一期一会 » MEETING ONCE IN A LIFETIME

[stormbelow]

He didn't stay in the nexus after the encounter left him all tense and anxious, two sensations he'd pretty much been hoping to avoid for at least a little while longer while he got things back to normal. He didn't even bother finishing the rest of his errands; there was no time for that.

Instead, he goes straight back home. The second he sets foot in the house, he senses around for Harvestman's presence, hoping like hell that he won't have to track him down anywhere else.

"John?"

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[fuckvampires]

Harvestman is sleeping, curled up haphazardly on a couch. He's been spending most of his time here, with breaks every day to check on Brody and, if he felt like he needed it, to give Arashi a break. It hasn't stopped the urge to hover, though, which is why he's sleeping at his boyfriend's place when his boyfriend isn't present. He's still easing himself into the idea that Arashi is okay. It's not a fast process.

Besides. Arashi's couches were more comfortable than his bed.

[stormbelow]

Damn. Harvestman sleeps too rarely and never well enough for Arashi to be willing to wake him up when it does happen (although it mystifies him that Harvestman chose the couch instead of the bed, which surely has to be even more comfortable). He hovers for only a few moments, quelling steady anxiety, before heading into the kitchen.

He pours himself a glass of O+, but doesn't drink it. Instead, his fingers just drum on the countertop, and he keeps thinking back to what happened and wondering whether it would be worth it to strangle Gabriel just a little bit.

[fuckvampires]

Harvestman is sleeping on the couch precisely because he is waiting for Arashi. It takes awhile for him to awake, and when he enters the kitchen there's more than a hint of red in his unsteady gaze. He leans against Arashi's shoulder, reaching for the glass of blood without even thinking.

"Hey, gorgeous."

[stormbelow]

"Hey." He lets Harvestman have the glass and turns around to nuzzle him with some small sense of relief, trying to wriggle its way through a heavy haze of dread. "How did you sleep?"

[fuckvampires]

"Like the dead." That wasn't true; the nightmares had lessened with Arashi around, but they hadn't faded entirely. He drains half the glass, leaving the rest for his boyfriend, as if Arashi was somehow going to appreciate his washback. "Where'd you go?"

[stormbelow]

It really doesn't matter all that much. Arashi definitely isn't feeling all that hungry at the moment. And the question actually manages to disconcert him for a second.

"...uh, errands. Having the ceiling fixed, getting in touch with Kaleo. I... got held up in between, though."

[fuckvampires]

"Your jerk coworker?"

To be fair, this is Harvestman's opinion of most of the people Arashi knows.

[stormbelow]

"My -- he's not -- okay, whatever. Yes." It's like his brain couldn't decide whether to argue or just let it go in lieu of the more important things he has to worry about, and he hates that the end result made him stammer like that. Goddamnit. Okay. He just needs to get this over with. The sooner it's out there, the sooner they can deal with it. Right?

"Come here." He takes Harvestman's hand and pulls him out of the kitchen and back into the living room. At least if Harvestman starts breaking things in there, Arashi will have someone coming to make it presentable again regardless. "Listen, there's something you should know. You're going to get upset, but I really don't want you to, so... at least give it a shot, all right?"

[fuckvampires]

Okay, that was instantly alarming. He lets himself be led, a million questions bubbling up that he barely manages to squash. It could be anything. Something to do with Arashi's boss, with his coven thing. Could be Brisbane.

Fuck, don't let it be Brisbane.

"Are you okay?" he manages.

[stormbelow]

"I'm fine." It's endearing that Harvestman asks that first. Arashi frowns uncertainly for a moment, before deciding, to hell with it, there's no reason to dick around with something like this.

"Charlie's in the nexus."

[fuckvampires]

His reaction is predictable. He freezes where he stands, his grip on Arashi's hand suddenly tightening. Just hearing her name is like a shot through the heart. It was enough to make everything stand still.

"What...?"

[stormbelow]

Damn it, he hates this. Not that he'd been thrilled by Harvestman's delay in getting in touch with his daughter, but he'd understood it, and he can only imagine what this must feel like.

"I think she ended up there by accident. It didn't seem to surprise her, though. I unlocked her door, but I don't think she left... you just need to know that she's. Around."

[fuckvampires]

"You... you spoke to her?"

There's a level of delay between understanding and acceptance playing across his face. He has to sit down. He does, heavily, on the couch he'd just been sleeping on.

[stormbelow]

"Yeah."

Arashi sinks down carefully next to him, sitting on the edge of the cushion in case he needs to jump up again. His whole body is basically half-tensed for exactly that.

[fuckvampires]

An explosion of anger was the last thing on his mind. Maybe if it was Brisbane. Or Lilith. Anyone but her. He'd built up such a careful distance, such a careful image of her in his head. He didn't know if he could stand that being destroyed.

"I... w-what was she like?"

[stormbelow]

"She looks like you." It was something he'd only noticed after the fact, but looking back now, he can't believe he didn't see it sooner. "I didn't realize it until I knew who she was, but I couldn't not see it after that. I probably... hm, didn't make a very good first impression, and I didn't stay long, but..."

He slides his other hand over Harvestman's, thinking about it. "She seems healthy. Quick instincts, but she didn't immediately go into some kind of panic mode when she saw me. And she was apparently still in contact with Gabriel, who was apparently willing to tell her my name but not who I was. You can sort of tell that she's the... deputy, if that makes sense."

[fuckvampires]

"Think you'd be hard to explain," he says, voice distant. His fingers clench when Arashi touches him, but he doesn't try to touch him back. He'd probably break something.

It's awhile, a few minutes of staring at the floor, before he speaks again. "I've never heard her speak."

[stormbelow]

It's a few minutes more, before Arashi answers, but he hasn't once looked away from Harvestman the whole time.

He asks it very quietly, "Do you think you may have put it off for long enough?"

[fuckvampires]

His eyes flickered with the usual anger, but he keeps his gaze on the ground. "She know what you are?"

[stormbelow]

He nods. "She knew right away."

[fuckvampires]

Harvestman grimaces. Even he could miss the mark on who was or wasn't a vampire in a nexus, the nature of the place threw him off. A good Hunter never missed. "And?"

[stormbelow]

"And nothing. I told you, she has good instincts but she didn't panic, she didn't treat me as an immediate threat, just as a stranger who could be." He wrinkles his nose with displeasure. "Then Gabriel got involved and made me something relevant. If I'd known it was her, honestly, I... wouldn't have stuck around as long as I did."

[fuckvampires]

"Got involved?"

[stormbelow]

"He was texting her. Told her to ask my name, when I wouldn't tell her she took my picture and sent it to him." Which still annoys him, whenever he thinks about it. "He told her I was okay, she wanted to know why, but she said that she doubted he would explain if she asked."

[fuckvampires]

His mouth twitched. Smiling might lead to hysteria, but the annoyance in Arashi's voice almost made it worth it. His explanation didn't clarify anything about the exchange - his mental image was blank, lacking in movement and sound a picture couldn't provide. "Smart."