#agonybow

@agonybow​ sent  /   poised and ready with a blanket clasped in both hands, as though about to catch a feral cat, sebastian slowly approaches the couch joseph sits upon. mindful of every step, ears straining for any unwanted sound when his feet touch down to the carpeting, when in position, he freezes---then springs. in a motion often practiced on lily (with her locked in a fit of wild giggling), joseph is expertly swaddled and hauled up clean off the couch and slung against his shoulder. ' time for bed! '

    at some point, joseph had stopped registering much. perhaps it was the regular dull fatigue, perhaps it was the natural difficulty that came to simply living in one’s own mind after the strain of fractures it had endured, but it was something that happened a little more often even now than he honestly liked, for someone who preferred to be so grounded and aware.

it was not only joseph the same could be said for. some days were tread upon lighter than eggshells for all of them, with cautiously announced entrances and and the unspoken promise the next day would be something better. 

it was doubtlessly no simple mistake then, the sudden, startling sight in his peripheral of his partner tensed, blanket draped wide like some sort of waiting net, was its own unspoken warning: one meant to be acknowledged, just as it was an inevitability that was utterly useless to fight against.

joseph had never cared for being startled before anything had gone wrong. even a year ago, pulling such a stunt would have worse odds than a rigged game of russian roulette. the change was a mark of either progress or some long-suffering conditioning. both, maybe.

a single syllable of warning protest was met only with plush fabric, and before he had the option to even process it, he was snugly immobile, scooped up like his was a weight that was somehow inconsequential. he tried not to think about how much of that leaned into late nights of expert practice.

the response was a sigh in resigned consent, whatever reflexive tension lingering about his person going slack.

@agonybow​  said:‘ it’s gone, but it still hurts. ‘

          “Hey, wait-- What are you doing?”

Voice a low hiss, all caution is thrown to the wind as Waylon springs out of hiding. Fingers latch onto Sebastian’s sleeve, seeking to pull this fool away from the newly opened doorway before someone -- or something -- comes their way, looking for the source of all this racket.

Well. So much for a quiet and stealthy exit. Where perhaps he should see Sebastian as some sort of hope for a way out of this mess, he sees nothing but a liability. Someone to get him killed that much faster.

And just as quickly as he had stepped out to act, his courage wavers -- fearful of what lies beyond that threshold. He’s so focused on it that he barely even notices that he’s trembling on the spot, unwilling to press forward.

Clearly, this guy has far too much bravery for his own good... And himself? Perhaps not quite enough. For now.

          “You can’t just go around blowing doors open like that.”

If there’s anything he wants, it’s to live just one more day to see Lisa and the boys. This idiot isn’t going to ruin his chances by barging through everything that blocks the way.

@agonybow:

‘ don’t flatter yourself. think you’re such hot shit, well, watch your own fuckin’ back next time. ‘

rough, calloused fingers tucked hard upon the harpoon bolt that just a minute prior had been sent flying from the cradle of his crossbow, now plunged deep into the eye socket of what had presumably once been human. it gave with a slick, wet sound. sebastian tried to pay little mind to the remaining shreds of an eyeball he shook off.

now, he debated if it was even worth it, saving the ass of a man so quick to dismiss him with snark rather than thank him proper. sharp as the glance cast in joel’s direction was, sebastian knew the answer to his own unspoken question.

ungrateful as his damsel in distress was.

‘ if love is your foundation from keeping someone else from getting eaten alive… ‘ the bolt was replaced with its brethren, a quiet count taken of what he had left, and what types. ‘ maybe i won’t feel so bad letting you get your ass handed to you. ‘

crossbow slung once more across his back, for a beat did he pause, regarding joel for a lingering moment. sebastian turned to spit, and kept along the beaten path they had been trekking.

‘ i don’t have time for your antagonistic bullshit. keep moving. ‘

Joel pushed himself back onto his feet and retrieved his shotgun, loading two more slugs to make up for the ones he’d spent trying to kill the monster that rushed him. Pumping it once, he kept it at the ready as he followed the other man.

“You keep fondlin’ that crossbow and you’ll be glad for my antagonistic side... Looks heavy as shit,” he remarked, unimpressed by how unwieldy it looked and the fact that it was single shot. Sure, it was powerful, but if they were surrounded by a mob of those things, then the brunette would be glad to have the extra firepower and range that Joel did.

They alternated between keeping an even keel and sneaking past whatever they decided they didn’t have to fight, Newsome keeping rear watch while Sebastian lead the way.

             ❝  Got  no  time  to  start  bein’  your  retirement  home  nurse.  ❞ 

im frankly disappointed i didnt think of that pun.

@agonybow​ sent    /     ❛ i’m sorry, i should’ve gotten here sooner. ❜ meme

     “ nah. ” a rather facetious answer through the taste of blood and sting of split skin, yet he could feel little of the real pain through the wash of relief and lingering adrenaline. “ you were right on time. ”  

  time enough, in fact, to nearly tap their fleeing suspect with their car, though probably much more lightly than he’d deserved with four homicides and a string of assaults alongside the guns at his belt. 

  it had been a rookie move to kick the door in alone anyway, joseph damn well knew better, but he also knew the odds of watching the clock, and wasn’t just about to simply lay down and wait on what would have inevitably boiled into a hostage situation the moment red and blue lights became visible through the window.

maybe it made him pragmatic. maybe just stupid. probably both. he would doubtlessly hear both once the report came in.

  “ i’m alright. ” grazed and badly bruised, he would be feeling it in the morning and for a number of them afterward, but it was far from life threatening, and the notion of the invasive poking and pressing of paramedics was hardly appealing. of all people, sebastian would understand that much, even if joseph admittedly had given him hell for less in the past.  

  hopefully, he felt at least a little merciful.

@agonybow​ sent  /   ‘ i just did something amazing, and you aren’t even excited. gonna throw me a bone here? ‘

“ amazing? ” 

joseph’s voice was a little more brittle than he would have liked, strained but utterly incredulous at the gall of the figure before him to stand there and preen. 

certainly in an objective way it was impressive, resourceful, a save on critically-limited ammunition and their position, guns only had so many uses - but it was, in turn, absolutely, horrifyingly risky to put oneself so close to a lament, much less only with a goddamn knife. 

sebastian ought to count himself lucky joseph didn’t have something to throw, if the utterly withering look was any sort of tell. christ, he’d only come to find the man an hour ago and already it felt like he was paying for it.