milliways_bar | (no subject)

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It may be some time before Quinn gets up the nerve to walk outside again, no matter how appealing the green landscape is. At least he's starting to think he knows why. He's not going to be staying here much longer. Not if his world keeps grabbing him back and pulling other people with him. It's nearly time to go home.

Still, he could do with a proper dinner or two before he has everything together, so he makes his way down to the Bar and finds a convenient booth. It'll do as well as anywhere else, really.

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And there's an audible sigh.

"I know. Especially if Russia and China get involved."

Pause.

"Think of your dragons, only human and not burning quite as much."

Quinn winces. "I see," he murmurs.

Bonzo notices the wince.

"Sorry about that."

Quinn waves a hand. "Can't be helped. It's not the sort of thing that ever goes down easy."

"Thanks." He pauses briefly, thinking. "How'd you end up meeting Dooku, anyway?"

"Tell you the truth, I don't recall the details," Quinn says. "It was a while ago. I'd just come back from an accidental trip home, and we had an injured man and a boy on fire. He showed up to see what was going on. Offered to help."

"Ah. That would attract his attention. How did you end up coming back with two other people?"

"Well, I left with three," Quinn says. "No, that's not fair. I did come back with all three. Arithon wasn't hurt, though, just shocked as hell. They were along to help me find a friend who'd gone and got lost, and wandered into my world with me by mistake."

"You can do that?"

First he's heard of it happening.

"'Can''s a bit misleading," Quinn says. "It's never been my idea yet- happened three times now."

"And it just happens randomly?" Bonzo pauses, pondering this. "Bar has a strange sense of humor."

"Bar's a sick bitch if that's her idea of a joke," Quinn mutters.

Bonzo shrugs. "Sometimes I wonder if Bar knows the effects of some things she does before she does them. Like bringing me in about two minutes before I was supposed to die."

"That how it happened for you?" Quinn says. "I was on my way to the stable at home. What were you dying of?"

"Stupidity."

Bonzo says that derisively, rolling his eyes.

"You might narrow it down a bit," Quinn says mildly.

Bonzo sighs.

"Another boy at the school had beaten me in a battle and inadvertantly rubbed it in my face. I lost my temper and decided to beat the crap out of him. As I was on my way in, Bar decided to bring me in here."

"Ah," says Quinn. "Lucky thing for you, then. What wound up happening when you left?"

"Well, there are two versions...what was 'supposed' to happen and what did happen."

Pause.

"I was 'supposed' to fight the kid in the bathroom and die in the fight. He'd then go on to beat the Buggers, despite not wanting to. However, I had the fight in here with an older version of Ender and found out I'd lose."

Quinn considers this, scratching at his nose. "Sounds like something out of an old Doctor Who episode," he says at last.

"Oh? What's Doctor Who?"

"Television show from before the dragons," Quinn says. "There was time travel in. I don't remember much more than that."

"Ah. Yeah...well, I'd like to note that there have been more side-effects than I'd like to consider from my trip in here, notably that Ender didn't win that war."

And there would be a decidedly embarassed look on Bonzo's face at that fact.

"That doesn't sound good," Quinn murmurs.

Apparently, British understatement survived the dragons and is alive and well at Alnwick castle.

"It isn't. Everybody's blaming everybody else, and the IF...the government that was fighting the war...has effectively collapsed."