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[myriadeclipse]

Hugo Inbox

Home of Mockingbird and the voice in his head

Mockingbird

Please forgive me for missing your message. I'll be right with you.

The Other Me

He isn't that sorry.

Mockingbird

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[myriadeclipse]

[ It was always nice when Lycaon saw reason. Just because it was a gift didn't mean that they should kill themselves over it. Hugo made quick work of the bag, taking the ends and curling them in. It was sat down beside his legs on the side away from Lycaon, one hand still grasping the bag as he prepared to get up. ]

Jane will not be broken up over a joke order not being savored to the last. Come, if you're treating, that means we're going for meat.

[ Hugo did need the iron, and despite the feeling of being treated with Lycaon's blood money, The Vogue really wasn't an awful place. Their money wasn't deplorable.

Finally getting to his feet, his free hand was stuffed into his pocket, looking up to the tops of the trees as he thought to himself. ]

How thick do you want it? I suppose that's the true deciding factor, is it not? [ He says innocently while throwing the bag at the trashcan in the perfect arch through the air, sinking into its depths. ]

[paraselenic]

I suppose you're right. For once.

[Obviously, she knew the burger was eccentric and would be controversial at best. So he'd do his best to not think about it and just tell himself that the crows that eventually find that bag may enjoy the leftovers. ...He apologizes in advance to them.

He had to admit, he was holding his breath just a bit. Hugo knew his income, and probably knew that other than the Vogue, he did bar tend for the elite on occasion. Best not to question or overthink it, he's just pleased Hugo took him up on the offer. He stands up, ready to give his recommendation--

--until Hugo says that line. The way his tone jumps up at the end of it signaling that the man was fitting in some double meaning or innuendo. The moment Hugo launches that bag into the basket (perfectly too, ugh) his tail swings around to whack at him, hitting either his legs or his front side, depending on how fast he turned around. Not hard enough to really make him stumble, but enough to be felt.]

Ah. My apologies, I thought I saw a giant pest just now.

It's that time of year, mosquito season.

[With a clearing of his throat, he tries to hide his smile by tilting his chin up, hands folding behind his back elegantly.]

There's an All-You-Can-Eat Korean Barbeque place nearby. I'm quite fond of it.

[No matter how hard he tries he can't stop that tail from swishing.]

[myriadeclipse]

[ He sound he let out was higher than he intended. It was evident by how that squeaky yelp was immediately covered by a gloved. Mismatched eyes looked down to the offending tail. He had been SO good! He didn't insult him. He didn't attack him! Perfectly behaved and he was still being abused?

This mangy son of a bitch.

Dropping his hand and standing straight again, he didn't hesitate to reach out and grab that accursed tail, and it's energetic assault. ]

Your ...kindness [ He grits between his teeth, a tense smile as he pushes hair back out of his eyes. ] knows no bounds. Lycaon.

[ Batting the tail away while he takes position out of tail-smacking range, he took a moment to school his features back to his usual smug smile that only seemed marginally strained at the edges. ]

That sounds fine with me. [ As long as he didn't order a ton of things that were garlic heavy, it should be perfectly fine. ]

[paraselenic]

[Lycaon's smile widens with every bit of that reaction. It's not often he indulges himself in a little childish behavior like this, and Hugo was always his favourite victim when he did years ago. The little bat-like shriek just added to it.

Even when Hugo grabs that tail, he doesn't move to pull it away, instead letting it continue wagging in his hand until he lets it free.]

Follow me. If you look towards the intersection, you can see its sign.

[The click of his legs sound against the sidewalk as he starts to stroll along, waiting for Hugo to follow him so he could match his pace.]

So. What line of work are you in now?

[Code. What's your cover? There's no way Hugo would go around proclaiming he's Mockingbird to the world. So Lycaon had to make sure he knew to match his story.

He might not agree with Hugo's hammer of judgment, but he's no snitch to the police. And even if it strayed from its goals, he was still proud of what Mockingbird did.]

[myriadeclipse]

[ As usual, it's a command first with Lycaon. Hugo looked to his side, watching Lycaon begin to talk and settling into a stride. He barely noticed how his own steps fell in time with Lycaon's, his attention turned toward the street and the sign that was being pointed out.

He's pulled out of staring at the city light's by the question. A mundane question to break the ice, as it was. Hugo cleared his throat and stuffed his hands back into his pockets. ]

I'm a curator at an art gallery. Moving the whole thing to his country is a pain, but it is being done.

[ He didn't have to mention how the gallery was recent or what was in it. Lycaon knew him well enough to know the answers to those questions. What Hugo wasn't talking about was all the blank space between their parting and him taking back up the Mockingbird name. He had no words for the listless years spent staring into an abyss, making connections as fragile as tissue paper, going from place to place.

It was better left unsaid. ]

No need to ask what you've been up to, unless there's more than that Vogue place.

[paraselenic]

[Just as Hugo's feet had fallen into place, his own matched in time without Lycaon even realizing. His eye is on the road ahead, only drifting to see just what type of expression his former partner had.

An art gallery. A little in-your-face to those who fall victim to his tricks, but it was so very...Hugo. Not everything changes, it seems. He has no doubt on how he acquired them or what was in it--he doesn't need to.]

Really, now... I'll be sure to come see it on its grand opening, then.

[Dark curtains hung between the time in their lives where they were apart. It was almost as it they didn't even exist in the other's world after that point. Lycaon had been shown firsthand what it's like to have so much taken from you in such a short time, whether it be matters of the heart, body or money, and his mind had tunnel visioned to adapt to what fate had thrown his way. The only thing one could do was survive--it's almost pitiful to think about how much one can regress to their basic survival instincts.

It wasn't something Lycaon was going to bring up to Hugo, either.]

The Vogue is my main employer, as I'm sure you've looked into. [Air catches in his throat for a second before he continues.] However, I am occasionally hired out to bartend for social gatherings. [He'll leave just who hires him unspoken. Hugo doesn't need the context to figure it out.]

I recently just returned from my final reservation.

[While money was a non-negligible reason, Lycaon had other, personal reasons. He'd rather people just think it was the paycheck, though.]

[myriadeclipse]

[ It takes everything inside him not to tell Lycaon he doesn't want him there. It would be a lie, but the wolfman's smug tone was light claws in his back. As much as his own public face was important to him, he wanted to tear Lycaon's down. Yet he didn't. He swallowed the petty need to do away with formalities and dark desires and focused on the path before him.

Or, At least he tried until he heard of Lycaon's other employer. It doesn't need to be explained. He remembers why Lycaon left him all that time ago. Hearing that he still did it left a bitter taste in his mouth, his eyes slowly closing.

Everything would be so much easier if he turned around and kicked him. ]

Sounds like you've been busy, and here I am with loads of free time, wasting it away for nothing. [ Hugo smirks, his voice as smooth as silk as he responds. ]

No wonder you have so many acquaintances. Your connections are still unparalleled, even if your acting is still a little off the mark.

[paraselenic]

[Lycaon can feel his veins freeze over as the air between them went stagnant. If there was one thing that was worse than Hugo yelling at him, it was his deafening silence. It'd be a lie to say that a not so insignificant part of him still longed for approval from his former partner, but to let that be known is Pandora's Box itself.

He would've preferred the yelling, honestly. It made it easier to yell back, shaking Hugo by the shoulders and asking him who's fault this all was.

As if he'd get the answer he wanted anyway.]

Not everything is a mask we put on. There is such a thing as genuine human interaction. [He bites down the desire to say the second half: "perhaps you don't recognize it anymore.", but Hugo was walking circles around this conversation already. No one knew him better than the man to his side, loathe as he was to admit it.]

And you've never been one to sit idle for long. I'm sure your...art gallery work will pick up.

[myriadeclipse]

Maybe for you, it's that way.

[ The admittance was slow and deliberate, his hands firmly in his pockets. Lycaon didn't need to say it. Hugo recognized what he was attempting to say. He could fight that elves were terrible judges of what genuine human anything was, but that sort of crutch wasn't something he enjoyed relying on.

Instead, his calm look soured, trying to find reason as well as the will to keep this particular mask going in the trees they passed. ]

I thought we were both aware that when you want something... genuine, I'm not the one you turn to.

[ Removing one hand from his pocket, he pressed in against his own chest. ]

How did you put it? You can't trust anything I say anymore? I don't recall that ever-changing.

Unless you have something to confess?

[paraselenic]

[Their partnership had truly been lightning in a bottle, as they say. Elves were not ones to judge genuinely, and wolves would tend to trust a little too easily. Hugo's words are just as much a call out as his were, and it's annoying to see it thrown in his face like this.

Lycaon taps the intersection crossing button with a single claw, thanking the moon above that they were the only one standing here. It made the awkwardness less palpable.]

Anymore is the key word. You had that trust in the palm of your hand, and yet you decided your own foolish ambitions were worth more than that.

[There's a low growl in his voice as the light turns for them to walk.]

All you saw was iron in your quest for silver.

[myriadeclipse]

You are the one that left me!

[ Hugo did not hold back, practically spitting that lump of emotion out of his mouth like it was a curse he carried. The growl did nothing to warn him away from the argument coming to life between them. Try as they might, they couldn't stop the stream of emotions from flowing between them.

And what did it matter? They were merely rehashing history. Hugo was well aware of what happened that day. It was burned into his memory, making its home behind his eyes every time he closed his eyes.

There was nothing to gain from this fight, and this fool still thinks a teenaged half vampire killed an entire Coven. ]

Now my ambitions are foolish, are they? Did you ever believe in them, or was it all placating and playing pretend for you like I was a child instead of your partner?

[paraselenic]

..!!

[Those words shot through him like a silver bullet, and his teeth grit trying to bear that pain. He knows he was the one who left, but what could he do?! He saw what he saw, and Hugo didn't deny his question that night. He may have walked away from that murderous scene, but the Hugo he knew was gone that night.

It's not like a whole vampire clan just drops dead with one left standing in their pool of blood as a casual activity.]

I left because of what you did! I would've followed you to the ends of the Earth had you kept the promise we made!

[His ears fold back, his emotions getting the better of him and dropping that gentlemanly image, the pain in his eye apparent.]

I believed in what we had. I wanted to believe you'd be different than what your family was. It was you who saw me as nothing more than a stepping stone for your revenge!

[Their leader had given him the warnings about Hugo, about what he was capable of. And in the end, he couldn't follow through with the last part of that request. To choke him if he had to. He couldn't do it...and so he did only what other option he had that day--breaking away.]

[myriadeclipse]

[ Hugo couldn't stop himself from laughing, his head thrown back in pained mockery of joy. It hurt. It continued to hurt. Would this fool have been happier if he perished among the waves of blood? With the way Lycaon spoke, he still had no clue. And yet that wasn't Hugo's problem. Every time it was brought up, Hugo wanted to shut it out.

He didn't want to see that room in his nightmares anymore. ]

You should admit it to yourself, Lycaon. You never believed in me. It's so easy for you to believe I'm a monster, it's like breathing, isn't it? You haven't even remembered it yet, have you?

Then let me tell you. [ The pain was covered with a smug air and a smile, looking at Lycaon with manic joy gleaming in his eyes. ]

This isn't the first time you've betrayed me. You always betray me.

I knew you'd leave again, so why bother?

[paraselenic]

[Hugo's laughter rang through him like the empty hollow of a bell. Each reverberation sinking thorns into his heart, reopening old wounds.

Why..why did Hugo have to go that far? Wasn't he happy with their life? Was all this pain worth those lives?

Wasn't..he enough?

There wasn't much that he feared, but the answer to those questions shook him to the core.]

I am not admitting to something that isn't true. [Hugo wanted this excuse.] Even now, you can still--

[His ears perk up again, fully alert. ALWAYS? It's because he can't let go of you that they're here in the first place!]

You have no idea how wrong you are. You're mad.

[myriadeclipse]

[ Instead of answering, he turned and continued walking. His footsteps took up the space, passing by the headlights of stopped cars with his eyes wide and his breaths shallow. Was he mad? Had this endless dance of love and betrayal finally driven him insane? No, actually. As loathed as he was to endure a scene like this once more, his mind was whole.

He did not answer until his heels touched on the other side, pausing on the sidewalk with the gleam of the restaurant's neon sign casing a shadow over his face. ]

Then tell me, since you're so superior. How am I wrong? What have I missed? [ His voice dropped to a quieter tone. ]

Why are you still tormenting me?

[paraselenic]

[Lycaon was quick to follow those footsteps through the crosswalk, paying those cars no mind and keeping his one good eye focused on the man in front of him. He could easily overtake him with sheer stride length, but something told him that he should stay behind him.

It wasn't until he reached the other side, metallic heels clicking back onto the sidewalk that he paused, seeing the slumped posture of his former partner and the weary tone he took.

Nothing could prepare him for the last thing he said. His tail went between his legs, something he would never allow anyone to see on a normal day, and his hand slowly reached out to Hugo's shoulder, hesitating merely inches from it. The worst part of it was...he was running from his sins. And he knew this.]

I did leave you on that day. Your actions you took caused me to make that choice, and we cannot go back into the past to change either of our decisions now.

[He took those jobs originally for the money, as legs don't pay for themselves. But high society gatherings...he couldn't think of a better place for Mockingbird to show up. Eventually, one day, he had to find something. His husky voice drops just as Hugo's did, and he sounds more like a scolded dog than a fierce wolf. Why are you still tormenting me? ...Why indeed.]

...The moon may block out the sun's light, but it is the only one who can take in its true radiance without going blind.

[Cryptic, maybe, but it's the most honest with himself he's been this whole conversation.

He steps forward to grab the door, holding it open.]

[myriadeclipse]

What if...

[ He stopped speaking, waiting. He didn't look at him, feeling the phantom touch of that hand that never connected. Pity. Was that all that was left for him in Lycaon's heart? Pity for the lonely little vampire whose weakness killed his family? Perhaps Lycaon was right. He did deserve to still be alone for that unforgivable blunder.

Walking in through that open door, he took a few steps in to the host, quietly requesting a table for two with a faint smile. They were in luck that there was an open table, but that might also be because the staff had been watching the approaching fight. Holding his arms in close, he gave another smile as they were taken to a seat with a grill.

He was quiet as he slid into his seat, crossing his legs and requesting just water as a drink.

It wasn't until they were alone again did he look at Lycaon, continuing that thought from earlier. ]

I've never answered what happened in that room, but you're convinced of my guilt. What would you do if you've been wrong this whole time? Has the alternative ever crossed your mind?

[paraselenic]

[Hugo's musing gripped his heart like a vice as he watched him walk through, following behind him soon after. The host greeted them and took them to the empty table, and with a little bow of his head in gratitude, he moved to take his seat opposite of Hugo. He'd gotten used to his larger size with these booths, but being unable to cross his legs like he used to was a bit of a pain.

Still, he made sure to leave room for Hugo to do so.

Requesting water himself, he positioned his tail against the wall of the booth as the man continued his hypotheticals. His hands slow, even if his expression remains unchanged.]

...

Yes. [Simple answers are best here.] But without proof, they're only hopes.

While you didn't confirm it, you didn't deny it to me. Had you just-- [No, he knew where that line of thought would end. Another argument. It was better to move on to the next question Hugo was asking him. Reaching over to arrange the items on the table to make the most room possible, he closes his eyes and thinks.]

...

..

Hypothetically, if I was wrong this whole time and you had nothing to do with this--provided you explained everything to me...I would admit I misjudged you. I would apologize.

And I would be the only traitor. [A bitter pill to swallow in the end.]

[myriadeclipse]

[ It was more than he expected, hearing that Lycaon did consider it. He thought about what things would have been like if it were the other way, but he didn't act in it. There was no going back. Even if they were stuck in these cyclical mistakes, what happened was up to them. He could break his ties to fate and decide how to handle this on his own.

Or he can be upset at Lycaon. They were both good ideas. ]

One thing I will say for certain; my father should have perished. Be it me or anyone else. The Ravenlocke's should have all died there. It's the justice this world truly deserved.

[ Hugo looked at the table as the banchan was set out. He didn't reach out, continuing to sit with his arms crossed. Lycaon was sure to handle how he wanted everything set up. ]

In fact, everyone did die in that room. Including me.

[paraselenic]

[...Well, the positives of this are that Hugo's at least speaking about it. No matter how unhinged it sounds. The cork in the effervescent bottle that was Hugo Vlad was coming undone, and was starting to overflow.

As Hugo lays out his true feelings about his family, Lycaon's hands began doing just that--laying each bowl out with the things he knew Hugo liked closer to him. His arms had a further reach, it wasn't an issue.]

I wont deny your father was an abhorrent excuse for a living being, let alone a parent. Your siblings were also complicit in how they treated you. [He wants to make that known. At a baseline, he did agree with him.] But the hammer of judgment was not yours to swing. No one person should have that power--lest you think yourself a god.

[It's not until that last part that he looks back up at Hugo, his red eye softening.]

Then who am I looking at?

[myriadeclipse]

[ Hugo could at least smile at that. Despite adversity, they agreed on one thing. Lycaon couldn't understand the depths of what happened in that house, or the parts of his life he kept to himself every evening he came back to Mockingbird. One thing was a step. It was more than they had before.

Looking down at the dishes, he reached out a hand, taking up a pair of chopsticks and adjusting them in his grip. He stuck the end of them in one of the side dishes, pushing the food around.

Who was left? ]

The spirit of death told me I wasn't supposed to perish there. [ Hugo said in French, picking up something with his chopsticks to stare at instead of Lycaon. ] So now there are rules I must abide by, less my body be taken by his will.

[ He wasn't planning to admit this to anyone. When it came to Lycaon, it still felt so natural to tell him whatever was necessary to his own care. Hugo hated Lycaon, but it would feel wrong if he didn't at least know that. ]

[paraselenic]

[Once the dishes were all laid out, Lycaon took to his own chopsticks--as always they looked comically undersized in his larger hands, and it was hard to hide his slight pout as he slide his fingers further back to at least allow some wiggle room.

Taking a bowl for himself, he stared at it as his ears swiveled in Hugo's direction, picking up that slip into French.

What he heard come out of Hugo's lips was beyond insane...had he not just had a crash course in what was a series of truth bombs. It's perhaps the only thing that keeps him from reacting with anything more than widened eyes.]

Your soul was bound to a god of death. [His French is a lot less refined, and a little awkward. It's been quite some time he's had to pull this out for anything other than an order at the bar.] That does explain some things. [His scent changing, for starters.] What are these rules?

[If there's one thing Lycaon has learned in this conversation, as much of a rollercoaster as it was, it's that Hugo wanted someone to believe him. And maybe it was time he actually started.]

[myriadeclipse]

[ Hugo breathed out slowly with a sigh, looking from the food to Lycaon. Although he meant to answer, He was stopped by the way the man looked across from him. It had been so long that he had forgotten Lycaon's ability to make normal things look miniscule. The smile that crossed his face was unintentionally.

What a mess. Much like the wolfman's French. ]

Lots of flowers, normally. They're offerings for the dead I must give out semi-regularly. The restraint rule is truly the messy one. He greatly dislikes restraints. Far too traumatic for him. They're manageable normally. It puts quite a damper on any... let's say... spicy bedroom activities.

[ Yet with his work as mockingbird, it puts the second rule in constant jeopardy. Hugo's expression was calm. ]

And then, after dealing with that, you yelled at me.

[paraselenic]

[Those were...less morbid than he was imagining. Forgive him, Thanatos, he assumed too much. A smile crosses his lips a bit thinking those both over.]

This god of death is a bit poetic. Offerings to the dead is a beautiful gesture if I may say so. [And as for the second one.] Though it's tragic for the complications in your sex life. [He's not sad lmao]

[He does have the same thought as Hugo, however. Being caught as Mockingbird...that sure would be the end of it there. Hm.]

All you had to say was "I didn't do it".

[myriadeclipse]

[ Hugo wasn't surprised they came back to this conversation. Reaching into a dish that sat closer to Lycaon's side of the table, He picked up a sliver of garlic and placed it down in the one directly in front of Lycaon, going back to the other dish to specifically steal a sausage on Lycaon's side and carry it back to his. Spoils. ]

I shouldn't have to ask my own partner to believe me. I wouldn't have done that to you.

[ Truly, he should have looked at the menu before this. It was only good manners to know what you want so you weren't holding people up. American waitstaff were always hovering about like pixies. He had forgotten how different things were done.

It was just easier to let Lycaon handle it, he thought to himself, despite the bitter taste it left if his mouth. It had barely been an hour, and he's somehow already lost to this control freak. ]

That brings us back to the eternal quarrel. The part that's important to you and the one that's important to me are different.