[open]

[clericals]

Who: Karen Page & You
When: 5/29
Where: About the Moira (aft, bar, galley)
What: After being sad about Foggy, Karen starts leaving her room again.
Warnings: n/a


The aft:

[She's never going to get tired of looking out at space. Sure, it's kind of scary, makes her feel small. Is it wrong that that's all a part of the appeal? It leaves Karen with more questions than answers, and that does get under her skin, but at least it keeps her mind busy.]

Star light, star bright. [Karen whispers the words, not checking to see if there is anyone else there with her.] First star I see tonight...

[She hasn't said the poem since she was a little girl looking up at the night sky. She's so much closer now, right in the middle of them. It makes her smile.]

I wonder what she would think about all this.

The bar:

[It will never be Josie's, with its colorful clientele and rusty pipe water that "encourages" you to keep drinking beers. Karen sighs before bringing a glass to her lips, and the alcohol is far and away better than anything she was ever served there.

God, she misses it. If Karen closes her eyes, she can still hear the sound of a cue ball sinking another one, the chatter of rough customers talking about their crappy jobs or their amazing dogs. Foggy's laugh.

This is the way Matt experiences it all, the other senses putting in overtime to make up for the loss of sight. She sits that way for awhile, eyes closed and the seat beside her empty. She'll be in for a surprise if she opens then and finds it suddenly occupied.

(By all means, surprise her.)]

The galley:

Hello?

[It's late, really late, though there's not an hour of the day or night when the Moira can be accused of being truly deserted. But the galley seems to be empty at the moment, and Karen plans on making use of it. Everyone needs to sneak in for a little midnight snack now and then, right?

Except probably the robots on board. Karen isn't really sure what they eat. She starts taking a look around at whatever there is to offer.]

Come on, there's gotta be some pickles somewhere.

Comments

[yer_pretty_good]

[Ocelot would say they were close, but it's also a little more complicated than he'd share with others. There's a lot of strange backstory attached to Ahab and Ocelot's responsible for that.]

Thanks.

[It's kind of her, anyway, to show sympathy for losing his friend.]

You must be a tough lady to live in a place like that.

[As for himself, he shrugs casually.]

Getting along. Guess that's what we all do in a place like this. Company's good, at least.

[Yes, that was a compliment.]

[clericals]

[That's two compliments he gave her, starting with the tough lady one. Karen smiles again at that.]

I swing a mean baseball bat.

[She leans in, almost whispering it to him. There's also the can of mace on her keychain, the .380 in her drawer...

She'd gotten used to taking care of herself.]

I'll drink to that.

[The company is certainly good. Maybe that's why she doesn't miss the gun. Karen feels like there's less of a need for it.]

Tell me more about where you're from.

[While she orders another round.]

[yer_pretty_good]

[He chuckles softly at the whispered words.]

How is it you were drinking alone? Seems to me men would be fighting over you.

[She was attractive, funny, and clearly had some grit.]

I'm from Russia.

[Sort of. Though he sure does sound like an American cowboy.]

I was raised by their military. I now hold a prominent position in their intelligence operations and special forces.

[clericals]

Well, they tried to, but I told them that the seat was reserved.

[Smooth too, a little smooth. Karen smiles coyly, but it's probably ruined by the way her mouth falls open a little.]

Russia? I never would've guessed. [Karen tilts her head at him curiously.] Can you do a Russian accent?

[yer_pretty_good]

I feel pretty lucky.

[Yes, very smooth, Karen. She was fun to talk to. She's right; he doesn't look or sound like he's Russian. In actuality he's not entirely Russian, but he did grow up there.]

U tebya krasivyye glaza.

[His Russian is as flawless as any native speaker who just told her she has beautiful eyes.]

Or did you mean speak English with a Russian accent? Which I could do, but my American accent is pretty good too, don't you think?

[He's a chameleon for sure. That's always been the nature of his life and his work.]

[clericals]

Wow.

[When she laughs, it's the laugh of someone who's surprised, impressed, even a little delighted. They say French is the language of love, but he certainly made Russian sound good.]

Yeah - that's amazing. [His American accent. Karen hadn't considered that he might not be speaking with his actual voice.] So what do you really sound like? Do you even know by now?

[Karen teases, watching him over the rim of her glass as she lifts it up.]

[yer_pretty_good]

[The question amuses him because she has a real point.]

That's a good question. Honestly, I can't even say for sure. I've been so many places and I speak so many languages, maybe I just go with what fits me best at the time. But I like this one. It feels like it suits me.

[And he sure does love cowboy movies. Not to mention he's built quite a reputation around this persona. One that strikes fear into many.]

You ever traveled out of Hell's Kitchen? Russia? Europe?

[clericals]

It definitely suits you.

[Especially if she bought the whole persona, lock, stock, and barrel. She herself doesn't fear it, but maybe she'll see that side of him too someday. Karen puts her drink down.]

I'm from Vermont, originally. But no, I haven't been anywhere like that. [There's a note of wistfulness to her voice, like maybe she wanted to. Maybe Hell's Kitchen was just the start of "not Vermont" for her.] Did it prepare you for any of this? Space?

[yer_pretty_good]

[Hopefully she won't see that side of him some day. Miller says Ocelot is a sadist; Ocelot doesn't see it that way. There's nothing wrong with enjoying your work.

Besides, when he has made people suffer, it was also to save the lives of so many others. Break a few eggs, blah blah blah, he's tried explaining it all to Miller before, but the man has his own perceptions of Ocelot that can't be easily changed. Ocelot supposes it's hard to break those perceptions when Miller's watched him work.

Her question makes him chuckle.]

I've been to some desolate places, but space is something else entirely. At least it's taught me to be adaptable, which I'd consider useful considering the number of planets we stop at.

[He hates to change the casual conversation to something that might be more serious, but cat metaphors aside, he's curious. Ocelot lifts a gloved hand to brush some hair back from her cheek with one finger.]

How're you sleeping? You said you had some nightmares.

[clericals]

[Karen takes a breath, looking down at the bar top, busying her hands with a napkin to set he drink on.]

Better. [She looks back up at him, lips pressed into an appreciative smile.] Time and space, you know? It heals everything. Space being quite literal in this case.

[She adds under her breath before speaking clearly again.]

And thank you. You know, for asking. For being willing to help.

[Karen gets the feeling that he wouldn't judge either.]

[yer_pretty_good]

[Given the things he's done in his past, he's not about to go judging anyone.]

Glad to hear it. Clearly you've been through a lot. I'm glad you were able to overcome it, though. Not all people manage to bounce back.

[clericals]

Oh, if there's one thing that I am, it's bouncy.

[Maybe she's getting just a little close to having one too many. Karen laughs suddenly, placing a hand over her own mouth.]

Shit, that sounded bad. I didn't mean - well, you know.

[yer_pretty_good]

[Ocelot chuckles under his breath.]

I know what you meant.

[Though the mental image is good either way.]

You want me to walk you back to your room?

[Perhaps she's had enough to drink.]

[clericals]

[Karen takes a deep breath, looking at him for a moment before sighing and admitting defeat. For tonight, anyway.]

Yeah, I think that might be a good idea. Especially when I have a gentleman to escort me back.

[yer_pretty_good]

Well then.

[He gets to his feet and offers her his arm. He'll make sure she makes it back to her room safely. With Ocelot and DD escorting her, she couldn't be safer.]