Booming Birthday Bash-Why me, of all people?(open)

[Tempero]

((This takes place on June 1, Danny's birthday. It's a sort of Depressed_Danny_Getting_Merriment_When_He_Doesn't_Want_It deal, and it is probably the first and last time you'll ever get a chance to RP with a Sad! or Depressed! mode of Danny. [notice the probably, there might be some more in the future, depending on character development] Everyone is most welcome, and although Danny never told anyone of his birthday, the post will explain how mostly everyone will definitely know about it. Warren (as the main reason of Danny's depression) is especially welcome [although perhaps only OOC], and so is Josh, as the delegating angry, or whatever boyfriend. Let the...um...sadness?...let it begin, whatever it is!))

Alright, this is most definitely not the way today was supposed to go. In fact, it is the absolutely, overwhelmingly, and rather increasingly exact opposite of what it was supposed to be like. This is also one of the rare times Danny does not feel nicely inclined towards hi uncle Dominic.

It started perfectly: wake up early because of bad dreams, mope around Institute until someone woke up, go up to room when Nikkolas wasn't there, avoid people, avoid Warren, eat something for breakfast in an empty kitchen, avoid Warren, wander about the courtyard, avoid Warren, go out somewhere where there is not many people whom he knows, avoid Warren. It all broke down after the last avoid Warren point, when he came across an unexpected Meet-booming-happy-hyperactive-uncle-Dominic point was added to his agenda in someone else's handwriting.

Even worse was the undeniable request to show him the Institute once more. Of course, all the while, Daniel had the same somber expression on his face and did not partake in much conversation, and was overall not the typical Danny, but at the same time, Dominic was practicing his most well-known talent- the quality of being as absolutely, bloody un-empathic as possible. And his limits have always been way far beyond not caring about what one felt, and deep into the seas of demanding that everyone around him partake in his current emotion.

And so Daniel had no choice but to show his uncle the Institute, hoping in vain that no one, and especially so Warren, would actually see them. But it has always been hard for the inhabitants of the Institute to ignore noise, especially so such a large source of it as is Dominic. The man kept slapping Daniel on the back, repeatedly congratulating the boy on his eighteenth birthday, and making sure that everyone they met up with could not, in their wildest dreams, avoid knowing that it was Daniel's birthday.

And so, when the uncle and his nephew came back down into the rec room, he said good-bye to Daniel, at the same time wishing him an umpteenth happy birthday, and yelling so loud that probably the Brotherhood Of Evil Mutants also now knows what today is.

The man leaves, shoving some money into Daniel's hands, and the boy can hear him explaining to some more people how important a day it is today and why it is so. He slumps into the first available armchair in the, luckily, empty rec room, and puts the money absent-mindedly into his wallet, and then the wallet into his back pocket, not really caring how much he got. He never was interested in presents, and today, of all birthdays, he is most explicitly against getting them. He closes his eyes for a few moments, recollecting, with relief, that they not at one point in time came across Warren, to whom he still has not talked ever since the Capture The Flag event and whom he is mostly now ashamed of talking to, or Josh, who is the boyfriend of said Warren, and therefore has full reason to be furious with Danny for an n number of reasons.

All that is left now is to hope that whoever comes through the rec room is not going to be in a mood to stay and talk, is not going to be one of the two he's been especially avoiding, and does not, but some miracle, know it's his birthday. Also, he hopes as hell that Dominic did not actually meet up with Warren on his way out. That would only add oil to the fire. Why, of all days and people, it had to be exactly today, and exactly Dominic?

[Warren Worthington III]

Warren chuckles quietly as Dominic gets into his cab and drives off, after an exhaustingly enthusiastic conversation that manages to shoehorn in the fact of Blackburn’s 18th birthday approximately every thirteen seconds, on average. Wouldn’t want to spend a whole day with him, he thinks as he walks back into the building, but he seems like a decent enough fellow. Glad I ran into him before he left.

The truth is, he’s been trying to find an opportunity to talk with Blackburn for what seems like ages now, completely without success. Of course, he could have arranged a meeting if he’d wanted, but that would make it an Official Talk, and Warren figures the kid had probably gotten enough of that with Ororo. Still, at this point the situation had gotten ridiculous… and it was clearly up to Warren to put an end to it.

So finding Blackburn alone in the rec-room is something of a pleasant surprise, and Warren doesn’t hesitate in taking advantage of it, perching himself lightly on the back of the boy’s couch. "Happy birthday, Danny… if I’d known, I’d have baked a cake. How’ve you been?"

[Tempero]

He opens his eyes immediately as he hears the voice, and, as if he did not recognize it to begin with, he follows up with a jerk towards the insides of the furniture, along with a very loud "GAH!", and further attempts to sink away from existence. He only then notices that his hands are still clutching the armrests and relentlessly refusing to let go. He forces them to do so, in the end, and then looks up again, as if in the hopes of having Warren not be there any more.

His eyes gain a guilty, if not even haunted, look, and he seems to be extremely ill-at-ease, now that Warren's there. What to say? The discomfort rises, at least for Danny, and he feels extremely embarrassed, because he is supposed to know how to handle all possible situations, no matter how awkward. But this is a different deal. This one is more so awkward than any other, mainly because Danny is among the subjects of it. He has been quite successful in persuading himself that Warren hates him, or is almost irreversibly mad at him, and here he is now, telling him happy birthday. That just doesn't work!

The sadness in his eyes is quite apparent, and the shine that usually is constantly there telling everyone that Danny is their friend is gone. In fact, he has been rather self-consumed in the past week, and now he just sits there, looking up at Warren with a guilty expression on his face. It is as if he is waiting some kind of punishment or something, and then he finally realizes that Warren actually said something, whereas up to this point he simply shrugged it off.

>"Happy birthday, Danny… if I’d known, I’d have baked a cake..."

"...cake?" he repeats the word, letting it float like that in mid-air, perhaps even giving the impression that the boy has never heard of the word and is awaiting some sort of explanation. Courtesy, as one of the mechanics that run Daniel's social responses most of the time, dominates his inability to say anything in particular, and responds to this with a short, and possibly barely audible, "...thanks...", before his voice fades off into nonexistence. He wants to say he's sorry, and wants to say that there is absolutely no reason for Warren to even remotely think about cake, at least not one for Daniel, but somehow all of those wishes simply fade away before the ominous facade that is made up of his sealed lips, using guilt and general depression as the mortar.

>"...How’ve you been?"

Alright, so now he has to say something, and lying is out of the question- Daniel has not yet lied to someone he wants to be friends with, and is, in fact, horrible at it. If he was any worse at lying, he would be so bad that he would tell more than enough truth in an attempt to hide it. So, again, his voice barely forms, and seems to travel through the air shyly, as if worried about disrupting the pathways of some other sound vibrations or perhaps some photons.

"...not good..." he croaks, still staring up at the other's face perhaps a bit worryingly. His gaze is literally transfixed on Warren's eyes, as if awaiting flames of wrath to shoot out from them and burn him down to a crisp.

((modified))

[Warren Worthington III]

> "GAH!"

Warren avoids being too obviously either amused or annoyed at Blackburn’s reaction to his presence, but it confirms his previous belief that the boy has been avoiding him. And the cascade of emotions flitting across the boy’s face – denial, embarrassment, confusion, sadness, guilt – in place of his usual unshakably placid expression further confirm it.

> "...How’ve you been?"
> " ...not good..."

The reply is actually somewhat surprising; Warren had been expecting something more evasive, an attempt to shift the subject or deny anything unusual. That Blackburn is both aware that there’s a problem and prepared to admit to it is probably a good sign, although it’s hard for Warren to be sure of that until he understands the underlying issues more clearly.

He waits a while, wondering if the boy will volunteer anything else, but all he does is stare back at him as if expecting to be slapped. So Warren slides down onto the couch cushions, kicks off his sandals and folds his legs underneath him, and stretches casually, all in the hopes of reducing the boy’s anxiety. "Yes, I’d gotten that impression, myself. Do you want to talk about it?"

[Arthur Coleman]

(Hope I'm not like.. being a total crazy person and interrupting some big important thingy! )

Rubbing at the back of his neck, leaning against the frame of his open window and listening to the fading grumble of a cab motor at the front of the school, Arthur contemplates the curious morning. Like anyone else who had been conscious for the duration of the beginning of the day, word had gotten around about Danny's eighteenth birthday, although everyone knew it hadn't spread like a silent rumor. Arthur had been granted the prolonged pleasure of running into the boy and his voracious uncle, which was where he first heard of the special occasion. The visit had been cut short after he made a hasty retreat, however, both perplexed and almost frightened of the visitor's loud, bold nature.

After the chance encounter, Arthur had found solace in his room, despite the fact that he had been attempting to step out of his self-announced comfort zone. Being cooped up was getting him nowhere, and some would have speculated that he would have come to this conclusion sooner than twenty years of nurturing a strong habit.

But instead of lapsing into a torrent of piano-playing, going straight from one song into another, he stood and waited, feeling the presence of Danny and his uncle drift here and there about the institute. It came and went, and he sometimes caught a repeated announcement of Danny's eighteenth birthday. Arthur hadn't made a move until he could hear the cab motor fading completely, making up his mind to go find the young man. Granted, he doesn't know the boy very well, all considering that Arthur does not have him as a student, but it seems appropriate to wish him well even after the apparently disconcerting events. After all, Arthur wants to appear friendly, and Danny appears to be very troubled. Its only fair of him to offer some sort of assurance as a teacher, some guidance perhaps if he needed it.

Arthur reassesses this reasoning in the back of his head as he turns a corner of the hallway, able to easily pick out the presence of Danny amongst all others. Sliding his hands into his pockets, Arthur keeps an elbow less than an inch from the wall, every now and then making sure it is still there, wary of upper-level traffic bustling with students and taking extra care as he descends a flight of stairs to the ground level. The slight man then makes a hesitant appearance to the rec room doorway, entering silently and aware that Danny is in the company of Warren. He nods to the pair of them. "Pardon me, I.. hope I'm not intruding." Certain that the moment of opportunity will pass before he can take it, Arthur continues. "Ah... perhaps you have heard this already, but I wanted to wish you a Happy Birthday, Daniel." He speaks gently, keeping his distance--almost rooted to the doorway, out of habit referring to the student semi-formally.

Feeling embarrassed for a rash action, and acting on the way tension seems to fill the room, Arthur stiffens, hesitant to move but fearful to stay. "I.. trust that.. everything is alright?" he asks, knowing that they may or may not know what emotional patterns they are emitting.

[Tempero]

As Warren slides down onto the couch, Daniel seems to move away from him, as if afraid of a sudden and violent lash of those very wings that were the reason for this whole feeling. All the time, ever since the first five minutes after he was eliminated from the game, the one thought has been haunting him: It is not supposed to hurt! It is not a dangerous mutation, and, Hell, it is not even a potent one. At least, it is not supposed to be!, and then, a few days later, he remembered the feeling he had when he did connect with and suppress Warren's mutation. And he is still as absolutely horrified as he was the first moment he realized what he had done. I am not that person. I am not that person. I am not that person...right? Am I?

And now he is still looking at Warren, only faintly aware that he has again scuttled away from him, even more so than the first time.

>"Yes, I’d gotten that impression, myself..."

A wave of panic washes over Daniel's eyes and face, but very quickly. What?! He's noticed? Is it that bad? I try to be happy and all, but it somehow doesn't work now...He doesn't think I've become that person, does he? No, I haven't! I haven't! he thinks, as if trying to somehow manipulate reality and make the event never happen. He has, over the last few days, come to think of "that" person, or, rather, the person who is under the control of that feeling of dominance, as Daniel, while of himself as Danny. Danny sounds more friendly. He is Danny.

>"...Do you want to talk about it?"

He looks at Warren, once again not a single emotion hidden on his sincere face. "Talk about what?" he asks, forgetting, for a moment, what they are talking about, consumed in the thoughts of that horrible feeling.

>"Pardon me, I.. hope I'm not intruding."

He looks at the man who has just entered, and his fantastic memory for faces and people kicks in. Professor Coleman. Even though Danny doesn't have him for any of his classes, Danny remembers seeing him on several occasions, including today's fiasco with uncle Dominic. Oh, no...he's going to wish me a...

>"Ah... perhaps you have heard this already, but I wanted to wish you a Happy Birthday, Daniel."

He starts to sigh, relaxed because of the sheer comedy of the situation- a person he has been avoiding and a person he barely knows have come to congratulate him a birthday that he has almost endeavored to keep hidden. But, then, the man calls him "Daniel", and he cringes, quite visibly at that, for a moment confusing the merely formal address with the image he has conjured up by and of himself under that name.

"Um...er...thanks..." he manages to mutter, now feeling very, very embarrassed indeed. Why did he even think about that so much? It doesn't seem logical, not in the least bit. But, Danny has always agonized over such things- it is his apologetic, unintrusive, and well-meaning nature taking the toll for what benefits it offers him.

>"I.. trust that.. everything is alright?

He remains silent for a while, not sure whether he should lie or tell an almost complete, yet trustworthy, stranger that no, everything is not alright. But then, he decides to not to say anything, and instead remain huddled up in his end of the couch in absolute silence of the guilty and convicted. Danny is always his own worst enemy, the lawyer, the judge, and the jury at one.

[Warren Worthington III]

> " How’ve you been?"
> " ...not good..."
> " Do you want to talk about it?"
> " Talk about what?"

Warren grins and settles down for a little “exploratory surgery” on whatever it is that is bothering Blackburn. It’s obvious that something is, from the boy’s evasiveness and increasingly frantic body language, and Warren’s best guess is still that it has to do with that incident in the Danger Room, but beyond that he’s just operating on guesswork and speculation.

>"Pardon me, I.. hope I'm not intruding."

Ah. I guess this waits, then. That’s not terribly surprising, given that they’re having the conversation in the most public room of the Institute. It wouldn’t have been Warren’s first choice of venue, but the opportunity had presented itself and he’d taken it. Ah well. Some other time.

Of course, Coleman will no doubt flee in an instant if Warren so much as thinks an impatient thought in his direction, but Warren has no desire to discourage the older man’s unusual foray into social activity. So he turns and waves cheerfully – of course, Coleman can’t see him, but Warren is never quite sure what his empathy is capable of discerning.

"Morning, Professor Coleman!"