Del Not Taco

Del. Agender. Call me what you want. And crawling on the planet's face. Some insects called the human race... Lost in time. And lost in space. And meaning. All gifs used for rping from ungiffed, abernantadaine, and nevilleslongbottom.

[taliesinmauk]

“He volunteered.” Taliesin added at least two extra syllables to the word. “That’s… what do the kids call it today? ‘Sus’? But smart suggestion.” He gave Del a reassuring smile. “And not just because you picked me.”

Beginnings was more than load bearing in Del’s next sentence. It was turtle-holding-up-the-world level load bearing. “So you have a witness. Or an accomplice. Does Christian know that?” He wasn’t going to trust him with any information if he could help it. Better to see what details would only be known by the killer.

“Delly. Whoa. Hey.” He pulled them into a gentle but firm hug. “We don’t place value judgments on feelings.” It was a statement borrowed wholecloth from Daphne Fusco, but it was still a good general policy. “You’re not stupid. He’s just a short-sighted asshole. And assholes tend to make more assholes.”

He swallowed the I wouldn’t be so sure of that that bubbled up in his throat when Del was so sure that Anu would protect him. He wasn’t sure he was ready to see her again, and he knew Lou wouldn’t tolerate it. Not without Christian “reasoning” with her. Which he very much did not want to see. But then Christian was alone with her. Fuck.

But this wasn’t Del’s problem. He wouldn’t let it be. That was part of the deal he’d made with Joe. You’re the oldest. Make sure no one gets hurt. It was always harder than it looked, on the construction site or off.

He gave her another small squeeze, his voice low, reassuring. “Don’t worry, okay? I got this. The hardest part is getting Lou on board, but that’s a me problem.”

[delilahseraven]

"Very sus," They agreed. Christian wasn't doing this for the group. More blood pooled in her cheeks as Taliesin agreed with her decision making. The mantle of community maintenance was a heavy one and she appreciated the positive reinforcement. "Thanks."

"I don't know." Their eyes met the ground. She hadn't been in the meetings with Leo. There was too much to the story and he wasn't trained in remembering pertinent details, so they had to sift through what he said. Whatever she heard was a facsimile of a facsimile. It didn't inspire confidence. "I think he knows something, but I can't say what."

She held onto him softly. The faint aroma of weed still clung to his clothes and took them back to the million of times she'd come to him for reassurance when they were younger. He'd always felt safe to be around, even on a construction site.

Del laughed softly at the Lou mention. "I know you can convince her. She'd do anything for you." Whatever was going on between the two of them, Del could spy the faintest bit of parallel between her and Tal with Del and Cricket. Neither Cricket nor Lou would ever be willing to hear it but it was there. Immutably.

[taliesinmauk]

“So he hasn’t agreed yet.” Which meant Christian hadn’t told Lou. Which meant Taliesin would need to get there first. “And if he does, we have to assume he still thinks he’s in control.” He wasn’t sure which was worse, Tony thinking he had all the cards, or Christian thinking the same thing at the same time and Taliesin himself having to be there.

Del was being so measured about this. He wasn’t surprised. He rarely was by them. Del’s rhythms hadn’t changed in the years they’d known each other, from elementary and onward. But he wished he had a solution for her that wasn’t this. That was the eldest’s job, right? Problem solving.

“Might have? Who–” But then he caught up. Where’s Noah? That’s what the note had said. “Noah. You know Noah is dead? How do you know Noah’s dead?” And, more importantly. “Del, are you okay? Are you safe?”

“Because I’m not really into preserving Tony Alessi for the betterment of society right now. This guy beats the shit out of people because he feels like it, and if Christian thinks he can manage that, he’s either wildly out of touch or they were on the same page at some point and he wants to exploit that. So we’re literally trying to save them from themselves. That’s hard to sell.” To Lou, especially. If Christian was anyone but himself. But Taliesin didn’t need or want that reminder.

[delilahseraven]

"Well...." They weren't going to have a lip to chew by the end of this. Del fought the urge to hide in her hair, shifting the curls forward to cover more of her face. "He volunteered. And I suggested we add our own representative."

She watched him put the pieces together. Maybe he should've been on the team, he was faster than they had been. "We don't know for sure, but there was a witness to...." How did they even begin to describe the mess? "The beginnings." Their voice cracked slightly. She could barely breathe around the lump in her throat. It hadn't taken long for them to fall into the same problems as the real world. If she hadn't been in love with a misanthrope for years, this might have shaken her faith in humanity.

Are you safe? She didn't know how to answer that. Are you okay? That one they could at least guess at. "I don't think I'm okay. I... he beat Cricket up and I threatened him. It was stupid. I let my emotions..." She sniffled, glancing upwards to stop any tears. "You know how I am. I feel things a lot. And then, I thought maybe he was calming down. Maybe Tony had seen that we can't work like this but..." They swiped at their face. Tears stuck stubbornly to her cheek.

"I know this is a hard sell. I'm not sold on Christian." They took a steadying breath. There were millions of thoughts sliding down myelin sheaths in her head, but she couldn't make sense of them. Everything was happening too fast, the world was too real. "They won't hurt you. Anu won't let them. You're uh... not to be too much of a nerd, but you're our only hope."

[taliesinmauk]

Well, that was at least a small relief to Taliesin. The armistice regarding “the insect” (as Hye liked to call him) continued, and Del didn’t seem to hold it against him that when Cricket was particularly pissed at him, he hit on him. Case in point, earlier today. “Oh. Uh. Good.” Tal agreed for emphasis.

But then Del mentioned Tony. Oh. Uh. Bad. he finished in his head before swallowing his inner monologue like the parent he was. For a moment, he thought that she was about to confront him about hiding Viola being assaulted, but it turned out things were even more complicated.

He let out a sound somewhere between a grunt and a very, very world weary sigh when Del offered up their proposal. It was absurd.

Tal was this close to saying ‘Are you familiar with the kaiju genre, Delly? Let them fight.’ But almost immediately he could feel Lou smacking him on the chest at the thought even though she was God knows where across town. So instead he gave himself a small concession. “…Of course he offered that.” Lou found this shit charming, somehow. He wondered if it was part of the reason she liked Tali. A certain je ne sais sociopathy.

Then he tried to focus on the best way to solve the myriad problems this had just introduced. More violence, which put everyone, especially Ruby and Viola, at risk. He couldn’t even put it past Anu to get some weird kind of vengeful at Lou. Blood in the water, etc.

“Does Christian know about this plan?” It was entirely possible he did and had already agreed and didn’t care. Christian had always given Tal the impression that his greatest fear wasn’t death but inconvenience. Tal was confident the rich bastard would die old and covered in sex workers as his ancestors probably intended. “And what is the full goal here? Say Tony exits the house with his hands up. What’s next?”

Tony would lash out. He knew that much. And if he lashed out at Tal, Lou would kill him. If he lashed out at Christian, Lou would would make Tal go to Christian’s funeral and then kill him. Which had to be some form of cruel and unusual punishment.

[delilahseraven]

If they hadn't been so adrift in their own sea of emotions, she might have laughed at Taliesin's clear relief. Something must have happened between him and Cricket. She'd have to get the story from Cricket later. But the idea of them potentially fighting was hard to fathom. She didn't have a schema for what that would even look like.

Del nodded her head softly. "I was suspicious, too." Not that she put much stock in rich white boys to do the right thing, but Christian had such a strong reputation for finding himself in the middle of a situation. There was a part of her that wondered if he'd already orchestrated some kind of deal with Tony. But she tried not to give into conspiracy thinking, she was a data driven person. There wasn't enough data to draw a conclusion, so he retained the benefit of the doubt.

"He's being briefed. Right now." The community maintenance team hadn't had much time to strategize, but she hoped this appeared like a coordinated and competent effort. Unfortunately, Taliesin's questions were well observed and she didn't have answers for him. Not true ones. She was a scientist, she obsessed more over the questions than certainty.

"I don't know. Depends on Tony. And Christian. And you." She pulled her lip between her teeth. "We want peace. I wanna say that we want a safer world, but...um..." There was no easy way to talk about this. "Tony might've killed someone, so I don't know. I've never been in this position. None of us have." That was the problem. They could all spin themselves in circles with theories, but Tony had taken a decisive action that had tilted the whole universe. Until they reckoned with it, there was no telling what future they were trying to build. This was the experiment.

[wewerechildrenwerenotnow]

Phase: Day Twelve

The lights are on, but no one’s home. Noah’s house is still smoking, and the mysteries are piling up. Oh, and there’s that government thing to worry about.  Might need a criminal justice system like now. 

So press play, and go.

[taliesinmauk]

It had been a long day, but Taliesin was finally done. He had notes and action items for what he’d found out about the woods, and he’d even managed to talk Lou down from their awkward attempt at a double date. He’d come home, helped Ruby make Viola a late dinner while Lou said she had to run an “errand,” and was now ready to settle in with some Unfinished Tales of Númenor and Middle-earth. Arguing with Christopher Tolkien in his head always made him feel better. Especially when Lou was being mysterious. But he was trying to trust her. He had to remind himself that she wasn’t off with someone else. He’d “won,” whatever that meant here.

He jumped at the knock on the door, going for the baseball bat he’d brought from his house when they’d moved Viola. But when he checked the peephole, the bat slide from his hands and nearly hit the ground of its own volition. He quickly leaned the athletic equipment up against the door hinges and opened up. “Delly? What’s wrong? Cricket was way ruder to me than I was to him–”

But she was already barreling forward. (Well, at least it was barreling forward speed for Del, which was about normal pacing for everyone else.) Something was really wrong. Del always took their time. That was one of the things Taliesin had always liked about her. So he made his voice as soft as he could get it, beckoning them inside. “Okay. Ruby and Viola are asleep. Lou’s… not here. Shoot.”

[delilahseraven]

Something in their chest warmed at the nickname. They hadn't heard it in a while. She was much more used to Lilah these days. But the fact that those pathways were still strong between them and Taliesin was a good sign.

"I don't... I'm not here about Cricket." She may take Cricket's side publicly, but they had no stomach for untangling the Lou of it all. There were too many younger emotions. Too many pieces of drama that were held on to in stubbornness rather than protection. She knew more than a little about that, but they didn't want to arbitrate that unless she absolutely had to.

Her breaths came a little easier as she walked into the space that was practically cavernous compared to the ruins of her home. Ruby and Viola moving in was a bit of a surprise, but she was happy for all of them. Community was more important than ever now. And here she came to make things more vulnerable. "It's about Tony." They swiped their tongue over her dry lips. "He's committed a crime, maybe a series of them." They swallowed. "Violent things, Tal. Worse than what he did to Cricket a few weeks ago." She could still feel the stutter in her chest as she watched Cricket limp and crawl towards her. It had been unfathomable that something more sinister had happened. Until it did. "Christian told Fern that he could..." They waved their hand in the air somewhat uselessly, "Get Tony to surrender himself nonviolently, but..." She trailed off.

In certain respects, Taliesin and Del had sat at the grown up table their whole lives. They were mostly responsible. They were the people that handled difficult things. They weren't volatile. She knew this was the right thing to ask, but that didn't make it any easier. It felt like throwing him into a deep end and hoping that his knowledge of swimming was enough. "I convinced her, and Drew, and Morgan that... we needed someone we could trust to go with him. Someone who had been in the Alessi house recently and came out unscathed."

[wewerechildrenwerenotnow]

Phase: Day Twelve

The lights are on, but no one’s home. Noah’s house is still smoking, and the mysteries are piling up. Oh, and there’s that government thing to worry about.  Might need a criminal justice system like now. 

So press play, and go.

[delilahseraven]

Del stood on the precipice of... something. The Villa-Sisniega house was beautiful. They expected nothing less from Lou's family. Being here was strange, but no less strange than anything else that had happened. When Taliesin opened the door, they would all be setting into a motion a course that could end in death. A course that may have already started with death. The whole thing was hard to swallow.

As she sat outside, waiting for a hum of insects that would never come, she wondered if this was all worth it. Making Tony the center of things legitimized his power. Going forward, there would be no denying that he wasn't a major player on a gameboard no one had asked to stand on. But it also didn't sit right with them to let him get away with something like this. Had they known he would escalate things this quickly, she imagined that things would have gone differently.

Would Gabe have stood up to him? Would Cricket have fought with him? Would Leo have left him? Would Del have threatened him? There were whole new universes sprouting around them where those questions were answered. She had nothing but uncertainty in this one.

She knocked on the door before they could think better of it. The sound was too loud in the absence of so much expected outside noise. It was late, but Taliesin was a busy guy. She had to work with his schedule.

"Hi, um... I have to ask you for a favor and in order to do that... I have to tell you something upsetting. I'm sorry."

@taliesinmauk

[wewerechildrenwerenotnow]

Phase: Day Twelve

The lights are on, but no one’s home. Noah’s house is still smoking, and the mysteries are piling up. Oh, and there’s that government thing to worry about.  Might need a criminal justice system like now. 

So press play, and go.

[wewerechildrenwerenotnow]

The President and Community Maintenance discuss the treacherous path forward. Can they get Tony to engage peacefully? And do they really have to involve Christian du Motier of all people? Surely there must be a better solution. Right?

Keep reading

[wewerechildrenwerenotnow]

[cricketmarston]

Cricket knew Del couldn’t promise they’d figure it out later. No one could. That was one of the reasons he’d chosen engineering over science. Engineering was applying established science to a purpose. Great mysteries were not something you could engineer your way out of. That was experimenting. Which was fun. On several counts. But you needed to establish a reliable baseline to engineer responsibly (which he could do, believe it or not.) There was no baseline here, only Del’s wide eyes and soft lips. That would have to be enough.

He smiled at her touch, even as he forced himself to say what he was thinking. “I don’t mind being unnecessary to you. It makes me feel… like you chose this.” He pressed his forehead to hers, fingers entwining. “Which, in full acknowledgment of my massive ego, is comforting to me.”

“I can be an elegant replacement for several electrical devices, it’s true.” Cricket had the restraint to only raise an eyebrow rather than waggle them. “But there’s only one of me, and I’m taken.” He liked the way that word sounded, in an odd way. It made one feel wanted.

“These people lack imagination. That, they have already proven. If we take away their miraculously still working devices, we will soon find ourselves in the Land of the Lotus Eaters or Thunderdome. Or both. Though a little birdie told me we’re also out of drugs. The fun kind, I should say.”

He kicked the door to the power station more than a little petulantly as they exited into the night, still bathed by the glow from the windows above the station door. “This would be far easier if it were only us here. But communities need to be… tied. Maintained.” It pained him a little, but it helped that even Del was acknowledging the flaws in this whole caring-about-other-people setup.

[delilahseraven]

Del gave his words careful consideration. They didn't ring true in their head. "At one point, you were unnecessary to me. But... that was years ago." At this point, it was difficult to imagine when that had been true. The summer before freshman year was so far away now and even further in the last few days. "I chose you years ago and I still choose you, but you are necessary to me. Earlier this year proved that." The past didn't sting as much as it used to, not when he'd replaced it with something so much better, but she could remember the atoms of her heart splitting. She'd been so confused as to how the world was still spinning, when it'd felt like hers had exploded. She didn't want to go back to that. Ever.

But he shifted her mood so elegantly, making her laugh out loud in a way that echoed off the aluminum walls. "You can and you are." If he was ready to discuss that, then things were turning around for him. He'd seen the void on the horizon and taken a step back. She was grateful for it, pressing a small kiss behind his ear.

Her hands laced tightly with his as they left the building behind. She didn't flinch as he kicked the door, more than understanding the frustration that inspired it. "Proud of you for thinking of others." He was changing, even if he pouted through the process, "But you're right. They need their opiates, real or imagined, and we're getting eerily close to facing reality. I don't know what happens then."

[wewerechildrenwerenotnow]

Phase: Day Twelve

Phase: Day Twelve

Phase: Day Twelve

[cricketmarston]

Cricket preened only slightly at Adrian’s impression of the car. “This old thing? If you like it, after this you can keep it. Reg wouldn’t know how to maintain it anyway.” He managed to keep himself from saying ‘doesn’t deserve it.’ He deserved a cookie. “And before you go worrying about private property and all that, we’re in a new world. If he asks about it, you just play dumb, say I lent it to you and didn’t say where it had come from, and I’ll take care of it.” He managed to swallow his own grin. He would very much enjoy taking care of it. he was scripting the monologue in his head already.

What Adrian was saying about not remembering was deeply concerning to Cricket as someone who used to get fucked up on occasion, but he had to trust that Del would guide Adrian through any unpleasantness.

So he forced his tone to be brighter than it was. “Well, if anyone can figure out how that place’s surveillance system works, it’s us. Have no fear.”

He switched literal and figurative gears as they sped toward the roller rink. “Now, some of these systems work on batteries so they’re more secure, easier to not take the whole thing down by cutting the power. I think that’s what we need to hope for. More information that way and no risk of footage getting overwritten because the external hard drive wasn’t responding. Where were you when you fell?”

@king-a

[king-a]

“What the fuck, seriously?” A huge part of him really wanted to. He’d almost died last night. Everything was fucked. Was it that wrong for him to want something good to happen for once?

But an equally large part of him was telling him it would be wrong. That was the parentified foster kid part of him though. And right now, even if he didn’t want to admit it, there was no chance he was seeing his brothers again anytime soon. At what point did he say fuck it? “You messing with a dude with a heart condition?” he joked.

Adrian nodded like it made sense to him. It didn’t, but he wasn’t here because he was the brains. “I think someone said they found me near the drinks table. That’s probably why they think I was drinking.” Ignoring all the physical symptoms that pointed to that being the answer too.

@delilahseraven

[delilahseraven]

Del made a small noise of alarm, but if Cricket was volunteering to talk to Reg, they weren't going to interfere. Community maintenance didn't exist to protect property, they existed to protect people. If Cricket wanted to confront Reg, that was his business. "I don't think he is," they said to Adrian.

She smiled shyly at Cricket. "You're right." They hadn't been able to fix things tonight, but things were different now. Closed circuit security systems were less complex. Soon, they'd be returning to the comforting world of programming. The computers hadn't completely failed them yet.

Del held the door open for Cricket and Adrian with the sleeve of their hoodie. She swallowed a laugh as Adrian explained where he'd been. "That's very logical reasoning." The table itself was still out, but the drinks had been cleared away. Del glanced around the area until she noticed the angle of the security camera. They pointed to Cricket, "That one, but I see two others."

[wewerechildrenwerenotnow]

Phase: Day Twelve

Phase: Day Twelve

Phase: Day Twelve

[cricketmarston]

Cricket hadn’t bothered to tell Reg that he’d taken the Maserati. He’d needed a backseat for Adrian and the Aston didn’t have one, and as he’d said (thought? Eh it didn’t matter.) during their little summit, he knew better how to take care of the children so he got to keep them.

The kiss was all too brief, but he knew he needed to be patient. Del was working. They were in public. All inconveniences he hadn’t bothered to care about until recently. Community ties were a cruel mistress, even for a concubine.

“Well done, mate.” Cricket said, as if Adrian had willed his vital signs to behave. For all he knew, he had. The life sciences were strange. “So do I get to know what we’re doing at the rink or are we pranking Jacks? I’m up for whatever.” He hoped it was clear that he was joking. Mostly.

@king-a

[king-a]

Adrian smiled at Del’s compliment. He didn’t bother telling them he didn’t feel good. But he was relieved he didn’t look too fucked up. It would make things easier for him.

“Sheeeesh.” Adrian whistled when Cricket pulled up, taking a second to admire the car. “Wassup?” he said as he slid in the back.

He chuckled, amused at the idea that he had any conscious role in making his vitals better. “Thanks. I’m okay. I’ll let you know if that changes,” he told Del so they wouldn’t worry. “This ride is fucking fire.” He ran his hand over the smooth leather appreciatively.

“I can’t remember what happened before I passed out,” he told Cricket. “Going to see if there’s security footage that can fill the gaps.”

[delilahseraven]

Del grinned at Adrian's enthusiastic joy. They'd had a feeling that Cricket's car selection might life his spirits. It was nice to see that her instincts had been correct.

They turned her attention to Cricket, who looked more relaxed than she would have imagined. Last night had been difficult in myriad ways. There wouldn't have been an issue if it took him time to readjust and find a new equilibrium. As always, however, he'd found interest in the present. She wished they shared his ability to do that.

"I texted Morgan." She added. "We should limit who sees this." Discretion was something that Cricket was more than familiar with. She knew he'd be able to handle this as they both figured out how the security system worked and what they'd need to do to get in. "You'll be helping me like with the hotel system."

[wewerechildrenwerenotnow]

[cricketmarston]

What if he just broke the grid permanently, took a wrench to every circuit, tore every wire, destroyed every piece of copper or steel he could find? Would that be enough to make this nightmare stop? Would Aurora’s little imaginary engineers suddenly decide to put everything back? Would they forget it all? The violence and the anxiety, the pain, the fear, the need? Would Del forget that they loved him? Would he forget how to love her without fearing that he’d tear her in two?

“I need to– It doesn’t make sense. I don’t understand–” But then they were touching him. Kissing him. Speaking the only language she knew he fully understood.

He paused, living in hope as he looked at her. “You promise? No community tie issues? We might… We might never know, Del. If I don’t check… I…” He swallowed. “But what could have changed, right? It was supposed to be working. Now it is. I’m unnecessary.”

[delilahseraven]

"Doesn't have to." Were it not inappropriate, Del would almost laugh. So many things that were currently happened defied reason. The stars had moved. They were surrounded by old growth trees that had popped up over night. A girl had died from a venomous snake bite. But there was something beautiful and fitting in Cricket being able to handle all of that. It was the electricity that broke his brain.

They tugged softly at his hand. "We'll figure it out later." There was chance that they wouldn't but she wasn't ready to create that possibility for him. He needed certainty. She aimed to provide that in the car for him, give him something real and tangible that still made sense.

She kissed the underside of his jaw. "No issues." Her hand found the contours of his face. He was so alarmed. They did her best to smooth out the wrinkles of his forehead. "You're never unnecessary to me."

Losing him for a brief period of time had been like wandering around without her lungs. No matter how hard they tried to breathe, there was nothing to take in the air. They'd been suffocating until he'd smiled at her again. There was not a universe where that wasn't true. "You are everything to me. Electricity isn't."

[wewerechildrenwerenotnow]

Phase: Day Twelve

Phase: Day Twelve

Phase: Day Twelve

[king-a]

“Happy to be of service.” He grinned at them, grateful for the lighter topic.

“Okay, thanks,” Adrian said, waiting until she was out of the room before he started moving. He went slow, careful in case anything decided to crap out once he got up. He felt like shit but honestly, he felt like he should feel worse. Normally if he passed out he’d have some kind of injury from how he landed, but he didn’t, so that was weird. One time it had happened outside, he passed out on his foster family’s decking. He’d hit his head so hard the grooves in the wood had marked his scalp for weeks. But that didn’t seem to be an issue for him right now.

Adrian’s stomach hurt and his head ached. But if that was it, he was lucky. Adrian got up and walked to the little bathroom off his room. Perks about nobody else being in hospital meant he got a private room and bathroom. It was nice.

He washed his face, rinsed himself off where he could without having to have a full shower. Adrian found his hoodie back in the room draped over a chair. He pulled that back on, slipped his shoes on and grabbed the bottle of water Raleigh had given him.

He made his way out to the hall. “Ready when you are roomie.”

[delilahseraven]

Del sent one more text to Morgan to make sure that she could make it to the rink. Coordination had never been her strong suit. She spent so much time with the same people that they developed their own rhythms and the need for explanation ebbed away. It was strange to work with people outside of that rhythm, but she was rising to the challenge.

"You look good." They said, appreciating that Adrian looked more alive than he had before. It was reassuring to see him walking around. He showed surprisingly little cognitive issues after having such a large setback. She was impressed.

She heard the purr of a sports car outside. "That's him." Del moved towards the door, holding it open for Adrian. After he'd safely passed, they bounded towards the car. She went to the driver's side and tapped for Cricket to open the window. When he did, she kissed him. Before he could deepen it, they pulled back and headed to the passenger side.

"Are you still feeling okay," she asked Adrian, before clarifying for Cricket, "His vitals are better."

@cricketmarston

[wewerechildrenwerenotnow]

Cricket let his smirk grow. It used to be that she always surprised him but now she always spoiled him. “I’d power this thing myself to make ‘after’ come faster if I didn’t need to reserve my stamina for other things.”

“Thank you, Lilah.” He said softly. It was always easy to believe in her. The rest was what was difficult.

He toiled for one hour, then another, manually switching out nearly every component in that horrible power station with Del lingering over or beside him like a very gracious ghost. But he’d reached his limit. He’d done too many repetitive tasks too many times. He was crawling out of his skin now and he had nothing to show for it. There was nothing to improve on. Nothing to really even fix. It should work. It just didn’t. He let out a groan of finality. “Lilah. I think we should go mess around in my car. It will do much more good for this broken little world and will certainly be more interesting for the two of us.” He didn’t say 'we can try again in the morning.’ He wasn’t sure he could, and he didn’t want to think about it.

He packed up his things, doing his best to not look completely defeated. He didn’t want to worry Del any more than he had. But as he stood up, something happened.

There was a cliché in some of the few movies Cricket had seen that always drove him up the wall. When lights turned on or breakers were reset, there was always a very loud kerchunk, as if a giant had flipped a impossible large switch deep within the earth. It wasn’t realistic in general. You needed an immense amount of current to cause a pressure change or a contactor to– Well, point was, electricity generally had a feeling, not a sound, but in films you couldn’t get feelings so you got ridiculously misleading bollocks like that.

So Cricket was especially irritated when he heard a very loud kerchunk and every. single. light. came back on.

“REALLY?”

[delilahseraven]

"Please don't," Del laughed. They enjoyed this new dimension to their relationship. Discussions of stamina and playful teasing wasn't entirely foreign to her, but this didn't fit her schemas in the same way because it was Cricket. Everything was different with him.

They moved delicately towards the ground as Cricket continued to work. Her knees were starting to ache from standing in the same place for so long. The floor was cool underneath her. There was something eerie about sitting in a mostly dark building. It highlighted the absurdity of the situation. Outside of horror movies, this wasn't a particularly common experience.

His frustration was building in the climb of his shoulders and the small huffs he made as he worked. They could feel the stress emanating from him. Her arms longed to hold him but it wasn't wise right now. They didn't want to disrupt his work or cause some sort of issue with the mechanics. It wasn't her area of expertise, she was much more of a theoretical person than practical.

She perked up as he spoke to them. "Okay." They smiled warmly at him, wanting him to know that they weren't opposed at all. "I think that could be fun." She didn't know if it would be a good idea to tell him none of this was his fault or not. In the past, she'd offer him food. She didn't have any with her today.

But she felt the hum underneath her. The buzz of static electricity and the resounding noise that meant something had happened. She swallowed a laugh at his ire. It was very cruel timing of the universe but he was just so adorable when he was this angry. She couldn't help it.

Del climbed to her feet unsteadily. Keeping his instructions in mind, she inched closer to him as slowly as possible. They kissed the underside of his chin. "Let's go to the car."

[wewerechildrenwerenotnow]

Phase: Day Twelve

Phase: Day Twelve

Phase: Day Twelve

Phase: Day Twelve

[king-a]

Adrian was tired but the idea of going back to the BnB alone and just… sitting in bed sounded depressing as hell. “Nah, I’ll come along,” he said. It would feel good to have something else to focus on. And if he was there he’d be able to see what footage they had, if any, and decide for real if he wanted anyone else to see.

Adrian chuckled at that. “So you’re saying I’m a hero,” he said, giving Del a real smile.

“Do you wanna go now or?” he asked them. “I just need a few to freshen up.”

[delilahseraven]

"Kay." They had only brought their short board. It wasn't exactly suited for two riders. Del texted Cricket separately. Pick me and Adrian up? Even if Adrian had a car, she didn't think it was the best idea for him to be behind the wheel right now.

She laughed at his comment. "Very much so. Man of the people." This kind of easy camaraderie was something she'd hoped for when he moved in. There were no way to know if everyone would clicked, but there was such joy in building those relationships with each other.

"Cricket will be here soon." It was presumptuous to say it, but she knew him. If they needed him, he would make the space and time to help. He'd stretch the universe if she asked. And they'd do the same for him. "I can," they nodded towards outside the room, "so you can have privacy."

She stepped out to the hallway to wait. There were too many possibilities that could arise from this. The way that Drew spoke about his own interrogation sessions, Del wasn't sure that they were fully prepared for all of the consequences that came with surveillance. Questions did need to be answered, however, and this was their only option.

[wewerechildrenwerenotnow]

Phase: Day Twelve

Phase: Day Twelve

Phase: Day Twelve

[king-a]

It wasn’t very reassuring. But at least it would only be people in official roles. That did make a difference, even small. He hoped they’d have the same value in confidentiality as Betty and Raleigh.

“Okay,” Adrian said reluctantly. “I don’t love it but if we can figure out what happened I think I need to.” He shrugged. “I can’t really do anything about stopping it happening again if I don’t know what went down.” Responsibility would always, unfortunately, win out when it came to Adrian.

“I’m not ready for this to take me out yet. Got a couple of kids at home who need me.” Was he talking about his brothers or Vi and Ruby now? Ha. His sister would never need him.

[delilahseraven]

Del nodded their head. "Thank you. I know it's....not ideal." She really wasn't the one that was good at talking to people. Knowing all the tools of communication wasn't the same as applying them constantly.

She took out their cell and texted Cricket and Morgan. Got a job at the rink. Adrian related. It wasn't much to work on, but she had never seen the security system. Without knowing the kind of hardware and software, ascertaining what was and wasn't needed was a bit impossible. They could all meet up and work through things together, but it would take some finagling. "Do you feel up to a fieldtrip or do you want to wait? We can send you the results if that's easier."

In this world, wherever it was located, and the real one, Adrian had so many people that were worried about him. He had people that needed him. Del wasn't lucky enough to place themself in that schema. Being housemates was nice. In some ways, it gave her a window into a different way of living. They were building a new kind of schema together, somewhere between roommates and something closer to friendship. "You're needed here and there." She reassured him, "You're saving Cricket from indecent exposure."

Phase: Day Twelve

Phase: Day Twelve

Phase: Day Twelve

Phase: Day Twelve

Adrian honestly didn’t know if he even wanted to remember it. He hadn’t really been doing so great lately but he hoped he wouldn’t have chosen to be that self destructive. He needed to be there for Vi, even if she didn’t want him to be.

The idea of remembering also just embarrassed him. He hated that even more people knew about it all now. That they’d seen him so vulnerable like that.

“Who would see it?” he asked them. “If there was footage.” It was probably smart to look. He just didn’t want to agree until he was sure he’d have whatever scraps of privacy were left.

[delilahseraven]

Del took a moment to think. They didn't want to promise him something that wouldn't be true. The council might decide to take things into their own hands. If they did, that was beyond her. "Me and Cricket, we'll have to work together to hack into it like we did the inn." She wasn't sure how much he knew about that, but it had needed to be done. "Maybe Drew and Morgan...we're a team."

Listing that group was the easy part. She trusted Drew and Cricket with her life. Drew trusted Morgan, so she had to be worthy of it as well. The potential for corruption, however, was all too easy to see. She didn't want to propose setting up a surveillance state or even relying on it frequently. Her own brain was racing with the ways that this could backfire. "Fern or the council. I'd do my best to pick only one of them, but it's not my..." she trailed off. The government system was so nascent and she didn't want to impede its growth, but there were so many facets that had to be planned and without those answers, she couldn't promise a lot. "I'll limit exposure. Promise." That was all she could do.

Phase: Day Twelve

Phase: Day Twelve

Phase: Day Twelve

Phase: Day Twelve

“I’ve been better,” he said, feeling like he should smile or something. Try to make Del look less worried than they did right now. All the attention and concern made him uncomfortable. Probably something to do with not being used to people caring. Adrian tried his best to make his face look okay.

He was surprised but also grateful. He knew the pool of people who knew something had happened to him had blown up overnight, so it was nice to get to share the parts he wanted to.

“That’s the thing, I don’t really know…” Adrian scrubbed his palm over his cheek. “I’m not supposed to drink. It can fuck with my meds and my heart.” He looked down, focusing on the white hospital blanket covering him instead of Del. “Raleigh said I passed out at the party. That it was alcohol but I don’t…” He let out a frustrated sigh. “I feel like I wouldn’t have done that. Or I’d remember.”

[delilahseraven]

Del laughed alongside him. They'd all been through such difficult situations recently, it was much easier to remember better times than hard ones. The paths were clearer.

It was tempting to reach for her journal, but she fought the urge. As much as this could potentially overlap with community maintenance work, it wasn't. Adrian was a friend. She tried to loosen her posture, be more welcoming in pose the way her father had taught them.

"S'ok." She patted his shoulder. "It might come back in snatches. And if it doesn't that's okay." They hadn't had much time to talk about neuroscience so she didn't know how much to say around him. She didn't want to confuse him with explanations he may or may not be interested in. "Sometimes our brains protect us by hiding things. That's okay too."

She fought the urge to clear her throat. It was too much of a nervous habit for them lately, filling the space with gutteral noises because words felt insufficient. "Do you want community maintenance to see if there's security footage to confirm things?"

[wewerechildrenwerenotnow]

Cricket leaned into Del’s touch. It seemed strange to him now that he hadn’t noticed the way she seemed to split the air with the softest wave of her fingers. They always left his skin buzzing, energized even in exhaustion. “Careful, my celestial.” he said in a way that was more invitation than warning. “You’re going to get us electrocuted.” But truly, what a way to go.

But then she turned to the heart of the matter. She wanted to protect him. She really thought they could. It broke his heart and molded him to them all at once. He hid his gaze in the wires for a moment, overcome. “The trouble, my dearest, darling-ist love, is that you are terribly, unashamed-ably, beautifully biased.” Always had been, poor dear heart. He hadn’t wanted to admit until it was staring him in the face with snow blowing about outside. “I do appreciate it. But your safety is more important than my own, especially in this aspect. There is more to protect than me. Much as I’d like, I can’t take up all your time and powers.”

It was a noble thing to say. A community-oriented thing to say. Which is why it felt ugly in his mouth, perhaps. As non-monogamous as he’d been, it was an ego driven non-monogamous. I will make you forget everyone you’ve ever been with and then I will leave, thank you very much. Sharing? Sharing was something he’d never been good at, which is why he tended to leave his toys out in the rain. Metaphorically speaking. Or literally in the case of the end of some outdoor rendezvous.

“I am not suggesting self sacrifice by any means, only…” He looked up, studying her face in the soft light, the way it glinted off her cheekbones… Had they been crying? Or was she just often near that in his head? A warning, a prophecy. “There is so much disorder, Del.” In people, yes, but in science itself now too. “I would… I will not let you be swallowed by it.”

[delilahseraven]

"Not here." Their face was pulsing with all the blood in it. She didn't entirely mind, not when he looked at them like that. "Outside. After." The process of getting there would be agony, but they'd been slowly edging towards an inevitability for years. They could handle it.

Her throat went dry at the casual use of love. One word that slid from his mouth so easily from her but it colored her entire perception of the world. There was elation alongside the confusion of how to solve things. "I knew you were impressive long before I became biased." The rest of them could see it too, although the reactions varied from threatened to awe. It didn't always come out in the most respectful way, but it was there.

They didn't know what to say. Protecting him was as natural as breathing. Their neurons fired through there without any active thought on Del's part. "We protect each other." That was the most compromise she could give when it came to making sure that he was safe.

She smiled softly at him. "I won't be." The first week had been a blur of euphoria and agony, the two growing so enmeshed it was hard to separate them. But they'd come through it together. They could handle what came next. "We can do this." They lowered themselves closer to him. "I believe in us."