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Tweak says, "My name is Inigo Montoya!"

Captain Jack Harkness (foreverjack) wrote in marinanova,
@ 2015-03-22 12:07:00

Entry tags:

jack harkness, nico di angelo

Day 315 / Action/ Closed to Nico
It's been a little while since he's spoken to Nico and he's developed a faintly avuncular protectiveness of the kid, so when he finds himself in Sector Three he decides to pop into the second-hand shop to see how Nico's getting along.

"Hello! Anyone here?" he calls, assuming Nico must be about somewhere as the shop door's open, even if the shop seems empty right at the moment.

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	nico_di_angelo 2015-03-22 07:43 pm UTC (link)
	It only appears empty because of the large pile of boxes in the back, behind which Nico is buried, slowly going through each one and trying to fit everything he inherited from Artemis onto racks and shelves. "Here!" A hand shoots up from behind the pile and waves. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	foreverjack 2015-03-24 02:58 pm UTC (link)
	He chuckles as one of the boxes appears to sprout a hand, and ambles towards it. "Looks like business is doing well!" he observes, grinning down at Nico as he finally comes into view behind the boxes. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

nico_di_angelo
2015-03-24 03:42 pm UTC (link)

Nico looks up from trying to sort this box into those other boxes, stuck between a pout and a glare. "I don't know what to do with it all!" Maybe store some of it in his room at the apartment until there's more space? He won't have to worry about donations for a while, at least.

"Anyway. Hi." He throws the shirt in his hand into a box overflowing with more shirts and stands up with a groan, and possibly every bone cracking. Felt like it, anyway. He's been sitting there a long time.

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	foreverjack 2015-03-26 08:15 am UTC (link)
	"Take over the store next door too?" Jack suggests, hands spread slightly. He watches Nico stand with faint concern at all the creaking and cracking. Nico's young enough - physically, at least - that that much cracking must mean he's been down there hours. "Need a hand with all that?" he asks casually. "Seems like a lot to tackle all on your own!" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

nico_di_angelo
2015-03-26 04:55 pm UTC (link)

He shakes his head at the suggestion. "I don't want more space. This many donations at once was just a fluke." And all from the same source. Couldn't possibly happen again, right?

"You can help if you want." He's not going to say no. He hasn't so far, every time the opportunity for another set of hands has come up. Though he's still flustered by the thought that people will willingly give up their time to help him. "But did you need something?"

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	foreverjack 2015-03-27 02:55 pm UTC (link)
	"Nah, I was just passing and thought I'd pop in - see how you're doing. Looks like it's a good thing I did! What do you need me to do?" Then, peering a little more closely at what the boxes contain: "Where did all this stuff come from, anyway? Someone just went round all the shops and brought it all here to you???" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

nico_di_angelo
2015-03-27 04:07 pm UTC (link)

"Oh, uh..." People checking in on him is also strange. Good thing there are lots of distractions here so he can avoid talking about himself. "Someone had a pearl. I guess it made them want ... everything?" He throws a hand out toward the boxes full of everything. "Anyway, I'm just sorting through them right now, and taking inventory on what I've got, and how much."

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foreverjack
2015-03-30 08:38 pm UTC (link)

Better get used to it, then, Nico, because Jack seems to have taken you under his wing!

He frowns slightly at the explanation of where everything's come from. "Those pearls were evil," he says darkly. Though hoarding stuff at least doesn't seem to be as evil as some of their other effects.

He pulls out some of the stuff, which is about as varied as it possibly could be. "I guess it really did make her want everything!" He's assuming it was a 'her', given the amount of feminine-type items in the box.

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nico_di_angelo
2015-03-30 10:48 pm UTC (link)

Nico heaves a sigh, frowning. "Not all of them were evil." But he's already gone round this topic with Sam, and Mal. He knows his opinion is in the minority. He even understands why it was necessary to get rid of his, even if he doesn't agree that it was harmful.

He was trying to be general about the donor. He doesn't want to name names. She might not appreciate it. "Hopefully others will find use for some of this stuff. I mean, most of it practically brand new."

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foreverjack
2015-03-31 08:24 pm UTC (link)

Yeah, Jack's only half-fishing for names. A part of him wants to respect the privacy of whoever it was, even whilst the other half of him is intensely curious to know who it was. Still, he can live with not knowing.

He does catch Nico's sigh and comment about the pearls, though, and glances over at him sharply. "Did you have a pearl?" he asks, trying to remember if he'd known that. His own mind was so clouded with anger for so much of that time that it's sometimes hard to remember things.

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	nico_di_angelo 2015-03-31 11:30 pm UTC (link)
	He'd just kept his on a black band on his wrist - more often than not hidden under the sleeve of his jacket. Not on purpose. That was just how it worked out. He hadn't keep it a secret, but he also never disclosed his having one, until the announcement came to give them up. He shrugs. "A pink one. Mal threw it in the lake in Sector 6." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

foreverjack
2015-04-03 10:28 am UTC (link)

Jack's eyebrows go up. "Mal did?" The he realises he doesn't actually know how Mal was persuaded to get rid of his own red pearl anyway - whatever it was must have had quite an influence on him. "Well, good for him!"

And then he realises. Kitty had a pink one, too, and Reid had said it made her... happy?

His smile fades. "I'm sorry, kid. That must have been hard."

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	nico_di_angelo 2015-04-03 04:07 pm UTC (link)
	Was it surprising, that Mal would do that? If Nico hadn't destroyed the red pearl, would Mal have just left his alone? Damn it. He tosses a clothing item into a box with more force than is necessary. "Doesn't matter any more, does it?" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	foreverjack 2015-04-03 04:33 pm UTC (link)
	Jack watches the forceful throw and gives him a wry look. "Theoretically, no, but I know what addiction's like and addiction to something that makes you feel good is even harder than my addiction to anger that I had with my red pearl." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

nico_di_angelo
2015-04-03 04:56 pm UTC (link)

That's the second time he's heard someone compare it to addiction. Specifically, to him. Was being addicted to happy such a bad thing? "Mal had a red one. Didn't know you had one, too." What happened there?

"Things were ... easier. Not completely, but I felt ... I didn't feel like now. I almost felt normal. Now everything's back to the way it was before." And he doesn't like it.

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	foreverjack 2015-04-05 02:27 pm UTC (link)
	"Yeah, we both had one. Got into a right tussle with each other and both ended up in hospital because neither of us could bear to back down. Hence: 'evil'." He glances at Niko, and then settles in beside him to start sorting things into boxes. Easier to talk about intimate things when you're just working side by side. "Were things so very bad before?" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

nico_di_angelo
2015-04-05 08:08 pm UTC (link)

He nods, balling up and tossing something else. "I had to fight him to get his away from him. ...Doesn't mean they're all evil."

He scoots to the side, giving room - but also keeping a bit of distance.

"I don't know. Yes." He plucks a ball stuffed toy out of one of the boxes and turns it over in his hands. "I was sad, and angry. Like, all the time. I can't sleep. I couldn't with the pearl either. The nightmares were the same, but I didn't care. I had a panic attack, and I started laughing. And I thought, if I can laugh at this, then it can't be that bad."

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foreverjack
2015-04-10 08:24 pm UTC (link)

To Jack's mind, the fact that they were addictive makes them evil. He's experienced enough mind-altering substances - and, more to the point, seen what they can do to other people - that he's not happy with anything at all like that. And especially not with young, impressionable people like Niko.

Mind you, hearing about what it was he was so relieved to get away from is hard too. He frowns, a stuffed toy forgotten in his hands. "Was this just since you came here, or before that as well?"

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nico_di_angelo
2015-04-10 09:12 pm UTC (link)

"Before." He twists the toy in his hand, like he's forgotten he has it. His hands need something to do. "A long time before." With brief hiccups of joy - his half-sister, that false sense of belonging after his first war. "But the last few weeks before I came here were the worst. The new memories help, a little." They put a little more distance between "now" and what happened.

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	foreverjack 2015-04-12 02:07 pm UTC (link)
	Jack shakes his head, dismayed that such a nice kid should have been through so much. "Have you tried counselling at all?" he asks, as casually as he can. "I know Deanna's not here any more, but Martha or someone might be good to talk to? Sometimes talking can help to... get a little perspective on things." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	nico_di_angelo 2015-04-12 11:30 pm UTC (link)
	He shakes his head no. "I had thought about talking to Deanna. But then I started feeling better, so I didn't need to anymore." The head of this toy might pop right off if he keeps twisting it the way he is. "I've talked about some things. With you, and Aidan. Yuuri. Kanji said I could talk to him, but..." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

foreverjack
2015-04-17 04:43 pm UTC (link)

It's not quite what he meant - he was thinking about Nico talking to someone trained in counselling, who'd be best placed to help him get through this - but it's encouraging, at least. Aidan, especially, he feels would be a useful person to talk to.

"Kanji? That's the new kid, right? Blond, with all the piercings?" He's particularly pleased that Kanji apparently took his advice in approaching Niko.

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nico_di_angelo
2015-04-17 05:05 pm UTC (link)

Professional counseling is something of a foreign concept. There was no such thing in the camps. Kids were being raised to fight, and die, and their siblings and friends were dying on the regular, wars ... But did no one think, hey, this is bound to fuck some of these guys up. Maybe a counselor? (It's not like any of them could seek help outside the camps. Who would believe them?)

"Yeah. That's him." Nico shrugs a bit. "He's cool."

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	foreverjack 2015-04-20 09:44 pm UTC (link)
	See, that's the sort of thing he ought to be saying out loud, not just in his head. And preferably to someone who's a lot better at this sort of thing than Jack is. "And you've talked to him about... stuff?" Yeah, he's pushing. He does that. It's the way he works. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

nico_di_angelo
2015-04-20 10:44 pm UTC (link)

Saying out loud would give it too much weight, drive home how very expendable he is.

"Uhh. Yeah. We've talked about a lot of stuff." Deflecting, but also going red and grabbing an armload of junk out of a box so he has something to distract him, because he knows what you mean, JACK. "And ... stuff. We got caught by one of those kissing bots, and ... Whatever. Stuff."