In the House of God

[Daniel Underhill]

A deep sigh escaped his lips into the cold February air as Daniel pushed the doors of the church open. He hadn't been to a church in... How many years? A chuckle escaped his lips, not in mirth or amusement, but in surprise. Twenty years. Twenty years of avoiding anything related to his parents.

Part of him wondered why he had chosen now, of all times, to actually visit one of the many houses of God. He hadn't been there in so long. What made him want to return?

The answer came rather swiftly. His parents. He didn't remember his parents much, but he knew that they...

"Hmm."

Slowly, he made his way up to the front pew, kicking the kneeling bench down gently before he did what it was for: kneel, peering at the cross that held a statue of Jesus with the crown of thorns, and blood running down its wrists. It made him sad, in a way, to be back here. Well, not this specific place, but a place like this in general. It reminded him of being home, of being with his parents. Sure, they were a bit on the fanatical side, but he knew that the longer he stayed away from them, the more likely he would never see them again.

Tears streamed down his face as he put his head against his hands, and began praying to whatever God was out there for the safety of his parents. He knew that God probably didn't exist, but... he felt his parents would've been happy, to see him do this. Wherever they were, he hoped they were happy, and safe, and well.

He didn't notice the door open.

[Ezra Bellefonte]

Ezra Bellefonte was not dressed for church today.

Not that it mattered, really, because no one was going to be in there at this time.  But still, Ezra had a reverence for places like this.  He didn't really have much of a personal belief system himself, but he respected how deeply others cherished their faiths and wouldn't want to offend anyone by shuffling in dressed in a hoodie and some old jeans.  But, as said, tonight wasn't a busy one for the church.  It was just a quiet weekday.  No one else should even be in there, save a few pastors or nuns.  If this was even a Catholic church.  Ezra honestly wasn't even sure.

So what was he doing in a church anyway?  Well, it's a bit embarrassing, actually, but...he was lost.  He'd gone out to have a few drinks at a bar he frequented.  Not a lot, just a few.  He was by no means drunk.  But apparently, his logic was dulled enough to the point that he figured he could walk back to his apartment instead of getting a cab and enjoy the night air.  Only he didn't have the greatest sense of direction, and ended up in a part of town he didn't recognize.  The church was the only warm place with open doors that he could relax in long enough to check his phone.

...Or maybe nap.  Because he was tired.  And it wasn't THAT odd for someone to nap in a church, was it?  Didn't homeless people do it all the time?

He yawned as he walked up the sanctuary steps, his body feeling as heavy as led.  Ugh, why did he have to go out tonight?  He was exhausted when he left, and this just made it worse.  It was the boredom he had been trying to ease, but drinking alone was even more boring.

"Maybe this is a sign," he muttered to himself, glancing up at the savior's image.  "Tryn to tell me something up there?"

It was then that he noticed the man bowed to pray, and he jumped a little, then realized he'd been intruding on someone's private moment.  "Aw shit--shit!" Cursing out of frustration from accidentally cursing...ugh.  "I mean, crap, sorry, man didn't see you..."  He paused, squinting his eyes.  Was that...?  It was.  

"Underhill?  Whoa, hey, buddy.  I didn't know you were religious."  Not that he knew much of anything about Daniel.  Professor Underhill was a very private type.  He didn't seem to have any relationships or friendships among his coworkers, and especially not with Ezra.  

Fancy that.  Running into a coworker.  That kinda made this even more embarrassing. 

"Sorry to intrude. I get that your in the middle of, uh, a conversation.  I'll go."  He turned to leave.

[Daniel Underhill]

Daniel wouldn't admit it, but he jumped in fright as he heard the other cursed out. He didn't scream, just... Jumped. Daniel may have been relatively unknown to most of his coworker peers, but if he was known for anything, it was probably for the fact that he scared relatively easily. One could sneak up behind him, and he would probably jump more than the average person.

However, his racing heart calmed down a second later, when he realized who it was. "Bellefonte? Ezra, right? Sorry, it's so hard to keep track of all of you," he said with a soft chuckle as he moved over slightly in a sort of silent invitation. Not overt, but subtle enough, he felt, to get his message across in a way that didn't seem weird.

The next question made him chuckle again, though. "Religious? No. Well, I used to be," he admitted with a sheepish grin and a scratch at the back of his own neck. "My parents were. I thought that maybe... No. I don't know what I was even thinking."

He sniffed the air, turning back to the man next to him now. "No, no, you're fine. Are you drunk, per chance? Do you need a ride home? My car is parked out front, if you need one. It's dreadfully cold out there, and I don't think a substitute would work in our situation." He laughed a little, before standing. "Come now. I'll get you home safely."

[Ezra Bellefonte]

Ezra chuckled at the older man's remark about the Bellefonte's being hard to keep up with.  Yeah, with one being the headmaster, another a teacher, and then four more being students, Bellefonte's seemed to have overrun the campus.

Ezra paused before sitting down, feeling that he was intruding, but he listened as Daniel opened up a little.  Huh, three years working at the school and only now did Ezra feel like he knew a little something about Daniel other than his subject and how easily startled he was.  Now that he thought about it, Ezra couldn't remember having any real conversation with the guy ever.  ...Well, to be fair, Ezra practically sleep-walked through most of his life, so he probably didn't remember having a lot of conversations.  Usually because they didn't happen as he didn't have the energy for them.

That was different, though.  Ezra fancied himself a rather friendly and outgoing guy, but he was just perpetually drained and never felt up to it, was never really feeling himself enough to show that side of him.  But Daniel was different.  Daniel chose to be withdrawn.  Odd fellow.  Was he that much of an introvert, or just insecure and lonely?

...Ugh, Ezra was headshrinking him like he tried to do with his students, and this guy was a handful of years older than him.  Certainly a more experienced instructor.  One who earned his position without riding off a family name.  He probably just avoided the other faculty because he had no interest in their meandering small talk or little dramas.

Still, what Daniel said about his parents concerned Ezra a bit.  He didn't imagine Daniel was one for opening up, so for him to let lose that little tidbit, it must have really been bothering him.  What went on with his parents?

But before he could ask, Daniel went about chuckling about him being drunk and offering to get him home.  Ezra laughed uncomfortably at the jokes and shook his head as he stood.  "I'm not drunk," he said, trying to stifle a yawn.  "I don't get drunk."

Why not?  Because he never had the energy for it.  He was already exhausted whenever he started drinking, so whenever he felt the buzz, it was more than enough to put him out for a long nap.  It was more like taking a sleeping pill when you'd been up for two days straight.  Just a little extra relaxer that you didn't even need.  "Just had a couple.  Blowing off steam, I guess."

 He scratched at the back of his neck.  Now that the initial startle of running into Daniel had worn off, he was speaking in that slow, out-of-it way.  Probably not helping his sober case.  But what could be done about that?  Ezra couldn't help that his powers left him this way.

  "I...would actually appreciate the ride, though.  I would have called an Uber by now or something, but for some reason I figured I could find my way back on my own."  He shrugged, grinning at his own stupidity.  "Thanks, man."

[Daniel Underhill]

Daniel looked up at the laughter, a smile of his own on his face as he scratched the area behind his ear. Always itchy, due to the frequent tickle of the glasses, but he was fine. Just... nervous.

Of course he would be nervous, though. He was sitting right next to a Bellefonte, who could easily have him erased with one bad word. He didn't believe Ezra would, obviously, but he couldn't stop his anxiety from acting up. Instead, he had his hands clasped in his lap, looking down at them. They were still together, as if he were still praying, but... Why had he come here? It didn't make much sense.

They sat in a sort of awkward silence, neither of them knowing what to say to the other. One was a new faculty member who hadn't even had the chance to acquaint himself with his coworkers, another was a Bellefonte, presumably in the school in the first place on namesake alone, and...

That was assuming. Assuming was wrong, and he knew that he shouldn't do it. It just didn't make sense to judge a book solely on it's name.

"I...Oh," he murmured, looking back at the other man, a bit surprised. If the other man wasn't drunk, then why did his breath smell of alcohol? Well, maybe he just had a few drinks. Buzzed was a term nowadays for those kinds of situations, right?

"Makes sense. Being a faculty worker can be a bit difficult at times. I don't drink much, myself..." He fell silent again, looking to the man on the cross in front of him. He didn't respect his parents much, but something inside of him knew he loved them, even after the Camp Sunshine incident, and even after no contact for twenty years. He couldn't forgive them, but part of him was resigned. It was the past. He didn't have to talk to them anymore.

He looked back to Ezra, a forced grin on his face as if he were wearing a mask to cover any and all emotions. "Then it's settled. Do you want to go now?"

[Ezra Bellefonte]

Ezra's smile faltered for a couple of seconds.  He knew that look.  It was the same look he got from a few other staffers before they got to know him.  The tad of intimidation that his last name carried like he had any actual power over their jobs.  Like his grandfather would ever make any kind of executive decision based on the words of his half-asleep grandson who disregarded a crapton of academy standards, from uniform to teaching style.  Only Daniel's look didn't carry the same sort of sting most of the others had.  The disdain that came with them KNOWING he had this job because of his name, and that he was a pup in his early twenties who had no business landing such a great teaching job right away, and who the hell did he think he was?

No, Daniel's look lacked that bite.  And it was nice.  Not that Ezra was frequently judged by his coworkers anymore (or well, he didn't really notice if they still did). They had dropped that look once they realized he wasn't a threat OR an arrogant assuming asshole.  He had started teaching fully knowing that he was an inexperienced noob who stumbled in off his last name, and hen owned it.  Some have them had even helped him get the hang of things.  Now the only thing he knew they judged him for was his frequent laziness, and he couldn't be bothered to care about that.

Ezra smirked at Daniel's comment about being a faculty worker being difficult.  "Eh...yeah, sometimes."  It wasn't difficult. Not for Ezra.  All he had to do was turn on his powers, and his kids practically taught themselves.  He gave them the basics and assigned homework and all, but the young art teacher mostly just let his inspiring pheromones take over.  He didn't want to block anything their natural creative flow summoned with a bunch of lecturing, anyway.  He was teaching them to express their creativity, to reach into themselves and produce something magnificent.  Not to draw exactly what he drew or paint exactly what he painted.

What was difficult was sitting back and wondering if he was doing the right thing.  If the comedown, that drop in creativity a couple hours after...if it was worth it for them.  If it was right to use his powers without telling them or getting consent.  If maybe he should be teaching the "standard" way.  He loved seeing his students come up with stuff on their own, and he thought of his powers as a way of teaching their minds to give into creativity habitually and enjoy it.  It worked, right?  So why did he always worry that he was cheating them out of learning the standard way?  He'd never change his style anyway, because he'd be too afraid of cheating them out of the inspiration his powers gave them.

A tricky spot.  But that wasn't what sent him trudging to the bar through the exhaustion.  It was Katrina's new roommate...that rowdy girl with the patchy history.  Violet wasn't the kind of girl any big brother wanted near his baby sister, let alone living with her.  But did Ezra have any real right to judge one of his students like that?  Did his position over the girl make it unethical for him to harbor that protective wariness?   ...And would Katrina even want him to feel that way?  Would it annoy her?  She was at that age, anyway.  And...why didn't he know right off the bat whether it would bug Katrina or not?  Because he wasn't as close to her as he used to be, not as frequent a part of her life as he wanted to be.

If Katrina ever touched the sort of thing that dotted the pages of Violet's file...Ezra wouldn't be able to take it.  Would it be his fault?  Because he hadn't looked after her as much as he should have?

...He was worrying too much.  Being dramatic.  Worrying over things he had no right to worry about.  But still.

Ezra's eyes wandered up to the crucified messiah, then shrugged and nodded.  "Sounds good.  Thanks again, man."  He started walking out with him, his steps heavy and sluggish as always.

"You believe in God, Daniel?"  He asked in the short silence that followed as they made their way to the door.  "I'm assuming so.  Considering." He gestured to the church they were in.

[Daniel Underhill]

Daniel could see the smile faltering from his friend's face, and immediately looked away, worried that he had done something wrong, or offended him in some way. No. Had he? No, he didn't think he had, but what if he did?

He took a deep breath, before facing the other one once again, shifting his glasses for comfort and observing Ezra thoroughly. When the other spoke, he nodded. "Yes, well, you have quite the advantage, if I may say. I don't quite have that sort of stepping stool that you have." Oh shit, he could feel he had just said something wrong. "... Not to say that you'd need it, or... Dammit, Daniel." He slapped his forehead, with a small smile. He made himself laugh, sometimes, but now wasn't the best of those times.

They fell back into an awkward pause, no sound escaping either of the two, the only sound in the entire church being that of trickling water from the fountain. Finally, though, the other man spoke, and Daniel stood, passing the other to get into the aisle as the question was raised. "I mean, well... Uh... Not exactly. I used to be extremely religious. A fanatic, one could say, as were my parents. They took the thing much more seriously than I do now. Why? Are you religious?"

[Ezra Bellefonte]

Daniel went on to say that Ezra had a stepping stool and an advantage, and all Ezra could do was spare a self-deprecating chuckle and nod with that wide-eyed 'fuck yeah I do and thank God for it cause I'd be screwed' sort of expression. But then Daniel started stammering and panicking a little, ending his sentence in, "Dammit Daniel."

...And come on, Ezra just couldn't resist.

"Daaaamn Daniel," he said, mocking the popular vine, accent and all. "Back at it again with the white vans."  

He patted Daniel's shoulder with the back of his wrist and laughed at his own joke, equal parts disappointed and proud of himself.   "I'm sorry.  I had to.  I know it's awful.  Not a mature teacher reaction.  But shit.  You walked right into that one."

He snickered and shook his head, then folded his hands behind his head if they walked.  "Nah, man.  Don't stress.  I know good and well what advantages I have.  It's more than a stepping stool.  It was a damn jet pack.  You honestly think I could have landed a job at THE Bellefonte Academy if my gramps wasn't the headmaster?  If my family history wasn't so entwined with it?"  He laughed at the very idea and shook his head, just the tiniest shred of shame lacing his tone, but one he didn't have the energy to consciously entertain.  "I was fresh out of college with zero experience.  You call me out on it all you want."  He patted Daniel on the shoulder.  "You earned this."  

As in, Daniel had actually earned his job, hadn't had any last name to ride off of.  And therefore earned the right to give Ezra as much crap about not earning it as he so pleased.

Then came the pleasant silence, the random question, and the topic of religion.  Was Ezra religious?

"Not at all," he said, smirking at the very thought of it.  A religious version of Ezra, faithfully attending church every Sunday to doze off.  "I mean, I'm curious about religions and all.  There's something out there."  He shrugged and rubbed the back of his neck.  "I...think I had a reason for asking?  But I can't remember.  Lost my train of thought."  He chuckled and shrugged again.  "Just curious I guess.  Seems like an appropriate place to ask those kinds of things."