Day 40: Lunch

[whiny-egomaniac.livejournal.com]

*hobble wobble*

"Damn that SCOURGE!" Starscream cried out, the slowly-filling cafeteria producing a jarring echo of his raspy voice. His limping, already bad enough from not knowing how to properly use his crutches, was now exacerbated from the injuries he'd received the shift prior. Despite the gauges in his non-casted leg so lovingly provided by the aforementioned 'patient', Starscream could still put some weight on it, but not so much that he could really stop and rest; relieving the soreness under his arms was out of the question. The nurse that walked behind him with his tray, already upset at having to deal with yet another troublesome inmate, was growing rather impatient as his charge slowly made his way down the food line.

"Just...give me a standard serving of the aquatic creature's flesh, some of those fried potato slices, two bananas, and three bottles of juice," Starscream sighed, his anger from just a moment ago assuaged by the physical exertion needed to move the way he did. "I'm going to sit down here...bring it to me when you're done."

He was hardly surprised to find that one of the bananas was completely bruised along its inner curve, or that the handful of 'chips' on his plate were all on the small side. Tired and frustrated as he was, however, he could barely muster a 'damned flesh-creature' before moving his fingers to the plate, picking one of the longer 'chips' and shoving it into his mouth listlessly.

There was an unusually high concentration of sodium chloride crystals on it. Of COURSE.

[For Tony Stark]

Comments

[full-score.livejournal.com]

Claude inwardly sighed at his rival's "greeting", but he offered a feeble, almost apologetic smile anyway. Looked like he didn't have to waste any energy flagging Dias down, at any rate. Dias, no doubt, had some things he wanted to talk to him about, too.

"Um, yeah, about that..." He picked at his food for a moment before glancing around. Dad wasn't anywhere to be seen yet, but it was possible he was in the line getting food or something. Either way, it was important that what they were about to talk about stay between just the two of them for now, so that was good enough for him.

Turning his attention back to Dias, he wondered if this was sort of how Guy had felt, having to explain those issues that had come up after Sync's appearance. Then again, it wasn't like his father was some psycho who'd socked Dias in the face, either, so maybe that was a bad comparison.

"I don't really know where to begin," he finally confessed. "I never expected something like this would come up..."

[heavens-too-far.livejournal.com]

"Start with how you know this Ronixis," Dias stated, ever practical. "And why you don't want him to know you. And tell me what I need to know if you want me to lie to him about you." On that note...he glanced at Claude. "You realize you're going to have to instruct everyone who knows you well like this. You'd better catch Leon soon, in particular...and Guy, if you haven't already told him." He wasn't blind; he'd seen the way the friendship between Claude and Guy was growing. The two of them were closer, and probably talked more, than even he and Claude were, and he'd known Claude for considerably longer.

Some part of Dias actually regretted that. True, he and Claude were rivals, not really capable of simply being friends like others who could relate to him without any sense of competition driving a wedge between them. But at the same time...with Ashton gone, Claude was the person he was closest to, rivalry notwithstanding. He didn't expect the feeling to be mutual, but knowing it never possibly could be - not while there were people like Guy around, who could relate to Claude without competing with him - was still a slightly bitter thought to have.

[full-score.livejournal.com]

Claude nearly cringed when Dias reminded him that he'd have to go tell the rest of his friends of what had happened and what he'd done. To be honest, if he'd really thought all of this through, he might not have given an alias in the first place. But the meeting had been so unexpected and sudden that it'd been the only thing he'd been able to think of at the time.

But Dias was right. He'd gone and done it, and now he was going to have to own up to it and make sure it didn't blow up in anybody's face.

Never mind the fact he wasn't sure how long he ought to keep this up with his own father, much less how long he'd even be able to. Dad wasn't a highly-esteemed military officer for nothing. It was only a matter of time before he realized something was off about Claude. If he didn't already, anyway.

"I haven't told Guy yet," he admitted. "Or Leon. So far you're the only person who even knows there's a connection between us at all." He sighed, putting his fork down. This subject was almost enough to chase his appetite away, but there was no avoiding it now.

"The truth is," Claude added quietly, "he's...my father. But he's from nearly 20 years before our time, so he doesn't even know who I am. When we all introduced ourselves, I...well, I panicked, and that's why I gave him a false name."

The blond glanced around again, just to make sure no one was in earshot of what they were talking about, and he leaned across the table, closer to Dias. "I mean, meeting your own kid before they're even born? That could cause some kind of time paradox if you're not careful!"

And that was just the tip of the iceberg, really. There was so much more to it than that, but for now Claude wanted to see how Dias handled this bit of information, and then they'd go from there.

[heavens-too-far.livejournal.com]

"Your father?" Dias repeated, eyes widening slightly as he leaned back in his seat. That the man had to be some relative of Claude's had been obvious from the start, with that last name, and Dias had considered himself prepared to hear any explanation of the connection and the fact that Ronixis hadn't recognized Claude to look at, but he hadn't expected anything like this. For one thing, Claude didn't look much like his father at all(although, now that Dias thought about it, they certainly acted alike); for another, Ronixis looked nowhere near old enough, which was apparently because he wasn't.

In any case, it explained a great deal - both why Claude had been so uneasy and why he hadn't wanted Ronixis to know who he was. Even Dias could see the potential issues that might arise from meeting one's future son; presumably that was what Claude had been referring to in regards to a time paradox, whatever that was. And while Dias tended to be unforgiving of mistakes, even he couldn't blame Claude for panicking and giving a false name; if Dias' own father had shown up at the institute suddenly, the mercenary probably wouldn't even have retained the ability to form coherent sentences.

Though... "Is there any reason you can't give him your real name now?" he asked finally. "You don't look enough like him that I'd expect him to make any connection, so long as you don't give him your last name. If he's from before your time, your name might not even mean anything to him at all." Fortunately, Ronixis seemed to share Claude's curious ability to be dense in very specific ways...and Dias was sure they could come up with a reasonable explanation for Claude's lying to him initially about his name. It'd certainly be easier to come clean now than to try to keep the lie going.

[full-score.livejournal.com]

A part of Claude was relieved Dias understood the seriousness of the issue. Then again, there was no reason why he wouldn't. But that didn't change the fact that it was good to know Dias was on his side (or something like that) with all this.

"I guess I could," he answered, eyebrows faintly furrowed. There were half-truths he could use in order to explain away the lie. Though while he didn't expect his dad to grill him about it, it would certainly put him under a little more scrutiny than he needed right now. Still, his dad could certainly be trusting sometimes. It hadn't even occurred to him that Claude's five-minute farewell to his friends would turn into an abandonment of his post, and ultimately him...

That last thought made him want to throw up the little food he'd already eaten. Thankfully, his nausea subsided after a few moments.

"But I don't know," he said with a frown. "Would something like that cause problems in the timeline? It seems like a small thing, but..." The blond gave a frustrated sigh. "Augh, I just...really don't want to screw this up, you know? And anyway, I don't even know if we could come up with a solid enough excuse."

Normally he was all for diving headfirst into a crazy situation if that's what was needed, but this was different. He needed to treat this like the delicate situation it was. After all the things he'd done, he at least owed Dad that much.

[heavens-too-far.livejournal.com]

"It's probably better if you do," Dias said with a slight nod. "I doubt you could keep the lie up for long, anyway, and the quicker you own up to it, the less suspicious it'll make you look. You can tell him you were trying to put on a show of looking sane for the nurses, or that you thought he was someone else, someone dangerous...anything, really. Or even that you don't trust your real name to people in this place until you're sure of them. I don't think he'd question those sorts of motives too much." After a pause, he added, "I don't know what effect it might have on the...timeline, but do you really think he'd never find out on his own if you tried to keep this up? Too many people know you as Claude who you might not be able to warn before they meet him, or who might just forget. Unfortunately, I don't think this is a choice so much as an inevitability - so it's best if you just approach it like one, and make sure it happens on your terms."

[full-score.livejournal.com]

He'd be hard-pressed to admit this out loud, but sometimes Dias was almost too good at making sense. The idea of keeping up this kind of lie was impractical at best, and just plain stupid at worst. Something would have to be done, it was true -- the trick was just figuring out what.

"Well, I might need to do a little more explanation than that, since I don't really hide my real name from everyone," he said with a sigh. "But I'm sure I can think of something." Maybe he could use what happened between him, Guy and Sync as one of his reasons for not being truthful about his name. It'd be a total lie, of course, but it would at least check through if Dad decided to ask a nurse about any injuries he'd gotten this week.

Not that there was a huge chance he would, though. It wasn't like Dad had any reason to be overly concerned about his welfare, he reminded himself.

"I don't think I can do it today, though," he added before finally forcing a bite of fish into his mouth. "I need a little more time to think."

[heavens-too-far.livejournal.com]

"He wouldn't know that," Dias pointed out with a slight shrug. "And if it did come out, you could just say it was a precaution you only recently started taking."

He nodded his agreement when Claude admitted that he probably wouldn't be coming clean that day. Undoubtedly he'd need to decide on just what to tell Ronixis(and, hopefully, practice making the lie sound believable). Anyway, it was unlikely the lie would unravel so quickly that immediate damage control was necessary. "So long as it's soon, I doubt you have to tell him today if you're not ready." After a pause, he asked the obvious next question. "You'll want us looking out for him, I assume?" He wasn't sure what the ramifications would be if something happened to Ronixis in the institute, but even if there weren't any, that the man was Claude's father was undoubtedly reason enough for his rival to want him safe.

[full-score.livejournal.com]

"I guess that's true," Claude agreed. In theory, it was a lie that was easy enough to explain. He just hoped it didn't make Dad ask too many questions. He probably looked suspicious enough, being an Earthling who was friendly from folks from underdeveloped planets and all.

When Dias mentioned his father's safety, Claude paused before letting out a small breath. "I know you have enough on your plate as it is, but...I don't think I can look after him alone," he quietly admitted. "This place is so dangerous, and Dad, he's...well..."

He fell silent, trying to word what he wanted to say. "I grew up thinking he was invincible," he continued, "but now I'm old enough to know that simply isn't true."

Wow, that was kind of a depressing thing to say, wasn't it? At least he knew Dias was on his side, though, and that was all that really mattered right then. They just needed to focus on keeping Dad safe, and then Claude could worry about the finer details later.

"Anyway," he said as he leaned back in his chair, "I really appreciate your help, Dias. Thanks. And..." Claude rubbed the back of his head, looking a bit sheepish now. "I've been meaning to apologize for the way I acted a couple nights ago. It was wrong of me to lash out at you like that, and I'm sorry."

[heavens-too-far.livejournal.com]

Dias was briefly silent. He couldn't think of many events that could shake a child's belief in the invincibility of his father - even once they were adults - save for the obvious. There was a chance he was wrong, of course, but somehow...he doubted it. "I understand," he said quietly. "I'll keep an eye on him."

He found himself slightly taken back by the apology, if only because it had been long enough that he'd assumed Claude had forgotten the incident...and also because it was the sort of behavior he tended to expect from Claude. After a moment, he smirked slightly. "Don't worry; I'm used to it."

[full-score.livejournal.com]

Geez, when Dias said things like that, it almost sounded like Claude was a jerk all the time. He was probably reading too much into it, though. And, anyway, Dias had a pretty thick skin, and it didn't sound like he was too bent out of shape over what had happened. Still, that didn't mean his actions that night were okay. They'd both been under a lot of pressure lately, but that just meant they needed to cooperate more than ever, right?

He was about to open his mouth to say something when the intercom sounded, and nurses began herding captives out of the cafeteria. Before he could get hassled by one of them, Claude went ahead and picked up his tray before standing up. "I'll see you tonight, Dias," he said with a small smile.