Fighting [IRIS/OPEN]

[jasonwright]

 It's been a rough week, to say the least. After coming back from his weekend job on a fishing vessel catching crab, he returned to scour the town for the two missing homeless men, Wulfric and Eddie, aka Edbyrd. He first noticed their absence last Friday before he got onto the boat, usually chatting with both before he left shore for the day. Neither appeared at their usual breakfast spot, but Jason had shrugged it off, thinking the men simply moved on past the little daily routine they had settled in. But they were still missing when he returned on Sunday. He spent his entire day looking around town for them, asking a few of the other homeless people, but nothing. No one had seen anything. No one knew where the two men were.

A lot of the men and women can't work like he can, doing manual labor for less than minimum wages. So anytime he gets an extra penny, he's started looking out for their little community in Siren Cove. Today's no different as Jason heads into Quill, spending twenty bucks on two boxes of day old muffins and bagels. The person behind the register even throws in a few extra treats. He thanks them then heads over a few blocks, down two alleys, and into a small clearing just on the edge of town behind an old building. Here a few of Siren Cove's homeless have set up residence, blankets and makeshift shelters all over the clearing.

When he arrives though, there's someone yelling at a man Jason knows, Anthony. The man is shoving a finger in Anthony's chest, calling him all sorts of terrible names, and swearing at him left and right. Jason hands the boxes to a woman he knows as Candy, wandering up to the commotion. He interrupts politely, asking if he can help the other man with anything. 

"This bastard stole forty bucks from me!" the man yells, turning his anger onto Jason now. His face is beet red and Jason holds up his hands to show he doesn't mean to threaten the other man in any way.

"Are you sure, sir? I know Anthony and he's not that kind of guy." 

And that's when the man wheels around, gesturing at all the people in the clearing. He calls them scums who need to get jobs, turning back to Anthony to call him a name Jason just has an automatic response to. He reels back and punches the man in the face.

It's stupid. And he'll be the first to admit that he's on edge this week, worried and now overprotective of this little community since two of its own have gone missing. He shakes his fist, wincing, and starts to apologize when the other man gets up and takes at swing at Jason. Before he knows it, they're in a full on brawl. The guy can punch hard, but Jason's faster. He's rusty, but his old reflexes kick in. It's almost like he never left the ring. He's about to hit the guy again after he uses the same word as before when someone hauls him up by the back of his shirt, an impressive feat considering Jason's size.

"What the hell is going on here, Jesus Christ?" a voice growls from behind him. Jason quickly looks over his shoulder and curses himself. He sees a police uniform and the badge on the man's chest says Middleton. The other man tries to explain, growing angrier with every breath and Jason really, really wants to hit him again, but he's being held back by the officer. But the dumbass screws up and doesn't clean up his language. Office Middleton's scowl goes slack, his tension on Jason's arm loosening. 

"Aren't you going to press chargers?" the man yells at the officer. Middleton shrugs, letting go of Jason altogether. 

"Know what? I am." The officer steps around Jason, grabbing hold of the other man. "Disrupting the peace and being a real asshole," he says dryly, moving the man's arms behind his back. Jason's shocked as the officer pulls the man away from the clearing, shoving him very unceremoniously into the back of his cop car. And suddenly his body feels weak and exhausted. He's bleeding, his ribs are bruised, and his knuckles are busted. He doesn't look pretty, but neither does the other guy. Jason checks on Anthony, making sure the man is okay before he excuses himself, slowly making his way back to the cabin at the community garden where he's left Alfredo. He kneels down onto the steps of the cabin, nursing his right hand. What a great week.

Comments

[jasonwright]

"You'd get mad at me?" he asks, smiling at the thought and turning to look at her. The idea of Iris mad at anyone is mind-blowing.

"He was accusing my friend of stealing from him. It was a mistake for me to hit him, but he said some bad things. I've just been on edge this week," he admits. He purses his lips when she hits a sore spot, but stays put. Wriggling can make these things worse.

[littleredsiren]

She scrunches up her nose at him. "Maybe more disappointed than mad... Fighting isn't good. Unless you're protecting people."

She tilts her head, trying to be more gentle at that part. "How awful. Just because he's homeless doesn't mean he's a criminal," she huffs, clearly upset at the thought. She holds up the washcloth, "Any other cuts not on your face? Why have you been on edge?"

[jasonwright]

"Exactly," he agrees. "The best people I've met have been on their worst luck, and the worst people their best. I just don't like prejudice." He furrows his brows at her question, scratching his head. "Uh. Yeah, I can get those??"

"Two of the guys are missing. Just vanished. I'm worried and towns don't usually notice or care when a homeless man goes missing."

[littleredsiren]

"I don't understand why people can't just treat everyone like they're people too," she mumbles, slightly irritable sounding as she wipes a smudge off of his cheek. "You sure? I don't mind. It's calming."

Iris sucks in a tiny gasp. "Do the police know?" she asks, worry dripping from her voice. "I met a really nice police officer at the beach the other morning. Maybe he can help..."

[jasonwright]

"Well...it you're sure." Jason sits up straighter and lifts his shirt off, revealing the scrapes and now-forming bruises on his stomach and side. The guy packed a punch, that's for sure.

"Monday, I talked to a Detective Astor. He took down their names and description. I haven't heard any updates though."

[littleredsiren]

Iris hisses slightly through her teeth, even as she feels her cheeks start to burn. She should have said no. She wasn't expecting this. A running chant of 'you can do this. he's your friend. stop those thoughts right now.' starts up in her head as she blushes and starts dabbing at a scrape on his... abs. Goddamn her stupid mouth. "You're gonna... um, need ice. For those, uh... bruises."

"That's him! Levi! He seemed really nice when we were talking and not like a creep or anything. I hope he'll try hard... If you need, I can go snoop or something for updates?"

[jasonwright]

Honestly, he's not uncomfortable at all taking his shirt off. Usually. But Iris is all innocent and good, so he feels her reaction and feels a bit self-conscious. He winces when she dabs at a deeper cut. "I'll get some for that and my hand before I leave tonight."

"Yeah, he seemed pretty professional at the station." But then a lot of them do and immediately trash the report you give them after you leave. Still, it feels good that Iris seems to like the guy. Maybe he won't blow Jason off like the rest. "You can do that?" he asks, intrigued.

[littleredsiren]

She feels his wince and glances up with an apologetic, if slightly red-faced, look. "Sorry, I'm trying to be gentle," she apologizes. "You're going to sleep outside tonight? Can't you stay in the cabin? It looks like you've bruised your ribs and sleeping on a hard surface is going to leave you really sore tomorrow..."

"I don't know how professional he is," she admits. "But he was very nice while we were swimming and seemed to actually care about the town. Hopefully that extends to everyone in it..." She tilts her head, nibbling at her lip. "Maybe? No one ever gets mad at me for things and it's helping people... I can at least go and ask. They might be more willing to give information to a young woman than a man."

[jasonwright]

"I, uh..." He's uncomfortable sleeping in the cabin, unless the weather is really bad, which it hasn't been since he made the deal with Eli. Showering there felt like he wasn't imposing. Sleeping there--entirely different story. "I could, I just...feel weird about it."

He nods his head. "That's true. You can be a spy then," he smiles at her. "Really, anything you can find out would be amazing, Iris."

[littleredsiren]

She frowns slightly. "You really should, at least until your ribs are healed," she advises, momentarily distracted from... abs. "Or somewhere where there's cushioning. You can use my couch, if you'd like?"

Iris gives him a rather stunning grin, glad to be helping. "I'll go talk to the police tomorrow then, before I come here to cook."

[jasonwright]

Jason shakes his head. "I can't do that to you Iris. I'll be fine. I've pulled through worse, no worries."

"You cook for people every day?" he asks with a smile.

[littleredsiren]

"Are you kidding me right now?" she asks, giving him a look that just screams 'Seriously???'. "You wouldn't be 'doing' anything to me outside of making me worry less. You're my friend and helping you is not a burden. Besides, I don't offer things to people if it's going to be a burden on me, Jason."

That last part may be a little bit of a lie, but she's determined to dissuade him from such silly thoughts.

"I like cooking for people," she huffs, finally putting away the washcloth and pulling out a tube of polysporin. "It helps me calm down when I'm anxious and it means people get good meals, which is important."

[jasonwright]

He's honestly surprised by her tone and hell, now he can't argue with her. "Alright, alright," he admits defeat, holding up his hands to her like a white flag. "You're right. I'll crash on your couch. Just to recover." He highly doubts the last bit she says, but she's just too kind. Iris would totally put herself our to help someone else, much like he would.

"I'm sure everyone appreciates your cooking for them. Are you anxious a lot?" He doesn't want to pry, but she mentions it and she had used Alfredo as a security blanket at the ball.

[littleredsiren]

Iris' expression quickly switches back to her normal sunshine-y smile when he acquiesces. "It's a very comfy couch," she assures him, leaning in to smear the polysporin on his facial cuts. "And there are lots of blankets. Plus, you get breakfast before work. Do you like french toast?"

She gives a non-committal shrug, not really wanting to admit just how scary living on her own could be. Her relatives hadn't prepared her for it in the least. She just threw herself into the deep end and prayed she'd figure out how to swim. "Everything here is new to me," she offers. "I'm on my own for the first time ever and I just found out I'm a magical creature and I have scales and claws and fangs. Plus I have so many people to worry about now."

[jasonwright]

Welp, he makes a note to take Iris seriously. Not that he ever wouldn't, but she can be insistent when she wants to be. "I'm sure it's only the best." He raises an eyebrow as she doctors him up, glancing at her. "Are there even people who don't like french toast?"

"Alright, definitely got a reason to be a bit anxious," he admits. "But you're enjoying it, right? Living on your own? How you doing with the whole siren thing?"

[littleredsiren]

She purses her lips slightly at a deeper cut, digging a box of butterfly bandages out of the first aid kit and carefully smoothing one over it to hold it shut as it heals. "You'd be surprised. Some people think it's gross. I think they're crazy, but that's just me," she giggles.

"It's a lot better than living with my aunt and uncle. I mean, even if they weren't overly controlling and kind of awful people, I'm twenty three. I need to get out on my own at some point, right?" she asks, half to him, half to herself. "Actually, I'd just figured out how to change completely the morning I met Levi. It's... interesting. Lara and, um... Nevermind. Lara says I'm a very pretty siren but I dunno. I still think I look kind of scary, honestly." She shifts uncomfortably at the memory of Bach's reaction to her that morning but brushes it off. He's lonely and she's not going to deprive him of company any time soon, even if it's not the kind he really wants right now.

[jasonwright]

She's very good at cleaning someone up, Jason has to give her that. He's patient as she bandages him, not wanting to break her concentration because it's keeping her busy. "I agree with you, they're crazy."

"Exactly," he nods just slightly as she works on his cuts. All the years he's basically lived on the sea, Jason's never seen a siren before he landed here. He heard the tales, but really had no opinion on their appearance. The scales of Iris' he saw at the ball were definitely beautiful though. "I take it you are transform a bit differently? It's a part of you Iris, so I'm sure you look beautiful."

[littleredsiren]

She ducks her head, busying herself with a gauze pad and tape to hide her blush and smile. "I'm a little more... um, feral looking, I guess you'd say. Monster-y. But thank you. You're sweet," she chuckles, carefully smoothing the bandage over the scrapes on his stomach. "I'll have to show you when I take you up on that offer of using the docks to practice, I guess."

[jasonwright]

Jason smiles. "You're talking to a guy who's lived on the streets for over a decade. Feral's stunning too. Raw and natural." He thinks of the animals in Alaska. There's something beautiful about typically scary creatures in the world. "Really?" He's surprised she'd even let him see her transformation. "I'd like that.

[littleredsiren]

She glances up, grinning. "You've got a point. No blaming me if you see me and run off screaming though," she teases before patting the bandage. "That's all good now. Anything else before we head back?"

"Of course! You're my friend. Why wouldn't you be able to see it?"

[jasonwright]

"Deal. I may make a shocked face though, just because I've never seen someone...change into...something...else...but give me a few minutes to process it, alright?" He looks down at himself, checking that he's properly bandaged and didn't forget to tell her about a spot. Satisfied, he shakes his head. "Nope, think you got everything."

He smiles because well, friendship in the past was usually "Hey man, I like you, I won't mug you tonight, sleep tight buddy" not "I'll show you how my entire body transforms from a human to a siren." But then this town is different, so his perceptions of friendship will probably change. "People are weird?" he offers as an explanation.

[littleredsiren]

Iris giggles, getting to her feet and holding out a hand to help him up. "That's fine with me. As long as you don't go screaming into the sunset, I think I can handle a little shock. Plus, you don't have to watch the entire time. I can't imagine it's pleasant to see someone's body changing so rapidly."

"Tch. You don't know the half of it," she agrees, giving him a crooked smile. "I've seen just how weird people can get so many times since moving here. It's a little overwhelming."

[jasonwright]

He takes her hand and pulls himself up, groaning a little now that he's moving again, stretching out his sore muscles. "I haven't gone screaming into the sunset yet in my life, so I doubt you'll make me do that. You might get Alfredo all in a tizzy though."

He shakes his head with a grin. "We don't want to play the "I've met weird people" stories, Iris. I think I'll win."

[littleredsiren]

Iris bites her lip slightly, aware once more that he's so very not wearing a shirt. "Hopefully he'll be able to smell that I'm still me and won't freak out too badly," she smiles, a tiny awkward giggle slipping out. "Anyway, I'm not too far from here. If you wanna get anything you'll need, we can walk over now?"

"You'll have to tell me those stories then," she smiles. "Though I don't know how you'll top the characters in this town."

[jasonwright]

"He probably will," he agrees as he pulls on his shirt. He shrugs at Iris. "Just what I got on me. You lead the way."

"It'll be a challenge. Some of them might take the cake though," he grins as he follows her out of the garden, making sure to close the gate behind them.