Play Pretend

Who: Eris and Max
Where: Around Town
When Afternoonish

Max was meandering his way through the city, seemingly aimless but contemplating the events of the past few days. Everything had been turned upside down and it initially caused some twinges of anxiety but he was moving past that. Arienne came home at a reasonable hour and there had been no more discussion of the Konovich boy that Arienne seemed so enamoured by. Thinking about that made his fingers itch and he’d only just gotten all the blood out from under his fingernails.

Spying a familiar form ahead of him, Max shook himself from his thoughts and wove his way through the pedestrian traffic to fall in step beside the dark haired woman. “Good afternoon, Miss Stockard. Car troubles?”

Eris had done a little shopping. Not a lot--she didn't have a whole lot of money to throw around or anything, but she did have some. And she'd gotten herself a little cleaned up. If she was going to be doing the business bullshit again, she had to look the part, so she was doing that. It meant she was well dressed, she'd had her hair trimmed and done, and generally speaking, she looked like the high class woman she'd used to be. When she abruptly picked up a companion, she glanced over to see Max. "Not so much today." she told him. "You having any? Or did the last guy you jumped for a car get away?" she asked lightly, as if she were discussing the weather.

“I figure next time I jump a car, I might plan better. Don’t want to end up walking home in the rain again.” She looked much less bedraggled than she had the other night. Then again, anything was better compared to the drowned cat look she’d been sporting. “You’re awfully dressed up. Off to a date? Meeting someone? Dressed to impressed badabing badaboom.” He hadn’t seen her this dressed up since Babylon.

“Planning is key, isn’t it.” Eris said, tone mock-serious. “And not a date. Business. I have one, you know.” she told him. Which, she didn’t know if he’d know or not. It wasn’t like he traveled in high society much, if at all. He tended to avoid those things--or more specifically, he wasn’t invited. His family knew better. “Why, if I were off to a date, would you be jealous?” she asked, arching a brow at him as she smirked. “I mean, we’ve had such special times together, what with the carjacking and all. Oh, such memories, such threats of grievous bodily harm...”

Business… someone had mentioned to him in his reports about her opening something but Max really hadn’t concerned himself with it. There hadn’t been a need to. “Well, good for you.” He pulled out his silver dollar out of his pocket and casually flipped it through his fingers and raised his own brow at her question. “Oh, so you treasure the time as much as I do. That’s good to know. I was worried that it was all completely one sided. You almost broke my heart you know, leaving me on the side of the road after I rescued you.” He shook his head sadly. Honestly, there was no jealousy, nor would there ever be any. While Max could flirt when it suited him, there was no attraction he felt towards anyone. While any other mind would find Eris stunning, Max only saw the scar around her neck, the bone structure, where all the major arteries were located. She was a subject that would eventually need to be dissected for enjoyment. Of course he didn’t say any of this, playing along with her as if he were perfectly… mostly normal.

“What can I say, I’m a heartbreaker.” Eris said drily. “So, little wounded one, what is it you’re after today?” she asked. “Or are you just bored enough to want to walk in an aimless direction with me?” Of course he could have another agenda, though she didn’t think the DiGiovanni clan would have need of her death. They were a little busy these days anyhow, so far as she knew. And she ought to--the stupid fucking back and forth war with the mobs was what had ultimately put the final nail in the coffin of her relationship with Brett.

Little wounded one? That was an odd name. Max wasn’t one who was used to many teasing nicknames and he filed it away for examination later. “No walking is aimless. Every direction takes you somewhere, whether you realized you needed to get there or not. So perhaps my destination is in the same direction. Or we’re both meant to end up in the same place. Or maybe you’re not meant to end up there at all. Tricky, isn’t it? Or maybe I just enjoy your company so much that I couldn’t resist joining you.”

“Here I always thought that having an aim was based on the person, not the location.” Eris said. “You often this philosophical?” she asked, glancing at him sideways as they kept walking. She didn’t make a move to try and get rid of him, though. She still wasn’t afraid of him. “And you know, a man of your unique talents shouldn’t say things like ‘maybe you’re not meant to end up there at all’. Makes a girl wonder.” she added. “But I’m sure it’s because you’re so enamored with my company that you’re enduring the possibility of another heartbreak.”

“Depends on the day. But why shouldn’t I say that? Just because you’re not meant to be someplace doesn’t mean you don’t end up there anyway,” Max said with a shrug and flipped the coin a few times before slipping it into the pocket of his vest. Eris Stockard was not one who was intimidated or cowered in fear and while Max enjoyed the bantering, there was a part of him that disliked the easy way she acted around him. She knew what he did to an extent, but she was unafraid. He wanted to make her afraid. “You know, I find it odd that a business owner would suddenly want to just up and run away.”

“Like I said, makes a girl wonder. Especially with your very special skill set, and predisposition towards using said skills.” she said, not going to say anything outright on a public goddamn street. But part of her old life had been all kinds of talking around things, so it came naturally to her. “As for the leaving town part, I had been under the impression that things were taken care of. I was mistaken on that, and therefore now have to change plans.” Which was true, she didn’t see a reason to lie about it, really.

Ah. Now he understood. “If you’re concerned about that, I’m sure you’ll be glad to know that your path to your destination will be pleasant and trouble free.” Max looked down at his coin as he balanced it on his index finger. “Perhaps a new sense of purpose will ease your troubles with the city. Work does that. Or it’s supposed to do that. It really comes down to the person but you seem like the type that benefits from a good work ethic. Ordering people around seems like your thing.”

Eris looked over at him and smirked. “I didn’t say I was concerned. Just that it could make someone curious.” she told him, not wanting him to take even that little shred of an idea that she was afraid. “But good to know, either way.” At his comment about ordering people around, she laughed. “Can’t help what you’re good at.” she told him. “I’m sure you know a little something about that.”

He shrugged and smirked back at her. “Why do I get the impression that you’re trying to get something out of me?” he asked her. The comments of ‘I’m sure you know a little something about that’ and the allusions to what he did that she peppered through. “The only thing I can get from that is that you’re concerned about something and I’m trying to alleviate any concern you may have.”

“I think you want me to be concerned.” Eris told him, smirking to herself. “But I’m not. So rest assured, sweetheart, there’s nothing to alleviate. If you’re going to be wandering about pretending to be a perfect gentleman, that’s perfectly alright with me.” She paused for a long moment. “However, I have to admit, our conversations would probably be a lot more interesting if there were less games played.” Not that she expected him to drop the pretense. It was integral to who he needed to present himself to be. She understood that. She just also liked pushing buttons, so she was refusing to play along properly. That and there was still an unhealthy dose of not giving a fuck going on in her life.

“But I am the perfect gentleman,” Max said with a frown and he looked mildly offended at that. “Unless you want me to offer my arm then, well no. You threatened to stab me the last time we talked and I’m not sure I’d get the arm back.” Eris clearly didn’t care about anything any more and it was interesting. There was a drive there, but it was let loose, untamed and wild and unpredictable. Max was curious about it.

“You keep tellin yourself that sweetheart, but you can stop trying to convince me.” Eris told him. Then she looked at him out of the corner of her eye as they walked. “Shouldn’t you be busy, by the way?” she asked. “Nasty business, what with everything going on with the family and all. And you know, I did hear that recently someone took down another little family in this town. So apparently, it can happen. Who knew? Thought you lot always considered yourselves invincible.”

Max still frowned but could recognize Eris needling him so he decided not to dignify the first statement with a reply. The second comment had him returning her side eye and he shrugged. "It's a nice day so I thought a walk in the fresh air might do some good. It's a trying time right now. We all need to keep level heads so we don't do anything rash. And as for the O'Malley's?" He resumed his toying with his coin as his fingers fidgeted. "Well, they're Irish. Full of hot tempers and no forsight. Clearly they sparked no loyalty. But then, I heard they did terrible things so I guess they had it coming, didn't they. Good work." There were stories about the downfall of the O'Malley clan and Eris' name was woven in with it. Which could be another reason why she was trying to leave the city, in case something did happen, but Max doubted that. If there was going to be retribution, something would've been tried. At least, if he had been in charge of those things.

Well, at least he’d learned to drop the first tactic, the useless ‘no really, i’m fine!’ schtick he seemed to want to say over and over like a broken record. So that was nice. “Thank you.” she said. “I was rather proud of it.” And she was. Granted, she’d done it for different reasons than anyone knew, but that wasn’t the point. The point was they’d taken down the wrong bitch in this town, and they got slaughtered for it. “Though you shouldn’t start rolling on the ‘they deserved it’ train. If you’re going that route, sweetie, there isn’t a soul in this city who would come up clean.” Well, except for one she knew. But even then, from other points of view, he’d deserve it too. He’d done evils in the name of keeping himself alive. She knew that. So, yeah. Maybe her first statement was correct. No one in this place was pristine.

His thoughts drifted to Arienne's plots and plans for how the city would be once she made things the way she wanted. Would Eris' statement hold true then? With everything tightly controlled under their watchful eyes? Maybe. People still did terrible things when they weren't ordered to do so. Max wondered if she was aware that there were still two O'Malley's that he knew of still wandering the city and if she wouldn't want to exact her revenge on them as well just to have a nice set... and there she went calling him sweetie again. What was it with her and pet names? "Well that's where you prioritize. There's those who really really really deserve it and those that are good with having to look over their shoulder for an undetermined amount of time." Max enjoyed both ends of the spectrum and he couldn't help but smile lightly at the thought.

“And where do your priorities fall?” she asked. “Do you make judgments on your own for people, or are you handed sets of contingencies?” She knew a bit about how the mobs worked. She just didn’t know everything. Bits and pieces she could put together on her own, sometimes she had clients that talked, people talked in society anyways, but this was a rare conversation. And her tone was light, nothing hidden beneath it. She was curious, that was all. It wasn’t for some ulterior motive.

A surge of surprised delight filled Max at her question. Eris Stockard, who some would say knew everything about the city, didn't know what he was. Who he was. Just that he killed people for the mob and was a bit out of the ordinary. He was the identifier of threats, the one with his ear to the ground as he listened to the whispers and the chatter of treason and fear and either took care of the problem himself or had someone else do it. But of course when it came to big things, that's when he didn't have the final say. It had been like that for as long as he could remember and he wondered if that's how it would be with Arienne. For now he was fine with the orders, but once they were set up? He realized that he hadn't answered her question and inclined his head in apology. "I suppose things fall under contingencies," he said carefully, like he was unsure if he should be telling her. "I have my orders, I carry them out. It's all already set up for me." And a nice setup it was. For now anyway.

“So you’re a pet.” Eris said, though it wasn’t so much intended to be cutting as it was a blunt assessment. “You’re a dog on a chain, and sent out to go mangle a stick now and then?” Because she was aware that was what he did, he killed people. She heard he was ‘creative’. “How’s that sit with you?”

"Well, if you want to put it that way." It bothered him when she said it like that. Sure, things weren't sunny and golden and he knew that they watched him, what with his penchant for murdering random people when he was bored, but he was more than that. Not as much as he liked but his set up wasn't as bad as it could be. He was allowed into meetings. Lucas wasn't. Max was important and he'd become even more important in the future. "I'm content. I know my place in the world and what's expected of me and that's fine." The disowned child kept hidden in the dark a voice whispered in his mind. Unwanted.

“I’m putting it the way I see it.” Eris told him. “Which is they’ve got themselves a nice junkyard dog. Obedient, you go take care of anyone sniffing around your ‘property’, and there you have it. How short is that leash, dear?” she asked, though it sounded mostly rhetorical. “I know I wouldn’t be fine. Never was one of those little girls who followed the rules.”

"Well, we're all different people," Max pointed out. Denying your existence as their own child, only good to do things no one else wants to do. The voice was insistent but Max worked on not letting it bother him and the internal conflict didn't show on his face. "I like structure. If I wasn't doing this, I'd probably be off fighting." Military school had been mentioned once as a way to cure him but no DiGiovanni son, disowned or not, would become a grunt. Not that the military would take him anyway.

“There’s something to be said for fighting.” Eris told him, though it was almost said conspiratorially, like she was letting him in on a secret. “And, I suppose, something said for structure. So long as you’re a happy puppy, I suppose that’s all that matters.” She smirked, and looked at him over the tops of her sunglasses, batting her eyelashes.

Max wasn't exactly amused by her coquettish tease and he didn't return her smirk this time and instead looked at her with patient calm. "I'm not an animal," he said and while his tone wasn't firm, there was a finality to it. He didn't think Eris would pay attention to it and he really wasn't expecting her to. "And the world would be chaos if there wasn't any structure. No checks or balances. There doesn't always have to be fighting either." With him, there rarely was. The little resistance his victims gave could hardly be constituted as a fight.

“Whatever you say.” She said to his first statement, but moved on past it. “And yes, actually, there does always have to be fighting. There always has to be strife in the world, in one form or another. Countries struggling against one another, like the war going on. Power struggles like your family has with it’s counterpart. People competing against each other for jobs, for companions...life isn’t life without a fight. If it is, it’s complacency. It’s living death. It’s nothing, it’s nowhere. Structure gets put in place just so people know the rules.”

"Thought a lot about it, have you?" Soon there would be no more power struggles. There would be order and rules like a chess board. Like Arienne's old dollhouse. Everything would have it's place and he'd be the one making sure they stayed in line, watching them all. He hoped he wouldn't get bored. For now though there was and there was plenty to do. He supposed it depended on your definition of fighting. There were those who stared at him defiantly until the light went out in their eyes and it was more fun when they struggled. “I see what you mean though.” Things would be boring if everyone just cooperated with him.

Nodding, Eris owned up to that. “Yes. I suppose it could be considered a personal philosophy.” she said. And for just a second, she thought about the fact that Brett liked it when she struggled against him just that little bit. But that was something best left in the back of her mind. But she counted it good that at least she remembered it at all. “And glad you can see it. There’s too many people in the world who want everything to be sunshine and goddamn light all the time.”

"Oh, I think we all enjoy a little sunshine every now and then, don't you think?" It was his turn to tease her as he nodded his head up to the clear sky where the sun was shining brightly.

“Now and then, I suppose.” Eris said, smirking faintly. She didn’t really seem like she had any sunshine lately. Just some odd, endless string of people she was giving advice to, or messes she needed to clear up. But she supposed that was just her lot in life, and she needed to accept that, regardless of the fact that she hadn’t seen it coming, nor did she especially want it. It was all strife for her lately. Just a weird brand of it.