[Thread] When You Need It The Most

[invisikid]

Characters: OU Naoki Kashima, AU Lyle Norg
Where: First in front of the first building, then around the compound
When: Early Afternoon
Summary: After a brief scare where Lyle thought the Demi-Fiend had vanished, the pair decide to go for a walk.
Warnings: Fluff, flirting, awkward; the usual with these two.

Comments

[invisikid]

"Violent? Well..." He paused, considering. "I did kind of feel like..." He raised his free hand again, curling his fingers a mimicry of catlike claws and wiggling them ominously, making a face. "A fish in a fish bowl." But it was all in jest. Sure, the demon had made him a little wary, but she'd been well behaved. So he laughed afterwards, attempting to reassure Naoki. "So she went through your stuff..." It was such an amusing idea, especially when it was embarrassing. His smell being all over Naoki's room, clothes... They'd been close enough for so long that their scents intermingled like that, and it was just now that they held hands, acted like whatever sort of couple or pair they were.

The sun was bright, but there were patches of rolling clouds shifting shadows over the Econtrian buildings. One managed to crawl between the bright rays and the city below, covering it with a darker chill that would only blow away in a few minutes. Lyle observed this event absently, tugging the last bit of his jacket's zipper up. It smelled like the month, something distinctly October that became prominent in the temporary shade; like leaves and grass and smoke. "...I missed fall last year. I was on a mission most of the time, or stuck in HQ." It wasn't really a conversation starter, more of a musing outside of general talk, on the brim of thought and just easy to pass the lips. Their elbows bumped, crossing and there was the sound of Naoki's skin against his jacket. It wasn't an embarrassing noise, but it still made him suddenly aware of heat in general; on his cheeks and flaring against his hand where gloved and bared fingers laced.

He hummed, a few bars of a strained tune, not carried properly and just loud enough to blend with the air and rustling of leaves.

[hands_of_reason]

He chuckled at the pantomime claws. "She's like that to everyone, really. I only put up with her because I needed an extra hand before I took on the Assembly of Nihilo." After a pause, he added, "A group trying to set up a Reason. They almost killed everyone Ikebukuro for their own gain." It wasn't something he'd thought about in a long time, but remembering it brought a sour taste to his mouth. They were going to kill all the demons in the Mantra building just to have their Magatsuhi... And he was so close to destroying the Nightmare System when he was pulled here! He had Ose right under his thumb; it would have all been over...

Naoki shook his head to get rid of the thoughts, coming back just soon enough to catch Lyle's comment on fall. "Then enjoy it now. No one's going to take it from you here." It was a feeling he could relate to, having missed who knows how many seasons since the world ended. "It is a nice day, really. I'm glad you're with me to see it." He offered the Legionnaire a smile, feeling his earlier anxiety settle into the rhythm of their walking and the faint swing of their arms.

[invisikid]

"...I am too." The Legionnaire returned the smile shyly, shifting his grip as if reassuring himself their hands were still connected. Sometimes it was easy to just feel the blend of their pulses and hold and warmth and not feel the individual fingers. Especially after hearing more about Naoki's world, his burden. He'd seen that look, the one that the Demi-Fiend got when he was thinking about something painful and was keeping it to himself. But Lyle hesitated to press it. How often did they have such a calm moment like this, only for it to collapse into some twist of their separate dark pasts? They were in a war, they were going back home to wars in their own sense, and who knew when another battle would start. So he decided to be terribly selfish, impulsive and needy.

They had arced around the fountain area, past his own rooms and now their steps slowed as the end, and the empty lot, appeared. Through it was the park. Here was a point for them to separate, and his brain entertained the image of his unfinished work. Easily it was over run with a simple tightening of their hold on one another. He didn't want to leave Naoki, not yet at least. Lyle blushed. When had he started feeling such impulses? They'd barely had one date, and that alone had only been considered a date near the end, once they'd kissed. But then again, their time alone together had built up whatever emotions he was feeling now.

"We can... go to the park now. Or you can come up to my room." Wait...Wait! What did that imply? He made a strained noise, going red again and covering it as much as he could with his free hand. "Sprock. I-I mean up to Nyi-Eski."

[hands_of_reason]

Honestly, he didn't want to ever think of that world again. He never wanted to see it again. The only reason he was even willing to go back was to fix the huge mistake he'd made in allowing Yuko to kill everyone. If that hadn't been weighing on his shoulders, he'd make every plea and bargain in the book to escape returning to his Vortex World, that horrible place he'd never be able to look at the same way again. He'd have to live knowing that every single one of those people had died because he didn't stop her, and he'd have to live that life without Lyle around to make that burden lighter. The Legionnaire was honestly a blessing, and he was already starting to wonder how he'd be able to keep going without that support.

Naoki hadn't even been paying attention to the areas they passed, his attention diverted elsewhere, though he felt a certain resistance to parting so soon. Maybe it was just that he hadn't seen Lyle in a few days, or maybe it was worry that he had to get in as much time with him as possible in case one went away and didn't return. Just the week Lyle had left for had been painful, even in his Fiend state before he was aware that it was more than a desperate need to cling to his only friend that made it hurt like it did.

He sighed and leaned against him a little, putting their heads together. "Can I go with you?" It was more of a little begging than his usual way of asking- when he did ask, anyway. Naoki didn't want to make him late for whatever it was he had to do, or get in the way of his work, but he didn't want to say goodbye, either.

[invisikid]

The sudden change in proximity had him reeling, the flush never managing to recede even when the Demi-Fiend wasn't enforcing it at all. "Sure," Honestly, the papers didn't seem so important anymore. Not so much when Naoki had that odd edge in his voice and was all the closer. He stood and basked a moment, that strange and not too unpleasant feeling squirming in his stomach. "You're more then welcome..." He pressed, closing his eyes. "It might be boring though."

But he couldn't imagine sitting and working, leaving his friend, his boyfriend to sit and watch. No, the work was shot. And he didn't care at all. He could go through the motions, but nothing would be added or changed to his already complete formulas. If Naoki let him, he would tug softly at the other teens hand, and lead him back to the 2nd building, where they would ascend the stairs towards Nyi-Eski.

[hands_of_reason]

Naoki just shook his head a little. "Thank you. I don't mind." Just sitting in a quiet corner of the room, watching like a prop against the background, would be better than going back to Ast-Okto and standing around the empty apartment. He was sure that he wouldn't feel much like walking around again, either. "Besides, how could I be bored being with you?" In all the times they'd hung out, he really hadn't found himself to be bored. Besides, there was plenty one could do through just staring, as he'd found out.

He would offer no resistance to the pull, following Lyle through the building and up the stairs obediently, slight elation already working previous anxiety away. No doubt he would have felt guilty if he knew his company would ruin the Legionnaire's earlier plans, but secretly glad he could work himself so easily into the younger's schedule, fed by that bit of possessiveness he harbored. "I won't get in the way."

[invisikid]

He tipped his chin down, feigning focusing on unlocking Nyi-Eski but really he was hiding his darkening blush behind his hair and jacket collar, still upturned. "You're never in the way." The key turned in the slot, and a seemingly empty apartment greeted them.

The Legionnaire walked in, unbuttoning his jacket before tugging off one of his gloves with his teeth; they were always too difficult to get off with each hand still clad. Expecting the other teen to follow, he tossed the outside clothes into his room carelessly, walking to the living area and placing his hands on his hips thoughtfully. "There's some snacks, and I think someone requested some hot chocolate mix earlier. You want anything?" Or maybe the Demi-Fiend wanted some ice-cream to go along with that shirtless walk in October. The idea wasn't so preposterous, he recognized as it made him grin.