Long Road Home (the_wolverine) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2016-09-05 14:22:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, bo dennis, logan howlett (wolverine) |
Who: Logan and Bo
What: Bo falls over at work, Logan takes her home
When: 9/3
Status: complete
Rating: PG-13
As it was the holiday weekend, Bo knew the bar would be packed. And she welcomed the work, to be honest. It kept her away from home, and somewhat distracted from worrying what was going on with Lara. Though that had turned into nothing but a lie currently. Whenever she wasn’t talking to patrons, Logan or co-workers, she was worrying. She was worrying so much she wasn’t really paying attention to her physical health. At first, she’d chalked the clumsiness up to being distracted by worry. But things had gradually gotten worse, and she was starting to realize she was getting weak.
And she was hungry, but she was resisting that. She’d wait it out until Lara decided to talk. Or so she hoped, anyway.
Bo finished making up an order and passed the drinks over with her trademark smile. Scanning the other patrons and seeing they were all happily talking amongst each other with healthy drink levels, so she turned to washing some used glasses in the meantime. Or she was until a wave of dizziness came over her and she wavered on her feet. She managed to stay upright as she grabbed onto the edge of the counter. A wave of hunger came over her, and she couldn’t help but feel the need to grab someone and take their chi. Her eyes flashed blue, but she quickly closed them and lowered her head, trying to breathe slowly and fight off her urges and the dizziness.
She really hated being a succubus. She didn’t really notice the fact she was gripping the counter so tightly her knuckles had turned white.
Logan could tell something was up with Bo. He’d gotten to know her well enough to be able to tell she wasn’t her normal self. Or at least her normal self that she showed to patrons. She could be sick, or there could be home problems distracting her. And it wasn’t his place to pry except he was worried about her health. He’d been in enough dark places in his life.
He also knew she wasn’t human. He didn’t know what she was, but her scent was different from a human’s and there was definitely the smell of magic around her. But right now even that smelled off.
If he’d known she was a succubus, he’d offer himself. It wasn’t like he could die (and more than once Bo had probably witnessed his miraculous healing).
“You okay, darlin’?” Logan put a hand on her shoulder. “You look like death warmed over.”
Bo was trying to pretend everything was fine, but it was getting harder to do that. The situation with Lara was worrying her, and she was starting to think if Lara didn’t willingly talk to her soon, Bo would have to force the issue. But there was something else as well, the feeling of being a burden to Lara, and frankly to everyone else around her. Lara was going to have to put up with her forever.
That is, if Lara didn’t break the engagement like Bo was starting to fear she would. Perhaps Kenzi was right, maybe Lara was getting cold feet and realizing being with a succubus was a bad idea. Bo’s head was not a pretty place to be in right now.
The voice and the hand on her shoulder brought her back to the moment. She looked up at him, eyes brown again. His approach had surprised her enough to snap her out of her instincts screaming at her to feed herself.
“Ah, sorry. I just got a little dizzy there. But I’m fine.” Which was a lie even she wasn’t believing anymore. Her succubus mojo was off. She was off. She was getting weaker with each passing moment, and the more she exerted herself, the quicker she became weak.
“You’re a little pale.” And it wasn’t like Bo hid much of her skin to make it less than obvious. “An’ that’s an understatement.” He almost pressed a hand to her brow, but let her keep her dignity. Despite that, Logan could actually be a bit of a mother hen. “Come on. Sit down, eat somethin’. If you need to talk, I won’t judge.”
When working, Bo did show off skin. Mostly her cleavage as, in her opinion, being alluring was part of being a bartender at times. Some people needed an escape from their life, someone to talk to without judgement. And Bo was just a natural flirt, something she couldn’t really help. Plus she got better tips from people who were into women the more flirtatious she was. And getting extra tips always helped in her making ends meet, thus old habits died hard. “Are you sure? I mean, it’s busy and having all hands on deck is a necessity this weekend.” She appreciated the kindness, but she didn’t quite want to talk. Or really know where to even start because she didn’t know what she’d done wrong in the first place. If she knew that, maybe she could actually fix things.
“I can call in a few favors so don’t you worry about that. Can’t have you dyin’ behind the bar, the health inspectors don’t like that kind of thing.” He gave her a gruff smile, and squeezed her shoulder again. “Think you can make it to the back on your own power?”
“I do try to keep things sanitary,” she managed to joke back. Bo wasn’t completely certain about leaving her post, even if Logan assured her he could cover it. But that was just how she was. And she didn’t precisely wish to go back home. “I think so, yeah.” Taking a breath, she stood up straight and started to head into the back. However, as she slipped out of the bar and headed for the back, the wave of dizziness hit her again, but this time she didn’t catch herself and went down.
Logan had gone to make a phone call when Bo fell. He hung up quickly and rushed over to her side, checking her head first for any blood or bruising. “Bo! Bo, you okay?” Bo was quickly moving into that type of half-adopted stray that gave him grey hairs.
Luckily, she hadn’t hit her head so there was no blood. There was embarrassment because she didn’t just fall normally. Bo sat up, shaking her head a bit to try and clear it of the dizziness. “Yeah, I was just a little dizzy.” She wasn’t sick, but she was feeling like it. She felt like she could sleep for a couple days straight right now.
“Anything broken?” Logan knelt to try to help her back up. He figured he could hold her in place in case she lost her balance again. He might be short but he was a super hero, damn it. A really strong one.
“No,” she responded honestly. She knew what broken bones felt like, and she wasn’t in that kind of pain. Though she wasn’t really in much pain from the fall. Bo wasn’t tall either, her heeled boots just made her seem like she was. She wasn’t really aware of her body or the fact that her boobs were probably level with Logan’s sightline.
“Sit down over here.” He guided her to a chair. “Let me get you somethin’ to eat, then I’m takin’ you home. You need to fuckin’ rest. Don’ make me strap you to a bed.”
Under normal circumstances, Bo would have a naughty response to the being strapped to a bed comment. However, currently, she didn’t have it in her to make that sort of comment. She sat in the chair and took a breath. “I’m sorry.” That was all she could manage to say in response because of course she was more concerned about inconveniencing Logan than anything else.
Logan gave her a long look. “Don’t apologize. Is everything else okay? Home life?” Maybe she just hadn’t been taking care of herself. Was there a boyfriend that needed to be snikt’d? He’d snikt a man, he really would.
Bo looked at him, and she really wanted to glaze over her personal issues. She didn’t want her personal life to mix with her professional one. At least no more than any patron who tried to get too friendly with her being shown the engagement ring on her finger before she told them off. “Honestly? I have no fucking clue. My fiancé won’t really talk to me, and I don’t know what I did wrong. I mean, maybe I just really am a burden and I’m putting more on her than she can handle and she hasn’t figured out how to tell me that yet.”
Sitting next to her, Logan thought about what to say for a moment. “Have you thought that maybe there’s somethin’ going on with her? A relationship takes two to tango an’ it ain’t ever just one person’s fault. Have you tried...talkin’ to her?”
“I haven’t pushed beyond asking what’s wrong, and she’s been a little distant, so I decided to wait and give her time, see if she’d talk to me without my having to press the issue.” Bo just wanted to know what was wrong so she could help make things better. She didn’t want this relationship to go up in flames, which is what it was going to do if they didn’t talk.
“Darlin’, forgive me for sayin’ so, but it sounds like you need to push the issue.” Logan looked her squarely in the eye. “Waiting will just make things worse an’ you’re never gonna find the ‘right time’ to bring it up. Take it from someone who’s been there once or thrice.”
“I know. I just don’t have the energy to push the subject. It’ll be a fight, and I need energy for that.” Technically, she needed chi, but it was the same thing. She was getting weaker, but with whatever was going on with Lara, she wouldn’t be getting any chi until they talked. And they wouldn’t talk unless Bo pushed the issue. It was a rather vicious version of a catch 22 that she was caught in.
“A nice long nap might help,” Logan suggested. “Though somethin’ tells me its a different kinda energy you’re talkin’ about.” What was it, though? Logan had encountered so many magical creatures throughout his dream life that it could be any number of things.
“Different kind of energy. Chi, to be precise. I’m a succubus and I feed off of sexual energy and life energy of others. I haven’t fed since the last time Lara and I had sex.” Bo was starting to realize the toll that was taking on her, but she wasn’t going to force herself on Lara. And she certainly wasn’t going to force the issue of needing chi until they talked.
“Succubus, huh? You’re the nicest succubus I’ve ever met, and I’ve met a few.” He frowned. This fight with Lara was causing Bo to starve. Talk about adding complications to already complicated things. “You really need to talk to her. Can you absorb from people around you, like leeching, or do you gotta do things yourself?”
He was sure taking this in stride.
Well. The fact that he was taking it in stride was nice. It was better than flipping out or screaming that she was some sort of demon. “No, I need to initiate it. I don’t necessarily need to kiss someone to take their chi, but I still need to get up close and personal with them.” Which was something she was not going to do behind Lara’s back. She was loyal to Lara, damn what her biology said.
“So much for a trip to a brothel,” Logan joked. Was he joking? Or had he considered planting her in the waiting room of a brothel in hopes she’d suck up all the latent sexual energy in the air. There had to be a story there. “You ain’t gonna be able to keep this from her all that much longer, darlin’.”
“If I wasn’t in a relationship, I’d be all over that.” Bo was fiercely loyal, and she was going against her nature. Something that people in her dreams kept telling her was a bad thing. She was a succubus and needed a healthy sex life. But she didn’t think her biology should dictate how she handled her relationship. “It’s a big house. And I’m just a burden to her anyway.” Those words had definitely stuck in her head, and she knew it wasn’t easy to be with her, let alone deal with the whole succubus aspect. Just because Lara had handled it up to this point didn’t mean she could handle it forever.
“You’re loyal. That loyalty might get you killed, but it’s somethin’ I understand.” Logan sighed, then bodily picked Bo up. “You ain’t no burden, an’ if that’s how she thinks of you then you can do a damn sight better ‘n that. You got a good heart. Ain’t enough people out there with good hearts. I’m takin’ you home.”
“I’d rather die being loyal than to hurt her like that.” Lara well knew what she was, but Bo had committed to her and she wasn’t about to go back on that promise. Even if Lara was having second thoughts or whatever. “She hasn’t thought that about me before, but it’s what I think of myself.” Why was she telling Logan that? It must be the exhaustion and starvation and everything else floating around in her head getting to her. She squeaked a bit as Logan picked her up, not having expected that. “Are you sure? I can get home myself.” Whether that was by driving or calling a cab, she could still get there without taking Logan away from the bar.
Logan shook his head, carrying her out to his car. “A good first step would be to think about what makes you a good person, not what makes you a bad one. I been there. Drownin’ in my own shit. You don’t got to drown, you can pull yourself out. You don’t gotta be alone, though.”
“It’s a lot easier said than done.” Especially after what she’d gone through with her parents. She had years of self-hatred to work with, and it had so easily been tapped into with that one text from Kenzi. “I’m not alone, though it kind of feels like it currently.” Which was why she needed to talk to Lara, to get her to talk so she could fix whatever was wrong.
“I figure. Self-hatred is hard to let go. But you can do. Fuck, if I can do it than just about anyone can.” He got her into the car and buckled her up. “Lets get you home. An’ if you need anything, you got my number.”
“That’s an understatement,” she said about self-hatred being hard to let go. Bo had a lot of issues that weren’t going to go away easily, but it didn’t help when she was made to feel like she was a burden and her fiancé wasn’t talking to her. She also didn’t normally like someone else helping her to this extent, but she wasn’t really in a position to protest right now. “Thank you, Logan. This was not how I envisioned the day going when I got up this morning.”
“Since when does life at all go the way we want it?” Logan grinned at her, and started to drive. He knew where her address was, but he hadn’t known just what kind of neighborhood it really was.
“Hardly ever,” she responded, half joking. The way she wanted her life to go here seemed to suddenly be in question. Was Lara re-thinking the engagement, or even their relationship? Bo seriously hoped she wasn’t, but considering her luck, that’s probably what would happen when she did finally press the subject. Once she mustered up enough energy to at least start the conversation.
Logan grunted in acknowledgement. He couldn’t entirely disagree with her, but that was why one grabbed the good things when you had them. “Damn this is a nice neighborhood.”
“Yeah, it is. I never thought I’d ever live somewhere this nice. I grew up on a farm in Canada, and have lived in some pretty shitty hole in the wall types of places. It was an adjustment to living in a place like this.” It had been a chance, but one she felt she’d adapted well too.
“I gotta question for you.” He didn’t wait for a response before he continued. “Do you think you could see the two of you in a hole in the wall, an’ still bein’ content?”
“Yes, I do.” Bo answered without hesitation. And it had nothing to do with Lara not liking having money or Bo being a gutter rat. It had everything to do with Bo was comfortable wherever she and Lara were. And she thought Lara felt the same way. They could be in the worst place in the world and still be as content as they were here.
“That’s a good place to start,” he pointed out. “Not many couples could say that. I’ve had something like that, sometimes.” Except they usually ended up dead. He’d just gone to Japan to visit Mariko’s grave. And he’d lost Alyssa in the fog. But he decided that Bo didn’t need that kind of thing hanging over her head.
There would come a day when Bo would experience that. She was immortal, unless she got killed somewhere along the way, and Lara was mortal. Eventually, she would die and Bo would be left behind. But she wasn’t going to think about that now, not on top of everything else. “She’s the most amazing person I’ve ever met. She is so alive, and smart, and beautiful inside and out. I would go anywhere with her and do anything for her.” Which is why the estrangement currently hurt so much. She missed her, even with the doubts in her head, she just wanted to hold Lara.
“You’re definitely in love, an’ I think you’ll be able to fix this.” He reached over and squeezed her shoulder as he came to a stop outside Croft Manor. “I really think that it’ll be okay, Bo.”
Bo looked over at him, smiling a bit. “I hope so. Hopefully I’ll be back in good form sooner rather than later.” One thing was for certain, she’d need to take chi little by little to cut down on the toll it would take on Lara. And also cut down on the chance of killing her in the process.
Logan nodded, giving her a hug.”Like I said, you ever need anything, you ask. Got it?”
She returned the hug, drawing in a steadying breath. “I do. And thanks for bringing me home. I’ll get my car when I’m able to.”
“No problem, darlin’.” He made sure she got to the door before driving off, and hoped that they could work it out. They would, right?
Bo took it on the slower side getting to the door. She wanted to prove that she could stay on her feet. But once inside, she didn’t make it that far before she needed to sit down. She really did need to talk to Lara, but at the moment she was a little short on energy. But once she could scrape some energy together, she would try to work things out.