[ SEMI-OPEN ]

[ct_7567]

WHO: Those who have been invited & anyone who would have a reason to visit Maurtia Falls #010! Wondering if you fit into that category? Just contact anyone with an involved character (Andy; Rex; Martin; Cassandra Igarashi; Dio; Archie) and ask!
WHERE: Maurtia Falls #010
WHEN: TONIGHT? TONIGHT.
WHAT: The soldierfam has decided that regular group dinners are good for Martin, and this time they've got a few party crashers!
WARNINGS: None anticipated; will change if necessary!



At a glance, one could easily mistake Maurtia Falls #010 for being entirely uninhabited. Dio rarely returns home and Rex and Marty only have a handful of belongings between the two of them and Rex is meticulously tidy, returning everything to exactly where it ought to be - if anything, it's Andy who makes the biggest mess around the place, and she doesn't even live here.

Despite every sign to the contrary, however, they do live here, and it winds up being a hub of activity whenever one of Martin's guardians - if that's truly what they can call themselves - decides that it's about time to get everyone together for dinner. In Anderson's absence, Rex has taken on the opinion that cooking can't be that hard, which is how they wind up with one window open, a casserole dish burned black soaking in the sink and an assortment of take-out on the table.

(As it turns out, it is that hard - and he found a combination pizza & Chinese food take-out place, whiich means that it can only be better.)

In all, there's not much to do or see here; there's food, Rex the goldfish in his tank, a soccer ball neatly tucked close to the house in the backyard, and a mysterious shelf called "Martin's Things" in the cupboard. Otherwise, you're stuck with nothing more than some potential awkward conversation. Have fun, kids!

Comments

[darkov]

"Right now?" he echoes, doubtful. "You mean...aside from, from talking? And dinner? I--I don't know. I mean, I...I usually just want to stay out of the way, but...but this isn't...appropriate for that."

[yol8]

"Yeah, I mean right now. Look, Archie is talking to Andy. Cass is talking to Rex. Everyone's already got food. So if what you want to do right now is go outside and chill the fuck-" WAIT HE ISN'T SUPPOSED TO SWEAR IN FRONT OF KIDS?? "...Chill out, I'm not gonna stop you."

[darkov]

He's safe, being out of anyone's earshot who actually cares about propriety; and for Martin's part? The swears mean little to him. Either way, he's left to looking about, confirming it is as Dio says.

"It's strange..." He says it absently, more a thought than a statement. "Archie says that...that I did this. I mean-- I'm why...it's happening, I didn't actually do anything."

[yol8]

"Yeah, he's right." Dionysus shrugs. "We're here for you. You don't have to do anything for it, really. We just like all being around you, and I guess Rex figured we should all be friends too."

And then lower, more conspiratory tone: "I think Rex also wants to make friends, and he thinks that if you're friends with them, he'll like them too."

[darkov]

Martin's eyebrows raise.

"Really?" He searches around until he fixes back on Rex and Cassandra. His stomach does a small flip. He wouldn't presume he's a friend to Cass, especially with how talking to her seems to really get under her skin. "I...I thought it was just to make sure...no one else was going to try to, uh. Kill me."

His voice flattens with guilt, and he gulps.

[yol8]

If Martin's worried about saying the wrong thing, it's literally impossible to, and Dionysus' smile is just the same small relaxed one he's had for a majority of the conversation. Like a chill dude who just can't be unchilled.

"I mean, maybe that too. I don't really know how soldiers minds work. But I'm pretty sure even in the mind of a guy like Rex, inviting someone over for dinner is less a 'I think you're a threat' and more like a 'let's get to know you better.'"

[darkov]

"Oh." He scratches at his cheek, sheepish. "Sorry...I guess that was a stupid thing to think."

[yol8]

"Hey actually, can you do something for me? It'll be easy, I promise."

[darkov]

He sits up straighter, blinking. "Ye-yes?"

[yol8]

"Don't call yourself stupid, okay? You're not."

[darkov]

Martin flushes red, head dipping down.

"Sorry...um. Sorry."

[yol8]

"No, it's- it's okay, Martin. But the more someone calls you something, then you start saying it yourself- then the more you start to believe it. It's a slippery slope. Just give it a try, okay?"

[darkov]

He scratches at his elbow -- a nervous habit.

"Yes, sir," he utters. "I-I only mean...I, I just don't know any better. Sorry."

As far as the question of him wanting to do something? He'd love to slink away and be erased from recent memory.

[yol8]

Yeah, this was going to be a bit of a tough one. But he might know where to go from here with this...

"Thanks- Marty? Or do you prefer Martin?"

[darkov]

He tilts his head a little and peeks Dio's way.

"Either is fine," he says. "I mean...Archie sometimes calls me Marty."

[yol8]

"And you don't hate it when he says that, right?"

[darkov]

He shakes his head. "No, sir. I don't mind. Some of my cousins back home called me that."

[yol8]

"Okay, cool. Marty it is. And I'm Dio." Not 'sir.'

To which Dionysus pauses, and then leans in to whisper a bit.

"Actually, I'm going to tell you a secret. My real name's Umar."

[darkov]

After instinctively leaning away, Martin blinks, then leans back in, confused.

"Your real name?" he echoes. "You have more than one kind of name? Why?"

[yol8]

"Yeah, that's my human name. The name my parents gave me. But Dionysus is what I go by now."

[darkov]

Human name? Versus what? Martin frowns, squinting at him.

"Why?"

It's blunt, but honest.

[yol8]

"Kinda a part of becoming a God thing." A shrug. "Everyone just goes by their new reincarnated name."

[darkov]

A god? His expression scrunches for a beat.

"So you're like Yato? You, uh...grant wishes for people?" That's all he knows what 'god' means.

[yol8]

"Oh, you know Yato too!" A beat. "Wait, he's a God? I had no idea! He's going to hand out fliers for me?!"

[darkov]

"Uh--?" Baffled, Martin leans away, blinking. "I, I don't know. He...he said he does work for humans as a, uh, a job. That's what gods are for? I think. I don't know."