But no, there's more to this -- and it's obvious in the look in his eyes. This means a whole world of advantages when it comes to war, and he knows Jack knows it. He can pass over the Seelie territory unseen in the dark of night. ]
[ Look, he's trying to be romantic! Well admittedly he's doing a pretty half-assed job of it even by his standards, because he's letting Jack see what he sees when he flies over it at top speed, climbing higher. He zooms at supersonic speed, quiet for a few moments before he speaks up. ]
I don't get doused out by clouds anymore. And whoever told you they're nice, fluffy things need to get kicked in the buns. They're nasty.
[ It would be so easy to rain fire down on the Seelie just like this, but Johnny holds back when he makes a circle to fly back again. ] This changes a lot of things. You know that, don't you?
[ He's coming back so they can do that together. The more he thinks about it, the more Johnny's interested, too. ]
I know.
[ He can't rest, they can't. Jack reminds him of what's important, what needs doing -- he balances him out and keeps him anchored; the man is his sword and shield, and Johnny knows it now.
But with all of that aside, it's minutes later before he lands in front of Jack, smiling as he holds out his hand to him. He wants to share this gift, wants Jack to delight in it, too. ]
[Jack has a pretty good idea, with that devious one-track mind of Johnny's. But he knows it's a little bit more, too. This experience has thrilled him, moved him, and it makes Jack happy to know that he wants to share it with him.
[ Johnny says, eager to share what he feels with him. It's exhilarating, and the only way it can be better is if Jack shares this with him, that he knows what he feels. ]
Let's fly, let's fly away. [ He croons, pulling him into his arms and evidently channeling Frank Sinatra. Really, he should be wearing an S on his chest, at the rate he's going. ] You don't mind if I carried you, right?
[ Johnny sweeps him up into his arms, all charm and unadulterated happiness. He's sharing his most favorite thing in the world with his most favorite person, how much better can that get? ]
All right, hang tight. I don't want you falling off.
[ And off they go! Johnny's arms are securely around him, and he takes to the sky with ease, delighted to soar upwards again. ]
The damn puca's put me through worse. Take us higher!
[Because he knows that will delight Johnny, and it excites him too. Jack's never been one who scares easily. What started as Johnny's happiness quickly becomes his, and that's how Jack knows what he means to him, how he feels.]
[ Johnny's laughing, there's nothing quite like being able to do this again, and he's missed this so much. He takes them higher without question, nuzzling close to his lover to make sure he's safely tucked against him.
The wind is brutal now, but Johnny ramps up his heat, more for Jack's benefit than his own. He slows so that they're cruising, and in the silence far up above the clouds there are only the both of them. ]
[ Johnny tells him brightly, thrilled and eager to share this with him. He's looking everywhere in wonder, taking it in again after being grounded for so long. He squeezes Jack tighter, briefly, like a boy with his most beloved companion, ecstatic that he gets to share this with the person who matters most to him. ]
Look, check it out, you can see the sunset from here. See how the colors are so different from when you're seeing it on the ground? I don't know if we can catch stuff like the Northern Lights here, but. God, I wish we could.
[Johnny surprises him with how observant he is, noticing things like the colors of a sunset when he thought it was always about the thrill, the adrenaline of the rise and fall and speed. Jack rests his head back against him, admiring it too.]
If we stayed up here forever, do you think the Void could reach us?
[ Johnny promises, nuzzling him and dropping soft kisses against his throat. He loves the play of color on Jack's face, how it makes him look so young and gentle, and Johnny is enraptured, gazing at him like a besotted lover.
He loves it here, when it's just him and Jack and the world. ] I'll protect you, babe.
[Jack smiles gently, turning his head just enough to catch Johnny's lips. Johnny gives his all to anything like this, even a kiss, and that's enough to distract him.
Jack takes his hands, pries them away gently to hold them in his own. And then, with one last kiss, lets go and begins to drop.
DID YOU THINK THAT SHIT YOU PULLED EARLIER WAS A JOKE, STORM?!]
[ Johnny panics when he falls out of his arms and down, down, and he bursts off after him, shooting after Jack as he reaches for his arms, terrified that this would be the end of him. ]
No, no, no, no -- [ No, he won't let Jack go that way, and after an eternity he grabs on to his lover, yanking him back with at least a hundred or so feet to spare, curling around him protectively in case he does something so fucking --
-- he doesn't yell at him until they touch the ground in front of the castle, and Johnny explodes, angry. ]
Jack! What the fuck are you thinking?! That's not funny!!
[All he has to do is fall; close his eyes and wait for Johnny to catch him like he knows he will. He's already seen the world hurtling towards him through Johnny's locket, and it wouldn't scare him nearly as much to look down now.
Jack catches him, and he knows he might've ruined his chances of Johnny ever taking him up like that again. At the very least, there'll have to be promises and apologies. He opens his eyes only when they've set down, greeted by the sight of Johnny's angry, pale face.]
For scaring me earlier, and once before. We're even now.
[ Johnny is ashen and angry, staring at him for a few moments -- he's so furious and so terrified by that few moments (the ones that will last with him forever) that his fingers clench into fists. He almost died, and Johnny's not in the mood to be empathetic.
Jack's calm and it gets under his skin even more. ] Do you even understand what you just did?! What if I hadn't caught you? What the fuck --
[ He paces like an angry tiger, desperate to shake off the adrenaline, the terror that still grips his heart. ] No! We're not even! We're -- [ He sputters, practically purple with rage. ] How even -- what is wrong with you? What if you slipped from my hands, what if I couldn't catch you?
[Johnny's anger continues, and the color is slow returning to his face. Meanwhile Jack slides from unmoved to confused, because there's no way that Johnny wouldn't catch him. The thought, the possibility never entered his mind.
But it obviously entered Johnny, and that surprises him, until it steadily dawns that no amount of self-confidence can stop some fears. The fear of losing the one you love, having them slip from your fingers and die right in front of your eyes-
His breath catches.]
Johnny - Johnny, I'm sorry. I took it too far. I was terrible and wrong.
[ Jack's apology is so surprising that Johnny stops short. Usually, he'd need pliers to wrangle any sort of apology out of his proud, haughty prince. But it's different this time, and Johnny doesn't quite get why.
Still, it's enough to wrongfoot him, to take the wind out of those indignant sails. Johnny scrabbles, trying to find the momentum again, but Jack looks at him that way and his words get caught in his throat.
Shit. Jack could kill someone in cold blood and all he'll need to do to make Johnny his willing accomplice is turn that look on him. ]
You're really sorry? [ He pauses, then half-heartedly adds: ] I haven't finished yelling at you yet.
[Pride goeth before a fall, or in this case, after one. Jack steps forward once Johnny's anger shows signs of subsiding, reaching for him, drawing him close like they were above the clouds.]
I know, and I'm sorry. You're the one person I never want to be cruel to.
[And his actions were, so caught up in debts and getting even. But Johnny never meant to frighten him, he was just being Johnny. Therein lies all the difference.]
[ Johnny doesn't instinctively see it as cruelty, doesn't remember Jack's unkindness -- he's always figured it's a part of him, and has accepted that part of him, too. He's one for quick forgiveness, because he can't imagine begrudging Jack Benjamin a thing, not when Johnny knows that he's so much more than the occasional cruelty, that his gentleness and his kindness shines through all the brighter on the occasion.
He'd just been hurt too much for too long, and he instinctively understands his lover's tendency to even a score Johnny isn't keeping. There is no score, when it comes to Jack. He cares too much to bother with that sort of thing.
Johnny steps into his arms and wraps his own around him, brows still knitted but taming in Jack's embrace, holding him tightly to assure himself that the fear is unrealised, that he's safe and here.
His heart is still pounding, and Johnny the daredevil, the bold and reckless Human Torch, had known what true fear was in those moments. ]
You know what you did was dumb, right? Even for me. And I wrote the book on dumb.
[ He buries his face in Jack's neck, breathing him in and pressing his lips to his pulse, soft and affectionate all the same. He might be angry with Jack, but it doesn't mean he'll drive him away. At least, not this time. ]
I could forgive you all the time. I'd be really mad at you but --
[Because it's true, no one knows dumb stunts like Johnny Storm. But that is also something that Jack accepts, loves about him along with all the rest.]
It was idiotic. I'll never do anything like it again.
[He whispers it against Johnny's ear. If he forgives him this once, Jack will never give him reason to do it again.]
You would never let me die. It's fact, it doesn't need to be tested.
[ By now, Johnny's anger is gone to the wind. Jack looks so genuinely chastised that he can't bear to do that to him any longer. He sighs and shakes his head before letting him go, taking his hand and squeezing it. He sits on the step of their castle, gesturing for his prince to sit with him. ]
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[ Johnny wiggles his brows at him suggestively.
But no, there's more to this -- and it's obvious in the look in his eyes. This means a whole world of advantages when it comes to war, and he knows Jack knows it. He can pass over the Seelie territory unseen in the dark of night. ]
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But he does realize the non-sexual advantages.]
Stay high. Make sure the natives can't sense you.
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I don't get doused out by clouds anymore. And whoever told you they're nice, fluffy things need to get kicked in the buns. They're nasty.
[ It would be so easy to rain fire down on the Seelie just like this, but Johnny holds back when he makes a circle to fly back again. ] This changes a lot of things. You know that, don't you?
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It improves things.
[A gentle reminder. There's nothing Jack's come to hate more than seeing Johnny get his hopes up and then see them crushed.]
We can't rest. Not yet.
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I know.
[ He can't rest, they can't. Jack reminds him of what's important, what needs doing -- he balances him out and keeps him anchored; the man is his sword and shield, and Johnny knows it now.
But with all of that aside, it's minutes later before he lands in front of Jack, smiling as he holds out his hand to him. He wants to share this gift, wants Jack to delight in it, too. ]
So, wanna do it?
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[Jack has a pretty good idea, with that devious one-track mind of Johnny's. But he knows it's a little bit more, too. This experience has thrilled him, moved him, and it makes Jack happy to know that he wants to share it with him.
He smiles softly before taking that hand.]
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[ Johnny says, eager to share what he feels with him. It's exhilarating, and the only way it can be better is if Jack shares this with him, that he knows what he feels. ]
Let's fly, let's fly away. [ He croons, pulling him into his arms and evidently channeling Frank Sinatra. Really, he should be wearing an S on his chest, at the rate he's going. ] You don't mind if I carried you, right?
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[Don't answer. He doesn't want to know. Jack's arms slip loosely around his waist as he considers it.]
Do what you must.
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[ Johnny sweeps him up into his arms, all charm and unadulterated happiness. He's sharing his most favorite thing in the world with his most favorite person, how much better can that get? ]
All right, hang tight. I don't want you falling off.
[ And off they go! Johnny's arms are securely around him, and he takes to the sky with ease, delighted to soar upwards again. ]
You'd better not choose this time to get airsick!
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[Because he knows that will delight Johnny, and it excites him too. Jack's never been one who scares easily. What started as Johnny's happiness quickly becomes his, and that's how Jack knows what he means to him, how he feels.]
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The wind is brutal now, but Johnny ramps up his heat, more for Jack's benefit than his own. He slows so that they're cruising, and in the silence far up above the clouds there are only the both of them. ]
Check that out, geese. You can breathe okay?
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[Not much higher and it would be uncomfortable, but right now it's just perfect. Everything is quiet, the world below them so small.]
You love this, don't you?
[He doesn't need to ask. Everything about Johnny screams his happiness. Jack's grateful that it was returned to him.]
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[ Johnny tells him brightly, thrilled and eager to share this with him. He's looking everywhere in wonder, taking it in again after being grounded for so long. He squeezes Jack tighter, briefly, like a boy with his most beloved companion, ecstatic that he gets to share this with the person who matters most to him. ]
Look, check it out, you can see the sunset from here. See how the colors are so different from when you're seeing it on the ground? I don't know if we can catch stuff like the Northern Lights here, but. God, I wish we could.
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If we stayed up here forever, do you think the Void could reach us?
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[ Johnny promises, nuzzling him and dropping soft kisses against his throat. He loves the play of color on Jack's face, how it makes him look so young and gentle, and Johnny is enraptured, gazing at him like a besotted lover.
He loves it here, when it's just him and Jack and the world. ] I'll protect you, babe.
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[Jack smiles gently, turning his head just enough to catch Johnny's lips. Johnny gives his all to anything like this, even a kiss, and that's enough to distract him.
Jack takes his hands, pries them away gently to hold them in his own. And then, with one last kiss, lets go and begins to drop.
DID YOU THINK THAT SHIT YOU PULLED EARLIER WAS A JOKE, STORM?!]
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[ Johnny panics when he falls out of his arms and down, down, and he bursts off after him, shooting after Jack as he reaches for his arms, terrified that this would be the end of him. ]
No, no, no, no -- [ No, he won't let Jack go that way, and after an eternity he grabs on to his lover, yanking him back with at least a hundred or so feet to spare, curling around him protectively in case he does something so fucking --
-- he doesn't yell at him until they touch the ground in front of the castle, and Johnny explodes, angry. ]
Jack! What the fuck are you thinking?! That's not funny!!
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Jack catches him, and he knows he might've ruined his chances of Johnny ever taking him up like that again. At the very least, there'll have to be promises and apologies. He opens his eyes only when they've set down, greeted by the sight of Johnny's angry, pale face.]
For scaring me earlier, and once before. We're even now.
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Jack's calm and it gets under his skin even more. ] Do you even understand what you just did?! What if I hadn't caught you? What the fuck --
[ He paces like an angry tiger, desperate to shake off the adrenaline, the terror that still grips his heart. ] No! We're not even! We're -- [ He sputters, practically purple with rage. ] How even -- what is wrong with you? What if you slipped from my hands, what if I couldn't catch you?
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But it obviously entered Johnny, and that surprises him, until it steadily dawns that no amount of self-confidence can stop some fears. The fear of losing the one you love, having them slip from your fingers and die right in front of your eyes-
His breath catches.]
Johnny - Johnny, I'm sorry. I took it too far. I was terrible and wrong.
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Still, it's enough to wrongfoot him, to take the wind out of those indignant sails. Johnny scrabbles, trying to find the momentum again, but Jack looks at him that way and his words get caught in his throat.
Shit. Jack could kill someone in cold blood and all he'll need to do to make Johnny his willing accomplice is turn that look on him. ]
You're really sorry? [ He pauses, then half-heartedly adds: ] I haven't finished yelling at you yet.
[ seriously, jack, why do you even like him ]
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I know, and I'm sorry. You're the one person I never want to be cruel to.
[And his actions were, so caught up in debts and getting even. But Johnny never meant to frighten him, he was just being Johnny. Therein lies all the difference.]
Forgive me, just this once.
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He'd just been hurt too much for too long, and he instinctively understands his lover's tendency to even a score Johnny isn't keeping. There is no score, when it comes to Jack. He cares too much to bother with that sort of thing.
Johnny steps into his arms and wraps his own around him, brows still knitted but taming in Jack's embrace, holding him tightly to assure himself that the fear is unrealised, that he's safe and here.
His heart is still pounding, and Johnny the daredevil, the bold and reckless Human Torch, had known what true fear was in those moments. ]
You know what you did was dumb, right? Even for me. And I wrote the book on dumb.
[ He buries his face in Jack's neck, breathing him in and pressing his lips to his pulse, soft and affectionate all the same. He might be angry with Jack, but it doesn't mean he'll drive him away. At least, not this time. ]
I could forgive you all the time. I'd be really mad at you but --
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[Because it's true, no one knows dumb stunts like Johnny Storm. But that is also something that Jack accepts, loves about him along with all the rest.]
It was idiotic. I'll never do anything like it again.
[He whispers it against Johnny's ear. If he forgives him this once, Jack will never give him reason to do it again.]
You would never let me die. It's fact, it doesn't need to be tested.
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[ By now, Johnny's anger is gone to the wind. Jack looks so genuinely chastised that he can't bear to do that to him any longer. He sighs and shakes his head before letting him go, taking his hand and squeezing it. He sits on the step of their castle, gesturing for his prince to sit with him. ]
Are you okay?
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