Violet Blue (Dare/Rhys)

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

Dare was in a daze when he stepped into the apartment, and though that in itself wasn't unusual, this particular daze was different. When he returned from a visit with Mistress V, he was tired and dreamy, patient, calm, and blissfully tired.

There was a bit more energy to him this time, or at least it was visible enough that his mind had been working. Oh, his muscles ached, and he'd be sleeping soundly that night, but he was still thinking about Michael, and trying to piece together what he'd felt had happened, what he'd thought would happen, what might have actually happened, and what he was going to do with any of it.

[Rhys Moreau]

"Hey," Rhys said. He had commandeered the oversized armchair ever since his little breakdown and he sat there now, with Elouai laying within arm's reach. He had a handful of fliers and a couple of books strewn around him, on the arms of the chair, tucked in beside him, and on the rough tables nearby. "How did it go?"

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

Dare blushed, there was no question about it as his gaze darted away. "Better than I thought it would," he said cryptically. He sat heavily on the couch, and Elouai got to her feet to sniff him. She probably smelled Michael. He blushed again and shook his head.

[Rhys Moreau]

Rhys raised his eyebrows at that not-quite-an-answer. "So Michael donned leather and joined in?" he teased. He still felt on edge much of the time, but just the same he felt much calmer now than he had just a few days prior. He hadn't been working, just trying to gather himself together again.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

"Oh, God no," Dare said, chuckling at the thought. The visual it gave him required a moment of gathering himself together after. "He didn't leave." Dare rubbed at Elouai's ears. "I dropped fast after. I... I knew he'd left, I thought I did anyway, and thought I'd ruined everything. Mistress V calmed me down and sent him in, and we just... sat together." He held me like he hasn't done in forever. "He told me he was okay, and I told him I love him."

[Rhys Moreau]

"That's good," Rhys said, smiling. It was probably strange to feel relief at that, but he did. "So, I mean, what did he say? What'd he think about it?" And what had Dare thought about being watched? Having an audience definitely gave scenes a different kind of feeling, from Rhys' experience.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

Dare thought back. "Not much," he admitted. "He said I didn't scare him off. He said... he said it wouldn't stop him from wanting to be with me, and there was nothing to be sorry for." He couldn't imagine why Michael still had any desire to be with him. What had he done for Michael in the past year?

[Rhys Moreau]

"Were you telling him sorry or something? You said you dropped," Rhys said. He didn't know what most people's drops were like, his own were typically not horrible, though every so often one hit him like an anvil in the chest and he felt drained for days. Those bad ones had been more often recently.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

"Yeah," Dare said, looking down at Elouai instead of at Rhys. "I thought I'd ruined everything, any chance that we'd ever..." He shook his head. "Mistress V got me down from freaking out, but I didn't really feel better until I was falling asleep in Michael's lap. I had to hear it from him, that he wouldn't leave." And it was only saying it now that Dare realized how very deeply that went.

[Rhys Moreau]

"Maybe Michael should be your third party or something," Rhys said. "Get him involved without getting him involved. I mean, unless he did seem interested in doing something." He knew people that came to that conclusion when trying to figure out ways to make things work for them.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

"I couldn't see him during the scene," Dare said. "There was a two-way mirror, and he was on the other side with your Dom the whole time. If he'll come again, I'll do it again, but I don't know." It had been all about him for once, and though he really did hope Michael was okay, at the time, he'd just wanted to see him okay, and talk was secondary.

[Rhys Moreau]

"I mean he could help with the aftercare, even if he doesn't really do anything else, that could help a lot," Rhys said. "I've heard of people that do that kind of thing. When are you going to see him again?" It certainly seemed that things were looking up for Michael and Dare, and Rhys couldn't help feeling a little pleased at that.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

"I've been visiting the twins on weekends since school ended," Dare said. "Maybe I ought to stop by tomorrow, but I just don't know. I don't want to drop again, and I don't want to fight when it feels like maybe we finally got somewhere, but I've been pissing all over about him refusing to talk to avoid fights, and it's a big f~ing mess, Rhys."

[Rhys Moreau]

"He might need some time to figure things out. No offense, but I doubt he was just all perfectly fine with everything, you know? Or it might hit him later, you never really know. Give him a couple of days, maybe," Rhys suggested, like he knew what he was talking about anyway. But at least this was a way for him to focus on something other than which therapist was best to spill his life story to.

[Dare Blackwood-Hardt]

Dare nodded thoughtfully. Here he was worried about dropping again, and hadn't considered that Michael might drop, too. "I'll owl someone at the school, make sure someone checks on him. I can drop by during the week when I know I'm clear. He's teaching, but I don't mind sitting around with the twins and Elouai for a few hours." They could hold off on talking until they'd sorted themselves out, but he didn't want to risk Michael breaking down and sitting through it alone.