Video

[arrowpoint]

[Still adjusting to his new super-sight, Liam is wearing glasses when he shows up on the screen. A hint of general anxiety is shown by some fidgeting.]

Okay so... things are bad in Locke, right? I haven't been back in a while. People are talking about moving, and I don't want to move. It's like a second home to me, you know?

[He'd spent a lot of time feeling like he wanted to get away from Locke when his sea-longing first kicked in, but now...]

My family has had property there since I was a kid... I mean I get that the property won't go anywhere, but I'm kind of attached to it.

[Liam takes a deep breath then sits back from the camera. When he speaks again, he's less somber.]

Okay, distraction time. So, a lot of people I know have names for their past lives or old selves or whatever - is that pretty common? I figured I should get one too, if that's the case. Don't want to be left out. Any ideas?

[Wait.]

...Okay nobody say "butthead" or something.

Comments

[arrowpoint]

I don't know, maybe you could actually wear wear a costume and then confuse the hell out of people enough to let you slide by.

Wait, so you had healing powers, or just this guy in the manga?

[espigeonage]

What kinda costume would be that confusing?

[Julien holds up a page with this drawing and a whole lot of tangled Japanese writing. The figure is manga-style and not realistic, so it's all angular and spiky, but it does have blue hair and eyes and a wide smile.] Just the guy, I think. The actual Apostle had some medical know-how and that's it as far as I know.

[arrowpoint]

Well, you do know your way around some athelas.

[espigeonage]

I do that! Learned from the best, after all. [...and that makes him sad. Quick, change the subject!]

So I like names to not be too serious. "Apostle of the Violet Rose" sounds entirely corny and romantic, which I like. How about you, what're your thoughts on elaborate titles?

[arrowpoint]

Well, I was just looking for something to call him besides "old me," "past life me," or "that dude." If he had some long-ass title I'd probably shorten it.

[espigeonage]

Haha, sure.

[ugh I want him to suggest Hawkeye but it's not improbable that someone from that canon could app in.]

Ariel and my favorite lamppost are going with Shakespearean fairy names. Want to stick to that theme?

[arrowpoint]

Okay, what did you have in mind? I haven't looked at Shakespeare since high school.

[espigeonage]

[delighted] Nick Bottom?

...Okay, okay, fine, not Bottom. How about Orlando!

[arrowpoint]

[Liam gives a look that clearly says "Really, Julien?"]

Orlando? Like in Florida? Okay, I admit I had fun there when I was a kid but...

[espigeonage]

He's the lead in a comedy! C'mon. Orlando is an all-round heroic sort, if you like your guy that much you could do worse - brave and good, handsome and smart, loving and devoted and popular, too.

[arrowpoint]

[Well, Liam would certainly like to think he was all those things.]

Okay, that is pretty awesome then. Killian says I should be Athelas, so it's between those two for now.

[espigeonage]

Also, he has an older brother who mistreats him, but then Orlando saves him from a lion and the brother's like whoah I was totally wrong he's awesome. So.

Athelas could get confusing, I think! We use it a lot. Though, I guess Thorir will only call it Kingsfoil. I do like the word.

[arrowpoint]

[Liam laughs.]

"Hey Athelas, can you hand me some Athelas? I heard you like Athelas, so I put some Athleas in your Athelas so you can Athelas while you Athelas..."

[espigeonage]

Aaaah! Old meme alert! Old meme alert!

[He bats a balled-up handkerchief at the screen. It bounces off.]

[arrowpoint]

What, just because it's old it's not funny? You should see my Uncle with some wine in him.

[espigeonage]

I never did, he was always very controlled! Tell. Tell!

[arrowpoint]

Well, usually it's a holiday. My Dad really gets on his nerves or something. I think he must sneak some extra glasses so he doesn't strangle him.

So this one Christmas when I was thirteen or so he's just belting out the carols with all the wrong words, no joke. It was hilarious. My mom wanted to kill him. He was cut off for the night.

[espigeonage]

Hhh. Oh my god, I wish I could laugh.

Niiiiice. Not something I'd have expected out of him! Y'know, drunk people just lose their inhibitions, they don't really do things they don't at some level want to do. Maybe in another life he'd be a karaoke star!