It Ain't Fun (Lukas/Orion)

Another day, another evening of paperwork. He's worked himself well this week. That's good. His doctor's proud. That's good. He was told to ask himself if he's happy. Looking down at the paperwork before him, finished work neatly stacked, a small smile actually tugged at his lips. However, he then found himself frowning. Work is work. He shouldn't let himself get too emotional over it. His line of work isn't something you should get overtly emotional over. Half of the papers he has are assignments to do slightly unsavory things.

But, with everything done, he'll soon be able to head home. At least they allow him that much. He remembers having to live in a specialized area for the unstable. Funny how things change as soon as you prove useful. It was no different back with them. The better you are, the better you're treated. What a way to turn everyone against one another and foster competition. Creating the perfect soldier isn't easy or pretty. Guess he oughta get out of here before he starts over reminiscing though.

CITY OF LIGHTS
A tightly bound black notebook, the pages half torn, have barely legible. In it were names, some in red ink, some in black. Some were crossed out, although most that had been were torn from the book long ago. Lukas couldn't remember when he got it - probably before prison, he figured, but he hadn't made much use of it since.

There were a few jobs he had performed within what he would consider 'normal', breaking up a smuggling warehouse being the fondest remembered. But ever since he got out, nothing had taken him from beyond the Stadt inside the ordinary. Africa was its own beast, and frankly, Lukas missed the smaller scale targets. There was something special about trailing a mark, he thought.

As his footsteps guided him to an exit door, the hallways light gave way to glass doors sputtering with rain. The patter of which became fierce as clouds roared overhead, audible through the building walls. Sighing, Lukas turned around, walking back into the Todgestalten quarters, nodding to another approaching quincy. "Hey, it's pouring. Good time to find an umbrella."

A faint hint of comradery.

Most people have gone home for the night, the night staff busying themselves with the boring repetition of inactivity. Orion has little reason to stay for an overnight shift, so he's making his way for home. However, a fellow member clued him in on the dreadful weather outside. He does have an umbrella, but it was left in his office. A folly on his part, one he shouldn't make again. Now, he's left with two options: return to his office or wait for the sky to clear up.

Processing his options, his eyes absently identified the man before him: Lukas Atherisch. There's a lot about this particular person, mental databanks at work. In a sense, the man is but a product of his environment, much like Orion, but that doesn't mean Orion'll accept the man. Anything that reminds him of his past isn't something he's entirely privy to indulge in. But, with things as they are, he found himself standing for longer than he needed, feeling it inopportune to turn and receive his umbrella.

Great.

CITY OF LIGHTS
Stepping past the man, Lukas shot a faint side eye. Moody fucker, aren't you?

The quincy made his way to the break room, beelining for the fridge that sat in the corner; fat, stubby, and worn. Reaching to the side, some strain crossed his face momentarily before triumph replaced it. Pulling back, he produced an older, ratty umbrella, noticeable dust and cobwebs sticking to it. Hitting it against the floor, Lukas made to shake it off onto the ground before exiting the break room, returning to the exit hallway.

Lukas left. For a second, Orion pondered leaving while the area is empty to receive his umbrella, but he let himself question the idea for too long. Lukas soon returned with an old umbrella. Orion couldn't help but turn his eyes to watch the man's next step. Will he chance such a thing out in this torrential? He doubted he'd be allowed to share the umbrella, not like he wanted to, but his observant nature couldn't help but keep him watching.

CITY OF LIGHTS
Staring down at the umbrella, Lukas walked some distance attempting to find its opening clasp, raising his head as was closer to the door. Almost running into Orion, he took a step back, finally opening the umbrella with a click. As the head expanded, held towards the ground, the quincy spoke.

"Hey man, you gonna... Keep, standing there?" Lukas' forehead knotting into visible confusion to the way Orion was acting.

Orion had waited to see if Lukas would notice his blunder, but the man barely did, almost crashing into the other. Well, Orion didn't care about the altercation, but he couldn't help but find himself amused by how simpleminded someone as dangerous as Lukas can be.

"I'm waiting for the rain to clear up. I've not moved since."

He would have explained how Lukas should have watched his step better, especially since he knew Orion was still here, but that'd be needless altercation. Instead, he looked out at the grey sky and sighed. On days like these, he found it easy to get lost in thought and lose himself for hours on end.

"The rain has a bit of charm to it, so I don't mind watching it."

CITY OF LIGHTS
"Yeah I can tell that." He replied with the faintest hint of anger, almost entirely subsumed by sarcasm. "Maybe take a seat, go back to your office?" A genuine suggestion, despite the sour look he gave Orion as he said it.

"Cuz you're probably gonna be waiting a while." Lukas remarked as the rain increased in frequency, the beating rhythm of it louder as thunder roared in the distance, lightning cracking the sky. Stepping beyond Orion as he spoke, umbrella lifting above his head as he pushed the door open.

"If you end up spending the night," his head turned, facing the man still standing in the hallway, "Don't get yourself in trouble, don't need more work."

They're both work. It's only a matter of who's requiring paperwork first. Two men led down similar paths. Orion wonders if Lukas has any desire to better himself, not as a soldier, but as a human being. Life behind bars couldn't have been fun. He knew life in a tube was only torment.

"That umbrella might not hold up," He'd say though, watching the storm worsen.