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saveourearth2019-05-25 04:12 pm
spaghettimonster) wrote in saveourearth2019-05-25 04:12 pm
Entry tags:
Past Time For A Talk [Log]
Date: May 25th
Characters: Russell Scordato, Benjiro Thorne, and their mutual aunts
This whole conversation is a long time coming, Russell has to quietly admit to himself. It's closing on a year since that aurora came and went, when something about the world changed... But the only times he's breathed an honest word about the strangeness he's been going through? All have been to other people who are caught up in the same thing.
Today, that's changing. As much as he'd like to keep putting it off, he can't justify doing so any longer. With Benjiro's disappearance last week, after the upset of telling his parents and getting disowned for it, Agatha and Rosemary deserve answers for what's going on. And... Russell can't, in good conscience, let Benjiro have that conversation alone. He shouldn't have to face that fear without the reminder that at least one relative isn't going anywhere, and... well, not least because what a teenager alone says might be less convincing than what a teenager and an adult say, compared to whatever his ex-parents decide to tell the aunts.
"It's a practice run," Russell mutters to himself, as the train pulls into the Moss Manor station. A test for how it feels to admit and reveal these things to family, in preparation for telling his own parents and siblings. Between that, and being here to support Benjiro, he should be able to ignore his fears that the aunts will react similarly - and break ties with them both.
Characters: Russell Scordato, Benjiro Thorne, and their mutual aunts
This whole conversation is a long time coming, Russell has to quietly admit to himself. It's closing on a year since that aurora came and went, when something about the world changed... But the only times he's breathed an honest word about the strangeness he's been going through? All have been to other people who are caught up in the same thing.
Today, that's changing. As much as he'd like to keep putting it off, he can't justify doing so any longer. With Benjiro's disappearance last week, after the upset of telling his parents and getting disowned for it, Agatha and Rosemary deserve answers for what's going on. And... Russell can't, in good conscience, let Benjiro have that conversation alone. He shouldn't have to face that fear without the reminder that at least one relative isn't going anywhere, and... well, not least because what a teenager alone says might be less convincing than what a teenager and an adult say, compared to whatever his ex-parents decide to tell the aunts.
"It's a practice run," Russell mutters to himself, as the train pulls into the Moss Manor station. A test for how it feels to admit and reveal these things to family, in preparation for telling his own parents and siblings. Between that, and being here to support Benjiro, he should be able to ignore his fears that the aunts will react similarly - and break ties with them both.
no subject
It has been a week. His great aunts have been incredibly patient as others have spoken to them on his behalf to stall until he could pick up the pieces. It has been difficult to manage while final exams have continued. His outstanding grades could absorb failures, but he found solace in the routine and could not in good conscience go without making an attempt to preserve his performance. After all, they’re likely the last tests he will ever take.
Benjiro pauses long enough to send Sadie a text to confirm their arrival at the station. All week she has been his greatest support, and along the way, had been advocating for informing Rosemary and Agatha. They deserve answers, and their aunts were notified of their pending arrival today.
Looking to Russell, Benjiro silently waits for a cue to start the familiar walk from the station to the house. Words are difficult for him, but he falls into step close to his cousin. He appreciates the company.
no subject
"Well," Russell finally declares, seeing that Benjiro's finished with his texting. "No sense waiting out here." He steps ahead, leading the way to the conversation that they're both dreading, and begins to walk up the street that'll lead to the aunts' house. "They'll start calling, or worse - come calling down here, to check on us in person."
It should go without saying that the conversation ahead of them is one best had in privacy, after all. There'll be a lot of things to say, there'll surely be unhappy words, and there might even be demonstrations of strange powers or changes to their appearances, Russell has the full makeup kit he's put together these last months, in preparation for removing and re-applying it. He gets enough glances as is.
no subject
Unlike his cousin, Benjiro has come with little preparation. He has his phone, enough for the train, and the key to the house weighing far heavier in his pocket than the small item should. Both of them are starting to have greater difficulty hiding their physical changes, what with Benjiro now the taller between them and far greater in mass, and Russell making use of makeup to soften the loss.
The quiet along the walk gives Benjiro time to think about how to discuss the Numbers, however, the moment they reach the end of the short drive that leads up to the house, his mind goes blank. He stops in his tracks, still far enough from the house to retreat. Or rather, it was, as he spots the silhouette of Aunt Agatha pacing by the door. Benjiro looks to Russell nervously, but will follow him further up to the door.
Before either of them can knock or ring, the door opens, and Aunt Agatha is the one holding it. She looks far less put together than usual, her hair down in a side ponytail instead of up and tamed, “There you are. I was beginning to worry. Come in, and we’ll go sit with some tea and sort all this out.”
no subject
He follows her inside, with Benjiro a quieter shadow looming behind. The house looks about as usual, their mostly-neat mix of household needs and decoration hasn't changed much since the last time he's visited. Rosemary's sitting at a table with a book in hand, but she's flipping the pages a little too quickly to really be reading the contents. She peers up at them through those huge glasses and relaxes a little, sighing.
"Now, we're not... angry," Rosemary says, as Agatha gets the kettle underway. "But you understand we've been concerned. I'm glad you were able to come."
no subject
No longer able to hide behind his cousin physically, Benjiro keeps his head forward even as he dares a glance to Rosemary to see her with a book. Hands folding together, he listens as she broaches the discussion in a careful manner. Habit takes over, and the teenager falls into a low bow, “I do. My actions were…not adequately justified. And I know I caused difficulty for you. I’m really sorry I…”
Hip against the edge of the counter, Agatha uses the brief pause to interrupt the apology, her voice more coaxing than commanding, “Ben. You can sit down. And you too, Russell.” With the water heading for a boil, she moves to take her seat close to Rosemary, and reaches for her wife’s hand to clasp as she waits for them to settle. Unsurprisingly, Benjiro is staring at the table instead. She then shares what little they have learned about the situation as she addresses Benjiro, “Your father finally responded to my calls this week. He would not say much, but he did tell us that you refused to attend university.” Along with a blatant attempt to dismiss Rosemary and herself as Ben’s caregivers. “…Can you explain why?”
“It’s um…” Benjiro begins uncertainly as he glances towards his cousin with hands clenched tight together under the table. “I-I didn’t think I should tell you before. I know you accepted me so that I could attend sixth form college, and if I had you could have been held responsible, and we don’t know why but I-I’m not the same.” Not as human anymore.
no subject
"Neither of us are," Russell chimes in, now that the conversation is shifting from Benjiro's actions - which he can't particularly help explain - to the context of them. He glances away long enough to tuch his kit onto another chair, freeing up his hands to gesture as he talks. "There's something... going on, and we don't know very much about it, but it's altogether queer, and honestly a bit... magic, I think."
He can't help but roll his eyes at himself even as he says it. Both the aunts know his mother, the astrology devotee. Know her chattering on about what the stars have to say for everyone's lives, how she regularly flutters from extolling one type of spiritual knowledge to another, and how Russell has complained about it for years.
no subject
“Something going on?” she repeats to begin her prompt to garner more information, “I’m afraid you’ll have to explain.”
His heart protests with a flutter of a beat in a spike of anxiety as Benjiro finds himself in the same position to explain as he had to his parents. Unlike then however, Russell is next to him. Drawing a slower breath, he borrows from the conversation he had with Sadie and her parents to find a foothold into the chaos of Numbers, “T-the aurora borealis last summer. That’s when we realized something had started. Odd events keep happening here in Mossgate since, and only in Mossgate. Things like what happened on Remembrance Day and Mother’s Day, or the earthquake and tsunami.” His hands tighten further, knuckles fading white as he narrows in focus, “And odd things have been happening to individual people. Like me. Or rather, us,” Benjiro says with a glance to Russell.
Agatha knows well about those events, as she has been wondering about them after living in Mossgate quietly for decades. Something about the last year has been very different. Giving Rosemary’s hand a squeeze, her expression gradually begins to shift towards something sterner that her wife will recognize as a protective response.
Unable to yet look to his aunts, Benjiro forges a little further, “Anyone caught in this has a Number that they remember. It won’t mean anything to anyone else, but… It allows us to communicate secretly, and seems to link each of us to something specific. From it, we’ve…changed.” He bows his head lower, sinking in his seat.
“Last summer, you started wearing a mask,” Agatha states with her voice carrying an undertone of sadness. They haven’t seen their great nephew smile since then, not really. “That’s part of it?”
Tense and flustered, Benjiro confirms, “…hai.”
no subject
"You've felt you had to hide things," she concludes with an outright overtone of sadness. "And... I can't imagine recent events haven't convinced you that maybe you were right do so. I'm so sorry, sweet. I promise we'll hear you out." Even if it's frightening. She gives Agatha's hand one more squeeze, then stands to go retrieve the tea set.
Russell opens his kit on the chair, pulls out a clean cloth and fidgets with it in his hands. "Y-Yes, like Benjiro said, it's... Things like that coal, over the holidays, or those pranks on Halloween. Strange things happening, too quickly and widespread to be the work of just people." No number of volunteers could unbury all those graves without any of them being seen or caught on camera, and yet somehow...
"You know I've... lost weight." Even with the makeup minimizing it, it's visible. "I've gotten it looked over, bloodwork and everything, but there's nothing causing it. Nothing normal."
Not wanting to leave the table, to even momentarily leave Benjiro alone with his fears, Russell dabs the cloth in an oil-based remover and begins to wipe at his face. "This will... take a few minutes, but." Proof might be helpful, and he wants to build up to displays of magic. That it gives him the excuse to close his eyes and cover his face while starting to reveal his changes, well... that doesn't hurt.
no subject
The kit being opened draws attention from Agatha, her curiosity of it returning as Russell starts to make use of the cloth from it, if only to work it in his hands at first. He mentions more incidents that are difficult to explain, and as upsetting as some of those had been, she would rather hear of how Russell and Benjiro have been affected directly. That he has been to a doctor is reassuring. They aren't making assumptions about what is happening to them and conflating an illness. As he begins to rub at his face with remover on the cloth from the kit, Agatha encourages him as she actually stands to join her wife in getting the kettle, "Take your time. We'll have the tea ready in a moment."
Next to Russell, Benjiro is looking at his cousin as he works to remove the cover of makeup with their aunts purposefully busying themselves to give them a little space. His hands unclench, a slight numbness left from how hard he was holding them a moment ago. If Russell is going to be brave, he must as well. Silently, he reaches up to remove the loops of his facemark from behind his ears. Lowering the cover to his lap, he folds the mask and keeps his lips closed. He has removed it in front of their aunts many times before during meals, and so long as he doesn't speak directly looking to them, he can hide his teeth a little longer.
Within a minute or two, tea cups are placed at each seat with sweetness adjusted for the recipient. Benjiro murmurs a word of gratitude, but leaves his cup untouched as Agatha and Rosemary return to their seats.
sorry for late, I got stuck on something and only finally figured it out
He picks up his cup but doesn't sip yet, gently tilting it in circles, watching the liquid inside spin slowly. It wouldn't do to spill it, so keeping his eyes on the cup is the closest to an excuse to keep looking away he can manage.
Likewise Rosemary isn't certain, as she returns, if it wouldn't have been better to sit and watch her nephew's reveal. She doesn't startle so badly as to spill the tea... but the hollowness to Russell's cheekbones and eyesockets is upsetting for her to behold. It looks like some combination of hunger and illness, except there's no other signs - his skin has no strange textures or discoloration, no blemishes or rashes, and from what she sees, he's moving with his usual energy.
Benjiro's face, at least, seems the same as ever - if solemn and unsmiling. He's grown, but what teenage boy doesn't grow? It's harder for her to see, just from looking at him, what concerns and fears he's hiding.
"So... you've been to a doctor. Something more cursory, or did they direct you to a specialist yet?" Rosemary asks, after a moment of looking between them.
Russell glances toward a window, as if Mary Ann's clinic is visible from here. "A... general practitioner. But there's other changes, in other people, and some with me that... I promise, I haven't picked up stage magic, but it might seem like I have, when I show you."
No worries! IRL ate my brain
Her instinct is to encourage a second opinion, to offer a referral to her trusted doctors, but that Russell has more yet to share delays that impulse. Agatha is inclined to seek a rationale explanation, but twice they have been given warning it may not seem that way. So then she looks to Benjiro.
Aware of the shift of attention, his lips thin as he braces himself mentally to rejoin the conversation. Reaching across to the shoulder of his hoodie, Benjiro sits up straight in his seat to slide the loose clothing off that side and repeats the process to uncover his arms and the tightness of his t-shirt. Recently he’s gained another inch and a half in height, and muscle has been layering on visibly. He had always had broad shoulders, but he never had shown such definition. Mundane explanations have been offered before, relating it to his work at the warehouse.
“It’s...a little harder for me to demonstrate, but I can. I’ve gotten much stronger than I should be capable of. And...well, my teeth are the reason I started wearing the mask,” he admits with a fresh wash of pallor at his face. Hard to make out while speaking at a distance, he looks down as he pulls his lip down to reveal the large pointed teeth that have taken place of the human ones he had a year ago.
Agatha stares silently as she tries to make sense of the change. Human teeth can be filed to points, she has seen that but this...is definitely not natural.
A bracing inhale is taken as the realness starts to sink in vividly. “Then please, do your best to show us. Both of you,” Agatha encourages them as she concentrates on understanding all of the situation before her emotions are allowed sway over a decision to react outwardly.