I Lived, Grinch! [open post]

[summerdude]

The first thing Magnus does -- with Alex's help -- after fully healing is board up the hole in the side of the greenhouse where the cheetah ran through. The second thing, once he learns the full scope of Dark (it's different at camp; he'd already taken out a ton of camp-appropriate food for when Galahad and Laertes couldn't make it out there, and so he and Alex have been fine on the eating front) is go to the greenhouse again to figure out what plants in there yield edible produce. (Also, he tries to scrub his blood off the table. It... partially works?)

Partly it's that he's still feeling weird after the whole affair. The season doesn't help, but he does feel closer to his own mortality than pretty much any point since he died for real the first time. Being around growing plants helps that. Mostly, though, it's because he doesn't want anyone to get, like, scurvy living on bushels of rice alone.

He doesn't want to overtax any of the plants, but some can be cajoled into fruiting. Right now, he's got his hand on a kumquat tree, and he's trying to convince it that it can speed up the growth process by a few weeks. Drosera is with him, 'helping:' she's found a dead leaf, and she's chasing it down the pathway between some plants. If anyone shows up -- either because they've heard of his near-death experience and want to check in on him, or just to hang out, or even because they're drawn by the way it looks like sunlight is coming from the greenhouse itself -- he'll be glad for the company.

Comments

[tallyyoungblood]

"Magnus-la!" Tally exclaims. She's been searching for Magnus ever since SecUnit had mentioned what happened to him, and has finally found him after a lot of fruitless and boredom-making wandering around in the woods near his camp. "Are you okay? SecUnit told me you, like, almost died?" He doesn't look almost dead, which is a relief. Tally's been training with Gideon to fight zombies, but this has been a much more bogus reminder of potential danger.

[summerdude]

"That's me," Magnus says, looking up from the kumquats. "Almost-dead dead guy."

[tallyyoungblood]

"What happened?" Tally's eyes fill with concern. "I mean, SecUnit-la told me a little, but not much."

[summerdude]

"You know, I'm not really sure? A sword fell, but it was a weird-ass situation."

[temnota]

In an attempt to improve his mood, Aleksander ventured outside. Even the dull winter light hurt his eyes but the one benefit was that the strange shadow creatures did not follow him. Whether they were bound to the house or didn't like the outdoors, he didn't know, but it was a relief to be alone.

His wanderings took him near the greenhouse and he stopped in shock, even as he had to shade his eyes. There was sunlight coming from the windows. Could... could Alina be here? He didn't think so, he couldn't feel her presence but everything was so different in this season of Dark. He was not remotely prepared for her but he had to know.

Cautiously he opened the door of the greenhouse and entered, bracing himself. When he found only Magnus, he was not sure whether he was relieved or disappointed. Rather then think any more about it, he forced a smile on his face. "Forgive me for intruding but I saw the light."

[summerdude]

"Did you? Huh." Magnus releases the tomato plant he's been trying to prod into action. "Like, the sunlight outside?"

[temnota]

"I saw it from outside," Aleksander answered. "The windows were glowing with the light and I... I was curious. I didn't realize it was coming from you."

[futaille]

The window of Grantaire's room is just able to see the greenhouse from the right angle, and although he's not actually looking out it at that angle, he's painting early one evening and sees a burst of light out of the corner of his eye and goes to the window to look. It's rather clearly coming from the greenhouse and although his first instinct is much like it was with the zombies, that being to ignore it and let whoever feels like dealing with it do so, he can't help a bit of curiosity in this case. It's even enough to make him brave the cold.

So a brief time later, he's cautiously stepping into the greenhouse with a coat on, peering around to look for the source of the light.

[summerdude]

The source is Magnus hunched over a bunch of greens, trying to grow a salad or whatever. Alive people need vitamins, right? Probably einherjar do, too. As with Aleksander, he's fully unaware that he's making light, as focused as he is on growing food.

He does hear the footsteps, though, and looks up. "Oh hey dude," he says, grinning. "'Sup?"

[futaille]

"Saw the light coming from the greenhouse, got curious. What are you up to?"

[sagramore]

Sagramore has been judiciously avoiding the greenhouse, since it's a place one could happen across Claudius or Galahad, but the light has caught his eye. He pokes his head in the greenhouse cautiously, ready to retreat if needed.

Luckily, Magnus does not require said retreat.

"Nuszka! How are you?"

[summerdude]

Magnus looks up from his beans, grinning. "Hey, dude," he says, gesturing Sagramore over. "I'm living the dream."

[sagramore]

"Really? What are you growing?"

[recognizance]

"You're glowing again," SecUnit informs him helpfully.

[summerdude]

"Am I?" Magnus asks, and glances down at himself. "Huh. I guess I am." He smiles at SecUnit. "Hey, buddy. Thanks for, uh. All your help the other day."

[recognizance]

"You're welcome." As usual, it doesn't meet his eyes, focusing on the tree he's been working with instead. "I didn't see the actual incident, or I would have done something sooner."

[lightbearinglord]

Lan Wangji wouldn't need the beacon of light to come and see to Magnus' wellbeing with his own eyes, but it does make for a convenient call to arms. There is no need to search the woods, or Magnus' camp, or any other part of the mansion. With this, Lan Wangji knows exactly where he is, and he points himself toward the greenhouse with purpose.

He strides inside. In this case, he doesn't hesitate at all before scooping Magnus into his arms and wrapping him up in a hug. This was impossible when Magnus was still injured, but not so anymore, and Lan Wangji is taking full advantage of the renewed ability to hold him as tightly as he wants to.

[summerdude]

Magnus sighs, relaxing immediately into the hug. "Hi d--Hanguang-jun," he says. "Want some okra?"

[lightbearinglord]

Lan Wangji doesn't answer right away. He is busy, primarily with nearly crushing Magnus to his chest. There is no chance that Magnus' feet are still touching the ground at this moment. He holds onto him for the entirety of that moment, which is a long one, and it is quite a while before he remembers that Magnus asked him a question. He pauses. "To use for my cooking?"

[onthewillowsthere]

It's been one of the few mornings where Galahad got up before Claudius and was able to make him tea first; those are always rare, and in Dark even rarer. It felt good to be able to do that.

He knows Magnus is in the greenhouse, because Magnus told him about it a few mornings ago, when he came into their room and sat on Galahad's feet like a large cat and talked at him until he was able to get up. Magnus is making his very own one-man farmer's market. He's Produce Guy now.

Galahad lets himself into the greenhouse quietly and just stands in the radius of Magnus' warmth for a few minutes. He's always so cold (recently Claudius brought a little table into their room that has some kind of warming machine in it, and when he feels incapable of doing anything else Galahad settles under the blanket of it and reads, or stares into space). Then he makes himself move, until he's at Magnus' side.

"What kind is that?"

[summerdude]

Magnus is back on the kumquats, since they seem to be pretty good about producing, actually. "It's a fruit," he says, reaching automatically to give Galahad a side hug. "Citrus, but you eat the whole thing. Wanna try one?"

[onthewillowsthere]

He leans back against Magnus. "Yes. Should I peel it?"

[timebethine]

As soon as Laertes finishes dropping off Sagramore's liquor, he hurries out to the greenhouse. He's not panicking, exactly--he knows that Magnus is well on the mend--but he keenly feels the place where panic would be. He swings open the greenhouse door with more force than necessary, enough that it swings back hard and rattles the glass of the building.

And there is Magnus, hand upon the kumquat tree's fine-grained bark, in the shade of its leathery leaves. Through that shadow, the light of him shines like a beacon.

"Magnus," calls Laertes, doing his best to pretend that he didn't just hustle across the snow to get here. "Thou lookest well."

[summerdude]

Magnus looks up with a grin. The whole near-death-experience thing is, at the moment, the furthest thing from his mind: he was a little later than usual to the greenhouse this morning on account of waking up to a fresh layer of snow on the makeshift tent and subsequently hanging out in the six-to-seven range of the snogging scale, including 6.5 and 6.75 with Alex for a very exciting hour. "Dude, I'm great," he says, picking a ripe kumquat and tossing it toward Laertes, over an excitable Drosera's head. "Fruit?"

[timebethine]

Laertes just barely manages to catch the kumquat, fumbling once and then catching it a second time in his other hand. "What manner of fruit is this?" he asks. The leathery skin of it is butter-soft; when he holds it up to his nose, it smells a little like an orange, a little like an apricot.