|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Tue Oct 08, 2019 5:29 am
Prompt As you head down a very familiar route that you frequent one night, you come across someone giving away free candy corn. Whether you love it or hate it, free is free and you decide to take it home, shoving it in your pocket to be forgotten. Eventually you head to bed, only to be woken up but a soft, high - pitched snarling sound near the foot of your bed. You sit up and find that the candy corn is splayed out across the floor, and among it, in the center of what seems to be a sacrificial circle… Is a knee high gremlin shaped like a candy corn. It sees you and bites you, before scampering away. Before you can catch it, it's disappeared. Sans the strange little bite on your leg, there's no evidence this was anything more than a dream, and by morning the marks are almost completely gone. The only lingering effect is an extreme need to consume sugar for the next twenty four hours.
Nevertheless, she seemed to be making very little attempt hide her need to gorge on needless amounts of junk at this particular period in time. The only care and consideration she had afforded was that each wrapper she opened was being done quietly and she had even neatly piled the waste wrappers into petite knots and origami folded triangles.
Surprisingly she seemed to be adept at multitasking, despite one hand being almost entirely occupied by treats, the girl had managed to continue with her dissertation and more interestingly, she appeared to be ambidextrous too. The lines weren't as straight as they could have been and would need some tidying up, but at least the formulae jotted down above them was accurate.
...The overall design of said building was a touch odd though, almost eccentric, and maybe entirely inspired by the sugar rush she appeared to be subjecting herself to.
Hardly the vision of beauty portrayed in many movies regarding the lonely figures in libraries, but she certainly stuck out at least.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Oct 11, 2019 12:04 pm
The morning had been an odd one. In a particular fit of absurdity, Nataniel had opted to forgo his morning workout in favor of a trip with his boyfriend to a fresh brand of hell, Krispy Kreme. He would not have ever made such a basic nonsense decision of his own volition, and to him it seemed as though much was beyond his 'own volition,' anymore. An instinctual craving had driven him to the donuts, and December had seemed more than pleased, but all Nataniel could think was how fattening dough and sugars were... His body was a machine, and he'd thrown sugar into the well-oiled gears.
All that was left to do was feel a crippling, persistent guilt, mixed with the horrific realization that the sweet craving had never quite abated. To top it off, he'd still had class to attend, after the debauchery that was Krispy Kreme.
And once that was done, it was off to the library to find a fabled 'hard copy' source reference for the thesis for his aquaculture class. Why such a thing was needed in this day and age, Nataniel would never understand. Didn't his professor know they had the internet now, with its vast supply of source material and consistently updated information? Well, whatever. He wouldn't be here long.
He strode toward the selection of reference catalogues and had the misfortune to pass by a colorful array of treats. Again, he was reminded that whatever creature had infected him in the night with want for sugar was not so easily satiated by donuts. It took a moment for his gaze to scour the table and eventually come to rest on its owner-
"Liliane," Nat murmured, softly, recognizing the girl from his architecture class.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 14, 2019 4:01 pm
Owlish eyes stared back at him from behind the array of treats and bags she had haphazardly strewn over the table. With her mouth filled she resembled something akin to a chipmunk and if she'd had any manners it would have been ill advised to say anything. Instead, Liliane would always be her reliable self and once she'd taken a moment to process who had spoken, she offered a rather odd smile.
"Nu-fan-el!" Her mouth was most assuredly full if there had ever been any doubt before.
She gave a wave, a merry smile upon her lips as she made a series of quick chews and then finally gulped down whatever she had been holding on to. With her facial muscles relaxed she looked much more ordinary, if a touch wild eyed due to the sheer amount of sugar she had already consumed. If she wasn't careful (and she wasn't going to be) she was going to come down from this high and crash hard whenever this peculiar craving ran out.
"Hi," she said and sat back, if only to survey Nat. At a glance he seemed fine, he didn't look like he was exhibiting any of the eccentricities she was, but then again he did seem the type to keep it all in. Bit of a buttoned-up type, not stuffy just...a bit antisocial?
"Want some?" she motioned to her collection. "I got plenty," she admitted with a side eyed towards it.
"Probably better if someone helps me with this, this isn't going to end well otherwise."
...It wasn't going to end well anyway, but she could live in hope.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Oct 17, 2019 8:09 am
...What a disgusting display. Stuffing her mouth. Speaking with it full. And it was so messy for somewhere as public as a library. Nataniel knew he wasn't above something so base as a craving, but, god, couldn't some people have a little more dignity when giving into those almost necessary desires? Of course it made him want to leave, to resume searching for what he'd actually come here to find, and it wasn't as if he considered himself particularly close to this girl...
But when he knew what he wanted, and it was right before him, the opportunity was hard to ignore.
He took a step toward the table Liliane had set up at, briskly pulled out a chair and sat. She had offered. He didn't need to make any more a scene of it than that, no matter how... uncomfortable he felt, sitting across from this girl with a pile of sugared snacks between them.
Should he even bother inquiring what had led to this array of treats here of all places? For all he knew, this could be how she ate normally, and considering the bake sale Liliane had been so inclined to force upon people, it wouldn't really have come as a surprise. It was strange for him to be in this situation, though. And given how it occured, it seemed sound to ensure that he wasn't the only one affected.
His gaze lifted to her briefly, then fell to a caramel apple sucker that he rolled idly between his fingers. "I usually try to refrain from eating sweets," he admitted. "I am not fond of the sheer amount of calories of a snack with such poor nutritional value. However..."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Oct 17, 2019 9:00 am
Liliane's definition of dignity was something that may have been up for debate in those moments, she was certainly much more laid back about embarrassment and seemed largely unconcerned with her eccentricities... But it might have helped that every now and then people had dropped by to partake in some of her treats. Whatever their motivations might have been there hadn't been any outward hostility or cruelty as a result of her collection.
She did however raise a brow, she had a small read on him and he hadn't seemed like the sort to simply sit down. Something was out of sorts with him, just as much as it was with her.
"You seem like the type," she shrugged and reached out to grab one of the treats by her pen. "You know, the fit type, probably thinks that any form of candy is the spawn of satan and they'll break out in pimples if they even get a wiff of some sugar," she added. It was an observation more than anything, but it wouldn't have surprised her if he took it as an insult as well.
...He wasn't exactly receptive to conversation (especially when it was her), but who was she to judge him, everyone had their moments.
"But pretty sure something is in the water today, or it was last night," she shrugged and glanced briefly at her sketch, squinting ever so slightly as if the otherwise questionable design had something wrong with it. Quite frankly, it had a significant amount wrong with it but that would be something she'd have to address when she sobered up.
"That, or that weirdass guy spiked the candy corn," she wrinkled her nose. "I don't even like candycorn, I got it for my mom," she admitted and shrugged her shoulder. "But he must have put somethin' weird on it cause I was hallucinating hardcore that night and then this morning..."
She paused and waved her hand at the bags.
She didn't have an excuse, merely an explanation, and the hand wave was about as expressive as she could get in relation to the outcome even if the rest regarding the hallucinations would probably sound a touch outlandish (well, it would have to her anyway).
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Nov 07, 2019 5:29 am
Epine de Rose I. Am embarrassed. Of my stupid son.
He unwrapped the caramel apple sucker, anyway. "My mother is Hindi," he explained, since Liliane had brought up what kind of type he was, as though he could just so simply be placed in a box among others 'like' him. "She never ate beef, and so, growing up, we didn't either. By the time I was a teenager, I thought it absurd that such an intelligent woman could so strongly believe in the sanctity of cows that it would actually limit her diet." Religion was no point of interest for him, and he didn't swell on it long.
"But... I will not do anything halfway, and I had been conditioned for so long to not indulge in beef that I could hardly fathom even tasting it. I decided I would be a vegetarian and simply have none of it. She was so proud, back then..."
But that wasn't the point he was trying to make. The point was, "There is little room for sugar in my diet when I already cut out the majority of protein and still expect to maintain-" Nataniel leaned back in his chair, his posture straight as he idly flicked the fingers of the hand not holding the sucker down the front of his chest. "-this statuesque appearance. So whatever type you think I am, don't. I do not hate sugar, and I am not frightened of pimples. But I have my health to be conscious of, and I will not be ashamed of that."
But one sucker wouldn't hurt. It wasn't great after the donuts from earlier. ...But the damage was already done, surely.
His head tipped inquisitively at the mention of candy corn. Something else he didn't eat and had no inspiration to do so. Of all the sugared treats anyone could choose from, why on earth would they decide on colored, shaped, flavorless fondant of all things? Nataniel would never-
But December would. December would chirp in delight and accept any treats he was given from any stranger down any ally. And he, in fact, had. It sounded remarkably similar to Liliane's experience...
"My..." He stumbled only briefly over what he ought to call December. They were friends at this point, certainly. Comrades to the extent that Nataniel would fight for him, and was working toward a goal of doing just that... But it was still so strange, so foreign. He settled on something he was more familiar with. He'd had housemates before December. "My roommate brought some home last night. I was, admittedly, not surprised he would pick something up from a stranger. But you? I might have expected better."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Nov 12, 2019 2:27 am
She blinked, it seemed like the most fitting response in this situation.
Well, if anything, she'd learned that her particularly terse companion had an intelligent but religious mother. She'd also learned about his childhood and well... She shook her head, she wasn't sure if it had been entirely necessary but it might very well have explained why he had been particularly hostile to the bake sale (all that sugar talk).
"Ok," she shook her head. "All I meant is that you're fit and came across as anti-sugar because you couldn't let it slide," she waved her hand towards him. "No cheat days and all that jazz, count the calories, never skip leg day, you know... that kind of thing." Nevertheless it seemed he was having some form of cheat-day today and it may not be entirely willingly.
...Had she actually being tripping last night or was that all real?
"In my defence the stuff given out during the Star Festival was fine," she added and wrinkled her nose at his observations. "This is just a lesson in being moderately more suspicious of people handing things out at random corners," she acknowledged in a light, breezy tone. She'd been in worse situations and much like his 'companion', she preferred to live on the more joyful side of life!
"Now if he'd had all the little bags in his coat and then opened it all," she cleared her throat and mimicked opening a long coat before winking. "'Hey kid, wanna have some candy corn?'; then maybe I'd have been a bit more suspicious."
"Seemed fine though and other people were taking it so yeah, no weird guy down an alley selling candy corn shanks this time."
She paused.
"Don't some of these have beef in them though?" she asked and motioned to the sweet he'd popped into his mouth. She wasn't a vegetarian herself but she knew there was something in some sweets that tended to come from some part of an animal. Not particularly helpful but it didn't sit well with her not to at least raise it as a concern.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Dec 02, 2019 12:38 pm
"And realizing what you meant, I took it upon myself to correct you," Nataniel retorted with a shrug. As a man who preferred information to none and reasoning to impulse, he thought she'd benefit from knowing his stance and surrounding thought process.
Apparently not.
"I am not averse to sugar or treats, and I obviously enjoy them." He twirled the lollipop between his fingers, drawing attention to it in demonstration. "I simply prefer to be aware of what goes inside me, and I refrain from..." His dark red gaze scraped over the mound of treats Liliane had hoarded, lip curling up slightly in distaste. "Indulging heinously." Though he'd definitely already reached the limit of what constituted 'moderation' of sugar for the day. He popped the sucker back in his mouth.
Why would he assume someone like this girl wouldn't take candy from strangers? Was it just because they shared a class and so he assumed she must have some kind of reasoning capacity? Certainly more than he could expect from his boyfr- ...From December.
Regardless.
"Would it not be just as easy to go to nearly any convenience store and purchase a sealed package? Candy corn is hardly difficult to find at this time of year... Just as a rule, you should always know to be wary of someone handing out anything for free. It is self-preservation to be mistrusting. I really assumed you would know as much..." For whatever reason. Nataniel couldn't explain why he'd assume much of anything about this girl. But he had. And he'd been wrong. He glanced away.
"I believe some of them have milk or whey," he admitted, falling easily back into their conversation, though still preferring to keep his focus on his own fingers twirling the lollipop stick, rather than back at her. "But I am not vegan and have no reason to mind these things. ...I actually really enjoy chocolate milk and grilled cheeses." Hard to miss the animal products in those.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Dec 21, 2019 9:12 am
"I like to live a little," She was unrepentant in regards to her decision to take the candy corn, there were certainly things she could learn from it but if she was going to regard everyone with suspicion then she'd never have any fun or make any real friends. The last bit might have been wrong but in the end it certainly would have taken her more time to achieve a relationship if she was constantly expecting the worst.
She wouldn't lie though, rather than say she would keep in in mind it was better to offer a smile and allow his suspicions to be confirmed. If gingerbread men were going to be offered on stalls in the park then she was probably going to take one of those too. If there was a friendly face behind it then she was going to be one of those people who gave them the benefit of the doubt.
In the grand scheme of things she probably could have benefited from someone with Nat's levelheadedness in her life... They'd certainly keep her out of any significant trouble (or at least try to).
"I'll level with you though," she murmured as he explained that he was all right with the various ingredients in the treats around them. "I never really assume anything about vegetarians, vegans and so on," she admitted. "When it comes to that I normally let people tell me what they can and can't eat because it seems to vary sometimes," she smiled wryly. "Better they have what they want rather than me assuming and feeding them something awful."
"Not that I can cook actually," he expression clouded and she furrowed her brow. "But you know, for organising food and that, have to make sure everyone gets what they need."
There was a pause.
"You know you can take some of these if you want to hold on to any of them for later," she added and shook her head. "Pretty sure I won't be able to eat everything on my own so if there's a good home for it somewhere I'm happy for people to take it."
And honestly, she was kind of hoping this whole sweet tooth insanity calmed down at some point. She liked sweet food but at this rate she was going to end up hating it if she kept eating it at the rate she was!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Dec 27, 2019 2:48 pm
"Mm." Nataniel flicked his tongue against the treat as he twirled the stick between his fingers, tasting more apple than caramel at this point. More sour than sweet. Still definitely candy, but it didn't cater near as much to the nagging want of sugar. "You did watch me put it in my mouth," he pointed out. "And as someone who has been living like this for most of his life, I think I am more well-positioned than you to decide what I am and am not comfortable eating. You had little ground to assume anything, when I clearly made my own decision on the matter."
It wasn't like she'd cooked anything for him, and he had, in fact, unwrapped a candy himself, perfectly aware of what had likely gone into it. Or at least as much as Liliane might have been.
And Nataniel had no idea why she thought it fell to her to ensure his needs (or anyone else's for that matter) were met. He was not a child that needed someone else to cater to him. He rolled his shoulders dismissively. There was no benefit to an argument on the matter. She had shared her treats with him out of the goodness of her heart, after all.
"I better not," Nataniel murmured after a pause as she offered to allow him to take some of the snacks home. "While my roommate would likely appreciate it, I like to encourage some... discipline, restraint where we can help it."
He'd taken December out for sweets earlier. He didn't need to bring more home. There were better things for them to indulge in.
"I appreciate the offer, though."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Dec 28, 2019 8:30 am
He certainly had a propensity for being a touch judgemental, it seemed that any opportunity he got to lecture someone would be taken. Whether it was intentional or not, the condescending style was likely to rub someone up the wrong way. To be fair, even Liliane had to wonder why he bothered to approach her if his default setting was to belittle, she might be friendly, but she didn't necessarily market herself as a punching bag either.
"Ok," she replied in a more measured tone than she had thought herself capable off. She wasn't sure if there was anything more she could have said to him either, not without returning the favour herself. With no real need for hostility (at least not for her), it was one of those occasions when she felt it best to let sleeping dogs lie.
He had something to say, he was going to say it, while completely missing all of the more nuanced aspects of what she might have said.
Good manners and hosting etiquette may not necessarily have been on his radar!
She was able to afford a half smile at the mention of his room mate though, whoever had chosen to share a home with him was certainly a person with a patience and a thick skin... or perhaps Nathaniel was different in more desirable company. She wasn't blind in that respect, she could pick up when she wasn't entirely welcome or appreciated, though she was still silently debating if 'tolerable' might have been the more accurate take on his read of her.
"No problem," she shrugged her shoulders. "I'm sure I can find homes for them elsewhere anyway," she pursed her lips. "Though I think I may avoid offering them on street corners just to avoid any suspicion that I might be the candy-corn peddler," she mused.
"It'll find a home by the end of the day anyway," she nodded, more-so to herself than anything.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jan 01, 2020 2:00 pm
Nataniel twirled the now-empty stick between his fingers, watching the tiny remaining flecks of green and brown that stuck to it spiral about it a short burst of a dance that melded the two colors together for just a second in his vision, before he tossed the stick in the nearby receptacle at the end of the table. At her assertion that she would certainly find a home for her remaining treats, he gave a small nod.
It was probably fortunate that the only thing odd about the candy corns she and December had been given was that they were guarded by some particularly bitey apparition. There were worse things about. And a pile of calories and a sugar high still weren't terribly bad punishments for engaging in the consumption of free candy from a stranger.
He sighed.
Just as it wasn't her business to concern herself over what he put in his mouth, it was hardly his business to concern himself over her well-being. Liliane was an adult. She should be able to make intelligent choices for herself.
But she had shared her snacks with him when Nataniel certainly would have been too stubborn to buy any more sweets for himself. She was sweet. A 'good' person, by all accounts that Nat understood of the matter. And he didn't believe that anything came for free, especially not food of any variety.
In return for her gesture, he offered one of his own. "Liliane," he murmured, gaze focused down toward the table, rather than at her. "I do not really understand what compels you to accept things from strangers," he admitted. "But... I do think you ought to be careful in regards to what you are willing to take from people who offer things to you. Not everyone is as... nice... as you are."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Feb 11, 2020 8:07 am
Now was neither the time nor place to explain what might have compelled her to do anything. The remark he'd made was purely rhetorical, or so she assumed, and he was blessed in that respect. The tone he'd taken just didn't seem to be that of someone who wanted an answer, it was merely something that had been said in preparation for what was to follow... And it would have been a lie to say that she hadn't been surprised by what that was.
Huh, so he did have a softer side in there.
She wouldn't get soppy, there was no point to that, but she did afford a smile as he provided her with what seemed like a compliment. She'd take that, he might have been selective with the word, but it didn't seem to hold any malice. For all intents and purposes she could regard it as genuine and the sentiment attached to it was similarly warm.
"You know," she said with a small shake of her head, her hands otherwise occupied as she toyed with the wrapper around one of the candy balls she'd pulled from the box beside her. "You're not such a bad guy," she added. She wouldn't go further than that, she did know better on that one, she'd seen enough people (including herself) go further than that to provide further context and it rarely went well.
"I'll be careful," she added. "Or at least try to be." She reassured him.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Feb 13, 2020 9:51 am
"Mm." His dark gaze flicked sharply up at her words, brows pinched in confusion, before darting back to the table.
Her commentary wasn't meant as an attack, and rationally, Nataniel recognized that. He would go so far as to say that it was probably meant as a pleasantry, one of those things that he did not often see need for, personally. They didn't know each other by any means other than a shared classroom space, so he couldn't imagine she thought particularly much of him one way or another, but...
It sounded suspiciously close to an implication that if she had given thought to him at all, it was to assume that he was 'bad,' and by extension:
'There's something wrong with you.'
It shouldn't matter, of course. And didn't. But it wasn't the first time any such commentary had been made, and Nat had difficulty understanding the cause, understanding where the 'wrongness' came from and the circumstances of what made it wrong at all. And it didn't have anything to do withe the obviously shady Negaverse mission. She didn't know that about him, and he hadn't been a part of that any of the times anyone else had mentioned it previously. If he was 'wrong' now, he could blame the influence of chaos. But he didn't know why he had been before. Didn't know what about him implied something 'off.'
He tried not to fidget. "Do I... give that impression?" Nataniel asked softly, tone flat, but words barely above a whisper.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Mar 03, 2020 1:59 am
"Sometimes," she smiled warmly. "But you won't be the first or last to do it," she pointed out. It should have been clear that she held no malice in her tone, if anything it continued to possess the more musical quality it often did. Given her gaze had been focused on the wrapper in her hands she soon returned it to Nat and gave a small shrug of her shoulders.
"Some folks are just tougher than others and they show it in different ways," she added. "In the end you have people who are just determined to be mean all the time, and typically they don't really have a reason for it," she continued and twisted the wrapper into a little bow. Evidently the red head needed to keep herself occupied, always filled with an over abundance of energy that she needed to temper in some capacity.
"Then there are people more like you," she motioned to him and chuckled. "They just come off as mean at the start, they're just a bit more distant and aren't really what I'd call 'people people'," she explained. "That doesn't mean they're evil, or mean, or they're even making it their life's goal to make someone feel a certain way... It's kind of just who they are and they're a little rough around the edges."
She paused briefly to consider her next words and then shook her head.
"But in the end, those not very people-people folks will occasionally show a glimpse of kindness," she pursed her lips thoughtfully. "Maybe they see it as a weakness to show it and that's ok if that's how they work, but to me you're a bit like that."
"I don't think you're aiming to be mean, you're just not big on the whole 'people' thing so you can be a bit of a tough nut," she grinned. "That's why you're not a bad guy after all, you might not be big in to the 'people' side of things but you still try and you have tidbits of information and advice that show you have a nice streak too."
Another pause.
"Even if you may not necessarily want to show it."
Whether or not that brought him the reassurance he was looking for, it didn't seem like she thought there was anything wrong with him. Nevertheless how someone interpreted another person's words was what mattered in the end and she couldn't dictate how Nat should feel about that...
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
