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 Posted: Tue Jul 25, 2017 6:35 pm
The compliment pleased him, probably more than it should have, but friends were scarce here so far, and Merric was glad to be on someone's good list. He flashed Lysander a smile over his shoulder as he reached for another beaker, trying - and failing - to make sense of some of the hazy thoughts from the "year" they had spent on the other island.
"You can," said Merric, just to reiterate, and then gave Lysander a slightly startled look. "I hope this doesn't come out wrong, but you don't...really seem the rebellious type. I mean, you seem rather competent in your own abilities and rather confident as well, so..."
He was frowning at the mention of younger brother, but it had always been an issue in his life, even if it didn't mean it was an issue in everyone else's as well. Merric was absently wiping the glass from the beaker; it took him a moment to register what exactly Lysander was saying, his head turning quickly in the other's direction.
"Me?" he said, sounding flustered, caught off guard by the simplicity of the compliment; he wasn't used to it, sure as hell wasn't used to it being directed at him and not his brother. "No, I...I'm sure my brother has his own...uses, his own abilities..."
Merric trailed off. "Uh. Well. I mean, I always...tried to do well, it's just that my parents never - well, let's just say that it was obvious who the favorite was in our family."
He tried to laugh this off, play it as a casual comment, but it came out sounding strained, anyway.
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Posted: Wed Jul 26, 2017 8:18 am
Lysander laughed. “By my family’s standards I’m a rebel. I didn’t take school very seriously, I have dubious religious leanings when they are all very staunch atheists and I don’t like bleeding innocent people dry. My brother’s a natural born salesman and my sister is a fantastic organiser. Both of them seem to operate on some other plane from me. I actually use my paid leave time, they don’t touch a day.” Even hiring Roswell, if he was honest had at first been an act of rebellion, taking on someone with an unsavoury background rather than the highly-recommended people who his father had put forward for the interview process. He knew they’d have liked nothing more than setting up a person close to him they could control and have do all his work. Lysander was lazy but he wasn’t stupid and was just as cunning as the rest of them. He just cared about very different things than they did.
“Families who play favourites, I’ve found, tend to undervalue the treasure right under their noses. Not that your brother isn’t a pleasing person, I’m sure he’s fine. I just find it very difficult to imagine someone more helpful, dutiful or useful than you have proven till now.” He slung his legs off the table and got up to meander over to the other cupboards with a sort of distant curiosity.
“It’s their loss.” He said matter-of-factly. “Their loss and my gain.” And there was something very firm in the way he said it, bordering on possessive.
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Posted: Wed Jul 26, 2017 8:51 am
There was something to be said about the fact that Lysander, of all people was considered a rebel among his own family; though, thinking about it, Merric supposed that normal companies likely wouldn't have hired someone with Roswell's background. If Roswell's background was even true, for that matter, though Merric was under the distinct impression that, in spite of that stupid truth ring, it was. Roswell's horror and Lysander's ensuing outrage were evident enough of that, really, even if the rest of the time on the island was sort of a hazy mess of confusion.
"So, without you there, does the company fall to your younger brother?" Merric asked, brows furrowing. "Or rather, if this is some grand scheme to extort more money from your company in order to barter for your return, then maybe that's the core of it."
He wasn't even sure if Barron was a pleasing person. "He's...well, he can be a bit brusque and a bit...uh, show-offy, I suppose, but he's not a terrible person." That he knew of. More just...entitled. And kind of an a**, for that matter, because what Barron wanted, Barron got nine times out of ten. Merric couldn't even remember a time when Barron had been told no."
The compliments were, again, received with a certain amount of bemusement and a little fluster to it, because he wasn't used to the sheer blatancy of it. Lysander spoke simply, without fanfare, as though it was an obvious fact, and this was probably what made it that much more confusing, because it shouldn't have been a fact.
"I...well, yes," said Merric, glancing over at Lysander, his hands stilling on the beaker. The tone of Lysander's voice went largely unnoticed, Merric's attention all on the words themselves. "I mean...I suppose it is, I feel very comfortable around both you and Roswell, so I mean...I hope that it isn't an intrusion, or anything," he added hastily.
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Posted: Thu Jul 27, 2017 2:08 am
“Yes, it goes to him, almost certainly. It probably would have anyway, even if I was still there. If this is a ransom situation though, I think they would still fight for me, familial loyalty supersedes any resentment they might have towards me personally. There’s a certain degree of pride and honour inherent with the Astoria name from what I gather.” He didn’t feel much pride over it, if anything he felt prouder of his mother who came from some long line of nobility or something. He wished he’d listened better when she’d told him about his history and about why he had to take those violin and French lessons, but instead it had been put on his tune it out it doesn’t matter mode and he could hardly remember any of it now. He hadn’t had Ros then to remember the important bits.
“And it isn’t intruding, not even a little bit.” He said. “There’s nothing to intrude upon, he’s my personal assistant and nothing else, regardless of anything else he might want in that regard if the truth ring was supposed to be effective. It is a business relationship and I am happy to have you as part of this little business of ours. I know that we will go very far as a team.”
He checked a walk-in cupboard at the back of the room, one which had appeared to contain only files and nothing else. “There’s a mop and bucket in here!” he said helpfully.
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Posted: Thu Jul 27, 2017 10:35 am
Merric's movements had slowed, clearly more lost in thought about the idea of family loyalty and ransom notes than actually cleaning the beaker he was still holding. "So, regardless, they'd still try to get you back," he said, with a nod. "I can't say my family would ever do the same, really. There's not as much...pride in the Cassel name, I suppose, at least not when it's attached to the name Merric."
He turned his head to look at Lysander, a slight warmth in his cheeks, but it passed rather quickly, and he was extremely glad that there were no truth rings, real or not, involved in this interaction, because his thoughts about everything were probably a jumbled confusing mess.
"I'm glad," he said, with a sincere smile. "I think that we'll go very far as well; it's been a very pleasant experience, learning to work with you both."
Merric stepped up beside Lysander, peering into the cupboard. "Oh, good, there might be some use for that later," he said, reaching out to peer at the mop. "Though admittedly, I've never used one of these before, either, my assistant usually was the one who cleared the lab once I was finished with the basic duties."
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Posted: Sun Jul 30, 2017 9:21 am
"Yes, but does it really count if the reason they get me back is to save face rather than because they actually care about me at all?" Lysander wasn't very sure that it did. "And I still stand by the fact that any oversight regarding your worth is entirely to their detriment."
He nodded. "All of Deus is our oyster going forward and there seems to be a distinct lack of cohesive groups of our nature. If I need to be stuck here, far from my horses and the things - besides Roswell - that matter to me, then I am certainly going to have a bit of fun with it." And fun included getting some junk food at some point in the very near future.
Lysander gave the bucket a curious look and swooshed the mop around in it. Why anyone would want to touch something so gross was beyond him. The mop itself was a bit grey looking.and washed out, it smelled faintly of floors."How hard could it be do you think?" he asked skeptically.
"I find all this having to deal with domestic tasks really stressful if I'm honest."
All of this was said in the languid tones of a man who looked like he'd never put any effort into anything in his life ever and would sooner go for a nap on one of the tables than perform science on them..
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Posted: Sun Jul 30, 2017 10:28 am
He hadn't considered this. "Oh," said Merric, now sounding a little more disappointed than he had before. "Well. That's an unfortunate point. I mean, I would hope that they would want you back because they care, not...any other reason at all."
He doubted very much that his own parents even had realized he was gone, Barron even less. Merric cast Lysander an amused look, a smile tugging at his lips in spite of himself. "Well, we'll have the upper hand if we continue moving forward with this," he said with a nod. "A clear advantage that could benefit us later on."
And hopefully gain some understanding. Merric stared at the mop with as much consternation as Lysander did.
"I seem to recall...something about filling the bucket, and then putting soap in, but other than that..." He reached out and tentatively took the mop from Lysander's hand, Merric squinting at the bucket beneath it, then back at the mop handle as though half expecting it to do the work itself.
"Roswell doesn't usually do handiwork, does he?" Merric asked. "I mean, household work, although he seems more of the assistant to do everything."
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Posted: Sun Jul 30, 2017 11:11 am
"Er. Sometimes he does." Lysander said, looking at the bucket. "I mean, at home or wherever we had people to do that stuff, at my house I had a really nice woman who came to clean up every day and the workplace had cleaners. But sometimes we'd be out at a camp or whatever - I liked to go to things - and Ros would do the menial stuff. He'd cook and clean and things like that, he's good at making the things I like to eat and keeping the place scrubbed."
It was obvious Merric was a scientist, he thought, when he managed to hazard the steps required to mopping. "How do you dry the floor if you sweep water all over it?"
He wished humans were straightforward, horses were easy, you just had to clean all the straw and lining out into a wheelbarrow and replace it with new stuff for the most part, if it didn't move mostly you just turned a hose on the concrete. Even that he'd gotten other people to do, but sometimes when he was younger he didn't mind mucking out a stall or two.
"It's just too complicated, I don't understand why they don't have people to do this stuff. I mean there are people who enjoy it, right?"
Because as far as he was aware, people were cleaners because they wanted to be.
"Wouldn't it be quicker to just fill the bucket with lots of water and throw it across the floor? Just sort of flood the place?"
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Posted: Sun Jul 30, 2017 1:44 pm
"My family also had cleaners," said Merric. "My parents would rather have had us - or really, my brother - learning than cleaning, they said, although they didn't approve much of the sciences either."
He eyed the mop doubtfully. "What sort of camps? As in training camps or something else? I assume some sort of...outdoor thing, if Roswell was doing the cooking, though I'm admittedly not too familiar with anything other than how to stick a marshmallow on a stick."
He wasn't even sure what happened after that point. Something about fire, and something about the smell of smoke, which always seemed to permeate through anything and everything no matter how many times his clothes were washed. Merric dropped the mop back into the bucket, then attempted to steer both mop and bucket out of the little closet.
"I'm quite sure there are people who like this sort of thing, yes," said Merric, coming to a stop just a few feet out and looking for a sink. "That sounds perfectly reasonable. Fill bucket, then dump, right? Very straightforward."
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Posted: Sun Jul 30, 2017 2:46 pm
"Oh it was a lot of things. Sometimes it was forest covens, gatherings, things like that. I'm a white witch." And this was thrown out there matter of factly. "Roswell isn't but he came along anyway because he's a good sport. Sometimes it was just riding holidays, sometimes it was trips to festivals and things. He's very outdoorsy when he has to be. I love the outdoors, but its just not the same without a strong animal between your legs."
He looked pretty set on their resolution regarding the bucket.
"See this is why they need people like us involved with cleaning. We take it to committee and then we make it better. We've just revolutionised floor cleaning without even trying. We deserve a good pat on the back." Taking the mop to one side he made his way to the sink.
"Lets fill it up."
He looked around the room. "Do you think you could pour it on the tables too for efficiency?"
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Posted: Sun Jul 30, 2017 3:55 pm
Merric had never even heard of such a thing. Witchcraft, yes, but not covens or gatherings, because he'd barely had time to glance at things in one of his religion classes before he'd dropped it in favor of another philosophy course he'd needed for his prerequisites.
"If you don't mind me asking, what does it mean to be a white witch?" Merric asked curiously, and then added, "I've also never been horseback riding, which seems a shame, I was always interested, though, animals are particularly intriguing to me."
If the panda pin currently on his vest wasn't enough proof of that. Merric stood alongside Lysander at the sink, glancing over his shoulder at the tables behind them.
"We could get a cup, or a bowl, or - wait, one of the beakers!" said Merric brightly. "And use that to pour it on the tables, that should work just fine, I believe."
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Posted: Sun Jul 30, 2017 4:16 pm
"It's pretty complicated." he said. "I could go into a really long rant about what it is. Technically I'm just a witch, but..people always assume that means bad things. It's just worship of...nature and stuff. Old ways. Spells and the like. I don't hurt anyone." he shrugged vaguely, used to people reacting as if he was crazy whenever he tried to explain. "But MAN!" he got suddenly very animated. "You've never been riding??? If we were back home I'd pick you up right now and we would go straight to my barn and you'd get to ride of the horses. You'd love it, there's everything to love. Horses are wonderful and they teach you who you really are as a person. Managing people is nothing after you manage a horse."
He grinned. "And great thinking! Beakers sound good. You fill up the bucket for the floor and I'll get started on the tables."
Fishing out a beaker, he filled it with water and poured it on one of the benches. "Easy as pie, don't even need to get our hands dirty."
"Man I cannot believe you've never ridden. One day I'm going to take you out on the trail, take your virginity."
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Posted: Sun Jul 30, 2017 4:41 pm
"Oh," said Merric, "Well, I never really considered it to be a bad thing, I'm not sure why anyone else would; is there just bad rep with witches? I barely know anything at all about religions, I do like nature, though, it's very soothing, as long as there aren't too many insects."
He could definitely, definitely do without the insects. Animals were one thing, spiders and creepy crawlies were an entirely different subset that Merric did not want to think too deeply on at any given day. He would have much preferred to think of other, better things.
Like pandas.
"I do like horses a great deal," said Merric truthfully as he snagged a beaker from the same cabinet that Lysander had. "I unfortunately spent too much time growing up studying - or really, you know, as I've said, trying to please my parents - so I never got to take riding lessons or anything."
Barron had. Barron had gotten everything, though Merric was studiously attempting to not talk about Barron and leaned over the sink to fill his own beaker, because hefting the bucket into the sink seemed a two-person job. He did, however, almost drop the beaker in the process of attempting not to be flustered at what Lysander was saying.
Merric cleared his throat. "Is - is there a trail somewhere?" he asked, cheeks faintly red, as he poured his own beaker of water over a table. It seemed a perfectly reasonable method of cleaning, and it was easy to focus on one aspect of things rather than think too hard about other things.
"I'd like that, though, I think."
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Posted: Sun Jul 30, 2017 4:55 pm
"Yes, there's a lot of bad blood about it. One side thinks its evil, another side thinks its nonsense like psychics, astrology and things like that. Even though its as old as humanity, as old as the world." He shrugged. "I don't mind though, I do it anyway, and it works. It's kept me and Ros safe plenty of times."
"Well now you are grown up it's horse time, so I'll see to it as soon as we get back to civilisation. If Ros can learn to ride you can too. There are lots of very patient horses around, more cold blooded ones. Bugs will leave you alone there with a bit of spray mostly." He didn't mention the horseflies which would probably bite anyone any of the time no matter what.
He nodded. "Yeah my parents estate wasn't far from the barn and they have all sorts of trails, a big winding river to ride along, fields to run in, the horses love it almost as much as I do. There's just nothing like it, nothing in the world. You just go from being this sort of fragile thing on the ground to thundering through the world like something powerful and ancient. You can just feel the muscle move under you, the force and strength. This animal could wear you as a hat and yet because of your confidence, your assertiveness and leadership, it trusts you and will go where you ask. It's humbling but also the best thing ever."
He filled up the beaker again and enthusiastically poured it over the table. "I feel like I can do things when I'm on the back of a horse. Without one I just feel like... sort of half a person."
Seeming a bit more enthusiastic about the task at hand he went back to fill it up again. "I'd really love to see how you did."
"This place will be spotless in no time."
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Posted: Sun Jul 30, 2017 5:27 pm
"I assume something along the same veins as the truth ring, or whatever that was?" Merric asked. "The whole..." He waved a hand, "astrology things, that is. The idea of being able to tell one's fortune by looking at their palm, that sort of thing is what you mean by the nonsense?"
Lysander and Roswell were two extremely sensible people who did not seem to fit into the mold of people who regularly went to visit psychics. And considering that Lysander had spoken of nature and peace, it sounded perfectly reasonable to be a witch, in Merric's point of view.
"I'll have to look a little bit more on witches up, then, it seems very interesting," he said, walking towards the sink again. "Roswell rides too?" Although this shouldn't have been very surprising, because where Lysander went, Roswell went. He stepped back over to the table, Merric's expression shifting slightly as Lysander spoke, a small smile forming on the edges of his lips.
"I think you're a very good, complete person, but it's very clear that you take great pride in riding," he said. "I'd like to go riding sometime, though I'm not...sure how good at it I would be, honestly."
He gave a nod. "We're doing well, I think, it's very streamlined, wouldn't you say?"
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