Fandom Into the fire (1x1 MzHyde/Gallifrog)

[_gallifrog_]

John didn't have the same reservations as Kay and Fia when it came to eating the fried tentacles. When John had first come across them he'd thought it was the most disgusting looking food every created by humans. Had it not been for somebody daring him to eat them, he wouldn't have gone near them with a barge pole, let alone a pair of chopsticks. They weren't his first choice when it came to seafood, but they were slowly growing on him. So he put a couple on his plate prompting Chas to sigh and go "really John? You're gonna eat that?" in a tone filled with mostly disgust and a strange hint of admiration. "They're not as bad as they look mate, sure they're an acquired taste, but they grow on you after a while." Elliott groaned as particularly hideous mental image came to mind. "Never say that sentence again, I think I'm gonna have to bleach my brain or something."

The video of Fia was a welcome deterrent to Elliott's mental picture of a tentacled John. "Thanks." He laughed at how competitive it was, noting that none of the five were holding back and despite the age, height and build differences between the people, they all had ways of succeeding. The dogs made a nuisance of themselves more than they were helpful, which just added to the hilarity of it. Fia's happiness didn't go amiss by Elliott, she looked like she was truly enjoying herself, completely relaxed, yet having the time of her life treating John and Chas as a combination of a ladder and a springboard. In his opinion this was a very close second to the most enjoyment Fia had had from this time travel experience. It made him smile to see her like that. John and Chas leaned over him to re-watch, not regretting anything they did in the course of the game.

Elliott passed the phone back to Kay with a smile. "Seems like I missed out on a good time." "That ya did, you'd have enjoyed it mate."

 

[MzHyde]

Both Kay and Fia grimaced when John went for the tentacles, glad that Chas said what they were both thinking. Fia's reaction to John's reply just had the facial expression of 'nope nope nope! Not in a million years would I ever put that in my mouth' whilst looking at Elliott as he groaned, having a good idea what mental image he was coming up with in his mind. "same here, just..it's full of nope!" Fia agreed with Elliott. Kay couldn't even look at them on his plate let alone think anything along the lines of what Elliott was thinking.

Which at that point proved to have been the best time to show Elliott that video she promised to share. Kay noticed the smile on Elliott's face when he watched the hilarity unfold, making her able to tell when it was for the sheer happiness that Fia was having and when it was for the general comical relief that was the whole video. Fia didn't regret a single dirty move she made in that game either, she felt like she was not only having the time of her life just having fun, but also bonding with John and Chas. Even if it was to use them as ladders and springboards. Kay took the phone back when Elliott passed it over and nodded at his statement. "I agree, it was nice to initially just relax in the water but fun to see this lot try and play a game amidst the dogs. But it was funnier seeing this lot get dunked by said dogs who didn't see them coming" Kay added. "I saw Meyer coming and I still got dunked underwater by her." Fia pointed out.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Elliott laughed when Kay told him that the others had been caught unaware by the dogs. He would have loved to see that happening an joined into the chaos himself, but he knew that spending the time with Rinaa was the better choice for him. Unlike with Fia who was going to exist for certain in whatever timeline won out, there was no guarantee that Rinaa would. Neither he nor Jay had actually talked about having a kid (they'd only just talked about their mutual feelings) and seeing how shitty a life Rinaa had, neither wanted to witness a child going through that. And unlike Fia, Rinaa had never had an Elliott in her life so Elliott was determined that she got as much of his attention and affection when she needed it.

"John, Chas, how could you not see something that size coming?" He indicated the dogs who were currently at the other side of the table with the teenagers who were more than happy to spoil them rotten. "We were facin' the other way and Benji and Nat had only just arrived with the dogs at that point. So they gave us no warning." John replied, picking up another piece of his tentacle dish ignoring the disgusted looks from the others, he found them quite funny if he was being honest. "Well you had like a split second as I got dunked first, but you spent that laughing instead of checking your own back." Chas grumbled back, but in a good natured way. "Those dogs have a serious pounce, floored us easily." "Well they are hunting dogs, chosen and trained for speed, strength and agility all in one good looking parcel."

 

[MzHyde]

Kay knew why Elliott decided to stay back with Rinaa, it was clear from the texts they sent each other that it wasn't just to keep an eye on Rinaa but to give her all the time she could have with him. It was why she never questioned his decision to remain behind and just joked around with him instead. She would have chosen exactly the same thing if the roles were reversed and it was her and Fia. She smirked at his question toward Chas and John about not seeing the dogs coming, knowing that if she wasn't still in the water at that exact point, she would have filmed it. She continued to listen to their excuses of why they didn't see them coming, which were valid reasons whilst still refusing to look at what John was eating.

"the real truth though, is that if you all had warning it wouldn't have been nearly as funny. Your expressions were priceless" she remarked. "I thought Benji and Nat were gonna fall over or literally wet themselves they were laughing so hard" she added with an amused smile on her face. Both Kay and Fia did notice how much fuss the dogs were getting from the other teenagers and just smiled fondly before turning their attentions back to their group. Fia didn't even care that she was the only teenager with them, she was happy to be. "it was quite the sight" Fia agreed, between mouthfuls of food. Kay continued to eat as well amongst the discussions whilst grabbing herself a drink from the nearest available one to her so she didn't have to lean forward and over a table. "so how the film you watched earlier?" Kay then asked Elliott, remembering that he said he was watching one with Rinaa.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Elliott laughed harder at Kay's description of John and Chas while the men themselves shrugged and smiled in a half embarrassed manner. The descriptions also brought a half smile to Jay's face. "Pity you didn't get in on camera I'd have got it framed or something, it'd be a nice birthday present for somebody." Elliott replied with a smirk. "I'd just change all of Chas' profile pictures to his shocked face for the laugh." Chas shook his head in fond dismay. "One tiny flaw there mate, I don't have any profile photos worth changing, and by changing my contact picture, you'd just be giving me a better one than the one of me you currently use." The contact picture John and Chas used for each other changed on a whim, the current ones showed the two in their twenties, but throughout the years they'd developed a sort of competition for having the stupidest and most unflattering photo of the other as their contact photo.

At the mention of the movie, Elliott smiled and nodded, before giving a little bit of context to Chas and John. "After Rinaa finished self-tattooing the two of us ended up watching a movie from her enormously large collection. She has like, a mini Netflix on a drive. I hadn't heard of the film before, it came out while I was on Earth. It was this actiony heist movie where a group of master thieves and catburglars planned this elaborate heist to rob a star system valuables deposit and it almost went perfectly. But the movie's focus wasn't the elaborate heist, it was about the relationships between the various thieves and how it turns out their past was all linked to one particular organisation, the ones who hired them to do the heist. My explanation's probably not doing it justice, but it was phenomenal." Elliott explained, the smile on his face making it clear he really did enjoy the movie and the chance it gave him to spend time with Rinaa.

 

[MzHyde]

"If I was out of the water at that point I so would have done, trust me. It was fantastic." Kay replied with a smirk, slightly smug that she managed to embarrass both men in the process, even slightly. She smirked at John and Chas talking about changing contact and profile pictures even though she couldn't see where Chas would ever have a profile picture for anything, she certainly didn't take him for the social media type, she was damn certain John didn't as well. Which now she thought about it, she didn't even have social media anymore, she used to when she was a teenager but in her mind, very few teens didn't. Yet she deleted it all when she went on the run to go as much off the grid as possible.

She listened to the film description and she could really tell Elliott did truly enjoy the film as well as using that to spend time with Rinaa. The passion for it just seemed to ooze from him which was so nice to witness. "sounds like an awesome film" Fia commented, always leaning toward action and horror herself, it sounded like something that would be right up her alley. "sounds intriguing that's for sure" Kay agreed with Fia's comment. Fia also realised just with the topic at hand that it made sense who Kay was texting when they were all on shore earlier, before putting down her fork taking a break from eating for a little while.

 

[_gallifrog_]

The others listened as Elliott explained the film and it sounded right up their alley. Action, thriller, sci-fi and horror were firm favourite genres of all three, slice of life was more hit and miss however, they were incredibly critical of forced relationships and character arcs that made no sense whatsoever in the context of the film. Character development was, in their minds, a hugely important aspect of film and when done masterfully it added a whole other level of engagement to the film. Elliott had clearly loved the film, but the chance it gave him to bond with his daughter was something he had enjoyed even more than that. "Sounds like you both enjoyed it then." "Your explanation is great Ell, now I want to watch it."

"Well that's your entertainment for the flight back sorted then, John." Elliott joked with a broad grin. Jay had been listening intently to the explanation of the movie, it sounded extremely familiar to her. "I think I know that movie. You don't remember the title by any chance?" "I do actually" Elliott replied, upon hearing the title Jay grinned before continuing in a delighted tone. "OH YES. That IS the one. It's got that lift surfing scene and the actress with the incredible facial prosthetics" Elliott nodded in affirmation as Jay continued raving. "I believe I saw it in the cinema when it first came out and it is truly a masterpiece. The director completely subverted the whole heist movie genre and the trailers gave none of the twists away. You go into it expecting just a simple heist movie, but you end up with something completely different." Jay very nearly went into a long and detailed monologue about the finer points of the movie, the symbolism, the stunts and the genius camera work, but stopped herself short, realising just how out of character that would seem to the others. "What? I watch a shit tonne of movie and analyse them too y'know." She said in a way that was more embarrassed than defensive.

 

[MzHyde]

Fia and Kay both nodded in agreement at John's interest to see the film, nothing having come to the same decision themselves. Elliott may have joked about it being John's entertainment for the flight back sorted but it really wouldn't surprise Kay if John did decide to borrow Rinaa's laptop to watch it. They both then looked at Jay when she said the film sounded familiar, before finding that it did for a reason, which was that she had indeed seen it. They listened to her talk passionately baout the film and although it was incredibly out of character for her, Kay thought it was nice to see.

Fia found herself smiling at Jay's passionate ramblings about the film, only to stop herself from going into anymore detail about it and looking sheepish. "no need to be embarrassed for that Jay. It's cool to see you like this over something. In my opinion no one should be sorry or embarrassed for their hobbies or likes." Kay told her. "she's right, we all should have something we love unapologetically" Fia said in agreement. She knew Kay would be lost if she didn't have her drawing and she herself would be if she didn't have her violin.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Elliott had never seen Jay to be so passionate about something that wasn't related to the art of death or criminal activities ans found himself staring in surprise as Jay spoke. Film was something Jay clearly enjoyed, and not just as a passive viewer judging by the tone and the complex terms he picked up on in her short outburst. "Jay, they're right, don't stop talking about this, you clearly love it, and I'm now wondering how I missed that fact that you're a massive film nerd underneath all the..."
Elliott was going to say something along the lines of 'incredibly deadly, smart and hot assassin thing you've got going on' but knew he'd never live it down if he said that. Not only would John use it to tease him, Fia and Chas would definitely have a go and Jay herself would also find a way to use it to embarrass him. So instead he went with a hand wave, gesturing up and down Jay's body "everything" ."Descriptive" John smirked (knowing that Elliott was clearly thinking of a different word(s) to describe Jay) which was met with a "Shuttup" by Elliott.

Jay didn't blush in embarrassment at the encouragement, she was far too good at controlling her emotions to let something like that happen, but she took on board what the others had to say. "The answer to that question Elliott is that: a) you never asked, b) I didn't do it at movie nights with crew as I'm still an outcast and c) you evidently don't go on film forums often enough." "You're on film forums?" Elliott parroted in surprise. "Of course I am" Jay shook her head slightly at Elliott being so slow on the uptake. "Clearly none of you ever looked deep enough into my internet history or my docs folder. I've always loved film and not just in a passive way, but as in a person who, after watching it once will go back and scrutinise every frame of a film for clues, read every article and piece on said film, figure out stunts, CGI, costumes, props and develop and discuss theories. I get in super deep and did have a sort of blog at one point."

 

[MzHyde]

Fia could see particularly that Elliott was just as surprised as most of them were at Jay's passion for film. She watched on as Elliott spoke up and went to say something but was clearly mentally stopping himself for fear of being tormented about it by the lot of them. So when he just gestured up and down Jay and used one single word to describe her, Fia found herself shaking her head at him smirking. She would have said 'what he said' but decided against it as Elliott told John to shut up. She also found herself impressed like always at Jay's ability to control her emotions on the outside from all their comments and praise.

Kay listened to Jay answer Elliott's question, finding that the girl was getting more and more interesting as the days went on from them knowing her. Not even Fia knew about this from her timeline's as Jay was still as secretive about certain things as she was in this time. Both girls thought it was really cool that Jay would go that far in depth with what films she had seen and even to go as far as to make a blog at one point. "that's actually pretty cool" Kay commented. Fia nodded as she took more of her drink before picking up her fork and nibbling what was left on her plate once more.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Elliott was beginning to wonder if there was anything Jay couldn't do. It hadn't taken him long after meeting Jay to realise that she was incredibly capable and talented in many different areas. As he listened it felt like he was falling for her even more than he already had. When they first met Jay had been so shut off and so layered that he had dubbed her as 'a real life question mark' in his mind because if he was asked to fill in a file on Jay, he'd only be able to answer with question marks. In depth film analysing was a side of Jay he'd never seen before and definitely wanted to see more of. He made a mental note to ask Rinaa if she had any of Jay's favourite films with her. John raised an eyebrow and let out an unintentional snort when Jay revealed she had a blog. Jay did not seem like the blogging type in John's mind and his reaction was more out of scepticism than malice.

Jay didn't like being laughed and would have narrowed her eyes in annoyance at John had it not been for the fact that Elliott spoke at the exact instant John snorted. Jay still heard the noise, but let it slide. "How can you sort of have a blog? Don't get me wrong" he held up his hands in a 'wait until I've finished speaking before verbally flaying me please' gesture. "I''m sitting here getting more and more impressed as you speak, but how does that work?" "It was a team effort really, we shared the account, I did the majority of writing and site coding while my brother spoofed the IP addresses and proof read and spellchecked. Both of us contributed opinions and theories to the finished product. Though it's probably withered and died since none of us have done anything with us, if it's even still active at all." She smiled fondly then shrugged. "It's probably totally cringy to read now."

 

[MzHyde]

Kay and Fia also noticed the snort from John toward Jay but knew he wouldn't have meant that out of malice in the slightest. He would have known better than to deliberately piss off Jay, both girls knew that. So when Elliott spoke at the same time, they were somewhat thinking how it was a saving grace for John without either of them probably even knowing it. Granted, Jay really didn't seem the blogging type but either Fia or Kay would have reacted the way John did, which was proven by Kay's initial comment.

They also thought Elliott's question was kind of valid as most people would have considered it a cad of either you did have a blog or didn't have a blog. 'Sort of having a blog' did seem like a strange choice of wording. Fia recognised the hand gesture from Elliott well, knowing that he had given her that gesture a few times in her timeline from a various amount of random conversations she would have had with him when she wanted a brother's opinion and not a parent's opinion. They all listened to what Jay said, now finding her initial statement making full sense. "have you ever thought about finding out if it's still around?" Fia asked curiously.

 

[_gallifrog_]

John was oblivious to the fact that had not Elliott spoken up he'd have been on the receiving end on Jay's disapproving glare. As her eyes had no whites, irises or noticeable pupils it was a disconcerting experience to stare straight into them. She'd also learned how to go three or four minutes without blinking, which just added to the unsettling nature of the stare. Chas listened with interest as Jay explained what she meant by her earlier remark, it was a strange choice of words, but if there was one thing he'd learned in the time he'd spent with Jay, it was that she picked her words with precision. Watching Jay and Elliott it was clear that Elliott was totally whipped. He could barely take his eyes off the woman and his eyes were filled with a deep affection.

Fia's question was a good one in the other's opinion. Jay was willingly offering up this information about her past and Elliott was confident that Jay would be wiling to show it to them, or at the very least to him. Elliott was fascinated and had set his plate to one side so he could give Jay his full attention. Jay had barely given any thoughts to her old social media and communication accounts since leaving Earth for the first time in years. She shook her head. "I hadn't given the old thing any thought in years. When I first crashed I did think of trying access it, only to realise that the network on Earth is completely insufficient for accessing the interplanetary data streams. But now that I'm thinking about it, I might try find it." She fell silent for a moment, her eyebrows knitting together as she thought. "In theory, it shouldn't have been taken down, the domain is paid for and the only other maintenance fees are paid by standing order."

"I'd be interested in seeing it" Elliott told her honestly, before flashing a grin. "And I'm sure I'm not alone in saying that, given that this is the nosy fucks corner of the table." "OI! Who're you callin' nosy?" John asked in mock outrage. "So you're saying you wouldn't be interested in scoping this blog out?" Elliott asked, eyebrow raised, arm crossed. "I didn't say that." John backtracked. Jay watched the two men a smile twitching at the corners of her mouth.

 

[MzHyde]

Kay was pretty sure that anyone with working eyes could see the affection that Elliott held for Jay. It was plain as day how he felt about her and how much interest he had for anything that was part of Jay's life, be it past or present. They really were meant for each other in her eyes and it did warm her heart to see that they had someone who they truly cherished. She may not have known either for long but she did want the best for them, particularly Elliott. She did also think Fia's question was a good one whilst being an innocently asked one at the same time without sounding like she was prying for sensitive information or being judgemental.

Both girls by this point had finished their food and eaten all they possibly could for the time being, with Fia purposely saving room for some kind of dessert out of the sweet items that were around, yet for now she was more interested in what Jay had to say, so she listened. Kay listened as well, not surprised to hear that Earth was incapable of such a thing. Ateast whilst they were away from Earth, Jay had a good excuse to try and find it. Both Fia and Kay chuckled at Elliott's comment about their group nosy unable to fully protest that, though Kay was probably the least nosy out of them, but not completely innocent of it. "I'd be interested if it's accessible still, as I can't even pretend to not be nosy because I know damn well I am. " Fia spoke up with a 'guilty as charged' crooked smile.

 

[_gallifrog_]

"I'm interested alright, though I prefer to be referred to by the term 'nosy sod'." Chas added after Fia voiced her enthusiasm. He wasn't saying that, he was genuinely interested to see what Jay and her brother had created together, as well as what kind of insight it could give into Jay's mind. Even as she was sitting right in front of him, Chas found it extremely hard to tell what she was thinking or feeling currently, apart from her affection for Elliott (her anger towards the other assassin had been cast aside now that she was distracted talking about her past life as a blogger). That was one thing that had dramatically changed in the time they'd spent with Jay, now that she'd been publicly outed as liking Elliott, she hadn't bothered to conceal that part of her with an emotional facade anymore. Before it had been only visible in the small gesture and tics, but now it was always present as some sort of low level background affection.

"Sure, sure, whatever floats your boat mate." John waved a hand at Chas deciding to be nit-picky about what term was used to describe him."Ell's already outed me as interested" John shrugged, before leaning forwards and giving Jay a conspiratorial look. "So the real test, does this blog have any pieces where you utterly slay terrible movies?" Jay's response was an evil looking grin. "Oh yes it does! There's a whole section I believe, it was sort of an unofficial hobby we had for when we weren't racing or training, we'd competitively destroy bad movies." "You can do that competitively? Wow.... just wow." "Well we could anyway, though we got competitive about everything and anything. Some of the funniest posts would be in the crappy movies section." "Well you've got me hooked then." "I can think of on many Earth movies that would be worth putting in that category, I had no idea that 'so bad it's good' was such a celebrated genre on certain planets." "On behalf of the human race, as the most human one here, I'm taking that as a compliment to our species." Chas declared, deciding that due to John's demon's blood he was the most human of their group.

 

[MzHyde]

Kay smirked at Chas' pickyness about how to be addressed when it came to being accused of nosy. It was such a typical Chas response Kay thought that smirking was the only way she could react to it. She and Fia glanced at John as he leaned forward and started asking, wondering where he was going with this until he finished asking his question. Both girls just rolled their eyes at it, even if they were slightly curious to what the answer would be. When Jay started grinning in an evil manner, they k ew they had their answer before she even opened her mouth.

They too was confused at first at someone could competitively rate and review movies, but then they both came to the realisation that they shouldn't even question it when it came to Jay. It was obvious the woman was capable of making anything competitive if she truly put effort into it. Neither spoke when the others did in response to her explanation, just nodding that this blog seemed all the more interesting and entertaining by the minute. With Chas declaring himself the most human one out of their group, Kay truly realised he wasn't actually wrong on that statement. Neither Fia or Kay were fully human, nor was John and Elliott certainly wasn't, nor was Jay. "of course you'd use your non tainted/mixed blood to your advantage in this conversation of all things" Fia smirked, not saying it out of malice but more sarcastically than anything.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Chas just shrugged in response to Fia's statement, there was no denying he was right. he didn't usually think of himself as the only human in the group, it didn't bother him really, he knew he was just as capable as any of them and he provided the invaluable service of transport (John couldn't actually drive a car and there was only so much one could carry on a motorbike). "I'm just working with what I got, can you blame me for doing it really?" "I'd die laughing if we found out that you aren't actually human after all this time." John added, knowing that Chas meant no offence in his remark. If Chas somehow wasn't human, John would be seriously questioning how it had slipped past them all these years, Chas gave off no demonic, divine or any other non human auras and neither Jay nor Elliott had flagged him as being alien.

"If that did happen it would typical of my life. So what would I be then?" "Not the foggiest mate" John shrugged before making up something on the spot, vaguely inspired by some old scrolls he half remembered reading at one point or another. "Some kind of god or higher being that had their powers and memories removed forced to be reincarnated in various bodies with no idea of their true potential?" Chas laughed at the absurdity of that suggestion "bloody Hells John!". Elliott joined in shortly after. "Chas is amazing and all, but not quite sure if god-like is a term I'd use, no offense." "None taken" The cabbie shook his head "I wouldn't use it either."

"Is something like that even possible? I know you can counterband and suppress, but to take away powers completely, surely that's a step too far?" Jay asked once they'd finished splitting their sides. "In theory..... yes, it could be done, but not by a mere mortal like me. It would be incredibly complicated and would requite far more energy and power than even a coven of high mages could muster. It would have be done by a group of beings of higher power, demi or semi gods maybe or some other form of godspawn would be the lowest type who could do it. But it depends on the power of the being who is getting stripped. The more powerful they are, the more needed to neutralise them."

 

[MzHyde]

Fia actually couldn't blame him for working with that one thing he had over any of them. That was mostly why she used a sarcastic tone, to show she didn't mean anything by her tease in the slightest as she respected Chas far too much. The very idea of finding out that Chas wouldn't actually be fully human was just so ludicrous to Fia and Kay, neither could ever picture him being anything other Chas. Both girls listened to the spiel that John spouted off after coming up with something to Chas' question about what he could be. Kay thought John was talking out of his arse but to Fia it sort of rung a bell to something she saw in the library, despite not having spent too much time in the area of the old scrolls.

They smirked at Elliott disputing the god like level for Chas, seeing that Chas wasn't the least bit offended. As it went on, Kay was with Jay on the subject matter, thinking it couldn't really be a thing only for John to say it really could be. "and there's me thinking you were talking out of your arse again" Kay smirked, joking around whilst ignoring as best as possible, the kicking that had started up again. She was so done with being pregnant now and getting bored of this stage even though it only had started a few days ago.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Jay was quite clearly fascinated as John explained his theory on how such a thing could be done, nodding as he spoke. It wasn't something she herself could actually do, but years as an assassin meant that when any unusual deaths or ways of dispensing pain were brought up, even in casual conversation, she would perk right up and want to know more. Magic was fascinating to her for the simple reason that it wasn't something she could ever do. She knew magic was nowhere near as easy as Elliott (and by extension John) made it look, but that didn't mean she hadn't fantasised about what she could do with that kind of power. The idea of being able to strip a god-like being of all it's powers and memories held a dark allure for her.

Chas knew that John was an excellent liar, exaggerator and con man when it came to general conversation, but he knew that when John spoke of magic, ninety nine times out of one hundred whatever story he told would have a grain of truth in it somewhere. This was proving to be one of those ninety nine. He too was sceptical like Elliott and Kay, but he and Elliott both knew that if John said it was true, it was to be taken as true. "In fairness he does do that a lot." Chas smirked to which John rolled his eyes and tutted slightly. "Thanks mate, but for the record all stories have some grain of truth in there somewhere, it's just a matter of weeding it out from the surrounding bullshit."

Elliott shook his head at such a typical John statement, drawling sarcastically "you have a simply marvellous way with words y'know. So eloquent." "Yes, that may be the case, but there's no denying the sentiment itself. There's an Isogrii saying, because they have a saying for pretty much any situation EVER - Stories are where memories go when they have been forgotten- same principle really." Behind them the tables were being cleared of the mains (or more accurately the bones and dirty plates left behind now that all the food had been demolished) and was replaced with various deserts.

 

[MzHyde]

Kay smirked when Chas came back at her comment in a sort of agreement to what she said. She had learned that if John said it was true, then she had to trust him in it, she just loved messing with him when she could. She did also have to agree with what John said about how most things were based on some kind of truth somewhere down the line. As Elliott spoke she chuckled, thinking of a one liner that she always would use a very long time ago from a film, usually resulting in either someone going more lost for words or slapping her. 'are you always this articulate?' seemed fitting to this conversation but went unsaid due to Elliott beating her to the punch.

She listened to what Jay said about the Isogrii having a saying similar to what John said and thought it was actually a really beautiful saying. "that's actually..really beautiful in a haunting way" Fia commented, seeing all the main dishes get cleared up. "it's certainly a really articulate way of saying what John said" Kay agreed with a smirk, seeing also the dishes were getting cleared up and Fia's favourite food group was getting brought out. She had to refrain from saying something to Fia in jest about it, deciding not to be a tease to her kid for once. "do the phoenix kind have any cool sayings like that?" Fia asked Kay, to which Kay shook her head and shrugged, "got no clue kiddo. There's probably a fuck load to do with fire but for general things? Not the slightest bit sure, but it wouldn't surprise me if there was" Kay explained.

 

[_gallifrog_]

Elliott and Chas were thinking exactly what Fia was, the lines Jay spoke were strangely haunting, yet beautiful, in the same way that an abandoned manor house is beautiful in a desolate way. "It's beautiful, but kinda sad at the same time." Chas replied, he'd read almost all of the book on Isogrii mythology since they found it and had noticed that Jay's people really did have a proverb for every occasion. "It's very poetic as well Jay." Elliott commented, passing over his plates to the people clearing the tables. He was thinking back on when Jay had first arrived and she'd speak in her native tongue to confuse (but mostly annoy) them. It turned out that most of what Jay had been saying wasn't actually insults, but old proverbs she felt fit the situation, but delivered in a sharp tone.

John wasn't surprised to learn that Kay had no idea if phoenix kind had similar proverbs, it was more surprising that Fia wouldn't know. They evidently knew far more about phoenixes in her timeline, though it could be some kind of bluff to preserve the timeline. "There's a reason it sounds like poetry, it's because the original line actually does come from a poem, an epic to be precise. One of those poems that's like forty pages long and you only learn it off it you are really bored, really swotty or as some form of cruel and unusual punishment... Or you're doing a degree in ancients poetry." "I take it you know it then?" Elliott asked with a soft smile.

"Of course." Jay told him, leaning back in her chair, knitting her fingers together. "I wouldn't subject you to the whole thing of course. But it's called something that translates to 'the bar to nowhere and the strangers that lurk there'. The relevant bit goes something like this:"Jay closed her eyes and began to recite in a slow, lilting tone.

" The stranger shrugged and sighed
"what does it matter?" he inquired
"everybody knows that stories are what happens,
when a memory dies."
"while that may be the case for some"
I answered, reaching for the rum.
"it's also true that many more turn to song
meaning they last just as long" "​

 

[MzHyde]

Kay and Fia both agreed that it was indeed very poetic and sad sounding in a few ways. Yet there was still something about it that was memorable and gripping. Kay did the same with the plates on her side of the table to make things easier for the person cleaning the plates up. Like John, it did surprise Kay that Fia seemingly didn't know any Phoenix proverbs by her timeline but didn't think too much of it for the time being, especially as Jay said that hers did come from a poem. Fia did however know a couple of them, but unknowingly as John guessed, she was playing dumb with it as she was curious to when abouts Kay learned of them to pass them down to her.

They both then listened as Jay confirmed she knew the whole poem but wouldn't put them through the whole thing, instead to give them an excerpt of it. Both listened intently, finding the voice that Jay was putting on was very soothing to listen to. Fia particularly found she could have listened to Jay read poems for ages quite happily. "that's really something... So haunting yet beautifully somber at the same time" Kay remarked when Jay was finished, meaning every word she said. "It really is. The kind of thing that really sticks in your head making it difficult to not forget any time soon" Fia agreed.

 

[_gallifrog_]

John raised an eyebrow at the title, whispering to Chas "Sounds like the kinda place I'd hang out in." The cabbie nodded in agreement, before giving John a look that said 'be quiet, I want to hear this'. The title of the poem (or at least Jay's translation) he noticed, also rhymed, which made sense. If the whole poem was forty odd pages long then having a rhyming pattern would surely help it to be remembered. He was surprised by just how effectively the translation rune was translating the poem, it was written in Jay's native tongue and rhymed in that,but somehow between the words leaving her mouth an entering their ears, not only had the rune translated them, it had translated it in such a way that it still rhymed.

There was something ageless in the way Jay told the poem, leaning back in chair, one ankle crossed over her knee, head tipped slightly upwards, fingers intertwined, a casual posture that had been adopted by thousands before her and would be adopted by thousands after. The change in her voice was deliberately put on, the lilting quality of her voice making it easier to run the lines into one another. There were also something in her voice that seemed to wash over the listener and draw them, as if what she was saying was some kind of secret. John wasn't a poetry person, but even he had to admit there was something about how jay recited it that would make him want to hear more. "They're right, that's really amazing Jay. Not just the poem, though that was that rare type that revels in it's melancholy nature, but you're reading of it was on another level." "I liked it, which is saying something." "I'm with Fia on that, I don't think that's ever going to get out of my head and I'd happily listen to the whole thing." Elliott told her, he found listening to Jay speak like that incredibly relaxing. He idly wondered if Rinaa had ever been soothed to sleep by Jay reading poetry, knowing that it would definitely work on him.

"Tell you what" Jay said with a smile opening her eyes again. She was quite enjoying being praised for her lesser known talents, and the idea of reading poetry to Elliott was strangely appealing (not that she'd say those exact words out loud). "If you have a couple of hours with nothing to do in them, I'll give it a go. The whole poem is from the point of view of the bartender who is observing and listening to the stories and conversations of the travellers of the universe. And it seems that ironically, I'm the one proving that all you lot have a soft spot for some poetry." Jay would have pegged herself, the assassin as the least likely person to expose the other's more sensitive sides, but that was exactly what was happening.

 

[MzHyde]

Because she in between the two of them Fia scrunched her eyebrows together in disapproval when John leaned over to whisper to Chas, glad that Chas all but told him to shh without saying a single word, as he wanted to hear what was about to be said. She was tempted to shop John back into his place but refrained from doing so and instead just focused on Jay and what was said. She too was glad that the translating runes translated the poem snippet so perfectly.

Kay and Fia couldn't help but smile and feel impressed that even John liked what he heard which was the most surprising thing out of the whole thing that just happened. They also agreed with WHAT Chas said after they spoke about it, with Fia smiling at Elliott agreeing with her. She could definitely picture Elliott just sitting around listening to Jay read poetry for hours on end with a content happy smile on his face. They both listened to what Jay said about if they ever have a couple of hours to spare she'd read the whole thing to them, something THAT Fia would gladly listen to. "well I love reading in general all kinds of things, whether it's magic text books or fiction or poetry, and with Kay being artistic it shouldn't be surprise us two have a softer side and soft spot for poetry" Fia commented. "she's right, I love reading in general and I would be that teen who would go to the old hidden independent book store that had a cafe in the back and hide away and read with a coffee to escape the world. So poetry isn't that much of a shock to like with me" Kay agreed.

 

[_gallifrog_]

It wasn't too surprising that out of them Fia and Kay would willingly pick poetry to read if given a choice. "Poetry wouldn't be my go to, I have to confess." Chas told them, he read a wide variety of things, but poetry wasn't something he gave a lot of time to. "When it comes to fiction I'm definitely a novel kinda guy, though there are certain authors who have an amazing ability to write in this beautiful language that sounds like poetry when you read it, but it actually isn't poetry." "My relationship with poetry is mixed, we did some Attili stuff when I was in school, but I was a kid, it was boring and hard to understand at the time. Maybe I would have appreciated it when I got older, but we'll never know on that." He shrugged, before adding with a groan of annoyance. "Plus my teacher had this really low droning voice that made it even harder to pay attention. Then on Earth it took me years to properly get to grips with the language in the first place. It was hard enough getting used to the nuances, different writing system and the massive variety of accents without, on top of that having to try and analyse somebody like Plath or Hopkins."

"Plath's poetry isn't that bad actually" Jay interjected before explaining why she thought that. "Most of it can be understood a lot better when taken as a metaphor for her life long struggle with depression, her unhappy, verging on toxic marriage and her dramatic emotional swings. But yes, your point still stands, poetry isn't something you look at when learning a language, unless you are studying the culture too." "Well I hate the stuff!" John declared. "It was the most bloody boring part of English lessons and we were forced to learn so much of it for fucking exams. How is being able to answer bullshit questions on poetic techniques, inspiration and cultural context going to help you get anywhere in life?" He grumbled. John had genuinely detested poetry in his school days and refused to have anything to do with it. "And they always chose the most boring poems too, where you have to get a thesaurus and an English degree to make sense of it." "And he skipped or slept through most classes anyway. Though school level poetry is just a hoop you have to jump to for the Department of Education's amusement." "So I refused to jump to their hoops and did me own thing."