Alexander "I know how to people" the Great (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
towards_okeanos) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
middaeg2020-02-04 09:33 pm
towards_okeanos) wrote in middaeg2020-02-04 09:33 pm
Entry tags:
Never is it diminished in sharing but grows stronger with it
Who: Iskandar, Judar and Waver
When: Somewhere after the rescue (21st) but before the trial
Where: Hospital where injured Mirrorbounds are getting their much needed medical attention
What: Iskandar plans to introduce Judar to his Bonded and vice versa.
Warnings: Possible discussion of injuries, will update as needed
[Those were the long days and hours. Nights too. Some of the medical staff that came and went started to joke that next time they know Iskandar would be moving in. Judging by how often they saw him in the hospital halls, it wasn't the most unreasonable assumption.
On the day when Waver is finally able to walk without getting them both angry looks from the healers, Iskandar gets him on a longer stroll down the hospital's corridors.]
There's someone I'd like you to meet. [He stops before a nondescript door to an equally nondescript room. It's a hospital, they all look the same.] I think you might have seen each other before but I want to introduce you properly.
[He opens the door and walks in, beckoning Waver to do the same.]
Judar, this is my Bonded, Waver.
Waver, dearest, this is Judar.
[Iskandar smiles looking from one to the other, gauging their reactions.]
When: Somewhere after the rescue (21st) but before the trial
Where: Hospital where injured Mirrorbounds are getting their much needed medical attention
What: Iskandar plans to introduce Judar to his Bonded and vice versa.
Warnings: Possible discussion of injuries, will update as needed
[Those were the long days and hours. Nights too. Some of the medical staff that came and went started to joke that next time they know Iskandar would be moving in. Judging by how often they saw him in the hospital halls, it wasn't the most unreasonable assumption.
On the day when Waver is finally able to walk without getting them both angry looks from the healers, Iskandar gets him on a longer stroll down the hospital's corridors.]
There's someone I'd like you to meet. [He stops before a nondescript door to an equally nondescript room. It's a hospital, they all look the same.] I think you might have seen each other before but I want to introduce you properly.
[He opens the door and walks in, beckoning Waver to do the same.]
Judar, this is my Bonded, Waver.
Waver, dearest, this is Judar.
[Iskandar smiles looking from one to the other, gauging their reactions.]
no subject
Sudden visitors make for a decent distraction from the pain, which manages to go through the sedated muscles and nerves. Raising up a thickly bandaged hand, with splints along all of the fingers, to also let them come in further. ]
Yeah. The pup that's working with Cú and getting a lot of the basework done for all things getting ready to be done.
[ Meanwhile, a lot of Judar's work was with design and trying to get things effective with a good aesthetic, in a way that Cú would actually be able to work with. Their spellwork had different designs, but according to the witch, both were solid.It's part of why Judar was up for letting them see his work for how his world's magic tools were put together, and how it could translate into enchanted items and the like. Maybe it didn't get to the other seeing them, but the books were left at the parlor, in the back, before all this nonsense happened.
... Ah. They're going to have to figure out how much work needed to be redone, didn't they? Though Judar did put a recommendation for fire-proofing important things, with how fire-aligned Cú was. ]
I don’t think we need to stick to particular order. So have a proud Iskandar..
[Iskandar beams as he replies. He keeps his arm around Waver’s waist in a gesture that’s in part possessive but mostly protective. He might be laughing again but the edge is not completely off.]
You’re looking better. I’m glad.
awww!
He accepts the invitation to walk around, of course, eager to get his strength back up after languishing in that prison for so long and then being stuck in a hospital bed. What he doesn't expect is Iskandar's declaration that he's to meet someone, or who that someone is.
His lips thin, pressing together tightly in a flash of annoyance, ears twitching. ]
Please don't call me that. It's Waver.
Judar... you've been working with Caster on some designs. Nice to properly meet you.
[ Considering the flat tone of voice, he doesn't sound entirely sincere, but he's being polite because Iskandar wanted to introduce him... Judar would be getting a lot more shit for calling him a puppy otherwise, for sure. ]
no subject
Don't take it personal. I give most people a nickname.
[ Iskander's nickname is probably just the least mean of them. (Sokie gets called a hag, for example. How mean.) However, he can see the way they are together. Which brings a few thoughts that has Judar fixing himself back on the bed. While not much else can be done, as long as he uses his palms, he can hold a cup of water enough to drink on his own. Tools and proper grasping were still in his future. ]
Mm. Big guy, you know your offer doesn't work if not everyone's on board with it, right?
[ Did Waver even know what Iskander had offered? The faun might've lived loose, but he wasn't really for domestic squabbles. ]
no subject
[He watches as Judar struggles with the cup. He would help him if this was just a regular visit. But it is not. Judar needs to know that Iskandar believes he can do things on his own. He needs that show of trust. Especially in front of Waver.
It may seem negligible. An insignificant detail. Who cares who looks how; they are in the hospital. Of course, nobody is in their best shape here. So it would be easy to ignore its importance but countries and empires have risen or fallen on smaller. He who cannot do well in small things, won't do better in grand.
Even the question does not surprise him. He expected it.]
I know and they are.
[That Judar even entertains a thought that Iskandar could withhold such important information from his Bonded speaks a lot about him and his past. One does not make such assumptions unless one has been subjected, or seen others subjected, to similar treatment.]
Unless you have changed your mind.
[He likes this kid. He truly wishes to see him grow. It doesn't change the fact that he will only take the willing. It is an offer, not a compulsion.]
no subject
I prefer not to have a nickname. You can call me Waver. It's really not that hard.
[ It's a bit forceful, but he manages not to outright snap. Considering the situation, Waver doesn't offer to shake his hand, but he does nod in a way that's supposed to be a similar polite greeting. If he can't be genuinely enthusiastic, he's doing his best to sound neutral, especially knowing how important this is to Iskandar; in reality, it's difficult to tamp down his territorial instincts and the desire to put his guard up, and Judar's attitude is an immediate frustration that's taken Waver by surprise. He tries to get the conversation back on track. ]
But... yes. We talked about it. It sounds like your living situation is a bit... uncertain? If you don't want to talk about it, I won't pry. But if you need a place, we can work something out. I understand.
[ He pulls out one of the chairs near the bed, glancing up at Iskandar and then over at Judar. ]
...Mind if we sit?
no subject
[ Whether that was in response to making kinder nicknames, or going with Waver's request to not have one at all is left ambiguous. Mostly because that's just the kind of personality the faun had. It's one that went alongside the way he'd watch the way people reacted, to read their body language and eventually figure out whatever tells he'd need to keep an eye out for.
So he finishes getting the cup picked up, to drink some of the water and get it set down. That way he could casually gesture for the two to get comfortable however they pleased. The hospital chairs were... well, as small as most of the rooms, and it's amazing to him that no one's had to come in and take one of the chairs for another room, for how limited his visitations have been. No groups of visitors, that is. ]
If you can get comfortable in them, go for it. Besides, it's not like I changed my mind or anything. I'd just rather be sure...
[ It's less that he thinks Iskander would put the turnskin in a situation where he felt like he had to agree, and more that this either rested on the first impressions, or was the case of someone holding out just to make their Other happy. What kind of 'Other'... Eh, there were more than enough terms that weren't necessary. ]
My situation was just that I never really trusted the Coven's housing. So while I've been keeping things there, I just spend the night wherever. With that and not having a bond, I explained how that's how no one out of that dungeon knew that I was part of the kidnapped group, so no one would've been searching.
[ It was all... Rather matter-of-fact, to a nearly detached set of facts, in the way that Judar explained it all. This didn't bother him, and was simply how the situation was. It's not like he was bothered by the idea of explaining this again, to the other person that mattered in this choice. Waver may as well have the same context and idea that he gave to Iskander. ]
no subject
He's glad to hear Judar presenting to Waver the same reasoning he did to him. He wouldn't ask for it. It would be cruel and he prefers not to be cruel. Lest of all to people he genuinely cares about. For Judar to do this on his own, unprompted, it is appreciated.
Only after they both spoken he decides to add a few words of his own.]
And that is exactly why I find your current situation unacceptable.
We'll see what can be done about that bond later. Right now you need an address. A place to come back to. A place where you would be expected. So you won't just vanish like that.
no subject
He listens in silence at the explanation, but his eyes are sympathetic.
No one would've been searching.
His chest feels tight, a pang of sadness as he considers this, and suddenly he understands why Iskandar felt the need to offer. On top of what they'd discussed and Iskandar's views on this young man's potential and allowing him an environment to show his worth, it is just decent to offer him a little bit of security. Waver can't even imagine how he could have gotten through all the horrors they'd been subjected to in that prison if he didn't know whether anyone would even be waiting for him if he got out. If he'd been so alone that no one even noticed he was gone.
Maybe Judar isn't bothered by it, but Waver is.
He nods his agreement to Iskandar's declaration. Even if the mention of a potential Bond between them makes the fur on the back of his neck prickle with discomfort. They'll cross that bridge eventually, but not now. ]
When you're able to move around more easily, you can come over and we can talk about room arrangement.
[ He lets Iskandar be reassuring; he can be practical. ]
If you need to give an address or contact information to the hospital, I'll write it down for you now so you'll have it.
no subject
[ Judar has certainly come to terms and decided to accept the way things were as fact- something that simply was, and he was working with it being that way. For all he knew, it'd be better that way. It's like that with both his paranoid lifestyle, of using a single place for storage and moving around with random hookups, and how he wasn't planning or searching for a Bond.
Probably because, while multiple Bonds were a thing, he was already aware of how it could be for someone that was in Waver's position. So he decided it was all easier to go his own way. The problem is that there was more of a time limit on that than he believes, and there was never any real clear definition on it.
So the practical, and having an advantage to living somewhere with others, instead of some Coven room, alone. ]
They probably would be willing to let me go earlier if I had a place with others, even if it'd still be a while... Okay. I don't know where any pens or paper would be, though.
[ He'll probably learn when he's able to bend his fingers more. ]
no subject
Willing they might be but don't insist on getting out before the doctors say you are ready. [It would be a while before you'd be writing anything...] I always carry something with me.
[He takes out a small, leatherbound notebook with a pencil attached. It's full of sketches of people, places, animals, design ideas for tattoos, roughly drawn maps. But it's not impossible to find a blank page. Yet. He hands it to Waver.]
We can leave information with the nurses too.
no subject
He writes down the address, both their watch contact information, and some simple directions on how to get there from where they are now before handing it to Judar. The notebook and pen goes back to Iskandar. ]
Here.
[ Not that Judar couldn't contact Iskandar for directions when he gets out. They could also leave information with the hospital staff as suggested. But this piece of paper is more than just directions; it's Waver's symbolic agreement allowing Judar into his territory. If it helps no one else, it makes him feel a little better, at least. ]
You focus on getting better. If you have any stuff you need moved ahead of time, one of us can grab it for you.
no subject
[ It's meant to be a sound for both understanding and saying that he'd listen. There's just also a subtle distraction, not from watching Waver write the address and instructions down, but something in his own head. Nothing actually big, or something to get bitter about, but amplified by something he's able to keep very subtle most of the time. Something that twists and interprets a lot of things as worse than what they were.
Just as he interprets Waver handing over the paper as both an agreement (accurate) and a power move (not so accurate.) Just because Judar was stuck having to take the torn out page by putting it between his two bandaged and splinted hands. ]
Ah... A lot of the wardrobe needs to be sold off, anyway. I didn't have time between that moon and the fires. Everything else is just books and money. So there's nothing that needs to be hurried.
[ ... Judar, how are you expecting to get the books moved, without someone else grabbing it? ]
no subject
Good. We'd deal with such matters after you'll get released. First, you need to heal. And rest.
[He raises from his chair.] We'd be going now. Try to get some sleep. [He takes Waver's hand.] Come, dearest.
[...you know, Iskandar has a horse. That can carry quite a lot of weight. Obviously, Bucephalus would be annoyed and offended at the mere suggestion. She's a war steed, not a pack mule! Still a solution.]