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Check-up
The Shadow has been splitting his time between the Sanctum and the apartment of James Rettigue, but only one of these locations is a place for guests. The coffee table is a solid mass of paperwork, although there are signs of order in the form of stacks. The furniture is sleek and black, modern even for its time. One wall of the living room is dominated by a tall picture window that overlooks the city, but the curtains are half drawn. From the kitchen the scent of fresh coffee drifts, but The Shadow is not used to entertaining. The spartan feel to the place, broken only by his paperwork, does not give a welcoming feel.
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"I think there's a possibility, because sometimes very small pushes and pulls on events can turn the greater tide. In my own world, Hitler had almost abandoned a plan to invade Russia, when winter was coming on. It was a foolish plan, but through careful manipulations his mind was changed back, and he went ahead with the invasion. It didn't end the war, but it did go very badly for him, and delayed more dangerous actions until the American forces had joined in the fight. If he hadn't invaded Russia when he did..." He gives a mild shrug that belies how terrible that thought truly is.
((All of this is, in fact, a neatly-written Shadow comic.))
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"But I understand the need to try, all too well. I don't think I could take watching the war happen all over again for them."
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"Oh... what was the first one like? Were you The Shadow back then?"
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"No, not yet. I was a pilot." He shrugs, while a myriad of memories flow through his head. His position in the Secret Service, the altering of his name for anonymonity, the shrapnel that damaged half his face; all these are secrets he intends to take to the grave. "It was a mess. All war is, from the inside."
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"Can you still fly a plane?" She asks, curious.
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As if he could simply forget how to fly. "I keep my license valid, yes. I have an autogyro, and a small plane. They come in handy for my work sometimes."
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"They do sound useful... I used to fly. For a short time."
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"Did you? What did you fly? Why did ever stop?" This topic seems to interest him particularly. Beneath the impassive exerior, there lurks a passion for aircraft.
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She smiles shyly. "I flew myself. I was a swan." That's probably not the answer the Shadow was expecting. Or looking forward to. Oh, well. "I still dream about it. Is it hard to fly a plane? It must be hard." All those gauges and switches... it was so simple to spread her wings and do what came naturally.
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That she's been a bird was the last answer he expected, but he takes it with expressionless calm, reminding himself of the LOLs of which he has yet to experience one. "That sounds like a fascinating experience. Airplanes vary in difficulty. As time goes by they get more and more complicated, but safer, too. There's something to be said for an open cockpit, though." He looks briefly nostalgic. They don't build them like they used to, out of wood and painted canvas and badly leaking oil that streams onto the goggles of the pilot exposed to the wind. There are good reasons, of course, that they don't build them that way anymore. He'd be hard-pressed to figure out the workings of a jet or a modern commercial airliner, though.
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"It was wonderful," she sighs, her expression unfocusing for a moment. "Just... lifting my arms -- well, my wings, I mean -- and pushing into the air, feeling the wind rushing past me..." Perhaps the Shadow might understand, a little bit, since he is nostalgic for open cockpit flying.
She looks at her watch. "Oh, shoot. I have to go back home and feed the kitten. Did you have any other questions about your diagnosis?"
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"It sounds... mm. I think all pilots dream about that." There is a trace of wistfulness about his smile, but he stands with a nod, offering a businesslike handshake. "No, thank you, I think I'll manage. I can't promise to avoid aggravating the condition, though. Thank you, and... congratulations." The ring on her left hand has not escaped his notice, and he's sure it wasn't there the last time he saw her, back before his escapades tracing the drug ring.
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"Really? LOLs aren't something to wish for, but I wouldn't mind that one again." She returns his handshake, professional and courteous, but then he offers his congratulations. "Oh... oh, thank you." She simply cannot contain her happiness, her expression glowing. "Take care of yourself, Shadow." She'll go ahead and PINpoint out before she says anything silly.
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"I haven't been, yet, and I'm not looking forward to it." The Shadow gives a shrug, resigned to the idea that he is due for an LOL eventually. His handshake is solid and carefully gentle, the of a man without the least worry of arthritis. "Likewise." He lets her go and steps back so she may PINpoint away. He's perfectly glad to see her go without gushing about her engagement, which may be why he waited to mention it until she was about to leave. He's just as glad to go back to his work, now.