route_1065 | five days after black and red collide

Entry tags:

five days after black and red collide

Who: Dale Cooper and Heather Mason
Where: The Ecruteak City Dinerrrr
When: December 14th
Summary: After those three days that were lost a lot of people probably had weird dreams about things they can't for the life of them remember. Coop and Heather are two of these people. And they've got some things to talk about. _{(..or as Kit excellently summarized it, this is AWKWARD CANON ENCOUNTERS: THE THREAD.)}
Rating: Oh umm, PG for possibly triggery conversation?
Log:

It's absolutely freezing out and the snow is falling thick and heavy when Dale Cooper makes his way to the Ecruteak City Diner, jacket collar folded up against the wind and hands buried deep in his pockets for what little warmth there is to be found there. He's not particularly used to this kind of winter despite having grown up with something resembling it - he blames having lived in California for the past nine years where the winters are, honestly, quite pitiful attempts at everything the season is meant to be.

Especially when compared to Johto. Good old sparkling completely-covered-in-snow Johto. The weatherman had announced a break in the persistent precipitation yesterday, but today's weather is another prime example of just how trustworthy those people are. The weather gods must be at odds with them. Either that or the deities have a not-so-secret penchant for practical jokes.

Needless to say he's cold and shivering a little once he enters the diner, gratefully shutting out the wind and swirling snow behind him as the little chime above the door welcomes him inside. It's warm in there - warm and quiet. Doesn't look like a lot of people felt like braving the weather to get a cup of coffee better than what the Inn can offer (which really isn't all that good, in his opinion, entirely too mild) but Cooper is a man of habit ... or standard, if you will, and if he's going to start the day with coffee it better be a (damn) good cup of the stuff.

And that's what he's set on, really. He takes his coat off even as he walks through the area to one of his favourite booths: by the windows, just a little secluded, comfortable seats. He's got a few things to ponder and brought one of his notebooks, but his first priority is to allow himself to just melt into the seat for a second there.

...and man that is sweet. But what will be even sweeter is coffee. And possibly something sugary.

Waaaiiiitress? c:

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Sorry Heather, you lost him at having Fire Walk With Me written for you to find. He's not listening fully to what she's saying after that and almost interrupts her.

"Where was it?"

It's okay, she's sort of gotten to that point where she's now rambling like a bad comedian because that's how she copes.

Still, she sits up a little more so that she can twist around and point to the floor where he was standing.

"It's not there anymore... it ... I think it kinda disappeared. Like... right in front of me."

He looks at the spot and there's still nothing indicating anything to him - but he still feels unnerved when he looks back at her.

It could be a one time thing ... not that that calms him. To his knowledge Maddy Ferguson only saw BOB once and the next time Cooper had seen her, she'd been wrapped in plastic.

He'd like to do something. With his hands. But the cups and the rest of the things are off to the side and he's not going to reach for them.

Intead he locks his fingers together.

"Have you seen him or those words at any other time?"

She had gone uncharacteristically quiet while he peered at the spot, just sitting there and absent-mindedly nursing the coffee while she watched.

When he asks her the question, though, the owl-eyed look of someone being called on something returns. Not that she's really being CALLED on anything... but...

"... Well, uh."

This was the part that had REALLY worried her. Almost more, in a way, than meeting him here in the diner did. Because that... well, hey. That could be dismissed... passed off as one of the MANY crazy, sometimes-nightmarish things that had happened that weekend.

But... just a little over a year ago...

"... I hadn't seen... the words before..."

He actually covers his face with his hands for a second, breathing in slowly, in a rare display of vulnerability.

She's seen BOB before.

She's seen him before.

It means ... it probably means it's not just a game. Cooper doesn't know a lot about BOB's motives but he has a number of REALLY good suspicions and he thinks several appearances mean that BOB is committed.

Committed to Heather.

And threatening to climb up his throat are the lives of all the people he's ever failed to save.

"Tell me about it."

It's a demand that's sort of broken if you listen closely, but it's still a demand and its coupled with a look her way that means she really should.

His hands are back on the table, locked together hard.

Heather may be a bit oblivious to others' feelings at times, but even when she's in the throes of recounting freaky experiences, there's only so much she can miss. And just like she's never heard him so urgent before, so genuinely unsettled, she's never seen him do that.

Not even when he had told her about what his best friend had done to him. About the woman he loved.

So while she opened her mouth to start talking, the words die in her throat as she looks across the table in combined alarm and concern.

"I-- ... are... are you okay?"

He's not.

He's never really been. But what he does is keep all his hurt and troubles at a distance where he can examine the big image without the details, because the details are what continue to tear at him.

BOB is a new detail. A recent development. Except he isn't, and having to dig into it hurts Cooper in places he'd forgotten and still can't remember.

And what hurts him even more is having to face that yet again, someone he cares about is in danger ... and he doesn't know what to do about it.

Somewhere, he's even wondering if BOB found Heather simply through his own being here. That had seemed to be why the Little Man had showed up. To talk to him. Maybe BOB had followed ... and Heather just happened to be his kind of girl ...

He needs to know when the other time or other times were. And what BOB did to her, said to her.

That's top priority right now.

Not him. And he looks genuinely confused for a split second, like he has no idea why she's asking him that.

"I'm okay", and he isn't, and has never really been, but that's not important right now. "Now tell me. Please."

Edited 2011-12-20 21:50 (UTC)

Her concerned gaze doesn't leave him at first. She's not convinced.

But... well... okay.

Exhaling, she puts her own hand on the table in front of her-- the other's resting below the table, on her knee.

"Well, I didn't... I didn't remember it at all until I saw him here, in this restaurant... like, it was just completely gone. But..." She rubs the back of her head, biting her lip again. The coffee's forgotten, but there wasn't much of it left anyway. "About a year ago... during that first... weird amnesia weekend, I was ... at work, and going downstairs to get a clean hat, or something... I worked at the Goldenrod Department Store then, remember? Anyway, the laundry room was super creepy so like... prime horror movie material already..."

Her fingers keep absent-mindedly trying to pick at the frayed knees of the jeans she's so used to wearing, only to find that there's nothing there. GODDAMMIT WORK UNIFORMS.

"... I got my hat, and then turned around, and... there he was. Standing in the corner in the dark and grinning at me."

He doesn't answer. He nods and listens intently, trying to absorb everything she's telling him.

Standing in a corner and grinning at her ... sounds about right.

What IS it about evil and dark corners and grinning?

She spreads her hands.

"I remember... telling him to leave, because... dude, that room is Employees Only, and he was really fucking creepy, but he just... laughed. So I, uh... I walked out... and..."

Once again she rubs at her head, trying to remember. This one is fuzzier. More distant, just by virtue of time. But fuzzy is better than NOTHING.

"And he.... he, uh... shit, I think he followed me."

Biting down on one finger, she frowns, brows furrowed deeply.

"Yeah, he was following me, and ..."

... And then suddenly, as the memory drizzles back in, realization dawns on her face. It's like she suddenly remembered where she left the keys.

"... Oh... so that's why he called me 'rude' this time..."

... wait, what ...

He'll just settle with a small frown.

"What did you do?"

Her answer is brief and to the point.

"I kicked him in the knee."

... :| okay.

He does a quick mental double take, tries to accept it, and fails.

Because it's BOB, and quite frankly, he's a fraid of BOB, and knowing what he is ... well, let's just say the thought of physically doing anything to him is absurd, impossible, and hardly ever crossed his mind.

So he blinks at her, tries again ... and still can't really wrap his mind around it, but he's going to pretend for now, okay.

"You kicked him."

Right. Okay.

"How did he react?"

Maybe, if she'd known at the time what he was, she'd have felt the same way, and just RUN.

.... NAAAH, it's HEATHER. We know she wouldn't.

Punch evil in the face ONCE and survive, and you'll just keep doing it... for better or for worse.

Needless to say, she just stares completely evenly at Cooper. If she were lying, if it were something she was making up for the sake of comedy or boasting, she'd be smirking that insufferable bratty grin she always wears when she brags. But she's not. Her face is completely straight.

"Well... he didn't... do MUCH... kinda... buckled a little. I think. Grabbed my arm, 'cause I tried to punch him in the mouth, too--"

... Yes.

Edited 2011-12-20 22:32 (UTC)

He only replies with the universal "Uh-huh?" sound, honestly looking a little impressed.

The dread BOB normally brings doesn't exactly inspire for much punching. Or kicking.

If nothing else he can understand why the spirit took a different approach the other time around.

Yeeeeaaaaah.

Straight-up, wordless creeping can do wonders... but on Heather Mason? Distinctly less so. She'd been stalked by abominations before... nothing a bullet and a well-placed stomp couldn't fix. ... Usually. At least that's what she thought.

... She had been much, much more scared the second time.

"Yeah, and then he... he said..."

Here is where the color drains from her face a little and she actually reaches up to cover her mouth slightly. Because she just remembered ...

"... Fire, walk with me..."

How could she have FORGOTTEN it? ... And to think, it hadn't even pinged her when Cooper had first mumbled it during that conversation. Or at least it hadn't pinged her enough to SAY anything, outside of thinking it was eerie-sounding... Maybe it had stuck with her because she remembered hearing it before. Somehow.

"... Shit, I totally forgot..."

He looks at her with a similar expression, fright and worry fighting for dominance in his face and winding up in a mix of both.

But he gets back on track quickly, leans forward even more. If it weren't for the table he might have touched her shoulder to encourage her to continue, but now there's just words.

Words that are a little rushed.

"And then?"

"And then I... pushed him away, and he... just stood there. ... And howled."

She has to admit, even after all the things she's been through, all the dark places she's explored the hearts of, all the bone-chilling, blood-curdling noises that haunt her sleep even now ... that had been one of the most terrifying sounds she's ever heard coming out of a human mouth.

"Then he... he backed up, and I backed up, and ... I ran. Just..."

She makes a sort of swooping motion with her hand.

"Up the stairs. Didn't look back. ... And that's it."

He feels with her. He's heard a howl from BOB as well, and even if it was out of Leland's mouth, it had rattled him pretty bad.

"And he was gone when you returned?"

That's a follow up question - he assumes he's right and is already mulling the facts over.

She's not hurt. That's a relief. But the fact that BOB seemed willing to get physical with her on both accounts was worrying.

The fact that he'd left her the Fire-verse both times even moreso.

And Cooper looks at her and he can see Teresa Banks and perhaps a bit of Laura and thinks that he really don't want to see her wrapped in clear plastic.

He has no doubt that she's strong and can take pretty good care of herself but she doesn't know what she's up against here.

Then again, he doesn't really know either.

She really doesn't know.

Nodding, she leans back against the back of the seat. What a night. What a conversation. As much as she'd worried, she hadn't suspected it would be this BIG...

"Yeah. Gone. ... I think I even got in TROUBLE. My bitch manager thought I was trying to get out of working."

He actually shoots her a quick smile at that but it's weak, doesn't fully reach his eyes and dies fast.

It takes him another moment before he says anything.

"If you ever see him again I want you to tell me right away."

It might be an obvious thing, but he needs to make it clear. Even if he doesn't know a lot he knows more than her. And BOB is his case. His, what, his enemy? He's from Cooper's world, so Cooper feels responsible.

Besides, he always did want to get a chance to understand and (if it would ever be possible) defeat evil, didn't he? And although he has very little evidence he's rather certain BOB is the evil that he's been looking for.

Again, she nods.

All initial reluctance aside... now that she's told him, and now that she knows... yeah. She'll probably tell him if she so much as finds a clump of grizzled gray hair stuck to her shoe. ... Okay, maybe not THAT, because Heather knows the difference between legitimate concerns and total paranoia, but there you go.

Her voice is uncharacteristically small.

"Yeah. I will."

And that's where he falls quiet. She seems to get it, or at least what he presented to her, and that's good enough. And she'd seen for herself. She knows it's serious.

He leans back with a soft exhale and lets his gaze rest on the table top, letting the chaos in his mind roar for a while longer until he'll start quiet it down.

BOB in Johto ... he'd never thought he'd follow him here.

Even if only for three days, it's worrying. But that again poses the question of what exactly goes on during those three days and what they are, not to mention what causes them.

After all, they're almost like clockwork.

... Hopefully BOB won't show up next time.

At least if he does ... next time she'll be prepared. Next time she'll know. That alone gives her a certain amount of comfort. Not, you know, a ton, but she'll work with what she's got.

She's quiet as well, for a time.

After everything... this?

She'd faced evil, sometimes with nothing but her bare hands, and for seven years, even less than that. She'd died dozens of deaths. She'd fought monsters and killed them. She had destroyed God and defied her own destiny. She'd saved the world, and herself.

She had done the impossible.

And after all THAT... some spook from ANOTHER world decides it wants a piece of her?

It's not fair.

"... Hey, Coop?"

Almost on an impulse, she reaches across the table to try and lay a hand on his arm.

"It's gonna be okay."

He swallows against the words, looks to her hand first - face a small moment after.

He has absolutely no idea what prompted her to say that. But it's only when she says it that he realizes he hasn't heard those few simple words nearly enough.

He can barely remember. He knows his dad told him a few times ... and his mother, back during those frightening nights of his childhood when he thought he might die.

No one had told him things would be okay when his life started falling apart because others couldn't go on living. And when he'd miraculously survived that thing in Pittsburgh, it hadn't been "it's going to be okay", it had been "you're lucky to be alive". It had been "we're glad you're back", "feel better", "good luck" and "take care".

Never any reassurance for the future. It didn't bother him because he didn't notice, didn't think to care - it wasn't anyone's place to tell, because no one knows what the future holds.

And Heather is no exception. Which is why he's surprised to find that the words mean something to him.

All things considered, it's a nice thing to hear, true or not.

He gives her a mild smile that probably comes across as just a touchy shaky and reaches out to return the gesture: her hand on his lower arm, his on hers. And he runs his free hand over his mouth in a distracted motion that serves no real purpose.

"Thanks."

It's a little quieter and tighter than usual but he's fine, really.

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