Sharing secrets

Who: Doc and Eva
Where: Eva's house
When: early evening

Doc hadn't wanted to consider that this would become a necessity. He'd hoped, both before and after troubles with Eva in the past, that he could somehow keep what they shared separate from the stark crises of his 'professional' life. How many times in the past had he seen people he'd cared about or women he loved get hurt by this world? No matter how many times there had been, Doc still knew it was unfair of him to think like that. It had never been his choice, they had each decided for themselves. So now? Now Doc needed to offer that choice again. He just didn't want to.

He'd been quiet and thoughtful ever since getting word from Frank, disheartened but understanding over the old hunter's decision to leave town. No matter how great the stakes were here, Doc would've followed his personal scores too. Frank needed this closure if he was ever going to find any kind of peace, and Doc wouldn't grudge him that. But Frank's departure meant he had a whole new level of things to get done. He was taking in Dylan, figuring the youngest Alden would be as safe here as anywhere. He was also reeling from what had been unveiled to the whole world last night. The tapestry between worlds had fallen, and it was anything but a good sign. Things were shifting in a decline, a process that was only going to get faster.

So he was doing what he could to anticipate the problems, to resolve them before they got too bad. Teddybear was setting up finances to help accommodate Dylan, the twins knew he was coming too; he wouldn't be a concern until the day Doc actually went and brought him home. But the tasks of War? They'd just gotten infinitely more complex. Doc had already been pulled across the world twice since dawn in Marquette, first to somewhere down Mexico way to watch a former drug runner nearly kill himself, surrounded by the ghosts of those he'd wronged and buried in the deserts. After that? Well, he hadn't even gotten home before Duty resounded again, yanking him to Sarajevo and the first shedding of blood in the life of a shellshocked former prostitute who now seemed a soldier. That woman had seemed hard as nails, and the look in her eyes when Doc confronted her was like an omen.

He was still thinking on it as he skimmed his last project's details, the one piece of work he didn't want to handle like the others. Eva. For all they'd shared, there were still secrets. His powers, for one. The illegal gun she owned, for two. And when Doc looked at her past closer? When he overlaid her personal details with local police reports, when he dug for the seemingly innocuous details where people like him or Eva hid? Well, there was more than three concerns. But maybe, just maybe, it meant that the woman he hadn't wanted to involve was suited to be. "Only one way to find out," Doc muttered as he turned off his PDA and snagged his cigarettes, dialing Eva's home, "Let's get those cards on the table."

Eva had heard the stories, that the veil between the living and the dead was supposedly at its thinnest on Halloween, but she'd always assumed that was folk legend, myth worked into religion, or perhaps as a result of the old pagan ways. Imagine her surprise when they exploded onto reality the morning after.

She realized quickly enough that it had happened Halloween night, but she'd turned in early that evening and (thankfully enough) apparently had no otherworldly roommates when she woke up. A rather surreal phone call from her parents in Italy as well as various news broadcasts confirmed that it wasn't confined to Marquette, and after emailing her students to cancel classes for the next few days, Eva settled in to watch the reports. There wasn't exactly much she could do - what hurt a ghost? She was hardly qualified to banish restless spirits. Particularly when the few she'd seen wandering around outside had looked as lost and confused as the living.

Practical as always, she was just making dinner and pondering calling Doc, who might have more information (assuming he wasn't busy using whatever other hidden talents he had to solve the problems), when her phone rang. "Is clairvoyance perhaps a skill of yours?" she teased when she answered the phone. "I was just thinking of you."

Doc had to smirk against his own grim thoughts and unresolved worries as she picked up, sighing out a lungful of smoke. "Never had the knack for that one," he answered, "I'm a guy who doesn't like prying into peoples' minds or futures, lucky for a lot of people." He was curious about why he'd factored into Eva's thoughts, wondering if it was a personal sort of regard or maybe something connected to events raging across the world. Neither would surprise him, but Doc was wondering just how much room he'd have for the former if this didn't go the way he wanted it to. "What're you up to? Got time for some company?"

Indeed it was lucky, Eva couldn't help but agree. She was still torn about when to share - or whether to share at all - her own secrets. But she knew there were still things left unsaid on both sides, so until that time came, she could keep quiet. "I was just making some dinner," she said. "And by making, I'm afraid I have to admit that I mean I'm reheating some leftover Thai. There's enough for two, if you haven't eaten yet." The smile was evident in her voice. "You know you're always welcome. But please, be careful. I would hate for you to have an accident with all of our... visitors outside."

"No worries, they're largely harmless," Doc assured her, hopping up from his seat and moving to the kitchen. "It takes a special kind of spirit to really be something you need to worry about," he went on, scrawling a quick note for the twins on the fridge, then moving to grab his coat. Doc stopped at the rack, eying his holstered gun. A mark of rank never hurt, just in case he did end up revealing things to Eva. But if it came to that? It wasn't like Doc was ever without his wings, and they worked just as well for proof. "I make no promises on dinner, so if you don't mind me stealing a bite or two? You don't need to heat up too much. Anything I should bring? I'm on my way out the door now."

"Only yourself," Eva assured him. "I have everything else, thank you. Be safe," she said again, hanging up after saying goodbye. She added enough for him to the food she was reheating. If he chose not to eat it, she could always refrigerate it again. It'd be fine. She was just setting the plates in the oven on its 'warm' setting when she heard his car in the drive. She pulled the door open for him, a welcoming smile on her face. "You made good time, as always," she greeted pleasantly.

Like usual, Doc wanted to draw Eva in for a light kiss of greeting, but he was somewhat worried by his reason for visiting. Not that it showed beyond the lack of that little gesture as Doc stepped in, slipping out of his shoes. "The drive's not getting any longer," he teased, "So all that could happen is me getting here faster from wanting to see you. Except there's some panicky people on the streets today, so I'm obeying the speed limits." He couldn't help himself entirely, stepping in close to settle a hand at Eva's side. "You're good? I mean, you look great. But... no problems with everything happening in town?"

"To be truthful, it was the other drivers I was more worried about," Eva confessed, stretching up slightly to give him her usual peck on the cheek. She closed and locked the doors. "I doubted you could be startled by a ghost, but another driver panicking and colliding with you was a possibility I was forced to consider. All the same," she said with a smile, "it seems it was a pointless worry." She led him into the kitchen, pouring two glasses of wine and handing one over. "I'm well, thank you," she reassured him. "Curious, of course, and a little concerned, but so far I haven't heard any reports of the spirits being malicious."

"Well, you probably won't hear any," Doc said with a smile as Eva kissed his cheek, "They're not like that. I'd bet most of them are as confused as us, really. They have their own existence, and as little as I understand the spirit world? I know that much. Something's pulled the two sides together, and they know how bad of a sign it is." Pausing to sip his wine, Doc didn't move away from Eva as concern lined his brow, though part of him wanted to. "That's actually tangentially why I wanted to come by tonight... there's some things I think we need to talk about, Eva."

Eva raised an eyebrow slightly at one of his secondary reasons for visiting, wondering what she could possibly know - or do - about the spirits. "Of course," she said easily, turning to remove dinner from the oven and turn it off. "I made you a plate anyway; please, eat what you like." She set the plates and cutlery on the table, wine glass floating over to her from its spot on the countertop. "Sit," she invited, doing so herself. "What is it you would like to discuss, Eric?" she asked.

Smirking a little at the levitating glass, Doc dropped into a seat across from Eva, sipping his wine and musing on just how to start this. He had his suspicions, sure, but if he accused her and he was wrong? Well, Doc might find himself sabotaging one of the few personal connections he dared to have. "It's... kind of a long trip to the central point, and I don't think either of us is going to like everything along the way. But I need to do this for us, so please, just remember that?" he asked, taking one more sip and clearing his throat, then setting his glass aside. "Who's Francesca Paolini?" Doc asked, watching Eva's reaction closely.

If he was looking for a particular reaction, he'd be disappointed. Eva had a master poker face when necessary, the ability to take everything in stride as it was happening and save any breakdowns for later. She'd been mid-bite when he dropped the question on her, eyebrow raised slightly at his assertion that their forthcoming discussion would be for them. She finished her bite and swallowed, surprised at the fact that she wasn't as surprised as she perhaps should be when confronted with her own alias. She was willing to bet it was a guess - he would need extensive contacts to be able to put everything together, she'd bet - but he'd obviously been looking.

She could have lied, she reflected as she met his eyes over the rim of her wineglass. If it was anyone else, she would have, and quite easily. But he deserved more, if he was choosing now to clear things between them. She took a sip of wine, calmly setting down the glass. "I am," she answered simply. "An alias of mine, rather. Francesca is my middle name. Paolini... a randomly chosen surname."

With more time, Doc likely could've put most of the puzzle together; his contacts ran deep and strange. But her answer was a welcome thing, it confirmed the working theory he'd had when he'd come over. He nodded slightly at Eva's explanation, not frowning as he considered everything, just turning each piece over in his mind before going on. "I wondered about that," he said, arms crossing on the table to let Doc lean, "Mainly because I'd wondered about a few other things. The gun you own, for one. Not that getting a piece off the record is all that hard in the States, but it didn't quite fit with what I knew. There was also... some police activity around when you headed here. And I was hoping you could tell me about that." He was giving her an earnest look, no condemnation in his eyes; Doc just wanted the truth, but wasn't going to push for it. He would give her the chance to either offer it, or tell him to leave.

"I should hardly think I'd have to," Eva commented quietly. "It seems as if you've connected quite a few dots on your own. I must confess to some curiosity as to what prompted you to start looking in those areas." Her gun permit in Italy was hardly connected, unless he'd been researching her and the area in general. "Why don't you share with me what you already know, and I will fill in the blanks."

He couldn't help smiling at the faint challenge to share his theory, though it wasn't a joking smile. Doc nodded, swirling his wine slowly and watching the curve of the liquid before he spoke up. "I think you're a pro. Or you were at some point," he began, "There's too many little connections to ignore the idea, really. Robbery reports, and the jobs were always art institutions or private collections, things you'd appreciate. The way the jobs were done, the police didn't always have theories on how access was gained. There's plenty of ways that can be explained? But if you put telekinesis at the top of the list..."

Doc didn't finish that thought, instead fishing out his cigarettes and tapping the filter of one on the table, leaving it unlit. "The gun's another piece of the puzzle. You have a range license back home, so it wouldn't draw any connections there. But it becomes a hot piece the moment you bring it here, doesn't it? And I know my guns, that's not an American design for the caliber. But the piece I didn't get until I had the others? Well, the caves... yeah, I was preoccupied. And at first I figured that was enough for you to do what you did. But now? Now I just figure you've had practice at your sleight of hand." He didn't like to bring up the cursed jewelry, and knew it was still a sore memory for Eva, but Doc had to explain himself. And there was no condemnation in his eyes, just an attentive focus as he waited for her to do as she'd said and fill in the blanks.

Eva sighed, taking another sip of her wine while she ordered her thoughts. He'd seen much more than she'd realized; she'd been less than careful with him. Which, in a way, was good. She just wished it had been a time more of her choosing. "I don't know that I would say 'pro', exactly," she began. "That would require being paid. I was only in it for... well, for the fun. To see if I could. There was a group, I more or less fell in with them, was trained. We worked typically in pairs at the very least, so most of what I did was without my telekinesis. They didn't know about that." The side of her mouth twitched in a very faint, fleeting smile. "We were just that good, I suppose." She grimaced slightly at the mention of the cursed jewelry, but kept silent. "Or the polizia aren't as good as they like to think." She raised an eyebrow at him, dinner forgotten as she reached over for her cigarettes and lit one up, leaving the pack on the table. "Again, I wonder what prompted you to begin looking."

And really, that was the question. He'd been right about her, but now he had to explain why he needed to know. Some part of him was nervous, it wanted to lie or evade the truth of the matter. But the rest of him? Well, Doc needed help. He needed people he could rely on. And she'd been honest when he'd presented his theory. Swallowing hard, Doc lightly turned his unlit cigarette round and round in his fingers, looking Eva's way steadily. "I have a job to do," he said simply, "I can't do it alone, either. If I try, I fail. And on this one? I can't fail. So... I need people I can trust, people who know the situation. And I trust you, Eva, I trust you enough that I think I should've come to you with this a while ago, but I've never wanted to pull you too far into this side of my life."

"And what is the job?" Eva asked, no sign of her surprise on her face. This was certainly not the way she'd expected the conversation to go. "I will help you if I can, Eric, but understand that this was only ever a hobby to me. A way of satisfying curiosity. I rarely carried the gun with me on jobs, though they insisted I have one. I will not kill anyone unless in defense of my life or that of an innocent."

"Well, I don't want you to steal anything," Doc assured her, shaking his head, "Or to kill anyone. I'd never ask you to do anything like that, Eva... the job? It's a big one, and I don't think you'll understand why I'm asking you at first." No one had, really. Kurt and Frank had both professed doubts about the ability of mortal men to factor in, but that was all Doc ever saw as War; mortals shifting the balance, whether they realized it or not. "It's the whole world, that's the job. We're at a crux right now... events are shifting, forces are gathering. The werewolves, the shadows and vampires, things are coming to a head. This business with the loss of a veil between the living and the dead? It's a sign that it's coming faster than I'd thought. And me? Well, I intend to stop it."

Most people's normal reaction would be to laugh, or express disbelief, or something else dismissive. And to be honest, her first thought was doubt that one man could really do all that much to singlehandedly save the world. But he was right - the occurrences in town and what was apparently now the entire planet were happening more often, and while she wouldn't rate this one nearly as damaging as the vampire gangs or the werewolves in terms of human injury in Marquette, it was much more widespread. "How do you know these things?" she asked instead. "What can be done? Telekinesis aside, my talents do not exactly lie in the supernatural arena."

Doc smiled in understanding at her qualms, finally lighting up his own cigarette. He'd need the little focus to distract his nerves, given that she just asked the real kicker. How do I know? "Second question first," he said, "It's not the telekinesis I'm interested in. It's you. You're a sharp one, Eva. You're determined, resourceful, and perceptive. That's what I need, that and people who can keep a low profile. My friend Kurt, from when we were all holed up at my house? He works for me in the same capacity I'm asking you to."

Doc huffed out a slow exhale, studying the embers of his cigarette for a moment and glancing back Eva's way. "As for how I know... I trust you. I understand if this is too much, or if it's scary. If you're mad that I kept it secret for so long, or... shit, anything you might be pissed at me for? I get it." He sat forward, expression intent, patient like he was waiting for things to fall apart. "There's another side to me, Eva, to who I am. Beyond the things you've seen? Well, I'm Eric, yes. But my other name is War."

"Ah, Kurt," Eva said with a faint chuckle. "When he and I first met, something seemed a little unusual about him. I'd wondered if he was from Interpol, though it makes sense now." She was quiet a moment then, evaluating the rest of what he was saying. She couldn't say that she was afraid or angered, as she wasn't exactly sure she understood the import of what he'd just said. "Your other name is War?" she repeated, eyebrow raised in silent request for clarification. "Is that some sort of code name under which you operate?"

Sighing quietly, he realized that he could explain and explain until he ran out of words, and it wouldn't carry the full weight of what he was trying to tell Eva. He had to show her. Doc sat forward slightly, elbows on the table to either side of his glass of wine. "It's not a code name, it's as much my real name as Eric is. It's who I am," he explained, blinking and coalescing his wings. He concentrated on reshaping the blades of force, bringing them away from the ground and out to either side to keep from hitting anything, then indulged in the little show he rarely ever used. Blue fire coursed along their lengths abruptly, roiling in slow waves as Doc kept his eyes on Eva. "This is who I am."

Eva was properly awed, really. Her eyes widened slightly and she leaned back in her chair, taking her time and giving him a long, slow perusal as she took a drag off her cigarette. On the other hand... he was the sort of man who carried great weights around with him - she'd seen it even before this, though she hadn't known their scope. And as a man living with constant responsibility, constant concerns, he seemed also to have a flair for the dramatic. She could appreciate that, of course, but he was also the sort of man who didn't seem to have much laughter in his life, and laughter was just as important as drama. So instead of launching into all the questions that were raised, she gave him a warm, fond smile instead. "Eric, caro," she said gently with only a very faint hint of amusement, "those are very handsome. But as explanations go, I'm afraid they are somewhat lacking."

Doc blinked slightly at how unfazed Eva was by the reveal, smirking to himself and tapping a curl of ash into his hand. Just like that, the wings were gone. No heat, no sound, nothing to mark that they'd ever been there at all. He shook his head with a frustrated smile, sighing to himself. "It's... not exactly easy to explain," he insisted, puffing his cigarette. Maybe he should just say it, say the word he hated even if he knew it was only a technicality for him. "In the grossest, most simplified way I can explain?" Doc began, tensing a little, "I'm a demon. Not... not a bad one, comparatively. But a demon all the same. I'm here to tend the shift between good and evil, Eva. And when it shifts too far, then the end times start. When that happens, there's still a chance to right things, which is why I'm here. This place is a focal point for what's going to touch the entire world, so if anything can be changed here? It can be changed everywhere."

"It does not have to be easy," Eva murmured encouragingly. "Just try." She listened then. The word 'demon' threw her for a loop; she had, after all, been raised a Catholic. But she saw his slight tension, realized that he knew which connotation of the word would resonate most strongly, perhaps even in his own mind. "I take it to understand that you do not mean 'demon' in the most religious sense of the term?" she ventured. "It has always seemed more important to me who one is rather than what." She sipped at her wine, thoughtful. "It seems to me that if it is your job to mind the scales and ensure balance, War might be something if a misnomer."

He hadn't expected the even acceptance and thoughtful regard. Really, Doc had anticipated more of a reaction like his own thoughts, but he knew what ninety-nine percent of demons were really like. "I mean that in the eyes of both sides, I fall in the ranks most people don't view too kindly," he explained patiently, "And it's... a different sort of balance. My job is to constantly shift things, to prevent stagnation. I do it through conflict. I ensure there's no lasting peace, because if there was? We'd have found ourselves here a lot sooner, or lost any chance there is of preventing things. I'm not trying to scare you off? But my job... it's making sure that there's always going to be something that someone out there is willing to die for. To kill for."

"Neither a utopia nor a dystopia for us, is it?" Eva commented. "I begin to see the reasoning behind your name. Interesting, that you use conflict for balance both ways." She paused, memory tickling, and her eyes narrowed slightly. "How long, exactly, have you held this... position, for lack of a better term?" she asked. He did like to allude to his age, did he not? She wondered if she'd perhaps been a few years off in her estimation. "Were you born to it?" Then, "Were you born?"

That actually got a more earnest, amused smile from Doc as he nodded. She was giving this the level of critical thought that had attracted him to her intellect some time ago, and that? Well, it was a good sign. "I was born," he answered, "1955, to be exact. I'm not a young man? But I'm no Methuselah either." Doc had to think on how long he'd been at this now, though in truth it hadn't been some great time. He just had trouble keeping it clear with how heavy and endless some of his days felt. "I've been doing this for a while now, right around a year. Before that? I'd been hunting the darkness for a good thirty. I've been told that I was born with war stamped on my soul, Eva. It made for an interesting childhood."

"I don't know that I can be swayed to the concept of predetermination so easily," Eva remarked. "For I was always raised to believe that, everything aside, we are what we make of ourselves." She put her cigarette out in the ashtray, absently swirling the bit of wine left in her glass. "What is it, exactly, that you require from me?" she asked. "Were I to be working with you, that is."

"Not predetermination so much as predisposition," Doc corrected with a smirk, since that's how he'd seen it. It wasn't Fate, but he'd always had the leanings towards fighting for a cause, ever since his youth. "As for what the job entails? Right now it's the same I ask of Kurt. You watch, you listen, you check things out if I need you too. Working on-campus, you'd have an interesting vantage point and some freedom to access files without garnering much suspicion. When a crisis hits? You'd need to be ready to work with whoever else I've got to do something about it. But mainly, it's about trying to anticipate the next problem and knowing how to resolve it when it shows itself. I can't directly intervene in this fight, not like I did when the dreams were hitting people. So I need people who are willing to trust my guidance and do things for me, or to use their own judgment and handle whatever's dropped in front of them."

"Ah, caro," Eva said with a small sigh and a smile, and she reached out to lay her hand over his. "Of course I will help you. I wish you had told me of this earlier; I can't imagine that it was very comfortable to have to conceal something that is such an integral part of yourself." Her smile grew slightly. "It seems that I was already fulfilling some of the functions you named before to a certain degree, save that now you won't have to think of creative reasons to explain your need for cooperation."

"No, now I can just be honest about things," Doc agreed, turning his palm up and slipping fingers lightly around Eva's hand. Well, most things. He didn't tell people about Star, about the world he'd watched end or the other life he'd lived; it was too much, and he knew all too well that some secrets were meant to stay that way. But Eva's willingness to try and understand this was more than welcome. "You're sure, though?" he asked again, giving her hand a light squeeze, "Because once you're in, there's no turning back. And I think the Vatican might take issue with us," he added with a slight grin.

"Then I suppose it is a good thing I don't live anywhere near it," Eva teased, giving his hand a light squeeze. "I'm sure. I trust you, and if you say this is necessary, then that's sufficient reasoning for me. Besides," she said, "my upbringing aside, I have long since felt that it doesn't as much matter who or what you worship as much as it does what you do with the life you've been given, the kind of person you become. I would hope that weighs more on our final resting place than anything else."

Laughing quietly at her first comment, Doc raised Eva's hand in his and kissed the back of her hand, nodding his agreement. "I think it does. And if I ever get that much sway? I'll make sure of it." Now came the gesture Doc always feared would unnerve whoever was receiving it, but as he had been with Frank, he was hopeful. She wasn't scared of him, what he was. Eva was focused on who he was, and that was the most crucial part of it. "One last thing and you're in," he murmured, bending his will and projecting his sigil from his palm to her own with a slow, tingling warmth.

Eva's breath caught faintly, though she didn't move or pull her hand away. A little warning would have been nice, but she trusted that he wouldn't do anything to her that she would object to - and likely nothing that couldn't be reversed if the situation called for it. She raised an eyebrow, looking from their clasped hands up to him. "And what was that?" she murmured softly, curious.

"My mark," Doc answered, gently releasing her hand to let Eva get a glimpse of the fading red symbol. "If you're ever confronted by angelic or demonic forces, they should recognize it and back the hell off. It says that you work for me, and I'm a little above the usual hierarchy. And if they don't? Well, it'll also let you call on me for help," he explained with a wink. Doc curled Eva's fingers into a loose fist with his own, smiling slightly. "Just close your hand, call for me, I'll be there. But no prank calls."

"How interesting," Eva remarked, looking at the mark before it faded. She opened her hand after he closed it to slide her fingers through his again. She chuckled. "No prank calls? Pity, here I was thinking I'd save money on my cell phone bill by using this to invite you to dinner."

Doc laughed, knowing how differently he'd feel if she actually did that but not caring, since this wasn't that situation. It was just pure relief from getting the worst of it behind him. "You could probably get away with one fake out, so make it a good one," he advised, smiling Eva's way and toying with her hand held in his own. "And y'know, I completely derailed your dinner plans."

"I'm not the type to cry wolf," Eva said, smiling. "I wouldn't dream of abusing this system." She glanced over at their forgotten plates and laughed slightly. "It was worth it, if we've further cleared things between us," she declared. "It isn't as if it cannot be reheated." She was in turn surprised that he hadn't had more to say about her recreational larceny.

He could've gone on about her past, really. Could've chided Eva for squandering her gift on something like that, instead of refining it farther. But she already had remarkable control, and she'd lived so long without knowledge of the rest of the strangeness in the world, so could he fault her there? Doc didn't think he could, not if he lived by his own advice. Yesterday only matters in shaping who you are today. No guilt for past days. He tried to believe that, at least, and lately he felt like he really did. "Reheating leftovers gets to be second nature with this sort of work," he agreed, "It's a rare thing for me to get to sit down and enjoy a fresh meal uninterrupted. I hope you can get used to it." And to me fading in and out of existence now and then when I'm called elsewhere.

"The only freshness I care about is that of my coffee," Eva said, laughing softly. "You forget - I don't cook. Or at least, not that well nor that often. So I rather suppose I have already gotten used to it." She got up, taking the two plates back to the microwave for a quick zap this time instead of the slower reheat in the oven. "I suppose flying was an ability that came with your new responsibilities?" she asked over her shoulder as she did. "Or did you have that your entire life?"

"No, I couldn't always fly," Doc answered with a smirk and a shake of his head. "I'dve been a terror to raise if I could. I figured out a... cruder way to do it as I learned about my own gifts, but it's pretty pricey. Only ever had to do it once or twice." He was treading lightly again, loathe to mention Star and the gifts she'd conveyed on him. In time, he could explain more; the agelessness, the strength, the healing and wings, but not tonight. Tonight, he'd already shown plenty. "The job has some requirements, though, and I needed to be able to meet them. So... things changed."

"I don't think I care to linger overlong on the image of a flying toddler," Eva mused. "Or, worse, a flying teenager." Perish the thought. She smiled slightly. "An upgrade, then," she said, refraining from pressing for details even though she was curious. New abilities had to come from somewhere, but she figured he would tell her when he could. If he could.

Doc laughed, nodding a little. "More like a promotion, but you've got the basics," he agreed, rising as the microwave chimed in readiness. "Or... a test. I've been told before that power should never be given to those who grab for it. So maybe it's all just to see how reckless I get with the potential. If so? Think I probably failed some test when we headed north," he said with a grin, pulling the food free and bringing it over. "Not that I mind if so, the sushi was entirely worth a reprimand."

"I think perhaps they will not mind," Eva said, grinning. "Your heart was, after all, in the right place." She took a sip of wine, looking unconcerned. "And the sushi was very good."

"I like that, y'know," Doc mused aloud as he set the plates down and moved to sit across from Eva. "You appreciate the little things. Someone I hold in pretty high regard told me that life's really in the details, and I have to agree. For all the fun we had that night? The fact that you appreciate a good meal is up there in my book. Lord knows I don't enjoy them often enough, so it's nice to know someone who doesn't balk at raw squid when I want to eat it." Really, it was just the strange compatibility that Doc had found with Eva, similarities he would've never thought existed if he'd seen the woman's life on paper. Ah, humanity, he mused as he speared a forkful of pork and fruit, Will you never cease to amaze?

"I was always raised to appreciate the small things," Eva said. "To take enjoyment wherever it can be found. Grand, sweeping events are all well and good, but those do not come along all that often, and for me it's always been the quieter moments that end up holding the most satisfaction. Food, family, good friends, and quiet passions."

Wolfing down his first bite, Doc nodded along with Eva's words, eyes twinkling as he chewed and swallowed. "For me, it was pretty opposite. Once i was out on my own? Well, things tended to get loud for my life pretty regularly. So when they weren't? Bet your ass I learned to appreciate everything in the quiet moments." Moments like these, as it happened. Trials and tribulations were coming for all of them, and they may fail despite their best intentions. But the trials weren't here yet, so why not savor the beautiful woman across from him? Her understanding smile? Or the delicious even when cold Thai food? "Here's to that," Doc said, raising his glass in a lazy toast, "Enjoyment wherever it can be found. Quiet passions."

"I had a slightly... exciting childhood myself," Eva commiserated. "Though I'm sure it was not nearly as exciting as yours." She smiled warmly, raising her glass to his and sipping. "I can't think of anyone I'd like to share them with more."