He went home afterwards, because, really, what else was there to do? He’d exhausted his magic for the night, and it was getting late, anyway. Zircon and the other captain’s escape - with Bolton in hand, damn it - had coincided with the end of prime patrolling hours. Arkady would be home for another few days before she went back to her wonder, and Babylon would have been a moron to not take advantage of every moment he could spend with her.
That didn’t make tonight any better.
In fact, no matter which way you tried to turn things, tonight ******** sucked.
Finn powered down about a block from Florence Court and stopped into the 24-hour bodega on the corner to buy a six-pack of apple cider and an extra-large chocolate bar. He was going to eat his feelings, god damn it, and they were going to be delicious.
He went home and found Arkady sitting on the kitchen counter, headphones plugged into her laptop. She had a tendency to perch in the weirdest places (like a bird.) Finn waved, and then gestured that she should take her headphones off.
“Tonight ******** sucked,” he said, digging around in the drawer for the bottle opener. “I got alcohol. You want some?”
Shibrogane
Arkady was reading about how one was to properly ******** around with music on the computer. It didn’t really make sense (but then what did) and she thought if she read it three or four more times, maybe it would click? Anyway, she’d decided to let Babylon go patrolling on his own, so he wouldn’t feel like she was coddling him. Even though she was definitely attempting to coddle her hot boyfriend. She tried so hard, and got so far, and in the end, it didn’t even matter.
He came home, and she looked up and smiled, one hand going to the top of her laptop. Finn didn't look that happy, and her smile faded at his pronouncement. "Sure," she said, closing her laptop and hopping off the counter. "What happened, babe?" Arkady folded herself up on the couch and opened her arms, musical ambitions temporarily forgotten. "Come here. Let's talk about it."out it.”
He came home, and she looked up and smiled, one hand going to the top of her laptop. Finn didn't look that happy, and her smile faded at his pronouncement. "Sure," she said, closing her laptop and hopping off the counter. "What happened, babe?" Arkady folded herself up on the couch and opened her arms, musical ambitions temporarily forgotten. "Come here. Let's talk about it."out it.”
Finn nodded wordlessly and settled into her arms, cradling the booze and the bottle opener and the bar of chocolate like it was some kind of incredibly misshapen baby. He offered a bottle to her. “I was out on patrol. Tracking a youma that was picking on a civilian. Normal stuff.” Until it had all gone to hell, anyway. ******** Zircon. What was she even ******** trying to prove by ruining some innocent’s life like that?
“I ran into Castor. We tried to engage the youma, but the civilian powered up into a Pluto page,” he explained. “A new one. She finished off the youma, but there was a captain waiting and another one showed up. We had a stand-off. They grabbed the page and vanished and it’s just so ******** stupid. She’s corrupted by now. I should have been able to do something to stop them.”
He shut himself up with a long sip from his bottle of hard cider. It did not really make him feel better.
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Arkady listened quietly, running her hands over his hair as he rambled. It was clear from the moment the page was introduced where this was going, and… you know, Arkady wasn’t sure how to console him. She kissed his temple, twining her fingers into his hair. “What should you have done,” she asked. It might seem pointed, but she didn’t intend it that way; if there was something to be done, better that he suss out what it was now before the same situation cropped up. “What could you, as Babylon Knight, have done to prevent this from happening?”
She was thinking about his explanation, and there were some missteps that she could see. One of them, of course, was allowing the Captains to live long enough to take the page away. Finn wasn’t a killer, and Castor was Castor, he showboated, that was just how he was. Still--she would have done differently. Maybe no more successfully, but…
“Let’s talk this out,” she encouraged, pressing her lips to his cheek. “Please, babe. It’ll make you feel better.”
She was thinking about his explanation, and there were some missteps that she could see. One of them, of course, was allowing the Captains to live long enough to take the page away. Finn wasn’t a killer, and Castor was Castor, he showboated, that was just how he was. Still--she would have done differently. Maybe no more successfully, but…
“Let’s talk this out,” she encouraged, pressing her lips to his cheek. “Please, babe. It’ll make you feel better.”
Finn reached for the chocolate bar and began unwrapping it. “I could have told Castor to shut up,” he said, folding the foil down to the halfway point. “He wasn’t helping. He was boasting about how he could ******** raze the city if he wanted to and it was just scaring the page.” If not for Castor, the whole ******** situation would have probably played out differently - but Babylon was smarter than to challenge a senshi prince.
“I could have fought the captains,” he sighed, breaking off the end of the chocolate bar. He stared at it for a moment, then offered it over to Arkady. “I could have done something. I mean. I should have been able to help! I was there, wasn’t I?”
He slouched forward in frustration. “So, uh,” said Finn quietly, “Since when am I babe?”
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“I read it online, and it sounded fun. Why? Not cool?” She nuzzled closer to him, accepting his offering of a piece of chocolate. Arkady nibbled it delicately, rather than snapping off one of the little squares to eat it more slowly. “So, here’s our options, according to you: Told Castor to shut up in order to calm the page. Fighting the captains. ‘Something’ isn’t a reliable action plan, so let’s keep going…”
She gave it some thought. “You’re not really a strong fighter, so going toe-to-toe with two Captains isn’t the best idea. You could ward them off by swinging your lantern in a big circle, but you don’t have a chain for it and that would’ve scared the Page away too. So, were you in an alley, or on a street…”
She gave it some thought. “You’re not really a strong fighter, so going toe-to-toe with two Captains isn’t the best idea. You could ward them off by swinging your lantern in a big circle, but you don’t have a chain for it and that would’ve scared the Page away too. So, were you in an alley, or on a street…”
“It sounds weird coming from you,” said Finn, although he didn’t really have a good reason beyond that. Arkady sort of sounded like Tate. She sort of looked like Tate, when the light was right. But she wasn’t Tate. Tate would have never called him babe, except maybe facetiously. Hearing it from Arkady was just another reminder of Tate being gone.
But it was high time he let Arkady be her own person, wasn’t it?
“I’ll get used to it if you want to use it,” he said, frowning slightly. “I wish I were a stronger fighter.” But that wasn’t something he could fix overnight. His approach to knighthood must have been fundamentally flawed for him to have made it this far without being very good at beating people up. (But on the other hand, Finn didn’t really like fighting? He’d rather just talk his enemies down... )
“It was an alley,” he said. “Secluded. I mean, I see what you’re doing, you’re showing me there was nothing I could have done? I still feel shitty about it.”
He shoved a piece of chocolate into his mouth. “Everything hurts and I’m dying,” Finn said around the candy.
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Arkady nodded. Nix the babe-ing, she thought. Note made. She wouldn’t repeat the mistake again. “Nah,” she said. “We can fix your fighting skills, though. I mean. I’m pretty decent, and it’s not like we don’t spend time together anyway.” One hundred percent muscle memory, though. Which sucked, because she had no idea what was a starter move and what wasn’t, and she didn’t exactly want to hurt Finn in an attempt to teach him to defend himself.
Even if he knew what she was doing, she was still going to do it. “You only see half of it,” she corrected. “We’re also coming up with an action plan, in case you wind up in this situation again.” That didn’t stop her from snuggling him up closer, into her lap proper, and fussing over his hair. He was unhurt, but that didn’t stop her from worrying. “You’re not dying. You’re sad and stressed, and worried about that page. We’re working on that.” She stroked both hands over his hair, kissed his forehead, and leaned back onto the couch. “Ow. You weigh a ton.”
“So. Alleyway. I bet if you’d tried to fight the Captains, it would’ve been really easy for her to get lost in the shuffle anyway. Tactically, it sounds like you were between her and the exit. Not the easiest hole to get out of if there’s weapons flying everywhere.” She tapped his chin, in lieu of her own, and found it pleasantly stubbly. “If there’s a vulnerable person between you and the person you want to aggress on, the best thing to do is…?”
Even if he knew what she was doing, she was still going to do it. “You only see half of it,” she corrected. “We’re also coming up with an action plan, in case you wind up in this situation again.” That didn’t stop her from snuggling him up closer, into her lap proper, and fussing over his hair. He was unhurt, but that didn’t stop her from worrying. “You’re not dying. You’re sad and stressed, and worried about that page. We’re working on that.” She stroked both hands over his hair, kissed his forehead, and leaned back onto the couch. “Ow. You weigh a ton.”
“So. Alleyway. I bet if you’d tried to fight the Captains, it would’ve been really easy for her to get lost in the shuffle anyway. Tactically, it sounds like you were between her and the exit. Not the easiest hole to get out of if there’s weapons flying everywhere.” She tapped his chin, in lieu of her own, and found it pleasantly stubbly. “If there’s a vulnerable person between you and the person you want to aggress on, the best thing to do is…?”
“I’m a hundred and seventy pounds of pure muscle and glistening manhood,” Finn joked weakly. Sparring with Arkady seemed like a fair enough prospect, albeit one that would probably end with them making out on the floor of the rec room. (They did that anyways, although they were very good at not doing more than making out there.)
But here he was rehashing tonight’s failure with her. “You get between the vulnerable person and the person you want to hurt,” said Finn. He’d tried that, he thought miserably. Bolton had been in a very bad position for him to go putting himself between her and Zircon, but that didn’t mean he shouldn’t have tried harder. “I failed to do that,” he sighed. “Like, completely. And that’s evil fighting 101. I should have my knighthood rescinded.”
Overdramatically, he took off his signet ring and held it out to her. “I am unworthy of this,” he said. “I need you to hold it until such a time that I am not a complete and utter ******** class="quote">
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She took the signet ring and put it on her thumb (the only finger it would vaguely fit). “Haha,” she said, “I am the Knight of Babylon and the page of Avalon. True power is mine.” Arkady looked at him, eyebrows up, as if to say eh? eh? His hand in hers was warm, despite his death grip on the cider. She slipped the ring back on his finger, and smoothed her thumbs over the back of his hand. “And thus do I dub thee Ser Babylon, Protector of the City and consort to the Lady of the Lake. Wear this symbol of thy station in good health.”
Dramatics done, she said, “You clear a way for the vulnerable person to get out, and then you close the way behind them. With your one hundred and seventy pounds of pure muscle. If you can’t do that or they’re not moving, grabbing them and spinning so they’re away from the enemy is good, too.” She sighed, absentmindedly nipping his ear out of habit more than anything. “Can I have more of your chocolate?”
Dramatics done, she said, “You clear a way for the vulnerable person to get out, and then you close the way behind them. With your one hundred and seventy pounds of pure muscle. If you can’t do that or they’re not moving, grabbing them and spinning so they’re away from the enemy is good, too.” She sighed, absentmindedly nipping his ear out of habit more than anything. “Can I have more of your chocolate?”
