❝ 003 ❞ v i d e o ( forward dated to the 31st )

[animosus]

[Hal's recording this from Barry's place and he looks uncharacteristically hesitant.]

I think Barry's gone. My ring can't find him and I know it couldn't find people when everyone did that ghost trick a while back, but he also left his-- [He belatedly realises he can't say Flash ring.] --wedding ring behind and he'd never forget it.

[He falls silent again as he figures out what else to say.]

It's like I just got him back and now he's gone again. [He hasn't worked it out, but it feels like in all the years he's known him, Barry was dead longer than he was alive.]

I never really paid attention to what people did in this situation, but I guess I should tell Bart to get over here. Anything else I should do?

Comments

[strategisch]

...Do you mean Barry Allen?

[Armin doesn't know this person, though they seem rather upset...]

[animosus]

[Thank you for not consoling him on the loss of his 'husband' like everyone else is.]

Yeah. There's probably better ways of getting it out there than this. [He winces as he thinks about all the other replies.] But I'm not exactly familiar with everyone he talked to.

[strategisch]

[Lol he's so unconcerned with such matters that the notion doesn't even occur to him. He does sympathize with losing a friend, however.]

I'm sorry, it's a shame. He was my... [Armin pauses. Friend? Companion? Comrade? Confidant? Boy is he terrible at this.] He was a good man.

[Way to cop out there.]

[animosus]

[Hal gets his meaning anyway. He would of described him in the exact same way.]

He was. He was the type of person who'd rather stay in, but he had this way of drawing people to him, you know?

[strategisch]

He was always very kind to me, especially when I was in need.

[Armin was hoping to be able to rely on him in the future as well, but... That's how the cookie crumbles around here. Nothing to be done about it.]

Did you know him from your own world, or did you meet him here?

[animosus]

I knew him back in our own world. [He screws his face up in thought.] I think it's been over a decade now. I'd joke about him being my longest relationship, but... [He grimaces.] Apparently people really do think that.

[strategisch]

[Armin tilts his head a little.]

It's good to have comrades that know you well. Then when it's time to make decisions, you can rely on each other to know what to do without wasting time hashing out details.

[animosus]

[Comrades... Russian?

He laughs and scratches his cheek sheepishly.] I wouldn't know about that. We were close yeah, but he never really approved of some of my choices.

[Number one being hanging out with Green Arrow. Something about being a bad influence.]

[strategisch]

Well, a good friend should tell you when you're being stupid too.

[animosus]

H-hey, I don't act stupid! It's just a difference in opinion.

[strategisch]

To you, perhaps?

[He smiles a little.]

I'm sorry, I don't mean to be antagonistic.

[animosus]

[He waves it off.]

I'm going to chalk this up to age differences. God, that makes me sound old.

[strategisch]

I'm sorry, I should be more respectful. I'm honestly used to taking orders from men your age.