DUDE, THIS ICE CREAM HAS SPRINKLES! AND THIS DOG IS SMILING AT ME! WHAT A GOOD DAY!

[dousing]

GOOD END MEME Sometimes you want a fix-it AU. You want everyone to live, to be happy, to find love, so on and so forth. You want the bad guy to lose early, for victory and triumph. No one dies, some deus ex machina saves the world, everyone goes out for ice cream after the final battle, whatever. The moral of the story is, everyone gets a happy ending. Everyone. Slasher movie? Everyone survives the night and the axe murderer changes their ways because they got a puppy. War movie? Both sides decide it's not worth it and sign a peace treaty. So. Like. Have fun with your lives not sucking. • Top level your character. Include any details you might think are relevant. Or don't. As always, we're not the cops. • Reply to other people's top levels! • Have fun!

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Sorry, I'm sick as a dog so I'll be slow for the next couple of days.

[agentnorth]

[Taking care of people was just in his basic nature. North was happiest when he was taking care of others. It had been what made him an excellent addition to his platoon back in the war and also made him popular in the Project. Sure, South had always bristled over her twin's attempts at 'handling her' but that had never stopped North.

Theta at least seemed more receptive to the sniper's more 'caring' nature. But now, with just Theta, York and Delta to fuss over, the blond man was definitely at his wit's end at times. Which was probably how he'd ended up as the agony aunt for the staff at the restaurant.] That hurts my feelings.

[He said with a laugh while settling in to relax on the couch. North didn't understand half of what York was doing with that holographic lock but it was kind of pretty to watch. Not that he'd tell the other man that because it would just lead to York giving him hell.]

Nah, you're not good enough for her. [His lips twitched with a repressed smile and man, could he be catty when he chose to be.] They're all good people.

[And that was what made lying to them so damned hard. It didn't sit well with his conscience even though he knew this was the only way they would be able to survive under the radar. But it didn't make it any more easier.] I feel like...I dunno, maybe I should start looking for another job. Not stay in one place too long just in case someone does start sniffing around. And I don't want to bring trouble to their door, yanno?

oh no, i hope you feel better! No rush and no worries, ok?

[goddamngrenades]

No it doesn't. [ That's why he said it. There's a comforting familiarity to giving each other a hard time, all sarcastic swipes without any real teeth. ] And no one is good enough for her. Doesn't mean I won't give it a shot.

[ If giving it a shot means bringing her flowers in exchange for food and programming her DVR when she asks. Kind women and families and things he doesn't have, and won't get, ever again. Living on the run kinda ruins that for soldiers. Especially ones on the run with experimental and kinda illegal military grade AI fragments.

York settles back with the bag of food, flipping open the lid to inhale deeply. This is normal and as close to mundane as they're ever gonna get and honestly? He's okay with that. Even if he goes still for a half second when North mentions moving on. A mental check in for time and a quick question for Delta prompts him back into movement, gnawing on a rib. ]

D, how long have we been here?

We're well within the observed safety window, as expected.

[ He chews, swallows, and wipes his mouth with the back of his hand. ] We still got a few weeks at the earliest before we ought to move on- but if you just mean, like, employment wise? Coupla contracts popped up in the boonies. Under the table work, you just need two hands and a working brain.

I am, thankfully.

[agentnorth]

Just don’t come to me crying if Sal takes a shot at you…with the shot gun he keeps hidden under the counter. [He teased, utterly unconcerned for his friend’s continued well-being. Mainly because he knew the worst York would do was flatter a dear old-lady and play at being the grandson they’d lost to the war.

They were good people and that was why it made this so hard on the blond man. It was rare to find decent people still left in the world so the idea that he might unwittingly bring trouble to their door nibbled at the back of his mind constantly. He let his head fall back against the lumpy back of the couch and just breathed out slowly as the tense muscles in his body started to loosen one at a time.]

I don’t think we’re blown or anything, I just don’t want them to get in trouble because of us. What if the Project or the UNSC finds out they were "harboring deserters with stolen military equipment"? [He even tiredly made a half-assed attempt at making finger-quotes in the air.] They would lose their restaurant at the least, maybe even end up in jail. I don't want to risk them just on our account, especially when they don't understand the dangers involved. [Typical North, self-sacrificing to the bitter end. South had often ribbed her brother about being a wannabe saint, something he'd just brushed off for the most part. Because compared to some of the truly awful things his twin had said to him towards the end, that wasn't even scraping the bottom of the barrel. York’s offer caught his attention though and he let his head loll over to look at the infiltration expert with a curious look.]

What kinda work? [So far, he’d hesitated to take anything that held too much criminal danger. The last thing any of them needed was one of them getting popped by the local police and ending up in a holding cell. North didn’t want to risk Theta or Delta, much less his best friend’s safety. Of course, when you were working below the radar, there just weren’t a lot of job opportunities to be found. Even on a backwater colony such as this one.]

good to hear!

[goddamngrenades]

The project that's kinda fallen to pieces while being investigated by the UNSC that's fighting a PR war on the ethics employed to ensure humanity's survival? [ It's hard to remove himself enough to have any kind of perspective on the whole mess and he'll never not be a complete paranoid wreck- but logistically speaking? Stolen experimental AI and all, they're small fish.

It's kinda nice to be certain of that.

Sotra. ]

I keep thinking I should just forge us some paperwork so we can actually get some solid employment. [ but there's that whole 'going straight' mentality he's trying real hard to stick to and some days are easier than others. Days when North feels guilty makes it hard to hold onto reasons to not. Real damn hard. Still York sets the thought aside (again) and pulls up the flyer he'd snagged off a notice board earlier in the day. ] Just some basic foundation work. Rebuilding shit that got blown up during the war, nothing dangerous. I was think'n about going in myself but-

[ He flicks his fingers to the scar, the eye. ]

Don't wanna stand out.

[agentnorth]

You heard what Texas had to say, there's no limit to what the Director will do to attain his twisted as fuck goals. [North didn't curse often but when he did, it was to great effect and to prove a point. In this case, he wasn't willing to assume they were just going to fly under the radar. The both of them had heard rumors about the Recovery unit and the often gruesome task they had to track down and recover lost Project Freelancer tech.

Maybe it was Theta's influence that colored his perception on the matter but he couldn't help but fear the other shoe was going to drop on them.] I just don't want good people to get caught up in our problems.

[He said with a momentarily sad and wistful look. Because like York, he'd basked in the affection to be found in the elderly couple.]

I hate to say it, but it might not be a bad idea. It'd make travel a lot easier, not to mention being able to find a legit job. [But he understood York's hesitance and in truth, he got it. The sniper leaned over to try and get a better look at the flyer the brunet was holding.] Sounds like it'd pay well, prolly better than what I make at the restaurant.

[At the self-deprecating remark about the eye, he leveled an earnest look at his friend.] It's not that bad, you could easily claim you got it in the war and no one would pay it any mind.

You could wear an eye patch like a pirate! [Theta suddenly chimed, having monitored the entire conversation from that private corner of North's brain.]