losthunter | Knock unbidden on the door ((Schön))

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Knock unbidden on the door ((Schön))

The evening on which Schön and Hunter had agreed upon a TV marathon to watch 'Twilight Zone' episodes had come very quickly, even though it had been a couple of days since the Spring Fair and the last time they had spoken.

Hunter had a lot of artwork to keep himself occupied in the time between the two events. There were a couple of sketches in his notepad from the evening of the Spring Fair that he had wanted to get on canvas. Some are watercolors. Some are color pencils. Some are using the rose petals, soaked in paint. In all aspects, he had been busy.

During the day, before Schön would arrive at the apartment, Hunter had been quite busy finishing a charcoal piece depicting an elderly couple sharing an intimate, and touching moment. He wrapped that up right before he was expecting Schön, so had to jump in the bathroom quickly to get cleaned and dressed for the evening.

Then he went into the kitchen to bring out the snacks that he had prepared for the evening. There are delights such as cranberry pretzel clusters, brownie batter popcorn, assorted chocolate-dipped fruit (bananas, kiwis and strawberries), and a cheese platter. For a wine choice, Hunter had selected a Wild Vines strawberry white zinfandel.

With everything else in place, Hunter does one more walk-through of his apartment, to make sure everything is prepared for his guest.

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"Moments few and far between," Schön offers, while quite suspecting otherwise. Coming to grips is a difficult thing. He accepts the offered flower with a nod of thanks, holding it to his nose to inhale.

"I cannot say I knew her, but I think your mother would be pleased with the man you are now."

"Thank you. The path has not been an easy one, but I would not change a thing. The challenges along the way have only inspired me to be a stronger me."

"So I have a very important question for you." Hunter smiles softly. There is a playful glint in his eyes.

"Your commissioned work is finished. Would you rather see it now, or wait until later in the evening to reveal the canvas?"

"Such is often the nature of such things," Schön muses. "I am pleased to hear you've come through your adversity so well."

The playful glint catches the thin man's attention, as the fae are ever intrigued by mischief. "Oh, I usually trust the artist to decide when their work will debut. If it were left to me, I should want to see it at once."

Hunter steps closer, so he can lean in and whisper in a teasing tone. "To tell you the truth, I don't think I could wait to show you either."

"This way..." Hunter leads Schön from the balcony, back into the art studio. He heads over to where the two canvas' are covered. With a smile, Hunter lifts the smaller of the two pieces up onto a empty canvas.

He is a little excited, and nervous, all at the same time. With a flourish, he removes the cloth off the canvas, revealing the art piece. The loving elderly couple captured in the piece was completely done with charcoal. Hunter had wanted to keep the finished piece in the soft grays and dark blacks of the charcoal.

Schön follows close on Hunter's heels, noting, "either your enthusiasm is infectious, or mine is."

The removal of the cloth prompts a soft "ah!" Schön grows quiet, then, a hint of a wistful smile lingering about his lips as he soaks up the scene, attention drifting from one detail to another, broadening to appreciate the whole, and focusing again.

"Exquisite. Simply exquisite. The moment almost breathes." Turning to Hunter with a deeply pleased smile, he adds, "thank you. From the bottom of my heart."

"I am glad that you like it." There is a soft blush covering Hunter's face right now.

And because he knows of Schön's fondness of stories. "I spoke to the couple, after I had observed them long enough to make my initial sketches."

"They had met as young lovers. And had their marriage last through the Depression and the Second World War. When he was overseas, he wrote constantly. She still has all his letters."

"They struggled with being childless, but then found ways to share their love with their communities by countless volunteer hours."

"This moment was observed on their 75th wedding anniversary."

Schön makes a quiet sound of awe, listening to the tale. "Cast aside your Tristans and your Juliets, leave Cleopatra in her dust--this is a love that stands the test of time. And you have captured a glimpse of it. Truly, truly beautiful."

"It is always an honor to capture such true emotions."

"Their love was very inspirational. It gave me such hope."

"As well it should. I truly believe there is someone for everyone--part of the reason I don't deal in love potions, that."

"I can't imagine how many times you have to explain why." Hunter shakes his head slightly. He has a feeling that there are many people who would want the 'easy' way of finding love.

"My eyes were really opened to the possibility of finding someone special when Lindy was in my life. Her friendship was wonderful, and the thought of having that with someone in a romantic sense..." Hunter blushes again.

"And now, I have even more great friends in my life who I care about." And yes, he counts Schön as one of those people.

"Mm, so many explanations. And so few people interested in my insulating myself from risk--as if my caution isn't protecting them, as well." He scoffs.

Hunter's latter remarks prompt some musing on the thin man's part. "It can sometimes take a jarring change for us to see what has been plain before us for some time."

"I'm sorry you even have to provide such explanations." Hunter reaches out to place his hand on Schön's arm with this statement.

"Even in my most darkest moments, when I desperately wanted love to free me from the curse... I would have never sought a magical solution to my situation."

His heart is in a much better place now. And he smiles at Schön's musing. "Oh yes. I know that all too well. But I consider my change to be such a good thing. My eyes are more open. And it is... exciting to ponder the possibilities."

"Ironically, I blame the stories--this modern crop of sanitized, hobbled pabulum that nervous parents feed to their precious, delicate children. It leaves people with the idea that magic is the easy answer, and I withhold it only out of petty spite." He tsks, shaking his head, but smiles at Hunter's touch. "It's nice to know someone has an inkling of the truth. Magic couldn't have given you a solution--at least, it couldn't have given you someone to satisfy the terms of the curse."

"You wear your change well, Hunter, for which I am glad."

"In a way, they are telling the wrong stories. They took the easy way out with that too. The true stories had consequences for actions. Not every Prince found true love."

Hunter is enjoying this little discussion. The closeness to the other man feels nice too. And it makes him smile, that Schön's has such positive comments to make. It is just those nice experiences that doesn't even make it seem like there is an awkward pause in their conversation. Even the stillness between comments is enjoyed and appreciated.

"Not quite the wrong stories, I would say, but by washing out the darker parts, they make the struggles sound easy, and the highest reward a return to the status quo, with perhaps a little new wisdom that leaves no marks. And yes," he concedes, "there are many tales that end badly for the heroes. Tsarevich Vassili knew many fine horrors in his day, and the frustration of being Tsarevich Ivan's elder, lesser-known brother."

"I do what I can to capture both the good, the bad, and the dark of life. To let the stories of others inspire me to be true to the canvas."

"And sometimes, the art speaks through me," he glances at the other covered canvas.

Schön follows his gaze. "Oh? Do, ah, feel free to elaborate."

"I painted this one after our first encounter." Hunter sets up another easel to properly place the covered canvas onto the easel.

Before he removes the cloth off the canvas, Hunter steps almost protectively in front of Schön just in case there is another magical effect. He had been told that the magic is dormant right now, but he is still cautious.

His instinct is telling him that showing Schön this piece is important, so he gets an impression of the Witch. "This is Kendra." Hunter removes the cloth off the portrait of the witch who had cursed him.

"I keep it covered, because when I first painted it, there was a magical effect where it pulled me to where she was. I guess, in a way, her magic knew that I had wanted to speak to her."

Schön looks the painting over thoughtfully, gauging it with more than simply mortal senses. "I think... I may feel some lingering traces. Certainly, this is an exceedingly good likeness--I would hazard working on it brought you close to her emotionally as well as capturing her semblance? You may have some magical talents of your own, yet to be unfurled."

"You think?" Hunter never thought about that, and wonders about what that could mean for him.

"I had wanted to help her, ask her if she was unbalanced. She said that it wasn't time. I wasn't ready."

"Maybe, she was talking about that?"

"It's possible," Schön admits. "There are signs which might be taken for it--although in the Nexus, it can be difficult to be certain. Something to think about."

"I definitely will think about it." It is almost a surreal thought, but Hunter is taking the suggestion seriously.

"Shall we start our TV marathon?" Hunter asks.

Many things in the Nexus, and the lives of people who end up in the Nexus, are fairly surreal. Still, there are worse places to grapple with strangeness, to be sure.

"Certainly, if you like. I brought a selection of the very best." He smiles, going to collect the disc from where he left it. "Up first, a chilling tale called, 'To Serve Man.'"

((Sorry replies have been slow the last few days. Work has been kicking me pretty hard. Please don't construe any long delays as a loss of interest in the thread.))

"Sounds like a good place to start." Hunter smiles. "I have the food set up on the table, but once you have a selection of treats, you can bring it to the coffee table."

He goes to open up the bottle of wine and pour two glasses.

[Totally understand the stresses of work. Hope things get better soon]

((Thanks. I've got a day off coming soon, but only one instead of a weekend, and then a day I have to go in early, so even my day off is cut a little short. It could be worse, though--it could be six-day weeks every week and my day off cut shorter by the day after it being much earlier, the way it used to be. This is progress.))

Schön takes a little bit of everything, in the way of snacks available. He likes to sample, and he thinks snacks may be particularly relevant during this first episode. When his plate is full, he goes to find a seat at the couch, lounging at his ease. He'll place the DVD where Hunter can put it in; whether he's offering the courtesy of not presuming to control someone else's home entertainment setup or eschewing that confusing technology, well, who could say?

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