betterthanaplan | Haven, Maine, over the weekend

Yeah, Octavia was definitely looking him over pretty closely, at that. It also kept her from indulging the urge to kick Nathan in the ribs. Which was probably a good thing.

After she'd determined he didn't have any serious visible injuries, at least, she turned towards Audrey and snapped, "What the fuck was that?"

Duke rubbed the back of his head and winced faintly. "That was . . . more than usual," he agreed.

"Nothing," Nathan muttered into the deck where he lay. "Felt nothing."

"I need you two to keep him here," Audrey said.

"Uh, no," Duke said.

"He tried to kill Duke," Octavia agreed in a snarl.

And don't think she didn't notice the lack of an actual answer, either, Audrey!

"It's not his fault." Audrey watched as Nathan passed out on the deck, then stood. "He's sick."

"He's been sick," Duke said. "Right now he's homicidal."

"It's not his fault," Audrey said again. "Something -- something just happened to him."

"Is he contagious?" Duke asked, eyeing Nathan's red and swollen face. Audrey glared at him. "I'm just asking!"

"What happened to him?"

Octavia really missed Wonkru, all of a sudden. At least they'd been obligated to give her straight answers, most of the time.

Yeah, Audrey wasn't at all impressed with Octavia's yelling. She shot Octavia an assessing look, hesitating.

"This is a trouble, isn't it," Duke said. "Whatever was going on at the Freddy got him, too. We can't be crazy right now, Audrey!"

"I don't know if he's contagious," Audrey said with a sigh. "But I do know someone who is. Which is why I have to go find her, which I can't do dragging Nathan around." She looked between the two of them. "Nathan's talked a lot about you two. This is where you both prove him wrong, right?"

Octavia didn't even have anything to say to that.

She was just making an extremely unimpressed face. At least by her own standards.

Yeah, Duke couldn't really argue with that, either. He barely knew Audrey, but Audrey looked like Lucy, and every instinct in him was screaming at him to help her out.

There was just one problem with that.

"This is a bad idea, Audrey," he hissed, voice low.

"Tie him up," Audrey suggested. "He's not going to hurt you again."

"I'm not worried about him hurting me."

"Doesn't he have an entire precinct of friends aside from you, anyway?" Octavia asked, pointedly. "Why aren't they coming to get him? How is this supposed to be our problem?"

She had no need to prove anyone anything. Not here.

"He's already here," Audrey said, giving Octavia a sharp look. "And you two apparently know enough about the troubles to know that this isn't his fault."

"Call Dwight!" Duke suggested. "He's built like a brick wall, let him wrangle the superstrength with a side of crazy!"

". . . Who's Dwight?"

Duke threw his hands in the air. "Why can't anyone tell anyone anything around here?!"

Octavia wasn't particularly concerned with whose fault it was. She just didn't like Nathan.

Not that she was saying that out loud.

"Makes you miss Fandom, doesn't it."

"Yeah," Duke said on a sigh. "Yeah, it really does."

"Are we good?" Audrey asked, already heading for the dock again. "The trouble should wear off . . . eventually. Dr. Lucassi was back to normal after maybe an hour. I've gotta go."

Duke looked down at Nathan with a groan. "You owe me, Parker."

"Yup!" Audrey called back to him.

"For this and for saving your life!"

"You're the best, Duke!"

And goddammit, if hearing that didn't make part of Duke's poor, neglected heart sing.

He shut his eyes and rubbed his nose. "Right. I'll go get some chain."

"I'll watch him," Octavia rasped.

She did not sound like she approved of how this had gone, nope.

Nathan didn't stir until Duke was just finishing chaining him to one of the posts on the dock. He immediately flung himself into jerking against the chains, vocally straining all the while.

"This is bizarre," Duke said. "He's going to hurt himself."

"Will not," Nathan muttered. "Can't feel it."

"Well aren't you just special, Nate."

Octavia had backed off, gone to sit on one of the crates. She didn't feel like being very involved, but that didn't mean she wouldn't keep watch.

In case anything happened.

Duke, on the other hand, couldn't keep his eyes off Nathan. It was surreal, seeing the man chained down and completely out of his mind like that. Even knowing how terrible the troubles could be, his vague memories and minor run-ins so far couldn't prepare him for -- this. This drooling, groaning, flushed and sweaty mess. This total breakdown in everything that made Nathan human.

"Nothing hurts you, does it, Nathan. Even when you try."

"At least I'm not a parasite," Nathan shot back, wild grin on his face. "Like you." He started laughing, loud and full-throated, like he couldn't stop.

Duke laughed along, humoring him. "That's a good one."

Nathan flung himself against the chains again, panting. "Just using people. . . ." He laughed, bouncing in place. "Like you always do. Plan on using Audrey, too?"

Duke took a deep breath through his nose, reminding himself not to rise to Nathan's level.

Nathan kept laughing. "Of course you are. Of course you are, that's what you do! You and your little whore --"

He cut off when Duke's fist collided with his face.

Over her years in the bunker, Octavia had learned to pack away her feelings when she needed to. It had allowed her to stay impassive when she'd watched her people slaughter each other down in the fighting pits, and it allowed her to stay that way now as she watched Nathan struggle in his chains. She focused on observing, waiting to see whether she'd need to do anything.

Otherwise, her heart would have been aching for Duke.

Nathan's little jab at her, however, would probably not have gotten to her even if she hadn't been keeping a tight rein on her emotions. She'd been called much worse, by people who mattered much more.

But that didn't mean seeing the punch happen wasn't satisfying.

Nathan was just so punchable!

The trouble being, Nathan didn't even feel it. That and that punching a guy in the face was a great way to get their blood on you.

Nathan spit and laughed. "Can't hurt me, remember?"

Duke lurched to his feet, eyes glued to his hand and the specks of blood absorbing into his skin. He spun, not wanting Nathan to see. Not wanting to see Nathan, tied down and helpless and so goddamn infuriating, just asking to be ended.

Nathan didn't have any family. Other than the Chief, who'd never shown any signs of his trouble. Killing him wouldn't do anything but put blood on Duke's hands, metaphorically and literally. Duke grit his teeth and wrapped his arms around himself as he staggered down the dock.

Maybe throwing himself into the water would help keep this damn trouble under control.

The thing about the trick of Octavia boxing up her feelings and pushing them aside was that it only worked until something came along that was too strong and busted right on through anyway.

And seeing Duke react like that, well, it was something she recognized.

She was on her feet instantly, but didn't move. Just -- watched, but now with a heavy weight inside her, a squirming thing of worry.

"Gonna cry?!" Nathan shouted after him. "'Run home and cry, baby!' Do you remember that?" He flung himself against the chains, moaning again. "Do you remember telling me that, Duke?!"

Duke ignored him. He made it to the end of the docks and sat abruptly, feet dangling over the edge as he curled in on himself and tried to breathe through the rush. The boards of the dock cracked under his fingers. If he had to get up right now, he'd take chunks of them with him.

Slowly, the rush subsided. And Duke was left with just his bruised throat and aching head, and Nathan screaming and taunting him from the other end of the dock.

Octavia crossed over onto the dock as Duke moved away, watching him but keeping Nathan in her peripheral vision. Had to watch them, both but for different reasons.

More or less, anyway.

"Shut up," she told Nathan, cold and assertive - and one hundred percent sure it wouldn't do anything.

Not a blessed thing. Well, other than making Nathan snarl at her like an animal, anyway.

Duke shivered faintly -- he was still shirtless -- and tilted his head into the sun, his eyes closed. He wondered if he'd ever be able to come back here without running headfirst into his trouble and his and Nathan's past.

He wished he could pretend that meant he wouldn't keep coming back here.

He slowly stood and made his way back over, head still down, hand wrapped around the back of his neck. "So. Naturally, Nathan goes nuts and his first instinct is to come try to kill me."

"'Cause you're a prick," Nathan spat.

"Yes, thank you." Duke waved him off and looked at Octavia. "What do you suppose everyone else in Haven would do if they lost their minds? Maybe we should be on the look out for more attackers."

Octavia wanted to ask if he was okay.

But she knew he wasn't, even without asking. So instead, she cast a glance around. "Maybe," she said. "Though I feel like if we were about to get swarmed, it would've started happening already."

"Point," Duke said, ignoring Nathan as he flung himself into his rocking and moaning routine. "And Audrey seemed to think she could get a handle on . . . whoever was running around causing this."

"Audrey likes the strange stuff," Nathan said. "Must be why she seems to like you."

"Jealous, Nathan?" Duke asked.

Nathan hissed wetly through his teeth.

Octavia squeezed her eyes shut for just a second. But very tightly.

"I shouldn't hit him until he shuts up."

Not a question. She was just telling herself that.

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