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

[summerdude]

"You're with Claudius, right?" Magnus says, focusing again on the ball. He knows this because Galahad has told him. "And Enjolras?" He knows that because he has eyes.

[futaille]

"I..." He's somewhat uncertain where this is going, but he's also not going to lie, so. "To different degrees, yes. Why?"

[summerdude]

"What's the draw of polyamory?" Magnus asks. He slams on a button. "I don't really get it, but it seems like most people here are, like, into it?" Besides Hanguang-jun and Galahad, and Galahad is a special case because Claudius is. He can't ask them. He feels like he can't ask most people who are into it, because they might be weird about answering, but he's pretty sure Grantaire won't take offense and won't lie and won't get awkward that it's Magnus asking.

[futaille]

Oh, this is much better than any number of reasons for that opening that Grantaire could have thought of. "Oh. Well, first of all, this place is very much an outlier in that respect, but I'm pretty sure you know that already. Second, I don't think the answer to that question is going to be the same for any two people, but I'll do my best to answer it for me. I think that not everyone is well-suited to be everything someone else needs at the same time that someone is everything they need. Don't get me wrong, clearly a lot of people are, and that's admirable in its own way, like twin stars in a dance in the heavens, circling one another. But there are, I'm sure, an infinite number of celestial configurations. The trick, no matter what, is to be honest about your expectations."

[summerdude]

Magnus blinks. "Stars?"

[futaille]

He shrugs. "Figuratively speaking, of course."

[summerdude]

Magnus pauses for a minute, to play furiously -- the ball keeps trying to make him lose! It's dumb! He hasn't even gotten to a decent score yet! -- and then says, "So your reason is, uh. Jigsaw puzzle vibes?"

[futaille]

He considers that for a moment. "Yes, I think that's a reasonably good way to describe it."

[summerdude]

Magnus chews on this, depositing another ball in another slot and getting ready to launch the third. "Huh," he says. He still doesn't personally really super get it, but he can follow the explanation.

[futaille]

"And like I said, you'd probably get a somewhat different answer from anyone you asked. People are unfathomable like that sometimes. Most times."

[summerdude]

Maybe Magnus can hack this. "Like what?" he asks. "For example."

[futaille]

"I can only speculate, in fairness, but I'm happy to as long as you understand that my speculation may not be accurate to any person in particular."

[summerdude]

"Oh yeah, of course."

[futaille]

"Let me think... One option, I suppose, is scheduling."

[summerdude]

"Scheduling???"

[futaille]

"Obviously that's less of a concern here, but it's possible."

[summerdude]

"No, I mean, like... what do you mean?"

[futaille]

"Say, for the sake of example, there are three people who are all reasonably compatible, fond of one another, and considering taking advantage of the opportunity but having trouble making a decision. The first person, as a rule, is available for social engagements on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. The second person is also available on Thursdays, but also Tuesdays and Fridays. Both of them are also occasionally available on the weekends. The third is available from Friday through Monday. Clearly they can maximize their opportunity for romantic liaisons by coming to a mutually satisfactory arrangement of splitting days."

[summerdude]

Magnus considers this carefully, mashing buttons all the while. "Okay," he says. "I can see how that one is less relevant here."

[futaille]

"Yes. Even if time weren't odd at times here, schedules aren't nearly as full."

[summerdude]

"Okay," Magnus nods, and then takes another moment to focus on his game. "What else?"

[futaille]

He thinks for a bit. "I am coming across a slight problem, as right now everything else I'm thinking of is just a restatement or a small part of my original answer, so I may be experiencing a woeful failure of imagination."

[summerdude]

"And, like," Magnus frowns. "Okay, I think my question is less, like, organizational and more -- you actually, like, like more than one person?"

[futaille]

"Oh, yes, of course. For different reasons, obviously, as they're very different people who delight different pieces of me, but... yes. I do."

[summerdude]

Magnus tries to picture this so hard that he nearly misses the start of multiball, when he curses and tries to focus. Eventually, when he's got the hang of it, he says, "Okay. I think that's what I can't wrap my head around."