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Eliot Waugh was 4 years old when his father beat him unconscious. He was taken to the ER and the doctors were told he fell down from the hay loft. What this Eliot didn’t know was that at least 40 other times, this same exact thing had happened.Jane Chatwin had played god and reset their timelines again and again. This time she decided she was going to do as much as she could to improve the lives of the children her brother ended up eventually murdering. She couldn’t enter Martin’s time stream or she would have simply stopped the abusive Plover from his horrendous sexual assault. But for reasons she didn’t understand after hundreds of tries she could not. What she could do, however, was interfere with the lives of 6 eventual Brakebills students.After the last reset her brother was finally killed but it was at the expense of so much greater grief she knew she needed to try again. And so she began to reread the books of the children she was manipulating, to see what she could feasibly change to make things turn out a different way.Now here she was, staring at a young, bruised, bleeding, broken Eliot. Eliot was the lynchpin in the whole scheme. Quentin needed to befriend Eliot for Martin to be defeated. Every redo had shown that, even the ones where they had died soon after meeting.Tears in her eyes, she nodded to herself and did something she had never dared before.“Excuse me sir I am Jane Chatwin. I’m a social worker and I need to interview you about what happened.” She addressed an anxious and furious Mr. and Mrs. Waugh. Well, Mrs. Waugh was furious but it wasn’t at Jane. It was at her husband. She knew the truth of the situation and had been trying to squirrel away money so she could take her baby and run. He had found out. And the beating Eliot received that almost ended his life? That was her punishment. Her punishment for “raising a little f**” and “trying to make him into a pussy mama’s boy. “ Emboldened by the woman who looked like she meant business, Mrs. Waugh poured out her story. She moved to the other side of the room while her husband stood in shocked silence listening to his wife lay out his crimes for all to see. His face first blanched then went red in with fury. He hadn’t realized there was a police officer watching nearby. He hadn’t realized that the people he had intimidated into compliance were just waiting for someone, anyone to stand up to him so they could join the fight.And so, as a terrified woman wept to a supposed caseworker, the ER doctor, a police officer, and several nurses restrained the abuser and prevented him from doing the violence he most certainly would commit should he have been allowed to go free.Little Eliot awoke to profanities being screamed as Mr. Waugh was dragged out to the waiting police car. He saw a strange woman hugging and comforting his crying mama. The sight along with the noise from his father scared him. He curled into a little ball, making himself as small as he could, and began weeping.His mother noticed, of course she did. She dried her eyes then picked up her baby and held him close. His wrist was broken and he had a concussion and bloody nose, but he felt none of it as he sunk into her arms. As he calmed down, however, he felt every brush against his injured body and it made him cry out.The doctor, no longer occupied with the violent man, worked with a gentle nurse to clean him up and put a cast on his tiny arm. Eliot tried to be brave but when he looked up and saw his mama crying silently he couldn’t help himself and he began sobbing again. Jane waited until the doctor had approved for Eliot to leave the ER. “May I walk you out Mrs. Waugh?”“I don’t see why not. Thank you for your help.”“It’s the least I could do. I’m sorry you and your son had to deal with all of that.”“I can’t see how it was your fault but thank you.”Jane shook her head to herself. Admitting her guilt would do nothing to help this woman and her children.“I would very much like to help you Mrs. Waugh. I understand your husband being in jail will be difficult for you financially. I understand that’s why you hesitated to leave. But now that he’s not around to hurt you and yours you will need help.”“I don’t…I can’t. How exactly could you help?”“I need you to trust me. Can you do that?”“I. I don’t see why not. Yes. Yes I trust you.”“Okay, well, first things first. I have a house for you. Don’t ask me how. It’s fully furnished, the mortgage is paid off. You’ll only need to pay utilities and that won’t be for another year so you can have the year to save up and provide nice things for your son here and his older brothers. I will take care of selling the farm. When that is done, if you don’t like the house you’re in I will help you find one that suits you better.”Mrs Waugh started to cry and couldn’t stop. “Why are you helping me?” She asked, knowing she would probably not get an answer.“Let’s just say…I owe your family a debt. I can’t explain it to you but understand this is the least I could do given the circumstances. Now, we need to get you home. I’ll drive and we can talk logistics on the way.” The car ride to the farm was no less confusing to Mrs. Waugh but at least she felt there was a plan now. She had slipped into disassociation and was simply going through the motions she was instructed. “Go home. Pack bags. Flight at 8 pm to New Jersey. Not coming back.”While she was packing their meager belongings that she felt needed to move with her to her family’s new life, she instructed her older boys, Evan age 12 and Leroy age 8 to help Eliot get washed up and into clean clothes. “Mind his cast. Wrap it in a garbage bag. Be gentle. Your father hurt him bad.”The boys should have been more compassionate. They too had been victim to their father’s rage. But they were children of abuse and their instinct was to continue the cycle. So while little Eliot sat in the bathtub they snuck up on him and held him under. “You made our Pa go to jail you little f****.”Eliot screamed in his mind and somehow, his brothers flew against the walls and he was able to bring his head up out of the water. The older boys looked at him and each other in terror. “Im sorry please don’t kill me you demons.” The older screeched as he pulled Eliot from the tub and dragged him to their bedroom to get dressed. Eliot wanted to cry but he was too afraid.The boys never spoke about it ever again, each one certain it was somehow the others fault but knowing whatever they said their mama would probably blame them.
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The Waughs arrived in New Jersey around midnight and were led off the plane by a woman that looked suspiciously like Jane. She insisted her name was Mary and Jane was her identical twin sister. In reality it was Jane herself who had simply walked through a portal. She didn’t want to break Elizabeth Waugh’s brain so she opted for plane tickets for them. The house she had procured was nice. Perfectly middle class. A fenced backyard, two stories, four bedrooms two bathrooms. Red brick and white vinyl made up the majority of the outside. It was in a lot of ways a normal house. Nothing special. And that would have absolutely been the case, were it not for the neighbors. The house directly to the right, a replica of every other house on the block, housed a family by the name of Coldwater. To the left was a family by the name of Wicker. As the family got settled the neighbors started visiting. Not just the neighbors on either side but actually, the children got along so well almost every day involving the adults sitting on yard furniture while watching the little ones toddle around together. The older Waugh boys got along well with Julia’s sister McKensy. Eliot, Julia, and Quentin were all more timid but they enjoyed playing with stuffed animals in the same general area. Eliot needed to be reminded to play gently so he didn’t hurt himself worse before he got his cast off.Four weeks after moving to their new lives the Waughs were visited by a ghost of their past. Somehow Mr. Waugh had gotten ahold of Elizabeth’s new cellphone number and he called to leave profanity-strewn messages once a day for almost a week before she got her number changed.Jane decided she had enough of the man who was trying to destroy his family. She opened a portal to his cell while he was sleeping, knocked out the camera system, and yanked him into the Neitherlands. Once they were there she walked with purpose, dragging the confused and angry man to a fountain that led to a world that was for all intents and purposes devoid of magic. And light. Oh, and people. There were no people. Okay, it’s possible the fountain led to a dead planet. Like…there’s a chance.That done, Jane made quick work of selling the farm, getting all new paperwork written up for the Waugh family, and setting up a bank account. Elizabeth Waugh would want for nothing in the way of physical needs and wants if she could help it. Jane also set up a trust fund for each boy that would be accessible when they were 18 years old.Satisfied that the Waugh family was taken care of to the best of her abilities Jane disappeared from their life with the suddenness she had entered. She would observe, but unless the need was dire, she was hoping not to need to be involved further.
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The children grew and the neighbors grew closer. Well. Julia’s mom, Quentin’s dad, and Elizabeth Waugh grew closer. Their respective spouses pulled away, first from the friend group, then from their spouses, then from the family as a whole. Jane watched with sadness as a five year old Julia waved goodbye to her indifferent father. Little Julia went to Quentin’s house then they went to Eliot’s house, seeking the comfort of each other.The children entered school and Eliot, though a year older, was enrolled in kindergarten with Quentin and Julia because of his tiny size. The school and parents felt it would be best for him socially if he could start school with an already formed social group. This turned out to be a fantastic plan. Quentin and Julia were quick learners, reading being their best subject. Eliot was clearly intelligent but he couldn’t manage to read the words on the page in front of him.When a frustrated Quentin impatiently waited to play after Eliot was done his worksheet finally burst out with “What is wrong? It’s just words!” Eliot had began to cry. The teacher’s attention had been drawn to them. She knelt next to the crying child and rubbed her hand over his back to sooth him. “Quentin that was unkind.” “Sorry.” A contrite Quentin got out before he too started crying. “I can’t do it Mrs. Brown. I can’t read the letters. They’re dancing all over the page!” Mrs. Brown smacked herself on the forehead. “Give me a minute Eliot, I think I have something that could help.” “Okay.” When she walked away Quentin wrapped his arms around Eliot and hugged him. “I’m sorry El. I wanted to play with you.” “I know.”The teacher reappeared with a few sheets of colored plastic. She laid them over the worksheet. “Eliot dear are the letters still jumping?” He looked at the page then turned to his teacher amazed. “They aren’t! I can read them!” Mrs. Brown beamed. “Okay darling. That’s enough work for now. Go play with your friends, I need to make a few phone calls.When Eliot arrived home his mother scooped him up in her arms and snuggled him close. “Why didn’t you tell me you were having a hard time baby?” “I didn’t want you to worry. You always worry.”Elizabeth frowned. “I don’t always worry. And when I do it is because what I’m worrying about matters a lot.” “Okay mama.” She set him down. “There’s snack for you and your friends on the kitchen table. I told Mr. Coldwater you could play over there today.”“YAY!” he squealed and ran to get the cookies to go next door. The friends continued to grow closer. They felt like they were one person divided in three. They’d play for hours crawling around looking for doors to Fillory. They drew a map on the bottom of the Waugh’s table (it was the biggest, since there were four people in that family, they reasoned) and planned their trip there. When Julia and Quentin were 10 and Eliot was 11, Quentin’s mom left. Eliot and Julia were there to hold him as he cried. Ted Coldwater shook his head. How could someone not adore these three? How could she leave her son? He felt he had been a solo parent for a long time now as she distanced herself but he was hoping she’d stay for Quentin’s sake at least. When Quentin turned 12 he tried to kill himself. He wrote notes to Ted, Eliot, and Julia. His father found him unconscious but still alive, if barely, and rushed him to the hospital. They pumped his stomach, ran IV lines and waited. He woke up, angry and embarrassed.Julia and Eliot were allowed to visit with an adult so they came every day with Ted. They snuggled on Quentin’s bed and watched movies, all trying to ignore the elephant in the room. At the end of Jurassic Park Quentin had enough. “I don’t know why I tried to kill myself. I just felt like…if my own mom couldn’t love me maybe no one else did either. Everything felt gloomy and dark and sad. I convinced myself you guys would be better off without me.”Julia cried, but Eliot got angry. “You would take away my best friend in the whole world?!” he shouted.Quentin winced and Ted stood to intervene. “No, Mr. Coldwater. I’m sorry I yelled but we can’t just pretend nothing is wrong and hope it doesn’t happen again.” He turned to face Quentin. “If you kill yourself I will find a way into the Underworld like we learned about in social studies and I’ll drag you back here just to punch you. Got it?” Quentin looked stricken. “I. I understand. I’m sorry El. I’m so sorry.” Then Eliot did cry as he wrapped his friends up in his long arms. He had just hit a growth spurt and he was six inches taller than both of them at least and his arms felt disproportionately long. Quentin was released with a prescription for an antidepressant, a referral to a psychiatrist, and instructions to Ted to find a therapist familiar with childhood trauma and abandonment issues. The doctor explained that there wasn’t really one overarching cause for depression and that there was not a one size fits all cure either. He could grow out of it, or it could plague him his whole life. When Jane periodically checked in on her people she was often upset that major turning points in the children’s lives seemed to remain largely the same. Of course, Eliot wouldn’t ever feel the need to escape to New York and become a full-fledged hedonist. He wouldn’t kill that other boy with a bus. But Quentin still had depression. Julia still felt like it was her job to protect Quentin. She hoped she hadn’t damaged their friendship by introducing them so early. On that count, at least, she needn’t have worried.
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It was a blustery fall day and Julia, Eliot, and Quentin were walking away from their interviews for the graduate program at Yale. “How do you think you did?” they asked, once they were all three done. “I think we all got in. At least, I think so.” Eliot said. His voice still held the tiniest hint of a drawl from his Indiana days, probably because his older brothers still talked like redneck wannabees.They decided they had earned some fancy hot chocolate as a reward for their work so they headed towards their favorite coffee shop. Quentin tripped on his own shoelaces (of course he did) and his paperwork that had been so neatly organized in a folder in his arms scattered every which way.He and his friends chased down and captured every document but one. “There it is!” Eliot exclaimed, pointing up a tree. He began to climb but the sheet seemed to grow a mind of its own and floated out of the tree and down the street. It zipped down an alley, the friends in pursuit. They stumbled out in to an open green field where an absolutely gorgeous woman was sitting cross-legged on a sign that said “Brakebills” She hopped off and swanned over to them.“I’m Margo.” She gave them an obvious once over, her hard exterior softening a bit when she saw Julia. She gently shook her head and scowled. “You’re late.”“Uh. I’m sorry. Where are we?” Julia squeaked. Margo rolled her eyes. “Brakebills. You’ve been invited for a preliminary exam for the master's program here. And you are going to miss it if you don’t follow me now. Andale.”They rushed to catch up, Quentin staring around wide eyed and confused. “Uh. I’m sorry. Are you a hallucination?”“Q baby. If she was how would asking her help?” Eliot chuckled. “Yeah yeah, laugh it up.” Quentin grumbled. They all made it. Of course they did. Margo showed them around campus and Eliot and Quentin tried to not be jealous of the extra attention Julia seemed to be getting. Eliot and Q were placed in a dorm together and Julia was put in a room with a woman named Kady that vaguely frightened Quentin. Late that night, heads still swimming from a day that far outpaced their creative imaginations, Quentin and Eliot began getting ready for bed. When the lights were out, Eliot whispered “Hey Q.”“Yeah, El?” “This is real, right?” “If it isn’t we are both tripping balls on some good stuff.”They laughed. “So. Today was a weird, long, confusing day. And I don’t want to like…add to it. But I wanted to talk to you about it before all this stuff started and I’m just. I can’t. Uh.”“What is it El?” Quentin asked, from much closer than Eliot expected him to be. He had moved over to the edge of Eliot’s bed. He wasn’t sure why they were whispering but he figured it would be easier to hear each other if he was closer.“It’s just. Well. Uh. Hi.” He said and pulled Quentin into a kiss. Q, stunned but also like, very interested in the proceedings pulled back with a gasp. “Eliot!” “It’s. Nevermind Q it’s fine its just something Juilia suggested and I.” Q never learned what else he was going to say as he shut him up with a kiss, shoving him down to the bed and pulling himself closer to his best friend. “I can’t believe you wanted this too El. Gods I’m so happy right now. You and Jules, magic is real! I don’t even want to guess where I’d be without you two to hold me up when I’m down. For the record, I’ve always wanted you.”“Well. I wanted you too but. Well, my brothers were already calling us names and throwing stuff at us before we even hit puberty. I thought it would be…safer to wait until they moved away, or we did. We need to tell Ted though. According to Julia he’s been asking when I’d “make an honest man out of you” for a while now.”Quentin snuggled in Eliot’s bed, giggling all the while. “Of course he’d say that to Jules. She’s always been his favorite child. I came home from a job interview once and they were in deep conversation about like found family being more important or at least as valid as biological family. They didn’t even hear me come in. Apparently she had waited until I was gone and then walked in to talk to my dad.”“In fairness to Jules, your dad is pretty great at the heart to heart chats.”“I know, but it was still weird.”“I felt a little jealous that she seemed to be able to make that connection with anyone she decided. Like, her dad walked out of her life so she decided she was just gonna find herself a new one to love her more.” “I never thought about that but, yeah. And here I was all sad that he was the only parent that stuck around for me. It makes sense she’d be the favorite.”“ Actually now that I think about it, I thought the dog was his favorite child.”“Well, yeah after we graduated high school and he was, in his words, left alone to care for the womenfolk of the family, he needed to get a dog so he wasn’t outnumbered. So, probably K9 is the favorite. But Julia has always been a close second.”“Well, that’s fine. My mom prefers you two to me, I think.” Quentin couldn’t tell if El was teasing anymore. “Hey. You know that’s not true though.”“I… do. Or , at least I think I do. To tell you the truth the last few years she and I haven’t gotten along very well. I know she loves me but. Well, you know we’re from Indiana.” “I mean, yeah, I’ve always known that, what about it?”“Okay so we moved to New Jersey after…and I only just barely remember this but my mom filled in some details…we moved because my dad threw me against a wall. He broke my arm and gave me a concussion. A social worker lady helped my mom move me and my brothers away while my dad was taken by the police. And then we were in that house for a little while and we found out he died in prison. I know it made mom really sad. I didn’t remember him very much at all but my brothers did and they blamed me for him dying. We were all just kids. But they were mean about it and it has always just felt like us against them.”Quentin was silent for so long Eliot thought he had fallen asleep. When he finally spoke it made Eliot startle. “One of you is worth 1000 of each of those bastards and even still they wouldn’t measure up. They don’t know what an awesome brother and friend you can be El. Long before I wanted to kiss your stupid handsome face, and hold your hand and be a creeper and stare at you while you sleep, I’ve been so happy to be your friend.”Eliot smiled. “I’m happy you’re my friend too Q. I’d be lost without you. So, just out of curiosity how long have you wanted to be more than my best friend?”“Okay don’t laugh at me, but I think it was the first time we went to the amusement park, just you, me Jules, and we spent the whole day just riding water rides, and then going on roller coasters to dry off. You grabbed my hand to pull me along and I remember looking at our hands linked together and I got warm all over. I knew then that you were too important to lose over a crush so I tried to keep it on the down low.”“How’d that work for you?”Quentin shoved him. “You know exactly how well it worked for me. You didn’t even notice, and Jules never stopped noticing. We talked about it a lot when she had to stay over because her mom was off on a business trip and her sister was off with a friend. I guess my dad heard us because he talked to Jules about it but he never mentioned it to me.”“Okay, now I need to make a confession ok? Okay. I’ve loved you since we were in middle school and you wore my flannel shirt to school. It was way too big and some jerk said “What’s that Coldwater, you wearing your boyfriend’s clothes to school now?” Then you shoved him away and said “I should be so lucky to have someone as amazing as Eliot Waugh for my boyfriend. I like his shirt. It’s soft and it smells nice, unlike you Drake.” And you huffed off to English class. I had heard you shouting but I didn’t want to embarrass you. I was a goner then.”“So you’re telling me we could have been doing this” he kissed El’s cheek “Since middle school?”“Well, I’m sure if my mom caught us making out on the couch she would have sent me away to one of those camps. You know, the evil ones that try to pray the gay away.” He shuddered. “I think she’s more or less come to the conclusion that I am who I am and she loves me anyway, but I know she wasn’t that way when I was 13 so. I waited. And waited.” “Okay, that explains when we were still teens but what about college?”“I don’t know Q. Your brain chemistry was all messed up, and you were having such a bad time with your classes it didn’t seem fair to add a complication. Then you met up with that Alice chick for a hot minute.”“Oh god, she hated you.”“Yeah, I’m pretty sure she knew I wanted to jump your bones. But she hated Jules too and Julia has never wanted that from a dude so, maybe she was just a bitch.”“Mean. Accurate, but mean.”“Oh god and do you remember your dad walking in on you and her…”“How did you hear about that?”“Uh. It was a spring day, your window was open, and so was mine? I think the whole neighborhood heard. ‘Curly Q dinner’s ready and your laundry should be done in a little bit. Oh my gods oh. Oh. Q I am so dang sorry. Miss. I Um. Did you use protection Curly Q? I can buy you some.” And you were all ‘goddamit dad knock first! What the hell?. Alice screamed that she was leaving and ….dismounted, and that was that. You were already so embarrassed I didn’t want you to feel worse so I didn’t bring it up. Until now.”“Asshole. I don’t love you anymore.” Q huffed“Okay, well I guess we had a good run. See you around Q.” Eliot moved as if he was going to leave the bed, only to be pulled down by a giggling Quentin. “Okay fine, fine. I love you. But dammit. No wonder Mrs. Thomas across the street wouldn’t look me in the eye anymore when I went home. I may actually die of embarrassment now.”“Don’t do that, my love. We have so much to live for. Remember, magic is real!”“Oh yeah, it is, isn’t it. Do you know what else is real? My need for sleep. Goodnight El.”“Goodnight Q.”Eliot curled around Quentin, big spoon snugly against the little as if they had done this all their lives. With a sigh of contentment, they fell asleep.
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Quentin and Eliot walked hand in hand to their first class. They found seats next to each other and looked around. The room was large and well lit with a row of windows that seemed to open on to rolling green fields. The men were surprised when the professor walked in, snapped her fingers, and the windows changed from bright midday sunlight to a shadowed forest. It wasn't a projection. The smell of crisp autumn leaves blew in on a cool breeze. The professor sighed, then smiled. "There. That's better. I'm Professor March. In this class, you will learn about manipulating matter into other matter. For instance, glass to wood, Quartz to aluminum, lead to gold, that sort of thing. The archaic term for what we do is alchemy but that term has lost most of its meaning in the years since its conception. Transmutation or matter transformation are appropriate terms."Quentin dropped the notebook he had been reaching for to take notes as he stared at her in shock. Yes, magic was real but damn. He hadn't been expecting Harry Potter level stuff the first day. This was so cool. He looked to his side and saw Eliot was also freaking out a little bit, a smile crinkling his whole handsome face with joy. Q knew about the weird thing that had happened with his brothers when he was little but it hadn't happened again and Eliot had more or less written it off as a weird dream instead of a memory. It turned out though, that Eliot was a talented telekinetic. Which. Well, Q though he was hot before. Now. *drool* An hour, and five (magically transcribed!) pages of notes later and the students moved on to the next class on their schedules. Eliot and Q were so engrossed in their conversation they almost ran in to their guide from the day before. "Hey nutsacks, watch where you are going!" Eliot looked down at her, eyebrows raised. "Aww. Aren't you a beautiful, tiny little thing? How can I help you darlin'?" Quentin had never seen a human turn that shade of red before and he briefly wondered if it was a magician thing. No...he thought, it's probably just a Margo thing. She had the look of someone who was entirely unique to the species as a whole. "Now listen here asswipe, I was coming over here to take you on the tour but I guess if you can't take your head out of his ass for five seconds-" "Excuse you, I haven't even gotten my hand up there yet. Little fast for a first date, dontcha think Bambi?" "Bambi!? I'll -"Eliot cut her off "Now listen here, Regina George. I like you. I think you'd be a great friend as I also enjoy shouting things at people and discussing fisting with absolute strangers. However, my boyfriend and I did absolutely nothing to provoke your little rage tantrum so you can either step back and try again or so help me god I will find a school bus and make sure you "accidentally" walk in front of it next time you scream at my kneecaps. Got it?" The tiny, irate woman shrunk back and hung her head. She sighed. "Okay. Let me. Let me try again. I'm Margo. I was your student guide to your test yesterday. I'm glad you made it. I thought I could give you guys the grand tour and then take you back to my room for some drinks and mani-pedis. Sound like fun?" Eliot smiled broadly, all teeth, and knelt down to eye level. "I think that sounds like a great time. Let me consult my paramour here and I'll get back to you."Quentin, for his part, had just been observing like a spectator to a strange sport. He knew Eliot could get...crass but he'd never seen him quite this vulgar or animated with a stranger before. And Eliot was nothing if not an extrovert. Q had been subjected to more than one lecture by his friends about the importance of having more than one or two friends and branching out a bit. He would regularly snipe back that maybe they should just respect him for who he was and leave him the fuck alone. So. That was his hot take on "fixing" his introversion. But this woman in front of him reminded him oddly of Jules. Firey and so tiny but probably would cut you for calling her cute or tiny. He'd figured out everyone here was Ivy League material so he knew she had to be smart. She looked like she was dressed for the runway but walked around in it like it was no big deal. Yeah, he hated to admit it, but he was pretty sure he liked this girl and had a sense that they would be best friends pretty soon. He was lost in his own thoughts, mostly about introducing Margo to Julia, hopefully without Kady around. Kady just gave off waves of hostility whenever she looked his direction, which had happened a few times since Jules had introduced them. He was completely unprepared for Margo to turn to him and give him a once-over. "He's not that cute El. I mean, I'd give him a 4 out of 10 on the willing-to-bang scale. And maybe a 2 out of 10 on don't kick him out right after scale." Before Q could even process that she had said "willing to bang" Eliot was at his defense. "Excuse you, he is at least a 9 out of 10 and you know he'd be a good cuddler so at least a 6 out of 10 unless you just really hate good cuddles."Margo eyed him as one might a horse they were thinking about purchasing. He could not shake the uneasy feeling that she could see beneath his clothes. The appraising little purr she made did exactly zero to disavow him of that idea. Once again Eliot was his metaphorical knight in shining armor. He stepped in front of Q and looked down at Margo. "Now look here, that is my adorable little boyfriend's ass to ogle and I haven't even broken him in yet. He still has the new "never been fucked" smell. So, give me a few days then we can negotiate terms. You know, if you're still interested."Q found himself both strangely aroused and indignant. " Excuse me, owner of said ass. Who said I want there to be terms.." "Quiet sweety the grownups are talking." Margo deadpanned his direction. Eliot cracked up. "Okay, I love you. It's official. Yes, let's go back to your room for some drinks and girl talk." Quentin, feeling a little dejected followed behind at a distance. He knew Eliot was just teasing, but Q had gotten insecure about their friendship around the time he started noticing he liked boys and girls about the same (with a heavy leaning towards hot guys that look like Eliot. Okay mostly just Eliot.) He didn't want to be weird, or clingy, but he already felt a deep camaraderie with El that only came with years and years of deep conversation, stupid fights, hundreds of stupid inside jokes, and hours of pouring out their souls to each other. So when Eliot said Margo was his new best friend he was a little...okay, a lot hurt. But he also knew Eliot was just like that with people. He could charm an entire room of angry people into being his best friend in a matter of minutes. So, he stared ahead, intent on not losing them but also not wanting to be close enough to overhear more talk about him. He saw Julia on a sidewalk nearby and waved only to want to duck and shrink when her roommate appeared out of nowhere and glared at him. What was her deal? Maybe Julia would tell him later. They'd agreed to meet up for dinner so. He figured he'd ask her about it then. He briefly panicked, afraid he had lost Eliot and Margo. He should have known better. Eliot was holding a door open to a cute little cottage and waving for him to come in, and move more quickly. The smile on his face told Q he was still welcome (he was always welcome with El, and how Eliot wished he could make that fact stick in Q's broken brain.) Q did the weird little half-jog people do when they are trying to make it to an open door that has been opened just a little too soon for them. He stumbled a little on the door frame, but Eliot caught him and pulled him in to a hug. "Q, sweetheart are you sure you're up to this? I should have asked you. I got so swept up by that little drama queen I didn't think." Q laughed. "I'm pretty sure she'll rip my balls off if I take you away and I don't really want to go anywhere you aren't so...I think I'll be ok." "This will be fine. This is a good thing. We are making new friends. This is a good thing." Q repeated over and over in his brain. "Hey dipshit, learn your freaking mental wards. Noone wants to hear your stupid little affirmations okay?" Q tried to think of something else and in his panic started singing "shake it off" in his mind as he tried to follow Eliot up the stairs in front of him. "You have got to be shitting me. Taylor Swift? What the fuck?" "Leave him alone, Penny." Quentin heard a feminine voice that sounded...familiar say. "He really can't help himself. That's just...Quentin." She said the last part like "whatcha gonna do, dude is a disaster." Oh fuck. Q knew why that voice sounded familiar. Alice walked around the door frame that had been blocking her and looked up the stairs. "Hey Quentin. I'll teach you the wards or whatever but you're really pissing the psychics off.""Oh, if it isn't Alice would have been more fun in chains Quinn. What a displeasure seeing you here." Eliot spat. "El. It's. It's fine.""Oh Q, still need big bad Eliot to fight your battles for you.""I didn't. He doesn't." Q stammered, both very much wanting to leave this conversation but also defend himself and Eliot. "He doesn't need me Quinn but he has me, and always will. Unlike your fickle two timing fair weather friend bitch ass." "I'm sorry that you don't seem to understand Quentin's use of mental illness as a ploy to get sympathy for his abandonment issues."Even Penny stopped what he was doing and stared at Alice, mouth agape. Eliot was the first to speak. " You heinous, frigid, inconsiderate bitch. Take that back and apologize to Quentin right the fuck now or I will show you abandonment issues miss 'my mommy doesn't like me because I'm not weird enough and she's a crazy sex-obsessed freak" Alice grew still, her red cheeks paling to white, either in rage or fear Quentin couldn't tell. Just when he thought perhaps they were done, Penny interjected. "So to be clear, you are accusing a kid who, no offense dude, clearly has serious mental health issues, like, I've been in his mind and it's darker than fuckin blackest black in there. Like that dude with the jelly bean sculpture could sue because his thoughts might be infringing on a copywritten color, amount of dark. Deep midwinter dark. Deep space dark hole dark. And you are accusing him of what, faking it for attention? Yeah, get out. You can't be here. I will not be witness to you making this poor kid have a mental breakdown." To Quentin, he turned and looked him deep in the eyes. "Kid you need to get some help. That is dark shit. And you don't need to worry about if anyone loves you cuz that dude clearly loves you enough for like, a dozen people. So, take that for what it's worth. Anyway, I'm Penny. Let's talk sometime. Sorry I was so rough on you." He shot one more disgusted look at Alice then disappeared. Alice finally managed "Q. I'm. Look, I'm sorry okay. I don't even know why I said that.""I do." Margo said from the top of the stairs, hands on her hips, for all the world like a Queen surveying her kingdom. "You're an inconsiderate, socially maladjusted bitch who wanted to hurt the boy who broke her heart and the boy that he did it for.""He never...broke my heart. I broke up with him." "Let me guess, because you couldn't handle him being besties with another girl and this handsome man here? ""No. He just. Relationships have boundaries and he. And he wanted to cuddle and I hate being touched and. " Alice was torn between wanting to run away and wanting to sit down and cry. Or sink through the floor. She thought she was making friends with Penny but she misjudged and now he hated her too. Fuck. "Look, I'm sorry Q. I see Eliot has finally marked his territory so I'll stay out of your way." And with that, cheeks burning red with embarrassment (and a confusing amount of arousal he's sure his therapist would have a field day with) Quentin followed Eliot and Margo up the stairs. Several hours later, Eliot's nails now a dazzling electric blue that glowed, and Quentin's a more subdued but still lovely pale pink, the men cuddled in bed and tried to discuss the day. It had been a doozy for Quentin emotionally and Eliot could see he needed to talk about it or he wouldn't be okay. Halfway through Q processed the fact Margo propositioned the two of them, an activity he never imagined himself being offered, and was thus unprepared to respond, a very annoyed Julia marched into their dorm room unannounced and sat on the unoccupied bed with a huff. "We were supposed to meet for dinner Coldwater." Julia pouted. "Uh.""Sorry Jules, we had an incident we had to decompress from. Remember the Ice Queen from Q's second year at college?""Oh my god do not tell me Alice Quinn goes here. Damit. What did she do, El?""Uh. Hullo, actual traumatized person here." "Shh baby the grownups are talking." Jules cooed"You people know that does not get any funnier when you say it, right?"Julia moved over to where the boys were cuddled and inserted herself into the cuddle pile. "I'm sorry Q. But oh my god we were right! Magic is real and we are at like...a freaking magic grad school. So, you know, Alice is much less a deal from my perspective." "Yeah, well she didn't say vile things to you about your mental health so consider yourself lucky, darling." Eliot drawled, affecting a heavy hick accent. Q giggled, and so did , as was the intended goal."Oh and was it our guide Margo that you guys were talking to?""That would be our new best friend Margo. She did this." They held up their hands and Q peeked his toes out from under the covers so she could see those too. " Okay I need to get to know the woman who convinced our Q to paint his toenails." "Oh, you absolutely do. She's amazing.""Yeah, you'll love her Jules. She comes on a little strong but I feel like most of it is an act. She's actually kind of goofy and sweet when she's not trying to impress anyone." "Don't let her hear you say that though, Q or she'll probably eviscerate you just to prove a point.""Fair. I have no doubt. Anyway, Jules how are you settling in? I didn't see you in our first class so I sort of assumed you managed to get bumped up a grade the first day.""Actually, I was with the Dean""Oooh, Julia going for the sleep with the dean to get the degree plan." "It is not like that you freaks. Apparently, I have a really rare discipline. I'm a knowledge kid. I can do metacomp which is like...making spells and reworking other ones. It's a big deal. Really hard and brain stretching but like, that's my favorite thing" "Nerd" both men interjected in unison. Julia snorted and kept going " and I'm the only knowledge student they've had in the past 20 years or so.""Wow Jules. That's fucking amazing." Julia blushed and smiled. "Yeah, it is pretty cool. Also my roommate is *purrrr* super sexy and into me." "Oh. Oh no. That Kady chick? She hates me Jules. She like...glares at me whenever she sees me!""No. No Q that's what I thought too. She's just like...really intense. And she needs glasses so it looks like she's glaring when she's really just squinting to see what she's looking at. I pointed you out and she was trying to see you two. She also doesn't like being stared at so you may have made her nervous. I don't know. Anyway, I think I like her. Oh and I see that you took no time in moving the plan forward El. How's marital life treating you?""Julia!" Quentin yelped. "We just started dating. We haven't even...you know, gotten to second base yet." Q said, blushing to his toes. "Oh my god you did not just say second base." "I don't know what else to. Never mind. I hate both of you." Q said, trying to keep the laughter out of his voice. "No, no, we should totally make that a thing we say. So fetch.""Ugh stop trying to make fetch happen Julia." the friends collapsed into giggles. "Hey do you two lovebirds mind if I invade the nest tonight? I really don't feel like going back across campus.""Absolutely. You're part of our family Jules. You don't even need to ask.""But maybe we do need to come up with a signal or like, magical alarm bell or something so you don't walk in on us banging." Eliot said solemnly. "Eliot!" Q moaned. He couldn't get away as he was surrounded by his giggling friends on both sides so he ducked under the covers. "Oh Q we've barely kissed yet are you sure you're ready for third base?" Eliot laughed. "I hate you. Both of you. Goodnight." he pouted. But it got too warm under the covers and he was bad at staying angry or annoyed at these two. "Jules if you want to change my clothes are still in my bag over there.""Thanks Q. Don't mind if I do." "Goodnight guys." "Goodnight Jules""No banging while I'm in the room.""No promises Julia.""Oh my god both of you stop."
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Margo, strictly speaking, didn’t do feelings. She had rules. Standards. She would not be one of those weepy, stupid chicks that batted their eyelashes and pretended to be emptyheaded to impress anyone else. She never had. It was one of the great many reasons her parents did not understand her. Their entire existence was about keeping up appearances and she could not be bothered to give a single solitary fuck.So, it came as a somewhat terrible surprise to her to discover that she had become *shudders* fond of the trio of nerdlings she had led to their entrance exams. Julia. Well. Julia was a complication. A complication that Margo was in no mood to accommodate. But the dumbest thing kept happening. Margo would be minding her own business hanging out with Eliot and Q (who were so in each others pockets it was borderline obscene) and Julia would just . Show up. So Margo had to deal with the fact that not only was she becoming friends with two of the nerdiest boys she had every met in her life (though Eliot held steadfast to the fact that the word nerd did not apply to him and his theater obsession) she developed a…crush? A crush on Julia. Perfect hair, angelic laugh, brilliant, funny, sarcastic, gives no fucks Julia. It was upsetting.It’s not that Margo hadn’t tried blowing her off. It’s not as if she was going out of her way to be nice or friendly or even a little bit polite. So why did this girl just keep.showing.up? Margo was thinking of dropping out of school so she didn’t have to feel these disgusting sappy feelings that kept creeping up on her. But then she’d lose Q and Eliot and that didn’t settle well. So. She endured the little trio of nerds disrupting her whole entire life.What Margo could not understand, six months in to this new, absurd relationship with these ridiculous people, is how much she l-l liked, yeah liked, Julia. She was free with her physical contact. Probably a byproduct of living around Eliot and Q their whole stupid lives. So they’d be sitting on the couch and laughing about some absurd thing that happened in class (a topic that never ran out due to the truly negligent amount of disregard professors seemed to have) and Eliot and Q would be cuddled on the end of the couch, Margo and Julia on the opposite end. Which, fine, okay they were just sitting and she leaned in to hear Q better. Then she just…stayed there. Pressed up behind Margo, running her fingers through her hair and massaging her shoulders. Holding hands and pulling her back against her chest. Hugging her every chance she got. It’s not that Margo didn’t enjoy it. It was just unexpected, is all, since she was used to being treated with admiration from afar. Not snuggled within an inch of her life. Which, is basically the way things ended up. They’d all head to Q and El’s room in the cottage under the premise of just, you know, doing homework or something. Then they all four ended up in the magically expanded California king that Eliot kept covered in silk sheets and a soft duvet. Eliot, Q, Jules, and Margo. They just…it was like nesting dolls.And if Jules sometimes wound her hands up under Margo’s top, and fondled her breasts a bit in her sleep, well, Margo didn’t want to embarrass her, so it could just be her little secret. And if she managed to sleep the best she had been able to since she was in middle school, nobody needed to know.It was a problem, was the thing. Margo had a reputation and it had just been torn to shreds. And she wasn’t sure how to handle it. Just her luck, Julia had plans. “Hey Margo, babe, you want to go to the city and get dinner? It’s Q and El’s date night so they will be absolutely disgusting to be around.“What…like a date?” Margo said after a minute, unsure what she wanted the answer to be. “I mean, of course like a date. I don’t dress like this for just anyone.” It was just then Margo looked up and really looked at Jules. She was gorgeous. She was always pretty, sweet faced, cute. But she was dressed in a tiny black dress, heels that could kill a man, and her hair done in an intricate probably magically created hairdo.“Um. Let me just get changed. Then. Yes, absolutely yes.”Julia chuckled. “Alright, want company while you change or?”Margo stopped to think for a minute. “So. Yes I would love your company, but full disclosure if you come in to my room dressed like that we may never get to dinner.”“Hmm. If we go to dinner is there a chance I could help you change out of your dress?”“That seems like a good possibility.”“Okay then. I’ll just wait out here.”The night was lovely and ended the way Margo liked best, in her bed being eaten out by a beautiful woman who knew what she was doing. Damn.After she returned the favor and they laid sweaty, gently petting each other’s hair and smiling, Julia broke the silence. “So. Want to go on a date tomorrow?” Margo narrowed her eyes. “Are you just asking so you can get in my pants again Wicker?” “Yup.” “Oh well, then absolutely.”So, Margo didn’t do feelings. She broke out in hives at the thought of calling someone her girlfriend. And yet, Julia was just a part of her now. Just like Eliot and Q but with mind blowing sex attached. It was amazing. But also kind of infuriating. Margo had harbored crushes for years but didn’t want to deal with relationship drama. Now she was with Julia from the time she woke up until way past bedtime in the evening. It was nice. But also weird. __ Eliot wasn’t sure if he would be able to look Mr. Coldwater in the eyes when the four friends stepped through the portal into Jersey for Winter Break. The man was like a father to him (in a good way) and the fact that he had now multiple times defiled his son…Eliot just wasn’t sure how well he’d take it. Q assured him his dad was actually happy they were dating. He was also happy Jules and Margo had started going out. But Eliot wasn’t sure. He need not have worried. Ted embraced him like he had the hundreds of times before but somehow the smile on his face was different than one Eliot had ever seen. “Eliot I am just so happy for you and Q. I know he’s loved you for such a long time now-“ “Dad! Stop!” “What, it’s true curly Q!” “Yeah Curly Q!” Julia and Margo sing songed to him. “You are all the worst.” Q said as he leaned in to hug his dad. “Well, Q we need to go see my mom but we’ll probably be back tomorrow.” “Sure thing Jules, Margo. We’ll do our gift exchange tomorrow night okay?” “Perfect.” Jules smiled, rocking up on her toes to plant a kiss on Q , Ted, and El’s cheeks. Margo and Julia walked hand in hand down the sidewalk and Eliot and Q smiled and turned into the Coldwater house.“So El, your Mom is in Indiana?”“Yeah. She. There’s some family I guess that wanted to meet up. Since my brothers are…well, I think estranged is the right word at this point, and since I’ve been back a bunch of times to help her pack things and organize, she thought she’d like to see some other family this year. She invited me along but I didn’t want to be away from Q for our first Christmas so.”“Well, you’re always welcome here, you know that son.”Eliot’s cheeks pinked up as he removed his coat and looked into Ted’s smiling face. “You have no idea how much that means to me Ted.”“I think I have an idea. Oh, I set up the guest room for you and Q. The bed is bigger in there for the two of you.”“Dad!” Q shouted, embarrassed. “You didn’t have to. I mean we were. Uh.” He stammered, blushing from the roots of his hair to his toes. He ran up the stairs bag in hand and in to his childhood bedroom, slamming the door.“The more things change the more they stay the same.” Ted chuckled“What Q meant to say was thank you D-I mean Ted” “Did you almost call me Dad Eliot?” Ted asked, eyebrows raised “Is there something I need to know?”“Um. Er. Not yet.” Eliot tried to backpedal“You know you can call me that, even if you and Q don’t…you know.”“I. I do. But. Well I need to talk to you about some things.” He said near a whisper.“Oh, well, the answer is yes if the question is what I think it is.”Eliot let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding.“Uh. I have this whole speech and. You know what, I’ll. Tomorrow. Yeah, tomorrow.”“Okay El. See you in the morning. Good luck prying Q out of his bedroom.” He laughed as he made his way to his own bedroom. Jane Chatwin looked in on all the proceedings with a smile on her face. She still had a way to go to make up for the past but at least for now things were heading the right direction.