◈ WHO: Zeke, Reuben & Ryder (Ravina Loki & Skyeforge)
◈ WHEN: Around 10AM on March 12, 2017 ◈ WHERE: Lab 305 ◈ WEATHER: A fair bit chilly, but sunny at least! The first moments in the car were rather quiet. Reuben kept glancing at his charge sitting shotgun, who kept himself busy by looking at the world outside. "So...ummm..." Reuben mumbled to try and get the frei's attention. The toadstool ignored the request for attention completely, staring out the window. Everything that passed by was beautiful to him. His imagination went wild. He imagined himself walking on the pavement as the passerby's did, not even knowing what it would feel like whatsoever. He looked down at his ribbon, which was draped gently beneath him on the seat and became discouraged. He then glanced at Reuben's legs as he drove. "What are those?" The frei asked, pointing down at Reuben's legs. "Alice has them too. What are they for and why don't I have them?" Reuben's face lit up as he heard the frei's voice, but nerves overcame him instantly. Glancing at his charge's finger to figure out what "those" were referring to which, in turn, led Reuben's eyesight up into his charge's face and then back to the road quickly. "Uh...umm...well, they're called legs," he began, slowly, looking at the frei as he spoke the word 'legs' to really get the point across. "They're used to move about. Like your wings help you move. So, I guess you could say, your wings are your legs," he concluded. That sounded like a good enough answer, right? The raevan simply nodded. "Huh...okay." Reuben smirked and his heart leapt into his throat. The first question in the real world and the kid was receptive to it. This wouldn't be so bad after all, right? Reuben pulled up in front of the house and a bright smile grew upon his face. "So, this is our home. Where you will live with me."
The toadstool looked out the window and gave a half smile at the sight. "Cool," he stated quietly. It was a nice place, definitely not as nice as the building they had just left to come here, and not as nice as some of the buildings they passed on their way, but it would definitely do for now. Reuben ran around the Prius and opened the passenger door for the toadstool to get out. With wings outstretched, the frei floated up into the air, his ribbon dangling below him. Reuben closed the car door and ran up the short path to the front door, unlocking it and opening it up for the raevan to enter. The toadstool entered the house, and it was as if out of a movie. A scene where the main character enters a darkened house on a windy day with an ominous "hello" echoing before removing their hood and closing the door behind them. Only this wasn't a movie scene. The frei entered the home and floated about the living room, curious to see what he could find out about this new place he was supposed to call "home". "Go ahead and make yourself comfortable and look around. I'll be right back with some tea," Reuben stated with a smile as he half-jogged into the kitchen to whip up a quick pot of tea. Tea. Now that was a familiar word to the frei. After all, Alice drank tea at the party. It didn't take the toadstool long at all to find a seat on the couch, staring down at some tarot cards that were left out on the coffee table. The raevan tapped the side of the deck, causing the cards to slide a bit. With curious eyes, he picked it up and began to thumb through the cards a bit, taking the time to really look at each one. As he did so, Reuben returned with tea. A smile on his face, Reuben looked down at his charge. "So, you found the tarot cards." "Tarot?" the toadstool questioned, looking up from the cards into his guardian's eyes. Reuben got lost a moment looking into the large green eyes his charge possessed. Shaking himself from it, he sat the platter of tea and cups down on the table and took a seat next to the frei. "Yeah. They're called tarot cards. They provide some answers to willing querents. They are a fortune telling tool. There are many decks as well. This is the Rider-Waite deck." The raevan kept his eyes on his guardian the entire time he spoke. "They're pretty," he said as he looked down at the cards in front of him. Reuben smiled and nodded, pouring himself a small cup of green tea. "Rider-Waite. That sounds nice." Reuben's eyes widened. "Yeah? It's one of the most well known decks." "I see. You said earlier that I could pick my own name. Can I be called Rider?" Reuben's eyes lit up and a smile grew upon his face instantaneously. "Well, of course, if that's what you'd like. But, see, Rider is spelled with an "I", which is oftentimes a last name. But if you change that "I" to a "Y", it becomes more like a first name," Reuben stated, taking a pen to his tarot journal he had sitting on the coffee table and drawing out the names to make it more visual for the frei. The raevan raised a brow and shrugged, a slight smile growing on his face. "That's fine. I prefer the way it looks better with a 'y' anyway." Reuben chuckled. "Well, I'm glad. Welcome home, Ryder." A smile grew upon Ryder's face as he heard his guardian say his name for the first time. This was to be the beginning of a beautiful life. The first week had come and gone in a blink of an eye. Ryder was alive, well, and living within the home. The two Rothmore men were still getting used to each other, how to integrate into each other's lives, and just over all getting to know one another. This was far different from growing with a baby, Reuben mused daily. Ryder seemed like he had a past, even if it was unknown. The fact that he was able to communicate so fluently, easily, and could now read, just after a few days of him and Alice reading the books together, was incredible. The fact that he could pick up on human concepts after a bit of explanation was fascinating to the tarotist. Ryder had become accustomed to his room, the home, what went where, and just little things over the course of that last week. He hadn't met anyone else, yet, but didn't necessarily care to. He had Alice, Reuben, and the books in his already growing collection. Reuben had gone out and bought him a few books on day two, and by day four, they were read completely. Ryder's mind just swallowed information and continued to flutter with thoughts and imaginings constantly. Reuben prepared a very quick meal in the kitchen for the two of them. Over the course of the week, he realized very quickly that all Ryder truly liked to eat was moldy and rotting foods. Once he got hungry, Ryder just took to the fridge on his own and found an old, rotting bag of spinach at the bottom of the bin. When Reuben told him not to eat it, Ryder didn't listen and felt much better for it. Thus, Reuben realized the fungus in his charge would crave the older food. That's what a fungus' job was, after all. To decompose rotten items. Well, in this case, Ryder would just scarf down anything he could. But it was never truly satisfying to the toadstool. Ryder kept to himself most of the week, even with Reuben's attempts to bring the toadstool out of his shell. All Ryder wanted to do was read. But, towards the end of the week, and when all the books that Reuben had bought him were complete, he did venture out a bit to explore the garden, the gazebo, the small lake next to the home. It was all so peaceful, and Ryder recognized it as such immediately. Through all of this, Reuben knew that he had one specific person to talk to, whom he hadn't yet told of Ryder's existence. One person he knew would be just as fascinated, if not more so, with the news of his charge's birth. Calista. With a quick text, Reuben got Calista's attention.
Within a minute, Reuben received a text back:
"Ryder, go to your room for a little while. There's someone I want you to meet, but I want it to be a surprise," Reuben stated with a grin on his face as he walked out of the kitchen with a towel over his shoulder and a knife in one hand. The toadstool glanced up from the couch and sighed. With a small flap of his wings he floated up into the air. "C'mon Alice, lets go," he said, looking straight ahead before floating off slowly down the hallway. "Fine. Why does he have to be so bossy? And why does it have to be a surprise?" she questioned as her long legs galloped behind the frei to the bedroom. She began to dissipate into the void before she was even able to enter the room. Reuben rolled his eyes with a quick chuckle at the girl's questioning. She was a strange one, that much was for sure. He still didn't completely understand his raevan's abilities; but he knew that she was just a figment of his imagination. After a few minutes of food prepping, he heard his front door open. With a smile on his face, he put down what he was doing and scurried into the living room. "Hey babe, got here as soon as I could. What's up?" she asked curiously, walking over to the couch and setting her purse down on it. "Like I said, I've got some news that I'm excited to share. Have a seat. I'll be right back with some tea." With a curious, unamused glare, Calista walked around and sat down on the couch to wait for her friend to return. "Who are you?" Alice's voice chimed from behind the couch. Calista jumped and spun around to see nobody there. "What the fuck..." she huffed under her breath. "Who are you?" the voice spoke again, this time it sounded ominous and echoing about the living room, followed by a high pitched, little girl giggling. Calista's fingertips flickered with magic as she stood up and moved towards the center of the room. "Don't you mess with me, Reuben Rothmore. I swear to the gods above and below that I will kill you." The giggling continued. "Don't you worry. No worries. No worries. No worries." Calista's eyes narrowed as she turned around the room. Nobody was there, but the ominous echoing of this girly laughter wouldn't leave her mind. Reuben re-entered with some tea only to see Calista looking crazed and hearing Alice's voice echoing throughout the room. "Alice, stop that!" Reuben called with annoyance in his voice. A heavy, ominous, high pitched sigh could be heard throughout the room. At that point, the giggling had completely stopped. "Reuben, what the fuck is going on?" "Alice, that's what. You'll see. Sit down. I'll be right back," he said as he set the tea set down on the coffee table and walked down the hallway towards the bedroom. Calista eyed her friend as he went down the hallway, but did as she was told. She could only hear muttering, but he was definitely talking to someone. She couldn't even imagine what was going on. Had he somehow enchanted his home or something? So many questions ran through her mind. Reuben finally appeared at the hallway's entrance. "Cali, this is Ryder," he stated with a smile, stepping out of the way to bring his frei into the light of the living room. Ryder floated in, a soft smile on his face. "Hello." Calista's jaw dropped. She instantaneously knew what Ryder was. "HOLY FUCKING SHIT REU-" "CALISTA! Language!" Reuben scolded. "Words are words, Reuben. Language is a wonderful thing. She should be able to express herself however she likes," Ryder said with a smile on his face, turning back to see the woman quite excited and giddy over seeing him. Reuben rolled his eyes at his charge. He seemed so smart for being so new to this world. What books had he been reading, anyway? "No, no, I'm sorry, Reuben is right. Umm, well shit. You're alive! Welcome home!" she exclaimed with a huge smile, walking over to inspect the frei. Grabbing him and giving him a hug, she caressed his soft skin ever-so-gently and squeezed. Ryder didn't do anything but accept the hug. Though, in all honesty, he wasn't enjoying the contact. Reuben hadn't even tried to hug him. Ryder just took that as how Reuben was. The physical contact lasted longer than Reuben had wished, and Calista pulled back a bit, slightly dizzy. "Whoa," she stated as she backed away. "Man, you are so fucking beautiful, hahahahahah!" Reuben's eyes narrowed. What on earth was going on. He had never seen Calista burst into laughter like that. At least not when she was sober. Turning her attention towards Reuben, she glanced back at Ryder a moment. Her body drooped a bit. "He's so colorful. So magical. Wow." "Cali, are you alright?" "No, yes, yeah, of course. Wow." Ryder just raised a brow at his guardian's friend. "Thank you for the compliment, I think." "Oh, baby, of course. Anytiiiiime." "Calista, sit down, drink some tea." "I'm fine, I don't need to sit," Calista insisted, waving a hand as she hunched over, acting almost annoyed. Reuben eyed her and looked at his charge. "Did you do something to her?" The mushroom raevan was taken aback by Reuben's questioning. He wouldn't have ever purposefully done anything to cause something like this. What was his guardian thinking? "Of course not. At least, not that I know of." Reuben watched as Calista wobbled her way towards the couch again to sit of her own free will. He was sure that something had overcome her the moment she had hugged his charge. "Here, Cali, drink this," the tarotist stated after pouring a cup of tea and shoving it into his friend's lips. Ryder hadn't moved, but instead just watched as his guardian took care of his friend. Behind the frei, Alice began to manifest slowly out of thin air. "What's wrong with her?" "I'm not entirely sure." "Shall we go read and leave them alone?" Ryder just continued to watch the scene in front of him and, with a shrug of his shoulders, Ryder couldn't think of anything he could do to help this situation. "Sure," he stated quietly. Alice smiled and turned around, hobbling off into the room. Ryder turned and began to follow, but before he made it down to hallway too far, he turned around to see Reuben still fussing with the tea cup and trying his best to get Calista comfortable. An hour later, a knock was heard at the raevan's door followed by a slow and steady creak of it opening.
"Hey Ryder," Reuben's voice called out. "Calista is feeling much better now, and if you'd like to join us in the living room, feel free." Ryder closed the book and set it beside the bed on the table. He then floated up and began to follow Reuben out into the living room. Alice continued to lay upon the bed still with an annoyed look on her face before dissolving away. As Ryder floated into the living room, Calista stayed seated on the couch. "Hello Ryder, I am so sorry for earlier. I don't really know what came over me. But I am so happy to finally meet you." Ryder nodded, a very slight smile creeping in the corners of his mouth. "I'm glad you're feeling better." The frei floated over and sat across from the woman on the opposite couch and she began to talk, pouring her heart out trying to get to know the quiet mushroom frei. ◈ WHO: Ethiriel, Henry, Ryder, & Reuben (NeonMace & Skyeforge)
◈ WHEN: Midday on April 15, 2017 ◈ WHERE: Gambino Books ◈ WEATHER: Comfortably cool and clear. I will it to happen and it does. That sentence crept it's way into the mind of the small toadstool frei many times over the course of that week. "All I have to do is will it to happen." Ryder stated, floating about his room as if to pace back and forth while thinking. Ryder was quite the studious little frei, but for whatever reason, he didn't truly understand his powers, nor how to control them. He recognized that magic was innately inside of him. That he was basically created of magic and imagination. That he was actually quite powerful, even Ethiriel had said so. It was just a matter of learning to control these powers and actually go figure out what all his magic was capable of. The logical first step was to figure out what exactly it was that caused those he touched to react in such a way. The conversation Reuben had with him on their way home from the bookstore that day played out in his mind. The Other Day: "So Ethiriel told me what happened. And I think her theory is correct," Reuben stated, hands on the wheel of his Prius and eyes strictly on the road. How was he supposed to turn down or turn off a power he barely understood? His skin was his skin, he couldn't help that. The only thing he could think of was to will it to happen.
The frei glared at his soft, pale hands and turned it over to view the many freckles that adorned the backs of his hands and speckled their way up under the ruffles of his sleeve. He closed his hands to create fists and then relaxed, flipping them back over palm up. With a heavy sigh, he just looked up and continued to pace back and forth across the bedroom. "I will it...and it happens," he stated aloud. "You have to believe in something enough to make it work. That's what magic is...a fair amount of imagination, belief, and will." With that said aloud, he closed his eyes and continued to repeat it over and over in his mind. He didn't feel any different, and after a few moments he realized that just telling himself that he believed his skin was no longer hallucinogenic wouldn't be enough. He had to test the theory. "Reuben, can you come here?" Ryder called through a small crack in his door. Reuben came in a few moments later with a concerned face. "What's the matter?" "Nothing. Here," the frei stated, holding out his hands. "Ryder, what're you doing?" "Just hold my hands, please." Reuben's brow raised as Ryder closed his eyes and took a deep breath. The toadstool began to think the thought that his skin was no longer hallucinogenic over and over again. Reuben nervously took a deep breath and slowly clasped his hands onto Ryder's hands. Ryder tightened his grip on Reuben's hands and scrunched his face as Reuben began to feel more and more uneasy. Finally, Reuben ripped his hands away. "Okay, that's enough!" he exclaimed. As Reuben backed up, his hands began to shake and his skin fell pale. Nausea overcame him and he began to sweat instantaneously. "I...need to sit down," he said, wobbling over to Ryder's bed. Ryder felt sick to his non-existent stomach as well, more out of nerves of what he had just done to his guardian. "I-I'm so sorry! I won't ever touch you again!" he exclaimed in nervous sadness, his own hands quaking at the thought of what he had done. He quickly floated out of the room in embarrassment as Reuben laid down on his bed feeling faint and sick. Reuben knew what he needed to do was sleep off these effects, while Ryder didn't know what to do whatsoever. Ryder paced the hallway outside of his room while Reuben laid down in the fetal position on his bed. "What have I done?" Ryder huffed under his breath. "It was supposed to work. Willing it to happen...that's what Ethiriel said. She just wills something to happen and it works. Why didn't it work for me?" Your magic is quite strong already if you are able to give me hallucinations just by contact. Ethiriel's words danced inside of his head. His powers were strong...potent... But he wasn't able to control them. Not by will alone, anyway. What could he do? He only held onto Reuben's hands for a mere ten seconds at best, and it sent him into a state of nausea and instant sickness. There had to be another way. There just had to be. In the days that followed the event that occurred with Reuben, Ryder became saddened by what he had done to his own guardian as an experiment. Staying cooped up in his room, he felt a sense of failure overcome him. There wasn't much he could really do, at least not that he felt he wanted to do. Practicing his magical skill when it came to his skin wasn't working. Thus, he gave up and turned to his growing collection of books. He delved deep into fantasy, myth, and adventure. Reading all day, every day. "Ryder, can we talk?" Reuben stated through a closed bedroom door. Ryder took a deep breath and exhaled. It stressed him out, but he closed his book, remembering which page he was on, and set it aside. "Yes," Ryder stated bluntly, folding his arms over his chest as the door opened, revealing Reuben peeking in. "I just wanted you to know that there's no hard feelings for what happened. It's in the past. I just don't want you to coop yourself up in the room all the time. You've barely left since the incident." Ryder nodded. "I just figure it's safer for you, and everyone else, if I just stay away. Plus, I like my room." Reuben shook his head as he approached the frei's bed and sat down near the end, looking at his charge. "Don't think like that. You'll figure it out one day. Don't worry about it so much. I had an idea; lets go out." Ryder piped up and softly floated up to a more straightened sitting position. "To the bookstore?" Reuben chuckled softly. "No, no. I meant like, out into the woods. On a small hike. It's a beautiful day." "A hike?" "Yes, where we climb hills and adventure into the wilderness a bit." Ryder's nose scrunched. That didn't necessarily sound appealing. He would have much rather stayed in and just read. But, reluctantly, he decided to agree to go on this 'hike'. "Get dressed and meet me in the living room when you're ready!" Reuben stated with a smile as he left the room. Ryder sighed. He was already regretting his decision to leave the confines of his safe space. His room was his everything. These walls connected him to the stories of his mind where he could stay for hours. But; he did as he was told and met Reuben in the living room a few moments later. "It's so hot," the mushroom stated as he floated behind his guardian, the sun blistering down upon him.
"You shouldn't have worn such extravagant clothing. You really should have just put on the tank top I bought for you." "I feel so uncomfortable in that, Reuben. I love my garments. They're exquisite in every way!" Reuben laughed. "Well, if you really feel that way, you shouldn't complain when it's hot out." As the two made it towards the edge of a small forest, Reuben smiled. "Through this little trail the sun won't be so apparent." Reuben was right! The sun cascaded down in puddles around this forest floor. It was as though they were walking into a fantasy novel, Ryder thought. His mind began to explore the different creatures that could potentially live throughout this forest. As they entered the forested area, Ryder began to feel more and more at home. The trees were like the walls of his bedroom. This. This wasn't so bad whatsoever. It seemed much cooler here than out there. Ryder decided he didn't mind this part of the trip so much after all. "Ah! Look at this!" Reuben called to Ryder. Looking at his guardian, Ryder saw Reuben hunched over. With a raised brow, Ryder investigated. "It's a toadstool. This is what you were partially created from," Reuben stated with a smile, looking up at his charge. Ryder floated down to the toadstool's height. "It's so...tiny." Stroking the top of the mushroom, he watched as a spark flew off his finger and caused the mushroom to glow slightly. This caused the frei to recoil in nervous fear. But, with a second attempt, his touching the mushroom again caused the same effect; only this time he continued. The glowing of the toadstool almost made it feel like a soft clay. Ryder was honestly surprised it had taken him almost two months to even see, in person, a toadstool that he was fashioned from. After a few more strokes of the mushroom's cap, it began to flow outward, almost as if his fingers stroking it were pulling the cap outward and making the toadstool flatter on top, and much wider. Bringing in a second hand, he began to mold the clay-like toadstool into a large, flat, pizza-like shape as it stuck out of the ground still. The frei floated back a bit and as the glowing ceased, the mushroom now looked like a Picasso painting in real life. Reuben stood back astonished. "That's...incredible," he stated, his jaw dropped. Ryder looked up at his guardian. "That was really fun. I'm going to play with it some more," he said with a smile, going right back to it. Reuben just looked at his charge with awe. Ryder was powerful and he hadn't even gotten a simple grasp on how powerful he really could be. Able to completely manipulate the fungus to his bidding. Ryder continued to play with the mushroom for an hour, fashioning it into a wizards hat and placing it upon his head. By the end of the hour, he had learned how to start and stop his glowing touch as needed to get the right feel. Ryder grinned with pride at what he had done. "I'm ready to return home now," he said with a smile and waiting patiently for Reuben to be ready. ◈ WHO: LuLu & Ryder (shushida & Skyeforge)
◈ WHEN: Mid-afternoon on June 11, 2017 ◈ WHERE: Barton Town ◈ WEATHER: Is the pavement sizzling!? Meeting LuLu made Ryder think. Was he so wrong to wish to feast upon Reuben's dreams? He felt it weird considering it wasn't something he could physically touch and bring to his mouth like the molding and expired food he'd become accustomed to eating every day. "I can't see it, I can feel it ... Warm and heavy. Right here." That scene played out in his imagination time and time again. He imagined LuLu hovering her hand over her chest with a look of desire on her face as she chomped down on the creativity over her GramGram knitting. It brought a smile to the frei's face, but he wished he knew what it was that drew him to Reuben's dreams, his mind, and even the minds of others. Reuben's dream was just the first time he had ever felt a twinge of hunger that deep all those months ago. Of course, he didn't ever do anything, for he wasn't sure what that twinge was. But, looking back, it was definitely hunger. Since then, he'd become accustomed to this twinge whenever someone nearby had a sudden "eureka" moment, a new idea, or was day (or night) dreaming. He just never knew what to do with these small twinges. Should he actually accept it, would he feel that warm and heavy fuzzy feeling in his chest too? It was food for thought. Ryder vowed that the next time he felt this ache in his chest, he'd accept it, he'd voluntarily take whatever this ache was and allow it to envelop him; he always knew it was calling to him, but never once did he think to take it in. What Ryder didn't know is, the twinge was coming soon. "Ryder, I'll be in the shop if you need me!" Reuben called from his own bedroom as he made his way out the door to his workshop.
Oftentimes, Reuben would just yell to him, alerting him of his absence in the house. It was during these times that Ryder found himself at peace. Not because he didn't care for Reuben or the company, but just simply because he liked being alone with his muses and books. And if Reuben was out and about, Ryder had full reign over the house, the books, the trash can, everything. Though, it was at this point that Ryder felt called to go outside in the back yard and spend some time under the gazebo. He liked going out there just to get away from it all, even if it was for only a few moments a day. He'd take his book and go relax and just enjoy the freedom given to him by Reuben. It was under the gazebo that many wonderful images came to him. It was a different world out there and he garnered so much inspiration from that place. Draping his ribbon gingerly across the small outdoor wicker sofa that sat underneath the gazebo, the toadstool opened the book he was currently reading back up to where he had left off. His imagination roamed with the stories of dragons, sorceresses, elves, heroes, villains, and even the common folk within the book. Every sentence meant something to the frei. Whilst he read, however, he felt that twinge from deep down in his chest. The one he promised himself he'd allow in. But how? He quickly sat up and closed his book, setting it on the sofa before floating up into the air and following this feeling of longing that he desired. It strengthened with every flap of his wings towards Reuben's workshop. As he neared the shop, he saw Reuben sitting at his desk, looking off into the distance with a smile on his face as though he wasn't fully present. Upon closer inspection, Ryder could sense the man's thoughts roaming. He couldn't see them, but he could definitely feel them turning like cogs in a clock. The ache he felt in his chest just grew stronger. Ryder floated right up to the window and gazed deeply at Reuben's daydreaming face and suddenly, the ache was gone, it was replaced by a feeling of warmth, satisfaction, and fullness; things he'd never experienced before. Reuben shook his head, as if he was snapped back to reality and he laughed and knocked on the window when he noticed Ryder sitting near the garden outside with a goofy smile on his face. Ryder's head snapped in the direction of the clinking glass. With a smile on his face he quickly waved and floated off back towards the gazebo while Reuben chuckled and sat back down in his seat. Upon arriving back at the gazebo, Ryder couldn't help but feel completely satisfied. "I totally get it. That was amazing. I feel so energized," he said, looking down at his hands. His freckles almost seemed to glow their faint colors, and his rune sparked a brighter shade of red. He was full. This feeling was full. This was wonderful. "I'll never deprive myself again!" It was that night of the week, the night that Calista and Reuben had their weekly wine or "Weekly Whine" as Reuben called it. Calista would come over and the two would get drunk on the couch while she whined and complained about her life, her work, or whatever else it was that bothered her. Ryder considered it to be her therapy sessions with Reuben. Reuben didn't disagree.
Clunk. Clunk. Clunk. There it was, the infamous three knock from aunt Cali. Ryder, at this point, would typically be frantically trying to lock himself in his room as to avoid the entire night, at least until Calista came into the room drunk off her ass trying to make conversation with the poor boy; but this time was different. Ryder knew that Calista, in her free time, was a real life illusionist and magician. She had powers from birth and was the only other person Ryder knew with magic. Thus, she had to be the one to talk to. As she entered the home and declared her day done, Ryder smiled and floated in the center of the living room. Reuben was in the kitchen opening the first bottle, but before she could get in there, Ryder called, "Hey aunt Cali?" Calista smiled and walked over to Ryder, setting her own bottle of wine on the coffee table before standing before the frei and picking lint off of his jacket. "Hey kid," she began with a smile, only to have her face fall into slight annoyance with each piece of lint picked off. "I don't get why you insist on wearing such heavy clothing in the summer. It's just too much." With a quick breath, Ryder ignored her comment. "I have a question for you." "Shoot." "Can you help me with my magic?" Calista's face lit up with excitement. "I thought you'd never ask! What's up, suga?" "My skin...you know how it's poisonous or whatever, right?" he said, folding his own hands together in front of him. Calista nodded. "Well, someone I met thought I may be able to actually change the potency of it's effect. But...I just don't know how. She said to will it to happen. But it didn't work." Calista's face fell into concern for her nephew a moment before a smile began to grow on her face. "Well, magic is just a mix of will and belief in oneself. She's probably right, though." "So...what can I do? Do you have any advice?" the frei asked curiously. "Well, I'm assuming you've tried to lessen it's affects, right?" "Yes, but as I said, it didn't work." "Well, what about making it more powerful?" Ryder's face scrunched. Why on earth would he want to make his skin more poisonous? Calista simply chuckled. "If you figure out how to make it more powerful, like you said, trying to will it to happen. At least then you'll know what it feels like to have that power and you can begin to lessen it's effects at that point. Then you'll be able to know what it feels like normally versus with additional power and then maybe you'll tap into something that will allow you to lessen it." Ryder's face turned to determination. It somewhat made sense. If he could power it up, then he'd potentially know what to do to turn up the power, enabling him to learn how to turn it down. "Thanks aunt Cali! I'll try that." With that, the mushroom frei quickly floated into his room, shut the door, and began to practice. Mondays had always been Reuben's busiest days. Every morning he'd be up at sunrise to open the shop and e had scheduled appointments for readings every Monday afternoon. Some days he wouldn't even come back into the house until after 8pm because of how busy he became during the day, even when the shop closes at 6pm. The cleanup was always worse on Mondays. Today, however, was different. Ryder noticed that Reuben had closed the shop an hour early and was back in the house and in his room with classical music playing as the shower in their shared bathroom ran. What was he doing off of work so early? Why did he decide to close the shop early? Ryder's imagination ran wild with scenarios of what could be. But he didn't let that distract him from practicing his magic. When the music stopped playing and Ryder heard the doors to the bathroom unlock, he instantly went into the bathroom only to smell the stench of strong cologne. "Oh, gods," a saying the frei picked up from his guardian over the last few months. "That's repulsive," the toadstool concluded, throwing his nose into his antecubital fossa. Ryder followed the musky scent into Reuben's bedroom, who had just finished putting on a pair of skinny jeans. "What's going on?" the frei questioned, his eyebrow raised and ribbon end twitching. Reuben spun around and smiled. "I'm going out," the guardian stated bluntly. "Your aunt Calista is coming to watch you." Ryder scrunched his face. He may have been young, but he wasn't a child. "I can take care of myself, you know. I do so every day you're in the shop." "I didn't say you couldn't, but the shop is literally right next door and I could be here in a matter of seconds if something was happening. So, to save me the trouble, Calista is coming over and is just going to be here in case you need anything." "Where are you going?" the frei questioned. Continuing to argue about being left alone at this point was futile. "Just to dinner. I'll be back in a few hours." Ryder's brows fell into dismay. So he was going to leave, and was getting all gussied up for a dinner? "With whom?" "My friend, Evan." Ryder nodded at the answer and decided to leave well enough alone. Why his guardian was getting so gussied up for a simple dinner was beyond the frei. And why he was missing out on potential clients and money was just confusing him further, especially when he knew how important Reuben's work was to him. Without further questioning, however, the frei let it be and went back to practicing his magic. A knock came at the frei's bedroom door. "Come in." The door swung open and there she stood, the babysitter as promised. "So, where'd Reu go to anyway?" Confused by the question, Ryder's brows furrowed. "He didn't tell you? He's out to dinner with a friend." "Which friend?" she inquired. Ryder's brows raised. Was she joking? As far as he knew, she was messing with him. Of course Reuben had told her, right? Why else was she here? "Uhh, Evan?" he stated in a questioning tone. "Why are you asking me?" "No reason." And with that, Calista shut the door. Ryder was too curious to leave that be, so he got up from his bed and followed her out into the living room. There she was, furiously going at her cell phone like a madwoman, cursing under her breath. "A-are you...alright?" the frei questioned curiously. Calista glanced up at the raevan and then back down at her phone. She then gently pat the seat next to her on the couch. Ryder floated over and perched himself next to her, where she proceeded to show him exactly what she was doing. "He's on a date. With him." Ryder glanced at his babysitter's face and then back at this photo of a man. "A date? What's that? And why are you mad about it?" Calista sighed. "A date is where you hang out with someone you like. I'm sure you've read a story or two where two people kiss, correct? Well, at the end of a date, oftentimes you get a kiss," she began, becoming more and more irritated as the sentence went on. "I knew he was going out on a date and not running errands. He should have just told me." Ryder was puzzled. Of course he had read many stories, but that still didn't explain why she was upset with him, or why he lied about it in the first place. "Okay...and you're upset because?" Calista rolled her eyes and a soft groan escaped her lips. "Look," she said, pointing to the man's social media relationship status. "He's in a relationship. And upon further inspection, it looks like it's with this girl...Valerie Cronk." Ryder's brow raised once more. He didn't understand all the importance of this, nor why it mattered. He understood that the lie was probably why she was upset, but aside from that, it didn't make much sense. "He just said he's going to dinner with a friend. Why do you believe it to be a date?" Calista could tell the frei didn't quite get it, and thus, she spoke up, "Reuben was dressed up far too fancy to run a few errands; and he wouldn't put that much effort into his appearance if it were really just a friend he was going to dinner with," she spoke, fully knowing that Ryder still didn't truly understand all of the surrounding components. "First of all, he lied to me. And he knows you never lie to Calista. She'll find that s**t out and ruin your life," she paused a moment with a sigh before continuing. "And secondly, he's on a date with a man who is in a relationship with a woman." she concluded, staring with disgust at a picture of the seemingly happy couple on her device. "What the hell is he doing?" she muttered under her breath. Ryder kept his glance between the phone and Calista's face. She never took her eyes off of the phone whilst speaking. She was fuming, and he could tell. With narrowing eyes, Calista clicked the sleep button on her cell before dropping it on her lap and rubbing her golden eyes with a sigh. Ryder felt as though this entire scenario could be found in many of the books he had read. A love triangle of sorts. It amused the mushroom frei to the point a crooked grin grew upon his face. Oh how he imagined these three fighting over one another like children over candy. It was fun to stir up drama, at least in his head. Calista sat her phone on the coffee table in front of them before turning her attention to Ryder. "So what all do you know about this Evan person?" Ryder just shrugged. "Reuben hasn't mentioned him to me. This is the first I've heard of him, honestly." Calista looked at the front door and tapped her fingers on the back of the couch. "Want to go for a drive?" Ryder winced. He hated going out, but when Calista said something, it wasn't like he had much of a choice. Before he could even answer, the woman was already walking towards the front door with her car keys in hand, ready to go. With a heavy sigh, the frei slowly floated behind his babysitter, not once even speaking. "Where are we going?" Ryder asked, staring out the window.
The illusionist was driving rather manically, and ignored the question for a good ten seconds while she passed a couple of cars in her over-sized pickup truck. "We're going to find your guardian." Ryder shook his head. Why did he allow this to happen? "How do you even know where he is?" Calista quickly glanced at Ryder with a mischievous smirk. "I have my ways." The two drove for a good twenty minutes deep into the heart of Durem. There was one restaurant there that Reuben had always loved to go to even though he hated the town and what it represented to him. If he was going on an actual date, this was where they were most likely to be. "Aha! There's Reuben's car," she chirped as she pulled into an open parking spot nearby. "That ******** thought he could be sly and s**t," she muttered quickly to herself, yet loud enough for Ryder to hear. Ryder just looked at the small restaurant and noticed the dim lighting. It sure didn't seem like much from the outside. "Now we just have to catch him in the act." "The act of wh-" the frei began before getting cut off. "SHH! There he is!" she screamed. Ryder jumped in slight shock. Why did she just tell him to 'shh' in such a loud tone? And even then, it wasn't as if Reuben could hear them when they were across the parking lot. But, nevertheless, she was right. Reuben was exiting the little restaurant with the same man that Calista had shown him earlier. Calista's eyes were like daggers, if only Reuben knew the two were there, he'd definitely feel the pain of those eyes digging deep into his very soul. Ryder was almost nervous, he had known Calista's personality to be rather sporadic and even a bit crazy, but wasn't this going just a tad too far? Maybe this is exactly why Reuben wanted to keep it all a secret from her in the first place. He knew she'd react this way. "Shouldn't we-" The erratic behavior of his aunt was almost sickening to the poor frei. He already felt bad enough for spilling the beans to her in the first place; but now she was basically in full rampage mode for literally no reason. It wasn't even any of her business why Reuben was with this man. It wasn't either of their businesses. So why did she care so much? Ryder sighed and just stayed silent while she continued to stare at the car. Once they pulled away from the parking lot, Calista spoke up, "Okay, now we have to follow them." "Or maybe we should just go home." Calista's eyes narrowed. That was not going to happen whatsoever. With that, she started up her car. Ryder couldn't take it, she was acting as though she was cheated or something. Finally, the frei had enough. There was only one thing he could do. He used what she had taught him the week before. He completely concentrated his thoughts on wanting his skin's poisonous potency to increase. With tensions high, his skin began to lubricate, looking wet and greasy. The frei looked down at the palms of his hands and they were swollen and glistened with a strange greasy clear slime it seemed. It was his chance. He grabbed the woman's bare arm and held on tight for a few moments. "Hey! What the hell are you doi-" was all she could get out before she instantly began to feel sick to her stomach. She yanked her arm away from the raevan's grasp and before she knew it, she was hanging her head out the truck's door, vomiting on the pavement. Ryder's eyes widened. It worked. His skin potency really worked. Albeit maybe a bit too strong. "I-I'm so sorry! I just want to go home!" As Calista brought up her head from staring down at her own bile, there stood the tall and lanky Alice, bent over staring her right in the face. "Lets go home," the figment stated in a firm tone, staring her right in the eyes. "I'm sorry, aunt Cali! I'm so, so sorry!" Ryder cried in the background. Calista had to take a moment to regain her composure before sitting straight back up in her chair with skin clamming up and chills setting in. "It's fine, Ryder. We're going home," she said, closing her truck's door and noticing Alice still staring at her in the driver window with the creepiest of smiles on her face. With that, the two headed back to the house. "We won't tell Reuben about tonight, okay? It'll be our little secret." Calista stated as she stared out the window at the street ahead, clearly still sick from the poisoning. All Ryder did was nod his head, staring out his passenger window. Tonight wouldn't be spoken of again, that much he agreed with. "YES! It's finally here!" Reuben's voice rang throughout the entire house. Ryder, curious to see what his guardian was so excited about, floated out into the living room with his arms crossed. He watched as Reuben unleashed his fury on the box, cutting it as much as he could with his box cutter and tearing through the cardboard to reveal a styrofoam box within. Upon closer inspection, the styrofoam opened to reveal a very beautiful clouded quartz crystal ball. It was nothing to be so excited about. It was literally a piece of molded crystal, albeit a very pretty molded crystal. "What is it?" Ryder questioned. Reuben laughed as he pulled the ball from the styrofoam. "It's my new crystal ball that's used for divination. Isn't it beautiful!?" Ryder shrugged. Sure it was pretty, but it definitely wasn't something to get so worked up about. "I...guess?" Reuben scoffed and chuckled. "You don't even understand how cool this is," he said as he walked through the kitchen towards the back yard. Ryder just shook his head and went back to his bedroom. Looking out of his bedroom window toward the gazebo, Ryder watched Reuben wipe down and just stare at that crystal ball. He had a goofy smile on his face as he gazed into it. Ryder just chuckled at the face his guardian made and tried his best to imitate it before laughing a bit and shaking his head. As the day went on, however, Ryder noticed that Reuben was still out there staring into that stupid ball. "What is so damn special about that thing?" he asked aloud. Finally, as he watched, Reuben covered the ball and made his way into his shop. Now was Ryder's chance. He had to see what was so interesting about it. The frei floated to the gazebo and looked at the desk where the crystal ball was sitting. He slowly lifted the deep purple cloth that covered it to gaze upon the ball itself. With a curious eye, Ryder floated down to eye level with the ball, staring through it he saw nothing. With a roll of his eyes, he floated back up and looked down at the ball. That's all it was; a simple, crystal ball that looked pretty. There was no power there. He didn't feel any sort of magical energy coming from it. Shaking his head he then picked it up. Suddenly, the different broken elements within the ball began to swirl towards the center. "Whoa!" Quickly taking his hands away, the swirling reversed back to it's original state. Ryder shook his head quickly a second as to bring himself back to reality. Did that really just happen? Slowly going to tap it with one finger, it did nothing. Then, he left his finger on the ball a moment. The broken shards right underneath his finger began to distort and wiggle as if they were dancing underneath this glass frame. Pulling his finger away stiffened the broken shards. The raevan slowly gazed at his hands, both back and front. His freckles softly glowing as if to warn him that his magic was stirring. He rubbed his fingers against his palms a few times before grabbing each side of the crystal ball once more. This time, the swirling began quickly and the center of the swirl began to show off a vision of a very cartoon-esque styled drawing of a woman with torched hair and elongated eyes which he instantly recognized. "Th-that's Alice..." he stated under his breath with a quick gasp of surprise. He was seeing Alice within this crystal ball. Ryder let go of the ball and the vision faded as quickly as he did. Ryder felt a bit tired once he let go, but it didn't stop him from thinking about what he had just witnessed. His muse within some magical crystal ball. The frei then grabbed the sides of the ball again and envisioned Alice dancing in a field of flowers. Upon this thought, the swirling started and there she was, in her very distorted cartoon-esque style scurrying through a field of wildflowers that looked as though they were drawn by three year old children. Either way, Ryder knew whatever he was thinking about was coming across this crystal ball. One vision led to another and Ryder began down a path, just staring deep into this crystal ball he got lost in a daze as if he was just staring into the void. THUD! Before he could even realize, Ryder had exhausted himself and passed out on the gazebo floor. "Ryder!? Ryder! Ryder!" Reuben's voice could be heard echoing through the frei's mind as if they were nails on a chalkboard. With a pounding headache, Ryder opened his eyes slowly to see Reuben on top of him calling his name. Ryder couldn't do much but push Reuben off of him and roll to his side. "Ryder, what happened!?" the concerned guardian called. Ryder couldn't even bring himself to speak. His face scrunched as he laid on the floor, ribbon strewn ever-so-lazily on the ground. "Lets get you inside," Reuben said, trying to pick up his charge. A moan escaped the frei's mouth as he slowly moved to grab Reuben's hand away. He just wanted to be left alone. "Ryder..." was all that echoed in the frei's mind before he slowly drifted out of consciousness again. Upon awakening, he found himself in his bed with Reuben hovering over.
"Thank the gods you're awake. I had to call Zeke because I didn't know what to do." Ryder's head pounded with pain as he sat up in his bed. "Uh-ow..." he moaned quietly under his breath, rubbing his head. "What happened to you?" Reuben asked. He wanted to get to the bottom of it. Ryder just continued to hold his head and once he felt well enough to speak, he did. "I...saw Alice in your crystal. And then I just saw more and more and it was cool. Then the next thing I know, you're standing over me yelling my name." Reuben let out a large sigh. "At least Zeke was right," Reuben stated. Ryder looked at him with squinted eyes, as if there was a blazing sun staring directly back at him. The look on the frei's face made it obvious that he wanted to know what the vet told his guardian. "He said that you're probably experiencing some sort of power exhaustion. You used too much of your magical energy and passed out because of it. He told me if you don't feel better to definitely bring you in, but that you should be just fine. Just don't ever over exert yourself like that again. He also said that you'd probably feel starved when you woke up. So, I went around the neighborhood really quickly and gathered some of our neighbors old food and also found some rotting veggies in the garden. So here you go. Eat up." Reuben stated, shoving a plate of the rotting matter towards his charge. This was the first time Ryder felt that Reuben truly was being a guardian. Before then, Ryder viewed Reuben only as company, not a companion. Now, with this little scare, he knew that Reuben cared deeply for him; and it showed on his face when he woke up. Through the pounding in his head, he smiled. "Thank you, Reuben," he said, accepting the gift of rotting veggies and expired foods. ◈ WHO: Lab 305 People.
◈ WHEN: Afternoon on June 25, 2017 ◈ WHERE: Beach near Lab 305 ◈ WEATHER: Sunny and warm. ◈ WHO: Lazarus & Ryder (kyoupi & Skyeforge)
◈ WHEN: Mid afternoon on June 25, 2017 ◈ WHERE: The Beach ◈ WEATHER: Bright and sunny. Ryder floated about his room; one hand on his chin, the other wrapped underneath, simply musing to himself. "What would you say about a man with horns and flowers in his hair?" Ryder spoke to himself. From the nothingness emerged his best friend, Alice, standing tall behind him. "A man with flowers in his hair? Is he homosexual?" Ryder huffed. "So what if he was?" "It was merely a question. Flowers typically aren't considered a masculine trait," the muse spoke. Ryder rolled his eyes and continued to float. "Well, I like the idea of him having soft flowers at the base of his horns. He's a druid after all." Alice simply shrugged her shoulders. Ryder's eyes narrowed as he continued to imagine the horns. So delicate and branch-like with pastel colored flowers set at the base. This druid was to be his main character in yet another story he was fabricating. A powerful druid with a tender, loving heart. Character design was one of Ryder's favorite aspects of writing. The frei closed his eyes and imagined the horns blossoming forth from his character's head. A smile crept upon the toadstool's face as he watched his druid's head sprout the horns and flowers in his mind. As he opened his eyes, he smiled. "They're beautiful." Ryder turned to his muse with a confused glance. "What are you talking about?" "The horns, they're beautiful." Ryder shook his head quickly. He had no idea what she meant. Could she see what he was imagining for the druid? Feeling the pang of hunger within, Ryder waved Alice away into the recesses of his mind before floating out to the kitchen to rummage through whatever he could find. As he brought out some expired, sour milk to drink, he closed the fridge door only to be greeted with a shocked gasp from none other than Reuben himself. "Ryder!? What on earth is on your head? A-are those...horns?" Ryder shook his head and floated upwards, still confused. He grasped upwards atop his head, only to feel what everyone else was talking about. Suddenly, his eyes widened immensely as he felt the soft petals of what seemed to be flowers upon his head, then moving his hands upwards he felt the branch-like structures. It was as though they had no actual basis in reality, for he didn't have any sense of feeling in them, and his head didn't feel heavier for having them there, but he could physically touch them. Ryder quickly raced to the bathroom to see what he was feeling. As he entered the bathroom, his jaw dropped. The horns that he had imagined on his druid...were...on him!? He quickly felt up the branch-like structures and then went back down to feel the soft petals of the flowers on his head. Reuben knocked at the door. "Ryder...is everything okay!?" "Y-yes! It's uhhhh....uhhh fine! Yeah, it's fine! Everything's fine. I'm fine. The hor-I mean, it's fine. Nothing's wrong." It was clear to Reuben that Ryder was just as freaked out as he was when he first noticed them. Ryder was panicking, continuously grabbing onto the horns and trying to rip them off of him. He felt nothing at his skull, but the horns wouldn't budge. Not even the flowers would come off, neither would the individual petals be pulled from their base. What was he to do!? He didn't want these horns on himself! Even if they were beautiful to him! They were meant for his character! Finally, the frei gave up and opened the bathroom door. Reuben took that as an okay to enter. "Are you really okay? How did this happen?" This first quarter of Ryder's life seemed to be a busy one for the poor frei, coming into so many different powers all within such a short time frame. Controlling them and really focusing on one was hard for the boy with his scatterbrained self, Reuben knew that. But he also knew that this boy's magic was strong, powerful, and was unfathomably wide-ranging; only limited by the boys own imagination (which was...well...never ending). "I-I really don't know. I was just imagining my new character to have these horns exactly. But I didn't think they would grow on me! What do I do?" Reuben gave the horns a look over and rubbed the scruff on his chin. He then went to grab the horns only to realize that his hands went right through them. Slight shock overcame the guardian a moment as he went for the horns again, only to see the same results. "Y-you feel those?" "What do you mean? Of course I feel them. I wish I could just pull them off!" the raevan called in frustration trying to rip them from his head with as much might as he could muster before giving up in a fit of frustration. "I mean...I can't touch them. My hands go right through them." Ryder looked into the mirror and watched as Reuben went for them a third time, only to see that his guardian was right, they were like holograms for him. His hands went right through as though they didn't exist. So...only Ryder himself could feel them physically. They weren't really there. They didn't exist. They were just a figment of his imagination; an extension of his power. As he realized this, he looked into the mirror and watched as they began to "glitch out" and as he narrowed his eyes and willed them away, they continued to glitch until they disappeared completely. I will it to happen and it does. This magic was utter will. This power was his and he already had a strong grasp on such magic, constantly willing Alice to come in and out of his life. This was simply an extension of that same magic. This was what Ethiriel talked about. That power, something that was already so ingrained inside of him. His very essence even. Visible Imagination. His imagination made visible by will. Now he truly understood. It was an afternoon unlike any other, Calista had come to pick up Ryder for the day and take him out to the bookstore. Normally Reuben would do it, but he had a full day of scheduled readings ahead and Ryder was getting rather antsy at home without any new books to read. Luckily for him, Calista had weekends off and was able to step in. The drive to Isle de Gambino was a quiet one. The two hadn't really spoken since their last meeting almost a month prior. Ryder stared out the window and watched as Calista weaved through traffic on the freeway. The drive was tense to say the least. As the two pulled into a parking space, Calista noticed someone familiar. "Is that.." she began, narrowing in on a couple walking into the same bookstore that Ryder and her were visiting. Ryder looked in the same direction, but didn't notice anyone or anything in particular. Calista quickly hopped out of the truck and began to waltz into the bookstore as if she was angered. Ryder's eyes widened as the scene unfolded in front of him. What on earth was she doing!? He quickly followed suit and rushed in after her. She wasn't about to embarrass him in his temple, was she!? As the frei entered the small bookstore, all he could hear was the voice of his aunt. "Excuse me!" she called ominously. Ryder's eyes widened as he heard her. He saw a couple spin around as they were being yelled at. The woman looked offended and the man just shook his head and shrugged. "Can we help you?" he asked, a brow raised. Calista instantly felt offended. Her face scrunched up, and all Ryder could do was shudder and hope for the best. He wasn't about to interfere with the wrath of Calista, even though as soon as the man spun around, he knew why she had called him. But before any more words could be shared, Ryder was spotted by the man. "Oh, wow, hey! You're Ryder, right!? What a coincidence!" the man called, walking straight past Calista and over to Ryder, grabbing his hand to shake it. "Reuben has told me so much about you! I've seen pictures, that's why I know who you are." The man kept a smile on his face the entire time. Ryder, first of all, was shocked that he had grabbed his hand without permission, didn't humans typically offer the hand and the frei could decline? Secondly, Reuben had been talking about him to his friend? Thirdly, why hadn't Ryder heard of this man before, aside from the one date they had and the snooping Calista had done. "Y-yes, I'm Ryder. And you are?" Ryder tried his best to throw off the trail that Calista had been so rude to create. Looking over, Calista was obviously fuming, and the girl, Valerie, seemed just happy as ever. Calista shook her head. "How do you know Reuben?" she inquired bluntly, with such a tone only Calista could muster. The attitude was quite apparent. Evan chuckled, and chuckled, and chuckled some more. "That's a funny question! It's Reuben. Everyone knows Reuben!" Ryder's eyes widened and his cheeks went blush. His poison. He looked down at his hands, they seemed swollen, uncontrollably, they were more potent (probably due to his stress level at Calista). Those few seconds of touching Ryder's hand had given Evan a fit. It was then that Reuben began to manifest. It was obvious that it wasn't Reuben, some details were very off, but it was based in Evan's mind; where Ryder could see the hallucination occurring. Calista's eyes narrowed. "What's that supposed to mean?" Valerie walked over to Evan (right through holo-Reuben), rather concerned. "Are you okay, babe?" she questioned. Evan laughed, eyes puffy and cheeks flushed. "Yeah, babe! Everyone's okay. Reuben, man! How ya been!?" the man chuckled, swatting at holo-Reuben and laughing. "Who's Reuben, sweetie?" Valerie asked, both out of concern and curiosity. "Reuben is my best friend. My gay best friend," Calista said walking over. "Someone your little boy-toy here needs to leave the fuck alone," she finished, walking up to Evan and shoulder checking him slightly. Evan just chuckled as he spun around. Valerie grabbed Evan's arms and became angry. "Hey! What the hell is wrong with you, lady!? What are you talking about?" Evan just plopped down to the ground, only to look up and see Reuben smiling back down at him. "Hey good-lookin'!" he said with a smile. Valerie spun around to see Evan staring up at the ceiling. "What did you do to him!?" Valerie stated, turning to Calista. Ryder couldn't sit by and watch. Everything that Calista said to Valerie in that moment went by in a blur. He floated over to Evan and hovered down to Evan's level while the two women went at it. The frei looked up at the Reuben hallucination Evan was having and then turned back to the man. "It's alright. Reuben isn't here. He's at home." Evan chuckled and looked right up at Reuben, smiling. He then made kissy lips to him before turning to Ryder and smirking more. The hallucination bent down and when Evan turned back the two 'kissed'. Ryder shook his head. Calista had been right. Obviously Evan had some sort of feelings for Reuben, this concreted it in his mind. "Evan, Reuben isn't actually there. I'm sorry this is happening to you, but you'll be fine in a little bit." When Valerie noticed Ryder was crouched down to Evan's level, she came over and pushed the toadstool away, causing Ryder to fall to the ground. "Get away from him, you monster! You're probably the one who caused whatever is happening to him!" she shouted, trying to pick Evan up off the ground. "I-I didn't mean-" "Now you've gone and done it," Calista said, waltzing up to Valerie and throwing a right hook right into the poor girl's face, instantly breaking her glasses in half and causing her to fall into Evan and the two of them ended up right back onto the floor. "HEY! WHAT IS GOING ON OVER HERE!?" a disgruntled manager screamed as he ran over from the back. "GET OUT! ALL OF YOU! AND NEVER COME BACK! YOU ARE BANNED FROM TODAY'S BOOKS!" the man said, phone in hand. "I'm calling the police!" "No need, we were just leaving," Calista stated loudly, narrowing her eyes at Valerie and motioning for Ryder to follow as she began to leave. That, however, didn't stop the man from walking back over towards the registers on the phone angrily. Ryder's heart sank as deep in his chest as it could. Never come back? Was the manager serious? Was he really banned from the bookstore!? This wasn't something that Ryder could just take. He hadn't even gotten a new book yet! He quickly glanced at all the books around him and truly felt sad for the first time. In fact, he was sad enough to actually feel tears well up in his eyes as he floated quickly to catch up to Calista. Before he got too far, he turned back around to see Valerie trying to compose herself and pick up Evan once more. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "What the hell do you mean, banned!?"
Ryder could hear his guardian yelling at Calista from his bedroom. He'd never heard Reuben truly yell before, at least not like this. Ryder just wanted a new book and Calista had to go and be a hot-head. Even the frei was so mad at Calista for starting up everything. Why did she have to stir the pot? The two hadn't even done anything to her. In fact, Evan was being a nice guy! But now, because of what she had done, the frei was never allowed back into that bookstore again. He rolled over in his bed, tears falling from his face onto the pillow sheet. More yelling could be heard up until the front door slammed, shaking the whole house. It only took a few moments before Ryder heard a knocking at his bedroom door, only to ignore it. The door creaked open. "Want to tell me your side of the story now?" Ryder winced and sniffled a bit before rolling over to see Reuben standing there, arms crossed, angrily huffing. His tone wasn't mean or angry, but his entire body seemed to be stiff and just so. "Not really." Reuben's eyes narrowed a bit behind his glasses, and Ryder instinctually knew that he wasn't going to leave until he talked. "Calista fought Evan's girlfriend." Reuben shook his head in shock. "Evan who!?" "Your friend." "What? How do you even know Evan? How did she know Evan?" The frei sniffled, knowing the secret that was kept was about to run out of his mouth without another thought. He tried to keep it back, but his anger with Calista over the days events just made him want Reuben to be mad with her. "The night you went on your date, Cal-" "My date!? What the hell do you mean?" Reuben sliced Ryder's words in half. Ryder heaved a big breath before letting it out with a few more tears, trying to push the words from his mouth in between sobs, "Calista said you were on a date. So we followed you to Dur-" "You what!?" Reuben cut into the raevan's sentence again. Angry, and getting angrier and angrier by the second, Reuben couldn't help but storm out of the room, closing the door behind him softly as to not alarm the frei, but knowing it was best for his own sanity to calm down before discussing anything further. Ryder's thought process continued, only circling back around to the fact that he was never allowed into the bookstore again. He rolled over on his bed to face away from the door. He held onto the pillow tightly for comfort, sobbing and thinking into the night. |