Fandom Island Museum, Thursday Daytime

[hasaknightjob]

The last day of Pride month and the spiders had added to their existing art with what looked like "LIVE WERQ P" where whatever came after P was still in progress.

Steven decided it would be cruel to point out he was pretty sure they'd gone wrong on the spelling and left them to it.

He settled down in his usual spot behind the welcome desk and kept himself busy looking up information on the latest round of music suggestions Layla had sent him.

[open]

Comments

[pocketpretzels]

"I've made up my mind," Watts said as he came barreling in through the museum's front door around lunchtime. "And I've brought lunch as well," he added, holding up a takeout bag from Taste of Thai.

He'd put a careful amount of consideration into what to wear for this visit, opting for the plaid suit (his nicest, if you asked him), blue-and-green checkered waistcoat, and a deep green tie. His Oxfords, unfortunately, were beyond help but he didn't really think Steven would pay all that much attention to his shoes.

[hasaknightjob]

It was fair to say Steven hadn't paid attention to Watts's shoes yet and there was little reason for him to start now.

The suit was very smart though, in Steven's opinion. It wasn't the reason he smiled when he saw Watts come in but it certainly didn't hurt.

"Watts! Didn't expect I'd be seeing you today," Steven said. Not that he minded. There were nerves about what the decision might be, but also relief that he'd finally know one way or the other.

[pocketpretzels]

"No?" Watts blinked at him. "No, I suppose you didn't," he said. They hadn't actually agreed on a timeframe, after all. "Well, here I am. Still very much a fool."

[hasaknightjob]

It was amazing how Watts could be so direct and at the same time poetic.

"You're bloody unfair to my resistance, you are," Steven said. It was very much not a complaint.

Steven put up the sign on the counter to indicate he was taking lunch. "Here. Let's go where we can't be interrupted, yeah?"

No, Steven hadn't given his answer yet, but the way he held out his hand for Watts was a fair idea of where things were going.

[pocketpretzels]

Watts hesitated for a moment as he glanced at Steven’s outstretched hand. That was- that was a far more public show of affection than he’d ever dared before. And there was every possibility that it would be reported upon in tomorrow’s radio broadcast. But he’d also made the very conscious decision earlier today to not set out any bribes for the squirrels. At least, not immediately.

This was 2022. And he didn’t want to have to hide anymore. Certainly didn’t want to ask Steven to, when asking him to give this a try at all was a big step for completely different reasons.

So, yes. Hesitation for a moment, but then a smile, and taking Steven’s hand in his own. “I’d like that.”

NFB from here please

[hasaknightjob]

Steven noticed the hesitation. He'd hoped that the two of them being the only ones in the lobby would have felt safe enough and felt bad he'd guessed wrong. He gave Watts's hand a squeeze to let him know he'd seen the act of courage.

Steven still had bad memories of when he'd used the office for this sort of serious conversation. Instead he led Watts through the fish exhibit. The first room they passed through had a display with a water feature which recreated a small waterfall and babbling brook for the fish that lived there. He knew from experience it made enough white noise that if someone came into the lobby they wouldn't be likely to hear a normal volume of conversation from anything beyond it.

The second room was all glass aquariums, with various fish swimming about in them. The room was tinged with blue light from the displays. There were benches which could be used for sitting and impromptu tables when they finally got around to eating.

Once there Steven turned to face Watts. He stood close, maybe only a half foot of space between them. He kept hold of Watts's hand as he said, firmly but not unkindly, "Tell me what it looks like. You thought about it. How's it work, for you?"

Re: NFB from here please

[pocketpretzels]

Had they been here for any other reason, Watts would have allowed himself to become distracted by the aquarium displays, enchanting as they were.

“Well, foremost- I wish to be your one-and-only, in the romantic sense. And you mine.”

Just in case there was any confusion at all on that front.

Re: NFB from here please

[hasaknightjob]

Steven felt himself start to relax. Because if Watts was stating his own needs that meant he had thought about it in a practical sense. It couldn't work as some sort of romantic ideal, no matter how tempting the thought of that might be.

"Fair thing, because I want that as well," Steven said. Then, in case it wasn't clear, "I like that idea. You being mine. Go on."

Re: NFB from here please

[pocketpretzels]

I like that idea. You being mine. Steven’s words sent a pleased shiver down Watts’s spine and he continued,

“I see us courting. Spending more purposeful time together than we do currently. Not all the time,” his face scrunched up in a brief frown and he scratched at his jaw. “I don’t expect nor do I care to be joined at the hip. I also expect our time together to require rather more forethought and planning than if there were just the two of us to consider.”

Re: NFB from here please

[hasaknightjob]

Steven's smile grew at "courting." He didn't know exactly what that would look like coming from Watts, but he was looking forward to finding out.

"Wouldn't want to be joined at the hip either," Steven said. Then, to help with expectations, he added, "And planning is going to evolve, I think. He grumbles a lot about how he won't need time or anybody of his own. But thing is there's what he says and what I know he feels. So what we make sure he takes and what he asks for later might change, all right?"

Yes, that was a purposeful "we" there which very much included Watts.

Re: NFB from here please

[pocketpretzels]

“I rather expected it might,” Watts said with a nod. “And what if your own expectations?” he asked.

There was something else he wanted to ask of Steven, but that could wait.

Re: NFB from here please

[hasaknightjob]

"Not expectations," Steven said, since Watts had hit the ones he would have asked for. "Honest question, more like. Can you picture it? Have you? Knowing you might see him out there kissing someone? Knowing he's going to be sleeping with people? Knowing it's not a twin or a doppelganger but this exact body doing all those things?"

Re: NFB from here please

[pocketpretzels]

"I have given it ample thought," Watts told him. Particularly in the light of finding out in recent years that he did in fact have a bit of a jealous streak.

"And it may be strange to witness, as you say, this body you share kiss someone else. Or think about it being- intimate." He frowned a little, the pronoun feeling strange but also not really sure how else to put it, not when Steven himself had used the phrase 'this body'. "But the body is not the whole of the self, as I suspect you know better than most."

It's also why he wanted a chance to get to know Mr. Spector as well. He had a feeling that once he had a better idea of the differences between the two, seeing Marc out and about living his life would seem as natural as seeing anyone else he knew.

[unusual_sith]

Lana poked her head in to make sure she'd remembered Steven's day correctly, then smiled as she came up to the desk.

"Hello, Steven." She was still looking around, too. "This is a lovely building." It was a little dark and definitely quiet. Relaxing.

[hasaknightjob]

"Lana, hello!" Steven said. "Yeah, it is, isn't it? Rather nice for such a small town."

[unusual_sith]

"It is," Lana agreed. She'd come here for something else, though maybe she'd tour it later. "Does it keep you very busy? I had some questions."

She set the book on hieroglyphics down on the desk. "Beginning with how anybody is supposed to be able to take useful cross-references on paper." There were little notes stuck in everywhere. "I've mostly been scanning everything to holo and annotating it there, but honestly."

[hasaknightjob]

"Yeah, no, I'm afraid you've found it," Steven said, with bemused sympathy. "You should see my notes at times. Then you need an entire system for that."

Just because Marc called it a mess didn't mean Steven couldn't find anything in it. So there.

[unusual_sith]

Lana sighed. "It's a wonder civilisation ever got anywhere. And what about stone tablets? Early Sith philosophy is largely carved in monuments, and so are these." She waved at the book. "How did you even reference things then - 'as seen in the first temple on the right, third door in, on the left'? I'm assuming no holos or photographs."

Honestly, ancient people!

[hasaknightjob]

Steven laughed. Not making fun, more sharing the frustration. "The writing was the advanced bit as far as their records go. Still around so have to give them points for that, right?"

[unusual_sith]

"Oh, yes," Lana agreed. "Stone is certainly durable. Long-lasting, if not terribly portable."

She rolled her eyes, though it wasn't entirely unsympathetic. "When the Alliance set up our base, some of our scholars brought their libraries. They still occasionally grouse about some of the larger tablets and artifacts they had to leave behind."

[hasaknightjob]

"Some get buried in the sand here," Steven said. "Have to do years of research just to figure out where to dig. Or I suppose hope someone left a magic device to help you find it as well but those aren't thick on the ground I'm afraid."

[unusual_sith]

"That too," Lana agreed. "The Alliance is still getting organised about it, but the Empire has the Imperial Reclamation Service, a branch of the military dedicated to discovering and preserving Sith history. It's a lot of digging under sand or snow. What sort of magic devices do you have?"

[hasaknightjob]

"Well not me personally," Steven said, just so it was clear. "I mean not for finding things at least. Suppose the suit counts as magic. And nothing that's universal? Like all archeologists get issued a ancient dig site device? But there's sometimes something specific. Ammit's tomb had one of those. Little scarab thing that worked like a compass."

[unusual_sith]

"I see," Lana said, nodding. "So it's more like the occasional artifact that leads you to a specific place." She smiled wryly. "A dig site device would be wonderful, wouldn't it?"

[hasaknightjob]

"Oh I know," Steven said with a wistful sigh. "I mean figuring out is fun and all but it takes forever."