90s sadness and gay???

[dtective]

[By this point, Leon has lost track of how long he's been searching for Count D. It became an obsession that only grew with time, and now he couldn't keep to one spot anymore. Not while D was still out there. Across cities, across countries, he probably looked insane to everyone around him. But they didn't know the half of it! Sometimes even Leon wasn't sure he understood what he was doing.

Right now wasn't the time to doubt himself, though. He'd hoped that this lead would get him even an inch closer to his goal, but he hadn't counted on spotting him in the streets. It had to be him. He'd seen him turn and look at him, and those eyes—]

Wait! Stop right there!

[He doesn't hold back, shoving his way through the crowded streets and keeping his eyes locked on him. It doesn't work, because of course it doesn't, and his steps slow in his confusion. His heart is beating way too fast, his stomach sinks, and for a moment he's sure he's lost his one chance.

But something catches the corner of his eye, and his instinct tells him to turn. He reaches out, grabbing the first wrist he can and meeting D's eyes with his own.]

...Found you.

Comments

[dtective]

[Okay, at the thought of having to bandage it again, he sort of tugs at his wrist to try to pull it back.]

It's fine, stop messing with it already! That stuff's on the outside, and it's not bleeding anymore anyway.

[Because it is bandaged, mostly... He sure did slice off a lot of his finger.]

[pruning]

[No. He can't have it back. Not until it's sanitary.]

It's soaked with half of your dinner! Even if you don't think it's a problem, I won't have you touching things in my shop with this hand!

[dtective]

[Well, just for that, he's going to shove his hand at D's face. Trying to touch him!! He's an adult.]

[pruning]

[WHAT the hell!! D does what any mature adult would do in this situation, flinging Leon's wrist unceremoniously away from himself and leaning abruptly back for good measure. Don't do that?!]

[dtective]

Hahaha!

[He reaches his hand out as if tempted to keep trying, but he'll stop there.] What's the matter? You were holding it before!

[By the wrist, but still.]

[pruning]

[Okay, see. It's okay when he does it. That's the problem here.]

You were controlling yourself before.

[dtective]

Good luck changing it now.

[Ha HAH, he has won this battle. And he pops the last potato piece into his mouth with his hand, just to make matters worse. At least he ate...]

[pruning]

[Ew. Please learn hygiene. D grimaces at him, but he's already standing and picking up the now empty dish to go put it in the kitchen. He's not just going to let this mess linger.]

Dooming me to bad luck, are we? [sigh... be right back while he does this chore.]

[dtective]

[Weird... But fine, he'll just kick back and relax here, maybe finally eat that cookie that had been brought out hours ago. It's nice to finish a meal with, not act as a replacement for one!

Again, he wonders if D is going to slip away while he's off, and then tries to figure out if this is going to be a regular worry. He doesn't think so, considering that this paranoia is even less than the last time... Soon enough they'll be back to normal in that regard. Leon isn't sure it will be quite the same for D, but...

He sits, and waits, and looks around the shop to take in any details that are exactly the same or positioned differently or brand new.]

[pruning]

[If D wanted to sneak out the back and disappear, he could. It would be easy. But he's rinsing tomato juice and rogue rice pieces out of a dish while Leon waits for him in the other room, and very much not fleeing out the back door. It's a strange feeling, like each time he's not actively bickering about pointless nonsense with Leon, he has to stop and confront some new facet of all this and make the decision to stay over again. Over and over again...

It's going to be frustrating when it takes ages for that to get easier. He isn't entirely sure it will, or that he'll be able to keep this up. Then what will they do?

Well, never mind that for now. He finishes with the dish and heads back to the other room, pausing in the doorway to look at Leon looking at all his things.]

I did replace the curtains, if you're wondering. [caught...] And I've acquired the strangest little lamp...

[Is he just going to lean against the wall here and discuss his own furniture? Maybe.]

[dtective]

[He jumps a little because he'd been really lost in thought. Being here in D's shop again, no matter the differences, felt comfortable. Everything from the incense to the arguing... it was comfortable. And now he was being interrupted in the middle of that.]

Jesus, give a little warning when you show up out of nowhere like that! [He'd just been in the next room but what if his inner feelings were visible.] I noticed that. ...The curtains, I mean, not the... Where's the lamp?

[He'd rather discuss furniture at this point.]

[pruning]

[He was just in the kitchen! There's nothing wrong with loitering silently and watching. As such, he makes absolutely no comment on that, but he does smirk a bit before moving away from the wall and over to his new lamp, which is strange but not actually very little at all. Look at it. It's so unnecessary.]

What do you think?

[dtective]

[...How did he not notice that sooner? Leon stares at it for a few seconds before he states simply:] It looks like a prop from Beauty and the Beast.

[pruning]

[That is a weird way to compliment a beautiful lamp.]

I thought it added a... special something. It brightens up the place.

[dtective]

It's a lamp! Of course it brightens up the place!

[He is going to strangle him, he swears.]

And it looks like one of those weird ones in stories that might be cursed. You didn't buy it from any strange street salesman, did you?

[pruning]

[heh...... D is innocent, he has No Idea what Leon could be yelling about.]

Of course not. It's from a very reputable shop run by an industrious old woman who would sooner snap this lamp in half than let it be cursed.

[dtective]

[Okay, but he's still going to stand up to stretch his legs and go over to poke at the weird... plant thing?? Underneath the light. As long as it's not cursed or some weird relative of D's, then he guesses it's okay.]

Yeah, right. [Hmmmm.] Aside from that, you kept things pretty much the same. It looks almost exactly like the one in LA.

[pruning]

Hmm, more or less. [That isn't hard to do when it kind of decorates itself, but he won't get into that.

...Come away from the lamp, Leon.]

While I have your attention, let's change that bandage.

[dtective]

[Is it even that bad? With one of his grumpy looks, he glances to his hand to pick at the bandaging enough to peel it back... okay, it's more than a scratch. Gross. It may not hurt that much, but it sure does look ugly.]

...Fine. [If he's going to keep bringing it up!! Not that he appreciates the help at all, no, of course not. He will follow D to the kitchen or whatever weird other spot he keeps first aid kits as he picks this bandage off himself.]

I can't believe we wasted that whole potato...

[pruning]

[Yes, back to the kitchen, where his mysterious first aid kit is mysteriously kept. D might be fussing over this cut more than he has to - he's seen Leon in worse condition!! - but it would be ridiculous to be careless and get some kind of revolting infection because of a potato.

So he's taking the first aid kit out again and motioning Leon to come closer and give him his gross hand again.]

I can't believe you wanted to use it. Throwing away a damaged potato isn't wasteful.

[dtective]

I'm telling you, it wasn't damaged. You could've just cut off the gross parts, like with moldy bread!

[Hmm, his belief that you can just scrape off mold may be the cause of a few illnesses. But that aside, he offers his hand over, half-peeled-off bandage and all.]

[pruning]

Similar to trace amounts of blood invisible to the naked eye, that is not how mold works. We could not have kept the potato.

[He's not going to explain mold, though, not while he has to deal with this gross cut and grosser bandage. That, he gingerly peels the rest of the way off and tosses out, ew. This time he doesn't yank Leon's arm around in a panic, so his rudimentary first aid is actually quite gentle! Appreciate him.]

[dtective]

[That's weird, D is weird... Who cares that much about a little blood? Vegetarian or not... Eh, well, it'd be weirder if he was leaping at the chance, so this is fine. He isn't really surprised by how gentle D is with him. He's been this gentle with helping his wounds before... So he just watches.

He's actually really tired. It's all catching up with him now, his blinks slowing. Chasing him around has been a real chore, but now he was here... And he could sleep for the night without too much worry. He's still not over it.]

Almost done?

[pruning]

Patience is a virtue, my dear. Just hold still.

[He is almost done, he just needs another moment to wrap it. When he's done he nudges Leon's hand away with a little pat that is maybe, kind of affectionate? Don't say a word.

It's then and only then that he actually looks at Leon's face long enough to realize he's probably tired... ah.]

Mm, it's done. [Go on, shoo, go sulk again on the couch.]

[dtective]

Thanks.

[He says it again almost in a daze, blinking down at his neatly bandaged finger. That is some nice bandaging work... Maybe he'll just be careful what he touches for a while. That pat to his hand, too... Nah, he was probably overthinking it.]

You should put that drawing somewhere before you lose it again. [He adds as he heads back to the couch.]