Somewhere in Special Collections, In A Tower Or Something, Sunday Afternoon

[lockestheway]

So Peter had picked himself up well enough that he was starting to think about maybe joining a bunch of the others and going searching for books that might help them in their predicament. After all, it was his universe on the line here, too, so he might as well stand for it

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[endsthegame]

Ender's eyes flicked over to the wall Peter had just burst through. There was a hole now, where the mirror had been - fitting that he'd burst in through the space where his reflection had once brought Ender such distress.

Not anymore; Ender knew well how terrible he was, and he and Peter didn't match up at all.

"They're still not having any luck with that?" he asked, quietly and surreptitiously wrapping the rest of his jacket around the Hive Queen, so Peter wouldn't see.

[lockestheway]

"No," Peter said, raising an eyebrow at the pronoun, "We haven't. But everyone's getting restless, rearing to go. You know how it is."

He did not say, why are you hugging a jacket? And what's with the sorry look on your face?

He badly wanted to.

[endsthegame]

"Time to storm the castle," Ender said, staring up at the ceiling.

It felt a little like that meeting with Valentine on the lake, except that it was Peter, and showing weakness was the worst thing he could do. Then again: Valentine had used his weakness back then, too, so maybe it was that Peter was simply more obvious about it.

He sat up.

"They're welcome to do it."

[lockestheway]

Peter's eyes rolled briefly towards the ceiling. "You know, I'm pretty sure that according to common concensus in our family, I'm the one who's supposed to fuck up," he drawled, "and you're the one who's supposed to be rallying the troops at the moment."

[endsthegame]

"I don't want to be the one who rallies the troops," Ender said. "I've done enough troop-rallying in my lifetime. I just want to be left alone."

[lockestheway]

"Oh, I'd love to," Peter said, "But we're kind of in an end-of-the-universe situation at the moment, and I don't think it'll listen if you ask politely."

[endsthegame]

Ender exhaled a breath. "It doesn't matter, Peter," he said. "Even if I did want to get out, Special Collections conspires to keep me here. Maybe it's got a use for me. I don't really care."

[lockestheway]

"I know for a fact that isn't true," Peter said, wandering idly towards one of the windows. "If we fail here, your boyfriend's going to be nothing but a spark in the back of your brain for the next... oh, eternity."

He shot a glance over his shoulder. "If we fail here," he added, "Val's going to be nothingness for the rest of forever. I don't know about you, but I'm not too pleased by that, no matter how much of a brat she is."

[endsthegame]

Of course Peter knew to play the Valentine card.

Ender finally climbed to his feet, holding tightly onto the bundle in his arms. He said nothing; more words would just give Peter more ammunition. He paced towards the window on the opposite side of the room and sat down on the sill.

[lockestheway]

"Where are we, anyway?" Peter mused, squinting at the land on the other end of what seemed to be a giant canyon, seperating them from anywhere they could walk to.

[endsthegame]

Ender pulled one leg up, resting his foot on the window sill. "Doesn't matter," he said, watching Peter as he leaned in the other window.

[lockestheway]

Peter shot him an irritated look over his shoulder.

"It matters to me, you inconsiderate little oomo."

[endsthegame]

Ender shot him a dry look.

"Tough luck," he said.

[lockestheway]

Peter offered him a bitchface.

"You have a real attitude problem, you know that, right, Andy?"

That wasn't useful, Peter. But then he couldn't exactly shake Ender into submission, at least not if he wanted his nose to stay unbroken.