meadowlarklogs | But you'll never see the end of the road,

[ bobbi thinks her subconscious is being particularly cruel today. she's had let it snow stuck in her head all day. the association is obvious, of course, but that doesn't mean she's enjoying this very much.

oh, the weather outside is frightful
but the fire is so delightful
and since we've no place to go
let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

she wishes there was a fire. there's not -- but it's wednesday and she's been out all day trying to help where she can until it feels like the cold's seeped into her bones. that'd been excuse enough to text dick and now here she is at the room he's in, an extra blanket under one arm and a thermos with fake hot chocolate spiked with something alcoholic in her hand. ]

Hey, stranger.

[It's Wednesday, but he can't say he was quite expecting the company. Ever since they'd arrived here- there'd been no shortage of tasks to be found. In following up with their fellow displaced and trying to sort through the aftermath of the dreams- and the actual relief efforts both. That- and well, after he and his roommates had made a spectacular dent into the wine that was provided in the kitchen- he figured there was a shortage of that too.

But just because he expected a postponement to their weekly tradition, postponed only other time- in the immediate wake of her secrets coming to light- doesn't mean he isn't pleased to see her. And that he isn't grateful that his roommates are otherwise occupied- because he is]

Well, if it isn't my favourite bottle blond. [He moves away quickly, lest she try and elbow him for that one- he knows her well enough to know that she isn't- and takes a moment to climb partially up the nearest bunk bed, before swinging himself the rest of the way up. He tugs loose the messy blanket from around his pillow, that he'd been lounging and trying to warm up in before she'd arrived and starts to arrange it- with himself settled back against the wall and feet dangling over the edge, and pats the spot next to him, before reaching out for the hot chocolate to make the trip easier]

Come on up, we'll have the place to ourselves for awhile.

[ it's wednesday, but that doesn't mean there's wine -- and if she hadn't been so cold, she'd probably be out there helping more. she knows well enough to pace herself, at least, not to overdo it entirely. so here she is. here they are. ]

No need to be rude. [ is the prompt reply to that greeting, but she's grinning despite the words, handing him the hot chocolate and moving up onto the bunk bed after him. she drops the extra blanket at the foot of the bed. ]

Roomies all out?

That's a word for it.

[An accurate one- though through her grinning he can tell that the tease got across, and so he isn't worried about making amends for the comment. At least, not the in the immediate. He might spring for a fancier wine, the next time they meet up for one of these outings, or one of those appetizers to go with that he's not overtly fond of, but she is.

Once she's settled beside him, he hands her one of the hot chocolates, before rearranging his own blanket across both their legs]

Mm. We try to spread out at least some of our relief work. It's the only real way you get time to yourself, here.

[And privacy by proxy. It's necessary, especially when one is still trying to adjust to the place, like Diana is]

Yeah, it is. [ it's the accurate word - but he's right, she doesn't mind and the teasing came across as teasing. so her calling him rude isn't serious, either, but warmly amused.

although she definitely won't say no to the fancier wine or one of those appetizers. it's entirely incomprehensible to her how he can't love them, too. they're amazing.

she settles in, letting him fuss with the blankets while she curls her fingers around the hot chocolate, their shoulders brushing. ]

That's smart. We've got a bit of that, but it's not entirely deliberate. But ours is a pretty quiet room, all things considered. [ markus, peggy, fitz, bobbi - all reasonably mature adults, most of the time. ]

[Once they're back in New Amsterdam, Dick gives it a few days. For them to settle back into their apartments, their jobs, their routines. To defrost, as it were. But before Kaldur can start to wonder if he's chosen to back out- Dick will send a gps pin marker into his inbox. It's a small smoothie shop, with a few tables and a deli counter
within from which one can select pastries, sandwiches, or pretzels. It's in a district of the city that sees a decent amount of traffic, businesses and other restaurants near by.

If Kaldur was being honest, about not really exploring the city or what it had to offer, the last thing Dick wants to do is overwhelm him by taking him somewhere bright, loud, and full of other people. They weren't the only places Dick preferred, but there were more of those than places like this.

When the other man gets there, he'll find Dick already sitting, somewhere to the back of the room, leaving every exit within his sight and a large smoothie already placed in front of him. He's greeted with a smile, and a chair being toed backwards, leaving space for him to take a seat, but for the foot that pushed it retreats back onto his side]

Thanks for meeting with me.

[ kaldur is not apprehensive about meeting dick grayson for a drink, to start over. he is not, because no matter how their interactions here may have gone thus far, he knows that dick is a good man, someone he trusts even if he is from another world. and still, there is something like apprehension because dick not knowing him hurts even when it shouldn't.

dick, wally and kaldur founded the team and while he was not as close to either of them as they were to each other, they were still his friends, his teammates. dick still is, even if dick has left the team for now -- temporarily, kaldur chooses to believe.

all the more reason to find common ground with this version of dick. and so there's something hopeful in his chest, too, when he gets the gps pin, as he makes his way to the smoothie shop, a thin scarf wrapped around his neck to hide the gills or at least make them less noticeable. he spots dick easily and makes his way over to him. ]

Of course. [ he takes the seat dick's pushed out for him. offers a small smile. ] Thank you for the invitation.

It's long overdue.

[Even if Dick hadn't had any interest in being friends with Kaldur proper, in making up with him well enough to be able to work together in a crisis- he should have addressed it, just because Kaldur was an unknown variable who knew too much about him. Even if there was the possibility of very distinct differences in their backgrounds, he knows enough about these things to know he's been rather constant in all of them. Closing the information gap is something Bruce would do.

Would have done, immediately. Dick had chosen to stew in his anger, in his ill placed feelings instead, and then just....let it lie, in favour of other things. That hadn't exactly been fair to Kaldur. Especially with the location they're in. There's nothing familiar here but those amongst the superhero community, and he's been more adrift in it than the others]

I'm surprised you accepted.

In my world, Kid Flash, you and I formed a team together. We were [ he hesitates briefly. ] friends. I understand that you are not the same person and that there is an imbalance between us. [ the same way jason and damian know versions of him, while kaldur doesn't know damian at all and barely knew jason before his death. ] I do not blame you for that, nor would I refuse the invitation to get to know one another.

[ a rather convoluted explanation of why he accepted. why it shouldn't be a surprise, really. ]

Part of that matches up. [Dick has founded, or been a founding member of several of those by now. Kid Flash was in two versions of the team, along with several others. Aqualad was a feature too- just, Kaldur wasn't the one with that moniker]

I'm glad to hear it. [That the friction in their first meeting isn't going to carry over. Is going to be chalked up to the differences in their worlds and left at that. It's an over simple explanation, but the truest one. If Kaldur hadn't presumed to know anything about his brothers or the states of their opinions upon his arrival- Dick wouldn't have had anything to hold against him in the first place. Nothing but their own different lives accounts for the situation.

As it is-]

So why don't you tell me a bit about you. Let's level the playing field, and then I'll tell you more about this me.

What would you like to know?

[ kaldur isn't great at talking about himself. he can, though - and he wants to try, for dick, for the possibility of friendship with dick. ]

I am Atlantean. When I was younger, I sought to learn Atlantean magic, but one day my friend Garth and I saw our King attacked and helped him in the fight. He offered both of us a place by his side as his [ the briefest pause ] sidekick. Garth wanted to continue his studies, but I accepted and joined my King on the surface. There, I met Robin, Kid Flash and Speedy, who later became Red Arrow.

We formed the Team when I was sixteen after freeing Superboy from Project Kadmus. Speedy did not join us, but many others did. We have been working with and for the Justice League ever since.

[ The apartment he shares with Dutch isn't exactly spacious, but it is in the sketchier area of the city, meaning it's close to the sketchy bar he and Dick ended up at. They'd gone because the bar had a reputation and because Johnny was looking for people with reputations, the kinds who make illegal tech their brand.

They didn't start the fight. They did help finish it, kind of, in that 'uneasy alliance with the morally questionable bouncers' way, and then they'd cleared out before anything got too official.

Dutch is at work, so it's empty when the door slides open — clearly lived in, and there are a few spare and mostly empty bottles of booze on the small kitchenette table, but it's surprisingly tidy. Then again, tidy's easy to manage when you're used to living out of a locker. There are maybe three full rooms in the whole unit, and the front door's a few easy strides from both the kitchen and the "lounge". Johnny heads straight for the sink, grabbing a cloth and running the tap.

The dark club and the dark streets hadn't given away much; under the apartment's fluorescent lights, it's a little easier to make out the blood on Dick's side. But he'd walked here without complaint, and Johnny's pretty sure he's smart enough to call the alarm if he's literally dying. Maybe??

He retrieves a less empty bottle, too. For medical purposes. ]

How bad is it?

Not that bad.

[It's not exactly the truth. Dick has always been stubborn, always placed his health and life secondary to that of everyone else- has tried to go back out wounded, post surgery and still attached to his IV's- but this situation isn't quite the same. There's no crisis, no one depending on him to be there. Just Johnny expecting him to follow him out, and a few eyes from the people they'd ended a fight for watch them go.

He keeps pace and he doesn't slouch, doesn't draw attention to the red staining his shirt until they're safely in the kitchen. Then he's easing a shoulder to rest against the fridge, and lifts his shirt out of the way, so Johnny can see for himself.

There's a wry twist to his mouth, as he glances upward]

I might have underplayed that, a bit. [But just a bit!!]

You know the tough guy act makes your dick look small, right.

[ Basically the same thing as buying a big truck. The joke's a little absent; he's distracted, squinting at the wound in the dim apartment lighting as he rethinks the plan and offers the entire bottle to Dick. They've got medical supplies in the bathroom. No point wasting good booze on frontier medicine. Or— ]

Weird question: would you rather get stitches or hold hands.

[ It's clearly a stab wound, and it's deep enough that he shouldn't just slap a band-aid on it and call it a day. But it isn't fatal, either, and even if it was — his power worked on a punctured lung. This should be easy. ]

But you'll never see the end of the road,

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KALDUR .

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WHAT'S UP

♥!

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