You can tell from the red in my eyes that I'm not right now at all...

[taibhsearachd]

Several people are having a Very Bad Day.

Nate is in the kitchen, sitting at the table in the back where he and Mat used to hide out before they got their wards. Sulking is not what he's doing. He's just... thinking. Very, very sulkily. There are several people he'd like to hurt now. Of course, considering one of those people is a First Angel, one

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[belle_heaven]

Rose has sneaked into the kitchen from the back door Mat had showed her oh, so long ago, when she stumbles across Nate. He looks...very unhappy. This is, well...in Rose's book, this just isn't okay with her and she wants to fix it. Finding herself at a loss, she just stops thinking and responds with a gut instinct. Snagging the apple pie that was sitting covered on the counter (which is what she was on her way to get in the first place) and a couple forks she walks over to the disgruntled looking angel.

Smiling tentatively at Nate, Rose lifts up the pie tin a bit. "I come in peace, and I bring pie. I can offer pie and company, or just pie and a hug and then I can get out of your face, your choice."

Yeah, we never said Rose was any good at this, but it does seem very in character as to how she'd handle an upset big brother.

[reluctantxangel]

Nate eyes her for a moment, tempted to just tell her to go away - nicely, of course - but it's Rose, and he can't bring himself to do that with her. It's an older brother thing.

"You can stay as long as you get the vanilla ice cream out of that fridge there," he says at length. It's not the most welcoming he could get, but hey, he's allowed to be grumpy. There's shit going on in his brother's life he can't fix, and that's a real problem for Nate.

[belle_heaven]

Rose doesn't need to be asked twice and comes back with a giant thing of vanilla ice cream, and because she likes to outdo herself, she also has chocolate ice cream.

Taking a seat, she pushes the pie and ice cream towards the angel. "You look like you need it more then I do, so help yourself, sweetheart."

Curling up in the chair and her signature giant hoodie she just takes a good look at Nate. She doesn't like the stress lines that are starting to appear, or the tension lines.

So, in true little sister fashion she smiles at him and makes a heart with her hands. "If you want someone to randomly yell at, I'm very good at looking intimidated."

[reluctantxangel]

Nate considers both pie and ice cream, tilts his chair far back enough that he can snag a spoon from one of the drawers behind him, and lets the chair fall back forward on all fours again. A few massive scoops of ice cream go directly on the pie.

"I'm not gonna yell at you," he says after a moment of watching the ice cream melt on top of the pie. "You didn't do anything." Even if she had done something, he probably wouldn't yell at her much, because some people it's just impossible for him to yell at, but...

[belle_heaven]

"Well," she tells him with a shrug, "it's just an offer. You look stressed out and I know sometimes it can help to tell at someone. And I'm offering, cause I won't get upset or hurt by it or anything."

She doesn't really know how to handle upset Nate. If he were Mat, she'd cuddle him. If he were the Doctor, she'd suggest an adventure. If he were Jack, she'd hug him. But really, Nate is kinda an unknown element. She wants to hug him, but she's not sure he'll accept it.

Snagging one of the forks she'd originally grabbed, she leans across the table and snag herself a bite of pie and hums. "Mmm, I know I already made the offer, but I mean it. If you need someone to talk to, I can listen. If you need someone to yell at, I'll let you. If you need someone to hit, I heal really fast. Okay? You don't have to do anything, and if you need me to go, I will. But the offer is there, Nate. Just in case."

Rose just wants all of her friends and family and Pack to be happy. And Nate falls into a couple of those categories.

[reluctantxangel]

Nate scoops up a large spoonful of pie and ice cream and shoves it in his mouth. It gives him time to think of a response to that.

"Nah, it's fine. You can't talk Romana into sanity, and you can't keep Mat's ward from being an idiot, and I'm not going to hit you. Don't worry about it."

[belle_heaven]

Nodding, she leans back a little bit and watches him devour the sweet monstrosity in front of him. "Okay. I have to admit, I'm kinda glad you're not gonna hit me, though I would have let you if it'd help. Speaking of helping...I never did thank you, for looking after me when I was sick. I was really glad to have you there, you know? Didn't want to admit it, but I was scared, really scared, and it helped you have you around."

Rose scoots off her chair and circles around the table to wrap her arms around him briefly in a hug, and kisses the top of Nate's head, trying to convey that she does love him in her little sister-esque way.

"I just don't want you to think no one cares," she admits to him, "because I really do. I mean, even if I wasn't dating Mat you're someone I consider a friend, or family...you know? So, if you need sweet monstrosities, or to go out and get a drink, or whatever you can let me know, and I'll be more then happy to help."

[reluctantxangel]

Nate smiles a little, as best he can, and shakes his head. "Don't worry about it. What kind of brother would I be if I didn't look after you while you're sick? 'specially while your idiot boyfriend was stuck upstairs..."

He frees an arm to hug her tightly as she leans forward, then drops back into his chair, with a smile a little more genuine this time. "Thanks. I'd take you up on that drink offer, but I kind of... feel like I need to be here." In case Romana wakes up and goes after Sam again, which would be going after Mat when it comes down to it and... He hates how complicated this is.

[belle_heaven]

"I can bring the drink to you, if you want, sweetheart," she starts to offer, "but I don't know how easily you angels get drunk, and I really don't know how sober you need to be."

Ruffling his hair once before moving to sit down, she also flashes him a cheeky smile. Settling back down in her seat she leans across the table and steals another bite of the pie-ice cream mix.

"If you want me to go get something, tell me what you drink and I'll go grab you a bottle, cause I could use a drink too."

Someone is trying to be helpful. It might be Rose.

[reluctantxangel]

"Yeah, there is that. It's... probably best if I'm sober," he sighs. "Just in case I have to go up against the boss lady any time soon." He stabs at the pie with a spoon. "Guess I'm stuck with pie in place of alcohol. Which isn't that bad, I guess... I mean, it's pie."

[belle_heaven]

"Pie is good almost always, and this is really good pie. I mean, really good."

She tells him this as seriously as she can manage. It is good pie, and she's looking to make him smile a little bit.

"As for the psychotic bitch, I can't imagine many people are that fond of her right now." There is quite a bit of steel and ice in her voice when she even thinks about Romana.

"My personal opinion is we should keep her drugged, or at the very least throw her in the cages."

[reluctantxangel]

Nate makes a vague grumbling noise. "Can't keep her drugged. Most drugs don't work on First Angels. Something about... building up immunity or whatever." Lucky, lucky them. And she's got a whole army at her disposal, so throwing her in the cells isn't an option either. Given the way she keeps trying to kill Mat's ward, though, Nate wouldn't object if anyone managed it.

[belle_heaven]

"Damn. Well, the only other thing I can think of is riddlin' her with holes and getting drunk."

Rose...doesn't always have the best ideas. The Narration apologizes.

[reluctantxangel]

"Probably not an option," Nate murmurs, though he smiles faintly anyway. "But thanks for the suggestion." He pauses, and then frowns at Rose. "You alright? I know Jack was your friend and all..."

[belle_heaven]

Rose tries to smile for Nate, and it's shaky but it's a smile.

"I'm...I've been better," she admits (albeit reluctantly), "you know? Jack was basically family, and you know it can't be good if someone if forced to leave the Basement, exiled. That just seems like a bad omen to me."

She's trying not to be pessimistic, or superstitious, but it's really hard with all the bad stuff that happens here in Chicago. Rose smiles at him one more time, and this one conveys thanks, and affection. She isn't doing so great, but she's afraid to try and lean on anyone since everyone is in such a fragile state.