Daybreak IC Inbox

[unpocoloco]

Héctor
UN: OLLIN

STATUS: Graduate Student / Teacher's Assistant

ACCOLADES: I write music, know how to play a few instruments, mostly la guitarra.

BIO: !Hola¡ Soy Héctor. Yo hablo español y un poco inglés. I've come to Daybreak to learn a little about all this magic stuff and help out around the Campus. If you need an odd job taken care of, I'm your guy! (Unless you are la policía. Or someone I have borrowed from. If that is the case, do not contact me, por favor.)

© TESSISAMESS

Comments

[hawkwardness]

[The socks would have been fine, if he'd remembered. Shoes, on the other hand, would have meant trying to tie a knot first the first time in months, with stupid clumsy fingers. Embarrassing. Save that for another day.]

I want to do better than that. I don't know, you're human every day... we can probably figure it out?

[unpocoloco]

[As if he wouldn't help with shoe-tying. That stuffs hard for kids of all ages and some adults.

He shoots the kid a softer grin. He's not surprised Tobias wants better. Tobias seems to want the best, even if not for himself. He reaches over to ruffle his hair then, just like he tried before with feathers. Much easier now.]

Of course we can. We'll have you walking and talking like the best of them. The good news, you've already done the watching part of studying. Now we just have to get you joining in.

[hawkwardness]

[He misses a step, startles, and staggers to the side for a moment then corrects himself... then ruffles his own hair, ruining what was left of the neatness. Ha. Feels like feathers.]

Right. Okay. I know what people do for fun, but half of it seems weird to me.

[unpocoloco]

Whoa there!

[He reaches out when Tobias stumbles, ready to catch him, but the boy rights himself. And then makes him laugh with that self ruffling. So he likes that, huh?]

Ah! But see, that's the trick of it! Many humans will tell you that being human is stuff like... jobs and school and being the intellectual species and the rough stuff of the world. And, yeah, that's part of human life, but it's not what being human is. And being human is the stupid stuff.

[He says that much too smug.]

It's enjoying small things just because and getting crazy excited about it for no reason. It's playing dumb games because it's funny and doing things we know we'll regret in an hour. Giving things meaning because it makes us feel special and so it makes the things special and it goes round and round until we're all following along an insane ritual. You've got to take all that weird, Tobias. Embrace it!

[hawkwardness]

[Seems like he can't play with his own hair and walk at the same time, but he's moving again.

Also amused in a way that reaches his voice and not his face.]

So to sum up what you're saying... I should be more spontaneous and that you have no clue what you're doing at any given moment?

[unpocoloco]

[He smiles wide and shameless, nodding.]

Yes. That is absolutely what I'm saying.

[no_dejare_de_quererte]

[When Imelda arrives on Aube's third floor, it's with a bag in hand that has an assortment of foodstuffs in it. Upon seeing Héctor with a human boy, she stops and watches from the end of the hall for a moment. Her head tilts a little, her free hand resting on her hip. A smile pulls at her lips.]

I don't know what advice he's giving you, but be careful about taking it. It's likely to land you in trouble.

[hawkwardness]

[The lousiest human act she ever did see. He still has no idea what the hell to do with these arms. Stuff his hands in his pocket and keep them out of the way, mostly. He doesn't blink much, he doesn't smile, he jerks his head in birdlike fashion to look at things...

But hey, he can smell things now. Smells like food.]

Mostly he's saying he doesn't have a clue. [Sorry, Héc.] Hi.

[unpocoloco]

Imelda!!

[He smiles bright, delighted by her arrival and missing any opportunity to take offence.]

I was telling him the best parts of being human, mi amor. Trouble is definitely part of that.

[no_dejare_de_quererte]

[Oh, the brightness of that smile is disarming. She finds herself smiling more, unable to resist.]

Part of it? You mean all of it. [She comes closer to the two, greeting Héctor first with a kiss, and then turning to the boy.]

So this is our bird friend? I half expected you to still have feathers. [She gives him a look over, her gaze lingering on his hair as if she expects to see downy fluff underneath those locks.]

[hawkwardness]

[It's weird. Nice that they're so affectionate, but weird. Not how his aunt or uncle ever were.]

Uh, no. [His verbal voice sounds quite a lot like the mental one.] I can't stop it halfway or anything. I don't have much control.

[unpocoloco]

[It's an echo chamber. The more she smiles the more he does.]

Si! Yes! All of it, of course!

[He laughs.]

She's making a joke, Tobias. Teasing.

[no_dejare_de_quererte]

Or am I? [She glances back at Héctor with a smirk that says she is, but now he's pulled into it, too. She looks back to Tobias, giving him another look-over before turning to walk towards the kitchen with her bag in hand.]

Anyway, I heard that you were hungry. And that you need practice holding utensils. Do you like tamales, Tobias?

[hawkwardness]

[Teasing. Right. Normal, friendly adults do that. She's only teasing, not mocking him for being a filthy no-good liar. She's a nice person, same as Héctor.]

I have no idea, sorry. I don't think I dislike anything?

[unpocoloco]

[He laughs at her teasing back, grinning at her.]

Ay, tamales! You're in luck Tobias! Doesn't get any better than Imelda's tamales!

[And quieter.]

Told you she'd make what she wants.

[He waits until she's set everything down. Then he goes behind and wraps his arm around her, hugging her close as he leans around and kisses her cheek.]

[no_dejare_de_quererte]

[Doesn't dislike anything... She doubts that. Kids can be picky, and this one in particular... She glances back at Tobias with a neutral look.] Well, I can promise they'll be better than anything else you might find lying around.

[Her husband is a pleasant distraction from that cryptic train of thought, though. Even if he's also a bit of a obstacle, as well.] Héctor, please. How am I supposed to cook like this? [She tries to sound scolding, but fails utterly at that. It's too hard, when he makes her smile the way he does.]

[hawkwardness]

I bet they are. Thanks for doing this.

[He goes to sit, this thin barefoot boy. Whoever's shape he's in, it doesn't look like he'd been eating well. Sit, look at his phone, and not interrupt their private moments. It's nice that Héctor's happy.]

[unpocoloco]

[He laughs in a way that's all too pleased with himself, especially as she scolds him.]

With my passionate belief in you to back you up, of course.

[He goes around and kisses her other cheek.]

Is it working?

[He hums, sneaking a glance back at the boy who's simply withdrawing. That won't do.]

Mmm, perhaps more power. Tobias! Come help!

[And with that he lets her go.]

[no_dejare_de_quererte]

Not at all. [He kisses her other cheek, and this time she turns her head to give him a kiss back. On one hand, shame on her for rewarding bad behavior. On the other hand, he does let go, so she moves to find a cutting board, some knives, a large pot, and a sauce pan.]

The last thing he needs is help. Here--you can come help me instead. [She holds the pot out to Tobias.] Fill this up with water and put it on the stove with the heat turned up to high.

[hawkwardness]

[Ohhh, nice safe. For a moment he'd tensed up, with no idea how to hug an adult who is very nearly a complete stranger... but filling a pot with water! That's easy! Simple and normal, as much as anything can be in a body that feels so strange to him now.]

Okay. [He takes it and fills it with water, as requested. But of course, this stove is not as familiar as the ones he knew... it takes him a moment to work out how to get it set to high.] ...Is that right? I've never, uh, cooked.

[unpocoloco]

[And what a sweet reward it is. His grin is leaving no time soon, even after letting her free.

He drifts back out of the way, stealing Tobias's chair, turning it to sit backwards with his arms on top of the back of it.]

Looks right from here! Check the dials to make sure it's the right burner!

[no_dejare_de_quererte]

[While Tobias fills the pot with water, Imelda pulls out a hunk of pork from her shopping bag and begins trimming the fat off of it and cutting it into three chunks. While this part might be somewhat easy, she's not going to give a knife to a bird that's still learning how to use fingers.]

I don't imagine that you would have. Birds don't typically cook their food. [She gives Tobias a pointed look, but then glances at the knobs, as Héctor suggests.] Looks fine to me. Let me know when it starts boiling, and I'll give you more things to add.

[Meanwhile, the pork gets dumped into the saucepan, and Imelda starts cutting up some onions to toss in next. She goes quickly, her knife making rhythmic chopping sounds as if she's done this a million times before--and she probably has.]

[hawkwardness]

No, we don't.

[He gives her an unreadable look back. She has no proof and he knows it. No one does. Besides, it's easier for everyone this way. He doesn't want pity. They'd both understand, surely.

And then he's looking back at the pot, literally watching for water to boil. Now it really smells like food in here... he can't imagine how good it will taste after months without tastebuds.]

Got it.

[unpocoloco]

[He sits, contented to watch for a while. He announces himself when he does get up.]

I'll be right back.

[It's probably no surprise that he returns with his guitar, plucking out tunes to accompany the sounds of cooking.]

[no_dejare_de_quererte]

[The familiarity of this scene is easy to pick out--even more-so when Héctor gets up and returns with his guitar. There's a strong sense of nostalgia building in her chest, and she almost expects to hear Coco's voice or see her brothers peeking their head in to ask when supper will be ready.]

[Without really noticing, she hums along with the tune that Héctor strikes up--the songs that he plays as familiar to her as they are to him. After a minute or so, she glances to Tobias again.]

So, how are you liking the school? Has it been up to your birdly standards?