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 Posted: Sun Sep 17, 2006 9:27 pm
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Posted: Sun Sep 17, 2006 9:29 pm
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Posted: Tue Sep 19, 2006 12:16 pm
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Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2006 10:54 am
Delivered to Rufus ShinRa care of Relm Arrowny A cylindrical package arrives with the daily mail to ShinRa Electric, addressed to President Rufus ShinRa. There is a stamp on it proclaiming "Handle with Care" but no return address. Any tests or precautions taken with it will show it to be completely benign. Peeling back the tape holding the plastic ends to the heavy cardboard tube pulls the cap out. Inside, can be seen carefully rolled canvas & paper separated by waxed paper. Tapping the other end of the tube causes a tightly rolled, hand written note to drop from within. Unrolling the very carefully packaged paintings reveals an oil painting on canvas & a darker, mixed media painting on a thick but flexible specially-made long-enduring paper. The image on canvas would be familiar to Rufus & Tseng: a spitting image of the one painted in the park. But this one bears not a trace of magic; not so much as a fingerprint. It is as if the artist shut off her 'gift' completely to paint the replication. The only hints of magic lingering on either paintings, letter, or delivery tube are barely detectable -so faint as to be like the slight cling of moisture after walking through mist. The second painting is dark, ominous. Although there are shapes that resemble what might be forms it is not exactly clear. A knowing & perceptive eye might recognize the darkness within & behind the Boss & his Turks. Little is left out, & an unwary viewer might just get sick at the sight. The understanding & imagery is uncanny though there is little anyone could point out as "accepted real" in the symbolism of the piece. Needless to say, it captured what Relm was curious to see in the drawn shades behind Rufus & Tseng's eyes.
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Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2006 3:26 pm
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Posted: Sun Oct 08, 2006 11:36 am
__//Office Monkey
"Came to work, sat around for three hours, followed the Boss to a meeting, stood around for another two hours....... why do they make me write this stuff again?" Reno was just visable between the mounds of paperwork that had piled up on his desk. Some of the mounds had even ended up on the floor, actually it was probably better to say that the area around Reno's desk was a distaster area. It had started to creep into Rude's area but the other Turk kept kicking the junk back to his partners little home away from home.
"Because you wont do it unless they tell you." Rude was leaned back in his chair, tail swishing behind him, while he was 'off' duty. Tseng and Rufus were going over something in the Bosses office so the two of them didnt have anything to do. Other than Reno getting his paperwork done.
"But its bullshit! I mean they know what i did." He tossed his pen onto his desk and kicked at the furniture with one booted foot. "Tseng just makes me do it to piss me off dosent he? He's just pissed Rufus took me to that lunch cause i'd su ... " His words were cut off as Tseng walked back into his and Rude's office. "Yo"
"You havent gotten any of it done have you?" Tseng crossed his arms as he stood in the doorway. There certinally wasnt a dent in the mess around Reno's desk but then again it would probably take an army to get rid of that junk.
"Sure i did. Got three reports filled out." He grinned and scooped the three reports off his desk.
"Three in two hours?" One brow raised slightly.
"Ya know me .... gotta make sure i get every detail."
Tseng turned to look at Rude as he mostly ignored whatever excuse Reno was making about not getting things done. "Dont look at me." The brawler said. "I kept my hands to myself." Stalking over to Reno's desk he looked down at the red head. "Reno, i expect thoes reports done by the time the offfice closes tonignt."
Ignoring Reno's bitching and whining he turned back toward the door. He had his own things to do and they wouldnt get done if he was sitting around trying to get Reno to understand the importants of the reports.
Reno's bitching went on long after Tseng left and eventually he grabed his pen again. "There's no ******** way i can get this s**t done by then." He glared at the stack of folders that needed his attention. Looking over at Rude he grinned. "Come on partner, help guy out?"
Rude grunted and didnt move from his seat. "Whats in it for me?"
Reno's grin slid into something else as he leaned on the desk. "You're smart. Bet you already know" His grin got even worse as Rude got up from his desk and walked over to snatch a few folders off the red head's desk. Yea, tonight wouldnt be as bad as he though it would be
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Posted: Sun Oct 08, 2006 11:39 am
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Posted: Mon Nov 27, 2006 8:24 pm
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Posted: Mon Nov 27, 2006 8:26 pm
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Posted: Mon Nov 27, 2006 8:27 pm
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Posted: Mon Dec 04, 2006 7:39 pm
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Posted: Sat Jan 20, 2007 10:50 pm
New Partners He eyed the man standing in front of his desk for a few minuets before he picked up his phone. He'd hurt the damn scientist for this. He'd told him to get rid of all those experiments but obviously he hadn't listened. There was proof standing in front of him looking almost as disheveled as their other red-head.
Dialing Kaleb's number he waited on an answer from the mage. He had news for their now not newest Turk.
He slouched in the chair behind and just to the right of the one their ever insane scientists had brought up. It was a little unnerving just how familiar he looked and even more so since Rufus wouldn't explain that one. At least it meant that the kid wouldn't have to depend on him anymore.
He wanted to tell Reno to keep his eyes to himself but Rufus didn't look like he was in the mood for an argument to happen. He'd heard enough about Rufus to not want to get on his nerves so quickly. He had no idea why he'd been told to just stand there and wait until Rufus got off the phone. Why did he have to call someone? Weren't all the Turks here already?
Kaleb had just arrived at his apartment with fresh groceries when his phone rang inside his pocket, causing enough of a surprise for him to jump and nearly drop the bag of fresh fruit he had been carrying. Kicking the front door shut and unceremoniously dropping the bag on the couch, he pulled out his phone and opened it on the fourth ring. "H-hello?"
"I require your presence at the office. It seems something came up and it needs your attention" Not exactally true but close enough. The new Audio did need Kalebs attention of a sort. At least now all his Turks would have partners once again as long as he kept Tseng to himself.
He didn't like how that sounded. He needed attention? What was that crap. Sighing he leaned on one hip and crossed his arms over his chest.
Kaleb glanced over at his bag of groceries. He wouldn't have time to put them away properly, but it should still be shoved in the fridge at the very least. "I'll be there in a minute," he replied, before hanging up and sticking the phone back in his pocket. Usually when he wasn't called for something social it was for an injury, but Rufus didn't sound unusually concerned, and there was no screaming or bitching in the background, so it must have not been too bad. The mage didn't want to risk it though, so he portalled directly into Rufus's office right after putting his groceries in the fridge until he could get back to them later.
"Holy s**t!" He skittered to the side as someone appeared in the office.
"Ahh, good." He stood up, ignoring Riley's cursing, and took Kaleb's shoulder. "Kaleb. I would like you to meet Riley. Riley, this is Kaleb." He shoved Kaleb gently in Riley's direction. "The two of you will be working together from now on"
" ... what?" He blinked at the blond kid. That was a Turk? Serisouly? And he had to work with him? "Did i miss something?"
This was certainly not what Kaleb had in mind when he wondered what situation he would be called in for this time. As it was, he almost stumbled when Rufus gave him a little shove. "W-what do you mean?" He stuttered nervously, glancing over at his new partner and fidgeting a bit. He looked intimidating, just like the rest of the Turks did when Kaleb first met them.
"I don't think i stuttered" He raised a brow and looked at the two.
"Partners, ya know like me and Rude?" He laughed as he waved one hand at them.
He looked at Reno with a skeptcial look on his face. "I wouldn't think that Rufus would ever partner people for that. You just can't keep your pants on." Alright so him and Reno had already gotten into one fight this morning and he'd heard things from the scientists.
"So i've got a kid for a partner?"
Kaleb frowned and blushed a bit. "I-I'm hardly a kid," he said in a somewhat shaky voice, even though he was nervous, he was also rather offended and didn't want to just stand there and take it.
"You look like a kid" He did. He looked like a teenager and from what he knew Rufus didn't hire kids.
"So nice to see you two getting along so well." He rolled his eyes and slid back into the smooth leather of his chair. "It seems that one of my overseas business associates has taken it upon himself to liquidate half of my assets. I am rather unhappy at this and think he needs a nice talking two"
When Reno opened his mouth to say something he glared at him. "And i think this would be a perfect opportunity for Riley to get into the swing of things."
Kaleb blushed more and bit his lip, technically he couldn't argue that one. But he still didn't like it. With an irritable expression he just stood quietly and tried not to look at Riley, while listening to what Rufus had to say.
"So i am sending the two of you to handle it." He looked at Riley. "I'm sure you know what i require of you?" When Riley nodded he looked at Kaleb. "And you are to keep him out of trouble."
Great, he was being babysitted by a kid. What a wonderful way to start off his life. "Yes, sir"
Kaleb nodded, but he also fidgeted a bit. He wished he knew what kinds of trouble he was supposed to keep Riley out of, but he would have to trust he could manage it if Rufus trusted him. He glanced over at his new parter, who didn't look too happy, and then quickly looked away. Without the benefit of getting to know him, Riley looked very intimidating indeed.
"Riley, you can take the chopper. Reno and Rude will accompany the two of you as they have other business to attend to" He shuffled a few papers on his desk.
"Yes, sir." He didn't exactally like the idea of being stuck in a chopper but at least it had windows.
"Aww and here i thought you were going to send me on vacation." He grinned and laughed as Rufus glared at him. "Yea yea, whatever
Kaleb was a little excited to be able to ride in the helicopter again, but he was much too nervous to really look forward to the trip. He chewed on his lower lip a bit and waited for Rufus to give them some more information. If they were leaving soon he would need some time to get changed into proper clothing for the trip.
"Kaleb, i will give you half an hour to get dressed and get anything dealt with before you leave. You will be gone at least a few days so make preparations for that." He held out a folder and Rude took it to look through. "Meet the other's back here and the lot of you can leave"
Kaleb's eyes widened a bit, that was rather short notice for a trip that would last a few days. "Y-yes, sir," he said anyway, and opened a glowing portal right next to where he stood that would take him to his apartment. It snapped shut behind him of it's own accord.
With a frown he wandered around his apartment getting some things packed in a small bag, called in to his other part-time job with an apology and a request that someone fill his shift in the emergency room for the next day, and then getting changed into his suit. The tie was becoming less of a struggle now, but it was still difficult. Deciding the groceries could be left in the fridge for the next few days, he portalled back to the office, ready to go.
" ... hat is he some kind of ..." Riley had been in the middle some tirade when Kaleb reappeared and his mouth snapped shut.
Reno laughed as Kaleb reappeared. "Yea, you two will get along perfectly" He'd flipped though the folder Rufus had handed Rude and tossed it at Riley once he was done
Kaleb's glowing portal winked out behind him, and he fidgeted a bit with his bag as he waited to go. He wasn't aware Riley had been talking before he came back, but he was kind of glad to hear Reno's words even if they were more joking than serious. While Riley was distracted with the folder, the scrawny mage took that opportunity to glance over at his new partner again. He looked like he should be someone Kaleb was familiar with, but he was still intimidating.
"Alright. Enough of this ... let's go. Faster we get there faster we get home" He slid out of the chair and headed toward the door after Rude.
He eyed Reno for a moment before looking back to Kaleb. "Come on." He followed after the other two toward the door and the chopper pad. "And will ya stop looking at like i'm gonna bite'cha?"
"S-sorry!" Kaleb squeaked, quickly following behind Riley and keeping his head down so his blush was less noticeable. He toyed with the strap of his bag, which was slung carefully over one shoulder so it didn't wrinkle the suit jacket.
"Yea yea." He stuffed his hands in his pocket as he headed into the elevator to the roof. Rude should have the chopper started by the time they made it up there so they could get whatever this was over and done with.
Up on the roof he climbed into the chopper and stole a seat by the door. He'd feel better that way.
Kaleb followed timidly and slipped into one of the remaining seats. He was very fidgety and nervous though, not wanting to speak up, but not wanting to sit in uncomfortable silence. He was better prepared to suffer through the latter since he could take some time to think over what was expected of him on this trip.
"So you're just gonna sit there and fidget?" He leaned back in his seat and looked at Kaleb. He could hear Reno and Rude talking about something upfront but decided he didn't want to know, it was probably dirty anyway.
Kaleb flinched a bit in surprise. "I-I r-really wouldn't know what else to do," he said nervously as he glanced over at his new partner. He fidgeted worse for a second, and then blushed brightly and adjusted his glasses one last time before forcing himself to sit still.
"You can't think of anything else to do other than fidget?" That sounded a little weird. "Guess Rufus didn't hire ya for the way ya talk huh?" He grinned slightly
The first question could be brushed off with a frown, the next question responded to with a bit of a glare. "I-I don't suppose so." Kaleb said in a rather hurt and irritated voice, it was just difficult for him not to stutter when he got anxious. Same with the fidgeting, it wasn't because he couldn't think of anything else to do, it was simply a nervous thing he did while he was thinking.
"So what did he hire ya for anyway? That magic stuff you did?" He shifted so that his tail wasn't stuck behind him. "Or somethin else?"
Kaleb nodded. "I-I'm a healer," he said simply, holding back a more sarcastic reply. "My magic consists of primarily medical and shielding techniques." He didn't think he needed to mention that they were good enough for Rufus to hire him despite his youthful appearance and nervous tendancies.
Great. He was partnered with a healer. What use was that? Slumping in his seat slightly he sighed. "Ahh .... so you're like backup for Reno and Rude?"
"And you now," Kaleb said timidly, picking up on Riley's unenthusiastic expression and doing a poor job telling himself to ignore his new partner's disappointment. "I-I'm usually only called in to heal or attend social events, but Rufus seems to think my shields are adequate..." He trailed off, not really wanting to add that he was usually too nervous to be taken on jobs such as this. That fact was already obvious.
"Ya seem a little jumpy to be doing s**t like this." He waved a hand at the chopper insides. "Though if yer not usually for this stuff makes me wonder why yer going with us" Then again he was new too and his skills hadn't been properly tested. All Rufus had about him was the word of a mad man and lab readouts.
It was Kaleb's turn to sigh a bit. "I-I d-don't feel nearly as useful in the office as I could be." He said without any further explanation, and went back to fidgeting. He was already thinking about the last time he had been called to attend a job. Yes, there was another thing he would have to disappoint his new parter with, not only was he just a healer, but he was a healer who felt faint at the sight of blood.
"Well if Rufus hired you then ya gotta be useful for something right?" Rufus wouldn't hire someone that wasn't useful. That would defeat the whole purpose of surrounding himself with strong people.
Kaleb nodded weakly. "What about you, what are you useful for?" he asked, a little out of curiosity and a little so he could know how best to keep Riley safe, but mostly to direct the conversation away from himself. He was too edgy to discuss his own magic right then, and besides, it would probably be better for his partner to judge for himself how useful his magic was.
He flexed his fingers and electricity crackled over his gloves. "Hand to hand." He jerked a hand in Rude's direction. "Not like him since i'm faster but it's kinda the same." He wouldn't really know how useful he was until he actually got to do something. The scientists had promised Rufus he would be good for the team but he guessed this was how Rufus was going to test that theory.
Kaleb was briefly reminded of Reno smacking him down in the gym as he saw the electricity, but that thought was fleeting. Hand to hand meant Riley would need to get in close enough to use his skills, and then he had to be able to avoid taking damage himself while he was in there, and the little mage was already mentally discarding a number of shields that would have either hindered his partner's movement or not provided enough protection. He nervously chewed on a thumbnail as he thought it over, but he didn't reply with anything more than a slight nod.
He thought about saying something but Reno's voice intrupted whatever it was he would have said.
"Sorry kiddies, no more time for sweet talk." He leaned around his seat. "Dropping you two off on the roof. Don't get caught eh?"
Kaleb nodded, fidgeting nervously all the while. He was more anxious than he had been on the first job, this time the only familiar face would be his new partner's, which wasn't really all that familiar yet. He could only hope Riley knew what they were doing there, since he had been told only to keep him safe.
He slid the door open as Rude hovered the chopper above the roof. Jumping out he turned around to wait for Kaleb. It wasn't all that much of a hard job they just had to ruff up the man a bit and get him to return the assets to Rufus.
Kaleb hesitated when it was his turn to jump out, biting his lip and trying to figure out how best to get out of the hovering helicopter without falling or anything. In the end he just walked out like he would walk down stairs and held his breath until he was safely on the building's roof. The invisible air spell gave him decent footing, even if it looked like there was nothing under him to keep him up.
He shook his head as Kaleb got out of the chopper. Couldn't he do that like a normal person? "Come on ..." He pointed to the door to the building as the other two left.
They were expected to get out of the building on their own and Rufus had already set up a room for them at a hotel nearby.
Kaleb nodded and followed close behind Riley as he raked one hand through his windblown hair in an attempt to get his bangs out of his face. Now that he was alone with Riley on the job, there was little chance he would even leave his partner's side for a moment. He took a deep breath as he tried to calm his mind and gather his courage. He would probably need every last little scrap of it.
"I'm just not gonna ask what you did." He shook his head and headed for the door. "Stay close .... there should be guards between the roof and the owner's floor"
Guards wouldn't be a problem for him but Kaleb looked a little, well, defenseless.
Kaleb nodded. He hardly needed to be told to stick close, he would have done that anyway. The thought of guards reminded him of that man on the stairwell during his last job, and he trembled a bit as he cast a light shield spell over the two of them. It was the kind of spell that clung to the skin and provided increased defense, rather than a bubble to completely prevent damage, and although Riley wouldn't see it, he would be able to feel it settle against his skin.
He shivered slightly and looked back at Kaleb for a second before opening the door carefully. He peered in before opening the door all the way and motioning for Kaleb to follow. He could hear people down on the next floor and they'd have to go past them to get down to the company owner.
Kaleb just returned his glance with an expression that was completely innocent and more than a little frightened. He only grew more anxious as he followed Riley, walking so close he almost stepped on the other's heels every now and again. His heart was racing and his breathing was panicky, and he was sure it was so loud that his partner would be able to hear one or the other despite how quiet he was trying to be.
He tried to pretend that he couldn't hear Kaleb's breathing but he wasn't doing a good job. Reaching a landing he peeked his head around and jerked it back quickly. "s**t ....Kaleb stop that!" He hissed at the other as his hand came up to cover Kaleb's muzzle. "They're going to hear you"
Kaleb completely panicked a bit and squeaked quietly as Riley reached up to cover his mouth, but that forced him to breathe through his nose. With practiced attention, the mage managed to calm himself down and slow his breathing so he felt less anxiety and wasn't quite so noisy. He even began to looked calm, even though he trembled badly.
As Riley reached around the corner there was a squeak, which was quickly cut off, and a moment later Riley dropped someone on the floor where they twitched slightly before falling still.
"There's another one at the end of the hall .... but i cant reach them until we're at least half way there"
Kaleb was in danger of falling back into a panic, but he kept a tight hold on it. "Y-you didn't kill him, did you?" He whispered in a terrified voice, before trying to calm himself again. Now that his skills would be used, he didn't want to mess things up. Taking a deep breath he tiptoed to where he could see the hallway for himself, and then channeled the magic he would need to bind the guard and allow them to get to the end of the hall safely. The man wouldn't even know what had happened, he would just feel the invisible force against his wrists, ankles and muzzle.
He looked down at the one on the floor. "Umm ... maybe if he's got a pace maker or a weak heart or something." Shrugging he stepped around the prone guard and headed down the hallway.
"What'd you do to him?" He eyed the bound guard. "Neat trick"
Kaleb seemed to skitter nervously around the body as he followed Riley down the hall. "It's just a fancy shield manipulation," he said, almost dismissively in his haste to move on. His legs were shaking, and he wanted to get this job done as fast as possible so he could stop feeling vulnerable and neurotic.
He poked the guard in the nose as he walked passed. "Guy's office should be on the next floor." There would probably be guards down there as soon as they realized these two were indisposed but they should have at least ten minuets before someone came looking.
Kaleb nodded to Riley and tried not to meet the guard's eyes as he followed diligently. After that incident with Reno's pants in the gym, he suspected the guard would be trapped for at least another half hour before the magic wore off. It would hardly be comfortable, but it was safer than Riley's method of dealing with them.
He pushed open another door to another set of stairs and headed down. The man's office was a few doors down from the stairs and a good kick to the locked door let him in. "Hello Mr, Rufus sends his regards and would like to inquire as to where his money went."
Kaleb was relieved to see no more guards between them and the office they had been looking for, but he hesitated before finally following Riley into the room. If he was wanted outside, he would have been told to wait in the hallway.
"Kaleb .... do that sticky thing and glue his a** to the chair." He grinned as he walked over to the desk and let his gloves crackle along the metal top.
The mage nodded wordlessly and obliged, using his magic to bind the man's pants firmly to the chair. He wouldn't admit it, but he was probably just as intimidated by Riley's unspoken threats as the man they were directed towards, if not more.
"That's better" He chuckled as the man struggled. That'd be a trick he'd remember Kaleb was capable of.
It didn't take all that long to convince the man that returning Rufus' money was a better idea. A few threats and two socks with Riley's glove and the man was shaking so hard he almost couldn't type.
Once he'd confirmed that the assets were back in Rufus' name he turned back to Kaleb. "So his a**'ll be stuck there for a while? Give us time to get out"
Kaleb nodded weakly, still rather shaken by the scare tactics Riley had used to resolve the situation. "A-at least a h-half hour," he said quietly. Then as an afterthought he used his magic to push the chair away from the computer and bind it in the middle of the room so the man couldn't use the computer to raise any alerts. He might not be so good at this kind of job, but he was bright enough to think about things like that.
"Right ..." He peered out the door and into the hall. "We've got company" He grinned as he looked at Kaleb.
"Try that sticky s**t on some of them so i don't get my a** handed to me kay?"
Kaleb couldn't so much as weakly smile back, the more people they ran into, the greater the chance of someone getting hurt. He trembled slightly as he poked his head out past Riley, and bound all the guards in place.
"Don't follow me until i'm at least half way down the hall. They have to come from that direction since there weren't any above us." He ducked out the door and made it most of the way down the hall before more guards appeared.
They weren't that much trouble to him but getting to their guns before they could fire was a bit of a struggle.
Kaleb immediately decided that Riley was being stupid, and followed a step or two behind him. That was the best place to protect him from, that way he would see danger sooner and be able to shield against it without being halfway down the hallway. It looked like Riley was able to handle most of it on his own anyway, dispatching the guards before they could get a shot off.
He had believed his parter about guards only appearing in front of them, and that was why he was completely taken off guard when a few loud gunshots rang out from behind them.
"s**t!" He cursed as his shoulder blossomed in pain. That was going to be a b***h to get out later. "********." He rounded the corner and drug Kaleb after him. There would be a nice smear of blood along the wall where he'd leaned against it.
Kaleb squeaked in fright, and maybe in pain, but he was already using his magic to gently and deftly remove the bullet in his partner's shoulder, and then repair the injury. He kept the momentum from Riley's tug and used it to give his partner a hard shove. "Keep moving!" He yelped, not wanting the guards to catch up to them.
He wanted to ask why his shoulder didn't hurt but decided that running was a better idea. "Hey kid ... that floaty trick, can you do it with more than one person? Otherwise it's going to suck going down twenty flights of stairs"
Kaleb nodded shakily. "I-if y-you can handle walking on nothing," he said between panting gasps as he ran after Riley. "Just find a window." He skidded a bit as they turned a corner, but it didn't slow him down much.
"I can do heights" He skidded down a hallway and kicked a window. The glass shattered easily and he tugged Kaleb toward the window. "Alright .. before we end up with bullets in our asses"
"Just step out," Kaleb said from behind Riley, having already constructed a platform outside the window. The invisible ledge safely extended to one metre away from the building, and he would allow it to gently slope downwards along the edge of the building. As long as they stuck to the wall, there would be no chance of falling provided Kaleb could maintain the spell long enough for them to get to the ground.
He eyed it for a moment before he climbed out the window. Right, not looking down. Keeping his eyes on the building he moved aside to let Kaleb out.
"If we don't hurry they're going to end up being able to still shoot us."
Kaleb slipped through the window and passed him quickly, grabbing his arm and on the way by and tugging him into a run along the invisible ledge. For the mage it was as simple as walking on solid ground since he could feel his magic and knew where it was located, but it must have been unnerving for his partner. Kaleb glanced back over his shoulder as Riley warned him, with an unreadable expression on his face. "Don't panic," he said, right before the ledge changed shape to more of a deep curve and the angle became steep enough to lose footing and slide down instead of walk.
"What the fu..." biting his tongue he kept his mouth shut. If he didn't he'd keep cursing until they hit the ground. This was not something he really wanted to be doing but at least they couldn't get shot at now. At least not until they were on the ground and running again.
"Hotel's west from here .... just start running so they don't catch us"
Kaleb looked back over his shoulder and nodded, breathing hard as he was up and running in the indicated direction. He wasn't cut out for this kind of intense physical activity, so it was likely Riley would overtake him soon enough. He stumbled a bit as he coughed onto one arm, but he didn't panic at tasting a bit of blood in his mouth and feeling a bit of sticky wet on his lower lip. He knew it had pooled a bit in one lung from the gunshot wound he had healed earlier.
He grabbed Kaleb's arm as he passed and tugged him along. He already had the keys to their hotel room so it was easy to sneak up the back stairs and into the right hallway. No one was around, which was good since their state of clothing would have caused some distress, so he made it to their room quickly.
"get in ..." He shoved the door open and almost shoved Kaleb inside. "Umm ...."
Kaleb stumbled inside and leaned heavily against the desk inside, gasping for air after the run and occasionally coughing a bit. He tried to catch his breath a bit more before turning around to look at Riley with a worried expression. "A-are you okay?" He asked, at this point completely unaware of the blood caked on the front of his white shirt and black jacket, and certainly ignoring the blood on his lip.
"I'm fine but .... are you aware that you are covered in blood?" He eyed Kaleb's clothing. "I mean that can't be good and all" Blood generally ment bad when it wasn't on the outside.
Kaleb coughed a bit more, getting more bright red on his lips, and he hesitantly glanced down at his shirt. There was indeed a lot of blood, and the mage couldn't help but be aware that it was entirely his blood. His face went pale and he swayed a bit on his feet before crumpling to the ground without a sound in a dead faint.
His eyes widened as Kaleb crumbled to the ground. " ... they hired a guy who faints at the site of blood ...." Shaking his head he picked Kaleb up and carried him toward one of the beds. He could at least get the bloody cloths off the kid so he didn't faint later and make sure he wasn't still bleeding.
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Posted: Sat Jan 20, 2007 10:55 pm
Nightmares and Crumbs in the Bed Kaleb didn't stir as he was picked up and placed on the bed. He had healed them both well before their escape out the window, and there wasn't so much as a mark on his scrawny chest to indicate where all the blood smeared across it had come from. Riley would notice the same on his own shoulder if he got around to examining it.
He covered Kaleb up and headed into the bathroom. "Damn it. I just got this suit." and he'd have to replace it. Leaving his jacket, shirt, and tie puddled on the floor he scrubbed the blood off his fur before taking a clean damp cloth out to clean Kaleb off. Wouldn't do to have him fainting again.
Riley had barely started when Kaleb stirred and quickly sat up in a disoriented panic. He was immediately struck with a wave of dizziness, and then he whimpered and struggled to steady himself despite his trembling. He closed his eyes tightly, calming down only a little as he remembered what had happened, and why he had fainted. The memory of blood only made his trembling worse.
He shoved Kaleb back against the bed and continued getting the blood off him. "Sit still or it's not going to come off." He doubted Kaleb would like being covered in blood more than he had to be. "Stuff's sticky"
Kaleb yelped as he was shoved back to lie down, but he didn't protest and he didn't open his eyes. He didn't stop shaking either, but as he calmed down further he began to blush at his apparent toplessness, and at how Riley had to take care of him.
The washcloth slapped against the sink as he tossed it in that direction. "There. You're clean." He sat back and raised a brow at Kaleb shaking. Turks were suppose to be able to handle these sorts of things. "Feeling alright?"
Kaleb opened his eyes carefully and then sat up quickly, almost bringing himself to another faint in his haste to find something to cover himself with. "I-I th-think I'm okay," he said in a shaky voice, blushing brightly and still trembling.
He turned his head away as the pink tinge to the other's cheeks meant that he didn't like being looked at. "Think we're gonna have to get new shirts before we leave, ours are kinda ... well yea"
Kaleb's was covered in blood and Riley's had holes in them. "Sure you're alright?"
Kaleb nodded weakly, and hugged the pillow he had grabbed to cover up even tighter than before. He still felt shaky and rather tired, and when he coughed again he got fresh blood on his lips. And he felt really bad for putting Riley through all that, if he had been more watchful he would have noticed the security behind them, and put up appropriate shields so they wouldn't have been hurt in the first place.
He got up off Kaleb's bed and rummaged around in the fridge in the room. "There's water in here .. ya want some?" There was booze too but nothing good and nothing worth the tiny bottles they had. "Reno and Rude should be by to pick us up in the morning"
"I-I would like that," Kaleb said timidly, managing a weak smile until he wiped his bloodied mouth with the back of one hand, after which he whimpered a bit and closed his eyes so he didn't have to look at it.
He got a bottle of water out for himself and one for Kaleb. Walking back over to the bed he held out a towel and the water. "Here .. cough into that and you wont get it on you"
Kaleb hesitantly opened one eye and took the towel before the water, using it to rub excessively at his hand until there wasn't a trace of blood on it. Then he avoided looking at the towel, but kept it close at hand until he could finish getting the blood out of his lungs. "Thanks," he muttered timidly, relieved that the water seemed to wash that coppery taste from his mouth.
He went and plopped down on the other bed in the room. "No prob." At least the water was cold and didn't taste like that crap down in the labs. "You haven't been a Turk long have ya? cause i thought those guy's'd be used to that kind of stuff"
Kaleb chewed on his lower lip before replying. "I-I don't think it matters how long I've been working for Rufus, I've had this problem for most of my life." It didn't matter if Riley was reffering to the blood thing or the nerves, they had both sprung from the exact same point in his childhood. He hugged the pillow a bit tighter as he coughed into the towel Riley had given him. At least the cough didn't feel so bad anymore.
"Really?" He raised a brow and moved his bottle so he could see Kaleb. "Kinda the wrong job for ya then." He chuckled and finished off the water.
"Should probably sleep. Ya might feel better"
Kaleb blushed brightly as Riley looked over at him, wearing a very miserable expression over the top of his pillow. "It's not like I had much choice, Tseng practically abducted me from my apartment to heal Reno, and then Rufus threatened me to agree to the job." He snuggled against the pillow and blinked tiredly. Riley was probably right, but Kaleb didn't know what to sleep in. He certainly couldn't sleep in his nice suit pants, but he didn't know if he would be comfortable in just his boxers.
He tried to ignore that miserable expression. "sounds like something they'd do." And it did. Rufus was the kid of man to just do whatever he wanted whenever he wanted it.
Tossing the bottle at the trash he rolled over and crawled under the blankets. "At least no one got hurt ... really"
Kaleb didn't have a reply for that.
Once his partner was in bed, and facing away from him, the mage finally decided that he would prefer sleeping in his boxers to sleeping in his expensive pants. He was quick of slip out of them and curl up under the covers, giving one last little cough for the night and hoping the bed warmed up quickly. He was absolutely exhausted after the strain of the job and injury though, so he fell asleep quickly and didn't really have to worry about the temperature.
He was perfectly happy sleeping in whatever he was in. You didn't get much of a choice when you were a lab rat. He snuggled down under the sheets and against the pillows and fell asleep quickly. His ears twitched occasionally as he either heard something in the hotel or dreamed but otherwise didn't stir.
Kaleb slept peacefully for only a short while before the nightmares started to get to him. At first it was just restless twitches and muttered words, followed by whimpers and frantic clutching at the bedsheets, and finally he woke up screaming and terrified. Once he realized he was awake and no longer dreaming, he whimpered piteously and sat in bed shaking.
The scream had woken up and he'd scrambled up and almost fallen out of his bed. He though something had happened until he saw Kaleb sitting up shaking. "Kaleb?" He blinked as he rubbed at his eyes and looked at his partner.
The mage glanced over at him with an expression full of fear, misery, regret, and all sorts of other emotions all mixed in, but overall it looked like he was on the verge of tears and struggling to hold them back. "I-I-I'm r-really s-sorry for waking you," Kaleb stuttered badly, trying to curl up as much as possible and hug his knees to his chest so he didn't shake so hard.
He untangled himself from his blankets and shuffled across the space between the beds. "Nightmare?" He was still slightly asleep but at least he could still hold a coherent conversation. He sat down on the bed and rested a hand on Kaleb's shoulder.
Kaleb flinched a bit at the touch, and bit his lip to keep from crying as he nodded. Between Riley's scare tactics in the office and Kaleb's failure to keep his partner completely safe as they left, there were lots of bad dreams to torture him while he slept.
Okay, Turks weren't suppose to cry and they weren't suppose to be unnerved by something that silly. "Did it like .. bother you that much?" He didn't move his hand even though Kaleb had flinched. After some of the things he'd gone thought he knew that touches could be better than nothing.
Kaleb just whimpered a bit in response, and hid his face so Riley didn't have to see him struggle so hard to hold back tears. He felt so lost, and it was even worse than the last time a job had given him nightmares since most of them focused on his own shortcomings. This time he didn't even have the comfort of his own books, or his couch, or favorite blanket to soothe him.
He fidgeted himself for a minuet before he shifted slightly and wrapped his arms around Kaleb. He could maybe make Kaleb feel better since he didn't think he'd get back to sleep knowing that Kaleb was sitting there not being able to sleep.
"S'not that bad." He muttered quietly. "Least yer not alone"
Kaleb sniffed and leaned into the hug a bit, taking comfort from having someone so close. "I-I j-just couldn't..." he trailed off as his breathing hitched a bit, and he snuggled closer against his partner before finishing his sentance in an inaudible whisper. He managed not to cry though.
"You did fine. We're both alive and in one piece right?" Well there was a lot of blood that said different but at least they were in one piece now. He nuzzled Kaleb slightly just on instinct. "So there's nothing to worry about huh?"
The words and soft touches seemed to relax Kaleb and calm his outright distress, and his sniffles and choked back sobs dissolved into hiccups. Suddenly he twisted around a bit to wrap his arms around Riley, burying his face up against his partner's neck. "I-I'm so glad you're okay...." he said, the words rather muffled against Riley's body. He nearly broke down all over again after saying it.
He was startled at the other's moments and carefully hugged the other back. "Just a bullet wound, wouldn't have killed me anyway." It hadn't been anywhere fatal. "And ya fixed it." He really wasn't sure what to do with Kaleb since he'd never been around anything like this. He would have thought that anyone who was a Turk would be used to this stuff.
Kaleb couldn't tell Riley that in his nightmares it had been worse, and he hadn't been able to fix it. Those were the kinds of nightmares that scared him. Instead of speaking he just hiccuped and sniffled against his partner's neck, and didn't loosen his hold.
He nuzzled Kaleb and purred slightly hoping that the combination would make him feel better. It was weird to have the smaller one clinging to him but it a way it was interesting. Not that he'd tell Kaleb that but still.
Kaleb found the nuzzling and the soft rumbling purr to be comforting, it was yet another reminder that everything was okay and his nightmares were just that. He slowly relaxed into Riley's hug as he calmed down. The mage didn't let go though, he was afraid Riley would also let go of him if he did that, and he really didn't want that.
"You uh ..... want me to sleep here with ya?" Kaleb didn't seem like he wanted to let go and if he did and let Kaleb sleep alone he might end up having another nightmare.
Riley would have been right, Kaleb really didn't want to let go, but he blushed a bit and pulled away quickly at his partner's question. He had only just remembered that he wasn't wearing anything but his boxers, and his blush only grew as he fidgeted and stuttered and sniffed miserably. "N-no, i-it's really okay, I-I'm s-sorry for waking you..." He was way too modest to accept Riley's offer, he couldn't even admit to himself that he wanted to.
"You sure? Cause i kinda don't want to wake up like that again. Thought someone had like stabbed your or something." Not that he thought anyone'd get in the room but that's what it had sounded like.
"I can like drag the blankets over here from my bed and you can just stay under yours so i don't see ya if yer nervous"
The scrawny healer shook his head to refuse again, even though his miserable expression said something else entirely. Surely Riley would be more comfortable in his own bed for the night. And besides, if Kaleb just didn't let himself fall asleep again, he wouldn't wake up screaming and wake Riley with him. Not sleeping had kind of worked last time, hopefully it would kind of work this time too.
"you sure?" He got up and straightened the blankets where he'd rumbled them. "If you cant sleep or something you can just poke me kay?" Shuffling over to his bed he flopped back down so he could curl back up to sleep. "Jus don't stay awake all night"
Kaleb whimpered a bit, and looked at the digital clock next to the bed with despair. Last time he had his books and tea to help pass the time, it would be torture to attempt staying up in the dark hotel room all night. "I-I d-don't think I can sleep," he said really quietly after a minute, torn between just suffering and letting his partner sleep, and accepting Riley's offer and crawling into bed with him for the warmth and comfort.
He shuffled around until he could roll over and look at Kaleb. "I could stay up and talk to ya or something." He'd rather go to sleep but it seemed like Kaleb wasn't going to end up doing that easily.
Kaleb didn't want Riley to stay up with him, he wanted his partner to be able to sleep, and he wanted to get some sleep himself, but the nightmares were just so awful... He whimpered a bit more, starting get all teary-eyed and sniffly again as he tried to figure out what to say that would fix the situation.
He sighed and sat up. "Alright ..... " sliding back out of bed and dragging the comforter with him he nudged Kaleb. "Move over, you're not getting a choice in this." He wanted to at least get some sleep and that meant making Kaleb sleep too.
Kaleb didn't protest a bit as he wiggled over, making room for Riley to sleep the bed with him. There had probably been no point in bringing over the extra comforter, since the mage ended up kicking off his own so he could curl up closer with only the sheets between them. It was more soothing that way.
He tossed the comforter over both of them and dropped one arm over Kaleb as he shuffled around so he could sleep. At least Kaleb hadn't complained. He'd have had to stuff something in the mages mouth if he'd done that. "Better?"
Kaleb shifted and fidgeted a bit, finally finding himself comfortable with his back against Riley's chest. He sighed shakily and sniffled a bit more before nodding. "I-I'm really s-sorry," he said quietly, but that just made his trembling and sniffling worse.
He rested his muzzle on the other's neck. "Nothin to be sorry for." His voice was slightly sleepy as he spoke. "Did yer best" He wasn't dead and Kaleb wasn't dead and they got the money back for Rufus so it was all good.
"I-I'm s-sorry for waking you, too," the mage muttered, snuggling back a bit so he was closer and more completely sheltered by his partner's body. He reached up to rub at his nose a bit, but his sniffing was already lessening as he calmed down.[
"Eh .. i've woken up to worse." It wasn't like he'd been woken up by screaming because something got out of one of the cages or the containers. That was worse than just a cute kid screaming cause of a nightmare.
Kaleb yawned a bit. "I-I'm still sorry..." He never wanted to be a bother, certainly not to his new partner. Even though Riley had called him a kid and seemed to poke fun at him when they first met, he was kind and took care of him after the job was over. He yawned again, the warmth seemed to overwhelm him with sleepiness even though he was afraid of what nightmares would come next.
"Just go ta sleep and don't worry about it." He shifted slightly, keeping his muzzle resting on Kaleb's neck lightly, and closed his eyes. He could get back to sleep just fine but he had to make sure Kaleb got to sleep. Partners were suppose to take care of each other so he didn't want his not being able to get comfortable enough to sleep.
"I'll try," Kaleb said, in a voice that didn't sound like it was too far off from sleep anyway. He only shifted once more to get more comfortable under Riley's arm before drifting off completely. HIs body only relaxed a little, the little mage was usually tense even when he slept.
He took him a bit longer since he wanted to make sure Kaleb was actually asleep but eventually he drifted off. Eventually Reno or Rude would call them and tell them that it was time to go but at least he could sleep for a little while longer.
Kaleb didn't sleep well that night, but he didn't wake up again because of the nightmares. With Riley's solid warmth at his back the worst he managed was some fitful whimpering, and a bit of thrashing at one point.
He'd just tightened his hold when Kaleb squirmed and nuzzled him to get him to calm down. It meant he didn't get all that much sleep but it was better than being jerked away. At least with the squirming he only had to wake up partially.
Although his sleep wasn't very restful, Kaleb was still surprised to have slept in when he looked at the clock the next morning. It was already six thirty, and he attempted to wiggle out from under Riley's arm without disturbing him.
He felt Kaleb wiggling and grumbled. "s'too damn early." He didn't even have to see the clock to know it was too early. It also didn't help that not soon after Kaleb started squirming one of their phones started ringing. "Oh for ...." Sitting up he glared in the direction of his phone.
Kaleb took that opportunity to squirm out of bed and go after his phone, and when he realized it wasn't his phone ringing he found Riley's and hurried back to the bed. He shoved it at his partner to answer. Then he sat on the other side of the bed and pulled out his bottle of lukewarm water from the night before.
He flipped the phone open "What? You do realize it's 6am right? What the HELL are you doing awake at 6am? yes i remember where it is, no, no, yes .... can you not ... i'll take that as a no." He rolled over onto his back. "Yea whatever don't want to hear it .. just get our asses by at least nine or Rufus will kill us."
He snapped the phone shut and tossed it on the bed beside him. "Breakfast ...."
Kaleb blinked as he brought the waterbottle to his lips, taking only a small sip before putting it down, and picking Riley's phone off the bed and setting it safely on the table next to the digital clock. "What's going on?" He asked, seeming to have forgotten he was still only wearing his boxers, white with silver stars on them.
"Reno says it will be a while before they get us ... they're busy." He sat up and scrubbed at his muzzle. "So we should get breakfast and those are cute." He turned his head enough that he could see Kaleb and said boxers.
Kaleb blushed brightly, his casual perch on the bed abandoned as he practically dove under the covers. "H-how are we supposed to get breakfast if our shirts are all bloody?" he asked once he was settled with the comforter clutched to his chest. The mage didn't even know where Riley had put his shirt, he hadn't seen it since glancing down at it before fainting. Even the memory was enough to make him feel a little dizzy.
He snickered as Kaleb dove under the covers. "Aww i was having fun looking at those." He shuffled out from under the covers. "Umm ... i'm sure i can call the hotel management and see if they can get us something. I'm sure Rufus name will come in handy"
Kaleb frowned back, still wearing a bright blush across his muzzle and clutching the covers. "Get your own pair then." He said, ducking his head timidly and fidgeting a bit. "I-I don't know if they would have room service at six thirty," Kaleb said after a second, glancing over at the digital clock again. "Did you ask Reno to bring us new shirts?" He asked quickly, his modesty felt like a more pressing problem at that moment than not having any breakfast.
"Yea ... said they'd bring us stuff but that could be a while. Could call and see if they have room service this early." Who knew, besides it was a hotel they should have someone around all the time for people.
Kaleb was kind of hungry, kind of very hungry now that he thought about it, but he didn't want to make the call himself. Which probably meant Riley would have to either get out of bed, or crawl over him to get to the hotel room's phone.
He eyed Kaleb for a moment and then the phone and then Kaleb. "... no rush or anything." He shifted and leaned over the other to get at the phone. It would be hard to Kaleb to move with Riley on is legs and hopefully he wouldn't get the idea to knee him. Finding the number for rooms service he dialed it and leaned on the bed and his partner to wait for someone to pick up.
"Mnn..." Kaleb wiggled a bit in an attempt to free his legs from underneith Riley's body, but his partner was too heavy and too solid. He tried to shift backwards, but that didn't work either. He poked Riley's shoulder a couple times. Finally he picked up one of the pillows, put it on Riley's back, and flopped forward to comfortably snuggle against it.
"oof ...." He turned his head to look at Kaleb but quickly had to turn his attention back to the phone. He ordered them a pile of stuff under Rufus name.
"said the food be here in like ten minuets." he hung up the phone and squirmed slightly.
"Okay," Kaleb said in a soft and rather happy voice hugging the pillow and sighing against it. The folded over position wasn't uncomfortable in the least, he was pretty flexible. He closed his eyes, it was probably possible for him to just go back to sleep like that.
He was tempted to move but the heat from Kaleb's body felt good on his back and it would be a while before the food got there. "So like ... you study all that magic stuff? Or you can just do it?" Might as well learn something about him since they'd be stuck together for a while
"A bit of both," Kaleb said happily, snuggling further into the pillow. "I have the ability to manipulate magical energy, but I need to study to learn how to produce the right effects." He sat up a bit. "A-are you comfortable?" He asked hesitantly, it musnt' have been pleasant for Riley to be leaning across Kaleb's scrawny knees.[
"Ahh .. so you'd like go to school for it or something?" He shifted his head so he could look at Kaleb. "Yea ... knees are kinda bony but my back was warm until you sat up. Wanna lay back down?"
Kaleb nodded in response. "I attended classes a magical training institute for a few years, now I primarily do my own research." He sat up a bit more and wiggled somewhat. His legs were starting to fall asleep, and he hated the tingly feeling he knew would follow when they regained feeling. "I-if you let my legs free, I can still lie on you, if you want..."
Using his arms he picked himself up enough so that Kaleb could move before he flopped back onto the bed. "So you got books on the stuff? Are they like those old ones you see in movies and stuff?"
That was probably a stupid way to think of it but the only magic books he could think of were the ones he'd seen in movies.
Kaleb winced a bit as he shifted and awkwardly tucked his legs up next to him, before lying back down across Riley's back like he said he would. "I have lots of books, sometimes they can be hard to find though." He blinked at his partner's last question. "I don't know, I don't watch movies," he replied simply, yawning a bit as he got as comfortable as he could with the tingling numbness in his legs.
"How can you not watch movies? I mean doesn't everyone?" He really didn't have anything to base that off of but he'd seen a lot of them so it made sense. Why make something that cost that much if people weren't going to watch it.
Kaleb fidgeted in a nervous manner, curling up to rest on his side against the pillow as he chewed on a thumbnail. "I-I don't think my TV works, and I'm usually too busy to watch movies anyway." That also included going out to theatres to see movies, Kaleb hadn't had the money or need for such entertainment.
"That's so not right." He grumbled as someone knocked on the door and slid out from under Kaleb. "You'll have to watch some .. i've got a pretty good collection i think." He yanked the door open, thanked the poor bell hop for the food and shut the door again. "Yay food"
There was a plate of pastries, some sausages, biscets, honey and butter for the biscets, and some orange juice on ice.
Kaleb flailed a bit and fell over as the object his pillow had been resting on vanished. "It smells good," he said as he picked himself up. His stomach grumbled appreciatively.
He sat back down on the bed and after shoving a clock and phone out of the way set the tray of food on the table beside the bed. "Better taste good too" He picked up a sausage and took a bite.
Kaleb had to lean past Riley a bit to grab something from the tray, selecting one of the biscuits before settling back to nibble on it. The sausages smelled good, but the meat would probably irritate his stomach, and he was never the type to go for sugar first thing in the morning unless it was chocolate milk, so the biscuit was a logical choice on his part.
He munched down the sausage before getting another and shoving in inside a biscuit. Finishing that off he picked up the bottle of juice and poured a glass. "Here." He held it out for Kaleb to take. "Don't spill it on the bed ... or get crumbs on it"
"On the bed or in the juice?" Kaleb asked, carefully licking said crumbs off his fingers before taking the glass with that hand. He took a small sip of the juice before going back to nibbling at his biscuit.
"Crumbs on the bed." He took a sip of his glass of juice and picked up one of the pastries. "Be nasty if we laid back down and there were crumbs all over it"
Kaleb blinked. "You're going back to bed after this?" He was wide awake now, and feeling almost like he should be doing something since he usually practiced his magic this time of day. A large crumb dislodged itself from the biscuit he held and dropped onto the bed. "Oops..." the mage frowned at the errant crumb, he had watched it fall, but had been unable to do anything about it with the half-eaten biscuit in one hand and his glass of juice in the other.
Kaleb huffed a bit. "I couldn't help it, the biscuit is crumbly and you gave me orange juice so I have no hands to catch crumbs with." He took another bite of the biscuit, licking it a bit afterwards so the crumbs stuck to his tongue rather than falling to the bed.
"... you're gonna get the crumb off the bed right?" He eyed the crumb and ate another piece of sausage. The bed wasn't a place for crumbs so maybe he should have made Kaleb come closer to the edge of the bed so he wouldn't get more crumbs down there.
Kaleb gave his partner a rather frustrated frown. What did Riley expect him to do? Lick it off the bed? Keeping his gaze fixed on Riley, the mage did just that, leaning forward without spilling his juice or jarring his biscuit and precisely sticking out his tongue to pick up the crumb without accidentally licking the bed covers. "Can I finish my breakfast now?" he asked once he sat up again, sounding a bit more irritable than he felt.
His eyes widened slightly and he shook his head before answering. "Yes ... you can finish now." Okay. He would just not mention that he'd had rather not pure thoughts involving Kaleb's tongue.
Kaleb gave him a peculiar look, as if to ask why he had been wearing that odd expression, but then he just went back to nibbling at his biscuit. He was always sure to lick the thing to catch the crumbs on his tongue after each bite, he didn't want to have to clean more off the bed.
Finishing off his orange juice he shoved his face into his pillow and tried very hard not to think about Kaleb's tongue. He'd just met him and he should be nice to his partner not having thoughts that should belong to Reno.
Kaleb blinked, breakfast ignored for a moment as he watched Riley's unusual behavior. "A-are you okay?" he asked hesitantly, looking rather concerned. Hopefully his partner was just tired, he did mention going back to bed, but the little healer felt an anxious little knot forming in his stomach at the thought that maybe he hadn't healed Riley completely the day before, or that maybe he had an adverse reaction to his magic, or something of that nature.
"mm..ine" He muttered into the bedding. He was fine, mostly, he just needed to stop thinking. "Cold .. " That was at least partially true but not why he was face first against the bed.
Kaleb stuck the remainder of his biscuit in his mouth and quickly finished up his orange juice before crawling down to the end of the bed. He reached over the side to pick up the comforter he had kicked off the night before, and then threw it over Riley so all that was visible was his tail sticking out on one side. "Better?" he asked hopefully.
He shifted slightly until his muzzle was sticking out. "Slightly." at least now he was warm even if it wasn't the kind of warm he wanted. Actually at this point he probably needed cold but that meant getting up and getting up meant Kaleb probably seeing things.
Kaleb felt slightly better. And cold a bit cold now that Riley mentioned it. He was too scrawny to hold onto body heat well, and wearing only his boxer shorts didn't help that any. Plus digestion tended to reduce energy put towards thermoregulation, which was already not so effective since his body temperature fluctuated quite dramatically when he channeled magic. He suppressed a small shiver and snuggled against the other pillow on the bed.
He felt the be move as Kaleb shivered. Moving part of the blanket he looked at the other. "If yer gonna be cold then get under here." He didn't want to have to feel or listen to Kaleb being cold while he was warm. "It's colder with two people anyway"
Kaleb hesitated for a second, but he didn't need to be asked twice. He quickly wiggled under the blanket and curled up next to Riley, poking his nose out from under the covers so he could breathe fresh air, and drawing in some magical energy. It would take a minute or so for his body temperature to rise because of the channeling, but hopefully it would get them both warmed up sooner.
He was fine for a bit until Kaleb started to heat up. Shuffling he purred and wrapped his arms around the mage. "Mmmmmm warm." He nuzzled the other as he curled around him. He'd have to ask how Kaleb did that, later, when he didn't want to be warm anymore.
Kaleb was a little surprised to feel Riley's arms around his waist and the pleasant nuzzle near his neck, but he did enjoy the touch. It was warm, and he found himself closing off his connection to his magic so he didn't overheat. Between his partner's closeness and the heavy blanket over both of them, the heat was trapped very well.
"How'd you do that?" He didn't have to talk all that loud since his mouth was close to Kaleb's ear. It would probably get hot under the blanket eventually but for the moment he was perfectly content to let the heat soak into him and relax him.
Kaleb smiled, even though Riley wouldn't be able to see it. "When I channel energy to cast spells, a lot of excess heat is produced. It's generally viewed as an unwanted effect, but it has uses of it's own every now and again." He didn't mention that if he wasn't careful, it was possible to channel too much or too fast and end up burning himself.
"Mmmm... i'd call it a good effect" He nuzzled Kaleb as he snuggled against the mage. Warm was good and if he could do this then he wouldn't ever really ever have to worry about being cold or the bed being cold or a chair being cold. It was like a personal space heater.
"I-it can be a bit distracting though," Kaleb said, although he hadn't used enough magic for a compensatory reaction to kick in and enhance his sense of touch, he wouldn't have been able to focus well if he had. There were too many unusual sensations as it was, Riley's nuzzling and warm breath against his neck as he spoke, his arms around Kaleb's waist, and the unfamiliar fabric of the blanket draped over both of them. Too much sensation and it would have been almost unpleasant.
"Really? How so?" He didn't think how heat could be distracting. Unless Kaleb got too hot and then being hot was a distraction in itself. "The heat itself? Or something else?"
Kaleb wiggled in Riley's grasp a bit, partly because he was getting too warm, and partly because he felt a little awkward discussing the side-effects of magic use. "I-it's something else, but it's related to the heat. Large amounts of energy flow can cause a decrease in skin sensitivity, which is compensated for by a temporary increase in sensory neuron excitability that can last for awhile after I stop using magic." he explained, although his growing nervousness made his explanation a little scientific and technical. He was just glad it hadn't become a permanent effect yet, like his inability to eat meat, or his surprising flexibility. He would need a much higher magic capacity before that happened.
He let all that process for a bit before he understood. "So ... it makes you extra sensitive when you use too much? Wait, i'm not making you uncomfortable am i?" He loosed his grip on Kaleb slightly. He didn't want to be causing the mage distress cause he liked the warmth.
"Yeah, really sensitive," Kaleb said, taking advantage of Riley's loosened hold to wiggle around and poke his tail and one foot out from under the blankets to cool off a bit. "I-I'm okay," he said quickly, not wanting to make his partner worry. Besides, he liked the closeness. "I haven't used near enough magic yet, everything still feels normal."
"Really? so i can..."
Riley's words were cut off as someone banged on their door. "Come on you two ... your asses better be awake"
He winced slightly. "Does he have to be so loud?" Wiggling out from under the covers he slid off the bed and headed for the door to let Reno and Rude in.
Reno walked Riley as soon as the door was open and plucked a biscuit off the tray. "so you boys have fun while you were left alone?"
Kaleb sat up and poked his head out from the large mass of blanket wrapped around him, and blushed timidly. Of course he knew Reno had already seen him wearing less than his boxers, but that didn't mean his modesty would allow Reno another chance to look. He felt a little disappointed though, it had been nice cuddled up against his partner.
He ignore Reno and looked at Rude who had a bag. "Please tell me that our cloths?" When Rude nodded he took the bag and headed back to the bed to dump the cloths out so he could find what in there was his size.
Sorting the cloths he tossed a pile at Kaleb. "New suit ... here ya go"
"Thanks," Kaleb said, still blushing, and not moving an inch from his safe blanket. He was pleased to finally have a shirt to wear, but he didn't want to crawl out to get changed. Not when everyone else was looking. The mage briefly wondered what Riley had done with his bloody shirt, but decided not to ask.
Riley shrugged his shirt on but left it unbuttoned his tie and jacket stayed folded as he turned to look at Reno and Rude. "You guys finish up your half?"
"Course. It's all taken care of so we can go home and Rufus can get the good news before he decides to send Tseng after us"
Kaleb sat and listened without a word, he wasn't going to make a move until the other two left and he was sure Riley wasn't looking. He pulled the nest of blankets closer to his body and floated his half-finished bottle of water over so he could get a drink without getting out.
He looked at Kaleb and laughed. "Again with that? It's not like i haven't seen it." waving his half eaten biscuit he headed back for the door. "We'll be outside, chopper's on the roof."
He eyed Reno and huffed as the two walked back out the door. "Should hurry. I don't think people will like it if they find the chopper on the roof where it shouldn't be."
Kaleb blushed brightly, sinking a bit further into the blankets in a failing attempt to hide the red in his cheeks. "I'll be quick," he replied, and then spoke up again in a very timid voice. "Riley... Can you, uhm, not look?"
"Not ... but i've seen it? So what's the difference?" He'd seen it and he'd had his arms around Kaleb so why was he being all modest now.
Kaleb fidgeted and blushed more. "Th-that's not the point, i-it feels awkward," he said, refusing to budge until Riley turned away from him. It really was awkward, he just felt all nervous and shy even thinking about leaving the blankets right then.
He just looked at Kaleb for a minuet before he finally turned around. That was silly. He'd seen Kaleb so what was the point of hiding it now? Plucking up another sausage before they got cold he waited for Kaleb to get dressed so he could turn back around and find his shoes.
Kaleb bit his lip, blushing and fidgeting as he held Riley's gaze. The moment his partner turned away he pounced on the clothes on the bed and dressed quickly. "Thanks, Riley," he said once he was fully clothed, and then he sat down on the edge of the bed to wage war against his tie.
He just shook his head as he went hunting for his shoes. Once he found those he looked at Kaleb and the war with his tie. "Umm .. want some help with that?"
"Y-yes, please," he said timidly, blushing and glancing down at his fidgeting hands, one of which had gotten tangled up in the tie somehow. He felt really bad, Rude had done it for him a couple times, yet he still hadn't picked up on the skill. Sometimes it worked, other times he got it all hopelessly messed up.
Shaking his head he untangled Kaleb's and and after a few minuets had the tie tied for him. "There. Maybe you should try taking it off without undoing it so ya dont have ta?"
"Thanks," Kaleb said again with a weak smile. "I-I try that, but it doesn't always work. Sometimes the thing slips and unties itself..." He hopped off the bed and found his shoes, taking only a couple seconds to pull them on before he was ready to leave.
He found their ruined cloths and stuffed them in the bag that Rude had brought. "You could always not wear it?" It wasnt like Reno did. Rolling up the bag he pulled the door open. "Come on ... before Reno gets bored and we end up having to wait for them to bang before we can leave"
"I can't not wear it. It's dress code." Kaleb said simply, following Riley outside before giving him a somewhat confused look. Riley had just stumbled across a phrase that Kaleb hadn't heard before, and which hadn't already been explained by Reno.
"Reno never seems to listen to that part of the dress code." He chuckled as the headed up to the roof. "What's that look for? did i say something weird?" He was pretty sure he'd said things everyone their age, or at least the age he figured Kaleb had to be, should know.
"I'm not Reno," Kaleb replied, glancing up at him with a hesitant expression. "I-I don't really know what you meant," he finished, without asking for an explanation. Whenever it was Reno saying things he didn't get, he was either given no answer or one that made him blush, so he fully expected to get one or the other out of Riley.
He stopped for a moment, shook his head, and continued walking. "Banging is another way ta say someone's having sex." Wasn't that suppose to be slang that everyone used? He didn't think the scientists information would have been incorrect so Kaleb should have known that.
"Oh." Kaleb blushed bright, and nervously adjusted his glasses. For most of his life he had either been sheltered from such topics, or simply didn't encounter others who discussed things like that, so he never had any way of knowing what such things meant.
"You do know they do that right?" He reached the roof and looked back at Kaleb. "Nevermind, don't answer that." Rude had the chopper started so he wouldn't be able to hear Kaleb at least until they were in the chopper.
Kaleb did know, or at least he had suspected it, but that didn't mean it was a comfortable thing for him to think about. He just blushed more at Riley's question as he followed him to the helicopter, but he was very relieved that they hadn't appeared while Reno and Rude had been in the middle of... things.
He stretched out across the seat and closed his eyes. Thank god they hadn't come up there to find the two of them doing something though by the speed he'd noticed Reno shift back into his seat they had probably just made it.
Kaleb had crawled in to sit beside Riley. Even though he still had a bit of pink in his cheeks, his thoughts were now comfortably working through the excitement of the helicopter ride. He really did like the ride when he wasn't preoccupied with other things, and spending the night with Riley seemed to have calmed his anxiety and blunted the psychological trauma of the day before so he could actually enjoy it this time.
His tail swished lazily beside him as he concentrated on the sound of the rotating blades. It sounded much like some of the fans in the labs and was relaxing. They could make their reports, or he'd just write them, and then Kaleb wouldn't have to .... wait. He looked at the smaller audio. "Did you eat anything besides that biscuit?"
Kaleb turned away from the window, and blinked before shaking his head.
".... you only ate the biscuit?!" He sat up straight and looked at Kaleb. "That's not healthy ... specially after not getting a good sleep."
Kaleb frowned, an odd expression on his face. "I-I wasn't hungry after finishing the biscuit," he said, fidgeting a bit under Riley's gaze.
"You should eat more. It's not right to only eat a biscuit." he scrunched his nose and prodded Kaleb's side. "Have ta get ya more food later"
Kaleb squeaked and squirmed away from Riley's poke. "I-I'm not hungry, I don't need more food!" he exclaimed, wiggling as far away from his partner as possible in his seat and wrapping his arms around himself to ward off any future attacks.
'Yes you do. A biscuit isn't enough energy!" He huffed and eyed Kaleb. "need more food than that." Kaleb was small so he could use more food so he didn't stay that tiny.
"It's fine!" Kaleb insisted, fidgeting a bit more as Riley looked at him. "I-if I needed more food, I would have eaten more." It was the truth, he always got full quickly. He would have eaten more another biscuit or something if he had been hungry after the first.
"It's not fine." He crossed his arms and huffed. Hungry or not you had to eat and a biscuit wasn't really eating it was more nibbling. He's just have to make Kaleb get something else to eat once they were back at the office.
Kaleb would have scowled back if he weren't a little too nervous. "It is fine," he said again, adjusting his glasses. He knew some people who believed he was small and scrawny because of his poor appetite, but the mage would rather believe he had a small appetite because he was small and scrawny, and so he really didn't need to eat lots.
He huffed and looked out the window. He could see Rufus' building now so it wouldn't be long before they were back. "Eat more." He'd make the kid eat more if he had to sit there and stare at him until he ate.
"No." Kaleb said, huffing a bit himself and turning to look out the other window. He had taken care of himself just fine for the last few years, he didn't need anyone to step in to ensure his survival. Besides, eating more would probably make him feel ill and uncomfortable, same as it would for anyone who tried to eat past satiety.
"Yes." He eyed Kaleb out of the corner of his eye as they headed for the city. He wasn't going to agree that a biscuit was enough food for anyone. "Almost lunch time anyway"
"I'll eat lunch when I'm hungry, then." Kaleb muttered in an irritable tone, scowling out the window. Once they got back to the building he would be able to just portal home and eat his lunch whenever he felt like it, and as little of it as he wanted. Well, unless Rufus needed something from him first.
Thankfully they got to the building before he could gripe at Kaleb more and Reno told them to get their asses out. He and Kaleb had to make reports to Rufus anyway, unless Rufus made him do all the paperwork, so they might as well get down there as soon as they could.
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Posted: Sat Jan 20, 2007 10:59 pm
Lunch! Kaleb slipped out of the helicopter after Riley while still looking rather huffy and irritated, but he felt better by the time they got down to Rufus' office. He came to the conclusion that Riley couldn't force him to eat, and likely wouldn't try. Besides, it wasn't lunch time yet, so there probably wouldn't be food in the office anyway.
"Ahh good, you survived." He smirked as he leaned back in his chair. "Riley, the paperwork's on your desk. So take are darling little mage with you and finish it. I'm sure Reno will be more than happy to help you"
"No, we didn't survive. We're just zombies back to do the paperwork." He rolled his eyes and snagged Kaleb's arm to drag him toward their office and his desk.
Kaleb yelped as he was grabbed and nearly pulled off his feet. He frowned as he regained his balance as he followed his partner, just because Riley didn't like his diet, that didn't mean he to be so rough with him.
Once they were in their office he let Kaleb go and headed for the desk. "Damn paperwork..." He poked at it before sitting down and hunting for a pen. He found one in a drawer and started on the report.
Kaleb huffed and flopped down in a chair near the desk. He sat still for a bit, before looking around the room while at the same time trying to hide his curiousity and look irritated so Riley would be less likely to comment on his meals again. He didn't even know there had been an office here. Eventually he got bored of looking around the room, so he scooted the chair to right across the desk from where Riley sat, and tried to read the reports he was working on upside down.
".... i should probably leave out your fainting right?" He looked up as the pen paused on the paper. "Don't really think they need to know about that, or the nightmares."
Kaleb glanced up as his partner stopped writing for a second, and then he blushed. "I-if you think that's best..." He muttered, glancing back down towards his paws. He had almost forgotten about that aspect of the job. He chewed on his lip a bit before leaning forward again to look at the report. "Was there anything I should do?" he asked.
"You could go convince Rufus to order us lunch?" He was going to get hungry again by the time food got to them so they might as well order it now. "And you'll need to sign it once i'm done but that's it." He could write it up on his own well enough so Kaleb didn't really have to help him.
Kaleb nodded. "I'll go ask him to order you lunch," he said, emphasizing the presence of 'you' rather than 'us' in his sentance. Then he slipped out of the chair and went to see if Rufus was still in the main office room.
"Us lunch!" He called out after his partner.
Rufus was still in his office and was flipping though what looked like reports of some sort. He looked up when Kaleb came close enough. "Yes?"
Kaleb didn't fidget like he usually did when asking Rufus about things, his irritation seemed to give him more confidence. "Riley was wondering if you could order him lunch," he said mildly, but just loud enough that his partner would be able to hear from inside his office, and note that he was still not using 'us'.
"I could do that." He smirked. "What do you think he would like for lunch?"
His eyes narrowed as he heard Kaleb use a singular for again. He was going to eat lunch damn it.
"I'll ask him, just a sec." Kaleb said, and then walked back over to the office and poked his head inside. "What do you want for lunch?" He asked, ready to relay the answer back to Rufus.
"Burgers .... " He eyed Kaleb. Hopefully Rufus would be on his side and would order food for Kaleb too. If not he'd just have to gripe about him later when no one was around to hear.
Kaleb smiled happily, but the smile held almost a trace of smugness if you looked close enough. "Okay," he chirped, and then turned to tell Rufus what Riley was hoping he would order for lunch.
He went back to scribbling down info on the report.
He nodded. "Go keep him company and i'll order you food." He could also order himself something since he'd be here for a while getting this mess sorted out. Reno always had to over do things just for the sake of something showy.
Kaleb nodded, and wandered back into the office where he sat down in the chair across from Riley. "Burgers would be good for lunch," he said casually, resting his elbows on the edge of the desk and watching what Riley was writing. "I don't eat meat though."
"They make vegetarian burgers ya know" He looked up while he wrote. "So that everyone can have burgers. I'm sure Rufus knows that." He grinned at Kaleb. Couldn't get out of burgers just cause you didn't eat meat.
"It's not a medical issue, so it's not in my computer file." Kaleb said simply, shrugging a bit. "I've never mentioned it to him either." He was rather glad Tseng had shown him that file and had him verify the information there, this way he knew there was only a very slim chance Rufus would be aware of his diet preferences unless Riley went and told him before he had a chance to call and order.
Setting the pen down he got up slowly before bolting for the door. "Rufus!!" he could tell him and then Kaleb would have no excuse not to eat something.
Kaleb shot to his feet once Riley bolted, and leapt at him before he could get out of the room. It would have been impossible for the scrawny little healer to bring Riley to the ground with just a flying tackle from behind, if it wasn't for the tripline desperately woven from air magic and placed right in his partner's path.
"oof.. s**t." He hit the ground with a thud. "RUFUS!!! ORDER VEGETARIAN!" At least he could scream still. Rufus had to have heard him though the door and the walls.
Kaleb winced, both at hitting the ground sprawled across his partner, and at the loud shout. He reached over and put both paws over Riley's muzzle to keep him from saying anything else. "I'm not hungry, don't order anything for me!" Kaleb called almost desperately. He really didn't want Riley to give him something and make him guilty because he didn't have room to eat it.
He wiggled around under Kaleb and after a moment stuck his tongue out and licked Kaleb's hand as best he could. He wanted those paws off his muzzle so he could tell Rufus to order the mage something.
"Eugh..." Kaleb winced again as he felt Riley's tongue on his fingers, but he wasn't about to let go while the other was still struggling to get his way. He just wasn't hungry, and no amount of pestering on Riley's part would change that. In addition, anything that was ordered for him would simply go to waste, and he hated to see wasted food after spending years on a very modest budget.
Damn it, licking him wasn't doing. He continued to squirm and after a moment rolled himself over so Kaleb was sitting on his stomach rather than his back. He stuck his tongue back out and tried to cover the other's hands in slobber.
It was really difficult for Kaleb to keep his perch on top of Riley and keep his hands on the other's muzzle, particularily now that his grip was all slippery with saliva. It was only getting worse as Riley continued to lick at him. "Very mature," he muttered with a frown, and he shifted a bit to more comfortably straddle his partner's waist.
"mmnhhgunh" If Kaleb would just let his muzzle go his hands wouldn't be wet. He wiggled his face trying to displace his hands. While he could easily just sit up and toss Kaleb off him he really didn't want to hurt his partner.
Kaleb clung tenaciously, wrinkling his nose as he tried to keep his slippery hands on Riley's slippery muzzle. Although he could have used his magic to bind the other from the very start, he really didn't like using it in such a way against friends. Besides, he just needed to keep his partner occupied long enough for Rufus to call and place the order without ordering anything for him. He wiggled a bit, inching forward to sit a bit higher up on Riley's waist so he could hold onto his muzzle easier.
He stilled for a moment as Kaleb wiggled again. Okay, that was not a good place for him to be. "OOve." He tried to squirm into a better position for his sanity while still trying to get his muzzle free.
He reached up and set his hands on Kaleb's waist. "op ..ooving." That wasn't helping at all.
Sadly Rufus took that moment to open the door to find out why it had gone silent. Raising his brow he looked down at the two. "Am i interrupting something?"
Honestly, Riley should just make up his mind, Kaleb thought to himself, before looking up when the door opened. "No, I was just trying to convince Riley I'm not hungry," he said innocently, not letting go of his partner's saliva-coated muzzle.
Oh god. Rufus was staring at them and Kaleb was sitting on his hips and he had his hands on Kaleb's and it had to look wrong from up there. "Ooof!" He tried not to wiggle or stick his tongue out again
"Really now?" He grinned. "Kaleb, i would suggest getting off your partner before Reno sees you."
Kaleb frowned a bit, seeing no reason why Rufus seemed inclined not to believe him. "Have you ordered lunch yet?" he asked, without moving in the slightest.
He whimpered slightly as Kaleb didn't move. He needed to get out of there and he needed to get now.
"Yes. I have." He leaned against the door frame. "It should be here in twenty minuets" He had heard Riley's screaming and Kaleb would be loath to find out that he'd ordered him something also.
"Oh, okay." Kaleb said, letting go of Riley's slobbery muzzle and standing up. He hadn't liked that whimpering, and was almost concerned he had hurt his partner even though he was really too small to do any damage just by sitting on him. He was about to offer Riley a hand to help him up, but then he remembered the drool lathered on his fingers and reconsidered.
He crawled off the floor and looked at Kaleb then Rufus. "Umm .... i'll be back in a few minuets." He fled the room before either of then could answer. He knew there was a shower in the gym and he could go dunk himself in a cold one
He chuckled and nodded at Kaleb. "Keep his chair warm for him until he returns."
Kaleb started to look rather worried, but he listened to Rufus and sat in Riley's chair to fret over it until his partner returned. He absentmindedly wiped his hands off on his pants, and then distracted himself from his worries by picking up the pen and finishing the report Riley had been working on.
He came back after about ten minuets and was now, well, damp. "... you're in my chair and you didn't have to finish that i could have done it." He walked over and looked over Kaleb's shoulder at the report.
"Are you okay?" Kaleb asked abruptly, swivelling around a bit in the chair and completely ignoring Riley's comments about being in his chair and finishing his report.
"Yea, fine now." Cold water did wonders sometimes. "Nothin to worry about." He didn't need to explain to Kaleb what he'd done and why. That would just get complicated
Kaleb's expression didn't lose any of it's worried quality. "I-I'm sorry," he said quietly. The healer was pretty sure that whatever had made Riley run out of the office that fast was his fault, so he couldn't help but apologise.
"Don't have to appologize, and yer still in my chair .... unless you want me in yer lap?" He grinned as he spoke in a attempt at humor to try to get Kaleb's mood to be better.
Kaleb offered a weak smile in return, and then got up and moved to the chair on the other side of the desk. The one he was already starting to think of as his own chair. It wasn't quite as comfortable as Riley's chair, but it would do. He sighed, still feeling a little bad about the incident even though Riley said there was nothing to apologise for.
He was about to say something when Rufus walked back in and dropped a take-out bag on their desk. He grinned at the two before he walked back out just like he'd come in.
"Food!" Riley dug though the bag and after a moment grinned himself. "Well look what we have her e.. veggie burger"
Kaleb crossed his arms in front of him. "I hope you like vegetarian." He said simply, having made up his mind that he still wasn't very hungry. He could always get something to eat on his own time when he did get hungry.
"Ahh no .." He liked his meat. "I've got my own burger." He pulled out a nice fat cheeseburger and some fries. "That's your lunch. Aren't gonna let Rufus money gonna go to waist are ya?"
Kaleb didn't move. "I'm not hungry right now, I'll just take it home and eat it later." He said, for the most part completely ignoring the food. He didn't tell Riley that if he did take it home he would simply cut the large burger in half for two meals. That wouldn't help his case any.
"Should eat some of it." He poked at the burger for a moment before taking a bite. It was good a juicy and cooked perfectly. At least Rufus knew good places to order burgers from
Kaleb shook his head stubbornly without saying a word. It smelled good, and perhaps he was a little hungry now that it was lunch time, but by this point he was ready to refuse food simply to prove to Riley he could and be just fine. He shifted a bit so he could get more comfortable in his chair, and made a point of not looking at the vegetarian burger on Riley's desk.
Eventually he poured his fries over some napkins and popped one in his mouth. They were good to. He looked at Kaleb for a minuet before returning his attention to the burger. Kaleb would eat eventually just because it smelt good.
Kaleb shifted a bit more in his chair and yawned a bit. He certainly wasn't going to touch any food if Riley was going to look at him to see if he was eating anything. He relaxed a bit into the chair and closed his eyes, he would much rather take a nap than eat his burger at that very moment.
Munching on his burger he eventually gave up on watching Kaleb. He'd eat eventually. Sides, he had his own delicious burger to pay attention to.
After a couple of minutes, Kaleb got bored and opened one eye. "Were there any other reports I could work on while you ate?" He asked, figuring he could make the process go a little faster.
"Mm .. no. Said i'd do them." Kaleb didn't have to do any paperwork and since he was technically stuck at the office until he was off he might as well do the work.
Kaleb huffed a bit. "Was there anything you wanted me to do?" He asked, fidgeting in his seat.
"Could eat your lunch." He picked up a fry and bit it in half. He had a grin on his face as he looked at Kaleb
Kaleb scowled back at his partner from across the desk, before picking up a single fry and leaning back to nibble on it. He really wasn't hungry, so he ate the thing at an agonizingly slow rate. "Anything else?" he asked, between torturously small bites.
"Those are my fries ya know and you aren't suppose to be hungry. if yer gonna eat then eat yer burger" Or the fake burger since it wasn't actually a burger.
"I'm not hungry." Kaleb replied, nibbling a bit more on the french fry. "I was just curious, so I won't eat any more if you don't want me to." He directed his attention back to the fry, and licked a bit of salt off his fingers.
His eyes followed Kaleb's tongue more than it should have before he shook his head. "If you want you can go home .... as long as you take the burger with you. I can finish the paperwork and i don't think Rufus will have anything else for us to do today"
"Didn't you say I had to sign things?" Kaleb said after nibbling on the french fry again. He was fine with taking the burger home, Riley said nothing about when he had to eat it, or how much of it at once.
"I can give then to you to sign before you leave then i can just fill them in. Not a huge deal." He eyed the burger Kaleb wasn't eating. "Though if you do i'm gonna come by your place tomorrow and make sure you ate that"
"I'll eat it, don't worry." If Riley was going to drop by tomorrow, he could still split the burger between dinner and lunch the next day. Kaleb finally finished off his french fry. "Are you sure you don't have anything for me to do?"
"Tomorrow morning ..." He stuffed a couple fries in his mouth. Kaleb wasn't getting out of it that easily.
Kaleb huffed a bit. So he could eat the other half of the burger for breakfast. There really wasn't any way Riley would know that he couldn't eat the entire thing in one sitting unless he somehow arrived before five in the morning. "Let me help with the reports?" The mage asked, taking another french fry to nibble on.
"Nothing to help with." He poked at them with an elbow. He just had to fill in basic stuff about what happened and make sure the he left the information about the other man's finances so Rufus could check that all the money being paid back to him was actually his and not funneled from somewhere else.
Kaleb stuck the french fry in his mouth and licked his fingers again. "If you insist," he said, and slipped out of his chair to go find Rufus and ask if there was anything else he needed to do before going home.
He happily finished off his burger and went to working on the fries. He really didn't want to end up having to babysit the kid, even if he was cute, Kaleb should eat more on his own. Damn it, he shouldn't be thinking Kaleb was cute. He'd end up like Reno if he wasn't careful.
Kaleb had no idea what Riley's problem was, it certainly wasn't the case that he was starving himself. What he ate may not have been normal for others, but he had never had any diet-related problems as a result of his small appetite, so there was no reason for Riley to be concerned.
He sighed, and found Rufus working at his desk again. "Uhm, sir, was there anything else you needed me for today aside from finishing the reports?" He asked.
He looked up from his work. "No. Unless Reno comes back from his little excursion in poor condition but i doubt that will be the case."
"Okay." Kaleb said with a smile, and then wandered back into Riley's office to sit down across from him again. After a second of sitting still, he stole another fry from the pile on the napkin.
"Yer gonna owe me for the fries." He didn't look up from where he'd started to work on another form. He probably shouldn't have said that since it brought up weird images in his head but he couldn't take it back now.
"You can have my burger if you want," Kaleb said without missing a beat, before nibbling on the fry with the same delicate slowness he used on the first one. He settled in a bit, getting comfortable again.
"I don't eat veggi burgers." He shuffled to the next report. "Not enough too them to be tasty." He wasn't going to give up that easily.
Kaleb had to agree, the fake burgers often didn't taste as nice as he remembered the real ones to be, but he had to listen to his picky stomach and avoid them. The vegetarian alternative didn't taste bad, just not as nice. "What did you want, then?" He asked.
The pen stopped for a minuet before he kept going. "I'll just start keeping a tab." He grinned up at Kaleb for a moment before looking back at his report.
Kaleb frowned. "You're just going to keep track of that?" He asked almost incredulously, the half-eaten french fry in one hand nearly forgotten.
"Sure, why not?" He tilted his head slightly and looked at Kaleb. "You can just pay me back later. Make sure i don't die or somethin"
"I already did that. Yesterday." Kaleb said. "It's my job." He idly nibbled at the french fry again, wondering how long it would be before Riley forgot about what he was owed for three fries.
"That was yesterday. Doesn't count for the tab" He finished off the reports and turned them around and slid them to Kaleb. "Just need your signature on them all and we'll be good"
Kaleb looked down to read over the reports, only briefly glancing up at Riley for a second. "You shouldn't play debt games with a healer if you're going to count saving your life as payment." It was good advice, by stating that someone's life was enough to repay a debt, it suggested that debt could be incurred if that individual needed their life saved again. It wasn't a good state to be in if you worked with a healer in a dangerous job, since you could end up owing your life many times over.
The mage signed the papers and smiled. "If missing three fries really bothers you, you can always take food from me next time we eat together. I wont' mind."
"You don't eat enough as it is so i'm not gonna start stealing yer food." He scrunched his nose. "Okay ... then i'll think of something later you can pay me back with"
"It's fine," Kaleb insisted, pushing the reports back towards Riley. "I'm small, I don't need much food."[
"Still. You don't eat enough for even a small person."
The mage crossed his arms with a huff. "If I didn't eat enough, I'd still be hungry."
"Not really. It's perfectly possible for you to eat and not be hungry but for your body to require more nutrients than you re giving it. That could just mean you've tricked your body into thinking that's all the food you need"
"I've spent my entire life eating small meals, and I haven't yet suffered from any diet related illnesses or experienced any weight lost to suggest I'm depriving myself of nutrients. If I could trick my body into thinking I needed less than I do, I would rather trick it into letting me eat more so I wouldn't have to handle the social pressure of having such a pathetically small appetite!" Kaleb snapped at Riley, and immediately looked a little taken aback. Even though this topic was irritating, he never snapped at anyone quite like that.
He stared at Kaleb for a minuet before he started laughing. It was quiet at first but after a few moments he was clutching his stomach. "Oh ... my god .... you can bite .... back." He barely managed to get words out between laughs. Kaleb could actually fight back when he thought something. That was good since he'd have gotten annoyed if Kaleb always rolled over and apologized.
Kaleb blushed brightly and ducked his head a bit, still embarassed by his outburst. "I-I'm really sorry, I-I d-didn't mean to snap at you..." He fidgeted badly, his restless paws rubbing at each other and toying with the sleeves of his jacket. Riley's laughter didn't help, it just confused him and made his anxiety worse.
He just kept laughing. Kaleb snapped at him for saying his mind then he was going to say sorry? That was just so not right. Thinking that he laughed harder and eventually slipped out of his chair. Sadly this meant his boots hit the underside of the desk and his head thunked against the chair. "Ouch .. s**t ...." He didn't stop laughing even if it had hurt.
Kaleb shot out of his chair when Riley disappeared from view, and ran around to see if his partner was hurt. "A-are you okay?" he asked with a worried expression, kneeling down next to the laughing Audio. Even if he was cackling like a lunatic, that didn't mean he couldn't be injured.
He defiantly was still cackling like a lunatic though he wouldn't have thought of it that way. You'd have t be, well Him, to cackle like that correctly. "sides ... hurt." And his head hurt where it had hit the chair but that hurt less than his sides.
Kaleb's worried expression didn't go away as he reached out to check over Riley with his magic, letting it explore a bit to find the source of the pain before withdrawing it. "Stop laughing then!" he exclaimed, feeling indignant, miserable, embarassed, and flustered all at once, and showing it all in the expression on his face.
"I ... can't" He kept laughing as he curled up on his side. That was just too funny. He continued to clutch at his stomach as he laughed.
Reno had come into Rufus office to ask him something and heard weird sounds coming from Kaleb and Riley's office. Heading in that direction he opened the door and looked at the bits of the two of them he could see.
Kaleb didn't notice the door open, he was too concerned about his partner's giggle fit. "It would hurt less if you just relax and stop laughing!" he insisted, shifting a bit so he could pull his legs out from underneith him and take a more comfortable seat leaning against the desk drawers.
"But .. i cant .. oh god it hurts."
He stood in the doorway for a moment trying to figure out what was going on. "Ya know .. if you two are going to have love fests under your desk you should do it quieter"
Kaleb blinked in surprise when he heard Reno speak up, and he got up onto his knees to peek over the top of the desk with the full intention of telling the redhead that Riley had just fallen out of his chair. Except he didn't get farther than opening his mouth before completely realizing what Reno thought they had been doing. He blushed bright red right down to his shirt collar as he sat back down, and covered his mouth with one paw in a shocked and mortified gesture.
Hearing Reno's voice calmed him down slightly. "Oh screw you .... laughing.... not that." He couldn't speak completely right yet but he was working on it. "go'way"
He walked over to the desk and leaned over it. "Damn ... though i'd get a good show too." He scooped up Riley's report and waved it at them as he headed for the door. "Just don't have too much fun, Rufus can hear ya know"
Kaleb didn't say a word, and didn't even move or glance up as Reno leaned over the desk to look at the two of them, he was too embarassed. He did whimper a bit though.
The door clicked shut as he laughed and left. Kaleb was so easy to get to.
Finally being able to breath he rolled onto his back and looked at Kaleb. "Yer ... pink."
A brilliant shade of red would probably have been a better way to describe Kaleb's blush. "I-I'm sorry, I-I d-didn't mean to..." He trailed off, unable to finish and say he didn't mean to give Reno the impression they were playing dirty, even in the mildest words he could think of. He trembled a bit, overwhelmed by being so embarassed and nervous.
Still snickering slightly he sat up and licked Kaleb's muzzle. "He thinks everything's dirty. Don't worry about it." he leaned against his chair and tried to get his breath back under control.
Kaleb blushed redder at the lick, but he seemed to be able to calm down a bit. "B-but w-what would Rufus think?" he stuttered in a weak voice, still looking rather distressed. "Reno s-said he..." Again Kaleb trailed off, not able to finish the sentance out loud. It was one thing for people to believe he was sleeping with his boss, it was another thing for his boss to believe he was playing around with his new partner in the office.
"Hopefully Rufus wont think anything. I mean he knows were not doing anything right?" He tilted his head and looked at Kaleb. ".... or he'll just ignore it"
Kaleb nodded timidly, he just felt so flustered he would have agreed with anything Riley said, but those words in particular did calm him down further. He knew one thing for sure, that was the last time he would go help if his partner fell over in the office.
Getting up he held out one hand down to Kaleb. "Come on .... cant sit on the floor forever. Might give them more ideas" If he sat back in his chair and Kaleb stayed down there and anyone else came in they'd certinally get the wrong idea.
Kaleb nodded and took Riley's hand, still blushing, but looking a little less shellshocked. Even though he moved to get up on his own without too much of Riley's help, it wouldn't be hard to just pull him to his feet since he was so small and scrawny.
He tugged Kaleb up onto his feet and smiled at him. He should have just eaten lunch and gone home when he'd told him too. "If they're gonna get to ya like that maybe you should head home?"
The little mage squeaked a bit as he was pulled to his feet faster than expected. "I-I probably should, Rufus s-said there wasn't anything else for me to do once the reports were done." He fidgeted a bit, lost somewhere between deciding to head home and making the portal to get there.
"I'll come by in the morning and make sure you got though the night Kay?" He let go of Kaleb once the other was standing. "If ya have a nightmare call me." He didn't want Kaleb having another nightmare and freaking out when no one was around to make him feel better.
Kaleb nodded timidly. He was a little surprised Riley seemed so concerned, but it also made him feel grateful to his new partner. He conjured a portal to take him home, but it didn't wink out right behind him. A half-second later he stepped back through with a sheepish smile. "I-I forgot my dinner..." he said, taking the still-wrapped veggieburger off Riley's desk.
He had been about to yell at the portal about the burger so it was good that Kaleb came back to get it. "Don't forget to eat it!"
"I won't," Kaleb said with a smile, before stepping back through the portal into his apartment. He would be hungry by dinnertime, so at least half of it would get eaten before Riley decided to visit him.
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Posted: Sat Jan 20, 2007 11:04 pm
You did eat right? He'd gotten up and drug himself into his clothes and headed for Kaleb's. He'd looked up the others address in the computer the day before and it wasn't all that out of the way. Stopping at his partners door he yawned and knocked on the door. Hopefully Kaleb would be awake and he wouldn't have to call him to try to wake him up.
Usually Kaleb was awake by that time of day, but he had another rough night and had been sleeping in to make up for the lack of good rest. He was half asleep on the couch when he heard the knock, and he blushed a bit as he stumbled towards the door in his pyjamas. The little mage would have looked a little tired and a little pathetic as he opened the door, rubbing at his eyes with his hair all tousled and his fingers and toes barely visible underneith the long hems of his starry-patterned pyjamas.
He blinked as he looked at Kaleb. Damn it he looked like he was sixteen again. Those pajamas certinaly didn't help his case either. It was almost as bad as his boxers, no wait, it would be that bad if he had another cute pair of boxers on too. "You look like crap." He tilted his head slightly as he looked at Kaleb. "Did you get sleep?"
Kaleb wrinkled his nose a bit. "Good morning to you too," he muttered in reply, opening the door so Riley could come in before dropping the look of displeasure regarding his partner's choice of greeting. He blushed a bit and moved a couple stacks of books so there was room for Riley to sit on the couch if he wanted to. "I-I slept okay," the mage said timidly, which really meant he hadn't slept well at all and just didn't want to bother his partner about it.
He eyed the apartment and all the books. How did Kaleb live live like that? It seemed like there was less furniture and more book than anything else. "Don't look or sound like ya slept alright." He eyed the couch wondering if it would actually hold him up before he sat down. "Sure ya did?"
The mage looked like he was considering the question, and trying to decide if he should admit things hadn't gone so well. "I-I had a few nightmares," Kaleb said, looking more small and fragile than he had just a minute ago. "D-did you want anything to eat or drink?" he asked, in a quick attempt to change the subject as he fidgeted with the long sleeves of his pyjama shirt.
"Nah, had breakfast not to long ago." He tried not to think about how young Kaleb looked in those pajamas. "Did you eat breakfast? Well actually you should get a good rest before you eat but yea."
Kaleb shook his head. "I-I only just woke up, I haven't had anything to eat yet." His original plan was to finish off that veggie burger this morning before Riley arrived, and despite how frustrated he had gotten the day before, he found himself feeling guilty because he still had a quarter of the burger wrapped up in his fridge. He looked torn between sitting down on the couch next to Riley and going to the kitchen to get a drink for himself, not quite figuring out which action would be the best one to take.
"Ahh." he scrunched his nose. Kaleb really needed to get over those nightmares since he'd probably see more stuff. It wouldn't be good for him to not get sleep because of it. "Do ya have to stand there almost fidgeting? Either sit down or do something" watching Kaleb look like that wasn't good for his nerves.
"I-I'm sorry," Kaleb said as he sat down quickly, apologizing both for not eating and for standing around fidgeting. The change of position didn't help his fidgeting at all, but at least he wasn't just standing there while he did it. "Y-you wanted to make sure I ate that burger, right?" he asked, getting right to Riley's reason for visiting.
"Well more like i wanted to make sure you'd actually eaten something more substantial than a biscuit." he grinned at Kaleb as he sat down. "But if you haven't been awake that long yet i guess that's okay"
Kaleb smiled back, and then his stomach growled. It always chose the most inconvenient times to make noises at him, like right now. He would feel uncomfortable eating at that moment because Riley had refused anything himself, and it wouldn't be polite to make himself breakfast with a guest over.
"Aren't you going to get up and get something?" He poked Kaleb's arm when the other didn't move after a moment. "Sound's like yer hungry." He didn't think about himself. He'd had food so it wasn't a big deal for him.
"I-I didn't want to just get up and eat if you didn't want anything," Kaleb said, inching away from the poking a bit before standing up and wandering over to the kitchen. He should have figured Riley would want him to eat. The first thing he did was pull out the last portion of his burger and an apple from the refrigerator, the burger going onto a plate and into the microwave, and the apple onto a cutting board to slice up into more or less bite sized pieces.
"I already ate so it's not a problem." When Kaleb got up he took a moment and flopped himself down across the couch. At least the couch was comfortable even if it wasn't as good as his.
Kaleb came back out juggling the plate with the quarter of a burger on it, a bowl with the sliced apple, and a glass of chocolate milk. With Riley lying across his couch he wasn't entirely sure where to sit, since there was a large stack of books still piled in his old armchair.
When he noticed Kaleb he scrambled back up to make room for Kaleb. "sorry ... shouldn't have taken up the whole couch." Since it wasn't his and all.
Kaleb just smiled and sat down, tucking his feet up next to him in a more comfortable sitting position as he set the plate down on the arm of the couch and the bowl of apples between himself and Riley. "It's okay, I could have sat in the chair if you really wanted to relax like that. Help yourself to some apple if you want, it's good," the mage said, before taking a sip of his chocolate milk.
"Chair's kinda covered in books..." He looked at it with a weary eye. He'd be afraid that the thing would like fall over if someone sat in it. "It was just comfortable .. not like i needed to lay down like that"
"I could move the books easy," Kaleb said, and nibbled a bit on his fake hamburger to quiet his grumbling stomach. Then he smiled lopsidedly and wiggled a bit in his seat. "It is a nice couch, I was lucky to find it." The old thing was threadbare and a bit sun-bleached from sitting next to a window in it's previous home, but it's fabric was still soft to the touch, and the broken springs just made it easier to flop into.
"i could have sat up like i did easier." He grinned as he leaned on the other arm of the couch. It was a nice couch even if he thought his was squishier.
"Maybe, but you're a guest, so I'd let you relax." Kaleb said, his smile not slipping in the least. He was already starting to feel much better after his awful night, it was really nice of Riley to visit even if the purpose was only to indulge his odd obsession over how much the healer ate. He took another sip of his chocolate milk, glancing at his partner over the edge of his glass.
He picked up the plate of apples and flopped back over so his head was in Kaleb's lap. "Okay then." He grinned as he set the plate on his chest so Kaleb could still get at it.
Kaleb blinked and blushed a bit at Riley's unexpected shift in position, but then he just smiled lopsidedly again. "I-I'll try not to get any crumbs on you," the healer said, taking another sip from his glass of chocolate milk.
He managed not to fall off the couch at that thought. It wouldn't be good for him to end up having Kaleb trying to l... no he just wasn't going to think about it. "Yea ... no crumbs"
Kaleb had tipped his head back to finish the glass of chocolate milk, so he didn't notice Riley's brief awkwardness. Then he finished off the last couple bites of his burger, licking a couple crumbs off his fingers before they could fall onto his partner.
He closed his eyes so he didn't have to see Kaleb licking the crumbs off his fingers. He'd just rather not have to see that and end up in trouble. "So ya gonna stay awake or go back to sleep and try to get some rest?" He'd have to go to the office eventually but he should at least make sure his partner was alright.
Kaleb frowned a bit. "I-I don't think I could go back to sleep, not without messing up my sleeping for tonight. I might go to the office and practice, if I get really tired maybe I'll sleep better." He looked down at Riley, then blinked. After a second of hesitation he leaned down and delicately licked the side of his partner's muzzle, where one crumb had escaped his careful attention.
His eyes opened and he stared up at Kaleb for a minuet. ".... crumb?" He hoped there had been a crumb, there had better have been a crumb, his mind wouldn't survive no crumb.
"Yeah." Kaleb said with a nod and a sheepish smile. "I-I missed one, I'm sorry..." He belatedly wondered if he should have told Riley there was a crumb instead of getting it off himself, but there wasn't anything he could do differently at this point so he settled for blushing a bit and fidgeting.
"shouldn't ..... drop crumbs." He grinned as best he could. He really should sit up and leave and go to the office and beat the crap out of something until he felt better and wasn't having thoughts about his partner who still looked sixteen and he shouldn't be having thoughts about anyway.
Kaleb nodded again, blushing more. "I-it was just a small one," he said, returning Riley's smile without having to work nearly as hard at the expression. He wiggled a bit, trying to get more comfortable with Riley lying across his legs, before taking a slice of apple to nibble on.
"Still shouldn't get crumbs on .. things." He shifted slightly as Kaleb wiggled so that he didn't end up uncomfortable himself
Kaleb couldn't help but smile more at Riley's awkward phrasing. "I'll try not to," he said happily, munching on his apple slice. There was still roughly half an apple's worth of slices left in the bowl, but the small healer had reached his limit. "Did you want any apple before I put the rest away?" He asked after finishing off the slice in his hand.
"Nah, not hungry .. should get going to the office before Rufus calls me." He didn't want his pocket vibrating while he was on the way there either really.
"Okay, thanks for visiting me," Kaleb said with a smile. He was surprised Riley wasn't going to bother him about his small breakfast, maybe the biscuit and burger thing was just a passing obsession. The mage was perfectly content not to speak up on the topic and remind him though.
He sat up and held out the apple bits. "Should finish this, it's good for you." He grinned as he straightened his jacket.
Kaleb sighed, now figuring he just hadn't waited long enough. "I'll finish it when I'm hungry," he said, but having to say it didn't irritate him as much this time as it had the day before. He just grinned back as he took the bowl.
He grumbled slightly before heading for the door. He'd just go to work and hopefully Kaleb would have eaten before he saw him again. "Lunch, with it ... don't just eat the apple half for lunch"
"I won't just eat the half apple for lunch, I can eat some of it for lunch and some of it for dinner." Kaleb said, now mostly poking fun at his partner as he stood so he could see Riley out. Mostly poking fun, he could always spread it out between the remaining two meals anyway, even though he would eat something else along with it.
He turned around and frowned at Kaleb. "All of it for lunch and something else." He was worried his partner was going to end up sick from not eating no matter what he said.
"Fine," Kaleb agreed easy enough, eating more apple just meant he would be eating less of something else. "Don't worry, I'll eat a good lunch today" he reassured his partner, smiling lopsidedly.
"you better." He scrunched his nose before pulling open the door. "Don't want to find out you're not eating right." He waved to Kaleb and headed away from his apartment. He'd have to get to work and hopefully he could get some stuff done and not think about his partner.
The little mage just smiled and waved. He said he would eat a good lunch, so he would. But it pleased him that he was still the one defining what good was.
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