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

[sagramore]

Sagramore blinks at him. "You did? Was that... what you were trying to remember back then?"

[summerdude]

Magnus rubs the back of his neck. "I, um. I think so? Cuz we were talking about what we talked about, right? And now that you've said it, it's like -- I knew it and just had to be reminded?"

[sagramore]

"Oh. Well-- good, I suppose that's good. At least you know. And you know to be careful around her."

[summerdude]

"It's weird that I forgot," Magnus says, scratching his head. "I try to make a ton of mental notes."

[sagramore]

Sagramore shrugs. "I forget everything. Listen -- did you know about Ophelia?"

[summerdude]

"Ophelia like the main character of Hamlet? I dropped out of school before we got to that one but she was my mom's favorite."

[sagramore]

He levels a Look at Magnus. "Did you know she dies?"

[summerdude]

"Uh." Magnus dips a nod. "I put it together. Eventually. Don't worry, I won't say anything."

[sagramore]

"You're too late. She told him."

[summerdude]

Magnus blinks. "Well," he says, letting the bean plant go. "Shit."

[sagramore]

"So I don't particularly care what her intentions are or were otherwise. She meant to hurt him."

[summerdude]

"How is he?"

[sagramore]

"Sorrowing, and tired."

[summerdude]

"Yeah. I'll bet," Magnus says. He hitches his foot up onto his stool and props his chin on his knee. "Death is stupid. You can quote me on that one. Big old crock of stinkfarts."

[sagramore]

Sagramore's look sharpens slightly. "What happened?"

[summerdude]

Magnus, who is still altogether too embarrassed to admit what happened, shrugs and goes with the other true thing. "I guess I've just been missing my mom a little more lately," he says, "and having Alex here, not doing Battle Practice every day, it's, like, perspective-shifting, you know?"

[sagramore]

He definitely does not buy this, but for now he's willing to go along with it. "I'm sure. What do you and Alex do?"

[summerdude]

Magnus isn't going to kiss and tell, Sagramore!! "Oh, you know," he says, vaguely. "He's teaching me to make pottery. Your husband is going to have to get creative if he wants use of that kiln of his back. Also I'm pretty sure Dro is entering into her teenage era now, so that takes up a lot of time."

[sagramore]

"He'll be pleased it's getting some use. Perhaps Alex could lend his wisdom -- I know he was having trouble with firing. And-- right, the illustrious Drosera. I still haven't met her."

[summerdude]

Magnus grins. "Do you want to?"

[sagramore]

"Is she about? Absolutely."

[summerdude]

"Yeah, she's around here somewhere, probably getting into mischief. --Don't tell Claudius, he gets soooo persnickety when she's sniffing around his pots." Magnus stands, looking around, and spots a long tufted tail curling out from behind an abundance of verbena. "Drosera, baby, wanna meet a new friend?"

[sagramore]

The tail begins lashing. Claudius isn't here, which means it's the perfect time to enact carnage while she can. baby bite!!!! she shrieks -- her squeaky little juvenile call is beginning to give way to an equally squeaky adult one.

[summerdude]

"Baby will not bite," Magnus says, going to part the leaves to reveal more of her body and give her a good scratching in that spot that she likes, where feathers meet fur. "I'll tell Alex on you if you bite anything except the fish Mothwing gives you. C'mon. Say hi to Sagramore. If you're nice you can become best friends with his puppy."

[sagramore]

puppy friend??? friend??? food???

She arches her back into the scritches, her tail continuing to lash but this time in an interested way. She stretches out her wings -- almost all of her flight feathers are in, and the wings actually look quite good now -- and slinks out from her hiding spot, leaving behind a very chipped pot with a lot of talon scratches in it.

"Christ," Sagramore breathes. "That's a griffin, as promised."