Complete Private ✪ Stokbon Nightfire

[Luthien]

It took a moment, but the simple "Ah." confirmed they were both on the same page once again—with all that had happened they’d never really talked about his death since that day. The expected ”I'm fine." that slipped through first was met with a dubious stare, the unspoken question easy for him to pick up as the hunter chuckled and elaborated a bit further.

"No reflection?" Confusion and curiosity colored her words in equal amounts, her brows furrowing slightly as he continued. ”You mean… like a vampire? You’re not cold, though." She stated the obvious as her hand reached to rest on his chest, the rhythmic beating of his heart causing a faint smile to tug at the edges of her lips. "Thankfully it didn’t make you allergic to garlic either~"

Soft giggles mingled with his laughter as they spoke of the downsides of having some vampiric attributes, before the mention of the unexpected clairvoyant ability caused her to think back to her favorite series. "Wait… is it like the scrying glass Nathaniel had in the Bartimaeus books?"

@Yugam

 

[Yugam]

Ari chuckled quietly as Val asked if he meant like a vampire, joking about his not being cold. Or, at least he thought she was joking. Whatever the case was, she reached toward him, the warmth of her palm against his chest as she faintly grinned and Ari replied: "Yes, kinda like a vampire. But god, I don't know how I'd live without garlic." Truly a lamentation to be remembered.

"Wait… is it like the scrying glass Nathaniel had in the Bartimaeus books?" Ari looked at Val blankly for a moment. "I...don't know?" he answered. "Uhm, more specifically I can see memories. That's why I didn't stab you back at Camp Hope, actually." Ah, good times that. "I can also look into the future. Or, at least at possible futures." Given what the nature of time itself was. "I can also ask for information. Kinda. Its all pretty vacuous, if I'm being entire honestly. So I mean I guess? Sure. Bartimaeus scrying glass but more functions and less reliable." Let's go with that.

@Luthien

 

[Luthien]

Although she’d meant it mostly as a joke there was a small part of the elf that felt relieved to feel the rhythmic heartbeats inside his chest, they brought an unexpected comfort that Lúthien couldn’t quite explain in words. "Pfft, I refuse to believe a vampire hasn’t figure out a pill to handle garlic like we’ve done with lactose… if they haven’t they’re slacking, or maybe they just forgot how good garlic tastes." She scoffs at the thought, before their conversation slowly turns away from silly vampire theories and back to the main subject currently on hand.

"Wait, you can see memories too…?" Surprise colors her words, before the true revelation of why he hadn’t stabbed her when they met back in Camp Hope was revealed. "So what you’re saying is you would’ve stabbed me if that DA of yours hadn’t happened, hmmm?"

The mocked indignation on her tone didn’t last long, interrupted by a handful of quiet chuckles that eventually escaped before curious crimson eyes glanced back to Yugam. "So, which memory prevented you from inflicting me with my first DA?"

@Yugam

 

[Yugam]

"Whatever the case, I pity said, sad vampires," Ari concluded with a slight chuckle before they fell into a comfortable silence again. Even though he hadn't meant to keep it secret, telling someone, especially Val, about his Affliction felt like a weight off his chest. A weight he hadn't even realized he'd been carrying. Despite that other weights grew heavier. Other effects, they were his cross to bear. And he would bear them in silence.

"Wait, you can see memories too…? So what you're saying is you would've stabbed me if that DA of yours hadn't happened, hmmm?" Oh no. Well this was a trap if Ari had ever seen one. On one hand, if he told Val the truth, she'd be mad at him. On the other hand, she certainly knew him well enough to already know what the answer was, and she might get mad at him for lying. A rock and a hard place. Well, there was only one thing to do in that case. Bait and switch. "Uh, well...y-yeah..." the man admitted sheepishly. "But I would've felt bad after when I figured out who you were!" he quickly added, before Val had the chance to get upset with him.

She shook it all off with a chuckle, as the man probably should've expected, before asking what memory he'd seen that'd stayed his hand. "New York," he answered, trying to recall exactly what it was. "I think we were just in my room after you had that leak in yours, watching a movie together...we uh...we made out...like, a lot." Saying it aloud felt weirdly embarrassing considering they did a lot more than just make out at this point, but the awkwardness remained anyways.

@Luthien

 

[Luthien]

She couldn’t lie, it had been entertaining to see the man quickly trying to think of an acceptable answer that wouldn’t land him in the proverbial dog house. It had certainly made Lúthien keep up the charade just a little longer, before finally giving in shortly after he’d answered.

"Damn right you would’ve." Part of her knew she wouldn’t have faulted him for it, after all she hadn’t really thought things through before deciding to invade his mind telepathically. COnsidering that this game was illegal to begin with it wasn’t unexpected for some of those playing it to risk everything in order to keep their identity safe… "That said you have the worst IRL friends, the least they could’ve done was tell you not to make your avatar a copy of yourself."

Then again maybe she should’ve thanked them for it, otherwise she very much doubted either of them would’ve ever told the other about the banned and dangerous virtual game they were playing.

"New York." His voice caught her focus again, a handful of soft giggles escaping at the memory of the unexpected water incident in her room as the blonde made herself comfortable once more at his side. "Mmm, I remember that night… just my luck to get the room underneath the one dumbass that couldn’t hold their liquor well."

Still, she couldn’t quite complain about it in the end—it certainly made the rest of her stay in New York all the more memorable—before the odd spacing between his words caused the elf to tilt her head enough to better look at her boyfriend. ”...we uh...we made out...like, a lot.”

"Ah... y-yeah, I uh… I remember now." Her words became slightly muffled as the blonde chose to hide her face in the crook of his neck, aware of the burning flood that flooded her cheeks as that part of the memory resurfaced. "We really d-did, huh?"

Part of her knew it was silly to feel embarrassed about it, by now they’d done way more than just a heavy make out session, and yet he still made her heart flutter like the very first time they’d kissed. "I... I l-love you."

@Yugam

 

[Yugam]

Despite the fact that he rolled his eyes, Ari let out a small exhalation of relief once it'd become clear that she wasn't going to hit him with la chancla. Ari knew well enough to fear the power of an angry latina with a sandal, let alone a whole pair.

"They're not that bad," the man said with a slightly dismissive wave before gesturing in a circular motion towards his own head. "They're just a little..." Not there all the time? Absent-minded? Some of the worst cases of ADHD he'd ever encountered in his twenty something years of life? Honestly, it amazed him most days that they somehow passed as semi-functioning humans. "Not all bad though. We get extra time together this way, ya know?" Ari added, the arm around Val's shoulders squeezing slightly.

Val buried her head in the crook of the man's neck. Though she could hide away the blush that colored her cheeks, she only made the heat radiating from them all the more apparent. Ari chuckled. "Yeah, yeah we did," he said. In a small, quiet, almost unheard voice, he could hear Val say three small words. "I love you too."

@Luthien