striketwice | reverie⚡inbox

[A blessedly empty common room. It’s unlikely that Henry would have had this conversation at all if it was occupied by anyone other than Alec; good thing it was vacant, then, because the end result is a moment that’ll remain burned into his memory. The good ones are so few and far between. If music were playing, he'd have his own anti-him song.

Though, a brow raises. What look?]

What do you mean?

I mean you're smiling. For real.

[ He tilts his head, as if to get a better look at the expression. To commit it to memory from a second angle. Alec seems blissfully unaware of how his own expression echoes Henry's, something light and genuine instead of carefully crafted and sharp with sarcasm. ]

I like it.

[Oh? Is he? Somehow, this realization doesn't even chase the expression away. He looks at Alec, who seems to be appreciating it from another angle, and he thinks of doing the same -- he's not the only one with something sincere spread across his features now.]

Well. It's reserved just for you.

[Alec deserves to see the real parts of him. Most of that has been ugly, furious rage, and violent predilections, but the fragments of contentedness are there for him to appreciate in equal measure whenever they surface, too. Rare as they are.]

You're smiling too, you know. More inspiration for my sketchbook.

[ They really have seen just about every facet of each other, haven't they? From the ugly and jagged to this strangely soft moment they're sharing on the couch. They've both seen each other's masks and what lies underneath, and yet somehow defying all odds, here they are. Smiling at one another. ]

You'd better not show it to anyone. [ He leans in, presses their foreheads together. ] This is just for you, too. Our little secret, hm?

[ No one else has earned the right. No one else could possibly hope to, he thinks.

He slips his hand up to the back of Henry's neck, tugging him closer. Come here, he wants another kiss. ]

[What can be more enticing than that, especially for people like them? There’s an intimacy that’s hard to surpass when two individuals share a secret, and more so when it’s so rare it’s almost a vulnerability between them. A fragile thing to hold with care — the first real secret he wishes to treat kindly, for once.]

Just ours to share then.

[He says in return, and his thoughts run parallel to Alec’s: no one else has earned the right.

Henry’s urged forward, and he barely needs to be urged at all. He leans in again with a tilt of his head, giving him the kiss the both of them want, close and warm. Grounding.]

[ He and Henry are both in the business of secrets to some degree, so to have this, something they can keep between themselves and be utterly selfish about, is a gift unto itself.

So is kissing Henry, he's realizing. They had that one moment before, free from the burden of expectation and the sharp edge of heat, and he'd thought to himself how nice it was. He never pursued more of it afterwards, but now... well, he just might.

This is soft and slow and warm, and Alec is more than happy to indulge in it for a while. ]

[He has no qualms about being selfish, especially if it means there are aspects of Alec he can keep partitioned to himself. Hidden away in private memory to be shared with no one else.

And he doesn’t have any problem with letting this linger, either. Lips faintly parted, the kiss is drawn out until both of them have to pull away to draw breath, and even then Henry doesn’t draw back terribly far.

Though Alec has heard it before, here comes another rarity from Henry:]

Thank you.

[Just… for everything. And for letting him interrupt his rest and relaxation time to dump drama on him.]

[ Ohh, this is going to spoil him. He likes this so much. It's like some void in him that he's chosen to ignore or didn't even realize was there in the first place is suddenly no longer empty. What a wild fucking feeling.

They do part eventually, but it seems neither one of them are keen on going far. His lips quirk a little, and his hand slides over, the backs of his knuckles running along the side of Henry's face. ]

Well, you know. Out of all the people in this whole shitty multiverse, I'm glad it was me.

[Instinctively, Henry tilts his head ever so slightly into that touch, Alec's knuckles just grazing along the side of his face. What a strange, gentle sort of sensation, all of it so alien to him, but he takes to it as though he had been wanting all of his life for someone (no, just Alec) to touch him like this.

"This whole shitty multiverse". Henry chuckles again, more than aware of that sentiment being echoed a second time between them.]

Mm. Who would have guessed when you're so insufferable all the time?

[(Jokingly fond.)]

[ That's a new tone of voice, one that Alec certainly never expected to have turned on him. One that probably should feel strange coming from Henry of all people, but it strangely slots in right alongside everything else about this moment and settles perfectly.

Another small laugh. ]

It's a part of my charm. Sorry, but you're stuck with it.

I guess I’ll just have to learn to deal with it.

[In the same way Alec will have to deal with Henry’s everything. Both of them are hardly deterred.

He leans a shoulder against the couch, considering the other man.]

It’s what I get for interrupting your downtime. You looked a little worn out.

[Did someone finish his portals?]

[ They both get by, somehow. It probably helps that the two of them are not exactly what anyone would call a good person. It makes it easier to foster this connection without such troublesome things as morals in the way. ]

Hm? Oh, yeah. I finished my portal network at like ass o'clock this morning.

Finished? [Given how much work each one seems to be, that’s quite a feat.] You have been busy. You’ll have to give me the grand tour sometime.

It's not like the prison is big. I ran out of options eventually.

[ He digs around in his pocket and comes up with a well-folded note and hands it over. It's basically this but with more shorthand. ]

I think I'm pretty much covered.

[Henry raises a brow, but takes the note and carefully unfolds it, skimming over the contents. Eventually, his eyes flick back up to Alec.]

This is still a lot. I saw how much effort it took for you to just create one.

Oh, yeah. Fucking sucks. I'm beat.

[ Said as he more or less flops back onto the couch, swinging his legs over Henry's own to resume his sprawl. ]

But I also like having all my bases covered at least twice over, so. [ A half-shrug. ] If you think that's a lot, you should see the network I have set up back home.

[He glances briefly down at Alec’s legs practically swung over his lap. This man is the only person in the world who could get away with that, but because it’s Alec, Henry only finds the familiarity somewhat of a comfort. He hands the note back.]

It must be a universal rule that portals take as much time as they do effort to make.

[He would know, too.]

You have them all over the city or something?

[ Maybe later, he'll sit back and marvel at how comfortable he is just using Henry as a leg rest. Like this closeness is the most natural thing in the world.

Or maybe he won't, and for once simply accept things as they are. ]

The city? [ He clicks his tongue. ] You're thinking too small, Henry.

[Looking even more quizzical now.]

…The country?

[ A grin. ]

With one or two international stops along the way, yeah.

[Well. Alec is officially more worldly than Henry.

Not like that’s a high bar to clear.]

So your… work involves a lot of travel, I presume?

Sometimes.

[ He considers a moment, tapping one foot against the far arm of the couch in no particular rhythm. ]

I can do most of my work from the comfort of my own home. It's the work I do for Madigan that has me getting more... up close and personal with the clientele.

“Up close and personal.”

[He can read between the lines. And Henry is, of course, curious.]

And how does that usually play out? Violently, maybe?

Not if I can help it, but sometimes yeah. I guess I should explain.

[ And then he realizes that this is a hell of an explanation and he should probably start several, several steps back. ]

Madigan's what we call Talented. Which means she's not a wizard who can use the runes like me, but instead she has a singular magical power — her Talent. In her case, that Talent is sex.

"But Alec," I know you're thinking. "What's so magical about that?" Well, apart from being a great fucking time because it's magic, sex magic heals wounds, slows down illnesses. A whole host of restorative things. And it means girls with that particular Talent are coveted.

[The context is undoubtedly helpful, though he does wonder where this ultimately leads. Of course, Alec detailing something like sex magic and calling those with that talent “coveted” gives him an inkling.]

Coveted… and seen as valuable for those who’d like to take advantage of those talents?

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