endlessflask | [ the village inbox ]

"Yeah. More or less."

What? It's not like he's going to tell her that he's looking for something that might be drugs, but the thought had crossed his mind that there might be more use in the plants than just that. He's not sure how potions might work here. He is sure that potions don't need to be infused with his own magic to work in strange ways, and folk remedies have endured through time for a reason.

Eliot also knows that his strengths aren't in mystery solving. He can put himself to use doing this until someone gives him direction.

"I'd go alone but if shit hits the fan, then no one will know."

She has no idea what kind of magical plants might exist here. She figures none, but things are so weird and sideways that who knows? They might. Or maybe, she thinks, they'll find bodies in the woods, some clue as to what the fuck is going on in this place. There aren't old cars or any animals or any trace of bodies, infected or otherwise. There's got to be something in the woods, right?

"I don't think anyone should go out there alone. This place is weird as hell. Sometimes you hear voices or you get so sick you can't walk forward alone. You're smart to take someone with you, I guess."

"Oh. Thank you."

People never really call Eliot smart for anything, so it's sort of a treat to hear it. Like someone's validating the fact that he's making a rational decision for once in his life.

"I mean, as long as there's not like ... A murderous clown lurking in the woods or something, I think it'll be mostly fine."

She laughs, because the murder clown thing seems absolutely ridiculous to her. Of course she doesn't think he meant it literally, but it's just an absurd image. She's seen some old movies, but she avoids the horror kind, so that's a pop culture reference that isn't in her databank.

"Come on. You and I could totally take a clown," she says. "I got a knife, you got some unreliable fireballs or something. No biggie."

"And telekinesis. Technically."

Which, honestly, Eliot doesn't think is that impressive. He's been around people with way cooler disciplines and talents that are significantly less traumatizing. At least, as far as he's concerned.

"Okay. Great. I'll ... Wait and see if anyone else wants to come along, then we can figure out when to go. My schedule's pretty wide open, so."

Ellie's eyes go a little wide at that mention.

"Telekinesis? Whoa, really? But, right, it doesn't work right so you can't even show me, is that how it goes?" That surprise settles into cynicism; it's easy enough to say you can do magic, but she's never seen magic in real life. She can't quite believe him.

"Either way, um...I'm at 1304 Phillips. There's a phone, but honestly I don't know the number. Phones don't work where I'm from. But it's easy to find."

"1304 Phillips."

Eliot nods, but he knows himself well enough to know he probably won't remember that. He excuses himself for a second and goes to the phone, where an address book is sitting, and promptly scribbles down her name and the address.

"If you're not around I'll slip a note under the door or something. Why this place couldn't give us cellphones is beyond me."

She watches him go. Writing it down makes sense to her. She's only seen busted up phones, never a working one.

"Yeah, okay. Just sign your name or whatever. Wait, you got magic and cellphones? That's not even fucking fair," she says. She wonders if magic cellphones are cooler than the regular ones. But then, the regular ones seem pretty magical to her in theory. The whole internet thing, which she's only heard of, sounds impossible. Maybe even cooler than fireballs.

[ the village inbox ]

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject