averagemedium | [Off-Comm Threads]

"Just one or two, I think? It was... kind of hard to keep track," he admits with a little shrug, taking Henry's hand and tugging him along toward the kitchen. "Things got a lot crazier after you... left, I wasn't paying a whole lot of attention to how long it was."

"Even crazier than the sky falling and stuff? Too bad I missed it."

But he squeezes his hand as they walk into the kitchen. "Good job on surviving! You're way tougher than you think you are, I wouldn't have- well I should've given you more credit. Stab any giants while I was dead?"

"...not really." It had mostly been running from giants, honestly, but he figures that's pretty much expected.

Something simple's best for now, so he's not bothering to really cook, instead popping a few pieces of bread into the toaster and digging out peanut butter and a couple bananas. "The whole place collapsed after a while, if Thor hadn't been there we probably wouldn't have lived. Held part of it together while the rest broke."

Henry's happy to let him figure out what to make, sometimes staying out of the way, sometimes brushing against him as he prepared things.

"Never thought it was a whole alternate place, though. Still, everyone's back now, huh? One way or another! --Oh yeah, how'd I die, anyway? You still haven't told me!"

Nudging him in the side; appropriate breakfast conversation.

He'd really hoped to wait until after eating for that to come up-- but okay, it had to happen sometime, and he just hopes he's hungry enough that he can manage some toast after this.

Ryan keeps his focus on the food while he talks, concentrating carefully on spreading the peanut butter. Things to do with his hands always help. "...your head sort of-- burst," he murmurs, hesitantly. "I know you said you only felt a little pain but before that you were-- it sounded like it was awful, you were screaming and- and you clawed your own eye out and then it stopped and I thought you were okay but--"

He stops to draw in a shaky breath. "But then that happened," he finishes, a bit weakly. "S'where all the blood came from."

Henry just hums a bit after that, trying his best to imagine it. He'd seen heads explode before, sure- had caused more than one to shatter with a curse or two. It was pretty fantastic, and the idea of it happening to him...

He really wished he'd seen it. The pain was a memory he didn't want to think about- but he had a feeling the sight would've done something to make up for it.

It's barely that he holds back the impulse to say so, to ask if Ryan'd kept the eye, had it been intact, to press him for information about what it had all looked like. So he hangs off of his arm instead, resting his head on his shoulder.

"--Sure made a mess of you, didn't I? Sorry about that. And for leaving you alone and stuff."

"...wasn't your fault." He doesn't really look up, busy slicing up the bananas and covering the toast with them. It's absolutely for the best that Henry's not digging for details about it, because he's really not sure he'd be able to give them.

"I think I've heard that's what happens if you ever happen to get your powers back, here, I just... I wasn't expecting it, and there wasn't any way I could stop it, or make you stop hurting--"

"It's okay Ryan, wasn't your fault either. And you know I don't mind dying." He tugs harder at his arm, possibly disrupting banana distribution. "Glad it didn't happen to you, I guess it sort of stung a little."

Just a little. But the reminder of that being a consequence of powers makes Henry pause, glancing up to Ryan's face.

"...But didn't you get your powers back too? Your eyes were different- were there ghosts stalking us everywhere? I sure did kill a lot of people."

"I didn't get anything," he answers with a shake of his head, carefully plucking banana slices up where they'd fallen onto the counter to put them where they were intended to go. "No idea what was with the eye thing, but-- I definitely didn't see anything that was any weirder than the rest of it. Not that I'd have been able to tell a real angry native from a ghostly one anyway even if I did."

The fact that he'd lived made it clear enough he hadn't seen anything, not to mention the complete lack of his sense. He'd have felt all the magic around.

"It's just a good thing none of them were real. Was that what you did the whole time I wasn't around?"

"What do you mean they weren't real? They bled and screamed just like every other human."

It would probably be a while before Henry worked out all the details of the fake Asgard. But he laughs anyway, sneaking one of the fallen slices and chewing on it before continuing.

"And yeah, pretty much! I couldn't really chat to anyone I ran into apart from Gerome, so there wasn't much else to do, even if I wanted."

"--okay, real enough for that, but-- the whole thing's complicated."

It's the best explanation he can manage, and he leaves it at that long enough to bite into one of those toast slices with a content sound. He hadn't realized how hungry he was 'til just now.

"He wasn't too much of a dick to you, was he? Because I have to say, he's kind of come off that way to me every time we've met. No idea what he said when I ran into him there but it didn't exactly sound friendly of him."

Henry pauses, distracted by toast as well before replying. Who needed plates or tables or anything like that; huddling over the counter was fine with him.

Even if the words were a bit mumbled. "Nah, I bet he's just a bit shy, deep down. Really deep." Another bite; thoughtful chewing. "But then, I died when he was pretty young, I think, so he didn't have a plethora of role models to learn from! But I can teach him this time."

He takes a few moments to think about that, chewing thoughtfully. Henry's mentioned the future-kids thing, and his friends getting married, so none of that exactly takes him by surprise. It sounds perfectly reasonable that he might have known a small Gerome. But--

"--I'll admit I'm kind of surprised someone was willing to let a dark mage be a role model for their kid," he says between bites, ruffling Henry's hair with his free hand. "I mean, I know it's different there, but I'd guess most people try to stop kids from being destructive."

"Hey, I bet I'm a great role model," Henry protests, even as he laughs at the ruffling. "Not that he inherited my magic ability anyway, I dunno if he even knows any curses."

Oh yeah, he should probably explain. "But yeah, Gerome didn't really get a choice in role models. I'm sorta his dad."

Casual as anything; this toast was pretty good.

And Ryan just stares, toast slipping out of his hand and falling onto the countertop while he tries to process that. A couple times he opens his mouth to say something, changes his mind, tries again--

"I thought you said you hadn't been with anyone else."

It sounds just a bit hurt- not that he'd have minded not really being the first, if he'd known, but that's an awfully big thing not to tell your-- ...partner, he guesses, he still stumbles over the right word even in thought. And it makes sense now that he thinks about it, shouldn't he have asked why they had the same hair color? White can't be that common.

Henry blinks a bit at that reaction, before laughing, putting what's left of his own piece down to try and pull Ryan into a hug.

"I haven't- I really do mean I'm only sort of his dad. The Gerome from my timeline isn't related to me at all."

It was still strange for him to consider. "But there's apparently other futures- and another Henry who's pretty much exactly like me, near as I can tell- apart from marrying Cherche and having Gerome! And that's the Gerome that showed up here! Pretty cool, huh?"

"...I don't know about cool," he admits, accepting that hug without hesitation-- a little bit of stability is definitely nice, because he's still trying to wrap his head around all of that. Gerome isn't really what he'd assume any child of Henry's to be like, nevermind the fact that he thinks he's a bit of a dick.

"It's-- kind of weird, honestly, I mean-- he's grown now, isn't he? You two look about the same age, it seems like it might be sort of late for role-modeling."

"I know, but- I still want to look after him, you know? And treat him like my own kid because he kind of is, and he never really got to have parents either-"

It's all a bit rushed, and he attaches that bit tighter as he takes a breath.

"And it's what I'd want myself to do, if I were me- and I kind of am!"

...it's a little more open about feelings than Henry usually gets, and Ryan rubs at his back as he clings tighter, already feeling a small stab of guilt for objecting to the idea. His own family experience wasn't fantastic, he can get wanting to fix that for someone else.

"You think he'll mind, though? I mean, he doesn't... exactly seem like the type to want to be looked after."

"Oh, he'll definitely mind."

Which gets half a sigh out of him, as he burrows his face against Ryan's chest, not quite smothering his words. "I think he's already mad that I didn't realize who he was at first. And more mad because I'm not married to his mom. But he'll just have to learn to accept what he does have, even if it's- not quite the real thing."

"Maybe it'll be close enough. You're still you, aren't you?"

He lets his chin rest on top of Henry's head, keeping him held close. It's still weird to think about, going to be weird to get used to--

Okay, and there are other concerns.

"...but if you're going to be treating him like your own kid, um. Is this going to get in the way of it? If he's already upset you're not with his mother then how's he going to take you... well, not being with a girl at all?"

"I like to think I'm still me! And pretty good at it by now."

But he accepts the chin-resting with a more content hum, pressing up into it for a moment, while scratching slowly at his back at the other question.

"Yeah, he's probably not gonna like you at all. I'll try to talk to him about it, but he's just gonna have to deal with it. I mean, Cherche's a great lady, but I'm not in love with her."

Well.

He's trying not to take that to heart, he really is (he's casual that way about everything, it doesn't necessarily mean anything like that, don't assume), but he can't help going still, fingers digging into the fabric of Henry's shirt-- no, his shirt, he'd almost forgotten.

He should probably just let it go, he really should, it isn't like Henry would want to talk about it even if that does mean what it sounds like it means- but he's got to ask. He's been open about things so far this morning, maybe chances are good.

"--not in love with her, or just... not?"

There is definitely an attempt at keeping it casual, but the nerves are obvious in the way he's still clinging a bit too much.

At the stillness, the harder clinging, Henry briefly wonders if he'd said something wrong, if he'd offended or worried him somehow. The question clears things up a bit, and he nearly laughs, shaking his head against him.

"Because I'm in love with you. Geez, I thought it was obvious."

As playful a tone as he could manage, because that was easier than being too sentimental, too emotional. Sincerity was better when it was as flippant as everything else.

Ryan feels like the pounding of his heart's got to be obvious to him, and all he manages at first is a reflexive "oh." It sparks a simultaneous wash of fondness and warmth, and a little panic; it's nice to hear that, really incredibly nice, but he's been trying to hold off on thinking about it too much himself, considering whether he might be. Ryan's sort of assumed that Henry wasn't much the type for it, that it might be best to just avoid worrying over exactly how he felt about him and just enjoy it-- and he has been.

It's just that without having already worried over it he's not sure whether he ought to say it back. His immediate impulse is to go for it, but he ends up hesitating too long, stumbling over words.

"--I didn't-- I mean, okay, maybe it should've been obvious but I wasn't really... I guess I wasn't expecting you to?"

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