tuesday, 1 PM

[disapproved]

[ there were a few things that morrigan was curious about, and there was one person in particular that she felt could answer at least a couple of them. as the day trudged on, minutes passing like sap from a ironwood tree, morrigan waits. and waits. she waits until she sees people file out of the hotel for the day, who, despite the cold, seek something to do to occupy themselves, so they won't go stir crazy and do something they may later regret.

she hadn't seen break that day, so she had hoped he would be in his room — she had no guarantee she would find him there, but now was a fine time to see. she folds the playing cards she'd been idly flipping to pass the time, quietly slipping from the kitchen to the stairwell. the coast seemed clear for now — easy enough — and, reaching break's room, she knocks firmly. she says nothing, on the off chance he isn't in — she didn't want to alert anyone to her trying to get into contact with him. ]

Comments

[crazily]

[ It's strange, that this would almost be the opposite effect from the one he had experienced decades ago now. Years had passed in minutes then, and now, it's minutes pass in years. Bitterly, he feels that he's only barely sure which is worse, but that was only because of the cruelty that had spat him out with a century lost. So in a way, the knock at the door is a welcome distraction.

He stands from where he had been flopped onto his bed, and he ignores just how long it feels that it takes to reach the door. Ridiculous. It's preposterous, and nothing more. Though of course, because he doesn't know who is on the other side of the door, he answers with his eye closed, even if it's with a smile. He has to get a sense of their voice to know where he should direct his gaze so that he can at least pretend that he can see. ]

Go~od afternoon. Or at least, I hope it's afternoon~! Looking at clocks today is terribly irritating, isn't it?

[disapproved]

Good day, Break. I suppose it still is light outside, yes?

[ a light joke about time shenanigans right back at him. if nothing else, break and morrigan could persevere through this week with pure verbal irony — a tiny boon to their temporal plight. ]

I have a few wonders, and I was hoping you may have the answers I seek. It may pass a few seconds, if nothing else. I believe we all seek reprieve from our idle thoughts, now. May I come in?

[crazily]

[ Morrigan, then. His eye opens, and despite the fact that he's only guessing, it still fixes on her gaze easily. His brow raises in surprise, but he nods and steps aside with a sweeping gesture for her to enter. ]

Why, absolutely. I wasn't doing anything of importance, so your company is much more interesting.

[disapproved]

Mm. Yes. Perhaps distractions will stay the murder yet.

[ she crosses the threshold of break's room, an act that seems to take minutes instead of seconds — as if she were wading through sludge. once she's in, she turns to break, not bothering to 'make herself at home' and sit anywhere — instead, she cuts right to the point. ]

So, what do you make of our dear Miata's motive?

[crazily]

[ The door is closed after her, and Break has to admit, he's surprised. She gets right to the point, and the surprise shows briefly on his face, but it also shifts into smile. Considering the circumstances, it's appreciated, but he'd like her straightforward nature normally too. He bows his head lightly with a half-playful laugh, but there's a slightly warmer and darker tone to it. For all his clownish appearance and mannerisms, he's not an idiot, and that shows in small measures like now. ]

Well, I think it will be convincing despite best wishes otherwise. Time is strange that way.

[ Which is a cryptic comment, but the implication is at least clear with his very odd profile in their little booklets. Not..that he's seen it, but he had Gilbert read it to him. Good enough. ]

A century passing in minutes, whether it's perceived or true, well~! That certainly does change your outlook, you know?

[disapproved]

Truly, we have found ourselves among a naive cohort. I suppose it is quaint, given that it is largely composed of adolescents — still, I find myself comforted to know there are realists among us.

[ coincidentally, break used some buzzwords that could be applied to the reason for her visit. she turns to gaze out the window, only looking over her shoulder when she speaks. ]

In truth, you have alluded to why I have come. While I do enjoy banter ever so much, there is a question I have been unable to disquiet. I felt now was, perhaps, an appropriate time to ask. [ she turns her head back to gaze out the window. ] What is your true age?

[crazily]

Ahh, then you will always find it with me, I'll admit~! I try and keep my spirit youthful with my temperament, but realism comes with age, doesn't it?

[ Break teases lightly, but as she gets to her point, he does actually get more serious. That sing-song, lilting tone leaves his voice, and he shrugs. ]

Actually, I'm surprised that more people weren't bothered by it. It's really just as it says. All three of those ages are accurate, in a sense. But, in terms of the number of years I've been alive, 45 is probably the best of the three.

[disapproved]

Pardon my intrusion, but how, exactly, can one have three ages? I felt that, somehow, our current situation related to it. As if this was a personal slight against you, specifically..?

[ just a hunch. she was probably wrong, but turning it around to being about break himself made her think he would be more willing to divulge his dirty laundry. ]

ugh i lost this tag when i switched emails i'm sorry

[crazily]

[ It's probably something that Morrigan is familiar enough with that she can read it well enough from Break. She's brushing up against something uncomfortable and secret, and even though his smile stays in place, it's definitely more strained. ]

Hmm... I wonder that myself too at times, to be completely fair.

[ Break pauses, and it's clear that he's reluctant to explain. However, where he's able to keep that secret casually at home, it's much more dangerous to do so with this odd "motive" in place. It's not quite damning, but it's definitely something that could become a problem. The silence lingers a bit longer than it should, but he answers with an ease in his tone. Still, that ease isn't exactly genuine. ]

The short version is that I cheated death. I certainly was supposed to be killed, but fate either smiled upon me or scorned me, depending on your point of view.

[ He's still being evasive and not quite getting to the point, but he looks up at her with a cool smile. ]

I was pulled into a deep abyss from which there's supposed to be no return. Time flows differently there, and so many decades passed while I was only in there for a short period of time. That was about twenty years ago. So I have an age for when I was to die, one for the time that truly passed while I was there, and an age for as I am now. It's very complicated, as you can imagine.

[disapproved]

Hm. 'Tis a tale that transcends culture, surely.

[ not that she doesn't believe him; it just is similar to what she knows of flemeth's own life, and the fables that surround her existence. she considers what break has told her for a minute in silence. ]

You are most lucky, then. Or is it unlucky? I can never tell.

[crazily]

[ He laughs, but it's far too cheerful considering what he actually says. ]

Well! If you were to ask me, then I would say unlucky. It wasn't quite something I asked for, I'll admit.

[ Break pauses again, but then hums lowly before he adds: ] Miss Morrigan... Have you talked to that cat, by any chance? Cheshire?

[disapproved]

I'd suspect you would say as much, but another may deem it lucky, for them — 'tis a fickle thing in which we place our trust.

[ anyway, nietzsche and sartre here should probably move on to actually talking about something. ]

No. I've yet to have the pleasure. [ a furrow of the brow. ] Why?

[crazily]

It's no pleasure.

[ Break says that bluntly, but then motions vaguely towards his long, oversized bangs that cover half his face. ]

But, I will say to you that you should be cautious with that kitty. Next time you look, take a good look at that eye of his, hmm~? It should look familiar, if you're observant.

[ This is the part where I'm like "my canon makes no sense, forgive me," but Morrigan will notice that it's definitely identical to Break's. Cheshire's eye is Break's stolen one. ]

[disapproved]

A pernicious cat, it seems.

[ morrigan leans against a wall, finally seeming to relax; to be honest, break was enjoyable to talk to, and she was getting dreadfully bored. she had received the answer she wanted, but there was a lot of time to waste so she may as well try and pass some more. ]

They are a friend of yours, then? It seems most have arrived without an acquaintance to speak of. Perhaps it is your questionable luck at work once again.

[crazily]

Not at all.

[ It's hard for Break to be direct when it comes to himself, which makes this conversation a bit difficult for him. He's not stupid, though. He knows that being indirect in a situation like this could give him a noose with which to hang himself, so he's trying to carefully tread the line between being forthcoming and protecting his secrets. ]

The cat is a creature of that abyss, so to call us enemies would be something of an understatement.

[ Ah, but that sounds terribly bad, doesn't it? He might as well just be direct with this. ]

That eye doesn't belong to him. It's mine.

[disapproved]

You.. must mean figuratively, yes? Surely the boy hasn't stolen your eye. [ maybe this was getting a little too weird for her.. she wants to backpedal but she concedes. weirder things have happened, she guessed ] No, I suppose that cannot be the case.

Do you plan to reacquire your eye?

[crazily]

If only.

[ Break laughs, and this one does have a bit of wry humor. HE KNOWS... Trust him... But he shrugs a bit all the same. ]

My circumstances are quite bizarre, so you'd be well within your right to take it as a tall tale! But no, I don't. There'd be no point, since I don't think it would do me any good. '

[ Another shrug, but this one at least has more humor as he tries to deflect this part. He's being factual, and from his tone, it's clear that he's not explaining because he wants pity or to be coddled. ]

I'm blind. So even if I were to get it back, it'd make no difference.