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[lcngstcryshcrt]

Maximus frowned.

"You just... asked her?" He repeated, not quite sure how to respond to that statement.

"I mean, that's certainly one way to do it," he muttered to himself, rubbing a hand down his jaw.

"Well, if she does show then you'll have something in your back pocket to suggest for your next meeting. Like I said, the more exposure she has to you and us in general, only the better I hope."

He looked out the window, frown still lingering on his face.

"In the meantime I wonder if there's someone or something in this town that can break a memory-lock like that."

Max lifted his hands in a placating gesture, raising his head to look Eugene in the eyes.

"Only joking, man," he replied, regretting the rash suggestion immediately.

"You'll just have to gain her trust another way, and hopefully, through interactions with you, something will break Maude's hold over her."

He leaned forward and put a hand on Eugene's knee.

"Look, if anyone can get through to her, it'll be you. I know how much she loves you. Somewhere, that's all locked away, but we both know she's a tough kid."

Maximus was using his best Captain of the Guard voice, the one he used on recruits that needed the encouragement. He didn't mean to. It just was... happening.

"What if you invited her to drop some paintings off at the shop? Or have her do some custom designs for you? Then you'd have at least some time with her while she was delivering or painting at the shop." He switched to problem-solving mode next, trying to think outside the box.

[lcngstcryshcrt]

Belle hummed to herself as she pushed the books back into their places on the shelves, swaying slightly to the tune stuck in her head.

Absorbed in her work, it took a few moments to notice the other woman standing there, a stricken look on her face.

"Oh, my dear! I'm sorry, I didn't notice you standing there!" She gasped and chuckled, stepping forward to put a comforting hand on the other's shoulder.

"Are you alright, honey?"

@posey-milne

Late afternoon sunlight filtered through the shop window, catching motes of dust dancing in the beam. Belle waved a hand through it, trying to disperse the cloud but only succeeding in setting the dust swirling, drawing the eye even more.

Sighing, she turned away, a trio of books pressed to her sternum in her other hand, searching for their homes on the crowded shelves of her little shop.

The front bell chimed, and Belle poked her head around the corner of the shelf to greet her customer.

"Bonjur! Let me know if you need any help today!"

[lcngstcryshcrt]

Maximus wasn't totally sure why he was at the bar. After putting through a few new applications, he'd grown so frustrated that he wanted some air to clear his head.

The walking had brought him to the sidewalk outside of Pour Unfortunate Soul, and after a few moments of contemplation, he'd gone inside, bee-lining toward the bar.

Max must have been craving closeness, because it didn't even cross his mind to choose a seat away from the young woman at the bar. He slid onto the stool next to her, waiting for the bartender to notice him so he could put an order in.

Her words startled him out of his reverie, head turning to look at her as his face flushed.

"Oh, sorry! I didn't even notice that it was so empty. Uh, I can move down," he babbled, scooting to the next stool over and gesturing to the space between them.

"Better?"

Open starter Location: Poor Unfortunate Soul

It felt like forever for Nyx for the third shift security guard to show up and replace her at work. She didn't hate her job. It gave her a sense of pride, duty, and purpose. That didn't mean she wanted to live there. Fast forward a few hours and she was tucked away at the corner of the bar, finishing the last bit of her drink. She flagged the bartender down for another just before someone sat beside her. She glanced over at them and then at the various other unoccupied barstools. Her drink was set in front of her and she didn't hesitate to grab the glass and take a sip. Nyx let a short time pass before she directly looked at the person next to her, whose presence was bothering her for no reason other than they could have sat anywhere that wasn't next to her. She was enjoying her solitude that night and the vibe they brought was really fucking it up. "Is there a reason you had to sit next to me when there are plenty of open seats elsewhere?" She rose a brow as she questioned them. "I mean, seriously, don't you think that's strange?"

[lcngstcryshcrt]

Maximus' shoulders loosened as Swizz actually (kind of) took his thoughts seriously. He lifted an eyebrow at him again.

"I'll take requests after my first gallery show," he quipped back. He checked his watch and huffed.

"I'm running late for an interview though. I've gotta run. I trust you can lock the door when you leave?"

He began to rustle around once again, looking for his house keys and his wallet, pointing an imperious finger at Swizz.

"Next time text me though. I'm not opposed to sharing my stuff but my roommate might not feel the same," he warned.

Max followed the wrapping in it's abbreviated arch to the floor, frustration simmering under his skin.

"Entertainment and trouble often go hand in hand," he replied, leaning down and picking up the wrapper, stalking over to the trashcan and dropping the garbage with a crinkle of foil.

"'Let loose'?" Max repeated the phrase, propping his hands on his hips and shaking his head at Swizz.

"As riveting as reading local ordinances sounds, my hobbies have exclusively involved swordplay, running..." his gaze flicked to the painting hanging over his couch, his frown easing slightly as his eyes swept along the brush strokes.

"Well, I'm thinking of trying to paint. Don't laugh at me."

He felt the flush grow in his cheeks as he turned back toward the counter again, brushing imaginary dust from the surface.

"So, no. 'Letting loose' is probably not in my wheelhouse."

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Kim and Swizz ~

Kim pushed herself up on her elbows to look, to reassure herself that she wasn't actually dreaming this up, that Swizz, handsome and coy and sexy, was actually smiling at her from between her thighs.

"On... On..." she stuttered, tongue-tied as her cheeks began to glow with a blush, chest heaving as she tried to catch her breath, to regain some composure, to keep up her usual flippant facade, but utterly failing.

"Fuck, Swizz," she whispered, "Please put your mouth on me."

She tried to indicate where she wanted that clever tongue with an insistent flutter of her fingers, embarrassment clogging her throat from spitting out what she wanted to say. Put your mouth on my pussy, Swizz.

°•○ - KIM & SWIZZ

Every bit of focus narrowed to the feel of Swizz's lips on her skin, the fire growing with each press in a tantalizing trail.

She watched, lips parted slightly, hardly recognizing the sounds leaving her throat.

"With your mouth," she begged, blushing.

She'd never asked so boldly like this, but the moments spent building to this precipice had given her not only courage but trust to put herself into Swizz's hands and step off, to move their... whatever this was to a different level. To let herself be reckless, take what she wanted wholeheartedly.

"I'm all yours."

[lcngstcryshcrt]

"Of course I have to, you're only like, my best friend in this town," Kim objected, pulling open the cabinet Molly had indicated and spotting the desired cooking implement.

She extracted it and stood, spinning the pot in one hand as she moved to the stove, setting it on the burner with a small 'tink'.

"You sound like death," Kim continued, turning back to her grocery bags and finding the can of classic chicken noodle. Keeping it hidden from Molly, she cracked the lid as quietly as she could and dumped the contents into the saucepan before tossing it back into her bags to take home and put in her own recycling.

"How about I make you some tea too?"

Kim kicked the door shut behind her, heading toward the kitchen in a rustle of shopping bags laden with groceries.

"Sit your butt down, I'm making you my mom's famous chicken noodle. I swear to God it cures everything," she chattered, dropping her armful of bags on the counter.

She began to rummage through the cupboards, humming to herself.

"Where are your saucepans?"

@evermorehqsstart

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"Yes, absolutely," he murmured back, hands falling to her waist to steady her, to pull her closer to him.

"As much as you want, as often as you want," Terence declared, punctuating both statements with a kiss to each of her cheeks.

"I fear if I don't send you inside I might just keep you on the sidewalk all night," he laughed ruefully.

She burst into a fit of laughter when he lifted her off the ground, her hands gripping his shoulders as he spun her around though really, nothing could ruin this moment — not even if he dropped her.

On her own two feet again but still feeling like the world was spinning around her, dizzying and dazzling, she hummed against his lips, unable to wipe her smile off of her face. "Your girlfriend," she repeated, something about the way he said the words making her heart beat even harder against her ribcage. "My boyfriend."

He sounded nearly as giddy as her, and she couldn't fathom why, but she liked it. She liked the way he was smiling at her. She liked the way he was brushing hair away from her face. "Does that mean we can do more..." she hesitated, just long enough to lesn on her toes and press another kiss to his lips, short and sweet, "of this?"

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@imgonnarackett

"Careful there," Max grunted, grabbing the other end of the pallet as the man appeared to try and haul it off the truck all by himself.

"These things can be a bit unwieldy, right?" he chuckled as they managed to stabilize it.

"Where are you going with this, stranger?"

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@nctaunicorn

"Well, here's what I have on local folklore," Belle said, surfacing from the rows of shelves with a handful of books. She puffed, blowing a lock of hair out of her face as she dumped them on the counter in front of the young person leaning against it.

"If you're just looking to borrow that's fine, I just need a card to put on file."

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@keepmovingforwcrd

"Oh, how delightful is that!" Belle cooed over the little figurine on her desk.

"Lewis, you always make the most wonderful things. You remind me of my Papa so much. You'd get along like a house on fire, I just know it," she continued babbling on, turning to continue adding books to the pile in her arms.

[lcngstcryshcrt]

Haku swallowed hard a few more times, loathe to even bring the words into this little slice of tranquility.

"My mistress owns the Bathhouse," they sighed at last, tilting their head to watch Saal as she sat beside them, her delicate fingers on his chest again stirring the longing in his chest to be touched kindly like this always.

They caught one of her hands in theirs, squeezing gently.

"Thank you for helping me, Saal," they murmured, then bowed their head over her hand before letting it go.

saal , ever patient when it comes to the medical treatment of others ( showing the very tenderness she had always hoped from ) , didn't let her brief irritation cross her expression or show itself in her work . she moved silently from one cut to the other , gently brushing debris from his scrapes , brows knotted in concentration . " go back where , haku ?? " she inquired , not as delicate in her questioning as she should be , tone flat as she tried to keep her responses neutral . solely an assessment for information .

yet , , , her heart did something akin to ache at his reasoning , lips twisting as beady pupils shifted up to look at his face . she tensed , gently releasing his arm , rising to her feet so she could turn to retrieve a fresh cloth . give her taut expression some reprieve . once she had done that , saaliha turned once more . sitting beside him , carefully brushed the pads of her fingers across his chest , taking in the state of his torso , his breathing . a look to his face , something somber in her expression as she lowered her brows . she wondered if jack felt the same way about her . if he dwelled over saaliha's safety the way she did his . if he'd be the savior she had made him out to be .

" that someone is very lucky to have you , " she says softly .

[lcngstcryshcrt]

Maximus chuckled, shaking his head.

"No shortage of self-confidence I see," he quipped back. Deciding to take up boxing had been a spur of the moment decision, when Max realized he was missing the physical release of sparring with his men. The tension sliding from his shoulders even as he lay sprawled on the sticky mats of the boxing gym was a welcome relief.

He pushed to his feet and held up his glove for a bump.

"It was Vitani right? Good match."

She felt like she was growing weaker, and while Vitani didn't love the excessive training she'd been forced into as a child, she appreciated what it turned her into. Sort of.

But a punching bag wasn't enough, and her regular gym membership was not cutting it. So here she was. Willingly signing up for socialization to fight strangers.

Maximus was better than she expected, though, and she was starting to lose her confidence until the moment of distraction was enough to wipe the man off of his feet. Staring down at him with a smugness that was a bit more forced than she'd like, her shoulders lifted and fell into a shrug. "Everyone does against me."

[lcngstcryshcrt]

Was she going to say 'I love you'? Nani's heart shied away at the very thought, not because she didn't feel it, not because she didn't want to, but she was just so scared.

Scared of opening her heart to someone else, of putting aside some of the space she'd reserved for Lilo and Lilo alone for all this time.

She opened her mouth to say it, to put a bow on this perfect moment, but hesitated. She smiled, squeezing David's hand.

"Kiss me again," she said instead. Maybe today wasn't the time, but it would come. When she could say it without hesitation.

Until that time came, she would enjoy the glow of this. The sweet pleasure of kissing him, of knowing that she was his and he was hers. At last, at last, at last. A mantra, a prayer, an exaltation.

Nani's breath caught, her chest tightening with a myriad of emotions as David closed the distance between them.

The first brush was so sweet, so tender, Nani could have cried. Then she was kissing him back and God - it was better than she'd dreamed of, better than she'd hoped, and she moved closer to him, twining her arms around his neck, deepening the kiss with all the desperation and loneliness and joy of reuniting at long, long last.

When she at last pulled back, a shy smile on her face, she brushed his hair back behind his ear.

"I'm not an easy person to love," she murmured, eyes roving over David's face.

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Kim grunted as she swung her bat at yet another delicate vase, the satisfying crack and rain of shattered ceramic sounding in the Rage Room.

Tossing both pony tail and sledgehammer over one shoulder, Kim turned to grin at her companion.

"Damn, that's always satisfying. Where does Antoine keep sourcing these?" She asked, shaking her head.

"I'm glad I ran into you today, though. It's been forever!"

@caramelxcarmen

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@brystol-u

"I know, right? Being a teenage hero is super rough. Like, I can't believe I made it out of school with a 3.7 when I was constantly skipping out of class to fight bad guys," Kim laughed, sitting back in the booth at Java Lava.

Meeting Brystol at the gym had been a stroke of luck Kim could hardly fathom. She felt almost like she had found a kindred spirit as a young hero, someone to reminisce about "the good ol' days" before Evermore and the separation from what life had been like before.

"You know, we should start a foundation if we ever make it home. To tutor young heros and make sure they are keeping up with their grades," she declared, smacking the table lightly with her palm.

"Whaddya think?"

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@posey-milne

Late afternoon sunlight filtered through the shop window, catching motes of dust dancing in the beam. Belle waved a hand through it, trying to disperse the cloud but only succeeding in setting the dust swirling, drawing the eye even more.

Sighing, she turned away, a trio of books pressed to her sternum in her other hand, searching for their homes on the crowded shelves of her little shop.

The front bell chimed, and Belle poked her head around the corner of the shelf to greet her customer.

"Bonjur! Let me know if you need any help today!"

[lcngstcryshcrt]

Haku smiled, the tiniest curve of lips as they considered Dani's question.

"With abstract art I feel that it's less about 'getting it' and more about the feeling that it invokes in you," they explained, tilting their head slightly to the side to view the piece from yet a different angle.

"This one gives me the distinct feeling of staring down into deep water. A distilled moment of both the awe of the depth and the chilling fear of it too."

They glanced to Dani, an eyebrow raised.

"What do you think? Too fanciful?"

Haku tilted their head again, contemplating the abstract piece. Something about it was giving them pause, to the point where they hadn't even noticed they were losing time.

It was well into the evening, the gallery finally having emptied around them. Haku looked around, as if waking from a trance, to find a pair of eyes on them.

"Ah, I apologize," they said, standing. Slender hands slipped into pockets, a smile crossing their features.

"I must have missed the closing announcements."

@evermorehqsstart