It took a moment, but he realized he was borderline baby-talking a cat when he actually had work to do.
WHAT: Noctis has an idea about how to help Anders. Also: Azzie makes a very gracious appearance. WHERE: DOA Office. WHEN: Wednesday, March 11. WARNINGS: N/A. STATUS:Complete!
Azzie didnât really like being in a carrier, but Dan wasnât about to bring her to the Office of Hell Feds (not its name, but he still thought of it that way) on a leash or worse, just let her wander around. She was a very intelligent cat and obviously operated on a higher level of functioning than most felines given her penchant for sensing the approach of the Grim Reaper, but still. The last thing he needed was for her to find a new potential best friend that would die in twenty minutes.
The weather had turned on a dime and it was pretty chilly, the night before blinded with ice-white dust. Snow made certain parts of the city look like unfinished paintings, perfectly white canvases, and when he stepped outside his breath was pale against the face-numbing air. Really, the sooner he got to Noctisâ office the better - Azzie was also probably irritated that he brought her along, but Noctis wanted to see her, so. Dan would oblige.
It was like the last song of winter or something - strange, considering how spring seemed to be just around the corner, but there was always that last hurrah in March. Or even April, depending. Dan wore his coat and had gloves too, just in case - he went to the DOA building and didnât even really need to ask (sometimes the Shining was helpful), he headed for Noctisâ office and knocked on the door.
The cold really wasn't great for Noctis' chronic pain. Every day, he felt more and more like his father, though at least he didn't clunk around in an ornate ceremonial leg brace. They had far more practical ones in this world, and his current work didn't necessitate he look quite as polished as a king usually needed to be. He enjoyed the DOA quite a bit more than that pomp and circumstance, not to mention the life he was making in this world post-death, so he couldn't really complain. Even if the cold weather was a bit unforgiving for him.
Needless to say, he was already standing by the time Dan got there, ready to open the door with a smile that was definitely relieved. "Hey, Dan. Thanks for coming," Noctis greeted. He noted the carrier with a sudden brightness to his eyes, trying and mostly succeeding not to seem too excited. "Azzie, I presume?" He'd never had a pet of his own outside of Umbra, a messenger dog of the gods who occasionally visited him. The closest he'd ever come was feeding a stray cat he and his friends always seemed to come across during their road trip. Not exactly pet material.
"We have coffee and tea if you'd like any," Noctis said, gesturing for Dan to make himself comfortable anywhere he wanted. There were quite a few chairs to choose from. Presumably, Azzie would be making herself comfortable as well, which was a very exciting prospect. Cat people. Bunch of nerds.
âNo problem. Thanks for inviting me,â Dan nodded, greeting Noctis with a smile of his own. He set down the carrier and opened it up, letting Azzie stretch her legs - she went right to Noctis, of course, though in this case it wasnât a bad thing. The Shining meant he had a little death-sense too, and Noctis was fine - the cat just wanted attention, not to give a warning.
But yes, given the way she head-butted him, pet meeeee, it was clear attention was what she was after.
Coffee was a godsend, and that was what he went for. Just a small cup of it, with half and half, and he settled in one of the office chairs. âIâm happy to help out the DOA too,â he added. âWhatever you need.â Office life was different from hospice life and, admittedly, heâd never worked in an office before - after nearly a decade of being in the medical field, it would be a change, but he didnât plan to give up his calling at the hospital either. People died back home and they died here - and that was where Doctor Sleep came in.
Noctis beamed when Azzie came to him, all too eager to kneel with his good leg just so he could give her a good scratch. "Hi! Look at you. You're so good. Yes you are. It's nice to meet you. How was the trip? Yeah? That cramped, huh?" It took a moment, but he realized he was borderline baby-talking a cat when he actually had work to do, and he smiled up at Dan, sheepish. "Sorry." He wasn't. Not really. But Noctis did manage to finally let Azzie go, using the desk for leverage so he could stand.
He cleared his throat. "We can use help anywhere," he replied, and that much was true. "Mostly just being available for new peopleâand visible," he added, because that was the hard part when there was an unexpected rush of new people. Making sure they felt like there were people who cared, and who were trying to make things easier, at least to the best of their limited ability given the situation.
Sitting in a chair opposite Dan, Noctis briefly smiled at Azzie as she passed before focusing his full attention on the man. He was actually capable of resisting more cat baby-talk. "So you mentioned something about the crystals?"
Oh, no, Noctis wasnât going to get away that easily. Azzie jumped up onto his lap once he was seated, and sheâd just sit here like the Queen Bee she was. Perched regally in all of her feline wonder. âVisible, right, I can do that,â Dan promised. It wasnât always something he was comfortable with - meaning, actually peeling himself away from being a wallflower and putting himself out there. But for this, heâd try. He remembered how scattered heâd been when he first showed up, so, paying it forward seemed ideal.
He still had a lot of debts to repay anyway. Thinking of all the people heâd hurt, all the terrible things heâd done, even if the memories were clouded by the haze of alcohol and drugs - yeah, he wouldnât just sit around.
And speaking of that. âRight, the crystals,â Dan scratched his cheek with his free hand. âI have a friend who - well, he got himself into kind of a situation where heâs sharing his body with a spirit of Justice. And the idea of Justice seems all well and good but I think we both know that type of thing can turn...dangerous. Really fast. Theyâve sort of bonded though, he and the spirit, but I know a thing or two about being possessed by a spirit and - it doesnât end well. I guess my question is - is there a crystal that can contain a spirit like that? Something that isnât...painful?â
Noctis was delighted when Azzie sat on his lap, all too happy to gently pet her back and scratch behind her ears. Dan seemed so kind, so genuinely willing to help people, and it was nice to meet someone like that with all the uncertainty surrounding the surge of new arrivals. It wasn't hard for Noctis to like him. He trusted easily, plus, Azzie's opinion was worth quite a bit already. You didn't dismiss the will of creatures touched in some way by divinity, which was what he thought of her. So the warm, "You're a good person, Dan," came easily because he meant it. "Thank you."
He was quiet while the situation with Anders was explained, surprised to hear something like that was even possible. Carrying the magic of his own world's Crystal inside him was one thing, but a spirit? Noctis frowned. "You're right. Nothing good can come of that." He thought for a moment about Dan's idea, though, turning it over in his head a few times. "I don't see why not? I've never thought about willingly putting anything in there, but ... yeah. It's doable, and it shouldn't hurt." He might have to test it out himself, which was a bit nerve-wracking, but Noctis told himself it was different here.
Still petting Azzie, he tilted his head a little. "Does Anders want to do this? And if so, when?"
âHeâs...coming around to the idea of separating,â Dan hedged, because he knew Anders was initially resistant and that was putting it mildly. It was basically a âno way, no howâ sort of thing - but after the truth bombardment, it seemed like he had to at least consider the notion that staying fused was going to end up going completely FUBAR at some point - similar to how it did back where Anders came from.
Revolution devours its own. It was kind of sad, actually, when he considered how it all played out for Anders - heâd been so desperate to make a difference, he and Justice, that heâd morphed into the very thing he sought to try to protect his kind from. A cyclical idea, life is like a wheel - it would end up happening here too, if they didnât stop it.
âI donât know when, exactly, Iâd need to talk to him. Like I said, heâs pretty hesitant to separate himself from the spirit. But my goal is to keep nudging it along - Iâm going to try my best not to hurt him, physically or otherwise.â He knew that Anders had feelings, and ripping through them like kitten claws through tissue paper wasnât doing any good for anyone. Heâd just continue to resist, if he was treated like the abomination some already believed he was.
Noctis nodded. This whole thing reminded him of his uncleâor, well, his immortal uncle from several generations back. Ardyn wanted nothing more than to help people, and that desire was twisted against him until he became unrecognizable. Noctis didn't want that for Anders. Hell, he didn't want that for anyone. "I'd be happy to help however I can," he said. And then, after a thoughtful pause, "Maybe it'd help if we talked? I'm sure he'll have questions, and we both have magic, so ..." Noctis trailed off. Anders was far and away more experienced than him simply because he'd had a chance to study his abilities. But he could at least try to explain his connection to the crystals.
Then an idea hit him.
"I can demonstrate," he said suddenly, excited something he'd been worrying about could actually be helpful to someone. "With, uh. Me. If he needs to see it. To prove it isn't hurtful." Alright, so Noctis was nervous about the idea of climbing back into a crystal, but they weren't the same as the ones at home. Besides, he would be going willingly this time. That had to count for something, right? And if it helped Anders, he was on board.
Dan blinked those baby blue eyes. Wait, what? Had he heard that right? âOh,â was all he said for a second, and his initial internal response was something like fuck no but that was simply because he was just - unfamiliar with everything. Not to mention he couldnât bring up an idea with Anders, a potential solution (even a temporary one - presumably Justice wouldnât be in any sort of crystal for very long) without having as much info as possible, and assurance that it wouldnât be painful. A demonstration went a long way there.
âIf youâre sure itâd be okay?â he glanced at Noctis. âI donât know what anyone from his own world has in mind to help with this, if anything, but explaining the crystals to him and demonstrating sounds like itâd be a step forward.â
"Sure it is," Noctis said, knowing immediately that Gladio would likely object. And probably Nyx and Luna. But they could try it first to see? Besides, he knew if he were being given this option without any assurance that it would go well, he wouldn't take itâand Anders deserved a damn shot. "They can watch? I know there's at least a few people from his world who have magic, too. I won't pretend to know what they doâmaybe they'd even come up with a better idea involving the crystals." Not that he'd ever worked with a group of magic users like this before, but it couldn't hurt.
Noctis gazed at Dan for a moment, thoughtful. "This is really nice of you," he said. It wasn't accusatory, just an observation. "You're going to a lot of trouble to help him out." He knew some of Dan's background and why that might be the case, but it was still surprising. There was doing good, and then there was going out of one's way to do good, and it continued to seem like Dan was in the latter category. That was pretty inspiring.
It was quite possible that those from Andersâ world would come up with something better - they were more familiar with the magic, and the whole situation. Dan had gleaned what he could but, then again, he didnât have to be from that world to know that a spirit and a human sharing a body wasnât a good idea. That people would get dragged down who didnât deserve to be, in the end.
âI donât know, I just - know what itâs like to not have anyone in your corner,â he shrugged. Part of the reason things with Anders and Justice fell downhill, while on fire (literal, actual fire) was because Anders felt like no one believed in him. Dan didnât want that to happen again. âBut - thank you. I think if we all work together on this, you and those from his world and me, we can turn things around for the better. Is that - â He scratched his cheek, thoughtfully. âIs that what you wanted to tell me, about the crystals?â
Noctis had mentioned something on the network - or maybe what he wanted to say wasnât related at all.
Noctis nodded. He'd always believed in the power of people working together, and with Dan's unique expertise in the mix, he felt very strongly that they'd figure something out for Anders and Justice. They had to. "Basically," Noctis replied with a little smile, sheepish. "I know I mentioned communing with the crystals before, and I haven't felt anything negative from them yet. It seems like a pretty safe option, if Anders decides it's something he'd want to know more about." If anything, it simply wouldn't work, though Noctis doubted that. He would have felt some kind of resistance from the magical energy those crystals were throwing, and he didn't. Not yet.
"Here's to working together," he said, reaching for his half-drunk mug of coffee to toast Dan. And Azzie, of course, who got an additional ear scratch for the trouble of coming all the way out to the office. God, he needed a cat. If he ever got one, he was blaming Dan. Mostly.