InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE"

Syd(ney) Barrett (_donttouch) wrote,
@ 2017-05-17 21:08:00

And, as they had discussed, the next day was back to work. She had gone to Cary first, the intention to find Kerry, but with a pleasant sidetrack of talking with the scientist. He did, in fact, have some poking and testing that he wanted to do --something about more theories that the journal brought up -- so Syd forced herself to stay still for the prodding. It worked, for the most part, particularly after Cary saw her trying and eased the tension with a little talk. Simple stuff, how he thought she could continue harnessing her ability and an unknown echo of
what Hank had said about part of it being psychological. The conversation also turned toward the light saber, with questions about whether she felt any after effects and if she'd like to continue working with that. Knowing all too well the stability that came with knowing the person you cared about could take care of herself, Cary saw nothing wrong in giving both Sydney and David that peace of mind. Just in case. Hope for the best, but prepare for the worse.

Syd, naturally, was pleased to continue being his guinea pig in that respect.

Afterward, it was Ptonomy she found next, which was actually perfect because she needed to bribe him into a favor soon. And what could she possibly offer the memory man? Pancakes. He loved them but couldn't cook them. Baking was apparently more his bag. So favor was exchanged for favor, and she couldn't quite help herself in innocently asking about yesterday afternoon, which had him looking at her suspiciously before she flitted away.

It all led her to Kerry, who had been heading over to Cary and her punching bag. But sparring was so much more fun. So that was exactly what they did, an hour and a half of moving and trying to best one another, moves and tips given from the younger girl as Sydney tried to get one over her. Still didn't work; the student still had much to learn from the master. They were about to switch when Kerry brought up a good point; had she tried with someone else? Other than David, because Kerry liked not having an explosion to worry about, thanks. Syd snorted, giving a shrug, but then she got to thinking about it. Maybe she should change it up. "I should find Rudy or Ptonomy and ask."

"Yeah, you should." Kerry thought that could possibly be interesting, grinning. "You get a hold on telekinesis and could toss things at me." Rudy wouldn't.

With that thought in mind, Syd wandered over to David's bedroom, figuring he wasn't there yet but would pop his head in relatively soon. She debated telling him about the newest plan, or letting him suss it out. Mostly because she was curious whether people were the same to him when they were switched. Humming, she plopped on the bed and sat cross-legged, going over various ideas in her head as she waited.

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xgene
2017-05-25 05:47 am UTC (link)

A fair bit of knowledge gained throughout the day, to be sure. Learned in a scary as hell way, yes, but learned nonetheless. David was glad to be back in his own skin, and he was sure everyone else was too, the sudden swap left for them to figure out and deal with on their own. Right now? He had every intention of keeping their isolation exactly as that: isolation. The cozy kind. The kind where it could remain stress free and they could appreciate what had happened in more relaxed terms.

And keep doing so, as the fort remained for the week. Totally deserved, totally awesome. And totally needed for a full recovery.

David stretched out as well, glad to be able to fully appreciate longer limbs, shorter hair, all that jazz. "I always will," he answered easily, laying down beside Syd after a moment, smiling brightly at her. "Never had a single doubt in my mind. Easy." Believing in her was truly easy, because somehow or another she'd always believed in him. How she managed, he also didn't fully understand, but that was a big part of the mystery of love. Their romance of the mind. Their awesome bond.

Now in charge of the rest of the day, David couldn't help but grin as an idea that had been floating in his head came right back to the forefront. With everyone back as themselves, namely himself and Syd... it made it easier. "Can I see that ring again?" Once a ring pop, now just a fun bit of jewellery that Syd seemed to have taken a shine to due to its comfort. Even David hadn't thought much about it when in her body -- its comfort truly on the level where someone who had never worn a ring before didn't notice it. "There's something I've been meaning to try with it." A further explanation. Sort of.

"Your powers have had enough spotlight today, now it's my turn." A little more, but the rest he kept gladly to himself, simply smiling as they lounged in their blanket fort after one hell of a day.

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_donttouch
2017-05-25 06:02 am UTC (link)

Oh, she would want to check in on everybody sometime. But that was later, much later. They'd all have their own self-reacquaintance and thoughts of the day to go through anyway, so might as well use that reasoning as an excuse for the quasi-selfish want to stay put. Cozy isolation with warm blankets and feelings was exactly where Syd planned to stay for a good portion of the rest of the day.

Their belief in one another was sort of two snakes biting each other's tails, feeding into each other as much as anything else between them did. And while she wasn't sure if she'd ever fully understand, it was something that Syd was okay with not fully understanding. "Still, thanks all the same."

She cocked her head in her hands, hair falling over her shoulder with the motion, but obliged the request, sitting up to do so. Sliding the ring off of her finger, she placed it between them both -- apologetic smile appearing because of that, but hoping he'd understand. It wasn't a slight to him at all, just a minor precaution after a long day.

"Oh? Do tell, Mr. Haller." She smirked playfully, curiosity definitely piqued with his interest in displaying what wonders he could do.

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xgene
2017-05-25 06:25 am UTC (link)

David totally understood placing the ring between them and didn't miss a beat in snatching it up, looking the ring over carefully and meeting the question with little more than a cheeky grin at first. Of course, it was soon followed up by, "Why tell when I can show?" There would be some words, obviously, but first there was a little showing that needed to be done -- ring in hand, held up where Syd could see -- so he took care of that first.

Focusing on the ring where it met the disk, David twisted just a little, the disk separating from the ring portion entirely. The disk was let go of, and while it continued floating where it was left (as if gravity had no effect), the leftover ring was molded a little, resized (a little smaller), and the material on top, the design, changed as well. A dark line appeared, still flat and smooth to the touch -- no agitation, nothing to catch on -- also wood, so it should feel just as nice.

But, in addition, another little extra something was formed with the leftover matter that came from the resize: something with a bit of shimmer without being overbearing. Crushed pearl -- something formed just as naturally as the wood itself.

Once done, the pale wooden band was turned over, the disk taken away with his free hand. The light that came in from the blanket held open by a never-used hair clip caught the bit of pearl just right, showing off the calm glimmer. Proud of the work, David set it down gently between them (an understood space, a respected and safe one) as he said, just as gently, almost shyly: "My idea for the rest of the day," eyes back on her own, still infinitely glad to see her in this moment, "is to... ask you to marry me."

He gave himself no time to overthink it, to worry about it. He knew he'd been wanting this, knew he'd been plotting it for a while. And with the right material, the right place where it was just the two of them... after a day that was a little intense, sure, but felt right because it was so very much their lives... it was time.

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_donttouch
2017-05-25 06:49 am UTC (link)

"So mysterious." Banter met with banter happily, even as she settled into further comfort sitting across from him and watching the show. Syd watched his hands, though attention flickered to the disk as she resisted the temptation to flick at it to see if it would float off or stay still, and then lifted her eyebrows in curiosity. She watched the changes being made, smooth as silk and interesting to look at.

The light of the crushed pearl caught her attention as well, picking the ring up and letting it stay in an open hand to admire just how beautiful it was. Syd looked up with a smile of awe, compliments and thanks at the tip of her tongue, but he got there first with more of the story. With a different part of the story.

She'd apologise a thousand times for it later, but the first reaction -- the first expression -- was an incredibly blank look. Not out of spite or annoyance, but simply because she had no idea how to react. And if brain noises could be broadcast properly, her thoughts were one big record scratch. Because she simply could not have heard right. Could she?

But once the words were processed, albeit slower than she might normally have, her face came alive. Her mouth opened to say the ever-so obvious answer in the positive, but laughter came out instead. Happy laughter paired with water in the corner of her eyes, eyes crinkled with the same emotion, tears threatening to spill but not doing so quite yet. Realising that she still hadn't said a word, she couldn't stop laughing and nodded emphatically to get the answer across to the poor beleaguered boy with so much courage.

She looked down at the ring still in her hand and slowly, with shaking hands, put it on the proper finger before leaning up and speaking quietly in his ear. "My answer is yes."

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xgene
2017-05-25 07:10 am UTC (link)

Mysterious for a reason! Mysterious for the usual, hopefully good, surprise that came with this kind of thing. But unlike Syd pretending to propose with this very ring, once little more than a weird candy flavor (blue, weird), his intent hadn't been to shock or get a deer in the headlights expression. Part of him wondered if it was blatantly obvious, if he hadn't already given himself away terribly. Hiding his intentions... really wasn't something David did. Ever.

The blank expression had him worried for a moment, holding his breath, trying to picture that it was similar to a deer in the headlights, just with the brain. A long moment. Air wasn't moving. David felt himself starting to shift from worry to panic when -- Syd reacted. Her expression, or lack of one, came about, and she laughed. The good kind, nothing in mockery, nothing in jest, just honest to goodness laughter.

He was finally able to breath after that, letting out the air he'd been holding and looking immensely relieved when the formal answer came. "Okay," he started, relief practically dripping from his tone, air still an issue as he drew in another deep breath to counter the long hold. "Okay, good." Phew. Okay. Okay wow. Wow. Good.

Wow. David couldn't hold back his own laughter then, fidgeting and wringing his hands a little around the remaining disk, empty hand tugging at the edge of his sleeve.

Bright grin back in place, he was back to practically beaming. "I know we're not a Surprise Couple, but I thought at least a blanket fort would be an okay place to make with this surprise."

Wow. Okay. Keep breathing. She said yes. Yes! Yes was good, yes was amazing. Yes was making his heart do all kinds of skipping-things right now.

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_donttouch
2017-05-25 01:45 pm UTC (link)

Perhaps it was easier to hide these sort of things when the other person didn't even dream of the possibility. In spite of the knowledge that David was it, the One and things like that, the idea of marriage hadn't even dawned on her. Not really, not seriously, beyond joking about it with silly candy rings that were now real ones. She hadn't even known whether he wanted to, or thought about it at all. So it was very easy to keep that a secret from someone who didn't see it in her own cards.

But now it was, and she was calming down from laughter but still anxious in a good way, excited and heart-skipping and unable to stop smiling. "It's the perfect place for this kind of surprise." She agreed with another nod. Then, unable to help herself, she looked down and watched her hand catch bits of light. "And the ring is perfect too. Thank you so much."

She laughed again, marveling at a new feeling. "Is it weird to want to run around and tell everyone, but also want to stay here just us and bask in this?"

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xgene
2017-05-25 03:13 pm UTC (link)

David wasn't a traditional person by any stretch of the imagination, and having no worldly possessions either, he knew that most reasons for 'marriage' weren't entirely applicable that couldn't be applicable to a couple that loved each other and chose to remain together without the label added to it. But it was just a thing in his head, probably Amy's influence -- if you loved someone, you should marry them. He loved Syd, more than anything else in the world, and as such he wanted to marry her. Simple as that, really.

"Thought I was totally giving myself away, testing all those materials the other day," he said in relation to the ring, unable to help the self-conscious smile and fidgeting he was doing. "You know me, zero cool and all." But God he was glad she liked it. He was glad it still felt okay, even with the minor embellishment, that it was pretty without being obnoxious or fussy. And also now that it fit on the right finger. His heart was still doing stupid things.

It felt like he had too much energy, all the adrenaline of having run a marathon without doing a damned thing. As tempting as it was to actually start running around doing something, both out of excitement and to combat the pounding in his chest, David wanted nothing more than to stay and bask. Because that was exactly what he was doing already -- basking, staring in abject wonder, amazed and stunned, feeling as lucky as anyone ever possibly could.

"Well, we should probably check up on everyone later anyway," do another set of rounds, this time with the right minds in the right bodies, "but right now?" Right now they were here and he couldn't stop smiling. "Right now I think everyone'd be sick just looking at us. Being That Couple again." Times about a hundred. A thousand. A million for what he was feeling right now. A bit of the nerves David had been ignoring were sinking in despite himself, a wave of oh my God oh my God smacking him upside the head and making him reel a little.

She said yes. "I love you." She said yes. "So, so much." A beat then, dopey grin turning just a little bit cheeky, "Welcome back to us, beautiful."

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_donttouch
2017-05-25 04:37 pm UTC (link)

“I love your zero cool,” she reminded him with a smile, then laughed quietly. “I just thought you were messing around half to see what would happen and half because you keep spoiling me.” What’s more spoiling than giving into someone’s childish desire for sugar on a stick? Or a ring, in this case. “And I’m apparently not as observant as I think I am.” She was joking, knowing full well that you can’t observe for things that simply weren’t in your scope of thought. Besides, that would have been really presumptuous, and she tried not to be that.

She loved the ring, really, finding it her style without ever having a style for jewelry in the first place. Hands folded over one another easily in her lap, right hand tracing along the lines of the circle like a kid with a new toy, like a woman completely awestruck by the way her life unfolded. Made into mush by the man before her and fucking loving every minute of it. It was weird. She laughed again, shaking her head. “Let them be sick of us. Times a million.” So much energy and nerves and she didn’t mind. A little bit of the nerves came from worries in the back of her mind, she knew. Marriage wasn’t something she had seen work in her experience. But the worry was a bug, squished from how big and full of love she felt. They had navigated some weird shit and only got stronger from it; together, they totally had this in the bag.

“I love you. With all of my heart.” She replied, laughing at his cheekiness. “The most amazing welcome back I can think of.” Then, peering at David, fidgety with energy. “And I might ask you to ask me again..? In our other Room?” If he didn’t mind. Because, while not a traditionalist either by any means, Syd was a romantic. And shared spaces where she could hug him after saying yes (again) sounded really nice.

“Also, this totally blows any of my gift ideas out of the water.” Not that it was competition, obviously, but it was still an amusing thought.

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xgene
2017-05-25 07:14 pm UTC (link)

"Well, I did want you to enjoy that ring pop." No denying that, that much was for sure. Motioning to the disk portion still in his hand, David added, "I plan on using this too. Might as well use it all, seeing as how you technically proposed to me first." Smirking, he laughed, those residual nerves making it lean more towards a giggle than he intended. "Try not to linger on the memory of how wide my eyes were with Ptonomy later." That it'd been on his mind, that he'd been looking for an excuse to test, and there it was. Perfect test... only to have that moment happen.

Yeah, whether they wanted to or not, they were probably going to make people sick times a million. David was looking forward to it, having nothing in the future portion of this to be nervous about. Then again, he had it lucky: he'd only ever seen happy marriages. Hell, even Melanie and Oliver were getting back into a married couple rhythm after Oliver completely lost his mind. David wasn't even thinking about how easily he could lose his mind too – he already had lost it, after all. He was already crazy as hell.

And Syd still said yes.

Wow. Wow.

"Of course I will," David replied with a warm smile, back to being dreamy-eye, tone very much reflecting the same. "How about tonight, after everyone's been checked on and projectile vomited?" When the time would officially be theirs again. Their own time that would be added to by their morning routine – the time they set aside for their mental and emotional prep for the day. As much as he'd teased about it, he didn't think 'group therapy' was going to be delayed at all, so that morning time would be very much appreciated to keep up the cloud nine he was on now.

Talk of gift ideas had him chuckling softly and shaking his head. "You said yes, I think that makes us even. Back to a level playing field for everything else." David couldn't imagine a better gift, so for everything from this point on? Starting new. No competition, of course, but honestly – best gift ever. Wow.

"If my heart could stop pounding now, that'd be awesome." Also amusing, considering the ol' ticker was practically beating up a samba still.

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_donttouch
2017-05-25 09:52 pm UTC (link)

"That’s right.” Syd replied, jokingly smug about the fact that she proposed first. But then she leaned in, as if sharing a secret. “But your proposal was way better.” Just so he knew. Settling back, she grabbed a pillow to hug happily – a proxy for the time being – and then stopped and stared at him, eyes going wide when she understood what probably had been going through his head at the time of gas station proposals. “That was why you were so surprised!” She exclaimed, laughing as well, both in amusement and at his adorable near-giggles. “Well, part of it.” It made so much sense now, even with having made just as much sense at the time. Head tilted, she smiled and lifted her eyebrows in curiosity, interested in his plots and plans. “What are your plans for the disk?”

“It’s a date.” Heart-eyed and even a little bashful, she nodded. A dream was what it really was, an amazing dream for a stressful day and she was perfectly alright with the idea of not waking up. Scooting over to give him more room, Syd laid back down, on her side to try and relax, letting the quiet closeness of blanket forts and Davids soothe excitable nerves and sky-high energy. “And I told you that you were stuck with me.” She pointed out with a lopsided smile, “so my answer was always going to be yes.” A pause, “After I actually comprehended what you said. Because, you know. That took a minute or whatever.” Sheepish, Syd smiled in apology, figuring that probably didn’t help the samba dancing heart.

“Well, the hard part is over.” She chuckled, leaning up on her elbow. A thought popped in her head, making the woman curious once more. “Did you tell Amy about your plans? Or are we telling them when we see them?” Syd still had to pop by and pick up needed things, after all, and had planned to steal away for a little while the next day to do so. So now she was trying to figure out the probability of being able to keep it normal and cool, or whether zero-chill Haller was going to rub off on her in this instance. Because, right now, the latter was winning that probability.

And with the thought of Amy came family, even wayward ones. Which was a thought that she did not intend to deal with at this very moment, thanks. Nope, she was staying firmly in the land of adoration and cloud nine.

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xgene
2017-05-26 02:15 am UTC (link)

Okay, so that was as close to blushing as David had ever been. The words about his proposal being better, something about that -- no, everything about that -- statement made the blushing want to happen and it was only barely controlled by a bashful chuckle, easing that need and desire with a burst of soft laughter. Yeah, that was definitely a huge part of why he'd been so surprised, so shocked and stunned. It'd make him freak out! Did she know? Was she on to him? "Yeah, my brain almost completely short-circuited there." Fiddling with the disk, he shrugged a little. "I was thinking of maybe using it for my ring, down the line, and something for you for the ceremony -- whatever it ends up being."

David felt the need to say that last bit, because in his mind, the ceremony was something he couldn't even conceive of. As a non-religious person, he didn't care overly much how it happened. Judge, sea captain, priest, rabbi, whatever. A couple strangers as witnesses (Amy might never forgive him, but still), their friends and Amy as witnesses, and upwards to intricacy -- he didn't think that far ahead because it was all such a big deal. They could talk about it, work it out together, but he knew the basics that rings would be needed specifically for the ceremony and one would be his for the rest of their lives as well. So... why not use all of the former ring pop for all that?

It had significance, after all. David was happy to keep the memory alive somehow, just as he was happy to burn the sight of Syd now to memory too. How she looked, their mutual nerves an energy, the wonderful things she was saying. "It kind of came out of left field," he admitted with a small smile, "I get it. The brain's a weird organ." The way it could react, or fail to do so. "But we're stuck with each other, so I forgive you." A teasing wink then, because he could. Because he loved her so damned much.

The hard part was definitely over, which was a relief and would help with the samba-heart-syndrome. Telling Amy though, David knew exactly what was going to happen and he couldn't help but laugh. "No, I haven't told her yet." And as for why: "She's going to scream. I know she is." Complete gut reaction from her, she was going to scream -- a good kind of scream, but one nonetheless. "There's going to be hugs, she'll probably just crush me extra to spare you." Because Amy knew, understood, and would remember because she was a good person like that. "Just... be ready to prepare your eardrums. Then all the hard parts will definitely be over."

Because there was going to be some commentary about how she knew it was going to happen as well. About how it was deserved for the both of them. All the romantic, wonderful things a big sister would say to a little brother she'd always wanted to find happiness with a significant other because it'd been so much a part of her own happiness. Not that one couldn't be happy without, but she was a huge believer in the 'you're complete with your other half' and all. Cheesy McRomanticson.

"I like the blanket fort for now though. Cozy isolation." No more need for other big thoughts, big announcements. It'd been a hell of a day and they could use the time to further unwind and keep the rest of the Big Stuff at bay just outside. Here? All adoration, samba-hearts, and cloud nine.

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_donttouch
2017-05-26 02:43 am UTC (link)

Oh! Yes, he was going to need a ring too, wouldn't he? This was all very new to her and was going to take a little bit of getting used to. She laughed quietly as well, looking down at her hand again before glancing up. "I like the sound of that."

As for ceremonies, she had no idea -- only knowing that the people they cared about would be there, because that was how it was, sharing all of that goodness and stuff. "I'm so glad that I have your forgiveness." Retorted in good nature, but she was at that.

"She's going to be fucking adorable, and I am going to be laughing a lot." Okay, so plans were made to get her shit under control tomorrow. The physical evidence would be easy, ever-trusty gloves to the rescue! But for now it was blanket forts and idle conversations, and jokes and cheesiness. And so much damn love, Syd had no idea what to do with herself.

And that was how it went until they mentally poked and prodded each other up and out to check on the others. Everyone was fine, as David noted when she had managed to make the switches back, but it was good to see it physically as well. After talking with everyone, and being That Couple so much that half of the others rolled their eyes far enough back to see their brains, it was back to cozy isolation and simply being straight on in until the morning.

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