Hadriel IC Inbox

[claritatis]

"You've reached Ignis Scientia. Leave a message and I will endeavour to get back to you post-haste."

Comments

WELL THEN. let's say the 16th or something bc yolo.

[dedikated]

( When it rains, it pours. The city, which so often feels entirely lacking of anything to do, is now filled with nothing but. A new planet to adjust to. The strange experience of two suns and barely any night. The clinic and guard HQs being rebuilt while they do without far too many things.

It's a good thing, in a way, that the pools are tainted with pieces of the gods. Drinking from the right (read: positive) water sources is all that keeps Kate from bristling at everything. Delight's betrayal. The attack on the city. Her total lack of powers. Today - about an hour after she gives up trying to move bits of debris from the new clinic building, when there's only the light of the smaller sun in the sky - there's a flood of warmth running through her that has little to do with the constant heat and more to do with the water she drank yesterday. An uncomfortably pleasant fuzziness which serves to remind her why they're taking the time and energy in this climate, with so much of their resources depleted, to continue rebuilding. Because the people of this city deserve it.

Although, that's really besides the point of why she's making her way up to a flat she now spends too much time visiting. For once, this visit doesn't involve Kate holding a bottle of wine. Rather, there's a familiar jacket tossed over one of her shoulders - one that's far too many inches long for her - that she's been intending to return, but, well...

Hadriel will do as Hadriel does, and make it all too difficult to return things promptly.

Knock knock, parakeet. )

You in?

YOLO

[claritatis]

[Once they were finally deemed safe from the Null - as safe as Hadriel ever gets - Ignis had found his way back to his apartment and immediately, stubbornly slept for well over twelve hours. After that, he had cleaned himself off, changed his clothes, and put his living space back to rights. After checking up on the boys (and the extra children they seemed to have picked up along the way), everything had begun to feel just that little bit more normal...

Until he takes a look out of the window, at least.

The sky is jarring, and not because it's entirely alien, but because it's there at all. After so many months of seeing nothing but rock when he looked up, it's a novel thing to see a real sun and a real sky.

He's at the window when he hears the knock, and the voice, and he moves across the room far, far more swiftly than he intends to. Much like Kate, he's been trying to keep to the more positively charged waters of the place (no one needs to see him angry), but the side-effects have been... interesting, to say the least.]

I am. [Comes the reply as he unlocks the door, a small smile on his lips as he opens it.] It's good to see you.

we're too impatient for actual event logs lmf

[dedikated]

( The sight of a sky does a lot for one's mood even without the added bonus of the mood infused waters. Waking up after days of her body trying to recuperate to the familiar sight of a sun - okay, two, but she didn't know that at the time - and the blessed warmth of real temperatures, as opposed to the cave's never changing drab ceiling and dusty air almost felt like a dream. As though she hadn't pulled herself away from the lull of exhaustion.

Sure, she hasn't had the chance to see a sunrise yet - the planet's schedule still hasn't sunk in and honestly, she's still sleeping a lot more than she'd like to be - but the simple fact that she sees the open sky when she looks up is enough to help Kate breathe. It's hard to feel trapped in the way she did back underground when there's a sky above you.

The smile that flits across her lips when Ignis opens the door is immediate and bright, fading away to something warm that seems to light up her expression more often when she's around him even without the water's effects.

(It's roughly around now that she realises this might not be the best combination of anything, but since her feet have already brought her here-) )

Think I owe you this.

( One jacket. Admittedly not washed, because things are still so very ruined here. But all the same. )

can't be tamed

[claritatis]

[Ignis expects that he'll have a few more early nights and late mornings (which would certainly not be anything like most people's 'early' and 'late') before he manages to pull himself back into his usual schedule, but for now he is finally listening to his body and giving it the rest that it wants after two weeks of unrelenting fighting.]

Ah. [The jacket. He'd barely remembered what he did with it, and it's likely beyond the point of a wash being able to recover it, but he takes it from her regardless with a light brush of his fingers over hers.] Thank you. I had wondered...

[Where it had been.

He looks at her for a few moments - an unusual hesitation - then softly clears his throat.]

Did you want to come in?

[dedikated]

( They can be morning type people trapped in a need for more sleep together, so to speak.

There's that weird fluttering of her heart again, the odd way the ghost of a touch seems to stick to her skin, all these goddamn things that make this a very bad, no good, terrible idea. That and the way that stare seems to go on for all too long.

But what comes out of her mouth instead has to be motivated by the water, or some need for a familiar routine. Something she can blame for continuing to hang around when the voice in the back of her head tells her to leave before she ruins something. )

...S'pose I could stay.

( Dammit. )

[claritatis]

... I'd be glad of the company.

[Your company.

He can still feel the place where their fingers touched tingling across his skin, and he wonders if inviting her in was perhaps not the wisest idea even as he acknowledges that he certainly would not have done anything else, and tries to convince himself that he would have invited her in regardless.

The door is closed behind her, and the jacket draped neatly over the back of a chair.]

How goes the work on the clinic?

[dedikated]

( Kate shrugs, rolling her shoulders and her neck to work out some soreness as she does. )

'Bout as well as you can expect.

( They could be getting things done faster if they had more people at one hundred percent. If the city was in better shape itself, with more resources and the gods were in shape to do the provision part of their feeding deal.

But they're getting somewhere, and that's all she can ask for right now. )

How're your kids?

( Kate that's not how you phrase that. )

[claritatis]

I should be along to help tomorrow. The Guard headquarters are coming along in about the same fashion.

[Slowly, with difficulty, because so many people are still missing or injured, or simply broken to the point where they can't help at all - the 'gods' included.

She mentions the kids - his kids - and he laughs, not finding an issue at all with how she chose to phrase her question.]

They're fine. Though it's a veritable storm when they descent upon me now. I left two of them here and came back to half a dozen.

[dedikated]

( Well, as long as he's not objecting to the way she words things... )

That how you make kids now?

( By mitosis? Hadriel is truly screwed in that case. )

[claritatis]

[A shrug, another smile that belies the truth of the almost-but-not-quite discomfort that he's feeling simply by having her nearby. It's a peculiar thing, characterised mostly by a faint tightness in his chest.]

It would appear so. How I didn't come back to more of a disaster area is a miracle as far as I'm concerned.

[Ignis takes a deep breath, exhales it sharply, then moves to the window.]

A binary star system. Fascinating, really.

[dedikated]

( It's a knot in her stomach best ignored and given no name outside of her own mind. Just... an inconvenience, one made worse by the given emotions swimming through her veins. And so Kate doesn't move towards the window immediately, slides her hands in the pockets of her shorts instead, rocking on her heels idly. )

Any sky's interesting now. ( Her footsteps follow the words and she finally comes to stand next to Ignis, glancing out at the dusky sky, resting her arms on the windowsill as she leans into it. They could have plopped them down in the middle of a perpetual storm and Kate would just be happy to see something other than the freakin' cave roof for once. )

...Had t' be one we need sunscreen for.

( But really, this is better than she could have hoped for. )

[claritatis]

[Sunscreen, and an unfortunate need for a lack of clothing that Ignis is entirely unwilling to stoop to. He has, at least, abandoned his usual black for a white shirt, but it's only helping so much.

She joins him and he glances down at her, a faint tension along his jaw. He's felt like this before, in several moments they've shared together, from the time he had all but ran to her apartment after their shared death, to the dozens of meals eaten with bottles of wine, to every moment of brushed fingertips and jokes shared between them.

It has been easy to dismiss, until now. The water has the effects of standing in one of the temples, without any way to escape from it.]

As far as I've been able to ascertain, we are in orbit around the primary star. We get some night, at least, though we will certainly need to construct something to offer an artificial day-night cycle if we want to make use of many of the seeds we have.

[dedikated]

( Really, she knew she was screwed well before this, because it's hard to ignore the repeating of certain things. The comfort felt in spending time together, the need to see that he was okay she couldn't quite vocalise after that dream, the slowly increasing incidents of brief touches, the fact she says nothing more about occasional nicknames. But as Ignis speaks of things that will, no doubt, have to be considered, her eyes follow the shape and curve of his lips and-

Well, she'll blame the effects of Love for the fact that she leans up to brush her lips against his. A moment of impulsiveness that seems to come from all those lingering effects. Right. That's exactly it. )

[claritatis]

That is, if we want any of them to...--

[He does see her moving closer, trailing off mid-sentence as his mind continues off on its tangent of pertinent agricultural concerns. He sees her, and he isn't sure in that moment if he doesn't move because he's stunned into place, or because he simply doesn't want to.

Then, in the moment immediately following the electric contact of her lips on his, he flinches back very slightly.]

Ah-- That...

[That was unexpected. What's unexpected, to, is the way that he feels his body react and the leap of his heart against his chest as he looks down at her.]

[dedikated]

( His reaction's more than enough to shock out the impulse that was there, like her veins are doused in ice water. Kate steps back almost too quickly. )

... Was a bad idea.

( She can't quite bring herself to say mistake, because she's not sure if it was. An impulse driven by the effects of the water, sure, but...

Not that it matters what it was right now. )

[claritatis]

No.

[His answer comes immediately, barely a breath drawn to get it out. He reaches out to grasp her arm, to close that space between them that she made by stepping back, and he shakes his head.

It had felt like many things, but a bad idea is certainly not one of them.]

Absolutely not.

[dedikated]

( It may not have felt that way, but it's what they should probably register it as. Hadriel taught her exactly why falling for people was a bad idea in its uncertain walls the last time she was here, and the peripheral awareness of the fact that he's only twenty two despite the words and actions comes into sharp focus.

All the same, old conversations about having been happy for a while ring in her ears, and she doesn't pull away or move back any further. Doesn't do anything else, either, because her heart feels like its lodged between some of her ribs.

Crap. )

[claritatis]

[This is a scenario in which all of Ignis' education and experience fails him. One which he has only ever been on the periphery of, perhaps observing but never experiencing, and he doesn't move his hand from her arm as he adjusts his spectacles with the other with deliberate care.]

I didn't expect it. [Careful, too, are the measured words that come out to avoid stumbling over syllables.] But I don't... object. Not in the slightest.

[Even if, perhaps, he ought to.]

[dedikated]

( She's almost grateful for the pause, the thoughtful, considered reaction over any more impulse ideas. It gives her a moment to collect herself, to push her heart back into place and swallow down the butterflies that seem to beat their wings more loudly than before.

The urge to say that they shouldn't, that part of her that has wanted to hide away from all these things, still echoes loudly inside of her. It's familiar and comfortable and she's spent so long believing that it's better this way that the list of reasons why they shouldn't jump to mind immediately. This isn't necessary. She's gone most of her life without it. She could just rely on old habits.

But then, there's that other voice. The one that's equal parts Faith, reminding her how good it is to live life and have fun, and her own promises uttered years ago. Those ones she keeps remembering with a tinge of guilt, like some new year's resolution. Promises to make the most of the time she has, because she's seen too many people have theirs cut away all too early. )

I-

( Kate stares up at Ignis, teeth worrying her lower lip for a second. )

...Fuck it.

( Well, if he's not objecting, then certainly he won't mind another kiss, one that's far less brief, her arm wrapping around his neck to pull him in close. )

[claritatis]

[Ignis has no such problems when there are several more primary concerns on his mind. This isn't something he can approach with any kind of measure beyond the initial careful reaction, but as he waits for what feels like an age for her decision on what she'll do next he can feel his pulse steadily growing louder in his ears.

Let it never be said that Ignis Scientia is not open to new experiences. He manages not to pitch forwards when she pulls him, and after a moment of hesitation the hand not still holding her upper arm - almost like a lifeline at this point - comes to the back of her head and threads loosely into her hair. The level of poise that tends to come along with most of his actions manages to handily disguise the fact that he has very little idea of what he's doing.

It isn't as brief, and he doesn't mind at all. He couldn't say if it was the water that made this feel as if it had been a long time coming, or if something else had been pushing them together from the start.]

[dedikated]

( She's not going to ask about the hand that hasn't left her arm, gripping onto her as though she could float away at any second, or think about anything for once. It's much easier to accomplish both of these when her occupied mouth and the brush of his fingers through the length of her ponytail offer more than enough distraction.

Perhaps it's just as much the new planet. Just as much the knowledge that they've managed to survive the first real invasion the city's had. Perhaps those things play just as much a part in helping her to ignore the doubts and reasons not to as emotion-charged water and lingering feelings.

Who knows. For the moment, what's important is trailing her fingertips across his shoulder, nipping at his lip gently. The important things are his hand in her hair and the warmth of bodies pressed together in the light of a slowly sinking sun. )

[claritatis]

[In later consideration, Ignis will put a good portion of this down to factors that have nothing at all to do with the godly influences flowing through them due to limited hydration options and barely considered house calls. She has been a near-permanent fixture in his life for the past several months, a central point which he has come to rely on, to trust, and to care about enough that he didn't even think to fight anything about the situation they are currently in.

It's slowly and gently that his fingers loose their grip on her arm, that his hand moves to settle in the small of her back instead, that he pulls her just that little bit closer to him.

The thought to break from her only occurs when the lack of being able to get a full breath begins to make him light-headed. Even then, he barely shifts back an inch, and there's a small, bemused smile on his lips as he looks down at her.]

Well, that's... certainly a first.

[dedikated]

( Whatever the case doesn't seem to matter now that it's actually happening, rather than being something briefly considered in moments of weakness and dismissed with a pang of guilt. There's that comfort that's been there for months now, a confusing little tangle of trust that's bolstered by emotion driven events and high adrenaline invasions, that settles somewhere at the base of her spine, right under the touch of his hand.

Somehow, this all seems to make sense. That it happens like this, driven by something other than anger or worry or too much alcohol. Something positive. Warm. New beginnings and all of that, despite the wreckage of an already dilapidated city.

Her eyes open when he pulls back and she finds herself mirroring that smile - lopsided as hers is - without thinking. )

...yeah. Were that.

( This isn't where she would have pictured them a few months ago, but then, she's never ended up where she imagined. It is certainly a first for them, in general. )

[claritatis]

[The god's influence is still buzzing through his system, but it's almost as if it's faded into the background, mission accomplished, leaving him with his own quickened pulse and the tingle of her lips on his. He slips his hand free of her hair and places it on her shoulder instead, sliding his thumb across the fabric under it.]

Had I had any idea that a segue into potential agricultural concerns would have prompted that reaction, I might have done it far sooner.

[He doesn't want to lose the lightness of the current mood to anything more serious. Not yet.

It is by no means where he had pictured them, either. Kate has been a good friend, but it took this moment for him to realise that she's been far more than that for some time. How blind he had been to it is almost baffling, now that he can see it clearly.]

[dedikated]

( They can have a few moments of respite. A flush of happiness, warmth, delight that has nothing to do with the god that betrayed them all but rather some freshly tapped potential. Kate lifts her hand from his shoulder, gently pushing at the side of his head for that comment. )

Coulda just kissed me instead.

( Not that it really matters either way, now. )