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31_days2005-08-16 11:52 pm
of-carabas.livejournal.com) wrote in 31_days2005-08-16 11:52 pm
[August 16] [Petshop of Horrors; Original] Guest at the Tea Party; Trade-Off
Title: Guest at the Tea Party
Day/Theme: August 16th/Kingdom of the mad
Series: Petshop of Horrors
Characters: Leon, D
Rating: PG
If Count D wasn't a criminal - and he was, of course, but if he wasn't - then he had to be insane. That was the only other explanation. In fact, Leon decided, he was probably both.
Even putting aside his taste in clothing, the Count was just too plain weird to be sane. Anyone who'd been in the shop for five seconds could tell that; Leon had to wonder how the guy managed to do any business at all. Half the time Leon walked in the guy was lounging around on a fancy-looking couch, having a tea party with snakes and raccoons. The guy might as well just change his name to the Mad Hatter. Not to mention that funny attitude of his, that little smile, like he knew something Leon didn't. That was arrogance, was what it was, and that pissed Leon off - come on, D ran a petshop, in the middle of Chinatown. It wasn't even his shop, he was always saying the place belonged to some relative. Where did he get off, lording it over a guy like some - well, like a count, Leon supposed.
But he bet that title wasn't even real.
Yeah, that'd be like D, making up something like a title to make himself seem fancy and exotic, instead of just plain weird. He did stuff like that all the time. Like that little dragon stunt - Leon still wasn't sure what the hell had happened there, D must have spiked his drink or something, but seriously, what kind of guy got his jollies convincing people he was selling dragon eggs? For a while there he'd even had Leon convinced they'd seen a dragon, for real.
The crazy must be contagious.
Hey, maybe that was how he managed to do business despite the wacky - his customers were as nuts as he was. Sure would explain a lot of his cases. 'Course, if the Count-makes-people-crazy theory was right, then by now Leon ought to be the craziest of them all. And he was as clear-headed as he'd always been, wasn't he?
"More tea, detective?"
Leon looked down at the empty cup in his hand, and then at the funky-looking cat-thing rubbing up against his shin. D smiled at him from the other side of the table, that little smile, like he knew exactly what you were thinking and thought it was a great joke.
...Nah. After all, he was still only here to catch D, right? He was still thinking straight.
"Yeah, pour me another cup."
Title: Trade-Off
Day/Theme: August 16th/Kingdom of the mad
Series: Original (CAGE)
Characters: Rob, Akira, Ben
Rating: PG
The boss had his arms wrapped around a cute Japanese girl as he stumbled out of the hotel's elevator, half feeling his way down the hallway. He looked blind. Rob wondered if the fangirl noticed, if she thought something was wrong.
She kept giggling. Nope. Hadn't noticed a thing.
Rob let the boss fumble at the door for a moment before gently pushing his way forward and unlocking the door. Then Akira shoved past him, vanishing into their bedroom with the girl before Rob had even stepped into the room. The bedoom door closed behind them.
Looked like Rob was on the couch tonight, then. He wasn't sure if he was happy or disappointed - he didn't particularly want to share their bed with girl-of-the-moment, but the idea of them sharing it without him wasn't all that great, either. But hey, if that was what the boss wanted. Couch it was.
Ben was sitting in the overstuffed armchair, eyes on the TV screen. Which was off. "Hey man, where's the princess?" Rob called as he sank down into the equally overstuffed cushions of the couch. Ben's good eye flicked toward him for a moment, then back to the screen again. Yeah. He hadn't really expected anything better.
The fangirl's delighted shriek rang clearly through the door, and Rob grimaced and closed his eyes. A noisy one. Great. Well, at least that meant Akira probably wouldn't decide he wanted to keep her; the boss could never stand noisy ones in the morning.
If he kept his eyes closed and pretended real hard, this could be three years ago. The three of them sharing an apartment, staying up late into the night, joking around or sitting in comfortable silence, crashing on the couch when the only bed was occupied by Ben and his latest one true love. Back when the comfortable silences were voluntary, back when Ben talked, open and easy. Back when Rob needed Akira far more than Akira needed him.
He felt automatically at the tattoo covering the old scars on his throat. The boss needed him, now. Didn't always want him, but always needed him. When he woke up screaming in the night, when he'd kicked the latest fangirl out of his bed, he'd demand his pretty bird. And Rob'd be there, always there. Was it sick of him, that he kind of liked this Akira? It wasn't like Akira had ever made him feel unwanted, before. But back then, the boss had been... well, the boss. He hadn't really needed Rob, not the way Rob needed him. The boss hadn't really needed anybody. And there'd always been that niggling worry that someday, the boss'd decide he didn't want Rob, either.
Another shriek from the fangirl, and Ben made a noise almost like a growl, deep in his throat. "It's cool," Rob murmured, not opening his eyes.
The boss needed Rob now. And Rob was glad for that.
But if that was supposed to be some kind of trade-off for how broken they'd become, it was a piss poor trade.
Day/Theme: August 16th/Kingdom of the mad
Series: Petshop of Horrors
Characters: Leon, D
Rating: PG
If Count D wasn't a criminal - and he was, of course, but if he wasn't - then he had to be insane. That was the only other explanation. In fact, Leon decided, he was probably both.
Even putting aside his taste in clothing, the Count was just too plain weird to be sane. Anyone who'd been in the shop for five seconds could tell that; Leon had to wonder how the guy managed to do any business at all. Half the time Leon walked in the guy was lounging around on a fancy-looking couch, having a tea party with snakes and raccoons. The guy might as well just change his name to the Mad Hatter. Not to mention that funny attitude of his, that little smile, like he knew something Leon didn't. That was arrogance, was what it was, and that pissed Leon off - come on, D ran a petshop, in the middle of Chinatown. It wasn't even his shop, he was always saying the place belonged to some relative. Where did he get off, lording it over a guy like some - well, like a count, Leon supposed.
But he bet that title wasn't even real.
Yeah, that'd be like D, making up something like a title to make himself seem fancy and exotic, instead of just plain weird. He did stuff like that all the time. Like that little dragon stunt - Leon still wasn't sure what the hell had happened there, D must have spiked his drink or something, but seriously, what kind of guy got his jollies convincing people he was selling dragon eggs? For a while there he'd even had Leon convinced they'd seen a dragon, for real.
The crazy must be contagious.
Hey, maybe that was how he managed to do business despite the wacky - his customers were as nuts as he was. Sure would explain a lot of his cases. 'Course, if the Count-makes-people-crazy theory was right, then by now Leon ought to be the craziest of them all. And he was as clear-headed as he'd always been, wasn't he?
"More tea, detective?"
Leon looked down at the empty cup in his hand, and then at the funky-looking cat-thing rubbing up against his shin. D smiled at him from the other side of the table, that little smile, like he knew exactly what you were thinking and thought it was a great joke.
...Nah. After all, he was still only here to catch D, right? He was still thinking straight.
"Yeah, pour me another cup."
Title: Trade-Off
Day/Theme: August 16th/Kingdom of the mad
Series: Original (CAGE)
Characters: Rob, Akira, Ben
Rating: PG
The boss had his arms wrapped around a cute Japanese girl as he stumbled out of the hotel's elevator, half feeling his way down the hallway. He looked blind. Rob wondered if the fangirl noticed, if she thought something was wrong.
She kept giggling. Nope. Hadn't noticed a thing.
Rob let the boss fumble at the door for a moment before gently pushing his way forward and unlocking the door. Then Akira shoved past him, vanishing into their bedroom with the girl before Rob had even stepped into the room. The bedoom door closed behind them.
Looked like Rob was on the couch tonight, then. He wasn't sure if he was happy or disappointed - he didn't particularly want to share their bed with girl-of-the-moment, but the idea of them sharing it without him wasn't all that great, either. But hey, if that was what the boss wanted. Couch it was.
Ben was sitting in the overstuffed armchair, eyes on the TV screen. Which was off. "Hey man, where's the princess?" Rob called as he sank down into the equally overstuffed cushions of the couch. Ben's good eye flicked toward him for a moment, then back to the screen again. Yeah. He hadn't really expected anything better.
The fangirl's delighted shriek rang clearly through the door, and Rob grimaced and closed his eyes. A noisy one. Great. Well, at least that meant Akira probably wouldn't decide he wanted to keep her; the boss could never stand noisy ones in the morning.
If he kept his eyes closed and pretended real hard, this could be three years ago. The three of them sharing an apartment, staying up late into the night, joking around or sitting in comfortable silence, crashing on the couch when the only bed was occupied by Ben and his latest one true love. Back when the comfortable silences were voluntary, back when Ben talked, open and easy. Back when Rob needed Akira far more than Akira needed him.
He felt automatically at the tattoo covering the old scars on his throat. The boss needed him, now. Didn't always want him, but always needed him. When he woke up screaming in the night, when he'd kicked the latest fangirl out of his bed, he'd demand his pretty bird. And Rob'd be there, always there. Was it sick of him, that he kind of liked this Akira? It wasn't like Akira had ever made him feel unwanted, before. But back then, the boss had been... well, the boss. He hadn't really needed Rob, not the way Rob needed him. The boss hadn't really needed anybody. And there'd always been that niggling worry that someday, the boss'd decide he didn't want Rob, either.
Another shriek from the fangirl, and Ben made a noise almost like a growl, deep in his throat. "It's cool," Rob murmured, not opening his eyes.
The boss needed Rob now. And Rob was glad for that.
But if that was supposed to be some kind of trade-off for how broken they'd become, it was a piss poor trade.