What's In An Unknowable Birthday? I Guess We'll Find Out!

[summerdude]

Magnus is a man on a mission. Actually, he's a man on several missions, but now that he's successfully pulled off the bachelorette part of Galahad's wedding, this one stands out as of particular import. As such, he has a pad of construction paper chock-full of notes tucked in his backpack and he's swinging briefly into every room he passes, on the lookout for Grantaire.

Comments

[summerdude]

"Whoa," says Magnus, now with his trademark shit-eating grin. "So you like talking to your friends? Huge if true."

[futaille]

He laughs a little. "To, with, around, over, near, against, for, any conjunction you can conceive of."

[summerdude]

"And you call that annoying? Maybe they're just weak."

[futaille]

He shrugs. "Maybe they were. Or maybe I was singular."

[summerdude]

"Do you talk a lot less now or something?"

[futaille]

"There isn't generally quite as much going on around me that I have to talk over here."

[summerdude]

"...what did you use to try and talk over?"

[futaille]

"Everyone else's conversations. At the same time."

[summerdude]

"So are you saying that you're more... heard... here?"

[futaille]

"By virtue of it being quieter here."

[summerdude]

"Huh."

[futaille]

"I am well-suited for speaking over six different conversations at once."

[summerdude]

"So what you're saying is you're a walking, talking episode of M*A*S*H."

[futaille]

"I'll have to trust your judgment on that because I have no idea what it means."

[summerdude]

"They all talk over each other." Surely this is the only context Grantaire needs!

[futaille]

"That sounds right, then." A beat. "Who are they?"

[summerdude]

"Oh. I think they're all, like, maybe Vietnam War doctors?" In Magnus's defense, he saw M*A*S*H once, when he was ten. Courtesy of one of his mom's boyfriends.

[futaille]

"All... right. Now...take two steps back and pretend you're explaining this to someone who was born in 1805."

[summerdude]

"Okay. You know what war is?"

[futaille]

"Yes, I know what war is. France was at war until I was ten."

[summerdude]

"And I bet a bunch of people have told you about tv... do you know about doctors?"

[futaille]

"Yes. We had friends studying to be doctors. ... And you bet a bunch of people have told me about what?"

[summerdude]

"TV? Television. Movies? Film? Moving picture shows?"

[futaille]

"Ah, yes! I do think I've heard a bit about those. So that's what this is?"

[summerdude]

"Yeah. It's a movie and a TV show about doctors in the Vietnam War. Everyone talks a lot all over each other." It's no longer a funny joke; Magnus has explained it to death.