[It's late enough that he's been asleep for some already, but the knock on the door rouses him slightly, enough to open his eyes and see his bedroom door swing open in the dark. It's probably an oversight to keep the door unlocked, but he liked to leave it that way, for Alfred to come and go as he needed to. Half asleep, he pushes himself on an elbow to try and see who it is, hand straying towards his bedside table where his gun sits]
[ If she can't sleep then it's only fair that he doesn't as well. She approaches with the confidence that she has the run of this whole place. His room included. His movement draws her attention to the gun on the table. ]
[Now that he knows who it is, he sighs in annoyance. His hand redirects to his glasses instead, though the weapon isn't forgotten entirely. Hiling's level of threat has yet to be determined. The sudden invasion in to his space certainly doesn't help matters.]
The condition is sometimes contagious.
[He says this with the most dry tone he can muster, as if it seems fairly obvious to him that he absolutely hadn't been awake but refrains from saying as much.
He flips on the table lamp and squints against the light.]
[ She sighs as she settles in on the edge of the bed next to him. Does she really have to see a reason to want to see him? It was just a whim of hers after all. Though there may be something on her mind. ]
[Wesley shifts minutely away from her weight and sits up, letting silence stretch for a few moments as he takes that in those words. He's still suspicious of her, and he wonders if she's capable of the guile necessary to bait him with one of the few things he might actually care about.]
Well I was thinking. [ As surprising as that may be. ] When I was put into a contract with him, he didn't want it. But now you're here too. He must like you. What do you have that I don't?
[ It hasn't done much to make her feel better about him as a dominant. She looks him over as if she might find answers that way. All this is such a mess and so confusing. ]
[The situation is precarious. She's little more than child, Alfred had told him, and that means he needs to choose his words carefully.
Wesley adjusts his glasses with a slight sigh.]
Alfred is a man of conviction. He wanted to honor his previous contract, but the system as it is does not allow it. It has nothing to do with anything you lack. We simply have an...understanding.
[Skirting around the truth is often his preference, sadly. But he can try. Wesley pauses to think, lips pressed together for a moment]
Alfred and I have similar professions. He is a butler. I am an assistant. We know what it means to work for but also with. And we were contracted once before, but in reverse. The arrangement is...comfortable.
Well I have something in common with him too since we were both in the military.
[ And yet she doesn't have the same connection. Maybe it's because she isn't human. She doesn't understand the first thing about forming healthy connections with other. ]
That's for Alfred to answer, but you have to overcome the debt you've already incurred. Give it time.
[Assuming Alfred will grant it. He'd frankly prefer to have the man to himself, but that was more a matter of his desire to be left alone than it was jealousy]
Why does it concern you? Being contracted doesn't require friendship.
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branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2020-03-17 11:06 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-03-17 11:21 pm (UTC)[ If she can't sleep then it's only fair that he doesn't as well. She approaches with the confidence that she has the run of this whole place. His room included. His movement draws her attention to the gun on the table. ]
no subject
Date: 2020-03-17 11:34 pm (UTC)The condition is sometimes contagious.
[He says this with the most dry tone he can muster, as if it seems fairly obvious to him that he absolutely hadn't been awake but refrains from saying as much.
He flips on the table lamp and squints against the light.]
Is something wrong?
[Something had better be wrong]
no subject
Date: 2020-03-18 02:12 am (UTC)It's about Alfred.
no subject
Date: 2020-03-21 12:04 am (UTC)What is it?
no subject
Date: 2020-03-21 02:21 am (UTC)[ It hasn't done much to make her feel better about him as a dominant. She looks him over as if she might find answers that way. All this is such a mess and so confusing. ]
no subject
Date: 2020-03-21 03:09 am (UTC)Wesley adjusts his glasses with a slight sigh.]
Alfred is a man of conviction. He wanted to honor his previous contract, but the system as it is does not allow it. It has nothing to do with anything you lack. We simply have an...understanding.
no subject
Date: 2020-03-21 03:34 am (UTC)[ Being vague is not enough for her. She wants details. She wants to understand. There must be something she can do. ]
no subject
Date: 2020-03-24 11:07 pm (UTC)Alfred and I have similar professions. He is a butler. I am an assistant. We know what it means to work for but also with. And we were contracted once before, but in reverse. The arrangement is...comfortable.
no subject
Date: 2020-03-24 11:23 pm (UTC)[ And yet she doesn't have the same connection. Maybe it's because she isn't human. She doesn't understand the first thing about forming healthy connections with other. ]
no subject
Date: 2020-03-31 08:37 pm (UTC)True. But you are also young, and there is no substitute for experience.
[He pauses, tilting his head at her thoughtfully]
Why does it bother you?
no subject
Date: 2020-03-31 10:25 pm (UTC)[ She doesn't have any complaints about the food and shelter he provides. At least that much is appreciated. ]
no subject
Date: 2020-03-31 10:48 pm (UTC)[And all his half-truths aside, this is something he believes in his soul]
no subject
Date: 2020-04-01 04:08 am (UTC)[ She's making herself comfortable here. It's nice and warm. Her room is lonely. ]
no subject
Date: 2020-04-02 10:35 pm (UTC)[Assuming Alfred will grant it. He'd frankly prefer to have the man to himself, but that was more a matter of his desire to be left alone than it was jealousy]
Why does it concern you? Being contracted doesn't require friendship.
no subject
Date: 2020-04-02 11:02 pm (UTC)[ Anything involving patience is going to be frustrating for her. She just wants it fixed now. ]
no subject
Date: 2020-04-03 01:44 am (UTC)If you're in danger of falling short, I'm sure he'd do what he can to help you.
[Alfred is nothing but not helpful]
no subject
Date: 2020-04-03 02:46 am (UTC)[ She moves in closer. He seems interesting enough. She just wants to bond with him more. ]