[The words fill Casey with an echo of that warmth and bubbly energy. He smiles brightly and rests against Hunter, still softly grazing his cheek as if every touch might wipe away so many years of anxiety, bit by bit.]
I love you... I... I'm really happy we met.
[He never could have imagined pulling Hunter out of the water all those months ago could have led them to this, but he's so glad.]
Yeah, I should sleep before I pass out on my feet.
[He finally lets go and steps back, edging towards his own room.]
Want to chill on the couch? I can brush your hair, we'll see who falls asleep first.
[Hair brushing feels like giving himself a head start, but he's tired enough that it might actually be pretty even. Plus he did say he'd like to mess with it.]
[Heck yeah, hairbrushing. Casey gives a thumbs up - he's all in - and vanishes into his room to change. Within two minutes he'll be parked on the couch again in PJs and a hairbrush in hand. (He might be faster to change since he thankfully doesn't have to wrestle his way out of a t-shirt with horns.)]
[ Hunter is indeed a bit slower - there's muffled cursing as those ragged edges catch on his horns - and then he has to get into his pajamas too here. But after a moment he pads back out, nice and cozy and holding a pillow. ]
[Phew, that's a relief. He's not sure how many jars they have to spare until they deal with the first one... (This reminds him they still have to deal with the first one. Oops. At least it's in a safe, now. No more closet screaming!)
Casey rises on his knees enough to give the horns a closer look as Hunter ducks, nodding slowly. Yeah, they're looking a bit rough.]
I can trim them first, it shouldn't take too long.
[He stands up and goes to fetch the clippers from the kitchen. They'd needed a good cleaning last time, but this time ought to go much more smoothly. ...Also he grabs a measuring tape at the same time. Figures it'll be easier if he knows how long Hunter likes them, if this will be a regular thing.]
I'll bet. If I had horns I'd have a hard time doing it myself, too.
[He counts himself lucky that his features are either locked into the familiar forms, or pretty easy to maintain. At worst his scales get itchy sometimes, or he bites himself with sharper teeth.
Once he has the clippers he settles in behind Hunter, beginning to carefully trim down the cracked, sharpened ends to clean them up one by one.]
It makes sense, yeah. I've got scales on my back that I can't reach.
[It's easy to snip away as they talk; he catches the bits of wood as they fall to not muddle up Hunter's hair, though if he misses any it'll be brushed out shortly. He tries to go slow, since he knows they get sensitive if too much is trimmed away, and is mindful of Hunter's body language for signs of when to stop.]
[ He's mostly just quiet as he enjoys it; there's a telltale twitch as Casy starts getting to the sensitive bits, indicating he probably should indeed stop here. ]
... Really? Do you need me to take care of those for you?
[Oops, there it is. Casey stops trimming outright and shifts to using one side of the blade to scrape around the edges, to even it out and make sure it's nice and smooth to the touch. Then he'll switch to the second horn and repeat- after measuring the one horn to confirm its finished length.]
I don't think they need anything specific for care... I mean, I don't do much with them, they're just there. But sometimes they get itchy...? Maybe you could scratch that spot for me, I dunno.
[He has yet to discover the joys of pangolin scales + comb grooming.]
[ Ah, now THAT part he likes the best. He really tilts his head against the side of the blade now to soothe the rest of the little rough spots away. Soooo nice. ]
Well - okay, I can definitely do that. But maybe there's a way to clean scales too.
[Hunter's reaction has Casey wondering if sandpaper would be nice or unpleasant... maybe he'll try that out next time. Either way, he'll take his time pampering those tips until they're perfect.]
Clean scales... maybe. I just scrub what I can reach like normal in the shower. I don't mind if you want to try, though.
[Casey pauses at that, opening and shutting his mouth in quick succession, momentarily caught up in the same dilemma. Can't exactly invite Hunter in to scrub his back. (Or, well. He could. Again, Casey doesn't have any particular hang-ups about communal showers post-apocalypse. But that feels like a bit much, especially for just a scale scrubbing. He's never shared a shower with a boyfriend before!)]
You. Um. You can try on my shoulder scales? I'd just have to roll up my sleeve.
[Don't need a bath for that. Or even shirt removal.]
[Just a bit. Even if technically he'd done it for Hunter before, it's a bit different when he only looked to clean off the fae bark. It was an emergency! Very situational.
He clears his throat, cheeks pink anyway, and goes back to smoothing out the second horn.]
I think they're pretty even, now... how do they feel?
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Hunter relaxes into it gratefully as Casey kisses him. Bright and warm in return. ]
I - I love you, Casey.
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I love you... I... I'm really happy we met.
[He never could have imagined pulling Hunter out of the water all those months ago could have led them to this, but he's so glad.]
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Me too. I might be the luckiest guy in the world.
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[It's such a silly competition, and it makes Casey laugh a bit.]
I guess we both can be.
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[ Still gotta update th guard here! ]
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[He finally lets go and steps back, edging towards his own room.]
Want to chill on the couch? I can brush your hair, we'll see who falls asleep first.
[Hair brushing feels like giving himself a head start, but he's tired enough that it might actually be pretty even. Plus he did say he'd like to mess with it.]
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I'd really like that. Yeah.
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I think my horns need a trim again.
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Getting gooey again, or just too long?
[How are they looking? He can start with a trim and then brush, if need be. Full-service salon couch is open for business.]
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Too long. I put another hole in that shirt.
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Casey rises on his knees enough to give the horns a closer look as Hunter ducks, nodding slowly. Yeah, they're looking a bit rough.]
I can trim them first, it shouldn't take too long.
[He stands up and goes to fetch the clippers from the kitchen. They'd needed a good cleaning last time, but this time ought to go much more smoothly. ...Also he grabs a measuring tape at the same time. Figures it'll be easier if he knows how long Hunter likes them, if this will be a regular thing.]
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[ Plus this way he gets soothing spa treatment! win-win.
He settles himself down onto the couch, then, watching Casey retrieve stuff. ]
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[He counts himself lucky that his features are either locked into the familiar forms, or pretty easy to maintain. At worst his scales get itchy sometimes, or he bites himself with sharper teeth.
Once he has the clippers he settles in behind Hunter, beginning to carefully trim down the cracked, sharpened ends to clean them up one by one.]
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It's just tough to reach. And also see what I'm doing...
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[It's easy to snip away as they talk; he catches the bits of wood as they fall to not muddle up Hunter's hair, though if he misses any it'll be brushed out shortly. He tries to go slow, since he knows they get sensitive if too much is trimmed away, and is mindful of Hunter's body language for signs of when to stop.]
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... Really? Do you need me to take care of those for you?
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I don't think they need anything specific for care... I mean, I don't do much with them, they're just there. But sometimes they get itchy...? Maybe you could scratch that spot for me, I dunno.
[He has yet to discover the joys of pangolin scales + comb grooming.]
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Well - okay, I can definitely do that. But maybe there's a way to clean scales too.
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Clean scales... maybe. I just scrub what I can reach like normal in the shower. I don't mind if you want to try, though.
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All right. Then - uh - next time you uh -
[ Wait, he's stumbling over the thought of Casey in the bath or something. ]
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You. Um. You can try on my shoulder scales? I'd just have to roll up my sleeve.
[Don't need a bath for that. Or even shirt removal.]
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-- Oh yeah! That'll be much easier.
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[Just a bit. Even if technically he'd done it for Hunter before, it's a bit different when he only looked to clean off the fae bark. It was an emergency! Very situational.
He clears his throat, cheeks pink anyway, and goes back to smoothing out the second horn.]
I think they're pretty even, now... how do they feel?
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A lot better. They were kind of - um - splintery before?
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cw discussion of child abuse
Re: cw discussion of child abuse
cw discussion of child abuse
Re: cw discussion of child abuse
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