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 Posted: Sat Aug 29, 2015 3:13 am
In high school, Lorne had never had much in the way of friends. So he hadn't done much in the way of what friends usually did - sleep-overs, parties, even just sitting at someone's house to watch TV or play games. He'd spent most of his time outdoors, promoting LEAF, reading... all very good things he enjoyed a lot, yes. But he'd done most of them alone, and he was okay with that. Alone was comfortable. Alone was safe.
It'd made life as Mont Blonc hard at first - because it was hard to thrive as a lone page. Because it was the first time he'd actually gotten a glimpse of what loneliness could do to him.
Now, he was doing everything he'd never done before with people like Nadia and Colin. Watching Netflix until they fell asleep. Joking and laughing over dinner. All those really simple things he'd never really been interested in before, and now he didn't know how he'd done it so long without them.
Even tonight - going home with a friend he'd just made for a drink of all things after a hard night - Lorne would have never been able to do this before Mont Blonc. For all the struggles he'd had as a page, with his wonder, all of it - he was still so grateful, so very grateful for what his powered life had given him. "Have you been a page long?" he thought to ask as they walked, hands tucked behind his back.
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Posted: Sat Aug 29, 2015 3:43 am
"Hmm?" Scholomance stirred from thought while the pair walked the length of the long hallway. His keys jingled against his belt, carefully threaded upon a chain that fastened as part of the leather. His mind remained on Scholomance, the stony swamp, even so long after their departure from Mont Blonc. He fumbled slightly when searching the proper door key, hands tainted with a vague tremor. "Oh, not terribly long. I think..." He paused, drawing breath through teeth. How long has it been, now?
My throat and lungs healed at last. They said they were surprised how quickly I recovered. "It must've been a month by now." The tumblers clicked, and the nondescript door opened to a loft apartment of dystopian, metallic feel. The distressed metals and woods composing the brunt of the furniture were occasionally offset by delicate glass and fabric chairs. The majority of the walls sported properly hung charcoal drawings from the same set with a few colored pencil studies peppered in to break up the monotony. Each was signed with the same name, proudly written in the corner or near the figure when clean delineations presented themselves. Glass-faced bookcases formed surrogate dividers to break up the expansive lower floor into more understandable rooms - a sitting area, a living room, a bar space against the wall, and the kitchen held its own alcove complete with exposed lightbulbs to contribute to the industrial feel.
Scholomance tossed his keys to a small display shelf that featured numerous photos of the man with various companions. A few lay face down on the shelving near a displayed bachelor's degree. Beneath, a sizable pen collection sat with each box displayed for balsa wood pens and other unique collected trinkets.
"I don't understand the attraction of being a page, honestly." He spoke to the condominium itself as he walked toward the kitchen. Boots transitioned from unstained cement to a plush rug runner, then back to cement before he rounded the rolling island piece. "Sure, the socialization component has its perks, but for its chance of getting you beat to s**t and a foreboding wonder I'd say that's two negatives against a positive. I don't fully understand this whole dichotomy between 'order' and 'chaos' either, but I suppose that's normal for someone recently jumped into this 'war'. And before you ask, I did try to give it up - but something about Scholomance loomed so oppressively over my thoughts that I could never stave it off for long."
He opened the metal cabinet door to reveal a surfeit of bottles, from scotch to rum to whiskey and many different types of specialty liqueurs and liquors beyond that stood in front. "So how might I quench your thirst, Mont Blonc? I have a couple beers and a tawny port, but I'm not much a fan of either - otherwise, there's a liquor store a short walk away and I'm still much too sober."
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Posted: Sat Aug 29, 2015 4:19 am
Mont Blonc hung back as Scholomance fumbled with his keys, pursing his lips at the new tidbit of information. One month. One month, and how much had he seen? How much had he experienced? How many other people had he seen? - one month, and he was pulling his pants down to 'honor' his wonder. After everything he'd heard, the page couldn't really say he blamed him.
His eyes widened, taking in the sights and color of the apartment with awe. "Wow, " he breathed out, taking a few steps forward, his arms slipping from his back to cross in front of him. "Your place, it's so... " Mature, was the first word that came to mind. He was after all a boy about to start college, and while his place with Trevor was nice enough, he didn't know what kind of luck he was going to have in finding a new apartment for him and Kyle to share. Luckily his parents were contributing, but... it wouldn't be like this, so stylish with such a personal flair. It wasn't the style Lorne would have used for himself, but he still highly appreciated the aesthetic, and it showed clear as day in his bright yellow eyes. "Cool, " he finished rather lamely, a light flush of color painting his cheeks because it wasn't exactly the ideal.
He felt bad when he found his gaze drawn to the photos, because Scholomance did have a civilian persona to protect - even if he'd brought him to his home, this wasn't exactly an invitation to bridge the gap between person and page. But he did allow himself to glance at the degree, and knew then that whoever Scholomance was, he was likely older - if the apartment itself wasn't enough of a clue.
Mont Blonc was drawn back into the moment as his companion began to speak, and really, "You don't have to justify why you're here or not to me, " and he didn't say it harshly; if there was one thing he understood, after all, "I tried to give it up." Not consciously, no; but he'd kept putting off powering up, reaching out to someone, checking in on the 'war'. "I kept it up for over a year - but here I am, " and he shrugged his shoulders in that helpless way, because if anyone was the poster child for devotion to knighthood, he certainly wasn't it. "I don't regret it though - being a page has, in some ways, been terrible - " The nightmares. The corruptions. The overwhelming sense of failure that nagged at his heels like a hound. " - but in other ways - it's been the best thing that's happened to me." Aegir. Colin. Methone. Her planet. Nadia. Now, Scholomance too. Another friend gained.
"You're right, though - it's more about the relationships than the war." He looked down, suddenly embarrassed, as though realizing it for the first time - "I'm doing this less for a war and more for my team, I think - I've seen some of the things those people do, and - I'm talking too much, " and he cracked a small, embarrassed smile, biting down hard on his bottom lip. "I don't usually - do that."
But Scholomance was like him; Mont Blonc knew he was drawn to others of Saturn, that he badly wanted to meet them. It just felt so comfortable, so easy to speak for once in his life. Just because it was easy didn't mean he should.
The page laughed softly, fidgeting a bit and rolling his shoulders. "I don't drink much, honestly... usually just wine, if anything, " he admitted. "But I'd be open to suggestions. - a liquor store would be fine with me."
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Posted: Sat Aug 29, 2015 4:40 am
The mention of wine had Scholomance pulling the bottle from the fridge with a proper glass for it from the adjacent cupboard. He eyed the glass for spots or stains of any kind before he crossed beyond the kitchen to offer both to his fellow page. "Take it with you. And don't worry; I only ever buy wine to pretend I'm a classy alcoholic."
The page returned to the kitchen to mix his own drink while Mont Blonc spoke at length over his generalized experiences in the war. "I know I don't have to justify anything to you," he started as he poured a splash of kahlua into a glass. "This isn't an army and you're not my supervisor. Trust me, as a businessman I am very clear on who I answer to. But sometimes it's helpful to share your reasoning aloud - you start to realize the mistakes in it when you lay out your rationalizations to someone else. What sounds solid suddenly loses all foundation." A couple ice cubes dropped into the glass, both spherical, and then he added equal part of irish cream and milk to fill the rest. Using a spoon from one of the drawers, he stirred the gradient drink into a uniform creamy tan. After rolling down his face mask, he took a test sip and considered it passable.
Really, if I'm going to keep up this page nonsense, I need to learn better recipes.
"You're right about that - being a page has been mostly terrible, but it saved my life. I suppose I should be thankful to that a*****e wonder for that, at least. I'm starting to wonder if it expects repayment, though." Perhaps he'd have to moon it again. "Trust me, though - if you talked to much, I have no problem telling you to shut the ******** up. But as much as I'd like to hang around here and chat with you about the atrocious circumstances surrounding becoming a page, a man named Aegir once warned me that it's best to separate civilian life and 'powered' life. Since we've got our drinks, we can go up to the roof; I know tonight the janitor's up there smoking weed, so it'll be unlocked. Poor b*****d won't be hitting the chronic so hard after he sees the pair of us."
Scholomance started right back out toward the door and swept up his keys while he walked. Idly he wondered if Mont Blonc suffered similar awakening circumstances that led him to a particularly dolorous experience as a page. He thought about how he could venture that ask when he opened the front door and held it ajar for the other man to pass. By the time he locked up, he started on the question.
"I heard that everyone has a point where they 'awaken'. I don't know the standard circumstances behind this, either - whether it's out of the blue, or bodily threat, or some wonder decides to haunt you. How did you come to be Mont Blonc?" He let the question stand between them; he waited in silence for an answer during their transition from condominium hall to elevator to roof access.
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Posted: Sat Aug 29, 2015 5:18 am
His eyes were going to be perpetually wide at this rate, "Are you sure? - this is good wine, " and looked like it might have been expensive; although he was hardly about to turn his nose up at it.
Mont Blonc flushed a bit, feeling somewhat silly because Scholomance was right of course - and then he blinked, because yes, "You're right, " and he drew in a soft breath, rolling the notion around in his head. "I - never really thought about it like that." He didn't usually talk about things like that, mostly because - because Methone and Aegir dealt with enough with him, always having to help him, always stepping in for him, always - even if they hadn't, he just never wanted to trouble anyone with his thoughts and feelings as a page. He just kept pushing forward with his nose to the ground, hoping and pleading inside his own head that somewhere down the line it would get easier.
He worried so much about saying too much, being too much trouble, being too weak to do much on his own - did he got say enough, maybe? - should he be saying more?
"How? - how did it save you?" The page felt less sheepish asking, now; as Scholomance had said, and the page had smiled when he said it, if it was obtrusive his companion would simply say as much. And, once more, he attempted a half-baked joke: "Perhaps it takes credit?" with a small, playful smile, trying to lighten the mood a bit in his own unsure way.
"Aegir - " When the name was uttered, his smile grew impossibly bright. "I didn't know you knew him - he's a good friend of mine, " his best friend, really, but it probably sounded silly to say it out loud. It made sense he'd dispense advice like that; honestly if it hadn't been for the rescue attempt at the gym and its aftermath, who knew how long it would have taken for Lorne to meet Colin? "That sounds smart to me, " and the last thing they wanted to do was draw undue attention to Scholomance's rather nice apartment. "It is a beautiful night, " without ash falling from the terminally gray sky.
As for how he became a page - "I tried to help someone." Come to think of it, Mont Blonc hadn't thought back on it in a long time - it seemed such a minor incident in comparison to everything else, honestly, even if it'd been terrifying then. "A youma was attacking an older man. I knew it saw both of us, so - " If it had to have been one of them, to date, he would've preferred it to be him. Mont Blonc shrugged again as he walked. "I distracted it. This silly pen appeared, " and there it was in his hand; summoning it had gotten easier, for all the good it did him. "And I grabbed it. Lo and behold, Mont Blonc."
He gestured once to himself and then made a face. "Of course, the youma got away and I'm almost positive I had a panic attack, " and come to think of it - he couldn't help but laugh, and he didn't even bother to try and stifle the sound. "It pretty much set the standard for my career, honestly - to be fair though, I had just spent a week as a cat, so I was wound up a little extra tight."
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Posted: Fri Sep 04, 2015 2:29 am
"I might tell you someday." Scholomance pressed past the heavy metal door to the roof area, passing through the distinctive smell of weed in the process. No smoke lingered; if the janitor toked up out here, he left some time before the pair crossed the threshold. Scanty lights illuminated the area, and what few remained were poised to spotlight centerpiece trees in the roof garden. A small pool sat in the center of the landscaped area but Scholomance paid it no heed. Instead he approached the benches that sat looking out across the cityscape, where the tall building allowed for a significant view across the metropolis, and the Page overstepped the guard rail to the small parapet outlining the edge. Fear was plainly evident in how heartily he gripped the guard rail, but with drink in one hand, he toasted toward the other Page. The glass trembled in his hand. "But today is not that day.
"It wasn't pretty, I'll tell you that much." He took a sip of his drink and paused to enjoy the warmth of it. He found it much too easy to lose himself to the confident numbness delivered by the alcohol. Closing his eyes, Scholomance snorted slightly - the beginnings of a laugh. "You're such a good samaritan, Mont Blonc. I wouldn't have bothered." And that's probably why I awakened how I did. Karma bit me in the a**.
"I suppose if we were all perfect heroes, this life would only exist in comic books. So what if you ******** up? To Be Continued - somewhere down the line, our beloved Hero faces down the first creature he ever encountered, bigger and badder than ever. I'm surprised you tried to fight anything - the way you duck down and slouch like you do, I'd figure you more interested in hiding from it or apologizing for encroaching on its noonday meal." Scholomance shot the other page a sly grin, despite the feeling of imminent danger that raced through him so strongly. Another sip took the edge off, though not by much.
"But look at you now - an established Page." He started to laugh. "Whatever that means. I still have no understanding of our purpose as a 'Knighthood' or anything we're meant to do. I can only assume we have a purpose, because otherwise, what point is there in awakening? Or is that like adolescence and it simply bites you in the a** when it feels like it?" He shrugged. "Aegir told me what he could when I met him, but as a senshi, I'm guessing he wasn't as familiar with knights as he wanted to be. Pointed me to someone named Hvergelmir, though, and I've never met this person. Seeking them out could probably do us both good."
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Posted: Fri Sep 04, 2015 5:10 am
The page's nose wrinkled a bit at the smell, although he didn't recognize it for what it was - he'd never so much as picked up a cigarette in his life, much less anything more than that. Still, he was even more impressed by the rooftop garden - a nice little stretch of nature in such an industrial building, laid out beneath the stars. He would've loved to have laid out a blanket or something and just laid out looking up at the sky...
... but that was not Scholomance's intent, and it was his terrain. Mont Blonc was content to follow his lead, up until he stood out on that small ledge overlooking the city. There, he hesitated, lingering on the other side of the rail, leaning against it but not crossing over. He could see the fear in Scholomance's eyes, the tremor of his hand, and wondered to himself, why? Why put himself in that position if it scared him? Why make that kind of choice?
He poured himself out a glass of wine as he mulled it over, savoring the scent before taking a taste. "I can wait, " the page said softly, but honestly, because he would. He would wait until whenever Scholomance was comfortable, and he would listen. That was really about all he could do for anyone, in the end.
As usual, Mont Blonc blushed at the praise, but he tried to combat it with another sip of his drink. "Not really. I'm just - rash when I should be thoughtful, thoughtful when I should be rash, " he admitted, pursing his lips at the thought. Unconsciously, he'd shifted a little closer to the other page, not because he was craving closeness but because subconsciously he wanted to be there in case Scholomance's other hand slipped, or if his knees began to wobble.
He had to laugh, though, because Scholomance was right. He was so right. "After the man was gone, it was another story - I was just running and shrinking away, and it was definitely going to dissolve me or something when the pen showed up - it was one of those, crap what have I done?! moments, " and he laughed again, although the sound was a little softer now, more subdued. "I try and fight for other people, people that matter - but the only times I do any good are when I'm fighting for myself, and that's... it's really very frustrating. I want to help people. But deep down, maybe I'm just more selfish than I think?"
The wine glass drained with that one.
'Established'. Right.
"I'd like to meet this person, this knight, " he mused as he poured himself a second glass, "I've met some other knights, one of Saturn even, but... I just feel like there's so much left unanswered, you know? Like the Code. Hardly anyone can put that into words. - Senshi have a guide. That's something I've gotten to take a glance at, and it's a very helpful tool. - I wish we had something similar, you know?" he asked, swirling the drink in its glass. "I still don't even really know what to make of this blueprint in my ring, and it's been months now. I'm supposed to speak with someone about it eventually, but she's been... occupied, " how else to put it when he had only bits and pieces of the story?
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Posted: Sat Sep 05, 2015 2:46 am
"What?" Scholomance shot him a look that communicated annoyance over fear (he hoped). Truthfully the expression looked forced and confused more than anything close to irritated. "Get out here with me. You'll be fine, just don't get dumb about it and slip or something." Carefully and at a crawling pace, Scholomance looped his arms under the thick bar that posed as the top of the guard rail. Afterward he passed his drink over himself to free up a hand for Mont Blonc. "I'll hold your drink for you if you're chickenshit about it."
The page sighed when he looked out toward the surfeit of stars lighted on the ground. Street lamps, spotlights, headlights all blazed through the city in a pollution that blotted out the night sky. "For as many mistakes as you apparently make, Mont Blonc, it's a wonder you're alive." His intonation leaned heavily on sarcasm to belie his point.
Mont Blonc raised a point in his explanation that Scholomance recognized before and found counterproductive to healthy thought. He himself fell to it many times, despite better intentions. "It's a wonder how often people confuse selfishness with survival instinct. Even if it was selfishness, you have the ability to condition yourself out of it if it bothers you so much. Personally, I don't see much of a problem with selfishness - since I lost my engagement, I've taken to selfish life choices quite nicely." With how his arm hooked under the bar, maneuvering himself to take a swig of it demanded much finesse from the page. "I only have myself to consider now. Sometimes I think people frown on that too much. I expect you start losing your own identity if all you do is live for other people.
"But that's neither here nor there, is it?" He spared a mirthless smile.
Deliberately he looked down, and nearly petrified himself to the spot. The ground spanned so far beneath him that his mind felt greatly perturbed to calculate the depth. Ultimately it looked impossible, surreal, and utterly harrowing to behold a street that looked as narrow as a bookmark. Afterward he looked straight ahead, allowed himself time to recalibrate his inner ear, and then looked toward the sky as a means to soothe himself. Finally he spoke, though his voice sounded rough. "Yes, well, I have no idea about where to find this knight or anything about a Code or rings or blueprints, but I do know that if you don't get out here on this ledge with me then there's going to be trouble." Without looking, his free hand snaked behind the guard rail and edged toward Mont Blonc. Practiced estimation allowed him to be right on target, so when his hand descended upon the other page, he seized a handful of a**.
Glorious, firm a**.
"That kind of trouble."
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Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2015 8:42 am
The look on Scholomance's face didn't do much to encourage confidence, and Mont Blonc frowned deeply, rocking onto his heels and back. He wanted to ask why, but didn't. He wanted to tell him to come back, but his tongue felt heavy. But of course he didn't step over either, hesitating and debating back and forth what he should do, if he should say something, if he shouldn't, if he should do it, if it was safe -
In that moment where his fellow page changed the topic, he hoped desperately that Scholomance had dropped the topic, that he wouldn't try and convince him anymore. The sarcasm was preferable, and he knew better what to do with that. "It is truly a miracle, " and he hoped that his tone was playful enough, because that was what he was going for.
Since I lost my engagement. That raised so many questions about Scholomance, who he was and who he'd been, giving tiny, juicy morsels about his civilian life, not enough to sate but enough to intrigue. "You were engaged?" And he wouldn't bother to push it if Scholomance wasn't willing to speak about it, and didn't really expect him to, but - he had to ask, had to try. It was an entire story left untold, after all.
Did he, though? - did he lose his identity from living for other people? It was a question he'd never really considered, and didn't really entertain for very long. "It's hard for me, " and perhaps that bit of wine had loosened his tongue just a tad. Or maybe just because, again, it was Scholomance and he was Saturn and that made it okay. "I was never really close to anyone before, and now that I am - I feel less and more, if that makes any sense at all - more for knowing them, less because I can hardly do a thing for them, " and trying to put it into words, it still didn't seem like enough. But he'd tried, and that was more than he would have usually done, biting his tongue and keeping his doubts locked up until they became too much to bear. Then Colin or Nadia, one of them would be there for him when it got to be too much, but... it felt like a cycle, one he hadn't the foggiest idea of how to break.
He was snapped from his train of thought as Scholomance spoke to him again, and all of a sudden - he yelped when fingers curled around his backside, surprise, yellow eyes wide. "A-ah, okay, okay!" His cheeks burned with a fiery intensity as he moved stiffly, finally, over the rail, and clung hard and fast to it, shuffling as close to the shred of safety it provided, every inch of him stiff from the groping, although he was almost half-smiling because - he liked to think it hadn't come from a place of maliciousness or anything, it wasn't like - it was friendly, more like something Colin would have done than Rutile.
He told himself that; maybe it was the height and fact that he was very much aware of how dangerous this was that caused the tightness in his chest, but...
"Why do you do this? - stand out here?"
At least he finally managed to ask.
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Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2015 3:13 am
"I was engaged," he confirmed, looking down. He was fairly certain the bones in his legs dissolved in that short span. How he remained standing eluded him. "But it seems that sobriety can make a person terribly boring. You could say we drifted apart." It sounded flat, stilted, almost manufactured. He hated how he described his failed relationship and the turbulent vitriol that stemmed from the constituent splitting. Could he ever convey it accurately? He doubted it. His interests in art and reading failed miserably in producing even the loosest description of the festering pain he still carried about with him.
So he took a drink.
"That's an interesting way to describe it. People are such a ******** tradeoff." They felt much too similar to purchasing blind merchandise. On one part, he found it thrilling to place a bid on an allotment of apparent garbage for the chance at finding a few chips of gold. However, he knew the high stakes often burned before they blessed, and the page found much wisdom in the saying 'once bitten, twice shy'. "Enjoy it, while it lasts." Because it won't, he wanted to say, but Mont Blonc was different than him. He lacked the abrasive sarcasm, the dry wit that spoke irreverently of every situation he'd ever been in. Mont Blonc held a kindness about him, and it was inherent in both the way he carried himself and how he displayed his countenance. Those yellow eyes looked more like butterscotch than piss.
His gaze lingered on the taller man in seriousness for a moment, but hazel eyes averted to the cityscape before those seconds could become awkward. Scholomance did not smile, but some of the fear faded. He refrained from articulating his thoughts as the boy joined him out on the ledge.
You shouldn't drink with me, he wanted to say, because it'll kill you.
A practiced grin bloomed over his face and Scholomance swayed slightly with the marginally forced mirth. His laugh came as a soft lull. "Why do I stand out here," he echoed. "Why why why. Let me tell you an interesting trick, Mont Blonc. Your brain sucks a whole lot of c**k at multitasking, and it's got some weird little priority system that sometimes loves to jam you up. But if you're smart about it, you can take advantage of the way your own brain works. You see..." He started gesticulating as he engaged the topic, primarily using the hand that held his glass. Sometimes the whiskey and coke sloshed, threatening to escape its confines entirely. "If you're scaring yourself shitless like I am now, there are a certain number of emotions you'll have a damn hard time feeling. Happiness is one of them, unfortunately, but so is despair. It's hard to maintain your grip on how much your life sucks when ohgodyoucouldbefallingtwentystoriestoyourdoom." Scholomance paused and blinked repeatedly.
"Of course, fear and anxiety can be overwritten too if you know what you're doing. Singing, for example, corks that." To prove his point, the page started into a long-memorized song.
"I cannot help it, can't decline
It's always better down the line
I'm in the wrong and I've done it all before
And I wish I'd never been
And I know it's just a dream
Now I'm blind I can open my eyes..."
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Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2015 4:12 am
Surprisingly, Scholomance had answered him... but it stood to reason that he gave an answer that just produced more questions. Mont Blonc frowned, shuffling a bit closer, placing a hand lightly on his fellow page's shoulder. It was so bony beneath his fingers, surprisingly so. More than he expected. "Do you mean - were you the sober one?" he asked delicately, half-expecting still to be rebuffed. "Because - because I've seen you sober, and you're certainly anything but boring, Scholomance. - and I'm so sorry to hear that. I mean, about your engagement." As though he'd be talking about anything else besides. "Really. Really, I am."
He couldn't help but think of Nadia - and he wasn't even sure why. They were nowhere near engagement, hell, they hadn't even gotten physical yet. Maybe because in a way, he knew he loved her. He couldn't imagine how it would ache to be so close to her, and then -- even now, at the stage they were at now, he feared it sometimes. She always reassured him, but -- was he really interesting enough? Was he really special enough? How was he worth her time? Mont Blonc knew it was silly, and he didn't want to mull over his own insecurities too long with Scholomance talking about his broken engagement, just - he couldn't even imagine how much something like that must have hurt.
As for it lasting, though - "I hope it does last, " and he said it with the utmost sincerity, because he couldn't imagine going back to how he'd lived before. "We're - my friends and I - we're forming a team, you know, " and why hadn't he mentioned this before, Mont Blonc chided himself. "Soon, for people like us - those of Saturn, you know. The knights and the senshi. I'm sure my friends would love you. - and you know Aegir already - oh, but - maybe he already mentioned it to you... " he murmured to himself thoughtfully, feeling a little silly for having brought it up now.
But, "In any case, please consider it. We're meeting up eventually, and - well, I'd be much happier if there was another page I knew, " he offered tentatively with a small smile. "This might come as a shock, but I have sort of a hard time meeting people. It's easier with other knights, but..."
The swaying paired with the soft peal of laughter unnerved him, somehow - and what Scholomance went on to explain did nothing to soothe him. He wondered for the first time if Scholomance did this often, if he did this alone, drinking and swaying from the ledge to avoid despair, to stay numb, if he laughed and sang and swayed some more with no other eyes on him.
Mont Blonc realized in that moment he had no fear for himself, fingers clasped securely on the railing, buzzed from the wine but nowhere near drunk. His heart was pounding, yes, but it was for the sake, the well-being of the person beside him. Abruptly, he turned, slinging an arm around the other man's midsection, his fears getting the better of him, fingers trembling. "I think we should go back, " he said, yellow eyes wider than they should have been. "You have a beautiful fountain over there, Scholomance. Why don't we lay by it for awhile? Okay?" His voice trembled, just a bit. "You can sing me the rest there."
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Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2015 5:13 am
Entertainment lingered in his eyes when Mont Blonc tried to cheer him up. He made a good show of it. But Mont Blonc thought of it in a narrower scope - he thought of it concerning actions he'd already seen. Scholomance's drinking counteracted one form of sobriety, so the page wondered if his companion thought he already surrendered the hard-earned time he spent grounded in reality. Scholomance's voice dropped to low tones heard barely above the wind. "You haven't seen me when I'm high."
Mont Blonc's arm shot to his waist, and Scholomance thought he felt a tremble in the touch. He wondered what part of him the page's fingers must've brushed first - his ribs, his hip, or the substantial absence that formed a dip between the two. He figured it must've been the former, for when Mont Blonc was committed to decent posture, he stood taller than Scholomance. The sudden press to side felt alluring in the welcome heat it expressed. Carefully, with great planning, he loosed one of his arms from its ring around the guardrail. He offered no words to preface his actions - a hand came to rest on Mont Blonc's shoulder while Scholomance turned toward him, as if intending to use the man as support to climb over the rail. Instead he sought to usurp the man's lips in an open kiss, one pressed for fervently with metal demanding entry past tight resistance.
But there was something particularly sobering about an unrequited kiss, and Scholomance parted from him unceremoniously. Suddenly judgment returned on the wings of a cold chill. He'd apologize, but he wasn't sorry (he was never sorry about affections), and instead he started to coordinate his way back over the guardrail. He surmounted it quietly, with a few mistakes in fine motor coordination, but he made it to the ground without dropping his glass or falling backward.
And he continued as though the kiss was meant for another reality, or transpired in a waking dream. "Someone mentioned to me a team - her name was Methone - and she said..." He stopped for a moment in his trek toward the center of the rooftop and stared up at the sky. "It was meant for Saturn? That something about the planet formed a special bond between its knights and senshi. I remember thinking that it sounded like a load of garbage at the time. I've always been skeptical, you see. Comes with the business." He could hardly feel his glass beneath his fingertips. "Do you know her? Methone, I mean. Tan, incredibly hot, dressed like an odd belly dancer. Stupidly charismatic."
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Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2015 5:42 am
When he was high - comprehension quickly dawned on the page, and he didn't quite frown, but instead furrowed his brow in a way that betrayed a much deeper worry, a much stronger, somewhat surprisingly protective urge, and all of this laced with curiosity, wondering again just what sort of person Scholomance was beneath the glamour. "I like you as you are, " he insisted, earnest, but maybe a little naively. But what did he know, really? The most 'daring' thing he'd ever done when it came to 'drugs' was steal a puff of his father's cigarette once, back before he'd quit. His work was that of PSAs and teachers clicking their tongues while warning of the dangers of addiction.
Mont Blonc breathed a sigh of relief when Scholomance turned towards him, because he brought it - he didn't even stiffen when that hand touched his shoulder, so happy to help. Then, all at once, it became something very different. His eyes widened when the heat of Scholomance's lips suddenly ascended onto his own, red flooding his face and his arm growing stiff at his fellow page's side.
It wasn't like Aegir's kisses, always sweet and reassuring. It wasn't like Rutile's kiss had been, oppressive and demanding and foul. He didn't push Scholomance away, didn't react violently like he had then - he just froze, like a deer in headlights, heart pounding with furious panic because he didn't know what to do. He liked Scholomance, he liked him a lot, yes, but not like - not like this, with a hot tongue pressing against the seam of his lips with hints of metal.
There was no comparing any of those to kissing Methone - Nadia - who stood in a league all of her, both sweet and soft and hot and passionate and always always comfortable.
No, if he had to compare Scholomance to anyone - it would be Archer, his hand firm and demanding coiled around Lorne's wrist, coaxing a tongue into his mouth. It wasn't the same. Scholomance was not Archer, the two of them were only alike in the most basic sense, but - it was similar enough to startle him. To make him, even for just a fleeting instant, afraid.
He felt silly for it, that fear, though, once Scholomance had gone. Because he was reminded by the taste of liquor breath left clinging to his lips that his fellow page had been drinking, and he did seem - Mont Blonc wasn't sure if lonely was the right word. But it was the closest that he had. He joined him in hopping over the rail, his cheeks still burning, and he half-reached for Scholomance's shoulder again as if to reassure him or something, but hesitated.
Although then, he couldn't help but smile rather wide, bright and warm, at the mention of Methone's name. "Oh, you've met her." It wasn't that surprising. Methone was social, infinitely more than he would ever be. "Of course, " he agreed with a slight incline of his head, because he knew now what Scholomance's business now was, so it only made sense that he'd be skeptical.
Did he know her - Mont Blonc chuckled lightly at the description (a very accurate description, by the way), accidentally brushing Scholomance's shoulder with his own as he fidgeted with his wine glass - which yes, was still present and intact with at least a mouthful of the drink left. "Yes, I know her - I know her quite well." The tone in his voice alluded to a tome of affections that were left unsaid. "She's very dear to me."
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Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2015 6:28 am
"Hmmm," Scholomance glaned askance at the boy in feigned judgment. "You should be proud of me. I've been sober - well, by NA standards - for fourteen months. And I've no intentions of going back to it, even if I'm boring." The space has been good to me, hasn't it? I wouldn't chat about this for the world when I first moved here.
Or I've detached so much from everything that it's not worth enough to hold it in anymore.
Talk of Methone roused quite the response in his fellow page, and Scholomance started to think that what transpired earlier was just a drunken dream. When drunk, however, Scholomance lacked the conscious effort to look more amenable to those around him - and his facial structure enforced a naturally imperious countenance. When he looked to Mont Blonc after he started to elaborate on his relation with Methone, Scholomance did not intend to look superior to the other man. It simply happened. "Ahaaaaa," came his drawn response with a knowing smile. "Yes, of course, you definitely have a hard time meeting people. So hard, in fact, that you have a girlfriend. I suppose we both have hard times meeting people, then."
Scholomance found a seat atop the retaining wall that prevented the grass from growing out and into the pool deck. Teenage trees arched low overhead, their spindly branches jutting out at awkward angles. A handful of leaves floated against the pool surface and trembled with every low breeze. They would've seen the sky, he estimated - at least the moon, in its luminosity - if the pool light weren't blaring just beneath the surface.
When he sipped the dregs of his drink, Scholomance caught some ice between his teeth and spat it into the pool. He watched it float. "So tell me about Methone. Have you gotten into her pants yet? Done the dirty all over Saturn? You know what those rings are for, right?" He didn't mind it when Monty brushed against his shoulder. Touch seemed no bother when the boundaries grew clear. And they would remain so, at least for a time - for as long as Mont Blonc maintained that reticence around him.
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Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2015 7:55 am
Mont Blonc couldn't help but half-smile back at him. "Well - in that case then, I am very much proud of you, " he declared in his usual soft way, clapping Scholomance warmly on the back - although not so hard since they were stil on the ledge then, and he didn't want to accidentally send his fellow page tumbling to his death, thanks. "And again - you're not even a little boring, believe me. I've quite enjoyed talking with you, " and he meant it, of course. He wasn't kidding when he teased Nadia about being a terrible liar; just a skilled omitter of the whole truth was all.
Whether or not Scholomance looked superior, it didn't really impact Mont Blonc one way or the other; this was a friend now, after all, and of Saturn no less. Besides, given the knowing smile and what came after, Scholomance really had every right to look smug. He blushed again as Scholomance called him on the truth, a toothy smile flashing across his face. "Oh, you - you know?"
Either Scholomance was perceptive - very much a possibility - or Methone had been talking about him, and somehow the thought that she was referring to him to other people at her boyfriend when he wasn't there thrilled him. It shouldn't have, really, but it did. Being what he was to her still just felt so surreal, so -
He grabbed the bottle of wine again, filling his glass and taking another sip, and just in time it seemed as he settled next to Scholomance and a question like that popped out of his mouth. Immediately, the flash of color returned to his face and he shifted, fidgeting and accidentally knocking knees with his fellow page. "I, uh - no, we haven't - "
He took another sip of wine, long and thoughtful, licking his lips as he lowered the glass again. "We've been - seeing each other for a couple of months now, but - it's my fault, really." And the wine had definitely gotten to his head a bit, for he surely wouldn't have admitted to anything remotely relating to sex to anyone but Colin without the warmth of wine in his belly to spur him on.
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