02-- Things might yet turn around.

[stillshinigami]

So he's taken to spending quite a bit at time in the common area of the residential chamber. Usually? Chilling out at the table or finding a nice little niche to settle in. Right then? He'd found a stone bench near a window that looked out onto the courtyard. On the opposite bench, a green-gray crate with numbers on it and a packing label. Someone got a package today. How? Probably a good question.

He'd gotten it the night before at the fountain while he was still restlessly awake. Didn't really take him long to figure out what had happen once he decided to throw a coin in and make a wish but he didn't think for a second that it would work. About two hours later? He asked again. Past midnight.

Now. It was late afternoon and he'd held off from indulging long enough. He settled onto the window seat, propped a leg up on the opposite stone ledge and plucked an apple from the crate of perfectly ripe fruit. Strawberries, mangoes, apricots, grapes, apples and pears. Perfect. He took a bite out of the apple, sighing contently.

So he'd lost his nerve for a spell. So those damn Shadows sapped a bit of his courage away. Didn't bother him so much right now. He'd just have this and enjoy his little birthday eating, drinking and being merry. Like you're supposed to do.

"Bottoms up." He said, drinking the last out of his flask before looking to the bottle to fill it back up.

[OOC: A window seat are common structures in castles. They look like this. Feel free to join Duo and have a drink, eat some good food, he's happy to share and plenty to go around. Also I may prefer prose but you can also respond in comment spam. I really don't care either way.]

Comments

[stoicperfection]

Heero had spent his time exploring the castle by himself after his first encounter with Duo. He worked best that way, finding that not many people could keep up with him. Not that it could be a problem here, not from some of the others he observed, but he wasn't interested in actually dealing with them for awhile. That meant he hadn't been to his room either. He didn't like the idea of having roommates.

Making his way into the common area of the residential chamber, he glanced around and found it mostly empty. Odd. This place was of easy access and it would make sense for it to be more crowded than this. He stepped a bit further into the room and spotted Duo off in one of the niches. Older Duo, he had to remind himself. Not the one from home.

"Drinking?" He asked as the older man refilled his flask.

[stillshinigami]

Duo was fine with what little he's seen of his roomies. Didn't bother him one bit so long as they didn't ask him too many questions. He wouldn't mind answering most but conversations, he's noticed, can become pretty bothersome if they had no idea what he was talking about. He's pretty much decided to avoid talking about home. It'd make him homesick anyway.

He raised his flask to his approaching friend and gave a friendly smile.

"I have a mysterious benefactor. It appears that fountain is a wishing well. Who would have thought?" He took another sip and then focused on the apple, taking a big crunch of a bite.

He smiled, speaking at first through the bite. "I don't care if you don't wanna have a drink..." He swallowed.

"--but have some of this. I don't think I can eat it all before it spoils. Plus, I gotta save some for my body double." With that, he tossed Heero an orange.

[stoicperfection]

Heero caught the orange in one hand and looked over towards the box. If someone had left it for him, it was generous. From what he could gather, they were only being fed the bare minimum of what could be considered food. Not that it really mattered to him, but an orange would be a nice change from that.

Taking a seat on the stone ledge across from the older pilot, he began to peel the fruit and glanced out the window. "I haven't seen him. How's he doing?" He figured that Duo was well and probably talking off people's ears, which was a difference he noticed between the two versions. This one seemed more subdued.

[stillshinigami]

"He's upset." Duo looked pensively at the crate, reaching over for one of the oranges to dig into. He closed his eyes, turning his head down to look at the stony floor. Eeeh, what to say about that? He turned his attention back up to his fellow pilot and shrugged.

"I went following him. Wanted to know what timeline he was from and we got attacked by these shadows. Pulled me into a void." A miserable expression crossed his face briefly, then he continued speaking.

"Then after we got back here, after he beat those things back, I told him about what happened. With Operation Meteor. He didn't take it so well. Frankly I don't even know how you managed it. Compartmentalized, I know. More important priorities and all. But still." He sighed. "But then, you are who you are."

He reached for a strawberry, one which was very large and deep red. He took a bite off the tip. Good thing he had this food or he might still be losing sleep over it.

[last_lombax]

Ratchet had had a rather nasty run in with the shadow creatures. He had been quite lately, staying in his apartment most of the time since then. He felt weak without his arsenal. Why the hell didn't he have it. He wanted them back so he could blow this place to hell and just let everyone go. But today he was out and out just to stretch his legs. And that's how he came across Duo and his bounty.

"...Where did you get all this stuff?"

[stillshinigami]

Duo looked incredibly content sitting there with his back to the wall and his leg propped up next to his crate. He heard Ratchet's footsteps and turned his head to greet his furry little friend. Boy, did he look like a mess. No more than he did!

"Hey buddy." He started, then looked to his box of treats.

"So it turns out that the fountain happens to be a wishing well. I got these last night. Finally got some shut eye too. How have you been holding up?"

[last_lombax]

Ratchet's eyes widened when he heard about the well. It granted wishes? He was going to have to give that a try. He waved his hand at the question as for how he was doing.

"I'm alright. Went out on my own at night. Kind of sucked. Nothing special."

[stillshinigami]

"Shadows attack you?" Duo guessed, taking another sip of his flask and offering it to the lombax. Go ahead. Take a sip.

"I got pulled into one of those portals almost." By his face alone it was easy to see how unpleasant it was for him.

[eldritch_princess]

Cordelia had been exploring the castle on her own, even making a small make-shift map (although it got harder and harder to properly map the place, with all the stairs and layers...).

It stood to reason she'd eventually run into Duo.

She discovered the man in a window seat, with a box of fruit, no less, which made her stop in her tracks. Now where had he gotten that one from?

She knocked at the wall, in lieu of a door to knock, then stepped a bit closer.

"Uhm, hello. I hope I am not interrupting anything - I couldn't help but notice you there, and particularly that box of yours. Might I inquire where you obtained it from?"

[stillshinigami]

Duo swallowed the sip, turning his head to this woman and his brow immediately raised. Of all the people he has met this one was dressed the strangest by far. Oh yeah. When she gestured to his loot, he looked from it to her and then took another sip, lowering the flask.

"Aaah. Well. I said I wanted it last night when I was by the fountain down stairs. Ever heard of a wishing well? Cause that seems to be what it is."

Ak sorry, didn't see the notif >_<

[eldritch_princess]

"It really works?" Cordelia answered with astonishment in her voice. "I've heard of them, but I thought they were just stories."

She paused for a moment. "Uhm, I think we haven't met before. I'm Cordelia. Is there something on my face...?"

She had noticed his raised brow, after all. She just didn't know why he looked at her like that.

Sallright.

[stillshinigami]

Duo nodded, taking another bite out of his apple. Yep. He was pleased with what he had and he gestured to the box. Help yourself!

"Cordelia, huh? I'm Duo." Then? He paused, his brow raised again.

"Uuuh. No? Why do you ask?"

[duomaxwell]

He tried to tell himself he wasn't avoiding his double. Tried, being the key word in that. But denial aside, he really was. He wasn't mad at him for telling him the truth, but it certainly didn't sit well with him either.

But he couldn't stay out of the common area forever, and this seemed to be the day when he finally came shuffling back after spending too much time awake, alone, and occasionally resting on very uncomfortable stone ledges and the odd stone couch.

His face was mostly hidden by his hat, dark circles under his eyes only visible to some one who actually looked and hands stuffed in the pockets of his jacket as he walked in quietly, kicking at the faint layer of dust still on the ground.

[stillshinigami]

Join the club. It wasn't as though he had the benefit of sleep either. He'd dreamed about the impact, Barton raids and shadow monsters for the better half of the week after that incident. He settled in for a bit, absently aware of the footsteps before finally looking. He hoped for some good company. Someone to share this bounty with, but when he saw who it was he cringed.

Him. Right. So what to say? He knew what the right thing to do was, but could he actually do it? He inhaled a heavy breath and picked himself up off the seat.

"Hey." Still so strange saying it for someone else-- Duo." He paused, waiting for the kid to look at him.

"Happy Birthday, man." Maybe the other guy didn't choose the same day as him. Maybe he did. But he just wanted to say it. Even if he didn't want anything to do with him.

[duomaxwell]

The voice got his attention, but the words sounded strange to him. It wasn't that they were suddenly speaking different languages, but for some reason it took his brain a few minutes to actually register what he said.

"... wait, really?"

[stillshinigami]

That brought him a little hope. He looked around the corner at his double and gestured for him to come over, nodding.

"I counted the days from when I left. It's Febuary Second. 2/2 for the pilot from L2. I figured you mighta picked the same day." He gave a tired smile to his double, similar weary lines under his eyes. More over, his cheeks were flushed from the whiskey.

He then turned his attention to his crate of fruit and grabbed an apple. C'mover here. I got somethin' for ya."

[modernholmes]

Shinichi had been occupying himself by seeking out and collecting information from as many different people as he could. By now he was beginning to believe that he had developed as clear a picture of the events that lead to this situation as he could create solely from witness statements. And so he had taken a seat in the corner of the living area as he began entering everything he had learned into his notebook.

He looks up curiously at the sound of Duo's voice before returning to his work.

[stillshinigami]

Duo caught the movement out of his peripheral vision and caught sight of Shin'. Oh. Hey. He waved, turning his attention back to to his drink and then plucking out a strawberry. Yep! He was happy. Or he looked far happier than the last time Shinichi had seen him.

[modernholmes]

"Fruit?" Shinichi asks with some puzzlement.

[tophbeifong]

Toph had long since decided that the open spaces in the castle weren't secure enough for her. With her bending returned, she could "see" well enough, but "seeing" all the way up the towering wall was a little off-setting. While it normally wouldn't prove to be an issue and perhaps instead a reminder of the Earth Rumble stadium, she'd learned that here, there were flying monsters and who knew what was hiding up there that she couldn't detect.

So, a small outcropping in the wall was her favorite sanctuary when she wasn't in her room. It had a shorter ceiling than the rest of the room, and every so often, she could feel the sunlight on her skin. She was on her way there when she paused. Someone else was there before her.

"Do you always steal people's seats?" She asked him, arms folded over her chest as she stood a short distance away, feet spread shoulder width apart, head at an angle.

She honestly didn't mind. Company was fine with her. It just surprised her, and she wasn't too good at saying "hi."

[stillshinigami]

"Didn't have your name on it." Duo said, screwing the cap on his flask and pocketing it. He looked over at the little girl and gave a smile, not yet aware that he couldn't see him do so. He straightened himself and looked at the kid.

"Hey. You want somethin' to eat? I got some fruit here. And there's too much to eat all on my own." Duo tapped the crate across from him then propped his feet back up. He was feelin' pretty damn good.

[tophbeifong]

She could see the smile, no, but she could hear it in his voice. She gave her own little smirk and passed him to sit in the corner by the window, right in the sunlight.

"That DOES smell really good," she commented, turning towards the crate to get a better sniff. Some of it smelled like the treats her father would bring home. Another corner smelled like the expensive flavored teas at her and her friends' adoptive uncle's shop. Something on the other side smelled like the desserts section of the many banquets thrown for the Avatar. Something else smelled like the midnight snacks they'd have when Zuko stepped away from his kingdom, Aang took a break from Avatar-ing, and they all had a sleep over in the woods.

All in all, it reminded her of home.

"Don't mind if I do," she commented, reaching in to grab something and bring it to her lips. "Mmm, mango."

She snuggled back into her corner before lifting a foot. A sturdy pillar of rock rose beneath it and she propped her bare feet on it, since she was too short to reach the opposite bench.

"Thanks."

[somekindahero]

The problem with a place like this was that it afforded you too much time to think about things you really didn't want to think about. Dean had spent the last couple of weeks looking for a way out with Sam and wondering what Hell was going to be like when his time came up. It was more than a little unfair that the last days of his life were being wasted away in some castle instead of hitting up old flames, kicking some ass and going out in a blaze of Las Vegas glory.

Not that he'd had time to think about how he would be spending his time if he wasn't in the castle... or anything. He was making his way through the common room when he passed a window and then promptly stopped and backed up.

That was a crate filled with goodness. Why hadn't he thought of that? "Hey," he said, moving over to the window. "How did you get that?"

[stillshinigami]

Duo turned his head left to look at the newcomer, another guy he hasn't seen before. He reaches his arms up to stretch, fighting back a lazy yawn.

"Y'remember that fountain coming in? All I did was ask for it and it showed up right next to me a few minutes later. I still don't know how it works, it just does." There's a shrug, and he scratched the back of his neck.

"You want some? Help yourself. Just sittin' back and tryin' to relax for a while." He'd be going out to explore and work before too long.

[somekindahero]

"Huh," said Dean eloquently as he eyed the fruit and drink for a long moment. He had to admit it looked a hell of a lot better than what he'd been eating. Who would've known it was as easy as wishing in some wishing well. He'd have to ask for a pie or two soon.

"Don't mind if I do," he said, settling down on the bench opposite of the other guy. "Thanks." He reached into the crate and picked out some grapes. "I'm Dean, by the way."