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[superniceone]

(open / overflow)

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[superniceone]

It's not as if Gustave had ever felt an overabundance of affection for Noco, but it had felt especially cruel that he was the one real casualty they'd faced since landing. A strange little gestral, but no less worthy of life for it. He's glad for the chance to bring him back, and the Sacred River is as beautiful as Golgra is terrifying.

And he does come back, but— different. Gustave doesn't give himself the space to think about why, but it makes something in his chest burn. All of the pieces of a particularly unpleasant puzzle are laid out in front of him, and he resists instead of putting it together.

He catches Verso's shoulder during a quiet moment when everyone has mostly settled to wind down. "Hey," he murmurs, "if you need to stay with Monoco..."

[recreatable]

"It's always... difficult," he says, not dismissive of Monoco's pain but used to it in a fatigued sort of way. After a while, it begins to feel there isn't any new experience left under the sun. Sometimes he wishes he were a gestral, and that he could be washed clean in the Sacred River, too. It would break Monoco's heart, though, so he doesn't entertain the impossible idea for long. "They never come back the same."

But that's a heavy thing to dwell on, so he rolls his shoulders back, physically and mentally shaking it off. "He'll be all right. We'll visit Noco when we can." That'll be difficult, too, but it has to be done. "Then Monoco will cry, and I'll challenge him to a duel and lose on purpose to cheer him up."

He's got this all figured out. Perks of repeating the same shit over and over again.

"—But I get it. Not exactly a turn-on." The vibe is just kind of weird and bittersweet.

[superniceone]

Is it any different than what Maelle had done to them? After so long, could there be any guarantee that the people they'd lost could be reconstituted into who they were before? Except— no. No, if there is a time to think about this kind of thing, it isn't right now.

"Mm," Gustave says, shuttering the unease he can feel in his own face. "Come on, then. You deserve a bit of cheering up, too." He desperately does not want to be left alone with his thoughts.

[recreatable]

Gustave's the one who looks like he could use some cheering up; there's a tense edge to that mm before he seems to push the feeling down. Pretty foolish to do in front of Verso, the reigning champion of pushing down uncomfortable feelings for the sake of keeping everyone else happy.

He wouldn't want someone to mention it to him, so he doesn't say anything to Gustave about it, either, although there's a small shift in his demeanor, a tilt of his head and a slight lean in. Activating people pleaser mode, so to speak.

"Are you going to challenge me to a duel?"

[superniceone]

Gustave can sense there's a subtle change, though he wouldn't be able to describe it if asked. It's as if Verso is suddenly more attentive somehow, though he's never felt particularly inattentive.

"Would that cheer you up?" he asks, his eyebrows going up. "I could probably be persuaded. It has been a quiet few days, after all."

[recreatable]

It's full of himself, but Verso's confident he could beat Gustave's ass in an actual duel. He just has such a limited skill tree.

"You had all day to think and haven't come up with a better excuse," Verso laughs. "So, yes, Gustave, I would like very much to duel you."

[superniceone]

He's probably unlocked some other things by now!! Gustave, meanwhile, believes they're likely not on entirely unequal footing. They've got a similar taste in weaponry, at least.

Gustave makes an annoyed little sound under his breath, but he's starting deeper into the trees. "I don't recall an opportunity to bring up any of the excuses I may or may not have come up with," he protests. "I'm being criticized without cause here."

[recreatable]

Verso's careful, this time, not to get whacked in the face with a branch like the first time they went off alone. He can hardly believe Gustave still stayed after that; maybe there really is something seriously wrong with him. He glances sidelong at Gustave, skeptical, although he's smiling under the dim glow.

"I'm listening, whenever you're ready to share."

[superniceone]

Gustave isn't actually a complicated man: he'd been drunk and he'd thought it was cute. Verso seemed so pointedly and carefully composed most of the time — getting assaulted by a branch just made him seem a little more relatable.

"Thought I might help you organize your Pictos," he says with a straight face. "Sciel tells me your management system is horrifying."

[recreatable]

Verso smiles, although the reminder is more embarrassing than anything else. He had been selfish and caught up in his own feelings, and he hadn't spared any thought about how it might make Gustave feel to be unceremoniously cut off in the morning and watch Verso try to replace him that night. Even if there hadn't been any deep feeling there, it still hurts to feel replaceable.

"That was... not my brightest moment," he admits. It's something like an apology. "But, in my defense, I'd have preferred your organizational skills."

[superniceone]

"You do understand that I'm teasing you, right? We had more important things to worry about." And they still do. Regardless, he's stopping when they reach a small clearing, stepping round to lightly try to grab Verso by the hips. "Should've just had you wear your swimsuit," he muses then, like he's insisting the topic stay light.

[recreatable]

It had felt important enough for him to feel bad about it all this time, but he can pick up on what Gustave's going for here, and he lightens up instantly so as not to disappoint. "I thought you liked these vintage Expedition uniforms." Naturally, he's been internally cringing ever since Gustave described his clothing as 'vintage'.

[superniceone]

Gustave won't apologize for his phrasing there. Any remnant of an Expedition Zero uniform that Verso might still have on his person is the literal prototype. Very hot to an archival nerd like him.

He hesitates, kissing him almost carefully, before he releases his hips and steps back. Gustave has one hand out to the side, like he's halfway to summoning his weapon. "Are we going to fight? You never actually gave me a clear answer."

[recreatable]

Verso laughs again, shaking his head in disbelief. He certainly hadn't meant a duel in any traditional sense of the word, but— "We could," he says with a shrug. "It would be fairer without weapons, though. Only I can reattach my limbs."

It's an entirely selfless offer, and has nothing to do with the fact that he'd rather be pinning Gustave down than swiping a sword at him like a Nevron.

[superniceone]

Gustave glances at his arm, then lowers it. "Not technically true," he says, but he's grinning a bit when he says it. It feels a little easier to breathe out here, and it's a relief he'd been desperate for. He's not obtuse; he knows that it's just a moment of respite in the form of sheer escapism, but he'll take what he can get.

He clears his throat and, a little awkwardly, swings his pack around to his front, retrieving a thin camping blanket from within. "You were right, you know," Gustave tells him, crouching down to spread it out. "This place is atmospheric."

[recreatable]

That Gustave thought to bring a blanket at all is irritatingly charming. Verso feels warm at the thought of Gustave thinking of this while he packed for the day, of him carrying that little blanket around with him all day for this express purpose. He smiles to himself, a private pleasure, as he settles down on it; it's thin enough that he can still feel the unevenness of the ground and the texture of grass beneath him, but it'll at least act as a barrier between them and the dirt.

He makes a noise of agreement before leaning back on his hands, appraising. "You look handsome in this light." Everything is cast in a faint, soft glow here; atmospheric indeed. "Obnoxiously so, some might say."

[superniceone]

Gustave doesn't have any particular issues with the way he looks. When he does appraise himself — which, admittedly, is not often — he figures he's mostly pretty average. All of that is to say: when he laughs at Verso's remark, it's not because he's being particularly hard on himself. It's just comically high praise from one of the most magnetic people he's ever met, and he lowers himself down next to Verso.

"You don't have to lay it on so thick, you know," he says, but there's still a laugh in his voice. "I'm already sold on you."

[recreatable]

Part of Verso had been hoping that the compliment would make Gustave swoon directly into his arms, admittedly; he can acknowledge when his hopes are unrealistic, as they so often are. He'd at least thought that Gustave wouldn't immediately brush it off, although perhaps it's for the best. Verso had been trying to infuse a little romance where he really shouldn't be.

"I haven't even begun to lay it on thick," he argues, although he doesn't try to compliment Gustave again. "But I see now that you preferred having your pigtails pulled."

[superniceone]

"I wouldn't go that far," Gustave says, and he'd be shocked to hear that Verso thought the situation was lacking romance at all. The soft light and the dense foliage are doing a lot of work as far as he's concerned. "But thank you. That's high praise from someone who is handsome all the time."

He thinks that he'd really like to just lean into Verso and close his eyes for half an hour — that the idea of another human body warm and solid against his own just seems unfathomably comforting.

"A little less handsome when you're kicking me awake," he adds, reaching over to sweep idly at that lock of Verso's hair again. "But I guess no one's perfect."

[recreatable]

"Nudging," is his defense. "Gentle nudging." With his foot, yes, but— details. "But I'll endeavor to look more handsome doing it in the future."

[superniceone]

Gustave has been conditioned to expect Verso to cut and run every time he gets too— sentimental; he's weirdly nervous when he slides his hand to the back of Verso's neck and shrugs. "I didn't hate it, actually. Seeing you first thing when I woke."

[recreatable]

It's difficult to reconcile the idea that Gustave is well aware of and at peace with the ill-fated, ephemeral nature of this with him saying things like that. He'd said he wanted to pretend, and for the first time, Verso wonders just how much he's supposed to pretend. He could turn on the charm if he really wanted to, act like this is something lasting and not a perishable item. Maybe Gustave would even like it.

But that would be getting his own hopes up, too. "You would get tired of it," he says instead, matter-of-fact, before leaning in to kiss him.

[superniceone]

Gustave has admittedly had a few flitting daydreams about it — bringing Verso back to Lumière with him, getting to know him when time wasn't short and the world wasn't falling apart around them. It's a pleasant thought.

He doesn't argue with him; he's just leaning a little too desperately into the kiss, trying to use the physical sensation of Verso's mouth on his to stabilize his racing thoughts a bit more.

[recreatable]

It's a relief, honestly, that Gustave doesn't have a rebuttal. It means Verso can focus on what's really important, which is pulling off Gustave's pesky overclothes. He gives the uniform a good tug, urging Gustave to help him remove it as he pulls back and asks, "Are you going to complain again if I ask what you want?"

[superniceone]

"Are you going to make fun of me again if I ask you?" Gustave shifts to sit up, shrugging off his jacket, but there's no desperate urgency in it like there'd been before. He pauses for a moment, before he peels off his undershirt as well, bare from the waist up now as he drops back to face Verso again. "I don't know what I want," he confesses quietly, "I just— it's nice to have time alone with you."