Kane and Adrienne - Welcome home!

[x-adrienne.livejournal.com]

Adrienne brings beer and food to a recouperating Garrison, but ends up offering to give him something more important to her.

"Hey, Kane, are you in there? Are you sleeping?" Adrienne knew he was in his room- using her powers on the door had confirmed that- but was starting to think she should have called first. That was a fleeting thought, however, as she opened the door herself. "I brought Thai food and beer! Helloooo?" Maybe he was sleeping. "Do I put the food in the fridge and come back later or do I go in there and welcome you home proper- whoa. What happened to your face?"

"I made the mistake of hitting people with it a lot." Kane was lying on his bed, head hanging off the edge, staring at the ceiling. He'd only gotten home a few hours earlier, and had avoided most of the mansion to return to his room. There were too many things in his head; too many questions with no answers and even less sense. Had he really been involved in a war over holy relics and secret societies? And who was Ozymandias? Farouk had gone quiet on the plane and refused to say anything further.

"Well, that was rather silly," Adrienne mumbled sympathetically. "Can I interest you in some food or do you want some alone time?" She was loitering by the bed, fighting the urge to join him on it. To talk, of course.

He reached up and grabbed the bottom of the bag with his fingers, tugging it and her closer. "After spending the bulk of the last two and a half weeks either in a cell, with Farouk, or a combination of both, no, I'm happy for company." He was wearing a tshirt, and peeking out from under the sleeves and the neck were mottled constellations of bruises, doubly impressive when you considered his healing powers.

Adrienne let herself be tugged closer and used the momentum to carry her onto the bed, so it would look like he pulled her there instead of her invading his personal space of her own accord. Sitting next to him, she winced at the bruises. "These must be either really recent or really bad if they haven't healed yet," she mused. Almost nervously, she reached out to run a finger over his bicep, as if she could make it vanish by touching it. "How'd you end up in a cell?" she asked quietly.

"Well, I was in Israel and was blown up by either half insane Pakistani Islamic fundamentals or half insane Spanish Catholic fundamentals. You know, as you do. Then an ancient order of knights who happened not to have been wiped out eight hundred years ago like everyone thought picked me up and put me in a cell until a nun, the Pope's chief blind assassin, and the Hellfire Club's version of Lara Croft in red leather rescued me." Kane sighed. "So, you know, pretty standard stuff."


"Uh... what? That sounds like a Dan... oh. That's why you made that journal post," she realized, shaking her head ruefully as a grin tugged at the corner of her mouth. "You're serious. The Hellfire Club has a Lara Croft?" It seemed better to stick with the light stuff so that she wouldn't pummel him for putting himself in these situations. "Were there auditions? Why wasn't I informed?" She pulled a bottles of beer out of the carrier she'd brought and twisted the top off using the hem of her shirt, offering it to him.

"British Hellfire Club. I think you have to be a native or something. Or have a red leather fetish. What's up with that? I thought you guys were black and white, like chess pieces." Kane lifted up his head long enough to drain a third of the bottle in a long pull. "What the fuck is a red rook anyway? Is it just a fancy way of saying 'Club Treasurer' or something?"

"Not exactly?" Adrienne opened a beer for herself and shifted a little to get more comfortable on the bed. "The Bishops are chosen for their advisory roles, the Knights for getting shit done, and the Rooks seem to be almost a type of enforcer, political or physical enforcement of their Court's agenda? At least, that's how it all seems to me, but I'm not in a Court, thank Christ. Also I think you need more than a red leather fetish to get into the London club because if that was all it took I could be their Red Queen. So why was Jane Hampshire, Red Rook, saving your ass?"

"I honestly have no idea. She was tied up in the whole Grail thing- maybe she cut a deal with the old guy. Got herself nearly gutted in the process too, so I guess I shouldn't be too harsh on her." Garrison closed his eyes for a moment, willing away the dull ache of pain that seemed to wrap his body.

Adrienne made a mental note to tell Emma about what Hampshire was 'tied up in' and see if the White Queen knew anything about this Grail. She opened her mouth to ask Kane about the Grail, mostly because she couldn't really believe he'd just said he was involved in something involving the Grail and wanted to tease him about being Indiana Jones, but when he closed his eyes she closed her mouth. "Do you want me to go?" she whispered, not wanting to disturb him.

"Not unless it's to go and change into something non-existant before coming back."

"I don't even have a toothbrush at your place, let alone non-existent clothing I can go change into," she teased. "Actually, I might have a toothbrush somewhere around here because I might have slept on your couch once or twice while you were away. However," she added, shifting back on an elbow so she could whisper in his ear, "if you want me to stay here and take off the clothing I already have, rather than going to change into something non-existent, I might be pursuaded to do that."

Kane raised an eyebrow and turned his head very slowly. "Really? I thought you wanted to take things slow, eh?"

"I thought you did too," she answered with an easy smile. "But you've been bruised and cooped up in a jail cell and shot apparently, and I'm feeling a little like I should offer to shag you as, I don't know, my patriotic duty to the returning protector of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness?" Would he assume she was simply joking, or initiating verbal foreplay? Or was she inadvertently insulting him?

"I'd prefer if the reason was because it was what you wanted."

"It is what I want, if you want it too," she replied quietly. "I don't need to have sex with you right here, right now, but I wouldn't turn you down either." Her throat had become dry and she nearly laughed at her own nervousness. "I don't want to mess up our friendship, but I'm starting to wonder if we may not know for sure whether that's going to happen until we go there."

"Huh." Kane said, before he kissed her. "You know, if it wasn't for the fact I'm black and blue and, well, shot, that would be the best offer I've heard in a long time. However, being as said state of collapse, how about you just lay here and listen to me groan and halfheartedly grope you. And once I'm not an invalid, we can explore this whole idea about you without any clothes on and me watching you without any clothes on and... yes..."

With a chuckle, Adrienne put her beer on the nightstand and stretched out next to him on her side, smiling at him. "I can do that. 'Can even do some groping of my own... I mean of you... I mean..." yeah, it was probably good they weren't actually having sex right now. "I mean, I can do whatever you want," she amended, leaning in to kiss him back.

"Whatever you want. Just, you know," Kane grinned. "-be gentle, eh?"