#ember parca

A quick, quiet knock started at Jinx’s door as Ember anxiously stood on the other side with a box of supplies in his other hand.

“Atticus?” He called out, “Mind if I come in?”

Atticus.

It was a novelty that someone had taken it upon themselves to call him his name. He hadn’t even mentioned it to Ember, but somehow he noticed that Jinx wasn’t super keen on being a jinx. Of course, he introduced himself like that, but it was a convoluted effort to get out ahead of the reputation he always seemed to carve for himself. If he owns it, it can’t be used against him right? He didn’t expect anyone to look past that in the first place.

But he had chosen Atticus himself. He took it from some old war hero on his father’s side, an ancestor he was a few generations too late to meet. It was a distinguished name, associated with charm and cleverness. He could honor his father and spite his grandmother in one fell swoop. Even if he was a hot mess right now, it was a name he could grow into.

So when Ember called him Atticus, it made him feel all warm and fuzzy.

Homesickness wasn’t anything worth dwelling on, at least that’s what Jinx told himself as he pushed Ember’s wheelchair along the path at the Sage Island lantern festival. Sage Island was the kingdom of Sol’s polar opposite, its dark mirror image. A lantern festival for the summer matched by one for winter. His brother was home and he was here. He could almost hear his voice in his head telling him he’s spending too much time brooding and why doesn’t he just live in the moment… but Lucian was not here. He shook his head clear of him. 

Jinx had to put in some significant work to shove a lifetime of memories and emotions into a box and put it far, far, far back in his mind. He could look down and see Ember, a person he cared for deeply, and all around them were families and couples and friends walking the same path. A path of multicolored lights, golds and silvers and blues. It was beautiful, and for a moment he felt guilty of ruining it. 

Refocusing in, he studied the lanterns more closely than before. It really was an impressive work of craftsmanship.

“This is really something, huh? I had no idea that you could do this with ice,” he gestured to a lantern, an intricately patterned snowflake glowing on its side, “Y’know, if your joints aren’t too locked up, we could try and make one together.” 

He stepped around the chair to the side so they could talk face to face, and he could see Ember’s expression a little better. It was difficult to get Ember to admit when he couldn’t do something, especially when he’s got his sights set on it. Jinx felt some obligation to stop him from overexerting himself, as much as that bothered him. 

“If not, I hear there’s a cafe with some killer hot cocoa in town,” he offers instead. Giving Ember options was the easiest way to curb his stubborn attitude, “Could get you some tea, maybe they have warm cookies too.” 

When Jinx turned the corner, Ember waved at him and handed him the box.

“Crowley let me buy this,” He said, “Felt it was only fair to get you a gift for reminding me of the test today and studying with me.”

Inside was a tiny top hat with a red bow around it. He put a few pieces of scrap fabric in to ‘wrap’ it.

He wasn’t surprised to see Ember, as they usually hung out at this time of day. However, he was surprised that Ember had brought him a little gift. It wasn’t like the test mattered to Ember, who probably would have passed even if they hadn’t studied at all. He looked from the hat in his hands to Ember again and squinted. 

“What’s this about? You didn’t have to get me the hat,” he said, shaking his head, “Here, I’ll pay you back.” 

He fished his wallet out of his pocket and handed Ember three thaumarks, basically shoving it into his hands. 

Ember didn’t mean to sound so short but the question *was* genuine. He had no clue how his lab partner managed to get seemingly every step wrong in the potion, but the color of the potion was… well… a lime green.

Everyone else’s was blue.

Both bright, of course, but it still wasn’t right.

And he knew he followed each of the steps he did to a T, but if they didn’t get this potion right he just knew they wouldn’t pass this assignment. Wasn’t a premonition either, it was seemingly guaranteed.

“Why are you acting like this is my fault, huh?” He asked, “Oh, sure. Blame me. I followed the directions word for word!” 

He was almost certain he didn’t do anything wrong. He had simply been following directions and even asked Ember for pointers. It felt like Ember, who was supposed to be his partner, had been doing the bare minimum. As a matter of fact, he seemed bored for most of the class. He could hardly spare Jinx a passing glance. It was infuriating. 

“i genuinely don’t know why my brain just goes blank when i look at you. i think i’m going a little crazy.”

Jinx and Ember were in the courtyard hanging out because Jinx had been struggling to keep up with the latest spellcasting work. He had seen evidence of improvement in the months they worked together to take control of Jinx’s magic, but he still had a long way to go before he’d be satisfied with his abilities. He could finally get the flowers to bloom en masse, and was celebrating with a little two-step shuffle when Ember said that to him.

He paused and tilted his head. He had no idea what Ember was talking about. Didn’t he see him do magic really good just now?

Ember walked up to Jinx in the midst of the hootenanny. He held his hand out for Jinx and gave a smile. "Mind if I have this dance, Jinx?"

Fiddling with the finer details of his appearance had become something of a nervous habit. As Ember approached, Jinx was pulling at the hem of his robes in a futile attempt to smooth the fabric. The diasomnia student would be met with wide, confused eyes as he stumbled into a reply. The shadows at the edges of the room were still moving all thanks to that nasty risotto, which left his gaze slightly unfocused. 

“Uh, yeah, sure?” His response sounded more like a question, so he reiterates, “Yes. I would like that.”

He cleared his throat and realized how awkwardly he had answered his friend.

“Listen, I only really know ballroom dancing, so I might not be any good at this,” he clarified, “Also, I ate some of that purple risotto and it’s messing with my head. So, if you want to find another partner I’d get it.”

@threadedwheels

The sound of a crash and cries from the outside made Jinx turn his head. He couldn’t exactly duck around Ember’s arms though to get a good look. If he had kept walking… would he have been knocked out the window? They were on the second floor and the fall could have left him seriously injured if not worse. He figured it was better to not see. This way he couldn’t imagine himself on the ground outside. 

“… thank you?” He said, and blushed harder. Ember had saved him from yet another catastrophe. His luck would have run out if he hadn’t pinned him to the wall when he did, “Um, how can I repay you? You saved me, so it only seems fair that I offer something in return.”