[Silence is golden, or the inevitable result when a fifteen year-old social recluse (by design, not choice) realises he might have a whole network of people listening to him
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[Louis is silent for a long time. He had hoped, perhaps, that this was an opportunity for he and the boy to do some of ye olde father-son bonding, but...
He misses his sister. And Louis feels bad. For various reasons, probably the greatest of which is the simple fact that he, an Infernal Lord, feels badly in the first place. It's a Penrose staircase of emotion and he does not like it. Oh, he misses the days of fire, brimstone, horns and little pointed goatees.]
I...
[How does I dad. He should say something bracing, something reassuring. Eliot is just a child, of course it makes sense that he would miss home more than he enjoys being around his father. They've only recently met, after all. One can't foist fifteen missed years upon the lad.]
- Eliot, how would you like to... go for a walk?
[He sounds like a dweeb. How odd. Lucifer, the Great Deceiver, coming off as a common plebeian. Perish the thought.]
[Being a dweeb is a genetic trait; that explains why your son exhibits so much of that, Louis.
That said, the very sound of your voice makes him perk up. Missing Fiona is one thing, but there is an instant boost when the absentee father appears and sounds like he wants to do something with him. Eliot only daydreamed about this kind of thing all the time when he was the only male figure in the house.]
Louis! I-- erm.
[Note the lack of similar conundrums. Eliot has been keeping to himself and, per their last conversation, laying low. This has included not reaching out to his father, because dad was busy being an Infernal Lord.
[He sounds happy about this. Genuinely, un-Infernally happy. Ugh, what is life. And... Eliot, must you persist in calling him by his name? Would it kill you to try 'Dad'?]
I... shall we meet at the Temple, perhaps, and go from there?
[Shoe on the other foot (a highly uncomfortable sensation), have you tried calling him 'son' lately?]
Okay! I'll be there soon.
[That is the sound of Eliot going through his pod, scooping up the contents of his pack to ensure he is adequately equipped for whatever this 'walk' will entail.
Hey. A drive with Uncle Henry took him halfway around the world. He's a smart boy and knows to be prepared.
There is a pause as Eliot pulls on his shoes, then a scuffle as he tries to get out the door sans capybara.]
No. Cee! Stay, Cee! Stay here and watch the pod, okay?
[comment log; return of the father-son bonding]infernaldorkJanuary 29 2011, 07:17:17 UTC
[Eliot is indeed there before him - in part due to Louis's pace and in part because old habits die hard. Fiona did not respond to his jibes, but she could be around and he needed to prove that he could beat her there.
Which he, obviously, does.
And so Eliot is waiting there, wandering a few steps back and forth as he considers where exactly 'at the Temple' means to Louis. His pack is up on his shoulders and he is wearing a recently cleaned set of the Cee-made clothing that he arrived in. Suave and debonair are two words that cannot be made to stick to Eliot, even with glue and staples.]
[comment log; return of the father-son bonding]agreatdeceiverJanuary 29 2011, 07:34:35 UTC
[And saunter he does, right up to his son, who is conveniently looking the other direction.
Should he scare him?
Hm. Louis considers it. He genuinely does. Isn't that what families do to each other, anyways? It's not like he'd be giving him a true Infernal greeting - no knife to the back, no poisoned blade, no thinly veiled insult. No Lev. That in itself is almost worthy of revoking his Infernal title and re-bestowing one of Sainthood.
But, fatherly instinct wins out in the end, and Louis clears his throat meaningfully.]
[comment log; return of the father-son bonding]infernaldorkJanuary 29 2011, 07:48:51 UTC
[Eliot has a heart. He knows this because it jumps up into his throat at the sound from behind him. Killer instincts are the territory of Fiona, so he is not the one turning with a thread snapped tight between his hands.
Though that might be the pack off his shoulder and a hand reaching for Lady Dawn. She has given him no indication that her voice is ready to move mountains, but that small comfort of what he's done with her in the past makes for the reflex.
Well, that and he has a flashlight in the pack. He could... blind you with it!]
Hi.
[Dad? Louis? Was there some other way to greet him? Part of Eliot wants to be okay with this being his father, the other part of him constantly thinks about the revelations about his family, the dangers they all pose to one another. And what he trusts about Louis also warns him to be careful - in particular around another Infernal.]
[comment log; return of the father-son bonding]agreatdeceiverJanuary 29 2011, 16:42:56 UTC
[Louis actually eyes this sudden flurry of movement with approval. Eliot may not have supremely amazing reflexes, or his sister's proclivity towards 'talk later, violence now', but an instinct of self-defense never harmed anyone. Except those who found themselves being defended against, he supposed.]
Lies and salutations.
[Louis manages to look vaguely apologetic for the traditional Infernal greeting, but he's not, not really. It's more of a test than anything else.]
[comment log; return of the father-son bonding]infernaldorkJanuary 29 2011, 16:48:59 UTC
['Lies and salutations.' That should be insulting, when the words are dissected to their base meaning and then woven back together. Or at least perplexing, because he has never heard Louis address him that way.
So then why did he smile and nod to it?
Because it sounded natural and fathoms more sincere than the awkward 'good morning' translation that followed it. Eliot commits it to memory, though he has a feeling it will not be that difficult to do.
[comment log; return of the father-son bonding]agreatdeceiverJanuary 29 2011, 16:51:53 UTC
[Oh no, he's caught! His smile is slightly guilty. Slightly.]
In the oldest, most traditional sense, yes. The countersign is 'may you destroy everything you touch'.
[BONDING. THIS IS TOTALLY BONDING THAT THEY'RE DOING RIGHT NOW. Louis would skip. If... he did that sort of thing. Maybe he'll just suggest they go find the closest thing around here to pizza.]
[comment log; return of the father-son bonding]agreatdeceiverJanuary 29 2011, 17:02:02 UTC
['Ooooh, Mufasa', 'DO IT AGAIN' about sums up the slight shiver he represses at Eliot's words. Though the boy might not realize it, there's power to be had in them, the oldest sort. No magic to speak of, but millennia of tradition and subtle double-meanings.
He even gets all the proper inflections.
Audrey would, no doubt, flay the skin from his body and roast him alive. Not novel, for a denizen of Hell, but painful nonetheless.]
You could of course say it to an Immortal, but they wouldn't like it very much. And humans...
[He shakes his head.]
There are human families, magical in some way, that can respect our traditions, but they are few and far between.
[comment log; return of the father-son bonding]infernaldorkJanuary 29 2011, 17:16:55 UTC
[Note made: Bad around mother. Only say it around Fiona to make her jealous that Louis paid more attention to him. Do not use around non-Infernals.
Eliot is excited that his father used an Infernal greeting on him. Fifteen years without him, but that makes a leap in mending the father-son abandonment issues.
Whoa. Back up.]
There are magical human families? More than Immortals and Infernals?
[Eliot remembers reading something about it in Mythica Improbiba, but given Audrey's selective curriculum... There are so many gaps in his knowledge that reading the book as the contraband it was could not fill in the blanks. It really didn't help that any other books to back the statements up had been too heavily censored to understand - if allowed in the house at all.]
[comment log; return of the father-son bonding]agreatdeceiverJanuary 29 2011, 17:30:18 UTC
[And if Audrey were any less terrifying, Louis would be Having Words With Her about the utter ignorance in which she kept his son.
Well, and Fiona as well. But mostly Eliot.]
Hundreds of them, last I checked, though they die out as the bloodlines weaken. The Covingtons, the Stephensons... The Pritchards. There's an entire city of Lees that are of one magical persuasion or another. They don't advertise themselves, for... obvious reasons. The Witchhunts are still fresh in everyone's memories.
[comment log; return of the father-son bonding]infernaldorkJanuary 30 2011, 04:35:48 UTC
[Eliot has the feeling he should write this down. Habit takes that feeling and pushes it into the thought that he should then write a paper about it and submit it to Audrey. Then maybe hope for an A-, otherwise it's time to re-write it and--
He misses his sister. And Louis feels bad. For various reasons, probably the greatest of which is the simple fact that he, an Infernal Lord, feels badly in the first place. It's a Penrose staircase of emotion and he does not like it. Oh, he misses the days of fire, brimstone, horns and little pointed goatees.]
I...
[How does I dad. He should say something bracing, something reassuring. Eliot is just a child, of course it makes sense that he would miss home more than he enjoys being around his father. They've only recently met, after all. One can't foist fifteen missed years upon the lad.]
- Eliot, how would you like to... go for a walk?
[He sounds like a dweeb. How odd. Lucifer, the Great Deceiver, coming off as a common plebeian. Perish the thought.]
Reply
That said, the very sound of your voice makes him perk up. Missing Fiona is one thing, but there is an instant boost when the absentee father appears and sounds like he wants to do something with him. Eliot only daydreamed about this kind of thing all the time when he was the only male figure in the house.]
Louis! I-- erm.
[Note the lack of similar conundrums. Eliot has been keeping to himself and, per their last conversation, laying low. This has included not reaching out to his father, because dad was busy being an Infernal Lord.
Or something.
HOW DOES HE SON??]
Yeah. Let's do that!
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[He sounds happy about this. Genuinely, un-Infernally happy. Ugh, what is life. And... Eliot, must you persist in calling him by his name? Would it kill you to try 'Dad'?]
I... shall we meet at the Temple, perhaps, and go from there?
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Okay! I'll be there soon.
[That is the sound of Eliot going through his pod, scooping up the contents of his pack to ensure he is adequately equipped for whatever this 'walk' will entail.
Hey. A drive with Uncle Henry took him halfway around the world. He's a smart boy and knows to be prepared.
There is a pause as Eliot pulls on his shoes, then a scuffle as he tries to get out the door sans capybara.]
No. Cee! Stay, Cee! Stay here and watch the pod, okay?
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I'll see you there.
[Though Eliot will no doubt be there before him, owing to the fact that Louis is practically designed to saunter at a manful pace.
And no, ladies, he is not on a horse.]
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Which he, obviously, does.
And so Eliot is waiting there, wandering a few steps back and forth as he considers where exactly 'at the Temple' means to Louis. His pack is up on his shoulders and he is wearing a recently cleaned set of the Cee-made clothing that he arrived in. Suave and debonair are two words that cannot be made to stick to Eliot, even with glue and staples.]
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Should he scare him?
Hm. Louis considers it. He genuinely does. Isn't that what families do to each other, anyways? It's not like he'd be giving him a true Infernal greeting - no knife to the back, no poisoned blade, no thinly veiled insult. No Lev. That in itself is almost worthy of revoking his Infernal title and re-bestowing one of Sainthood.
But, fatherly instinct wins out in the end, and Louis clears his throat meaningfully.]
Reply
Though that might be the pack off his shoulder and a hand reaching for Lady Dawn. She has given him no indication that her voice is ready to move mountains, but that small comfort of what he's done with her in the past makes for the reflex.
Well, that and he has a flashlight in the pack. He could... blind you with it!]
Hi.
[Dad? Louis? Was there some other way to greet him? Part of Eliot wants to be okay with this being his father, the other part of him constantly thinks about the revelations about his family, the dangers they all pose to one another. And what he trusts about Louis also warns him to be careful - in particular around another Infernal.]
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Lies and salutations.
[Louis manages to look vaguely apologetic for the traditional Infernal greeting, but he's not, not really. It's more of a test than anything else.]
Ah, that is to say... good morning.
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So then why did he smile and nod to it?
Because it sounded natural and fathoms more sincere than the awkward 'good morning' translation that followed it. Eliot commits it to memory, though he has a feeling it will not be that difficult to do.
'Lies and salutations.' Neat.]
Is than an Infernal greeting?
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In the oldest, most traditional sense, yes. The countersign is 'may you destroy everything you touch'.
[BONDING. THIS IS TOTALLY BONDING THAT THEY'RE DOING RIGHT NOW. Louis would skip. If... he did that sort of thing. Maybe he'll just suggest they go find the closest thing around here to pizza.]
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May you destroy everything you touch.
[An Infernal Lord of terrifying repute he is not, but he is sincere about it. Though he wonders how sincere an Infernal is allowed to be.
BUT LOOK, DADDY. HE IS WALKING IN YOUR SHOES. Audrey would sever a lot more than she did last time if she knew this.
And then his curiosity gets the better of him.]
Is it only said to Infernals?
[Eliot, sounding hopeful about that. Proof of the skewed values in this family.]
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He even gets all the proper inflections.
Audrey would, no doubt, flay the skin from his body and roast him alive. Not novel, for a denizen of Hell, but painful nonetheless.]
You could of course say it to an Immortal, but they wouldn't like it very much. And humans...
[He shakes his head.]
There are human families, magical in some way, that can respect our traditions, but they are few and far between.
Reply
Eliot is excited that his father used an Infernal greeting on him. Fifteen years without him, but that makes a leap in mending the father-son abandonment issues.
Whoa. Back up.]
There are magical human families? More than Immortals and Infernals?
[Eliot remembers reading something about it in Mythica Improbiba, but given Audrey's selective curriculum... There are so many gaps in his knowledge that reading the book as the contraband it was could not fill in the blanks. It really didn't help that any other books to back the statements up had been too heavily censored to understand - if allowed in the house at all.]
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Well, and Fiona as well. But mostly Eliot.]
Hundreds of them, last I checked, though they die out as the bloodlines weaken. The Covingtons, the Stephensons... The Pritchards. There's an entire city of Lees that are of one magical persuasion or another. They don't advertise themselves, for... obvious reasons. The Witchhunts are still fresh in everyone's memories.
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Wait.]
Witchhunts?
[This sounds suspiciously like Rule 55 material.]
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