selfhelp | [IC] Appointments Post

Entry tags:

[action],
[voice]

[IC] Appointments Post

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[Action, January 1st]

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[She listened intently at that, her head cocked a little to the side.]

Can you tell me what happened?

[He nods, though he’s quiet for a long moment after doing so. He’d brought it up, but… he doesn’t have to be happy about discussing it.]

There’s… someone with the same kind of powers as me. Something terrible happened to her, and… one day, she cast a spell to change the whole world. Everyone… every single person was changed. Had their life flipped around. And only a handful of people even knew about it.

I suppose we can be thankful then that you only tried to improve life on a smaller, intimate scale.

[He has to laugh at that, however faintly. It's not a particularly pleasant sound.]

"Thankful"...

[She reaches out and lays the tips of her fingers lightly against the back of his hand, the touch barely there. Her gaze is thoughtful, but serious.]

I know you expect everyone to be upset with you for what happened. I don't blame you. Mistake or not, this was... This will take some time for everyone to come to terms with.

But yes. [She gives him a faint smile at that, tapping one of his knuckles with her fingertip.] Thankful. I meant the words I said. And for what it's worth? Thank you, Billy. I choose to take what you did as a gift.

[That earns her his full, undivided attention, wide-eyed and mortified, searching her expression as if trying to find the cruel humour in her expression instead of sincerity. How... how could she... is that true?]

Why would it... I mean... how... a gift?

[She gives a soft laugh at that, dropping her gaze, pulling back a little. There's something careful in the way she chooses her words.]

Because it was perfect, while it lasted.

[And she'd been blissfully happy. All three of them had been, down in their little house by the stream. It had only been a taste, but... It had been perfect.]

[...Yeah, he's... kind of still in shock over that. It shows on his face.]

I didn't... do that part, though. You chose it. I mean- it was my spell, but that life... came from you.

You made it real, Billy. It came from us, yes, but it was a life... we're not likely to duplicate. It was perfect and yes, brief. But it was wonderful while it lasted. And it wasn't the Malnosso trying to be cruel. It was you trying to make us happy. Which you did. So thank you.

[...Ah...

Billy doesn't know what to say to that. He truly, honestly doesn't. The prospect of being thanked for any of this had never actually occurred to him, after waking up and realizing what his spell had done. So he looks down, stunned, and remains silent. She was grateful... amazing.]

[She's rendered him speechless, which is a little amusing in itself, because she's pretty sure she's never seen him at a loss for words in all the time she's known him. She reaches out, ruffling his hair lightly with gentle affection.]

So. Now that you're awake, is there anything I can get you? Being stuck in the clinic is never fun.

[He barely registers the hair ruffle, lips pursing. He’s not really sure what he needs, besides… a working mental state, maybe. And that’s not something he can have handed to him at will.]

It’s not… supposed to be fun. But Teddy’s looking after me.

I know. He's been here the entire time, pretty much. He's been worried about you.

...Yeah.

[He wishes he could feel good about that. He feels very loved, yes, but... guilty. Sick, a bit. Mostly just guilty.]

That's not a very positive sounding agreement. Is everything alright with Teddy?

[She doesn't need keen observation skills to pick up on that hint.]

...Is anything... alright with anyone?

[The answer is no.]

He's... he acts like it's fine. But things... have changed. I know they have.

[I'm scared.]

[She can admit to being a little surprised at the answer, because she would have suspected Teddy to be the one solid thing here, knowing the boy, but maybe she'd missed a step. Or maybe she'd just forgotten that despite who and what they are, they are both still boys.

She leans forward, resting her elbows on the bed again.]

How have things changed?

...He's... been shifting. Changing how he looks, a little bit every day. He thinks I don't notice, and... maybe sometimes I don't. But sometimes I do. And it's... it's not right. It's how he used to be, before we started going out...

[She absorbs that information with a troubled frown, thinking back over what she's observed in the days since the the shooting, seeing if she could pick up any subtle differences. She'd thought she'd noticed a thing or two, but she hadn't put much thought into why until now, with Billy bringing it up.]

Do you have an idea as to why?

[He glances sidelong at her, giving her a look, and gestures vaguely down at himself. You want the culprit? It's probably because of him. Everything else is, right now.]

I meant something a little more specific than that. [She gives him a wry look, but his motioned response has given her enough time to think about it. About Teddy and what she's observed. A few comments he made that she hadn't thought too deeply about, but connected with this new information...]

Could this be over the fact that there were two of him?

[Billy hesitates for a moment - he doesn't like to remember that - and then nods uncomfortably.]

That's... what he thinks. I think. And... I don't know how to tell him, otherwise. Not when... it's what he saw...

Sometimes words don't quite make up for an unintended hurt like that. [She gets that part at least. The whole 'let's talk about our feelings' was not one of her stronger skills.] Have you talked to him at all about it, or are you worried about how he'd react to the fact that you've noticed?

...Mm. I don't know what to say.

[...No. That's not quite right, either.]

...I don't... know if I can keep it together long enough to explain it. My head's...

[He gestures a bit helplessly, the movement erratic and unstable.]

...it's a mess...

[She gives him a small faint smile, the expression crooked and for once not wholly convincing, although there's still the same look of understanding in her eyes.]

Billy, I think all of us are a bit of a mess at the moment. [Although another thought occurs to her and she tilts her head, studying him intently for a moment.] Or are there more after-effects of the magic than you just being drained and exhausted?

[Action, October 18th]

selfhelp - 2013-11-27 03:12 (UTC) - Expand

Re: [Action, October 18th]

widows_kiss - 2013-11-27 04:06 (UTC) - Expand

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