26 Jun 2022, 19:03
Come Here Often?
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@Alec Mason
Softly sliding his fingers over the engraving “520A” at the foot of his bed, the most professionally done of all the etches the frame had endured over the years, Wyatt walked out of his room. Clutching his toothbrush and toothpaste like a vice, he stalked down the quiet hall in the early morning dim and entered the bathroom. It was dead silent, but he knew he wasn’t alone.
Whoever it was certainly wasn’t using the bathroom, nor did it seem to Wyatt as though they were hiding out on purpose, but though he knew he had company, he didn’t know their intent. Perhaps it was a bit jumpy to suggest that someone in that strange limbo between the toilet flushing and getting up to exit the stall was not really in such a limbo, but rather waiting for the right time to pounce. Perhaps. Or perhaps it was reasonable, justified, valid, and smart. Wyatt exhaled.
He didn’t even notice how he had been holding his breath. How odd? Was he worried? He didn’t need to be. Not to mention the fact that this alleged spy is just that: alleged. Wyatt had no idea if there actually was someone in the bathroom with him, and to dwell on a meaningless suspicion with a probably less-than exceptional outcome would be a waste. And so Wyatt brushed his teeth.
Once he was done, he eyed the dots on his throat in the mirror with a tight frown. He’d hoped they would have faded more by now, but they weren’t bad. They were barely noticeable, only noteworthy in good lighting. It was lucky for Wyatt, then, that good lighting was very hard to come by in the home. It hardly mattered anyway. The Slytherin, though that title didn’t matter here, would be hard-pressed to find someone persistent enough to challenge him on the mark longer than a minute.
Much like most everywhere else, Wyatt had accidentally made a name for himself at the home. Funnily enough, he had gained his notoriety by keeping his head down. Conceptually, Wyatt is odd. A lanky, pale, posh-sounding kid comes along for the summers, starting only a couple of years ago when he displayed little desire to share the reason behind his arrival. Then, during the school year, he heads off to military school, but never gains a muscle. In fact, sometimes he looks worse!
Yes, he certainly was off. Fortunately, though, so was everyone else. He wasn’t normal enough to be… well, normal, but he certainly wasn’t bizarre enough for some of his roommates, either. Looking down into the sink, he thought of this. He very frequently asked himself if he was strange or if it was everyone else around him who were the weird ones, and he still had no answer.
“Please, take your time, ‘s not like other people got to wash their hands.”
A voice and a sneer from behind pulled Wyatt from his thoughts. Recently, Wyatt had grown a little comfortable at Hogwarts. He was on a sports team, and while he wasn’t looking buff he was certainly looking healthier. This coupled with his naturally uninviting demeanor was finally enough to stunt some of the bullying he’d regularly received in years past. But he wasn’t of any importance, here.
“It does shock me that you care about cleanliness all of a sudden, Orso, but if you would turn your head a bit you would notice that there are other sinks. That is, unless whatever disease that has been making your skull so thick has spread to your neck, and now it won’t turn?”
He should’ve known. Orso had spun Wyatt around so he could ball both fists in his shirt in less than a second before turning and shoving him into the wall. Unfortunately, that was the side with the paper towel dispenser, so Wyatt’s back was being pressed into that thing. Wyatt hadn’t let a single noise leave his lips through the whole thing, but if he did, the sound would’ve been easily lost under the volume of the plastic dispenser lid breaking off and falling onto the tile below. Wyatt laughed.
It wouldn’t be long before someone came in and Orso would have to explain himself. Everyone knew he had an anger problem, and Wyatt was okay with pushing his buttons. Unfortunately, they knew that too. It was probably going to be like the spork incident and they’d share the blame, being served with an equal punishment, but at least the brat would be in trouble too.
Wyatt had missed this. The angry and confused look on Orso’s face as Wyatt laughed in it as a response to his violence. It was always the same. Eyes bugged out in what had been fury, turned to shock. A quivering lip bursting to say something abominable. Shaking hands that would soon… yes. Wyatt was carelessly thrown to the floor, joining the broken plastic. He landed on his hands, elbows, and knees. All parts took the pain equally. They hurt now and would bruise later.
This was how things stayed for a few seconds until the door swung open and Wyatt gracelessly returned to his feet. He felt woozy as a result of how quickly he stood, but he didn’t think he looked it. To his surprise, it wasn’t Green or one of the Reillys or even Iacono who was standing in the doorway. If it was going to be one of the kids, it probably would’ve been Ross. Not him either, though.
“What are you doing in the boys’ bathroom?”
Elle, Wyatt’s roommate, was in the doorway. She was the only person in the home who Wyatt would address by their common nickname. She’d been there for him after he woke up from too many nightmares for him to be his typical brand of rude to her. Knowing that he likely wouldn’t be able to warm up to many others, she even kept their bunk, 520, to herself during the school year. This meant his side of the room was the way he left it every time he came back. She was like his sister, which was another reason why it was strange that she was in the boys’ bathroom right now.
“What are you doin’ on the floor? ‘S all gross n’ wet n’ stuff. Come on.”
Following Elle’s impatient gesture to follow her, Wyatt left the bathroom without another word or glance in Orso’s direction. Wyatt glared into the back of his savior’s head. She was Wyatt’s age but she still talked to him like he was her little brother. Perhaps she had a reason to, as she was usually at his side, keeping his temper in check. Not to mention how Wyatt, himself, thought of her as a sister. But he imagined it was more like twins. Not an older-younger hierarchy situation.
“I was already up. You talk to me like I’m a toddler,” Wyatt spat as soon as the bathroom door was closed behind them, upset that she had to make him look even dumber in front of Rory. Wyatt wasn’t trying to impress anybody, but Elle was making it seem like he couldn’t help himself in that sort of situation, and Orso didn’t need to think that of him, or this was never going to change.
“It’s ‘cause you’re acting a lot like one, Drac,” she said in a tone that sounded like their conversation was over. She was good at stuff like that. Letting him know when to stop and when it was a back and forth. Wyatt appreciated how easy it was to understand what she was saying to him. They finally were back in their room, and they both collapsed onto their beds. It was a Monday, but it was also the summer, and they didn’t have any responsibilities to get to. It was going to be a normal day.
Last edited by Wyatt Starkey on 14 Sep 2022, 03:52, edited 2 times in total.
| “If you ever need anything please don't hesitate to ask someone else first.” - Kurt Cobain. |
Sta: 15 | Eva: 20 | Str: 6 | Wis: 9 | Arc: 9 | Acc: 11 Parselmouth | Prodigal DADA | Fearless | Muggle Condition |
27 Jun 2022, 05:28
Come Here Often?
| Alec:#3c0f8f | Jackie:#df629f |
Quick note: there is a lot to read, I got caught up in writing. Here is where the relevant information starts
Light shown in through the bedroom window, the sunlight brightened the dull gray room, adding a certain unforeseen aspect of cheeriness, to whatever may have been going on beyond the walls of the room. A curly-haired young man could be seen, walking around the room and collecting items, there was a certain anxious air in his steps, the items he reached for would be hastily such into a bag. He held no regard for how fragile an item may have been. In the same room sat a young girl on a bed. The girl was blonde, her hair was in a neat fishtail braid, she was wearing black plants, a white turtleneck, and a plaid overall skirt. She was leaning forward as she sat, holding a lion stuffed animal in her arms and attempting to peek out the window, which was just beyond the bed. With his rush of frenzied frantic actions, the young man would only now stop to notice the girl trying to peek out the window, and quickly he pulled the curtains closed. The lack of sunlight dulled the room once more, leaving a melancholy atmosphere, the young girl pouted.
“Did we have to close all of the curtains?”
“Yes,”
“why?” Jackie asked tilting her head.
Alec half-laughed, “you already know why,”
Certainly she understood the series of incidents that had taken place yesterday. However, he was becoming increasingly uncertain in her ability to understand the severity. The 'series of incidents' was his fault, Alec's fault. Call his mistakes irresponsible for that's exactly what they were. He broke a rule, leaving the house, though it wasn't as if he hadn't done it already. Taking Jackie out on a walk in broad daylight, at the time he thought no harm could come of it, they needed to stretch their legs a little, Alec needed fresh air for the sake his mental health and Jackie was having adverse reactions as well to being cooped up. The neighbors were nosy, apparently a walk was the perfect thing to alert them to the fact there had been nobody but two 'children'(as they put it) in the house for days. Alec was used to being on his own his Jackie for multiple days before. As it turned out the neighbors seemed to be the type who coddled their children, they couldn't seem to listen when Alec tried to explain that he was perfectly capable of not only taking care of and watching over himself, but Jackie as well. There were quite a few people who tried to make him and Jackie come into one of their homes, so they could sit down and have a 'friendly chat' over tea. By nightfall the measures taken had vastly increased.
Alec could claim it was the cause of him being unable to sleep, though at that point he would have been using the convenient circumstance as somewhere to place false blame. When morning-time had arrived Alec came to the astute realization that their nosy neighbors involvements were only going to increase, Alec was wary of the mess that would follow, the hoops he would have to go through too talk himself out of the situation, the people who would overreact and try to get certain authorities involved. Thus had appeared Alec's solution to the problem, pulling a Nina and having a 'disappearing act'. Unknowingly contributing to the bad cycle of incidents and huge mistakes as his sleepless brain attempted to function and come up with 'bright ideas', ones that had nothing more than a title and cover photo, ones the lacked actual plans and important details. In this case for instance, one of the important details he had not at the time realized to think about was where he would be taking him and Jackie.
--
Alec had packed any necessities they may have needed. He also packed an extra outfit so he would have more to wear than the clothes on their back. His wand also tucked and hidden away in a secret pocket, and he'd for some reason been compelled to bring the strange book. The one he'd found going through his mother's things. Of course he made sure to have his wizarding currency on him, and a snack or two.
---
They'd left the second Alec had finished packing the bag, setting off towards town. Alec had never thought about where they were going and would continue to do that until they reached town. It was an important question, where would they go? Alec had already made a full list of places they couldn't. Him and Jackie walked past downtown shops, and Alec tried to clear his head, attempting to do his best to not get distracted by the strange muggle items in the windows, he'd never walked this far out from home before, not once had he been here, in fact, he was starting to think he was going to need a map.
Alec navigated him and Jackie through the busy street, focused on avoiding bumping into people, any measures to not make a scene. While Alec held strong on not looking on muggle shop windows, Jackie did not, she stopped and in trying to get her to start walking again, someone bumped into Alec. Thankfully nobody stopped and made a big deal out of it- the stranger had lightly grazed him, bumping into his bag and accidentally knocking something ou- wait- knocking something out of the bag? Alec glanced to see what it was... The book with the letters in it and the letters too- too-
Oh thank merlin! This was perfect. It was somewhere to go, at least a place where nosy neighbors wouldn't spot them. It was also the world's most incredible excuse to run off, thinking it was for the 'greater good', then deciding the greater good meant visiting Wyatt Starkey. The timing was perfect... because of.. well, yeah...
Alec reached to pick up the book and put it back in his bag.
Alec was going to try and figure out how to send a letter through muggle post to check on Wyatt, Alec was going to try to figure it out sooner but then the whole mess happened, and it was going to end up being a letter that was late either way. Haha! This meant muggle post could not try to one up him, he didn't have to deal with the strange system if he was seeing Wyatt in person.
There was only one teensy problem, Alec had an address but he lacked directions. He was also thinking that there was going to be trouble trying to make it by foot, they'd reach that hurtle when they came to it.
Alec asked around for directions, surprisingly, he was able to get some. Advice on how to best get there as well.
---
Alec and Jackie started by foot, they were able to get a lift from strangers every so often(despite the way Alec's heart rate increased inside a stranger's vehicle. They had managed to cover a good amount of ground, Alec had no doubts on his ability to be able to get there. Currently, he was walking with Jackie by foot. Alec didn't know exactly where they were. Only that he was beginning to realize how exhausted he was, tired from the lack of sleep, and very physically drained, it didn't help that Jackie had begun complaining about sore legs over the walking and asked to be carried. Jackie had always been incredibly light, still, it always got harder to carry her the older she got. This was probably the last year he'd be doing it, she really was getting too old for it. Alec was pulled out of his spots when he spotted a bench. “We should stop for a break,” Jackie smiled and nodded, squirming out of Alec's arms, “last one there is a slimy flobberworm!” She darted off towards the bench. Alec was left to think about the strange looks he may have been getting if a muggle heard followed by darting after her(much slower), towards the bench.
Jackie mentioned she was cold, and Alec gave her his green hoodie, within minutes the two were out cold having fallen asleep on their bench break.
---
All good things must come to an end, their bench break certainly did, Alec awoke to the feeling of something being placed over him, a jacket. He looked over to see the culprit, a stranger, a woman(cough cough the random npc this writer made up on the spot and will probably forget about by their third post into the thread) who was explaining to a disgruntled Alec that he looked cold. Followed by her mentioning sleeping there wasn't the best idea. She asked Alec to follow her, and for some reason he agreed too. Picking up a sleeping Jackie, Alec followed the lady to her car and got in(he'd been getting lifts all day, he wasn't allowed to be worried now!). In the backseat of the vehicle, Alec once again fell asleep.
---
There are lots of time skips I only bother to clarify the time hereee | time : 20:00-21:00 somewhere around that time
Alec regained consciousness as he felt the vehicle slow, waking up he stretched his arms before looking out the window. Wait... Why had he agreed to go with this lady even when he didn't know where she was going? Alec panicked, and his eyes quickly searched for any form of an address. It didn't take long to figure out where they were, and as he realized this she opened the vehicle door, holding it for Alec and Jackie to get out. Alec gently shook Jackie awake, and the both left the car. As Alec and Jackie followed the woman to the door of the building, Alec's mind raced. WOW. Was she or was she not merlin reincarnated? He didn't know how she did it, but she had read his mind. Now all Alec had to do was see Wyatt stay for a bit, leave and work out a place to sleep and come back in the morning. Someone around this town had to take payment in galleons. . .
Forgive Alec's tired and foggy-headed brain for not realizing the full extent of what was happening as they entered. The woman went over to the front desk, and Alec stood awkwardly keeping Jackie close by him. He still needed to 'wake himself up' and brush his tiredness off. Alec hated how inattentive he was feeling, especially in an unfamiliar place. Alec rubbed at his eyes, blinking as he let his arms fall to his sides and he became better aware of everything around him. Watching the woman who'd brought them here from the corner of his eyes. Did she read his mind again? Maybe she was asking about Wyatt? Alec couldn't tell. He'd never been the best about eavesdropping without making it obvious, and he was worse at reading lips.
@Wyatt Starkey
27 Jun 2022, 23:09
Come Here Often?
wearing | hex: #3a5948
kyrsten lynn hex: #2f1f28
When Wyatt opened his eyes again, it was dark. He put his hands on his face and wiped the goo out of his eyes, wondering how long he’d been out as he did so. Maybe he really was a vampire, because he imagined sleeping through the night and then sleeping until the night wasn’t normal. He wasn’t so foggy-brained as to forget the reason why he felt this way this damned month, though. He just thought he was better at handling it. Then of course, he was never truly good at knowing himself.
Though he would’ve loved to close his eyes and succumb to that post-sleep tired, Wyatt couldn’t ignore his throat, which was so dry it hurt. He reached for the mug at the side of his bed, but only got the smallest sip of water from the thing and cringed when he remembered that the water was days old. Oh well, water’s water. Checking the other mug that sat at his bedside table, he found it was similarly empty, and he cursed himself for not getting a drink before going to sleep.
Something about the room didn’t feel right. At first, he thought Elle had closed the curtains to leave them in darkness while they rested, but as soon as he remembered her fear of the dark, he shot upright. Looking around a bit frantically, he found that Elle wasn’t in her bed. Suddenly, the grogginess that comes with just waking up left him, and he almost tore his sheets pulling them off of his body. When he marched to his door, heart racing, he was met with a small note taped to the door.
lizzie’s roomie got sick : (
but that means i can sleep over : )
With a breath he didn’t even know he was holding, Wyatt exhaled, the action suddenly causing him to re-remember how dry his throat was. Now that he was up, he could probably use a tea to wrestle his mind back to peace. It wouldn’t be the first time he scared late-shift security by walking out of the shadows at night, but it had been a whole school year since a request this late in the night, by the looks of his alarm clock. Well, it was bound to happen at some point, no use in caring now.
Slowly, Wyatt turned the doorknob, as to not make a sound. This idea was quickly abandoned, as the door creaked the same way Wyatt forgot it did, every time. Looking around the room, Wyatt saw Elle’s hairspray on the floor by her bed, and sprayed it over the door’s hinges before tossing it onto her pillow. When he tried the door again, the creaking had softened. No one left their rooms to stop him, so Wyatt considered that a success, now traveling down the hall as quietly as he could.
Once downstairs, he immediately looked to the front desk. For some reason, he always expected to see Mrs. Green, but in her place was Ms. Davies, who Wyatt was glad he recognized too. He briefly registered two figures seated in the waiting room; the smaller one in a comically big hoodie and the bigger one clutching a women’s form-fitting jacket around themselves. Both were cloaked in darkness, as many people here seemed to be. Not notable enough for Wyatt to spare them another glance.
Davies was talking to the night guard, whose name Wyatt couldn’t remember, though he was sure it started with a C. That’s when something struck him as odd. The front desk workers don’t usually stay overnight. While some kids do get taken in late, if it’s a short-notice thing, they usually are brought in by the police or a social worker and a nurse finds them a place to rest. Davies should have been home by now, maybe just arriving if it was that far, but traffic was never rough in Cokeworth.
“Wyatt?” Came a voice from behind him. It sounded like Ms. Lynn, and Ms. Lynn sounded tired. Wyatt turned to face her. Lynn, the sort of director of the home, looked down at Wyatt with concern, clutching a thin cardigan around her pajamas. “Why are you down here so late?”
“I just wanted to get some tea,” he replied honestly, not seeing why he shouldn’t.
“The tea and coffee cart is locked up in the staffroom around this time,” Ms. Lynn reminded him. As a response, Wyatt shrugged with raised eyebrows and a faint, tight smile. In truth, he had one of Elle’s bobby pins in his pocket and meant to pick the lock. When he saw Davies, of course, he was going to just ask, but he got all caught up in why she was there and forgot his objective for a second.
“Well,” Lynn suddenly sighed. “Please allow me a minute, Ms. Davies, officer Crowley.” Turning from the recently addressed back to Wyatt, she said, “off to bed right after, okay?”
Wyatt nodded as she gave him her ring of keys, specifically handing it to him by one of the keys, which he assumed was the one to unlock the door. He took it by the key with a smile, careful not to lose it in however many others there were on the ring. He flicked the hallway light on and travelled quickly to the staffroom. He poured a water bottle into the mug and placed it in the microwave for a few minutes. The tea he made wasn’t the most… anything, but it was quick and it was tea.
For some reason, when the microwave beeped, it felt deafeningly loud. A testament to how groggy Wyatt was. With a yawn, he took a teabag, whatever non-caffeinated thing they had plenty of, and put it in his mug. Not wanting to push it, he left the staffroom and locked the door behind him as soon as the teabag had found his cup. It being unnecessary to still hold on to a single, specific key, Wyatt just but the ring around his wrist as he made his way back down the hall.
Though Lynn was talking to Davies and Crowley, all Wyatt had to do was hand her a ring of keys, so he walked over to the group. On his way, he caught a glimpse of the little hooded figure, and paused momentarily. It sounded crazy, but they sort of looked like Alec’s little sister. Of course, he stayed with Alec’s family for a summer, but he hadn’t spent the most time with his sister, nor had he seen her in a while. Still, he thought it was funny that this kid looked so similar.
But now that he was thinking about it, the kid next to her had Alec’s same brand of wavy locks. And now was when Wyatt noticed that he didn’t turn off the hallway light, because what he could see told him that he was finally going fully insane, or Alec and Jackie Mason were in the waiting room of the Cokeworth Children’s Home. Even if something truly terrible happened and they lost their parents, it didn’t make any sense that they would be sent to some place in Cokeworth. No way…
The ear-splitting sound of keys hitting the ground brought Wyatt out of his thoughts, but not his confusion or panic. This was insane, why were they here? Was that really them? How did they get here? From what Wyatt remembered, they certainly weren’t a block away. This was all too much, and Wyatt did not know how to handle it. As to not spill his mug of hot tea, he slowly got the keys from the floor and handed them to Ms. Lynn with an apology, but couldn’t pull his eyes from Alec.
The group had stopped talking when Wyatt got to them in the first place. They were obviously talking about the new kid, and Wyatt respected the professionalism in keeping new kids' information as secure as possible. Wyatt got the impression staying out there longer wasn’t going to get him to Alec, if it was even Alec at all. He knew the best thing to do was to head out before Ms. Lynn asked him to, herself. What would he even say? Nothing was making sense. Maybe it was just a dream.
“Are you feeling alright?” Ms. Lynn was looking at Wyatt with a worried look. Wyatt never cared much for new kids, so the fact he couldn’t rip his eyes off of the two huddled figures in the corner struck her as odd. Wyatt cursed himself for not caring about the other kids.
“Just tired. Thanks for the tea,” he replied quickly. Forcing himself to look away from this kid who really looked like Alec J. Mason, Wyatt went up the stairs, pinching his arm. Maybe if he pinched himself hard enough, he would wake up, and he would be in his bed, waking up at a reasonable hour. Eventually, he got to his room and collapsed onto his mattress, willing himself to sleep.
Interacting: @Alec Mason
Mentioning: N/A
| “If you ever need anything please don't hesitate to ask someone else first.” - Kurt Cobain. |
Sta: 15 | Eva: 20 | Str: 6 | Wis: 9 | Arc: 9 | Acc: 11 Parselmouth | Prodigal DADA | Fearless | Muggle Condition |
28 Jun 2022, 21:30
Come Here Often?
It was cold and Alec clutched the coat, holding it to him as if his life depended on it. It couldn't have been anything more than a light breeze, he doubted it was even that. The waiting was beginning to feel like forever, and so silly things had become his point of focus. The longer Alec stayed, the more he realized the truth of the situation he'd dragged him and Jackie into. To think the woman who'd brought them here had any association to merlin was a stretch. He'd known it from the beginning, he wanted to think the best of it. There was little chance the woman had read Alec's mind, and he was sure she had not been asking about Wyatt. Alec shifted, his hair falling into his eyes as he turned his head, glancing over at the group of adults. Alec tried not to make his peeking over at them obvious. Staying still was agonizing, he could hardly understand the purpose of him waiting around and trying to pass time while they spoke. He could hardly understand the purpose of staying inside the building. Alec didn't know if Wyatt was here. Not for sure. It could have been an old address... Though it was unlikely. Every minute that passed with Alec here was a minute wasted for Alec to find arrangements for him and Jackie. Alec didn't know why he was here. It strangely felt like he was in trouble. Of course he was confused as to how sleeping on a bench was some sort of criminal offense. Alec's intentions hadn't even been to fall asleep.
Alec held back the urge to walk out the front doors.
His stomach was doing flips flops. Alec closed his his eyes, taking a deep breath in and out. The tension in his shoulders subsided, but it wasn't enough, his eyes settled on the front doors while he tried to push away the nauseous anxious feeling. Having a better scope of the building and his surroundings wouldn't do any harm. It offered some reassurance. The frosted glass doors weren't far from him. From there he found it hard to identify if there were any others exits. Whether or not they existed was irrelevant to him now, and so, he turned his attention to getting a better look of the interior, the room around him. The wallpaper was worn, in fact everything he could see was worn or run-down. None of it looked particularly terrible, old and used had to be the right words for it. Describing the inside of the building felt like describing an elderly wizard, the type of person who has lived a long and full life, fun stories here and there, but it's clear they've seen some things, gone through many rough events over their lifetime.
It was a shame none of the walls were sentient. He was missing out on good stories, and a spy. Alec lips curled into a frown. Making a sentient wall had to be a much easier task than trying to pin-point the purpose of the various muggle objects he'd seen throughout the day on his trip here. There was no limit to the amount of confusion Alec experienced in trying to make sense of them. To be fair, nobody was explaining their purpose, he'd seen things in the shop windows early in the morning out of the corner of his eye. It was hard to guess their purpose based on looks.
Time passed and eventually Alec caved, he ended up no so subtly watching the group of adults. Talking, talking, and more talking. Boring, boring, and more endless boredom... Kid walks up. Alec was curious, but at the time he wasn't actively seeking Wyatt out- and so he paid little attention. Alec was currently attempting to learn how to lip read. Usually a hearing person starts with sound but Alec decided he was a go-getter. Admittedly the words he tried to claim they were saying made no sense in a full sentence. He looked away in order to not make it obvious he was staring at the adults, the adults probably wouldn't notice, but kid might.
Alec sighed. Lip reading did not seem to be working out anyway. He glanced towards Jackie, she was quiet and keeping herself busy. She was a good kid, Alec knew he didn't have to worry about her. Alec just hoped he'd made the right decision, he didn't have the best track record thus far. Alec lightly ruffled her hair, and glanced back towards the group of adults. Ah now there was some good news, kid was gone. Alec didn't have to look away. He watched the adults until he noticed their attention had shifted, they stopped talking. Focused on the ground? Something had been dropped on the ground, strange. Before Alec could realize the culprit was the kid from earlier and that he was being stared at, kid left.
The rest of the night was a blur, the waiting still felt endless in it despite the fact he knew it hadn't been long. The young teen ended up zoning out for a majority of it. Lost in his thoughts, an endless ocean of them to pick through. Alec couldn't remember whether or not he ended up being involved in the conversation the adults were having, or if he had attempted to actually listen in on it after some time. They might have asked questions, Alec never ended up keeping track of the specifics. He didn't care too. Time dragged on slowly, but eventually the night came to a close, wrapping itself in a ribbon and tying a bow. The lady was given her jacket back and Alec made an internal note to himself about not accidentally falling asleep on a bench. Alec and Jackie had been given a place to sleep, it was late enough that Alec found himself too tired to protest. It was better to worry about it in the morning. He went to sleep easily, he was exhausted and at that point, anything was a step up from the bench
@Wyatt Starkey
30 Jun 2022, 00:11
Come Here Often?
wearing | hex: #3a5948
elvira olsen hex: #425778
If this was all a dream, it was an awfully long one. Wyatt had never tried so hard to sleep. Still, the storm of questions in his brain raged on, and he couldn’t catch a wink through it all. Was he finally losing it, or had Alec Mason and his sister shown up at the home? It was beyond reason to think Alec would just drop everything and drag his sister to Cokeworth, so he must be going mad.
Though stressed and confused beyond description, Wyatt was secretly grateful for this mystery. Alec’s presence came with worrying implications, but it took his mind away from the date. As if dictated by some circadian-esque clock, Wyatt felt naturally more and more down near the twelfth of July. Even in those moments of bliss where he forgot the date or something, there was still a cloud hanging overhead, reminding him of the upcoming anniversary. Today. Any distraction was welcome.
By 10:00, though he stayed holed up in his room, he had heard dozens of voices say the words “new kids.” It was driving him insane, both from curiosity and annoyance. Every time a new kid joined the home, it was breaking news, and the kid barely gets a second to adjust. People were rarely mean, and it’s only natural to be curious, but the whole thing felt a bit strange. Wyatt didn’t remember feeling so against this curiosity before, but these kids were never gossipping about Alec.
Finally, around 11:00, Wyatt broke. He decided to get in some new clothes and brush his teeth first, to feel normal. He told himself it was because he had a routine to keep up, but getting up this late was exclusive to the middle of July, and was not a part of his usual routine. In truth, he was stalling. He was still hoping he was sick, and in the middle of a really weird fever dream.
When he got to the common area, Wyatt saw a group of kids huddled around Finn. One of them, Elle. Instantly, Wyatt waved her over. He knew what the group was discussing, it was beyond obvious. Not to mention predictable, since Finn always knew the best things to say to pull information from Mrs. Green. Always, Wyatt had called that ability commendable. He didn’t think he would, now.
“We’ve got new kids!” She exclaimed immediately, beaming widely. She was always warm. Most of the kids’ first friend (or at least their first ally) in the home was Finn. While this was also true for Wyatt, the first child he ever saw was Elle. He’d been put in room 20 with her, and she’d given him a big smile–like the one she sported now–and waved at him for a solid ten seconds. While that first impression was strange to Wyatt then, it had made him feel welcome. “Alex and Jamie, I think.”
Well that didn’t help, but it definitely did. Alec and Jackie were two easily mistakable names and through an elaborate game of telephone, they could’ve gotten mixed up. This could be read as a sign pointing to their genuinely being there. Alec, Jackie, Alex, and Jamie were all very popular names, however. Whether misheard or correctly received, there was still no telling whether it was the Alec and Jackie Wyatt knew. Who knew, maybe the new kids were really just named Alex and Jamie.
“You know their room?” Wyatt asked. Elle reacted with a confused eyebrow knit and a head tilt. She, as well as the others, knew he was not one to interrogate or concern himself with new arrivals. “I feel like people are making more of a big deal of their coming here, and I just want to see if I can help,” he justified upon registering her non-verbal response. It was bullshit; Wyatt wouldn’t have usually cared, even if they had actually made a bigger deal of one new kid than another. Elle saw through it.
“You’re so hospitable,” she joked with a ridiculous smile and an eyeroll. “They’re both in 26. Don’t freak them out too much. At least not before I can warn them about you,” she continued, poking fun at Wyatt, who was seeming way too stormy for a regular old Tuesday morning to her. With a nod and a word of thanks, Wyatt made his way to room 26, which was quite close the the common area.
He stood there for a moment, then a few more. He couldn’t break himself out of this worries. Were Alec and Jackie going to be behind this door, or was it going to be this Alex and Jamie, strangers. While he missed Alec, he didn’t wish for anything bad to happen to him for the sole reason of seeing his face. Not if it meant he was as hurt as he looked last night. The image, if it truly was of Alec and his sister, made Wyatt’s stomach lurch. He hesitated greatly, but was eventually able to knock on the door.
Interacting: @Alec Mason
Mentioning: N/A
Last edited by Wyatt Starkey on 6 Jul 2022, 11:22, edited 1 time in total.
| “If you ever need anything please don't hesitate to ask someone else first.” - Kurt Cobain. |
Sta: 15 | Eva: 20 | Str: 6 | Wis: 9 | Arc: 9 | Acc: 11 Parselmouth | Prodigal DADA | Fearless | Muggle Condition |
1 Jul 2022, 03:02
Come Here Often?
A precious thing was sleep. Ethereal to the sleepless, ethereal to Alec, he supposed... Alec slept less than most, more often than not it could attributed too his night outings, he frequented enough he was bound to get used to the change. However, even when you slept less you would expect when you go to sleep next you would sleep for the same amount of time you usually do, or play catch up and be done with it. Neither were the case for Alec who ended up sleeping in a good many hours, beyond normal, and beyond any sort of catch up. Commotion coming from the common area was easily lost on him, just as easily lost on him as the fact that his young roommate had been up and awake for hours. Alec tossed and turned in his sleep, to wake him up, he would not be greeted by the warm sun shining onto his face through the window, nor the comforts he was used too (such as a mattress that did not feel like it was made out of rocks back at the house in Bristol), but by a knock on the door, and the only familiar greeting, the feeling of Jackie as she poked and prodded at him while telling him to get up.
“Wake up, someone has to open the door,” she would receive an unfamiliar reaction. Alec felt her fingers jabbing at his shoulder, and he gently and groggily swatted them away. Not opening his eyes Alec frowned, “Jackie stop, go away please, I'm trying to sleep,” Alec mumbled, his voice slightly muffled by the mattress he'd buried his face into. Perhaps not the kindest words Alec could have chosen, but he was alleviating himself from blame just this one. Alec moved away from her to avoid being touched. He knew Jackie was capable of answering the door herself. He made his best attempt to ignore her antics and sleep. Jackie stopped poking and prodding at him, and he could hear the girl huff. Victory at long last... All he had to do was shut his eyes tight to go back to sleep. Then he heard the door creaking open, and the words whatever visitor they had was being subjected too, “Alec says to go away,” in the background, reacting to Jackie's choice of words, Alec would let an audible groan of frustration slip past his lips.
He listened to the door close, closed in the visitor's face, silence filled the room, despite it Alec knew Jackie was still there and waiting for him to get out of bed. He'd decided the situation was dealt with. It seemed Jackie had thought so as well, ...she changed her mind on the matter when Alec still had not gotten out of bed. He heard the door creak, and he knew she had opened it once more. Round two was on the brink and far from over. Their visitor should have run in the opposite direction the second they had the chance. “Alec says that-” the second she began speaking again was the one he decided to give up.
“-and I am awake, look at that,” he interrupted despite whatever was whispering in his ear to stay in bed and sleep, Alec opened his eyes. He blinked as they adjusted to the light filling the room and sighed as he swung his legs to the edge of the bed. “Ah, sorry about that, I should not have let her answer the-” Standing up he spoke to their visitor at the door, Alec's gaze on Jackie as he made his way towards the two, Alec hadn't yet reached the doorway when he looked up, locking eyes with their visitor Alec paused his and stopped walking. “-door.”
Surprise would finally register on Alec's features, Alec stared no longer than a few seconds before he unfroze himself, “Wyatt..?” Alec's eyebrows furrowed. Should Alec have been less surprised that Wyatt was going to show up eventually? Probably, yes. Was he? Clearly he was not. Alec held onto the door and took a step back, allowing Wyatt space to enter the room. This was not a part of the plan. Sleeping here wasn't part of the plan either, but, sleeping here and then having Wyatt show up at the door was way more not apart of the plan. Alec leaned against the door, “so, do you show up at the door of your ex-enemies often, or am I special?” Alec asked jokingly "jokingly". He was surprised how little time it took for Wyatt to show up and knock on the door, whether he knew, or it was somehow an accident. Also to be fair, the sentence had sounded better in Alec's head. It came off differently when he said it out loud. However when the only other dialogue option he could come up with was asking how Wyatt was holding up, Alec decided to save the latter for later. He had to give it a few minutes before he allowed to be a concerned friend and a downer.
Despite Alec lack of words, his eyes would attempt to dissect Wyatt, he didn't look for emotion, half the time Wyatt's face lacked any, however he did look for signs of the gloomy grieving Wyatt he had seen during the summer after their first year.
@Wyatt Starkey
2 Jul 2022, 00:17
Come Here Often?
wearing | hex: #3a5948
As the door opened, Wyatt realized something very important yet not at all relieving. This was not a dream, but a nightmare. Looking up at him was indeed Jackie Mason, who immediately slammed the door in his face after saying that Alec wanted him to go away. Not willing to kick the door down just yet, Wyatt gave it another knock. If Jackie opened it again he could ask her why she was here, or at least see Alec. Sure enough, the door opened and Jackie began to tell Wyatt off again.
This time, however, she was interrupted. Wyatt started to hyperventilate at the sight of Alec Mason who, for some reason, was standing in front of him in a bunk at the Cokeworth Children’s Home. No, not standing, leaning! He was casually leaning against the door, holding it open. If it was to signal Wyatt to enter the room, he didn’t recognize the gesture. Or maybe he wasn’t recognizing anything right now, because his head was spinning and he wanted to throw up.
When Alec said his name Wyatt almost cried. He was so confused and worried. Because of the date, because of Alec’s arrival, because of what that meant about Alec’s situation. It was just a bit too much to take in right then. In an effort to stop his hyperventilating, Wyatt tried to quit breathing for a moment which only offset his rhythm and made things worse. He might’ve muttered something like “what” in the middle of the confusion, but eventually he stabilized his breathing enough to focus.
“So, do you show up at the door of your ex-enemies often, or am I special?”
“Don’t do that,” Wyatt scolded, though his voice wavered slightly. Careful not to draw more attention than he definitely had already, he made sure to keep his voice low, and stepped into the room. Wyatt shut the door as calmly and normally as he could before turning to Alec with a glare. “You can’t just show up here out of nowhere with no warning a- and then b- b… be all snarky about it.”
Wyatt internally cursed himself for the return of his stammer. It had truly been so long, and even in moments of more intense emotion, it was barely prevalent. How was it that Alec usually had something to do with its return? Would the two boys ever stop stressing each other out? Wyatt took in a deep breath, which was a lot shakier than he would have liked. Alec looked awful, so he didn’t want to scare him. If he was here, he couldn’t have been having the best summer of his life at home.
His friend truly did look worn, if that was a word that made any sense. There was too much he seemed to have gone through recently, and Wyatt didn’t remember that specific look on his friend before. Alec fit right in with these kids, but he wouldn’t have last month. Wyatt turned to Jackie, giving her the most natural smile he could conjure. She was so young, barely looking older than seven or eight. How long had she travelled with her brother to get to some random small town in the middle of nowhere?
“Hey Jackie,” he said, greeting her as kindly as possible. He couldn’t even have been sure that she remembered him, but he still felt he should be nice to her before he berated her brother for coming here. Wyatt turned to Alec, letting some of the smile go. “What are y- you two doing he- here? How did you both even manage to- are you okay? Are y- you hurt? Did you eat? You should go eat something, both of you. There- there’s got to be something- if-... What is going on?
“Why didn’t you write me, or something? To let me know you were going to show up here? Was it your intention to just be here and- and try to avoid me? Or were you going to look at some point? And why here, Alec? Jesus, are your parents okay?” Though his tone was mostly monotonous and low, Wyatt's pace of speech absurdly was fast, his brain and his breath only keeping up by some miracle.
Interacting: @Alec Mason
Mentioning: N/A
Last edited by Wyatt Starkey on 6 Jul 2022, 11:22, edited 1 time in total.
| “If you ever need anything please don't hesitate to ask someone else first.” - Kurt Cobain. |
Sta: 15 | Eva: 20 | Str: 6 | Wis: 9 | Arc: 9 | Acc: 11 Parselmouth | Prodigal DADA | Fearless | Muggle Condition |
4 Jul 2022, 00:23
Come Here Often?
Wyatt saying 'don't do that' and Alec's thoughts could only be left to as 'do what?' How specific of you. . . Was is the incredible version of a hello, or the appearing out of nowhere? It could have even been as simple as letting Jackie answer doors, and for that Alec's reply was; lesson learned. Alec questioningly raised an eyebrow, but held his tongue. Moving out of the way as Wyatt closed the door. He glanced to the side to check on Jackie, who as energy-filled as she had been minutes ago, had gotten quiet the second Wyatt entered the room. Was she normally shy? Alec had no clue. When Alec looked back towards Wyatt, he was met with a rather unusual look from Wyatt. Was Wyatt glaring? At him?
Wyatt spoke again, saying something about giving no warning and Alec being snarky. Alec tensed and frowned. So... The incredible hello was terrible? Alec had made it up on the spot but he didn't think it was bad, or snarky for that matter. Wyatt's fueled reaction and the stammering it all caught Alec off-guard, being caught off-guard by it; Alec's immediate reaction was to apologize, “shit- Wyatt, sorry, I wasn't trying to-” Alec cut himself off. Looking back on it, apologizing was making less and less sense. It somehow felt a Wyatt problem, than an Alec problem, yes, Alec was biased because of what he thought to be, his most incredible hello yet. Alec listened to Wyatt take a rather shaky deep breath. Alec resigned to the fact he should be taking the situation seriously. Less about incredible hellos more about...
Out of the corner of his eyes Alec watched as Wyatt turned to Jackie. If anything her hesitance or apparent shyness was to be blamed on Alec. She read the room and if he was hesitant or tense, she was going to be. Alec was going to count her glancing over at him when Wyatt said hi and proof of this theory. She meekly waved.
Wyatt turned to Alec, he began asking questions, though it felt less like question asking and more like an interrogation. Alec couldn't keep up with what Wyatt was saying, let alone answering any of the questions, before his brain had time to process one, Wyatt asked another. Alec was immediately overwhelmed, and his reaction was to cover his face with his hands, “I don't know,” Alec muttered, the only answer he could come up with for the strings of questions. “Do we have to talk about it?” Alec retreated towards the bunk he had been sleeping on moments prior, sitting on the edge. Alec gave it a few minutes before he let his hands fall from his face and to either side of him. Alec focused his gaze on the ground and away from Wyatt.
“Nobody is hurt, okay?” Alec reassured, trying to not stress Wyatt out with lack of giving or offer answers, Alec made attempts to compromise, “just apparently no sleeping on a bench,” he muttered, his voice quiet. He said it as if him muttering something about sleeping on a bench would make sense to Wyatt, when in fact, without proper context it made sense to no person ever. “I came to Cokesworth with Jackie. I was going to visit- showing up here like this was an accident.” Alec said, hoping to clear up the claim of possibly wanting to avoid Wyatt, Alec didn't know how he come to the conclusion. Okay he did know how but... “Is that good enough of an answer for you?” Alec wasn't asking, it was words of frustration if anything. He didn't want it to be a question for the possibility of receiving an answer he wasn't going to like.
@Wyatt Starkey
6 Jul 2022, 11:23
Come Here Often?
wearing | hex: #3a5948
“Do we have to talk about it?”
“Yes, absolutely we do,” Wyatt replied, dumbfounded. What the hell? What was Alec expecting? Thank you for showing up to this children’s home, unannounced, want a cuppa? No! Literally nothing on Earth could have prepared Wyatt to deal with this today. Jesus, this was the last thing he wanted to do, forget about the day, week, month, year. Alec did not belong here.
He couldn’t quite place why this was throwing him off so much. It couldn’t have only been the date or the implications of Alec’s arrival. Maybe it was similar to how little kids don’t like it when different foods touch each other on their plates. Hogwarts was one place, and the Cokeworth Children’s Home was another. The people Wyatt knew from one never met those from the other, and now, they did? This mixture of people made Wyatt’s head ache. This was not how it was supposed to be!
“Nobody is hurt, okay? Just apparently no sleeping on a bench.” Though the intent was probably to soothe, that was not the effect of Alec’s words. To Wyatt, he could not have been more vague and ominous than that sentence. Alec was sleeping on benches now? What happened to his house? And if no one was hurt, why was there a necessity to drag Jackie along on the journey?
“I came to Cokeworth with Jackie. I was going to visit- showing up here like this was an accident.” Upon hearing the word visit, Wyatt scoffed, throwing his hands up in the air. Usually, when people visit, it’s not a full surprise. Not to mention it’s at, like, a coffee shop, or maybe even a house. Often times, though Wyatt could admit his experience was limited, it wasn’t showing up to the worst spot in town and avoiding the host. “Is that good enough of an answer for you?”
“No, it’s really not! You don’t get to be all- all snippy with me right now. Forgive me for worrying about you when you show up at a place children go after their parents leave them or die. Yes, my bad. I promise it won’t happen again,” Wyatt fumed, feeling like he was spiraling. “Is that a good enough answer for me? Do your parents even know you’re here? And what on Earth are you talking about when you say ‘apparently no sleeping on a bench’? This is all so wrong, it doesn't make any sense.”
Wyatt wanted nothing more than to fall to the ground, curl up, and die. Or maybe sob like an infant for a bit first. He was overwhelmed. More than overwhelmed, if there was any such thing. It made no sense that Alec would come here, but still, Wyatt didn’t want him to feel bad. There was an explanation as to why he was here, and it wasn’t gonna be a fun one. For that reason, Wyatt knew he shouldn’t be too harsh on his friend. Still, for him to act so nonchalant about everything? Wyatt had a migraine.
“You have to understand, showing up here with no warning… How did you expect me to react?” Wyatt stared at his friend, quite dumbly. He was feeling like an idiot, but he was mostly confused. He could possibly understand why Alec would just come here if his family was okay. Of course, Wyatt remembered the divorce, but he was always under the assumption Alec had a roof over his head. “Whatever happened to the whole honesty thing? Please, tell me what is going on.”
Interacting: @Alec Mason
Mentioning: N/A
| “If you ever need anything please don't hesitate to ask someone else first.” - Kurt Cobain. |
Sta: 15 | Eva: 20 | Str: 6 | Wis: 9 | Arc: 9 | Acc: 11 Parselmouth | Prodigal DADA | Fearless | Muggle Condition |
9 Jul 2022, 23:24
Come Here Often?
What started as Alec casually leaning on a door, had turned into a far more escalated situation. Wyatt was worried, and rightly so, Alec understood how it could be interpreted to an outsider. However, with Alec knowing what he knew; part of him couldn't help but want to tell Wyatt to calm down. To insist he was making far greater of a fuss over the two and them being here than he needed to make. The explanation was long, and Alec didn't want to be put through the questioning of his actions and the gradual motions of once again realizing it was at the very least slightly concerning that he had no responsible adult to reach out to in case of an emergency. Currently Alec was put into a position where he had to sit and listen to Wyatt... ranting? Sort of? Alec had let a choice word or two(or nine) slip in his frustration, and funnily enough(it wasn't as funny now but it would be later) Wyatt had taken it and did what Alec didn't want. He recognized it as a question, giving the answer Alec didn't want, and effectively letting Alec know his answers were not enough.
Often situations between the two had a tendency to escalate quickly, Alec should have expected it would, it always did. Turning his head to look at Wyatt, Alec imagined steam coming out of his ears, similar to the the side-effect of the Pepperup potion, it felt fitting in this instance. Less fitting when his words seemed more panicky, questions. Alec towards Jackie as Wyatt continued. She seemed confused, Alec shrugged to her as if this were the world's most normal situation. Wyatt stopped speaking and the silence felt heavy. Was Alec expected to say something? Answer his new list of questions? He let the silence sit, Alec could feel Wyatt's eyes on him, and Wyatt was speaking once again.
He asked how Alec had expected him to react. Alec wanted to say it would have been less severe had he actually followed through and been able to carry out his plan, but he didn't. Alec didn't respond and Wyatt did something unexpected, he pulled the honesty card. Alec's lips pursed to keep impulsive and rather childish protest move past his lips. It was ironic Wyatt pulled the honestly card considering how long it had took Alec to get anything out of Wyatt the day he had asked for a hug, it was ironic considering Alec- No. He wasn't going to think about that one. . .
For a moment Alec was left stunned. “There's nothing wrong. You're fussing over it more than you need to be, but fine, I don't care anymore.” Real mature Alec, real mature. It wasn't all that serious, though every time he voiced it out loud it did begin to feel a slight bit more concerning. Alec took a deep breath, “When the neighbors found out Jackie and I had been at the house by ourselves for...” Alec paused trying to think back, he hadn't kept track but he should have been better at pulling the dates from his mind, “it couldn't been anymore than a week. They made a huge deal out of it, they were pushy about us not being left for 'such a long time' without supervision and tried to get us to stay at one of their homes.”
Part of Alec was worried Wyatt was going to ask why the information was relevant. He felt like Wyatt would still be demanding answers if he just explained the whole park bench thing, or answered that no, their parents do not know where they are. Which is why he chose a little story instead. He was hoping he wouldn't be interrupted if Wyatt was confused, because Alec was going to hit every bullet point. “I said no, though I knew it obviously wasn't going to end there.” Alec's lips split into a frown, his face looking conflicted as reflected back on it.
“So I left with Jackie... I'm not going to explain my reasoning, I'm not sure you would understand. It feels like it sounds irrational, but I don't know any of my neighbors well, or trust them.” Alec shrugged, the words came out far too casual, though this was just Alec trying to mask the fact he was worried about having made the wrong decision. Would it have been better to try and trust the neighbors? Alec felt better being off somewhere else.
Here comes the part that nobody would ever be surprised about, Alec's not being predictable was so incredibly predictable. At least this idea was well thought out enough that there hadn't been any soap related, and in general and injuries yet. “I had no plan and in a spur of the moment decision we ended up going to Cokesworth. We didn't walk the whole way however we had been walking for a while and were close when we took a break on a bench. I meant it to only be a few minutes but we both fell asleep.” Alec's face flushed out of embarrassment, he hadn't meant too fall asleep. “I was a misunderstanding because somebody brought us here.”
Finally his explaining was coming to a close, he wanted to get it over with as soon as possible. Now all he had to do was talk about the part that worried him the most, great. Alec stood up, wringing his hands as he began to speak, “while the best idea would have been to send a letter to one of my parents. One, I have no idea what's going on with my mom or where she is. Two, my father left the day after I arrived home from-” Alec paused he didn't know if he was loud enough to be heard outside the door, he was in a place filled with muggles so... “-erm for the summer. We were staying at his house in Bristol for the summer. He said something about work. He wouldn't tell me anything, and didn't give me any address to send a letter.” Alec had nobody to contact. It was a shame considering if there had been an emergency he would not have been in a good position. Nothing bad had happened yet, maybe luck was on his side.
@Wyatt Starkey