action; phone (forward dated to Monday!)

[cursedtolive]

{ACTION} Mayfield Elementary; before class
[Despite seeing and hearing some things he didn't want to encounter during the trip into the void, Czeslaw has been attending school without missing a day. Dressed in a white shirt with a tie (fixed to be straight by his drone mother) and jacket but missing his usual hat, Czes makes his way on campus, arriving a little bit early.

He bumps shoulders with people sometimes, uttering a small "sorry" whenever he does. But if he sees a face he recognizes, he looks up with the best smile he could plaster on his face.]

Hi... good morning! How's it going?

{ACTION} Stone Street; afternoon
[Czeslaw received something in the mail after coming home from school. It was just an envelope with a card inside, but what's important to Czes is what is dran on the card. It's a two-panel comic, a simple picture of a human with a wound in the first panel; the human's wound is healed in the second. He looks at it for a couple of seconds before he pales and nearly drops it, turning white and running inside the house.]

{PHONE} filtered to Firo Prochainezo
Firo! Hey Firo, can I talk to you?

[First he calls Firo, because this is the guy he was living with back home. First he's got to call Firo and see if he's still alive and around, and tell him what happened. He already tried to see if the mail wasn't joking, and sure enough it was real. The cut on his lip he bit down on it earlier healed in seconds.]

Not over the phone, though -- I can come to to your house or meet you anywhere, but I need to talk to you!

{ACTION} Nelson Street; nighttime
[Czes was also going to try calling Elmer C. Albatross but instead he runs. He remembers that Elmer lived on Nelson Street, so he runs as fast as he can to that street, hoping he'll find the house. But it's the one with the treehouse, right?

He's running so fast he might crash right into a passerby, saying "Sorry!" and hoping he won't get pulled into a conversation.]

Comments

[Action]

[cursedtolive]

I don't really know...

[Not all families are kind to each other. Maiza was friendly to his brother, though. And Firo was always nice to him after they met...]

[Action]

[justdumbluck]

[He holds back a sigh. It's not Czes's fault that he doesn't know the answer.]

An awful one, that's what. So don't bother thankin' me or anything, alright?

[Action]

[cursedtolive]

[He nods. Firo looks very sure of himself, even though Czes is pretty sure normal siblings get into arguments sometimes anyway.]

Okay, Firo. I got it.

[Action]

[justdumbluck]

[Firo knows that siblings scrap from time to time--the Gandors and Claire showed him that. He's using nice in a pretty broad sense, though he'll probably refrain from play-fighting with Czes at his age.]

Good.

[He smiles and reaches over to pat Czes's shoulder.]

So did anything else come in the mail?

[Action]

[cursedtolive]

No, just that. It was actually a picture, but I recognized it from that day. The circle...

[Action]

[justdumbluck]

[His eyes widen when he realizes which circle it must be.]

The one Maiza drew? To summon the demon?

[Action]

[cursedtolive]

Mhm.

I don't remember it exactly... but I remember the occasion so they must've used that.

[Action]

[justdumbluck]

I can't believe they know...

[He shakes his head and groans. he'd hate Mayfield just a bit less if it were less confusing.]

Well, I guess I can. I just don't get how.

[Action]

[cursedtolive]

[He shakes his head with a nervous look.]

They knew enough to take away our immortality once, so... they probably know a lot of things.

[Action]

[justdumbluck]

Yeah... I didn't even know it was possible to take away somethin' like that.

[Action]

[cursedtolive]

But they took stuff away from everyone, didn't they?

Jacuzzi -- he didn't have his tattoo when he got here.

[Action]

[justdumbluck]

Yeah, I guess they did.

Who's Jacuzzi?

[Firo only spoke with him briefly on the phone.]

[Action]

[cursedtolive]

Oh, he's one of the guys who came here from our place. I met him on the train on my way to Manhattan.

[Action]

[justdumbluck]

Oh yeah? You gotta introduce us sometime!

Losin' a whole tattoo... Must be weird.

[Action]

[cursedtolive]

It's so weird! He's got this real big one, y'know? I think it's a sword right down his face -- [He draws on his own face with his finger to demonstrate] -- and I guess most people recognize him by it. I almost didn't recognize him at first when I saw him here.

... Er, I haven't seen him in a long time, actually. He might've disappeared already, but I'm not so sure.

[Action]

[justdumbluck]

Yeah? That's crazy!

[Then his expression darkens somewhat.]

Oh. Well, maybe you can introduce me when we get back home.

[Not that Firo's so sure they'll make it home, but he needs to stay optimistic for Czes. He forces a smile and pats him on the shoulder.]

[Action]

[cursedtolive]

Maybe. He should be in Manhattan, still, unless he caught another train. But he was pretty hurt...

[Action]

[justdumbluck]

Hurt? Just what happened on that train ride?

[Did the guy fall off? Wander into the engine?]

[Action]

[cursedtolive]

[Oh now he turns absolutely pale and looks away not very subtly at all.]

Nothing!

[Action]

[justdumbluck]

[Firo leans over to get a better look at Czes's face. You're really worrying him, pal.]

Uh, Czes? I can tell it wasn't nothin' by the way you look right now. C'mon, tell me what's wrong.

[Action]

[cursedtolive]

[No no no. Leaning back.]

N-no! Nothing happened!

[He looks terrified.]

[Action]

[justdumbluck]

[Firo reaches out in an attempt to grab Czes's shoulders gently so he can't lean away too far. Firo's not dense enough to miss that something really bad probably happened.]

Look, you can tell me what happened. Come on, I'm gettin' worried here.

[Action]

[cursedtolive]

[He raises his arms over his head and ducks -- he thought for a second that Firo was going for his head and that terrifies him. Or even if Firo wasn't going to, if he's friends with That Guy, maybe he actually is just as terrifying and strong and--]

Stop it!

[Action]

[justdumbluck]

[Czes has shown plenty of signs of being uncomfortable with contact, but Firo's still startled by his reaction this time. He forgets that Czes doesn't know that he has no intention to harm, and he doesn't realize how suspicious Czes can be. Blinking, he backs away, hands up in surrender.]

Hey, I'm just worried. What's wrong? Was it somethin' I said?

[Action]

[cursedtolive]

It's not that! I'm-- I'm okay, really. I'm sorry. [Czes doesn't realize he's breathing hard, but he is. He keeps his hands near his head as he calms himself down, but he looks like he might start crying.]