purpleandgray | (no subject)

Five PM. Sunday. Merlin was standing in his living room, staring outside from a rainy window. Unfortunately that happened. But it smelled like it would pass, in a few hours. It would just be a minor inconvenience on the way. (Which is why he hadn't bothered to postpone the rain until tomorrow. A spell could do that but there was no point here.)

At the exact time, he brings up one of those cards. It hasn't even been laminated yet, because the paint hasn't completely dried out. It'll take several days. It's a picture of Dean, a little bit of his bar at the background, a smile on his face. Merlin regards it with focused intent, studying it until it gains depth, starts to shimmer and--

There he is. Merlin smiles.

At New York, his image will appear in the faint shimmering eventually, a sense of connection will become over Dean and if he accepts the "call" he'll see Merlin soon before him almost like a hologram. Merlin's background also is transported into the visage, windows in his living room.

"Hello."

Dean picked up his guitar case when the shimmering started. He reached out with his own magic for what Merle casted and latched onto it. He was excited for their second date and a chance to explore New Orleans, a city he had never thought he'd go to because of how much he worked. Yeah, he probably should vacation more but now he was getting that chance.

"Hi there," he said with an easy smile. "I'm ready to go through if you're ready for me."

There was rain in the background, he could see it through the windows and there was a little sense of disappointment. Rain was definitely not exploring a city weather.

It was actually really nice seeing Dean. Merlin hadn't expected to feel this pleased just thinking about the date, let alone seeing the guy.

He offers his hand through the trump link. "Take my hand," he said encouragingly. "Then just step forward." The magic would take care of the rest. Once through and standing in Merlin's living room, he would be subjected to a hug and a dry smack of a kiss pressed somewhere in the general area of the top of his head.

"Hi."

He had forgotten how tall Merle was. There weren't many people who could so easily kiss the top of his head. Dean put the guitar case down so he could return the hug, holding him tightly for a moment.

When he drew back he grinned, "Pretty cool trick. You must save a ton on travel expenses."

Dean took another step back to look him over. God he was really nice to look at. He had forgotten how piercing those eyes of his were.

It might have required some standing on his toes action and pulling Dean down by a hold around his neck to be able to reach the top of his head but Merlin wasn't against doing some manhandling. But then again, Dean was short. (Not really, but Merlin would say so because he towers a little over most men.)

Merlin handed him the card when they broke apart. The flip side looked like all of his other cards, emblazoned with a unicorn and a snake. "I would actually love to travel by car one day, or train. If Only I had the time. I've taken a road trip once in my life and it was great."

Now that they've gotten to casual touching, he didn't know how to stop. So Dean got a once over from those piercing eyes but also a light hand coming up to cup his cheek and brush a thumb over his cheek. It was easily Merlin's favorite thing about Dean, the brilliance of his smile. Though, he did appreciate the rest of the package just as well.

How could you not? Seriously. Dean was pretty damn hot, and he knew it, didn't he?

He did know it.

"Then the next time you come to New York I'll take you out on my motorcycle," he said as he turned the card around in his hands. "It won't be a long road trip but you'll get a good ride out of it."

It still impressed him just how powerful Merle was. He had never seen magic like this. It was amazing that a little card could be a gateway to cross worlds. Well, cities in this case.

"So do I get to know what you've got planned for this second date or am I in for a surprise?" he asked, letting Merle touch him. Dean really enjoyed the easy affection and how freely it was given.

The easy affection would just grew to be more intimate as time went past. But for now it's that one touch topped with a warm smile and then Merlin moves to take the card, replace it with another one. This one is laminated, thick and big for a playing card, more like a big tarot card and it has a picture of him in the Courts, in a three-piece-suit, with a crown hanging by one finger and the Abyss behind him pushing out some Logrus tentacles. He liked to use this one as a calling card with people he worked with, just to remind them that while he was very personable, he meant business and could whip out pure chaos out of his pocket. It had worked really well for years now.

He pressed it to Dean's hand. "This one is for you. I'll teach you how to use it. Later. Ignore the picture. I didn't have anything else at hand. I make these to hand out to people who I have to deal with in the Courts."

The idea of a motorcycle trip seemed to excite Merlin, he grinned and nodded. "I'll hold you to that. My brother also likes bikes. He's a bit of a speed junkie. Do you like the look or the speed or the convenience?" he asked while walking backwards towards the door.

"I have a reservation for us in half an hour," Merlin said and crooked a finger at Dean, beckoning him to follow. "Leave the guitar, lets go."

"Oh sure, just ignore a picture of you in a nice suit. Sure that's easy." Dean crouched down and opened the guitar case just enough to slip the card in and then closed it again.

It was a shame, really, because that was a great picture except for the blackness and tentacles. Take those out and it would be a really great picture of Merle looking very fine in a suit with a grown. It was a good look. The power, the confidence, it painted a picture of a king in his element even if he had said he didn't like it.

Dean put his hands in his pockets as he followed after Merle. "I'm not really into crotch rockets. I like Harley's built for long road trips. It'll go fast but not like super fast, racing bike speeds," he explained. "So if you're looking to go super sonic I'm not the one to talk to."

Merlin could play the king easily enough. He had a life long practice at it. It's just not what he feels is him. (And yet it is. He's just not comfortable with that side of himself.) And actually, the idea of Dean finding his picture attractive made Merlin pause for a brief spell. He never really considered himself hot or much of eye-candy. He was reasonably okay looking. Yeah, that's Merlin in a nutshell for you.

He grabs an umbrella from the rack before they slip out of the door and leave his flat behind. "No, that's too much," he laughs. "I like speed sure, but I'm in no hurry to break the speed of sound. Won't a Harley be uncomfortable for a trip, though?" He imitated the way hands would come horribly high while driving that kind of bike. "You'd imagine that your hands would be hurting after a while."

Outside Dean pressed close to fit under the umbrella with Merle and just to enjoy being pressed close. Even though it was fall it was warm in New Orleans, a lot warmer than New York. Dean was glad he wore a tank top with a light flannel over it with the sleeves rolled up. If it got too warm he could take the top layer off.

"Not every Harley has the high handlebars. Mine are more down here." He demonstrated where his hands would be on his bike which was not high or ridiculous as what he showed. "It's actually very comfortable. Well, I find it comfortable."

Not everyone he had ever dated like his motorcycle. Dean tried not to hold it against dates but seriously it was great and they were wrong.

Merlin wore just a simple button down with jeans. Gray and faded blue. And he was delighted to get Dean squeezed under the umbrella, even if he could have made sure that the rain would not fall on them even without. The heat and rain together created a bubble of humidity that seemed to wrap around a person like a wet blanket.

"The rain will blow off before we're done with dinner," Merlin said as he wrapped one arm around Dean's waist while they squeezed closer together under the umbrella and hurried down along the street. He didn't bother calling a cab, the place they were going to was also in the French quarter and walking was both quicker and easier.

"That doesn't sound so bad," Merlin replied. He liked bikes. Had a healthy respect for them after Despil had given him a ride. A few rides later he still managed to feel inclined that bikes could be fun even if he had almost lost his life several times. But Despil used his contraptions to travel the universe, not just shadow Earth. "I'll look forward to a ride."

"I promise we'll have fun."

He would need a little time to plan where they'd go but as long as the weather wasn't too frigid they could go and have a good time.

Dean looked around them as they walked. He had only seen New Orleans from pictures. It was different to walk along the streets. He could feel the magic of the place, old and steady, but also fast and dancing from all the years of Mardi Gras and the carefully cultivated perception of a party town. It was vastly different from New York which always seemed to race along as fast as it could.

"So, where are we going?" he asked, pulling his attention away from the city and back to Merle. "Do I get to know now?"

"There's this little restaurant called Eat that I've come to like. It's just around the corner," Merlin replied, shrugging one shoulder mildly. "Nothing that mysterious about it. But I'll keep withholding information if that makes this date more exciting," he murmured the last playfully near Dean's ear.

The restaurant was indeed just around the corner, a small venue with white and sand front, a hand written sign of the day's special menu. Merlin closed the umbrella under a second story balcony and opened the door for Dean.

"After I figured we could stop for a drink and some live music."

"I like the name." Dean rubbed a hand through his hair to get out any rain and then stepped inside. He was mindful of his shoes and wiped his feet. He didn't want to track water in a nice, quaint looking restaurant. It smelled amazing inside and Dean's stomach rumbled happily at the idea of filling southern food.

He waited for Merle and the hostess who got them to a table. "I thought I was providing the live music," he teased. "That's why I brought the guitar."

"It's very self evident, isn't it?" Merlin liked the lack of pretentious air that so many other restaurants had. The food was always good, service spotty but never lazy and he could come in with paint spotted clothes and a book, and no one would look at him like he was committing a crime against all the sense of propriety by not dressing to the nines when all he wanted was something to eat.

It was a habit that Merlin sometimes forgot to watch out for. When they got to the table, he pulled a seat for Dean like his brother had drilled into his head from early age that a gentleman does for his companion. He grew up to old fashioned customs that have surprisingly nothing to do with either disrespect or respect. Sometimes used for fishing out apologies, a national sports of a kind.

The hostess took their drink orders and left them with the menu. Merlin glanced at Dean over his menu, smiling behind it. "well, I don't mind having you all to myself earlier than I thought."

It was really old fashioned of Merle but Dean was amused. It was really rare anyone did that these days for women or men. He sat down and scanned the menu. Everything sounded good. He wasn't an expert in Southern food but he knew there was a lot of butter and that made food good.

"I guess it depends on how long you'd like me to stay," he said, also sneaking a peek over the top of his menu. "We can go see some music and then have a private concert. You just have to send me home late."

How far this would go tonight was up in the air. So far, Merle had been very respectful and polite about everything. Dean's dates were usually more forward but he didn't mind the slower pace. He wanted everyone to be comfortable while they were out and he was pretty comfortable with flirting and taking it easy.

Merlin hasn't done any dating for a long while. He honestly has no idea how people in today's shadow Earth act. He merely works around the issue, ignoring it completely when he can and does what he wants. Which goes happily hand in hand with spending time together and getting to know each other. Dean is someone he would like to be able to call to after ten years and have a pleasant conversation about magic at least if nothing else.

His eyes curved a bit, his grin hidden behind the menu but the wrinkles around his eyes saying a thing or two about it. "You could spend the night," he said laughingly. "Your home is basically next door." Or at least it was with magic.

"What kind of music do you like?" he asked suddenly. There always seemed to be some jazz club or another with live music to offer but what else was there? He didn't honestly know.

Spending a night was a big step forward but Dean wasn't bothered by the idea. He remembered Merle's bed being very comfortable and large and lavish. He would happily bed down in it again without any objections. Maybe this time Merle would join him.

"I'm pretty open to every type of music," he said with a laugh. "Seriously, if it's good I'll listen to it. There are some things like scream rock and really hardcore rap that I don't enjoy but most genres there's at least one song I like."

Honestly, with how much he loved music Dean should've been a muse or siren or something instead of a sorcerer. It was another one of those things that got him through his rough, lonely childhood. When the world sucked he had music to turn towards and comfort him. "So, take me to your favorite place and I bet we'll have fun."

"Makes sense." Merlin nodded while scanning the menu quickly before putting it away. "I feel the same way about art and software. Of course there are favorites but it would be such a narrow selection if I'd only limit myself to those."

And to understand any walk of life as thoroughly as one usually wanted with their chosen passion, focusing only on a limited selection of it would be quite boring and hardly give a good idea of entirety of the practice.

The hostess came over to bring their drinks and take their orders for food. A lot of the selection Merlin had tried before and he picked one that he already knew he would like.

"Would you like to travel outside NY if you had more time?" he asked when they had the table for themselves again. Unlike most of his questions, this one came with a whole conversation that might or might not take place depending on Dean's answer.

Perhaps he was being a bit of a tourist but Dean got himself gumbo. This probably wouldn't be his only chance to try authentic New Orleans gumbo but why take the risk? He wanted to experience it while he had the chance, just in case something went wrong dating Merle. It could happen.

"Maybe. I've always wanted to see other cities and get a feel for their magic, maybe learn some new tricks," he said with a shrug, idly drumming a finger against the table. "But again, all my money's in the club and right now I can't afford world wandering. In a few years I can probably start thinking about that."

As long as nothing went wrong. Dean knocked his knuckle against the table, knocking on wood, because he didn't take stupid chances. Things were good now but he wasn't going to tempt fate by saying they would always stay that way.

"So, theoretically, you'd be interested in a dinner date, say in London next time?" Merlin asked curiously, unable to stay still so he fiddled with his fork while talking, balancing it on one of the spikes. Laws of physics say it probably shouldn't stand up like this but Merlin knew better than to trust those laws.

"Or somewhere more exotic? I want to make sure you will talk to me again if I whisk you away to another world for an afternoon or to Russia in the 18th century, or something like that."

Not everyone would find that entertaining. Look at Julia. Not that Merlin had taken her to anywhere. Maybe he should have. She might not feel inclined to stab him.

"Hey, as long as I don't have to work you can whisk me away to anywhere," Dean said with a laugh, ducking his head at a sudden burst of bashfulness. Jesus, a date in London. It was insane to think he was dating a guy who could with a wave of his fingers take him anywhere in the world.

Magically he was way out of his league.

"Let's work up to time travel though. My magic sort of relies on modern technology." Without it around Dean wouldn't be completely powerless but he would be weak. It would be terrifying to go back in time and not have access to the power he relied on. It was absolutely the scariest idea to him. He hadn't been without magical power since he was thirteen. "But London sounds cool. Pretty much anywhere but LA and I'm good for travel."

Mobility was important. Merlin didn't like staying still for too long.

His lips curved into a calm smile as he watched Dean, wondering if it was just too much for the man. Or would be? He didn't know. Hopefully not.

"It's not time travel, per se. The universe includes all possible parallel worlds to yours. So there are countless versions of shadow Earth in countless different time periods. It's a bit of a mess. But basically it means that by stepping a bit on the side from here, you could be living the yesterday's world. Two identical worlds cannot exist but two almost identical worlds can and do exist.

"But duly noted."

No to travel between the worlds. At least for now.

Merlin leaned in to slosh a bit of his wine against the sides of his glass before taking a sip.

"Is it London or something else rather? Stockholm? Rome?"

Edited 2016-10-15 05:21 (UTC)

"It's anywhere," Dean said with a laugh as he ran his hand through his hair. He didn't know how to explain it. "I'd go anywhere because I've never expected to travel that much. I sort of figured I'd stay in New York for the rest of my life. Most of my power is tied up in the city itself anyway."

He felt like he was rambling a little and so stopped to take a breath and sort through his thoughts on how to explain himself to Merle.

"A sorcerer like myself can form a symbiotic relationship with the city they live in," he said, gesturing with his hands. "When I'm in New York I'm stronger because the city gives me some of its power. A lot of sorcerers who connect like that never leave their cities. They're protectors. I'm more a... promoter. I get magical people to New York who help make New York stronger."

"So, New York gets more powerful the more of you there are?" Merlin asked curiously. He didn't know the brand of magic that Dean practiced and it was fascinating learning more about it. Every shadow had its own set of rules. He hadn't been in this particular shadow Earth all that much. In others, yes, but this one was still a bit of a mystery.

Like discovering a world again. It was why he liked traveling.

He thought that it would be interesting to see if Dean could download parts of his power onto the mechanical devices that he could so easily manipulate. Merlin had a bit of experience in mixing and matching machinery and magic. He would have to introduce Dean to Ghostwheel.

"We should have a brainstorming session about your brand of magic one day. It's an interesting field. I'd love to know more about it."

Second date

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ugh, lost this tag to browser closing on me

bad browser

rubbish, I also know virtually nothing about Nola so I'm so sorry if I get something horribly wrong.

That's okay I've never been, lol

I've never been to the states. C:

it's not all that great here, lol

lmao, where would it be? It would be warmer in Nola. D: Freezing in here already.

Chicago where it's chilly and windy and getting to be cold

Arctic zone! Finland. 8D Ice on the roads. Good times.

You win

what did I win? ice? D: DON'T FEEL LIKE WINNING

probably not, lol

well. : |