Come Meet the Boy...guy? The guy-person Charlie loves: ota

[fireandthread]

It started with a shout.

No.

That's a lie. It started with a leash on a pint of Rocky Road ice cream that Charlie'd hidden in a large freezer in another part of the house. It started with Ben putting the leash on the ice cream as a sort of calling card for Charlie. His own 'haha got you'. And Charlie was entertained.

Oh, sure. She shouted his name through the house. A joyful but loud "BENJAMIN HARGREEVES, YOU DICK!" echoed through the dozens and dozens of bedrooms and dozens of bathrooms as Charlie chases Ben through the house.

All of their old training kicks in, and there isn't much that gets in their way, Charlie chasing Ben all over the place and both of them laughing. There are expert jumps over tables and couches, sharp-as-knives turns around corners and quick jumps up railings instead of stairs, shouting insults only siblings can use at each other, a massively entertaining chase that Charlie is enjoying more than words can say. She's laughing as they goof off, forgetting the entire week and shitshow that had been.

This was what they needed, honestly. This bit of good craziness to counter the strangest week they've ever had in their lives. A brief note of normalcy that they didn't get much of as children.

And speaking of forgetting! Charlie's so locked into the game she and Ben are playing that she's forgotten one Danny Torrance was going to make his way to her home to see how things were going and meet her family.

She's unaware of the front door of the house opening as she charges by at top speed, barefoot and hair flying behind her as she moves over, under, around, between objects in her path.

It's just a matter of her making a second run through the foyer when she notices the door and, embarrassed, she skids to a stop and looks at Danny with wide eyes.

"Oh, my God. Hi." One sec. "How long have you been standing there?"

Comments

[neverreallyalone]

Danny had been more than a little Unsure about the offer to come by the house. Sure, it would be nice to see where she grew up, meet her siblings, but Family had gotten to be a bit of a difficult subject in general. It held just as much likelihood of going south in a second's time as going great. But here he was, fist poised in front of the door to knock, and with a steadying breath he followed through.

What he met on the other side of the door, though? Well that was something else entirely.

"Uh. Hi? Not long, it's...fine."

[the_horror]

It was worth it.

Worth the yelling.

Worth the chase.

That leash would be donated to Klaus later anyhow, but Ben felt it was worth it to be chased around by his sister. And as they cross the threshold of the house, he sees someone open the door but he doesn't stop. Not until he realizes that Charlie has stopped chasing him.

Taking a moment to catch his breath he eases back to the entryway hall, looking to see who showed up.

[fireandthread]

There's not much thought in the hug she gives Danny. She's beyond happy that he's there. She's missed him terribly.

Stepping away slightly, Charlie looks from Ben to Danny, trying to put into words just how pleased she is to even see the guy, but then it dawns on her; introductions are probably a thing she should do.

She also realizes that she never really got around to telling Danny that Ben was alive and had been all this time.

And that they had faced the apocalypse. And jumped backwards in time.

Oh, god. This was going to be a thing, wasn't it?

She points at Ben for a moment, still trying to process exactly how to explain her dead brothers current Not Dead status and then just decides fuck it.

"Danny, this is my brother, Ben. Uh..." She's actually a lot better with words than she lets on. "Apparently, he wasn't dead. Just kind of...stuck in a pocket dimension."

By Hargreeve's standards? This is kind of weird.

"Ben, this is Danny. My roommate from Ohio." And the most important guy in her life that isn't a Hargreeves.

Oh, god. Someone help her. She just remembered Five is back, and somehow? Explaining that seems harder than explaining Ben being alive.

[bestfuneralever]

Klaus hears the ruckus going on out in the wider, more main areas of the house and absolutely has to investigate. And once he finds his siblings chasing each other (for no currently discernible reason, from where he's standing), he can't help but join in.

Except.

There's a knock at the door and everything comes to a screetching halt as Charlie and Danny exchange slightly awkward pleasantries. Klaus sashays up behind Ben to see who's arrived, just in time to hear Charlie's even more awkward explanation about their not-so-dead-anymore brother.

"Oooh," Klaus croons suddenly, moving from behind Ben and toward Danny instead, hands going up and coming back down in a loud snap of a clap. "sister, dear, is your lover here?" He extends one hand to Danny. "Klaus. We talked that one time?" When he had tried to be too much of a big brother in the most unnecessary way. And, to his chagrin, he'd kind of already decided he liked the guy. "Charlie didn't mention you were coming by," there's a sideways, judge-y glance at his sister there.

[neverreallyalone]

This is...a lot to take in all at once. Greeted by Charlie, which was all well and good and expected, really. A brother nearby, and that's not particularly surprising either (even if he's the one who he thought was dead but life's weird as hell so he'll accept it), but then Klaus comes wandering over, and it's a whole new level of awkward.

"Hey, Ben. Pocket dimension, huh? That's a new--"

But he doesn't get much further because of the interruption, although he at least has enough presence of mind to shake the offered hand.

"Nice to meet you in person. 'Lover's a little far, but yeah, I'm Danny. Hi."

[the_horror]

Ben gave a small wave to The Roommate™, head tilting, taking in his appearance and how Danny greats him. Slight brother mode going on as he takes the other in.

"Pocket dimension. Yeah. It was new for us as well." He says in greeting, only to see Klaus drop in with all his grace and ...'lover'? Oh god, embarrass Charlie more, why don't you.