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[gravings]

I need this now apparently

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[comelately]

[ is two countries well-traveled?! Johnny is a little puzzled by that, too, but he doesn't push it. Techncially, he's been to a ton of different states now, so maybe it's true. Even if she doesn't know that. He's heard English people don't move around very much, so maybe even going between the two continents is impressive to her. ]

"Exciting" is one word for it, I guess... What's a film?

[ oh boy ]

[comelately]

[ just him -- considering her general personality, he can't be too surprised. She probably didn't want to burden anybody by reaching out. If they're lucky, Eustace and Minegishi already had some plans in motion. Considering one is dead, though, Johnny's not holding out hope. ]

Then I guess it's a good thing I called you.

[ there's a bitterness to his words, because he feels sorry the only person that's apparently tried to help is him, and he has no idea what he can even do. That doesn't change the fact that he's going to try and do something. ]

You got food and water? I don't know what the other Pleroma think, and I can't bring you to our headquarters or anything like that, but I'm not leaving you high and dry like that.

[gravings]

[ Gray is something of a clean freak. When suddenly faced with an entire house to herself to clean, she knows what her task will be: eliminating every possible speck of dirt from the premises. It's a continuing project given that she has a job now (weird), but one she attacks with gusto whenever she can. Today's round of cleaning is a post-work destresser. Within the privacy of the house she rolls up her sleeves and submerges herself in the happy tedium of dusting and polishing, scrubbing and scraping. The servants of Achamoth can deprive her of this pleasure no longer.

The quiet, mindless hum of a song fades from her throat when she hears footsteps approaching the front door. By now the character of Eustace's footsteps are burned into her memory, and the person at the front door, whoever it is, is unknown to her. She begins to wonder if it's a neighbor come to be friendly or a postman (does Godsblood have a post??)... up until the rough rattle of a key in the lock sets off alarm bells in her head.

Now, Gray is a shy girl. Some (many) might even call her timid. A stranger on the street talking to her out of the blue is enough for her neurons to scatter like an upturned sack of marbles. A stranger suddenly in her new home is a national emergency, and for more than just personal reasons; she and Eustace are refugees of a sort, liable to be hunted down for their defection form the Kenoma, and a stranger barging into their residence could be here to kill her with more than just social awkwardness. And if this person somehow managed to get their hands on the house key, then — did they do something to Eustace to get it?

A man she doesn't know comes barging in like he owns the place — thuglike behavior if she's ever seen it (she watched Goodfellas) — and she's especially glad that she's chosen to conceal herself behind the nearest corner. She isn't armed at the moment, but that won't stop her. The moment the stranger rounds the corner, she doesn't hesitate. She grabs the man any which way she can and hauls him overhead all the way until he comes crashing back down on her other side. Aions are tough, so she can't afford to go too easy on him. ]

Please surrender!

[ She shouts quietly... after already attacking him... ]

[gravings]

[ Gray emerges from a sea of thought, one of many she's found herself submerged in over the past few days. Mordred's communion lacks its usual overbearing clarity through no fault of her own. Gray struggles just as much to answer, but she does so earnestly and with no hesitation. ]

I'm not in Achamoth. I had to leave because of an emergency... Um, sorry for not telling you.

[ Mordred isn't her keeper, but she wouldn't be surprised either if Mordred chastised her for this... The knight seems like she'll take any excuse to yell a little. ]

What did you want to talk about?

[uproared]

[ Despite the difficulty she's having with the connection, Mordred's sudden pulse of anger is still overpowering; like she's grabbed Gray by the shoulders and shaken her. ]

Hah? You idiot, don't just run off without telling anyone! Doubly so if it's an emergency!

[ Without telling her, she means. When Gray asks what she wanted to talk about, she snorts humourlessly. ]

To hell with that. You're safe, right? Nobody's makin' you stay there?

[gravings]

[ And there's the chastisement... Having expected it, Gray is as a tree straight in the wind: rustled but not jimmied. ]

I'm safe... enough. It was my choice to be here.

[ In some ways it was difficult getting here, but to her it was her only option. After a moment of hesitation in which she wonders how she should explain her situation, she decides that Mordred might appreciate the most straightforward route? ]

I think I'm Pleroma now.

[ Whoops... ]

flexing your scar icons huh

[uproared]

[ There's a brief pause after Gray's blunt admission comes through, where Mordred considers the possibility of it being true — and then disregards said possibility. ]

This isn't the time for jokes. To hell with the Regent — you know what it means to make an enemy of me. Even you aren't that stupid, or that foolhardy.

Now, tell me what's really going on.

i paid a good ten minutes for these

[gravings]

[ Well... she tried........... ]

There was a shard I couldn't let the Regent have. If you know what happened to Mr. Barnaby and Mr. Liem, I think you might understand. So... I had to take it away.

[uproared]

[ ... ]

Alright.

[ A mental shrug; the acceptance that what Gray's telling her is, in fact, the truth. If that seems too easy, it's because she follows up with: ]

Then, next time we meet, I'll kill you. Simple as that.

[gravings]

[ The sudden switch is jarring, and it brings a small hit of dread that had been put away since they shared their sandwich. But, she remembers, Mordred was like this when they first met. Gray was prepared to potentially fight her former allies, but no amount of mental preparedness could completely fend off the spike of hurt that pinches her now.

But again, she has no choice. Better that she's crushed in battle than that Eustace be subjected to the Regent's "re-education." She packs her small convictions into steel. ]

You can try. I won't lose.

[ She can't. She won't. ]

[uproared]

[ Good, she thinks — which is odd, because she's never gone into a fight with the will or expectation to lose. Even Camlann, where she knew she'd meet her end one way or another, was supposed to be her victory, when she forced the king to look at what his nation had become. ]

I guess we'll see. [ Her answer is suitably lukewarm, despite the arrogance in her tone. ] Make sure you stay alive until then. If you die to anyone else, I'll be really pissed off.

... And look after that shard, if it's so damn important to you. I won't tell the other fools you left, but they'll figure it out eventually.

[gravings]

[ Mordred's declaration to kill is gone in a flash, so quick that Gray might have to question whether or not it happened. But it isn't the kind of thing she can willfully ignore, so she takes it as just one of those quirks of warriors of olden times, and a Servant to boot. ]

... I will. Thank you.

[ ... ]

Can I still talk to you like this until then?

where's the scar :/ lazy

[uproared]

[ Gray's thanks goes ignored, because Mordred hasn't done anything to be thankful for. Instead, she scoffs. ]

You wanna keep tabs on me? Smart, but it won't help you win.

gimme the $$$ for space and i'll do more

[gravings]

[ Confusion momentarily fills the muggy telepathic space between them. ]

Just to talk.

[ She already knows Mordred's Achilles' heel. No real need to probe further in that regard. ]

It can be about unimportant things.

no i need that for mordred icons

[uproared]

"To talk...?"

[ She echoes it back in disbelief, then starts to laugh. ]

You... hahaha! You're serious, aren't you? ... Okay, fine. As long as you're alive, we can talk. I promised you that much, after all.

[ It might be weird to hear someone known for her treachery bring up a promise, but she sounds sincere about fulfilling it. ]

[gravings]

[ She doesn't mind if Mordred is intent on fighting her (well, no, she minds a little for more practical reasons), but she'd be a little upset to lose her connection to the only other person who could understand her situation save perhaps King Arthur himself. ]

Then... what did you want to talk about originally?

johnny is BACK... action in heliopolis?!

[comelately]

[ as long as it might seem to others, to Johnny, it doesn't feel like he was gone more than a night or two, at most. His time away from Springstar was nothing more than an overlong nap, albeit the sort he might get after drinking way too much the night before. The paralyzing anxiety he'd felt at first has waned somewhat, provided he doesn't dwell on it for long. The moment he starts to consider what happened to him or why, it starts creeping back up him like frost. Johnny being Johnny, not thinking about it is nearly impossible.

During times like these, he'd normally go tend to Slow Dancer, but the horse is missing - not surprising, if what he's been told is true. He wouldn't want her to stand around doing nothing for months, anyways. Fortunately, his wheelchair is still in his room (though he'd only barely caught his retainer about to move all his belongings out of his room as the six-month mark of his absence approached.) He'll have to settle for getting some fresh air, instead. Maybe he'll find something interesting. See what's changed. Anything to distract him from the new horrible uncertainty looming over him. At least he's gotten used to enduring all the rest.

So there he can be found, heading out of the Tribune - though he's not getting anywhere fast. ]

whenever, wherever, they're meant to be together...

[gravings]

[ Fresh off reuniting with Eustace, Gray gets to work. She beelines to Slow Dancer's stable, gives the horse's saddle a good old brush-down and conditioning for that polished look, and outfits Slow Dancer so that she looks like a proper riding horse again (and not the glorified walking war closet she's been for Gray).

After a swift but gentle brushing of her mane and tail, Slow Dancer looks as dapper as she does unapproachable when she and Gray hit the streets. Naturally, Gray isn't riding the horse she's so meticulously saddled up. The two of them trot out and out until Gray finally catches a familiar sight: Johnny, wheeling along like he's always done. ]

There he is!

[ She's talking to Slow Dancer, though the horse has probably already taken notice. Gray jogs at Johnny, a smile warm on her face. ]

Mr. Johnny!

shakira so true

[comelately]

[ The minute he hears her voice, he berates himself internally. Right -- Gray! Why didn't he talk to her? He should have called her, or... however one would refer to their weird telepathy powers. Not for the first time, he'd been so lost in the morass of his own thoughts that he hadn't even considered reaching out.

The good news is that it hasn't even been a day; he doesn't have to feel that foolish, and besides, the entire issue is nearly forgotten when he sees Slow Dancer next to her. He practically falls out of his chair. ]

-- Gray?! Y-you're -- why're you with my horse?!

[ not accusatory, but purely shocked - though she won't be with his horse for long, as Slow Dancer is quick to abandon Gray and break into a little trot once they're close enough to Johnny. It's not exactly a heartfelt reunion - she's much too proud an animal for that - but she does immediately give him a lick big enough to knock the beanie off his head and into the grass. ]

[gravings]

[ Gray delays her answer as she watches Slow Dancer go to Johnny. Even though Gray is capable of conversing with her, Slow Dancer would never go so far as to admit she missed Johnny — so when the horse promptly gives him a lick right up the head, Gray finds herself suddenly choked up. After taking care of this unruly horse for five months and watching her reject person after person, it's quite moving to see her welcome Johnny back so warmly. By Slow Dancer standards.

Gray sniffs and wipes her eyes as she comes to a stop in front of Johnny, looking him over. He seems just as she remembers him, and she'll be much as he remembers her — save for the new blonde streak of hair above her left eye. ]

She's been staying with me, Mr. Eustace, and Mr. Dokja. When you disappeared, I suppose she didn't want to go to people she didn't know.

[ Gray genuinely doesn't know if Slow Dancer accepts anyone else Johnny knows. Even with Gray, "acceptance" may have been a strong word before. ]

[comelately]

[ the blonde isn't particularly noticeable against her already-pale hair, so Johnny doesn't see anything different - at least not right away. It doesn't help that he's being distracted by the horse. She's not exactly affectionate, but she is quite concerned with confirming that he's back, in that way reunited animals can be; even Gray's approach doesn't seem to bother her, as Slow Dancer stays put, sniffing and nosing all around Johnny until he puts a hand on her snout to gently push her head back. ]

-- All right, all right, I get it, you missed me, [ he sighs, though he can't help cracking a smile at her demeanor before his attention goes back to Gray. ] Figured she would've just run off, but I guess she knows humans have the good food. Thanks for looking after her...

[ he trails off when he sees Gray looking a little teary-eyed. ]

Uh, you okay?

[ he figures this can't be about his return, because no one would be that happy to see him, and that leaves him puzzled. The fact that his horse has belonged to someone else for months hasn't quite set in; to him, it feels like he's been away for a day or two at most, even though he knows the truth. ]

[gravings]

[ Gray smiles at Slow Dancer's insistent affection. With both Eustace and Johnny's returns and Slow Dancer so happy, it's been a long time since Gray's heart has felt so full. ]

I'm just glad... I've never seen her so happy. She must have missed you this entire time.

[ Maybe if Gray had made more of an effort to ride her, Slow Dancer would have felt less lonely... but now that Johnny is back, Gray is glad she didn't encroach on that honor. Her smile warms, this time for Johnny. ]

Welcome back, Mr. Johnny.

[comelately]

[ Emotional over an animal, huh...? He gets it. Gray is such a sweet girl; despite everything, he can't help smiling back at her, though it's small and quiet as ever. ]

Yeah? Well... thanks. I'm glad someone cared about her.

[ especially as genuinely as Gray seems to. Johnny keeps a hand on Slow Dancer while he speaks, absently stroking her long nose. ]

As long as she didn't hurt you or anything. [ a beat. Then, awkwardly: ] ... Sorry for vanishing and makin' you take care of her.

[gravings]

[ A rare Johnny smile. It looks good on him. ]

I didn't mind. [ Though the same couldn't be said for everyone else around her. ] Her being here made me think you might come back. And I felt safer with her around. In a lot of ways, I admire her.

[ Most people would be appalled to hear it, but Gray really does think she should be more like Slow Dancer: proud, tough, and uncompromising. ]

Actually, I was hoping I could still come by and help take care of her. If you... and she don't mind.

[comelately]

[ he can't say he doesn't understand that feeling: without Slow Dancer, he would never have gotten anywhere, literally and metaphorically. She made him safer, too - and stronger.

The question takes him by surprise, but not in a bad way. ]

Uh -- sure. I mean, if you really want to... It'd definitely be faster with two people. [ unsurprisingly, it takes a long time to tend to a horse properly in a wheelchair. He'd question her further on if she really means that, save for the fact that she's been caring for Slow Dancer on her own for a few months now. ] You ended up liking horses, huh? Even a mean old nag like this one.