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 Posted: Fri Aug 25, 2023 5:23 pm
Arawn huffed and grumbled and began to pace again. At least for a few steps, until he stopped again.
He didn’t want to upset Laon. What he said made sense, anyway. And he had to trust him, because where would he be without him?
If Laon said things were okay. If he was okay. Then how could Arawn possibly argue with him? Did he fully believe that everything was okay? He didn’t know. He didn’t feel like things were. But Laon was being insistent, and Arawn didn’t want to upset him and…
He needed to stop circling around on things, because it was just spinning wheels and got them nowhere.
“No matter what,” he agreed, his voice quiet as he let out a frustrated breath. “Maybe we can get Remarque to call back that dumb talking cat to give you more power,” he grumbled.
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Posted: Fri Aug 25, 2023 5:52 pm
“Maybe,” Laon agreed. “But it is getting late. It’s probably past his bedtime tonight. We can ask when we see him again.”
And maybe between now and then, Laon would magically figure out how to unlock whatever he needed to so he could get more power, too. It felt like there was a web in his stomach, pulled taut and stretched by some dark spider hunting for its next meal. He could feel its bristly legs prodding inside of him and had to work very hard not to scrunch up his face at the visual he’d summoned for himself.
Instead, he forced a quick smile, and when he wasn’t sure that was convincing enough, he just tucked his face into Arawn’s neck.
“It’s okay,” he said, partly for Arawn. Partly for himself. He wanted to believe it was okay.
It was still magic, he knew he shouldn’t expect to understand and harness it immediately. Maybe he just hadn’t practiced with his enough. Maybe he was still uncertain of his own abilities, or unsure of when to use them. “I’m okay.”
Just in case Arawn needed to hear it. Laon couldn’t see what was going on inside of his head, but he didn’t want to be the source of any stress or strain. He knew he’d be panicking right now if their positions had been swapped, so he couldn’t blame Arawn for worrying. “You’re okay. Better than okay. I’m really proud of you, Arawn. Honest. I’m really excited to see what else you can do.”
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Posted: Fri Aug 25, 2023 6:02 pm
Arawn wasn’t sure he was convinced, but for Laon’s sake, he nodded.
He could be okay. For Kaelan, he could be okay. He had to be. Maybe if he acted like this wasn’t a big deal (it wasn’t) then Laon would realize that it was really just nothing. Or a weird fluke. He didn’t know, but he couldn’t risk Laon being upset and worrying.
“Oh, you’re excited to see what else I can do?” he teased, giving Laon another squeeze as he held him.
He loved Laon. He really did. He wasn’t even insincere when he teased him, although it felt a little fabricated at that moment. A distraction. For the both of them.
“I think the first thing I want to learn to make is some more of this rope,” he nodded to the cords that seemed to be wrapped around him even more enthusiastically now than before. “Why, you ask? Why would that be the first thing? Well…”
He tilted his head so he could whisper a bit easier into Laon’s ear. He was happy to share with him all the things he could do with some soft, strong cord.
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Posted: Fri Aug 25, 2023 8:16 pm
Laon knew Arawn well enough to know that he had so many tricks up his sleeve to distract him. Despite knowing this, despite thinking he was prepared for them, they always worked.
His face turned red and he instinctively squirmed in his arms. It wasn’t to get away, he just couldn’t help himself.
“You are so bad! How do you do that! Out of nowhere! It’s too hot for you to be talking about that right now.” Well, it was warm, it was still summer. He was acutely aware of the heat right now, though. He had to raise a hand to fan himself off–and then decided to share whatever small breeze he could generate with Arawn, too. He should have brought a hand fan, this happened too often.
He was quiet for a few seconds, and then looked in the direction of the mirror they’d stepped out of. He looked up at Arawn.
His face was red; it felt like he had a sudden sunburn. Maybe it was dark enough that Arawn wouldn’t see it.
“It’s so late.”
It wasn’t. His face felt hotter.
“We should go home.”
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Posted: Fri Aug 25, 2023 8:51 pm
Arawn laughed, endeared by Laon’s reaction, as expected as it was. He might have a horrible memory, but he would have a hard time forgetting Laon and how much he cared about him.
“Oh, yes, we should definitely get home so we can cool off,” he agreed, amused that Laon seemed at least distracted for the moment. He knew it wasn’t the end of how he was feeling, and how he suspected Laon was feeling, but it was a good time to take a breath and step back.
“I guess I could always give you a preview with some stuff we’ve got back at the apartment,” he teased again, but pressed a kiss to Laon’s heated cheek. It wasn’t so dark that he couldn’t tell when his face changed colors.
He stepped towards the mirror with the intention of using it to take a shortcut home, and pressed a kiss to Laon’s cheek.
“I love you.”
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