Seventeen Bells: [WRITTEN/ACTION]

[simplestgift]

On July the 4th, 1776, one Horatio Hornblower was born in Kent.  If you see him, bid him many happy returns.  He will most likely grump about it all day and act ungrateful, but don't allow it to discourage you.  He does appreciate it, he simply does not know it.

[For most of the day, Archie will be running around trying to furnish a bedroom in the house for a new housemate. He'll end up in the library, Good Spirits, the grocery store, then finally the Battle Dome, mostly staring in bewilderment at the controls before deciding this is too scary and leaving. At some point, he'll also take a walk in the woods, rain or no rain, in shirtsleeves and waistcoat but no coat. After a while, he'll get back on the journals.]

[Filtered away from Grell, 44%]

If you wanted to surprise someone dear to you, to cheer her up when she returned from being kidnapped, what would you do for her?

Comments

[herotypical]

[ she downs that vodka-orange altogether too quickly. ]

I mean, what do you think I-- [ no. she frowns some more. none of this was working. but she was dawn's older sister. and mom's...buffy has to be the adult of the family. another deep breath. ]

I'll talk to her. Make sure she knows.

[simplestgift]

Good. [He drinks about half that whiskey at once.] Good, tell her. [Not me, please, please, please.]

[herotypical]

...So -- how about that local sports team?

[simplestgift]

The Blue Rogues are completely useless.

[herotypical]

...Also? Not a sports team. But points for trying.

[simplestgift]

What is a local sports team?

[He'd heard the word "team" and ran with it.]

[herotypical]

...It's a team. A team that plays sports. Locally. A local sports team. Like -- football! Or basketball.

[simplestgift]

And what of that sort do we have here?

[herotypical]

We...don't. It was a joke. Sorta. It's a thing that people say to, y'know, change the subject. It doesn't work so well when it has to be explained. Kinda just draws attention to it.

[simplestgift]

[Okay, so that was a faux pas on his part.]

It's a shame about the rain.

[herotypical]

...Some day, I'll get used to it.

[simplestgift]

Now, I know there is rain in Scotland.

[herotypical]

And I wasn't getting used to it there, either. Every morning I woke up and I looked out the castle window and I said how can one place be this dreary? Sunnydale was on top of a Hellmouth but at least it looked happy.

[simplestgift]

Oh come now. At least it's green where it rains.

[herotypical]

It's also green in places where it doesn't rain almost all the time.

[simplestgift]

[Archie just doesn't understand how someone can not love Scotland.] But it's Scotland, Buffy.

[herotypical]

If the next thing out of your mouth is anything pro-haggis, I might have to vomit. Just warning you.

[simplestgift]

What has haggis got to do with anything?

[herotypical]

Haggis. Scotland. It's...a thing.

[simplestgift]

I'm aware it is a thing, in fact that it is a food. [And in fact it sounds worse than it is.] I was speaking of Scotland herself, however, not the the...anotherness of her cuisine.

[herotypical]

It's just...Scotland? It's not home. And I don't like that when Dawnie comes back from college I can't say goodnight to her in her own bedroom. The same one mom used to tuck her into at night.

[simplestgift]

...Like how Luceti would quite pleasant without the Malnosso, but it's Luceti no matter how you wish it wasn't.

[herotypical]

Something like that.

Only not quite.

[simplestgift]

I mean it's not home.

[herotypical]

For me? It's less about a place not being home and more about -- well, home just doesn't exist, anymore. That bedroom that I can't say goodnight to her in? It doesn't exist.