a need to know basis

who: oz and sean
where: upstairs
when: before dark

Oz had spent most of his day helping Billy get the house into something resembling working order again. It wasn't exactly easy, and there was a lot to actually be done. Which meant while he'd gotten a bit of a nap in in the afternoon area...he'd been up the rest of the day and was going to be up the rest of the night, too. Joy. It was starting to get late, and that was when he went to find Sean, to discuss a little something he'd overheard earlier. The angel was upstairs, mending the window he'd broken through the night before, and Oz entered the game room, then shut the door behind himself. Walking over, he leaned back against the wall. "I'd like to have a discussion." he said. And it wasn't necessarily a 'can we' sort of deal. He wasn't sounding hostile or anything, just firm.

Sean wasn't exactly doing a great job of the window, and he was aware that Billy could have probably done a much better job, but the handyman was elsewhere and Sean didn't like the idea of there being an open window - even if it was several stories up. Anyway, it had been raining on and off all day and so he'd taken a couple of sheets of ply and some nails and had been boarding it up when Oz turned up. He finished nailing (crookedly) the final corner of the sheet in place before turning to the guy. "Sure," he said, easily. "What's up?"

"I overheard something a little...distressing this morning." Oz said. "And for starters-I wasn't trying to eavesdrop, so I'm sorry about that part. Werewolf--we hear a lot. But what I did hear? Wasn't terribly good. I heard the word 'cursed'. In regards to Joshua. I'd like that explained." He was kind of half thinking that if Billy wandered into this room the first thing he'd be doing is re-doing the entire window there, but that was a really random sort of observation.

Sean raised an eyebrow, and then sighed slightly, going off to lean against the pool table that sat in the centre of the game room. "It's not what you think - the boy just has bad luck is all," he said, trying hard not to immediately sound defensive. Which, for him, in regards to Joshua, was a natural reaction - he was protective of the guy. It was an instinct. And he didn't like the fact he was being confronted about the curse.

"Bad luck." Oz repeated. He was very careful to continue to keep his tone civil, level. He didn't especially want to find out who would win in an angel vs. werewolf fight. "Can you explain that a little better?" he asked. "And...can you please tell me why no one found it pertinent in the middle of all of this blood death and violence to tell the rest of us about it?" Yes. Very careful on wording there. He was tense, but trying not to pick a fight. That didn't mean he didn't want to know, though.

Right, so they really were talking about this. Great. "It's a family thing," Sean said after a reluctant pause. He shifted, resting his hands at either side of him, loosely gripping the edge of the table, looking mostly - but not entirely - relaxed. "His family line is cursed with basically bad luck. Mostly cuts, scrapes, massive amounts of clumsiness. Then some general bad luck - like... He's never gonna go into business on his own, because it's more than likely to fail, that kind of thing. And why wasn't it mentioned? Well, I guess I could ask why it wasn't mentioned to us that there's a cursed werewolf in the house who needs a cage in the basement for when he loses control," Sean told him, taking equal amounts of care to keep his tone civil, level.

Oz listened, giving Sean time to get out what he was going to say, not jumping in on any of it, just because he would rather hear a fuller story than just get pissy over one bit of it. "I won't lose control." he said first. "It wasn't mentioned because I've had a ritual done that gives me control, and even if that failsafe breaks--my wife can control me completely. Even in that form, even if everything else went to hell." he said. "The cage is....security. Or basically something I have, because I can't quite let myself relax enough just in case." He shrugged. "So that's why that wasn't mentioned. But..." he paused, looked away, then back at Sean. "With something like what you're talking about there...bad luck? Would you chalk up what happened with the window to that? If we'd known, he could have been put down in the basement, where he'd be perfectly safe, and everyone else would have been safe from him too. If you'd wanted to sit down there with him, no one would have held a grudge over it. But I spent a good chunk of the morning picking up pieces of a young girl that means the absolute world to someone very important to me, and it's sounding like if something was said, that could have been avoided. Now she might be back--and she might not, but even if she is? You heard her screaming. She was tortured out there before they killed her. What if she remembers that?" His tone was quiet, but he definitely wanted to get his point across.

"I can't keep him locked up for all of his life," Sean told Oz. "And, yeah, maybe it was. But maybe it wasn't. Do you know what it does to a guy to be told that he can't do anything? That he's a potential danger to everyone around him? Which - to be honest - the curse is usually pretty damn specific. It affects him. That's what I'm here for - and she knew that. There was no need for her to go after him. None. At all. So maybe the curse did trip him - but it's not his fault, or mine, or anyone else's that Lulu was stupid enough to go after him. And with her amount of injuries? I'm sorry for what happened to the girl, but that was not Joshua's fault," Sean told him with a level tone.

Oz gave Sean a Look. "Okay, first of all? Fuck off. Never did I say anywhere that anyone should be locked up for their whole life. I don't know what you're projecting there? But I didn't say it, so don't push that shit off on me. What I'm saying, is in a massively dangerous situation? Yeah, maybe it's better for everyone if he sits somewhere where he can't get himself killed or anyone else with him. That's just logic. And no, I don't agree that she should have gone off after him and I'll even back you up that it was stupid, but it was her boyfriend, and they're teenagers. Not exactly going to be making the wisest of decisions, especially in a situation like this. So yes, a tiny bit of warning might have made one hell of a lot of less trouble for everyone. You're in my house. I'm not going to be asking you to leave, but I'm also not looking for any further incidents."

"He wouldn't have gone," Sean sighed slightly, sounding tired. "With the irrational teenager of it all - I don't know if you notice, but he wasn't leaving her all day. But, I'll allow, you're right - it would have been safer with him downstairs. But Joshua hasn't exactly been the easiest person to deal with lately."

Nodding, Oz simmered himself back down again, glad this wasn't going to brew into a huge argument. "I imagine not." he agreed. "Dean's been...better than he could be, but I still think he's been dealing with a lot." he finally said. "If you need help coming up with a way around him feeling pissed off and put away somewhere safe, I can do that. Fuck if nothing else, we could sit him up here, and have him walkie down locations of vampires if he sees them. Anything that puts him out of harms way and putting anyone else in."

Sean looked interested in that, liking the potential of that idea. "You know - I think that might help? I think he's been feeling a little useless lately, so, yeah, something that makes him think that he's helping? Or, damn - something that would actually be helpful? Is all kinds of good in my book."

"Well, that sounds fine to me. There are walkies...down in the basement, I think. So he could do that. Just sort of play lookout, good vantage from up here anyways. We pull the board off, put a couple up just so he doesn't fall out--though there's a roof below there anyways--and yeah. Sounds like a useful, non-dangerous thing to do to me." Oz said.

Sean looked less happy when Oz mentioned the ability to fall out of the window, but he kept his mouth shut - that really didn't need to be said. Anyway, Sean would be there to make sure that nothing of the sort happened - because, knowing Joshua, he'd manage to hit the roof, keep on rolling and fall smack bang into the centre of a group of vampires. That was just how it went.

"That not work?" Oz asked. "If it doesn't...there's rooms down a floor he could be stationed in, that the window isn't broken out of."

"That would probably be better," Sean agreed. "Anyway, we can put him on a walking patrol, checking all sides of the house - that should be safe enough," he considered. "But, look - the suggestion would probably be better coming from you. From me he'd think that I'm palming him off. Which, okay, I am, but still... Best you make the suggestion. And give me a job to do at the same time, though I'll warn you that if it puts me any distance from him, I'm not gonna do it."

"I can do that." Oz said. "If you want a job..." he paused, trying to think about it. "You could circuit the house and surrounding area once an hour or so to make sure there aren't any more vampires, or something of that nature incoming." he said off the top of his head.

"That I can do," Sean agreed. "So, you tell me to do that at the same time you tell Joshua to keep an internal lookout and we'll be good. Hopefully. You think they'll be back tonight?" Sean asked, keen to move the topic of conversation away from his ward and the curse. It made him twitchy, talking about it. As if they'd be asked to leave, which would throw up all sorts of issues. Not least that Sean actually appreciated being in a house where Joshua would, in theory at least, be safer. At least these people were prepared. And if they had to leave, Sean knew that they'd be leaving town. And he really didn't want to have that argument - especially not now that he'd encouraged Joshua to start questioning his decisions.

"Done. If you head downstairs, I can follow down in about ten, and give you both the plan." Oz said, more than willing to put on a bit of a show if it caused less problems for everyone. Yep. More than happy to give bullshit tasks and do it in front of people. Anything, really. "And...I don't know. It's possible. Or, they may decide since they lost the majority of the vamps that came here last night that it's not the best idea they've ever had. So honestly...couldn't predict at all. I'll say yes, and hope not."

"Will do," Sean said, pushing up off the pool table and heading out of the room. Well, that had gone... Okay. Couldn't put more on it than that. There was tension between them, but Sean knew that that wasn't likely to go away - it was all a matter of priorities. His was Joshua. Oz'? Obviously a much wider base. But Sean couldn't help what he was and he wasn't going to be changing that. So, okay would do. He walked out of the room and headed down the stairs.