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It had been a scene of moderate chaos following the gang's escape from the Armory. For his part, David had dismissed any attempts to get him checked out at a hospital — all he needed were clothes. Which, thanks to one of the shops next to Harry's, he now has. Even if it's just jeans and a t-shirt, it's more than he's had in weeks.
On bare feet, David paces back towards Harry's with his eyes narrowed attentively. He had a feeling he wasn't too late.
"Twenty-three?" he calls, turning in place as he looks around. "Are you still here?"
*
Indeed, the young lady is sort of hovering around the edges of the Mansion Crowd while they get themselves straightened out in the aftermath, check on each other, figure out what to do with the rescuees, and so on. Truth to tell, she isn't entirely sure why, except she told XIV-2 and 3 that the others would be found here and she needs to see it through. For one reason or another.
She blinks, as she hears herself called for, turns towards David, and tilts her head. "Yes? David. Do you need something?" She's a mess. GuardBlood and KittyBarf all over her jacket and boots, mostly.
*
Ah, thank goodness. David turns towards the voice and makes his way over to her, running his hands over his face. Now that he's out, he's beginning to notice how terrible he feels. Awesome.
"Just checking on you," David tells her with a tired smile, though it fades as he looks her over. Hm. He glances towards the door to Harry's, sees lights on inside, and crooks his fingers at Laura. "…here. Let's get you cleaned up."
*
"I am undamaged," comes the reply. Somehow, Laura gets the feeling Kitty will be looking for her shortly. But then again… if that's the case she'll find her easily enough. She nods, following along, and starts shrugging out of her combat jacket.
*
Without a word, David offers a hand to take the jacket from her, if she'll let him. "Just the jacket," he says lightly, his other hand going for the door to draw it open for her. "They won't let us in otherwise. Are you hungry?"
*
Laura tilllllllts her head to one side. Eating and cleaning up aren't done together, in her experience. Regardless of that. "It is not time to eat yet," she notes. Oh, this is going to be all kinds of fun, isn't it?
*
At least David is in a better position to roll with it than most. "That's fair. When is it time to eat?" he asks, giving her a curious look.
The look on the hostess' face when she sees the state of her restaurant's newest arrivals is… something to remember, that's for sure.
"We need to use your restroom, please," David says, before she can protest. "And then we would like a booth, please."
She eyes him for a very long moment, then her eyes drift to look past him and out the window. "…fine. But no more trouble," she says firmly, snatching up a pair of menus. "I do not get paid enough for this.""Makes two of us," David says with a smile. To Laura, he says, "Go ahead and use the sink in the women's restroom to wash Miss Pryde off of you. Then come sit with me for a while. Alright?"
*
Good news, David. You are lucky enough to NOT have to explain "Women's Restroom" to Laura. Dodged a bullet. "Eighteen hundred," she says in reply to the question, then considers the rest before simply nodding and moving off in search of said restroom. She isn't gone long at all, and smells a touch better when she catches up with him. And, no surprise… sits with him. Hands in lap and curiously attentive.
*
From the look of him, David took a moment to duck into the men's and wash his own face. The fact that it was the first time he'd seen himself in a mirror in weeks might explain the slightly strange look on his face while he waits for her in the booth.
When she joins him, David offers her a small smile. "There. That's a bit better." And then, for a long moment, he's quiet. When he breaks his silence, his tone is light.
"XIV and I are going to find Control and spend a very long time making him very uncomfortable," David says simply, steepling his hands in front of himself. "Would you like to come?"
*
Laura listens, and considers this for a while. Much longer than he probably expected. "I do not know," she finally decides. "It does not seem very productive. But I understand that XIV will wish to."
*
"I promised I would help," David tells her, shifting to sit with his bearded chin propped up in one of his hands. "They got me out. It's the least I can do." As if the torture and inevitable murder of a man was as mundane as paying someone back for a movie ticket.
He studies her quietly for a moment. Then, hesitantly, David adds, "They listen to you. Respect you. If they needed to be stopped, pulled out before they were ready… I wouldn't be able to do it."
*
Laura simply nods, at the first portion. That all makes sense. She seems to find the latter portion curious. After a while: "Perhaps. I will talk to them. We will see what happens. They must still rejoin their sisters. Katherine—" A pause. "Kitty. Will have something to say. We will see what happens."
*
David nods once. "Thank you. I suppose we will."
A waitress breezes past the table long enough to drop off a burger and a bottle of beer for David - how he managed to swing a meal when he has no wallet on him is anyone's guess. Might be related to the remarkable restraint he shows as he scoops up the burger and prepares to take a bite, just like it was any other meal.
"You won't be able to go back now," David notes, watching her over his food. "Will you be alright?"
*
X-23 is scanning the room absently, cataloguing the environment. She doesn't look at him when she replies, but that doesn't mean the same things it does when other people do it, of course. "It was inevitable. Yes. I will be fine. I was designed to be alone in the feild. If that is necessary." Which is not the same thing, but it has similarities.
*
The word 'necessary' catches David's attention.
"I'm going to be a bit cut off now, myself," David murmurs slowly, his eyes still on her. "But after these last few weeks… mmh. Think I've had my fill with being alone in the field." The burger is set down and he reaches for the bottle, instead. "If you'd be interested, we could pool our resources," he says carefully, trying to figure out how to best phrase it for her. Maybe that'd work. Probably not.
*
Laura tilts her head thoughtfully. "I understand what you are asking, David. We will see what happens. Regardless, I will be available when needed. I do not know more than that. This… pursuit. It bears some similarity to Control's fixation on the past. I am not certain what Laura will think of it."
*
David pauses with the bottle to his lips, his brow furrowing slightly. Likening this to Control seems to have been enough to give him considerable pause.
"…I gave them my word," he says quietly, though he seems far less comfortable with the notion, all of a sudden. And pale. Very pale. "I can't disappoint them again."
Slowly, David sets the bottle back down. "…'Laura'?"
*
A small smile. She waits to see if he gets it on his own. Either way… "Your… talking defect is no longer relevant," Laura notes with a slight hint of a wry tone. She may be actually making fun of him in her own way. That might be projecting. As to the other part. "Yes. I will talk to them. We will see what happens." She doesn't seem to be inclined to judge what he does either way. It's all just the way things are, to her.
*
David quietly pushes his plate away, still pale. Intentional or not, Laura now has him thinking about what XIV might do to him if he doesn't uphold his end of the deal.
"If… if you had to guess. What do you think they'll want to do?" David asks, forcing his eyes back to Laura's face. "After they are finished with Control?"
*
"I do not know," Laura admits. "Find another purpose. Or a new place they belong. Or perhaps isolation. It is hard to say." Her gaze passes out the window. "Perhaps talking will suggest answers. We will see what happens."
*
David's eye twitches but he looks down at his hands and tries to focus on breathing. "…right. Well. If you need somewhere to stay," he murmurs, raking both of his hands back over his hair. "Let me know. I would welcome your company." Slowly, he manages to lift his eyes to her again. "Laura."
*
Laura gives a slight nod, as if to agree that this is acceptable for him to do. She frowns a little. "You should eat. And sleep. Perhaps not in that order," she notes. "It has been some time." her head tilts to one side, and there's a pause. "Did you check the mail?" she hazards quietly.
*
"Don't know if I can sleep," David admits in a quiet voice, his hands still up in his hair. "I don't… the nightmares. I don't know how much of that was them." He has suspicions. But he isn't sure.
When Laura asks about the mail, however, the tension and fatigue in David's expression melt away, and his eyes — now laser-focused — snap to hers. "I'm sorry. I'll do that now."
*
Laura frowns thinly. Well. This is a problem. "You will sleep fine," she says evenly. "The next time your trigger phrase is spoken you will be aware of it and what the expected response is. You will retain the freedom to do with this information what you choose. Do you understand?"
*
His eyes still locked on Laura's, David gives a single, crisp nod.
*
Laura breaks eye contact, going back to looking out the window. "Good. Eat your…" she glances back over. Laura has no idea what he's eating. "…meal."