ArchivedLogs:Some Kinda Way

Some Kinda Way
Dramatis Personae Jax, Autumn, DD
In Absentia	2015-07-27 "Oh no, you've gone and put ideas in his head."
Location <NYC> {Lighthaus} - Harbor Commons - Lower East Side
Bright and sunny-light, this house lives up to its name. With a plethora of enormous windows flooding the place with light and an open layout, the ground floor feels more spacious than it is. The small entryway has a closet space for shoes and coats, and doors at either side leading to the neighboring apartments. Past this it opens straight into the living room, a wide expanse of space bordered on one side by a curved set of stairs leading up (with colourful glass tiling on the risers between each stair) and next to these, the half-wall into the kitchen. Cool pale tile underfoot and many dark cabinets with a small walk-in pantry, plentiful custom granite countertops, black and speckled faintly with rainbowy flecks, lots of hanging space overhead for cookware, a large double-oven. There's a strip of rather detailed mosaic-work in the kitchen backsplash, colourful glass tiling depicting strange fantastical herbs and small faeries and firelizards darting among them. In back of the kitchen, a door opens up to a small sunroom, wide and two-stories high with a balcony overlook from the second floor; two of the windows here have cushioned windowseats, and there's a wealth of herbs growing in hanging pots and small window-boxes. The back wall of the living room is nearly entirely dominated by windows, huge and allowing a view of the river beyond with bench windowseats lining the sills. There are plentiful paintings on the wall, surreal and fantasy-inspired, mostly in shades of blacks greys with bright bursts of colour that are mirrored in the decor -- monochrome upholstery on the couch and armchair but colourful throw-pillows, black and white huge corduroy beanbags (and one large red doggie-bed,) soft throw rugs also in mostly black and white with splashes of rainbow woven in. The hand-built furniture -- tall chairs by the kitchen/living room counter, dining table and chairs in the kitchen, low coffeetable in the living room -- has been hand-painted as well, black with bursts of colourful abstract designs. Along the living room's other wall, doors branch off to a full bathroom -- in white and deep blue with one wall of the shower done in colourful intricate mosaic too, an underwater scene full of strange mythical water-creatures; tiny water-sprites have been interspersed at random points in the rest of the wall tiles, as well. There's a small studio space beside the bathroom, large windows as well and a gratuitous amount of shelving and cabinets along the walls; this room has very /little/ colour in it, just white walls and black furnishing. The windows in Lighthaus are all thrown open to the pleasant sunny day outside. It makes it possible to smell the fresh berry scent of baking tarts, warm and sweet, even from out in the courtyard. Inside the smell is heavier, richer. In the kitchen one small beagle paces anxiously, nosing every so often in the direction of the cabinets as though they will dispense tarts for him. The cabinets (nor the ovens, where the tarts are actually baking; nor the high counters where some already sit cooling) do not oblige. Neither does the closed door to the studio. From behind it, music is playing. The Golden Palominos, "The Ambitions Are". For anyone close enough to hear, the song (muted through the closed door in the house, but more audible outside with the also-open windows) has been on repeat for some while. It's not a long walk from the common house, and DD is prancing the entire way. He's in an ice blue Elsa t-shirt and loud orange shorts, his feet bare. "...and my gem power would be /flying!/" he declares, leaping as high as his scrawny legs will launch him. Autumn, a couple of steps behind, chuckles. "Couldn't you just shapeshift into something that could fly?" Coming to Lighthaus, she hesitates, then knocks. And sniffs at the air. DD's eyes go wide. "Whoa you're right!" The volume of his voice grows with his excitement. "I could grow wings, like Dusk! That smells so good!" He is now peering in through the open windows. There's a scuffle of paws behind the door, a snuffling, a thud. Another thud and another in time with a frenzied whappity-whap-whap. Only a little bit after this does Jax actually open the door, holding one enthusiastic beagle back from tumbling outside with his foot. He's dressed plainly, dark grey and orange cargo shorts and a Cooper Union tee, both heavily splattered with a wide array of speckled paint colours. There's a smile on his face as he gestures the others inside. "Hihihi. How y'all doing? Y'had lunch yet? I'm supposed to, soon." "Hi Mr. Jax, hi Obie!" DD scuffs his feet on the door mat before bounding inside. "We ate /cupcakes/ for breakfast!" He sounds slightly incredulous of his good fortune. "What are you cooking?" "Hi, I'm...not sure how I am. How are you?" Autumn bows and follows her brother in, crouching to unbuckle her sandals and smoothing down her aqua sun dress when she straightens. "Um, it was kind of a late breakfast..." she adds, blushing. Her dark brown eyes take in Jax's paint-splattered clothes. "Sorry, if this isn't a good time, we can come back later...?" "I -- prob'ly shouldn't mention how often cupcakes is breakfast in this house, it'd be settin' a bad example." Though really, Jax sounds cheerfully unabashed about this. "I'm /bakin'/ blackberry an' raspberry tarts,but I was thinking maybe pesto pasta salad for lunch. On account of it's already in my fridge." He closes the door behind the children, releasing Obie to eagerly bound up to -- up /on/to -- DD. The door to his studio is closed next. "Nah, s'a fine time. Got the afternoon all t'myself til my shift t'night so I'm good. What's goin' on?" "See, I told you it was okay!" DD beams triumphantly at his sister. He gives a delighted squeal when Obie rears up to greet him, though even this minor impact knocks him back half a step. He scratches behind the beagle's ears with both hands. "Autumn can we get a dog?" "I didn't say it wasn't /okay/ to eat cupcakes for breakfast, just...we can't make a habit of it." But Autumn smiles despite herself. "Wow, berry tart! I think the fanciest thing I've ever baked is frozen pizza." She trails after Jax, looking a little lost. "We can't get a dog, we have to figure out where we're even going to live. Which...is kind of what's going on?" Hesitating, she tugs at her dress again, though it's sits just fine. "I saw our mom last night, and...she wants us to go live with her. Which would be weird enough considering she up and left us two years ago without saying a word to us, but it's even weirder because she's with these...well..." She frowns and lowers her voice, "...I think they're a gang." "There's a whole delicious wide world'a breakfast options," Jax answers DD brightly. "/Just/ as good as cupcakes. I mean, you ever had strawberry-banana stuffed french toast for breakfast? You'll totally forget all about cupcakes. 'least until lunch." He scoots along towards the kitchen, retrieving bowls from a cabinet. There's a stretch of quiet while he obtains pasta salad and slices of grilled tofu from the fridge. "... gang? Like what kinda a -- I'm guessin' I don't need to start explaining all the ways goin' to go live with a gang might not be the best --?" His eye darts briefly to DD and Obie as he starts spooning pesto-coated pasta and mushrooms and tomatoes into the bowls. "Why'd she go in the first place? Did she explain? Or -- why she wants you back /now/?" DD has just sat himself on the floor, the better to play with Obie's ears (while making 'whoosh' sounds). "I had French toast with strawberries and bananas on /top,/" he says, thoughtful, "it wasn't as good as cupcakes. Is it better if the fruit is inside?" There's a touch of skepticism and a lot of curiosity in his tone. "The kind that does a lot of vaguely referenced 'business' and that no wants to cross. They sponsor festivals and lend money to small businesses and donate to senior centers. Like a shady Rotary Club." Autumn looks so much in awe of the kitchen that for a moment she's afraid to enter. But finally she does, trailing her fingers along the glossy countertop, staring at her reflection in its surface. "Mom's a mutant. She says she left to find our sister, and that's why she hasn't been around. Don't know if I believe anything she says." Her shoulders hunch in, making her look tiny and miserable. "I think they want me cuz of my um...power." Sitting on the floor is a perilous business; Obie takes this as invitation to climb right up into the little boy's lap, the better to cover his face in sloppy tongue-kisses. "Way better. You mush them up an' make cream to stuff it with an' then you put banana butter on top. How 'bout you come by here tomorrow for breakfast an' I'll show you?" Jax's teeth worry at his lip as Autumn talks, his brows pulling in together. After a while, finally, only: "... do you /want/ to go live with her?" DD seems too preoccupied by Dog in Lap to have paid any attention to people talking to him, but he bounces up and down in place at the invitation. "Yes please!" Then he adds, as solemnly as he really can while being licked in the face by Obie, "I'm gonna learn to make breakfast so Autumn doesn't have to cook all the time." "Oh no, you've gone and put ideas in his head." Autumn does not seem very distressed, for all that. Not about DD's culinary aspirations, at least. She doesn't answer Jax's question at once, and when she does it's a very dubious reply. "Not exactly. I'm really mad at her, but..." She looks over at DD, uncertain. "I feel like you're in a better position to judge what's gonna be a safe -- an' happy -- environment for the both of you than she is, if she been gone." Jax's frown has lingered. "Gone an' /left/ you with a man who --" There's an edge creeping into his voice, but he bites back the end of his sentence, shaking his head and moving to set the bowls on the table. "Y'all want any drinks? Lemonade or sweet tea or -- I got some peach soda." This is called a little louder than his previous quiet words, over towards DD. "An' do you know, I /teach/ cooking? I could help you learn too, if that's a thing you're interested in." His voice slips back into a quieter tone, after this. He leans against the edge of the kitchen counter, one arm folding across his chest to curl fingers tightly around the crook of the opposite. "Gettin' mixed up in folks what -- might be up to shady business an' only want you for your power, that's -- that could go real ugly. If she wants to start havin' a relationship with y'all again, have you considered ways she could do that -- safer? Like, you don't go /live/ with her, you just -- start out havin' dinner once a week or somethin'." Though after this he adds with a small sharp huff of breath: "An' I mean /actually/ havin' dinner like /she/ can come to /you/ somewhere safe, not you go off with her somewhere she chooses 'fore you get a good idea of how much to trust her again." "Ooh! Soda please I've never had peach soda!" DD is trying to get up now, but hasn't stopped petting Obie or made any real attempt to persuade the dog to climb out of his lap. "They teach /cooking/ in school?" He is still for a moment, absorbing this revelation, before his excitement returns full-force. "Yeah I wanna learn to cook!" "Can I have some lemonade, please?" A faint smile returns to Autumn's face, seeing her brother so happy. "No, I...hadn't really thought of that." She looks down at the counter, blushing faintly. "I knew it was stupid, going with them last night, but they kind of caught me by surprise. I was almost as eager to yell at her as to see her. Didn't even think to propose /my/ terms. With our parents it's always been kind of their way or the highway, you know?" "Sure do. I teach bakin', personally, but there's a whole separate class for cookin' all the -- non-bakey things." Jax retrieves a peach Izze from the fridge, setting it down by one of the bowls on the table and then returning to pour two tall glasses of lemonade. "I don't think I'd say /stupid/, exactly," he adds to Autumn with a small uncertain frown. "I mean, maybe weren't the most prudent but -- it's your mom. I think it was plenty understandable to want --" His cheeks puff out, words trailing off again. "... an' /I/ don't want to be tellin' you what you should or shouldn't do neither, y'know? I jus' -- want to help. Make sure that you're safe, whatever decisions you make. An' they should be /your/ decisions. Not your parents' or nobody else's." The promise of peach soda finally motivates DD to separate himself from Obie. "There's baking class /and/ cooking class?! I want to learn all of it!" He gives Autumn a sort of comically hopeful look and adds, "If I cook, then I get to decide what we eat, right?" "Yeah, he's gonna become a great cook and make dessert for breakfast, lunch, and dinner." Autumn rolls her eyes. To Jax, a bit more seriously, "I know you're not telling me what to do...and I knew you wouldn't. Which is kind of why I wanted to ask you? That and...you're a dad, so I thought you might like.../get/ parents, right? Better than me, anyway." She smooths DD's hair back (to no avail; the cowlick is strong with him). "I can't just write her off, but I'm also not going put us in her hands. Maybe I'll suggest something like you said, regular visits. I still want to go see the school, too." "Bakin' class, cookin' class, gardenin' class, class that teaches you the science behind why food cooks the way it does -- there's all kindsa food class." Jax moves to set the lemonade down on the table, too, dropping into a seat afterwards. "We can talk t'Matt about visitin'. He's out there a fair bit now so shouldn't be too hard t'get somethin' scheduled. Plus I'll jus' bribe him with desserts." His eye flicks towards the tarts cooling on the counter; a moment later he's bounced back /up/ to go retrieve another round of them from the ovens. He eyes them with a bit of longing before (with a force of effort!) making himself sit back down at the Real Food. "Lunch first." Almost like reminding /himself/. "Yeah, dessert is the best." If DD noticed that his sister does not fully /approve/ of dessert for every meal, he seems willing to look past there differences as he climbs into a seat, folding his skinny legs under himself to get at the peach soda. "I'm gonna take /all/ the food classes so Autumn never has to worry about feeding us again." Autumn scoots DD's chair in for him before sitting down herself. Her little brother's explanation for his interest culinary studies leaves her speechless, and she fills the gap with lemonade until she regains her voice. "You don't have to worry about that, just focus on your grand vision for Dessert All the Time, okay?" There's a hitch in her voice, but then she smiles at Jax's suggestion. "I was about to say I could bribe him with tea, but that makes it seem like I'm holding caffeine hostage which...I'm not!" Her cheeks turn red. "Thank you, though. For lunch. And for talking to me, I was freaking out. Still /kind of/ freaking out. But at least I feel like there's some way to come at this that isn't terrible." Jax's smile softens, his eye flicking briefly to DD. "Y'all are -- welcome here for eatin' any time, aright? I always cook kinda way too much anyhow." He offers Autumn a quick flash of smile. "An' there's always some kinda way to come at things. Sometimes jus' takes a bit of lookin'."