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 Posted: Thu Jul 24, 2008 5:33 pm
York frowned and tried to decide. "I'm not sure..." he said slowly. It didn't really matter which book it was, anyway. What mattered was that they were together and that they were there for each other.
York still remembered when D first offered to read to him. It had surprised him; he had never expected an AI to offer to do such a thing. He had gotten used to it though...he found that over time, he could get used to anything that D did. Sometimes he was shocked to remember that D had been constructed by the government; the only thing that damn program ever did.
"How about this one?" he suggested, pulling a book out at random. That was another thing--he wasn't sure why he still held a book even if D had their entire collection memorized. I guess that's just part of what makes us human... he decided. The assumption that a living thing needs a book to read from, not a memory to recite from...
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Posted: Thu Jul 24, 2008 6:01 pm
D glanced at the spine of the book and pulled up the data file. "In here or the bedroom?" he asked once the file was prepped. He didn't have much of a preference but the bedroom would be easier as D suspected that York would fall asleep at some point while he "read". Not that he minded, D liked to watch York sleep. The stress and all the cares seemed to fall of his partners shoulders and it made D feel warm inside to see York like that.
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Lady Argentum Draconis Vice Captain
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Posted: Thu Jul 24, 2008 7:19 pm
"How about in the bedroom?" York suggested. "It'll be more comfortable for us both." He had discovered that D had a wonderful voice for reading: it was clear and comforting, gentle and easy on the ears. Even when he was tired and had trouble concentrating on anything else, he found it easy to follow the story. It was also very restful, lulling him to sleep every night. It had become a routine; York wasn't even sure if he could sleep without it any more. He shook inwardly at the thought of never hearing D read to him again. It wasn't something he liked thinking about, just like how some couldn't stand the thought of death: it gave him the creeps and only made him feel panicky.
York curled up on the bed, holding the book ready for D.
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Posted: Thu Jul 24, 2008 7:38 pm
D followed York into the bedroom and curled up behind York with his head resting on York's side. From here he gave the illusion of needing to see the book and let him take opportunity to touch York. D tittered a bit to himself, a living being may think touch was important but they had no idea how much it meant to someone who wasn't even real.
Being able to be in physical contact with York meant more than D could possibly explain. He shook his head a bit and then pushed up his glasses and leaned his head in toward York's chest. "Chapter One, A Runaway Reef..." he began.
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Lady Argentum Draconis Vice Captain
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Posted: Thu Jul 24, 2008 8:24 pm
York closed his eyes and let himself drift away as D began to read.
He shivered at D's touch. Why? He had never felt like this when D touched him before...why did he fall in love with D only now? I guess I'll never know. The only thing I can do is to accept it. He laid his tail across D's and snuggled into the blankets. D's chin was a warm weight against York's shoulder, his voice a comforting murmur in his ears. He wasn't sure if he had ever felt this happy before. If he had, he certainly didn't remember it...
Without realizing it, York drifted off to sleep, content in the feeling of his partner against his back...
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Posted: Thu Jul 24, 2008 8:41 pm
D only only just started chapter two when he noticed York asleep. He stopped and made a bookmark in the file for later and stashed it back in his archives.
He tilted his head the other way and looked up at York. He felt that warm feeling spread across his stomach and through his body. Had he always felt this way about York? He wasn't sure but he knew he'd always liked and respected York. While the others were fighting with there new partners for control, D had accepted that it was York's head and he was a guest, and guests shouldn't argue with the landlord...at least that was how D felt about it.
He sighed and watched York some more. It helped him take his mind of things that would crop up in his memory whether he wanted them to or not. D gently flicked his tail back and forth in time to his internal clock. Before long he'd entered his standby mode, and the thoughts that he couldn't get rid off started cropping up again.
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Lady Argentum Draconis Vice Captain
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Posted: Fri Jul 25, 2008 9:40 pm
York remembered the initial implantation only hazily. He remembered being told to breathe just before his armor was exposed to Delta...he remembered being told that his mind would race in a thousand different directions, robbing him of the ability to concentrate and that he might even forget to breathe...it hadn't quite been like that. That is, it was just as they said, but to York it felt like they had exaggerated. It was only later that he found out that the other Freelancers had had a much rougher time of it as the other AIs had slipped into their minds, circling around like a cat to get comfortable in their host's mind. D hadn't been like that. His transition had been much easier and gentler. York felt grateful for that after hearing about the other Freelancers; after losing his eye. He had already begun to appreciate D, but it was then that he realized that D had already treated him more as a friend than a body.
It was a combination of D's assistance with his recovery from his injury and the knowledge of his respect that had made York rely on D more and more as a living being and not as a program. And now...it had turned to love. Was that even possible?
It was morning, and York could still feel D's warmth against his back. Lazily, York opened his right eye and debated getting up or not.
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Posted: Fri Jul 25, 2008 10:14 pm
He was back in the storage area again with all the others...before he was D...when he was just Delta...The strange one, the one that acted accordingly. They were arguing...they were always arguing...there wasn't much else to do. They were restricted from accessing files on the Freelancers they were eventually getting assigned too, so it left a lot of down time...at lot of time for quirks to start showing up. First they'd started naming themselves, then came the obsession with Alpha...that started the downward spiral for most of them....
D sat on the far end towards the fanatics. Although his own personality kept him from the rash actions that many of the others later tried, any mention of the name set him off. He'd tried ignoring the impulse to babble endlessly but it was useless he always did.
And it made him feel guilty...He wondered if it hurt York to see him like that, when it took something near a miracle to make him stop. He didn't want to hurt York...he never had....He loved York and all he really wanted was York to love him back.
D was still "asleep" when York woke up . And although he couldn't dream per se, he was. Although the term nightmare would have better applied. He was stuck in "remembering" the time before York, the time when they'd only had one thing to talk about. D's frame shuddered as he tried to "wake" himself up. Sometimes D didn't need to actually hear the name to be set off...sometimes he just had to "remember" having it heard it...
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Lady Argentum Draconis Vice Captain
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Posted: Fri Jul 25, 2008 10:44 pm
They had all known what they were getting into...the briefings, the training...some had tried to cop out. He remembered hearing that Tex's boyfriend at the time, a Blue soldier, had tried to talk her out of it, but she had stayed along with most of the other agents. Now that they were in, they were in for good. Too late to leave. Too late to face anywhere but forward, into a future with a shared mind.
York had been forced to look forward, not only because the government wouldn't let any of them out, but also because he had nowhere else to go; his family had shunned him after he had been caught shoplifting. He was lucky that the government had taken him in.
The most startling experience in the program--besides the shocking blast of pain as Omega!Tex had blinded him and the moment he met D--was during the first briefing after the implantation. He had begun to get used to D in the background, but suddenly he had felt the AI consumed with curiosity, almost driving away his normally calm demeanor. As he got more and more used to D and began to appreciate him more and more, he began to feel hurt whenever IT was mentioned. Not because it hurt him personally, but because he had seen what it did to other AIs and the thought of D going insane like the others worried him--and not just for his mind. York didn't want to see D go mad with the thought of IT, that all-consuming passion among the other AIs...
York noticed that D had gone stiff and had begun to quiver. York moaned under his breath. "Not again!" He rolled over and nudged D gently with his muzzle. "Come on, wake up, D! It's okay...it'll be okay...please wake up?"
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Posted: Fri Jul 25, 2008 11:06 pm
D flinched involuntarily as York touched him. He shuddered one more time and slowly "woke" up. He pushed his tiny glasses up and looked up at York blinking. The expression on York's face was enough to tell him what had happened.
D immediately turned his head away, feelings of guilt and a deep disgust with himself boiled to the surface. "I'm sorry..." he whispered, the words sounding inadequate to his own ears. In that instant D wished he could cry. He curled his tail tightly around his body and buried his head in it. "I'm sorry, York...I..." he trailed off not know what to say, here he was with the individual he loved, whom he hoped loved him back, who had given him so much, and here he was thinking about the one thing that he wanted almost as much as York's love if not more...
D couldn't help but feel revolted with himself. He pulled himself tighter against himself and started to shake slightly as though crying even if he couldn't shed tears...
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Lady Argentum Draconis Vice Captain
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Posted: Fri Jul 25, 2008 11:32 pm
The tone of D's voice brought tears to York's eyes. He wrapped his tail around D and nuzzled him gently. "It's okay," he whispered gently. "Everything's fine, D. You don't need to feel ashamed. I...I think I understand."
Burying his face into D's shoulder, he hoped to make D feel better. He had always known that the AIs were obsessed with IT, but it dawned on him that it bothered D. Why? Why should he feel guilty about obsessing? He's always obsessed about it... "D...please don't tear yourself apart about this," York whispered. "You don't need to...it's nothing to be ashamed about. We all have our little quirks." He felt the tears in his eyes soak into D's soft fur. "You don't need to apologize. You've never needed to. I...D..." York gulped. "D, I love you. Please don't...I couldn't live without you. Please...stay..."
York began to shake as well. He couldn't bear the thought of losing his closest companion, his only friend...his love..."Please stay."
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Posted: Sat Jul 26, 2008 4:56 am
D stopped shaking as York wrapped himself around him. He was surprised as York began crying into his fur. And it nearly broke him to hear York beg him to stay and to hear the words "I love you" addressed to him. He almost didn't believe it.
D uncurled himself just slightly so that he could look at York. His eyes were full of the pain he was feeling, and the hope that York had brought to life.
"Because....Because...I love you, York...." he whispered just so his partner could hear and with that D began to tremble again. He gently turned himself so that is head was directly under Yorks and began to nuzzle against his partners chest. "Please don't cry, I'm sorry....I love you, I'll never leave you, York...Please...please don't cry...I'm sorry...I'm sorry..." he said in a rush rubbing against York in almost a blind panic to reassure his partner. He didn't want to hurt York, he couldn't stand to see York hurt. "I love you, York..."
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Lady Argentum Draconis Vice Captain
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Posted: Sat Jul 26, 2008 9:54 am
York took a few deep breaths, beginning to calm down as a fierce warmth spread through him at his partner's words...I love you, York... "It's okay, D," he whispered. "You don't need to feel guilty. It's just...part of who you are." He rubbed his chin along D's neck and stroked his tail with his own. "Please don't drive yourself mad over this...that's what I meant..." He closed his eyes, hoping that this would reassure D...
He remembered the hope in D's eyes, and also the pain. It tore him up to see the pain even as he savored the hope; he couldn't stand the thought of D being hurt. He hoped never to hurt D like that or even see that look of pain in his deep green eyes.
"I love you so much, D..." he whispered. If he spoke any louder, his voice would crack like a smashed window. "I don't want to hurt you or see you hurt..."
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Posted: Sat Jul 26, 2008 10:19 am
D nuzzled closer to York, running his head against his chest. "I won't, York..." he said, "I won't....I have you..." he muttered. "I don't want to hurt you either York. I never want to hurt you. " He slowly stopped trembling and the panic began to fade.
"I love you too, York...I...I always have...even if I didn't know it..." he muttered. "I won't lose myself...not as long as I have you..." he said trailing off and continuing to nuzzle his partner.
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Lady Argentum Draconis Vice Captain
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Posted: Sat Jul 26, 2008 10:34 am
"Thanks," York whispered. "For everything I have now and everything I am. I couldn't have done it without you. I would be lost without you." He felt D's tremors subside and started to calm down himself.
"The only way you've ever hurt me is whenever you hurt yourself," he added. "Please don't hurt yourself..." He, too, trailed off, savoring his partner's warmth and the feel of his soft fur.
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