There's a moment in Control's AWE dlc that i really love and its when Jesse takes the elevator and Langston starts talking to her even though she cant respond
His line, "We're SUPPOSED to be on the same TEAM" is so powerful to me and he says it so earnestly like i really just love it, and it made me love his character even more. I hope they do more with him in the next game, and have Jesse address that sort of mentality that the Bureau has
In the same breath, i love the next moment where he just starts GOSSIPING about Darling because 1. I cant get enough of Darling and 2. Theres apparently some drama behind the scenes and i MUST know about
Continuation of this! I might accidentally repeat somethings, so bear with me y’all.
(Everything below the cut!)
How it Happens: It’s a slow burn, that’s for sure.
The two of them started talking pretty early on, when Byron and Edgar were first introduced to the roster. This would be about when Frank and Mortis had just talked things out. Edgar and Emz became friends (after a rocky start), which gave Byron and Mortis an excuse to interact more.
Mortis fell first, but he didn’t act on it immediately because he didn’t know if he was actually in love or just wanted to get into a relationship for the sake of familiarity. So he just spent more time with him until a friendly acquaintanceship became genuine friendship. From there Mortis realized that oh shit! This was the real deal!
Byron, on the other hand, very much did not know why his stomach twisted every time he made Mortis laugh, or why he enjoyed their conversations over drinks so much, or why his face kept heating up when he watched the way Mortis moved during a Brawl. He’s confided in his friends (Edgar and Colette, Belle, Piper and Barley), and all of them said the same thing.
“You’re in love, you idiot.”
Byron vehemently denied it at first, and even when he finally accepted that maybe he was in love, he never planned to do anything about it. Internalized homophobia’s a bitch, and he was convinced that Mortis would never reciprocate.
Which was why he was completely blindsided when Mortis confessed.
(He didn't even accept the confession immediately. He told him that he needed to think about it, and then proceeded to lie awake in bed all night reconciling with the fact that he is thoroughly gay, and really wants a bat boyfriend.)
Showing affection: You’d expect Byron to be the words guy, but he’s never really... been held before? Or held someone before? Or ever actually been able to give/receive physical affection other than a friendly shoulder pat in a while. Words just seem to fail him whenever he tries to tell Mortis he loves him, so instead more often than not he’ll go for a hug from behind and a kiss on the cheek. He still gets giddy when he realizes that this is something that he’s allowed to just do. Byron’s also one for gift giving! Catch him giving jewelry that incorporates vials of poison to Mortis.
Mortis has no qualms with telling Byron how much he loves him, and sometimes throws love at him out of the blue just to watch him fluster. If Byron isn’t doing anything dangerous (ie. mixing chemicals), he’ll act like a spoiled cat and bother him with/for affection. Whenever there’s a brawl that Byron’s in, he’ll be standing in the sidelines yelling “YOU’RE BRILLIANT!” at the top of his lungs. He’s the only one who can get him to flush red with something other than anger.
Handling Conflict: Neither of them are ones to start arguments. If there’s something wrong, they can usually talk things out and explain how they think. But sometimes, shit goes sideways, tempers flare, and an argument happens. If a shouting match occurs, they’ll take some time to cool off, vent to a willing ear, and then eventually make up.
Byron handles the aftermath of a conflict by trying to compartmentalize his feelings. He’ll try to act like everything’s fine, and that he feels fine, and it didn’t bother him all that much when in reality, depending on what the argument was about, it very much did bother him. If he thinks he’s in the wrong, he’ll swallow his pride and apologize, but otherwise, he’s a mask of smiles.
Mortis is a bit more hot-headed, but he never wants post-argument tension to last. If Byron doesn’t do it first, he’ll apologize no matter whether or not he was in the wrong. He’ll apologize for what he thinks he might’ve done wrong, and then try to explain why he blew up.
It’s not too hard for them to forgive each other. Staying angry is tiring, and no one wants to stay mad at their s/o.
Dealing with jealousy: These two dramatic, victorian-vibed gentleman get jealous surprisingly easily, but it’s hidden by the fact that there are few chances for that jealousy to show.
They'd act kinda similarly if someone triggered their jealousy, which is they'd walk over, insert themselves into the situation with a little "who's this insolent little fool you're talking to?" and make it so it's pretty obvious they aren't just friendly acquaintances.
Byron would walk up, loop an arm around Mortis's waist, and rest a hand right above his hip. It's always paired with a stony stare that he'll level at the offending person until they go away. Lets 'em know pretty quick that Mortis is most definitely off limits.
Mortis would be a bit more bold, shutting things down quick with a kiss on the cheek and malice, thinly veiled by a smile, directed at the offending person. He'll link an arm with Byron, and interject with his own sweet talk whenever the offending person is tries to flirt with him. The offending person, if they're smart, usually realizes they don't have a chance immediately.
Relationship attitude: Both of them would be dedicated lovers. That doesn't mean they shower each other with love everyday, all the time, cuz that's not dedication, that's the beginning of any relationship. But they do have specific days where they do sweet romantic gestures for each other, and they rarely part ways without a kiss and a quick "Love you!"
Byron's never been used to affection, and while that gets better as time goes on, the most PDA thing you'll catch him doing is light kisses, light flirts, and hugs from behind. He also doesn't like acting all lovey-dovey in public because he's got an *image* to uphold. Byron will be more open with people he trusts though!
If Mortis wants to kiss his boyfriend, he's gonna kiss his boyfriend! He'll obviously respect Byron's boundaries, but he runs on the belief that "If I'm not embarrassed, then the embarrassed one is you," the you in question being any onlookers.
Attachment: Since both of them are people who fight to the ‘death’ for a living, neither of them really feel overprotective of the other. They’ll watch each others’ backs, but they trust that they’re both completely capable of protecting themselves. Mortis does have feelings around protecting Byron though (see the first post).
As for independence, not exactly sure what to put here? They’re both pretty independent, it’s not a very healthy relationship if either of them needed each other. They’ll spend a lot of time together, but that’s cuz they want each other.
I put Mortis’s dot a little bit more to the left because sometimes he has to fish Byron out of caffeine-induced multiple-nighters after he had a chemistry idea and forgot that he needs to take care of himself. But I guess that’s not wanting to be separated and more worrying about your part-time mad scientist boyfriend.
#project hail mary
#the amazing digital circus
#photography
