Kanda Yû (神田ユウ) (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
lotusmesenpai) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
overjoyed_logs2017-02-19 07:04 pm
lotusmesenpai) wrote in overjoyed_logs2017-02-19 07:04 pm
Closed(ish) | Guarding Mr. Daisy
Who: Sion, Lavi, Kanda & anyone they meet at the Summit
Where: Springhill Compound, Peace Summit
When: W6D2 - D6
Summary: Guarding Sion during the summit should be an easy warrant. Unfortunately, nothing with Sion is ever actually E A S Y.
Restrictions/Warnings: Kanda's fine command of language, as usual.
Where: Springhill Compound, Peace Summit
When: W6D2 - D6
Summary: Guarding Sion during the summit should be an easy warrant. Unfortunately, nothing with Sion is ever actually E A S Y.
Restrictions/Warnings: Kanda's fine command of language, as usual.
no subject
His expression softens immediately when he does, another smile offered in wordless thanks as he turns his focus back to the pages--
Except their well-worn pattern is broken, and rather than the usually unobtrusive distance, Kanda leans over him to deposit the extra supplies. His attention scatters in the process, hand tightening slightly on its precise grip around the quill while hair slides across his arm like silk.
His head lifts slightly, intent to keep to his task until lips murmur at his ear. Quicksilver heat flashes through him, lights the pallor of his face in a faint hue of red, skin shivering in the wake of whispers.
(Looking down again, Lavi realizes he's soon to break the quill just by the force of his grip, and slowly, carefully, he loosens his fingers, ignoring the tingling waves of anticipation that threaten to drown him.
Suddenly, he's both immensely grateful and remarkably reluctant about Kanda's departure.)
Eventually, after what feels like years, he nods shortly, glancing up to offer a mildly strained mirror of his earlier smile. ]
Will do. Enjoy.
[ Reassembling his broken focus with a monstrous exertion of his will, he finds himself even more eager to dive into the words on pages and quickly disappears down that literary rabbit hole again.
He'll wait until Yu leaves the room properly, and then some, to reach an idle hand up to his ear, tracing the curve of it in a not unpleasant recall with a softly whispered curse about terrible bastards being the end of him. ]
no subject
He allows it, for the briefest moment, and then schools his features to something more appropriately neutral before stepping into the central room of their suite. He waits just long enough to step over to Sion's door on silent feet, listen to the faint whisper of normal sounds within, and then heads out as quietly as he could.
And his 'sweep' happens to take hours, because he makes his way to the highest common access point, checks the security measures at all secure points (has to flash his badge on several occasions, until the facility security finally assigns an escort to him), and spirals his way down to the underground levels.
He takes the time to verify escape routes and grill his escort on the security measures being taken in the kitchens, cleaning facilities, banquet and conference halls, the gardens. He makes the same escort walk him through the reaction plans for bomb threats, hostage situations, and system security measures.
He's surprised that he's one of the few killjoys assigned to this dog-and-pony show that's done so to this extent (at least, as of yet).
By the time he returns to their suite, he's tired, his escort had likely gone somewhere to both pull out his hair and ask who he'd pissed off to get stuck with him, but he's carrying two mugs of steaming tea into their room and a premade sandwich.
Stepping into their room, he casts a quick glance at the desk, utterly unsurprised to find his partner in the same location as he'd left him.
Crossing the short distance, he steps around closer to the desk, carefully sets the snack and one of the mugs out of Lavi's way without a word, and then retreats back to the small couch in the corner of the room. His own mug is set on the table before he crosses to the beds, props his sword against the headboard, and then unhooks both thigh holsters.
These he hangs off the bedside table, both firearms laid neatly on the table's surface before he crosses to the closet. Belt, boots, and jacket get neatly stored (Lavi's too, once Kanda goes back to retrieve them) before Kanda takes a few things out of his bag, slips out of the room once again.
Fifteen short minutes later he's back in their room, sleep pants hanging low on his hips and a towel over his head as he settles on the couch to sip at his tea.
This, at least, is a familiar routine. This, is something they both trust in, regardless of the more nebulous changes between them.
Because through it all, this has never faltered.
It's his last thought before he drifts into a light doze, the towel still around his neck and hair caught in a careless knot at the back of his head save for the mess of bangs sticking to his forehead, his cheek.]
no subject
Such is the moment when Kanda returns to their room; he's aware, at least on a basic animal level, that he is no longer alone. There's a brief glance that follows, a quick scan of the room and its contents to confirm that nothing has drastically changed since the nebulous time between Yu's departure and arrival. Satisfied that he need not rejoin the stream of time just yet, he resumes his work, ink stains limning against pale knuckles but miraculously never marking upon paper.
As such, Lavi does not know how long it's been since he last lifted his head and now, though the ache that was once dull and easily ignored flares sharp in his joints. Though the bookman may leave time for a spell, it does not truly leave him, and his devotion is met with punishing tension throughout. There's a mug near him, a new artifact on the landscape of the desk, and he smiles upon seeing its accompaniment, a tightly wrapped bit of bread and--since this is a Company facility and not Old Town proper, he reminds himself--likely real protein.
Stretching his shoulders and rolling his tortured neck, he decides, albeit with some reluctance, that he's done his duty for the night. Observation without rest or food is a common problem in these situations, but that's as much because of his channeled focus as it is because of the environment. But this is no war zone, there is no need to burn the midnight oil within himself. Not yet, at least. When the next day arrives and the summit begins proper, he'll likely have even less hours in the night to complete his work.
The tea is room temperature when it touches his lips, though it's not quite cold yet. It's likely only been half an hour or so since it was set beside him, although the insulation of the cup makes that a hazarded guess at best. Twisting (and wincing, the whisper of flesh pulling against medical thread sharp against the dull ache of stiff muscles), he turns to offer his thanks to Yu.
But it seems he's the only creature still conscious in this room. His smile warms momentarily--he's glad Yu has managed to sleep on his own, even if exhaustion surely drove it--but ah..
So recently reunited with his physical being, it takes a moment for the full implications of the picture to register within him, mind shifting from sleepily grateful to acutely aware. It's hardly the first time he's seen Yu without a shirt, but everything about the man has become a source of distraction in more recent times, and the sight of pale flesh marked with intricate black is.. decidedly harder to ignore than it once was.
He stares for just a moment, tea gripped with a hand already tired from writing instruments. Tracing the hollows of collarbone to the smooth stone of chest with his sight, he follows the lines of muscle until they converge and hollow again at the precipice of sleepwear.
Trees he has to get this under control. It would be one thing if he were merely observing, as he once did, at the aesthetics of his partner, but he's not just looking as an impartial party. If he were, he wouldn't feel his stomach tightening and the slide of fire down his spine, through his chest and lower still.
Wouldn't imagine himself tasting and touching every inch of exposed and hidden skin.
Cursing softly, Lavi reconsiders his earlier decision to cease work, yearning for the safety of a world of data and empirical observations. But it's useless; even as he turns his head down and tries to throw himself back into those pages, he's powerless to stop himself from studying his peripheral and delving right back into very bad, terrible, absolutely enticing images.
He draws a breath, holds it, counting off in his head before release, taming the quickened beat of his heart. He's no hope of finishing his work or sleeping, he thinks, if he can't get himself under control. At the very least, he should get Yu a blanket, serving the dual purposes of preventing illness (a touch of folk medicine that persists; those who sleep cold will expose themselves to weakness) and giving his mind less ammunition for exceedingly detailed dreams.
Resolved to this end, Lavi pushes out of the chair, carefully extending muscle groups one at a time until he feels some measure of his coordination return. Downing the tea in one fell swoop, he turns to the nearest bed and pulls its top comforter off before padding to Yu's side.
(At first he's mindful to keep his lashes down, but when that provides a wider lens of viewing, he directs his sight to the wall ahead, carefully navigating around tables without actually looking at them.)
It takes some effort--effort he scarcely has the energy to expend--to layer the blanket over Yu without further stares, but he's dutiful in this, and once he's arranged it so that it provides both ample cover and shielding from cold or vision, he hovers in momentary triumph. Momentary in that he notices the towel, and with his own neck protesting a fixed position, he's sure that leaving it there will result in an exceedingly grumpier Yu by morning's time.
Frowning, he swallows his breath and leans down, one hand slipping behind Yu's neck to provide support where the towel currently resides and the other grabbing the cloth by the tail end to begin very carefully sliding it away. If he'd thought it was difficult to focus before this, he's given a new lesson in what precisely difficult means as this action brings him within breathing distance to the lips he's already thought far too much about.
pleasedon'twakeuppleasedon'twakeup ]
no subject
Primarily because he'd known that Lavi was there and that, though his partner was lost in the intricacies of his studies, he was still more than capable of defending them, of defending Sion.
So while some part of him had begun to stir at the feel of a blanket warming him, he hadn't come to his senses. Nor had the hand cradling the back of his skull been enough to pull him from sleep. But the feel of warm breath ghosting over his cheek, his lips, combined with the slow drag of the towel against bare flesh?
That is enough to send a shiver through him, elicit a soft gasp, back arching slightly off the back of the couch.
Brows furrowing, one hand reaches up enough to push the blanket out of the way before curling into the loose shirt before him, tug the other closer in his sleep...]
no subject
A gasp is answered with a trapped groan, the noise initially enough to startle him into retracting a pace lest he meet the ire of the troubled sleeper. The subsequent twist and arch, however, elicits an entirely different kind of response. Teeth worrying at his bottom lip, Lavi releases the towel, instincts kicking in and telling him he needs a lot more than a single step away.
Preferably, several. Possibly all the way towards a shower; his imagination feasting on that sight with absolute frenzy. All the different ways he might recreate that gasp, might make it louder...
Unfortunately, slowed with the abuse of stagnation at the writing desk and the subsequent confusion of a reaction split between horror and hormones, he doesn't move fast enough. Kanda reaches out, grasping at his shirt and pulling him right back--and closer--to where he began.
Still, evidently, asleep. Forced to bend or suffer the pains of still healing wounds, Lavi finds himself within proximity to just.. tip his head forward that little bit more and finally taste the skin he's been so preoccupied with studying.
His lips part, the ghost of a brush against the corner of Yu's mouth--all, he'll swear up and down--in the name of wrenching himself free. Not at all a moment stolen and savored, and the blood that rushes up to his cheeks and burns pink under his skin?
Just a reaction to the sudden change of level.
(He's not buying this, but it makes a viable story if he needs to explain himself.)
Gripping into the hand nested in his shirt, he shakes at it lightly, trying to distance himself while simultaneously not waking Yu up with battle reactions at the ready. It's a precarious, and at the moment, losing balance. He gulps, willing his voice to come out soft and even-toned in despite nothing in him feeling that way. ]
Y-Yu? Um. Yu. Wake up? Please?
no subject
That is, until the feel of a hand around his fist finally registers.
Then, it's a different kind of instinct that kicks in - one that has him surging off the couch and flipping positions so that his captive lands into his spot he'd been in, Kanda's knees pressed hard against the other's hips, forearm pressed against the intruder's throat.
But all it takes is a blink, a split-second to see a wide verdant gaze and the shock of messy crimson locks, lips parted in protest or reassurance--
Breath catching sharp and hard, pupils blown at the sight before him, completely unable to look away, it takes every last dram of self-control not to close the distance, give in to a desire that's been eating away at his sanity for weeks and steal a kiss once more.
Instead, he lets out an uneven breath and practically falls back, feet catching in the blanket in his haste to find safety in distance.]
Shit - sorry. That, ah. Huh. [And the blanket wins. In his haste, his feet tangle and balance is lost, sends him crashing next to his partner in an ungraceful heap.] Fucking hells.
no subject
But it's useless. He can't tame the instincts etched into Kanda's DNA. Can't even chase away the bad dreams that keep him awake.
Lavi goes limp, a ragdoll offering no resistance or fight against the violent upheaval. He knows it isn't personal, and not too long ago, he likewise would've responded in retribution with equally indiscriminate force.
At least in this, he's changed himself. The only reaction received is a strangled gasp of pain as tender muscles and still healing wounds are pressed and squeezed between knees, body twitching involuntarily away from the surge of white fire racing down his veins. He blinks back the threat of tears, though they're only a physiological response, wordlessly trying to reassure Yu that he's not the enemy.
(In this, at least, the pain is enough to keep him from noticing the struggle for control in Yu's face. The response strikes him as one of barely restrained violence and nothing more.)
When the arm lists off his throat and he's granted leeway to move again, he coughs, hand rising to soothe the still aching pressure in his neck. Lavi sees the folly of the blanket before it fully occurs, reaching out seconds too late to offer any aid before Yu comes crashing down beside him.
After a tense moment of ragged breath and holding his throat, Lavi laughs, sincere if a bit breathlessly, carefully straightening out his posture. He's pretty sure that didn't bust any stitches, but he's too seasoned not to check. ]
's fine. I should've known better. Sorry.
[ For waking him up like that, for almost kissing him, for a dozen other things that are increasingly becoming evidence of Lavi's poor judgment.
Lifting his shirt with one hand, the other seeks out the twin titanium threads along his lower ribs, tracing the grooves in skin carefully. Fortunately, it's actually healing pretty well. In a few more days he should be good to pull the stitches out if he's mindful. ]
Thanks for the tea, by the way. How was your walk?
no subject
Even so, Kanda doesn't miss the sharp flash of pain, or the way that eye brightens with unshed tears before Kanda's fall, though he is quite nearly distracted once again when Lavi loosens an unfettered laugh.
How long has it been, since he's heard that light tone?
Too long.
It's a stark realization, and one that he feel can be laid in large part at the feet of the Nine. For his nightmares, for the chaos on Leith and on Westerley. It all stems back to their insatiable greed.
Rather than voice this, however, he simply drinks in the sight of Lavi's mirth... that is, until his partner straightens and lifts his shirt, reveals the metallic lacework marring flesh. A knot forms in his gut at the stark reminder of how vulnerable his partner is, how close he'd come to losing him in the riots and all because they're still to prone to act independently.
Not that they can really change this, but the worry from it settles like rusted iron in his gut all the same. Enough so that Kanda shifts in his seat and leans down, his focus wholly on the healing flesh rather than the otherwise distracting proximity.
Reaching out, his fingers trace the metallic lines with a feather-light touch, carefully inspecting each line for signs of tear or infection.]
How cold was? [Because he knows, doesn't he? That tea sat there until most of the heat (if not all) had been drained entirely from the glass.] Fine. They've certainly got enough security cameras everywhere, but there are still a fair few blind spots. Nothing I can't handle by myself unless shit goes sideways.
no subject
Somehow, he thinks inflicting that worry is more difficult to live with than getting the injuries in the first place.
So while he's definitely not as focused and clear of mind as Yu seems to be, he's concerned enough to ignore the ticklish sensation of careful fingertips gliding over knitted skin. Lavi frowns softly, reaching for Yu's hand without a second thought to offer a reassuring squeeze.
I'm here, he tries to convey without words, you didn't hurt me. ]
Well, it wasn't icy, at least...?
[ Drawing the captive hand away, Lavi pulls down his shirt to hide the evidence of those stitches, trying to put them somewhere out of mind for Kanda. ]
Counting me out already, huh? That's probably fair. Thanks for being so reliable, Yu. Just one of your many features that make a guy all weak in the knees.
[ An old joke a little.. too literal these days, but alas! ]
no subject
This time, he can feel a faint flush warming his face at the thought, throat going dry.
Shaking his head to dispel the memory of Lavi leaning into his hold, their bodies pressed flush from thigh to chest, he quite nearly admits to knowing exactly how to 'make a guy all weak in the knees'.
Or worse, show him.
Instead, Kanda carefully extracts his hand from Lavi's with a wry chuckle before leaning forward to untangle the blanket from around their feet.]
Nothing to thank, idiot. I've seen you go into 'bookman mode' enough times to know how this'll go. Security is enough that I should be fine to play primary babysitter while you do what you need to. 'S why we work, isn't it?
[Only once he's sure he's no longer going to give such an obvious tell (the down side of such pale skin!) does he look back up, glance sidelong towards his partner.]
Speaking of, we should probably go to bed soon - long day tomorrow and knowing you, you're going to live off caffeine and ink for the next week so...
no subject
Picking his legs up to be helpful, Lavi shrugs with a light laugh--he's never really been sure why they work outside of their propensity to abide secrets--but even that seems to have changed lately.
(Or has it? Lavi is, after all, keeping a new secret from Yu, and he damn well intends to keep it to his grave.
Which at the rate of things isn't that far away so it seems fairly doable.) ]
Yeah, I guess so! I'm really just a miscellaneous detail for warrants like these anyway. Kinda hard to compete with you.
[ A bit disparaging of self, perhaps, but not in a way that seems to bother him. He's long since accepted that while he's damn good in a fight, he's never going to be at Kanda's level.
At the comment about bed, Lavi nods, yawning just by virtue of bringing it up. There are few things he loves more than sleep, which means it's often the first sacrifice when he enters that so-called bookman-mode. A peace summit that only lasts a few days will definitely push him to the ends of his endurance, but it's what he signed up for. ]
That sounds like a great idea. Might as well get a headstart before things get exciting.
[ Reaching down to reclaim the blanket, he stands, stretching carefully and donning the comforter like an oversized cape the few steps to the bed. There are two beds so it would follow that Yu would claim the other one..
..even so he murmurs as he collapses on the mattress, preparing himself for the perpetual war of who-has-more-blanket early. ]
Get the lights and hurry up. I'm not gonna warm the blanket just for you to claim 'I only have the corner'.
no subject
Kanda would reveal them as known, if he'd thought his stubborn partner would accept them as much now as he had that night.
So then, maybe it's more accurate to say fever and fear keep them locked neatly away, because it's Kanda's fear of pushing the boundaries reset before Lavi would be willing to accept the erasure of said lines entirely.
More and more he finds himself like this, sitting back, watching his partner, and trying to understand and unravel the complexity that is now (and may always have been) between them. And every now and then, the man in question says something so stupid that it jars him out of those thoughts entirely.]
Shut up, idiot.
[Because while there's no question that Kanda's combat skills outstrip Lavi's, his partner is able to see the subtle nuances that more often than not catch the underlying current waiting to throw the warrant into the deep.
It's a skill that Kanda can't match.
One that he values equally.
Pushing to his feet, he steps around to his side of the bed, cuts the bedside light as he slips under the remaining blanket.]
Like hells I'm letting you take both damned blankets, selfish bastard!
[ Pausing just a moment, he then smirks in the dark and, quite deliberately, pulls the remaining blanket harder than necessary, neatly claiming more of it and dragging Lavi that little bit closer all at once. In the dark, he can feel the faint tease of hair against his lips, murmurs softly:] Go to sleep, idiot rabbit, before I decide to strip you of both blankets instead.
the pun was there it had to be taken
That thought distracts him, leads him down the wending turns they've taken to establish that even in a room with two beds.. Lavi had expected Kanda to crawl into this one.
(And he had with seemingly little to no reservation. Just reached over to kill the light and settled down beside Lavi, a picture of domestic companionship.)
Thus when the blankets suddenly swirl and usher him forward, he's caught largely unaware, a small yelp of surprise half-strangled in his throat. The usual grumbling protest begins, interspersed with a fair few colorful additives, but he makes no move to distance himself again in spite of it.
(This part becoming part of their routine is still fairly jarring, but that's largely, Lavi knows, because he can't seem to keep his damn mind off doing a dozen other things in this--or any--bed that aren't the slightest bit sedate or sleep oriented.)
Closing his eye, he exhales softly, drawing in a deep breath and filling his senses with the mingled aroma of tea and overpriced soap. ]
So harsh, Yu. You'd leave a battered friend to the cold of the void..
[ Lavi shivers melodramatically, snapping his teeth to emulate chattering between them before he curls slightly amid the sea of blankets in unconscious effort to bring them closer. ]
I'd have no choice but to cuddle you to survive the night! My gravestone would tragically read..
'Brr.'
[ Preemptively he ducks his head down, inadvertently--or perhaps just unconsciously again-- putting him within kissing distance of collarbones he's all too often thought of doing as much to.
Kissing, that is, but he'd be good with biting or licking or--
Keep it together. ]
'Brr Rabbit.'
no subject
Kanda finds himself stuck somewhere between the urge to either roll his eyes at the exaggeration or pull his insufferable partner under the blanket with him.
He doubts either of them would have reason to be cold, then. Because how many times has he awakened in the middle of the night with a careless arm or leg slung over him, the weight of his partner's body heavy against his side, threatening a control already worn down to threads?
It was dangerous to become accustomed to such moment, because they're still ones that Lavi isn't fully cognizant of - this constant reaching for him when the other man is unconscious - but it's a danger Kanda not just accepts, but relishes.
So when the bastard actually shifts even closer, barely any real space between them once again and Lavi's breath teasing over flesh to torment, Kanda just.
Slips.
The low rumble of murmured words falls from his lips before his teeth can cage them, linger like an invitation or a dare between them, there to challenge a faulty memory.]
I dunno what's worse - that you'd think you'd be cold when you sleep on me or that damn joke.
[Reaching up, he absently cards messy bangs back from the other man's face, nails scraping lightly across his scalp before his mind finally catches up to the danger of his actions. Blinking, he snorts a laugh at himself, an attempt to tamp down the frustration at having to force himself back once more, and flicks the other man's forehead softly.]
Idiot rabbit definitely fits you more.
no subject
Thankfully, the sound of the snort draws him out of it and he laughs for a lack of better noises to make, reaching up to paw at his hair and pat his fringe down in huffing irritation at having it mussed and then abused by tantalizing fingers.
That was an excellent joke, thank you very much. ]
Such a cruel man indeed..
[ Sighing, Lavi closes his eyes and shifts closer to the edge of the bed. Sprawling slightly, he 'accidentally' lets a hand whisper past Yu's shoulder on its descent.
He should really get to sleep before he thinks about letting that hand drift any further.
Yawning, he commits himself to chaste dreams, for the love of the trees, and nestles into the pillow. ]
In my next life, I'm definitely screening partners for their charitably, mmmhm.
/end
He can't help but think it after watching Lavi's head dip, the anticipation that had flared in that moment left to linger unfulfilled as his oblivious partner turns away.
Saving a measure of both their sanity, perhaps, disappointing as that may be.
Biting back his own sigh, Kanda can only watch with a hooded gaze as Lavi shifts further away, sprawls enough to take up more of the bed space before resolutely closing his eyes. Better to not watch temptation slide between the sheets than give in... for now, at any rate.
Even so, he chuckles softly, the sound warm and almost content as he reaches an arm back, tucks a hand behind his head.]
Complain all you want - you'd miss me in that life too.
[It's a gamble to say it, true, but he's a little too tired to care just then. Besides, it's fun to shot taunts back at Lavi... even if the other man doesn't realize just how true that probably is.]
Go to sleep already. I don't want you complaining that I kept you awake too long come morning.