gipsy_danger | for striker

He lets her take his face in her hands and hold him still so she can look him over, doesn't fight her on it, just lets his arms settle comfortably around her waist. It's strange that she's so petite, at least physically, because he's used to the idea of her being much, much larger. But it's nice, he likes how she fits comfortably in his arms.

I saw the doctor and everything. And got a right dressing-down for his trouble, too. But apart from some mild neural strain, he was apparently just fine with a little rest.

He manages not to focus on the trouble he got into for not breaking the connection while he still could. He doesn't want her to think about that, because he knows she's going to blame herself and that much was definitely not her fault. The decision was all on him.

Good.

The relief comes over the connection loud and clear. She’d been terrified ever since she’d booted him out that day that she’d permanently hurt him, or that she’d managed to guarantee him an early death.

I promise you, Hercules, I will never hurt you again. Ever. I told you once you were always safe with Gipsy Danger, and I broke that promise. It won’t happen again, I swear.

I know, love.

He has no idea if that kind of neural strain will mean an earlier death for him, but then again, Hercules is kind of convinced he's living on borrowed time anyway, so he doesn't put much stock in a 'long and happy life.' He's not going to mention that to her, though. He doubts she'd take it very well.

I believe you. He leans in and kisses her forehead like he did the first time she showed him her humanoid avatar.

Now, are you going to tell me what all that was about?

She lets a flood of affection trickle through the Drift and surround him, a little shiver of happiness sliding through her frame at the little kiss.

Tell you what what was about?

So very innocent, of course – he could mean a multitude of things, right?

He scoffs, but he's smiling, pleased she's feeling better already.

The music, Gipsy. You're far too clever for me to believe you when you play dumb like that.

I needed to get your attention somehow. I can't communicate outside of the Drift with you very well so...

There you have it.

One hand drops from his face to his shoulder while the other carefully traces a path along his jaw line.

I need you.

He wonders idly where she learned to be so physically affectionate, and then realizes that, oh, it's probably from him.

Whoops.

I'm here.

It definitely comes from him. Some from Raleigh, but mostly Hercules.

I want you to be my pilot. I think we both know he is not going to return.

This is a lot to ask, she knows.

I am not as strong as Striker, and I am not as fast, but I fight hard. I will protect you, Hercules Hansen.

I will also understand if you tell me no.

There you have it, his bad habits keep rubbing off on impressionable young women. He should feel worse about that than he does.

He might.

But it's a weak hope, even he knows that.

I'd never tell you no, Gipsy. Not for this. I need to talk to Stacker about it. If I leave Striker then Chuck needs to find a new co-pilot. That might take some time.

He might. She concedes, but like him, she knows its a long shot.

...Really?

She's stunned. She expected fight, an argument -- excuses why he can't leave his son. Not...immediate acquiescence.

She's not complaining, though. Instead she's looking at him with hope, fingers pausing on their trek on his skin.

You'd do that? Come pilot Gipsy Danger and leave Striker Eureka to another?

He shrugs a little.

Striker belongs to my son. I only started piloting him after Delta Fairfax fell in Manilla.

He feels much more connected to Gipsy than he does any of the other Jaegers, even Striker.

It would be an honor to be your pilot, love.

Edited 2013-07-18 19:36 (UTC)

The hand on his boulder slides around him and she squeezes entry, a protective, affectionate gesture.

I'm glad. It would make me very happy to have you as my pilot.

And she would trust his judgment. Whoever he picked to copilot, Gipsy would tolerate.

A thought occurs to her.

Have you told anyone about me? The avatar, I mean.

That might take a little time too, I haven't the first clue of who I would pick.

He squeezes her in return. She's an affectionate little thing, and it's more than a little sweet.

That makes him blink a little in confusion.

No, I haven't. I didn't think you wanted me to.

I trust you. Implicitly, even.

And really, she gets it honest. It’s entirely your fault, Hercules. ‘

It is up to you. She likes this being between them, but knows that if and when a co-pilot is introduced, that person will probably find out on their own through Herc’s memories.

I rather like it being our little secret, though. Gipsy smiles up at him, fingertips carefully tracing over his lips. It’s almost exciting.

That means a lot to him. He'll try not to fuck it up by picking someone she'd hate.

He's only just now realizing just what it is he's done here, by being the first human who's spoken to her like an equal, treated her kindly, shown her affection. She's modeling her behavior off of him, and he doesn't quite fall within the normal spectrum for this kind of thing. Oops.

Maybe some day. Not today, is what he means. He likes this being between just them, too.

He ought to step back a little but he doesn't, just lets her pet his face to her heart's content. Is it, now?

She doesn’t have a lot to go on, no – just him, Raleigh, and Yancy. Some of their memories were…interesting, and probably not what she should be modeling herself after, either.

They seemed to shield themselves better, though. Hercules is like an open door for Gipsy. She has yet to encounter any kind of mental blocks when Drifting with him. She likes that openness that they share.

I think it is. With a smile, she gently pries into his mind, uncovering memories and letting them sift through her mental fingers like sand at the beach. Don’t you?

She moves deeper – deeper than she usually goes, interested in the more personal and private life of Hercules Hansen. What she uncovers is…probably one of the most intimate moments a person can share with another human, and she pauses and stares at the man in front of her, eyes very, very wide.

What is this?

He's seen no need so far to shield himself. She's just curious, not malicious, and he knows she's not going to turn around and blab his secrets to someone else. Besides, he's very used to Drifting and the kind of honesty it requires. She's open with him, he's open with her.

Yes, I do.

He doesn't even feel alarmed at her sifting through his mind to find out more about him. Not, at least, until he realizes where she's going, and then he's not so much alarmed as horribly embarrassed.

He can feel color flaring in his cheeks again. Apparently today is a day full of humiliation. Well. Uh. Christ, Gipsy, I have no idea how to explain this to you. Because what she's focusing on right now is one of his one night stands, when he'd been drinking at a bar downtown and taken a pretty girl home, how it felt to run his fingers through chestnut brown hair as she sucked his brains out through his dick. And that was just the beginning of the night.

It's called sex, love, and it's something humans like to do. He probably should not be holding her this close anymore. Nope. That should stop being a thing.

She’s experiencing this with him, and it has her clinging to him and feeling horribly confused and…achy. A good achy though, but she can’t exactly pinpoint what it is that is doing the aching.

It’s certainly somewhere, though.

She holds onto the memory – and him – and waits for it to play out further.

I—I think I can see why. Jealousy colors the edge of the memory before it’s pushed away so that she can continue to focus. You’re making quite a bit of noise. Are you sure she isn’t hurting you?

Oh god. This is worse than when she played fucking slow jamz to try and get his attention.

Thankfully Hercules has enough life experience to be able to relive arousal without letting it actually do anything to him, which means that Tendo and whoever else is monitoring his vitals won't freak out about his blood pressure or something. It helps that this is an old memory, one he's replayed enough times that it's lost its edge. For him, at least. Apparently not for Gipsy.

Oh god.

Uh, nope. No, she's not hurting me. Quite the opposite, actually. She's experiencing this memory from his point of view, so it's not exactly a fair and accurate representation of what happens during sex, but it's a pretty good facsimile so. Okay. Erm. Alright. Sex is one of our basic biological urges. It's how we reproduce. It also feels really good, as you're, uh, experiencing. Jesus Christ. As long as it's with two consenting adults, then sex is really great. It's a good way to relieve stress and...stuff.

It worked, didn’t it?

I see.

Gipsy keeps watching, though she’s actively fidgeting in his arms.

What…is that? She had it in her mouth, earlier. Now, well. It’s somewhere else entirely and Gipsy is very, very curious about that because the woman is – well. Female, and Gipsy needs to take notes so that she can be as accurate as possible.

She moves through the memory a little quicker, then moves to another one.

You’ve done this a lot.

If he didn't know it would upset her, Hercules would probably initiate the disengage sequence right now, because this is mortifying, and he'd prefer not to have this talk ever again. Trying to give it to Chuck once was bad enough.

Wincing, he answers her questions. Because if he doesn't, she might ask someone else, and that would be weird as hell. It's my cock. Or, it's technically called a penis. All men have them. He's just going to shut up, now, because apparently Gipsy is fascinated by this and is flipping through his catalogue of sexual experience like a teenager surfing for porn on the internet.

Well, like I said. I'm an old man, now, I've had a lot of time.

Hm. This is fascinating. You do seem to enjoy it.

She senses his mortification and backs away from the memories - for his sake, and her own. She's left feeling strangely over-heated and still aching, though she can't quite pinpoint what it is and why.

I'm sorry. I've embarrassed you again, haven't I?

It feels good, so. Yes.

He's beyond relieved when she decides she's had enough and stops watching him have sex. That was...quite an experience.

It's alright, love. It's just, uh, sex is a pretty private thing for most people. We tend not to talk about it very much.

Is it taboo? Why wouldn't you talk about something pleasing? He talked of music and movies with such passion, yet this is kept silent.

I'm not sure I will ever understand your species completely, Hercules.

More or less, yes. It's a behind-closed-doors thing. Between you and the person you're having sex with.

That makes him laugh, though, and he lifts his shoulders in a helpless shrug.

I don't really understand us either, Gipsy.

for striker_eureka

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/kicks phone typos

/pat pat it's ok

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