Brazil (but not Ribeirao Preto, sigh), Sunday

[whenshewasnice]

If you'd asked Natalie just a year ago whether she could imagine herself ending up in a situation where she'd be glad almost to the point of tearing up just to just be on Earth... She would've said no, she couldn't imagine a situation like that. And yet here she was. They'd finally returned, and she was looking all calm and collected about it – because that was the Natalie V. Adams way – but inside was a different story. There was a ton of work to do, and to continue on, now that they were back Earthside, because the situation with Achilles was far from over.

But her first order of business (well, after all the unavoidable stuff like getting sort of settled) was still to get to making a single, important phonecall. There was someone she'd missed dearly.

[ooc: NFB, but open for the one being called, for the one who's probably around, and any calls or texts people might want to fling this way after a long bout of unreachability.]

Comments

[pursuedthestars]

Jim stopped walking and stared at his phone.

"Natalie?" he asked, sounding surprised. "You're...huh. Didn't expect to hear from you."

[whenshewasnice]

"We finally got back," Natalie replied. She just sounded... well, like she was doing her best to hold on to her mildness. "We've been up in space since –– well, about since I left. Since your graduation."

[pursuedthestars]

"Wow. Long time," Jim said because it was. "And you're back now? Are you all right?"

[whenshewasnice]

"Well, as it turns out, I hate being in space." So there was that. But she managed to get closer to a wry tone as she said that. Reassuring. "Other than that, I'm okay. Everyone's okay."

[pursuedthestars]

"Where are you at right now?" Jim asked. "Are you safe? Is it safe for you to be back?"

[whenshewasnice]

"We're back in Brazil." If not where they'd started, since Achilles still had the compound. "It's safe enough. We wouldn't have returned if it wasn't."

[pursuedthestars]

"Well. Good." It was hard to think of what to say to someone who'd been gone for so long. "I'm glad to hear from you. I was pretty much thinking it wouldn't happen again."

[whenshewasnice]

"Don't say that."

The last part. She hadn't meant to really say that out loud, but maybe her filtering was shot. Or worn down by actually getting to talk to him again.

"It was always going to happen again."

[pursuedthestars]

"I just didn't know," Jim told her, shrugging. "Meant nothing bad. It's just been a long time and I was...worried. Thought the worst."

[whenshewasnice]

Well, she really wasn't going to be telling him anything about any plans to blow their shuttle out of the sky, now. Even though that had been smartly thwarted.

"I know," she said, even if she didn't really want to know. "I missed you."

[pursuedthestars]

"I missed you too," Jim told her easily enough. "Are you back for good now? Do you get to keep your feet on the ground?"

Did he have to come and punch Peter to make that happen?

[whenshewasnice]

"We don't have plans or reasons to head back up there, no," Natalie assured him. And maybe she sounded a bit relieved about that. She sighed again. "We're back for good. We are."

[pursuedthestars]

"You still gonna be working with that guy?" Jim asked, curious.

[whenshewasnice]

"What?"

She hadn't expected a question like that to come up, and so she sounded genuinely surprised.

"Of course I am. Assuming 'that guy' means Peter."

[pursuedthestars]

"Calm down," Jim said. "I just didn't know if you'd finished what you were doing. I have no idea what's been going on, Natalie."

[whenshewasnice]

"You really need to start getting better at pushing past how much my job bores you so you can actually retain information about it," Natalie replied. It was more a wry joke than anything else. "My job is on-going. Achilles continues to have our compound and shake Peter's status as Hegemon."

[pursuedthestars]

"Probably not going to happen," Jim told her honestly. He shrugged. "If it's what you want to do that, that's all I need to know."

[whenshewasnice]

"Well, do try to keep up anyway," she joked mildly. "It makes the worrying easier."

Not that she was intending to give him anything big to worry about. But they did have a general threat of assassination hanging over them, she supposed.

[pursuedthestars]

"I make no promises," Jim told her, half smiling. "I do my best when it comes to what you do. Can't know everything though. Not really my area of interest."

[whenshewasnice]

"You don't even know what Peter does." She was aiming for teasing but there was truth to that, too. "You barely remember his name."

There was that.

"Anyway. How have you been?"

[pursuedthestars]

"I don't give a damn about Peter," Jim told her. "And I've been fine. Just adjusting to being back home and all. It's different."

[whenshewasnice]

She also didn't think he gave a damn about what she did. Which, considering she had put her life on the line for it several times now, could be a little hurtful sometimes.

But she was not getting anywhere near into that right now. Both for her mental stability as well as for the fact that it didn't matter too much, anyway. "I bet," she said. "Everything's weird and different after Fandom."

[pursuedthestars]

He'd spent the last few months worrying about her. It was best not to broach that subject right now, yes.

"It's just boring," Jim told her, shrugging. "I don't like it. I don't like being there or dealing with everything at home. I'd rather be off doing stuff."

That had been on his mind a lot lately.

[whenshewasnice]

"Like what?"

It was an easy prompt to give. She kind of desperately wanted to listen to him right now.

[pursuedthestars]

"Dunno. It's not fully formed," Jim told her. "Maybe just getting out of there somehow. College is an option but I really don't wanna do that. Maybe traveling. Hiking across the country. Or maybe I can check out a few other planets out there. See if they need any help."