#brckenprcmises

[aeviterncl]

@brckenprcmises * ✽ ❪ cont. from here┊☓ ❫

What a cute little demon he found himself drawn to. It was so funny to him that Asa was complaining about the fall even happening to begin with. To be fair, Albert already knew that was going to happen, and that was why he even suggested to hang out at the top of this skyscraper. Whether he had done so or not, Asa would've come here and ultimately faced this very same scare—the only difference being that he wouldn't be here to stop it from resulting in his ultimate demise.

Ah, what a chore it was to stop all these things that threatened to kill off his friend, but in a way, Albert did enjoy being able to play savior white knight for a very amusing demon who had no inkling of how much death was trying to swipe his soul. With his hand still tightly holding onto Asa's wrist, the reaper had pulled them up to the safe part of the skyscraper roof. Though, the minute they were back to safety, the other had yanked his arm out of his hold, childishly pouted, and stuck out his tongue.

Unfazed by the display, Albert smiled, ❝ I would've caught you no matter what, ❞ the reaper reassured him with an almost inappropriately giddy laugh. Walking up to him to close the distance again, the reaper reached out to pinch Asa's cheek between his fingers—harshly as if to punish the the demon for expressing his intent to make him feel the same fear, ❝ and even if you pushed me off a building, I wouldn't die anyway. ❞

After all, he was already dead—not that Asa knew that.

[kaireios]

" nu - uh, i'd swim to the end of the ocean for you ! " \ @brckenprcmises, johan.

[polycephebi]

"I'm sorry, thank you." She said, under hopes that the new stranger would somehow hear her, and knowing that the other guy didn't have a chance of doing so. @brckenprcmises | Cont.

------ And if that other guy didn't tuck his tail and leave, the piercing gaze that Adriane offered him served as a monumental warning.

His stature was smaller, only marginally less so than Ellie, and significantly less so than the [ ambitious ] fellow that wished to paint himself as charming. From the outset, Dri had no advantage, except that his arm fit much more comfortably around the girl.

So, what could a warning like that possibly entail? If he's wise, this guy will never have to know.

He smiled, swayed his head, and began to lead Ellie away. The man was left stunned. It felt to him near-certain that this man would want to try something, whether through words or force, so Dri chimed loudly for attention, as he hurried the girl away from here:

"Thank god I found you in time~! From the look of it, that [ CREEP ] was all set to roofie your drink, huh!"

Sufficiently, the man should be held in place by the suspicious gazes that now surround him. Dri carried on lightheartedly, assuring the illusion of friendship and safety like this. Well-- It wasn't a complete illusion, ( I guess ). Even though he didn't know her at all~! Nobody else should be able to tell that, right now.

"Anyway, the rest of us are just around the corner~ Try to be more punctual next time, alright?"

Just around the corner-- It should be fine enough to let the poor thing go there. Although, it couldn't be said that he didn't enjoy her arms around him~

[lured-into-wonderland]

Continued from [here] with @brckenprcmises

“I actually need more than one minute.” – Nunnally smiled; she knew she could be honest with Gus, and whatever inappropriate confession she was to make, it would stay between them – “I wish I could simply disappear for tonight…” – she was forced into conversations she didn’t like, with the women she hoped she had nothing in common, and with their smug husbands that needed their reassurance they were important. It was kind of her job; one could argue, but Nunnally still did not enjoy it.

“It’s so hot inside.” – she complained – “Do you think we could risk sneaking outside to the terrace or to the gardens for a few minutes?” – perhaps if they didn’t spend too much time outside the main room, their absence wouldn't get noticed.

“…gosh, this dress is so uncomfortable…” – the sigh had left Nunnally’s lips before she was able to stop it.

“I’m really sorry. My frustration got the better of me, and I didn’t mean to direct it toward you.”

[aeviterncl]

@brckenprcmises * ✽ ❪ cont. from here┊☓ ❫

It wasn't unusual for the redhead to narrowly avoid falling structures like large air conditioners, but he was a bit concerned about the frequency of these happenings. It used to be only once every so often but now these kinds of narrow escapes were happening almost weekly. Shi hadn't said anything to his caregiver, but showing up after work with minor scrapes and/or damage to his clothes certainly alerted him of the things going on. If he was safe, it didn't really matter, right?

Anyway, this time, the fall of the air conditioner had made people panic. So, the witch went on to check on people who had seemed to be too panicked to move. Reaching out to one of them, he offered his hand. The moment their hands touched, he felt a heavily malicious aura. Shi instinctively yanked his arm back, but the stranger had a strong grip on his hand, preventing him from even budging at all.

In moments, it felt like he was being drained. Whatever magic coursed through his veins felt like it was being called to leave him. While Shi did not use his magic much at all, it was still very much a part of him—part of his identity. Even if his magic caused him so much pain, to feel a sensation similar to blood spilling from his veins and knowing something important was being taken from him–it finally pushed Shi to yank away harder, desperately so.

His remaining magic activating out of defense, he channeled it to alter the shape of his shadow to act as an additional vaguely shaped limb to pry the stranger's hand out of his and push it away. Stumbling back a little bit from the recoil, he warily looked at the stranger from a safer distance, the brand in his eyes now faintly shining through the color of his brown contacts in warning.

❝ What did you... just do? ❞ Shi asked, his words laced with confusion and disbelief. Normally, he wasn't the type to be so shocked, but to literally feel his magic being taken from him was not something he ever expected to experience. Since when were there people who could steal magic like this? His studies only covered taking magic via items.

[aeviterncl]

@brckenprcmises * ✽ ❪ cont. from here┊☓ ❫

Her eyes widened in disbelief when Yukimura spoke. This whole time, she believed that she needed to hold onto his hand to keep him tethered to this world if he wasn't lingering around his place of death. She hadn't even bothered to ask if this was necessary before making it a habit and establishing the routine of leading him around with their hands together. Shock clouding her features, the witch froze, her magenta eyes fixing on the way her small hands struggled to truly hold onto his decently larger ones. How embarrassing!

❝ W-What do you mean we don't need to hold hands? ❞ she stammered aloud, processing the implications behind everything she had been doing. Had she come off as someone too forward or maybe even flirty without meaning to? Heat rose to her cheeks and for the first time in what felt like forever, she felt warmth course through her bloodstream. Her fingers threatened to loosen their hold for a split second in hesitation. What if Yukimura actually hated the prospect of holding hands? After all, they weren't lovers or anything, and clearly this was... too intimate for people who barely knew things about each other.

Yet, the woman found herself holding onto Yukimura's hands tighter, squeezing them as if it would help her regulate her own emotions that were suddenly put into turmoil. Unable to directly look him in the eyes for a moment, she took a moment to gather her bearings and forced her flustered feelings down for a moment.

Desperately trying to explain her point of view, she attempted to blab her explanation, her gaze flickering back up to him in a way that probably appeared to be batting her long eyelashes, ❝ I thought you needed that to—I thought if we didn't, you'd... not be able to stay tethered here. ❞

But she really didn't want to let go. As much as she felt she probably should let go, her hands refused to budge from how they were currently clasped around his. Their hands had certainly warmed up by now, and breaking away would mean facing the cold all over again.

[aeviterncl]

@brckenprcmises * ✽ ❪ cont. from here┊☓ ❫

Shi listened attentively to the knowledge Ansel was providing. He didn't know about that myth, but it puzzled him that the practice wasn't constrained to those involved in romantic relationships. After all, wouldn't things go wrong if strangers or simple friends got stuck under the mistletoe? Already beginning to distract himself from the conversation with more internal questions, the redhead took another sip of his hot chocolate (which had definitely gotten cold by now), letting his hand fall from where he had tucked it under his chin.

Though the witch was pulled out of that isolated cage of thought when he felt hands cup his cheeks, the boy startled to the point of nearly dropping his cup as he darted his attention back to Ansel. In a fraction of a second, his lips were taken, but just as quickly, the weight against his lips was gone. What was left behind was an odd tingly sensation and a sliver of warmth.

Oh, so that’s what it felt like to be kissed. It was shorter than he expected, too. He didn’t feel flustered or put off but from how quickly Ansel pulled away from him, Shi could tell that the demonstration was far more meaningful than he thought it was. Shi knew lovers and couples kissed to express their love for each other, but he had never thought that the simple act of standing under a mistletoe would spur friends to kiss too. Or... was this Ansel trying to convey he felt more than platonic emotions for him? The reaction he was facing here was confusing. Why did Ansel do this if he was going to feel embarrassed afterward? Why would he do it if he didn't harbor those romantic feelings? Just because there was a rule didn't mean he had to follow it.

❝ Thank you for demonstrating how it works, ❞ Shi spoke up in his usual tone, showing no signs of being flustered or embarrassed at all. Taking hold of Ansel’s wrist as the other shrunk away from him, the redhead pulled the boy toward him—close enough to have a proper conversation like they were doing just before Ansel decided to demonstrate the tradition for him. Making Ansel face him, Shi looked directly into his eyes and gently reprimanded him, ❝ but if you were going to hide away from me, I would rather you not have. ❞

As he peered into Ansel’s eyes, he noticed the massive amounts of fear and anxiety in them. Ah, so the kiss bothered him. Now Shi felt a little bad for not being the same level of flustered (not that he could tell if that kiss was meant to mean anything in the first place). But, he did have to admit that seeing Ansel’s face so pink and shy was quite intriguing. It seemed he had learned about a new side of his friend today. He could get swept away by wanting to share his knowledge and that effort could lead to embarrassing moments and make him shy. It was such a contrast from the usual people-person, extrovert he was used to talking to.

As he scanned the rest of Ansel’s expression, the redhead noticed a droplet of the hot chocolate on the blond’s lip. Thankfully, he had a napkin on him. Shifting the paper to his free hand that wasn’t holding the cup, he leaned in for a second to wipe the drop off his friend’s lip, ❝ You had some of the hot chocolate there, ❞ he explained after he drew away without missing a beat, quickly giving Ansel his personal space to not make him panic any more than necessary.

[aeviterncl]

@brckenprcmises * ✽ ❪ cont. from here┊☓ ❫

Oh, his tip wasn't accepted. Well, he supposed it was probably too much of a tip compared to the price of the drink he ordered, but he didn't have any smaller bills to offer at the moment. However, it wasn't his place to insist on giving it even if he felt like the barista should take it. Maybe the café had changed their rules on tipping or there was a personal— the boy's eyes widened a bit in disbelief at the reasoning provided to him. To work simply for the joy of it and not the income was... a blessing.

Straightening out his posture and reluctantly tucking the bill back into his wallet, Shi put his wallet away into his pocket. With that done, the redhead was going to head over to the nearest table to relax and nurse his drink over a book, but he was quickly stopped by the other calling out to him. Did he want the tip in the end then? Though, the question that he was asked certainly told him that was not the case.

Glancing down at his iced latte, Shi tried to recall the other drinks he had tried, taking a sip of his drink through the straw as he did so—the matcha green tea, the hot chai latte, an expresso, the basic black coffee roast, and a peach flavored fruit drink. Well, with that order history, it was no wonder that Ansel might have the impression he didn't like anything he did order in the past.

After ingesting that generous sip of his iced latte, Shi shook his head as he lifted his gaze to meet Ansel's directly, ❝ It isn't that I don't like the drinks I've tried, ❞ he began to explain, ❝ it's more like I like trying new drinks when I can. I wouldn't order something I know I wouldn't like, so I can't say I'd actually try everything on the menu. ❞ Sometimes he felt like drinking something different depending on the book he was reading that day too, and having a different drink was also another way to add variance to his daily routine. It kept things a little different from time to time.

However, if it bothered the employees here that he was a regular and didn't have a go-to order, he could see why it might be frustrating to work with him as often as they did, ❝ But if it is a bother to not have consistent order, I can start ordering the same thing more often. ❞ Though he would have to figure out what drink to settle on for that routine order.