I Deliberately Misinterpret The Nature Of An Agreement

[summerdude]

Galahad probably didn't expect Magnus to come pounding on his door in the middle of the day when they agreed Magnus would try sleeping on his own, especially since Magnus decided pretty quickly that he wanted to sleep outside again (but on purpose because he prefers it, not because it feels like the only option that doesn't end with the walls closing in on him). But here Magnus is, anyway, in the middle of the day, knocking loud enough that he has to force himself to take a step back so he doesn't break the door down.

"Dude, it's me, I need you," he calls, just so Galahad knows for sure it's him, or whatever. "You're in there, right? Galahad?"

Comments

[onthewillowsthere]

"Do you think she'll tell you when she's ready?"

[summerdude]

"Yeah, probably." Alex is intensely private, but still: "We don't really keep, like, secrets, or whatever."

[onthewillowsthere]

"I don't think we do either."

[summerdude]

"That's good." Magnus flashes him a grin, and then sighs. "I'm probably not ready either, actually, so."

[onthewillowsthere]

"For Claudius it's like a language. He talks to people and learns about them when he has sex. He likes learning about people." He rubs the braided band of his watch. "It isn't the same for me."

[summerdude]

"Yeah, that's the impression I got when I asked him about sex," Magnus says. "I guess I feel like I would want it to be really special. Not that getting to know other people isn't, um, special! But..." He trails off. "What's it like for you? Wait, you said you didn't want to talk about it. We can change the subject if you want."

[onthewillowsthere]

"I think I would want it to feel like that too. Precious."

[summerdude]

Magnus sits up straight. "I think that's what I was trying to figure out when I was asking everyone about it," he says. This, similar to post-nut clarity, is post-Alex-return clarity. He'd mostly been freaking out about whether Alex would be able to come back again at all -- he can recognize that now -- but there was a genuine concern underlying it all. "Like, I know about the mechanics. And pretty much everyone was like 'your first time isn't going to be that good,' but I don't accept that. Even if it's not good, I want it to be good, you know?"

[onthewillowsthere]

"Yes," quietly. It can only be the first time once (except for him, perhaps), and it feels important.

[summerdude]

"Yeah," nodding.

[onthewillowsthere]

He sits in silence, then, leaning against Magnus' shoulder.

[summerdude]

"Oh, by the way," Magnus says, eventually -- he's made the connection through remembering that Lancelot was actually kinda helpful when he asked for the talk. "I talked to your da-- um. to Lancelot."

[onthewillowsthere]

Galahad twists a little to look at him, curiously.

[summerdude]

"At that awful debate club thing. I promised him I wouldn't try to defeat him," Magnus says. "Or whatever."

[onthewillowsthere]

"Thank you."

[summerdude]

"He's alright, I guess," says Magnus, and then snorts. "But even he agreed he has cop energy."

[onthewillowsthere]

"But he's all right."

[summerdude]

"We're never going to be friends," Magnus acknowledges. "But I'll let him live." He means it in the literal sense, but more importantly in the I won't bother him (as long as he holds up his end of the bargain) sense.

[onthewillowsthere]

"Thank you," he says again.

[summerdude]

"Yeah, well." Magnus shrugs. "I love you, man."

[onthewillowsthere]

Galahad considers pointing out that loving him doesn't mean not antagonizing Lancelot, as they've previously established, but that's not really the point. He nestles against Magnus' shoulder. There's certainly a part of him that's worried that now that Alex is here Magnus won't have time for him in the way that he has up until now, but he's so happy for Magnus that he's not thinking about it too much yet.

[summerdude]

It might not be a requisite, but Magnus probably wouldn't have listened to anyone but Galahad ask him to give Lancelot any kind of chance, so.

He curls up against Galahad. "Anyway. How are you doing?"

[onthewillowsthere]

He's quiet for a while longer before he says, "It's been a long winter."

[summerdude]

"Yeah," emphatically.

[onthewillowsthere]

"It will be better when Easter comes. Easier. It always is."