#(edit: hmmm this post broke whoops)

[justashadetalkative]

theovergrowth​:

“Pleasure meetin’ ya, only wish it were better, uh, better circumstances. For you, I mean, I, I can only assume just how bad ya must feel to come to, uh, y’know, this place for help.”

The sight of his van was not a welcoming one by design, meant to dissuade people from coming near with it’s sketchy appearance. It was dark, old, and scary on the outside while being a small, simple, and comfortable (if not a bit rustic, messy, and disorganized) home on the inside.

“Luckily, you happened upon a survival-recovery expert. I was sick in the wilderness all the time when I was a kid younger than you. It’s scary, but uh, a little less scary when ya got someone to help out.”

He watched with unsure worry as Linast gagged, knowing the feeling yet not really able to do anything besides grabbing a box of tissues from a cardboard box labeled “Emergency” and placing them within Linast’s reach.

“They make garlic pills too you can buy, for future reference. No taste, I just don’t got ‘em. But hey, the hard parts over, huh?”

“The soup tastes like… not garlic. I didn’t use garlic. But it’s chicken, carrots, some pepper, uh, onions… um, chicken broth? That’s about it. Gotta make sure it’s as plain as possible so it’s easier to eat.”

Once the bowl was gently placed next to the tissues, Titus crouched down to continue rummaging through the cabinet before his hands landed on another cardboard box. Pulling it out, the box labeled books contained exactly what you would assume (save for a few tourism pamphlets Titus had mindlessly grabbed at various gas stations on the road).

“What brings you all the way out here anyways,” he inquired, heaving the box up onto the counter. “Campin’? Or uh, hitchhikin’ maybe?”

Someone so young had no reason to be alone and so far out from the nearest town. Was this a runaway situation? Should he report that? No, he had been a teenage runaway too and he wasn’t a fucking snitch. At the very least though, he had to consider giving Linast a ride somewhere once he recovered.

Linast frowned in vague confusion. What had a human kid been doing in the wilderness like that? And why would he know what it was like without help? He knew that wasn’t how human children were supposed to work.

But Titus had obviously survived the experience, so. It was… probably fine? At least Titus knew what he was doing, if he was telling the truth.

Linast took the offered tissues with a soft thanks and blew his nose, grimacing at the sensation and trying desperately not to gag again. His hands were still shaky from the last time. (He longed for the days when he hadn’t even really understood what disgust was. It seemed deeply unfair to him that this body that had made him capable of experiencing it was, itself, also gross.)

“Okay. Carrots are good,” he rasped, gingerly folding the tissue to set aside and eyeing the soup. Lingering nausea warred with his deep desire to get rid of the taste of garlic. Eventually he compromised, cautiously sipping at the broth and ignoring anything more substantial.

And then Titus asked what he was doing. Linast hadn’t been stuck this way for long, but he was already learning to dread that seemingly inevitable question.

“…um.” How in the world was he supposed to answer, anyway? ‘My creator told me to go to his follower’s house to heal, but she’s an asshole, so as soon as they stopped paying attention I left?’ For one thing, that might get him dragged back. For another, it had too many ‘S’ sounds and he hadn’t rehearsed. It’d take forever to say. His throat hurt; it wasn’t worth it.

But his head was too fuzzy to come up with a better explanation. Linast shrugged uneasily, gaze fixed firmly on the soup. 

“I’m not… nnothing, really. I’m not here for anything. Was just — ff-following the road.” 

Which had been stupid, now that he was actually thinking about it — because what, exactly, had been his plan for dawn? He hadn’t had one. He didn’t have one now. Linast hunched his shoulders against a miserable shiver and tried not to think about it.