Karmically wrong? Patch had no idea what she was talking about. Supposing he was right and Tai-San had tapped into some great cosmic force...she wouldn't have meant to, and he certainly hadn't meant to imply that it had been her fault. All that came out of his mouth as she began to walk away was a stuttering blur. "Wait! I,...I didn't mean, it's not like..." Patch cast Jack a confused and slightly helpless look. What had he done wrong?
It would be pointless to call Tai-San back right now. She was angry, and maybe the best thing would be to give her some time to just cool off. Patch hadn't even realized he'd gotten half way up when Tai-San had stormed off and once again sat back down in his seat roughly giving Dee that look that said he knew he'd screwed up...again, but that yet again...he didn't know how. As Jack began to babble on again, hypothesizing and asking still MORE questions, Patch's mouth just hung open. Was Jack serious?! They'd both just managed to horribly offend Tai-San, and all Jack cared about was figuring out the logistics of how Zandra came back. He shook his head both in disbelief of how unfeeling Jack could be and because he really wasn't an expert on metaphysics.
"It's...it's not something you can prove. Like I said,...it's just a theory. But I mean,...it makes sense." Patch glanced once more over at Dee as if looking for her approval or some sort of confirmation. "It's possible. Tai-San could have done it and not even realized what she did. She might have acted as a ...a channel or something." All this talk about channeling spirits and the weight of knowing he'd just made someone else extremely uncomfortable was started to get at him. "Look, isn't it enough that Zandra's back?" Patch glanced nervously over at Dee and then back to Jack. "That's all that really matters right?..." An uncomfortable briefly came across his face as Patch looked awkwardly at the table avoiding eye contact now with both Dee and Jack.
Dee snapped out of her day to find Patch glancing at her as if wanting her approval. She bit her lip, slightly embarressed that she had no clue as to what they were talking about. Once Patch and Jack had gotten into their indepth conversation, her mind had started to wander - to the point where she didn't even distinctly hear her voices. She hoped Patch hadn't noticed.
Pretending that she understood, Dee half-smiled and nodded.
Jack scoffed again, "Well yeah it matters, I suppose, if, if this were about three years ago," his eyes traced the top of the table as he contemplated everything. Theories and science went hand in hand, first you had a hypothesis and then you worked to prove it, if you had access to the resources of course. "I mean, she's been gone for so long. It's like, if that is her, back here now, then why? I don't know that I believe in a higher power, but if there is one, then there would be a reason for her to come back, but I can't just believe that there was no reason either, that it was a fluke. I mean, if you knew Tai-San and Zandra, you'd know, that's the last person on earth she'd bring back," Jack was mostly mumbling to himself, finding that he was now doing the equivalent to soul searching, a rather uneasy feeling.
Glancing up at Patch and Dee, Jack forced a smile, "Well I guess the only way to prove your theory would be to try to recreate the situation, once again, and the way Tai-San stormed off, I don't think we'll get any repeat performances out of her just yet. I mean," he scoffed and sat up a bit, "besides, who would we have her bring back? I wouldn't do that to Dal, and he was my best mate. I guess," his eyes trailed back down to the top of the table, "I guess I just think it's wrong, in a lot of ways, and, maybe that's just something I have to deal with." Jack felt that uneasy feeling again, that he was reaching into a place he wasn't used to reaching, spiritual and all of that. Besides, it was just creepy, bringing back people from the dead, and as much as she was Zandra, she wasn't Zandra, which made absolutely no sense to him, but there it was.
"I should, eat, I think, and go find Anna," he told the table top, looking up sharply to Patch, "Thanks, man, I really appreciate, I know this is awkward conversation material, but I figured if anyone around here was half as smart as me, it'd be you. I, well I know now that I'm wrong, you're pretty smart, you know a lot. We should hang out sometime," Jack reached out his hand, waiting for Patch to shake it, a goofy smile on his face.
Patch listened in miserable disinterest as Jack continued to ramble on about what he thought about Zandra coming back. It was as if he wasn't even filtering what he was thinking, just letting it all come out a stream as if he was the only one in the room. But when Jack came to the part where he suggested that Tai-San could repeat what she'd done!...To completely recreate the incident and bring back someone else from the great beyond, Patch was so dumbstruck he couldn't even stutter properly. His mouth simply opened and closed a number of times, looking at Jack as if he'd just grown a few extra eyeballs out of no where. Even by the time the redhead mentioned going to find Anna, Patch was still a speechless mass of blank. Was Jack complementing him now?! This was just too much and it took a second for it to register that the other boy had his hand held out.
"Uh...thanks." Without thinking Patch held his right hand back with his left for a moment, just staring at Jack's hand. He couldn't very well just say, "NO!!" That would be totally rude and mean but...wow if Jack wasn't an oddball. For a second, Patch entertained the thought of checking him over to see if he had some sort of...on/off switch. Like a robot or something. In fact, as the thought struck him, Patch did look at the skin of his outstretched hand a little closer than he otherwise would have...seeing if maybe Jack's skin wasn't really skin at all...but just some sort of synthetic polyfibers like Data's before he got that skin graph...
Shaking his head in an attempt to get rid of the unnerving thought, Patch finally, and reluctantly, took hold of Jack's hand giving it a firm but quick shake before pulling back away. "Sure. I'd like that." He hoped the large smile on his face didn't give away the fact that what Jack had said had thoroughly horrified him.
Trudy led Hawk into the Extra Cafe and glanced around. Things seemed ok in here, quiet conversation, and Jack was walking away from everything. Amber and Bray, however, were nowhere in sight, and Trudy wondered if they were ok, if she should check on them. Pausing in thought, Trudy closed her eyes and cringed, Uhh, bad idea Trudy, and she moved towards the food.
Getting a plate of food and a fork, it occurred to her that perhaps they were in the Main Cafe, Duh, but coming to a pause in that doorway told her differently, and the way Ebony seemed to be about to lunge across the table at Tai-San made her turn on her heel and scan this room. Can't even go a whole night without drama, god that woman drives me crazy, she thought kind of bitterly. Ebony was one thing Trudy would not miss, and finding that there was something gave Trudy a bit of strength.
Smiling at Hawk, she motioned to the two empty chairs at the table that held Patch and Dee and walked over, smiling at them. "Good evening," she greeted, not even bothering to ask if she could join them. There was no way she was going to eat in the Main Cafe, she didn't want to walk all the way to the Breakfast Room to eat, beside, what if Brady needed her?
Taking a seat across from Dee and next to Patch, Trudy set her napkin in her lap, glancing down as she found one on the floor, picking it up and putting it on the corner of the table. "So," she said softly, "I take it we haven't had any more drama. Have you two seen Amber or Bray yet?"
Hawk hadn't been surprised at all by the sudden hug Trudy had given him as they entered her room, his hand coming up to touch her hair, wondering what to say to make it all better. Of course, he wasn't entirely sure what was wrong now, why she was sniffling and crying, but sometimes it was just better to let things take their course. He held her tightly as she gave into her emotions, then told him she was hungry and seemed to buck up. The look on her face worried him, but he believed the tone of her voice, she meant it, and he easily followed her to the Cafe.
Once there, he followed her lead, taking some of the food and eying the concoction strangely, it wouldn't have meat most likely, and though some Ecos ate rabbit and other wild game, Hawk wasn't one. He preferred vegetables and fruits to anything, a vegetarian Trudy had called it once, but he couldn't expect the Mall Rats to accommodate everyone. Of course, as he spooned it onto his plate, he realized that it was all vegetables, beans, though he had to wonder how good this sauce was, had it come from tins? Would it have that distinct not fresh flavor?
Turning around as he grabbed a fork, Hawk noticed that Trudy was coming back in from the Main Cafe, giving him a smile and motioning where Dee and the doctor sat. He quietly took a seat and smiled at both of them, using his fork to quickly push the ingredients around a bit before being satisfied that there was nothing in there he wouldn't eat. Taking an apprehensive bite, Hawk was quite surprised to find that it didn't taste tinned at all, it, why it tasted quite good. Taking another, somewhat larger bite, Hawk happily enjoyed the meal and looked up as Trudy questioned as to the where abouts of Amber and Bray.
Patch had to admit he was partially relieved when Jack went his separate way. It wasn't that he didn't like Jack really...it was just that Jack could be well...kind of,...oh, he didn't know the word. Sure, he could explain away how the dead could be brought back to life but ask him for a simple adjective and he was chalk out of ideas. A bright smile came to his face as Trudy came to sit next to him and Dee along with Hawk. Something about Trudy soothed Patch in a way he couldn't quite put his finger on. She was so motherly, and had a glow about her. It was just,...nice.
"No, Sorry." He shook his head at her question, readjusting himself in his seat as if that would somehow give her and Hawk more room to sit down. Patch chose to ignore the question about whether or not there had been more drama. The conversation with Jack was something he really wanted to put aside for the time being,...at least until he could settle things with Tai-San. Looking from both Hawk to Trudy, Patch dug his fork into his food a few times as if finding just the right place to keep it. "So. What did you guys think of the wedding?"
Dee said goodbye to Jack, not entirely understanding the...tension?...between him and Patch. Something tapped at the back of her mind, telling her to be cautious around the redheaded computer geek, but she tossed it aside. From what she had seen, Jack was harmless. There was nothing wrong with Patch and Jack discussing scientific things - despite the fact that she had become completely lost during their discussion.
Trudy and Hawk appeared, settling themselves down at their table. Dee liked Trudy, she was a sweetheart who cared very much for her young one. If only Dee's parents had been just as loving...but that wasn't important, nor something for her to think back on. Hawk, she really didn't know, but knew that he was an Eco and currently with Trudy. Her instincts told her that Hawk was trustable, and a good man. How could he not be? Someone that made a loving person like Trudy happy couldn't be sinister.
When they asked if they had seen Amber or Bray, Dee added onto Patch's answer: "Haven't seen them since the wedding festivities. They're probably having some alone time," she said with a grin, "give 'em time and they'll show up to eat eventually."
"Oh well I rather enjoyed them," Trudy responded to Patch, her smile on crooked as always, "it's so nice to see Amber and Bray get married finally. I mean, after all of these years, and the baby, and all they've been through," it occurred to Trudy in that moment that neither of them probably knew anything about that, but it didn't matter. Surely, in due time, they'd learn. "How about you? Did you enjoy the ceremony Dee?"
Trudy was taken aback a bit by Dee's response, her chin lifting up a bit and giving Dee a bit of a nod. Trudy didn't know Dee that well, other than the fact that they'd lived together the last month or so, and that she had been here when Trudy and Hawk had come from the Eco's, after the Technos attacked. She hadn't really gotten to know Dee on any personal levels, but she liked her, and she knew she could be kind of brash at times.
Oh, what was Trudy whinging about? She just didn't want to think about Amber and Bray having "alone time". Her eyes darted down to her plate, then up to Hawk, giving him a smile and needing one in return. "Well, I think today has been rather exciting. Anything exciting going on in the Hospital? Did Sal ever finally decide if she was going to keep it here or move it?"
Hawk agreed with Trudy by simply nodding slowly with his head, chewing the food in his mouth with deliberate accuracy. It was good, he wanted to savor this, imagine, a home cooked meal made with ingredients bought in the city. Who knew? Besides, Hawk had nothing to really add, and Trudy was the one who liked being sociable, he'd give her that time, there was no need to try and compete with her for any of it.
Carefully breaking up the potato slices with his fork, Hawk watched the conversation, the way Dee said things, the way Trudy reacted initially, then found her path and kept things nice. Hawk liked Dee, when he'd come from camp and been convinced to help the Mall Rats overthrow the Technos, it had been because of the things the Mall Rats had said. Dee, Jay, Salene, Amber, Lex, Pride, and so he knew he could share a meal with any of them in somewhat brotherhood.
When his eyes came up from his plate again, Trudy was looking at him with a forced smile, and he simply gave her a strong comforting one around the food in his mouth, his cheeks puffed out a bit from the food in them. Chewing again, his eyes turned on Patch, waiting to hear what he had to say. Of course, Hawk and Trudy would be leaving and heading back to camp, so what happened here shouldn't matter, but Hawk knew it was important to know where things were, even in the City. What if an Eco were hurt and they didn't have the necessary holistic treatments? He knew he'd want to be able to come to the Mall and find someone like Patch who could probably help. It was better than doing nothing at all.
Patch definitely had to agree that today had in fact been exciting. In many ways actually. But as crazy as things sometimes got around the mall, or in the city in general, it at least kept things interesting. He shook his head at Trudy's question, continuing to eat in between talking and looking generally pleased with the gathered bunch of people. "No, actually." It suddenly occurred to Patch that he should maybe know more about what was happening down at the hospital. There weren't really any other doctors around and being away from there even for a short time made him feel a bit awkward. What if someone was hurt? But that was silly. If someone were hurt, they'd go get him. There was no reason to feel awkward or ashamed for not being locked in a hospital around the clock. Trudy hadn't meant any offense by it.
"Everything seems to be pretty quiet for now. Not that I'm complaining." A lighthearted but still self conscious laugh escaped Patch as he poked at the food on his plate some more, trying to remember if Salene had made a final decision on the hospital or not. Last he remembered, she hadn't decided....but maybe he was wrong. Salene was a ...well, she was a good leader. At least, she always did her best,...but sometimes she could be a tad indecisive about things. It wasn't Patch's place to question he reminded himself. And hey, maybe she had come to some sort of a decision and he'd just forgotten. "I um, I think she's going to keep it here." Patch's voice rose on it's own accord again, as if he was trying to justify what he'd said. "But! That doesn't mean it's going to stay there. There's...just a lot to consider is all. Maybe soon."
It wasn't until he'd said everything that Patch realized he'd not only not given Trudy a direct answer, but he'd contradicted himself too. He felt his face grow hot and looked to Hawk, hoping to start the conversation in a different direction. "So. Hawk." Patch nodded his head a few times, come up with something, come up with something "Do...do the Ecos have any medicines ,..or...knowledge of herbal medicines they'd be willing to share with the mall? Things that grow wild around here? I'm sure we could work out some sort of exchange or something."
Walking quickly in from the Main Cafe Dax could see it on their faces that they'd heard too, "Patch," he called out, turning to look at the boy, "Do you think," he motioned at the stairs, "Someone ought to go down and check? I can come with you, help with...the," he trailed off, his eyes darting to the stairs. Dax didn't want to pick up a dead body, it wouldn't be the first time, but he'd hoped last time was the last time. "We need to find Sal, and Amber," he said gruffly, shaking his head, not sure what to do, who to find first.
Hawk's smile reassured her and she looked at Dee with the same reassuring smile, it was so nice, enjoying a dinner with members of the Tribe like this. Of course she'd prefer to spend her last, or maybe next to last dinner, with her very best friends, but one had just gotten married, one was just back from the dead, and the other was busy with her kids and such.
Listening intently as Patch spoke of the hospital, she nodded, it was odd that Salene had gone to a City Leader meeting in regards to the hospital and yet even Patch wasn't sure what was going to happen with the Hospital. This worried Trudy, but she kept reminding herself that it didn't matter really, if she was moving away, she wouldn't really need to know. All of this thinking about what was going to change was starting to get her a little agitated, and Trudy shifted in her chair a bit uncomfortably.
Patch began asking Hawk about holistic healing, herbal medicines, and Trudy found that a nice distraction, turning her attention to Hawk as she listened. It was all interrupted by a scream and a lot of thumping and then a voice calling out for help. Dax arrived shortly and Trudy looked confused, nervous, "What? What's going on? Who was that, Dax, what happened?" Trudy hadn't seen anything, she was kind of behind a short wall at the table here, but Dax seemed to know what was happening. "I, I can go find Amber, or, or maybe Sal," she offered, standing up and putting her napkin on the table.
The attention was turned to Hawk and he cleared his throat, taking a sip of water and nodding as he set his cup back down. "Aye, our Tribe learns from each other, shared knowledge, so what I know, I would teach you, and you would teach someone else, and they would teach someone else, and this way the knowledge is spread around. I'm sure we could send a few of our more knowledgeable Ecos here, to the Mall, to teach herbal things, maybe the next time Trudy and I return? You should ask Danni, she was with us for a short time, I am sure she-" he was interrupted by screaming, banging, gasping, shouting.
Looking to Trudy with confusion, he stood as she did, "Aye, I can help you find Amber and Salene, or perhaps I can help you, Patch," he offered, he wasn't a doctor, and he didn't know what was going on, but he'd gladly help if he could. Anything they wanted from him. His eyes moved to Dax, waiting for him to explain what was going on, then back to Patch, wondering what he'd want everyone to do. It was times like these that Hawk hated not being the Tribal Leader of the present group.
Patch heard the screams for help and looked to Dee in confusion for a moment. "That sounds like Ebony." Seconds later Dax came barreling in, basically saying that a doctor was needed. Instantly a wave of nervousness crept up inside him. True, he was the closest thing to a doctor the mall had, but he was far from a real doctor. People seemed to forget that. He was just...Patch, a nerdy kid with a passing interest in medicine. But everyone always assumed he'd know best, and it freaked him out each and every time. The thought that lives depended on him...well if choosing which shirt to put on in the morning was stressful...knowing that one wrong move might kill the very person he was trying to save scared him like nothing else.
Maybe he could just sit here, maybe the problem would go away, but he knew that wouldn't happen. He could already hear people calling for him in the other room and he knew he couldn't just sit there hoping someone else would step up. And just like that, the wave of nervousness was instantly pushed aside as another thought, the one that always came to him in situations like this screamed from inside his head. If you don't go, and someone is hurt badly,...you may be killing them just by sitting here and doing nothing at all. Giving Dee one determined look, Patch ran off to where all the commotion was going on.
"Tai-San, ma'am, she fell, down the stairs," Dax told Trudy softly, his face crestfallen. "Yeah we better find Sal, but I dunno about finding Amber, we don't want to make something big out of something that might be minor," he told her solmenly, looking nervously in the direction of the stairs as Patch took off.
Looking back at Trudy and Hawk, Dax nodded, "Maybe you should come help, I'm sure he'd appreciate it. I know he's always worried about things, he'd sure like an extra set of knowledgeable hands," Dax nodded simply once more before turning around and heading downstairs to see how he could help.
It would be pointless to call Tai-San back right now. She was angry, and maybe the best thing would be to give her some time to just cool off. Patch hadn't even realized he'd gotten half way up when Tai-San had stormed off and once again sat back down in his seat roughly giving Dee that look that said he knew he'd screwed up...again, but that yet again...he didn't know how. As Jack began to babble on again, hypothesizing and asking still MORE questions, Patch's mouth just hung open. Was Jack serious?! They'd both just managed to horribly offend Tai-San, and all Jack cared about was figuring out the logistics of how Zandra came back. He shook his head both in disbelief of how unfeeling Jack could be and because he really wasn't an expert on metaphysics.
"It's...it's not something you can prove. Like I said,...it's just a theory. But I mean,...it makes sense." Patch glanced once more over at Dee as if looking for her approval or some sort of confirmation. "It's possible. Tai-San could have done it and not even realized what she did. She might have acted as a ...a channel or something." All this talk about channeling spirits and the weight of knowing he'd just made someone else extremely uncomfortable was started to get at him. "Look, isn't it enough that Zandra's back?" Patch glanced nervously over at Dee and then back to Jack. "That's all that really matters right?..." An uncomfortable briefly came across his face as Patch looked awkwardly at the table avoiding eye contact now with both Dee and Jack.
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Pretending that she understood, Dee half-smiled and nodded.
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Glancing up at Patch and Dee, Jack forced a smile, "Well I guess the only way to prove your theory would be to try to recreate the situation, once again, and the way Tai-San stormed off, I don't think we'll get any repeat performances out of her just yet. I mean," he scoffed and sat up a bit, "besides, who would we have her bring back? I wouldn't do that to Dal, and he was my best mate. I guess," his eyes trailed back down to the top of the table, "I guess I just think it's wrong, in a lot of ways, and, maybe that's just something I have to deal with." Jack felt that uneasy feeling again, that he was reaching into a place he wasn't used to reaching, spiritual and all of that. Besides, it was just creepy, bringing back people from the dead, and as much as she was Zandra, she wasn't Zandra, which made absolutely no sense to him, but there it was.
"I should, eat, I think, and go find Anna," he told the table top, looking up sharply to Patch, "Thanks, man, I really appreciate, I know this is awkward conversation material, but I figured if anyone around here was half as smart as me, it'd be you. I, well I know now that I'm wrong, you're pretty smart, you know a lot. We should hang out sometime," Jack reached out his hand, waiting for Patch to shake it, a goofy smile on his face.
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"Uh...thanks." Without thinking Patch held his right hand back with his left for a moment, just staring at Jack's hand. He couldn't very well just say, "NO!!" That would be totally rude and mean but...wow if Jack wasn't an oddball. For a second, Patch entertained the thought of checking him over to see if he had some sort of...on/off switch. Like a robot or something. In fact, as the thought struck him, Patch did look at the skin of his outstretched hand a little closer than he otherwise would have...seeing if maybe Jack's skin wasn't really skin at all...but just some sort of synthetic polyfibers like Data's before he got that skin graph...
Shaking his head in an attempt to get rid of the unnerving thought, Patch finally, and reluctantly, took hold of Jack's hand giving it a firm but quick shake before pulling back away. "Sure. I'd like that." He hoped the large smile on his face didn't give away the fact that what Jack had said had thoroughly horrified him.
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Getting a plate of food and a fork, it occurred to her that perhaps they were in the Main Cafe, Duh, but coming to a pause in that doorway told her differently, and the way Ebony seemed to be about to lunge across the table at Tai-San made her turn on her heel and scan this room. Can't even go a whole night without drama, god that woman drives me crazy, she thought kind of bitterly. Ebony was one thing Trudy would not miss, and finding that there was something gave Trudy a bit of strength.
Smiling at Hawk, she motioned to the two empty chairs at the table that held Patch and Dee and walked over, smiling at them. "Good evening," she greeted, not even bothering to ask if she could join them. There was no way she was going to eat in the Main Cafe, she didn't want to walk all the way to the Breakfast Room to eat, beside, what if Brady needed her?
Taking a seat across from Dee and next to Patch, Trudy set her napkin in her lap, glancing down as she found one on the floor, picking it up and putting it on the corner of the table. "So," she said softly, "I take it we haven't had any more drama. Have you two seen Amber or Bray yet?"
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Once there, he followed her lead, taking some of the food and eying the concoction strangely, it wouldn't have meat most likely, and though some Ecos ate rabbit and other wild game, Hawk wasn't one. He preferred vegetables and fruits to anything, a vegetarian Trudy had called it once, but he couldn't expect the Mall Rats to accommodate everyone. Of course, as he spooned it onto his plate, he realized that it was all vegetables, beans, though he had to wonder how good this sauce was, had it come from tins? Would it have that distinct not fresh flavor?
Turning around as he grabbed a fork, Hawk noticed that Trudy was coming back in from the Main Cafe, giving him a smile and motioning where Dee and the doctor sat. He quietly took a seat and smiled at both of them, using his fork to quickly push the ingredients around a bit before being satisfied that there was nothing in there he wouldn't eat. Taking an apprehensive bite, Hawk was quite surprised to find that it didn't taste tinned at all, it, why it tasted quite good. Taking another, somewhat larger bite, Hawk happily enjoyed the meal and looked up as Trudy questioned as to the where abouts of Amber and Bray.
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"No, Sorry." He shook his head at her question, readjusting himself in his seat as if that would somehow give her and Hawk more room to sit down. Patch chose to ignore the question about whether or not there had been more drama. The conversation with Jack was something he really wanted to put aside for the time being,...at least until he could settle things with Tai-San. Looking from both Hawk to Trudy, Patch dug his fork into his food a few times as if finding just the right place to keep it. "So. What did you guys think of the wedding?"
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Trudy and Hawk appeared, settling themselves down at their table. Dee liked Trudy, she was a sweetheart who cared very much for her young one. If only Dee's parents had been just as loving...but that wasn't important, nor something for her to think back on. Hawk, she really didn't know, but knew that he was an Eco and currently with Trudy. Her instincts told her that Hawk was trustable, and a good man. How could he not be? Someone that made a loving person like Trudy happy couldn't be sinister.
When they asked if they had seen Amber or Bray, Dee added onto Patch's answer: "Haven't seen them since the wedding festivities. They're probably having some alone time," she said with a grin, "give 'em time and they'll show up to eat eventually."
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Trudy was taken aback a bit by Dee's response, her chin lifting up a bit and giving Dee a bit of a nod. Trudy didn't know Dee that well, other than the fact that they'd lived together the last month or so, and that she had been here when Trudy and Hawk had come from the Eco's, after the Technos attacked. She hadn't really gotten to know Dee on any personal levels, but she liked her, and she knew she could be kind of brash at times.
Oh, what was Trudy whinging about? She just didn't want to think about Amber and Bray having "alone time". Her eyes darted down to her plate, then up to Hawk, giving him a smile and needing one in return. "Well, I think today has been rather exciting. Anything exciting going on in the Hospital? Did Sal ever finally decide if she was going to keep it here or move it?"
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Carefully breaking up the potato slices with his fork, Hawk watched the conversation, the way Dee said things, the way Trudy reacted initially, then found her path and kept things nice. Hawk liked Dee, when he'd come from camp and been convinced to help the Mall Rats overthrow the Technos, it had been because of the things the Mall Rats had said. Dee, Jay, Salene, Amber, Lex, Pride, and so he knew he could share a meal with any of them in somewhat brotherhood.
When his eyes came up from his plate again, Trudy was looking at him with a forced smile, and he simply gave her a strong comforting one around the food in his mouth, his cheeks puffed out a bit from the food in them. Chewing again, his eyes turned on Patch, waiting to hear what he had to say. Of course, Hawk and Trudy would be leaving and heading back to camp, so what happened here shouldn't matter, but Hawk knew it was important to know where things were, even in the City. What if an Eco were hurt and they didn't have the necessary holistic treatments? He knew he'd want to be able to come to the Mall and find someone like Patch who could probably help. It was better than doing nothing at all.
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"Everything seems to be pretty quiet for now. Not that I'm complaining." A lighthearted but still self conscious laugh escaped Patch as he poked at the food on his plate some more, trying to remember if Salene had made a final decision on the hospital or not. Last he remembered, she hadn't decided....but maybe he was wrong. Salene was a ...well, she was a good leader. At least, she always did her best,...but sometimes she could be a tad indecisive about things. It wasn't Patch's place to question he reminded himself. And hey, maybe she had come to some sort of a decision and he'd just forgotten. "I um, I think she's going to keep it here." Patch's voice rose on it's own accord again, as if he was trying to justify what he'd said. "But! That doesn't mean it's going to stay there. There's...just a lot to consider is all. Maybe soon."
It wasn't until he'd said everything that Patch realized he'd not only not given Trudy a direct answer, but he'd contradicted himself too. He felt his face grow hot and looked to Hawk, hoping to start the conversation in a different direction. "So. Hawk." Patch nodded his head a few times, come up with something, come up with something "Do...do the Ecos have any medicines ,..or...knowledge of herbal medicines they'd be willing to share with the mall? Things that grow wild around here? I'm sure we could work out some sort of exchange or something."
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Listening intently as Patch spoke of the hospital, she nodded, it was odd that Salene had gone to a City Leader meeting in regards to the hospital and yet even Patch wasn't sure what was going to happen with the Hospital. This worried Trudy, but she kept reminding herself that it didn't matter really, if she was moving away, she wouldn't really need to know. All of this thinking about what was going to change was starting to get her a little agitated, and Trudy shifted in her chair a bit uncomfortably.
Patch began asking Hawk about holistic healing, herbal medicines, and Trudy found that a nice distraction, turning her attention to Hawk as she listened. It was all interrupted by a scream and a lot of thumping and then a voice calling out for help. Dax arrived shortly and Trudy looked confused, nervous, "What? What's going on? Who was that, Dax, what happened?" Trudy hadn't seen anything, she was kind of behind a short wall at the table here, but Dax seemed to know what was happening. "I, I can go find Amber, or, or maybe Sal," she offered, standing up and putting her napkin on the table.
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Looking to Trudy with confusion, he stood as she did, "Aye, I can help you find Amber and Salene, or perhaps I can help you, Patch," he offered, he wasn't a doctor, and he didn't know what was going on, but he'd gladly help if he could. Anything they wanted from him. His eyes moved to Dax, waiting for him to explain what was going on, then back to Patch, wondering what he'd want everyone to do. It was times like these that Hawk hated not being the Tribal Leader of the present group.
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Maybe he could just sit here, maybe the problem would go away, but he knew that wouldn't happen. He could already hear people calling for him in the other room and he knew he couldn't just sit there hoping someone else would step up. And just like that, the wave of nervousness was instantly pushed aside as another thought, the one that always came to him in situations like this screamed from inside his head. If you don't go, and someone is hurt badly,...you may be killing them just by sitting here and doing nothing at all. Giving Dee one determined look, Patch ran off to where all the commotion was going on.
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Looking back at Trudy and Hawk, Dax nodded, "Maybe you should come help, I'm sure he'd appreciate it. I know he's always worried about things, he'd sure like an extra set of knowledgeable hands," Dax nodded simply once more before turning around and heading downstairs to see how he could help.
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