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[corkscrewed]

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[statementfuckingends]

Only that you weren't much of a drinker before. Now you're cracking open bottles of wine in front of me.

[He's ducking down to grab a cider from the fridge below, and in the same hand grabs a long-necked beer. When he turns back to deposit them on the bar, Martin will be able to see the band-aid on his forehead.]

I might just be able to drag you out to a club soon.

[corkscrewed]

Oh, yeah, can't you just see me out clubbing? Be the center of attention for sure.

[ a bit drily. he reaches for the bottle, eyes flicking to the band-aid but not lingering. ]

How'd it happen?

[statementfuckingends]

Give yourself some credit, Martin, you're a handsome man.

[It takes a little more rummaging to find a bottle opener, which he does - again - one handed, popping his beer off before he passes the opener to Martin.]

Pistol-whipped.

[corkscrewed]

[ he snorts derisively but not unkindly as he takes the opener from him, popping the cap off his. ]

Yeah, well. We'll see. And your arm?

[statementfuckingends]

[He gives a bit of a hollow smile as he shrugs.]

Hit him in the face with an extinguisher. Got it broke as payback. [He takes a quick swig.] Which feels fully unfair, since I didn't actually hurt him.

[corkscrewed]

Christ, Tim. I didn't think that's what you meant by more or less.

[ martin's exhale is shaky, and he gestures for tim to take a seat at one of the booths while he rummages for a second cider. he's barely touched the first, but he knows already he's going to want it. ]

I don't even know Connor.

[statementfuckingends]

[Tim grabs another beer and the bottle opener before he heads to sit down at the booth, and reclines immediately into the plush cushions.]

That's why I said the lounge, I'm not convinced you won't tie to the bed to keep me there. At least here I can run.

[His humour dries up a little at the mention of the android, though.]

He's a fancy robot with removable skin. Jacobi reprogrammed him to go on a killing spree, but a few of us just got injured instead.

[corkscrewed]

Jon would probably frown at that.

[ it's a halfhearted joke, but martin's expression goes a little cold at the remark. ]

What an absolute arse. Just because dying here isn't permanent doesn't mean that it's fun.

[statementfuckingends]

The impression I'm getting is that most of the Inmates here are right arses. And I'm not the only warden who's got a chip on his shoulder, either.

[Yes he'll admit it, it's not like it's a secret.]

[corkscrewed]

I mean- it's not like I haven't seen people change. BJ cut my head off because he was rollerblading with a scythe? [ he takes a long sip. ] I hate that that sentence doesn't even sound insane anymore. But he's a better warden than I am these days.

[ martin struggles for a moment, then- ]

Turning someone else into a weapon, though? That's actually just evil.

[statementfuckingends]

I'm not really sure we have room to talk between "full-scale building assault by a sentient flesh hive" and "chased through hell by a personification of madness and fear".

[His tone there is dry, at least. He'll come back to BJ later, because that's a hell of a loaded name.]

Suppose it depends on how much you think of them as an actual person.

[corkscrewed]

I specifically meant change for the better and you know it.

[ how much are they people? jon's still a person, but he had fought to retain his personhood. martin's still not sure if that meant something, or if he just tells himself that to make him feel better. ]

I still can't believe we were only in those tunnels for- what, a few hours?

[statementfuckingends]

[He takes another sip, but there's a wry smile there.]

I can't believe you were ready to fight Michael because it implied it was gonna kill Jon.

[corkscrewed]

[ and martin actually looks a little embarrassed by that. ]

God, could you imagine? He would have bloody ended me. At least getting stuck in the Lonely was comfortable.

[statementfuckingends]

Sounds like it would've been more fun than the wax museum. 'S'probably for the best you got to sit out of that one, even if you hadn't had other plans.

[corkscrewed]

[ his expression darkens slightly then, and he delays his own speech by pulling a long drink from his bottle. ]

The bloody stupid wax museum. I lost both of you. Just kept thinking - maybe I could've made a difference if I'd been there. Stupid, I know, but- I'm still sorry it happened that way.

[statementfuckingends]

[He gives Martin a long, sympathetic look.]

You know there's not anything to really be sorry for, right? [He drums his fingers quietly against his bottle.] I don't... remember much about what happened in there, I can't imagine Jon's much better, even for him, but... one thing I do remember is making an active choice to pull the trigger. [He huffs quietly, turning his gaze away] It's about one of the only things I remember from all that. Realising I was hitting Jon and knowing- properly knowing that I had the detonator. Sticking the stupid thing in Grimaldi's face because he knew I'd do it.

[corkscrewed]

[ martin doesn't quite meet tim's sympathetic look. instead he's up on his feet, heading back behind the bar to look for something else. it's pure restlessness: his second bottle is still sitting unopened at the booth. ]

I lost both of you at the same time. It just felt - you know, a bit like I was meant to be there, too.

[ it had taken him a long time to work through certain feelings. ]

[statementfuckingends]

[Tim's torso doesn't currently have the flexibility to turn without aching, so he watches Martin over his shoulder instead, before he drapes an arm over the back and brings his feet up onto the seat too.]

You didn't actually need to go, though. You just wanted to keep Jon safe.

[corkscrewed]

You and Jon both were scaring the hell out of me then, Tim. Both of you were just-

[ he exhales hard through his nose. ]

It was frightening. And then it turns out my fears were founded, so.

[statementfuckingends]

We get that a lot in our line of work. Bit of survivorship bias there, really, when most of what we do is follow conspiracy nuts and cults.

[corkscrewed]

Are they really conspiracy nuts if half of what they think is true?

[ he doesn't even know what he's looking for behind the bar. maybe he's just hoping movement in general will burn off some of his frustration, but it's not working. ]

I can't believe you've already been hurt here.

[statementfuckingends]

Conspiracy doesn't mean 'fake', Martin, it means secret. It sure as hell doesn't make them sane.

[He leans forward to brace his sore arm over his knees as he pick his beer back up.]

And frankly we're all lucky I'm not dead again.

[corkscrewed]

I dunno. Death tolling is the worst, but at least it's usually over in a couple of days.

[ he finally returns to the table, frowning. ]

Jon's fine, but it doesn't mean he wasn't injured. He's got super-healing now, if you didn't know already. He's keeping something from me, so- reckon it's probably whatever Connor did to him.

[statementfuckingends]

[Tim put too much effort into his new pose to uncurl now.]

Given that he's got a rather long history of not sharing things with us, probably yes. [He takes a long swig.] I did mention he offered to let me stab him to prove the healing thing.