Log:Moonshine and Secrets

Moonshine and Secrets
Participants Gabriel Grayson, Jack Fry	22 May, 2018 Gabriel comes by Jack's cabin to meet up after their meeting fighting the wildfire - where Jack saw some things he shouldn't. It's time to clear the air, and share secrets - between friends.
Location
Up a dirt road of about half a mile lies this well maintained but old log cabin. There's a large open area surrounding it, which serves as a paddock for a horse, fenced in properly. Attached to the cabin is a stable/garage combination, and a large farm door leading straight out to the paddock shows where the horse can come in and out. The yard itself is not very interesting. There's several stacks of wood under makeshift wooden constructions and tarps. There's a little porch in front of the house, with a few chairs and a table. There's some woodcarved ornaments around - there's a foot-tall horse standing on the porch, and a few other local animals lined up against the wall. The fence around the porch is noticeably made of wrought iron, probably bought from local smithies, and there's also a few iron ornaments hanging on the wall - a large horseshoe turned up for luck and another one of a stylistic horse. Jack has worked tirelessly since Friday afternoon. His own house was threatened, but a sudden unexpected heavy downpour saved this area of the hills, and the fire never reached here - but not far, only a kilometer away, the forest is burned. He has finally time off, and is spending it doing absolutely nothing, sitting on his porch having a beer, and watching Goblin playing and Troll pacing about lazily in the large enclosure near his house. His feet are kicked up on the railing and he's enjoying life to the fullest. It's Boss that showed up first. There's a bellowing bark that heralds him before he comes tearing out of the woodline on the side of the cabin that hadn't burned and heading towards the cabin. It shouldn't be much of a surprise when Gabriel shows up not long behind him, riding on that same big black horse he had showed up to the fire on. He's saddled today, with saddle bags and a blanket made out of some sort of fur, trotting lazily while Gabe sat heavy in his seat, guiding the animal up towards the cabin with much less urgency than the dog. When he was near enough he didn't need to raise his voice too much, he raised a hand and called, "Mornin' - " Whether it was actually still technically morning or not. "Finally takin' a breather, yea?" Oh wow! Goblin gets totally crazy with joy, hearing and seeing the dog first of all; he razes like a black streak to greet Boss. It's now HIS turn to show all the good spots and fun places here around his area, immediately starting a bit of a play-wrestle with the other dog, should he want to. Jack's grin is genuine and welcoming, a hand raised and a beckoning gesture. There's a cooler next to him, filled with beer. "Yep," he responds. "They're just out making sure it won't flare up again, now. No actual fires anywhere." He holds a beer out invitingly. "You can leave Mud in the enclosure with Troll, if you want." If he is worried about their last meeting, he doesn't show it. In fact, Jack appears to be just his usual self. Boss is totally game to wrestle and explore with Goblin, though he does take a moment to break away from greetings to run up and make sure Jack knows he's there. Hi! Hi! Lick, wagging tail assault, lick. Then he's off again to run amok with the shepherd. Gabe shakes his head a little and chuckles over the dogs, and glances off towards the enclosure as he pulls Mud to a stop. He looks thoughtful a moment or two before swinging down and unknotting the bags from the saddle, to toss them over his shoulder. "A'right, should be fine." It wasn't too long with that, untacking the horse and letting him into the enclosure to act just as he did last time, completely uninterested in the other horse. Soon enough Gabe was back, climbing the steps to take the offered beer, cracking it open and seeming content to settle himself right there on the steps. Rather than say much else at the moment, he took to a long, deep draw from the beer. This is the best of lives. Jack has a nice view up here, down over the slope and towards the road that you can just hint. Every now and then, there's the sound of a car down there, but nothing that disturbs too much. Otherwise, he's all alone here, with forests and some meadows around the area. Jack finishes a beer, picks up another. He's not drunk, but might have had a few beers to relax. So, he's sort of mellow and content. "How's Red?" he asks, not having seen his cousin for awhile. Gabe slouches back against the step behind him, propping up on one elbow while sets the beer with a sigh on his knee, the other leg he'd been favoring stretching out gingerly. He didn't seem to pay it much mind though, taking in the view with a small smile. It wasn't quite so remote as he liked it, but it was near enough that he was actually comfortable here, unlike the homes of most people he visited, when he absolutely had to. "She's..." He tips his head a little left and right before settling on, "She's been a lil outta sorts, but makin' her way back to herself." He reaches to his shoulder then, taking the saddle bags to hold over to Jack. "Brought you some 'shine 'n wine. Same wine, different 'shine." Ordinary shine, nothing magical about it, just quality stuff that could double as fuel in a pinch. "Might be all this with her sister," Jack says, making a bit of a grimace - he's not happy about that either. He leans over, takes the saddlebag and opens it with a grin. "This, this is the best gift ever. I will save this for a very special occasion." He speaks about it like it's a vintage, expensive wine - and for Jack, it's much much better than that. He points his bottle at Gabe's leg. "Whatcha do with your leg?" In all honesty, if Gabe were the kind to care about money, he could probably make a pretty penny on that vintage. It could win some awards. But he didn't so it never would. Gabe glances down towards his leg and furrows his brow a bit, himming and hawing for just a beat or two before settling on, "Got myself bit. Birdie fixed it up some for me. Nothin' too bad." He brushes past that to go on to, "Met your girl while back, and her beau more recent like...You met 'im yet?" Jack kicks his feet up on the second board of the simple railing around his porch and tips the chair back a bit - it's not a rocking chair. "Bit?" He frowns, studying Gabriel closely. "I wanna know from what?" He gulps down more beer - it's really warm and the beer is cold. "Yeah, I met him. Seems like a decent enough guy - and he clearly loves Syl. I'm going to meet up with him for beer some time soon. We got a few things to talk about, him and I." He squints at Gabriel, and adds; "Suppose we might have too." "Nope," Gabe answers quick enough that it's evident he's apparently squared himself along the way with the revelations pragmatism had pushed him towards back in the smoke. He glances sidelong towards Jack when he goes on about Ink with a short nod, then another pull from his beer. When he sets it down he lifts his hand to scratch through his beard. "Prolly so, specially if you're gonna be havin' a drinkin' talk wit' him." He pulls his eye away from the road below to peer towards Jack when he asks, "Just what kinda weird do you know 'bout?" "Heh." Jack seems amused by that question, eyes glittering a bit. Or maybe that's just the beer. "More than most and less than many." That's not a very helpful answer, and he realises it, so he continues after a thoughtful pause. "Around here, we keep a careful eye on every kid that is born, because the chances are high they're going to grow up with psychic powers. That's just how it is. It's not a story, it's the truth. And then there's those that get taken, and sometimes they return. And what /they/ can do - I don't know much about that. But, they're here. It could be the cashier lady at the mall. Or the waitress at the bar. Why you think Bill's Bar has a sign that says 'NO FAIRYS ALLOWED'? It's not just for fun." "Ah...well..." Gabe tips his head back looking up towards the porch awning then chuckled a little as he looked out towards the road again. "That makes it easy don't it. Weren't all that common place where I grew up. No signs 'bout fairies. Folks wouldn't believe it even if there was, bein' good Baptists and all." He pauses a moment longer, it would never be an easy thing to simply say, not as fierce as he was about his secrecy, but just a moment and he adds, "I was one of them folks that good took and came back." He pauses, a moment longer before going on, "Was gonna let on a bit of it to ya even before th'fire though. Sylvie told me 'bout her spirit talkin'. Wanted to let ya know I could deal with 'em too, in case shes ever got herself in some trouble with 'em that needed outside help." Jack isn't terribly surprised, but his eyes do widen a little as he looks at Gabriel. Or maybe he didn't expect the other man to outright admit it. "I'm sorry," he offers, his face grim and there's a hint of cold rage in his eyes for a second or two. The anger about what happened to Gabriel. "Syl is from both the Lefevres and the Frys - she's got both sides of the family to draw power from. And she sure has." He looks over at Troll, who is contently munching hay near the stable; his gaze burns with intensity, as he calls out to the horse. "Hey Troll! Move backwards, then make a spin on your back legs." The horse looks up, alert - he can feel the power in Jack's voice, and though he might not always want to do what he's told, this time he does back a few steps, then spins around on his hind legs before whinnying and tossing his head. "We're animal empaths, and more." Without the hanging question, its' doubtful that Gabe ever would have admitted it, he certainly didn't need to for the matter of spirits alone. But after the business at the fire, and knowing just how poor at deception he was, he was more the sort to own it so the door could be shut. He shrugs a bit at the apologetic sentiment and adds only, "Just keep it to yourself, though Sylvie knows. Not my doin' that, but she knows." He sounds more than a little grumbly about that when he pulls from his beer again, listening in on that about Sylvie and her other family. His brow lifts when he Jack goes hollaring at Troll, and Troll listens. "Huh...Handy trick that..." he mumbles. Glancing towards Mud, he nods toward the horse. "Can ya talk to him?" he asks more curiously. Jack snickers and sips beer. "That girl - she has a nose for that too. I'm sure she got that from me." He's no stranger to being very proud and claiming that some of the skills of Syl is all due to HIS DNA... just like a silly dad might. "We're not going to talk, cause you're family. You and Red." He glances pointedly at Gabriel - like he knows about his cousin, too. "Of course I can. I can talk to any animal. Though spiders? Damn, they're a bitch to talk to." He stands up, whistles to Mud. "Hey Mud." He focuses, that little glimmer of power pushing out from him again, towards the animal. And.... he's met with an instant barrier, that pushes Jack backwards a step, eyes widening. "What the..." There's a lift to his brow at the mention of family, then a further lift at Red herself. He didn't comment on that, taking the read but on the off chance he was mis-reading, well, nto his to elaborate on. His hand did lower to make a rub at his leg without much thought. He peers towards Mud who flicked an ear at his name but little else, lingering near the water trough and nosing in some mud. "Are they? Seem th'sort t'be," he mumbles distractedly about spiders. When there's no real response from Mud beyond his usual indifference, Gabe looks back to Jack and the surprised expression. "Can't get through? Reckon that means I don't gotta worry 'bout folks with animal talkin' tongues tryin' to learn things through th'likes of him 'n Boss." Clearly, Jack's stumped as to why he can't even get through at all, to Mud. Sure, he might fail sometimes, but even then, there's some sort of connection. So, he turns a slow stare at Gabriel, digging out an old beaten up pack of cigarettes and lighting one up, now leaning over the railing. "I'll be..." he breathes, holding the pack out to Gabriel should he also like to enjoy a cigarette with his beer, once in awhile. "I take it Mud and Boss are special. I've never felt /anything/ like that, before. It's similar to when I tried the trick on humans, but not quite the same." Gabe shakes his head with a simple, "Thanks, but nah," for the offer of the smoke. He chuckles when he grunts, "Boss is Bless 'is Heart special, but yea, th'both of 'em ...not from 'round here." He pauses a beat before adding, "Told Boss t'not pull no tricks on Goblin though, don't get 'im in trouble. He means good, but gets up t'mischief...might try t'talk to ya after a while." Gabe clears his throat at that and adds, "Don't pay 'im no mind if he cracks wise at ya..." Up goes the beer again on that, draining it down, like someone with a problem child. "Talk to me?" Jack says, baffled. "But you just said I couldn't talk to... wait. You mean, talk to me like with a voice?" He puffs on his cigarette like it's the only thing keeping his resolve right now. Sure, Jack might know there's weirdness, but this is the weirdest he's heard in a long time. "Well," he says dryly, composing himself quickly. "Can't be worse than Goblin. Goblin /is/ a dog. He only really talks about three things; playing, eating and making puppies. The latter part is mostly him asking me if I'm going to make puppies with every woman I ever meet. And I mean /every/ woman. Unless we're around female dogs, then he asks me if he can make puppies with them." Gabe considered the rapid puffing on the smoke with a furrow to his brow, second guessing himself. This reading people business, he'd have to get better at it if Card was going to keep dragging him out into populations. "Erh, yea...out loud...Carries on kinda like a teenager that thinks he's so fuckin' funny..." He snorts at what Goblin talks about and chuckles, "Reckon they get on good then." Considering Jack a few moments longer, he asks, "Y'gonna be alright with all that? Lookin' a lil..." In place of words, Gabe makes a vague gesture with the empty beer bottle in Jack's direction at the whole of him, then turned to brace on a step as he worked up to his feet. "Know it's kind of a lot," he adds working carefully up the steps towards the beers to replace teh empty with a new one. "I thought I knew a lot, coming back here. But there's so much more to learn," Jack notes, straightening up and looking at Gabe with burning curiosity. He's not /scared/ - he just wants to know so much more. "I'll be alright. And I'm usually better at hiding my reactions - just didn't see much reason to, right now, right here," he admits. He finishes his cigarette and dumps it in an empty beer bottle for now. Not going to start /another/ fire... "I want to keep a balance though. You got to know where I come from - I used to defend people, against the supers, in New York. And I helped supers, if they were alright folk, too. One foot in each world." Gabe took his knew beer and rather than return to the steps, limped his way up to the rail to lean back against it, taking a few moments to settle, resettle, and adjust his shirt at his back before finally going still. Hidden tails were still tails. "Like a Hunter?" he asks with a tip of his head. Big H. "Plenty of folks that shouldn't be that need clearin' out, take what they didn't ask for an' push it on other folks." He takes another swig, looking out towards the horses, or the horse and whatever it was Mud was, he certainly saw it different than Jack did. "It's good work, dang'rous work. Why'd ya quit?" "I didn't hunt anyone," Jack grumps. But maybe that question hit home a little, his shoulders tensing up. "I just made sure they didn't fuck people over too much." How he did that, he doesn't elaborate on. "Gave people justice when the law couldn't." He rubs at his chest, gaze growing distant. "I almost got killed - by a man with claws. I spent months recovering. They killed my dog, Lucy - I went nuts and went after them. They shouldn't have killed Lucy." He grimaces, and drinks beer thirstily for a moment. "I went to uni and studied to be a Park ranger, went back home after I was done, and here I am now. I can do more good work here. And I get to be outdoors in the wild - the urban jungle, it wore me down." He doens't notice Gabriel's fidgeting with his shirt - he has no idea what the man /really/ looks like. Maybe he's curious, but he isn't asking. Goblin is taking Boss around the favorite paths around the cabin - the two can be hinted up near the forest, where Goblin is digging up some old bones. Gabe glances back towards Jack when he answers in that initial tone, frowning a hair. The further explanation is taken in with a further, deeper frown. "Nah don't reckon they should of," he agreed quietly about Lucy. He looked down into his bottle, absently running his thumb to the lip of it, nodding a little while he listened through the rest. "I don't like the city either. Even these..." He nods towards the distant town. "Feel too big 'n loud 'n crowded for th'likes of me. Grew up on a farm with nothin' 'round for a good ten miles in any direction cept other farms. When he looks up again, he follows the sound of the dogs, where Boss was quick to snatch up one of those bones and trying to entice Goblin into a game of chase with it. The Black german shephard is not hard to entice, barking joyfully and dancing around Boss and then chasing after him like a giant puppy. Jack nods to Gabriel, agreeing silently with him. He looks out towards the town as well - you can't even see the buildings from here. His nearest neighbor is another cabin a mile down the road, so he's not exactly crowded while still being near enough to civilisation he can be part of both. "I grew up on the Fry farm. Busy place, but busy with... the important things. I felt that I was needed in New York though, that the big city was where I could really help people. I was right /and/ wrong. This place? It needs just as much people fighting for justice." He smirks, finishing his fourth or so beer and going to get one more. "Aren't we all serious and sharing? But it feels like I've known you a long time. And we've only met a few times." Bro code, dude! Ya don't acknowledge it! The hermit shifts a little uncomfortably when he makes mention of the serious talk and sharing with a shallow grunt of agreement, his attention quick to turn back out towards the horses as he ducked into his beer. "Yea well..." he starts when he lowers the beer, gesturing around the cabin. "Seem to come from th'same place, even if it's just in th'..." He pauses a moment, fishing for the word, settling on, "Figur'tive kinda place. Same thinkin'." He pauses for a beat before chuckling, "And I like y'er dawg," drawled out a little worse than usual for effect. "I like your hooch," Jack quips back - he can get back to the bro code talk, more comfortable with that anyway, grinning at Gabriel. "You able to stick around? If so, we /could/ open that hooch up and get properly drunk. Maybe go in the back, barbecue something. Long as we don't start another wildfire..." He still faintly smells of smoke, like it crept into his skin. Gabe scratches at his jaw while he looks back the way he'd ridden in from. "I can crack the hooch but don't figure I can stick 'round for supper. Birdie wanted to talk 'bout somethin' tonight so I reckon I shouldn't be too late gettin' back." He didn't seem to mind too much the idea of going back drunk at least. "Mud knows th'way home," he snickered as he pushed up from the rail. "Unless you're gonna bust me for ridin' while under the influence?" "I'd have to bust myself then, cause I've done it," Jack notes, wandering in to find them some glasses to drink from, and he finds some ice as well - iced hooch? Why not! "This is a special occasion, if any." It is. They've shared secrets, and now it's all good. Returning with two mismatched glasses, he hands one over, offers some ice for Gabe if he wants it, and then pours up a generous helping of the moonshine for both of them. He gulps down a large gulp and then breathes out - that IS strong. But really, really good. "Damn. This isn't magic stuff, right?" "Hot damn, ice," Gabe teases when he comes back with the glasses. He holds the glass out for a healthy portion. It's utterly mundane stuff, with a fair amount of burn, but damn good. He takes a smaller swallow himself, wincing a little as he rolls it back - then coughs a bit at the later question. Clearing his throat, he starts, "Ah...nah. I leave that for when I'm not sure if folks are gonna see things they shouldn' - " almost apologetically. "Cheershine - gotta way of makin' things foggy to th'memory." "Uhuh," Jack says, giving Gabriel a bit of a mock-dubious look. Apparently, he knows that some things that you eat or drink /can/ ensorcel or put magic in you - it's a legitimate question. "Well. You've put your soul into making it, that's for sure." He takes a seat again - there is another chair for Gabriel, if he wants to sit next to Jack and stare out over the land. "Heard you're helping Syl with a greenhouse? I owe you beer for that." Gabe glanes again down into his bear with a strange look, somewhere between distant and proud. If Jack could see his ears they'd be swiveled off in different directions. "Yea well, s'what I'm made for," he remarks for the booze, but he's got one of his small lopsided grins when he looks up again. "Glad you're likin' it. And I don't mind th'greenhouse. She wants t'learn to raise up th'spirits an' hybrid plants I do, reckon she should have a good spot t'do it in. Won't have no kids m'own to pass that to so..." He makes another of those vague gestures with his glass as he leans down to set the beer bottle by his boot, he'd get back to that after this glass. "Won't get lost when I kick th'bucket if I teach someone else." "I didn't think I'd have kids either. But damn. I have one that is twenty years old." Jack looks amazed - he still does that from time to time. Like he can't believe it. And that he's very happy about the fact. "She needs looking after," he says suddenly, glancing at Gabriel. "Theres's something in her past that her mother warned me about, in a letter. But Sylvana doesn't know about it." Gabe pushes away from the rail, considering the chair when he approached it before settling down and stretching out his leg again, sitting with a bit of a slouch to ensure his tail wasn't pinned up uncomfortably. His brow digs in at the last bit, peering sidelong towards Jack. "Th'sorta thing she should prolly know 'bout?" "Maybe," Jack admits grudgingly. "That's why I need to talk to Ink - he might know more." He doesn't elaborate here and now - he needs to talk to others first. "Just wanted you all to know, you're also family. I'll be in touch with this." And he settles down to quietly drink next to his friend. Gabe nods understanding about needing to talk to people first. He wasn't the sort to ask after it himself, people's business was just that, theirs. He wasn'g going to pry. There's another one of those strange weight-shifting and brow furrowing faces pulled when he's dragged into the family category again, another longer swallow from his glass. He'd hang around for a few hours longer, shooting the shit and watching the dogs be dogs until they'd played themselves out and Gabe took it as a sign that it was probably time to get himself back home.