#laertes bothers ellery

[laertesthelocalstranger]

he y lae ca n u um. he lp me? i n ed hlep pe lase

Laertes appears by Ellery in an instant. He grabbed the first aid kit as well as some suspicious ramen, for either ends of the need help spectrum, just in case.

[little-watcher]

Some time after the kids have been put to sleep, Ellery hears Laertes’ voice calling from the kitchen.

“Hey, Ell, guess wha-” He cuts off suddenly, followed by the sound of something falling to the floor.

@laertesthelocalstranger

ellery jumps up. “jeez, lae, gave me a heart attack.” it snorts, walking to the kitchen. “sheesh, are you okay?”

[little-watcher]

hall oween!!!!! spoo ky mon th!!!!!

[nobodys-soldier]

ellery knocks on the door of elias’ flat. he shouldn’t be there. shouldn’t know where elias lives. but it shouldn’t know a lot of things. but it knows that people who hurt his brother don’t get off scot free. it knocks again.

“hello? anyone home?”

Elias doesn’t get visitors. Ever. He opens the door a few feet, holding the threshold and standing in the gap. He’s holding a machine gun in his unoccupied hand, and wearing socks with no shoes.

Elias is practically surprised to see them there. But not really.

“Hi again, kid.”

[little-watcher]

Laertes appears behind Ellery, leaning forward and covering their eyes.

“Guess who~”

@laertesthelocalstranger

ellery giggles, grinning brightly. “hmm… i wonder…. it couldn’t possibly be my favorite sibling, laertes….”

[laertesthelocalstranger]

ellery sits in a coffee shop near the magnus institute. it doesn’t know why it picked this one, but it seemed familiar. all the staff seem to recognize him too, which feels odd. it takes a bite of a grilled cheese sandwich that it bought, waiting for laertes to show up.

Laertes pops up into the chair across from them. He coughs and spits some glitter out of his mouth. They're a little covered in it, actually, like they just got doused. She blinks it out of her eyes before they focus on Ellery. Laertes smiles, wide and friendly. "Hi!"

[laertesthelocalstranger]

@little-watcher see spiders can be cool these ones have little masks

my house has always been a bit spidery but recently this thing has been happening where I'll be literally anywhere and a single spider will descend from the ceiling to dangle directly in front of my face. and I always tell them, "hey, mate, this isn't a good place for you to chill, this area gets quite a lot of foot traffic and everyone else in the house is fairly arachnophobic," but they just ignore me :/. so we hang out and look at each other for a minute until I hear someone else coming, and I know I can't really say "please step around this spider hanging from the ceiling, dw about it," so I'll pinch their strand of web from a few inches above them and deposit the spider somewhere out of the way. this has happened three times in the last week, this isn't even a bit.

[laertesthelocalstranger]

ellery bursts into the store in a panic, rushing through aisles and pushing people out of the way until they find laertes.

“fuck, baby, what do i do? how do i help?”

Laertes sits with their back to a shelf, where he appears to have fallen. A few items are scattered about where they must have gotten knocked over. She clutches her face, pressing into their eyes as hard as they can, but it doesn’t help. They’re shaking violently, but more than that, they’re vibrating, so fast they look almost like water being rippled.

[laertesthelocalstranger]

ellery walks through a door carrying a pot and some bags of vegetables. it shouts a “thank you” into the yellow door, which promptly closes and disappears. it sets the pot and supplies down on the kitchen counter.

“la e? whe re yo u ha nging aro und? its ell ery. not a clo wn, by th e way.”

There is a waist high pile of clothes, towels, and blankets in the living room. It rustles a little bit and goes still.

[laertesthelocalstranger]

Laertes stands in front of the door of Ellery’s flat. They had all agreed to meet there that afternoon.

@child-of-the-vast :D and @little-watcher

They open it with the spare key she'd acquired through unknown origins, stepping through into the familiar space and glancing around for their siblings.

He brought the rifle with him. She doesn't expect a fight. But she needs the comfort and the buzz that it brings.

[little-watcher]

ellery shellery rhymes with amphetamine

@laertesthelocalstranger

hi l aer my name do es not rhy me with amphetamine

[little-watcher]

Hey, infected, is it alright if I come over?

@laertesthelocalstranger

//ooc: fml

co me on ove r, duc k

[laertesthelocalstranger]

ellery has entered the circus. “laertes?” it calls out, masks blurring together. none of that matters here. nobody but laertes matters. “it’s me! i’m here! are you?”

For a second, no one reacts. They’re just one more yelling voice in the cacophony- though the fact that he has so much identity ticked inside him is grabbing attention.

And then somebody with floor length braids, a mess of scars, and a battered top hat flings their arms around it.

“Infected!”

[speyeralling-down-thy-majesty]

It nods, watching and listening, taking everything in.

ellery shows up with a grin, knitting needles in hands. “hi!!” it grins, practically bouncing on his feet.

Willard nearly pounces at Ellery the moment it opens the door, making Amelie laugh.

"Hi Ellery¡!"

[little-watcher]

Laertes appears in Ellery’s flat. They look…blank. Defeated. His braids are out. It’s distinctly wrong.

@laertesthelocalstranger

“l-lae?” it stammers, wiping already inky eyes. “you okay?”

[laertesthelocalstranger]

ellery knocks on the door, winded and hair curled up into spirals. “lae? hun, you in there?” it rasps, the knocks sounding frantic.

He pulls the door open, letting them in. Laertes hadn’t really wanted him to come over, hadn’t wanted them to see her like this- they’d seen her too broken too many times. But they know their brother, and they know there’s no stopping it when it has a sibling to look after.

“Hey, lit tle lion.”

The first thing Ellery notices are the strings. They’re covered in dangling threads, trailing behind him like a blanket over his shoulders. None tangle, in perfect ready position. They look like they’re just waiting for someone to pick them up, a free tool for any weaver who needs one.

The Web informs Ellery that he can use this puppet, if he likes.