Around town, Sunday morning

[betterthanaplan]

Duke knew at this point that his chances of finding Octavia wandering around town on her usual patrol route were slim to none. (Unless she turned into a raccoon and just turned back. Or got kidnapped by woodchucks and just escaped. Or was hit with a random bout of weeklong amnesia. This island turned occam's razor into a nightmare.) He was still willing to take those odds.

And frankly, walking her usual patrol route with her sword strapped to his back felt enough like doing something. He was pretty sure he'd searched most of the preserve by this point, and Lucifer and the new cop guy were both supposedly also on the case there. He'd be back out in the woods later today, continuing to shout himself hoarse.

For now, he was . . . patrolling. Someone had to do it.

[open!]

Comments

[1000yearstoolate]

Seivarden, out on a walk, noticed Duke ahead of her and caught up with him. Seeing Octavia's sword on his back, and knowing from radio that she was missing, she could guess what he was feeling.

Sort of, that wasn't really something she was good at.

"Good morning," she greeted him. "How are you doing?"

[betterthanaplan]

What a question. "My girlfriend's been missing for a week. How do you think I am?"

Duke, don't take out your frustrations on your friends.

[1000yearstoolate]

Seivarden held up her hands, defensively. "I didn't mean to insult you," she said. "And I didn't know it's been a week."

[betterthanaplan]

"You didn't --" Duke sighed and rubbed his neck. "I'm just . . . kind of on edge." To say the least. Despite Danny's attempt to get him to take a nap at least, he hadn't really been sleeping. "Don't suppose you've heard anything?"

[1000yearstoolate]

"No, I haven't," Seivarden said. "I just heard about it on the radio."

She might not like Octavia's reluctance at tea and conversation, but she definitely didn't want her gone.

[betterthanaplan]

"Right. Of course not." Because Octavia was just gone. "Does this happen a lot around here? I mean, she's not the first person I've met around here who just . . . wasn't around suddenly."

[1000yearstoolate]

"I know people are suddenly gone," Seivarden said. "But those I've known have said goodbye before. I can't think of anyone I've known who's just disappeared, and she didn't have a reason to, did she?"

She and Duke had seemed to get along quite well.

[betterthanaplan]

"No. Not that I know of." He dragged his hands through his hair. (His poor hair.) "She wouldn't just go without telling me, not on purpose. She wouldn't do that to me."

[1000yearstoolate]

Seivarden saw no reason to think that she would either.

"This place is really unpredictable, with portals and all that. If I can help..."

She didn't think she could, but at least she should offer.

[betterthanaplan]

Duke shrugged. "Just . . . let me know if you hear anything? We've already been searching all over the damn island."

[1000yearstoolate]

"Of course."

She added, after a pause:

"She left her sword?"

[betterthanaplan]

"In her apartment, yeah." Which had been when Duke really started to freak out. "If she's in trouble somewhere without it. . . ."

[1000yearstoolate]

"I've got the impression she likes carrying it around," Seivarden said.

[betterthanaplan]

"I've barely seen her without it, and we sleep together."

[1000yearstoolate]

Seivarden wasn't going to ask what that meant.

"I can see why it makes you concerned."

[firstofitskind]

Liam had gone for a run earlier this morning, when the island was still and quiet and no one else was awake. Then he'd gone back home, lazed around for a bit, made himself and Verity breakfast... and now he was back out again, full of a restless energy he couldn't quite explain.

Not jogging so much as... sauntering, really. Trying to give that elusive disquiet room to make itself known.

And then there was Duke, stalking around with purpose, Octavia's sword strapped to his back.

"Duke," he greeted, a frown creasing his features. 'Good morning' seemed like a poor choice of words no offense, Seivarden!, so he just left it at that.

[betterthanaplan]

"Sheriff." Duke tensed. He couldn't help it. He wasn't used to wandering around with a really obvious weapon on him, after all. "How's it going?"

[firstofitskind]

Liam noticed the tenseness, but let it pass without comment.

"I've had better mornings," he acknowledged. "You?"

He could guess, honestly.

[betterthanaplan]

Duke gave him a thumbs up. "Terrible. Thanks for asking."

Seriously, he looked like crap. He'd barely slept all week, and he spent about half his time talking to people yanking on his own hair. . . .

[firstofitskind]

Liam nodded. "I heard on the radio yesterday that she might be missing." No need to specify the 'she', not with Duke looking like that and Octavia's sword on his back. Which also meant 'might be' just got upgraded, in Liam's mind, to 'is'.

[betterthanaplan]

"All week," Duke agreed. "She went out with her brother on Monday and -- no one's heard from her since."

[firstofitskind]

The word Liam met that news with was hissed and sibilant and from no language Duke would recognize. For Octavia to go a few days without talking to anyone was hardly unusual, but for that to extend to Duke seemed... not right.

"You checked out her last known location." Not a question.

[betterthanaplan]

"Been doing that the last few days, yeah. She was heading into the preserve."

It was a big place.

"Checked her apartment, too. That's where I found her sword."

[firstofitskind]

"And if she'd meant to leave, she would've taken it."

If she'd meant to leave, she would have mentioned it. And not just to Duke, not after the way she'd gotten upset with Liam the last time he'd left the island for a few days without giving her a heads up.

[betterthanaplan]

Octavia liked to know where her people were. This was very true.

"Yeah." Duke reached back, hanging onto the sword's hilt for a moment before letting it go again. "Something happened to her. Just -- don't know what."

He could guess. Whatever it was had happened to both her and her brother, likely at the same time. But he didn't even want to think about that yet.

If she was on the Ground, there was no way he'd ever be able to go get her back.

[firstofitskind]

"You said she was with her brother last you knew," Liam said. "What about him? Is he missing too?"

[betterthanaplan]

"Yeah." Duke huffed humorlessly. "No one ever sees him anyway, though."

[firstofitskind]

That was true; Liam had seen evidence of Bellamy's existence, at the Blake's apartment, but never the man himself.

This wasn't looking good, but there was still the chance that it could just be a kidnapping?

Just be a kidnapping.

That wasn't, in Liam's experience, something one really wanted to hope for... and yet.

"Do you think," he said slowly, "There's anything someone could do to make her go without a fight?"

[betterthanaplan]

Duke had to think about that one. "Threaten Bellamy? She'd probably at least hold off on trying to fight them if that happened. And she didn't have a clear shot with a knife or something."

[firstofitskind]

"So it's possible," Liam sighed. "She could be anywhere. She could be on the mainland."

He hoped she was on the mainland.

[betterthanaplan]

"I guess. She could --" Duke looked up, eyes widening. "She could be on the mainland!"

Look, it was worth a shot at least?