bakerstreet | Childhood Sweethearts

[I don't know how but I want to make this happen >.>]

Honestly she was not going to say a word. She had been intending to ignore him, to pretend she hadn't caught a glimpse of familiar brunette hair. It had been years, he probably didn't remember her (though how one forgot blue eyes and white hair on chocolate skin was beyond her) still one mustn't assume.

Yet somehow, someway she was in front of him. Feeling incredibly stupid and silly, like a deer caught in headlights.

"Dick? Dick Grayson" she said a smile on her lips as she smoothed her hands over her skirt nervously.

Edited 2016-01-03 01:55 (UTC)

It had been a long day at the precinct and he was ready to collapse on his bed (for all of about ten minutes before he had to go back out and patrol anyway), so when he heard his name he froze momentarily, paranoid that Bruce had done something and it was a reporter from Gotham come to ask him about it, that or a bored society columnist come to press him yet again about why he'd take a job as a police officer when Bruce's billions had him set for life.

When he did turn round though, his wary expression dropped into one of shock - of course he couldn't forget her, he recognised her instantly. He ran a hand through his hair, licking his lips nervously, suddenly at a loss what to say. It had been years since he'd seen her, so much had changed in that time, she'd changed so much, and yet...

"...hi," he lifted a hand in an awkward wave, giving her a lopsided smile.

That smile, made her stomach fill with butterflies and her heart flutter. It had been years since they had last spoken, since she had seen him and still his smile managed to make her feel like she was a teenager all over again.

She smiled tucking snowy hair behind her ear and she stepped closer to him. She had just finished her shift at the youth centre so she was dressed casually-- blue jeans, black leather heeled boots and a leather jacket. Still she had to tip her chin upwards to meet his eyes.

"You look good" she commented tipping her head to the side letting her gaze drift across his body. "How have you been?" She asked as she pushed her hands into her pockets.

Edited 2016-01-07 02:24 (UTC)

"Always did," he chuckled, waving off the compliment and letting his gaze drift over her in return "You look amazing." he told her genuinely, he'd always thought she looked amazing, but somehow she looked even more stunning than he remembered.

"I've.. been pretty good, keeping busy you know..." there was so much to cover, he wasn't sure where to start "How about you? What are you doing these days?"

"That is very true" she said agreeably as he waved off the compliment she bit her lower lip at his comment smiling widely at him. She shiftted her weight from foot to foot. Dick always looked amazing, she always found it difficult to keep her eyes off him, especially now after not seeing him for so long.

The answer didn't surprise her, he never did ever give her a clear answer. She sighed shrugging at the question. "I do a lot of volunteer work, charities, I just finished at the youth center actually" she said looking back up at him. "I was going home to sit in front the tv with a tub of ice cream when I saw you" she said laughing softly.

"Why am I not surprised you spend your time helping people?" he couldn't help but smile, laughing slightly at her plans for the evening "I was thinking of doing something similar actually." Well, okay, that was kind of a lie, he actually planned on wolfing down a bowl of cereal before heading out on patrol, but much as he didn't like lying to people it did come easily these days, and he knew that keeping his identity as Nightwing secret was important enough that a few white lies here and there weren't so bad.

The smile and the sound of his laughter brought back emotions that she had long thought was gone. In the few moments within his presence and she felt like a giddy school girl again.

And hey, he didn't mention he had anyone to go home to.

Perhaps she shouldn't feel as happy about that as she did, nor should she jump to any conclusions but the thought that he was single was...exciting.

She shrugged "You know me, always looking out for those in need" she bit her lower lip considering for a moment. "Well if we're both free would you like to go grab a drink? Or coffee or something? I mean if you want to, of course because you totally don't have to and I completely understand if you don't" she paused and sighed "And now I'm rambling, which I completely blame on you and your smile and I really need to stop talking now"

"Of course I want to!" He laughed "After all this time you really think I'm going to say no to that? I always found it hard to say no to you, even when it hadn't been years since I saw you last!"

Patrolling could wait, the streets would survive without him for a little while. The thing that Bruce had always struggled with was allowing time for himself, and admittedly Dick wasn't much better, but at least he tried.

Decembra couldn't control the giant smile that split across her lips when he agreed. The sound of her laugh gave her a warm feeling in her stomach, something that she hadn't felt in...far too long.

"Well I didn't want to assume that you would, for all I know you could be married with kids" she said simply with a shrug. She moved and took his arm naturally as though it hadn't been years since they had seen each other last.

"There's a pub not too far from here if you want to get a drink. Or well my place is a few blocks away too. If you wanted some privacy" she offered as she looked up at him curiously. It was apparent she had no issue with how easily she fell into old habits, having always enjoyed being close to him.

"Married, me?" he laughed, waving a dismissive hand "Not even close." Well. That wasn't strictly true, he had gotten close, once upon a time... but he didn't want to think about that, especially not with her there, standing there in front of him like a second chance.

"Pub sounds good," he agreed, leaning into the contact briefly, glad to feel her close to him again "Unless, wait!" he mock-gasped "Are you planning on getting me drunk?"

"I'm surprised to hear it, with your looks and charm I'm surprised you don't have women falling at your feet" Decembra teased her hand sliding along his forearm as he leaned into her. She laughed amused by his antics, resting her head on his shoulder for a moment.

"Obviously. You look like you need to loosen up" she said with a playful squeeze of his arm as she fell into step beside him. The night was cool so she pressed herself closer as they walked enjoying his warmth.

"Well, I never said I didn't have that, just that I wasn't with anybody," he laughed, his tone was light though so it was obvious he was joking. It wasn't that he didn't know that women found him appealing - he knew he was attractive, rich and charming - but he also wasn't the type to brag about it, and he knew their interest was just superficial. Mostly, he just didn't want to put anybody in danger by getting too close.

"I need to loosen up?" he scoffed "I am the chillest of chill."

Decembra smiled softly trying not to be so pleased with his words as they walked together her head resting on his shoulder as they did do.

"Really now?" she said with a snort a brow raising as she looked up at him a teasing grin on her lips. "Alright then Grayson, then how about you take me dancing" she said wetting her lips.

"Since you're so chill that is, I'm sure you don't mind treating a girl for old times sake"

So, he really had planned to patrol tonight, and he knew it was important not to take too many nights off... but he could always do a quick round when he got back, right? And it was only one night, with extenuating circumstances no less.

He tilted his head, matching her teasing grin with one of her own "You're on. But I'll have to go change first, can't exactly go dancing in my uniform." he tugged at the police shirt he was wearing.

Decembra felt the smile grow on her lips as he returned the grin and tugged at his shirt. She allowed her gaze to drift along the length of his body playful, appreciative before meeting his eyes.

"That's a shame" she said with a soft sigh "You look hm...good in your uniform"

Which was an understatement, he looked far more than just good in fact this would be a fond memory...how he looked right now. Grinning at her as though it hadn't been...years since they've even touched each other like this. And yet they fell back into the their teasing playfulness as though they hadn't been apart.

"But fine, alright lets get you changed and hit a club. I want to see if you can keep up with me" she said gesturing for him to lead the way.

[Open to cross-canon]

[Sounds cute. canon and cross canon welcome.]

[Bio in profile, klist in journal]

[This is probably a terrible idea. It can't be a worse idea than offering to let Masamune live with him in the first place when he left Hyogo for the Yakults, but it's still probably not smart. Furuya knows how Masamune can react surprises and while he's not sure how big a surprise his presence is going to be, he knows damn sure Masamune's not going to expect him to be waiting to meet him at the train station when his train from Hyogo gets in.

He's not even a teammate. But here he is, hands stuffed in his pockets, lingering around the platform in Tokyo Station where the Nozomi 4 is due to get in.

It'll be 1145 if the train's on time. Maybe he'll want to get lunch. Or maybe he'll walk away again, but they'll only just see each other later.

It's been two years since they've been closer than eighteen meters to each other. They're not the same people they were in high school. Furuya's the one who reached out to see if this would even be a possibility, the two of them living together.

He's hoping for lunch.]

[ this - and by that masamune means the entire series of decisions that has him on the nozomi 4 with a bag over his shoulder and his stuff shipped to a tokyo address - was definitely a terrible idea, which is what he's tried to convince himself about half a dozen times since he signed onto the lease, but it hadn't stopped him before, and there's no stopping the train, either.

satoru furuya texting him about being roommates had probably surprised him so much it shorted something in his brain. that's the only explanation as to why he packed his things and sent them .

even in high school, he hadn't hated furuya, though he probably would have called it that, if anyone had asked - his feelings had been a lot more complicated, a lot more confusing. furuya had been a massive figure in masamune's quietly simmering dream of rivalry, smarting with disappointment and the frustration that had characterized pretty much his entire high school career.

it's different now. furuya's still the guy he wants to beat, but he's not the specter of everything masamune hates about mainlanders, about backing down from challenges and going somewhere easier, about giving up.

the train pulls to a stop, and the automatic, dull voice-over of a woman telling passengers to make sure they have all their things plays distantly as he shoves his paperback into his leather bag and slides past the trio of salesmen he spent half the trip wanting to strangle to find the first open door.

he steps out onto the platform, and it's actually anticlimactic. not that he'd expected anything exciting - he's been in and out of tokyo for a year, for one reason or another - but it's home now. it doesn't feel like home any more than nishinomiya had, yet.

first things first, he finds his way out. he turns, sticking his hands in the pockets of his jacket, and walks to leave the platform. he only takes fifteen steps before he stops, because that's furuya, there, figure cut against the crowd. what in the hell was he doing here? masamune knows he'd mentioned when he was getting in, but furuya hadn't said anything about coming to pick him up. ]

What is this, the Tokyo welcome wagon?

[ they're stuck with each other for the next year. might as well at least try. ]

[It's been strange, living in the apartment for days with Hongo's things. They came like an advance guard, not much stuff but enough to establish a second presence in the apartment. That was the entire idea but it didn't make it any less weird. He'd moved the boxes into what would be Hongo's room--some of them heavy, a peek through the tape showing what look like book covers--and shut the door.

Yesterday, a little research through the kind of inane interviews rookies have to endure revealed that Hongo's tastes hadn't changed much from what he remembers, so he went out and added a couple cuts of beef to the freezer, some fresh vegetables to the fridge, and a set of shelves for the bathroom. It meant removing some old take out containers and organizing his own stuff but it's about time that happened anyway. Treating the place like his own personal cave was fine when that's what it was, but Satoru's learning to share again. He doesn't want to go too far, though, or reveal that he's looking forward to this, just in case it turns out Hongo really isn't.

Even now, he's not entirely sure. Hongo doesn't seem angry and he's not walking away from him. It could just be professionalism and maturity and Satoru's sure that's part of it, but not all. That would demand politeness; this is more than that. It's almost like conversation.

Satoru shrugs a little. He absolutely can't mention the early-morning sentimentality that led to this decision but he doesn't have to stay completely reserved now that Hongo's broken the ice.]

No point in paying a porter. Do you have any other bags?

[ Masamune stops close enough they don't have to raise their voices to be heard over the rumble of the station's trains. He shrugs, himself. ]

Tokyo's expensive enough without 'em. [ And shakes his head. ] Suitcase was too big, I sent it with a delivery service. It'll be here tomorrow with the last couple boxes.

[ Everything else was sold, thrown out, or claimed by people he knew. The amount he'd saved on a deposit by signing onto Furuya's lease was pretty much balanced out by the sheer amount of stuff he's got ordered and coming in the next week, but that's life. Though he can't wait for his bed frame to arrive, so he can sleep on that, instead of the futon he'd sent over. ]

You can give me the tour. [ He shifts the strap on his bag across his chest, and he starts to walk again, passing close enough by their elbows might brush, toward the exit. ]

[A reasonable assessment. He knows Hongo's not completely unfamiliar with Tokyo, after all, and it's more secure to get things sent with a service anyway. That much, at least, is precisely the same as ever: Hongo has no interest in anything unnecessary.]

Everything's in your room. Some of it was really heavy...

[It's not a complaint, though. If anything, slightly in the other direction. Satoru's curious about the books, especially in an age of tablets and e-readers. They're an odd thing to hang onto, at least in his opinion.

He moves when Hongo does, hands still in his pockets, careful of the space between them but not overly so. The little bump feels familiar, nostalgic. If it were a decade ago, they'd probably be holding hands. It's not, though, and time has made things less certain. A Tokyo street also isn't the kind of place to get caught holding hands.

Satoru is spending far too much time thinking about holding hands. He nearly misses Hongo's request.]

You might get recognized.

[Which isn't inherently a bad thing and neither of them of the level to get mobbed by photographers, but Hongo might prefer to avoid the whole thing. Satoru chides himself internally for not taking Hongo at his word, but he wants his first full day in Tokyo to be a good one, enjoyed on his own terms.]

[ He eyes Furuya, the note of curiosity to the comment about heavy boxes something he has to take a moment to be sure he heard properly. He doesn't think he's wrong, though: he knows what a complaint sounds like. ]

There'd have been more, but I don't think I have room.

[ He's collected books for years. He likes his e-reader just fine, especially now that he winds up on a lot of overnight trains or buses and leaving the light on's not an option, but the weight of a paperback in his palms is better, heavy with history and every word printed in it. (His habit of jotting things down in the margins is its own beast.)

He shrugs off the warning, if that's what he'd even meant by that. ]

's not like that didn't happen in Nishinomiya. Big cities are easy to lose paparazzi in, anyway.

[ Escaping stubborn photographers in Tomakomai: kind of a pain in the ass. Avoiding them in Osaka: not a problem. It shouldn't be any different in Tokyo. ]

[No point in complaining; Satoru got the movers to do most of the work, he just organized things. Doesn't mean he didn't notice how heavy stuff was but it's Hongo's stuff, after all. The statement that there would have been more is a surprise, though. He remembered Hongo being kind of bookish when they were young, especially in winters without practice (before the advent of Coach Nitta's approach), but the sheer volume of, well, volumes is remarkable. Then again, his own perspective is skewed: with photobooks removed, Satoru owns perhaps twenty books altogether, at least half of which were gifts.

In the end he just shrugs.]

It's your place too.

[Translation: Satoru's hardly taking up bookshelf space, but Hongo will see that soon enough.

He didn't think Hongo was exactly new to keeping a low profile--if anything, he's been at it longer than Satoru--but he wants to be helpful. It was kind of a shock for him, after all.]

They use hidden cameras a lot so you don't know who to avoid. Your team will know what they look like, though.

[Satoru does have the honor of playing for the most watched team in Japane so that might have a little something to do with it, but there's no reason to keep that to himself. He's still too new and unproven to merit much attention but he doesn't intend for that phase to last very long and in the meantime, if they're watching Hongo they'll be watching him.]

Did you have a lot of them? Photographers?

[ 'It's your place too.' He hums wordlessly at that, sure he's going to be reminding himself of that for weeks, at least. It's like middle school sleepovers, part two, only now they're paying the bills.

(He suppresses the details of those middle school sleepovers with a routine mental twist.) ]

At first there were a ton. I'm not too interesting, so they stopped swampin' me unless we're winning. There's a couple that think if they stick around long enough I'll pick a fight or somethin', though.

[ Accompanied by an eyeroll. Sure, he'd been more than a little aggressive as a player in high school, but despite his face he's not going to start a fight for no reason. ]

[At least the bills are a lot easier to pay now than they would've been back then. Granted, having a roommate will certainly help because Satoru's just getting started so he's hardly swimming in money, but it's still more money than he's ever seen in his entire life.

Hongo's description of himself as not interesting makes Satoru turn his head just slightly. Either Hongo's being overly modest (unlikely) or Satoru would make a terrible paparazzi (likely) because he immediately wants to disagree with that, but the thought never makes it out of his head.

Instead--]

I never realized they were that stupid.

[Even Satoru knows half a dozen reasons off the top of his head why getting into a fight would be a terrible idea, and publicity is the least of those.]

[ When they were children, Rose and Alisha were close. In spite of her status, Alisha clung to Rose, and played with her whenever she could (which was, for the record, relatively often; being so far from the throne helped with that). When they were teenagers, there was less playing involved, but they still spent as much time together as ever.

(It would be a lie to say that, right around the time she turned 13, she didn't have a crush on Rose. She did, and it was probably obvious to... just about everybody. She could only hope that, maybe, Rose never picked up on it.)

Things didn't stay that way forever, though; when she was about fifteen, Alisha's mother died. She enrolled in the knights soon after, and Rose left Ladylake around the same time. If it weren't for her training, Alisha would have been able to visit her, but... well, she couldn't exactly leave on a vacation when she had more pressing matters to attend to.

At this point, it's been a few years since they've seen each other. So, imagine Alisha's surprise when her maid knocks on her door and then, in a soft voice, informs her that Rose, of all people, has stopped by to visit her. She can barely contain her excitement when she rushes out to see her. And, when she finally lays eyes on her, Alisha's heart leaps into her throat. It's been a long time, but apparently her Feelings™ are still as strong as ever. She rushes down the stairs two at a time, and throws her arms around Rose's shoulders. It might not be good for appearances, but nobody ever stops by her manor anyway. The only person in it aside from them is her maid, and she at least has the tact to keep to another room during this reunion. ]

Rose, it's so good to see you!

[ Alisha squeezes Rose a little tighter, burying her face against her neck as she speaks. ]

What brings you to Ladylake?

((Think maybe you'd be up for a sort of AUis situation where Rose remembers having seen Dezel around when both were younger? Obviously set before seriously bad things go down. Depending on how you feel about these two as a ship or not, I can also keep things more toward the ambiguous side with exactly how it is Dezel feels about Rose while still maintaining the fact that he cares strongly for her well being.))

( Yup! That sounds okay with me! We can do a cute scenario where he's helping her cook for the guild or something... Like later on in one of the skits she says that he must have been watching over her while she cooked. Or hmmm SOMETHING CUTE INVOLVING A PUPPY. I viewed Dezel and Rose in the canon as more of a familial bond, but I am open to playing it as a one-sided love from Dezel's end! )

((Alright, I can definitely work with that! I personally do ship them, but I realize that not everyone does and I'm always up for anything that's got openings for cute and/or feelsy stuff. And lbr, even without romance involved on either side, these two can really bring it on an emotional level, regardless.))

[While the phrase "watching out of the corner of one eye" doesn't really apply to Dezel, it works well enough in describing how he's trying to monitor Rose while the two of them work together on baking up a batch of desserts. Ever since he and Mikleo caught Rose with a dagger and an abacus on hand while making butter cookies, Dezel's insisted on being with her at least some of the time where food prep is involved. After all, Mikleo had asked Dezel what he intended to do about it and even though Rose has always had issues with using proper tools in cooking, well... Something finally had to be done.]

[Though hopefully she doesn't notice that he's set out some of the same "secret ingredients" for what he's making that Rose herself uses. His explanation about coincidences the first time that subject came up didn't seem to satisfy Rose's curiosity all that much. The last thing he needs now is for her to start asking questions again about things like that...things that hedge too close on the truth about him being around her for years.]

[In fact, you know what? He'll just discreetly edge that porange juice around one side of a nearby mixing bowl and more out of sight, then get back to combining the sugar and flour in the other mixing bowl he's set out. And if he looks a little tense while he's working? Well, it's just been a long day, that's all. Really. No other reason.]

Edited 2016-01-04 17:20 (UTC)

Childhood Sweethearts

Dick Grayson | Batman | OTA

Re: Dick Grayson | Batman | OTA

Sorry for the delay! Let's just make this up as we go along ha

No prob! So happy you tagged back! <3

Re: No prob! So happy you tagged back! &lt;3

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Sorry for the delay!

no worries!!!

actual worst, so sorry

It's okay!

Re: It&#39;s okay!

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Hermione Granger | Harry Potter | m/f

Midii Une || Gundam Wing: Episode Zero

Bruce Wayne || Gotham

himeko inaba | kokoro connect ( ota )

Wanda Maximoff • MCU • ota

Genesis Rhapsodos | Final Fantasy VII Compilation | OTA

Mary Crawley | Downton Abbey | M/F

sorey - tales of zestiria - m/m

mikleo l tales of zestiria l ota

Kenma Kozume | Haikyuu | OTA

Decembra Frost | OC | OTA

masamune hongo | daiya no a | ota

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the name thing is on purpose this time!

i figured!! :>

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Yuugi Mutou | Yu-Gi-Oh! DM | OTA, M/F preferred for shipping

Amelia Atwater | OC | OTA

Rose | Tales of Zestiria | OTA

i accidentally a whole fcking novel, i'm sorry

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Re: No prob! So happy you tagged back! <3

Re: It's okay!