ArchivedLogs:Celebrating

Celebrating
Dramatis Personae Derek, Rasa
In Absentia	2015-12-23 No matter how bad it comes out, at leatht it't thparkly, right.
Location <XS> Conservatory
Tall panes of glass keep this large indoor garden warm year round. Tended to by the school's groundskeeper, the conservatory is lush with plant life, a carefully cultivated paradise within Xavier's walls. The room serves as a classroom as well; in the center of the garden a ring of seats forms a small circle, a favorite locale for some teachers to hold court. The rain echoes off of the glass of the dim conservatory this evening. The unseasonably warm weather has made it so the indoor temperature is quite comfortable. At first glance the room would appear empty but the sound of classic rock in the form of Norman Greenbaum's 'Spirit in the Sky' drifts from plant filled corner. Sitting among the leaves, dressed in a pair of jeans and a red t-shirt is Derek. He's scribbling away in a note book with an expression that he's not really happy with what's being produced on the pages. Rasa wanders in with a plate of food, in a somewhat somber mood, looking around the conservatory as ze walks. Ze looks a bit like a post-apocalyptic misfit, wearing layers of cotton jersey and canvas, with hefty belts holding a pair of axes to hir back. Hir feet and hands are as bare as hir head, hir skin a similar muddy gray shade as hir clothing, soft wavy-curly hair framing hir face. Hir hazel eyes narrow a little as the sound of music reaches hir ears, hir steps subconsciously taking hir closer. After a few steps, it becomes a conscious desire to see who is interested in this particular music, hir brows raised and wrinkling hir forehead. "Di-bu-jo?" ze asks quietly, hir fingers digging into the small lump of mashed potatoes next to hir veggie burger. Derek jolts slightly from being startled, not realizing that he had company. His eyes glance up at Rasa and he gives hir a confused looked. "Di-what?" He closes his notebook and looks awkwardly at Rasa for a bit. Not really sure what to say or what to do. He runs a hair through his messy auburn hair and looks around the room before his eyes settle back on hir. "Can I help you with thomething?" "Dibujo. Drawing. En Espanol." Hand free of potatoes, Rasa gestures to the paper he's applied a writing or drawing implement to. "Or are you writing?" Hir English is hesitant, hir expression giving away hir discomfort with the language. "I ... don't need... help. I mean, I'm here because I need help, but I did not come looking for student help. Thank you for asking though." Derek shakes his head. "No, not drawing and I don't theapk Ethpanol." He is hesitant on saying the word Espanol, as he's not even sure what language that is. "I only theapk Englith, though not the betht." He lets out an awkward chuckle at his own joke in regards to his lisp. "I'm trying to make a card for my thithter for Chrithmath but I'm not good at drawing or writing tho..." He shrugs a shoulder. "Anyway, I'm Derek." "Rasa." Ze gestures to hirself and settles down on a nearby retaining wall. "Cards are nice. Your sister is still into celebrating the holiday season? I ... am not sure how I ... am going to celebrate. I did have some latkes for hanukkah, but I did not celebrate all eight days, so I hardly thing that counts." Ze picks up a spoon and starts sculpting bits of mash into the bowl before devouring them quietly. "Kinda? We don't really have the money to do anything, it'th not ath if either of uth are religiouth jutht, I don't know. I jutht want to do thomething thince the'th all I got." Derek chews on his bottom lip a bit after speaking. "I don't know, it counts if you want it to count, ya know? Not like any big fat magical man ith going to do anything for anyone. But I'm hardly one to talk about holidayth. I don't normally do anything for them." "Oh. I wasn't meaning to bring up religion. I... well, I guess I don't really think of the holidays as religious myself. They are cultural expressions in as much as they are religious at this point. I mean ... well, I guess it is easier to see with Hanukkah, where people are Jewish by ancestry and race just as much as they are Jewish by religion." Ze pauses and bows hir head. "Though, I feel like I am... not a good person to speak on the subject as I am neither religious nor culturally... predisposed to Christmas or Hanukkah. Anyway, cards are good. Showing your sister you care is good." "We never thelebrated much growing up. Mom uthed to try to do thomething for uth but after thee, when it wath jutht the Old Man it..." Derek shakes his head. "Never mind, but yeah, that'th pretty much what it is, jutht trying to do thomething nice. Ethpecially after everything that'th happened rethently. Gotta thay I'm glad it'th all over." His eyes look Rasa up and down. "Though by the look of thingth, you look like you're ready to go out zombie hunting." "Just... the old man?" Rasa registers a quietly complaint in hir tone. Ze doesn't harp on it, listening instead and nodding slow. "Ah. Yeah. Over." Ze considers, looking over hir shoulder toward the windows that provide a fragile barrier between the students and the outside world. "Um. Well. There are still undead out there. Can't really go anywhere without weapons yet. Not... sure when I'll stop carrying them." Ze unhooks one and draws it across hir lap, cleaning the edge of the blade with hir thumb. "My... father." Derek says with some hesitation. "Anyway, I only went out there once, fought thome and that'th kinda why I'm trying to make thome thort of effort thith year thince thee'th thtill kind of mad that I went out zombie hunting with a few otherth." He rubs the back of his neck, his eyes going to the window, staring out at nothing. "Jutht glad that thingth are finally tharting to go back to normal, whatever normal ith anyway." "Normal is new and different and harsher. I don't blame your sister for being mad at you for fighting without her, but at the same time..." Rasa tightens hir grip on hir axe, scowling deeply, hir skin tone shifting to a dark bark color. "I don't like that we have to kill anything dead." Ze falls silent afterward, hir gaze unfocused, shoulders tense. "It wathn't tho much the fighting without her, it wath the coming back all beat up." Derek smiles nervously for a moment looking down at his notebook. "I don't think I really thought about we we did, I wath thick, and angry, all the time, tho going out and fighting, doing thomething about it all, I needed it." He visibly winces after he says that. "I never thought that zombieth would be real." "Yeah... I remember what that felt like." Rasa exhales and pulls hirself back into the conversation, turning hir head to focus on Derek. "Yeah, you probably have a lot of worry to dispel, if you showed up hurt. Family cares about a person." Ze gives a little smile. "Have you had any of the art or shop classes yet? You could maybe be taught how to make her something nice, too, to go with your card." Derek shrugs, looks away from Rasa. "No, I'm not the creative type. Cooking ith pretty much the only thing I'm okay at. And it'th two dayth away tho I don't think there'th anyone who could teach that in two days." He looks back at hir and smiles. "Daithy and I have been through a lot together, thee'th all the family I have, but, I dunno, the best part about the holidayth, no thchool for a few dayth and no more townthfolk about. That'th all the Chrithmath I need." "Apologies if you ... I don't mean to keep encouraging you toward creativity. They don't really teach creativity in shop classes. I just -- never mind. Yeah... things being calm... and having food to eat - I think that sounds pretty good, too." Rasa nods slowly and gives a little smile. Ze falls silent again. "I may just be having a bad day." Derek shakes his head and waves a hand at Rasa. "No, no. You're not doing anything wrong, it'th me. I... " He stop speaking and chews on his bottom lip, trying to figure out how to say what he wants. "I, I'm not good with people? I don't take offenthe to anything you thay. Though thop might not be a bad thing to look into, I fit the therotype for a thop kid. Jutht don't let me being... me make you think you're having a bad day unleth thome other bad shit happened earlier." "Bad shit has been happening. It's not you. I guess... I feel like I haven't really been communicating well during all of this." Rasa digs hir spoon into hir potatoes, leaving hir axe resting on hir lap for the time being. Ze eats quietly as ze considers. "A wood box could be cool. Or a metal one. Something nice to keep cards in, you know?" Ze shrugs and smiles. "I think... we're getting stuff across to each other now, so that's good." "I've been kind of avoiding... everything. It was awful when all thothe extra people were here. I wath worthe with being thick. I mean before coming here there were timeth when we didn't have a whole lot to eat tho you'd think I'd be uthe to it but getting zombie plauged didn't help." Derek looks back down at his notebook and runs a hand over the cover. "It might have to wait till her birthday. I know there'th that whole bullshit thing with Chrithtmath miracleth but no way am I learning how to do thomething like that in a day.: "Ha. Yeah. That's cool." Rasa gets to hir feet, sliding hir axe back into the holster on hir back. "I am sure you'll learn it though. Or, well, there are always elves." Ze gives another smile. "I should probably get going. Good luck with your card. Try some glitter. I hear it makes cards much, much more festive." "Glitter, that'th thomething I think I can manage. No matter how bad it comes out, at leatht it't thparkly, right." Derek stretches and follows suit, getting to his feet. "I'm gonna head to the art room and thee what I can find there. Thank'th, it was nice meeting you. Have a good holiday whatever you do for it. Even if it'th nothing." "Thank you! You too." Rasa gives a little wave and then wanders off to find a place to eat.