survival of the fittest

[advanced]

who: Bucky and anyone!
what: Bucky is a big old thief, tracks down his name twin, and also goes monster fighting with Clark
when: Anytime between March 8th and March 12th
where: Around Quarantine
warnings: Probably violence

[i: Around Quarantine; open to anyone]

[Bucky has chosen to eschew the communal housing gifted to him, as well as all the benefits that affords. Like food, shelter, and access to a shower. The last two aren't such a big deal, but he needs a lot of food to keep him going, the bastardised serum in his veins makes him burn through calories at a ridiculous rate.

Which is why he's ghosting through Quarantine on the look out for empty housing or possible a not very well attended street food stall, in order to snatch a hand out and take something. He can be found shoplifting in the street; or, if you'd prefer, breaking into your character's housing in search of food.]

[ii: Down a back alley somewhere; closed to Bucky Barnes]

[Ever since he saw that name on the network, his own name, Bucky has been in overdrive trying to figure out what's going on. It takes him a day or so to track down who owns the username, and then another day to just follow them around and try and figure out who they are. It's only when he catches the imposter out alone, whatever he might be doing, that he reveals himself by trying to drag the other man down an alleyway in an explosion of movement and bad decisions.]

[iii: Monster hunting; closed to Clark Kent]

[The perimeter is of interest to Bucky, partially because it means an escape from this town and partially because he knows that Stark is going to be making upgrades to it. It's why he's scouting around it today.

He's too focused on the possible security measures, trying to find surveillance equipment or defence mechanisms, that he has completely failed to notice the large monster shaped like a monstrous caterpillar creeping up behind him on silent feet.]

Comments

i, probably in or close to the abandoned city?

[somnioergosum]

[Ronan isn't looking for food but abandoned houses? Sign him up for a much different reason. Unfortunately, there's usually a good reason a place is abandoned here in Riverview. It doesn't take him too long to judge this one unsuitable. As he steps out, he starts at the suddenness of Bucky appearing before him. This guy someone who screams 'shady' to Ronan's eyes, probably cause he can recognize a hint of his own in them.

But instead of commenting on that, he jerks his thumb back to the place.]

Don't bother. Use this as a secret lair and the roof will crush your skull before day two.

[advanced]

[It's not exactly ideal, that there are other people trapped here that also want to find abandoned places to squat in, but hardly unexpected. He can't be the only person to distrust the housing given to them with no real satisfactory explanation.

He wasn't expecting to run into one of those people in the doorway to a decrepit ruin, and he takes an instinctive step back when he does.]

What's wrong with the structure?

[somnioergosum]

Rotting beams and rotting mice or whatever shit they have here.

[Ronan's raven chooses that moment to fly out of the building. Perching on the roof, she's scarfing down something with a tail. If nothing else, one of them has some food.

Ronan briefly cocks his head up to check the bird before he looks back at Bucky.]

See what I mean.

[advanced]

[He almost reaches for a weapon with that flurry of movement, but it's just a bird so all his guns and knives remain hidden.]

That's yours?

[The raven, he means. It's odd, for some reason he didn't expect people here to have pets.]

[somnioergosum]

Chainsaw. Yeah.

[He says it as if he's utterly oblivious to the ridiculousness of someone thinking Chainsaw is a cool name for just about anything, which he is.]

If she doesn't keel over from whatever she just ate.

[On cue, the bird finishes swallowing what Ronan knows is or rather was a mouse. For his part, Ronan looks at Bucky. He wants to ask why he's looking for a place to stay, but then Ronan would have to tell. He decides he probably doesn't want to know anyway.

He also doesn't want to answer too much about his bird.]

You can look for yourself if the place meets Hobo Inspection.

[advanced]

[This guy's bird is called Chainsaw?!

He shifts to make sure that he's at least half facing Ronan as well as giving himself a good view of the street, making sure that nobody else can come up on him without him noticing them there.]

It doesn't.

[Mostly because his main criteria is 'nobody knows I'm here', which this now fails because of this guy.]

You're looking for somewhere to stay out here?

[somnioergosum]

[Hey now, it's perfectly respectable for a then 17 year old grown man to name his bird Chainsaw. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise, even if it's completely true.]

Are you?

[Ronan feels like he shouldn't have to answer such a blatantly obvious question. Besides, he recognizes that body language and it unsettles him. Bucky might as well be looking over his shoulder all the time.

Maybe, Ronan thinks, he does.]

Hey, I didn't want to run into you anymore than--

[He stops when before he finishes that sentence because he realizes that might be a lie. He gets the sense that Bucky dislikes this a lot less.]

Whatever. But I'm not gonna take an actual chainsaw to your head.

[advanced]

I asked if you were looking for somewhere to stay.

[He knows he was asked the same in response, but he asked first and, like a child, he wants the answer before he even thinks about answering himself. The other questions and comments are ignored, this is the important bit.

Because if Ronan is looking for somewhere to stay, then Bucky needs to be aware that there's someone else transient that he has to keep an eye on and make sure he doesn't run into. If he's not, then why the hell is he here investigating broken ruins with his weirdly named bird?]

[somnioergosum]

Yeah. And I asked you.

[They can both be childish here. The effect is either undermined or amplified by the silence that follows. Ronan can't use his height for full intimidation against this guy but he does shift his body language. He's more closed off, the (very relatively) open angle of his body closes in as he braces himself. The familiar tensing of muscles and silence is comfortable for Ronan to fall back to, especially when it makes people uncomfortable. This time he's the one who feels uneasy from it.

So, finally, he breaks it.]

I don't sleep well when other people are around.

[Now he has to weight his risks. Which one is worse: risking discovery and/or exposing people to his nightmares or risking assault by hobo and/or exposing said hobo to his nightmares? Great.]

[advanced]

[It's a good answer and one that he understands intimately. It gives a reason without actually giving away anything at all, because of the multitude of different reasons that a person might not sleep well with others around, and it's the sort of answer Bucky might have given if he'd been further pressed.

Either he's dangerous or he thinks of himself in danger, there's not often a lot of difference between the two.]

Then you can take one of the other buildings along this street.

[It lets Bucky know where the other person sleeping rough is, allowing him to play an avoidance game, without giving away his own position.]

[ooc: Sorry for the wait, I've been on holiday without internet for a few days.]

[somnioergosum]

[Ronan nods. He's not too sure if he wants to trust this guy, but there's time to figure that out. At the least, they've come to an unspoken mutual agreement to respect whatever the other is hiding.]

Sounds good, man. Thanks.

[He moves to step around Bucky, confident his bird will follow at some point.]

See you around.

[ooc: No worries. And I figure that's probably it for the thread, unless you want Chainsaw to catch a glimpse of Bucky's shiny arm and divebomb it.]

[advanced]

[ooc: That's all good! Until the next thread, then :)]

[Bucky's relieved that the other man seems to accept that course of action without any argument or problem, and so he makes no move himself to impede Ronan leaving. He wants to be alone, after all.]