[HEY COLLETTE THERE IS A MEDIUM-SIZED BOX WAITING FOR YOU OUTSIDE YOUR DOOR
IT CONTAINS THIS
AND THERE'S A NOTE
IT SAYS: "For my favorite Collette."
WOW I WONDER WHO IT'S FROM]
IT CONTAINS THIS
AND THERE'S A NOTE
IT SAYS: "For my favorite Collette."
WOW I WONDER WHO IT'S FROM]
[ After a week in the outlands, he has made it back home and has had a bath and some sweets and a change of clothes, it's heaven.
Or rather, purgatory. A step up from hell, but still unpleasant. It's not so much that he's bruised, bitten, and blistered; but he's had quite a bit of time in the last week to think.
And the fact that Collette didn't reply to his post, nor seems to be home, has raised an awful possibility in his mind, particularly given what just happened to Leo.
He considers leaving a text but that feels cowardly (and a bother!), so he simply leaves her a voicemail: ]
All right, Collette?
Or rather, purgatory. A step up from hell, but still unpleasant. It's not so much that he's bruised, bitten, and blistered; but he's had quite a bit of time in the last week to think.
And the fact that Collette didn't reply to his post, nor seems to be home, has raised an awful possibility in his mind, particularly given what just happened to Leo.
He considers leaving a text but that feels cowardly (and a bother!), so he simply leaves her a voicemail: ]
All right, Collette?
( Collette doesn't respond, even though she listens to the message. She's considering what to do at all when Oz interrupts her thoughts with suggestions of going home.
But she'd been replaying the message, and instead of just relaying, she'd managed to hit... respond.
Thus when Break checks for a response, or notices his tablet beeping at him, or even hears a word out of it, he'll be treated to the audio file of something currently ongoing and slightly muffled.
Teens! )
But she'd been replaying the message, and instead of just relaying, she'd managed to hit... respond.
Thus when Break checks for a response, or notices his tablet beeping at him, or even hears a word out of it, he'll be treated to the audio file of something currently ongoing and slightly muffled.
Teens! )
[ This time Caesar isn't even going to knock on the other apartment's door, he's just going to outright check to see if it's unlocked. It's always been before and he's begun to sense this is the trend of things over here.
So it's only a door creaking open and him poking his head in to look around. At the very least, he won't wander in. He has to figure out who's here first.
If it's Gilbert, he's in for it! ]
Hello?
So it's only a door creaking open and him poking his head in to look around. At the very least, he won't wander in. He has to figure out who's here first.
If it's Gilbert, he's in for it! ]
Hello?
in which the boys debated where they'd sleep for hours
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crocodilesmiles
2013-08-23 05:48 am (UTC)(link)
( Collette looks up from where she's tapping away on her tablet, looking toward her doorway. She waits a beat, wondering if anyone else is in at this exact instant. Nothing from Break... nothing from Gilbert.
This was an 80's film waiting to happen! )
Hello? Caesar?
( She sets her tablet in her lap, moving toward her door. She pops herself around backward so that she leans over the back of her manual chair when she looks out into the hall, toward the door. )
Hey! It is you! Come on in, I guess the guys are out for now.
( ... Opportunity! )
This was an 80's film waiting to happen! )
Hello? Caesar?
( She sets her tablet in her lap, moving toward her door. She pops herself around backward so that she leans over the back of her manual chair when she looks out into the hall, toward the door. )
Hey! It is you! Come on in, I guess the guys are out for now.
( ... Opportunity! )
[ Thank goodness! He doesn't need them hovering around while he just sits around over here. ]
Likewise over at my place. That cat kept trying to break into my room, I swear...
[ Hence why he's here. Driven out by a cat, how awful. Anyway, he's in and closing the door behind him before meandering over to the hall. ]
Likewise over at my place. That cat kept trying to break into my room, I swear...
[ Hence why he's here. Driven out by a cat, how awful. Anyway, he's in and closing the door behind him before meandering over to the hall. ]
She probably was trying to get lost in your maze!
( She teases, watching him come her way. )
Or she was lonely. She probably figures between the both of you, you could sleep through almost anything! Napping buddies.
( Ah, but she smiles, now fully in the hall, turning her chair to face down it head-on. )
Hungry? Thirsty? Miss me?
( She tries not to snort in amusement at herself, but it's not all that effective. It's just nice to see him (again, it's not like it's been long) -- but nice to see him and not be surrounded by so many others.
Again, part of her can only thing... opportunity. )
( She teases, watching him come her way. )
Or she was lonely. She probably figures between the both of you, you could sleep through almost anything! Napping buddies.
( Ah, but she smiles, now fully in the hall, turning her chair to face down it head-on. )
Hungry? Thirsty? Miss me?
( She tries not to snort in amusement at herself, but it's not all that effective. It's just nice to see him (again, it's not like it's been long) -- but nice to see him and not be surrounded by so many others.
Again, part of her can only thing... opportunity. )
She's a cat. She shouldn't get lonely!
[ Caesar gives a small huff over that before stopping before her.
With her in her chair, he has to lean down, but that's no bother. He does lean down, close enough to put his hands on the armrests. With those as support, he can go in even closer, close enough that she might feel his breath on her face and be at the same eye level as well.
He smiles! A sort of smile she probably hasn't seen since he was asking "Terri" a favor, something borderline charming, though more likely meaning mischief than anything else. ]
Oh, you know, hungry, thirsty, missing... [ And then he straightens up again and moves to go around her. If he can make it, it's going to be a beeline for the bedroom. ] A bed to nap on without someone yowling and scratching at the door. You don't mind, right?
[ Caesar gives a small huff over that before stopping before her.
With her in her chair, he has to lean down, but that's no bother. He does lean down, close enough to put his hands on the armrests. With those as support, he can go in even closer, close enough that she might feel his breath on her face and be at the same eye level as well.
He smiles! A sort of smile she probably hasn't seen since he was asking "Terri" a favor, something borderline charming, though more likely meaning mischief than anything else. ]
Oh, you know, hungry, thirsty, missing... [ And then he straightens up again and moves to go around her. If he can make it, it's going to be a beeline for the bedroom. ] A bed to nap on without someone yowling and scratching at the door. You don't mind, right?
( She can't help when it's fairly obvious a large portion of her attention ends up focusing on his lips. It's the disjointed nature in seeing that sort of smile she's only seen in a very different context to seeing it on his face now which makes her look more surprised than anything else. (Though the fixation might have slightly more to do with hormones than memory.) Terri is something else she should talk to him about --
But then he's being a royal jerk tease, and the surprise is replaced with laughter, reaching out to snag his shirt and tug, or at least forestall the bed usurption. )
Woah, woah! There's a toll for the privledge of bed use, you know!
But then he's being a royal jerk tease, and the surprise is replaced with laughter, reaching out to snag his shirt and tug, or at least forestall the bed usurption. )
Woah, woah! There's a toll for the privledge of bed use, you know!
Edited 2013-08-23 07:02 (UTC)
[ And stopped by a shirt. ]
A toll? [ He glances back down at her, an eyebrow quirked. ] Oh, well, let's see...
[ Here's him checking his pockets. ]
Doesn't seem that I have anything on me. [ There he pauses to look back towards the living room of the apartment. ] Is there a toll for sleeping on the couch?
A toll? [ He glances back down at her, an eyebrow quirked. ] Oh, well, let's see...
[ Here's him checking his pockets. ]
Doesn't seem that I have anything on me. [ There he pauses to look back towards the living room of the apartment. ] Is there a toll for sleeping on the couch?
( She snorts, keeping her hold on his shirt and looking ostensibly out toward where the sofa is. )
Oh, no, of course not...! But what you have to watch out with that one is the resident troll.
( Not that Break can't do anything he wants, that teleporting cheater, but he does seem to have a tendency to preform some amazing couch surprises. Collette quirks up an eyebrow, looking at at Caesar. She gives him a mischevious grin along with an amused tone of voice. )
Your call, Mr. Silverberg.
Oh, no, of course not...! But what you have to watch out with that one is the resident troll.
( Not that Break can't do anything he wants, that teleporting cheater, but he does seem to have a tendency to preform some amazing couch surprises. Collette quirks up an eyebrow, looking at at Caesar. She gives him a mischevious grin along with an amused tone of voice. )
Your call, Mr. Silverberg.
Edited 2013-08-23 17:15 (UTC)
( this text currently under debate by Collette and Xerxes Break, bbiab Jack!!! )
Hmmmm.
[ Let him think about that for an exaggerated length of time. Then, he peers down at her curiously again. ]
I don't suppose you're willing to take something other than marques for this toll of yours, are you?
[ Dead serious face. This is obviously a very serious matter! ]
[ Let him think about that for an exaggerated length of time. Then, he peers down at her curiously again. ]
I don't suppose you're willing to take something other than marques for this toll of yours, are you?
[ Dead serious face. This is obviously a very serious matter! ]
( She spends her own exaggerated time humming in consideration, canting her head to the side and looking up fast his head, contemplating the ceiling. )
I suppose... I could be persuaded.
( She says at length, eyes coming back to his face. It's terribly difficult for her to pretend she's up to anything other than mischief. Collette doesn't try too hard, lips itching to tug up into another grin, eyes practically laughing. )
What's your best offer?
I suppose... I could be persuaded.
( She says at length, eyes coming back to his face. It's terribly difficult for her to pretend she's up to anything other than mischief. Collette doesn't try too hard, lips itching to tug up into another grin, eyes practically laughing. )
What's your best offer?
[ This is going to go on for awhile, isn't it?
While she fights off a grin, he doesn't bother. He's going to grin it up like an idiot for once, though more because that's his intended effect. Maybe he's trying to mimic Nash! It works for that guy, right? ]
That I'll actually follow through on taking you out. How's that?
While she fights off a grin, he doesn't bother. He's going to grin it up like an idiot for once, though more because that's his intended effect. Maybe he's trying to mimic Nash! It works for that guy, right? ]
That I'll actually follow through on taking you out. How's that?
( She looks startled, startles into a laugh even, and finally lets go of his shirt in favor of slapping his thigh with her hand. )
Not funny! ( She says, shaking her head, still laughing. ) Grinning like that, you're such a tease!
( It just doesn't connect right now that him wanting to nap away from the cat can turn around into anything other than a tease back over the whole ludicrous idea of a toll. Besides, a date? That'd totally be more taxing!
(Ha-ha!) )
Not funny! ( She says, shaking her head, still laughing. ) Grinning like that, you're such a tease!
( It just doesn't connect right now that him wanting to nap away from the cat can turn around into anything other than a tease back over the whole ludicrous idea of a toll. Besides, a date? That'd totally be more taxing!
(Ha-ha!) )
A tease? This grin? No, it's real, really!
[ The slap on the thigh gets him to move aside, since she's made the grand mistake of letting his shirt go. Ha ha, free! It gives him leave, unintended or not, to finish navigating past her in the hall and into the room.
Just as planned. ]
Also, I do believe you need a better guard at your toll bridge.
[ Now excuse him while he claims this bed here. ]
[ The slap on the thigh gets him to move aside, since she's made the grand mistake of letting his shirt go. Ha ha, free! It gives him leave, unintended or not, to finish navigating past her in the hall and into the room.
Just as planned. ]
Also, I do believe you need a better guard at your toll bridge.
[ Now excuse him while he claims this bed here. ]
Hey!
( Your girlfriend manipulates time, Caesar, do you think it's that easy?
... Well yes, it sort of is, since Collette doesn't do anything immediately, not until he's at her bed anyway, and even then it's a startling moment of trying to figure out if she'd just switched directions and rolled after him, or done so with the benefit of that strange space between sound and function that came along with using her stopwatch to end up behind him like she has.
(It's the stopwatch. Baby steps toward endurance in all fields! Not that she'd admit such without prompting.)
Either way, time resumes and she's right behind him, reaching out and yanking him back from the bed and (technically) into her lap, though his changed momentum would send both of them rolling backward if she succeeds. )
Oh no you don't! You mean it? ( She doesn't dampen the enthused excitement in her voice. ) You'll take me out? In public? Just you and me? No drinking, no sick days, no bombings, just you and me and food and something normal like that?
( There's a slight emphasis on normal, a hint of longing she wouldn't be able to identify if someone had even pointed it out. Pfft. What was normal? Normal changed for each person.
Normal was getting to go out on a date with a boy. It's not sky diving, but it has a different sort of appeal. )
Oh, Caesar!
( And if she had him in her lap, or had him catching himself before her, then now she's aiming to give him the best bear hug she can -- just that happy (and it is still, sadly, not as much of a bear hug as it used to be). That she laughs at the same time is an extension of being pleased at the thought, perhaps a little too much so. )
( Your girlfriend manipulates time, Caesar, do you think it's that easy?
... Well yes, it sort of is, since Collette doesn't do anything immediately, not until he's at her bed anyway, and even then it's a startling moment of trying to figure out if she'd just switched directions and rolled after him, or done so with the benefit of that strange space between sound and function that came along with using her stopwatch to end up behind him like she has.
(It's the stopwatch. Baby steps toward endurance in all fields! Not that she'd admit such without prompting.)
Either way, time resumes and she's right behind him, reaching out and yanking him back from the bed and (technically) into her lap, though his changed momentum would send both of them rolling backward if she succeeds. )
Oh no you don't! You mean it? ( She doesn't dampen the enthused excitement in her voice. ) You'll take me out? In public? Just you and me? No drinking, no sick days, no bombings, just you and me and food and something normal like that?
( There's a slight emphasis on normal, a hint of longing she wouldn't be able to identify if someone had even pointed it out. Pfft. What was normal? Normal changed for each person.
Normal was getting to go out on a date with a boy. It's not sky diving, but it has a different sort of appeal. )
Oh, Caesar!
( And if she had him in her lap, or had him catching himself before her, then now she's aiming to give him the best bear hug she can -- just that happy (and it is still, sadly, not as much of a bear hug as it used to be). That she laughs at the same time is an extension of being pleased at the thought, perhaps a little too much so. )
[ Of all the things to forget!
Isn't she supposed to be abstaining from using that thing?
But there isn't time to stop and tell her off about it, since one second he's about to flop over onto a bed, the next (or possibly the exact same second) he's yanked backwards and landing in Collette's lap. He's shocked and confused at first, having never had the stopwatch used against him before, but it does sink in soon enough.
Then she's going on about something being normal and hugging him! He squirms against it, but not with any serious effort. ]
Cheater. [ Cheeeaaateeer! ] Don't act so surprised. I already owe you at least one, anyway. It's not that big of a deal.
Isn't she supposed to be abstaining from using that thing?
But there isn't time to stop and tell her off about it, since one second he's about to flop over onto a bed, the next (or possibly the exact same second) he's yanked backwards and landing in Collette's lap. He's shocked and confused at first, having never had the stopwatch used against him before, but it does sink in soon enough.
Then she's going on about something being normal and hugging him! He squirms against it, but not with any serious effort. ]
Cheater. [ Cheeeaaateeer! ] Don't act so surprised. I already owe you at least one, anyway. It's not that big of a deal.
Edited 2013-08-24 06:44 (UTC)
All's fair...! ( she quips, and then she's pressing a kiss to the side of his neck (and whatever hair she catches in the process), happy and pleased and -- and -- ! ) You're saying you want to. It makes me happy!
( It's a big deal to her, whenever she does feel wanted or necessary or just fun to be around. It's nice! So she hugs him again, tries to get in another similarly light, laughing kiss, and lets her grip loosen enough that he can move (leave) when he wants to. )
When?
( It's a big deal to her, whenever she does feel wanted or necessary or just fun to be around. It's nice! So she hugs him again, tries to get in another similarly light, laughing kiss, and lets her grip loosen enough that he can move (leave) when he wants to. )
When?
Time manipulation is never fair.
[ He still doesn't see why it's such a grand occasion! It's not as though he was going to avoid fulfilling his part of the deal forever. He tolerates the kisses and escapes when he can, since stuck on a lap that's stuck in a wheelchair is a little confining.
He'll turn and plop down to sit on the bed's edge instead, looking as exasperated as expected. ]
I was actually trying to argue with you until you outright said the toll was a kiss, but you went and ruined it. [ Good going, Collette! ] When... Uh. Tonight? Tomorrow? I don't need to tempt even more catastrophic interruptions by putting it off too long.
[ He still doesn't see why it's such a grand occasion! It's not as though he was going to avoid fulfilling his part of the deal forever. He tolerates the kisses and escapes when he can, since stuck on a lap that's stuck in a wheelchair is a little confining.
He'll turn and plop down to sit on the bed's edge instead, looking as exasperated as expected. ]
I was actually trying to argue with you until you outright said the toll was a kiss, but you went and ruined it. [ Good going, Collette! ] When... Uh. Tonight? Tomorrow? I don't need to tempt even more catastrophic interruptions by putting it off too long.
( her hands steady the wheelchair as he moves, getting up and depositing himself on the edge of her bed. she has nothing to say on manipulating time. it's the game they all play here. so instead... )
Half our arguments don't go according to plan! ( she says, laughing, amused that he admits to playing the game along to the same initial lines as she was thinking. like she was going to pass over something even better than a kiss!
though that is what had led to them being here now -- not the idea of kissing, but dating. such an odd thought. plus a sobering one... why she'd barged in on him that day, and things that she held close now that were probably good to share.
her hands fold into her lap, and the excitement simmers down; her pleasure is hard to quash, but she does in an effort to sound more sober. )
Better off with tonight, by tomorrow we could be invaded again. ( the lightest smile, a brief closing of her eyes. they open again, considering. ) Though... on another note, there's stuff we still need to talk about, huh? Like at Lavi's party...
( and with so many other, scattered things. )
Half our arguments don't go according to plan! ( she says, laughing, amused that he admits to playing the game along to the same initial lines as she was thinking. like she was going to pass over something even better than a kiss!
though that is what had led to them being here now -- not the idea of kissing, but dating. such an odd thought. plus a sobering one... why she'd barged in on him that day, and things that she held close now that were probably good to share.
her hands fold into her lap, and the excitement simmers down; her pleasure is hard to quash, but she does in an effort to sound more sober. )
Better off with tonight, by tomorrow we could be invaded again. ( the lightest smile, a brief closing of her eyes. they open again, considering. ) Though... on another note, there's stuff we still need to talk about, huh? Like at Lavi's party...
( and with so many other, scattered things. )
Fine. Tonight. [ Ughhh, now he has to figure out where they should go. ] As if there's anywhere worthwhile to go...
[ But the change of topic pulls him away from that line of complaints. She wouldn't shift from something that involved hopeless romantic tidings to a party that's since passed without good reason. He sits up straighter, away from the lazier slouch from just before.
Okay, she has his attention. ]
What about it?
[ But the change of topic pulls him away from that line of complaints. She wouldn't shift from something that involved hopeless romantic tidings to a party that's since passed without good reason. He sits up straighter, away from the lazier slouch from just before.
Okay, she has his attention. ]
What about it?
As if there's no place exciting enough to try!
( not even admonishing, to find herself perpetually amused by his need to find something to complain over. as if she would ever be the difficult one. it was fun, in a way, seeing him do what he does paired with the complaints that glossed over the world around him.
her thumbs fold over each other, then twitch. )
Lavi, Tyki, Lenalee... I guess it's some of all of that. Their war, the things that make Tyki dangerous. Why he recognized you.
( she glances up as she shifts into recollection. she doesn't feel like it's a confession; something about the idea of confess sat poorly with her right now. )
Was it a month? Must have been... after being out of the hospital, back home. Lavi went back to his world for a while, like some people do, but he came back and he was in a bad place. He needed helped. He got me.
( she smiles, reflecting on how that, to so many, would not be a blessing. how it'd taken all of the andalite's gift, and the initiative's, to turn her into something, someone dependable. not just a liar. not just a girl looking for a world with a prettier answer than the one she had. )
I'm slower than most people, just on my own. On a straight way, though! ( a short laugh. ha! then, the story changed! ) I needed to be able to move fast and be something people could recognize as needing help. Not the things I usually am. People just ask more questions, which I like, but questions were going to waste time.
( lavi had asked for help, and he'd gotten her. she'd needed to move, and so she'd become... caesar. she doesn't spell it out: it's obvious, something he had doubtlessly guessed she'd done around that man, that more-than-human, with how tyki had behaved at the celebration. )
( not even admonishing, to find herself perpetually amused by his need to find something to complain over. as if she would ever be the difficult one. it was fun, in a way, seeing him do what he does paired with the complaints that glossed over the world around him.
her thumbs fold over each other, then twitch. )
Lavi, Tyki, Lenalee... I guess it's some of all of that. Their war, the things that make Tyki dangerous. Why he recognized you.
( she glances up as she shifts into recollection. she doesn't feel like it's a confession; something about the idea of confess sat poorly with her right now. )
Was it a month? Must have been... after being out of the hospital, back home. Lavi went back to his world for a while, like some people do, but he came back and he was in a bad place. He needed helped. He got me.
( she smiles, reflecting on how that, to so many, would not be a blessing. how it'd taken all of the andalite's gift, and the initiative's, to turn her into something, someone dependable. not just a liar. not just a girl looking for a world with a prettier answer than the one she had. )
I'm slower than most people, just on my own. On a straight way, though! ( a short laugh. ha! then, the story changed! ) I needed to be able to move fast and be something people could recognize as needing help. Not the things I usually am. People just ask more questions, which I like, but questions were going to waste time.
( lavi had asked for help, and he'd gotten her. she'd needed to move, and so she'd become... caesar. she doesn't spell it out: it's obvious, something he had doubtlessly guessed she'd done around that man, that more-than-human, with how tyki had behaved at the celebration. )
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