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[braveoff]

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[requiemshark]

[ Sharkface nods, following Drake in. He takes a seat. ]

Met anyone new? Anyone worth knowing?

[braveoff]

Maybe. One woman, she's been here two and a half years, seems to know things inside and out.

[ He pours them drinks and places one in front of Sharkface, going to grab plates and utensils and such while the rice finishes. ]

I've got a couple hits on the ad that I agreed to meet, just to see if we get along. I'm still not looking to rush into a contract but... the quota's a thing.

[requiemshark]

Yeah. The quota's a thing.

[ His tone goes flat for a moment, though he shakes it off and takes a drink. ]

Met a couple people who seem to know their way around. I'll see how it turns.

[braveoff]

[ Drake sets their places at the island where Sharkface is seated, nodding approvingly. ]

Everybody I've met seems to hate it, I figure that's a pretty good sign too. That there's no kool-aid.

Anybody interesting?

[requiemshark]

[ Sharkface hums in agreement. ]

Not sure. Maybe. Some kid named Katie Holt seems to know her way around. And there's a woman named Qi'ra who's built herself some power in the Down. I'll see how it shakes out.

[braveoff]

Sounds like someone worth knowing.

[ Drake checks the rice again and deems it done, flicking off the heat and serving them both before coming around the island to sit next to Sharkface. ]

The woman I met who's been here forever is Raven -- she says she switched designations a couple years ago, but that it almost never happens.

[requiemshark]

[ He hums in agreement, watching Drake. What he says next is interesting. ]

Really. But it is possible?

[ That's worth knowing. ]

How'd that happen?

[braveoff]

She got in with the would-be mayor. I got the impression it was some kind of a stunt or... something.

[requiemshark]

A stunt.

[ Sharkface frowns. ]

But it took? It's real?

[braveoff]

Like a show of power? But I'm just guessing. And it's real, yeah.

[requiemshark]

[ Sharkface nods slowly. ]

Good to know, I guess. I'm still trying to get a handle on this place. All the fucking rules.

[braveoff]

[ Heh. Fucking rules. When they're rules about fucking. It'd be funny if it were intentional but as it is it's just... frustrating. Drake picks up his fork and nods towards Sharkface's plate for him to try dinner. ]

Go ahead. While it's hot.

[requiemshark]

[ Oh. Right. Sharkface glances down at the plate and then back at Drake.

It's fine. It's just food. Only, no one's cooked for him in a long time. Not since Barrows, he thinks.

He twitches and takes his fork. Digs in before he can think too hard about it. ]

Shit. This is good.

[braveoff]

[ Drake beams, then tempers his smile to something less embarrassingly obvious and spears a bite of chicken. ]

Thanks. I got a lot of practice in the past couple of years.

[ Both of cooking and cooking for Ephemera, specifically. Drake knows his tastes. ]

[requiemshark]

[ Sharkface lifts his head and gives Drake a faint smile. ]

It's a good skill. I like it.

[braveoff]

I'm glad.

[ He takes a bite himself, and they eat quietly for a little while. Until what's been in the back of Drake's mind since Sharkface arrived gets too loud for him to ignore. ]

...you don't have to stay, you know.

[requiemshark]

[ The silence settles between them. It's not uncomfortable, not like he feared it might be.

Sharkface hesitates, chewing on his food. ]

No. I don't have to.

[ He could up and walk away. Take his chances. ]

It wasn't so bad last time, was it?

[braveoff]

No, it was good. I just... don't want it to only be about the quota.

[ He breathes out, reaches for his drink. ]

Not with you.

[requiemshark]

[ Oh. Sharkface twitches a little, dropping his gaze down to his hands and the tattoos stretching across his knuckles. The rings. The memorial. He belongs to the dead now. He thinks Drake knows that, on some level. ]

I don't know how to explain it.

[ His voice is very soft. ]

But I trust you. I know that's not....it's not much. But that's real.

[braveoff]

[ Drake blinks. He was expecting Sharkface to shut down a bit at that admission, honestly, which might have been underestimating him except for that they barely know each other from his perspective. It's not like Drake's offered him much in the grand scheme of things, not like when they met in Hadriel. But instead the other man says 'I trust you' and that's... a lot, honestly. It matters. He smiles softly. ]

It is. And it's plenty. I'd like you to stay, if you're up for it. Even just to work on the mural.

[requiemshark]

[ Sharkface lifts his head, watching Drake. It's a nice smile. Drake wears it well. ]

I'd like to stay. To work on the mural.

[ He doesn't particularly want to address the quota thing, but it's still hanging over both of them. ]

[braveoff]

I'm glad.

[ If nothing else he likes the company. He can watch Sharkface work, make up the couch for him if it gets too late to go back. They don't have to do anything. ]

[requiemshark]

[ That sits between them. Sharkface takes a slow breath, then another, and reaches for his drink to steady himself.

Okay. He's okay. ]

Thank you. For the food. And - the mural.

[ The chance to work on it, he means. ]

[braveoff]

I'm definitely the one who should be thanking you -- I couldn't afford to pay for work like this and it's important to me. To make the place more like it's mine.

[ He isn't exactly planning on making a home here, but knows from experience that it happens anyway. ]

What have you been painting on your walls?

[requiemshark]

[ His expression softens briefly. ]

This set of cliffs I saw on a drop. They were some kind of black crystal. I remember the way it'd shine. I'm working on that. Lot of shades. Lot of lighting.