[oom: Dinner with captainryan]

[hell_in_highheels]

[from here]

River arrives in the bar just before seven in the evening, and secures a table for two in a cozy corner of the bar.  She's dressed casually, wearing her favourite Irish sweater, jeans and her tan field boots.  But she has to confess, she's spent a bit more time with her hair and her face.

For as interesting as Richard is, he is also a good looking man.

She orders a glass of pinot noir, and waits, watching the faces in the crowd.  When she sees him, she smiles broadly and holds up a hand.

Comments

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

"...century?"

[hell_in_highheels]

She smiles, like a little girl caught with her hand in the cookie jar. Her nod is small but distinct.

She nestles closer to him.

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

He frowns thoughtfully, considering this even as he accommodates her.

"You are human, correct?

"Not that I mind if you aren't," he adds quickly, "but I think that's the sort of thing I should know beforehand." He gives her a wry little smile.

He's also aware she could have simply been dead for that long, but he's not used to the idea of 100-year power sources. He hasn't seen much tech of the future yet.

[hell_in_highheels]

"I am. As human as any of us are in the 51st century." She pulls back just enough to look him in the eye. Her tone is a touch bewildered.

"52nd century? No, it was the 51st when I died, and I've lived -- I mean, my data ghost has been online, for -- damn it, I can't remember. Something over 39,000 cycles? Days, in your world. And I've been kept from file degradation, restored from backup you might say, every day since about day 7,000, after that run in with Professor Challenger and his little pets." She laughs, but there's a shiver as well.

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

It's Ryan's turn to look bewildered and a bit taken aback.

"You don't have to...have an 'run in' in order to be restored, do you?" He sounds cautious, but he just looks concerned.

[hell_in_highheels]

She reaches up to touch his face, cupping his cheek for a moment. "Your concern is touching but completely unwarranted. No, I don't. But if I hadn't had my little 'run in', I wouldn't have discovered that I was archived, and it was that archive that allowed me to work out the file degradation issues my colleagues succumbed to."

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

Ryan pushes the weight of his head into her hand.

Quietly, "Were you able to help them?"

[hell_in_highheels]

Her eyelids droop for a moment. Her cheek nuzzles into his shoulder. "We didn't know what was happening to them until it was too late. There are earlier versions of them, but they're -- not quite the same." She shakes her head. It's a question that's puzzled her for many many years.

"Anyway, I'm here now. And whole, it seems." Another little smile ghosts over her features. Even sad memories can't rob her of this moment.

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

He nuzzles the crown of her head anyway.

"I'm glad," he says, then frowns at himself. How did he become so enamoured of her so quickly?

What will he do when she leaves?

He gives her a gentle squeeze.

[hell_in_highheels]

She purrs into his touch, sighing contentedly. He feels her fight back a yawn.

"Mmm interesting," she sounds bemused. "I don't have a bed back in the Library, as I typically don't need to sleep when I'm there."

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

Ryan tilts his head down at her.

"So you haven't dreamed in a century. I think that's some kind of record."

He grins, teasingly.

"Assuming you're still sane, of course."

[hell_in_highheels]

"Mmm, good point." She turns her face up to his. "I do cat nap a lot, I suppose. But, I guess what I was hoping..."

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

He doesn't know her well enough to guess the rest of her sentence.

What the hell was he thinking having sex with her?

"Yes?"

[hell_in_highheels]

"Would you mind terribly if I stayed here with you, tonight?"

when did want become need?

Her heart is in her throat all over again. She's already imposed so much on him.

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

Ryan nearly laughs at her.

"I'm not going to kick you out now." He kinda doubts he could.

And speaking of kicking out...

"Oh shite!" He starts, gently but still urgently, disentangling himself.

[hell_in_highheels]

She lets him go, albeit reluctantly, pulling the comforter up to cover herself. "What's the matter?"

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

Ryan avoids looking sheepish, but only because he's trying to find his pants.

"Damocles is still outside." Poor pup hasn't spent a night alone since Ryan was kidnapped by the angels.

"Sorry," he apologizes after a moment. He hadn't meant to cut their conversation short.

[hell_in_highheels]

"Oh! Oh poor thing!" She covers a grin with her hand. "Go on, I'll be here when you get back!"

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

"Good," he says a bit fiercely, but it's muffled by the (still wet) tee he's pulling on. Pants, trousers, and a shirt is enough to go downstairs in and howl out the back door, he thinks.

He leans over to kiss her. "I'll be right back," he says, grabbing his holster from the nightstand. He pads silently to the door, picking up his belt as he goes, and shuts it with a click behind him.

He can still smell her. She's all over his clothes, all over him, and he thinks of little else as he finds the stairs. He has his belt threaded through the holster and loops by the time he enters the bar proper. He looks his usual grumpy self as he heads for the back door in an attempt to discourage conversation.

He steps outside and winces as the cold air takes advantage of his damp clothes. He howls (River will hear it through the window, he thinks) for Damocles to come and quickly before he's hit with the realization that now he has nothing to do but wait.

[hell_in_highheels]

She lays in his bed, pressing her face to his pillow and drinking in the scent of him there. Her fingers grasp the sheet and she holds on tight, as if she could some how bring him back to her faster. She has no idea what is happening here, and she doesn't want to look too close, lest it slip through her fingers.

She hears the sound of a wolf calling over the cold Scottish landscape. She hopes Damocles will forgive her for taking up so much of his time this evening. Poor pup.

But she has no real regrets.

She does make a quick dash to the loo. While washing her hands, she looks at herself in the mirror. His bite mark is clearly visible on her pale skin. She touches it and shivers, half in pain, half in arousal.

She makes her way back to the bed and straightens the covers, arranging herself in what she hopes to be a pleasing pose for when he comes back.

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

Ryan looks out over the moonlit snow, frowning.

What did he just get himself into?

He's fairly certain he's just gained a packmate, and more specifically, a mate. Fuck. He never should have had dinner with her, not this quickly. It's not that he regrets the evening, just how fast this all happened. He should've taken the time to get to know her better. Instead, he has a relative stranger waiting for him in his bed.

A century!

Though to be fair, she doesn't know all that much about him, either. But, Ryan points out to himself a shade bitterly, she doesn't have instincts hemming in her actions. He already knows from experience how well it works trying to ignore them. Just look at Suzi and Deitmar.

Damn, it's cold out. Ryan plucks at his shirt, peeling the fabric off of his chest before letting it settle back on his skin. Where is that dog? He's about to howl again when he sees a dark shape speeding across the lawn. A grin breaks out when Damocles is close enough to hear.

Sir! Sir! There you are! I thought something had happened! I'm so happy to see you! I love you, sir! I'm glad you're here! It's cold out! And the rabbits tried to steal a bone, but I ate it instead! So happy to see you!

Yes, yes, Ryan rolls his eyes, cheerfully ruffling the dog's ears. I love you, too, you great idiot. It's said fondly as Ryan gets low enough for the Doberman to greet him properly. Come on, let's get upstairs.

Ryan opens the door to let them both in. Damocles doesn't quite prance around him all the way to the stairs, having been better trained than that, but it's a close thing. Ryan is regaled with the story of the defeat of the plaid rabbit, which lasts all the way until they're back at his room.

Well done, Damocles. Good job. Now, we have a guest tonight-

Is it Suzi? Or Deitmar? We haven't seen them for ages!

No, it's not. Our guest's name is River, and I want you to be on your best behaviour. That's an order, understood?

Yes, sir!

Good. Ryan opens the door for them, eyebrows going up when he sees River stretched out on the bed. A slow smile is spreading as Damocles skids into the room, then scrapes to a halt with his nose sniffing madly.

Whoa! What were you guys doing in here?

Ryan? Facepalms.

[hell_in_highheels]

River smiles to see them both returning, especially Richard. Her eyes meet his for a moment, long enough for her to register that he's happy to see her, and then the face palm. Her brow furrows as she looks between Richard and the dog.

She holds out a hand to the dog, but her eyes are on the man standing in the middle of the floor. "Is there something the matter?"

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

Who does he answer first? How does he answer?

"Nooo," he says aloud. "Nothing's the matter, per se..."

To Damocles: We had sex. Anything besides that would lead to trouble later.

Oooooh. Damocles walks over to River, still sniffing, ears pricked forward curiously. She's the lady from the other day. Does this make her my mom?

Ryan stares at the dog. He completely did not see that question coming.

[hell_in_highheels]

River leans up on one elbow, her hand stroking the dog's head and ears. She's watching Ryan watch the dog.

She cocks her head to one side, her eyebrow raised. She can recognise communication when she sees it. "He has questions?"

[captainryan.livejournal.com]

Ryan starts tugging his shirt off to give himself a chance to think.

...he can't tell her what Dam just asked, can he? Isn't that a bad idea? Won't that just make the entire room awkward?

On the other hand, he doesn't want to lie to her about it.

"Yes," he says once the shirt is off. "He does have questions. This is a first time experience for him." The shirt is tossed toward the bathroom door and Ryan heads for the bed.

Damocles is still waiting for his answer, but he will happily accept pets while he does so.