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Solo - Sailor Aegir Awakens!

Early morning in Destiny City meant several things: children sleeping snugly in their beds while their parents roused to begin the work day - or tired bodies returning home to end the work night. It meant the sun slowly creeping up to dress the city in soft purples and pinks and oranges as nocturnal creatures returned to their roosts and dens and those that graced the day slowly stretched and began their hunt for food, for life.

For Colin, the early morning was the birth of a day filled with oppourtunities and possibilities: he loved it. He was a dancer and he kept a fairly strict schedule for working out that typically involved these glorious early mornings. First he would run, then a shower and finally breakfast! After that...well, that was wholly dependant upon the time of year: during the school year he would attend his classes (now at Hillworth Grammar, formerly Meadowview with his sister) and during the summer...well, he'd probably spend his morning at the dance studio.

This morning found him out jogging, a smile on his face as his sneakered feet pounded the pavement. Running gave him a blank slate upon which to think, drift or dream. He didn't need to be attractive, didn't need to worry about his grades, his family or even what his next project via the studio was. It was just Colin and the road (or trail, whatever he was running on)...and that was the way that he liked it. Very few people were welcome to join him on his early morning runs because most of them would try to converse or otherwise distract him.

Of course, jogging so early also meant putting on seasonally appropriate clothing for his early morning jog. Tying on his atheletic sneakers and tucking his dorm keys safely against his person so that they wouldn't fly out while he was running. No cell phone came with him (except in the cooler months when he wore the wind-breaker jacket and zipper-pocket jogging pants) and usually no music either - he much preferred to just think or zone-out. Sometimes he enjoyed jogging to music, but he found that it could be quite dangerous to do that: too often he'd seen joggers in their own little worlds - their iPod's or Zune's or whatever they had blasting in their ears - nearly getting themselves hurt due to turning cars, people on bicycles or scooters or skateboards: if you couldn't hear danger coming, how could you avoid it?

In the early morning chill, he opted for a light pair of windbreaker pants in a red with a bone-colored t-shirt that had a band logo on it (he'd picked it up at a Fair to Midland concert that he'd been given tickets for on his last birthday). Because he had the windbreaker pants he did take his wallet as well as his keys...just in case. Something told him to do it - he'd even stood in his room with the slim wallet in his hand, debating leaving it or taking it. With a soft whistle, Colin left his room and headed outside for his jog.

The curly-haired blond kept a good pace, his body falling into the practiced rhythm smoothly and with the ease of one long accustomed to such things. He was well into his jog when he heard a pitiful mewling sound nearly drowned out by the low growling of dogs. Because he didn't wear headphones, he heard this and immediately veered his course to intervene. A poor kitty was in danger and there was no way that he would let something that sounded so...lost and tiny be mauled. "Hold on kitty, I'm coming!" Colin sprinted towards the sounds, running towards some kitchy-looking diner - the sounds were coming from the alley next to it!

Two grey-brown mutts had a tiny, fluffy kitten trapped! The poor thing was on top of a covered trash-can, the remains of a waffle at it's feet (how weird, do cats normally like waffles?) as it cried and hissed at the slavering beasts. The kitten's tawny fur looked plush, the collar-and-bell ensemble gave her the look of someone's pampered pet - clearly this little baby needed help. "Hey! Get out of there! Shoo!" The dogs whirled, growling and baring their teeth at him, but Colin picked up a rock and tossed it - not to hit the dogs (because he wasn't a cruel boy) but to get them to shy away from the trash can and the kitten atop it. Luckily, with the appearance of the human and his rock, the dogs decided to otherwise occupy their time: they whined, growled at the cat one last time, and then both slunk further down the alley to "escape" via the open far end. Apparently the waffle and kitten weren't worth tangling with a human.

Once they were gone, Colin turned his attention back to his 'rescue'; the wall-eyed little fluff-ball was looking up at him with a slightly odd expression, but then it proceeded to devour the waffle-section (obviously someone's left-overs)...almost as though it were trying to protect it's "prize" from him by eating it quickly. "Wow." He shook his head and then tried coming closer to the trashcan and cat, "Hey there kitty, it's okay - I didn't want your waffle...I just wanted to keep those dogs from eating you. It's okay kitty..." Derp allowed him to come closer - maybe Astrea had told her to be more wary of strangers, but this was a nice boy! He had saved her - and her waffle! - from those horrible dogs! There was no way he was a 'bad guy'; Derp would have known. She was totally sure of this.

So Colin was able to pick up the tiny kitten; hold her (he decided that the kitten was female by that point though really, he didn't know/couldn't tell) close to his chest while looking at her adorable, miss-matched eyes. "What a cutie you are...I bet you've got an owner somewhere, don't you?" He petted her and scritched between her little ears, looking around as he did so - if she had an owner (and she obviously did) then maybe they'd be wandering around the waffle shop looking for her? His fingers brushed over a spot on the kitten's forehead and suddenly there was a little jolt along Colin's spine. "What the--?" He frowned and looked down at the tiny, smoosh-faced fluff-ball in his arms; static shock wouldn't have done that, would it? Maybe, but then why hadn't he gotten jolted before when he was touching her? No...that made no sense.

Neither did the little star marking that appeared on the kitten's forehead, right where Colin had been petting when he felt that weird frission. Staring down at her, the blond felt that his reality was somehow skewing sidewise. "Okay kitty, either I'm going crazy...or you just got a star on your forehead." Maybe he needed to get something to eat? It hadn't been a problem before now - he always went jogging before breakfast - but...who knew? Colin rubbed at his eyes with one hand, the other still holding the tiny kitten with the star on it's forehead, but it was to no avail: that star stayed right there...mocking his sanity but also tantalizing those parts of him that wanted to believe aliens and magical-seeming creatures/things existed. He was, after all, a Trekkie (and possibly more prepared to believe in talking kittens than most of the unawakened senshi Derp had met)!

It seemed that when he acknowledged the star on the kitten's forehead that it got extremely excited; the fluffball was all but vibrating in his arms when the strangest thing yet happened: the kitten started talking!

"Yes yes, oh good! Derp fou~nd you! You save Derpraline. And Pray's waffles. Mmm...waffles. More waffles for Derp?" Colin stared as the kitten in his arms - was it's name Derp? No, it was Derpraline (wasn't that pretty! It must have been a bad joke to give a cutie like her such a mean nick name) - chattered on about having found him, about his having "saved" it from being devoured by evil dogs and about waffles. After a moment of him staring at her with a semi-curious, semi-disbelieving face Derp stopped her babbling on about waffles and took on a strained look. She was preterbed - when Astrea or the others did this, the senshi got it and accepted what they were! When Derpraline did it, they seemed stupified and generally didn't believe her...it made the Persian kitten sad, but she was absolutely determined to get this curly haired boy - so pretty! - to a) believe her b) use the henshin pen she would (Serenity willing) give him to transform and c) wear a fabulous hat that she would give him!

"You're a talking cat." The boy croaked the words out as the kitten tried to have him put her back on top of the covered trashcan. "Seriously, this is..." And here, Derpraline's typical encounter would end, because Colin wasn't going to start blathering about how "this couldn't be happening" or how it "wasn't real". Instead, he finished that thought with, "...amazing!!"

Green eyes lit up with awe, curiousity and excitement, "You can talk. Where are you from? Wow, do you talk to everyone, or just people that help you?" Many questions got fired at the poor, wall-eyed Persian kitten and she sat on the textured black plastic lid with her eyes going in different directions; she was wholly confused by Colin's rapid-fire questions and by his (seamingly) easy acceptance of a talking cat named Derpraline that was willing to face down not one, but two hungry stray dogs just to keep a few bites of waffle. He was definitely confusing her...but at least he wasn't freaking out! Derpraline shook her little head and waved a paw at him - amazingly enough, just that silenced her new blond friend and the boy leaned over with his hands on his legs, waiting to hear (or see) what Derp had to say.

"Nice boy is senshi! Derp found him. Yes yes, really listen, nice-boy!" She bounced in excitement, enjoying having someone's full attention for once! "First, yes first! I am Derpraline. You are senshi so you can call Derp whatever you want! Derpraline, Derp. Pray, DP~ Anything senshi wants!" Colin absorbed this and only interupted the fluffy kitten to tell her his name. "Call-in. Call-in is Derp's senshi!" She didn't explain what a senshi was, but then...really, she couldn't. Not really. "Now. Now now now...Call-in waits, yes? Wait for Pray's gift. Senshi will want it, Derp will give it~ Just wait!"

Screwing her eyes shut, Derpraline crouched and then attempted to leap up and backwards in a magical backflip. Unfortunately, she was quite clumsy at it. After telling Colin to "wait" and "be still" (because he kept trying to "rescue" her from herself), she had to make the attemp five times before she was able to complete the requisite motion (it was terribly adorable and Colin kept thinking it was her tiny little legs that kept her from making the backflip happen - though the why behind Derpraline's wont to do such a thing was wholly unknown to him) and produce several objects from thin air. She was quite happy with the two objects that fell onto the trashcan lid - a large victorian-style hat, a dark blue cell-phone (at least, it looked like a cell-phone, even if it really wasn't) and a strange-and-clunky looking pen in a deep midnight blue with gold. Derp took the pen in her mouth and moved closer to the edge so that she could give it to Colin.

It was strange, just how right that weird pen felt in his hand, but Derpraline was beaming at him as though he were one of her beloved waffles. "Derp is so happy! Hat is for Call-in! Pen is for Call-in!" She nodded, fairly vibrating with joy at her accomplishments; "Call-in is Aegir!."

"Aegir?" The blond's hand opened a bit so he could look down at the pen he'd clasped there; a pen...a phone...and Derpraline was calling him Aegir. Telling him that he was Aegir. A "senshi". "What's that?"

Derp's tiny ears twitched and her tail swished in a pleased manner at him - this senshi was accepting what she said! He was listening and acting like Astrea had said senshi would! It was wonderful! "Aegir is sen-shi! Call-in is Aegir." There was more, yes...there was something more -- oh right! Derp remembered, she had to teach him how to say it - if he didn't say it they wouldn't know he meant it! And that would be bad, so terrible..like never having waffles...like dogs chasing you or being left outside in the cold rain or or or -- never having pretty hats!

Once more she got Colin's attention. "This...this this this...important! You have to say it, or it won't work. You can say it, right?" She was excited but she waited until he'd nodded his assent before going on. "It's..uhm...ummm...." Pray's eyes crossed as she strained her tiny, fluffy kitten brain to remember, but then an almost beatific expression came over the kitten: she remembered! "Say 'Aegir Power, Make-up!' Say it strong and loud, okay? Okay! Derp did so good~ I remembered!" Although Colin had agreed with her that he could say such a thing, he didn't do it immediately, which was what Derpraline had expected/wanted to happen. "Colin should say now! Try for Derpraline, pleaaaase?" If it meant finding another senshi and showing them how to access their powers properly (or getting another waffle or more food) then she wasn't above wielding her insane amount of cuteness and begging (kitty begging, not stupid-icky doggy begging). She sat on her tiny (adorable) haunches and gave him a look until the curly haired blond sighed and said he'd try it.

"Okay, okay...I'll say it now." Colin straightened and glanced around; the alley was still empty and it was early enough that there weren't people milling around just yet. Even if he did something that made him feel stupid or foolish...well, only the talking kitten would see or hear it. Besides...he really did want to know what might happen if he said those words while holding that weird pen!

"Aegir Power, Make-up!"

Whatever he'd been expecting to happen (or hoping to happen), this was not it: Colin found himself naked - entirely naked - but thankfully that lasted mere seconds as a white body suit appeared automagically to cover him up. That wasn't the end of it, oh no - there was more! As he felt his body moving in a manner that was completely foreign while also being strangely familiar, he could see more pieces of what could only be called a costume appearing on his body. At the end of it, he was left standing in the shadowy alley wearing a rediculously brief outfit while standing next to a rediculously cute talking kitten.

"Oh my god...what is this!?!?" Derpraline was absolutely no help in explaining just what had actually happened or why he ended up wearing a white body suit with a freaking sheer sarong-type thing around his hips though she did say she thought he looked very pretty - but needed a hat. Perhaps two different ones, to wear alternately, since he had such pretty colors! Even if Colin-Aegir decided that he didn't want to wear multiple hats while transformed, she was supremely happy with herself (and him, of course). The hats didn't really count - they barely mattered at all in the scheme of things, what mattered was that Derpraline had found another senshi, had awoken him and had taught him what he needed to know! Kind of - time would tell and Colin would definitely go out seeking other senshi to fill in the blanks left by his adorable Guardian kitten.

"Oh oh! Aegir must know! If big bad ugly shows up, if youma show up - you say more!" She nodded sagely and then purled up at him as though smiling with her whole tiny body; "Your attack, senshi's attack! You say "Aegir Golden Mute! Just like before, but say that. Use attack until monster goes away." There. Now he knew what he needed to - except it seemed that he didn't because Colin - Aegir - was asking her more questions. Lots of questions...half an hour's worth, nearly! It was nice that he was using small words, but still...they were confusing her. Some she could answer - and would, of course - some she couldn't. When Derp couldn't give Colin an appropriate answer, she just shook her petite-kitty head and chirped that 'Strea would fill him in because Astrea was smart and good and knew all about senshi and youma and everything. Clearly she idolized this other person that had all the answers; it did make Colin feel better knowing that there were others that knew what was going on, what it meant for him to be a senshi...what a youma was...what the point to all of this transforming, talking cats, big bad ugly "youma" and crazy magical costuming was all about.

Colin, having powered down with Derp's help, was feeling a bit out of sorts - it wasn't every day that one found out that they were able to transform into a 'senshi' via a stick thing given to them by a talking cat - but after a while he had to go. Breakfast waited and...well, he would meet up with Derp again and go see this all-knowing Astrea. Until then, he'd just have to live with knowing only the barest bones of who - and what - he was.

There was a lot to be said for someone that could make you smile. Björn definitely did that. The Swede really could be too sweet for his own good and he treated Colin like some sort of prince or something. Almost literally. After Colin had admitted his 'Big Secret' to Björn (which, admittedly might have been a really ******** stupid thing to do because what if the blond were part of the Negaverse?!), he'd started up with this idea that he (Björn) wasn't good enough for him (Colin). That the dancer was in some way a higher being than the "lowly" strongman...which was absolute crap. Bull feathers. And many other derogatory statements.

Someone that could bring a grin to your face when you'd just bombed a test you thought you'd studied for two day's straight for...or when you didn't get the part you wanted for the dance recital...or when you got your a** handed to you by a Negaverser (or a cat) was really special. Someone to be cherished and held close to your heart. Colin knew these things and recognized them in his relationship with his room mate. Hell, he knew that he was lucky just to have a relationship with Björn! He'd been nerve-wracked when he'd first brought up the idea to the Swede and been asked to leave the question unanswered for a bit. The thought that he wasn't attractive to Björn or that he'd done something that made being with him seem like a bad idea had caused the curly-haired dancer to lose several hours of sleep - but he couldn't have said no and demanded an answer right then! That would have assured his chances were shot and Colin had really wanted to be in a relationship with the teddy-bear like strongman.

As happy as he was to be with Björn, they couldn't spill the beans to everyone (to anyone?) because Hillworth had a big rule about fraternizing with roommates -- Hillworth had harsh rules about almost everything -- because that was the sort of place it was. That they had to keep their relationship a secret to just about everyone didn't change much for Colin, he was still affectionate and handsy with the taller teen...he just couldn't hug or kiss him on school grounds (or anywhere that a class-mate might see them...which was just about everywhere within three miles of their school) which sucked, but was livable. They could go out to the movies together and hold hands in the darkness...he could pick veggies off Björn's food when they were out, joking about how some day he'd convert his boyfriend to vegetarianism. Someday, after hover-boards were commonplace or in an alternate reality where animals were considered vegetables (Colin really didn't try, he wasn't stupid - Björn would likely never be a vegetarian by choice).

It wasn't just that being together made him happy. It was sharing the things that interested them or watching movies together. It was talking and laughing together about things they'd heard, seen or experienced. They could be talking about classes or their electives...classmates, a bad movie or even the "Sailor Sushi" and it didn't matter. Colin felt relaxed and at ease (though he tried to not talk about the Senshi business too much - not because he didn't think Björn would understand, but because he didn't know a lot himself and because it depressed him to think about it. There were some unresolved things within the Senshi sphere that Colin really needed to address, but hadn't just yet, that kept him fairly mum on the subject). Sometimes when they were talking together he had to talk things out further, explain the subject more, but Colin didn't mind that, he was kind of used to explaining things out thanks to his little sister.

Sometimes the blond did wonder if it bothered Björn. If maybe that was part of the reason he kept treating him like someone above him - not just because Colin doubled as the super special sailor sushi, Sailor Aegir. Once in a while he worried about these things; would Björn break up with him because of his "sushi" status? Was it too great a difference between them? Colin rarely entertained such thoughts for long, much preferring to think about how enjoyable their time was together. Björn could make him smile, but not only that, he could make the butterflies that sometimes lived in his stomach start dancing the quadrille. When the blond smiled at him, strong arms wrapped around him in a big hug...his brain went all warm and fuzzy. When Björn kissed him - oh! It could be absolutely electric.

Definitely someone worth keeping. Colin had no plans to let Björn go any time soon. He just hoped that they would have a long and happy relationship...that nothing bad would happen to either of them because of the Negaverse or whatever else...and that they could protect each other from all the craziness.

Colin liked to leave little love-notes for his boyfriend from time to time, in places that he'd be sure to find at some random point. The first one? All it said was: "You make me smile."

Trying to contact Sailor Castor was far less rewarding than Colin had hoped. For whatever reason(s), the older Senshi didn't respond to his texts and when he tried to actually call and speak with him...he was schlepped off to voice-mail almost immediately. He'd left two messages before the voice-mailbox was full and he could leave no more. It was worrisome, but maybe there were good reasons for the brunette being incommunicado for so long? Whatever the reason(s), he found no information as to why Björn (and others) had suddenly become Mauvians. Even poor Derpraline had no idea why there were suddenly "more friends to play with!" but she knew that it wasn't exactly the best thing to happen. Colin had given the adorable kitten a pretty little hair-bow that he'd seen in the store, as well as some waffles when he'd gone to see her, but other than as a social call, his visit was largely unrewarding.

Hiding a large cat in the dorms wasn't the easiest thing he'd ever done, but it was easier than hiding their relationship (which was actually kind of a sad thing, when he thought about it - which he didn't like doing, because it made him feel bad. There was absolutely no reason to hide his being with Björn save that Hillworth had rules against it; if anything, Colin was proud to call Björn his friend and lover). At any rate, he was getting into the swing of things, having his boyfriend as a cat when one morning the alarm went off and he found himself unable to get up as usual due to a very large, very well muscled arm thrown across his waist.

Waking up to find a very human, very naked Björn weighing him down caused a bubble of joy not unlike the one that he'd felt when he'd finally connected with his boyfriend-turned-cat in the first place. Björn, grumbling something in a language clearly not English, woke enough to shoot the alarm a dirty look before reaching out to turn it off. Colin reached for him, wanting to reassure himself that the flesh pressing him into the bed was, in fact, really there and not just another fond dream. Under his seeking fingertips, Björn's skin was very much real: very warm and very alive, the muscles moving and shifting under the skin in just the way he remembered. Björn made a low sound of appreciation, his sleep-soggy brain not quite realizing that there was any reason that this morning was any different from the ones before it; the disconnect continued for a few more moments as his boyfriend blinked sleepily at him, face pressed to his neck. Colin watched, interested in seeing Björn's eyes when he finally realized that those were hands - not paws - and that Colin's eager hands fell upon taut skin instead of fur. What happened next was no one's business but theirs; a re-familiarization of face and form, shapes and how they fit together.

Later they would talk of what had happened, how Björn had survived the time before Colin had found him and how the dancer had sought after his lover with the same determination he gave to his dancing. Sharing their individual experiences over the first "real" meal that Björn had gotten since his magical transformation into a large fur-covered feline. Colin spoke of how he'd been unable to get information from any of the meager sources he had at his disposal - how it didn't seem that anyone had answers about the "how(s)" or the "why(s)" of the Mauvian Ordeal. It was not the first time that he'd wanted information but been unable to get it, nor would it be the last...what it was was yet another sign of how unorganized the "White Moon" or "Order" faction could be. He was not happy about it and would have probably been very upset, save that he had his friend and lover back; there would need to be a great deal of stress, problems or other unfortunate business to affect his mood negatively for the next week or so.

As he had been "missing" for some time, now that he was "back" Björn wanted to give his mother a call; Colin knew that he wanted to make sure that his mother was okay and that she hadn't been worried. He'd done his best to keep people from realizing that his "room-mate" wasn't around, but Björn wasn't the only one missing and people had most likely noticed that at least something had been up.

Or not. Colin could have sworn that sometimes the citizens of Destiny City ignored anything they couldn't immediately explain...or they just pretended that everything was A-O.K. even when it was most assuredly not.

While Björn was busy, he sat at his laptop, working on an e-mail reply to his booking agent in regards to another screen-test. While Colin didn't do a lot of music videos, television or movies, he did enough to require having a proper agent; more than enough to have a nest-egg set aside for when he got out of high school and thought about college or whatever else he wanted to do. He was probably one of the few kids that had not only a bank account, but a savings account and IRA too (that wasn't part of the "trust fund" group). His mom wanted him to go to college, of course, but he wasn't so sure that was in his stars. But he'd keep working as long as someone wanted him and he was interested in the project; most dancers didn't end up doing the academic track anyway. There were phenomenal dance schools in Europe, places where a dancer could get polished and perfected if they were willing to give it their all.

College? No. But one of those schools? Yeah, he'd thought about it quite a bit. The down-side would be leaving his friends and family. And Björn. Leaving Björn would probably be the hardest part; harder than leaving his "duties" as Sailor Aegir even (he was pretty sure he could fight "evil" wherever he physically was, but being without Björn's touch, his quick smile and beautiful eyes? Without being able to touch and kiss and love the big blond wasn't something Colin ever wanted to think about (ahh, young love!) -- especially not now, after he'd been caring for his boyfriend, the cat.

'Did I ever feel like that about Adrian?' Fingers paused over his keyboard, the dancer thought back to the days when he'd been wholly in an older man's thrall. When the celebrated actor, Adrian Grey had kept him as sort of a pet, sort of a toy that he ******** and abused without any care for the damage he was doing. They'd met when he'd been working as a dancer in the chorus line and the prima-donna had broken her damned ankle. Adrian had insisted they not stop filming, so they'd looked for a replacement about her size...and thirteen year-old Colin had fit the bill. Dressed in drag, he'd been happy to dance with the actor! Hell, at that time Colin had even had a bit of a crush on him, idolized him! It was that "crush" and that dance that signaled the beginning of the end of whatever innocence was left to Colin Hargrove; afterward Grey invited him to his personal trailer "just to go over some choreography" (since Grey didn't dance much and had no idea what he was doing). Colin, being gullible and star-struck, went without any hesitation and soon found himself in a situation that was far, far over his head.

"No." He said aloud, leaning back and staring up at the ceiling, "I didn't." Thinking about Adrian Grey made his throat go dry, gave him a knot in his stomach that just wouldn't go away. Thinking about Björn could cause similar reactions, but for far different reasons; good reasons! If his throat went dry, it was because he couldn't believe such a warm, caring - and gorgeous - person wanted him. If his stomach started misbehaving due to Björn, it wasn't knots causing it - it was likely to be nervous butterflies. They were entirely different people with similarly determined attitudes towards their "work". Usually when there was a screen test that would suit him, Colin got excited and agreed to attend straight away. But the current project was one he knew he couldn't work on: Adrian Grey would be in it.

With a sigh, Colin sat straight in his chair again - rejecting a job with Grey in it was never easy. His agent always wanted the exposure for him, but there was just no way in hell he wanted to put himself near that man again if he could help it. Idly, he wondered if he could feed the actor to a youma...or make a request to a member of the Negaverse to rip out Grey's star-seed...and if wanting to do so made him a bad person or just a hurt one.

Wouldn't that just have been some poetic justice? With a short laugh the dancer's fingers flew over the keys, quickly typing up some BS about how he had too much work or whatever to take on such a large project but that he appreciated always being thought of. "Blah blah blah...thanks, Colin....there, sent." He stretched his arms above his head and then looked around the room thoughtfully before deciding to go and get a shower before Björn came back.

Getting ready for the holiday break was never fun; so much packing and cleaning to do, so many phone calls back and forth between family and friends trying to make sure that plans went through and meetings happened on time and of course, finals and last-minute projects for various classes that had to be completed too. He didn't like that part of the holidays at all, but what guy did? Except for really weird ones, most guys - hell, most people, tended to avoid as much of the fuss and bluster as possible; preferring that things went off without a hitch. Unlike that Sean guy down the hall that wanted to become some sort of...organizational specialist or something whenever he graduated and moved on to college (did colleges even exist for that sort of thing?) It was pretty strange...knowing just how much that guy thrived on the minutia of organization, the details involved in plots, plans and machinations and the chaos of trying to manage hundreds of tiny details all at once. Colin could only shake his head and wonder. It really wasn't his thing, so it was a damned good thing that this was the second-to-last night before they broke for the holidays.

Luckily, he wasn't alone in his preference for less stress in his life, nor in his need to get ready for the Christmas Break. Björn too was working on packing and cleaning, so he had some company that didn't suck! At least, not unless he asked, nicely. Eh hem. While he just had to pack to go home for the holidays, poor Björn also had to pack and get ready for a Strongman competition that he'd be participating in. Colin hoped that his boyfriend would have fun at the event, no matter what his standing should come out to be. Naturally Colin had wanted to be there, to cheer Björn on...but the Swede had been upset thinking that Colin would miss one of his auditions just to watch him throw tires around (or something to that effect) and so he would not be there this time. Next time, however, he wanted to be there for sure!

Not only was he pleased to have his boyfriend's company as he packed and readied for the Christmas break, he was pleased to note that Björn was having some difficulty keeping his mind to task. It was Colin's fault, of course, because he was wearing a pair of his short-shorts - usually reserved for dance practice - and that meant that each time he moved, bent over or crossed into the big blond's field of vision...he was being utterly distracting. It was just as he had intended when he'd picked those particular shorts to wear that morning. Gratifying as hell, really - Björn was having a hard time keeping his hands to himself and Colin was quite happy to go along with being 'man-handled' in the pursuit of affection, physical or otherwise. He'd always been a touchy-feely sort of guy, even with his friends, so it was no wonder he went to such lengths to spend time within the warm embrace of Björn's strong arms...especially since they'd be apart for a bit before he picked Björn up and brought him home with him for Christmas.

Calling the time they'd be spending away from Hillworth for Christmas and the New Year a "break" was really a misnomer; both youths were going to be very busy during that time. Not only did Björn have his Strongman's competition and Colin have dance recitals, performances and auditions (pre-planned and any that might pop-up during that time) but there were also various events that involved people in their families. Colin's little sister, Miriam, had Christmas concerts for voice and instrument that he (at least) would be expected to attend - and god only knew what else might pop up. He couldn't remember every little thing he was supposed to do, but that was okay! Like most people, he put them into a digital calendar that was synced with his phone. Phones, rather. Even the special phone that Derpraline had given him when he awoke as a Senshi was synced with his main profile and 'working' calendar/date book. It was quite convenient, though he couldn't really use it for anything but "Senshi" business.

With a yelp he landed in Björn's lap; the Swede had given in to the temptation presented by his slender boyfriend and was now wrapping his arms around Colin's waist, beard tickling Colin's neck as kisses were placed upon sensitive skin. "We're never going to finish at this rate..." He murmured, reaching back with one hand to pull Björn's head closer to his own for an over-the-shoulder kiss. After, his boyfriend chuckled and quipped that they would both finish many times, if he had his way, but that the packing and cleaning may not be so lucky. Suggestive and seductive, Björn's voice gusted warmly against his ear, causing the dancer to shiver pleasantly within his embrace. Colin's reply was three parts naughty, one part invitation and held within in all the promise any red-blooded male could desire in his chosen partner. He just couldn't help himself when it came to being physical with his lover; they spent nearly every night in each other's arms and the thought of sleeping without his favorite "teddy bear" for even a few days made him feel like pouting. And crawling into Björn's lap to demand attention.

Since he was already there, Colin worked on the second part: getting the attention that he wanted for as long as Björn was willing to give it (this time). His lover was a fundamentally good guy; if there was a project in the works, he would undoubtedly work to complete it...and while he might be willing to take a break here or there, he would invariably return to the task at hand until it was done. Not to say that Colin's work ethic was bad - he too worked hard to finish any task put to him, but he was more likely to be distracted from it than the other boy was. Especially when and where young mister Guilderson was concerned. One could say that Colin had a weakness for the young man...and visa versa. The two lovers "indulged" in the pleasure of each other's company (read: made out) for a good five minutes before Björn reluctantly pulled away, arms loosening from around the dancer's lithe body. With a roughened voice, the Swede reminded Colin that they had work to be doing and that they should get back to doing it before they completely forgot and their entire holiday break thrown off schedule. He could only sigh and agree with Björn, giving the bigger boy one last quick kiss before slipping out of his lap and off those broad, muscular thighs.

"As much as I'd rather stay in your lap, I know you're right." Colin straightened his clothes and went back to work; Björn rejoined him after another moment or so - it was apparent that he was just as reluctant as himself. But the sooner they finished doing it, the sooner they could do other things...like get some dinner or go to a movie (if they wanted)...or work out together. Cuddle together? Something. Whatever it was, it'd be the next-to-last night they had to do it before the Christmas Break and Colin wasn't about to spend more time than he needed cleaning if he could help it! Especially since he had some very special plans to finalize; Björn was going to be spending a few nights at home with him...in his bedroom...and Colin wanted to make sure that everything was perfect. Which reminded him, "Oh, if you wanna do some laundry at my place, be sure to pack it separately and I'll take it with me. That way you don't have to drag everything with you while you're at the competition." Björn thanked him for the offer and they spent the rest of the evening working companionably to randomized music playing on Colin's laptop.