Flowers were his go-to when Jude was feeling all emotionally expressive. He hadn't realized it until he caught himself browsing a flower shop near the subway station. He was trying to surprise someone who meant a whole lot to him. But what flowers said "thanks for scraping me up off the street, are you proud of me yet?"

Probably the biggest ones he could find.

"Can I buy one of these?" Jude knew he was going over the top this time, and again decided some social lines were just worth blowing right past. He had to turn it a bit sideways and squat to get it on the subway. He didn't mind hefting it down the street in his jacket and sweater vest. As far as Jude was concerned, it was perfect.

He checked his notes on where Jack lived now. It was sheer coincidence that he'd run across that information, working at BlacTac. But he knew it was a sign from the universe (r something). The time had come to say thanks.

And, conveniently enough, he worked with the security guys who worked there. So it was literally no big deal when he asked for them to ring up Jack and tell her that she had a delivery.

Jude waited as close to the elevators as he was allowed. Whatever Haven was into, it was hella fancy. He held the trellis of sweet pea climbing vines as best he could, even if that meant his face was easily covered. Meh. She'd know it was him as soon as the flowers were hers.

Despite having lived in Devon's complex for almost a year, the newness of Jack's apartment was jarring. Her last place (the place she'd accidentally blown-up) had been really low-tech, a hole-in-the-wall brick building that, in the event there was a visitor, they'd either need a cell phone or a fine pair of lungs to holler up at a resident's window. In Devon's building, there was a whole paging system accessible from a few key points...

The prawn didn't get many pages. Sometimes from Devon... sometimes from Emma... but otherwise, her intercom was mostly silent. As such, when it sputtered to life, the young woman nearly jumped out of her skin. It was just one of the security guys... saying that she had a visitor. Huh, that was annoyingly vague enough. She did appreciate the extra level of security, even if the intercom system gae her a heart attack every time.

"...'kay," the prawn replied simply, pressing the button to reply. The security guys were pretty diligent. It was probably Emma... who, for a friend (with benefits) certainly visited a lot. Regardless, Jack wriggled into some clothes with the time she was allotted... a tank top that didn't stink, boxers, cargo shorts. Very casual. She didn't even bother with a surgical mask.

Minutes later, there was a knock, and the prawn padded to the door, peering through the peephole. She saw a blur of pink and purple. She unlocked door, pulling it open, and was greeted by... flowers.

"I-" Jack began. The remark, "I never took you to be a romantic," was on the tip of her tongue. But the pile of tousled brown hair just barely visible over the spray of blooming flowers clued Jack into the fact that this miiiight not be Emma.

"Hi," the prawn elected to say instead. Last Jack checked, she didn't have any young, male suitors. Maybe he had a wrong apartment? (And of course, she wouln't recognize him, because when she'd known him, he'd been much... spiny-er, "Nay I hel' you?"

The door opened. He could kind of see it underneath the planter. That was doubly confirmed when she started to say something and then stopped. And then started again.

Could she... help him? Didn't she recognize him? But Jude stopped and thought back and... duh. he'd been hiding out as her until he'd gotten that first job that helped snowball him back onto his own two feet.

"Uhm. These- I-" Well now he was all flustered and off his game. It hurt not being recognized even if she legitimately had no reason to know him. Jude worked to set the flowers down because it was distracting to have a literally bush between him and the person he was trying to talk to.

"Once upon a time, you shared a sandwich with a kid in an alleyway. He busted out of his clothes when he copied your power?" Surely she remembered that part. And as much as he hated calling himself a kid? Well, maybe he had done quite a bit of growing in that time... "Uhm. Hi? It's nice to meet you, I guess. I'm Jude. I brought- I mean I wanted to say thank you. Now that I'm back on my feet and stuff." He gestured toward the pink and purple flowers.

Jack stood by patiently as the kid sputtered. Poor thing. Maybe he'd manage to trip over a name so that the prawn could point him in the right direction. Idly, Jack wondered who he might really be here for... she at least knew most of her neighbors by their first name, though she only *really* knew Sveta.

>> "Once upon a time, you shared a sandwich with a kid in an alleyway. He busted out of his clothes when he copied your power?"

There was a pregnant pause-- at least, it felt that way to Jack-- she didn't exactly go around giving sandwiches to people in alleyways, particularly adolescents. The specificity of the scenario brought Jude hastily to mind.

Yes, of course, she remembered him. A hand rose to the prawn's mouth, her eyelids flaring a fraction in disbelief. How was that... even possible? Of course, there were ways to be found, Jack knew that-- that wasn't her question-- how... how was he there?

Thankfully, Jude rambled-on, for the prawn was left reeling in dissonance.

>> "Uhm. Hi? It's nice to meet you, I guess. I'm Jude. I brought- I mean I wanted to say thank you. Now that I'm back on my feet and stuff."

"Jude," the prawn echoed, her tone quavering in disbelief. He was there, really there, on her threshold. Jack couldn't stop herself. Two, massive arms wrapped around the kid, squeezing him in a heartfelt hug, "Kid, it's good to see you! You look diss-erent all squishy and hyu-nan."

She patted him on the back and released him, tears welling in her eyes. One who knew know better might say that Jack was simply touched by the reunion. This was by no means inaccurate, but... as Jack drank in his appearance, something else was still reeling through her brain. 'I thought you were dead. I watched you die.'

Or, at least, someone she'd thought was Jude... but she was really relieved it hadn't been him.

"'lease, cun in," the prawn insisted, "Don't wanna leaz you in duh hallway holdin' down duh car-tet."

The way she said his name made the Frenchman look up, all the way up, to Jack's misting eyes.

He got his hug. Tight with all the fierceness of recognition and time passed and worry. That was what he'd wanted. Someone who cherished the fact that he was here. To tell him he mattered. He may have even gotten a little choked up as well, despite the fact that he'd only stayed with Jack for a week or two.

It's just that the weeks prior to those had been so hard. And staying with Jack had been without judgement or comment on his history or choices. Just support when he'd needed it most. He wrapped his arms back around, knowing just how to dodge the vestigial arms he'd also had for a little while.

Of course she would comment on his looks. Last time they'd been twinsies.

"Yeah. I usually walk around like this. I kinda forgot you'd never seen me-me." He laughed and scrubbed a little of that moisture away from his eyes when he was released. He was actively canceling his own power from the moment he walked into the building. He knew this was a building full of mutants and he'd just been hugging on one. He reaaaally did not want to bust out of his clothes or catch an unexpected mutation.

"I tried going, like, ten years older and I tried being a girl, once. This is what I go back to." He picked up the flowers and chatted after he was invited in. The flowers went right back down, just on the inside of the doorway.

"I got a couple random jobs that didn't end up lasting too long, but now I work security for this place, actually. The Haven building. I just do the clerical stuff, but I saw your picture go by when we entered you into the security system. I hope it's okay to just drop by..." He looked around curiously at the apartments he'd read the specs for several times, but never actually seen in real life before.

Jack held the door open, extending her free arm into the apartment, motioning for Jude to come in. The foyer shot diagonally past a handful of closed doors, leading into the great room. There was a distinct kitchen, dining, and living area, each sparsely but practically furnished. The foyer led past four closed doors, and opened up into living room/kitchen/dining area. In the living room, a sectional couch bracketed a round coffee table, facing a medium-sized flatscreen t.v. Upon the coffee table, there were a few paperbacks, old mail, a laptop. There was a small, round table with four chairs in the kitchen, devoid of clutter. At the far end of the unit, a balcony.

The apartment was distinctly nicer than her previous abode, but just as pragmatic with the decor.

Jack followed Jude smilingly, listening as he recounted where he'd been and what he'd done since they'd last seen each other.

>> "I got a couple random jobs that didn't end up lasting too long, but now I work security for this place, actually. The Haven building. I just do the clerical stuff, but I saw your picture go by when we entered you into the security system. I hope it's okay to just drop by..."

To think their paths would split and then cross again like this.

"You work here?" Jack clicked in disbelief, "I nan-age duh clu' downstairs."

Maybe he already knew that, though. She wasn't sure how thorough their background checks were.

"You're al'ays nor den wel-cun to swing 'y," the prawn was, burbling with delight, "You know dat."

Jack was trying to play at cool, but the sense of relief, of delight over seeing Jude here in the flesh, was barely containable. She wanted to tell him everything, but how? Jack pried her eyes off of him, stalking out of view into the L-shaped kitchen.

"Sirs-ty?" she trilled, "Hun-gry?"

"I don't work here exactly." He clarified. "I work for the company that secures the premises. BlacTac. Uhm. That's Blackforest Tactical. I work for Michael Hunter." He was sure to name drop and make sure he had his "in." He should be allowed in here, even if it was residents and guests only. At least Chief said he was okay to stop in. That made him brim with warmth.

Was it just Jude or did Chief seem rather happy today?

"Look at you going all maternal... paternal... parental." He tried a few words before settling on the one that felt best in his teasing. "I wouldn't mind a sandwich, if you just happen to have one laying around." Honestly, he could throw down a surprising amount of food at almost any moment. Jude hoped that meant he was growing. The up kind of growing. Not the out kind. He still had a while before he could look Chief in the eyes without a crick in his neck.

"Do you like it here? Are they nice? It seems really exclusive. I-in a good way, I guess." He went for a chair at the table in the kitchen. If he was getting fed, that was where he should go, right?

And, my, wasn't this a step up from the last place? The couch wasn't her old crufty one. He didn't remember enough about the kitchen to know if that was the same kitchen table or not...

"I guess the work's not too bad. No security incidents big enough for me to hear about." In all honesty, the Haven building was one big black box for him. He knew a couple people inside, but it wasn't like the guys gossiped at the water cooler about what went on inside.

>> "I don't work here exactly. I work for the company that secures the premises. BlacTac. Uhm. That's Blackforest Tactical. I work for Michael Hunter."

"Nn, Nigh-cole," the prawn clicked affirmatively. She'd made his acquaintance at the party, "He's a good guy."

>> "Look at you going all maternal... paternal... parental. I wouldn't mind a sandwich, if you just happen to have one laying around."

With the request of a sandwich, Jack went to the fridge to rummage for fixings... cheese, meat, condiments, lettuce, tomatoes, bread... all these were deposited in the counter. Jude took a seat at the table, so Jack maneuvered to a place at the counter where she could see him out of the corner of her eye, or by turning her head to the left... It still felt surreal to see him there... in the flesh... not remotely dead...

>> "Do you like it here? Are they nice? It seems really exclusive. I-in a good way, I guess."

"Good con-'lex," the prawn confirmed, retrieving plates and a knife, "Good unit, nice neigh'ors... It's a little nor ex'ensi'e den ny last 'lace so it's not as..." the prawn broke off. Her last place had been cost-effective, but not in a nice area by any means. Jack didn't run into much trouble by virtue of the fact that she looked like she could tear a phonebook in two the way others would tear a sheet of paper, "... well, you know."

Jack went quiet as she fixed the sandwiches, periodically lifting ingredients up for Jude to accept or decline. Mayo? ... Mustard? ... Lettuce? Tomatoes? Cheese? Pastrami, or turkey? These would then be added to the both sandwiches, or just to Jack's, before being set aside.

>> "I guess the work's not too bad. No security incidents big enough for me to hear about."

Jack padded to the table, shaking her head, a finished sandwich in each hand. She set one in front of Jude, and one across from him. The prawn made a momentary return to the kitchen for a pitcher of water and two glasses, before finally taking her seat.

"Nigh-cole has a to'-notch setup," the prawn murmured, "I don't think here's any rune sore dra-nuh to get in."

She didn't exactly have an insider's knowledge of the building either. She knew the club, that was it. Jack poured herself a glass of water, peering across the table at... well, her surrogate son, for lack of a better word. Something was eating at her, still. And it would keep eating at her until she said something about it.

"Has you... had any run-in's wiss solks s-run duh udder side?" she asked, before taking a sip of water. From what Jack heard, her exposure to people from the other universe happened later than most others, making her a minority in her former cluelessness.

For whatever reason, maybe because he'd spent a good portion of his life with an accent or because he'd borrowed those same mouth parts, understanding what Chief said wasn't ever an issue. If the sounds were written out or if he over thought it, maybe it would have been, but hearing it out loud was like conversing with anybody else.

"He is a good guy." Jude confirmed. "He took a chance on me and I'd really hate to let him down." If Chief was his father-figure, Michael might just be the mom in this bizarre upside down world.

He nodded along with Chief's assessment of the place. It was nice. It just felt... fake, somehow. Like it was too good to be true. Chief held up his choice of meats and Jude pointed toward pastrami.

"I kinda went the opposite. I got a spot in one of those community living set ups. There's pot lucks and stuff so I feel like I actually know my neighbors a little. For a bit, I was tutoring a girl with her English, but I guess she's not interested any more." Or she got herself murdered. Jude had to wonder sometimes, but really tried not to go down that road. Astrid hadn't come home or paid rent so management had locked her door. It probably wouldn't feel real until someone else moved on his floor along with Gina.

Mayo? Yes. Mustard? Yes. Lettuce? He wasn't about to say no to any of it. A real, full sandwich was such a luxury. He was glad that Chief hadn't only made one for him. It was weird to eat alone with someone watching. Better that they both eat, even if their mouthparts no longer matched.

> "Has you... had any run-in's wiss solks s-run duh udder side?"

She was trying to be casual, but something struck him as odd about the question.

"No, I haven—" He trailed off as he realized that he had, actually. "Wait. I have. I met other-Michael, actually. And a couple other suspicious people BlacTac was looking into." But the real question was important enough to delay his sandwich eating. "Why?"

Jack was still meticulously assembling her sandwich when Jude responded. Sandwich-making was a serious business, and one needed an even spread of all the ingredients. Pastrami slices ever so slightly overlapped-- chese configuresd in an almost argyle configuration...

>> "No, I haven— Wait. I have. I met other-Michael, actually. And a couple other suspicious people BlacTac was looking into."

Jack was decorating the leaves of lettuce on her sandiwch with a moderate squiggle of mustard when Jude spoke.

>> "Why?"

The prawn shrugged.

"Saw duh udder nee," she grunted, setting the mustard bottle down, "Guess it ne'er occurred to nee dat you looked hyu-nan sun-tines... nost uzz duh tines..." she chuckled faintly at her own absentmindedness, "...so sore a while, I sought dey were you. And dere was sun-sing... seriously wrong wiss den, like... seral... wild... so I sought... sun-sing had ha'ened..."

A sad smile touched her expression, looking to see if Jude understood. If something bad had happened to Jude, bad enough to make him go "feral" as Jack had termed it...

She picked up the mayo, unscrewing the lid, and retrieved the accompanying knife.

"And den, deez... guys, wiss guns... dey was looking sore duh udder nee," Jack murmured. She picked up the top, unadourned piece of bread, and spread a thin film of mayo on it. Her gaze fixed on the slice of bread, and away from Jude. She couldn't look at him when she said this, "And dey, uh, sound den..."

She placed the top slice onto the sandwich, completing it. "Found them". That was the best way she could put it. Jack couldn't bring herself to say "killed" or "murdered". But "found"... "found" was okay. Jude was a smart boy, he would understand. Jack gazed at her creation for a moment, before finally looking at Jude. She smiled, but there was only the smallest glimmer of happiness in the look. Relief was predominant, and also sadness. She had to tell him why she was so relieved to see him. What his appearance on her doorstep meant, beyond just... a reunion. It meant that the person who'd been murdered in Jack's apartment was really just a stranger, and not... well, Jude. It couldn't be Jude, because Jude was here, eating sandwiches with her.

"I'n really glad it wasn't you. I was scared it was you sore a long tine."

There. She said it. That's why she was so happy. Because part of her had been worried that Jude had died.