lucetilogs | I've seen your flag on the Marble Arch; Love is Not a Victory March

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I've seen your flag on the Marble Arch; Love is Not a Victory March

Who:

lists_to_port
What: Seeking Refuge at Cullen House
When: Monday evening, after this.
Where: Cullen House
Summary: 8| and :(
Rating: It's scaling toward a very emo PG at this point.

"Now watch yer step, Bonesy---this path's a bit iced over today." Jack Sparrow picked his way easily across said icy path, completely ignoring the Are We There Yet--

Damn it, why am I calling her that now?!

--because looking at the boat made him think of Jilly, and he did not want to think of her right now. Looking at her also made him think of Buffy, and he did not want to think of her, either. Of course, what one wants and what one actually gets are often two drastically different animals, and Jack was very busy having a lovely garden party in his head with both women in attendance.

It was the sort of garden party where it rains, and everyone's hats get wet, and then horribly misshapen lobster monsters rise up from beneath the crudité and finger-sandwich cart and begin attacking the guests, and the only thing you can do is draw your sword and try to fight them off, and the hats end up getting even wetter because of course it starts to rain HARDER, and that one lummox who always shows up uninvited complains about the state of the brie.

"Bonesy.....where.........where are we goin', again?"

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"Well I was just trying to show her a good time, wasn't I? And we HAD one. Us. Or perhaps she'll simply invite you out for a good time."

Irrational jealously boiled in his gut when he heard him say that and he retaliated by jabbing the pirate in the ribs with his elbow. First he had taunted him with barbs about Emony being invisible and now this. He couldn't decide whether it was remnants of the experiment playing with his mind or genuine feelings which caused him to strike out.

"She's a school teacher, damn it. You can't go out getting her drunk every night." It was easy to lecture him. "Just leave her alone. Please."

"Oi! I didn't make her do anything she didn't WANT to, mate!"

"Can you go five minutes without lying?"

"Why would I lie about Mistress Raine? I owe her my life, McCoy."

And he also owes you, doctor. Jack Sparrow is not known for paying off debts, ever. But he rather likes being in Raine's debt. It's pleasant, somehow.

He knew what debt he was referring to. When his mind was in overdrive, he could still see the dried blood on the porch steps and feel the same panic grip his chest. And as a response failed to materialize, he opted to scowl darkly at Jack instead.

"No worries, McCoy--I'm in no hurry to be put into any position to return the favor." The pirate swirls the rum about in the bottle, examining the color of the liquid appreciatively.

"How can I not worry?"

"Well I could knock you over the head again. It might hurt, but you wouldn't be thinkin' about it."

The pirate was KIDDING, but he knew that McCoy would very likely hit him for saying such a thing. And to be honest, he thought it might be good for the man to get some of this anger out somehow.

"If you do that, I'll sedate your ass." He threatened the pirate in a low, trembling voice. The joke did a good job of riling his temper, but he refrained from striking out for the comment despite how satisfying it would be. He had to remember the oath.

"It was a mistake coming out here."

"Not a mistake. What do you want of me, McCoy? Hm? You came here for a reason. I want to know what that is. Your purpose, here."

"You're the one who invited me here."

"Pfft. That's not why you came. Out with it: what's to gain from refuge here, hm? Better to throw yourself at her feet, isn't it?"

Now one would have to question whether Sparrow was talking about what HE should do or what McCoy should do. Because clearly he is speaking about more than just their current situation.

"I'm not..." He begun, but hesitated. He hadn't even begun to consider how she was dealing with the repercussions of this experiment and it was evident on his face. Should he throw himself at her feet? And for what? Showing her a good time while he was under the illusion of loving her? That wasn't how he operated... the same thing had happened with Emony Dax and it had taken him an evening to figure out how much of an ass he had been to her. "You don't know anything."

"What if she's waiting for you?"

He pictured Jilly, forlorn, feeling used, perhaps. The thought chilled him.

"I doubt it."

Raine was efficient and steadfast and he felt a new wave of admiration for her as he considered this. Moving along like nothing happened; she was more inclined to recover from something like this after she had experienced it more times than him. It was him who was being overly emotional.

"But she's been hurt, before; and she doesn't deserve being hurt by a black-hearted scoundrel. She deserves...to be loved."

He opened his mouth to refute those claims, but he begun to realize that maybe the pirate was actually projecting his own issues about the experiment onto him... "What are you talking about?"

Oh, bugger. There was nothing Jack wanted less than to talk about what Jilly had revealed to him. The girl had been bewitched into betraying a trust to herself, that much was clear. He was certain she would never tell him any of what she had of her own accord. He swallowed hard and tried to put an innocent smile on his face.

"Hmm? Ah. Just talkin' about love, Bonesy."

He had his suspicions, but decided not to pry and let it drop. McCoy figured that he must have been talking about Jilly and he thought -- with any luck -- Jack would remember how he backed off this subject instead of pursuing it.

Jack needed to change the subject, desperately. He was glad when the doctor seemed to want to let this drop, because honestly he was not sure how much further with it he could go. He knew, too, that thinking about Jilly would probably only cause further pain, and pain is something Jack avoids at all costs. He was, however, curious about Bones's thoughts on another member of their Luceti social circle.

"How do you think Kennedy's been settling in?"

The lad's behavior at the pub the night they'd played dice had been strange, to say the least.

"I think he's... adjusting."

"Adjusting?" Jack snorted. Kennedy might be settling down but there was something going on with the boy, that was for certain. "Do you remember the look he had when we tried to give him his comeuppance?"

"You tried to give him his comeuppance." McCoy corrected him lazily as he lifted the bottle again and savoured the taste of it. His memories of the evening were fuzzy although he did recall having to be carried out by the pirate. Oh, goddamn it. "I didn't have anything to do with it."

"He was terrified, and all I'd done was sit on him."

Jack fell silent. The doctor appeared not interested in discussing this interesting situation with him, and he wasn't keen on pressing the man too hard. McCoy had been through enough this week. They both had.

"You can stay here as long as you like, Bonesy--but eventually you'll have to go back. We both will."

I've seen your flag on the Marble Arch; Love is Not a Victory March

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