So, I saw you have your very own room on the Tourist now. Congratulations. [She'd been checking the manifests more regularly because of Logan, but that can stop now. He's gone.]
Oh yeah! Thanks - [ he smiles, he hasn't really moved out of kara's office yet, because it's just easier to fall asleep on his work. ] I was gonna tell you but I...forgot. [ as she can see from his familiar surrounding ]
Be good not to sleep in the same room with project Plato, radiation suit or not. And -- it'll be -- a lot better, when you visit.
[ would it have spared him the awkwardness that happened last time? he's not sure. but at least then he wouldn't feel bad about making kara uncomfortable in her space. ]
I could visit now. [It just kind of slips out before she realizes she's just inviting herself over and he's busy and just... But she misses him and video messages kind of suck.]
I mean, you know, I don't have to. [The awkward was contagious!]
[ the time it takes her to arrive, he spends trying to put some order in his work-chaos. when she knocks, he'll be holding up her dress - that he was just about to hang to keep it from wrinkling.
he opens the door with a smile. ]
You make really good time. [ he may just be flattered. ]
Alleged secret dancing ninjas. You can't even keep your story straight, and I'm not sure it counts as alleged if you are the one alleging it. [She steps inside letting the door shut behind her.]
That dress looks really beautiful, Winn. [She's genuinely touched that he's done all this for her.]
Think about it, if a ninja's really good at their job, there's only one way for rumors to start - [ start them yourself! his logic is airtight.
his laughter fades into a warm smile, as he hands her the dress to look over ]
I'm really glad you like it. I - have one more thing for you. I was gonna save it for right before the masquerade, but...it might be dumb, so you'd want to just take it home instead of being stuck with it at a party.
[ he rummages around in one of the drawers and pulls out a box, wrapped with a blue ribbon he made himself. he hands it to her. ]
Corsages are probably more appropriate, but I figured - [ inside, she'll find a simple metal slinky. ]
[She gently touches the fabric and is impressed by just how perfect it all looks. She doesn't really know much about clothing but she's sure if she made something herself you'd be able to tell. This just looks beautiful. She hangs the dress up before accepting the box looking touched already before she's even opened it.] Winn, you've already done so much you didn't have to get me anything. [She notices the ribbon is even her favorite color which of course he knows what that is now.]
I guess I should open it? [How do you even with this much thoughtfulness? And if she thought she was overwhelmed just getting a gift in general she has no idea what to feel when she sees the slinky. Her breath catches and she can feel tears trying to come through, burning at her eyes. She just holds the box and slinky tightly in one hand as she throws her arms around him in a hug. Words are too hard. It's just a slinky but it's the thought and the feelings and it's just a lot.]
I wanted to. [ he watches her open it with anticipation. his best case scenario was a laugh, a witty quip, and one of those genuine smiles he's becoming way too attached to seeing on her.
but he'll happily take the hug, and return it warmly. ]
I guess you like it - [ right now, he has an intense desire to go back in time and congratulate his past self for an excellent idea. ]
rubbing her back gently, he tries to reassure whichever part of her that finds it so surprising; she's amazing, she deserves all the best of things, as far as he's concerned. ]
I'm glad. [ that's an understatement. he's thrilled. when he cares about someone, there's nothing he wouldn't do to make them happy. and nothing makes him happier than his efforts paying off. ]
[She pulls back, but only enough to bring their lips together. She needs to be kissing him right now—deeply and full of affection. Almost any other gift she wouldn't have known what to do with. It's not a gesture she expects or translates into caring necessarily. But a dress he custom made just for her and a slinky he got—she doesn't even realize he made it—because of a shared interest and conversational topic? Those show her how generous and caring he is. They also bring up all the feelings she's been having for him that she's been trying to keep at a low, controlled burn. She's not ready to feel all of it. She's not ready to be vulnerable and open enough with someone for them to crush her again. She's not ready to lose him the way she just lost Logan to the whims of the Atroma or the way she lost Reid with new memories of a life he still has left to live.]
[ he may not have been prepared for this strong of a reaction, but he welcomes it with open arms - and lips. he pours into the kiss all the gratitude he feels for having found someone who truly understands him; his jokes, his interests, his references, his feelings. for the longest time, he didn't think it was possible for him to a have a better connection with anyone than what he shares with kara but now -- he and kitty just fit more perfectly every time they speak. all that's really missing is to test how good of a team they'd make in game night.
the rational part of his brain constantly warns that their environment makes everything feel more intense, that it could all end in tears tomorrow if one of them is taken away, that getting attached to a kidnap victim from another universe is a really dumb move - but feelings are rarely rational, and really, what's so great about home anyway? ]
[It isn't until breathing slightly edges out kissing for importance that she backs off.] I died. [Breathless as it comes out because of the kiss. Just standing there holding her box with a slinky and Winn and blurting out that she died. This is totally how everyone saw this going, right?] Back home. I didn't make it. The prison pulled me out right before, but Kurt remembers me dying. It wasn't a secret, but I didn't know how to tell you.
[ at first, it doesn't quite register - he tilts his head in confusion, as if he just heard her wrong.
and then she repeats it, explains it, and it's like someone just took a kryptonian to his heart. his breath catches in his throat and just like that - he falls from the top of the world to the bottom of the dead sea - and he's too crushed to even fear the fall.
how could she be dead? no - she's not dead yet. his grip slightly tightens around her - reassuring himself that she's still there.
kurt could be from another world, one that's very similar except for this one significant change.
it's slim, and he knows it, but he'll grasp for anything now, he's desperate. it's too cruel. ]
We can figure this out -- you're definitely alive now. We can take you back to my world - if you don't go back there, you should be alright, right? [ if her universe, her timeline, are done with her -- she's welcome to his. one thing's for certain: he's not giving up on her. ]
[Not that. Not the offer to go back to your world. It makes her think of Reid and the way he asked her to do the same before...] Winn...don't offer something you might want to take back later. We don't even know if something like that's possible. [She can't get her hopes up again. Not for that. Don't ask her to.]
Listen. [She lifts her free hand up to his cheek and then starts to fall into those eyes.] It's okay. You're right. I'm alive now. For the last year and almost three months I've cheated it.
[ but she's right. he's not even sure he'll ever be able to get himself home, let alone bring someone else along for the ride, and it hurts. it hurts more than he knew he could hurt. if they stay here -- that would be one thing. but what would he do if one day he'll wake up and she'll be gone - and he'll have no way of knowing if it's to some other arena of whatever sick experiment they're on -- or if she's gone? he's never been a hero, he's never had powers, and he's never hated his ordinary-ness more than at this moment. what kind of a man is he, if he can't even save her?
no. he can't give up. so long as they're both still here - there's still hope. and while there's hope - he's going to keep fighting, keep trying, keep working. there has to be a way. if he can't create a portal back to his earth himself, he just has to find the one atroma used. one way or another, he's taking kitty home with him.
but he can't say that, because hope is powerful, but a crushed hope is just as strong and as much as he wants to believe that he won't fail - a part of him isn't wholly on board. so he'll work alone. he'll figure it out. this is his super power, this is what he does, this is what he's good at. he'll figure it out.
it's all he can do not to fall apart in her arms; she's being strong for him again, when she's the one who's hurting. he can't make this about himself, as painful as it is. ]
[She hugs him tightly again. If she could read his brackets there would be no chance for protecting her heart against him. There may not be much of one as it is.] I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner. [He deserved that, didn't he? The right to decide if he wanted to walk away before he got even this invested?] There's more I should...
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It's - ready and willing. [ the able part depends on what those plans are, ok. he's not actually a dance ninja. ]
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So, I saw you have your very own room on the Tourist now. Congratulations. [She'd been checking the manifests more regularly because of Logan, but that can stop now. He's gone.]
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Be good not to sleep in the same room with project Plato, radiation suit or not. And -- it'll be -- a lot better, when you visit.
[ would it have spared him the awkwardness that happened last time? he's not sure. but at least then he wouldn't feel bad about making kara uncomfortable in her space. ]
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I mean, you know, I don't have to. [The awkward was contagious!]
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Kitty, I'd really like it if you visit. Now that - this is properly my ship too - you have an open invitation.
[ screw busy. she's more important than a costume - and coming from him? that means a lot. ]
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[And she will! She'll even knock when she gets there.]
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he opens the door with a smile. ]
You make really good time. [ he may just be flattered. ]
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Even alleged dancing ninjas have to practice.
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That dress looks really beautiful, Winn. [She's genuinely touched that he's done all this for her.]
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his laughter fades into a warm smile, as he hands her the dress to look over ]
I'm really glad you like it. I - have one more thing for you. I was gonna save it for right before the masquerade, but...it might be dumb, so you'd want to just take it home instead of being stuck with it at a party.
[ he rummages around in one of the drawers and pulls out a box, wrapped with a blue ribbon he made himself. he hands it to her. ]
Corsages are probably more appropriate, but I figured - [ inside, she'll find a simple metal slinky. ]
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I guess I should open it? [How do you even with this much thoughtfulness? And if she thought she was overwhelmed just getting a gift in general she has no idea what to feel when she sees the slinky. Her breath catches and she can feel tears trying to come through, burning at her eyes. She just holds the box and slinky tightly in one hand as she throws her arms around him in a hug. Words are too hard. It's just a slinky but it's the thought and the feelings and it's just a lot.]
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but he'll happily take the hug, and return it warmly. ]
I guess you like it - [ right now, he has an intense desire to go back in time and congratulate his past self for an excellent idea. ]
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rubbing her back gently, he tries to reassure whichever part of her that finds it so surprising; she's amazing, she deserves all the best of things, as far as he's concerned. ]
I'm glad. [ that's an understatement. he's thrilled. when he cares about someone, there's nothing he wouldn't do to make them happy. and nothing makes him happier than his efforts paying off. ]
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the rational part of his brain constantly warns that their environment makes everything feel more intense, that it could all end in tears tomorrow if one of them is taken away, that getting attached to a kidnap victim from another universe is a really dumb move - but feelings are rarely rational, and really, what's so great about home anyway? ]
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and then she repeats it, explains it, and it's like someone just took a kryptonian to his heart. his breath catches in his throat and just like that - he falls from the top of the world to the bottom of the dead sea - and he's too crushed to even fear the fall.
how could she be dead? no - she's not dead yet. his grip slightly tightens around her - reassuring himself that she's still there.
kurt could be from another world, one that's very similar except for this one significant change.
it's slim, and he knows it, but he'll grasp for anything now, he's desperate. it's too cruel. ]
We can figure this out -- you're definitely alive now. We can take you back to my world - if you don't go back there, you should be alright, right? [ if her universe, her timeline, are done with her -- she's welcome to his. one thing's for certain: he's not giving up on her. ]
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Listen. [She lifts her free hand up to his cheek and then starts to fall into those eyes.] It's okay. You're right. I'm alive now. For the last year and almost three months I've cheated it.
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[ but she's right. he's not even sure he'll ever be able to get himself home, let alone bring someone else along for the ride, and it hurts. it hurts more than he knew he could hurt. if they stay here -- that would be one thing. but what would he do if one day he'll wake up and she'll be gone - and he'll have no way of knowing if it's to some other arena of whatever sick experiment they're on -- or if she's gone? he's never been a hero, he's never had powers, and he's never hated his ordinary-ness more than at this moment. what kind of a man is he, if he can't even save her?
no. he can't give up. so long as they're both still here - there's still hope. and while there's hope - he's going to keep fighting, keep trying, keep working. there has to be a way. if he can't create a portal back to his earth himself, he just has to find the one atroma used. one way or another, he's taking kitty home with him.
but he can't say that, because hope is powerful, but a crushed hope is just as strong and as much as he wants to believe that he won't fail - a part of him isn't wholly on board. so he'll work alone. he'll figure it out. this is his super power, this is what he does, this is what he's good at. he'll figure it out.
it's all he can do not to fall apart in her arms; she's being strong for him again, when she's the one who's hurting. he can't make this about himself, as painful as it is. ]
I'm so sorry, Kitty.
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Maybe we could sit?
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