collaborative_daredevil | Slavery RP Post XVIII

"Uh-huh." He yawned as he responded, and he put his knitting away. "Could we all try napping together maybe?"

"Your bed here or the bed on the top floor?" she asked, yawning at the very suggestion.

"The bed here's big enough I think." He glanced over at Jamie.

"Well, alright," Jamie sighed a little, and hauled himself up with a wince, "Whoever wakes up first explains it to Master?" he suggested, and stepped carefully closer to the bed, unsure of how Toffee wanted them to arrange together.

"Or if he phones us to let you know what he and Hendrick want on their pizza." Toffee glanced between Jamie and Ivannya, then guided Jamie down to lie facing him, letting Ivannya decide if she wanted to be at Jamie's back or his.

Ivannya pulled her jewelry and dress off, cuddling up behind Toffee in her leggings and shift and socks, warm and drowsy already. "A warm toasty Toffee sandwich," she mumbled in glee. "My favorite. So so tasty. Love you, our baby pet-sib. So good at being shared," she giggled and closed her eyes. "One day you'll be at the center, not me."

"Love you too, love you both." Jamie was dropping off already, and Toffee quickly followed him.

(OOC: Up to you if DA Barba calls ahead, or comes in to find the three of them napping)

Barba was deep in thought about both his latest personally-handled case and his pets as he sat in the car with Hendrick on the ride home. This new case would be very difficult to prosecute; half the witnesses wouldn't cooperate and the one with the best testimony was a former cooperator who was moved by guilt--an emotion he knew could dry up at any moment. And the crime itself, while horrible, wasn't quite vivid enough to overcome the instinct to flinch away from horror in the jury unless he and Hendrick presented it very carefully.

He also worried a little about Jamie and Toffee. Jamie's sole time of bratty, self-destructive behavior was always when he was sick or injured, and he hated having to rest. They were working on it, but Barba did worry that he'd disobeyed and made things worse. And Toffee..well, clearly, Toffee needed some more bonding, some trust-building, and Barba could do that with him--but it needed time and attention, both of which were scarce commodities at times.

He half expected to walk in to a house with an irritated Jamie and peacemaker Ivannya, but blinked when he saw the kitchen was still dark, and went up with Hendrick to investigate, looking for the pets--and amazed at the cute sight of them so thoroughly tangled they might as well have oozed together, huddled under a single blanket and only slowly waking up.

"Hello master. We convinced Jamie to take a nap with us." He spoke as he lifted his head, voice sleepy.

Trust Toffee, by far the lightest sleeper, to wake up first. "I see, sweetheart," he murmured, bending to kiss his forehead. "Did you take good care of Jamie too?"

"Got him set up here, then talked about my knitting and what I want to knit. Found a really pretty shell I could knit to maybe wear over a plain long sleeved top for warmth at first, then over a camisole if we get a hot summer." He didn't mention the cardigan he was planning for Hendrick.

"Sounds like you did a good job then, keeping him and you happy and resting," Barba murmured, and kissed him more. "Don't get up just yet, my sweet little darling, me and Hendrick ought to change to something comfortable and then come and order some dinner. You were all too tired to, I can tell."

"And not entirely sure when you'd be back." He agreed, smiling up at Master Erik, then settling down with Jamie and Ivannya for a bit longer, not ready to sleep again.

"My darling," Barba murmured, petting him, and he and Hendrick then went and changed into more comfortable clothes--actual sweatpants and sweatshirt for Barba, which felt odd and luxurious, and soft lounge clothes for Hendrick, who then slipped downstairs to order pizzas, wings, garlic knots, churros, and sodas--enough for many delicious leftovers.

Staying snuggled between Jamie and Ivannya felt safe and comfortable, but he did need to use the bathroom, so he wriggled out from between them carefully, moving down to join Master Erik and Hendrick afterwards.

Ivannya shifted and moaned at the absence, rubbing her eyes in the dark room, disoriented and starting to be afraid. "Mast'r? Toffee? What happened to him, did he die..." she mumbled and stood up, stumbling around and blinking in the horribly bright light. "Toffee?" she called, voice dreading the answer.

He'd just managed to get his shorts back on when Ivannya began calling out for him, and he washed his hands quickly.

"It's okay, I just needed to use the bathroom." He called out to her, coming back to hug her. "Master's back, should we wake Jamie up?"

(OOC: I'm reading this as her being woken up by his absence, and Toffee was planning what to do in his last section.)

Ivannya groaned and hugged him, her nightmare fading away like fog when the sun came out, and rubbed his cheeks with hers. "Uh-huh. If he misses dinner he'll be upset," she mumbled. "Was he mad we forgot to order?"

"No, he was happy that we got Jamie to relax and sleep." He reassured Ivannya at once, before moving to kneel by Jamie and let her get dressed again if she wanted to.

"Jamie, Master Erik's home with Hendrick."

"Huh?" Jamie asked reflexively, sitting up and blinking. "He what? We slept that long? Where are they now?" he asked, perturbed and alarmed, "Did you really let Master Erik have to do everything?" he demanded as he climbed out of bed.

Ivannya, meanwhile, had stolen Hendrick's fluffy nightgown and was heading down the stairs.

"They're downstairs." He hugged Jamie again. "Careful, don't want your back to open again."

"Why did you trick me into falling asleep before I could get dinner?" Jamie grumbled. "I wasn't--I'm always in charge of dinner!" he protested as he came down slowly to see the den table set with plates and the floor arranged with pillows.

"I think a nice, informal kneeling dinner would be lovely," Barba called from the kitchen, where he was setting out glasses. "Pizza, wings, garlic knots, churros, and sodas are incoming."

"Sounds good." And perfect for the handfeeding game, except he wasn't supposed to play it right now.

"Jamie, you must have needed the sleep if you fell asleep that quickly."

Jamie huffed, but knew by the familiar look on Master Erik's face he wouldn't tolerate any argument on this, and he had no desire to be ordered to silence for the evening.

He glanced at Toffee's slight apprehension, and sent a questioning look over.

"We're not handfeeding tonight," Barba said. "But frankly I think some more kneeling time will be good for you, Toffee. Make you balanced."

"Oh, yes, yes that sounds good." He smiled up at Master Erik with relief. "Thank you Master Erik."

Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Re: Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Re: Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Re: Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Re: Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Re: Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Re: Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Re: Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Re: Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Re: Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Re: Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Re: Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Re: Toffee: Overload and Burnout

Toffee: Overload and Burnout