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It was rainy and gloomy today. Raindrops falling against the windows echoed throughout the manor. Normally, the survivors would have been relieved. They didn’t have to deal with bruises and other injuries from the hunters or worry about getting everyone out safely, there was no pressure to contain long enough for your teammates to get some decent decoding progress in. No threats of detention or getting terror shocked or rescue anxiety. Most of them were happy about the cancellation of their matches, excluding Edgar Valden.
The rain hadn’t begun until around eight in the morning. Edgar had received his new S-tier costume last week and had been waiting with anticipation for the day he would get in another match with his lover, and that day had finally come after what seemed like months. He was so excited that he had even woken up early to put it on himself. It was a duos match too, the time where everyone was exhausted from their daily violent matches and wanted to preserve energy for ranked matches. Duos was one of Edgar’s favourite game modes to participate in since the hunters were often peaceful with them. He had to be wary, though. He was known for shooting them at the gate with a flare he purchased from his tranquillity points, so some hunters would chair him with no questions asked. Vera would rescue him if she happened to be in the same match, but he was often emoted at and left to blast off. The other survivors wondered why he had such an attitude all the time when he was treated like that…
So, here he was. In the library, pissed off, and kind of hungry. Martha had knocked on his door right when he had finished dressing to tell him that the games today were cancelled due to the weather conditions. He slammed the door in her face as response and spent a few minutes fuming over it in his room before ultimately deciding to just go through with his choice of clothing. It was a bother to put on, so it would probably be just as tedious to take off if not more so. He’d forgotten all about breakfast and stormed his way to the atheneum. The library helped him calm down with how tranquil it was. The only other survivors who would come in often were Helena, Luca, Freddy, Orpheus, and Victor. The postman would usually only enter to give Edgar a cup of tea and a kiss, maybe asking him a question or two about what he was reading.
On rare occasions in winter, Victor would sit next to Edgar with his head on his shoulder. If it was particularly late and Edgar knew they both had their daily journal entries written, he would read to his lover until the other fell asleep. Victor was always so busy with writing and sending letters, never once receiving one of his own. Even if he didn’t mention it, Edgar could tell that it disappointed his boyfriend a bit for his support to be so one-sided. As such, he did his best to make sure that Victor got at least some reward for his efforts. His letters were extremely helpful, after all. Edgar couldn’t recall just how many times he’d kited for another 30 seconds or so via the assistance that Victor provided to him.
“Edgar.”
The painter jumped upon hearing his name. He looked up at whoever had snuck up and disturbed him with a scowl, but his features softened when he saw the familiar amber eyes of Victor Grantz. His lover set down a plate and a cup on the side table closest to Edgar. Wick jumped up on the couch the painter sat at, laying down by the opposite arm of the sofa. Victor sat next to Edgar and peered over at the page he was on, silently scanning over the text. Edgar glanced at the plate that the other had set down. It seemed like Ada’s french toast that she usually made on days like this. “You weren’t at breakfast,” Victor explained, “I saved you some.” The other’s voice was scratchy and soft from not being used often, though it was still the nicest thing Edgar had ever heard.
Edgar smiled and set bookmarked his page before setting his book down. He was finally able to get a good look at his lover– Victor was not, in fact, wearing his regular clothes. Instead, he was adorned in the scarlet and gold of The Embrace. His contacts weren’t in though, so his yellow eyes remained. “What’s got you all dressed up on a day like this?” Edgar asked. He could very well be asked the same thing considering the fact that he was wearing the Narcissus outfit, but he was curious about how Victor had the same thoughts as him.
“Margaretha.” Victor answered vaguely. He didn’t expand on it for a few moments until Edgar asked him to elaborate, to which he apologised. Edgar wished that his lover wouldn’t say sorry for every single thing, but he knew that it was just what the postman was used to. Matches with him were filled with ‘Sorry…’ pings whenever he did a single thing wrong, from sending a letter slightly too late to his Tide Turner no longer being available. “She told me that you had told Vera you were going to be wearing something different today. I thought it would be your new fancy outfit since it was in our letter from the Dean last week.”
“You look very handsome, darling.” Edgar said. He kissed Victor’s cheek, causing the other man to look away. He laughed at how easy it was to fluster Victor after almost two years of being together. He still remembered their first kiss… He had worried that the postman would pass out at any time, and it was only a kiss on the hand. Edgar’s hand cupped Victor’s left cheek, gently pushing the other’s head onto his shoulder. The painter grabbed the plate that his boyfriend had brung him, along with the silverware.
“I… Appreciate the effort that you put in for me,” Edgar spoke quietly, “I know I don’t always show it, but I really do think that you’re the best I could ever ask for.” The painter was not used to vocalising such sensitive feelings, so his voice wavered a bit. Victor only smiled. The moment was serene, something rare for the chaotic manor. Having 37 people in one house, with 21 hunters you had the chance to go up against with more people coming in as the years went by… It was hectic, to say the least. These times with Edgar were the ones Victor cherished the most.
“I love you, too.” Victor responded. Edgar stiffened up a bit. No matter how many times the postman said that to him, he still wouldn’t be used to hearing it. “Instead of wandering around the map in duos, how about we relax today? If the rain clears up, we could have dinner in the courtyard tonight. I’ll make sure it’s just me and you.” Victor offered. Edgar nodded, finishing his plate and picking up his book once again. “Sounds fine. Keep your outfit on, though,” He said, his tone a bit demanding, “We look nice together.” Edgar would never say it outright, but he found it cute that the two finally had matching costumes.
“Of course I will. Can you read the story to me?”