You're all my friends

[totallytrustworthy]

Date & Time: Before groundhogging it or after depending on preference
Location: Exsilium proper/ wilderness/ various
Characters: Chloe Frazer and you as a fond farewell
Summary: a year and a half of thievery and trouble hits its last few notes
Warnings: VIOLENCE some of it

A: E x s i l i u m 

She's back to normal now. Residual lacquer stuck to her nails, hair still neatly trimmed at the edges and her trousers aren't the dirt-stained mess left behind of a little over a year's worth of close calls and fire fights, but she is herself again, and whatever magic that Facilier had carefully stuck in under her skin with a few nice words and a friendly gesture have-- for the most part-- been shaken off. Which is to say it's almost dysphoric having to readjust after being recalibrated so completely that even her old routines and habits feel unfamiliar: walking to the market to trade off another batch of heavy (only slightly roughed-up) furs is something more akin to watching video of the ground shifting forward, of footsteps in the snow and crowds filtering off out of focus.

Doesn't feel like there's weight in her arms or the sting of bitter cold on her cheeks.

Doesn't even feel like she's capable of recognizing any of the familiar faces she passes-- and she does pass them: without a second thought or even the uncertain shift of her attention that comes from purposefully dodging someone close.

How bloody rude. Particularly when she's not careful enough to keep from clipping the occasional passerby.


B: E x s i l i u m   w i l d s

This, though. This is where she flourishes. These days, anyway. After too much time spent snagged on emotions and vital decisions, solitude and silent snowfall are more comforting than things like central heating or idle banter. Simple tasks are easy to fixate on (pull wire, wrap twig, bend branch, insert bait and wait), numbing pinpricks running just under layers of insulated clothing precede pain from too many hours of it spent out in the cold. Veins going tight in an effort to cling to any remaining heat. Unappealing, unattractive, inhospitable work.

And Chloe's smiling to herself through the chilled cracks of her frost-split lip as she goes about it.

Not that most people would feel right at home in a yeti-infested wilderness.

C: Wildcard

OOC: pick a different scenario or location, whichever suits you best, and we'll make it happen!



 

Comments

[totallytrustworthy]

She stops for a moment. Blinks at that.

"You're moving into the city proper? Never thought I'd see the day." But judging by the wary, faint smile at the edge of her collar, she's glad to hear it. "Try not to destroy it all, would you?"

[cyphered]

He keeps walking even after she stops, because he senses that look she's giving him.

"Seemed like an ok idea," he adds awkwardly, shrugging. He could never stay tied down to one place for too long, that wasn't a secret, but the activity level gave him something to do. Things to steal. Culture to learn.

Until he inevitably figured it all out, got bored, and left again. Before that sinks in too deep, he throws a smirk back at Chloe's comment.

"Trying to bridge the gap, not widen it."

[totallytrustworthy]

Which surprisingly enough gets a laugh out of her. Something genuine. Easy.

"Mm. Maybe you'll be the one to patch up the damage I've done for a change."

[cyphered]

"Wouldn't that be something?" he scoffs in return, expertly sidestepping a woman he nearly ran into. He's obviously not paying any attention to where he's going. "I'm not sure what's more impressive. The fact that I'm fixing anything, or the fact that you would be letting me fix it."

He pauses.

"Letting me try to fix it."

Because he knows Chloe will call him out on that pretty quickly.

[totallytrustworthy]

"Suppose it would be." Huffed out under the edge of a smile before his near-collision. He might never believe it-- never has believed it-- but the truth of the matter is that she's always held out hope for him. That she wouldn't have been so disappointed in Syria if that wasn't the case. "Just mind where you step for once and you might actually have a shot at it."


"A very far, difficult shot."

[cyphered]

"Watch my step? Come on, that takes half the fun out of everything. That's what I've got you, Sully and Charlie for, right?" he adds playfully, stopping once he reaches the next crossroad to let Chloe catch up to him. And also to keep him from accidentally tripping into oncoming traffic.

"Ouch," he adds, feigning a wince. "Tough crowd."

Not for much longer, Nate :')

[totallytrustworthy]

"Oh like we ever stop you from falling on your ass and taking the whole bloody world with you." Her elbow clips him (intentionally) once she catches up enough to press ahead. Banter's a good distraction; falling in step with him just means that it's something familiar as well.

"I hear nuclear winter does something to your sense of humor."

FUCKIN RUDE

[cyphered]

"Well, step it up then, you've got a job to do," he adds with a needlessly dramatic 'oof' when she clips him.

"Yeah? Well, I think I caught the ever-elusive Frazer smirk once or twice on the walk over here." Actually, if he thought about it, it was probably the most he's seen her grin since they arrived. They spent so much of the first month or so being awkward that by the time they made landfall, they had both drifted a bit.

Maybe she was onto something about nuclear winter.

[totallytrustworthy]

"It's only elusive when we're fighting for our lives." Some part of this still has her wondering if this isn't dangerous ground. If given the distance and years between them that she ought to still be keeping him at arm's length.

Bugger it. For once, she's going to let it lie and enjoy herself. Christ knows she damn well needs it right now.

[cyphered]

"So basically always, is what you're saying."

Its added matter-of-factly. At this point, he's happy to let Chloe lead. He's all but stopped paying attention to where he's going. Having familiar contact and conversation is a lot rarer than it used to be, and not just based on distance. There's a lot of factors keeping him from reaching out to his 'crew', so to speak -- but at his core, Nate is much more social than he likes to admit.

So even if half the conversation is poking fun at his competency, he'll take it.

[totallytrustworthy]

"Hello, earth to Nate, I don't always live in collapsing ruins, you know." The look she tosses him is pointed despite the broad, toothy grin she's wearing. Briefly interrupted only by the need to duck in between a few passing-- wary-- pedestrians. Safe to say her reputation's now permanently damaged. "Or underground cities, or civil war torn countries or...."

[cyphered]

"I'd say you could have fooled me, but I've been to a few of those other living spaces," he adds a bit too smugly, like he's winning some invisible argument. Chloe may be ahead of him, but its not hard to picture the smart-assed cock of his eyebrow, and the slant of his smirk when he says it. "Between you and me, the collapsing ruins have better charm."

[totallytrustworthy]

Oh now that's just not fair. She flattens her smile briefly, tossing out a low 'tch' against the backs of her front teeth before bothering to respond. "Hey now, they might not've been five star but some of those rooms were well worth it."

Can't dock the view of a city skyline or endless Himalayan mountains at dawn. Doesn't excuse the cockroaches or springs too flat to do anything but dig in between ribs, but it's better than cozy little picket fences day in and day out.

Christ. The thought leaves an even more bitter taste in her mouth thanks to recent events.

[cyphered]

He doesn't get lost in the train of thought. How could he? Nate knows better by now. He just chuckles at her comment and shakes his head a little. "Some of them," he agrees. "But I bet you ten bucks you've never conned your way into a five star more than once."

He'll give her ass the benefit of the doubt and give her the once, because he's not a complete ass. In truth, he still has only half an idea as to what she and Charlie had been up to here in Exsilium while he was...doing whatever he was doing. Time travel still made zero sense to him.

And that was ignoring the fact that he (and Elena) had been here once before, and that he had no memory of it.

[totallytrustworthy]

"You don't even have ten bucks to bet." Which is the best defense against her knee jerk reaction which is to tell him exactly how many times she's done it and precisely how well.

Meaning she'd miss a shot at ten dollars.

[cyphered]

There's a brief pause. "Ok yeah, so what?" he blurts somewhat abruptly. "Its not like anyone's keeping score."

[totallytrustworthy]

"Oh so that's not what this is about?" Insert one look of feigned surprise here. "And here I thought you were looking for yet another win to stash away in that belt of yours."

[cyphered]

"Could you blame me? Its a sad looking belt sometimes," he chuckles, finally slowing his pace once he catches up to her again. "Don't tell Sully I said that, I'll never hear the end of it."

[totallytrustworthy]

"Believe me, after the month we've had he and I are going to be skipping the touchier subjects."

Nathan Drake's belt: a touchy subject.

[cyphered]

Nate starts to laugh, but some thought trips him up and he has to stop and ask himself who its a touchy subject for (besides himself) and also why.

Just as he's about to ask for clarification, he decides he doesn't want to know and shakes his head. "Well, at least the month is almost over, right? Who knows. Maybe they'll pick somewhere warm next time. Somewhere warm that isn't a volcano or the sun."

Because knowing their transportation habits...

[totallytrustworthy]

These days? There's little that isn't between them-- at least as far as Chloe's concerned. Disaster's keen to put a strain on their relationship, and considering the fact that it's all been a solid chain since his arrival, she can't blame Victor for feeling a touch wary of what she throws his way.

"Well I hear hell's nice this time of year."

[cyphered]

Nate laughs a bit awkwardly at that, making a bit of a face. Nobody is a fan of facing their own mortality, after all -- especially not after all the close calls he's been through.

He knows she isn't threatening him, but something in the back of his head flinches anyway.

"Hasn't been all that long since my last visit," he reminds her, waving a very 'no fucking thank you' hand with a bit of a forced scoff. "And its got some special screening requirements that I'm missing and not looking to meet again anytime soon."

It comes out a little more clipped than he means for it to, but he's still a bit sore about his last close call. He didn't have enough to show for his life to walk into any sort of waiting afterlife (or lack there of).

[totallytrustworthy]

"Darling, you'll be fine. Trust me." Doesn't take a genius or a psychiatrist to follow what has him all tense at the seams, after all; she's careful to look at him when she says it.

"You always are."

[cyphered]

His expression is mixed as ever when she happens to look at him -- a bit of offense, a bit of relief, some discomfort and a bit of sudden exhaustion. Whatever thought has him preoccupied eventually flutters off, and Nate's signature light smile of surrender fixes itself on his face.

"Always am," he echoes. He moves the weight to his other arm and cuffs her lightly with his now-free-hand as he strides forward again. "Still not going though."

[totallytrustworthy]

It's welcome contact, expressed without hesitation through one light huff as he brushes past. "Please." If she took her coffee the way she took her humor, it'd be black and bitter and bleak as anything. "You can't expect me to believe that when you habitually keep one foot out the door."