bakerstreet | Only one bed

[ And Logan is going to call him out on it. His own mouth twitches in a bit of a cynical smirk. ]

Hypocrite.

[ He takes those bloodstained hands in his own, holds onto them. ]

You saw my claws. They weren't like that when I first got them. It's called adamantium. Someone coated my bones with it, but it's toxic.

if you tried to bite my bones, or break my skull with your own, you'd just get hurt, because it's a fucking strong substance.

[Alivian is half about to try to convince himself to pull away, until Logan holds those bloodied hands of his.]

Of course I'm a hypocrite.

[It's just a calm acknowledgement. Plain, and resigned.

[He looks at Logan's hands, considering them as his ears remain half-lowered.]

...Good to know that if I hadn't been holding back my jaw strength, I would have broken my teeth.

[He can't seem to look up just yet, though, and his ears only flatten even more as he struggles to say anything more.]

I'm going to help you.

You can't stop me, you can't make me do otherwise. Not even if you Command me.

[ Logan is insistent about this promise, and he squeezes Alivian's hands. He doesn't like seeing those ears flat; he doesn't think this will fix it, because it's the opposite of what the man wants, but he simply can't help himself. ]

I will resist and I will make you better.

[Alivian gives an honest-to-god huff through his nose at that. Of course.]

There's no point in giving you antagonistic Commands. Doing so will damage the both of us.

Me, because I can't fathom giving such Commands. You, because you will not wish to comply, so your every fibre will struggle against me. You will possibly enter Drop - a state that will heavily take its toll on your body and mind.

[But if he gives no Commands at all? Logan can't make him talk.]

Oh, shut up.

[ Logan is tired of the circular argument. He hates these the most. Just going around and around and everyone gets tired, nobody gets what they want. ]

Or I'll make you.

[ Is that even a threat? All he can think of to do so is kiss him, and so - he does. It's probably unexpected in the middle of an argument, but that's the brilliance of it. ]

[Fortunately or not, Alivian does "shut up" at the retort, before the kiss even happens. This time, without the heat of the moment, the kiss shocks him even harder. With his hands held, he can't shove a hand between them.

[He can only sink into it, feeling every fibre of his being screaming for more.

[He doesn't have the energy to fight - much of it spent in finding the damned house, and the rest of it used to lift Logan up while they rutted together.

[He can't convince himself to push away, anyway. Not that he just passively lets it happen. He kisses back, just as firm - and being very, very careful to keep his expression neutral without the mask.

[Still, the pressure of his Glare rises a little when he cracks his eyes open - less yielding than the first time.]

[ He breaks off the kiss at that, feeling the Glare like a heavy burden. Like he's trying to lift a thousand pounds and failing, even though he's never failed at that before. ]

You're doing that on purpose.

[ His tone is definitely accusatory, he's angry. It's all he can do to not cover up Alivian's eyes, and see if that relieves the pressure - but he would never do that to someone. He knows what it's like to have your powers restrained. It's not something he'd do to anyone else, because it implies you can't handle them being who they are.

He can handle this, goddammit. ]

It won't change anything.

[Alivian just stares at him as they part, heart twisting into knots even as his wounded pride tries to assert itself.

[He shouldn't have gotten so close. Fuck, he should have kept to himself, hunted, slept, and moved on.

[He clicks his tongue and slowly evens out his expression - with several deep breaths and repeatedly closing his eyes. The feeling abates with it, lingering as that ever-there presence against Logan's skin.

[Logan did say "shut up" after all.

[His ears stay low, and his tail gives a few aggravated thumps on the bedding.

[But he still doesn't pull away - unhappy expression and all.]

I'm not telling you to stop.

[ Logan doesn't know how to make this better. They're having a direct conflict, so quickly after meeting, and it feels terrible. He doesn't like it at all. But he's also not going to back down and say he's not going to help him. That just isn't an option at all. ]

Do what you need to do. I'm not judging, I'm not suffering and I can take it.

[ He takes a hint from the fact Alivian isn't pulling away and holds him tighter, trying to make the physical contact comforting for him. ]

[More highly aggressive tail thumping. Really, really hard on the bedding. Alivian stares pointedly at him.

[After a moment, he tries to pull one hand away. Not to get away, but to throw the whole damned blanket that he can pull over - over his own head. Followed by more aggressive tail thumping.

[Alivian knows that this is a losing battle he's fighting. He really can't go against someone like Logan - at least not physically.

[But the break in eye contact somewhat helps. Enough that his next set of tail thumps soften.]

....I thought you were a wolf, not a dog.

[ He considers, before reaching under the blanket and touching his back. He doesn't try to take it off, or force him to make eye contact, he's just. He's just touching him gently, trying to show he's still not judging, that he's going to be there.

Even if his tone is admonishing, he's still not judging. ]

[There's a flinch at the touch he doesn't expect, body going ramrod straight until he processes that it's safe. It's safe.]

...Woof.

[Which still somehow translates in on itself, like an echo reverberating once off of cave walls.

["Yes" is all that echoes with it.

[But he does start to calm down, his tail lashing abating bit by bit. He still doesn't come out even five minutes after his tail stills.

[But it's progress?]

...you're probably uncomfortable. And feeling gross.

[ Logan is trying logic now to get him out. He sat there for the five minutes, just rubbing his back gently, but eventually it grows old. He has to try something. ]

Don't you want to wash off? Get clean?

Come out for that?

[Despite the silence, Alivian has been hard at work calming himself down, and regaining some sense of equilibrium. It isn't useless, even if Logan finds it "old". The comment gets a tail flick.

[It seems that "shut up" no longer applies.]

...Bathe with me.

[He does at least tug the edge of the blanket up, partially revealing one gold eye. His tone, though, is gentle - a quiet request, rather than an assertive demand.]

[ He takes it as it is - a request he can accept, rather than something he has to follow. But his answer would be the same either way. ]

Alright.

There's a stream nearby. It has a lake. Things live in it - you wanted to hunt, right? As a wolf?

They're not the best to eat, but they're something.

[ No better or worse than what he'd been chewing on before. ]

I can fish under water. Food is food until we can find something better.

[After a moment, he works himself out from under the blanket - all without breaking their hand-holding.]

I can spearfish and hunt with a bow and arrow, if I can find the right things to make one. Snares, too. Coming of age ceremony: survive a day and night in the wilderness, and hunt one of your chosen prey before the dawn of the second day.

[After a moment, he slowly lets go of Logan so he can stand up. Before he even fully rises, he regards his legs a moment before moving to slowly sit up, tail stiffening as he braces himself for the pain to follow.

[...But it doesn't? Did fucking help? No, hell no. The Commands--

[His tail drops immediately for balance adjustment, the muscles in his tail, lower back, and ass all shifting to adjust.]

Bodies of water also help the pain when I have it.

[Idly, he looks around a moment, a bland expression on his face.]

If there are any decent towels and a brush, that would be good, but I won't hold my breath.

[Otherwise? Unless Logan stops him, off he's gonna go - to the porch, at least. Naked.]

I have - blankets. More blankets. That's the kind of towel I have.

[ Logan snorts. ]

If I had a brush, do you think my hair would look like this?

[ Answer? Yes, probably. But anyway. He watches Alivian move, interested because he is definitely moving better than he had before. ]

Did all that help?

[ He doesn't stop him, but after he asks his question, he does kind of duck to grab all their clothes before following. Too bad there's nothing to wear as a change of it. So much was hard to come by, here. ]

...Yes.

[He's definitely moving more smoothly, putting more weight on that limb than prior.

[He glances over when he notices that Logan's bringing their clothes with them. In a bind, his coat will be a decent towel, too. So long as it's dried by the fire after.

[Once he knows where they're going - or rather, Logan leading, Alivian falls into line, resisting the urge to follow behind rather than beside.

[After everything, they both utterly stink compared to the air outside. Alivian isn't accustomed to sitting in his own filth for long, anyway, even if the scent of sex and the resulting aches makes him feel pretty damned good, now that his mood has settled. Walking towards a slow, agonizing death aside, he feels... alright.

[His body doesn't ache as much within the bones, and his leg doesn't feel so shaky. It's... well. Not as bad as he thought he'd be off, after that.

[It seems they both need someone. They're probably not right, but... he can't bring him to fully turn Logan down, and walk away.

[Buzz relief aside, there are important matters to deal with. A bath first, even if the wolf in him desperately wants to sit in this stink and feel pride over being (however erroneously) chosen. His fur and skin are tacky with sweat and blood and if he doesn't wash it off soon, he's going to have to relieve himself with his hand for a time.

[But they don't have that leisure. Even as Alivian half-thinks he should return to his world, if he leaves without Logan, then... Well, he'll die and that'll be that. Just like he expected to.

[And there's no guarantee that Logan will want his attention once they escape (probably false,) his company (likely false,) even if they return to Logan's world (probably, definitely, not escaping him.) They fucked. (Logan told him that he won't be able to forget.) That's it. (That's not it. It's so uch more than that!) They're strangers, otherwise, in a land that seems hardly fit to house life at all. (True.)

[Once they arrive, Alivian immediately takes a (fast, proper posture) running start to dive into the lake, only to take off at a brisk swim just under the surface of the water. It feels good, his bones and joints getting an additional break from carrying his weight. He takes a quick breath, and then dives, scaning along the bottom of the lake for any fish to catch, and maybe a stick to catch them with.

[Hopefully Logan doesn't worry as the seconds he's been underwater extend to a minute on.]

[ Hell yeah, he worries. He doesn't go into the lake but he crouches at the edge of it, keeping an eye on where Alivian disappeared into the water. He's waiting for him to resurface, watching for bubbles, trying to judge whether he should go in. He doesn't want to do it frantically - that would just result in dire straits for both of them. But he still worries. ]

Hey, wolf? Surface now.

[ He probably can't hear him, right? Not under there. If it takes any longer, he's going in and seeking him out. ]

[Nope, water's too deep, and also in his ears. Sorry Wolvie, can't hear you.

[Alivian, on the other hand, is quite enjoying the deep dive. It's not as cold as the lake back home! He also feels like he could do this for hours. That's stupid and impossible, but it's a feeling.

[Not wanting to take chances, it takes him another thirty seconds to resurface with a short gasp, and some focused head shaking to instinctively combat the feeling of water in his ears.]

...you stayed down there awhile.

[ Logan's tone is almost... accusatory? It doesn't fit the words at all. But the tone of communication is clear: you worried me. ]

I'm coming in now.

[ And so he does, walking into the water with a shiver at how cold it is. It's a shock to his system, but he always likes those, no matter what form they come in.

~~Pain slut~~ ]

[He sees Logan's mouth move, and frowns, then points to his ears.]

Water in ears.

[Sorry, still didn't hear you. Alivian takes a moment to wade into shallows and repeatedly tilt his head a bit to try to let the water drip out of his unfortunately-placed ear canals: namely, the top of his head.]

Water's pretty warm.

[More awkward head tilting.]

[ Logan eyes him as he wades into the water, coming up pretty close. He looks amused at how the awkward head tilting looks. The offense is all but forgotten. ]

Should I even bother saying anything else? You need help with that?

[ He gestures towards his ears, though he's not exactly sure how he could help. ]

Edited 2024-08-28 06:52 (UTC)

[Alivian carefully tries to focus on Logan's mouth for help, picking up some amount of sound from it, thankfully. He nods and pats his waist once.]

Balance help, please?

[His equilibrium is off, he means.]

Need to lean over to get the water out.

Bunch of the fish at the bottom, so after clean-up, I'll want help one more time with my ears after we get them. Or to lie down on a blanket and roll over a few times.

[Frowning, he lightly fusses with a waterlogged ear.]

[ Putting his arms around his waist, he gives the balance help that was asked for. It's easy enough, so why would he deny him? Besides, he's already started to have it bad. He'd help with anything Alivian asked for, as long as it didn't hurt him. As was made obvious by that argument before.

He's already thinking about what it would be like to lay on the blanket with him, holding him close - but that wasn't the topic at hand. Fishing was, after fixing those ears. ]

This help?

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