Reunion

[not_the_philistine]

Visitation Day came and went and Goliath still had not seen any of his clan in what felt like, and might have been, years. He still had not seen Elisa since she was nearly killed in his sleep, then vanished angry at him. There had been several times like these before, when the gathering of new crew members has been too painful for him to attend, knowing that his clan would come from elsewhere and at other times, and so podpops offered him only one chance at reunion with a loved one.

Disappointment had settled on him again, and he warded it off with productiveness. Elisa's car shone with the evidence of regular care, but the rest of the castle needed maintaining. He would invite more people in to work in the gardens, dispose of more of Xanatos' things - but first, he felt there was more still to gain by researching the Mayan sun amulet that he hoped could give him control over his waking and sleeping. It would be a good idea to contact Lupin again, but at the moment, it it pleased Goliath to conduct his research in solitude.

Deep in his reading in Castle Wyvern's library, he didn't hear footsteps until the door had already been opened behind him.

[EDIT: Subthreads now open for other characters to comment, starting with the Drunken Dragon]

Comments

[newyorkbynight.livejournal.com]

"That'll my job a lot easier." Ronnae certainly seemed to have faith in the security team, which was good to know. She wasn't always good at putting her trust in strangers - it had taken her a long time to warm up to Matt, for example - but she'd have to learn if she was going to be any use on this ship. "I hope they can find a job for me somewhere."

At Ronnae's final comment, Elisa let out a laugh of her own, glancing sideways at Goliath.

"I know the feeling."

[not_the_philistine]

"If Billy is working this evening that is all the better. He has been a good friend to me. I hoped to introduce you." To Ronnae he added, "Are you and he close?"

Because when you spend most of your time brooding in a castle, or brooding on patrol, you stay out of the loop on certain aspects of your friends' lives.

He returned Elisa's sideways glance with a small smile. He'd certainly be overworking himself if he were not biologically mandated to rest without fail. They'd see which of them could truly win the outworking-each-other game once he'd found a way around his sleep cycle.

[ronnae.livejournal.com]

The question from Goliath made the girl change in demeanor almost instantly, making her face grow very red, almost moving to the tips of her long ears as she looked down timidly, fidgeting as she pressed the tips of her fingers together.

"I... y-yeah... y-you could say t-that..." You could say that? C'mon Ronnie you can do better than that. "Well... w-we're l-lovers... f-for a long time n-now actually..." There, that's better.

[newyorkbynight.livejournal.com]

The flush that coloured Ronnae's face was impossible to miss, though Elisa had no desire to embarrass her further and didn't comment on it.

She'd been force to hide her friendship with the gargoyles for so long that she was still getting used to the fact that she and Goliath could walk around the ship together without attracting unwelcome attention. The idea that other sorts of relationships might be accepted here ... well, it was a lot to take in. Especially on top of arriving on the ship.

"Too long ago for me to say congratulations?"

[not_the_philistine]

That was very candid. But Goliath's surprise at the young female's candidness about her relationship passes quickly in favor of approval at her happiness, and therefore, the happiness of his friend.

"I am happy for the both of you."

Oddly enough, it hadn't occurred to him to think about how conditions aboard the ship would make things easier for a couple not of the same people. He'd been too busy missing Elisa to entertain hopeful notions about how their situation would be changed by being in a place where fewer people cared what species of person they were fighting beside than they cared about just winning the war.

It was much too early to draw conclusions, especially considering the hope that they still might restore their Earth, where their situation on the ship wouldn't matter in the long run. But he couldn't help but glance at Elisa again while she was speaking, smiling softly at her for just a moment.

"Though it seems I have not been visiting my friends enough, if I have missed this much."

[ronnae.livejournal.com]

Ronnae let out a breath she didn't even know she was holding and smiled timidly, pressing her fingers together nervously.

"It's... kinda hard to tell time around here... but... it's been around four pod releases since we started."

She had decided that due to the odd circumstances that worked around time in the ship and the inability to be able to tell time more of the... well time! She figured she could at least use a re-occurring event as the base for how time passed by on the ship.

"And you should, he could use more of his close friends around him for sure."

[newyorkbynight.livejournal.com]

Elisa, on the other hand, couldn't shake the feeling that their time on the ship - whether it lasted for weeks, months or even years - would change everything. From her perspective, she'd admitted her feelings only minutes before waking up on the ship. Coming to terms with the enormity of that - with everything that would change and how it would change - in a place were it would be accepted was an opportunity that she'd never expected.

She met Goliath's gaze for the briefest of moments, returning his smile with one that was just as soft and maybe even a little shy. It wouldn't matter in the long long run, but every moment they spent together was a moment to be savoured.

"I'll make sure that gets fixed."

[not_the_philistine]

Goliath put his hand on Elisa's shoulder. "We should go, if we're going to fix it tonight."

To Ronnae he added, "I am glad to have met you at last. If you see your mate before I do, give him my regards."

[ronnae.livejournal.com]

"Oh! A-ah, sure! I'll be sure to let him know!" she added cheerily with a quick bow and a timid smile.

"It was really nice to meet you both and if either of you need anything, don't be afraid to pass by Engineering or the Sun and Moon Twins and I'll be happy to help!"

[newyorkbynight.livejournal.com]

It was a good point and, although Elisa would have liked to get to know Ronnae a bit better now, she nodded when Goliath rested his hand on her shoulder and indicated that it was time to leave, settling for later instead.

"Ok, let's go," she agreed, "There's still a lot I need to see."

With a smile, she added: "I'm sure we'll see again soon."

The ship might have been big, but it wasn't that big.