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[latkje]

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[trueltning_fury]

[unintentional, but he'll roll with it]

There's always an off chance it could be highly entertaining to me. Such as, if you try to talk your way into Alma Kinan and end up just digging your own grave.

[highly entertaining]

[latkje]

Not a believer in the gift of gab? [ That goes without saying. But even Nash would admit he's talked himself into at least as much trouble as he's talked himself out of. ]

None of your ridicule could match my wife's wrath. My grave's been dug for a while.

[trueltning_fury]

[that is the perfect opening to needle him about his marriage, what fun]

Do you know how hard it is to believe that some poor woman has decided to put up with you? She must be a saint, longsuffering and delightfully world-weary.

[latkje]

"Weary" is accurate. At least, she's always complaining of being tired, and I'm a morning person.

[ Though if you ask him in a week he'll probably be complaining about having to get up two hours after sunrise. ]

[trueltning_fury]

You? I wouldn't have guessed. [DRY AS THE DESERT. Honestly, he wouldn't be surprised if Nash really was a morning person, all chipper and shit when everyone else wants him to shut up.]

If she's the type to care about the sympathies of a stranger, then you can tell her she has mine. Of course, if she really hates it she could leave you, I suppose.

[latkje]

Ah, but then who would she find to put up with her? Loneliness is a poison at least as deadly as marriage.

[trueltning_fury]

[OUCH right to the secret heart of things, eh Nash? Geddoe does that thing where he looks much more interested in what's left in his tankard than in their conversation]

...that's a matter of opinion.

[latkje]

Of course. Sometimes being married can make a person feel lonelier. [ He takes another sip of his drink, and doesn't look at Geddoe. ] I don't think everyone gets lonely. [ Does Yuber get lonely? Not in any way that's healthy to contemplate, Nash would wager. ]

Just everyone I've met who's worth knowing.

[trueltning_fury]

[it's the Not Looking At Each Other Hour, featuring these two]

And yet I still see a flaw in your theory. It's either the idea that marriage is the solution, or that being alone is poisonous.

[he will swear until the end of his days that he needs no one and nothing like that. He's seen what it does to people. He refuses to be that person.]

[latkje]

Isn't it? You don't have to be married to live a full life, but you've got to have other people in it.

[ He thinks of Sierra, and her centuries spent alone in her wooded cabin. That was no way to spend eternity. ]

[trueltning_fury]

Oh, good. Then this isn't some kind of veiled attempt to get me paired off. [wry as hell] You would have done well to pass along such wisdom to Wyatt. He tried to tell me that someday my turn would come. [siiiip] Still waiting.

[latkje]

[ He wags a finger. ]

Matchmaker is not in my job description. [ And he's definitely not trying to add to his job description. ] But what are you waiting for?

[trueltning_fury]

I'm not, actually. [semantics, phrasing] I've no interest in that sort of thing. You understand, I expect, given the lifespans of Runebearers.

[his other two companions have shown two very good, if different, reasons not to get involved. Geddoe is pretty proud deep down of outliving most of those cursed with True Runes, he'd rather not jinx it with feelings]

[latkje]

[ This feels like a conversation he's had before. ]

So you're a coward. [ He says it with a shrug, not like it's an insult. ] That's fine. The would could probably use more of those.

[trueltning_fury]

[oh hell no...his ego is not down for that conclusion]

I'm a pragmatist. A coward removes his Rune and runs from his responsibilities.

[WELP thanks Nash there's the raw wound rubbed all over again.]

[latkje]

Who said anything about removing your Rune? [ He quirks an eyebrow. That's an interesting place to go with this. ] I mean, you have people who care about you, who'd die for you, and you want my help ditching them.

[ Help he's perfectly willing to offer, to be fair. ]

[trueltning_fury]

That's different. It's not what I was talking about.

[grouchily; the talk of matchmaking has him centered entirely on the fates of his two best friends and their associations with lifelong commitments. His unit? Yeah sure they're people he cares about but it's not the same. To cover the awkwardness, Geddoe sinks into his tankard for a bit, making a good dent in the volume]

[latkje]

It's what I was talking about. [ He drinks and shrugs a shoulder at the same time. It's an advanced technique. ]

But we can keep talking about ancient history if you want. I do find it interesting. [ Maybe this conversation would be different if Geddoe knew more about Nash's marriage. ]

[trueltning_fury]

[damn Nash, he doesn't want to know how your brain went from matchmaking to the 12th. That's a leap he can't take.]

Ancient history is all I've got, really. So if you're going to poke the bear, that's what you're going to get.

[it's surprisingly not a 'leave it alone.' Against his better judgment, maybe.]

[latkje]

[ Few minds can anticipate the twists and turns that lurk in Nash's. For example: ]

You think Wyatt ever realized he'd made a mistake?

[trueltning_fury]

[that sure is a turn, but at least it keeps Geddoe from talking about himself. Enough time has gone by that even if losing Wyatt is still painful, it's a pain he can soldier through without showing a trace of it on his face.]

Yeah, he did. We spoke of it, just once, after I'd tracked his move to Karaya. He tried to claim that it would have been no different if he'd really been killed in battle instead of simply faking his death to escape, but I could tell he couldn't convince himself of that.

[latkje]

Have you told Chris this story? [ But as soon as the question is out of him, Nash shakes his head. Would she even want to hear it? ]

I abandoned my family once. It was the worst thing I've ever done, probably.

[ Geddoe is free to imagine whatever list of "worst things Nash has ever done" he'd like. ]

[trueltning_fury]

[oho? Geddoe raises an eyebrow in interest]

Was it worth it?

[no judging, he's just really curious about any real flaws arising in this guy who always likes to look like he's got it all together]

[latkje]

No. What did I even get out of it? Not immortality, vast wealth, or a chance to save the world.

[ Was it better than his alternative options? Well, he used to think so. It's taken him a while to come around. ]

[trueltning_fury]

Mm. Shame. Did you at least think, at the time, that it would be worth it?

[how interesting, though, that of all people Nash and Wyatt would have something in common.]

...for the record, immortality is highly overrated. But if you didn't even get to save the world, well, that's a damned shame.