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ysabetwordsmithThis poem is spillover from the May 7, 2024 Poetry Fishbowl. It was inspired by a prompt from rix_scaedu. It also fills the "March 25 Tolkien Reading Day" square in my 3-1-23: card for the March Is... Bingo fest, and the "Found Family" square in my 5-1-24 card for the Superhero Bingo fest. This poem has been sponsored by fuzzyred. It belongs to the Shiv thread of the Polychrome Heroics series.
Warning: This poem contains intense and controversial topics. Highlight to read the more detailed warnings, some of which are spoilers. It includes boredom, emotional upheavals, because the inside of Shiv's head is always a warning, because surprise, reconnecting with a lost family member, reference to past separation due to foster care interference, self-blame, miscommunication due to malicious sabotage, Nebraska's Family Services is a pack of abusive liars with a special hate-on for Shiv, rude language, mixed feelings, awkwardness, trust issues, past educational abuse, fraught educational issues, intrapersonal dissonance, financial revenge, and other challenges. Despite the emotional tensions, it's actually pretty upbeat overall, and it ends on a hopeful note. If these are touchy topics for you, please consider your tastes and headspace before reading onward. This is a key point in ongoing story arcs, so skipping it would leave a big gap. It comes after "The Hope and Freedom You Exude" and while they're not directly connected, they do relate to the same path.
"From the Ashes a Fire Shall Be Woken"
[Wednesday, July 6, 2016]
The middle of the week ran slow
at Blues Moon, and Shiv was bored.
He had already hit the truck stands
that he knew about, and it was too early
for the afternoon farmer's market that
ran at the Charles Drew Health Center.
He wanted something fun and relaxing
to do, so he checked his schedule and
found a meeting of the Mind & Craft Club
at the University of Nebraska-Omaha.
That was worth swinging by, because
with classes starting toward the end
of August, there would be flyers up for
all kinds of extracurricular arts and crafts.
Shiv might not care much for school itself,
but he was developing a taste for some of
the snazzy art workshops on campus.
The university drew in a wide variety
of artists and crafters from all around
the Greater Omaha Area, so you never
knew who'd show up at a given event.
Mind & Craft was a fibercraft club --
mostly just knitting and crochet, but
sometimes folks brought needlework
or tatting and once even bobbin lace.
It was supposed to be meditative
more than fancy patterns, but people
varied as to what they considered easy.
Someone could be doing granny squares
next to Shiv's hyperbolic pseudospheres, and
on his other side was five-strand cableknit.
He caught a bus to campus, then started
walking toward the building with the meeting.
It was less busy in the middle of summer,
but there were still some students going to or
from classes, and kids for special programs.
The grounds were beautiful, with flowers
spilling out of beds and big concrete pots.
"Hugo?" someone said, sounding startled.
The name was right, but the voice and
the context around it were all wrong.
Shiv jumped and spun like a cat,
looking wildly to see who called him.
The young man was fair and slim,
with wild chestnut curls to his shoulders,
a faint scruff of beard edging his chin,
and round wire-rimmed glasses that
that made his brown eyes look bigger.
Something about him seemed ...
almost familiar, if too tall and
too well put together, but wind
back to someone smaller and
scruffier and it was just like ...
"Arthur?" Shiv breathed.
"Yeah, it's me," he said,
lips curling up in a shy smile.
"Never thought I'd see you again,
but now that you're here, damn it
feels good to find you," Shiv said.
"From the ashes a fire shall be woken,
A light from the shadows shall spring,"
Arthur recited in his warm, soft voice.
"Renewed shall be blade that was broken,
The crownless again shall be king,"
Shiv finished from long memory.
"You do remember," Arthur said.
"I wasn't sure anything would stick."
"You read that stuff often enough,
something was bound to, even
after all this time," Shiv replied.
"I guess it has been a long time,"
Arthur said, his face falling.
It had been years, since
the people movers had
split them up because
Shiv fucked up again.
"Too damn long,"
Shiv said, "but I
guess I can't blame
you for getting sick
of me, I'm an asshole."
"What? No!" said Arthur.
"We thought you didn't want
anything more to do with us,
since you never filed paperwork.
After you would've turned eighteen,
we looked anyway, outside the system."
"Yeah, the system," Shiv said sourly.
"They never filed Want Contact forms
for me, whether I wrote 'em or anyone
else did. Fuckers didn't believe that
anyone might actually like me."
"Bastards," Arthur snarled, and
the tone reminded Shiv why he was
one kid nobody wanted to jerk with.
"We ought to sue their heads off."
"Not my style." Shiv shook his head.
"I want nothing to do with that shit."
"I could tell my parents," said Arthur.
"The Atwoods have adopted me."
"If you're really into that, you could
join the family effort," Shiv said.
"I kinda found my own too."
"Yes, please," said Arthur.
"I'll take whatever I can get."
Shiv fished out a business card
for Soup to Nuts. "Call here, ask
for Dr. G, and have him tell you ...
well, whatever he thinks you need
to know about me." He heaved a sigh.
"The password is 'Fucksake, doc, I'm
never gonna need a password for that'."
"And he accepted that one?" Arthur said.
"Yeah, well, he knows me," Shiv said. He
huffed. "Better'n I know myself, sometimes.
Tell him what happened with Family Services
and he'll be happy to stomp them. Again."
Arthur cocked his head. "Is he behind
some of the shakeups in recent years?"
"Oh yeah," Shiv said. "He's ripped 'em up
at least twice, just the major times, and
probably more little stuff in between.
I try not to pay too close attention."
"That sounds gratifying," Arthur said,
baring his teeth in what looked
very little like a smile. "I'll get
to work on this later tonight."
"Happy hunting," Shiv said.
Then he sighed. Arthur
looked so fluffy and scruffy
and Shiv kind of wanted
to rub up against him but
most folks got weird when
he did that sort of thing.
"I missed you," Arthur said,
and tilted his hands outward.
Shiv stepped into him, not
caring if it got him grabbed.
He leaned against Arthur and
put his head on his shoulder,
breathing in a woodsy-spicy scent
that went right to memory, like how
quilts smelled when you took them
out of the storage trunk in autumn.
Arthur didn't grab him, just ghosted
his hands along Shiv's arms and back.
It was ... nice. Shiv didn't even
bother trying to count potatoes.
Eventually they stepped apart.
"So uh, you doing anything?"
Shiv said awkwardly. "I mean,
what brought you here? I don't
want to make you late for anything."
"I was heading to Mind & Craft,"
said Arthur. "Nothing I can't skip."
"Huh, me too, I like that club,"
said Shiv. "But I'd rather spend
the time catching up with you."
Arthur tossed his head. "C'mon,
I know a place right near here
where we can sit and talk. Hardly
anyone goes there except staff."
He led the way between two
of the old brick buildings, and
suddenly there was a tiny garden.
It was dim and cool, a welcome relief
from the heat of the summer day,
with a sunbeam slanting down
to touch the lefthand wall.
The ground was paved with
worn slate flagstones. The cracks
between them had filled in with
tiny leaves and occasional flowers
spilling over the edges of the stones.
Some of the bushes and other plants
grew from beds against the walls, while
others stood in pots of plastic or ceramic.
Volunteer ferns sprigged out here and there.
Dense vines covered much of the walls, but
in several places volunteer sumac trees
hugged the bricks, reaching for the sun.
An ornate wrought-iron fire escape
spiraled up from one corner, and
a sculpture of metal hoops stood
on a table in the other. In between,
a birdbath fountain bubbled cheerfully.
More small tables held potted plants,
and outdoor chairs offered a place to sit.
"How's come the back end is all lattice?"
Shiv wondered. "I can see light through it."
"I don't know," said Arthur. "Many of
these old buildings have been renovated
to the point that there are some odd bits
left over. It might have started out as
a porch or a lobby entry once, or even
a passageway between buildings. Now
I think it's used to store garden tools."
"That is weird, but I kinda like it, and
all the metalwork," said Shiv. He let
his superpower play over the iron,
but took care not to change anything.
"I like this place because it's quiet and
peaceful," said Arthur. "The gardeners
move plants back here if they're getting
sunburned. I think the ones with green
and white leaves are hostas, they need
shade. I'm not sure of the white flowers."
"Strange that more people haven't found
a nice hidey-hole like this," Shiv said.
Arthur chuckled. "Oh, there's plenty
of other options," he said. "Campus is
full of curious little nooks and crannies."
"Yeah?" Shiv said. "Sounds interesting."
Also convenient if he needed to hide.
"Some are deliberate gardens, others
just adopted by whomever wants them,
or let run to weeds," said Arthur. "I know
of one with brick circles on the pavement,
and they're echoed in round bushes and
white hydrangea flowers. Even the table
and the wicker chairs there are round."
Shiv sat down and stretched out his legs,
letting his heels rest on the green stuff.
Arthur promptly did the same, tangling
their feet together like they had as boys.
It reminded Shiv of how Drew and Aida
would snuggle, because Aida was
about as uncuddly as Shiv but she
and her brother were still close.
He liked just sitting here, in
the cool shady garden, with
Arthur, enjoying the contact.
"So uh ... what've you been
doing?" Shiv asked eventually.
"I mean, if you're in college, then
you must be studying something?"
"I tested out of almost all the basics,"
said Arthur. "So I'm majoring in English
with concentrations in Language Studies
and in British/Irish/Anglophone Literature
plus three minors in Creative Writing, in Art,
and in Nebraska and Great Plains Studies."
"That's batshit," said Shiv. "You know
that's a crazy amount of work, right?"
Arthur just shrugged. "I have room
to take whatever classes I want, but
trying to pick random ones gave me
a headache," he said. "So I sorted out
subjects that I liked and found programs.
Plus these tend to have summer classes,
and I like taking some fun stuff then."
"Yeah, like what?" Shiv wondered.
"You said you came here today
for a club rather than a class."
"They kind of blur together
sometimes," said Arthur. "In
June I did a two-week session
of the Adventure Archery Course.
This month is Fantasy Camp, which
can be anything from art to writing
to costuming, hence the club overlap.
August I've got another two weeks
marked for Wilderness First Aid."
"That's dead useful," said Shiv.
"I know a guy in Lincoln who took
Wilderness First Aid and that's
great for street fights and shit.
I'm glad somebody else is doing
that, 'cause I don't work on people."
"Well, I was hoping to use it more
for camping, but you're not wrong,"
said Arthur. "So what about you?"
"I work at Blues Moon, it's a jazz joint.
I'm learning to play the saxophone,"
said Shiv. He skipped the gang part.
"I do a lot of art, some networking ..."
"Oh yeah?" Arthur replied, brightening.
"You always made great art, I don't
care what the people movers said."
"I do a lot with creme pastels and
pretty much anything made by Paletta,"
said Shiv. "Also metal work and glass,
occasionally stone -- anything hard, really."
"That sounds so cool," Arthur said.
"I'd love to see your work sometime."
"I got plenty of pictures," Shiv said,
pulling out his smartphone. "These
are some of the more recent ones."
He passed the phone to Arthur,
who happily scrolled through images
of sketches, paintings, and graffiti.
"You've gotten amazingly good
at this stuff," said Arthur. "I love
all the pictures of the buffalo. You
mentioned metal and glass, though,
and I don't see any of those here."
"Different files," Shiv said with
a shrug. "I show flat ones more."
"I'd still like to see the rest, if you
don't mind sharing," said Arthur.
"I remember how good you were
with the pipecleaner sculptures."
Shiv gave him a sidelong glance.
"If I show you something, will you
promise not to freak out about it?"
"Sure, I trust you," Arthur said easily,
and wasn't that nerve-wracking.
Shiv pulled out his play-putty
and set it dancing in the air
above his hand, twisting and
turning through different shapes.
"Oh, gods!" Arthur exclaimed.
"Hugo, you're a wizard."
"No, that's Antimatter,"
Shiv said absently, and
then, "Shit. I hadn't meant
to mention any of that."
"You ... you actually know
the supervillain-slash-superhero
running around our city?" Arthur said,
staring at him. "That's really something."
Shiv sighed. "I know him and Stalwart Stan
both," he admitted. "It's kind of a long story."
"Yeah, I'll bet," said Arthur. "Okay, I can
tell it's a touchy topic. Go back to the art."
"This summer I got a place at Hanson Hall,"
said Shiv. "I love it there. I've got plenty
of room to work and store my supplies. I
joined a charity that does live animal models.
There's other classes and stuff, but I still
like to catch ones on campus too."
"I thought that you hated school,"
said Arthur. "Glad you got over it.
You should think about coming to
college officially, if you're already
taking classes here. You might
as well get the actual credit for it."
"I'm not over it," Shiv protested.
"I just ... it's different when people
are showing something I enjoy.
Like this one I caught at the library,
it was all crochet and fancy math.
You'd think it was crazy complicated
to make, but it's not, it's just increases.
You can literally do it all with one stitch."
"It is different," Arthur agreed. "That's
why I took all the pretests that I thought
I had a chance at winning, so it knocked off
most of the basic classes. I can take stuff
that I don't already know and want to explore.
So what've you found here that's fun?"
"This and that," Shiv said. "There's
a bunch of good painting classes.
I mean, some have been as bad
as ever, but others are a lot better."
He tried to remember them all, got
tangled up in recent fibercraft ideas,
and pulled out his smartphone instead.
"Here's the stuff I've already taken."
Arthur looked at the list. "Hugo, this
is probably more than you'd need
for an Art Minor already," he said.
"Really?" Shiv said, startled. "It's
just a workshop here and there."
"It is kind of a lot," Arthur said.
"That adds up over time."
Yeah, maybe ... come to
think of it, Shiv had been
doing workshops and stuff
for almost two years now.
Hadn't there been a flyer
about adding up workshops
to make a class credit?
Okay, he'd done a couple
of things last summer that
actually did advertise credits.
And there were a few classes
for fall that were tempting ...
"Huh," Shiv said. "You could
be right. But that's not the same
as getting an actual degree."
"Well, not yet," Arthur said.
"There are open degrees,
though, and a general art one
where you just have to rack up
enough credits to get the paper."
"Didn't know that," Shiv admitted.
"Still seems weird, me and college."
"You had a lot of crappy experiences
with schools, I get that," Arthur said,
patting the air with his hands. "But
think about what you've taken here.
You liked something enough to take
several dozen workshops. It must
have some appeal for you, or you
wouldn't keep coming back for more."
"Yeah, I guess it's okay," Shiv said.
"Some of the teachers are good enough
that I watch for new offerings from them."
"See, there you go! You're building on
a sound foundation now," Arthur said with
a grin. "I could introduce you to some
of my favorites. I think you'd really
like them -- and a few of those you've
even found on your own already."
"So what are you taking this fall?"
Shiv asked, trying to turn the focus
back to Arthur again. "Those favorites?"
"Let's see, Nebraska en Plein Air,"
Arthur said. "I bet that's one that
has snagged your attention."
"Yeah, I like the workshops
when I can catch them. It's fun
to paint outside," Shiv admitted.
"Fauna of the Great Plains, that's
about animals," Arthur went on.
"Then I've got Language Studies,
Intro to Britannian Literature,
and finally the Fiction Studio."
"That sounds like your kind
of list," Shiv said, chuckling.
"Well, better you than me."
"The one I'm the most excited
about is Worldbuilding," Arthur said.
"I can't wait to dig into that one."
"Worldbuilding ..." Shiv mused,
trying to recall where he had
heard that before. Then he
snapped his fingers. "Ah yeah,
Tolli and Simon follow that, they
got like a whole shelf of books
with stories and art and all."
"A whole shelf, wow, that's
quite a collection," Arthur said.
"I wish I could afford to do that."
"Save it for when you're rich
and famous," Shiv said.
"Now you're just being silly,"
Arthur said. "Anyhow, that's
my class list for this fall. I
was planning to drop by
Professor Dexter's office
and see who else he's
managed to rustle up for
the Worldbuilding course."
"Rustle up?" Shiv said.
"They don't want to do it?"
"The course gets plenty
of interested students, but
the professors try to sort them
into balanced teams, so each
has enough of artists, writers,
and random skills," Arthur said.
"I guess that makes sense,"
Shiv said. "Now that I think
about it, the worldbooks have
like a guide to who made what,
and it breaks down that way."
"I don't suppose that there's
any chance I could talk you into
joining?" Arthur said wistfully.
"It would just be so wonderful
to collaborate with you again."
"Yeah, until the teacher saw
what I was making and we both
got in trouble, again," said Shiv.
"Professor Dexter isn't like that,"
Arthur insisted. "He's nice,
and he's a nerd like us."
"It's got to be too late for
signing up," Shiv pointed out.
"Normally, yeah, but you survived
foster care, so that changes things,"
said Arthur. "They have to make
allowances in case the state
messed you up, or at least, it
says that on my paperwork."
"Oh right, I forgot about that,"
said Shiv. "And you think there's
still room in Worldbuilding too?"
"Pretty sure," said Arthur. "Listen,
you don't have to commit to anything
now. Just tag along while I talk to
Professor Dexter and see if you can
tolerate him. Maybe we could visit
the Art Department too, you love art.
You can ask questions if you have any."
Shiv was half-tempted to try it, but
he knew better. Really he did.
"This is nuts, Arthur, you
know me and school don't
mix and never did," Shiv said.
"There's no guarantee that
college will go any better
than grade school did."
"Sometimes it's not about
a guarantee, it's about
choosing to be better,"
Arthur said softly.
Shiv realized that
maybe he wasn't
the only one who
had hangups, and
maybe he was being
a dick to his brother.
"Well ..." Shiv drawled,
still waffling over it.
"Besides, it's a chance
to stick it to Nebraska,"
Arthur pointed out.
"Ah, you got me there,"
Shiv said, laughing. "Okay,
I'll come talk to your teachers,
but if this whole thing blows up
in our faces, it's all your fault."
"Agreed," Arthur said, and they
shook hands to seal the deal.
* * *
Notes:
This poem is long, so its character (Part 1: Arthur Atwood, Part 2: Stephen Dexter), setting, and content notes appear separately.
rix_scaedu. It also fills the "March 25 Tolkien Reading Day" square in my 3-1-23: card for the March Is... Bingo fest, and the "Found Family" square in my 5-1-24 card for the Superhero Bingo fest. This poem has been sponsored by fuzzyred. It belongs to the Shiv thread of the Polychrome Heroics series.Warning: This poem contains intense and controversial topics. Highlight to read the more detailed warnings, some of which are spoilers. It includes boredom, emotional upheavals, because the inside of Shiv's head is always a warning, because surprise, reconnecting with a lost family member, reference to past separation due to foster care interference, self-blame, miscommunication due to malicious sabotage, Nebraska's Family Services is a pack of abusive liars with a special hate-on for Shiv, rude language, mixed feelings, awkwardness, trust issues, past educational abuse, fraught educational issues, intrapersonal dissonance, financial revenge, and other challenges. Despite the emotional tensions, it's actually pretty upbeat overall, and it ends on a hopeful note. If these are touchy topics for you, please consider your tastes and headspace before reading onward. This is a key point in ongoing story arcs, so skipping it would leave a big gap. It comes after "The Hope and Freedom You Exude" and while they're not directly connected, they do relate to the same path.
"From the Ashes a Fire Shall Be Woken"
[Wednesday, July 6, 2016]
The middle of the week ran slow
at Blues Moon, and Shiv was bored.
He had already hit the truck stands
that he knew about, and it was too early
for the afternoon farmer's market that
ran at the Charles Drew Health Center.
He wanted something fun and relaxing
to do, so he checked his schedule and
found a meeting of the Mind & Craft Club
at the University of Nebraska-Omaha.
That was worth swinging by, because
with classes starting toward the end
of August, there would be flyers up for
all kinds of extracurricular arts and crafts.
Shiv might not care much for school itself,
but he was developing a taste for some of
the snazzy art workshops on campus.
The university drew in a wide variety
of artists and crafters from all around
the Greater Omaha Area, so you never
knew who'd show up at a given event.
Mind & Craft was a fibercraft club --
mostly just knitting and crochet, but
sometimes folks brought needlework
or tatting and once even bobbin lace.
It was supposed to be meditative
more than fancy patterns, but people
varied as to what they considered easy.
Someone could be doing granny squares
next to Shiv's hyperbolic pseudospheres, and
on his other side was five-strand cableknit.
He caught a bus to campus, then started
walking toward the building with the meeting.
It was less busy in the middle of summer,
but there were still some students going to or
from classes, and kids for special programs.
The grounds were beautiful, with flowers
spilling out of beds and big concrete pots.
"Hugo?" someone said, sounding startled.
The name was right, but the voice and
the context around it were all wrong.
Shiv jumped and spun like a cat,
looking wildly to see who called him.
The young man was fair and slim,
with wild chestnut curls to his shoulders,
a faint scruff of beard edging his chin,
and round wire-rimmed glasses that
that made his brown eyes look bigger.
Something about him seemed ...
almost familiar, if too tall and
too well put together, but wind
back to someone smaller and
scruffier and it was just like ...
"Arthur?" Shiv breathed.
"Yeah, it's me," he said,
lips curling up in a shy smile.
"Never thought I'd see you again,
but now that you're here, damn it
feels good to find you," Shiv said.
"From the ashes a fire shall be woken,
A light from the shadows shall spring,"
Arthur recited in his warm, soft voice.
"Renewed shall be blade that was broken,
The crownless again shall be king,"
Shiv finished from long memory.
"You do remember," Arthur said.
"I wasn't sure anything would stick."
"You read that stuff often enough,
something was bound to, even
after all this time," Shiv replied.
"I guess it has been a long time,"
Arthur said, his face falling.
It had been years, since
the people movers had
split them up because
Shiv fucked up again.
"Too damn long,"
Shiv said, "but I
guess I can't blame
you for getting sick
of me, I'm an asshole."
"What? No!" said Arthur.
"We thought you didn't want
anything more to do with us,
since you never filed paperwork.
After you would've turned eighteen,
we looked anyway, outside the system."
"Yeah, the system," Shiv said sourly.
"They never filed Want Contact forms
for me, whether I wrote 'em or anyone
else did. Fuckers didn't believe that
anyone might actually like me."
"Bastards," Arthur snarled, and
the tone reminded Shiv why he was
one kid nobody wanted to jerk with.
"We ought to sue their heads off."
"Not my style." Shiv shook his head.
"I want nothing to do with that shit."
"I could tell my parents," said Arthur.
"The Atwoods have adopted me."
"If you're really into that, you could
join the family effort," Shiv said.
"I kinda found my own too."
"Yes, please," said Arthur.
"I'll take whatever I can get."
Shiv fished out a business card
for Soup to Nuts. "Call here, ask
for Dr. G, and have him tell you ...
well, whatever he thinks you need
to know about me." He heaved a sigh.
"The password is 'Fucksake, doc, I'm
never gonna need a password for that'."
"And he accepted that one?" Arthur said.
"Yeah, well, he knows me," Shiv said. He
huffed. "Better'n I know myself, sometimes.
Tell him what happened with Family Services
and he'll be happy to stomp them. Again."
Arthur cocked his head. "Is he behind
some of the shakeups in recent years?"
"Oh yeah," Shiv said. "He's ripped 'em up
at least twice, just the major times, and
probably more little stuff in between.
I try not to pay too close attention."
"That sounds gratifying," Arthur said,
baring his teeth in what looked
very little like a smile. "I'll get
to work on this later tonight."
"Happy hunting," Shiv said.
Then he sighed. Arthur
looked so fluffy and scruffy
and Shiv kind of wanted
to rub up against him but
most folks got weird when
he did that sort of thing.
"I missed you," Arthur said,
and tilted his hands outward.
Shiv stepped into him, not
caring if it got him grabbed.
He leaned against Arthur and
put his head on his shoulder,
breathing in a woodsy-spicy scent
that went right to memory, like how
quilts smelled when you took them
out of the storage trunk in autumn.
Arthur didn't grab him, just ghosted
his hands along Shiv's arms and back.
It was ... nice. Shiv didn't even
bother trying to count potatoes.
Eventually they stepped apart.
"So uh, you doing anything?"
Shiv said awkwardly. "I mean,
what brought you here? I don't
want to make you late for anything."
"I was heading to Mind & Craft,"
said Arthur. "Nothing I can't skip."
"Huh, me too, I like that club,"
said Shiv. "But I'd rather spend
the time catching up with you."
Arthur tossed his head. "C'mon,
I know a place right near here
where we can sit and talk. Hardly
anyone goes there except staff."
He led the way between two
of the old brick buildings, and
suddenly there was a tiny garden.
It was dim and cool, a welcome relief
from the heat of the summer day,
with a sunbeam slanting down
to touch the lefthand wall.
The ground was paved with
worn slate flagstones. The cracks
between them had filled in with
tiny leaves and occasional flowers
spilling over the edges of the stones.
Some of the bushes and other plants
grew from beds against the walls, while
others stood in pots of plastic or ceramic.
Volunteer ferns sprigged out here and there.
Dense vines covered much of the walls, but
in several places volunteer sumac trees
hugged the bricks, reaching for the sun.
An ornate wrought-iron fire escape
spiraled up from one corner, and
a sculpture of metal hoops stood
on a table in the other. In between,
a birdbath fountain bubbled cheerfully.
More small tables held potted plants,
and outdoor chairs offered a place to sit.
"How's come the back end is all lattice?"
Shiv wondered. "I can see light through it."
"I don't know," said Arthur. "Many of
these old buildings have been renovated
to the point that there are some odd bits
left over. It might have started out as
a porch or a lobby entry once, or even
a passageway between buildings. Now
I think it's used to store garden tools."
"That is weird, but I kinda like it, and
all the metalwork," said Shiv. He let
his superpower play over the iron,
but took care not to change anything.
"I like this place because it's quiet and
peaceful," said Arthur. "The gardeners
move plants back here if they're getting
sunburned. I think the ones with green
and white leaves are hostas, they need
shade. I'm not sure of the white flowers."
"Strange that more people haven't found
a nice hidey-hole like this," Shiv said.
Arthur chuckled. "Oh, there's plenty
of other options," he said. "Campus is
full of curious little nooks and crannies."
"Yeah?" Shiv said. "Sounds interesting."
Also convenient if he needed to hide.
"Some are deliberate gardens, others
just adopted by whomever wants them,
or let run to weeds," said Arthur. "I know
of one with brick circles on the pavement,
and they're echoed in round bushes and
white hydrangea flowers. Even the table
and the wicker chairs there are round."
Shiv sat down and stretched out his legs,
letting his heels rest on the green stuff.
Arthur promptly did the same, tangling
their feet together like they had as boys.
It reminded Shiv of how Drew and Aida
would snuggle, because Aida was
about as uncuddly as Shiv but she
and her brother were still close.
He liked just sitting here, in
the cool shady garden, with
Arthur, enjoying the contact.
"So uh ... what've you been
doing?" Shiv asked eventually.
"I mean, if you're in college, then
you must be studying something?"
"I tested out of almost all the basics,"
said Arthur. "So I'm majoring in English
with concentrations in Language Studies
and in British/Irish/Anglophone Literature
plus three minors in Creative Writing, in Art,
and in Nebraska and Great Plains Studies."
"That's batshit," said Shiv. "You know
that's a crazy amount of work, right?"
Arthur just shrugged. "I have room
to take whatever classes I want, but
trying to pick random ones gave me
a headache," he said. "So I sorted out
subjects that I liked and found programs.
Plus these tend to have summer classes,
and I like taking some fun stuff then."
"Yeah, like what?" Shiv wondered.
"You said you came here today
for a club rather than a class."
"They kind of blur together
sometimes," said Arthur. "In
June I did a two-week session
of the Adventure Archery Course.
This month is Fantasy Camp, which
can be anything from art to writing
to costuming, hence the club overlap.
August I've got another two weeks
marked for Wilderness First Aid."
"That's dead useful," said Shiv.
"I know a guy in Lincoln who took
Wilderness First Aid and that's
great for street fights and shit.
I'm glad somebody else is doing
that, 'cause I don't work on people."
"Well, I was hoping to use it more
for camping, but you're not wrong,"
said Arthur. "So what about you?"
"I work at Blues Moon, it's a jazz joint.
I'm learning to play the saxophone,"
said Shiv. He skipped the gang part.
"I do a lot of art, some networking ..."
"Oh yeah?" Arthur replied, brightening.
"You always made great art, I don't
care what the people movers said."
"I do a lot with creme pastels and
pretty much anything made by Paletta,"
said Shiv. "Also metal work and glass,
occasionally stone -- anything hard, really."
"That sounds so cool," Arthur said.
"I'd love to see your work sometime."
"I got plenty of pictures," Shiv said,
pulling out his smartphone. "These
are some of the more recent ones."
He passed the phone to Arthur,
who happily scrolled through images
of sketches, paintings, and graffiti.
"You've gotten amazingly good
at this stuff," said Arthur. "I love
all the pictures of the buffalo. You
mentioned metal and glass, though,
and I don't see any of those here."
"Different files," Shiv said with
a shrug. "I show flat ones more."
"I'd still like to see the rest, if you
don't mind sharing," said Arthur.
"I remember how good you were
with the pipecleaner sculptures."
Shiv gave him a sidelong glance.
"If I show you something, will you
promise not to freak out about it?"
"Sure, I trust you," Arthur said easily,
and wasn't that nerve-wracking.
Shiv pulled out his play-putty
and set it dancing in the air
above his hand, twisting and
turning through different shapes.
"Oh, gods!" Arthur exclaimed.
"Hugo, you're a wizard."
"No, that's Antimatter,"
Shiv said absently, and
then, "Shit. I hadn't meant
to mention any of that."
"You ... you actually know
the supervillain-slash-superhero
running around our city?" Arthur said,
staring at him. "That's really something."
Shiv sighed. "I know him and Stalwart Stan
both," he admitted. "It's kind of a long story."
"Yeah, I'll bet," said Arthur. "Okay, I can
tell it's a touchy topic. Go back to the art."
"This summer I got a place at Hanson Hall,"
said Shiv. "I love it there. I've got plenty
of room to work and store my supplies. I
joined a charity that does live animal models.
There's other classes and stuff, but I still
like to catch ones on campus too."
"I thought that you hated school,"
said Arthur. "Glad you got over it.
You should think about coming to
college officially, if you're already
taking classes here. You might
as well get the actual credit for it."
"I'm not over it," Shiv protested.
"I just ... it's different when people
are showing something I enjoy.
Like this one I caught at the library,
it was all crochet and fancy math.
You'd think it was crazy complicated
to make, but it's not, it's just increases.
You can literally do it all with one stitch."
"It is different," Arthur agreed. "That's
why I took all the pretests that I thought
I had a chance at winning, so it knocked off
most of the basic classes. I can take stuff
that I don't already know and want to explore.
So what've you found here that's fun?"
"This and that," Shiv said. "There's
a bunch of good painting classes.
I mean, some have been as bad
as ever, but others are a lot better."
He tried to remember them all, got
tangled up in recent fibercraft ideas,
and pulled out his smartphone instead.
"Here's the stuff I've already taken."
Arthur looked at the list. "Hugo, this
is probably more than you'd need
for an Art Minor already," he said.
"Really?" Shiv said, startled. "It's
just a workshop here and there."
"It is kind of a lot," Arthur said.
"That adds up over time."
Yeah, maybe ... come to
think of it, Shiv had been
doing workshops and stuff
for almost two years now.
Hadn't there been a flyer
about adding up workshops
to make a class credit?
Okay, he'd done a couple
of things last summer that
actually did advertise credits.
And there were a few classes
for fall that were tempting ...
"Huh," Shiv said. "You could
be right. But that's not the same
as getting an actual degree."
"Well, not yet," Arthur said.
"There are open degrees,
though, and a general art one
where you just have to rack up
enough credits to get the paper."
"Didn't know that," Shiv admitted.
"Still seems weird, me and college."
"You had a lot of crappy experiences
with schools, I get that," Arthur said,
patting the air with his hands. "But
think about what you've taken here.
You liked something enough to take
several dozen workshops. It must
have some appeal for you, or you
wouldn't keep coming back for more."
"Yeah, I guess it's okay," Shiv said.
"Some of the teachers are good enough
that I watch for new offerings from them."
"See, there you go! You're building on
a sound foundation now," Arthur said with
a grin. "I could introduce you to some
of my favorites. I think you'd really
like them -- and a few of those you've
even found on your own already."
"So what are you taking this fall?"
Shiv asked, trying to turn the focus
back to Arthur again. "Those favorites?"
"Let's see, Nebraska en Plein Air,"
Arthur said. "I bet that's one that
has snagged your attention."
"Yeah, I like the workshops
when I can catch them. It's fun
to paint outside," Shiv admitted.
"Fauna of the Great Plains, that's
about animals," Arthur went on.
"Then I've got Language Studies,
Intro to Britannian Literature,
and finally the Fiction Studio."
"That sounds like your kind
of list," Shiv said, chuckling.
"Well, better you than me."
"The one I'm the most excited
about is Worldbuilding," Arthur said.
"I can't wait to dig into that one."
"Worldbuilding ..." Shiv mused,
trying to recall where he had
heard that before. Then he
snapped his fingers. "Ah yeah,
Tolli and Simon follow that, they
got like a whole shelf of books
with stories and art and all."
"A whole shelf, wow, that's
quite a collection," Arthur said.
"I wish I could afford to do that."
"Save it for when you're rich
and famous," Shiv said.
"Now you're just being silly,"
Arthur said. "Anyhow, that's
my class list for this fall. I
was planning to drop by
Professor Dexter's office
and see who else he's
managed to rustle up for
the Worldbuilding course."
"Rustle up?" Shiv said.
"They don't want to do it?"
"The course gets plenty
of interested students, but
the professors try to sort them
into balanced teams, so each
has enough of artists, writers,
and random skills," Arthur said.
"I guess that makes sense,"
Shiv said. "Now that I think
about it, the worldbooks have
like a guide to who made what,
and it breaks down that way."
"I don't suppose that there's
any chance I could talk you into
joining?" Arthur said wistfully.
"It would just be so wonderful
to collaborate with you again."
"Yeah, until the teacher saw
what I was making and we both
got in trouble, again," said Shiv.
"Professor Dexter isn't like that,"
Arthur insisted. "He's nice,
and he's a nerd like us."
"It's got to be too late for
signing up," Shiv pointed out.
"Normally, yeah, but you survived
foster care, so that changes things,"
said Arthur. "They have to make
allowances in case the state
messed you up, or at least, it
says that on my paperwork."
"Oh right, I forgot about that,"
said Shiv. "And you think there's
still room in Worldbuilding too?"
"Pretty sure," said Arthur. "Listen,
you don't have to commit to anything
now. Just tag along while I talk to
Professor Dexter and see if you can
tolerate him. Maybe we could visit
the Art Department too, you love art.
You can ask questions if you have any."
Shiv was half-tempted to try it, but
he knew better. Really he did.
"This is nuts, Arthur, you
know me and school don't
mix and never did," Shiv said.
"There's no guarantee that
college will go any better
than grade school did."
"Sometimes it's not about
a guarantee, it's about
choosing to be better,"
Arthur said softly.
Shiv realized that
maybe he wasn't
the only one who
had hangups, and
maybe he was being
a dick to his brother.
"Well ..." Shiv drawled,
still waffling over it.
"Besides, it's a chance
to stick it to Nebraska,"
Arthur pointed out.
"Ah, you got me there,"
Shiv said, laughing. "Okay,
I'll come talk to your teachers,
but if this whole thing blows up
in our faces, it's all your fault."
"Agreed," Arthur said, and they
shook hands to seal the deal.
* * *
Notes:
This poem is long, so its character (Part 1: Arthur Atwood, Part 2: Stephen Dexter), setting, and content notes appear separately.
(no subject)
Date: 2024-05-15 02:54 am (UTC)Thank you!
Date: 2024-05-15 03:06 am (UTC)I'm glad you liked this.
>> I hope we'll see more of Arthur in a different context.<<
That's the plan. I have a story arc in mind for this, which will involve introducing Shiv to some of the teachers, and introducing Arthur to the Finns starting with Tolli and Simon.
By all means, prompt for more if you want to see Arthur in other contexts! There's plenty of potential there and he's intended as a recurring character. Next up will be the
Re: Thank you!
Date: 2024-05-15 06:13 am (UTC)Re: Thank you!
Date: 2024-05-15 07:42 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2024-05-15 04:08 am (UTC)Oh I'm sure Arthur would get along with the Finns & Shiv's other found family. He's a Tolkien nerd who speaks multiple languages & likes art. He may have met one of them in passing already.
Thoughts
Date: 2024-05-15 07:55 am (UTC)Thank you!
>> I was kinda sad that we didn't see the craft club <<
There will be other opportunities for that, if people want to prompt for it.
>> but Arthur is so cool. <<
Yay! He is a fun guy.
>> Oh I'm sure Arthur would get along with the Finns & Shiv's other found family. <<
Absolutely.
>> He's a Tolkien nerd who speaks multiple languages & likes art.<<
Including Irish, and won't that be fun to see!
>> He may have met one of them in passing already.<<
I doubt it, but Arthur will certainly latch onto them when Shiv introduces him. Which is going to freak Shiv out because he himself is not a joiner.
(no subject)
Date: 2024-05-16 06:54 am (UTC)Yes ...
Date: 2024-05-16 08:33 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2024-06-04 01:09 am (UTC)... well it couldnt've happened to a better guy. (Not gonna say nicer, I don't THINK he'd stab me for it these days but he'd sure be cranky about it.)
Thoughts
Date: 2024-06-04 02:33 am (UTC)At the moment, Shiv is contemplating whether to take a course or two with his brother. Shiv hates school, but now that he's reconnected with Arthur, he's as clingy as he ever gets. It's just enough for him to consider the course idea rather than dismissing it out of hand.
If this intrigues you, by all means ask for followup. The next events will be Arthur introducing Shiv to his Worldbuilding professor and then some folks at the art department. That ought to be fun, and could certainly be made to fit tomorrow's theme of "Like a Normal Person."
>> ... well it couldnt've happened to a better guy.<<
Hee!
>> (Not gonna say nicer, I don't THINK he'd stab me for it these days but he'd sure be cranky about it.) <<
Stab, no. Sharpen the grommets in your shoes so they cut the laces, absolutely. He's still a little shit in a lot of ways.
Re: Thoughts
Date: 2024-06-05 03:09 am (UTC)... oh wait. That's today. *pops into another tab*
ANYWAY yeah, were I to call Shiv a nice guy, he would be TOTALLY justified in murderating my shoelaces, that'd be entirely appropriate.