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chosehumanityOn Wednesday, on his way to work, Mitchell had gotten a phone call. Annie, George said, had been assaulted, and she needed him around. If Mitchell were entirely honest, he'd been a little preoccupied recently - and feeling guilty over his first impulse ('I don't have time') had led him to grab a portal back to Bristol. Just until Friday. So he could keep an eye on her.
Then today happened.
Saul had tried to assault Annie again, but this time while he was dying. He had tried to grab her and drag her through Death's door, and then at the last moment he had repented. Repented! ... and taken the blow for Annie. It was insane, was what it was.
Still, at least now Annie was safe. And Mitchell couldn't stave off work forever.
He had a portal tonight.
And so he sat lurking outside by the door with his things, wiling away his last hour until he got back to Fandom.
That's what he had been doing, at least. Because now he could hear Nina's footsteps creaking on the stairs. She was holding something, too. A bag of her own. And Mitchell didn't need to ask, didn't need to raise his voice to know what she was doing.
"Nina," he said. His voice sounded strange in the empty darkness, if not unfamiliar. "Don't do this. I understand, I really do, but it's going to take time to adjust."
But Nina hadn't stopped, she hadn't... wavered. She had... gotten to the door, and all right, she had paused there. Just not in any way he wanted.
"Adjust?" she asked. And in one fluid turn she faced him and said, "You've gone native. The three of you. Maybe I'm being naive, maybe it's a consequence of your condition. Our condition. I don't know. Your-- humanity, this thing... are you protecting it? Are you looking for it? Do you even know? Because take it from me, it's long gone."
She was just trying to cope. Mitchell had to remind himself that. Just-- trying to cope. Like they all did. In their own way.
"And this house, it accelerates it," she said, "It's insane here. You've got monsters, and killers, and by god, that man, you actually helped him escape."
He couldn't counter any of that. It was true.
"What have you said to George?"
Nina stared down at her feet. "I've written him a letter."
Oh, Christ. Mitchell turned in his chair. "Jesus, Nina... a letter--"
"He gets a letter. I love him, I really do, I mean, sickening, stomach-turning, appending my name with his surname kind of love, but I look at him now, and I want to pull chunks of flesh from his face." She trembled where she stood, so full of anger, sorrow, all these emotions--
This was going to kill George. It really was.
But there was precious little that Mitchell could do, could say to make this all better again, because there was no better. Not really. Nothing less harsh, less cruel, less...
"Good luck," he whispered.
"You too," Nina whispered back.
And then she opened the door and walked out of their lives.
Mitchell sighed, and weighed the advantages of leaving now, and found precious few. George would... probably need him. As would Annie. Even if right now he wished he could be anywhere else but Bristol, where it felt like death was starting to close in on him, strangling him. Responsibility: even worse.
Then he turned on the television. Just for a distraction. Just for anything that wasn't almost envying Nina's decision to just-- leave.
"...one of them dead and one in critical condition. The bodies appear to have been nearly exsanguiated. Some are already speaking about 'vampires in Bristol'..."
Oh, Christ.
Disaster really did come in threes.
[[ nfb, and taken from both Being Human 2x02 and 2x03. open for phone calls ]]
Then today happened.
Saul had tried to assault Annie again, but this time while he was dying. He had tried to grab her and drag her through Death's door, and then at the last moment he had repented. Repented! ... and taken the blow for Annie. It was insane, was what it was.
Still, at least now Annie was safe. And Mitchell couldn't stave off work forever.
He had a portal tonight.
And so he sat lurking outside by the door with his things, wiling away his last hour until he got back to Fandom.
That's what he had been doing, at least. Because now he could hear Nina's footsteps creaking on the stairs. She was holding something, too. A bag of her own. And Mitchell didn't need to ask, didn't need to raise his voice to know what she was doing.
"Nina," he said. His voice sounded strange in the empty darkness, if not unfamiliar. "Don't do this. I understand, I really do, but it's going to take time to adjust."
But Nina hadn't stopped, she hadn't... wavered. She had... gotten to the door, and all right, she had paused there. Just not in any way he wanted.
"Adjust?" she asked. And in one fluid turn she faced him and said, "You've gone native. The three of you. Maybe I'm being naive, maybe it's a consequence of your condition. Our condition. I don't know. Your-- humanity, this thing... are you protecting it? Are you looking for it? Do you even know? Because take it from me, it's long gone."
She was just trying to cope. Mitchell had to remind himself that. Just-- trying to cope. Like they all did. In their own way.
"And this house, it accelerates it," she said, "It's insane here. You've got monsters, and killers, and by god, that man, you actually helped him escape."
He couldn't counter any of that. It was true.
"What have you said to George?"
Nina stared down at her feet. "I've written him a letter."
Oh, Christ. Mitchell turned in his chair. "Jesus, Nina... a letter--"
"He gets a letter. I love him, I really do, I mean, sickening, stomach-turning, appending my name with his surname kind of love, but I look at him now, and I want to pull chunks of flesh from his face." She trembled where she stood, so full of anger, sorrow, all these emotions--
This was going to kill George. It really was.
But there was precious little that Mitchell could do, could say to make this all better again, because there was no better. Not really. Nothing less harsh, less cruel, less...
"Good luck," he whispered.
"You too," Nina whispered back.
And then she opened the door and walked out of their lives.
Mitchell sighed, and weighed the advantages of leaving now, and found precious few. George would... probably need him. As would Annie. Even if right now he wished he could be anywhere else but Bristol, where it felt like death was starting to close in on him, strangling him. Responsibility: even worse.
Then he turned on the television. Just for a distraction. Just for anything that wasn't almost envying Nina's decision to just-- leave.
"...one of them dead and one in critical condition. The bodies appear to have been nearly exsanguiated. Some are already speaking about 'vampires in Bristol'..."
Oh, Christ.
Disaster really did come in threes.
[[ nfb, and taken from both Being Human 2x02 and 2x03. open for phone calls ]]
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Date: 2011-02-11 02:26 pm (UTC)Kate didn't quite have time or inclination to start calling people when she was getting ready for the dance. Still, she thought he'd might like to know.
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Date: 2011-02-11 02:32 pm (UTC)Were he more present mentally at the moment, he might have asked.
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Date: 2011-02-11 02:37 pm (UTC)and people disapprove of my date to the dance. it's like two years ago all over again.
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Date: 2011-02-11 02:38 pm (UTC)Mitchell grabbed for the remote and switched the TV on to the next news broadcast.
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Date: 2011-02-11 02:41 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-02-11 02:45 pm (UTC)He needed to get to the hospital soon. Though not too soon. 'Middle of the night' would be a bit awkward.
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Date: 2011-02-11 02:49 pm (UTC)thought not. we're just going as friends anyway.
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Date: 2011-02-11 02:52 pm (UTC)Vampires. In Bristol. Every single fucking news channel.
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Date: 2011-02-11 03:03 pm (UTC)She thought some of these responses of his made him seem... a little distracted, but really, she had enough stuff she was ignoring all of her own.
i'm not allowed to wallow. as if i was going to.
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Date: 2011-02-11 03:07 pm (UTC)He should... probably try crafting more convincing voicemails to make sure that happened.
And here I thought you were such a wallower. Though this better not be the start of some kind of Irish fetish.
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Date: 2011-02-11 03:24 pm (UTC)Because Kate wasn't entirely convinced one of the reasons she'd been so good at resisting Nathan's advances wasn't that he sounded familiar in entirely the wrong way.
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Date: 2011-02-11 03:28 pm (UTC)Mitchell thumbed his phone, and sighed. I haven't been back there in decades. You can't judge them by me. Or vice-versa.
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Date: 2011-02-11 03:32 pm (UTC)And he was never hearing about it.
well if i judge them by dear nathaniel, they don't come off looking too good either.
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Date: 2011-02-11 03:44 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-02-11 04:47 pm (UTC)Oh yeah, he was one Prince Charming, really.
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Date: 2011-02-12 09:52 am (UTC)Mitchell scrambled around for a notepad. Something to jot down steps.
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Date: 2011-02-12 01:07 pm (UTC)Sure he'd insult her every step of the way, but he still came to walk her home from the causeway when she asked.
plus i think he's hilarious.