ｊｅｆｆｅｒｓｏｎ．．．is a giant troll (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
royalpassport) wrote2016-09-26 09:04 am
royalpassport) wrote2016-09-26 09:04 am
Entry tags:
IC: CONTACT (EUDIO)
[ And now, thanks to Emma: ]
❝ Send me a message, and I'll respond when I get around to it. ❞
[ And now, thanks to Emma: ]
❝ Send me a message, and I'll respond when I get around to it. ❞
About as well as it could with a curse in place meant to keep us in one place.
[ Which he realizes is being very vague. ]
Not that there were no outside influences in his decision to stop.
[ Which he realizes is being very vague. ]
Not that there were no outside influences in his decision to stop.
Of course. But I have to admit, I'm curious about the types of people your counterpart attracted.
Exactly the sort of people you'd expect when you mention you're a business owner and landlord.
I'm afraid I don't really know. [ Seeing as he lived as a shut-in for decades. ] Opportunists?
That's a kind word to use. Thankfully, bad a dresser as he was he had taste enough to sever contact with the ones that threw around phrases like "sugar daddy."
Ah. [ Jefferson wrinkles his nose in distaste and picks up his tea. ] Glad I never tried it, then.
[ As if there were any circumstances, back in Storybrooke, that would have led him to give online dating a try. ]
[ As if there were any circumstances, back in Storybrooke, that would have led him to give online dating a try. ]
And then of course there's this place.
[ He has never been the best equipped to just...put himself out there. Not for things like this. Lacey had been a literal trial by fire. ]
You've fared well?
[ He has never been the best equipped to just...put himself out there. Not for things like this. Lacey had been a literal trial by fire. ]
You've fared well?
[ He takes a sip of his, thinking on how he wants to answer that question. ]
Well enough. [ Which makes sense. For all his personality flaws, he's young, handsome, and well-dressed. Catching others' attention has always come easily to him-- at least before the curse.
The problem, however, is that he tends to draw in people looking for a pretty face and a fuck. Not always, of course. He's had some friendly conversations with no sexual motives, but they didn't blossom into much else. Though in Curtis, at least, he's found a friend that he holds dear to his heart (and who he happens to find incredibly attractive).
He actually finds himself smiling a little at the thought. ]
Well enough. [ Which makes sense. For all his personality flaws, he's young, handsome, and well-dressed. Catching others' attention has always come easily to him-- at least before the curse.
The problem, however, is that he tends to draw in people looking for a pretty face and a fuck. Not always, of course. He's had some friendly conversations with no sexual motives, but they didn't blossom into much else. Though in Curtis, at least, he's found a friend that he holds dear to his heart (and who he happens to find incredibly attractive).
He actually finds himself smiling a little at the thought. ]
[ Yes, he's sure it's come easily for Jefferson. In his old line of work, being charming could do half a job for him if he played his cards right.
But rather than volunteer that he's been having a hard go of it and would like some advice, he shifts a little to keep the subject on Jefferson. ]
How long have you been here?
But rather than volunteer that he's been having a hard go of it and would like some advice, he shifts a little to keep the subject on Jefferson. ]
How long have you been here?
[ He hums in thought. ] Only two and a half months.
[ Funny, sometimes it feels longer. But perhaps that's because he has a tendency to lock himself in his apartment and wallow for days on end, the monotony making time feel as if it stretches out endlessly. ]
I don't know how long I'll be here
[ Funny, sometimes it feels longer. But perhaps that's because he has a tendency to lock himself in his apartment and wallow for days on end, the monotony making time feel as if it stretches out endlessly. ]
I don't know how long I'll be here
That was the only thing that felt vague about making a contract with these people. It's uncertain how long it really takes.
[ Jefferson eyes Gold with interest, wondering what it could be that would have the man agreeing to terms that carried even a whiff of vagueness. ]
Mm. I suppose it depends on how much you give in return. And how quickly.
Mm. I suppose it depends on how much you give in return. And how quickly.
And there's the rub, I suppose.
[ Another sip of his tea. ]
[ Another sip of his tea. ]
It is rather nice here. All the more reason to be present and not to waste the chance that we've been given, darling.
Of all the deals you've made... I have to say, this one surprises me.
[ Since the Dark One never seemed particularly, you know. Cuddly. And neither did the curmudgeonly Mr. Gold. Then again, things in Storybrooke have changed-- as people are so fond of reminding him-- so who knows. And besides, he knew there was one who held Rumpelstiltskin's heart, though Jefferson was out of the game before they ever came into each other's lives. Doesn't mean he stayed entirely out of the loop, even in the Enchanted Forest. ]
I would have thought Belle was the only--
[ Ah. Wait. She's from an even earlier point in time than Jefferson is. As in before whatever happened to make Regina see the girl as some leverage to hide away in her perfect little cursed world. Jefferson clears his throat awkwardly and leaves it at that. ]
[ Since the Dark One never seemed particularly, you know. Cuddly. And neither did the curmudgeonly Mr. Gold. Then again, things in Storybrooke have changed-- as people are so fond of reminding him-- so who knows. And besides, he knew there was one who held Rumpelstiltskin's heart, though Jefferson was out of the game before they ever came into each other's lives. Doesn't mean he stayed entirely out of the loop, even in the Enchanted Forest. ]
I would have thought Belle was the only--
[ Ah. Wait. She's from an even earlier point in time than Jefferson is. As in before whatever happened to make Regina see the girl as some leverage to hide away in her perfect little cursed world. Jefferson clears his throat awkwardly and leaves it at that. ]
[ He winces. She is, but also not -- that's at least partly his fault. He did choose to come here rather than run home to her. On one hand, he needs something in front of him. Something to hope for, even if this deal fails. On the other -- how can he hate himself for being here and doing this when the last woman he kissed wasn't even her? He's already failed. The least he can do is use it to do something right for once.
the one who is here, he cannot risk approaching. Especially if she won't know him. As much as he felt so much would be better if he could talk to her right now -- but the one that knows him. The one that understands. I'm sorry I woke you up to die, but I needed you. ]
I have to try.
the one who is here, he cannot risk approaching. Especially if she won't know him. As much as he felt so much would be better if he could talk to her right now -- but the one that knows him. The one that understands. I'm sorry I woke you up to die, but I needed you. ]
I have to try.
[ Well, the wince doesn't go unnoticed. Best not to dwell on that point. So Jefferson just nods. ]
Of course.
Of course.
I'm sure there's the odd person who comes here because they enjoy the atmosphere, but I know I'm not the only one who really needed something, the awkwardness be damned.
No, of course you're not. And I suppose it gets easier, the more you do it, anyway.
[ Mumbled low, before he gulps down more of his drink, now cool enough for him to do more than largely fidget with. ] I certainly hope so.
I know.
[What Emma has faced with Henry isn't exactly the same. That transition to parent from something else - Jefferson is already her father, Grace knows him in that role, but he has to worry about some of the same things she does. Is she good enough to call herself a parent? Does she make him proud? Has she let him down? Henry deserves everything a person has to give, and she's already screwed it up by lying about Neal.
He'll forgive her, she knows he will, but it still feels like she's working from behind. She hasn't had a mother for long enough to know how to be one.]
But I've been on both sides of this.
[ She's been the parent who left her child for their own good, and the daughter abandoned to a similar situation. It sucks, there's no way around that. It's still easier to believe in the forgiveness of a child than it is to think about where she is thirty years later. And even now, it's working. She's learning how to be what Henry needs, her parents are doing the same for her. Jefferson may not be a prince riding in on a white horse, but he's a father. One who, twenty-eight years later, was still fighting to be with his child.]
If someone had told me when I was ten years old, that my parents never stopped fighting for me, that would have been worth everything.
[ That's a starting point, isn't it? It's a path that leads to stable, to good. He loves her, he won't fail her.]
I mean, I've had some choice names for you. [Kidnapping her and Mary Margaret will do that, alright?] But I've been through enough to know that we become someone else when we're desperate.
The future's not that far off, you don't have to fight as hard anymore. Just take some time, try to figure out who you are now that you know what you're going home to.
[ She has a feeling that if he does that, the transition will be smoother than he's expecting.]
[What Emma has faced with Henry isn't exactly the same. That transition to parent from something else - Jefferson is already her father, Grace knows him in that role, but he has to worry about some of the same things she does. Is she good enough to call herself a parent? Does she make him proud? Has she let him down? Henry deserves everything a person has to give, and she's already screwed it up by lying about Neal.
He'll forgive her, she knows he will, but it still feels like she's working from behind. She hasn't had a mother for long enough to know how to be one.]
But I've been on both sides of this.
[ She's been the parent who left her child for their own good, and the daughter abandoned to a similar situation. It sucks, there's no way around that. It's still easier to believe in the forgiveness of a child than it is to think about where she is thirty years later. And even now, it's working. She's learning how to be what Henry needs, her parents are doing the same for her. Jefferson may not be a prince riding in on a white horse, but he's a father. One who, twenty-eight years later, was still fighting to be with his child.]
If someone had told me when I was ten years old, that my parents never stopped fighting for me, that would have been worth everything.
[ That's a starting point, isn't it? It's a path that leads to stable, to good. He loves her, he won't fail her.]
I mean, I've had some choice names for you. [Kidnapping her and Mary Margaret will do that, alright?] But I've been through enough to know that we become someone else when we're desperate.
The future's not that far off, you don't have to fight as hard anymore. Just take some time, try to figure out who you are now that you know what you're going home to.
[ She has a feeling that if he does that, the transition will be smoother than he's expecting.]
[ Both sides. That's enough to have Jefferson looking at Emma with renewed focus. That's right, she's been reunited with her parents after being apart for the entirety of the curse. The circumstances of their respective separations may not have been identical-- Prince Charming and Snow White had far more noble reasons for abandoning their daughter, whereas Jefferson had simply been a fool-- but Emma, more than anyone, would know what it's like to be in both his shoes and Grace's.
The corner of his mouth twitches a little when she says she had some names for him, and it's hard to say if Jefferson's about to laugh or scowl, but he does, at least, appear somewhat grateful in the end. Now, at least, she understands; it's not like before, when he felt like he was going madder and madder trying to explain things to her that she wasn't ready to believe in.
His voice is soft, a little reluctant, but he manages to at least express some of the gratitude he's feeling once he absorbs everything Emma just said, particularly about how she would've felt, as a child, to know that her parents fought for her. ] Thank you.
[ But the perspective does bring him to another question, one that's been lingering at the edges of his mind, though he usually doesn't have it in him to really voice it to himself or others. ] Did you ever hate them? Your parents. Before you knew...
[ He doesn't know, exactly, how Grace might have come to regard him in the time between he left her and when Regina cast the curse. So much could have changed. ]
The corner of his mouth twitches a little when she says she had some names for him, and it's hard to say if Jefferson's about to laugh or scowl, but he does, at least, appear somewhat grateful in the end. Now, at least, she understands; it's not like before, when he felt like he was going madder and madder trying to explain things to her that she wasn't ready to believe in.
His voice is soft, a little reluctant, but he manages to at least express some of the gratitude he's feeling once he absorbs everything Emma just said, particularly about how she would've felt, as a child, to know that her parents fought for her. ] Thank you.
[ But the perspective does bring him to another question, one that's been lingering at the edges of his mind, though he usually doesn't have it in him to really voice it to himself or others. ] Did you ever hate them? Your parents. Before you knew...
[ He doesn't know, exactly, how Grace might have come to regard him in the time between he left her and when Regina cast the curse. So much could have changed. ]
Edited 2017-01-10 21:28 (UTC)
[ RING RING. You've got a call. ]
What can I do for you?
What can I do for you?
Page 3 of 5