because the lives of the wicked should be made brief

[somanyadjectives]

Comments

[bereavements]

( They decide to meet in the main room on the girl's floor, so Josie and Hope beat the other two there just by proximity. And, someone has to get the popcorn going. She closes the microwave door and debates "POPCORN" or 5 minutes and listening to the pops. )

I know it wasn't your magic to have, but, Dennis came in hot and I was this close to making him regret that.

[polydeukes]

Me too, apparently.

[Josie makes a face as she begins to build a blanket and pillow nest near the couch and gets ready to settle in.]

She hasn't been that close to the surface in a while.

[bereavements]

( POPCORN wins out because they need to have this conversation. She leaves the microwave to work it's electric magic and takes one of the pillows in her hand, fidgeting with it. )

Not since school?

[polydeukes]

[Josie nods.]

Usually she's just the small, petty voice in the back of my head, you know? The one that tells you what could be really fun to do to get back at someone who pissed you off? But it's never been enough to make me change.

[She makes a face.]

But I also thought that he was going to take everything for a minute there. Not just the magic I was holding but my magic entirely. Maybe even kill me or Ivan and ... I panicked.

[bereavements]

Hey. Don't feel guilty about fighting back. It's a natural response. And maybe - maybe she's evolved. Instead of trying to burn it all down, she's working at preserving the both of you. It feels like an upgrade. But, if it's scaring you, we could go to someone. My aunt Freya or visit Ms. Tig. I don't want you to be poked or prodded, but if you wanted to know more.

( She'll be with her every step of the way. )

[polydeukes]

[That is a thought. And not even a bad one. She knows she accepted a long time ago, that this dark part of her would always be there, but she still doesn't like the feeling of losing control.]

I don't know. Maybe. I might feel better if I sleep it off, but if I'm still feeling weird in the morning, I'll call Ms. Tig.

[She won't let it fester, but tonight was a lot.]

What do you think about this Colm stuff?

[bereavements]

I think that he's always seemed like he knows more than he lets on, but I just thought it was one of those, 'I couldn't care less,' acts. Like he can't be fucked.

( But in reality, he can. )

I should probably be more concerned that he's in all of our heads?

[polydeukes]

Yeah, that part worries me too.

[Especially with all they have running around in there.]

It doesn't seem like he's thrilled with it either. Maybe there's a way of warding it? We'd have to figure out what triggers it, but we are smart, capable witches.

[They could probably figure it out.]

[bereavements]

We are.

( But, he might be listening to this right now? He made it sound like it's involuntary. So, she moves back to the microwave, which beeps. )

But, maybe we also let him come to us. If he wants to. We remember my loner phase.

( Years, Hope. Years. )

[polydeukes]

We do. But he also may not realize that's something he can ask for.

[Josie sighs as she pushes herself up into a sitting position.]

I know I haven't really given him a lot of credit in the past, and I stand by a lot of it, but if it really is as bad as he says then I could understand why he might not want to be in crowded spaces like a football game or a movie theater. Maybe it might be worth it to make an offer.

[bereavements]

What, join our witch cult? We have t-shirts? ( She smirks. ) I'll invite him to lunch on Monday. How about that. We'll start small. Eat on the quad. Not pick his brain about his giant, watcher-family.

[polydeukes]

Fine.

[Is Josie simply looking to be proactive because she doesn't want Colm in her head? Maybe. But Hope does have a point. She doesn't want him feeling like they think there's something wrong with him either.

Then her nose twitches.]

I think the popcorn's done.

[And may be close to burning.]

[bereavements]

Shit.

( She's up and going to the microwave, opening it. Yeah, it does smell popcorn-ripe. )

Well, that retires the popcorn button. For the record, I think he might be worth it. Also, we need more friends. Not including Jed and Ben. Do we only have guy friends? Is that how it's always been?

[polydeukes]

You have girl friends. You have Mia, and Cleo and Lizzie. They're just not here.

[Josie has some school friends that she's made, but they're not on the level of those three just yet.]

And Lizzie said that Alice was super stoked that you were hanging out together at Thanksgiving.

[bereavements]

I do have Mia. And I owe Cleo a check-in. And Lizzie checks in too much, so we're always caught up. ( She does like that Josie puts herself out there. She goes to socials and has clubs. ) She was? I like her. The chances that she's Lizzie's roommate and her dad married my aunt Rebekah are like, super slim.

( A beat, as she finds a popcorn bowl and pours the bag's contents out. )

About Mia, we had a nice conversation. And I think she's still in New Orleans. I made her friend Spike a daylight ring. I was a little skeptical but, apparently souls are just being given out these days. And - her and I - well, she asked how school was going.

[polydeukes]

[Josie raises an eyebrow as she turns to face Hope more, because she's not an idiot. She knows that Hope has been struggling with the normalcy of school. But it's good to hear that she was talking about it with someone.]

And what'd you say?

[bereavements]

I said you were loving it, you belong here. I gushed. ( And then. ) And I said, I don't think I know my place yet. I don't know if it's for me. But, I also acknowledged I have no alternative in mind. ( And then. ) And, suggested, I could get more into art. I taught myself everything, I know there are actual rules.

[polydeukes]

Sometimes rules are meant to be broken.

[So she doesn't need to know the rules, necessarily, to be an artist. But she smiles as she reaches for her hand.]

But I think that could be good. Probably way less stressful than some of the other classes you could be taking.

[bereavements]

Well, I'm not going to be studying law any time soon. Or math. Avoiding math.

( But something's out there. )

Should I try round two with another bag of popcorn? Boys like it burnt, right?

[polydeukes]

[Josie glances over at the microwave and shrugs.]

Maybe? Then at least we have fifty-fifty in terms of good popcorn versus burned popcorn.

🎀

[bereavements]

( She doesn't know what boys like! )

Yeah, yeah. I'll grab another bag.