Log; Ongoing.

[captainshort.livejournal.com]

When; February 16, Holly's reentry.
Rating; PG.
Characters; Holly Short[captainshort] & Jas Hook [ironhook].
Summary; Following Holly's return to the City, Hook notes that explanations are in order, and the elf simply wishes to know what she's missed.

Log;

It was at once difficult and wonderful to be back. Although returning to Ireland - however abruptly - was a thrill in itself, somehow, there was something relieving about coming back to the City. The fairy chuckled to herself as she sped over the Forest, wings fluttering soundlessly as she blended with the sky and trees through her magic. Who would have thought she wanted to come back? Unfinished business, that sort of thing? Who knows. And again, who would have thought it? That the first person she'd head to, aside from Jr., was Hook!

He would be the first familiar face, though... Holly paused in the air, hovering invisibly as she glanced over the Forest and ocean. Gene was gone. She knew that now. He was missing, then the City returned him home; she could tell. It was cruel, that the City should do that when she had left too, but at the same time, Artemis was returned to her. No, she thought, shaking her head. That's not right either. He deserved to stay in Ireland.

But ignore that now. You've got some explaining to do. Taking a deep breath, Holly skimmed over the water, fingertips grazing the surface, before sweeping up along the Jolly Roger's hull and touching down lightly to her decks. The fairy switched off her shield, and swept her two-toned eyes around the area. Where was he now?

Comments

[ironhook.livejournal.com]

He sensed her approach before she even reached the Jolly Roger (for some reason he was hyper-aware as of late to all things magical, more so than usual), and with a gentle word he excused himself from the kitchen where Smee, Peter and little Tinkerbell had taken up residence. Left hand lifting, he pulled it through the thick curls of his hair, ducking out of the door and climbing to the main deck wearily. It was difficult, seeing him like that, lack-luster and dulled eyes and off-tone skin. It was far better today than it had been yesterday, and Jas knew the boy would be okay-- but it didn't ease his discomfort at all. That someone else had taken it upon themself to harm the boy. As if they had any right what-so-ever-- only he was allowed, and those he gave express permission to.

Which, in this City, was absolutely nobody.

But then, this wasn't Neverland anymore. It was no longer their make-believe island of freedom, and Hook was remembering why he had hated the 'real world' so much.

Appearances had to be kept up, however, and as he stepped out into the sunlight, forget-me-nots lifted, expression idly curious as they fell on the petite figure of one Holly Short. An eyebrow canted slightly. Even from this distance, he could tell something was entirely different about her.

"Miss Short," He greeted with the slightest of tips to his head, silently thanking her for her discretion. He had no doubt Smee or Peter or Tinkerbell might come up, but the last thing he wanted was for the boy to start up again. Pan was healing, but Jas was no fool-- he knew the youth was still fragile.

[captainshort.livejournal.com]

Holly turned her head at the voice, which was both strikingly familiar and still sounding as if the pirate had appeared after a century. It certainly felt that way, and for a split second, the elf allowed a quiet moment to survey her sometimes-foe to clarify he was truly there. Holly knew he was exhausted, could catch the slight slump to his shoulders, though he hid it well. She chose not to comment on it. Then the feeling passed, and she simply straightened in his presence, brushing a hand over tangled auburn locks, eyes of hazel and sapphire rising to meet his.

"Captain Hook," she finally said, with an unusually polite inclination of the head. "It's been a while." She knew she was still covered in volcanic ash, uniform torn in places, having been pulled back to the City only moments after dropping Artemis off at the beach. But who cared for that?

[ironhook.livejournal.com]

"A week, for me at least," And then he raised an eyebrow to her overall appearance. Disheveled, calm... and those eyes.

"Though, from the sounds of it, longer for you," Not only just from appearances and the way shes alluded to a greater length of time. She just felt older. Her eyes, despite their two-toned colour, held that hint of wisdom they had not had before. He couldn't help but wonder what exactly had come to pass in her absence. The pirate cocked his head, curious.

[captainshort.livejournal.com]

"So I've been told," came the easy reply as the fairy crossed her arms loosely and tilted her head in similar fashion. She reminded herself that time moved differently in the City to her world, but it was unsettling to know that although it felt like three days, a lot more than 72 hours has passed when she was in Hybras.

Gods, but the time tunnel tangled that up. It had switched her eye for one of Artemis' and vice versa, but it had also thrown her three years into the future. She was three years older, but not physically - the tunnel didn't alter that. Not to mention what had happened on the volcano... She suppressed a shudder; it didn't happen, and yet she still remembered it all.

"But enough of that," she continued, flashing a brief smile at the human. "Let's ignore how much we loathe each other, for the moment, and just get on with it. What did you want to know?"

[ironhook.livejournal.com]

Hook was sans coat this afternoon, wearing only a black poet shirt that hung almost eloquently off his shoulders, and the fabric shifted as he crossed his arms. The arrangement was fine by him, quite frankly. He had not slept since bring Pan to the Jolly Roger, and while normally no sleep put him into a bad mood-- all he felt was aged and weary.

"Where have you been?" He asked directly, and the fact that he did not bother to beat around the bush was a hint to exactly how off-kilter he was at the moment. Forget-me-nots were sharp, though, and while he refrained from asking the multitude of questions that were obviously still on the tip of his tongue-- he waited for the answer to that one first.

[captainshort.livejournal.com]

Admittedly, the elf was taken aback by the swift reply, unused to such a direct answer from Hook. She knew that, in most tangles she's had with the human, banter was almost always involved; then there would be the period where she would be incensed enough to try and throw a punch at him, and they would be forced back to where they started. It was such a common occurance that she sometimes thought of it as tradition, but that was clearly not the case this afternoon.

Holly watched Hook carefully; there was obviously something wrong, then. She knew better than to ask him in turn, knowing that he wouldn't accept sympathy or concern from a fairy who was a main source of amusement or irritation, and so she held back on the urge for the moment. And so, she chose to play to his guidelines; but that didn't mean she would not ask eventually. She did not know why, exactly, but seeing the man troubled bothered her as well.

"Where have I been?" she repeated thoughtfully. "I returned home, Hook. I was there for three days" - she paused uncertainly - "or, well, perhaps years..." This part still puzzled her, and the confusion was obvious in her tone as she answered.

[ironhook.livejournal.com]

"You don't sound very certain," Jas responded, eyeing her for a long moment. "As hard as it is to keep track of time-- I'm sure even a fairy such as yourself could tell the difference between a few days and a few years."

His tone was clipped, but it didn't hold quite as much venom as it normally did. Mostly, he was just tired of being confused. The recent events had knocked his sense of balance off so hard that he was still just regaining his footing. And he knew he wouldn't be able to find it until Pan was healed, until some sort of normalcy was returned.

Although, he wasn't quite sure what 'normal' was anymore. His expression tightened a little, brows furrowing, a hint of discomfort dancing in the corners of his eyes.

[captainshort.livejournal.com]

"Unfortunately," she replied, "these were circumstances that more or less rendered time absolutely useless." Holly tried to keep the conversation civil, keeping the usual cool from her tone at bay as she spoke to Hook; after all, perhaps she could gain some sort of information on what else she had missed in her absence. She raised an eyebrow at the subtle change to his expression, wondering exactly how much time she had left before he possibly exploded.

"So really," she continued evenly, "it's difficult to gauge exactly how much time had passed, or what reality came to be." Absently, she added, "I hope it's the one where I'm living, though. Magic is a tricky thing to deal with."