07.05.74 08:03:23

[cloakandclaw]

Stepping back into this environment after a week's absence should have left him... rejuvenated, perhaps. The truth of the matter is that while the respite has been a much-needed one, the first thing he does is remove his glove and place his hand on the computer console.

NO DESTINATIONS AVAILABLE.This... is not unexpected, but neither is it

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[third_jing]

"Hey, Vincent."

She's coming from the east, covered in dust and a healthy coating of earth. Her stomach still demands attention, but she gives it a stern inward glance and a silent promise: later, okay? and it falls silent for the time being.

The figure on the bench is almost too easy to recognize; Vincent's armor is as good as a hail for identifying him, and she marches right on up to stand in front of him, chin slightly tilted. With him seated, they're probably about the same height, but it's difficult to be sure. "Missed you at the party. Not your scene, huh?"

[cloakandclaw]

"No."

There's a better way to answer the question and he would far prefer not to lie when it's unnecessary. That, of course, is different from remaining silent and he is a fan of stating only that which needs to be stated. Still, an explanation might be... polite.

"I was away."

There. Succinct, to the point, unsullied by any emotional component he'd really rather keep to himself, and altogether explanatory. It also serves to dull the I don't want to be here, I don't want to be here, I don't want to be here chant that simply refuses to leave his thoughts when he's otherwise unoccupied.

"You've been... busy?" From the looks of things, she's been bathing in dirt.

[third_jing]

Oooh, away. That's a conversation starter. She chooses not to jump at the bait--if that's what it is, Vincent strikes her as extremely literal--and instead answers his question.

"Not really. Mostly I've been unbelievably lazy. You know, sleeping late, napping in the afternoons, wreaking the occasional havoc." She smiles, and wipes the sweat off her forehead, leaving a thick streak of dirt behind. "Just kidding. Actually, you caught me at pretty much the only time I've been doing anything."

She jerks a thumb over her shoulder to indicate the eastern edge of the park, where a dust cloud is still settling. "I made a practice arena. Got to keep the old edge sharp, right?"

[cloakandclaw]

That... is something new; at the very least she's got his attention. When he stands to tower over her, the breeze picks at the ragged hem of his cloak; he brushes that back.

"I would like to see that. Will you... show me?"

He isn't one who's been, as she puts it, unbelievably lazy, although he recognizes a joke when he sees it. It's been years since he slept late, but... well, he had thirty years' sleep and doesn't feel the need to indulge in that very often these days.

His gaze moves in the direction of the dust cloud. Now, he's curious. All along he'd thought nothing new ever happened here. It appears he was... incorrect in that assumption. His hypothesis will have to be revisited.

[stardrive_pilot]

It's just after 0800, and he's left his run a little late this morning. Not that anyone's keeping track, and not that he's got any commitments to keep here. He's not about to miss a briefing or a mission because he slept in a little. But he's trying to keep up with some vague semblance of a routine, so that when he does get back to Atlantis, he can slip back into his life there

[cloakandclaw]

He recognizes this man. They have yet to meet, but... they were both at a party together a number of months ago, although they haven't spoken. Still, he's as familiar with this man's routine as he is with any of them.

Gathering information without being seen is a specialty of his, and he's not without his own adherence to routine.

"Good morning."

The morning has not been particularly good to him, but that... is nobody's business, least of all the business of a stranger. The very least he can do -- the very least this place has taught him -- is how to be polite. Whether or not it's against his will is irrelevant.

[stardrive_pilot]

"Hey." He stands there for the space of some more breaths, until he's not breathing quite so hard, then straightens and raises a hand in a sort of wave. He's been jogging in a lot of different places in two different galaxies, and the park here's nice enough.

He misses winding through the back corridors and catwalks and hidden places of Atlantis, through the parts of the city known to just a few of its inhabitants. Maybe he's just a sap, but there's something special about that place, even to a man who's not all that into all the Ancient tech stuff.

"You're staying at the hotel, right?" He does, of course, already actually know the answer to that. If he didn't, knowing what he does now about the situation in the city, he wouldn't even bring it up. He can't imagine that the Dragons, if they've figured out what happened, will be feeling particularly warm and fuzzy towards the people who took out so many of their comrades.

"I'm Sheppard, by the way. John Sheppard."

[cloakandclaw]

His nod serves as answer to the hotel question; standing, he extends his gloved right hand.

"I am called Vincent Valentine." The wording on his introduction is intentional: while it's true that Vincent Valentine is his name, he... is more than simply Vincent these days. If he disassociates from his name, he takes the rest of it far less... personally.

"I've been a guest of this place for some time." He knows exactly how long he's been here, down to the minute if not the second, but his... obsessions are his own business, just as his earlier concession to the morning not being particularly good to him is his own business. Everyone needs something on which to focus. Why, he wonders, after a week spent with Lucrecia, is he not... happier? The usual logic dictates he has yet to earn back the right to happiness, but carrying the burden of his sins, layered with the burden of hers, is a very heavy load