God help them both

[toblameforit]

(from here; warning for some fairly wrong goings-on all round)

His room is on the second floor and it's really more of a suite. First through the door is a comfortable little living room containing all the essentials—squashy couch, wall-mounted plasma TV, bookshelf for Sherry, liquor cabinet for Tony, a pair of reasonably uncluttered desks side by side for the rare occasion when they both bring their laptops. One of them has been usurped by a violin case.

Comments

[toblameforit]

He leans into it, more or less like a delighted kitten.

"You should. Maybe you'd like him more. He has that effect on people a lot."

[be-this-naive.livejournal.com]

He does it again, slower and more lingering this time.

He doesn't remind Tony that that ship has effectively sailed.

[toblameforit]

Tony closes his eyes and hums.

Were they talking about something? Oh, yeah, how adorable Sherry is. Well, obviously.

[be-this-naive.livejournal.com]

The urge to kiss him is -

His pace, Obadiah reminds himself. His time.

It will be well worthwhile.

[toblameforit]

You could not fairly describe what is happening in Tony's head right now as thinking, and yet, he opens his eyes and sits up a little and takes a sip of his drink and says:

"Maybe I should talk to your Tony."

[be-this-naive.livejournal.com]

. . . he's heard worse ideas.

(He lets his hand drift down a little, to rest on Tony's shoulder near his neck.)

"What would you say?"

[toblameforit]

He meets Obadiah's eyes.

"That it's fucked up that it took you getting sucked into hell before I realized how much I care about you."

[be-this-naive.livejournal.com]

He leans in a little to kiss Tony's forehead, hand sliding around to the back of Tony's neck.

"I'm half-tempted to take you back with me and let you try," he murmurs against Tony's skin.

But only half.

[toblameforit]

Tony smiles a little, and his eyes close briefly; he likes the contact, now that he has decided it's okay.

"I mean, he's me," he says. "A me, anyway. And I know what I think after all this."

A wry smile tugs at his lips.

"Can't promise he'll kiss you, though. I think that was my very own stupid idea."

[be-this-naive.livejournal.com]

The way Tony responds to his touch makes his pulse quicken a little. Keeping to the plan of letting Tony set the pace is getting more difficult.

"I don't think he needs to know about that," he says. "It's not important unless I act on it, which I have no intention of doing."

[toblameforit]

"No," says Tony, "no I really think he does."

He takes a long drink, conscious as he does that Obie is probably looking.

"And everything else too," he adds. "Right down to there's an alternate universe where you hired a buncha vampires to turn Sherry, and I hope I don't have to tell you how terrifyingly stupid an idea that is, I have nightmares about it and it didn't even happen in my world."

[be-this-naive.livejournal.com]

Well. It wasn't an idea he was seriously considering anyway.

(He does watch - Tony's lips on the glass and his throat working as he swallows - with an idle lack of discretion he has never been able to indulge at home.)

His attention is grabbed by that last, though, eyes moving back up to meet Tony's and eyebrows arching incredulously.

He probably doesn't even need to ask what he's thinking: Are all his doubles idiots?

[toblameforit]

He grins a little. "I know, right? That was definitely a genius-level fuckup."

[be-this-naive.livejournal.com]

"No, no, I think it's a great idea to have a vampire created with reason to target me. How could that possibly go wrong?"

He makes a note to specify that when he makes his call: No new vampires. Dead means dead.

[toblameforit]

Tony looks very wry.

"I think the idea was he'd go after me first. Which, uh—apparently not. Anybody who'd send vampires after Sherry just isn't paying attention, anyway, he took out like half a dozen of them by himself at the beginning of summer."

[be-this-naive.livejournal.com]

. . . Obadiah's expression doesn't change.

"Really," he says. "That's very impressive."

[toblameforit]

He laughs. "Yeah, no shit," he says, eyeing the rest of his drink. He decides against finishing it in one go and takes another sip instead. "Fucking badass," he concludes.

[be-this-naive.livejournal.com]

He may need to start looking for another angle on this.

That's potentially doable. He has information now he didn't have before. He just has to find the right holes to slot it into.

"What was he doing messing with that many vampires, anyway?" he asks, casual. He moves his hand from Tony's neck, laying it against Tony's side instead, and sips his own drink.

[toblameforit]

Tony decides abruptly that he is not even going to mention Cal's name.

"His best friend's dad went missing. Turned out it was vampires." He shrugs. "Kind of a shitty scene all round."

[be-this-naive.livejournal.com]

"That's a shame," Obadiah murmurs politely. He's still a little distracted.

However:

"He's a bit more of a loner in my world, far as I can tell. I don't think he has any friends at all, never mind a best one."

[toblameforit]

He grins a little.

"That's way politer than the other you was about it."

[be-this-naive.livejournal.com]

"I think we've established that he didn't have much going for him."

Focus. Think later. That's what Milliways is for.

He's not leaving until he's damn sure he has a clear and solid plan in place.

[toblameforit]

"You're still kind of an asshole about Sherry," Tony points out. "But less of one. Which is good."

[be-this-naive.livejournal.com]

He smiles.

"Maybe I'm learning."

[toblameforit]

Tony beams. He approves of this theory!