Me and My Best Friend Put On A Show That Would Make Freya Totally Jealous [closed post]

[summerdude]

Magnus wakes up, normal again except for how he's in an unfamiliar room. Not Galahad's old room, either. A nondescript one that, as far as he can tell, just has a bunch of clothes and stuff. Also he's wearing silky pajamas he'd never pick out automatically on his own?

It doesn't take long for him to feel like the walls are closing in on him. It's out of respect for Aornis that he stumbles out of her room through the door (barefoot and in the silky pajamas) and goes outside the normal way. Once outside, he flops into the snow, calling summer and feeling the way the snow steams against his skin as it melts.

He's not feeling totally regular again when he sits bolt upright, remembering that Drosera is probably in Galahad's old room with two people that aren't Magnus or Galahad. Existential crisis over, there's a child to retrieve! And hopefully, he'll run into Galahad in the halls.

Comments

[summerdude]

"I do." Magnus tugs at the hem of the cropped sweater and then stops, striking pose with his hands over his head so that it rides up. "I think these things are kind of in fashion in my time." He laughs. "Maybe I could wear this and sneak into an actual high school class. Finish learning geometry finally."

[onthewillowsthere]

"Come back and teach me."

[summerdude]

"A squared plus b squared equals c squared," Magnus says, promptly. "So you like yours?"

[onthewillowsthere]

"It's soft. I like how it feels. And I like this," twirling the skirt again. "At the dance, when Sagramore was wearing the red dress-- I didn't understand before."

[summerdude]

"Didn't understand what?" Magnus asks, curiously.

[onthewillowsthere]

"Why he would want to dress that way. I didn't understand how it could feel."

[summerdude]

"How does it make you feel?"

[onthewillowsthere]

He hesitates, only because he wants to be sure he has the right words. "Like flowers. Like-- something that's growing. And beautiful."

[summerdude]

Magnus grins at him. "You look beautiful."

[onthewillowsthere]

The soft fabric of the skirt brushes against his thighs, smooth and light, and he focuses on that, on the softness of the sweater against the skin of his stomach and chest, and when he looks at his pale narrow self in the mirror it feels less like he's looking at a stranger. He exhales. It's not so hard to feel close to beauty when Claudius is looking at him, or when he only considers the tactile aspects of beauty, the swish of the skirt or the braid of his watch against his wrist -- harder, when he can see himself in this object of a body. He assesses it and tends to find it lacking: too thin, too cold, the body of a person who has never treated it as anything other than a workday horse-cart. Not a palace, or a tabernacle, cunningly worked with hooks of gold and sockets of silver.

Now he focuses on the blues and greys and how they make the blue of his eyes seem brighter, the ash-light color of his hair matched in the pearl buttons. Beautiful, he tells himself. Thou art beautiful.

[summerdude]

"Wait, hang on, I just had a thought," Magnus says. He goes to the same dresser drawer where Galahad got his barrettes; there, he rummages until he finds a headband in silvers and blues. It has a few seed pearls tucked into the stamens of stiff fabric flowers, and the band itself looks braided like Galahad's watch.

He carries it over back to Galahad, twists it back and forth a few times to see what angle might look best, and then carefully puts it on him, using it to push the fluffy front of his hair back. "How's that?"

[onthewillowsthere]

He looks over at Magnus in pleased surprise. "It's good."

[summerdude]

Magnus adjusts a strand of Galahad's hair and grins. "You're flourishing."

[onthewillowsthere]

"It's easy to grow in summer."

[summerdude]

He gives Galahad a suspicious look. "Is that a compliment?"

[onthewillowsthere]

A serene smile.

[summerdude]

"I'll take it as a compliment," Magnus warns, happily.

[onthewillowsthere]

"Good," as he reaches into the closet again.

[summerdude]

This time, Magnus pulls corduroy dungarees out for Galahad. They're a rich shade of yellow. The straps have tie closures, and the bibs and one leg are embroidered with blooming flowers in reds and greens and blues. He thinks for a minute about whether to get a shirt -- maybe Galahad might like the shirtless-under-dungarees look? -- but it's still winter out and Galahad gets cold, so he finds a sweater, too. It's pale blue -- like an early-spring sky -- and soft as a cloud, knit with a fine, fuzzy yarn. He's pretty sure the arms are long enough that it will give Galahad sweater paws. Magnus doesn't know if Galahad will love those or hate those, but it'll definitely be one of the two.

[onthewillowsthere]

Magnus gets another pair of leggings -- Galahad has been absolutely enchanted by the discovery of leggings yesterday -- that are grey with a subtle tone on tone paisley pattern, an Alex-hair-green pinafore dress with a knee-length skirt, and a long-sleeved black shirt with stylized suns and stars on it. He's trying to pick things that, while neutral in color for the most part, still capture how interesting Magnus is.

Galahad already knows he loves corduroy, and he slips into the sweater and dungarees, tying up the shoulder straps. He is keeping these. They're perfect. He likes the floral embroidery and the way the sleeves of the sweater fall over his hands.

[summerdude]

"I like this," Magnus says, thoughtfully, after trying on the clothes. "There's a lot going on but I really don't hate it." He does a contemplative spin, watching as the skirt flares, then stops and looks up at the ceiling. "Dear Frey. Dad. It's me, Magnus Chase. Your son. Do you see what I'm wearing? Just a tip for next time you give me a boat, if you ever give me another boat. Not that I'm asking for another boat. I'm just saying, this is much better summer vibes than highlighter yellow. Please take notes. Thank you. Amen. Bye."

Frey, of course, doesn't answer, but then again, Magnus didn't expect him to.

[onthewillowsthere]

"The patterns too?"

[summerdude]

"The patterns too," Magnus says, holding out his arms and looking down at himself. "I really like the shirt." He might keep the shirt.

[onthewillowsthere]

Galahad just lets the warmth of that approval sit in him as he dips into the closet again. This time he gets Magnus a formal shorts suit in a pale shell pink, although instead of a collared shirt there's a deep grey tee with floral block letters that say MAY THE FOREST BE WITH YOU. The suit jacket sleeves are pre-rolled to elbow-length.

[summerdude]

Magnus is hesitating in front of the closet, trying to decide what to pull for Galahad. "Casual and comfy, or formal and cool?" he asks. "Or a different vibe entirely?"