oo1: actual intro!

[cursedtolive]

[action - around town in the afternoon]
[There's a small little boy walking around town. A flat cap pulled down over his eyes, and a brown jacket even in the middle of July. His outfit choice looks a couple decades out of date, too, although the clothes are definitely from the right era. Fashion statement?

Seemingly lost in his thoughts, Czeslaw Meyer-Stanfield is not paying much attention to where he is going. He passes by houses, by shops, by people. He might accidentally bump into people, at which point he will blink the surprise away and smile sheepishly, with a natural-sounding]

Oh...! Oh, I'm sorry [mister, or miss]. I guess I wasn't watching where I was going. I didn't mean to run into you. Good afternoon!

[action - 459 Stone Street]
[Nope. Nope. Nope nope nope. He can't handle this family arrangement. His "mother" won't let him hole up in his room, though, so he's sitting in a chair in the corner of the front room watching the door so he'll never be surprised by his "father"'s homecoming.]

Comments

[action]

[justdumbluck]

You looked a bit worried. You sure?

[action]

[cursedtolive]

I'm just fine! There's-- there's nothing wrong.

[action]

[justdumbluck]

If you say so...

[He takes a deep breath--he can't just leave it at that. Czes is family now, Firo needs to look after him.]

You know, you... well, you can tell me stuff that's botherin' you.

[action]

[cursedtolive]

[He smiles at that. He squeezes Firo's hand gently, grateful, but he knows he'll never speak a word of this to the camorrista.]

Thank you, Firo, but I'll be okay.

[He laughs a little, a quiet giggle.]

It's not every day I get told that by someone two hundred years younger than me, though.

[action]

[justdumbluck]

Huh?

[Right, Czes was on the Advenna Avis... Firo shrugs and chuckles.]

It's just kinda hard to keep that in mind.

[action]

[cursedtolive]

It's okay. Maiza still treats me like a kid sometimes, too. But I guess that's because he's actually older than me.

[action]

[justdumbluck]

[He nods, smiling a bit.]

I sometimes forget that he's really that old. But I'll, uh... try to keep your age in mind.

[Try. He's not going to be too good at it.]

[action]

[cursedtolive]

W-well you don't have to worry so much about it. It'd be kinda creepy if you really treated me like I was older than you.

[action]

[justdumbluck]

Maybe you're right. Okay, so I won't try at all.

[He's just teasing a bit, don't worry.]

[action]

[cursedtolive]

[He huffs, but that doesn't last long. He laughs quietly and steps closer to Firo.

He likes Firo. Firo doesn't know anything, and at the same time he knows everything Szilard knew. He knows he things Gretto knew, and Czes remembers Gretto as the quiet young man that talked to him while they waited for the Advenna Avis as the city burned above them...

Staying with Firo in Manhattan was nice, and he doesn't feel that threatened by his presence at all, immortal or not.]

Yeah, that's fine... you treat me like a kid back home, anyway.

[action]

[justdumbluck]

Huh? Are you sure about that?

[He gets annoyed at being treated like a child, he's surprised to think somebody else wouldn't mind.]

[action]

[cursedtolive]

Course I'm sure. And I'll treat you like... like a big brother! I guess? Maybe we can start as friends?

[action]

[justdumbluck]

Okay! Brothers is fine with me. Unless maybe it's easier for you to start out as friends?

[You'll still be considered family either way, Czes, so don't think you'd be getting off easy by picking to be friends.]

[action]

[cursedtolive]

I don't have a whole lotta experience with either. [He smiles almost shyly. Is that a real smile or a pretense, even he can't really tell right now.] So they're both kind of the same to me...

[action]

[justdumbluck]

[Firo's smile fades when he hears that. His childhood was by no means great, but at least he had the Gandors and Claire as both friends and brothers.]

Oh. Well, that'll be fixed. I promise.

[action]

[cursedtolive]

Really? I'm looking forward to it!

[action]

[justdumbluck]

I'd be disappointed if you weren't.

[Hmm, what are some fun brotherly things to do other than beat each other up...]

So, uh, what do you like to do?

[action]

[cursedtolive]

Me? Well, I spend a lot of the time now just hanging out at Alveare. Sometimes I help Miss Ennis to the groceries and we'll have lunch there...

[action]

[justdumbluck]

I mean like fun stuff.

[Grocery shopping with Ennis sounds fun, but pretty much anything is fun if Ennis is there.]

[action]

[cursedtolive]

[Pick on you. Tease you about Ennis. Um.]

I just talk to everyone! I don't really have hobbies or anything...

[action]

[justdumbluck]

Not any?

I guess I could try introducin' you to some a' my friends here.

[Though a few of them aren't too talkative--Barton comes to mind.]

[action]

[cursedtolive]

Uh-huh. I was on my own most of the time before I got to Manhattan, so I didn't have a lot of time to sit down and do something fun. I... guess I read, sometimes.

[action]

[justdumbluck]

Read..?

[Not what he would have expected, but he can do this!]

You ever heard a' Peter Pan?

[action]

[cursedtolive]

Of course I have.

It's the kid that never grows up, right?

[action]

[justdumbluck]

Yeah. that's it! My friend lent the book to me back when we were kids.

[He grins.]

What else do you read?