|: 014. Video : When the Music's Over, But the Song Stays in Your Head :|

[andyougoleft]

     [ Public ]

     So, I've seen how these sorts of questions go over around here.  I know I'm opening myself up to a lot of troll answers, and angry defensiveness, and cagey suspicion, and this is me saying I'm okay with whatever comes my way.  Bring it on.  Because at least one of you is going to give me a straight answer, and I guess...

     [Slevin is sitting in his room talking to the communicator, toying with something in his hands.  It flashes gold just at the edge of the view screen when he hesitates to look down at it, takes a breath, continues anyway:]

     I guess that's what I need.  Just one.  So: what was the worst thing you ever lost?

     And how did you decide to handle it?  


     [ Private : Chris D'Amico ]

     You were right.  I'm an asshole, but I can at least admit when I made a mistake.

Comments

[Private]

[mistconduct]

Can't blame me for trying to squeeze that one out of you.


...What do you think you're talking about?

[Private]

[andyougoleft]

Huh uh. Nope. You failed to ask before I did.

[Private]

[mistconduct]

I'm thinking this is about that conversation Cassel pulled me into where you were depressing the fuck out of yourself.

[Private]

[andyougoleft]

I pulled you into that conversation to dig Cassel out of the depression he was digging himself into, not the other way around.

[Private]

[mistconduct]

Aw, it's the Who-Rescued-Who tale of the handicapped retarded puppy and the aged blind veteran.

[Private]

[andyougoleft]

That's so easy I'm not even going to take it.

Forget about it.

[Private]

[mistconduct]

No, I'm sorry, come on. Serious time now.

What were you thinking about?

[Private]

[andyougoleft]

My file.

[Private]

[mistconduct]

Oh. We're talking way back. Okay.

Yeah, that kind of threw me.

[Private]

[andyougoleft]

I don't know if you've noticed, but sometimes it takes me a minute to get around to something.

[Private]

[mistconduct]

I did notice.


I didn't abuse the file.

[Private]

[andyougoleft]

I know. That wasn't the point, then.

It wouldn't have been the point if you had.

[Private]

[mistconduct]

What was the point? To you.

[Private]

[andyougoleft]

Protection.

For them, not for me. I mean a little for me, but...

I make my living off of information. If someone like me has it on you, you're dead. If no one has it, then... no one has it.

[Private]

[mistconduct]

That was pretty noble of you. Quick-thinking, too. I guess I get why you'd do it.

[Private]

[andyougoleft]

Noble. [Slevin snorts.] Don't bullshit me.

I'm still not sure what to do with any of it. You're not the one they need protected from.

Well. She needs protected from. Goodkat's got bigger problems than me. I'm easy to solve.

[Private]

[mistconduct]

I'm not. I'm just saying it was cool.

Dude, you gotta tell her what you are.

[Private]

[andyougoleft]

I did. I told her what I do - most of it anyway, there wasn't a lot of time - and I told her who Goodkat is, what he was going to do.

I've been lying to her as long as I've known her and I asked her to trust me to save her life. Who would actually do that, Chris? What completely normal person wouldn't just go to the cops or decide I'm off my meds?

[Private]

[mistconduct]

Well, that's pretty obvious; someone who's not completely normal. Someone who might actually have the stamina to keep up with you, I guess.

[Private]

[andyougoleft]

[His instinct is to scowl, or at least frown, and he starts to.

Then, abruptly, he laughs. Just a small, short one, as surprised by it as anyone hearing it might be.]

I think I'd have to keep up with her.

[Private]

[mistconduct]

[Completely startled by the laugh, Chris hesitates, but then grins back all the same]

Is it really that bad? I mean, otherwise you'd probably get bored.

[Private]

[andyougoleft]

Not bad. I'm just not used to it.

Barring the occasional interstellar kidnapping, there aren't many people that can put me on my ass in a conversation.

[Private]

[mistconduct]

I guess you don't get practiced at smalltalk in your line of work, huh?

Do you have any hobbies?

[Private]

[andyougoleft]

On the contrary, smalltalk is a large part of what I do. I'm excellent at smalltalk when I want to be. I'm the conman out front, remember?

Model airplanes. Kind of fell off it a bit recently, but there it is.

[Private]

[mistconduct]

No, but I mean legit smalltalk. Where you're not playing a role or trying to get something, you're just. Chilling, I guess.

You're fucking with me.