hello-from-nrc-infirmary

[hello-from-nrc-infirmary]

*Shirley perks up, staring at Vern as he bolts upright. She frowns*

Vern..?

*he's quiet. Mumbling to himself about a train.*

........ so theyre back...

Vern... it's okay, you're like... at NRC, remember?

*Vern blinks at her with slight panic*

Shirley...? I-I... I um.. didn't...

Shh... get some rest, okay? You like... have to keep your strength up.

[hello-from-nrc-infirmary]

*Long stare, like an owl hunting, and an occasional crunch of Takis. Shirley reaches forward to take some chocolate chips when Coven is not looking*

Today is a Friday morning, I’m stressed, and I’ve decided to use every single ingredient in the diasomnia kitchenette to make various pastries.

I’ve already baked three loaves of bread.

[hello-from-nrc-infirmary]

A-are you kicking me out? Me and my poor, aching shoulder?

Fen... no. That's not a toy...

Drop it... DROP IT... DROP! IT!

...

Don't give me that look.

.....

Fen, no!! GET BACK HERE!!!

Nooo... no no no... NO!!! NOT THE-

*Crashing sounds, Fen seems quite happy with the giant hole he has dug and the cauldron he dropped inside of it*

...... great.....

[hello-from-nrc-infirmary]

..... in the stables?! But he'll howl if he doesn't sleep near me

Fen... no. That's not a toy...

Drop it... DROP IT... DROP! IT!

...

Don't give me that look.

.....

Fen, no!! GET BACK HERE!!!

Nooo... no no no... NO!!! NOT THE-

*Crashing sounds, Fen seems quite happy with the giant hole he has dug and the cauldron he dropped inside of it*

...... great.....

[hello-from-nrc-infirmary]

.... I didn't know he could dig through solid stone.... or a building's foundation...

Fen... no. That's not a toy...

Drop it... DROP IT... DROP! IT!

...

Don't give me that look.

.....

Fen, no!! GET BACK HERE!!!

Nooo... no no no... NO!!! NOT THE-

*Crashing sounds, Fen seems quite happy with the giant hole he has dug and the cauldron he dropped inside of it*

...... great.....

[hello-from-nrc-infirmary]

Fen... no. That's not a toy...

Drop it... DROP IT... DROP! IT!

...

Don't give me that look.

.....

Fen, no!! GET BACK HERE!!!

Nooo... no no no... NO!!! NOT THE-

*Crashing sounds, Fen seems quite happy with the giant hole he has dug and the cauldron he dropped inside of it*

...... great.....

[hello-from-nrc-infirmary]

Got some pastries~ and like... those little sandwiches... oh! I should like totally grab some of these!!!

(Shirley... Vern doesn't handle extra-hot-and-spicy chips well... okay, he struggles with chips unless they're baked)

I know!! Those are like... totally for me! This store is like... totally amazing!!

[hello-from-nrc-infirmary]

...........

*Vern is quiet as he processes. There's conflict and concern knitting his brow. His chest aches, though his words are soft and careful. Remorseful being an understatement*

..... I have not kept our hearth well....... I ummm... have been horribly remiss, regardless of my intentions... moreso if Victor is who you have umm.. heard from. What else has that icicle said that you umm... feel I should have?

.... I feel unworthy of your forgiveness..... and I umm... will not make excuses. I um.. feel my apologies are not enough. I.. regret not speaking with you and keeping such a horrid schedule to the point of neglect.

*he's quiet again. Searching for an answer, or anything to reassure Silver. Vern reaches for his pocket, only to remember Victor swapped his outfit. He sighs. His eyes sting, still dry from crying too much lately.*

You are not a burden, Silvester... not to me. I umm... regret that I have um... been too focused on umm... our future and keeping excess stress away from you... and um.... it seems I have lacked in speaking with you.

…Victor, you do know your ogling is painfully obvious, right?

For the sake of both of you, say something. There’s only so long I can watch Coven prompt you for reactions.

- @aurora-retainer-silver

*Victor chokes on his iced coffee, cheeks turning rosy*

O-ogling!? I'm respectfully staring!! I can't do much even if I... wait.

How about this: I'll fess up the day you give Vern a chalice!

[hello-from-nrc-infirmary]

You... don't want me to....

*Vern sits, a bit stunned for a few moments*

Silvester... sunshine on my heart... I want to stay. Have I... what have I done to make you umm.. feel like a burden....?

…Victor, you do know your ogling is painfully obvious, right?

For the sake of both of you, say something. There’s only so long I can watch Coven prompt you for reactions.

- @aurora-retainer-silver

*Victor chokes on his iced coffee, cheeks turning rosy*

O-ogling!? I'm respectfully staring!! I can't do much even if I... wait.

How about this: I'll fess up the day you give Vern a chalice!

[hello-from-nrc-infirmary]

but.....?

*Vern sets the tray aside, doing his best to keep the space open between them. His movements are careful as he thinks. Reaching, he hesitates, fingers hovering a hair away from Silver's hand*

..... if I umm... speak the answers, will it be welcome...?

…Victor, you do know your ogling is painfully obvious, right?

For the sake of both of you, say something. There’s only so long I can watch Coven prompt you for reactions.

- @aurora-retainer-silver

*Victor chokes on his iced coffee, cheeks turning rosy*

O-ogling!? I'm respectfully staring!! I can't do much even if I... wait.

How about this: I'll fess up the day you give Vern a chalice!

[hello-from-nrc-infirmary]

Confirmed... what exactly? How can I umm... confirm what I do not know?

*There's a crack of hurt in his voice*

I um... do not request soft whispers. If you wish to not speak with scorching flames... then there is ummm....... um...

*Vern's gaze drops to the bread he's holding between them, debating if he should withdraw*

…Victor, you do know your ogling is painfully obvious, right?

For the sake of both of you, say something. There’s only so long I can watch Coven prompt you for reactions.

- @aurora-retainer-silver

*Victor chokes on his iced coffee, cheeks turning rosy*

O-ogling!? I'm respectfully staring!! I can't do much even if I... wait.

How about this: I'll fess up the day you give Vern a chalice!

[hello-from-nrc-infirmary]

....

*Vern pauses at that and gently stirs the soup with the spoon. A circle of red columbines and nightshade slowly bloom around his hair*

Lately, the gales of autumn drown our words... and umm...the claws of blizzards keep the hearth....

*Vern sets the spoon down and pulls some bread apart to hold out to Silver*

Silvester..... my Aster... I fear my words are not welcome. If you um.. wish, speak with fire.

…Victor, you do know your ogling is painfully obvious, right?

For the sake of both of you, say something. There’s only so long I can watch Coven prompt you for reactions.

- @aurora-retainer-silver

*Victor chokes on his iced coffee, cheeks turning rosy*

O-ogling!? I'm respectfully staring!! I can't do much even if I... wait.

How about this: I'll fess up the day you give Vern a chalice!

[hello-from-nrc-infirmary]

*Vern is unusually aggressive with the spoonfeeding!!*

... it wasn't anything, I'm um.. sure. It's alright, I umm... understand if you ummm... prefer to let Victor sit next to you and speak but umm... only sit silently with um... me. I ummm... surely earned the treatment.

*SOUP*

..... it's okay, I um.. I'm not the best cook but umm... I think this soup is um... close to how my mother made it. At least it ummm... smelled right...

*SOUP! And a slight voice tremble*

I umm... took care of Samson for you and um... let him run around with Koa. The cats are umm... just fine, they were settled for a nap.

*Sooouup*

I gathered notes for your classes so umm... I'll set those out for when you feel rested enough... when you're um.. not scattering petals to Victor...

…Victor, you do know your ogling is painfully obvious, right?

For the sake of both of you, say something. There’s only so long I can watch Coven prompt you for reactions.

- @aurora-retainer-silver

*Victor chokes on his iced coffee, cheeks turning rosy*

O-ogling!? I'm respectfully staring!! I can't do much even if I... wait.

How about this: I'll fess up the day you give Vern a chalice!

[hello-from-nrc-infirmary]

I'd rather be left under the summer sun at noon than experience that from you

*Victor glances between Silver and Vern for a moment before grinning at Vern.*

Aw... let me help you with that, since you're being so helpful

........... I um... thought it would umm... be easier to not wear only one shoe around.

*Victor flicks a spell at Vern to swap his outfit to something out of a housewife as Vern steps over to sit next to Silver*

..... if you weren't a patient, Victor...

Then you'd be sending me crashing through a window?

*Vern decides to cast for vines to shove Victor back to his cot*

Silver... I umm... see you're feeling well enough to um.. speak with Victor but not..

*Vern is quiet for a moment, not finishing his statement, while taking the lid off of some soup. Taking the spoon, he gently shoves a spoonful of overly seasoned mushroom soup into Silver's mouth. It tastes strongly of rosemary and mushroom*

I umm... suppose I'm the one who um... shouldn't be speaking... but umm... indulge your little spouse for a moment? Is the soup to your liking? Tell me if it umm... doesn't taste right. I um... asked Deuce to summon a cauldron so I could umm... make it right.

*he might have heard Silver's question about the words*

…Victor, you do know your ogling is painfully obvious, right?

For the sake of both of you, say something. There’s only so long I can watch Coven prompt you for reactions.

- @aurora-retainer-silver

*Victor chokes on his iced coffee, cheeks turning rosy*

O-ogling!? I'm respectfully staring!! I can't do much even if I... wait.

How about this: I'll fess up the day you give Vern a chalice!

[hello-from-nrc-infirmary]

Or what? You'll smack me with your arm of bubble wrap?

Do you have an idea of what that something is or are you confused on it?

A why might not be important to you, but to others it could be.

.... do you want to give him up for not choosing you in those moments? It's selfish of him to not be considerate

*even Victor didn't notice the silent footsteps before Vern's familiar voice fills the space Silver's question left. He's carrying a tray with a covered bowl, spoon, and supplies for tea. There's a hint if bitterness in his words that contrast the slight pain in his eyes*

I um... see the two of you have umm... gotten close.

Uh... hey Sweetheart! Where are your shoes? I couldn't hear you without them. We should get you a bell and ribbon, hm?

…Victor, you do know your ogling is painfully obvious, right?

For the sake of both of you, say something. There’s only so long I can watch Coven prompt you for reactions.

- @aurora-retainer-silver

*Victor chokes on his iced coffee, cheeks turning rosy*

O-ogling!? I'm respectfully staring!! I can't do much even if I... wait.

How about this: I'll fess up the day you give Vern a chalice!

[hello-from-nrc-infirmary]

(Vern! The soup is bubbling!)

Oh... I got it. Check the bread?

(On it!)

*Vern hurries to carefully stir and reduce the heat a bit*

There... it umm... smells right...

(Timer says 5 minutes!)

[hello-from-nrc-infirmary]

Mhmm! I like... totally get it, too! Vern's always been like... super concerned over Silver! He keeps being like... totally worried about things that he like... doesn't need to be yet! Though, I like.. totally get the fussing. Usually best to like... let him fuss, but not like... let him spiral too far! He will totally exhaust himself with it. I just shoved Vern out of here so he like... can take a break while Silver sleeps

I like... totally can't let Silver down. I have to like... make sure Vern's okay for his sake and like... totally do my best to keep him bright as tulips!!

*Shirley almost chokes on her pie, but her eyes are bright with excitement*

So he like.. totally DID tell you about me!? Vern like... never tells me much about his like... time here! What all do you like... do together???

I could also like.. probably use a spell to fix it up for you and like... totally make it nice and functional! Just say the word and I'll like... have it done!

*A red-haired fae shoves a protesting Vern out of the infirmary. She flips some hair over her shoulder before returning to where Coven is with a beaming smile. Summer heat radiates from her as she sets a pastry box on the infirmary desk*

Hey~ do you like pastries?

@hello-from-nrc-infirmary

[Coven is currently being swarmed by plants and paperwork, so can’t pay much mind to Vern being taken from the infirmary- not like he would, anyway.]

[though their attention flits back up when Shirley approached, trying to fix his hair and face before sitting up fully.]

Pastries-? Oh, um- I just ate earlier, but I can put them somewhere safe for the patients. Thank you, Miss. you are..?