if you were bothering me, tigress, i wouldn't hide it from you
[truthfully speaking, after some of the most recent disappearances - and, despite his unwillingness to face it, everything with jack - he's feeling especially alone here. that kind of thing might pass, but it's mostly up to chance, and he doesn't think it's fair if either one of them puts all of that feeling on the other. but so far it hasn't seemed like she was doing that to him.]
[it's only fair, but he still takes his damn time answering.]
same as you
[it's simply not in him to write out the words I miss them. he might say it to her, if she asked in person, but watching the letters appear one at a time grates like sandpaper on his soul.]
there was a time when i thought survival was the only thing that mattered
Tigers arenāt natural climbers but humans are, and the mix, plus her natural grace means sheās comfortable climbing.
Sheās wearing a bikini top and a pair of cut off jean shorts, which means no tail to give her extra balance. It takes about twenty minutes after that comment for her to head spot heās at, a bag with a snack and a bottle of water looped over her shoulder and her hair tied up in a scarf.
She sits nearby, just a few feet away, and her hands already itch to touch him.]
Give me a kiss?
[She asks, as she looks up at him, taking the bag off her back and offering him the bottle of water.[
[he pauses when he notices her presence, and then resumes while she makes her way to his platform, and then stops again to greet her, leaning in with a little smirk to kiss her. he's already left his shirt draped from a knot in the trunk, even though he hasn't yet worked up a sweat. mostly he seems to be fiddling with the ropes.
he gratefully takes the water.]
Did you come intending to help, or just to keep me company?
[She returns that kiss. She didn't train him to do that, to kiss her whenever they saw each other, but she does suspect that there is a part of him that gets a thrill from it. She wonders if he's ever had anyone who let him be as affectionate as he wanted to be in his entire life.
It tugs her stomach a little.
She smiles up at him.]
I could help, but you know I'm bad at knots and I'm worse at hammers.
[She doesn't really go for finesse when it comes to hammering, preferring, you know. Brutal smashing.]
Not really. Just sit there and look beautiful for me.
[and make sure he hydrates.
he is mostly working with knots at this point. the platform they're on is broader than most of the others on the course, built to hold only one person at a time, maybe two if they both had really good balance. this one is big enough for him to take a seat beside her, at a comfortable distance to letting one leg dangle over the side.]
[She hums a little at the task, and then moves just so she can take her shoes - slip-on sneakers, nothing fancy - off and set them aside. She wiggles her toes as she drops her legs off the side of the platform, and then takes out a breakfast sandwich from her bag. She half unwraps it and holds it out and up for Charles to take a bite before she takes one for herself.
She sits there in silence for a moment.]
You know how I knew I loved you? I mean beyond the fact that I couldnāt get my hands off you and the idea of not having you around made me really mad?
[breakfast sandwiches are one of the greatest inventions of the last three hundred years, change his mind
(that's right, he's older than sandwiches)
the question makes him glance toward her with fond amusement. the charm of these moods on her has shown no signs of wearing off. he doesn't answer, but arches an eyebrow at her with interest.]
[that makes him laugh, at the tail end of it; but he goes quiet pretty quickly, thoughtful over the weight of that. it's hard to imagine someone spending time with him just for the sake of doing it. and yet here daphne is, here she so often is, here she is whenever he wants her to be.
his hands pause with the knots, looking over at her.]
[She lifts her head, and looks a little surprised. It's not like she didn't have feeling for him back then, too. It's not like she didn't know that she could have fallen in love with him, and it wouldn't be hard.
After all. She did.
But it feels odd that it would be him, thinking that, when she had months to think about it and he just-
-left. Disappeared. Went into some black abyss of death where she didn't exist and there was no way that he could have known about her. She thought about it. Missed him.
He came back and loved her. Which means-]
Does that mean you loved me before you left?
[They weren't together for so long, but it's not like it would be unthinkable.
She knows, right to her marrow, that they were meant to be together. That the worlds and universes bent for them to meet. She wants to hold his hand, suddenly, but he's working with them and she really doesn't want to be that kind of distraction right now, so she presses her nose against his bicep in a gesture that's both familiar and loving.]
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Iām not being unreasonable. That isnāt stupid.
[She is not looking to start a fight.
Sheās looking for some reassurance because she doesnāt recognize this feeling.]
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i assumed that sharp nose of yours would tell you which direction i went, but the city can still do a lot with that
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I canāt stalk you. I mean, yes, I can, but I probably shouldnāt.
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Anymore.
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But theyāre honest with each other.]
That youāre the only thing they could take from me that would make me break. That I refuse to be quiet, but I know the cost.
That everyone else they took was warning.
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so like i said. i'll leave a note
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[Typing. Dots. Dots.]
I know I haven't really let you out of my sight much the past few weeks.
Has that bothered you?
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[truthfully speaking, after some of the most recent disappearances - and, despite his unwillingness to face it, everything with jack - he's feeling especially alone here. that kind of thing might pass, but it's mostly up to chance, and he doesn't think it's fair if either one of them puts all of that feeling on the other. but so far it hasn't seemed like she was doing that to him.]
it means something to me, that you're close
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What are you thinking?
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same as you
[it's simply not in him to write out the words I miss them. he might say it to her, if she asked in person, but watching the letters appear one at a time grates like sandpaper on his soul.]
there was a time when i thought survival was the only thing that mattered
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[that's a yes, but he's at the far end of the site, 50 feet up the last tree, constructing the final leg of the course. the heads up seems polite.]
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Tigers arenāt natural climbers but humans are, and the mix, plus her natural grace means sheās comfortable climbing.
Sheās wearing a bikini top and a pair of cut off jean shorts, which means no tail to give her extra balance. It takes about twenty minutes after that comment for her to head spot heās at, a bag with a snack and a bottle of water looped over her shoulder and her hair tied up in a scarf.
She sits nearby, just a few feet away, and her hands already itch to touch him.]
Give me a kiss?
[She asks, as she looks up at him, taking the bag off her back and offering him the bottle of water.[
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he gratefully takes the water.]
Did you come intending to help, or just to keep me company?
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It tugs her stomach a little.
She smiles up at him.]
I could help, but you know I'm bad at knots and I'm worse at hammers.
[She doesn't really go for finesse when it comes to hammering, preferring, you know. Brutal smashing.]
Do you have a Daphne-shaped task?
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Not really. Just sit there and look beautiful for me.
[and make sure he hydrates.
he is mostly working with knots at this point. the platform they're on is broader than most of the others on the course, built to hold only one person at a time, maybe two if they both had really good balance. this one is big enough for him to take a seat beside her, at a comfortable distance to letting one leg dangle over the side.]
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She sits there in silence for a moment.]
You know how I knew I loved you? I mean beyond the fact that I couldnāt get my hands off you and the idea of not having you around made me really mad?
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(that's right, he's older than sandwiches)
the question makes him glance toward her with fond amusement. the charm of these moods on her has shown no signs of wearing off. he doesn't answer, but arches an eyebrow at her with interest.]
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She recognizes his moods and his ease as much as anything. There are times heās not so receptive, but itās never with her.]
It was one day, when I realized that even if you and I spending time together didnāt end in sex, it was still going to be the best part of my day.
[She takes another bite, chews.]
That sitting with you and watching you do something I absolutely have no skill in didnāt bore me like it does with most everyone else.
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his hands pause with the knots, looking over at her.]
Do you know when I knew?
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It wasn't after you fucked me the first time?
[She's teasing, and she takes a sip of his water, and kicks her feet a little.]
Tell me when you knew.
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When I came back. I almost went to find you before Jack.
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After all. She did.
But it feels odd that it would be him, thinking that, when she had months to think about it and he just-
-left. Disappeared. Went into some black abyss of death where she didn't exist and there was no way that he could have known about her. She thought about it. Missed him.
He came back and loved her. Which means-]
Does that mean you loved me before you left?
[They weren't together for so long, but it's not like it would be unthinkable.
She knows, right to her marrow, that they were meant to be together. That the worlds and universes bent for them to meet. She wants to hold his hand, suddenly, but he's working with them and she really doesn't want to be that kind of distraction right now, so she presses her nose against his bicep in a gesture that's both familiar and loving.]
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