♪ EXEC_07/. ♫

[fallbythesword]

[There's a short little reyvateil chilling on the beach, sitting up under a palm tree. There is a box of cookies sitting beside her, and a data pad (that any Freelancers may recognize) in her lap.

She looks... a very forced sort of blank, right now.

She scrolls through the info on the data pad, frowning thoughtfully through most of her time spent looking down, but every so often that frown turns a little dark - moments when she can no longer read something she could before, when data seems to be missing, when she spots an inconsistency that wasn't there before... She's pretty sure she knows what this means, as it relates to this place and its... machinations.

And she doesn't like it. At all. ... How dare they. How dare he? No. Not him. Just... them.

That forced stoicism remains as she reaches for one of those cookies, unwraps it and gently nibbles at it, still flipping through the data pad. Some might call it obsessive, the way she's going through it over and over and over. She wouldn't care.]

Comments

[grip_on_reality]

[Menzies looks over some of the text as Jacqli explains. she hasn't held one of the datapads from that world before, so the weight just seems like future technology. however, the gaps and the lines of gibberish are quite obvious, and she frowns down at it as she scrolls through some of the information]

[while she already suspected the conclusion they're both thinking of, this has confirmed it. she was hoping Jacqli would say it herself, but since it seems that's not going to happen, she sighs. watching Jacqli, she asks gently:] The connection is fading, isn't it? Because he's not here anymore. [after a pause, she adds:] I'm sorry.

[fallbythesword]

[Jacqli just.... nods. She can't think of anything to say at all - she's upset, and that's enough to throw her off completely. Why is she upset? Why did she even care in the first place?

Tch. Humans...

She looks up at Menzies, and though she still says nothing, her frown is sincere... and probably the most heartfelt and honest expression Menzies will have ever seen from her.]

[grip_on_reality]

[Menzies wordlessly holds the datapad out for her to take back. she shifts her position, stretching her legs out a bit more--and then she just sits with her. comfort has never really been her strong suit, and she's not sure how to go about it. she just hopes that her presence will at least ease the hole Jacqli must be feeling inside in some small way]

[after a bit, she sighs. turning to Jacqli, she says:] Miwa... There's nothing you're gonna want to 'ear right now. But if you think you want a drink or anything like that? Just say so.

[fallbythesword]

[Jacqli greatly appreciates the silence. There's something about just being here, just sitting with the detective that is enough to let her know that what she's feeling really is rational. Her head lowers, her hair hangs forward - covers her face and hides her eyes. This is okay, for now. This helps. Somehow.

When Menzies speaks up, she exhales a quiet, somewhat dark laugh.] Maybe later, I'll accept a drink. Not right now. [She takes the data pad back, holds it, ready to begin her file diving all over again.] I have a few more things to read. [To commit to absolute memory.]

Detective? ... Patricia... thank you.

[grip_on_reality]

[she just nods, glad to have been able to do this much at least] Don't mention it.

[but now that Jacqli has the datapad back, she doesn't want to end up invading her personal space rather than being helpful. she stands] I'll be in the library. Stop by if you decide you feel like that drink, all right? [or if she decides she wants to talk, but Menzies has a feeling the open invitation will get that sentiment across]

[fallbythesword]

[Yeah, the sentiment gets across. But, after nodding her acknowledgment, Jacqli falls silent again. Her gaze drops back to that data pad, and she goes right back to her reading.]