Revelation in the Light of Day // [Embryze]
Jul 27, 2012 21:04:44 GMT -5
Post by Baby Wessex d9b [earthling] on Jul 27, 2012 21:04:44 GMT -5
for what it's worth, I have a slow disease that sucked me dry... I always aim to please
but I nearly died
The day had been long, exhausting, engaging, and most of all, distracting. By the time the evening had lit District Ten aflame with its colors, Mace was as far from the 61st as he had ever been. He'd claimed Julian's hand during the pageant, and had hardly let it go throughout the rest of the fair. After the pageant the events dwindled towards the closing, and Mace wasn't strictly required to be at the finale. He didn't ask Julian to check his schedule. Instead, he leaned in as they walked and whispered a kiss over the flesh at the nape of his neck. It was time to go home.
Thankfully the fair wasn't far from the victor's village. As had become their custom during Julian's stay in Ten, Mace took the smaller guest bathroom while Julian had the grand master one. It didn't matter a whit to Mace, as long as the shower had good pressure. He scrubbed down quickly, trying to rid himself of the stench of the crowd, and then tied a robe tightly around his fluctuating figure to go upstairs and changed. It was maddeningly strange to live with someone and not really live with them. They still hadn't quite figured out the daily routine, let alone how to live together while their relationship was still in a toddler stage.
It was quite frankly the longest Mace had ever gone without being more intimate.
He'd forgotten about sex altogether after Elon's death. In the weeks that followed he'd thought only about what he could have done differently, about how he could have shown his brother a more worthy love, about how much he had failed. Nothing penetrated his grief. He couldn't even delve into his feelings for Julian because they had changed, part of them stolen along with Elon's life. But Mace was not made of stone. It took time, many sleepless nights, but he was beginning to find feelings anew. And Julian was ever at the forefront of his thoughts.
He picked out a pair of dark jeans and a white button-up, fastening a leather belt around his middle. At the moment it was considerably shrunken, but still not to the condition his abs had been for the Games. Still, he was slowly dwindling to his former glory, one side benefit of the loss he'd suffered. He drew his thumb over the wide belt buckle, a gift from Cygnus. It had suited him over the last holiday season, and yet it looked strange on him now. Gaudy in a way Ten could only be. He doubted Julian would approve.
And it was that thought, so simple in the turmoil of the rest of them, that made him smile up to one side. He tapped the metal, and then hopped down the stairs, out to the barn to check on Whicker. The horse remained a consistent source of comfort for him, even when he didn't necessarily need it. Buoyed by the long day, the hilarity of the pageant, the tingling he'd felt when he'd kissed Julian's soft neck, Mace just wanted to see Whicker to see him, not to escape.
The horse knickered as Mace drew close. He redistributed his feed, making sure not to give him too much, and then looked around the barn. There was plenty for him to do; really he should hire a caregiver. The thought clanged against his heart, but it hit a wall instead of piercing straight through. He felt it, felt Elon's absence, but it was becoming something he could carry instead of something that crushed him. Mace unconsciously scratched his chest as he walked up to the tack pile, ready to polish whatever it needed it when he heard the barn door creak open.
In the dimming light of Ten, Julian Bryze looked like he was glowing. Mace blinked, and then looked down at the saddle. He should focus on it, do his part to take care of Whicker. But all of him thrummed with the idea of Julian being so close, even though he'd been stay in Mace's house for a fortnight. He laid a hand on the U of the saddle, and then looked to Julian again. It seemed to Mace that it was suddenly very difficult to breathe.
"You were great today," he said, even though he'd meant to tease him about being clean enough for Two. But that's what had come out, and so he stuck to it, offering a small, awkward smile. "I mean they really love you here. I wasn't sure it'd work but... you're everything we've ever wanted."
banner credit: jurate
lyrics:placebo for what it's worth
lyrics:placebo for what it's worth