snowblindrpg | [log] I Think We're Alone Now [semi-open]

Tie you to the seat?

[Look, if you're going to put the kibosh on all the fun ways. House glances upward, quiet for a moment as he thinks and wrings out Will's shirt to hang up.]

I know a couple of guys from the mob. I could have one of 'em show up, too, and have you try to pick him out in the crowd.

[The game would hold House's interest, but he's not as sure about Will. He's not nearly as competitive, overall.]

Kinky. [ He was done with his shave, set the knife down and began to rinse off his hair. ]

I said an entire rally, House. Not the first ten minutes.

[ It was rare that Will expressed arrogance about his skills. He tended to be quietly competent and just went about his business. But when it was just he and House?

Let the smack talk commence. ]

That's how I like it.

[The quip is quick, slid in before he pauses to consider his next move. The doctor's lips do quirk up in a smirk and he wrings out his own shirt and drains the sink to get some fresh water into it for washing their pants.]

So, I get multiple guys, but I'm not telling you how many. You like Where's Waldo-cum-scavenger hunts? I can think of ways to keep you engaged for more than ten minutes. I am that good.

[House is proud of his gaming skills. He would absolutely devise some elaborate nonsense to keep Will entertained for a few hours at a rally just to prove he could.]

You're in over your head doctor. [ Will challenged back. ] That would draw it out to an hour, maybe ninety minutes.

[ He paused and peeked his head around the curtain, devolving into complete juvenile humor. Something he hadn't done when there were others around. ]

Unless you're saying that as long as these truck rallys can last.

[Really, Will? If that's how he wants to play it...

House is wearing his birthday suit, so the other man will just get a view of his too-skinny form as he lathers and scrubs a pair of jeans. Most of his scars are on his front now with the others being healed away by various deaths, so there's not much to see.]

We're going for at least three hours.

[He considers suggesting blind-folding the other man to enhance the challenge, but that would mean he wouldn't get to see the monster trucks, and that would be a travesty.]

You find all my guys, we go to the bonus round. It's called 'find where I put the body.' I know a couple of dead guys in the hospital morgue who might wanna get around before going into the ground.

Three hours? Sounds like a high risk of chafing. [ You know, sitting on their butts that long.

Seeing House in his birthday suit, caused Will to realize something. ]

House. At this point in the grand scheme of things, do you have any change of clothing?

[ Because Will was damn sure he didn't. Everything needed washed and aired, and even then it was going to be the hobo life for them. ]

And stop body napping from the morgue. It's rude.

[House is about to retort, but the question draws him up short as he stares down at the pants he's scrubbing. The doctor glances to the door where his pack is sitting outside. He'd brought all of his clothes in for a thorough cleaning. About the only things that aren't at least a little damp now are their outer coats, which he isn't sure about washing, anyway. The doctor's eyes track back to the underwear and shirts hanging up.]

They donated their bodies to science. It's science.

And I've seen you naked before. Think we can survive.

[It's going to be a very cold night in his sleeping bag, though. Unless...]

Especially if we combine sleeping bag forces. As much as I like frostbite and all.

Edited 2018-10-11 02:15 (UTC)

Alright, I'll ask. How exactly would you explain taking them to a monster truck rally as being good for science?

[ Because this had to be a doozy. As for the cold and the lack of clothing. Will is quiet for a few breaths, before he responds. ]

If it weren't for the fact that it's colder now than it's ever been, since I got here, I'd challenge you on the cheesiness of that line. [ Because it really did feel like something out of a movie. ]

However, I'd like to avoid frostbite as well, and it's a very real risk. Even being indoors.

[ -100 degrees was nothing to be messed with, and besides they were adults. Perfectly rational adults. ]

[Good! They're in agreement. They're going to huddle like manly men. Naked. In a couple of sleeping bags. It's fine. House is just going to focus on the first question for the time being. They can cross the 'who's playing big spoon' bridge when they get to it.

The answer is, of course, House is playing big spoon. Will is short as all hell and just feels small when you look at him. It probably has something to do with him pulling himself in to take up the smallest space possible.]

I'd be studying the effects of loud, continuous noise on the eardrum. Easier to do it with a fresh corpse than a living person. Those ones kick when you try to vivisect their ears.

[This is complete bullshit, but he could spin it.]

[ He doesn't just feel small, he is small. Dolarhyde had tossed him around like a paper doll on more than one occasion, and Hannibal had princess carried him for miles.

The good news was he tended to run hot when he slept, so he'd definitely keep House from suffering frostbite to delicate places. As they were huddling, like manly men, naked in a couple of sleeping bags.

Just another night in Norfinbury, nothing to see here.

Speaking of nothing to see, Will was finally finished with his shower but he didn't shut off the water. The steam was a blessing. ]

I thought that's what paralytic drugs were for? Also tag, you're it.

[ Will came out from behind the shower curtain like it was no big deal. They had the same equipment, nothing to see here. If he was currently dredging up images of some of the worst murder scenes he'd worked, that was just ... standard operating procedure? ]

[Oh, they're just... doing this. Okay. Sure. He's seen Will naked or mostly naked. Nothing to see. Move along. If House averts his eyes to the shower a little too quickly, that's just because he's eager to get in and clean off after far too long.]

I mean I can vivisect a guy, but my usual surgeon gets all whiny about things like that. Have you ever heard an Aussie cry? It's like drunk dingos howling.

[House leaves the clothes for Will to continue working on and steps into the shower, drawing in a deep breath as the hot water crashes down over his head. He closes his eyes and an immediate image of Will standing here a few seconds ago comes into his head.

Okay. Shoving that off and to the side. He picks up the shampoo first. his hair has felt greasy for days and while he might be all right with looking disheveled, feeling completely dirty isn't something pleasant for him. Not unless he has a hot shower to look forward to.]

Edited 2018-10-11 03:15 (UTC)

[ These bathroom walls really were fascinating. Will waits until he hears the water hitting flesh, then swallows a groan as his ever helpful imagination supplies a crystal clear image of the naked body he'd just seen, under the sluice of water.

Was one humiliating encounter not enough? Did he really need to go for more rejection?

Crossing to his pack, he withdrew a small square cloth that was enough to dry himself, but not enough to loop around his waist. Shaking it out, he set it on the back of the toilet, if House wished to use it and then, naked as the day he was born, took over laundry duties. ]

Can't say I've ever heard drunk dingos howling, so I'm not sure what that sound might be, but aren't you certified for surgery?

I'm a nephrologist and infectious disease specialist and you think I'm certified for surgery?

[There's actually a full towel in House's backpack. He probably should have brought that in here with him.]

I mean, I can run a large intestine like any guy, but no. They usually don't want me doing much more than observing on the live ones. [He's exaggerating a little bit. House has performed surgical procedures, but they're typically the kind that involve minimally invasive actions... or majorly invasive ones after the surgeons have things set up so he can't kill anyone too easily.] I do more autopsies than surgeries. I've got a neurologist and an intensivist on my team and a whole surgical unit at the hospital when I need that kinda thing done.

Chase, he's the crying dingo. [With something of a start, House realizes it's the first time he's said the young man's name in... months probably. He'd offered all of his fellows as fake names in his first months of being in Norfinbury, before Dio announced his name and his first obituary confirmed it. The thoughts are enough to douse the heat inside of him that's been embarrassingly close to the surface for the last several minutes.] My intensivist. Probably the most irritating overall, really. He's a brown-noser with a side of back-stabber. Daddy made a call and Cuddy told me to put him on my team. He's not a complete idiot, but some days I wonder.

Not a complete idiot. [ Will returned the words to House. ] That's high praise from you.

[ Which suggested that House actually saw something in this Chase, or else he'd have made his life such a living hell that the guy would have quit the team. One pair of pants done, Will checked the dishsoap and then went ahead with freshing the water with a new supply of soap.

The extra bit of effort also helped distract him from the sounds of the other man moving under the water; the slick slide of soap over skin.

...

Really should have gone for that cold rinse cycle. ]

[It's really not going to get any better as House sighs in quiet contentment to himself, washing out the shampoo and scrubbing himself with the soap. Everywhere.]

He's... caught a few mistakes. Made a hell of a lot more, but he has decent ideas when we're doing our DDX's. Foreman's the one I... [He trails off. He's thought this, but it's nothing he's actually said out-loud.] He's my neurologist. He used to break into cars when he was a kid. Ended up top of his class. Bright guy. Kind of an ambitious dick. Incredibly argumentative. [There's a smile on his lips and in his voice.] If he thought he was right and I was wrong on a diagnosis, he'd spend all night in the lab running tests trying to prove it or undercut me. Handy when we get off track. He's good for breaking into patient houses, too. So, you get the whole package.

[House runs the soap lower, across his belly and slows his movements as he looks down, remembering Will's fingers brushing there, just beneath the hem of his shirt. Okay, stay focused on the fellows. Out, out other thoughts!]

[ No. No those content sighs really do not help. Or the do help, just not in the direction necessary for the circumstances. But Will does not need his extra fertile imagination playing out various scenarios where he might draw out similar noises.

....

Crap!

Quickly rinsing out the last pair of pants, Will reached for his small towel and ran it under the cold water. Peeking back to make sure House was still safely behind the curtain, he reached down and tucked the towel up between his legs.

Socks. Got to clean socks. Dirty, filthy, stinking socks. Not sexy work at all. ]

You respect him. [ Will called over his shoulder, it was a conversation they'd had once before, a ... well a long time ago. ] What do you think your team would have thought of this place?

[ A conversation about other people was safe, right? ]

[House is being a terrible waster of water. He's tracing his pruned fingers across where Will had touched, sliding lower and... really finding a burning need to finish washing. Shouldn't waste soap. The doctor slicks his hand and washes his particulars more roughly than is his usual wont. Just a little unpleasant treatment to re-rail his thoughts... and calm those down to a company-appropriate position.]

Cameron would've been like Hale with a side of that chick who's with Quark now. She's niceness incarnate and has to fix every broken bird she finds. It's pathological. She'd probably have burned out and gone into the same force optimism shtick Hale's running to keep herself together. Chase'd try to make himself handy to everyone. Probably would've died without regular showers to keep his hair looking pretty. Foreman... probably would've thought this was hell, but he's used to dealing with that from me. Would've tried to do the information and organization thing. He's good with paperwork.

[ Will tried to keep his focus on the socks and the description of House's team. He absolutely did not let his imagination wander to such practical thoughts of how much water they could have saved if they'd just showered together.

He tries to remember the feel of warm skin against his hand, with the gentle rejection that came with it. Tries to keep himself in line with what was reality. Tries not to think how his fingertips had been within reach of trouser buttons. He tried to rationalize the need he'd felt. Layer it under the guise of distraction and the instinctive response to a stressful environment.

Memories of another bathroom, of arms around him, cropped up and Will nearly groaned in frustration.

Socks, socks, focus on the socks. They needed a rinse, at least one and maybe another scrub. Will attacked them with focused ferocity. Poor socks, never did anything to deserve the scrubbing they were receiving. ]

Sounds like a diverse group. I know how you ended up with Chase, what about the other two, were they hand picked or foisted upon you?

Edited (need to stay in a format lane) 2018-10-14 16:24 (UTC)

[He can hear Will moving around out there. Naked. They really should have thought the clothes situation through a little more. House is grateful just to be out of his grimy attire and getting it washed, though. It if means pretending hard that some part of this doesn't appeal to him at an incredibly base level, then so be it. So be it.

He can just talk about his team. His team is not sexy. Well, scratch that, his team is actually pretty damn sexy as a group, but they're not the type of sexy House is interested in pursuing. He's not interested in pursuing any sex right now. Not with anyone. Or anything. He's putting the damn soap down and grabbing the conditioner so that he can get out of here.]

Cameron was my first hire. She came on around the same time as Chase. Foreman I hired a couple of months after those two. Cameron and Foreman were mine. Wilson helped with the interviews.

[Oh, there we go. That's a good dose of icy water to the libido.]

Cameron got the job 'cause she was pretty. Chase got the job 'cause of daddy. Foreman got it because his old gym teacher has loose lips about my home-boy's extracurriculars.

[ House. Your team is incredibly sexy because they're smart. One of your biggest turn ons.

Will has moved past being concerned about being naked at the moment, and tackling the sticky wicket that was practicality. It was dangerously cold these days, even when inside a building it felt bone deep; a lethal sort of chill. They needed all the warmth they could get and that included body warmth.

Body warmth, shared while hunkered down between two sleeping bags that were zipped together.

Not usually a problem, they had manfully huddled (muddled?) together in the past, but always with a few layers of clothes on and minds full of puzzles. Now, as they crept towards what felt like an unfortunate end, the puzzles didn't have the same sense of urgency, and the clothes were currently drip drying all around the bathroom.

Also, practically speaking, it was better to be flesh against flesh for the sharing of body warmth.

Rubbing his hand over the back of his neck, Will reached down and scooped up the bags. ]

You're ridiculous, you realize this right?

If we sleep in here, we can make the most of the warm steam and we'll be right here when our clothes have dried. But there is a mattress in the bedroom.

Do you have an opinion, one way or the other?

[House doesn't expect Will needs an answer to that first question, not really. Ridiculous is his life. He's had the Joker tell him off for being a ridiculous person and that's like the Kool-Aid dude telling someone they're having too much Kool-Aid.

The matters of practicality have not escaped House, either, though. It's not like this should be any different from the other times. They've dealt with this before. It's just... with fewer layers. And certain things they're ignoring. And now he's firming up again. House twists the handle for the cold water and it's almost an immediate stream of ice over his body. He gasps, a little too loudly in the close quarters, then turns it down.]

Goddamn knob doesn't know the difference between hot and cold. [Yep. Nailed it on the excuse.] Go drag the mattress in here along with my pack I've got a towel in there.

[Sorry he didn't mention, Will.]

I'll keep the steam going. I'm magnanimous like that.

[ The knob is perfectly functional. Will knows this for a fact, but as he'd nearly had to do the same thing on a couple of occasions, he sympathized and didn't remark on it.

Instead, he snorted lightly at having missed the obvious solution. ]

You spoil me. [ Will remarked in a desert, dry tone. There was a half a minute of building himself up to face the cold, then House probably felt the shift in the air and the wash of cold as Will opened the door.

There may have been a small (but completely manly) yelp.

Yelp or no yelp, over the next few minutes the ex-profiler set himself to the task of retrieving the mattress and their packs. It was going to result in very close quarters, but hopefully neither of them would have to leave the bathroom until their clothes dried.

A hand holding a towel pushed its way around the curtain. ]

You're welcome.

[ At least his foray out into the cold air had helped settle his own equipment. It was a little difficult to sport an inappropriate semi when your cock and balls were trying to burrow their way back up into your body cavity. ]

[House turns off the water when it seems like Will has everything in the bathroom and mostly settled, then just sort of waits. The towel being offered is a nice surprise. He figured he'd have to grab it himself. Taking it, the doctor dries himself off as much as he can before wrapping it around himself and pulling back the curtain. He'll do his best not to step onto the mattress, but it's not a big bathroom. It's probably going to get dripped on a little as he steps over it and onto the cold tile.]

Kinda hoping the our clothes don't freeze overnight. It's getting colder.

[Which... when it's already hellishly cold is impressive.]

If Holmes was right about this whole place being some kind of super quantum computer, might be it's gearing up for something.

[Thinking. Theorizing. It'll keep his mind off watching Will moving around, maybe setting up the sleeping bags together. The puzzles are a little more distant right now, though. His eyes follow the other man as he shifts the towel up to dry his hair.]

When the temperature drops like this, something bad's about to happen. [Then again, when the temperature rises to room temperature or higher, bad things tend to happen, too. There's a happy medium of mostly-freezing that they live in now.]

[ House was in luck.

While the doctor distracted himself with quantum computer something or other, Will was keeping his eyes firmly on the job of zipping together the sleeping bags. He was not desperately hoping his body behaved long enough to get into the bags, nor was he allowing himself to sneak peaks at the way water was sliding down House's chest.

Down his chest, across the soft skin of his abdomen and then beneath the towel. Will absolutely was not thinking about how his fingers had traced a similar path, up to the point where they were stopped.

Sleeping bags secured and laid out on the mattress, the ex-profiler wasted no time crawling inside. He hoped that it would just look like a man who was cold, trying to get to the warmth. ]

Before you fuss, I've already taken care of my teeth. [ Because he knew it was not above House to insist on good oral hygiene. Just to make Will move, if for no other reason.

The material of the sleeping bag felt strange against his naked skin. Will tried to recall if he'd ever slept naked in a sleeping bag before and he couldn't recall a single instance. He'd always been clothed, in one way or another, not stripped bare.

In more ways than one. ]

I think we've all accepted the fact that something bad is on the horizon. [ The ex-profiler finally circled back to the puzzle. Though he sounded more resigned than anxious. ] I suspect the deck has always been stacked against us, just perhaps in varying degrees of negative consequences.

Perhaps it's better to have it done with, than to continue on; trapped in this horror. We had tastes of what that would be like.

[ Hunkered down in the sleeping bag nest, arms wrapped around himself as he tried to warm up, Will peeked up at House with a pointed glare. ]

If you try to drag that wet towel in here with us, I will feed it to you.

[ He knows what you're like with loopholes, House. A wet towel, despite affording the illusion of some sort of physically barrier between naked skin, is NOT invited. ]

Edited 2018-10-23 17:23 (UTC)

Kinky.

[Enjoy the sass while House takes care of his own oral hygiene. He has the towel cinched around his waist for the moment as he steps around the mattress and uses the sink and the diminishing remains of his toothpaste along with the toothbrush he's thoroughly worn through. Still, it's better than nothing.

It also offers a few more precious moments to prepare himself for this and tell his body to behave. He drops the damp towel on top of Will's head once he pulls it off, purely to be a brat, then sort of... slides into the sleeping bag. It's immediately apparent there there are two grown men trying to share a very small space. It's physically impossible to get in and move to zip up without being aware of how naked Will is beside him. At his back, as he shifts to his side to work the zipper all the way up. Normally, House would demand to be the 'big spoon' in this situation. It's sort of expected. He's larger. The whole skin-to-skin warmth will work better if he's 'cuddling' Will.

But cuddling Will means having an extremely telegraphic body part pressed up against the other man.

Decisions.]

So, I'm guessing the whole weird feeding fetish came from Donner Party?

[Cold water. Cold water. Think of cold water-inducing things to say while they just settle and sleep.]

[log] I Think We're Alone Now [semi-open]

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cw: mention of vivisection/ear trauma

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