2021-11-14 - Cereal Conversations

Everyone needs milk, bread, and the like. Everyone ends up at the grocery store some time. This time, it's Isi. She's forsworn a push cart in favor of a hand basket. She stands before an array of cereals eyeing them. A sudden itch has her casting a look to each side - but with no one obvious in sight she takes a second to hike up the back of her shirt and scratch something on her backside. It's mostly modest in the front, nothing important uncovered.

Being another one of those that need to get his food, Jonathan is looking around at some of those shelves now. He's simply got a basket with him as well, partially filled with things. He steps around the shelves a bit slowly, in the direction of the cereals, although he's currently looking at a good old-fashioned list on a piece of paper in his hand, so he hasn't noticed anyone in particular present yet.

And that's when Turner rounds a corner and comes face to, er, rump... with Isi's momentarily bare bum. Luckily there's some distance granted by the shopping cart, which he quietly positions to give Isi some privacy, all while his heavily freckled cheeks redden. He turns his head to examine some cereals with sudden, supreme interest, and he suddenly finds himself wishing he could hide behind the thick curls that are currently barely tied back with a long suffering hairtie bought a while ago, when he had Much Less Hair. Because of course Isi would end up mooning the shyest, nerdiest librarian.

Isi hears the step of feet coming down her isle and yanks down her shirt abruptly, though one can tell by the way she wiggles that the itch has NOT been scratched. Turner's red face is super apparent because she cocks an eyebrow up - "What happened to your face?"

Hearing a voice, Jonathan looks up from his list, pausing momentarily as he looks between Isi and Turner, while moving over in their direction, since the one thing he's looking for happens to be right near where they are. But for now, he keeps quiet.

How did his blush get deeper? Between the freckles and the redness, he looks some sort of exotic fruit. "It... um... I have lentigines and ephelides, they're two different types of freckles?" he stammers, tucking a loose strand of curls behind his ear, "Lentigines don't respond to sun exposure and short of skin bleaching, which can be really harmful to the skin, or laser removal, which can cause more freckles or horrible scarring, they don't... they don't go away." Gosh, this cereal is super interesting. "I just... have to keep an eye on them for irregular shapes or redness. Which is difficult because..." He glances sidelong at Isi, holding up one freckled hand, "M-my whole body is like this. My sister has them too, I think?"

"M-my boyfriend likes them..."

Oh man it's hard. So hard. Something about the timid way the blusher talks just makes Isi want to sharpen her nails and dig in. But she controls herself. "You should see a doctor about that or something. Can't be healthy." Turning slightly she catches sight of Jonathan and raises an eyebrow with a little head jerk at Turner. Like 'can you believe this guy?!'.

Jonathan raises an eybrow as he listens, nodding a bit at Isi's words as he notices that look, glancing over at Turner now. "Probably a good idea," he offers, with a bit of a shrug. "Better safe than sorry, right?"

"Oh." Turner looks a little discouraged, but smiles, all the same. "I... I have. Several dermatologists, actually?" he tilts his head and smiles hesitantly at Isi, and Jonathan, both, "My Grams said they were fairy kisses when I was little, so I wouldn't be so self conscious about them..." he finally decides on a cereal, placing it in his cart with care. "It didn't work." he laughs, self deprecatingly, clearly aware of how awkward he looks.

He's wearing a dark blue knit jumper with planets and constellations as the design and new looking jeans, with a gold name tag pinned to the jumper that reads 'Gray Harbor Library' 'Turner'. He's like Ms. Frizzle's younger, gayer nephew, or something.

"I... I don't know if I should insult you or pat you gently and pray to the spirits you don't break." Isi says with a cascade of radical honesty. "Do you know this," Isi says with a glance at Jonathan, then back at the... kid? not a kid? ISI CAN NOT TELL GUYS, "Turner? Him? God how have you //survived in this town?"

"Ah, I see," Jonathan offers, before he pauses, "If who knows who?" he asks Isi, before he blinks a little as he hears the rest, looking between the two once more.

"You can insult me, if it helps you feel better about..." he glances down at Isi's skirt, with just a hint of a smile. "I'm a research librarian, b-but I help out in the kids' section a lot, so I'm used to tantrums. N-not a lot of call for my specialty." Did he just... throw shade? About as much shade as a single translucent flower petal on a summer day, but he threw shade! Somewhere, Grams Addison is smiling down on him.

"I mostly keep to myself? If you don't go looking for trouble T-they... don't notice you as much." Turner shrugs slightly, smiling at Jonathan with the sort of 'I know you, but I don't know you well' friendliness of a small town.

"About my dry ass vagina?" Isi asks, her face transforming from unsure of what the hell to do with Turner's personality to abject glee at the shade being thrown. THIS is comfortable territory. THIS is good. "If you're a researcher - how do you not go looking for trouble? It seems like the more you know the more shit gets thrown at you, at least that's the implication Ravn seems to give."

Jonathan's question has Isi tilting her head at Turner again. "Him. If he hadn't shown some backbone just then I was about to think he was one of those fear-bitches."

Jonathan chuckles, momentarily, although it's brief and with not too much humor. "Not as much, you say? I mean, everyone gets in trouble here, sadly." He nods a bit at Isi's words, "Ah, yes." He glances back towards the shelf, briefly, taking out some products and putting it in his basket. "What would you have done if you suspected him of being that? Throw canned goods for his head?" he offers a bit lightly to Isi.

The blush, which had been fading, is an almost palpable heat. Is he turning purple? "I was assuming winter dry skin!" Turner blurts out, and for a second it looks like he wants to bury his face in the cereal and hide. "I keep my nose in books. I d-don't go looking for trouble, after all. It does find me occasionally? Like the time I had to fight flying books to rescue my boyfriend from Alice in Wonderland... I was so conflicted."

"I w-would prefer no canned goods. I bruise like a peach... a-and with the freckles... and the blushing... I'm a-already half the rainbow... and I'm not one of Them."

"Please," Isi replies to Jonathan, shaking her head slowly. "I'm the opposite of a hero. I'll drop to the ground and find something to hide behind. Leave the heroics to someone else. I don't have anything close to a chainsaw this time." There's a half grin before Isi turns her attention back to Jonathan. "My skin's better at this than your pansy white ass. These were my ancestral lands before you all decided to come overun it."

Jonathan chuckles. "See, the first time... Wait, really the second time, since the first time was in one of those dreams, you know..." A brief pause as he grins again, "The first time in the proper world that she met me, she tried throwing a log or something at my head. Thankfully, I was able to duck." It's offered rather lightly, before he looks between the two of them.

"'I'm usually face down on the ground when there's a stampede.'" Turner quotes, moving down the aisle slightly to grab a box of cornbread mix. "M-my skin isn't d-decorating the tiles of the cereal aisle." Turner manages with a smile, growing a little more bold, his tone attempting playful.

"Don't th-throw logs at Mr. Wallgren's head."

Isi can't help the shiver that runs down her back. Of all the dreams, that one she met Jonathan in was the worst so far. "I see the shiny-ness now. I was new." That's Isi's defense for trying to brain Jonathan. "I'd heard from everyone else about their legitimacy, but no one seemed to have a contact with him."

A snort for Turner - "You get a back full of road rash from goblin children and tell me not to itch then."

Jonathan smiles, "It's okay, I've forgiven you," he offers to Isi, before he looks between the others again, keeping silent at the mention of road rash and itches and such.

"I can, um... help with that?" Turner offers Isi, completely clueless as to what it sounds like he's offering, now, as he ponders absently if he wants pancakes. For some reason, he's craving pancakes. The premade mix goes into his cart, too, with a little far away smile. He's probably picturing a scene of domestic bliss, but it makes him look like he's horny for pancakes.

"Help with what? Seeing shininess, knowing that Jonathan is a real person, not hitting him with logs or...?"

She's not being dense on purpose, seriously. Give her a few seconds....

"Oh! You mean my back? Fuck if you can make it stop itching I'll take my shirt off right now." Turner's gay-ness is completely on the record. "If you're cool with that?" Some small concession to Jonathan's comfort.

Jonathan is unable to hold back a brief grin as he listens, before he shrugs. "As long as it helps your back," he offers to Isi, glancing over to the shelves a bit absently, then back to the others.

"Y-your back. I'm good with... plants and healing and things. I get it from my Grams, I guess." Turner explains. He glances about the store, making sure none of the more mundane folk are watching... which is silly because they just brush it off, anyway. "I'll have to touch you, just for a second. It doesn't need to be skin to skin, though." He reaches out, a little hesitantly, resting his hand gently on Isi's shoulder. There's a sudden surge of energy from the librarian and it flows into Isi, along with the faint scent of green, growing things and spring, perhaps a peculiar manifestation of his Gift.

"It won't heal up instantly, but... it should speed things along, maybe help with scars."

As that sensation brushes through her Isi tries to catch a glance of her own back - failing totally to do so, because she's not an owl. Seeing as there is no need to remove her shirt she doesn't do so - but does reach up to touch it. "Huh - those places I scratched open sealed." Her hand drops out from her back and she shakes her head.

"So he heals, what is it you do again Jonathan?" Everyone has something weird,r ight? Even if it's just a super brain like RAvn.

"I think I can manage to make some things move, every now and then," Jonathan replies, letting out a bit of a sigh. "I was trying to learn more about those abilities back before..." He trails off, shaking his head momentarily. "Nevermind."

"I'm actually, um... Someone called me a 'tribrid'. Which isn't very accurate, as three or more would still be..." he trails off. Control the nerding. Control the nerding. "I try not to use them, much. It attracts Their attention more, but... if someone's suffering I try to help, and... keeping my garden looking nice is a good thing too." Turner shrugs a little, "If anybody's ever really hurt, I'll try to help out. I'm usually, um... at the library? And they know sometimes I need to go... help at the hospital for a little bit... or... help with first aid..."

"What about you? What do you do?" Turner asks Isi, giving Jonathan a sympathetic look.

IF Turner would talk about math, Isi could keep up with him there. But alas. To Jonathan, "Before what?"

She shrugs a shoulder. "Not much -but I'm not sure I want to do much either. Duck and run for me like I said." She makes an abrupt decision on cereal. Yes, it is something with more sugar than substance. Captain Crunch is good at any age OKAY!?

It gets tossed into her hand basket and she hoists it. "I should keep shopping - I'll see you both around at - Wait, do either of you know a guy called Alexander?" Yes, random change of topic. "Has a hissy fit if anyone tries to shorten their name?"

Jonathan frowns, expression a bit distant for a while, perhaps even a bit pained. "Someone... left," he replies, after a few moments, before he nods a little at the mention of Alexander. "I do. He's a... I know him. Good guy, once you get to know him."

"Mr. Clayton? I know him. He does a lot of research..." Turner hesitates, "He's... very into true crime. Researching it, I mean. Not so much with doing it. I think." Turner smiles, fondly, the way one might smile about the weird uncle who spews conspiracy theories at Thanksgiving but isn't a racist dirtbag at the same time.

"I'm sorry someone left... if you want to learn more, I'm sure there are people who are good teachers in town. I could put word out if you'd like?" Turner doesn't offer to teach, however, because teaching means drawing more attention. And Turner is Mousy.

"He seems like an asshole to me." Isi replies, so much doubt all over their expression that he might be a good guy.

"Tough luck on that." Isi says with gruff sympathy. She's not much into feelings.

"Let's just say that Alexander Clayton is an acquired taste?" Jonbathan replies, before he lets out a bit of a breath at Turner's words. "I'll... think about it," he replies, with a brief smile.

"N-not everyone has the capacity for s-social skills." Turner points out, gently. "Sensory processing disorders, a-anxiety," Turner clearly knows about that one, "an inability to... connect with peers. I see it a lot at the library." He smiles, softly, as he adds syrup to his cart. "We live in a world that d-doesn't make sense. Some people act abrasive because they're af-fraid to let people close." That last is said with the slightest eyebrow quirk to Isi. Turner smiles at Jonathan, again, sympathetically.

Well, that last bit from Turner is just going to hit WAY TOO CLOSE OKAY. So Isi snorts in an overly aggressive way and tosses a bit of escaped hair back over her shoulder. "And some people are just assholes. It isn't too complicated. I need milk - see you." And she is OFF. No more astute observations kthanks.

Jonathan shrugs as he listens. "Hmmm..." he offers, right after Isi heads off, before looking to his basket again. "I should probably get going too. Need sa few more things now. It was nice to meet you," he offers, before he starts moving further along the store.

With Isi heading off, and then Jonathan, Turner shifts his attention back toward getting his groceries for the week, smiling just a little at the weirdness that is this town.