hugtopia_logs | Sleepovers

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Sleepovers

♥ Who: Verstael, Sephiroth
♥ Where: Verstael's townhouse
♥ When: Early October
♥ What: Earning dora and building alliances
♥ Rating: Are these two NSFW by nature? Nothing in particular but I will change this if something happens.

Verstael had fully informed Sephiroth previously of his touching experiment, but there was more than it to that. Frankly, money was useful. And it seemed Sephiroth understood that as well, so he'd invited him over to make better use of their time sleeping. Why just sleep when you could earn money as well?

The townhouse was like any other on the outside. Besides some garlic sitting by a window, there wasn't really anything that made it stick out as even being occupied. But he had given directions clearly, and when he went to open the door it became much more obvious that someone did, indeed, live there.

The living room was transformed to look much like the Information Shelter. Shelves, chairs, desks... Everything for work instead of looking like a cozy living room. The doors were all where they should be, but one of the bedroom doors had been switched to something more heavy duty. It looked sterile and lablike. Verstael's version of home sweet home.

"I would prefer if we maintain a significant amount of contact when we touch. I'm currently in the second phase of my study." The explanation was a straightforward reminder. He invited the other in with some energetic flair.

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Everyone needs money eventually.

Sephiroth's flippant reply to Kaworu had finally come back to haunt him. From his point of view, he had been quite generous with his physical person since he arrived. However, it seemed the so-called gods did not agree. Was this punishment for his lack of reverence towards them? While he might have had few needs and even fewer wants, the inevitable finally happened and Sephiroth almost ran out of dora for essential items. Like food and shampoo. He knew better than to neglect himself and so it was with a keen ear that he listened to Verstael's proposal.

It made too much sense to refuse.

Sephiroth also knew it would be poor manners to show up to someone's dwelling place empty handed. He'd had that lesson drilled into his head by various people through the years. It followed that Sephiroth retrieved the corpse of the dog-like monster he killed a little earlier that day while doing some exploring and cleaned it up before placing it in a bag to bring with him. The head was separated from the body, but it was otherwise in good condition.

After being around Verstael this long, Sephiroth was certain he would like it.

He nodded to Verstael and stepped into his apartment, noting that it was not very different from the Information Center at all. He was willing to accept much as long as he understood and agreed with the reasoning behind the arrangement. This would be beneficial to both of them and he knew it would be accomplished in an efficient manner.

"I brought you something." Sephiroth said this without further preamble. He held the bag in front of him. It was not heavy to him, but he understood it might be to Verstael and so followed up, "where would you like me to put it?"

Sephiroth stepped a little further into the apartment. "It is a dog like creature. I thought you might find it useful."

Edited 2020-10-05 05:40 (UTC)

A gift? Not completely unheard of, but a rarity indeed. He listened, and his corner of his mouth quirked up as Sephiroth explained it.

"Ah. A rive talon. Yes, I've two of those, but it never hurts to have extra."

He headed immediately towards a door that, if Sephiroth took into account the layout of this townhouse compared to the one he stayed at, should be a bedroom. But just as the door had been changed out, so, too, had the interior. When Verstael opened the hefty metal door it revealed that he'd stripped out the previous bedroom and rebuilt it into a freezer, which would have to suffice for holding bodies at this time. It was at least an improvement over what he had before. Which was nothing.

And inside he'd somehow acquired two of each animal save for the giraffes that wouldn't fit. Giant spiders, lizards, hares and bipedal birds, along with two rive talons just as he'd said. Each pair had one dissected and one intact and preserved.

"It as if these dogs have somehow grown into the landscape. An effect of the toxins outside of our bubble I would suspect. Certainly they would normally die with such foreign objects inside of them if not for the manipulations of this blight. You have seen the bone 'giraffes'? They look much like anaks. A perfect example of the way the toxin appears to manipulate the dead like marionettes. Quite similar to the plague on my own world."

He sounded entirely intrigued rather than horrified. Who didn't like a good mystery?

A deep chill wrapped around them when they entered the room that fazed him none. He grew up in this sort of weather, after all, so he was near impervious to the cold, movements changing not in the least as the wave of his hand towards the shelf where Sephiroth should place it and continuous motions going along with his speech were almost theatrical. He didn't even rush out, taking his time closing the freezer back up when they were done, the bite of frozen air melting away when they stepped out and sealed it.

Despite the seeming frozen bestiary, there was no trace of weaponry in the home.

"You've eaten?" he asked as he began removing the armor. It was getting late after all, and close to time for sleep to happen. Neither seemed the type to waste a lot of time before getting to business.

Notably, while it probably did provide some amount of protection, that armor definitely leaned towards the decorative side, and taking it off took time with all the extra little bells and whistles. It was impeccably cared for without a hint of damage despite all the dangling bits that would be prone to catching or tearing.

Sephiroth couldn't help but be impressed at the lengths Verstael went to to customize his townhouse to suit his needs. He had been expecting a cooler or perhaps a refrigerator, maybe some kind of chemical bath. This was something else altogether.

Sephiroth followed Verstael inside as he explained, giving a critical eye to his other specimens. He had certainly encountered each of them in the wild, so to speak, and was familiar with most of their properties first-hand as well as what he'd gathered from Verstael's notes. Sephiroth placed the corpse in the indicated place as he continued to listen to Verstael's explanations.

It was cold. Sephiroth could see his breath and feel the bite of it on his exposed chest. But he didn't mind nor pay it any attention. He never let trivial things like minor physical discomfort bother him. When they moved back into the apartment and Verstael began to remove his armor, Sephiroth followed suit, beginning with his pauldrons and then following with the several straps and buckles and finally the heavy coat itself. He made quick work of his boots next. Sephiroth stacked his armor on top of his shoes and folded his coat on top of everything. All of this was accomplished with precise military efficiency and timing and without any wasted movements.

"I have," he said, as he worked. "Tell me more about this plague of yours." Sephiroth was now down to his SOLDIER issue pants alone. He wasn't a modest person by any means, but waited now to remove them for the same reason he did many things in social situations: because he had a vague idea that this was the correct action. Although, in this case, he did have a relevant question.

"What kind of contact will be necessary for your experiment?"

For now, Verstael removed the armored portion, getting down to the soft undergarments meant to keep the armor from chafing him. Which shimmered with obvious high quality, but also showed some wear by now. Even the best kept clothes wore out eventually.

He picked up what he had taken off to carry it back to his room and put it meticulously in order for the night. Notably, this was the only bedroom left that seemed to still serve as a bedroom in this townhouse. Woe be anyone who was forced to live with him in the future.

"The Starscourge. It is actually an ancient parasite, a mutation of plasmodium malariae. Infected are twisted beyond recognition and become what is commonly referred to as 'daemons'." He seemed to grow in enthusiasm as he talked about his favorite subject. With his armored set down he turned back towards Sephiroth, lifting a fist in excitement. "Their strength is immense with but one weakness: they are photophobic. However, the miasma that pours from their body eats the light." His energy seemed to die down as he considered the future.

He still felt thrilled by the thought of daemons but things had changed, and thus the next line he said came out more sullenly. "33 years from my time the light will be gone." His Empire would be gone. The sun of Solheim would be imperceptible beyond the wall of miasma. However amazing daemons were, it was a high price to pay.

"Or so goes the future I have been told of." He threw up a hand before turning back to readying himself for bed. He, in contrast to Sephiroth, didn't bother to strip down further. "With our arrival here the future can be contested."

He ducked into the small bathroom quickly for cleaning, as diligent with that as everything else, before reappearing and heading to the familiar bed. It was just the same as the one in Sephiroth's townhouse. The room hadn't been upgraded for typical comforts - only in the way of adding shelving. It did, however, still function as a bedroom.

"My initial experiment involved contact of approximately one hand. Therefor, I will require contact of a larger area than that to determine if it makes a difference. It should be simple in a resting state."

Edited 2020-10-07 04:29 (UTC)

Sephiroth followed Verstael to his bedroom after the man finished stripping off his armor. He watched with approval as Verstael cared for it. Despite the fact that he was so heavily involved in science, he still paid a proper amount of respect to his equipment. It was something Sephiroth appreciated in other people. He had high expectations of himself and was always pleasantly surprised when other people came close to mirroring them in any way.

"Starscourge..." Sephiroth said this mostly to himself as Verstael elaborated on the parasite plaguing his world. They had nothing like it on Gaia. At least, nothing that occured in nature. What ShinRa's scientists, Hollander foremost in his mind right now, got up to behind closed doors was another matter. Still, this was nothing compared to what Verstael was describing. Sephiroth could read between the lines and beneath Verstael's usual optimism. He had questions, but those would probably not lead to the beneficial and rest they both sought here tonight and would be better served another time.

Or, at least, this was Sephiroth's line of thought until Verstael mentioned being told of the future.

"How is it you know what will happen in your future?" he asked, when Verstael returned. Sephiroth had already completed his own hygiene routine before coming over. Now that he had his answer regarding the amount of contact necessary, he stripped down to his SOLDIER issue briefs and slid into Verstael's bed without asking for permission or waiting for further comment. It was as if he owned it.

Once settled, Sephiroth looked at Verstael without expression, waiting for Verstael to join him.

Verstael wasn't exactly shy about his body, but he saw no need to strip further. His undergarments were quite comfortable - as they should be, being designed to protect his skin while wearing something heavy and rugged all day. It did mean they were wearing a bit thin, but they were still velvety to the touch inside and out. So, looking much like he was wearing an a pair of airy white pajamas, he jotted down a quick note - he had to keep track of the amount of time they were touching - and without fuss lied down next to Sephiroth, silently beginning the struggle of deciding exactly how and where they would touch. For now he rested an arm atop Sephiroth's, leg lightly touching the side of Sephiroth's. Adequate for the time being, but perhaps not enough to make sure they didn't drift apart during sleep.

"There are others here from my world. Or, worlds so alike my own that you could scarcely tell the difference, save for the fact that they claim to be from different times. On my initial arrival, it was M.E. 722-IV-7th. A soldier from Lucis who had previously been here was from approximately M.E. 760, give or take a few years. I was able to acquire my future files as well as documents taken during the time of darkness through him. Thus, I know in M.E. 756, the light of our world will be hidden from view and it will be permanently blanketed in darkness."

Sephiroth didn't object when Verstael rested an arm on him. He understood the reason for the contact and therefore could compartmentalize how strange the situation was--for instance, he could not recall ever lying like this with another human being in his life. Not even in his earliest, dimmest memories. It was a completely new experience.

However, when Verstael further explained, it was time to put this aside as well. Sephiroth leaned over on his elbow to watch him as he spoke and really though it broke the contact Verstael had established it made much more sense in this position for Sephiroth to put his hand on Verstael's arm. Sephiroth was well aware there would be certain parameters to maintain and though their positions had changed he had no intention of muddying the results.

"An enemy soldier gave you your files?" It seemed ridiculous, but then so did a lot of things here. "And you believe them to be accurate?"

Sephiroth's hair cascaded behind him like a curtain, and his eyes glowed all the more in the dimmer light.

"I had my suspicions of their authenticity. However, I know myself well and the work of my lab. I'm confident he would not have been able to falsify documents from myself. Others... don't think as I do. I would recognize a fraud. I believe they are real."

His gaze turned down at the change of position. He, too, rarely slept with anyone like this. When he did it was Will, and he had no problem taking the dominant position there. With Sephiroth hovering above him and partially on top of him, he realized he would need to shift. He propped himself up on his elbow to meet the other man eye to eye - which he did effectively enough despite the fact that he was noticeably smaller. He'd never really let that stop him from acting big. However, contact needed to be maintained, so he placed his second arm slightly above Sephiroth's as he faced him.

"Were he of my time, he would have no way of knowing the inner workings of my lab or of projects that have yet to happen. Beyond that, I have seen that Regis Lucis Caelum, still a young prince in my time, is a grown man here and claims to now be the king. Though I never met him in person, his age is clearly beyond that of a teenager and would be quite difficult to fake. It may not be time travel, but people lifted from my world have all come from different times. Save for Ardyn, I am the furthest back on the timeline. I suppose that's to be expected when many of them haven't been born yet."

"I see."

Sephiroth did not break eye contact. He remained as still and impassive as ever. However, something about the way Verstael shifted bothered him. Perhaps it was the addition of the arm? Sephiroth had no experience in this area. He only knew that this was not what he had expected. However, Sephiroth had no qualms about rectifying it. After all, if they were to sleep they would have to do so comfortably and as far as he was concerned being the guest meant he got to have his way.

Something like that.

Sephiroth extended his arm under Verstael's body and drew them both down onto the mattress in one smooth motion so that Verstael's head rested against his chest. He then draped said arm around Verstael both in order to maintain the contact and to keep Verstael from moving around too much. For the study, of course. This was odd in a new and different way, but still much better than before.

"I have met your Ardyn. He assured me that our worlds continue on without us. It seems this was more than simply idle talk." Sephiroth spoke in a casual tone as if nothing at all had changed.

Edited 2020-10-09 23:58 (UTC)

Outside of his armor there wasn't much weight to Verstael's person. Both only average height and on the thin size, he was easy to pull close. And he clearly wasn't expecting to be suddenly dragged down on top of Sephiroth.

Before he knew it he had lost balance and his cheek was pressed up against something warm. Too warm. Despite the best efforts in his lab there was always a chill that ran through it. He slept at night surrounded by cool, crisp air. Exactly what one would expect to come straight off a mountaintop. This city had not been as harsh but he was still accustomed to it, and never slept with another before coming to Havenwell.

So Sephiroth's body almost felt sweltering in comparison. He struggled against him, trying to reset his position to a less impotent position, placing one arm on Sephiroth's chest to push himself up.

"Many have that belief, though there is no proof of it." He grunted as he attempted to lift himself. "Perhaps a personal belief in order to alleviate concerns over the disappearances."

Edited 2020-10-10 00:30 (UTC)

Sephiroth hardly felt the struggles. In reality, it took very little of his strength to keep his arm in place over Verstael. It seemed illogical that Verstael would attempt to compromise the integrity of his own experiment, but here they were. Nevertheless, Sephiroth was assured that the other man would calm down in a moment once he realized his circumstances would not change. Relaxation and rest would follow.

"Is that so? Yet it seems to align with what you are describing." Sephiroth's chest rose and fell with the ease of one not exerting himself whatsoever. His heartbeat also remained steady.

He had not experienced any such disappearances himself, but then he had never been the most sociable person and this had not changed since arriving in Havenwell.

"What do you propose instead?"

Well, this was a predicament. Previously Verstael hadn't been used to anyone grabbing him. It had happened in this city, and he had certainly replied to the action with an expression that said everything. And if he wasn't used to anyone being willing to so much as grab his arm, he definitely wasn't used to being smashed into someone's chest. And apparently holding him there. While it didn't compromise the experiment it was not a position he ever pictured himself sleeping in.

His already low voice seemed to go even lower, nearly grumbling as he exerted himself. Still, his strength was that of a human. Despite how he presented himself he was not intimidating in the least physically.

"We've only theories. If the natives are continuing their experiments and seeking samples, it would benefit them greatly if the otherworlders turned a blind eye to disappearances."

Sephiroth had to give Verstael credit for his perseverance. However, unfortunately for him Sephiroth was far more persistent and had the strength to back it up. He held Verstael in a loose enough grip for him to maneuver a little but not to get out from under Sephiroth's arm. It was still strange, but he thought he must be doing something right because Verstael had yet to ask him for a change in position. He would have been amenable to lying side by side as he thought the experiment originally entailed. Not that they had discussed this in particular.

"Ah, yes, I recall you mentioning this before." Verstael had brought this alarming theory to light but it seemed to go against the topic at hand. "However, I am referring to the difference in timelines you mentioned here and how this could possibly relate to our home worlds."

"Ah. Consider that akin to layers of dimensions, neighboring layers being much like the next with the slightest differences. Rather than actually being from different times on the same world, it may be that we are from different similar worlds."

One theory of many, but coming to Havenwell opened up a universe of possibilities.

Stubborn he was, but stupid he wasn't. He wasn't making any progress attempting to wrestle this, and he wasn't quite the type to point out his own weakness. He settled, considering his options quietly.

It really was warm pressed against someone.

"It may be deceptive if we assume that our circumstances are exactly as they appear on the surface."

These were all compelling thoughts. Things to be taken in and slowly digested. Not anything Sephiroth wanted to rush to conclusion. His gaze cut down to Verstael as he considered everything the man said. "Have you thought of any way to test this theory?"

While Sephiroth had not put much stock in Ardyn's words, it would have been nice if what the man believed was true.

"Things seldom are as they appear." He said this after a small pause where he made a small adjustment to his loose hold on Verstael to better allow for the other man's comfort. Now that he had finally finished with his futile and counterproductive struggles they could begin to relax in earnest.

The thought tickled at the back of his mind that it really wasn't all that bad holding someone like this, but Sephiroth ignored it.

Edited 2020-10-12 02:19 (UTC)

While it remained a bit warmer than Verstael liked, he at least had some experience being close to Will. Will didn't cover so much of his body, though. It seemed he would need to deal with it for now. Perhaps it was a blessing none from Niflheim were here. The things that would be said if they saw him in this position.

Not that he tended to give a damn about people making fun of him.

"It is a tricky one to test. But I suppose you could say I've thought of it. One of the otherworlders here had been an inter-dimensional traveler. He acquired a vehicle called the 'Lor' that could move through dimensional rifts. Knowing now that it's not only possible, but that other dimensions are true, I would create my own version of this vehicle."

With a soft grunt he positioned himself more comfortably, cheek pressed against's Sephiroth's chest as he stared at the wall. "It will take some time. Even the owner of the vehicle had only found it - he did not create it himself, so he did not entirely know its inner workings. If we are to go home, however, I would prefer to be able to do it on my own terms rather than based on the whims of the gods."

That was news to Sephiroth, tangible proof that changed this from a conceptual to a practical discussion. He thought back to what Prompto had told him about having come from a similar universe not his own and wondered how deep this mystery went and whether they were just touching the surface. Subsequent thoughts arose as to whether their efforts to return home were ultimately futile. However, Sephiroth was the tenacious sort and once he had a goal he would see it accomplished.

"Were you able to examine this vehicle?" Verstael's cheek was soft against him, belying his otherwise masculine form. "I would also prefer not to rely on these false gods."

The fact that there might be an alternative was actually quite exciting. Sephiroth lifted his head and gathered his hair before brushing it to the side. The real goal of this motion was to stare down at Verstael for a moment. The man was increasingly worthy of Sephiroth's respect, and proving to be a most useful ally.

"I trust you'll tell me if I can be of assistance."

That was what he liked to hear. It implied that he would be of assistance in the future if needed.

"I was not. It would have been quite helpful if I could have, obviously. But even knowing of its existence is still of use. It means that we already know it is possible. It's only a matter of figuring out the problem."

Which he lived for. So, despite their predicament, a smirk was on his face. "When we learn to travel the universes and dimensions of our own accord, then we determine our fates rather than the gods."

Sephiroth believed in Verstael's capabilities and ambitions. It was why he had chosen to offer his assistance in the first place and why, in the grand scheme of things, he continued to involve himself with the man and his ideas and experiments. The fact that they agreed on any number of issues only made things more palatable.

"Agreed," he said, simply, meaning in as many words that Sephiroth bowed before no gods and never would. He was the one who determined his own fate and no supposedly divine being, nor any circumstance would ever be allowed to take that away from him. People and events might interfere in his life but there would always be time and methods for rectifying this. The only reason he hadn't struck them down already was that there was so much research to be done in understanding the effects of everything first.

"Shall we rest now?" They had discussed much in a short amount of time and, as well he knew, there was only so much one could do at a time.

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Sleepovers

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HIS FACE

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I'm so late

No such thing <3