Log: When I Was a Boy - September 25, 2004

Goblin Fruit -- Main Room

With its mural-covered walls, multiple bulletin boards and esoteric smoothie menu -- whoever heard of a cactus and mulberry smoothie? -- stepping into Goblin Fruit can seem a little bit like taking a wrong turn into a painting by a particularly quixotic children's author. The floor is brown tile blunted with rugs patterned in fallen leaves; they edge up against the ferns painted on the walls, creating the illusion that there's no actual distinction between the two. The chairs and tables are a mis-matched assortment, mixing wicker, painted wood and plastic. There are even a few comfy chairs and loveseats around the outside of the room.

The counter itself is either a work of art or the testimony to someone with a modicum of wood-carving skill getting really, really bored one day; it seems to have grown organically up out of the earth, shaped like a particularly twisted tree, with roots that run around the baseboards and branches reaching up to provide support for dangling menus, plants and baskets of fruit. And of course, there are the creatures: small tanks and terrariums are scattered all around the room, holding small reptiles and amphibians, as well as a few exotic bugs. The lighting is smooth and even, and the piped-in music is generally non-obtrusive -- folk or quiet Celtic.

Contents: Jan, Monica, Li Qin, Matt

Jan nods. "Cuddly baby dinos, yay." She reaches for her smoothie, finally taking a long sip.

Li Qin mmms. "This is true. As long as the lizard instinct to nibble on the insect doesn't kick in, sure."

Matt steps inside, then towards the counter. Smoothie first, then see who's here.

Monica foils Matt by spotting him and waving. "Hey, you!"

Jan looks over at Monica's wave, blinks, and waves in turn before noting, towards Li, "Velociraptors. We'd be in danger if you were, y'know, a cow. Cricket, not so much."

Matt glances over his shoulder after giving his order. Then Monica gets an easy smile and a wave, as does Jan and Li.

Li Qin blinks at Jan. "What about the baby raptors?" She too waves at Matt. Surf's up, apparently.

Jan replies serenely, "Lizards and guinea pigs."

"I once had a guinea pig named Frank," Monica announces.

Li Qin aaahs, and sighs. "Little lizards, just like the Incans you are."

Jan points out, "Dinos, warm-blooded, more like birds."

Li Qin blinks at Jan, then smiles a little. "Bad with the science I am. Forgive me?"

Matt gets his smoothie, then makes his way over to the trio of women, "Is this another discussion of Jurassic park?"

"I blame the early paleontologists for the terrible lizard shit," Monica remarks.

Jan shakes her head. "Nope. Planning to grow dinosaurs. Or maybe giant flowers that eat dogs, I haven't decided yet."

Matt blinks slowly at Jan, "I see. Why?"

Jan blinks back. "Why not?"

Li Qin blinks slowly as well. "Don't you -have- giant flowers that will eat dogs?"

Monica chirps to Matt, "For fun!"

Jan shakes her head. "Flytraps. Not quite the same. Also, they don't like eating dogs; dogs don't taste good."

Li Qin aahs. "I see. Sorry, should have been clearer." She grins, and sips from her smoothie.

Matt ahs and shakes his head. "No, I do not have carnivorous flowers."

Monica happily sucks on her smoothie, swinging her legs. La la la.

Jan kisses Li's temple, lightly. "No need for sorry." Looking towards Matt, she chirps, "Like, hi. How is?"

Matt nods, "Hello. I am well, and you?"

Li Qin smiles briefly at Jan, then wiggles her fingers at Matt. "I just hate music at the moment, personally."

"Yeah, about that... holy fucking suck," Monica notes.

Jan shrugs. "It could be worse. I don't see how, just now, but."

Li Qin looks over at Jan, and asks, "We could burst into flame when we're done?"

Matt ohs and nods, "Yes, I had my first experience the other day."

Monica peers at Matt. "Ohhh. You sang?"

Jan blinks. "Yeah. That would suck _even more_."

Matt shakes his head slightly, "It was Mister Zorbas and Miss Crawford." He pauses for a few moments, "I was the back up singer."

"Spontaneous combustion is only fun for the Human Torch," Monica says with a sigh.

Li Qin arches a brow. "Penelope and Jimmy. Do we want to ask -what- they sang about?"

Matt considers for a moment, "He sang about responsibility, about playing the game and not being a normal boy, and he asked Miss Crawford if that's what happened to her." After a sip of his smoothie, "I'm afraid I don't remember her reply. I blocked out the whole memory as being something quite traumatic."

Li Qin arches a brow slightly, then nods slowly and offers a tiny smile as she sips from her smoothie. "Fair enough."

Monica grins. "Huh. That fucking good, huh?"

Jan shakes her head. "Mostly I've been in the presence of singers that didn't make me want to put my eardrums out with nails. Luckily."

Matt shakes his head slightly, "I do not sing."

Monica shrugs. "I haven't yet. Unless you count the Chiquita Banana song, but I'm pretty sure that was all me."

As if to belie that, of course, a piano starts up. Just a piano, slow and the music seems sad, and Matt begins to sing (his voice isn't /bad/, just not practiced at all):

"When I was a boy, I wanted nothing more,
than to grow up big and strong.
When I was a boy, I wanted nothing more,
than to be just and smite wrong.
When I was a boy, I wanted nothing more,
than to be the hero of all.
When I was a boy, I wanted nothing more,
than to save the weak and small."

Matt sighs heavily, giving the three an apologetic look. But hey, he can't stop the song.

Monica blinks. "Ohshit," she murmurs.

Jan asides, quietly, "This is why you don't say you don't sing."

Li Qin winces a little, then offers Matt a tiny, sympathetic smile before she props her chin up on one hand and watches him, listening intently.

Matt nods at Jan and shrugs, but rather than answer, continues with the song,

"Now I am a knight, full of might,
big and strong, just and I smite the wrong,
and yet..."

He trails off and the piano plays again, a little slower, sadder.

"I have come to regret, under every full moon
a potion I must down, full of my blood and sweat.
Else I begin to tremble, my legs to knock and shake,
My eyes blur and ache, and so I dissemble.

Every day is a fight, to stave off another night,
of fear and frustration. One more chance this day,
to find the Grail and say, 'This is my salvation.'"

Another little interlude, mood descending further,

"When I was a boy, I wanted nothing more
than to grow up big and strong."

The music fades, and he's done. Short, but the damage is done.

Jan winces, and says quietly, "Sorry, Matt."

Matt shakes his head and starts to say something, but ends up shrugging slightly.

Monica sighs, putting down her drink and getting up to walk over to Matt and try to hug him. Oddly enough.

Li Qin simply sighs, and shakes her head a little before she looks over at Jan and says quietly, "Whenever you and Miles and maybe Theresa want to pile into Sciences? Tell me. I'll be there with bells on."

Matt doesn't turn away from the hug, as he's still getting used to the idea that one shouldn't spurn them. He smiles at Monica, "Thank you, Miss Lane. Now you understand more, about the other night."

Monica murmurs. "Yeah. I gathered." She hugs Matt briefly, pats his back, and releases.

Jan nods to Li. "I need to get the flute from Ryan. Then we can move."

Li Qin nods. "Just...wanted to make sure, since I hadn't had chance to answer mail."

Monica makes an inquisitive noise. "Muh? Flute?"

Jan nods. "Tres cool." She glances to Monica, and says, "We may have found the deely-bopper that started this. We're not sure yet."

Monica blinks. "Holy shit! Awesome. Can I do anything? Can I look at it? I wonder if I could reverse engineer it and oooooh."

Matt points out, "You can't hide the secrets again."

Monica nods to Matt. "Nope. Wasn't thinking of it."

Jan replies, "Not yet, not yet, dunno if that would be a good idea. I don't know what can be done, I don't have it to display, and I'd rather we didn't poke it more than we have to until we have more data. Which means, in this case, seers first."

Monica's head bobs. "Makes sense."

Li Qin smiles faintly. "Lucky us. If we're truly special, it'll blow up in our faces."

Jan leans over and kisses Li on the cheek. "I'll clone you a new body."

Matt sips his smoothie. "I'd offer to help, but I do not think in this case there is anything to beat up."

Monica winces a little at Li. "Fuck."

Li Qin smiles quickly at Jan. "You just want me to look like Lucy Liu in a bikini. Not that I'd complain exactly."

Jan blinks. "Why? You're cuter." Looking to Matt, she shakes her head. "Not yet."

Matt nods at Jan, then continues to sip at his drink.

Li Qin sticks her tongue out at Jan, then smiles reassuringly at Monica. "These are the hazards of our times."

"Yeah, with the getting blown up. I am familiar with this hazard," Monica replies.

Jan nods. "Explosions are like...an industrial danger."

Li Qin grins quickly. "It's why I properly flush my eyes out after every experiment."

"Lead shields are our friends." Monica sucks down more bright blue smoothie.

Jan sighs, looking mournful as she says, "Unlike asbestos. That two-timing bitch."

Li Qin mmmms. "Depends. If you lick the lead shield, it's not so much your friend anymore."

"Well, you shouldn't lick the lead shie... yeah." Monica flashes a grin at Li.

Jan nods. "True. I totally don't want mutant babies."

Li Qin blinks over at Jan. "Not even, like, if they came out like Nightcrawler?"

Monica oooohs. "Nightcrawler!"

Jan sniffs. "I'd bang Nocturne. So would you."

Li Qin sighs happily. "Repeatedly?"

Matt blinks at this slowly. Way and far beyond his ken.

Jan nods. "Of course." She asides to Matt, "Smile, nod, don't think about it."

Matt nods, even attempts a smile, "Yes, Miss."

"He's blue and he smells like rotten eggs when he teleports," Monica enthuses.

Li Qin shrugs. "Or think about it, just don't tell us about it?"

Jan leans over to kiss Li on the cheek. "Fair."

Li Qin grins at Jan. "Just as long as we're clear on the mutant children issue."

Matt does that nod and smile thing again. He's not very good at it.

Monica grins. "I love Nightcrawler."

Jan nods. "Caught that."

Monica wriggles her toes in her shoes. "Yeaaaaaah. Though I'm supposed to love Forge more now."

Matt asks politely, knowing nothing of the X-Men, "Why?"

Li Qin tilts her head curiously, but sips her smoothie rather than saying anything at the moment.

"Oh, 'cause Calvin's kind of like Forge and he's going to make himself a new cybernetic leg and shit," Monica replies.

Jan shrugs. "I like lots of X-Men. Like the Stepford Cuckoos? Oh, _mama_."

Li Qin giggles at Jan. "I'm glad I have some idea of what you're talking about these days. Just the three, or do you want all five at once plus Emma Frost?"

Jan blinks. "I'm sorry. You just turned my brain _off_."

"I dunno them," Monica admits. "I haven't been keeping up."

Matt ohs, "I see. I'm afraid I have only watched Electric Knights lately."

Jan beams. "Still, EK, very cool."

Li Qin looks sheepishly at Jan. "Sorry."

"Electric Knights, very cool. And creepy. Creeptastic." Monica sucks on her smoothie.

Li Qin tilts her head. "Creepy?"

Matt nods, answering Jan, "Yes, but I am afraid I am beginning to become too involved with it."

Monica nods to Li. "Yeah. With the thing where it mirrors us or we mirror it and somebody's trying to make a perfect rose out of everyone to change everything."

Jan blinks. "I...don't think they're trying to make a rose out of EK, Monica. You just totally lost me."

Li Qin blinks at Monica slowly, one brow arching as her antenna wiggles.

Monica sucks on her straw. "Nevermind."

Jan asks, "No, really. What were you saying there? I'm curious and confused.

Matt glances to Monica, almost sympathetic.

Monica sighs. "Just that... the thing. With the show. Like we have these... variations on us all and someone's out there /tweaking/ it all to an end I can't figure out." She glances over at Matt. "Changing it so that they can create some kind of perfection." She looks over at Li and shrugs. "Like the gardener growing a perfect rose, trying to get all the angles right or something. Something's all fucked up out there, and I *know* I sound crazy, but... I can't really pretend I don't think it anymore."

Jan shakes her head. "See, I don't think EK is tweaking us. I don't think EK _can_ tweak us, because it's almost always after the fact, except for with this music. If anything, I think it's warning us."

Matt asks, "Of?"

"Of things to come," Monica suggests. "That could be it, too."

Jan shrugs. "Or maybe of what's already happened."

Monica bites her bottom lip. "Yeah. In any case? Creepy."

Li Qin frowns faintly, but stays quiet. She simply finishes off her smoothie, then pushes the empty cup over to the side.

Jan nods. "I will _definitely_ give you creepy."

Matt notes, "But before, the episodes before happened just after things here happened. This is the first time that the show happened first. Could it be that the first episodes were a - demonstration? And now, they've become a warning? If so, how do we know what the 'right' thing is? Who is to say that those behind the cartoon are good or bad?"

Monica shakes her head. "Well, the stories aren't new, really. I mean, it's the players that are familiar, but there's been blue-haired people who were the last of royal lines seeking out something that'll save their kingdom before and stuff."

Jan shakes her head. "I don't think there's any danger in the cartoon. I trust Devlin. He'd tell us if there was danger there. And yeah, this time, the cartoon happened first, but the thing that caused it was already loose. It doesn't seem like a demonstration to me. More like 'look, this is how it goes, pay attention'. Or I could be insane. Dunno." She rises, stretching languidly.

Matt nods at Jan. He does say, "It is troubling. In any case, I must be going. Miss O'Leary, Miss Zhou, Miss Lane, it was ever a pleasure to see you."

Li Qin peers up at Matt, then at Jan, and says softly, "A pleasure, Mr. Anderson, as always of course."

Monica smiles at little at Matt. "See you later. We still gotta talk about that shit."

Matt smiles at Monica, "But of course." With a little bow, he and his smoothie depart for regions unknown.