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 Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2015 3:36 pm
He had tried to tell Ripley multiple times that he didn't need any sort of compensation for helping him out that one time; but since the other man clearly wasn't taking no for an answer, Chance thought it best to just go along with the flow and let himself have a day off.
That, and the prospect of going off the island was pretty dang appealing, he couldn't lie.
So, early one morning, the white haired man would receive a text:enoh love Text to Ripley:Stopped by your room, but there was no answer. You awake?
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Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2015 4:22 pm
kuuropii Text to: Chance I am. Is everything alright? I'll be in the common room soon.
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Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2015 4:26 pm
As it so happened, Chance met Ripley just before the common room, in the hallway that led to it.
"Hey," he said, by way of greeting, his hands pushed into his pockets. He was dressed in a pair of jeans with star-shaped patches on them, a white long-sleeved sweater with thumb holes, and a leather jacket over top, a beanie on his head of curly black hair.
"Good morning," Chance said, and smiled. "Sleep well? Sorry if I woke you up."
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Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2015 5:25 pm
"Good Morning." Ripley replied curtly, followed by a small shake of his head. "You didn't wake me." He had been up for hours already, woken up by his own struggling internal clock. The pale man had paused in the hallway when he came across Chance, finding that a conversation was much easier accomplished when both parties were still. He did glance at the man in front of him though, taking in his attire for the day; it was very Chance. He liked it. His own clothing for the day was as business-appropriate as it nearly always was: an off-white dress shirt under a deep brown vest with a darker brown, near-black tie, and black dress pants that ended in immaculately clean dress shoes.
"I imagine you are available today?" Chance didn't quite seem the type to reach out so early in the morning for simple brief hang-outs...plus there was that whole unfinished business with the off-island thing, too.
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Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2015 5:41 pm
"Oh, good," said Chance and smiled. Being in Ripley's company was always so easy, even with the quiet - and sometimes lack of - conversation. There was just something very relaxing about being with him, something that Chance found rather appealing. "Glad you were able to get some rest and that you weren't awoken by some idiot knocking loudly at your door."
Grinning, he leaned back against the wall and gave a little laugh. "I am indeed," he said lightly, casting the other man a smile. Business as usual, his outfit said. The tie was met with a certain amount of amusement, not because he thought it looked out of place, but because it was just very Ripley.
"I figured I would see if you were up for that whole trip thing you were talking about."
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Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2015 6:19 pm
"Not today." Ripley gave a thin smile. Being woken up by some idiot knocking on his door was fairly commonplace; but when he stayed over at Finn's, it was a lot less likely to happen. When Chance brought up the trip thing, which Ripley had assumed was the plan from the beginning text, he gave a small nod.
"I am. I can delegate my duties today." Which was lucky, at least. He tucked his phone into his pocket, and placed his hands on his hips, his gaze moving way from Chance in thought. "I've given it some thought." His gaze settled back on Chance, unmoving and steadfast. "I found a place. It is open, but it won't be warm." It was a place he thought Chance might like, if everything he read and imagined was true. It didn't quite match the criteria the other man had placed, though.
"Is that alright?"
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Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2015 6:27 pm
The smile on Chance's face widened a little further. "Awesome, I'm glad," he said sincerely. Even if he hadn't intended on making Ripley make good on his promise, the idea of getting off the island with someone interesting and that he got along relatively well with was a nice thing to look forward to, regardless.
His eyebrows rose; clearly Ripley had spent more time thinking about this than Chance had given him credit for. His curiosity piqued, Chance just gave a little laugh.
"Sure, I don't mind a little cold; I can run up and get another coat, if you mean that it'll be like, freezing, but I'm willing to brave it."
Chance looked surprisingly excited by the prospect. "I'm definitely okay with it," he said.
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Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2015 6:43 pm
"Temperatures vary between -40 and 35, in Fahrenheit." Ripley parroted the information as though he were reading from a brochure. "Pack for an overnight trip. Unless you object." He doubted there would be any objections, though if there were any, it would be about the temperature and not the length of stay. "Bring your telescope." It was added as an afterthought, though a somewhat sad one; half of the surprise was sucked out of the trip, but alas, it was a necessary evil he supposed. He had no idea if the place would have some on hand.
"I will meet you at the portal in an hour?" That should give him plenty of time to prepare, at any rate.
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Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2015 6:52 pm
He just stared at Ripley for a moment because that wasn't a definition of cold, Ripley, that was freezing.
But then he laughed and shook his head. "Extra blankets, extra coats, extra everything, got it," he said, giving Ripley a nod and a little wave. The telescope comment made him lift his brows, but the excitement was growing at the idea that he could actually use it somewhere other than a crowded island. It might be a little bit awkward to carry, but that was beside the point.
"See you soon," Chance promised, and flitted upstairs.
It didn't take him too long to pack the clothes; everything went into a small backpack, while the telescope was a different story. Chance stripped one of the blankets off of his bed and laid it in the bottom of his duffle bag. Then he carefully disassembled the telescope as much a he dared and set it on top of the blanket, wrapping it around and using a second, thinner blanket to tuck it all in securely. Chance stood, testing the weight cautiously, and was pleased to note that his little idea seemed to have worked perfectly.
He made it to the portal with ten minutes to spare and a new blue hoody beneath the leather jacket.
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Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2015 7:51 pm
Chance left him, and after he watched for a moment he turned and headed to his own room. The first thing he did was change, replacing his business attire for something much warmer and appropriate for camping. He wore a thick sweater and a long sleeve shirt underneath, warm pants and thick socks un winter boots. His toque, scarf and gloves were set aside for now, besides a winter coat. Extra clothing was set out and eventually packed into a back pack of his own, with a duffel bag for a couple thermal blankets and a few extra things they may need for the course of one cold, freezing night.
He had already formed the game plan in his head, and as such he was able to get to the portal room much faster than he had intended; he was there in half an hour with all his items in tow, which gave him more than enough time to get everything situated with the portal techs, along with a third, long bag that would very likely come in handy.
The tech had just finished preparing the coordinates when Chance arrived - early, Ripley noted with a small but approving smile. He liked early. The tech was given a nod, and the portal came to life before them.
"Ready?"
---
The portal set them right outside of a place called 'Denali Dome Home' - but a small side sign read 'Keys to Denali', which was perhaps a little more helpful by the looks of things. Ripley however, said nothing; a notion that was likely unsurprising to say the least.
"Stay here." He ordered, hoping this time to have a little more success this time, and left his bags with Chance as he entered the building. Several minutes later he returned, his bright smile fading quickly into the usual non-committal set of his lips on a fairly expressionless face. He had keys in his hand though, and soon he had his bags again too, packing them into the back seat of an unremarkable black car.
"I hope you trust me." He offered a smile, briefly amused, and pulled open the driver's door, imagining that Chance would take the hint and enter the car as wll.
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Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2015 8:00 pm
Denali Dome Home made little sense to Chance at all; it was also brisk and cold, his breath visible in the air. He stood obediently outside and waited for Ripley to return, rubbing his hands together and glancing around to try and figure out where the heck they even were and why they needed a key to get there.
He thought he caught a whiff of a smile on Ripley's face - Chance gave him a suspicious look as it was, but the other man was impassive as ever, his expression inscrutable. Now insanely curious, Chance reached for the passenger side door.
"I put my life in your hands, Ripley Crowell," he deadpanned, but he climbed into the car and shut the door, glancing around.
"Where exactly is this and where exactly are we going, may I ask? Or are you just not gonna tell me until we actually get there, because I think I'll be okay either way. Unless you're planning on murdering me," Chance added mildly, threading his fingers together. "In which case, please make sure that my telescope is taken care of."
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Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2015 8:39 pm
"I'll take good care of it." Ripley promised, but gave nothing else as he twisted to gaze through the back seat, the car in reverse until he could safely drive from the parking lot. He avoided location-specific conversation, but it seemed like they arrived at their destination in no time flat anyway, as he drove through the gates that read Denali National Park.
Still, he said nothing, even as he pulled up to the Winter Visitor Center and put the car in park. Until, finally:
"We need a camping permit to go any further." He informed Chance, as he climbed out of the car. "I can do this on my own, unless you'd like to ruin your surprise further."
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Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2015 8:42 pm
Chance just reclined back in his seat, shifting so that he could bend his legs and put his feet up on the dash. Casting a sideways glance at Ripley, he gave a little smile and then settled in comfortably, trying to mentally figure out where they were going without actually asking any questions that he knew wouldn't be answered.
The Denali National Park sign made him perk up a little, however, Chance lifting his head and staring at it, trying to figure out where exactly that was. The air outside was brisk, and Chance huddled in the car, arms wrapped around his torso.
"I'll wait here," he said and smiled. "I like surprises, and you seem to be doing pretty well about this. I'll let you take the reigns here, so you lead, and I'll follow."
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Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2015 9:05 pm
"Too trusting." Ripley clicked his tongue in amusement, getting out of the car alone - but showing his own brand of trust by leaving the keys in the ignition. He returned half hour later to the still-warm car, climbing in and buckling up before driving once more. It was slow going and cautious, trying to stay on a path that seemed hard to find in the snow. Eventually the path opened up to them, showing little secluded spaces between the trees; and one, at the very back, was where he stopped. The car was parked between two large trees that seemed to stand guard in front of a clearing.
"Have you ever pitched a tent?" He inquired with a small smirk, vaguely finding his choice of words amusing, though they weren't really meant to be. His exit from the car was not without lingering, torn between wanting to stay in the warmth and to get this exciting evening started...but he did leave, and he did grab one of the bags from the back seat of the car, though the majority was left behind for now.
"Where should we set up?" Was his final inquiry, as he stood in front of the car to take a look at the modest space around them, a clear camping spot with defined perimeters, the outside scattered with trees of varying sizes. The sky was an overcast grey, but it did nothing to dampen the brightness of the fairly fresh snow on the ground. Near the centre of the grounds was a fire pit, that seemed to have been unused for some time.
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Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2015 9:13 pm
"Or maybe just too curious," Chance called after him, rolling up the window and making himself nice and warm in the car. He may have even dozed off a little (this was what happened when he didn't sleep until close to four), but was jostled awake once more as Ripley came back, keys jangling.
Clearly they were going up some sort of place that was not really meant for too many cars, though there was a road, at least, even if it was an unsteady one. When they stopped, Chance eased himself out of the car and twisted around, resting his arms on the top of it so that he could get a good look at their surroundings.
It smelled like fresh air, cold, and the smallest hint of smoke from whoever was camping nearby. Chance exhaled a breath, laughing as he stepped away from the warmth of the car to move around and stand beside Ripley.
"Many times," he said airily, with a return smirk because jokes were fun, Ripley. "But if you mean this sort of tent, then...once. But it was very messily done, and I was really young, so I don't really remember a whole lot of it. I think I had stepped in bear s**t at one point..."
Chance's eyes swept the area, taking a few steps this way and that.
"I think over here is good," he said finally, pointing at a relatively flat spot that was close to a tree without being entirely under it. "I don't want any snow to fall on us while we're here, so maybe a few inches to the left is better."
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