Bricks in the Wall, Chapter 19: Feet First
Title: Feet First
Characters: Sylar, Peter
Rating: PG
Warnings: None
Words: 1400
Setting: The Wall, Bricks
Summary: Peter and Sylar are reading on the couch in Sylar's apartment, but reading isn't really what Peter wants.
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Isn't that so interesting? I can see that bothering Peter every time either of them reads a book: 'But there are words in the books so this can't be a dream, I know because I checked, how does this (weird guy's brain) thing work?'
So funny, too. I'm a reader, I can read for days if given the right book (or if given the vaguely interesting book or finding something vaguely interesting about an assigned book). It baffles me how someone can *not* be interested in reading or be a good reader. I know people like that, but it makes no sense to me. What kind of a reader do you think Nathan is?
Restless!Peter is cute. Annoying (to me and Sylar) but cute therein. Its just one of those Peter things we shake our head at. I think its his way of saying 'pay attention to me!'
Sylar would (mostly) like that Peter's comfortable enough to, well, get comfortable around him. I can see him wondering 'what's going on over there? Seriously, pick a position and get comfortable'
This makes me wonder if Peter and Nathan ever had some form of 'couch layout' like this, where Peter sitting a certain way or getting a certain reaction can make him comfortable (or not).
What expression is Sylar using to calm Peter? Ones he'd use to calm children...I guess I think of something in S4 where he'd still look like a pedophile.
I died laughing at Sylar sitting on Peter's feet to warm him up! Of course poor Peter would have a strong reaction to that.
I know you already know this, but I'm going to 'think aloud' here: its interesting to me about casual touch and how it effects both the boys. Peter's used to it, giving and taking, he likes it, yet he's the one - understandably - who's cutting him/them off from it. Sylar's used to getting semi-casual tough (from Virginia - she was all over him), not so much giving it, he likes it and he's the one trying - understandably - to get it. And its interesting where exactly Peter draws those lines because, to Sylar, those lines are pretty random and weird, but I know they make perfect sense to Peter. I get the sense that Peter's...afraid that giving Sylar anything will...kind of trigger his empathy (not the ability) and it will be a landslide he can't stop and he'll have to deal with Sylar as a human being and have to really deal with Nathan's death. I knew there was an epiphany of sorts in there!
Yeah, like you say "giving himself permission." We can talk all day about Sylar's control (he's a very uncontrolled person, similar to Peter, I imagine) but Peter, the uncontrolled, controlling himself on *that* of all things?
I think its so sweet that Peter just KO's at "touch". Of course screw the book.
Its cute how Sylar is gently touching Peter with his hands once he thinks Peter's going to sleep.
In a backwards way, Peter's rationale makes sense: its the guy's FEET for crying out loud, socks, smell and all. Not much is sexy or desirable (at this moment in time) about Sylar's feet, no real way for that to be confused for desire or need for Sylar himself.
I adored "oddest of teddy bears". That's candy-sweet.
I had much the same thoughts as you: my Sylar is still going "Uuhhhhhh....." about this. Foot fetish occurred to me, but Sylar thinks its out of character for Peter. Then again, I don't think he'd care much - he's needed and wanted and that's good enough for him in this instance!
Such an odd piece. I'll have to think on it because Peter's trying to speak to me about something.
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The funny thing is, that when they get out of the Wall setting, Peter won't remember much of anything about the book that he didn't know going into it, except maybe a little that he picked up from Sylar's memories of it. But in the context of the Wall setting, Peter thinks he's reading something, it looks detailed, and it passes inspection. I liked how we worked that out for MBU! (Obviously I use the same idea in my other Wall scribblings.)
What kind of a reader do you think Nathan is?
I imagine that in most cases, books bored him. He'd skim them, try to read the Cliff Notes version, maybe watch the movie for an hour and a half rather than investing hours upon hours to slog through text. Every now and then I figure some Horatio Alger, self-made-man tale would snag his attention and he'd read with fascination. Always and only stories of real people, like Carnegie or Rockefeller or Gates. Maybe Patton, Eisenhower or Roosevelt. He was probably a big fan of Alexander the Great (there's a lot of parallels there if you remove the brother thing).
Myself, I used to read voraciously and constantly. Once I had my son, my goof-off activity switched abruptly to computer games, one turn after another, slow empire-building games. Civilization II absorbed the time I could have spent on a library of books. Then I had my daughter. Every now and then I'd read something, like the Harry Potter or Jim Butcher series, but it was tough going. Then I found fanfiction and the computer games were never touched again. Not long after that, I started writing. For most of the last year, I've written more than I've read. I think I need to turn that around and start reading more widely, but I haven't done it yet. Every time I think about reading more, my brain gets nagged that I just need to finish this other writing project.
This makes me wonder if Peter and Nathan ever had some form of 'couch layout' like this, where Peter sitting a certain way or getting a certain reaction can make him comfortable (or not).
I really can't see them reading together very much - not for leisure. Nathan's so much older and he doesn't strike me as a reader. Now I could see Nathan trying to study for a class, while he was living at home and going to college (which I figured happened for a few years), and Peter (age 10 or so), curling up quietly on the opposite end of the furniture with his own book, trying to be like big brother and not detract.
What expression is Sylar using to calm Peter? Ones he'd use to calm children...I guess I think of something in S4 where he'd still look like a pedophile.
A little scared/concerned, very attentive. Some of the expressions he used with little Matty Parkman, when he wasn't leering at Matt over the kid's head. I think he could manage it, especially and mostly because here his intention and emotion is right in line with what he's trying to project. He doesn't want Peter to withdraw from him, and Sylar knows Peter will jerk away at the slightest wrong move. So he's trying to handle him like a nervous colt. Sylar's much more used to being able to brute force things, especially with people, but by now he's figured out that Peter requires a much, MUCH lighter hand.
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Different people have different boundaries and that's something I've been giving some thought to recently. The "TMI" reaction is intriguing to me. If I tell someone a story about my grandfather's struggles with growing banana trees, they'll be bored. If I tell them about his bladder infections and incontinence problems, they'll be more interested, maybe a little sad for him, or grossed out, but they will have some emotional engagement. If I tell them about my own urethral sling and birth-related incontinence issues, some people freak out with TMI! TMI! Yet were I talking about a stranger to them, they'd have sympathy and interest.
I was told recently by someone who doesn't like me that I had poor uptake on subtle social cues and didn't properly observe boundaries. So this boundary thing has been on my mind - where do they come from, are they justified, what purpose do they serve, how do people use them to exclude and include people?
On a less personal note, I agree that Peter's boundaries would truly seem random to Sylar. Peter's sense of personal space is virtually nil, but he still usually keeps Sylar at arm's length. And he will protect that boundary physically if necessary. In MBU I found it amusing that Peter didn't want Sylar opening a door for him/getting that close, yet later he gave Sylar a friendly push and was okay with that, and later still for the first application of the brace on his hand, allowed all sorts of touching up on his hand and wrist. Then he got his back up and told Sylar to fuck off and stay away from him, leading to the standoff with the katana - a demand for more personal space than he'd required to start with.
So the line keeps moving back and forth. I can understand and empathize with Sylar's confusion about the fluctuation.
Yeah, like you say "giving himself permission." We can talk all day about Sylar's control (he's a very uncontrolled person, similar to Peter, I imagine) but Peter, the uncontrolled, controlling himself on *that* of all things?
That's something Peter's have to block out with high energy all the damn time - the urge to get close. And maybe that's the source of the fluctuating boundaries. Peter has this magnetic pull that's sucking him closer to Sylar all the time because Sylar's the only one there. Yet Peter doesn't want to be close to him (Nathan, serial killer, stranger danger, asshole alert, murdered Peter in the past, etc.) Peter's really having to fight his own nature here.
I had much the same thoughts as you: my Sylar is still going "Uuhhhhhh....." about this. Foot fetish occurred to me, but Sylar thinks its out of character for Peter. Then again, I don't think he'd care much - he's needed and wanted and that's good enough for him in this instance!
I had several other thoughts, like about how they would act afterward, and Peter would try to ignore that anything at all happened that was weird. Despite how much Sylar really, *really* wants to rub it in, he decides to drop it and just see if he can get Peter to do that again. So a few days later maybe, they're sitting together, maybe talking, maybe reading, and Sylar takes off his shoes and puts his feet over near Peter, acting like this is totally normal. Peter frowns at that, because after a second or two, he knows what Sylar is suggesting ... and offering. Then after ignoring them for a little while (insert Sylar wiggling his toes, crossing at the ankles, and shifting his feet), Peter says, "Fine. Give them here." and Sylar puts them on Peter's lap, with Peter adding, "I don't have a foot fetish. So get that out of your head." Sylar being, "Of course not." and trying very, very hard to act totally cool with the very weird fact that his feet are now in Peter Petrelli's lap, and Peter is petting them like they're a cat.
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