Student Housing, London, Friday Morning

[bitten_notshy]

The portals were booked: Jack and Sebastien were scheduled to go to 1901 Boston early the next day. Kevin had been informed he'd need a new flatmate for the spring, and the university had been told Jack was taking a leave of absence. (Neither, it must be said, seemed exactly broken up to see him go.) Jack had made excuses to his London friends, something about a sick relative that was deliberately dull enough to discourage further questioning.

All that was left were the calls to people from Fandom.

Sebastien, being a wise man, had taken himself elsewhere to handle some paperwork, so Jack had privacy as he started dialing.

It was possible he was calling in ascending order of difficulty.

[OOC: NFB due to distance, but open for calls and the like.]

Comments

[bitten_notshy]

"I know," Jack said, a bit sing-song as he reminded himself to keep his temper under control. He couldn't actually jump through the phone line and shake her.

"I disagree, but I respect your right to feel that way -- and all of that therapy talk. You know, I suggested you leave your world, both because of your family and because of the way it treats mutants. When you didn't want to I said almost nothing else, as it's not my choice to make. You owe me that much basic fucking respect, whether you think you do or not."

[icecoldfrost]

"Staying here and keeping my head down and mouth shut--" Mostly. Because while Emma tried, she wasn't always good at holding her temper in class. "--is a far cry from you deliberately throwing yourself into a war zone, Jack! For one, no one is trying to put me down using weapons!"

Well, no one wanted to kill her personally, but the number of students on the ESU campus who harbored nebulous ideas about 'killing muties' was, steadily, growing.

"As much as you dislike my choices, you at least understand why I'm making them. I don't understand why you feel like you have to do this, when it's already a done deal."

[bitten_notshy]

"Yet," Jack muttered, at the comment about weapons. He didn't trust Emma's world to stay safe in that way in the least.

Still, her not understanding was something he could at least try to fix.

"First, the fighting's in America now," he said calmly. "I'll start out there, but it's likely I'd be far more useful in Europe, where I can put bugs in the ears of the powerful to get them on the rebel side. I stand out less here; people trust me more."

He drew a breath, kept talking. "The fact we succeeded in the world I live in now doesn't mean we succeeded in every version of my world; I don't know how exactly time travel works. And for all I know -- and you're going to call me egotistical again -- I might make the change that permits victory, or one that shortens the war by months or years. I don't think it's a foolish risk to take given how much is on the line. And, finally, I can portal home if this turns out to be the wrong choice. All right?"

[icecoldfrost]

"You'll ask Ronan for a Gate home, because with our luck, you'll run into my handsome mariachi player, get shot at some more, and end up making out with him," Emma replied absently. "And then get shot at again."

She didn't want to see any logic in this. She wanted Jack to stop and agree she was right and stay in 2011 where he belonged. Where he was happiest. Where people were not actively trying to stop him from doing anything, possibly by lethal means.

"Why go into the thick of it at all?" she continued, trying to organize her thoughts into something rational. "You're clever, Jack. You could do amazing things for them while in 2011, decoding things or transferring money in untraceable ways, or whatever manner your tricksy mind could come up with."

"I understand about not knowing how things turn out in every version of a world, I do. I constantly have people watching me, expecting things out of me, and holding things against me that I haven't even done yet, or might not even do. I know how it feels if you're constantly wondering if you're going to live up to what they want out of you, knowing your now is their past, and sometimes I want to scream."

"But you can't live your life worrying about keeping things on track, Jack. Are you going to end up in every major conflict? How many times am I going to get this phone call from you?"

Yes, fine, she was scared. Both in Jack's prospects for coming back alive, and for what sort of precedent this was going to set. "Do you understand why I'm worried?"

[bitten_notshy]

"We don't have phones," he reminded her. "Or Internet. I could hunch over a telegraph and a mail drop in 2011 all day, but I'm not so important that people would go out of their way to hunt me down and ask for my words of wisdom. And even if they wanted to, it would take way too bloody long to have a conversation. I have to go there; this isn't some Arab spring where I can fire people up on Twitter."

"And," he added, "for what it's worth, this will likely be the only time. The first world war was vicious and I'll be almost 40. I'd be older yet for the second one, and that one actually was specifically about killing people like me. I don't want to die of dysentery in some camp. My sense of duty isn't so great that I'd parachute in just to fight either of those wars, and I don't plan to become some time-traveling hero. This fight, though ... this is mine."

"But yes," he admitted. "I understand why you're worried."

[icecoldfrost]

"You don't have phones," Emma admitted, twisting a lock of hair between her fingers. "Which means you're on your own, Jack. Which means that unless you have a telegraph right there, then there's no way I could organize the Fandom cavalry if something goes wrong for you."

No back-up besides his vampire, and Sebastien had limited hours of operation.

[bitten_notshy]

"I know that," Jack said. It was the one part of the whole operation that gave him pause. "We'll most likely have Professor Garrett on our side, and Ronan's working on a bracelet with a few spells woven in for me. But in a sudden crisis, it'll be me and the people there."

He scruffed his hand over his hair. "All I can promise is to be careful."

That was the most he could offer.

[icecoldfrost]

"If you were Careful Jack, you wouldn't be going," Emma answered, with a slight hysterical giggle. "Promise me you'll be Tricksy Jack, instead, with no unnecessary risks."

"If you ask yourself 'is this going to make Emma mad at me when she finds out,' then don't do it."

[bitten_notshy]

"Apart from how you're mad at me about the whole enterprise?" Jack asked, some slight amusement in his voice. "Tricksy Jack, then. Sneaky and sly and not calling attention to himself any more than he has to."

[icecoldfrost]

"I'm not mad, darling, I'm utterly furious," Emma admitted. "I know I can't stop you, and even if I tried you'd be gone before I found you."

"That doesn't mean I like it -- and I don't -- and if I find out you've done anything other than be Tricksy Jack, we shall have words."

[bitten_notshy]

Jack went silent for a moment to weigh what she'd said. While he'd try his best, he couldn't promise what she was asking, not given how unpredictable any war was likely to be. He suspected if she thought about it, she'd know that.

He also knew that in leaving, he might be causing a rift he couldn't heal. But in his heart, he believed he was doing the right thing. Cold-blooded as it was, he cared more about that than he did about upsetting Emma.

"I understand," he said, because he did. "Can I ask for a favor, or are you too furious to think about that?"

[icecoldfrost]

"That quite depends on the favor," she replied warily. "Why?"

[bitten_notshy]

Jack closed his eyes and gambled. "It's dull. I need someone to check my voicemail and email and pass along anything important. I'd trust you with the passwords."

Not an exciting thing, not a sexy thing, but Jack couldn't give up his 21st century life completely enough to cut himself off. He was coming back, and he had to act that way.

[icecoldfrost]

If some traitorous little part of Emma had been hoping he'd say something else, well, she wasn't going to admit anything.

"You assume I don't already know your passwords," she teased, shutting her eyes against the well of emotions. stopitstopitstopit. "Of course, darling. Just send me a list of whatever you think is important, and I'll check in once a day to send anything vital along."

[bitten_notshy]

Was he supposed to ask her to come with him? Jack only liked asking for favors when he expected the answer to be yes.

He noticed the hesitation in her town, but gave no sign of it. "Thank you," he said. "Once a week should be enough, really. I'm doing my best to let everyone know I'll be a bit unreachable."

And for the first time, his stomach knotted up at how final this could be.

[icecoldfrost]

"I take it this means your invitation to spend New Years' with you in London is rescinded," Emma commented. "...are you sure about this, Jack? Really, truly sure?"

[bitten_notshy]

"Given I have no idea where I'll be by the New Year, I'm afraid that is safe to say," Jack had to agree. "And I'll miss your birthday, too."

He half-smiled into the phone. "The longer I keep talking to you, the more doubts I have."

And yet he didn't hang up.

[icecoldfrost]

"Because you're quite clever and know that Auntie Emma is usually right," she pointed out. Because she was! "You also hate making me cross."

[bitten_notshy]

Jack had meant because he would miss her, but that didn't seem a path worth going down.

"I'll be in touch," he said. "Hopefully not in ways that will make you cross."

[icecoldfrost]

Emma had a suspicion she knew what he meant; he had used particular words in his voicemail, after all, but it would be impolite to bring it up. Hence, teasing and sarcasm.

"I plan to hold you to that, Mr. Priest," she replied instead. "Do try not to do anything too hideously reckless."

[bitten_notshy]

Yes, Jack had used those words, and he'd been neither naked nor suffering from head injury. It was, perhaps, a sign of progress in their relationship.

One to be considered later.

"I will, and let me know if the world almost ends again," Jack added. "Farewell."