open / radio killed the penmanship star

[friendsfordinner]

Who: Cornelius Hickey & OPEN
What: futzing with the radio, dog times, hot springs
When: throughout the month of August
Where: Milton

Content Warnings: nudity in the hot springs, will add as needed

morse code / ota
Hickey occasionally is smart. He doesn't exactly know what Morse code is, but he knows that this radio Marra gave him can only send dots and dashes. Obviously there must be some kind of language or code used, simply because it would be remarkably useless to communicate with otherwise. So, might as well do some poking around, see if there's anything useful or any code books in any outposts—Lakeside has the hydrodam, that might be useful. It takes him a while but he finds what he's looking for: a basic guide to Morse code.

Anybody who's got one of the shortwave radios that Marra gave out will soon hear a message repeated, a few times a night, as Hickey tries out his new toy (and also, more importantly, just tries to get more fluent in Morse code):

THIS IS HICKEY. CAN YOU HEAR ME?

wolf mode / ota
Every now and then, Hickey just has to cut loose and enjoy some time as a wolf. It's easier, after all. He likes Billy, he likes his human friends, and honestly it's gotten so much easier here now that certain people have died and/or vanished. But every now and then, when he's focused too much on Morse code or worried about their provisions for the winter or stuck on some boring human concern, he just takes a moment to forget all that.

Sometimes he hunts. Hickey as a wolf is small, with reddish gray fur, and a wirey build. Anybody in the wolf pack is invited—hell, there are times when Hickey goes up to his mates directly and just bluntly asks if they want to hunt this evening. There are times when Hickey can be found out in the woods, squirrel in his mouth, looking up at anybody with a 'what are you going to do about it?' sort of expression. And there are times, few and far between, when Hickey just plays. He romps in the snow, digging down with his paws, shoving his snout in before leaping and bouncing all over the place.

hot springs / ota
Hickey doesn't usually take clothes along when he's in wolf mode. He's destroyed a few too many shirts via shifting and honestly, it's a pain in the ass to get dressed in the cold. He'll go out in the afternoon then come back home at night, happy and tired, slipping through the town when most people are asleep and nobody can bother him (and, just as importantly, he can shift back into a person close to home).

So that means when Hickey decides to take a break from being a wolf and just soak in the hot springs for a moment or two, he does it buckass naked. Dick out, limbs sprawled, just absolutely enjoying his moment of relaxation.

Sorry anybody who's coming into the hot springs and who wants to relax themselves, there's a naked man lying next to the hot springs, feet in the water, back resting on one of the rocks slightly warmed by the temperature, sunning himself like a lizard. Hickey does not want to move right now.

Comments

[sputnik]

Konstantin knows some of the town gossip about Hickey — knows it about most of the residents here. It's interesting to hear the man come outright and say that someone like Rorschach should be killed, even that he'd do the deed himself. Most people wouldn't openly admit to such things. Most people might be appalled to hear them voiced right out loud.

Konstantin, instead, smiles, not looking bothered by the admission in the least. What he's thinking is, once again, that it's no wonder Chloe's made connection with this guy. What he's thinking is that Hickey's smart. "You're not wrong there. A reputation can be more important for survival than any gift, power, or leg up this place gives us." He knows that all too damn well. It's part of why he protects his own so fiercely.

"I'm keeping an eye on him. Sometimes I even think I might be getting through to him. But if he does try to hurt Dorian, or anyone else I care about — and it sounds like you and I care about some of the same people — he knows he'll have an active enemy in me. I made sure to warn him on that." He tips his head to Hickey from across the hot spring, smiling a little too brightly for the subject matter.

"If things get bad enough, maybe some of us can work together to take care of the problem. Discreetly, of course."

Is he threatening to help kill Rorschach if they have to... Look, he truly doesn't want to resort to that and his own relationship with the guy is admittedly complicated, but the thing is that Konstantin would if it's a matter of protecting his loved ones. As long as the blood doesn't end up directly visible on his hands. That's the thing that made Tanya call him a monster back home. And he's ultimately okay with that.

[friendsfordinner]

Most people wouldn’t admit to murder out loud. But also, most people didn’t almost get stabbed by Rorschach in their fucking house. As far as Hickey’s concerned, he has every right to express his anger, annoyance, and absolute loathing of the man. Really, he’d be doing everyone a favor if he killed Rorschach. And honestly, Hickey’s certain that more than a few people here would treat that whole mess with quiet acceptance.

But there’s Billy. And even if he trashes his reputation by association, he doesn’t want to trash Billy’s. At least, not before talking about it with the man first.

It’s good to know that Konstantin is on the same page. Because if Rorschach wants to go after that Gray bloke, he’ll want to go after Chloe. And Hickey’s keeping her safe no matter what. So he gives Kostya a little nod of acknowledgement…which turns into a little smirk of a smile at the mention of a discreet way of taking care of the problem.

Well. Man’s more canny than he thought.

“I won’t say no to something like that,” Hickey says, with a little shrug. “Hell, I’d even help. Because you’re right. We’ve no idea what this place is like. We’ve no clue what could happen. Things could get even worse. And if they do…sensible to act, yeah?”

[sputnik]

Hickey does have every right to express those things, with everything he's been put through from the guy. And Konstantin feels unexpectedly refreshed, to talk to someone like that, someone who doesn't try to sugarcoat it or pretend there's another better solution. Sometimes the best solution is getting rid of a problem. Konstantin, who has lived his entire life under the spotlight, who has to be careful what he does and what he says, knows there's times he wanted to be free the way this man before him is.

But he has his moments. He'll always be careful never to cross a certain line, but... he will do the things that he has to do. He'll let people die to protect his loved ones, and he'll kill a threat to those loved ones himself if he has to. He knows that. It's how he survived as long as he did back in that research lab.

So it's good to make allies with others here who are on the same page, others who not only want to protect mutual friends, but would actually do whatever it takes to make that happen. Konstantin smiles again, dragging a hand through the water, relaxed now that it's clear the creature isn't going to have a fit here. Probably the warmth is relaxing to it too.

"Sensible's a good word for it," he agrees. "I'm glad to hear you're on the same page, but not surprised. Sounds like you've had the right idea from the start. I'll keep an eye out, let you know if I see anything worrisome from him."

[friendsfordinner]

It’s good to hear that Konstantin is on his side, that someone else has sense in this damn place. Hickey realized right from the moment that their first town meeting ended, when after all the talk and all the posturing, nobody did anything, that Milton was the sort of place where no one would rock the boat. On the one hand, that’s good—saved his ass during that town meeting and Hickey will be the first to admit it. On the other hand, sometimes decisive action needs to be taken. And if that decisive action is a little murder? Easy enough to accomplish.

Hickey is also relaxing in the hot springs, though he can feel his fingers getting a little pruney. He can still stay and talk, though, enjoying the sensation of the warmth of the cave. As Hickey pushes himself out of the water, there’s the briefest glimpse of his bare ass, marred with scars and signs of the lash, a punishment that healed then opened up a bit thanks to the scurvy then healed again. That glimpse is only bare, though. In an act of deliberate nonchalance, Hickey adjusts his position so that he’s sitting on one of the rocks, facing Kostya, feet dangling in the water.

Granted, dick’s out, but Hickey doesn’t seem to be particularly shameful about it. Sometimes you talk about murdering a guy and you’re both naked, this is normal!

“I’ll keep an eye out as well,” Hickey nods. There’s a moment before he points out, light smirk on his face, “Though you’re more likely to hear directly from him than I am. I’ll pay attention to any gossip, but it’s not like Rorschach and I actually talk.”