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teamflareTitle: Then We Shall Need Each Other
Fandom: Pokémon X&Y
Pairing: Professor Augustine Sycamore/Lysandre
Rating: G
Summary: There's a method to taming people, just like there's a method to taming pokémons.
Notes: For the prompt "getting to know you." Title is from Le Petit Prince, from the fox taming scene, of course.
AO3 Link: Here.
Café Lysandre is a warm and lively place. Ever since it's opened, Augustine has always found it swarmed with customers; new ones, eager to see what the fuss is about, and regulars, looking to score a spot to sit and savor some hot coffee and fresh pastries before it gets too crowded for comfort. Multiple times, he's arrived only to be greeted with a closed door, guarded by a sharply dressed employee here to inform the curious passersby that, very sorry, the room is currently over capacity.
Multiple times, he's been let in with a nod and a smile, of course, we have room for you, Professor.
Today, after he's sat down at the counter on the only barstool left, he can't resist the urge to turn toward Lysandre and ask, "Why do you let me in?"
Lysandre frowns at him. It's not an unpleasant expression, exactly; it's one of sharp focus, of quick thinking.
"Why not?"
Augustine rolls his eyes, but before he can insist, his host puts down a tall cup of his finest iced coffee, made from scratch to his requirements.
"I'm trying to figure you out." Augustine takes a sip, closes his eyes to let the taste sink in, and lets out a contented sigh. He opens one eye to further explain, "You're a very mysterious man."
He takes another sip without breaking eye contact and Lysandre smiles, just a bit, his eyebrows slightly raised.
"Am I?" Augustine knows he's got him because his voice no longer carries the affable, professional tone he reserves for his other customers. "What would you like to know, then, Professor Sycamore?"
There are many answers he could give to this question, some of which would definitely break through the veneer of Lysandre's composure, but now's not yet the time. There's a method to taming people, just like there's a method to taming pokémons.
You can't just put your hands in the pyroar's mane without first training him to eat out of your hand.
"I've been meaning to ask you," Augustine starts, running the tip of his forefinger alongside the rim of his cup, "what's drawn you to Lumiose? I heard you were thriving in Snowbelle."
For a second, barely a blink of the eye, Lysandre's mouth presses into a thin line, and then it's gone, so quick Augustine thinks he's imagined it.
"The appeal of the capital should seem obvious," he says, enunciating the words slowly in his upper-class accent. "It's where the important things happen, where the important people are."
"Oh," Augustine says, and he can't hide his delight. "Then it's true that you came up here to meet me?"
He's teasing, tilting his head up as if to dare him to deny it. Lysandre's gaze darkens before he looks away. Under the soft lighting of the café, the blush that spreads on his cheekbones is hardly visible. Augustine's heart feels too big for his chest.
"Perhaps I was hoping to make your acquaintance," Lysandre murmurs. He's staring to the side, his arms folded behind his back. "It has been slow going."
Augustine can't help it: he laughs, almost a giggle, unbefitting of a man his age. The customer to his right pretends not to notice.
"Well, if you wanted to get to know me, you could have just asked," Augustine says, smiling brightly. "We can figure each other out."
He brings his cup up to his lips to drink what's left in it and give Lysandre ample view of his exposed neck and collarbones as he tilts his head back. When he's done, he licks his upper lip, and Lysandre's nostrils flare imperceptibly.
Of course, once you've found out what the pyroar's willing to eat, it becomes easier to make him sit and wait for when you're ready to give it to him.
One bite at a time.
Fandom: Pokémon X&Y
Pairing: Professor Augustine Sycamore/Lysandre
Rating: G
Summary: There's a method to taming people, just like there's a method to taming pokémons.
Notes: For the prompt "getting to know you." Title is from Le Petit Prince, from the fox taming scene, of course.
AO3 Link: Here.
Café Lysandre is a warm and lively place. Ever since it's opened, Augustine has always found it swarmed with customers; new ones, eager to see what the fuss is about, and regulars, looking to score a spot to sit and savor some hot coffee and fresh pastries before it gets too crowded for comfort. Multiple times, he's arrived only to be greeted with a closed door, guarded by a sharply dressed employee here to inform the curious passersby that, very sorry, the room is currently over capacity.
Multiple times, he's been let in with a nod and a smile, of course, we have room for you, Professor.
Today, after he's sat down at the counter on the only barstool left, he can't resist the urge to turn toward Lysandre and ask, "Why do you let me in?"
Lysandre frowns at him. It's not an unpleasant expression, exactly; it's one of sharp focus, of quick thinking.
"Why not?"
Augustine rolls his eyes, but before he can insist, his host puts down a tall cup of his finest iced coffee, made from scratch to his requirements.
"I'm trying to figure you out." Augustine takes a sip, closes his eyes to let the taste sink in, and lets out a contented sigh. He opens one eye to further explain, "You're a very mysterious man."
He takes another sip without breaking eye contact and Lysandre smiles, just a bit, his eyebrows slightly raised.
"Am I?" Augustine knows he's got him because his voice no longer carries the affable, professional tone he reserves for his other customers. "What would you like to know, then, Professor Sycamore?"
There are many answers he could give to this question, some of which would definitely break through the veneer of Lysandre's composure, but now's not yet the time. There's a method to taming people, just like there's a method to taming pokémons.
You can't just put your hands in the pyroar's mane without first training him to eat out of your hand.
"I've been meaning to ask you," Augustine starts, running the tip of his forefinger alongside the rim of his cup, "what's drawn you to Lumiose? I heard you were thriving in Snowbelle."
For a second, barely a blink of the eye, Lysandre's mouth presses into a thin line, and then it's gone, so quick Augustine thinks he's imagined it.
"The appeal of the capital should seem obvious," he says, enunciating the words slowly in his upper-class accent. "It's where the important things happen, where the important people are."
"Oh," Augustine says, and he can't hide his delight. "Then it's true that you came up here to meet me?"
He's teasing, tilting his head up as if to dare him to deny it. Lysandre's gaze darkens before he looks away. Under the soft lighting of the café, the blush that spreads on his cheekbones is hardly visible. Augustine's heart feels too big for his chest.
"Perhaps I was hoping to make your acquaintance," Lysandre murmurs. He's staring to the side, his arms folded behind his back. "It has been slow going."
Augustine can't help it: he laughs, almost a giggle, unbefitting of a man his age. The customer to his right pretends not to notice.
"Well, if you wanted to get to know me, you could have just asked," Augustine says, smiling brightly. "We can figure each other out."
He brings his cup up to his lips to drink what's left in it and give Lysandre ample view of his exposed neck and collarbones as he tilts his head back. When he's done, he licks his upper lip, and Lysandre's nostrils flare imperceptibly.
Of course, once you've found out what the pyroar's willing to eat, it becomes easier to make him sit and wait for when you're ready to give it to him.
One bite at a time.