openmisc | TMA!Jacobi and Jon

TMA!Jacobi and Jon

"Are you sure this is the place?" he asks the driver, who was already speeding off, leaving Jacobi in front of the old building.

"Thanks for your help!" he calls out with false cheer, rolling his eyes before trudging his way up to what he had been told was the Magnus Institute. He doesn't even flinch at the screech of tires that comes from blocks behind him. He doesn't have to see the car erupt into flames as a very confused driver crawls out and phones for help. That's chaos for someone else.

Instead, he takes the steps up, backpack on his shoulder. He had flown all the way out here, so it's not as if he's going to be missing any leads. Besides. He has an appointment.

The closer to the door he gets, the more uncomfortable he feels about this. It's like a whisper of wind against his skin, a suggestion of something dangerous, but Jacobi's never let something like that bother him. He walks through, hands in his pockets.

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There's another hand helping them, a claw that grabs onto Jacobi's shirt and yanks him up and out, along with the Archivist, whose hand is smoking, and the bedraggled woman who's clinging onto his back.

And that impossible voice is its usual smug, satisfied self even if the owner of said voice looks more than a little frazzled, bloodspattered, and singed.

"I have heard of a fish in a fish, but this is a catch of a lifetime."

He never, not in a thousand years, thought that he'd ever hear that voice again so clearly.

He lets go of Jon, staring up at Warren Kepler with wide eyes. It lasts for only a second before he finds his voice.

"That's the line you go with?" he scoffs. He turns to find Jon, wincing at his hand. But at least he's alive. Ish. And - Daisy, too, apparently.

Which is when Jacobi is going to hear a snarl and get snatched up by the front of his shirt again, the violence of the movement sending his sunglasses askew to show the bright yellow glow to those eyes.

"What I have to say doesn't need words."

Which is when he's getting kissed, on the mouth, desperate and a little rougher than even Daniel might like as he's pressed into the wall of Jon's office hard enough to shake a bookshelf and send a few things on the desk skittering off.

For their part, Jon's going to check on Daisy, who has her eyes squarely on Kepler like a large dog that just spotted a bear and doesn't even know how to deal with the concept of something that much bigger and more deadly than it is. Jon doesn't say anything for a long moment as he observes it, and then there'll be a quiet discussion between the two while the man in question is... occupied.

In the very, very, very back of Daniel's mind, where there's sense that isn't being kissed out of him, he makes a note to apologize to Jon because there is still a distinct singe to him, and the wall behind him now has some definite burns on it. As does Kepler, though Daniel is sure he's not going to mind or even notice. He puts hands to his face, along his back, through his hair, anywhere he can get to.

They had never kissed until this moment, and it hurts in the best way. He's - happy.

He feels so whole and full again that it takes him a while to regain any sort of consciousness before he gently shoves the heel of his hand into Warren's shoulder. A deliberate burn. A stopping point so he can figure himself out.

There's smoke coming off of his jumpsuit, but Warren doesn't seem to mind. Instead, those golden eyes are glittering with dark promises and something that isn't entirely sated yet.

"That? Is three plans? You've blown up in my face, Daniel. I'm going to start charging service hours."

And he might have stopped kissing him but he's not going to stop himself dipping in to get a breath of his scent at the neck and under the jaw.

Jon, who is putting a blanket around Daisy's shoulders, gives both of them a weak smile before tipping his head towards Daisy.

"I'm going to put on the kettle. Who else would like some?"

Daniel raises up slightly and, in a show of how absolutely absurd his life is, he looks over Warren's shoulder and calls out.

"Make that instant coffee shit for me!"

But then his attention is firmly on Warren and he tries to push him back again so he can at least look at him.

"Send me a bill," he mutters. "What the hell happened?"

"Nope," he says firmly, "I get to ask that first, what with you neck deep in the Buried. Did your brains all fall out of your head on that trip back with the Hephaestus crew?"

From over his shoulder-

"Yes, yes," from Jon.

And a slightly more reedy "aye, I know how to make it" from Daisy.

He narrows his eyes. "You don't get to judge my choices when you weren't even here."

Trust Daniel to get fussy with a very fierce Hunter and have absolutely zero fear doing it.

"Jon went in. I was helping. And it - took too long. I thought I could help. And, to be fair, I did."

His answer is a growl and Jon is going to interrupt to offer him a cup of coffee that's practically jammed in his hands.

"I would have been able to find my way to you, Daniel. Your plan was sound. Your addition to it-" he glances at Kepler, "I have a feeling the arrival of your Mr. Kepler is the only reason we're alive right now."

But he will pause and lean in to gently say-

"Thank you, Daniel. It... I couldn't have done it without you."

"Don't tell him that," he says to Jon, but takes his coffee anyway.

"Well, I may have also been testing that self destructive streak," he mutters into his cup. And then he reaches over with his free hand and wraps it around Jon in a tight embrace.

Oh. Jon's... a little surprised, but he'll once more lean into the hug and give him one right back. The growling behind him doesn't subside; if anything, it does the opposite. Which has Jon giving him a squeeze before tipping his head to indicate Daisy, who he feels the need to look after.

Once he slips away, Jacobi will get to see the 'told you so' look on Warren's face.

"You break other things, Jacobi. Breaking yourself is firmly off limits."

Which is when he hears his phone beep and he'll pull it up to show him two very important things: the first one is a message that just says Did you find him yet? and the name on top.

Dr. Maxwell

He almost argues with him. He almost raises his voice and insists that he doesn't know. That text knocks all the fight out of him.

Daniel leans back against the wall, closing his eyes as the world seems to tilt off center. Jon leaves to care for Daisy and Jacobi just braces against one side of a bookshelf like a lifeline.

Jon's alright. He has someone, he has Daisy, and Jacobi has the shattered pieces of his life coming back together.

Things don't un-break. Jacobi knows that's not how it works. And yet hes seeing it happen.

"How?"

Warren keeps his voice low as he leans in.

"I had a feeling. That she... might be like us? Just... different. So. I made sure to switch the bundle with her body. Kept it from going out into space so she could heal. It took... time. For her body to reconstruct. And she's... not entirely the same?"

That earns him a cocky smile.

"Not that any of us are. But Alana and I have been... fully realized. Much like your friend over there."

He gestures towards himself.

"I had to wait for her to wake up and pluck me out of the vacuum of space. Which. I can't say I enjoyed?"

He chuckles a little. "It was easy enough to overtake the clean up crew. Commandeer the ship. And get back here. Then we were figuring out when to approach you when you did the dumbest thing I have ever seen in my entire life."

He glances around for a moment before focusing on Daniel again.

"What even brought you here, Daniel? You decided to just... trot into the middle of a war zone?"

That makes...so much sense and he hates how easy that Warren makes it sound. As if he didn't make it all the way back here and suffer for months and months. As if he should have known.

Maybe he should have. Maybe that was his problem all along.

"I got intel from some old idiot friends about something that - I wanted. And so I came here to get it."

There's a blink as Warren does a mental inventory and really, he should know. How do you think some of these artifacts move around?

"...Daniel. Tell me. you didn't. Tell me you didn't use that knife."

He runs his tongue along his teeth. "Jon wouldn't let me have it," he assures him. "It's still locked away safely."

"It wouldn't have gone well for Jon if he had," he says honestly before he turns to Jacobi and meets his eyes.

"Anything else I need to know about what you've been doing on Earth since you got here?"

He puts a hand on his shoulder, finally drinking his coffee. "Don't touch a hair on his fucking head or I will raze this goddamn city to embers snd ruin every plan you've ever made."

Threat delivered, he slides that hand down his chest, unconcerned with propriety at the moment. What does it matter? His head is still spinning from that kiss.

"I demolished the lab down the way," he mutters. "If you couldn't figure that out." He'd be disappointed in him if that had been a detail he missed, but he still likes saying it.

"I - gathered up all my resources and have some stockpiles in the usual places. I was working on taking them down."

It's obvious from the brightening of his eyes that he takes it seriously but-

"Don't threaten me with a good time, hot stuff," he says before letting out a chuckle. "But I've got no beef with the Archivist. He did right. I'd even say I probably owe him a favor. Especially since you're so attached."

He puts his hand over Jacobi's and gives it a squeeze.

"We noticed your work with the lab. And good job with the rest as well. I was coming to see what had you coming here when I noticed the coffin. And smelled you in there."

"That's the dumbest fucking nickname. Pick something else," he grumbles for the sake of grumbling. But there's a smile on his face at the praise.

He looks to his coffee and pulls away, heading to Jon's drawer where he keeps the brandy. Hopefully he won't mind if he just puts a bit in his cup.

"Let's get the fuck out of here," he finally decides. He's not leaving forever, but he does want to give Jon time. He's aching to have his own life right.

"I've got a whole dozen of 'em for you, sunshine," he says cheerfully before he gives Jacobi a nod and throws off a wave to Jon.

"We'll be back," he says cheerfully before sliding his arm around Jacobi's shoulders.

Jon looks up from giving Daisy a cup of that coffee and offers a warm, if tight, smile.

"We'll be here."

Jacobi glances once over his shoulder. "I'll bring your cup back!"

He takes a drink as they walk out, leaning heavily against him as a bit of that bravado goes out the window. The weight of the day, the decisions he made, what he went through, finally hits him full on.

"Where are you both staying?"

Jon just looks amused but his focus is on Daisy, rubbing at her back and trying to settle her somewhat now that she's out.

For his part, Warren waggles an eyebrow before he huffs a laugh.

"My London bolthole. As per usual. Not the main one, the side one."

"I'm assuming no one knows that you're here."

He takes a drink of his now spiked coffee.

"This is - a fucking lot," he breathes out.

"Hence the waiting to break it to you," he points out as he pushes a door open and a woman in a headscarf stares at him before immediately running past. He grins. "But given that you almost trapped yourself in the Buried for the eternity, I decided to move up our timeline."

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