[Ficlet] Jet-Black Mirror - Engraved Invitation
Title: Engraved Invitation
Character/s: Mikey Way, Gerard Way,Frank Iero
A/N: Set after the band filmed the video for 'Vampires'. Part of a Buffy the Vampire Slayer/ My Chemical Romance crossover. Rough cut.
Gerard is the one who knocks. Mostly because Mikey is hanging back in the shadows, radiating disapproval. Gerard grits his teeth and tries to ignore the weight of his brother's emotions as they drift through him. It's not easy, it's like ignoring his own thoughts, something he's never been able to do. Sure, he'd been able to drown them sometimes, mute them a little, but never shut them down completely. And these aren't his thoughts - it's Mikey.
He knocks harder, leaving indents in the cheap wood of the door.
"Fuck, hang on."
Just hearing Frank's voice sets Gerard on high alert. His hearing ramps up - he can hear the creaks and groans of the apartment, how the neighbor downstairs is settling in for the night, muttering curses at the TV. Scent's next - cold and heavy tannic bite of autumn, exhaust. There's a draft, it shouldn't smell so much like the outside in a building, and Gerard feels a spike of rage over Mikey having to live somewhere this close to falling apart. He smells pizza - several types, of varying ages - dish soap, the musky scent of Frank's dirty laundry, marinating in old sweat. The last is odd, since Frank, former dreadlocks aside, is by far the cleanest of them.
Frank swings the door open and blinks in surprise. Gerard unearths a smile.
"Gee?"
"Hey Frankie."
At the greeting, Frank's shoulders slump with relief, then tighten again as Frank gets pissed.
"Where the fuck have you been? First Mikey vanishes, then you disappear and I... we thought..."
He shivers, pausing to take a shaky breath. Gerard's fingers twitch on the door frame. He wants to touch Frank, to comfort him, to feel the flutter of his pulse under his fingertips... Gerard tears his eyes away from the steady temptation of Frank's jugular. He hopes he looks contrite and not hungry.
"I know. I'm sorry that you were worried. I went looking for Mikey and left my phone behind."
"There are other phones in the world, Gee. Fuck. Fuck!"
Frank lashes out, hits the wall next to the door. The faint scent of iron reaches Gerard. His mouth starts watering.
"Frank. I found him."
He freezes and looks up at Gerard with wide-eyed hope.
"What? Where? Where is he? Is he okay?"
"I've never been better."
Frank starts in surprise as Mikey steps closer to the door.
"Mikeyway. You motherfucker, we thought you were dead."
"I was. It didn't stick."
"Ha-fucking-ha." Frank glared at Mikey, scrubbing his hand through his cropped hair.
"Can we come in?" Gerard asked. He stares at the scorpion on Frank's neck and tries to not drool outright.
"Can you come in? What the fuck, of course. Mikey lives here, Gerard, in case you'd forgotten."
Gerard shrugged, and can't tear his eyes away. Mikey plants a bony elbow in Gerard's side.
"Way to be subtle, Gee." he mutters low, under his breath. "We weren't sure of our welcome, so..."
"Get your asses in here right now." Frank says with a scowl. "I gotta call Schetcher and let him know that you've re-surfaced. I am not taking your ass chewing for you."
Despite the anger, as soon as they enter the apartment, Frank's hugging them both, his arms so tight if they still needed to breathe, the breath would have been pushed right out of them. For the first time since he's been turned, Gerard feels the familiar warmth curling through him, the connection he carries to Frank and to the rest of his band. Mine, he thinks, and breathes Frank in. He relaxes a little, feels Mikey relax too. They end up tumbling together on the couch, reassuring phone calls forgotten, letting Frank manhandle them into prime cuddling positions. Gerard trades a look with Mikey. He stares back, and then nods slightly. Frank curls around Gerard, hooking his chin on his shoulder.
"You showered recently."
"Yeah."
"Gee, where have you been?" he said quietly, all the worry bare in his voice.
"He was with me. I was watching out for him." Mikey said, his voice equally soft.
"But where were you?"
"I told you, Frank."
Frank snorted, and burrowed his chin into the meat of Gerard's shoulder. Gerard grinned and shifted around under the pressure. Frank felt like a furnace at his back.
"Yeah, yeah. Dead, but you got better."
"Exactly."
"Brian's not going to buy that."
"I think you'll be surprised."
This entry was originally posted at http://crowgirl13.dreamwidth.org/588971.html. If possible, I prefer comments there.
Character/s: Mikey Way, Gerard Way,Frank Iero
A/N: Set after the band filmed the video for 'Vampires'. Part of a Buffy the Vampire Slayer/ My Chemical Romance crossover. Rough cut.
Gerard is the one who knocks. Mostly because Mikey is hanging back in the shadows, radiating disapproval. Gerard grits his teeth and tries to ignore the weight of his brother's emotions as they drift through him. It's not easy, it's like ignoring his own thoughts, something he's never been able to do. Sure, he'd been able to drown them sometimes, mute them a little, but never shut them down completely. And these aren't his thoughts - it's Mikey.
He knocks harder, leaving indents in the cheap wood of the door.
"Fuck, hang on."
Just hearing Frank's voice sets Gerard on high alert. His hearing ramps up - he can hear the creaks and groans of the apartment, how the neighbor downstairs is settling in for the night, muttering curses at the TV. Scent's next - cold and heavy tannic bite of autumn, exhaust. There's a draft, it shouldn't smell so much like the outside in a building, and Gerard feels a spike of rage over Mikey having to live somewhere this close to falling apart. He smells pizza - several types, of varying ages - dish soap, the musky scent of Frank's dirty laundry, marinating in old sweat. The last is odd, since Frank, former dreadlocks aside, is by far the cleanest of them.
Frank swings the door open and blinks in surprise. Gerard unearths a smile.
"Gee?"
"Hey Frankie."
At the greeting, Frank's shoulders slump with relief, then tighten again as Frank gets pissed.
"Where the fuck have you been? First Mikey vanishes, then you disappear and I... we thought..."
He shivers, pausing to take a shaky breath. Gerard's fingers twitch on the door frame. He wants to touch Frank, to comfort him, to feel the flutter of his pulse under his fingertips... Gerard tears his eyes away from the steady temptation of Frank's jugular. He hopes he looks contrite and not hungry.
"I know. I'm sorry that you were worried. I went looking for Mikey and left my phone behind."
"There are other phones in the world, Gee. Fuck. Fuck!"
Frank lashes out, hits the wall next to the door. The faint scent of iron reaches Gerard. His mouth starts watering.
"Frank. I found him."
He freezes and looks up at Gerard with wide-eyed hope.
"What? Where? Where is he? Is he okay?"
"I've never been better."
Frank starts in surprise as Mikey steps closer to the door.
"Mikeyway. You motherfucker, we thought you were dead."
"I was. It didn't stick."
"Ha-fucking-ha." Frank glared at Mikey, scrubbing his hand through his cropped hair.
"Can we come in?" Gerard asked. He stares at the scorpion on Frank's neck and tries to not drool outright.
"Can you come in? What the fuck, of course. Mikey lives here, Gerard, in case you'd forgotten."
Gerard shrugged, and can't tear his eyes away. Mikey plants a bony elbow in Gerard's side.
"Way to be subtle, Gee." he mutters low, under his breath. "We weren't sure of our welcome, so..."
"Get your asses in here right now." Frank says with a scowl. "I gotta call Schetcher and let him know that you've re-surfaced. I am not taking your ass chewing for you."
Despite the anger, as soon as they enter the apartment, Frank's hugging them both, his arms so tight if they still needed to breathe, the breath would have been pushed right out of them. For the first time since he's been turned, Gerard feels the familiar warmth curling through him, the connection he carries to Frank and to the rest of his band. Mine, he thinks, and breathes Frank in. He relaxes a little, feels Mikey relax too. They end up tumbling together on the couch, reassuring phone calls forgotten, letting Frank manhandle them into prime cuddling positions. Gerard trades a look with Mikey. He stares back, and then nods slightly. Frank curls around Gerard, hooking his chin on his shoulder.
"You showered recently."
"Yeah."
"Gee, where have you been?" he said quietly, all the worry bare in his voice.
"He was with me. I was watching out for him." Mikey said, his voice equally soft.
"But where were you?"
"I told you, Frank."
Frank snorted, and burrowed his chin into the meat of Gerard's shoulder. Gerard grinned and shifted around under the pressure. Frank felt like a furnace at his back.
"Yeah, yeah. Dead, but you got better."
"Exactly."
"Brian's not going to buy that."
"I think you'll be surprised."
This entry was originally posted at http://crowgirl13.dreamwidth.org/588971.html. If possible, I prefer comments there.