entrancelogs | i've been there too a few times (closed)

Entry tags:

i've been there too a few times (closed)

Who: Sam and Charlie
Where: Fifth floor, 013 (his room)
When: Feb 5
Rating: PG-13? WHO KNOWS
Summary: Things get complicated when a stranger who looks like your dead girlfriend shows up to Wonderland.
The Story:

[ Just another day in the life of someone who is no longer a moose puppet. Sam Winchester is in his room, as he is most often these days, cross-legged on the couch with a dozen old books nicked from the library on his lap, in his hands, on the nearby surfaces. It's all about the Core (easy to distract himself with and ultra-important) these days; with so much else going on, it's good to have something impossible to focus on that he can put his mind wholly into.

Unbeknownst to him, one of those fairly-complicated things is going to knock any minute now... ]

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[ So, she has a lot of time on her hands.

That seems to be the norm in Wonderland thus far, with the exception of the weird things that happen to everyone without their consent, but luckily, Charlie has been spared most of them. She doesn't know if it actually is luck, though she tries not to give it much attention just in case. Her sort of luck had never been particularly good anyway, always taking her places she'd never wanted to end up and forcing her to make decisions that hadn't really been much of a choice to start with. This is something she can control, and since they're neighbors...

Why not, right? Charlie hadn't seen him since the dance, and she figures that the only way to get over any potential awkwardness that might be between them is to see each other as often as possible. Or something like that.

She knocks a few times, smoothing out the dress she's wearing so it doesn't look like she'd just tossed on whatever she'd had laying around. Maybe she should have asked first? Charlie doesn't exactly know where they stand in general, even if she figures they could be really good friends. Are good friends? She sighs and stands there, eventually crossing her arms as she waits. ]

[ Not expecting visitors and not usually receiving visitors, Sam frowns quizzically and gets to this feet, peering at the door. Old hunter instincts say "approach with a gun," but he doesn't do that anymore. Not in Wonderland.

So, he just pulls open the door, and there she is. ]

Hey, Charlie. [ She looks nice, he thinks, and then almost shakes his head to physically remove the idea. ] ... Everything okay?

[ When the door opens, she immediately drops her hands to her sides. Looking distressed isn't at all how she wants this to go, whatever it's supposed to be, and his concern is a little endearing. If completely unnecessary. ]

Hi. [ She gives him a smile, eyes settling on his face before shifting to glance over his shoulder. ] Everything's great. I just wanted to see how you were. You know, with the whole-- [ Charlie gestures like it's easier to say the weird puppet thing with her hands than with words. After a second, she pauses and bites at her lip.

...what if he really was busy? Or didn't want to see her? ] Is this is a bad time? I can come back later.

Hey. Uh-- [ He cracks a smile, scratching at the back of his head. ] Yeah, I'm... uh. Better. Back to normal.

[ """normal""" ]

Bad-- No, it's fine! Here-- [ And he moves aside to give her room to pass. ] Want to come in for a minute?

Normal's good.

[ She has no idea how he relates to that word, but for her, any day that's not spent with the hard reminder she's got a kid her age here and too many angels hanging around to give her comfort is a good one. But the invitation's more than welcome, and Charlie nods almost instantly. ]

Okay, yeah. As long as you're sure I'm not-- [ She bites her lip and pushes on into his room. He'd already said it was fine. So. ] What have you been up to? [ Asked as she looks around. It's not as if she makes a habit of going into people's rooms, but it's always interesting to see just how different they are from hers, which she actually hasn't done anything with. ] Anything fun I should know about?

[ She can't help teasing him. ]

It's-- Yeah. [ Good... to an extent. He chuckles lightly and steps in, sort of glancing around his own apartment as if appraising it for the first time. ]

Nah, you're not. [ The apartment (more than a room, really, no matter what he insists) seems too empty and quiet at first... until a Golden Retriever puppy explodes onto the scene with a delayed series of yaps. He circles the pair enthusiastically before trying very hard to jump up to lick Charlie's face. ]

Uh... well, there's that. Leo. And-- Minnie should be around here, somewhere. She's a little less... like that.

[ There's a quiet giggle, mostly breathless as she opens her mouth to say something and is immediately distracted by the cute thing that tries jumping on her. Charlie eases to her knees, smoothing her hands over the dog's head and rubbing behind his ears. She looks up at Sam, grinning. ]

You must have your hands full a lot then. [ And then, she's turning her attention back to Leo, turning her face so she doesn't get too many dog kisses right in the mouth. ] You're a cutie. [ Said to the dog, of course, and she pets him a few more times before getting back to her feet. There will be plenty of time for Charlie to give him more love later. ]

Show me around? I'd like to meet Minnie too.

[ As they're still very young (eternally, in fact), she can probably pick them both up and do what she will to them. Especially if it involves a lot of love, which they... well, love. ]

Sure. Uh-- Over here.

[ The room had been one room, once. As time went on and Sam found himself keeping space from the other residents after more and more tragedy and the development of more questions and no answers... the place had grown.

There's an open floor plan with some couches and stairs that go down to a pool table, a lot (lot, lot, lot) of books, and a bar. He pauses down there, glancing around near their ankles. ]

She's pretty shy; wonder where she is. She's black and white if you catch a glimpse of her somewhere.

[ Pick him up is exactly what she does, depositing him back on the floor when Sam stops to look around for Minnie. She's a little distracted by how large and comfortable his room is--not at all like hers. Charlie hadn't actually gotten around to decorating and expanding it; in fact, she didn't know it was something you could do until just now. Idly, she touches some of the books. ]

I'm sure she'll come out when she's ready. [ Looking over her shoulder at him, she tilts her head. ] This is a nice place though. I like it.

[ Then, because she isn't sure what else to say: ] Have you read all these? [ The books, she means. ]

Thanks. It's... I mean, I didn't really... make it. Wonderland-- The mansion kind of changes things up every so often. It's gotten bigger and smaller and I have no idea why it does what it does, or when.

[ At the question, he glances toward the shelves. ]

All of them? No way. Some of them I've nicked from the library for later. [ And there's a guilty smile to accompany it. ] Others I think are from back home.

Maybe it's their way of trying to make things better. Not that this - [ She gestures at the space around her. ] - makes it okay, but... I dunno. I can still like it.

[ No matter what he says, so hah. She gives him a smile, randomly picking one of the books to look through, so Charlie hopes he doesn't mind. It doesn't look particularly interesting at first glance, but it's not as if she's going to help herself to his private library and start reading. She'd never disliked books, but she'd never quite had the time for them like some people. ]

Yeah? [ Flipping through a few pages, she puts it back in place. ] Do you have a favorite?

I don't think there is a "their." I mean, it's... there're the queens, but I'm not sure they're on the same sides, and the mansion itself--

[ Sam just shakes his head wearily. ]

... It's a lot to deal with. Mentally.

[ He glances over, though, curious at the question. Favorite book? Well, it's been a long time since he's actually read for pleasure and not for a case, so he scrunches up his face a bit in search of an answer. ]

Uh-- Huh. It sounds stupid, but I always kinda liked biographies. Especially historical. When your life's pretty much all fiction, you tend to stay away from the genre a bit.

[ She shrugs a bit when he mentions the queens, not so much interested in discussing them or what they actually have to do with Wonderland. She tries to keep her thoughts focused on better things. Which happens to be this room and the person in it--not to mention the puppies. ]

I know.

[ Her smile is slight. ]

So... historical biographies. [ What a change of subject, huh? ] Doesn't sound like much, but I'll try almost anything once. You wanna read one? [ She honestly never thought she'd ever get to this point, sitting around with a cute guy just to talk about books, and it makes her want to laugh. ]

What, now? [ He actually chuckles, thinking she's joking, but... then he clears his throat and glances to the shelves. ] Nah, they're not interesting enough; why don't you take a look, see if there's anything good up there?

[ That she'd be interested in, not something... dry. ]

[ She wouldn't have found it particularly dry, but she gives him a nice little smile and takes to investigating all the books she's passed up instead of arguing. There are far too many, and some of them, admittedly, she might not have had any interest in. There had been the occasional novel that had held her attention long enough, magazines and other similar things, but nothing like this. ]

Maybe we should let fate decide. [ It's a joke, and she shrugs, deciding to blindly pick. Charlie flips the cover over, eyebrow raised as she lets him see the cover. It reads The Uninvited Guests: A Novel. ] ... I hope that's not a sign or anything.

[ She's teasing. ]

What do you say? [ Or he's more than welcome to pick one. She doesn't have much preference. ]

That works. [ He chuckles lightly at the title, thinking nothing of it as she, obviously, isn't an uninvited guest by any means. ] Read that one before?

[ He hasn't even touched all the books, himself; since they're mostly supplied by "Wonderland magic," they crop up every so often and he barely notices when there are new ones, especially if they aren't something he's actively looking for. ]

Um... no. [ She shifts it from hand to hand, trying to decide on the best place to actually do this. Maybe on the sofa, which is what she starts making her way back to. ] I never really had much time to do this sort of reading.

[ Not for the last eight months or so anyway. But that's a different story, so she just plops herself on the couch and flips lightly through the pages, waiting for Sam to join her. ]

Neither did I. Not really. [ Not even in Wonderland, why is why he doesn't recognize this one. He settles onto the couch next to her, keeping a distance so as not to brush up against her, but he isn't so far as to... you know, be weird. ]

Alright, what's the back say? [ He flips it over, then chuckles. ] Okay, alright: "a sinister tragi-comedy of errors, in which the dark underbelly of human nature is revealed in true Shakespearean fashion." Sounds dramatic to me.

[ Nope. That's not going to happen. They're going to get comfy together and enjoy this book, even if it does sound dramatic. Besides, how are they supposed to read it together if they've got some space between them? Charlie scoots closer, settling it between them and flipping it to the first page. ]

Okay, uh... Let's see just how true that is. [ Charlie makes a face and reads some of it: ] Since her marriage to Edward Swift, three years after the sudden death of her first husband Horace Torrington-- [ She makes another face. ] What kind of terrible name is that supposed to be?

[ Can she even finish the first paragraph now? Well. Just watch her try, even if she can't help being amused by some of it. ]

[ Sam actually laughs, eyebrow quirked in a what have we gotten ourselves into kind of expression. ]

Wow. Just... huh. You really picked a winner, Charlie.

[ He scoots a bit in return, just... you know, because she did, and it's easier to see that way. ]

Next dog I'm naming Horace Torrington. [ Leo, who has just emerged around the corner with Sam's shoe in his mouth, drops it to bark indignantly. ] Kidding, boy.

Don't blame it on me! [ She elbows him a little, more than glad to hear him laugh and see the way it brightens his face. She thinks about commenting on it but gets severely distracted at the suggestion and the way Leo looks absolutely horrified.

Charlie sighs, settling even more onto the sofa. ] Leo's right. The poor thing doesn't deserve a name like that. [ She rests her fingers on the pages to hold her place. ] You should name it something normal. Like Oliver.

[ Don't judge her, okay. It's the first name she could think of that sounds better than Horace Torrington. ]

I think he's just jealous. [ Whatever he was, though, Leo isn't anymore; he continues to maw the shoe immediately after. Sam groans and reaches out for it, but, alas, the puppy bounds away out of reach. ]

Oliver? Another character? [ He asks, glancing again at the book. ] And I think you're dismissing this whole Horace thing pretty quick.

[ R.I.P. shoe. But that's not the point of this conversation, so she follows Leo until he's out of sight and glances back at Sam. ]

No. Just... you know. Oliver. [ Charlie taps at the name on the page. ] You'd really be okay with a dog named Horace, huh? [ Have a skeptical look. ] Maybe we should read a little more and decide after.

Alright, alright. [ He grins; no, of course he wouldn't name it Horace, but her genuine skepticism is... well, cute. ] Let's see if we can find an Oliver in here to justify it.

[ You know, the naming of the fictional dog. ]

How long's this book, anyway?

[ He could be totally serious, so it's her job to make sure some poor unsuspecting thing doesn't end up with such a horrible name. She smirks at him a little. ]

What's to justify? Oliver's a great name. Um-- [ She looks down at the book and flips to the back. ] Pretty long. Why, don't think you can handle it?

I'm just saying, if it's inspired by this book, which it is, then we should find a name to match from in the book.

[ Never mind that it makes no sense, he's bantering! Just play along!! ]

Uh, yeah, I think I can handle it. [ He props up his elbow, cracking a smile at her from over the novel. ] You?

I wouldn't be sittin' here if I didn't think I could.

[ She pushes most of the book into his hand, though she helps hold the other side, and if their fingers brush, she doesn't comment on it. ] You read for a while. I wanna listen.

[ And that certainly has nothing to do with the fact she likes hearing his voice. None at all. Charlie gives him a tiny smile before leaning into the couch. ]

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i've been there too a few times (closed)

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