[open] serve me the sky tonight

[alphaophiuchi]

WHO Draco Malfoy and OPEN.
WHAT Fantasy week takes its toll.
WHERE Hell House, the hostel, the streets...wherever, really.
WHEN Wednesday through Sunday. Please specify if you want a certain day.
WARNINGS Deathly Hallows spoilers? I'll edit as necessary

Comments

[alphaophiuchi]

He'd been able to keep himself relatively calm during the explanation - as calm and objective as he could manage, at least - but as the topic began to slide back to his Mark, he'd begun to shake visibly again. He knew that it was of his own doing, that it was his decision to say anything at all, and that there was a few doses of a calming drought somewhere in his room. At the same time, he knew that it was good to have allies in this place, where people didn't see him just for the supposed injustices he'd performed upon people: Draco focused on that small point - that Ianto would defend him as long as he didn't do anything. That no matter what people said past this point, as long as Draco did nothing to jeopardise Ianto's trust, he would probably have it

[alphaophiuchi]

He shook his head plainly, more than eager to not be left alone more than anything else; of any proffered company, Ianto's was probably best. He always seemed to have a calming sort of effect on Draco that allowed him to relax a little bit more than with others.

"I don't mind." He didn't even really care. Company was company, even if they were his boss. And apparently the boss that cared enough to actually take time from his busy day to come by. Draco even offered a small snigger at the Owen remark, "You're right, really. Could be worse, though; I don't find him that bad."

[torchwoodteaboy]

Ianto nodded. "Yeah, it could be worse. Owen's not so bad, all things considered. He's actually a nice guy, under all that gruff sarcasm and caustic joking. He's been a good friend and business partner, in this city." He smirked slightly. "But that doesn't mean that he still doesn't have his moments, even so."

Ianto looked around Draco's apartment, silently wondering if there was a coffee maker. Brewing coffee always made him and everyone else feel more comfortable and at ease, in his experience.

[alphaophiuchi]

"Of course not. Everyone has their moments," Draco replied lightly, still looking a tad wary; he glanced where Ianto did, trying to see what he was looking for. It escaped him momentarily, and he simply stayed silent on that point, moving back to the topic of Hellsing. "Dare I ask how you got into the profession? I don't imagine you woke up one morning and said 'I ought to start a supernatural protection...thing'."

[torchwoodteaboy]

Ianto shook his head with a smile. "No, I didn't," he said. "And I certainly never thought that I'd end up in charge of the organization like this either. Here," he said, with a nod towards the kitchen. "D'you have a coffee maker? Or a kettle? I could put some coffee or tea on, and then if you're interested in hearing it, I could tell you how I did end up the teaboy in charge of the supernatural protection force."

[alphaophiuchi]

He actually did have a coffee maker, though it was sorely ignored for his own lack of skills in the area. "Both, in fact." Draco started to rise from the couch when his knees decided they wanted nothing to do with that; he replaced himself on the couch and gestured in. "Kettle should be on the counter. The coffee maker...should be nearby it."

Truth be told, he would be lying if he said he wasn't interested in hearing more about Ianto. There was something almost reassuring about hearing that things didn't have to go exactly as planned, and yet...would still probably work out in the end.

[torchwoodteaboy]

Ianto found the coffeemaker and filled it up with water, looking around and finding a bag of coffee (unopened) as well. Measuring out the right amount, he set the coffee to brewing - it wasn't going to be spectacular but it was going to be coffee - before turning back to Draco.

"Alright, well. How did I get to be where I am now? I suppose we could start with Torchwood. That's where I used to work. I mean. I was just the archivist, and all I did in the beginning was archive and make coffee, but. Torchwood...was an organization established by the crown to defend the planet against the threat of alien attack. So I guess that you could say...while this is not exactly the same thing, I'm used to this sort of environment. The one you find at Hellsing, that is."

[alphaophiuchi]

If Ianto was brewing it, it would automatically be better than anything Draco made. The blond watched from the corner of his eye thoughtfully until he was addressed again, remaining otherwise silent - as if not speaking or moving would allow him to drift into the unnoticed background.

"Torchwood. Never heard of it." But it wasn't that surprising. What was was that Ianto had experience with what they did at Hellsing, give or take a little. Draco couldn't hide his mild bemusement at that. "Is the planet often threatened by alien attack?"

[torchwoodteaboy]

"More often than you'd think," he said, with a small smile. "Too often, in fact. And there were only five of us, working there. It was cozy, and we were all friends, but. Well, it was a dangerous job, and things went wrong. People died." He paused, watching the coffee brew, before continuing. "I died. And woke up here." He shrugged. "Needless to say, it was a bit of a surprise. Not unwelcome, though. I'd rather be here than, well..." he trailed off, shrugging again.

[alphaophiuchi]

When what he thought was an innocent question turned quickly into him actually getting to know Ianto - not just what he did - his eyes went slightly wider; Draco could follow the train of thoughts leading to why Ianto wanted to be there in Bete Noire. They weren't terribly unlike the blond's own reasons, though for a slightly different motive. Most of the emotions seemed to be about the same. "I can only imagine," he replied quietly, curling up slightly where he sat. "Protecting the world from...aliens-" A bit of a ridiculous notion, but considering he himself lived down the hall from an alien? Perhaps not. "-sounds as though it would be...dangerous. They're probably not overly friendly."

[torchwoodteaboy]

"Apparently not, for the amount of times they tried to invade," Ianto said, with a shrug. "Anyway, then I ended up here, got a job at the archives in the police station, got hired by Hellsing as well and was working between the two of them when Integra disappeared and put Owen and myself in charge and well. Here I am now." He turned, handing Draco a mug of freshly brewed coffee. "Here you are, then."

[alphaophiuchi]

He couldn't much argue with the breezing nature of the explanation, like it didn't need much more to it: it really didn't, either. Draco had to admit, the barest bones of the tale were roughly all that was needed to explain everything. He accepted the coffee with a twitch of a smile and a grateful nod, then simply took a sip of it, letting its warmth wash over him momentarily. "Bloody good, even with my limited supplies."

[torchwoodteaboy]

Ianto shrugged. "It's a hobby," he said, with a smile. "I'm glad you like it, though. It's part of the reason I was hired by Torchwood back in the very beginning of things, so. I guess you could say it's more of a passion now than a hobby exactly."

[alphaophiuchi]

"Always nice to have hobbies you can make something of," he murmured thoughtfully, thinking back to his potions practice and how it had apparently become what he did as well. He had just unintentionally said he was a bit better than he was; the fact that he wasn't failing, and hadn't yet killed anyone merely proved that perhaps he wasn't as bad as he thought. "At least you haven't moved away from it."

[torchwoodteaboy]

Ianto smiled, shaking his head. "I don't think that they'd let me, even if I wanted to. In case you haven't noticed," he said, with a bit of a smirk, "but my coffee's pretty good. I might even go so far as to say that it's in high demand."

[alphaophiuchi]

"I can only imagine," Draco offered, managing to chuckle. He didn't regret letting Ianto in, nor letting him stay, and the feeling of gratefulness was swelling if anything. "So even here, with Hellsing, a subtitle of your occupation is 'coffee maker'."