[ Wherever Luca was out and about in town on his own this afternoon... he sure did miss a lot at home. The past couple hours have left Alberto both better and worse for wear.
Positive: All his wounds from the goosefight have been magically healed, which was pretty cool...
Negative: Heeeee got exposed as a sea monster and almost got into a physical altercation with a clever man who has mind-explode-y powers and a bad temper, who now knows their secret and may well be mad at Alberto for acting like a crazy jerk...
...Toss-up. Hm.
The bottom line, though, is that the altercation with Katsuki culminated in Alberto's many hanging jars full of trinkets were shattered to bits inexplicably, sending broken glass and all the jars' contents flying all over the room. Now, while these regularly fall and break and do the same, it's usually not all at once, and usually not projected across the room by invisible superpowers... Alberto did his best to clean it up after Katsuki left, but still managed to cut his foot on a stray piece of glass shortly after. Thankfully, August was already coming over to heal him... and in the process, August found out that not only does this feral child have a reputation, but also a roommate that few adults have even heard of, which was disconcerting on his end. Alberto, though, is none the wiser that this adult left their home thinking it's a dangerous death trap that children shouldn't be living in alone. Why would anyone think that...
Meantime, Luca will come home to find their home in mild disarray — which is "moderate-to-severe" disarray by normal people's standards. Alberto's pulled furniture away from the walls in attempts to get a totally thorough sweep of the place, diligently set on finding every piece of shattered glass, as if to prove a point to himself. Luca getting his foot cut, too, would symbolize everything that Alberto's just spent the afternoon fighting over, and he's feeling extra determined to feel like they're okay on their own... But it's been now some weeks since Luca's arrived, and slowly, inevitably, the threads of their disguise have started to fray. They've talked about wanting to find humans to trust and adults to have involved in their life, but Alberto talking about it and Alberto pursuing it are two different things.
When he walks in, Luca will find Alberto comically bent over on the floor on all hands and knees, cheek pressed to the ground peering under the cabinet where they keep their record player and vinyls, indelicately flinging a broom underneath it, trying to knock a piece of glass stuck in the corner out into easy reach. It'd be funny if there weren't something really... off... in the air somehow. First of all, there's no music playing in the apartment, which is a rarity; all the lights are on, even though it's not quite dusk yet, making the room exceedingly bright; and, uh, more noticeably...? There's about a half a dozen dead, cut up potted plants, a balled up piece of bloodied gauze, and a pile of weirdly withered black leaves, all littering the coffee table, not to mention an open first aid kit left out on their nest of cushions. What happened in here...?!
When Alberto hears the door open, he clumsily sits up and rolls over on the floor to face Luca better. But despite a sort of wildness in his eyes, something frenetic barely tugging his tone of voice, and the even-more-chaotic-than-usual state of the room, he acts as if... everything's normal... because of course he'll play this off nonchalantly to start. ]
[Luca had gotten himself signed up for some summer school courses when he heard about them from Moana and Varian, hoping to get himself to where a kid his age should be before the new school year starts. While he hates taking the time away from hanging out with Alberto, it's only for a few weeks and he figures Alberto has a lot of his own stuff to do anyway. Like finding things to sell to Eda's shop.
He's not expecting anything too terribly eventful to have happened while he was gone, though. Grabbing the key from under the mat, Alberto will hear the click of the lock and Luca opening the door. Before he even looks into their apartment, Luca starts to greet his friend in a cheery tone.]
Ciao, Alberto! How was--
[He trails off as he walks into the room, first noticing that all the jars were missing from their hanging spots.]
Mother of pearl! Did all the jars really fall down--
[Now, he had noticed a lot of the furniture was pulled away from the walls, but with Alberto that could mean anything. Sometimes it's hard to predict what he'll get up to, after all. But then, it's unusual that he'd get up to it so quietly. No music, no yelling, and Alberto...is he cleaning? Then when Alberto finally manages to get the glass out, Luca has so many more questions. That cabinet is nowhere near the jars.]
How did glass from the jar get all the way over there?
[Then there's the bit of dead plants all cut up everywhere, the bloodied gauze which isn't too surprising since Alberto had those wounds from the goose...wait. Luca looks at Alberto, closing the door behind him, noticing all the places that had various bite marks now looking completely fine. How...]
[ Alberto starts slightly at the question, his nonchalant act almost instantly faltering. But he doubles down, shifting to sit more comfortably on the floor, though he stays sprawled out, propping himself up by his elbow with his chin in his hand. ]
Ohhh... Uh. I had— company. And the glass broke. Watch your feet, okay? Oh, hey, look!
[ On a hairpin turn, he suddenly shoots up, sitting upright with his legs crossed, and sticks his arm out to show Luca the lack of scrapes and scratches and bites. ]
Amazing, right? I'm healed! It's magic! I met a cool magic guy online, he came over and healed me. August? He can talk to birds and he's a psychic fortune teller, too — he knew my name before I even said it! Che forza, eh?
[ Distracting from whatever issue is clearly at hand here... But he's not gonna open with "hey, someone figured out we're sea monsters, welcome home." He'll at least let Luca get inside and sit down for this. He's eating himself inside. He's been dreading this talk with Luca ever since Katsuki left. He knows he's the one who messed up here on some level, deep down. So they'll just... ease into it. If only for his sake. ]
[ Alberto's face falls at the question. He... hadn't thought of that. Could August tell he wasn't human, just by having done his magic on him...? Alberto forces a breath of a chuckle out in spite of himself, bracing himself inwardly. ]
Um, ha, I-I don't think so? Not that he let on, at least. But, um— that brings me to the glass...
[ Oh. Oh, no. There's something extremely foreboding in the way he segued there... He rises to his feet, turning to face Luca with a nervous smile on his face, as the feigned nonchalance begins to shed away. He abruptly lifts his shirt (a navy shirt that reads "CRABULOUS" with a trail of little red embroidered crabs, a topically nautical prized thrift store find, just to make matters worse; not like that adds suspicion at all, right) and exposes his chest to Luca — aaalso totally normalll...? ]
See? Bruise is gone, too. Um— ...Luca, weird question, hah, but— can you show me your belly? Does it look perfect like mine, or do you have a hole in it...?
[ He points first to his side, where the bruise had been, which is now completely healed, but what he really means to show off here is his smooth and unscarred belly... He points to his own first, then to Luca's, meeting his eye with an uncharacteristic hint of worry in his gaze. He's seen Luca shirtless plenty; he already knows the answer. But maybe he's overlooked Luca's bellybutton, it's possible, it's not like Alberto's ever looked for it, since he... didn't know what a bellybutton was... He just wants confirmation on this before he lets the truth out. If Luca has a bellybutton, then they might be in the clear — well, sort of — but... Alberto's fairly sure he doesn't, either... ]
[That brings him to the glass? Why does that bring him to the glass? Luca's incredibly concerned about that segue, but decides to say nothing, to give Alberto a chance to explain and to avoid distracting him. Then he lifts his shirt and shows him that his bruise is gone, too. Okay...what does this have to do with a possible exposure, though? And why is Alberto asking him about holes in his belly?]
Um...no, there's no hole.
[Luca lifts his shirt to show Alberto his belly buttonless belly.]
See? I'm fine. Why are you asking me if I have a hole? Is there someone going around stabbing people in the belly?
[ Alberto leans in, bending straight down with his hands on his hips, to inspect Luca's belly at a closer distance, with a shrewdly discerning look on his face... but it's a let down. It's true. Luca's navel looks exactly like his. Smooth and unscarred — with no sign of an umbilicus in the slightest. Alberto inhales sharply, a look of defeat suddenly washing over him, and he lowers his shirt, flopping backwards suddenly onto the nest of cushions they call a sofa, abandoning his cleaning project for the moment. He lays dejectedly, motionless, limbs splayed akimbo, with his gaze fixed on the empty ceiling where the jars of marbles and buttons and whatnots used to hang. He doesn't have a good wind-up for this conversation. He's tried to rehearse a few before Luca came home, but he's not been satisfied with any of them. So just wings it with something entirely new, improv, off-the-cuff, which is... not gonna yield the best result, more than likely... But he feels something might be said for his candor? ]
...Soooo... ...Humans have holes in their bellies. I guess. They call them buttons. I don't know. It's just a scar. But I guess all humans have this scar? Even cats have their bellies buttoned! I looked it up! ...Isn't that stupid, though?! That's stupid of— Nature! You'd think if it was such an important human thing, more humans would talk about their bellybuttons, y'know?! Psssh...!
[ Um, this is a great fun fact and all, but... increasingly nerve-wracking... It's easy to read between the lines, and probably infuriating that Alberto's tiptoeing even around his own frankness. His exasperation is clear through every detail of this scene, from his tone, to his face, to the way he thrashes himself in agitation at the final note, to the very room around them... The gig might not be up, but... something's gone awry. And this? This is probably not the best way to admit it...? The day had to come when one of them shocked the other with news of discovery, though; it was only a matter of time, and deep down, somewhere, they both knew it. It's probably just coming sooner and more bluntly, yet backhandedly, than expected... ]
[Luca just...stares. This sounds completely and utterly ridiculous. Humans have holes in their bellies? Why would they have holes in their bellies? Why does every single human and cat, apparently, scarred? But...there's no reason to think Alberto is making this up. Especially since it sounds like he did his research, and if this all comes back to the broken glass...well...then he probably found out about this straight from the source.]
So...I'm guessing the person who healed you saw that you didn't have a hole in your belly? And...and...
[He swallows and looks to where all the glass jars were hung. Oh, this is not good.]
And I'm guessing it didn't go well if the jars all ended up broken...
[How worried should they be? Should they run away? They were too far from saving up for a vespa, and Luca hadn't even started school yet. Were they going to miss out on their dream just because of belly holes?]
[ Alberto's silent for a long moment, still staring at the ceiling. After a beat, he trills his lips in resignation, but stays motionless. ]
...No. It didn't go well. But it wasn't August who noticed.
[ He pushes himself up to throw Luca an earnest (though exasperated) look before he lets loose the big reveal. ]
No, it was Katsuki. Remember that guy I thought maybe figured it out, but I wasn't sure if he did or not? Well, yeah, I, uh— I guess he did... Hah. But yeah: it did not go well, no.
[ He lies back down, but gestures at the empty space where the jars used to hang, twirling his wrist to wave at the rest of the room. ]
Aaand. It turns out he also has psychic powers or something? Crazy mind-explode-y powers, apparently...! Ecco— broken glass everywhere.
[ Yet still no details on what happened in between this discovery and the explosion. But Luca's fought with Alberto before. He knows it escalates quickly. He can surely guess what led up to that explosion... quite unfortunately. ]
[So there were two people who came over after Alberto got attacked? Okay. He's feeling like he'd follow this story far better if he got a lot more details he hasn't been getting, but okay. That's not the most confusing part of what Alberto's saying, though.]
Okay, I'm confused. If he already knew we were sea monsters, how did it not go well? I mean, he wasn't upset when he found out the first time, how did things to in the crazy mind-explode-y direction when he wasn't even finding out anything new?
I wasn't sure if he already knew...! I played dumb like I didn't know what he was talking about back then.
[ He pauses, the sense of how dumb he'd really been sinking in now; he wasn't just playing. But dumb in an entirely different way. Dumb and dumber yet, apparently: ]
...And today, I tried the same thing... Acted like he was talking crazy... Like maybe it'd convince him not to be suspicious, right? Like it was all in his head? But it didn't work. I just—
[ He draws his legs up on the cushions, into himself, as he hugs his arms and casts his gaze aside awkwardly. ]
...What a stupid thing to get found out over. Y'know? If bellybuttons are so important to human-ing— how come my dad never mentioned it? His belly didn't have a button, either...!
[ Since his dad was an all-knowing expert at human-ing and taught Alberto everything he knew, naturally. Anything important he'd need to know, he'd been sure his dad had already known and taught him. Even for how many things have completely sideswiped him in the past few months since living in Portorosso and Kaisou, he's still certain his dad knew everything there was to know about everything. And he's mad that he never told him about bellybuttons... but worried that his dad didn't know, either — because that puts yet another crack in the pedestal Alberto's dad still sits on. Let alone in his own confidence that he's just as good at human-ing as his dad was. Just... more and more cracks in his confidence in general. It's been a rough few hours dispelling that feeling, to no real avail. ]
Alberto...when you acted like he was talking crazy, what do you mean, exactly? Did you just laugh it off? Did he just get frustrated with you not admitting it? Or...
[He knows Alberto. He knows how Alberto can be, and that worries him.]
Alberto, you didn't start a fight with someone who knows our secret and could tell everybody, did you?
[He doesn't raise his voice, instead choosing to strongly emphasize certain words, but inside Luca is starting to panic. Everyone will know...and there's so many people here, there's probably at least one Ercole in all of this.]
Maybe your dad didn't know?
[Because Alberto's dad didn't even know that Alberto was way too young by both human and sea folk standards to be on his own, so Luca, unlike Alberto, has no faith that he knew what he was talking about at all.]
[ Alberto's glossing over the remark about his dad not knowing something so important; he's already grumpy enough without thinking too much about his father. But Luca's very valid panic tinting his voice puts Alberto on the defensive. He sits up to face Luca abruptly, pointing a finger emphatically at him, tuned out of his own body language. ]
I didn't start a fight! I mean— We didn't fight...! We argued. It's different. And anyway, I denied it. Okay? W-We're still okay! He can't prove anything!
[ None of that inspires confidence. This is some kind of déjà vu back to Portorosso... ]
Yes he can! All he has to do is splash us with water! Or show everyone we don't have belly buttons!
[Maybe it's not Alberto's fault. Maybe the guy just got frustrated when Alberto kept denying it and maybe Alberto wasn't more combative than he needed to be. Of course, Alberto's frequently way more combative than he needs to be, but Luca wasn't there. He doesn't know how things went down. Maybe it was unavoidable.]
He doesn't know how the Change works! He didn't see me get wet. Besides, if he goes around saying, "I think these kids are sea monsters because they don't have bellybuttons" — he'll sound crazy to other humans...! Right?! Like— th-the same way normal humans would think it sounds crazy if someone accused them of being monsters! If I were a normal human, I'm supposed think that's really weird and deny it, right?!
[ That's been his operating approach with this situation: How crazy would this accusation sound to a normal human? He should act like how a normal human would act. It's not a convincing case, though, when Alberto's gaps in what's "normal" to humans seem to be as wide as ever... ]
I mean...yeah, saying we're sea monsters will sound crazy. Unless someone actually decides to check whether we have belly buttons. And yeah, normal humans would probably say they weren't sea monsters if you said they were, and probably laugh or seem confused about why you said that.
[Luca might not know much about human behavior, but he also wasn't raised in isolation, so he knows getting too loud or insistent is suspicious in it's own right.]
Right! And that's what I did— ...basically! [ That half a breath's pause is so slight, but still enough of a lapse to invite doubt. ]
Look, this guy isn't like Ercole — I don't think he has a reason to go around telling everyone... And you agree that even if he did, it'd just make him look like the weird one — not us. So that means we're okay, right?
[ Alberto's mental gymnastics are as impressive now as they ever were... ]
Um...yeah, we're probably okay. People probably won't believe him. But we're really going to have to do our best humaning if he does, because after they hear that we're sea monsters if they see us do anything weird they might start thinking he's right!
Basically, yeah! I-I acted confused— I didn't laugh it off... I acted like he was talking nonsense. Like he was being rude.
[ Which... was suspiciously insistent, as Luca'd probably already guessed. Alberto's already admitted it didn't "go well." But he wants to believe that he didn't just mess everything up for them... a familiar pit has been growing in his stomach at the idea that he might've, though. So, like with most anything, he just doubles down. ]
Look, apart from this bellybutton thing, I haven't been exposed this whole time... You haven't been exposed this whole time...! We've been human-ing perfectly fine. The bellybuttons aren't our fault. We'll just, uh— research what other things like that are necessary to seem human. Easy!
[ How the hell are you going to Google that, Alberto...? He's trying to write off the fact that they don't even know what they don't know. This was a total surprise to them. Alberto's truest fear in all this is simply: what else don't they know? What other quintessentially human details that they lack could blow their cover in a split second? But he's not about to speak to that just yet. He needs to run out of bravado first, of course. ]
Alberto...you didn't get mad at him over saying it, did you?
[Because he's suspecting if stuff got broken and it didn't go well that Alberto started a fight. Which is a terrible idea. And sure, they hadn't gotten caught yet...except Alberto did twice and Luca hasn't been here that long, but okay. They weren't doing terribly at this humaning thing. Most people were convinced. Still, they needed everyone who knew to be on their side.]
No, he got mad. He got mad cuz I wouldn't admit it, and then he started being a jerk! I just stood up for myself...!
[ That is... one interpretation of how things went down, yes. Minus the detail that it was Alberto who brought things to a physical level and drastically overreacted; Katsuki's own hot temper just heated Alberto's, they fed into each other's energy, clashing like metal on metal. It escalated quicker than he's making it sound. ]
[ Oh god. Lie to keep the egg off his face, pretending he didn't get mad first, backfires and the egg is still on his face, because he made the guy mad at them. Maybe it would've been better to admit that he was the one who got mad first...
He wraps his arms around himself and tosses his gaze askance poutily, pausing for a silent, guilty beat. He does think of one silver lining, sort of, perking up to face Luca once more, offering this saving grace hesitantly. ]
...Well— technically he only knows about me, and he's only mad at me... He doesn't know about you. Y-You're still safe. So— I'll figure something out. You're still okay.
[ If he can at least keep Luca out of the spotlight of Katsuki's suspicion — totally oblivious that Katsuki's already pieced that together, too — then he'll feel a lot better about the situation... But how likely is it for Luca to stay uninvolved? Not very likely. ]
Alberto...I want you to be safe. I want you to be okay.
[Sure, people will also probably figure out that he's a sea monster, too, if Alberto's exposed, but that's not Luca's biggest concern. He wants Alberto safe, and he's not going to throw aside Alberto's safety for his own. Not again.]
If this ends up being a problem, we'll figure something out.
[ Alberto goes quiet a long moment, staring at Luca with an earnest look, his brow knotted in thought. He throws his gaze away, though, as he draws his legs up into himself on the cushion and wraps his arms around them, resting his chin on his knees. ]
...It's just— ...What else don't we know, Luca? Do humans have a secret tail they never talk about or something?! This came out of nowhere. Something so small and stupid... It freaked me out.
[ "It freaked me out" being his subtle admission that he actually was the first one to get mad... ...which Luca probably already assumed he was lying about anyway. But it's a rare and genuine moment for Alberto to be so transparent, though he's still visibly uncomfortable letting himself be so vulnerable as to admit he's scared... not in so many words, of course. ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
timeasmymeasure
action; after having his goosefight wounds healed
Date: 2022-06-23 02:13 am (UTC)Positive: All his wounds from the goosefight have been magically healed, which was pretty cool...
Negative: Heeeee got exposed as a sea monster and almost got into a physical altercation with a clever man who has mind-explode-y powers and a bad temper, who now knows their secret and may well be mad at Alberto for acting like a crazy jerk...
...Toss-up. Hm.
The bottom line, though, is that the altercation with Katsuki culminated in Alberto's many hanging jars full of trinkets were shattered to bits inexplicably, sending broken glass and all the jars' contents flying all over the room. Now, while these regularly fall and break and do the same, it's usually not all at once, and usually not projected across the room by invisible superpowers... Alberto did his best to clean it up after Katsuki left, but still managed to cut his foot on a stray piece of glass shortly after. Thankfully, August was already coming over to heal him... and in the process, August found out that not only does this feral child have a reputation, but also a roommate that few adults have even heard of, which was disconcerting on his end. Alberto, though, is none the wiser that this adult left their home thinking it's a dangerous death trap that children shouldn't be living in alone. Why would anyone think that...
Meantime, Luca will come home to find their home in mild disarray — which is "moderate-to-severe" disarray by normal people's standards. Alberto's pulled furniture away from the walls in attempts to get a totally thorough sweep of the place, diligently set on finding every piece of shattered glass, as if to prove a point to himself. Luca getting his foot cut, too, would symbolize everything that Alberto's just spent the afternoon fighting over, and he's feeling extra determined to feel like they're okay on their own... But it's been now some weeks since Luca's arrived, and slowly, inevitably, the threads of their disguise have started to fray. They've talked about wanting to find humans to trust and adults to have involved in their life, but Alberto talking about it and Alberto pursuing it are two different things.
When he walks in, Luca will find Alberto comically bent over on the floor on all hands and knees, cheek pressed to the ground peering under the cabinet where they keep their record player and vinyls, indelicately flinging a broom underneath it, trying to knock a piece of glass stuck in the corner out into easy reach. It'd be funny if there weren't something really... off... in the air somehow. First of all, there's no music playing in the apartment, which is a rarity; all the lights are on, even though it's not quite dusk yet, making the room exceedingly bright; and, uh, more noticeably...? There's about a half a dozen dead, cut up potted plants, a balled up piece of bloodied gauze, and a pile of weirdly withered black leaves, all littering the coffee table, not to mention an open first aid kit left out on their nest of cushions. What happened in here...?!
When Alberto hears the door open, he clumsily sits up and rolls over on the floor to face Luca better. But despite a sort of wildness in his eyes, something frenetic barely tugging his tone of voice, and the even-more-chaotic-than-usual state of the room, he acts as if... everything's normal... because of course he'll play this off nonchalantly to start. ]
Oh. Ciao, Luca. How goes it?
no subject
Date: 2022-06-26 06:54 pm (UTC)He's not expecting anything too terribly eventful to have happened while he was gone, though. Grabbing the key from under the mat, Alberto will hear the click of the lock and Luca opening the door. Before he even looks into their apartment, Luca starts to greet his friend in a cheery tone.]
Ciao, Alberto! How was--
[He trails off as he walks into the room, first noticing that all the jars were missing from their hanging spots.]
Mother of pearl! Did all the jars really fall down--
[Now, he had noticed a lot of the furniture was pulled away from the walls, but with Alberto that could mean anything. Sometimes it's hard to predict what he'll get up to, after all. But then, it's unusual that he'd get up to it so quietly. No music, no yelling, and Alberto...is he cleaning? Then when Alberto finally manages to get the glass out, Luca has so many more questions. That cabinet is nowhere near the jars.]
How did glass from the jar get all the way over there?
[Then there's the bit of dead plants all cut up everywhere, the bloodied gauze which isn't too surprising since Alberto had those wounds from the goose...wait. Luca looks at Alberto, closing the door behind him, noticing all the places that had various bite marks now looking completely fine. How...]
Um...Alberto? What happened while I was gone?
no subject
Date: 2022-06-27 06:57 am (UTC)Ohhh... Uh. I had— company. And the glass broke. Watch your feet, okay? Oh, hey, look!
[ On a hairpin turn, he suddenly shoots up, sitting upright with his legs crossed, and sticks his arm out to show Luca the lack of scrapes and scratches and bites. ]
Amazing, right? I'm healed! It's magic! I met a cool magic guy online, he came over and healed me. August? He can talk to birds and he's a psychic fortune teller, too — he knew my name before I even said it! Che forza, eh?
[ Distracting from whatever issue is clearly at hand here... But he's not gonna open with "hey, someone figured out we're sea monsters, welcome home." He'll at least let Luca get inside and sit down for this. He's eating himself inside. He's been dreading this talk with Luca ever since Katsuki left. He knows he's the one who messed up here on some level, deep down. So they'll just... ease into it. If only for his sake. ]
no subject
Date: 2022-06-27 04:47 pm (UTC)[Something isn't adding up, but Luca goes over to look at Alberto's arm. That is pretty amazing.]
Wow, that is pretty amazing! And he could heal you up just like that?
[And he's psychic, too! Wait...]
Um...Alberto? If he's psychic...does he know anything else about you? Other than your name?
[Like the fact that Alberto is a sea monster?]
no subject
Date: 2022-06-27 05:57 pm (UTC)Um, ha, I-I don't think so? Not that he let on, at least. But, um— that brings me to the glass...
[ Oh. Oh, no. There's something extremely foreboding in the way he segued there... He rises to his feet, turning to face Luca with a nervous smile on his face, as the feigned nonchalance begins to shed away. He abruptly lifts his shirt (a navy shirt that reads "CRABULOUS" with a trail of little red embroidered crabs, a topically nautical prized thrift store find, just to make matters worse; not like that adds suspicion at all, right) and exposes his chest to Luca — aaalso totally normalll...? ]
See? Bruise is gone, too. Um— ...Luca, weird question, hah, but— can you show me your belly? Does it look perfect like mine, or do you have a hole in it...?
[ He points first to his side, where the bruise had been, which is now completely healed, but what he really means to show off here is his smooth and unscarred belly... He points to his own first, then to Luca's, meeting his eye with an uncharacteristic hint of worry in his gaze. He's seen Luca shirtless plenty; he already knows the answer. But maybe he's overlooked Luca's bellybutton, it's possible, it's not like Alberto's ever looked for it, since he... didn't know what a bellybutton was... He just wants confirmation on this before he lets the truth out. If Luca has a bellybutton, then they might be in the clear — well, sort of — but... Alberto's fairly sure he doesn't, either... ]
no subject
Date: 2022-06-27 06:12 pm (UTC)Um...no, there's no hole.
[Luca lifts his shirt to show Alberto his belly buttonless belly.]
See? I'm fine. Why are you asking me if I have a hole? Is there someone going around stabbing people in the belly?
[Seriously, Alberto, what is that question?]
no subject
Date: 2022-06-30 02:45 am (UTC)...Soooo... ...Humans have holes in their bellies. I guess. They call them buttons. I don't know. It's just a scar. But I guess all humans have this scar? Even cats have their bellies buttoned! I looked it up! ...Isn't that stupid, though?! That's stupid of— Nature! You'd think if it was such an important human thing, more humans would talk about their bellybuttons, y'know?! Psssh...!
[ Um, this is a great fun fact and all, but... increasingly nerve-wracking... It's easy to read between the lines, and probably infuriating that Alberto's tiptoeing even around his own frankness. His exasperation is clear through every detail of this scene, from his tone, to his face, to the way he thrashes himself in agitation at the final note, to the very room around them... The gig might not be up, but... something's gone awry. And this? This is probably not the best way to admit it...? The day had to come when one of them shocked the other with news of discovery, though; it was only a matter of time, and deep down, somewhere, they both knew it. It's probably just coming sooner and more bluntly, yet backhandedly, than expected... ]
no subject
Date: 2022-07-03 12:48 am (UTC)So...I'm guessing the person who healed you saw that you didn't have a hole in your belly? And...and...
[He swallows and looks to where all the glass jars were hung. Oh, this is not good.]
And I'm guessing it didn't go well if the jars all ended up broken...
[How worried should they be? Should they run away? They were too far from saving up for a vespa, and Luca hadn't even started school yet. Were they going to miss out on their dream just because of belly holes?]
no subject
Date: 2022-07-07 05:58 pm (UTC)...No. It didn't go well. But it wasn't August who noticed.
[ He pushes himself up to throw Luca an earnest (though exasperated) look before he lets loose the big reveal. ]
No, it was Katsuki. Remember that guy I thought maybe figured it out, but I wasn't sure if he did or not? Well, yeah, I, uh— I guess he did... Hah. But yeah: it did not go well, no.
[ He lies back down, but gestures at the empty space where the jars used to hang, twirling his wrist to wave at the rest of the room. ]
Aaand. It turns out he also has psychic powers or something? Crazy mind-explode-y powers, apparently...! Ecco— broken glass everywhere.
[ Yet still no details on what happened in between this discovery and the explosion. But Luca's fought with Alberto before. He knows it escalates quickly. He can surely guess what led up to that explosion... quite unfortunately. ]
no subject
Date: 2022-07-08 02:18 pm (UTC)[So there were two people who came over after Alberto got attacked? Okay. He's feeling like he'd follow this story far better if he got a lot more details he hasn't been getting, but okay. That's not the most confusing part of what Alberto's saying, though.]
Okay, I'm confused. If he already knew we were sea monsters, how did it not go well? I mean, he wasn't upset when he found out the first time, how did things to in the crazy mind-explode-y direction when he wasn't even finding out anything new?
no subject
Date: 2022-07-08 03:06 pm (UTC)[ He pauses, the sense of how dumb he'd really been sinking in now; he wasn't just playing. But dumb in an entirely different way. Dumb and dumber yet, apparently: ]
...And today, I tried the same thing... Acted like he was talking crazy... Like maybe it'd convince him not to be suspicious, right? Like it was all in his head? But it didn't work. I just—
[ He draws his legs up on the cushions, into himself, as he hugs his arms and casts his gaze aside awkwardly. ]
...What a stupid thing to get found out over. Y'know? If bellybuttons are so important to human-ing— how come my dad never mentioned it? His belly didn't have a button, either...!
[ Since his dad was an all-knowing expert at human-ing and taught Alberto everything he knew, naturally. Anything important he'd need to know, he'd been sure his dad had already known and taught him. Even for how many things have completely sideswiped him in the past few months since living in Portorosso and Kaisou, he's still certain his dad knew everything there was to know about everything. And he's mad that he never told him about bellybuttons... but worried that his dad didn't know, either — because that puts yet another crack in the pedestal Alberto's dad still sits on. Let alone in his own confidence that he's just as good at human-ing as his dad was. Just... more and more cracks in his confidence in general. It's been a rough few hours dispelling that feeling, to no real avail. ]
no subject
Date: 2022-07-11 02:02 am (UTC)[He knows Alberto. He knows how Alberto can be, and that worries him.]
Alberto, you didn't start a fight with someone who knows our secret and could tell everybody, did you?
[He doesn't raise his voice, instead choosing to strongly emphasize certain words, but inside Luca is starting to panic. Everyone will know...and there's so many people here, there's probably at least one Ercole in all of this.]
Maybe your dad didn't know?
[Because Alberto's dad didn't even know that Alberto was way too young by both human and sea folk standards to be on his own, so Luca, unlike Alberto, has no faith that he knew what he was talking about at all.]
no subject
Date: 2022-07-11 04:38 pm (UTC)I didn't start a fight! I mean— We didn't fight...! We argued. It's different. And anyway, I denied it. Okay? W-We're still okay! He can't prove anything!
[ None of that inspires confidence. This is some kind of déjà vu back to Portorosso... ]
no subject
Date: 2022-07-12 01:20 pm (UTC)[Maybe it's not Alberto's fault. Maybe the guy just got frustrated when Alberto kept denying it and maybe Alberto wasn't more combative than he needed to be. Of course, Alberto's frequently way more combative than he needs to be, but Luca wasn't there. He doesn't know how things went down. Maybe it was unavoidable.]
We need to convince him to not be mad at us!
no subject
Date: 2022-07-14 08:58 pm (UTC)[ That's been his operating approach with this situation: How crazy would this accusation sound to a normal human? He should act like how a normal human would act. It's not a convincing case, though, when Alberto's gaps in what's "normal" to humans seem to be as wide as ever... ]
no subject
Date: 2022-07-15 01:59 pm (UTC)[Luca might not know much about human behavior, but he also wasn't raised in isolation, so he knows getting too loud or insistent is suspicious in it's own right.]
no subject
Date: 2022-07-15 02:36 pm (UTC)Look, this guy isn't like Ercole — I don't think he has a reason to go around telling everyone... And you agree that even if he did, it'd just make him look like the weird one — not us. So that means we're okay, right?
[ Alberto's mental gymnastics are as impressive now as they ever were... ]
no subject
Date: 2022-07-15 03:01 pm (UTC)[What does Alberto mean basically?]
Um...yeah, we're probably okay. People probably won't believe him. But we're really going to have to do our best humaning if he does, because after they hear that we're sea monsters if they see us do anything weird they might start thinking he's right!
no subject
Date: 2022-07-17 01:46 am (UTC)[ Which... was suspiciously insistent, as Luca'd probably already guessed. Alberto's already admitted it didn't "go well." But he wants to believe that he didn't just mess everything up for them... a familiar pit has been growing in his stomach at the idea that he might've, though. So, like with most anything, he just doubles down. ]
Look, apart from this bellybutton thing, I haven't been exposed this whole time... You haven't been exposed this whole time...! We've been human-ing perfectly fine. The bellybuttons aren't our fault. We'll just, uh— research what other things like that are necessary to seem human. Easy!
[ How the hell are you going to Google that, Alberto...? He's trying to write off the fact that they don't even know what they don't know. This was a total surprise to them. Alberto's truest fear in all this is simply: what else don't they know? What other quintessentially human details that they lack could blow their cover in a split second? But he's not about to speak to that just yet. He needs to run out of bravado first, of course. ]
no subject
Date: 2022-07-17 10:45 pm (UTC)[Because he's suspecting if stuff got broken and it didn't go well that Alberto started a fight. Which is a terrible idea. And sure, they hadn't gotten caught yet...except Alberto did twice and Luca hasn't been here that long, but okay. They weren't doing terribly at this humaning thing. Most people were convinced. Still, they needed everyone who knew to be on their side.]
no subject
Date: 2022-07-18 02:39 am (UTC)[ That is... one interpretation of how things went down, yes. Minus the detail that it was Alberto who brought things to a physical level and drastically overreacted; Katsuki's own hot temper just heated Alberto's, they fed into each other's energy, clashing like metal on metal. It escalated quicker than he's making it sound. ]
no subject
Date: 2022-07-18 03:34 pm (UTC)[He hopes.]
no subject
Date: 2022-07-18 11:38 pm (UTC)He wraps his arms around himself and tosses his gaze askance poutily, pausing for a silent, guilty beat. He does think of one silver lining, sort of, perking up to face Luca once more, offering this saving grace hesitantly. ]
...Well— technically he only knows about me, and he's only mad at me... He doesn't know about you. Y-You're still safe. So— I'll figure something out. You're still okay.
[ If he can at least keep Luca out of the spotlight of Katsuki's suspicion — totally oblivious that Katsuki's already pieced that together, too — then he'll feel a lot better about the situation... But how likely is it for Luca to stay uninvolved? Not very likely. ]
no subject
Date: 2022-07-19 02:46 am (UTC)[Sure, people will also probably figure out that he's a sea monster, too, if Alberto's exposed, but that's not Luca's biggest concern. He wants Alberto safe, and he's not going to throw aside Alberto's safety for his own. Not again.]
If this ends up being a problem, we'll figure something out.
no subject
Date: 2022-07-20 04:11 am (UTC)...It's just— ...What else don't we know, Luca? Do humans have a secret tail they never talk about or something?! This came out of nowhere. Something so small and stupid... It freaked me out.
[ "It freaked me out" being his subtle admission that he actually was the first one to get mad... ...which Luca probably already assumed he was lying about anyway. But it's a rare and genuine moment for Alberto to be so transparent, though he's still visibly uncomfortable letting himself be so vulnerable as to admit he's scared... not in so many words, of course. ]
(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From:wanna wrap this one up?
From:Works for me!
From: