bakerstreet | the totally innocent

[The past few days have been...pretty much a blur, plans accelerated into motion almost before he'd fully processed, and then chaos everywhere, a second death (or what felt like one, anyway), the redhead in shining armor swept away to the land of antiseptics and cold on the dregs of adrenaline and alcohol before the ashes had even begun to cool...

But that was all finished now. The Forces of Good returned, the Balance restored, the Shining Knight again polished and whole, the Fallen Prince returned to...wherever the fuck it was he'd fallen from. More or less. And It Was Good, Happily Ever After, or whatever appropriate bullshit fit best.

The point is, now that you're back and bandaged up appropriately there's an Ed all up in your space, McGee. Completely settled in and fast asleep; there's even limbs preventing too much movement. ...Hey, it's been a loooong few days, he's allowed.]

[They were doing a good job of keeping her drugged, something she'd set fire to people for. Charlie plus hospitals plus drugs? Bad memories. They weren't the ones she saw when she slept, though. What she saw was Jerry knocking the blessed stake from her hand after throwing her through a window that overlooked the deep end of an empty pool. How she survived it, she wasn't sure. And then Jerry had her by the throat. And there was Ed. Ed looking uncertain, torn between loyalty to Jerry and a loyalty to Charlie that she didn't quiet get.

And then Jerry had fangs in her neck and she lashed out the only way she knew how and it was Ed that staked Jerry. She couldn't remember much past that. Just that suddenly it felt like something was leaving her quite forcefully, a black mist of some kind that hurt worse than anything she'd ever felt. And then flashes of the hospital and people checking her and now she was waking from the latest drugged sleep. Eyes opening slowly and a soft sigh escaping her lips. She looks at the limbs around her, confused and a bit worried. Mostly confused because she recognizes the limbs but they're warm.

Why are Ed's--] Ed.

[Yes, she spoke. And yes, her voice sounds unused. She tries rolling over but those limbs have a good hold on her so she does the next best thing; she burrows in against him and tries to go back to sleep. It's not successful in the slightest and she just sort of...gently elbows him in the ribs.]

[It's the elbowing that gets his attention. Ed tries to ignore it, squirms and huffs and groans in protest, but then he registers what it means and forces himself the rest of the way awake, resulting in a choked cough as lungs are forced to remember that no, they're really functioning quite well on their own already, they don't need to be kick-started but thanks for trying.[

Uh? M'wake. What.

[Just because his eyes aren't open yet doesn't mean he isn't. He's working on it, and anyway he's still got his nose burrowed in against her shoulder, he doesn't need eyes right now.]

[Ed breathing. Oh, God. What an amazing sound, even if there was a coughing fit involved. Her arm moves, reaching over her own shoulder to play with his hair, just make sure he's really there. This isn't a hallucination. He's right there, under her fingertips and she can hardly contain her excitement. It's actually making breathing interesting. She turned her head slightly, just to look at him, one big blue eye going over the details she could see.

And then, very carefully and with much wincing and groaning, she manages to roll onto her other side, now facing him. She's toying with his hair some more, just smiling slightly at the sight of him. She can't really speak for a moment, clearing her throat just to get her vocal chords moving again.]

You're still a space hog, you know.

[Charlie. What?]

[McGee, what are you...what are you doing. You are right.there, and this wasn't weird before but now it is for some reason; there's a weird warm and tingly and jittery thing going on in the pit of his stomach and it's like there's something wrong but he doesn't know what, can't pinpoint anything in particular other than that she's got her hand in his hair and she's right.there and he kind of feels like he needs to puke only not quite but it's okay. He opened his eyes finally before she rolled over but now she's closer than he'd been expecting and he can't quite look at her, although she does get a self-conscious smile for her trouble.]

Yeah, well; my thermostat's still pretty shitty right now, sue me.

[Yep, totally everything to do with his body figuring out how to regulate again and absolutely nothing to do with the fact that he was a little worried.]

Have a good nap?

Edited 2012-01-27 14:36 (UTC)

[Oh, good. The jokes are still there. She'd have been upset if they weren't. She's also aware of how close he is, doing that whole 'tongue over teeth' thing to not react too much to the lack of distance. Keep calm, McGee. Seriously.]

So I'm still your space heater? [She pretends to give this serious consideration before speaking again.] I think I'm fine with that.

[His question gets a subtle shake of her head. It's not like she's about to lie to him about this.] No. Reliving....things. Plus, a drugged sleep isn't that restful, anyway.

[It's okay if she tucks her head under your chin, right Ed? She sure hopes so because that's what she's doing.]

[Of course it's okay, McGee; it's somehow easier if he doesn't have to actually look at her (well. If she's not looking at him, really), and that's a horrible thing to think but it doesn't make it any less true.]

...Shit. Sorry, that was...stupid.

[Like his nights have been much better; he wakes up in a confused panic every few hours, thoroughly convinced he's still dead and then...isn't. Which is disorienting as fuck, but at least it's not TRAUMA. He'd tighten his arms around her in reassurance or something, but he doesn't really want to hurt her more than she already does, so...he doesn't.]

I... [And then it falters because he really has no idea what to say. What do you say in this kind of situation, really? It's not like there's a rulebook. "I'm sorry I didn't do anything sooner," "I'm sorry my sire tried to kill you," but while they're both true enough he can't really put the words together. It's too weird.] ...Thanks.

[Ed, you are fantastic and Charlie adores you. Did you know that? You should. It's not like she faces down 400 year old vampires for everyone. And okay, it's not like everyone has a 400 year old vampire making their un-life hell. The point is, Ed is important enough to risk her life over.

She'd do it again in a heartbeat if she had to.

She also appreciates not tightening your arms around her. Everything is made of hurting. Even talking. The 'I' catches her attention, as does the loaded pause between that and his next word. It's the last word that makes her smile, makes her shift just a tiny fraction of a bit closer, her arms going around him as best as she can manage. Ed, this is a hug from McGee. How often does that ever happen? Best cherish it.]

You're welcome, Ed.

[He'll make it up to her. Sometime. For sure. Because while she might not have had a problem doing it, it's still a pretty big fucking deal; it could have gone so much more horribly than it did and he knows all too well they're damn lucky it didn't. So yeah, okay, he's absolutely cherishing that hug, even as slight as it is, and he might have his fingers curled into her shirt, as if he's trying to make sure she's actually there.]

I'm pretty sure you might be suicidal though. Because...seriously, what the fuck.

[There will be no making it up to anyone. Nope. Just him breathing and being warm and having a heartbeat that she might be listening to at the moment is fine. It's more than fine. It's somehow oddly perfect. She really has no plans to let go, though she's so tired and so sore and so out of it that if he wanted her to let go it wouldn't take much effort on his part.

Just...not any time soon, okay?]

I wouldn't say 'suicidal.' More [Completely and unfortunately enamored with a vampire? Hooked on those moments when he didn't seem like a vampire and just some guy her age?] lacking in any sense of self-preservation.

[Fffff yeah, like he's prying her off. Fuck no. YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO GO ANYWHERE, MCGEE. For like...hours.]

...How is that any better, exactly? That's like... virtually the same thing, you just rephrased it so it sounded more like something you hear about on the Discovery channel.

[Good. Because Charlie has decided that now is clearly the time to do her best impression of a barnacle. She's holding on for dear life, Ed. The one hand that isn't bandaged is taking a page from Ed's book and now has a gentle hold on his shirt.]

One is a death wish. The other is wishing death on others.

[And she did a damn good granting that wish on a bunch of newborn vamps. They barely got near her before turning into ash and Charlie didn't even have to move. Just look at them and push. Let that firething out at them as she searched for Jerry.]

No, one's a death wish and the other's a Darwin award waiting to happen. Which, I guess on the plus side people would know your name. If you're into that kind of thing and don't mind people laughing at your expense.

[He doesn't really know what to do here other than ramble, so...rambling is what he'll do. It's a decent distraction from her proximity and the fact that all he seems to want to do is keep her there.]

...Not that anyone would. Laugh at your expense, I mean.

[Ffff why was this easier when he was dead. There's probably something meaningful in that, but he's NOT looking at it too closely. Apparently it's easier to just be a jerk-ish while cuddling for his life. Like that's healthy.]

Eh. Let them laugh. At least I'd have been memorable.

[Because taking on a full nest of very hungry vampires and even still trying to go after a 400 year old creature from nightmares while parts of you are broken isn't memorable? Charlie? Do you even pay attention to your life? You remember that time you were barely in the double digits and you took down a helicopter? Yes? Okay, then. You are far from forgettable.

Ed, meanwhile, has worried Charlie to the point where she moves carefully to look him in the eyes. There's really no reason for her to reach up and brush a bit of hair off his forehead (and ignoring the bit of her own hair in her face) but she does so, gently.]

Are you okay? And you're not allowed to lie and say you are. It's an unwritten rule that you can't lie to people recovering from accidents.

[Or, Charlie, you could just say 'no bullshit' like you usually do. Or are you trying to be nicer?]

[This time he does meet her gaze, and he spares a moment to actually be glad she's as close as she is; normal social distance and he'd have to squint to see her well, and that's about the last thing he needs, it's bad enough he's already got the damsel card without having to look like a complete dork on top of it.]

You made that up just now, that's not a rule anywhere.

[But he takes a deep breath then lets it out, a play for time before reluctantly admitting:]

I keep expecting to wake up to find out it was just a dream or something. But otherwise? Aside from puking my last liquid meal on the first day it's been fine. You're the one who looks like she lost a fight to a paper shredder, shouldn't I be asking you that question?

Let's just take a minute to remember I'm unwillingly medicated. [Seriously, Ed. Give her enough of a chance and that IV'd come right the fuck out. And then Charlie'd try to get out because she really hates hospitals. She listens, though, still toying with his hair. It's going to become a habit if you don't stop it now, Ed. It's like a kid and their blanket. It's comforting. You're comforting, Ed, and Charlie wants to know when that happened.]

I know the feeling. And I didn't lose the fight. I just needed a bit of help. [Turning the tables just a bit, where the Redheaded Knight in Shining Armor takes the place of the one in distress and vice versa, she adds a quietly spoken;] My hero.

[He wishes she would stop.

Well, not really, but it's distracting and he's trying to have actual thoughts here. Coherent ones. Ones that don't center around "her eyes are really pretty" and "fff she still smells like apples and donuts" and "SWALLOW or you're going to drool all over yourself, Ace. Quit staring like a coma patient SHE'S GOING TO NOTICE."

He manages the last, at least. Not the staring part, but the swallowing thing. It's a help.]

Oh yeah, standing there like an idiot while shit goes down, totally heroic. [A pause, and then a wry smirk.] Plus, he was poaching my space heater. I couldn't let that slide; it was completely a selfish thing.

[Yeah, like anybody believes that.]

At least you did something. I was pretty much screwed until you moved. [She couldn't think long enough in that situation to even produce a passing spark. Oh sure, parts of Jerry flared up on occasion but considering how much everything hurt and the hold he had on her neck, she was finding it difficult to concentrate. But ugh. No. She doesn't want to think about that mess at all anymore. His smirk, though, that's what she wanted to see and it gets a grin in return.]

All things considered, selfish is perfectly acceptable.

Could've moved sooner though.

[And now he frowns, even though hindsight's always 20/20; coulda shoulda woulda, but in the moment he'd been paralyzed, at least at first, and acting against Jerry, staking him, killing him...he was pretty sure at the beginning, before the effects of the stake had even kicked in, that he was already dead. Fully dead, can't-come-back-from-it dead; he'd felt like his very soul was being torn apart at the seams, and that's what had stopped him initially, because he'd known it was coming, known going into it that breaking that bond would hurt, infinitely more than forging it had.

Even now he still felt like something was missing, a huge gaping piece that was somehow important, and it scared him more than a little, not that he'd say. But he was damn sure he'd made the right choice.

Life was always the right choice. McGee was always the right choice, and when the hell had that even happened?

He's not going to think about it. He's just not. Although he might be clutching at her shirt a little more tightly now because FFFFF if he'd been slower.]

[Ed, you are breaking her heart just a bit. Her fingers resume what they'd been doing with his hair, just ...well, she's not sure why. She suddenly felt an overwhelming need to reassure him that everything is fine. Or maybe it's a need to reassure herself.

Whichever the case, the way his hands hold her shirt, an almost desperate-seeming motion that she wasn't sure to make of at first...it just breaks something in her and she pulls herself close, tucking her face against his shoulder and closing her eyes. She knows exactly what he's thinking, just by the way he's holding her.

And she isn't sure what to say about it at all. So she holds him as best she can, hoping that maybe. Just maybe he'll understand that she really is right there; tangible, alive, breathing and not going anywhere, quite happy with the fact that he's holding her and he's also alive and breathing. She turns her head to ay something but it's forgotten when she notices how close he is and without a second thought, she presses a soft kiss right against the corner of his mouth.

And then blushes because, hey. That was a shock, even to her.]

[He tenses when she moves, fully aware she shouldn't be, not that much, but he relaxes when she settles down; okay, she's okay. Well. Okay enough. And that's enough. For now. His own grip adjusts, eases where fingers are clutched so arms can wrap around further, remove the space her shifting created, one hand moving into her hair because he doesn't know what to do with it. She moves, and he shifts to better accommodate...

...And he really wasn't expecting her to do that.

Not that he's complaining; he blushes too, not really sure what to make of it, but he's grinning now, self-conscious and puzzled but it's a grin all the same.]

What was that for?

Felt like it.

[It was one of the best impulses she's had in a while. Much better than the occasional impulse to detach all medical equipment and get out of the hospital. She tilts her head into his hand, enjoying the contact. And when he grins, she grins in return, certain that following the impulse to kiss him was a good idea.]

And it made you smile. I've been trying to get you to do that since I woke up.

Well maybe if you didn't look like you're plugged into the Matrix after running into an ax murderer you wouldn't have to go to extremes.

[It's really not that bad, Ed, stop overreacting for dramatic effect. And anyway, you actually liked it so why are you complaining?

But he's still smirking.]

the totally innocent

charlie mcgee || Firestarter || ota

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