somnioergosum | IC Inbox (Riverview)

Where are you?

[ He knows not to bother with messages to Ronan, but it's short and he needs to find him fast. ]

[Ronan's actually in the car at the time when he hears the text. His first instinct is to ignore it, then he realizes that he's never received a text here. He grabs the phone, glances at it, and pulls over the second he sees it's from Adam.]

going home

what is it

Meet you there.

[ He doesn't want to say anything over phone and it'll probably get Ronan to get home faster if he's vague.

Adam is on foot, but he's close to home and makes it there before Ronan. Their dogs rush to greet him when he opens the door and he pets them mindlessly while he waits. ]

[Ronan's lucky they don't give out speeding tickets here or maybe they just don't bother. In any case, Ronan's there minutes later. He doesn't even bother to close the door behind him.]

What happened?

[He quickly scans Adam for injuries. Nothing visible. Good.]

[ Adam is looking frustrated and more worked up than he usually ever lets show. He herds their dogs out to go play and then turns to Ronan. ]

That asshole I told you was trouble. I got trapped under that weird mistletoe with him and—he pulled me in to start threatening me and then kissed me.

[ The threats don't bother him. He was expecting that. But being kissed without his permission? Taking away his agency like that? It's eating him inside. ]

Ivar?

[The question is unnecessary. Of course it's Ivar. Who else has Adam warned him about? Who else have they fought over repeatedly? Ronan was prepared to deal with another threat if Ivar ignored Ronan's own warnings. They've gone beyond that now.]

He kissed you?

[He's still wrapping his head around it all, but the anger hits before the confusion leaves.

He's going to kill him.]

[ Adam crosses his arms and looks away, upset. He hates that he has to tell Ronan about this. ]

To get out of the trap. I was planning to wait it out. I guess he got impatient. [ He looks back at Ronan. ]

He needs to leave both of us alone. If he doesn't, I'm going to make him stop.

I'm making it stop.

[After this, there is no way he's letting Ivar near Adam again. He turns to leave, then stops. He can't just leave Adam alone. Their pets don't count.

He slams the door shut with his foot.]

Look, I'm-- I'll deal with it.

[ Adam looks suspicious. He knows how Ronan deals with every problem that has to do with another human being. ]

Beating him up isn't going to do anything. Do you really think you can handle a fight against a Viking?

I just want you to stay away from him.

You know I can't promise that.

[At some point, they'll have to talk. Quarantine is too small and he and Ivar were too close. Disappearing isn't an option. Besides, he needs to give Ivar a piece of his mind and follow it up with his fist.]

It's not hard. [ Ronan is just being difficult. ] You're only going to make things worse.

Let's not have another Kavinsky.

[Ronan has a feeling that it's too late for that. Adam's surely thinking the same. So Ronan just raises his hand in a "stop" gesture. He doesn't need it spelled out.]

It's not going to be like that.

[He's going to make this right. Kavinsky didn't listen. Ronan will make Ivar listen.]

But I'm not letting him get away with this.

[ Adam knows Ronan won't listen at this point. He's stubborn and has made his decision. Luckily, Adam also wants revenge. If not for the kiss, then for letting Ronan get ripped open. ]

Then let's come up with a plan. We can both have things we like in it. [ Ronan can punch. ]

[Ronan finally walks over to Adam. One of the dogs blocks his way, demanding affection from its other father. Ronan brushes his fingers over its head, ruffling its fur.]

You know my control sucks these days, right?

[He's talking about his dreams but that describes his rage just as well.]

[ Adam closes the rest of the distance once the dog moves out of the way , wrapping his arms around Ronan's neck.

He assumes Ronan means his dreams, doesn't think at all about his anger. ]

I won't need anything big from you. It'll be simple, nothing bad. [ No Greenmantle. He can't let that happen again. ]

I just need you to tell me what you know about him.

[Ronan wraps his own arms around Adam's waist and pulls him close. When he thinks that Ivar was the last person to be this close to Adam, he believes he deserves anything.]

Everything?

[Once he thinks about it, doubt settles in. He knows what they both can do and he knows how Adam thinks. Whatever he is now, however strongly he hates him, Ivar did used to be his friend. That was more than Kavinsky ever was.

He hates that he's even questioning this, after what Ivar did to Adam, and yet...]

What are you going to do?

[ Adam knows he's hesitant, and isn't surprised. Ronan is a good person who, no matter what, has principles attached to all of his actions. Adam doesn't want to make him do anything he wouldn't like.

He caresses Ronan's cheek with the back of his hand, easing him. ]

I don't know yet. I need to find out more about him before I can figure that out. But I won't hurt or kill him. I'm just going to make sure he leaves us alone.

[Ronan leans into Adam's touch, but he's not the one who should need comforting now. He kisses Adam lightly although he holds him tighter. Adam is, of course, free to do whatever he wants. That doesn't stop Ronan from being possessive of what he's been given. Later, he'll make sure Adam never thinks about it just like Ronan never thought about what Kavinsky did to him.]

He's not the kind of guy you can blackmail, Adam. I'll just punch some sense into him.

[ Adam kisses back and relaxes into Ronan's hold, relieved to be with someone he trusts now. He keeps Ronan close, silently telling him to not leave for a while. ]

Then I won't blackmail him. [ Just because all of his plans so far have ended with blackmail and murder doesn't mean he can't have other things up his sleeves. ] And I may not know him well, but I don't think you can punch sense into him either. Fighting is just working on his terms. It's what he wants.

It's what I want.

[Upset at being ignored, one of the puppies lays down on Ronan's foot. Ronan lets it be. He won't let go of this anger yet.]

I told him not to touch you.

[ Adam frowns and glances down at their puppy. He pulls away from Ronan to crouch and pet it. ]

I don't need you to fight for my honor, or whatever this is. You're the one he's trying to manipulate. You're the one in the most danger.

I'm not fighting for your honor. I'm proving a point. He needs to stay away from you.

[Ronan starts to glare at the puppy for taking Adam away from him, but even he can't resist that cute face.]

If he wanted to kill me, he would've.

I don't think he wants to kill you. [ He picks up the puppy and cradles him in his arms for ease. ]

I think he likes to see you hurt. I think he likes seeing people hurt in general, but it might appeal to him more when it's someone who trusts him. [ That's all that makes sense to him. ] Besides, I can handle myself. You don't need to protect me.

[Being pissed off versus cuddling a puppy, only Ronan can find that decision difficult.

Fine. He'll do both. If Adam needs to pet a dog, then they'll pet the dog. He'll just have this be the ultimate test of his rage. He crouches next to Adam and scratches the puppy behind the ears as another comes up to nudge him with its nose. Now both of his hands are occupied petting dogs instead of punching something. Damn it.]

I told you, he's got a crush on me or something. He's taking it out on you and it's going to fucking stop.

[He avoids mentioning protecting Adam entirely. He knows Adam doesn't need or want it, but it's one of the prices to pay for dating Ronan.]

[ Adam manages a smile when he sees that Ronan is petting two puppies at once. The one in Adam's arms struggles to lick Ronan's cheek. ]

You thought a lot of things about him that were wrong. [ Which is to say, they're going with Adam's interpretation now. ] He admitted he doesn't feel empathy. If anything, it's like Kavinsky's feelings. He doesn't care about you, he just wants to use you.

[ He lets the puppy go, and it tries to jump on the other puppy. ] So, what made Kavinsky end it?

[Even the puppies can't calm him down after that. He presses his finger to the dog's nose as a warning bop. All that happens is his finger gets licked instead.]

You saw.

[He already relived that with Adam. They don't need to trot that dead horse out just to beat it one more time.]

He feels some empathy. He cares about his dad. There's some things you can't fake.

Why are you arguing about something that he's admitted to and shown? [ His tone is snappish and the puppies seem to register it because they whine.

He's reminded of the few family gatherings with Ronan and Declan, and Matthew in the middle trying to calm them. ]

Just stop defending him. You said he has a daughter, too, right?

Why does that matter?

[Now Ronan is the one who's snappish.]

[ Adam stands, abandoning the puppies. He doesn't know why Ronan is trying to pick a fight with him over this. ]

I'm figuring him out. What he does, things he has, his motivations.

[ He gives Ronan an unimpressed look. ] Even though I don't think someone like that should be raising a kid, I'm not going to involve her. [ Not unless he has to. ]

[Ronan exhales through his teeth. Thinking about kids in association with this sort of plotting does not bring back warm, fuzzy memories. But like Adam said, they're not doing that again.

Anyway, he's not taking this bait. He's staying on the floor with the puppies for now.]

I don't know. He's a Viking. He's protective of the people he loves-- yeah, I know, he doesn't. I'm just saying what I thought I knew. He likes chariot racing, fighting... so he's an adrenaline junkie psychopath in a wheelchair.

[ Take out the wheelchair part and they have Kavinsky. He gives Ronan a Look for a moment but decides he's had enough scolding. ]

I can work with that. For now, I think you should make some defenses for the house. Get creative. I'll make sure there's as little retaliation as possible, but he doesn't seem very rational.

[Ronan's thoughts first go to an impenetrable forest, but there's no leyline and no Cabeswater. But his subconscious has come up with many ways to kill himself over the years.

Get creative.]

If you want that, we'll have to keep the pets inside for now.

[ Adam frowns down at the puppies, who are still seem to have a lot of energy considering they're trying to attack Ronan's shoe. ]

Just when you're dreaming, right? The dogs need to be walked, at least.

[Ronan snaps his fingers to try and distract the puppies. Too single-minded.]

No, they can be out with us. But I don't want any defenses backfiring on them.

[He takes a moment to consider both how much control he has and how much he can pull out of a dream at a single time.]

A fence would work. Then we can dig a wheelchair proof trench. [That's a joke.]

[ He feels bad making their house into a war-zone, but it's probably for the best no matter what. There's always something strange going on, and when their house is separated from the rest of town, it can either be good or bad. ]

I was hoping for a little more of a deathtrap. Bombs, giant rocks, a poison-electric wire fence. [ That's probably a joke. ]

Or you could just dream up some giant monster guard.

Right. The giant monster guard that's gonna break into our house and claw me to death. But what the hell, at least the puppies will be safe.

[Ronan picks up one of the aforementioned puppies and stands.

It's O.K., Thorpedo. He won't let a monster or a psychopath hurt you.]

[ Adam reaches over to pet Thorpedo. ] Chainsaw hasn't tried to claw you to death yet.

[ It's possible. After a pause: ] You're right, it's a little too soon to try that. I'll look into some history and see what stopped the Vikings before. I mean, they had to fail somewhere.

Assimilation.

[What? It doesn't have to directly involve Wales, Rome, or Greece for him to know history.]

Good luck making this guy a Christian. The two men living in sin are really gonna sell it.

[ Adam rolls his eyes. ] Sorry to break it to you, but Christianity didn't exactly make everyone less violent. I'm pretty sure they lost a few battles—didn't Gansey ever tell you about Alfred the Great?

[ That probably marks the end of the planning session. Adam has research to do and Ronan has death traps to come up with. But he knows letting Ronan go right now is a bad idea, so he wraps an arm around his shoulder, nudging him toward the stairs. ]

What does living in sin even mean?

Never said it did. I had to listen to Gansey's obsessions way before you.

[Ronan takes Thorpedo up the stairs with him. He'd follow anyway. The rest of the puppies are.]

You know. Living together before getting married. [Possibly living together after they got married as well but he thinks they only call that one sodomy.]

[ Adam is careful not to step on any puppies as they race up the stairs with them. ]

So you were living in sin with Gansey? [ His smile is cheeky. Ronan walked into that one.

The puppies have found their way onto the bed before they get there, which is probably Adam's fault. ] I don't see how this is in sin. [ Look at the cute puppies. ]

[Ronan lightly punches Adam's shoulder for that one.]

It's an expression. Don't take it personal.

[Ronan sets Thorpedo down on the floor. He soon joins his siblings, prompting Ronan to wonder why he ever let Adam talk him into allowing the dogs on the bed.]

[ Adam gives Ronan a half-shrug when the puppies decide to take up the middle of the bed. They can probably still fit. ]

I've heard it before. [ Never in ways that weren't personal, but he's not going to argue about that. ] I just think there's a better expression for it. Living in...

[ He goes to one side of the bed and cuddles up with the puppies as best he can. ] Virtue? Bliss?

Ronan Lynch living in virtue. We'll go with bliss.

[He sits down on the other side of the bed. Before he can lie down, Thorpedo dives onto his lap.]

Enjoy it while you still can, mutt.

[Those paws are way too big. Ronan pokes one of them before rubbing the dog's belly. But there's only so much the dog can do. It can't take away his anger, and it can't distract him from Adam. He holds his hand out to the man he's living in bliss with.]

[ Adam grins fondly at Thorpedo, thoughts of revenge not forgotten but put to the side. Anger still simmers inside him, but it's fading, particularly once he takes Ronan's hand.

He leans over the puppies to press his knuckles to Ronan's lips, an action that would be odd to anyone but them. Bliss is right. ]

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