>"I try not to keep that-- It isn't my experience. People can't keep things from me, Hades. Just... think about that."

Hades sobered at the comment. He of all people knew the treasures and darkness that lurked withing memories.

"My apologies" Said Hades. "I did not mean to be insensitive."

>"I suggest you get a puppy and learn to behave.”

"Puppy Huh?" Hades mulled the idea over. It did have merit. Perhaps a wolf hound or two and two Caucasians, and perhaps a Doberman. Once upon a time Hades had helped train attack and guard dogs in Mongolia. He resolved to look in to it later. "Perhaps I just might, and probably more than one." Hades said smiling. It would be fun, well not at first, but the results would be well worth the effort.

>"Please don't do this, Hades."

Hades blinked. Had he crossed a line. Then he figured that she might have some triggers what with loosing memories and having her mind turned inside out. Triggers for PTSD or the equivalent for one who's mind has been mauled are always unpredictable. Ah well best leave the joking alone for a while.

"Once again, my apologies, I don't seem to be doing very well today."

He stared ahead, more than a little frustrated with himself for his social ineptness. Then his thoughts turned elsewhere. Friends, the word reverberated in Hades mind. Usually when he was working he would shut down such thoughts. But here now, with Noel, he was relaxed. He allowed his thoughts to turn where they would. Friends....

Without realizing it, Hades had murmured the word aloud. His eyes contemplative. As he turned the word over in his mind, names started to come to him, names floating up from the depth of memories. Again without realizing it he murmured them out loud.

"Fergus, Wyatt, Winters, Cardsharp, Bull, Lip... friends." As he whispered the names, there was a ghost of a smile on his lips. He could remember their faces, their accent, their antics. There was a tinge of sadness to his expression. He was not just a keeper of secrets, but also a keeper of memories. It was almost time to visit their graves. They had all served together in WWII. He shook his head, returning back to the origin of his current train of thought. Well at least he discovered that he had a friend he could call on in a time of need. Friend enough to help, but perhaps not yet friend enough to joke around.... yet.

He realized that he had been staring into the distance for a minute or so. He turned to Noel.

"Sorry, lost in memories."

He wasn't getting it. Noel would have pulled out her hair if she hadn't already been holding her face. He wasn't being sensitive to the thing she'd hoped he could pick up and Noel was too much of a coward to straight up tell him she didn't want to get stuck in an intimate memory while out in public. She squirmed in her seat anyway.

And it didn't help in the least that he took her snippy comment to heart. She told him to get a puppy, now suddenly he wanted a whole pack? "Hades you are so..." She let her hands drop as she cast around for the word. What were kids saying these days? "Extra. You're over the top. And you're out of the house too much to be a responsible pet owner. I was kidding about the puppy. Kind of. The responsibility..." Aaand he was lost.

Hades could space out almost as much as she did sometimes.

His lips were moving. "Please don't be having a stroke or something." Noel glanced over at her keeper. Haley seemed fine so Noel leaned in to be able to hear what he was saying.

A list of names that ended with the word "friends."

> "Sorry, lost in memories."

Immortals. She sat herself back into her seat with a relieved sigh.

"Friends." She confirmed while trying to ignore the building headache. "Sounds like you got 'em in spades. Why don't you give them a visit? Get yourself grounded." This reunion was not at all what she'd expected and Noel couldn't figure out if it was her being weird or him. Or both.

Noel seemed frustrated. To be honest Hades was beginning to feel a little frustrated himself. Was it his imagination or did they seem to be communicating on two different wavelengths.

>"Hades you are so...Extra. You're over the top. And you're out of the house too much to be a responsible pet owner. I was kidding about the puppy. Kind of. The responsibility..."

Hades mere raised his eyebrows. He had thought it a good suggestion. Puppies would reach adult stage in 12 to 16 months. From there it could take 2-3 months depending on temperament to train the dogs to become competent guard/attack dogs.

"Noel, I have raised and trained dogs before, If I did decide to purchase puppies I would stay to train and raise them."

Apparently she had a rather low opinion of his abilities, or perhaps just a low opinion of him in general.

>"Friends. Sounds like you got 'em in spades. Why don't you give them a visit? Get yourself grounded."

Hades smiled bitterly. Ground himself? He was taking time to slow down, to re-assess things, to process. Months in the wilderness with no distractions had given Hades much time to think. Grounded? It seemed that Noel was the one that could use some grounding. To slow down, to perhaps pause in this frantic grasping of life, perhaps to process and make peace with the memories that she had or that she had picked up. She definitely was on a different wavelength. Perhaps this would be a good time to end this..reunion. She did not seem to be in such a great place herself.

"Friends of that nature, I do indeed have in spades." The emotions slowly drained from his face, leaving that professional, calm, inscrutable mask. He gathered his things as if to rise. It was clear that much had happened to Noel and at present she was not that interested in being forthcoming or talking about anything serious. Perhaps it was the location, or perhaps she was still "grounding" herself.

"Feel free to visit them any time in Brooklyn. They can be found at Green-Wood Cemetery." He paused for a moment.

"It was good to see you Noel. It appears that since we last met we both have been through a lot. It appears a great many things have changed, and as you suggested, grounding may be required." He did not mention who needed the grounding.

"I will contact you once the sale is complete. Unless there is anything more....." He trailed off, turning as if to leave, unless there was something Noel wished to say. 

She did it again. Noel was getting far too good at opening her mouth and inserting her foot. She could tell the moment when he shut off.

This was exactly why she shouldn't talk to people.

> "Feel free to visit them any time in Brooklyn. They can be found at Green-Wood Cemetery."

She paled. Noel had just told him to go visit with them and to go ground himself!? She may as well have just told him to go kill himself which was very much not at all what she'd meant to do.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know. I shouldn't have said that." Was it a cop-out to let him know that she'd only just re-learned how to speak English? That everything was always changing and here she was, always entirely broken?

> "I will contact you once the sale is complete. Unless there is anything more....."

"Please don't go." She was miserable, but her plea was only half-hearted. She'd brought this on herself and though she could see her mistake now, she wasn't so sure how to avoid it next time... or if there would ever be a next time.

Was he mad that she didn't think he'd be good at taking care of puppies?

"Wait. Did you say... you're staying?" He always seemed so in and out before. She'd tried to keep tabs on him, but with her missing time and neither of them being transparent about their schedules, there was no telling if he'd actually been gone at all. But a puppy... that was actually a good marker of the passage of time for Noel. They only got bigger. And if he wanted one (or a dozen or whatever)... he had to be present enough to care for it. Training, he'd said.

"Staying here staying? Staying long enough to train puppies staying?" Well, she figured she'd try to be clear considering the foot in mouth she'd suffered earlier.

>"I'm sorry. I didn't know. I shouldn't have said that. Please don't go."

Hades sat back down from his risen position, slightly mollified. He allowed his professional mask to drop slowly. Emotions started to return to his formerly expressionless face and his eyes grew less cold. Noel looked miserable. Hades ire and frustration began to cool. Even though Hades and Noel had interacted for a relatively short period of time, they had been through much together and she was still one of the few people Hades actually trusted.

>"Wait. Did you say... you're staying?"

Hades nodded and took a breath but before he could speak, Noel continued in the manner of a drowning person clutching at straws, desperate and slightly frantic.

>"Staying here staying? Staying long enough to train puppies staying?"

He smiled gently. "Yes Noel I am staying for a while. At one point in my life I was in charge of a war kennel. I know what is required to train scout, guard, attack and ever war dogs."

He sat back, a little more relaxed. "It usually takes 12 to 16 months for dogs to reach adult stage depending on breed. Then the real training begins and that can take anywhere from 4-6 months. There are companies who can do it in a shorter time but my training tends to be more through."

Any dog Hades trained would be capable of fending for itself in the wilds for extended periods of time. It was one of the requirements that He had if he was ever going to take them on missions.

"Probably a Doberman for guard and a wolf dogs or two and one or two Caucasians for War hounds."

He paused. Best not bore Noel with facts and figures. Then he had a thought.

"Would you like me to train you one?"

He asked with a smile, half jestingly. Perhaps she could use a dog. It might help her and at the very lease help protect her. She seemed more than capable of getting herself into all sorts of situations that posed hazards to her physical, emotional and mental health, often to all three.

"Besides," He continued, "I need to stay around to look into purchasing and setting up additional safe houses."

He knew better to offer her one this time. She seemed to dislike gifts? and needing the items given even more? Though if she asked he would happily part with one. Perhaps he would buy a hotel, or actually open one. that would be fun. He knew just the one....

Would she... like a puppy?

How the conversation had come around to Noel getting a puppy was, frankly, confusing. "I couldn't be responsible for a dog." Which was the same exact excuse she'd thought was Hades' problem. She'd thought about it before, but she just wasn't lonely or whatever dogs were actually for.

"I have enough trouble just keeping myself fed and watered. Can you imagine me with a dog...?" She was rationalizing it too much. Talking herself out of it despite what might have been a hint of interest.

She would do what she always did: the responsible thing.

Did she want him to train her one? No. "I'd want to learn to train it myself." She teased. Was she entertaining the idea?

No. No, no. Of course not.

Noel had to distract him, quick, before he bought her something she'd have to take care of for the rest of its life.

"Investing in property again?"

>"I couldn't be responsible for a dog."

Hades raised an eyebrow. That was an excuse. Hades had seen Noel in action, she had the discipline if she set her mind to it.

>"I have enough trouble just keeping myself fed and watered. Can you imagine me with a dog...?"

There she went again, trying to rationalize the issue away. Noel seemed to be afraid of commitment. Perhaps it was time to change that. Hades grinned inwardly to himself, careful to keep any such expression from showing on his face.

>"I'd want to learn to train it myself."

Hades nodded "Very well."

Under the table Hades had brought out a burn phone, they type with a physical key pad. Without showing any motion above the table to give anything away he typed the following message:

"Winston, track address for one Noel, currently residing in Haven. Mail following package. Canine. Breed Caucasian. Gender, Female. Quantity...2" Hades was never certain if he intentionally sent two dogs to Noel or if his finger just happened to slip at that moment. Either way, he had pressed the send button out of reflex before he had time to give it a second thought. It was done now. Noel would be in for an interesting time. Hades turned back to the conversation at hand, with no indication that his attention had ever been temporarily divided.

>"Investing in property again?"

"Yes, firstly it is always wise to keep a number of safe houses ready should the need arise. But since I am going to be here for a duration, I am thinking something larger as well. Perhaps a Mall or a hotel or two. I have had my eye on a number of properties."

Was she trying to change the subject? She was, Hades was sure of it. But her efforts would be in vain. Winston would not fail at his task and Noel would be receiving two puppies. Caucasians lived for 10-12 years and females could grow up to 220lbs and 28+inches tall. This would be....interesting.