Blind Loyalty

[Garnet]

It's been a long-ass time since I've written my old-ass snake OC's. But what the hey.

These are characters of mine from... many moons ago, they've undergone quite a few changes over the years but I still like them. I don't think you need to know much backstory to appreciate the sneezing, but they're both snake-like shapeshifting monsters. Functionally human on the upper half, serpent on the lower half. Snaketaurs! 8D

Here's a picture of the two characters in this story, when they were younger, but it's a recent enough visual reference.

http://i.imgur.com/NHRVl.jpg

Enjoy!

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There was a particular breed of misery in being sick and alone.

Occasionally, Hemlock wondered if he felt that loneliness more keenly than his fellows. He was as self-sufficient in survival as any of them, and more than capable of attending to his own needs and desires, body and mind. But there was a palpable difference in a casual coupling, a friendly companionship, and the kind of attachment he craved. At least the kind he craved at the moment.

Kaphiri was often meek and despondent, that was true, but he didn't seem to mind being unattached for long periods of time either, his worries invested elsewhere. And Aolani, well... there was no better poster-boy for the 'love them and leave them' philosophy. Hemlock, on the other hand, was almost never without a live-in bedfellow, rarely going any length of time on his own between mates. Had he always been like this? He didn't remember. Was he weak-willed or just a bleeding heart?

After Limelight had been found dead, said heart had simply not been engaged in seeking another romantic partner. He hadn't planned on spending his whole life with the kid, though he'd certainly been low for weeks after his death. But there was something about the entire circumstance that seemed to clarify the futility of it all. What was the point? They all ended up alone eventually, maybe even died alone.

That was definitely the fever talking.

Sniffling, Hemlock hauled himself up onto one arm and searched a hand through his nest of blankets for his dwindling tissue supply. What the hell had he done with that box, thrown it somewhere? He was going to sorely need it in a minute... here...

Too late.

"HEEISHH'oo!" Inhale, nose wrinkling. "Ihh-IHHSH'U! Fuck."

Finally, groping fingertips bumped against cardboard in the dark, but turning it towards him revealed the bounty depleted. Damn. He rarely got sick, but when he did, it tended to hit him hard. This cold was going to be the death of him.

Shivering and damp-nosed, the viper turned his face miserably into the blankets, rubbing the wetness against the rough wool. It was indelicate and stung the raw flesh, but better than nothing. Nobody would care if he was sick anyway, what was the point of being polite?

He rolled back over in the cold darkness, preparing to resume wallowing in self pity and, if he was lucky, drift off into an exhausted sleep. Drugs would be good right now, but a pack of Nyquil at the moment was an even more ridiculous luxury than a spare box of tissue. The same category of a cool hand on his brow or a clean, warm place to rest. Well, he'd lived without all of those things before.

Scrunching his nose against a lingering, irritated tickle, Hemlock closed his eyes determinedly, seeking that elusive rest. No sooner had the itch backed off and sleep begun to weigh on his mind, however, than a sudden vibration and beacon of blue light buzzed beside him. Groaning back to consciousness, he unearthed the prepaid phone that Khira had given them all some time ago. They provided the funds and she the credit cover. It was a pleasant little convenience, but one he could have done without at the moment.

He flipped it open, then arched a brow to see Aolani's number flashing on the screen. Damming back another sneeze with his knuckles and blinking through running eyes, he made out the message in squinting surprise.

Craving takeout, want to come over?

Normally an opportunity he would have taken up in a heartbeat, but after a pause to mull it over, he thumbed back a reluctant response.

Only if you want venom all over it. I'm sick :[

There was a long pause that made the viper's shoulders sag, assuming that was the end of the interaction. Oh well.

Moments later, however, an answering chirp pulled him back out of his sulking.

Poor baby. Feel better.

For being such a flamboyant and exaggerated man in person, Aolani's texts could be frustratingly blunt. He wasn't sure if that was genuine concern or sarcasm, but sent an answering 'thanks' nonetheless and curled the phone close to his chest. He'd just pretend his former lover was being sincere, and use that as a tiny band-aid on his soul.

Sleep came easier after that, but he had no idea how long he'd been out of it before being awoken by a familiar voice and touch. Someone was rubbing his shoulder and speaking to him softly. Too sick to react with violent defense even if it had been someone unfriendly, Hemlock peered drowsily up into their face, trying to make it out in the gloom.

"Jaanu?" He mumbled, recognizing the vibrant blue of eyes even in the dimness. He barely realized he'd used a long-defunct pet name for his boss until Aolani tilted a brow up in amusement.

"You look like hell."

Snuffling miserably and wondering if he was dreaming, Hemlock rubbed one pair of hands over his face. "I... feel like hell."

Aolani groped overhead for a moment, finally finding purchase on a hanging cord and flooding the basement lair with light. The sudden brilliance aroused a hot tickle in the back of Hemlock's nose, prompting a hitch of breath and then a grimacing sneeze into his hands.

"Heh'IHFFSHH! --hh! ...HEH'IHFSSHH-uu!"

Or two. Recovering with a watery blink, he glanced again for the tissues, gratified to find a few squares of paper towels left on a roll nearby. He snatched them up with an extra hand, and grumbled an apology as he cleaned himself up.

"Bless you. Shit, how long have you been sick?" Aolani prompted, studying the dark hollows under his eyes with a dubious frown.

"I uh... I'unno, couple of days I guess?" Hemlock said hoarsely. Did the other man actually care, or was this merely an inconvenience into whatever other plans his boss had concocted for him? What he wouldn't give for the boa's telepathic talents, sometimes.

"Get up. You're coming back to my place."

"Pretty sure I won't be much good for anything, I feel like shit," the viper muttered petulantly. Whatever task Aolani wanted him for, he wanted no part in.

No, his inner voice added, you just want him.

"I'm not making you do grunt labor, idiot," the smaller man sighed, reaching out a thin hand to pull his right-hand man upright. "I'm taking care of you."

"I..." Hemlock stumbled over processing that thought, working the back of a hand cruelly under his nose as he squinted. "... really?"

"Don't look so surprised."

"Didn't think you had much of a bedside manner, to be honest. It's been... years." Not since they'd laid a hand on one another, there was still plenty of that when the mood struck right, but having the boa gently tending to him? He tried not to pin his hopes on it. "Anyway, I'm the one who watches your back, yeah?"

Aolani sighed at that, impatient, but the hand that smoothed over one bicep was gentle enough. "You don't get sick that often, so why would I? And you've usually got a boyfriend to look after you."

"S'true," Hemlock had to admit with a shrugging sigh. That was still entirely different from Aolani's attentions, his specifically, but perhaps he was being overdramatic. "Still, I'm... a mess," he added, pinching a thumb and forefinger at the tip of his nose to quell the tingle of another threatening sneeze. His throat was raw from just those two sets, and he felt queerly shy about doing it in front of the other serpent, whereas he was quite shameless about the act otherwise. "Dunno if you'd want me hanging around."

Aolani sighed, tapping the blue-lacquered talons of one hand against Hemlock's clavicle. "Darling, I've seen you with broken bones and your guts more out than in," he emphasized, trailing the hand down to stroke a long, ancient scar across the viper's belly. "A little mucus won't terrify me."

Hemlock was too tired and sick and hopeful to have a whippish comeback to this, so he only nodded in resignation. "Well... okay."

"Good. Then come on, I've got tissues and drugs."

Ah, heaven.

--------

Some twenty minutes later, he was safely sequestered across the street and up a block or so, in Aolani's flat above the occult shop. The building was nigh impossible for any human to find unless they knew specifically what they were looking for, and yet it felt strange not to be sleeping underground.

The apartment boasted little furniture, since most of it only tended to get in the way of coils and tails, but Aolani had constructed a little 'den' of his own that dominated one corner of the warm, sunny space. Colored fabrics and draperies had been pinned at odd angles to form a pleasant enough little canopy over an old, beaten mattress and piles of cushions and covers all shoved haphazardly together on the floor. Even sick, the impromptu nest-fort had a cozy feel to it as Hemlock laid there, watching a bar of sunlight move through the patterned cloth above him.

Aolani had done as promised and plied him with various cold comforts: tissues, toast, tea with honey, and a handful of drugs he'd fished out of a medicine cabinet. They were starting to slow down his brain and body, but he felt positively spoiled at the moment and too drowsy to worry if there were any ulterior motives at work.

"Better?"

The inquiry roused him from his Nyquil-induced daze, and Hemlock looked up with a blink to see Aolani at the foot of the mattress, holding out a hand for the empty tea mug.

"About as good as it gets with a cold, I imagine," he replied with a sniffle, and handed the dishware over. "Thank you."

Aolani set it aside on a windowsill rather than bringing it back into the kitchen. Instead, he ducked beneath the canopy and flicked the covers back with one hand, exposing huddled coils in spotted brown and black. Hemlock shivered, but the blankets were quickly replaced as Aolani joined him on the mattress and began to wind and twist their tails together.

"'Lani?" He snuffled in confusion, as the boa draped the covers back over them both and bullied a spot curled up contentedly against Hemlock's chest.

"Mmm? Get some sleep, Hem."

"You're gonna catch this," he warned, but his resolve was weakening, and he couldn't deny the way his heart gave a little flutter at this familiar position. His ex-lover's smaller body tucked affectionately against his own, nails slowly sifting through his hair and lips pressed to his throat... gods, it was too much. Did he really still have it this bad?

"I doubt you're contagious anymore. If I'm going to get this, I've already caught it," Aolani hummed, unfazed.

Even if he'd wanted to argue, about that point or well... any of this, now wasn't the time to do so. It was a little too nice just like this, as it used to be, feeling Aolani's breathing slow to match his and his coils giving his own a little squeeze. He blinked back heavy emotion, took a slow breath. If nothing else, Hemlock had grown quite good at masking and denying his feelings. The less he talked about them, the better. Besides, wasn't this exactly what he'd asked for?

That said, the position did come with... certain disadvantages.

He'd laid there for a few minutes in compliant, contemplative silence, but at length began to squirm slightly and struggled to free one hand. Any hand.

"B-better move back," he warned, fighting the preemptive hitch of breath. "I... I have to..."

To his surprise, Aolani withdrew only far enough to free one of his own hands. Then there was a long, slender forefinger pressed against the tip of his nose, effectively halting the prickling sensations of a sneeze in place. It didn't exactly abate the urge, though, leaving the viper with brow creased and nostrils delicately quivering against the other's touch.

"H-hih...!"

This was certainly preferable to accidentally spraying his companion with venom, but gods he had to sneeze.

"I think I see what Khira likes about this," Aolani chuckled. He slipped the pad of his finger to lay lengthwise beneath the larger man's nose, rubbing gently across the knuckle. Hemlock grimaced sharply, nostrils flaring in irritation and embarrassment. "You're pretty cute when you're helpless."

He might have preferred handsome to 'cute', but at the moment wasn't going to split hairs. A free hand reached sideways for the tissues while another went to remove his ex's hand, but Aolani carelessly swatted both away with the tip of his tail.

"'Ladi," he groaned out in congested dismay, which only earned another soft laugh.

"Alright alright, I'm sorry. I do have to tease you a little, it's a prerequisite," the sand boa apologized with a queerly genuine smile. His free hand had been busy cleverly stealing two or three of the tissues Hemlock was seeking. He had them folded and ready into a thick barrier, however, as soon as he removed the stalling finger.

"Hpt'KHFSSHHH!" The viper released immediately into the buffer of soft paper. It scraped his throat raw but seemed to do little to relieve the nasal irritation, only antagonizing it if anything. "Heh'HHFTSHH'u!"

That was a little better, though there was still a buzzing little tickle in the back of his nose that was making him scrunch up in preparation, impatient. Aolani didn't seem bothered, however, calmly holding the little bundle to his companion's nose. He hardly needed to peek into Hemlock's mind in order to detect the anticipation of one more.

"Hh--! ...Heh-- IEHSHHoo!"

He exhaled a low, throbbing groan in the aftermath, not caring how weak and miserable it made him seem. He was miserable, but at least Aolani let him have the tissues this time when he reached upwards.

"M'sorry," he muffled as he swiped at his hooked nose, then tried a few careful, discreet blows. At least the small volley had loosened his congestion some, he would enjoy a few minutes of blessedly clear breathing if he was lucky.

"Bless you, and don't be. Pretty sure that laying around sneezing and complaining is all you're meant to do when you've got a cold," Aolani mused, tipping a nearby wastecan towards him. Hemlock tossed the tissues in blindly, burying his face in a forearm. They made a perfect two-point shot anyway.

"Why're you beig so dab'd dice?" So much for the cleared sinuses.

"I'm not usually nice?" Aolani peered up at him in amusement, eyes impossibly blue.

Hemlock sniffed strongly to cure his speech.

"You're an arrogant, self-absorbed, manipulative prick, so no."

Aolani sputtered a laugh. It wasn't the first time Hemlock had been so pointedly blunt with him, so he didn't appear to take any great offense. Anyway, it was the truth.

"Right, I should have left you to die in the basement then?"

"I wasn't going to die," the viper grumbled, but closed his eyes as his friend's hand ghosted over his brow, smoothing away stray locks of hair and subtly checking his temperature.

"I'm going to chalk your surliness up to a fever and not hold it against you. But don't get fresh with me." There was amusement in Aolani's voice, but a hint of genuine warning too. Hemlock sighed.

"Sorry, this is just... confusing."

Aolani slowly arched a sculpted brow, begging further explanation. Hemlock grunted in annoyance and continued.

"This, you! Being all... affectionate and cuddly and taking care of me when I'm sick."

"You don't want me to?"

"No, I do," he huffed a frustrated breath, sniffled, and nodded when the boa passed him the tissue box. "It's just... too familiar. I've always been loyal to you, so don't fuck with my..." He closed his eyes, searching in vain for a less ridiculous and histrionic way to explain it. He came up short. "With my emotions, okay? I do like this, but I can't take it if you suddenly change your mind tomorrow and want nothing to do with me."

"I've never not wanted anything to do with you," Aolani protested with a furrowed brow. There was a different, unreadable sort of expression on his face now though, something thoughtful and strangely candid.

"No, but you are flighty as hell and you've come damned close. There's not..." Hemlock skimmed his gaze away, heterochromatic eyes searching the fabric canopy of the little nest den again. "Nothing's binding us together here like it did then. It's like we're just... adrift or something, only bumping into each other when it's convenient or the mood is right. That's... fine, if it's all there is, but you can't get my hopes up for something less tenuous."

"You think we're two ships passing in the night?" The boa was obviously fighting not to chuckle at the analogy, and Hemlock gave him a flat look.

"I was trying to avoid the cli--cliche-HEISHH'uu!"

"Bless you."

Aolani was quiet again for a moment, processing this.

"Do you miss it?"

Hemlock fixed a fang on his lower lip and chewed uncertainly as he drew out a fresh handful of tissues. "Not... exactly. I mean, I wouldn't want to go back."

"Good," the boa mused. "Because I'm pretty sure Shahrazad would have me beheaded."

They shared a bitter smirk at that, though when it faded again, Hemlock could only sigh.

"Look, just... read my mind or something, I can't explain it."

"I don't have to, you've done well enough." Aolani took his jaw lightly in a taloned hand. "Ravi," he began, and Hemlock suppressed a shiver at hearing his real name. It lent an automatic sort of weight to his ex's words. "I hope you know I still love you, idiot."

Hemlock looked at him sullenly and swiped his nose with the tissues. Even if deep down he knew that response, it was still strange to hear it from Aolani's lips. "You make it very difficult to tell."

The blue-eyed naga sighed, and tipped his head up to bump foreheads lightly. "Honestly, what do you think I'd do without you?"

"Find some other sap to order around."

This time Aolani frowned in genuine dismay. "Is that really all you think you are?"

Much as he wanted to continue being petulant, Hemlock sighed reluctantly. "...no."

"Then stop being a drama queen, that's my job," Aolani scolded, sliding a hand back down the side of the viper's neck to gently squeeze one shoulder. "So, let's try this again. Where do you think I'd be without you?"

Hemlock closed his eyes and slipped an arm around his companion again. He sighed. "Dead, probably."

"Many times over."

He stroked a hand over Aolani's back and the network of slashed scars there. They were old, faded, and hardly noticeable, but he remembered when they'd been months-fresh and his partner had still smelled like the sea.

"You seemed to manage well enough before me."

The boa closed his eyes and curled himself back up into Hemlock's arms, seeming more lulled by the touch than displaying any note of lingering pain. Sometimes he wondered if the other still had the capacity to feel hurt or regret, and then other times...

"Well, that was a long time ago. Now you're stuck with me, and vice versa. But can we talk about this when you're better and not tripping out on cold meds?"

"Mmm," Hemlock agreed. He could feel the tug of sleep at him again, now that the moment of confusion and distrust had passed. "Maybe still a bit sauced, though."

"We can manage that." Aolani eyed him from beneath lowered lashes for a moment, a slow, wry smile curling up one corner of his mouth. "Nose is twitching again."

"Mmnf," Hemlock complained, "Yeah, I-- hh! Sh-shit, why'd you mention it," he grimaced tightly, scrunching the prominent curve of his nose up into an irritated crinkle.

His partner pressed a fresh handful of tissues into his fingertips, letting him manipulate them himself this time, and just quickly enough to catch a flinching release.

"Hh'-- RHSSHH'uu! --Hh'RSHHH! ... uuugh fuckthathurts."

"Bless you."

"Th-tha--- H'IHSHH!!"

That one bent him hard enough that Aolani moved back a little. He blinked in surprise and rubbed a hand over the viper's upper shoulders.

"Bless. That was big."

Hemlock smiled weakly as he blew his nose again, gratified for the relief. "Big nose, you might have noticed."

"It's occurred to me once or twice," the smaller man agreed, touching the upturned tip of his own nose to it once he seemed composed and clear again. "I'm fond of it, though. Here, give me those. Do you want me to leave you alone now?"

"Ghhgh, no. You're not getting away that easily," he sighed, twice as drowsy for the effort of the explosion. His eyelids sagged and then closed in full as Aolani resettled himself and resumed combing his hair through his fingertips.

"Good." They laid there in lazy quiet for a while, until Aolani touched his lips to his brow to preface an idle question. "If I'm a self-absorbed, manipulative prick, what does that make you?"

"Gullible."

"Hemlock..."

He chuckled, turned it into a cough into one fist, then sighed. "Right hand of the devil."

Aolani snorted his own amusement, but seemed satisfied with the answer.

"Get some sleep, jaanu."

Hemlock managed a final, quivering smile before tucking his head back down and dropping easily off into a nice Nyquil coma.

[Salamander]

Mmmk... I enjoyed this. Really really. Hemlock is right on the edge or whinging (I hate whinging!) but never tips over it. He's as miserable as he could be without getting irritating for me. And their dynamic is lovely, too. They are far more adorable then they have any right to be.

[Anonymouse]

Hemlock is such a bad-ass name.

He has my favorite kind of sneezes. The lovely sound, and the kind that are occasionally triggered by light (as well as from being really sick<3). Wonderful descriptions too. I never thought I'd be smiling like a goof over how cute a couple of half-human, half-snake people are, but your writing is just that awesome. The characters and their relationship is so complex and intriguing.

"Good. Then come on, I've got tissues and drugs."

Ah, heaven.

Colored fabrics and draperies had been pinned at odd angles to form a pleasant enough little canopy over an old, beaten mattress and piles of cushions and covers all shoved haphazardly together on the floor.

Dammit idk if it's just because I'm exhausted right now but that sounds really freaking comfortable.

Omg when Aolani stops the sneeze with his finger...

"I think I see what Khira likes about this," Aolani chuckled. He slipped the pad of his finger to lay lengthwise beneath the larger naga's nose, rubbing gently across the knuckle. Hemlock grimaced sharply, nostrils flaring in irritation and embarrassment. "You're pretty cute when you're helpless."

Hemlock skimmed his gaze away, heterochromatic eyes searching the fabric canopy of the little nest den again.

Does he have two different colored eyes? I love that shit.

"Th-tha--- H'IHSHH!!"

That one bent him hard enough that Aolani moved back a little. He blinked in surprise and rubbed a hand over the viper's upper shoulders.

"Bless. That was big."

Hemlock smiled weakly as he blew his nose again, gratified for the relief. "Big nose, you might have noticed."

*melt*

I loved it and I love your writing.

[LeapYearKisses]

This is absolutely lovely! You've written such a complex relationship between them that I can't help but want more, and that's even before I tell you about how awesome the sneezes were! Good heavens! XD I would love to see more of them. It would also be fun to see Aolani catch this, despite believing it no longer contagious...

PS. The drawing is gorgeous!

[doggo]

Oh this is so lovely. Such delicious cold misery! <3 Thanks for sharing, I really enjoyed reading this.

[Garnet]

@Salamander - Thank you! Haha I agree on whinging, Hemlock's not usually much of a complainer, but apparently he turns into a big baby when sick. I guess he's allowed!

@AnonyMouse - Aksldfhsd HOLY IN DEPTH COMMENT Batman awww this made me really happy ;u; Thank you! That little blanket fort thing was inspired by a post on tumblr I stumbled across the other day of some super badass looking ones (like this! http://28.media.tumb...bq7p9o1_500.jpg)

He does have two different eyes, also Well, partial heterochromia anyway. One is green and the other is a brown/green split. I love the two separately colored eyes too, homina homina.

@LeapYearKisses - Eee I'm so glad you liked! And don't worry, I'm sure Aolani will have somehow accidentally contracted it mmmyesss. Thank you!

@pig - Oh yes, I do love me some languishing sicky misery every now and again. Thank you for reading!

[serotonin]

Mmm delicious ^__^ After writing something of my own I now appreciate how challenging it is to write sneeze sounds but I just want to say yours always push my buttons regardless of fandom/pairing and this one is no exception <3 I also adore your balance of plot/story and sneeziness, as it always ends up just right. ... This isn't a very specific comment, so you could totally read this comment as an outpouring of my worship upon you in general

[prisma]

amazing to see your writings again