Sebastian (bloodyturnips) wrote in somerealityrpg, @ 2020-01-08 06:22:00 |
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Entry tags: | active: tony stark, inactive: sebastian |
WHO Tony and Seb |
The pages of the magazine were slowly turned as he half paid attention. His gaze was not really focusing on the glossy pages as he let his mind wander. Hope was acting peculiar or was she? Sebastian had not known the girl long enough to know if she was being ridiculous or if her humors were out of balance. I gave the friend thing a good run. Wasn’t for me. He let out a sigh as he finally tilted his head back to look at the ceiling as he waited to be summoned to try the strange synthetic blood. It was becoming dangerously clear he was without friends in this place. Hope had at least started the matter of sustiance in motion before she had decided to cut ties. Landon loathed him and Elizabeth, well, Elizabeth was dealing with losing her sister and others. What if this blood did not work? He would have to deal with the fallout twice over thanks to the arrival of Anna. There was a time where he had left her to fend for herself, but he was trying here. He was trying to be less of a monster. “Why is it so bright in places like this,” he mused softly just about the time he heard footsteps. His hearing focused on the sound of a heartbeat as well and he found himself bringing his thumb up to his mouth. “Am I to wait forever?” The question was half in jest as he shifted his gaze to the person who had arrived. Tony wasn’t known for punctuality, but he never intended to keep people waiting. He just got caught up in whatever he was doing in any given moment. It was why he needed FRIDAY and Pepper to keep him on task when it came to company matters. Sebastian, however, wasn’t a company matter. He promised to keep the situation quiet, and, outside those select few who helped with the project, he’d kept his word. “Sorry.” Tony’s playful smile showed he didn’t take the remark too seriously. “Hazard of dealing with Tony Stark.” He stuck his hand out. “Sebastian, I take it?” A slow, lazy smile appeared on his face as he inclined his head as if accepting the apology. He stood up before grasping Tony’s hand with his own. Sebastian gave him a firm handshake before letting go so he could clasp his hands behind his back. “You would be correct, I am Sebastian. I do not know how much Hope told you about me, but I do appreciate your help with my predicament.” The smile dimmed as he refrained from saying he doubted Hope would say much about him anymore. He was not sure why the loss of a friendship bothered him, but it did. “Should I have any concerns about this syn-thet-ic solution?” It was clear synthetic was not a word he was used to saying from the way he sounded it out as he spoke. Hope had kept the details light and Tony hadn’t pressed. However, Sebastian wasn’t alone in worrying about their mutual friend. Her name made Tony’s heart hurt a little although he didn’t let on. Hope said to “try harder,” which he accepted as a challenge. He wasn’t going to give up on her. He, instead, focused on the task at hand for the moment. “I think it should work,” he assured Sebastian, “but there are always risks involved with synthetic material. Do you have any allergies you know of?” He gestured for Sebastian to follow him as they spoke. “This way,” he added. "There are risks with most things that are worthwhile, are there not?" Sebastian followed along easily as he thought over the allergy remark. His lips pursed into a line as he sorted out what was safe enough to say. "I suppose a plant called vervain and I do not get along. If I was to consume some I would most likely be in agony. I am hoping your creation does not contain this nasty greenery." He toyed with his daylight ring as he frowned. "I appreciate this, Tony Stark. Not many would see fit to help me." Tony led him into one of the more secretive labs. No one needed to see Sebastian; it was his business. “Tony is fine,” he said. He laughed a little and shook his head “no” when Sebastain mentioned the “nasty greenery” not agreeing with him. Yet his smile faltered when the younger man mentioned not everyone would help. “Well, people can be idiots,” Tony pointed out. “Go ahead and make yourself comfortable.” He gestured to an over-sized chair. No point in treating Sebastian like he was a patient in a doctor’s office. Tony started rummaging around his lab and getting things together. “Tell me about yourself, Seb.” Sebastian could not argue that people could be idiots, but he knew he had been a large one in his time. His stupidity had resulted in the death of his love, something he took full blame for despite her part in the whole mess. He sat down in the chair and raised an eyebrow at being called Seb. He could not recall the last time someone had called him that. "Now that is an interesting request," he drawled out in an amused tone. "I am merely a person trying to figure out this modern world. This whole room is fascinating to me, I have to admit. Roanoke was all thatching and stone. This place is brimming with technology I cannot even begin to comprehend. Were you informed exactly why I need blood," he questioned as he grinned to hide his unease. “Yes,” Tony responded. He didn’t feel the need to elaborate. If Sebastian wanted to tell him more, he could. “Seems better than the alternative,” he added. He turned from his work station with a vial of blood in hand. He wore gloves just in case. He crossed the room and held out the vial. “Let’s start out small,” he said. “If you tolerate it, you should be able to increase with no difficulty.” However, making sure there were no reactions was paramount so Tony wouldn’t give him more until he was sure he was okay. “Quite,” he agreed. Losing control meant a reason for someone to permanently put him down for good and Sebastian certainly did not want that outcome. His gaze focused on the vial of blood and he could feel the black spider web like veins appearing under his eyes as his pupils dilated. Hunger gnawed at him, but he somehow managed to politely reach out and take the vial. “Cheers,” he said in a jovial tone before tossing the blood back like it was a shot of alcohol. He sat there, empty vial against his lips as he tried to figure out the taste. It was not quite right, but he wasn’t sure if it was disgusting or not. Nothing would ever beat the rotten blood that had awoken him from his slumber thankfully. “This doesn’t bother you? That you are helping a monster,” he raised an eyebrow in challenge as he used his finger to get the last drops of blood out of the vial. “Question aside. Tis not awful tasting I suppose.” The black veins slowly retreated as some of the color returned to his face. The hunger was still there and he couldn’t help popping his finger into his mouth to clean the blood off. That was the moment he looked more like a teenager than anything else, his normal air of superiority gone for the moment. If this synthetic blood worked it would not matter if he was alone in this world, right? “Should it?” Tony asked. “I’ve helped worse,” he continued, “Unwittingly or not. You are trying to do something good for yourself that protects others. I don’t see how you’re a monster.” He watched Sebastian carefully, making sure nothing adverse or unexpected occurred. When everything seemed alright, he crossed back to his work area, scribbled some notes, and poured more blood using a bigger vial that time. “Hope is important to me. If she cares about you, I see no reason to doubt you.” He returned to Sebastian, handing him the bigger vial. “I can send you home with a supply if you like. How often do you need it?” He found himself blinking and it really wasn’t until the matter of Hope caring for him that was brought up that his mood changed. Sebastian burst out laughing before he could stop himself. It was the type of laughter that betrayed sadness, not joyfulness. “Irony, that,” he said as he forced himself to stop laughing. “She has informed me that we are no longer friends. Not entirely sure what I did so perhaps this is all for nought? I am untrustworthy.” The vampire let out a sigh as he accepted the bigger vial. He tapped his ring against the vial as he thought about how often he actually needed to eat. It would be easy to lie and say everyday, but that was the glutton in him. “I can survive by consuming blood every few days, longer if need be. I suppose three times a week is the wisest answer,” he saluted Tony with the vial finally and drained it a bit slower. “A supply sent home would be appreciated. There is the matter of storage, however. Does this require refridge-eration?” He was staying on what was dubbed the Kid’s Floor and he doubted having blood, fake or real, in the fridge would not go over well with most of the occupants. “Way ahead of you,” Tony answered. He pulled out a refrigerated box containing several weeks worth of blood. “FRIDAY,” he said to his AI, “put a reminder on my calendar for Seb’s blood supply.” He looked back at Sebastian. “We don’t want you running low. These will keep in this box until you need more.” He grinned. “Science.” It was obvious how much Tony enjoyed what he did. “It is not you,” he went on, “with Hope, I mean. She is pushing us all away.” Sadness flickered over Tony’s face when he recalled how upset Pepper had been. He was worried about Hope and worried about his wife too. “We just have to make sure she knows we aren’t going anywhere.” It was clear Tony thought of everything and it left Sebastian with wide eyes. The last person he knew who had loved their calling had been Cassandra. That was eons ago at this point, a different life really, so it was strange to see something that reminded him of her. Tony was in his element here and there was a faint pang of jealousy. Sebastian had no idea what was his calling was or what he was even to do with himself here. “Science,” was all he could say in agreement. “Fascinating.” His brows knit together as Tony explained about Hope. “Why is she pushing us away?” The mood change had started happening after Alaric and such had left Goodland. Perhaps that was the reason? He had not really thought much about that except it had upset Elizabeth. He had, as promised, been keeping his distance so that minor thought had been pushed from his mind until now. And then came the remark that left him looking actually lost. “I am not sure I exactly follow what you mean, Tony. When Hope said our friendship was not for her-” He frowned deeply as he realized he may have misstepped by saying goodbye. Friendships were confusing things. “Ah, people don’t always say what they mean,” Tony explained. He knew from experience a thing or two about pushing people away. “I think she might find herself unlucky somehow, like the people close to her leave.” He shook his head. “She is not the entity. It is not her doing.” He shrugged. “I don’t know how to convince her of that. I think she is protecting her heart, but...everyone needs friends.” It was something he grappled with once, but Rhodey and Happy never left his side. An undignified snort escaped him as Tony explained what he thought was going on with Hope. “If she was human I would just compel her to realize she is being ridiculous,” Sebastian propped his chin up in the palm of his hand, an elbow on the arm of the chair as he watched Tony. “If that is what she is feeling of course. She will not tell me, our friendship was tenuous to begin with here.” He thought she was a silly child with how she was acting, but he was not about to voice that opinion. He was from a time where people died or left and never came back all the time. A person picked themselves up and kept going until they died as well. “Mayhaps she merely needs to mourn those she lost and once the pain ebbs she will come to her senses? I am not very good at this sort of situation. People tended to keep emotions more...private. Bunch of stuffy hypocrites.” He sniffed in distaste as he thought about the settlers and their lies. Tony raised his eyebrows at the “compelled” comment, but remained quiet. “She won’t talk to me either,” he admitted. “I hope she just needs time.” She was part of his family as far as he was concerned and while he could understand where she was coming from, he just couldn’t accept it long term. Of course he couldn’t make her talk to them either. Life, nonetheless, was dimmer with one less kid in it. “I told her I wasn’t going anywhere though.” “Ah, I see,” Sebastian had told Hope goodbye since he had thought that was it, the end of their friendship. He should have told her he was not going anywhere it seemed. It irritated him that he had actually had not been against the idea of having a friend here and now he had most likely lost her. “When she said our friendship was not for her, I said ado. It seems I may have caused harm where I did not know it was possible. In my defense, it has been a long time since I have called anyone friend.” He gave a faint shrug as if that was a good excuse. “I shall let her know I was in the wrong though I doubt it will matter much at this point.” Tony clamped Sebastian on the shoulder. “That’s all you can do, man,” he said. “Let her know you are there and hope for the best.” He glanced Seb over one more time. “Your color is good and it seems you won’t have a reaction.” He beamed, obviously pleased with his team’s work. “Make sure to tell me if you have any problems though, okay?” The physical contact was unexpected and Sebastian could only stare at Tony for a moment. "I shall do that," he finally drawled out before giving a half smile. Tony Stark was perplexing, but it was sort of refreshing. "If I have any problems I shall be sure to let you know. I can send you a...text message. The little emogis are delightful. I am a rather big fan of the vampire one." He still had so much to learn about the modern world, but he had time now. He flashed Tony an honest smile. "My thanks for all of this." |