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Much Millerson ([info]muchofamuchness) wrote in [info]nevermore_logs,
@ 2020-11-21 15:02:00

Previous Entry  Add to memories!  Tell a Friend!  Next Entry
Entry tags:athena, much the miller's son

WHO: Much and Athena
WHEN: Saturday night
WHERE: Diogenes Club
WHAT: Athena has connections all over the place...
WARNINGS: TBA



Movement kept catching his eye; Lars reached across the bar for a bottle of Cointreau, Asterion shifting position by the door, the door to the restrooms swinging open as a tall man with dark green hair stepped out, a strand of his own hair falling into his peripheral vision. Everything drew his attention, in case the movement turned out to be the Sheriff. Or Gisborne. Or Hermes.

Or Marian, walking back in with a sheepish look on her face, holding Rob’s hand We got carried away… But we’re fine!

The hope was thin, and felt like a lie. Will was right, Marian’s disappearance was down to the Sheriff, and now she was chained to his bed like Marcie had been. Leila’s observations were probably right as well; Gisborne had finally found Rob.

It seemed prudent to assume, as Stutely had suggested, that the Sheriff and Gisborne were working together again. Much was trying very hard for things like prudence, very hard to stay away from other thinks like panic and recklessness.

Enemies were closing in. He had to be smart and careful.

He had to stop thinking about Merlin’s words. You won’t find any of them. Because if Merlin’s prophecy had come true for Marian, then her instructions for Much to forget his prophecy, to ignore it, well… they were a big old bit of bullshit, weren’t they.

You won’t find any of them.

You can’t stop her from dying.

Still, Much knew himself. He knew he wasn’t going to stop trying till his very last breath.

He also knew this about himself: he was gonna function better, less anxiously, if he threw a couple of shots of vodka down the hatch. Just to give himself a boost. Just to shut up the little Merlin voices and the memory of Marcie in chains. Just to stop thinking about Marian’s fear. About the team of the Sheriff and Gisborne. Just -

Maybe three shots.

Maybe three shots and then he was going to gather up an armful of dishes and take them out back to be washed and give them all the scrub of their fucking lives.



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[info]polymetis
2020-11-21 05:02 am UTC (link)
It had been the usual sort of week, which was to say that between teaching classes and grading papers, Athena had enjoyed a productive meeting with a former mentee freshly elected to the New York City Council, a less productive but nonetheless illuminating meeting with a counterpart from another pantheon (that both were Wisdom didn't mean they were both of one mind), quashed a blackmail attempt (too amateurish to even be interesting, alas), fielded several pressing demands from her father the king (who had seduced his personal lawyer's daughter, again, and presented her with the fallout... again) and talked her stepmother down from a laundry list of creative forms of retribution.

By this evening, she'd finally managed to tie a bow on her father's affairs (at least until the next time) and was looking forward to escaping into the smaller, more diverting intrigues of the Diogenes Club. But when she caught the eye of the bartender, Athena sensed something amiss.

It was Much, of the Merry Men. She didn't know him especially well, they'd only spoken in passing across the bar, but his jumpiness was hard to miss; his eyes seemed to dart at every stray movement.

They'd never gotten in contact, the Merry Men, after her chance encounter with Will Stutely a few weeks ago. Not that she'd been holding her breath. Neither Stutely nor Scarlet showed any particular inclination to trust an Olympian, and why would they? They were outlaws, and Olympus was, or had been, the ultimate manifestation of the privileged establishment.

But heroes had always held a soft place in Athena's heart. And she could never walk away from a riddle. How do you stop an immortal who isn't deterred by death? Much's anxious demeanour suggested they still hadn't found an answer to that one.

"I was going to order a drink," she said, a wryly sympathetic smile brushing her lips, "but you look like you need it more than I do."

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[info]muchofamuchness
2020-11-21 05:53 am UTC (link)
Much's stomach leapt when he caught sight of Athena. Out of all the people he'd been keeping an eye out for tonight, her name was near the top. Under Rob and Marian's, sure, but still, significantly high on the list.

He'd been a little bitter toward Athena after she'd spoken to Stutely. A little jealous. A little worried that Stutely was so much more obvious of a hero than he was (especially if words like you can't stop her from dying were true).

But now? He was a little too desperate and worried and stressed to let any feelings of inferiority get in the way now. Maybe the vodka helped.

"Aah," said Much, wisely, as he slid an armful of clean martini glasses back on their rack above the bar. "The great thing about this world is that it's generous with the crap it doles out; we can both need a drink. At the same time and everything. What can I get you?" He gave her a wry smile in return, only his was a little wider, a little more self-depreciating than hers. Athena's face didn't look the type to carry any kind of self-depreciation, though the sympathy was evident.

Well good. Marian and Robin were missing and Much was ready to grab onto any potential ally, caution be - well, not damned, exactly.

Caution be regarded as unhelpful at this current juncture and set aside. As sayings went it wasn't snappy, but it was true enough. He was past worrying about any future consequences asking for an Olympians aid might bring. But then, worrying about future consequences had never really been Much's forte.

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[info]polymetis
2020-11-21 07:46 am UTC (link)
He was an interesting one, was Much the Miller's Son. As animated and personable as Will Stutely was taciturn. The kind of talkative that encouraged those around him to open up as well. The kind that was very easily mistaken for buffoonery. It was Much who had helped her niece Marcella find her Olympian family, tracking down contacts first for Athena herself, and later for Ares. Whatever else he was, Much was no buffoon.

"Martini, dirty," said Athena, sliding onto a bar stool. She considered him for another moment. What has the world dealt you? she wanted to ask him. Why are you in such sore need of a drink tonight? But asking outright could simply prompt him to clam up; the Merry Men had good reason to be wary of Olympians who took an interest in them. "Are you waiting for somebody?" she asked instead. "You keep looking around."

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[info]muchofamuchness
2020-11-21 08:12 am UTC (link)
Oof Much thought, taking a moment to find the artisanal olive brine Diogenes kept for such an occasion. Really need to work on being more of an unreadable enigma.

Still, despite feeling a little too seen, he was grateful that she'd given him an opening. Not that Much wasn't well versed at creating his own conversational openings, but that was with normal people, in normal situations, and not Olympian goddesses, in rather extraordinary ones. "Sort of," he said, glancing up at her over the glass as he stirred the drink together. "Do you have time to talk, tonight?" he asked, with a hopeful smile. Hopeful but polite. He didn't want to come across as too demanding, like he was afraid he'd done with Merlin, barreling up and asking for a prophecy.

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[info]polymetis
2020-11-21 09:02 am UTC (link)
Athena inclined her head, quietly curious. He wanted to talk. She hadn't expected that. Something had happened, then.

She had approached Will Stutely... it had to be close to a month ago now. That had been the same day they had struck at the Sheriff of Nottingham, the day the Sheriff had publicly lost his cool and let slip that he was flying out of the country to set his affairs back in order. Assuming he'd left immediately, he must be back in town by now. Back, and with scores to settle – unless they had moved swiftly to neutralise him, but Much's jumpiness suggested otherwise.

"Of course," she returned his smile with one that was open and attentive. "What would you like to talk about?"

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[info]muchofamuchness
2020-11-21 09:23 am UTC (link)
"Um," said Much, and immediately wished that he hadn't. Athena had such poise to her that every slightly clumsy or slightly awkward thing Much did felt highlighted when held up against her composed, controlled demeanor. At least there was nothing clumsy about the way he poured her drink into the icy cocktail glass, steady hands garnishing it with an olive.

"So," he said, sliding the glass toward her by its base. "A while ago you talked to my mate Stoo- Will Stutely, and mentioned your interest in heroes and, uh, your resources? We were wondering what those resources were, and if they could help us. We've lost both Marian and Rob, Athena, and we-" he had to pause, his eyes up on the ceiling, deep steadying breath to stop his voice from shaking. And his voice didn't shake, even under the weight of the urgency it suddenly carried: "-We need to find them, as quickly as possible."

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[info]polymetis
2020-11-21 09:53 am UTC (link)
Two men down – missing? – and two of their leaders, at that. No wonder the man was on edge. No wonder he was willing to ask an Olympian for help.

Athena's fingers curled around the stem of the cocktail glass, but she made no move to drink yet, her thoughts focussed entirely on the Merry Men's dilemma. "I may be able to help," she said cautiously. She wasn't about to promise anything she couldn't deliver. "It depends on what's happened to them. You say you don't know where they are; what do you know?"

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[info]muchofamuchness
2020-11-21 10:13 am UTC (link)
Despite Athena's caution, Much grabbed onto her offer with both hands. Too hopeful, maybe. Or perhaps anything would have looked like hope after the last person he'd gone to for help had, instead, given him words that pretty much amounted to you are completely powerless.

I may be able to help was glorious, compared to Merlin's offering.

"The Sheriff of Nottingham has been hunting us. Marian especially, although a few days ago he made a move on Alan and maybe would have got him but Melpomene fully stabbed him. The Sheriff, not Alan. He has this dungeon ready for all of us, and we think he must have found a way to Marian. And Rob, signs are pointing toward Gisborne - he's a cop - he's had a warrant out for Rob's arrest for a while now and he was spotted in the park where Rob was supposed to be. So... Sheriff and Gisborne," he said, holding out both hands, palms up, as if each hand held one aspect of their problem. "Marian and Rob... That's what we know."

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[info]polymetis
2020-11-21 11:13 am UTC (link)
She had suspected the Sheriff would have something to do with it. A private dungeon, too, that made sense. The Sheriff was a spectre of draconian law; naturally he'd find the due process of the modern legal system inadequate. And opposing Robin Hood was his purpose... no, he wouldn't leave the Merry Men's punishment to another.

Guy of Gisborne, he was one Athena had yet to encounter. Another villain from their tales, who'd tried and failed to thwart Robin Hood; beyond that, she knew little of him. Given the general cut of Robin's antagonists, it was fair to assume that if he was working in law enforcement, he would be deeply entrenched in its corrupt underside.

Melpomene's name was a surprise, though. It seemed Clio wasn't the only Muse who'd taken a shine to the Merry Men. Perhaps it was past time Athena took Melpomene up on that bottle of wine. But that was for another night.

Athena took a sip of her drink, let the swirl of thoughts settle and clarify.

"So you don't know whether they were taken, but it's a strong possibility," she mused. "In that case, the logical first step would be to verify those suspicions. An arrest will be relatively easy to confirm; it'll be in the system. I have a contact in the NYPD who can check on that." She actually had several. It was a matter of necessity when so many of her family lived in New York City, and so many of them had a habit of running afoul of the law. "An abduction is more difficult. Being who he is, I imagine the Sheriff is careful about covering his tracks. He wouldn't want to risk falling on the wrong side of the law himself. Do you have any idea where he might have ambushed her?"

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[info]muchofamuchness
2020-11-21 11:37 am UTC (link)
Much liked this, this steadiness. This reason. He liked laying out a problem and having someone else lay out a plan (rather than being part of half a dozen different voices all clamoring with their own ideas, talking over each other, barely getting anywhere.) Did she remind Much of Marian, or was Marian just so close to Much's thoughts that he would have found similarities in any woman? "The last people to see her were her workmates, at NYU," Much said. "She was working late upgrading something. We're pretty sure she didn't make it home."

Didn't make it. Much's blood ran cold at his own words, and he pressed his lips together, as the reality of Marian's disappearance grew sharper.

Part of him still hoped, despite everything, that Marian and Rob had just run off together like idiots.

But hearing his own words we're pretty sure she didn't make it home... It made him want to sink into the floor and never get up again. He'd failed her. They'd all failed her.

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[info]polymetis
2020-11-21 12:48 pm UTC (link)
Athena steepled her fingers. "Well, that is somewhere I may be able to help. You may not be aware, but I actually work at NYU." In point of fact, she'd been the one to offer Marian a foot in the door at the university. That the Sheriff may have followed and attacked Marian there was disturbing, but within the present circumstances, it actually made things somewhat easier. The campus was full of security cameras. "Security footage is kept under lock and key, of course, but it wouldn't necessarily be impossible to access it. How much it will tell you is another matter; if the Sheriff did get to her there, he likely took pains to avoid being seen. But at the very least, it would confirm whether or not she walked out of the building."

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[info]muchofamuchness
2020-11-21 07:32 pm UTC (link)
"Yeah, I'm aware," Much said, chewing on his lip. "I know you already helped her out with getting that job, like I know you offered Marcie one, too, when she was working for John." He shot her a grateful look, for her past help, and for the future. Maybe they'd all been too paranoid, when it came to Athena. She'd never done anything wrong to anyone he knew, she was just... Olympian.

"I think we'd take anything you could find. If we don't see her... then at least we've looked. If we do, if we see them, than at least then we'd know if it was him or not. Just cos he's the most likely culprit doesn't mean someone else hasn't happened to her - do you know the Seven Deadly sins are people, too? - and then all we need to do is find him."

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[info]polymetis
2020-11-22 06:22 am UTC (link)
"It's wise not to jump to conclusions," Athena agreed, taking another sip of her drink. The Sins sounded like a leap, but it was certainly true that the Sheriff of Nottingham wasn't their only enemy. A canny foe would take advantage of their preoccupation with his attacks in order to catch them flat-footed. Perhaps even take the time to make it look like the work of the Sheriff, play to their fears, send them scattering in the wrong direction. It's what she would do.

It seemed unlikely, though. The villains of English folklore didn't tend to hew to such subtlety. Unless they had made enemies in other quarters. Was that why he had mentioned the Sins? "Do you have reason to suspect any other immortal would target you?"

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[info]muchofamuchness
2020-11-22 06:59 am UTC (link)
"Well, Gisborne and John obviously. And Hermes, but his memory for grudges is worse than a sieve, 'pparently," Much said, completely unaware that Hermes had messaged Will, tonight, and his mates were gathering forces to wait for Hermes as they spoke. "And we kinda went up against Lucifer a while back, not in the front line or anything, but we were there. Well, Marian and Rob weren't, but me and some of the others. And I've laughed at the picture of him chocking on a bagel with Mary Magdalene a lot when she comes in here, so I guess if he was pissed about that he might do something? But to Marian? Rob? Nah, don't think that feels right, you know?"

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[info]polymetis
2020-11-22 08:33 am UTC (link)
They were an endless source of intrigue, these Merry Men. The feud with Hermes she had been aware of due to her conversation with Will Scarlet at Peitho's symposium, but she'd been of the impression that it was either mostly or entirely one-sided. Had the situation changed?

And Lucifer. Setting themselves against him took mettle, even if they hadn't been frontline combatants. But then, the Merry Men's was a legend of ordinary men who stood strong against the evils of the great and powerful.

"No," she agreed, "it doesn't. If Hermes were to move against you, he'd make sure you knew it. As for Lucifer..." she pursed her lips. "He is ruthless and spiteful, that's true. But, as you say, they're not the most likely targets for his ire, whereas you know for a fact that the Sheriff is hunting you, and Marian in particular. That presumably won't have changed, regardless of whether he has them right now."

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[info]muchofamuchness
2020-11-22 09:02 am UTC (link)
Much let out a huge sigh, shaking his head. "Yeah, I don't think anything's gonna change the fact that the Sheriff is hunting us, and will always be hunting us," he looked up into the glacial blue of Athena's eyes. "Or at least, he'll be hunting us till he's caught us all," he added, grimly. And then added on top of that, like contradictory verbal lasagna: "He's not going to catch us all, though. Won't let him. We need at least one of us out to mount a daring rescue when the time comes. That's how it goes. That's how it always goes. Oh - bloody hell, listen to me talk like I think I'm prophetic, what the fuck. Sorry."

He closed his eyes for a second to stop himself rolling them. Yeah, Much, just air all your thoughts as you have them in front of the goddess of goddamn wisdom.

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[info]polymetis
2020-11-23 02:02 am UTC (link)
"You feel trapped by your tale," Athena surmised, not without empathy. A memory plucked at her: Odysseus on the beach of Ogygia, head bowed, broad shoulders slumped in despair. Again and again, with cunning and trickery he'd defied the vengeful Sea, but every escape had stripped him of something, until at last he had washed ashore broken and alone, and still no closer to home. Their fight against the Sheriff of Nottingham had become a protracted war of attrition and, just as Poseidon had shattered the spirit of Odysseus, the Sheriff did not need to kill them all in order to break them.

Ah, it was no wonder she felt a soft spot for these motley folk heroes. They shared much of her Odysseus' polytropos: resourceful, wily, inventive. Men of twists and turns, indeed. Perhaps she could clear a way for them, as she had for him.

"I think I understand," she said. "The Sheriff was built to hound you; it's all he knows what to do. And perhaps there is no escaping that reality. But remember, he was also built to fail. You are still the heroes of this story, and on a level field he stands no chance. So we need to start by evening the ground."

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[info]muchofamuchness
2020-11-23 04:53 am UTC (link)
We, Athena said. Much was used to speaking of 'we' rather than 'I' when he was talking about the Merry Men, but it struck him as significant that Athena was doing it too. She could have said 'you'. She didn't.

Her use of the word made him want to believe it, that yes, he was part of a we and that we included Athena, just as the we lately had grown to include Francis and Nerd and Fairy Tales and a couple of the Muses. Why not Athena too?

"How do we do that?" He asked, letting the bar take his weight on his elbows. "We already outnumber him..."

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[info]polymetis
2020-11-23 06:27 am UTC (link)
"You do," she agreed. "And he knows that. It's why his strategy hinges on cornering you each individually." It was a curious reversal of the standard tale: the Merry Men the ones leading outwardly law-abiding lives; the Sheriff the one sniping from the shadows. "But knowing that's his strategy, you may be able to turn it on its head. Offer him an attractive lone target to draw him in, while the rest of you lie in wait to ambush him."

She laced her fingers. "This secret prison is another challenge, though." Even if they succeeded in capturing the Sheriff, Athena doubted he would give up its location. Especially if, as seemed likely, he already had one or more captive. More likely, he'd use the threat of their impending death by starvation to compel his own release. "You need to find it as a matter of urgency. Do you have any leads?"

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[info]muchofamuchness
2020-11-23 08:56 am UTC (link)
Ah, the classic human bait scenario - usually that was Marian's job. But if the Sheriff already had Marian, and if he was working with Gisborne, then capturing the Sheriff would only put her in more danger.

Also, last time they'd killed the Sheriff he and Will had pulled the bait and ambush trick, so he'd be more on guard if they did it again. Not that he was about to mention that here, at work. Best to stick to finding the prison.

"Not really," he said. "We have the blueprints, but there's nothing about a location on any of them. We've had a look at his accounts but there weren't any clues there either. I reckon we've got to track him... wait outside the only address we have for him till we see him and then follow him... Rob'd be great at that, his disguises..." Much trailed off, the Rob problem rearing his head, but he tried to rein it in and stay on track. One dire issue at a time. "Waiting takes time though and if he doesn't go back to that house for days, weeks... then we've wasted all that time when we could have been doing something else."

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[info]polymetis
2020-11-23 11:03 am UTC (link)
That was troubling. "No, you're right. You don't know for certain that he'll go back there at all." If the Sheriff was playing this carefully – and it seemed likely, after that last humiliating episode, that he was – he would be fully supplied in his prison-house, no need for any extraneous trips. Just occasional supply runs, and the hunt.

"In fact," Athena mused, "the only thing we know about his movements at this stage is that he is following yours. Unfortunate as it is, your best chance currently of picking up his trail may be to latch onto him when he comes for one of you." She stirred the olive around inside her glass, toying with that thought in different permutations. It would be higher risk than a simple ambush. Not only would they have to lure him in, they would need to sell it. If he suspected for a moment that he was being set up, he might ditch his car, change course, alter his plans entirely... It was messy, in short, and Athena wasn't keen on messy. "I'll see what I can dig out of the security cameras, at any rate. Even a licence plate number would be something to work with."

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[info]muchofamuchness
2020-11-23 11:39 am UTC (link)
"Thank you," Much breathed. His gratitude felt like it would manifest as a physical thing he could pass on to her. And on that note... "Is there something we can do for you?" he asked. "I know you... look out for heroes as part of your whole deal, but, is there someone you'd like, from us?"

He did not ask it with the same amount of suspicion or wary paranoia as he had been feeling earlier. Athena did not seen underhanded or manipulative, she seemed like a clear sighted woman with a genuine compulsion to help.

So while it was Will Stutely's voice in his head, urging caution, that compelled him to ask, when he did, he asked in the spirit of reciprocity. He wanted to be able to offer her something, though he was not sure what he could give that would be equal in value, not if her help led to them finding Marian or Rob. But he wanted to offer it all the same.

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[info]polymetis
2020-11-24 09:59 am UTC (link)
Athena considered the question seriously as she sipped her drink. She traded in favours, and though she had no current need of the Merry Men's skills, there might well come a time when they would prove useful.

But favours could be gained through friendship as well as through bonds of obligation, and the truth was, she'd had no especial designs when she'd approached Will Stutely, or when she'd reached out to Marian. They simply interested her, with their earthy heroism and their intractable foes; the speed and intensity with which they'd become entangled with her own family, as both enemies and lovers.

Goddess of nearness, Otto had called her. Mentor and guide, who takes men by the hand. She still had her students, still cultivated young proteges, but it had been a long while indeed since she had walked at the side of true heroes.

No, she didn't want them tethered to her by debt. But men – especially men experienced in trickery and cunning – did not always trust one who offered a lifeline without asking for anything in return. So she said, "Perhaps sometime you can indulge me with a few stories of your travels. I am, as you say, a patron of heroes, and lately I find myself starved of good tales."

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[info]muchofamuchness
2020-11-24 11:14 am UTC (link)
Much's eyebrows climbed up his face, but so did the corners of his mouth, spreading into a wide grin. "Oh we can definitely do that," he promised, and before he knew it he was saying: "You gotta come over to the Parsonage sometime, I can make dinner, we can have the gang round, swap stories." In his head, though, when they gathered, Marian and Rob were there and... that wasn't his reality right now, and the grin slipped.

He still meant it, though.

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