tushanshu | 21 ❄ ( VIDEO )

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21 ❄ ( VIDEO )

[ Jack's been largely off network for about a month, other than replying to those whom he's closest with. But there's too much to do and too many people who needed him to not be uselessly hung up on his own issues. So he faces the console screen with something much closer to his usual good cheer and Baby Tooth is perched in her usual spot on his shoulder. ]

There's been a lot of new people lately so I thought I'd bring this up again. My name's Jack Frost, this is Baby Tooth and I'm... kind of in charge of the Welcome Center here in the city. For anyone who's arrived lately, the kedan who showed you where your suite was should have mentioned it to you.

[ There will be a location ping that shows a very centrally located address, one that if anyone else in the city has tried to procure a business of their own will know is normally unavailable. ]

If you need anything that the kedan weren't able to provide at your suite, let me know and I'll see if I can track it down. Don't worry about if it costs money you haven't got yet. I've collected information about the city that'll help you get settled in and they're in brochures, there's books you can borrow that aren't in kedanese if you want to borrow them, like a library. Just bring them back in one piece, 'cause there aren't that many and we only seem to get more when we visit a mainland. Oh, and I have a list of some kedan shopkeepers who are willing to take on Foreigner employees so they can start working.

If you want to volunteer some time, just let me know. You don't need any kind of experience, just be willing to answer questions and help people learn about the city.

[ He thinks for a moment but can't come up with anything he's forgotten. ]

Yup. I think that's everything.

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[ No particular warning bells and flags from this... Costigan's always pretty secretive. But Jack doesn't dawdle either and is there a few minutes early, looking around to see if the other has arrived. ]

[Costigan is sitting at a table outside, sunk down in his chair with his cap on to help obscure his face. His leg is continually bouncing, waiting for his friend to arrive. Not seeing the other man, he pulls the bottle of meds from his pocket, dumps a couple into his palm, and knocks them back. Then he returns the bottle, cursing under his breath at just how few are left.]

[ Jack has tried to get himself out of the habit of watching people when he knows they can't see him, but it's hard after centuries and he does stop, taking in Costigan's posture, the fidgets, the callously swallowed pills. The same bottle from his suite? he wonders, thinking back to the one he'd given back to the man after Sabriel's strange ghost had found it. Pushing his musings down, he circles around so he can approach Costigan from the front, speaking when he's a dozen feet away so his voice doesn't come entirely out of nowhere so closely. ]

Hey.

[Costigan stands as soon as he hears the kid's voice, jerking his head off to the side and beginning to move in that direction.]

Let's take a walk.

[He walks slowly for the first few seconds, giving Jack plenty of time to catch up, before his pace quickens to one of his naturally anxious walking speed. He's quiet, staring ahead and waiting to speak. He wants to get them out of the main public area and into some sketchy back alleys.]

[ Jack falls into step beside and slightly behind, letting the Bostonian set the pace and directly. The spirit is free with the draft that surrounds him, the ice that marks each step (there's still snow around but the streets are clear and dry, with little fresh snow having fallen in the last few weeks) knowing that the man uses that in lieu of not being able to see him. He opens his mouth to ask why Costigan asked to meet him at the cafe only to leave but decides to be patient instead. ]

Everything okay?

Edited (words) 2014-01-15 19:27 (UTC)

[Costigan turns his head as if to answer, then says nothing. It's a complicated question. No, everything's not okay, or he wouldn't be playing cloak and dagger routine. But no one's hurt or in danger, which is probably more what the guy means. He sighs a little, leading them down an alley and off towards an abandoned warehouse not far.]

Yeah. [He says finally, his pace quickening as they near their destination.]

[ Hrm. Not the most resounding reassurance but Jack has learned patience during his time here on Tu Vishan. Since the undercover doesn't seem overly keen on speaking, Jack glances around but follows without asking any other questions. ]

[When they arrive at the warehouse, Costigan moves immediately to one of a few doors, knowing how to jimmy it open. There are some markings relevant to a specific kedanese gang near the door. The undercover has the fortune of knowing that they've abandoned this place weeks ago and haven't been around, making it the perfect place to chat.

He leads the way in for the two of them, still not saying anything until he navigates their way down a hall and into a back room, obviously very familiar with the building. Once in the office of sorts, he gestures for the spirit to come inside, hoping the guy is still with him, and then waits a beat before closing the door and then turning to face the seemingly empty room.]

You in here?

[ Okay, this is starting to get weird... Jack thinks, eyeing the markings, not recognizing them specifically but seeing similar ones around during his deliveries, thinking them more graffiti than anything. He's inside the door before Costigan closes it, appreciating the pauses the man leaves where they can still manage some semblance of a normal conversation. ]

I'm here.

[ He move toward the near wall, taking in the office's appearance, leaving a frosted hand print on the wall. ]

Quite a hiding place you've got in here... could do with a decorator though I've gotta say, if you're asking my opinion on paint samples, everything's gonna come out in shades of blue.

[Costigan follows the voice to emptiness, once again unsettled that he can't see the guy he otherwise feels pretty trusting of. At least there's the frosted hand print, Jack's way of trying to communicate his location. The undercover sighs, moving to lean on the edge of a file cabinet just inside the door, facing where Jack seems to have moved.]

It's not my place. [He replies. There's a small smile on his lips, appreciating the humor of Jack's words, but he won't claim ownership of any gang territory.]

Jack. [His voice is more serious, his smile fading.] I need to tell you something and I need you to promise me you aren't going to tell anyone else, whether you understand the significance of it or not.

[ The joking tone likewise drains from Jack's voice, because that's a pretty heavy request to spring on someone out of nowhere. But he also knows that it's not something Costigan would ask lightly-- that, and the isolation of where it's being asked-- are enough to sober the humour from him for the moment. ]

... all right.

[Costigan hates that he can't look the spirit in the eye right now. For just a split second, his desperation becomes so severe that the spirit seems to appear. But when the undercover suddenly tenses and tries to look directly at him, shocked and pale, there's nothing to see. He wonders if he's losing his mind.]

I'm a cop.

[The words come out slightly more distracted than he means them to, but he focuses almost immediately after. Jack's visage appears again. This time, it doesn't flicker. Costigan looks him right in the eye for the first time. He concentrates so as not to think about it, about what it means or the magic or any of that. All he thinks about is the truth he's sharing right now.

The revelation isn't exactly a life changer, given that Costigan hasn't engaged in all that much violence and hasn't made many of his gang ties common knowledge, but it's the first time he's ever actually admitted as much. His eyes search the guy's face for any reaction.]

I have been, almost since I got here. Since the time I was arrested for exploring the shell and a woman came and broke us loose. [And he was the only one to stay behind.]

[ Jack almost misses the second part of the admission when he realizes Costigan is looking at him-- not his general vicinity, not where he thinks Jack should be based on the icy signatures Jack leaves but actually meeting, holding his gaze. The first time he made the mistake of letting it override everything so he forces himself to stay still.

Just go with it. Don't scare him away. Don't screw this up.

Then the words register and blue eyes widen marginally in surprise... and then the overall reaction seems to transition to something much closer to relief. Unexpected yes, definitely. Jack could have made any number of guesses (some educated, some not) as to Costigan's origin in Boston but that would not have been on the list. Yet it was far less worrisome than the spirit's imagination could have (and might have) conjured up for such a clandestine revelation. ]

Okay... that's not-- too weird.

Edited 2014-01-15 21:11 (UTC)

[Costigan continues monitoring his reaction as he speaks, finding it strange somehow that this is the first time seeing the guy's face. He still makes an effort not to think about it and instead plows ahead.]

Back in Boston, I joined the toughest, most ruthless, and most successful criminal organization to exist in the U.S. for a long time, to the point where I became his number one. The leader's. He trusted me above anyone else.

[He has to force himself to breathe, trying to choose the words deliberately. He's saying he was a gang member, rather than an undercover. It's all intentional. Still, admitting even that much clearly isn't easy for him and the memories bring back pain that weaves through his expression.]

I started doing the same thing here. Not with M- [He catches himself saying the name.] -the big guy, but gangs. Foreigners. My arrests, everything.

[Another pause to give Jack time to respond. This is the largest risk the undercover has ever taken and every muscles in his body is tense with the effort.]

[ Jack nods slowly, digesting the information as it comes in piecemeal form. He has to assume everything he's being told is not just because Costigan is feeling in an overly indulgent mood for sharing his life so is important, to be committed to memory even if it's not to be shared. ]

Can I ask why?

[ Then he realizes that's too vague and clarifies: ]

I mean, not back in Boston but here. There wasn't any need for you to go around doing that in a strange city where no one else knew you, right? You didn't have to be a cop, but you didn't have to fall in with criminals either. You could have just been yourself and no one would have been the wiser.

So this was something you... wanted to do?

[ There's no judgment in either his expression or his tone... not just openly, but at all. Jack really is just listening at this point, trying to understand where this is coming from and where it's going. ]

Edited (*proper words*) 2014-01-15 21:38 (UTC)

I guess. [He admits, frowning, then corrects himself.] You know me. I can't fucking stand lying to people, but it needed to be done and I felt like I was the only one who could do it. Or who I trusted to do it maybe. I don't know.

[A beat.] What I do know is I started working for the Commander to stop criminals like the ones in Boston. Only now, the Commander is the Emperor.

Edited (erased last line about foreigner force) 2014-01-15 21:48 (UTC)

[ The spirit nods, accepting that answer, knowing more than a little what it was like to think that the only way to get something done was not to rely on anyone else. He was working to stop the criminals is the important thing for Jack to hear there, though a small smile pulls at his mouth when Costigan admits to working for Evandau. ]

It was a pretty convincing cover since he kept throwing you in jail. So are you going keep working for him?

[ a beat ]

Is that what you want to be doing?

[Costigan gives a small smile about being thrown in jail, like a point of pride. Yeah, he spent a lot of time in the cells, trying to get information and work his way into other gangs.

His smile disappears at Jack's questions and he forgets to focus, closing his eyes and rubbing at them for a moment. It doesn't even occur to him to be surprised that he can still see Jack when he opens them again. The anxiety, pain, and fuilt of his choice are clear in his tone.]

I don't know, guy. That's the problem. I don't know if it's the right thing. I'm tired of lying, but I lied to a lot of people and I don't know if I want them finding out.

[ Jack is silent for a few moments, turning the situation over in his head before venturing his advice and any opinions on it. So his words come slowly and with a measured consideration, as though the spirit is deciphering them as he speaks. ]

If you're tired of lying, then you should walk away from it. You shouldn't have to keep doing something you don't want to. As for people finding out... they might or they might not. With the way things are in this city [ Malicant ] that's not something you can plan for either way.

But if you tell them, it'll be on your terms and it'll be... while you're still capable of dealing with the backlash, if there is any. If you run yourself down to nothing just for trying to keep up what's fake, what are you going to have left when you need it?

[ Jack takes a step toward the man, not close enough to touch but for the meaning of it: he's unafraid of anything he's heard here. ]

Knowing when to stop isn't the same as calling it quits.

Edited 2014-01-15 22:31 (UTC)

[The undercover gives a wry laugh at that. He's not mocking Jack in any way, which is clear from the almost goofy expression on his face. Costigan is simply overwhelmed with the path before him and finds some level of humor in the ridiculousness of it all.

His friend's approach doesn't go unnoticed. He respects that kind of loyalty, the kind that exists above and beyond everything else, all the bullshit and stupid choices.]

It's worse than that, guy. He wants me to help lead something. Publicly.

[ Jack is glad for the laugh, bizarrely uncharacteristic as it seems coming from the man. Jack never feels less like the Guardian of Fun around anyone as he does around Costigan... though this is not the time or place for it, anyway. ]

Wait, what kind of public "something"? Lead who?

[Costigan shakes his head and runs a hand through his hair, then readjusts his cap.]

'Lead' is the wrong word. He wants me to advise or somethin'. On a new foreigner division of the police.

Oh... well, that's not so bad. It's still your choice whether you want to work for him on something like that but-- it sounds like you'd be able to make your own choice there. Not the ones you're making because you're trying to keep your cover.

[ He spreads his hands a little, as though to say that he doesn't have the answers he thinks Costigan is looking for. ]

I know, guy. [He gives a light and almost dismissive nod. Costigan isn't looking for answers. He's looking for acceptance. Jack seems to be taking all his declarations in stride and that only makes the Bostonian more anxious, waiting for the metaphorical knife in his back. Maybe this whole thing was a mistake.

He has to stop his thoughts there, before he begins questioning magic and loses sight of the guy again.]

I wanted you to know, alright? In case somethin' happens to me. I wanted someone who could set the record straight.

[ Maybe it's a sixth sense of being a spirit or maybe Jack just makes a good guess, but he doesn't miss the rising anxiety. ]

Hey... I don't know what kind of reaction you've got in the past but-- you're not going to get it from me. This doesn't change the person I've gotten to know.

[ Admittedly "gotten to know" is a bit of a stretch, because Costigan has always been tightlipped about himself. The few instances where he'd shared personal information with Jack were significant but infrequent, making the spirit recognize them with that much more importance. ]

21 ❄ ( VIDEO )

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