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[effiomsfavorite]

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[effiomsfavorite]

Okay.

[And with that, he moves in to pick Mark up. Bridal carry is easiest, so he goes with that.]

I'm still new enough that the guilds are taking care of me. I'll just bring you with me.

[atypical_echo]

[Oh man, this is awkward. He's not used to this sort of treatment. Well, no, he's just not used to it recently. He gestures toward his abandoned things.]

Can I get those in my arms? I don't want to lose my winter gear.

[effiomsfavorite]

[Okay, he's got two hands and both of those are occupied with carrying Mark, so he just. Puts Mark back on his feet again.]

Grab your stuff and let me know when you're ready.

[Probably should have led with that, but he's not used to being a taxi, so here they are.]

[atypical_echo]

[Mark nodded and moved to bundle it all up.]

So, uh, where are we going?

[effiomsfavorite]

Back to Phoenix. It's not too far.

[Says the guy who flew here at speed.]

[A beat.]

Unless there's another city closer by. I just don't want to try teleporting in the middle of nowhere.

[He's never used the Guild teleporter he's been lent before - another Guild member had given him a ridealong to Phoenix with their teleporter, along with a refresher on the basics - so the last thing he wants to be is incapacitated in the middle of nowhere if something goes wrong.]

[atypical_echo]

[Huh, well that was a whole thing wasn't it? He had to take the 'ride' from the guy that was not experienced. Damn, he really should have said yes to Speed, but those chases of explosions...]

Do you trust me?

[effiomsfavorite]

To do what?

[That is a very broad question from a guy who was pretty set on keeping his secrets an hour ago.]

[atypical_echo]

I'm an unaffiliated starfallen meta. Means I had a few months on the guild dime. I know how to use these things, and I know what most of the core guild cities look like. Not Little Love. Where were you staying?

[effiomsfavorite]

Oh.

[Turns out context is important! He pulls the teleporter out of his pocket and offers it to Mark.]

Take us back to wherever you're staying. As long as it's on the continent, I can take care of myself from there.

[And if Mark bails without him, he can at least fly back to Phoenix. He doesn't think that'll happen, but it's still a possibility.]

[atypical_echo]

I'm staying in Central.

[Like he would bother to strand someone here in place of him. That would be the worst thing he could do. Before he does that, though, he starts to dress in his warm clothes again.]

[effiomsfavorite]

So am I. That makes it easy.

[He'll wait while Mark gets his winter gear back on, folding his wings and taking a long look at the scenery. He can understand not wanting to be stuck here against your will, but this place really is beautiful.]

[atypical_echo]

Most of the arrivals stay there until they find their place with the guilds.

[He looks to the guy and offers a bit of a smile.]

Thanks. For coming out to save a stranger.

[effiomsfavorite]

Well, yeah. The Diadem is fancy - why would you leave before you have to?

[He smiles back, but the gratitude throws him a bit. It's one thing to pull a fellow soldier out of the line of fire during combat - that's duty, and also it doesn't make sense to let an ally die. This...he did go out of his way, for a complete stranger, only because the guy needed it (though the sightseeing is certainly a benefit).]

[He's not used to being able to just do a kindness. He's definitely not used to being thanked for it.]

No problem. Being stranded in the middle of nowhere isn't great, so...

[He trails off and shrugs.]

[atypical_echo]

I didn't. I know what you're talking about. It's a reasonable choice.

[He finally finishes getting warm and takes the teleporter up.]

Uh, I guess hold on to me?

[effiomsfavorite]

[General 'you' - he didn't phrase that well - but at least Mark gets what he's talking about.]

[He blinks at the followup request-]

Uh- okay?

[And puts a hand on Mark's shoulder. It's how his earlier ridealong had worked, and it's the least awkward thing he can think of right now.]

[atypical_echo]

Hopefully that covers it. There's an alley by the Diadem. I'll use tha.

[He's been mugged there before, but it'll be fine this time. Probably.]

[effiomsfavorite]

Sounds good.

[Huvrye has since learned that your average human can't take a punch the way your average homunculus can, so if anyone tries to start trouble, he will have no trouble ending it.]

Whenever you're ready.

[atypical_echo]

Right.

[Mark took a deep breath, tried to have more confidence, and then closed his eyes while he tried to picture where they were going. But it had been so long, and he was distracted. At least, though, they only ended up on the roof of the place. And when Mark opened his eyes he sighed.]

And now to figure out how to get down from the Diadem's roof when I literally never properly entered the building.

[effiomsfavorite]

[Well, that's an interesting misfire. Right now, Huvrye is just grateful they're not halfway through a wall somewhere. He can survive a lot, but he's pretty sure that's outside what he can handle.]

[He doesn't say anything - just gives Mark a meaningful look and opens his wings. He did offer to give Mark a ride, after all.]

[atypical_echo]

Sorry. I started thinking of the Diadem, and then I got to thinking about this person I met here on the rooftop and...

[He had teleported them safely, he'd just gotten distracted. But for now he offers over the teleporter and nods. Yeah, he can accept this.]

The alley behind the place? Should be the safest bet for letting me down. I'm going to owe you so much for this.

[effiomsfavorite]

It's fine.

[He's just not going to bring up the 'teleported halfway through a wall' idea. Probably not a good idea to put that in Mark's head.]

[He takes the teleporter back and puts it back in his pocket, then starts heading towards the back of the building.]

Any reason you don't want to be let down on the street? I'll still take you to the back - I'm just curious.

[Seriously, why this alley?]

[atypical_echo]

[That's an option, and Mark dismisses it immediately.]

I try and not give away the whole 'I'm a Meta' thing. Being seen a lot with Metas can make that harder, if I can't explain the friendship.

[effiomsfavorite]

So I'm not going to see you very often, am I.

[It's a bit wry. At home, Huvrye stood out because he was a homunculus with a reputation; here, it's because he's a fairy at all. Not many people have wings, and none of them are like his. He can't exactly keep a low profile here.]

[atypical_echo]

[Of course he wouldn't. Why would he?]

Did you really want to spend a lot of time with the weird stranger you met in the middle of a desert? Like, what if I'm a suspicious person?

[Not like he has a problem with the other guy.]

[effiomsfavorite]

If you were a suspicious person, you would've stolen my teleporter and left me in the desert.

[What kind of question is that?]