Room 505, Tuesday Afternoon

[thismaskiwear]

With so few classes to take up much of her week, and no work until tomorrow, Katchoo had turned to her favorite pastime. You know, the one that wasn't pining after Francine. Her easel was set up by the bed, the windows wide open to sort of do something about the paint fumes and cigarette smoke (Clocky was totally equipped to chase off the fire marshal or something, really), and the stereo was cranking one of her very well-worn Griffin Silver CDs.

You could say she had some residual frustrations to work out and was doing that through painting.

. . . and then you could look at the stack of canvases that was threatening to eat her closet, and strike the word 'residual.'

[OOC: For that guy with the ears, and the roomie if she wants, but open too. This post, which was supposed to go up hours ago, is yet another victim of my Swiss-cheese brain today. Sigh.]

Comments

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

Knocking on the door, Merlin shifted his weight from one foot to the other nervously. "Hello?"

[thismaskiwear.livejournal.com]

Katchoo didn't hear the knock at first because she was stuck in traffic too engrossed in the song, but when Clocky ran over her foot and wheeled emphatically toward the door she set the brush down and followed it.

"What --" She yanked the door open mid-word. "Merlin? What's goin' on?"

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"I was looking for Francine," He admitted. Though this might actually work better... "She's not around?"

[thismaskiwear.livejournal.com]

"Not sure where she is right now," Katchoo replied. "Haven't seen her in . . . a couple hours?" Her sense of time got skewed when she was painting.

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"Oh. Good." A beat. "Not that you haven't seen her, but that--you've seen her."

Another beat.

"Before."

Merlin was one smooth wizard.

[thismaskiwear.livejournal.com]

Totally smooth. Gelato only wished it was -- that metaphor was going to go badly.

"We've talked since Saturday, if that's what you're wondering, yeah." Katchoo half-grunted something like a laugh. "Yesterday, that is."

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

Very badly all things considered.

"Good." He cleared his throat. "Are you alright?"

[thismaskiwear.livejournal.com]

"I'm okay," Katchoo replied carefully. "Think we maybe cleared the air a little there. That was . . . fun."

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"Good." You said that already, Merlin. "This is quite possibly the most awkward conversation I've ever had."

Yes, this was including when his mum explained the birds and the bees. And made a special point to mention boys who fancied other boys.

[thismaskiwear.livejournal.com]

"Tell me about it." Because she was having a conversation with her best friend's boyfriend when she was in love with her best friend and he knew about it and the kissing and . . . yeah. "The part that gets me is how you're not mad."

Sure, Chewie, make it worse.

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

Merlin frowned. "I--it's complicated?"

[thismaskiwear.livejournal.com]

The laugh was a little more laugh-like this time. "Complicated wishes it was this, I think." Katchoo dropped onto the edge of her bed and rested her hands on her knees. "I'm not gonna kill you if you are mad, y'know. Not like I'd blame you."

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"If I was mad at her or you about this, I think I'd be a very big hypocrite."

[thismaskiwear.livejournal.com]

". . . point," Katchoo conceded. "Dammit, Ears -- you're a hell of a decent guy, you know that? I didn't think those existed Like --"

Don't say it, Katchoo.

"The frikkin' Fountain of Youth or something."

Okay, good. You didn't say it.

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

Series 3 of Merlin. Just you wait.

"There are good and bad everywhere," Merlin replied with a shrug. "You just have to look for it sometimes."

[thismaskiwear.livejournal.com]

"And sometimes you have to squint like hell to see it. At an angle that'll give you a neck cramp," Katchoo added wryly. "She knows now. How I feel. And she didn't run away. That's a good part."

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"Very good! And hopefully the... running away will stop."

[thismaskiwear.livejournal.com]

"I," Katchoo told him distinctly, "would not frikkin' complain at all if it did."

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"I think she---needs time to get used to feeling this," Merlin said slowly. "Her mother is terrifying beyond all comprehension and, considering her reaction to me, I can't see her thinking well of Francine not fancying boys."

[thismaskiwear.livejournal.com]

"Marie's never liked me either, if that makes you feel better," Katchoo offered. "And it's not that she doesn't --"

The corners of her mouth almost twitched at the term. "Fancy boys. All of 'em I've heard her talk about since we were in seventh grade, and for the record you're about the only one of 'em I've ever approved of." Like her approval was necessary or something. ". . . and I know her, it's not overcompensating. I'm just the exception."

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"Well." Merlin nodded slowly. "That--makes sense."

[thismaskiwear.livejournal.com]

"Thing about Francine is . . . she's so uncertain of herself a lot of the time," Katchoo said, voice going gruff (well, more so) with affection. "Some things are more obvious to the rest of us than they are to her. What happened last week, that's about three times now. And I couldn't take it again. What do you see? God, this is a screwed-up conversation."

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"I told her she could," Merlin blurted, making it moreso!

[thismaskiwear.livejournal.com]

It could be a competition! Sort of like a slow-motion version of the strongman thing at the carnival where you swing the mallet and try to make the weight fly up and hit the bell. Only possibly with breaking the bell.

". . . told her she could what?"

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"Kiss you. If she wanted to." A beat. "It came up with the Arthur thing."

[thismaskiwear.livejournal.com]

"Yeah." Katchoo paused for a beat of her own or maybe she stole Merlin's. "About that -- you know I'm not really gonna kill you or anything. Right?"

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"Francine assured me that killing wasn't on the table." Anymore. "It's very--yes. I think the only way this could be more strange, is if you and Arthur fell for each other."

[thismaskiwear.livejournal.com]

That choking, strangling noise Katchoo made right about then, accompanied by bugged-out eyes and turning red? That's the sort of thing that usually calls for the Heimlich maneuver it's not really a maneuver at the moment, it's more of a gesture if there's eating involved.

"Absofrikkin'lutely not ever."

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

Merlin reached out to pat her on the back at that. "I think you'd kill each other," He said cheerfully.

[thismaskiwear.livejournal.com]

"Hell, I'm amazed Strokes of Genius is still standing as it is," Katchoo sort of half-croaked when she could talk again.

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"It can't be that bad."

[thismaskiwear.livejournal.com]

"Not for lack of trying," Katchoo replied. "Are we done with this incredibly disturbing detour now?"

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"Yes, I think so," Merlin replied with a nod.

[thismaskiwear.livejournal.com]

"Thank god. If I have nightmares now . . ." It so wasn't a real threat.

Or a threat at all, really.

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"You can threaten me all you want," Merlin promised.

[thismaskiwear.livejournal.com]

Katchoo pretended to look wounded. "It takes all the fun out of it when you put it that way."

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"You could--have me help with something humiliating?"

[thismaskiwear.livejournal.com]

"Now why would I do that?" Katchoo asked, more seriously now. "You saved my life. And I never did get around to thanking you properly for it. Although if you're really set on it I could come up with something . . ."

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

Merlin laughed, shaking his head. "It's nothing you need to thank me for. It's just--you'd do the same."

[thismaskiwear.livejournal.com]

"You know," Katchoo said, "I would, actually. Might be a little less flashy, though."

[bigdamndestiny.livejournal.com]

"We can't all be wise wizards," Merlin granted her magnanimously.