Spin Off

[Trillian]

Ben took Kerr's hand when he reached over. He nodded when Kerr agreed about Tikki. The imp hadn't been hostile or anything but he'd certainly shown he wasn't in Ben's corner. It made Ben pleased that he'd read the situation correctly. He considered himself a perceptive person but in the middle of an interview when conversation and questions were being fired from all angles, it was impossible to know whether he was picking up on everything.

At Kerr's suggestion to listen to the interview already had him frowning thoughtfully, confused. He nodded and did as Kerr requested, lifting his hips to dig the drive out of his pocket and then pushing it into the slot of the car. It would've auto-played except Kerr had started fiddling with the GPS which had put the audio on pause.

Intrigued, he said nothing, ready to see where this would go.

[Existentially Odd]

Kerr turned two corners and found the park he wanted in the middle of the third street. It was a tidy but unlit space, with quite a few swings, fixed exercise equipment, restroom and picnic facilities but he was only interested in the ten car parks out the front. He chose the shadowiest one, at the end, and pulled in. He switched his lights off but left the car running so that using the sound system wouldn't run the battery down.

After he set the media stick to play and put it on repeat - anticipating they'd need to hear it a few times for Ben to be satisfied he had an accurate impression of how it had all gone - Kerr got out of the front seat and climbed into the back. The disc jockeys were finished with their banter and Ben's voice was filling the car in all its acoustic beauty as he settled against the door, one leg on the floor and the other stretched along the seat. He smiled at Ben, watching him from the front.

"C'mere," he invited with a grin, patting his chest. "You sound fantastic in here and I know you'll enjoy listening to the way you beat down all of Jake's policies resoundingly. I want to celebrate it with you." He raised his eyebrows suggestively and edged the tip of his tongue across his lips.

His plan was simple and indulgent: listen through the interview once and, once Ben was reassured and buoyant, hearing his own success in crisp surround sound, he'd pleasure him accordingly. Maybe it was weird to think about someone getting off while listening to themselves speak but success was success and Kerr felt Ben's ego deserved the boost.

Besides, Kerr liked the idea of them tucked away in the middle of nowhere, fooling around in the backseat of his car while everything came up Ben. It was kind of ridiculous and out of character but also spontaneous and a bit of fun. Sure, they could listen to it on Ben's laptop in bed at home - with Cain circling around the house being unintentionally distracting - but that was predictable. Expected. Boring. Comfortable. He wanted them to play outside of that zone for once (and, hopefully, even more often than just once, if it worked out okay).

He kicked off his shoes and tried to look cute while he waited for Ben to decide whether to join him or not.

[Trillian]

Ben didn't know what was happening but he was curious about where this was all leading. With Kerr in the back licking his lips and requesting Ben's presence, he puffed a light laugh of surprise before toeing his shoes off. Instead of getting out of the car, he crawled between the front seats to the back. It was an awkward manoeuvre but he was very quickly laying atop his lover, arms wrapped around Kerr's neck and planting a kiss on him.

"This is comfortable," Ben purred, touching his nose to Kerr's.

[Existentially Odd]

Kerr tipped his head back to laugh, wincing a grin when he bumped into the car window, his chest rumbling with pleasure as Ben draped himself atop him. "Agreed. And how good do you sound?" he murmured, referencing the high quality timbre of Ben's voice filling the cabin of the vehicle. He fell quiet while they listened to the radio show come to life around them, his hands sliding from Ben's back to his backside and cupping him, pressing gently as he kissed his way from Ben's lips to his throat.

He murmured a chuckle as the interview reached the part when Ben said Jake's posters should read 'Eventually', not 'Progress'. "I had to stop myself from bursting out loud laughing at that one. Tikki wasn't happy," Kerr told the sensitive flesh below Ben's ear. With the interviewers talking again, he'd realised the guy's name wasn't Tika after all. "It's apt and so funny."

[Trillian]

Ben smiled but he was bothered by Tikki's reaction.

"I don't get it. If I knew one of them was pro me and one of them against, I would've thought they'd be the other way around. Tikki's an imp. Isn't he tired of not having someone to go to who understands what he needs? It's not like Jake's done anything worth mentioning for the Fae."

Ben's hands slid up Kerr's sides and his thumbs followed the lines of Kerr's sculpted torso, even as he pressed his lips to Kerr's skin shortly after his complaint. He stopped kissing and nibbling when another thought occurred to him.

"I should've said I had the support of some of the District Leaders," Ben said, groaning. "I boxed myself in with my stupid train analogy."

[Existentially Odd]

"Mmm, the train thing was a bit weird at first but I thought it apt, in hindsight. They did all let you get away with a robbery of sorts - which implies consent, even if you didn't talk about their support directly. Besides, you saying you have some leaders' support without naming names or them publicly fronting for you wouldn't mean anything. Tikki would've wanted details, names for sure-" Kerr broke off as the conversation switched to the alphabet soup business.

He pulled his head away from Ben's jaw in order to glower at what he was hearing, his gaze drifting around the car until it alighted on Ben's eyes when he had a comment ready. "This whole going through Jake's policies thing was sabotage from Tikki, I think now. I mean, why not pull up yours and let you expand? It's an iffy way to honour their guest - skew the perception a little, focus first on Jake and make you prove yourself against him instead of just advertising your beliefs. You made excellent points, though," Kerr commended, appreciating anew Ben's lucid, cohesive arguments as he heard them for the second time.

Ben's voice wasn't all he was focussed on, though. Kerr started working Ben's shirt out of his pants to better caress his back, his hands still kneading his ass. He was tilting his own hips as he pressed Ben downward, grinding them together with increasing ardour. He bent his leg to put his foot flat on the seat and give him better leverage. Ben felt tight and alluring in his arms and it was exactly as sexy as Kerr had anticipated to hear his voice echoing around them with such conviction while they idly played. Intelligence was delicious; Ben was a smorgasbord.

[Trillian]

Ben hadn't liked when Tikki had brought up the policy thing either, but only because he'd thought the interview was going on forever.

"If I was smarter, I would've challenged him on it. Said something like: 'I'd rather talk about my own policies'," Ben criticised himself, not really into Kerr's toying with him when he was feeling down on it. Kerr's idea had been cute to fool around in the back while they played the interview, but it wasn't the best idea he'd ever had. Ben wanted to focus on it, to pay attention to where he could improve.

As Kerr tried to escalate their play, Ben tried to cool them down by turning in Kerr's arms, cuddling instead of grinding.

[Existentially Odd]

Kerr accommodated Ben by easing off, happy to let him focus on the interview. He'd figured that would happen the first couple of times through, anyway - he'd just got a little overeager.

"I don't think it was a matter of you being smarter," Kerr countered, shaking his head. "He hedged you into it. When it plays again, listen to him. He dictates the terms - something about he'll read them out so you can say where you're different. You even tried to make light of it but they weren't to be dissuaded. It was their show. You were acceding to their wishes. If you'd started dictating, the tone of the interview would've shifted," Kerr argued, rubbing Ben's side with a gentle hand.

"Political parties are the dumbest idea," Kerr muttered crankily.

[Trillian]

"I think I know why Jake's copying the human political setup," Ben replied, sighing. "It's familiar and familiarity is easy to understand. It's easy to sell and it's easy to just borrow from humans even though their political system is terrible."

Ben used Kerr's shoulder as a pillow and wrapped a hand around Kerr's torso. He was mostly on top of Kerr but it was a nice nook he'd settled into with Kerr's body. After a moment of listening to the interview, Ben said, "Tikki didn't like District Law over Ward Law. I won him there. I wonder if someone would change their minds over one issue."

[Existentially Odd]

Kerr made a noise of enlightened consideration as he accepted Ben's assessment of the human system's adoption. It made sense. And indoctrination would be a powerful weapon for Jake to wield in the battle of the election. "No imagination," Kerr criticised. Ben's comment about Ward Law got him thinking about Tikk with deeper focus.
 
"Theoretically, yes, if the issue is important enough to sway them. And maybe it is, to him, because... there, see? He challenged you when you corrected him about the fact you weren't talking about Jake, but his policies. I thought Tikki sounded ruffled, because accusing you of not pulling punches bordered on it. He didn't appreciate you defending yourself as being a policy attacker, not a Jake attacker."

[Trillian]

"I kept my silence on purpose. I didn't like the 'throw my weight' around comment and dead air is really bad for DJs so I knew he'd have to talk again before I did," Ben smirked but the smile fell quickly. "I thought associating myself with the Oligarchy system would be good," he said, thinking of the Luminary building, "but Jake's putting a negative spin on it. The Oligarchy was good for people though. Don't they remember?" he pleaded.

After Kerr's response Ben settled to listen some more.

"At least I got to mention the West, even though Tikki downplayed the seriousness of it. It was like debating Jake on radio. I hope if Jake copies me and talks to them that Joe will have my back."

[Existentially Odd]

"Clever," Kerr commended with a chuckle when Ben revealed his tactic for forcing Tikki to relinquish his pursuit of Ben throwing his weight around. His appeal regarding the Oligarchy's legacy of goodness roused a sigh and a little extra affection for Ben in the way of kisses upon the edge of his hair and a hug from Kerr.

"Ultimately, the Oligarchy made it their business to know everyone's business and police them. It was an autocratic system. I know why people remember the bad - because there weren't many positive interactions. It was good for people in the same way foul-tasting medicine is; it fixed ailments but unpleasantly. Your way honours that legacy of equal consideration and value without the teeth. It will be better," he murmured with another kiss.

"I hope so, too! He certainly exuded positivity when he praised you for keeping things simple," Kerr pointed out, listening as the interview continued around them. "I don't know how Jake's going to remodel the White Rabbit," Kerr mused, shaking his head.

[Trillian]

Foul-tasting medicine. Yes, he remembered taking that medicine, and it hadn't helped him any. It had opened him up to some weird cosmic ritual that had stolen his memories. It was peculiar to think that there were two versions of him. The first one had been a bit wishy-washy and weepy, by his memories. He felt like a stronger version.

"I don't really care. It's a strange thing to put into his policies. He promises to renovate the bar. I know I'm making people walk into our hotel, but it's still a professional atmosphere. They don't have to walk past drunk people or strippers to reach our offices."

[Existentially Odd]

Kerr snickered at the thought of some innocent family with district business having to get past the scores of inappropriate personages teeming out of the White Rabbit in his mind. It was blatantly false but amusing nevertheless. "Agreed. And as long as Digital stays in his hidey hole, there are very few risks in coming to The Luminary," Kerr chuckled, his mind moving on to imagining Digital running amok in a pink tutu, combat boots and his goggles.

He winced slightly as the interview turned towards financial issues and, again, Kerr's money was mentioned. At least the points Ben had made leading up to that were detailed and sound. He wondered if that was the part the general public would focus on, though, given how people tended to pay attention to the most inane things.

"Huh," Kerr grunted, struck by Tikki's tone the second time he was hearing him say he didn't know Ben hadn't grown up rich. "It kind of sounds like he was impressed to find out you started out poor. Maybe you won him over a little, there?" he hazarded.

[Trillian]

"I think seeing me surrounded by wealth makes everyone who doesn't know me think that I grew up with it, as if I'm a child of privilege." He lifted his head to plant a kiss on Kerr's jaw. "You're not my sugar-daddy but you are a provider. I do use your money. I used to have a hangup about it but I'm over it. I don't care if people think I'm a gold-digger. I know I'm not."

He hoped Kerr would take that and apply it to himself. There would always be those who cast jealous or greedy eyes on them and resent them for being wealthy.