Convalescence [Closed]

Kevin listened attentively as Meridith talked, taking in her certainty behind both her words and her bearing. She obviously didn’t want to run or hide, that much was clear. Truthfully, she had seemed more afraid of the hospital staff than she now was of the Shinigami, though it was unlikely that the Shinigami would telephone her family asking about medical information. In truth, the surname Sheppard was so common that she had nothing to worry about even if they found her name out, and Kevin bore his normal human father’s name, so his mother’s lineage of Quincy were relatively safe as well if something were to happen to him.

Kevin accepted his drink and ordered a double monster burger with extra sauce. He’d considered trying it on his previous visits, but he wasn’t feeling hungry enough to try their largest offering. After the night he’d had, he could use it.

After the orders were taken, he leaned back in his seat and sighed in general agreement with Meridith’s sentiments. ”Yeah, I suppose hiding’s probably out of the question. If we go off somewhere, they’d be liable to try and track down other Quincy. Last thing I’d want to do is get someone else in trouble with the ghost Nazis because I turned tail.”

Kevin pushed forward setting his drink back on the table and bringing a hand to his chin, stroking it in thought for a moment before he spoke again. ”We’ll still need to be careful, though. No pissing off the Shinigami for a while if it can be at all avoided, agreed? We need to figure out our numbers first. Things are gonna a lot different if it turns out we outnumber them four to one.”

She held her hand up when he finished speaking and just closed her eyes. She waited like that in silence as if waiting for something. Perhaps she was waiting for the other shoe to drop. Perhaps she was waiting for some dire threat top reveal itself at last. Maybe she was savouring this moment where everything seemed good, a moment where she was safe, with someone she liked, in a place outside of the Quincy, outside of the struggle and conflict. She smiled and opened her eyes. A last bit of business to address, she mused.

"We'll find others like us. And we'll all get together, those of us keen on turning the tables. We'll come up with a plan to let us hunt in peace." She dropped one of the five fingers she held up. "We'll keep our heads down though I don't intend to hide. Lives are on the line and it's obvious that the Shinigami are far from capable of protecting people here while the Hollow's hunt." She dropped another. "I won't go out of my way to antagonize them," she affirmed.

"Now, I think that's enough serious talk." She turned her gaze over towards the rest of the dining room. Course set. Partner in crime confirmed. That was the last of it on her checklist. She smiled and dropped the third finger, then the fourth and lingering a moment longer before the fifth dropped followed by an audible shift in relief. The wait staff emerged a moment later barring their food. Two unreasonably sized burgers with too much in them, in a gaudy near American show of excess. Exactly the kind of mess they both deserved right now. She snatched hers up greedily and waited a long plaintive moment before taking a far too large bite.

It was so good she could almost cry. It tasted like victory. For a moment, everything was right with the world.

Tomorrow was a brand new day.

Kevin listened and nodded along approvingly as she agreed to at least be sensible about not picking any more fights with the Shinigami. As long as the two of them could stay safe, there wasn’t much they would need to worry about from a stray ghost, be it an evil monster or a goofy ass ninja in pajamas flailing around with a sword.

Unsure of why she was making a fist, Kevin mirrored the gesture and gave her a fist bump of solidarity. ”The accord is struck,” he said, trying to sound all cool and formal but being distracted by the wafting smell of delicious burgers on their way. He took his appreciatively and, after stifling a chuckle of her far too overlarge bite, took one himself.

It was a solid burger, well seasoned, with a juicy patty and a quality sear on the meat. The tomato had clearly been freshly sliced, and the lettuce carried a crisp crunch that added just the right levels of texture. The sauce was still a little off, not knowing if it wanted to be a proper thousand island or a creamier mayo, but it could be forgiven for not overpowering the rest of the flavors. 4.5 stars, would try again after helping a friend escape death.

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