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 Posted: Tue May 23, 2023 5:47 pm
They’d spent all morning talking. Most of it felt like in one ear and out the other for Viconius, who would alternate between watching them with a cranky looking glower and then look into some corner and squint there, instead.
Sometimes he didn’t seem like he was paying attention at all. He ate when there was food in front of him. He listened while they spoke–though it wasn’t even always obvious.
Sometimes a moment would pass before he answered, and then he’d speak as if he were responding to something they’d only just said.
Priam had taken a bit of time to get used to him–not that he would claim to be used to him, even now. He had the energy of someone who resented everyone and everything around him. He seemed like a predator waiting to strike, and Priam found himself a bit anxious standing so close.
He didn’t know what was most unnerving about him. Viconius always seemed tense. He moved like a snake as much as some cougar in the mountains. He would appear behind Priam so silently that he’d nearly jumped out of his skin several times already just today. He never flinched, no matter how animated Priam was when startled. Sometimes he squinted. Sometimes his face was completely unchanging.
It was so strange to interact with someone who seemed so absent while still having such a presence. He moved like he was under attack.
He’d had breakfast, and brunch, and an early lunch, and they were about to go out for real lunch, because Priam and Sterling both understood that if he was going to be on Earth he was going to need to understand what he was dealing with.
And, for as silent as Viconius was on so many things, he was interested in Earth.
He asked about the computers. The television. The air conditioning. The phones. The oven.
‘What is that?’ and ‘What does that do?’ were sometimes the only things he said. Sometimes he’d answer with a ‘Hm.’ Sometimes he wouldn’t answer at all. Sometimes he’d ask ‘Why?’
It was like having a very serious, very unhappy, very unnerving toddler living with him.
And, he didn’t like the dogs.
Or, rather, he looked like he didn’t understand them, either. He hadn’t tried to pet them once. He didn’t share his food. He was completely unfazed by their pleading, begging eyes. He saw them, but he didn’t seem eager to interact with them.
It was a cloudy day–which was good, because Priam had serious concerns about Vico’s vision given the way he flinched at the lights and yet still seemed tempted to stare right into them like he was challenging them.
Viconius had not liked the car. He spent the entire ride sneering while he looked out the window and clutched the seatbelt. He seemed to like walking more, but he kept running his fingers through his hair as they took a trip through the park.
They’d given him a summary of the war here. He’d been briefed on the state of things but had hardly commented on any of it. He seemed to have a vague acceptance of things, and Priam wondered what he was planning in his silence.
“Why?” Viconius asked while they were sitting at the picnic table in the park. It was good to give him a taste of Earth, but he and Sterling both thought it was a good idea not to overwhelm him with it, lest he lash out and try to eat some innocent civilian.
For a few seconds, he didn’t clarify. Priam glanced up from the tea he’d been drinking; he hadn’t ordered anything for lunch but Viconius was almost done with the cheeseburger they’d given him. Somehow he managed to eat it without making a mess, which was impressive given his fierce bites.
Priam wracked his brain to think of what subject he could be asking about now, but between one bite and the next, Viconius asked, “Have you been so accommodating because you want me to help you fight them?"
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Posted: Sat May 27, 2023 6:39 pm
Sterling paused and glanced up at Viconius, and then glanced to Priam for a moment before slowly shaking his head. He had let Priam explain the practical and technical things, spending a majority of the time listening, and had been truly focused on his burger, letting his mind wonder in this moment of relative quiet.
The question though, it honestly startled him.
“No. I told you last night…we don’t really go out much. We’re a part of the war but…we’re not really…active in it. We wouldn’t force you to do anything, or expect anything from you. You’re our guest…we…I mean. s**t.” The word escaped before Sterling could hold it in and he put his burger down, wiping his hands off on his pants before he ran a hand almost nervously through his own hair.
“You could stay and be a hermit forever if you wanted. We’re not going to push you into anything or ask you to do anything you don’t want to do. We just. Like helping. It makes me feel good, at least. And I can’t…help myself from offering help when I see someone who needs it…and honestly, I’m just glad that I had decided to go out last night. I’m glad that I had the chance to find you and now I know you’re safe. And taken care of…you’re under no obligation to stay with us, to fight in the war or to do anything. I mean. Other than keeping yourself clean…I expect that…but…” He shrugged and picked the burger back up.
“...It’s nice to have someone in the house again, honestly.”
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Posted: Sun May 28, 2023 9:50 pm
It didn’t matter what he’d been told, Viconius seemed naturally inclined not to believe any of it. The only reassuring thing about it was that it didn’t seem personal.
Priam had already assumed that something must have happened to make him so guarded, and he really couldn’t imagine what condition he’d be in if their positions had been swapped. They didn’t know much about where Viconius had come from; he’d said next to nothing about himself or his world. He thought, when he looked into Viconius’ face, that he could see the gears turning.
Only, once things had clicked into place, he still wasn’t sure what they were dealing with.
Practically speaking, Viconius might be better off being a hermit, but he shook his head after a moment.
“You have each other in the house. But you talk like you’re alone.”
There was something sharp about that, something guarded. Another thing Priam thought meant more than what he was saying. His words were barbed but it didn’t seem like he was trying to hurt them.
He was just blunt. Curt. He was rusty.
What he did know was that Viconius seemed to have been alone for a while, and Priam had enough experience with people who were just a little rough around the edges.
Viconius took another few bites before he asked, “What am I supposed to do here? Your world is strange. I knew what I was supposed to do on my world. Yours?” He shrugged and took another bite.
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Posted: Mon May 29, 2023 7:58 pm
Sterling thought over the statement. And, for a moment he didn’t really understand. “...We…have our own lives, yeah. The house…ah. People here. There’s a lot of us. A lot of humans…and humans don’t ever really focus outside of their own groups, so…yeah. Priam and I talk about our home like we’re alone, because we are. It’s just us. Our little…family. Group. Thing. I’m not sure what things were like on your planet, but…I guess you can say that we’re alone together. And. As for what you are supposed to do here, that’s kind of easy. You just have to live.”
He gave a little smile and hesitated, reaching out and putting a hand on Viconius’ shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. “Live and do what interests you. We’ll support you. You aren’t alone anymore…if that. Helps you in any way.”
Taking a small bite of his food, Sterling looked thoughtfully at Viconius. “Nor do you have to be alone anymore. That’s why we’re here. And, why you and I found one another last night. I think it was like. Karma or destiny or something. It had to be.”
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Posted: Tue May 30, 2023 11:31 pm
Viconius’ lip curled, like it could have been a snarl if he wasn’t controlling it. He didn’t shy away from the touch but he tensed and looked like he wanted to squirm underneath it. Or lash out.
Priam had noticed that about him, like these feral tendencies weren’t new to him, like he knew enough about manners to know that they weren’t proper but couldn’t help himself, anyway. There was so much to unravel, so much to unpack. He didn’t really know where to start with the alien, but he was glad that Sterling seemed to have found some way to connect with him enough that they could at least talk things out.
Something about not being alone had visibly stirred Viconius’ interest, but he again did not expand on this and seemed like he was all too quick to bury the thought. It must have been raw, or awkward. Priam didn’t press it, but he smiled kindly anyway.
“I don’t believe in destiny,” Viconius huffed, and tore another bite out of his burger. “But you are not the worst company I could imagine. I haven’t,” he paused, held the thought for a moment, and then concluded, “had this much freedom in a while. It is overwhelming. I don’t like Chaos. It makes my head hurt. During the day, I suppose it isn’t so bad.”
Even though they were under the shade of the tree and had been deliberately avoiding the sunlight; Viconius was too pale to be out here safely but he hadn’t wanted anything to do with sunblock.
“I am restless at night. Maybe I want to go out. I want to tear them apart. I am not used to…”
He looked at the packaged food, at the domestic little couple in front of him.
“...This. At all. It feels wrong for me. But you are nice. This is nice. But I feel wrong.”
And was struggling to articulate it, visibly. His brows knit and he didn’t look up. He looked at his meal like it had answers, but it didn’t, so he squished the patty between his fingers and thumb and watched as the bread tore and the juice dribbled out.
Then, he took another bite.
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Posted: Wed May 31, 2023 8:35 pm
“If you want to go out and tear them apart…fine. But I would like if one of us went with you, at least for a little while until you’ve gotten the layout of the city. That way you can always find your way back…”
Sterling broke off before saying home. For some reason, he wasn’t sure that it would sit well with Viconius and the last thing he wanted to do was set the man off.
“...to the house. If that’s all right with you. But if you want to go and fight, then we won’t stop you, we’ll only support you. I bet it’s a big difference but…hopefully with time it won’t feel as wrong. You’re nice too.”
A little odd but. Nice.
And trouble enough to fill the void left by Yu’s absence. It was…strangely nice to have something pulling him back into things once again…even if he honestly hated the war.
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Posted: Wed May 31, 2023 9:59 pm
Viconius didn’t seem like he liked the idea of a chaperone so he huffed instead. “I have a good memory. I won’t get lost. If you left me here I could find my way back. I’ll show you. Let me lead the way back.”
He seemed confident, and eager to prove himself, yet was still a bit haughty and defensive.
He took another bite of the food and then spoke again. “But when we are done eating. Your sun is too bright but I like the warmth. And I like seeing your city like this. It’s uglier than I thought it was. I think I’d rather come out when it’s dark. It looks nicer then.”
He liked the lights, he’d said so several times, and criticized how unappealing things were without their LEDs or bright, flashing colors.
The sun hurt his eyes, and staring into the lights probably didn’t help, but he couldn’t help himself.
“You will slow me down if you come with me.”
He said it like he believed it, and spoke as if he wasn’t even trying to insult them. But then, he did move quickly, and silently. His outfit was darker than theirs were, not that he’d seen Priam’s, but he could already assume by the man’s soft demeanor that he wouldn’t be interested in going out to cause a bit of havoc.
“We will see. I can try. But I don’t like asking for permission, so I won’t make any promises. You will like me more if you don’t come, anyway.”
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Posted: Thu Jun 01, 2023 1:49 pm
Sterling gave a little laugh and shrugged. “All right, you can lead the way back, I want to stop and grab you some sunglasses at some point for when you go out during the day, but I agree, night time is quite nice…”
Sunglasses seemed like they would help Viconius a lot, and honestly…but. No, there really hadn’t been time so there was no point in beating himself up for not thinking about it. “If you want to go alone, we won’t stop you, but I’d like to get you a phone before you do that, if you don’t mind too much. I want to make sure you can call us if something does happen. Good memory or not…it’s good to be able to get in touch with your friends. Or…allies or…whatever you want to call us.”
Not that it mattered what he saw them as…just so he would know that they were there...should he ever need them.
With a sigh, Stirling reached out and took hold of Priam’s hand, lacing fingers with him and leaning over to rest his cheek on the male’s shoulder. “The warmth is nice. And it’s only going to get warmer as we get into summer.”
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Posted: Thu Jun 01, 2023 8:41 pm
“A what? I don’t know what you’re saying. If you want to give me something, I'll take it.”
Viconius never seemed to say no to gifts. Or food. And, his was nearly gone, much to his own disappointment. He didn’t seem to know when to stop eating and was likely to make himself sick, but even if he did he’d just go back and eat something else.
Earth food generally seemed too flavorful for him, and he often made faces that implied he didn’t like it–but then completely devoured everything in front of him. He didn’t care to explain this, but for as open as Priam and Sterling tried to be, he was still very closed off.
Neither of them had tried to push him out of his very small comfort zone so far, and Priam might have been a bit ashamed to admit that his current method of winning their strange guest over was through small treats and food and giving him time to acclimate.
Not unlike his method of winning over stray dogs or other animals.
So far, it was working.
As long as Viconius didn’t feel boxed in or trapped, he was much more agreeable. Especially with food in hand.
Priam wasn’t looking forward to summer so much, but Fall? Winter? Absolutely. He missed sweater weather already, and the excuse to cuddle up with a good book, and drink warm tea, and relax with good company. He squeezed Sterling’s hand; he knew this was hard on him. Viconius himself was difficult, but he knew he was still thinking over what happened last night–still worrying about Yu.
He hadn’t given up hope of finding him, and he wasn’t going to start now. Even with a strange new guest around in the meantime.
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Posted: Thu Jun 01, 2023 8:45 pm
“Sunglasses, they’ll help your eyes with the light, and you won’t have to squint so much in the daylight. I think it’ll help you out a lot.”
He drew in a breath and slid his container of fries over to Viconius.
He wasn’t Yu, but he was a new stray to take care of…and it was nice to feel like he had something to do again…and hopefully Priam felt the same way…it seemed as though he did…so now…
Now they just had to keep going as they had begun.
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