strangetrip | [EP/GP] Today is Check-In Day

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[EP/GP] Today is Check-In Day

When the fifteenth of the month came and went without any new arrivals, most people logically supposed that there would be no new arrivals that week, or that the pattern they believed they'd found was false after all.

Kitty Pryde, Caroline Forbes, and Phryne Fisher were decidedly not most people.

Between them, they agreed it would be best to keep a watch for a few days following the fifteenth, on the grounds that, often enough, holidays interrupted regular schedules, which would reassert themselves again at the next instance. If "keeping a watch" had required them to do anything out of the ordinary, they might have been somewhat less sanguine about it. Might have, as they were not, after all, most people. Yet since their routines, almost invariably, had them in public places, working and people-watching, it required no special effort on their part to be alert for new arrivals.

So it was that Phryne had taken up a table in the lobby cafe to read and hold court, while Kitty took an extra shift tending bar, and Caroline tidied up and labeled the boxes of decorations from Valentine's day "for next year's residents" on the morning of the sixteenth and again on the seventeenth--and not one of them were surprised when, in early afternoon, newcomers began to arrive.

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Percy nodded thoughtfully. He didn't know anything about radiation, but he knew something about locking away dangerous artifacts. "I'll help, if I can. It would be easier if my party was here. They're...extremely creative."

MacCready nodded, starting to put away some of his guns. No sense in keeping things looking like an arms deal gone weird. "I'd appreciate that." He was a sniper, not a scientist.

"What's your party like?" He kept referencing them. Might as well try and get him talking about them.

"They're..." He thought of the Vox Machina. Of the insane, broken, brilliant men and women that had been his family after he'd lost his own. He thought of Scanlan, irreverent and unpredictable but reliable in the clutch. He thought of Grog, strong, with a heart even stronger than his rage. Of Vax, dark, searching, trying to prove something. He reminded Percy of himself. Keyleth, his best friend, the light to his darkness and the optimism to his cynicism.

Vex'ahlia. Beautiful Vex'ahlia, who had his heart. Who was his match in wit and guile.

And Pike, the best of them all. The one whose trust they all worked to be worthy of.

"The're all completely mad. And they recently saved the world."

MacCready smiled a little. "Sounds like a story worth hearing if you're up to telling it." He leaned back in his chair once he got the rest of his weapons put away.

Percy considered, then drained his wine glass and refilled it. He was going to need something to keep his throat wet if he was going to tell this properly.

"To Vox Machina." He lifted the glass. "It all began when we returned to our home in Emon. Sovereign Uriel Tal'dorei asked Vox Machina to attend an announcement of some sort. As the ceremony began, a flight of four chromatic dragons descended on the city..."

Percy wove the story of Emon's destruction. Of the battle for Greyskull Keep and their eventual flight from the city.

The whole tale was absolutely enthralling. MacCready hadn't been so caught up in anything since he'd first listened to the Silver Shroud dramas back at Good Neighbor (those got old after a while, not like there were new episodes.)

Once Percy finally finished, MacCready let out a heavy breath. "Shit," he said, running his hand through his hair.

There was a heavy pause. Nodding to himself, he pulled out one of his laser rifles and offered it to the guy. "For you to screw around with, yeah? Not a big energy weapons guy myself." They couldn't be silenced. What was the point?

He took the last dregs of his wine. "For the story." He cleared his throat. "And out of apology for not stopping you in the middle of it. Pretty sure you're one of the lucky bastards who ain't completely alone here."

Percy took the gun slowly, and somewhat unsteadily. It was lighter than he expected but hardly the thing that most had his attention. He frowned at MacCready, then set the rifle down. He lifted a finger to his ear to activate the spell earring Tiberius had created.

"Can anyone hear me? It's Percy."

"Vax," MacCready said, stretching. They'd been sitting for way too long. It'd been worth it. "Me and him got here the same day." He didn't know when in Percy's timeline Vax'ilan was from, but clearly things were super weird with that. Inconsistent.

Complicated.

"He's a stealthy bastard, though. Haven't really kept much track of him."

It was good news, though, right? Percy and Vax both now totally had someone who understood them and they seemed like decent enough guys. He was glad for them. It made him feel even lonelier, but whatever. He did something right for once in his goddamn life.

Cleaned up following the whole experience with Alcuin, Vax had taken some time to pray in the dark of his room. He didn't know as he'd actually call it that - he had no temple here, no pool of blood, and he'd never had much training in what made for good manners in service of a death deity. But it had seemed important, given what he'd done, to acknowledge Her presence in some way.

It took him a good minute to realize he wasn't imagining the familiar voice, that it was coming through the black pearl of his earring rather than something more mystical.

"Percy!" He sat bolt upright, grabbing the nearly forgotten earring to answer as his thoughts raced to make sense of what he was hearing. "Is that really you?!"

Edited 2017-02-21 14:38 (UTC)

"Vax'ildan! Are you alive? Or are we dead?" Percy half stood as Vax's voice came over the earring. The table rattled and wine sloshed over the edge of the glasses.

He looked down at MacCready, almost frantic. "Where is he?" Then over the earring, "where are you? This place is hideous."

MacCready moved within seconds of Percy doing so, half out of alarm and concern and half to make sure he didn't end up with wine on his clothes, 'cause really that was just excessive.

"This place is huge, how the hell am I supposed to know where he is at any given moment? It's not like I have elf-sense. Tell him you're in the café. If he can't come down here, I can take you to where he is." He shifted warily on his feet, ready to catch Percy if he had to. The guy'd been unsteady before. Last thing he needed was his body realizing how much it still hurt and to take a header into the table or the carpet. Vax was really not gonna forgive him if that happened.

"He's a half-elf," Percy corrected as he let MacCready guide him back down into his seat. The last two feet, his legs gave way and he thumped onto the bench.

He pressed the earring again, this time with his head leaned against the back of the booth and his eyes closed. "We are in the cafe. There's wine."

"You're drunk as a skunk," Vax'ildan realized, halfway between amused and dumbstruck. And he was here. Vax had almost thought they'd just managed a way to make the earrings work at a greater distance - but Percy was actually here. "Don't you dare move, yeah? You just sit your highborn ass down right there and I'll come to you."

He was already up, throwing his room door closed behind him as he raced down the hall.

We are in the cafe. Did that mean...?

Percy dropped his hand from his ear and reached for his wine. "He's going to be a mother hen about this," he predicted to MacCready, largely because in addition to being a stealthy asshole who reminded Percy entirely too much of himself at times, Vax was also a kind hearted fussbudget.

"How long did you say you've been here?"

"Bout six weeks," MacCready said, grabbing a napkin to clean up the spilled wine while they waited for Vax. This was going to be...interesting.

The few smaller black feathers that got away from Vax's cloak in his hurry - dead run on the straightaways, dropping right down over the railing in the stairwell to tumble back onto his feet - probably made the hen remark seem especially fit.

By the time he burst through the front of the cafe, he needed to catch his breath, a few strands of dark hair come loose about his face. His eyes found Percy - well bloodied, obviously wobbly, powder smudges and dirt in the usual places to suggest he'd been in battle before all this - but he had enough color in him (and a bit of wine flush at his face) to suggest he'd got healing somewhere. Vax took a moment to just stand there and give him an emotional smile that spoke of gratitude and relief.

He couldn't help but continue to look around the place as he approached their table - there was MacCready, whom he obviously owed something... But where were the others?

"Vax!" Percy wrestled himself to his feet, stiffness somewhat alleviated by the alcohol, and lurched forward to grab his friend's shoulders. He leaned in, peering closely at Vax, trying to see the last six weeks in Vax's face. But all too quickly, his attention was drawn downward to the deep purple bruise on Vax's neck. He brightened, blue eyes going bright with hope. "Keyleth is here, too?"

Based on what he'd gathered about Keyleth through Percy's story, MacCready was pretty sure he would've noticed if someone like that was there. He had no idea what brought the guy to that conclusion, but whatever. Alcohol. He pivoted in his chair to watch the reunion, or really more to make sure that Percy didn't topple over. Not that he doubted Vax's reflexes. Once the touching moment, he'd probably bail. He didn't need to bear witness to whatever they were gonna unload on each other and fuck he needed a cigarette.

The lack of attention to personal space from someone usually so stuffy didn't surprise Vax anywhere near as much as the question about Keyleth. He'd already reached to (em)brace his drunken friend, and was too close to try and deny Percy's observation.

He did stiffen, though, dark eyes shifting as if to get another look at Percy in his disheveled state rather than through those glasses and into Percy's own critical gaze. "No," Vax said plainly after an uncomfortable beat. "Keyleth isn't here. Not as far as I know. I was hoping... When you said you were with someone else down here-"

Vax glanced to where MacCready had first class viewing of their messy reunion. He'd thought he'd worked it out now. "Did any of the others come with you?"

Percy's eyes narrowed, an intimidating look made much less intimidating by the fact he was kept from swaying only by his grip on Vax. He released one hand and poked Vax in the bruise. "Don't change the subject. Where'd that come from? Where's Keyleth?"

There was obviously no one with him. Anyone could see that the only person with him was MacCready who had given him a rifle.

Now that Percy seemed to be well in hand, MacCready got up and slung his rifle back over his shoulder again, adjusting it comfortably. "There was a compulsion going around. Dicks and tits everywhere," he said dryly, trying to give Vax an out if he didn't want to discuss things.

He clasped a hand on Vax's shoulder as he passed, leaning in to say, "He hasn't checked in yet. I'm in 137 if you need anything." With that, he squeezed the half-elf's shoulder and went to go hang out in front of his door and smoke. The rain would be good enough to cover whatever emotion he was absolutely not feeling.

"Thank you, truly," Vax'ildan managed to ignore Percy for a few moments to say to MacCready directly. Though he really didn't need Percy left alone with the idea that 'dicks and tits' had been involved in getting his marks.

"Again, Keyleth isn't here. I got this from a very enthusiastic young lady who was compelled to gift me with it." It was technically true, and Vax's low tone would let Percy's over-indulgence in drink help him sell it. "Now we should get you a room before you fall over. Agreed?"

Percy wasn't sure what was going on, but both MacCready and Vax'ildan seemed quite certain that their explanations were sufficient. His head was pounding, either from the wine or the semi-recent unconsciousness (and perhaps death?)

"A room seems, yes. I think that's a good idea." Percy released Vax, swaying alarmingly as he turned and picked up his pack and new gun.

"Sure it is," Vax agreed. He moved to take Percy's pack and sling it over his own far shoulder (not daring nor wanting to reach for the bizarre gun). He was in no way mother-henning, as he pushed his bare shoulder and arm under Percy's to brace at the stumbling gunslinger. He'd just rather not have to carry his friend the whole of the way upstairs.

"This way to check-in," he steered carefully. "You look rough around the edges, if through the haze of wine. Did you just come away from the Thordak fight?"

Percy shook his head. "That was yesterday. We were fighting Raishan."

She'd been looking fairly rough, when he'd last seen her. But rough still was deadly enough to leave him bleeding on the floor.

Percy accepted Vax's shoulder - as much because of his wounds as the drink if he were forced to be honest, which he was not. They made their way slowly out of the cafe.

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