jasonwright | Fighting [IRIS/OPEN]

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.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

From:

littleredsiren

She chews at her lip, running through her schedule for the next few days. "Is Tuesday okay?" she asks. "I shouldn't have anything to do that day..."

Iris scrunches up her nose as she tries to think of something he could do for her. "I'm gonna be honest, I don't think I can think of anything I need done right now... You being my friend is a fair enough trade for me though."

From:

jasonwright

"Tuesday's good," he nods. "I don't get back to the docks til after two."

It seems like such an Iris answer and he smiles. "Alright, but let me know if you need help with anything, okay?" Normally he'd negotiate a trade of some kind. But he's sure Iris really feels like his friendship is a trade and her need to help others probably outweighs his feeling of guilt. Honestly, letting her do a few things for him is probably the trade in and of itself.

From:

littleredsiren

"Okay good! Maybe I'll even have this magic seal off by then," she laughs, gesturing to the seemingly water-resistant paint still stuck to her chest. "I think I need to set up another meeting with Lara to work on the actual powers part of things..."

"I will," she promises with a bright smile. "I'm pretty self sufficient but if anything breaks around here, I'm up a creek. You can be my handyman." Iris giggles slightly at the thought. She seriously doubts she'll be needing him any time for that, but if he needs something to feel better, she would be fine with him helping her out there.

From:

jasonwright

"What's that supposed to do?" He's curious because he's never heard of a magic seal. Maybe it was exclusively for sirens. "It doesn't keep you from transforming, does it?"

"That's a fair trade," he agrees, pointing a finger at her with a smile. "Just let me know if anything breaks."

From:

littleredsiren

"No, no. It keeps me from... Mm," she squirms slightly uncomfortably at the thought. "Influencing men. With my powers. Making them unintentionally attracted to me."

"Cross my heart, I will," Iris grins back.

From:

jasonwright

"Oh....ohhh," he adds finally understanding. "Is that what happened that one night?"

From:

littleredsiren

Iris can feel her teeth clenching at the memory, but nods. "I think so. It's also why I've had to deal with it my entire life," she explains. "But I know what it is now, and I'm learning how to control it so I never have to influence anyone again!"

From:

jasonwright

"Hey, that's good," he smiles. "I'm glad people won't mess with you anymore."

From:

littleredsiren

"Well, I mean, other than for my natural attractiveness," she jokes, tossing her hair over a shoulder. She pauses... "I'm kidding, by the way."

From:

jasonwright

Jason laughs at that. "I'm sorry, I'm not laughing at the natural attractiveness, more your face when you said you're joking."

From:

littleredsiren

She sticks her tongue out. "Mean! I just wanted to make sure you knew I'm not actually that vain!"

From:

jasonwright

"Believe me Iris, I don't think anyone will mistake you for being that vain," he grins.

From:

littleredsiren

Iris lets out a prim little huff, bouncing to her feet and collecting their breakfast dishes before flouncing out to the kitchen with them. She pokes her head around the corner a moment later, glaring at him. "I can be perfectly vain if I want to, I'll have you know!" she says, giving him a very 'u should kno better' look.

From:

jasonwright

"Can you though?" He can't remember one instant where she's been vain and there's nothing but kindness in her. He winces at her glare anyway. "I fully support if you want to be vain, I just won't believe it til I see it."