amillixnvoices

[amillixnvoices]

"Oh don't you DARE, you know you are always welcome here, Bea." And he means it, always has. Sometimes, Henry feels guilty for leaving all of England behind, even his mother and Philip, but he feels most guilty because of Bea. She'd been the only one who had been there for him when he'd dealt with things, despite the things she had been going through herself, and now he was on the other side of the ocean.

Of course Henry is aware that she's her own person, who can make her own decisions, and she could leave if she chose to, but still, it does little to ease his GUILT when it comes in its full force. Now that Bea is here, however, he pushes that aside, lips curved into a smile.

"How was your flight? Come on in." He steps aside and fully closes the door, nodding to the living room and couch, never quite letting go of her hand as they settle down. "How long are you staying?" I've missed you.

Bea had had to watch everybody leave her again ( although last time, she'd left Henry behind in pursuit of whatever had passed for happiness in the drug-induced haze she'd been living in before her last stint in rehab ) as Philp and Martha embarked on their delayed honeymoon / world tour, as Henry moved out to America to be with Alex, as Mum had left to do whatever it is Mum does these days, and as Gran had practically cut ties with them all.

And yes, Bea has things to keep busy with in a day; she has her own charity foundation to run and supervise, her royal duties speckled in wherever she makes time for them. She's on holiday this week though --- she'd messaged Alex about arranging a visit, flown herself out ( on a commercial flight, no less! ) and turned up on the doorstep of the Brownstone with a confident smile and a tight hug for her younger brother ( who has the absolute audacity to be so much taller than she is these days ) before he's even comprehended who it is that's hugging him.

"I missed you, Hen," she says, far more brightly than she feels as she's swooped up into his arms, "-so I thought it was high time I came to pay a visit." She owes Alex her thanks, of course, but that can wait until he comes home from work later. "Are you really? I'm not being utterly dreadful and intruding? Alex said it'd be alright, but I can always find a hotel nearby-"

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Henry EASILY wraps his arms around the other man, keeping his close as he presses a kiss to Alex' temple. He'd never thought that this would be where they ended up when they had met again at the beginning of the year, but he is more than glad that fate seemed to have set their eyes on them like this. "Mhm...yes. Of course." He answers with a smile, tracing his fingers down Alex' back, nodding.

"If you still want to. We'd...still have to be careful, of course, but...there's a lot more liberties at Kensington than there are here." For one, they wouldn't be confined to just one room, and the staff, should they catch them either way, are confined to secrecy, while Bea would never tell on Henry. Philip is an entirely DIFFERENT matter, but he doesn't reside at Kensington Palace. "And I'm sure my grandmother will be happy that I am helping her relationship with the United States along."

Alex obliges him. He is not as skilled at being with men as he would like, but he has been learning with Henry and he brings them both to completion not once, but two more times that night before the night is through. And his exhaustion afterward shows it as he basically collapses on top of Henry, snuggling into him for his warmth.

“One of these days we’re going to properly share a bed, without fear of the matron stepping in.” He supposes Henry has protection. As does he given his mother’s title. He knows they are not checked on as often as the others and he’s grateful for it. “You did say I was allowed to stay with you for break, right? I haven’t told my mom it yet though." None of this really. He wasn't sure how much he should say, but Alex did eventually want to tell those that he cared about if he had the okay from Henry.

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Nate KNOWS that Victor would tease them about this, but he'd never stand in their way, because he cares about them both, and as long as they won't let this affect their work, he'd be there to support them in...well, whatever this is. He doesn't really have the mind to think it through now though, not when she feels so good beneath his and all around him. "I am just ENJOYING myself," he quips back with a grin, but doesn't make her wait any longer as she slides her hand into his hair, both their intentions very clear.

Whether this night will simply be forgotten between the two, it is too early to tell. God, Victor would never let them live this down or hear the end of it if he ever caught wind of this tryst. Coworkers—let alone FRIENDS—do not sleep with each other after a long day. A shiver runs through her body when his unshaved skin brush against her tender flesh. The longer he draws this out, the needier she becomes. “You're such a TEASE, Drake.” Ange whines, entangling her hands in his dark locks.

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She wonders for HOW LONG she's been wanting this, actually. Nora had always been close to both June and Alex, and even though her fling with Alex had been brief, it had meant something to her, but June had always meant something to her, too. Maybe MORE than she had even realized. Nora doesn't entirely know if she'd classify it as love just yet, or say that out loud, but it feels an awful lot like it.

"Of course I do," She finally replies, reaching to take the other woman's face into her hands. "Don't make me ask for a kiss again, please?"

June buries her face in her knees, a wave of nauseatingly strong anxiety overwhelming her as her mind - not quite as self-destructive as her brother's or as quick to numbers and statistics as Nora's - supplies the fear that she might've just made everything between them weird, that she's ruined their friendship and destroyed their trio's dynamics.

But then Nora says me too and June raises her head, staring in disbelief but also hope with this little glimmer of something on the horizon. "You-" just... kiss me, please? How can June resist, when this is what she's wanted for so long? Carefully, eyes fixed on Nora's in case she changes her mind, June shuffles closer to her friend until she can feel the other woman's breath on her cheeks. "You really want this? Us?"

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"Yeah man, I'm SURPRISED you guys didn't." He nods, leaning back in his seat. "I mean, we barely have time to do anything besides work, so to spend that time planning a wedding? Sounds stressful to me." Not that he doesn't want them to have the perfect wedding. If anyone deserves that, then it's Maddie, so whatever she wants, she'll get, but still.

"Do you get a say in things?" Buck then adds, taking a sip of his drink. "Or like...do you WANT a say in it? I feel like as a guy, and knowing my sister, you'd just...be nodding off things whether you like it or not,"

Thank god, for Buck. For all of Chim's teasing, he won't deny that Buck's smarter than most people assume. Chim is happy to step away from the turn of conversation for something sweeter.

Chim groans. "I thought you said less depressing subjects," he complains and then tacks on, "Oh, fuck off. That's not what I mean." Wedding planning isn't depressing. It is, though, annoying and stressful and fucking expensive.

"We should've hired a wedding planner." Sure, it would've just added to the cost, but they would've at least saved themselves some of the stress.

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"Good plan!" Katherine agrees, pulling out a piece of paper and a quill. "How about you read me the pamphlets and I note down the amount of bad gossip she writes about each family or person? That way we will see who's at the top, and who's at the bottom?"

It's exhilarating, she finds, to be investigating these things, and with a friend of hers, too. It's certainly more interesting than having to prepare for yet another ball to say the least.

"Yes, good idea! And you had mentioned before that Lady Whistledown might be trying to protect someone. So maybe we could see who she writes about in a negative way and who she writes about in a positive way. That might give us some clues too." Eloise suggests, as she peruses her pamphlet.

She nods when Katherine suggests comparing the handwriting to people they know, and also getting the handwriting of people they suspect. "Yes! Great ideas!"

[amillixnvoices]

They fall into this a little TOO EASILY, Nate things, but he doesn't really have time to worry about the how and why. They are, after all, here for a job, and that is what they need to focus on. It's easy enough, securing a place at the bar, his attention seemingly focused on his gorgeous WIFE, while he surveys the room for their targets.

"So far, so good." He then mutters, leaning in to whisper in her ear, smile on his face to seem flirtatious. "I don't think they're here yet."

“Of course, and you remember the SAFE word if things go south?” Angélique affirms, dutifully matching his pace after ensuring the door was closed.

Times like this are the best occasion for her to lean into her naiveté; people tend to underestimate her time and time again. Yet, she knows more than she lets on. The HALO EFFECT works wonders once more. “I suppose that would be a good way to start the night, love.” she retorts without missing a beat.

[amillixnvoices]

Henry does think he prefers to be on the RECEIVING end on things when it comes to sex, but there's something about getting to try out these things with Alex that makes him feel a little bolder, and safer, too. Usually, sex is about getting off, and not as much about getting to explore what he likes and doesn't like, but then sex has never really been LIKE THIS before either. It should be terrifying, truly, but somehow it's not, not with Alex right here by his side.

"I can only RETURN that...hah...compliment, dear." he mutters, reaching up to grab the other man's face so he can pull him down for a kiss. "Would you...like me to move?" he then adds, brushing his lips against the corner of Alex' mouth. "or would you like to do the moving?"

Alex laughs, unable to help it, when Henry says that and he’s all too eager to kiss him back. There’s longing there when he does. He was absolutely certain that he was falling, had already done so, which was dangerous given he knew this wasn’t going to last.

“What’re you going to do if I don’t?” He asks with a grin before reaching out to pull down Henry’s pants too. Trousers, dear, Henry’s voice supplies in his head. “Don’t worry, I hold up to my promises.” And then he’s straddling Henry, eager to slide on, but knowing he should prepare himself, he does so with careful ease. Alex moans softly as he touches himself, leaning down to pepper Henry’s mouth and the corners of it in kisses, before he’s finally sliding on top of Henry, giving a small roll of his hips so that he fits all of him there. “Hmmng, you always feel so good, Hen.”

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There's a WHOLE LOT to unpack here, Ricky thinks, especially considering how he hadn't really thought he even was big into the whole kissing or making out thing, turns out he might have just been doing it with the wrong person, but maybe this also isn't the right time to think about THAT. "Yeah?" he mutters, "Well...uh...I can help with that." And then he shuts himself up with a kiss, because otherwise he might continue to ramble on forever.

Reaching up and brushing his hand against Ricky's cheek, Jere nods. "Mhm." He responds with a light hum. "I do, keep going." He tells him before his hand goes into those curls and his fingertips massage Ricky's head. "But you know what I enjoy more? Your lips on mine."

[amillixnvoices]

Henry doesn't spend MUCH time at Kensington anymore, not with Alex in his life now, and them living across the ocean, which is funny, considering it's much closer to Pez than England in its entirety. Still, they both know how it is, especially with Henry still having Royal duties, despite them being far and few between these days. He wouldn't pass up an opportunity to see his best friend though, not ever. "You could never hurt me, Pez." he chuckles, shaking his head as he's being put back down to the ground.

"I'm alright. Just...having to figure out a few family things. Speaking of," he offers a smile. "How's yours? I've been meaning to call. Maybe we could go for dinner while we're all here?"

Pez has been incredibly busy with his end of running and supporting the shelters he and Henry opened together --- and when he's not spreading his unique brand of chaotic happiness and self-love, he's spending most ( if not all ) of his free time with June and Nora and the apartment the three of them share.

There's always a sliver of guilt somewhere in his gut when he doesn't manage to see Henry for a while. They're both in Kensington now; Henry likely because he's been called back for whatever reason, and Pez because he's checking in with his parents, making sure everybody's alright before his next stint across the ocean. It hadn't taken long for him to sweep Henry up in a tight embrace, bodily lifting the other man off the floor and spinning him round with a bright, broad grin. "As long as I don't hurt you, Hez. How've you been?"

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"No, there's no need to apologize, please." The last thing Henry wants is for Alex to think that he's NOT WELCOME here. He always is, even if he might not be by the Crown for some reason, he'd always be welcome with Henry. ( which is a problem, if he thinks about it, but it's not one he can allow himself to think about right now, because they are in public, and Henry can't let Alex know just HOW MUCH he cares for him ).

"I was just...not expecting you, that is all." He nods as a passer by, before turning his attention back to Alex, hands balled into subtle fists at his side. "Frankly, I was expecting to just spend the day at this VERY boring function, so this is a welcome surprise."

"How was your flight? Would you like a drink? I think we might need to have some photos taken, but if we manage to do that, then we can possibly leave soon enough,"

Alex knows that look. He might not know Henry all that well, but he knows that look. that's the look of a man who needs a hug, a friendly word, and Alex? Alex is more than willing to provide, even if the two of them aren't very close, even it it might be frowned on by onlookers. Henry, after all, seems to be friendless in this sea of people who resemble sharks, sniffing around their ocean for a single drop of blood they can swarm around. Alex is prepared to be a friend, should Henry let him in, allow him close enough to try and pull the pieces of him into one place.

If.

He's cleared his schedule, flown across the ocean to be with Henry to support him in this moment as friends, and he doesn't mind a minute of it. He's got an arm wrapped around Henry now, a little tighter than he might usually, but he's getting the vibe that Henry might need an actual hug right now --- this is as good as he can manage in their current environment without arousing some kind of question neither of them are ready to face yet. The last thing he wants to do is spark some kind of security incident, so his hand is in plain view above the prince's sweater, well above the waist. Surely nobody can raise an objection to that?

"Sorry," Alex lets him go without protest, recognising now that Henry is uncomfortable --- but about what? Has he come on too strong ( again )? "It was kind of a last-minute thing. Mom and Zahra want me out the way for something, I think, but they said it'd look good, so..." Here I am, says the spread of his arms. "Are you alright? You look paler than usual."

[amillixnvoices]

They look like the PICTURE PERFECT couple to the outside world, but then pretty much everyone in the Royal family does, and everyone else is probably aware that things aren't as perfect behind closed doors. Sometimes Martha feels herself getting angry, trying to provoke some kind reaction, a sign of any kind of feelings, from Philip, and it's not pretty. It's not like HER either, but sometimes she simply cannot help herself.

She can still read him better than anyone though, knows WHY he is the way he is, or reacts a certain way, so when he asks, almost shyly, about the planes, her expression softens. "Of course not, love." she then says, reaching to rest a hand on his shoulder. "I think they're adorable, and quite frankly, who the hell cares about a theme?" She adds, the hint of a smile on her face, "A nursery is ought to be filled with LOVE, is it not? And I don't see anything that carries more love than these,"

Despite their arguments, Martha was one of the few people keeping Philip sane and grounded as they navigated becoming parents together. It seemed whichever way he turned recently, someone was either speculating, offering unwanted advice or telling him that whatever child they had would be another drain on society ( he'd stopped reading the papers and the opinion pieces online a while ago for his own sanity, and it might've been the best decision he'd ever made ).

To say it's made him tense recently is an understatement.

He gives up the plane with a kiss to Martha's cheek, fleeting but hopeful --- he does genuinely love her despite this rough patch they're going through. Maybe it's the cottage that softens him, the memories held in the walls that bring on a wave of nostalgia so strong, it makes his eyes water. "You don't think they're just dust traps?" Mum had called them that once and it still stung more than it probably should. "---Or that they won't be on theme?"

( @amillixnvoices )

[amillixnvoices]

"Well, then why are we still talking?" She offers with a slight chuckle, before leaning in to kiss him some more. Katherine sort of loses track of time eventually, and it's not until they're both a little out of breath, with their lips swollen and a little numb, that she settles into his arms and drift off TO SLEEP.

When she wakes up the next day, Katherine takes a moment to assess the situation, like the fact that she finds herself wrapped up in Nate's arms, and concludes that she has, in fact, NOT made this all up. With her lips curved into a smile, she eventually leans in to press a soft kiss to his lips. "Good morning," she then says, "Are you awake?"

Nate is almost sure that he would feel a lot more comfortable during a pizza date than during a date at a fancy restaurant, and as a first date being comfortable is what he is looking for. Even if this might not be much of a first date, they have been friends for a long time and know a lot about each other already. But he still wants it to be a good date.

He knows that things have changed, and he has known for a long time, but this is the first time they are talking about the changes. And it is a good thing, it might be hard at first, but he knows it's good, great might even be a better word. Besides that they have almost figured all out of it out already, so maybe it won't be as hard as he thinks. He can't help but to smile at her, pulling her closer, pressing his lips against hers, "I'm almost sure that I will never say no to more kissing."

[amillixnvoices]

me, doing all my drafts? very likely.

[amillixnvoices]

The last thing Henry wants is for their day to be ruined by something he cannot control. He is, of course, aware, that this is the whole point of something being out of his control, but he doesn't want Alex to suffer because he's grieving the relationship with his brother and how it had changed over the years. "Well, we could go somewhere FANCY." he then offers, squeezing the other man's hand as they walk along the path. "Or...we could just order something in. I am not partial to either, really. Your pick, Darling."

Alex can tell there's something off; his smile dims a little as he draws away, eyes flickering automatically ( and with a little trepidation ) towards the guards who are still watching them from a respectful distance. There's an apology on his lips, but Henry invites him to continue their walk around the gardens and takes his hand and something in Alex's gut settles a little as he accepts both, fingers squeezing around the prince's.

"Whatever you want's fine with me, Hen. Honestly."

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"Mischievous...MAYBE, but not a menace, that is entirely YOU, darling." he manages, bottom lip pulled between his teeth as the other man presses his hand against Henry's erection. He's been hard ever since being on his knees for Alex, and it feels like a relief to finally have the other man touching him. He knows Alex won't make him wait, not today anyway, so when he finally sinks to his knees, Henry lets out a sigh, hand sliding into those perfect curls.

"Christ...Alex...you are..." there's many different ways to FINISH that sentence, but they all go out the window, along with Henry's ability to form coherent sentences, the moment Alex wraps his lips around him. He's never felt this good with anyone before, and there's a part of Henry who desperately wants to hold on to that, hold on to Alex, really.

A shiver easily runs down Henry's spine and he groans, trying to keep his hips still as he tugs on Alex' curls a little HARDER, just wanting him even closer. "You're so...oh...that feels s-so good..."

Alex does his best to make sure that Henry feels wanted and cared for when he’s with him. He wants more, to tell how he really feels, but Alex doesn’t want to push. So he’s content with this while he has it. Alex laughs into Henry’s mouth and says back, “YOU’RE menace.” His eyes twinkle with delight as he admires that blush on Henry’s cheek.

He lifts a brow as he feels how hard Henry is for him. “Eager for me, are you, baby?” His eyebrows wiggle suggestively. Alex takes Henry’s hand and kisses at his fingers before letting go and shifting so that he’s down on his knees. Alex pries his buttons undone one by one and slips his pants and underwear off with ease.

Without much more prompting, Alex takes Henry fully into his mouth, swallowing him whole. He’s as eager to get Henry off as he was sure Henry was for him, and from the feel of it, it won’t take much. He’s slow at first, going up and down and sliding his tongue along the side of of him, teasing and tasting with his tongue. Alex moans around Henry, giving him a squeeze beneath to let him know how good he’s being for him.

[amillixnvoices]

There's just...SOMETHING about sharing clothes with Alex that is an extra layer of special to him. For the longest time he hadn't even been allowed to dress himself out in public, and these days he gets to go out just wearing clothes he feels comfortable in, clothes that belong to someone he LOVES, and is allowed to love. "Of course I do," He then replies with a smile, stepping out and pulling the door shut behind them, before slipping his hand into the other man's. "Maybe we can get some take away dinner on the way back, what do you think?"

Alex's laughter softens to a fond smile as Henry kisses him quickly before turning away to grab David's leash. Alex moves a couple of steps away to grab his sweater ( or... one that used to be his, but is currently the latest in a long line of sweaters that now apparently boast co-ownership between the two of them ). "We shall," he confirms, attempting to copy Henry's crisp accent with a spark of mischief in his eyes as he moves on to toeing his sneakers on. "You got the keys?"