Roleplay City
Infusco => INFUSCO: Enter The Shadows => Galvin Academy => Topic started by: Trillian on April 03, 2019, 08:57:52 PM
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Two weeks over schedule, but finally the building was complete. The internals hadn't yet been furnished but the protective plate covering the underground area was lifted off. Ben had been informed on multiple occasions that the panel had been peeled up in one corner after the builders went home for the night, but nobody was down there whenever they inspected. There were no rodents either, for the walls were concrete and steel and no such critters could get in (unless they were let in by the squatters). Thankfully there wasn't too much damage - only a few pieces of equipment had been knocked over and a few scratches on floorboards in some rooms. Whoever had been squatting there had moved on after building started happening on a 24 hour schedule, to make sure they didn't go too far over target.
Ben was on the property, walking Kerr through it. Some rooms were set up as classrooms or lecture halls, others were completely empty. Still a work in progress. It was soon going to be a mid-year break between Semesters One and Two, and Ben was pleased that they would be able to make a smooth transition out of Haven Crest and into the Academy proper. He'd roped his sire into agreeing to teach a couple of classes and Ben had accidentally released a short summary for the Lovebite App into the Semester Two signup page, without properly defining what it's purpose was. He'd felt foolish and amused when some unknown person had enrolled at the Academy and then signed up for the Lovebite course. Even the ex-Oligarchy regulars didn't know about it, yet.
He wondered if Jake was catfishing him.
They still had to find Digital and Ben was starting to feel like he never would. "What do you think?" Ben asked, turning to Kerr after a brief walk-through. There was still very little to see, but it had that nice smell of new of a display home. "Do you want to see below?"
Ben's focus shifted from his sire to the front door that was wide open, and his jaw dropped at who stood there.
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Digital and Flick had abandoned the Academy when too much noise and movement happened upstairs. Their pet rats came with them and Flick had ensured the rest of the ratty family escaped into the woods with them, including Vane. His wolfish friend was very good at hide and seek now because Digital was having trouble finding him. Digital had been so much better at hide and seek when playing with Ben.
Digital flounced in, dressed in his finery that Jeanne had made for him. White classic bodice and frou-frou at the bottom, enough to charm the pants off Mae West. He did his best catwalk - the only way to sashay when wearing bright red heels. He approached a stunned Ben and grabbed him, twirling him around and then dipping him for effect before grinning at Kerr and waggling his eyebrows.
"I will help you forge a love connection," he declared grandly, then turned to look at Ben who was diagonal to the floor in his arms. "I like a mustard, myself."
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Kerr got the same odd feeling when he saw Digital as he had at Sabrina's coming out party; a mixture of exasperation, sadness and pleasure. He was relieved, also, because he was keen to approach the clairvoyant with his and Ben's business proposal and get their vision underway. What if they'd gone to all the trouble of jumping through the labyrinthine array of legal and copyright hoops, only to find out they couldn't realise what they wanted with the Lovebite app?
Apparently the request part of the process hadn't been necessary, as was Digital's way.
Smiling, Kerr approached the begowned creature and, ignoring Ben's awkward position, tapped Digital on the shoulder. "May I have the pleasure of this dance?" he queried, snapping into a well-trained ballroom pose, shoulders back, elbows square and dance space waiting for a partner to step into it. He had no idea what liking mustard had to do with anything.
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Ben was too shocked by the vision of Digital in an extremely feminine dress walking in an extremely feminine way. He'd never have been able to picture it and still couldn't believe his eyes even as the vision approached him. He was very much a mannequin in Digital's dancing arms, emitting a tiny sound of alarm when he was dipped by the vampire and then laughing at his own surprise.
His amusement shifted into excitement when Digital talked about helping them with Lovebite. The vampire might often speak in riddles and know things he shouldn't know without a telepathic scan, but the answer was one Ben felt genuine glee over. He grinned at Kerr at the same time as Digital did. He was also lost as the mustard reference. In his head he'd envisioned calling the donors Sweethearts or something like that. Not condiments or sauces. Hmn, though a Spicy Sweetheart might work.
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At the tap on his shoulder and seeing the position ready for him, Digital let go of Ben and heard him thump to the floor even as he held a hand to his mouth 'oh my!' and grasped Kerr's shoulder and hand, putting Kerr into the lead position.
“You should be kissed and often, and by someone who knows how," he said firmly, doing a very good Clark Gable impersonation.
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Kerr stumbled slightly at the quote as he began leading Digital in a slow, sweeping foxtrot around the room (and, as it turned out, around his neatly-dropped partner). He hadn't had a whole lot of kissing in his life of late but that didn't stop him playing along - once he recovered his equilibrium.
It had been decades since he'd danced properly but Kerr had been trained in ballroom dancing and used it as often as he could throughout his long life. The foxtrot was his favourite. He was dressed poorly compared to his partner, though at least he was wearing black trousers tonight, instead of jeans, and his wine red dress shirt - though tie-less - was neatly buttoned almost to his throat. He didn't match Digital's shoes perfectly but it wasn't a terrible pairing either, he thought.
"Why, Digital, are you offering?" he queried as he moved Digital into a promenade spin that made his skirts twirl beautifully before Kerr pulled him back into chasse and back hover position, their legs pressed between each other and their feet gliding as they continued to promenade to nonexistent music. "And here I was only looking for you because I need your help with our app."
And because I forgive you, he thought but didn't say.
The muscular man in his arms had done him a terrible wrong by killing his sire and original fledges but time had helped his heart heal. It had also shown him that Digital had likely been right because Ben truly did have a knack for making bad decisions and he could understand, after his lover had spent a year in bed with Charon (mourning Kerr), that he would likely have been drawn negatively to his grand sire eventually. Sawyl had been the master of trouble, so Ben would've been absorbed without a problem.
He'd accepted that it was for the best and his heart was opening to Digital once more. He held him close as they tumbled and hovered across the spontaneous 'dance floor', grateful to have found him at last.
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When Ben hit the floor he smacked his elbow and he grit his teeth against the pain. He hadn't cried out his surprise at being dropped, he'd mostly expected it, but he certainly hadn't expected Kerr to have been the reason for it. He watched the bizarre display of dancing as it happened around him and sat up, crossing his legs and watching like he used to do in primary school.
"Will the app work? Will the Academy grow? Who kept breaking in downstairs?" he asked, then realised he was being rude. "Sorry, Digital. I've been looking for you everywhere and the questions have been piling up."
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Digital laughed his delight with the twirls Kerr sent him on, and he spun back, kicking his heels and giving the dance some flair.
"Not meeee," Digital admonished Kerr when asked if he was offering to kiss. His love was right there on the floor, and hugging and kissing was the best way to get the pair of them back to normal. After a few more steps and kicks, Ben's questions finally entered his brain, buzzing all around. The voices ripped the questions apart and offered him nothing. But the last one, ah, the last one he could answer.
"I was the one they kept trapping when they bolted down the floor," he laughed. "Me and Flick, my wolf. He's in the greenery now," Digital missed a step and his ankle threatened to go sideways and drop him - he would've stumbled but gallant Kerr caught him, holding him tightly in his arms. A gentleman! "You didn't once come here to look for me!" Digital said, peering down at Ben. "But you caught him single-handed, instead. The app and the school should be one creature. Ouroboros!" he cried, breaking free from Kerr's hold so he could fling his arms into the air.
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Kerr raised his eyebrows as he listened to Digital's answer, wondering whether the wolf was literal but then recalling the stir such a creature had made when he crashed Sabrina's party. Kerr hadn't seen it personally but there'd been discussions about it even a few nights later, once they were sheltering at Penbrook. Ari had been particularly taken with the wolf. Apparently, so was Digital, which could prove problematic.
When Digital unfurled away from him, Kerr took the opportunity to approach Ben and help him to his feet, smiling apologetically at him and making a show of kissing his jaw, the backs of both hands and brushing his shoulders off before wrapping an arm about his waist and turning to face Digital.
"Move some of the academy classes into the same building, you mean? Or feature app classes at the academy?" Kerr queried, wondering if Digital was telling them something they were already planning to do or meant something else entirely. "Do you want to live in the city with us, by the way?" he asked Digital, desiring locking down a permanent address for the clairvoyant - with a huge bank of computer power at his disposal, preferably. "Or would you prefer a space here - one where they won't lock you in?"
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Digital grinned broadly and nodded at Kerr's second suggestion about app classes at the Academy. He'd seen visions of Ben's phone on a big screen as he talked his idea to a bunch of interested mortals. Whether they had the idea before Digital told them or not was moot. What did he care if he was the source or not?
"I used to live in your building with my followers," he said, the statement direct and his tone sad. "I would like to go back, but not to the same floor. Lower. Lower," he pleaded. "I want to keep my eye on my tea."
He gestured sporadically at the couple looking at him, at their blank faces.
"My eye on my tea! My eye on my tea!" he yelled, because louder made it better.
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"The... I.T. department of the business, you mean?" Kerr hazarded. "You're happy to head it up for us? Is there anything we need to do to help you code the app?" he queried, wondering if they needed to go shopping to buy computers. If so... the night was young and he was ready. The sooner they got the app creation underway, the better.
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"Yes! My tea! The app is matchmaking, yes? It will take me less than an hour," Digital said, rolling his eyes and looking skyward. He stepped out of his shoes, lifting up his skirts so he could see what he was doing. "Making it secure is the trick. Need powerful computers in multiples, for multiple firewalls. Need a room of computers to store the data and back it up. Not yet, can get away with a single fridge for now... but soon. Keep them coming in every month. Standing order."
The voices were silent and he grinned his pleasure. "Hacking. Hacking hacking hacking hacking programming. Quiet in my head. Quiet and clear." Digital looked adorably happy. "Just for that, I would do it all for free!" He squinted at Ben next. "But I want to be paid."
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Ben quieted, letting the conversation unfold naturally. Digital always responded better with Kerr than with anybody else. He was fascinated by the Malkavian and he was jealous of the connection that Kerr had with him. He thought sourly that if Kerr had been looking for him, Digital wouldn't have kept himself hidden for so long.
"Did you know Kerr was coming back?" he asked quietly. He hadn't meant to interrupt with something so left field, but he wanted to know.
He needed to know.
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Digital's goggled gaze turned to Ben and he saddened.
"The voices screech impossible things. Your bond was broken and Kerr is gone, but I see you with him in bed. How?" he said, stepping closer, his gaze manic. "And then I see the old tick-tock pounding, pounding!" Digital thrust his hips back and forth, "And you speak to him with Kerr's name! So strange. And then I see you with the rabbits and something bad..." he clutched his head and yowled before falling to his knees. "And it has to happen that way. It has to happen for you to be together."
Digital gathered up invisible things and pretended he was packing them up into a ball shaped object.
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Ben's eyes widened when Digital demonstrated what could only be him with Charon pretending to be Kerr. He was horrified and embarrassed and wanted to tell the clairvoyant hacker to stop, but he was also masochistically drawn to what he would say next.
"Fuck," he breathed when he realised Digital had known about the rape. He ran a hand through his hair and took some steps away, not wanting to look at anyone's expression.
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Kerr looked at Ben's back, the all-too-familiar sense of helplessness rising up to swallow his heart. He'd tried so hard to heal Ben's pain and hadn't anticipated a fresh attack from this direction. The unexpectedness of it made it hit so much harder. He was thrown back to the moment he'd realised it was Digital that had killed Sawyl and the twins. He'd have done anything to spare Ben further pain. His hands bunched into fists and he looked down at Digital.
Far, far too many people 'had to be' hurt for Kerr and Ben to be together but Digital had always been their champion. At what point would the costs be too high? What right did their happiness have to destroy other lives? Or their own. Why did it have to keep happening? Because they were cosmically not meant to be together without ripples of pain radiating outward from them, like some twisted nexus of darkness?
He stepped close to Digital and crouched down before him, gathering his frantic hands together and pressing them between his own, beckoning Digital's gaze with his. He smiled at him, reaching up to cup his face with one hand once he sensed he had the Malkavian's attention. "Perhaps, now that you're going to live with us, you could warn us if something bad is going to happen, hmm?" he requested gently, toying with Digital's hair. "It would be helpful if we could stop everyone getting hurt, just so we can be together." His smiled saddened.
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Digital wished Ben hadn't asked. Lots of times people asked questions that they didn't really want to know. Everything was muddled together. He'd seen three different outcomes, in fact. He'd been so sure that Lefty was only going to wank his seed over Ben that he hadn't paid attention to the other visions. They were... nastier. No point warning Kerr that Ben might seduce Lefty if he ended up not doing so. That would've split them up. Couldn't warn Ben that Lefty was going to prove his masculinity using him. If it happened, Ben and Kerr would come together. Appreciation, gratitude, safety, comfort and love.
"Yes, warnings for everyone," Digital agreed, though what good would it do? Not everything came true. "One warning left. A storm for the throne. Demons and witches and angels and dragons. And you. You will be king of your domain again."
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Kerr tilted his head, frowning at Digital. Dragons? And him, king of his domain? The City Central district? It couldn't be... although, something felt very right about being back in their old home and the business was bound to garner them a lot of attention. Like royalty in their tower. Kerr supposed it was feasible - possibly even logical - that he be looked upon as a contender for dethroning Jake. Only time (and possibly a whole lot of support from old friends) would tell if this prediction was likely.
"Shall we go shopping?" he asked Digital, shaking off his kingly ponderances. "You can buy the computers you want and possibly some new clothes?" he suggested, wondering how comfortable haute couture could possibly be for an extended period of a time.
He would either release Digital and stand if he seemed unconvinced or help him to his feet if he was enthused, before letting go of him to walk over behind Ben. Sliding a hand into his from behind, he rested his forehead on Ben's shoulder. "Are you up for that?" he asked softly, wanting to hug and squeeze the pain out of his love like so much juice out of a lemon. But he was fearful of shredding delicate flesh into pulp, hence his gentle approach.
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Ben turned at Kerr's touch, leaning into his lover and eternal partner. Initially he ignored the question about shopping.
"I don't believe his prediction," Ben said softly. "I refuse to believe I needed Lazarus to rape me before I appreciated you. We were already talking, we were already discussing spending time with one another. That moment in the garden, at Sabrina's party, I admitted a lot of things to you that needed to be said. That's when we started coming together properly. Maybe not physically yet, because I was still... on a mission. But we were getting there."
He smiled and embraced Kerr tightly, giving him the hug that Kerr wanted.
Don't be afraid of touching me. I'll let you know if it's too much. Don't feel bad if I pull away. I need you to try.
"I'm up for that," he said into Kerr's neck.
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Kerr nodded as Ben argued that their true reunion had come about because they’d finally started talking, admitting their fears to one another. Their situation had certainly been unique so it had been understandable they’d taken a while to get their groove back. Knowing that didn’t make it suck any less, however.
He held Ben tightly, relishing their unified outlook and the way his heart filled every time they got close. It was always like a lovely surprise but Ben’s message told him it shouldn’t be. He wouldn’t break him; Lazarus hadn’t and that proved how strong he was. “God, I love you,” he murmured, acknowledging the tingles spreading across his skin where Ben’s face was. He fought the instinct to push his desire for Ben away, allowing it to grow instead. It was a double-edged sword.
Okay, I’ll try. I don’t want to overwhelm you but... I’ll try, he vowed. He wanted to say more, to confess how beautiful and talented he thought his lover was, to wax lyrical about Ben’s intellect, his sharp tongue, his raw prose and astute observations, confess how much he desired his mind and his body and longed to immerse himself freely in both... but that was exactly the overwhelming he was talking about. Restraint was still key.
Kerr satisfied himself with pressing a finger to Ben’s chin as he leant back, tipping his face upward. He poured his feelings into a kiss instead, moving hs mouth hungrily against Ben’s, pushing his tongue past soft red lips and thrusting against Ben’s, swiping and twirling to encourage a dance in which he drew Ben’s tongue into his mouth and sucked meaningfully on it before releasing it. The reaction in his own body was swift and exhilarating and after a bit more tasting, he pulled back with a cocky smile and glinting eyes, shifting his body against Ben’s in a manner that was less guarded and possibly too honest, considering the circumstances.
He was reminded they weren’t alone in the room by Digital and his affirmative aura dissipated with a rueful chuckle as he stepped slightly away from Ben.
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Helped to his feet by Kerr, Digital watched the two of them come together. His hands clasped together near his left shoulder, his head tilted that way. Ah, love. He smiled his approval as they spoke to one another, renewing vows and the pouring of emotions. His smile grew devilish when they kissed.
"You sure know how," Digital said to Kerr when they finally broke apart. He then hunted for his shoes, finding them a little way off, and slipped his feet into them once more. "Take a girl out on the town, would you?" he said, then giggled coquettishly and led the way out of the academy for a night of shopping and a new place to live!
He'd have to find his pet wolf later.
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Ben smiled at Kerr's promise and was then swept away by the emotions that were poured into the kiss. It was breathtaking and comforting, like warmth and light. The taste of his sire was familiar and welcome, the style of his kiss recognisable and beautiful. He'd missed this - the passion that came with kisses like these.
When Kerr pulled back, he stared into the depth of his eyes and grinned, feeling like no words were enough to describe what he felt for him. He let it charge along their blood bond and only looked away when Digital spoke. He didn't recall exactly what Digital meant by knowing how (forgetting the line from before the dance), and chuckled at the Malkavian's actions as he headed out.
We're going to have our hands full with that one.