ardenrue

[ardenrue]

Gold knocking - banging, really, booms that echo in the (still) relative emptiness of your rooms - on your door in the middle of the night has never really been a scenario you played out in your head before.  But as you unlatch the chain and the man brushes past with a curt, "We need to talk." surprising strength to his wiry form, well, there's no real way to deny that this is happening.

blood on his shirt

"Regina. God. Magic. I don't know." "I don't care." you amend, bitter to your own ears, spitting the words, "The end result is the same. Look, do you want a drink or something?"

Gold seems taken aback by the question.  Maybe no one's asked it before.  but it's the middle of the night, and he's got this memory in his head of what he told Emma once

he's a lonely old man with no family too much money

at the time it had been true.  May yet still be.  To a  degree.

-

Gold.  the part of him that is Graham thinks.  But the voice is fading.  And so is The Huntsman. 

-

The next time he wakes he is aware of two things.  The first: that it is night.  The second: Wolf is with him, heavy on his chest.

-

When they find him in the forest, Graham is really only aware of two things.  The first, that it is night.  The second is the presence of Wolf, his head heavy on 

-

They find him in the forest, well after nightfall, passed out and naked.  The only that saves him for subcomming to hypothermia, Dr. Whale will later inform him, was likely the fact that Wolf was with him.  

[ardenrue]

Fathers will always steer their daughters wrong in some way or another.  With exactly zero practice Charming really can't be blamed for his mistake.  Or the one where (Charming is unobservant and) Emma Swan finds her Happily Ever After right where she is.

The first thing he missed was Snow's face.  The way she had paused 

"Oh," she had breathed, "That's..."

And 

She trips over him.

Running full tilt, bursting through the last bits of shrubbery, the tip of Red’s jogging shoe catches the prone figure in the gut and sends the she-wolf flying. It’s really only luck that saves her from braining herself on the well.

He squints, “Ruby?”

“Are we - am I - what am I doing here?”

she doesn’t even have a scarf to give him.

The little voice in Red that remains Ruby quietly observes that she’s had fantasies just like this. (But this probably isn’t the time to dwell on that given the whole threat of oncoming hypohtmeria and all.)

Well. Just like this sans the whole threat of oncoming hypothermia and all.

hospital door leading to forest

-

“Another tourist?”

“Not exactly.”

Whale opens the door and Emma gets her first look at the figure sleeping in the bed.

Then she leaves.

-

There’s a directness to his gaze that wasn’t there before. New edges that Emma was not aware of, sharp enough to cut herself on.

“I really don’t think this is necessary.” raises wrist with cuffs

“You’re wearing my badge.”

“I’m sheriff.”

“What about the cruiser?”

“It’s the only one we’ve got.”

”Do you use my office?”

“My office. And yes because I’m sheriff.”

- “The day I returned without snows heart is the day she took mine. I have been belonging to someone else for so long that I do not know how to be myself. But I can’t live like this half tamed creature, hating its cage but fearing the unknown something idk but basically g has to figure out who the hell he is and how to get on with his life ect ect

- He leaves the damp towel on the bathroom floor. Too tired and too unmotivated to be bothered. - Taking a walk. He shrugs a little deeper into the navy windbreaker. He misses his buttons ups and vest. He misses his leather. But that’s not practical or in budget

- On hook, David "he hit me over the head with a crowbar. I can't say I'm particularly fond of him myself"

- G on r "why is she even still," alive. It's on the tip of his tongue and he bits it, "here." And Emma who has dealt with pirates and ogres and Cora "you have NO idea what this town has gone through"

- "No. It's not because you're the savior. It's just YOU, Emma. You're this half wild, feral creature it's what makes you -" he can't think of the words to describe it "There's no coming back from death. That's the one rule all these people have agreed on so how can you be here? How can you be him?"

- Gold "you. You did this." "How?!" "You wanted this." Emma's voice is a hiss, "/of course/ I did."

- Mm "no you didn't see her after she was. She was so quiet. And David I can count on one hand the number of times she's EVER spoken his name since."

- Sum: the impossible happens and Emma Swan wonders why she is keeps being surprised Sum:  And though this town no longer wants or needs a huntsman, this is storybook and the impossible remains an everyday occurrence.  (though he may wish he had stayed dead)  sum: his heart weighs heavy in this town that has no longer requires a huntsman.  but this is storybook and the impossible is something of an everyday occurrence. 

[ardenrue]

The last Mary Margaret sees of Graham is his back.  Is his jacket.  The slice of crimson fabric glowing red as blood.

[ardenrue]

It starts off as something she does to herself. Asking him rhetorical questions to speed along her own thought process. Then the questions get more complicated. And what’s more, he starts asking his own.

- This is the worst one yet. (Well shit. Guess we can add another strike on luteces tally. I’d call this one heads wouldn’t you? Booker. You’re crying. Not now. What about me. What about you. (Her own failure bitter and leaving her feeling mean, she lashes out) HE may have fotton ‘heads’ booker but YOU - you were the one left in an alley with tails. What do you think you did. got tails. The portal closed and you where left standing in an alley with half a child in your arms. What do you think happens to you? So I’m dead. Fantastic. Strung up on my own ceiling fan, most likely. you’re hands were shaking too much to tie a knot. You use the pistol. Fantastic booker repeats. So what now. You said it yourself. We kill the son of a bitch.

What about me What about you Yeah. The one who got tails. What happens. What do you think happens booker. / you would know better than me. Ceiling fan or pistol. Pistol. Your hands shook too much to tie a knot.

-

Something with the luteces. I keep waitin for those to be less annoying and it never happens.

I keep waiting for the day when that isn’t completely annoying. You’re going to be waiting a long time -

The lighthouses are tears. Elizabeth explains that eventually being omniscient turns you into one. Humans weren’t meant to know the things I know. So you see booker. In a thousand worlds, I don’t control it. And it is too much.

-

There’s a difference between defending yourself and finding pleasure in the act.

Sure I do. You got it from me.

I used to think it was fortunate you didn’t take after me. But sometimes kid seeing you standing there. I can’t help but think id rather you inherited my nose than this.

(You know he begins conversationally sometimes i see that bloodlust in you and i think it’s a shame you didn’t inherit my nose indeatd (i start thinking my nose wouldn’t have looked that bad on you) - Voice a whip crack / Hard. Elizabeth! I’m doing this! You can’t stop me, booker. / I made my choice. And you're going to regret it. You shoulda had my nose instead. / you should have fotton my Nose instead What. I’d be a better look on you than bloodlust./ it'd look Better on you than this bloodlust. (I ain't gonna help you on this one.) Fine. (But then Booker's always had trouble keeping his promises)

[ardenrue]

I was already twenty thousand words into (an/this) attempt at an organicly growing romance between booker and Elizabeth before I finished the game. For glaringly obvious reasons, this proved a mistake on my part. So I did the natural thing(. I threw up my hands, screamed "AU!") and wrote another ninty thousand words (of this shit). You’re welcome and in sorry. I am so sorry. Then I wrote another ninth thousand words and here we are firmly planted in AU territory. Accidental incest??? Don’t even know how to tag this tbh

Sum: AU: and now these two broken people are stuck with each other or the one where ( sometimes) a debt is just a debt and the girl is just a girl. AU.

[ardenrue]

Reaches into pack and pulls out a canvas wrapped bundle. Have at it, he tells her. While she works. So hey. What kind of metal is this, don’t think I’ve seen anything like them. Um. Says Elizabeth, focus elsewhere, take a look at the makers mark. Lit eve. You’re joking. He says Say what you will. They made some quality products. Yes fine. But lock picks? Booker I think a person could waste a lot if their trying to figure out why those two do anything. They do. And well. That’s fair enough.

They produced my hairpins too. She volunteers Elizabeth. Did they make these FOR you? That one gives her pause. Then she shrugs. A while ago I would have said of course not. But truth is I never saw the inside of a Columbia shop before you and me were shifting through their waste bins. - Booker- Look I don't know how many times we gotta go through this. You can search the corpses or you can make the corpses but I'm not getting stuck doing both myself. I think that's a fair deal Elizabeth. - You mean we just. Leave? Well there sure as hell ain't any box populous to blame this on so yeah, Elizabeth, we just leave. But first help me scan around and make sure we didn't leave nothing that could be traced back to us.

[ardenrue]

i. The Lighthouse ii. The Man iii. The City iv. The Girl v. The Debt It rains on dec 31 roof rain how the welcome the new year He underestimates the resilience of Elizabeth (and more the fool him for it). I’m used to being only with myself she says. The only difference was that my keepers were activly cruel instead of passively. But that’s not the only difference and she is not unaffected. Booker can tell this from the way she’ll check the temperature of her bath water ten times before she commits. He sees it in the way she sleeps with her back against the wall so no one can sneak up on her. He sees it in the way And he knows whatever they did to her, it was not ‘nothing’. - after her freakout He finally brings himself to ask, "Is it Comstock House that's left you spooked?" "What? No, I -" (and as he feared) the bewilderment in those big eyes is genuine, no way it could be anything but, "That is, I'm - I'm well acquainted when it comes to going without, without friendly folk. the only real difference between Comstock House and my tower was the fact that my keepers were actively cruel as opposed to Songbird's passive negligence." when it comes to friendly folk. first chap maybe The Girl in booker pov? sec The City elizabeth pov, elizabeth getting on a more even keel / booker starts working/ rehabilitating elizabeth into society / booker backslides a little maybe with drink/gambling? hence elizabeth’s request not to come back to the room drunk during nebraska job third 1. booker pov. think about kill / beach / / songbird //torn about putting his neck too far out least the sharks come to gather. he’s been gone six months and that’s six months of interest to his debts. also the columbia evacuees have ended up in the US. he is not sure how well known his name was among the non vox. on the other hand he has no idea how else he is going to find the man who hired him to find elizabeth. / has elizabeth tally up his debts / maybe booker gets nervous + elizabeth is still sort of shell shocked and maybe that is why he takes the nebraska job? does he take nebraska job in this chap? also elizabeth needs clothes and bed 1. flashbacks. beach. sleep. finds irene's dress for her. the room.

Bleatin and jackass line because bookers been gambling and Elizabeth criticizes him for it.

i wasn’t. i didn’t mean. I wasn’t meaning to relate you to any kind of ovine, Elizabeth.

-

Nervous about farmer son because he looks like one of the com stock house docs. Booker tells her at some point how after wounded knee, he saw ghost dancers everywhere.

On ride back booker does not miss the way Elizabeth presses as close to him as possible.

sometimes there ain't the /luxury/ of right and wrong, i did what i had to do Spit and damnation, Elizabeth! (Damnation? Well) But that’s all you are isn’t it booker? Damnation? Just a walking, talking, bleeding (pile) skin of damnation! Damnation and - and monsters in the dark (ghost dancers in the shadows) and god knows what else! (And I will tell you one thing) Well I’ll tell you this mister Dewitt. And she can’t hide the waver I her viice They were right to call you false. (It may be) the only thing com stock ever got right was when he named you false.) (the only thing com stick may have ever fotton right was when he named you false) (damnation? i suppose you'd know as well as anyone about damnation, wouldn't you booker? It's all you are. (Just a walking talking bleeding pile of damnation! Damnation and ghost dancers and - and dead women! (And. And Anna! that one gets him. he jerks his chin up and looks her squarely for the first time since she started her diatribe - Elizabeth. (but she ignores the warning there)(but she is in too much pain to see heed the warning there) Well, I will tell you one thing, Mister DeWitt. Comestock naming you false; that was the one thing (the great prophet ever) he got right.)

When walking at night be sure to mention how cold it is and how Elizabeth’s hands around the lantern even with gloves go numb. This makes the lock picking take longer.

/ Well if one of us is going to be locked in jail with the key thrown away. It’s probably gonna be you. (It’s probably not going to be me) On why booker should learn lock picking - guidelines they put down for each other. booker - you carry your own pack elizabeth - smoke outside. and don’t come back to the room drunk. Like hell I said I wouldn't abounding you Elizabeth. You also said breaking me out wasn't charity. What do you want from me booker?