Jul 17 03:14:48 105 PA
From Chronicles
The current game time is: Fri Jul 17 03:14:48 105 PA.
The large garage has a small corner desk, with pieces of paper and catalogues of machine pieces on shelves against the wall. Along three od the walls, huge metal shelving units hold a variety of brown boxes, each marked with some arcane mechanics scrawl that indicates the contents. The other has a long workstation against it, and a series of hooks and shelves, upon which tools sit, in apparently random order. The workstation itself bears the weight of half a dozen dismantled machines of varying sizes. The floor is concrete, stained with oil, with patches of sand here and there. A large tub containing sand squats beside the garage doors, a shovel sticking out of the top as if someone shoved it there after use.
A row of pegs against the wall by the workstation has various coveralls, coats and other things hanging on it and a large noticeboard has a range of oil stained pieces of papers stuck to it with pins. Along the beam that runs the length of the garage, several jars have been attached with a nail through their lid. They seem to be storing small components of different sizes.
A door exits the garage, apparently allowing entrance to the upper floor by the use of a key pad.
Surrounded by boxes and tools, scattered in an apparently random pattern in a circle around her, the petite woman has her hair tied back into a long plait that rests over her shoulder. Her head is bent over the tool chest in front of her. She takes items out of it, putting each carefully into a pile, consideration given to each decision. She stretches, clasping her hands above her head, her back arching to move the cricks from it, and she turns her face up to the ceiling, closing her eyes. For a moment, she remains like that, before relaxing and uncurling slowly, intent on rising to her feet. Next to her on the floor is a stick, and her foot is still bandaged, the white covering now stained with oil.
Janus appears in the doorway and languidly knocks with slow beats of the heel of his hand against the door's frame. "Oi!" he bellows into the garage. "Cali? I'm here, don't go banging yourself up because I snuck up on ya!" Of course, his sudden shouting isn't a whole lot better for not surprising the unsuspecting woman.
Caliopa pauses midreach, tilting her head up as she takes up the stick. "Erik? You ain't needin' to make that racket. You'll go wakin' the dead, you will." She uses the stick to get up, leaning on it instead of the hobbling walk as she moves. She makes her way, ungraceful for once, to the shelving and begins to put tools away there, balancing the stick against it. "You broke summit?"
"Naw," Janus answers, putting on a crooked smile for Caliopa as he steps inside and crosses the room towards her. "Thought I'd look in on ya, see how the ol' hoof is feeling. Went to the garage but they said you'd moved on." He pauses then, planting his hands on his hips and taking a slow, inquisitive look around the place in that oh so very cop-like way of his.
She glances down at her foot, pulling a face, and shrugging. "Still there, ain't fallen off." It is almost a sulky mumble and she turns the topic away clumsily. "Atti 'n' me, we bought this place together." She smiles then, the sun coming out of the cloud. "He got the offices over it, for Si Sera, and I got this bit for my garage. Ain't it shiny?" She glances over the grubby, chaotic room, her face alight with pride.
Janus finishes his visual tour and brings his eyes back to Caliopa, his smile broadening and a good-natured chuckle rising from his throat. "Well it's a garage," he agrees after a fashion, not seeming to take the same degree of excitement out of it but adding, "And it's yours." His gaze drops from Cali's face then and roam down to the bandaged foot, which he studies with pressed lips and a concerned furrow of his brow. He keeps his comments to himself. "Si Sera, an' what's that?"
"Atti's 'tective agency." She explains briefly, balancing on her good foot to put tools in the chest at her highest reach. "He does stuff like findin' folks, 'n' things, 'n' gettin' rid of ghosts 'n' all." She picks up the stick, using it to balance as she grabs another pile of tools, moving towards the work bench where she dumps the pile. "It ain't just a garage. Tis my garage." The emphasis on MY is clear and the pride is obvious.
"Right, that's what I said," Janus notes, nodding and following after Caliopa with a couple of tools in his hands. He puts them on the pile helpfully. "Your garage."
She picks up the tools he touched, gives him an oddly sharp look before putting those into their place. "I know it ain't that much, 'n' it ain't a big deal to anyone else." She hesitates before placing her hands onto the surface, jumping up and letting her legs dangle over the edge.
"No, you stay out here! *Pause* Just.. just go stand over there. Go!" A distinctive, flinty voice rises audibly from up just outside. "Go, shoo!" A few moments of silence will settle in before the heavy treads of boots stomping into the room betrays Kid's arrival. "Atticus!" Not a true roar, but she yells it out pretty loud. Then she spots Cali and Janus, making an immediate beeline towards them. "Cali! Where's the elf, girl? This shit ain't working!"
Janus misinterprets the look Caliopa gives him, mistakes it for something he said rather than did and fixes her with a puzzled look. He opens his mouth, inhales and starts to say something right as Kid comes barging in. His groan isn't quite audible but it's most certainly visible, his eyes clenching shut and his mouth drawing out in a thin, white line.
Kid's voice draws Caliopa's attention and for a moment, the corner of her mouth quirks. "Told him she ain't gonna like it." She murmurs softly before trying to school her face but failing. "Kid, he ain't here." She replies, swinging her legs, resting her hands on the counter. "He had to go out. What ain't workin' about it? Seems he is followin' you just fine."
Kid completely misses the asides and looks, lost on her as she rolls right up to Cali. "Yeah, real hard to lose," she grunts, openly displeased with the man's presence. "And strange as all hell," she adds sourly. "Bad enough having him hanging around all the damn time, but you ain't had to be at his place," she states. "And sure as hell I can't get no serious looking done with him hanging about. How am I supposed to find out who wrecked my place before?" Her voice now back to a more normal tone for her, though her temper runs high throughout. "This can't be done soon enough.. I don't think I can take a week of this, let alone how much longer it'll be! Hell, the elf didn't even know."
Janus slowly pushes a hand back through his hair and takes a careful step aside, getting himself out of the space between Kid and Caliopa. He tries to follow the things they're saying but none of it is making any sense to him, so he simply lifts his brows and listens, shooting Cali a couple of little, inquisitive looks.
Caliopa tries not to meet Janus' looks, trying not to giggle. "Is... is his place so bad? I ain't been over to it." She is trying hard to keep her voice level, to keep the expression on her face from showing the humour. "It ain't gonna be long, honest, jus' til things get sorted. Kid, do you know Erik?" She waves a hand at him, before tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear, leaving another smudge against her cheek
"It ain't my place, Cali-girl. I don't got my bed, my things.. I don't sleep good when dealing with other peoples things." Kid's eyes narrow slightly as she detects that poorly hidden amusement. "You laugh it up, girl, but I ain't going to be worth a thing for getting work done under these conditions." Her arms crossing over her chest firmly. Then she points Kid's attention towards Janus, who gets an eyeing when the girl turns her head towards him. She examines him for a moment before she states, "Seen him, don't know him," she states.
"We've been introduced," Janus informs Caliopa, giving Kid a good looking-over while she's doing the same thing to him. "Came bashin' in same way the last time," he adds, nodding at the recollection. "New fellah ain't all he was talked up ta be?" He arches a brow, picking up on Cali's amusement at the situation and following that cue.
Caliopa nods, unruffled by Kid's bad temper, "Erik, this is Kid. She is my best friend. Don't mind her temper, she don't mean anythin' by it." She gives them both that sunny smile, before hopping down from the bench, thoughtlessly. Her mouth opens in a surprised O shape as the foot hits the floor and then she hops, biting her lower lip.
(Seen only by Kid) A soft feminine voice filters through your head "Come into my parlour little fly..."
Kid bares her teeth at Janus, in an almost 'feral' manner. Except, there isn't a feral aspect to her looks, outside of the punkish garb she's wrapped in. Doesn't work well for cute. "He's not a 'fellah'. He's protection, because the elf thinks I need it. Stupid robots.." She looks to Cali and frowns darkly. "What I need is a nice little robo killer virus and a delivery sys.." Her words cut off suddenly. Her eyes narrow to slits as she snaps her head back, then forth in a sweep of the room. Her dark expression lingering as she looks for the source of that.
(Seen only by Kid) That same voice drifts across "Welcome to the rabbit hole Alice." followed by a trill of laughter, and while it's soft and musicial, there is a hard, nasty and evil edge to it.
Janus doesn't notice anything unusual, other than Kid suddenly being quiet. "Robots?" he repeats, again looking over at Caliopa for some kind of assistance. "She talkin' about the manhunters, then?"
"He is a nice bloke, Kid, and it is rightly nice of him to let you stay, bringin' trouble down on him." There is a soft chiding tone to her voice as she straightens, taking the stick in her hand. "Kid, I ain't sure that a virus is the way of doin' this, ..." Janus' question causes Caliopa's forehead to wrinkle. "Manhunters?"
Kid frowns slightly and looks at Janus and Cali strangely. Her expression tensed, lips pursed into a straight, narrow line. -Get the fuck out of my head, freak- she thinks back at the voice.. or tries to. Turning without saying anything audibly, she takes a few steps away, mutely focusing on.. trying to close up her mind. An abstract thing she has little real practice with. To the other two, she'll just be standing there, back to them, shoulders hunched slightly.
Janus watches Kid out of the corner of his eye, his lips poised slightly apart with words teetering on the precipice. She's quiet though, and he feels no great need to try to change that, so he directs his attention fully onto Caliopa again and favors her with a gentle smile. "I asked you about 'em the other day, Cali. Wanted to meet'cher Attie and talk about helping out with 'em. What those robots are called, ain't it? Manhunters?"
Caliopa gives Kid a frown, staring hard at her, the start of worry in her face. "Kid?" She shakes her head, drawing her attention back to Janus' question. "Oh them robots? Atti knows all about them, but he ain't here, not for a bit now. I ain't sure Kid is takin' bout them though." She returns the smile, her heart not in it as her gaze flickers back to Kid.
When Kid glances back towards Cali, her expression will be different from when she came in. Tensed and tight, lips still pursed into a tight line as she shakes her head slightly. "I gotta go Cali girl.. I.. gotta go." And she does just that, walking towards the exist with a slight stiffness to her gait. She barely glances at Janus in the process.
Janus folds his big arms across his broad chest and issues a low, hearty chuckle. "Reckon little sheila there hasn't taken a liking to me yet," he observes to Caliopa somewhat sardonically. He's still curious about her situation however, and wonders, "What robots she need protecting from?"
Caliopa watches Kid leave with an expression of worry, concern written in her brown eyes. "She ain't normally like that..." She explains to the man beside her, moving slowly to pick up another tool, to put it away. "Ain't something I'm clear on, really. Atti deals with that type of thing..." That type of thing being the rest of the world.
He's starting to notice the trend, Janus is. He watches Cali hobble around the garage tidying up and replies with a note of vexation is his voice. "'course he does. And he ain't around." He unfurls his arms again, breathing out a heavy sigh and pressing the heels of his hands to his temples. "Right good you're back on your feet, anyhow. I worry about you, ya know."
"He'll be back soon. He ain't gone on a long chore." She is vague, concentration on her face as she places things, stepping back, frowning and moving it. "Why worry? I'm grand, no problems at all." She smiles at him then, bringing her attention back into the world, the smile lighting up her entire face. "All's shiny."
Janus doesn't seem like he believes her when he turns his head and casts a sidelong look down at Caliopa, lips pursed and brows heavy. "I won't tell ya it's otherwise, then," he remarks, but he throws a meaningful look down at the bandaged foot as he does.
She gives him an exasperated look. "Ain't you people got anything better to do 'n' get on about my foot? Ain't much more than a little scratch anyhow." She stomps, as best as you can with one foot and half hopping, to the pile nearby, picking up pieces.
Janus spreads his arms and turns his hands up in a shrug before rather pointedly pushing himself up to sit on the edge of a workbench. "Right, I won't bring it up again." He throws a quick look around the garage, searching for something else to talk about, and idly asks, "Reckon you'll get enough work so far from the Field?"
"Reckon so. The lads at the field say I can use it for the bigger stuff that ain't allowed down here." She reaches, tucking one of the boxes onto the large shelves. "Reckon you can lift that box up on here for me?" She turns, rubbing her hands clean on her combats, leaving a trail of dust.
"Aw, you suddenly 'ave a use for me?" Janus teases Cali as much with his eyes as his voice, dropping back down off the bench and crossing over to her anyway. He hefts the box, stretches his arms up over his head and slides it into the spot she wants it. "Never quite asked what all you can fix, come to think of it."
She bends, giving him that sunny smile over her shoulder, the plait falling down as she moves, picking up a box. "Mostly anything. I can do stuff with bikes, guns, stuff that flies, robots, computers, some bits of cybernetic stuff..." She shrugs, dismissively, as if anyone could do it. "Here, think you could stick this one up too?"
Janus takes the second box and lifts it up like it's empty to put alongside the first. "When my armor takes a bashing, then...?" he prompts, hopeful that he'll get the answer he wants. The box gets a last little nudge to make sure it's stable on the shelf, then he drops his arms and turns himself towards Caliopa again.
She turns, resting her hands on her hips and giving him a thoughtful look. "Reckon I could look at it..." She shrugs, "It ain't that hard." She glances around, a slow smile growing until she is grinning, happiness glowing in her eyes. "Look at it all. Lookin' like a proper garage."
Janus joins her in having a look around across the space and nods. "That it does, Cali. Glad you got all this together, seems to make you happy." He folds his arms again and leans back against the shelving unit behind him, causing it to creak and shift a little as his weight slides it up flush against the wall.
She gives her shelving unit a slightly worried look and him a small frown, before she returns to staring around, the slow smile returning. "Jus' worked in other people's space forever, havin' them messin' with my stuff, movin' things and breakin' them." She limps across the room, touching her fingertips lightly against the surfaces, almost caressingly.
Note to self: Cali's extremely protective of her stuff. Realizing this, Janus straightens himself up and presses a steadying hand back against the shelf, in case it decides to topple forward and rain boxes and pain down on top of him. It holds, and after a breathless moment he draws his hand away almost timidly before taking a few steps out nearer the center of the garage.
She is wandering, limping but wandering around the garage, touching things lightly, adjusting the position of several things by a millimeter. Her face is almost glowing with happiness. "See. Just everythin' right in its place." She turns, giving Janus a smile of pure brightness, her eyes glowing.
Janus just smiles back at her, nodding in seeming understanding and approval. "Little bit of stability and order in the world." He sweeps his eyes over the garage again, gaze lighting on various objects and fluttering away again like a hyperactive butterfly.
"Everythin' in its place and I know where it is then. Ain't noone else to mess things up." She nods a few times, her smile almost picking up brightness. "Just, it is perfect. Ain't gonna be hard to work here."
Atticus comes in from the outside, carrying a plastic bag and a smile - a wide smile - he heads towards Cali, whistling good naturedly as he hands the bag over. "Burrito with the spicy salsa, some chips and a drink, since I figured you never had anything to eat. How's the new shop treating you?" he asks, noticing Janus and giving the man a smile. "Hi!"
Janus lifts a hand and greets Atticus with a wave from where he stands on the opposite side of the garage from Caliopa. "Hullo," he offers a second later, dipping his head in a nod.
"Atti! Look, ain't it perfect? I got it all put away, Erik lifted the stuff that I couldn't." She takes the bag, opening it and dropping herself to the floor, sitting cross-legged as she investigates it. "Atti, I'm starvin'!" She looks up at both men, her smile bright, her face lit up.
Atticus grins, "I figured I was right. Extra meat and cheese," Atticus tells Cali, stroking her hair as she drops down to the floor. "It looks really good. I like that beam along the edge and it's all put away so neatly! I bet you'll be a lot happier here," he tells the female mechanic with a smile. "Hey. You must be Erik. Pleasure to meet you," he notes to Janus with a grin.
"She's been talking about me, has she?" Janus asks with a soft laugh and a quick glance from Atticus to Caliopa and back again. He confirms the guess with another nod. "You're Atticus, I reckon? The bloke who 'deals with it'." He grins a bit as well, but it doesn't completely mask the way he assesses the elf with his eyes.
She looks up, waving a chip between them, her mouth full. She swallows quickly, "Sorry, Atti, Erik wants to know 'bout robots." She leans into Atticus' touch, giving him a look that holds adoration before she returns to eating chips, licking the salsa from her fingers with quick, efficient movements.
Atticus shakes his head with a smile, "No she didn't. I'm just a crack investigator, see," he notes. He extends his right hand - not all up-armored, instead just in a relaxed tunic and jeans, boots and an old style revolver at his hip, a helmet bag and another holstered pistol at the small of his back. "Ah, the robots. So you want to help fight the robots then?" he asks.
"Help fight?" Janus repeats with a widening of his eyes and amused surprise in his voice. "Don't even know what they are or what they're on about. Again his eyes flit for an instant to Caliopa before refocusing on Atticus. "They're causing trouble, is it?"
Caliopa applies herself to the chips with an interest that suggests that food isn't high on the list of things to remember. She fills the chips, one by one, with cheese and meat, pops it in her mouth, licks her fingers clean and repeats, a few times before looking up, guilt showing on her face. "Um either of you want some?"
"I'm good, I ate before comin' over, sweetheart," Atticus says with a grin towards Cali. "And yes, the robots. Well, you're welcome to come here, to Si Sera," he points to the door. "Sunday afternoon, one o'clock. I'll be discussing some about what's going on. What sort of skills can you offer?" he asks casually.
Janus scratches his cheek briefly while he considers the question and then folds his arms again over his chest. "Reckon I'm an expert when it comes to blowin' things up," he replies with a crooked and boyish grin. "So far as skills go, that's always the popular one, eh?" He thinks about it a little longer and shrugs. "Not knowin' a thing about these buggers, can't say for certain what else would be useful."
She returns the grin, licking her fingers clean of salsa. She methodically fills another chip, making the edges neat before adding cheese on top, precisely and carefully. She gives it a look, sees that it is good and pops it into her mouth. She goes back to licking her fingers. "Ain't worth missin' the thing for the lack of one, Atti." She observes.
"True enough," Atticus agrees to Cali, smiling at her. "Alright. What about tactics, strategy, military experience or training, field first aid experience, driving, technical skills, reading and writing?" he asks Janus with a sm ile. "You have any issues with taking orders?"
"I can read," Janus says first, giving a nod to Caliopa who can most certainly confirm this. "Ain't such a special skill where I come from, that. And I've been taking orders my whole life, don't reckon it'll be a problem now." Again he goes quiet for a moment, thinking and taking a mental catalog of what he's been trained for. "I'm a fair tracker and know how to handle myself in the bush. Might be some call for that, eh?"
She is mostly absorbed by the last pieces of meat, having run out of chips. One piece, lick fingers, until the last piece, where she hesitates, giving Atticus and Janus a guilty look, as obvious as a child caught with fingers in the cookie jar. "Uh. Either you want that piece?" She bites her lower lip, glancing between them.
Atticus nods, "Fair enough. You know how to use pistols, obviously. Submachine guns, edged weapons, hand to hand, rifles, heavier weapons?" He stretches and shoves his hands into his slacks, watching Cali with a grin before turning his attention on Janus. "Go on, darlin', I don't mind," he tells Cali.
Janus smiles again, answers Cali with a small shake of his head and ticks off each thing Atticus has asked him about on his fingers. "Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. Trained for demolitions on top of all that, too. Like I said..." He lowers his arms, rests his hands on pouches and the holster at his waist. "Expert at blowin' things up."
She puts the last piece of meat into her mouth, licking her fingers before rising to her feet and crumpling the bag up. "Thanks for that, Atti. I clean forgot 'bout food." She gives him a smile that speaks of a running joke, her face glowing, the smudges of oil on her cheek not detracting from the beauty. "He is a nice bloke, Atti." She speaks confidently.
Atticus smiles and reaches for the bag, tugging out a napkin to lean over and clean off that bit of oil from Cali's cheek and leaning down to kiss her gently. "Alright." he tells Janus with a grin. "You seem like a good sort of fellow to have around. You have any issues with having me examine your aura and general magical well being to make sure it's all," he waves his hand in a gesture, "Alright?"
"Don't see how's there any need for that," Janus notes, his easygoing manner disappearing and his whole attitude turning on edge. "Ain't even discussed the pay and you want to go poking around at me where I can't see?" He lifts his brows, laying out the challenge, and shakes his head.
Caliopa smiles up at Atticus, returning the kiss with a willingness that reflects the feelings showing in her eyes. Erik's manner change draws a small frown onto her forehead, a look of confusion rising in her eyes. "Ain't that much of a deal, jus' takes a look at something or other, seein' the type of person you are. It ain't like I don't know you are a nice bloke..."
"The pay is, the city remains standing and we all aren't dead," Atticus says easily, smiling. "And there is need for that. You could be - and I mean no offense, everyone has gone through this - someone trying to get information for us. Or you could be evil. It's not bad, it wouldn't harm you. And of course you can refuse. But why? The pay .. well, there is no pay, unless we get some sort of bounty or reward. But with that said, the rewards have worked out so far. Fighting these folks have," he waves his hands, 'Paid for this garage and Cali and I's rent, you know?" A smile.
"Not puttin' my neck out for someone that don't trust me," Janus continues, shaking his head once more time and walking for the door. "A dog'd sniff my ass to see what sort of man I am, but I don't see why I'd want you doing that to me either. I ain't askin' to go rootin' through your underwear drawer, reckon I don't need to know."
Caliopa's face crumples into lines of confusion and she hops to her feet, reaching for the man's arm. "Erik, don't. It ain't like that. I mean, you want to root, you do it. I don't understand?" She looks between the two men, appealing to both. "Ain't a matter of trust. I trust you. Tis just that someone we trusted turned out to be someone that ain't too good...Please, Erik? I want your help."
Atticus shrugs with an easy smile, "I certainly don't mean any offense. But I have reasons - reasons I can go into tomorrow - for why I do this. Legimate reasons. I certainly didn't mean to insult you. Everyone goes through this." He pauses as Cali speaks, letting her reply.
"What's to understand?" Janus shoots back at Caliopa. "Mankind got along just fine for millions of years without... magically readin' each other for evil first time they meet." He turns his eyes over to Atticus, frowning. "Got no right intruding on person's privacy like that, just because you can, same I got no right gunning you down where you stand. 'Can' don't mean 'should'. I 'aven't done nothin' to you."
She nods slowly, taking a step back from him, giving Atticus a look of confusion. She glances between them for a moment before stepping back, letting the two men sort it between them, lifting her hands in a gesture of defeat, blinking rapidly before she turns to a tool station, tidying it.
"Mankind didn't have to deal with the sorts of threats that we did, I'm afraid. Look, I'm sure it's frustrating to you, but like I said it's just a great way of figuring out who's who and it doesn't allow me to read your mind or really delve into your privacy - beyond your aura, which really just shows your intent, any evil nature and that sort of thing. It's a method of really knowing you are who you say you are." Er, Atticus says.
Janus stands there, glowering, looking back and forth between Caliopa and Atticus with a hard cast to his features and an inner debate raging behind his eyes. "I can respect your caution," he says after a time, the intensity of his bearing lessening without really softening at all. "But magic took me from my home, from my mates, from the girl I loved and dropped me tits up in the back end of nowhere without so much as a 'good on ya'. You want me to piss in a cup so you can have a computer smell it, right-o. Draw some of me blood to see if I'm human, fair enough. Same as any job back home."
She has nothing to say, nothing to explain this away for him, and she keeps tidying the workstation, limping as she moves, her shoulders tensing at the conflict between them. Her back reflects the tension on her face, tense and straight, the plait hanging down her spine.
Atticus nods, "That can all be faked. An aura," he waves his hand, "It can't be. And I can accept that you're sensitive to it and don't feel comfortable with it. Cali, her foot is hurt there 'cause she refuses to let me heal her, even though I could do it without breaking stride or a sweat. So I can respect your caution. But blood can be faked, the rest could be faked. Aura can be faked but it's harder, and it's a quick, non invasive way for me to determine you are who you say you are. It won't tell me your thoughts, it won't let me read your mind - it's sort of just like an instant very cursory personality test." he replies. "Look, a rift threw me and several thousand other elves here fifty years ago. I can appreciate your distrust of it. But there really is nothing to do it. I promise. And when I'm dealing with - not to be brazen here - the fate of all these lands, I can't afford to cut anyone a special break. The last time I did that, we almost lost everything. Everyone."
A moment passes and Atticus offers, "Let me honest with you. I don't need to say or do anything to do this. If I wanted - and I didn't respect Cali's opinion of you and your bearing - I could've checked you out ten times already. And you would never know. Never. But I haven't, because I wanted to tell you straight out. Let you know, so you would know it was coming. Maybe that can help you understand where I'm coming from?"
Janus runs his tongue across his teeth thoughtfully, pushing his compressed lips forward as he does. Again his eyes flick to Caliopa, but find no help coming from that direction. "Right," he decides, heaving out a breath and holding his shoulders back. "I've got nothing to hide. It's a dangerous slope you're starting down, though. Reckon there's a fine enough example of where it leads up in ol' Chi-Town. Trustin' you to be responsible, and only 'cause I don't figure Cali would be with you otherwise."
She turns slowly, giving Erik a considering look as she bites her lower lip. "Thanks, Erik... he don't ever lie, not about anythin'." She glances between them, weighing something out before she speaks again. "Ain't precisely a swap but figures, I ain't keen on the magic stuff. You're doin' it and you don't like it. Ain't sure if it'd help at all, but Atti could do my foot if you're lettin' him read, 'n' we'd do it together?"
"You sure about that?" Atticus asks Cali, frowning. "And thank you," he tells Janus with a smile, blinking and clearing his throat. "I think you really could help us out, so I'm glad that you wre willing to let me do this," he nots.
Janus shakes his head and staves Cali's offer off with his hand. "Don't need to see any more of this than is necessary." He nods at Atticus, squaring his shoulders and erecting his posture like he's bracing for a punch or an executioner's bullet. "Let's get it over with."
Relief flashes across her face, obvious as hell, written in giant letters in her eyes. She smiles at Erik, giving him a warm smile, full of gratitude. "You won't feel a thing, not the slightest. Ain't a risk to it neither." She turns, leaning her back against the workstation, a moment's hesitation before she corrects the position of a tool.
Atticus smiles at Janus and by the time the man has squared his shoulders Atticus is already touching Cali's shoulder and gently squeezing it. "Already done. I saw what I needed to see," he says as he shifts in his seat. "Listen, why don't I buy you a drink. I know that wasn't easy for you."
Atticus smiles at Janus and by the time the man has squared his shoulders Atticus is already touching Cali's shoulder and gently squeezing it after he's twisted his fingers in the air and murmured two quiet sentences in the Elven tongue. "Already done. I saw what I needed to see," he says as he shifts in his seat. "Listen, why don't I buy you a drink. I know that wasn't easy for you."
Janus doesn't have time or inclination for the drink and shakes his head, making polite noises before leaving. Atticus and Caliopa are left alone, discussing things in soft voices, with Caliopa showing him a neatly hidden piece of machine here or there...Tags:atticus, caliopa, janus, kid
