(no subject)

[mnt_raph]

*It was a shitty shitty day. And even though yesterday ended hours ago, the fact that Raphael hadn't slept yet just meant that he was still living it. For as we all know, it's not morning until after you sleep. He doesn't want to, but he runs the day again.

Goodbyes. Punches. Talks. Bombs. Barstools.
Too long a day by far, only to be made longer by that look on his brother's face.

Raph had left home to avoid that look.
He'd decided to never go back in order to never see that look again.
That look cuts him in ways that only Endless tears can surpass.
The look, and then Michaelangelo disappeared.

His brother is much better at it than he is. He always has been. Mike is just much better at everything than he is. It's not like Leo though. It never was. Mike didn't try to be better, he just was. He wasn't striving for superiority, he already had it.

Raph wasn't just blowing smoke when he described his brother as The best of us all, he meant it.

So seeing him like that, on the verge like that, was too much.

Raph takes off the protective gloves. The silver rune work in the soft leather flashes in the bright light of the gym. The anger is out of him, for now. Which is good, because his target is a little worse for wear. Looks like it's not a good day to be an ex-turtle or a cinder block, really.

After shaking the concrete dust from the gloves, he returns them to his pocket. He's been trying to make it a point to carry them with him at all times. Not just because they're useful as hell, but because She gave them to him. He grabs his towel and hits the lights, closing the door to the gym behind him as he goes.

No one sees him as he walks through the bar and up the stairs to room 134.
Raph doesn't knock.

Comments

[henry-jones-jr.livejournal.com]

Indy looks around abruptly. Not startled, but momentarily expectant.

"Oh. It's you." His face falls slightly. "Stampy has a marble stuck in her trunk. Um... slight crisis. Still breathing... but... um, yeah."

[mnt_raph]

*He opens his mouth as if to ask how the heck something like that was even possible, but then decides at the last minute that he'd rather not know.*

So just like, I dunno,...force it out.

[henry-jones-jr.livejournal.com]

"By squeezing?"

Stampy shrinks back, still snuffling in irritation at the blockage. That sounds painful. Don't listen to Mr Angry Man, Uncle Indy.

[mnt_raph]

*Raph shrugs*

Or pepper.

[henry-jones-jr.livejournal.com]

"Oh. That's good. I knew I kept you around for something."

"I'd been toying with the idea of attaching the vaccuum cleaner hose. But it's still busted. Pepper works."

He picks Stampy up and heads for the kitchen.

[mnt_raph]

That's what the cartoons say anyway.

*Raph follows. Anything is better than what he's actually come here to do.*

[henry-jones-jr.livejournal.com]

"Yeah well. If it works in cartoons, it's bound to work here at Milliways." Indy reaches into a cupboard and pulls out the pepper. He empties some on the counter and keeps a firm grip on the tinyphant. "Ok. This is not going to be very pleasant. I'm sorry. You can have some M&Ms afterwards."

This seems to placate Stampy's struggles. Indy thinks for a second then moves her under one arm and pushes her trunk gently into the pile of black powder. Then he holds her mouth closed with his other hand and waits.

An apologetic smile for Raph.

[mnt_raph]

*Raph shrugs. Sometimes the bizzare nature of this place surprises even him.

Stampy can only hold her breath for so long. Breathing is painful with her trunk half obstructed, but she doesn't have much of a choice at this point. There's a small wheezy intake of breath, as she inhales a good dose of black pepper into her trunk.

Then....nothing.

If only Indy and Raph knew about the large build up of pressure that's already collected in the lungs of the mini-phant they might be looking for higher ground instead of watching her expectantly.

Indy gets the warning first. Her muscles sieze as the sneeze begins to form. Raph doesn't realize it's working until her trunk curls up a bit. There isn't even time for him to flatten against the fridge before the marble comes shooting out hai-lai style from the sneezing mini-phant's trunk.

The marble smacks against the opposite wall, leaving a dent before rolling across the floor.*

Holy crap!

[henry-jones-jr.livejournal.com]

"GOOD GIRL!" Indy praises, completely ignoring the near miss, and immediately rewards her with the promised choclate and peanut treats. Her tails wags weakly as she munches, still firing off smaller sneezes while the effect of the seasoning lasts. Chocolate and pepper doesn't taste that great, she decides, and leaves the last few.

"Ok. Never mind. Go play now," Indy says to her as he picks up the troublesome toy piece in a paper towel. She obliges by wandering back into Mike's room. Most of her toys have suddenly wound up in there for some reason.

Indy wrinkles his nose. "Have you seen him?"

[mnt_raph]

*Raph has moved over towards the marble mark of impact.*

Nope.

*He looks over at Indy.*

And we won't until he wants to be seen.

[henry-jones-jr.livejournal.com]

"Right. Just checkin'..."

He cleans the marble and pops it back into the battered box with the rest of the game

"A new friend of mine might be able to help him out a little when he gets back."

[mnt_raph]

Lemme guess. She's hot.

[henry-jones-jr.livejournal.com]

Indy laughs. "Well, yeah. In more ways than one. Rachel Grey. She's an X-girl with telekenesis and telepathic powers. Tattoo of a phoenix over one eye. And her power's all kinda flame-based."

"She eased the bad feeling a bit. Made it all a little easier to handle."

"Not that I asked her to."

[mnt_raph]

*Raph smirks.*
X-Girl huh? Great, Mikey oughta love that.
...

What do ya mean, easier to handle? You okay?

[henry-jones-jr.livejournal.com]

He frowns. "I loved her too, Raph. It isn't easy having her gone."

[mnt_raph]

*He nods, then shrugs*

She had a job that needed doin', and she'd doin' it. Take comfort in that.

[henry-jones-jr.livejournal.com]

"I do." He relaxes a little. "Anyway, this girl can, um, impress things in your mind. It's not intrusive in anyway. It just makes you feel better. Stops you dwelling on the crap stuff, and reminds you of the good times. It's hard to describe."

"It gives you strength. She's a real sweetheart."

[mnt_raph]

*Raph repeats her name to himself, committing it to memory. His lips move has he does this.*

Actually, that's kinda why I'm here. I uh...wanted to leave this for him.

*Raph reaches into one of the pockets of his cargo pants and retrieves a palmsized crystal. Indy would recognize this as Dream's Christmas Present.*

[henry-jones-jr.livejournal.com]

"Aw hell, Raph, that's a great idea. He wasn't a permanent resident when we all got those."

Indy gazes at it. He could have used his a week ago, but he'd completely forgotten about it. "Sure you won't miss it?"

[mnt_raph]

*Raph scoffs at the accusation that he'd need something like this at all. He's a big tough guy. Big tough guys don't need such things. He even adds a big tough guy smirk for good measure.*

I'll live.

[henry-jones-jr.livejournal.com]

Indy is quietly impressed by Raph's thoughtfulness and, dare he think it, sensitivity. He'd suspected there was a compassionate brother in there somewhere. Maybe Mike, or Large, or... have seen it demonstrated. But Indy hasn't really. He's seen it work the other way, going back towards Raph, and he's seen a caring Raph before, but not on this level.

He nods. "It'll definitely help. I guess... leave it on his pillow or something."

[mnt_raph]

*Raph nods back.*

Just what I was thinkin'. Great minds an' all that. I'll just uh. I'll just do that then.

*It's a quick pivot when Raph turns towards Mike's room. One that appears to be an escape from a conversation about emotions and their sharing. When really it's Raph's way of steeling his resolve enough to be able to let go of the one that that's really kept him stable in the long periods of Her absence.

Crossing the threshold to Mike's room causes him to shiver just slightly.
No turning back. As per usual, the room is a pit, and Raph has to make his way over various piles of Organized Chaos to make it to the bed. He holds the crystal out, for a final look. Then he squeezes it in his hand.

Her. He sees her. She's smiling. She's happy to see him.
And for a moment, it's alright. Everything is good.
Then the nagging fact that it's not real sinks in.

Raph sighs, and without a further glance at the crystal, he leaves it on the pillow and exits.*

I was thinkin' of leavin' instructions, but really...I'm sure he'll figure it out. He ain't a complete idiot.

[henry-jones-jr.livejournal.com]

"Yeah. It's not like it's a TV remote." Indy opens the fridge, seeking an apple, and sighs a little.

"It's gonna be tough, even with the good memories. She's... all around." Her dietary favorites in the refrigerator, photos everywhere, a sudden unmanageable amount of syrup. Looks like there's going to be some more wholesale dealings going down. "But I don't think he's gonna want to purge." He doesn't seem like the type to want to forget.

[mnt_raph]

Mikey? He's the family packrat. He don't get rid of nothin'. Hell, I bet he's still got Klunk's first collar somewhere. That cat's been dead for years.

Nah, he uh...he just needs time. That's all.

[henry-jones-jr.livejournal.com]

Indy mutters something about all the time he needs at the end of the universe as he pulls out a Granny Smith and buffs it on his shirt. "You know, damn it all, this place isn't gonna be the same without her." He flings open the cupboard under the sink, revleaing the last six gallon cans of syrup. "What the hell are we going to do with all these now?" He picks one up and looks at the expiry date.

"Wednesdays are gonna suck for a while as well," he says sourly as the secondary use occurs to him.

[mnt_raph]

Wednesdays are pants days, right?

[henry-jones-jr.livejournal.com]

Another frown. How can Raph not be clued in after all this time? "Boxers and PJ's normally. And guests for waffles."

[mnt_raph]

Hey, it pays to check, alright? I mean, that much syrup in addition to what I hear about your other themed days? I just wanted to check. That's all.

*Raph looks at the syrup.*

That's a crap load of waffles right there.

[henry-jones-jr.livejournal.com]

"Um... yeah." A shifty sideways glance. "Waffles. Yeah. And pancakes sometimes."

"What can I say? Mike likes to cook breakfast, and entertain."

[mnt_raph]

Always has. I figured it's just cause he likes to eat. Don says it's his uh...

*He snaps his fingers as if trying to look for the right word.*

Copin' mechanism.

*Raph raises an eyebrow.*

[henry-jones-jr.livejournal.com]

Indy takes a bite of his apple. "The company'd be a good distraction as well. I just dont know if he'll be up for it... here. You know?"

"She was always part of it."

[mnt_raph]

*Raph nods.*

Makes sense. So what're you thinkin'? Like a road trip?

[henry-jones-jr.livejournal.com]

Another scrunch. "I wasn't really thinking of anything, to be honest."

Indy rubs his chin thoughtfully. "Not a bad idea though. Shit, you're full of 'em today."

[mnt_raph]

What can I say? I'm a frickin' genius.

*Smirk*

Well, he'd still need a kitchen. SO... we'd need to take him somewhere that's already got one...

[henry-jones-jr.livejournal.com]

It's perfect really. Indy grins, but then pauses for further thought. "But who has the facilities, or would even want us to come and make waffles in their place?"

[mnt_raph]

Hell, forget want. It's more like endure...

hmmmm.

[henry-jones-jr.livejournal.com]

Indy raises an eyebrow at that remark as he continues to think.

"Hmmm..."