[PRP] Pasodoble (Sacha + Cerpin)

[Yamashii]

who will win? the bull or the cape?

 

[Yamashii]

Cerpin Sugall was losing his mind. Was this how it felt to have a rival? Or was this how it felt to be prey? It didn't settle well with him to not know when danger would come barging into his hive to rip him out of it. And that meant he needed to do something about it. He looked up at the hivestem with his hands in his pockets. He'd come straight to the source to have it out finally.

There were only two outcomes possible here and he wasn't sure which one was worse. Trusting Sascha or... hopefully things wouldn't come to that.

He walked up the cramped stairs to the hive and wondered why Sascha chose to stay here. He had risen far enough to have his own office even. Sascha could kiss goodbye to this dusty old town any time he wanted. He could easily find a newer bigger hive to cram full of junk for his hoarder collection. Maybe the yellowblood was like him, too nostalgic to leave. Cerpin rapped on the door of Sascha's hive, hoping he'd come early enough in the night for him to be home.

"Hey, Sasch, you in there? I wanna talk to you." Which Sascha would answer the door, he wondered. The lieutenant? Or the rascal?

seekingCylem

 

[seekingCylem]

Sascha reacted on impulse. There was a knock at his door and he hauled himself off the couch (spilling a number of magazines and throw pillows in the process). He'd made it all the way to the threshold when he heard the voice on the other side.

Sascha stalled. His hand was on the doorknob. His fingers flexed. As soon as Sascha recognized his hesitation, however, disgust forced him to throw open the door. He hadn't thought of a word to say. Anything was better than the limbo he'd found himself in, though. It wasn't just this moment in his filthy entryway. This state had haunted him for weeks. Sweeps, it felt.

The door could only open so far with the boxes piled on the interior side. Sascha filled the gap entirely. He looked tired. He always looked a little angry, but tonight the expression seemed to sit heavy on his face. He was dressed in jeans and a simple t-shirt--black with his symbol like a child would wear. It was... ordinary.

Sascha opened his mouth. He instinctively tried to head off whatever Cerpin was about to say, but realized he had nothing to say. His lips flattened around his fangs and his fingers clenched the edge of the door. He breathed in through his nose and tried to speak again. Carefully.

"Do you want to... come in?" It was spoken less in hesitation more than a legitimate question. Sascha's hive was hardly a hospitable environment, but it was more private than his doorstep. Whether it was worth the effort to excavate space for a second troll depended largely on what Cerpin had to say to him.

Yamashii

 

[Yamashii]

Was there room for him to come in? The place looked packed full of everything Sascha had ever set sights on in his life. Cerpin wedged himself in through the small gap in the door and looked for a place to stand. Settling on what looked to be a doorway to another room, he leaned against it as it was one of the few places required to have some empty space.

"So... I was just wondering why you haven't turned me in yet. Do you plan to?" The words sounded like nervous questions but the delivery had a flat tone as if they were rhetorical. It had kept him on edge for weeks now. He had people relying on him to keep a safe roof over their heads. He needed to resolve this one way or another. Hopefully they could get this over with quickly before Cerpin stupidly revealed any other extremely dangerous information about himself to the lieutenant again.

He hated how just the sight of Sascha after such a long time seemed to trigger a rush of energy in him. The yellowblood was a threat to everything he was working for. He wasn't supposed to be excited to see him again.

"I guess I'm not really sure where we stand right now. Or where you'd like us to." The purpleblood crossed his arms in a guarded stance. He didn't know where to look right now. He felt vulnerable at how much power Sascha had to flex right now if he wanted to. He wanted to punch his pretty fangs out for leaving him in suspense like this for so long. Was it because the yellowblood shied away from anything emotional? Or did he simply not feel the same?

What an interesting ceiling Sascha had.

seekingCylem

sorry for lateness orz

 

[seekingCylem]

Sascha squashed himself behind the door to allow Cerpin room to come in. He followed after, maneuvering through the piles with practiced ease.

The pair stopped at the door frame separating the respiteblock and ablutionsblock from the rest of the hive. It was a well-trafficked enough zone to have minimal junk crowding them. Sascha leaned against the edge of his nutritionblock's counter and crossed his arms. He was used to the tight spaces of his hive. He was comfortable. Safe. It was the atmosphere that felt like it was closing in on him.

There. There was the question. Sascha knew it was coming, but he still winced. The two men mirrored each other for a moment. Bodies tense; folded in on themselves. Contemplating. There'd been far too much of that lately for Sascha. He needed action. This was torture.

He opened his mouth, wanting to say anything to move past this ******** of a situation. No sound came out. Sascha closed his mouth slowly. What was on the other side of this confrontation? There was no precedent. No procedure. No managers or superior officers.

The smart thing to do would be to apprehend Cerpin here and now. He could do it. He could bring the whole hive down on them if he wanted to. Turn what was left into the authorities. He'd earn some major credibility with the military. Depending on Cerpin's standing in the rebellion, Sascha might even receive a seat in the Empress's inner-circle.

And then what?

Sascha's jaw strained with the pressure he was putting on it. The correct answer was sitting right there in front of him. Yet Sascha couldn't bring himself to take action. Sascha reluctantly admitted the reason: Cerpin. Something about him made Sascha stupid. Emotional. Weak. Sascha was cornered in his own hive by this a*****e and his... his... everything! He was smug and capricious and hard-headed and fun and generous and well-intentioned...

Sascha growled and shook his head; hands in his hair. "I hate this!" he blurted out. "I hate this! I hate this! I hate- you." The admission struck Sascha through the chest. His eyes fell to Cerpin's as his thrashing ceased. "Why... Why does it have to be like this? Why do you have to be like this? You could be so much more than what you are. I don't want to turn you in. I want..." Sascha choked back an emotion he couldn't place. "I just want you to succeed, you moron! Why won't you let me help you!?"

Yamashii

*Spikes the metaphorical football into the GROUND*