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[stand_unshaken]

 

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[dog_eat_dog]

“Matches, alcohol, photos, probably some shivs or something, if he isn’t an idiot.”

The last bit is a guess, but anyone who doesn’t craft something in the absence of a real weapon deserves to be called stupid.

She brings Arthur to the fifth floor, to Pagan’s room, and she pauses at the door handle to glance down the hall. No one around for now. She gives Arthur a playful little shhh gesture, finger to her lips, and lets herself in.

[stand_unshaken]

He follows her, and sees right away whose room it is. He waits to groan until the door is closed behind them, and then rubs a hand over his eyes.

"This guy? He'll never keep himself outta trouble."

[dog_eat_dog]

Tess grins a little, nose crinkling.

"Good thing he's not your problem, yeah?" she says. "Ellie's his temp this month. I tipped her off, too."

[stand_unshaken]

"Works for me," he reminds her. "Well, with me. I put a brush in his hand and he pretends to be the most glamorous painter on the whole Barge - poor Ellie."

[dog_eat_dog]

"He's obnoxious as hell," Tess replies, but that is at least in part why she likes him. He's transparent, more-so than her in many ways. She wanders his room, opening the closet to reveal his collection of colourful suits. "Doing work in custodial must be novel to him, rich guy like that. I bet it's like those people that spend thousands of dollars to fly to Africa just to sloppily paint fences and then come back and tell everyone about the charity work they did."

[stand_unshaken]

"Don't know about all'a that, but I'm sure he never even saw a mop, before. But I think he must respect me at least a little, to do the work he does."

Half-assed as it is. He's got a soft spot for him, damn himself.

[dog_eat_dog]

"A lot of inmates like you," she replies. "You're not a sanctimonious asshole."

She closes the closet and starts idly looking through drawers next, curious almost by habit. She won't take anything, but hey, she was invited to go through his shit.

[stand_unshaken]

Normally going through people's stuff is Arthur's jam, but right now he just leans against a wall and watches her do it.

"Who is? One obvious party aside."

[dog_eat_dog]

"Uh, all of them?" she chuckles, rifling through a stack of books, all in a foreign language. She flips between the pages like she might find something tucked in there. "It's pretty much in the job title. The obvious party is leading the pack, though."

[stand_unshaken]

"Think he stuck something in the floorboards?"

He isn't checking. He will not.

"I think most people are just tryin' their best. You just like me because I don't give you any bullshit."

[dog_eat_dog]

Their best isn't good enough, Tess thinks, but he's not wrong. She would give Arthur all the leeway in the world for treating her like a partner in this rather than a project. She snaps the book shut and puts it away, giving the floorboards a glance. They seem firm under her feet, and there's no obvious gap of a board that needs to come in and out.

"You hold me accountable, and that's the difference," she replies. Flippantly: "And they aren't fun to drink with."

[stand_unshaken]

"Well, I got plenty of practice at that," he jokes back, pushing away from the wall.

"What'd you find?"

[dog_eat_dog]

"Looks like a journal, it's handwritten," she replies, gesturing at the book. "But not in English, so no snooping for me."

This time. She moves to the trunk and crouches down to unsnap the latches. Efficient work, even with only one arm.

"You have any plans for New Year's?"

[stand_unshaken]

"More of that drinking," is all. "You?"

[dog_eat_dog]

"Thought about doing Archer's party, but the location sucks," she replies. Outdoors at night, no thanks! "We should drink together, then."

[stand_unshaken]

"We should absolutely do that. Think we could get away with starting a fire on Deck, while everyone's gone?"

They're gonna be the ones cleaning the mess, anyway.

[dog_eat_dog]

“I think so, we’re slippery people.” She grins, resuming going through Pagan’s things. There’s the matches and cigarettes — she’s surprised to not find anything harder. “Sacrifice a deck chair.”

[stand_unshaken]

"I thought for sure this guy would have drugs," he comments, at that, and then:

"Yeah, let's do that. See who else wants to show up, I'll bring some good booze."

[dog_eat_dog]

She chuckles.

“Right? He’d do cocaine. Wardens’ve told me it’s easy to get here, even.”

How that works, she has no fucking idea, but maybe Pagan just hides it better than she’s willing to dig on this pretend raid that Arthur will pretend to bust her for, anyway.

“It’s a plan, then.”

[stand_unshaken]

He scoffs - sounds like a damn stupid idea - and comes forward.

"Great. Are you done here?"

[dog_eat_dog]

"Alright, alright."

Tess shoves the drawer back closed with her hip and fishes her communicator back out of her pocket with her good hand. She scrolls a moment, checking messages. None. The network: there's a Pagan post.

"And we have a murder," she says, typing a response to Pagan with her thumb. "Looks like he used Norton as bait. I'll tell him I'm leaving his shit here, he can come back here and hide it himself."

[stand_unshaken]

Arthur groans, displeased with that outcome. Fine, Pagan didn't get killed - someone still did die, even if they're going to come back.

"Come on. Let's get outta here before people clue in."

[dog_eat_dog]

"Yessir," Tess replies, a little flippantly. The death of a total stranger feels like nothing, an afterthought. She types something more and then nods her head towards the booze bottles lined up on Pagan's desk. "He's offering a bottle as thanks, grab one and we'll go."

[stand_unshaken]

"Let's try somethin' new," he says, and picks up something that looks exotic and maybe a little spicy, before heading out.

[dog_eat_dog]

Tess grins, following him out the door.

"Thanks for this, by the way."

It certainly makes staying out of trouble a hell of a lot smoother, too.