forbidden (illicitus) wrote in the_colony, @ 2010-06-04 22:35:00 |
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Entry tags: | ^ week 09, jed bailey, thomas galloway, | jed and tom |
Week Nine - Sunday
Character: Tom, Zoé, and Jed
Location: Nevada State Museum, 4pm
Summary: Tom meets with Zoé and Jed and decides to join the Colony.
Rating: G
Jed and Zoé pulled up to the museum right on time, something Jed was pretty proud of. Of course, it was made easier by the fact that they were getting there at a time he would usually leave. It was an odd feeling, even stranger than going several days without meet-ups had been.
"This guy's a professional, so 'long as you don't make any quick moments, he ain't gonna overreact to anything," Jed said as he put the truck in park.
"I will be very slow," Zoé assured him with a grin, unfastening her seatbelt and wriggling out of it. She was perhaps taking this a bit too lightly; she hadn't been to a meet-up since she met Jed and Alice along with Cass. She had heard stories about the bad things that had happened since then, but they hadn't really sunk in.
Jed grinned back, pausing a bit longer than necessary to watch her get out of the truck before he did so himself. He looked around, ready for the first sign of trouble, but kept his rifle over his shoulder. Tom had seemed a pretty good guy; he wasn't worried.
Leading the way, Jed went through the doors first.
Tom was already there, of course. He'd arrived at the museum about an hour ahead of them to recon the area just to be on the safe side, parking his truck out of sight in the subdivision on the other side of the street from the museum. As the Gipper had once said: Trust but verify. Once he was satisfied that there weren't any nasty surprises awaiting him he'd gone back to get Rollo and then returned to wait for Jed and whomever he was bringing with him.
When the younger man and a pretty brunette came walking through the door, Tom looked up from his paperback and put a hand on the back of his dog's neck. "Stay, Rollo. Good boy." The dog whined a little, wanting to go lick the strangers, but contented himself with lying back down on the floor, tail thumping in anticipation. Once he was satisfied that the dog was doing as he was told, Tom got to his feet. "Right on time, that's good. Nice to see another friendly face."
Jed nodded, unable to hold back a smile. A dog was always a good sign. He also glanced at Tom's gun. Far enough away not to be a threat, close enough that the man could grab it if he had to. "Good seein' you again, Tom," Jed said, though he didn't come close enough to shake hands or anything so friendly.
"Good to see you too, Jed. Hope you don't mind I brought some company along." He glanced down at Rollo, whose tail was thumping even more energetically in the desire to make friends with the newcomers.
Jed introduced the woman at his side. "This is Zoé."
"Bonjour!" the acrobat said brightly, waving enthusiastically at Tom from her place next to Jed. She wanted to go over and greet him properly but could tell they were both being a bit wary; she had promised Jed she would be good and she was trying to stick to it... at least for now. "It is very nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too, ma'am," Tom inclined his head in a nod, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth at the obvious enthusiasm and energy bundled in the petite blonde. "You're French Canadian, right? I recognize the accent." It was similar to that of the Cajuns he'd served with over the years, and different enough from the regular french accent that it was really the obvious choice. "Long way from home."
"Mais oui!" Zoé replied, thrilled. This man was obviously okay, even if he had brought a gun along with him. She looked up at Jed, motioning at the chairs leaning up against the wall in an effort to convince him they should sit down and talk like civilized human beings.
Biting his tongue to keep from teasing her, Jed grabbed a couple of the chairs, setting one down for him and then sliding the other behind Zoé, as though they were at a restaurant. "Go ahead and take a load off," Jed said to Tom, nodding at his own chair. "Might as well be comfy."
"Might as well," Tom agreed with a nod. He brought his chair forward a bit so they'd be closer together, and picked his carbine up by the muzzle with one hand, being careful not to look like he was planning on using it, and stuck it underneath the chair out of the way but close enough he could get it if he needed it. Years of experience had taught him never to be more than a few feet away from his weapon in a combat zone, and as far he was concerned that meant the entire world these days.
Another whine from his dog caused him to roll his eyes slightly and nod. "Alright Rollo, released." With that the mutt jumped to his feet and ran over to Zoé, tail wagging as he sniffed away, looking for some petting. "He's mostly harmless folks, less I tell him to guard somethin'."
Zoé giggled and obliged, bending over the dog and ruffling his ears with both hands. "He is very cute!" She liked dogs, as long as she didn't have to be responsible for feeding them or taking them outdoors or anything difficult like that. "Rocky will be glad to have a friend. If you are coming to the Suites," she added after a moment's thought, glancing up at Tom again.
"That's what y'all call it?" Tom asked, ears perking up a bit. "That's kinda what we're here t' get a feel for I guess." He glanced over at Jed as the dog made his way over to the man after getting what he wanted from Zoé.
Reaching out with both hands to rub behind the dog's ears, Jed looked up at Tom. "They're suites, so makes sense to call 'em that. Better'n Rollo," he said with a playful smirk. "Ain't those that carmel candy?"
"It matches his coat," Tom's tone was slightly defensive, which was rediculous and he knew it. "'Sides, I wasn't going to call him 'convict' or 'jailbird' even though I got him from pound."
He rolled his eyes at himself and settled back in his chair to get down to business. "Alright, last time we talked you said you had about a dozen or so folks in your group and that you and a woman were the leaders." He glanced over at the Quebecois. "That you or somebody else?" Probably somebody else, he knew if he were in Jed's shoes he wouldn't have wanted both leaders in the same place at the same time out in the field in these circumstances.
"It is not me," Zoé confirmed with a musical laugh and a shake of her head. "But... it is not like they are the only ones in charge. Everyone will have something to do - Searle is a builder, and Sam and Peter do the gardening, and Cass is a driver, and Bridget does the books..." She trailed off, realizing quite belatedly that perhaps she shouldn't be revealing quite so much information to a near-stranger.
Jed had been thinking the same thing, but then, what would a list of names matter? "Yeah, I told him 'bout us workin' together. We all take care of our own stuff an' ask for help when we need it."
Tom had raised an eyebrow at the information but otherwise kept his expression neutral. So now he knew the names of at least half of the group and their general duties, but that didn't mean much. Still, the young woman would be wise not to go around sharing everything with everyone. It sounded like they were still fairly disorganized for the most part, but it also sounded like they cared about each other and were willing to help as needed. "Sounds like y'all have a system going."
"Pretty much. Always open to other thoughts and things, though," Jed said. It was odd, trying to 'sell' the idea like this. Most people grabbed on eagerly.
"Good to hear." Tom nodded, and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. After that incident in the auto parts store he knew safety lay in numbers, but he couldn't quite bring himself to commit. "I ran into a guy after I left here the other day. Not a very friendly sort at all, in desperate need of an attitude adjustment. I have to say I like y'all better." It was on the tip of his tongue to ask about their defenses, but that wasn't the sort of question a stranger, even one considering joining the group, asked. Let alone expect an answer to.
"Yeah, we met a couple like that ourselves," Jed said with a slight smirk. "You seem to got things straight. Smart without bein' an ass."
"My drill sergeants beat it out of me when I was in basic training, lo these many moons ago." Tom smirked and then rubbed Rollo behind the ears when the dog came back to sit beside his human.
His face took a more serious expression as he regarded the two people in front of him. It was getting to 'shit or get off the pot' time with this group. He either had to decide to go his own way and wish them well, or come stay a while and see how it went. Sitting around talking it over was all well and good, but sooner or later it came time to do something. Time to be a grown-up again Tommy-boy. The veteran took a deep breath, focused his attention on Jed, and committed to a course of action. "So, you think your team can use an extra pair of hands?"
Jed grinned, not exactly sure why he was so pleased. Maybe because Tom hadn't jumped at the chance; it was a sort of validation to be considered and chosen. "Hell, sure, I think so," Jed said, glancing at Zoé. Not that he needed her permission, but he figured if she had bad vibes about the guy, they'd be right. "An extra pair of hands is always good."
"Oui, it will be nice to have another big strong man around," the acrobat said with a coquettish giggle, slipping her hand over Jed's and giving it a squeeze. She liked Tom; he seemed like a good sort, and she could tell Jed liked him as well. She was always glad to see more people join the community - it was good for everyone involved. "And another guard dog," she added with a glance at Rollo.
"Don't know how much good he'll be at it, I think he'd rather try and lick intruders to death than bite them." Tom shifted a bit in his seat as he scratched back behind Rollo's ears again. It was a bit flattering and confusing to be flirted with by a woman young enough to be his daughter. "But we can help you out with guard duty, sure enough."
"Hell, we sure need it. Maybe Leo'll get to sleep durin' the night for once," Jed said with a grin. Then he had a thought. "Y'know, we got a group dinner thing tonight. Do it 'bout twice a week. You wanna come and meet folks? I know you prob'ly ain't all packed and ready to move, but you can pick a room."
"That sounds fine. I'd like to meet the rest of your people," Tom replied with a nod. "I've enough gear with me I can stay a few days before needing to head back and collect the rest. I don't think anyone will be there in the meantime." If all went well he might try and get one or two to come back with him to help him load everything when the time came.
"Sure, works even better," Jed said, giving Zoé's hand a squeeze before getting up. In the back of his mind, Bridget and Alice's experience started to weigh heavy. "No reason to hang around here much longer. We'll show you the way."