redshiftlogs | What would life be if we had no courage to attempt anything?

You really don't know how to do anything other than a tequila sunrise, do you.

[The robot does not answer the question, only places another tequila sunrise beside the one that Crowley is already half way through. Behind his sunglasses the demon's snake-like eyes narrows slightly, but he does not refuse the offering.

It's the best the old chap can do, seems like. And they're not terrible.]

Don't tell Aziraphale. [He warns, not even sure the thing can understand what he's saying.] He'll think my standards are slipping.

[It's impeccable balance that keeps Crowley from falling off the railing he's precariously perched on top of as he looks down into the centre of Anchor. The height is dizzying, but... hey, he's fallen from higher up before.]

What do you even make a place like this for... [He mutters to himself, raking a hand through his hair and adjusting his sunglasses when they threaten to slide down his nose.

The other city made some kind of sense... kind of. Like a corner of Hell had been dragged up and set on Earth. It felt familiar in a bad way, but not a way that Crowley couldn't comprehend. This place, though? There's a lot of strangeness here, but he hasn't... quite...

He twirls a white feather idly between his fingers then lets it drop, watching it fluttering slowly down.]

Uri! Get back here!

[Gokudera's chasing down his storm leopard kitten. The kitten is domestic cat sized, tail twice the length of its body, ears gushing read fire. It seems to notice that feather as it's running away from the boy.

And Uri hops up onto the railing and right after that feather.]

URI! [Wanna watch a teenager jump right off that railing to grab a kitten out of the air? That's a thing that's happening. They're both falling. Don't worry, Gokudera has a plan or how he won't die, but he's not sharing that, cause he's falling and trying to execute that plan.]

[He hears the commotion behind him, briefly turns to glance in the direction of the noise... but he does not in any way expect the young man who comes running towards the railing to outright jump over it to save an apparently suicidal cat who also jumped over it.]

What the fuck? [Crowley yelps, almost losing his sunglasses and nearly toppling off the rail himself all in one ungainly movement.

And then, with a peculiar hand gesture from the dark-haired man now a few levels above them, it's a strange thing how the air beneath the boy and the cat suddenly seems thicker, easy enough to breathe but like sinking through treacle. It's not easy to do it, either, but bless it if he's going to just sit there and watch someone leap to their very likely death.]

[Gokudera nabs the cat mid-air, and in a gush of flames and electricity, a platform forms directly beneath him. He lands on it easier than he expects, then realizes that it’s not much effort to keep it in the air. Uri makes a low noise from his throat, feather in mouth, and then crouches, wiggles, and tries to get out of the boy’s grasp.]

Sorry!

[Gokudera says as they’re lifted to the railing and Uri finally manages to hop off and start playing with the feather.]

[That's

what.

So the kid didn't actually need any help, and Crowley realises far too late that he just did something bordering on selfless. When Gokudera makes it back up to the railing, all he can do for a moment is stare.]

I usually don't like to repeat myself, but what the fuck.

[Gokudera looks himself over, worried he may have dropped something. The kitten just continues to chew on the feather, making small growling noises.]

Well? What the fuck is that? What the fuck are you doing here? What are you “What the fuck”ing about?

You just jumped off the railing and you're the one who's confused?

[What is he really supposed to be 'what the fuck'ing about, here.]

Well yeah. Uri can't fly. I've got my storm disc, so it's not a problem.

[Gokudera doesn't see what's so odd.]

[Of course he doesn't see what's so odd. Young men launching themselves off railings over drops of Someone knows how far is a perfectly normal, natural thing to be doing.]

Okay, alright, but just bear with me here--

[Allow him a moment to draw a breath in through his teeth.]

How was I supposed to know that?

[Gokudera nods and then blinks in surprise. He really should not assume that what he did was okay.

At all.]

Why the fuck would I jump over the railing if I thought I was gonna die!?

[This would be a good time to facepalm. Crowley resists.]

Look, I've been watching humans do stupid shit for thousands of years. It wouldn't be the strangest thing I'd ever seen one of you do.

[Sorry Crowley.]

So then why are you surprised?

[Shouldn't the unpredictable stuff be really predictable at this point?]

[spLUTTER.]

Just because I'm used to seeing humans do stupid things doesn't mean I want to see it happen.

[How dare you make him admit he cares about people!]

Whether you want to see it or not, I mean why would it be surprising?!

[Just-- just give him a moment with this.]

I really feel like you're focusing on the wrong thing, here. When did I say I was surprised?

You did not say it directly. Based off your reaction, I thought you were.

[He shrugs. What‘s the point of this conversation, for him to get tugged around a bunch?]

[There are options here, and if Crowley were a nicer or more patient person he would probably not take the one he chooses. Unfortunately, Crowley isn't a patient (or nice, regardless of what Aziraphale says) person.]

Okay, this is going nowhere. I've got other things to do. Enjoy your base jumping, kid.

[And he turns on his heel to walk away, pulling a cigarette from his pocket and lighting it with a small snap of fire from his fingers.]

Give birds somewhere to sit.

[ Not that Finnick actually thinks that's why this place exists, but he does know that it gets used that way at least occasionally by the talking osprey that had attached itself to him months ago. He still comes up here sometimes to talk to her, because she likes to be up high and survey what little domain she has living wild between the park and the agricultural levels as she does.

Finnick brings her fish sometimes.

She's perced on a different railing, and she gives Finnick's smart-alec comment a beady stare before pointedly flying away, leaving Finnick alone with the guy who's perched so dangerously.

Ten years or so ago, Finnick would have been up there with him, but he's a married man now, with more than just his own impulses to consider. ]

[The way that Crowley balances has the edge of something unnatural to it - there's barely any tension at all in his body. He smirks slightly at the (unexpected) answer he gets, shakes his head with a lightly exhaled chuckle, then steps back off the railing and leans against it instead, pulling a packet of cigarettes from inside his jacket.

He doesn't light one, or even draw one from the box. It plays between his hands like a toy instead.]

She didn't look impressed. [The bird, that is.] Friend of yours?

[ Finnick's got good balance and he's extremely physically skilled, abilities he'd picked up on fishing ships as a kid and carried through as a Career and a victor. And he's used to reading physical signs. So he notices the oddly relaxed way the guy perches on the edge of the long drop.

It makes him feel a little uneasy. He's rarely seen anyone with that relaxed an attitude in the face of potential immediate death, and he's seen a lot of death.

This guy seems barely to notice the height. ]

She's rarely impressed.

Yeah. Could say that. She seems to have decided I'm the only person around here worth talking to.

Edited 2020-08-30 13:22 (UTC)

Hm. I can relate to that.

[Given he'd spent the last several thousand years deciding that only one person was really worth talking to, he doesn't find it to be an unintelligent choice to make.

Casually, he offers the pack of cigarettes over to Finnick, still not lighting the one he has in his hand.]

Want one?

What would life be if we had no courage to attempt anything?

open; bar

open; idk somewhere high...

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