While Llewellyn was absolutely the kind of person that would put down what he was doing and arrive at the promise of free food, he would like to think he would have shown up even if Ivy hadn’t mentioned it and had simply asked for him to stop by for a chat. They were friends, and he was more invested in seeing his friend happy and for things to work out between her and Harry given the amount of conversations they’d had about her even allowing herself to try to find that kind of happiness with someone.

The last time they’d talked, it actually sounded like things were going to start going well for the two of them! It was progress that Llewellyn was happy to hear about, and proud of his friend for trying. He knew well enough how hard it was to take a risk on a relationship, and the pain of the fallout when it didn’t end well.

The offer of free pizza was a welcome one when he got it, but the detective still stared at the tell-phone for a moment considering the way she’d phrased it. It felt a lot like “Ivy-Speak” for “I need to talk.”

Humming lightly, he tugged out his pocket watch (sure the phone had a clock, but old habits die hard) and checked the time. “Mm… About time for a break.” He mumbled to himself, closing a folder on his desk and getting to his feet.

Rather than questioning her on why and potentially making her second guess the request even with the offer of pizza, he simply responded:

I like the sound of that. I’ll be around in a little bit.

And that was what the Detective did. Popping on his hat and bundling up for the walk, he left the agency and made his way to the pizzeria. Ducking inside, he glanced around to see if he could spot his friend and get an idea of how she was and perhaps how serious this might be.

Llewellyn took a moment to admire the setting once Ivy was spotted, and gave him a small wave before going back to get the pizzas on platters. There was definitely something about the aesthetic that felt a touch stereotypical, but perhaps vampires (or at least Ivy) found the humor in leaning into such a theme? It was still stylish and clearly put together in a thoughtful manner, though, and the detective rather liked the effect of the candlelight. “This place has mm… really come together since I last saw it. You’ve clearly been busy.”

Smiling a little, he finally sat himself down on one of the bar stools and leaned his arms on the surface in front of him. “And I do, was starting to feel a bit hungry and in need of a break. Your pizza is always an excellent choice for that.” His eyes lit up a little as he could smell the curry pizza. He was absolutely keen to have another slice of that one. “So thank you for the invite!” He took off his hat and set it on another barstool, finally letting himself try to get a better read on his friend.

“How uh- how have you been, Ivy?” He added, finally easing into the earlier concern he’d had at the sudden text. Llewellyn’s curiosity was almost as big as his appetite after all, and it had been a while since they last spoke… A lot could happen in that time.

Llewellyn hummed at the offer, taking the plate and slipping a slice of pizza onto it for himself. “A drink would be nice. I’ll have your uh- recommendation.” He responded with a light tone, not particularly picky at this moment. He was a little more curious about his friend as he waited for her answer than anything else.

That said, the answer wasn’t quite as detailed as the detective might have hoped, though he should have probably expected that given he knew Ivy well enough by now… Small talk, working up to the main point of any topic, could be fairly awkward without adding in the obvious difficulties with the probably topic she was working up to. Llewellyn nodded lightly as she shrugged and gave him a ‘fair’ back, doing his best to offer something in return to ease some of the nerves that might be plaguing her. “I’ve been alright, keeping busy with Pretzel’s scent training and giving him a little practice in the snow.” He took a bite of pizza, relaxing for a moment. “So between that and some indoor house repair projects, I’ve done a decent job of keeping out of trouble for a change.” He added with an amused rise of his brow and a small smile.

Staying out of trouble was admittedly a novel experience, and not something he was well known for in his own world. Some things changed, it seemed.

He set the slice back on the plate and leaned on the counter to ease the topic back away from himself again. “I suppose you’ve mostly been busy with getting the restaurant in order?” Or other things? He hoped other things. It was great that she was doing this for herself, but the detective hoped there was still more to her life than it.

That does get a small chuckle from Llewellyn. “Indeed, we can. I uh- can almost picture it now like it was yesterday.” He responded with an amused rise of his brow, more because he’d been to Italy once or twice during his travels. “Grazie per il vino!” He added, thanking her for the wine before taking a sip and deciding that authentic or not, it was good and it went well with the slice of pizza he was working his way through.

Her comment gets a slightly comical expression in return. “I admit, I wasn’t sure I was capable of it either. I’m not sure if it means I’ve grown wiser or perhaps more boring?” He added with a small, thoughtful hum. Who knew, but if so, he thinks he preferred boring at this point. It meant a little less upset on his and everyone else’s part, and being present for those who needed him.

Specifically, when moments like this came around.

Listening to her expand on what she’d been up to, he finally voiced his own curiosity about the pizzeria’s aesthetic. “Ah, so he wouldn’t be particularly appreciative of the overall aesthetic you’ve put in place, hm? I believe that’s a good sign, then.” The detective grinned finally, because it meant this was more Ivy’s. A rebellion in the form of a beautiful pizzeria that leaned into the stereotypes in a way that gave it… character, he thinks. “You’ve done a fantastic job with the place, though. I hardly recognize it from the first time I visited.”

Now, the comment about Harry gets a vaguely confused and slightly alarmed expression. Less because he knows what a soulgaze is, and more because it sounded like something not done lightly. “Uh… Well, I can’t say that I remember him telling me. He may have, but mm… My memory has always been a bit spotty about what it retains and what gets lost, like papers out of my notebook.” It was often a problem for him, hence the notebooks in the first place. Still, he waves a hand vaguely to continue. “I take it this ‘soulgaze’ was a bit… invasive concerning one’s privacy in some way?”

Yeah, the Detective is concerned that this is going to be something that particularly throws a wrench into his friend’s whole relationship attempt. So… details would be good.

The question gets a duck of his head in a quick nod, setting the glass aside for a moment. “I have, back when I was younger. I worked odd jobs and saved up, saw most of Europe and a few other places before I had to return.” He responded with a shrug. When Mrs. Young died, he’d decided to stay in Toronto to be there for his younger foster brothers until they were a little more grown. Ended up getting steady employment, which lead him into his current career. “After that, I didn’t travel as far.” He smiled a little, picking up the pizza again. “Italy was beautiful, though. I’m sorry to hear you’ve never had the chance to travel.” Seemed a shame for someone’s life to be so restricted, when there was so much to see and experience in the world. Sometimes he missed it, though arguably ending up in a different world was quite a trip by comparison, too.

“Really? I don’t know that I’d call you boring, at least not compared to the boring people I’ve met.” Murdoch was dreadfully boring even if he was brilliant, never really seemed to want to do anything fun or take time to consider the more interesting theories on some subjects. “That said… I think you’re right, not bad to be a little of both. At least I’m starting to appreciate some of the boring things.” Some excitement isn’t missed, that was for sure.

“Too bad for him. I rather like it.” He added with a grin, terribly supportive of anything that Ivy did that seemed in direct contradiction to what that man would like. He sounded terrible, and Ivy deserved something to call her own. “The lighting gives it a lot of charm.” He added, gesturing to the candles. He could see a lot of people stopping in here in the evenings for dinners out.

That was all pushed aside though as he tried to wrap his head around the whole ‘Soul Gazing’ thing. “That sounds uh- terrible, to put it mildly. Especially if one isn’t prepared for it.” For both parties, really. It seemed odd that Harry wouldn’t tell Ivy something like that, considering their current situation… But then again, maybe that also had something to do with why. People were, unfortunately, complicated. “Though I find it odd that he wouldn’t have mentioned it to you… I suppose if it’s not something easily controlled, he might have wanted to avoid it altogether. Mm… Like it might not be something spoken of where he’s from, so neglecting to mention it might’ve been a forced habit?” Harry did tend to avoid meeting people’s eyes, he supposed. That was probably why…

That was simply speculation, though, and he doubted that was all Ivy had to say on it. “Did Harry say anything about it after the fact or…?” Did he not, or did they just part ways awkwardly, or was there an argument? Goodness things really had a way of getting complicated…

Llewellyn couldn’t deny he was lucky for that much in his life. He’d gotten to see a lot in his youth even if his life had been lacking in other areas and it all had eventually come to a sad halt when things happened. He offered a sympathetic tone in response to her halfhearted joke. “I think we can definitely count that. We’ve both seen things no one else has. Bottom of the sea to uh- a world so very different.” That aside, he considered his slice of pizza as much as a fleeting thought that crossed his mind. “And on the subject of travel and this world… Who knows, maybe there’s more to see to this one that we haven’t had the opportunity to learn about it, right? It’s uh- got to be more than the city, or maybe it will be more one day.” There were the harbors, whatever lay beyond the forest and its boundaries. There are a lot of things Llewellyn doesn’t quite understand about how things work, but it seems reasonable to think there might be more to see than they knew now… Or at least there might be sometime. “Then who knows what kind of travel potential there might be, hm?”

“I think a lot of us were more wild in our younger years.” Except maybe Murdoch. He had a hard time seeing that man with a wild side. Which was actually a bit funny, perhaps, given he had very little idea of what Murdoch had been like before they met. “And mm… on the contrary, saying things like that has a way of making one curious, you know.”

Llewellyn could see the problem from both sides. He could see Harry’s reasoning for not saying anything, but it also didn’t stop him from getting why Ivy would be upset. Between the invasion of privacy and the fact that she had clearly been open with the man about a lot of the aspects of her life and what she was. It was… A mess, certainly. Not that relationships were perfect and without their moments, but this was a particularly large one. Setting his pizza aside, because this deserved attention and not him focused on food, he sat back in his seat. At least they had talked about it, so that was… Something. A start.

“I can understand, I think. At least in part.” He wasn’t good with people withholding truths from him. It usually leads to some rather unfortunate, explosive conversations or situations. “It’s a confusing cluster of something… Feelings like that. Takes time to sort through them and figure it all out.” Wondering why they hadn’t shared, why they hadn’t thought they could just tell you. Is it something you can forgive and get over to resolve? Or was it bad enough that wasn’t possible?

“But… I don’t doubt he felt bad about his decision upon reflection.” Not that it made it better, but might help a little… And then there was the matter of if things festered too much without being resolved between them. “And it’s good for you to have given yourself time to uh- sort through those feelings? I expect he would understand that much. Mm… But take it from someone who had certain harsh truths withheld from them and reacted poorly for it, it’s better to try to talk it out once your heads have cooled off rather than close the door immediately. Sometimes they can’t be reopened once you do.”

“It is, I think it uh- reinforces that there may be no pattern to how being pulled from one place to another like this.” He mused, it was something he tried to not think about too hard. Llewellyn rather hoped to be here for a long while this time, though. “The sea does seem like the most likely option, given how hard the forests were to navigate that time we went looking.” The detective added with a nod, it seemed like a question of when… “Whether it has already changed, or it will… I suppose it’ll take the right person with the inclination to take a ship out that far to see.” Might be nice to know, though, to learn that there might be other places out there worth seeing in this world already. Then maybe Ivy would get to travel, and Llewellyn could think of a few other people who had been restricted in their prior lives and hadn’t gotten to.

“And I am notoriously curious when someone says I shouldn’t be.” Llewellyn agreed with a small grin. So, yes, he’d love to hear these stories of hers. At least when she felt inclined to tell them, he wasn't sure if today was that day, considering everything else. As for himself, he shrugged slightly. “I think that, uh- would depend on what we’re using as a comparison for wild…?” What seemed wild for him might seem tame for others. Ivy might have found him boring back then. He travelled, saw a lot of interesting things and got to take part in some interesting social gatherings… But was that truly wild? Or simply well-travelled.

“I would say the second one sounds more likely.” Though he recognized that she might not have expected him to answer that question. He winced a little at the snipe. It was fair though, given how often he heard things went awkwardly between the two of them. Llewellyn was a little relieved to hear her say she wasn’t planning on closing the door exactly.

“You would think, but some people do need more time than others to share some things- not that I’m trying to defend his not telling you about it.” He added with a slightly awkward shrug, not wanting to upset but thinking it was worth considering. But even if it would be nice if everyone could just be open and honest about things… But some people needed more time to open up than others. Especially about certain things that might be harder to approach for whatever reason. Llewellyn thinks Ivy knew that already, though, based on prior conversations. The fact that she’d told Harry everything already was an impressive thing in the detective’s opinion. It was sad that Harry hadn’t been ready to say anything before it actually happened, though.

“Mm… Either is always possible, especially around here. Seems like all sorts arrive, and the world tends to move in such odd directions itself.” He responded with a small shrug. It really was anyone’s guess what would happen and who it might be that pushed something forward.

He hummed a little at the suggestion, though, smiling a bit. “Then I look forward to the potential story one day, Ivy.” He responded, knowing better than to push for one now given the overall mood of the conversation. Though he had to chuckle a little at the grin she gave him and the small hint at what those stories involved. “Ah, so all the things one could consider an exciting and interesting night out.” He could think of a few stories he heard about other people, after all. The signs of an adventurous evening tended to involve one or more of those very things.

“That it certainly would be.” He can’t deny that, not at all. In Ivy’s place, he can imagine he would have been just as frustrated if he found out something like this about his own significant other. Relationships were always a… particular kind of frustration at times, even if they were worth pursuing. “He does seem very sure of these things, at least from some conversations I’ve had with him.” He remembered the very specific advice about not wasting time, though, back at his wedding at the Sphere… “Makes me think he has his reasons for it, some experiences making it hard to not be over-cautious and serious about protecting people.”

But it did tend to make a self-fulfilling prophecy. Even Llewellyn knew by now that trying to do whatever was required or seemed expected to avoid disaster and ending up alone… It didn’t end well. It hadn’t in his world, that was for sure. “Was that something you spoke to him about before you both, uh- put the matter aside till you had time to think?”

Oh, he definitely would be asking someday, unless she was very lucky, and this was one of those things that slipped from his slightly scattered memory. It was just a matter of when, and if the time for that kind of conversation seemed right.

Which was not now, unfortunately, as he listened to her explanation. There’s a small furrow of his brow, it definitely gave a little more of an idea why Harry sometimes said the things he had in the past… “I guess that would explain why he might have a hard time with opening up about these things… But it seems like he needs to realize that with you he doesn’t need to keep those kinds of secrets.” Ivy was already a vampire, for one, but that wasn’t exactly the point. Ivy was a capable woman, one who knew wouldn’t have as hard a time wrapping her head around situations of a magical, disastrous nature that Harry seemed to end up involved in if his experiences were anything to go by.

But that also meant, unfortunately for the two of them, talking to each other like responsible people. “Then I think once you’ve, uh… had some time?” When she wasn’t as angry, really. “You might want to try having a deeper conversation about that. Get on the same page about keeping secrets and being allowed to make decisions concerning your relationship together instead of one or the other.”

Llewellyn nodded sympathetically as she continued, taking another slice of pizza for himself. He didn’t think he needed to point out that sometimes it took people a while to learn things that should have been pretty obvious. But forced habits were hard to break and repeated experiences were hard to move past. It seemed more like Ivy just needed the chance to vent a little and get it out before she approached Harry again on the subject. He shook his head at the apology, though. “No need to apologize. I think you are well aware that my own track record with relationships isn’t the best. Dramatic moments are mm… almost natural, I think.” It’s easy to focus on the one more stable relationship he had here, and it would be preferred to do so… But he can’t deny he’s had some awkward moments himself. Both with what happened with Jack Walker, and then the confusing situation that was Milo Strange.

“And if we don’t talk about things… Well, it all tends to bubble up after a while.” He shrugged lightly. Llewellyn hadn’t really had anyone like that in his world. The inspector tried, but he also wasn’t… really good at dealing with Llewellyn’s particular situation. “Better to get it out, especially if you’re going to try talking to Harry about it later.” Better to have gotten some of the frustration out in the open, rather than go in all tense and riled up. That would just lead to more drama, Llewellyn thought.

“Luck is an odd thing.” He responded with a little shrug. She wasn’t wrong, though. Maybe they really were intensely unlucky… Until the moment they weren’t. “It changes, as much as anything else. One minute you’ve lost everything on a stupid bet, the next you’re suddenly you fall into something you never expected.” Love from someone who didn’t care about how awkward you were and was willing to work through the difficult times. But that was the thing. Getting that lucky card called love didn’t mean things would progress easily.

But it was worth it, Llewellyn thinks. At least here he does. If Ivy were to ask him back in his world with no memories of this place? The detective might have felt different, at least from his current point in time. The difference between happy and mostly stable and an unhappy mess was rather large. “Mm… Well, then all the better that you got in touch. You should have someone to talk to before you get to the point of ‘snapping,’ I think.” A snap of any kind generally wasn’t pretty, in his experience.

“You’re welcome, and you know you can always call if you need to talk about these things.” He added with a reassuring smile, holding up a slice of pizza. “I only charge one of these, hm?” He added in a light attempt at a joke. The pizza was never necessary, but it was a nice bonus considering how darn delicious it was. “I think it will. I have faith in you two, having gotten to know you both over time.” It just… was going to be a tricky path for them to navigate, he thinks…

“Not supposed to… Hm…” That seemed sad, really… Though there were a lot of people, even humans, who also tended to believe talking about your feelings and the like was an absurd notion. His inspector got fairly annoyed and huffy every time something like that came up. “Well, as you say, he isn’t here to discourage it. You get to do things differently, as you like or wish to try.” He smiled awkwardly, gesturing at the pizza place around them. “And you’ve made a pretty good start at that, I’d say.” So he hoped she kept trying, both exploring things in her own way and talking to people instead of bottling it all up. Easier said than done, but today was a good start.

Llewellyn chuckled a little at that, “You’re always welcome, Ivy.” He hoped she knew that already, though. The detective liked that he could be there for a friend. She had been there for him plenty after his return from his world, after all. “I am always ready, and even when I’m not… I like to think I’m adaptable.” he responded with an amused rise of his brow. Picking up a last slice of pizza and considering it before taking a bite. “Hmm… One pizza would be plenty, but!” He added with another grin. “I’ll never complain if there happens to be two once in a while.”

“An 8 out of 10, hm? That’s a decently high grade, so that’s a good sign.” He responded with a small grin in return, finishing off another slice of pizza and gesturing at the table lightly. “It’s always good to be prepared for the possibility of the need for more pizza.” He added, and the detective would never say no to the option of taking a pizza home. They were working on their cooking skills, but Llewellyn still tended to rely on bringing things home instead, given his general distraction when he made the attempt.

Llewellyn finally set his plate aside, though. “But I do hope your next conversation goes well, Ivy.” He had a feeling it wouldn’t be an easy one, not for either of them… But it would need to happen. “And let me know how it goes, or if you need to talk.”