1497/I Really Want Hugs

I Really Want Hugs
Date of Scene:	25 April 2024
Location:	Dorms
Synopsis:	In which Jadeite, fresh from the horrors of the Fall of the Silver Millennium and the Golden Kingdom, gets hugs. And also kisses. Two of them. Two kisses. Also featuring texts from Koji Silvia.
Cast of Characters:	Mamoru Chiba, Jadeite, Koji Silvia
Tinyplot:	Operation: Past

---

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
It was a mess, everyone getting out. Mamoru had his moment of getting to be touching almost everyone he needed at once, then Usagi needed to be with her girls, and Mamoru and Kazuo brought Tamaki to campus -- he can have a dorm room if he wants, but apartments definitely have more space, but hell if Mamoru's leaving Tamaki alone in his apartment right now??? So it's to Mamoru's room they went.

Koji, not being in, will get a text later. For now, Mamoru has stuck Tamaki in the shower and left a set of clean pajamas in the bathroom for him to change into, and told Tamaki to stay in there long enough to get clean, and he's got comfort food ready if Tamaki wants it. In this case, microwave ramen with a flavor packet, and not telling Koji about it because Koji makes the good stuff, and also hot tea.

By the time Tamaki is out of the shower, Mamoru's finishing changing the sheets on his bed, and he has a smile for his fluffiest guardian knight. "Hey, you," he says affectionately, "I know you're tired, but you should eat. I made you noodles and some tea."

Jadeite has posed:
Tamaki cranks the heat in the shower as high as it can go. The phantom feeling of ice on his skin lingers, but the heat does a lot to melt it away.

The double vision of watching his own death is fading, his memories settling. But it was still - so much, to be there again. So much to see the past again, to see his past self and his mistakes, the kingdom they all lost, Endymion and his death -

Kazuo said not to push Endymion - Mamoru - away physically or emotionally, and Tamaki won't. But he's - he can't just let him use his psychometry either.

"You're incredible," he says as he comes out of the bathroom; he's already changed into his pajamas, blindingly yellow pants with an oversized King Kong vs Godzilla tee. "I'll make sure to eat it all before I go to bed, don't worry. And, ah," he scratches his arm sheepishly as he forms his words.

"Look. I'm going to be thinking a lot about what we saw in the portal, back in the Golden Kingdom. Most of it was - bad stuff, or stuff I regret. So if you touch me, you're probably going to be getting blasted with that. I don't want to jumpscare you with it."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
"I can put up my shields," promises Mamoru, "if you want hugs. If you don't want hugs, I'll be careful not to touch your skin when I make you go to bed." He looks a little sheepish himself, sitting on the edge of the bed and pushing his desk chair out with one foot. The cup noodles are on the desk itself.

"I don't really want to see, if she sent you into the Fall... I have nightmares, still. It wasn't that long ago for me. So don't worry about me looking. And thanks for the warning."

Jadeite has posed:
"I really want hugs. I - we just came from the last part of the Fall,when we all died," Tamaki says, and tries to smile. His face is still a little stiff from the last few days of emoting hard. "It was just as bad seeing it the second time. I don't want you to see it. It was bad enough, not being able to shield Usagi from it...."

He had offered. He had tried. But she'd watched anyway, and the sound of her tears had torn through him alongside Serenity's.

"I have, ah," and he's faltering again, "something to talk to you about that's - kind of serious? If you're up for it. It's not bad and it's not time sensitive, so I don't want to - push it. If you need rest. I can't imagine it's been easy on this side, searching for us."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
"I'm okay," Mamoru says, and-- he sounds okay. "I'll show you without looking--"

And he stands up and comes over and takes Tamaki's hand, holding it for a second, and there he is: warm and golden, relieved, calm, close to centered, affectionate, concerned, welcoming... and behind it all, the ancient Earth turns, providing them a home to come in from the cold, and a bedrock steadiness to lean on. That's always been something he could give.

He's absolutely not lying when he says cheerfully, "I ended up getting a psychic dream with Usagi kind of early on, while Zoisite was watching over me taking a nap, and she told me everyone was okay, and a little bit of what was going on. So after the first few hours of hell and feeling guilty for running away, I was really okay and could focus on working with Luna and Zoisite and Riventon."

Jadeite has posed:
He sounds ok. He can't always tell with his prince - especially now, when Tamaki is shaken and his prince is in emergency mode - but he hopes it's true.

He just. He doesn't have the energy to try and pierce the veil. He used every drop of magic in him between his shields and the teleport. Only stubbornness and a desire to see Mamoru is keeping him upright.

He breathes, feeling the earth through Mamoru's hand. Steady,warm, and always there. Not going to leave. Just like Mamoru. 5R
"Good. I'm glad she could contact you, I"m glad you were reassured. She's always been reliable." He manages a more genuine smile. "Back then - she fell in, but I jumped in the portal after her so I could help her get back, but she ended up saving me more than vice versa..."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
He sounds okay, he feels okay -- or at least as okay as he was the last time there was contact like this, before the portal. He feels like status quo Mamoru. And then he squeezes Tamaki's hand and lets go.

"So, what do you need to talk about that gets this much preamble?" the prince asks ('King of Earth and Elysion--' he'd said, 'I'll never be 'your prince' again!' he'd said), grinning a little lopsidedly, maybe poking a little fun at what he sees as hemming and hawing. "And can you talk about it while eating your ramen? It's going to get cold, and so's the tea."

Jadeite has posed:
("I'll never be your prince again!")

(The light had shone upon his face, cleansed, purified, but a second too late - he broke free just as the blood spattered on his face, and could only watch in horrified silence as Endymion's body fell, as Serenity took the blade and fell upon it, and - )

"Regrets and not repeating the past," he says with a wan smile. "Let's eat first. It'll be no good if I faint from hunger halfway through, isn't it?"

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
(At least, for Endymion, it was over quickly.)

"You're putting it off, but I'll accept it if you do eat," Mamoru says, and steers Tamaki into the desk chair and pushes down on his shoulders lightly. He pours each of them a cup of tea, and he sits back down on the edge of the bed. "Itadakimasu."

He drinks some tea, then gives Tamaki a sidelong look and takes a chocolate bar out of his desk drawer, and starts to eat that. "Zoisite made me eat salads."

Jadeite has posed:
"Itadekimasu," and Tamaki starts eating. The noodles are cooled enough he doesn't burn his tongue taking a huge mouthful, and he downs half of them in two minutes before he takes a breath and goes to sip his tea.

"No more salad. You deserve chocolate after all that," tamaki says, waving his chopsticks at him.

Siiip. Right. Right! "So. I like you a great deal."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
Okay here we go. Mamoru's mouth curls into a smile slowly, and he puts his elbow on the edge of the desk and he rests his chin on his knuckles.

"But...?" he prompts, as if Tamaki were going to say something like 'but your taste in fashion is awful and your taste in men leaves something to be desired' or 'but you have this annoying habit of clicking your pen when you're nervous'. As if he didn't know Tamaki would rather die than criticize him, which is something they probably need to work on. As if Tamaki hadn't lost his mind when Mamoru grabbed his chin a couple weeks ago.

Sometimes Mamoru is a little shit.

Jadeite has posed:
"...but I loved you in the Golden Kingdom, too, and I was an ass about it," Tamaki exhales. "I was jealous of Serenity and rude to her and her bodyguards... Not to mention that it made me vulnerable to Beryl's manipulations."

Regrets. Maybe if he had been mature about his feelings, things wouldn't have....

"I forgot when I reincarnated. I imagine it was the shock of seeing you die. But once you freed me from Beryl's control, I remembered, and - "

He shudders, recalling himself and the ice statue of Endymion. "I was afraid if I acted on those feelings, I would repeat the same mistakes I did in the Golden Kingdom."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
Here's where Mamoru sits up and reaches forward, putting his hand on top of Tamaki's fluffy blond head and just leaving it there for a second. "I know this is important, I know this is really important," he says, then lets his hand fall to briefly touch the side of Tamaki's face, then lets his hand fall, "but before you go any further, did you talk to Usagi and Kazuo? Because I know you like-like me, Tamachan. But I can't just like-like you back and do anything about it on my own, because I am in two relationships already."

Jadeite has posed:
"I was told in very strong terms by both Kazuo and Usagi that I had permission, and I needed to confess before I exploded," Tamaki confirms. "They, ah. We all walked in an echo of me. Ah. Pining. And was promptly told to not make his mistake and just talk to you."

He reaches up gingerly and touches Mamoru's cheek as it falls from his face. "I've been informed that my time comes out of Kazuo's share, not Usagi's, and I need to start bringing snacks. And if I break your heart, no one will find the body."

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
"... all right," says Mamoru, and he stands up because they're not quite close enough otherwise, and he laughs a little bit as he lifts a hand once more-- because again, his fingers go under Tamaki's chin. This time, to tilt Tamaki's head up as Mamoru himself bends down to kiss the other boy, sweet and soft.

It's not for long, but the feeling that comes with it is reassurance, is acceptance, is affection and love and amusement all rolled into one. It's warm, Mamoru is nearly always warm. But even though they're the same age now, and even though Jadeite was the elder of the two in the Golden Kingdom, there's also a sense somehow that Mamoru's older--

Or something.

Whatever it is, he's the one here who's more comfortable in his own skin, who's more certain of himself and his place in the world. But that can change. Tamaki -- Jadeite -- has a long way to go before he's that settled.

Mamoru's hand falls away. "Consider that a promise. But you need to sleep, tonight, and you're not the only one I need to take care of tonight, and... Tamaki. Jadeite. You will not be the only one. I love you, but you're not the only one I love. If you can handle that, then we'll be fine." One corner of his mouth turns up. "And I think you can, if you're confessing you were like that back then."

Jadeite has posed:
The kiss takes Tamaki by surprise - but then he's kissing back, his chopsticks discarded to brace himself against Mamoru's shoulders.

If Mamoru lets any of Tamaki's feelings soak through, they're pure adoration; the trauma of the night has temporarily been warded away by relief and affection and love. Whatever happens later, it will be worth it to have this, here and now.

"The Earth's love is too big for one single person. YOu're much the same. Your heart is big enough to hold an entire galaxy. How can I love you if I can't accept that?" And he sticks out his tongue mischieviously. "Besides, do you think I'd jump through a portal for Usagi to try and get you to dump her? I don't know her very well yet, but if you love her, then I'll just have to become her friend, as I am Kazuo's." He can accept it all. He will.

Though. "Can I finish my noodles and get one more kiss before I sleep?" PLeaaaaase...

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
"Only if you wash your noodles down with more tea," Mamoru says, grinning. He cards a hand through Tamaki's hair and lets it fluff out again, then drops his hand. And then he says with a smaller smile, "We'll have to work on this, too. I don't want you putting me on a pedestal. I'm just a person, same as anybody else."

Jadeite has posed:
"I will!" and he lets his head fall against Mamoru's hip. "I... was very bad about it, back in the Golden Kingdom. I may have erred too hard on the other side trying not to make things worse. I don't know how to stop, yet, but I'll... I'm working on it."

Hooo boyyyy he is not looking forward to THAT conversation.

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
"Yes, yes, you were jealous and I remember you being rude to the Senshi, terrible," Mamoru says cheerfully. He runs his fingers through Tamaki's hair again, then pulls away slowly so Tamaki doesn't fall over, and he sits back on his bed as he takes his phone out. "I'm texting Koji to let him know you'll be in here," he says, and he'll do just that until Jadeite is finished with his noodles.

And then there will be another kiss, because Jadeite said please, and then there will be tucking in with one of the stuffies Mamoru has been given, and then Mamoru won't be far -- just down the hall, in Kazuo's room.

Just in case Tamaki doesn't sleep like the dead.

Jadeite has posed:
He eats, and he's lead to the room,a nd there's another kiss - and Tamaki pulls away from him reluctantly, but down to bed he goes.

"Goodnight, Endymion," he murmurs; the moment his head hits the pillow, it's filled with dreamless sleep.

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
    Meanwhile, the texts:

<PHONE> You text Koji Silvia: hey everyone is back from the portal, i'm putting jadeite in my bed tonight since he's a mess
<PHONE> You text Koji Silvia: pls dont judge his cup noodles its easy comfort food

<PHONE> A text from Koji Silvia: Welome back. You bring me anything from another dimension or meet your other self?

<PHONE> You text Koji Silvia: i didn't go
<PHONE> You text Koji Silvia: but zoisite made me sleep in his room so he could guard me
<PHONE> You text Koji Silvia: why are all my knights cats

<PHONE> A text from Koji Silvia: Okay. Well... I'll make sure not to wake him. Do you want to use my side instead for him? No big deal. I know the score.

<PHONE> You text Koji Silvia: no, i need to look after kazuo, he's showing signs of being a mess too. don't have a room thats big enough for everybody, but kazuo has a single and tamaki lives offcampus. i just dont want either of them too far for me to run

<PHONE> A text from Koji Silvia: Do you need anything? Store run? Favorite snacks?

<PHONE> You text Koji Silvia: <3 no i'm okay, and he'll be okay too. im making him eat noodles and drink tea and then he's going to sleep like the dead
<PHONE> You text Koji Silvia: i just wanted to warn you if you got in late and it was not me in my bed, lol

<PHONE> A text from Koji Silvia: Thx.

<PHONE> You text Koji Silvia: <3 ~

<PHONE> A text from Koji Silvia: Does HE need anything I can pick up? Spare clothes?

<PHONE> You text Koji Silvia: Nah, we're about the same size except for me being taller, so I'm just gonna lend him a school uniform to go to class tomorrow.

<PHONE> A text from Koji Silvia: *thumbs up*