The hurt in his eyes isn't enough to make the King soften. His eyes narrow as the man finally rises to meet him on equal ground, finally venting his fears and frustrations--and how simultaneously helpful Gilgamesh is and isn't being. This is the challenge he's been waiting for. One can spend hours throwing swords at a stump
but having a moving target is far more interesting and feels just that much more productive. ]
You have, haven't you? [ For all of Sampo's proclaimed happiness, there's a rock in his chest and Gil pokes a finger beneath it by a good inch or so, really pressing in as if the pressure would be enough for Sampo to actually feel this time. The man bleeds his anxieties and Gilgamesh's face would indicate he's unmoved by the fear, head cocking ever so slightly. ]
And yet for taking such a difficult toll on you, here we are for the second time in our lives. Here I sit, having given you the depths of my affection--a place at my side, comfort in my bed, whatever things you might've desired and craved, and you still sought to chase something else for profit, or amusement, or whatever it is that drives you. So yes, Samuel. It's cruel. Once again, you've left me in the dark because "everything was going to work out, isn't life a laugh", only this time, I get to watch you bleed out in an alleyway, and you get to be ringside for hearing people scrounge for rumors and blame me for not doing enough in real time!
[ There's a cheerful sort of malice in his voice, in his expression, and the baring of teeth he's passing as a smile doesn't reach the slit-pupil red of his eyes. ]
You could've done a dozen things different if only you'd look towards the resources you keep at hand! You could've had someone in Ghost City appraise the piece, or reached out to one of the half dozen magically-inclined strangers that you regularly service and tease! You ask me to comfort you right now, but why didn't you lean on me two months ago? And another thing!
[ And now he's on a roll--the breath he sucks in rattles in his simulacrum lungs. ]
If you think I'm going to cast you out after spending all of this time, energy, and grief on helping you, then you're actually stupid and not just playing a Fool, Samuel Kovac. You are mine. I'm going to drag you towards something resembling your health, kicking and screaming if I must, and if that means you have to tolerate a little temper from me in the wake of it, then so be it! I don't have to hold you and coddle you, because you should already know that I will break the world itself to see you safe from harm, and that simply comes from my nature as an Absolute!
I am a King and if I must fight the heavens themselves to protect you, then I will--that is my burden, and that is the load I bear! A cedar tree will never bend to embrace you, and yet, the rain will never reach you when you stand beneath it! You're cold, you're stupid, and I'm going to fix it and you can be a little uncomfortable in the wake of all of that! The price must always be paid! Maybe you'll finally learn to think before you act and there won't be a next time!
[ The thunder in his voice, the scowl on his face--the world sits upon his shoulders and it will be a cold day in hell before he lets it slip away. One moment, he's braced on the side of the tub, looking like he wants to leap in and fight Sampo physically, and the next he's climbing into the water himself, clothes and all, to grab the man by his hair and drag him in for a bone-crushing embrace--both for the fact that he wants Sampo to feel it, and because he kind of wants to pop his head off like he's a cartoon toy for how aggravated the other man's gotten him. ]
no subject
Sam finally found his teeth again.
The hurt in his eyes isn't enough to make the King soften. His eyes narrow as the man finally rises to meet him on equal ground, finally venting his fears and frustrations--and how simultaneously helpful Gilgamesh is and isn't being. This is the challenge he's been waiting for. One can spend hours throwing swords at a stump
but having a moving target is far more interesting and feels just that much more productive. ]
You have, haven't you? [ For all of Sampo's proclaimed happiness, there's a rock in his chest and Gil pokes a finger beneath it by a good inch or so, really pressing in as if the pressure would be enough for Sampo to actually feel this time. The man bleeds his anxieties and Gilgamesh's face would indicate he's unmoved by the fear, head cocking ever so slightly. ]
And yet for taking such a difficult toll on you, here we are for the second time in our lives. Here I sit, having given you the depths of my affection--a place at my side, comfort in my bed, whatever things you might've desired and craved, and you still sought to chase something else for profit, or amusement, or whatever it is that drives you.
So yes, Samuel. It's cruel.
Once again, you've left me in the dark because "everything was going to work out, isn't life a laugh", only this time, I get to watch you bleed out in an alleyway, and you get to be ringside for hearing people scrounge for rumors and blame me for not doing enough in real time!
[ There's a cheerful sort of malice in his voice, in his expression, and the baring of teeth he's passing as a smile doesn't reach the slit-pupil red of his eyes. ]
You could've done a dozen things different if only you'd look towards the resources you keep at hand! You could've had someone in Ghost City appraise the piece, or reached out to one of the half dozen magically-inclined strangers that you regularly service and tease! You ask me to comfort you right now, but why didn't you lean on me two months ago? And another thing!
[ And now he's on a roll--the breath he sucks in rattles in his simulacrum lungs. ]
If you think I'm going to cast you out after spending all of this time, energy, and grief on helping you, then you're actually stupid and not just playing a Fool, Samuel Kovac. You are mine. I'm going to drag you towards something resembling your health, kicking and screaming if I must, and if that means you have to tolerate a little temper from me in the wake of it, then so be it! I don't have to hold you and coddle you, because you should already know that I will break the world itself to see you safe from harm, and that simply comes from my nature as an Absolute!
I am a King and if I must fight the heavens themselves to protect you, then I will--that is my burden, and that is the load I bear! A cedar tree will never bend to embrace you, and yet, the rain will never reach you when you stand beneath it!
You're cold, you're stupid, and I'm going to fix it and you can be a little uncomfortable in the wake of all of that! The price must always be paid! Maybe you'll finally learn to think before you act and there won't be a next time!
[ The thunder in his voice, the scowl on his face--the world sits upon his shoulders and it will be a cold day in hell before he lets it slip away. One moment, he's braced on the side of the tub, looking like he wants to leap in and fight Sampo physically, and the next he's climbing into the water himself, clothes and all, to grab the man by his hair and drag him in for a bone-crushing embrace--both for the fact that he wants Sampo to feel it, and because he kind of wants to pop his head off like he's a cartoon toy for how aggravated the other man's gotten him. ]