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Post by DARRIN "MOOSE" MOORE on Nov 22, 2013 17:41:58 GMT -8
"You're not ten." Moose countered, unaware of how amused most people would be to see him literally arguing with a child. "It's two thousand and twelve. You're like thirty something." He wasn't entirely clear on Oskenonton's age, but considering he could barely remember his own age most of the time, that wasn't so odd. If he wanted to remember his birthday, he had to go pull a piece of parole paperwork or ask his parole officer. Not that he cared--Moose had never had a party, and he really didn't see the point.
The bug did talk, and Moose let out a little grunt, holding up his finger to let Aura scoot onto it. Then he lowered her down, letting her step onto Oskenoton's shoulder.
"Yeah. She's a talking bug. You already know about this stuff." Or he did when he was an adult. "Aura, say something."
The dragonfly shifted a bit on his shoulder, as if considering what to say before finally speaking directly into Oskenonton's mind.
Hello. You seem a lot like the taller one--are you the taller one? She couldn't be sure, but he sure seemed like him, and he felt like magic.
OSKENÓN:TON | MAY 15TH, 7AM |
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Post by OSKENÓN:TON on Nov 22, 2013 18:05:18 GMT -8
tagged: Moose time: May 15, 7AM. speech: Oskenón:ton. notes: - - -. Oskenon:ton continued to stare up at him for several long seconds. ”…Sir, will all due respect, but have you ever seen a ten year old?” Or a thirty year old, for that matter. He had no idea how this man thought he was ever thirty, because as far as his mother told him, people couldn’t bounce ages or walk around in the future. The spirit world was reserved for the medicine men, and he was pretty sure you couldn’t go wobbly with your age there, either.
When the dragonfly was handed down to him, Oskenon:ton looked at the little blue bug and grinned. He always liked bugs. ”I… I can’t really say I do know about her, but hi!” He was happy to meet the little bug thing.
What happened next was definitely not something he was expecting, and he stiffened up as Aura spoke right into his mind. He didn’t hear it with his ears, definitely not. He heard it like an echo of a thought, and that freaked him out just a tad. Animals didn’t talk, but they used to in the beginning days. Coyote and Raven spoke, and he supposed the little dragonfly was a leftover? He’d never encountered any sort of talking animal before, minus in tales.
”I… I guess I am?”
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Post by DARRIN "MOOSE" MOORE on Nov 22, 2013 18:45:37 GMT -8
He was so dang wordy as a kid, wasn't he? At least Oskenonton seemed to dumb himself down as an adult. Without thinking about, he'd reconciled Oskenonton-the-adult and Oskenonton-the-kid. They were similar enough, even if each was a distinct entity.
"Just listen. It's two thousand and twelve, alright? That's the year." Moose paused, then shoved a hand into his pocket and pulling out a cellphone. It took only a few moments of fumbling for him to pull up the date on the lock screen, holding it up to show the date to Oskenonton.
Aura seemed pleased with the answer she received. That's good. I'm not sure why you're small though. I thought humans got bigger, not smaller? Humans were a bit of a mystery to her.
OSKENÓN:TON | MAY 15TH, 7AM |
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Post by OSKENÓN:TON on Nov 22, 2013 19:24:14 GMT -8
tagged: Moose time: May 15, 7AM. speech: Oskenón:ton. notes: - - -. Two thousand and twelve… He closed his eyes for a second, doing some quick math about the point. It was… definitely not two thousand and twelve. He opened his eyes, staring up at Moose incredulously. Still, it was starting to grow on him, a sort of small realization. His brow furrowed in worry, glancing about the room again and biting his bottom lip.
”But…” His voice was right back to being soft, looking awfully worried. ”But it’s not supposed to be…” Definitely not. If it was two thousand and twelve, he’d have been…thirty two. He definitely was not thirty two.
”Humans are supposed to grow bigger… But I’m only ten years old. I don’t know why I’m here.” His voice was awfully soft, a little frightened even as he stared up at Moose.
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Post by DARRIN "MOOSE" MOORE on Nov 22, 2013 19:33:06 GMT -8
Moose had spent the whole time desperately hoping that he wouldn't be afraid--that he wouldn't scream, or draw attention. Only when he did start looking afraid--looking like he was scared--Moose wasn't angry so much as he suddenly became worried. His stomach twisted, the feeling of discomfort increasing as he stepped forward, going down on one knee to try and be a bit closer to eye level.
"Hey, don't freak out, alright? You're safe here--it's your house. You from the future. So you're safe and good, alright? There's even food out there, if you want some." Because if he was upset, he wanted food, right?
He paused, glancing back towards the door. "Well, I'll get some. I don't want Rhiannon seeing you."
OSKENÓN:TON | MAY 15TH, 7AM |
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Post by OSKENÓN:TON on Nov 22, 2013 19:42:31 GMT -8
tagged: Moose time: May 15, 7AM. speech: Oskenón:ton. notes: - - -. Oskenon:ton sniffled just a tiny bit, rubbing at his eye with a closed hand as he peered around again. It was unfamiliar, and that was starting to really scare him. He didn’t really care for ‘coming from the future’ or whatever it was. He just wanted to go home, but the island seemed so far away. Was it, though? Or was it just out of sight? Either way, he was frightened enough to look it.
He quickly shook his head. ”N-no…” He wasn’t hungry. ”I… I just want to go home.”
The man seemed friendly and so did the bug, but he was still very freaked out about suddenly being in the middle of a strange place when he woke up. When he’d gone to bed, he was in the relative warmth of his little house, his mother close by and the smell of the sea in the air. It just smelled… stale here.
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Post by DARRIN "MOOSE" MOORE on Nov 22, 2013 19:49:06 GMT -8
He had never thought about Oskenonton having a vulnerable side. He always seemed so organized and together, as if he had it all planned out to begin with. It was hard to imagine Oskenonton being scared or frightened, but there he was--nearly crying in front of him. Even if he was younger, he was still Oskenonton, and Moose was having a hard time dealing with him crying.
"Hey, don't cry alright?" Moose was not good with children, and the best he could manage was fumbling through his best guesses. Aura took off, returning to her normal spot on Moose's shoulder, and then Moose hesitated before leaning forward a bit, giving Oskenonton what he hoped was a comforting hug. He was being careful--worried that if he squeezed too hard, he'd injure him. "It'll be okay. I dunno what's going on, but I'm going to try and... hopefully you'll go back. And it'll all be a dream, and you'll be back home and big you will be back." What if he didn't? What if he was like this forever?
OSKENÓN:TON | MAY 15TH, 7AM |
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Post by OSKENÓN:TON on Nov 22, 2013 19:56:51 GMT -8
tagged: Moose time: May 15, 7AM. speech: Oskenón:ton. notes: - - -. He sincerely had no idea what was going on. Anything his mother or father had ever taught or told him hadn’t prepared him for this. Surely he was ready to face down a bear in the woods, but he definitely wasn’t ready to be shoved into the future and put into such a weird place.
Oskenon:ton tried to breathe. He took a low breath, but it hitched and he sniffled again even while Moose told him it was going to be alright. But how was he supposed to… un-future himself? He was distracted vaguely by that before he was suddenly taken into a hug. It was gentle and warm, but Oskenon:ton stiffened just a little before going slack and putting his head on Moose’s shoulder.
”But how?” He couldn’t even draw the beginnings of a clue.
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Post by DARRIN "MOOSE" MOORE on Nov 22, 2013 20:03:06 GMT -8
If Oskenonton didn't have a sliver of a clue, Moose didn't even have that. His head turned slightly, regarding Aura for a moment before the bug made a noncommittal noise that was the psychic-bug equivalent of a shrug. She didn't know anything beyond that it was magic.
After a moment, she finally gave her best guess. Most magic is time based. They'll only last so long. As if sensing Moose's confusion, she added to that. Just wait it out.
Moose paused for a moment before responding, trying to make it sound reassuring in his head and failing completely. "Aura--the dragonfly--says that we should wait it out. It should put you back to normal soon, and then... then you'll be fine." He clarified, giving him a little pat on the back. "So you just don't worry about it, okay?" Moose wasn't used to being the responsible one. It was an entirely alien experience for him, and he was fumbling through it with as much grace as he could muster.
OSKENÓN:TON | MAY 15TH, 7AM |
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Post by OSKENÓN:TON on Nov 22, 2013 20:09:05 GMT -8
tagged: Moose time: May 15, 7AM. speech: Oskenón:ton. notes: - - -. It wasn’t comforting whatsoever that neither of them seemed to know. Oskenon:ton had, up until that point, depended mainly on his own experience and the wisdom of his parents to fill in the gaps. Now he had neither, and Moose seemed to know even less than him, according to the look on his face.
He felt tears prickle his eyes and he quickly buried his face against Moose’s shoulders, small and skinny arms wrapping more or less around him where he knelt. Of course, he got nowhere near reaching all the way around him, but it was sort of like hugging a big, soft teddy bear. Kind of.
”S-so… we just… don’t do anything and wait?” Because that seemed like such a horrible solution.
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Post by DARRIN "MOOSE" MOORE on Nov 22, 2013 20:19:03 GMT -8
He was crying. He was crying, and Moose didn't even feel angry--just worried that he was upset. He paused, then reached forward a bit to lift Oskenonton up. He was so light--so small and tiny and easy to lift--and Moose had no problem sitting him on the bed. His knees were starting to hurt, among other reasons, and he gave Oskenonton a little pat on the head before nodding.
"I'm not really... good with this magic stuff either, so yeah. I think we just wait and it should stop soon I guess." He paused. "Dunno much about magic. But we can give it a bit, and if that doesn't work then... I don't know." Call his parents? He didn't have the number, but Oskenonton had to have it somewhere. He'd dig it out... but only if he was absolutely sure that the little Oskenonton was there to stay.
He hoped he wasn't though. Regardless of the fact that it was magic, if the mature and responsible Oskenonton was gone, Moose was going to be in trouble. He depended on Oskenonton too much--he was his guide through the world of normality, the person who had comforted him after his dream. Now he supposed it was his turn, and he ran a hand through Oskenonton's hair, ruffling it lightly. "So just... we can talk, yeah?"
OSKENÓN:TON | MAY 15TH, 7AM |
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Post by OSKENÓN:TON on Nov 22, 2013 20:29:12 GMT -8
tagged: Moose time: May 15, 7AM. speech: Oskenón:ton. notes: - - -. He wasn’t expecting to be picked up and he squeaked just a little when Moose did it so easily, then quickly went lax in his arms as he was carried over to the bed again. When he was put down, Oskenon:ton let go and drew his knees up to his chest, his clothes much too big for him, making him look like he was sitting in a pile of fabric.
”My parents never taught me about magic.” His voice was very soft, and he rested his head on his knees. He looked awfully tired, a little older in his worry despite being about ten years old. He was a country and an ocean away from home, only he didn’t know that. All he knew was that he wasn’t there, and he wanted to be.
Still, as the fingers ran through his hair, Oskenon:ton felt comforted by Moose’s presence. Just talk? He could try to do that. His eyes went up again. ”Are… are you future me’s friend?”
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Post by DARRIN "MOOSE" MOORE on Nov 22, 2013 20:46:28 GMT -8
While it wasn't entirely accurate, Moose didn't have parents so to speak. No one had taught him about magic either. He'd had to learn about it bit by bit by experiencing it, and even then he had only the vaguest understanding of how things worked. That was assuming he could claim to have any understanding of the situation at all. In truth, there was plenty he didn't understand.
Aura's wings buzzed once before she took off, flittering away as she returned to her terrarium. Perhaps she wanted to think, or perhaps she'd prefer to simply leave them alone, and Moose paused before scooting over, opening the door for her before closing it as she went.
He turned back to Oskenonton, giving a little nod. "Yeah. He helped me out of a bad situation. I've been crashing on the couch since then, since it's his place." Well, his and Rhiannons, but Moose didn't want to get into details like that.
OSKENÓN:TON | MAY 15TH, 7AM |
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Post by OSKENÓN:TON on Nov 23, 2013 19:43:05 GMT -8
tagged: Moose time: May 15, 7AM. speech: Oskenón:ton. notes: - - -. The little bug, who was the only one in the whole room who seemed to have her shit together, lifted off from Moose’s shoulder and fluttered away. Oskenon:ton watched her go, the little blue iridescence disappearing through a crack in the door and going off to wherever she came from, which left him and Moose.
He looked back over, worried, but not because of the man in the room. Moose seemed… well, not dangerous. ”Oh…” He murmured just a little, resting his chin on his knees again. ”I… future me sounds nice.” He hoped so, at least. He’d be horribly disappointed if he turned out to be a mean person in the future.
”So… So when did I get here? Where is here, anyways?”
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Post by DARRIN "MOOSE" MOORE on Nov 23, 2013 19:49:06 GMT -8
Good god, Moose wasn't prepared for questions. He knew little about Oskenonton himself. They didn't talk about their pasts. Moose never asked, in part because he didn't want anyone else to ask him. Not that he knew most of it. If someone asked where he'd grown up, he wouldn't have known what to tell them--same with his family, or anything from before his time in jail. He didn't know those things, and even if Oskenonton had shared his life story, Moose would have struggled with it. He had nothing to compare it to. He had no point of reference.
"He is nice." He was certain of that much. "Or you are nice, I guess. Because they were the same person, and while he'd accepted it he was still struggling to wrap his head around it. "This is... Los Angeles. Down in California. It's..." He paused, trying to remember where Oskenonton had said he came from. He had once, when they were in the forest after the masquerade, but Moose's memory was like a sieve. "South of where you live. You're here making art. You're an artist. You make... art."
Moose was so very eloquent.
OSKENÓN:TON | MAY 15TH, 7AM |
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Post by OSKENÓN:TON on Nov 23, 2013 20:03:25 GMT -8
tagged: Moose time: May 15, 7AM. speech: Oskenón:ton. notes: - - -. Oskenon:ton was a very curious kid, and it came with growing up in the environment he did. It paid to ask about the plants he found so he wouldn’t eat something that’d kill him, after all. Magic was one of those things he didn’t ask about simply because he knew of certain things otherwise. He knew the old tales and such, but nothing of… going into the future, or whatever the hell this was.
”California… I know that place.” Not LA specifically, though. But an artist… He was going to be an artist. He tilted his head just a bit, squinting. This was insight to his future. This was so downright surreal that he had a hard time wrapping his head around it.
When he went back in time, and hopefully he would, could he change it if he wanted to? What if he didn’t want to be an artist? What if he wanted to do something otherwise? He had no idea. He didn’t even realize if he could change anything at all.
”Do you… maybe think I can change anything?”
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Post by DARRIN "MOOSE" MOORE on Nov 23, 2013 20:17:11 GMT -8
Moose really wasn't thinking about time shenanigans. He didn't want to think about those things. Time travel and whatnot was an intellectual pursuit. It was so far beyond Moose's level of thinking. He let out a little grunt, brow furrowed as he thought about it.
"I dunno. Wouldn't you have... already known? I mean, like... you already know, so you become an artist because you know you'll be an artist." He paused for a moment. "Or maybe you won't remember. Maybe... maybe you're just younger, not like... swapped in time." He muttered quietly, looking like he was about to have a brain aneurysm from thinking too much.
OSKENÓN:TON | MAY 15TH, 7AM |
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Post by OSKENÓN:TON on Nov 23, 2013 20:35:01 GMT -8
tagged: Moose time: May 15, 7AM. speech: Oskenón:ton. notes: - - -. Oskenon:ton more or less blinked at him. Yes, he was 100% confused by Moose’s explanation because it made absolutely no sense. Well, it might have if he knew about Moose’s lack of vocabulary, but at that age he definitely didn’t and what Moose was spouting was confusing at best. He just chewed at his bottom lip before sighing and flopping back onto the bed.
”I don’t know… It’s so confusing. I just wanna be back home.”
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Post by DARRIN "MOOSE" MOORE on Nov 23, 2013 20:42:20 GMT -8
Even Moose knew his explanation made no damn sense. He let out a little grunt, feeling sullen and sulky.
"You are home. I mean, this is your home. But I'm sure you'll be back wherever you came from soon." Only he wasn't really sure at all, was he? Moose paused, then stepped over, sitting down on the edge of the bed, trying to be supporting. He couldn't even just go through the motions, because he didn't know what the motions were. He had never seen real parenting going on. He had heard about it, but even those that he'd heard about were terrible. Felons didn't make terribly good parents the vast majority of the time. Moose didn't even have his own parents to compare to, and he was struggling to get even the basics down pat.
Not that he wanted to be a parent to Oskenonton. Whatever he was... well, he wasn't the more responsible ones in most situations. "So you can just... not worry, okay? I'll get you anything you need."
OSKENÓN:TON | MAY 15TH, 7AM |
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Post by OSKENÓN:TON on Nov 23, 2013 20:48:47 GMT -8
tagged: Moose time: May 15, 7AM. speech: Oskenón:ton. notes: - - -. He just squeezed his eyes shut, lying there and feeling horribly blue for the situation he was in. If nothing else, he just wanted to go to sleep and hope the nightmare was over by the time he got up. He didn’t even know if he was dreaming right now or not. He definitely didn’t feel thirty years old, but according to Moose he was supposed to be. Where did all those memories go?
”I don’t really need anything.” He said quietly, rolling onto his belly and burying his face in the pillow. He wasn’t crying, but he was definitely not feeling well. He was worried to no end. What if his parents thought he was lost? Being lost in the woods was… well, okay, not a freakishly huge worry when it came to him because he knew how to live off the land, but the pure fact that he got lost at all was alarming.
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