Uncomfortable Revelations
| Uncomfortable Revelations | |
|---|---|
| Players | Razi's Office Gareth has some questions. Razi...kind of has some answers? |
<TXT> From Gareth to Razi: how much do you know about witness protection +----+ Razi +------------------------------------------------------------------+ Razi doesn't have the huge corner office, but he's senior enough in the legal department that he /does/ have an office. One that's not even a shoebox! He's let his executive assistant know that a certain /Gareth Evans/ would be stopping in to meet, and to be please make sure he was allowed up. And so Gareth's arrival at Omega Tower is smooth sailing, and he's ushered into Razi's office without fuss. Other than being asked if he'd like anything to drink? Coffee, tea, soda, water? Either way, Razi is at his desk when Gareth arrives, in a well-tailored business suit. Charcoal grey today, pale blue shirt, purple patterned tie. He looks like a lawyer. "Mr. Evans," he says, gaze lifting to Gareth in particular, attentive study. +----+ Gareth +----------------------------------------------------------------+ Gareth looks *awful*. Like, bad enough that someone would probably assume that he'd lost his mind and wouldn't let him into the building if he didn't have an appointment with Razi, and at least two forms of ID. He's paler and gaunter than usual, dark circles under his eyes, his hair even *scruffier* than usual. It's a low bar, but somehow he's beaten it. He clearly hasn't slept for at least 48 hours, and he keeps nervously looking around the room like it might eat him. "Razi," he greets with *deep* informality. He hovers close to Razi's desk, and were he not *painfully* human he probably would be actually hovering. "I think I'm going mad." +----+ Razi +------------------------------------------------------------------+ Gareth's appearance certainly gives Razi pause. He looks him over slowly, and then he gestures to the chair on the other side of his desk before reaching slowly to press a button on his phone that's clearly the intercom for his assistant outside. "Could you please bring a glass of water for Mr. Evans? Thank you." Whether he WANTS IT OR NOT. In the brief window they have to wait, he says, "You look terrible." +----+ Gareth +----------------------------------------------------------------+ Gareth takes the seat, watching Razi's finger move to the button. There's a hollow laugh at the assessment. "Do I?" he says like someone who saw their own reflection in an elevator very recently. "I feel a million times worse." He fidgets, one leg bouncing on the floor, making no attempt to still it. "You're gonna think I'm mad. Maybe I am mad. Please don't let them take me to a mental hospital." +----+ Razi +------------------------------------------------------------------+ There's a subtle crease to Razi's brow as Gareth continues, but he does give matters a bit of time. Long enough for water to arrive and be set gingerly on the desk in front of Gareth. "Please make sure we're not interrupted," Razi politely requests of his assistant before they're gone. And then, finally, he looks back to Gareth. He looks meaningfully at the water. "Why don't you tell me what's going on?" +----+ Gareth +----------------------------------------------------------------+ Gareth fidgets some *more* under the scrutiny, but the Meaningful Look the water gets does have him reaching and downing half of it without stopping. Some of it spills onto him and he tries to brush the water off onto the floor. "It's fine it's fine it'll dry," he reassures Razi as he eyes the now slightly wet glass and then the *nice desk* in front of him. He hangs onto the glass, holding it in his lap with both hands. Some of his fidgeting stills. "I.... stumbled into something big, Razi. Something that doesn't make sense. I stuck my stupid fucking nose in because I was *curious* and now it's gonna get cut off," he says by way of preamble. "That or I've lost my mind," he adds helpfully. He takes a breath before launching into it. "So I ran into this guy in a coffee shop who'd been missing for a while - the guy I texted you about - and I thought he'd been declared legally dead because he'd been gone for so long but it turns out there was a body? But hey, maybe it's just mistaken identity the usual shit, whatever. But then Darwin - my best friend - he picked up his guy and now he's living on his couch and I'm a bit over-protective and so I looked him up and it turns out he also y'know exists? Somewhere else. Same guy but not the same guy? So I started digging because one's an incident, two's a coincidence and three's a pattern and fuck Razi I found a pattern like this happens a lot. A lot a lot. There's this guy Hubert and he just disappeared in the 50s, poof *gone*, and he turned up forty years later totally naked back in Chicago and he's completely fine for a man of *over a hundred* apparently and oh fuck do you think it's the *Russians* replacing people for sleeper agents and now they're going to want to kill me?" His voice gets fainter and fainter and he finally stops. Because he needs to *breathe*. He stares fearfully at Razi. +----+ Razi +------------------------------------------------------------------+ Razi doesn't seem concerned with where the water's ended up, apart from the generalized concern about Gareth's state of being. But as Gareth starts on his story, as he /continues/, that concern shifts to...something else. A very particular sort of sobriety, and a shrewder study. But, at the very least, he doesn't seem to be worried about Gareth's sanity. There's a moment, after Gareth finally runs out of breath, that Razi remains silent. He inhales a slow breath. And then he says, "I do not believe you need to worry about the Russians." There's a considering beat, and he adds, "I also don't believe your life is in immediate danger, so I think you can relax for the time being. And breathe. Please." +----+ Gareth +----------------------------------------------------------------+ "No I mean I guess it wouldn't make sense that it's the Russians because no one seems to be like doing anything *suspicious* I even checked a f-" Gareth starts and then stops, actually *listening* to what Razi told him to do. He breathes, nodding once. It's quick and shallow at first, but slowly evens out, deepening and slowing. There's a pathetically grateful look shot to Razi. +----+ Razi +------------------------------------------------------------------+ Razi nods in approving manner, but there is also a certain distraction to him. A hint of thoughtfulness as he considers his options. "Perhaps," he finally says, "these are people in unfortunate circumstances doing their best to live their lives. If they are not harming you or yours, do the details truly matter to you beyond that?" His gaze is steady on Gareth now. +----+ Gareth +----------------------------------------------------------------+ There's a silence from Gareth. A slight pricking of his ears and a furrow on his brow as he watches Razi, like he's trying to work through something in his head, but the gears aren't quite turning fast enough. "I... Yes!" he blurts out, looking embarrassed by it. "It's a *mystery* and it's *there* right on the edge of understanding and it's like, it's like..." he fails to come up with a sufficient metaphor. Perhaps the metaphor is also on the edge of understand. "...And Miel basically challenged me to figure it out anyway," he grumbles. +----+ Razi +------------------------------------------------------------------+ "Mm." Razi looks implacable and impassive in the face of Gareth's blurting. "If you were challenged by your best friend's roommate, are you presuming their motives are sinister? That your friend is being deceived?" He reaches for his own coffee, which has been there on his desk the entire time, to take a sip. +----+ Gareth +----------------------------------------------------------------+ The furrow on Gareth's brow grows as he shakes his head. "Noooo," he says, the word elongated. "I mean, it was *after* I figured out he wasn't him." There's a pause. "Or that the other guy wasn't him, to be fair, he rightly called me out on assuming that *he* was the imposter and not the other guy," he says. His words are more careful now, slower, more considered, his eyes unfocused before they snap back onto Razi. "I didn't tell you who Miel was," he realises. Though he doesn't sound *completely* sure in himself. +----+ Razi +------------------------------------------------------------------+ Razi does pause there, when he realizes the accuracy of Gareth's words. "Hm." He takes another sip of coffee as he settles back in his chair. "No, you didn't. But I do know of a Miel, living with a Darwin, so I suppose my mind drew the connection for me." He sets his coffee back down on his desk. "You have two options, Mr. Evans. You can leave this particular thread alone, and I don't believe your life will be any worse off. No one will be hunting you down. This is not some sort of conspiracy of any human agency for you to unearth and reveal to the public. Your other option is knowledge, which will undoubtedly be /more/ dangerous. As knowledge generally is." +----+ Gareth +----------------------------------------------------------------+ There's something unsure in Gareth's eyes as he watches Razi, like he's suddenly worried that he's made a huge mistake, eyes wide like a rabbit in headlights. He sips at his water, his hand shaky before he settles the glass back in his lap. His eyes sharpen at the word 'human', forcing their way through the fatigue that lines his face. He leans forwards, tugging at the metaphorical thread. "Here's the thing, Razi. Do you think I'm not *already* involved in whatever this is? Because I know Darwin knows what's going on. And I'm starting to think you know." He puts the glass down on the carpet. No water rings for Razi's desk. Lifting his hands he ticks off two fingers, one for Darwin, one for Razi. He keeps ticking. "Miel, of course. Maybe Ji-Ho? He was certainly giving me *vibes* of something," he looks at Razi as if gauging his responsiveness to the name. "So if you're telling me there's *danger* there? What makes you think me not knowing is going to protect me?" +----+ Razi +------------------------------------------------------------------+ "Yes, actually," Razi replies, his voice mild. "I do think that you are currently not involved in 'whatever this is.' Your inkling of something being strange has not made you a part of matters yet. I'm not telling you that /not knowing/ is a protection; I am simply telling you that I do not believe you are likely to have earned the ire of anyone as of yet." There's a beat of quiet as he studies Gareth. And his fingers. "There's danger everywhere, Gareth. You are not safe, because no one is safe. But if you are suspicious of your best friend, why was it me you reached out to?" +----+ Gareth +----------------------------------------------------------------+ "I'm pretty sure I've earned the ire of *many* people actually," Gareth argues immaturely. He stops short of sticking his tongue out at Razi. He looks unsure at the question, considering it. Turning over the angles in his mind. "Because up until like.. five-ten minutes ago I thought I was encroaching into either need a lawyer or need a psychiatrist territory," he admits slowly. "And now I'm not sure if I need the Men in Black or John Constantine." He tries to pass it off as a joke but... he doesn't laugh. +----+ Razi +------------------------------------------------------------------+ "You were hunting for a lawyer or a psychiatrist because you /thought/ you had earned the ire of many people," Razi counters. "You learned enough to know that there is a great deal you don't know, and you assumed that would mean that someone would wish you harm. But have you been threatened?" And now he shifts in his seat, leaning forward. "What is the evidence of danger you believe yourself to be in that is not derived from your expanding understanding of the world?" +----+ Gareth +----------------------------------------------------------------+ "I don't *know*!" Gareth snaps, slamming the arms of his chair with his hands. The chair is unmoved. "I don't *know* Razi. I am *tired* and I haven't slept in *days* and I've drunk more fucking coffee than I think God himself could handle and I have a fucking murder wall in my apartment with *literal pieces of string* and I didn't know if I was going insane or if I was actually onto something and I came to *you* because I fucking trust you okay? Because I can count on my *ears* the number of people who actually have shown they give a literal actual shit about me and my pathetic little life and you are one of them - you think I don't *know* that there are better investigators than me in Chicago that you could hire, without all of the... y'know," he gestures to himself like it should be obvious. "I came to *you* because I thought you'd either say 'yes Mr. Evans this is very serious let's get you into protection immediately' or 'Mr. Evans have you tried sleeping in the last week you are quite clearly making connections where there are none' and either way I would believe you." His impression of Razi is poor. "But instead you're giving me this... *this*!" he says, whirling his hands around in the general direction of Razi like that explains everything. He glares furiously at Razi, chest heaving with the exertion of being mad. +----+ Razi +------------------------------------------------------------------+ Razi is silent for a long moment in the wake of all of...that. In truth, he seems to be giving Gareth time to recover, what with all the chest heaving and exertion. His gaze draws away, clearly weighing something in his mind. And then, finally, he rises. He moves about the desk, not to Gareth, but to the door of his office, which he locks with the solid sound of the metal deadbolt slotting into place. "All right, Gareth," he says. "I suppose there comes a point where it becomes better to be forewarned and, thus, forearmed. You're certain you want to know all of this? Because you may end up feeling a good deal worse." +----+ Gareth +----------------------------------------------------------------+ Gareth shrinks into his chair when Razi actually stands up, like he's worried he's about to be in trouble for his outburst. He turns to watch him go towards the door and lock it. Gareth swallows hard before he nods silently. And rethinks that response, leaning towards Razi just slightly. "Yeah, yes. I do. I want to know," he states clearly. +----+ Razi +------------------------------------------------------------------+ "Mm." Razi does not sound entirely convinced of the whole matter. He returns to his seat, reaches for his coffee, and takes another sip. He is quiet for a long, thoughtful stretch of silence, although his gaze is averted rather than staring Gareth down. Finally, he looks back to him. "Do you believe in monsters, Gareth?" A beat. "Or in magic?" +----+ Gareth +----------------------------------------------------------------+ Gareth leans forwards to watch Razi, quiet for.. probably the longest he's been since he's been in Razi's office. "I've seen monsters. Metaphorically, at least. That's not the question you're asking." He hesitates, fiddling with his fingers. "I don't know," he says truthfully. "A few years ago I'd have said 'no, I don't believe in either'," he admits, looking down at his hands before he looks back to Razi, afraid but stubborn about it, even as things start clicking together in his sleep-deprived brain. "But I dunno, Razi. If you're about to tell me 'it's all real', then... things make a certain kind of sense where they didn't before." +----+ Razi +------------------------------------------------------------------+ Razi spreads his hands a bit in reply, and then he laces them loosely atop his desk. "Not every magic thing you can imagine is real," he says. "But some of them are. It is not my place to speak to the particulars of others within the city; their business is their own. But I will tell you that there are multiple types of supernatural entities that exist in the world, or outside of it." There, he pauses; it's another long moment of consideration, the line of his mouth a bit tight for a moment. And then he says, "A year or two into my career in New York City, I walked through a door one night, and I was somewhere else. Something was left behind in my place. When I finally returned, it was a decade later, and he was living my life. I was fortunate enough to be able to return to my identity, which is not the case for everyone in my position." And there, at the end, there is a tension as he waits for Gareth's reaction. +----+ Gareth +----------------------------------------------------------------+ Gareth is silent for a *very* long time. Even longer than the time just before it. He just stares at Razi, his eyes *wide*. And then he groans, his hands covering his face as he bows his head forwards, resting his elbows on Razi's desk *rudely*. "Oh my *God*, is that why Darwin asked me if I thought fairy tales were real??" he asks, his voice muffled through his hands. "'Magic being real' was not on the list of options I considered here, Razi. It really fucking wasn't." His hand snaps out, trying to pinch the back of Razi's hand. "Wait, fuck, no. Sorry. Pinch *me*," he demands of Razi. "I need to check I haven't completely lost my mind and that this is actually you talking to me." +----+ Razi +------------------------------------------------------------------+ Razi draws his hand back a /touch/ protectively from Gareth's sudden /pinching reach/. But then when he stops, and makes that particular request, Razi stops retreating. He peers at Gareth a moment, still a bit on edge himself. A lingering tension. But then he reaches over and, obligingly, pinches the skin at the back of his hand. "Perhaps," he says neutrally of Darwin's apparent question. +----+ Gareth +----------------------------------------------------------------+ "Ow!" Gareth says, pulling his hand back and rubbing it. He flops back into the chair, looking at Razi. "Honestly I half expected you to tell me not to be so stupid," he admits. "Either would have worked. Okay, okay, okay," he says, taking a long, calming breath. A long, slow, calming breath. "Okay," he says, breathing out and rubbing his face again. "I feel like I *should* have so many questions, but honestly right now I'm just relieved that I'm not going mad?" he queries with a half-smile. "I don't really know what to do with it? Like. It's like I had all of these puzzle pieces and I was putting them together in the dark and you just turned the light on and gave me the box with the actual picture on it." His gaze flicks around the room until it finally returns to Razi. "Has it always been you?" he asks curiously. "You you, not the... other you," he clarifies. "That I've known," he clarifies further. +----+ Razi +------------------------------------------------------------------+ There's a slight thinning of Razi's lips when Gareth asks about the 'other you,' although it doesn't seem to be any ire directed at Gareth. "It's always been me. At least I certainly hope so. But yes, it was you that you originally met, and I have had no reason to suspect anything else has made contact with you in my guise." Some of that tension does ease, however. "You seem a good deal in need of sleep. Perhaps, now that you know you have not actively lost your mind, it might be better for you to begin there. I promise I have no plans to flee the city." +----+ Gareth +----------------------------------------------------------------+ "I just wanted..." Gareth starts, and then looks away, his mouth working as he tries to figure out the words. "I wanted to know if it was real. That it was *you* that cared. And not... keeping up an appearance. Thank you." He stands up, his legs just a little wobbly. "God, Razi, I wouldn't have thought that you'd flee the city just because I knew that ghosts are real. Wait, are ghosts real?" he asks, suddenly interested, his train of thought interrupted. And then, abruptly, he goes white. Which is impressive, considering how pale he was before. "...Razi?" he asks hesitantly, "...are werewolves real?" +----+ Razi +------------------------------------------------------------------+ "Of course," Razi murmurs to that thanks, and his gaze tracks Gareth with perhaps a /hint/ of concern for the wobble. To the question of ghosts, he simply says, "Yes." To the question of /werewolves/, his brows tick up a touch, although whether that's due to the topic or Gareth's clear reaction is not immediately clear. He pauses a moment, and then he says, "Yes." +----+ Gareth +----------------------------------------------------------------+ "Oh," is Gareth's response, this revelation inexorably ticking through his brain, slowly wiring neurons together that when all connected fire *directly* into the mortification center of his brain. "Oh. Oh my god. Oh my *god*," he says, his hand slapping his face with an audible sound of skin against skin. "Oh my *fucking* god." +----+ Razi +------------------------------------------------------------------+ "Gareth." Razi's brow creases now, and he actually rises from his seat once more to lean over his desk and set a hand on his shoulder. "You're not going to make this any easier on yourself by committing assault on your own person." That's not ACTUALLY how it works, but. +----+ Gareth +----------------------------------------------------------------+ Gareth laughs helplessly, pulling his hand off his face. "What are you going to do, arrest me? No, do you know what I'm going to do? I'm going to go roll up a fucking newspaper and *bap* a dog on his fucking *nose* oh my god how has he not killed me I made a *fleas* joke." He breaks into hysterical laughter. +----+ Razi +------------------------------------------------------------------+ "No, I'm not a police officer," Razi says, voice particularly bland now. He pauses a beat when Gareth starts /hysterically laughing/, and he comes around the desk now, leaning up against it in better range so that he can just sort -- pat. Gareth's shoulder. Uh. There, there? +----+ Gareth +----------------------------------------------------------------+ Gareth laughter catches in his throat and he manages to pull himself together with long, hiccupping breaths. "Fuck I need to sleep. Sorry. God, fuck, I'm sorry. I promise I'm not having a nervous breakdown in your office." He is. He totally is. He reaches up to catch Razi's hand on his shoulder, squeezing it just once before letting go. "Thank you," he says emphatically. "Thank you for telling me the truth." +----+ Razi +------------------------------------------------------------------+ "You do," Razi agrees, his voice just shy of stern. Just...you know. /Serious/. To the thanks, he's quiet a moment, until finally his head tips. "I don't know that I've done you any real favors," he says. "But, for what little it's worth, you're welcome." +----+ Gareth +----------------------------------------------------------------+ Gareth gives a little shrug of his shoulders, shooting Razi a small smile. "I mean, what do you expect me to do with it, Razi? You've given me the truth that there are just some things that escape my understanding of the world. And I'll research them, and learn what to look out for when I'm doing my job. But at the end of the day, I'm only human. I can't..." he waves his hands vaguely. "You know, I have no idea what you can do other than fill in forms *really well*. But whatever it is, I probably can't do it. So more than anything you've given me the heads up to steer clear. And sometimes, maybe I should just not open that door." +----+ Razi +------------------------------------------------------------------+ And there, Razi's lips draw into the faintest of smiles. "It's mostly the forms," he says very seriously. "If you intend on being involved in this part of the world, there is an Accord within the city between the major powers. You'll want to sign onto it, if only for your own safety. I don't think you'll object to the terms: they mostly involve respecting the territory of others and everyone making a reasonable effort not to murder each other for no good reason." +----+ Gareth +----------------------------------------------------------------+ Gareth's gaze refocuses very sharply on Razi. "Major pow-" he starts to ask. "Wait is murdering each ot-" he redirects and then shakes his head, flagging. "I'm going to go home. I'm going to sleep and have a shower and take down my murder wall. I'm going to do the job I'm being paid to do. Can we go over these... Accords later? When I'm actually able to give informed consent?" he asks wryly. +----+ Razi +------------------------------------------------------------------+ "I think that's a good idea," Razi says, straightening back up. "I don't have the power to make you a signatory, anyways; it's just something I think you should consider." He sets a hand briefly on Gareth's shoulder before turning back around to his desk and reseating himself. "Try to get some rest, hm? We can speak later." +----+ Gareth +----------------------------------------------------------------+ "Yeah, of course. But maybe at least you can explain the tees and cees to me, huh? Thanks, Razi," Gareth says again, shooting a weary smile to Razi before he turns towards the door. And completely ignoring his advice to himself about not opening some doors, he attempts to open it. It takes him a moment of straining at the handle before he remembers the deadbolt, unlocking it, his face flushed in embarrassment as he *flees*. Never did get the hang of doors. | |