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[youngtimer]

NeverAcorned - Standard UN || HoratioV - Fog/Lighthouse UN || 5ofDiamonds - Casino Business || Odyssean - Anonymous/Sock UN

WELCOME TO YOUR PRIVATE CHANNEL, NEVERACORNED. FOR SECURE COMMUNICATION, USE 208.52.15.25 *** NEVERACORNED has joined 208.52.15.25 <NEVERACORNED> This is the private channel for Horatio Hargreeves. Leave me a message and I'll reply as soon as I can. If this is related to the Lucky 38, please start your message with a '38' so I can prioritize. <NEVERACORNED> Spammers will be banned, IP tracked, and have their index fingers broken. Have a nice day. :)

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[youngtimer]

Sounds good, see you then.

[at the appointed time, he shows up in more casual dress than he usually wears around the casino, the sort of stuff he wears to the eighth-floor parties. dark jeans, a t-shirt, a hooded sweatshirt, fingerless gloves. he's leaning against the cafe's patio fence waiting for her, wings folded close to his back]

Hey, Riley. How's your morning gone?

cw: critical alcohol consumption judgement + internalized ableism

[isawallflower]

[ As is with most social outings with people she doesn't know well— or, well, most social outings in general— Riley's nervous. But, she's optimistic in whatever way she allows herself. She has been in the same space as Horatio a total of three times:

One, that initial welcome party for Yugi, wherein she booked it the second she caught wind of alcohol, which he had brought.
Two, the meeting to try and figure out who tortured and killed Steve, wherein she spoke with him maybe once but spent the majority of her time shell-shocked and defensive.
And three, the most recent party, during which she all but told him to get lost and was a total basketcase over something that every other person there enjoyed.

(...Okay, maybe not Fugo. She found a kindred spirit in Fugo. That...really helped, honestly.)

The point is, while she's had worse impressions left on people, god, she keeps on striking out with Horatio, because the circumstances around their meetings are...weird. Bad. The setting here is vastly improved. Okay, she's still going to be in public and she always feels a little jittery like that...but it's still a private meeting, one-on-one. It's early enough that no one's drinking, and she isn't currently sorting through the aftermath of the death of one of her most beloved people. In all ways, this is an improvement! The deck is much less stacked against her in her quest to just be fucking normal and socialize with someone in her social circle.

Every person Celeste invited was either important to her or to their group in general. Horatio is both Celeste and Mukuro's boss. Or—was? Does Celeste still work at the casino? Regardless— he's someone the both of them like, she's able to easily put together. And, since everything in November, she...

Riley wants to get along with the people her friends like. Celeste is a friend now. She's sure of that. After months of a tenuous, nebulous antagonism, sometimes on her side, sometimes on Celeste's, Riley's grateful that things are...better. And she doesn't want to screw that up.

It puts more pressure on what should be a casual meeting, but—well, Riley's nothing if not her own worst enemy, imposing little challenges and caveats on any and every interaction.

She's dressed casually as well, though with a winter jacket tailored to accommodate for her wings. It's chilly in Ryslig right now and...she'd quite like to be warm. She gives a little wave, the smile on her face not relaxed but much less tense than the party atmosphere Horatio's seen her in. As usual, the very tips of her massive wings brush against the ground as she approaches. ]

Hi! Pretty uneventful! Just, sorting paperwork for Cassandra. Normal work stuff.

[youngtimer]

[Horatio, for his part, had next to no idea what Riley's deal even was. He had personally observed that she seemed to have some issue with alcohol, liked mystery novels, and seemed to be an introvert to the point of almost tactlessness. That had never stopped him, however: if Riley had any doubt, she could easily ask Dr. Robotnik how many times his fellow fairy had initiated a conversation and insisted on remaining an acquaintance, simply because he found the man interesting.

And whereas the observations Horatio had made about Riley weren't necessarily Interesting, getting to know her better was even more important, because she was friends with so many of his own: especially now that he and Celeste were ... he didn't want to call it dating, that made it sound so odd on so many levels. Together? Ugh. Labels were hard enough as a monster, let alone a grown man in a teenager's body. Which, he'd realized as he was waiting for Riley, might be something she didn't know. It was certainly a conversation starter, if not outright important information. But the icebreaker he'd chosen seemed as good a place to start as any. He was getting much better at leading and holding conversations now that he wasn't a lone gunman at the beck and call of the Commission.]

I have to admit, I was surprised when you said this was near where you worked. I thought I'd heard someone we know say you worked at the Orphanage, not for Cassandra.

[he nodded toward the door, gesturing for her to go first]

Come on, let's grab a table, it's freezing out here...

cw: abuse logic

[isawallflower]

[ The amount of things Riley concretely knows about Horatio... They are few. Neither of them know each other, except for what they've observed. That's something Riley's trying to remind herself; no matter what experiences she's had in the past, the people here are not the same people she went to school with, or— like what her parents taught her the world is like. Not...everyone is like that. Steve, Giorno, Mukuro, Atem, Trish— so many people have taught her that much.

If she keeps repeating, that she's not in danger, maybe she'll believe that.

These thoughts hover beneath the surface. But Riley smiles, nevertheless. ]

Oh, well. I sort of have a few different jobs I'm working at, right now. [ She gets the door, as she explains. ] There's Persephone Orphanage, but I was working at Cassandra's agency first.

[ Not...consistently, since she ghosted Cassandra for a few months— god let's not even go into it— ]

But besides that, I do some work around Poundmates. It was volunteer at first but now I help out with giving the animals enrichment! Oh, and there's Nai'a Nights, but, that's only like...two or three times a week, it's kind of flexible.

[ She's a workaholic. That's the answer, Horatio. ]

[youngtimer]

Enrichment?

[he tilts his head as they head inside, taking a second for it to register what she actually means by that.]

So like, you just go hang out and play with them for a while. Not a bad gig, if you ask me. And Nai'a, too? I'm beginning to think that Maya and I know all of the same people, and have for months, at least, and I'm just starting to find that out. Small peninsula. Keeping busy, though, that's - it's why I agreed to manage the Lucky, too.

[he nods to the cafe hostess, who just points to the 'Please Seat Yourself' sign. he'll go ahead and let Riley choose where they sit]

If I'm busy, I can't think too hard about how fucked up so much of this place is. Right?

[isawallflower]

[ She nods along, yes, that's what she does. Plays with the animals, cleans cages, gives them some TLC. And Nai'a Nights. As he continues, however, the nodding slows and she bites her lip as she leads them to a table away from any other occupied ones. ]

Um, well... Kind of. I mean, at first, that and to make some money but now... [ The orphanage discussion is way too big. So: ] There's...people relying on me. I'm just trying to support them.

[youngtimer]

People you knew from home?

[he's okay with Big discussions, but she doesn't know that. yet. he gives a little approving smile at her choice of table and pulls out her chair for her - both of their seats angled so that they can see the door. he's learned to always keep an eye on his surroundings, and figures any monster worth their salt in Bavan does the same]

Or people here? It's easy enough to get close to people here, too, if you find the right ones. People that remind you of old friends, family. Or the kind of people you always wished you'd gotten to know.

[he may seem like he's speaking in general terms, but really he's sharing a little of himself, too: some of his friends and employees remind him of siblings, but some have come to mean even more than that. mentors and support of a caliber he never had]

[isawallflower]

[ With an unintended questioning tone, Riley answers after a thoughtful moment: ]

Yes? No— people here. I know someone from home- I mean, we live together, she's my best friend— but, she's got her own job, she can support herself.

[ The reality of the situation is the orphanage is too big for her to go into. She's barely been able to cover it with those close to her, those who found her in the midst of her rampage or who she cried on after. The reality of what she did has lived with her, ever since Giorno explained what he meant, that day. Even before then—she lost the drive, the feeling that what she was doing actually saved anyone.

If she talks about it, she might break. And that...is probably a little much, for an afternoon lunch. ]

It's just... You know, working with...kids. [ It's the closest she can get to the subject. ] I guess... They remind me of...somethings. But, really...

[She shrugs one arm, and her wing bumps against her chair. Annoying, but she's used to it. ]

I just wanna do right by them.

[youngtimer]

[she's not wrong: given the kind of drama the Hargreeves family got into, breaking might be on par with dinner, at the least. lunch was more for avoidant behavior, rampant denial, and emotional suppression. they're on track.]

Doing right by things is important to a lot of people here, all things considered. Myself included.

[he takes a breath, then realizes that he may as well just dive in and get the usual conversation over with]

Has anyone told you I'm actually fifty-eight years old? I promise this is related.

[isawallflower]

[ Immediately: ]

You're what?!

[ She squawks a little. Her neck puffs and stretches out. Her cheeks go red immediately after. ]

[youngtimer]

[he can't help but laugh at the response: he's never seen a harpy react to extreme things before, okay, and it's funny. like those NatGeo photographs of pissed off birds]

I'm sorry, I shouldn't have laughed. It's just - [he makes a little 'floof' gesture near his neck with his hands] - wasn't expecting that.

And yeah, I am. Back home, I had the ability to time-travel. I can give you the Cliff Notes explanation or the long one.

[the waiter shows up at that point, and he orders himself a large black coffee to start, figuring they'll need some time before they actually order lunch]

[isawallflower]

[ Riley's face remains fully red, especially when Horatio laughs. ]

It- it's just a- bird thing. [ She mumbles it, under her breath as the waiter comes along. Oh dear. She gets herself some tea. Riley and coffee don't really mix well. ]

You— I'm- how's time travel make you...that old, but you- you look, so— young!

[youngtimer]

It's neat. Please don't be embarrassed about it.

[when she makes the inevitable comment about his appearance, he chuckles, leaning back in his chair]

It's because when I tried to travel back to the time I left, I messed up the equation that made it possible. My consciousness came back through in one piece, but my body reverted to the age I was when I first moved through my timeline. Think of it like coming back home from a trip and only having your baby clothes to wear, only ... it's your whole self.

[isawallflower]

[ To go back and everything... All of it being like when she was even younger...

Riley shivers. ]

That...sounds genuinely awful, I'm sorry. [ She hesitates. ] So... Does that...mean you're...like, an adult...?

[youngtimer]

[her reaction catches him by surprise: Riley is the first person to actually say 'wow, that sounds awful'. everyone else either doesn't believe him, or thinks he's lucky to get a second chance. his careful, cheerfully-acerbic mask falls for a moment and he lets out a huff of disbelief.]

Yeah. It's even worse when all you have to wear is a closet full of school uniforms. I was honestly relieved when I showed up here, it meant I had options. But - yes. I was fifty-seven when I showed up here. Which means there's a forty-four year disparity between what you see and what's going on between my ears most of the time. It's also how I wound up being a bartender and, eventually, the manager of the Lucky. I don't blame you for judging me a bit on that. Most people do when they look at me.

[isawallflower]

[ After everything she's seen and been through, frankly she'll believe anything with little convincing. Once a staunch "ghosts probably aren't real" person, she's learned to roll with the punches. ]

O- oh, I definitely wasn't— [ judging him, but...she was, wasn't she? ] ...Okay, it wasn't really...judging, I just...don't have a good relationship with alcohol.

[ This is weird. Knowing he's an adult... That changes this but she's not sure in what way. She's all thrown off-guard. You have to signal different things to adults and other kids...right? ]

[youngtimer]

Noted.

[their drinks come, and he raises his to her in deference]

Here's to my not pressing about that unless you actually ever want to share, then. People have enough shit to deal with here, without having to dredge up their past.

[isawallflower]

[ A toast to something like that? How...strange. Strange but welcome. Her smile's caught between the mask she puts on for adults and a genuinely grateful twitch of her lips, as she raises her cup in return. ]

Yeah. Here's to...letting people take that first step. When they feel like they can. [ A moment later, quickly: ] To, uhm, you too? I hope- I don't wanna pry, like, about any of the...sensitive stuff.

[youngtimer]

[so there's a crack in that mask, he realizes, his own smile growing. good. he takes a sip of his coffee and pauses a moment to critique the brew. not bad, but not the best, his expression plainly says as he shrugs]

Honestly, there's not much I won't talk about. From before I got here, or after. I'm not really big on the mushy, feel-good conversations where everyone pours their hearts out, but ... If anyone asks me something, I tend to answer. And I'm a fairy, so ...

[a little wave of his hand takes the place of finishing the sentence: she's probably well aware that fairies can't lie]

[isawallflower]

[ And yet. She's not! So, he trails off, and Riley tilts her head in that birdlike way of hers. ]

So...? I'm sorry, the, uh— I've only really spent time with Miss Lusamine and- well, Celeste while she's been one, in terms of like...fairies.

[youngtimer]

[he makes a little sound of mild surprise as he tilts his head in the opposite direction to her, smiling a little]

Aha. Celeste already knew because of me, and Lusamine's pretty new to it, and she doesn't seem like the type of person who'd find out by example, so that makes sense.

[he shrugs]

Fairies can't lie without feeling really serious pain.

[isawallflower]

...Oh.

[ Well. First of all, poor fucking Celeste, and second of all— ]

I...genuinely had no idea, uh. That must be... Wow.

[youngtimer]

It sure was annoying to find out, let me tell you.

[he takes a sip of his coffee, thinking for a moment]

Do harpies have anything that inconvenient?

[isawallflower]

Um... No?

[ But she doesn't sound so sure. Being a harpy... In only a year—less than, if you deduct the time it took for her to change, the time she spent a manticore—it's become an intrinsic part of her. ]

The most inconvenience was really just...the change itself, um... Like, I get distracted by shiny things, sometimes? But I don't really mind that. It doesn't sound as...difficult to deal with, as being literally unable to lie.

[youngtimer]

I got lucky, some fairies with moth wings get the whole 'mesmerized by light' thing, too. I missed that one. Good thing, with the casino being full of all that neon and shit.

[he chuckles a little to himself]

You know, the changes are hard, but ... they're not the hardest part, sometimes. Sometimes it's more ... [he pauses, trying to put his words in order before he finishes the thought aloud] ... knowing that you have to live here, the best way you can, and deciding what the hell that even looks like.