When will that be? Just so I know when to expect you, that's all. You might be one of those guys who works until three in the morning and by then I'll be asleep.
[ True to his word, Bradbury shows up on time, but it isn't a bottle of wine he's bearing -- just non-alcoholic cider. He doesn't know if Rin drinks enough to be aware of the difference, but wine is just really fruit juice of some fashion, so he figures it's close enough.
Besides, Rin didn't think he was really going to serve alcohol to a minor, did she? He knocks on the door and waits for her to let him in. ]
[ Ah, so it's going to be one of those nights is it? At least he's clear-eyed and less visibly tired than he was not too long ago, having come to a resolution -- not one he intends to bother her with. It seems a night more for her problems than his own. ]
Hey. [ He holds up the bottle. ] You want some of this, or not? [ He doesn't wait for her to respond before he's attempting to step past, gaining entrance before he can be thrown out. ]
Archer still at work? [ He's not sure if they still live together or not, but it seems likely. ]
He isn't around so I assume that he's working with one of his many jobs or chatting it up with Minako.
[ She doesn't care how bad the impression she gives is (what with Archer talking to teenager girls all the time) or for her manners as she shuts the door behind him. ]
He doesn't live here anyway. [ Pointing a finger towards a door in the wall that shouldn't be there in these apartments. ] He lives in there and no, it isn't a closet.
Huh. [ Must be a magic thing. Phrased like that, he resists the urge to make quips Rin probably wouldn't appreciate anyway. Instead, he looks around for the easiest way to the kitchen, absently toeing off his shoes at the doorway before heading in. ]
Guess he's gonna have to miss out. [ Though given Archer seems a bit of a lightweight the last few times Bradbury saw him, he thinks he'd likely refuse the chance of a drink anyway. ]
You got any wine glasses, or are you fine drinking out of -- [ He casts his eye warily over the kitchen. ] --mugs?
[ As well as teacups and every other useless kitchen utensil in the world. Even if it's never been used, they somehow have it due to a Certain Someone who fancies the kitchen and if he's not responsible, it's Rin herself who arguably just buys things that look wealthy enough. ]
Here, I'll show you. [ Strolling across the apartment into the tinier kitchen, she's pulling open one of the cupboards to reveal an array of glasses, most of which haven't been touched. ] Wine glasses, right here.
Huh. [ It's a noncommittal sound, but Rin could probably take it to mean Bradbury is suitably impressed, even if he doesn't say as much. It's more glasses than two people need, and it's on the tip of his tongue to ask Rin whether she has all these glasses in anticipation of guests or in the hope of them.
Instead, he reaches forward to snag them a pair of glasses, then heading off to the living room. At least he's not going to have to mess around with a corkscrew, since the bottle opens easily with a twist of his hand. ]
So, why exactly do you think you need to keep yourself calm now? [ He is, of course, referring to her initial message. ]
I don't think I need something to calm myself down, Mister Bradbury. [ Her arrogance is overwhelming today as she watches him, leaning against the counter lazily. ] I know that I need it because a lot has been on my mind.
I rather not think anymore.
[ Every time she does, she's torn between feeling guilty and irresponsible. A rotten mixture that does nothing for what kind heart she used to have. ]
[ Did he really just ask a teenager girl if she wants to talk about her feelings? Closing the distance, she snatches the glass quickly into her hands. ]
I killed a man. [ And then she's downing the whole glass as if that will help get her drunk faster. ]
[ It's a good thing she grabbed the glass from him, or else he would've dropped it. Regardless, though the shock on his face is clear, he seems less concerned about the act -- he knows Rin's capable of killing (though, he thinks, she seems to be a lot better at getting killed) -- than the fact that she clearly isn't coping well with it.
He almost asks if it was Archer, then decides that's a stupid thing to ask. Instead, he shakes his head. ]
Take it easy on that stuff. [ Not that it will get her drunk, but he's afraid she'll choke. ] What happened?
It was that guy I spoke about on the network before. [ Pulling the empty glass away with a scowl. ] You know, the lizard man.
[ She didn't seem so upset about it when she first mentioned it, but now it's hitting her? In her mind, she's trying to think of a good way to mention the other man she's killed. Instead, she changes the subject by holding up the glass to the light in the room. ]
Anyway, are you certain this is alcohol? It tastes just like juice.
[ Now that she mentions it, he does seem to remember her saying something like that. There's a stab of guilt, quick and sharp -- he really needs to be paying better attention to this thing. But though he's a little fuzzy on the details, he's pretty sure he can't afford to let Rin realize something's wrong, so he's quick to distract her: ]
It'll hit you later. Anyway, that was a couple of weeks ago, wasn't it? [ She's being evasive, but so is he. That said, she seems to have a lot more to hide than he does, and he frowns. ]
[ Why does he want to know? Not that she suspects that he's the type of man to gossip carelessly, but he just might start doing so at the expense of her comfort. ]
Why does it matter? It happened and that's the important part, don't you agree? Talking about the specifics is a bit morbid.
[ He scratches at his cheek -- he's feeling a bit of stubble there, is going to need to shave tomorrow -- and shrugs, looking away. ]
I used to be a cop. Things like that matter. Whether it was self-defense, or whether you attacked first. Whether you used unnecessarily cruelty, or if you did it quick. Whether you planned it or you didn't. [ He turns his head just enough to glance at her, brow raised. ]
Lets the jury decide if you're guilty or not. Not that it makes you feel better if you believe you are.
[ Her question is abrupt, but she doesn't seem frightened by the idea. Maybe it'd be nice to be punished for not only one death, but another. She's experienced dying so she knows what it feels like to have to go through with it, yet she was still able to raise her hands to take lives swiftly. ]
Archer won't be comfortable with that. He might even attack you to keep you from doing that--you know that's the purpose of having a Servant, right? Even if they lock me up, he'll break me out and kill as many people as it takes to free me.
Even if you asked him not to? [ That leaves the question of whether she'd deliver such an order or not, but... best to leave that train of thought behind before they can dwell on it. ]
It's not my place to make that call. Can't go to court without clean hands, and all that.[ He shrugs. ]
I'm not sure if you've noticed, but Archer is a disobedient Servant. I tell him to sit and he does, only after he's finished doing what he wants and he decides it's a good time to sit. In short, he'll inevitably do as I ask on his own time.
It's rather troublesome and I rather not see more blood shed because I decided to kill a priest.
[ She slips up on that. Wasn't she talking about a monster and now it's a priest. ]
[ It's... a pretty big leap there, but Bradbury decides he can roll with it. It's what he's interested in, after all, more than whatever messed up web of loyalties and emotions make up the thing that connects Archer and Rin. ]
You must have had a good reason to kill him. [ More curiously, though... ] Why couldn't you just ask Archer to do it?
Would that have made it any different? A death by his hands is a death by my own seeing as he's my Servant. It'd be irresponsible for me to think otherwise.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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It might be nice to indulge that way then.
You can come over.
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i'll drop by after work.
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Just so I know when to expect you, that's all.
You might be one of those guys who works until three in the morning and by then I'll be asleep.
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I'll expect you then.
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Besides, Rin didn't think he was really going to serve alcohol to a minor, did she? He knocks on the door and waits for her to let him in. ]
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[ As if she's forgotten already that she asked to come by. ]
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Hey. [ He holds up the bottle. ] You want some of this, or not? [ He doesn't wait for her to respond before he's attempting to step past, gaining entrance before he can be thrown out. ]
Archer still at work? [ He's not sure if they still live together or not, but it seems likely. ]
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[ She doesn't care how bad the impression she gives is (what with Archer talking to teenager girls all the time) or for her manners as she shuts the door behind him. ]
He doesn't live here anyway. [ Pointing a finger towards a door in the wall that shouldn't be there in these apartments. ] He lives in there and no, it isn't a closet.
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Guess he's gonna have to miss out. [ Though given Archer seems a bit of a lightweight the last few times Bradbury saw him, he thinks he'd likely refuse the chance of a drink anyway. ]
You got any wine glasses, or are you fine drinking out of -- [ He casts his eye warily over the kitchen. ] --mugs?
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[ As well as teacups and every other useless kitchen utensil in the world. Even if it's never been used, they somehow have it due to a Certain Someone who fancies the kitchen and if he's not responsible, it's Rin herself who arguably just buys things that look wealthy enough. ]
Here, I'll show you. [ Strolling across the apartment into the tinier kitchen, she's pulling open one of the cupboards to reveal an array of glasses, most of which haven't been touched. ] Wine glasses, right here.
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Instead, he reaches forward to snag them a pair of glasses, then heading off to the living room. At least he's not going to have to mess around with a corkscrew, since the bottle opens easily with a twist of his hand. ]
So, why exactly do you think you need to keep yourself calm now? [ He is, of course, referring to her initial message. ]
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I rather not think anymore.
[ Every time she does, she's torn between feeling guilty and irresponsible. A rotten mixture that does nothing for what kind heart she used to have. ]
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You wanna talk about it?
[ He's taken a seat on the couch, and he's already topped up a glass for her, holding it out expectantly. ]
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I killed a man. [ And then she's downing the whole glass as if that will help get her drunk faster. ]
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He almost asks if it was Archer, then decides that's a stupid thing to ask. Instead, he shakes his head. ]
Take it easy on that stuff. [ Not that it will get her drunk, but he's afraid she'll choke. ] What happened?
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[ She didn't seem so upset about it when she first mentioned it, but now it's hitting her? In her mind, she's trying to think of a good way to mention the other man she's killed. Instead, she changes the subject by holding up the glass to the light in the room. ]
Anyway, are you certain this is alcohol? It tastes just like juice.
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It'll hit you later. Anyway, that was a couple of weeks ago, wasn't it? [ She's being evasive, but so is he. That said, she seems to have a lot more to hide than he does, and he frowns. ]
How'd it happen?
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Why does it matter? It happened and that's the important part, don't you agree? Talking about the specifics is a bit morbid.
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I used to be a cop. Things like that matter. Whether it was self-defense, or whether you attacked first. Whether you used unnecessarily cruelty, or if you did it quick. Whether you planned it or you didn't. [ He turns his head just enough to glance at her, brow raised. ]
Lets the jury decide if you're guilty or not. Not that it makes you feel better if you believe you are.
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[ Her question is abrupt, but she doesn't seem frightened by the idea. Maybe it'd be nice to be punished for not only one death, but another. She's experienced dying so she knows what it feels like to have to go through with it, yet she was still able to raise her hands to take lives swiftly. ]
Archer won't be comfortable with that. He might even attack you to keep you from doing that--you know that's the purpose of having a Servant, right? Even if they lock me up, he'll break me out and kill as many people as it takes to free me.
That's just what will happen.
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It's not my place to make that call. Can't go to court without clean hands, and all that.[ He shrugs. ]
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It's rather troublesome and I rather not see more blood shed because I decided to kill a priest.
[ She slips up on that. Wasn't she talking about a monster and now it's a priest. ]
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You must have had a good reason to kill him. [ More curiously, though... ] Why couldn't you just ask Archer to do it?
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Would that have made it any different? A death by his hands is a death by my own seeing as he's my Servant. It'd be irresponsible for me to think otherwise.
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gdi i thought i replied to this
it's cool we have our threads ALL OVER THE PLACE
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