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 Posted: Sun Jan 03, 2010 10:52 pm
Sagittarius was keenly interested in the sky, but it had nothing to do with what was happening down on Earth. Destiny City didn't allow for much scenery at night; most starlight was doomed to be drowned out by streetlights. A shame for him, a man so fond of them. You couldn't see them here like you could back home.
But then, he did look at Leo, and didn't think to wonder why Leo wasn't looking at him in return.
A door the other Senshi didn't want to open had just fallen off it's hinges.
"Why do you say that?" The tone was not one of someone who was clueless. Indeed, he'd already considered all of this. There was more than enough time to with as often as he was alone. Still, he clearly wanted someone else to verify any suspicions he'd had.
Or could it be something else?
"No, really, why do you say that? Don't bullshit, either. It's important I know."
Maybe this was going to get personal after all. Poor Leo.
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Posted: Sun Jan 03, 2010 11:01 pm
Uh oh.
Leo had not wanted to open any doors. If he could, he would pick up the door, carry it back over, and nail it shut himself. This was completely over his head and he was out of his element, big time. He didn't like to speak for others under any circumstances, but especially not when those others were Aries and Capricorn - people he didn't know very well. But Sagittarius was looking at him, he could feel it, and the words couldn't be unsaid.
So, he did the only thing it seemed like he could do: he sighed.
Shuffled his feet.
Looked at his hands, then Sagittarius.
"I don't want to cause any trouble, Sagittarius." His mouth set into a firm line, making his expression difficult to read behind the mask, but almost as soon as it happened, he was speaking again. "I'm certainly not an authority on women, so this could all be completely off base."
It probably was.
"But... well, they're best friends, aren't they? Capricorn is probably jealous. Not that Aries has you," he added, quickly but mildly. "But because you will be taking up Aries' time. Time that could be spent with Capricorn."
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Posted: Sun Jan 03, 2010 11:11 pm
"You definitely have a closer connection than me." He had no plans of tacking a politically correct "no offense" on the end. Why would he? He meant that exactly how it sounded, and he was only being honest. Grayson was still man enough he wouldn't just get offended by something not meant to be, right? "I'm not trying to attack you or anything, my bad."
Then, he did something rare: listened quietly.
"Yeah, I was thinking that. They are best friends. I mean, even through Barren Pines they were best friends. Most of us didn't even recognize the others and they stayed united. That's... I don't know. That's a testament to how close they are, I think." If that was the case, why was Hero spending so much time with him instead of her?
Better yet, why was he making a case against himself?
"You're probably right. They probably started fighting over that." Guilt never settled well with him, and there was one Hell of a distressed look on his face as he ran his hand through his hair. "I'm a jerk. I--"
He stopped.
"I can't believe I forgot this." A second later, a tiara was shoved into Leo's hands. "There we go. I knew I forgot something. Anyway... I guess I'll have to think on this one."
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Posted: Sun Jan 03, 2010 11:25 pm
Fingers curling around the tiara, Leo manfully bit back another sigh, well used to the behavior. On a good day, it amused him; when he was trying to avoid talking about feelings and delicate subjects, it didn't really. It was a welcome distraction, but at the same time, it was an all-too-obvious reminder of just where Sagittarius saw their gender boundaries falling.
Leo was not a woman. He didn't want to be a woman, didn't pretend to fathom the way their minds worked, though he had the utmost respect for them. Frankly, he tired of Jude's misunderstanding on the subject, but he figured it wasn't the time to bring it up.
So, he hooked Sagittarius' tiara in his scarf, adopted a casual expression. "You aren't a jerk, though. What you and Aries have is different from what she and Capricorn have. It'll take some adjusting, but they're good friends. More than that, they're comrades. Everything will work out."
Grayson Graves' personal mantra. Everything will be fine in the end.
He chewed his lip, lifted his shoulders in a shrug. "Have you talked to Aries about this?"
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Posted: Sun Jan 03, 2010 11:32 pm
Irony of ironies, Leo wishing Sagittarius would stop talking about feelings.
To the guilty party, he was still discussing business. Not that he was thinking about that by then, either. This had gone from a discussion to what was almost a rant, and by now Leo knew once you crossed that border there was no going back.
Lucky for him, Sagittarius just shook his head and said: "No, she hasn't mentioned it to me. I found out from Se--Chronos they were fighting, not Aries. I'll have to think about how to do it, then I guess I probably should." Which meant he would see Hero multiple times over the course of the next few days where he didn't say a word about it. She was changing him for the better, of that there was no question, but there was still plenty of work to be done in avoiding certain domestic issues with the person he should be discussing them with. That person was not Leo.
"I'm sure I could ask around, but she'll get angry no matter what, I figure. Honesty is the best policy and all that." He'd have compared this to high school, but he barely attended it enough to form solid enough memories to reference now.
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Posted: Mon Jan 04, 2010 12:07 am
Sagittarius was taking the cautious man's route? Leo was impressed, and a little dumbfounded. Who was this man, and what terrific change had been wrought upon him? Oh, right. Hero.
Grayson's gaze softened, because at the heart of it, he was a hopeless romantic. He took his mask off, arm curled in front of him as he traced the inside of it with his thumb and glanced over. It was a friendly smile that he offered, something almost boyish in the look. He liked the look of Jude -- or rather, Sagittarius -- when he was worrying about someone he loved.
It was sweet.
"You care very much. I'm sure she'll see that, and even if she's angry at first, she'll realize that at the heart of it, you have the best intentions." So he hadn't wanted to talk about deep, mushy things - so what. A man was entitled to change his mind.
He looked back down to his mask, turned it over in his hands. Such a useful thing, especially considering he wore his heart in his face. "In the end, it'll be up to the two of them to solve, but having your support will mean a lot to her, I think."
It would mean a lot to him if he was in Hero's place, he knew. While he and Hero were certainly not similar, he thought the general idea would be the same, and appreciated, no matter who it was. Especially since they loved each other.
How nice, he thought, eyes going a little distant. To have someone to love, who loved you in return.
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Posted: Mon Jan 04, 2010 12:29 am
If the cautious route was the route of a man in love, then Sagittarius would turn down it every single time he had the option to. Unfortunately, he wouldn't always realize he did. Worse than that, it was possible the not-so-bright side of this relationship may come crashing down on him any day now.
None of them could predict the future. Only time would tell. For now, Aurelia and Marcel aside, most things were at peace in his life. Enough that he could find temporary happiness in it.
Hero was not the only person who was changing him, nor was the bond he had with her the only one getting stronger. It would be a long time before Sagittarius found himself ready to admit to the world or himself Leo was a friend, but the truth? He was. They were friends. All they had to do was figure that out.
The atmosphere was lighter now, and with it, so was both their moods. Sagittarius glanced his way after he began talking, caught the smile and returned it with some kind of friendly, easygoing grin, hands folded on the back of his head and a little careless waver in his step. Something about times like these made him aware of why people got so attached to Grayson. He just looked and sounded so genuine.
You're okay, Leo, Sagittarius thought. Saying it would mean more, but his mouth was already going. "I hope you're right, because if not, she's probably going to kill me in my sleep for making it worse. As batshit crazy as you think she is, she is way, way more crazy than that." He was serious, yes, but it was hard to tell when a laugh followed.
A laugh and another wide grin at his companion, almost mischievous in nature. "I think maybe if she names our first daughter after Aurelia she'll settle down some."
Was that supposed to be a joke?
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Posted: Mon Jan 04, 2010 12:50 am
It felt... nice, he realized, to be able to talk with Sagittarius companionably. While it wasn't a topic he would have imagined in his wildest dreams, when he saw how much Jude clearly and obviously cared for Hero, it made it easy. Grayson was the kind of man who got misty eyed at a sappy movie; of course he would turn to marshmallow inside at the thought of two people finally finding each other.
It made it easier for him to grin and take Jude's words lightly, grin in response to the mood that had been set. "I'm happy for you."
It was simply and honestly said, and before it could become awkward, Grayson breezed past the admission. "Aurelia is a very pretty name." In his head, he tested it out. Aurelia Lawson. It really didn't sound bad, all things considered.
He fitted his mask back over his face, adjusting the corners with his fingertips. If he was surprised that Jude was already thinking about children, he didn't show it. Grayson was a man who knew that he wanted a family, eventually. Once he found someone to spend his life with, if he ever did, they would discuss it when the time came. Just because someone was thinking about something ahead of time didn't mean they were in an awful rush to go out and have children.
Actually, thinking about it so early showed foresight.
He shot Sagittarius a briefly suspicious look, thankful that most of his face was hidden again.
Huh. Who would've thought?
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Posted: Mon Jan 04, 2010 1:06 am
"There are worse names," Jude agreed. Names like, you know, Jude. The appeal to have a junior version of yourself was something most men could understand, but he'd only curse a kid he hated with a name like Jude Jr., and there was no way he could ever hate any kid that much.
He was looking at the sky again, and it was quiet. Not the awkward, tense silence that had made him shift uncomfortably early. Just a simple muted pass that was not so much between them, but rather they just so happened to be in each others company during it.
It was nice.
Maybe he'd somehow sensed what Leo must have been thinking or maybe he'd caught that look he gave him to the extent he could with the mask shielding some of the obvious signs. Just as likely, he was making some submission to his case for another reason. Or no reason at all. This was Sagittarius. Sometimes you had to wander if he was just saying things to say them.
"The only voice you get to hear when you're always alone is your own, Leo. It gives you a lot of time to think about things." And, the only time you thought about a future was when you planned to have one. That part he didn't say out loud. "I guess there's no point in us wandering around for no reason. I need to go think about all these crazy girl problems. They say we don't think as much as them, but we do, it's just that they're the ones that make us do it."
Playfully, he elbowed Leo in the side, then turned and cast the commonplace wave-over-shoulder goodbye.
Yet he no longer appeared to be quite as worthy as he once was of a title proclaiming him the Zodiac who walked away whenever he felt like it.
My, my, how things did change.
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Posted: Mon Jan 04, 2010 1:13 am
It wasn't the first time that Sagittarius, or Jude, had walked away from him. Still, it was the first time he could remember grinning about it, shaking his head in amusement instead of frustration as the modern-day Robin Hood sashayed off.
Left to his own devices, Grayson continued his walk for a little while, but he quickly grew bored with his own thoughts. What Jude said was true, but Grayson spent too much time in his own head to really enjoy it to its fullest extent, especially after having such a satisfactory conversation with someone he'd been mostly sure almost hated him. It just went to show that things were never truly as bad as he thought they were, even when they really seemed like it.
Henshining down, dressed comfortably in his jeans and Colts sweatshirt, he made his way back to his house, whistling a bit as he did.
It was, all in all, just a good night to be someone.
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