A Very Special Day(s) In The Life

[aboutpower]

Who: Buffy, people I have plots with (Anders, Hoffman, Dean, Merlin, ETC) and YOU!
Where: All over Christmastown!
When: All days of the Breach.
Warnings: No idea, probably not. There might be swearing.

Just putting this up for now, will add threads with specific things once I confirm with those who I need to confirm with. Won't be able to tag till late

Comments

Re: Day two - Merlin!

[takeyouapart]

[So this was Merlin's rationale for actually going to a store (two towns over, dressed like an incognito film star) instead of using the Internet for his illicit harvesting: his mum never goes into his room to clean it, that's his responsibility, but she's forever going in there to use his laptop because her computer was obsolete in 1995. He isn't enormously good at covering his tracks and it hasn't exactly sunk in with her that his privacy (which she broadly respects) extends to his browsing history.

(Nor has he realised that Hunith actually worked it all out years ago and is now just patiently waiting for him to come out of the closet on his own time.)

He carefully nudges the door open with the combined efforts of one shoulder and the toe of his shoe, hands full of mugs.]

Hey. You still take sugar, ri-

[He immediately identifies the look on her face; moments later, he detects a not-quite-rightness in his peripheral vision and his gaze flickers down to the catalogue of shame that has obviously been disturbed and then not-quite-replaced. He spends long enough staring at it that it's obvious he can't be looking at anything else.

By some immense measure of self-control, he manages not to drop either mug. That she's even still there is a - good sign? Maybe? - but she looks absolutely horrified and what do people like her even think of people like him? And then he hates himself a little more, because there's no pigeonhole full of people Buffy is 'like' and he loves her like a sister, he didn't want her to know this about him, not while he was still working it all out himself--]

I'm - I'm sorry.

[It's kind of a stupid thing to say but it comes closest to covering all his feelings right now.]

OHGOD MERLIN. <3

[aboutpower]

[Buffy kind of wants to melt into the floor right about now. She has absolutely no idea what to do. This is quite possibly the most awkward situation she's been in. She really had no idea about Merlin, despite many potential hints over the years, and she feels terrible to have found out this way. That is the source of her shock and horror.

Her guilt just goes to immeasurable levels when he apologizes. He said he was sorry. Of all the ridiculous things..] No! No, I was just- My earring fell and-

[Buffy takes a deep breath and lets it out, trying to get rid of the weird feeling she has, so she can try to process everything here. The last thing she wants is Merlin to feel ashamed. Even though, okay, porn, gross. But the reasoning behind it..] No. [She is far more collected now, the negative and uneasy emotions that were previously on her face now melt to earnest empathy and a tiny hint of a smile.] Hey. No. Don't.

[Buffy moves towards him cautiously, as if trying to not startle him, and reaches out to take the mugs he's holding, to try to release him of their burden. Kinda symbolic, really.] There is nothing wrong with that. [She stresses.] I should be sorry, I really shouldn't have found out.. Like.. [A little more awkward creeps in. Loss for words.]

[takeyouapart]

[He lets her take the mugs; he can't really hold on to them, his hands are numb. He had made plans, to tell her, sort of. He had never attempted to gauge her opinions on gay people (unsurprisingly it's a subject he tries to avoid) but he always knew it would be easy, the next time some celebrity or politician fell out of the closet, to ask how she felt about it...]

It doesn't - it was an accident. I...

[His entire face is flushed dark with shame, and he's tempted to just turn around and go even though it's his room in his house and that makes no sense.]

I was going to tell you.

[He feels exhausted, suddenly. The last few years of lying and repressing and dating girls who liked him because he felt nonthreatening - that all seems like it was such a gigantic waste of energy now.]

[aboutpower]

[Buffy places the mugs down on the nearest surface and turns back to him. She's nervous about all of this, and she's kind of wringing her hands together. But it's moreso just the circumstances, not really the subject matter.]

I'm really, just- I had no idea. I know that must be hard to.. Well, no, I don't know. I have no idea what it's like to feel like you have to hide something like that.

[Words tend to fail her in times like these, so Buffy reaches out to take his hand. If he lets her have it, she'll give it a gentle squeeze.] You can tell me anything. This doesn't change a thing. Okay?