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 Posted: Sun Oct 06, 2024 11:58 am
Cassidy nodded but he didn’t seem willing to move on so easily.
“Only once every couple of weeks,” he reminded. The little room was cozy, and even if Reims said he was still working on things.
He wanted to move closer to Reims but he stayed put. Except for when he stretched the blanket out to better cover Reims, too. The fire wasn’t warm enough that he could feel it from here and he had Reims’ coat so he had to be chilly, too.
“I mean, what you described seems pretty rough.” Burned by fire! Cut open by glass! Attacked by monsters! Souls snatched!
“What could be worse than all of that?”
…Was he just trying to be cool? Or was there more to it? What kind of life did you have to live before you were worthy of this magic?
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Posted: Sun Oct 06, 2024 11:58 am
Even though he sighed again, it was only with slight exasperation, and he accepted the blanket that was offered to him with quiet thanks. He would be lying if he said he wasn’t trying really hard not to shiver. But if he was really that cold, he could just insist they move the couch closer to the fire.
“There are other places I could go,” he said with the hopes of reassuring him. “The Moon… some kind of magical Headquarters my friends and I are trying to figure out. It’s just more comfortable here, for me.”
It was difficult not to suggest to Cassidy that car accidents that prevent baseball players from playing baseball could be worse. Or not being able to use healing magic at all.
But it wasn’t just that, and he knew saying too much would just open up the chance for Cassidy to tease him.
No… that wasn’t quite it. Cassidy didn’t seem like he wanted to make fun of him, otherwise he could have. Very easily.
“Like this--” Reims cautiously started, and vaguely gestured to himself. “I actually have full control over what I do with my life. There’s been a lot of things that I’ve done and regretted. I get the chance to just be myself like this. Less pressure, you know? I’d take all those risks to keep this.”
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Posted: Sun Oct 06, 2024 12:00 pm
Chewing on his cheek, Cassidy considered this for a moment. He still wasn’t quite sure what to make of Reims but he knew he didn’t think poorly of him.
“Yeah, I guess that makes sense,” he said slowly, even as he was trying to decipher what more he might mean.
“You don’t look like you’re old enough to have a lot of regrets.” What had he done that had such an impact on him? He still had time to make up for whatever it was, didn’t he? “I mean, from where I’m standing, it sort of seems like there’s a lot of pressure. To save lives and all that. I can’t imagine what you’ve got going on outside of this that’s got you so high strung.”
No offense meant! But who willingly fought monsters at their own peril with no reward? He was out here fighting ‘just to keep people safe’? Like, it was cool but it was dangerous, too.
It would have taken a special person to pick up the mantle of responsibility and put themselves in harm’s way like that, even if it was for the greater good.
“Who are you when you’re not ‘like this’? Just some ordinary guy, and no one’s going to know that in your free time you hunt monsters and visit the Moon? You don’t have to tell me your secret identity, that’s not what I’m asking. Well, I mean, you could. I’m just trying to figure you out. Am I going to get to see you again or are we going to get back to Destiny City and you just disappear into the night and leave me to question my sanity for the rest of my life?”
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Posted: Sun Oct 06, 2024 12:22 pm
Reims frowned a bit while he listened to Cassidy’s thoughts and questions. There was a lot that he knew he could say. Just as much as he knew there was a lot he shouldn’t say.
There was a part of him that wondered if he would regret this, too. If he pulled Cassidy into it too quickly. Maybe they would have been fine if they just ran for it. Or maybe nothing would have happened if he just kept to the shadows and kept an eye out for the youma that was lurking.
Against his will, Cassidy was pulled into a world of monsters and magic. There was enough that he had to deal with in his normal life. He didn’t need everything else that was now thrown at him.
“It would probably be better for you if you never had to deal with this again,” he admitted. “But at least you can be more vigilant about what’s going on in the city. As far as I’m aware, it’s just Destiny City. You might be safer if you could leave again. And… just be careful, because we’re not all the same.”
He wanted to help people, but that didn’t make him a hero or anything like that. He was just doing what felt right. He knew others didn’t feel the same way.
“If you ever hear about the Negaverse-- yeah, it’s as bad as it sounds. You’d think they’d call themselves something else. But they control the youma. Some of the people have, like… merged with youma. I don’t know how it works. Anyway, try not to piss them off if you’re cornered for, like… recruitment. You’ll be forced to do things you don’t want to, and be made to fight people like me. And to take energy and starseeds from civilians too.”
Cassidy said he had questions, so if Reims made sure to keep his distance from then on, at least Cassidy could have some answers.
Even if it wasn’t specifically about him.
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Posted: Sun Oct 06, 2024 12:36 pm
“You think some evil corporation is going to want to recruit me with my heart condition?” Cassidy rolled his eyes.”I’m sure I’ll be fine. I might not look it but I’m pretty good at running. You just caught me on a bad day. I’m only out because I have to get ready for school, but after that it’s not like I’m going to be on my own a lot. I have a lot of friends so I’ll just make sure to stick with some of them when I’m not home.”
He shrugged and leaned back into the couch so he could look at the room again. “I guess I’ll be careful. But you’re not really going to tease me with magical healing and then ditch just when I was starting to get into it, are you? Because if I’m supposed to keep this to myself and not tell anyone else about tonight, I want to make the most of it.”
Teasing, just a little. His attention shifted back and forth from where they were to who he was with. Now, he was looking at Reims. Really looking at him. Did he really seem so familiar or was his mind just playing tricks on him? What was it about him that was so…so...
Something.
“Is there any way I can repay you? You know, bake you a cake or something, give you a kiss.”
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Posted: Sun Oct 06, 2024 12:38 pm
“What? Why?” Reims sputtered, feeling his ears burn as he stared across the couch at Cassidy. He was making fun of him again! Even though he didn’t know he was Riker. It was probably just a thing Cassidy did with everyone, but still!
“N-no, I’m fine,” he mumbled, hoping it was still dim enough in the room that his cheeks didn’t look like they’d flushed a bit with color. It wasn’t even a lot that Cassidy was suggesting! Just a kiss! It was nothing!
“I wasn’t teasing you. I am going to ask my friends about what their healing can do. They’ll probably try to meet up with you to figure things out,” he explained and shifted uncomfortably where he was on the couch. The fire seemed like it was starting to die out, but that wasn’t unexpected since he’d taken some logs off to help speed up the process.
“Anyway, we can go back whenever.” Because if he could hurry him back to Destiny City, maybe he would drop the ridiculous idea of kissing him.
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Posted: Sun Oct 06, 2024 12:39 pm
“Relax!” Cassidy laughed. “It’s just a kiss! And you already said no! But I guess the offer’s still open. Isn’t that what they do in all the fairy tales? ‘Oh, thank you for rescuing me from mortal peril, brave knight’. No? You need to read the same books I do, you’re missing out.”
He twirled some of his hair around his finger thoughtfully. “Want a lock? No, I’m just teasing. Don’t kick me out so fast. I’ve got like twenty bucks cash on me, I could give you that instead.”
He doubted Reims actually wanted to be paid, but Cassidy leaned over to grab his bag and heave it up. In the process, he scooted a little quicker to Reims. Cassidy plopped his bag onto his lap and unzipped it, eagerly fishing around. “Oh, I’ve got an apple too. That’s boring. You could have it if you wanted it, though.”
Cassidy had a boring, black wallet. He’d always called it his lucky wallet, because he found it on the sidewalk while walking home from practice once. There was nothing special about it; it had no brand name, it wasn’t of particularly astounding construct. It was just the same wallet he’d carried since he found it in middle school and hadn’t even had anything to put in it.
Riker had seen it before, but back then it hadn’t been anything special. Now, the black leather was scratched, and had several prominent dents, and a crease that looked like it had been folded in half right down the middle. It had two holes straight through it; a splash of color from the cards inside was visible as soon as he pulled it out.
“If you want to go back now, we can. I just don’t want you to waste your trip up here. His wallet was less full of things now than it usually was; he tended to shove receipts in there, and business cards, and anything small that fit. He didn’t have much right now, but he pulled out a twenty and a few extra bills. “I’m guessing you won’t let me take you out to dinner to say thank you, so here. So you can get it yourself and think of me. Is there some easy way to meet up again with you or your friends or is that just a polite promise so I don’t make a fuss on the way out? You can be real with me, I won’t throw a fit. I might start crying, though.”
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Posted: Sun Oct 06, 2024 1:11 pm
“Please don’t,” Reims immediately grimaced in response to Cassidy’s comment about how he might start crying. He’d already leaned further back against the side of the couch as Cassidy scooted closer, his heart doing that weird thing where it raced for no reason.
He was watching with probably very obvious curiosity, although he tried not to be too nosey. The wallet was interesting in that he’d definitely seen it before, but not in as poor shape. Holes that went through leather? Was that intentional?
Had the wear and tear been done over time, and Reims just hadn’t recalled very clearly what it looked like, or was it due to the accident?
“You could probably use that to get yourself a new wallet,” he nodded, still leaning back as though attempting to distance himself without actually moving from the couch.
“It’s fine. Really. And my friends will be able to find you. I’ll… describe you to them,” he suggested with a forced shrug to feign nonchalance. “It wasn’t a waste. It would have been a pain if either of us ended up being hurt before school starts. And I got to show off my Wonder a little. It’s not like we have a lot of guests that come here. Uh, I’m sorry you got dragged into this.”
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Posted: Sun Oct 06, 2024 1:22 pm
Please don’t.
Cassidy donned a thoughtful look, but given his demeanor it wasn’t at all possible to tell what he was thinking about. He watched Reims like he expected more from him. Whatever he was looking for, he either found or didn’t; he shrugged and put the money away. “Well, suit yourself, then. I’ll keep the money but if I’m going to spend it, it’s not going to be on a wallet. This one’s lucky,” he promised. “I’ve always said there was something special about it. Who knows, maybe it’s magic.”
He dropped it back into his bag and zipped up before he hunched forward on it so he could prop his arm up and give Reims his full attention.
“You don’t have to be sorry about anything. I’m glad you were there so I didn’t get hurt. How are you going to describe me to your friends so they can find me?” he asked. The corner of his lip twitched into a very familiar, bemused smile. Cassidy had the impeccable ability to look both smug and complacent without really having to do anything. It was just a natural aura that gave him an easy, laid back demeanor.
Which was great if it was someone who knew he was just like that and didn’t mean anything by it. He couldn’t help how his face was any more than Reims could help how pink he got when flustered.
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Posted: Sun Oct 06, 2024 1:59 pm
“What?” he sputtered, not thinking he would be prompted to explain how he looked. He was just going to tell Atticus and Elliot that he’d run into Cassidy and he was interested in Atticus’s healing magic and not to mention him being Reims!
Reims awkwardly rubbed his hands on his pants, not enjoying how sweaty they were feeling. The air was still a bit chilly, and the fire was starting to die out, but he felt suddenly overheated.
“I don’t know! That-- that you’re pretty and have long legs-- I mean hair. Long blond hair. And uh, I guess green eyes, but they’re almost like your hair color and, uh. Your backpack. So don’t get a new one,” he struggled through his explanation, hoping it wasn’t too weird. He wasn’t sure how he felt about Cassidy looking at him like that, but it wasn’t like it was anything he wasn’t used to. Not when it came to him at least.
“How can a wallet be lucky, anyway? It looks like it got tossed in a blender! -- Sorry…” he quickly cut himself off. He knew he ended up saying the first thing that came to mind when he was flustered, and Cassidy didn’t need to deal with that.
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Posted: Sun Oct 06, 2024 2:01 pm
Cassidy’s lip twitched again but he nodded. “Well, that sounds like a good description for me, I guess I’m satisfied with that.” It was feeling cold again, and though he really wanted to actually see Reims, he knew he wasn’t dressed for it. For as much as he wanted to be back in Destiny City, he didn’t want to leave this place. Not if it was his only chance to see somewhere other than Earth.
“Not as flattering of a description for my wallet, though. I guess it did sort of get tossed in a blender, in a way. But that’s okay, it might be ugly but it still gets the job done. I’ll tell you a secret, though. It had a twenty in it when I found it, but nothing else in it. And no one was around to claim it. It felt like it was just waiting for me, so I called it my lucky wallet. But I was in this accident a few months ago and had it in my pocket, and you know? It was so stuffed with garbage, but it was in the right place at the right time.”
He was fishing around in his bag again and pulled it out, this time passing it over for Reims to examine. “When the door buckled in, this was between me and the metal. It was jammed into my leg, right against my thigh. I’ve got a little scar, I’d show you but you know. It’s pretty high up there. Anyway, I almost nicked the artery. And I was in that car for so long while they cut me out, I definitely would have bled out if I had. So it’s lucky. I had to throw away a lot of the things I had in there, they got kind of messed up. But the wallet’s still good. I’ve got this really creative friend, I was thinking maybe I could ask him if he could think of a way to make it look a little prettier. But I haven’t been in town for long enough to ask yet. But I can’t get rid of it now.”
Cassidy was pleased with it, maybe more so now with its imperfections than when he’d first found it.
“I wish I could have seen this place more. Will you bring me back some time and show me the rest of it? I’ll dress warmer, and I can help you clean up some, too. But that would mean you and I would have to have some way to contact each other. Destiny City’s a big place, we might not just run into each other again. Especially if I’m going to be good and not stay out too late. So is there some way to reach you again? I mean, not that we have to hang out or anything, but, you know. If I’m in trouble and need a rescue. Or if you’re in trouble and need a rescue. I mean, or just someone to help you sweep. I’m pretty good with a broom.”
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Posted: Sun Oct 06, 2024 2:02 pm
Reims stared at Cassidy, his heart sinking as the realization of what happened to him -- what really happened -- came crashing down around him. He accepted the wallet when it was handed to him, his fingers tracing the creases and the holes in the leather.
Once again, Reims realized how wrong he was about things. He suspected there was more to what happened to Cassidy, and how it must have affected him.
How could someone sit there and pretend like everything was perfectly fine, after almost dying, trapped inside of a crushed car? Cassidy must have been terrified and in so much pain.
And he hadn’t even bothered going to the hospital to see him.
He told him he thought he’d died, knowing very well that he hadn’t, and not realizing how close Cassidy had been to actually dying.
Cassidy was asking about seeing more of Reims. Of figuring out a way to get in touch with him. To help him clean. Offering to rescue him if needed, just as Reims would do the same for Cassidy. Reims never thought Cassidy was a bad guy. Just… a lot sometimes. And he flustered him easily.
He wanted to hug him. Probably all that time hanging out with Julian and with Evie. Even Evan made hugging seem so normal and wanted. Did he have any right to? Did he want to risk Cassidy finding out who he was? Would Cassidy just think it was pity?
“I don’t know if that’s a good idea,” he said quietly, his voice thick with emotion that he didn’t want Cassidy to hear, so he quickly cleared his throat before saying anything else. Realizing he was still holding onto Cassidy’s wallet, he slowly held it out to hand it back. He didn’t look, but he was almost afraid to see if the leather had been stained with Cassidy’s blood, or if it had been washed off.
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Posted: Sun Oct 06, 2024 2:25 pm
Cassidy clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth as he returned the wallet to the depths of his bag.
“Oh, too bad. I would have really liked to get to know you. But it’s okay if you’re settling on ‘no’, I can accept rejection with grace. Of course, if it were all up to me I’d just tell you that even if it’s not a good idea, that doesn’t mean it’s a bad one.”
Unlike before, his eyes hadn’t left Reims’ face. He wasn’t taking his time to glance between both the Knight and the room; his attention was solely on Reims.
His expression hadn’t changed, so it might have been easy to assume that he’d just missed the emotion in Reims’ voice. He hadn’t, though. He just didn’t know what it meant.
“Could have been fun, just saying. But I guess you’ve already got it pretty rough. You don’t need dead weight following you around if you’re out trying to save the world, right? It’s cool, I get it. No hard feelings.”
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Posted: Sun Oct 06, 2024 5:25 pm
Had he said no? He must have, if Cassidy was insisting that it was fine and that he would accept rejection with grace and all that. Reims felt his heart sink further, especially as Cassidy compared himself to dead weight. He opened his mouth for a moment to protest--
But stopped.
No… it was better this way. He wouldn’t screw up and make things worse if Cassidy was already set on accepting that he wasn’t going to try and contact him again.
Which meant… it was probably time to go.
Evan might still be up, although he wasn’t sure he’d know what to talk to him about other than how he ******** up again. Julian would probably be trying to sleep, and Reims would feel guilty about waking him up. Maybe he could get away with grabbing one of the blankets he had and slept on the floor. Just for the company.
“No hard feelings,” Reims repeated, but the words sounded hollow in his ears. Carefully, he set the blanket aside and stood up from the couch so he could use a poker to disburse the rest of the smoldering wood. He pulled a bucket of water close by, and with some tongs he grabbed the last pieces of wood and dropped them in, letting them hiss and sizzle and lose all their heat. The last thing he wanted to do was come back to his cathedral gone because of a preventable fire.
“It’s been long enough. I can take you back now.”
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Posted: Sun Oct 06, 2024 5:25 pm
While Reims got up and took care of the fire, Cassidy stayed put on the couch. His lips were pressed together in thought as he watched Reims work. Cassidy didn’t move or speak but he didn’t seem upset.
Just contemplative.
Only when Reims had finished did he stand up. He left his bag on the couch and started by neatly folding the blanket, placing it where he sat. Then, he shrugged off Reims’ coat. He really didn’t want to give it back, it was cozy and comfortable. “Thanks for letting me borrow this.”
The room felt frigid without it, or the blanket, or the fire, or Reims sitting next to him. Cassidy grit his teeth so they couldn’t chatter and carefully swung his backpack on, one arm at a time. He adjusted it, rose to his tiptoes, and flatted his soles to the ground again.
There was a tension in the air that hadn’t been there before. Was Reims brooding? Ready to be rid of him? He wasn’t squirming or nervous anymore.
Cassidy didn’t want to overstay his welcome.
“What do we have to do to get back?”
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