icarusalsoflew | 003. and in every raindrop... // open post.

We do.

[ He says that softly as he's following the way your eyes fall towards the room's set-up. He'd been worried that maybe it would seem a little much, but the look on your face earlier had been totally worth it.

That is, of course, when the food finally arrives. ]

[And it looks marvelous. Yes, the Blade King is a Keeper of the Vigil and therefore used to roughing it out or having very little to go around on the battlefield.

This is not the battlefield, and the Blade King also happens to be Hikaru Shinta, a Bladian. Bladians are all about drive, and sucking out the marrow from the bones of life whenever they can. The long and short of it? They know how to enjoy themselves, and appreciate it when somebody indulges them.]

You know, making sure that Japanese food down here was up to snuff was a bit of a long-term project for my Whisperers for a very long time.

[ He's enjoying a cigarette in time to enjoying the amount of sashimi he decided to indulge in because wow hell yeah, this is really good stuff. ]

So, the food here back in 2012 wasn't as excellent as this?

[ It tastes autentic, okay. And he can actually say he's had authentic thanks to that little trip you guys had with the Hounds down to Ebi-san's little restaurant in Ginza. ]

Food down here has always been great in general, but my country's stuff could have been worlds better.

[Oh, that reminds him.]

You have been trying more Filipino stuff, right?

[ He nods. ]

Here and there. If not at the Great Hall then when I'm at Ateneo.

[ It's cafeteria food, but he did note that most were treated like home-cooked meals. ] But if you have places you want to suggest, I am totally game.

[ Grinning at you now, as he takes a sip from his drink. ]

What I'm thinking about isn't so much of a place as it is a road trip.

[Work with him here. He's gone places, done shit, and is amazingly familiar with the Philippines. This country became his second home in so many ways, and also served as his safe place for a long time.]

[ Okay. He's listening. ]

And... where exactly were you thinking we should go?

[ He hasn't been around. Sure, he's read up some, the information's just out there ready for the taking -- but anywhere you pick is bound to be interesting. ]

Everywhere. This place is beach central, and there's nothing quite like eating fresh seafood on a beach that's nowhere near the hustle and bustle of a city.

[Good times, good times...]

[ ...Beach. Right. Okay, he can work with this. ]

Where's your favorite place to go?

[ You must have somewhere in mind, surely. ]

[Hmm!]

That's probably a toss-up between Bicol, Batanes, Palawan and Dumagete. And that's only if we're talking nature stuff.

[His list always varies according to what he's looking for.]

[ He's going to cross his arms over the table and lean forward, because listening to you talk about places you've been has always been something he has enjoyed. ]

Well, my last experience in Palawan wasn't exactly the recreational sort. [ Mission from Jessiah Vice? Instructions to push the red button ( and how is a red button supposed to be a good thing anyway ) if Rhiannon couldn't hold the target back? Well, at least he got a blademate out of that. ]

But okay, what if we aren't talking nature stuff?

[Riiiight, that was how you met Brigade. Oops.]

Cebu and Davao are always nice. So's Baguio, Vigan, and Taal.

[He has a soft spot for Taal, actually. But that's a story he'll tell you about some other time.]

[ You're definitely giving him things to look up. ]

Well, wherever you want to go, I'm always game.

[ Saying that with a soft look in his eyes directed your way. Both your schedules might be an issue, but that can be worked out. ]

Even if it happens to be Antarctica?

[Because there is actually stuff to see there now, even if it's bloody fucking hella really cold.]

Or the Middle East? Or Africa?

[Which are probably the single most dangerous continents in the Fifth World right now.

He's totally teasing you.

Maybe.]

[ And this one's doing his very best not to laugh.

He also has a comeback for you, because he does feel good about a lot of things tonight. ]

And if my answer is 'yes'?

[ The look in his eyes might be hinting at just a little intense. ]

[And now that chin is going on that hand, with a tiny upward curve of those lips.]

Then I'm going to wonder what happened to that shy, unassuming Sin-Eater who found himself on Shinta Airways a couple of months back.

[ Yep, there goes that not-really-biting-at-his-lip-but yeah, you get the picture.

The pitch of his voice has also dropped a notch. ]

That same shy and unassuming Sin-Eater trekked three months from San Diego to Canada. [ Travel was a thing he couldn't indulge, but it was his favorite part of having games out of state. ] I've always wanted to go places, I just... didn't have the chance to.

[ His eyes are still fixed on yours, by the way. ]

Besides. Gotta keep up with my boyfriend somehow, right? He seems to have been everywhere.

[ No shit, Sherlock. ]

Oh, not everywhere. Places keep changing, you know?

[It's not false modesty: it's a fact. Only close-minded folks, practically immortal or otherwise, could be arrogant enough to assume that some things don't change at all, most especially if they happen to be countries and the manifold living spaces within them. Even the relatively untouched expanses of wilderness shifted around.]

There's always something new to check out, and that sort of thing is especially fun to experience when you've got excellent company.

[ That grin on his face is broadening, because for someone who's lived 29 life cycles, you've got a world of curiosity in you -- and he's heard people warn about that curiosity but honestly? It's refreshing and very, very cute. ]

I hope you keep me in mind if you decide to go jet-setting to wherever.

[ Or blood-walking. Which he'll be concerned about, but mostly because he'll always be concerned about you exerting yourself too much or stretching yourself too thin. If you say that you can handle it though -- he's going to practice taking your word for it. ]

That's a given, isn't it? It's kind of impossible to not think about you.

[The lightness in his tone betrays the look in his eyes at this point. He hasn't been this settled about your relationship in a while now. It's... its really nice.]

[ And there's a tug on the corner of his mouth when you say that, and a distinct shift in the light in his eyes precisely because he hasn't felt this... stable in a while. Not where it concerns the two of you.

It's almost like your club run days, few as those were, brief as they had been.

He breaks eye contact after a bit, uses his chopsticks to dip one of the rolls ordered into the sauce. ]

I seem to remember promising you dinner... and then a movie.

[ Popping that roll in his mouth now, just as he looks back up at you. ]

That you did.

[And letting his own chopsticks do a little pirouette in the air, as if he were a conductor or maybe a teacher with a baton.]

I must commend you for your excellent memory, Mister LaRue.

[ Yeah, he can totally believe that you are actually twenty-one.

He's going to take a moment to enjoy another roll at that, because he doesn't want to sound like an overeager teenager in your company. Once he's done going through that roll though: ]

Kaz revoked everyone else's access at the Tower for the night.

[ Is that his tension tell? The one where his lips press briefly together as he occupies himself with getting a portion of one of the dishes on the table? Is that the faintest shy slant to his shoulders like he isn't sure how you'll feel about that little tidbit of information? ]

Edited 2014-05-15 18:22 (UTC)

[And here's his tell of interest: the way his chopsticks hover just over a plate of rolls, and how he pauses, just so, in mid-chew.

Okay, finishing what he was chewing on now like a good boy. Then looking at you with that sort of smile, the one that's all sorts of understanding, excited, and pleased.]

Did he now?

[You have just told him the best thing he's heard the entire night. It's right up there with this dinner.]

[ And his gaze may have held yours for a little bit, but it's definitely averted now. Is he backpedaling some? Maybe. But it's not because he doesn't want to be with you. Quite the opposite. ]

I might have... told him that I was taking you out tonight.

[ A pause. ]

And that I wanted to show you that projector that I got.

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