Room 122 - Sunday Evening

[marsheadtilt]

Veronica so owed Piper.

Her BFF had cooked an amazing dinner of roast beef and yorkshire pudding upon Veronica's request after Archie mentioned craving it the other night at Caritas.

The food was warming in Veronica's oven, the table was set and she was waiting for Archie.

[locked, obviously.]

[ETA: V & Archie were hit with the truth spell

Comments

[actingltcrumpet]

Archie took a sip of his wine and noticed that Veronica was drinking water instead.

"It really is a good wine. Why aren't you having yours?"

[marsheadtilt]

"I don't drink very much," Veronica replied. "A few years ago I went to a party and was drugged and raped."

She blinked the moment the words were out of her mouth. She hadn't intended to tell Archie quite like that.

[actingltcrumpet]

Archie nearly broke his wine glass, but set it down just in time. "Oh, God," he breathed. She'd made allusions to this happening before, but he hadn't realized the full extent of what had happened.

Whatever had possessed her to tell him right now? He tried to think of something reassuring to say, but what he said wasn't quite what he had intended.

"You remember what I told you about Simpson, the senior midshipman from the Justinian. It wasn't at a party," he said slowly, "and I wasn't drugged, but . . . so was I. On several occasions."

[marsheadtilt]

"Oh, wow," Veronica said, reaching across the table and taking his hand. "That's awful."

She was silent for a moment, wondering what had sparked these revelations.

"At least yours wasn't someone you trusted and thought you loved," she said. "I found out about a year after it happened, that my ex-boyfriend had done it. He claimed it was consensual, but he freaked out and left me alone afterwards because he thought there was a chance we had the same father."

[actingltcrumpet]

There was awkward silence for a moment or two as Archie squeezed her hand. His jaw was clenched in quiet fury. "By God, if there was ever anyone I wanted to challenge to a good old-fashioned duel more, I can't think of a name."

"That's true enough," he conceded. "Simpson was not well-endeared to most of his shipmates, regardless of whether we were his victims -- there were many, if the rumors were true -- or not. But God, he made our lives hell. I could barely function with him around. Living in such close quarters with no escape was . . . it was horrible."

[marsheadtilt]

"No wonder you said you got used to a non-violent life," Veronica said softly.

"It was hard for me to face Duncan after what he'd done, especially because I had to be treated for an STD last summer and he lied to me and said he'd never been with anyone else."

[actingltcrumpet]

"I don't believe I was ever cut out for life as an officer," Archie answered, much to his own consternation. "I haven't the mathematical skills for the navigation, and I freeze under pressure. I love the sailing life, but I was passed over for assignments all the time. I resented it at the time, but in retrospect I would probably have flubbed them horribly."

He stabbed at a piece of roast beef and glared viciously down at his plate. "He sounds like a right bastard. How in hell could he treat you like that?"

[marsheadtilt]

Veronica pushed her plate aside, having lost her appetite.

"It sounds like ending up here was a positive change for you then," Veronica said. "And working at the museum will allow you to do the things you enjoy."

She sighed. "I don't know. I often wonder that. He claimed he loved me."

[actingltcrumpet]

"People will abuse that word to get away with so much," Archie snarled quietly. "I don't know that I'm ready to say the same to you just yet, but I would never betray your trust that way."

He pushed his own plate to the side and propped his chin up on his hands, looking across the table at Veronica. "Well, it was certainly a positive change to be alive again, I can say that much."

[marsheadtilt]

"I know you wouldn't," Veronica said. "I do trust you and that's not something I say easily. After all I..."

The rest of Archie's words finally caught up to her. "Wait, what? Alive again?"

[actingltcrumpet]

How the hell had that come out of his mouth? Archie immediately reached for his glass of wine and had a gulp of it, wide-eyed.

"I --" he stammered. "Veronica, I meant to tell you eventually, but back when I fell into that damned locker I went back to my own time and saw myself living out the rest of my life there, as if I had never left. I saw myself die -- and that's when I ended up back here."

[marsheadtilt]

Veronica just stared at him for a few moments, not really sure how to respond to that.

"But you were alive when you went in," she finally said. "So you didn't really die, right?"

She was starting to wonder if she had some kind of magnetic draw for dead people.

[actingltcrumpet]

"I'm not sure," Archie said. "I could have seen an alternate version of my life; on the other hand, that could explain how I ended up here in the first place. All I know is that there were things I couldn't remember before that incident, but when I saw them happen it was like I remembered all over again. In short, I have no idea."

He gritted his teeth and set the wine glass back down on the table. "Damn it! I had not intended to tell you like this, so suddenly."

[marsheadtilt]

"It doesn't matter to me either way," Veronica assured him, reaching for his hand again.

"And I hadn't exactly planned on blurting out the truth about Duncan the way I did either. I knew I had to tell you eventually, just in case, but I wasn't planning to do so tonight."

[actingltcrumpet]

"I haven't run screaming yet," Archie reminded her, rubbing the back of her hand with his thumb. "And neither have you. I'm pathetically grateful for this."

He had not exactly intended to describe his gratefulness in quite that way.

[marsheadtilt]

"I told you I wouldn't," Veronica said. "And I'm relieved that I haven't managed to scare you away."