[Thread: Dark and Vincent]

[and_it_aches]

Who: Dark (scarred_dark) and Vincent Valentine (and_it_aches)
What: ... I don't know if I should say 'hanging out'?
Where: Library
When: Nows? Today? D:
Rating: I wouldn't think it'd get over G.

Comments

[scarred_dark]

Dark had been in the library for some time now. Ever since Mahaado had brought him here almost a month before, it'd become one of his favorite places besides his room. It was warm and cozy, and while the lighting was brighter than he would have liked, the smells of age and the sounds of real people chatting quietly was enough to compensate the loss

[and_it_aches]

Vincent looked up sharply at that harsh whisper, in mid turn of a page. He relaxed when he realised it was Dark, and nodded without hesitation. "Certainly," he murmured, gesturing with his chin to one of the empty chairs.

He returned to his book, though kept an eye on Dark. It seemed the boy was doing better, something that relieved him despite barely knowing him. They had some sort of connection, though, something to which Vincent felt he could relate, so Vincent did not shun away Dark's company.

[scarred_dark]

Dark, in turn, noticed that Vincent seemed to be doing better. When they'd last met, he'd seemed to be carrying some sort of shadow around with him that was not entirely his own. Now, however, Dark could hear a difference. Vincent sounded better.

Dark clambered up onto the tall chair directly across from Vincent and got right to work, laying out the different pieces of paper he'd collected and sorting them into an order that only he really understood. Eventually he was happy with their arrangement and flipped a particularly large piece over and started to copy things down.

He held the pencil much like a child does when they're still learning about the use of their thumbs. He also wrote rather slowly, knowing that if he sped up, his awkward lettering would become too jumbled for anyone, even himself, to read.

[and_it_aches]

A comfortable silence settled between them, Vincent with his reading and Dark with his writing, Vincent every so often glancing across to the boy, more so focusing on his hand then the writing itself. Holding it like that--it would end up causing cramps in the hand, would it not? He shifted, taking note of the page in his book before closing it and speaking.

"Do you always hold your pencil like that?" he questioned softly, not at all condescending, just curious.

[scarred_dark]

Dark looked up, confused. He lifted his hand and looked at the way he was holding his pencil, then looked back at Vincent.

"Uh-huh."

With the way Vincent said it--Dark had never actually considered that there might be an alternative. He hoped he wasn't doing it wrong. But... Was there a wrong way to hold the pencil? Dark wasn't sure.

"Is Dark doing it wrong?" he voiced his question aloud to the man across from him.

[and_it_aches]

"Not wrong, but perhaps with some discomfort," Vincent replied, setting down his book on the table. He scanned the area briefly, and as there happened to be a lone pencil left on the surface, he plucked it up and held it appropriately in his right hand as one would normally.

"Perhaps it would be easier for you to write, should you hold it like so."

[scarred_dark]

"Does make Dark's hand hurt..." he agreed remembering all those times he'd managed to break his pen with his odd writing style. The only reason he'd kept writing after that was because of all the people he got to talk to.

Dark looked at the way Vincent was holding it. He turned his head to a few different angles, trying to figure out just what it was Vincent was doing. Then he turned his attention back to his own hand, moving the pencil around, trying to get it to look the way it did in Vincent's hand.

"Ow." he said with little feeling, "that's weird. Hold on."

It took almost a full minute for Dark to figure it out, but eventually, he held up his own hand next to Vincent's to see if he was doing it right.

"Like this?"

[and_it_aches]

"Bend your thumb," Vincent corrected swiftly with a curt nod of his head. Once Dark was holding it correctly, he gathered up his book once more and leant back in his chair, returning to his page.

"What is it you are writing?" he questioned, not looking up from the pages.

[scarred_dark]

Dark tried his best to memorize the way his hand held the pencil, since he'd have to let go of it again eventually. He tried writing a little bit, but it felt odd, and much different than what he was used to.

"A song." he said, letting a bit of pride show through his voice, "It's really short right now, but Dark'll make it longer. It's a..." He looked up, trying to remember the word, "...Lul--Lullaby. It's a lullaby."

A few scribbled words later, and Dark felt like he was starting to get the hang of it. Maybe it was just optimism, but his writing was starting to look a little neater, too.