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[toabsolution]

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[dog_eat_dog]

Don't be stupid. You're going to feel like shit longer if you don't eat something.

[She's there shortly anyway, and she lets herself in without knocking. She drops her backpack at the foot of the bed, and it hits the ground with a hard clunk as a can of soup bumps up against her gun. Tess sighs and sinks down to sit on the edge of his bed, at his hip.]

Why didn't you just shoot her?

[toabsolution]

[He's in bed, looking more than a little ragged under a quilt, and turns towards her when she enters.

He does reach out to put a hand on hers.]

Tried to. She was fuckin' fast. And strong. Couldn't get past her hands.

[dog_eat_dog]

[Fair. Tess winds her fingers around his and adjusts his quilt with her free hand. She's more businesslike about it than tender, but that's just how it is.]

Her hands?

[toabsolution]

[He doesn't even notice it. It's just comforting to have her hand.]

She was fast. She kept stoppin' me from gettin' to it.

Who else?

[dog_eat_dog]

Yunlan, Norton. Sounded like there were more but I haven't heard who else yet.

[toabsolution]

[He takes a breath, slowly trying to keep the pain from overwhelming.]

Goddamn her.

[And he can't do a damn thing about it. He rests his head on his pillow instead.]

You ever been through this?

[dog_eat_dog]

[She nods.]

I was here about a month when everything on the barge flipped. Someone killed me. I don't know who.

[And if she ever finds out, she'll destroy that person.]

Arthur took good care of me, though. It passed.

[toabsolution]

[Hopefully it's a warden. Because suddenly Jake wants to do the same thing.

He squeezes her hand.]

Arthur's a good man. Glad you got him.

You said you had somethin' to eat?

[dog_eat_dog]

Me too.

[ Even if he has unknowingly been a huge cockblock lately. ]

Yeah. I brought soup. Hungry after all, huh?

[toabsolution]

No, but I'll eat it.

[He also doesn't want to talk about Arthur anymore.

He gestures to the stove.]

Should have wood ready. Matches in the drawer.

[dog_eat_dog]

[Old-fashioned. She's never used an old wood stove, but she's lit many fires and it seems straightforward enough, so she's not even going to bother asking how.

Tess gives his hand a squeeze and pulls away.]

I don't go anywhere without a lighter, anyway.

[toabsolution]

With the shit you come from?

Surprised you don't always carry that bag.

[He turns so he can watch her, glad that she came.]

[dog_eat_dog]

[She shrugs, crouching down by the wood stove to get it going.]

Depends on how likely I think it is that I'll need it.

[Or: how safe she feels at any given time. Since the thing with Edward, that's not very, but she puts on a decent show otherwise for Jake.]

[toabsolution]

You always have it ready.

[It's not really a question.]

What else you got in it?

[dog_eat_dog]

[She rattles them off like nothing:]

My gun, ammo, a lighter, some medical supplies, a flashlight, duct tape, a water bottle, a hunting knife, a bit of alcohol and some rags. Some food, too, if I have something that'll keep, but it's harder to manage that here.

[toabsolution]

[It's a good list. Solid.

He pushes himself up slowly to lean back against the wall.]

Got some tinned beans around here somewhere. Don't normally touch 'em since we got enough elsewhere. If you ever want it.

[Because he might not get food insecurity, but he understands that food is difficult to come by where she's from. She's said so herself.]

[dog_eat_dog]

[Most girls probably don't feel their heart skip a beat over a couple tins of beans, but Tess is, regretfully, not like most girls. She glances at him over her shoulder, looking pretty pleased, but she keeps herself grounded. She tells him:]

You gotta have your own rations, Jake, you never know when this place is going to go to hell.

[toabsolution]

[He sucks in a breath, grinning.]

Didn't tell you where the canned fruit was, did I? Got a bit of flour and shit left if I need to make somethin'.

[dog_eat_dog]

And you're just going to live off what, pie filling?

[She puts the pot on the stove and moves around his place, looking for dishes. She'd probably just eat it right out of the can, but she knows how stupid that looks here.]

[toabsolution]

[The dishes are a cabinet beside the stove, but he doesn't offer to help. If she wants to be snarky, then she can be snarky.]

Thought about it. Better than beans.

[dog_eat_dog]

[Searching longer means marginally more time to snoop, anyway.]

More protein in beans. [Does that mean anything to a guy from the 19th century? No idea.] Fruit has almost no fat, too, and you need that the most when you're low on food.

[toabsolution]

[She won't find too much around. He's purged all touches of Alice from his cabin the first day here and everything else is generic and sterile.

Still, he watches her snoop.]

Don't much like beans.

[He knows that she's trying to help, but he's too tired to be compliant. Or to make it easy.]

[dog_eat_dog]

Then starve.

[She says it playfully enough, but she rolls her eyes when she's got her back turned, feeling confident that no one here will take food seriously until they have to live through a famine. For their sake she hopes it doesn't happen, but for her own sanity, she'd love for anyone else to understand it.

If it comes to starving, she won't be sharing.

She finds a bowl and moves back to the stove to stir the soup.]

Shame you're all old-fashioned, death tolling is a good excuse to just lay in bed for a few days watching movies.

[toabsolution]

Won't starve, Tess. I've got rations here and I've been keepin' what can be kept from the meals.

[Despite her teasing tone, his is serious. He remembers how seriously she took it before, and, while he doesn't want to argue, he doesn't want her to fret for his sake.

He has containers of granola, the aforementioned beans, fruit, cereals, and anything else he can store without worry. Of course, it's not because of a fear of starvation, but a desire to eat alone rather than exposed in the dining hall, but he's got enough.]

And I don't need movies when I got you to keep me entertained with your lectures and good humor.

[dog_eat_dog]

[She thinks of that stupid fucking conversation with Archer, and how easily people say "no one will starve", like she didn't grow up without it ever crossing her mind.

She turns around and looks at Jake and how rough he looks, and she decides to put the topic to bed. She's not convinced they're close enough for her to get away with picking too many arguments, and she's gotten far enough with him that it's not worth risking, either.

Simply:]

Alright.

[She finishes up with the soup and ladles it out.]

I do have a good sense of humor.