Court of the Fallen
how ‘bout now? - Printable Version

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how ‘bout now? - Felix - 06-24-2020

Another long day of no sunshine, something that Felix realizes he misses. Surprisingly more than he lets on. But being cooped up at home certainly doesn’t do him any justice, not when he could both explore the dark and what Torchline was like in the dark. After hours, so to speak. It’s an adventure, one he’s incredibly excited about as he attempts to not get into trouble. So far so good.

So he spends a fair amount of time wandering Haulani, visiting whatever he can find that’s open just to look and see what it is. He’d already been told about bartering, while it doesn’t make sense to him he does appease the locals with acting as if he does. But he doesn’t have anything to barter anyway. And so he wanders the streets again, until he finds a rather large looking space that seems intriguing… And yet, refrains from going in. Doesn’t stop him from peering at the door, trying to see if he can glean any information off of it.


RE: how ‘bout now? - Zephyr - 06-24-2020

Tomorrow you're going into the Fingers. Or, as much as tomorrow exists when days cease to dawn and time becomes a swimming, amorphous thing as difficult to pin down as the sea. It's simultaneously delightful and disgusting, and it inevitably leaves you with your head swimming and your stomach upset and you wondering why the fuck you made half of your choices.

You're hoping to avoid that until after the expedition- as much as possible, anyway. It's a little too late, but whatever. You've just woken up from a nap (the only form of sleep you get this week, really) and now you're walking into town, trying to clean the cobwebs from your head and stretch your legs and avoid the still raging parties. You're passing the newly minted Halenani when you spot a young man peering in the windows, with a balcony of girls in the upper floor watching and giggling quietly. You ought to go on your way, but...

[say]"Oi, lad- you gonna' buy, or just ogle? 'Cus right now th'merchandise's oglin' you."[/say]


RE: how ‘bout now? - Felix - 06-24-2020

Felix had grown attentive as a hunter, enough so to an extent that he can keep an eye on those that wander around the alley behind him. But without much of the social understanding of how things worked, he didn’t think anything of it. Didn’t think it was awkward or strange or weird that he just stared at the door. At least, not until someone calls out to him and his dual-toned gaze shifts over to focus on the man that calls out to him.

He can hear the giggling above, glancing up to the girls occasionally with a raised brow, not getting it at all, as he goes to step away from the door and invade the other man’s personal space a bit. “[say]Whattya mean?[/say]” He asks, voice relatively deep but not just so. As if puberty was still working to settle itself in a sense. He sounds young, and that’s really it. “[say]Merchandise? What would I buy?[/say]” He asks, brows raised toward Zeph before stealing a glance back toward the balcony and the Halenani.


RE: how ‘bout now? - Zephyr - 06-25-2020

How old is this boy, ten? You blink at the question and the apparent innocence, trying to judge whether or not the kid is pulling your leg. No teenager loiters outside a gods-damned brothel without knowing what goes on inside- or at least being deeply interested based on a certain amount of maybe-not-accurate information. Probably he's already gotten his dick wet. Most kids around here have.

[say]"'Pends on your type, I s'pose. An' your coin."[/say] Whatever the fuck is going on here, you're beginning to feel very awkward about it and to seriously regret not just walking on. Above you the girls giggle again, and one of them calls down: 'Come on, kiddo, we don't bite!'

'Unless you want us to,'
another adds, throwing in a wink. You recognize that one - her father is a work acquaintance, as it were - and wave up to where she and her friends watch. More reason that you will probably never set foot inside.

Turning back to the kid, you shuffle your feet a bit. [say]"So... your first time buyin' in a brothel, kid? Y'seem a bit young- what are ya, fifteen?"[/say]


RE: how ‘bout now? - Felix - 06-25-2020

“[say]Type?[/say]” He repeats as he focuses on the stranger, peering almost eye to eye, taking in the scars. He looks like he’s a bit older than Felix’s mother, and immediately the confusion blossoms again. “[say]I don’t have any coin? Or… Anything to barter.[/say]” He manages, recalling the easy conversation Vai had with him about how trading worked here.

Specifically why he couldn’t just grab something and run off.

But the girls call toward him again and Zeph waves, and Felix is so fucking confused but attempts to flash the girls an easy smile before turning back to Zeph with brows furrowed into his questioning stare. “[say]I’m sixteen.[/say]” He offers the information up easily. “[say]They… Don't have those in the Greatwood… At least not that I’ve seen.[/say]” He mulls over the word again, letting his gaze drift as he does before he focuses on Zeph again. “[say]What’s a brothel? And why would I want them to bite?[/say]”


RE: how ‘bout now? - Zephyr - 06-25-2020

Well, he's shit out of luck if he's expecting to get much out of a brothel with nothing to pay with or trade- but somehow you're very much beginning to expect that will be the least of his problems. Especially when he reveals that he's sixteen, and that he used to live in the Greatwood, and things finally begin to click. And now you have a whole new set of issues to address.

Well, fuck.

How do you explain to a previously-toddler-turned-sixteen-year-old what a brothel is? And why he might want women (or men, or anything in between and outside the binary - another thing you doubt he's aware of) to bite him? These are conversations you never had to have with Ray, for better or worse. Feeling suddenly quite out of your depth, you run a hand through your hair and seriously consider just nope'ing right the fuck out of there and washing your hand of this mess before you can stick your foot in any deeper. Instead you look back up at the balcony. [say]"Sorry, Lou- I think this one's a bit young for ya."[/say] Much, much too young.

Clapping your hand on the boy's shoulder, you attempt to steer him away from the brothel and toward absolutely anything else, both physically and in terms of topic. [say]"Say... your ma wouldn' happen t'be named Vai, would she?"[/say] If the gods have any mercy at all the answer will be no- but then again, when have the gods ever done shit for you?


RE: how ‘bout now? - Felix - 06-25-2020

Felix is nearly awaiting an immediate response, before he realizes Zeph’s looking back to the balcony and Felix shifts his attention back toward the girls with the comment that’s given from the stranger that stands before him. “[say]What? Too young?[/say]” He protests, knowing it’s absolutely the truth given his mix-ups and misunderstandings when it came to most social things… But still, he pouts a small amount, moving just as Zeph places his hand on his shoulder and guides him away.

The question of his mother as he’s steered away from the brothel has his head turning back toward the scarred man, a nod of his head given. “[say]Yeah. You know her?[/say]” He asks, though he realizes after asking the question that it’s obvious if he knew her name. At least, he doesn’t know this stranger. But that still doesn’t stop his curiosity, his multitude of questions that nobody besides Zeph is around to answer. “[say]Wait, why are we leaving? What goes on in there?[/say]” He asks, pulling out of Zeph’s touch to half turn back toward the brothel with his dual-toned eyes flickering between the business and the man before him almost expectantly.


RE: how ‘bout now? - Zephyr - 06-25-2020

Well there's the confirmation you desperately did not want. [say]"Aye."[/say] Yeah, you know his mom maybe biblicaly by now - but more importantly, you know his story. You know he's a toddler turned teenager for all his looks and declarations, and you know that he probably has no bloody idea about anything related to birds and bees, except how to be stung by them.

Oh, and he can turn into a bear. You know that, too.

So when he decides to turn back to the brothel you're both very keen on stopping him and very reluctant to do so because, fuck no, don't want to fight a bear. It's easier to answer the first question, so you ignore the second for now. [say]"We're leavin' 'cus yer ma asked me t'let her know if I saw ya wanderin' around."[/say] This is true. Once again you make to grab his arm and steer him away.

And as to what goes on in there? [say]"Look, kid- There's a lotta things that happen in a lotta places y'don' know about yet. An' I sure as hell ain't the right person t'tell you about 'em."[/say]


RE: how ‘bout now? - Felix - 06-25-2020

He’s half ready to protest the idea that he’s too young, that he’s ready for whatever goes on in there. He absolutely isn’t, but he doesn’t know that. So he turns back toward Zeph, brows furrowing in his frustration at the definite not answer he receives when it comes to the comment of his mother as Zeph ignores the other one for now. “[say]You’re not my babysitter. I don’t even know you.[/say]” He huffs, ready to plant his feet in place to be unmoved, half debating shifting into his bear shift just so the man right here wouldn’t try and drag him around.

But then Zeph latches onto his arm, and Felix’s brows lift, lips parting in his surprise. “[say]Hey![/say]” He protests, but his balance and gangly arms are set off with the way Zeph has gripped him, and he stumbles along after Zeph with a huff of a sigh and a huge amount of frustration – glancing back over his shoulder to memorize where the business was so he could keep it in mind if he ever found out.

“[say]Why can’t you tell me about them? Are they all secrets?[/say]” He whines instead, knowing he could get out of Zeph's grip in an instant but refraining from doing so at the moment – why have a business out there when it’s all secretive and open? That didn’t make sense?


RE: how ‘bout now? - Zephyr - 06-26-2020

You run a hand tiredly through your hair, not really sure how to answer his accusation. This seems like a perfect moment for a stranger danger lecture, but given how you are the danger stranger, it might not land as well as it should. [Say]"S'pose that's fair. My name's Zeph, an' you're Felix, an' now we know each other."[/say] And now the danger is arguably higher, because most crimes against children are committed by people who they know, but fuck if you're explaining any of that.

At least he hasn't decided to shift. You've never actually seen a bear, but from what you know it isn't an fight you'd win. And he's following along, reluctant though it may be. It was so much easier to drag Ray away from shit. At least he was small enough to carry when he threw a fit

More questions, and you know you've dug yourself a proper hole. Sighing, you try to decide the best way to reply. Kid's gonna have to learn sooner than later, especially if he's got the desires and impudence of a proper teen. [Say]"It ain't a secret. But that don't mean you're ready t'learn it."[/say]

You're far enough away now that you feel comfortable letting go of his arm. Leaning onto the wall of an empty shop, you look the boy over speculatively. Poor kid didn't ask for this, and your dad old heart goes out to him. In your best patient father tone, you attempt to soften the blows. [Say]"Look- yer ma told me a bit about ya. That you grew up faster'n most kids do. So it makes sense there's a lotta stuff you don't know about, stuff you're curious about.but you gotta be patient in learnin', k? The world's a damn big place. Nobody knows everythin'."[/say]


RE: how ‘bout now? - Felix - 06-27-2020

Even despite having Zeph’s name, Felix is still uncertain, still somewhat on the fence but he knows his bear shift well enough that he’d be able to get out of it if he needed to. So he reluctantly follows along, frowning despite the fact that this strange man before him knows his name because of his mother, and gods was that dull. Of course she’d have eyes on him out here, to keep him out of trouble. It makes sense, but that doesn’t mean he has to like it one bit.

So he pelts the other man with questions instead, though his lips remain in a frown. “[say]Why aren’t I?[/say]” He wants to learn all there is to Torchline, far too innocent of a mind to know about anything else that Torchline might have to offer. He sees it as its face value, a bunch of people together fishing and what looks like celebrating despite the midnight sky above.

Luckily for Felix, Zeph releases his arm and the young man immediately folds his arms across his chest, frowning as he stares at Zeph. There’s a tone to the other man’s voice that Felix doesn’t get, doesn’t fully understand for not having a father around. But he does know it sounds a lot like his mother and when it’s coming from a stranger, he immediately doesn’t want to listen. “[say]How patient?[/say]” He questions, a bit demanding instead. “[say]Do I have to wait until I’ve aged enough that it seems like I’ll get it then? I’m sixteen, I can’t spend all this time learning the stuff I missed out on in time.[/say]” There’s a bit more of a pout to him, a dejected sort of… Exhausted look, tired of hearing that very same excuse over and over again for people not telling him things.


RE: how ‘bout now? - Zephyr - 06-28-2020

What a fucking nightmare it must be, waking up one morning to find you've gone from toddlerhood to being a teenager. What a fascinating change of pace, and not in a good way- the boy is doing surprising well, all things considered. You'd probably be impossible to drag out of a brothel, or our of bed, or out of some other hole. And therein lies your hesitance in telling him any more, because who knows how much of that knowledge he's prepared for, or what he'll do once it's given?

Sighing, you run your hand through salt-and-pepper hair in an attempt to buy time. Sorry, Vai- whatever it is you're supposed to be doing is far beyond your knowledge, and so now you're just doing your best. [say]"Alright. Fair enough. How 'bout this."[/say]

Settling in against the wall, you raise an eyebrow at the boy. [say]"Y'can ask me one question - one - an' I'll answer it 'best I can. An' then y'can ask another one."[/say] It's a shit enough thing as it is, being sixteen years old. Add to that having none of the formative time ahead and... damn, you can't help but throw the lad this much of a bone.


RE: how ‘bout now? - Felix - 06-28-2020

He feels like he’s won something when Zeph sighs and runs his hand through his hair, and it lightens his pouty mood immediately when the ultimatum is given. He keeps his arms folded across his chest, focusing on the man before him, leaned against the alley wall as his dual toned eyes never leave him. “[say]Okay. Deal![/say]” He agrees easily, before his face twists in an attempt to try and think up something good for his first question.

And of course, he’s not going to leave the idea of the brothel behind to ask his mother about when there was someone who could likely explain it without the awkwardness surrounding it (hah jokes on felix and zeph) that his mother might have.

So he plants his feet, staying in place, mulling it over before his voice quips out. “[say]So... What’s a brothel?[/say]” Hopefully this time Zeph would answer it.


RE: how ‘bout now? - Zephyr - 06-29-2020

You know what you're inviting with this but it simply can't be helped. The kid's right: he's going to have to learn these things eventually, and it's better he learns them by being told rather than by stepping into a shit situation and winding up in trouble. So you wrap your arms across your chest and wait for the inevitable.

And boy, does it come.

[say]"How 'bout we sit?"[/say] you suggest as soon as he asks the question you really should have seen coming. There's a curb nearby and you lead him toward it, gesturing with your chin for him to sit. Whether to lad sits or not you find yourself a spot adjacent and settle in, elbows on your knees. You'd often thought about what might happen when you had to have this conversation with Ray.

In that image you weren't a weird adult stranger during LongNight, but that's neither here nor there.

[say]"Aite, Felix. A brothel's a place where people can spend money t'fu.... t'have sex with someone. Next question."[/say] In for a penny, in for a motherfucking pound.