serefin "tranavia's greatest idiot" meleski (meleski) wrote in valloic, @ 2022-03-07 18:14:00
WHO: Jacob Frye and Serefin Meleski WHAT: A lockpicking lesson in the middle of Casino Night, definitely not suspicious at all. WHEN: Saturday evening, March 5 WARNINGS: None, really! STATUS: Complete!
Serefin was not cut out for lockpicking. Whatever possessed him in the sphere to use a dagger to attack the door without much finesse, had been a scared, desperate, sober version of himself. A person who thought he could work a blade into a lock and expect it to pop open. There was, as Serefin was learning, much more to it than that after Jacob's instruction. This was the danger of being involved with an assassin: Jacob made everything difficult look relatively easy. The knife throwing came to mind.
"This lock is unpickable," Serefin said, crouched in front of the office door down an unoccupied hallway, after spending only a minute on the mechanism. He was now a little buzzed from the fundraiser, which should have been helpful to his mission, but it only made him more liable to give up. And yet, he pushed up the sleeves on his dress shirt, and worked the tools into the lock for another try.
"Did we have a contingency plan if someone sees us?" Serefin asked casually, feeling one of the teeth of the lock give way. Huh. "I know the whole point was to do this under pressure, and I do feel momentarily pressurized, but I expected some kind of cover of the night. Perhaps wearing more black." He paused, before adding, his brows raising suggestively at Jacob, "Or wearing less."
The progress he made was immediately lost when he snapped the pin, and the tumbler fell back into place. Serefin swore something low in Tranavian. "I hope you realize that we would be most certainly dead if this was left up to me."
Jacob didn’t seen overly concerned about them getting caught. He leaned casually against the wall with a beer in one hand and only gave the hallway a casual glance every few minutes. His special sight was more than helpful for this kind of thing. He was more concerned with Serefin learning this particular trick. He didn’t think it would’ve helped in the sphere, from what he’d heard about the whole thing, but it was a crucial skill anyway.
He’d be dead himself, several times over, if he hadn’t known how to pick a lock.
“No one’s going to see us so I don’t need a contingency plan.” The charity event was in full swing two floors down. And to be fair, he didn’t want to lose his job. But he was confident in his ability to get them out of trouble if he needed to do so. He was also sure no one had any reason to come up to this office now. Besides maybe the shady fellow who worked there and was suspected of embezzling funds from events just like theirs. “Breathe, love.” He crouched down to Serefin’s level and corrected his grip with a warm hand. “Remember what I told you about throwing knives? About seeing where you want them to go? This is a little like that.”
"I remember many things you've told me about throwing knives," Serefin said, wedging the pick back in again. He breathed, as gently suggested, and needled at the tumbler. He had nearly gotten halfway there before.
However, now that Jacob was at Serefin's level rather than supervising, Serefin leaned into his space and stole a swift, ardent kiss. "But I would be more amenable about seeing where that goes instead." His voice was low and conspiratorial. He might have foregone the entire lesson for finding a dark corner if he didn't hear the faint click of another pin falling into place. His hands still had been working the lock after all.
He winked at Jacob, for good measure, and turned back in earnest. Time wasn't necessarily running out, but Serefin did feel the need to hurry up. "I realize now, as I use these tiny tools, that the dagger was never going to work. It seemed like a good idea, but that was prior to knowing what was on the other side." He was filling up the space—just talking to talk while he focused on where he wanted the tools to go—but it was obvious the sphere had been top of mind. They wouldn't even be doing this if it weren't for that. "Perhaps I simply thought I could stab it into submission, but I believe that lacks the required stealth."
Jacob chuckled into the kiss and then poked Serefin in the ribs. “Stop trying to distract your tutor. You asked for this lesson.”
He made another adjustment of Serefin’s hand, mostly for an excuse to touch him, but also because he could tell Serefin was gripping too tightly. Shockingly, lockpicking had been one of the skills Jacob learned the easiest. Probably because he knew it would make it easier to do things without his father’s knowledge. Or at least, he’d thought it would. His father had always known everything anyhow. Glancing quickly back down the hall, Jacob plopped down to the ground and kicked out his legs. It would make getting to his feet take a little more time, but now he had a good view down the hall and a good view of Serefin’s face.
“Knives are rarely good lockpicks anyway, sorry, love.” He didn’t like thinking about Serefin back in that place without him, so he frowned and blustered on ahead. “But I’ve got a few implements you can practice with after you get the hang of a standard lockpick. Hairpins are usually the easiest to find in a pinch.”
Serefin didn't protest when his grip was directed to a gentler touch. He still had not mastered the light hand of an assassin and was ultimately grateful for the correction. Jacob was right; Serefin had asked for this.
His attention was on Jacob, slumping down beside him. Serefin slowed his lockpicking, just wiggling the tools back and forth as he considered. "Does that mean you are aware of a nearby hairpin? Will I have to start wearing them in my hair? It might be a giveaway, keeping any of my hair in any sort of order," Serefin said, nonchalantly, feeling the unsaid parts all bubbling up on his tongue. Serefin's brows furrowed together, briefly, when he caught Jacob's frown.
"I'm half blind, but not completely oblivious. I can see when something is on your mind." He was back to his casual voice, the one that sounded forced, because getting serious while attempting breaking-and-entering might have been terrible timing. "You can keep it to yourself, though. We can go back to figuring out what sort of evidence we might find in this office if I can manage to harness my usually unfortunate but sometimes spectacular luck against this lock."
“Whilst I enjoy the mental image of you pinning your hair up, it’s really unnecessary. Hairpins are easy to keep in your pockets, tuck into shoes, what have you.” Jacob had a fair few hidden on him right now, for both the habit of it and because he’d like the idea of Serefin eventually having to fetch one off his person. Not necessarily here in this hallway where his firehouse might wander at any given moment though. As much of a fan of risk as he was, he really did enjoy his job.
He waved his hand dismissively though, at Serefin’s concern. “What’s on my mind is the usual. Didn’t enjoy being separated from you. Not a bloody thing anyone can do about it.” He knew he sounded petulant. He made an effort to soften his tone and leaned in to kiss Serefin’s shoulder. “If I could magically cuff us together so it would never happen again, I would. As it stands, I’m going to put a little more effort into passing along any skills I have that will help you out in a bad situation.”
"I tried to, you know," Serefin said, sighing softly at the casual affection from Jacob. "Magically handcuff us, that is. Back when I didn't have the stars, I wrote a complicated spell into my codex so only I could use it, right after the snowglobe. But I lost my blood magic, and never found a good time to get your consent before all the connections broke, irrevocably." There was another satisfying tick of a pin falling into place as Serefin continued the dutiful work on the door.
Serefin exhaled, sounding unusually frustrated, and it wasn't because he still hadn't solved the lock. "I thought it was entirely unfair that we were separated then, and I still find it troublesome now." Jacob had given him skills, arming him in a way that kept him alive a hundred times over, but more than that, Jacob himself was a damn good reason for Serefin to keep pushing through to get back to him.
"But it is also unfair to want you always in harm's way with me. Or to have you worry about me if I am pulled along to a dangerous situation with you. Perhaps that is why I never asked if I could do the spell."
Pop-click, and the tools turned in the tumbler. The door unlocked, and Serefin smiled tightly at Jacob.
Jacob raised his eyebrows and then frowned instead. "You talk about yourself like you're some kind of burden. You're powerful and quick on your feet. And we're bloody magnificent together. Any help I can give you is for mundane things like locks."
He gestured at the lock Serefin had just opened, before he realized Serefin had just opened the lock. He huffed a laugh and pushed to his feet. "Well done! Keep those picks handy. There's probably more to unlock inside." With a reckless push of the door, Jacob strolled inside and yanked Serefin along with him. They were immediately plunged into darkness when he shut the door.
"Bollocks, hold on." He clicked on a tiny flashlight and grinned. "There we are."
More to unlock inside? Serefin made a face, being characteristically dramatic about doing it again. There was sentiment about practice making perfect—Diego probably yelled it at him multiple times while training to fight—but he didn't want it to apply now.
He allowed himself to be pulled inside and blinked rapidly at the shifting of light from the small torch. For some reason, his voice went lower, as if the darkness surrounding them would be able to hear anything above a whisper. "We are bloody magnificent together," Serefin added, continuing the thread from before. He wasn't going to let Jacob get away from praise and self-deprecation. "But nothing you do is anywhere near mundane. If anything, everything I have learned from you has kept me alive. I owe very little to magic."
Serefin moved over to the desk, hitting his knee loudly in the process. With a wince, he held out the lockpicking tools to Jacob, and his empty hand, palm up. "I want the hairpin. I know you have one on you."
Jacob smiled toothily in the dark and crowded closer. They really didn't have time to fool around, but it was tempting anyway. He was always a little randy when he was up to no good. And hearing Serefin agree they were so good together didn't hurt either. But they weren't really up to no good. They were on the search for an opportunistic crook.
That didn't mean they couldn't have any fun, of course.
"I watched you burn straight through a number of those creepy twats not too long ago, so I think you could give your magic a little more credit," he teased. Leaning a hip against the desk, he lowered his voice to a more sultry whisper. "But you're right, love. I do have a hairpin. I might even have more than one. But if you think I'm going to make it so easy as to hand it to you, you really have misunderstood the enjoyable part of all this lesson business."
"I will my magic credit, later, when I don't have you to give credit to," Serefin said, brows rising in interest as Jacob's offer to find the hairpin himself. "It is more fun to see you blush, or in this case assume you are. It is still too dark to tell in this office."
He wasted no time in dropping to his knees in front of Jacob, all within the interest of locating the hairpin; he left his own tools in the desk. "Always a challenge with you." Serefin was teasing now, his hands fumbling over Jacob's shoes, then around his ankles and up his calves, dragging part of his pant legs with him. It was not a thorough search. At least, not what it was intended for, but Serefin was having a good time ceremoniously feeling up his boyfriend, as his hands skated over the sides of his thighs.
There was no rush. In fact, Serefin's leisurely stroll with his hands was clearly done with intent to get a reaction out of Jacob. "Is this the enjoyable part you meant? I have noticed that when I train with others, they are not so prone to a hands-on approach like you." His fingers were on Jacob's hips now, and he paused as if considering checking below his waistband but slid a hand into his pockets instead.
Serefin asked, sounding blatantly innocent, "In here, perhaps?"
Even though he'd presented the challenge and knew what was coming, Jacob still flushed at the sight of Serefin dropping to his knees. The torch only gave him a dim view but it was enough to make his blood hot. He offered zero assistance in the search. If anything, he was a taunting brat, nudging Serefin with a foot and twisting his hips away from searching hands. He didn't aim the light in Serefin's eyes which really was the truest form of love he could show.
"Taking your time, I see," he teased. His face was stupidly hot but his voice only waivered slightly in cheekiness. "I suppose if anyone finds us here, this would be a lot easier to explain away than the snooping." Brushing a hand through Serefin's unruly hair, he adjusted how he was sitting so his belt would be front in center. There were several pins behind the buckle but he hated to rush through the fun bit. "You need to think a little less obvious, love."
"I could go slower," Serefin offered, offhandedly, as he continued his search. Even if Jacob said he needed to think less obviously, it didn't stop Serefin from spending a few more diverted seconds rummaging in Jacob's pockets. Then he was back to his hips, running his hands nonchalantly across Jacob's waist as if trying to decide which direction to go—back down or all the way up?
He hummed, fussing with the buckle. "If they find us snooping, I believe it would be in our best interest to look a little bit more undress—ah!" His fingers brushed against the hairpins hidden there, and Serefin's whole face lit up, pleased to find them purely by accident. But with his hand still on Jacob's belt, Serefin was clearly torn between continuing his purposeful roaming and actually following through with, well, whatever they were looking for. Distraction was everywhere, and Serefin was not helping himself by leaning in closer to Jacob, with intent.
No, no. Serefin made a noise of frustration, stepping back abruptly. He rounded the desk, putting necessary space between himself and Jacob. He started to check for locked drawers. "If I do not do this now, we will never get anything done. You are dangerous to my attention, towy nóżczko."
Jacob groaned and then laughed. "I don't know. If I was really that dangerous, you'd still be over here on your knees," he joked. Abruptly, he hopped over the top of the desk and dangled his legs next to the drawers that Serefin would need to pry open. But because they really had lingered here longer than they probably should, he decided to give a little help.
"Hold on, I'll save you some time." Using his eagle vision, he scanned the desk and spotted a hidden cavity underneath the last drawer. He smiled crookedly, kicking his feet like a smug child. "Start with the bottom one. Also, a quick lesson in breaking and entering…always checked if the dimwit left it unlocked first."
"Do not test me, I am exercising so much of the patience I have at the moment, I am quickly running out of it and if you speak another word, I'm going to find every reason possible to keep you quiet." It was a promise, and a threat, and a tease all in one. Serefin grabbed Jacob's swinging leg and squeezed in a fortifying move, before he went to the bottom drawer.
The hairpin was unnecessary; the desk compartment slid open. He slid his hand inside, and the secret latch gave way. What Serefin was rewarded with was a stack of papers shoved messily inside of a dark folder. Feeling unsatisfied with a literal papertrail and not something more damning, Serefin slammed the folder beside his cheeky boyfriend, and kept digging awkwardly around inside the desk.
"All of that, and nothing more scandalous. I was hoping for photographs, perhaps one of those little cassettes saying what a shady crook he is," Serefin said, holding up the hairpin with a theatrical pout. "And I did not even get to show you what a disaster I am with this. Should I tuck it back into your belt for safekeeping?"
"Oh, now that's a threat," Jacob laughed. Unlike Serefin, he was pleased there was anything in the hiding spot at all. All too often at home, he found nothing at all. He picked up the papers and started rifling through them. "I'm sorry there wasn't a severed finger or something in there. But this…this is good. I can work with this."
Jacob rolled the papers up and slipped them inside the inner pocket of his suit jacket. With the work part of the lesson done, and still plenty of time before he needed to help wrap things up downstairs, he smiled and sat fully on the desk.
"Come here then," he whispered warmly, tugging Serefin between his bent knees." Put your tool back where it belongs and we'll see about a reward for a job well done."
Serefin, unbothered by how swiftly they changed from investigating the desk to investigating each other, replaced the hairpin behind Jacob's belt. "Perhaps another time. But a desk is a terrible place to leave body parts as evidence. You never know what kind of riffraff are going to be busying themselves in your office."
He crowded into his space, being pulled and going easily, looking devilishly eager to let loose what he had been attempting to tame all night. " And I do deserve a reward, but I'm much more interested in finding out whatever else you have hidden on your person. Where shall we start?" And with that Serefin grabbed a fistful of Jacob's shirt and tugged him down into a kiss.