Comical

Date/Timing: 28 April 2006
Setting: Gottlieb house; Berlin, Germany
.
Hermann lets himself into the house, knee and wings aching after a long day of criss-crossing campus, toes off his shoes.
From upstairs, shouting.
Father's roar.
Bastien's yowl.
He sighs, limps to his bedroom, dumps his rucksack on his desk chair. Slowly eases from his 'outside' clothes, peels off his binder, sighs in relief as he beats his wings slowly.
Yelling continues.
He slips into his pajamas, digs his physics text and his glasses from his rucksack, heaves himself onto his bed, opens to his page, stares blankly.
Heavy footfalls descend the stairs; a door slams.
Silence.
Hermann counts down from twenty, then creeps upstairs, peers into Bastien's room.
Bastien lies face-down on his bed with a pillow clamped over his head, knuckles white and whole body shaking.
Hermann settles on the mattress, asks quietly, „What happened?“
„„/Father happened.““
„Come out here and talk to me, please.“
„„No.““
„Bastien, please.“
„„No.““
Hermann rolls his eyes. „Fine. Stay like that. What did he do?“
„„He tore up my comics and banned me from the internet again.““
„Why?“
„„He said they were disrespectful and unseemly and I was wasting my time on art when I should be studying.““
Hermann gazes heavenward, asks for restraint, says as calmly as he can, „What comics were these?“
„„Stuff I was working on to show Newt. 'The Adventures of Captain Infodump'.““
„Oh dear. I take it you were giving Newton his own medicine in graphic form?“
Bastien digs himself out, sits up next to Hermann, wails, „He /likes them! I tried to explain, but Father wouldn't listen, /of /course.“
„You can't write to Newton anymore?“
„/No!“ Swings his heels against the bed frame. „And when Father remembers it, he'll rip up my sketchbook, too, and I don't wanna lose it. I worked so /hard on those drawings.“
«I sneak it out to someplace safe for you.»
«Thanks,» mumbles Bastien.
«It's better than losing the work permanently, right?»
«Yea ... but how'm I supposed to practice without it?»
«You can work on scrap paper and I'll tuck it into the book when I can.»
Heavy footfalls ascend the stairs.
Bastien cringes. «He remembered already.»
«Where's the book?» Hermann hisses.
Bastien dives for his desk, pulls a small spiral-bound from under a drawer, queries.
Heavy footfalls in the hallway.
«Stuff it under my wings.»
Bastien lifts his shirt, wedges the book firmly among Hermann's scapulars—
Hermann clamps his wings tightly to his back; the edges of the cover dig in, but Hermann does. not. shift.
—yanks the shirt back into place, perches next to Hermann.
Father stands in the door, glowering.
„Go downstairs, Hermann.“
„We were practicing our French, Father.“
„Downstairs. Now.“
Hermann lowers his eyes—„Yes, sir.“—slinks out.
„„Where is your book of doodles?““ demands Father.
„„I'm not telling. You'll have to find it,““ smugs Bastien.
Hermann smirks, pads to his room as smoothly as he can.
Category:Ficlet
Category:Berlin (setting)
Category:Hermann
Category:Hermann's POV
Category:Hermann (ficlet)
Category:Hermann has wings
Category:Bastien
Category:Bastien (ficlet)
Category:Lars
Category:Lars (ficlet)
Category:Newt (mention)
Category:Ficlets with images
Category:Celestial Mechanics
Category:Pages with comments
Category:Prompt