revivalproject | Happy Holidays

Entry tags:

Happy Holidays

Who: Billy Kaplan, Tony Stark, Soldier
What: Holiday Gifts
Where: The Forge, Billy and Soldier's current undisclosed living quarters
When: Early this month or late last month
Warnings: TBD

The Forge (for Tony)

There was some casual chit chat before Billy asked for his favour, some general catching up, where Billy idly tried to tidy as they spoke. He mostly knew better than to mess with anything electronic looking, or any tools, but he did start folding a pile of clothing to keep his hands busy.

"So um...have you ever made anything with obsidian before?" he asked, and for such a random question there was surely a follow up to come.

REDACTED (for Soldier)

The cold weather had Billy thinking back to his and Solider's time during the blizzard, grateful now for the far more cozy set up they had (though it had been a good excuse for some cuddling). He'd magicked them up an appropriately cozy dinner, stew and warm buttered bread- hearty and filling.

"So um...I made you something," Billy offered up abruptly, nearly done his meal, and he pushed a red box across the table with a slightly anxious look. Inside was a knife honed from obsidian, and given how well machined it was, Billy added- "Tony helped me," cheeks pink.

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Their setup wasn't perfect, and the Soldier was likely to recommend they relocate in the spring. But they'd managed to build something both warm and secure in short time; he just had to deal with his dislike of it not being as hidden as he'd prefer. With Billy so happy, that dislike had a very small voice indeed.

Dinner — a real sit-down meal — tasted good, though it had him low key on alert. Even so he didn't expect the box Billy slid across the table. Why would he? They hadn't talked about typical Earth winter holidays but the Soldier didn't really observe any of them anymore.

"What is this?" He opened the box a moment later to find the knife, similar in design to his preferred style. Eyes flicked up to Billy's face before he removed the blade, testing its heft and balance in his hand. "It feels well made."

"It's...I dunno... Hanukkah/Christmas.../Tuesday...it's just a present. I wanted to make you something. Actually make it, not just-" His hands glowed with magic and faded again.

"Tony helped a lot," he added with flushed cheeks, "My first attempts didn't really go so well." He removed the magic glamour on his hands to show off the bandaged cuts with a further flush.

"You don't have to give me anything," he replied immediately. "You give me your time. And consideration. And patience." And so much more that went with dealing with the mess that was the Soldier's, well, everything.

He could see that the knife wasn't purely decorative. Billy thought to give him something functional. "But I will use it to keep you safe. You have my promise."

It probably wasn't the time to mention that the Soldier believed Tony didn't like him. Billy didn't need to hear that, especially as he had a good relationship with Tony. Instead he reached across the table to take Billy's hands in his. "Don't hide these from me. Please." He didn't like the thought that Billy had injured himself for the Soldier. After a moment of hesitation he leaned forward to bring Billy's wounded hands to his lips. Kissing injuries was a thing people did, right?

“I know I don’t have to, but I want to. It makes me happy,” he assured, but he smiled softly at Soldier’s words. “So do you,” he reminded gently, not wanting to let him forget his own strengths.

His gaze ducked apologetically, and lifted again in surprise at the brush of those lips, heat spreading over his cheeks. “…I won’t,” he promised softly, leaving the glamour off and smiling shyly, “They don’t hurt,” he assured.

"If it makes you happy," he conceded. He didn't want Billy to feel restricted or obligated. He just wanted Billy to feel free, period. Another thought occurred to him then: "was there a holiday that we should have celebrated for you?"

Was Billy missing something? And did the Soldier somehow contribute to it?

"Even if they don't hurt, don't hide them from me. I want to know when you're injured." Practically, because it could affect the way he trained Billy. Worse, it could be a hindrance should they have a real fighting situation. And weirdly emotionally, because he wanted Billy to know he didn't have to hide his wounds from the Soldier, even if he wanted to hide them from others. "I don't like it when you're hurting."

“It does, I promise. I like giving people gifts.” He tried to give as gentle a shrug as he could. “I guess it is around the time I’d usually do Hanukkah with family or Christmas with my friends or Teddy. But it’s okay. Just happy to be with the people I like this time of year, you know?”

He flushed and nodded. “I only hid them because I wanted the knife to be a surprise. I won’t keep things from you. Promise.”

"I don't celebrate holidays." When he was back on Earth, still on the run, he'd worked whatever of jobs he could around holidays, ones that didn't ask questions. Someone almost always needed manual labor somewhere. If he couldn't work, he traveled to a new city; holiday travelers made it somewhat easier to hide in a crowd. "You should tell me, when you want to celebrate something. I would at least tell you if it was something I could do."

He still hated parties, but he'd try to help Billy if he could. If Billy wanted to be around other people, then he could endure it.

"It is a surprise. I'm honored." He kissed Billy's hands again before straightening back up. "You don't have to promise that. You're allowed to have your secrets. But I want to be careful with your training until you're healed."

"I know, it's okay. I didn't wanna make you feel like I was trying to force you or anything." Billy considered his words for a moment though and nodded, "I'll try to be better about it. We're still learning each other. Maybe...we could do something for the New Year? It's the one time the Agrii sort of point out for us. And we don't have to do it with other people even, we can just...I dunno- reflect? Make goals maybe?"

He didn't know why he felt so shy proposing it. Maybe it was because he felt worried Soldier would agree no matter how much he might dislike something.

He grinned, first at his words and then at the kiss and gave Soldier's fingers a squeeze. "Some secrets," he compromised easily, "Mostly fun ones."

"I still have most of the shards if you want some. They're crazy sharp. Or I can show you were I found it."

"You're not forcing me. I will tell you if I'm uncomfortable." As opposed to just disappearing, which he might have done prior to his attempt to be Billy's companion. "Do you want to do something together? Or do you want more people around you?"

They could communicate preferences, right? And find some kind of ground between them?

"Important secrets too, if you need." The Soldier wanted Billy to know that he trusted him entirely.

"You should be careful with them." He didn't want Billy to injure his hands further. "It may be good to know how much there is, in case other tools are needed. Or if we need to do something to make the area safe, if there are many sharp places."

"Promise?" he asked, and then laughed softly at the two of them trying to be so careful of each other's boundaries. "Mostly just together. But...maybe a little of community celebration? Whatever our equivalent of the ball drop is, but...I get people'd out too. Just...not for all the same reasons, obviously. But...I get it." he offered.

A smile and another short nod where Billy met his eye. "...If I need. And same for you." There was obviously a lot of unspoken subjects with Soldier, and he never wanted him to feel as though he was under any obligation to spill his entire past to him in order for Billy to feel satisfied.

"There might be other spots, but it was near the volcano. I did a sort of tracking spell to figure out the general area since I don't really know all the science of how it forms apart from volcanoes are involved. It might be harder to find with the snow now, but I can take you out there. You're probably a better judge of if it's safe for people or not."

"I promise." Another squeeze of Billy's hand, and he tangled the fingers of his right with Billy's left, a closer hold. More intimate. Hopefully. "I don't mind keeping you to myself. But I don't want to keep you beyond what you want."

Maybe someday the Soldier would share more of his past. Maybe someday he'd remember more of it. Maybe he'd even remember something good for once, something he could share to make Billy happy.

"We can go when it thaws too," he offered. They certainly had their work cut out for them dealing with the snow; he didn't think too many people would go climbing through drifts when so few paths were made in general. "The snow should be its own deterrent."

Very intimate. Honestly, Billy's scale of intimacy had shifted in his time with Soldier anyways, and even what might have seemed like casual touches in the past, he could recognize and being far more meaningful when they came from Soldier.

"It's probably good for both of us to do a little socializing now and then. But when I do drag you out it won't be anything too heavy. Hopefully." Again, he trusts Soldier to tell him if he needs to step away. And he's better at recognizing the signs of it as well.

"That's probably a better idea. Wouldn't want to find it by accident, and it should be pretty safe out there from anyone else. ...I want to make Tony something too. Not the same, just...something to thank him. But I'm not sure what. I'm trying not to use my magic for them."

Edited (html) 2024-01-08 04:54 (UTC)

The Soldier didn't try to change anything about what Billy wanted in intimacy, and Billy didn't try to force him. But they both seemingly took to heart their first talk about the boundaries between them and the agreement to try this thing. So far, it seemed to work for them. Small gestures like holding hands really gave the Soldier an opportunity to explore it from every angle — yes, even the tactical one.

"Hopefully," he agreed. Neither of them could ever know what the Agrii planned at a given time though. Considering that they seemed to foster socialization in ways the Soldier didn't always want, he approached everything with caution.

"Then that's what we'll do," he agreed, lapsing into silence when Billy mentioned Tony. The Soldier could be of little help there; Tony didn't like him. "What do you think he would appreciate more: something decorative or something functional? I think that's your first decision."

Billy absently traced a thumb over Soldier's knuckles and smiled softly. It offering reassurance and comfort to him when Soldier felt safe enough to touch.

He might have argued if he knew Soldier's thoughts, given how much time Tony had volunteered to help Billy make the gift for Soldier. He considered a moment. Decorative seem the obvious choice at first, but the more he thought, the more he felt sure Tony would want something functional. Something tactile. "Functional, I think. Something he could use. But maybe not something he could make himself..." Which wasn't a lot of things, in Billy's mind.

Touch was still hard. There were times his skin felt everything too keenly, like fire under the veins, the burn of the post-cryo thaw. And there were times that mentally he just couldn't reconcile the idea that touch could come without violence. But in those other times he did reach out, did try to give Billy the affection that the other man so easily demonstrated.

"Then that's where we start. What kind of things does he use the most, that are hard to get here?" The Soldier steered clear of the other man's workshop, choosing self maintenance instead. With Cal unable to work on his arm, it didn't leave him much choice. But Billy didn't need to know that. "Think about tools, but also think about other things. Clothes, or... coffee mugs?"

If Billy did know he'd be trying much more vocally to try and spark a relationship between the two of them. But he (mostly) trusted Soldier to be honest when he needed help.

"Those are all good," Billy agreed, brow creased with thought, "...I'm not super confident in my ability to make any of those without magic, but...he'd definitely like them. Coffee mug might be good. Or...maybe too grade schooler bringing home a father's day present?" he asked anxiously.

The Soldier was mostly honest with Billy. Some things he knew he needed to sort out in his own head before he could bring them in front of someone else. But other things he'd gotten more comfortable sharing, like letting Billy help him when the headaches got too bad.

"I'm not sure I get your reference," he admitted, shaking his head. "But we can continue to brainstorm. Do you know what kind of work he does here? Maybe the shape of his day will inform your plans."

Mostly was good.

Billy flushed, and shook it off. It wasn't really an important reference anyways. "He does a bit of everything. Too much, really. I think he tries to take on everyone's problems as his own. Um...he's communications. I know that. And he has lots of cameras and little robot guys. He always seems to be working on building or fixing something. I don't know if he stops to eat half the time, but I don't know how to make something that would make him take care of himself. Dunno if he sleeps much either." Jeez, this was turning into a kind of worrying portrait. Billy frowned.

"So you would want to give him something to make his self-appointed job easier? Something practical?" The Soldier assumed that was the angle Billy wanted, given that Billy had gifted him a knife and knives were very practical.

Or perhaps something else would fit better, considering how Billy frowned at his own description of his friend. "Or do you think something more frivolous, that he might relax? Maybe in addition to something physical, give him some of your time and take his mind off his work?"

There it was. The only reason to come all the way out here was because he wanted something, and Billy was anxiously fussing around with Tony's stuff like he didn't want to ask, making Tony increasingly wary. Billy still was dancing around it, though Tony couldn't say he anticipated the question exactly, making him tilt his head to try to find the angle. "Sure. Obsidian, adamantium, Dr. Pepper, you can make anything blow up," he answered. "I've handled more things than I'm proud of. A few more often than I should." He hadn't been moving around so much, lingering on the stairs where he had been stripping down a rusted arcade cabinet for parts, buckets around his feet to sort into.

There was more than that, but they aren't talking about the other thing. Or the other other thing. So...yes, it was a pretty big reason at the moment.

"Well...I'm definitely not looking to blow it up," Billy laughed, but stopped his fidgeting to approach and pull free what was left of the hunk of obsidian he'd found. "I've been trying to make like... a knife for Soldier out of it, but I uh...I really don't know what I'm doing. It seemed a lot easier in my head, and I just keep cutting myself..."

"Let's leave the possibility on the table, just in case," Tony encouraged as Billy gathered himself enough to produce the dubious project. An explosion was occasionally the ideal outcome, and Tony was very good at them. He did take the obsidian, abandoning his scrap process to lean back on one elbow and lift the rock to the flickering light, where he could see the chipped planes of it. "Good news is, the proof of concept can be the hardest part of the whole development, you know, the big ideas are cheap, market is saturated, and you've already got a knife that cuts. We'd really be in trouble if it was doing something else."

Their last explosion hadn't worked out so well for them long term. Though that wasn't Tony's fault.

He laughed softly and quirked a shoulder in acknowledgement. "That's true. Do you think it's something we could do? And you're not too busy, are you? I really should have started there-"

The stairs rattled as Tony rolled up to his feet to sidle around the mess he had been making, and if the noise of it wasn't enough to cut off Billy's thought, Tony was already interrupting, "Of course not, sweetheart, never too busy for you." It came with a dismissively flapping hand to put the idea to rest, though that did leave them in the awkward position of addressing just how necessary it was for Tony to use his time for this. After all, "Doesn't he have enough knives?" That wasn't slowing Tony's saunter toward the workbench, still talking without looking over his shoulder, expecting Billy to follow. "I mean, when you know what a fella likes, it's never going be the wrong choice, he's certainly developed a strong brand. Quick, tell me what the problems that we have to solve are here, we're working with some unique properties, thirty seconds on the clock."

Billy felt pretty sure Tony would say that no matter how busy he was, and he smiled softly.

"'The limit does not exist'," he quoted, though he wasn't sure Tony would recognize it from the movie, and more so just...from math. Um...the problems with my knife attempts? They- um-...they're mostly just...jagged shards. You can't hold them. And they're sharp but not that strong because they're too thin."

That wasn't quite how Tony would have approached it, and tipped his head with a tick of a grimace around his mouth at Billy's interpretation of 'problem', but he didn't interrupt as he deposited what they were working with on the table to drum at the surface restlessly. "That thing that you're calling 'not strong', that was a selling point when you chose your material," Tony pointed out. Obsidian wasn't Billy's choice because it was plentiful and intuitive. His finger remained in the air for Billy to attempt to follow the logic himself even as he diverted, "Why aren't you just wishing up some flawless Kamakura katana? Did you consummate your relationship on that mountain?"

There was an immediate shake of his head, and rush of colour to Billy's cheeks. It wasn't like that. And they weren't- He took a breath. Nope. He wasn't going to be baited into giving away more than his cheek were already saying.

"I want it to be something I made myself. I thought it would mean more that way."

It was clear that Billy didn't have to say anything for Tony to come to his own conclusions, with his tongue between his teeth in a knowing smirk, not giving him the mercy of looking away. What he did challenge was, "Oh, when you wiggle your fingers around it doesn't mean anything. That's reassuring."

Breaking the gaze, Billy's flush grew darker, and he grumbled, trying to deliver a swat.

"You know what I mean. Like...the difference between buying something and making it yourself. Magic doesn't...seem as much effort to people." Even though it is in many ways Billy literally giving of himself.

"I don't," Tony was ready to interrupt, quite happy to admit that he had no nuanced feelings about what magic did or didn't mean. And he did like to buy a gift, so he wasn't particularly convinced by the variable value as compared to something hand crafted, but he wasn't about to argue Billy on his analogy. Making something himself was more reliable than entrusting its quality to some unseen force, either magical or corporate. Instead, he challenged, "And it's important that you're putting in the effort."

Right, wrong guy to try and make that point with. Billy flushed, and nodded. "It's...nice, I think. Is it dumb? Should I just magic it?" God, he was overthinking it now.

"I just really want to give him something he'll like..."

Maybe Tony was pushing him a little too much. Impatiently, like Billy was the one distracting them from the task, he said, "He'll like it, you're giving it to him," with a hand between Billy's shoulders to direct his attention. "It's going to take a lot of polishing, that's the key, the smoother it is, the harder it is to break. You know how to do that?"

"You...rub it, right?" Billy said with an uncertain head tilt. There was probably more to it than that, but that was the main thing. Rubbing it until it got shiny?

While the language made Tony snort, he gave a nod of encouragement and instructed, "Yeah, rubbing, you're probably a natural, that'll be your job. Come on, what were you using to do this? Don't answer that. Look, humans evolved to use tools, this one is one of my favourites." While Tony would continue to loom possessively, he brought Billy to stand in front of him and take some charge of the workbench as he plucked some tools from the array. It wouldn't be a particularly difficult job, but Billy wouldn't be allowed to leave until he met some exacting standards, and maybe regretted not just using his magic to save himself an afternoon.

Billy fought and lost the urge to snicker.

"I was still mostly at the chipping stage-" he started to explain, paying attention to Tony and the various tools, nodding his head with his very best studious expression. Difficult was a variable that would measure very differently between the two of them, but he was determined to do his best as time crept on.

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Happy Holidays

my thing :>

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other thing

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