flowerofmtsilver | IC contact; phone

[Vinnie barely spared Bulba a glance, he was just so... hypnotized by the spread on the table. Sorry about that, it was kinda rude. The smell of hot food was overpowering every single one of his senses - so strong he could taste it on his tongue. Saliva was pooling in his mouth at the thought of just desperately devouring everything on the table in an attempt to quell the emptiness inside him.

He stood there for a long, awkward moment, just staring. Even his mouth hung open a little. Decorum stated that he at least say, thank you, or something, but for some reason the words couldn't make it past his throat.

Slowly, Vinnie shambled over to the table and all but collapsed on the chair. His tail was dragging along the floor, no energy for lift but still limply trying to make some semblance of a wagging motion. It was really like a languid, side-to-side shuffle though. One shaky hand reached out to grab a burger and...

then he started inhaling everything.]

[Bulba, meanwhile, was being just as rude as he watched Vinnie do his thing. Staring, shambling over to the table, making a heavy sit. The Venusaur's eyes drifted to Vinnie's tail, minutely being a responsible eye but mostly just overwhelmingly curious about the reaction. The small semblance of a wag outweighed the worry about the state of his flame- he figured that'd be taken care of soon enough. So his hints of a smile grew a bit more, especially when he just started digging in. Good.

He turned back to finish his business of scrubbing the last few utensils that needed washed. Actual conversation could happen after Vinnie's stomach was a bit fuller.]

[It didn't actually take that long. After about four burgers in, there was a groan of regret - Vinnie had eaten too much, too quickly, while he was too empty. While physically he was a Charizard, the actual size of his stomach hadn't increased a great deal from his Venusaur appetites, nor was it chemically used to this type of food being shoved down the gullet. Overall, this was not a great move.

Vinnie doubled over his own gut a little, looking like he was trying to curl up into a ball of lizardy regret. His flame, at least, was a bit larger now. Still sputtering a bit, but not as deathly.]

Uuerghh...

[Oh no what. Bulba had the thought to tell him not to eat too fast, but looking back over at him now... well. Too late. Damn. Okay. He frowned and shut the water off, pulling the towel off his shoulder to dry his hands as he wandered over.] Ahhh...

[Bulba paused besides him, hand already outstretched as if to touch him.]

...If I rub your back, is that okay?

[Cause he wasn't sure if that was weird. Or if he'd get annoyed by that.]

[Vinnie shook his head as he glared miserably at the edge of the table.] Maybe don't...

[Not so much because he didn't want to be touched, but... here, his wings shifted uncomfortable where they had folded against his back, revealing the membrane that had a great big chunk torn out of it. Backrubs were hard enough when you had extra limbs sticking out, moreso when said limbs were broke.

Trying to stifle another uncomfortable gurgle, the Charizard strained to lift his head to give Bulba a (somewhat pathetic) look of appreciation.]

Uh... thanks though. For cooking all this.

[... Ah. Was that the equivalent of his leaves? Bulba's brows knit just slightly and he nodded, drawing his hand back. He was suddenly glad to have asked first.

Seeing that just lifting his head suddenly seemed to be an ordeal, Bulba helped himself to crouching down next to him and the table instead. One arm was lifted against the table edge, and Bulba leaned his head against it with a smile.]

You're welcome. If you liked it, I'll pack up some for you for later too.

[It might have been hard to guess that anything could have been wrong, if it weren't for the burns that were much more clearly present at this close angle. An amount of the burns were already almost healed over a week later, but there were lingering, angry splotches of red along the edge of his jaw and throat where the damage had been more severe. The towel that was back on his shoulder covered the neck of his sweater, so it was unclear if they went much farther than that.

Those were definitely new.]

[Vinnie forced his head to stay up as the Shiny Venusaur crouched next to him, instinctually wanting to keep his (nonexistent) horns held high. It dismayed him a little that the dragon's defensive urge kicked in even around Bulba, but he couldn't quite help it. His pride was already pretty wounded - not only from having to rely on him for food, but from being pinned just the other day as well.

It was hard not to catch sight of the burns, however. Vinnie blinked. Through whatever convenient means, he'd heard about pretty much everyone turning into Charizards as well, so his first thought was that one of them must've lost control of their fire. There was a small surge of relief that he still hadn't managed to breathe a single ember himself - at the very least, he didn't have to worry about coughing a flamethrower at Bulba by accident.

Still, it warranted worry. It wasn't like the Saur he knew to let a burn go untended. He knit his brows.]

Bulba... How old's that burn?

Hm?

[The Venusaur blinked, already moving his hand to brush the towel up higher over the markings as if doing so would diminish their appearance. He had already known it was inevitable that they'd become a topic of conversation at some point- they both shared too many of the same spots. It was bound to get noticed sooner or later.]

Oh, ah...

[His smile dimmed into a more neutral expression.] ... About a week and a half, I guess.

[That... that was before people started changing. That burn couldn't have been from a novice Charizard. Vinnie's eyes widened - he was starting to have a bad feeling about this. Who made the burn, and why hadn't it been treated yet? His own queasy digestive woes took a backseat to this alarming mystery.

With a sternness born of concern, Vinnie stared him straight in the eye.]

What happened.

[Not a question. He needed to know. He felt sick and had a feeling he was about to feel sicker, but... this was Bulba. He couldn't not know.]

[Most of it, at least, were things that Bulba wasn't too afraid to admit. Mostly. Bulba turned his head a bit more towards his arm on the table, glancing down.]

Just a dumb scuffle.

[Which was not nearly enough of an explanation, surely. He sighed quietly, meeting Vinnie's look once more.]

Marie was being Marie. We had it out. That's about it.

Ah...

[Vinnie's face fell. He couldn't help it. The last time the two of them had a skirmish, it... well, it hadn't ended well. He knew Bulba wasn't one to pick such a fight either - that was the most disheartening part of it all.

Marie... he couldn't save him from himself. He wasn't in any place to be able to help him either. Guilt etched itself across his face as Vinnie stared at that patch of red skin.]

...I'm sorry.

[There had been a few moments where Bulba had felt like he needed to say something, and that he couldn't hold it in anymore. But there had been more fights. Then they were dragons. Now, watching the way Vinnie's face fell in his guilt, Bulba's resolve grew a bit firmer and he clutched the words more tightly to himself than before. Whether or not that was a stupid thing to do was not a current factor.

Blaming himself wasn't something Vinnie needed to be doing right now.

Bulba reached out to gently lay his hand on Vinnie's knee, his brows knit slightly in concern of his own.]

It's okay. I'm fine.

[Words that sounded more legitimate out loud. He was fine, even if he really wasn't. He was fine.]

Edited 2013-08-09 23:54 (UTC)

[Huff. Bulba obviously wasn't fine, or else he would've taken care of himself like he was always nagging Vinnie to do with his injuries. And Marie, what was he even thinking pulling a stunt like that again?

It was so easy to get agitated in Charizard form, and right now Vinnie's tail was starting to tap against the ground in an irate tempo.

Maybe this was what Bulba felt about him sometimes. It was only frustrating because he cared, dammit.]

What happened t'taking your own advice, huh? You should've put a Burn Heal to that ages ago.

Marie, he... [Vinnie grit his teeth for a moment, hesitant to know. The timing couldn't have been a coincidence. A week and a half ago had been when Bulba told him what he felt - given him a kiss, wanted to be with him. Did that mean...?]

Please tell me it wasn't about us.

I did. I've been keeping an eye on it.

[...He had just gotten to it later than he should have. The fact that it was still there meant... well. Probably that it would be there for longer, even once the redness faded.

His eyes drifted to Vinnie's tail briefly, taking it into careful consideration.]

I don't... think it was about us, per se. [This came with a hesitant, knowing look up at Vinnie. There really wasn't an us, but it wasn't about the potential of one either.]

... He thinks it's my fault though, that you wanted to leave. All the same stuff from the first time, really.

[That much he couldn't get around, because when had any of the starters' recent fights been about anything else but their friendship?]

[There was a loud slap! of Vinnie's tail against the floor. He glanced to the side, no longer able to keep staring at the red welt on Bulba's face. His eyes were filled with anger instead - at Marie, at himself. Without realizing, his voice snapped much harsher than he normally would've.]

Then he should've fuckin' taken it out on me! Goddammit...

I'm such a fuckin' idiot. You shouldn't've had to get blamed for that. I thought... tch.

[Bulba flinched slightly at the snap of both tail and voice, but quickly spoke up in a firm voice.]

It's not your fault.

[The Venusaur took in a deep breath and sighed.] He doesn't listen. That's not on you. This shouldn't have happened either, I just... got mad at him. For being stupid. That's all this is. [It's all it was, he told himself.]

[The tail had gone back to a light tapping, but he still couldn't meet Bulba's eyes. There were a slew of questions swirling inside him - if Bulba had told anybody, for one. But that wasn't fair. It wasn't right to place the onus on him, especially considering the unintended consequences of their last fight.

Vinnie wasn't part of the team anymore, and Marie had to fight his own battles. He didn't have that right. Maybe it was just for the best that he didn't know - that he just trust that at least Bulba learned from the past.

So he just nodded, even if he didn't look like he believed the starter's words completely.]

Yeah, he's... he can be a shit. I don't blame you.

[He paused.]

...S'long as you're okay.

[He could tell Vinnie wasn't really buying all of it, but this much would have to be enough, Bulba supposed.]

Yeah.

[Bulba lowered his eyes briefly, sorting through the tugs at his feelings. He was grateful and selfishly a bit pleased that Vinnie cared to the degree he seemed to. He wanted to be honest and say he didn't think he was okay, because he probably wasn't. Not really. He had to be though. He didn't want things to get worse.

So he nodded his head, giving the Charizard's knee a light pat.]

I'm okay. I'm sorry for making you worry.

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