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xp_logs2024-06-03 10:17 am
xp_shatterstar) wrote in xp_logs2024-06-03 10:17 am
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Birthday Celebration - Shatterstar and Arthur [BACKDATED]
Backdated to June 3 Shatterstar and Arthur celebrate Arthur's birthday and talk about death.
Shatterstar had managed to save part of the cake for Arthur. He preferred Arthur's stunt work and movies, but he did have a soft spot for certain episodes of Longshot for Survival that Benjamin liked. They'd never missed an episode as a kid, even if maybe they had been too young to be watching it. The two-parter of the Amazon Rainforest was on the TV, and Shatter had the knives that Arthur had gifted him displayed out in the table as a show of appreciation.
So the two sat watching something that aired before digital upscaling. Where the show garnered a flavor of nostalgia for Benji, those who knew the older man next to Shatterstar well might describe him as watching with an expression best described as 'one sitting through an unsubtitled foreign film after lying on his resume about speaking the language.' Still, however, Arthur's smile was never less than perfect. He opened his mouth to say something clever – he wasn't sure what, but he'd figure it out as he went along.
"Amazing the camera didn't fall over during that," was what Arthur settled on. He picked at the remaining crumbs on his plate. "My compliments to the chef on the cake, by the way."
'Star wasn't exactly watching the television either, instead letting it be background noise to the nicety of sitting quietly with someone he liked.
"I'm glad you liked it," Shatterstar said. "I wasn't sure what you liked." He had known Arthur for a year now, but sometimes he still had a hard time separating myth and fact. The man in the screen and the man next to him didn't seem like the same person at all.
He preferred the real thing.
"I... Thank you. For spending this time with me."
"Hey now. It is my pleasure," came much more easily and immediately. An answer that required no thought from the older man. "You'd figure after everything I've forgotten, I wouldn't forget my own birthday." Arthur's smile turned wry. "But, this is perfect. I had worried I'd done something wrong."
"You haven't done anything wrong," Shatterstar assured him. It was just- he hadn't wanted to seem weak to Arthur. He let his shoulders slump and his posture go slack- prove in the pudding that he trusted Arthur. "I just... It's fine. I didn't realise you had noticed."
"Hey now, it is my job to notice," Arthur said with a quick tap to one temple. "I'm an investigator. It is harder than it looks on TV, let me tell you, and they get to wrap things up in thirty minutes to an hour. I'll admit, I saw you trying to work through things." He looked back toward the screen. "You didn't seem ready to talk."
Shatterstar still wasn't sure if he was ready, but Arthur had brought it up. "I wasn't able to be willing to sacrifice myself," is all he said, not going further into how he had not stopped Jessie from being willing either. He tried not to show it, but it was clear in his voice he expected Arthur's disappointment.
The look on Arthur's face as he turned back was somewhere smack between confused and the beginnings of a knee jerk response. He caught himself, though, and shut his mouth to chew over his reply. "Well," was the best he had, but the man was clearly relieved, "that's a lot to unpack. First? Good." A pause to let that sink in. "Next and more importantly? That must have been very hard and stressful, but you and Jessie are both here and safe. So what happened next?"
Shatterstar turned to look at Arthur with wide eyes in almost shock, having been so certain that Arthur would be disappointed in him. But Arthur wasn't. Arthur had said it was good. Arthur was not condemning him for his selfishness. "Then we came home," Shatterstar said. "And everyone was safe."
The older man paused, processing. "That's amazing, obviously, but . . ." He trailed off, eyes drawn to the television to where the younger version of him was in the middle of some high stakes survival stunt. "So what I loved about this show," Arthur gestured to the screen, "was having a piece of the action. Nothing scripted. Bold decisions, making choices work moment to moment filming this. There was never just one solution, even when you're in a corner." His smile tugged in hope that metaphor hit.
Shatterstar nodded, having more understanding in Arthur's metaphor than he had been been able to understand before. They didn't need to talk more about it, in his opinion. He would need some time to sit with what Arthur was telling him, but it was clearer now. There was almost always another way out, a way to escape. Arthur was something of an escape artist- and Shatterstar could be too.
No one needed to die. And Arthur wasn't disappointed in him.
"I think I understand."
For that, Shatterstar received a laugh that was somewhere between relieved and delighted.
"Good," Arthur said. "I'm in trouble if showbiz metaphors don't work." He settled back a little easier, content, and let his attention again drift to what was happening on screen. A slow frown began to form.
Shatterstar saw the frown on Arthur's face and his expression began to mirror his, worried that he had upset him after all. "Arthur?"
His eyes didn't leave the television. "I don't . . . what season is this one from?"
"The season finale of season two," Shatterstar rattled off immediately.
Arthur bit his lip, and not speaking the language had turned into not even understanding the medium. He couldn't take his eyes from the screen, desperate to find one familiar thing. "That was – carry the one – no, we filmed that – I don't . . ." He shut his eyes and counted under his breath.
Shatterstar turned it off at the way Arthur stared as if he was watching someone else. He had never, ever meant to distress him. He hadn't even thought that it might upset him.
The look on his face remained frankly puzzled, but one more long, deep breath finally brought the man back to himself. Arthur blinked blankly at the empty screen. "You know, great idea," he said, "let's switch it up. Something with plot."
"You pick something," Shatterstar said, trying to play it off that he was interested to see what Arthur liked to watch for himself. Which wasn't hard, since he was interested, but it was best, he was sure, not to acknowledge the dissociating.
"Birthdays are nostalgic, so let's go old school. Back before digital."
It was an easy answer, but the tension evaporated immediately. They'd covered the heavy topics. It was time for ease.
Shatterstar had managed to save part of the cake for Arthur. He preferred Arthur's stunt work and movies, but he did have a soft spot for certain episodes of Longshot for Survival that Benjamin liked. They'd never missed an episode as a kid, even if maybe they had been too young to be watching it. The two-parter of the Amazon Rainforest was on the TV, and Shatter had the knives that Arthur had gifted him displayed out in the table as a show of appreciation.
So the two sat watching something that aired before digital upscaling. Where the show garnered a flavor of nostalgia for Benji, those who knew the older man next to Shatterstar well might describe him as watching with an expression best described as 'one sitting through an unsubtitled foreign film after lying on his resume about speaking the language.' Still, however, Arthur's smile was never less than perfect. He opened his mouth to say something clever – he wasn't sure what, but he'd figure it out as he went along.
"Amazing the camera didn't fall over during that," was what Arthur settled on. He picked at the remaining crumbs on his plate. "My compliments to the chef on the cake, by the way."
'Star wasn't exactly watching the television either, instead letting it be background noise to the nicety of sitting quietly with someone he liked.
"I'm glad you liked it," Shatterstar said. "I wasn't sure what you liked." He had known Arthur for a year now, but sometimes he still had a hard time separating myth and fact. The man in the screen and the man next to him didn't seem like the same person at all.
He preferred the real thing.
"I... Thank you. For spending this time with me."
"Hey now. It is my pleasure," came much more easily and immediately. An answer that required no thought from the older man. "You'd figure after everything I've forgotten, I wouldn't forget my own birthday." Arthur's smile turned wry. "But, this is perfect. I had worried I'd done something wrong."
"You haven't done anything wrong," Shatterstar assured him. It was just- he hadn't wanted to seem weak to Arthur. He let his shoulders slump and his posture go slack- prove in the pudding that he trusted Arthur. "I just... It's fine. I didn't realise you had noticed."
"Hey now, it is my job to notice," Arthur said with a quick tap to one temple. "I'm an investigator. It is harder than it looks on TV, let me tell you, and they get to wrap things up in thirty minutes to an hour. I'll admit, I saw you trying to work through things." He looked back toward the screen. "You didn't seem ready to talk."
Shatterstar still wasn't sure if he was ready, but Arthur had brought it up. "I wasn't able to be willing to sacrifice myself," is all he said, not going further into how he had not stopped Jessie from being willing either. He tried not to show it, but it was clear in his voice he expected Arthur's disappointment.
The look on Arthur's face as he turned back was somewhere smack between confused and the beginnings of a knee jerk response. He caught himself, though, and shut his mouth to chew over his reply. "Well," was the best he had, but the man was clearly relieved, "that's a lot to unpack. First? Good." A pause to let that sink in. "Next and more importantly? That must have been very hard and stressful, but you and Jessie are both here and safe. So what happened next?"
Shatterstar turned to look at Arthur with wide eyes in almost shock, having been so certain that Arthur would be disappointed in him. But Arthur wasn't. Arthur had said it was good. Arthur was not condemning him for his selfishness. "Then we came home," Shatterstar said. "And everyone was safe."
The older man paused, processing. "That's amazing, obviously, but . . ." He trailed off, eyes drawn to the television to where the younger version of him was in the middle of some high stakes survival stunt. "So what I loved about this show," Arthur gestured to the screen, "was having a piece of the action. Nothing scripted. Bold decisions, making choices work moment to moment filming this. There was never just one solution, even when you're in a corner." His smile tugged in hope that metaphor hit.
Shatterstar nodded, having more understanding in Arthur's metaphor than he had been been able to understand before. They didn't need to talk more about it, in his opinion. He would need some time to sit with what Arthur was telling him, but it was clearer now. There was almost always another way out, a way to escape. Arthur was something of an escape artist- and Shatterstar could be too.
No one needed to die. And Arthur wasn't disappointed in him.
"I think I understand."
For that, Shatterstar received a laugh that was somewhere between relieved and delighted.
"Good," Arthur said. "I'm in trouble if showbiz metaphors don't work." He settled back a little easier, content, and let his attention again drift to what was happening on screen. A slow frown began to form.
Shatterstar saw the frown on Arthur's face and his expression began to mirror his, worried that he had upset him after all. "Arthur?"
His eyes didn't leave the television. "I don't . . . what season is this one from?"
"The season finale of season two," Shatterstar rattled off immediately.
Arthur bit his lip, and not speaking the language had turned into not even understanding the medium. He couldn't take his eyes from the screen, desperate to find one familiar thing. "That was – carry the one – no, we filmed that – I don't . . ." He shut his eyes and counted under his breath.
Shatterstar turned it off at the way Arthur stared as if he was watching someone else. He had never, ever meant to distress him. He hadn't even thought that it might upset him.
The look on his face remained frankly puzzled, but one more long, deep breath finally brought the man back to himself. Arthur blinked blankly at the empty screen. "You know, great idea," he said, "let's switch it up. Something with plot."
"You pick something," Shatterstar said, trying to play it off that he was interested to see what Arthur liked to watch for himself. Which wasn't hard, since he was interested, but it was best, he was sure, not to acknowledge the dissociating.
"Birthdays are nostalgic, so let's go old school. Back before digital."
It was an easy answer, but the tension evaporated immediately. They'd covered the heavy topics. It was time for ease.