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Who: Mystique & [open]
Where: The training center!
When: Afternoon of March 14
Rating: PG-13 to start?
Summary: Aggression is best taken out on inanimate objects, if one wants to avoid undesirable consequences.
The Story: [Perhaps it was the annoying overgrowth of plants that occurred after the sky threw false memories down at the ground, or the fact that people seemed to be reuniting in droves in this place, but today Mystique was feeling particularly irritable. She still had nobody from home here, and while she would tell most people to their faces that this was a good thing ... it didn't mean she didn't still miss her brother. Idiotic and idealistic as he was, there had been an alarming number of instances here where she'd thought it would be a lot easier to have him around than to face things alone.

It was this particularly rotten mood that had sent her to the training facility today -- she shows no sign of stopping the punches that she's throwing at the punching bag suspended from the roof despite a chorus of somewhat worrisome creaks coming from the chain holding it up.

At this rate she's going to bloody her knuckles -- or she would, if she hadn't already thought to thicken her skin there just a little.

Approach with caution, friends.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Well, I try.

[She isn't sure what she was expecting of him, given his track record of hilarious antics, but it wasn't having him reach over and try to lock her hand. If she'd had more presence of mind at the moment she might have pointed out that it was likely her palm was just going to taste like the lemons from the drink mixed in with some sugar and maybe whatever traces had been on the table in the bar, but she's now a little distracted with the supposed adult in front of her licking her.]

Well? Do I pass the taste test?

You could try somewhere else if you're not quite sure yet.

Edited (Phone tags! D <) 2016-04-20 17:57 (UTC)

[Supposed adult is definitely accurate as he sits there for a long moment with his tongue sticking out like a particularly large dog.

Her hand tastes perfectly normal - a little lemony, a little sweet and mostly like skin. Although part of him had almost expected something else a little more blue in flavour. But not the point.]

Hmmm, no I think I'm satisfied. My first impression was right - you're a good friend to have.

[Whiiich admittedly hadn't been his first impression on seeing her. But. Hopefully they can not bring up how very smooth he was the first time they spoke lest anyone listening in get intimidated.]

And I think you should be safe from getting eaten while you're here.

[Your eyes deceive you, Alistair, but you'd probably not be the first to assume that she was going to taste a tad more blue.

She raises her eyebrow at his statement about first impressions, since she's fairly sure that the first time they met he thought that she was a desire demon bent on seducing him. That isn't actually far off the mark of where her goals were steering her this evening, though, so she can't say he's wrong.

He's been one of the few people here she's coming to trust, and the weight of the last event is still making her feel so very lonely. The combination of that, and the speed with which she's downed the last of her drink, make it easy for her to slip to her feet and then into Alistair's side of the booth. She isn't crowding him just yet, but she feels the intention might be clear.]

In that case -- present yourself. If I'm going to be making exceptions for who I let lick me, I expect to be able to get a taste for myself.

[What, him, introduce himself to someone by accusing them of being a demon? Never. He'd never. That's just not him.

Alistair doesn't think too much of her coming around to join him - it's a little cozier, a little more friendly than sitting opposite each other and makes it easier to fulfill her request without them getting any odd looks. Just in case someone at the bar thinks there's something odd about two people licking each other. Although why anyone would is beyond him.]

Your wish is my command, my lady.

[Chuckling, Alistair offers her his hand to taste as well. Since he went and started this he can't complain about it being turned back on him. And, well. If she wants to lick him who is he to say no?]

[With the other patrons of the bar being trapped in Wonderland as well, a couple of people licking each other probably isn't even the strangest thing they've seen today.

She's never going to get used to anyone calling her 'my lady', but that doesn't mean she doesn't secretly like it.

She makes a point of turning his hand over with her fingers so that his palm is exposed, but rather than going for the middle of it like he had, she opts to flick her tongue out against the more sensitive skin of his wrist.

She pauses after doing so, raising her eyes to meet his while she pretends to look thoughtful.]

Well. I'm afraid I was right about you being tasty. You'll have to be extra careful from now on.

[That's a very good point. It's certainly not as strange as some things he's come to take as normal whilst in Wonderland. Or things he takes as normal back home that most others seem to find strange.

Alistair twitches at the swipe of her tongue over his wrist, a little surprised by the move despite himself but given the roughness of his hands it's probably a better choice than his palm. Thankfully he wasn't doing anything earlier like polishing his armour that would have left an unpleasant taste on his skin so he doubtless tastes of little more than sweat and skin. Arching an eyebrow and grinning he waits patiently for her verdict.]

I am, am I? And here was I convinced I'd taste like old socks. [A put upon sigh follows.] Well, if I disappear and you never see me again you'll know what happened.

Old socks? I mean, you do shower, from what I can tell...ajd jeeze, way to kill the mood. The number of times I've seen people post about others just disappearing to the network...

[She shakes her head. Realizing she hasn't dropped his hand yet, she does so and glances over toward the bar.]

...I think that deserves at least another round of drinks. Maybe I should get them to go if we're going to keep going like this, because I don't want to have to carry you back to your room.

[Or drag him comically.]

[Alistair winces. He really hadn't thought about what he was saying that time, had he? He's seen those announcements too and while it's never been someone he knows....]

Ah, want to see me put my other foot in my mouth now?

[Taking his hand back he follows Mystique's gaze over to the bar and shrugs. Another round doesn't sound like a bad idea, though he's almost insulted by her implication.]

Hey now, I'm not that much of a lightweight! [Mostly due to having mass on his side but still.] But if you really want to get me alone you just have to ask.

[Or if she just doesn't want to be seen in public with him when he gets loud and embarrassing. That's good too.]

If you're going to be showing me how flexible you are by putting your other foot in your mouth, then we definitely need to get a room.

[She's not going to mention that she's not as much of a lightweight as people would think either because of her mutation unless it comes up. You can't just immediately give up such a great upper hand during drinking games.

At his comment about getting him alone, she can't help the sly smirk.]

You caught me. I was trying to be subtle about it, but your powers of deduction are just too good. Guess I should just drop the act.

[Fueled just enough by the few drinks she's had (and when has she ever really needed an excuse to initiate, honestly?), she moves to close the distance between them. If he doesn't move away once they're nearly face to face, she'll tilt her head and lean in to press her lips against his.]

That's right! You can't fool me that easily. I'm onto you.

[Alistair grins back proudly, expecting her to head for the bar again and then make good on the plan to find somewhere that one of them passing out won't be a problem.

When that doesn't happen he stays where he is, frowning as she draws closer, confusion slowly giving way to surprise. He doesn't respond to the kiss, frozen uncertainly in place until she pulls back.

It takes him a long moment to find his voice again, uncertainty clear when he speaks.]

Mystique? [Cheeks pink he studies her face intently, looking for... something. Something to tell him what he's supposed to do.] ...I want you to know I'm going to be really embarrassed if you start laughing.

[And more than a little hurt. He doesn't mind teasing but if this is a joke at his expense it's going too far. He doesn't think she'd do that to him though.]

[Any sort of comment she might have about whether she'd really be able to fool him is pushed away in favor of his reaction (or lack of reaction, at first glance) to the kiss.

Once she's pulled back, she can see the reason he was so frozen in place -- he's confused, that much is certain, but then he says that and all she can do is blink.

He's flushed, which is usually a positive reaction, but the statement...]

Have you ever had someone kiss you like that and then laugh?

[She clears her throat, dropping a hand down to his leg to steady herself. Okay, Mystique, this isn't like that time a decade ago when Hank rejected you by saying you weren't ever going to be beautiful like this. He's just asking a question.]

I think the joke would be on me, if I've misread you completely and you're not interested.

Um- Not exactly. [Dropping his gaze to stare at her hand against his leg he flushes brighter.] But I don't normally get women kissing me at all.

[Maker that sounded completely pathetic, didn't it? Not much worse than expecting to be laughed at though, which she has yet to do.

Looking back up at her next words Alistair smiles hopefully. She thought he was interested in her. And so had decided to kiss him. And not to make fun of him because of it. Which meant she was-]

I didn't- I mean, I- No. I mean, yes! I- Oh, blast it!

[Leaning in a bit too quickly he's more liable to knock their teeth together than actually manage to kiss her but maybe he gets points for effort? Or at least for conveying what he can't find the words for.]

[Any anxiety she might have been having quickly dissolves into relief the longer that Alistair goes on. She isn't surprised, exactly, that he isn't experienced (how old is he, anyway?), even is she's surprised no women have tried anything on him. Maybe that was a product of the time he came from. Whatever the reason, it's given her the upper hand in this situation and she isn't about to waste the advantage.

Once he starts stammering, she's just about to lean on again and put him out of his misery when he moves so eagerly back in.

Points for effort, definitely; Mystique narrowly manages to keep their teeth from colliding by virtue of her reflexes and opts to place a hand at the back of his neck to help guide him into a better angle that would be less likely to lead to emergency dental surgery.

She pauses for a breath she doesn't really need, voice low.]

I still think we should get out of here.

Edited 2016-04-27 00:49 (UTC)

[Well. OK then. Good.

Actions convey what words can't and, courtesy of Mystique's guiding hand saving both their teeth, this kiss is a lot better than the first now that he's not worried about being laughed at. Alistair can feel the heat still lingering in his face as she pulls back, stomach fluttering at the sound of her voice.]

I think- Yes. We should. We need to talk.

[The conversation is not one he wishes to have in public where anyone can hear. And if there's going to be more kissing that's not the sort of thing that should be done in public either. Yes, he knows that people aren't always proper and well-behaved in bars in general but she deserves better than that and it's just not something he's comfortable with personally.

Nodding at the bar he smiles shyly, tone deliberately light as he adds-] I won't blame you if you still need a drink to take.

Being as he's going to fumble through the coming conversation too and she might well need it by the end.]

[The reaction to this kiss, at least, is a lot better than the last one. She can't say she's surprised that he wants to talk before anything else happens, all things considered -- she'd hoped for it absently, in the back of her mind. She felt things too deeply when it came to finding an attachment in others, too often alone and often-abandoned. He hadn't seemed like the one-night-stand type (although she might've taken it).]

I think we'll be doing more than talking if I have my way, but I guess we've got to start somewhere.

[It's much easier to fall into the teasing smiles and words right now.]

Let's call the drink a want and not a need. I'll even get you one.

[True to her word, she'll snag a pitcher and some glasses from the bartender and head back in his direction.]

I get the feeling you might be more comfortable in your room, not mine?

[Hers kind of looks like a fancy mansion room from the 1970s, anyway.]

[Alistair swallows nervously and manages to squeak-]

Not much more.

[He has to make that clear before anything else. If Mystique is expecting something more.... physical, that's. Well, he doesn't want to give her the wrong impression or lead her on. Just in case it is more than teasing on her part.

He nods gratefully at the offer, feeling like he might just need that drink before long. While Mystique goes over to the bar he takes a moment to collect himself and is waiting by the booth when she returns, still smiling nervously.]

Yours might be better? Mine's... not very fancy.

[Or really set up for guests. He's too used to living in dormitories or barracks to have thought about trying to make the space anything more than functional. That's something to think about later. But maybe she'd said that for more personal reasons.]

Unless you'd rather not. We can go to mine if you want, that's fine. Just don't get disappointed that it's not much to look at.

[Admittedly, she's used to playing the oversexed seductress -- and yes, maybe that has bled over into her romantic life more than it really needed to. The fact that she doesn't think she'd mind slowing things down, though, the fact that Alistair is actually planning on communicating things to her clearly, is -- refreshing, given her last few choices in partners.

She can't help the slight laugh.]

If that's the case, mine might be too fancy. The more homesick I get, the more my room looks like it was decorated by a Liberace fan.

[She supposes hers might be more comfortable, if what he says about his place being more utilitarian is true. There's one thing she wants to make clear, though.]

I don't think I'm going to be looking at the room much, anyway, when there are much better things to look at.

[She nods her head toward the door.]

But c'mon. I'll take you to my room -- it's a couple of floors down.

[And maybe he can collect himself a little more while she tries not to get too nervous about what it is that he wants to talk about. She's fairly sure it isn't going to be a serious discussion about how they can be intimate, but only in private where nobody could possibly see him with her -- but she can't help that it's one of the first things that pops into her head.

...she might have a complex, all right, and while being with Erik certainly helped to minimize it, it's still not completely gone.]

[No complaint about his need to take things slow - that's good, isn't it? He thinks it is. Mystique has never had any trouble speaking her mind before, if she found his reluctance off-putting she'd say as much surely. He's still going to be antsy until they've spoken properly - and not just about that - but he thinks there's a chance he won't make a mess of things.

Hopefully. Although the nervous gulp he can't hold back at her claim that there she'll have better things to look at than the room makes him wonder. Still, Alistair manages a smile and gestures her ahead of him.]

Lead the way, my lady.

[It's further to her room than his which is good. He'll need the chance to collect his thoughts, that's for sure. Not that he doesn't know what he has to say but making sure it comes out right is another matter entirely.

As they make their way down Alistair asks-] You live somewhere fancy back home?

[He can't remember if she ever said where she lives normally. He's not sure what a Liberace is either but he's picturing some fancy estate like the Arl's which at least won't be unfamiliar for him and definitely makes him think he might need to do... something about his own space. If Mystique might be coming there at some point in the future. Or anyone else who wasn't raised in a barn - or stable, but close enough.]

[She finds his reluctance intriguing, at least -- she wants to know more about it, and to quell the negative voices in her head that always seemed to pop up in these sorts of situations.

Once he suggests she move forward (she'll never get used to being called a lady), she begins leading him to her room. She doesn't think she's ever actually had anyone in it, here, and even at the mansion she'd grown up in that was more or less true, save for the few she'd snuck in before her brother caught them.]

-- no, not any more. But I grew up in my brother's mansion, and he always kept most of it looking the same way his mother kept it.

[She hadn't wanted to argue with him even if she thought the place looked positively antique. Charles' mother wasn't something they talked about much, but she knew he was fond of him.]

Back home now a days, I more or less just sleep in hotels. I move around a lot.

[The walk to the room is short, and as promised, the room looks rather -- elaborate.]

Edited 2016-05-01 18:13 (UTC)

[Her brother again - her adopted brother who's parents she didn't feel were her own even while he was family. Perhaps they'd simply died before Mystique met him - she suggested as much when she said it was kept much the same as the mother had had it. It doesn't matter. It's none of his business and he doesn't want to upset her again by reminding her of less pleasant memories.

Instead he chuckles, nodding in understanding.]

Me too. I've spent a lot of the past year camping out. It's been nice having a real bed for once.

[They arrive at Mystique's room and Alistair follows her inside, stopping almost immediately once he's past the door to stare about in surprise. It's not so far off the Arl's estate in Denerim or other noble's homes he's seen in some ways but more Orlesian in style than Ferelden. It also makes him very grateful they didn't wind up in his room with its bare stone and rough wooden furniture, no matter how out of place he might feel here.]

Wow. You weren't joking about this place.

[And to think she grew up in a house like this. If he ever needs advice on being regal he knows who to ask.]

[Maybe it's part of the reason she's always felt such solidarity with other mutants -- neither her parents, nor Charles' had ever been around to make her feel accepted by someone who didn't share her plight at home.]

Maybe, but having a weird closet help you decorate your room still seems kind of weird to me.

[She doesn't mind the staring, although it makes her more than a little self-conscious. She shrugs her shoulders easily, trying to pass things off again.]

I just asked it to make it look like home. I guess I still think of the mansion as that, even if it's been years since I've visited.

[After all, she'd never really settled down again. Any fixed point for over a decade had to count as home, didn't it?]

I'm glad it didn't put the rest of the house in this place somehow, or it'd take forever to get around.

[She doesn't think she needs to ramble about her living quarters, though, when they have other things to talk about. She slides down onto the end of thbed, leaning back against her palms.]

So, what do we need to talk about so badly?

[Because the kissing part had been pleasant, and she was eager to return to that.]

[Right. They came here to talk and not about her choice of decor. He takes a deep breath and-]

I have to go back to Ferelden.

[Alistair winces as soon as the words leave his mouth. There clearly isn't enough time in the world to make him tactful when it comes to this sort of thing. All he can do is push on, rushing to explain.]

It doesn't matter that time might not be passing there while I'm gone. If we can find a way to get ourselves home I have to go as soon as I can. I have a duty to uphold. To the Wardens and to my country. I like you but I can't forsake my duty. For anyone. And I can't... can't take this sort of thing- [He gestures between them.] Lightly. That's not who I am.

[With a sigh Alistair slouches back against a wall, studying his boots morosely. When he speaks again his voice is quiet.]

I don't know what to do. [He peers up at Mystique worriedly, uncertain how she's taking it all.] I don't want to hurt you. But I want... I want something that's going to last and-

[He shrugs helplessly. Maybe this was a bad idea. Maybe he should have just told her he wasn't interested and left it at that. But he couldn't bear the idea of letting Mystique think she was unwanted or ruining their friendship. Which he could well have done anyway. Brilliant move Alistair, just brilliant.]

[Any sort of concern she might've had for where this conversation was going to go dissolves as soon as Alistair starts to explain himself. What he's concerned about is something that she hadn't even considered -- that she might want him to stay in this awful place even if he had the potential to return home.

She watches him slouch, thinking about how she ought to word her own statement.]

Well...

[She cants her head, lips twitching to one side.]

I would never try and keep you from returning home. Just because I don't really have one myself any more doesn't mean that I don't have causes that I care about too, but this place...

[She motions for him to come closer and sit next to her, if he can.]

...it isolates itself. I've heard that when you return home, you won't remember this place or anyone in it. I don't know about you, but I'd like to make the best of the time I have here while I still remember it.

I can't promise you anything that could last through something I can't control, but I wasn't just going to make this -- a fling.

[Right, okay, that all sounded reasonable enough...right?]

I- [He frowns, scrubs at his face. Shoves off the wall but rather than come over he paces half-way across the room and back. Turning to face Mystique he tries again.]

I don't know. I mean, I know I don't want a, a fling. And I'm glad you don't too. But...

[Alistair swallows and draws himself up straight, squaring his shoulders, determined if not self-assured.]

I haven't.... I've never- I grew up in a monastery. The only women were the sisters who, well. [Were sworn to the Maker. Were almost all old enough to be his mother.] There were some girls among the trainees but I- [Was the bastard son of someone high born. Didn't fit with either the nobles or the commoners and who made no secret of his dislike of the life most of them had chosen.] There's never been... anyone. Like that. In my life.

[He's blushing again. At least there's something normal about the conversation then.]

And I like you and you deserve to be happy and to have someone special and if this place were my home I'd want to, to see if that person was me without a second thought. But it's not home for either of us and I don't want to hurt you. But I can't promise I won't - we can't control if one of us just disappears or forgets. [Although, that will hurt just as much if they're friends or something more.] And I don't know what sort of future you'd want. For us.

[And maybe, selfishly, he's not sure about his first relationship being something that can never last. Something he'll just forget one day. It's naive, he knows that. To expect to spend forever with the first person he becomes involved with. Naive or not though, he can't pretend he doesn't want something that's forever.]

[Ah, awkward first love. Fortunately for Alistair, she's managed to navigate this incredibly horrible obstacle in her life already -- more or less.

She doesn't know if she considers Hank the first person she loved, because that was a pathetic little crush brought on by him being one of the first people other than Charles to ever show her positive attention -- and he'd also told her she'd never be beautiful, looking the way that she was.

He'd saved her life since then from one of the only other men she'd ever been romantically involved with trying to kill her, so she also understood that romance could be -- complicated. She purses her lips, thoughtful, and turns so their knees are touching and she can look him in the eye a little better.]

There's a lot of things that we can't control. Here and at home -- in my world, at least. The only things we can control are how we feel, and how we let that make us act.

I can't tell you how to feel, Alistair, but...

[She reaches her hand out to rest against his leg. Hopefully he doesn't pull away.]

I can tell you that for me, missing out on something because I was afraid of what would happen is a lot scarier than the idea of being hurt by this place.

[She knows it's her silly, somewhat impulsive nature that keeps her feeling like that. She also knows what it's like to want something to last forever while knowing in the back of her mind it's nearly impossible for it to do so, but she can't make his decision for him.]