i followed fires toward the sound, cold upon the mountain to which i'm bound.

[nightmarist]

WHO: Residents of the Meadows & OPEN to visitors
WHERE: The Meadows outside De Chima
WHEN: Throughout May
WHAT: Day-to-day encounters at the magical farm commune.
WARNINGS: Look to the subject headers.
NOTES: This is a mingle/catch-all log. Start your own threads! Tag around!

[The Meadows, being a place largely created from magic, has a subtle strangeness to it. From the outside, it could be taken for any old Appalachian farm: scattered barns and stables, a lakeside castle, a roomy wooden farmhouse, a 19th century stone chapel that some hoodlum graffitied. There's evidence that the farm is occupied by unsupervised teenagers, too, in the donut tracks that mar the grass and the remains of regular bonfires. As long as the monsters are out of sight, everything seems ordinary.

Once inside the farmhouse, however, the odd discrepancies become more apparent. The layout of the rooms doesn't quite match how the house appeared from the outside. There are windows where windows shouldn't be, stairways like vertical mazes to secluded rooms, and views from rooms that look into other worlds entirely. Half of the appliances work without any source of electricity, fresh coffee's always waiting in the pot without anyone having to brew it, and the refrigerator never seems to run out of leftover pizza. Things are simply wrong about the place, for all the cozy warmth of its design.]

Comments

the handsome explorer and the dead guy he dug up.

[admemoriam]

[Noah stretches his toes out in the sand, and pops another piece of prosciutto into his mouth, catching it on his outstretched tongue.]

Okay, but- [He speaks around the mouthful. His eyes are lively and curious behind expensive tinted lenses.] -if I spat in it right here, how long would it take to get to Africa?

[He punctuates the question with a finger in the air, pointed at his boyfriend. It's the continuation of an increasingly unserious conversation, getting more and more so with each glass of cabernet.]

[disentombs]

[He laughs at Noah’s ridiculous question, but feigns pondering over it, swirling his wine around in his glass. His parents taught him that was supposed to release the aroma or something like that.

They had needed some time together, away from the Meadows, to spend with just each other, away from the heartbreak that permeated their home. So a date it was.]

Hmmm...well it wouldn’t all stay together, some of it would get there and some of it wouldn’t, though the more important question is, why would you subject the fish to that?

[admemoriam]

[As one can guess, Noah doesn't swill his, he just gulps it like a pleb.]

I don't know, you don't seem to have a problem with it.

[He leans over and waggles his wine-tinted tongue at Gansey's cheek.]

[disentombs]

I consented to it. The poor fish did not.

[Of course he has a wide grin on his face as he dodges Noah’s tongue. He takes a good sip of his wine before using his free hand to force Noah’s face to the side, so Gansey can plant a kiss on his cheek.]

[admemoriam]

I'll send them a waiver first.

[He leans into the cheek kiss, and as soon as it's over turns quickly to catch Gansey's lips. It's short and chaste, and a bit crooked from their wide grins.]

[disentombs]

[Gansey leans into the kiss, and when Noah pulls away, Gansey chases after, free hand reeling Noah again in close so Gansey can get one more. He lets go of Noah, heart full and allowing himself to be happy and satisfied. This, he's happy with this, beyond content.

Gansey sits back and takes another swig of his wine before just leaning back on his elbows on their blanket, soaking everything in.]

[admemoriam]

[Noah doesn't lay back, but he scoots until he's about level with Gansey again, wine only sloshing a bit in the move. There's no sunset to watch on the east coast, but they can see the clouds streaking pink overhead, reflecting the sunset in the west.

It's as much peace as they've had this year, getting gently drunk on a private slice of Florida beach.]

Man, how is it May already? [It hits him as he swallows down his next sip, looking down at his freckled feet.] I'm almost twenty.

[disentombs]

[If Gansey had the power to freeze time (for more than 3 minutes), he would do it right here, right now, with Noah, this sunset, this beach. He sticks his feet into the sand, cool underneath the initial top surface as he flips his sunglasses up to sit on top of his head now that it’s dark enough to see without them.

He’s pleasantly buzzed when he looks over at Noah and grins.]

Old, [he teases, reaching an arm out to pull him in close.]

Although I would guess that you would get carded longer than any of us.

[admemoriam]

[Noah smiles, wrinkling his nose, and leans over until their faces are just inches apart.]

I'm just fun-sized.

[disentombs]

To be fair, you would be fun-sized no matter how tall you are.

[Gansey closes the gap between them with a brief kiss.]

What do you plan on doing once you turn 20? [His alcohol-hazed mind shuffles through the list of privileges bestowed once one turns certain ages.]

I don’t think there’s anything new you’re allowed to do once you’re 20.

[admemoriam]

[Noah is flattered by his analysis, and grins into the kiss.]

I dunno. Nothing special, really. I was just thinking about, like... [He looks up at the clouds, tilting his head back.] I guess just doing some stuff that’s more grown-up. Like, less stupid stuff. More helping people.

[Theres a furtiveness in the way he glances down at Gansey, more anxitipatory than nervous.]

I’ve been talking to someone from the, um, the National Center for- [Hold on, he’s got this.] The National Center for Missing Kids. Missing and Exploited Kids, I mean. I’m going to start doing some stuff for them. Like, being a spokesperson.

[disentombs]

[His mild surprise shows on his face—he’s far more emotive when he’s drinking—but he breaks into another grin.]

That sounds marvelous. [Yes your boyfriend just said “marvelous”.

Noah, his sweet, happy-go-lucky, goofy Noah being able to relate to such an organization is a terrible reminder of everything that happened before—Before.

His heart swells with love for Noah, overcome suddenly by it as he leans over Noah and kisses him firmly. He pulls back an inch or two away from Noah’s mouth.]

I’m proud of you.

[admemoriam]

[Noah smiles, and finally leans back onto his elbows, copying Gansey’s repose.]

I want people to look up to me for the first reasons, not just because I can do skateboard tricks and shit.

[disentombs]

It’s admirable. Both your desire to help out and your skateboard tricks.

[He sits up and reaches behind the both of them towards the little basket they packed to pull out the second bottle of red wine he’s stashed. Uncorking it, he pours out another glass for himself and refills Noah’s cup without asking.]

[admemoriam]

Mmm. [Noah takes the cup happily, and pretends to waft it like a connoisseur.] I love you even more, now.

[disentombs]

[He laughs at Noah looking ridiculous.]

Because I refilled your glass?

[He takes a large drink of his newly filled glass.]

[admemoriam]

I like booze and I like you.

[He beams. The wine has left him a little purple mustache stain.]

[disentombs]

[Gansey swipes a thumb at the purple mustache and when it doesn't go away, he leans in to kiss Noah again.]

Something on your face, [he murmurs against Noah's lips when he pulls away a little.]

[admemoriam]

[Noah grins, and quickly chases his lips for another.

Something on your face.]

[disentombs]

[Quite the coincidence

And he gladly obliges Noah with more kisses, a hand reaching back to entwine his fingers into feather soft blonde hair.]

[admemoriam]

[Noah reaches out for the collar of Gansey's shirt and tugs him closer, partially over himself. His kisses are slow and languid, a little sloppy from all the wine, but deep and passionate nonetheless.

After a minute, however, he pulls back again.]

Hold on. [He lifts his glass again, and gulps down a fair amount of it.] Need to set this down.

[And he does, reaching over to set it on the charcuterie board now that it's less full. He wants both hands on his boyfriend, after all.]

[disentombs]

[He groans into the kiss, quite into Noah pulling him where he wants him. Gansey ducks down, capturing Noah's bottom lip and sucking gently.]