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 Posted: Thu May 15, 2014 6:27 pm
He'd made a mistake.
This is what Alistaire's first thought was upon awakening the morning after his evening with Harland. He rolled over in bed, still exhausted and bleary, and it wasn't until he had sat up that he actually remembered the events of the previous day.
Color slowly flooded into his face. Alistaire looked around the room hastily, trying to check for any signs of his brother, but the door was still locked and the patch on the floor where Ian sometimes crashed was unoccupied, everything tucked neatly away in its proper place. Careful. Orderly.
As it should have been. As last night hadn't been. Alistaire lifted a hand, running his fingers over his lips, the memories of Harland's mouth on his, the heated kisses pressed repeatedly, all flooding back to him and Alistaire covered his face with his hands, his fingers beginning to tremble.
What on earth had he been thinking? Not only had it only been a first date, it had been one of Alistaire's first ever outings with anyone that had been interested in him in the first place (or at least, said they were interested, since he still wasn't entirely convinced of Harland's affections). He had agreed to the date because Harland had been helping him -
Was that really why he had agreed?
Yes, Alistaire told himself, as he swung his legs over the side of the bed. Yes, that was it. Harland had been an assistant, someone to help him through a problem that he had, and the "date" had been a way of saying thank you. He'd gotten carried away because Harland was so very warm and was easy to fall into step with.
He couldn't stop thinking about the kisses.
Alistaire spent most of the day reading and doing his duty shifts around the island until finally he pulled out his phone, fiddling with it absently before he turned it back on and began composing a message.face your demons Text to Harland Leander Belle:I've been assigned to a duty shift at one of the training fields. Care to join me?
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Posted: Thu May 15, 2014 7:17 pm
Harland was sleeping in, because he was absolutely exhausted, and he had nowhere to be. His phone, which was in his hand as he slept, buzzed to wake him up quite late. Curious, and expecting a text from Lilac, he saw it was actually from Alistaire.
It wasn't night yet, as Harland affirmed by a glance out the window. He was relieved; sleeping in that late, and he'd worry he was getting sick. Harland smiled at his phone the whole time he composed a reply to the text.kuroopu Text to My HeartSure. Which field, and when?
Harland showered quickly, tossed on: heavy jeans, his chaps, one of his more resilient dress shirts, red cowboy boots, red bandana, and of course his cowboy hat. Basically, his normal work stuff. Lastly, his Death Division duster with its gold gears and edging. "Time to go," he said to himself, cheerfully, heading down in the direction of the training fields, checking his phone for a reply.
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Posted: Thu May 15, 2014 8:35 pm
Well, it was too late to take it back now. Alistaire's hands shook as his phone dinged, and he carefully picked it back up, eyeing the screen almost warily. Harland's reply, however, was casual and light, and Alistaire had no idea what he'd expected, but it wasn't that. He exhaled a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding and slid off the bed.face your demons Text to Harland Leander Belle:Back field. Twenty minutes.
He waited, slightly antsy, at the far edge of the field, absently fiddling with his gloves and ignoring Grimshaw's early afternoon growls of amusement.
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Posted: Thu May 15, 2014 9:12 pm
Harland smiled at the screen of his phone again, and tucked it into a pocket as he headed to the back field. The second he saw Alistaire, his smile only widened, and he took advantage of the walk up to him to admire how handsome he was. He definitely had that going for him.
Harland stopped a very decent personal bubble away from Alistaire, tipped his hat to the man, and made sure to quietly say: "Elegant," and just the one word, nodding in Alistaire's direction. He was, in fact, gorgeous and Harland would not deny that. Not at all the rustic look Harland had returned to. Seemed like if it wasn't a date night, if he was doing Deus stuff, he was dressed to do rugged things.
In a manner of speaking. "So, training field duty, huh? Better 'n buildin' walls again, I suppose," Harland said, cheerfully.
"Did ye sleep well?" he asked.
He was happy, casual, well-rested and clearly full of energy. It was nice to be outside. Harland stretched as he looked across the field. "What... do ye do here, anyway, if you're on duty," he asked. He was being very well-behaved, because he 1) didn't want Alistaire to yell at him for being affectionate in public, 2) did not want to ruin his chance at being invited out like this again.
The two also seemed to go hand in hand.
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Posted: Thu May 15, 2014 10:08 pm
"Good afternoon, Mr. Belle."
He had already determined that he was not going to turn into a blithering idiot just at the sight of seeing the man he'd kissed (somewhat of an understatement, really, seeing as how it had been many kisses, most of them too heated to be considered simple), but Harland's presence did send spirals of confusion and anxiety and pleasure throughout Alistaire. A flick of his eyes towards the other man saw that he was dressed casually, a smile on his face, and Alistaire pressed his lips together, resisting the urge to draw closer.
"I slept well," he said, though this wasn't really true. He'd lain awake for several hours after Harland had left, just going over everything that had happened, repeating the scenarios inside of his head until he'd been so deliriously exhausted that he'd finally dozed off around three in the morning, waking up mid-morning. "I trust you did also."
Quiet, simple conversation about nothing in particular. A good way to start the afternoon. Alistaire lifted a brow and smiled slightly, the corners of his lips twitching as a smirk spread across them.
"I thought we might have ourselves a rematch of that fight we had earlier," he said. "The one where you sent me to the infirmary."
It wasn't said with any sort of antagonism or anger, merely an amused curiosity.
"What do you say, Mr. Belle?"
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Posted: Fri May 16, 2014 6:42 am
"Yeah, I did," he said, "Thanks for the thought." Since he hadn't really asked, after all. Harland watched the smirk spread across Alistaire's face, and looped his thumbs through his beltloops.
A fight? Well, that could be fun. Now that they were (hopefully) not fighting to establish dominance of wills. "Infirmary?" Harland asked, feeling bad about that, "Woulda visited to apologize if I'd known. Ian didn't really tell me where he was takin' you, or what had happened." He actually did sound apologetic, and he frowned lightly.
"A rematch sounds about fair," Harland said. "This time, guess you've got more of an edge now that ye don't mind gettin' close t' me," he teased, with a quirked smile. After all, that weapon of his wasn't exactly ranged; Harland's was, but it had its melee uses, provided it was already recoiled. Harland took a second, and then asked:
"So... you're not actually on training duty?"
He blinked owlishly at him.
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Posted: Fri May 16, 2014 7:37 am
Harland wasn't entirely wrong about it not being a fight to establish dominance of wills; there certainly was a part of Alistaire that wanted to prove himself, but another part of him wanted to fight merely to train and to learn more about the use of his weapon.
"I was only in there a few hours before I left," Alistaire said lightly. "No need to concern yourself, my shield was still in place."
The mention of Ian sent a strange feeling of irritation throughout him, though he pushed it away, Alistaire absently tugging on the chain link bracelets around his wrist. His face flushed a little, his gaze sliding towards Harland with a mingled look of shock that he would mention such a thing in a public place and embarrassment that he actually was learning that he didn't mind getting close to Harland and that was a problem.
He chose not to comment on that statement, instead moving on.
"I am on duty," said Alistaire, summoning his weapon. Grimshaw appeared with a clink, the black daggers glinting in the sunlight as the chains slid in the grass behind him. "I just thought that duty could be a little more entertaining and worthwhile if I did something other than just stand here."
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Posted: Fri May 16, 2014 7:47 am
It was a little unlike him to have said it aloud, definitely; maybe it was a slip of the tongue, maybe he was forgetting their situation for a second. He had a flash of curiosity as to whether mentioning Ian's name was off limits and thought that might be a little odd for him. Not that he saw Ian ever, so really not that hard. Surely it would settle eventually. He couldn't pretend to stop feeling things, but he did usually have the decency not to act on them or bring them up unnecessarily.
He just hoped Alistaire never asked a direct question.
"Well, sure then," Harland said, understanding a little better. He folded his sleeves back and summoned Coyote from where he had been dormant, pierced into his stomach. He didn't have to fold them back, but the way the metal felt on his skin was heavenly. Today, he would like it.
☆≼He has obviously brought you here to kill you and bury it,≽ Coyote said, bitter at having to spend even more time around Alistaire. ☆≼Riding around in your meat suit is excessively tedious, lately. Have you ever considered asking me politely if I think we should make out with Alistaire?≽
Sorry, Coyote. But wasn't that walk out to meet Solia lovely? She seemed to like you, Harland said, trying to distract his partner.
Coyote grumbled, placified for now with thoughts of bacon and Solia.
The gauntlet glinted in the light, and harland didn't do anything more than prepare the gauntlet.
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kuropeco rolled 2 8-sided dice:
3, 3
Total: 6 (2-16)
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Posted: Fri May 16, 2014 9:07 am
Alistaire scrutinized Harland's weapon somewhat curiously, as though he was trying to figure it out better than he had the last time. But after a few seconds he took a step back and gathered the chains up in his gloved hands, winding them around one of his wrists.
"I take it you won't go easy on me just because..." he started to say and then flushed a deep red, unwilling to finish the sentence in a public area. The rest of it - just because we kissed last night - remained unspoken and yet clearly audible.
He was still trying to sort through that mess inside of his head, but at least he had some semblance of control again.
His first lunge towards Harland was a feint, Alistaire aiming for Harland's side but veering to the left before it actually made contact.
HP: 40
DMG: 0 a+ 4 u ali
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Face your demons rolled 2 8-sided dice:
2, 4
Total: 6 (2-16)
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Posted: Fri May 16, 2014 10:03 am
Coyote was immediately a lot more thrilled with this engagement.
He had absolutely no desire to throw a fight, or to go easy on Alistaire. He laughed at the suggestion he might even consider it, but didn't manage to reply, he was smiling at Alistaire's blushing. And then there was a lunge, and it thankfully veered, because Harland was way too distracted by how cute the blush was. It was endearing, because it wasn't... well, not really cute, honestly. It was just somehow vulnerable on a face normally so sharp and unyielding. He loved that.
"Keep forgettin' how fast you are," Harland lamented, with a grin. He tried to punch the gauntlet at Alistaire as he retreated to get some distance and use his hookshot properly, but no such luck regarding the punch: a near hit, sure, but he didn't estimate Alistaire's position properly as he was moving and failed to connect.
Maybe his own attraction would be his undoing in the fight. Harland just smiled, thinking there are worse reasons to lose.
hp: 40/40
dmg: ZERO WOO
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kuropeco rolled 2 8-sided dice:
2, 4
Total: 6 (2-16)
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Posted: Fri May 16, 2014 10:38 am
He was trying to maintain order to maintain calm - and yet it was clear right off the bat that it wasn't going to be easy. Harland was his normal casual, laid-back self, seemingly unruffled by the events of the previous night - or at least, if he was thinking about them, he wasn't showing it, other than a flippant comment about getting close. Alistaire's mind, on the other hand, kept replaying everything in an attempt at deciphering it, figuring it out, taking it apart piece by piece so that he could understand every little detail about it.
Harland had stepped back and Alistaire twisted away as his weapon shot forward, barely missing him. The chains rattled as they dragged across the ground, and Alistaire clicked his teeth together, a faint smirk on his face.
"I find that if you keep moving your feet, it tends to make things a little more easy to dodge," he said lightly, waving one of the daggers.
HP: 40
DMG: ....this is going to be a long spar...
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Face your demons rolled 2 8-sided dice:
6, 8
Total: 14 (2-16)
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Posted: Fri May 16, 2014 11:06 am
Harland didn't really need to devote a lot of time to puzzling things out when he determined that they were simple. He had decided, for one reason or another, that what he felt for Alistaire was simple. He liked him. He wanted to be close to him. He didn't really need to understand the future, or to influence what happened; Harland was, as per usual, just happy being Harland. Everything else would fall into place, as far as he was concerned.
Besides, just because he was thinking about Alistaire all the time didn't mean he had to freak out about it. The more time he spent with Alistaire, the more comfortable he got, and the less it'd show that Alistaire was on his thoughts all the time.
He wrinkled his nose at Alistaire. "Depends what direction you move your feet in, don't ye think so?" Harland asked. You go, sassy harland, you go.
He deployed his hookshot seemingly in entirely the wrong direction, and swept the razor wire cable low to the ground towards Alistaire. So much for moving your feet, unless Alistaire intended to jump over it.HP : 40 / 40
Charge: 1/3
DMG: 8
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kuropeco rolled 2 8-sided dice:
3, 6
Total: 9 (2-16)
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Posted: Fri May 16, 2014 7:15 pm
Unfortunately for Harland, Alistaire was exactly the type of person to analyze everything to death, dissect it until he had it down to the bare bones, to the simplest form so that he could sit and decipher the real meaning of whatever it was - what made it up, what made it exist.
Harland was simply one of those things - or rather, one of those people - that Alistaire was unable to take apart as easily as he was used to, and it frustrated him to no end.
He darted sideways, attempting to dodge the wire, but Harland had feinted, and the hookshot caught Alistaire by one of his feet, yanking it out from beneath him. He toppled to the ground with a surprised grunt, and promptly rolled over, gasping through his clenched teeth.
"You think you're funny, do you?" Alistaire said as he got to his feet, but it wasn't said meanly. In fact, there was a smirk on his lips as he gathered the chains to him again, swinging the knife back up to his hand. He dragged himself to the left, sliding around behind Harland, and whipped the chains at his arm.
HP: 32
DMG: 3
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Face your demons rolled 2 8-sided dice:
8, 5
Total: 13 (2-16)
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Posted: Fri May 16, 2014 8:22 pm
Harland didn't mind the analyzing. It was what he did, after all, just in different ways. Besides, if Harland could just open the net of his mind and let facts wander into it, why bother going to the trouble to force them out? So that's all he did: sit in the middle of his web and catch information as it came to him, filing away nearly literally everything he ever found out.
That's why he was so slow sometimes, and that's why he seemed so chill; he had to disconnect from everything he knew, or he'd go insane. He just couldn't be on the ball all the time, or he'd burn out for sure.
"I do, yeah, mo chroi... but looks aren't everything, hm?" he joked, at his expense, beaming right before he caught the chains with his gauntletted forearm-- it smarted, it was a very solid hit, but thankfully the metal dulled the blow.
Now that the hookshot had already been deployed, Harland whipped it back and forth, lashing its heavy cable and razor wire at Alistaire in a series of strikes that hit the ground so hard they tore up earth.
HP : 37 / 40
Charge: 2/3
DMG: 7
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kuropeco rolled 2 8-sided dice:
3, 2
Total: 5 (2-16)
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Posted: Fri May 16, 2014 8:50 pm
He had to admit - Harland's lack of restraint on his part was not only refreshing, but welcomed. Alistaire had been serious when he'd asked Harland not to hold back just because of a simple (understatement) kiss. The fact that Harland hadn't wallowed in sappy affection and refused to attack for fear of hurting him was exactly the answer that Alistaire had been looking for.
"Remind me to look up what that means," he said, hissing as the cable lashed at his side. Alistaire reached for it, fingers wrapping around the razor wire as it slowed down enough that he actually could; and it nearly tore his gloves off, though he held onto it determinedly. " 'Mo chroi.' A strange phrase."
He let go of the cable and it zipped through his fingers, probably giving him rope burn in the process, but if it did, he didn't acknowledge it, Alistaire already diving forward again. His chains dragged behind him, but Alistaire didn't attack yet; instead, he circled around behind Harland, his expression a mixture of curiosity and stubbornness.
"You're full of surprises, Mr. Belle."
HP: 25
DMG: 0 ali u suck
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