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ax_mainThe day after Nott's Rescue, post Traumatic Breakfast, Caleb takes Nott to meet his roommates. It's a little awkward, but there's tequila. For one of them.
Caleb wasn’t sure he was ready to go back to his room after last night, but he and Nott had been given the all-clear to leave the infirmary, so he didn’t have much choice. What he had had a choice about, however, had been whether or not to eat breakfast, and he was beginning to regret the decision he’d made as the over easy eggs were now threatening to become scrambled.
God, why couldn’t Caleb just crawl into a hole and never come out? It was going to be hard seeing Cal and Clint again after everything he’d told them, and he didn’t know how he was going to look them in the eye. He hadn’t wanted to tell them, and now… He felt naked. They knew what he was now—what he’d done—and when they looked at him they’d think murderer.
“We’re in the girls wing right now,” Caleb explained to Nott as they went up the stairs. He ignored the looks his hamburger face was getting them. “They are renovating the boys wing.”
Nott wasn't sure she was ready for any of this. It had already been a lot to take in just a few days, and not just being taken by Trent either. It was hard knowing what to think and feel about this place she never would've guessed existed, and to imagine how she could possibly belong here. It was hard with Caleb, too, someone that had been long lost and presumed dead, just like- [No. Don't. Nevermind.] But then everything he'd told her about who Trent was, and the awful, despicable things he'd brainwashed Caleb to do... Her heart had been crushed to hear his story, to hear for the first time how he'd come to wear all of that pain of his, to understand how a cruel man had broken such a sweet boy's mind into the thing she'd seen a passing shade of when they'd met in the Facility.
And now, here they were, going to meet his school friends, who only remembered her as the creepy, dead-looking little gremlin thing that had almost gotten their buddy killed or captured.
This wouldn't be awkward at all.
Nott trailed to a gradual stop from where she'd been trotting along at Caleb's side, trying to slump a little deeper into the overhang of the child-sized gray hoodie and the jeans that the Professor had got for her from somewhere. "Where are the girls staying?”
“The same wing.” Caleb made a face. “It’s very crowded. I—” He stopped, confused, as he realized Nott was no longer beside him, and turned to face her. She looked upset. Had someone—He glanced around to see if he’d missed a student saying something to Nott, or giving her a look, but they were alone in the hallway. “What’s wrong?”
"Since we've been sharing so many secrets lately... I should probably tell you..." She wasn't sure how to say it or where to start exactly. Nott peered up at Caleb with a guilty expression. "I tried to break into the cabinets where they keep the isopropyl alcohol in the infirmary last night while you were away," she confessed, rushing the words out before she decided against saying anything. "They were locked and I didn't have anything good to jimmy the lock with, and then that huge blue furry guy came sniffing around, so I didn't have a chance to take anything. But I would have. Even though I know that if I'd been caught, they probably would've kicked us both out or something.”
“Oh. Okay,” Caleb said, processing that. He had questions, mainly why was Nott trying to steal rubbing alcohol and what made her decide to tell him about it now, but that would have to wait.
Caleb crouched down in front of Nott. “Well... I think the worst you would get is detention if you stole anything, but if they did kick you out, we’d find somewhere else to go. We’d be okay. But maybe try not to steal from here, though? I can help you if you want. If you get the urge, and think you can’t resist on your own, you can come get me. And then you could make sure I’m not reckless with how much gold I make. We can sort of keep each other in check.”
He was so sweet sometimes, and it meant so much that Caleb would even think to leave with her when he had it so good here - but that was really not where she was going with that. "That's great, I mean, if it would just be detention," she agreed. "And I do, y'know, seriously get the itch to steal stuff. So, yeah, that might be a thing to look forward to. But it's not that."
She took a deep breath, and she didn't quite look Caleb in the eyes. This was hard, too. "You wouldn't really know this, because we were only together in the Facility. But when I'm nervous or anxious or paranoid or scared or guilty or sad or - or just any kind of upset, or when I want to make sure I won't get upset... I have a few drinks to sort of-" She smoothed her hands out over the air in front of her. "To even myself out. And meeting your friends, and being in this new place, and everything that's happened..." She swallowed, and her voice was very tight. "But I haven't had anything to drink, because I can’t."
“Oh.” That answered those questions Caleb had been saving for later. He took a moment to process that too, then nodded some. “Okay. Well, we will look into that too, okay? I don’t have anything now, but we’ll find something. Will you be okay for now?”
"I know. I know. I mean, I didn't think you'd have anything on you." Nott shifted uncomfortably, stuffing her hands back into the pockets of her hoodie. More than anything, she didn't want to embarrass him, or to disappoint him, and that would be a lot easier if she had some liquid courage to mellow things. If his friends hated her... "We can go. I'll be okay. But maybe later…?"
A worried frown pinched the corners of Caleb’s mouth. He knew what anxiety looked like and Nott was crawling with it. Offering her a pinky, he said, “I promise. But we can skip it if you want. You could meet them later.” He didn’t want to drag her into something she didn’t want to do.
"...Thanks. But I think it just gets more awkward the longer I put it off. Like, 'ohhhh, how come she doesn't want to meet us, what's her problem?'" Nott looked back at Caleb, and folded her much smaller green pinky around his. She shook, and nodded, determined even if she was sort of scared. Caleb needed this to happen sometime, no matter how it went. It was a little easier if she thought of it that way. "Come on, then. I'm sure they're great.”
“They’ll love you,” Caleb reassured Nott, giving her a smile. How could they not? They were great, and she was great. It may as well be simple math. He gave her head a fond rub, then stood and went over to the door to his, Clint’s and Cal’s temporary room. Opening it, he gestured for Nott to head on inside as he called out, “It’s me. I’ve brought Nott with me.”
Cal had been in the middle of playing tug of war with Lucky, with Abs barking excitedly at them. So what if he'd been spending more time shifted than not; he had a lot on his mind, and it was easier to let his subconscious get started on processing everything that way. He opened his jaws to let go of the old cloth they'd been fighting over, looking over at Caleb and Nott. She looked nervous as fuck, and he couldn't blame her. He shifted back into himself and pushed up to his feet, going from a grey wolf dog to a blond boy in jeans and a long-sleeved t-shirt within a couple of seconds. "Hey," he greeted her with his usual half smile. Friendly, just shy of charming. "I'm Cal."
There was a thump in the nearby closet, then a thud, then another boy backed out, dressed in jeans, a flannel shirt, and half his laundry on his head. “Who’s Cal?” Clint asked, pushing the boxers out of his eyes.
"He is? I guess?" That was a joke, right? The small girl in her gray hoodie peered around Caleb's legs at them all, tensing slightly when she saw the boisterous dogs. That turned into people?! One person, at least. "Is the other dog your purple friend?”
Caleb felt Nott’s small fingers tighten on the leg of his jeans, and realized he probably should have asked that Clint and Cal have someone watch Lucky and Abs. Two people and two puppies was a lot all at once. “The other dogs are dogs. Lucky, and Abs.” He pointed out which was which. “You’ll meet Mollymauk later.”
Cal grabbed whatever item of clothing he could off of Clint and threw it back in the direction of his closet. "They're real friendly, don't worry.”
"Totally friendly," Clint agreed, as Cal pulled the laundry away and he was able to finally get a look at the girl peeking around Caleb's legs. "They're like us - refugees. Which, you know, we all are.”
"That's good. If they're friendly." After you'd been hunted with dogs as big as you were more than once in your life, you got leery of them. Just in case.
Nott liked having her hood, but her ears were big, and she hadn't had a chance to cut slits for them or anything, so it wasn't the most comfortable and she couldn't see everything around her at once. Her curiosity got the better of her. She reached up and pulled the hood back off of her head, coming out from around Caleb's legs so she wasn't - y'know - very obviously hiding back there. "Hello, nice doggies. Hello, Cal and Clint. Are you all friends because you practically have the same name? Is that it?”
"Us C-boys have gotta stick together?" Cal offered, but he was a little distracted, his gaze on Abs, to make sure she behaved. As if feeling the weight of his gaze, she angled a look up at him, and he nodded. "Go on, girl. Be nice."
She immediately walked forward, sniffing at the tiny green girl.
Clint, in the meantime, crouched down to hold on to Lucky's collar, not wanting to overwhelm her more than she already was. "I guess you could call me Hawkeye if you wanted too, but most people just stick with Clint. Or, 'hey you!'"
Oh, this dog looked adorable and friendly. But that's exactly how a smart, mean dog would sucker you in so it could bite your fucking face off. Nott looked back at Caleb - not unlike Abs had looked back at Cal for approval - and then reached with a clawed hand very cautiously for the doggo.
"I, uh. I call myself Nott the Brave, sometimes." She was still watching the dog while she directed her wavering words at the others.
“With a comma,” Caleb clarified, giving Nott a smile. He leaned over and scratched Abs behind an ear. “And I am just Caleb Widogast.”
That was cute, in a kid kind of way. What was also cute was the way Abs sniffed her clawed hand, and pushed her wet nose against Nott the Brave's palm. Cal smiled in approval, sitting down on the bed behind him. "Nott, the Brave. Nice ring to it." She was so young, and she'd survived the Right. Of course she was brave.
"Great, names all around," Clint smirked. "You wanna come in, Nott? We have coffee."
"I don't think there's a comma," Nott told Caleb, but it was an almost playful protest. And in spite of not much liking dogs, she had a dog licking her hand and it hadn't bitten her or barked or anything, so she tentatively rubbed Abs' head. ...Hand still intact. Cool. "Yeah. Okay. I'd like to see your room.”
Caleb let Nott go in first, then followed after her, leaving the door open in case the small, enclosed space would make Nott feel uncomfortable. He sat down on the floor, his back against his desk and his legs folded under him. “It’s only our room for now. They’ll move us back to the boys dorm once they’re, ah, finished working on it.”
Abs barked, but happily, as she led the way back into their space. Her tail was wagging as she reached Cal, clearly proud of herself for having been so well behaved. Of course, Cal congratulated her with some petting-and-praising. "Good girl, Abs. You did good. Real good.”
Clint let Lucky go back to snuffling at Caleb's legs, then at Nott's legs, his one-eye looking as though he were perpetually winking at them. Then he headed toward the coffee pot to get everyone a cup. It had been a hell of a day yesterday. Coffee all around.
Giving Lucky pats, Caleb said, half-joking, “After yesterday, I think we could all go for something stronger than coffee.”
"Oh my god YES," Nott piped up enthusiastically and immediately, as if she'd spent the whole introduction waiting for someone to say so. She was decidedly not joking, whatever the boys might make of it. She watched the one-eyed dog warily, not trusting that one dog that didn't want to eat her necessarily meant neither dog would want to eat her. She tried winking back at Lucky experimentally. "Is that an option?”
Cal's eyebrows raised at Nott's very, very enthusiastic response to the thought of alcohol. "...how old are you?" Sure, they were all underage, but there was underage and there was being a kid. She couldn't be more than, what, ten maybe? Eleven?
"I think we have some tequila lying around?" Clint offered, scanning the room to try and remember where they'd stashed it.
Nott sighed a long-suffering sigh. Her small size was a part of having her mutation, not her age, but she was still going to be shopping in the kid's section forever. "Hold on, it's... 2019? So probably...about...fifteen. Give or take. I know what I look like, but I'm not a child, okay?”
Caleb realized he probably should have mentioned that to Cal and Clint beforehand. It hadn’t even occurred to him that it needed to be said. He gave both Cal and Clint an apologetic look and, to Clint, said, “It is under the bed, I think.”
"Or in the closet?" Cal added questioningly, and looked back at Nott to nod. "Fifteen. Got it.”
"Sure, fifteen," Clint agreed, because he'd seen stranger things, and flattened himself to the floor to search for the booze. If they wanted booze, they'd get it, fuck the burns on his side that were pulling and complaining as he moved.
The girl blinked at them, having half expected someone to balk or fight her on it. People didn't always take it very well when something didn't turn out to be what it looked like. But this was...kinda nice.
"I wanted to say thank you for taking care of Caleb," Nott looked at Clint first, then realized she was just talking to his waggling ass, before shifting her gaze to Cal. "I know you went to the warehouse place for Caleb and not me, because you didn't know everything that was going on then. You still helped me too, and the punchy girl, even if she hasn't come around yet. But Caleb needed somebody and you went. And I'm glad you did.”
“I was alright, Nott,” Caleb said, exasperation leaking into his voice. The last thing he needed was Nott encouraging Cal and Clint’s stupid heroics. Trent wasn’t gone. He might come back someday, and he didn’t want them risking their lives again just to save him.
Cal nodded at Nott in acknowledgment. He didn't really know what to say, but he didn't want to brush it off as nothing, because it definitely was something. Helping out Caleb was definitely a big something, and he'd do it ten times over. But Caleb's tone as he cut in made Cal scowl, and he couldn't help the words that came out with the spike of anger. "Yeah, you were peachy."
"Tequila!" Clint raised the bottle up from the floor victoriously.
Nott turned to Caleb with a look, wanting to tell him and his hamburger face that he had needed help, and thank goodness he'd had friends who were able to do that for him. But she also knew he'd been through a lot in the past few days - and the boys had probably already had this same argument last night. Maybe it was more important to give them a chance to make up than to fuss over his safety in front of them just now.
She could really only manage one strong impulse at a time. Nott dove to yank the bottle from Clint's hand, unscrewing the cap and tossing it over her shoulder. She thought about offering Caleb a slug, but he had that concussion and all. So she tipped the bottle back for a swallow. And a swallow. And she didn't really pause between them until she'd gotten several good chugs down.
Interrupted by Clint’s triumphant announcement, Caleb bit back his equally heated reply to Cal and said nothing. Ignoring the tequila, the suggestion had been more for Nott than himself, he snapped Frumpkin back onto this plane of existence, and drew him up onto his lap to pet him.
Cal all but forgot his anger as he stared at the sight of Nott, who still looked like a ten-years-old, even if she wasn't, putting that booze away like it was much needed water after a stay in the desert.
Clint sort of stumbled to his feet, turning to watch the spectacle, just as surprised as Cal. "Uh, Caleb?"
Finally, the butt of the bottle swung low again, and Nott wheeze-sighed absolute relief with none of the sputtering or flinching one might expect from such imbibement. "Holy shit but I NEEDED that," her words were something like an elated sob. She clutched the open bottle close to her chest, arms wrapped snugly around it and glanced between the boys as if to see which might try to take the bottle from her. She really hoped they didn't want it back right away. She didn't think she was strong enough for that.
Caleb had tried very hard not to, but had ended up staring at Nott too halfway through her goal to become the fastest person to ever chug a bottle of tequila. He blinked rapidly, and looked away, not wanting to draw too much attention to it. “Ah, thirsty?” he asked.
"Is that part of your mutation?" Cal blurted out, still staring at Nott, too shocked to check his words.
"Please say that it is," Clint muttered under his breath.
"Yeah, sure," Nott said to one of them. All of them? Whatever.
She sighed again, softer this time, happily waiting for the liquor to do its work. "Hey. Heeeeeeeey. Which one of you blonds popped Beau on your way out of that warehouse?"
"Uhhh," Clint rubbed at the back of his neck. "That'd be me. Sorry about that."
"Why would you be sorry? She was working for Trent until she saw those mercenaries beating the shit out of Caleb. She kidnapped me. Beau helped us in the end and that's great, but there was no telling how far her loyalty would go after a flipflop like that," her words and thoughts flowed easily with the spreading warmth in her body and the promise of intoxication soon to come. "And she's not exactly a pleasant person, so... That makes you my favorite blonde," Nott concluded with a funny, fanged smile.
“I used to work for Trent,” Caleb gently reminded Nott, something pained in his expression. He couldn’t argue that it was a strike against a person, but if they weren’t going to hold it against him, they certainly couldn’t hold it against Beau. It had taken far less for her to question who she was following than it had him. She’d saved lives, while he’d only taken them.
"And it would've been the smart move to knock you out back then, too," Cal replied with a bit of a frown, not sure what Caleb was getting at. Clint had been right to do what he'd done, as far as Cal was concerned. "In the same-ish circumstances.”
“Good,” Caleb replied, not sure why Cal had brought that up. “But that wasn’t my point.”
Nott's smile had faded from her face, and she glanced between the two boys uneasily as the mood between them became tense. Shit. She hadn't meant to set them at odds.
"I think," she glanced at Caleb as she piped up, as if inviting him to stop her, "that Caleb is making the point that someone being manipulated like that deserves to be given a chance, as their own person. It could as easily have been any one of us. So being a dick to Beau right now, out of immediate danger, as she tries to reorient herself and find her own way...is sort of mean and unfair," she didn't sound exactly pleased to have reached that particular conclusion. Huh. But that would mean she had been... Ah dammit.
Caleb’s brow smoothed out from its frowning wrinkle as he realized Cal had misunderstood him. “Ah, basically, yeah,” he confirmed, glancing from Nott to Cal.
Clint just watched them all, eyebrows raised, then finally raised his hand. "Speaking for a guy that worked for a bad dude once, I'm gonna go with, sure, let's give her the benefit of the doubt."
"Well, yeah," Cal agreed, because obviously. Although he had to wonder what Clint's story was exactly. He wouldn't push, fuck no. But the curiosity only briefly distracted him from the confusion of a conversation he was clearly miles away from, given the looks everybody was giving him. Maybe he should just shift back and let them talk. That would be easier. He looked down at Abs as he petted her.
Caleb wondered if he should have just kept petting Frumpkin and left all the talking to the other three. Was it always going to be this weird? “Sorry. I only meant that hitting her can both be necessary and be something you’re sorry for.”
“Ah. Anyway,” Caleb said, desperate to make things not awkward again, “um—Oh. So, Nott is the one who taught me the message spell.”
"Oh! Yeah, I did," Nott didn't mind helping him to change the subject. "I mean, almost always it's Caleb teaching me things, but I'm not a very good student. I was glad I figured that one out though. We sent lots of messages back and forth-" But then she cut herself off, realizing Caleb probably didn't want to get them talking about the Facility either. "And now we're friends," she finished instead.
Clint blinked. "Whoa, so you both do magic?"
“It’s part of why the Right stuck us together. They wanted me to teach Nott transmutation.” At the time, Caleb had thought they’d just wanted more gold faster, but he’d come to understand economics and the worth of gold better since then and realized it was more likely they’d wanted to have a replacement lined up just in case. He’d broken so easily; they’d probably been worried he’d break again, leaving them without their golden goose.
"It didn't work," Nott added quickly, before they got the wrong idea. She certainly couldn't make mountains of gold herself. "Well. We can share some spells, I suppose. But I'm not anywhere as talented or powerful as Caleb is." It might have come off as snarky, in a different tone, or with a mocking expression. But she looked entirely sincere as she said it. Or as wholly sincere as a potentially tipsy, highly mutated little girl could look.
Cal had slid off the bed to park his butt on the floor and be level with Abs. He felt awkward as fuck over the misunderstanding, and wary about how defensive he got over Clint. So he was happy to listen to the conversation and pet his dog, who was clearly all about that, tail wagging happily. He liked the way Nott talked about Caleb, at least, and his expression softened a little with it.
Clint smiled a little, and nodded. "Yeah. He's pretty damn powerful. He sets these tripwires every night that make sure no one can sneak up on us."
Uncomfortable, Caleb kept his attention on Frumpkin, scratching his cheek. He hated those words—Talented and powerful. Trent had used them. He’d told him all the time how he had ‘potential’ and was ‘meant for great things’ and he’d loved it—He’d believed it. It had made him feel important and special. Even worse, it had made the horrible things he did feel justified.
Nott knew that Caleb didn't like being the center of attention, not even when the circumstances were better than this. So it didn't seem unusual to her that he would rather pet his cat than answer the praise. Especially not if he was still thinking about himself in the way that he'd been talking about himself over breakfast.
"I'm sure you guys are impressive too," she offered Clint and Cal. "I didn't see what happened during the rescue, but you probably have really cool powers yourselves if you got in and out of there okay."
"I'm only as good as the people around me," Cal replied with a shrug, although it was an oversimplification of his mutation. He wasn't even as good as them, for one thing. "I mimic people's mutations. Not that you need active mutations to kick ass," he added, unable to resist glancing at Clint.
Clint caught that look and tried to ignore the sick pit it created in his stomach. "Yeah, no. My powers are all sucked out. Mostly. Anyway. Nothing awesome here, except some tricks I picked up in a sideshow."
“Clint is badass all on his own. Like Batman,” Caleb supplied offhandedly, still petting his cat.
Sucked out? Nott didn't know what that meant, but it sounded awful.
After a beat, Nott asked Clint - "What kind of tricks?"
"Oh, you know. Shooting things with a bow. Tricks on ponies. General stunt show antics," Clint told them, shrugging it off.
"You shoot things?!" Nott's curiosity gushed into open enthusiasm. "I shoot things! Or - I used to. I never used a real bow, but crossbows and rifles and things, I learned to shoot with those."
Caleb listened to the exchange as he pet Frumpkin, a small, soft smile warming his features. He was glad they were all getting along so well. “There’s an archery range on the grounds,” he supplied.
Cal was happy to fall back into silence, his hand rhythmically moving over Abs. He was all for watching Clint shoot, yes (a little too much, probably), but his own personal relationship with weapons was... complicated.
Clint’s eyebrows went up. “Yeah? I’ve never tried a crossbow. Don’t think we got any of ‘em here, but we’ve got some practice compounds if you wanna try that?”
There had to be a sporting goods store around here. Army/Navy Surplus? Walmart? She'd like to have a crossbow. Or a handgun. But she didn't think they'd let her have a handgun at school. "Can I? Am I big enough?"
He looked her over for a moment and shrugged. "Sure. There are compound bows made for people your size. You'd probably need something in the draw weight of 6-10 lbs. Draw length, maybe 15-25? If they don't have something in the school's equipment, we could go hunting in town."
Nott didn't know what that meant at all, but it would be nice to shoot again. There had been some people with hunting bows back home in Felderwin, but not for someone her size. Kids were expected to grow up into their family's old things, and quick. "You could teach me to shoot a bow, and I could show you how to use a crossbow. It's not so hard really. We'll do a crisscross," she suggested brightly, even setting down the bottle she'd had a clenched grip on to make an X from her arms and grin jagged daggers at Clint.
Clint grinned and mimicked the gesture with his arms. "Deal."
Listening to his friends bond made Caleb’s heart felt too big for his chest. Seeing them happy and having a good time maybe him happy in a way that was too big for him to have words for. “There’s someone I can talk to about getting you a crossbow that’s good for your size.” And if Gilmore couldn’t do it, he might know someone who could.
"Or we could find you one," Clint reiterated. Because while Gilmore had made him his bow, he was pretty sure he'd pushed the limit of what Gilmore wanted to do with weapons. "Either way, it's great to have you here. Who are you rooming with again?"
What that was all about, Nott wasn't sure - but she didn't want them to think she was greedy or fussy. "Oh, I don't need anything special," she put in quickly. "Just so long as I can shoot it." It was very thoughtful of Caleb to offer though.
"I'm sharing a room with Jester. Do you know her? Blue, horns, unicorns and glitter on all her stuff?"
"Never really talked to her," Cal answered with a shake of his head. Not that surprising; Jester seemed loud and enthusiastic and pushy. All the things Cal tended to keep away from.
“I haven’t met her, but she seems nice.” Anyone who was as nice and welcoming to Nott as it sounded like Jester had been earned points with Caleb. Nott had been beaming when she’d told him about her new roommate.
"She sounds like a riot." Clint grinned, recalling some of the things she'd posted on the forums. Hell, he even had one of her Traveler pamphlets in his gym bag.
"She's something," Nott agreed, her expression suggesting that even if she was teasing, it was at least something good.
"You have to meet her," she added directly to Caleb, taking the tequila bottle with her as she moved to sit next to him, leaning against him casually. "Jester says there's gizmos that put disguises on us so we can even go to the mall! US. At the mall. Like normal people!" Nott hesitated for a beat, but then burst out with: "You should come with us, Caleb! We're gonna buy clothes and eat junk at the food court and get piercings!"
Caleb’s mouth, which had opened to argue that Nott was normal people, closed again in surprise. “Um. Okay,” he stammered. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been to the mall. Years, at any rate. He’d liked it once, but now it sounded like a terrible idea with its crowds and strangers and possible agents of Trent or the Right around every corner. He couldn’t let Nott go alone, though, and he didn’t want to dampen her obvious excitement. She should get to go to the mall. She should get to have fun just like anyone else.
Cal watched Caleb with concern, but tried to hide it. Given current circumstances, the last thing he wanted was for Caleb to notice him feeling protective and make that into a shitty thing. Still, that sounded like Cal's idea of hell, and Caleb's unenthusiastic, short response made it sound like they were of one mind on this one. But rather than say anything, Cal looked down at Abs as he kept petting her.
"You know, I've been dying to raid the food court for awhile now," Clint told them. He didn't really care about going to the mall one way or the other, but if Caleb wanted backup, he could give it.
Having Clint there with him too, did make a trip to the mall sound less terrible. Technically, though, neither he, Cal, nor Clint were allowed to go anywhere right now. They’d all been grounded for going to rescue Nott on their own instead of notifying an adult. He hadn’t told Nott that, though; he didn’t want her to feel guilty.
“What’s there?” Caleb asked.
"What isn't?" Clint grinned. "Mall food courts are like the buffet of junk food. You want it, they got it."
"I'm gonna eat one of those soft pretzels the size of my head, and drink the cheese sauce," Nott decided, telling the room all of this with the philosophical air of the drunk. "And an unhealthy number of fish filet sandwiches. Then I'm gonna eat an Orange Julius, whoever that is. M'gonna eat as many doublewide pizza slices as I can fit in my mouth, and two-fist some gyros, and dollar-a-scoop my way across China if they've got it. And Jester's gonna want candy... Ooh, or ice cream. Or... OR one of those places where you put candy on top of your ice cream."
Clint pointed at Nott. "See, she knows."
That was a lot of food and it all sounded good. Caleb’s parents used to let him have Orange Julius whenever they went to the mall when he was little. He’d always ordered a hot dog with cheese, and a soda. A small, bittersweet smile twisted his mouth at the memory. Maybe he’d get that if he went to the mall... It had been ages since he’d had it.
“What kind of ice cream would everyone want?” Caleb asked.
"Are you gonna bring some back for your friends?" Nott tipped her head up to peer at Caleb. Was that what he meant? Or was he asking about her and Jester and maybe-Clint? Her brain was a little wobbly by now and wasn't sure what he meant. But he was a very thoughtful boy and everyone should appreciate that about him.
Which was why she announced to his roommates, as if they didn't know - "He's so thoughtful. Isn't he thoughtful?"
"Yeah, thoughtful. But do we gotta figure that out now? Maybe save that for the mall," Clint told his friend.
“Ah. I guess not,” Caleb replied.
Nott absently let her attention wander to the bottle she still clung to, having wrapped it up in her arms like a little girl might grip her favorite doll, and thought about the prospect of trundling back to her room with Jester. Jester seemed nice enough, but she didn't really want to leave Caleb. (Or the bottle. But mostly, Caleb.)
She remembered what Caleb had said when she'd fibbed at Simon about sharing a bed in the infirmary, and let the tequila loosen up the question she wanted to ask the boys until it finally fell out. "...Uhhh. I can see it's kind of a full house in here. But I was wondering, if...maybe... I could stay here tonight? I could share with Caleb, 'cause I'm so small. And I'll be very quiet, and leave so nobody notices."
Cal looked at Caleb, who didn't seem opposed to the idea, and shrugged when he realized she was waiting for their okay. "I mean, sure? If you don't mind the cat and dogs." It wasn't as if he had been likely to end up in Caleb's bed tonight, all things considered.
“I don’t mind,” Clint agreed, smiling sideways.
Caleb gave Nott a warm, encouraging smile. He knew they’d be okay with. Just like he’d known Cal, Clint, and Nott would get along with one another. “You don’t have to sneak out. We’ll all get breakfast together in the morning.”
"I won't try to eat any of your animals," Nott said very sincerely. She tipped the bottle back in both hands (careful, careful) for another reassuring swallow, then leaned (careful, careful) to place what was left of the bottle of tequila on the floor beside Caleb's bed. Saving some for later. "...Thanks. It's just easier that way sometimes," she mumbled, piping up louder again to add: "I'm really glad Caleb has such nice roommates."
Caleb wasn’t sure he was ready to go back to his room after last night, but he and Nott had been given the all-clear to leave the infirmary, so he didn’t have much choice. What he had had a choice about, however, had been whether or not to eat breakfast, and he was beginning to regret the decision he’d made as the over easy eggs were now threatening to become scrambled.
God, why couldn’t Caleb just crawl into a hole and never come out? It was going to be hard seeing Cal and Clint again after everything he’d told them, and he didn’t know how he was going to look them in the eye. He hadn’t wanted to tell them, and now… He felt naked. They knew what he was now—what he’d done—and when they looked at him they’d think murderer.
“We’re in the girls wing right now,” Caleb explained to Nott as they went up the stairs. He ignored the looks his hamburger face was getting them. “They are renovating the boys wing.”
Nott wasn't sure she was ready for any of this. It had already been a lot to take in just a few days, and not just being taken by Trent either. It was hard knowing what to think and feel about this place she never would've guessed existed, and to imagine how she could possibly belong here. It was hard with Caleb, too, someone that had been long lost and presumed dead, just like- [No. Don't. Nevermind.] But then everything he'd told her about who Trent was, and the awful, despicable things he'd brainwashed Caleb to do... Her heart had been crushed to hear his story, to hear for the first time how he'd come to wear all of that pain of his, to understand how a cruel man had broken such a sweet boy's mind into the thing she'd seen a passing shade of when they'd met in the Facility.
And now, here they were, going to meet his school friends, who only remembered her as the creepy, dead-looking little gremlin thing that had almost gotten their buddy killed or captured.
This wouldn't be awkward at all.
Nott trailed to a gradual stop from where she'd been trotting along at Caleb's side, trying to slump a little deeper into the overhang of the child-sized gray hoodie and the jeans that the Professor had got for her from somewhere. "Where are the girls staying?”
“The same wing.” Caleb made a face. “It’s very crowded. I—” He stopped, confused, as he realized Nott was no longer beside him, and turned to face her. She looked upset. Had someone—He glanced around to see if he’d missed a student saying something to Nott, or giving her a look, but they were alone in the hallway. “What’s wrong?”
"Since we've been sharing so many secrets lately... I should probably tell you..." She wasn't sure how to say it or where to start exactly. Nott peered up at Caleb with a guilty expression. "I tried to break into the cabinets where they keep the isopropyl alcohol in the infirmary last night while you were away," she confessed, rushing the words out before she decided against saying anything. "They were locked and I didn't have anything good to jimmy the lock with, and then that huge blue furry guy came sniffing around, so I didn't have a chance to take anything. But I would have. Even though I know that if I'd been caught, they probably would've kicked us both out or something.”
“Oh. Okay,” Caleb said, processing that. He had questions, mainly why was Nott trying to steal rubbing alcohol and what made her decide to tell him about it now, but that would have to wait.
Caleb crouched down in front of Nott. “Well... I think the worst you would get is detention if you stole anything, but if they did kick you out, we’d find somewhere else to go. We’d be okay. But maybe try not to steal from here, though? I can help you if you want. If you get the urge, and think you can’t resist on your own, you can come get me. And then you could make sure I’m not reckless with how much gold I make. We can sort of keep each other in check.”
He was so sweet sometimes, and it meant so much that Caleb would even think to leave with her when he had it so good here - but that was really not where she was going with that. "That's great, I mean, if it would just be detention," she agreed. "And I do, y'know, seriously get the itch to steal stuff. So, yeah, that might be a thing to look forward to. But it's not that."
She took a deep breath, and she didn't quite look Caleb in the eyes. This was hard, too. "You wouldn't really know this, because we were only together in the Facility. But when I'm nervous or anxious or paranoid or scared or guilty or sad or - or just any kind of upset, or when I want to make sure I won't get upset... I have a few drinks to sort of-" She smoothed her hands out over the air in front of her. "To even myself out. And meeting your friends, and being in this new place, and everything that's happened..." She swallowed, and her voice was very tight. "But I haven't had anything to drink, because I can’t."
“Oh.” That answered those questions Caleb had been saving for later. He took a moment to process that too, then nodded some. “Okay. Well, we will look into that too, okay? I don’t have anything now, but we’ll find something. Will you be okay for now?”
"I know. I know. I mean, I didn't think you'd have anything on you." Nott shifted uncomfortably, stuffing her hands back into the pockets of her hoodie. More than anything, she didn't want to embarrass him, or to disappoint him, and that would be a lot easier if she had some liquid courage to mellow things. If his friends hated her... "We can go. I'll be okay. But maybe later…?"
A worried frown pinched the corners of Caleb’s mouth. He knew what anxiety looked like and Nott was crawling with it. Offering her a pinky, he said, “I promise. But we can skip it if you want. You could meet them later.” He didn’t want to drag her into something she didn’t want to do.
"...Thanks. But I think it just gets more awkward the longer I put it off. Like, 'ohhhh, how come she doesn't want to meet us, what's her problem?'" Nott looked back at Caleb, and folded her much smaller green pinky around his. She shook, and nodded, determined even if she was sort of scared. Caleb needed this to happen sometime, no matter how it went. It was a little easier if she thought of it that way. "Come on, then. I'm sure they're great.”
“They’ll love you,” Caleb reassured Nott, giving her a smile. How could they not? They were great, and she was great. It may as well be simple math. He gave her head a fond rub, then stood and went over to the door to his, Clint’s and Cal’s temporary room. Opening it, he gestured for Nott to head on inside as he called out, “It’s me. I’ve brought Nott with me.”
Cal had been in the middle of playing tug of war with Lucky, with Abs barking excitedly at them. So what if he'd been spending more time shifted than not; he had a lot on his mind, and it was easier to let his subconscious get started on processing everything that way. He opened his jaws to let go of the old cloth they'd been fighting over, looking over at Caleb and Nott. She looked nervous as fuck, and he couldn't blame her. He shifted back into himself and pushed up to his feet, going from a grey wolf dog to a blond boy in jeans and a long-sleeved t-shirt within a couple of seconds. "Hey," he greeted her with his usual half smile. Friendly, just shy of charming. "I'm Cal."
There was a thump in the nearby closet, then a thud, then another boy backed out, dressed in jeans, a flannel shirt, and half his laundry on his head. “Who’s Cal?” Clint asked, pushing the boxers out of his eyes.
"He is? I guess?" That was a joke, right? The small girl in her gray hoodie peered around Caleb's legs at them all, tensing slightly when she saw the boisterous dogs. That turned into people?! One person, at least. "Is the other dog your purple friend?”
Caleb felt Nott’s small fingers tighten on the leg of his jeans, and realized he probably should have asked that Clint and Cal have someone watch Lucky and Abs. Two people and two puppies was a lot all at once. “The other dogs are dogs. Lucky, and Abs.” He pointed out which was which. “You’ll meet Mollymauk later.”
Cal grabbed whatever item of clothing he could off of Clint and threw it back in the direction of his closet. "They're real friendly, don't worry.”
"Totally friendly," Clint agreed, as Cal pulled the laundry away and he was able to finally get a look at the girl peeking around Caleb's legs. "They're like us - refugees. Which, you know, we all are.”
"That's good. If they're friendly." After you'd been hunted with dogs as big as you were more than once in your life, you got leery of them. Just in case.
Nott liked having her hood, but her ears were big, and she hadn't had a chance to cut slits for them or anything, so it wasn't the most comfortable and she couldn't see everything around her at once. Her curiosity got the better of her. She reached up and pulled the hood back off of her head, coming out from around Caleb's legs so she wasn't - y'know - very obviously hiding back there. "Hello, nice doggies. Hello, Cal and Clint. Are you all friends because you practically have the same name? Is that it?”
"Us C-boys have gotta stick together?" Cal offered, but he was a little distracted, his gaze on Abs, to make sure she behaved. As if feeling the weight of his gaze, she angled a look up at him, and he nodded. "Go on, girl. Be nice."
She immediately walked forward, sniffing at the tiny green girl.
Clint, in the meantime, crouched down to hold on to Lucky's collar, not wanting to overwhelm her more than she already was. "I guess you could call me Hawkeye if you wanted too, but most people just stick with Clint. Or, 'hey you!'"
Oh, this dog looked adorable and friendly. But that's exactly how a smart, mean dog would sucker you in so it could bite your fucking face off. Nott looked back at Caleb - not unlike Abs had looked back at Cal for approval - and then reached with a clawed hand very cautiously for the doggo.
"I, uh. I call myself Nott the Brave, sometimes." She was still watching the dog while she directed her wavering words at the others.
“With a comma,” Caleb clarified, giving Nott a smile. He leaned over and scratched Abs behind an ear. “And I am just Caleb Widogast.”
That was cute, in a kid kind of way. What was also cute was the way Abs sniffed her clawed hand, and pushed her wet nose against Nott the Brave's palm. Cal smiled in approval, sitting down on the bed behind him. "Nott, the Brave. Nice ring to it." She was so young, and she'd survived the Right. Of course she was brave.
"Great, names all around," Clint smirked. "You wanna come in, Nott? We have coffee."
"I don't think there's a comma," Nott told Caleb, but it was an almost playful protest. And in spite of not much liking dogs, she had a dog licking her hand and it hadn't bitten her or barked or anything, so she tentatively rubbed Abs' head. ...Hand still intact. Cool. "Yeah. Okay. I'd like to see your room.”
Caleb let Nott go in first, then followed after her, leaving the door open in case the small, enclosed space would make Nott feel uncomfortable. He sat down on the floor, his back against his desk and his legs folded under him. “It’s only our room for now. They’ll move us back to the boys dorm once they’re, ah, finished working on it.”
Abs barked, but happily, as she led the way back into their space. Her tail was wagging as she reached Cal, clearly proud of herself for having been so well behaved. Of course, Cal congratulated her with some petting-and-praising. "Good girl, Abs. You did good. Real good.”
Clint let Lucky go back to snuffling at Caleb's legs, then at Nott's legs, his one-eye looking as though he were perpetually winking at them. Then he headed toward the coffee pot to get everyone a cup. It had been a hell of a day yesterday. Coffee all around.
Giving Lucky pats, Caleb said, half-joking, “After yesterday, I think we could all go for something stronger than coffee.”
"Oh my god YES," Nott piped up enthusiastically and immediately, as if she'd spent the whole introduction waiting for someone to say so. She was decidedly not joking, whatever the boys might make of it. She watched the one-eyed dog warily, not trusting that one dog that didn't want to eat her necessarily meant neither dog would want to eat her. She tried winking back at Lucky experimentally. "Is that an option?”
Cal's eyebrows raised at Nott's very, very enthusiastic response to the thought of alcohol. "...how old are you?" Sure, they were all underage, but there was underage and there was being a kid. She couldn't be more than, what, ten maybe? Eleven?
"I think we have some tequila lying around?" Clint offered, scanning the room to try and remember where they'd stashed it.
Nott sighed a long-suffering sigh. Her small size was a part of having her mutation, not her age, but she was still going to be shopping in the kid's section forever. "Hold on, it's... 2019? So probably...about...fifteen. Give or take. I know what I look like, but I'm not a child, okay?”
Caleb realized he probably should have mentioned that to Cal and Clint beforehand. It hadn’t even occurred to him that it needed to be said. He gave both Cal and Clint an apologetic look and, to Clint, said, “It is under the bed, I think.”
"Or in the closet?" Cal added questioningly, and looked back at Nott to nod. "Fifteen. Got it.”
"Sure, fifteen," Clint agreed, because he'd seen stranger things, and flattened himself to the floor to search for the booze. If they wanted booze, they'd get it, fuck the burns on his side that were pulling and complaining as he moved.
The girl blinked at them, having half expected someone to balk or fight her on it. People didn't always take it very well when something didn't turn out to be what it looked like. But this was...kinda nice.
"I wanted to say thank you for taking care of Caleb," Nott looked at Clint first, then realized she was just talking to his waggling ass, before shifting her gaze to Cal. "I know you went to the warehouse place for Caleb and not me, because you didn't know everything that was going on then. You still helped me too, and the punchy girl, even if she hasn't come around yet. But Caleb needed somebody and you went. And I'm glad you did.”
“I was alright, Nott,” Caleb said, exasperation leaking into his voice. The last thing he needed was Nott encouraging Cal and Clint’s stupid heroics. Trent wasn’t gone. He might come back someday, and he didn’t want them risking their lives again just to save him.
Cal nodded at Nott in acknowledgment. He didn't really know what to say, but he didn't want to brush it off as nothing, because it definitely was something. Helping out Caleb was definitely a big something, and he'd do it ten times over. But Caleb's tone as he cut in made Cal scowl, and he couldn't help the words that came out with the spike of anger. "Yeah, you were peachy."
"Tequila!" Clint raised the bottle up from the floor victoriously.
Nott turned to Caleb with a look, wanting to tell him and his hamburger face that he had needed help, and thank goodness he'd had friends who were able to do that for him. But she also knew he'd been through a lot in the past few days - and the boys had probably already had this same argument last night. Maybe it was more important to give them a chance to make up than to fuss over his safety in front of them just now.
She could really only manage one strong impulse at a time. Nott dove to yank the bottle from Clint's hand, unscrewing the cap and tossing it over her shoulder. She thought about offering Caleb a slug, but he had that concussion and all. So she tipped the bottle back for a swallow. And a swallow. And she didn't really pause between them until she'd gotten several good chugs down.
Interrupted by Clint’s triumphant announcement, Caleb bit back his equally heated reply to Cal and said nothing. Ignoring the tequila, the suggestion had been more for Nott than himself, he snapped Frumpkin back onto this plane of existence, and drew him up onto his lap to pet him.
Cal all but forgot his anger as he stared at the sight of Nott, who still looked like a ten-years-old, even if she wasn't, putting that booze away like it was much needed water after a stay in the desert.
Clint sort of stumbled to his feet, turning to watch the spectacle, just as surprised as Cal. "Uh, Caleb?"
Finally, the butt of the bottle swung low again, and Nott wheeze-sighed absolute relief with none of the sputtering or flinching one might expect from such imbibement. "Holy shit but I NEEDED that," her words were something like an elated sob. She clutched the open bottle close to her chest, arms wrapped snugly around it and glanced between the boys as if to see which might try to take the bottle from her. She really hoped they didn't want it back right away. She didn't think she was strong enough for that.
Caleb had tried very hard not to, but had ended up staring at Nott too halfway through her goal to become the fastest person to ever chug a bottle of tequila. He blinked rapidly, and looked away, not wanting to draw too much attention to it. “Ah, thirsty?” he asked.
"Is that part of your mutation?" Cal blurted out, still staring at Nott, too shocked to check his words.
"Please say that it is," Clint muttered under his breath.
"Yeah, sure," Nott said to one of them. All of them? Whatever.
She sighed again, softer this time, happily waiting for the liquor to do its work. "Hey. Heeeeeeeey. Which one of you blonds popped Beau on your way out of that warehouse?"
"Uhhh," Clint rubbed at the back of his neck. "That'd be me. Sorry about that."
"Why would you be sorry? She was working for Trent until she saw those mercenaries beating the shit out of Caleb. She kidnapped me. Beau helped us in the end and that's great, but there was no telling how far her loyalty would go after a flipflop like that," her words and thoughts flowed easily with the spreading warmth in her body and the promise of intoxication soon to come. "And she's not exactly a pleasant person, so... That makes you my favorite blonde," Nott concluded with a funny, fanged smile.
“I used to work for Trent,” Caleb gently reminded Nott, something pained in his expression. He couldn’t argue that it was a strike against a person, but if they weren’t going to hold it against him, they certainly couldn’t hold it against Beau. It had taken far less for her to question who she was following than it had him. She’d saved lives, while he’d only taken them.
"And it would've been the smart move to knock you out back then, too," Cal replied with a bit of a frown, not sure what Caleb was getting at. Clint had been right to do what he'd done, as far as Cal was concerned. "In the same-ish circumstances.”
“Good,” Caleb replied, not sure why Cal had brought that up. “But that wasn’t my point.”
Nott's smile had faded from her face, and she glanced between the two boys uneasily as the mood between them became tense. Shit. She hadn't meant to set them at odds.
"I think," she glanced at Caleb as she piped up, as if inviting him to stop her, "that Caleb is making the point that someone being manipulated like that deserves to be given a chance, as their own person. It could as easily have been any one of us. So being a dick to Beau right now, out of immediate danger, as she tries to reorient herself and find her own way...is sort of mean and unfair," she didn't sound exactly pleased to have reached that particular conclusion. Huh. But that would mean she had been... Ah dammit.
Caleb’s brow smoothed out from its frowning wrinkle as he realized Cal had misunderstood him. “Ah, basically, yeah,” he confirmed, glancing from Nott to Cal.
Clint just watched them all, eyebrows raised, then finally raised his hand. "Speaking for a guy that worked for a bad dude once, I'm gonna go with, sure, let's give her the benefit of the doubt."
"Well, yeah," Cal agreed, because obviously. Although he had to wonder what Clint's story was exactly. He wouldn't push, fuck no. But the curiosity only briefly distracted him from the confusion of a conversation he was clearly miles away from, given the looks everybody was giving him. Maybe he should just shift back and let them talk. That would be easier. He looked down at Abs as he petted her.
Caleb wondered if he should have just kept petting Frumpkin and left all the talking to the other three. Was it always going to be this weird? “Sorry. I only meant that hitting her can both be necessary and be something you’re sorry for.”
“Ah. Anyway,” Caleb said, desperate to make things not awkward again, “um—Oh. So, Nott is the one who taught me the message spell.”
"Oh! Yeah, I did," Nott didn't mind helping him to change the subject. "I mean, almost always it's Caleb teaching me things, but I'm not a very good student. I was glad I figured that one out though. We sent lots of messages back and forth-" But then she cut herself off, realizing Caleb probably didn't want to get them talking about the Facility either. "And now we're friends," she finished instead.
Clint blinked. "Whoa, so you both do magic?"
“It’s part of why the Right stuck us together. They wanted me to teach Nott transmutation.” At the time, Caleb had thought they’d just wanted more gold faster, but he’d come to understand economics and the worth of gold better since then and realized it was more likely they’d wanted to have a replacement lined up just in case. He’d broken so easily; they’d probably been worried he’d break again, leaving them without their golden goose.
"It didn't work," Nott added quickly, before they got the wrong idea. She certainly couldn't make mountains of gold herself. "Well. We can share some spells, I suppose. But I'm not anywhere as talented or powerful as Caleb is." It might have come off as snarky, in a different tone, or with a mocking expression. But she looked entirely sincere as she said it. Or as wholly sincere as a potentially tipsy, highly mutated little girl could look.
Cal had slid off the bed to park his butt on the floor and be level with Abs. He felt awkward as fuck over the misunderstanding, and wary about how defensive he got over Clint. So he was happy to listen to the conversation and pet his dog, who was clearly all about that, tail wagging happily. He liked the way Nott talked about Caleb, at least, and his expression softened a little with it.
Clint smiled a little, and nodded. "Yeah. He's pretty damn powerful. He sets these tripwires every night that make sure no one can sneak up on us."
Uncomfortable, Caleb kept his attention on Frumpkin, scratching his cheek. He hated those words—Talented and powerful. Trent had used them. He’d told him all the time how he had ‘potential’ and was ‘meant for great things’ and he’d loved it—He’d believed it. It had made him feel important and special. Even worse, it had made the horrible things he did feel justified.
Nott knew that Caleb didn't like being the center of attention, not even when the circumstances were better than this. So it didn't seem unusual to her that he would rather pet his cat than answer the praise. Especially not if he was still thinking about himself in the way that he'd been talking about himself over breakfast.
"I'm sure you guys are impressive too," she offered Clint and Cal. "I didn't see what happened during the rescue, but you probably have really cool powers yourselves if you got in and out of there okay."
"I'm only as good as the people around me," Cal replied with a shrug, although it was an oversimplification of his mutation. He wasn't even as good as them, for one thing. "I mimic people's mutations. Not that you need active mutations to kick ass," he added, unable to resist glancing at Clint.
Clint caught that look and tried to ignore the sick pit it created in his stomach. "Yeah, no. My powers are all sucked out. Mostly. Anyway. Nothing awesome here, except some tricks I picked up in a sideshow."
“Clint is badass all on his own. Like Batman,” Caleb supplied offhandedly, still petting his cat.
Sucked out? Nott didn't know what that meant, but it sounded awful.
After a beat, Nott asked Clint - "What kind of tricks?"
"Oh, you know. Shooting things with a bow. Tricks on ponies. General stunt show antics," Clint told them, shrugging it off.
"You shoot things?!" Nott's curiosity gushed into open enthusiasm. "I shoot things! Or - I used to. I never used a real bow, but crossbows and rifles and things, I learned to shoot with those."
Caleb listened to the exchange as he pet Frumpkin, a small, soft smile warming his features. He was glad they were all getting along so well. “There’s an archery range on the grounds,” he supplied.
Cal was happy to fall back into silence, his hand rhythmically moving over Abs. He was all for watching Clint shoot, yes (a little too much, probably), but his own personal relationship with weapons was... complicated.
Clint’s eyebrows went up. “Yeah? I’ve never tried a crossbow. Don’t think we got any of ‘em here, but we’ve got some practice compounds if you wanna try that?”
There had to be a sporting goods store around here. Army/Navy Surplus? Walmart? She'd like to have a crossbow. Or a handgun. But she didn't think they'd let her have a handgun at school. "Can I? Am I big enough?"
He looked her over for a moment and shrugged. "Sure. There are compound bows made for people your size. You'd probably need something in the draw weight of 6-10 lbs. Draw length, maybe 15-25? If they don't have something in the school's equipment, we could go hunting in town."
Nott didn't know what that meant at all, but it would be nice to shoot again. There had been some people with hunting bows back home in Felderwin, but not for someone her size. Kids were expected to grow up into their family's old things, and quick. "You could teach me to shoot a bow, and I could show you how to use a crossbow. It's not so hard really. We'll do a crisscross," she suggested brightly, even setting down the bottle she'd had a clenched grip on to make an X from her arms and grin jagged daggers at Clint.
Clint grinned and mimicked the gesture with his arms. "Deal."
Listening to his friends bond made Caleb’s heart felt too big for his chest. Seeing them happy and having a good time maybe him happy in a way that was too big for him to have words for. “There’s someone I can talk to about getting you a crossbow that’s good for your size.” And if Gilmore couldn’t do it, he might know someone who could.
"Or we could find you one," Clint reiterated. Because while Gilmore had made him his bow, he was pretty sure he'd pushed the limit of what Gilmore wanted to do with weapons. "Either way, it's great to have you here. Who are you rooming with again?"
What that was all about, Nott wasn't sure - but she didn't want them to think she was greedy or fussy. "Oh, I don't need anything special," she put in quickly. "Just so long as I can shoot it." It was very thoughtful of Caleb to offer though.
"I'm sharing a room with Jester. Do you know her? Blue, horns, unicorns and glitter on all her stuff?"
"Never really talked to her," Cal answered with a shake of his head. Not that surprising; Jester seemed loud and enthusiastic and pushy. All the things Cal tended to keep away from.
“I haven’t met her, but she seems nice.” Anyone who was as nice and welcoming to Nott as it sounded like Jester had been earned points with Caleb. Nott had been beaming when she’d told him about her new roommate.
"She sounds like a riot." Clint grinned, recalling some of the things she'd posted on the forums. Hell, he even had one of her Traveler pamphlets in his gym bag.
"She's something," Nott agreed, her expression suggesting that even if she was teasing, it was at least something good.
"You have to meet her," she added directly to Caleb, taking the tequila bottle with her as she moved to sit next to him, leaning against him casually. "Jester says there's gizmos that put disguises on us so we can even go to the mall! US. At the mall. Like normal people!" Nott hesitated for a beat, but then burst out with: "You should come with us, Caleb! We're gonna buy clothes and eat junk at the food court and get piercings!"
Caleb’s mouth, which had opened to argue that Nott was normal people, closed again in surprise. “Um. Okay,” he stammered. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been to the mall. Years, at any rate. He’d liked it once, but now it sounded like a terrible idea with its crowds and strangers and possible agents of Trent or the Right around every corner. He couldn’t let Nott go alone, though, and he didn’t want to dampen her obvious excitement. She should get to go to the mall. She should get to have fun just like anyone else.
Cal watched Caleb with concern, but tried to hide it. Given current circumstances, the last thing he wanted was for Caleb to notice him feeling protective and make that into a shitty thing. Still, that sounded like Cal's idea of hell, and Caleb's unenthusiastic, short response made it sound like they were of one mind on this one. But rather than say anything, Cal looked down at Abs as he kept petting her.
"You know, I've been dying to raid the food court for awhile now," Clint told them. He didn't really care about going to the mall one way or the other, but if Caleb wanted backup, he could give it.
Having Clint there with him too, did make a trip to the mall sound less terrible. Technically, though, neither he, Cal, nor Clint were allowed to go anywhere right now. They’d all been grounded for going to rescue Nott on their own instead of notifying an adult. He hadn’t told Nott that, though; he didn’t want her to feel guilty.
“What’s there?” Caleb asked.
"What isn't?" Clint grinned. "Mall food courts are like the buffet of junk food. You want it, they got it."
"I'm gonna eat one of those soft pretzels the size of my head, and drink the cheese sauce," Nott decided, telling the room all of this with the philosophical air of the drunk. "And an unhealthy number of fish filet sandwiches. Then I'm gonna eat an Orange Julius, whoever that is. M'gonna eat as many doublewide pizza slices as I can fit in my mouth, and two-fist some gyros, and dollar-a-scoop my way across China if they've got it. And Jester's gonna want candy... Ooh, or ice cream. Or... OR one of those places where you put candy on top of your ice cream."
Clint pointed at Nott. "See, she knows."
That was a lot of food and it all sounded good. Caleb’s parents used to let him have Orange Julius whenever they went to the mall when he was little. He’d always ordered a hot dog with cheese, and a soda. A small, bittersweet smile twisted his mouth at the memory. Maybe he’d get that if he went to the mall... It had been ages since he’d had it.
“What kind of ice cream would everyone want?” Caleb asked.
"Are you gonna bring some back for your friends?" Nott tipped her head up to peer at Caleb. Was that what he meant? Or was he asking about her and Jester and maybe-Clint? Her brain was a little wobbly by now and wasn't sure what he meant. But he was a very thoughtful boy and everyone should appreciate that about him.
Which was why she announced to his roommates, as if they didn't know - "He's so thoughtful. Isn't he thoughtful?"
"Yeah, thoughtful. But do we gotta figure that out now? Maybe save that for the mall," Clint told his friend.
“Ah. I guess not,” Caleb replied.
Nott absently let her attention wander to the bottle she still clung to, having wrapped it up in her arms like a little girl might grip her favorite doll, and thought about the prospect of trundling back to her room with Jester. Jester seemed nice enough, but she didn't really want to leave Caleb. (Or the bottle. But mostly, Caleb.)
She remembered what Caleb had said when she'd fibbed at Simon about sharing a bed in the infirmary, and let the tequila loosen up the question she wanted to ask the boys until it finally fell out. "...Uhhh. I can see it's kind of a full house in here. But I was wondering, if...maybe... I could stay here tonight? I could share with Caleb, 'cause I'm so small. And I'll be very quiet, and leave so nobody notices."
Cal looked at Caleb, who didn't seem opposed to the idea, and shrugged when he realized she was waiting for their okay. "I mean, sure? If you don't mind the cat and dogs." It wasn't as if he had been likely to end up in Caleb's bed tonight, all things considered.
“I don’t mind,” Clint agreed, smiling sideways.
Caleb gave Nott a warm, encouraging smile. He knew they’d be okay with. Just like he’d known Cal, Clint, and Nott would get along with one another. “You don’t have to sneak out. We’ll all get breakfast together in the morning.”
"I won't try to eat any of your animals," Nott said very sincerely. She tipped the bottle back in both hands (careful, careful) for another reassuring swallow, then leaned (careful, careful) to place what was left of the bottle of tequila on the floor beside Caleb's bed. Saving some for later. "...Thanks. It's just easier that way sometimes," she mumbled, piping up louder again to add: "I'm really glad Caleb has such nice roommates."
