Room 507, Thursday, Late Afternoon

[not_in_the_book]

It was a phone call he'd rather not expected.

"What do you mean, I'm needed at home?" he asked. "I've got plans -- I've got a life here now! I can't just-" There was a pause on his part; from the earpiece of the phone came some rather angry -- and vaguely American accented -- Gaelic. "Okay, yes, I can just drop it," he corrected himself. "What with the Oath and all. But this doesn't sound like it's the kind of thing that would normally... I mean," he continued, dropping into the Speech as he did, "I don't see why it's so important for me to drop everything and come home right now if all it's for is to help clean up the overlays some. It can't wait two more days?"

He sighed as Annie Callahan continued to explain the situation. "Well, why didn't you say so in the first place?" he asked. "If I'd know the situation was that serious, I'd not have blinked twice about it. Give me..." In his head, he calculated how long it would take him to throw all of his stuff into his claudicated bags, as well as tell people that he was leaving. "... Give me three hours and I can be at your front door," he said, switching back to English. "Is that spot in your backyard still clear of the overlay? It's more reliable than my jump point at my parents' house."

His parents' house. Not home. Ronan couldn't help but stop and notice that he'd stopped thinking of that place as home. Ireland was, yes, and always would be, but in the way that a parents' house was supposed to be -- where you came from, not where you made your home. Was Fandom that to him, now? Or was it just a step on his way to finding where his home would be?

Annie confirmed that her backyard was still good for jumping, and the two finished up the conversation quickly. "This is going to take some work," he muttered, throwing his bags open onto his bed, and throwing his door open to the hallway. He made a few quick phonecalls to let people know that he was leaving, and then set to work packing.

[Ronan's not gone for good, just for the first summer term! He'll definitely, definitely be back. And no, he won't be a year older this time. Post, like the door, is open, especially for anyone who thinks they'd have gotten a phonecall and want to come say goodbye before Ronan's gone.]

Comments

[therhimineecat.livejournal.com]

As soon as Seregil got the phone message, he headed down the hall to Ronan's room. "So Greece isn't to your liking?" he asked as he strolled inside the room.

[not_in_the_book]

"Not at all," Ronan replied, folding the last of his shirts and shoving it down to the bottom of his expanded duffle. "They need me at home. It's a pretty big... I'm not going to be in the thick of anything, I don't think, so I shouldn't be in too much danger. At least, that's the plan right now. It's just that I'm young enough to still have some power, and old enough to understand how to use it. They need me for that."

[therhimineecat.livejournal.com]

"Being needed at home is a good reason to need to leave," Seregil said, with only a mild pang about how he wouldn't be contacted if his own home was in danger.

[not_in_the_book]

"Yeah," Ronan said. "I just wish I'd had a bit more warning, y'know? As it is, I've got to get everything packed up, like, right now."

[therhimineecat.livejournal.com]

"Anything I can do to help?"

[not_in_the_book]

"Come over here for a moment?" Ronan asked, letting his arms drop, leaning forward onto his bed. There was a weight on his shoulders that hadn't properly been there in several months -- not since he'd gotten back from his Year Away, really. His time at Fandom had been a relief in so many ways.

"Just... I don't know when I'll be back," he explained. "It looks like it might be a while. Whatever's going down is starting this weekend, but from the sound of it, they're starting a whole project out of it."

[therhimineecat.livejournal.com]

"The thing about being Aurenfaie," Seregil said as he came over and sat beside Ronan, "is that time doesn't mean the same thing to us necessarily as it does to you tirfaie. I'm not going to forget you when you're gone."

[not_in_the_book]

Ronan leaned into Seregil, laying his head against the other's shoulder. "Good," he said. "That sounds like just exactly what I needed to hear."

[therhimineecat.livejournal.com]

"Thought it might be," Seregil said with a small smile, reaching up a hand to card through Ronan's hair.

[not_in_the_book]

Ronan leaned into Seregil's hand, then turned his head, moving up to a kiss.

[izzyalienqueen.livejournal.com]

Isabel had gotten back from work, gotten the message and immediately gone up to Ronan's room to knock on the door.

[not_in_the_book]

"Hey," Ronan said, smiling softly as he turned from his packing. "You got my message?"

[izzyalienqueen.livejournal.com]

"I did," she replied warily. "Off to save the world are you?"

[not_in_the_book]

"Yeah." Ronan shrugged. "But I'm not going to be in the thick of things. At least, I shouldn't be. I'm being called in mostly for clean-up duty." He paused. "Have I ever explained to you about the overlays?"

[izzyalienqueen.livejournal.com]

"Briefly," Isabel nodded. "There's a problem?"

[not_in_the_book]

"Not a huge one," Ronan explained. "There's something kinda big going down soon, and they need some help at home managing and cleaning up the overlays. I've got experience with them, from when I helped clear up Annie Callahan's back garden, so." He shrugged again. "I get called back. Right away, since whatever's going down looks to be going down this weekend."

[izzyalienqueen.livejournal.com]

"Of course, because advance warning would make things too easy," she observed. "You're not going to get lost for another year are you?" Isabel remembered what had happened the previous fall.

[not_in_the_book]

Ronan shuddered. "I bloody well hope not," he said, emphatically. "There shouldn't be any worries there, though, anyway," he added. "If I do need to go Sideways, it'll just be a world or two over -- and it'll be in the other direction, closer to Timeheart. No worries about getting trapped that way."

[izzyalienqueen.livejournal.com]

"Good, because not that I'd have a clue how, but I would be mounting a rescue party of some sort," Isabel promised.

[not_in_the_book]

"If anyone could manage it," Ronan said, "I rather expect it would be you."

[izzyalienqueen.livejournal.com]

"Only because I've got lots of people to help me," she said. "How long do you think you'll be gone?"

[not_in_the_book]

"I'm not sure," he explained. "Whatever's going down looks to be going down this weekend, like I said, but they're talking about turning this into this big project. It might be a while before I'm free to come back. A couple of weeks, at the very least."

[izzyalienqueen.livejournal.com]

"Of course. Here we are in Greece. It's my last few weeks before I head off into the big scary world," Isabel said with resignation. "And you have to go help save the world. It figures. Well you'd better write."

[not_in_the_book]

"Definitely," Ronan said. "And call. And if I have a free moment, I may try to pop over and see Parker; she seems to be in the same sheaf of worlds as my own, so it shouldn't be that hard, even without going through Portalocity."

[izzyalienqueen.livejournal.com]

"She'd enjoy that," she smiled. "She needs people to distract her once in a while."

[not_in_the_book]

"I rather thought so," Ronan agreed. "If I do manage to get over there, I'll call you when I do, all right?"

[izzyalienqueen.livejournal.com]

"Absolutely," Isabel told him. "And depending on what's up here, maybe I'll get Wyatt to bring me over. She was tempting me with tales of the Glastonbury Festival when I was there."

[not_in_the_book]

"That sounds like a lot of fun." Ronan grinned. "See? Summer won't be so bad after all."

[izzyalienqueen.livejournal.com]

"No," she admitted grudgingly. "I guess not. But Wednesday nights aren't going to be the same."

[not_in_the_book]

"Nothing ever is," Ronan told her. "Change is about the one thing constant across all the worlds. But isn't it better that way, in the end?"

[izzyalienqueen.livejournal.com]

Isabel stuck her tongue out at him. "Fine, get all philosophical and realistic on me."

[not_in_the_book]

"It's what I do best," Ronan said, grinning. "Well, that, and..." He trailed off. "... and things in which you likely have no interest."

[izzyalienqueen.livejournal.com]

"You don't know that," Isabel grinned. "Parker...well, let's just say there was girl talk. Anyway, I'd better let you get packed if you're on a time limit."

[not_in_the_book]

Ronan's grin grew wider. "Well," he said, "anytime. That goes for both you and Wyatt. At the same time, even, if you'd like. Although I'd need to talk to Seregil, first."

Ronan? Shameless? Never.

[izzyalienqueen.livejournal.com]

Isabel laughed out loud. "Tempting. I'll let him know the offers there." And then she'd watch Wyatt's head explode.

Still laughing, she went to give him a hug. "You're shameless and I love it. Don't ever change."

[not_in_the_book]

"Nor you," Ronan replied, hugging Isabel back tightly. "As much as either of us can avoid it."

[izzyalienqueen.livejournal.com]

"And there's that reality again," she said wistfully. "But yeah, I know what you mean."

Reluctantly Isabel let go. "You'd better call. Because I will mount a rescue party."

[not_in_the_book]

"I'd be upset if you didn't," Ronan replied. "After all, I don't want to be stuck Sideways for another year. I've already caught up to this timeline. Any more and it'll be running 1-to-1."

[izzyalienqueen.livejournal.com]

"Not gonna happen," she promised.

"Take care of yourself okay?" With one last wave, Isabel headed back to her room.