The New Headquarters of Leverage, Inc, (The Apartment Above Lukes), Wednesday Evening

[geniuswithasmartphone]

Eliot was looking pretty terrible. Despite Hardison's insistence that he wasn't going to feed Eliot again after the never-to-be-discussed Pork Rind Incident (c'mon man! There were just some things you didn't do to pork rinds! Or your friends! Even friends that tased you and tied you to a chair!), that insistence didn't mean much when your best friend looked like he was gonna keel over at any minute.

"Yo," he said, standing a safe distance back. "Eliot. You feelin' okay, man? You thirsty? I ain't gonna feed you--" such lies. If Eliot said he was hungry, Hardison was a soft enough touch that he'd try to feed him anyway. "--but I can get you something you drink?"

But that drink would possibly be orange soda, because soft touch or not, Hardison was also spiteful.

"You know, dude, this could all be over if you just told us what the heck was going on."

It was possible that Hardison and Parker didn't really have an endgame here, beyond keeping him tied up for...indefinitely?

[Open!]

Comments

[vdistinctive]

The part of Eliot that understood that, that agreed with it, was a little closer to the surface now than it had been a couple days ago. Unfortunately it didn't help how close to the surface you were, if you were still drowning.

Eliot looked at Hardison for a long moment, refusing to close his eyes, then swallowed. "Yeah," he said, sneering. "I'd totally wan'you t'tie me to a chair."

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"Yeah," Hardison said seriously. "I know you would."

He whistled again and Val came scampering into the living room, jumping up on the couch and padding over to his lap. "See? Even Megabyte's knows it's for the best."

That, or she smelled the bag of jerky Hardison had in his pocket. One of those.

[vdistinctive]

Oh sure, Hardison. Piss off the guy tied to a chair who tried to take you out with a pork rind.

"Her name," Eliot hissed. "Is Val."

They'd corrupted the only damn thing he had left that didn't scare the shit out of him he still trusted. If he were even slightly less thoroughly tied down, he'd be at Hardison's throat.

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"When you're not crazy anymore and can tell us what the heck is going on, her name is Val," Hardison said. "Until then, I'mma call her Megabyte. Maybe even feed her table scraps."

He looked Eliot right in the eyes. "If you won't come back for us, come back for her."

[vdistinctive]

Eliot rattled the chair. "I haven' gone anywhere!" They didn't even seem to know about the necklace. What did they want from him?!

[geniuswithasmartphone]

THEIR ELIOT BACK, GOD DAMMIT!

"Yes, you have!" Hardison replied with a roar that startled Megabyte. She went running for cover--but not for the safety of Eliot. "No, you might not be an alien or a robot or an evil clone from another dimension--" please don't let Parker have heard that "--but you ain't. Our! Eliot! You changed and we don't know why, but we're not gonna rest until we know how to get the old you back!"

[vdistinctive]

"THIS IS THE OLD ME!" Eliot shouted, then had to slump forward, gasping for breath. He was shaking now, trembling hard against the ropes and cords that held him against the chair. He was spent, had used what seemed like the last of his energy in one bellow. ". . . I ain't . . . th'good guy. Never been. . . ."

He was just . . . so fucking tired.

"Lemme 'lone."

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"Aww, hell naw," Hardison snapped, standing up and striding over to Eliot's chair, practically getting into his face. "Don't even try to feed me that line of bullshit. I stopped believing it five years ago. You were a bad guy, yeah. And I know toy did some stuff that you don't think you can ever come back from. But were. Did. So stop hiding behind that wall of crap because it ain't true for you anymore!"

[vdistinctive]

Eliot flinched again, unable to look Hardison in the eye (physically and emotionally). He'd never been this tired. Not in Croatia. Not in Myanmar. Not in that damn park in DC when he'd been so sure his team was going to leave him behind (where they should've left him the hell behind).

He wanted Hardison to be right. But mostly he wanted to sleep.

"Please," he said, voice soft and flat. "'M tired."

[geniuswithasmartphone]

"Me too, old son," Hardison said, grabbing a blanket from off the couch and draping it over Eliot's shoulder. "Me too."

He went and found Megabyte and after soothing her, deposited the little puppy on Eliot's lap. "Keep 'im company, girl."

And then as he left the room to go to bed he added, "Remember what I said, Eliot. You're better'n this."