normal life au meme

[elementalherodragonlord]

the normal life AU meme

you wake up in the morning, and something has changed:

Maybe you're a super villain, a superhero, a magician, a knight, a space explorer -- but today, when you pad down the stairs (still half-asleep, still unfocused), you do not walk into your secret lair, your spaceship, your headquarters.

You're now just an average Joe, and you're standing barefoot on a worn wooden floor, smelling fresh coffee.

To boot, there's someone else in this kitchen, leaning on the counter, wearing pajama bottoms and an old t-shirt.

The setting might be new, but hell, you know eactly who they are...

so...why is your worst enemy/co-commander/partner/captain/etc. currently pouring you a second cup of coffee and asking you for pointers on the crossword?

WHAT EVEN?

Comments

[quietgardens]

[Taashath has a moment of mental connection, because he's seen people dressed up in grey with horns, but that was at the convention center, and they were hanging out with Naruto Uzumaki at the time.]

[Well. No point in trying to dig into the specifics, it clearly isn't helping.]

Okay. We'll google it, maybe we can find something out.

[He nods, channeling as much calm as possible.]

How about something to eat first? Or a hot cocoa?

[ash_elvhen]

[Oren can see when Taashath recognizes something about what Oren said and then appears to dismiss the thought. He can't help but wonder what might have come to mind but that thought is gone almost as soon as Taashath opens his mouth. Eyebrows wrinkled in confusion, Oren frowns.]

What's google?

[quietgardens]

[That-- That is not good. That is not a good sentence.]

I'm going to take a shot in the dark here-- do you know what a computer is?

[ash_elvhen]

[Well, Taashath did not like that question.]

No, I don't. Does it have anything to do with the little paintings on the shelf? Oh, shit, I broke one, didn't I? Those must have cost you a fortune...I've never seen anything that lifelike before. I'm so sorry.

[Oren looks so apologetic. He's not sure if that's something he can fix either.]

[quietgardens]

The paintings?

[They do have a few paintings in the house, but not on the shelves.]

Oh, no, those are photographs.

[He is definitely going to have to explain photographs, isn't he. God. Oren is the one who's into photography, between the two of them.]

There's a tool that makes them very quickly and inexpensively, and we put them in cheap frames because the cat knocks them over all the time. You don't have to worry.

[ash_elvhen]

[Oh, good, that's good. Oren's shoulders relax as he lets out a sigh of relief. Maybe he can help fix the "photograph" later. There's a beat of silence as Oren processes the idea of a tool that can create perfect, small paintings and then--]

Wait, you're explaining things to me. Does that mean you believe me...?

[quietgardens]

[Oh boy, how to answer that one.]

Regardless of what's happening, I'm going to help you. The, ah, magic is... well, prior to this morning you'd never expressed any belief in magic being real, but you're my husband, we'll figure it out.

[Yeah, he's definitely thinking this is some kind of very strange mental health episode, but Oren still knows who he is, so they can do something about it.]

[ash_elvhen]

[Well, that would have been too easy, he guesses. This still might be one of the worst situations Oren could imagine. He hates how crazy he must sound, he hates not knowing what happened to him, and he hates imagining what he must have left behind in his real life. What happened to Alice? And his dad? And his Taashath? How would he feel if Oren actually is dead and now he's stuck here and all that's left of him is a corpse? At least this Taashath isn't completely dismissing him. He also..apparently..is Oren's husband.]

...We're married?

[Magic isn't real, which is bizarre, but at least he wasn't a mage. That won't take too much adjustment. This though. The irony of it all has him in tears. Oren is almost certain the reason he's here is because he decided that he needed to propose in the most dangerous way possible and now he's just..stuck in the body of some human who has the life that he wanted with a version of Taashath that is never going to believe him.

Oren drops Taashath's other hand. All he can do is slump over and cry into his own hands. What is he going to do?]

[quietgardens]

[Well! Okay, that's worse, Taashath doesn't know why saying they're married is the thing that pushed poor Oren over into tears, but it sure did. He pushes down hard on the feeling of dread that has gone from a simmer to a full boil and moves to sit next to Oren on the bed. He puts an arm around him, as gentle as possible.]

Hey, it's alright, I've got you. What do you need, sweetheart?

[He's flipping through a mental list of things he could offer to help Oren center himself. A glass of water? The cat? Usually he has a much better idea of what's going on when Oren is this upset, and he's at a bit of a loss.]

[ash_elvhen]

[Taashath's arm around him is simultaneously a source of comfort and more upsetting. How can he even answer that question? His voice comes out wobbling and weak.]

I need to go home.

[Oren knows even as he says it that this is not making the situation any better. These are not the behaviors of a mentally stable man. This also must feel terrible for Taashath, which just makes Oren feel worse. Even if this Taashath isn't his Taashath he doesn't want to hurt him like this.]

I'm sorry, I'm so sorry--

[A sob cuts him off. He can't even speak anymore so instead he goes to his own self-comforting techniques. Nothing here can be fixed if he doesn't calm down. Oren takes slow, deep breaths, one after another. He focuses on the things he can physically feel, the sound of his breathing. Then, he lets himself take note of where his feelings are sitting in his body. The sinking stomach, the quickly beating heart, the shaking hands, and one by one the sources of his discomfort fade. It's not perfect, his nose is stuffed up and his eyes hurt from crying, but he feels better than before.

Once he feels reasonably sure the tears have stopped he wipes his eyes with his hands. His voice is steadier the next time he speaks, though his body language is still incredibly vulnerable.]

I wish I had my handkerchief...I'm a mess...I'm sorry, Taashath, this must be hard for you.