apassingafternoon: (so silent no violence)
kαıηє {нคяd тσ Ъε รσƒт, тσugн тσ Ъε тεหdεя} ([personal profile] apassingafternoon) wrote2015-02-18 12:20 am

hail of arrows

To graduate from utter silence to the constant roar of Gilead was something else. Though she had been here for over a week now, and would stay for much longer, Kaine was not used to the constant noise. Even at night it felt as if she could hear every shuffle of bodies in sheets and night clothes, every fuck whether positive or not, and all those conversations that were never suited for daylight. It all made sleeping outside difficult, but even lying beside Nariko didn't make it any easier to deal with the walls all around her. They were suffocating. At night and in the day, they threatened to drive Kaine out of her mind.

So she took to wandering around because there wasn't fuck else to do around here, not for her.

Which might have explained catching sight of him towards an edge, around a corner. The specifics weren't relevant, that Kaine saw Bert and spun on her worn down heel and followed him was relevant. It should have also been worrying for her, this unnatural and constant fascination that was tempered by the occasional bout of good sense felt odd. It was a ... Not a problem, but not exactly good. Crushes on men that you hardly knew, that hid the way Cuthbert did, that never let her finish talking the way Cuthbert did couldn't end well.

She followed anyway, and not with any real ounce of subtlety or control. Eventually one of them would have to say something and in her own way she knew he might take that responsibility first. So she followed, and even if Kaine happened to be wrong he was pretty interesting to stare at anyway. Maybe it was the hair.
askthelookout: (Well what can I say)

[personal profile] askthelookout 2015-02-27 06:21 pm (UTC)(link)
"Weak is right," Bert grumbled, rolling his eyes, and sighed. "Okay. Arms round my shoulders. I'll piggy-back you the rest of the way, and you, sai Kaine, will owe me a hell of a big thank-you later."

Letting go of her, he turned and crouched down so she could get on his back easily. He figured that piggy-backing was a lot less likely to send all the blood rushing to her head, and she might actually make it the rest of the way without passing out.
askthelookout: (Catching the sunlight)

[personal profile] askthelookout 2015-02-27 10:13 pm (UTC)(link)
He laughed, hooking his arms under her legs, and straightened up. "No ladies, and clearly no gentlemen either," he quipped, taking a moment to catch his balance with her weight pulling back on him, and started on up the stairs. "Ah, well. Everyone who ever tried to teach me etiquette knows I'm a hopeless case. At least I can have fun being an ass." He lowered his voice, mock-conspiratorial. "Unlike certain other asses who shall remain nameless. Let's call them R."

Chuckling, he headed on up the stairs, bowed under her weight, and down a corridor to the left, finding his way with complete surety.
askthelookout: (A dangerous smile)

[personal profile] askthelookout 2015-02-28 12:11 am (UTC)(link)
"Don't fall asleep on me, now," Bert warned with a little laugh, twisting his head to look up at her. "I'm not a bed. At least, I don't think I am."

The bed wasn't far, though. He had to shift her weight on his back to unlatch the door, and he did so a little unsteadily, his arms and hips starting to ache a little. She didn't actually weigh all that much less than him, after all. So he was quite relieved to let them into the dark little guest room, squinting in the dimness.

"You're gonna have to get down so I can light the fire," he said rather apologetically, moving deftly towards the unmade bed to sit down on it and let her off. It wasn't cold, but it was rather gloomy sitting here in the dark.
askthelookout: (Firelit evening)

[personal profile] askthelookout 2015-02-28 01:26 am (UTC)(link)
He couldn't, really. Not while he was using both hands to build up a fire and light it. Luckily, he'd made fires under much worse conditions, so it was only a couple of minutes before he straightened up, wiping his hands on his jeans and looking down at the merry little blaze he'd managed to get started in the fireplace. By its light, it was a whole lot easier to find his way back over to the bed, flopping down on it. "I owe you a hug, right?"
askthelookout: (Catching the sunlight)

[personal profile] askthelookout 2015-02-28 04:15 am (UTC)(link)
"I try to be a man of my word," Bert said gravely, and leant over to hug her - rather awkwardly, since he didn't feel like it would be particularly appropriate to climb into bed with her. Still, it was a hug, and that was what he'd promised. Anyway he didn't exactly mind. In the absence of someone else's bed to crawl into, this was a pretty good way to round off an evening, all things considered.
askthelookout: (What the fuck?)

[personal profile] askthelookout 2015-02-28 06:09 pm (UTC)(link)
Bert made a herculean effort not to return the kiss, and mostly succeeded. Even so, when she let him go, his colour was high, and it took him a moment to find his tongue.

"Not... exactly what I meant, but alright." He laughed, a little higher than usual, and pulled away, turning his back on her so she wouldn't see the effect that had had on him. "Sleep well, alright, Kaine? I'll see you tomorrow."

When, hopefully, they would both be sober enough not to assail his self-control that way again. It was far too tempting to let her kiss him all she wanted. The only thing that made it easier was knowing that she was hideously drunk, and doing anything with her now would be even less ethical than if she was sober.