Sure. Even have a survey for you to fill out, fifty bucks on the spot if you do.
How does tonight or tomorrow night grab you? Don't know if Sherlock will be that interested in talking to me since we did recently. Even then, he seemed more interested in getting a blood sample than anything, so maybe now that I'm more acquainted with him, I guess, he might be more willing to talk. Stab in the dark. I don't really understand the guy.
[And he'll make sure to arrive on time, bringing an apple pie with him. Not much, but at this point even Pokey gets that it's impolite to show up without bringing anything at all with you. He knocks, just once or twice on the door, to let John know he's arrived.]
[Pokey will hear scuffling, skittering claws on the other side of the door before it's followed by footsteps. John's voice comes muffled through the door.]
Stay, Black Bart. Good boy.
[And then he's opening the door to reveal himself and a German Shepherd puppy that's a couple of months old. Black Bart is sitting, but his tail is wagging ferociously as he looks up at Pokey.]
Dessert. Thanks. We can set that on the kitchen counter.
[John takes the pie from Pokey, and gestures the lad in. The door to the kitchen is immediately opposite the entrance, and the living room is off to the right. Everything is dark, warm colors, skulls, and dead animals and insects. John's tidied up the place as best he can, so Sherlock's violin is in its case to one side, and his sheet music is all on its stand. Books are back on the shelf, and stray pieces of paper have been grouped and stacked. The table in the sitting room has been set for three, although John seriously doubts Sherlock will be joining them. He's not sure he'd even want the other man for this conversation, anyway.]
You can sit down. Anything to drink?
[Black Bart will follow along with Pokey at his heel, continuing to look up at him hopefully for pets.]
Edited (let's pick a format, Terri) 2017-06-15 17:48 (UTC)
[Pokey takes a seat at the table, noticing there are two set places in front of him. He has no idea if Sherlock actually will be arriving; the man is inscrutable to him.]
Just some water, thanks.
[Pokey looks towards Black Bart as the puppy continues to follow him, asking for pets. Pokey wasn't a big fan of animals; even less, sometimes, of dogs. But at the same time he could tell that this was just another creature looking for affection where it could find it. In a way, weren't they all.
So he relents and gently pets the dog a few times as he waits.]
Thanks for seeing me. I wouldn't ask this a lot of the time but it seems I managed to arrive her in time for an explosion.
I kind of want to get the full story from whatever sources I could to find out how things got to this point.
[When John comes out, he's carrying a platter of roasted pork chops and wild carrots and onions. He also has a glass of water for Pokey that gets set down in front of him. John returns to the kitchen to fetch a glass of water for himself, as well.]
Hope you like pork. [He'd needed a break from the rabbits, honestly.] I have some left over coney stew, is that's more your taste, though.
[John sits down shrugs slightly.]
Anyway, it's fine, just s'long as you understand it's not your job to fix anything or play mediator. You do understand that, right?
[He's absolutely not putting that burden on Pokey.]
[Pokey's impressed. He didn't expect John to go through this much trouble, and feels a little guilty he didn't try to bring more to add to it. Ah well. He'll definitely help himself to the pork chops.]
It's great. You cook often?
[Pokey is quiet a moment as he cuts his pork chop up, nodding a tiny bit.]
...Look. I'll be honest. I want to help where I can but I'm not about to dig myself a grave here trying to sort everyone's baggage with each other out. I've got my own thoughts on the whole thing and I'm genuinely not impressed with either side at the moment.
Same time, I'm not a guy who really has the right to point fingers. And I don't believe any of you actually have any malice or anything. ...Talked a bit to Sherlock personally. Still don't understand him, first impression of him still wasn't great, but I don't think he intends harm so much as it just seems like digging things up is what he does.
So I guess like. I just want to understand, because if I'm living and working here I'd like to know the buzz so I know what I need to be aware of with lines between people.
[John just nods at the question. He's the only one who cooks in this house. Honestly, he wouldn't trust much of anything Sherlock tried to cook. He already drugs John's drinks every so often. God only knows what the man could put into proper food.
When Pokey's done serving himself, John takes a portion for himself. He's not actually all that hungry, and hasn't been for a while, but eating is better than not eating for his health.]
Sherlock's... well, he's complicated if you don't really know him. [John gestures vaguely.] He's about as opaque as a glass closet when you do. He's bored, he's scared, and he feels useless and helpless here, same as most of us who came in from Norfinbury. He's a consulting detective. Solving crimes and helping people who need him are what he does. It's how he finds meaning and purpose in his life. Not many crimes here, if you hadn't noticed. Fewer puzzles that he can actually access information to work on. He's clawing out of his skin because he thinks he's failing me, as well.
[The doctor sighs.]
And there are people trapped in Norfinbury who need our help. A perfect little paradise is nice and all, but there are children, innocent civilians, just... just ordinary people freezing and dying and being eaten by monsters and all we can do is sit here, twiddle out thumbs, and play house until Zephyr apparently gets big enough to let us out. Talked to Miwa about some things we can do to help out here while we're waiting. There's some sort of sickness making gods fade out. Or it might be a murderer dunno. Trying to get information about it to help is like pulling teeth. She's talking, at least, but Zephyr's been keeping mum.
It sounds like this is something that could legitimately destroy the Meadous. It brought down Zephyr's walls already when the god maintaining those fell ill. If we can help with that, we do want to.
[That just all sort of poured out. John clears his throat and glances down at his pork, starting to eat.]
[Pokey, meanwhile, is hungry, so he doesn't mind eating while he listens to John. He takes it slowly, making sure that he focuses more on what John has to say than the food.
As the man goes on, it makes more sense to Pokey. It gives him a different sense of perspective on things. While he wouldn't say the explanation on Sherlock necessarily endears him to the man any more than it had, but it makes sense. Pokey could understand wanting to help people, being driven to do that, but not being able to connect with them. The fact that Sherlock seemed even worse at connecting than Pokey was something to see. But he could at least understand that.
The fact that John and the others were so anxious to go back to Norfinbury too. If there was still a place Pokey needed to be that needed to finish business, if Mayfield was still active and alive and dangerous and he was here, Pokey would have reacted just the same. It's hard to blame John, when Pokey can think of scenarios where he would do the same.]
...I understand. I know that might sound like bull, but it's true. If I had anyplace else to be, anywhere else I could be that I thought needed my help, that was that dangerous and needed to be stopped, I'd be anxious to get out too. I don't, which is part of why I guess I'm more complacent with being here. After all I've seen, I'm kind of down with adventures or fighting in general.
I'm not going to get in the way or judge you all for trying to leave. If there is anything I can do to help, either with the possibility of this being some actual 'case' that could affect all of us, or trying to figure out a way to get you back where you are earlier, I will.
That's all I promise. I'm not crazy enough to think I can single handedly make your image better here. But whatever I can do to help you get where you need to be, I'll do what I can so long as I don't think it might somehow damage Zephyr.
It's not my image I'm worried about. [Not really. John can get by. He and Stephen are personable enough to make friends, or at least positive acquaintances. Even Bucky might be able to pull a few more people here into his orbit of trust by just keeping his head low.]
Sherlock's a hero. I know people have trouble believing it. I know it seems unlikely after what's happened, but he really is a hero. Honestly. I wish there were something here, some way for that to shine through. It's his image I'm worried about. The last time we were... the last memories I have of home, there was an arsehole who managed to tarnish his name. The press turned on him. Most of our allies turned on him. I can't let that happen again. He digs his own bloody grave in these things, but last time it at least took Moriarty to run him into the ground.
[John stabs at the pork chop he's eating, but doesn't actually pick any of it up.]
I'm his partner. I'm his assistant and blogger. Managing his image was part of my job back home. I used to be half-way decent at it.
And none of us want to hurt Zephyr. [Well, okay, maybe Bucky wanted to hurt Zephyr there for a bit.] I know they're just a kid. We want to get out with their help. But they either actually can't, or they won't. Maybe it's a little bit of both.
[Wanting people to recognize your friend, to realize how great he or she or they are. That's something that Pokey can relate to easily, something so much more immediately on his mind that he can understand. Pokey's not sure he necessarily cares more about Sherlock himself, but John's struggle to maintain this image of him. To wish others could see it.
That resonates with him quite a bit.]
...In places like this, it can be hard to actually help another person's image, because everyone is pretty much on display for one another. I believe you though, about him, even if I'm not seeing it yet. I'm not really sure what I could do to lighten the load there. But I'll at least try and keep giving him the benefit of the doubt instead of pouncing on him.
[See what he can do about trying to keep others from getting on the guy's back too, though he won't say that out loud quite yet. He did, after all, tell Watson he'd try and not be a mediator for everything here.]
They were wrong saying he got what he deserved recently. I can understand anger at him, but they're wrong to make excuses for him getting killed or that this guy just couldn't help himself in killing him.
I know you don't want to hurt Zephyr. I'm antsy, I guess. I'm not a master in regards to magic, but I've picked up basic theory and ideas with all the fairies and monsters and gods I've spoken with before getting here. I guess I'm mostly concerned about what we're teaching them, and that it'll be some weird magic shit where the emotions we put in might also somehow affect them.
I'm not saying that just in regards to worrying about your group. The old timers here aren't doing much better in trying to handle this.
[John's grateful for Pokey at least allowing that Sherlock might not be a complete and utter wanker. It's more than could be hoped for, really. He just nods to that and lets the lad speak as he finally takes a bite of the pork chops.]
I tried to tell them they weren't alone in it all, at least. Zephyr, I mean. After what happened with the whole... murder 'mystery.' I talked to them a little about Sherlock... and a little about what's going on with the gods. Has anyone told you about the illness? That might well affect Zephyr, too.
From what Miwa told me and Sherlock, it makes a god fall ill and disappear within minutes. A couple hundred different ones have been affected, it hit their last king, and there doesn't seem to be a pattern they can find, yet.
[John frowns and takes another bite of pork.]
If it's a disease, it's like nothing I've ever heard of, but with their king being targeted... that seemed significant.
[Despite how few words John uses, there's a lot of information to unpack, for a lot of reasons, from what he just said. There are a ton of different questions he could asks, wants to ask, but knows John probably doesn't have the answers himself.
He'll stick to what possibly might be worth asking or talking about.]
I'm not surprised they could get sick. Makes sense they'd have diseases we wouldn't know or understand either. At the same time, that seems like a whopper of a disease to just blow into town this quick, if it has just suddenly appeared. Fact there's no body afterwards is...suspicious.
Going to take it that's most the information she was willing to tell about it so far?
Yeah. Even that much was a bit like pulling teeth. I don't know that it's that she doesn't want to tell us, but she feel obligated not to say. Maybe it's taboos or she's liable to get in trouble with the other gods or something. I don't want to push her too far that she's pulled out and punished.
[That would just be a pointless waste. Miwa seems genuinely kind and earnest for one thing. For another, she's the most valuable information broker that they have so far. Or at least that John's seen outside of Deei during whatever was happening with Zephyr's powers going mad.]
She suggested I talk to Zephyr more about what we can do to help. I think it'd need to be more than just me telling them they need to let us help, though.
Be best if we don't, though I kind of suspect she won't let us get to that point. I talked with her a little, but I didn't dig too deeply into godly behavior and all that.
[Pokey thinks on that for a moment, resting his chin on the flat of his hand.]
It's worth a try, but it could take a little bit. If we start off by figuring out what they even know about it, and trying to give them advice on how to handle it that could lead to them trusting enough to let us get more hands on. ....Kids don't really want to look to someone else for help if they think they can handle it on their own. It can take a bit to get them to realize its okay to ask for help.
Yeah, that makes sense. [John knows he's stubborn and doesn't like asking for help as an adult. He digs into his pork chop as he considers a little more.]
Still, coming from more than just me would help. Would you be willing to give it a go talking with them about what they know?
[Pokey shrugs a little, taking another bite of his meal.]
They're as worn down as the rest of us from this month, so I'm going to give them just a little. But this coming month I don't mind helping talk to them about it.
Think we can wrap this up and fade out on them chatting
Fair enough. Everyone's gone through a bit of a wringer lately. Emotionally, if not physically. It's almost starting to feel like home. [John offers Pokey a wan smile and a shrug.] Anyway, why don't you tell me if you've been pulling a few more fruits and vegetables into your diet.
[He's absolutely going to use the opportunity to check up on Pokey's health while he has him here. It's a much easier topic to deal with.]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Sure. Even have a survey for you to fill out, fifty bucks on the spot if you do.
How does tonight or tomorrow night grab you? Don't know if Sherlock will be that interested in talking to me since we did recently. Even then, he seemed more interested in getting a blood sample than anything, so maybe now that I'm more acquainted with him, I guess, he might be more willing to talk. Stab in the dark. I don't really understand the guy.
-Pokey
no subject
Pokey,
Call it fifty quid, and I'm sold.
Tonight's fine. I'll let Sherlock know you're coming. Dinner's served at 6:00 PM.
-John
=>Action
Fantastic. See you then.
-Pokey
[And he'll make sure to arrive on time, bringing an apple pie with him. Not much, but at this point even Pokey gets that it's impolite to show up without bringing anything at all with you. He knocks, just once or twice on the door, to let John know he's arrived.]
Perma action
Stay, Black Bart. Good boy.
[And then he's opening the door to reveal himself and a German Shepherd puppy that's a couple of months old. Black Bart is sitting, but his tail is wagging ferociously as he looks up at Pokey.]
Dessert. Thanks. We can set that on the kitchen counter.
[John takes the pie from Pokey, and gestures the lad in. The door to the kitchen is immediately opposite the entrance, and the living room is off to the right. Everything is dark, warm colors, skulls, and dead animals and insects. John's tidied up the place as best he can, so Sherlock's violin is in its case to one side, and his sheet music is all on its stand. Books are back on the shelf, and stray pieces of paper have been grouped and stacked. The table in the sitting room has been set for three, although John seriously doubts Sherlock will be joining them. He's not sure he'd even want the other man for this conversation, anyway.]
You can sit down. Anything to drink?
[Black Bart will follow along with Pokey at his heel, continuing to look up at him hopefully for pets.]
no subject
Just some water, thanks.
[Pokey looks towards Black Bart as the puppy continues to follow him, asking for pets. Pokey wasn't a big fan of animals; even less, sometimes, of dogs. But at the same time he could tell that this was just another creature looking for affection where it could find it. In a way, weren't they all.
So he relents and gently pets the dog a few times as he waits.]
Thanks for seeing me. I wouldn't ask this a lot of the time but it seems I managed to arrive her in time for an explosion.
I kind of want to get the full story from whatever sources I could to find out how things got to this point.
no subject
Hope you like pork. [He'd needed a break from the rabbits, honestly.] I have some left over coney stew, is that's more your taste, though.
[John sits down shrugs slightly.]
Anyway, it's fine, just s'long as you understand it's not your job to fix anything or play mediator. You do understand that, right?
[He's absolutely not putting that burden on Pokey.]
no subject
It's great. You cook often?
[Pokey is quiet a moment as he cuts his pork chop up, nodding a tiny bit.]
...Look. I'll be honest. I want to help where I can but I'm not about to dig myself a grave here trying to sort everyone's baggage with each other out. I've got my own thoughts on the whole thing and I'm genuinely not impressed with either side at the moment.
Same time, I'm not a guy who really has the right to point fingers. And I don't believe any of you actually have any malice or anything. ...Talked a bit to Sherlock personally. Still don't understand him, first impression of him still wasn't great, but I don't think he intends harm so much as it just seems like digging things up is what he does.
So I guess like. I just want to understand, because if I'm living and working here I'd like to know the buzz so I know what I need to be aware of with lines between people.
no subject
When Pokey's done serving himself, John takes a portion for himself. He's not actually all that hungry, and hasn't been for a while, but eating is better than not eating for his health.]
Sherlock's... well, he's complicated if you don't really know him. [John gestures vaguely.] He's about as opaque as a glass closet when you do. He's bored, he's scared, and he feels useless and helpless here, same as most of us who came in from Norfinbury. He's a consulting detective. Solving crimes and helping people who need him are what he does. It's how he finds meaning and purpose in his life. Not many crimes here, if you hadn't noticed. Fewer puzzles that he can actually access information to work on. He's clawing out of his skin because he thinks he's failing me, as well.
[The doctor sighs.]
And there are people trapped in Norfinbury who need our help. A perfect little paradise is nice and all, but there are children, innocent civilians, just... just ordinary people freezing and dying and being eaten by monsters and all we can do is sit here, twiddle out thumbs, and play house until Zephyr apparently gets big enough to let us out. Talked to Miwa about some things we can do to help out here while we're waiting. There's some sort of sickness making gods fade out. Or it might be a murderer dunno. Trying to get information about it to help is like pulling teeth. She's talking, at least, but Zephyr's been keeping mum.
It sounds like this is something that could legitimately destroy the Meadous. It brought down Zephyr's walls already when the god maintaining those fell ill. If we can help with that, we do want to.
[That just all sort of poured out. John clears his throat and glances down at his pork, starting to eat.]
no subject
As the man goes on, it makes more sense to Pokey. It gives him a different sense of perspective on things. While he wouldn't say the explanation on Sherlock necessarily endears him to the man any more than it had, but it makes sense. Pokey could understand wanting to help people, being driven to do that, but not being able to connect with them. The fact that Sherlock seemed even worse at connecting than Pokey was something to see. But he could at least understand that.
The fact that John and the others were so anxious to go back to Norfinbury too. If there was still a place Pokey needed to be that needed to finish business, if Mayfield was still active and alive and dangerous and he was here, Pokey would have reacted just the same. It's hard to blame John, when Pokey can think of scenarios where he would do the same.]
...I understand. I know that might sound like bull, but it's true. If I had anyplace else to be, anywhere else I could be that I thought needed my help, that was that dangerous and needed to be stopped, I'd be anxious to get out too. I don't, which is part of why I guess I'm more complacent with being here. After all I've seen, I'm kind of down with adventures or fighting in general.
I'm not going to get in the way or judge you all for trying to leave. If there is anything I can do to help, either with the possibility of this being some actual 'case' that could affect all of us, or trying to figure out a way to get you back where you are earlier, I will.
That's all I promise. I'm not crazy enough to think I can single handedly make your image better here. But whatever I can do to help you get where you need to be, I'll do what I can so long as I don't think it might somehow damage Zephyr.
That's honestly my main concern right now.
no subject
Sherlock's a hero. I know people have trouble believing it. I know it seems unlikely after what's happened, but he really is a hero. Honestly. I wish there were something here, some way for that to shine through. It's his image I'm worried about. The last time we were... the last memories I have of home, there was an arsehole who managed to tarnish his name. The press turned on him. Most of our allies turned on him. I can't let that happen again. He digs his own bloody grave in these things, but last time it at least took Moriarty to run him into the ground.
[John stabs at the pork chop he's eating, but doesn't actually pick any of it up.]
I'm his partner. I'm his assistant and blogger. Managing his image was part of my job back home. I used to be half-way decent at it.
And none of us want to hurt Zephyr. [Well, okay, maybe Bucky wanted to hurt Zephyr there for a bit.] I know they're just a kid. We want to get out with their help. But they either actually can't, or they won't. Maybe it's a little bit of both.
no subject
That resonates with him quite a bit.]
...In places like this, it can be hard to actually help another person's image, because everyone is pretty much on display for one another. I believe you though, about him, even if I'm not seeing it yet. I'm not really sure what I could do to lighten the load there. But I'll at least try and keep giving him the benefit of the doubt instead of pouncing on him.
[See what he can do about trying to keep others from getting on the guy's back too, though he won't say that out loud quite yet. He did, after all, tell Watson he'd try and not be a mediator for everything here.]
They were wrong saying he got what he deserved recently. I can understand anger at him, but they're wrong to make excuses for him getting killed or that this guy just couldn't help himself in killing him.
I know you don't want to hurt Zephyr. I'm antsy, I guess. I'm not a master in regards to magic, but I've picked up basic theory and ideas with all the fairies and monsters and gods I've spoken with before getting here. I guess I'm mostly concerned about what we're teaching them, and that it'll be some weird magic shit where the emotions we put in might also somehow affect them.
I'm not saying that just in regards to worrying about your group. The old timers here aren't doing much better in trying to handle this.
no subject
I tried to tell them they weren't alone in it all, at least. Zephyr, I mean. After what happened with the whole... murder 'mystery.' I talked to them a little about Sherlock... and a little about what's going on with the gods. Has anyone told you about the illness? That might well affect Zephyr, too.
no subject
You said it might be murders, instead.
no subject
[John frowns and takes another bite of pork.]
If it's a disease, it's like nothing I've ever heard of, but with their king being targeted... that seemed significant.
no subject
He'll stick to what possibly might be worth asking or talking about.]
I'm not surprised they could get sick. Makes sense they'd have diseases we wouldn't know or understand either. At the same time, that seems like a whopper of a disease to just blow into town this quick, if it has just suddenly appeared. Fact there's no body afterwards is...suspicious.
Going to take it that's most the information she was willing to tell about it so far?
no subject
Yeah. Even that much was a bit like pulling teeth. I don't know that it's that she doesn't want to tell us, but she feel obligated not to say. Maybe it's taboos or she's liable to get in trouble with the other gods or something. I don't want to push her too far that she's pulled out and punished.
[That would just be a pointless waste. Miwa seems genuinely kind and earnest for one thing. For another, she's the most valuable information broker that they have so far. Or at least that John's seen outside of Deei during whatever was happening with Zephyr's powers going mad.]
She suggested I talk to Zephyr more about what we can do to help. I think it'd need to be more than just me telling them they need to let us help, though.
no subject
[Pokey thinks on that for a moment, resting his chin on the flat of his hand.]
It's worth a try, but it could take a little bit. If we start off by figuring out what they even know about it, and trying to give them advice on how to handle it that could lead to them trusting enough to let us get more hands on. ....Kids don't really want to look to someone else for help if they think they can handle it on their own. It can take a bit to get them to realize its okay to ask for help.
no subject
Still, coming from more than just me would help. Would you be willing to give it a go talking with them about what they know?
no subject
[Pokey shrugs a little, taking another bite of his meal.]
They're as worn down as the rest of us from this month, so I'm going to give them just a little. But this coming month I don't mind helping talk to them about it.
Think we can wrap this up and fade out on them chatting
[He's absolutely going to use the opportunity to check up on Pokey's health while he has him here. It's a much easier topic to deal with.]