revivalproject | [Open Log] Sometimes You Work Too Hard

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[Open Log] Sometimes You Work Too Hard

WHO: Reeve Tuesti, OTA
WHERE: Sh'Ka Security and Water Treatement
WHAT: Dealing With Machinery and Infrastructure in Sh'Ka
WHEN: Late October
WARNINGS: Minor possible mental manipulation in Security log starter

A. Work Is Always Distracting | Water Treatment Facility

When in doubt, work to make other's lives better. This was a philosophy that Reeve had been raised with. Sure, when he had been raised with it the point had been 'make the lives of your family better' but that didn't mean he hadn't brought those thoughts into his adult life and had a lot of complication from it. But here and now, with so much going on, Reeve found himself falling back on this.

The way it was manifesting in Sh'Ka was Reeve's arrival at the Water Treatment plant, mere hours after he had gotten off of the train from Temba. It was here he had set himself up to sleep in one of the side offices, and here, looking at readouts from displays while he tried to figure out where systems were backed up and needed help, that he was getting yelled at.

"Will yah listen tah meh for a wee moment and let yahself get some sleep?" Mini was demanding, the robotic cat's voice loud and carrying through the halls.

"If I'm sleeping, I'm not helping make sure there is clean water," Reeve countered, not looking up from the displays. He wished he had paper to work with. The programs on his datapad just could not keep this straight for him, not with how his eyelids were getting heavy.

B. The Strangest Computers Ever | Security Station

Get out of the office and take a damn walk.

It wasn't what Reeve had wanted to do, but Mini sure had been good at channelling Cid in that moment, and giving Reeve no choice but to finally stop working. It had come down to the fact that the cat had basically taken Reeve's comm pad to keep him from working further. Damn keeper.

With a sigh he had agreed to at least get up and move his legs some, stuffing the cat into his bag and taking Mini's weight onto himself to explore. Where he'd ended up was one of the better lit areas in the city. The Security building had looked so inviting from the outside, and slowly he had made his way deeper and deeper until he finally ran into something both familiar and new.

Reeve had been staring at a monitor for almost five minutes now, watching the image of some sort of plant matter being roasted over a fire. Strange how he hadn't been hungry a bit ago, and now his stomach was starting to grumble.

"I wonder what the point of having videos of food is," Reeve mused aloud, only to earn a snort from his bag.

"It's like ya forgot tha channels like tha were big back home."

"How would you even know that?"

"Because you do."

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Compliment, huh? He would accept that he supposed. But he frowned when he looked at Soldat further. Nope.

"I don't think that would go well for me, do you?"

Mini probably had more capacity to care about the welfare of others than the Soldier possessed. It was a compliment.

One side of his mouth quirked up in something vaguely resembling a distant cousin of a smile. "Do you want to find out?"

Oh yes, Mini definitely did. The doll just cared that Soldat was trying to help. In fact, he was moving over the machinery to gather up Reeve's things while Reeve was distracted.

"As fun as that could theoretically be, I think it would go poorly for me, and poorly enough that Poe might judge me," Reeve said, and he sounded so tired.

"I don't have anywhere to sleep."

The name threw him for a short moment. He hadn't spoken to Poe since their return from the fake world — not out of avoidance, but their paths simply hadn't crossed. Hearing the name now brought the memories to the surface; they weren't anything he wanted to focus on now.

"We can't have that," he said instead. Best not to bring up anything even tangentially related to that fantasy world.

He shook his head even as Reeve spoke his protest. Considering that he didn't keep anything resembling a permanent residence in Temba, coming here also meant bringing equipment for simple shelter. "You have my camp. Safe, warm, and dry. And away from here, which I think you need."

Perhaps he should speak to Poe. The man was truly a charming one. Soldat deserved to explore a friendship with the man. Reeve would be very happy if his boyfriend and friend could be friends.

"I'm certain he judges me plenty on his own already," Reeve sighed.

He was shocked, though, standing a bit straighter, when he heard the offer. Somewhere safe to stay? Safe and warm and dry?

"Thank you," he said, never thinking to doubt it for a moment.

Perhaps they could at least be friendly. More than the distance at which the Soldier kept most people.

"Does that worry you?" He didn't want to make assumptions about whatever the two men were to each other.

"I will warn you that it's a little rough," he cautioned. "But if you don't mind the equivalent of camping, it's sufficient. And I will keep watch."

Does it? Perhaps. But Reeve smiled through the question. He thought that Poe would be patient with him, though.

"I think he has a right when he does it out of worry for me. There's nothing judgemental about it, just concerned. Like you're being."

Meanwhile Mini continues his frantic packing, clearly intending to let the encouragement play out.

"I've camped before. Often while seeing barns raised."

"Concern is not a bad thing." Quite the opposite, or so he's observed. Of course he had no doubt that it could be taken to the extreme but he didn't think that was the case here.

The Soldier was tracking Mini's movements through sound, not wanting to draw attention to him. It might make Reeve resist, and that would be counter productive.

"I can't promise you a barn. But knowing this place I also can't say there wouldn't be one by morning." He shrugged. "I can promise you and Mini my bed, and I will stand guard over you both."

Mini kept going at the gathering as Reeve moved to the other man's side. This was worth it, he thought. Resting. Especially since Bucky woudl insist. Was insisting.

"I don't think you need to actually be watched over. It's okay if you sleep as well."

Would insist. Forcibly if needed. But it was looking like it wouldn't be needed as Reeve seemed agreeable to the idea.

"Perhaps." He considered Reeve, now at his side, carefully. "And perhaps you might sleep better knowing that you're completely safe."

Mini finally finished stuffing things into a bag and hoped down to the floor, his tail wagging slowly.

"Perhaps I shall. I just wish I had a materia to put me to sleep. I might be too worried for it."

Since it seemed like they were ready to go, the Soldier started to lead the way out of the space. The more they lingered, the more likely Reeve might decide to work on just one more thing, or so he believed having observed the man's work ethic.

The question of actually getting to sleep was more difficult. Truly the Soldier was banking on Reeve's body just taking over and letting sleep claim it the moment he settled into a relatively comfortable place.

"Don't think I can help you with that." He frowned. "I mean, I can knock you out but that's probably not what you need."

Oh, Reeve was definitely having a serious lecture from Mini to keep him from turning back to do one more thing. That and proper respect for how dangerous Soldat was.

"Yes, that doesn't sound really good," he noted. "Possibly capable of injuring me."

Mini was the true hero here. The Soldier doubted he'd have been able to drag Reeve away from the work on his own, at least not without major protest and possibly damaging the understanding they'd cultivated. He probably would have tried waiting the man out instead.

"More certainly than possibly," he replied offhand as they made their way out of the building. Some people made small talk about the weather; the Soldier talked about violence. At least he was talking. "And I'd rather not have to."

He paused briefly at the entrance, scanning the landscape for potential threat before starting to lead Reeve away.

Yes, it was more like Mini was very grateful to the person who was assisting in his normal Reeve wrangling duties. There were not many that did that. Poe, Tony, and now Soldat. The list was far too small.

"Possibly in that you would attempt not to, and may succeed in that," Reeve noted as he walked, though he was yawning as he spoke. The further he got from work, the more tired he was becoming. Or allowing himself to be.

"I don't expect we're going to get attacked on the way there."

Reeve wrangling seemed like a full time job. Then again, the Soldier couldn't argue that there was a lot of work needing skills he had. But pacing oneself was important too. (Supposedly.)

He made a noncommittal noise in response to Reeve's observation. He didn't have any intention of hurting the man. But he also knew he was a walking time bomb. Eventually someone would flip the switch in his head.

He slowed his stride to keep pace with Reeve's steps, one eye on the man and the other on their surroundings. "Some of my kills were accomplished when people didn't expect them. I still consider it possible, if not probable."

A very full time job. Good thing Mini didn't sleep at all.

"While I do understand your point, I also would note that you are not the one after me right now, Soldat. I should be fine without such hovering. Besides, I'm armed in my own rights at the moment."

Not that his spell work was as fast as a gun in the moment.

Mini deserved a ~~raise, benefits and a 401k~~ break. The Soldier idly wondered if he got tired, but hadn't figured out how to ask without sounding rude. Knowing how Cobb had treated Mini, and how Mini and Reeve both felt about it, he preferred to tread carefully.

He considered Reeve's words, the perception of his behavior. It interested him to see it from this angle. "It's not something I can just turn off," he finally replied. "The alertness, it's... part of me." A switch flipped to on, then broken off with no way to fix it.

He made the effort to put some space between them though, to not hover. To try to be normal.

Oh there was no doubt that Mini deserved all of that. Too bad there was no option for that. Reeve would give him all of that if it was at all in his power.

"Yeah, that sounds about right. Vincent had the same problems. Actually, most of the Turks did, and they had it a bit less, well, intensely than you have implied you have."

For now Mini might have to content himself with the reality of Reeve taking an evening to rest. Hopefully it was enough of a reward.

"I suppose it could be a matter of training," he mused. "And of what one was allowed to be outside of that training." For himself, there was only training, only orders. HYDRA had no use for him outside of a weapon.

He might even have elaborated, were it not for the crack of leaves falling from branches. Solid stone, so he had discovered, and he'd allowed himself to become distracted by conversation. Careless, and dangerous, and the Soldier lunged for Reeve's side, his left arm up to shield them both.

For Mini that was definitely sufficient reward.

"I suppose the Turks had a bit more freedom. They chose to become the men and women they were," Reeve noted. "So perhaps the better comparison is Soldier, and those who did not understand what it would make of them."

And then it was that Soldier started to move, and Reeve was so tired and confused that he didn't understand what was going on.

"Perhaps." Reeve had said that the word had complicated connotations on his homeworld; the Soldier respected that and recognized it as having as many potential landmines as his own history.

But Reeve wasn't moving, which meant that he'd have the Soldier all but plowing into him in an attempt to shield the man with his own body. The clang of falling rock leaves against his arm was loud and he gritted his teeth when one hit and broke, sending loose chips into the mechanism beneath the metal plates. He'd have to deal with that later.

It's only when he's certain that nothing else is going to fall that he notices the arm around Reeve's waist, the way he'd tried to tuck the man against his side.

Well that was weird. Reeve hadn't really processed what had happened or why until Soldat had gone still and there was an arm around his waist. He took a moment to breathe, trying to get his balance, and then he tried to move from the man's grip.

"I'm sorry, are you okay?"

The Soldier let go as soon as Reeve started to move, disturbed himself by how readily he'd gotten too close. Too familiar. He wasn't meant for that kind if familiarity. Once it would have meant malfunction, a wipe and a reset. The feeling was hard to shake even now.

"I am fine," he replied, ignoring the feeling of grinding underneath two of the plates on his arm. "You are uninjured? And Mini as well?"

"I am uninjured," Reeve agreed. Mini, who had run to try and catch up to them, looked no more than dusty.

"We shud be gettin' 'em under cover. Ain't trust Reeve to be safe."

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