( Months ago he would have been all too willing to write Ratio's concern off as both impossible and illogical. Aventurine was a man who was willing to put his body on the line for a win, who was flashiness and flirtation but without any real substance underneath the façade. Sometimes he'd wondered when Ratio would see past that and find the emptiness that lay beneath, like he sees past his smiles and promises, but the time never came. Doctor Veritas Ratio never seemed to ask for something Aventurine couldn't do, wasn't capable of handling, and so--

And so he's here, now. )

Jeeze, Doc. No need to threaten the formerly dead man.

( It lacks his frivolous bite from before, and when he finally finds a seat amongst the stone, he sits with far less flair than he might have. He doesn't know who he is anymore -- Kakavasha? Aventurine? Or no one at all -- a true ghost in this world from now until the heat death of the universe. But Ratio had been honest with him in his attempts to keep Aventurine from truly exiting the universe. The very least he can do for the good doctor is be honest with him, without hiding it in wordplay and plans and gambles.

What a new and novel thing. )

It took me a while to make my way back. Months, actually. For all the effort I put in to die, you'd have thought it would have been the hardest part.