Kevin & Darcy | Fallout
Jul. 15th, 2023 01:19 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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xp_logsKevin visits Darcy in her room at Helga's to talk about the Quire problem and her reluctance to sleep at the mansion. She's bribed back with pastrami from Sol's and the promise of finally starting sniper training.
Helga had made it clear years ago what her boundaries were with Kevin: he never used his powers to represent her, he never asked her for more information than she was willing to provide, and he waited like everyone else to come up to the fourth floor. So he stood at the elevator until the doors slid open and stepped in. After a few minutes, he was through the tiny lobby and knocking on the edge of the doorframe of one of the guest rooms.
"Come in!" Darcy called out. There were chunky studio quality headphones around her neck, and her laptop had an audio file open but paused. She gave Kevin a brief hint of a smile as he entered the room, closing the lid and pulling her headphones off before setting both to the side. She scooted over, looking up at him expectantly. "You wanted to talk?"
"I wanted to check in." He handed over a carton. "Sol's finest pastrami. Extra pickle. Latkes. I'm apparently now your Jewish mother complaining you don't eat enough."
Check-in made her think of the last time she'd spent more than a single night at Helga's. Her gut churned uncomfortably, but she firmed her mental shielding and kept that light smile on her face. "I mean, you're a bit spry for it but I guess I could call you second gran," she replied, setting the carton to the side. There was no possible way she'd be able to eat right now, but she appreciated the sentiment. "But Helga wouldn't let me starve myself. I've filled the freezer with easy-to-reheats for her and the staff between cooking fresh for all of us."
"Of course not. Helga knows how to treat her people." Kevin said. "You want to offer me a seat?"
"I wouldn't have made room for you if I didn't want you to sit. I could find some paper and a pen, write you one in my pretty cursive?" She moved a little closer to the stand she'd set her laptop on and made a show of slowly patting the seat next to her before gesturing at the chair in the corner. "My place is yours, as always."
"You know Helga's rules." Kevin said, the first bit of mild rebuke in his tone. But he took a seat beside her. "Stacy said her people reacted well to you. They are kind of excited to see you again."
Darcy dipped her head in acknowledgement. Helga was big on verbal consent, even for fairly minor things. It made sense, considering her line of work, but also made for some awkwardness for her, personally. "Stacy's got generally lovely people, and I don't just mean their looks. Getting to interview one of their camera people was pretty rad. I got some fun behind the scenes stories for that one."
"Good. We'll map out a strategy once you've got enough background on all the talent about how best to use the X-Ranch for intel safely." Kevin said as he sat down, unbuttoning his suit jacket doing so. Summer in Manhattan and yet, he was in full suit and tie as always. "You'll need to connect with Stacy and then pitch Colbert and I your suggested approach. There could even be a power point, so you can't say I don't spoil you."
Darcy made grabby hands at his suit jacket, slipping it backwards over her arms before tucking her face into the collar. Her lips quirked up at the reference to making a powerpoint. "I think for now the trickle I get just from being there and being fairly accepted is pretty good. Henry's been helpful for that, of course, and some of the other more staff are more relaxed around me after seeing me be completely relaxed around him and the twins instead of skittish or weirded out. Speaking of intel, apparently there's some sort of new mutant-friendly commune that's sprung up in Oregon. Mostly rumors about the vibe of the place, but the people that've come through from there haven't been ill used or anything, according to Stacy. Decently fed, good health, seemingly enjoyed their time there." She nudged him with her arm. "You always spoil me. Except when you're making me run."
"That's not changing any time soon." He said. "So, do you want to talk about why you're here and not in your own rooms now, or do you want an extra day or two?"
Darcy leaned into his side, stealing as much warmth as she could. "You should've brought drinks for this conversation, not food," she grumbled, curling up tighter in his jacket. "I'm scared. Not during the day, really, because I stand behind my statement that Quire's a coward that typically lacks the conviction to follow through on his words. He's brute force, so if he got through my shields - and I'm sure he could - I think people around me would notice something was wrong at minimum. But when I'm trying to sleep at night? Relax? I can't, because there's not always someone there to know if something's happening, and if there is they're usually sleeping too. My shielding isn't strong, I'm more vulnerable to being messed with. And so I can't relax enough to do more than lightly doze, knowing he's down the hall and potentially able to force his way in while I can't stop him. Cowards are dangerous, they're like cornered animals. You never know when they're going to stop growling and attack. So instead I'm alternating. Naps during the day sometimes at work, at home if he's not there, crashing at Foggy's or here or any couch of a friend's I can surf on for a night or two. Protecting myself. I don't know what his range is, but if he's actually following me enough to reach outside the mansion and I find out, he becomes a direct threat and I'm going to deal with that the way you trained me to." It was a lot to say. Hopefully Kevin would pick out her thought process in there, the need to keep herself safe in any form she could. But talking about it made her tired, and her head dropped to his shoulder. "Helga's got his picture. He's banned from the public club and this side of things."
Kevin didn't say anything for a long moment. Finally, he reached over and tapped the jacket she'd stolen so she could hear the sound of metal. "At the very least, I have drinks." He said with a wry smile, flipping open the lapel to show the flask in the inside jacket pocket.
"As for the rest... I'd say I understand but I really don't. I've dealt with it as a woman at times, but those experiences I can walk away from in a new skin, which you can't. And while I trained you to take care of him as a threat, I also trained you about minimizing risks, so I can't really fault you for doing what I taught you to do. Which I hate, just as an aside." Kevin said finally, poking her on the knee in a very gentle tease. "So, what can we do? Or would you prefer a couple of weeks in the field just to get a little distance."
Darcy grinned despite the seriousness, swiping the flask from his hands and taking a bracing drink before handing it back. "Which part do you hate? That I feel the need, or that being smart about it means reverting back to my weird sleep non-schedule? I've got some ideas that shockingly aren't just tasing him until he's drooling on the carpet while I watch Dog Cops, but all my plans are based around what's being done at the mansion. I mean. I'm not sure what can be done, if anything, but I haven't even seen anyone reprimand him other than that little bit from Clint. If you know about anything, I'd appreciate the intel."
"I hate it when I train people to do the right thing even when I don't like it and then get cheeky with me." He grumped slightly, taking a sip. "I've had a chat with Quire. He knows he can't touch you, but it seemed to get through to him that he could lose... well, everything, just by being Quire. He doesn't realize yet the extent that you or Gibney could destroy him with a few phone calls and filing some paperwork, but I think he knows everything he's got is balanced on the knife edge right now. I'm not discounting your fear, but my read is he cares enough about what he's currently doing to not risk it by being stupid again. But if you want to destroy him, I'm sure you can see the same path I can."
"Aww, you love me," she teased, slipping an arm around his back and squeezing. "Feeling's mutual, Boss." She let the lightness of the feeling buoy her for a moment, before turning back to seriousness. "I know that if Kyle and I went that route we might as well just hand-deliver him to Magneto. Or Essex. Any of a dozen splinter groups that lead back to Magneto. Government disappearance." Darcy sighed, dragging a hand through her hair with her free hand. "As tiresome as I find him, I don't actually want any of that. And I doubt Kyle does either, although of course I can't speak for him. But based on what I know, and how long he stayed willing to hold at least a polite hand out to Laurie... I think I can say it with some confidence. Who knows though? Maybe Quire getting away with still acting like an angry 20 year old pothead with nothing to care about or live for is the straw that breaks someone's back. I know I'm certainly disappointed in the almost total lack of response. I can't help but think if I'd threatened to kill someone, I'd have been tossed out on my ass the same night. And that's a problem, because I'm not in charge of anything here, and Quire's got ownership over a whole fucking team."
"That's actually the issue he's facing. He can't be an utter shitbag and lead a team. He can't say whatever cruel shit he thinks and not face questions and potential defections from his shop. It's a job, not a military post, after all." Kevin said. "Quire fucked himself the second he realized he desperately wanted to be a leader. He wanted to build something, because it means he needs to be worthy of being followed. That's why I don't think he's a threat from my professional perspective. But, you know that, because if I did think he was a threat in my professional perspective, I'd have already taken care of him. And he knows that, in spades."
He shook his head for a moment, chuckling. "You know the ironic thing? Quire makes empty threats. That's one of the reasons why he's weak, because the threats are so obviously bullshit. But you're right, if you made a threat, you'd likely be taken more seriously, because people know that if you threaten to kill someone, you have the training and conviction to do it. You're taken seriously when he isn't is a compliment of your character. So, again, I'll back whatever play you need, and I am not discounting your fear in the slightest, but there's a lot more constraining him than I think you see right now."
"I see it, logically. Funny enough, logic doesn't help me sleep at night." She gave him a wry grin. "Right now my plan's more in the vein of making sleep happen. I've got an appointment set up to talk with Forge, see what we can do on that front without someone locking one of us into The Box every night. I wouldn't say no to Xavier doing an unobtrusive scan, if it's possible. Just to ease my mind a little. I assume grounding him from his TP for a month isn't really a thing we can do, right? Being a flatscan or psi-null or whatever for a few weeks would either shut him up or give me excellent whiny brat entertainment."
"That's up to Xavier but I doubt it." Kevin said, patting her hand. "We'll figure things out in a way that works for you. You've earned that. But... and you knew this was coming, you also need to mend some fences and rebuild some bridges. Quire went way too far, but you also fucked up. I know you know it. But, remember that whole training thing? I expect you to be better and when you're not, I expect you to figure it out. What was the joke? Thus endeth the lesson." He passed back the flask.
Darcy gave him a look. "I've already apologized to Clint for not using my words right. And I'm going to apologize to that Madin person for the part I'm actually regretful about, which is starting at shut the fuck up instead of being diplomatic. I'm not sorry for telling them to put up, or for outlining how they could do that." Her lips pursed tightly, and she took another pull of the flask before continuing. "I don't owe Quire shit, but I'll be at least as professional and civil as he is. You can't ask me to sit back and let him call me a worthless cow and say the only thing I'm useful for is blowing my boyfriends. If he keeps his nasty words in his head and stops undermining me when we have to work together, I'll do the same. If he doesn't, then I'll treat him like the threat he wants to be."
"You should know that I wouldn't expect you to do anything for Quire. He's burned that bridge like he called in a napalm strike." Kevin said. "Like I said, you know the people you need to talk to and the ones you don't. And frankly, you can tell Quire to go fuck himself every day and twice on Sunday. I don't care about that. It is with the people your reaction was over the top that you need to reconcile to at least neutrality."
"Yeah. Like I said, Clint and I have already talked it out. I'm already planning to apologize to Madin. I can't do anything about them accepting it, but I can at least hold out an olive branch. I only offer to be polite because we do work with X-Factor. So I can be professional and polite if he can keep his mouth shut or stay the fuck out of the room. I get along with the rest of their office just fine. Down the road... well. If shit happens and we ended up in the field together, I'd rather not be worrying about whether the bullet's coming at my face or the back of my head." She nudged him in the side. "So, when are you going to start my sniper training again?"
"I'll make you a deal. You come home and I'll not only start your training but guess who's face will be on all the targets?"
"I like that plan. Alternate it with Laurie." Darcy tipped her head back, laughing. "And what's the plan for me sleeping? I'm willing to entertain interim ideas, even though I'm still going to talk to Forge about something long-term."
"We have plenty of relationships in Manhattan. We can swap you out of hotels for the next couple of months if that helps."
Darcy scrunched her face. "If that's the best option, I might as well get a short-term furnished place."
"Really? You don't want to enjoy suites at the St.Regis on an expense account paid for by the Koch brothers?" He said, a lightning quick smile. "How about this? I'm on the other side of the mansion from Quire. Why don't you take my room for a bit? Maya's on one side and that Hope with the astral powers is on the other. One floor up is Maximoff, Sefton and Colbert, and one floor up from them is Doc Grey. Add in my occasional physical presence, full of charm and grace, and it is a place I doubt he'd risk treading. When I'm not there, you're welcome to have Ramsey or Murdock or Inez or... I dunno, whoever else is in your orbit stay with you if it helps. Until Forge can whip up something more protective for your own space."
"How about you send me into the field when you're gone and watch me when you're home, since you don't need as much sleep? You'll have to deal with some of my weird insomnia, but it's nothing you haven't seen before." Darcy countered, finally relaxed enough to grab the container from Sol's and open it. "If we can't match up field work, I'll crash at Foggy's or your work couch, no big."
She set the container between them, eyeing the mound of food inside with some trepidation. "This is for both of us, right?"
"Haven't said no to pastrami in 80 years, not about to start now."
"Good, because I can't eat all this in one sitting." The latkes alone were bigger than her palm, and the sandwich probably had close to a pound of pastrami on it. "Or well, I could, but I haven't been using my powers extensively... that said, if you hear Quire bitching about some annoying quirk of his phone on and off for a while?" She gave him a sly side-eye and a wink, before biting into the latke she'd picked up. Still warm, and she pinched some pastrami for the next bite. "Nothing that will interfere with legit work, I'm not that much of an asshole. But his tunes, his grindr, his ringtones for his pick-ups? That's all fair game. And no consistency either, nothing that can track back to me."
"It's mean, petty, and I couldn't be prouder."
Helga had made it clear years ago what her boundaries were with Kevin: he never used his powers to represent her, he never asked her for more information than she was willing to provide, and he waited like everyone else to come up to the fourth floor. So he stood at the elevator until the doors slid open and stepped in. After a few minutes, he was through the tiny lobby and knocking on the edge of the doorframe of one of the guest rooms.
"Come in!" Darcy called out. There were chunky studio quality headphones around her neck, and her laptop had an audio file open but paused. She gave Kevin a brief hint of a smile as he entered the room, closing the lid and pulling her headphones off before setting both to the side. She scooted over, looking up at him expectantly. "You wanted to talk?"
"I wanted to check in." He handed over a carton. "Sol's finest pastrami. Extra pickle. Latkes. I'm apparently now your Jewish mother complaining you don't eat enough."
Check-in made her think of the last time she'd spent more than a single night at Helga's. Her gut churned uncomfortably, but she firmed her mental shielding and kept that light smile on her face. "I mean, you're a bit spry for it but I guess I could call you second gran," she replied, setting the carton to the side. There was no possible way she'd be able to eat right now, but she appreciated the sentiment. "But Helga wouldn't let me starve myself. I've filled the freezer with easy-to-reheats for her and the staff between cooking fresh for all of us."
"Of course not. Helga knows how to treat her people." Kevin said. "You want to offer me a seat?"
"I wouldn't have made room for you if I didn't want you to sit. I could find some paper and a pen, write you one in my pretty cursive?" She moved a little closer to the stand she'd set her laptop on and made a show of slowly patting the seat next to her before gesturing at the chair in the corner. "My place is yours, as always."
"You know Helga's rules." Kevin said, the first bit of mild rebuke in his tone. But he took a seat beside her. "Stacy said her people reacted well to you. They are kind of excited to see you again."
Darcy dipped her head in acknowledgement. Helga was big on verbal consent, even for fairly minor things. It made sense, considering her line of work, but also made for some awkwardness for her, personally. "Stacy's got generally lovely people, and I don't just mean their looks. Getting to interview one of their camera people was pretty rad. I got some fun behind the scenes stories for that one."
"Good. We'll map out a strategy once you've got enough background on all the talent about how best to use the X-Ranch for intel safely." Kevin said as he sat down, unbuttoning his suit jacket doing so. Summer in Manhattan and yet, he was in full suit and tie as always. "You'll need to connect with Stacy and then pitch Colbert and I your suggested approach. There could even be a power point, so you can't say I don't spoil you."
Darcy made grabby hands at his suit jacket, slipping it backwards over her arms before tucking her face into the collar. Her lips quirked up at the reference to making a powerpoint. "I think for now the trickle I get just from being there and being fairly accepted is pretty good. Henry's been helpful for that, of course, and some of the other more staff are more relaxed around me after seeing me be completely relaxed around him and the twins instead of skittish or weirded out. Speaking of intel, apparently there's some sort of new mutant-friendly commune that's sprung up in Oregon. Mostly rumors about the vibe of the place, but the people that've come through from there haven't been ill used or anything, according to Stacy. Decently fed, good health, seemingly enjoyed their time there." She nudged him with her arm. "You always spoil me. Except when you're making me run."
"That's not changing any time soon." He said. "So, do you want to talk about why you're here and not in your own rooms now, or do you want an extra day or two?"
Darcy leaned into his side, stealing as much warmth as she could. "You should've brought drinks for this conversation, not food," she grumbled, curling up tighter in his jacket. "I'm scared. Not during the day, really, because I stand behind my statement that Quire's a coward that typically lacks the conviction to follow through on his words. He's brute force, so if he got through my shields - and I'm sure he could - I think people around me would notice something was wrong at minimum. But when I'm trying to sleep at night? Relax? I can't, because there's not always someone there to know if something's happening, and if there is they're usually sleeping too. My shielding isn't strong, I'm more vulnerable to being messed with. And so I can't relax enough to do more than lightly doze, knowing he's down the hall and potentially able to force his way in while I can't stop him. Cowards are dangerous, they're like cornered animals. You never know when they're going to stop growling and attack. So instead I'm alternating. Naps during the day sometimes at work, at home if he's not there, crashing at Foggy's or here or any couch of a friend's I can surf on for a night or two. Protecting myself. I don't know what his range is, but if he's actually following me enough to reach outside the mansion and I find out, he becomes a direct threat and I'm going to deal with that the way you trained me to." It was a lot to say. Hopefully Kevin would pick out her thought process in there, the need to keep herself safe in any form she could. But talking about it made her tired, and her head dropped to his shoulder. "Helga's got his picture. He's banned from the public club and this side of things."
Kevin didn't say anything for a long moment. Finally, he reached over and tapped the jacket she'd stolen so she could hear the sound of metal. "At the very least, I have drinks." He said with a wry smile, flipping open the lapel to show the flask in the inside jacket pocket.
"As for the rest... I'd say I understand but I really don't. I've dealt with it as a woman at times, but those experiences I can walk away from in a new skin, which you can't. And while I trained you to take care of him as a threat, I also trained you about minimizing risks, so I can't really fault you for doing what I taught you to do. Which I hate, just as an aside." Kevin said finally, poking her on the knee in a very gentle tease. "So, what can we do? Or would you prefer a couple of weeks in the field just to get a little distance."
Darcy grinned despite the seriousness, swiping the flask from his hands and taking a bracing drink before handing it back. "Which part do you hate? That I feel the need, or that being smart about it means reverting back to my weird sleep non-schedule? I've got some ideas that shockingly aren't just tasing him until he's drooling on the carpet while I watch Dog Cops, but all my plans are based around what's being done at the mansion. I mean. I'm not sure what can be done, if anything, but I haven't even seen anyone reprimand him other than that little bit from Clint. If you know about anything, I'd appreciate the intel."
"I hate it when I train people to do the right thing even when I don't like it and then get cheeky with me." He grumped slightly, taking a sip. "I've had a chat with Quire. He knows he can't touch you, but it seemed to get through to him that he could lose... well, everything, just by being Quire. He doesn't realize yet the extent that you or Gibney could destroy him with a few phone calls and filing some paperwork, but I think he knows everything he's got is balanced on the knife edge right now. I'm not discounting your fear, but my read is he cares enough about what he's currently doing to not risk it by being stupid again. But if you want to destroy him, I'm sure you can see the same path I can."
"Aww, you love me," she teased, slipping an arm around his back and squeezing. "Feeling's mutual, Boss." She let the lightness of the feeling buoy her for a moment, before turning back to seriousness. "I know that if Kyle and I went that route we might as well just hand-deliver him to Magneto. Or Essex. Any of a dozen splinter groups that lead back to Magneto. Government disappearance." Darcy sighed, dragging a hand through her hair with her free hand. "As tiresome as I find him, I don't actually want any of that. And I doubt Kyle does either, although of course I can't speak for him. But based on what I know, and how long he stayed willing to hold at least a polite hand out to Laurie... I think I can say it with some confidence. Who knows though? Maybe Quire getting away with still acting like an angry 20 year old pothead with nothing to care about or live for is the straw that breaks someone's back. I know I'm certainly disappointed in the almost total lack of response. I can't help but think if I'd threatened to kill someone, I'd have been tossed out on my ass the same night. And that's a problem, because I'm not in charge of anything here, and Quire's got ownership over a whole fucking team."
"That's actually the issue he's facing. He can't be an utter shitbag and lead a team. He can't say whatever cruel shit he thinks and not face questions and potential defections from his shop. It's a job, not a military post, after all." Kevin said. "Quire fucked himself the second he realized he desperately wanted to be a leader. He wanted to build something, because it means he needs to be worthy of being followed. That's why I don't think he's a threat from my professional perspective. But, you know that, because if I did think he was a threat in my professional perspective, I'd have already taken care of him. And he knows that, in spades."
He shook his head for a moment, chuckling. "You know the ironic thing? Quire makes empty threats. That's one of the reasons why he's weak, because the threats are so obviously bullshit. But you're right, if you made a threat, you'd likely be taken more seriously, because people know that if you threaten to kill someone, you have the training and conviction to do it. You're taken seriously when he isn't is a compliment of your character. So, again, I'll back whatever play you need, and I am not discounting your fear in the slightest, but there's a lot more constraining him than I think you see right now."
"I see it, logically. Funny enough, logic doesn't help me sleep at night." She gave him a wry grin. "Right now my plan's more in the vein of making sleep happen. I've got an appointment set up to talk with Forge, see what we can do on that front without someone locking one of us into The Box every night. I wouldn't say no to Xavier doing an unobtrusive scan, if it's possible. Just to ease my mind a little. I assume grounding him from his TP for a month isn't really a thing we can do, right? Being a flatscan or psi-null or whatever for a few weeks would either shut him up or give me excellent whiny brat entertainment."
"That's up to Xavier but I doubt it." Kevin said, patting her hand. "We'll figure things out in a way that works for you. You've earned that. But... and you knew this was coming, you also need to mend some fences and rebuild some bridges. Quire went way too far, but you also fucked up. I know you know it. But, remember that whole training thing? I expect you to be better and when you're not, I expect you to figure it out. What was the joke? Thus endeth the lesson." He passed back the flask.
Darcy gave him a look. "I've already apologized to Clint for not using my words right. And I'm going to apologize to that Madin person for the part I'm actually regretful about, which is starting at shut the fuck up instead of being diplomatic. I'm not sorry for telling them to put up, or for outlining how they could do that." Her lips pursed tightly, and she took another pull of the flask before continuing. "I don't owe Quire shit, but I'll be at least as professional and civil as he is. You can't ask me to sit back and let him call me a worthless cow and say the only thing I'm useful for is blowing my boyfriends. If he keeps his nasty words in his head and stops undermining me when we have to work together, I'll do the same. If he doesn't, then I'll treat him like the threat he wants to be."
"You should know that I wouldn't expect you to do anything for Quire. He's burned that bridge like he called in a napalm strike." Kevin said. "Like I said, you know the people you need to talk to and the ones you don't. And frankly, you can tell Quire to go fuck himself every day and twice on Sunday. I don't care about that. It is with the people your reaction was over the top that you need to reconcile to at least neutrality."
"Yeah. Like I said, Clint and I have already talked it out. I'm already planning to apologize to Madin. I can't do anything about them accepting it, but I can at least hold out an olive branch. I only offer to be polite because we do work with X-Factor. So I can be professional and polite if he can keep his mouth shut or stay the fuck out of the room. I get along with the rest of their office just fine. Down the road... well. If shit happens and we ended up in the field together, I'd rather not be worrying about whether the bullet's coming at my face or the back of my head." She nudged him in the side. "So, when are you going to start my sniper training again?"
"I'll make you a deal. You come home and I'll not only start your training but guess who's face will be on all the targets?"
"I like that plan. Alternate it with Laurie." Darcy tipped her head back, laughing. "And what's the plan for me sleeping? I'm willing to entertain interim ideas, even though I'm still going to talk to Forge about something long-term."
"We have plenty of relationships in Manhattan. We can swap you out of hotels for the next couple of months if that helps."
Darcy scrunched her face. "If that's the best option, I might as well get a short-term furnished place."
"Really? You don't want to enjoy suites at the St.Regis on an expense account paid for by the Koch brothers?" He said, a lightning quick smile. "How about this? I'm on the other side of the mansion from Quire. Why don't you take my room for a bit? Maya's on one side and that Hope with the astral powers is on the other. One floor up is Maximoff, Sefton and Colbert, and one floor up from them is Doc Grey. Add in my occasional physical presence, full of charm and grace, and it is a place I doubt he'd risk treading. When I'm not there, you're welcome to have Ramsey or Murdock or Inez or... I dunno, whoever else is in your orbit stay with you if it helps. Until Forge can whip up something more protective for your own space."
"How about you send me into the field when you're gone and watch me when you're home, since you don't need as much sleep? You'll have to deal with some of my weird insomnia, but it's nothing you haven't seen before." Darcy countered, finally relaxed enough to grab the container from Sol's and open it. "If we can't match up field work, I'll crash at Foggy's or your work couch, no big."
She set the container between them, eyeing the mound of food inside with some trepidation. "This is for both of us, right?"
"Haven't said no to pastrami in 80 years, not about to start now."
"Good, because I can't eat all this in one sitting." The latkes alone were bigger than her palm, and the sandwich probably had close to a pound of pastrami on it. "Or well, I could, but I haven't been using my powers extensively... that said, if you hear Quire bitching about some annoying quirk of his phone on and off for a while?" She gave him a sly side-eye and a wink, before biting into the latke she'd picked up. Still warm, and she pinched some pastrami for the next bite. "Nothing that will interfere with legit work, I'm not that much of an asshole. But his tunes, his grindr, his ringtones for his pick-ups? That's all fair game. And no consistency either, nothing that can track back to me."
"It's mean, petty, and I couldn't be prouder."
