quietplacelogs | Oh yeah, who'd you kill/To get that body on the windowsill [Closed]

[ There was a quiet crackle from the receiver. Then, breathing.

The voice of the man in the cell was hoarse at first -- as if its owner was unaccustomed to using it, though the texture would even out soon enough with use. ]

So. It's you.

[ something about this is vaguely familiar in a way that doesn't sit well with thomas. sitting on the other side of a screen, watching, listening. it's a different kind of prison from the glade in that it's an actual prison, and not some facade for something else, but that doesn't dampen that nagging, uncomfortable feeling.

this isn't the same. he'd volunteered to do this, and where he hadn't really understood the severity of his complicity with wckd, he understands what he's doing here and now. he reminds himself again: this isn't the same.

thomas breathes in slowly through his nose, giving himself a second before he responds to the man being held captive. his voice is quiet, his tone calm, neutral. he's still not sure how he feels about lamar, about the things he's done, his motives.

but lamar knows who he is, at least enough to recognize him as someone he's met before. that's enough to maybe establish something. ]

Yeah. I'm Thomas. [ because there probably wasn't much time for introductions the last time they met. there's a brief pause of complete silence, then the soft crackle of the intercom again. ] ...How's your head?

[ thomas imagines having your brain probed probably isn't the most comfortable thing in the world (and honestly, the fact that someone is even capable of that sort of thing at all is unsettling to him, and enough reason to keep his distance from kylo ren after their last encounter with lamar). fortunately for thomas, he doesn't quite remember what it was like when wckd found their way into his, but he does remember what it felt like to learn that they'd messed with his mind at all. but he can relate.

his job here is to bring lamar down to a level of calm (perhaps build some semblance of trust) and convince him to agree letting a doctor examine him, and he figures a good start to reaching that point is treating lamar... like a person. like a human. ]

Thomas. I remember.

The boy with the mole on the left side of your mouth. You had several, but that's the one I remember.

[ Well, that was weird. That was a weird detail to hold onto.
Lamar's voice sounded calm enough, though. Maybe he was 100% cool now, and definitely would not try to attack them again. ]

My head's fine. You know, if your friend had been a little slower the other day, I could have cut you right open.

[ ...Maybe not. ]

[Tony's here. And frankly, he had been planning to come sober, but he has a drink in hand while he slouches back in a chair. He's having a dumpster fire of a day and what better way to top it than doctor appointments with an enraged psychopath? F.R.I.D.A.Y. is recording as he closes his eyes and listens.

Well. That's pleasant.]

Wouldn't have even strangled someone with the intestines? I think we've found a model citizen here, someone give the man an award.

[It's a muttered, unhelpful aside before he sips his alcohol again. On the lenses of his glasses F.R.I.D.A.Y. is running voice recognition against every single person Tony's ever heard speak in Reims. Doesn't hurt to verify Lamar hasn't been snooping around blending in as a new arrival, even if the red eye would make it hard. Tony, for one, would love to know how he managed to slip into town hall to rig up his duct taped vent apparatus. The place isn't guarded, but it's not a low traffic area either.]

[ in general, there are very few adults that thomas actually likes, even fewer that he trusts, and right now, tony doesn't fall into either category — and for a plethora of reasons, most of them having to do with thomas' previous experience with almost everyone he knows over the age of twenty. mainly, though, it's the unnecessary, unhelpful commentary that's currently ruffling his feathers.

not as much as lamar's comment, though. thomas clenches his teeth a little, but beyond that, he doesn't react. not externally, anyway. internally, there's a small spark of mild paranoia in the back of thomas's mind, not because lamar remembered a small, physical detail — that much isn't that weird, because people remember little things about other people all the time (newt limps, gally's eyebrows were wild). it's the fact that even in the middle of being mentally raided (for lack of better words), he still managed to focus on something else (on thomas) long enough to commit something like that to memory. for half a second, it almost makes him wonder if...

thomas shakes the thought away with a slow, deliberate blink, breathing in quietly again through his nose. he casts tony a brief, unamused sideways glance, and then finally responds to lamar's casual threat. ]

I know, [ he says, and it's not fearful, or patronizing, or condescending. thomas is pretty agile, but he's not stupid enough to think he's superior to a man he hardly knows beyond the rumors, some of which have turned out to be false.

he pauses for a moment, his finger still on the button, that strange hiss of not-quite-static present in the air. thomas looks at tony again, his head turned slightly as he leans a little closer to the receiver so lamar can still hear him clearly.

man, does he have trust issues with adults. sorry, tony. you're just gonna have to deal with his unamused stare. surely, it's something he's been on the receiving end of before, from countless other people. ] But I'm not your enemy. You don't trust the people here, the natives... and neither do I. Not all of them.

Edited 2018-04-12 16:28 (UTC)

[ Majima, who had mostly been standing aside during the beginning of the conversation, glanced up at Thomas when Lamar started going into particulars. Other than that, however, he remained quiet.

The microphone crackled and hissed. ]

That's good. I'd bet that you've done this before.

Now if I recall, you were a bit aside when the telepath and the elf were questioning me. I'm sure what happened came as a bit of a surprise to you. They might have planned it beforehand... but I don't think you did. I'm sure that's why they're having you talk, and not the one that threw that elbow at me.

[ His tone turned a little musing. ]

I was a little careless there. I should have realized everyone tries 'circle to the right'.

[ Oh, well. Lessons for next time. ]

[Stares Tony can handle. In fact he doesn't even notice. Doing this after fighting with Steve wasn't the best of options, but what could be done? He has a full schedule at all times.

And right now he's stony faced at the mention of the “questioning”. They're not in public so if he hears these things it's fine. But Tony's been tortured himself. He might be a bit sensitive to being forced against one's will. There is a decided pause before he speaks this time. Because what's coming through the speaker sounds like Vanko. Like Killian. Like Loki. Like too many people that have murdered and burned their way through Tony's life.]

He's trying to unsettle you. Ignore it, kid.

[More helpful? Maybe not with the way Tony flicks back his glass, swallows, and pours more from a bottle. Oh, yes. He came prepared. He still has to talk to the man who murdered his parents and formally pardon the guy once this shitshow's done. So he's just going to sit here and wait for Lamar's next shit-infested tactic and stew on it a bit.]

Edited (Nitpicks) 2018-04-13 03:05 (UTC)

[ it's not as if thomas is free from knowing what it's like to be tortured. for years, he'd been brainwashed and manipulated, used for his intelligence and praised for all the good he was doing, all the people he was going to help, all the people he was helping to save when in reality, all he'd done was play a hand in sending them ( his friends ) to meet their end. and when he'd figured it out, when he'd finally seen through the facade that was wckd, they sent him, too. took his memories, wiped him clean, and sat back and watched him on the monitors (the same way he used to watched, before he learned, very quickly, that he wasn't okay with watching his friends die knowing he could do something about it), knowing that they were setting him up to die with everyone else.

they'd filled the maze with monsters, hideous things made of flesh and machine with a single objective: kill. because the maze was the only way out, and only those fast enough and strong enough and smart enough to escape unharmed were worthy of phase two. but they hadn't escaped. freedom had just been another prison with a different dressing, false promises to lull them into a fabricated sense of safety, to make him believe that although they'd lost chuck and alby and ben and winston (and so many more that thomas had only hazy memories of), that it would end with them. that they wouldn't lose any more.

and then aris had led him to the bodies, the children wckd had led away and strung up like meat at a slaughter house, their bodies tangled in tubes and wires as wckd drained the life out of them in the hopes that maybe they'd find the answer they were looking for. as if maybe, if they killed enough of them, something would change.

and thomas used to work for them. it makes him feel a little sick to think about it now, to have that assumption from lamar sit heavily in his chest. you've done this before. there's no way lamar could know that, right? the only way he'd know something like that is if he's with wckd, and while thomas has been doing his best not to jump to conclusions about what, exactly, is going on in reims, it doesn't help the paranoia.

yes. he's done this before. he's sat on the other side of a screen and watched. he's talked to people, tried to calm them down, ease their worries. he'd been younger, then. just barely a teenager and naive to the true evils of the world, and—

and he's letting lamar get under his skin.

thomas clears his throat, his fingers hovering over the button for the receiver, his gaze focused downward and his eyes a little shifty as he tries to pull himself together, tony's warning just a vague murmur in the unpleasant buzz of his head. he clears his throat quietly, shifts his weight slightly, and squares his shoulders.

lamar doesn't know him. he can pretend he does all he wants, but he hasn't made any kind of observation or assumption that anyone else could have made. thomas wets his lips, keys the mic in. ]

Nobody's making me do anything. I volunteered. [ lamar is right about thomas having been surprised by kylo and alexandre. he's right about thomas not having known what the plan was before it was already happening, and by then, thomas was a little too unsettled at the idea of any one person being able to get into someone's head so easily like that, that he'd basically been rendered useless.

he'd stood by and watched, like he'd used to, and regardless of whether or not lamar is actually their enemy (and some part of thomas wonders if maybe he's not, creepy comments aside), he's not proud. it's why he's here now, trying to do this the right way, to the best of his ability. ] You're right, though. I didn't even know who they were before then.

[ except for majima, but that's not important, and not who they're talking about, anyway. ]

I didn't know what they were going to do. [ thomas pauses for a moment, takes his fingers off the button. he wipes his hand over his mouth, down his chin, then keys back in. ] Look, there are two doctors that want to take a look at you. As long as you cooperate and you don't hurt them, they won't hurt you. That I do know. No mind reading, no games, just a physical. And then we go from there.

All right.

[ The words sounded conversational, even cordial... the words of a man agreeing to an impromptu stroll around the grounds at a garden party. ]

Go ahead. Send them in.

[ That was... it?

While no official agreement had been made, Majima had decided beforehand that he wasn't going to try and speak to Lamar. This was a responsibility that Thomas had accepted -- building a one-on-one rapport. It was clear from his expression, however, that he was a little concerned about how quickly Lamar had rolled over. ]

[Well. It looks like it's going to be an electric time. Tony can hear Clint's words in the back of his head, those mocking claps reverberating in his memories. The futurist is here. He sees all, whether you like it or not.

The day Tony can get out of this game of violence and judgment is looking like never. So he guesses there's nothing to do, but move forward as the heavy weight of being an Avenger bears further on him.]

Do we have anything in that cell? Tasers, something?

[It's said so idly matter-of-fact it's easily clear Tony's been at this crossroads before. Another sip, a glance at Majima.]

You keep looking like that I'm going to get you a comfort blanket. Cheer up. It might not go the way we're both thinking. [And then, to Thomas, without even looking at him:] Good job, kid. Unless you've got further questions wrap it up and let's send Adrien and Hawkeye in there. I'm sure they have nicer places they'd rather be.

Edited 2018-04-14 18:12 (UTC)

Pretty big 'might'.

[ But as long as the doctors were both okay to go in in a situation like this, it was probably all right to trust their judgment about their newest patient. It wasn't like they were going to totally fuck off and leave, and Lamar, for all the eagerness with which he'd attacked them earlier, was still human in terms of strength.

Either way, it didn't look like Lamar had anything to add at present. ]

[ ... it's too easy. thomas may not know lamar from anyone else in reims, but his sudden compliance and lack of resistance or pushback is a sharp change of pace and personality and practically screams liar. thomas doesn't buy it for one second.

but apparently tony does. that, or he just doesn't care about what could happen to those doctors, which just makes thomas trust him even less than he already does. tony may not be looking at thomas, but thomas all but snaps his head to the side to look at him, his brows drawn together sharply and his expression a mixture of annoyance and disbelief. ]

... Are you serious? This guy goes from talking about how he'd have killed us [ well, talking about how he'd have killed thomas, specifically, but not important ] one minute, to agreeing to let two people he doesn't even know look him over the next, and that doesn't set off any alarms for you?

[ his tone is somewhat sharp, but he keeps his volume relatively low, turning his head the other way to look at majima once he's finished with a slightly similar expression (but with less annoyance) and an unspoken question: you don't really believe him too, do you?

it's too easy, too quick, too suspicious for thomas. if they were going to bend so quickly, then what was the point of him even doing this? ]

[ The door to the cell swung open. Inside, seated on a cot, was a strongly-built man. The dark curls of his hair had been hacked short; in combination with his stubble and bloodshot left eye, they gave him a wild look. His eyes were trained squarely on the visitors outside, seemingly just as intent on gauging them as they were in observing him.

But he seemed calm? He seemed calm. ]

Well? Come on in.

[ ooc: Lamar will be nominally cooperative at this point, I'm assuming. ]

[All things considered, he should have thought this through. Not that he would have chosen a different course of action, but maybe he would have felt a little better prepared for this. It's his first time stepping to or even towards the prison (the damn thing), and there's a second doctor by his side that Hawkeye hadn't exactly made acquaintance with yet (oops?) and when the door to the cell swings open Hawkeye Pierce gives Adrien this one long, side-long, suffering sort of a glance. The kind a kid gives before they're invited into the principal's office at school. Kind of daring, kind of dreading.

Anyway.

Anyway, he's not prepared for this at all. Which he should be used to, what with... everything. Hawkeye slips his hands deep into his pockets (he probably shouldn't) and saunters on in, shrugging and--] Well it's kind of rude to just barge in here, you know! I wasn't sure if we should knock first or if you-- you know. [Routine medical exam for the POW. Hawkeye wonders if he should have asked for the girl with supposed X-Ray vision to tag along, in case of hidden hand grenades. He shrugs again and takes in more of the cell than he does of the kid at first, honestly.] Privacy's important.

So we should be outta your hair soon. We're doctors. I'm Hawkeye... [And Adrien can take it from here yep he sure can. Thanks, bud.]

[ Hopefully Hawkeye wasn't looking at him to be an adult about this? If that was the case, they were all in for a serious world of disappointment. Adrien was more than happy to let the other doctor -Hawkeye as he was to learn- take the lead with this initial introduction. He was rubbish at introductions.

He followed Hawkeye into the cell, but then broke off a step to the left to fall back and hold a position at the door even if it was shut behind them. When the conversation was passed off to him, he looked mildly bemused. ]

I'm just some guy who found a medical diploma in a box of cracker jacks.

[ Lamar was wearing a jumpsuit, hands neatly folded in front of himself. His nails were short, surprisingly well-manicured... but caught under them were signs of the same red dust that he'd been caught with by the others. Maybe he wasn't big on washing his hands. ]

Doctors,

[ he repeated, looking first to Hawkeye and then lingering on Adrien, on the way he remained by the door instead of stepping further into the soundproofed cell. ]

And one comedian, I see. So what is it you want? A blood sample?

Surely you don't think dust is going to come out of me.

[Holy shit, Adrien.

To hell with panic over Before, Hawkeye now wants to crack wise that he's taking this job and his profession very seriously, thank you very much- he's a graduate of the bottom of Kellog's Corn Flakes, himself. Instead all he can do is stifle a knowing grin before Lamar greets them.

Good. Okay.

Alright.

Not bad. Hawkeye does finally turn his attention fully to the kid. All things considered he isn't looking all the worse for wear.] I'd be more impressed if baby bunnies did. [But yes! He's carrying a bag, in it some simple equipment. Blood sample is absolutely on the list. As he rummages through- feel free to pick up a stick or two, Cracker Jack.] Or just eggs, if we stick to what's species-appropriate. But I'll be okay with skipping any magic tricks for now and just making sure you're okay. [Speaking of] What the hell happened to your eye? Fall down? Fall up? High blood pressure? Would I hate to see the other guy? And how comfortable are you with bright lights and saying "ahh"?

[ Didn't Cracker Jacks have a long standing rivalry with Kellog's Corn Flakes in the time honored sport of toilet paper unrolling?

It's Adrien's turn to be amused by Hawkeye's responses, but for the moment he holds his tongue as the other doctor lays out some of the basic questions. Best that they not look completely like Abbott and Costello by stepping all over each other asking for details.

Instead, he made a visual exam of the patient. The kid seemed in fairly good health, red eye not withstanding and he noted the dust under the nails The jumpsuit was fairly pedestrian but didn't do much to hide the fact that Lamar looked to be in good physical shape, also appeared to be sitting up fairly straight and his diction was clear.

This suggested he had taken whatever treatment had gotten him captured without too much physical injury and he at least sounded in his right mind. Whether he ended up sounding like a psychopath was still up for debate, but at least he wasn't slurring his words.]

Edited 2018-04-12 02:42 (UTC)

What happened to my eye? ...What do you mean?

[ Lamar's eyes were on Hawkeye's bag, not Hawkeye himself, as the doctor rummaged through his instruments. He brought his right hand up in an almost absent gesture, fiddling with the end of a black lock of hair. The set of his shoulders seemed relaxed. ]

I agreed to let you examine me. I'll deal with your bright lights.

But if you want to do anything more invasive than stick one of those depressors in my mouth, I'm afraid we'll have a problem.

["What happened to"-- and hold that thought while Aunt Hawkeye gracelessly interjects.] Look in a mirror lately? [He's serious, okay, raising a brow to the kid and feeling out of his depth, again, for a blink of a moment.

Lamar's hand was up, eyes on the basic sphygmomanometer and stethoscope pair. Self awareness, self defense, or plain ol' adolescent attitude?

Pierce isn't much used to patients being awake when he's in a room with them, mind you. Not for the "pre-" stuff, not if they don't by tragic law speak a different language and are lined up for inoculations, each with a flimsy (even forged, he never gave a damn) ticket from Uncle Sam granting them one (1) office visit per family. And (and ) holy crap he can keep his own mind on Reims, he swears.] A blood draw is standard, Lamar. It wouldn't hurt. ["Wouldn't" instead of "won't" because he isn't entirely sure that they will , y'know?] Cracker Jacks is the best damn medical school in Idaho if you'd rather Mr. Hotshot do it.

[Mr. Hotshot gets the stethoscope handed to him, though-- look, the boy is big, Hawkeye isn't, do him a solid, hm?] Has anything been hurting you, bothering you recently? Any injuries more major than anything minor?

[ Lamar gestured with his right arm, indicating the rest of the cell. No mirror in here, nope. ]

Perhaps they thought it would be imprudent, given my earlier behavior.

[ Probably a good idea, since something that could be smashed into convenient slivers of glass was... really dangerous, actually! Thank your prison administrators. Either way, maybe Lamar just wasn't big on appearances? Maybe he really hadn't been paying attention to the old 'man in the mirror', as it were? ]

I feel fine, Dr. Hawkeye. Thank you.

[ As Hawkeye handed Adrien the stethoscope, it'd be Adrien he'd be tracking with his grey gaze. ]

Are you quite all right, Dr. Hotshot? You've been very quiet.

[ Everybody in this damn cell is bigger than Adrien is, but that's pretty much par for the course when you're short. He takes the stethoscope with a slightly bemused expression on his face, looking from it, to Lamar and then to Hawkeye, coming back to Lamar when the young man speaks to him.

Sliding the stethoscope tubing through his fingers, he lifted one arm and pointed at Hawkeye. ]

He's the ethical one here, so I was giving him the opportunity to appeal to your cooperative nature.

[ The words were spoken in a mild tone, but the expression on his face suggested that he was not inclined to stand here and play games this evening. To Adrien's understanding people had already gathered what information they could get out of Lamar, and that he and Hawkeye were here to collect objective data points to use in conjunction with what the others had learned.

To Adrien's way of thinking, this mean that prolonged conversation was not necessary. Please let the nice cereal doctors get their samples and everybody can call it a day, alright? ]

So he's the good doctor, and you're the bad doctor.

[ There was no warning, no tell -- only Lamar going straight for Hawkeye, sinewy arm out like a snake aimed towards the doctor's face. If he was allowed, he'd simply dash the man's head against the wall hard enough to drop him, so hopefully either of them had quick reflexes.

Up until now, Lamar had been the picture of calm. Now, however, his expression was one of both intense concentration and vicious, barely contained excitement. His entire body was alive, taut with tension wound tight. ]

["Doctor"? "Thank you"? Words that have Hawkeye perk up despite himself, because (unless uttered sarcastically) they hadn't visited his ears in a lifetime. Naturally, it makes the man suspicious, but all he can do is peer at the boy owlishly before Adrien (the jackass ) catapults them into

this.]

Wh-- ?

[Ethics and it's said all serious and Hawkeye has just enough time to steal a glance at Adrien again, something shocked and vulnerable because that's the dry and (possibly true- ain't it sad?) wit you pull in for heated discourse and imbeciles, not

this.

And then he's wincing, a full-body recoil and grit teeth against the attack that's coming, arms up to make an attempt to shield himself and... not much else, really. Fight? There's none of that in him, and there's nowhere his body will take him to flee, and he's left with a sharp tremor and "no no nono" as he feels one heavy hand against a temple, and that's his legs failing to keep him upright and

and so and so and so and

he doesn't hit the wall as hard as he knows he should have, really. The reason Why is lost on Hawkeye for a moment. Either he'd shut his eyes or his brain had done that thing where it blanked and left him or

well, fuck you, Adrien.] Hey!

[ Fuck.

Alright, that might have a small error in calculation on his part. Even two hundred plus years in, sometimes reading people was not his long suit. Luckily his body knew to react, even as his brain was facepalming at the error in judgement that had left Hawkeye -temporarily!- vulnerable to attack.

Adrien sprang across the relatively short distance and employed the stethoscope in a rope like manner, intending to loop it around the arm Lamar had extended towards the other doctor. Just get it around that leading wrist and then try to simultaneously pull Lamar off balance, or at least off target and get himself in between the attack and Hawkeye. ]

[ It was too bad about that stethoscope, really -- it saved Hawkeye from a bout of unconsciousness which, however brief, would probably have been suuuper bad for him.

But if years of surviving on his own had taught Lamar anything, it was how to improvise -- and he now pivoted quite neatly to round on Adrien instead, his free arm whipping around, thumb poised to try and put out the doctor's eye.

Lamar's lips had pulled back from his teeth, flashing sharp canines in an expression somewhere between smile and snarl. If possible, his left eye seemed even more bloodshot in close proximity. ]

[ Lamar was quick and he was strong, two traits that Adrien could now fully appreciate at he was in close proximity with the young man. In any other circumstances, he might have actually allowed the fight to draw out a little; particularly when he noted the intensity of the blood shot eye.

Interesting.

But Adrien wasn't in any mood to have his eye gouged out, nor for Hawkeye to continue to be at risk. Lamar had already demonstrated that he wasn't above going for either one of them.

Releasing the stethoscope, Adrien used one forearm to block -keep your thumb to yourself, young sir- and then threw a closed fist punch towards Lamar's solar plexus. ]

[ Lamar took the blow to the torso -- though the way he was twisted necessitated that the punch didn't land quite as cleanly as it could have. The instant Adrien had let go of the stethoscope, Lamar had shifted to an attempt to use it as a makeshift garotte instead... but too late, as all he managed was to loop the instrument over the doctor's shoulder.

He slumped to the ground, eyes fixed on Adrien in a strange mixture of fury and elation for the second before he flat-out hit the ground.

The thin mattress of the cot had flipped over during the altercation, and now sat askew off the frame of the bed. All in all, however, it had been... relatively painless. ]

[ Elation? That was disquieting, but unfortunately now really wasn't the time to be thinking too closely on it.

As Lamar went down, Adrien darted in to actually try to help ensure the young man's head didn't hit the floor. But also in case he was still wriggling, the doctor wanted to be close to ... well ... stop any further wriggling.

If Lamar stayed down, then it was time to go after those vitals and the blood sample that had started this whole mess. ]

We really could have done this the easy way.

Oh yeah, who'd you kill/To get that body on the windowsill [Closed]

Cooldown (For Thomas & co)

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cw: threats of violence

Cw: gore talk

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this got away from me i'm so sorry

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Exam (For Hawkeye, Adrien, and whoever's left waiting in the wings)

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Violating post order for a second

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cw: attempt at eye damage

Skipping posting order with permission

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cw: medical procedures without express consent ... sorry!notSorry Lamar