just like magic

Merlin | 25 | Human/Researcher member of zombified disney

[hcppilyneveraxter]

*Shivers*

[brainymerlin]

smolderingcharmerflynn

“I guess I just mean people who haven’t written off zombies as beyond hope. People who still believe that there is a cure out there. Exactly” Flynn nodded “We’re all still citizens of Disney, I think some people tend to forget that.” He grabbed a cart and handed it to Merlin before grabbing one for himself “Oh absolutely! Without fail! Every time I grab a basket I always end up filling it too full and my stuff flies everywhere. It’s always a mess. This is definitely the safer option.”

“I see,” Merlin nodded. “Too true. I guess the best we can to is remind others that we’re all one in the same. All in this together. We need to look out for each other, especially in a time like this.” He took the cart, letting out a chuckle. “I think that might mean we just wait to long to do the shopping.” Upon entering the store, Merlin was surprised. He expected there to be a lot more people. Maybe it was the time of day, or the snow was just too much to deal with. He pointed to Flynn. “You wanted your favorite snacks and some more healthier food options.” He then pointed at himself. “I needed tea, should probably get some extra food for my cat, and... I know there were other things I needed.. Maybe going aisle by aisle is best.”

[brainymerlin]

missmorphy

“I.. fine.” She smiles. “Thanks. It’s super nice of you to do that. And then keep up with them too.” She let’s out a small laugh. “Works for me! Can I be paid in snacks?” Morph glanced down at the gloves in her hand before making her way to the counter. At the counter she noticed a collection of star earrings (which we too cute to pass up) and placed them with the gloves. Once her purchase was complete, Morph stepped off to the side and waited for Merlin.

He chuckled. “Just snacks? Kind of an odd thing to want to be paid in, don’t you think?” Merlin followed Morph, a small smile appearing on his face when he noticed her new addition. He stood patiently behind her as she completed her purchase. Pleasantries were exchanged while he bought his items. Once finished, be put everything into his backpack and gently nudge Morph towards the exit. “Now that you have gloves, what are you planning on doing for the rest of the day?”

[brainymerlin]

skellingtongrin-jack

The flyer caught Jack’s eyes, and a small smile spread on his lips. Surely, someone who was curious enough to follow pumpkins around the Wastelands meant him no harm. Still, he could never be too cautious these days, and so he remained hidden for just a moment longer. “You’re funny.” He responded, chuckling softly at his cat comment. He gave the other male another look up and down, trying his hardest to see if he had a gun on him, before stepping out from the shadows of the old high school. “I suppose you’re right.” He chuckled again, stepping out a bit more into the light so Merlin could get a better look at him. He didn’t move from the side of the building too much, as he didn’t want to cause alarm, “Do you need help finding them? I happen to know where one is.”

That caught him off guard. “Funny as in I have comedic value or as in I’m an oddball.” Merlin was about to make a quip about talking to shadows when the owner of the voice finally stepped forward. Even though he was in the Wastelands, where a majority, if not all zombies were, the sight of the zombified male still surprised him. His instincts forced him to take a step back, but his brain told him that he shouldn’t have. “Sorry,” he apologized. “I’m used to theorizing about zombies, not actually talking to them.” Feeling a bit awkward, he cleared his throat. “I’m still on the fence about continuing on. In your opinion, would it be worth my time?”

[brainymerlin]

waitwhatwasidoing-ben

Ben’s smiled brightened at Merlin’s appreciation of the small pocket-watch, feeling even prouder now that he had discovered such a trinket. “You really like it?” He eagerly asked, stepping back to allow Merlin his space again, “Here.” He took Merlin’s hand and placed the pocket-watch in it, “You can have it. I think it suits you better.” He laughed at the questions Merlin asked him, shrugging in response to the first one, “I mean, you definitely talk ancient, but you make it sound cool. Some people are just so boring with it! Plus, you have a pretty cool name! Merlin. That’s pretty neat. Ben is so lame, but I like it.” He laughed, shrugging again. “Say, Merlin, I got an idea! Let’s solve the pumpkin mystery together! You know, I did see one in the school. I was going to go look at it because I thought ‘wow how weird that there’s a pumpkin just sitting there’ but then I heard a noise in another room and I got scared, I mean, I went to discover what it was bravely but then I ended up outside somehow,” He sheepishly grinned. “Oh, by the way, just let me know if I am rambling.”

Once the watch was in Merlin’s hand, he slowly turned it. The watch looked very similar to the one his father had. “Very nice,” he said in a near whisper, his mind thinking back to the nights his father let him use the watch to practice telling time. “Looks a lot like the one I remember my father having. Not the same watch, but perhaps the same watchmaker.” He tore his gaze from the watch and looked over at the boy. “Thank you. But that now leaves you without a timepiece...” he glanced down at the small watch on his wrist. “I suppose you could have this one, if you’d like.” Merlin couldn’t help but smile at the compliments. “Ben is a fine name. Shortened from Benjamin, right?” When the boy started to recount his previous adventure in the school, Merlin’s eyes filled with delight. The amount of excited Ben got from just one small excursion was amazing. “It would be a joy to solve this mystery with you.” He waved a hand at the mention of rambling. “No worries here. I am no stranger to rambling. I’ll stop you if you stop me.”

[brainymerlin]

waitwhatwasidoing-ben

“Woah, Woah! Why are you talking like you’re ancient?” He laughed, shaking his head, “You’re not ancient at ALL! Do you feel old? Oh yeah! You asked a question!” He smacked his forehead, laughing still. “Sorry, um…I was just exploring. I got bored, definitely not lost, and I said ‘WELL, what does an old high school have to offer?’ and you know what I got?” He reached into his pocket and pulled out an old pocket watch. “I found this and check it out!” He brought the pocket watch up to the male’s ear, “It ticks! It actually ticks! How cool is that!?” He proudly smiled at his little discovery, keeping one hand still by Merlin’s ear, he brought his other hand out for him to shake, “I’m Ben! What’s your name, old-sounding man?”

Merlin let out a laugh. “Well, I may not look old, but I feel old. Should I try to talk like I’m younger?” He listened to the boy, amused by his energy. The sight of the pocket watch surprised him. Why would a pocket watch of all things be in the old high school? Must have belonged to a teacher. Merlin quieted his thoughts long enough to listen to the ticks. “Hmm, looks like you hit the jackpot. I don’t know much about pocket watches, but I think that’s a rather nice one. I’d hold on to that if I were you.” He took the boys hand, giving it a firm shake. “Nice to meet you, Ben. I’m Merlin.” He cleared his throat, “Now, do I really speak like I’m ancient?”

[brainymerlin]

waitwhatwasidoing-ben

Ben hadn’t had much of a reason for going to the old high school when he set out to start his adventure today, he just sort of ended up there, and that’s kind of how Ben went about every day of his life. He had just been about to give up with exploring around the building when a voice caught his attention, and he poked his head from behind the building, “Hi there!” He happily greeted the stranger, now coming out entirely from behind the building. “Whatcha doing out here, friend?”

Merlin smiled at the sight of him. “Hello,” he replied as the boy appeared from behind the building. Getting a better look at the boy, Merlin realized just how young the he was. Surely he wasn’t a hunter. Would they let a teenager take on such a job? But he seemed too chipper to be a zombie, or someone turning into one. He had to be human. Maybe he belonged to Morph, she seemed just as bubbly as he did. “The mysterious pumpkin flyer got the best of me, I’m afraid. And what are you doing out here, my boy?”

[brainymerlin]

maxslaysdownthelaw

Max sighed a small sigh of relief when he had finished his mini-rant. He hadn’t realized how frustrated he felt towards Hera lately. When Merlin agreed to attend a meeting at some point, it made Max less frustrated because he hoped that Merlin would be the one to open Hera’s eyes about things finally. He certainly was doing an excellent job at doing that with him, and many others had tried to do the same. He followed Merlin’s directions to find the lab coats and began trying them on. The first one felt a little too snug, the second was a little too baggy, the third had sleeves that were too short, but the fourth had finally been the perfect fit. “Okay, I think I got it.” He softly chuckled, making his way over to Merlin and the microscopes. “That sounds interesting. I have no issues with comparing blood, not that I’ve ever been in a situation where I have had to do such a thing...but still.” He smiled and turned to the microscope. “How often do you guys find discoveries with the blood?”

It didn’t take Merlin nearly as long to find the right lab coat. But then again, he wore a lab coat most days, so he knew which coat to grab just by looking at it. While Max was still finding the perfect one, Merlin busied himself with preparing a few slides with the samples of blood the lab keeps on hand. He toyed around with the idea of making two slide per sample, but in the end he went with one of each; human, zombie, and a mixture of the two. “Ah, now and then,” he motioned at the pair of safety glasses and gloves by the microscopes. “Can’t be too safe.” He brought the slides over. “Zombie blood being a bit darker than human being one. We’ve also mix human and zombie blood, just to see what happens. Still not sure if anything really came of it.” Merlin figured since no one else was here, they could take advantage of three microscopes, using one for each slide. “I’d, well, we would really like some, what do you call them? Boonies..? No.. no, no bonies! Bonie blood would be nice for comparison. It’s not worth the risk. At least, not right now.” After all the slides where slid into their new homes, Merlin turned them on. “Don’t look straight into the light." Merlin lightly tapped the eyepiece of one of the microscopes. “Look through that. The knob on the side works in two parts. Big wheel for big adjustments, smaller wheel for finer ones. But be careful, adjusting too much will snap the slide.” Merlin offered Max a smile. “Just call out what you see and I’d write it down. Any questions before you start?”

[youngwarlock]

[hcppilyneveraxter]

*Shivers*

[brainymerlin]

smolderingcharmerflynn

“Of course!” Flynn said “And I absolutely stand by my words. It’s nice to know we have people like you on our side. Really. I’m sure no matter what you ended up doing you wouldn’t end up wasting your talents, but we sure are lucky you’re on our side.” He smiled at Merlin “Thanks, I sure hope we’re able to find some common ground. It might be nice to put all our fighting behind us.” Flynn stopped and thought for a second “Carts?” He nodded “Carts sound good. Every time I grab a basket I always end up needing a cart anyway.”

Merlin lowered his voice. “Our side as in zombie or the people around here?” Before the other could answer, he shook his head. “Guess it really doesn’t matter. We’re all still citizens of Disney.” Merlin gave a single nod before sprinting forward to wrangle together some carts. “You know, I think I do the same thing.”

[brainymerlin]

bellexresearcher

“It’s easy to get tunnel vision, isn’t it?” she acknowledged with a wry smile. “Goodness only knows I’ve been guilty of it. It’s why occasionally I’ve been escorted out of the lab.” She chuckled. “It’s me getting so zeroed in on what I’m reading that I forget about things like food and sleep.”

“Escorted out of the lab? How interesting.” Merlin let out a small laugh, happy to know he wasn’t the only one speeding a majority of their time working. “No one has forced me to leave, yet. But I have been forced to take a few days off.” He shook his head. “We make quite the pair, don’t we?”

[brainymerlin]

missmorphy

Merlin’s kindness left her searching for words. When was the last time someone offered to buy something for her? “I couldn’t let you do that. I’ll buy them, but give them back to you for safe keeping. How’s that sound?” Morph smiled at his choices. “I think the scarf is a perfect match for you.” She looked closer at the sweater. How was she to know what a hunter looked for in a sweater? “I think it’s nice regardless of your friend’s job. I’m sure they will love it, Merlin.”

“I insist, Morph. Think of it as an early birthday gift.” A smile crept across his face. “Oh really? I just liked the color. Hmm. If I ever decide to update my wardrobe, I’ll be sure to employ you.” After getting Morph’s approval on the sweater, he gathered his choices back into a neat pile, nodding towards the check-up counter. “Shall we?”

[brainymerlin]

skellingtongrin-jack

Jack hadn’t gone to the old high school in search of pumpkins; instead, he had gone in search of Zero. He had only been there for a few short minutes before he picked up the scent of an incoming human, causing him to slip into the shadows of the building cast by the sun. The skeleton man waited for a moment, curious to see what human would wander so far by themselves. When he saw Merlin approach, Jack studied the other’s heartbeat for a moment. It didn’t sound elevated, he didn’t seem to be a hunter, and he doubted the human worked with Oogie Boogie because he didn’t seem like the type to get mixed up with someone like Oogie. Still, Jack remained cautious, speaking from his hiding spot, “Perhaps. Why are you here?” he carefully moved away from where he spoke, because he was trying to throw them off, in case the stranger wanted to come towards the sound of his voice.

Merlin glanced in the direction of the voice, fighting the urge to go towards it. Whoever it was, he didn’t want to scare them off by coming closer. He let out a small chuckle at that. Him scaring someone off, that was a ridiculous thought. Merlin gave the flyer a little shake, “Guess my curiosity got the best of me this morning. That darn cat of mine must be rubbing off on me.” He glanced down at his other slip of paper, then back up. “I didn’t think it would be this elaborate. I suppose that adds to the fun, though. What do you think?”

[brainymerlin]

Merlin stood outside the old high school, the mysterious flyer he found that morning in one hand and a clue in his other. At least, he thought it was another clue. He hadn’t looked at it yet, still wondering if he should continue on with this little game. It gave him a reason to be out here, to possibly obverse or even meet a zombie, but it was also pulling him away from his work at the lab.  A flash of movement caught his attention, pulling Merlin from his internal debate. “Anyone out there?”

[brainymerlin]

missmorphy

Morph searched a few more displays, only coming up with a baby pink pair of gloves. At least they were pink. She never noticed Merlin keeping tabs on her, but then again, she was deep in search-mode. When Morph reached her side of the back wall, she frowned. Not a single bright pink glove in sight. “Yellow and light pink,” she replied as she walked over to him. “Ooh, cute hat. What else did you find?”

“Ah, I’m sorry. I really hoped we would have found you some pink one. At least the yellow is bright.” Merlin offered her a smile. “You like it? I.. uh, I figured I’d get it for you, but keep it with me. Just in case something like this happens again.” He glanced down at his pile, then cleared his throat. “Scarf for me. Sweater for my best friend. If you were a hunter, would you like it?” he asked her, shuffling his stuff around until he was able to reveal the entire sweater.

[hcppilyneveraxter]

*Shivers*

[brainymerlin]

smolderingcharmerflynn

“Maybe between the two of us we’ll be able to remember everything we need.” he said with a shrug and a smile. “Thank you, Merlin. For words and for all your dedication and commitment. It’s nice to know we have people as passionate as you are working on that cure. It makes me feel like maybe a cure is possible.” Flynn nodded “You’re absolutely right anything is possible, especially in times like these. Finding a cure, looking past each others differences. I mean stranger things have happened” He said gesturing around. “We do have a few friends in common, so I guess that should help us get along.”

“Sounds like a plan to me,” he shook his head and smiled. “My pleasure. And thank you for your kind words. We would be searching for a cure regardless, but, for me at least, meeting those who support it and believe in this work.. uh, makes it all worth it.” Merlin paused. “Not what I wanted to say, I guess it makes it feel like I’m actually doing something. And not just being some bio engineer wasting my talents.” He chuckled, still not happy with is previous statement, but he couldn’t get the words he wanted to say to come out right. “If anything, common friends is a start. I wish you well in that area.” When the pair reached the grocery store, Merlin stopped. “Carts or baskets?”

[brainymerlin]

bellexresearcher

Belle gave him a quick smile, appreciating his agreement.  “Not that I want to get caught,” she continued.  “We don’t have enough researchers as it is, so we don’t want them losing us.” She shifted her bag, getting the strap up over her head so it rode cross body - an easier hold if they needed to climb through something or run.  Hopefully it wouldn’t come to that.  “Good idea.  No reason to leave any valuable supplies out there.  We can save the gatherers some time.”

“That’s good to hear because I wasn’t really planning on getting caught,” Merlin joked. “You are absolutely right, Belle. We are small group with a big load, we shouldn’t make it harder for the others.” At the sight of Belle shifting her bag, Merlin did the same. He pulled the straps a little tighter, making sure the backpack was closer to his body. “Silly me. I wasn’t even thinking about the gathers, just our own needs. Any valuable is worth getting. I’ll be sure to keep that in mind.”

[brainymerlin]

maxslaysdownthelaw

“That is exactly what I mean, my friend.” Max sighed, throwing his hands in the air. “It’s more like they just like to complain, and Hera just lets it happen, and I have to take notes.” He turned to face the other, taking a step closer to him.  “Look at me, Merlin. Do I look like the type of guy that likes to take notes?” He continued before the other could respond, “You’re damn right I like to take, Merlin. I love them. So you can understand my frustration when there are none to take!” He huffed, crossing his arms. At the sight of Merlin laughing, Max’s slight frustration diminished, and he joined the other in laughter too. He looked around in curiosity as he followed the other down the call did, causing him to almost bump into the other when he turned around so suddenly. “Oh, uh..” he clumsily replied, “Lab coat and all. And sorry for almost bumping into you.” He offered an apologetic smile but ended up just awkwardly smiling instead. He had to admit Merlin did have a way with getting him excited over something that up until an hour ago he did not think he could find interesting.

Merlin just listened as the other man started on a tangent. He was about to begin answering Max’s questions, but when he continued, Merlin figured they were more rhetorical than anything else. When he was sure all the ranting was over, he cleared his throat. “If I’m not stuck in the lab, I’ll start attending the meetings. You have my word.” Merlin straighten himself, extremely grateful he didn’t fall. “More my fault than yours, no need for an apology.” Merlin returned the smile before taking off again. At the end of the hall, he held open another door for Max. “Lab coats are in the closet straight ahead. Any is fine, just make sure it fits. Baggy sleeves aren’t ideal.” Merlin followed, replacing his backpack and coat for a lab coat of his own. Once he noticed Max was ready, he led the way towards a row of microscopes. “You okay with comparing blood samples? We’ve do this weekly, just to check, but an outsiders eyes might spot something we’ve overlooked previously.”