The true story here was a fate to discover; the true story here was too simple to see...

[thatsortofaman]

As the sun starts to rise, a handful of people emerge from the trees, heading for the barracks gate. It's not another attack - for one thing, the group's a bit small and ragged-looking for that. For another, as they get closer to the gate those inside the barracks may recognize them, all friends or acquaintances who quietly went missing before the

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[hisstupidheart]

Des, on the other hand, is keenly aware of his surroundings. He actually got out lucky in the Creepy Kidnapping Wood Part Two. All he managed to do was break down someone's bar door. There's still wood chips clinging to his dirty, matted hair and he looks tense and on edge. The piles of monster bodies don't really do much for his sense of foreboding either.

He watches the Doctor and rolls his eyes, cupping his hands over his mouth, before yelling, "Hey! Anyone alive in there?"

Well, it might get them pissed off anyway and it's less annoying than the constant pounding.

[notalighieri]

"Alive an' kickin." Comes the answer, drifting down lazily from atop the wall. A moment later, Dante's head pops over the side and looks down at the ragged people, before standing up to head down to join the others by the door.

"Looks like dirty an' fucked up is the fashion this month, huh." The white-haired devil-hunter gives Des a look and smirks, "Still alive eh, dude? All limbs and functions intact? I was almost gonna suggest we'd take up a guessing pool back here."

[hisstupidheart]

"See? That's how you do it," Des mutters in the Doctor's general direction before calling up to Dante. "Dante, you son of a bitch. What the hell happened? You guys throw a party and we miss it?" He runs a hand through his hair, dislodging the last bits of debris. It's been a long... Actually, he has no idea how long it's been. It felt like a few hours.

"How long were we gone? Jesus H. Christ."

[notalighieri]

"Don't mistreat the memory of my mum, asshole! She was a total babe!" Dante yells back with humour before disappearing behind the wall, only to reappear a moment later through the door.

He waves his hands out in a lazy manner and smirks at the other hunter, "Hell yeah man, it was one crazy party! You should've seen the finish it was fuckin' awesome." Never mind the part where he got K.O'ed six feet under by an over-powered green giant. He chuckles and shrugs.

"Been gone about a week or three, dude. Had a fun vacation, brought back any souvenirs?" Taste the wry humour here, he can tell it was no leisure cruise even if he's not acknowledging it by freaking out.

[hisstupidheart]

Des gapes. "You're fucking kidding me? All I remember is going to bed and suddenly I'm out in the darkest part of this freak show like a geek in the middle of a camp prank. I found a bar out there- had to bust down the door to get in, but..." He shakes his head.

"Green giant? When the fuck did we get one of those around here? Is he on our side or just freelance? We might need him if anyone wants any souvenirs from where we just came back from." And Des is staying right on point now that he's gotten the initial sarcasm out of the way.

[notalighieri]

"Sounds like a fun trip, dude." Dante deadpans, as if not disturbed or surprised in the slightest. there's one word that makes him perk up, however. "You found a bar?"

The half-devil pouts his lips in a wry smirk as he thinks back at said green giant, only to chuckle and offer a shrug. "Oh yeah. Think we'll call him freelance tho' -his manager's a pacifist." Yeah, probably shouldn't bother that poor fellow again any time soon.

[hisstupidheart]

"His manager? Jesus Christ- are we hiring a hit squad or a fucking clown?" Des blows a lock of curly brown hair out of his face and sighs, as he starts walking towards the gate. He wants to be inside- for a little while at least. "Yeah. I found a bar. And I also found the asscrack of this fucking forest. Beer is great and all, but so is figuring out who the fuck is playing games with us."

[notalighieri]

Dante just 'hmm's and shrugs, clearly perhaps a bit too amused at Desmond's cranky mood. Not to mention unaffected and wholly uninterested in revealing more about he mystery giant and his 'manager'.

Oh man, beer. What a nice thought... Dante honours it with a silent few seconds and enjoys it, before following Des through the gate. "The asscrack huh? I don't know man, I like a well-rounded ass." He shoved his hands into his pockets as he strolled after the irate hunter. "So what'cha plan to do when you find out?"

[hisstupidheart]

"This ass is full of cellulite and things that'll eat your face. Still want a taste?" Des threw a look over his shoulder, grinning in a way that showed his teeth. Irate? He wasn't irate- okay, he was, but that was because he hated being bent over backwards by fairies.

"Go back in," he shrugged, his tone completely and utterly duh. What else would he do?

[notalighieri]

"I thought you'd say that!" Dante laughed, grinning widely to match. Reaching out he slapped Des on the back. "See, that's why I like you dude. You got the right kind o' crazy in ya!" He winked and pointed at the otehr man. Yup, that was his kind of crazy.

[hisstupidheart]

Des fell forwards a bit- damn, that albino nutcase had an arm on him. It was like being smacked on the back by Mathias. If he bruised, he'd be concerned. He straightened and rolled his shoulders. Right. He was cool. That didn't just happen. "Yeah, I figure you gotta be some kinda crazy to survive when it comes to shit like this. I don't like getting fucked in the ass by a bunch of fairy tale rejects."

[w_for_wizard]

Harry blinks at Des for a second or two once he's back inside the walls, somewhere between startled to see him and... okay, a little sleep-deprived. Which is still much better than Des looks right now.

"I was starting to think you'd gotten eaten by something," he comments finally. "I was gonna call dibs on your crossbow." Yeah, he's glad you're back, Des. Really.

[hisstupidheart]

"You have magic, jackass. What would you need a crossbow for?" Des says, flopping down on the nearest porch to pull one of his boots off, tongue sticking out of the side of his mouth. He's obviously got something on his mind. "Heard you guys got into some trouble. Seems a little coincidental, don't it?"

[w_for_wizard]

"The same reason I have a gun back home."

Harry wanders over to the cabin where Des is sitting, arms folded over his chest. "Yeah, the whole thing was weird. They weren't trying to get in, just... keep us here."

[hisstupidheart]

"What? Magic really doesn't solve everything? I know a mechanic back home that'd piss off." He studies the inside of his boot with the look of someone just doing it to be doing something with his hands. When Harry moves, he looks up at him- way up. He makes a mental note to have all further conversations with Dresden while standing.

"And, meanwhile, we just pop out while you guys are distracted, get stuck in that place, and then turn up here when the fighting's over." He slid his boot back on. "Like I said. Convenient."

[w_for_wizard]

"I promise not to tell if you won't," Harry answers with a wry smile. He grimaces a little as Des goes on, though, shrugging uneasily. "Convenient, yeah, but I'm having a little trouble seeing the point. Stop us from coming after you, maybe, but you all got out alive and you're not even missing any limbs. It's a lot of trouble to go through just to get a handful of people lost in the woods for a week."

Even by fae standards... that just doesn't make sense.