[open-ish] I'd ride in your pocket all day

[thereneverwas]

WHO: Fitcher, Barrow, and anyone else in the area
WHAT: SCORN
WHEN: return from jungle times
WHERE: the Gallows docks
NOTES: this is more of an open now. I told you I was a wildcard

They're back from the jungle, it has been a Time. Barrow is substantially thinner (and beardier) than he was when they left, and the one thing keeping him going as he trundles off the boat into the Gallows is the promise of a hot bath, a shave, and a proper meal.

But before he can get there, something else catches his eye. He deliberates for a moment, then approaches Mrs. Fitcher with a tired, sheepish smile.

Comments

[thereneverwas]

"Well," comes Barrow's contemplative reply, "it would seem you're speaking to someone with experience protecting people and their things." He smirks.

"So were you of a mind to ask, he might be glad to lend a hand. Free of charge, of course, this being an insular organization and all that."

[sulahnan]

Athessa hums, mulling it over. She really doesn't like the idea that someone took the time to rearrange anything in her room, but Sister Sara had made the fair point that the lot were presumed dead. What's the likelihood that they'd try it again, now that everyone's back and very much not dead?

"Maybe. I mean I've done the protector role myself a few times but it's different when it's your own shit, ya know?"

[thereneverwas]

She is just.
Miles away from the conclusion he was hoping she'd take, and Barrow sighs at her, for a moment looking rather older than he is.

"Kid," he says frankly, holding out a hand to gesture toward her, "I'm offering you protection. For free. So you don't have to worry about it." He raises his eyebrows, like 'ok???'

[sulahnan]

And for a moment she looks younger (so, like, a toddler), blinking at him with wide, surprised eyes. Then, she looks embarrassed. She isn't the brightest, but she's doing her best, okay?

"Thanks, Barrow," she says.

[thereneverwas]

Once it's apparent that they're on the same page, Barrow goes back to smiling, relaxing back into the bath.
"Once we're both decent I'll come up and you can show me what got rearranged, what you want protected, all that. We'll figure out who did it."

[sulahnan]

"Well for a start," she says, drifting along the edge of the bath until she can reach the little phial of bath oil she'd had in her bag in the jungle. Now, the only phial left of what she'd had stashed in her footlocker. "If you find anyone who smells like this, they're either the thief or know who the thief is."

She slides it across the floor between the two pools, adding as an afterthought: "Er. Anyone other than Derrica and me, of course."

[thereneverwas]

He catches the phial and instinctively sniffs it, wrinkling his brow. It's not familiar, at least not yet.
"Can I keep this for reference?" he asks, giving it a little shake, "I'm no bloodhound, but there are worse ways to find someone."

As long as it isn't Derrica he finds, as he doubts she'd have any interest in discussing this or anything else with him.

[sulahnan]

She nods, yeah sure.

"It's pretty unlikely that anyone else would have the same stuff, since it used to be Lakshmi's. And I figure we can rule out anyone who was in the jungle with us," But his mention of bloodhounds gives Athessa an idea. Laura's got that crazy sense of smell, she could probably help, too.

She should probably finish washing her hair first. One thing at a time.

"Are you alright, by the way?"

[thereneverwas]

Barrow doesn't know who Lakshmi is, but it stands to reason she's someone important, and therefore the phial should be treated with care. He sets it next to him for now, careful not to let it fall on its side.

Athessa's question seems to surprise him, and he raises his eyebrows to look at her with a little smile.

"Me? Of course. Never better." The bath helps.

[sulahnan]

It's not that she's skeptical. That's not why she's giving him a look of appraisal. She's just trying to see if she can tell whether or not he's lying.

She can't, so she shrugs and goes about the arduous task of dealing with her mane of sopping curls.

"Jus' checkin', in case you needed to talk about somethin' or whatever."

[thereneverwas]

Although Barrow is a deceptively good liar, all things considered, his response here can easily be discarded as 'evasive' and not outright untrue.

"We've all had a hard go of it," he admits, pushing his hand through his own hair as if taking her cue, "it'll take some time before we're back to normal."

[sulahnan]

"I'm so far this side of normal that I probably wouldn't know normal if it bit me on the heel."

[thereneverwas]

He laughs, genuine and bellowing.

"Poor lamb. Well, I'll do my best to move the bar at least a little for you."

[sulahnan]

She starts a little at the laugh, but manages to pass it off as dunking her head under to rinse it. Smooth.

"Has anyone ever mentioned how great your laugh is?" Much like his laugh, the compliment is genuine. "It's got like...a boom to it. Ha-ha-ha."

Her imitation is nowhere near deep enough, but it's cute, so that basically makes up for it.

[thereneverwas]

Her imitation only makes him laugh more, but now he covers his mouth slightly, yet again self-conscious about the most unexpected things.

"I can't say anyone has," he replies with a grin, "but that's nice. Thank you."

Snatching the towel he's had folded next to the bath, he strategically blocks himself from her view as he rises out of the water and wraps it around his waist.

"I'll meet you upstairs in an hour or so to check things out, yeah?"

[sulahnan]

"Yeah," she agrees, shifting slightly to remain strictly PG not out of her fickle sense of modesty but because he made the same effort. She smiles and gives a thumbs-up. "See you then."