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He doesn't notice.

He tries to underplay it, jars the cadence.

But nothing he could easily forget. Push him a little.

And you both know it.

A massive sign marked 'NONCE' flashes red in your mind.

Except your self-doubt.

Spare her this knife, at least.

The word sounds blasphemous coming from her mouth.

It was eerie, she thinks. A silencing of all music amid the man's gravitational pull.

Yours don't seem to require the spotlight.

Now she's fan-shifting as Tempo, a gay middle-aged criminal.

A couple she's very proud of, even.

No contempt, just a light sadness.

He averts his eyes from you and your attempts to converse.

He is very excited to say the word 'legit'.

He doesn't know what apathy means.

Aw, give him something.

You try to picture any of your old assets saying those words -- and come up blank.

You're scaring him.

He doesn't know what 'mercurial' means, you nonce.

Must be. Yana trusted him too.

His Brave Face mask slips from the sweat underneath.

This woman's reading a solid ZERO on the empath-o-meter.

A touch of regret in her voice.

Behind her mirrored sunglasses, she's around your age.

A mixture of guilt and the desire to lobotomise him even more comes over you.

He has been subjected to the 'Hershel Wilk Special'. The history of all your former assets, condensed into just a few days.

Congratulations. You have made your point, and in doing so, you have toppled one of his few psychic pillars.

It's not obliviousness, at least not primarily-- there's something else holding him back..

She shivers, smiles. Trying to dispel an unwanted thought.

A lost cause. He's not going to budge on this one.

Read between the logistical acrobatics -- he just really wants to work with you again.

There is a new mutedness to him, and new shadows too.

That childhood book has a strange grip on him, even now.

Woah, woah, woah, easy! That nickname is offensive and unapproved.

Snagged on a memory. A pleasant one.

Afflicted by that odd loneliness that comes from seeing and knowing a lot that you can't do much about.

Better to go along with this. You'll have a stronger chance of pulling him clear of this psychological wreckage.

He's hurt by that direct accusation, even though it's his own working theory.

You can practically feel the fetid water sloshing about his feet.

He phrases it like he's asking if you'll be over for tea next week. It doesn't hide his desperation.

He wouldn't have willingly given up a career that meant so much to him.

With fear, or maybe rage that the past should repeat itself so shamelessly.

Profound indifference exudes from him.

A genuine question.

If this were a trap then he wouldn't have been so cagey about his client.

Eszti's territorial. Walking into her apartment was a trespass. She'd have no reason to be here.

Disbelief that anybody would do anything so vulgar as know this man.

More curious than horrified, interestingly enough.

432 skill checks - ZERO PARADES field manual - Page 7 of 9