open + closed | mistakes have been made

[thereneverwas]

WHO: Barrow + you
WHAT: catch-all
WHEN: the general Firstfall/Haring vicinity
WHERE: around the Gallows
NOTES: lots of Templar-relevant navelgazing. starters in comments, holler if you'd like one

Comments

[thereneverwas]

Glancing at Mobius over the rim of his mug, Barrow sees that he's flustered, conflicted-- feels a little guilty about it, ultimately, but the voiced support causes that to abate somewhat. His smile is weak, sad.

"It's," he thinks a moment, to ensure he isn't lying, "...it's not that. I mean, that's a factor, but it's just. An excuse."

With a heavy sigh, he seems to melt back into his chair, and stares at his mug to evade the vulnerability of meeting Mobius' eyes.
"Only thing I've ever really wanted," he murmurs, in a moment of tired, raw honesty, "'s to live free."

[favoriteanalyst]

"Then you picked a hell of a life going to the Templars," Mobius says with a wry smile. Picks his mug up in a cheers and downs some. To live free.

What a thought.

"Okay. Freedom it is, then. You're gonna get your ass off the blue, and anyone that comes at you for it, you're still gonna have the rest of us and the rest of Riftwatch at your back." And that's that about that, as far as he's concerned. "You're gonna go to Strange and figure this out. Have you gone without for a while before?" Like, he's just gonna go out on a limb and think yeah, of course, but still. "It's not going to be fun."

It could be a hell of a lot worse than no fun.

[thereneverwas]

Barrow's returning smile is sad, pensive-- to the son of a devoutly Andrastian farmer, going off to join soldiers looked enough like freedom. Freedom from shoveling cow shit the rest of his life, at least, but in hindsight there's a gnawing thought that if he'd known what it really was, what it really meant, he'd never have left the farm.

"Couple days without," he confirms softly, "I know."