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Maximus comes to the apartment with a bag…that's not great. Its a fairly big bag, as well. He knocks, but after even 10 seconds of waiting, he just gets out that key to unlock it, unable to converse with his spies at the moment to tell him if Lindon is here tonight or not.
Lindon happens to be here tonight, reading through some of the books he's left here instead of taken to the house. When he reads, he just flips through the book. That's it, now it's committed to memory. He has a stack beside him at his desk, not to mention a teacup nearby. When Max lets himself in, Lindon looks up. His eyebrows lift at the sight of the bag. "Staying overnight?" he asks.
Definitely something is up. Max has a bruise forming on his face..and his mascara is running. He looks a little dirty, a scrape here and there from moving around his house in the dark to try to get what he wanted to bring over here. "To start…I am. Those peasant ruffians revolted against the wishes of their King, and I am afraid that over the past few weeks, I have managed to upset every possible ally…except for one. /You/. If YOU turn me out, I will be a desolate street-walker." Well, up until he mind controlled someone to take all their stuff, but…in the 30 minutes before that, sure, he'd be homeless. "I needed to be somewhere no one could find me, too."
Lindon sets the book in his hand aside and gets to his feet. Those big dark eyes are doe-like as his features come over all compassionate. "Of course you can stay. Here, let me help you with that." He reaches for the bag with the intent of taking it to the bedroom. He doesn't sleep there, and the bed is neatly made, the room tidy and spartan. He'll spare that someone the mind control, just this once. "Let me get you some ice for that bruise."
Maximus goes to the little bedroom…imagining his bed at home. REAL home. Attilan home. Though Lindon got his bag, he kicks off his shoes and then flops forwards dramatically on the bed, landing face-down, arms out. "I did it because I liked her, and now…she is lost to me, too. Nexus…that terrible weasle. /Karnak/…that waste of space…not defending me." Max moans.
Lindon sits on the edge of the bed and awkwardly pats Maximus on the arm, trying not to think of smeared mascara on his coverlet. "People can be unreliable," he say. "But things ebb and flow. You'll get back on top again." He pauses, then adds, "Life is a waveform. there are crests and valleys."
"No one wants to see me on top, Lindon, believe me. If I get there, I have to crawl and scrape and deceive my way there. Everyone is against me. Stephen never even talkst to me anymore and he called me /Mad/ anyway. I HATE THAT!" Max pounds his hand into the coverlet. "So did Nexus. And Karnak /punched me/. And sweet little Vesper that I liked so well, she just went with them like it was nothing at all to leave me behind. And Nexus RUINED my work…" Then he growls, "They'll all /pay/ for what they've done…" And then he cries. Its all super logical.
Lindon clears his throat. "I'm sure someone wants you on top," he says. Hastily he adds, "But aren't we all a little mad?" Oh god, now Maximus is crying. Lindon rubs his back and murmurs, "It's all right. Let it out." This is what he gets for giving Maximus a key. This is what he's signed up for. "You just need a few days downtime to rest and get your thoughts in order. No one's going to think to look here."
"Of course they won't look here. You are a hidden figure, a man that tries not to be noticed. But you cannot tell your lover about this…because my enemies could be looking for me. Surely, they will attempt to find me. To try to level some…justice…I don't know. They are worthless, ruthless…and all I wanted was to make Attilan better. Oh Lindon, what possible motivation could you have to help me? What sort of…saint amterial were you crafted from?" Now he's REALLY a mess on his face, and he turns it to look at the archive.
Lindon gazes at poor Maximus, and he takes a handkerchief from his pocket, unfolding it and offering it to the Inhuman prince. "You've always been…" Kind isn't the right word here. There was the mind control incident. Still, aside from that, and all the other attempt at mind control, has Maximus really been so bad? "…interesting. Then we became friends, and I can't just abandon my friend. That's not what friends do."
Maximus says, "Friends…yes…though, hopefully I can manage not to lose you in all this. Ohhhhh…I had servants, Lindon. Good-looking guards. This one…oh I really did adore him. But they took him away. They took everything away." He sighs and then rolls over to his back, looking up at the comforting dispensery of all knowledge. "I will make something for you…you cannot say no.""
Lindon says gently, "You won't lose me. I'm an outsider, remember. I've got no agenda, no desire for your power or position." He pats Maximus on the shoulder, gazing down at him kindly. "And I won't say no if you want to make me something, though you don't have to. I'm telling you, this is just what friends do. I'm sure if I were desperate with nowhere to go, you'd take me in and give me comfort."
Maximus flops a hand over his suit-covered chest. "Yes, of course I would. I am actually very welcoming…a good host. I love guests. I love whole households of guests. And I do not care what reason the people like me. But its nice to…be liked without the power and position. That is something I /have not known/. For a time, Stephen and I were friends. And then, I fell in love with him and he threatened me."
"I know his heart belongs to another," Lindon says delicately, "but I see no need to have threatened you." He wipes Maximus' tears with the handkerchief, and he's got a gentle hand. "He has fine qualities, but as a paramour?" He shakes his head. No, Lindon is too enamored of Wanda to notice Strange in that way. "I'm sure you two will make amends, given time."
Maximus nods faintly. "I knew I was headed for disaster, but…here's the truth. He was leading me. He was tempting me and leading me down it, as long as he could. I know that he thought about me. I know that he did it all on purpose. But he couldn't just turn me down, so I had to make him do it, to put everything out there and end the game, to make him be cruel and heartbreaking. It was terrible. Maybe we will be friends again. I'm not sure. But, I know that I did the right thing in forcing him to be mean to me."
"It's better to tear the bandage off all at once than a little bit at a time," Lindon says. "This too shall pass, though, Maximus. Things cannot stay bad forever." He tidies up Maximus' face, dabbing away the running mascara. "There we are," he says. "The visage of a king. I think you should take it easy for awhile. Rest and rejuvenate. Then approach these things methodically."
"You are right, of course. But, I am Maximus the Mad, you know. I may start to approach something methodically, but…in the end, the madness shines through." Maximus lets out an exhale and then smiles up at Lindon. "Am I a pretty mess, Lindon?"
"You are a gorgeous mess," Lindon says. "Let me help you with a methodical approach. It suits the way I think, and we'll get you back on your feet again. People forget and they forgive." He smiles softly, and he pockets the handkerchief. "Now, what shall we do tonight? Would you like to just relax with some tea? I could make you something to eat. I've got all sorts of recipes in my head."
"Tea. Sure. We can start with tea. Do you have a shower in this…apartment? Perhaps I will shower up as well. I always feel better after a shower. A really hot one." One that uses up everyone else's hot water. That's what he really means! "And food. Whatever you want to make. As long as its sweet. " He indulges and smiles faintly. Its amazing how far a little praise can help him along!
Lindon rises from the bedside and says, "Yes, it's the door just down the hall." He gives Maximus' shoulder a squeeze, and he says, "Why don't you help yourself, there's towels in the linen closet. I'll fix us some tea and a little snack. You'll feel better after something to eat, I'm sure."
Boomchickawowow, Maximus drags out a long, asian-looking robe with him towards the shower. At least he's planning on wearing clothes! "Do you have other guests that come by?" He calls as he makes his way in there, while his new servant-friend makes him dinner and some tea.
"My sister, but rarely," Lindon says. "She usually stays at the house, when she stays over at all. I doubt she'll show up any time soon." He ducks into the kitchen to put the kettle on, and he pokes around the fridge for the groceries he brought over and put away. He hums as he putters, making a nice strong Ceylon and, 'just tossed together,' a remarkable chicken cordon bleu.
Maximus steams up the whole bathroom and eventually comes sauntering out of it in his robe, his hair all shake-dried. "Do you ever have visions regarding your sister? That would be strange, I would think. Suddenly seeing…what the world has recordeed abotu someone you know so closely." He makes a humming sound and makes sure his robe is tied. For a change, Lindon can see maximus as he really is, which is a fairly masculine-looking guy, sans make-up, bit of scruffy goatee, nothing particularly striking or remarkable about him. The diva without his face.
"It happens occasionally," Lindon says. "And it is rather odd. The universal mind sees things in such an impersonal fashion. To have a revelation about someone I love, as if I didn't care about them at all, is unsettling." He's setting the table, dinner served. He smiles at Maximus, even if the diva has lost his face. The one he presents to Lindon is well-received. "Come sit, have something to eat. You'll feel better." It doesn't hurt that Lindon knows exactly how to prepare the best known recipe for the dish.
That doesn't hurt at all! Maximus really doesn't know much about being a human, or poor, or…yeah, he's just not good at a lot of normal stuff. However, he settles down at the table, and sniffs the air and praises, "Well now, this smells like you had a vision about being a cook." Smile.
Lindon grins sheepishly, and he sits down as well, doctoring his tea with some milk and sugar. "History remembers the finest meals ever eaten and how they came to be," he says. "I've done a lot of cooking to home the skill. They say if you know how to cook, you'll never run out of friends." He gestures to the meal and says "Pleases, let's eat, unless you prefer to say grace."
Lindon grins sheepishly, and he sits down as well, doctoring his tea with some milk and sugar. "History remembers the finest meals ever eaten and how they came to be," he says. "I've done a lot of cooking to home the skill. They say if you know how to cook, you'll never run out of friends." He gestures to the meal and says "Please, let's eat, unless you prefer to say grace."
"Grace? Oh…belief in…no, I mean, you can for you, if you like. I don't…bless any sort of god creature before I eat." Maximus grins, saying it politely enough, but also definitely a little…like…'oh that's cute', in his voice. He digs right on in! "So, oh my this is quite good. yes. So you LIKE to cook for people? This does assure you no lack of friends, definitely."
Lindon shakes his head and says, "Oh no, I haven't said grace in years. Our family used to, of course." He tucks in to dinner, eating neatly and with impeccable manners. "It's fun," he says. "And it keeps me occupied." He and Lamont cook together often, but Lindon? He's learning to be judicious in what he says. No need to rub it in that Lindon isn't having any trouble in the 'friend' department. "I'm glad you like it."
Maximus knows that Lindon is with him, so its no surprise. Max may have little to offer to the typical friendship, and he's definitely hit a low, but there's some undeniable sense of tenacity about him, like kicking him when he's down is only going to result in him popping back up again. A plus side of his mania. "I suppose there might be some humans that would not like it, but…they would be /few/, and those sorts that refuse to eat meat, I suppose." He shrugs, "What else do you do besides read and cook?"
"I can cook vegetarian meals too," Lindon says, "but tonight, this seemed like just the thing." Meat wrapped in another kind of meat. There are also vegetables on the plate, seasoned well and a nod to health. "I can read quickly," he says, "and I realized the game of frisbee is just learning to predict the throw using physics. I speak several languages. Hmm, what else. I'm good at my job, archiving books in the library."
"Yes, I can see how you would be good at that. Though, possibly, /too good/. I suppose you do not long for something like…archiving the entire histories of an entire culture or country? With your abilities, I would thik you could be one of few able to do it with any sort of natural precision. There are storehouses of knowledge all over the world…the Vatican, for instance. /Hidden/ places as well. I know of some." Maximus flicks a smile at Lindon.
Lindon sighs quietly. "The Vatican. Now that I have a glimpse of what they've go there, I almost which I could become a holy man, just so that I might get assigned there and get m hands on some of those books." He shrugs a shoulder and says, "But I like what I do, and it's not so bad living a quiet life." He smiles across the table at Maximus. "No complications, no danger. Besides, the library gets some interesting volumes. I can't complain."
Maximus lifts his chin. "So, you are saying that you would not at all be tempted by going to a lost city to help me find forgotten knowledge written on large, stone slabs? Not at /all/?" He arrrrches his brow as he dangles the lure.
Lindon gives Maximus a pained look. "It would be dangerous," he says, but oh, oh he does look tempted. "But you're supposed to be resting," he chides. "And laying low for a little while." He pushes the last few bites of food around on his plate with his fork. "Hypothetically speaking, how guaranteed would my safety be? I'm not a fighter."
"Its hypothetical, for the future. "Safety is not really an issue, as long as you stay beside me. I belong in the city as much as antine ever has. It has just been abandoned, long ago." Maximus turns to his food and keeps eating it, clearing out the veggies before the chicken. "The tricky bit is the compiling. Look, I am brilliant, but I obviously do not have your exact same skillset to remember everything at a glance. I do like keeping knowledge locked in /here/…rather than paper, but…the knowledge I seek may be extensive." He taps the side of his head.
Lindon rises to his feet and says, "It would be interesting." He speaks fluent understatement. "You definitely have my attention, but!" He wags a finger at Maximus. "Hypothetical future. I want you taking it easy." He steps back into the kitchen, and when he returns, he's got strawberry shortcake. He sets the larger portion before Maximus. "Something sweet," he offers, "after a rather bitter day."
Maximus looks at the dessert and then draws it in closer. He lofts a spoon and tests at it. Simple. A peasant dessert, certainly, if ever there was one. The fruit isn't even distilled in alcohol. However, despite its simplicity, he cannot deny needing something not quite so fancy as usual, for his current mood. He slices his spoon through it, getting a little of everything, then tastes the delight of a treat. Something he had not hoped for. "Thank you, Lindon. Its perfect."