[PD] Catching up... [Theis/Corwin]

[Feral Mule]

.....Those pixie eyes closed as Theis let out a breath. It was a very hot summer day and, even inside, the air felt still and thick. Just from breathing it in, Theis could taste how stale it was. He was sitting in his room, completely shirtless because it was too hot! The air conditioner in their house broke down and was currently being worked on. Not only the Pixie-dragon was swimming in his own sweat. Oh, no, his adoptive father was, too. And the boy just felt horrible for him!

.....Every now and then, when Theis could muster up the strength, he would get two frozen rags from the freezer an find his dad, forcing them both to take a cool down 'bath' as it were.

.....Besides the heat, one of the other reasons Theis agreed to let the men come and work was because they weren't going to go near any of his stuff. It would all be perfect, and neat, and clean, and set up just the way he left it after days of arranging, rearranging and getting it just right.

.....A tan hand pushed through pink, curly hair and he groaned. it was soaked with sweat! Luckily, the workers had just told Tony, his dad, that they were done for the day! Maybe he could ask about the idea he just now had.

.....See, Theis knew his dad was lonely and wanted to see James, and Theis wanted to see Corwin, and it was way too hot to sleep here tonight. So he spoke up now that all the workers were gone. "....Can we go to Mr. James' and Corwin's for the night?" His dragon tail swished about him as he tried to act, and appear, innocent. Not so easy when he was plotting!"

.....Tony sighed and pushed a hand through blond and pink hair before piling it on his head and wrapping rubber bands and pencils and things in it to keep it there before looking to his son.

.....Clearly the poor boy was suffering if he offered to go to someone else's house for the night. Naturally, the blond and pink haired man nodded and fluffed up Theis' limp hair. "Yeah.. While I call and ask, you, sir, go climb in the shower and put on clean clothes." He chuckled and kissed Theis' sweaty forehead, grimacing at the taste and smell of the kids' sweat.

....."Scrub hard." He sent Theis to the shower as he grabbed the phone and dialed James' number. He was so nervous.  

[Juridian Soul]

"Corwin Thaddius Reid, you get your scaly tail into this tub, or so help me I'll tell your aunt!" James threatened lightly as he chased the dragonchild around the house. The naked dragonchild at that.

"Catch meeee!" Corwin singsonged, scampering around and trying to avoid his father at every turn, just about suceeding.

Where he failed was the stairs, and that is how James caught him up, and cradled him. Squirming all the way, Corwin huffed, and resigned himself to a bath, giving his father a dirty look, then catching interest in his own tail as it swayed slightly back and forth from him behind carried.
"You are going into this bathtub. I won't take 'no' for an answer - you understand me?"

The dragon nodded his head, and pouted, sitting on the floor next to the tub, and wishing his dad didn't have a habit of locking the door on him at bathtime. It would be FUN to go running around wet...
The water was just starting to get heated when the distinctive ring of the telephone caused James to look over at the one on the wall in here. "Honestly? This late? I wonder who..."

He didn't even split his attention as Corwin tried to bolt, and the man grabbed him, sitting him back in the tub for the warm water to continue filling, holding him there with a gentle-yet-firm hand on one shoulder.
James picked up the phone after getting Corwin into the tub. He answered with sudsy hands, and held the phone to his ear with his shoulder as he soaped Corwin's long, beautiful hair. He yawned as he scrubbed, and his voice over the phone was a bit tired.

"Reid residence, James speaking..."  

[Feral Mule]

"Hey sugar, miss me much?" Tony asked animatedly, laughing softly. "I know it's late James, and you're probably giving Corwin a bath or getting him settled down, but... the a/c at our place broke and Theis is miserable. He's just sweating and flushed and it's like he has a fever!" He was throwing his hands around animatedly, as if James could really see him. "So I was thinking, lover boy, is that..... Can we come crash with you? Our air should be fixed tomorrow. Just for the night."

Theis loved baths. They got him clean and refreshed and there were bubbles! Who didn't like bubbles? The half pixie-half dragon was in a tub full of nice warm water, a bit on the hot side, with bubbles everywhere, including his head. He knew how to take his own baths, and liked to do it that way 'cause Tony didn't get between all the scales on the underside of his tail and got dirt in his bed a lot of times!

The boy would be in the bathtub for a while yet.  

[Juridian Soul]

James laughed a bit, and nodded, as though Tony could possibly see him.
"It IS late, and I AM giving Corwin a bath... but you're welcome to come over. Actually I'm about to go to a 'family meeting' for about a week, and was going to ask you if you'd come over to house-sit and watch Corwin. Perfect timing, right?"

His voice dropped to a softer tone. "I'd really like it if you'd see me off... In such a manner as is befitting of me having to deal with my family." Another very soft chuckle. "Once the boys are tucked in bed of course- ACK! CORWIN! Stop splashing!"

The boy pushed a wave of water toward his father, but didn't win this fight. James got right back in there, soaked as anything.
"You WILL have clean hair by the time you get in bed young man, and that's final."

Corwin offered a pouty-face, and sat there with his arms crossed while James finished washing his hair, and returned to talking on the phone.

"I have a few days yet before I leave. We could catch up? There' a couple things I wanted to ask you anyway - I just haven't had the time. I took some of those parenting classes you recommended, too. Time-eaters... but seriously helpful. Thank you."  

[Feral Mule]

He winced when James started yelling at Corwin and grimaced. "James, I taught you better than that, didn't I? If he wants to splash in the tub, you tell him he can after he gets clean!" He chided, grinning happily. There was a happy little flush on his cheeks as he tried to ignore the suggestion James just gave him, but he knew his brain had flagged it as an invite.

"Seems you still might need those classes? I can offer the again...." he all but purred into the phone as he received an odd like from Theis. "I'll see you soon, then."

He hung up the phone fairly quickly after that, cheeks still a light shade of pink as he snorted at Theis. "We're staying for a while. Why don't you pack a week worth of clothes, hm?"

And off the boy raced again.  

[Juridian Soul]

Once there was a clean dragonboy in the tub, James helped him out of it, and pulled a nightshirt over his head. Corwin really wasn't all that mad about being thwarted, and he really WAS tired as heck. So he let his father dress him, and help him into bed with a kiss to the forehead.

"Theis and Tony will be here when you get up in the morning." he murmured. "But you need to get some sleep - okay? Rest well, Corwin... I love you."

He stroked the boy's hair back, and smiled as he turned on the nightlight on the dresser, and turned off the overhead light, tucking Corwin in with one of his favorite stuffed animals.

After that, he retreated to the other side of the room, and lifted up the lazily sleeping black-and-rainbow dragon, cradling him like a kitten, and taking him out to the living room. "YOU need to wake up, young dragon. You've been asleep since this afternoon."

The dragon was unceremoniously placed on the ottoman, and a tiny leather collar in pink was snapped around his neck. "Wake up, and be NICE. I'm sure Theis will play with you. I need to give you a bath later..."  

[Feral Mule]

Tony arrived a few short hours later and had Theis in tow. the two had packed, showered and changed in the time, as well as brought some dinner. It wasn't much, but Tony had made a lasagna for the four of them to eat together. It was one of Theis' favorite 'messy' meals. It was a good thing they packed Theis' lasagna bib.

"Knock on the door, Theis. I have my hands full!" He said, chuckling. A suitcase and a hot meal in his hands. Indeed he had it full!

Theis nodded and bit down on his lip as he looked do the door. Drawing the sanitizer out of his pocket, he knocked and proceeded to clean his hand with a wrinkled nose. Why couldn't everyone have a plastic door he could clean easy?