[rhymes with demon]

[porcupineliz]

Liz is standing at the bar, reading a brief note over and over.

Anyone wanting to talk to her may have to put in a little extra effort to get her attention.

Comments

[porcupineliz]

A long shaky sigh, with what might be a stillborn laugh in there somewhere. "Okay, yeah, fair."

She lifts her glass and takes a determined swallow of the whiskey.

[dr_j]

Jordie eases his arm around her again. "Is this okay?"

[porcupineliz]

"Better than okay." She leans against him, her eyes half-closing.

It helps; so does the whiskey. The shaking's almost gone.

[dr_j]

"Good." He picks up his own glass. "I think it's pretty okay, too."

[porcupineliz]

"Good to know."

Another swallow. Her breathing has slowed back down.



"Well," she says after a moment, and rubs her face with her free hand.

[dr_j]

"Well." Soft. "You're back down here. Do you want to talk?"

[porcupineliz]

She nods without looking up.





It's several seconds before she says anything. "I don't know if I just did something really smart or really stupid. Or both. Maybe both."

[dr_j]

Gently: "Why don't you start off with what you did, and we'll save the value judgments for later?"

[porcupineliz]

"The demon sent me a note." Tiredly. "Saying something like 'it's about time we talk'."

Beat.

"So I strapped on a bunch of silver and went up to talk to it."

[dr_j]

Jordie stiffens. He can't stop himself.

But his tone is quiet. "What did it have to say?"

[porcupineliz]

She finishes her drink, puts the empty glass down on the table. Her hands find each other in her lap.

"Bullet points: everybody here is on the menu. It's planning on bringing in an army. And it wanted me to spread the word."

[dr_j]

Jordie lets out a long breath.

His voice isn't entirely steady. "Can we still get out?"

[porcupineliz]

"It didn't say." Neither is hers. "But it said I could maybe still save a few lives if I started telling people. Do you --"

She looks up at him.

"Do you want to try to get out now?"

[dr_j]

He shows her his wrist.

Her bracelet dangles.

"Is this enough?"

[porcupineliz]

She looks at the bracelet, and then up at him, startled. "You got my note? Then you knew --?"

[dr_j]

Blankly: "I didn't get a note. Was there a note?"

[porcupineliz]

"I -- wrapped the bracelet. In a note. I thought I did."

Did she forget to?

[dr_j]

Jordie turns bright red.

Muttered: "I didn't see the note part -- I just thought it was folded up in paper, that was it -- "

[porcupineliz]

"... oh god that was dumb of me." She buries her face in one hand. "I should've made it two separate things, I didn't think --"

[dr_j]

" -- you know I would have come up after you."

It's a question.

"So it's just as well you didn't."

[porcupineliz]

She looks up at him, blinking.

"... yeah." A little shaken. "Yeah, definitely just as well. I don't --"




"There was more."

[dr_j]

He's silent, waiting.

(The arm around her tightens.)

[porcupineliz]

(That means he'll be able to feel the shudder she can't quite suppress.)




"It says it likes me."

The tone in her voice is loathing.

[dr_j]

Jordie's breath catches in his throat.








"Do you think," and he doesn't even bother pretending his voice isn't shaking, "it likes you enough to -- to do -- "

[porcupineliz]

"I don't even know." She rubs her face again; she's wishing she hadn't finished the drink yet. "It says -- and believe me I do not think it's true for one bleeding second -- it says it likes me enough to let me team up with it."