bragnificent | IC CONTACT ➛ mask or menace.

what part of watching football seems like it'd get me in the mood for romance? archie used to bribe me with non-traveling food so i'd sit through a whole game.

hey it works 4 some ppl
especially if theyre games uve already seen b4, bc then its just like bckground noise
so its a p fair question

[well that felt like an unwanted peek into Reggie (and,,, Archie's) private life. he's suddenly wondering what else these tapes have seen. he stops wondering that]

what time are you coming later?

[ Is it really a conversation with Reggie if there isn't at least one moment of spontaneous TMI? Hardly, ]

if ur still @ the same place i can probably be there in like an hour or so

yeah, it's the same place. the wards should still let you by. food?

yeah i could eat

ok. see you later

[ 45 MINUTES LATER HE'LL BE THERE, with a six-pack and a couple pizzas. And probably regrets? Whatever, too late for that now. ]

[Magnus opens the door, blinking in surprise at the offerings. the six pack, he expected, but the food, not so much]

Oh. Dude, you didn't have to do that. I got tacos. [he posits, with curiosity] Pizza tacos...? Um, come on in.

[into Fauxhalla he goes, and Magnus has all the windows open wide, letting the summer breeze blow through the treehouse. the tacos are keeping warm in a bag that's leaking onto the table in front of the tv. it's mostly neat and comfortable, but Magnus was clearly still in the process of cleaning up for company, as he's got a pile of girl's clothes under one arm, and picks up one of Clarisse's many conjured-and-forgot-weapons off the floor (a long dagger or a short sword). he drops it into an umbrella stand next to the tv (with several other handles sticking out of it)]

[he arches his eyebrows a little helplessly at Reggie]

Sorry. You might wanna check the couch before you sit down.

[he drops the clothes into a laundry basket, pushing it with his foot down the hall towards Clarisse's room]

[ Reggie stares at Magnus, the couch, the room in general a bit like he's just walked into a strange parallel dimension, but then heaves a heavy breath and decides fuck it, it'll be fine. It's not like he's spending the night in this glorified barnyard.

He puts the pizzas down on the table, the beer on top of them, and then his feet on the table as well once he's sat down and made himself comfortable on the couch-- luckily not on anything sharp. ]

It's cool. Like whatever, it's only pizza. [ Reggie leans forward only to grab one and crack open one of the beers. ] How many people even live here?

Only three, including me. [he walks over to the TV, scanning the room for more weapons and sports bras as he does] But the girls are messy as shit. [even his cousin has a habit of leaving things sort of around the house in media res in a way that differed from his Norse friends; books and plans and papers and clothes and half-eaten plates of food, when inspiration drew her elsewhere] It drives me kinda nuts.

[satisfied nothing will literally impale Reggie accidentally, he moves to the table, taking a beer and cracking it likewise. as he takes a swig, he stoops to start sorting through the DVDs he'd shown Reggie on the phone, spreading them across the remaining bare square of the table for better perusal]

Edited 2018-07-27 07:36 (UTC)

Pfft. [ A bit of a laugh. ] Sure glad I don't have that problem. Guess living alone does have some perks after all.

[ Not that Reggie can't be a bit messy himself, especially since Archie was usually the one of them that did most of the cleaning, but it's also easy for Reggie to tolerate his own mess.

Plus, having Veronica pop by periodically was incentive enough to keep things tidy within reason, at least periodically. Whether or not that'll still be something that continues remains to be seen.

Taking a swig from his own beer, Reggie leans forward to look over the DVDs and then taps one of the center ones.

This one's pretty good. You seen it yet?

[Magnus shoots a deadpan look at the typical Reggie-response to someone else's problems -- sucks to suck, nerd, unlike ME, the Amazing Reggie Mantle! -- but he recalls that Reggie's only living alone because Archie's left. he thinks it might be lonely, for him, wonders why he hasn't moved in with anybody else. he wisely keeps these thoughts to himself]

[he picks up the tapped DVD, squinting]

...Maybe? I have to see the first couple... uh, the first hour. When he figured he wasn't getting anywhere with games, we watched like, four football movies in one day, and they all had, you know. Snappy one-word titles and a lot of high-stakes championships. Conquerors. Invincible. Undefeated. Oh shit, this one's two. The Yardline. [he stacks the unchosen DVDs underneath the table, then pops the winner into the player. returns to the couch, flopping down and putting his feet up likewise]

Is this the one with the younger brother that's better than the older brother on the team...?

[ Reggie takes another swig, sitting back and shaking his head as he crosses one ankle over the other, feet still propped jauntily on the table. ]

No, that's Second Down. The Yardline's the one where the guy breaks his leg so his brother has to fill in for him during the final game. And then his girlfriend likes them both or something weird like that, I don't remember.

[ Either way he just remembers it's not actually one of the better films, which is probably preferable in this case since watching a good movie with someone who isn't as into it is always a bit annoying. Food, beer, and a stupid movie is a much better combination when in uncertain company. ]

I don't remember which of the two is the movie with the super hot assistant coach, though.

It's this one.

[Magnus supplies immediately; there's been a few things he's liked about these movies, after all, to let Archie keep jamming them down his throat (the writing sssometimes, the hot actors most of the time). he takes a swig of his beer, his eyebrows inclining at the screen]

He's actually one of the better actors, too. [one of the brothers isn't... great. it's a little endearing]

Oh. Okay, then I guess we can put in that one.

[ Maybe it's just because it's been a while since Reggie actually watched any of these, but man, it really is hard to keep some of the details straight between films. So many of them are more or less the exact same movie with a different sport and/or slightly different casting. ]

It's not like being good at acting is really the point half the time. As long as they can act like they're kicking a ball.

True.

[Magnus digs the remote out from a cushion -- thankfully not getting stabbed by any daggers -- and puts in the right input. the DVD menu screen is a thing of beauty, with a soulful boy repeatedly kicking a ball to some swelling music over and over. nice. he presses play]

You and Archie could be in movies like these.

[ Nice. Reggie tips back more beer before he leans forward again to grab a slice of pizza. The tacos smell pretty good, too, but he's not quite at a "two-handed food" level of comfort yet.

He chuckles a bit, half-genuine and half more like a scoff. ]

I could be in movies like this, and I'd be a better actor than almost anyone we're about to watch now, too. Archie would probably rather strum his stupid guitar than throw a ball, though. Especially if it's in front of a camera.

[the movie starts, and Magnus helps himself to the tacos -- cold pizza is preferable to cold tacos, after all. when it comes to food, he's a long game kinda boy]

Did you ever watch him perform? You must have. Man, he was really good. He could'a been a teen hearthrob. Not like, Bieber shit. Who's the one guy from that band who broke up...?

[around his neck and inside Magnus' brain, Jack is losing his shit. unforgivable, that Magnus has forgotten the name of a One Direction band member. Magnus cronches some taco]

Of course I did.

[ Reggie looks over, his eyebrow raised, expression mildly inscrutable-- he doesn't seem annoyed, exactly, but maybe very, very, very... very mildly defensive. Of course he did! ]

He wanted to do some more shows here, too-- I was gonna be his manager, but it didn't exactly pan out. [ He shrugs. ] Who, Zayn? That's some comparison.

Archie's some kinda guy.

[the present tense, because even if Archie is gone, he isn't dead, even if the only way their friendship is preserved now may be through Magnus' memories]

It's warranted. Some people are just special that way -- they bring people to them.

Yeah. [ That's easy enough to agree to. ] He can be.

[ Even when they're not... even when they're just friends, including when neither of them has memories of being anything more, Reggie always sort of felt that way. He wanted to be friends with him before it really made sense for them to be good friends, despite differences and cliques and separate interests.

Archie's just strangely magnetic that way, without having to try. ]

Which is lucky for him, too-- it means most people won't notice what a geek he is right away. And then when they do... [ He cocks his head. ] Well. Anyone cute can get away with that pretty easily.

[ All of this is meant in the warmest way possible, obviously; this is Reggie Speak™. ]

[Magnus laughs over another sip of his beer, easy. even if it's Reggie Speak™, there's no topic he likes better than the gentle roasting and crowing about one's friends. it's especially nice to talk about someone who he's been missing (and who he thinks Reggie, certainly, misses more than he tries to let on)]

I think that kinda stuff seals the deal. I miss my Bloodborne buddy. He had more patience than I do about those boss fights, and I'm literally immortal? Ridiculous...

[he finishes his first taco neatly, grabbing for a slice of pizza next. he can't resist the delicious smell, even if logic says he should demolish another taco first. on screen, a boy has some complicated but silent emotions. he's pretty cute, and speaking of cute -- Magnus is distracted by him]

[ Besides himself, amiably dragging his friends is one of Reggie's favorite subjects, too; not necessarily within contexts like this, per se, situations where there may or may not be baggage of some kind, but it's a lighthearted enough conversation for Reggie not to feel very bothered. ]

Well, he plays 'em enough. And he can be surprisingly good with focusing when he actually puts his mind to something. Not that you'd ever know it just by looking at him.

[ General "you," that is. As he continues eating his food, Reggie also gets distracted by the movie, staring at the screen half-focused on the story (which will make sense of itself again any minute now, surely) and half-focused on the same cute boy. And then for some reason, suddenly Reggie feels weird.

He moves himself slightly, as if getting ready to stand. ]

Uh-- you got any popcorn or something that I can make?

[the request is surprising, and Magnus quirks a bit of a bemused smile at Reggie]

On top of the tacos and pizza and beer? Off-season cheat meals are real for you, huh?

[like he knows anything about Sport Boy diets (which he acknowledges with a wry shrug). but he pauses the movie, putting his feet on the floor and also making to get up]

We've got popcorn. Not sure where. We can dig it up.

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