I need a hit, baby, give me it~ ♥ [closed]

[futariniousama]

Who: futariniousama and usedlaserbeam.
Where: Out in the streets of Cherrygrove.
When: Backdated about a week to right after all these shenanigans.
Summary: Stealing some alone time for a real reunion, hopefully.
Rating: PG-13 for Niou's mouth, probably.
Log:

Comments

[usedlaserbeam]

[The chaos of the evening had been pleasant in its own way, even for someone like Yagyuu, who vastly prefers to have things quiet and neat and orderly. It was the ruckus that came with too many bodies in too small of a space, of too many excited, chattering teammates all reunited in the same place and elated to be together again. The energy, the enthusiasm, the familiarity--yes, all that had been pleasant, and in his own way, he'd enjoyed it.

But neither he nor Niou have ever been ones to let down their guard in public, and so the chaos had come with its disadvantages as well--the most prominent being the implicit distance it had placed between them. So now, with the merriment settling at last, perhaps the opportunity for them to properly greet each other will finally arise. And when Niou catches his eyes, he knows his partner is on the very same wavelength.

So he gives Niou a minute's head start before carefully maneuvering himself off the bed and toward the door himself, silently picking his way around the bodies and clutter on the floor as he makes his way out and into the hall.]

[futariniousama]

[ Niou lingers in the hallway, several doors down, waiting for Yagyuu to show. They've spent six months apart, and a few hours together in the company of others is absolutely not enough to make up for it.

He's frightened, almost, because after half a year, what will be enough? What might either of them do, in the grip of this crushing relief? He sure as hell doesn't know, but thinking about it gets his heart racing, and when the door shuts quietly down the hall, he looks up with a start.

After a glance at his partner, he turns to disappear into the lobby, and from there, out into the night, where there's less need to be quiet. ]

[usedlaserbeam]

[Yagyuu follows at the same comfortable distance, letting Niou have the head start, and only taking care to mark the general direction his partner takes before he disappears from view. Not that it's difficult to guess where he might be going or the path he might take when he does; after all, if there's one thing Yagyuu has a knack for, it's guessing Niou's thoughts.

It's chillier outside now that it's late in the evening, but he's got his jersey to help stave it off, the collar still turned up out of old habit. So he steps into the night and glances around in search of that familiar flash of unruly hair, looking for a sign of where his white rabbit might be taking him next.]

[futariniousama]

[ He's not going too far - out of the inn and across the square, to a bench positioned just barely within range of a streetlamp. He climbs atop it and sits on the back, his feet on the seat, and watches Yagyuu approach. ]

[usedlaserbeam]

[And when he does approach, it's not so much slow as it is unhurried, smooth. A gentleman's walk, in a moment when the rest of his polite veneer is gradually slipping away into the darkness.]

I hope I didn't keep you waiting.

[It isn't just a deliberate echo of their earlier reunion; it's something creeping close to an apology. Six months. It's so much time to make up in a single conversation.]

[futariniousama]

[ Niou exhales softly at that. It's no less difficult a subject to approach than it was earlier, he realizes, and he's no better equipped to handle it now than he was before.

Hands lightly laced, arms resting on his knees, he sits in a slouch and stares at the bench between his feet. He doesn't answer right away, because he isn't sure what the answer is. Yagyuu sure as hell didn't keep him waiting deliberately, but the fact remains that Yagyuu saw him yesterday, and until today, Niou hadn't seen Yagyuu in half a goddamn year. It was by far the longest they've been apart since they met.

Finally, quietly and with no hint of mischief or malice: ]

Not on purpose, anyway.

[usedlaserbeam]

[He'd paused once he'd reached the bench, standing opposite Niou as he waited for his answer, but now he takes his cue to climb on himself, abandoning all pretense to join Niou on the back of the seat. He sits a little straighter than his partner, his posture a little better, but it's still a position he'd never take up if there were prying eyes watching.

Not on purpose. Of course he wouldn't. But that doesn't necessarily make things any better, does it?]

I'm sorry, for what little it's worth. I know it isn't much.

[Because of course, the most he can do is imagine what it was like. He's not the one who had to live it.]

[futariniousama]

No sense in apologizin'; it's not your fault.

[ It's more than Yagyuu thinks, probably, but it isn't enough, all the same. Not when what Niou really wants is the solace of knowing that Yagyuu's been as alone as he has, that he's missed him as badly as Niou missed Yagyuu.

Yagyuu's proximity comes closer to being satisfactory. Niou leans slightly toward him, until their shoulders touch. It's as close as he can get to making that leap from comfortable friendship to some unspecified intimacy, but if Yagyuu were to make the leap for him, for once, Niou wouldn't shy away. Absence does, indeed, make the heart grow fonder. Niou can vouch for that now. ]

[usedlaserbeam]

I wasn't the one who was gone.

[It's a cruel and unfair truth, but it's one they both already know. Yes, he's missed his partner, but he's only had to for days. And it doesn't feel right to have something so unequal set between them, when they've always been so good at balancing each other in everything else.

He doesn't flinch or stiffen when their shoulders connect, but he does tip his head to the side, watching Niou out of the corners of his eyes. Then, after a searching, lingering moment, he adds his own slight nudge to the touch.]

You've kept yourself busy in the meantime, at least.

[futariniousama]

[ That's a bit of a consolation all on its own - that Yagyuu understands what the problem is, that it's not just a matter of having missed Yagyuu, but also of Yagyuu not having missed him. The added comfort of Yagyuu returning his touch is enough to make him drop his head, relaxing.

He speaks quietly still, to the bench below. ]

Blizzards and floods and killer bugs and Team Rocket business.... The place kept me busy.

[usedlaserbeam]

[It would be simpler if he could just ask the question that's been lingering in the back of his mind ever since he learned of the difference in time between them, days ago when he arrived. It's not even a difficult request--nothing more than a simple, straightforward, "Are you all right?" But he can't do it, not yet. Not when it's still too easy to deflect. He can feel Niou relaxing at his side, and the last thing he wants is to take that away from his partner now.]

How did you end up with them?

[futariniousama]

[ He takes a moment to sort out the possible 'them's in question - in a conversation like this one, Yagyuu could very well mean someone who hadn't even been mentioned yet.

But based on tone and inflection, Niou expects he means Team Rocket. That's an easy enough question to answer. It starts with a shrug. ]

When I got here, I turned up in Mahogany Town up north, where the Rocket Base is. Uniform and shit waitin' on the bed for me, and a nice form letter from the boss.

[usedlaserbeam]

And no choice in the matter. How considerate.

[Not that he doubts Niou would find a way to manage through most any situation he found himself in, supposedly dangerous criminals or otherwise. But it is worthy of a note of irritation, this addition of one more experience Yagyuu knows he can't possibly relate to himself.]

And the same went for Yukimura-kun and Fuji-kun, I take it. That's how you all ended up together?

[futariniousama]

Yep. Me and Fuji were in Goldenrod, preppin' for a mission when Yukimura popped up in Mahogany. They flew him down to join us.

[ His speech is coming easier now, but no louder; his voice remains relatively spiritless. It's clear, especially to Yagyuu, that he's tired, if nothing else. ]

Me and Yukimura talked about goin' AWOL - the team's not exactly run by Rikkai standards. They're basically a buncha losers in uniform.

[usedlaserbeam]

I'm sure that could be arranged.

[He leans a little more, another slight nudge. A reassurance, perhaps.]

I doubt they'd look too kindly on my accompanying you for those missions, anyway, poorly-run organization or not.

[futariniousama]

Nah, outsiders aren't on their list of favourite things.

[ He presses into the touch, bringing their shoulders firmly together. No more of this bumping and nudging; he leans against Yagyuu gently and leaves it that way. ]

We could find a way out, though. They're fuck-ups, like I said. Pretty sure Kirihara's smarter than the average Rocket Grunt.