(no subject)
[ooc: Millitimed to four days before Christmas. Spoilers for episodes 1x02. Most dialogue and imagery property of Carnivale.]
Could be Ben's been spendin' a little more time in his room, maybe, likes it up there where there's less people'n noise. But he can't stay up there forever and he comes down today, shoulders hunched, hands all deep in his pockets and he bellies up to the bar, asks for a coffee.
She gets it for him and he takes it, turns around, makes like he's gonna go settle in a booth 'cept then he sees it.
His door is there, half open, dry smell like dust and dirt floating through and the coffee mug smashes on the ground as Ben takes two big steps, half runnin, and then.
Then he's back, and Ruthie's starin' at him like maybe she thinks Gabe hit him a little too hard but Ben's just lookin' at the sky and the trailers like he ain't never seen 'em in his life.
~
She says something quiet, later, 'bout how he ain't bruisin' or walkin' stiff from the beating and he don't say nothing, just shrugs his shirt down from where she'd walked her fingers over his ribs to check for breaks. After a moment he holds out the photograph, the one from the baggage trailer, asks if she knows him who it is.
Old Hack Scudder's sweetie, she says, after a minute. Says what was her name? Flora.
And then Ben don't say anything past the lump in his throat, and for a moment he ain't even thinkin' 'bout Milliways and all the shit what's happened to him 'cause that confirms it.
She talks about Scudder, a bit, says he was a rummy and sounds wistful, gets a picture to show him and Ben's blood runs cold 'cause he thinks he knows that face When she trails off Ben looks up her, looks at the girl's picture, shrugs a bit and says she's my ma. And then Ruthie's sayin' how that's downright queer but Ben's gettin up to leave because he's puttin' things together in his head and he don't want to stay there no more when he gets a thought, turns and says this - this Scudder, you think he might've been in the war?
Could've been, Ruthie says, real quiet-like and she's not lookin' at him, she's lookin' at the past. Lots of crazy men in the war.
Crazy as mud-bugs on a griddle, she says, and Ben slips out, past Gabriel sittin' on the steps, back to the scuffed dirt under the truck where his blanket is but he knows he ain't gonna be sleepin' because the last thing he wants, last thing he wants is to dream.
'cause now he knows one of the faces, and he knows he's seen Hack Scudder.
Could be Ben's been spendin' a little more time in his room, maybe, likes it up there where there's less people'n noise. But he can't stay up there forever and he comes down today, shoulders hunched, hands all deep in his pockets and he bellies up to the bar, asks for a coffee.
She gets it for him and he takes it, turns around, makes like he's gonna go settle in a booth 'cept then he sees it.
His door is there, half open, dry smell like dust and dirt floating through and the coffee mug smashes on the ground as Ben takes two big steps, half runnin, and then.
Then he's back, and Ruthie's starin' at him like maybe she thinks Gabe hit him a little too hard but Ben's just lookin' at the sky and the trailers like he ain't never seen 'em in his life.
~
She says something quiet, later, 'bout how he ain't bruisin' or walkin' stiff from the beating and he don't say nothing, just shrugs his shirt down from where she'd walked her fingers over his ribs to check for breaks. After a moment he holds out the photograph, the one from the baggage trailer, asks if she knows him who it is.
Old Hack Scudder's sweetie, she says, after a minute. Says what was her name? Flora.
And then Ben don't say anything past the lump in his throat, and for a moment he ain't even thinkin' 'bout Milliways and all the shit what's happened to him 'cause that confirms it.
She talks about Scudder, a bit, says he was a rummy and sounds wistful, gets a picture to show him and Ben's blood runs cold 'cause he thinks he knows that face When she trails off Ben looks up her, looks at the girl's picture, shrugs a bit and says she's my ma. And then Ruthie's sayin' how that's downright queer but Ben's gettin up to leave because he's puttin' things together in his head and he don't want to stay there no more when he gets a thought, turns and says this - this Scudder, you think he might've been in the war?
Could've been, Ruthie says, real quiet-like and she's not lookin' at him, she's lookin' at the past. Lots of crazy men in the war.
Crazy as mud-bugs on a griddle, she says, and Ben slips out, past Gabriel sittin' on the steps, back to the scuffed dirt under the truck where his blanket is but he knows he ain't gonna be sleepin' because the last thing he wants, last thing he wants is to dream.
'cause now he knows one of the faces, and he knows he's seen Hack Scudder.