𝒸𝕆Ň𝓽Δ𝔠ᵗ 👌😈

[oorah]

𝓜𝓻. 𝓜𝓪𝔂𝓸𝓻

𝖙𝖊𝖝𝖙, 𝖛𝖎𝖉𝖊𝖔 (𝔲𝔫;𝖍𝖔𝖙𝖉𝖔𝖌)

𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓 (𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖘𝖆𝖋𝖊 𝖍𝖔𝖚𝖘𝖊)

𝖋𝖎𝖌𝖍𝖙 𝖈𝖑𝖚𝖇 𝖛𝖕 (𝔰𝔞𝔣𝔢 𝔥𝔬𝔲𝔰𝔢 𝔤𝔞𝔯𝔞𝔤𝔢)

𝖈𝖆𝖘𝖙𝖑𝖊𝕮𝖆𝖘𝖙𝖑𝖊 𝖑𝖔𝖔𝕶𝖔𝖚𝖙 (𝔦𝔫𝔱𝔢𝔯𝔦𝔬𝔯)

𝖔𝖈𝖈𝖚𝖕𝖆𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓 (𝖘𝖆𝖓𝖉𝖕𝖆𝖙𝖍 𝖙𝖊𝖈𝖍 : ₁₀₋₃ | 𝖕𝖆𝖙𝖗𝖔𝖑 : ₁₁₋₇ | 𝖋𝖔𝖔𝖉 𝖕𝖗𝖊𝖕)

𝖛𝖔𝖑𝖚𝖓𝖙𝖊𝖊𝖗 (𝔭𝔯𝔦𝔰𝔬𝔫, 𝔠𝔩𝔦𝔫𝔦𝔠, 𝔥𝔬𝔰𝔭𝔦𝔱𝔞𝔩)

Comments

[underachievement]

[ Obliging the dog, she moves her knee an inch over, but he moves his head accordingly. She gives him an uninvested glare before setting her palm down on his big, broad skull. He closes his eyes and huffs a breath against her jeans, which she takes as approval, leaving her hand there and idly scratching. She thinks Frank's rummaging is to whip out a bone or a bottle, not a piece of crap souvenir. Her brow puckers at first, then through the mire of her memories there surfaces a vague recollection from the last week. Jess sighs, or laughs; both, a warm rattle that shakes up her nerves. She grabs the snowglobe and disturbs it similarly. ]

Should've been expecting that.

[oorah]

[ he snorts at her reaction and nods, she really should have expected it. he shrugs one shoulder a little helplessly, watching as max enjoys her idle attention. there's something captivating about the scene, and frank settles back against the pillows to memorize the image. ] Next time, you should come. [ it was a good time, all things considered. and no one had died, which put him leaps and bounds above the native-escorted trip. ]

[underachievement]

[ The dog takes some interest in the motion but seems to know the difference between a useless knickknack and a ball, and sets his head back down almost immediately after picking it up. Jess turns it over in her hand, running her thumb over the city's name. ]

I'm not big on group outings. [ She wouldn't mind seeing the tower though, as touristy as that is. Just along the skyline, not necessarily up close. ]

[oorah]

[ he pushes out a shaky breath, hesitating over what he's about to say. but the truth is, he's tired. tired of being responsible for so many others. he did that once, in a past life, and it had ended in a massacre of his family and then a vendetta he'd turned against the entire city. it's easier now than ever before to be a little selfish. ] Maybe just us, then.

[underachievement]

[ Jess smiles and then suppresses it, like she's heard a dirty joke in the middle of a lecture. They're both immune to Kilgrave now, which is exactly why they shouldn't go off together, even though she's never been more practically temped to, either. She's closer to bailing on everyone than she was when she had less control but nowhere near close enough to go through with it. Maybe when the majority of the community is inoculated and Trish has returned home like others are assumed to have. ]

Yeah? Who's gonna watch the kids? [ Her eyes make there way to him on a roll. He knows who she's talking about and it is not Scrappy and the gang. ]

[oorah]

[ does frank really think he'd be able to abandon everyone for more than precious moments at a time? no. but it was nice to think about before her words bring him crashing back through the stratosphere. the bemusement remains as a shadow in his gaze, but he's frowning again. ]

Bet we could convince 'em to watch each other. The buddy system still mean anything? [ he shakes his head, just glad they'd made it beyond another hurdle. he knows better than to think it's the last one where kilgrave is concerned, but they're a damn sight better off than a month ago, and certainly than they had been the first time he'd come back. ]

[underachievement]

[ Jessica Jones, professional buzzkill. She can't find it in her to feel any guilt as the easiness bleeds out of his expression. Well she can find it in her to feel tons of guilt but none that isn't currently in use. It wasn't much of a fantasy to go suspending their disbelief for, anyway. Jess doubts he could go two days without hearing from Micro before losing it. He would drive her crazy before that. Hell, she would set off resenting him, given how rusty her camping skills are. Depend on him? No thanks. ]

Only if at least half the people aren't assholes. [ While he does the math on that one, Jess shifts her legs from under to in front of her to ease herself back against the huge pillows lining the wall. ]

[oorah]

[ he wouldn't see it that way, but his patience would probably piss her off more. the image is kind of appealing for whatever reason. he can subsist off of these stolen moments alone though, it's what he's been doing all along even if he doesn't admit it to himself. when she leans back, he stretches one leg out too, his ankle tapping hers companionably. ]

I wouldn't bank on that, but my lot's already in with yours. [ a grim smile is spared here. since their second night, that had been the case. where she goes, he will follow-ow. ]

[underachievement]

No shit, buddy. [ Ignorant to what she is or isn't spared, her head lolls back against the top of the pillow. She's tired but not anymore than usual. Instead of tallying the list of worst case scenarios for the trillionth time, all involving Trish, Jess steers her thoughts over to the current situation, and the broader reality that she can only accept in increments: She can make people safe. He's breathing proof of a possible future here, a middling case on the spectrum of scenarios, and there's something to hate in that too.

Teeny, tiny increments. ]

[oorah]

[ frank snorts. yeah he knows that kind of went without saying. he shoves his hands back into his pockets and closes his eyes for a moment. for a change, he doesn't see horrors behind them, just blessed blankness. ] I think he likes you. [ max, who seems to already be dozing against jess' side. ]

[underachievement]

[ Jess gives him a nudge with her leg, which neither disturbs nor dislodges him. Dogs don't get insomnia, as far as she knows, so he can't be too tired to swap company. Must be putting down what Frank's picking up on, if she's to defer to his knowledge. Not like it's the dog's fault. They take after their (dumb) owners. ] What's his name?

[oorah]

[ a smile curves his lips as he opens his eyes again. ] Max.

[underachievement]

Frank n' Max. [ she muses with a mocking pout. Max audibly snuffles at the repetition of his name and she pets him down reflexively.

They sound like a pair of trenchcoat-wearing detectives or hippie wives. He's done a good job here of cultivating a reliable reputation. She doubts anyone would believe her if she told them who the Punisher was at home, now that she's figured it out. Between the two of them, she's done more to earn the title since they've arrived. ] Yours from home?

[oorah]

[ he shrugs again. that's them, as simple and americana as it gets. her question isn't met with his usual hesitation. even if she hasn't figured out who he is, she of all people deserves the truth. he tips his head as if he isn't sure whether to answer yes or no, they're both right to an extent. ]

I saved him from the Kitchen Irish. [ a beat ] Or maybe he saved me.

[ it's not a cheesy rescue dog slogan when frank says it. he literally means they would both have a bullet in their heads if they hadn't unwittingly worked together. ]

[underachievement]

[ Sounds cheesy but she doesn't doubt it's literal. Kitchen Irish, that was on Daredevil's beat, not hers. She'd rather fight the Hand again than take on the mob or some government conspiracy bullshit -- but then, if either ever came after Trish, she wouldn't have the luxury of a choice. Jess keeps thinking she's just too tired to be disgusted by who he is and that she'll work it up eventually. ]

Think animals reset? [ she poses lightly, regarding Max as she scratches gently through his fur. ]

[oorah]

[ the question has him immediately looking down at max and frowning. ] Not looking to find out. [ frank takes his hand out of his pocket to scratch max's back. he'd taken extreme precautions to make sure max survived here. he's a Dog Person. ]

[underachievement]

Yeah. [ she reassures Max, corroborating Frank's hollow promise by implication. a dog doesn't know when it's being lied to or care when someone breaks their word. if she weren't so debilitatingly terrified of having full accountability for another living thing, she would probably have had a few. ]

Is there anyone left for them to spring on you?

[oorah]

[ what a question. he swallows, fingers tightening in max's short fur as he regards her across the scant space. does she mean... all the people he's killed? or maybe his squad, his brothers? foggy nelson would probably be an annoyance for both of them. and he doesn't dare think -- not even in hypothetical. ]

Yeah. Always is, right? [ it's gravelly and he looks down at max rather than at her. ]

[underachievement]

[ She's thought about it and the only active risk is Malcolm. Her family is buried in the past, stored somewhere in cardboard boxes, Ruben barely knew her, and Hope deserves her ill-won peace. Just like Jessica deserves to be here paying for it, again and again, like a bad dream. Giving purpose to random circumstances isn't a sign of her staunch independence slipping, not if she's sane enough to know it might be. ]

I don't know. I had it good for a while there. [ She cocks her head at Max, as though her present and could confirm her solid job of pushing people away. ]

[oorah]

[ that gets a shallow smile as he slowly forces his gaze back up to hers. ] You had the right idea. Just never could get a grip on it. [ pushing everyone away. clearly, he sucks at it. ]

[underachievement]

[ Jess smiles guardedly too. He's right, and she has plenty of other crap to be in denial about. Maybe if Trish had shown up earlier, she wouldn't have had to forge this weird working friendship but probably not. Probably things would have played out the same but worse. If Trish has to be here, she and Jess are both fortunate that she arrived no sooner than she did. ]

It's my one weakness. [ And now it's Kevin's: with every person immunized, she turns the threat away from herself, from everyone that's vulnerable. She'll keep him ignorant as long as possible even if it means putting up with his shitass messages in her inbox. ]

[oorah]

What, being a dick? [ he nudges her ankle with his and makes a face like he isn't convinced. because he isn't. she cares a lot more than she lets on, and not just about her sister. ]

[underachievement]

[ Her gaze is dragged over to him for the first time in what feels like minutes. ] Giving a shit. [ They both know she excels at being a dick, thank you no thank you. Accordingly, no one's called her hero in a while, so that's nice. ]

[oorah]

[ the bluntness actually makes him shrink away a little, though he holds her eyes. and slowly frank nods his understanding. ] A brother of mine -- a guy I served with, he told me I cared too much. We were commanding a unit together, our only job was getting those people home to their families. I cared too much.

[ frank shakes his head, like he still doesn't understand. it's clear by now himself and billy are woven from different cloths, but that isn't what's confusing. how he went from a selfish asshole kid to someone who would die for his unit, him. frank castle. that's what he still doesn't get. ]

You're doing okay, Jess. A lot better than most people would do.

[underachievement]

[ Right, because before he was Resident Dad he was the Punisher, and before he was the Punisher he was Rambo. If she had the internet as a resource here, she would have researched him inside out several times over, right down to his wife's secret Pinterest board. Without the option, she cuts down her assumptions until they fit the puzzle. He had someone to defend, way back, but all he's left behind is a fugitive's life, and maybe one day, he'll end up the same way in this place.

Weird thing to hope for while he's extending some battlefield kindness, but there's comfort in knowing what his worst will be. She can still put down the Punisher, if necessary, and god knows he can protect himself from the mundane threats. It's up to him to separate that life from the one he's building here, to monitor himself for inevitable breaches. He's a piece of shit, like her. Just better at playing it down around civilians. She prefers to alienate them, and the ones that refuse to comply -- well, she never stops trying to save a life.

Jess isn't hesitant in leaning across and putting her lips to his even though she thinks he's more likely to push her away. It would be better for him if he did, she's only tried to drill that into his head since day one. And if he doesn't, she doesn't really want him to. There's a well of aggression and helplessness she can't spar out like so many others, that she hasn't gone to in too long for fear of spreading her poison. Some hot, rough sex would be nice right now, is all. ]