Twenty Eight Truffula Trees

[whichwayyoulean]

[Friends]

[He'd meant to do this yesterday, but the Lorax arriving had thrown him off. Still, the forest guardian had done him some good. It meant he had to try to piece himself together again, or at least start to. But there was something more important to attend to now. After losing Zelos and House (the memory of watching the latter die engraved on his brain and refusing to leave) he needs to know...]

Okay guys, if you could tell me if you got out of that mess now would be a really great time. Don't make me come looking for you, because I'm pretty sure someone in here will drag me back to bed before I can pathetically shuffle as far as the door. We'd be at it all day.

Just...check in.

[Mom]

[He didn't want to make this filter. He'd rather her not know where he is. Perhaps, even, he has the smallest hope her visit in the castle was brief. Enough to shake him up before she went home again. One last wonderful stab in the chest to remember her by.

...But she's still his mother. And he still needs to know if she's okay]

I asked after you. Where were you? Are you still here?

Comments

[whichwayyoulean]

[Ino what are you doing? La la la, not noticing her]

[ino]

[ she's getting into the clinic without getting in trouble for being there is what! she's knocking on the wall next to his cot/bed with a small smile ]

[whichwayyoulean]

[He smiles, happy to see her, because hey, he always is]

I thought that James guy had banned you.

[ino]

That would be why I came in the back.

[ she'll move to sit on the bed next to him]

How are you feeling?

[whichwayyoulean]

[That gets an arched eyebrow] Riiiiight. I'd try to tell you to go rest, but you probably won't listen to me and I couldn't force you out even on a good day.

[He's lying really, he's glad of her company]

I'm... getting there. [He's not dangling over the precipice of a mental breakdown now, at least] The Lorax showed up.

[And because they both lost someone so important to them] You?

[ino]

I rested. [ she fluffs her hair a bit ] Showered, too.

[ she looks surprised at that next bit ]

The Lorax did? Really?

[ neglecting to answer that question for the moment, because whoa lorax ]

[whichwayyoulean]

Yeah, the day after all this...ended. Guess he really was catching some lucky break.

[No you do not get to get away with that missy]

You didn't answer my question.

[ino]

No kidding ... so you guys have had a chance to talk?

[ she pauses uncomfortably ]

I'm alright. Been keeping busy, I guess.

[whichwayyoulean]

Well, more me kind of losing it and telling him he was a hallucination and him getting confused and grumpy, but after that we talked, yeah. [There's still so much to talk about, for the both of them. So many smouldering wrecks of bridges to try and rebuild. He knows it'll take time, but knowing the guardian is here, to have a chance to speak to him, to apologise has taken a little of the weight he always carries around off him]

I guess that's as best as I could hope for.

[ino]

[ that gets a bit of a sympathetic smile ]

Well, after what happened, it's only natural to think that ... still, I'm glad you guys will have time to sort things out.

[ she pauses ] I'd like to meet him sometime, too.

[whichwayyoulean]

Yeah. It was good...speaking to him again. [He'd missed it more than he realised. The Lorax had become such a constant presence back home, annoying as he was, that the Once-ler didn't quite realise what a hole he'd left]

I'm sure you'll get the chance. He'll probably leap on you one day while you're watering your flowers or something.

[ino]

Leap on me?

[ she looks amused ]

Sounds terrifying.

[whichwayyoulean]

It's pretty terrifying if you don't want to be picking orange hair off all your clothes for hours.