So a cook and an ME meet at the park... (Private)

[Ermon]

Michael

It's 11 A.M. and the Tahoe park is nearly empty, seeing as it's a weekday and not everyone works the weird hours that Ermon and Gallows do. Sometimes an elderly person walks by with a dog, or a young housewife takes a belated morning run, but that's really about it.

The Mastigos is waiting for the other mage to show as he rests on the bench, drinking water and rubbing his legs to keep the bloodflow going. He has found out during the last month that it helps you be able to stand the next day after all the running.

Ermon wears a sleeveless dark-green t-shirt and black shorts. On his feet are a pair of mid-price athletic shoes. The shirt is covered in sweat and it's obvious to anyone who works out or studies medicine that the man isn't very healthy: although somewhat tan, Ermon's skin somehow still looks sickly. His face is flushed and he's breathing heavily.

[Gallows]

It was rare for Gallows to watch crime shows these days, especially ones like Law and Order. He was in the somewhat unique position of having served as both the investigatory and judicial side of many investigations, and found that being inside the process made those shows lose their appeal. When he did watch, though, he noticed that tv shows were really fond of having their coroners be people who ate food around the corpses, as if just to show how desensitized they were to the presence of death.

Well, that was bullshit. Not that Gallows would have minded eating around a corpse--he just didn't want to spend his entire day under the bright lights, underground. Around eleven he usually headed out to either grab something from somewhere, or eat a packed lunch on one of the upper floors--maybe even outside, if the weather was nice. Today, though, he had planned to let his lunch take a little longer. He had a meeting to conduct, after all.

Gallows went to the park, glancing around to look for Ermon. Gallows was wearing his work outfit, which (minus the lab coat) was mostly just slacks and a button up shirt. He spotted the apostate after a moment and, after waving to him, walked over.

"Ermon," he said, reaching out to shake the man's hand, "Good to see you again. How are you doing?"

[Ermon]

Ermon is clearly enthusiastic to see Gallows: he smiles brightly, shaking the other Mage's hand, but that expression immedeately turns into a wince of pain, as the Mastigos stands up.

"It's good to see you too. I'm not sure if you can count our bumping into each other at Ember as a proper meeting." - the smile returns, - "Let's walk. Or I won't be able get to work in the evening. These exercises are slowly killing me, but so far I'm staying ahead."

The first few steps take him obvious effort, but as the blood starts circulating faster, the pain starts to go away.

"Things are good. Exercising, trying to help our group to stay on top of things. It's slow, but there is progress. How have you been doing? I hear that you guys are about ensuring cooperation and stuff, how is that working out?"

He looks at Gallows's clothes:

"You are dressed... officially. Sorry, I sometimes forget that normal people start work in the morning. Do you want to grab a bite somewhere?"

[Gallows]

Gallows didn't know Ermon that well, but it didn't take a lot to see that the guy was in pain. As he shook the apostate's hand, he wondered what was wrong--and whether or not Ermon was the type who'd be offended by his asking.

"Things have been pretty slow lately, on the cooperation front--I'm trying to open some new lines of communication. Mostly, I'm just adjusting to the new position." Gallows said with a shrug. "What sorts of exercises are you doing, if you don't mind me asking? It seems like they're taking a toll."

He waved off the suggestion of food. "I'm fine, unless you're hungry. I'll probably just grab something from a drivethrough on my way back."

[Ermon]

Ermon's normal cheerful self gradually returns as they start walking. He shakes his legs a little every few steps. The flow of blood makes the pain go away, so he can now enjoy the park and the conversation a bit more.

"Yeah, communication. We definitely need more of that. Take our group, for instance: if you need info or getting in contact with the right people, we can make it happen without too much trouble. And do I see people lining up to ask for our help with their investigations? Not a single one in months. I suspect it's the same with other groups: everyone just does their own thing instead of contacting the people who can do the job ten times better."

There is a kind of a guilty smile when Gallows asks about his training:

"I don't look so good, eh? At least you didn't see me back when I started. Mostly, I do warm-ups and jogging - trying to build my endurance. It doesn't come easy, though. And some stretching for relaxation. Any advice for a beginner?" - he looks the Moros over for a few seconds, - "It's just that you look like you work out."

[Gallows]

Gallows chuckled and shook his head. "Thanks for the compliment, but I haven't been working out as much as I'd like to lately either. Been pretty busy lately..."

Gallows sobered up a bit when he thought about the murder investigations, though. He hadn't realized Ermon was involved. "It's actually good that you mention the investigations. I'm trying to combine the resources of all the cases that are going on right now. Do you have any information that might be useful?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

[Ermon]

Ermon looks at Gallows appraisingly:

"Nah, you're good. Still a couple years of lying in the dark until you'll be in my condition." - he grins mischievously and lowers his voice to speak about investigations.

"I've been looking into the 'blackouts and angels' thing together with Ariadne and some other people. So far, all we've found out is that they are somehow related and the whole thing is far less harmless than it sounds."

Which says something.

[Gallows]

Gallows shook his head at that. Blackouts and angels sounded far from harmless--though he guessed that depended on exactly how Old Testament you were talking about when it came to the angels.

"Well, if you find out about any connections to the other cases, be sure to let me know," Gallows said. "Some similarities in the causes of death have me thinking that we're looking at the same perpetrator--or group of perpetrators. Almost definitely 'our sort', though," he said, meaning 'mages'. At least, he wasn't aware of any cryptids that could use tass.

[Ermon]

Ermon nods:

"Sure, I'll keep you in the loop. And if you ever need anything found out or have something to share, don't hesitate to come to ask." - he offers Gallows his hand, which is still a bit sweaty, - "I'm really glad we got to talk. Perhaps next time we can chat in a gym. Or over food. I hear both options work for getting to know someone better."

OOC

I'm really sorry for not writing in this scene for ages. Let's close it, I'm sure our toons will have more opportunities to talk

[Gallows]

Gallows chuckled--he wasn't sure if Ermon knew that Gallows had in fact used both of those options to network, but either way the two of them seemed to be on the same page.

"Sounds like a plan to me," he said. "Maybe sometime next week we can hit the gym, or something. Ever been to Ricardo's?"