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[ well that gets him a flat look fired back in return. this might rank for the most confusing interaction he's had with evan to date, and there have been some doozies. ]
So we just knock eachother around a bit and leave?
[ he doesn't try to mask the confusion, or the fact that he's still kind of raring to go. he's not about to start anything though, because clearly evan isn't feeling it anymore, he'd just be reacting out of necessity if david threw a punch. ]
[ still-- ] S'not like you.
So we just knock eachother around a bit and leave?
[ he doesn't try to mask the confusion, or the fact that he's still kind of raring to go. he's not about to start anything though, because clearly evan isn't feeling it anymore, he'd just be reacting out of necessity if david threw a punch. ]
[ still-- ] S'not like you.
[ so david's noticed too. that shouldn't be a surprise, but it irritates him, right down to the core.
evan pulls the mask back on, knowing that creates more distance than the distance does, and watches david, waiting for any attack, any violence, any excuse or justification to kill him other than because that's what he's supposed to do. ]
You'd know?
[ all the roaring in his head says david wouldn't know, he's just some maggot, some piss-poor excuse for a person trying to get in evan's way. but there's other arguments there, too, which is why he's not attacking. ]
evan pulls the mask back on, knowing that creates more distance than the distance does, and watches david, waiting for any attack, any violence, any excuse or justification to kill him other than because that's what he's supposed to do. ]
You'd know?
[ all the roaring in his head says david wouldn't know, he's just some maggot, some piss-poor excuse for a person trying to get in evan's way. but there's other arguments there, too, which is why he's not attacking. ]
[ there's a brief wrinkle of distaste in his expression when the mask goes back on, but that's it. though part of him does think evan better not start another fight now, because he doesn't want to fight him to get it off again. ]
How many times have you told me nobody should be walkin' away from a fight with you, hm?
[ he still remembers the sudden, stark realisation that there's no winning with evan that lets both parties live. the deep nausea, the shaking hands, the understanding that beating evan meant killing him. that he had to be ready and willing to kill or he'd never survive. ]
[ ... except one time, in the coal tower. funny that he'd basically pinned david and had a go at him that time too, but that struck him as an outlier. strange and unusual for both of them. ]
How many times have you told me nobody should be walkin' away from a fight with you, hm?
[ he still remembers the sudden, stark realisation that there's no winning with evan that lets both parties live. the deep nausea, the shaking hands, the understanding that beating evan meant killing him. that he had to be ready and willing to kill or he'd never survive. ]
[ ... except one time, in the coal tower. funny that he'd basically pinned david and had a go at him that time too, but that struck him as an outlier. strange and unusual for both of them. ]
[ evan looks at him in silence, knowing he's right, knowing it would be best for both of them if he charged right now. he can feel the urge to kill seething in his blood. he wants david to shut up. he wants him dead. the anger is still there, even after the cold crept in.
but he doesn't act. he just watches him, grim and glad for the mask, and wonders why it is the entity never pulls him for a trial when he needs it. ]
Yeah, well.
[ nobody should be walking away. from this in particular, both of them should be half-dead or full-dead on the ground. they shouldn't be standing. he shouldn't be ready to walk away.
evan turns and looks at the forest, at the grass beyond where the ironworks sits and rots. he's beaten people to death out here, and not just in the fog. the corpses probably didn't come with. their ghosts can't chase either one of them now.
after a few long seconds, he starts to walk away. ]
but he doesn't act. he just watches him, grim and glad for the mask, and wonders why it is the entity never pulls him for a trial when he needs it. ]
Yeah, well.
[ nobody should be walking away. from this in particular, both of them should be half-dead or full-dead on the ground. they shouldn't be standing. he shouldn't be ready to walk away.
evan turns and looks at the forest, at the grass beyond where the ironworks sits and rots. he's beaten people to death out here, and not just in the fog. the corpses probably didn't come with. their ghosts can't chase either one of them now.
after a few long seconds, he starts to walk away. ]
That's it?
[ what? ]
[ he should just take the... whatever this is. not a win. but he's alive, that's something. but this is wrong, and david doesn't know why that bothers him, but it does. concern churning in his gut and he doesn't like that either. ]
[ david follows after him, almost reaches out to grab his arm but stops himself in the interest of evan not just wheeling around and punching him in the face. ]
The fuck's going on with you?
[ what? ]
[ he should just take the... whatever this is. not a win. but he's alive, that's something. but this is wrong, and david doesn't know why that bothers him, but it does. concern churning in his gut and he doesn't like that either. ]
[ david follows after him, almost reaches out to grab his arm but stops himself in the interest of evan not just wheeling around and punching him in the face. ]
The fuck's going on with you?
[ evan pauses just long enough to know he shouldn't when david follows him.
maybe it's the fact that this was out of nowhere for both of them. maybe it's just time and the entity weighing down on him. maybe he's just going insane (more insane, probably). or maybe he's getting soft. unable to deal with the dangerous truths that david might not realize he's laying out at evan's feet.
all things he doesn't want to deal with, and can if he just walks away. ]
Just take this and get out.
[ you win, he thinks dully, but maybe it won't be the same as before. maybe david'll brag and maybe he won't. evan heads into the trees, where he knows where all the traps are that he needs to avoid and david ... probably doesn't, but can probably find his way through. he's done it before. ]
maybe it's the fact that this was out of nowhere for both of them. maybe it's just time and the entity weighing down on him. maybe he's just going insane (more insane, probably). or maybe he's getting soft. unable to deal with the dangerous truths that david might not realize he's laying out at evan's feet.
all things he doesn't want to deal with, and can if he just walks away. ]
Just take this and get out.
[ you win, he thinks dully, but maybe it won't be the same as before. maybe david'll brag and maybe he won't. evan heads into the trees, where he knows where all the traps are that he needs to avoid and david ... probably doesn't, but can probably find his way through. he's done it before. ]
[ david doesn't know why he's so insistent, why he follows evan all this way. something bothers him and it's not just the fact that he's doing this. the whole situation just feels wrong. ]
[ he doesn't speak, slows down as he follows into the trees — not for any special reason, david just needs to concentrate on where he's going so he doesn't lose a foot — but it'll be obvious to evan regardless. david's way too stubborn to let this lie. ]
[ he doesn't speak, slows down as he follows into the trees — not for any special reason, david just needs to concentrate on where he's going so he doesn't lose a foot — but it'll be obvious to evan regardless. david's way too stubborn to let this lie. ]
[ he knows david's following him, as well as he knows whenever there's trespassers on his property. it's infuriating, and frustrating, and it makes something in the back of his skull itch. not just from the call to violence, either.
but as far as he's concerned, this is Done, so he doesn't turn around and try to run him off or fight him again. he just keeps heading into the forest, hoping he can will the fog to hide him or get pulled to a trial. none of his doors have locks anymore; david can follow him anywhere. short of blocking the door this isn't going to end.
and he wonders: why the hell won't david just take the win he's always looking for? ]
but as far as he's concerned, this is Done, so he doesn't turn around and try to run him off or fight him again. he just keeps heading into the forest, hoping he can will the fog to hide him or get pulled to a trial. none of his doors have locks anymore; david can follow him anywhere. short of blocking the door this isn't going to end.
and he wonders: why the hell won't david just take the win he's always looking for? ]
[ david keeps following, quietly concentrating save for a hissed curse when his boot skims the edge of a trap, but he manages not to step in it. it's easier to focus on following evan than wondering why he feels compelled to do it. it just bothers him and that's not weird, evan's the one behaving strangely. ]
[ unless evan eventually gets fed up and tries to run david off, he'll follow him all the way until he stops somewhere. anywhere. keeps a healthy distance, but makes no attempt to act like there's any other possible reason for him to be here. honestly david doesn't see the point, evan would know better. ]
What's got into you?
[ he's not concerned, just confused. they're very similar expressions and intonations is all. ]
[ unless evan eventually gets fed up and tries to run david off, he'll follow him all the way until he stops somewhere. anywhere. keeps a healthy distance, but makes no attempt to act like there's any other possible reason for him to be here. honestly david doesn't see the point, evan would know better. ]
What's got into you?
[ he's not concerned, just confused. they're very similar expressions and intonations is all. ]
[ evan stops when they get to the ironworks, the huge, looming monstrosity that used to always be lit, always be active. the iron is long since cold, coating the inside of the massive vat so permanently it's become part of the metal. the windows are broken and the pipes would shatter if they got hot again. it's all a reminder of what he used to have, whether that's a good thing or a bad thing at this point.
he wants to get rid of david somehow, but he can't be stealthy when he's being followed. trying to kill him would restart the fight he just ended. he doesn't sigh, and he doesn't snarl, and he doesn't look back when he speaks. ]
If there was somethin', why would you care?
[ there's an edge of curiosity there. why would he care? is he just asking to carry it back to the campfire, and then to get overheard by certain ghosts? ]
he wants to get rid of david somehow, but he can't be stealthy when he's being followed. trying to kill him would restart the fight he just ended. he doesn't sigh, and he doesn't snarl, and he doesn't look back when he speaks. ]
If there was somethin', why would you care?
[ there's an edge of curiosity there. why would he care? is he just asking to carry it back to the campfire, and then to get overheard by certain ghosts? ]
I--
[ david stops maybe a foot behind him, frozen by the question. ]
I dunno.
[ why does he care. why would it matter if there was something up with evan? it tugs at something in him, familiar with the way he feels toward the other survivors sometimes, but that's... that's wrong. evan's not a survivor, he's not his friend. why does this matter at all? ]
[ he sighs. ]
Just doesn't feel right.
[ david stops maybe a foot behind him, frozen by the question. ]
I dunno.
[ why does he care. why would it matter if there was something up with evan? it tugs at something in him, familiar with the way he feels toward the other survivors sometimes, but that's... that's wrong. evan's not a survivor, he's not his friend. why does this matter at all? ]
[ he sighs. ]
Just doesn't feel right.
[ it's an excuse, half-assed, and evan can tell. he'd think about the fact that every word he's spoken so far has also been an excuse, but that would be coming dangerously close to self-awareness when he's in this kind of mood. ]
Does anything around here?
[ he's not sure he wants to know why david thinks him backing off 'doesn't feel right' in a way that isn't gloating. would he chase david down in this kind of situation? no. probably not -
the probably sinks in, and he only doesn't storm further into the ironworks out of sheer frustrated disbelief at himself. ]
Does anything around here?
[ he's not sure he wants to know why david thinks him backing off 'doesn't feel right' in a way that isn't gloating. would he chase david down in this kind of situation? no. probably not -
the probably sinks in, and he only doesn't storm further into the ironworks out of sheer frustrated disbelief at himself. ]
Nah.
[ david will concede that point, nothing in this place feels right. but that doesn't mean he has to just accept it and leave when something is so obviously off either. ]
[ talking to evan's back is stupid though. david steps around to be able to face him, to look up at his mask with a frown. ]
Look, I've got no right answer to give you here. All I know is what I said.
[ it's true and it's not. it doesn't feel right and david doesn't really know why beyond the fact that it's not like evan, but he also knows it's not like himself to be bothered by it either. anyone else, hell just a few months ago, he'd take the win and shove it in his face next time they saw eachother. ]
[ fact is, talking to evan makes david feel like he's going crazy sometimes. this is just evidence that maybe that's true. ]
[ david will concede that point, nothing in this place feels right. but that doesn't mean he has to just accept it and leave when something is so obviously off either. ]
[ talking to evan's back is stupid though. david steps around to be able to face him, to look up at his mask with a frown. ]
Look, I've got no right answer to give you here. All I know is what I said.
[ it's true and it's not. it doesn't feel right and david doesn't really know why beyond the fact that it's not like evan, but he also knows it's not like himself to be bothered by it either. anyone else, hell just a few months ago, he'd take the win and shove it in his face next time they saw eachother. ]
[ fact is, talking to evan makes david feel like he's going crazy sometimes. this is just evidence that maybe that's true. ]
[ evan realizes with more than a little irritation that david's not going to give up until he has an answer he likes. or at least an answer he can stomach, since apparently you win isn't good enough anymore. he looks david in the eye, or as much as that can be done with the mask on, and sees ... what?
concern? confusion? pity? it makes him furious, almost sick to deal with. he might be seeing things that aren't there, but it's not the first time that's happened in his life - even without the entity's help.
it would be simplest to punch him out, but that wouldn't end this, either. evan grits his teeth and tells himself that next time they get into a fight, he's just going to finish it without a word. ]
I don't like you bein' this close to right.
[ this is as far as he can say it. as far as he can even accept it, even. not just get the words out, but conceptualize it in his own head. it isn't even that he's wrong - it's that david's right in a way he doesn't like.
anywhere else, any other time, it wouldn't even be something th consider. ]
concern? confusion? pity? it makes him furious, almost sick to deal with. he might be seeing things that aren't there, but it's not the first time that's happened in his life - even without the entity's help.
it would be simplest to punch him out, but that wouldn't end this, either. evan grits his teeth and tells himself that next time they get into a fight, he's just going to finish it without a word. ]
I don't like you bein' this close to right.
[ this is as far as he can say it. as far as he can even accept it, even. not just get the words out, but conceptualize it in his own head. it isn't even that he's wrong - it's that david's right in a way he doesn't like.
anywhere else, any other time, it wouldn't even be something th consider. ]
[ he could push — right about what — try and force him to admit that he's not close to right, he is right. admit that he's full of it, that this place isn't worth shit, that he's not special and important just because. david opens his mouth to do as much, but he stops himself, frowns. what's that going to accomplish? ]
And that's why you just... [ david gestures vaguely in the direction they came from ] Pissed off instead of tryin' to finish it?
[ still doesn't make sense to him. it's not the first time david's poked at uncomfortable truths for evan and they both know it, whether he'd rather acknowledge it or not. was this just the final straw or what? maybe he is stupid, because he just can't wrap his head around it. ]
Why's this time any different?
And that's why you just... [ david gestures vaguely in the direction they came from ] Pissed off instead of tryin' to finish it?
[ still doesn't make sense to him. it's not the first time david's poked at uncomfortable truths for evan and they both know it, whether he'd rather acknowledge it or not. was this just the final straw or what? maybe he is stupid, because he just can't wrap his head around it. ]
Why's this time any different?
[ what gets evan is the this time. as if david's always been right before. in truth he probably has been, hitting on the unfortunate frustrations evan has to deal with (or ignore entirely). at the same time, evan hasn't walked away from those confrontations. he ended them. except the one that david ended, but it was done either way.
he isn't sure why everything had to stop this time, but he'll be damned before he admits he doesn't know to david's face. he lashes out, grabs him by the throat and drags him in close. ]
That ain't your business.
[ it's a growl. almost a threat, almost a promise of violence. there's no way to see his eyes through the mask even that close thanks to the shadows just inside the ironworks, and after a few seconds of letting that sink in he shoves david aside and heads deeper into the ironworks, aiming to leave and be alone for at least a little while before he's snatched up to be in another trial - or someone finds him. again. ]
he isn't sure why everything had to stop this time, but he'll be damned before he admits he doesn't know to david's face. he lashes out, grabs him by the throat and drags him in close. ]
That ain't your business.
[ it's a growl. almost a threat, almost a promise of violence. there's no way to see his eyes through the mask even that close thanks to the shadows just inside the ironworks, and after a few seconds of letting that sink in he shoves david aside and heads deeper into the ironworks, aiming to leave and be alone for at least a little while before he's snatched up to be in another trial - or someone finds him. again. ]
[ instinctively, like always, david reaches to grab evan's wrist when he snaps out for his throat. grunts in pain as the pull makes various aches flare up with new pain. ]
[ his eyes search over evan's mask, like he'd find a flicker of an expression in the carved bone, but all he gets is a growl and a shove. he stumbles back a couple of steps, out of evan's way, and just... stands there for a second. watching him go. ]
Run the fuck away then-- [ he throws his hands up in frustrations ] Who gives a fuck.
[ definitely not him. ]
[ his eyes search over evan's mask, like he'd find a flicker of an expression in the carved bone, but all he gets is a growl and a shove. he stumbles back a couple of steps, out of evan's way, and just... stands there for a second. watching him go. ]
Run the fuck away then-- [ he throws his hands up in frustrations ] Who gives a fuck.
[ definitely not him. ]
[ that stops him for a second. run away. Like a coward, like he's not a man.
but when david doesn't continue and just gives up, evan manages to overcome his own insulted fury and keep going. he makes his way out of the ironworks and follows a winding path back to the mine, trying to not think about anything, or everything, that wants his attention.
he's got no one to blame for this but himself, and he knows that. it's part of the reason why he's so angry about it. ]
but when david doesn't continue and just gives up, evan manages to overcome his own insulted fury and keep going. he makes his way out of the ironworks and follows a winding path back to the mine, trying to not think about anything, or everything, that wants his attention.
he's got no one to blame for this but himself, and he knows that. it's part of the reason why he's so angry about it. ]
How busy are you?
[ not "are you busy", because evan always is. he's learning. ]
[ not "are you busy", because evan always is. he's learning. ]
Need to burn some energy. Thought you could help with that.
[ suspicious. ]
what was your plan? try to beat me to death again?
what was your plan? try to beat me to death again?
[ evan have you never gotten a booty call before ]
I'm asking if you wanna fuck.
I'm asking if you wanna fuck.
[ short answer: no.
but that was his next guess. ]
figured you'd still be too pissed off to consider it.
but that was his next guess. ]
figured you'd still be too pissed off to consider it.
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