Room 322, Sunday Night

[not_every_mage]

It had been barely more than 48 hours since Anders was last in this room, this safe space that was bright with Rapunzel's paints and littered with his own clothes and books. It felt like it might as well have been years. When he'd left, he could be flip about killing because he hadn't needed to do much of it, not enough to make it real. Now he'd done more than he had expected outside a war. (He didn't feel all that bad about it. Deep down, he wondered if that were a problem.)

In Rapture, he'd been fueled by potions and adrenaline -- too tightly wound by the situation to sleep, to rest, to eat more than a mouthful or so when they'd had the chance. It had gotten him through the horror of it all, and Nathan's pizza had helped dull the gnawing in his stomach. But now ... now he felt, all at once, as if he'd die on his feet if he didn't lie down immediately.

He took off his boots and sprawled on his bed. Drifting with his eyes closed, he imagined what would happen if he took the same crew back to Thedas.

The templars would never see them coming.

[OOC:Closed door, open post!]

Comments

[not_every_mage]

"Fair," Anders agreed, and reached for a handshake. "And I'm going to bother you again about going with you sometime."

[spin_kick_snap]

"I'm looking forward to it," Kathy said. "But we're gonna have to run across some rooftops on the island first, okay?"

She really liked Anders and didn't want him to go splat the first night they went out.

Giving him a hesitant grin, she added, "I don't suppose you'd mind if I put you on speed dial in case I get hurt, would you? I mean, I don't want to assume or impose on you, but..."

Hospitals and things would probably ask all sorts of uncomfortable questions.

[not_every_mage]

Anders appreciated the anti-splat concern. Truly.

"All right," he conceded. "And yes, of course, call anytime. I'm probably faster than the hospital would be, and I won't ask a thousand questions."

Unless it amused him. But that went without saying.

[spin_kick_snap]

"Even if you did, you wouldn't follow them up by calling the cops. Or worse, my parents." Yeah, there was no way she'd wanted to explain to any of those people why she was in the hospital after getting caught up in a gang fight or something.

"You can ask all the questions you want and make fun of me besides, for that."

[not_every_mage]

"You're so good to me," Anders teased, with a lazy smile. "I won't make fun of you. Too much. I didn't make fun of Eleanor, and she broke Joker's hand."

[spin_kick_snap]

"Broke Joker's hand?!" Kathy knew her little brother was fragile, but couldn't imagine how Eleanor could have broken him--literally. "What happened? Did she, like, step on him by accident?"

What could Eleanor have done to break Joker's hand that would be funny?

[not_every_mage]

"It was in bed but I didn't ask for the details," Anders told her. "Maybe she did step on him. Who knows what people get up to?"

To him, any sex-related injury was funny.

[spin_kick_snap]

And now Kathy was bright red. "Anders!" she scolded. "You shouldn't tell me that! That's personal! And private! And--and--how did she even do that? No! Don't tell me! It's none of my business!"

She clapped her hands over her ears, as if Anders was about to start waxing poetic about how one could routinely break someone else's hand during foreplay. Or sex. Or whatever.

"Oh my gosh, if that ever happens to me, I'm swearing off sex entirely and joining a convent."

[not_every_mage]

Anders' first thought, which was to point out that Kathy wasn't having sex at all anyhow as far as he knew, seemed unlikely to help the situation.

"I -- didn't think about it that way," he admitted. "You're right, though. I shouldn't go sharing my friends' mishaps. Even the funny ones."

[spin_kick_snap]

Well, not right now! But it could happen! One day! Theoretically!

...She hoped.

"Yeah," she said, sticking her tongue out at him. "What if you were in bed with someone and someone's...something...broke!"

Which she was steadfastly not going to picture, because Anders was her friend and perving on him was not okay. Even if her imagination did have him looking delightful, all bare-chested and tousle-haired, with the sheet wrapped around his waist...

Wait, where was she going with this again?

[not_every_mage]

"Fall out of bed laughing and then heal them up," Anders said promptly, although he likely wouldn't be so callous in reality. "But I've never broken anyone I slept with. Perfect record."

... not that he'd exactly slept with that many people, but hush.

[spin_kick_snap]

"Ooooh, you have?" Kathy asked. "I mean, slept with, not broken. Obviously you haven't broken anyone, you just said so. I just didn't know that you weren't--that you had--not that it's my business or anything!--Didn't you say something about cake, earlier?"

Help her out here, Anders. Kathy was about to commit death-by-flail.

[not_every_mage]

"I did, but I don't have it," Anders said apologetically. "I do have Oreos. Do you want some?"


He definitely wanted some, so he rummaged under his bed for the package. As he did, he said -- "No great love stories, I'm afraid. There just weren't a lot of other things to do in the Tower."

He'd spare Kathy his theory about easy-access robes.

[spin_kick_snap]

Kathy would appreciate it, if for no other reason than because that was not what she needed to be thinking about when she saw Anders in his.

"Oreos would be awesome," she said. They were something to do with her mouth that wasn't babbling! Yay!

"You know, I'm almost surprised we don't get more of that here. Unless we do and I'm just totally out of the loop. Which could happen."

[not_every_mage]

"I think people just don't announce it," Anders said, passing Kathy the Oreo package once he'd removed his first three. "But maybe I'm wrong and everyone walks around horribly frustrated. Sad, really."

[spin_kick_snap]

"Yeah, but no one has to really announce it. That's what radio is for," Kathy said, sighing. She helped herself to several of Anders' Oreos, resolving to buy him another pack if she ended up eating most of his. "Please tell me that with all the magic and everything your world has, spying squirrels are still weird to you?"

[not_every_mage]

"They're still weird to me," Anders promised her. "If there was ever someone who didn'tthink they were weird ... their world would have to be a very, very interesting place. And not one I want to visit."

[spin_kick_snap]

"I think that the possibility of taking a graded course taught by a bright pink talking pony is even weirder?" Kathy decided, twisting off the top cookie to lick at the cream filling. "But alcoholic, literate, stalker squirrels is probably way more unsettling."

[not_every_mage]

Anders considered it as he devoured his own cookie. "No, we have Qunari and elves and dwarves at home," he decided. "Not that any of them are pink ponies, but I knew there were other intelligent species. Squirrels aren't supposed to be intelligent."

[spin_kick_snap]

"Are ponies?" Kathy asked. She had the standard-fantasy idea of what elves and dwarves were, but Qunari were new. "Because I'm pretty sure I could get used to the idea that I was being taught by a magical elf sorceress than a pink pony. What's a Qunari?"

[not_every_mage]

"I've never seen one in person," Anders admitted, leaning over to steal another cookie. "They're supposed to be eight feet tall and as broad as two men, with skin the color of stones and horns like a bull. Pink ponies are much less intimidating."

[spin_kick_snap]

"I know you have major issues with your world, but I'd love to come and visit sometime," Kathy said, eyes shining. "It's just sounds like everything I grew up reading about in novels. I mean, I know, it's make up of real people and real problems, but..."

Elves and dwarves and magic!

[not_every_mage]

"But they're different real people and real problems," Anders finished. "If it felt like something in a book to me, I'd probably want to go there too."

Quietly, he added, "If I could take you just to see it, I would. I'd even show you the bits that aren't covered in animal shit."

[spin_kick_snap]

"You do know how to treat a lady," Kathy said, resting her head on his shoulder. "Out of curiosity, if we're skipping out on those parts, how much of your world do I get to see?"

[not_every_mage]

Anders' hand moved to comfortably rest around her waist. "Enough," he protested. "We'd just have to stay away from slums, docks, and markets after 10 o'clock or so. And off farms."