#marspirited

[marvoile]

she might have wished for different circumstances to lead to this  ( her, switching on the coffeemaker, him, sitting down at the kitchen table ),  but if there was anything elena had learnt by now, it was that fate had a weird way of spinning things. especially in new haven. she had not expected to reconnect with isaac in a café she had randomly chosen, just like she would not have thought that she would ever encounter  her brother in dion’s apartment of all places. suffice to say --- it had thrown her for a loop, and she was not entirely sure if she was trusting the ground beneath her feet again already.

‘‘ here, ’’ she said as she handed one of the coffee cups to marcus, a smile tugging on the corners of her mouth. they knew each other, knew each other well and there was something very comforting in this knowledge. ‘‘ i’m glad that whoever built this house had taller people in mind --- i’d hate for you to have to keep your head down all the time. it’s hellish for the neck, or so i hear. ’’

her calm, collected  ( professional )  smile peeled away like a layer of old paint as a more playful, perhaps even mischievous expression dashed across her face before it settled in her eyes as she poured milk into her coffee and stirred it slowly. elena was not as obnoxiously well-behaved as the common opinion might claim, but then: she had not been quite what people thought her to be since she had been a young woman. the same, she supposed, went for marcus as well.

‘‘ ---i took tomorrow off so we can explore the city a bit, maybe grab a bite to eat in one of the cafés i told you about. ’’

@marspirited​

[ardentelle]

‘ ‘ Don't you ever get tired of that? ’ ’ marcus asked, in an undertone, watching as brigid beamed back at a stranger passing her. ‘ ‘ You're so kind, sometimes it seems like you don't even realize you're doing it. ’ ’  ------ sent by @marspirited​

they had this conversation before, she reminded herself as she shrugged and looped her arm through his. there were a few conversations like this, ones that kept recurring, not because anyone expected a new answer, conversations they repeated because some things did bear repeating. it was like how frédéric said that even if a good choice did not pan out, it was still a choice worth making, once every five years or so. elena --- responsible for quite a few of those exchanges --- might see worth in repeating the same thought over and over, in voicing it so it sunk in better, so it settle deeper into the bones; she was the type to learn best like this. and for brigid, too, there was something safe about how sometimes, there were questions she would always know the answer to.

do you ever get tired of being kind? no. do you ever get tired of loving them? no.

her hand curled softly into his hair, glad to find it free of the product frédéric had insisted on using the last time they had seen each other face - to - face. ‘ ‘ i don’t think i’ll ever grow tired of being kind, no, ’ ’ she responded quietly. ‘ ‘ ---at least not as long as you don’t grow tired of buying snacks for our walks. ’ ’

they both knew well that snacks aside, there were things that could extinguish her kindness like a breeze a candle, things that turned her face moonwhite with unspeakable anger, things that did not need a mention, that did not need to be summoned like unwelcome ghosts ------ even brigid knew little of kindness at the sight of a dear friend bloodied and beaten, hanging onto life by a silken thread. 

[ardentelle]

Marcus beamed, face lighting with a warm joy of familiarity, "Brigid," he greeted, handing over the second drink in his hand. It was a new blend of tea the shop he had begun to regular was selling, seemed like something she might enjoy, "I'm here, and ready to work. What did you want me to do first?"

when the key had turned in the lock, she had stopped her valorous battle against the ornate carvings or, more precisely, the dust they gave shelter to and turned towards the door. as it swung open, it revealed the very person she had been expecting. the only other option would have been elena or frédéric, and elena did not stop by unannounced while fréd did the former but was guaranteed to be at work.

the grin that carved her face in two was almost as bright as the sun that was peeking through the windows. ‘ ‘ just on time and you brought tea — goodness, you are heaven-sent, marcus! ’ ’ she laughed; dusting off shelves was a chore best tolerated with a plenitude of drinks, and tea was always welcome in her home.

she was grateful, very grateful that marcus had agreed to come over and help her; spring cleaning was fine and dandy, but it was hard work and it could get quite boring when one was doing it on their own. and brigid not not have an exactly good reputation when it came to staying on task and not getting sidetracked by something. like books.of half-finished essays she had started months ago and never completed because she had found another interesting topic.

( the next step of her annual spring cleaning would be to pile them up and seriously go through them and decide which ones would be granted another chance. )

setting aside the rag she had been using to dust off the top of her shelves, she jumped off the ladder and looped her arm through his, taking the cup from his hand with practiced ease. there was comfort  ( so much comfort )  in the knowledge that no matter where she would lose balance and trip, someone would catch her. to go through the centuries with a family, never far behind, had been a blessing and she knew how to count those.

‘ ‘ i would promise to buy you lunch — as a thank-you for helping me here — but i thought i could cook something, later? ’ ’ she added as she steered him away from the mess in her living room towards her sun-soaked balcony. ‘ ‘ i won’t ask you to scout the reject pile for whichever project will be the first lazarus of the season, but — i’ve been having some trouble with the garden chairs. they have to be assembled, and i’m about two hands short. ’ ’

her garden was never as much of a priority for her as it might be for other people, but she had agreed with frédéric when he had argued that if she got garden furniture, she could make a cosy corner out of the nook below her balcony. and he had promised to come over and realise his vision which likely meant that before the end of the month, her garden would bear witness to her compatriot, cursing. the more things changed, the more they stayed the same.

leaning against the iron-wrought railing, she took a sip of her tea. there was no hesitation, after centuries of sharing meals with marcus, she trusted him blind when it came to food and beverages alike. and, no surprise followed— ‘ ‘ this is delicious, marcus, you’ll have to tell me where you got it, ’ ’ she sighed as she turned her head towards him. ‘ ‘ i was thinking we could deal with the furniture first, have lunch — maybe some fish dish? i found a great store for seafood — and then deal with the usual suspects? ’ ’ 

such as the piles of books that were reaching towards the ceiling in her study. or all the other chores that had been forgotten about between work and her social life. one of these days, she would have to learn to be more consequent when it came to the schedules she set for herself and stop caving whenever elena called her to ask if she wanted to hang out. it was truly not fair that elena tended to use brigid’s weaknesses against her so mercilessly.

* @marspirited​

[marvoile]

Wrapping his friend, (his oldest, dearest friend) in a hug, Marcus grinned happily. It'd been too many years to have gotten one another a gift for every passing fancy of a holiday that sprung up - but he liked it still. when things aligned & he could celebrate in good company. a small box, with a matching wooden-themed jewelry set rested on the nearby table. "Merry Christmas, Elena."

she had missed this. had missed the warmth that was spreading from her fingertips to the rest of her body. it had hardly been a very long time since they had last all been together for the holidays  ( ten years, at most ),  but this was the nice thing about traditions — they were supposed to be repeated again and again … and again.

she was a little out of breath when marcus put her back on the ground, but she was happy. stupidly happy. she disagreed with a majority of mortals on a great variety of little things, but she did agree that christmas was to be spent with loved ones — whether they were family or not had never had much weight for her.

‘‘ merry christmas to you too, marcus, ’’ she responded as she reached up to ruffle his hair. ‘‘ and thanks again for inviting us over, fred, ’’ she added, almost shouting into the general direction of the kitchen. she was almost eaten alive by her own impatience — brigid had still not arrived, and the worried mother hen inside of elena could not rest until everyone was there, until they were all together. was this the spirit of the holidays? as far as she was concerned, it was.

[ardentelle]

"Brigid," Marcus greeted warmly, delivering a quick kiss to air above her cheek. Balancing the presents he'd brought with him, one of which had her name in computer print ink ( centuries past & he still had yet to master handwriting ) on the wrapping paper && two sweaters he had pain painstakingly agonized over before deciding to just get both folded neatly inside. && a rubber bone, for puzzle, because he could hardly NOT. "I come bearing gifts... and snacks. I brought pie."

to work on christmas had not been her preferred course of action, but she liked the colleague who had asked and unlike her coworker, she did not have two little children at home. in the spirit of both christmas and fairness, brigid had smiled and said that she would not mind to cover the other’s shift. in return, she could have valentine’s day off, not that she was particularly interested in that occasion. 

‘ ‘ i just arrived and here you are, spoiling me already, ’ ’ she said, a faux complaint that was immediately belied by the gleam in her eyes and the way her hands reached for the present. she liked presents, liked to give them to others and liked to receive them. alas, she knew the rules — frédéric would be most disappointed if she would unwrap any presents before dessert. ah, to disappoint frédéric would not do, not on christmas, she thought as she turned and threw her keys into the little basket by the door, causing puzzle to turn and look at her in silent question. 

she laughed, softly, as she reached for marcus’ wrist and pulled him back into the living room, placing the bag of gifts she had brought under the tree — frédéric had truly surpassed himself, this time — and grinned. it was good to be home for christmas.

shrugging off her jacket and releasing puzzle from her leash, she smiled widely at marcus. ‘ ‘ presents and pie — someone has decided that i wasn’t on the naughty list this year, ’ ’ she continued with a laugh as she grabbed two of the cocktail glasses elena had set down on the couch table before muttering something about having to drag frédéric away from the stove. passing one to marcus, she sighed dramatically. ‘ ‘ i wish i could’ve been here earlier, ’ ’ she admitted, running a hand through her hair, ‘ ‘ alas: work. don’t let me sit down on the couch or else i won’t move anywhere else all evening and you’ll have to carry me to the table when dinner’s ready. ’ ’

[revnaire]

"Fred," Marcus greeted, patting his friend on the shoulder firmly. it was the holiday season & no matter how many years passed, he couldn't shake the gratefulness that came with having people to give gifts to. this year, he'd won an intense e-bay auction for an oddly charming && remarkably vintage watch. It certainly wasn't every day wear, but it had stricken Marcus as something he'd enjoy. "Merry Christmas!"

frédéric had offered to spend the holidays with freya because she was family and because it was christmas, but she had cited prior engagements. he had not asked; if she did not offer this sort of information voluntarily, it was often something he did not want to know. instead, he had given elena a call and invited his closest and dearest friends to his apartment. it was as he said — christmas was to be spend with the family, and they were his family just as much as freya was.

he was always grateful to have family that was just as undying as he was, especially during the holiday season. he knew himself, he would be miserable if he had to spend christmas alone with nothing but fine food and movies to keep him company. no, this was so much better — it gave him something to do, gave him a reason to spend ridiculous amounts of time brooding over presents and recipes.

‘‘ come here, marcus, ’’ frédéric almost demanded as he passed the stack of plates to elena who had been keen on helping him out. now, he turned towards marcus and grinned as he lifted his arms. ‘‘ you cannot deny your best pal — that’s the word, right? — a proper hug. it’s christmas. or saturnalia, for you guys. i even got a real tree! ’’

not that this was unusual for him. he was a bit of a nostalgic soul, he liked to recreate the perfect christmas each and every year. this meant a prettily decorated tree, a delicious meal and — most importantly — time spent with his loved ones. presents were more of a secondary concern for him, but this did not mean that he had not made an effort. beneath the books for brigid and the necklace for elena, marcus’ present was waiting for its time to shine — quite literally as he had gotten him, among other things, a desk lamp after elena had mentioned getting him a decent desk.

‘‘ brigid isn’t here yet, she’s covering for a colleague, but once she’s here, we can eat. and, yes, elena, we will unwrap the presents, ’’ he added with a grave sigh before he shook his head at her.

[ardentelle]

@marspirited.

‘ ‘ lena and fred are here, too? ’ ’ she asked, a sudden rush of giddiness flooding her. she was not surprised, per se, that elena was there. she had never been as attached to europe as marcus and frédéric were, had always liked to sail the seas and write postcards from wherever the winds had taken her. but to hear that all of her closest and dearest friends were in the same place --- it was the sort of information that made her fingers tingle with warmth. ‘ ‘ no, no, i didn't know they'd be here --- i got a job offer at the animal clinic in town, didn't have much of a reason to stay further south and figured why not? ’ ’

for a moment, she trailed off, studying the side of his face. ‘ ‘ i am glad to see you, you’re looking amazing and i’m happy to hear you still teach --- and i have to apologise for not being better at staying in contact these past . . . three years. it has been three years, hasn’t it? ’ ’ she pondered, chewing on her lip. it might just as well have been four or five. it was not often that she dropped off the face of the earth without much of a warning, but it was a habit  ( a bad one, she knew )  to isolate herself when she was not feeling well.

she was feeling more than well as she took half a step back from marcus. it had been too long, far too long since they had last been at the same place for more than a short while. as nice as it had been to visit frédéric in paris and let him drag her to whatever new tourist-y thing had opened up since the last time she had been in town, she had always found that there was a special sort of energy that only surrounded them when it was the four of them.

continued from here