nexus_sages | holy guacamole it's foggy nelson!

Knowing has always been her burden. But sometimes it saves her; she knows there's no good and no comfort in being spiteful. She tried that. It never worked. So now there's the mourning of what's gone and what will never come. Someday, she's been promised, she'll feel better about it all.

She doesn't have much to say--she could have done more, risked more... probably died with everyone else then, but that's what real heroes do. The gratitude that she's still alive confuses her for a moment, but then she manages a thin smile. "I thought it was his place to tell you, when he was ready. It's part of why I didn't come to meet you sooner. Matt's always told me such lovely stories about you."

Yes, she's changing the subject. Please don't press, Foggy, not right now.

Someday isn't today unfortunately. And the goodness of her heart has no comfort with or without spite, she is better this way, as well as can be. Foggy still has a hard time taking the next bite but is just as encouraged to continue on. Verity has. Yes, it is best to just let that stay fixed there.

A sip of coffee at least before more cake. The bitter before the sweet.

He returns her smile. "He didn't actually make them lovely did he? I mean, I'm pretty sure that the first week as roommates he only tolerated me. Matt insists it's because he's really a shy, slow to get to know type. It's a gimmick to get you to be encouraging." Yeah this is a safer, friendlier territory.

Somehow, carrying on with cake seems a little easier. Just a little. She, too, will continue the brave struggle to keep her own delicious treats in line. It's a burden she'll have to learn to live with.

"Oh, is that how it went with you? He's been somewhat more forward with me." Shy about some things, sure, but he was certainly the one taking the lead for most of their relationship. "We first met at a big party. It was Halloween and he was dressed as Waldo. Surprisingly, not that hard to find."

Little does she realize she will now be recommended nearly every worthy greasy spoon in Hell's Kitchen with specialty anything. Doughnuts, croissants, macaroons and macarons, ice cream, cake, pie... Foggy has the hook ups. It's the least he can do.

"I mean, okay he does the smiling thing and the 'sure let's do that' thing. Anybody can do that. I knew it was real when he let me listen to his recorded notes even though I ate his Greek food. That's friendship." He chews thoughtfully imagining the scene and grins around his bite.

"That was my idea. I mean, he knows what Waldo looks like but to make him be Waldo." Foggy points to himself. "Even before I learned he's got...something it was always really weird to me that he'd somehow be able to be with really attractive girls. It was like he was Tommy except not with pinball machines."

A greasy spoon that makes good macarons is something she has to see... and recommend a cleaning service to.

"That is," she agrees. "Sharing food is one of the primal bonding rituals." Says the woman who's fed him twice now. It's almost like, in lieu of knowing what she's doing, she's been reading a lot of books. (She has been; research is easier than actually talking to people.)

"Ah, I must have been a surprise." That's not an attempt to fish for compliments; she knows she's a five, maybe a six where she's from. But the scale she grew up with includes goddesses, so. "Who's Tommy?"

Ah if only it were just a figure of speech. Those charming hole in the wall places. That's not a figure of speech either. Post Incident Hell's Kitchen is making the most in some cases. When you just get by and you're still trying to hear back from your insurance you carry on.

"It so is. I mean, I meant to ask. I was starving. That's primal. Maybe a little high. I don't do that any more. He never did to start. Maybe that was part of the whole feeling each other out thing. Matty is such a square." And he says it with absolute fondness. "He did eat a brownie once." Foggy tries to stifle just how much this humors him. "Wait. So what lovely things has he actually told you?"

Woah, woah. Franklin Percy Nelson has super sensitivity to self-depreciation. He mmms his way through his cake to point the fork at her. "Listen here lady, you're hot stuff. You're very edgy with the tattoos and the hair, way cool." Goddesses or not five or six? Way harsh. And Foggy has the good sense to not complete his thought with 'way cooler than any other girl Matt has been with.'

"Tommy? It's The Who's rock opera? That deaf, dumb and blind kid sure plays a mean pin baaaall. That one." As if that explains it. He sips his macchiato again. Every now and then he catches a glimpse of the waitstaff or someone very odd passing by the window but.... it feels like he's any other place catching up.

Ver's got no complaints about people doing the best they can in the wake of tragedy. The Manhattan she grew up in was like that all the time. She just prefers places that are a little cleaner than Josie's.

It's good he sounds so fond of Matt, she wouldn't usually let someone get away with calling her Matty anything like that. But from him, it gets a smirk. "Oh, did he? Just the once?" She finds it hard to imagine him ever doing that. Impaired senses doesn't seem like his idea of a good time. But everyone does stupid things in college.

"Oh, he told me what a good friend you've always been, how lucky he is you took the chance in opening Nelson and Murdock, how much you like bagels." Plenty of other things too. "Nothing too embarrassing, don't worry."

She doesn't view it as self-depreciation; to her, it's a simple truth. But she'll take the compliments with a smile. "Thank you." Comparing her to exes would not be a smart move; on one hand, she'd love knowing she wins, but on the other, it'd make her wonder about them. She doesn't need to do that.

"Oh. Right." She still has no idea what he's talking about, but it's so much easier to pretend a little and smooth over these things. It's going to be a familiar refrain from her before long. Anyway, there's something more important she ought to tell him. "So... did Matt ever tell you about my power?"

Josie's is their low water mark for places to go, truth be told. They won't go any lower. The only way to go is up! There is hope!

"Yeah, just once. It was a pretty big brownie. It was the week before finals. We usually label food and I usually warn him if there's something up.The good part was that he was giggly, more hungry than before and slower than an arthritic turtle. After though," Foggy clicks his tongue. "Once was enough."

Baw. Even though those are very true facts, Foggy beams at knowing that it's information he proudly shares with his girl. "True on all counts. Though I think some embarrassing thing or two must have slipped out. It's only fair."

Another bite of cake and he nods. "He said you're like... fact sensitive? I don't know if he told Karen. He said that I just need to be honest and there aren't any problems. So. I mean, it's like an allergy or something?" "Please Fog, don't lie to her or in front of her. It's like nails on a chalkboard or a hit in the face. Just don't do it."

It's good to know they have standards.

"Yeah... me too. I don't do well with that sort of thing." What? She went to college. She was uptight and frigid and all the things that people use as excuses to offer her drugs still. Once was more than enough.

"I guess it would depend on your definition of embarrassing? There wasn't anything I think poorly of you for." Croissant finished, she curls her hands around her half-empty mug. "Matt wants us to get along too much to risk it with a silly story about that time you wore your pants inside out."

She hums softly at the partial understanding and gives a little shrug. "Sort of. I'm a human lie detector. You know how frustrating it is when you know someone's lying to you? I feel that all the time. It's tiring."

They do! Nelson and Murdock, attorneys and friends have taste. Matt's are more refined but he has had a natural inclination to what is either more natural or humble. These days though he's being swayed to lots of finer dining. Who are we to blame?

"You too? Well, it's really an acquired taste. I got too much to do now to get baked. Besides law school really got it out of my system." He laughs but boy. The threat was real.

He almost coughs some of his macchiato. Almost. "I still don't know how he knew! I mean, he didn't even touch me. They weren't like... zipped and buttoned pants either. Faux everything. I had to book it to the men's room before opening statements." Laughter means that everything is fine on his end.

Foggy thinks back to that confrontation nearly a year ago with Matt looking like tenderized meat. "Yeah, I don't think that would be a great feeling at all. I try not to. I mean, on principle everyone should try not to but... I really put forth the effort. And it doesn't stop or like dampen if you get sick or something?"

It's no bad thing to like nice things. And if Verity's cooking beats every restaurant in Hell's Kitchen, well, someone needs to step up their game and it's not her.

"Matt just knows things. I try not to worry about the reasons so much." 'Try' being the key word. She worries about him constantly, and has spent some considerable effort trying to understand his powers. But in the end, it's all for naught. He does what he does and she cannot truly understand it. "You wear fake pants to court? Oh, Foggy."

She shakes her head at his question. "No. Nothing stops it. Nothing I've ever found. There were a few ideas when I came here, but... they didn't amount to anything."

Not all of them. A great, big chunk of them. Matt will still champion for Thai food on a lazy night. Foggy usually sticks to pad thai and never really gets the buzz. He does think that Verity is secretly some ninja chef.

"It's less eerie than it used to be to me. He used to just call it a hunch if I pressed him enough for reasoning." Which gets a big eye roll from Foggy. Fake pants though, he shrugs. "It was only for emergencies! I mean they looked like slacks. Why would anyone look at me, you know? That was when we were nobodies at L&Z. I think Matt might have been the only person to catch on."

He pushes his plate back and cups his own drink. "Did you ever try to like short it out or get... afflicted with believing every lie and maybe they'd like fritz one another out?" As he says this his face grows more and more grim and he waves it away. "I'm sorry. All of that is terrible. Don't listen to me."

Thai food after a long day should be acceptable most of the time. She thinks he just really like Thai food, which is also fine.

"Matt's identity was public knowledge where I'm from, so once I knew his name I knew what he did. That's probably helped. At least I don't wonder if it's another woman that keeps him so busy at night." With Foggy, it seems safe to be a little more honest about how frustrating Matt's heroing is. She can love it and wish it weren't so all-consuming at the same time.

"Let me tell you two true things, Foggy." She lifts her gaze and waits until she has his full attention. "The first one is, someone is always watching. The second is, you have never been a nobody." No sign of flinching or even an arched eyebrow. It must be true. She'd know otherwise.

It's good he's giving up that line of questioning, because the constant reminder that there's something wrong with her is painful. The more he digs, the more she shuts down; quietly, wordlessly, she withdraws into herself. There are some nasty cutting words on the tip of her tongue. She'll try to drown them in coffee.

That and the local joint treat him like he's some sad, hapless basket case and give him freebies. It's horrible and ableist. Their food is delicious though. And yes, he really like Thai food.

He leans forward and has to scoot his plate further to save his tie. "Public? Really? That's...weird. Is he like a celebrity? It's hard to get him to say boo about the other guy in front of Karen or anybody else. I can't imagine him dealing with everyone." Foggy shakes his head a little and looks away a minute to try and grasp the crazy.

The solid, piercing gaze beyond Verity's lenses get him at attention. "Okay. Tell me." Though now he wishes that maybe he didn't tell her to. Someone? Someone watching? That's one thing. And he--Franklin "Foggy" Percy Nelson--being considered more than a nobody? "Is...Is--? You can't tell me, can you?"

She's so pretty. Even when she is so visibly gloomy. But when she smiles, if only Matt could see her smile.

Ableist and delicious. It's got to be hard to not take advantage sometimes, to try and get a bit of his own back.

"I understand he was very popular in San Fransisco. You know how helpful people can be if you promise them a great selfie for their efforts." She gives a little shrug before admitting, "I don't know why he did it. But you may want to steer clear of representing the people he rounds up at night."

She was going to tell him anyway. There's not much stopping her sometimes. "Is what? I don't even know what it is you think I can't tell you. I'm not a mind reader."

If only. Maybe Foggy will have to help him with that. He might give more glowing reviews of the experience.

Matt thinks of it as payback. Now that Foggy's in on it he thinks it's more hilarious than offensive.

"That's...weird..." Still trying to wrap his head around that in addition to all of the other things in the mix. It's like each new thing is a piece of confetti in a snow globe to swirl around. At least it feels less dangerous and odd to be in a place like this. "I can definitely adhere to that. Jeez. Nelson and Murdock don't do that." Ah, this, this is a prophetic conversation isn't it?

Foggy takes a drink finding more foam than coffee left. "I mean, is this a warning? Can you tell me things? There's no like rule or anything we're breaking?"

Glowing reviews he can do. And he can spot the difference between being without one another and with each other. They're like puppies and kittens when they're together.

A balancing of the scales. So very 'Matt'.

Ver's also getting down to the dregs of her drink, and gives the mug a disappointed look. She trusts you, delicious cinnamon coffee. "Yeah, I can tell you things. I don't think it's going to break any rules. I doubt it'll break your timeline even; you won't notice the changes anymore now than you did before you knew where I was from. Time travel and alternate dimensions are tricky business."

Business she's studied, her tone suggests. "Just try to think ahead a bit. You two have pissed off Wilson Fisk. He's going to come after you eventually. Don't make it easier for him by leaving a breadcrumb trail of ethical violations."

All about finding a new way to define fair and balanced. He would have preferred Robin Hood of Hell's Kitchen. Oh well. One of them makes more sense than the other. The whole vigilante thing didn't get him thinking farther than getting through the night, let alone dreaming up some name. It's all about trying to be the balance.

Peculiar that in this realm of realms they don't have self refilling cups. Foggy's not above sipping foam. It's so fluffy! Artistry here. "Okay... That's a relief. You can't be too sure." There could be weird consequences for dipping into unrevealed futures or truths some kind of truth tax. He clears his throat.

"We're not super seasoned pros, but we know our stuff. Nelson will be careful. Murdock will catch on. We started all of this to help people. That's won us plenty of allies too. Fisk comes back he'll have to deal with them too." Truth be told the very thought of it is terrifying. That's plain enough on his face.

This is why he needs a gal who plans ahead. Balance doesn't just happen. Too many people get hurt when heroes try to find their balance by happy accident.

"I've tried to be careful," she points out. There's a little chiding to her voice--this is new to him, not her. She's had time to think about these things. And if there's a truth tax, it's clearly hers to pay.

Verity stays quiet while she studies his expression. The fact he's terrified is probably a good thing, but she doesn't want to press it too hard. She'll try to be gentle. "Yeah, but will Matt really allow other people to get involved in the fight? Just. Let's just assume that people will find out what he does eventually. Plan for that."

Too many people get involved, hurt and lost in the mix. Matt has had a solid run of good fortune but his methods are lacking a grand plan. That's where Verity's presence comes as an even greater blessing.

"I believe you. I mean, this is your thing. I kind of just...stepped in. Heh." Foggy rubs the back of his neck. "Now that I think about it Matt had tried a few times to talk about this. Something's just...always happening. One time he started a conversation about Quantum Leap." He shrugs.

Anyone who would fall under the influence of power or money became a tool for Fisk. That's what is so frightening. They had dodged enough bullets that flew around them the first time. There can be a next time. "No, he wouldn't." And it's a glum admission. "This wouldn't be hard if he just stopped. Things are getting better. I mean, there's always going to be a problem. Always. He can't be doing this forever, right?"

Verity's own brother couldn't manage his marriage and his heroing, and his wife was a hero on the same team. She's going into this knowing full well she and Matt probably won't work out in the long run. But she loves him too much to not try.

"I know. It's a lot to think about, all the ramifications." The reference is lost on her; she just gives Foggy a kind of blank look. "He's not great at managing his schedule. Sometimes he needs to be reminded that he can't save everyone."

Power and money get everyone eventually; if not directly, then through family or friends. "No. He can't. But I think he'd rather die trying." That's a glum admission. Heroes don't retire. She's seen it. Even after the serum wore off, Cap never stopped, he just shifted his focus. It makes no goddamn sense to her. "Fisk isn't going to stop either. Some people just don't know how."

Matt's blind (haha) faith has him fully committed into doing whatever he can to make this last. Verity has become such a fixture in his life. And he has come to love her in ways he never expected to love a person. He is going to try for forever.

"You said it," exactly that. At least someone else is telling it like it is. "At least it seems like he's sleeping a little more."

A little. Enough for it to make a difference.

Friends or family who just are in dire need as well as danger. Danger is always around, Matt would rather hoard it all to himself than have it spill over onto other people. It's frustrating. "I don't even know if he's ever tried. Matt I mean. Fisk he's like... a bull or a shark or a tank.... shark tank bull thing."

Trying for forever is a little bit of a scary prospect. How does someone like her, who's been through what she's been through, even believe in forever? Indefinite, perhaps, she can handle; a love with no scheduled end. Forevers need to be talked about.

"A little," she agrees. "He's stubborn." She is not going to be discussing how she manages to get Matt to sleep. Even so, there's some color creeping into her cheeks.

Sometimes the need is what lets the danger in. Sometimes the danger is what they need. It's a complicated and complex mess. Ver snorts in amusement at the description of Fisk. "Matt doesn't want to stop. You can't force people to change who they are. He is, in his heart, the righteous instrument of his god."

Scary, yes. They say that serious things are. Verity's life experience and world knowledge surpasses Matt's. And he might be older than her and more grizzled but somehow idealistic and naive from his faith to his belief in going on loving her for an indefinite (or forever) amount of time.

"I deal with him as a friend and a partner. The rest," he does a vague hand gesture. The blush though? Ooh. Hmm. Well, it's not his place. Looking like he does and as athletic as he is Foggy isn't the least bit surprised. A little funny how his knock outs are not from fights.

"Sounds like you got it down pat. I just... I've known him as long as I have. And he would never ever want to hear it but I'm protective of him. Don't tell him that or else he'll think I'm trying to pull something. But really, he's like my brother."

Verity wouldn't say her experiences surpass anyone's. Matt has gone out and lived life far more fully than she does even now. Her tragedies are singular and writ large, but that doesn't make her any better at this adulting crap she got tricked into. She hopes neither of them ever consider his faith in ther love naive.

Yes, Foggy, it's not a well-kept secret (he's seen how they get when thy're in the same room), but it's not something she openly discusses. "You know how they say it takes a village to raise a child? I think it takes a village to successfully adult, too. We need people looking out for us in different ways." Maybe it's all wishful thinking.

"I know." The fact they're brothers in everything but blood was something she picked up on within five minutes of walking into the office. "I understand that kind of bond. That's how I got my brother, too. I hope you don't think I'm getting in the way of that?"

holy guacamole it's foggy nelson!

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

Not the puns! You know I hate that. :P

Ooooooooooooops ;D

#sorrynotsorry rite?

#neverrlysry

:P

X3

<3

(no subject)

(no subject)