that perfect tranquillity of life ( OPEN )

[flecks]

Date & Time: April 10, late afternoon & evening
Location: The library
Characters: Leo Baskerville & YOU.
Summary: There's some weird guy sitting on the floor, come trip over him or be weirded out at him because hey, there are perfectly fine seats in the library!!
Warnings: idek

[ When Leo isn't busy with the extra training the Initiative forces him to do and the community service at the orphanage, he can be found reading in the library. Reading books now isn't the same as it was before. He can't quite enjoy it like he used to, but it's the only way of coping he knows and so he keeps on reading. Not knowing what else to do, it's easy to fall back on old habits. Old habits die hard after all and his only escape from reality had always been books.

The Initiative library isn't nearly as grand as the one in Lutwidge Academy or even the Nightray family library, but it's plenty spacious and there's a lot of chairs to sit in, at a table or otherwise. However, Leo sits on the floor. Also out of force of habit. The library at his orphanage had been quite small with not much room for any chairs at all, but no one ever came there and that's why Leo loved it and willingly resorted to sitting on the floor. It's become so normal to him that he has actually come to prefer sitting on the floor when he's reading, no matter how comfortable a chair or bed is. That hasn't changed here either.

He's found a nice beanbag though, but rather than sit on it, he leans back against it. The beanbag is big enough to hide him out of sight and he's placed it near some bookshelves so he has new books within reach. Unfortunately this also means he's made himself an obstacle for the unwitting and he's too caught up in his current reading to realize it. ]

Comments

[bloodyashes]

[Ain't no reason it can't be motherfucking both things, bro.]

So even more of their pride is at stake.

[Yep, he gets it. A family in disgrace who maintains the shards of their reputation by enforcing perfect behaviour; no wonder Elliot is so wrapped up in his idea of what nobles should and shouldn't be.]

[flecks]

[ Oh, Asch gets it right away. Out of personal experience or otherwise, but either way Leo's actually coming to like him. ]

Exactly. I think it says a lot about why Elliot is the way he is. [ A beat. ] Or a little, at least.

[bloodyashes]

[Clearly, twas a match made in herding Nightrays.

A small snort.]

He has enough pride for the entire family.

[flecks]

[ Truly.

He lets out a soft chuckle at that. ]

He does. [ And the more sobering thought: ] But the family needs it.

[bloodyashes]

[Well, now that sure is an intriguing line. Don't mind following up on it, do you, Leo? Of course not.]

So their reputation as shady is well-earned?

[flecks]

[ There's a tiny bit of hesitation as he figures out how to put it. ]

No, not at all. In fact, it's quite unjust. It's just that the number of family members has been . . . dwindling. [ Practically to 0. ]

[bloodyashes]

Illness, war, or assassination?

[Don't mind him being blunt, Leo.]

[flecks]

[ He raises an eyebrow, but it's more amused than anything else. Being a blunt person himself, he can appreciate it at least. ]

Murder.

[bloodyashes]

And how does that differ from assassination, in this case?

[Because back home, they usually meant the same thing, when it came to such high-ranked nobility.]

[flecks]

They weren't planned like assassinations would be. It was done more, hm . . . [ how to put this ] spur of the moment?

[ Yes, that sounds like the most accurate way to put it. He nods. ] Only one was a planned assassination.

[ Probably two, but he's not certain whether or not Vincent had set out with the sole purpose of killing Duke Nightray. ]

[bloodyashes]

[...Well.]

And does that have anything to do with why Elliot showed up covered in blood?

[Who all got murdered, exactly?]

[flecks]

[ Well, Humpty Dumpty was involved with that, so . . . ]

Ah, yes. He— arrived like that, I see. [ The thought earns a grimace, it's a picture that's all too easy to imagine and one that haunts him in his sleep. ]

[bloodyashes]

The Initiative healed his injuries, whatever they were, but his shirt was still covered in blood.

[Which hey, luckily Asch is an expert with that.]

[flecks]

[ If only the Initiative had been there to do that before Elliot died. ]

It must have been gruesome. [ Because that was a LOT of blood, Elliot practically died in a pool of his own blood.

But he shoves the thought away in favor of something he's been wondering about. It's likely Asch doesn't know, but considering he was Elliot's roommate, there's still a chance. ]

This might be an odd question, but how does he sleep? [ Since the nightmares had been bad enough when his memories were suppressed, he can't imagine how they must be now that Elliot remembers if he still has them at all, that is. ]

[bloodyashes]

Not exceptionally well, not terribly. I hear him wake up sometimes in the middle of the night, but overall he's fairly quiet.

[Want more detail than that? Get it yourself. Asch has better things to do than watch Elliot sleep. His own nightmares, for example.]

[flecks]

Is that so? That's good. Thank you.

[ Here, have a genuinely grateful smile for your trouble at least. It doesn't sound like it's gotten worse and that's good enough for him. He doesn't like the thought of Elliot suffering through them alone when Leo had always been by his side before, but well. It would require him to stop avoiding Elliot and he doesn't plan on doing that. ]

I'm sorry if he's woken you up before.

[bloodyashes]

[Hey, he's not alone, the cat sleeps in his room most nights. Never underestimate the power of kitty cuddles, Leo.]

Only once or twice. I'm a light sleeper, but it's nothing I haven't dealt with before.

[More likely he's being woken by nightmares and/or hearing his replica on the other side of the wall having nightmares.]

[flecks]

[ He's never had a pet, so he has no idea! ]

Well, that's not really considered a good thing, but I guess in this case it might be.

[bloodyashes]

[A small snort.]

Not among civilians, maybe. But light sleepers are less likely to die before they wake up.

[Soldier, assassin, hey, it's all kind of the same gig for him.]

[flecks]

[ Actually, a small moment of consideration and then that does make sense to him in conjunction with soldier. Especially when . . . ]

Were you in a war before you came here?

[bloodyashes]

Not exactly.

[There's a slight hmph, and he folds his arms.]

There was a war going on, but I wasn't directly involved in combat.

[Because, you know, running around behind the scenes to stop the actual cause of the war and all that. Oh and he kind of flounced the whole military thing, but is he saying that? Hell no.]

[flecks]

[ Leo shifts slightly in a more comfortable position, body more angled towards Asch for easier talking. ]

Oh, so more like an intelligence officer?

[ Although that doesn't fall in line with all the sword training, but Leo doesn't claim to know much about military organizations and their workings when the Initiative is the only frame of reference he has. ]

[bloodyashes]

[He shakes his head.]

No, Special Operations. Less front lines with the grunts, more slipping behind the lines to take out specific targets.

[So, you know, assassinations. Fun times.]

[flecks]

An assassin then.

[ You could have just said so.

Leo doesn't look bothered in the slightest, he's dealt with people who have done far worse in his eyes and Asch doesn't seem like a bad person. ]

That sounds like rough work.

[bloodyashes]

[A small snort - yep, got it in one, Leo. Why do you think his mind went immediately to that?]

Less rough than the front lines.

[Just ignore the fact that he's been doing it since he was like, twelve.]