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 Posted: Mon Jul 07, 2014 7:00 pm
The sun was setting.
Harland had tried to coordinate their plans just so, in the hopes that they could meet at the training grounds when it was quieter, and cooler, once the heat had drained away from the landscape and it would be a bit harder to see.
Harland had, just in case, brought his own candles. Fighting by some light was better than none, perhaps? He didn't intend to fight Alistaire in the usual sense.
No, he'd been putting a lot of thought into the choreography of their movements in fights: he had decided that their styles were entirely conducive to one another. Harland was good for grabbing things from far away, bringing them close. Alistaire was faster than Harland was, he believed, and those knives and chains could surely be put to good use.
This was why Harland wanted to bring Alistaire to the training field at night, to show him what he had figured out, and to hope that Alistaire might consider employing it in the future.
Harland wanted them both to be safe, and he believed that if they could work this style, practice footwork, placement, figure out how to move together as fluidly as possible then there would be no gaps. No weaknesses.
In time, perhaps Harland would stop being afraid of Alistaire dying. Perhaps he would have to stop trying so hard to make sure he, himself, stayed alive. Besides, it couldn't hurt to have more reasons to touch him. Hopefully the field would stay empty, for that very reason.
Harland leaned one broad shoulder on a post in the training field, looking up at the darkening sky, and smiling to himself as he slowly went through all his mental photographs of Alistaire.
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Posted: Mon Jul 07, 2014 11:05 pm
He had tried very hard not to think about his growing attachment to Harland Leander Belle, but this was rendered entirely impossible by Alistaire's one-track, well-organized mind. He could sort things into careful categories, and put things where they belonged, but Harland was special and did not fit into any category that Alistaire could think of.
In spite of his conflicted nature, he was surprisingly grateful for Harland's late-night invitation. The training field was a public area, but it was doused in shadows from the darkness, and it was a place where Alistaire felt more comfortable than many. This late at night, it was highly doubtful there would be others on the field besides themselves, which meant that Alistaire would not have to worry about unwanted prying eyes and judgmental stares.
He was dressed, of course, in his usual attire, but Alistaire had left off his coat for once (it was warm enough to not need one). Black slacks, a black dress shirt, emerald green vest, and a matching tie, and he looked entirely more suited towards attending a party rather than the training fields of Deus Ex Machina.
Harland was already there when he arrived, Alistaire's stomach giving a nervous twinge at the sight of him; but he pulled on his serene expression and stepped up beside him, tilting his head in Harland's direction as a smile played at the corners of his lips.
"Good evening, Mr. Belle."
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Posted: Wed Jul 16, 2014 11:39 am
As Harland heard Alistaire's voice, he felt his heart speed up, and his eyes widen just a fraction before they settled on Alistaire and took him all in again. Harland looked around quickly, seeing if anyone was nearby. He didn't see anyone, and he couldn't help it, just one touch-- Harland slid his broad hand up to cup Alistaire's cheek and jaw briefly, letting his fingers stroke the skin before he turned bright red and took a step back, his voice more raw than he would have liked.
"No matter how many times I see you, I can't get over the way ye look, all sharp an' elegant an' temptin'," Harland laughed at his own words, shaking his head, running a hand through his hair. "Promise I didnae drag ye all the way out here jus' to say's much," he said.
"I've been watchin' the way ye fight, an' I think if we trained together, we could design a style w' nary a hole in it, with your knives an' chains an' my hookshot contraption," Harland suggested. "I was wonderin' if ye'd consider trainin' like that, to be the perfect team?"
Harland was a little weird. He was trying not to let it show, but he didn't consider an end to things a viable option. An option he'd ever have to face. Even if it could be true in moments, he'd keep behaving like they were safe together forever.
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Posted: Wed Jul 16, 2014 9:41 pm
It was fortunately dark enough that Alistaire did not have to be concerned about too many people walking by. That, and they were draped in the shadows of the buildings, hidden from view of most, but that didn't stop the anxiety from rising in his throat all the same. Harland's hand was warm on his face, his fingers gentle, and Alistaire's breath hitched for a moment. He resisted the urge to lean closer, close the gap between them, and instead gave Harland a brief, slightly twisted smile.
"Say what you will, Mr. Belle," he said lightly, and his face was still warm from Harland's touch. "Whether or not it's true remains yet to be seen, but I will give you the benefit of the doubt this time.
His eyebrows raised slightly. He wasn't surprised that Harland had been watching him, but he was surprised that this was what he'd been watching. Alistaire grew more curious, leveling an even look in Harland's direction as he tapped a glove finger against his chin.
"I do believe I would be in agreement of that," he said finally. "I do think my skill would be better put together with someone that actually knew what they were doing, after all."
He smiled faintly. "What did you have in mind?"
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Posted: Wed Jul 16, 2014 10:55 pm
At least Alistaire didn't flinch away. Harland thought back to the times when they'd first started, when even hand to hand was too much. When Alistaire had said show me and Harland had told him to lean on his shoulder. As if that made sense, as if it wasn't going to open Harland's heart right up so Alistaire could walk in and claim it as his own.
Harland needed to hold on so badly that he couldn't imagine ever letting go. Not this time. Surely not now.
"Gracious, mo chroi," Harland joked, with a tip of his hat. His accent and his mannerisms often made him seem less perceptive than he was. He was always studying, remembering, thinking. Filing away information. Especially information about Alistaire.
And he was left basically speechless, about to reply when Alistaire's words sank in: someone that actually knew what they were doing. Somehow, that compliment deeply touched Harland, and he was left starstruck for a moment, smiling stupidly. He cleared his throat, ran a hand through his own hair. And then the faint smile. It was just too much. He stood there watching Alistaire, and swallowing words he wanted to say.
Sometimes, the way you look, the things you do... I can't help but love you.
"I was thinkin' maybe if I stand a bit behind ye generally, I can rope em' in one by one, an pull em right into your waitin' embrace-- the chains, that is-- but .. I'm still tryin' t' think of how we can deal with multiple targets at once," Harland admitted, lost in thought, eyes cast upwards.
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Posted: Thu Jul 17, 2014 11:21 pm
He was learning to bear with it more; it was becoming easier to adapt to the little touches, though they still sent ripples of anxiety and mingled nervousness up and down Alistaire's spine. Still, he was inexplicably drawn to Harland, and that wasn't changing anytime soon, so for now he was content to see where it led.
In a manner of speaking, that was.
He'd made Harland flustered, which was not really that difficult of a feat, but it still amused him somewhat, Alistaire arching a brow. He waited until Harland found words again, and the expression on his face shifted slightly to one more contemplative, Alistaire tapping a gloved finger against his chin.
"An interesting concept," he said musingly, frowning slightly. "You basically do the wrangling and I do the strangling, is that it?"
A pause.
"...it was not my intent to rhyme, however, ironically, that is what happened."
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Posted: Sat Jul 19, 2014 6:34 pm
It wasn't overly difficult to make Harland blush, but making him speechless was an entirely different bag of proverbial cats. Harland could be a little distant with strangers, perhaps, but the second someone started to talk to him it was game over. Alistaire had literally touched his heart so profoundly in that split moment that he had forgotten what he'd meant to say.
He laughed suddenly as Alistaire said he hadn't meant to rhyme. "Couldnae've put it better m'self," Harland agreed, his eyes aglow with amusement and affection. "Maybe the simplest way t' deal with multiple targets if for me to keep 'em at a distance an' off their ... balance?" Harland did a vague gesture with his hands, trying to think of what they could possibly be on since most creatures they fought would probably not have feet in the strictest sense of the word.
"Seems like it might be efficient, if we got a rhythm down. Any thoughts?"
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Posted: Mon Jul 21, 2014 1:00 am
Wrangling and strangling sounded exactly like the sort of thing Harland would say, not Alistaire, and yet it was what had come out of Alistaire's mouth. He lifted a gloved hand and rubbed at his forehead with exasperation; clearly some of Harland's mannerisms had started to wear on him, and that needed to be put to a stop immediately.
He was too relaxed.
"So for multiple targets, would you still stand behind me?" he asked, beginning to walk in a slow, thoughtful circle around Harland, more out of a need to move than anything actually definitive. "While I stab the ones in front, you distract the ones in back, knock them off balance, and keep them off balance until I can get to them, is that right?"
Alistaire stopped and turned to look at Harland, a slightly amused smile on his face.
"I think...that this sounds like a rather interesting idea, Mr. Belle."
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Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2014 6:55 pm
What would Harland do, without Alistaire? Who did he trust to find a rhythm so flawless there was no chance that something could slither between them, snap their threads before they had a chance to really live?
No one. He trusted no one like he trusted Alistaire. Honestly, he trusted Alistaire all the more because he was so comfortable asserting himself and telling Harland what he wanted. Harland didn't have to second-guess Alistaire, didn't have to try to navigate the muddy waters of deciphering whatever it was Alistaire really meant. Well, okay, that was only half true; maybe not in that sense, but in other senses Harland would be left constantly slightly off balance.
Good thing Harland was patient, and trusted that time would give him as sure a footing as anything could. Harland tried not to laugh as Alistaire rubbed his own forehead with exasperation, but he couldn't wipe the cheshire-like grin off his Irish face despite his efforts.
Back to business moments later, however. "If there're targets behind us, my priority'd be herdin' em in one direction so we c'n control their approach I'd guess," Harland suggested. He thought for a moment. "So... more or less a variant o' what ye've just been after sayin', only with worse vocabulary an' in a different accent on my part," Harland agreed, with one of his sunny smiles.
"I'd be controllin', an' ye'd be doin' most of th' executin'," he suggested, "like if I was your bodyguard, but... ye were an assassin?" He was making like zero sense now, he suspected, or it was sounding like a really terrible foreign film with zero budget and a lot of people on very terribly concealed ropes.
Still he was relieved to hear that Alistaire thought it sounded interesting.
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Posted: Tue Aug 12, 2014 1:07 pm
Really, it was the same for Alistaire; there was only one person that he trusted on the island, and that was, of all the crazy people to trust, Harland Leander Belle. He did not even trust his own brother in the way that he trusted Harland, and this was perhaps the most frightening fact of all because it meant that he was putting the entirety of himself into someone else's hands.
"That grin of yours is annoying," Alistaire muttered, but there wasn't any real vehemence to it. He swept a gloved hand through his hair and gave a sigh as he listened. It was a good idea; Harland had clearly thought this through properly, and he was making it so that the pair of them would be able to work together without looking suspicious while simultaneously keeping the both of them alive and in formation.
Alistaire was only irritated that he had not thought of anything like this himself, but that was beside the point.
"So you do the herding," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "You guide and direct them, and I'm the one that does the...executin', as you say. Well, I do admit that it seems a rather interesting idea...I think that it could work out very nicely."
Alistaire passed an amused look in Harland's direction.
"So how do we go about testing this theory of yours, Mr. Belle?"
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Posted: Tue Aug 12, 2014 6:25 pm
Harland ran a hand through his hair, as if mimicking Alistaire unconsciously. He was still grinning. "Ta bron orm," Harland apologized, though the smile didn't budge an inch. He sort of lost the edge on his thoughts, focusing on Alistaire rubbing the back of his neck, and watching his mouth move.
Harland cleared his throat and looked away, suddenly acutely aware he had been a lot more focused on Alistaire's mouth than on the words. He had fully intended to be efficient and businesslike-- and he was learning, the hard way, that he wasn't exactly cut out for that.
"How do we... test it... well, I'd be a liar if I said I wasn't achin' t' make somethin' up right now that'd give me an excuse t' touch you," Harland said, his eyes half-lidded. His face was red. He took a deep breath, and shook his head, trying to clear his mind. "'Sweet was the time to him, and sweet to me. Surely to-day No whim of mine would turn his heart away, No senseless act or speech, do what I may ... My heart is flame, A tempest heat no ice on earth can tame,'" Harland recited, with each word his blush worsened but his voice steadied. He couldn't quite look at Alistaire, however, lest he remember why it was he'd thought of those verses. He stepped past Alistaire, so that his back was to him, and looped his thumb through his belt loop, looking off at the training dummies.
He was trying to find his plans, all those carefully choreographed ideals for their fighting. "We'd need somethin' t' practice on. Mainly, I'm findin' that although I thought I could be calm around you it's not as easy as that, is it," Harland said, quietly at the end, as if amused at himself.
How much had Alistaire changed him, in ways he didn't even fully understand?
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Posted: Tue Aug 12, 2014 6:51 pm
Alistaire, waiting for an answer that had to do with tactics and strategies and positions and proper footing, opened his mouth and then promptly shut it again, his face reddening with each word that Harland spoke. That was most certainly not anything related to what they had been talking about, but annoyingly it wasn't annoying, and Alistaire felt a rush of heat wash over him.
His gaze followed Harland as he moved around to stand with his back to him, Alistaire's eyes narrowing slightly. It was difficult to see him in the darkness of the field, the shadows casting long black shapes across the grass and Harland's back, but he looked oddly impressive silhouetted against the dark.
Alistaire's mouth felt dry. He took a step towards Harland and lifted a gloved hand, gentle fingers resting against the nape of Harland's neck, barely grazing his skin.
"How about this," he said, surprising even himself with the steadiness of his voice, in spite of the confusing array of thoughts rampaging back and forth inside of his head. "For every scenario you come up with - for every practice, you get one minute with me to do...whatever it is that you want."
Alistaire's hand trailed down Harland's back until it fell away entirely. His chest felt tight, but he said quietly, "And for the record, it's not a game, so don't feel as though it is. It's a...compromise. We both would get what we want."
Namely you.
A way for him to be able to be close to Harland without having to constantly make excuses inside of his head, excuses that were becoming flimsier and flimsier the longer he spent with him, because it was getting increasingly more difficult to deny the swell of attraction that he felt towards this man.
A small smile tugged at the corners of Alistaire's lips.
"That way we get both practice in with this theory of yours and...you get something for your time and effort."
And I get to spend more time with you, he wanted to say, but couldn't.
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Posted: Tue Aug 12, 2014 8:19 pm
As he felt Alistaire's gloved fingers rest against his skin, Harland shut his eyes, exhaling a breath he'd held without meaning to. He smiled again, but he thought I'm a damned man twice over. And perhaps more disconcerting, he didn't mind.
It was a boon Harland never could have imagined, this excuse to touch Alistaire, an excuse to take and to earn it on top of that. Harland could get behind a deal like that. He felt Alistaire's hand trail down his back, and only once he felt it fall away, heard those words, could he turn. Harland's gunmetal green eyes were feverish, for a moment, as though the verses he'd spoken were true in a literal sense. That he was flame.
"A deal, mo chroi," Harland said, holding one hand out to shake Alistaire's as if to seal it. At the last moment, Harland leaned in to rest his forehead against where one of Alistaire's collarbones likely was, his mess of sunny hair brushing against him before Harland straightened, forcing himself as best he could to think of training scenarios. He bit down on one thumb, his hand in a fist, eyes cast downwards as if focused on some distant thought, brows furrowed. He managed to draw blood, without noticing, and the taste of it finally made him focus.
"If only there were more o' us," he lamented, with a grin, "I s'pose eventually we should go back into the Sun trainin' an' use that as a real demo, but for now... let's talk about positionin'," Harland suggested, getting the candles out and lightning them one by one, setting them down. He loped back to stand with Alistaire and point at the different candles. "Say it was just the one, an' we could control who was approachin' so they could only get to us from the front-- that's ideal, naturally, but probably not a likely scenario-- still, if I'm gettin' a minute for each one ye can be damn sure I'll cover even the simplest," Harland said, with a laugh. "Say it was just the one-- would ye prefer I let it advance all natural, or shall I pull it forward with Coyote?"
Harland was looking to Alistaire for his preference, now, for his input. What pace was best for Alistaire?
The second Harland looked at Alistaire again, really looked at him, he started to lose focus again. It was really damn hard not to look at Alistaire's mouth, his jaw, his clean sharp lines and not want to pull their bodies together again. All the things Alistaire liked, all that rawness to him-- Harland thought again of the box hidden under his pillow, the gift he'd bought in Galway, and he smiled to himself.
He hoped one day he could let Alistaire in on the secret.
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Posted: Tue Aug 12, 2014 10:14 pm
A satisfied smile crept onto Alistaire's face; he had hoped that Harland would accept the deal, because it was easier that way; and this way they could both get what they wanted, even if what Alistaire wanted was something he wouldn't - couldn't say just yet. He saw the feverish look in Harland's eyes and it made his stomach twist a little, Alistaire drawing in a breath as he felt Harland's head against his neck and collarbone after he shook his hand to seal the deal. Briefly, gently, he allowed himself to rest his gloved fingers against the coppery colored hair before Harland pulled away.
Alistaire's heart was beating very fast; he tried to ignore it.
He watched Harland set the candles up, eyes following the movement of each one as he began to sort through the information beginning to form inside of his head. "Theoretically, perhaps, it might be easier if we had more people," he said in agreement, but then added, "But I am content to work only with you for now."
He shifted his feet, trying to gauge the best position of himself in relation to both Harland and the candles - or rather, what the candles represented. Alistaire straightened and cast a sideways glance over at the man in question, catching the intensity of his stare, an intensity that made his pulse quicken.
"Pull forward with Coyote first," Alistaire instructed, facing forward again so that he wasn't distracted, but it was hard to concentrate properly. "And then I will advance."
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Posted: Wed Aug 13, 2014 12:01 pm
Harland was pretty sure Alistaire would always be the one with just a little more control of the situation. Harland also didn't mind that. If that was all it took to make Alistaire feel more comfortable, Harland would gladly let Alistaire make his machinations. "I'd rather keep it just to us," Harland agreed. Not just because they were more content this way, but also because Harland didn't want to explain their secrets to anyone else. Harland didn't want a third person in the equation. That would ruin all of the symmetry, all the beautiful designs.
Harland nodded, serious again. "Alright," he said. He realized suddenly that he couldn't quite demonstrate on the candles, so this would just work for the positioning part of the demos. "So that'd be for one, now if there're three advancin' what I can do is pull one ahead..." Harland made an almost pistol-like gesture with his fingers, held his arm out, and with a clean motion immitated as though he was whipping Coyote out at the middle candle. "an' then I could sweep the others to the side an' deal with keepin' 'em at bay," he suggested.
"Unless ye've got a better idea?" which wasn't a challenge, but rather an opportunity for input.
After a pause, Harland added: "I can save my minutes up, right?" his voice thick, a blush across his face again.
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