onewhoisall | (no subject)

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kaine

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Kaine. He's missing, I have been searching. Looking for him since I surprised him but unable to find him. It takes me a while but I find him, finally, in a dark alley. The shape of his body familiar enough by now that it makes me stop, hesitate and pause before I drop from the rooftop into the alley and land silently. My nose wrinkles, the smell of booze and urine fill my nostrils as I move towards him. I creep forward, eyes taking in the bottle and the hint of hair on his cheeks as I approach him from behind. I understand him before I see him.

I don't talk to him, don't give him the chance before I strike out quick and sharp at a bundle of nerves. I murmur an apology as his body goes slack and I move forward to catch him. The bottle breaks and I pull him away from it before collapsing back against the building. He is heavy in my arms but I have carried heavier.

"Kaine," I murmur, a soft apology before I move his weight slightly. I struggle but it is a struggle that I can bear. Lifting the grapple gun, I fire it before hooking his body to mine. We fly together, slowly across the city and when he begins to stare I hit him again. It is only when we are safe back at my apartment that I will allow him to waken.

I place him in the shower, grunting at the weight and rubbing my shoulder at the tension. I glance looking around before my eyes settle on the cannister, taking the razor and foam I move over to him before straddling his waist. The cool of the tiles soothes me as I ignore the smell, the presence of him and concentrate on the task at hand. I do not slip, I shave him cleanly before I reach up, moving close to him before I press the on button.

He will be angry but I am ready. I will not allow him to destroy himself.

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Okay? What does she mean by okay? She's still touching me and leaning against me so... I don't know. But she isn't upset so I figure that's pretty good. I don't think I could stand to lose another friend to my stupidity. Which reminds me that I need to go talk to Helen and apologize.

"I never said I wanted that!" I grumble. "The masks would get in the way anyway."

Cass looked at him, her lips pressing together as she stared at him almost as if she knew what he was thinking. She didn't but she knew him, she knew his body and she knew the way he would over think about this when it was so simple.

"Yes, they would. Wouldn't get in the way now though," Cass replied, her lips tugging into a smile at his grumbling. Her brother had taught her how to tease, Steph had refined it. Beneath the quiet, serious face Cassandra could actually be quite wicked when she wanted to be. Cass stretched her leg out before poking Kaine in the stomach with her toe. "Eat or it will go cold."

"You're cruel," I say, finally starting understand what she's doing. This sort of... playful teasing is not something I'm used to at all. A lot of things are becoming clear about how she's been acting toward me.

"And maybe I like it cold," I say, grabbing her foot and lifting her up off the ground by it. I know she's good enough to not smack her head as she swings and I'm showing her she's not the only one that can mess around.

Besides, bats like being upside down, don't they?

Her body tenses waiting for the curl of his fingers around her foot, she isn't surprised when he tugs her off the counter. Instead she wrapped her other leg around his arm pressing into his skin and muscles to support herself. She scowled, letting her hands fall down as her t-shirt began to slowly fall away from her stomach and across her torso revealing more than Kaine had probably intended.

"Hn," Cass murmured, poking him with her toe as he held her. Cass turned her head looking up at him with a raised eyebrow, not bothering to cross her arms over her chest. "You done?"

The nice thing about holding her like this is that I don't actually have to look down at her, so if her shirt is slipping off, I don't see it. I can just eat my pizza in (relative) peace.

"Yeah, sure, I'll let go," I say, opening up my hand. She doesn't budge though, as I'm making sure that she's still sticking to the surface of my hand.

Almost by accident, a small smile quirks at the corner of my mouth as I take another bite of pizza.

She trusts him enough not to drop her, she trusts his body not to lie but she still wraps one leg around his arm and grips him as he opened up his hand. Looking up at him, the small smile at the corner of his mouth made her smile a little more. Turning her head she pressed a kiss against his knee before continuing to hang for a little while longer.

"Okay, down." Cass said raising her arms for him to take and tug her up and onto her feet rather than drop her.

"Fine," I say, stuffing the last bite of pizza into my mouth and reaching down to grab her hands. I pull her up and unstick her foot from my hand at the same time, letting her get into a standing position.

"You weigh more than you'd think."

She doesn't move away, she simply lets gravity work and allows her body to fall, controlled as ever, up against him and down his body before placing her feet on the floor. Letting her lips tug into a smile, she nods and curls her fingers around his wrist as she doesn't make the effort to move away from him.

"Muscle," Cass replied simply. "Weigh more than you think. I have to be able to carry people."

"After you sucker punch them," I say, not moving to push her away. Now that I know what the little things she's doing mean I'm less comfortable with them, but somehow I can't quite bring myself to push her away.

For now, it's easy to keep myself from getting too... invested that way. The sting of being a monster, of being unworthy of being around people, is fresh in a way that makes it easy to fend off any feelings of anything more than mild appreciation.

"Didn't punch you, collection of nerves... here." Cass replied, leaning up onto her tiptoes to press her finger and thumb against the back of his neck. Lifting her shoulders in a soft shrug, she parted her lips with her tongue before adding. "Hit them the right way and people go down. So... not punching. Striking. Difference."

Her lips tugged into a soft smile before she brushed her thumb against his skin. He would understand now but she needed him to know and understand he was more than what he thought he was.

"Sucker nerve strike then."

I know it's not really a sucker blow. Even drunk I'm not easy to sneak up on for most people. But then again, she's not most people. She's not like anyone else, really.

And I don't know why she's so interested in saving me. It's a waste of time on her part

"I don't understand you."

"Perhaps... you're easy to sneak up on." Cass replied, letting her fingers stroke the area she had hit almost in gentle apology before she brought her hand back down over his shoulder. Her hand stroked down his chest as she turned her head curiously to one side and looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Don't you? Okay, I'd offer to explain but you don't seem to want that."

True her explanation wouldn't he done with words but he knew her, he was her friend and he knew what to expect. Or at least she thought he should.

"Easier than I used to be," I admit. With a Spider-Sense I didn't even have to try to be alert, it just happened. Still, not having the vision is a nice trade-off. Those alone would drive me crazy.

"I understand wanting to help me. You're a hero, it's what you do. I don't understand you... wanting more."

I don't see how anyone would. Why anyone would want something like that with me, especially knowing what I am, confuses me.

"That's okay, I can help you train to be more aware." Cass replied, letting her hand glide over his sternum before sliding down over his stomach. Hand curling into a soft fist, she pressed her knuckles light and gentle against his stomach almost like a kiss. "Why wouldn't I?"

Cass looked at him confused before shaking her head at him. "I like you. It's simple, it doesn't have to be... hard."

"I don't understand why."

She doesn't have to tell me though. Maybe it's best that she doesn't. I just can't understand or fathom it though. There is nothing about me that would seem... desirable that I can see. I'm more trouble than I'm worth, and I'm not worth anything.

"I think you're crazy."

She stretched her fingers up his stomach, leaning into the warmth of his body before looking at him. Her lips were soft, pliant as she parted them with her tongue and sighed softly.

"Because beneath it all you are a good person and I couldn't hurt you. I like that," Cass replied simply with a shrug, stretching up onto her tiptoes before she wrapped her hand in his shirt and tugged. "Maybe I am."

"Certifiable," I say, allowing myself to be pulled a bit closer. I want to believe what she's saying, that I'm a good person deep down, but I can't.

Same as I want to kiss her, but I can't, or I won't. Give her some time and she'll see what I really am. Better if I don't get too close or attached. At least not more than I already have.

She stretched her hand up, fingertips brushing against his collar before sliding around his neck. Turning her head, she leaned in close almost to brush a kiss against his lips but holding back just slightly.

"Perhaps..." Cass agreed, her voice trailing off as she tugged him down a little more. "I'm not... good. Not yet. But I could be, I can try to be. So can you."

"Cass," I say, placing a hand on her chest to stop her from pulling me any closer. It's too tempting to give in to and I admit that I've found the things I want the most are a bad idea.

"I'm not good and I don't think I can be. But we'll see."

We'll see. Maybe one of these days I will kiss her, but not today. We'll see.

She nods before bending her head to press a kiss against his knuckles. She smiles against his skin understanding even if she disagrees with him, even if it frustrates her not to be able to show him without words what she meant.

"You are over-thinking it Flamingo Boy," Cass murmured turning her head, wondering why he doesn't listen to his own body. "It's just... talking. Kissing."

"You're being too impulsive, Fox Girl."

That is probably the first time in my life I've criticized someone for that. But I don't think I'm over-thinking this at all. This is what's best for both of us. When she realizes what a lost cause I am, she'll be grateful.

Impulsive. Hn, that was one word that did not describe Cassandra. She trusted her instincts, she acted on them but that was rarely impulse. Training, knowledge and instinct yes but not rash. She knew what she was doing.

"No, I'm not. Been thinking about it for a while, been telling you that I was going to do it. Not my fault you didn't believe me," Cass replied simply. She had after all been telling him repeatedly that she was going to kiss him. She figured she had given him enough warning with words and without them by now. "But I can't change your mind... tonight. Can I?"

"Nope," I say, taking another slice of pizza and taking a bite out of it. She's determined, but I know she's disillusioned just like Sybil was. She'll learn eventually.

"Not tomorrow night either. Or the night after that."

"We will see," Cass replied, hand darting quick to snatch the pizza from his hand. The corner of her lips turned into a smile that she tossed over her shoulder as she made her escape into the living area. "I can be persuasive."

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