Poppy Morris @poppy-morris - Tumblr Blog

Ruby’s heart clenched as Viola mentioned going in and out on her walk. She should have fucking been there. It’s probably the kind of shit Jordan would have done. Didn’t all those books involve stalking or was that just Twillight? She had no idea. But Viola… Viola deserved so much better from everyone.

“You’ve been doing all of this sober? Really?” Ruby wasn’t sure she’d seen her brother sober for a week straight before. It was mildly unsettling. And she didn’t want to know what he was using to cope instead because she could take a fucking guess at the answer and it made her want to puke.

She stared at him. When he didn’t move she went to the medicine cabinet, her heart rate speeding up as her anxiety spiked. She needed to be by Viola. Bad things happened less when they were together. She grabbed the bottle and started opening it on her way back. Ruby handed the open bottle to Poppy so she could double check the dosage. “Here ya go.” She dug around her room until she found her water bottle and placed it in Viola’s hands, her fingers lingering against Vi’s for the briefest second.

“See, Rubes?” Viola said, somewhere between putting on a brave face and gloating. “I’m fine. I can nap.”

She winced where the antiseptic touched her skin, but she didn’t pull away. She’d stuck her fingers through flames enough to be able to push through. Even if it made her look more compliant than she actually was.

Viola stuck her tongue out at Tal as Poppy agreed with her. Maybe he was right in this small instance. His friend really didn’t suck. How he’d gotten her to stay by him was a mystery to Viola.

She let her hand linger on Ruby’s a little as she took the meds from her hand. She could tell that Ruby was just as scared as she was. Potentially more. Ruby didn’t have as much experience feeling helpless as Viola did. Viola took the pills with a dry mouth and then washed her tongue out with water.

Viola squinted at Taliesin, suspicious. “Where are you going with this, Tail? My ass isn’t walking anywhere.”

@poppy-morris

#with: tal #with: ruby #with: viola #phase: day ten

"I believe you," Poppy told Tal. It was disappointing though. She almost wished he had been holding out on her, he looked like he needed to decompress desperately. He wouldn't though, not when things were like this.

Poppy took her gloves off and wrapped them up, tucking them into the side pocket of her bag. "Thanks Ruby," Poppy said, shaking two out and handing them to Viola. She took them without any fuss so that was good. She'd honestly expected it to be a lot harder to get any cooperation out of Viola, but the lack of fight probably pointed to how hurt she was. Poppy didn't know if she should feel relieved or concerned. Both?

"Yes, I want you to rest as much as you can for at least 48 hours. You can get up for the bathroom obviously but it's important for your healing that you let people take care of you." Poppy hoped this wouldn't be where the wheels fell off, but she had to give the right advice. "Then it's taking things slow. Try things but don't push yourself. There's no rush." She smiled at Viola, tilting her head in the Mauk's direction. "Plus it means these two get to run around after you. Your own personal assistants at your beck and call."

@taliesinmauk

“You are the nice one,” she conceded. That wasn’t hard though when the other person was her. “I’m the grumpy one. That’s my job.” Poppy was really good at it too.

Poppy brought her forearm closer to her face to study his writing. “It’s beautiful Taliesin. Maybe make it three times a week.”

She dropped her arm down and looked over at him, her high having brought a lot of her defenses down. “Thank you,” she said. He knew for what. Poppy had needed this today. She let herself fall back against the couch and turned her attention back to the cartoon. It was time to let the gentle hum in her body overtake her brain.

“THAT’S IT.” Taliesin said with far too much satisfaction and force for a moment before wincing. He shushed himself just as quickly. “It was on the tip of my tongue.”

He smiled as she admired his handiwork, proud. “I was gonna try to do it in Elvish too but it wasn’t the right kind of pen.” Yeah. It wasn’t that he could only remember how to barely speak English now.

“Welcome.” He answered on autopilot. Even if he couldn’t remember what they’d been talking about. Or why. Sometimes it was just enough that she was here. Almost always. And the rest of the time… there was Lord of the Rings.

(end)

Phase: Day Twelve

cricketmarston

Unrealistic. “The straights generally are.” Cricket said solemnly. “Is he straight? Or just Texan?” It could be so hard to tell.

He took a half step back, confused at Poppy’s strong support for Viola. “You are not beating the fucking the fire rumors, Poppet. But as I said, I support you regardless.” Reassurance completed, he leaned against the counter, his mind whirring like Del’s hard drive after a particularly involved bout of coding. “Who else then? It couldn’t have been about Sprout, right?” He didn’t want to worry Poppy, but it was better to bring it up now when they could try to reason it through.

He tried to accept Poppy’s attempt at reassurance. He really tried. “That is somehow both optimistic and very cynical of you.” He was oddly touched, but not for long. “You’ll have to forgive me if I’m wary. The reminder that most things are weird may not always save the weirdos. Frequently it doesn’t.”

Cricket’s eyebrows rose. He hadn’t thought that anyone would have a worst experience of that book than him. But a high would likely do it.

Poppy snickered. "I have no idea. I don't really care. He liked me, that's all that matters." Straight people were generally a mystery to her, especially straight women. But she had no interest in solving that one today.

Poppy groaned and covered her face. It was quite literally the last thing she needed, trust Cricket to put it in her lap. But at least he was accepting it, however doubtfully. "I don't know who would want to hurt her like that," Poppy told him. Not even she did and if anyone would have a motive for murdering her little sister it was her. "Wouldn't they just set my house on fire if it was about her?" She hoped like hell that she was right and she didn't need to be on alert for whoever to finish the job.

"I'm a woman of many talents, what can I say." She softened, and then offered something she hadn't in a long time. "Yeah, I get it. I'm here for you though, okay?" It would probably be difficult to keep that line of separation in her mind when it came to Cricket and Lou. But she'd taken him back as her friend so she needed to figure it out. She had a feeling Lou would get it, at least to some degree. Poppy had never met a bitch that was better at compartmentalising.

Taliesin stared too long at his forearm, as if seeing it for the first time. “Fuck.” She was right. It was law.

“I’m always nice.” He coughed. “Mostly. I’m the nice one. That’s my job. You have the other job.” He could not for the life of him remember what that job was so he was losing track of the point, but it was somewhere in there.

He took the pen from her and grasped her gently by the wrist, focusing as hard as he could on making the swooping cursive legible while also being very careful not to hurt her. Finally, he smiled. “See? That’s teacher cursive. I practice that shit twice a week.”

#with: tal #phase: before

"You are the nice one," she conceded. That wasn't hard though when the other person was her. "I'm the grumpy one. That's my job." Poppy was really good at it too.

Poppy brought her forearm closer to her face to study his writing. "It's beautiful Taliesin. Maybe make it three times a week."

She dropped her arm down and looked over at him, her high having brought a lot of her defenses down. "Thank you," she said. He knew for what. Poppy had needed this today. She let herself fall back against the couch and turned her attention back to the cartoon. It was time to let the gentle hum in her body overtake her brain.

Phase: Day Ten

Taliesin was getting more and more upset, but he knew he couldn’t show it. He focused on holding Ruby, rubbing her back gently like he used to do when they were kids and she’d been angry enough to scream at their parents. He couldn’t think of a time when he felt more useless. And his dad wasn’t even here making him feel like shit.

But Poppy was absolutely killing it. He didn’t want to mess up anything for her. So he kept his voice low again as he whispered to his sister. “I know she doesn’t want to move but we need to get you both out of here. Just in case someone comes looking. I don’t want to push, but it’s not safe. Do you think she can move under her own power or could we carry her?” @rubymauk

Ruby’s shoulders relaxed as Poppy said the symptoms were natural. She’d been scared out of her fucking mind this whole time. And there wasn’t even a webmd to google to make sure that things were okay. She’d have to make Poppy tamales. The bitch deserved a meal that took twelve hours to make. She’d basically saved Viola’s life.

She wanted things to be over just as badly as Viola did, but they had to get this right. The risks were too damn high. They needed… she needed Viola to be on the road to recovery. Not worried that there’s a brain bleed or some shit.

“Yeah, we have some.” Ruby didn’t want to leave Viola for a second. She jerked her head towards the bathroom. “In the medicine cabinet. I don’t know what the right dose is for, like, legit injuries.”

Tail’s presence at her back was a balm. She was going to ask where they were supposed to go until she realized the obvious answer. Lou. Of fucking course. At least she’d be back in the kitchen that felt like home. “She doesn’t wanna walk, so no. We have to carry her, but we can’t make her feel like she has to be carried. You gotta get creative, Tail.”

“Consciousness is a state of mind.” Viola said with a dark chuckle. Then she shrugged. Then she winced. It fucking hurt to shrug? “No idea. I know it was a long walk back. And I zoned the fuck out. But that’s the stress, right?”

She wasn’t really used to people asking her consent about well… anything. Somehow maybe she was considered too grumpy to give it. Poppy’s question staggered her into holding out her forearms like she praying to some kind of weird saint. The saint of gauze and bandaids.

“I don’t know what we have.” Viola said, turning her head in a searching motion before wincing one more time. She really was doing a terrible job of reassuring Ruby. Some part of her old self was still there, so what Poppy presented the opportunity, she took it, grinning through still slightly swollen eyes. “You hear that, Tail? You’ll have to smoke your shit somewhere else. Because I have a headache.”

@poppy-morris

#phase: day ten #with: tal #with: ruby #with: viola

Poppy was concerned that she didn't know, but it wasn't unusual for a trauma like this either. It just made her recommendations a little harder, but she was also aware that whatever she said, Viola would likely not do more than the bare minimum to heal herself. It was the part of her limited experience working with people that bothered her the most. You had to meet them where they were. "Yeah. It definitely can be." Poppy said, opting to reassure.

Poppy had never been given consent quite like that before, but she would take it. "Thank you." She sanitised, put gloves on and started working as quickly as she could. Thankfully she had practiced this a lot and there weren't too many so she was able to keep her promise. Anti-septic, bandage for protection, move on. Thank god none of them needed stitches. That would have been its own battle.

She tried to listen to Tal and Ruby talking behind her, but couldn't quite catch it. Something about carrying. Good luck to them, whatever they were discussing.

Poppy laughed at Viola's gibe at Tal. "Yeah, no hotboxing around the patient," she confirmed. She wondered what Tal's stash was even looking like at the moment. Was he running as tragically low as the rest of them?

"Perfect. I'll get you some more so you don't run out, but take two every six hours. Don't take any more than that. It'll fuck with your liver." Could she say fuck as a doctor? Poppy wasn't sure she cared. She looked over her shoulder at the siblings. "Can you get two for her now and some water?"

@taliesinmauk

Phase: Day Ten

Taliesin really considered backing out of the room. He didn’t want to be here, and he was pretty sure Viola didn’t want him here either. But Ruby was squeezing his hand behind her back so hard that he wasn’t sure he could feel it anymore. He gave two quick squeezes back, partly in encouragement and partly to make sure the nerves stayed awake.

He hadn’t ever seen Poppy like this. Answering questions in class, of course, but he’d (luckily) never had to be up close and personal with her EMT side. She was… softer than he expected. He’d never say it out loud, of course, but he did enjoy the irony. Once she was an attending physician, she’d win awards for bedside manner the same week she made every single resident cry.

Taliesin whispered near his sister’s ear, as quietly as he possibly could. “See? She’s got this.”

@rubymauk

“You don’t have to sit up for long,” Ruby cut in. She couldn’t help herself. She was so used to her and Vi always sticking up for each other. It didn’t matter if Poppy was sympathetic to them. She still had to do it. “And if you need support… I got you.”

She tried to go quiet, seeking Tail’s hand. This whole thing had been so fucked up and she didn’t want to show how scared she was, but it was getting harder. Viola was always so big, like she’d swallow the fucking sun. And right now she was a blonde dot in a sea of blankets.

Poppy was the right person to call. Taliesin had been right. She was kind, but also no nonsense. The kind of person Viola could almost respect. Ruby tried not to smile as Poppy complimented her. Viola’s face had looked like something in a slasher when she got home, but it looked a lot better now. She almost looked like herself.

“Yeah,” she whispered to Tail. She wasn’t going to tell him that he made the right call. “Hope it doesn’t take long.” She should’ve been taking notes or some shit, that would have been the smart way to handle things.

“Vi was a little wobbly on her feet earlier. I don’t know if that counts? No puke, though.” That had to be a good sign, right? Right?

The light hurt Viola’s eyes, but she forced herself to focus. It felt like an eternity, and she swore for a moment that she could feel her pupils getting smaller at Poppy’s demand. She let her eyes flutter close as soon as she had permission. The darkness was blissful. Seductive.

She nodded to confirm Ruby’s account of things. “I’ve been real nauseous, but I assumed that’s the situation.” She swallowed the last word, unsure how to put it. “My ears rang at the time. Like a fucking cartoon. But not for a while.”

It was something one of Go’s many boyfriends had said to her once. One of the nicer ones. He was a boxer. Irony. But he’d let Viola, no more than ten run her small fingers alone his purple cheek. Got my bell rung, he’d said, almost soothingly. The way you talked to a kid when they first figured out what pain was. (She’d known. Fuck, she’d known.) It was no surprise when Go scared him off, but every now and then, she missed him. It was a shame she couldn’t remember his name anymore.

“If I say I can walk but I don’t want to can we be done?” She was being far too nice about this.

@poppy-morris

#phase: day ten #with: viola #with: ruby #with: tal

"It's normal to feel nauseous after a head injury," Poppy agreed. "It's good you haven't been sick. Do you know if you lost consciousness?" Poppy began rifling through her bag for the supplies she needed for Viola's wounds.

"Soon, I promise. Do I have your consent to dress your wounds?" she asked, not too firmly and not too gently. "I'll be quick and then the risk of infection will be much lower." It was clear Viola wouldn't tolerate much more, so she wanted to at least do the essentials. "No infection means seeing me less." That had to be a positive.

"Do you have Tylenol here you can take?" she asked, directing the question at Tal and Ruby too. "If not, I can get you some. I want you to just stick to that for at least the next two days. Other pain medications and substances can be dangerous for head injuries."

@taliesinmauk

Taliesin might flinch from Lou’s judging gaze, but Rumi and Poppy never fazed him. “Certain. Because I could do your hair length, but I’m not sure you’d agree to mine.” He could pull off the Beauty and the Beast look. He knew that. “All things being equal and–” he coughed, a Skittle stuck in his throat. “And shit.”

He blinked, looking as close to his skin as he could. “Fuck you are going to be a doctor. No one’s gonna know what the fuck this says. Even the lying part.”

What else had he wanted to retain. There had been several things. Several. “I have… forgotten. Forgive me. But that feels like a start. You need anything?”

"I might not agree to it but I'd look good if I did," she insisted. "Plus I already wrote that mine is better on your arm and that basically means it's law."

Poppy smiled at him, taking that as a compliment too. "You're being so nice to me today. I can read it. Just ask me when we're sober and I'll tell you." She tapped her temple. "Can't lose when I've got this bad boy."

"Yes. Can you please write bitch iceberg on mine? I want to write that on my mirror. A little daily affirmation, if you will."

Phase: Day Twelve

cricketmarston

Cricket watched Poppy work through the state of her not-relationship with the new kid in town with a thoroughly bemused look on his face. “Sounds like you’ve got some feelers to put out. Unless you hope that he’ll just show up on your doorstep with flowers.” He had a feeling that may be exactly what she was hoping, but she clearly wasn’t up to talking about that yet. So he double fisted, pouring her coffee and tea respectively.

He raised an eyebrow at her. “No one? Not even exploding mailbox girl?” He watched her closely, considering. “Did you like… fuck her or something? Not that I blame you. A certain degree of… unpredictability can be very hot. Within reason.” He adjusted his posture, as if he could twist away from the question itself. “Mayyyybe. Quite frankly, I wouldn’t put it past, well, her.” He sipped the tea. He knew he was talking about Poppy’s queen bee, but all of this did have him spooked. Perhaps he needed Poppy to tell him it was bullshit. “If it’s a fire, it becomes my fault. Doesn’t matter if I intended it or not. Everything I do is to piss her off, you see. She blamed me for not paying enough attention to her, and now, clearly, all I do is pay attention to her. Inescapable logic.” He rolled his eyes. “Imagine being that self-centered.” He said, with about ten percent of the self awareness he’d need to pull that line off.

“Meanwhile, of course, they’ll blame me for all of their tech not working because they don’t actually understand how it works and then I end up in some Lord of the Flies situation.” He paused. “Is that what happens in that book? I read about twenty pages. They started beating up on the kid with the glasses and I was done.”

Poppy considered the idea for a moment. "I wouldn't hate that. But I think that's sort of unrealistic." Their two interactions consisted of first aid and letting him get to second base in the dark. It didn't exactly scream romantic gesture as the next logical step, but she wasn't really an expert there.

Jesus Christ. Poppy was way too tired for this. "No!" she protested. Normally she wouldn't care about that kind of assumption, but recent events had Poppy looking at Viola in a new light. What could she tell Cricket though? She couldn't break doctor patient confidentiality. Or best bud confidentiality. "Something happened recently and there's like a 2% chance it was her. I can't say more than that but just like... trust me. I would be fucking shocked if I was wrong."

It took Poppy an embarrassingly long time to realise who he was talking about when he referred to her. She tried her best to stay out of anything relating to the two of them. But even if she didn't, she had a very different view of Lou than Cricket did.

"I'm not sure that we're that far into irrational territory yet," she told him. "Weird shit is happening constantly. The fact that we're even in this situation is bizarre as fuck. We're all aware of that. Would be fucked up if a power cut was what we decided to lose our minds over. What with the endless list of bullshit. Dead and missing kids, tree prison, no animals, no other people. I'll happily whack people over the head with that if they start being stupid." She was not talking about Lou there. Never Lou. More like the whole of their new society. "I don't remember. I think I was high when I read that."

Taliesin genuinely appreciated her acknowledging it was shitty. For what felt like months now, maybe even a year, he’d felt like he was walking on glass. A mirror shattered by his own making, maybe, but Lou was the one who had placed it on the wall. What a shitty fucking metaphor. Why did they let him tutor English?

Still, he let himself smile. “True. But at least my hair’s just as good.”

He sighed. She was right. Again. He just needed to remember it. “Momo… How do you keep stuff in your head after you’re high?”

Poppy gave him a judgy look. "Debatable, but okay."

"Uh, fuck. I don't know. I don't, I guess?" She thought about it really hard, then reached over and grabbed her school satchel. It was as close to a medical briefcase she was going to get for now, but she loved everything about it. She pulled out a pen and scooted closer to him.

"Give me your arm. What are we remembering?" she asked, before writing Poppy has better hair than me. in her doctors scrawl onto his skin. Then Vibes with a capital V. She tapped her pen on his arm. Don't be complacent.

Poppy looked up at him. "Which of my other wise words would you like to retain today?"

#me #with: cricket #friends who serve together stay together

Phase: Day Ten

“I’ll find something better.” Taliesin said diplomatically. That vodka was gone. That had been true less than 24 hours after he’d realized Caleb wasn’t where he was supposed to be. He’d been resentful at the time that Ruby had been spending time with Viola and not him. Like she was supposed to sit in the dark and mope with him. But now he was glad she hadn’t seen it, and he wasn’t going to acknowledge the evidence now.

He nodded gentle encouragement to Ruby’s ice move. It was a Ruby interpretation of his approach, but he knew Viola didn’t really respond to anyone other than Ruby’s approach. Except Poppy now. Perhaps he should have been able to predict that.

“…That’s fair.” he said, because it was. “Dumbass status accepted. Temporarily.” He did have a tendency to treat Viola like a child because she so frequently acted like one but this definitely wasn’t the time.

All he could do was nod to Poppy’s question. He was honestly grateful for another excuse to keep his instinct to ride over to the Alessi house in check. He was likely to need a reminder once he saw what Viola actually looked like but there was no harm in starting early.

@rubymauk

Ruby tried not to flinch as Viola shot down her idea. It wasn’t the yelling that bothered her. It was the bribe. She wasn’t trying to bribe her, she…didn’t matter now. Viola was upset. Ruby slinked backwards, closer to Tail.

“They won’t say anything. Tail has lots of practice.” She wasn’t just talking about herself. She knew that some of his students confided in him and he took that shit to the grave. Poppy she knew less, but Poppy was cool. “Poppy’s a fucking doctor, they won’t let her near medical equipment or whatever if she tells people.”

This must be what Tail felt like sometimes with her. Desperate to make something happen, but knowing that you couldn’t force it. The whole thing was a special sort of hell and she wanted out. Pity she couldn’t move her fucking feet when her heart was bleeding on the bed.

“I’ll fuck em up if they do.” It was an empty threat. Everyone here knew that. She didn’t care. She had to say it.

It was a cheap move on Poppy’s part, but Viola still appreciated it. She always liked dividing people, and it was rare for anyone to agree with her aside from Ruby. And Jordan… long ago. Her head found a new way to hurt.

She snuck a peek out from beneath the blankets, then lowered the comforter to just below her chin. She knew it was bad. She hadn’t looked at it yet, but she could feel how bad it was. The way it stung and tightened, raw and lumpy. She could feel the abrasions, the epicenter of each bruise probably blooming on her face. And the way that her nose probably needed to be set. How did one actually set a broken nose? Maybe she could just get used to it. Owen Wilson did have a distinctly lesbian energy at times. “I don’t want to sit up for long.” She swallowed, more apologetic than she’d likely ever been. “If I can help it. But it’s the, um, back and front. Ruby cleaned it, but it… it hurts.” God, saying those words, admitting it, hurt just as much.

She couldn’t believe herself, but she tried to be helpful. “I went to like, sleep, and stuff. But I’m not dead, so. No concussion I guess. That ought to shorten the exam a little.” She really wanted to sleep again. She wanted to curl up beside Ruby, against Ruby, and forget where she was until all there was was Ruby’s so well hidden gentleness.

@poppy-morris

#with: tal #with: ruby #with: viola #phase: day ten

"Good." Poppy nodded, satisfied with their agreement. She turned her attention back on the blanket mound that was Viola, and waited for her to lower it. Her expression didn't change when she saw her injuries, she would not give this girl any more reasons to worry or feel self conscious. It wasn't good though, it was honestly kind of heartbreaking. She was hurting in more ways than one, that much was obvious. "I'll be as quick as I can so you can lie down again," she told her. She opened her bag of supplies and pulled out a small flashlight.

"I just want to see how your pupils react to light first, then you can close your eyes, okay?" She knew it would make her head hurt worse, but it was important. Poppy waited for her agreement before shining the light in her left eye first, then her right. Both of them constricted how they should, which gave her a small amount of relief. Ruby said they'd been blown earlier, but they seemed okay now. "Alright, you can close them now."

Poppy moved around Viola, gentle and slow in all of her movements. She looked at the wounds, impressed by what she saw. "Ruby did a good job. I'll get some antiseptic on these too and bandage you up to avoid any infection, but I don't think they need any more cleaning," she told her.

"Sleeping is good," she confirmed. "I know there's pain, but have you noticed anything else? Nausea, seeing stars, your ears ringing. Things like that?" Poppy wanted to barrel on, ask all of her questions at once, but if she was concussed she wasn't going to be able to keep up with that. She forced herself to be patient.

Taliesin shouldn’t have been so pleased with himself to have earned Poppy’s approval but she was hard to please. And he hadn’t expected her to stay positive this long. Even when he, or maybe both of them were being maudlin.

She was right. He hated how right she was, especially when she couldn’t even pronounce the most important word there. “It’s okay to say accidental. It would be. Fuck. And accidents can happen in slow motion.” Months long motion, in his case.

“I don’t. But I’ll try. That’s all I can do.” Even if Lou wouldn’t admit that he was trying. “Or… I guess I thought I used to know. Maybe I’m complac–” He lost the last syllable. He focused as hard as he could, willing the word to return to him. “Complacent.”

Well, if that mistake didn’t say anything, nothing did.

"Accidental," she said perfectly, paired with a wink and a click of her tongue. "Yeah. I'm sorry. It's shitty Tal, it really is. I wish I could do something, but my role in this story is to be your wiser, more attractive high friend."

"Hm." Poppy considered that for a second. Was he complacent? Maybe. "Okay, so don't be. Change it. You can do that. Maybe that'll be the spark that ignites the eternal flame of your platonic love story." She almost winked at him again, but even she knew that'd be too much.

"You're clearly not ready to let go yet, so don't."

Phase: Day Twelve

cricketmarston

“You will.” Cricket said, somehow feeling like he still knew her and he very much knew the type. “Always leave them wanting more. That’s the rule. And he’s a cowboy right? I think there’s a joke about lassoing in here, but I’m too British to get it.”

He got up to search for the kettle, pleased to find it in the exact same place it had been when they were children. He supposed when there were so many people in the house, no one wanted to reorganize the kitchen. “Same. Trouble is, jock Roy Cohn had many, many, many enemies. So I propose we start with a simpler question.” He filled the kettle and set it on the stove, waiting for the water to boil as he place two tea bags into mugs. It was a compulsion he’d learned from his mother. “Who, besides me,” He gave her a preemptive look. “…has a history or interest in arson?”

“It’s not possible. That’s the bloody problem. It’s too big a system for anyone to mess with it on that scale, even me.” Though that didn’t stop certain people from accusing. “It would require multiple people, with technical knowledge that only I or to a small extent Utley would have. And I sincerely doubt he could explain it to anybody well enough for them to coordinate. Which means I’m left with like… fairies. And not my favorite kind.”

"Cricket please," she said, appealing to a part of him that did not exist. She knew better too. "Maybe I will," she shrugged. "I don't care. I haven't talked to him since. He hasn't text me or anything so... he doesn't have my number. I don't think. Does he? There wasn't really time to give it to him. Between the wall and Lola. No I don't think he has it." The fact that she was saying any of this out loud was proof of how exhausted she was. "I need more coffee."

Oh. Very awkward question actually, Cricket. Considering she was currently treating the girl known for her love of fire for a serious concussion. She couldn't have done this. Not in her state. She was barely up for being a menace with Ruby, let alone a menace to their new society. She was a hard one to crack but she didn't think Viola would repay her by trying to kill her sister, accidentally or otherwise. "I don't know. Nobody really comes to mind. I'm sure they're out there though."

Poppy frowned. "Okay. I mean I know things are a shit show right now but I think fairies are a stretch." She could see that he wasn't taking this lightly though, so she softened a little. "This is really fucking with you isn't it?" Poppy asked. "Are you worried they're going to blame you for it?"

Phase: Day Twelve

cricketmarston:

Cricket smirked. "Well, stick with me, Popsicle, and we'll have you back on the pissed off pony in no time." He tended to have that effect. One of his many, many talents. He leaned back, watching her. He'd been too young when they were friends back then but he knew enough to recognize the pattern. "You have it bad, don't you? Like more than the accent or the soulful dark eyes bad. And from just a makeout? That must be some tongue. Love that for you."

"She saw God on the way to the party or--" He sighed as Poppy clarified. "All due respect to Lola..." He gave Poppy a quick look that indicated that that meant no respect was due at all. "But I think she'd take the credit for saving herself if she'd done so, even if she only suspected she'd done it. Is it perhaps more likely that our mysterious rescuer didn't stick around because they themselves set the fire?" He didn't really want to tell Poppy how he knew it, but it had been made very clear to him by the authorities that most arsonists were very averse to causing casualties. But intent didn't matter, did it? Her confirmation was a bit of a riddle but he was feeling gossipy so he'd take it. "There was nothing wrong with the grid. The whole time, all the readings, the fluctuations, everything says it should have been working. But it wasn't. And right when I'd given up it just turned back on again. Like some great cosmic joke." He was keeping it light. He had to. The alternative was too terrifying.

Poppy rolled her eyes in amusement. He hadn't changed all that much during their friendship hiatus. It was comforting.

"Stopppp oh my god." Poppy was actually blushing. It was mortifying. She covered her cheeks with her hands, willing herself to get it together. He was just a guy! There was literally no reason for her to be having this kind of reaction. "We'll see. I might not see him again. I did practically run away from him last night to rescue the rat."

Cricket had a point, even if she didn't love it. Lola wasn't one to give away credit for her own accomplishments. "That... would make more sense." She didn't love it. If that were true, they'd still left her sister in danger. Out of one life threatening situation and into another. They were lucky Rowan had found her when she did. "Would love to know who did it. I have words."

"What?" Poppy frowned. "How is that even possible?" Cricket knew infinitely more about that realm than Poppy did, but even she knew that shouldn't have been able to happen. "Could someone have been messing with you somehow?"

Phase: Day Ten

Well this was going better than Taliesin had anticipated. Though he had anticipated needing to grab the fire extinguisher. He was surprised he’d even got a ‘Tail’ out of it. Her greeting to Poppy was less than ideal but to him it was at least a small sign that she was alright with ‘family’ being around, and that was comforting in some small way.

“This is Poppy Morris, Vi. She was an EMT before all this shit happened, so she actually knows her stuff. This doesn’t have to take long at all. Then I can make you guys some food and then disappear or just disappear in general.” It was a tactic. He was going to get them out of the house if he had to drag them but it wasn’t a good idea to bring it up just yet.

He’d kept his hand on Ruby’s back as they entered, invisible to the patient but hopefully still a benefit for his sister. He whispered softly as he eyed the blanketed lump that was Viola. “Do you think we could get her to show her face for a start? Is she self conscious about it? Does she need ice or a warm wash cloth or something? Like I’m sure you did that already but maybe she needs a refresher.” The closest he and Ruby had ever gotten to their current dynamic tended to come when Ruby herself was sick. She’d accept ice and warm compresses and teas and soup and any number of comforts she’d usually rebuff. (Tal, on the other hand, tended to self isolate or attempt to muscle through it, much to Lou’s chagrin. Or wrath really. Yeah. Wrath.)

@rubymauk

Ruby stifled her urge to flinch. She heard the bitterness in Viola’s voice. This had been a horrible idea. She knew she should’ve waited a day or two for Viola to deal with her anger first. But she was so small and covered in blood and Ruby had panicked.

She felt Tail’s hand on her back and tried to visibly relax so he couldn’t feel how upset she was. She blinked a few times, making whatever dust was fucking her face calm down.

Poppy was fucking good at this. If she’d been in Viola’s position, she would have actually listened to that. Maybe Tail did know what he was doing. “Tail has at least one liter of vodka he stole from me. Maybe he’ll give you that.”

Ice. Ruby wanted to laugh. Living with Lou had really made him forget how things worked in this house. “Yeah,” she whispered back. “I can help.” Ruby approached Viola with caution. She reached for the soggy bag of peas resting on the bed. “I’m gonna swap this.”

She headed back to the kitchen and tossed the peas in. She grabbed another bag of frozen vegetables and a new kitchen towel. She had no fucking clue where the other one had gone to. As she walked back to her room, she wrapped the vegetable in the towel. “Here,” she handed it back to Viola before ducking out of the way. “Twenty minutes.” She pulled out her phone and started a timer.

“Well agree to disagree, huh?” Viola said, voice almost comically muffled by the comforter. Someone did not have to do it. People generally didn’t do it, in fact, because most people understood that Viola ‘liked her space.’ But she’d made several mistakes this week, not the least of which being letting several people think she allowed her space to be encroached upon.

Perhaps later, when cooler, less likely concussed heads prevailed, she would acknowledge that trying to light Finn Beaumont’s hair on fire wasn’t the best plan for a peaceful solution but she hadn’t really meant it, had she? At this point, after she’d felt the swelling around her eye and nose and let very reluctantly let Ruby wash the blood out of her hair with trembling fingers, she thought she might have meant it. But only in retrospect.

She groaned as Tail used his teacher voice. “I know it’s Poppy, dumbass. We have English together.” The one AP class Jules and Bea had finally managed to cajole Viola into taking had backfired on her. Who was surprised? “With you.” She added pointedly. Yes, Ruby was her person, but Viola was technically in Tal and Poppy’s year while still being closer in age to Ruby. This was what happened when someone decided to use kindergarten as all day child care as soon as possible. “Or is your head just so far up Lou’s ass all the time that you didn’t notice?”

Still. She slid a hand out of the blanket to drag the peas to her throbbing head. “I don’t want a fucking lollipop, booze soaked or otherwise.” She wanted to say she wanted them to leave again but she realized quite suddenly that the thought scared her. It was very dark under here and she was still seeing stars from time to time. “If I come out, and I do mean if... you are not allowed to tell anyone what you saw.” It came out more vulnerable than she’d intended but she might have a TBI. She was trying to give herself some grace.

@poppy-morris

#with: tal #with: ruby #with: viola #phase: day ten

"Yeah dumbass," Poppy echoed, but she gave Tal a reassuring smile. She'd apologise for using him as a punching bag later. He already knew but she wanted to remind him too that she didn't get intimidated easily. This was well within her wheelhouse. And to be fair, Poppy rarely noticed who else was in her classes unless they were 1. her friends or 2. hot.

"You got yourself a deal," Poppy said. She wasn't going to point out that doctor patient confidentiality applied well before she said any of that. Whatever got her to agree. "Right?" she said, turning to Ruby and Tal. She wanted their verbal confirmation too. "If it's a no, then you can wait outside."

Poppy did not love the timer situation. It put more pressure on her to do something quickly she hadn't done often before. If it took longer she'd just get Ruby to pause it for a few minutes or something. She needed to do this thoroughly.

@taliesinmauk

Taliesin desperately wished he’d recorded Poppy’s laugh. It was the kind of thing that was very useful to have when your friend was being prickly for prickly’s sake. He realized just as quickly that that was a high thought. He didn’t need to take his life into his hands.

“Scout’s honor.” He said with a two finger salute to promise. “I’ll make Rumi write out the sound changes for me and everything.” He’d been fascinated by Rumi’s explanation of how accents are taught to actors using the same universal alphabet actual linguists used. He stopped himself from going through the vowel progressions Rumi had taught him but only just.

Taliesin nodded in solemn agreement. “Yeah.” He wasn’t sure which part he was really agreeing with. He loved a lot of things about Lou but he wasn’t sure her stubbornness was one of them. Perhaps because it had so often been leveled at him. “That’s not fair.” He grumbled, words barely audible. He’d asked Lou again and again. He’d given her time. He always gave her time, even when he really, really didn’t want to share her.

“Good.” he swallowed, genuine relief washing over his features. This was already feeling like too much. He didn’t want to add hurting Poppy to his list of sins. At least Poppy would tell him. “I feel like you said that with a capital V and I should make some kind of cultural reference but I’m coming up with absolutely nothing. Maybe I just can’t think of any piece of media aside from Scooby-Doo and Tolkien.”

"Good boy," she said, snorting a laugh. Her eyes widened, looking at the bong accusingly. "How dare you." Maybe she was high enough now.

Poppy did feel a little bad for him. She didn't know that she'd feel all that great about it if she was in Tal's shoes. She resisted the urge to put her bottom lip out in the worlds most insincere looking pout. Even if she was being sincere. Tal wouldn't read it that way. She didn't want to make fun of him right now. "I know. I just can't really think of anything to try that wouldn't inadvertently make it worse." She stumbled over inadvertently, her tongue felt like it was too heavy for her mouth.

"I can't either. But I was saying that with a capital V." She was happy that he'd picked up on that. You never knew with him. Probably why Lou was struggling. He could be so smart but also not at the same time. Boys. "You know what I'm talking about."

Phase: Day Ten

Taliesin squeezed Ruby right back, placing his hand on her head to stroke her hair. They hadn’t been this close since… well, ever. But he would have given anything to never know what this was like at all.

He had always laughed at the stories about his father’s uselessness when his children were born. He’d even witnessed it firsthand with Caleb. But he was starting to develop an understanding. How immense it all felt and how strange. He’d always known Poppy was good but not this good. She had better bedside manner than any doctor he’d taken Caleb too, that was for sure. So he mouthed thank you to Poppy over Ruby’s head as he rocked her a little. He owed Poppy every snack, truly.

He understood where Poppy was coming from but he also was pretty sure she hadn’t seen Viola in action. Still he’d back her play. She was the boss. “If you want me in there, Rubes, I’m in. With or without you. You want me to be the bad guy? I’m there. I’m good at that.” He bowed his head a little, correcting. “While respecting her consent. But if she needs someone to kick out first so she feels like she’s in control, I’m just saying I’m a good candidate.”

@rubymauk

“Thanks,” Ruby whispered to Poppy. She hugged Tail a little bit tighter. There was a small pricking of relief worming its way through her, but it was still too tiny to appreciate. Poppy was going to take care of whatever Vi needed. Things would be okay. If she just said it enough, it’d have to be true at some point.

She wanted to laugh, but it came out more like a cough. Her throat was dry from crying. “Yeah, I don’t wanna do this alone.” For the most part, she and Viola were solid. But this was the kind of shit that could turn that solid into nothing. There was a real chance she’d end up losing her but keeping her alive. It wasn’t a question for Ruby. She would do anything for Viola. She just wasn’t excited about the fact that Vi might hate her for it. “C'mon,” she pawed at her eyes.

The walk to her room was short. There wasn’t enough space in their house to give them too much time to think. Ruby usually liked that. She took a deep breath and opened the door. “Vi, you got visitors. They want to help and they’ve already promised not to tell anyone anything.” Her eyes met the ground, “Poppy has to examine your head.”

@violaparker

“Ruby?” Ruby wasn’t there. For the first time in almost a day, Ruby wasn’t there. It hurt her, frightened her. What if Ruby was hurt? What if she’d abandoned her? Viola’s voice was small, hoarse, yet it was too loud for her ears. Her head was still pounding, breath still panicked when Ruby returned with visitors. Anger swallowed fear as she snuck a quick look at who was invading her space before covering herself up again.

“Tail.” She spat. “Random bitch.” She knew who Poppy was. She’d seen her around. She even kinda admired her resting bitch face. This was an admittedly juvenile attempt at a power move, but this was all Viola had. She felt like her brain was swimming in molasses, struggling for words, meaning, anything really. A thousand insults waited on the tip of her tongue, just out of reach. It infuriated her, but she was too tired to move, too tired to storm out. So she kept her splotchy, swelling face hidden beneath the sheets out of spite.

Her dark chuckle at Ruby saying she needed her head examined made her headache worse. It pounded and pulsed, setting off a lightning storm that became a wildfire right behind her eyes. “I get that a lot. I’ll try not to take it personal. But I didn’t invite you here. I can be real unpleasant and have few reasons not to be so please leave. Ruby helped.” Now wasn’t that noble of her? Acknowledging Ruby’s contribution even when she’d betrayed her. “I’m stable.” She laughed again, hard enough to make her dizzy. “Stable for me. I just need the dark.”

@poppy-morris