Get into the van, kiddo.

[captaincatblock]

[Peace is a funny thing. It's been teased and denied for so long that now that it's happening, it's almost weird. He'd missed most of the drama with the princess and her traitorous Terran Knight -- not that he's fully convinced of it, but if it gains them this peace, then he won't question it -- but he had been returned to his kin as Earth's first peace offering.]

[Kuroo hadn't been too happy about that, hadn't even had the time to say good bye to Tsukki after being whisked away by a couple of generals and then thrown into political chaos. But he had endured it, because he knew that eventually, the princess would get to the small issue of Kuroo's kataphrakt and how he intends to spend his time on Earth. He could be a diplomat, he'd offered, or teach his fellow Versians about Terrans, since he's learned a lot. Anything, he had added meaningfully, if he allowed him to keep his landing castle close to Earth if not entirely on its soil.]

[He'd gotten some leeway in the end, after weeks of endless talks, so here he is now striding into the hanger where they kept his mech, in full Count regalia. Oddly enough, he only has Terran escorts with him, and they back away well enough when he reaches his destination.

Tsukki? Oiii, I'm looking for your mechanic, Tsukishima Kei. [first he calls out, and then just outright asks someone to find Tsukki for him]

Comments

[hellacene]

[tsukki rolls his eyes at that.]

I made her better. [and then, quietly - ] I'm glad you can be with her again.

[and then he kisses him, because it's been way too long and kuroo's about to leave.]

[captaincatblock]

[Ah-- what the heck. That goes straight to Kuroo's heart. He kisses Tsukki back with a sense of urgency borne of not seeing him for such a long time, and then he reaches up to close the hatch on them.]

Sorry, Tsukki. Give me a minute here, I'll show you something. [Kisses his cheek. And then he thumbs at the pin of his cravat to take it off.]

[hellacene]

[he raises an eyebrow.]

I've seen you naked before, that's not going to work on me anymore.

[captaincatblock]

[He laughs.] How lewd. I thought you wanted me for my Kat, but it's actually my body, isn't it?

[He stabs his finger with the pin, though, and then reaches forward to smear the drop of blood on the Aldnoah Drive at their feet. Surprise, it glows, and everything in the cockpit just powers up in a whirr of muted machinery and beautiful engineering. The screens glaze out to show the hangar interior around them.]

Some Terran friend of the princess figured out how she can distribute the Aldnoah activation ability temporarily. [Although he had to kiss her. He hadn't been sure if he was going to get murdered for daring to insist on having to go back, regardless of her busy schedule. But in the end, this had been the compromise she was willing to give him.]

[hellacene]

[there're way too many things going on that tsukki was alarmed by, but the most surprising one was the kat humming to life around him after kuroo pricked his finger.

and he was right - the screens are big and in high definition.]

But - temporarily? What does that mean?

[captaincatblock]

Meaning I can only do this just this once. [He rubs Tsukki's forearms.] But it depends. Since we're sharing the Aldnoah technology, they might find a way for anyone to start this on their own.

[He reaches around him for the controls, checking to see if everything is in good working order. To his surprise, music filters into the cockpit, and he chuckles.]

[hellacene]

Just once - [wait, now that everything's online -] I should probably go back. I don't want to delay you back to your castle.

[where's that thing to open the hatch, he has to get out of here. from the kat's comms, command from the bridge is asking the count if he's ready to go.]

[captaincatblock]

[Kuroo keeps his arm firm around Tsukki's waist, and tells command that yes, he's ready to go. And then he moves his Kat out of its cubby, in preparation to head out, effectively locking the hatch as its safety triggers.]

Stay with me a while, Tsukki.

[hellacene]

[it's only then that tsukki realizes what's going on.]

Kuroo.

[kidnapped. he's being kidnapped by a count. this is ridiculous. and shortly thereafter, before he can tell command he's right there, the kat takes flight.]

[captaincatblock]

Tsukki~ [he says back, looking much like a very pleased cat. He doesn't offer any other explanation, because he doesn't want to ruin the surprise, but the landing castle is actually just inside the Earth's stratosphere. He'll need it to get back to space, after all, once he comes home with his Kat.]

Just enjoy the view. [It's too bad his hands a bit busy with the controls now, or else he'd cuddle.]

[hellacene]

You're bringing me to your castle. You -

[he doesn't know whether to be impressed or annoyed. so he'll settle for folding his arms over his chest and being utterly confused. in a rather petty voice,] They're going to find out I skipped work because I wanted to look at space.

[captaincatblock]

I'm sure I can do something about your superiors at work. After all, in a weeks I was with you, I got to become friends with some of them. [Not really. But Kuroo knows how to play the politics game and this is easy stuff.]

[He sets the course for his landing castle -- they'll get there in like ten minutes or something -- and gives in to his urge to cuddle.] I couldn't wait. [kisses him at the neck.]

[hellacene]

[he lets kuroo cuddle him. everything is happening at a pace that's too quick for him. he doesn't think kuroo would be stupid enough to hold him hostage, but he also misses him, and now that he has the chance to actually be in his castle he remembers that kuroo has an observation deck. above all things that's what he wants to see.

he's absolutely impossible, but he's kuroo, and he came back for him. that's all that matters. he runs his fingers over his messy hair and replies with,] I'm not sure I'm dressed enough for a castle.

[captaincatblock]

[That's what you get for involving yourself with a mercurial man like Kuroo Tetsurou. He looks completely happy with everything going on around him, the turmoil he's causing be damned.]

That's all right. Whatever you wear, you'd still be the most beautiful man there. [Even that's so sappy he has to laugh at himself.] My staff won't care. It's my castle, after all.

[And that's the castle floating quite a distance away, in all of its hulking glory. The clouds are being displaced around it as he hovers.]

[hellacene]

I guess it's a good thing you're not King.

[you can start a war with that attitude, kuroo.

he pulls away from him the minute he sees the castle, however. he doesn't really understand why kuroo thinks of it as an ugly thing of metal and wire. it's sleek, absolutely shiny, and imposing. tsukki presses his hands against the screen as he watches it with awe.

quietly, he asks him - ]

How long can I stay?

[he wants to see everything and do all the things in this castle.]

[captaincatblock]

[He might or might not have started a war just to show you the stars, Tsukki.]

For as long as you want, love. [Since Tsukki is giving him a little bit of space, Kuroo's going to take the opportunity to attend to his responsibilities as a pilot, like preparing for landing and informing his staff that his Kat is coming in soon.]

[hellacene]

Don't call me that. It's embarrassing.

[worse than him calling him 'tsukki' all the time, cheeks pinking at the words.]

I didn't bring anything with me, Kuroo. [especially if this is going to last longer than a sleepover.]

[captaincatblock]

Don't worry about it, princess. I have things. [cheeky smirk] What's the point of being lovers with a Count if he can't spoil you from time to time? [his wording sometimes is very old fashioned.]

[hellacene]

["princess." well, that one's slightly more accurate.

he settles back onto kuroo's lap as the kat lands on the castle, thinking about what kuroo had just said. he's still in his shirt and jeans and boots. he certainly looks a lot shabbier compared to kuroo, even as he had gained a few inches in height and had some muscle in him. as he presses his face against his shoulder, he wonders,]

You've planned this for a long time, then?

[captaincatblock]

[More accurate than love? Gasp, rejecting my feelings, Tsukki.]

It takes a lot to move through bureaucracy, you know. I had to hound the Princess and her new fiance about helping me get my Kat functional again. [He chuckles, even as he makes the motions to land the Kat.] And I knew I couldn't come back empty handed after disappearing like that.

[But, they're here. Kuroo opens the hatch to let them both out. Notably, no one's touching the Kat beyond the necessary fastenings to slot it into its place. Looks like Kuroo's told them that Tsukki won't appreciate anyone touching it.]

[They're barely even landed when the hull closes up and the landing castle starts rumbling.]

[hellacene]

[but you'll do anything for your princess.

the way kuroo had phrased it earlier though, makes it sound like he's cruising earth for unsuspecting counts to spoil him. it makes him feel a bit self-conscious when he's invited to come down from his kat. no matter what kuroo says, he's still wearing terran clothes in a sea of suits and military jackets.

as soon as the landing castle moves, though, tsukki nearly loses his balance (in anti-grav! of all things!) and has to hold on to kuroo to keep him from flying off.

he's quiet, though, taking in everything in the hangar, from the versans that work for kuroo to the way they keep their distance from him and the count, watching the crowds watching them.]

[captaincatblock]

[Whoa there. Kuroo holds him easily by the waist, himself used to the change in balance. And then Kuroo's distracted for a while giving instructions to a couple of his staff -- something about the storage of his Kat, another about stores, and another about the ascent to space. Someone else tries to talk to him about paperwork, but he waves it off. The Kat's walls are all shuttered right now, to protect the glass from the stress of leaving the Earth's atmosphere, so there's not much to see outside. At least inside should be entertaining enough for now...]

All right. [This, he says loudly, for everyone to hear.] You can stop gawking now. It's not like you haven't seen a Terran before. This is Tsukishima Kei, he took very good care of me when I was down there. [At that, some of the staff brighten a smidgen, in as much as Versian stoicism can brighten up.] Make him feel at home while he stays with us.

[Then he tugs Tsukki by the wrist through the hold to the interior of the landing castle. He looks a little nervous, actually.] Let me show you around. Oh, we don't have to strap down or anything, but the ride gets a little bumpy nonetheless.

[hellacene]

[oh no. now everyone knows his name. god, he feels so embarrassed. it was different when he was a kid and he played volleyball on a full court with his name being announced to everyone. it's another thing for a count to announce his arrival in the castle to everyone else involved. tsukki could've been swallowed by the castle.

he gives a slight bow to everyone and then belatedly realizes he's a guest, and martians work differently, and - kuroo starts dragging him to the interior.]

Kuroo. [should he still address him like that? god, this is so weird.] You're moving too fast again. I want to see everything, you know. We have time.

[captaincatblock]

O-oh. [That might be a slight shake to his chuckle.] Sorry about that. The hangar gets pretty chaotic during ascent, so it's best we leave the staff to it for now. You can see it from the control room if you like...

[He does slow down, though, once they're in a corridor.]

[hellacene]

That's fine.

[it's kuroo's castle, so maybe it doesn't matter if he's a bit closer to him than usual, standing right beside him and letting him hold his hand instead of his wrist.]

I don't know why you keep calling your castle ugly. It's nice and sleek.