Locked to in_verbatim

[jmlevitt]

The Sanctuary is almost always deserted in the mornings, making for a decent place to meet someone without being disturbed. It's a bit less private than the Keep, but Jeff wasn't quite well enough for everything that re-opening it involved. Besides, there's couches, drinks, a kitchen...anything one could really need was right there. And the best

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[in_verbatim]

Soze steps in without ceremony, hands buried in a winter coat, a small dusting of snow covering his hair and clothing. Though he PINpointed into the Nexus (he's been in his home world, he's always in his home world these days), he prefers arriving outside the sanctuary instead of PINpointing into the middle of it-- a sort of caution, maybe, or an attempt to make things seem more normal than they actually are.

The four months away from the Nexus have changed him. Duller eyes. A tendency to stare at people longer, closer. A colder voice. He still has his left arm in a sling. The pain is dull most days but biting others, and he's lucky it isn't bothering him much today. He needs to concentrate. His eyes make a quick scan of the room. They're alone, but it doesn't mean anyone can't just walk in.

"Hi," he says. He's relieved that Jeff is looking better. He's relieved, sure, but he doesn't really know what to-- ...he doesn't know what this should mean, the fact that he was willing to risk his life for this. He doesn't know where to go. (

[jmlevitt]

Jeff's eyes actually light up when Keyser comes in. His head tilts oddly for a moment, as if sniffing the air. He doesn't seem to notice the new habit he's picked up, or any of Keyser's, for that matter. "Hi!" he says, beaming, and he nods to a bar seat across from him with an empty plate set neatly in front of it. "I made breakfast. Help yourself." He sounds perhaps a little bit more proud of this than he should, but then again, a week ago he could count his vocabulary on one hand.

He looks more than a little taken aback by the other man's candor, and flushes a little, lowering his eyes. "Me too," he says. He looks up again, chewing his lip with discomfort. "What happened?" he asks after a pause.

[in_verbatim]

Sniffing the air. Like an animal.

(But he's alive.)

"It's probably too much for me to ask about meeting somewhere a little more private," he says, eying the breakfast and then Jeff again, his voice back to the usual empty. He hangs up his jacket anyway. "But maybe it doesn't matter. I'm sorry, where do you want me to start? There's a lot."

There always is.

[jmlevitt]

Jeff looks sheepish as he helps himself to another plate of pancakes. "Normally I would have said to meet at the Keep, but I still haven't gone back there yet. It's probably still locked." And he has no idea if the wards will recognize him the way he is now. He nods in the direction of the side rooms. "We could grab a room if you want? I was out here mostly so I could keep an eye on the door."

He goes to run a hand through his hair and stops himself, realizing he doesn't have any. He runs his hand along his scalp instead, fingers tracing over a new scar on his temple. "I'm not sure," he admits. "The beginning, I guess? I remember leaving the Keep to meet you at Luigi's...and then I woke up strapped to a hospital bed. I still can't figure out how I got there. Did Gabriel have something to do with it?" His eyes travel to the sling. "And what happened to your arm?"