fireincarnate | Video | Backdated to 30th

Video | Backdated to 30th | Private To Phillip

[She's nervous.

There's no getting around it, really. This is her first Inmate since Jason, and while that went well - she was a different person, then. It feels like a lifetime ago.

But it doesn't show in her smile. (She's grateful, today, that Phoenix doesn't need to sleep; the shadows of her nightmares don't hang beneath her eyes.]

Hey, Phillip. I'm Jean.

[She gestures to the file on her desk.]

I wanted to talk to you, before I read this. I won't do it at all, if you don't want me to.

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[Her eyebrows arch, lightly sceptical.] So if I take you at face value, you won't get grumpy at me.

As far as I'm concerned, you're free to do whatever you like with what I say.

[His feelings about the Barge and what it stands for should be starting to become clear.]

[She resists the urge to sigh, or pinch the bridge of her nose.]

Look - I know you didn't choose to be here. I know that's not fair. But if you want to go back, you need to work with me.

I never said anything about wanting to go back.

[And he hasn't. People seem to assume that's the end goal of every inmate here, but it isn't his. He doesn't care where he is; if he stays or goes. There's nothing to go back to in his world and there's nothing waiting for him anywhere else. He was expecting oblivion when Lilly pulled the trigger.]

...I didn't want to go home either, when I first came back.

You don't have to. You can start a life somewhere else.

["First" to Philip signifies that she thinks it will change. That he can change. But he sees both of these things as impossibilities. Circumstances only differ, they never. And him? Well, he's fallen over into the abyss. There's no coming back out of that.]

That's a nice thought.

[But that's all it is.]

Why don't you think you can change? [That's the crux of it, she thinks.]

[It is very much at the crux of everything. Philip knows his answer, but he's not going to share with the class if he doesn't have to.]

Aren't you supposed to figure that out?

I could, but doesn't that seem like a waste of time?

As far as I can tell, that's all I have.

[So, no.]

Are you always this difficult? [But she's smiling. She likes challenges.]

Fine, I'm making an executive decision - I'll read your file. But I'd like you there with me while I do it.

[He shrugs a shoulder.]

Fine.

Great! [Yes, okay, maybe she is being obnoxiously cheerful on purpose.] Where do you want to meet?

[She can be as cheerful as she wants. It won't get a rise out of Philip one way or another.]

Wherever's fine with me.

Savage Land it is. [When in doubt, dinosaurs.] Meet me at the Enclosure.

[He doesn't know what Savage Land is and doesn't particularly care. Zero fucks, lady. Z e r o.]

[But he nods and cuts the feed there to meet her outside the Enclosure.]

[Jean changes, before leaving, into something suitable for a wild tropical preserve; a light tank top, loose capris, sturdy hiking boots, and a faded bucket hat. A waterproof backpack of supplies she won't need but Phillip might. His file is tucked deep inside.

She doesn't need to dress for warmth either, not any more, but - she still remembers the first time she wore this outfit, dashing into an African wilderness to save Charles. That mission went well; hopefully this does, too.

She still gets there the same time he does, though, because why take the steps when you can fly over them?]

Hey. Thanks for coming.

Edited 2015-02-08 21:47 (UTC)

[He gives a cursory once-over, but gives no comment to her outfit or anything about this. It's fairly obvious that although he's doing this for her, he's not all that interested in this taking or lasting for long. Philip approaches this as he does most things: just get it over and done with.]

Mmhm.

[He's not really any more for conversation in-person than he is over the communicator.]

[She expected that, and doesn't let it dent her warm enthusiasm.]

I've got water and snacks. [The words are light, as she opens the hatch and steps inside. She presses the intercom button, murmuring "Savage Land, please", before looking back at Phillip.]

Stick close to me, okay? No one can die in here, but still.

[He wouldn't be all that concerned if they could die in there in the first place. He's already died once since his arrival here and he recovered quickly enough that he's not all that bothered by the idea of dying again.]

I won't go wandering off on my own.

[He gestures for her to go on ahead.]

[She's trying not to pry, but that blasé reaction is so achingly clear.

She doesn't let herself react, doesn't let her smile waver as she leads him into the trees.]

We'd be in the Antarctica right now, if this were real.

[What are you talking about, Jean? He is an exemplar for healthy coping, okay. It's a wonder he's even an inmate, GOSH.]

Seems a bit out of place for the Antarctica.

[But he'll take her word for it.]

[Truly, she hasn't seen healthier coping skills since Wolverine.]

I know, right? It's right out of the Triassic period, too. No one really knows how it happened. Probably aliens or mad scientists. [Yeah, that's how her life generally goes.]

[If he were a child, he'd probably be losing his mind about all this. Hell, even maybe a year or two ago he'd be more fascinated. But he's generally too jaded to take this in and see it as a wonder. He's watched too many good things get destroyed in his world to muster up the energy to even ask why she'd pick a place like this.]

Seems to be as good an explanation as any.

[Throwing people into wonder and absurdity is a good way to test them, to figure out who they are. She's not surprised that his reaction is mild, detached - but it's sad to see, all the same.

It goes on her list. Make him excited about something again.

She pushed onward through the foliage - it's as huge as everything else, and strikingly green.]

I think there's a clearing up ahead, but I never really took a guided tour. I was busy getting kidnapped.

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