Fourth Floor Common Room, Thursday Evening

[furnaceface]

It was Ben's fault.

That was Jonothon's story, and he was going to stick to it like glue.

He'd pulled out his guitar, and his amplifier, and he'd staked out a spot on the couch, which he'd turned just enough so that he could watch the door. The television wasn't on, but you had better believe that his amplifier was, and he had a small arsenal of songs memorized for the task at hand.

If anybody was going to try to make use of the common room on the fourth floor today, they were going to have to do it at the risk of being greeted by their very own theme music today, courtesy of Jonothon Starsmore and his electric guitar.

Totally Ben's fault.

[Open! And you better believe that there will be YouTube abuse today.]

Comments

[momslilassassin]

"I lasted almost ten minutes," Ben said proudly. "But yeah, Granddad's one of the most competitive people I've ever met, and I come from a family of overachievers, so that's saying something."

[furnaceface]

//I suppose I'd probably be th'same way, if I ever found myself squaring off against somebody else with a guitar,// Jono mused, //but I can't imagine I'd end off in physical pain by the end of the ordeal, mate.//

[momslilassassin]

"I still have all of my limbs," Ben laughed, then shook his head. "Sorry. Bad family joke."

[furnaceface]

//Any family gathering you can walk away from in one piece, hm?// Jono considered that, and then shrugged lightly. //Really, Ben, I can probably relate.//

His family wasn't so much with the removing limbs, really. But they did have a thing for large, hideous tattoos, which Jono wasn't much a fan of.

[momslilassassin]

"Dad has a prosthetic hand from a lightsaber duel," Ben said. "Granddad--my version, not the one here, had lost even more. When you're going against another Jedi who wants to kill you, well, I'd rather get thumped here than by someone who doesn't have my best interests at heart out there."

[furnaceface]

Jono nodded faintly, eyebrows furrowing as Ben spoke.

//That would make for th'both of us,// he admitted. //I don't have half as much experience as you do, Ben, but I think I at least have some idea as to what it's like, catching yerself in a dangerous situation where yer opponent would like nothing more than yer head on a platter.//

[momslilassassin]

Ben smiled ruefully. "And I'm sorry we have that in common," he said. "How's your week been?"

[furnaceface]

//This week in particular...?// Jono shrugged. //Quiet. I think I can handle th'quiet, though. There are worse ways to be, and it means I've had some time to think.//

He'd... really needed some of that.

[momslilassassin]

"I didn't want to hover too much," Ben said. "I've heard from Ender, Karla and Tahiri that I'm bad about that."

[furnaceface]

//...Honestly...?// Jono glanced up from his guitar. //I'm thankful that you did at all, mate. That was... not th'best note for me to end my summer on.//

Worst. Summer. Ever.

It actually managed to beat out the span of months where he'd lost his face, girlfriend, and home, all in one fell swoop. Good job, summer of 2010.

[momslilassassin]

Ben's look was entirely sympathetic. "You have a flair for understatement."

[furnaceface]

//She probably would've boxed me around the ears if she knew I was wallowing,// Jono replied with a shrug. //I... knew it had to happen eventually.//

Which didn't make it any easier, no.

//My first impulse is always to give up. She wouldn't have stood for it.//

[momslilassassin]

"Neither would Raven," Ben said with a small smile. "My family has mastered the art of repress and avoid. It's terribly healthy."

[furnaceface]

//Mm, I can imagine,// Jono mused, a little wryly. //I avoid what I can, when I can. But most of my problems tend to be th'sort that stare back at me when I look into a mirror.//

There were probably a good many clinical reasons for his constant depression issues. But it wasn't as though he'd be able to take medication for that, anyhow. So he'd just be more than happy to be able to blame it all on what he was.

[momslilassassin]

Ben nodded, wondering if that sort of thing had been something his grandfather had worked with. It couldn't have been easy to stare at that mask for decades.

...didn't excuse the deaths of millions, but still.

"I don't know if it matters at all, but I don't notice it," Ben said quietly.

[furnaceface]

//You'd be... one of very few,// Jono noted, shrugging. It tended to be a not-so-good thing when Jono tried to shrug his way out of these particular conversations. He usually ended up shrugging away more of the good than the bad. //But I appreciate it.//

He did, in the here and now. Later on, when he was hating his own reflection again, it would probably be the last thing to cross his mind.