29. juxtaposition

[orderfromchaos]

[Video]

[Grumpy Dillon is grumpy. His clothes from over a month ago are unwrinkled, and he has no bedhead, but he manages to look groggy anyway.]

So, while I was unconscious for a month, Hangover ate all my socks. Or sucked the reality out of them, or whatever he does.

[The camera swings around to see a bobbing lavender jellyfish like creature, wriggling self-consciously on a few sad strands of translucent yarn. Squiddle shaming!

Back to Dillon.]

So can I borrow some, maybe?


[Filtered to Tucky, Dillon, Bucky, Jean, Iris, Abigail, Horatio, Chris, Helena, Gene, Snafu, and Scott]

What's up with you guys? Are you okay? I feel more out of touch than I did breaking out of prison.


[Spam for Merlin]

[Once he's checked in with people, he goes searching for Merlin, ends up discovering him in the infirmary which is, frankly, perfect, since he's stuck on shift. Dillon grabs a wheelie chair and scoots next to him, forcing himself to tamp down his anger. Just from the set of his shoulders, it's clear the guy is kind of messed up.]

Hey. Can I talk to you for a minute?

Comments

[video]

[tucky]

Dillon.

[Thank. God.]

Where are you right now? Can I come see you? When you're-- when you're dressed, I mean.

You missed a lot. Floods and ports-- I know what a port is now-- and all kinds of stuff. I'm not doing so great right now myself, not at all, but until a couple days ago I was having a real good month. I wish you had been awake because I think you would've been proud of me.

... I missed you. I missed you a lot.

[video]

[orderfromchaos]

It's okay, at least he didn't get into my pants.

[Wait. Um. He makes a face like he bit a lemon. MOVING ON.]

I'm in One-nineteen, I'll get the door for you. It'd be really helpful if you told me more about all that stuff, actually.

[Come give him the news and gossip and bragging, Tiffany.]

[video]

[tucky]

I'll tell you everything.

[She's going to start with the bad stuff, though. Unfortunately, it's foremost in her mind right now.

She'll be at his door ASAP though, knocking and then leaning her head against the doorframe.]

private

[imfollowinghim]

I've been better.

[Bucky still sounds - and looks - pretty awful, hollow eyed and rough voiced, but it could be worse. He feels a little less brittle and angry about what happened now.

A little.]

Glad you're up.

private

[orderfromchaos]

Oh hell. Steve?

[Something Happened. Death thing. He can tell just from Bucky's face.]

private

[imfollowinghim]

Yeah.

[Literally no point in pretending or lying.]

private

[withtheoldbreed]

I've got some extra. They'll probably fit, too.

[It's a weak joke - the smile doesn't totally meet his eyes.]

private

[orderfromchaos]

[It's a bad joke but it makes him snort out a laugh anyway, the way terrible puns do, in spite of himself.]

Yeah, probably.

[He can totally see Gene not answering the how are you part of the post, but he doesn't press immediately. He'll have more luck pressing in person, where he can brush at least a little of the surface weariness away.]

Thanks, man. What's your room again?

private

[withtheoldbreed]

Deck five, room eleven.

[Which is what he would have answered with anyway, but he does tend to spend more time in Snafu's room borrowing one of the extra cots more often than he doesn't. Lately, though, his friend's seemed weird, weirder than usual, and so Gene's been keeping his distance a little bit.]

[youwillgotohell]

I resent that this is what your hair looks like after a month.

[Hers was a goddamn mess.]

[orderfromchaos]

[He manages a thin, huff-breath of a laugh.]

Neatness powers. I should sell conditioner, or something.

[youwillgotohell]

If only magic bottled well.

[Private]

[semifreakingnormal]

You can have mine, but some of them....most of them are probably kinda threadbare.

[This is not true because part of Lydia's Christmas gift was new socks, but. He's too busy doubting his ability to judge everything.

He tries for a smile, though it doesn't last.]

I'm glad you're up. I was out for a while too.

[Private]

[orderfromchaos]

[He's getting socks from Gene, but - yeah, okay, frand needs some facetime, Dillon decides.]

Beggars can't be choosers, right? Anyway, I appreciate it.

[And he heads for Scott's room before he can take the offer back.]

[Private]

[semifreakingnormal]

[Which is probably a good thing, because he's already regretting offering at all. He's sitting on the edge of his bed when he hears Dillon, staring at the TV with no game on. The door is open, Scott will even rouse himself to call for Dillon to enter if he doesn't just let himself in.]

private, forward dated by like 12 hours

[versusnurture]

You can have some of my socks. He can eat the bows off of them.

[Does she really have socks with bows on them? Who can say.]

I'm okay. Died a little.

private, forward dated by like 12 hours

[orderfromchaos]

Goddamnit.

[Wow Dillon, a whole blasphemy.]

Should I come over?

[darknessb4me]

You still have that?

[orderfromchaos]

Yes?

When exactly was I supposed to get rid of it? Even if I was okay dumping him in hellcastle, I was out cold.

[badgerms]

When'd you break outta prison?

An' what the fuck is that thing? [Why does everyone have weird-ass pets around here.]

[orderfromchaos]

...recently? The barge makes the timeline kind of weird, but I have definitely killed more people than you.

[And also, there wasn't a war on.]

I turned myself in for awhile and. Later I changed my mind.

I don't know what it's called, but I got him for Christmas.

[What are you gonna do.]

Private - Before the Sha gets too bad.

[sssiiiiirrrrr]

The Barge is still the Barge. It's good to have you back.

...I do have some spare stockings if you're in need.

[They are the most olde timey stockings you've ever seen.]

Private

[orderfromchaos]

It feels like something big went down. Even for the barge, I mean.

[The rhythm of responses, the tenor of the air, the dart of people's eyes. There's been a shift - some unseen load-bearing pillar collapsed, some deep-sea detonation whose echoes are still rippling into typhoons.]

[adelphoktonos]

[Some small flash of irritation crosses her face, a thread that leads to something bigger, deeper, more wrong. She's Angry, but it's only just starting to show. It tucks itself back away after a beat and when she speaks she sounds normal. Normal for her.]

All that you missed was more floods, more ports. Sleep is better, sometimes.

[orderfromchaos]

...if it had to happen, I'd have rather been with you.

[Emphasis on with, not you, with everyone. Able to help.]