Their obligation to this war seemed to go on and on. William and Ronald traveled all across Europe; reaping, fighting off demons, and witnessing more horrors along the way than either of them had ever imagined. They crossed paths with Grell and his partner from time to time when their assignments took them to the same locations, but they never remained in one area for longer than two days. As they moved from location to location, more instances of blank cinematic records sprang up, and there were apparently reports of the same thing coming from other locations surrounding Germany.
From the end of January to the middle of March, most of their assignments took place in cities and towns under Nazi control throughout Poland, Ukraine, Romania and of course, Germany itself. The allies were pushing to liberate outer territories taken over by the Axis, and occupy those that were part of the Third Reich.
In early March, both William and Ronald got severely injured during an air raid over Essen, in the Ruhr valley. A bomb dropped too close to them and the building they ran to for cover collapsed on top of them. Ronald spent a little over a week in a German Shinigami hospital recovering, before they were released and deemed fit to resume their duties. The camaraderie between them grew—as could be expected when two people had to wade through hell on earth together and rely on each other for survival—but neither of them acted on the underlying attraction they felt. Both stubbornly clung to the assumption that it could never amount to anything good, and both did their best to hide it from each other.
On March 11th, shortly after their release from medical care, the partnered London agents were sent to Kharkov in Ukraine. German troops had begun an invasion there and were embroiled in a fight against the Red Army for control of it. This would be the first time either of them had been sent to reap outside city walls. There were bodies of SS Panzer Corps troops scattered around they had directly engaged their opposition and hundreds died in the process of breaking through the defenses.
Compared to the noise of explosions, gunfire and screaming within the city, the grasslands that William and Ronald now walked through were almost peaceful—but for the carrion birds and the moans of dying and wounded troops. They passed by a German medical encampment where injured soldiers were brought to be tended to, if at all possible. So far they had reaped two each…but the list was very long. There were severed and burned limbs and various body parts scattered throughout the area; some blown off from land-mines, others from artillery fire.
The smell made William want to vomit, and he decided to quit breathing and communicate with his partner through hand gestures. He found another of their targets and he waved Ronald over to cover him while he reaped.
Ronald, also having ceased his breathing, nodded and looked around for a good vantage point where he could station himself to keep watch for demons and any other problems that may present itself to he and his partner. Unfortunately there were none in this particular area, and he took to having to sweep the area, walking around to get a clear view in all directions. Towns were easier. There were buildings to perch on. Here there wasn't even a sturdy tree; many of them having been damaged by explosions.
Everything seemed to be as safe as a battlefield could be. In the distance where the fighting had advanced to, there were shouts, cries, gunfire, and explosions, but the wide areas free of walls and buildings let the sound be swallowed up by the air, making things more pleasant sound-wise, and it helped Ronald listen for the tell-tale signs of a demon.
Since Ronald had started helping William relax after they got back to their hotel room, The man had really cleaned up his act and behaved much more like the William T. Spears he knew while out on the field, so he didn't have to worry about the records getting out of control on the man—which was good. It was one less distraction…one less thing to keep an active eye out for when he was covering William.
More blank records had also been turning up, however. At first it was just one or two per week. Not for them, but for all the reapers working the field in this war. The Board of Higher Reapers simply told everyone to ignore it and write it off as another soul lost during a time of war. However, it had started happening more and more as the months passed, causing a bit of alarm to turn up in the dispatch community.
Ronald completed another wide circle around William's collection site and he glanced back at him in time to see the man finish it up. Good. Every successful collection made things much easier on everyone. On to the next target.
William tethered his scythe back to his wrist and he tugged his uniform cap lower over his eyes, shielding them from the sun. Most of the fighting outside the city had occurred in the dark hours of the morning, before the city was breached an hour or so after sunrise. The air was chilled, the frost of winter still lingering before the coming of spring. He walked over to Ronald and he checked the list again. Today he wore his prescription sunglasses, having stashed his regular ones in it's case—which he kept in the supply pack attached to his belt.
"Hmm." William's mouth drew into a frown of concentration as he read the list and checked his compass. "The next three targets should be over there, near that copse of trees."
He pointed a black-gloved finger in the direction of the coordinates, where he could feel the death aura already. "That way. The first two are closest. The third is further away from the trees, a few yards away."
Taking the lead, William began his trek towards the targets, watching the ground before him carefully for trip-wires and odd mounds.
Ronald followed carefully behind William. Many mines and trip wires had already been triggered, but there was always the chance of encountering one that was still live. Triggering one wouldn't kill the two reapers, but it would put them out of action for an extended period of time.
"You'd think the tech department would work to create something that would disarm things left on the battlefields that could harm us dispatch agents." The blond complained as he side-stepped a suspicious mound, "Save us time, energy, and keep us safe and able to do our jobs more efficiently. We already have bullets and demons and sky-bombs to worry about! And not to mention—Hhhah!"
Ronald was startled by a man, not quite dead a few feet away, pulling himself along the ground despite his missing arm and a broken leg, triggering a trip wire. As blood splattered towards Ronald, he stepped back out of an involuntary reaction—and his heart seemed to stop; a small click sounding as his foot came down on the mound he had just seconds before carefully stepped around, and it sank in ever so slightly.
~shit~
Wide-eyed and frozen in place, Ronald looked at his partner, who had turned his attention to the man who'd just been killed, checking their collection list and finding a new name had been added. He watched with a dry mouth and quickened heart as William turned to collect the man's soul while they were there, unaware of Ronald's bad step and the fact that if the blond moved for any reason, he'd be blown to bits.
"S-S-Senpai…pr-problem." he choked in a small, broken voice he wasn't sure William could hear.
William thought he heard a weak sound from his companion, and he glanced up. Seeing Ronald standing a few feet away with a terrified expression on his suddenly colorless face, he frowned. "What is it?"
"I…I can't—my foot…" Ronald slowly pointed down at his firmly planted foot that had sunk into the small mound, "I—I think I—stepped on something."
William's eyes widened slightly as he looked down, and he hastily finished gathering the last of the reels he was drawing in. "Oh, hells. Not that it needs saying, but do not move, Ronald. Releasing the pressure will set it off. Let me think for a moment."
He moved closer to study the mound, and he estimated how much Ronald weighed. He looked at his scythe. It could extend an incredibly long distance, but the question was whether or not he could wedge it under Ronald's foot and keep enough pressure on the trigger for the two of them to get a safe distance away.
"Ronald, listen to me," said William in a calm voice—though inwardly his tension was wound up like a coil about to snap. "I am going to create a portal to our realm. Once I've done that, I intend to try and wedge my scythe under your foot to hold the trigger down while you come to me. Once I have it wedged, come to my side and we shall back up towards the portal before I release it. Do you understand?"
"Yes sir." Ronald whimpered. What a stupid, careless thing to do! Stepping without looking where his foot may land! He was scared. He was legitimately scared that he and William would be seriously hurt for a long time over his mistake. And so soon after their previous stay in a hospital.
"I'm sorry…" he whispered.
"Don't be sorry, be alert," demanded William. He formed a portal behind him for them to fall back through, before beginning the delicate task before him. He started to perspire beneath his cap as he extended his scythe toward the foot on top of the mine. "Steady, Knox…steady."
He stopped it at the bottom of Ronald's boot and he pushed cautiously, rocking the pole from side to side to wedge the blade up under it, little by little. When he surmised that he had it where most of the weight was resting, he looked up from his task and met Ronald's eyes. He reached out to him with his free hand and beckoned.
"Come to me now…be quick."
"Are you sure this'll work?" Ronald asked, reaching out and grabbing William's hand with a trembling one, "If—you don't then you can get to a safe place and I'll take it all myself and then only one of us will be stuck in the hospital!" He didn't want to get hurt, but he didn't want to see William get hurt, either. He could at least make sure William didn't. He himself was a little screwed on that front.
"I will not leave you to become the victim of a landmine," said William sternly, pulling the blond toward him. He put an arm around him once Ronald was clear of the trigger, pressing down with all his might on his scythe to keep the trigger from releasing. "Now…let's back away slowly. I'll continue to extend my scythe as we go, to put as much distance between ourselves and that mine as possible. Once we reach the portal, I'll retract the scythe and we'll dive through—hopefully with minimal injuries."
When he was tugged off the mine, Ronald stumbled against William, and he didn't bother to pull away, backing up slowly with William, holding onto him for comfort. He was off it, but they were still in danger.
He watched as they got closer and closer to the portal. Finally arriving within a half step into it. "Okay—ready when you are." he breathed.
"Very well," said the brunet, holding him more tightly. "On the count of three. One…two…three!"
William retracted his scythe and jumped backwards through the portal with Ronald at the same time. The land mine went off with a spray of dirt and flames, and he felt the searing heat against his skin just before they landed on the other side of the portal. William's breath escaped in a pained huff as he and his companion landed on the hard concrete of the Shinigami version of the same city they'd just been outside of. He lay there with Ronald, both arms wrapped around him now in a reflexive embrace. He saw clear blue skies up above, and he realized absently that his uniform hat had fallen off. His sunglasses were askew and smeared, but whole.
William turned his head to look at the smaller reaper beside him. "Knox, are you injured?"
"I—I'm whole, at least." Ronald gasped in surprise, adrenaline pumping through his body. He honestly couldn't tell if he had been injured, but he could at least feel that he had two arms and two legs still.
Breathing hard, Ronald lifted his head, looking down at William. His glasses were down at the tip of his nose, and his hat was also missing. "Are…are you?" he panted.
William relaxed his hold on Ronald and he cautiously patted his body, finding singed bits on his uniform, but feeling no pain. "I seem to be whole," he murmured.
He'd seen men caught up in this fight wander around in shock, seeking out their own missing limbs because they were too dazed to feel the pain of dismemberment. Sitting up painfully, he got to his feet and he stared down at his companion for a moment. So close…he'd come so close to watching Ronald get blown to bits. Could he have managed to gather him up and bring him in to be stitched back together again? He thought of Humpty Dumpty, and he loathed himself for the comparison.
"We made it," he said simply, offering a gloved hand to help his companion to his feet. "Shaken, but whole. I think a reprieve is in order, before we return to the other side to finish our collections."
Ronald took a deep breath, checking himself over before accepting William's help, hoping his shaky legs could hold him. "Thank Rhea," he sighed as he was pulled to his feet. "That was way more excitement than I ever want to have on the field again." His admission was the closest he'd let himself get to admitting to his partner and boss that he was scared shitless and was simply glad he hadn't wet his pants.
"It was nerve wracking," agreed William, impulsively putting an arm around Ronald to steady him.
It really didn't feel like a strong enough description, to him. In that moment when he thought he'd have to watch his partner get blown up, something was shaken loose inside of him and he wasn't quite sure he could stuff it back into the box from whence it came. He looked around and he spotted a cafe across the street. The few reaper civilians in the area looked at them curiously in passing; but they were likely used to the sight of frazzled Dispatch agents teleporting in from the other side, these days.
"There is a cafe," announced the brunet, making himself let go of his companion. He straightened his shades and he located his and Ronald's hats a few feet away. He went to retrieve them and he brushed his off before putting it back on his head and offering Ronald's to him. "Let's have a drink to calm our nerves and try to eat something before we return to the field, shall we?"
Ronald nodded and took a deep, calming breath to try and steady his legs before walking across to the cafe. One look at his and William's uniforms, and Ronald sighed. "So much for these issued uniforms…gonna have to send in for replacements. It'll be too much work to repair them and even then they'd not look right."
Not that he really cared that they were ruined. He hated having to wear the uniform that represented the Nazi party which were causing so much grief and death in the mortal world. It would be one undercover uniform he would not be keeping in his possession. But it was a way to try to distract himself from enjoying the way William had held him. The man was only helping him. Not showing him affection, after all!
Unaware of Ronald's inner dilemma, William guided his steps over to the cafe and he pushed the door open for both of them. He asked the man working behind the counter where they could sit, and he told him to choose any seat he liked. William looked around until he found a quiet, shadowed spot in a booth near the back. He nodded at it and directed Ronald over to it, helping him sit down before sliding in opposite of him. With a soft sigh of relief, William took his hat and gloves off and retrieved his comb from his pocket to groom his hair back into place. He looked at Ronald's dirt-smudged face and blank stare, and he tapped the table with his fingertips to get his attention.
"What would you like to eat, Ronald?" He nodded at the menu sitting by the napkin dispenser. "They have English translations beneath the selections here, so you should have no trouble finding something to your liking."
"Something calming…like tea would be good, since we are still working and can't have a nice scotch after all that…" Ronald muttered before realizing that tea wasn't 'something to eat'. Hoping he wasn't called out on that, he opened the menu and scanned over the English translations written in tiny text under the German descriptions of each dish. He rested his elbow on the table and cradled his chin in his hand as he lazily went over his options. He wanted something easy to eat, something that would help restore his energy but wouldn't upset his still nervous stomach.
"I think I'll have the potato and sausage soup," William decided after a glance at the menu, his thoughts running in a similar direction to Ronald's. "It doesn't look as though they have much of a tea selection, but they do have hot cocoa. I think I'll try that with a glass of water on the side."
He was only making small talk to distract both of them from the disaster they'd narrowly escaped. Inwardly, he wasn't fairing much better than Ronald, but it was times like these that he needed to be the strong one and lead by example.
"Everything here is sausages and potatoes." Ronald sighed, "I guess I'll have the same…maybe we should share that chocolate cake afterwards. I heard that chocolate can be good when you feel like you nearly got blown to bits…"
"I'm not certain I can stomach the richness of German chocolate cake right now, but perhaps if we share, as you say." William closed his menu. "I shall put our orders in now. What would you like to drink?"
"Is German chocolate terribly different than what we have in England?" Ronald frowned, looking over the drink menu. "…What kind of cafe doesn't have tea?"
"It's rumored to be delicious, but richer," answered William, "and as for the second question, this one, apparently." He smirked. "There are plenty of coffee selections, I've noticed, but I doubt being wired on caffeine is conductive to calming you down."
"I'm not big on coffee unless its morning and I had to get dragged out of bed way too soon." He set the menu down and looked at William, "Have you not had German chocolate before? I thought you were part German or something."
"I am," answered William, "but I cannot recall the last time I actually tasted some. I have some vague recollection, but…well, I tend to block out much of my childhood."
"Why? Germany's not that bad—well, except for what the mortal Nazi party are doing right now, but the rest is nice…and very…potato-obsessed based on every menu we get handed to us when we eat out."
William nearly chuckled at that. "Yes, well…potatoes and sausage are both staples of German cooking." He sighed and looked out the window. "I would like to return for a visit under more pleasant circumstances. As for my childhood, I really didn't enjoy much of one. Father was forever pushing me to do better, and my best was never good enough for him. Mother simply went along with whatever he said or did."
He got up and nodded toward the order counter. "I will go and put our orders in. Have you decided on a drink yet?"
"I'm surprised you didn't rebel and turn out, well, more like me." Ronald observed, "And uhh…maybe a glass of milk?" he suggested.
"I'm sure that's available," said William with a nod. He left to put their order in, and he returned a moment later with both their drinks. Setting Ronald's down before him, he took his seat again. "The food should be ready within fifteen minutes. In the meantime, we should discuss our next course of action when we get back to our daily mission. I believe I should take the lead and use my scythe to test the path before us, while we are collecting in an area riddled with landmines. I would like to avoid a repeat of the situation we narrowly escaped, if possible."
"No objections here… No way would I ever want to step on one again—ever!" The blond sighed and picked up the glass of milk, looking at it before taking a gulp. When he set the glass back down, he unknowingly supported a mustache of white.
William cleared his throat as a chuckle threatened, and he tapped his lips with a finger. "Ronald…"
"Hmm?" Ronald looked up at William, confused for a few seconds before what the man was trying to tell him. "Oh!" He grabbed a napkin and dried his lip, his cheeks pinkening.
William sipped his cocoa to control the smile he was fighting. Knox could be quite endearing without even trying, and for the stoic Dispatch supervisor, that could prove to be a dangerous thing. He had already grown much fonder of him in their time together as partners during this war. The forming of a bond between partners was to be expected in such drastic situations, but his feelings for Ronald were anything but platonic.
He'd even fantasized about leaning across the table to lick that milk mustache off, himself.
William cleared his throat. "Well then, let's try to keep our mind off of that close call and enjoy this break while we can, shall we?"
"We'll get a nice hour-hour and a half before we have to be back out there." Ron nodded, "And with any luck we can finish our collections without any more…distractions."
William thought of something entirely different from the disaster they'd narrowly avoided when Ronald mentioned "distractions". He drank more of his hot chocolate—too quickly—and ended up scalding his esophagus. He coughed and hastily reached for his ice water, gulping it down to sooth the burn.
"Yes, well," he managed after a moment, "we will both simply have to be more careful, won't we?"
"Are you okay?" Ronald asked, his eyes flickering between his partner and the hot drink, "Too hot?"
William nodded and dabbed his lips with his napkin. "A bit, yes." He heard the bell ring on the counter and he looked to see that their food was ready. "I'll go and get that."
He got up to retrieve their food, glad for the momentary distraction. He could not believe how inappropriate his thoughts and behavior were, but then having been through a scare like that was likely an understandable reason for it. He collected the two plates with the bowls of soup set on them and he balanced them with the skill of a professional waiter as he carried them back to the booth. He set down Ronald's before putting his own down and retaking his seat. His stomach growled as the aroma wafted up his nostrils. He didn't realize he was so hungry until he had actual food before him. He opened the package of crackers on the dish and he broke them up into his soup.
"This smells delightful," he sighed. The one thing he was going to miss about their time in Germany was easily the food. Perhaps that was why he'd avoided having any desserts, so far. He feared he might not want to leave at all, once he tasted authentic German chocolate again. But Ronald wanted to try some, so he supposed he was due for it.
Ronald picked up his spoon and swirled it in the soup to help cool it as he leaned forward and gently blew on its swirling surface. He ignored the crackers provided for the time-being because he preferred to use them to help scoop up the last few bites of soup once it got harder to get it on the spoon. After a moment, he raised a spoonful to his lips, giving it one last gentle puff of air before he slipped it in past his lips to deposit it onto his tongue.
"Not bad." He shrugged, dipping his soup spoon in the bowl for more, "It's no risotto, but it's nice." He smiled, "Filling, too."
William smirked a bit. "I should prepare my risotto for you, some time. Cooking is one of my guilty pleasures, when I can actually find time to do it." He blew on his first spoonful of soup and ate it, sighing with pleasure at the creamy texture and flavor. "I should procure more of my mother's people's traditional recipes and begin perfecting it. I had forgotten how much I enjoy this kind of food, to be honest. Knox, when this is finished, I am going to sign us both up for a weekend off, and we can try making a meal of your choice and a meal of mine."
He was feeling so relieved and so grateful that it didn't even occur to him that he was speaking so casually…and essentially asking Ronald to have a two-day date with him.
Ronald blinked, "As much as having a day off—let alone two—would be fantastic, I can't cook worth shit. I set the kitchen on fire every time I try and Grell-senpai banned me from ever trying it again after I set off the fire alarm in my apartment which is close to his, and his sprinklers went off same as mine when he was leaving for a date." He held up his hand, a small still-fading scar circling his thumb, "Cut off my thumb once, too…and I wasn't cooking. I was just trying to cut a slice of cheese."
"Gracious," remarked William with a stare. "Well then, I'll cook and you can be in charge of handing over ingredients to me as I do so. I can't imagine you getting into a terrible amount of trouble that way."
"Or I can handle the drinks. I'm great at mixing them!" Ronald boasted, and then paused, remembering who he was talking to, "Uh, Not just alcoholic drinks. I'm good at other drinks, too."
"Oh?" William took another bite of his soup and he washed it down with a swallow of water. "I'm rather fond of fruity smoothies. If I were to pick up some fresh fruit for the juicer, do you think you could manage that?"
Ronald nodded, "Of course. Make those all the time. Would you like it with, or without the vodka?" he added the last bit with a tease, his foot nudging Will's under the table before he could stop himself.
"With Vodka or Rum would be ideal on a day that I plan to imbibe," answered William with another little smirk, "but let's just see where the weekend takes us, shall we? It could be quite some time before we have the opportunity to indulge ourselves."
"Hopefully before this war ends…unless it ends tomorrow. That'd be nice." Ron chuckled, inwardly surprised that William Spears wanted alcohol in his drink. In some ways, he'd always imagined William to be more like Alan when it came to alcohol. Alan always refused it when it was offered. But then again…Will worked harder than anyone. Maybe a glass or two after work helped? Even if he didn't get drunk and just took the edge off life.
"It would, but it's highly unlikely." William sighed and spooned up another bite of soup. "I haven't a clue how long we can expect this conflict to go on, sadly. It could end in a few months or it could last for years. So many nations are embroiled in this war now. I can't imagine it getting resolved quickly."
He resumed eating, maintaining proper table manners despite his hunger.
"It's like the Great War all over again…only worse in some ways…" Ronald said, talking around his food, "But in that one I got to stay in London."
"This is quite possibly the worst mortal conflict I've ever witnessed," remarked William. "Though I am sure the Undertaker and other reapers before us have seen their share of terrible ones, too. I have often wondered if his madness sprang from seeing too many mortal wars, or being part of extra planar wars himself. Both he and Father Anderson served in the largest conflict to occur in the Shinigami realm in the history of our kind. The Demon Wars, if you have ever read about them. I wonder how many reaper deaths they bore witness to…and how many of those were friends."
He took another sip of his water. "It puts it all into perspective, when one considers it. Perhaps Anderson did not see as much as Legendary Death. He was assigned a non-combat position as a lookout, so I imagine he did not see so much of it up close and personal. Undertaker, however, was in the front ranks. He was a major combatant."
William's thoughts again went to the blank records that had been showing up with greater frequency. Could the old legend be responsible? What purpose could it possibly serve to erase all life events from a cinematic reel, and how would one even go about doing so?
"All I know of that war is that it happened and it ended in the forming of a treaty between reapers and demons… and angels, as well as a prevention of a war with them in the future. We had to memorize the terms of the peace treaty, but never learned much of the actual war." Ronald shrugged, sipping his milk and immediately wiping his lip just in case.
William nodded. "Yes, the constraints laid down upon us concerning interference with contracts between mortals and demons were a part of that treaty. Before that, contracted humans appeared on the death lists and Dispatch agents were encouraged to attempt collection before their demons could dine on their souls. I'm not particularly thrilled that we now must allow those vile beasts to feed on their contractees, but it was a necessary compromise. In addition, we are restricted from interfering with angelic 'purification' missions, provided they are sanctioned by the divine council. It's all very tedious, in my opinion."
He finished off his soup and he sat back with a sigh, pushing his bowl away. "Perhaps we'll have our answers concerning the erased cinematic records, before this conflict is over."
"Well, I hope so. I don't want to see it continue. We are losing a lot of souls between demons and blanks." Ronald opened his packet of crackers and used one to scoop up the remaining soup with it. "Paperwork for it sucks."
"Agreed," muttered William. He checked his watch. "I estimate we should be finished with today's collections by nightfall if we leave within fifteen minutes. I would like for this day to be finished, quite honestly."
"Cake first," Ronald reminded, finishing up the last bite of his soup. "Us sharing one shouldn't take us too long to eat. Do you want to go get it, or should I?"
"You choose," decided William. "I'll wait here."
With a nod, Ronald pushed himself to his feet, making sure his legs were steady before walking away from the table—only to stop mid-stride half way there to turn around and walk back. "I forget I'm in Germany and don't speak the language," he admitted, embarrassed.
"I've forgotten that as well," confessed William dryly. He wasn't usually the sort to be so forgetful himself, but the experience with the landmine had shaken him up as much as it had Ronald. He got up to go and make the order. "I won't be long."
"I shall be here trying not to grow a white mustache." Ronald grinned, picking up his half-drank glass of milk. He'd saved some to go with the cake.
William returned after a few minutes with a slice of cake split onto two plates. He set them down and took his seat again, gazing at his share with an odd sense of trepidation. How many memories might come flowing back, the moment he had his first taste of Black Forest cake since childhood? Memories of his father striking his hands with the extendable pointing rod he used during lessons, whenever William failed to answer a question. Memories of his mother sneaking this very same cake to him in his bedroom at night, because if he didn't excel at his lessons, his father would deny him dessert after supper.
He stared down at his portion as Ronald began to dig in, absently rolling a cherry around in the dollop of whipped cream on it. Unbeknownst to him, his expression betrayed his sadness as he began to miss his mother.
"Now this is what I call dessert!" Ronald hummed in content as he flavor assaulted his tongue, "Totally makes up for the endless potatoes!" He glanced up at William and frowned. "You okay?"
William shook himself out of it and slipped his mask of stoicism on again, nodding. "Of course. I was just allowing my stomach to rest for a moment before eating mine."
He began to dig in, and to his surprise, the familiar taste of the dessert brought back more good memories than bad.
The pair got back to their hotel room late. Their paperwork had taken longer to complete and file away than they had expected causing them to delay their return to their temporary home. Two AM struck on the large clock tower a few blocks away from the hotel, causing Ronald to groan as he opened the door with their key.
"Two in the bloody morning…and we both need showers. Who's the lucky one to get it first?"
The blond slumped against the wall and reached down to take off his shoes and socks first before moving to his uniform. The uniform was ruined, so he didn't bother taking care of it, simply dropping it to the floor by his feet until he was only in his slacks. His muscles flexed as he stretched and moved his arms to try and relieve some of the tension that had built up, and he cracked his neck. Dirt and scorch marks had found its way to his skin, the back of his left shoulder having gotten hit the worst, the skin inflamed from a burn.
"I'm gonna be sore tomorrow for sure…"
"You should go first," offered William. "You took the worst of it…again." He nearly smirked at Ronald, but he caught himself before making the teasing expression. He really needed to avoid flirting with him, if at all possible.
"Thanks, Will." Ronald flashed a soft smile and leaned in without thinking, his exhausted mind forgetting to put up a wall of self reminders that they were work partners and nothing more as his lips brushed against the man's cheek in a fleeting kiss. He turned into the bath and closed the door, locking it before he froze in realization at what he'd done.
William stood there in a stupor, watching as the blond vanished behind the bathroom door. "Oh, heavens," he muttered to himself harshly, "it was merely a gesture of gratitude. No need to get flustered."
But flustered, he was. His thoughts about Ronald were anything but professional or pure, and he sighed. What a horrid leader he was…lusting after his subordinate so much.
Ronald sighed, knowing there was nothing he could do to take back his action, and he couldn't avoid facing William for long. He turned on the water and stepped in, taking his time in showering, letting the soap and water wash away the sweat and dirt, through he babied his burned shoulder when he scrubbed it. It'd be healed by morning, but it did hurt.
Once he was done and dry, he slipped on his boxers and walked out of the bathroom, his glasses steamed over.
"Uh, you're turn," he said, looking away, "and…sorry I didn't mean to—you know…I'm just real tired and wasn't thinking…" he apologized, his cheeks flushing.
"Think nothing of it," excused William, his own cheeks still warm. "We are, both of us, exhausted and fatigue tends to make one careless."
He gathered his pajamas and went into the bathroom for his turn. As he turned the shower on and adjusted the temperature, he could not get his mind off of that seemingly innocent little kiss. He and Ronald had grown much closer, and the bond was getting stronger with each day. Was it really so improper to begin thinking of him as a lover, as well as a comrade? After all, soldiers formed close bonds in war. He smirked as he undressed and stepped into the shower. He doubted most soldiers considered shagging their companions, though.
William sighed and let the water spray over him, bowing his head. He'd been through these self-arguments before. Just because he had developed an attraction—even feelings—for Ronald, did not mean that he had an excuse to act on it. He took his time, turning the heat down to cool his ardor. He needed to focus. When this was finished and they no longer had the stress of war influencing their thoughts and feelings, perhaps he and Ronald could sort this out.
He finished up and dried off, before slipping into his pajamas and towel-drying his hair. He combed it into place and exited the bathroom, trying to keep things on a more casual level with his partner. "I believe I shall order dinner to be brought to our room, rather than dining downstairs," he announced. "I don't know how you feel about it, but I'm personally not in the mood to dine with strangers tonight."
Ronald grunted and rolled over, having been in a doze on his bed. He sat up and rubbed his eyes before grabbing his glasses and pushing them back on his face, "I dun' wanna really put clothes back on," he yawned. "Forgot about Dinner…yeah, probably shouldn't skip that." He stretched as if he was going to stand back up, but instead he fell back across his bed, arms spread out.
"Order something that will come fast and can be eaten fast, though…don't want to use it as a pillow."
William smirked, sharing his sentiments. "Perhaps something from the sandwich selection, then."
He picked up the menu sitting on the table and he carried it over to the phone to order. "Would you prefer roast beef, ham or the potato sandwich?" He kept his tone casual as he glanced at the blond, awaiting his reaction and answer.
"Ham," Ronald said quickly. "No more potatoes tonight for Knoxy. —With extra cheese if possible," he added as an afterthought.
The fact that Ronald didn't even blink when William teasingly told him there was a potato sandwich on the menu testified that the blond was finally getting used to the German love for the root vegetable. He glanced at the menu again and he blinked. There actually was a potato sandwich on the menu. German potato salad on rye.
"Goodness," he muttered. So much for his attempt at a joke. He picked up the phone and dialed room service to order Ronald's choice and a roast beef sandwich for himself. Once he'd finished with that, he relaxed on his bed. At least these accommodations offered two twin beds, rather than one double or queen. He honestly feared his hands might wander in his sleep if he had to share a bed with Ronald again—especially after that little peck on the cheek, earlier.
William picked up the book he'd brought and he turned his bedside lamp on a dim setting to begin reading it. "Ronald," he said absently, "Teach me to say something in Italian. I'm rather interested in learning the language, eventually. Perhaps I can teach you a few simple phrases in German, as well."
"Hmmm… 'Lavoro straordinario succhia palle,'" he said slowly so that the man could hear how he spoke the words.
"Lavoro straordinario succhia palle," repeated William slowly, careful to enunciate each word the way Ronald had. "Now, what did I just say?"
Ronald snickered and tried hard to hold back laughter. "Finally, the man admits it!" He sat up and crawled to the edge of his bed, a cocky grin on his face. "You just admitted that Working overtime sucks balls."
William's first reaction was to get annoyed, but instead, he found a smile growing on his lips. As much as he assigned it to both himself and his underlings, he despised overtime as much as the next reaper. "Well then, I suppose it does," he agreed. "A necessary evil, nonetheless."
"Necessary, sure, but you are the only person I know who doesn't complain about it! Well, at least not openly and where others can hear you. Give the impression that you like it which just isn't natural."
"I assure you, I like it no better than you. I've been longing for a day off since…well, since I first became supervisor of our department. Sometimes I miss the days of taking orders, rather than giving them."
He tilted his head as he looked up from his book again at the blond. "Would you like to learn a phrase in German?"
"Hmmm…here's an order, then." Ronald stretched himself over the gaps between the beds and settled himself on William's, folding his legs, "Teach your sexy junior some German until dinner gets to the door. Something useful so I'm not so lost in this country."
William was so distracted by the sudden change of Ronald's location that he spoke without fully considering the connotations of the phrase. "Steigen sie mit mir aus, bitte."
"What's it mean?" Ronald asked, taking caution before repeating the words. He didn't want to unknowingly agree to not complain about overtime once they got back to London—or something.
"Get off with me," answered the brunet. His eyes widened behind the lenses of his glasses as he realized how that sounded. "As in off a bus or other transport," he hastily explained, his face heating with embarrassment. He glanced at Ronald from behind his book, hoping the blond's mind didn't go to pornographic places. He could see by the smirk on his lips that it had, and he lifted the book up to hide his face as his blush deepened.
"Hmm, has it been that long for you?" Ron smirked, "So long that you're feeling the need and so your mind's in the gutter, taking the dirty meaning over the obvious one?" He nudged the man's leg with his foot and scootched closer, lowering his voice. "If you need it, just tell me."
William lowered the book and stared at him, properly flabbergasted. Did Ronald just…offer himself to him? "I beg your pardon?" His eyes swept over the blond, lingering on his bare chest and abs. Good heavens, that was a tempting offer. All of his propriety nearly went out the window. He started to lean in closer to the attractive young blond, his pulse quickening. "What if I were to take you up on that offer, Knox?"
"Not tonight, of course—way too tired." Ron shrugged as if it was no big deal, "But like, this weekend when we have more time off according to our schedule…I could go out on my own for a bit while you do whatever you do for it."
Really, he wanted to offer it himself, but he refused to let himself. It wouldn't be meaningless on his part, and he knew he'd hurt himself emotionally having casual sex with his crush—far more than knowing the man was having sex with someone else.
William blinked, finally realizing that he was speaking of something else entirely. He felt an unreasonable sense of disappointment. Of course Ronald would offer for him to…arrange a meeting with another party. Why did he entertain thoughts to the contrary?
"I…see." William pulled back, faintly mortified that he'd come close to cupping the back of Ron's head and crushing his mouth against his for the kiss he'd so often been fantasizing about. "That will not be necessary, Ronald. I do appreciate the offer."
~I'd have appreciated you offering your body to me even more, but that is such a foolish, unprofessional notion.~
He wondered if it just came naturally for Ronald Knox to flirt without conscious thought. He'd been so sure for a moment that the younger reaper…but then, the kiss from earlier had addled his thoughts…made him imagine things that weren't there. How silly of him. He tried to return his attention to his book and forget about the moment he'd felt that might have resulted in him shagging his underling into a coma.
Ronald opened his mouth to respond when a knock on the door interrupted. with a tired groan, Ronald pushed himself up and walked over to get their dinner, tipping the busboy who brought it up to them before handing William his plate, "Finally, we can eat and pass out for a few hours!" he grinned, sitting back on his own bed, plate on his lap, and biting into his ham sandwich.
William put his book aside and accepted the plate with a polite nod of thanks. "Yes, I quite agree with you on that front." He picked up his sandwich and bit into it, hardly even tasting it. He ate mechanically, glad to have something to distract him from the idiot thing he'd nearly done.
They ate in silence, a thin fog of awkward energy between them until Ronald was more than half-finished with his dinner. "Hey—Senpai…Have you ever…you know, liked someone you know you shouldn't?" He asked in a more serious tone than before when he'd been being playful and teasing the man.
William paused and looked at him sidelong. "Undoubtedly."
"…What do you do about it?" Ron continued in inquiry as he looked up at the man. "I mean, especially when you've been crushing on them for so long and it only gets stronger instead of fading away like you thought because…yeah, not so great an idea to try and pursue…"
William felt that the subject was hitting far too close to home. "I…generally remind myself that partaking in my desire wouldn't be wise of me. It doesn't prevent me from…wanting."
Dear gods, he felt himself getting hot under the collar again, and he reached up to flick the top button of his pajama top open. It seemed he could not even gaze upon Ronald anymore without entertaining lustful thoughts.
"Did it ever get easier? Or like, go away? I mean, It's been years, and it's exhausting, to be honest," the blond admitted, taking another casual bite of his sandwich. "Sorry," he added around his mouthful, "I tend ta take whatever's in my head at the time and run my mouth about it when I'm exhausted…"
William slowly shook his head. No, it did not get easier. If anything, it only seemed to get stronger the more he resisted it. "It does not go away, Ronald. I wish it would, but I'm afraid once the mind and heart sets their sites, it cannot be so easily dismissed."
~Stop looking so blasted appealing.~
He wanted to grab him and kiss him. William had never felt this strongly before. It disturbed him. Taking care of his baser needs through casual encounters was all well and good; but this was something different; and he could not define it.
"Ronald…" he didn't know what he wanted to say. Invite him back to his bed? Ask him to stop looking so attractive? Confess his feelings?
"What did you do? You know, when it happened to you?" Ron asked, finishing his sandwich and setting his plate aside before pulling his covers back to slide under, "or wish you would have done…"
William tried hard not to stare at him. "I did nothing. I simply…hid it…and still do. I have never acted on the desire I feel, though I fantasize about doing so more often than I'd like to admit."
Goodness, was the room heating up, or was it just him? His glasses were steaming over from the body heat he was putting off, and William demonstrated uncommonly bad table manners by cramming his sandwich into his mouth just to keep himself occupied.
"I was hoping you had some great words of advice on the subject, Senpai," Ron sighed, "It's driving me nuts trying to ignore my feelings. I'm gonna end up like that crazy old geezer back in London if this keeps up! Giggling to myself over nothing…"
William smirked and finished swallowing the last bite of his sandwich. He washed it down with a few swallows of iced tea before answering. "Have you considered telling the object of your affections how you feel?"
At once, he felt a sharp spur of jealousy stab at him. Just who had managed to gain the affections of Ronald Knox to the point where the notorious heartbreaker suffered such distraction? He thought it was better that he not know. His feelings for the boy had grown so unprofessional lately that he dared not trust himself with such information. He might just be tempted to arrange an accident…and that bit of self-awareness frankly terrified William.
"Because I may as well step on another land mine if I do," the blond groaned. "No way am I his type."
"How can you be sure? They may surprise you." William felt like a hypocrite even as he said it. He certainly wasn't making any moves…but he felt he had more reason not to. In addition to Ronald being a coworker and subordinate, the timing was horrendous and now, he knew Ronald already had eyes for another.
~And why in bloody hell am I encouraging him to act on his feelings, knowing now that it would eat me alive with jealousy to see him with someone else?~
William checked a sigh as he put away his dish and finished off his drink.
Ron gave a little shrug, "He don't date…" he muttered.
~Not to mention you hardly knew I existed up till recently, and you focus on your work way too much to have time for me,~ he thought sadly, punching his pillow into shape and flopping down onto it, arms folded up underneath.
William frowned at that. Perhaps he wasn't the only one at Dispatch practically married to his job. It sounded like he had a lot in common with whomever this fellow of Ron's fancy was, and that irritated him even more. Bad enough that the boy's affections were focused on another, but it would bother him less if he at least sounded like a vastly different person for himself. He couldn't explain why it insulted him…except that he wondered why he was being overlooked, if a workaholic was what Ronald wanted.
Perhaps he was simply jumping to conclusions, though. There could be another reason why the man did not date. "Does he object to dating on some sort of moral grounds?"
It wasn't common for reapers to suffer compunctions about sexual relationships outside of matrimony, given they typically weren't religious…but stranger things had happened. He dug his toothbrush, floss and toothpaste out of his toiletry bag so that he could clean his teeth before bed.
Ron shrugged. "Not that I know of. I just know he doesn't." He paused, thinking back. "Probably just work reasons, really."
"Hmm. Well, perhaps it's for the best," reasoned William. It made him feel selfishly a bit better to hear that Ronald doubted anything would ever come of it, and he decided he needed to come to terms with his feelings and decide what—if anything—to do about them. "Excuse me; I need to brush my teeth."
He went into the bathroom to take care of that matter, and he admonished himself. "Knox isn't for you," he whispered, "so stop this nonsense. You are allowing feelings of comradery in a time of strife develop into something inappropriate."
He could sit there and reason with himself all he liked, but he couldn't stop the jealousy at the thought of another laying hands on Ronald. He brushed his teeth vigorously and he got a bit rough with his flossing, making his gums bleed. With a sigh, he rinsed his mouth out and brought his oral hygiene items back out to put them away.
"Goodnight, Mr. Knox," he said as he climbed back into his bed again. He didn't bother trying to read more of his book; he was far too distracted. He took his glasses off and slipped on his eye mask to help him sleep, and he reached out blindly to click off his bedside lamp.
Ronald had already drifted off, and was only conscious enough to respond with a small hum. Though his mind was still active, twisting images in his dreams of him finally confessing to William, pressing up against him, kissing him—and being kissed and held in return. He'd been having such dreams more and more the longer they stayed in Germany, and he was glad they had separate beds, given his habit of cuddling up to things in his sleep—and the morning wood his dreams gave him.
-To be continued