Amanda, Nathan - Sunday evening
Feb. 13th, 2005 08:30 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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xp_logsNathan stops by the back porch on his way out to say goodbye to Amanda. She doesn't take the fact he's leaving very well.
Life was continuing as normal, like nothing had happened, Amanda reflected sourly, sitting out on the back porch. Good thing she'd never tried giving up smoking - that would last all of five minutes in this place. Lighting a fresh cigarette from the butt of the old one, she hunched up further into her coat and tried unsuccessfully to not worry about Pete.
Nathan paused at the doorway. He was already dressed to go, which she'd notice - no colors to make him stand out, just black and leather - and it struck him that he should have really tried to find a few minutes to tell her before he was on his way out the door. But he'd been busy making arrangements for himself and Tim, not to mention Mick and Ani...
"Hey," he said, coming out to join her.
"Hey..." The welcoming smile died on her lips as she saw the way he was dressed. "Oh." Half-turning from him, she tossed the finished butt into the bucket and took a long drag of the fresh one. "Off then, are you?"
"With Tim, yeah." Oh, yes. Not a happy witch. "I'd have told you earlier, but it only got decided this morning. Been running around getting plane tickets and making arrangements..."
"How long?" she asked, voice still holding that flat, uncaring tone she'd been so good at when she'd first arrived. "Just so I know when t' get me homework done by an' all."
Nathan's expression tightened for a moment. "No more than a week," he said. "Ororo's covering history and humanities for me. I've left assignments for everything else."
"Fair enough. I s'pose you can't tell me where you're goin' or anythin', seein' how it's t' do with Mistra." She still wouldn't look at him. "I'll keep an eye on Pete while you're gone."
"Amanda..." He came over to stand in front of her, looking down at her with a frown. "What am I getting the stiff upper lip for?" he asked.
"Who says I'm givin' you anythin'?" she replied with a trace of the old streetwise sneer. "Look, Nate, you have t' go, an' that's fine, I get that. Just don't expect me t' be overjoyed by the fact. 'Specially now, when I have no idea what state Pete's in an' what he's gunna do." The mask crumbled just a bit, her worry coming through. "Just feels like I've barely had the chance t' say two words t' you since before Christmas, is all."
Nathan stared down at her for a moment, then sat down beside her. Not reaching out to touch her. "It's been a hell of a couple of months," he said slowly. "And Pete... I don't know what to say, Amanda. I'm worried too. But there's nothing I can do for him right now. He knows how to get in touch with me if he wants me. So do Charles and Scott and Alison, if I'm needed back here."
But not me. "'S gettin' t' be a recurrin' theme, this whole nothin' we can do business," she said, pulling her legs up under the coat and wrapping her free arm around them. Making herself as untouchable as possible - it was hard to hug her like that.
Nathan stared sideways at her for a long moment, then dug a pen and a scrap of paper out of his pocket. "You remember that encryption program I gave you?" he asked, scrawling one of his secure email addresses on the paper. "So that you could email back and forth with Dom?"
For the first time she actually turned her head and looked at him. "Yeah," she said, watching him. "Still got it - use it for Pete when he's on a job too, sometimes."
"Anything you send here," he said, handing the scrap of paper over, "Make sure you run it through that first. Otherwise it'll just bounce right back to you." He watched her peer down at his rather crabbed handwriting. "So long as I don't get cut off entirely out there, I should see and be able to answer anything you send to that within 24 hours."
She'd had to unwrap her arm from her knees to take the paper, and the movement seemed to relax something inside her, something that had been drawn tight enough to break. "Thanks," she said, tucking the address away carefully in her pocket before flinging her arms around his neck and hugging him tightly. "I'm sorry. For everythin'. Be careful?"
"It's okay," Nathan said softly, hugging her back. "Hell of a time for me to go, I know. I don't really want to - hell, I think where I'm going is a lousy idea in the first place." He sighed as she finally drew back a little. "But Tim can't stay here, and he won't go back to Berlin with Mick and Ani. And if his idea works... well, it might do a lot of good, in the end." He mustered a smile. "I will be careful. Nothing resembling action - damned brain's still half-sprained."
"Gettin' t' be a permanent state with you..." Amanda ducked her head, trying to hide the fact she was tearing up. "We'll be all right. Just don't forget me while you're gone, yeah?" The last was meant to be a joke, but it didn't come out that way.
Nathan reached out and took her chin, tilting her face upwards so that she had to look at him. "It'd take a hell of a lot more brain-sprains for me to do that," he said gently. "At least six more. Seriously. Which means that in a year you might have to worry."
She gave him a watery smile. "Plastic bubble," she managed, hating herself for being so weak but not wanting him to go. Even if what he was doing was important. "You got someone t' look after Bella while you're gone?"
"Her favorite little green friend." He rubbed her back gently. "She'd probably do better if her 'Manda came down to see her a couple of times. She looks upon you as an easy mark, because you always bring her food."
"What can I say, 'm just a big softie after all." That was the truth, all right. "I'll drop in an' see her. An' you should go. Don't wanna miss yer plane." She made a valiant effort to compose herself - Nate didn't need a weepy mess on his hands, not when he had important things to do. Briefly she wished she'd been able to stay angry - angry was always easier in terms of keeping herself together.
Nathan didn't miss the internal struggle. He reached out again, hugging her. "Thanks," he said very softly. "You take care, mi'caehla. I'll see you next week." With that he let go, getting back to his feet. "I'd promise souvenirs, but we're headed to the back end of nowhere," he said wryly, turning to head back up the stairs. "I'm just hoping for running water."
"You don't need t' bring me back anythin', just yerself in one piece'll do." Put on the brave face, that was it. She wasn't brave enough to get up and see him off, 'though. "Love you, old man."
Life was continuing as normal, like nothing had happened, Amanda reflected sourly, sitting out on the back porch. Good thing she'd never tried giving up smoking - that would last all of five minutes in this place. Lighting a fresh cigarette from the butt of the old one, she hunched up further into her coat and tried unsuccessfully to not worry about Pete.
Nathan paused at the doorway. He was already dressed to go, which she'd notice - no colors to make him stand out, just black and leather - and it struck him that he should have really tried to find a few minutes to tell her before he was on his way out the door. But he'd been busy making arrangements for himself and Tim, not to mention Mick and Ani...
"Hey," he said, coming out to join her.
"Hey..." The welcoming smile died on her lips as she saw the way he was dressed. "Oh." Half-turning from him, she tossed the finished butt into the bucket and took a long drag of the fresh one. "Off then, are you?"
"With Tim, yeah." Oh, yes. Not a happy witch. "I'd have told you earlier, but it only got decided this morning. Been running around getting plane tickets and making arrangements..."
"How long?" she asked, voice still holding that flat, uncaring tone she'd been so good at when she'd first arrived. "Just so I know when t' get me homework done by an' all."
Nathan's expression tightened for a moment. "No more than a week," he said. "Ororo's covering history and humanities for me. I've left assignments for everything else."
"Fair enough. I s'pose you can't tell me where you're goin' or anythin', seein' how it's t' do with Mistra." She still wouldn't look at him. "I'll keep an eye on Pete while you're gone."
"Amanda..." He came over to stand in front of her, looking down at her with a frown. "What am I getting the stiff upper lip for?" he asked.
"Who says I'm givin' you anythin'?" she replied with a trace of the old streetwise sneer. "Look, Nate, you have t' go, an' that's fine, I get that. Just don't expect me t' be overjoyed by the fact. 'Specially now, when I have no idea what state Pete's in an' what he's gunna do." The mask crumbled just a bit, her worry coming through. "Just feels like I've barely had the chance t' say two words t' you since before Christmas, is all."
Nathan stared down at her for a moment, then sat down beside her. Not reaching out to touch her. "It's been a hell of a couple of months," he said slowly. "And Pete... I don't know what to say, Amanda. I'm worried too. But there's nothing I can do for him right now. He knows how to get in touch with me if he wants me. So do Charles and Scott and Alison, if I'm needed back here."
But not me. "'S gettin' t' be a recurrin' theme, this whole nothin' we can do business," she said, pulling her legs up under the coat and wrapping her free arm around them. Making herself as untouchable as possible - it was hard to hug her like that.
Nathan stared sideways at her for a long moment, then dug a pen and a scrap of paper out of his pocket. "You remember that encryption program I gave you?" he asked, scrawling one of his secure email addresses on the paper. "So that you could email back and forth with Dom?"
For the first time she actually turned her head and looked at him. "Yeah," she said, watching him. "Still got it - use it for Pete when he's on a job too, sometimes."
"Anything you send here," he said, handing the scrap of paper over, "Make sure you run it through that first. Otherwise it'll just bounce right back to you." He watched her peer down at his rather crabbed handwriting. "So long as I don't get cut off entirely out there, I should see and be able to answer anything you send to that within 24 hours."
She'd had to unwrap her arm from her knees to take the paper, and the movement seemed to relax something inside her, something that had been drawn tight enough to break. "Thanks," she said, tucking the address away carefully in her pocket before flinging her arms around his neck and hugging him tightly. "I'm sorry. For everythin'. Be careful?"
"It's okay," Nathan said softly, hugging her back. "Hell of a time for me to go, I know. I don't really want to - hell, I think where I'm going is a lousy idea in the first place." He sighed as she finally drew back a little. "But Tim can't stay here, and he won't go back to Berlin with Mick and Ani. And if his idea works... well, it might do a lot of good, in the end." He mustered a smile. "I will be careful. Nothing resembling action - damned brain's still half-sprained."
"Gettin' t' be a permanent state with you..." Amanda ducked her head, trying to hide the fact she was tearing up. "We'll be all right. Just don't forget me while you're gone, yeah?" The last was meant to be a joke, but it didn't come out that way.
Nathan reached out and took her chin, tilting her face upwards so that she had to look at him. "It'd take a hell of a lot more brain-sprains for me to do that," he said gently. "At least six more. Seriously. Which means that in a year you might have to worry."
She gave him a watery smile. "Plastic bubble," she managed, hating herself for being so weak but not wanting him to go. Even if what he was doing was important. "You got someone t' look after Bella while you're gone?"
"Her favorite little green friend." He rubbed her back gently. "She'd probably do better if her 'Manda came down to see her a couple of times. She looks upon you as an easy mark, because you always bring her food."
"What can I say, 'm just a big softie after all." That was the truth, all right. "I'll drop in an' see her. An' you should go. Don't wanna miss yer plane." She made a valiant effort to compose herself - Nate didn't need a weepy mess on his hands, not when he had important things to do. Briefly she wished she'd been able to stay angry - angry was always easier in terms of keeping herself together.
Nathan didn't miss the internal struggle. He reached out again, hugging her. "Thanks," he said very softly. "You take care, mi'caehla. I'll see you next week." With that he let go, getting back to his feet. "I'd promise souvenirs, but we're headed to the back end of nowhere," he said wryly, turning to head back up the stairs. "I'm just hoping for running water."
"You don't need t' bring me back anythin', just yerself in one piece'll do." Put on the brave face, that was it. She wasn't brave enough to get up and see him off, 'though. "Love you, old man."
