Off the Road (roads_untaken)

[i_vanquish_evil]

He's sitting in the library, reading a scroll. (Yes, the man can read.) He's between assignments and doing some reading on one of his recent foes. It's not overly exciting, but it keeps the Cardinal off his back... for a little while.

The tea at his elbow has gone from piping hot to lukewarm.

Comments

[i-read.livejournal.com]

"You're an absolute brute with your beverages," came the familiar voice from over his shoulder as a brown-robed friar settled noisily onto the bench beside him.

[i_vanquish_evil]

He presses a finger across his lips and makes a 'shhh' sound. "This is a library," he says. Typically he's the one being told to be quiet, but turning things around wasn't a bad plan for the afternoon.

He didn't care much about the tea. One of the other monk-types had put it there for him. He assumed at the direction of someone a little higher up the ladder. Though, he could be wrong about that.

The scroll was interesting. The tea was unnecessary.

[i-read.livejournal.com]

"You should drink something," he said, only a little bit softer, "if only not to waste it. And I know what it is. Who do you think handed you your first scroll? There might be any number of things you don't remember, but I know you remember that."

[i_vanquish_evil]

He peers at Carl over the scroll. "What are you talking about?" He frequently has to ask that question, but it's usually because he wasn't actually paying attention to whatever Carl had been rambling about, but this time it was because he didn't have a clue what the man was on about at all.

[i-read.livejournal.com]

"That this is a library, goodness, don't make me go backwards. Forwards is hard enough."

He took a sip of the lukewarm tea for himself.

"What are you reading about anyway?"

[i_vanquish_evil]

He leans forward a bit. "I'm going to have to teach you proper subject-pronoun agreement so that I have some clue what the hell you're talking about half the time."

[i-read.livejournal.com]

"And I'm going to have to teach you how to listen. What. are. you. reading?"

[i_vanquish_evil]

"A. scroll," he replies, holding up the item in question. The corner of his mouth twitches up in a little grin. "Banshees. They're annoying."

He'd managed to survive the last fight with them by the sheer luck of falling over the edge of a cliff, using only the grappling hook gun Carl had created to survive. That and the tiny cave on a ledge where the wail of the banshees was shielded from his ears.

"Any chance you can put together something that will block the obnoxious noise they call 'song'?"

[i-read.livejournal.com]

"Probably. There's a few different options, if you'd like to share with me what you were thinking might be the most useful."

Not that he wasn't already designing something in his head.

[i_vanquish_evil]

"Something easily portable and easy to use on the fly."

[i-read.livejournal.com]

That got a flat look.

"Obviously, Van Helsing. I meant more in the sense of an area effect or something more personal."

[i_vanquish_evil]

He folds the scroll down. "What?"

[i-read.livejournal.com]

"Do you need something that would work on the area at large or just personal protection?" A sigh. "Should I look at insulation or attempt something with white noise?"

[i_vanquish_evil]

He reaches a hand up to scratch at his hairline. "I'm not sure. What would you suggest?"

[i-read.livejournal.com]

"Well," he enjoyed the thought of going through these things, "if you're going to be dealing with these creatures in a public area, an area affect would be preferred so that the siren doesn't turn people against you. The problem there is that you'll have to make sure that the device isn't destroyed or turned off while you're in the midst of things. If you'll be dealing with the creature in a more... rustic area, then a personal solution will provide you with your free will and you only have to watch yourself to make sure the device isn't disabled. But, of course, if someone should wander into things... well, you can see the advantages and disadvantages of both."

[i_vanquish_evil]

"So you create both," he states, matter-of-factly. It's not really a suggestion, nor is it a question. Though it's not quite an order either. It's just Van Helsing.

[i-read.livejournal.com]

That got a very flat look.

"I suppose so. But which one has priority?"

[i_vanquish_evil]

He grins. "Whichever will keep me alive the longest."

[i-read.livejournal.com]

"You know, that is my priority. But while I know many things, the dynamics of your fights are something you have something more of a--"

He sighed.

"I'll have both ready for you before you have to deal with anything like this."

[i_vanquish_evil]

"I don't know the 'dynamics' before the fight actually happens, Carl." He spends a couple moments rolling the scroll back into a roll that will fit into the tube it came from. "Thank you."