[ did he manage to emulate an action movie scene sufficiently? he may have been missing a snazzy line to say, really, but maybe he'll be forgiven that oversight — regardless, it's a nice, short moment there in the middle of a situation that sucks quite badly, actually, and he has to focus once they're inside the mirror, and even when they're outside of it, too.
he lowers junpei down to his own feet only when he's entirely sure the only other living being in the house is gab — the silence inside the house is oppressive, almost, the darkness now a real danger instead of a mere inconvenience, and the reality that they have to get out of here and fast is what spurs charles into action.
in one swift move, he pulls the bat out of his bag, and holds it out for junpei to take. ] Here, use this. I can come back for other stuff later. [ it's just big enough; luckily, gab isn't a big dog, and charles can make multiple trips to get junpei a change of clothes, gab some of his food, and whatever else they might need. ]
The inn, [ he says then, as he crouches down to pick gab up gently so he can be placed in the backpack. ] Should be our best bet. There's a big mirror in the hall, I put one there just in case. [ thank you richard for asking for his help in redecorating, ] If it's not safe, well, reckon there'll be others, so strength in numbers and whatnot.
[Junpei takes the bag without looking, already looking down to mumble at Gab that they're going on a trip and he's got to be a good boy and hang out in this backpack for a while, okay? It's a good thing, too, because if he actually said, out loud, that there's nothing else to come back and get, well— maybe he'll hold off on admitting he would willingly sit in the inn and stare, in the same clothes, doing nothing, for however long this takes. As long as Gab is fed and he himself doesn't, like, starve or whatever, who cares...
He'll keep that much to himself. He holds the bag open for Gab, who personally, is having a pretty good time, now that he's not alone in the dark.]
More mirrors. [blegh.....] Yeah, okay. That'll work.
[He puts the backpack on backwards, so it's more like a baby carrier with Gab in it, because he's not going to lose his damn dog in the mirror world or somewhere else. Then he stares down the hallway into the dark, thinking - he's still fairly convinced that snake is going to track them down no matter what, so- so yeah, they have to go, they can't hang around here.
He sighs and turns, shuffling up beside Charles to grip the back of his coat and lean his head on his shoulder, just for a moment. Did he mention blegh? Blegh.]
Let's get out of here. If something wrecks the place... Well, let's go.
Sorry, [ he says immediately, frowning apologetically — he knows junpei hates the mirrors, and really, he wouldn't be suggesting it if running to the inn was an option... but it's not. not with the snake and god knows what else out there.
he draws junpei into a tight side-hug as he leans against him, there, before leaning over and pressing a kiss to his temple. ]
Yeah. Just — [ with a glance at the door, too; so far no sounds from the outside, so. he looks at the mirror, its surface still for now. ]
I could go ahead, open the way, then it'll just be stepping in and out, for you. [ but it will mean him having to, well, go ahead, literally, leaving junpei and gab waiting there for the ten or twenty seconds it'll take him to get there.
he adds, with a half-shrug, ] Or I could just carry both of you. [ that's an option, too, gab is no added weight at all. but he wants this to be as easy as possible, and junpei hates mirrors, so if there's anything he can do to make it more comfortable... well. of course he'll do it. ]
[He just watched Charles get snake-slapped through an entire building, and even if Charles is far too unconcerned with himself, Junpei doesn't want to leave him on his own. Just as much as he doesn't want to be left behind in the dark, even for a minute.
And carrying him was, ahem, quite delightful the first time, but now that they've stopped for a few minutes and the reality of the situation has had time to settle heavy in his stomach, ugh... It's probably the best plan? It is not, however, super hot this time.
(Well, it's normal hot. Anyway.)]
Whatever works, man. You're faster than me, so...
[He extracts himself from this side hug and takes a step back to... stand there. He's ready. Specifically for uppies.]
[ right, so that's out of the question, then — which is fine, really, because charles isn't too keen on leaving junpei by himself here, either. and he's not exactly concerned about anything he's doing being, hm, hot in any way at all; he's all about being pragmatic right now, has been through all too many supernatural chase situations to think of anything else except the best plan to get them through it relatively unharmed.
so he ducks his head, to drop a kiss on gab's little head, then lifts it enough to kiss junpei, too, just because he can, and because it's a nice distraction from what the mirror is going to be like — and then he's just sliding his arms in place and scooping him up just as easily as before. ]
Sorry, buddy, [ he says to gab, ] You're gonna hate this, but I'll be quick. [ which he is; it's clear that it's not the first time he's walked the distance between their mirror and the one at the inn, and it takes perhaps half a minute total for them to be in and out — and as soon as he steps out of the mirror, it's clear something's different: the inn is still brightly lit as usual, and charles can't help but heave a relieved sigh. ]
Fucking hell, [ he says, and sets junpei back down gently. ] Think this'll be fine. They've got the lights on, that's got to mean something.
[Up again and back through the mirror, ugh... At least Junpei has Gab to distract himself with, hugging the dog-in-backpack close to his chest during the brief jaunt through the mirror. Gab has no idea what's going on although not in his usual pleasant old man way, and so whines the entire way through the mirror and is still whining when Charles puts them back down. Junpei crouches immediately to get Gab out of the backpack - and maybe because two mirror trips in a row make him feel extra awful.
He keeps Gab cradled in one arm as he straightens up again, holding the backpack out to Charles and looking at the inn. The lights are on?
Somehow, it kind of makes him angry. The fucking inn has the lights on and nobody said anything? They ran from a big evil snake and the inn was fine the whole time?]
The fuck... [aaaaAAAAAA—] Okay, whatever. Let's go, maybe my old room is empty.
[Angrily, let's go. It's stupid and illogical to be mad about the inn, he knows this, but it's the easiest target for all of his frustrations right now, so: fuck this building in particular, but fine.]
[ he grabs the backpack and swings it over one shoulder, reaching out to junpei, to take his hand — unnecessary, perhaps, given that the inn seems to be a safe place... but you never know, and he feels better like this, like gripping his hand tightly reassures him that he's still there, and safe, and relatively okay.
relatively, because there's a tightness around his eyes and an undercurrent of anger in his words, but that's fine — he's used to junpei's anger sparking at a variety of different things, some of them more easily explained than others.
so he just nods and says, ] Yeah, [ and then pulls junpei along, hoping that his room is indeed free, that'd be a very dusty silver lining for this whole thing... and maybe their shit luck for the day is finally turning, because his room is empty, and charles lets out an exhale when the door closes behind them, and the light in the room remains on. ]
Right. Guess this is us, then, for however long this thing's going on. [ "this thing" meaning, of course, the darkness and the monsters and whatnot. ]
[Charles' hand in his is a comfort, of course, it always is; still, Junpei remains quiet as they enter the inn and head upstairs. He doesn't want to look around and see who else is here, if there are any familiar faces, who all is accounted for—
(He wants to do that very much, actually, but he can't or he will never sit down.)
So. His old room. Gab is still unsettled, so Junpei takes a moment to mutter to him about how this is totally home away from home, they'll get him some food soon, for sure, while putting the dog down to let him explore the new space. Junpei sits on the floor, because of course he does.]
Hey, [up, to Charles, hi,] Before you go out there and do some big hero thing...
[And he raises an eyebrow briefly, as if to say don't even pretend to deny this, they both know Charles can't resist the pull of good deeds, Junpei loves him immensely for it but right this second, well—] Stay here with me for a while? I won't even ask what the hell happened with the big snake.
[ as junpei mutters to gab, charles does a sweep of the room, just in case — and he does end up hovering somewhere near the door, so junpei's assumption is... not altogether wrong, really. ]
But I — [ he starts, and then swallows the rest, because the rest is definitely need to go and take care of that snake; richard's got some swords, he's pretty damn sure of that, so maybe he can just borrow one and go cut the snake's head off. he dealt with the bigger one on his own, this one shouldn't be a challenge, either.
but he's also incapable of saying no when junpei asks him for anything, and after a moment, he sighs and sits down, too, right next to him, wrapping his arm around his shoulders and pulling him close. ]
Yeah, alright. I'll stay as long as you want me to. [ or at least as long as he's awake; when the night comes and he's asleep, well. won't matter if he's gone then, will it? ]
[See, he's doing it, he's thinking about it—Junpei continues to give him the same look, knowing and fond despite the circumstances (knowingly throwing oneself into danger, please, he wrote the book on that one). That holds until Charles sits down and Junpei leans against him, putting his head on his shoulder and winding an arm around his waist. There's a touch of intensity in it, because he really doesn't intend to let Charles run off anytime soon.
Surely he can stay awake forever— Eh, they'll get there.]
It'll still be there later. We didn't see anyone else out there, so...
[So that's blatantly an excuse, a hasty balm slapped over the situation, Junpei can selfishly monopolize Charles' time for a handful of hours, at least.]
I know. [ there's an attempt at a smile, there, a kind of reassurance that he's not going to go out there right this second — but whether he's trying to convince junpei or himself that it's all fine for him to remain here, well.
but it's fine, it has to be fine, because junpei is his first priority, always — and this is no different. the entire world could be full of snakes, out there, and he still wouldn't run out on him, not when he's explicitly asked him to stay.
so he sighs again, and turns his head to drop a kiss on junpei's head. ]
You don't need to thank me, love. Nowhere else I'd rather be. [ a pause, and then, softly, ] You matter to me more than anyone or anything else, yeah? So if you want me to stay, I'll stay.
[The snakes can wait, there are other people in this town who can swing a sword or a bat or whatever, but there's only one Charles. Junpei doesn't want to sit in this room with nothing but the dog and his thoughts, and since he's comparatively useless against a big snake (or snakes! who knows how many there are!) he can't go back out there with Charles...
So, this: sinking into Charles with a sense of, hm, dread? Guilt? There are other people in this town but what if they're one short— No, it's stupid to think about it like that.]
I always want you to stay. [And yet, is he going to fall asleep sooner or later, yes...] Just keep me posted if you go out.
[... ....... .....,] The rock baseball thing you did back there was pretty cool.
And I always want to stay, [ he says just as easily — he leans against junpei in turn, and thinks for a moment about the truth in his own words. because really — as much as he's determined to give junpei his space, if it was only up to him, he'd really never leave.
so he just nods; yes, he won't go without letting him know.
and then, with a slight grin, ] Couldn't have done it without your good throwing skills, could I?
I know you do, [Junpei says, and he does, just as much as he knows Charles can't resist rushing in to do all the heroics he's capable of. It's too bad that becoming shut-ins for the rest of time just isn't an option for either of them, honestly, much as Junpei would like that right now.
And ugh, please, he's cute. Junpei scoffs.]
It was a lucky toss.
[He slouches down a few inches more, leaning more heavily into Charles. This is where he will fall asleep and give himself a cool crick in the neck, yes indeed...] But I guess we still make a good team.
[ he rests his head against junpei's, turns it slightly so he can look down at him fondly — and yeah, sure, this can be where he falls asleep, and then charles will gently carry him over to the bed so he can sleep there, properly, possibly with gab settled over his legs. ]
Course we do. [ softly, ] The next time I need someone to throw me projectiles I can hit with my bat, I know who to ask.
[He pantomimes a pitiful little throw, at this angle, but the sentiment is there. Should he really take up ranged rock throwing, for real? The agreement to keep out of danger is getting harder to actually stick to, the way things keep coming right into the city instead of being past its borders, huh...
Well, whatever. He's tired for real; whatever he thinks about the inn right now, the comparative warmth and light and safety cool the panic adrenaline right out of him. He reaches up blindly to find Charles' cheek and give it a fond pat.] Love you. Remember to leave a note.
[Just a helpful reminder, before he lets himself drift off for real.]
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he lowers junpei down to his own feet only when he's entirely sure the only other living being in the house is gab — the silence inside the house is oppressive, almost, the darkness now a real danger instead of a mere inconvenience, and the reality that they have to get out of here and fast is what spurs charles into action.
in one swift move, he pulls the bat out of his bag, and holds it out for junpei to take. ] Here, use this. I can come back for other stuff later. [ it's just big enough; luckily, gab isn't a big dog, and charles can make multiple trips to get junpei a change of clothes, gab some of his food, and whatever else they might need. ]
The inn, [ he says then, as he crouches down to pick gab up gently so he can be placed in the backpack. ] Should be our best bet. There's a big mirror in the hall, I put one there just in case. [ thank you richard for asking for his help in redecorating, ] If it's not safe, well, reckon there'll be others, so strength in numbers and whatnot.
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He'll keep that much to himself. He holds the bag open for Gab, who personally, is having a pretty good time, now that he's not alone in the dark.]
More mirrors. [blegh.....] Yeah, okay. That'll work.
[He puts the backpack on backwards, so it's more like a baby carrier with Gab in it, because he's not going to lose his damn dog in the mirror world or somewhere else. Then he stares down the hallway into the dark, thinking - he's still fairly convinced that snake is going to track them down no matter what, so- so yeah, they have to go, they can't hang around here.
He sighs and turns, shuffling up beside Charles to grip the back of his coat and lean his head on his shoulder, just for a moment. Did he mention blegh? Blegh.]
Let's get out of here. If something wrecks the place... Well, let's go.
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he draws junpei into a tight side-hug as he leans against him, there, before leaning over and pressing a kiss to his temple. ]
Yeah. Just — [ with a glance at the door, too; so far no sounds from the outside, so. he looks at the mirror, its surface still for now. ]
I could go ahead, open the way, then it'll just be stepping in and out, for you. [ but it will mean him having to, well, go ahead, literally, leaving junpei and gab waiting there for the ten or twenty seconds it'll take him to get there.
he adds, with a half-shrug, ] Or I could just carry both of you. [ that's an option, too, gab is no added weight at all. but he wants this to be as easy as possible, and junpei hates mirrors, so if there's anything he can do to make it more comfortable... well. of course he'll do it. ]
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[He just watched Charles get snake-slapped through an entire building, and even if Charles is far too unconcerned with himself, Junpei doesn't want to leave him on his own. Just as much as he doesn't want to be left behind in the dark, even for a minute.
And carrying him was, ahem, quite delightful the first time, but now that they've stopped for a few minutes and the reality of the situation has had time to settle heavy in his stomach, ugh... It's probably the best plan? It is not, however, super hot this time.
(Well, it's normal hot. Anyway.)]
Whatever works, man. You're faster than me, so...
[He extracts himself from this side hug and takes a step back to... stand there. He's ready. Specifically for uppies.]
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so he ducks his head, to drop a kiss on gab's little head, then lifts it enough to kiss junpei, too, just because he can, and because it's a nice distraction from what the mirror is going to be like — and then he's just sliding his arms in place and scooping him up just as easily as before. ]
Sorry, buddy, [ he says to gab, ] You're gonna hate this, but I'll be quick. [ which he is; it's clear that it's not the first time he's walked the distance between their mirror and the one at the inn, and it takes perhaps half a minute total for them to be in and out — and as soon as he steps out of the mirror, it's clear something's different: the inn is still brightly lit as usual, and charles can't help but heave a relieved sigh. ]
Fucking hell, [ he says, and sets junpei back down gently. ] Think this'll be fine. They've got the lights on, that's got to mean something.
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He keeps Gab cradled in one arm as he straightens up again, holding the backpack out to Charles and looking at the inn. The lights are on?
Somehow, it kind of makes him angry. The fucking inn has the lights on and nobody said anything? They ran from a big evil snake and the inn was fine the whole time?]
The fuck... [aaaaAAAAAA—] Okay, whatever. Let's go, maybe my old room is empty.
[Angrily, let's go. It's stupid and illogical to be mad about the inn, he knows this, but it's the easiest target for all of his frustrations right now, so: fuck this building in particular, but fine.]
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relatively, because there's a tightness around his eyes and an undercurrent of anger in his words, but that's fine — he's used to junpei's anger sparking at a variety of different things, some of them more easily explained than others.
so he just nods and says, ] Yeah, [ and then pulls junpei along, hoping that his room is indeed free, that'd be a very dusty silver lining for this whole thing... and maybe their shit luck for the day is finally turning, because his room is empty, and charles lets out an exhale when the door closes behind them, and the light in the room remains on. ]
Right. Guess this is us, then, for however long this thing's going on. [ "this thing" meaning, of course, the darkness and the monsters and whatnot. ]
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(He wants to do that very much, actually, but he can't or he will never sit down.)
So. His old room. Gab is still unsettled, so Junpei takes a moment to mutter to him about how this is totally home away from home, they'll get him some food soon, for sure, while putting the dog down to let him explore the new space. Junpei sits on the floor, because of course he does.]
Hey, [up, to Charles, hi,] Before you go out there and do some big hero thing...
[And he raises an eyebrow briefly, as if to say don't even pretend to deny this, they both know Charles can't resist the pull of good deeds, Junpei loves him immensely for it but right this second, well—] Stay here with me for a while? I won't even ask what the hell happened with the big snake.
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But I — [ he starts, and then swallows the rest, because the rest is definitely need to go and take care of that snake; richard's got some swords, he's pretty damn sure of that, so maybe he can just borrow one and go cut the snake's head off. he dealt with the bigger one on his own, this one shouldn't be a challenge, either.
but he's also incapable of saying no when junpei asks him for anything, and after a moment, he sighs and sits down, too, right next to him, wrapping his arm around his shoulders and pulling him close. ]
Yeah, alright. I'll stay as long as you want me to. [ or at least as long as he's awake; when the night comes and he's asleep, well. won't matter if he's gone then, will it? ]
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Surely he can stay awake forever— Eh, they'll get there.]
It'll still be there later. We didn't see anyone else out there, so...
[So that's blatantly an excuse, a hasty balm slapped over the situation, Junpei can selfishly monopolize Charles' time for a handful of hours, at least.]
Well, thanks. It's just— thanks.
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but it's fine, it has to be fine, because junpei is his first priority, always — and this is no different. the entire world could be full of snakes, out there, and he still wouldn't run out on him, not when he's explicitly asked him to stay.
so he sighs again, and turns his head to drop a kiss on junpei's head. ]
You don't need to thank me, love. Nowhere else I'd rather be. [ a pause, and then, softly, ] You matter to me more than anyone or anything else, yeah? So if you want me to stay, I'll stay.
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So, this: sinking into Charles with a sense of, hm, dread? Guilt? There are other people in this town but what if they're one short— No, it's stupid to think about it like that.]
I always want you to stay. [And yet, is he going to fall asleep sooner or later, yes...] Just keep me posted if you go out.
[... ....... .....,] The rock baseball thing you did back there was pretty cool.
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so he just nods; yes, he won't go without letting him know.
and then, with a slight grin, ] Couldn't have done it without your good throwing skills, could I?
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And ugh, please, he's cute. Junpei scoffs.]
It was a lucky toss.
[He slouches down a few inches more, leaning more heavily into Charles. This is where he will fall asleep and give himself a cool crick in the neck, yes indeed...] But I guess we still make a good team.
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[ he rests his head against junpei's, turns it slightly so he can look down at him fondly — and yeah, sure, this can be where he falls asleep, and then charles will gently carry him over to the bed so he can sleep there, properly, possibly with gab settled over his legs. ]
Course we do. [ softly, ] The next time I need someone to throw me projectiles I can hit with my bat, I know who to ask.
slaps a beautiful 🎀 on this
[He pantomimes a pitiful little throw, at this angle, but the sentiment is there. Should he really take up ranged rock throwing, for real? The agreement to keep out of danger is getting harder to actually stick to, the way things keep coming right into the city instead of being past its borders, huh...
Well, whatever. He's tired for real; whatever he thinks about the inn right now, the comparative warmth and light and safety cool the panic adrenaline right out of him. He reaches up blindly to find Charles' cheek and give it a fond pat.] Love you. Remember to leave a note.
[Just a helpful reminder, before he lets himself drift off for real.]