mahem | inbox for duplicity;

good

I'll be there in a little while

i'll tell em to let you right on up

[ As it turns out, getting to the Up is easier with practice. This time Hellboy barely even glances at the SIN guards and thankfully they decline to question him on why he's unaccompanied so late at night, and he makes decent time to Harley's apartment building, letting himself admire the glitter and hum of this part of the city at night.

The click of his hooves muffled by the fancy carpet, he arrives outside her door and knocks carefully, not knowing who else he might be waking up. ]

[ it's definitely a very mature hour, so mature it could probably get into an r-rated movie all by itself, but the harley who answers the door isn't the harley he's probably used to seeing, even if she's still wearing bright colors. no, this harley looks... softer, blonde hair freed from its pigtails and her face scrubbed clean of any makeup, lips an almost-bloodless shade without her trademark red.

paired with her off-the-shoulder sweatshirt and a pair of rainbow leggings, she either looks like she's on her way to a dance class or ready for some hardcore snuggling, but she leans against the ajar door and grins sideways up at him. ]

Ya know, I almost didn't think you'd show.

[ He doesn't bother hiding the smile that crooks up the side of his mouth, either because of her grin or her outfit, though he makes a show of looking a little offended at her accusation. ]

Hey, I'm a man of my word. Didn't want you to end up sleepless on my behalf. And.. [ He reaches into one of the big pockets of his coat, pulling out something loosely wrapped in wax paper which turns out, when he shows Harley, to be a thick beef bone. ] I got something for Bruce.

Well, you're just spoilin' both of us then, aren't you? [ she has to get enough momentum in order to rocket herself up onto her tiptoes so she can reach his cheek in order to deposit a kiss there, a quick peck before she sinks back down onto her heels and carefully takes the package from him. ]

We can surprise him with this in the mornin', he's totally passed out right now and I like to let him get his z's in. [ because a tired hyena is a cranky hyena, to no one's surprise, and sure enough, if hellboy happens to look over at the living room sofa there's a furry body splayed out on it snoring almost as loud as a person would, occasionally making little barking noises in his sleep. harley glances back over her shoulder at him, clucking her tongue once. ] Isn't he the most precious thing you've ever seen?

[ Hellboy's grin spreads in the wake of that kiss, bordering, a tiny bit, on being goofy for while she's occupied with taking the gift from him before he pulls his composure back. He follows her look into the living room, expression softening again at the sight of Bruce sprawled out like that. The hyena isn't anything like Mac, the dog that's almost seventy years behind him now, but he's got a soft spot for animals that the passage of time hasn't managed to erode yet. ]

Yeah, he's pretty far up there. [ He glances back at Harley. ] Didn't pull you out of bed did I?

Who, me? [ she's already in the process of finding a place to toss that bone — in the fridge seems like the best way to keep it fresh until bruce can chow down on it — and she glances up at him over the open door before letting it close quietly. ] Nah. I'm gonna be the one pullin' you in in a minute.

[ because she reaches out to slip her right hand into his left one, giving it a small tug to lead him down the hallway to the last door on the end, a smile clinging to her lips. ] Might be a little bigger than what you're used to sleepin' in down there, but —

[ that might be an understatement; the bed in the room is obscenely large, enough to sleep at least ten people let alone two, and there might be a few articles of clothing haphazardly tossed at the foot of it, but she slips free of him to bound toward it and hoists herself up, spinning around to flop onto her back with her arms outstretched. ] Mmmm. Like layin' on a cloud.

[ He doesn't think he's ever going to be able to get used to how easily she reaches out for him, not just with an outstretched hand, but with a word or a glance, making him feel wanted, included in ways he didn't expect to find in a place like this. He lets her pull him down the hall, enjoying the tiny almost boyish thrill of being lead to her private sanctuary.

He smiles at the sight of the bed, though it's mostly because of her excitement, gently closing the door behind him. He glances around at the decor, the scattered bits and pieces of her life, and shrugs out of his coat, draping it over the back of a chair. Though they've already shared so much of each other, it feels strangely intimate. ]

My kinda bed. [ He walks over to stand at the foot of it, tail waving idly behind him, and looks down at her. ] Guess it pays being up here, huh?

[ it's not really a space of hers he's been in before; truth be told, not very many people have been in this room, period, and as she props herself up on her elbows to watch him shed an outer layer, she's struck by that realization, something that manages to fill her with excitement and enjoyment all at the same time. she likes that he's here. likes that she's getting to share this with him.

and maybe she wants to prove that she's not just the wild, whirling dervish he first met not very long ago now. that she has other sides she's still capable of, sides she thinks she's willing to trust him with. crazy as it sounds even just in her own head.

she extends one hand slowly to pat the space beside her — though really, there's so much of it in either direction he could have his pick of any side, since she's crawled more to the middle. ] Well, I probably won't be up here for much longer, so... if you wanna take advantage of this whole sitch, now's your chance.

[ It's a kind of trust he hasn't been offered all that often, at least not by the living, or people who have expected him to stick around for longer than the space of the job they've hired him for. He doesn't know quite how to act, but he's happy to take cues from her.

He climbs up onto the bed, moving across to her left side so he can stretch his big right arm up above her, settling his weight carefully. He doesn't try to reach out and touch her yet, though, just stays on his side looking down at her stretched out next to him. ]

You're not staying here?

Uh-uh. [ she rolls over onto her side so she’s facing him, elbow nudged into the mattress with her cheek docked in her palm. ] First chance I get, I’m gonna move to the Down, Brucie and Cass and me and whoever else might be with us by then.

[ she’s distant for a moment, reflective, pressing her lips together in thought before she continues out loud. ] This place... it’s fine, but it’s not me, y’know? Too fancy. But I got my heart set on this warehouse space, could be perfect with a little overhaul. So once I have enough to make it happen, I’ll move us all in. Still plannin’ on havin’ a bed just like this one in it, though. [ she shifts inward until her knees skim his thighs, tilting her head back to keep him in her view. ] For sleepovers, that sorta thing.

Yeah?

[ Slowly, he reaches out with his left hand to skate his fingertips along the edge of her sweatshirt until he can rest his palm on her hip. There's no magical compulsion between them now, only a few inches of space among the soft blankets, and he finds himself feeling strangely nervous. ]

I guess it must be kinda tough living in a place like this. [ His voice is low and thoughtful, his thumb rubbing her gently through the fabric of her shirt. ] Feels like you've got someone watching your every move. View's.. uh, pretty good, though.

Mmhmm. [ she's already comfy enough lounged out on the bed like this, but now that he's shifted to lay beside her she becomes even more aware of just how much heat he gives off merely by existing, warmth radiating outward, and that happens long before he touches her, fingers brushing the hem of her sweatshirt where she feels the weight of it against the curve of her hipbone. it prompts her to sidle in, and now she's so close that she barely needs to raise her voice above a murmur. ]

Yeah, security's a real bitch. Plus they make it almost impossible to have just anybody up here unless you put 'em on a list, and I know what a freakin' hassle it is for you every time you come since you don't have a contract or anything, and — [ she sighs, gives herself a second to collect her train of thought again before it derails. ] Livin' in the Down just seems... easier. Simpler. Better. Whatever you wanna call it. The kinda place a girl like me is suited for.

[ Curled up in the shelter of his body, Harley seems a long way from the firecracker who stopped in the street to lick his chest, but he's finding he likes this side of her just as much, if not more. He can hear the conflict playing out under her words, the parts of her life she's struggling with, and it makes him wonder just how comfortable she really is with her situation, as much as she seems to have fun with the sexy side of it. Whether she gets lonely in this big bed with the good view of the city glittering through the big windows, and whether that's anything like the long years he's spent in the strange corners of the world.

He moves his hand a little on her hip, stroking her side, then lets it come to rest draped down over her back. ]

Well, lemme know when you move, I'll come over and make sure the place isn't haunted. [ His fingertips draw small, soothing circles. ] You know, just in case.

[ there's a lot about this place to love — the luxury, the 24-hour room service, the very bed they find themselves in now, the fact that she could stay here for an entire year if she wanted to before she'd have to find somewhere else to crash — but it doesn't feel like her, not the way the down feels. when she's there, she can't help but be reminded of home, even with its darker corners, its shadowy edges. it's what she rubs up against all the time in gotham, and it just makes more sense for her to be there once she can have enough cash to swing it.

but his hand shifts along her hip and then his arm drops further across her, making it easy for her to find a place where she's tucked into him with her knees pulled up so she's almost docked in like a fitted puzzle piece. ]

Yeah? Give it a looksie for me? [ her smile is a little more subdued, but no less genuine. ] Maybe there'll be somethin' in it for ya. Like... free pizza.

[ It's nice like this, nicer than he's had in a very long time. With so little experience sleeping in the same bed as someone else he had assumed he wouldn't be comfortable enough to relax, had planned around spending the night letting Harley rest while he lay there and letting that be enough. But now that he's here and breathing in the scent of her shampoo and her sheets, faint notes of laundry soap and hyena, he can feel a pleasant lassitude tugging at him.

He shifts a little, stroking her back, tries and fails to stifle a yawn. ]

Mm. Can't say no to free pizza.

Who can say no to free pizza?

[ alright, whatever she thought was going to come from essentially inviting him over at whatever-the-fuck o'clock in the morning, she's not prepared for how freaking adorable it is when she realizes he's starting to get sleepy in front of her, and there's something in his energy, lax and quiet, that falls over her too, makes her want to snuggle into him and drift off until whenever she happens to wake up. (she doesn't know what an alarm clock is, really.) ]

Okay. Sleep time.

[ her voice is soft, hushed, and then she finally tips her chin up in order to skim her mouth across his, faint and light, before nudging her nose to his for a brief second. when she shifts, it's to roll herself away but press herself into him simultaneously, fitting her back to his chest with her knees drawn up as she takes his hand in hers and tucks that shared link together in front of herself. ] See ya in the mornin', Red.

[ she really doesn't need an extra blanket so long as she's tucked in this close to him, and it doesn't take long before her eyes flutter shut and her breathing slowly evens out. ]

[ As quick and soft as the kiss is, he's tempted to chase it back for more, but there's something good about that brief touch as well, like it's part of a routine they don't have to rush because they have plenty of time for the other stuff. When she rolls over and slides herself back against him, he goes with it willingly, an undefinable feeling of gratitude blossoming inside him when she laces her hand through his and pulls it up against her chest.

He ducks his head to drop a kiss into her hair, shifting a little to get comfortable. ]

Sleep tight.

[ He tries to stay awake long enough to feel her drift off, watching the lights of the city glow through the window, listening to the faint sounds of traffic and Bruce snuffling and snoring down the hall underneath the soft rhythm of her breathing. He wants to stay up, as if he can try to hold on to this moment longer the more of it he can experience, but she'd been right to say that the bed is far more comfortable than the thin mattresses and creaking springs in the Down, and it's been a long, strange week, and eventually sleep rises up to claim him as well.

*

Hellboy's sleep is often restless. After everything he's seen and done, with everything he is, nightmares are an expected side effect. Thankfully, most of the time he doesn't remember them.

Soft sunlight on his eyelids pulls him out of a formless morass of black tentacles and tolling bells, distant memories of an African shoreline. For a moment he's confused, still mostly asleep and not sure where he is, but the soft warm weight of Harley resting along his chest and belly, nestled up against his thighs, reminds and reassures him that he's right where he wants to be.

Sighing, letting his eyes drift closed again, he moves slightly to pull her a bit closer, happy to drop back into a warm doze for as long as the day will let him. ]

[ when harley quinn dreams, her dreams are probably the stuff of nightmares — but most of the time, she forgets them as soon as she wakes up, like a memory that sloughs off in her subconscious and never emerges to torture her when she's awake. her thoughts are scattered enough that this isn't anything she really worries about, most of the time.

but tonight, maybe she's tired enough — or maybe she manages to be soothed enough — that she doesn't dream about anything at all, curling in a little tighter every so often and readjusting her hold on his hand. at one point, she rolls over to burrow into him more closely, knees tucked up so she's in more of a fetal position with her shins docked atop his thighs as she nestles beneath the casual sling of his arm across her middle.

when she wakes up, closer towards the afternoon now, she can hear the tv on in the living room — cass is probably watching some objectively terrible home improvement show again, his favorite pastime — and it takes her an extra second to remember how she'd fallen asleep, pressed against a warm wall of big and red, and she doesn't fully open her eyes yet, too cocooned and content to want to ruin the moment.

she can't tell if he's awake yet, but she can feel her way by touch, and it's how she ends up tipping up just enough to press her nose to the hollow of his throat, nuzzling along the dark line there before pushing her lips to that same spot, soft hums emerging because she can't help herself. the scent of him, pleasing, like roasting chestnuts, is even stronger right now, makes her needy for him without any hurry in it. right this second, she just... wants to enjoy this. ]

[ He drifts again for a while, untethered in a warm dark sea, content and comforted in a way that's been out of reach for so long it's almost become unfamiliar to him. Then gentle movement against his chest brings him back again, the stroke of careful hands over him before soft breaths and the light touch of lips find that place between his collarbones and he remembers, all over again, where he is.

He makes a low pleased noise in the back of his throat, not wanting to speak yet and admit to being fully awake, wanting to stay in this moment between dreaming and the world they need to get back to. His eyes still closed, he smiles sleepily as his palm slides down over her back, over the rumpled softness of her sweatshirt, warmed by his body heat and the depths of sleep. That searching touch finds the hem and slides underneath, along the waistband of her leggings and up until he can feel the smooth softness of her skin, spreading his fingers over her back. ]

[ she’s so warm she doesn’t even really need her sweatshirt either, but she’s bare beneath it, nothing but skin meeting his fingers when he slips his hand underneath it, the delicate curve of her spine that arches as she simultaneously leans back into his touch and strains up in order to reach his face too. lying on the bed like this, she can make her way up the length of his body easily in spite of their height difference, and now she’s too motivated to keep kissing him, little soft presses of her mouth to his neck, his jaw, wherever she can reach without craning too much.

she doesn’t know if he’s awake yet — she hasn’t opened her eyes fully to check — but he sound he makes, that low rumble, seems to be a fair indication that she’s roused him a little and she finally inches her way up the bed until their faces are closer to level, until she can find his lips with hers, fitting them together in something slow and gentle. there’s nothing rushing in it, nothing impatient — and nothing working inside her other than her own appreciative want for him, now that she’s woken up to him still here in her bed with her. ]

[ Hellboy lets out a breath as her mouth finds his, a slow sigh of pleasure at having her curled up against him, his hand up under her sweatshirt gently caressing her back, thumb drawing a line down between her shoulderblades as they kiss, letting their contact spool out slow and lazy and sweet.

As he draws more towards wakefulness and becomes more aware of Harley so close, the softness of her skin and her small noises, his body responds, already half-hard in his shorts as he surfaces from sleep. But there's no insatiable hunger this time, only a gentle heat and warmth building between them, so he's content to just stay like this, enjoying the fact that she's in his arms, letting the life of the city and everything else happen without them for a while.

Opening his mouth a little into the press of her lips, he slides his hand down over her side and around to her front, up over the warm weight of her breast, the metal beads of her piercing against his palm a counterpoint to that softness, drawing a soft groan from him. ]

[ well, now she knows he's awake, considering his hand is taking a very direct path from the small of her back to the front of her body, his heavy palm cupping over the slight swell of her breast; his hand is so big his fingers are spreading out across her chest, and if she tucked her chin down she could probably even see one or two tips peeking out from the collar of her sweatshirt, but right now she's too caught up in the feeling of his mouth on hers to let herself be distracted.

she chuckles when he groans like that, a sound that manages to leave her huskier than normal since this is the first time she's used her voice all morning — especially after a long night at the clockhouse and staying up for who knows how many hours before that.

so her first instinct is to keep this slow, lazy, unhurried, even in the way she finds his mouth with hers, slips her tongue in to let it tangle with his, and presses herself more firmly into him, rolling her shoulders so her breast nudges more into his palm, so that it's clear she doesn't mind where his hand is going. ]

[ The soft way she laughs at him is satisfying in ways he can't really define while mostly asleep, except that it sends a pleased thrill through him and all he knows all he wants is to make her happy like that as much as he can.

He squeezes her gently, softly, as he tastes her, no tequila or pancake syrup this time, just the uniqueness of her own body. The soft warm breaths against his skin are as thrilling as anything else they've done. Part of him, mostly the part starting to push against the front of his shorts, wants to roll her over and kneel between her legs, kiss his way down her body and fuck her with his tongue or his fingers. But at the same time he wants to stay here, exactly like this, not even speaking but letting each other's touches guide them. Either way he's full of gratitude for her, for what she's been to him over these last few weeks.

Lifting his right arm, he encourages her as close as she can get, a low quiet rumble of sound indicating how much he likes what she's doing. ]

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ugh this is so soft i can't handle it

just too soft

:3

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