2nd judgement ~ [Accidental Video | Backdated to day 110]

[foodshortage]

[The bracelet had been a very convenient and pleasing thing to throw to the floor. It was a creation of this world, this world reeking of magic and Uther no longer wanted anything to do with it. In landing, it starts recording on its own and shows Uther's profile as he swipes out an arm and knocks over the lamp on the night table by his bed (it's probably a good thing that it's not on).

And then, he starts pacing, with long, loud steps and the Pendragon red cloak billowing with every turn. The light may be dim in the room, but the anger in his expression is quite easy to make out - all it hides is the troubled hint to it, as that's far less obvious.

Finally, he kicks the bracelet further away, in under the bed and before the recording cuts off, he leans on the night table with his jaw and shoulders tense and he may not be young, but he certainly looks even older.]

((OOC: This is backdated to shortly after this log where a nasty falling out between him and Arthur is meant to take place. So Uther is very moody and feeling like he's lost all his footing with no idea what to do.

Thus; approach at your own risk.))

Comments

Audio

[samantha_grey]

The reason I threw my bracelet in the trash a week ago and ended up going gray for a bit. I'm betting you had your own reasons if you're sounding like that right now.

So, you got that figured out I take it?

Audio

[foodshortage]

[He did indeed have his own reasons, but he's certainly not going to go into them.]

The bracelet? People have warned me, yes.

Audio

[samantha_grey]

[And this is about as far as she's going to pry directly into them. She can be nosy, but only to an extent. Nosy gets your nose cut off if you're not careful. However...]

If you don't mind me asking, I saw the stone's color. You're in Hel's little house of unspeakable horrors too, aren't you? I don't think we've met yet, have we?

Audio

[foodshortage]

We have not. I do not currently reside there.

[And he hasn't really left the house much, even if it makes him restless to stay put like this. So that might have something to do with it.]

Audio

[samantha_grey]

You, sir, are debatably one of the smartest people in that freaking house then. I'm saving up to move the hell out of it myself. The place is a walking freak show on a bad day, and I'd rather not add to the exhibit too much.

Name's Samantha.

Audio

[foodshortage]

I cannot say I stayed long enough to tell much. Why do you say that?

I'm Uther Pendragon. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance.

[Sort of. Actually not all that bad, considering the circumstances. Damn bracelet.]

Audio

[samantha_grey]

Demons running around the joint, some freak with a leather face mask or some other crap like that and a psycho killer's attitude, my suitemate's got all the personality of a corpse and I'm not sure he's human either. The place's a damned zoo for the macabre.

That, and the idea that some of these things have the ability to turn me into a puppet and might actually abuse that sick power Hel gave me, the bitch, bothers me to no end.

Audio

[foodshortage]

[The unrefined language of many in this world is something Uther is still trying to adjust to. Not that it's one of the more difficult things to deal with.]

Hm. It would be foolish on them to turn on their own.

Audio

[samantha_grey]

[And, she tends to be on the unrefined side. Not uneducated, but definitely prone to a guttural sort of speech at times.]

The world's full of fools, Uther, and I've long ago stopped trusting people to be sensible about things.

Audio

[foodshortage]

[Out of habit, he has half a mind to right her on using his first name like that, seeing as he is the King. Only for a moment, though, because he's hardly forgotten he's not much of a king here. More like one forced down from his throne.

It's an uncomfortable thought and he almost squirms.]

Ah. So it is.

Audio

[samantha_grey]

[She's not particularly good about honorifics, really.]

So far no trouble, but either way you're smart to stay the heck away from the house. It's not exactly what I'd consider to be prime real-estate. The neighbors really drop the property values.

Well, since we seem to be on the line, planned or unplanned, you got any random questions? I'm feeling talkative.

[It wasn't that she was. It was actually more that she had trouble knowing how to close out a conversation sometimes, particularly an awkward one that probably shouldn't have begun in the first place.]

Audio

[foodshortage]

[It's the most insane idea that has probably ever entered his mind, he thinks. Or at least close to it, maybe. And Mary (god knows why he listens to Mary, no matter how close she is to Arthur) had said it's a bad idea to be alone in this place, Samantha seems like a nice person and he thinks that perhaps they could get along.

And somehow, he thinks it's not insane enough to ignore. Somehow, he thinks why the hell not. He wonders if he might not be going mad, if he hasn't already.

So instead of a question, he says:]

I have a spare room.

I doubt my son's going to be returning anytime soon, if ever.

Audio

[samantha_grey]

[No... no no no no! Bad idea, horrible idea. What is this fool thinking? Samantha was struggling with whether or not to be enraged at the audacity of asking something that forward and the foolishness of it. That was an extremely bad idea. She almost went video right then and there, but thought better at the last second.

Her voice, however, was filled with obvious trepidation as she spoke.]

Without needing to [or wanting to] go into any further detail, that might be the worst idea you've had since ending up here, Uther. You don't want me as a housemate. When I get a place, I'm going to find somewhere small and cheap, where nobody else has to live with me.

It's... it's better this way.

Audio

[foodshortage]

[...

O...kay then. But that's probably just as well, isn't it? Honestly, what was he thinking, this is getting absurd. He's going mad. It's Asgard, all Asgard, it's not good for him.

But wait.]

Why do you say that?

Audio

[samantha_grey]

...

I'm not safe either. Can we leave it at that, mister?

Audio

[foodshortage]

[Oh.

Someone to be wary of, then? That's a shame. He has a feeling they could get along.]

If you're certain.

Audio

[samantha_grey]

Very. I don't really mind talking, but I wouldn't be comfortable living in the same house as someone like that. Hel house makes me nervous enough as is.

Audio

[foodshortage]

Very well.

[A pause. Well, if she wants to talk...]

Do you have any family?

Audio

[samantha_grey]

... No one living that I would call family, no. My mother is dead, and has been for about a year, and I have no siblings.

[Her father did not deserve that title, however technically accurate it might have been.]

Audio

[foodshortage]

[Ah.]

I'm sorry.

Audio

[samantha_grey]

You weren't the one who killed her, so don't worry about it. I'm used to it by now. There's advantages to being alone.

Audio

[foodshortage]

[A year is a very short time, though, and at the same time horribly long, when you've lost someone really important. Not even close enough to really heal, and that's why the days drag on.

People always say children grow up so fast. The first years of Arthur's life were the longest ones he's ever experienced.]

Such as?

Audio

[samantha_grey]

Easier to run. Easier to hide. Nobody depends on you, and you're only responsible for your own needs, and nobody else's. It makes a lot of things in life simpler.

Audio

[foodshortage]

...

You really are dangerous.

[Easier to run and hide. A big part of him thinks it's probably pretty important to somehow figure out just why she's dangerous.]

Audio

[samantha_grey]

Well... yes. Anyone is dangerous if enough pressure's put on them, but yes I am dangerous. I prefer it if people stay away from me, most days. I kind of fit right in with the little house of horrors, whether I like it or not. But, most of it's that there's just been some ... unpleasantness I've been avoiding the last year.

[Way to understate that situation, Sam.]