(Untitled)

[spectral_skin]

At the end of the night, Angelo takes the class picture Kitty gave him back to his room, stopping at the Bar on the way to get a frame for it

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[no_more_chianti]

Staff wing walls are thin, as Clarice is learning. She listens quietly for a minute, then goes out into the hall and taps on Angelo's door.

[spectral_skin]

He glances up, then wipes his eyes quickly before he goes to open the door, still clutching the picture.

[no_more_chianti]

Clarice frowns when she sees him. She wasn't wrong then; something happened.

"Hey," she says quietly, noting the picture. "What's the matter?"

[spectral_skin]

Angelo gives her a weak smile.

"Just a bad night. Memories."

[no_more_chianti]

"Do you need to talk about it?" Clarice asks. She returns his smile reassuringly. "It could help."

[spectral_skin]

"Got a present from a friend." He shows her the photo. "My old class."

[no_more_chianti]

Clarice examines the picture and nods. "Friends?"

[spectral_skin]

"Best I ever had."

[no_more_chianti]

"So what happened?" she asks, not unkindly.

[spectral_skin]

"Ev died", he says quietly, pointing to the boy in the picture. "The group dissolved."

[no_more_chianti]

She looks where he points, then back to him.

"I'm sorry," she says.

She frowns. "Do you know why your friend decided to give this to you now?" It seems a little heartless, given the background.

[spectral_skin]

"Because I'm dead and Bound. She knows I miss them. This is the best she could do."

[no_more_chianti]

Clarice watches his face. After a pause, she speaks.

"This place is pretty amazing in a lot of ways-- there are angels here, and people from all over time and space and different worlds-- but there are some things it can't fix."

[spectral_skin]

He grins ruefully. "When you live the life I d... did, you kind of expect to die young. But it's hard as hell to give it up before that happens, for all that. I don't know what I'd do if they showed up here, alive."

[no_more_chianti]

Clarice wonders what kind of life he's talking about, but figures now isn't the time to ask.

"I know what you mean," she says. "My dad-- my parents ... I miss them a lot. But I wouldn't know what to do if they ended up here."

Would they still be proud of you, Starling?

She sighs, smiling faintly. "But this other friend, who gave you the picture ... she's here, isn't she? And you seem to get along okay."

[spectral_skin]

"She wasn't one of my team. On the same side, and she's a good friend now, but she wasn't one of my people, before..."