alwayskayaking | Duplicity Inbox

['We aren't that close.'

No. Jon supposes they aren't.]

We don't have to be that close. I'm responsible for everything that happened and will happen to you in the Archives. I couldn't keep you safe there. I can't really here, either, but the dangers are different. And you were so angry and bitter at the end.

I'd forgotten you were- that you could be... happy. I just don't want you to lose that and I think just staying away from Elias is a better solution. I doubt he'll come after you unless it's to get to me, and you're far more intimidating than other potential targets.

Edited 2020-06-17 13:27 (UTC)

You forgot I can be happy? [Well, that sure sounds ominous.] Me? The office's lovable prankster? Things really do go pretty sour in a year, don't they?

And it's not just about protecting me. It's about protecting all the people he has or will hurt. What kind of people are we if we just turn a blind eye and let him hurt other people so long as it's not us?

[There's a but of an extended pause.]

I... lost it. After Prentiss. After finding Gertrude's body. It didn't help having that Not-Sasha thing around. I could feel it, but I didn't know what it was, not back then. Elias was still pretending he had nothing to do with it. I started stalking you. I started stalking everyone. I barely slept or ate. I spent all night spinning wild conspiracy theories to myself about how you or the others could have killed Gertrude and were planning to kill me. It was bad. Obviously, it was horrible. It ruined things between us. Something I could never...

You hated me, Tim. Rightly so. I don't want to repeat that.

And I understand that you want to stop Elias hurting anyone else. Punish him for what he's done. As far as I know, it's only me and Agnes he's actually done anything horrible to here. He's been playing the model citizen otherwise. It's not turning a blind eye, but I just don't know what good it's going to actually do here. It might wind up catching innocent people in the crossfire in Duplicity and at home without having anything to actually show for it past the satisfaction of destroying someone evil. Possibly only temporarily.

Not-Sasha... [Tim's face falls once again. Even having been told several times that she gets-- has been replaced it was hard to believe. How could he have possibly not noticed her being replaced? They had dated and she was his best friend at the institute. It still didn't seem possible.

Wait-- what did Jon just say?] You thought I was planning on killing you? How could you think that? I only went into the archives because you asked me to. I risked my life coming back for you and Martin. If I wanted you dead I would have left you behind during the attack. [The suddenly Tim chuckles as if afraid of being left behind in some joke.] Wait, you're joking right? [That had to be it.] You really need to work on that a bit more.

And that's exactly why he should be stopped now before he gets any sort of power and influence behind him.

[Jon gives him a look before sipping his coffee. He could pass it off as a joke it would be easy. Tim seems to want it to be, and that's half the trouble with a lie, isn't it? Unfortunately, Jon wasn't a creature of comforting falsehoods even before he'd become the Archivist.]

When I say I lost it, I lost it. I was paranoid, delusional. If it hadn't been exactly what Elias wanted, he'd have needed to fire me. Or have me committed. I thought Martin wanted to kill me.

[He'll circle back to Elias in a moment when Tim understands just how unhinged he'd been.]

Martin? You thought that Martin was out to kill you? [Now Tim lets out a bray of laughter.] You really did completely lose it, didn't you?

[The laughter stings. Jon knows on some level that this is Tim coping, that he probably doesn't think it's actually funny, just... doesn't know how to react to circumstances that haven't happened, yet. But that doesn't mean it's not a bit like getting slapped in the face for trying to be vulnerable.

He can't be. Not with Tim. Not like this. It's probably good to have the reminder on something relatively mild.]

For a time, yes. I think maybe we've had enough of a heart-to-heart, Tim. So, unless you have any other pressing questions or murder plots to share, I think I should probably get back to work.

[There is nothing funny about anything they've discussed. The laughter simply felt like a better choice then screaming for the moment.] I don't know? Do you have any sort of good news to share? [Tim knows the answer if he's being perfectly honest with himself. He just so badly wants to be wrong. To have some sort of hope to cling to.] Because, yeah, I think I've had my fill of heart to heart for today if you don't.

[...]

Martin and I had a lovely holiday in Scotland before everything went bad. It was like... having a honeymoon. We saw a lot of very fuzzy cows.

[It's not much, but its... sort of good news.]

Fuzzy ones, huh? [It doesn't really give him much hope for himself, but he supposes there's not a lot of time for things to get better for him.] That's good. I bet there were some pretty great looking fuzzy cows. [He's attempting to sound sincere, but it likely just comes off as tired.]

[Look, the good news is incredibly limited and absolutely none of it centers around Tim or his life.]

Yeah. I... I have some photographs of Martin with them on my phone at home. The one I brought with me from home. I can show them to you sometime. He's really cute- th-they're really cute.

I would like to see them some day. [Honestly Tim couldn't care less. Not right now when everything seemed just a bit hopeless, but he could tell Jon would likely enjoy showing him. That was at least something.] Maybe next time then.

Yeah. Next time.

[Jon moves to stand up.]

Thanks for the coffee, Tim. I'll... see you around.

See ya, boss. [Tim will get up and move to walk off. He's not really sure where he's going, but he'll figure that out once he gets there.]

Duplicity Inbox

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject