Seeing emptiness

Kenopsia n. the eerie, forlorn atmosphere of a place that’s usually bustling with people but is now abandoned and quiet—a school hallway in the evening, an unlit office on a weekend, vacant fairgrounds—an emotional afterimage that makes it seem not just empty but hyper-empty, with a total population in the negative, who are so conspicuously absent they glow like neon signs.

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First Meeting - Alfred and Arthur

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It was a few hours later that they finally left the zoo. Alfred took Arthur’s hand as they left, smiling down at how tired the other looked. He genuinely seemed like he was going to fall asleep at any moment. Alfred wouldn’t be surprised if he did.

“Have fun?” He asked, making sure Arthur stayed awake long enough for them to get to the car. “And you like the toy I won for you?”

Arthur was satisfied. After he realised he didn’t have to question everything and that Alfred wasn’t such bad company at all, he relaxed and simply enjoyed the company. He yawned as he all but leaned on Alfred while they walked to the car. “Mhmm… I had a lot of fun.” He admitted, another yawn interrupting him. “I love it. It’s really cute.” He smiled down at the plush toy Alfred had won for him. It was of a lion, a big fluffy lion and Arthur would cherish it. He didn’t have many personal possessions of sentimental meaning. He was happy to have this. “Did you have fun?” 

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God, Arthur was cute. Why did he have to be so cute? God. What a fucking tease.

“You know it,” he laughed. “Especially after you loosened up. Anyways…” he gestured to the car. “I take it that it’s nap time for you now?”

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“I could nap, yes. I haven’t slept in a while.” He rubbed at his eyes, then yawned again and got into the car. “Will you nap with me?” He didn’t think it was weird to ask for something like that. 

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First Meeting - Alfred and Arthur

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It was a few hours later that they finally left the zoo. Alfred took Arthur’s hand as they left, smiling down at how tired the other looked. He genuinely seemed like he was going to fall asleep at any moment. Alfred wouldn’t be surprised if he did.

“Have fun?” He asked, making sure Arthur stayed awake long enough for them to get to the car. “And you like the toy I won for you?”

Arthur was satisfied. After he realised he didn’t have to question everything and that Alfred wasn’t such bad company at all, he relaxed and simply enjoyed the company. He yawned as he all but leaned on Alfred while they walked to the car. “Mhmm... I had a lot of fun.” He admitted, another yawn interrupting him. “I love it. It’s really cute.” He smiled down at the plush toy Alfred had won for him. It was of a lion, a big fluffy lion and Arthur would cherish it. He didn’t have many personal possessions of sentimental meaning. He was happy to have this. “Did you have fun?” 

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First Meeting - Alfred and Arthur

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Alfred tilted his head. Arthur’s smile looked so real. So expertly crafted. But there was something missing… the warmth. The warmth of a true smile, one that fully lit up his face and made him, well, beautiful.

“See, that’s when you’d be lying to me. But if you smiled… like really, actually smiled like you did when you were looking at the lions? That’s beautiful. And truthful.”

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Arthur sighed as he relaxed his face back into his neutral frown. He didn’t know why Alfred looked at him the way he did. But it made him feel… self conscious. Alfred was adorable, that’s at least one thing he could admit. 

“Okay,” he started slowly, “then I will only smile when I need to.” He usually forced smiles out of one simple reason. People always thought he was in a bad mood. You could say he suffers from a bit of a resting bitch face. Or… or resting sad face. Yeah, resting sad face is better. 

“Look, Alfred.” He pointed up at one of the bald eagles. “It’s you.” The tiniest of smiles graced his lips at his own joke. 

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Alfred snorted. He looked up at the bald eagle, who was preening his feathers. The mighty bird needed a bath. And a feather trim. Then he would be suitable for posing in front of a flag.

“Oh yeah? Well you know what?” He pointed at a scary looking vulture. “That’s you!”

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Arthur looked in the direction Alfred pointed, but from where he stood, he could see a smaller, more colourful bird. He raised an eyebrow. “And that’s supposed to be mean?” He asked, then rolled his eyes. “I compliment you and you calla me....” he gestured vaguely. “...that.”

He then continued leading Alfred through the bird exhibit until they reached the owls. He rambled on about owls for a bit. Apparently next to lions and robins, they’re his favourite animals. 

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First Meeting - Alfred and Arthur

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Alfred tilted his head. Arthur’s smile looked so real. So expertly crafted. But there was something missing… the warmth. The warmth of a true smile, one that fully lit up his face and made him, well, beautiful.

“See, that’s when you’d be lying to me. But if you smiled… like really, actually smiled like you did when you were looking at the lions? That’s beautiful. And truthful.”

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Arthur sighed as he relaxed his face back into his neutral frown. He didn’t know why Alfred looked at him the way he did. But it made him feel... self conscious. Alfred was adorable, that’s at least one thing he could admit. 

“Okay,” he started slowly, “then I will only smile when I need to.” He usually forced smiles out of one simple reason. People always thought he was in a bad mood. You could say he suffers from a bit of a resting bitch face. Or... or resting sad face. Yeah, resting sad face is better. 

“Look, Alfred.” He pointed up at one of the bald eagles. “It’s you.” The tiniest of smiles graced his lips at his own joke. 

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fixingfinn:

There’s nothin’ like a good steam to melt yer despair for a bit. Wanna go? …by the way, I’m Tino. Have we met? I’m sorry if we’ve already met.

They have a sauna here? That’s nice. Ah... yeah. I’d like that, yes. 

No, we haven’t met. [he offers his hand] It’s nice to meet you, Tino. I’m Arthur.

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Work is so difficult. I wish I could just sleep all day. 

Is there anyone here who can… erase time? Forever?

[fixingfinn]

Someone needs some time in a sauna.

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Those hot steamy rooms? 

That would be nice, yes. 

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Gay

I don’t get it.

Thank you?

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Work is so difficult. I wish I could just sleep all day. 

Is there anyone here who can... erase time? Forever?

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First Meeting - Alfred and Arthur

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Alfred was disappointed, to say the least. how could someone not know? Well, then again… Alfred knew he was… a bit wild. A bit crazy.. Perhaps more than that. He could be overwhelming and… perhaps that turned Arthur off-

Oh.

“… I don’t know,” Alfred admitted. “I… I think you should smile more….”

Arthur took Alfred’s hand again and lead him to the bird exhibits. He wanted to find the bald eagle. He didn’t answer again for a while. If you look closely, you can see the gears trying desperately to turn in his head. 

“I don’t want to lie to you.” He said bluntly as he followed the signs to the birds. “Smiling would be lying. Right?” He associated smiling with lying. 

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Huh? Alfred frowned as he stopped suddenly, causing Arthur to stop as well. The poor man slipped a little bit. Oops. He didn’t mean that.

“Sorry… but no. That ain’t it. Smiling isn’t lying, not unless you’re feeling sad and trying to hide that from me,” he paused. “Smiling… if you really mean it… means you’re happy. You’re happy to see something cool or excited to go somewhere awesome or… or happy you met someone.” he smiled. “See?”

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Arthur was glad that he was holding Alfred’s hand just then. He almost fell. He turned around to look at the other, then sighed. “I know why and how and when people smile.” 

He had to admit that seeing Alfred smile was nice. Very sweet. 

“I just thought... since I don’t feel like smiling... it would be lying to you if I forced it.” He smiled, forced himself to, to show how it does not look good. But he’s trained himself enough that actually, even his fake smiles are very convincing. 

“That’s what I meant... But thank you for explaining anyway, Alfred.” He paused, continuing to walk. “I appreciate it.” 

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First Meeting - Alfred and Arthur

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Alfred was disappointed, to say the least. how could someone not know? Well, then again… Alfred knew he was… a bit wild. A bit crazy.. Perhaps more than that. He could be overwhelming and… perhaps that turned Arthur off-

Oh.

“… I don’t know,” Alfred admitted. “I… I think you should smile more….”

Arthur took Alfred’s hand again and lead him to the bird exhibits. He wanted to find the bald eagle. He didn’t answer again for a while. If you look closely, you can see the gears trying desperately to turn in his head. 

“I don’t want to lie to you.” He said bluntly as he followed the signs to the birds. “Smiling would be lying. Right?” He associated smiling with lying. 

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First Meeting - Alfred and Arthur

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That was a confusing compliment, actually. Because… well, he was being called pretty. But he was also being criticized. And Arthur wasn’t brushing away his hand. God, why was it so hard to read the Brit? Oh right…. because he had zero emotion whatsoever.

“… Are you comfortable around me?”

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Arthur kept his eyes on the lions. He shrugged at the question. “I don’t know.” How could he not know something so simple? He obviously knows when he’s uncomfortable. 

“I guess.” He added finally after five minutes of silence, when the conversation should have ended there. “I don’t dislike you.”

“Are you comfortable around me?” 

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First Meeting - Alfred and Arthur

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“We can prolly ask a zookeeper if you wanna know their names,” Alfred said. He leaned up against the glass to get a better look at the male, who was lounging around a bit casually in the shade. He looked like he had a good life, if the shining fur was any indication. “I’d probably name that dude Supercat or somethin’. Something really cool and heroic, ‘cause lions are the second most heroic animals!”

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“I don’t know… that’s too much social interaction.” Arthur said and frowned. He looked at the lionesses and smiled gently. They were beautiful- underrated compared to lions. Very, very underrated. “Well he’s probably a lazy asshole who in the wild would just fuck and sleep, but I guess.” Arthur added and was tempted to teleport in there. It was so obvious in his eyes. He really wanted to do that. 

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Alfred whistled. “Too much social interaction? Do I have to like ease you into that stuff?” he shook his head before placing a hand on Arthur’s shoulder. “I know what you’re thinking… don’t do it, okay? You might freak a buncha people out… and you know people are afraid of us supers.” he looked around. “I… I don’t want ya gettin’ hurt…”

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“I am not comfortable around people.” Arthur stated and looked over at Alfred when he felt a heavy hand rest on his shoulder. “Yeah but.. they’re pretty. Kinda like- kinda like you now that you stopped eating like an animal.” Now one might say that’s a pretty compliment. But really, Arthur was still scolding him about that ice cream. Still, he did call him pretty. 

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First Meeting - Alfred and Arthur

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“We can prolly ask a zookeeper if you wanna know their names,” Alfred said. He leaned up against the glass to get a better look at the male, who was lounging around a bit casually in the shade. He looked like he had a good life, if the shining fur was any indication. “I’d probably name that dude Supercat or somethin’. Something really cool and heroic, ‘cause lions are the second most heroic animals!”

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“I don’t know... that’s too much social interaction.” Arthur said and frowned. He looked at the lionesses and smiled gently. They were beautiful- underrated compared to lions. Very, very underrated. “Well he’s probably a lazy asshole who in the wild would just fuck and sleep, but I guess.” Arthur added and was tempted to teleport in there. It was so obvious in his eyes. He really wanted to do that. 

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First Meeting - Alfred and Arthur

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Oh… well, that made Alfred feel a bit better. Though he would’ve preferred it if the statement was accompanied by a smile, not a frown… but he’ll take what he can get. It was likely going to be hard with Arthur being like this, but… well, Alfred was always able to make friends easily.

“So, what animals do ya wanna see first? The lions? Or the bears?”

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And yet again, as if no one could predict it, Arthur’s switch has been flipped and he’s all smiles, as child-like as, well, a child. He takes Alfred’s hand and drags him to the lions, talking about the beautiful creatures as if he had been studying for years. He might as well have. He’s visited the wikipedia pages on lions at least 10 times. 

“Oh my god, Alfred, Alfred… look at them.” He cooed, still holding the other male’s hand, for no apparent reason. 

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“Whoa!” for such a small person, Arthur could definitely pull another man along. And Alfred wasn’t exactly light, either. Still, it was almost adorable how eager Arthur was, how he all but ran over to the lions and pressed his face against the glass, cooing at the beasts sleeping peacefully in their pen. From the looks of it, the zoo had one male and three females. How many babies? Alfred couldn’t tell.

He didn’t want to think too hard anyways. Arthur was holding his hand.

“… Cute,” Alfred breathed. He wasn’t talking about the lions.

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“Yeah, they’re adorable. Did you know that they don’t even need that much water to drink? They usually get enough from their prey, in the wild, of course.” He grinned, looking up at Alfred with wide, wide green eyes. “Ohh do they have names?” He dragged Alfred over to the little sign that described the lions. “Awww, they’re not displayed...” He frowns. “Do you think they have cool names? What would you name the male? Isn’t he gorgeous? He kinda looks like your cat, if your cat was a lion, of course.”  

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First Meeting - Alfred and Arthur

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Oh… well, that made Alfred feel a bit better. Though he would’ve preferred it if the statement was accompanied by a smile, not a frown… but he’ll take what he can get. It was likely going to be hard with Arthur being like this, but… well, Alfred was always able to make friends easily.

“So, what animals do ya wanna see first? The lions? Or the bears?”

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And yet again, as if no one could predict it, Arthur’s switch has been flipped and he’s all smiles, as child-like as, well, a child. He takes Alfred’s hand and drags him to the lions, talking about the beautiful creatures as if he had been studying for years. He might as well have. He’s visited the wikipedia pages on lions at least 10 times. 

“Oh my god, Alfred, Alfred... look at them.” He cooed, still holding the other male’s hand, for no apparent reason. 

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First Meeting - Alfred and Arthur

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Alfred deflated immediatley at Arthur’s words. Him? Gross? Oh… he… he didn’t really think of that. Now he was self-conscious. Fuck. He felt gross. Without much of anotehr word, he tossed the ice cream away. Okay. No more ice cream. He didn’t want to be gross.

“I-It’s fine. I’m full.”

“Are you sure?” Arthur asked, watching him throw away the treat. He seemed to enjoy it earlier. What happened? He stayed silent, thinking about what could have possibly gone wrong all suddenly. “Are you okay?” He asked, observing the other and coming to the conclusion that he was sad. 

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“Yeah,” Alfred said honestly. Well, as honestly as he could be. It was a damned shame to see that ice cream go, but… well, he didn’t want to gross Arthur out. It wasn’t right. “I’m-… I’m just a bit weird, huh? Anyways! How are you liking this ice cream? Ain’t it great?”

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Arthur doesn’t get it. Did he hurt or did not not hurt Alfred? He rethinks back on his words. He saw nothing wrong with them. “I don’t like it, but you really wanted me to try ice cream.” Arthur said, frowning. “Weird...? Yeah. You’re loud, full of energy, you eat too fast and too messily... but.” He bit his lower lip. “You’re not really weird. No... You’re sweet, too.” 

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All that, and the Weaseltown guy was just a pointless distraction to fuel the big reveal’s surprise. [Sigh] I just really liked their duet. But it’s all for the sake of mixing it up, I suppose. Throwing out the cliche princess movie plot for something new and shocking.

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I’m not even a fan of Disney or animated movies in general. [small frown] I suppose I just don’t understand the appeal of them in most cases. I wish I did. The ending of Frozen was… [he searched for the correct word, though he had no feelings attached to the ending itself] …cute. 

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[He sits quietly for a moment, pondering] I like the music. And the feel-good aspect of them. Movies in general are something I enjoy, whether they’re for children or adult audiences.

My name is Sigurd by the way.

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I’m rather fond of movies too, I just don’t have enough time to watch everything I want. I barely began watching some of the classics. I have become rather fond of certain TV shows, too. Sadly, I really don’t have the time for those, either. 

Sigurd… It’s nice to meet you. I’m Arthur. [he even manages a smile] 

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Arthur, good to meet you. Ah, I can’t imagine not having enough time on my hands. [He lets out a partial laugh] Although I was raised by some of the world’s greatest procrastinators.

I believe it’s important to fill your time you have with things you enjoy, and not waste it on meaningless tasks.

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I have a very demanding job, so I don’t have much free time... [he could, technically, take less hours... but he already agreed on 10 every day from Monday to Friday...]

I tried to focus more on the things I could and wanted to do. It just always messed with what I needed to do. I would prefer not having a tight schedule, but I can’t help it much.