From the windows (from the windows) to the walls (to the walls)

[arsarcanum]

characters: Sora, Crowley, Matt Murdock, Hana, Midge Maisel, and you!
location: Beacon, with a quick detour to the lake post-freeze.
date/time: January 3rd through the 10th! (And one on the 13th if I can get away with it - Sora wants to go ice skating!)
content: Sora is on his grind! Taking names! Making friends! Paying his dues! Having fun! Trying to work so hard that his existential crisis forgets he's there! (Will match tag format.)
warnings: Warning for low self-esteem and, uh, Catholicism?

[ A: A visit to a new friend. Closed to Hana Song (and maybe the other residents of the cabin?) ]

Day three of the convalescence of Hana Song. Sora's in the cabin again, walking to her door with a paper bag under his arm after giving a brief, polite, completely friendly greeting to her roommates. They're very lucky that they took her in, and even helped find them splints and bandages so her arm and leg would heal straight. (That took a lot of reapplications of the Cure spell! It's sort of strange to think it's been reduced to the same effect as super fancy band-aids and anesthetic.)

He'll knock at the door of her room in the cabin. "Hey, Hana? You awake?"

[ B: Bad Catholic checks out a creepy pagan cathedral. For Matt Murdock, but open otherwise. ]

It's Sunday, so it seems like a perfectly reasonable day to check out the little church he saw on his many, many trips to and from the boat when he first got here. Skyler never really took religion seriously, and only went to Mass when the rest of the family did for Christmas and Easter, and even then he only did it because Arielle wanted to go see the lights and hear the music with everyone, Skyler included. If there's Catholic guilt here, it's only here because Arielle managed to make Skyler feel bad for not pretending to give a fuck.

In a lot of ways, Sora has even less of an attachment to organized religion than Skyler did. After all, he was living proof that the soul did not conclusively go to a heaven or a hell. And even if his existence wasn't conclusive enough, the many times he died in all of his lives and the many ways death and the afterlife has manifested has shifted his perspective of an all powerful God who reigns over heaven by just a bit. A church shouldn't change his perspective on that.

But, again, in a lot of ways, Sora is Skyler, except honest. And if he was being honest with himself, he liked the peace and beauty of a church as much as Ari did. He was just curious to see it, is all.

He shuts the tall door behind him and looks around the atrium, lifting his lantern to see as much of the architecture as he can. No clear dedications on his way in. What a weird place.

"Is this place Anglican," he asks, half to himself and half to the darkness of the pews in front of him. His eyes are now more or less used to the constant, overpowering dark of Beacon, but he still doesn't know if anyone else is in here. No nightvision for him.

[ C: Library. Open. ]

Throughout the week during his stay at the library, Sora will slowly, inevitably, grudgingly take an interest in the books around him. He's really not big on fiction - he's not creative enough to make them interesting - but the non-fiction will capture his interest. Practical books on cooking and first aid grab him first, followed by anything else that seems like it could come in handy in the near future - morse code, music, diy and repairs. (He makes sure to put them back in the reshelving areas, not on the shelves - he's not entirely a caveman, and the Elvira person on the network told him to be careful and clean up after himself and others. Which he does!)

Where do you find him? Wandering around with a book in his hand? Reading at one of the tables? Passed out drooling on one of the tables? Were you interested in something in the fiction section, only to find his cot in the way of your books? Is he in the cot? Who knows! I don't know. It's up to you.

[ D: The Invincible, the Kitchen. For Midge Maisel, but open to anyone who can catch him arriving or leaving. ]

Hey, Midge. Remember that teen who shyly poked his head into the kitchen a few days ago and asked in a very, very slight New Jersey accent if he could use the kitchen just to make some things and leave? The kid who proceeded to come back every day, right after the end of the daily meal, to make something to eat before cleaning up (and he always cleans up - maybe not perfectly, with things in the wrong places, but there are no crumbs or stray utensils left out) and heading out again?

Yup. Same teen. He's toasting a couple of pieces of bread in butter, layering cheese and some slices of turkey he found somewhere on top. It's nothing extraordinarily fancy, and he's just going to pack it up and leave again, but this time, he's making enough for two. He also has a bowl with him, and inside... that's a fruit salad, isn't it? Slices of apple, grapefruit, orange, peach, and a few more fruits rest inside, dotted with blueberries and grapes. Who exactly is he making all of this for? Why is he making it? Why can't he just eat with everyone else??? It is a mystery.

[ E: Armory. Open. ]

On the third day of the blizzard, Sora gathers all of the clothing he can and some snowboots he nabbed from the general store and hikes the miserable 40 minute hike through driving snow to the armory. He makes sure to go there when the regular lessons with Javert aren't going on - as much as he'd love some company, he doesn't want to risk running into anyone else while he tests out his spells, especially if they make him think about who he is and why he's doing any of this. One thing at a time!

He's tacked a piece of paper to wall. On this paper is a list of every spell and ability he can reasonably test without someone else there to help him. Time to do some experimenting.

Why are you out here? What are you doing? It's so cold! There's so much snow! But if you're in the armory for some reason, you'll see a weird kid in the basement at the range, with a giant key in his hands, casting magic spells that send pinpricks of light spinning at the targets at the other end of the range. How curious are you? (And seriously, what are you doing out there right now?)

[ F: Sora has skates and will now sksksksksk across the ice. For Crowley, but open otherwise. ]

Pretty self explanatory. Granted, the skates are VERY beautiful, made of glassy crystal, with a pair of crystal hand-glove-claw things to match, but they seem to be for aesthetics only. Sora will stay near the edge of the water - he doesn't want to risk falling through for several reasons - and he skates with the comfortable motions of someone who doesn't skate professionally but can and does skate for fun.

But indeed, there he go. Sksksksksk across the ice, his lantern bumping at his hip. He could use some company. He will, in fact, wave and skate over if he sees he has an audience. You aren't getting away without a chat, pal. (Unless you're a Riku or Vanitas, in which case he will seriously consider drowning after all.)

Comments

[arsarcanum]

Sora is a bit cowed. Yes, he knows this was kind of a terrible idea, and yes, he knows there's a fair chance of him freezing into an ice cube on the way back... but that's what the sweaters are for! Five sweaters! He's down to his own sweater - Raider Nation for life - but he'll layer them back on when he goes back out! New Jersey's cold, he knows how this works.

He's about to fire back on that, but hey. Pause. Reeewind. That accent. "Yo, are you from New York?" A beat. Sora's face drops in mock dismay. "Oh no, you're from New York." How does he tell his new friend he's from South Jersey? Oh, the betrayal.

[worthallthis]

"I'm from fucking Russia, pal." Says the guy who sounds so very Brooklyn right there. It doesn't last, though, slipping back to the more normal standard accent-less middle-American the Soldier was trained into. "And I know what freezing is like. I am staying here with you until you leave, and making sure you do not actually freeze to death or get lost on the way back. You understand me?"

They'll worry about the "oh no" part once they have an assurance that Sora will not be that stupid again, at least for the duration of the day (night, whatever).

[arsarcanum]

"Yeah, buddy, I'm feeling that Soviet vibe." S a r c a s m. Seriously, he doesn't have all of the stupid accents they have up there down, but he can tell that that's from somewhere that isn't Staten Island. Sigh. "Okay, I hear you. Dad." He snorts, but gives them a tinier smile. Seriously, that means a lot. "Thanks."

He turns back to his list, checking the first item on his list: Fire. He nods to himself, then summons his Keyblade, positioning himself directly across from the targets... but he'll pause, checking back on the soldier. "You need a place to sit? I think they got some folding chairs in the back." And he'll stop, and physically turn and move to get a chair for their friend. This is a longass list, friend.

[worthallthis]

He gets a glare pointed right at him for the sarcasm, and it doesn't soften one bit at the thanks. (Okay, maybe it does a little.) Either way, the Soldier waves off the offer of a chair. "I'll help. Or do target practice." They finally shrug out of their coat-- the scarf went by the way-side before their tirade, so as to be clearly understood and also not potentially laughed at-- and even strip off one of their jacket layers. They do not, perhaps oddly, have a hat.

(Tried that once. Never again, after the panic attack it induced.)

They look around, folding the coat and jacket aside. "Why didn't you just go to the gym? It's ninety percent closer, and safer, than this."

[arsarcanum]

He's a teen, he gets to push boundaries with authority figures! For like, at least another two months, anyway. He's got enough experience with tough love to know what the good kind looks like. Do not worry your pretty, unhatted head.

He'll nod. "Cool, thanks." There is one spell he can't test on his own, and it won't even hurt! He'll ask if they get around to it, though. Not a lot of people are down with getting put to sleep.

He'll focus on the target, locking on with his robot eyes (literally - the reticles pop up in his vision, the only proof he has besides the keyhole pupils that they were modified at all), raise his keyblade, and fire. Three fireball whip their way down the range, hitting the target on the mark. He still doesn't reply as he lowers his keyblade, surveying his handiwork. He's not really sure how to answer the question without it becoming kind of a thing.

"I was sort of hoping no one would find me." He says this kind of offhandedly, then immediately reviews it, realizes how that sounds. "Oh, uh, you're fine - honestly, I'm kind of glad you did." He turns and takes a pencil from his hoodie pocket, walking over to his list. "I didn't actually want to be alone. I just didn't want to be found." He puts a star next to Fire. Please feel free to point out that those two sentences do not make any sense next to each other.

[worthallthis]

Putting the Soldier to sleep is gonna be a pretty hard sell. One, they don't trust Sora yet; two, they don't trust him not to knock him out and then escape. They're not the trusting sort. They do watch him cast a... spell? Jesus, these people and their magic.

Weirdly, they can kind of understand not wanting to be alone but at the same time not wanting to be found. Normally in that situation, they'd find a good hiding place near to other people, like the kitchen of the Invincible or a roof somewhere, where they could see and hear others without having to interact. "Apparently I'm just as stupid, since I did find you." The Soldier is just also tougher, dammit.

[arsarcanum]

The soldier may not know he has nothing to fear, and Sora would be a bit shocked and insulted! But hey, it's why you ask first. Not that that's near the top of the list, nor on the list at all - he's got plenty on the list to test. He'll put the pencil down on a table nearby and go back to the range, rolling his shoulders and getting into position.

"Stupid, huh." He'll aim again and fire, this time sending three bolts of magical ice down the way. It's a slower spell, but it freezes the singed target on contact. Good. He'll keep that one in mind and take a few steps forward, holding his keyblade in a different position. "What were you doing out here? Watch your arm, this one's electricity." And with that, he'll cast a spell that surrounds the space directly around him with small lightning bolts.

[worthallthis]

The Soldier steps back obligingly, absolutely not wanting the arm to get fried. They're watching the show, rather than working on target practice themselves, because they've learned the hard way that knowing what your potential battle partners are capable of is the only way to avoid being startled by them and missing a shot, or worse. "Patrols. Couldn't stay inside, too confined. It was just luck I spotted you. Another minute or two either way, and you'd have been invisible in the storm."

[arsarcanum]

"Guess we both got lucky you got restless, huh." He said it before and he'll say it again: he's glad that they found him. Not wanting to be alone aside, he really didn't think that staying on his own forever would help with his current mindset, even if his problems had intensified beyond what a simple hang session would help. After all, having the option to talk about what's been on his mind with someone who could at least understand him is much better than looking around for a door that wasn't there.

"Hang back, this needs a little extra." He cuts himself off and frowns, more and more lightning bolts dropping down to the floor around him, increasing in frequency but not necessarily in power or magnitude. After about 20 seconds of the lightshow, he stops, panting a little and staring at his keyblade, frowning. "Well, that sucks." And he'll stalk off to his list, putting a little star next to Blizzard and Thunder, but crossing out Thundara and Thundaga. (He wants to ask about the arm, but he doesn't feel like he has the right context to bring it up. He'll be thinking about it, though! Weird to meet so many fellow cyborgs in one place.)

[worthallthis]

"It still looks useful," the Soldier points out. "The green-eyed spirits laid siege to use for two weeks, a month and a half ago. That would have come in handy against the horde of rock spirits. We had to use a grenade at close range." Which really isn't that bad a way to die, compared to myriad other options. It hadn't really even hurt.

[arsarcanum]

Sora winces. "That sounds nasty." Yeah, he'll definitely make sure to help out if there's another siege.

Sora will go back to the range, mentally measuring his energy. He's got a bit of juice left for another two or three tests, and then he'll have to take a rest for a minute or so. He goes back to the range, closes his eyes, and focuses... to no effect at all. He doesn't seem too surprised at this, and repeats the same set of focusing techniques. Nothing, nothing, nothing. Finally, he'll end that weird little pause with a sudden blast of wind that kicks up around him, open his eyes, and breathe out. "Well, that's something."

He'll go back to his list and grab his pencil. "I've been looking at the logs before I go to sleep. You're the one on it talking to the spirits, right? I remember you talking about that." He'll reach up and strike through Spark, Sparkra, Sparkga, and Salvation, then put a star next to Aero.

[worthallthis]

"One of them. There are several people attempting to do so. Daylight hash ad more luck learning their language, but I have a contact who I can communicate with without knowing it. So I got a lot of intel and put it up on the network." To their great nervousness. Even now, the plates on their metal arm resettle a little at the memory, though the sound is muted under their jacket and long-sleeved shirt.

Peering past Sora at the list, the Soldier asks, "What does Salvation do?"

[arsarcanum]

Huh... that seems really dangerous. How do they communicate without knowing it? "That sounds really handy... I hope they don't find out or get mad." If they do, maybe it'd be best to explain what happened? After all, the soldier said that they're just a little different, not bad.

He puts the pencil back down on the table and leans against it. He needs a minute to rest and build up magic for the next series of tests. "Salvation? Uh..." He's not really sure how to explain this one. "It's a light spell. Big one. I wish I had it, it would come in handy if there's another siege." He thinks about it for a second. "I... blew up half a laundromat with it once," he admits, turning red. It's embarrassing to admit it, but it's the best way he can describe the scale of what it can do.

[worthallthis]

Without knowing the language. Without knowing the language. The Soldier blinks at Sora, confused. First, they nod to the explanation. "A light spell. That would probably be why it doesn't work. Light doesn't work right here unless it's lanterns or the bonfire."

Then, just so Sora doesn't think they're invading any spirits' privacy, they add, "You don't need to worry. I bring a spirit coffee and we talk using Morse Code. They're a friend."

[arsarcanum]

Pronouns hard. "Right, I sort of figured." He shakes his head. "Salvation's one of the best ones I have. Sucks."

"Oooh." Sora pauses, then brightens. In all that confusion, he'd almost forgotten why he'd asked about talking to spirits in the first place. "Hey, can you teach me? Morse code. I know you're already teaching me how to use the knife, but I was reading a book and things got confusing after the alphabet part."

[worthallthis]

Bucky's fault for being unclear tbh. "There's a program on your tablet that can teach you, too," the Soldier points out. "But if you think you'll learn better from me, I can. It's tedious to use, though. You have to find one of them who knows it, and be patient." Can you be patient, Sora?

[arsarcanum]

Please do not overestimate neither Sora's nor my intelligence.... Sora scratches the back of his head, embarrassed. "I learn better if I have someone to practice with so I can ask questions." He also just likes the company, but he really does learn better with someone hovering behind him to catch all of his early stupid mistakes. He's a good study afterward!

"I can be patient!" He looks over at, eyes burning with fervent belief. Do you feel it, Soldier? "I mean, I'm not great at it, but I've done a lot of waiting before. I mean," he corrects himself, catching his hypocrisy, "okay, I'm not so great at waiting for computers? I always think that they're supposed to do things really fast, but now I know they do a lot of thinking just like the rest of us."

[worthallthis]

It's okay, Sora. The Soldier understands liking company and not being able to really explain it. At least Sora doesn't creepily follow people around, or loiter in their general vicinity watching them, or anything. He actually comes up with actual things to talk about and do.

They manage not to roll their eyes at Sora immediately walking back his enthusiastic assurance, but it's a near thing. "We'll see. How many more spells do you have to test?"

[arsarcanum]

Aw, Soldier. Sora doesn't mind a bit of creepy - he's made much more questionable friends before! (And Skyler's made enough incredibly questionable friends that Sora now understands what a bad vibe is - the soldier does not have that vibe.) Sora's happy to chatter away about people! After all, how does he get to know people if he doesn't ask?

Your valiant efforts would be deeply appreciated if Sora knew (really - he'd be grumpy about it, but that's legit). Sora goes back to his list and counts... "Four! Everything else I either need a partner for or I don't want to test it on another person." He has a poison spell and he is not testing that on anyone he'd ask in Beacon, thank you. "Why?"

[worthallthis]

"Curious. There's more than four on that list." They finally turn away, pull out a knife to flip idly and consider throwing targets, but most of their attention is still on Sora. "Do you need to practice? Your spells?" Like most people would have to practice other skills, and such.

[arsarcanum]

"Uh... well." He looks at the keyblade in his hand, then back up at the Soldier. "I mean, I used to, but that was when I had to practice my aim." He taps one of his eyelids. "These... do the aiming for me now."

"Why?" Sora's looking at the knife. Up and down, up and down...

[worthallthis]

"I don't know much about magic. You're the first person I've had to ask questions about it." They pause in the knife-flipping to frown at Sora's face, at what he's pointing at. The Soldier usually avoids eye contact, but to see what Sora means, they have to actually look at his eyes. They frown a little, confused. "Eyes usually do aiming for you. Yes."

They have of course registered the weird pupils, but figured it was a quirk of wherever Sora came from.

[arsarcanum]

Oh. That's. An immediate burst of embarrassment and shame that he immediately has to quash down, but his still ears turn red. He was hoping that the soldier was offering some extra knife lessons this week. This was not something he'd usually tell people about, except for the people who noticed, and the people who noticed back where he was from already knew what he was.

... Does he tell them? On one hand, it doesn't seem particularly relevant to the conversation. They could just keep talking about magic - Sora doesn't know a ton about it, but he remembers Merlin and his magic lessons quite well. Donald alone could take up a whole conversation.

On the other hand, it's not like this would make the soldier leave him. They don't know about how he got them, and probably wouldn't ask.

Huh. Is... this what he's been waiting for this whole time? For someone to leave? Is this why he walked 40 minutes through driving snow? Did he do that just to make sure he'd be alone? Really?

Sora shakes his head. Seems silly. He really is thinking about it too hard. "Remember how I said I was stronger than most people? I have... some machine stuff in me. Kinda like your arm." He taps at his eye, just under it this time. "I have little... target things that line up my shots for me. I had infrared and nightvision back at home, but they don't work here. It's just the targeting system now. Comes in handy."

[worthallthis]

Joke's on you, Sora, they are definitely gonna ask. The Soldier gives a startled twitch, staring back at him for a beat, before the discomfort of eye contact makes them look down, at Sora's feet. There's a surge of fear, reminded of a procedure they only remember snippets of, but also a surge of protective anger. This boy with two minds, like their own, was also augmented? Experimented on? Tortured?

"Who did that to you," they ask, voice oddly flat.

[arsarcanum]

-- Yep, maybe should have thought about that harder. The eye-contact was alarming enough, but the change in their tone was worse. It was a trauma thing, response, Diyos ko this is his fault, isn't it? The soldier knew, they told him about this. Their cybernetics weren't their choice. Bad. Him and his stupid lack of brain-to-mouth filter.

Sora moves closer, hands stretched out, placating. "I - He - He asked. He made a deal. This was his choice, I -" He did it to stop me from getting stronger. He didn't care what it was as long as it wasn't me. "We don't - it wasn't like you. Promise. I swear, he wanted this." Sora is so, so sorry about bringing it up.