Hey, Mervin.

[jamesmcginty]

To BestPilot [@] Free.net
From JMcGinty [@] Free.net

How was the flight?

I am taking a course in first aid. Or a refresher one? I had one for Victorian style emergency triage for ships, but that's hardly modern. So I'm taking another one. The uh - painting class is mostly for the fun of it. I keep feeling like I should apologize for signing up for it, but the teacher's been - all right. He finds my accent quaint.

I have not grumbled about that.

The college is up and going again. The students have started three competing papers. A charming spotty youth that looked about twelve offered a subscription to one to me, and I took him down for coffee and lunch and talked politics. He was of the young and clueless sort, but he looked like he was due a lunch in the world.

He asked if I was good at setting type.

Well, I could toss the name by folks and see if it's dangerous, right? He seemed all right, and it'd be type for all the papers.

Love,

James

Comments

[grand_error]

"Ooh I'm intrigued." R admits, and really, he is. Feuilly usually seems torn between wondering if he's joking when he brings up his work and compares it to serious art, or serious about things, but he really IS serious about the man's ability with a brush. And it's kind of a shame he can't really end up coming here.

Not that most of them can go places for the time being. R escaped by means of having his face hidden, at least, and he's relieved by that much. It allows him to keep living without raising suspicion, which is a good thing.

He studies the colors too, musing a little as they fall, considering the place James mentions.

"I'm up for giving that a try. I like the atmosphere. It's very lively."

[jamesmcginty]

"Anyone else free? I'm game for trailing along while you hunt for inspiration for Gabriel." James is - trying to not blush a little at - it's not even innuendo, is it? It's not like R said he was basing that painting off of James' face. He doesn't think he'd look good with a horn to start with.

The Ethiopian place is more of a generalized "pick three things and we'll toss in a tin of a carb" kind of tiffin place. James likes the prices and it's clean and bright. He's pretty sure Joly's found something safe there. Thinking of Joly - "I think Joly ate at the Ethiopian place."

[grand_error]

"Possibly." R considers. "That is, I'm fairly sure most of them are skivving off classes at the moment. Law students." He adds, shaking his head, rather amused by the whole thing. "Admittedly, the pooling together notes so not all of them have to go every day is a good SYSTEM." Like it's not the sort of thing he would do if he was in a field where that was acceptable. Classics or something, maybe. If he ever tries for another degree in something relatively unproductive and invoking of judgment it'd have to be Classics. For right now, he's just grinning at James a little.

"You do know what they say about muses and spending time around your personal one, right?" No, James isn't so much a Gabriel as all of that. R's pretty sure silver is better suited to him than gold, but it doesn't mean being around someone he likes to look at will hurt the painting at all. The opposite, in fact.

"Even Joly? Then it's certainly workable if he emerged and didn't decide to die. I'm in."

[jamesmcginty]

James is definitely a little pink as he picks up his coat. "Right. I've been dutiful enough, I think. Do I need to scrub my face again, or shall we head out, painter of angels?"

He's game for trying to grab medical students a lunch or a law student to join them. He still kind of wants to make sure that everyone is fine and safe ever since the riots. It's probably why some of them started taking medical jobs with the prison to keep an eye on fellow rebels.

It's why he's taking that first aid class, at least. So he wouldn't ever run into Dr. Combeferre in the night looking so exhausted.

[grand_error]

"Looks that way to me." R agreed. "Teacher's pet, even." That was said with a little bit of a wink. "And I think it's mostly gone." He didn't notice much of any paint anywhere at least.

"Let's take to the streets then, see who we can round up, if you'd like. The medical students SHOULD be finishing rounds by now."

[jamesmcginty]

James waits till they're in the hall to touch R's elbow and give him a half hug. "Sounds like a plan. I heard Tom's in town too, so we may run into him. I think he was doing some traveling around for family stuff."