Who: Greer and Archer When: Monday, July 9th, early evening Where: Black Cove Status: complete
Greer had been trying to do her part, reaching out to Ty when she finished talking to Jasper, whom she assumed would talk to Elodie. They were keeping each other updated on what was going on and so far it seemed like most people were willing to meet. She had expected some pushback, but everyone had questions and maybe they could all figure this out together. There were a few more people that they hadn’t reached yet, so Greer decided to do it herself. One of those people was Archer. They hadn’t spoken to each other much on the other side, but she didn’t want to leave anyone out, especially if something had happened to him. Surely he would have questions and maybe not think to ask one of them.
She knew where Archer lived, mostly because she knew where he was at the time she decided to track him down. Black Cove was a really lovely neighborhood and Greer enjoyed walking through it, admiring the landscaping and designs. It wasn’t as extravagant as Overlook, but certainly nicer than the rest of Point Pleasant. Archer’s home was no different and Greer walked up to his door, knocking a few times before she waited. Hopefully he would remember her.
Archer’s life had slid into a strange place since they’d all been back. He’d discovered his passion, his calling in life, and it seemed that he’d brought something back with him that made pursuing that passion so much easier. He’d been on another out of town ‘business’ trip without Ezra to scratch that incredibly powerful itch, and being able to walk through doors and walls made it almost too easy. It wasn’t the invasion that did it for him anyway, it was those bright bursts of mayhem and chaos and blood, and the fear that he could cause, a truly animal act in an overly sanitized world. He didn’t belong in this weak time period, and he probably never had. The fog world had just burned away his modern training, and Archer was discovering who he was underneath.
He’d been keeping up appearances decently well, though he was sure his father was noticing his work faltering a bit from distraction. Ezra looked at him funny sometimes, but Archer didn’t think he had it in him to ever suspect the truth. Life just kept going, and while Archer felt removed from it all to a certain degree, he could play along until he was ready to drop the farce. So he was doing some work on his laptop when someone knocked at the door -- Ezra wasn’t home yet, and as Archer’s head lifted he immediately knew who it was like he could see through the front door.
He hadn’t spoken to any of the others since their return, but now one of them was here. Archer frowned vaguely and stood up. He straightened his shirt a bit before he opened the door, his expression cool as he looked at Greer. “... yes?”
Greer wasn't entirely sure what to expect when Archer opened the door, but she wasn't terribly surprised that he didn't look pleased to see her. For most she was sure that she was just a reminder of where they had been and what they had gone through. Still, she hoped he would hear her out. If not, they might just have to cross him off the list completely, unless Ty wanted to give it a go. "Archer," she said, greeting him with a small smile. "Hi. I was wondering if we could talk for a minute or two?"
Archer was mostly just unsure why Greer was there. He did remember her name, but that felt like one of those subconscious things more than any effort on his part to recall it. Just like how he knew where all the survivors were located at any given moment if he concentrated. It hadn’t occurred to him that any of them would want any sort of reunion, or that they were even experiencing something unnatural like he was. Archer didn’t smile back, or make any move to invite Greer inside, still standing in the doorway with his hand on the knob. “I’m listening,” he said after a beat, not making any promises about the talking back part. He didn’t want her there, but since he was alone in the house, he would hear her out.
Okay, so this wouldn't be as easy as it had been with Ty and Jasper. That was okay. Greer had dealt with people like Archer before and again, she couldn't blame him much if he was wary of her presence. She didn't mind talking outside on his porch, and at least it seemed like he would listen. "Well, I've been reaching out to everyone who was lost on the other side with us because it seems like something happened over there that... changed us. We all have something different happening, something we can do now that we couldn't before. Have you experienced anything like that?"
A weird cold chill ran down Archer’s back. So it wasn’t just him ... were they all the same? Could every one of them walk through walls now? Or was it something more insidious, something that could expose what he was doing to the world at large? He was careful to keep his expression neutral as he looked at Greer and quickly weighed his options. Keeping his mouth shut was probably best, Archer didn’t trust any of these people just because they’d all be stuck in the same hellscape. “What do you mean, something you couldn’t do before?” he asked instead, feigning ignorance.
"Something a bit out of the ordinary," Greer explained. It could be that he hadn't been affected by that place at all, but given how many others had, she found that hard to believe. Maybe he just needed something specific to understand what she meant, so he would feel more comfortable talking about it. Greer didn't want to blurt out everyone's ability, just in case, so she settled to explaining her own. "Like for me, if I touch someone, sometimes I can see how they die. It wasn't anything I could do before. Some of the others have experienced the same thing... well, not exactly the same thing," she added with a small smile. "But something that's probably a bit unexplainable to most people. I've been wanting to see if it has affected everyone."
She could see people’s deaths? So if Archer grabbed her wrist, would she see how he was going to die? He suddenly wanted to do it, to test her, but to also see what his fate was going to be. If Greer didn’t see him riding the lightning of an electric chair or getting a lethal injection, he would know that he would get away with everything he’d been doing. He would know that he was on the right path, doing what he was meant to be doing. It would be too much of a tip-off to risk, however. The last thing Archer wanted was any of these people getting involved in his life. “No,” he said slowly, something watchful in his eyes as he looked at her. “I don’t have anything like that.”
Greer couldn't really tell if he was lying but there was something in the way he was looking at her that sent a weirdly uncomfortable chill down her spine. It was likely she was reading too much into it. Not everyone she spoke to was going to be friendly or open up to her and that was okay. "Well, it may manifest later," she said, thinking of Jasper. "If it does and... you need someone to talk to, or you have questions, obviously you know how to find me, or even Ty, if you remember him? We're trying to figure out why this may have happened and if we can learn to control it."
Ty the black cop who’d taken over as the de facto leader in the fog world, like it was his god-given right to tell them all what to do. Yes, Archer remembered him with plenty of dislike. He’d avoided all of them since their return, but avoided the cop especially hard, for obvious reasons. He was suddenly even less interested in whatever Greer was trying to accomplish, if it was that kind of group project. Archer hummed and took a half-step back, starting to slowly close the door as he spoke. “Well good luck with all that,” he said, short and insincere. He wasn’t going to agree to telling them jack shit about what was going on with him, and what was going on with them didn’t really interest him much.
He was actually shutting the door on her. Greer very nearly reached out to stop him, but she rarely lost her temper and it didn't seem like it would be worth doing it here. Archer clearly had no interest in socializing with the rest of them, but her gut told her that he was lying about not having been changed in some way. He clearly didn't want her to know, at least not now. He hadn't been very social Over There either, so Greer wasn't going to hold her breath. Instead, she sighed softly as he shut the door and then turned to head down the porch steps and back toward home. If Ty wanted to give it a try, he could, but she doubted he would get any farther with Archer than she had.