hadriel | [VIDEO] 🔥 TWO

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[VIDEO] 🔥 TWO

[The broadcast opens up on Lup's bright, beaming expression, her mouth balled up to the right in a grin, mischief dancing against her eyes. For those who haven't seen the elf in awhile, she's sporting a new 'do, her usual long locks cropped short to her head, though with a little help from her brother, she pulls off the look effortlessly.

It's honestly the most excited Lup's looked in the past three weeks.]

Sup, nerds. This is your fav evocation expert sendin' out the call for ladies needin' a weekend away. Hadriel life runnin' ya ragged? Need a break from the liches in charge tuggin' ya this way an' that? Just plain ol' bored lookin' at your family's dumb faces?

[The corner of her mouth twitches upwards as she tries to hold back a laugh, before the elf is quickly adding,] --Sorry, Koko.

Then come join me on a trip outside these shitty dunes to explore what the rest of this world has to offer. Any an' all gals are invited. Just hit me up an' we'll get this ball rollin'.

[She pulls the phone away from her face so she can show off a few instagram angles, complete with duck face.] Lup out!

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Lup, you sleep in later than I do. But no, whenever's good.

Oh dag, I got fuckin’ called out. [But she laughs, only amused, so rarely offended. Especially since it’s the truth.]

I’ll pop in early and see this little surprise you have for me. Extra early just to prove you wrong!

You did, and now I'm gonna pay for it. Oh well.

See you tomorrow morning.

[And early she does arrive, too full of nerves to sleep, especially after a late night text that came in quite unexpectedly.

Which accounts for the soft thrum of energy radiating off of the woman as she knocks at Drake’s door, trying and unable to contain a shy, surprisingly bashful smile. Things aren’t fixed exactly, but the promise that they’ll get there is everything.]

[ Well, there's no missing that! Drake has been awake long enough to have gotten dressed properly for company, though he didn't bother with shoes. He swings the door open for Lup and gestures her in, eyes sparkling with curiosity. ]

Okay... something's up. I don't think that smile is about me or a camping trip. Spill it.

[She shoves him almost automatically, rough but that's normal for Lup, so rarely ever pulling her punches, even for the people she loves most. But Drake's teasing does manage to drag the softest touch of pink to the elf's cheeks as she sweeps inside, waving his words away with a flick of her wrist.]

You don't know! I could be all hot and bothered over the idea of a camping trip.

[But it's Drake, so after a moment, Lup adds, just as casually as possible,] Barry finally text. So, it's... It's just... [Ugh, she's bad at this.] It just feels good.

[ The shove doesn't bother him, and the blush is telling enough that he doesn't believe for a second that it's about her little trip. So he waits, and is rewarded with good news -- he'd thought she was going to be the one to message first. This is a pleasant surprise, and his happiness for her is clear in his smile as he closes the door. ]

I guess he's braver than you thought. Good. I'm really glad, Lup.

[ He doesn't want to jump ahead of things and assume this means Barry's moving back in or whatever, but they're talking and Lup is obviously happy, so. It must have gone well. ]

You're gonna see him when you get back?

[Anyone else smiling at her like that, with such happiness in their eyes for her, would never be taken seriously. But Drake's frustratingly sincere. The sight of his genuine joy leaves her feeling light and warm, happy in a way Lup hasn't felt in weeks.]

Sometimes he comes through. [It had certainly taken longer than she would have liked, but he did it, all on his own, facing down his greatest fear and his even greater anxieties to reconnect. That's what matters.]

Yeah, we're gonna get together and go for a walk. Just chat. Talk it out.

[The anticipation is probably going to kill her.] Anyway, that's enough about my crap, what's this thing you wanted to show off?

[ Right. She's on a schedule, after all. He can hassle her for details about her relationship when there's more to tell, when they've worked some of this shit through. For now...

Drake gestures again for her to come farther in and go sit down on the couch -- there's a squarish book on the coffee table, and when Lup gets up to it she'll see it's not regular bound pages, but plastic sleeves contained in metal rings. A photo album. ]

The Door decided to spit out some shit from home and I thought you'd like to see this. Since you helped look after me as a kid and everything.

[ He sits and draws the book into his lap, flipping the cover open. On the first page the photos are various shots of a woman with dyed red hair holding a baby, looking as happy as a person could possibly be. ]

[Lup follows Drake to the couch without question, plopping in next to him, her expression shifting from sweetly bashful to intensely curious all in the blink of an eye. But he opens the cover and delight curls at Lup's mouth immediately. She scoots forward on the edge of the cushion, not her usually sprawled out posture, propping up her elbow on her knee so she can rest her chin in her palm, watching the album with absolute interest.

It's not at all what she expected, but this? This is wonderful.]

Holy crap, babe. Look at you! What a little sweetie, the total opposite of Taako an' I at that age. That's your mom?

Yeah, that's ma. She's a handful but we did alright.

[ At least until he snapped at nineteen... but maybe they'll get there. Maybe they won't. He doesn't intend to dig up his dark past, Lup probably already figured most of it out from seeing him as a kid. The bruises, the fear of the men in her house, and now the telltale way that someone's been cut out of some of the early childhood pictures. Probably his father. But as Drake keeps flipping, Lup sees him grow up. The only other person in any of the photos is his mother, but it seems like that was enough for him.

There are birthdays and holidays and the occasional posed shot with a martial arts trophy or in front of a landmark on some vacation or another. In his teen years the pictures trickle off and he doesn't look as genuine when he smiles, and if Lup is very observant she'll notice he seems to age a bit suddenly. After traditional end of high school stuff it jumps to his police academy portrait, then holding up keys in front of a new-to-him car, standing on a ladder painting the walls of an apartment full of boxes. He doesn't flip to the last page with Lup, knowing what's there and not wanting to ruin her good mood. ]

[It's definitely something that Lup can relate to.

She doesn't have any albums of her and Taako growing up, but if she did, they wouldn't be any better. Two starving kids dressed in rags on the road, not a caring adult in sight. Just humans putting the young elven children to work for their food, watching them with hungry eyes and making grabs at them without permission. Lup had to grow fierce first, to become strong and assertive to protect her brother, to keep Taako, who had always been more delicate, safe. The affinity for fire hadn't come too much later than that, a surefire protection against any man looking their way.

They'd lived with that distrust in their hearts for well over a century, keeping everyone, but especially humans, at a distance. Until Barry and the mission that changed everything.

Lup doesn't fake kindness, when she leans in and coos at Drake's pictures, reaches forward to flip to the next page when he takes too long, it's all sincere. The pictures aren't all positive, sure, but Drake and his mother look happy. Look like they trust in each other absolutely. Lup can relate to that feeling. Two against the world.]

She's hot. [It's a compliment ok. And then she shoots him a grin.] I see where you get it.

[ Lup's cooing and comments are really sweet, and Drake's glad he decided to show her this. It could have waited, sure, but he's also got another question for her. In a minute. Right now, she's calling his mom hot and reaching for the last page... so he closes the album decisively, setting it back on the table. They don't need to go there. Not when he's laughing softly and shaking his head at his friend's assessment. ]

She used to be a 'looker,' as she would put it. I think I'm biased against seeing it.

[Drake closes the album cover and Lup's first instinct is always to fight back. But he's laughing and the atmosphere is surprisingly sweet, so her ears may twitch but the woman drops her hands into her lap and flops backwards into the couch, laughing with her friend.]

Hey, different strokes for different folks. [Gross, Lup.] But really, you were a cute lookin' kid, well-mannered and all that crap. I enjoyed havin' you around the house. Also compared to wrangling a tiny Taako, you were way easier.

Gross, Lup. [ His thoughts exactly. But it's actually nice to hear she enjoyed looking after him. ] Ma raised me with manners, even if I did start getting into trouble later on. And you were... really great, actually. You planning on being a mom? I think you'd nail it.

[Lup's eyes fly open in surprise at the commentary, the barest hint of a twitch at her mouth, the brightness of her smile dimming. She's not upset, just taken back. She's pretty sure that no one's ever once thought she'd make a good mother before. In fact, looking back, she's pretty sure she'd heard the opposite at least a handful of times over the course of her two hundred year life. Mostly from Taako, for sure.

But Drake's not completely wrong. After a lifetime of having minimal interactions with kids, they kind of bring out a much softer side in the woman now that she's grown, something protective but sweet, something very maternal. It's risen up a lot more frequently in her interactions with Angus and with Ellie as of late, and there's no denying it went a little crazy during that kid week a few weeks back.

Still, it's surprising to hear. Kind of awing in a way. It may be the nicest thing anyone's ever said to her.]

That's... S'nice of you to say. [a beat, like it's hard for her to believe him.] You really think so? All I did was keep you from wandering off into a monster den. [And cook for him and play with him and probably read him bedtime stories too.....]

[ Well he means it. His own smile gentles, and he leans to bump her shoulder with his. ]

Anybody could've put a leash on their kid charge and called it a day. You actually took care of me. Made sure I was clean and fed and wasn't scared, and that last part is a lot harder than it sounds. I had major trust issues at that age.

[ It's true that Lup and Taako as kids were sort of little terrors, but. Drake's also pretty sure their lack of upbringing was as responsible for that as a sense of mischief. And besides... ]

Would yours and Barry's kids have half-length ears, like Kyna's?

[ That'd be super cute. ]

[She's flattered enough by what he has to say that Lup's gaze drifts back to the album sitting against the table, focusing on the cover while a soft, awed smile curls at her lips. She spent a long time being scared, so it means a lot to her that she was able to keep him from feeling that way too. Even if it was just for a little bit.]

That's... I mean, I guess, yeah. Any kid of ours would be a half-elf. [Adorable, small pointed ears. Ugh, gotta cut that off right now. She looks back to him after shaking that image out of her head.] But that's just not in the cards for us. Not possible.

Edited 2018-03-30 04:36 (UTC)

[ What? Why? Drake tilts his head, not wanting to make her uncomfortable but feeling the need to reassure her. They're both healthy, right? They could totally have a family if they wanted. ]

Don't say that. You guys are gonna be fine, you know. And it's not like there's any reason to rush.

[There's probably some good reasoning against the undead having kids in the first place anyway, but that one is easier to wave aside when their bodies seemed so perfectly alive like this.

His reassurance manages to drag a bit more of her usual swagger back to her expression, Lup nudging Drake in the side with a playful roll of her eyes.] Not that, goobus. We just don't have all the necessary baby makin' parts between us.

[ That... makes him pause, a tiny furrow of confusion appearing between his brows. Maybe one of them wasn't healthy? He doesn't want to ask what happened, that magic couldn't fix it. So he leaves it up to her. ]

I'm not following.

[DRAKE.]

I don't have all the girl parts needed. Like, all that super important inside junk. A uterus or whatever.

[ THAT IS NOT REASSURING. Her flippancy doesn't mean it wasn't something serious, that's just how Lup operates. He doesn't personally know anyone who had a hysterectomy, but something would have had to be really wrong, right? ]

Are you okay, though...?

[Lup takes one look at Drake's face before she bursts into laughter, a hand flying up to cover her mouth, even if it does nothing to hide the shaking of her shoulders. He looks so confused and distressed. Holy shit.]

Gods, you're impossible. [Her tone stays fond. Lup doesn't mind his cluelessness.] I wasn't born with 'em either, so I'm not missin' anything. [And because he's probably still failing with all this vagueness, the elf leans forward to pat at the man's knee.] I'm a trans woman, hun.

[ Oh. Oh well thank god. Drake's expression shifts from concern to surprise, then utter relief. With maybe a hint of embarrassment that he didn't catch on to her hinting but in his defense she was being very vague. And it's not like there are any physical giveaways -- no, he never would have guessed on his own.

It only takes him that moment to process, before he's settling his hand over hers and shifting gears as easily as breathing. ]

So you build a family instead of growing it. No big.

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