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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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[paraselenic]

[There is a slight pause in his response.]

It may not be something you can help him solve, but sometimes being there is enough.

[myriadeclipse]

We've parted many times.
Always due to one of us running from something.
Sometimes without even saying anything to the other.

It wouldn't be out of the ordinary for me to go and find his place empty.

[paraselenic]

And yet you sound familiar with that outcome.

[Hugo must've gone and found Molly's living space that way at least once.]

He thinks the world of you. I was quite...impressed with how fast he ran to you with the info I provided him. [No sense hiding that anymore.] I do not even think he waited until my second message.

But this is not somewhere I should walk. So I will do what is needed of me, and see just what type of man this Mr. Caleb is.

I trust you.

[myriadeclipse]

Don't be daft
He's let you in deeper than I have seen.
Faster than he even let me.

I don't want to ask about Caleb, so anything you learn will be helpful. If he says anything about it, I will tell you.

You are better at telling him what he needs to hear.

[paraselenic]

I am honoured he trusts me at his most vulnerable.
I simply told him I would protect him from his demons, that is all.

[He simply exhibited unshaken confidence.]

Understood. Anything I glean from speaking to him will be sent to you. My observations so far show him to be a softspoken man.


But am I the one he wants to hear those words from, Hugo? I will of course check on him later, but one word from you is likely worth twenty of mine.

[myriadeclipse]

I warned him you were more practiced than you look.
No one ever believes it until you've already seduced them.

[ What he exhibited was this city is full of furries and Molly is one of them. ]

I'm already headed to his apartment, but you are going to make me lose my nerve talking like that.

A friendship built on abandonment the moment things become difficult can hardly be called anything at all.

[paraselenic]

I'll thank you to not compare me to a Siren, wooing sailors at the slightest flick of my tail.

[Self callout, Hugo?]

The fact that you have crossed paths multiple times means you seek comfort in each other, even momentarily.

He is someone floating on driftwood in a storm. You are the one who must find him, and tell him to hold on. I will be the lighthouse to guide you back.

[myriadeclipse]

As the unwitting sailor who has drowned against those rocks, I would say I have the right to.

[ Yes, and he's not even being coy about it. ]

In the past, I learned to accept Vivian.
yet when things got tough, I pushed her away and chose to gamble with my own life all alone.
This time I have not even done that.
I'm not the one Molly should be trusting with such a heavy task.

[paraselenic]

[He'll hand that one to you. He did sing that song with you in mind.]

Vivian...

[His memories of her were a blur. A sketchy outline of a girl who he couldn't make out the face of. But he did remember her tears, and he remembers being the reason they were shed.]

You had your reasons. Clouded ones, but I know you had her well-being in mind.

...Back when I was head of Victoria Housekeeping, Ellen would often shy away from us when she had problems, be they school related or personal. As her...boss, the Managers thought I would be the best one to speak with her, for much the same reasons you are giving me now. But I could not relate to her in the same way the Managers could.

I was just a small part of Ellen's life. I don't think I could've understood her in a way that mattered.

With Molly, I think you understand what he's running from, his fears, and his pain more than someone like me ever could. It doesn't matter how long you've been in his life. It's understanding him at a personal level I can't reach. Not yet, anyway.

[myriadeclipse]

[ It takes him a few minutes to answer, looking at a fading screen as he contemplates how to lay out the thoughts on his mind. ]

Why do you talk about it like that?
I was fairly certain I was not the one who crumbled and ran from that situation.
Wasn't it built off of your painful and conflicted feelings?

How would you not know what it feels like to run from something that became painful?

Did you date after that?
Did you trust? Truly trust someone after it fell apart?
How many of these people have seen your real face, Lycaon?
Your control is just another way to keep yourself out of those situations, pleasantly disguised as 'overcoming'.

You ran first. I merely responded.

[paraselenic]

[Whatever words Lycaon was currently typing stop cold in their tracks, as the feed falls into silence.

Hugo was absolutely right. It was his cowardice, unable to face what was in front of his eyes that led them to this. He was the one who let Hugo there in that room that day, and didn't dare look back. He'd only faced it when Hugo himself made the first move, stepping into the light and forcing him to move his hand.

He didn't date. He didn't trust. No one saw the true Lycaon beneath this facade of 'capable bartender'. His pleasantries, his control...those were all part of the mask. A way to keep himself at arms length instead of letting his heart get too close. Even now, he distanced himself from Molly's situation, handing it to Hugo to deal with under the excuse of 'they know each other better'. When in reality, he knew exactly Molly's reasons for running.

Hugo had been gracious enough to say it so blatantly to him, too.

After letting the air he was holding in slip through his teeth, he starts to type again.]

You truly dismantled me in a single moment.

[myriadeclipse]

[ The short answer was Hugo was panicking. He will go in and be the smooth, in control person he always was, but he was also running from the fear these situations set on his heart. His words and demeanor were unkind, but the work it took to admit these things was more than he would say. ]

I've seen looks like that on his face before.
I've done this. Where I go to look for him, and he's already gone.
I have sat in those empty rooms and reminded myself that I would see him again.
And not every situation would be like That Day.

It's fear that drives my hesitation.
Just the same as it drove me to point out that you are the one who would understand this.
I am merely the fool who keeps waiting.

[paraselenic]

[Lycaon lets those words sink in, letting his head tilt back to think before he responds. The reality of just what his actions led to was now playing out before his eyes. A reminder that he had just as many areas to improve as Hugo did.]

You're many things, Hugo. But a fool is not one of them.

We will handle this together. I won't let you lose this piece of your world, and as your partner, I want to share it with you. [It was the first time he'd put a word to what they had. A soft and hesitant one.]

That said, can I trust you to go to him first? I fear both of us may overwhelm him, and he will likely want to see you. [Molly was friendly with him, but he can't imagine he's the contact he needs. He knows that puts the risk of discovery on Hugo, but he's fairly confident the man hasn't left town yet.]

I will follow up after, I promise.

[myriadeclipse]

I will go.

[ No matter what he said here, he WAS going to go. He could sit and torment himself over this, but it didn't mean he wouldn't do it anyway. The conversation with Molly had already started and Hugo was already on the move. ]

I was going to go anyway.
You're lucky he's responding.
If it was silence, I was going to pluck your tail bald.

[ It was an empty threat. Lycaon, for everything he just said to him, was the grounding he needed to move forward. He deserved more than a tongue lashing. ]

I'm sorry for being harsh.
Thank you for pushing me anyway.

[paraselenic]

I had a feeling you would.

[Hugo's heart was bigger than he'd ever admit.]

First my ears, now my tail--do you mean to make a coat out of me? [Lycaon takes that threat in stride. Empty, petty threats like that were a good sign with him.] ...You will permit me to share it with Molly this once, yes?

[He knows the effect his tail has on the less-fur-inclined folk of the city. It might be quite effective in bringing their friend back from the brink.

But he pauses at that apology, smiling a little before he starts to type back.]

On the contrary, I am the one who should apologize. Your words were fair, and provided some much-needed clarity.
I am quite stubborn, after all.



I'm sorry. For making you act alone. [Both in the past and the present.]

[myriadeclipse]

It's your tail, Lycaon. I'm not going to dictate who you shake it at. I'm just going to lightly judge your tastes.

Regardless, yes, that's fine with me.

[ Knowing that Lycaon wasn't mad at what he said was good, although he doubted that he would have been. Lycaon was lenient with him. Sometimes too much so. The apology was something he would accept, though. ]

I am going to head there now.
It's not your responsibility, but if you can bring something for my sugar and iron when you come in the morning, I will be appreciative.

[paraselenic]

Hm. You struck me as the type who didn't want to share, that's all. I've seen how you gravitate towards it, so I can't discount you two fighting over it like children. [It's your tail that gravitates to him, Lycaon.]

[Lenient, maybe. Indulgent, absolutely. But what he had said was entirely accurate. He'd spent a lifetime casting doubt on Hugo, subconsciously or otherwise. It was about time he placed his trust in him bit by bit to make him a better person. (Wolf?)]

It would be my pleasure. I will wait a bit to check on him, and then I will do some shopping. I'll be rather indulgent in my choices, too--Bacon, Eggs, Pancakes, Fruit.

[myriadeclipse]

Why does everyone expect me to be jealous?

[ Probably because of how he pops up more often than not in places, Lycaon was already talking like he was stalking him. Which he wasn't. That would be weird. He was just nosy, and knowing things was his job. ]

You're going to spoil up.
I will see you in the morning, then.

[paraselenic]

Your need to be center stage, most likely.

[And not at all by how Lycaon tends to talk about him. Or how their friends from their past lives have already had a crisis hotline set up just for their antics unbeknownst to them.]

See you in the morning.