shatterverse | (no subject)

Sounds stick out. Somethings will never change.
A bullet leaves. The explosion sound fading as leaves rustle.
And she turns with the rifle leveled at the face watching her.

Then it dropped an inch with instant recognition. "Hey."

A rifle leveled at her face by an expert hand. Rachel should be afraid or worried or at least flinch.

She does none of it. But she does glance back to make sure Tobias isn't looking for her.

"Hey."

The rifle drops a little more.

It can't be propped up.
Hot metal isn't your friend.

"You look better."

Rachel blinks at her, frowns sligtly.

"Did I look bad?"

She sounds more baffled about this than anything.

"Last time." Shrugs a little bit.

Not that bad, but still better than.

Rachel frowns and thinks about this. It's been a while since she last saw Jo and there's been a lot since then. Mostly fighting. Mostly fighting with Tobias.

...fighting about Tobias. That happened, too. With Dean, and things he'd said.

Rachel's frown deepens, color rising in her face.

"Oh yeah," she grumbles.

Dean's a dick.
Even at his best, still a dick.
Jo's aware enough to know that.

Even if he's staying around. Well.
He went back to Hippie Hollow again.

Jo shrugged, again. "Happens."
She glanced back toward her target.
Catatonia still beat one set of stitches.

"More often than I'd like," Rachel grumbles, coming around to lean against the wall with her shoulder. She follows Jo's gaze to the target and looks at it with interest.

...oh yeah. That gun she left back at the apartment.

"Looks good," she points out quietly, examining the target.

Jo's lips curved. Not a smile.
Something hard and almost proud.

"It's better than yesterday at least."

Rachel blinks at her.

"How often have you been coming out here?"

Jo thought about it, squatting for more bullets.

"'Bout a week and half maybe? How's yours coming?"

"What, like daily?" Rachel frowns, looking at her. Jo doesn't like it when she gets concerned about her.

Jo can deal with it.

"My what?"

Jo look up from her bag.
Eyebrow cocked. "Shooting."

Rachel scowls because that was a distinct lack of answering her question.

Then-- looks more than a little awkward. "Oh. Uh. I haven't, really. There's been other stuff."

Other fights.

Jo's expression turned shrewd without looking away.

"Thought you were saying you wanted to get better."

Rachel scowls a little more - but shifts uncomfortably, embarrassed.

"Yeah, well... I've been busy." She crosses her arms and shrugs, shoulder against the wall. "So have you, I guess."

"Yeah. Here."

Continued uncomfortable, embarrassed shifting.

"Mmm."

My, but the ground is interesting.

"Well, I've been busy in Metropolis."

SO THERE.

Jo cocked the gun. "Not good enough."

She tossed the riffle through the air. "Here."

Rachel only just manages to grasp the rifle - and her hands fumble with it several times before she manages to get the slightest grasp on it.

Which finishes with a glare on Jo, even as she shifts her grip on the rifle. She could argue about what's important to her, things she had to do, arguments she had to have, plans she had to make.

But she just grumbles, "Fine," and joins Jo, lifting the gun to aim at the target.

Jo only chooses to note Rachel never dropped it.
She dropped one knee, digging her bag again.
This time pulling out a silver revolver.

"New targets or same one?"

"I don't care. Which?"

She frowns and puts the rifle on her shoulder, sighting as best she can.

"However long it takes."

She gets more bullets with this one.
She also holds herself tighter.
She hasn't used it since...

"Only the center rings."

Rachel frowns and glances over. But Jo's loading a gun of her own and Rachel won't be left behind.

She nods and lifts the rifle awkwardly. She never did learn how to shoot a rifle, really, but it's basically the same as a pistol. At least, so far as the trigger goes.

...right?

Her first few shots might be a little wild.

It could be worse. She reminds herself of that.

"Focus across the sight at the end of the barrels. Keep it in focus, and relax your shoulder right before the kickback."

These are all said like remarks on the weather.