avoiding fate [mason]

[CAIM VENUS HYSSOP]

outfit

Gilly wrote Key a letter. It was very simple - just "I'm sorry", some excuses, and "P.S. Please don't drive tomorrow." Cryptic messages about the future - it infuriated Key. That was something her sister did to her when they were kids. How dare she try to salvage their relationship now or conjure nostalgic sentiment? Key ripped the letter in two and tossed it in the trash. The next morning she went driving at the first opportunity. Her car was an old Jeep Rubicon that used to belong to an uncle. Defiantly Key packed supplies and drove to the store. Midway there, her engine failed in the center of an intersection. Thankfully, there was little traffic, but the car behind her nearly rear-ended her and it was enough to throw her into a panic. Starting her engine again, Key tentatively drove to the Shop.

She took some deep breaths when she finally parked, trying not to think if that fear was what her mother felt before she died last week. Trying not to cry. Trying not to swell with shame and self-loathing over her stupidity. She stared at her keys, trying to focus on one thing to calm her mind down.

Her keys. A key for the house, where now only she lived. A key to the store, which only she could open now. A key for her car, which her mother or sister would never again borrow. A key to the shed, which only she will ever need again. A key to the safe in the store, to keep money and documents only she will read and manage. So many keys to so many things, but only for her. Key felt unbearably lonely. So much was missing. The absence of her family was like a constant chill and she had no way of feeling warm.

Key blinked away. Looking at the keys weren't helping. Trying to swallow her emotions, Key stepped out of the car and walked into the Shop. Action. Movement. Chores. Doing one task at a time. Key gravitated towards these things in desperation, craving distraction. The bell gently rang as she stepped inside. The front desk looked empty - was the owner out back in the garage?

[MASON MIEL CAIN]

OUTFIT

Mason how forgot how dirty the real world could be. After shiny tiles with rubber scuffs and clean orange jumpsuits, he was glad to be back in the mud of life. It was easier that way somehow, easier to be blue. The air was sweet with rain and he liked the sound of his mud-laded boots on the mat. Most of all, he liked getting to use his hands again. Prison was hard, pretending he couldn't have just bent the bars open and left, but he did his time. He would have never forgiven himself otherwise. But the past was past and he could just slide back into real life, which was even more bumpy and uncertain than he'd remembered.

He wasn't sure who had taken care of everyone's repair needs in the 5 years he'd been gone. Maybe the old retired man he had bought the place from back in the day. In any case, there was work waiting for him. He smiled softly at the shop, cluttered but everything had a place. The smell of oil and industry.

With a sigh, Mason ran his finger across a screw, unraveling it. Metal had betrayed him the last time he had handled it, a man lost his life. The people in town were worried about him now, he heard their whispers...

But the bell rang softly from the other room and he wandered out front, wiping his large hands on his jeans. His necklace visible under his V-necked t-shirt, chest hair curling lightly about the metal. On the simple chain was his key to his house.

The girl on the other side of the desk looked worried, her dark twisted up on her head. "What can I help you with?"

[CAIM VENUS HYSSOP]

Key had forgotten that there had been a change of management at the Shop. Mom had called her up to tell her - she normally called during the week to gossip. Small town people loved gossip more than anything else. "Guess what? Mason Cain - you know Richard Cain's son? He went to jail years ago for stabbing that man? He's out and working at the Shop." Key said something to the effect of "oooh" or "you don't say?" just to humor her mom at the time, though she didn't care and at the time she was doing homework.

Mom would've loved to hear about her encounter, though maybe she would've also been worried. Key blinked in surprise and took him in. He was easily half a foot taller than her, probably more. His built was absurdly impressive. Key figured his one hand could crush her face with no problem.

He looked intimidating, but he didn't feel dangerous. Mason wasn't staring down lewdly at Key, and he enunciated his words instead of slurring them like a hooligan. Key blinked again and answered. "There's something with my car."

It suddenly occurred to Key that maybe she should've brushed up on some car speak. She'd never taken her car to get fixed - was there a protocal? Should she have called first? Too busy being miserable, Key didn't really think about it. And once again this week, Key was struck by just how much she hadn't figured out about the real world.

Key shifted nervously. "I was driving just now, and the engine just died while I was crossing an intersection. And I had to start it up again to get moving?" That was a problem, right? Key was feeling less sure about everything.

"I have it parked out front." She added, pointing behind her. He needed to look at it or something right? All the while, part of Key's brain was wondering who Mason stabbed. What it was like in jail. Wondering why his girlfriend left him (town gossip.) He was awfully attractive - was there something wrong with him?

[MASON MIEL CAIN]

Mason smiled at her a little bemused. She seemed nervous--everyone did these days though. He'd stabbed a guy after all. It had been fairly serious and Mason wasn't sure if he even lived and he didn't want to find out. But anyway, he was used to turning heads and she seemed more flustered by him than whatever was wrong with her car. Oh if only his only problems were with his car...

"Okay, I'll go take a look," He said, moving around the counter and walking by her and opening the front door. His large boots clomped on the wooden floor, the door squeaking on its hinges. Mason frowned. No one took care of this place while he was gone did they? He figured he'd fight with the hinges later. They were hard to manipulate in place.

Mason nodded for her to go on ahead and point out her car, not like she needed to, there was only one in front of the shop-- besides his own dark blue pick up.

Mason walked over to it and just looked at it a moment. It had stopped, and yet had started back up. Most mechanics now a days had a computer that would hook up to more modern cars, but they didn't have anything like that out here. He considered the options quietly before moving.

He walked around the car and then put his hand on the metal. Given his ability to manipulate metal, you had to feel the weakest parts of it so you didn't break something. Mason moved around the car, his palm staying on the vehicle until he reached the area of the fuel tank. "Yeah it's the fuel pump. It wouldn't run at all if the thing was broken, so it must be an electrical issue."

[CAIM VENUS HYSSOP]

When Mason let her go ahead, Key walked out at a quickened pace, figuring for every step he took, she probably took two. She stood next to her car with her hands folded in front of her and turned to him, waiting for whatever came next. Since she was in the dark with this whole process, being attentive seemed like the best option. Key watched him go about his work. This was a machine though, and not a patch of roses, but magic was magic. Key could relate to the feeling. While mostly attentive, part of Key's mind sunk back into sad thoughts.

She was glad when he finally spoke up, and even straightened a little. Quickly, she pulled out her notepad and a pen from her bag. With the way her week was going, it was impossible to keep track of everything if she didn't write it down. car electrical issue with fuel pump Above that she had written shortage of mint oatmeal shaving cream, sort the bills, trash on tuesdays. Once she scribbled that down, she hesitated and looked up.

What now? Did he expect her to understand what that meant? Was he just telling her what was wrong before he fixed it? Was he going to fix? Or did he just run the diagnostics and refer her to someone else? Key couldn't decide whether to ask "what can I do?" or "what can we do?".

She settled for, "Okay. What can be done?"

[MASON MIEL CAIN]

She seemed to be writing it down, so he said nothing for a moment, not wanting to overload her. She seemed fragile somehow, but he had no monopoly on heartache. "Oh well I can fix it, might take a few hours, but I'll try to have it ready soon." Mason said, trying to mentally sort through the few tasks he already had lined up. He could probably do it rather quickly even. "It'll probably be about $150." He said. Normally, it would be more like $300, but since he needed neither new parts or much time, he always gave out a reduced price. And since she seemed so worried or something he'd give her some leeway. But he did have to make a living. He owed his sister that much, after leaving her alone for five years.

"Can you drive it into the garage?" He said. He could fix the pump with his powers but he had no electrical based powers, but he knew his way around a car. He'd have to get under the car so he'd need it on a lift.

Mason pushed a button on the side of the building, the door pulling up to reveal the garage component. His leather jacket was tossed over a stool, and an old red radio crackled from inside.

The he realized he wasn't a very good employee as he noticed he hadn't gotten her name for the work order or given her his name. He pulled out a sheet of paper on which to write what was wrong with the car and what it would cost.

"May I have a name for the work order?" He asked.

[CAIM VENUS HYSSOP]

Key was encouraged by the response. This was good. Things were going to be taken care of and Key didn't screw anything up. She felt a small sense of pride and achievement bubbling up inside her - she'd been getting it intermittently over the past couple of days anytime she figured out something or took care of a big responsibility. It was a bittersweet feeling though - she would've loved to brag about it to her sister, and her mom would've been proud of her, but ...

"Okay. That's fine." Key said nodding to show that none of that was a problem. She didn't mind waiting and $150 was nothing compared to some of the bills. Her mother had supported two daughters and even sent one of them to college. Now that Key dropped out and Gilly moved away, Key got all those resources to herself. That much money (which wasn't so much compared to some suburban middle class families) would've excited Key just two weeks ago, but not now. Key wondered if Mason knew Gilly - they were closer in age.

In terms of driving the car in, Key said sure and hopped into her jeep - it was a tall car, and she to literally leap inside, or swing herself in if she grabbed onto the top. The garage opened and she drove inside. It was unclear where she should stop, but there was only so much open area. She swung back out and slowly approached Mason who was holding a paper. Paperwork was something Key was getting used to - there was a lot of it in the real world.

Then he asked for her name. For a moment Key's voice got stuck in her throat. Here in Heatherfield, even if people didn't know her on sight, when they heard her last name they immediately knew who she was and what it meant. She was the orphan girl, abandoned by her sister, left to run her mother's shop. Key had never heard the term "you poor brave girl" so often in her life as she had this week. It was usually followed by condolences and offers of help. There had to be something said about the small town community - people Key grew up with were bringing her food everyday, Zeek Zabel from next door helped rake the leaves on the lawn, and Uncle Ben brought over enough firewood to last a month.

Something about all that was heartbreaking, too, though. "Um, sure." Key mumbled. That came out low and hoarse and she cleared her throat. "Caim Hyssop."

She avoided eye contact.

[MASON MIEL CAIN]

Hyssop... Sounded familiar.

"Hyssop... like the apothecary?" He asked, assuming that it was still the same place it was five years ago. The woman who ran it was very nice, not that he frequented the place much. But she had kind eyes. One of the daughters went to school with him, probably this was the other one, Caim wasn't a familiar name. It seemed like she was expecting him to say more but he had no idea what to say. He probably had missed quite a bit while he was locked up.

Mason jotted it down on the form and pushed the car onto the middle of the left and cranked it up, locking it in place. He figured she probably knew his name, he'd only been out of jail three days and the town was a buzz with gossip. It didn't matter to him if she knew him or not. Though her face was captivating and he hoped this was not the last time they'd ever speak.

Mason got to work under the car, correcting any problems he could with his magic. "You're welcome to stay if you like." He told her from under the car. He wasn't so good at telling people to leave and honestly, he didn't mind her presence. It had been a while since he'd been around woman who weren't police officers.

Mason began to melt and reform the metal connectors to see if he even needed to fiddle with the wires--they were of course metal too, but they were rubber encased and he didn't control rubber.

[CAIM VENUS HYSSOP]

Key had been braced for sympathy, but it didn't come. It occurred to Key that Mason might genuinely not be in the loop or he was really good at acting casual. Either way, Key breathed an internal sigh of relief - this would make getting through the next few hours so much easier. "Yeah. That's me." Key almost said "us" but caught it at the last moment. To be polite, Key asked, "You're Mason, right?" She almost asked if he went by Mr. Cain, but that seemed a bit much.

She felt like a kid having to look up at him so much. He was by far the most normalizing influence on her since she got back, and she was thankful for this relatively casual encounter. And he was a bit of a mystery - everyone was wondering about him. Key found it hard not to stare and try to take in everything she could.

Mason popped under the car like he had done a million times. He probably knew what he was doing. He was probably was very good at his job. Key was going to recommend him to anyone who asked - maybe it quell some one of the whispers.

She stood around awkwardly until he told her to stay. Key had been debating sitting on the curb in the parking lot, but now she looked around. Sit where? There was one stool. Figuring it'd be alright, Key decided on there. She picked his jacket, sat down on the stool, and drapped the jacket over her lap so that it wasn't on the dirty floor. She leaned slightly forward on her elbows and watched Mason work, but pretty soon she was staring down at her hands, consumed with her own thoughts.

[MASON MIEL CAIN]

"Yeah," He said from under the car. "I'm Mason." He hoped that wouldn't worry her. He wasn't a bad man, just one that was dangerous when out of control--which really only happened when he was seriously drunk.

In any case, she sat down, unafraid and he got back to work, occasionally humming along to whatever the radio was playing. He wasn't up to speed music wise since prison, but he recognized some earlier tunes. He was content to work in silence but when he got out from under the car to look under the hod, he saw her quietly sitting there, looking sad again.

"I'm a good listener you know..." He said like an offer. He was like a bartender, someone to bounce stuff off of and go. And frankly, he was glad not to be focussing on his own life. Maybe she'd offer a welcome distraction. Maybe she just anted to ask about him though, which he supposed he could deal with.

Mason popped the hood and got to work, wiping his brow with his beefy arm, smudging some grease on his skin. Machines were so simple, they never got sad.

[CAIM VENUS HYSSOP]

She had been pretty sure before, but there was something about his confirmation that made the encounter more real. This was Mason. The same Mason that stabbed a person and went to jail. Granted, this wasn't the first time something like that happened. It was a small rural town where people took the law into their own hands. There were unspoken laws, old rivalries. With magic involved, sometimes things got messy. Heatherfield was a peaceful place, and it was shocking when the stabbing occurred, but it wasn't unheard of.

Key chewed the inside of her cheek. She had never been in the same room with an ex-con. It didn't seem too different from being in the room with any other stranger. But part of Key was too tired and sad to really feel invested in the novelty of the situation.

His comment broke her out of her reverie. It took her mind a moment to process what he was saying, and then another moment realize it's implications. "Sorry." she said reflexively. Clearly she wasn't a cheerful presence and he noticed that. It would never come to her that maybe he wanted to talk, but she figured she force some small talk.

"Do you know anything about hiring employees?" She asked lightly. It wasn't her primary concern in life, but it was something she had to consider. Running the store herself almost all-day every day was proving a challenge.

[MASON MIEL CAIN]

For a second he thought she was sort of roundabout saying she wanted a job here. Mason wouldn't have hired her, she obviously knew nothing about cars or mechanics. He would have felt bad about it though of course. But then it seemed that she was asking about how to hire people under her. How was she old enough to run anything? "Not really." He answered plainly. Pretty much he worked here alone. He preferred it that way really, and he got more done that way. No distractions. Though it did get lonely. Basically you put an ad in the newspaper, or online, or in your shop window right? How hard could it be?

He wasn't sure if he should clarify that he meant if she wanted to talk about what was bothering her she could but he didn't care either way. Small talk wasn't necessary, but Mason was bred to be polite so he wasn't about to point out anything either way.

Mason looked over at her, his bright blue eyes meeting her hazel ones. She was rather pretty he noticed. He looked back at the car, fiddling with a few things, trying to make sure it would all keep working. He had pliers in one hand and was deep in the engine when he said, "Can you grab me a wrench?" He extended a hand behind himself, unable to let go of what he was doing. "It should be in the top of that red toolbox on the floor..."

[CAIM VENUS HYSSOP]

Key nodded. "Niether do I." she said, ergo the problem. She went to the library a couple of days ago. There were complicated steps like obtaining identification numbers and setting up taxes. Of course she could hire people under the table and pay in cash - most places here did that - but she wasn't sure if she'd get into trouble. Probably not, but those notes were tagged in her notebook so that she'd consider it later.

They made eye contact for a brief moment, but then Mason looked away and Key looked down. She noticed she'd been holding his jacket, running her thumb over the leather. It felt nice. It was probably a comforable and warm jacket, though considering Mason's shoulders, Key could fit at least two of herself in it. In a strange impulsive thought, Key wondered what it'd be like to wear it - it smelled nice. A little wood, a bit like smoke and grease, but mostly some unidentifiable fragrance. And Key knew fragrances - she worked with herbs. She herself smelled like lavender, mint, lemon, and honey half the time (her favorite ingrediants.) So did her room and now most of her house since it was only her living there.

Once again Mason's voice broke her away from her mind's wanderings. Caim looked up for a red toolbox. Sure enough it was there was a wrench on top of it. Leaving his jacket on the stool, Key got to get it. Then she walked up next to him and kneeled down on her knees. "Here ya go." She said softly holding it out to his free hand so he could just grab it. She glanced underneath her car - she wondered how long it took him to figure out all that chaos. "Is it going well?" she asked.

[MASON MIEL CAIN]

As she handed him the wrench, his fingers brushed hers. She had soft hands, rather warm too, but he didn't ask why. "Thanks." He said, fiddling with something. He had figured out the problem spot and now was just the issue of the metal and wires to realign and spark properly. He did glance out at her feet from his spot under the car once again (he'd moved from working over the hood to back underneath). She was so tiny, rather like his sister. Slight and pretty...

"Yup." He answered her. But then figured he owed her more than that, he added, "I'm almost done with it." Mason didn't much like electrical issues, as he could only work with the metal that was involved but he couldn't help it if the thing didn't spark right or travel correctly unless he could get to the wires, which would mean cutting the safety rubber, which was never a good idea.

He continued to tinker under the car, using both tools and his own powers. They generally didn't take much of a toll on him, and he jumped out from beneath the car and wiped his hands on his jeans again. "There, she should run now." Mason nodded at it and then smiled lightly at Caim.

It was hard to smile when the both of them seemed so down.

[CAIM VENUS HYSSOP]

"Oh." Key said. Mason must've worked fast. "Good." She didn't mean good because she was anxious to leave, but it was good that everything went so quickly without a hitch, right? Key lingered by the car. She wasn't sure if she was bothering him, but she figured it she stayed here it would keep her hands off his stuff. Watching him work was peaceful somehow. After about fifteen minutes time, the floor did their toll on her knees, so she got back up to sitting on the stool and holding his jacket.

Caim didn't grow up with a special blanket. She couldn't remember if there was anything in particular that she was attached to. But she imagined what she was feeling holding his jacket was like having a favorite blanket. She liked the weight of it on her lap, and the obvious warmth it brought to the parts of her body that it touched. She wished she could shrink down and hide under the jacket - away from world, to a world that was dark and warm. She almost wished it lasted forever. Just the warmth, the smell, the gentle tinkering in the background, and the soft quiet. The past two days everyone wanted to show their support and have heart-to-hearts. People held her hand and talked about what a great, loving person her mother was. None of that made it any easier.

Mason was done and Key got up. Maybe Key was imagining it, but he looked a little proud. She certainly knew what it was like to do a good job at something. She did her best to return the smile. "It's actually a 'he'." she countered lightly, still smiling a little. "I named him Spike."

"But thanks, I appreciate it." She added. Key stood before Mason and then realized she was still holding his jacket. "Oh, sorry. This is yours." She said, holding it out to him. Key tried to shake off that awkward moment by asking, "Do I pay at the desk?"