limacharlie | [Day 3, Public]

Entry tags:

[Day 3, Public]

[Oh hey, Rita's actually using the network today. Her voice sounds weak and raspy, but she's got some water handy, so she should be able to make it through talking without hurting her throat too much, at least for a while. Besides, this is important.]

Right... so, apparently, I'm not supposed to do anything too strenuous until I've recovered more... which is fine and all, but the thing is... I've already read every book in my trailer three times over.

Anybody got any books I can borrow? Nonfiction is preferred, but frankly, I'm getting desperate.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Blastia aren't rocks. And I talk to people too, you know!

[Added quietly, as if remembering how that hasn't always been true:] These days, anyway.

[...But she does move her legs over, shifting into sitting cross-legged on one side of the couch. The borrowed books are set on her lap, and she flips one open to peruse.]

But you like blastia better than most people. [ Lambert says, matter-of-factly. That doesn't take great observational skills to suss out, so it's not a deduction he's particularly proud of, but he'll plop down on the seat heavily (the couch protests under the weight of stone) so he can flip through the book in earnest.

It's quiet for few blessed minutes, before he speaks up: ]

Have you even been getting any sleep?

[Rita doesn't say anything to contradict that. He's basically right.]

[To his question, she gives a half-hearted shrug.]

More than I'd like to, actually. I get tired after only being up a few hours... it's annoying.

... What about you?

[ Lambert shrugs. ]

After the first couple of days? I think I slept all I need to. Can't really sleep for too long at a time, so I figured I might as well walk around. Sitting on my ass is driving me nuts.

[ It's hard to sleep when you have nightmares. However, he won't be sharing that. Instead, he'll ask a rather abrupt question. ]

Can you still summon your daemon?

[Rita shakes her head. She's not necessarily sad that Krios is gone... because he isn't, really. But it sure would be nice to have him around now.]

How come you still have yours?

I asked the Ringmaster and I learned a spell for it. [ Lambert shrugs. ] Took a while to practice, but I thought it'd be handy to have another pair of eyes around. A polecat's harder to notice than a grown man.

[ Naturally, that's not the only reason he learned to do it, but it's also the less sentimental one. ]

I see... [That would be useful, from a purely pragmatic point of view... but if pragmatism were the real goal, there ought to be plenty of other ways to achieve it.]

Looks like you've got a sentimental side of your own.

[She's not going to miss a chance to call him out on it after he did the same to her back in the dungeon.]

[ Lambert colors a little at being called out, but he's quicker to rally, smirking broadly at Rita. ]

At least she talks back. [ Shots fired! ] And they can talk for you. Like when you sound like shit. [ That's you, Rita. He means you. ]

I thought they patched everyone up. [ As much as they could, anyway... ]

[He gets a glare for that retort.]

[When he brings attention to her injuries, she rubs her fingers lightly against her neck, conscious of the bruises once again.]

They did... sort of. The pipsqueak used some weird healing technique on me, back in the other realm. [She doesn't specify which pipsqueak, but it might be possible to guess it's the one who also works at the medical tent.] It's been getting better.

He's good at that.

[ Yeah, he knows he means Steven. Kind of crazy, how almost unlimited that kid's power seems to be... ]

Who got you in the end, anyway?

[ It's not like anyone's been hip to telling him who killed who in the hunt. Some of it he's managed to infer -- the awkwardness is too hard to miss -- but in Rita's case, he missed that entirely. ]

[Rita's quiet at first. She hasn't told anyone who did it. In a way, talking about it feels like blaming him, when they'd both rather put it behind them. But since Lambert was in the same position as her, he probably understands how complex of a situation it is. So... maybe she can tell him.]

... 9S.

[She looks away, her gaze falling on the bunk her roommate normally sleeps in. From the vaguely finger-shaped bruises on her neck (made even more obvious by the current absence of her blastia), it's easy enough to tell how he did it.]

So that's why he's so fucked up. [ Lambert says, dryly. Rita's right, in a sense -- he does understand-- but he has no intention of being reverent about it. He tried to kill Childermass and Baker, after all, and then Peridot had set that other gem on him... ]

Got the job done. Guess that's what matters. [ He shrugs. ] You're not thinking too hard about it, are you?

O-of course not. Don't be stupid. [Yep, she's definitely dwelling on it.]

Somebody had to do it, so... I'm not upset about it, or anything. [Not about the killing part, anyway. That wasn't 9S's fault. But the way he went about it, the things she saw and experienced as a beast... It's hard to just forget and move on.]

[ Yeah, that's not convincing in the least, and the look Lambert levels Rita says as much. ]

Not even a little? That doesn't sound like you.

[Rita tenses under his stare, defensive.] What!? You got a problem with that?

[She can't keep up that sharp tone for long, though, and she has to stop to clear her throat before continuing.] Of course I'm mad. But... he was trying to help, even if he had to be an idiot about it. It's the damn fae who caused that situation in the first place!

[She is, of course, glossing over the problem with 9S here. And dancing around the fact that a good portion of her anger is at herself... for getting caught, for being manipulated... It should have been avoidable. She has to do better.]

Good, because if you weren't worked up about it, you'd have to be dead.

[ And neither of them are that. He shuts the book in hand decisively, putting it to the side as he continues to speak. ]

You wouldn't have been in the hunt if you weren't caught. [ But he's just as swift to follow up with: ] Of all the people to get on board with a half-assed plan to talk to a house, I didn't think you'd be one of them.

Edited 2017-12-19 08:06 (UTC)

[There's a brief tinge of redness in her face when he calls out the half-baked plan. Sure, it was just a ragtag crew going off a vague lead, but...]

What was I supposed to do? Nothing?

I thought I'd be able to sense something with my magic perception... It didn't work, but it was worth the risk. [She says that with conviction, even after having failed and having faced the consequences of that.] If I had to do it all over again, I'd still choose to do something.

Something smarter, maybe. Though it's good to know you put a little more thought into it than Portland. [ Lambert shrugs, but he's smirking ever so slightly, recalling the mess that had turned into. Half-assed plan or not, the conviction is something he likes. A poor choice, maybe, but not one she regrets... that's how Lambert views his own mistakes, too. ]

This is the second time we've gotten screwed going up against fae. [ His expression sobers a bit, looking at her. That's true enough, isn't it? Of course, in the broad scheme of things, the Carnival got universally screwed by the fae, but both of them have directly borne the physical brunt of making the attempt. ]

I'm getting real tired of that. [ He turns his face to the ceiling, scowling as his fingers curl in his lap. In a weird way, perhaps, it's impossible to talk to Childermass and Strange about this. They're afraid of the fae. So many people are, and some part of Lambert is too. More than that, though? He's angry. And he's always found a way to turn anger into something useful, and Rita seems to think the same way.

He just wishes he knew what that something was. ]

Edited 2017-12-22 01:18 (UTC)

[Rita glowers a bit at the criticism, but manages to keep herself from arguing. She could wear her voice out defending herself, explaining every reason she had for doing what she did, but it's just not worth it right now. Besides, they agree on one thing...]

Me too.

[Rita's sick of losing, and she's sick of these damn fae. She sighs, and when she continues, she's calmer.]

When I first came here, I didn't take anything about this stupid carnival seriously. I thought I could just focus on my research and ignore all the other crap going on.

But... I can't. [That's not the kind of person she is anymore. Not since she first left Aspio and chose to go see the world... In the end, she had to accept that she was a part of that world. Now, like it or not, she's part of this one, too.]

The next time something like this happens... I'm still going to fight.

It will. It's just a matter of time. [ Lambert says, seriously. No comment on not taking the carnival seriously -- he can't say he wasn't similar, but experiencing hell so shortly after joining made certain dangers up front and present in a way nothing else was. ]

It's obvious we can't match them for power. [ His lip twists in displeasure, but that's not even a thing that he's a stranger to. Witchers are always outmatched in one form or another, in brute strength or magical force, so all they've got is cunning, and wits. ]

But I'm no strategist either. [ He exhales, tipping his head back against the couch. It's frustrating, coming up against his own limitations, when for once he wants to push beyond them. ] That's part of why Strange gave me those books.

[Lambert's right. Rita's equally convinced of the inevitability of another encounter with some sort of malevolent fae. That's why she has to be prepared, in as many ways as possible. Sounds like he's been thinking the same.]

Hmm... so you really do take things seriously sometimes. [It's not clear if she's genuinely surprised, or feigning it in jest. But after a beat, she continues:]

Good. Maybe I won't regret this, then.

[There's another pause as she dismisses any lingering hesitation and looks over to meet his eyes.]

I want to join the nightrunners.

[ It's Lambert's turn to be surprised -- though now, thinking about it, he shouldn't be. It's too late to hide that she's caught him off guard, so he does the next best thing and takes his time giving her an answer. ]

You'd have to be a mercenary, obviously, since you're not exactly talented at sneaking around. [ He says at last. It's not a yes or a no, but it's certainly teasing, perhaps his own way at getting back for that surprise whether it's feigned or genuine ... ]

You know what we do, right? [ He cocks his head to the side. ] We're the closest thing to an army the Carnival has. We're the first to head into any world we go to. We lose people, we're the ones that go after them. And if the Ringmaster asks us to do something, we do it, or at least we give it our best shot.

You want to be part of that? Why should you be?

[Her eyes narrow at his teasing. She got caught once, damn it! Once! ... But she is more interested in being a mercenary than a scout anyway, so whatever. She'll try to ignore his stupider comments.]

Like I said, next time something happens, I'm not sitting on the sidelines. If I'm going to fight either way, and you and your team are doing the same, then we might as well do it together.

[It'll give her the benefit of operating with support and intel. As for the benefits to Lambert, well, she figures that's obvious.]

Besides, you could use someone with my level of magic knowledge and power.

Probably. [ Lambert smirks. With as impulsive as Rita is, like him, it never hurts to check she's thought it through. ]

You're also going to have to listen to me most of the time. Or learn to pretend to. [ That might be the hardest of all ... well, that and chivvying Rita to exercise. ]

[Rita's expression sours, and she groans. She's thought it through, all right, including the part where Lambert would be her boss.]

I know. And I know I'm not the type to be an obedient little soldier. [Certainly not in the way those in the knights and warrior guilds were...]

But it seems like our philosophies align more than I expected... so yeah. I'll deal with it. [At least, for as long as she can trust Lambert to make the right calls.]

(no subject)

whattaprick - 2017-12-29 06:38 (UTC) - Expand

(no subject)

anti_nonsense - 2017-12-29 07:09 (UTC) - Expand

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only