inthebiblicalsense | TLV IC Inbox

you'll never believe what happened today lol

[Fitz usually texts with proper capitalization (with indignation if anyone suggests that it's an old fashioned thing) but he's been known to mix it up without any one reason driving it.]

Why do I get the feeling I won't like the end to this story? What happened?

[He's shifted to a audio call, since hes still sitting at the goo vats, waiting for a shift change.]

Edited 2025-07-22 05:06 (UTC)

[Fitz doesn't switch to audio. He's fine - all healed up by eldritch forces, but (as usual) while he'd managed a jaunty walk back to his cabin, as soon as he was there he'd been hit by it all.]

some fucking stupid new arrival decided that asking questions like a normal person was for losers/anyone with sense long story short got tortured and then stabbed (in the stomach, because he's a fucking dick as well as an idiot) but JD patched me up

[Ethan stares down at his phone, reading the message. He reads it once, twice.

A third time, sitting in silence.]

[His eyes keep catching on the 'tortured and stabbed' part before he's finally managed to realize that his whole body is incredibly tense, and he's gotten to breathe.

Air fills his tongues and he's stood up, running towards the stairs. In an emergency you never take a lift.

He's a little breathless, but he does manage to get a word or two out.]

On...my way!

[Fitz's door is unlocked, and Fitz himself is just lying on his bed.

All his physical injuries are taken care of, so the only obvious physical change is that his bright yellow and red shirt has been replaced by green and blue plaid.

He had liked that shirt.]

[Ethan almost trips on the last stair, rounding the hall and pushing Fitz's door open.

He's a little out of breath when he crosses the space, half kneeling on Fitz's bed to get a good look at him. His hand is raised, but he doesnt touch him just yet.]

Let me look at you...

[Fitz appreciates that, not that he's going to say that.

He does roll over so Ethan can see him more easily. He's fine! Except in all the ways he isn't.]

[He feels like at the very least, Fitz is feeling how he did after John had helped him recently. Tired.

Gently he runs his hand through his hair to make sure its out of his face. He could continue to lose his shit, but he can't be present for Fitz if he's letting his anxiety have the best of him. So he sits back, taking in a deep breath, before attempting to shift gears.]

You want some tea, we can talk about it?

['Tired' is a good word for it. It's one that Fitz would use to describe what he's feeling on multiple levels, anyway.]

I wouldn't say no to tea. [He can't completely escape his heritage.] Covered most of the story. Oh, there was the bit where he choked me and then tied me to a chair. [He knows being knocked unconscious isn't good for you, so that's another point for eldritch healing.]

Okay. [That is actionable, something he knows he's capable of handling at the moment, and hes up, though he's having trouble not looking Fitz's way. He's trying.]

God...what an asshole. Did you get his name?

Our introduction was literally just him punching me in the hallway.

[The irritation clearly isn't directed at Ethan for the question, but at the guy who was both an asshole and stupid. A combination that isn't in the least rare, of course.

He would've been perfectly capable of taking Fitz down after seeing if asking the question normally would work. But, no, he had just skipped every reasonable step.]

Great way to get honest answers. [You know what happens when people threaten him? He immediately starts thinking of ways to lie that will get them to stop. And he hadn't even had an honest answer to give.]

[He's fussing with the kettle to keep himself from losing what semblance of control he has. Being on edge since their arrival on the station, he cant say this is helping, but thats not Fitz's fault.

He'll have to ring John later, and try not to be mad that he just sent Fitz on his merry way without calling first.]

Where ever he came from was probably hostile, but...you're not even carrying any weapons, that...seems too aggressive to me. [Desperate. But thats him trying to put reason to madness, and he can do that on his own time, coming back to sit on the edge of Fitz's bed while they waited for the water to heat.]

Im glad John found you... I wasn't exactly focused on threats coming from the Barge.

It's hard to express just how little I care about his 'motivation'.

[Fitz says, dryly.]

No, I know- sorry. [Its habit, and filling space to keep him from thinking about the action but motivation instead.]

I'll...see about contacting John. If he's new, he'll be able to find him.

Is there anything you want to say to this guy that you didn't get to? I'll pass it on for you. Word for word.

[Which is giving Fitz a lot of power, but what ever he says goes.]

[Fitz knows what Ethan is like, so he's not annoyed at him for it. It's what he'd expect Ethan to think about. Personally, Fitz thinks it's obvious and doesn't care.]

John already found him. I assume he probably has his name by now.

[He's pretty sure the name would come up on his warden item even if the guy was refusing to share.]

I already told him that he was an idiot. If he hasn't been able to work out for himself that I'm right, I don't think you saying anything would get him there.

[There's nothing he wants to say to him right now, anyway. That will no doubt change if he sees him say anything, but that's a future Fitz deal.]

Find him again, I mean, if he's not just following him around. [Which, despite the possible danger present outside, he hopes he is, or at least warned others of this new inmate who stabs first, asks questions later.

Hes caught in a thought when he realizes that Fitz didn't take advantage of his offer, and of course he's learned that when he doesn't even reach for the low hanging fruit, he's not okay. He didnt think he was anyways, but Fitz can shrug off things most people don't. Makes it hard to tell sometimes, but he has tells.

Ethan shifts a little more, flopping down next to Fitz on his side, bumping knees with him before attempting to pull him into a hug.]

Probably not, but maybe if I make some charts and diagrams I can really hammer it in.

You’d hope.

[Fitz has shrugged it off as much as he always does. If he’d run into someone in the hallway immediately after being tortured he could’ve easily not shown any sign.

There’s just a lot that he can shrug off that still leaves him upset. Not everything that he waves away, but a lot more than he admits to.

He lets Ethan pull him into a hug, leaning against him.]

I mean, I’m not sure how many charts you could make about how trying to talk before torturing someone is the smarter option. It’s a very simple concept. You can give a guy a book about how torture doesn’t work but you can’t make him read it.

[As the saying goes.]

large print, bolded. With lots of graphics to show how his zero to sixty approach had less success than saying hello.

[He's just talking, knows none of it helps, but he'll slide his arms around Fitz and give him a solid squeeze.

He didn't deserve this, and he'd done nothing wrong. The fact that they'd been together most of the day and then the moment they separated this happened is not helping the guilty protective urge, but he'll try his best not to smother him with attention.]

Is there anything else I can do?

Maybe take a second unless where he'd been looked exactly like a hallway here.

[He'd think Joel's response was stupid no matter what, but the layers of stupidity makes it... not 'worse', necessarily, but a specific pinch of irritation. Malicious ignorance is common, but that doesn't mean he has to like it.

He sighs.]

You know, I think it's stupid that people accept someone stabbing first as a response to suddenly arriving here, but I can get it. Blah, blah, fucked up people brought here from a dramatic situation. It's not the same time and premeditation that go into torture. If John's not going to say something, someone should.

[If Joel had just killed him, he would hold a grudge forever. There's still a difference between that and what had happened.]

[Ethan can agree, completely. There is a difference between interrogating a defenseless stranger and tying a man to a chair, harming him further, and asking questions after the fact.

There is some understanding he has about violence, but the degree indicated to him that who ever this man was, he was dangerous in how his anger or frustration played out in the people around him.]

I'll make a statement. But, I'm going to ask John to introduce us first. I can at least show him the courtesy he couldn't afford you and give him some warning...while also calling him out on his bullshit if he comes up with some kind of excuse for his behavior. [His fingers curl into the material of Fitz's fresh shirt, resting his head on his shoulder.]

He tied you to a chair for gods sake... what sort of threat were you then?

I wouldn't bet on there being any excuse. If he says anything at all I'd imagine it boils down to the old 'I'm a hard man from a hard world doing the hard things' blah blah heard every day of the week. It's pathetic, but there you go. You can tell him anything you want, but if you get anything other than the usual self-absorbed bullshit superiority you get from those types I'll give you a dollar.

And he stabbed me in the stomach. To kill me, I mean. There are a lot of other ways you can kill someone with a knife. I wouldn't be applauding any of them, but the petty vindictiveness of going for that says all you can expect.

[Ethan is thinking that he's not going to get a cent out of Fitz, but there is still some glimmer of hope. Maybe this stranger will surprise him, but he doubts it.]

Either he truly is an idiot, or he's a sick bastard... What purpose- [He shakes his head, biting his cheek to stop himself from trying to rationalize it. If he was going to kill to cover his tracks, he should have done it quickly, something that wouldn't just have Fitz in that god damn chair, slowly dying. He takes in a slow breath, eyes closed and rubs his forehead into his shoulder.]

I'm sorry... I know I can't just be there all the time, but that must have hurt like hell.

[He squeezes Ethan's shoulder.]

If you're gonna talk to him, I'd try not to get riled up by his bullshit. Like I said, I've met no end of guys like that. They're not worth caring about. Aren't you lucky you got me instead? [Who manifestly is worth caring about and much better company.]

Gotta invent a new level of hell that's even deeper, to get how much it hurt.

It's a little late for that... And it's not that I care about him, I care about you. And sometimes it's really hard to fight the impulse to let my temper go. He'd deserve it... [Ethan truly has tried his best not to let it get the best of him since the whole thing with Jacob, but it wins out in little moments here and there.]

I am lucky though. And...I know I probably shouldn't mention it, but thank you, for telling me? I worry about you...and even if it's terrible, knowing what happened? It makes the 'what if's' a little quieter.

And now you don't have to sit with this by yourself.

post Joel encounter

Re: post Joel encounter

Re: post Joel encounter

1/2

2/2

Re: 2/2

Re: 2/2

Re: 2/2

Re: 2/2

Re: 2/2

Re: 2/2

Re: 2/2

Re: 2/2

Re: 2/2

Re: 2/2

Re: 2/2

Re: 2/2

Re: 2/2

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject