bound_by_honor (bound_by_honor) wrote in doorslogs, @ 2012-03-18 13:36:00 |
|
|||
Entry tags: | eddard stark, jon snow |
Who: Theo and Raegan
What: Dinner & a show
When: Before he went through the door; after he met Nell
Where: The Wynn, then the Venetian
Warnings: None!
Raegan’s idea of going out for dinner was grabbing a burger at a fast food joint, and the only shows she went to were movies, which she’d always snuck into rather than paying for, and neither required a dress code. Needless to say, she was completely out of her element on this one. Fishnets and bold prints weren’t an option when it was her uncle taking her out for dinner at a classy restaurant, especially since he was her only link to her mother, a woman she’d never known but often dreamt about. Most of the time she didn’t give a damn what people thought about her, but this... this was different. Even if she’d never admit it, Raegan wanted to make a good impression. She didn’t want to screw this up, not when she hadn’t seen the only other people she counted as family in years.
Not surprisingly, Jon was no help at all when it came to outfitting herself. He’d started becoming vocal in the past few days, not too much so, but enough to start voicing his opinions instead of expressing them through little jolts of emotion or nudges in a certain direction. While she deliberated over what to wear, he instructed her on how to behave-- which she thought was a bit rich, coming from him, but she was too distracted to argue. When she arrived outside the Wynn, clad in dark purple and shoes with an actual heel, she was actually nervous, though she hid it well behind a devil-may-care exterior.
Overall, however, the night hadn’t gone too badly. Dinner was nice, even though she stared a little too long at the prices, and the Venetian’s theater was admittedly impressive. Jon thought Phantom was boring and kept making observations about what his half-siblings (particularly Arya) would have thought, but Raegan enjoyed it more than she’d expected. Okay, so the tragic love story angle wasn’t really her thing, and sometimes the singing was a little much, but she kind of dug the unrequited love part.
“Now I won’t be able to get those songs out of my head for weeks,” she joked as the lights came on and people began to rise from their seats, milling about and heading towards the exits for whatever else they had planned for the night. Raegan figured if she kept things light, and she didn’t leave much room for pauses that went on too long, there was less of a chance of things getting awkward. Sure, Theo was her uncle, her flesh and blood, but while that may have meant the world to Jon she didn’t know him that well yet.
Theodore was clueless when it came to children and Eddard wasn’t very helpful when it came to possible bonding activities. Since dinner and a show seemed to work so well for Kate, he thought it was reasonable to assume that it would work for his niece. She was the only family he had left, aside from those who had Ned’s children as their alternate person. His meetings with Nell and Ezra had gone in vastly different directions but he hoped that he would be able to cross the door soon.
It was easy to push most of that aside once he saw Raegan. She looked beautiful, and he made sure to tell her so. Theo wore a black suit with a light blue button down shirt, looking every bit as comfortable in it as most would in jeans and a t-shirt. Dinner when quite well, as did the show. It had been years since he’d last seen Phantom and it was just as wonderful as he remembered. Eddard had been quite unimpressed with the production, but he had stayed quiet throughout the performance. Any lingering awkwardness had faded the moment the lights went down and hadn’t returned with the return of the lights. He laughed at Raegan’s joke, nodding in agreement.
“They are rather catchy, aren’t they?” he replied. “I think there’s a soundtrack for purchase outside if you’d like,” he offered, only half serious. What he really wanted to discuss with her was her living arrangements and what he could do to help ease some of the financial aspects of her life. The theater started to empty out and he put his hand against her lower back to guide her through the crowd. “Would you care for a gondola ride?” he asked, figuring that it might be a good way to begin to talk about what he wanted to discuss.
Admittedly, Raegan was still trying to get herself used to the idea that someone might actually want to do things for her out of sheer genuine selflessness, rather than some hidden ulterior motive that would bite her in the ass later. Her stepsiblings were the last people she could recall ever doing things like that, but even then mutual benefit came into play every now and then; if you were going to steal some cigarettes, why not add in some shampoo and hairspray for the littlest stepsister? “Yeah, I think that’s how they get you,” she said, trying to discern whether Theo was kidding or actually being serious about the soundtrack. Jon would lose his mind, but then again he already hated her choice in music as it was. “But I’ll pass on the soundtrack. Thanks,” she added, a little belatedly, after some prompting by Jon.
Beyond dinner and the show, she had no idea what to expect, which meant that she was following Theo’s lead despite her natural resistance to doing just that. “Uh...” She didn’t have a real reason to return home so quickly, since using her dog as an excuse seemed pretty pathetic, and Raegan realized she wasn’t particularly desperate to leave in the first place. “Sure,” she agreed, after a few moments of consideration. The crowd was slow moving, but if there was one thing she was good at, it was slipping through the cracks.
Theodore continued to lead her after she agreed to the gondola ride. It wasn’t a far walk from the theater entrance and the line for the exhibit. Because it was late, there wasn’t a line and they were seated right away. After helping Raegan into the gondola, Theodore slipped the attendant a twenty dollar bill to let them have a conversation in peace. He stepped in after her and sat next to her as they began to go down the river.
“You’re my niece, Raegan, and the only family that I have. It’s becoming very clear to me that family is something that should be treasured and I want to do right by you. There are some weird things going on in Las Vegas right now and -” Theodore stopped, because he wasn’t sure if they’d discussed the journals or the doors. “Have you heard of Passages Hotel?” he asked.
Fortunately, Raegan was too busy trying to explain the concept of a gondola to Jon to notice the twenty dollar bill oh-so-subtly slipped from Theo to the attendant. She’d usually talk out loud when she was alone, even though Jon hadn’t started actually responding until recently, and she had to bite her tongue to keep from doing so now. You know nothing, Jon Snow, she told him with a private smirk as Theo settled beside her. Now hush.
She only paid half attention to what her uncle was saying at first, not really expecting it to be anything of importance, but she immediately snapped to attention when he mentioned Passages Hotel. Okay, so maybe the fact that Theo was on the journals should’ve clued her in, but for some reason it never really clicked. They hadn’t discussed it either, which probably hadn’t helped on that front. “Yeah,” she said, once she’d gotten over her initial surprise. “I’ve been there. What do you know about it?”
Theo relaxed when Raegan said she knew of the hotel. That meant that she was like her and while he wasn’t entirely sure if it was a good thing or not, depending on who she had in her head, he was glad that he wouldn’t need to hide anything from her. “I have as well, just recently. It wouldn’t let me through, but I was able to see through it. I have to say, it’s even more impressive in person than on the television,” he replied, keeping his voice low. That, combined with the gondola attendant who had his headphones in, would ensure that they wouldn’t be overheard. “I have to say, it’s quite odd having another person in my head, but he’s proven to be very helpful. Are you having any difficulties with yours?” he asked.
He wasn’t sure if he should share his knowledge about Nell and Ezra, particularly because he wasn’t sure what kind of situation Raegan was in. He hadn’t seen her speaking on the journals in a negative manner regarding her other person, so he hoped that meant that she was doing well. Theo would do whatever he could to help her, either through the door to wherever her person was from, or in Las Vegas. He especially wanted to help her out on this side of the door. She was his responsibility, he felt, and although he wasn’t sure how to bring up taking care of her financial situation - which he’d looked into - he still wanted to help.
Raegan could have pretended that she wasn’t curious, but she was, and Jon was the one thing she actually didn’t mind talking about. She was sort of proud to have him in her head, despite his flaws. “You should be able to go through soon,” she told him. “So, yours is from a TV show?” Despite the fact that there was a television show based off of Jon’s books, she had a tendency to think of him as a book character first rather than one from TV. Both were good, in her opinion, but you could never really beat the original source. After reading about some people’s troubles on the journals, she was definitely glad she didn’t have someone more problematic. She shook her head. “No. It’s a little strange to have a guy inside my head, but other than that, he hasn’t really been giving me any trouble. He just really wants to find the people he cares about, you know?” Jon mentioned Arya quite a bit, and Robb, but there were also mentions of his father, Bran, Sam, Ygritte, and even Sansa and Rickon.
Despite their relation, she didn’t expect any sort of assistance from Theo. She’d been taking care of herself since she was a child, really, which had made her independent and fairly self-sufficient. Still, her apartment wasn’t the best and it was sort of lonely, not to mention the fact that she was looking for a better job, even if all the girls at the club were nice enough.
“You’ve got a man in your head?” Theo was a little concerned about that, wondering what kind of privacy she was allowed. “I can definitely understand wanting to find people he cares about. The man, Ned his name is, he died and he’s very worried about his children. It’s been refreshing to have him though.” He felt a lot less out of his depth with Raegan thanks to Ned. He reached to take Raegan’s hands in his and offered her a very sincere smile. “I have to say, it’s been an adjustment for the both of us, but I’m glad for the chance to get to know you.”
He gave her hands a squeeze. “I’m sorry I didn’t come looking for you earlier. I...well, I didn’t believe my sister when she said she’d had a baby. I wish I could make that up to you. If there’s...If there’s anything I can do for you, whether it’s a place to stay or a job or paying for school, all you have to do is ask.” There was nothing like jumping into the deep end and it was either sink or swim.
She didn’t think of Jon as a man, really, since he was barely older than she was, and she clapped a hand over her mouth to muffle her laughter. “Uh, yeah. I guess you could call him a man, but he’s still young.” To give him his due, Jon had never attempted to invade her privacy, and was easily flustered. She supposed it made sense, considering he’d only had sex once and the girl hadn’t lasted very long; talk about doomed relationships. “His name is Ned?” Suddenly Raegan straightened in rapt interest, despite the fact that Ned wasn’t exactly an uncommon name. Jon was so desperate for a familiar face that he couldn’t help getting his hopes up at even the slightest potential, even if it was a dead end. “What’s his last name?” Maybe it was nothing, but Jon wouldn’t let her not ask. She was too preoccupied to pull her hands back when Theo reached for them, which she would have done out of instinct rather than spite, and her expression became one of surprise.
“I’m... I’m glad too,” she managed, and while it was painfully awkward, she wasn’t just saying it to be nice. The problem was that Raegan and expressing feelings didn’t exactly go hand in hand. Her father had never given a damn, her stepmother was never present, and even her stepsiblings hadn’t been the most affectionate types of people. “Look, you don’t have to apologize. Really. I mean, we’re here now, right?” Sure, she was angry at a lot of people; her worthless excuse for a father, her stepbrothers for leaving, even herself for abandoning Maren when she should have stayed behind to protect her. Theo was the one person she actually wasn’t mad at. He seemed genuine, which was rare, and he was the only real connection she had to her mother. Still, family or not, she couldn’t imagine herself asking for anything. She either took what she wanted, or went without; favors weren’t in her repertoire. “You don’t need to do anything,” she told him, a lifetime of forging her own way making her reluctant.
It seemed that just mentioning Ned caused a strong reaction in Raegan and he didn’t quite understand why. He gave her a confused look and pulled back just slightly. “Yes. Well, technically Eddard, but those who know him call him Ned. Stark’s his last name. Why?” He felt no need to hide who he was from her. She was family and to Ned, that meant everything. There was a part of Theo that was curious as to who she held, but he imagined she would tell him seeing as he told her.
She didn’t pull her hands away when he reached for them and he was glad for that. It meant that maybe they’d get along better than he thought. Theo was far too negative, according to Ned. Still, everything she said made Theo smile wide, eager to spend more time with her and to nurture their relationship even further. “I appreciate that Raegan,” he said softly, “and I know I might not have to or need to, but I want to. I’ve spent my life dedicated to my career. I’m glad I’ll finally be able to do some good with the money I’ve earned and there are no better uses for it than family.”
Any hope of Raegan playing it cool went out the window when she heard Ned’s last name. Stark. She stared at Theo, speechless, as both she and Jon attempted to come to terms with the reality that sat before them. Jon had, of course, been devastated when he’d learned of his father’s death, and when she’d watched that particular episode (she read the first book before he took up residence in her head) he’d relived it all over again. Now he was here, alive, and so close; yet he hadn’t the slightest idea of what to say. Raegan finally managed to find her tongue, but her silence had been too long to brush off, and she cleared her throat as she flounced between keeping quiet and revealing the truth about Jon. It wasn’t as though he was a Lannister, after all, or someone who would mean him harm. Ned was his father; he practically had a right to know. “Jon’s the one in my head,” she admitted with a weak smile. “Jon Snow. He’s... he’s really glad Ned’s here and not headless. He wouldn’t be in your head if he was, right?”
There were a number of variables that made it difficult to decline Theo’s offer. She did hate her apartment; it was too small, and her neighbors were too loud, and she slept with a baseball bat within arm’s reach. Her job wasn’t the best either, but school wasn’t exactly an option, or at least it didn’t seem to be one since she’d never actually finished high school. Then there was Jon, who was also torn between refusing and wanting to be somewhere close to the one person he knew from his world. “I can take care of myself,” she began, shifting in her seat. “I’ve been doing it for a while, and I get by. There are tons of people out there who’d jump at your offer, but I don’t want you thinking I’m only interested in your money, or what you can do for me, you know? I don’t care about any of that,” she said, waving a hand dismissively. Once there was a time when she did, but family would always mean more.
Raegan’s silence had him second guessing his admission. Ned was chastising him, suggesting she might be a Lannister. Theo fiercely shoved that thought aside, unable to even think of the possibility. She couldn’t be a Lannister. It simply wasn’t possible. Theo clung to that as he waited for her to say something, anything. Of course, what she ended up saying made him freeze. “Jon,” he breathed, and Ned was relieved that his son yet lived. Unbidden, his arms lifted as if to give her a hug, but he stopped halfway. “I ah...sorry. Ned is very eager to reunite with him as soon as possible,” Theo explained. There was an unbelievable relief there as well for both Theodore and Ned.
Her reply in regards to his offer hand him reaching for her hands again. “I don’t think you’re using me, sweetheart. That’s the last thing I’d ever think about you,” he was quick to tell her. “I’m not trying to do this to control you or be more involved than you want me to be. I’m not asking that you move into the Wynn, but if you want to move somewhere else or there’s something you’d like to do but you can’t for whatever reason, you have someone you can come to. No matter what, okay?” Theodore offered her a warm smile. “Though, just say the word and there’s a suite with your name on it at the Wynn.” He did his best to have it come across as a tease, but he was partially serious. All she had to do was ask and he’d give her the world. “You’re family, Raegan. Twice over, now. If there’s one thing Ned’s really helped teach me, it’s that there’s nothing more important than family.”
“Yeah,” she agreed. “The feeling’s mutual.” There was no chance of Jon remaining at the Wall for very long now, not unless Ned came to meet him there. He’d already made the choice to remain true to his vows while his family was torn apart, which was difficult to live with, and he didn’t think he could choose duty over family again. “Jon’s still at the Wall for now. They haven’t ridden out yet, but they’re going to, and he doesn’t want to go with them. It’s so weird-- he knows what happens, but it hasn’t happened yet.” She realized too late that Theo might not be aware of the course of events, and Ned might not either. If he didn’t, then he certainly wasn’t going to like any of it. “Do you know if anyone else is hear? Arya, maybe, or Robb?” Those were the two big ones.
Raegan almost wanted to tell him that he should have thought so, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it. Normally she was brazenly defiant in terms of her past and what she’d done, but with Theo, she didn’t want any of that. No one ever cared this much, and no one was ever this selfless. It was everything she’d never had growing up but had always dreamed of. “Okay,” she said, but then she was unexpectedly quiet while she spoke, considering his offer and attempting to find balance between clinging stubbornly to her Independence and allowing him to support her. A suite at the Wynn sounded like heaven compared to what she had now. She bit her lip, and her brow furrowed as she thought, but finally, she came to a decision. “If you mean it, about staying at the Wynn, I could give it a try. Like a trial basis. But I can still support myself,” she added. She planned on paying him back someday too, but that part she kept to herself. Maybe Jon would finally shut up about how she shouldn’t be living alone as an added bonus.
The confused look on his face likely answered whatever questions she might’ve had about his knowledge base. “They’re riding out? For- no, never mind. Ned and Jon can discuss such things when Ned is able to cross. He and I are only familiar with the HBO show, though I’m quickly realizing it might be best to pick up the books. I just don’t have much time.” He sighed heavily, knowing that he was about to inherit a great deal of responsibility once he crossed the door. “Both of them, actually. I’ve only met Arya’s though,” Theo replied easily. “At the door, she showed up when I did. Other than that, I’m not sure.”
There were so many people to consider, but right now it was about Raegan. She was so quiet when she agreed to staying at the Wynn, but he could tell that there was something else she wanted to say. He gave her the time she needed to gather her words and Theo readily agreed with a nod. “I mean it, and whatever you’d like. We’ll work something out, I promise.” He’d do what he could to accommodate her wishes, eager as he was to have her in his life. He gave her hands a squeeze before letting go. The last thing he wanted was to waste this chance with her and he would do everything in his power to keep her in his life. He prayed to God that he wouldn’t muck it up too badly. The gondola was approaching the platform again, which meant their evening was coming to a close.
Raegan really didn’t feel like trying to explain that Jon and half the men of the Night’s Watch were currently planning to ride out beyond the Wall. Strangely enough, that had already happened to Jon, and he knew how badly it went, which was why he was currently doing what he could to keep them back. The fact that some were missing, including Commander Mormont himself, fortunately aided him in his efforts. He did wish Sam was there, however. “Yeah, I think it’d be better for Jon to explain everything himself. It’s kind of complicated, at least from his end.” She blinked at him. “The show is way behind on the books. You have a lot to catch up on,” she said, albeit apologetically. Poor Ned was in for a big shock. The wave of emotion Jon felt at hearing that both Arya and Robb was here made her want to cry, but she bit down on her tongue and swallowed down the tears. She didn’t cry; not in front of people, at least. “He’s missed them. I mean, he’s missed everyone, but Arya and Robb especially... they were pretty close.” She wanted to ask who had Arya on this side of the door, but managed to refrain. She was sure she’d find out soon enough.
She was still a little apprehensive about the whole thing, but a part of her was admittedly relieved. Jon could be close to his father, and maybe she could change things for herself too, instead of living in a run-down apartment and working in a strip club for the rest of her life. Jon had purpose, duty, and honor; she had none of the above, but she wanted them. “I have a dog,” she added with a guilty smile, as the gondola approached the platform. “I hope that won’t be a problem. He’s not too big, at least.” Not yet, but Raegan figured she’d cross that bridge once Ghost started growing. At least he’d never be as big as a direwolf. “Thank you, by the way. For... all of this.” It might take some getting used to, but for one of the first times in her life--since leaving home--she felt like she was doing the right thing, and it felt good.
The last thing that Theo wanted was more complication in his life, but Ned didn’t see it as complication. It was family and there was nothing he wouldn’t do for them. Theo could relate to that because he was beginning to realize that he’d do anything for Raegan. Now that he had her, he didn’t want to let her go. “I’ll see if I can get through it. Maybe audiobooks or something,” Theo mused. “Jon was one of the first people he asked for, after Arya and Sansa. I know they’ll likely spend a good while talking.” Not that he minded, of course. He was going to need to learn how to balance his life with family, but if there was anything worth making time for, that was it.
Theodore laughed when she said she had a dog. “It’s not a problem. I’ll make the arrangements and let you know when it’s all taken care of. You should be able to move in by the end of the week,” he replied, just as they pulled up next to the platform. He stepped out and helped her out as well. “You’re welcome, Raegan, but there’s no need. In fact,” he said with a smile, “I think I should be thanking you.” He tipped the gondola attendant and then gave Raegan his arm. They were on the right track, and that was what mattered right now. Hopefully they’d stay that way, but Theo wasn’t always an optimist. He’d get there.