( what he says is...right. she knows it's right but he doesn't know if she can make herself believe it completely. she doesn't know if she can allow herself not to feel like an abject failure if she doesn't have the answers. )
I know.
( she nods, head falling forward to give herself a moment to breath, to get herself back together. )
I expect myself to have all the answers. I'm old, Booker, I've been through every possible situation you can name. But not this. I don't know this.
The universe clearly figured you needed one last surprise, another je ne sais quois.
[ Booker shrugs, watching her and wanting to reach out to give her shoulder a quick squeeze or something, but he doesn't like the empathy bond, doesn't like how it reveals all too much, makes them glow like a goddamned light show.
He sighs. ]
We explore first. [ Maybe get jobs, even. ] Drink next. [ Obviously. ] Answer the questions after. Huh?
( it's a good plan. she wants to have the answers to her questions first but she knows she has to be patient. this is one problem that's not going to be solved with an axe or brute force.
this is a whole new situation that's going to have to be looked at in a totally different way. )
Since when did you get so smart? ( smiling, andy reaches out and taps the side of his head. ) I thought you'd taken too many blows to the head for that to happen.
[ There's a proper laugh this time. Booker shakes his head, glad for the jab, honestly. It's very Andy. It's familiar. It feels normal in a sea of very abnormal circumstances. ]
I wasn't, but thank you for the confirmation if I had any doubts.
I know there's plenty of men and women around who would soothe your wounded ego, I'm sure.
( he wasn't that ugly, he can be rest assured. he was familiar and comfortable and she likes seeing his face on a daily basis. that had been one of the biggest difficulties when he had been exiled, knowing that she wouldn't get to see him.
she swallows and tilts her head, looking over at him. )
Or they would be on my side. That might be even more fun.
When was the last time someone had 'soothed his wounded ego' anyway? Likely much longer than Booker cares to admit, but it has always been his own doing. Emotional attachment with anyone, the kind he'd seen between Joe and Nicky every day, feels like a slow poison lasting the length of a mortal's life. Too long and too short, all at once. ]
Are you trying to make me cry, Andy? Any more of this, and perhaps I might.
( she doesn't actually want to see him cry. she's seen it a few times since they've known each other and each time she feels helpless, just as she does with joe and nicky, to help him. she does her best to comfort and soothe but she can't take away the source of what's caused his tears. )
Hopefully we can both avoid the whole crying there here. I think we'll have...other things to really preoccupy us with that we won't have time to cry.
Oh, I'm sure we will. [ Booker agrees, thinking on how there are way too many things they have yet to understand and figure out before they can even begin to find a way back to their own world.
There is very little room in their busy schedules for crying. ]
And don't forget, there is always drowning our sorrows in alcohol. We will need to get jobs just to afford that alone.
( a job. she knows that she has to get one because she'll be too...out of her mind with boredom without one but the thought of going to an actual job after so long is somewhat strange. )
Do you know the last time I had an actual real job?
( she's not even going to give him time to answer. )
It's been a long damn time. I don't know if I'm cut out for a mail room somewhere.
[ No shame in it, of course, but Booker simply can't imagine Andromache the Scythian — once worshipped as a goddess, who knows nearly every way to kill a man without blinking — sorting envelopes and Amazon packages for minimum wage. ]
What was the last 'actual real' job you had anyway?
( and that's the honest truth. andy isn't really sure what her last job was. she's been doing this for years and years and years. maybe not with the same group but it's always been this.
she sighs, trying to sift through memories to find an answer to booker's question. )
I might have done something when I was younger. Maybe delivering things for my parents? I really can't recall having a legitimate job. I did things for jobs we were on, took employment to get myself into certain situations but I don't know if that counts.
[ It's curious though, makes him realize that there's still a lot about Andy that he doesn't know — even after all these centuries of being a team. She's the boss, the leader; and he is her soldier.
There is a lot he does know and a lot he's seen of her skill, but the minute details, the mundane is somehow still a mystery.
( she chuckles, rubbing a hand over her face and sighing. this is a whole new world for all of them and it's strange to feel off balance. if she hadn't just gone through a world shaking event, she might be a little more excited to explore it but it's hard to be excited right now. )
We'll be okay.
( because they have to be. )
If anything, we'll make you dance for money. Bet that brings it in.
[ All the more reason, perhaps, to try and not be such a self-isolating sad sack. That both he and Andy had enabled each other's dark moods led him to thinking he had done the right thing when he'd done quite the opposite. And for what?
Not that he's going to feign excitement either, but he'll do his goddamned best not to indulge in the hopelessness of the situation - at least not in front of Andy and not to the detriment of his family. Never again. ]
Ah, but you know Joe always was a much better dancer than me.
[ Booker chuckles too, and then completely dead-pan: ]
If you say that, you're going to have to prove it, you know.
( are you really willing to risk that, booker? because she's going to make you do a set in front of her and she's going to judge you. )
I think there's a few clubs in this city that'll take amateurs. You find yourself a club that'll let you tell a few jokes and I'll go and sit front row.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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I know.
( she nods, head falling forward to give herself a moment to breath, to get herself back together. )
I expect myself to have all the answers. I'm old, Booker, I've been through every possible situation you can name. But not this. I don't know this.
( and it's throwing her. )
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[ Booker shrugs, watching her and wanting to reach out to give her shoulder a quick squeeze or something, but he doesn't like the empathy bond, doesn't like how it reveals all too much, makes them glow like a goddamned light show.
He sighs. ]
We explore first. [ Maybe get jobs, even. ] Drink next. [ Obviously. ] Answer the questions after. Huh?
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this is a whole new situation that's going to have to be looked at in a totally different way. )
Since when did you get so smart? ( smiling, andy reaches out and taps the side of his head. ) I thought you'd taken too many blows to the head for that to happen.
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Hey, I have my moments.
[ You know, even after all this time and all this depression. ]
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( so, congratulations and all that. )
You're still an ugly sob, though. Just in case you were curious.
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I wasn't, but thank you for the confirmation if I had any doubts.
[ Beat. ]
Which I don't.
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( he wasn't that ugly, he can be rest assured. he was familiar and comfortable and she likes seeing his face on a daily basis. that had been one of the biggest difficulties when he had been exiled, knowing that she wouldn't get to see him.
she swallows and tilts her head, looking over at him. )
Or they would be on my side. That might be even more fun.
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When was the last time someone had 'soothed his wounded ego' anyway? Likely much longer than Booker cares to admit, but it has always been his own doing. Emotional attachment with anyone, the kind he'd seen between Joe and Nicky every day, feels like a slow poison lasting the length of a mortal's life. Too long and too short, all at once. ]
Are you trying to make me cry, Andy? Any more of this, and perhaps I might.
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( she doesn't actually want him to cry. she wants him to be at peace and be content but she knows that's asking a lot.
still, she thinks a light conversation like this is a good start. )
Do you get snot everywhere while you cry?
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[ Actually, yeah, it kind of is. There isn't a lot of snot, really, but it's a miserable thing to see anyway. Crying is no fun.
Still, his mouth is twisted into amusement. ]
But perhaps we should stop talking about my tears, huh?
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( she doesn't actually want to see him cry. she's seen it a few times since they've known each other and each time she feels helpless, just as she does with joe and nicky, to help him. she does her best to comfort and soothe but she can't take away the source of what's caused his tears. )
Hopefully we can both avoid the whole crying there here. I think we'll have...other things to really preoccupy us with that we won't have time to cry.
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There is very little room in their busy schedules for crying. ]
And don't forget, there is always drowning our sorrows in alcohol. We will need to get jobs just to afford that alone.
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Do you know the last time I had an actual real job?
( she's not even going to give him time to answer. )
It's been a long damn time. I don't know if I'm cut out for a mail room somewhere.
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[ No shame in it, of course, but Booker simply can't imagine Andromache the Scythian — once worshipped as a goddess, who knows nearly every way to kill a man without blinking — sorting envelopes and Amazon packages for minimum wage. ]
What was the last 'actual real' job you had anyway?
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( and that's the honest truth. andy isn't really sure what her last job was. she's been doing this for years and years and years. maybe not with the same group but it's always been this.
she sighs, trying to sift through memories to find an answer to booker's question. )
I might have done something when I was younger. Maybe delivering things for my parents? I really can't recall having a legitimate job. I did things for jobs we were on, took employment to get myself into certain situations but I don't know if that counts.
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[ It's curious though, makes him realize that there's still a lot about Andy that he doesn't know — even after all these centuries of being a team. She's the boss, the leader; and he is her soldier.
There is a lot he does know and a lot he's seen of her skill, but the minute details, the mundane is somehow still a mystery.
Booker shrugs. ]
Well, you know what I did.
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( she chuckles, rubbing a hand over her face and sighing. this is a whole new world for all of them and it's strange to feel off balance. if she hadn't just gone through a world shaking event, she might be a little more excited to explore it but it's hard to be excited right now. )
We'll be okay.
( because they have to be. )
If anything, we'll make you dance for money. Bet that brings it in.
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Not that he's going to feign excitement either, but he'll do his goddamned best not to indulge in the hopelessness of the situation - at least not in front of Andy and not to the detriment of his family. Never again. ]
Ah, but you know Joe always was a much better dancer than me.
[ Booker chuckles too, and then completely dead-pan: ]
Clearly my talent lies in stand-up comedy.
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( are you really willing to risk that, booker? because she's going to make you do a set in front of her and she's going to judge you. )
I think there's a few clubs in this city that'll take amateurs. You find yourself a club that'll let you tell a few jokes and I'll go and sit front row.