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bound_cruz ([info]bound_cruz) wrote in [info]bound_rp,
@ 2013-09-14 16:40:00

Previous Entry  Add to memories!  Tell a Friend!  Next Entry
Entry tags:complete, cruz ramos, isabelle parker, private

Fairy Floss and Other Things
Date: June 15th, 2012
Time: 10:00pm
Location: The Crescent Cove Fairgrounds
Characters: Cruz Ramos, Isabelle Parker
Description: Cruz and Isabelle meet up at the Fairgrounds as part of Operation: Spend More Time Together. Crafty Isabelle is able to deduce Cruz's secret. Awkwardness ensues.
Status: Private, Complete



It was fair time in Crescent Cove. A jovial time full of many memories for a sizable chunk of the populace who made the coastal Maine locale their home. Cruz was no different from the majority of these people. In fact, some of his earliest memories were of the fair. It was one of those things that filled him with nostalgia, even now as he had relatively outgrown the rides. Certain things about the fair, however, were impossible to outgrow, like the Cotton Candy, which would be his at some point.

Since encountering Isabelle about a month before, Cruz had spent a decent amount of time in contact with her. Usually over the phone, but contact was contact. As they had both pledged to spend more time together, Cruz figured that a little bit of time at the fair would be an ideal situation. There was one small wrench in the system, though: work. Cruz worked on Friday, he had Saturday off, but Saturday was devoted to spending time with his siblings at the fair, and he worked again on Sunday.

This forced Cruz to think about his situation analytically. While it was possible that he could ask Isabelle to meet up with him on Saturday, that would mean subjecting her to time with his siblings. He doubted that Isabelle would mind. She had siblings, she knew how it went, and Cruz loved them all… but the relationship between Cruz and the redheaded beauty was still in relative infancy. His siblings could be merciless, especially when it came to dating. It was not a one-way street, though, because Cruz could play the nuisance sibling game just as well as the rest of them. Still, it was best to leave them out of the whole thing entirely. At least for the time being.

With Saturday no longer an option, Friday and Sunday were left as possibilities. Sunday did not seem as appealing as Friday, because by that point his younger siblings may have severely tapped his far from unlimited coffers. Now that they were all of a working age, he was less receptive towards blowing cash on them, but damn if those little buggers couldn’t find some way to guilt big brother into something. Friday, by comparison, was before the family day at the fair. It also had the extra boon of giving him the possibility of spending money on Isabelle and therefore not having money to spend on them. It seemed like a win win situation to Cruz.

Once he decided which day would work optimally for his schedule (allotting, of course, for any modifications that may need to be made to accommodate Isabelle’s schedule), Cruz made the offer to Isabelle. Graciously, the young woman accepted his offer for a little bit of time at the fair. With his shift ending at 9 Friday night, 10 was the decided upon time.

Walking around the fair in his waiter uniform was an option that Cruz could have used, but instead he brought an extra change of clothes that were far more relaxed. Even though it was going to be at night, the fair still happened during the summer season. Cruz complimented his jeans and t-shirt look with white shoes and a denim jacket, which could be discarded from his person and carried if it got to be too hot. Almost immediately after his shift, Cruz made his way to the bathroom and changed outfits. A few of his coworkers commented about the change, but he just said he was going to go out. There were some attempts at probing the raven haired man for information, but he remained mum on the subject.

Fair time was a good time for most people around Crescent Cove. It wasn’t nearly as goodwill inducing as the holiday season, to be sure, but there were still people who were content to leave larger tips than normal. To Cruz’s benefit, these people were sitting at several of his tables. He had no delusions that he could take Isabelle on a shopping spree, but he could at least afford a few corn dogs or something. Plus, he’d pulled money out of his account before he went to work.

The agreed upon meeting place was near the entrance of the fairgrounds. The parking lot was still relatively crowded, being the first weekend night of the fair, and many of the high school students making the fair their hangout spot for the duration of the event. Cruz did not have to park that far from the entrance, and gave a few pleasantries to some of the people he saw walking by as he made his way there.

Once inside, he waited near the entrance as promised, and shifted uneasily for a moment. It wasn’t the first time that he had met a girl at the fair. It was a common rite of passage that most young people in Crescent Cove partook in at some point in their life. What it was, however, was the moment that cemented the fact that he had basically arranged to meet Isabelle at the fair on a date. There was no other way of describing it. He was on a date with Isabelle Parker.

Suddenly, Cruz was more than a little thrilled that his siblings had no clue where he was or what he was doing. If he ended up getting a cryptic text from them, he’d swear they were witches… oh, wait, they were.


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[info]bound_isabelle
2013-09-15 09:27 pm UTC (link)
Isabelle, who had initially enjoyed her time at the fair already, was quite glad to be going back. Although she had managed to take amazing pictures, her fun had been cut short about a very strange, very angry woman. It had sent Isabelle's emotions through the ringer, and she had been much too tired after that to enjoy any of the other fun things that the fair had to offer. Aside from Corn Dogs, she had definitely made time for that the first time.

When Cruz had called and offered to take her out on Friday night, she accepted without hesitation. Since she worked for the guy who owned all the Coffee Shoppe's in town, her schedule was easy to rearrange. Besides, they weren't open past ten anyway. So she just got off an hour early so that she could get ready and everything. It had taken the few days between the call and Friday to decide what she was going to wear. Quite a few outfits had been tossed around the room before the perfect one had been chosen.

The outfit, as it were, consisted of a pink short sleeved v-neck t-shirt, a high waisted black and white vertically striped skirt that went just a bit above the knee, and a pair of black toms to complete the ensemble. A jacket, since it wasn't quite cold yet, was slung across her arm, a cute little black cardigan. Her hair was down, too, beautiful red curls falling down past her shoulders. This was the chosen outfit, and it was what she changed in to right after work in the ladies bathroom. This was also where she applied her make-up, and then cursed when she realized she was running just a tad late.

And so, she set out to the fair. Parking wasn't difficult - fortunately for them it was rather late, and most of the parents and their young ones were gone. Just getting there at ten meant that some of the closer parking spots were open and Isabelle easily took one. Her car was compact, and fit easily in between some of the other cars. She slipped easily out of the car and found her way to the front entrance.

The excitement made her smile. She could feel it everywhere around her. And then, she could feel his excitement. The moment she felt how thrilled Cruz was, her smile got wider. She waved at him, clearly equally pleased to see him. "Hey, sorry I think I'm a bit late." Though, the extra effort she put in to her make-up (which still gave her a clean, natural look just a little highlight here and there), and to make the outfit just right, was obviously worth the wait.

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[info]bound_cruz
2013-09-15 10:02 pm UTC (link)
Cruz turned to look at Isabelle as soon as he heard her voice. They’d known each other long enough that he could remember what she sounded like without much effort, but it was kind of amazing that, after spending so many years apart with basically no contact, Cruz was so easily able to identify her voice once again. “Nah,” he gave a casual shrug. “It’s only been a few minutes. Besides, you’re worth the wait.” All true. “And, in the time I’ve been waiting, I’ve seen a decent chunk of people leave, so, that just means that this place is just a little bit less crowded.” Given that it was the event of the season, as it were, the crowd at the fair could be quite large. Especially for Crescent Cove standards.

Isabelle’s outfit looked natural on her. She always had a sense of style, to be sure. Cruz, by comparison, just sort of went with the standard clothing options for a guy his age. Nothing overly fancy, although he did have a suit for those times when he was given the guilt trip and attended church. “I like your outfit.” As soon as he said it, he realized how basic the statement sounded, and wished that he would have said something a little less standard, but he couldn’t think of anything else.

“Now that we’re both here, what’s say we have a little fun?” His teeth flashed as he smiled. “What are you in the mood for, Isabelle? Lady’s choice.” Cruz fully intended on making sure that the things that Isabelle wanted to do made a priority on his list. The fair wasn’t as huge as the State fair in the Capital, which Cruz had attended once before, but it was sufficient enough for a little bit of fun. Really, it was a safe outing, which suited Cruz very well, because the familiarity of the locale made it very easy for him to keep his nerves in check.

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[info]bound_isabelle
2013-09-15 11:15 pm UTC (link)
Isabelle couldn't help but blush when he brushed off her lateness and complimented her. She wasn't used to people being so lovely. Her friends were nice, of course, and strangers were also generally nice, of course. But this was different, it made her feel special. "Oh, yeah I noticed a lot of traffic heading in the other direction when I was on my way in. Well that's good, it can be a bit overwhelming in there when the fair's on full swing." She nodded seriously but with a hint of that joking smirk pulling at the edges of her lips. She followed him inside happily.

A glance was given to her outfit when he complimented it. Even after all the searching, she hadn't been satisfied. This was the perfect outfit, but Isabelle had wanted it to be more then that. The fact that he liked it, however, made her even happier about her selection. "Really? Thank you, Cruz!" She stepped up to be right beside him and nudged his shoulder a little with her hands playfully.

Oh, the whole fair was open for them! What could they do? Isabelle looked around at the fair, thinking to what she hadn't done when she was here before. "There were some nice games I didn't get to play." She had taken pictures of them, of course. Lots of pictures, actually, but she hadn't played any of the games herself. Which was sad, because she did really enjoy fair games. Despite how rigged they were to make you lose.

"Yeah, how about some games first? Unless you're hungry. You did just get off of work, right?"

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[info]bound_cruz
2013-09-15 11:39 pm UTC (link)
It was good to see her so playful with him. Took some of the edge off. He jovially returned the favor, batting away at her hands lightly. “You’re welcome.”

“Actually, I grabbed something to eat on my last break, so I’m good, probably for the rest of the night.” One of the perks of working at a restaurant was the fact that he could get some of that food for himself from time to time. It wasn’t anything big, some chicken and a salad. Admittedly, Cruz had almost inhaled the dish instantaneously, which at first made his stomach act a bit odd. A few hours later and he was fine, aside from those slight jitters. “I might get a craving for something when we pass by, but we’ll see how that plays out when the time comes.” The smell of all that batter in the air was noticeable, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Cruz ended up craving something fried before the night was done.

Isabelle was fully aware of his occupation by that point. She was a barista, so she knew what it was like to serve people their desires. There was one very big difference between them, though. Cruz worked for someone. Isabelle worked at the place that her family owned. He wasn’t uncomfortable with his occupation, but despite the similarities in their tasks, their situations had vast differences. He’d made peace with said differences. At least as much as he could. Cruz felt strongly that the complex was completely in his head, but it was there nonetheless.

“So, games, huh?” He repeated her request. They were scattered around the area of the fair, but there was also one area where a concentrated amount of them were set up, just like there had been in the years past. “That sounds like something I can make happen for you. But which games do you want to play the most? We’ve got your standard balloon popping ones, the ones where you have to throw the basketball into the net, rings around the bottles, that game with the quarters that makes you think that you’re going to win something but you never, ever do, and probably a few new ones that I haven’t seen yet. Take your pick, Isabelle… but just so you know… if the carney operating the game is missing more than two fingers, we’re moving on.” It was a slight joke, but at the same time Cruz was being serious, because those people were something else.

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[info]bound_isabelle
2013-09-15 11:57 pm UTC (link)
"Ah, right. Working at a restaurant definitely has it's perks!" Of course, she worked around food too but it was pastries and doughnuts, not exactly going to fill your stomach up the way a nice dinner would. Definitely didn't mean Isabelle didn't fully take advantage when she was having an attack of a sweet tooth. She, too, had snacked before coming to the fair, so she wasn't particularly hungry. However, the smell of fair food was wafting through the air and it was already working it's magic on her stomach. Slowly, but surely.

There it was again. Isabelle and Cruz had definitely talked about their jobs, but every time they did there was a tinge of something in the air. She noticed it every time he mentioned working. She couldn't figure it out. It was weird, too, normally Isabelle could work out near any emotion someone was feeling. But, Cruz had already made peace with this emotion at the same time, so there was only ever the briefest moment of something and then it was gone, again.

It really, really was irritating. But, as Isabelle was never one to hold on to an emotion for very long, especially in the face of so much fun, she let it go.

"I agree on the Carney." She said seriously, not about to get given some cursed coin or something by a freaky carney with missing fingers and only half their teeth. She nearly shuddered just at the thought. Given all the options, she let silence pass as she thought about which game she wanted to play, walking side by side with Cruz to the area most populated with carnival games. "I'm truly awful at the basketball ones - no upper body strength. So that's out."

Her eyes scanned the area for the most fun looking game with the least creepy looking people running them. Eventually she decided on one of the ring toss games, with what looked like a young, somewhat awkward young boy running the game. "Ring toss. The one with like, a million coke bottles pushed too close together for the rings to get through except by some miracle. Maybe you just have to think thin." She strategized, laughing as she came up to the edge of the stand, waving her hand at the carnival worker.

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[info]bound_cruz
2013-09-16 12:23 am UTC (link)
It dawned on him in that moment that he had made something of a faux-pas. “I should have checked with you in case you wanted me to bring you something before I came here. I’m sorry. You totally can let me know if you ever want something from there, you know? Even if you’re just working a later shift at the Coffee Shoppe and you need something for dinner.” If he was at work, it would be easier to get the food to her, but in case she wasn’t, he didn’t mind driving over there to pick it up. Sometimes he would do that. They had very good clam chowder where he worked, and, like most places, that was a Friday thing. Actually, he wondered why he hadn’t had it that before he left for the fair. Eh, always next week.

Their agreement about carneys was all but given. In all his life, Cruz had never known someone who wasn’t unnerved by the folk. Not necessarily all of them, but there were some who were just extremely pushy about everything that it was unnerving, annoying, and a horde of other emotions at the same time. “I’ve actually got the upper body strength for the basketball games,” and he had to resist the urge to flex his muscle, but he did, “but I’ve never been all that good at basketball, so, yes, no basketball.” Indeed, despite Cruz’s aptitude towards swimming, the rest of sports he was in were passable at best (track, for example), to downright bad (football). Golf remained a mystery. For all Cruz knew, he could be Tiger level talented, without the personal issues, but he could never bring himself to play the game. Too boring. Putting it mildly.

“Honestly, I think most of these games have a certain degree of miracle-ness applied to them.” He had never won at a ring toss before, never seen anyone win at a ring toss before, but if it was what Isabelle wanted to do, Cruz wouldn’t object. “Guess it’s time see if we’re going to get our miracle.”

Instinctively, Cruz looked at the fingers of the kid who was running the booth. They were all there. He gave Isabelle a knowing look and a brief chuckle. It seemed as though fortune was favoring them already. “Take a look at those stuffed toys, Isabelle.” They were all of a moderate size, which they could afford, since victory in the games of chance came few and far between. “Which one do you want?”

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[info]bound_isabelle
2013-09-16 02:34 am UTC (link)
She could feel the slight moment of regret Cruz seemed to be having, and when he launched in to how he should have checked with her about food, she put her hands up quickly, waving off his assumptions. "Noooo no no no. Don't even worry about it. I'm not a big eater to begin with." It was true - more often then not she forgot to eat. It was actually quite fortunate that she worked somewhere with pastries, the smell tended to remind her that she was hungry. Aside from that, Isabelle didn't really pay attention to such trivial things as food. Fair was different, though. You couldn't deny those corn dogs and funnel cake.

Although, she definitely entertained the idea of having him bring her food after work... maybe in her own apartment... Since, after their first talk, she had started apartment hunting. She smirked at the thoughts internally, then realized she must have looked weird smirking to herself, and went back to paying attention to Cruz.

"You're lucky you were talented in any sport. Aside from the whole fashion thing, with picture taking, being in the picture, and runway walking, I've got no other skills. I'm an awkward runner, not terribly flexible, and although my coordination is great I also am a bit girly for most of the other more rugged sports." She shrugged. It was never a hidden fact that, despite being very laid back, Isabelle did prefer to be a little more feminine than not.

"Perhaps the Carnival Gods will shine down upon us on this day." She said seriously, the tell-tale smile on her lips.

She gave the knowing-look back to Cruz when they both ended up double-checking for all fingers to be present on the carnival worker, and the conformation that they were soon after. He asked which stuffed animal she wanted and she glanced up, looking at the selection. She spotted a group of stuffed animals there were little mooses or whatever possibly pluralization of moose there was, and she pointed to it. "The moose, definitely."

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[info]bound_cruz
2013-09-16 08:49 pm UTC (link)
She didn’t eat much? Well, that explained why she was so skinny. Not that it was a bad thing, of course. By comparison, Cruz ate quite a bit. It was because of his workouts and how much energy that they took, he had to counterbalance that with an intake of food. Over time, he’d conditioned himself to ignore his cravings during the colder months, because Maine could be quite chilly during the winter, and the ocean was not a friendly place to be at that time. “Well, the offer still stands if you ever need it. Just let me know.”

His memories of Isabelle did recollect a decided lack of sports savvy on her part, yes, but Cruz refused to believe that the only things she was good at were the things she listed. “You’re cutting yourself a little too short, don’t you think, Isabelle? I’m sure you’ve got a few other things that you’re good at.” Not that being able to list runway walking as a skill was something to scoff at. Hardly. Unless one was at Fashion Week in Manhattan. The things a man learned from watching Ugly Betty. Other than the fact that Vanessa Williams aged very, very well. “I can think of something that you’re very good at that you left off that list without even thinking that hard about it. You’re very good at making other people smile.” As long as the other people were him, but it was probably a truism nonetheless.

They would find out soon enough if the carnival gods did indeed shine upon them. It could happen, since they were apparently enjoying abandoning those cruise liners. Oh, wait, that was a different carnival. No cruise for Cruz. Funny how that worked out.

“The Moose?” He gave a surprised laugh. Of all the things Isabelle could have chosen, puppies, kitties, bears, horsies, all that traditionally girly stuff… she picked… the moose? It was a shock, to say the least, but that did not mean that Cruz disliked the decision. In fact, he enjoyed it very much, simply because it was so off the wall. “One Moose, coming up.”

His attention turned to the kid on the other side of the counter. “How many of these things do I have get around the bottle to get one of the…” Mooses? Meese? He didn’t know, and didn’t want to sound stupid.

“Moose.” The kid interjected. “It’s the same for both the plural and the singular.” Just because he was a carney didn’t mean that he had to lack the ability to count to 21 without taking off his pants. “Don’t worry, I had to google it on my phone at first. And the answer is one. One will get you the moose.”

“Thanks.” One? Seemed simple. But years of experience, and a considerable chunk of change, had help enlighten Cruz to the fact that it wasn’t really that simple. “Can I get the five dollar bucket?” The Lincoln was pulled out and handed over, in exchange for the bucket with faded rings.

The southpaw dug his hand into the bucket and pulled out a trio of rings. “Did you want to try, too, Isabelle? Or did you want to leave this up to me?” He kind of wanted to win it for her, but if she wanted to, he wouldn’t mind sharing the bucket with her.

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[info]bound_isabelle
2013-09-17 02:51 am UTC (link)
"Only if you promise to stay a while." She countered, giving him a sly little smirk. Isabelle, of course, had no filter. These little 'jokes' as it were, although not particularly common, were not something she was ashamed of either. She was pretty sure at this point it was clear she liked him, and spending time with him was becoming one of the best ways to make her happy. She would definitely enjoy dinner and a movie or something.

"Maybe a little." She conceded, though aside from making a wicked cup of coffee, she couldn't readily think of any other skills. When he added that her being able to make other people smile easily she fired back with a beautiful smile of her own, and a slight reddening of her cheeks. "You make people smile, too. But thanks. I try to make people happy." She really, really did. And if she couldn't make them happy just be being nice... Well, she had other talents right?

She caught his surprise when she told him what animal she wanted, and laughed as well. Isabelle had always been a bit of an odd ball. She liked things that weren't necessarily your average run of the mill. It's probably why she liked high fashion. I mean, have you seen some of that stuff? Definitely not normal.

She smiled when the kid told them it was always just Moose. Isabelle had never bothered to look it up or think about it, nor had she had many occasions where she would have needed to say the plural of Moose. But now she knew. The more you know, right? The five dollar bucket was handed over and Isabelle glanced inside. Not a whole lot of rings there... She momentarily of cheating... But her ability to maneuver wind wasn't that accurate.

"Yeah! I'll try a few times." She took the proper amount of coins and changed that over for some rings, watching as Cruz did the same. "Same time, okay? 1...2...3 go!" She tossed hers.

Predictably, her ring hit the tops, bounced, and slid off the table of coke bottles. "Darn. That wasn't even close was it?" She laughed again, enjoying the game regardless.

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[info]bound_cruz
2013-09-17 08:42 pm UTC (link)
“I think I can arrange to stick around a little while if you ever need me to get you some food, sure.” It might mean that she would have to wait until the end of his shift, because his breaks weren’t that long, but that didn’t seem like the worst way to spend his after-work time. “But if you expect me to dress up like a butler when I bring you the food, on some sort of silver platter, while calling you Lady Isabelle, that… that is something that I will not be able to promise you.” He wasn’t Alfred. Hell, he wasn’t even Alfredo.

Her ability to make people happy, be it with a smile, a kind word, or simply her existence, was certainly a gift worth noting. People like Isabelle were rare. Or, if they weren’t that rare, Cruz did not find a great amount of them in his own life. Not that his life was doom and gloom, far from it. Overall, Cruz was content, but having Isabelle around just made it better. It just did.

While it was true that the five dollar bucket of rings was not exactly filled to the brim, Cruz hoped that there were enough rings in there that one of them would be able to hit their mark. Besides, it was still a good value, for the group that brought the fair to town, at least. The stuffed toys were unlikely to be that costly. Factor in the amount of money spent in vain by people trying to win, and they probably came out in the end. Probably.

Cruz wouldn’t have minded if Isabelle would have just grabbed from his bucket, but he knew better than to object about something like that. Plus, before he could even think about an objection, she had already forked over the cash and had her own rings to toss. Wordlessly, Cruz gave Isabelle a nod, readying his hand to aim at the bottles before launching his first ring, and failing spectacularly.

“You’re not doing any worse than I am, so I wouldn’t worry about it too much.” Two more rings were launched in quick succession. One bounced off the glass bottle, with the audible ‘tink’ sound echoing for a brief second, the other almost looked like it was going to succeed before flopping over to the side.

“That one was close. You’ve almost got it.” The kid was encouraging, but how genuine the statement was could be widely debated. After all, his job was to lure customers into wasting their money, and then trying to get them to waste even more.

Cruz ignored him, looking over at Isabelle every so often to ensure that she was still enjoying herself. It seemed like she was. More rings were tossed towards their goal. A few hit the bottles. A few just slid between them, some of them went towards the back of the canvas, flopping down harmlessly.

Three rings were left in the bucket. Cruz took one and flung it. Miss. Giving a frustrated sigh, and completely ignoring the guy on the other side of the counter, who was probably smirking, Cruz relaxed his fingers for a second before throwing the next ring. It was too low and hit the middle of the bottle. “Damn,” he muttered softly.

For the final time, Cruz reached into the bucket, letting the ring dance between two of his fingers before he pulled it out. “This is my last one…” in that moment, he realized that he hadn’t checked to see how she was doing with her mound of rings. Maybe she could win instead.

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[info]bound_isabelle
2013-09-17 08:57 pm UTC (link)
"I would never ask you to do that!" She laughed, guessing he was joking and certainly hoping he didn't think of her as that kind of person. "Although I'm sure you would look very debonair in a suit." She chuckled, the visual of that whole situation was pretty funny if you really thought about it. But of course, that would never happen. "I was thinking more, relaxing on the couch and watching a movie or something. Nothing so sinister."

Isabelle didn't know how happy she made people, normally. Sure, she felt their happiness, but she never really deduced it to it being her presence. She knew Cruz was frequently happy when they were together, but she also just assumed that Cruz was generally a happy person to begin with. She wasn't one to take complete credit for that.

She watched as he threw his ring after hers, and failed just as beautifully as she had. She gave another little laugh. She timed her throw with his again, but again the two failed to hit the mark. She scrunched her nose, eyebrows knitted together in determination.

One, two, three... five rings. Still nothing. She watched as Cruz, as he had said, wasn't getting much progress in on getting a ring to actually hook the bottle top either. Although the tinkling noise of the rings hitting the glass was a distinct reminder of their failure to hook one, she couldn't help thinking the sound was quite pretty.

A bit of a snort escaped her when the guy encouraged them, saying that a few of theirs had been close. She knew he was supposed to say that, because hers hadn't come close whatsoever. A few of Cruz's had, that was true, he clearly had better aim than she did. She tossed her lass one just as Cruz looked over, and it missed the mark completely, ending up on the floor in front of them without even having hit a glass.

"Looks like it's all up to you."

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[info]bound_cruz
2013-09-17 09:24 pm UTC (link)
He couldn’t take credit for looking good in a suit. That was something that was bestowed entirely on the suit itself. People often made comments about how easy it was for guys to look good in suits as opposed to girls, who had to pick the right style of dress, the right color, and just deal with so much more. It was pretty much true. Rare was the suit-wearing male who Cruz saw that could not work the apparel. Although there was that one time he saw someone in a powder blue tux. If that was a choice made ironically or if the guy thought he looked good, Cruz could not say. He also left it alone. “See, a movie on the couch, that’s way more my speed. And I might not be giving you a silver platter, but the take out containers at work are actually pretty nice.” Microwavable and everything.

Although he had been relatively oblivious to Isabelle’s attempts at scoring the plush antler bearing animal, it was clear now that the last chance Cruz had to win her the moose was right there in his hand. He really wanted to win her the moose. It obviously wasn’t overly valuable. He could probably find a better one online, but there was something about winning it for Isabelle at the fair that just increased his drive.

With determination, Cruz unleashed his final ring from his hand and he looked at it intently. Within a moment, it was obvious that the ring would not land on the top of the bottle naturally. A normal person would have to walk away defeated, or pay more money and make another attempt. Fortunately, Cruz Ramos was not a normal person.

Despite his lack of dedication towards honing his magical abilities, Cruz had the process hammered into him enough times over the years that it was relatively effortless to channel his gift. His preference was to use his hands instead of his eyes to supernaturally control the positioning of an object, but that would be too obvious around both Isabelle and the carney. First rule of magic, as taught to him by his family? Don’t use it in a way that will allow you to be caught. Second rule of magic? If you can use it and not be caught, it’s fair game. That second rule was his own, and he was rare to utilize it.

He was able to use his powers to guide the ring, making it seem like it was still naturally moving, pushing the circular object further towards the middle of the bottles before lowering the ring down, right over the top of the glass. Once confident that his ploy was successful, Cruz released his hold and the ring fell around the top of the bottle, clanging repeatedly for a few seconds before falling into silence.

The carney was surprised for a second before he recollected himself. “Look at that, we’ve got a winner!” He reached over to grab the moose, handing it to Cruz. “Congrats, man!”

“Thanks.” Was it cheating? Maybe a little, but it was cheating for a good reason. If it was just for himself, Cruz probably wouldn’t have even thought about using his magic. But it wasn’t for him. It was for her, to give Isabelle something to remember the night by. Surely that meant that a little extra help wasn’t a bad thing, right?

He held the moose up in front of his face for a second. “Looks like luck was on my side tonight after all.” Cruz smiled. “I think this little guy wants to get out of my hands and into yours, though. In fact, I know it. I speak plushy. Don’t tell anyone. Only you and my little sister know.” Cruz offered the trinket to Isabelle, feeling quite accomplished.

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[info]bound_isabelle
2013-09-17 09:48 pm UTC (link)
Men had it just as difficult, actually. Most men wore their suits improperly, it was just difficult to tell. A lot more went in to sizing and fitting a suit than just buying one that fit around the waist and who's arms weren't too long. The jacket had to fall to the right spot at the waist, the pants the right length, the way the tie or bow-tie was knotted, etc. It was difficult for women too, of course, the wrong fit of a dress and it could make you look grotesque. "I like sitting down to watch movies, too. I might seem very go-go-go all the time, but I like to relax as well."

She could feel his determination when he realized that she had lost all her coins. She rose an eyebrow as he turned back to the coin toss, and tossed the coin. It was almost like she could watch his thought process through the emotional spectrum and his face. When it looked like the coin was going to miss, she could feel the moment of panic and then... was that an internal debate? She felt conflicting things, and his face looked funny...

And then she felt that. It was a clear, little burst of magic in the air. Something she was very, incredibly in-tuned to. She watched as the little ring hovered in just the most imperceptibly wrong way and then fell to win. The carney was surprised, but he wasn't paying as much attention as Isabelle one. Still, Isabelle cheered out when he won and congratulated him when the moose was placed into his hands.

"I think more than luck was on your side. Cheater." She said jokingly, though she quite happily took the moose from his hands and held it in her arms, using her free arm to link through his. "I knew it. You're a witch aren't you?" She said quietly so only he could hear. Their words were impossible to hear in the noise from the fair, as long as she spoke close to his ear.

"Not that I mind, even with... whatever it is you can do, that takes skill also. No reason not to get an edge up on the games that cheat innately." She shrugged. She had known for a bit now that he was a Witch or something, he definitely had a lot of magic around him at all times and she could feel that positively familiar strain of magic that ran through nearly everyone she kept in contact with.

"I'm one too you know."

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[info]bound_cruz
2013-09-17 10:40 pm UTC (link)
There weren’t that many times when Cruz felt his blood run cold. The nanosecond that Isabelle asked if he was a witch was one of those moments. He frozen, practically forgetting to blink, even breathe. Finally, an involuntary motion took over his body as he gulped. It seemed extraordinarily loud, as if it was a sonic boom or something.

She was talking softly, quietly, so that nobody else would hear. If he would have been more present, instead of locked away in the deepest fears of his mind, he probably would have appreciated her tact significantly more.

The first rule that his parents taught him, the big rule, was not to let people know what he could do. It wasn’t just because they were paranoid. Bad things could happen if too many people knew what the Ramos clan was capable of. Even people asking too many questions could be disastrous. Cruz knew that. He wasn’t old enough to remember it, but he suffered through the fallout all the same.

Even Isabelle’s statement that she was like him was not enough to calm his jittery nerves.

How long he was standing there in stupor was unknown to Cruz at that very moment. Could have been a minute. Could have been an hour. It felt like an eternity all the same. Finally, he was able to respond, but it was only a single word, barely above a whisper. Was he a witch? There was only one answer. “Yes.”

He felt like he wanted to throw up.

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[info]bound_isabelle
2013-09-17 11:19 pm UTC (link)
Well that was certainly not as she expected. Most people didn't react with such fear. Well, some did, but not once she mentioned she was too. She felt the emotions he was going through, the initial feeling of complete shock and then, possibly dread. She road along with him on the roller coaster of things he was feeling. Knowing he needed this time and these emotions, Isabelle refrained from saying anything. After a moment, there was more to feel.

Now it was jittery. He was nervous, anxious. She could feel that, she started to sweat. It was like fight-or-flight response, but even a little more amped up then that. She hesitated, wanting to calm him down. She heard him say yes, admitting what he was, and she smiled but was immediately struck by the urge to vomit. She gagged a little then frowned at him. After a moment, she and him would both be calm.

It was like an open window. If the weather started to change, if a breeze came through, you would feel it at first but not notice, and eventually you would become cold and maybe you would wonder how it had gotten so cold but it was all seem very logical. That was kind of how Isabelle's ability worked. There was a nice, calming feeling peaking through the horizon there, and it gently washed over him until she could no longer feel the jittering, nauseated shock emanating from him.

"Better now?" She asked, clearly very upset that she had caused him to go through such intense emotions.

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[info]bound_cruz
2013-09-17 11:31 pm UTC (link)
There was a wave of clarity that came along in his mind. It was unexpected, and he didn’t exactly know why it had happened, but if Cruz tried to claim that it was unwelcome, he would be a total and utter liar.

He started to remember to breathe almost right after Isabelle asked him if he was doing better. Cruz could focus again. Focus on her. It wasn’t easy, but it helped. It helped a lot. Speech was still a little too difficult for him in that moment, but he was able to provide a nod. Thankfully, the repetitive movement of his head did not make him want to hurl, although his stomach still felt slightly knotted.

“Can…” he coughed a little, oddly hoarse. A second later, and Cruz tried again. “Can we find somewhere to sit down, please? Kind of… away from as many people as we can?” Isabelle knew. She knew the thing that Cruz had tried to keep hidden from everyone, even his closest friends. There was no forgetting that. Or, if there was, he didn’t know how to do it. She wasn’t going to forget it, which meant that, well, he needed to tell her.

His body was a little stiff, but he knew he could manage. It wasn’t a conversation that he wanted to have, right there in the middle of the fair. Off to the side, secluded, that was all he needed.

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[info]bound_isabelle
2013-09-17 11:50 pm UTC (link)
Now, he was feeling better all on his own. Still a little uncomfortable, but the emotions were much more calm than they just had been. That was a good first step in the right direction, yes? Yes. She put her hand on his back, still feeling pretty awful. Had she known he was going to react that way, she never would have said anything. Or maybe she would have done it in a more gentle fashion. But she had no way of knowing, and so there they were.

He asked to be taken to somewhere a little more quiet and away from all these people and she wordlessly obliged. Isabelle knew where there were very few people. She could feel the clusters of emotion and their directions, too. So she went where she couldn't feel nearly as much, and that happened to lead them over to where there were some offices and other things where the managers of the Carnival hung out all day. There really was no one there, the rides, food, games and other forms of entertainment had stopped a few feet behind them and all that lay ahead were the few little trailers.

She walked him over towards where it was an area mostly just of grass, somewhere in the middle of Memorial Park, which she could see in her head but looked so different when the fair was in full swing. She sat down on the grass and pat the space next to her softly, motioning for him to take a seat. Whether or not he did, she spoke before he was able to get a chance to. "I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to upset you."

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[info]bound_cruz
2013-09-18 12:09 am UTC (link)
He stayed in silence as he followed her, head down for most of the journey. There were still so many thoughts going through his head. He remembered the feeling of paranoia that he had when he was growing up. That instilled belief that his parents put into him, into all of them, that things would happen if people found out. He supposed that, after leaving school, after spending all that time, those formative years when it would have been so easy to let something slip, without any incidents that it was basically going to be something he never had to talk about with anyone outside of his family. How wrong he was.

When Isabelle offered her apologies, he wasn’t sure how to take it. “It’s… it’s not really your fault. I’ve never told anyone before. I guess I just thought that I never would.”

Cruz sighed and looked up at the sky. Isabelle knew. She was a witch, too. “There’s always been… so much magic in the air around here. It’s just always here, lingering. I got so used to it that, I don’t know, I stopped paying attention to it…” that was the best way that he could describe it, because it was honest. “I’ve never been very good at pinpointing where the vibes are coming from.”

Isabelle deserved an explanation. Or, at the very least, Cruz wanted to tell her more, but there was just so much deeply seeded lectures, it was hard to be so forthcoming. But he knew he could trust her. Cruz just knew it. “My parents sort of made it a point to tell us to keep our mouths shut. That’s kind of why I reacted as strongly as I did. I’ve always been afraid that if someone found out… we’d have to go through everything all over again…”

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[info]bound_isabelle
2013-09-18 12:26 am UTC (link)
Isabelle was a good listening, and very trustworthy. She didn't entirely believe it wasn't her fault, but she knew he felt strongly about saying that, and so she trusted that he, at least, believed it wasn't her fault. She waited for him to explain, and was patient with his inability to be totally forthcoming. She had a feeling that it was a big secret for him. There were a lot of very complicated emotions surrounding his being a witch and telling this story.

When he said he had always been told to keep his mouth shut, she understood. It was the same with her family, the biggest difference being that her family had known other families who were also magical. It was so fortunate for Isabelle to have grown up knowing her Circle the way she did. Even though it had to be a secret to everyone else in the town, it had never really been a big secret. She hadn't grown up with the same notions of horror instilled in what they were the same way it seemed to have been for others.

"What happened, when you were in California?" She asked tentatively, immediately adding, "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." She put her hands up to show that she wasn't prying, and really, Isabelle didn't need to know the story. If he wanted to tell her, she would listen, but she didn't find this to be so vital to their future as friends or whatever that he needed to tell it now. In time, she knew, he would.

"Let me tell you about me first." She said, hoping that would ease the tension a little bit. It must be so hard for him to talk about it, never really having been able to before. "My family was persecuted for being witches way, way long ago. They were actually in the Salem Witch Trials, along with a few other people. Those other people, and my family, decided to try and create a town where they could live more peacefully, and freely. It happened to be Crescent Cove."

Sorry, co-founders. Isabelle's outing you.

She paused for a second before moving on. "Time passed, et cetera. Magic became very instilled here. There's always been a lot of witches here, what with all our families producing like a million children." She laughed. "My family, we're... emotionally environmental. I don't know how to put it, really. No one in my family can feel and manipulation emotions as well as I do, but we all have some sort of empathic ability. We also are very adept in wind manipulation. You know, like aerokinesis or whatever you want to call it." She blushed. That was a weird way to put it.

"I joined a circle, I have friends here who are Witches. My life, unlike yours unfortunately, was ingrained with Witches everywhere around me all the time. New ones show up from time to time, and leave, some come back. Witches grow like weeds here. This place, I think it draws the magic to it now. Of course, I have to keep it secret, like you, from anyone who isn't magic... But I could feel that you were, so I said so. Anyway, that's my story." She blushed, feeling a little privileged again. She hated to feel that way, but Isabelle had never once taken her stable household and her comfort with all aspects of her life for granted. And she never would.

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[info]bound_cruz
2013-09-18 12:58 am UTC (link)
Before he could reveal the bits and pieces of his past, Isabelle gave him a bit of an informational dump of her own. He listened, intently, but also with a certain amount of disbelief. Mostly because, well, they were really having the conversation that they were having. It wasn’t a dream. He’d tried that whole pinch himself thing, and it didn’t work.

The information that he gathered from Isabelle was quite enlightening. Even without being a witch, people knew about the Salem Witch Trials. Cruz’s family could be traced back for a very long time, but they never had to deal with something quite so well documented. It was surprising to him, however, to learn that Isabelle’s family was essentially some sort of witch pilgrim, with Crescent Cove taking the place of Plymouth Rock. The Parker family was ingrained in the town’s society, alongside a few other families. Now he knew why.

The other tidbit was that Isabelle was a member of a circle. That word carried with it a lot of weight. The complete ramifications of what it meant to be in a circle weren’t clearly known to an undereducated practitioner like Cruz, but the important parts were. It made her stronger. A stronger empath and aerokinetic, as her confession revealed.

“My family lived in Arcata for a very long time. I don’t know how long, probably not as long as your family, but long enough. I was a baby when we left, and my parents don’t really like to talk about it that much, so me and my siblings sort of learned to stop asking questions pretty quickly. What I do know is that my family was pretty adjusted there… but then some vampire came and started killing regular humans. Cops were looking around, hunters came, and regular people were worried, too. There was a lot of tension in the magical community because of what happened. People were scared. People were angry. My parents felt that if they stayed, it’d be dangerous for us. So we left. We left and we came here, but we lost everything.”

He sighed and looked at her, “So, ever since then, they’ve raised us here. I was the last one of my siblings born in California. We practiced magic so that me and my siblings wouldn’t let our magic sort of flow out of us. We came here because, like you said, this place is known for being safer for witches than most places, but even knowing that, they still wanted to keep our gift a secret. I can honestly count the people who know on one hand… even with you knowing. I think my parents were just scared, and that’s why it was hammered into us that we had to stay quiet.” He gave a disappointed chuckle. “Pretty good job of programming us… considering I practically had a nervous breakdown when you found out.” He was adjusting, obviously, being able to throw humor in it.

“I’m… not ashamed of what I am… but I guess I try not to let that part of me be my focus.” That… sounded like a very, very poor explanation. “I guess that’s why I focused so much on swimming. It gave me something that was normal. Something that I could do that I wouldn’t have to hide. I liked having that.” Cruz’s eyes turned to look at Isabelle once more. “Does that make sense?” He’d hate for her to think that he was crazy.

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[info]bound_isabelle
2013-09-18 01:14 am UTC (link)
Isabelle could feel for his situation. The Parker family was lucky enough to have gone through that kind of persecution and being frightened away from their homes at a time when, together, going to a new bit of land and creating a town wasn't so difficult, if you really put your mind to it. She was fortunate that Crescent Cove had been, until recently, quite safe from outsiders. She wished his family had never had to undergo such a terrible and frightening situation.

"Wow, Cruz. I'm really sorry. To lose everything like that..." She shook her head. "I don't have to imagine, I've felt how it feels to lose things like that. I really just hate that other people ever have to feel that way. You, and from the little I know of your family and siblings, definitely aren't the kind of people who deserve such a thing to happen." She put her hand on his shoulder and patted it gently. Again, she felt almost a little guilty that she had had it so easy.

"Yeah, if you ever want to feel magically safe somewhere, this is definitely the place. Even though I'm pretty sure we have our fair share of other magical creatures, too, you're never far from help. Things like that don't tend to happen here." Not usually, anyway. Things cropped up, but the town was more than well protected from random brutality and cruelty. Isabelle failed to mention the few mysteries happenings around town that her own Circle had been worried about for a while.

Things seemed to be calm as of late anyway. No need to worry, right?

Isabelle figured if the time ever came she would tell Cruz about the strange things going on in Crescent Cove but right now was definitely not the time to share that bit of information. She gave a small smile when he joked about his parents programming them. "Yeah, I thought you were going to throw up all over my skirt. I mean, I would still like you and all but this is a pretty nice skirt." She smiled playfully, trying to lighten the mood. One of Isabelle's biggest traits was her inability to take things too seriously for too long.

"I'm glad you're not ashamed. I can tell you aren't. I understand where you are coming from. That's why I like fashion and photography so much. With my empathy, I could have been a therapist. But, like you... I don't want it to be all there is to me, either." The empathy was so ingrained in her, it was almost impossible for it not to be central to Isabelle as a whole, but she very seldom thought of herself as just being a Witch and doing Witch things. No, she was Isabelle Parker - a phenomenal photographer and sensitive person.

Just a little more sensitive than your average bear, is all.

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[info]bound_cruz
2013-09-18 09:31 pm UTC (link)
Sometimes, Cruz wondered if he should really feel any sort of ownership in regards to the pain that the relocation caused his family. After all, he was too young to remember any of it. But the agony that was readily apparent in his parents’ eyes, in their words, when they brought up California… Cruz supposed that ultimately it was the resentment of that kind of pain befalling people who he loved so much being the reason why he felt so strongly.

“It does feel safe here,” he agreed. He’d said it before, and he truly meant it. Cruz may not have been born in Crescent Cove, but it was home. There were some things about the town that drove him slightly crazy, sure, but overall he was content with the place. It did seem odd that his parents would opt to relocate to an area that was certainly more welcoming of people with their abilities, only to remain relatively shrouded about their gifts all the same. Their son had learned not to question them, unless it was privately and in silence. “They’re just always going to have their guard up, I guess. But I can’t really blame them.”

He didn’t respond to her comment about throwing up on her skirt with words, but his body did shake a little bit as he let out a soft snicker. One of those things that he feared had just happened. If it had been pretty much anyone else, he’d probably still be in a very bad place. But, because it was Isabelle… it was just different. That helped. Somehow, it helped.

Part of the reason may have been because Isabelle seemed to ‘get’ him. She didn’t judge him for his choices, a claim that Cruz could not even make about his parents. “The only thing I’m really any good at is moving things telekinetically.” Since he wasn’t in the mood to be some sort of Criss Angel-esque charlatan (although, since he was actually a witch, there wouldn’t be much of a ruse), his scope of careers that embraced his ability were all too rare. “And even that, I could be a lot better if I wanted to be. I just fought the idea that I needed to spend so much time training.” Between magical training, learning Spanish, and swimming, amongst other necessities, something had to give. Spanish may not have been the most practical language to learn… especially in Maine, but still. “I’m even worse now that I’m not living at home.”

Finally feeling more at ease with his jitters, Cruz looked at Isabelle yet again, “I can’t believe you’re a witch. I guess I shouldn’t be all that surprised…” there was that slight pull of magic in the air around her, always. He just ignored it all that time. And then it hit him. “Did… did you ever have a feeling that I was? Before the moose thing, I mean.”

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[info]bound_isabelle
2013-09-18 11:47 pm UTC (link)
She knew it was safe here for the most part. That didn't mean she didn't fully understand his parents' need to keep their guard up. They wanted to protect their family, and no one could blame them for that. She certainly didn't, and she doubted that Cruz ever felt any anger over that, either. He seemed much too laid back and understanding to not get the reasoning behind their slight paranoia.

She caught the slight snicker and she smiled brightly again. Good, ok, he was laughing. That was always a good sign. She could tell he didn't hate her or anything, and that was good too. She felt a little better about the situation after that, and was glad they were still going to talk. Really, he could have run away screaming. It would have made sense. She pulled the moose closer to her, her thumb rubbing the soft fur.

"Is that what you did? I just knew you used magic, I wasn't sure how you did it. That's really cool." She had never seen anyone really use telekinetic magic efficiently. Little things, sure, but getting things to be accurate was really difficult. She was impressed, and maybe just the tiniest bit jealous. Who wouldn't want to basically be Jean Grey? She'd seen X-men, she was definitely jealous.

"I didn't practice much when I was out in California, either. I nearly lost control of my magic when I was there." She shuddered at the thought. "It was a runway show, I'd been so focused on everything going on that I'd nearly forgotten I was even supposed to be going out on the runway and the jittery-panic of everyone in the room got to me. I fainted. Fortunately that's all that happened, it could have been so much worse." She shuddered again. It had not been a good moment.

When he asked if she had always known, she shrugged a little. "Not when we were younger. I couldn't recognize it when we were smaller. By senior year I had an inkling that you were, given I was so familiar with how being around other Witches felt. But it wasn't until I saw you again at my work that I was positive." She almost felt a little bad, like she had read his text messages or something. "The moose sealed the deal, though."

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[info]bound_cruz
2013-09-19 12:55 am UTC (link)
“The technical term is Kinetomancy…” it dawned on him that he wasn’t just talking to some random kid on the street. He was talking to a witch whose family had been around for hundreds of years, helping shape the community that they lived in. Of course she knew what the technical term was. “That sounds way too scientific, though.” Sort of like when people called a Heart Attack by its more professional term… what was it… myocardial infarction? “But yes, that’s what I did. That’s what my family can do.” Both of his parents were skilled in the same craft. “It is pretty cool sometimes… and handy.” The remote was never too far out of range for Cruz, which was very, very helpful indeed. “Usually, I control it with my hands, but since I didn’t want to make you or that guy think I was having a stroke or something, I used my eyes. I was trying to be crafty, like a ninja. And I failed.” Because Mexicans weren’t supposed to be ninjas, obviously!

He hated the idea of Isabelle being overwhelmed by her magic the way that she described. It was a very real fear amongst witches that their powers could be left unchecked. Cruz, for example, wasn’t even allowed to attend a sleepover at his friends’ houses until his parents were completely sure that his powers wouldn’t mean that their son would be caught levitating in his Superman sleeping bag, because it could happen. It never did, but the chances were there. “That sounds horrible. I mean, there was a chance that you could have blamed it on your nerves and people wouldn’t have known,” runway models had to get nervous at some point, right? “But to lose control like that…” the thoughts were so unpleasant that Cruz tried to purge them out almost as soon as they entered.

Cruz gave a faint nod as she explained the way that she read him when they were younger. His parents were much better at pinpointing who could harness magic, and it was entirely possible that out of all four of them, Cruz was the worst of his siblings with the magical homing beacon, as it were. “I think somewhere in the back of my mind I might have thought that you were. There was something there. I just never gave it much thought.” Who Isabelle was mattered infinitely more than what Isabelle was.

His brown eyes took note of the Moose yet again. That little stuffed toy had caused such a ruckus without even trying. Truly, a skilled piece of fluff indeed. But, in his own way, Cruz appreciated the toy for acting as the proverbial ice breaker. At some point, he probably would have needed to tell Isabelle (even though, by her own statement, she knew), because he wanted to be honest with her.

No longer encumbered by the cornucopia of emotions, Cruz was in a state of relative calm. “I think I’m okay now,” but he was still spent emotionally. Even so, he could power through the emotional drainage for Isabelle. “We can go back into the fair if you want.” He looked at his phone. No missed texts or calls from his family. A true blessing. But the time on the phone revealed one undeniable fact. “There’s… not a lot of time left before it closes, but we might be able to do a few more things.”

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[info]bound_isabelle
2013-09-19 06:14 pm UTC (link)
She did know the term, but she hadn't really thought about it in years. She knew most of the kinds of powers witches had or could obtain, different schools of it that people were gifted in. But she hadn't met anyone before that was good at it. "I kind of like the term. Telekinetic is kind of general. Kinetomancy is... cooler." She didn't know a better way to put it. She just happened to like the term. "I bet it's handy. I've only ever levitated things a few times, but not in the same way. With wind, it's not easy, and they mostly crash through windows so I stopped." She had a habit of breaking things.

She laughed at the thought of him using his hands to control it while everyone was watching. It was a funny sight, and might have looked like he was having some kind of fit. People probably would have just written him off as weird and laughed when they walked away, but it would have looked incredibly strange nonetheless. "You only failed because I could sense the magic. No one else knew." She said, her voice upbeat. Gotta look on the bright side, right?

"It can be scary to lose control like that. We have to take such precautions on purpose. I mean, what if you could create really intense illusions, and you did it on accident just thinking about it? You could really harm someone that way. Or light something on fire because you were careless? When the empathy first manifested, I had to be removed from school for a while. Remember that? We said I had pneumonia. I was out for a month or so." She shrugged, it was all ancient history now, but the threat of losing control sometimes was still very real.

Cruz was ready to get back to the fair, and Isabelle, knowing he was much more calm than before, trusted this and stood up as he did. She glanced at her phone after he said it was nearly closing, and rose an eyebrow. Time had gone by much more quickly than she had anticipated. "Well, I think all I really want is a corn dog. Maybe some cotton candy, but the jury's still out on that."

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[info]bound_cruz
2013-09-19 08:56 pm UTC (link)
“Kinetomancy sounds like an exotic sickness or something,” Cruz quipped. And, being Mexican in Maine, Cruz already had enough ‘exoticness’ going on in his life. “It can be really handy at times, yes, but sometimes it’s hard to control, even now. But that’s kind of par for the course with magic.” It seemed like Isabelle had endured the same difficulties, perhaps even more, with her wind manipulation.

It was comforting to know that the only reason he failed at his task was because Isabelle had an ace up her sleeve that he was completely unaware of at the time that he used his magic… but if he hadn’t, he wouldn’t have won the moose. “So, it’s like a half-fail then. Partial credit and all that. I haven’t had to deal with partial credit since we graduated from high school, but I’ll take it.”

The ramifications of magic were hammered into most magic using children at a young age, provided their parents were decent human beings. It was more than just the risk of exposure. Magic was power. Power could hurt a person just as easily, if not moreso, than it could help them. He’d felt the ramifications of using his power too much before. It was not an experience Cruz enjoyed reliving.

Isabelle’s story about the past, about what happened when her empathic abilities blossomed, shook away the cobwebs of his mind. “I do remember that,” he said softly. “You were there, and then you weren’t. After a few days, the teacher just said that you weren’t going to come back until you were better.” While the adults may have been aware of the fake reason that Isabelle was out, it was something that the kids could not understand, so they spoke about it in the basics. Cruz remembered missing her, and being very happy when she was back. Even if he didn’t show it overly much at the time.

When Isabelle brought up the food, his stomach kind of tightened. Was he feeling better? Yes, but that didn’t mean that he was going to start chowing down on fair food. “I usually get cotton candy when I’m here… I’ll probably get some for later. Come on, let’s go.” Cruz took about two and a half steps before he stopped. “Oh, and Isabelle… thanks.” A simple word with a lot of meaning. Cruz had a feeling that she knew what he meant.

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[info]bound_isabelle
2013-09-20 02:57 am UTC (link)
There was a snicker at the exotic sickness comment. It was kind of true, but she still liked the term. Isabelle wondered what his aversion to exotic things was. Being Isabelle, she had never noticed something as silly as the fact that he was Mexican and that might be weird in a predominantly white area. Isabelle had never been one to look at race as a thing of any sorts. She was just one of those people. "I bet, it seems like such a precise bit of magic, too. That's just how it is for us, though." Said matter of factly, but without any malice.

"Yes, half-fail would be more accurate than complete fail." She laughed, she hadn't had to deal with partial credit in a long time. Really, you didn't get partial-credit at a school for professional photography. It was basically You're In, Or You're Out. Auf Wiedersehen, as Heidi Klum would say.

"It was weird to lie to everyone about what happened when I came back. I'm not very good at it, so I mostly just said I was sick and refused to talk about it more." In truth, she had been sick in a way. Everything had been so overwhelming she had nearly gotten physically ill a few times. She was lucky she hadn't been institutionalized - but being empathic, and having her family knew what that meant, they knew any kind of environment like that would have made her go much farther downhill.

"You're welcome." She replied with a smile as they walked towards the food section of the fair. "I'm really sorry I kind of ruined the whole date." Yes, she definitely said date out loud, but she wasn't going to press the issue either. "Can I make it up to you?" She didn't know how, but she would gladly do whatever he requested (within reason) to make it up to him. All he had been trying to do was win her a stuffed animal, anyway. And there she went spilling the beans about mystical backgrounds and deep seated family secrets.

It wasn't often Isabelle made her dates feel like vomiting.

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[info]bound_cruz
2013-09-20 09:02 pm UTC (link)
“You were pretty good at it, though. At least when you were lying about the reason why you were gone for so long back then. I mean, I believed you.” But then, Cruz could be accused of being overly trusting at times, especially when he was a young child. Aside from not having the financial security of some of his friends, Cruz had a relatively happy childhood. That helped fester a certain amount of naivety. He was older now, wiser.

When Isabelle apologized for, as she put it, ruining their date, he instantly felt a need to correct her. “Isabelle, you didn’t ruin anything. Honestly, I’m the one who did because I’m the one who reacted the way that I did when you asked me about being a witch. You didn’t have any clue about what my family had gone through, and you couldn’t have known that asking a simple question would have snowballed the way that it did. Unless… you know, you’re hiding some form of telepathy from me…” the tone of his voice was playful enough that he didn’t believe that she was, and certainly hoped she wasn’t.

“So, no guilt about me going mini-Defcon and no need to make anything up to me. Let’s just go back to the fair for what little time we have left and have a good time. I think we can manage that, don’t you?” Still reeling from the reveal, Cruz was able to refocus on having a good time. He had made a vow to himself long ago that he would not allow magic to have unnecessary impacts on his life. If he let Isabelle knowing what he was ruin what they were building, then he’d end up regretting that decision.

“Oh,” he added quickly, “just so you know… my personal nickname for that moose of yours is ‘Trouble’ from now on.” Again, Cruz flashed a playful grin. Humor was a better way of moving beyond uncomfortable situations than just about any other emotion, so why not use it?

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[info]bound_isabelle
2013-09-22 03:25 am UTC (link)
"I don't want to be thought of as a good liar." She griped, doing that scrunching-of-the-nose-in-faux-disgust thing. She did that often, as people who don't take things too seriously tend to do. "But thanks. I'm glad it was believable. Might have been totally weird if I hadn't been." Her family could have been put under some kind of scrutiny too, though it would probably be more of the CPS house visits kind than the burn-the-Witch kind. They already had that one checked, anyway.

"No, it's understandable to react that way. I forget not everyone is as open to it as I am. Some people don't even know what they are." She was blushing profusely now. Isabelle often said things she shouldn't, and though she wasn't ashamed of being outright and forthcoming, she did deeply regret things she said that caused such strong reactions. She was only brightened by his joke at telepathy and she shook her head. "No, definitely not." She smiled again, though the regret was still hiding in the edges.

"Ok, ok. I'll do my best." Though, Isabelle naturally would try to make it up to him, regardless. Mostly because Isabelle just liked to do nice things for people, and though it might not be her intention to make-it-up, she would find a way to do it regardless. "And I am definitely capable of having more fun!" C'mon, we're talking about Isabelle Parker, here. If anyone was capable of having fun, it would be the feisty little redhead.

"Trouble." She repeated, looking down at the moose she was carrying quite gingerly with one hand. She gave a little pat to the top of its head. "Yep, I think that's an appropriate nickname." She joked, giving Cruz another winning smile. "Hopefully he's a one-time offender."

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[info]bound_cruz
2013-09-22 03:00 pm UTC (link)
Sometimes, lying was important. As children, most of them were taught that lying was a bad, bad thing and that nobody should do it. As a person grew up, they undoubtedly went through moments where they knew a lie wasn’t necessarily told to hurt someone. Sometimes it was told to protect someone. In the case of most witches, lying was something of a second nature. It wasn’t like they could just go out and about to all the normal human beings in the world and proudly display their gifts. If that happened, well, the Salem Witch Hunts would pale in comparison. Humanity had developed a significantly more dangerous arsenal since then.

“You were one of the lucky ones,” Cruz commented. “But don’t feel bad about the privileges that you had growing up. They helped make you who you are, and I happen to like who you are quite a bit, so clearly someone did something right.” If anything, Cruz slightly lamented the fact that he had not been so open with Isabelle about his history earlier. He’d told her, and everything was fine.

It was good to have shaken off the feelings of awkwardness. Well, most of them. Cruz was feeling good about how the conversation went, but still had some slight lingering pangs from the fact that it had happened at all. “I know that you’re all too capable of having a good time. I’ve seen you do it plenty of times.” It was fun to watch her light up a room with her natural presence back then. Still was. “Just do what comes natural to you, Isabelle, and the good times will keep on rolling.”

His brown eyes stared at the similarly hued moose. She seemed to enjoy having him. “I think Trouble learned his lesson, yeah.” What else could Cruz try to hide from Isabelle, after all? Nothing that he could think of. And that was perfectly fine with him.

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