Tentative Friendship (Paris/Karl)

[horseboykarl]

Paris:I got home around six, and there were two messages on my machine. One from Dave, saying he wouldn't be back until later, and one from Karl. I left a message for him this morning, asking if he wanted to come over tonight for something to eat with us and he was confirming he'd be here. I wonder if he realises yet? That they're gone? Least we'll be able to talk this time without Théodred doing his party trick. Wanted to see how he was doing too. My knuckles are healing, but slowly. It's a bitch at work cause I keep cracking the skin open again. I fed the furballs, and headed off for a quick shower, and opened the yard gate so Karl can drive the bike straight in.

Usually, I'd sit out on the steps, have a beer, unwind after work, but the fog is still so thick, I head back in, grab a cold one from the fridge, and flop down on the couch. I let the bottle dangle from my fingers as I go over what needs to be done tomorrow in my head, and it's not too long before I hear the throaty purr of a Harley engine pulling up outside,
Ise beats me to the door.

Karl: I get home to find some messages from Paris and finally one that asks if I'll come eat with him and Dave tonight. I sigh. I've got to deal with him as well as Éomer, scratch that . . . I don't have to deal with Éomer any more. But still . . . Paris has been dammed decent about the crap that our shifts have put us through, he's handled it way better than I have. He's probably no more thrilled that our shifts seem to want to fuck each other silly than I am.

So I call him back and get his voice mail. I leave a message that I'll be there. I go to the store to stock up on necessities after my trip and pick up some Limburg Hopsmacker. I put a six pack in either saddle bag and then head for the warehouse. He can't kill me if I'm bearing gifts, right? I'm hoping his lip has healed.

I'm greeted at the door by . . . Dave's goofy dog? "Hello, goofball . . . Ise? What the fuck is this weather about? I went up Hastings way for a few days and I come back and it's been like this ever since. Never seen this before." I'm babbling, trying to cover my nervousness. I don't think I've ever been around you when I'm not in some sort of emotional turmoil. Not recently anyway.

Paris: "Hey mate, glad you could make it." I relieve you of a very decent choice of beer, and head off to the kitchen, keeping two bottles back to open and putting the rest in the fridge. "Dave's gonna be a bit late, but he shouldn't be too long." I hand you a bottle, glad to see your bruising is going down too.

"The weather?" Hmmm… how's the best way to put this? "Well, it appears to be a little Morgothy revenge for our shifts disappearing. Did you hear about the vandalism too? A whole pile of cars over in Oriental Bay were smashed up, and whoever did it left symbols and markings all over them, Middle Earth type symbols."

And as for the shifts leaving … I have to know. "Have you tried to reach Éomer recently? Théodred promised to back off after … after what happened at your place last week, to wait until I wanted to reach him, but he's nowhere to be found. Not that I'm complaining …"

Karl: Shit, I hadn't heard about the vandalism and your words raise an uneasy chill up my back. symbols and markings all over them, Middle Earth type symbols. I've seen that kind of crap before, on some crazy punk-ass fanboys that thought they could take out Gareth. Suddenly, the good news that I can't find Éomer anymore doesn't seem to matter.

"When did this happen? And how do you know it has to do with Morgoth? Someone . . . a friend told me the shifts were gone, and I tried once to reach Éomer, but nothing."

I rake my hand through my hair. "Doesn't it worry you? Not knowing what happened or why?"

Paris: "The attack on the cars was a couple of nights ago, the first night of the bad weather and I haven't heard of anything more … yet." I just nod when you confirm you can't get through to Éomer.

"Worry me?" I take a long drink before letting out a sigh. "You have no idea …" I don't feel as if I can tell you the specifics, that's up to Dave. I have no idea what he's keeping from everyone, and what can be common knowledge. "See, I do know what happened, and that the freaked out weather started at the same time … and I'm assuming the vandalism more than likely had something to do with the guys you had the run in with the Firkin, probably the same ones that trashed the Children's Theatre …" Which started the chain reaction that led to Dave's recent actions.

"Seems like it's all connected, and I'm worried that it's gonna escalate … and that Dave has his hopes built up too high that shifting is over for good." That last bit comes out without really thinking about what I'm saying. I have no idea how you feel about Dave and the bowl, if you blame him too, but he counts you as a good friend, and he's high on my list of concerns right now.

Karl: All right, I'll buy that it's all connected . . . and then it sinks in what you said about the weather stuff starting when the shifts stopped. Now I'm really alarmed.

"Wait a minute . . . something specific stopped the shifts? They didn't just stop on their own? Is Dave all right?"

There's been a distance between us these months, because of the shift crap, but dammit, he's still one of my best friends. I know he had a good relationship with Faramir, not at all like mine with Éomer, but would losing Faramir hurt him?

"If the shifting isn't over for good . . . I don't understand, but it wouldn't be the end of the world, we've lived through it before." I'm shocked at the words out of my mouth, that's almost zen-like and I don't normally do calm and rational. I must be more freaked than I thought about Morgoth being pissy. Yeah, dimension hopping big-bad having it in for you, nothing to worry about.

Paris: "Dave's fine, in fact too fine. He's been doing a mean impression of Tigger these past few days … did you know he feels responsible for everything? The shifting and the side effects? Every time something goes wrong with someone's life around here, he takes it personally. It's been a fight to get him to ease off on the guilt trip, and now this … he's convinced the side effects are gonna stop, and we can all go back to leading normal lives, but if this lack of shifts is only temporary, it's gonna hit him so hard … "

Knocking back the rest of my beer, I get up and pull the lasagne out of the fridge to stick in the oven so it's done for when Dave gets in. While I'm over there, I grab us another couple of cold ones. It's good to have someone to talk this over with who's on the same wavelength, and who I trust enough to talk about Dave to.

"And I'm with you on this one, mate. I'd like nothing better to have my body all to myself again, but not if it means anyone else getting hurt, or this …" I motion to the dark, heavy clouds out of the window. "… getting any worse."

Karl: Fuck, I can just see Dave carrying on about this like some cartoon on speed. And I'm an expert on guilt trips . . . "It's not his fault. It took Bernard to snap me out of my guilt . . . about the whole thing with you and the shifts. But I'm not patient like that, I'd be more tempted just to slap Dave, so I'll leave him to you. But I don't blame him for any of this, I don't think anyone does. If you think it would help, I'd be happy to tell him so."

I take a long pull on the fresh beer you gave me. I barely know you, but we've been through a lot of crap together in just a few months. "Shit, Paris, are you and I ever going to have a normal conversation?"

You look a little puzzled. "Every time I talk to you, it's some sort of bloody dire situation. We both care about Dave, so we should be friends, right? So . . . what have you been doing with yourself for the past four years?"

Paris: I glance across at you with a grin. "You're right, we haven't had the chance to say a normal word to each other since you arrived!" Four years? Seems more like an age ago that you were hauling me around in front of you on that bloody horse. "Well, the first thing I did when I finished with Rings was buy Leelu, then I hit the road again, headed down to Dunedin and picked up some construction work on a site there for a while …"

Before I know it, I've rambled through most of my travels, finding out we have something in common as I tell you about pool hustling in Owaka, missing out the couple of very well paid courier runs I did for Monty, and regaling you with tales of the year I worked for the bike tour company before heading back to Wellie.

"So I bumped into Dave the night I got back into town, and ended up doing the remodeling job on his cabin, working with Sam … she's John Noble's daughter. I don't know if you've met her?"

Karl: "Yes, I met her during filming, she was around the set a bit, and I ran into her again before Christmas. She's very . . . exuberant, isn't she? I didn't know she did remodeling, she seems so young."

You describe the work you did at Dave's, including . . . "You did that stable? It's bloody gorgeous, I thought I was back on the Edoras set. I'll have to remember that if I ever want to update Smokey Joe's quarters."

I launch into my own news and as I start explaining the whole vineyard concept and wine making, and Pinot noir and Chardonnay and Sauvignon blanc. I'm surprised that I've absorbed that much from the little bit of reading that I've done so far and as I'm telling you all of this, I realize that I'm really excited about Aunt June's new venture. It's going to be a hell of a challenge, but fuck, I'm looking forward to it.

Paris: I can see by the way you talk about her, the way the corners of your eyes crinkle with affection, that your Aunt June means a lot to you. And this business venture has amazing potential.

"Your aunt sounds like quite a character" You nod with a smile, but before you have a chance to tell me more, Ise races past us towards the door getting there just as Dave lets himself in, and I can hear him making a fuss of her. "We're in the kitchen, babe." He joins us, the unruly mutt still wrapping herself round his legs. He looks so happy as he steals a quick kiss and says hi to Karl. I might be worried about him, but god, I love that smile.

"Why don't you guys go and catch up? I'll give you a shout when it's ready." I hand Dave a beer as I shoo you both out of the kitchen.