2018.08.19 - Seth to the Rescue

*Seth rescues Sly from a mugger, and they regain their missing memories.*

September 2015

La Push

Once upon a time, it seems to Sly, he remembered who he was and why he was in the little town of La Push, Washington. He must have known, right? But now he doesn't. Wandering the streets, his thoughts are jumbled and his memories almost totally absent. He feels lucky he remembers how to speak English, even. He's been on the streets for... how long, now? He can't remember. There's a vague sense that someone sent him here, maybe, or he had an important reason, but whatever that was is lost to the haze of his scattered memory. Unfortunately, he doesn't have the best survival instincts, and while La Push is mostly a friendly town, even it has the occasional unwelcome visitor or bad egg. That's why, when Sly finds himself suddenly confronted by a tough-looking guy with a knife in an alleyway--in broad daylight, no less--he freezes up, staring at him, and tries to stammer out an excuse.

"But--but I don't even have anything to give you!"

Around La Push, Seth is known as a helpful kid. So, when one of the elderly locals needed their lawn mowed, today, Seth was the one they called. He didn't even ask for any money, but when he insisted, well, he couldn't pass up getting a snack on the way home. So it is that he's in that part of town, opening a chocolate bar on the way by the alley, but he stops as he hears the voice. A voice that's strangely familiar. He turns to look into the alley, blinking, and then stepping inside, "Hey, what are you doing?" His voice isn't threatening--even he knows he's just a kid--just confused as he sees the knife. Why would someone threaten someone like that, here of all places? And why is that voice so familiar?

Sly turns and spots Seth, and the amnesiac youth waves off the helpful local boy, wide-eyed. "No, get out of here!" he insists. "This man has a knife, and he's dangerous!" Sly doesn't recognize Seth, but something about him seems friendly and safe, even kind, and Sly doesn't want to see someone like that hurt by a modern day highwayman.

The mugger snorts and waves his knife at Sly. "You're wearing nice clothes, kid. They're only a little dirty. I bet you've got an expensive phone and everything else. You're just hiding from your parents. What, they kick you out for being gay or something? Now cough up everything you've got, or I'll send you back to 'em with some parts missing!"

Taking a step back as Sly waves him away, Seth hesitates. Looking at Sly for a moment, and again there's a flash of recognition, and then blinking again as he looks up to the thief, and takes another step before he pauses again. He looks out of the alley, for a moment, looking for any sign of possible help. But he ends up turning back to the confrontation. Unwilling to run away and leave the other boy alone, but believing he can't help. He just seems stuck. "Leave him alone," he says, in a faltering voice.

The mugger turns to face Seth, brandishing his knife, and snarls, "Are you kidding me? I outta slice you up just for being stupid, kid!"

Sly rushes forward toward the man, then, reaching for his knife arm, and cries out, "No, leave him alone!" This does not go well, however, as the mugger merely knocks him aside like the small-framed youth Sly is. Landing sprawled on the ground, the teen stares up at the armed man in a daze, as though confused by the entire situation.

His attention drawn back to Sly, the mugger growls at Seth, "Get outta here, kid, and maybe I'll leave enough of your little boyfriend to take to the hospital later." He advances on Sly, raising his knife, and seems to have forgotten all about mugging. At this point, he just wants to hurt something.

It's not visible, really. In the milliseconds as the knife starts to go down towards Sly, something happens in Seth's head. Like an explosion, but thought just comes, 'Not him!' Out loud, he shouts, as instinct starts to take over, "Sly!" And then he's leaping. Clothes tear and go flying as he transforms midair, and it's a giant sandy coloured wolf that hits the ground, standing protectively over Sly. Even this moment of panic, he doesn't attack, though he growls loudly enough that the mugger probably doesn't realize this.

It's hard to say who's more stunned. The mugger is definitely shocked, so shocked that he drops his knife, shrieks like a very high-strung, startled animal, and then turns to flee in terror, shouting something about wild animals. It'll probably be reported as a wild dog attack or a small bear that wandered too close to town. Either way, the odds are this guy will be out of town as soon as possible, and he probably won't look back.

Sly's response is quite different. He's surprised by Seth's transformation, but he's even more floored by the flood of jagged memories that start to fill his mind, like the shards of a shattered mirror fitting back into place. He blinks a few times, looking at the wolf that's leaped to defend him, and then sits up some. Slowly, the words come to him, and he asks, "S-seth?

Seth steps back a bit, turning to nudge Sly a little, but he keeps one ear facing the fleeing mugger, to be sure he's gone. Finally, he changes back. Not that a naked boy is any easier to explain than a giant wolf if anybody investigates, but at least this way he can talk for a moment, "Yeah, it's me, are you okay?" His own memories are continuing to return, as well, though his concern overpowers that for a moment anyway.

Sly blinks several times at seeing Seth in front of him, human again and now naked as well. His cheeks flush a bit, and he says, "Where's... where's my dad? I don't remember everything, but I know I have to find my dad." He hesitates, then, before going with his feeling and reaches out to hug Seth, and nudity be damned. "Gods, you saved me! Not just from that guy with the knife, but something here made me forget *everything*. You made me remember! Mostly, anyway."

"Um.. I don't know, I haven't seen him since he came to see Jacob." There's a trace of confusion on his face, as he struggles to remember where Jason might be with his jumbled memories. He hugs Slide back, holding on tightly (but not too tightly) for a few moments, "Me too! Well, I had all my memories of home, but not what I was, or... Anything to do with that. Nobody else did, either, except dreams. I didn't even remember you, until I thought... I couldn't let you die. I just knew I couldn't do it. And started coming back." He's trembling a bit, as he talks about this. His fear in that moment was very real.

"Hey, hey!" Sly says, wrapping his arms around Seth as comfortingly as he can to hug back. "We're remembering now. I don't... remember everything yet, but it's coming back. I remember you, and my dad, and Jacob..." He frowns some. "I'm forgetting something important, but I'll remember, I think. Right now, we should get somewhere safe, and..." He coughs delicately. "You're gonna need some pants or something." Oddly, he doesn't feel much fear or worry. It's as if, for him, all is suddenly right with the world. He scrambles to slip out of his coat, which he offers to Seth. "You can at least tie this around your waist or something, and... hm. I think your shoes might've survived..."

Seth does relax at Sly's words, nodding, "Yeah, you're fine now, and we're remembering." It's more the former that he was worried about, than the latter, by the way he says it. He grins a bit sheepishly, accepting the jacket and wrapping it around his waist, looking more passably like someone who just found it too hot out. Grabbing his shoes, he slips at them on quickly, and then says, "Yeah, let's go. My house isn't very far."

"Cool," Sly says, straightening up. Okay, so the September weather won't give Seth's attire much credence, but at least now they won't get stared at *as* much. Sly makes a mental note to start wearing more layers... just in case... and gestures for Seth to lead the way back to his place. "Your house--sounds great! Maybe then we can start finding people." He falls into step beside Seth, seeming relieved and relaxed now that some things in his world are making sense again. "Oh, and maybe some food. I've had nothing to eat but stuff out of trash cans for, like... days."

Nodding, Seth says, grinning, "Yeah, I can definitely beat that menu for sure." Then he nods, and says, "Maybe my sister will be home. And either way, I'll call Jacob. Everybody was meeting to talk about the dreams a few days ago, trying to figure out what was going on. Your dad even showed up, he thought Jacob did something to him because he was dreaming about him all the time."

Smirking, Sly says, "Jacob did something to my dad, all right, but I'm pretty sure I'd get killed if I said it out loud." He idly bumps shoulders with Seth as they walk and says, "Gods, it's good to see you again! I was with some friends in Seattle, but I was really starting to miss *home*." And for him, the area around Forks and La Push has become home. Seth's one of those people he's come to be close to, to depend on having around. It's a relief to have him back.

Seth Clearwater laughs, nodding with a grin at the talk of Jacob and Jason. Then the grin turns to a smile and he says, "I really missed you too, even if I didn't realize I was. How long were you there? I don't even have any idea how long I've forgotten everything. This is like the weirdest thing ever."

"I think it's been... a few weeks? Everything's kind of fuzzy, still. It was still summer last time I remember anything, and it's got to be September by now..." He shakes his head. "Weird. It's *very* weird. Like something's just messing with us, but something big and nasty. It feels so... *wrong*. I don't like this magic, whatever it is."

Seth Clearwater nods in agreement as they walk along, and says, "This is awful. Whatever it is. And yeah, it's got to be pretty big and powerful to be able to catch you and your dad. But why would anybody even want to? Whoever it is got the Cullens too, I saw Alice a couple of times and she'd forgotten everything too."

"I think... they wanted to get *everyone*," Sly says slowly. "I don't remember much, but I think they went after the whole area here. My dad might know why, but we'll have to make him remember." Frowning, he says, "We need to make everyone remember, like you made me remember. It... might not work the same way for everyone, though. The magic here feels... weird. And I don't trust myself enough to try using it for anything yet."

For a few moments, Seth considers that, or perhaps he's just letting some people pass by before talking again. After a moment, when they are alone on the sidewalk again, he says, "For my sister, I just have to change in front of her. That... That's a pretty big image. But I don't know how to make anybody else remember."

Sly nods again, slower, and then brightens some. "But we'll figure it out! Now that we remember, we'll be able to help other people remember. Maybe we can track down Jacob, or maybe the Cullens. Some of them probably remember something, and if they don't, then we can help." He gets a determined look. "We'll fix everything, and then we'll find the ones who did all this, and we'll fix *them*, too."

Seth Clearwater nods emphatically, grinning, "Yeah, we will." Then, he says, "Some of the others might've remembered by now, anyway. Like I said, you are talking about the dreams, and the other weirdness. Someone might've figured it out." Arriving at the house, he opens the door (already unlocked) to let Sly inside.

Sly heads inside, looking thoughtful. "Dreams," he muses. "That makes sense. It's like the truth is trying to get to us, but it's having to slip in somehow." He tucks his hands into his pockets and looks around, thinking thoughtful. "We should definitely check with Jacob and the Cullens. Maybe Alice will have some ideas. She's always, y'know... insightful."

Seth Clearwater nods quickly, and says, "Yeah. We'll probably have to go see the Cullens, but I can try to call Jacob." And, indeed, he steps over to the phone, picking it up and dialling. That, of course, wasn't part of his missing memories, so he still knows the number very well.

Seth Clearwater hangs up, and looks back to Sly, "He's going to try to find your dad. He's starting to remember. I've got to call Scott next." But he glances down at himself, and then says, "can you grab me a pair of shorts from my room, please?" And he gives directions to which room is his.

Sly grins at Seth and says, "Progress! And... yeah, be *right* back." He heads down the hallway as indicated, glancing around Seth's room with curious interest, but he doesn't nose around except to find the pair of shorts, which he then carries back out to hand to Seth. Blushing a little but still grinning, he says, "That was seriously cool, before. Sorry it ruined your clothes."

Seth Clearwater programs the phone with Scott's number while Sly retrieves the shorts, then looks up and grins back, and says, "It's okay. Totally worth it." He presses hand, and puts the phone to his ear with his shoulder. He hands the jacket back and then pulls on the pair of shorts, without a trace of care that Sly is there watching.

Sly definitely notices, but he's polite enough not to stare. Sure, he gets a look, but he doesn't creep on Seth or anything. And he can't help still blushing a little, but less than before. Probably, some of the fae in him is coming closer to the surface, but... well, he's still human, after all! Once Seth's re-dressed, Sly finds a spot to perch against the wall and waits for Seth to make his phone call so they can plan the next step.

Seth Clearwater hangs up again, and says, "He already remembered. They think whoever did this is somewhere in the forest, so he wants to get together with as many of us as they can and try to find them. Were going to meet at Jacob's house when everybody's ready, and talk about everything we remember.."

Nodding, Sly says, "Sounds like a plan!" He folds his arms across his chest and grins a bit, seeming more confident all the time as things go forward. "So, what should we do until then?" His eyes sparkle a bit, and he seems now in quite a good mood. Then, in a suddenly more cautious tone, he asks, "Do you think we could have a snack or something? I'll totally treat you back once everything's fixed. Dad's got some great food at his club and all."

Seth Clearwater nods, grinning, "Yeah, right! No problem, you don't have to pay me back. Come on." He leads the way to the kitchen, and says, "Too bad my mom isn't home, I don't really know how to cook anything. I mean, I can do mac & cheese or grilled cheese, but not like a proper meal or anything."

"Trust me, anything sounds great," Sly says. He pauses, then, and explains, "And... even if I don't have to *pay* you back, it's kind of a... tradition... where I'm from that you give a gift for a gift. Plus, you totally saved my life earlier, so..." And with that, he abruptly leans over to kiss Seth on the cheek. "I just... wanted to say thanks," he adds softly.

Now it's Seth's turn to blush at that kiss to his cheek, looking a bit shocked, but he's smiling, too. Softly, he says, "You're welcome" Then, after a moment, seeming to remember that Sly asked for food, he turns, starting to grab a box of mac & cheese, a pot, and other supplies.

Sly hops up to sit on the counter and watch Seth cook, his expression curious and focused. He's still not used to the way humans really *do* things in the modern world, so it's interesting to see. (Besides, if he's honest, he just likes watching Seth... even with the shorts on, there's plenty about the other boy he finds very, very watchable.) A soft smile rests on his lips all the while.

It takes a few minutes, and Seth doesn't seem to mind being watched at all. Soon enough, though, he serves up two bowls, heading one to Sly, grinning. "This should be a lot better than garbage."

Sly joins Seth at the table, grinning right back, and says, "I already like the atmosphere here way better, and the company is definitely beyond comparing." He digs into the food with restraint, but he's clearly really enjoying it. "Oh god that's the best thing ever," he declares with a sigh. "Thanks."

Seth Clearwater smiles, quite happy at Sly's reaction it seems. "'Welcome," he answers, and then digs into his own. After a moment, he says, "If you want, after, you can shower and use some of my clothes, too, until you get home."

Sly brightens even further at this and says, "Really? That would be great. I've been wearing these clothes since..." He frowns and shakes his head. "Okay, since way too long. I really appreciate it, Seth." He finishes off the food eagerly, then gets to his feet and goes to wash the bowl out. "Okay," he says after, "I'll go use the shower, and... do you mind picking some clothes for me?"

Standing up, Seth nods quickly, and says, "Sure! No problem." He rinses out his own bowl, putting it in the dishwasher, before he says, "The bathroom is right next to my room, but I guess you saw it." He heads up to his room, pointing to the bathroom on the way, "I'll start getting you clothes."

Sly grins and slips into the bathroom, and soon the sounds of the shower being run can be heard. As he settles in, Sly begins to quietly sing to himself, though not in anything even remotely resembling English. The shower and steam are so very relaxing and refreshing that more and more of his memories seem to be drawn closer to the surface...

Seth takes a few minutes picking clothes, hesitating perhaps a bit too much about what Sly would like, especially since his memories are not entirely back yet. But he finally comes to decision, picking a red T-shirt and a pair of jeans, and steps out to open the bathroom door a bit to toss them inside.

When the door opens, Sly opens the shower curtain enough to turn to grin at Seth and say, "Thanks! I'm almost done!" Seth may well get a glimpse of his own in return. After all, fair is fair! Soon after, the water shuts off and Sly emerges. If the door is left open, then it's left open! He's apparently not very modest, either, but he towels off efficiently and then slips into the clothes Seth brought him. When he emerges, he looks much less "homeless post-goth" and much more "boy next door." Spreading his arms some, he asks, "How do I look?" Then, holding up his bundle of dirty clothes, he asks, "Um, and can I borrow a bag or something for this?"

And Seth does take that peek, biting his lip but then turning away quickly, returning to his room. He does, indeed, forget to close the door. But, nobody else is home right now anyway. He's waiting back in his room, and he grins, answering, "You look awesome." Then he blinks, and nods, "Oh, yeah..." He runs downstairs a moment, and then comes back with a shopping bag, offering it to Sly. "Hope this is good."

"Perfect!" Sly says, stowing his laundry in it for later, and then goes to sprawl across the foot of Seth's bed. Grinning up at his host, he says, "I like your room. It's... very you. You have a really nice home, and I'm not just saying that 'cause I've been living on the streets lately." Homes are something that Sly never really had until very recently, so they always leave him a bit amazed.

Seth grins, and lays down next to Sly, almost instinctively taking the excuse to be relatively close to him. "Thanks. When my mom gets home, we can ask if you could stay for a bit, if you want. Until we find your dad, anyway."

Sly turns a bit to face Seth, lying on his side, and says, "Really? That's... wow. Thanks, Seth. I'd really like to stay with you... and when we fix everything, you should stay over at our place sometimes, too." He flashes a grin, then lets a hand slide a little closer across the bed toward Seth, not actually touching him. "I mean... I really like you. You know?"

Seth Clearwater smiles back at the offer, and says, quite cheerfully, "That would be awesome." He goes quiet for a moment, but he glances to the hand, moving his own to gently touch the back of it - hesitantly, as if not sure whether he's doing the right thing- and says almost shyly, "I really like you too."

Sly smiles as Seth touches his hand, and after a moment he moves to actually hold Seth's hand in his. "And you didn't just save me... you gave me food and... made me feel safe. Guess this makes you my hero," he murmurs, shifting a little closer. "I... think I'd like to kiss you again. I mean, a real kiss. Would you... mind?"

Squeezing the hand a little, Seth smiles, visibly relaxing a bit. Though, still very nervous. He looks a bit shy as he's called a hero, but before he can make any objection, Sly makes the request for permission for a proper kiss. He doesn't answer the question audibly, but immediately leans in to kiss Sly.

Sly meets Seth halfway, kissing him in a way that shows he's got a very clear idea of how to do it, just not a lot of experience with it. (Suffice to say, one can learn quite a lot by observing the goings-on of a fairy court!) For all that, it's a sweet and chaste kiss, conveying affection more than great passion, but perhaps that's best for a first kiss, anyway. When their lips finally part, Sly is smiling faintly. "I liked that, too," he says, barely speaking the words but clearly meaning them.

Seth Clearwater has a happy smile on his face as the kiss breaks. Slightly know what to do, but he didn't, not really. But, he seems very happy, anyway. "Me too," he says, and then adds enthusiastically, "A lot." He squeezes Sly's hand bit.

Sly scoots a little closer to Seth, keeping their hands clasped, and leans forward so he can press their foreheads gently together. "This," he says quietly, but can't help grinning, "is probably a terrible time to make a joke about being in your pants... in your bed." Because, literally speaking, he is.

Terrible time or not, Seth laughs anyway. "Yeah, probably." He, too, scoots closer, as he leans in for another kiss, if Sly seems agreeable. For now, all thought of lost memories or hunting for the source are forgotten, all his thoughts on the boy in front of him.

Sly reaches out to slide his free arm around Seth, snuggling against him. He's not inclined to move too fast, but kissing... kissing is nice! And cuddling is okay if kissing is okay, right? So, he too lets his worries about the world and their lives slip away, just for a while, as he explores this new experience with Seth Clearwater, the boy who saved his life.