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Pierce Gregory is Odin, CEO of the World ([info]the_allfather) wrote in [info]paxletalelogs,
@ 2010-08-20 07:38:00

Previous Entry  Add to memories!  Tell a Friend!  Next Entry
Entry tags:odin, tyr

Who: Nate and idk his BFF Pierce?
What: It's Beer O'Clock. And discussion time.
Where: T1.
When: After Pierce meets his cheery niece Aura in a graveyard, and after Nate picks up Simon from the airport. LULZ.
Warnings: This bromance is so awesome, it may kill you in the face fifty times.



Let us first start by traveling back in time a few years, back to the days of Stanford, keg parties, and stealing your roommate's clothing from the communal bathroom while he was in the shower. When it became glaringly obvious that Pierce and his biological brother David were meant to spend the rest of their natural lives in a love-hate roller coaster of angst and one tear (that they would blame on dirt in their eyes), Nate stepped in to fill that brotherly role. No one could take David the Anathema's place per se, but Pierce considered Nathan part of the family regardless. It was true that Nate was dedicated to his good friend and grateful for what he had done for him (money is important, despite people who will lie about it otherwise), but it went both ways - Pierce was always looking out for Nathan and he would do most anything for the man, which didn't make Nate simply a minion or someone who did Pierce's bidding. It was not a one-sided bromance.

He knew that when he called Nate, seeing if he was free to come up for drinks and a chat, it wouldn't be long before he climbed the relatively short distance to the tower and just let himself in. Most anyone else who did that would have gotten a katana blade in the eye right away but Pierce was expecting Nathan, so he only glanced up briefly before going back to rummaging through the fridge for beer.

"Alright, what'll it be: Dark Lord Imperial Stout or Westvleteren?" The latter wasn't easily accessible outside of Belgium but Pierce, of course, had connections to end all connections.



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[info]sinistral
2010-08-20 07:55 pm UTC (link)
Despite how Nate had never been sure on how exactly he wrangled up the grades to get into Stanford, there was never a time when he regretted that choice. Running across the country to get somewhere better, with better opportunities, had let him meet Pierce, and from there the rest of his life was the history they knew. When your only older brother was ten years ahead of you, it strained the relationship somewhat - which was why Pierce was a closer friend than most of the rest of Nate's own family. The almost-thirty years of working together only made that stronger.

With the kid comfortably back in his room, Nate took the stairs (he would have tried the elevator, but he had to get in a little exercise somehow) up to his room, dropped off his coat, and then went up the last few flights to the tower room. He envied Pierce a little for this kind of amazing view but wasn't about to hold it against him - he was allowed to visit any time, after all. He pushed open the door and gave the room another once-over.

"What is your obsession with foreign beer?" he asked, shutting the door behind him and coming to look over Pierce's shoulder into the expanse of the fridge. "I'll take the one that sounds like it came from an English-speaking country, thanks."

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[info]the_allfather
2010-08-20 08:07 pm UTC (link)
"It's better?" Pierce offered by way of explanation, then graciously handed Nate the bottle of Dark Lord. "What do you have against beer names that are impossible to pronounce?"

He had moved in a short time ago and already things were strange. The cap came off of the bottle - first he reached over and popped the top off of Nate's Dark Lord - and then Pierce took a long, well-deserved swig of Westvleteren. "I think moving into this building is the beginning of the end," he said as he grabbed the rest of the beer and also remembered to pick up his lighter and cigarettes off of the counter as well. "But come in! Sit. Let's talk."

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[info]sinistral
2010-08-20 09:12 pm UTC (link)
"So you say." Nate, for his part, was more a man for something brewed a little more locally. At least within the country, but Canada was valid, too, so maybe within the continent. "I didn't major in language, I'm sure you recall." Point was, European beer, while good, just didn't have the same sort of tasteless bite as the American stuff. His preferences had often gotten him very strange looks.

But, hell, he wasn't paid to like Pierce's booze.

"You think? We're not that old." Nate sat down on one of the couches and took a long drink of his own, feeling it add to the air conditioner's effects. He leaned back and watched his old friend with a raised eyebrow. "Unless that's more a metaphorical end for something."

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[info]the_allfather
2010-08-20 09:40 pm UTC (link)
And paid the big bucks, Nathan was! But he was worth every penny. "I'll have Red Rock next time you come up, just for you, buddy," Pierce said as he reached for the pack of cigarettes, pulling one out. He left them within reach in case Nate wanted any. "I have a feeling we'll be drinking a lot."

The cigarette was lit, and he enjoyed the satisfying first puff, leaning back into the couch cushions. "How to put this? Ah...I wasn't quite expecting the family reunion that seems to have presented itself."

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[info]sinistral
2010-08-20 10:07 pm UTC (link)
Nate laughed, but it was tempered. They drank plenty, sure, what old friends didn't? But from the way Pierce was putting it, things didn't sound so simple. They sounded downright unsettling, in fact, but he didn't show it. Family reunion, huh? There weren't that many people in the Gregory family that could show up out of nowhere, unexpectedly, and Nate had the sinking feeling he was about to meet a certain someone.

"Family reunion, huh," he said, avoiding the cigarettes for the moment. "Who all's here?"

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[info]the_allfather
2010-08-20 10:50 pm UTC (link)
Nate already knew Pierce had moved into Pax Letale because of Billy, so he didn't bother to bring up that connection just yet. "David," he replied, exhaling the name in a puff of smoke. He tapped some ashes off in the tray on the end table. "With his girlfriend, who is actually quite lovely even though she's younger than Harrison." It was a bit strange, but the age difference was the least of Pierce's concerns. "But no one will know we're even related, since he changed his last name." It was probably better that way, because then David's children could always put the puzzle together if enough little tidbits were strewed about here and there. More fencing as stress relief was definitely in order, however. He didn't want to drink himself to death.

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[info]sinistral
2010-08-21 04:33 am UTC (link)
Some part of him had expected an answer like that. David, the other brother he'd never met, who had been responsible for trouble that personally didn't bother Nate a whole lot but that had bothered Pierce a great deal. It was their secret, the event that had gotten David cut off from the family; the business with the two kids was long since done and over with, but he had no doubt that some part of it was going to arise again now that the brother were back within reach of each other. Or maybe not, he mused, since it was likely that neither of them wanted to breach the subject.

"Sounds like a riot," Nathan said, taking another long drink. "I take it I should keep my distance." Even if they had never met, all the stories he knew hadn't exactly engendered any sympathetic feelings in him over the years. Unless the man tried anything stupid, the most he would do would be to keep a wary eye on him. That was his job, after all: to keep things running smoothly.

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[info]the_allfather
2010-08-21 11:35 am UTC (link)
"Probably so. Considering his dislike for me and everyone associated with me," Pierce chuckled. "I may have to sit Harrison down for a talk..." He trailed off, considering how well that would go. Probably not very well, but it might be necessary in order to prevent the children from finding out anything they shouldn't.

He took another long drink, preparing himself for what he was going to say next. "Because David's children are here too. Fuck, Nate, they're here..." Pierce rubbed his forehead, like he often did when he was frustrated. "And now I have to keep them away from David because if they find out he's their father, there's no telling what he'll do."

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[info]sinistral
2010-08-21 05:02 pm UTC (link)
Nate could deal with David, he was pretty sure. Just keep his distance and avoid any conversations deeper than a little top-level smalltalk if absolutely necessary. But when Pierce followed it up with what he did, Nate considered it a blessing that he hadn't been drinking at the time, or else he might have choked.

"They're here?" he exclaimed, the words making it to his ears but not quite reaching his brain entirely. "Both of them?" The girl he could understand, maybe, since she'd lived in the state, but - he drove across the country to make sure the boy didn't come back. He'd waited until there was news of an actual adoption before he stopped keeping an eye on that one. Pierce had told him he didn't want the two comign back and finding the family. If both kids were here, in this building, then there was no doubt they knew each other, if nothing else.

God damn the advance of technology sometimes, he thought irritably as he leaned back on the couch and pressed a hand over his eyes. That was about when he reached for a cigarette.

"Shit. I guess it's easier to find out where you come from than I thought." He lit up and took a long drag - of course this kind of news was going to put him back in his worse habits. "I'm sorry, Pierce. I didn't think this was going to happen." Christ. Both of them? How bad was his luck?

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[info]the_allfather
2010-08-21 05:14 pm UTC (link)
Pierce waved off the apologies with the cigarette-holding hand, and then he took a drag a second later. "It's not your fault, Nate. I know you did the best you could do with finding families for them."

He sucked the cigarette down to the embers - obviously stressed - and flicked the remains into the ashtray. "Yes, both of them. I kept tabs on them, mostly just where they were, I've never met them obviously. Except for the girl, Olivia. I met her the other night. The boy calls himself Simon now. Apparently he's close friends with Harrison." It was time for another cigarette, so he flicked the lighter and set the cancer stick ablaze immediately. Even the first puff didn't calm him like it usually did.

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[info]sinistral
2010-08-21 05:28 pm UTC (link)
He knew Pierce wasn't going to blame him but the irritation stuck anyway. How simple, how straightforward had that job been? He knew he should have found some way to get rid of the birth records. It couldn't have been hard. Some kids were just too clever for their own good.

... and of course Pierce would follow it up with something even more shocking. Simon, a friend of Billy's. How many other Simons did he know? Nate let out a sharp stream of smoke and fought the urge to grind out the cigarette in frustration.

"Simon Erikson?" he asked dryly, knowing it was going to be the right answer.

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[info]the_allfather
2010-08-21 05:39 pm UTC (link)
"Yes," he nodded, the word coming out along with a puff of smoke. "That's what Aura - I mean, her real name's Olivia - said her brother was called. They do know each other. How'd you know his name?" Pierce just figured that Nate knew the name because he had followed up on the adoption, and subsequently what the boy's new identity was.

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[info]sinistral
2010-08-21 05:46 pm UTC (link)
"He needed to get picked up from the airport. It was a favor for Billy, since going himself wasn't an option." Nate tilted his head back and let out another puff of smoke, not sure if what he was feeling was a headache coming on, or just a spasm of skull pain. "That's where I was before I got here."

So. That was a little ironic, a little ... awkward. He'd had no idea that was David's son. Obviously he wasn't going to recognize him, it being such a damn long time since, but it was still a little unnerving that the kid had been right there without him even realizing it.

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[info]the_allfather
2010-08-21 05:54 pm UTC (link)
Pierce arched his eyebrows so high, they nearly flew off of his face. Well, at least now he knew that Harrison and Simon were still friends - Olivia could rest easy. Joy upon joys!

"Fuck," he hissed, smashing the cigarette into the ashtray and covering his face with his hands, his palms jammed into his eyes. That was definitely a migraine he felt, and currently wanted drill his brain out of his skull. "Okay...alright. First thing's first. Olivia and Casper can not know who their father is, who I am, and so forth, not right now. Obviously they will find out eventually, but David doesn't even know his kids are here so when I tell him..." Pierce pinched the bridge of his nose. "Goddamnit, it's going to be his responsibility to do something about it this time. They're his fucking kids!"

He paused before speaking up again. "What was he like? Simon, I mean."

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[info]sinistral
2010-08-21 06:03 pm UTC (link)
Nate silently agreed, rubbing his left temple and trying to get rid of that little spike of pain that seemed to want to stick around and make his life difficult. He'd already dealt with the kids once, admittedly when they were too young to even realize where they were; parental responsibility would have to take over at some point, though given what had happened last time, he almost expected David to cut and run.

Would that be so bad? But maybe if they kids were already in their 20s, it would be different.

"Quiet, actually. Hardly said anything during the ride." A real reticent kid, for the most part. "Polite enough, but I don't think he was really in a normal mood when I got him."

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[info]the_allfather
2010-08-21 06:16 pm UTC (link)
Pierce expected David to head for the hills again as well, even though he had just moved in with his girlfriend. There was no way the man was going to own up to any kind of responsibility or want to be a part of their lives, even if they were grown by now. He'd probably just shit his pants and run off.

"He had this terrible aura about him," Pierce said, leaning forward with his head in his hands. "I looked at him and got the creeps, chills up and down the spine, blood ran cold, all of that. Intuition of sorts, you know? Things could have changed, but..." he shrugged. "I don't know. I think I'm going to meet him soon."

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[info]sinistral
2010-08-21 06:23 pm UTC (link)
Over the years, Nate had gotten used to Pierce's sixth sense - his intuition that showed up on occasion, changing minor decisions and shaping the way some things went. Or, in the case of the kids, making things very certain. One look at the kid had sent Simon across the country, but as far as Nate could tell, there had been nothing different about the kid. Not back then, and not now.

But whatever Pierce said, he was willing to trust. They'd gotten this far, after all. And more often than not, Pierce was right.

"He lives on one of the lower floors. I can find out which one." He didn't suggest asking Billy, because that wouldn't end well, no matter what. "Unless you've already got that written down somewhere."

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[info]the_allfather
2010-08-21 09:43 pm UTC (link)
"Nope. I only know which floor Olivia is on - she's in 1001 - but all I know about Casper is that he's an artist," Pierce said, amused at the thought. A moody artist. How perfect. "But it would be good to find out which apartment is his."

He sighed, tilting his head back with his hands covering his face again. "I can't believe all of this. I really can't." He dropped his hands. "And David gets pissed off at me because I've been making sure he's still alive by checking in with his girlfriend every once and awhile. I should have just told him about his kids on the phone right then, without actually trying to engage him in conversation." Not like David would ever agree to the dinner invitation either.

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[info]sinistral
2010-08-21 10:24 pm UTC (link)
The mental note to find out where Simon lived lodged itself firmly in his mind, and Nate figured he'd do that as soon as possible. After this, though. The whole deal seemed a little surreal, and even he was kind of suspicious about it - what were the chances that all of them would manage to converge on the same city, much less the same building? Coincidence didn't go that far. This was just uncanny.

"You and me both." The cigarette wasn't doing its usual relaxing job, and with it slowly starting to creep toward the filter, he sighed and stubbed it out before going back to the drink. "If you tell him now, he might jump ship." And the kids would not be their problem, not this time.

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[info]the_allfather
2010-08-21 10:43 pm UTC (link)
"If he does, it'll be his fucking problem. The kids are grown now, and at least they'd know what a coward he is," Pierce grumbled, also returning to the beer. He twisted the cap off of a second one with the bottle opener, then took a drink. "But he wouldn't want them to know he's their father. Not at all. He pretends he doesn't even have children."

It did seem extremely strange that everyone ended up in this building - considering it was the worst possible thing that could have happened. "I just think something strange is going on. Why would we all be here if not for some specific purpose?" It was sort of a rhetorical question, but a valid one.

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[info]sinistral
2010-08-22 01:30 am UTC (link)
"I doubt they're the only ones," Nate muttered, finishing off his drink and reaching for a second. He didn't make any further comments about that, though, only made his guesses and moved on. There was a better, if rhetorical, question that they'd both just tripped over. "It does seem pretty unlikely that everyone's here, out of nowhere, but I can't give you anything other than far-fetched reasons." Thin strings of logic just barely connected by events and relatively cheap rent.

He paused opening his drink to consider it, then shrugged.

"At least now we've got everybody where we can reach them." Where he, personally, could watch them and keep track of them. For Pierce, of course.

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[info]the_allfather
2010-08-22 01:40 am UTC (link)
"True," Pierce agreed - keep your friends close but your enemies closer, right? Not that David was an enemy; he just didn't need to be trying anything stupid. "Now you know why we'll be drinking a lot," he chuckled dryly. "Well, here's to...a series of fucked up events." He toasted Nate with his beer bottle. He was kind of glad that he and Harrison's mother had split up - she didn't need to be dragged into this mess, in this ominous building.

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[info]sinistral
2010-08-22 02:46 am UTC (link)
Nate laughed and tilted his bottle toward Pierce.

"To whatever we have to do to get out of them," he agreed, and took a long drink. At least the next few months wouldn't be boring - not that his work for Pierce ever was. He'd have people to watch and things to do, ostensibly people to keep a very close eye on. And the usual work, too. But so much to look forward to, he figured, both good and bad.

He didn't get foreboding feelings like Pierce did, but something didn't seem quite right, even to him. But hey, if it meant a good excuse to drink, who, at the moment, really gave a shit? He could worry later.

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