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Scene Title | Missing Something |
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Synopsis | Magnes gives Aaron a ride to the Lighthouse, his new home away from home. When he gets inside, he feels like something's missing…. |
Date | April 17, 2010 |
When Aaron talked with Gillian and agreed to a meeting with Magnes at the top of a local parking structure — no need to tie himself to the building he came out of, it's less conspicuous that way — he grossly underestimated just how much all of his things he brought with him weigh. Compared to the two bags of clothes and personal effects, the guitar weighs nothing, and he managed to have it strapped over his shoulder just fine the whole way. The two gym bags, on the other hand, switched between hands and shoulders the whole two blocks and a quarter to the parkade.
The climb to the top was fun, and he arrives with such a posture as to make him look destinctly out of breath and physically exhausted. He usually doesn't even stray a whole block away from home and did not realize just how much weight all of the winter clothes he put on add to him. Maybe he should have been using the gym. He doesn't even look around to see if Magnes is there yet, though he's certain he'll only barely recognize the man — he wasn't particularly coherent when first and last he saw the pizza guy — even if he is. No, he just drops all of his thinks, save the guitar, and catches his breath a little, pulling the red scarf free of his mouth so he can breathe the air more quickly, despite how chill it is.
Intending to rest for most of the day before his fight, Magnes does have a few errands to take care of. One such errand is picking up Aaron, which he doesn't make a big show of dressing up for. He's in a buttoned up black wool trenchcoat, some blue jeans, and a pair of black snow boots, landing a few feet away from him on the roof. "Oh, you're Peyton's boyfriend." There's just a hint of jealousy… who wouldn't be? "I can take care of the bags, just gotta see how we're gonna position everything." He starts heading over, getting ready to start taking things.
Boyfriend. For that remark, Aaron offers a stifled laugh before he wraps his scarf back around. He is similarly attired, though with a hoodie under his hooded, long winter coat. "Feel free," he says of the bags. There are other things on his mind than hauling around sixty pounds of wardrobe. Not that he wants to give those things any brain-time. "I imagine whatever way's more aerodynamic, or, however it works with … gravity…" Aaron cracks his neck and readjusts his leather gloves, working a bit of feeling back into his hands and preparing for what he assumes is probably going to be a terrifying experience. Granted, after his adventure in Nightmaremanland, it might not be so bad. "So how long's this gonna take, anyway?"
"A few minutes at most, depending on visibility. And with all these bags, I couldn't be even remotely aerodynamic, even if it was necessary." Magnes shakes his head, smiling for a moment, then grabs them and couches down in front of him. "Come on, Tom Baker, time to get going. This is your first time, so you better hold on tight. It's not like normal flying and it might be a bit much, but you won't fall, even if you try."
"Aaron Michaels, actually," Aaron says, not catching nor understanding the reference. Aaron Michaels of the once popular Lightbringers. "And falling isn't really my concern right now. Freezing is." He's fallen plenty before, in dreams anyway. It wasn't so bad. "Good to know it won't take long."
"On, on." Magnes motions a hand, indicating that he's clearly expecting Aaron to get on his back. He is holding those bags, afterall. "And I'm Magnes J. Varlane. You're gonna be cold by the time we get there, if you're not used to cold air pelting you in the face."
"Now why didn't you say so?" Aaron asks. He reaches into his coat and shifts his scarf around so it covers more of his face. Then he puts on some sunglasses — not that the sun refracting off the snow wasn't enough to warrant them already. He finally climbs on Magnes' back and makes one last adjustment to his scarf. "I'm already cold, thanks."
"Alright, let's go!" Magnes suddenly springs up into the air, then they're suddenly falling across the city at an incredibly fast pace. It's kind of like sky diving, but he's clearly in control, and seems to be doing fine with the bags. "You alright up there? You better not be bisexual, that would be very awkward."
"Oh yeah, just peachy," Aaron says, with a bit of sarcasm. Yup, definitely falling. He recognizes it as the same sensation — plus icy cold — he had when he dove off that balcony the last time he attempted to face off against the Nightmare man. Not his finest moment, but it apparently prepared him for this to avoid what others would likely experience as a good reason to vomit.
"No, no, don't worry. Besides, it's so cold it probably wouldn't matter anyway."
"Yeah, well, my organs have a saying; Through rain, sleet, hail, snow…" Magnes leaves that up in the air, and after a while they can see the Lighthouse up ahead as he starts to descend. He doesn't seem to be slowing much though, which might be a tad alarming.
"Good for your organs," Aaron mutters. With all the snow, he'd barely recognize the Lighthouse if not for the fact that … well, it's a lighthouse. He's so busy watching the scenery and wondering how he can possibly not feel like vomiting, that he only notices that their descent is not slowing precisely when it should probably be too late.
They only start slowing when they're about twenty feet up, Magnes' feet sliding a bit over the ice, until they eventually stop and he waits for Aaron to step down. "Alright, let's head in. And how'd you get a girl like Peyton, anyway? She's really really hot."
And off he comes, fast as lightning. No reason to prolong the awkwardness. He laughs again at Magnes's misperception that he's somehow involved with Peyton. He grabs his bags and straightens his guitar case's strap over his shoulder. Clearly he has every intention of carrying his own things. "I tried to kill myself in her bathroom. It was all downhill from there," he says it with such stark humour that he can't possibly be telling the truth. "No, it's probably more likely tied to her coming to one of my concerts way back in the day when I still had a band, or possibly the fact that I'm not her boyfriend." He walks past Magnes, "And the word you're looking for his 'beautiful.' I find that 'hot' has far too much negative connotation, and usually only works on women with low self-esteem. Or maybe that's just why I don't have a girlfriend."
The inside of the Lighthouse has a lot of activity. There's lights and smoke coming from the chimney. Wood burning heat always has a certain smell to it, depending on the wood, and the Lighthouse seems to actually have acquired some good wood to burn. One of the curtains pulls back, a little dark head peeking out a smeared hand print out into the snow and the frost. The figure sits up, disappears, and the curtain falls.
A few moments later, the front door opens, and one of the kids starts to move outside, only to be snagged from behind and pulled back in by a familiar face. "You, stay inside. You need coats on before you're allowed outside," Gillian says, putting the little blonde girl back down once she's back inside, and pushing her back into the warmth. "Get in here before you two freeze to death."
"I thought the normal thing for someone in my age demographic was to say 'hot'." Magnes shrugs, allowing Aaron to take his own bags. Peyton isn't dating Aaron, yay! Not that he can actually act on this information, having his own problems. He quickly heads inside when Gillian ushers them in. "He rode on my back."
"You didn't come with a sleigh or anything," Aaron says with a roll of his eyes. He kicks snow off his boots before he trudges into the Lighthouse, and is quite grateful to be out of the bitter cold. He gives the place a look around. It's been a long time since he was here the first and last time. He sets his things down on the floor. "This place is missing something…." With a shrug, he unlaces his winter boots and sets them aside with the rest of the boots, his size thirteens pretty much dwarfing the others there. His heavy coat remains on for a bit while he warms up, but he does take the frost-caked scarf off.
"This place is missing a lot of things!" says the tiny blonde girl, raising her hands up to greet them. It almost looks like she wants a hug, and Gillian sweeps in and picks her up before the other two get the chance to. "We don't have a pony!"
"What is it with little girls and ponies— I never wanted a pony growing up!" Gillian exclaims, before making sure the door is firmly shut so the warmth isn't let out too much. "Thanks, Magnes. I wouldn't have asked you to do this if the weather wasn't so bad."
"It's no problem, Gillian." Magnes drops down on all fours, starting to crawl through the room. "Pony attack!" he exclaims, quickly crawling after the young girl. He's apparently leaving Gillian and Aaron to talk.
"I was thinking more along the lines of a piano," Aaron says quietly. For him, it's always about the music. Screw ponies. "Certainly there's one needing rescue somewhere." Especially with the weather and the Staten Island economical and political climate. He gives a gesture to his things, "Where should I bring all this?"
When Magnes gets down on his hands and knees, he'll soon feel a light burden of a seven year old Lucy placed on his back. Gillian grins as he plays pony for a while, but then looks back at Aaron. "Upstairs— there's a room free for a while," she says, a little tension showing on her forehead. The room wasn't free before FRONTLINE came knocking— but if Jenny ever does come back…
"Come on," she heads for the stairs, picking up one of the lighter looking bags from him, to lead the way with it.
"Thanks for the ride, Mags," Aaron says as he passes, following Gillian with his other gym bag and his guitar and grinning sightly at Magnes' interaction with Lucy. When they pass, he grimaces, praying he can be as playful with the children, being Mister Buzzkill and all. He very easily catches the tension coming from Gillian as she mentions the room being vacant. The fact that it's free 'for a while' isn't lost on him either. At least concern himself with something else keeps his mind off of the powder keg that is his emotional state. He's amazed he's kept it together this long.
A boarded up window catches his eye. "Got a kid with super strength throw a snowball in here?"
"That— that's a long story," Gillian says, a hint of something both sad, and terribly uncomfortable, before a dark skinned Indian girl interupts with a loud:
"It wasn't me!"
That clears up some of Gillian's worry, as she walks by and pats the dark haired girl on top of the head. "No, it wasn't you, Mala. Though she is the one with super strength. Mala, Aaron, Aaron, Mala."
The little girl waves happily, full of happy feelings, before moving into one of the dorms on the side. "Your room is down there for now, Aaron. Mine is that one. And those are the two dorms where the kids stay. If you don't want to sleep alone, you can stay in one of the dorms, too."
"Mala," Aaron says awkwardly in greeting. This was one of the things he's been dreading about the move — temporary move, he has to keep reminding himself. More people to witness how neurotic of a mess he is. Like having to remind himself the whole thing is temporary. And kids, of all people.
"OK." He feels awkward and strange in this place. "I think I'm just going to get settled in and have a cup of tea or something, and maybe crash. Or some combination." He pushes forward, brushing a hand along Gillian's face and drawing away some of the pain she's holding on to. Not all of it. He's trying to wean himself off, now that he seems to have gotten some level of control over it, a development he hasn't really shared beyond Peyton. Then he opens the door to what is going to be his room now.