fic: more twilight zone barca madness
Two updates:
+ A new section by colourreporter, in which Pep tries to guide a reporter around Camp Nou while disguising the increasingly weird behaviour of the stadium. [By the way, Lorenzo is Barca's physical preparation coach, newly signed this season.]
+ My contribution, in which Pep discusses the situation with Txiki [Barca's sporting director, and Pep's old Barca team mate in the 90s]:
Pep stares glumly into his coffee. "It never used to be this bad."
Yes, he's whining. No, he isn't usually given to whining. But given the circumstances, he figures that he'll be forgiven it this once.
Txiki opens his mouth, and Pep can just tell that he's about to argue, just to be contrary, because that's the way he is, and while they used to laugh about that back in the old days, he really isn't up to dealing with it today -
Ozone in the air. Txiki closes his mouth and holds up his hands. "Woah, calm down. I wasn't about to say anything."
"I am calm," Pep says with a big smile. For some reason Txiki doesn't seem too reassured. "And you were about to argue."
"I - fine. Could you stop that? It's really uncomfortable."
Pep spreads his hands, palms flat against his desk. "I'm not actually doing anything. Honest. Told you it's worse."
Txiki sighs heavily, suddenly looking about as tired as Frank did in those final days. "Okay. What's changed?"
"Where do we start?"
"Now who's being unhelpful? Do we have an indication why the stadium is throwing the worst strop since that time with you and Raul and the massage bench?"
Now, that's a low blow. One day, he's going to have to figure out how Zubi had managed to make Raul forget the whole thing and replicate it for every single person who knows the sordid details.
"Leo's been trying to find out, without much success. Something about needing food? Guess the new pitch is messing with things."
Txiki regards Pep's empty plate with naked, mounting suspicion. "Say, I don't remember you being this thin before. Have you..." He pauses to look briefly disgusted by the ridiculousness of it all, before forging on with new determination. "Have you noticed food appearing randomly around you? Stuff that looks like it came from the catering department, maybe?"
"I haven't really noticed, but...huh. Maybe. Why?"
The head-in-hands reaction is so familar that Pep feels a warm surge of nostalgia.
"I don't believe this."
Notes: credit to lemongrasstea for the food thing. Zubi is Andoni Zubizarreta, Barca keeper and captain in the early 90s.
+ A new section by colourreporter, in which Pep tries to guide a reporter around Camp Nou while disguising the increasingly weird behaviour of the stadium. [By the way, Lorenzo is Barca's physical preparation coach, newly signed this season.]
+ My contribution, in which Pep discusses the situation with Txiki [Barca's sporting director, and Pep's old Barca team mate in the 90s]:
Pep stares glumly into his coffee. "It never used to be this bad."
Yes, he's whining. No, he isn't usually given to whining. But given the circumstances, he figures that he'll be forgiven it this once.
Txiki opens his mouth, and Pep can just tell that he's about to argue, just to be contrary, because that's the way he is, and while they used to laugh about that back in the old days, he really isn't up to dealing with it today -
Ozone in the air. Txiki closes his mouth and holds up his hands. "Woah, calm down. I wasn't about to say anything."
"I am calm," Pep says with a big smile. For some reason Txiki doesn't seem too reassured. "And you were about to argue."
"I - fine. Could you stop that? It's really uncomfortable."
Pep spreads his hands, palms flat against his desk. "I'm not actually doing anything. Honest. Told you it's worse."
Txiki sighs heavily, suddenly looking about as tired as Frank did in those final days. "Okay. What's changed?"
"Where do we start?"
"Now who's being unhelpful? Do we have an indication why the stadium is throwing the worst strop since that time with you and Raul and the massage bench?"
Now, that's a low blow. One day, he's going to have to figure out how Zubi had managed to make Raul forget the whole thing and replicate it for every single person who knows the sordid details.
"Leo's been trying to find out, without much success. Something about needing food? Guess the new pitch is messing with things."
Txiki regards Pep's empty plate with naked, mounting suspicion. "Say, I don't remember you being this thin before. Have you..." He pauses to look briefly disgusted by the ridiculousness of it all, before forging on with new determination. "Have you noticed food appearing randomly around you? Stuff that looks like it came from the catering department, maybe?"
"I haven't really noticed, but...huh. Maybe. Why?"
The head-in-hands reaction is so familar that Pep feels a warm surge of nostalgia.
"I don't believe this."
Notes: credit to lemongrasstea for the food thing. Zubi is Andoni Zubizarreta, Barca keeper and captain in the early 90s.