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Mearc has set his laptop up on the kitchen table while he paints the cabinet doors in the kitchen. It's blasting music, mostly progressive rock from his early teenage years, and he's singing as he works. He's not half-bad, either--while he's clearly no musician, he's got some idea about pitch, and a lot of spirit. He's even getting used to the teeth that have shown up in his mouth recently. The cabinets are being painted a deep dark saturated shade of blue to match some of the other accents in the kitchen--he's got an idea to add Mexican Talavera tiles to the backsplash behind the stove, and is picking up some of the bright colors in the rest of the kitchen.
Tiles
Lux had been spending a fair amount of time here, getting things in working order and helping to paint. They weren't going too crazy. Mearcstapa lives here and they don't want him to feel overwhelmed. They had instead focused on doing little details here and there--hand painted designs around windows and railings, little details to add pops of color and added design.
Having just finished a bit of such painting in the living room, Lux heads into the kitchen, some paint smudged on their hands and shirt. They pause, leaning against the doorframe to watch and listen, lips curling into an adoring grin.
"And the lava's the lover who licks your boots awaaaaay~! Hey-hey-hey!" He's on a stepstool as he works on the cabinets, making sure each coat of the blue is nice and even. After a moment, though, he looks over his shoulder at Lux, his freckles doing their new pixellated color shift to red when he sees them. "Sorry, was I being too loud?"
"No. Just figured I'd enjoy the show rather than just listening." They push off of the doorframe and step over, reaching up to grab his shirt, pulling him down enough to steal a kiss. "You sing really well, you know."
"...thanks. I'm going to be doing it more in synagogue, as I start to go regularly, you know. Or at least sorta regularly. I think I need it." He steps down off the stool. "I had an idea about the cabinets, maybe doing small floral designs in the corner, to bring in some of the other colors from the tile? The bright yellow and the tomato red and some of the white? Not too much, just to tie it together. What do you think?"
Lux snakes their arms around Mearc's waist once he hops down, keeping him close. They look up at the cabinets, smiling thoughtfully. "Ooh. I like that. You know me, Kitten--I'm never going to turn down the opportunity to paint more stuff. I think it's a good idea, though." They look back to Mearc. "Going to synagogue more, huh? Any reason why, or just... cause it feels right? Not that I think it's a bad idea, at all."
"To reconnect with my culture. To give myself better, firmer roots. Right now, the thing that I consider my dearest connection to humanity is my Youtube channel." He slowly, carefully walks forward until Lux is pinned up against the countertop. "And hanging around Alex showed me how quick that can be taken down."
They grin wider as they're pinned against the counter, leaning back against it while their hands rub over his sides. But then they nod, looking more serious. "That makes sense. May I go with you?"
The response is a fierce kiss, Mearc's hands moving to either side of Lux.
"I'd like that."
"Mmf!" A pleased sound, their head tipping to return the kiss. "Mmm... I'd like that too." They nip gently at his lower lip.
"Careful, I'm not sure how safe I am, biting back with these teeth yet." He rests his forehead against theirs. "I'm getting used to them."
"Hm." Their hand lifts to caress his cheek gently, then their thumb catches at his lower lip, pulling it down to show the sharp teeth. Lux regards them a moment. "I imagine it'd suck if you bit your tongue. But I don't mind getting a bit risky. They're hot."
You know, Jack always seems to show up when Mearc and Lux are Having A Moment.
Maybe it's just 'cause they have a lot of moments.
Either way, the purr of his bike is pretty distinctive as it rolls up in front of the house, and the sound dies as Jack kills the engine. A couple seconds later the door opens.
"Home!" Jack calls to the house, and there's the sound of thuds by the door as he kicks his boots off. Then he peers into the kitchen, a wide grin splitting across his face as he sees the two of them. "What am I interrupting..."
"You're hot." There's a warm chuckle with more than a hint of a purr, before he looks up at Jack. "Oh, I was just painting the cabinets, before this one decided to come tell me I sing well. C'mon in, plenty of room if you wanna join us."
"You sing?" Jack's eyebrows go up as he pads into the kitchen in his socks, looking around at the place appreciatively. "This's really coming together - 's a gorgeous color." He slides an arm around each of their waists and takes the time to give each of them lingering kisses. "I'm never gonna get sick of coming home to this shit..."
"I know," Lux sing-songs, then leans in while Mearc has his head turned, pressing lips and teeth to Mearc's throat. Nibble nibble.
But as Jack approaches they straighten to kiss him on the lips in return. "Never gonna get sick of having a home for us all to come home to, together."
"Oh, don't let me stop you..." Jack grins as Lux nibbles at Mearc's throat, and squeezes Lux's side.
"A home you two can feel safe sleeping in, where nothing is going to come to get us." When nibbled at the throat, he tilts his head back, exposing more of his neck in clear invitation.
"As safe as we possibly can feel, but yes." When the invitation made, Lux dips in to continue nibbling and teasing at Mearc's skin.
They pull back after a moment though, smiling at Jack. "How was work?"
"A home where we'll be ready when shit comes to get us..." Jack leans into Mearc, pressing soft kisses against the other Darkling's neck.
"Oh - called off to run up to Allentown." Jack's lips brush against Mearc's neck as he speaks. "Sigrun offered to help push my fate in the right direction for tomorrow. And...offered to come with, too. 'S gonna be her'n me and Annie trying to convince Sulochana to give us a chance to fix shit with Patriarch's Tree before they really go to war."
"Ah." Lux frowns briefly, looking at Jack. "How are you feeling about it? Think it'll... work?"
"Sigrun's blunt, she speaks directly. Use her where you need to convince people of your sincerity and dedication to hard work." Mearc combs his fingers through Jack's hair. "And you're welcome to use a little teeth, there, you know."
"I...I don't know." Jack pulls away a little, sighing. "Sure fuckin' hope so, it's kinda our last shot at stopping a war. Gotta check in with the folx who went up to Old Iron, we just missed each other there I think. You know it'd be great to...not have a war on the horizon for maybe a few days? Maybe?" Another sigh, and he nuzzles Mearc's neck. "That a request?" He brings his hand up to run a thumb along Mearc's jaw.
Lux nods, frowning with concern at Jack. "I'm sure you're gonna do amazing, babe. Is there anything we can do to help? Or just... want to not think about it for a while?"
Mearc closes his eyes. "Please, Jack, bite me?" The talk of the war doesn't seem to register at this exact moment, whoops.
"'M assuming you're not gonna let me go out for a beer or three, so..." Jack, that is a bitter laugh. He slides his hand up into Mearc's hair and tugs, forcing his head back still more before he leans in to drag his teeth against Mearc's neck. Not biting. Yet.
"Tell me about your day, firefly," he murmurs, eyeing Lux for just a moment before properly catching pixelated skin with his teeth.
Lux leans back against the counter, not replying immediately--just eyeing the two, watching the biting appreciatively. "Mmm... Hm?" They blink, then smile lopsidedly. "Uh... Just... working on finishing up a project."
Mearc gasps when he's bitten, his hand in Jack's hair closing slowly into a fist and tugging rather than pulling. "Damn, that feels good. Wh...what sorta project, hummingbird?"
"Mmm?" It's a suggestion for Lux to continue, all Jack can really muster as he he continues to kiss and bite down Mearc's neck. He lets out a quiet whine when Mearc pulls on his hair, and starts to catch a bit more skin, aiming to leave a mark at the base of his throat. A t-shirt will cover it up. Probably.
"Um..." Lux stares, enjoying the view, then lets out an amused--and nervous??--huff. "It's... nothing big, really," they say evasively.
"Lux, dear. We know what you sound like when you're being evasive. If anyone knows, we know." Mearc opens his eyes, looking past Jack's head at Lux, vantablack eyes lingering as green pixels poke through the wash of red.
Even as distracted as Jack is, he pulls away to raise his eyebrows at Lux. "You can say you don't wanna talk about it - but it sounds pretty big, 'f you ask me."
Light shines through Lux's cheeks, their weight shifting between their feet, the nervousness just increasing. "Mmm... I just... uh. It's--uh. Something. For both of you."
"...for us?" He blinks, and then glances at Jack. "They uh-something for us. It sounds serious."
Scribbles drift across Jack's cheeks as he grins. "It does. Uh-somethings're pretty serious..." He turns the grin on Lux, and pulls them in to kiss their cheek. "'S it a surprise uh-something?"
Lux's head tilts into the kiss, their face shining brighter. They must really be nervous about whatever these gifts are. "Um. Yeah. Uh. They're... pretty much done. Just. Finishing touches."
"Should we press you and prod you and bug you until you tell us, or is this being a surprise important to you?" Such a Mearc question, as he moves across from Jack, so they're sandwiching the Bright One.
Mmmm, a Lux sandwich. Jack nibbles at their neck, one hand sliding up the back of their shirt, the other reaching out to grip Mearc's. "I'm happy either way..."
Lux hesitates, glancing between them a moment before letting out another soft huff. "Well... It'll be a surprise, either way, but--I'd planned on making a big romantic thing to give you them, but..." They rub their neck, smiling sheepishly. "I guess it's less of a big surprise now that you know something is coming."
"Oh no, advance warning to help plan a big romantic thing, a night for all three of us. Maybe not fancy, but big in the ways that we do big. Romantic in the ways we do romantic. Hummingbird, that sounds like fun to me."
"It does. Honestly..." Jack catches Lux's neck in his teeth. "Knowing something's coming makes it better. 'S more anticipation, you know?"
"I... guess I'll wait, then." Lux almost sounds disappointed, briefly, but then smiles. "You two could help me, though. Uh. To put the finishing touches. So long as you don't mind not seeing the finished product until later?"
"I like surprises. What d'you need help with?" Jack's hand makes gentle circles on Lux's back.
"...finishing touches, coming from you, sounds like it could be incredibly dirty." There's a grin as Mearc makes this observation.
Lux considers that for a moment, then smirks. "Yeah, possibly." They slip away, grabbing Jack and Mearc's hands to drag them off towards the basement door. Which is now the door to Lux's Hollow.
Mearc allows himself to be dragged along, a smirk lingering on his lips.
"I'll always help with finishing touches." Jack brings Lux's hand to his lips as he follows them to the basement.
Lux pauses to do a special knock at the door, then opens it into... another space that is basically the inside of Lux's brain. Color EVERYWHERE, all neon and psychedelic pattern. And lots of art supplies everywhere, as well as paintings and drawings stacked and scattered about. A lot of them are of Jack and Mearc. Some are, uh, fairly erotic.
Mearc squeezes Lux's hand, as his eyes adjust to the brightness and saturation, but when he recognizes some of those paintings, there's a laugh. "So this is what you do with those memories?"
Jack lets out a happy sigh, blinking a little at the brightness. "God I always forget how much I love coming in here..." The scribbles on his cheeks darken as his gaze runs over the paintings, and he gives Lux a lingering kiss on their neck. "You've got an eye for emotion, firefly."
"What can I say? I think about you both a lot," they mutter, cheeks glowing again. They pull the two further into the hollow, then turns to face them both, smiling warmly. "I love you both. So much."
"Love you too." His freckles do a rapid rasterized red-shift, his smile coming easily to his face.
"Mmm, I love you too, firefly. I love you both. So fucking much." Jack pulls Lux in by their beltloops and gives them a hard kiss.
Lux returns the kiss. Deep, passionate, slow. Their hands dance over Jack's hair and cheeks, then when they pull back, their fingers are glowing and bits of Jack's dark charcoal linger around their fingers, swirling--condensing into little floating bits of shadow intertwined with Lux's light. Then they turn to pull Mearc in for a similar kiss, their fingers doing the same--combing through his hair, caressing his cheek and neck, stealing a bit of his shadow and a little sparkle of red-green within.
Lux pulls back, cupping hands reverently, carefully around the traces of hedgespun shadow, color, and light. "Okay--close your eyes. Both of you. No peeking!" They turn, moving over to a corner of the hollow, opening a drawer then crouching, hands moving over something out of view.
Mearc quietly takes Jack's hand before his closes his eyes.
Scribbles dance across Jack's cheeks as he's kisses, and he lets Lux leave his arms with a little reluctance. Then he twines his fingers with Mearc's, closing his eyes as he does.
A few minutes pass before Lux lets out a gasp of delight. "Ah... I think... yes, they're perfect, now." Lux closes the drawer and stands. "Okay, uh. You can open them again." They step over, blushing again and smiling widely, doofily. "Now just... need the perfect moment."
"We'll help with creating that moment. It'll probably be high on a rooftop, at sunset, with dinner and flowers, or something."
Jack grins before he even opens his eyes, and nods at Mearc's suggestion. "Dinner, and flowers, and ice cream floats, maybe...?"
"That... sounds perfect, yeah," Lux murmurs, smiling.
"Bring something to play music, dance a little. Laugh a little. Cry a little. Be together and close and full of one another." He sighs. "Yeah, that would be everything."
"Is this a dress up kinda dinner and dancing? Or a pajamas kinda thing?" Jack tugs on Mearc's hand, drawing him close.
"Um... how would you two be most comfortable?"
Mearc looks thoughtful. "Definitely not a suit and a tie in this kind of weather, that's for sure."
"There's a lot you can do with linen, but yeah...'m tempted to say club-wear, but...that might lead to dinner going cold." Jack presses another soft kiss against Mearc's neck.
"I mean... I ain't gonna complain about that." They grin. "Wanna head back to the house?"
"If you want to. I sort of want to spend another minute ogling these paintings. I'd heard you'd painted us...but I'd never gotten the chance to see before. You really seem to like my freckles. Is that going to change, now that they're not freckle-freckles?"
"All of them are pretty damn stunning..." Jack means the paintings, probably, but he reaches out a hand to press fingers into the freckles scattered across Mearc's neck.
There are a lot of freckle based paintings--where the freckles form patterns and designs, or are just paint splatters. It seems a near-obsession sort of inspiration.
Lux hesitates, glancing over towards the paintings and staring for a moment. "I... will miss them," they admit softly. "But you're still beautiful to me, Kitten."
"Pixels probably aren't as easy or as fun to paint. It's okay, I still have some good features left to me."
"Different kind of beautiful." Jack replaces his fingers with his lips again, stepping behind Mearc and wrapping his arms around him.
Lux frowns. "More than just some." They step in, pulling him in for a kiss. "I love you. You are beautiful. And very, very sexy."
This time, Mearc's more forward with the teeth, nipping gently at Lux's lower lip. "I love you too. I don't know if I love how I'm changing, or what I'm remembering."
Lux leans into him, head tipping to kiss at his ear. "How can I help?"
"You don't have to know." Jack kisses the other side of Mearc's head. "What can we do?"
"I don't know. Just...it's scary. Finding out you had a whole other Keeper. Lived a whole other Arcadian life that you never knew of. Killed someone you call a friend. I still don't know when or how I moved between the realms. Or why." He shakes his head.
"Is that a mystery you want to unravel?" Lux asks softly.
"It's absolutely scary." Jack squeezes him gently. "You've got every right to be off kilter 'cause of it."
"It's...I don't like the unknowns, but I'm scared to try and unravel too much. That sounds like a recipe for repeated Clarity hits. Sinking deeper. But I'm uncomfortable with the idea of how much I don't know. There could be another Keeper in between the Game Master and the City, for all I know. Another influence on exactly what I turned out to be."
Lux is quiet for a moment, then hugs him tighter. "If it's something you want to dig into... I'm here to help. As much as I can. We can... look at your dreams, dig deeper. Or--try to find an Icon, or something."
"And I'll be here to help you if your Clarity suffers for it." Jack kisses Mearc on the cheek. "And, for what it's worth? No matter who they tried to make you Over There, you made you, after. You clawed your way back from protocol to person, yeah? Whatever you learn about your past doesn't change that."
Mearc kisses each of them in turn, a slow, soft, gentle kiss. "I know. Thank you both."
"Jack is right." Lux nods, then returns the kiss. "Come on. Let's go finish the cabinets, so we can spend the rest of the night cuddling."
"Maybe more than cuddling, if the cabinets don't wear both of you out." He smirks.
"Sounds like a plan..." Jack steps away just enough to take both their hands "I'd rather you two wear me out."
"Hmm, I think I can manage that." They smirk, then pull the two out of the hollow, back into the house.
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