maskormenacelogs | Draw Me Like One of Your EDZ Girls

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Draw Me Like One of Your EDZ Girls

WHO: Cayde-6, Ashley Williams
WHERE: Jeopardy, Ash's place
WHEN: evening of September 5th
WHAT: FEELINGS and thinly-veiled SYMBOLISM
WARNINGS: None off the bat, but will change if things get spicy

[After moving into her new place a while back, Ashley had asked him to draw her a picture of "something happy." A simple enough request on its face, but the more he thought about it, the harder it was to pin down a subject. His first thought was to sketch up the skyline of The City, but something about it didn't feel like enough, and besides thinking of the Last City fills him with a kind of ironic heartsickness that he'd rather not dwell on, so that was out. His chicken? Definitely a candidate. Ramen, too. He'd done a couple of sketches of both before Ashley vanished for a month, and then he'd put them aside.

As soon as she returned, though, he couldn't think of anything better to draw than a portrait of her, because it was painfully clear that nothing had made him as happy as her in a very long time.

After noodling at it off and on for the past month, he's reached the point where he's calling it Done. And besides, it's a good day for it, what with the date and all. After his shift at Aegis, he makes for Ash's place and knocks on her door.]

Yo Ash, it's me.

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[The date hasn't escaped Ashley - there's a six of hearts card pinned to the Aegis Force calendar by her kitchen - but she hasn't quite figured out what to do about it yet. This is her longest relationship to date, and Cayde's somehow found a place in her heart, the spark she'd felt between them six months ago growing into a blaze. It needs to be special.

[Thanks to her synthesis, she feels him coming before he announces his presence. Leaves the black fabric samples she's playing with on her coffee table, she gets up to unlock the door and opens it as he finishes speaking. She's dressed down for the evening, relaxing in a slouchy tee and jeans with her hair in a loose braid and an open smile on her face when she lays eyes on him.]

Hey. This is a nice surprise.

[She gestures for him to come inside, then locks the door behind him. Even now her apartment feels like a lot of space for just her, after growing up in a family of four and then a decade in the military, but it's really a pretty average sized one bedroom with an open plan living area on a quiet street in Jeopardy. Her taste in decor's mostly blue with white accents and would almost be minimalist if not for the lights everywhere, ranging from fairylights strung along shelves to a variety of lamps on every surface. (Curiously, she's been turning fewer of them on since she returned from her world.) There's a small bookshelf by her couch holding a handful of poetry books (it's so nice having them in paper) and a couple of digital photoframes rotating through photos of her friends here and loved ones back home (not being a big photo taker herself, they're mostly other people's photos).]

Did I forget date night...?

[When she opens the door, Cayde leans in and plants a kiss on her forehead as he crosses the threshold.]

Nope. Just wanted to spend time with my favorite Spectre. We can do a date if you wanna do a date, though.

[Ashley considers the offer for all of two seconds before shaking her head.]

Nah. Got my Hunter, I'm good.

[She's already comfortable and figures now that he's here, he can check out the fabric samples ~~and also she doesn't want to put a bra back on~~.]

I've had dinner already - you want anything?

[He makes a show of mulling it over, humming loudly and crossing his arms.]

I could eat. Maybe I'll order something in.

[He flops onto her couch, one eyebrow cocked, a grin on his face.]

But that'll wait because I have something for you.

[her face lighting up, there's a spring in her step as she joins him on the couch, knees touching the side of his leg in their usual casual touch.]

Is there an occasion? 'Cause I can think of one today but didn't really get you anything.

Not really—okay, a little. It's a little bit of occasion since it's been a while since we did the thing with the simulated Vex and you faked me out on that hug.

[Yes, somehow, he's still not over that.]

But you asked me for something a while ago and, well, I finally got it done.

[He reaches into the empty air with his left hand and summons Sundance who in turn transmats a rolled up sheet of paper into his hand. Should she take it and unroll it, she'll find that it's a really decent pencil portrait of her, absolutely nothing like the playful doodles from his network post some months back. There are errata in the background; half-finished sketch ideas of chickens and ramen and a comparison of the vague similarities between the Vanguard and Spectre logos.]

[she laughs, shaking her head in disbelief about his continued grievance over the hug. Oh well, she threw him out of a boat in a dream over something he said months ago, so maybe she can't really talk.

[When she takes and unrolls the paper, at first she only realizes it's the long awaited drawing for her housewarming.]

I was starting to think you'd forgotten about this...

[she trails off because she recognizes herself on the page, and where she'd been expecting those fun doodles again it's good, it's realistic and she doesn't hate how she looks in it (a reaction to images of herself that's happening less often these days). And she hadn't asked for a portrait of herself, which means...

[Touched, she looks up at him.]

Are you saying I'm something happy, Cayde?

Yeah. I mean no. I mean no, no you're not a thing but [He rests a hand on her thigh before continuing] ... but you make me happy, Ashley. Real happy.

[her expression goes through a journey of bemusement as he backtracks, before completely softening.]

You make me happy too, you know. Not just this, but every day.

[her eyes drop to the drawing again, only now taking in the other sketches and emblem comparison, but always returning to the portrait.]

This is really beautiful. I'm gonna have to get it framed.

[He sits up a little straighter, feeling something like butterflies in a stomach he does not have.]

What, really? I mean—'course, it's awesome.

[He doesn't much share his sketches with people, save for when he's trying to visualize his weapon ideas for Banshee, who can't make heads or tails of his drawings.]

[She smirks at that self correction, but her nod's entirely earnest.]

Yeah. I mean, I would've been happy with a cartoon of the Colonel or something. [A gesture of acknowledgement to one of the half-done chicken sketches.] I never expected anything like this.

Just ah ... didn't feel like half-assing it, you know?

[He shrugs his shoulders slightly, trying to play it cool like he wasn't taken with a need to give this the best that he could after she got back.]

But um. I'm real glad you like it.

[That, at least, comes out earnestly, and he meets her eyes with his own.]

[With a smile, she leans forward to kiss him briefly, before setting the drawing next to the fabric samples on the coffee table and getting up to go to her calendar. When she brings back the six of hearts, she sits with her knees over his lap this time as she offers the card to him.]

That's how long it's been since I faked you out.

[So, she's picked up on his theme. He can't smile more than he already is, but if he could? He would. He is on the inside, anyway. He takes the card and rolls it between his fingers.]

So it is. I'd say you owe me, but I'm sure you've paid up with interest by now.

I'd hope so, considering I went down on you at camp - first time together, outdoors...

[She can only stay deadpan for a moment before laughing and snuggling into him.]

Hey hey hey, sex and hugs are totally different needs!

[He laughs with her and wraps his arms around her, the playing card secreted away with a twist of his wrist. He's quiet for a few moments before his attention catches on to the fabric samples.]

Whatcha workin' on there?

[He nudges at the table with his foot.]

[Her heart's full as they cuddle in comfortable silence. Not only did he give her this lovely housewarming turned anniversary gift, but her small anniversary offering went over well too. When she'd kissed him and asked to see where that spark between them goes six months ago, she hadn't imagined it would be here.

[She picks up the samples when he asks about them, fanning out the pieces of paper with scraps of leathers and thick knits stapled to them and labelled with handwritten descriptions, product codes, and prices per yard (much too legible to be her handwriting), in different shades of black and charcoal and occasionally red because she'd been thinking of the stripes he's added.]

Your cape. All the fabric samples I ordered finally come in. Did you know your cosplayers have entire threads fighting over the best materials to make it out of? Whether the red bits should be fabric paint or another fabric sewn on, or there's one person who embroidered them...

[Pausing at a few samples that are more like the blues of her Alliance uniform or her home decor, she frowns.]

Okay, these looked a lot blacker online.

Embroidered? Damn, that's more effort than I put into it. It's a screen print.

[That's a lot to take in. He didn't expect her to go this hard on the cape repair idea. In fact, between cruising cosplay threads and yardage quotes? He's not entirely sure that's what he signed up for anymore.]

You're not thinking of remaking the whole thing, are you?

No! No, of course not. I couldn't disrespect...

[Andal, and whatever Cayde's feelings are for him that lead him to put on a dead man's clothes every day.]

Where it's come from, and everything it's been through with you like that. I just wanted to make sure you were happy with whatever we use to patch the hole.

[His shoulders sag in relief, as if he were letting out a long-held breath.]

Whew. Well then. In that case ...

[He leans forward and picks up one of the bluer samples.]

... Why don't we go with the blue?

[Her eyes widen in surprise. Colors that aren't already on his cape hadn't occurred to her, especially not a color more hers than his.]

Really? It won't blend in like the black.

Thing's faded from the sun anyways, it'll be a mismatch no matter what. May as well remind me of you.

[There's a sudden lump in her throat as she processes the fact that he's willing to wear something every day that reminds him of her, that he's willing to add that to Andal's cape. She loves the idea, moreso because it came from him, she didn't impose this on him.]

Okay. [Oh, she's smiling now.] I'll order some more.

[This sample being about the size of her thumb.]

[Her smile warms him, unknotting little bastions of tension and doubt that were lingering in his mind. He smiles back and loops an arm back around her waist.]

You put a whole lotta thought into all this.

'Course I did. You practically live in it, I'm not about to halfass something like that.

[using any random fabric like she had as a kid patching her jeans had been out of the question.]

Look at us, whole-assing things. I'd offer a toast, but we seem to be dry right now...

[He *could* get up and go to the kitchen to get a couple of beers. But that would necessitate letting go of her and getting off the couch.]

[Ashley stretches so that the top of her head's touching his horn and her feet swing off his lap and onto the floor, in the shadow of the coffee table.

[And then they're in the kitchen, feet in the shadow of the counter, but without the support of the sofa, she falls onto him.]

[Fortunately his instincts are faster than his conscious thoughts, and he manages to catch her and stay on his feet, even has he tries to orient himself to where they are. Advantages to having people on your fireteam who can Blink—the opportunity to develop the (parallel equivalent to) muscle memory of what to do with yourself when teleported.]

That's one way to get me off the couch. You alright?

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[Even as she finds her feet, she stays close to him, feeling a little silly yet safe in the knowledge that he won't think less of her for it.]

Yeah, I'm good.

[she grins at him.]

Just figured we could go get something to drink together. Whole-assed teamwork.

Heh, I like the sound of that. I'm gonna keep it in my back pocket for the next time I need to cheerlead my Hunters.

[He reluctantly lets go of her with an affectionate tap on her backside before leaning forward and opening the fridge and grabbing a couple of drinks and handing one to her with a grin.]

To whole-assing it.

[Taking her drink, she immediately holds it up for the toast.]

And to us.

[Despite her boastful tone, her eyes are soft. Surely their six months together deserve a toast too.]

To us.

[His voice is a soft rumble as he pulls the tab on his beer before knocking it against her own and then carefully pouring it into his mouth.]

[After a long drink, she leans back on the counter, content.]

Six months in, we've had some ups and downs, and we're still whole-assing it for each other. I think we're past seeing where this goes: I think it's gone somewhere good.

[He can't help but chuckle; Ashley is so much more straightforward than anyone he's ever known.]

Y'know, I don't usually know where I stand with most folks—there are some exceptions, of course, but ... I guess what I'm sayin' is I've never met anyone quite like you.

But yeah, I'd say it's gone somewhere good. Real good.

I hope that's in a good way too - officer's school really drilled it into me to hold my tongue more than I used to; it's the only way I got through working with politicians.

But as for you...

[She takes one of his hands and places it over her heart.]

That's where you stand with me.

[He's glad that he's got both her and the counter to steady him because it almost feels as if the floor is falling away from him for a moment. He holds her gaze until he can get something of what he needs to say to spill from his modulator.]

In a great way. To be totally honest, I only ever expected to flirt with ya and let you think it was all a joke.

[He sets his beer on the counter and uses his hand to pull one of her hands to his chest, like she's done of her own volition so many times.]

You're right here with me, too.

[the longer he's quiet, the more nervous she becomes about what she's just wordlessly admitted. She's felt it for a while now - if she had to put a time to when she first realized, it might be when he was the first person she thought of on her return to this world. But something about actually saying, or as it's turned out, gesturing it, had been intimidating to consider doing; this had to be an impulse confession.

[And then he lays out his low expectations and her eyes go wide. They would have been friends, she's sure of it - they'd gotten on well once they were past the misplaced offense of her internalized robophobia - but she doesn't want to imagine the last six months without all they've shared as lovers.

[When he puts her hand on his chest, it's like the sun coming out, or his Solar Light on the blankets. Her answering smile lights up her face with her relief, her joy, her love - reciprocated! - and all she can think to do is lean forward and kiss him.]

[After he woke up in the world feeling as broken as everything around him, the only thing that gave him comfort and kept him (reasonably) sane was the daydream of love. Love for a woman made up by a self he doesn't remember, but the idea was enough to fight for. To become the kind of person that it was good enough for, even if it wasn't real.

And yet, somehow, this thing between them is. He slides his arms around her and holds her close while he savors the warmth of her lips against his mouth. She's real. This is real.]

[She's still smiling as she presses closer, as she wraps her arms around his neck, as she relishes the familiarity and safety of his arms, even as her mouth leaves his so she can lean her forehead against his. As much as she enjoys Cayde's surprise visits, she hadn't expected this tonight, this light and full and bubbly feeling all at once.]

Stay tonight.

[That feeling's got her breathless, more so than the actual kiss did.]

We'll have our own little private celebration [she underscores "private" with a bump of her hips against his], and let's do a six months date tomorrow night. It's special [and so is their non-verbal love confession] - perfect excuse for me to dress up.

[Because sometimes it is fun to wear a dress but generally not after you've gotten comfy for the night.]

Hmmm...

[He rests his hands on her hips and holds them to his, swaying in place as he feigns considering her offer. Not staying the night had never entered his mind, but being asked to stay never gets old.]

I guess I could stick around. You do clean up real nice, after all.

So do you, you know.

[She says it with a nuzzle of her nose to where he lacks one, more of a reminder than a hint. As much as she enjoys seeing him dressed up and out of Andal's clothes, she doesn't want to pressure him into something else.

[Plus, it's a lot easier to be less jealous when he's the one who suggested adding a reminder of her to his everyday outfit.]

Oh, I know. I just feel so naked without the cloak. Good thing I like being naked around you.

[There's a smile in his voice and he feels light on his feet—which, being a Hunter, is very light indeed. He keeps swaying with her, something close to a dance, and conjures his Ghost.]

Thinkin' we need a little music right now, bud. Lady's choice?

[He raises a browplate at Ash.]

[She laughs, and takes it as a compliment - it's nice to know that as attached to that outfit as he is, he's comfortable enough with her to like being out of it. (The sex that often comes with said nakedness probably helps.)

[When Sundance appears, Ashley reaches over to give her a little pat in greeting, her happiness extending to her love's Ghost.]

Jazz, please. Surprise me.

[Her dad playing baritone sax gave her a taste for it.]

['Like' is a strong word, but he can tolerate it for a while. He can tolerate it for a little while plus some for the way she looks at him when he steps into some pre-Golden Age fashion. And yeah, the sex part doesn't hurt.

But the cloak will never leave him, not while he still lives. It's a Hunter thing, he doesn't expect her to understand. It is what it is.]

[Sundance ruffles her shell thoughtfully, runs a search for Jazz and selects a random result. A tinny Glenn Miller tune plays.]

Not my usual, but mmm ... yeah, yeah I think I can dance to this.

[His head bobs while he's trying to work out the beat.]

Yeah, yeah, I know it's not that "Hope for the Future" song.

[She teases, well aware he prefers country and doesn't even like that particular earworm.]

Really? You're hittin' me with that? Here I am, havin' a moment of romantical exuberance and you're puttin' "Hope for the Future" in my head? Wow. Wow.

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Draw Me Like One of Your EDZ Girls

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