Del x Vince

Del had been quietly pondering his next move when he heard an all too familiar voice at that point and startled "Aweakjasd!" He quickly backed up against the other wall and held a hand over his heart, glaring at the other man who was entirely too cheerful again. "Damnit Vinny!" he huffed trying to convince his pounding heart to calm down. He had been most sure that he was alone, but apparently the other man was tracking him. He wouldn't leave him alone until he had satisfied himself. He was a lot like his father in that fact, and Del felt a twinge of anger, remembering how his father had used him as a science experiment. However, Vincent was not his father and he couldn't just go jumping the gun like that due to his emotion. "What do you want?" He asked calmly, in spite of his need to just put distance between himself and this man now. Mostly because he hadn't quite fully recovered yet, but he was working on it.

Vince chuckled lightly, back to his cheerful 'aww Del's so cute' mode again. It still was weird to be call Vinny of all things but he just brushed it off lightly. "You should have been more attentive Delly-kun" He could use funny Nicknames too. He waited in silence for the boy to calm himself down and speak, tilting his head lightly and seeming to think about his response. "Well, I just thought I'd remind you of my offer while you were figuring out just what your next move is going to be." He half turned then. "Everyone has their own motivations Delly-kun...if you keep waiting around for the perfect set you'll be waiting and running forever." He glanced over at his shoulder and smiled brightly. "If you need any help, real help, regardless of silly things like 'true purposes', then you know where to find me."

"Wait!" Del was at his side in an instant, standing in his path, which was pretty amusing for someone who had wanted to run away a few seconds ago. Thinking things over quickly. "Look, I know you probably think I'm an idiot, and just a kid that can't handle anything, alright? And for the most part, you're probably right." He wanted to grimace at that, but degrading himself was always something he'd been very good at. "I'm sorry for the way I treated ...you earlier, but ...she ..." She just made it hard for him to think straight, needless to say he got emotional whenever she came around. "And to prove it...I'll allow you to help like you wanted." Whatever reasons he had for it, he didn't care. He was so sick of that woman, and if he could use him to kill her, then god damnit why was he shying away from it? His father would have jumped at the opportunity, he guessed he was just a little scared in spite of his visage. "I've screwed things up before, I know I have, but I know I can do better..." he mumbled finally raising his gaze to look at the man in front of him. He was still miserable, but he wasn't going to act like it anymore! It wouldn't solve anything!

Vince paused and blinked a few times slowly, a little bemused at just how quickly the boy had come to stop him. He had almost expected him not to, but it was hard to tell because he kept the same expression on his face while the boy started to talk, this mostly cheerful expression that belayed just a hint of his bad mood. "What are you apologizing for?" He tilted his head curiously. "You were merely pointing out the truth, there is nothing to be sorry about there." He chuckled lightly and brushed his hair back nonchalantly, his acting very impressive considering how dark he was feeling on the inside right now. He moved forward a few steps and wrapped his arms around the boy in a comforting manner. "There there, you keep moving forward and eventually you will reach your goal." He pat his head gently, making it hard to imagine there was anything other than sweetness in him at the moment. "Use me all you want." And he would do much the same. He believed in reciprocal relationships.

Del nodded quietly, not trying to pull away from the other man, and instead wrapped his arms around him in return. "Then could you do me a favor Vinny?" He pulled away then and actually offered the other a true smile of his own. "Lets do something about that bad mood." He could stand a lot of things, dark emotions under a petty mask however, was not a very good one. He thought things over for a moment or two before tilting his head to the side. "Ah I know, let's take a walk." He was perfectly calm now in spite of the others bad mood, and he knew that deep down that this man was every bit of a mess just like his father had been, and for once, Del felt maybe perhaps he had been sent here for a reason. So he made a silent vow to himself that he would help this man in any way he could, even if he got hurt in the process, and for some reason, that helped him to ease up around him considerably.

Vince gave a small smile of satisfaction as the other hugged him back, pleased to have actually done him some good, and in the process ensure that they should have a nice mutually beneficial relationship in the future. "Hai?" He tilted his head at the other man, blinking and getting a rather weird expression on his face at the mention of the bad mood. This boy really was too good at seeing through him. "Of course, that sounds like a lovely idea" His expression was as cheerful as ever as he turned towards a connecting alleyway that would take them to a nice park. Dealing with all this touchy feeling was troublesome, but it would be worth it in the end he hoped.

Del was glancing around as they were walking, even though he knew the other man didn't exceptionally appreciate his presence, he stayed moderately close now. It wasn't that he wanted to be, nor that he was trying to irk him more, but he just got a feeling of weariness if he drifted too far away. Glancing down at the pond's surface he saw for once, something he only ever saw on a deep fried dish in a plate already ready to eat. "Fish..." he reached out slowly and watched quietly as they nommed at his fingers. He just continued to stare with a child like wonder, and considering he had only just ever seen such things dead; it was no wonder his fascination came up now.

Vince kept his pace slow and easy, there was no point in outdistancing the boy. He hadn't expected much of the walk, initially he spent a lot of it thinking very deeply and more importantly keeping tabs on the other highly distinct person in this city. After a while thought he just sort of spaced off, not thinking about much of anything and finally starting to drift to something closer to his usual mood, which was rarely actually happy, but a sort of bitter calm he was familiar and comfortable with. It was his preferred state. He'd walked about 20 feet before coming out of his spacey state to realize Del had been somewhat distracted by fishes. He turned around curiously and moved back towards him, his eyebrow raising as an amused expression grew on his face. "I take it you like fish."

Del blushed a bit and looked up to find the amused smile on Vincent's face. "I've never seen them alive before like this..." he stated looking back at the koi, "I've only ever seen them on someone's plate." He was fascinated by animals, of all shapes and sizes, which was probably why he hadn't freaked out when he saw his first Awakened. His mother's sea turtle Judas. He watched the fish swim around and battle over who got to nom his fingers, trying to refrain from giggling but it wasn't working very well. He got in an infinitely better mood if around an animal, so long as it wasn't a mutt. He'd never liked the noisier sort.

Vince blinked a few times in confusion, not entirely sure what to think of wherever Del came from if he'd never seen -live- fish before. Maybe he lived in some sort of desert? He tilted his head and watched him for a few moments, shaking his head at how silly the fish were. "Apparently they are a bit hungry..." He chuckled lightly. "Perhaps I should get you some fish." He didn't care much about money, and for some reason he felt the desire to get him some after seeing such an adorable expression on his face. He could make up some logical self serving excuses later if need be, but there was no denying that he just -felt- like doing something to make the boy happy right now.

Del's head shot up a bit at that statement and he turned to give Vincent an almost startled look, getting up and waving his hands in front of him in an almost panicked manner. "N-No that's ....I mean well, thank you ...but I really don't need...anything." He flushed deeply and looked down at his feet, clearly no one had ever even considered spoiling him. He didn't know exactly what the hell to do with someone that was trying to get him something with their own money, and since he had never really received gifts, he didn't exactly know what to do with it. He dug through his pocket to find some bread crumbs, tossing it out to the hungry fish, who seemed to appreciate it, pushing the small bag back in it's place once it was empty.

Vince's eyebrow raised once again at that rather horrified look, though he recognized it pretty well. His brother was somewhat similar in that, he did not spoil well, better now that he did as a child, but still not very well. His eyes turned a bit distant and he gave a nostalgic sigh before chuckling and watching him in silence for a few moments until he was done feeding the fish, at which point he grabbed the boys hand and started dragging him back towards the town. "Now that you're done feeding the free ones, let's go buy you some of your own~" He wasn't going to take no for an answer, particularly after that reaction to his suggestion. At some point he had decided he was going to spoil this boy, just for the fun of it. No other nefarious reason involved.

Del squeaked as he was dragged along, blushing like mad at what the other said, and trying to think of some excuse to sway him from his decision. "B-But Vin...I don't need to be spoiled." He muttered quietly, not fighting against going along at the very least, because he already knew this man to be exceptionally strong, and he could easily just drag him even if he was kicking and fighting the whole way. He just didn't have any idea of what to do with someone who was going around and buying him random stuff. He sighed and looked around as he was led, wondering why the heck some people just up and decided to do things like that.

Vince smirked darkly, finding he really enjoyed seeing those adorable little blushes of his, though at this point it couldn't be called so 'little'. "Everyone needs a bit of spoiling now and then~" He chuckled lightly, though inwardly his thoughts were just a bit dark, once again going back to his brother, but he pushed them firmly away, he was concentrating on something else right now, his brother could just sit on his pedestal for a while. He easily found a near-by pet store, almost as if he had a radar leading him to it. "Ah, this should do nicely." He pulled him inside and to the corner where they had all sorts of fishes. "Now then~ What shall we get eh?"

Del didn't even seem to hear Vincent, he had done the one thing that the young man had dreaded, and of course it became obvious why. He just stared around at everything with such an adorable expression that it was almost like looking at little seven year old him, rather than 23 year old him. He blushed a bit when Vince finally seemed to penetrate through his mind, his words a bit fuzzy but the young man had gotten the gist of it. "U-Um..." he fidgetted a bit and looked the fish over, trying to pretend that he wasn't flustered and excited and a million other things that confused him.

Vince didn't think he would ever get tired of watching Del's face. He had no idea before he'd pulled him in that he was quite so fascinated with animals, but looking back he realized it should have been obvious. It made him want to do more than buy him a few fish, but somehow he suspected that might just give the boy a heart attack, and having a zoo might be a bit impractical. He chuckled lightly and reached out to ruffle his hair, watching to see what fish might be catching the other mans eye, though he was having a hard time focusing he could tell. "After we get your fish we should go out for a nice dinner~ Since you had to leave before we could finish the last one." Or even start on it.

Del flushed visibly upon hearing that from the blond male. "Ah, I didn't mean to!" he quickly assessed that the other was just saying that to either embarrass him or just state the facts, Del would bet both. Instead, he turned his head and thought for a moment. "I ..guess so." he wasn't comfortable with all this money spending, but he wasn't going to object openly when that would be just as rude. He stood sulkily for a moment before looking at Vince. "I really don't know what to pick." He admitted, his face heating up even more. He had never even been allowed to choose what he would wear in the day, let alone what he wanted. Even after all these years of running around, he had just gone with whatever he could find when he could find it.

Vince smirked and chuckled ever so lightly, pleased to have elicited another blush from him, though it was good to know that he hadn't been running away. Well, he'd already suspected the silly bird anyway. He turned back to the fish and hummed lightly, blinking and glancing at Del with a bit of a raised eyebrow. "My...well that's a bit of a problem~" He wasn't entirely surprised, he'd somewhat got that impression while he was trying to judge which ones Del liked, though he did sort of have an idea. "Well, we'll just grab the most expensive and head out to dinner~" He strolled over to the counter and had the man choose his 5 most expensive, baring the likelihood any of them were going to kill each other. The look he gave the man ensured that they would get fish that would not have any problems together. "What's your favorite food?" Vince was very much all happy and cheerful again, and this time not so much an act. He enjoyed bothering people, he was so good at it.

Del nearly had a heart attack in his mind when Vince said the five most expensive, though visibly paled on the outside. He tried to ignore the other man by watching a raven, quite an unusual thing to be in a cage, especially in a pet store. Though it's black eyes studied Del with intelligence far greater than humans gave it credit for. Adelhard, being the man that he was, reached out to the bird, slipping his fingers through the bars. It was no surprise that anyone else would have been pecked to hell, but the bird instead turned its head as if trying to understand before Del removed his hand and opened the cage door, holding out his hand once again, though this time the bird jumped onto his wrist and he carefully pulled him out to pet him. "Too much alike you and me...you're living your life in a cage as well." He spoke softly, though glanced back when Vince asked him what his favorite food was. "I like all kinds..." he answered honestly, "Though some kind of pasta with mushrooms and cheese would be good about now." He slowly pet the bird's head, earning an interesting noise from it.

Vince kept one eye on Del, just to make sure he wasn't getting into trouble, and maybe just to catch that shocked expression as well. He decided until Del learned to choose for himself that was what he was going to do. He suspected Del would be reforming his ways very quickly after that. He chuckled lightly and instructed the shop keeper to take the fish out to the carriage while he strolled back over to Del, noting his preference and easily making the decision about just where they were doing to go while he eyed the Raven, finding it most facinating they'd found one of those of all things in this store." He smiled a bit sadly and looked down, did it mean something perhaps? Would this man be the one to set his brother free in some way? "We'll take him with us as well I think."

Del thought about it for a few moments, looking back at Vincent with a softer expression, handing the bird over to the blond haired male. "Set him free, Vinny. That's what he really wants." He could feel something threatening to spill from behind his eyes, but firmly kept it back. Del remembered how his father would often say 'Set it free'. Though he had been talking about the vast power deep within the other boy, he smiled sweetly after a few moments. "Then we can go eat." He stated, his hands in his pockets again, wondering if Vince would let the bird go. The Raven continued to stare at Del for a few moments, before it's attention shifted to Vincent, it's dark eyes seemed to echo something else. Something sad and forbidden, it was almost as if Del's very essence were the bird, and the bird had merely been created by illusion.

Vincent hardly even noticed the odd nickname this time, instead he was taking in that sweet soft expression from the other man, thinking deeply. He of course, would be the last person to imprison that bird, it had never occurred to him that Del might want to do so. He smiled, looking just a bit sat himself, staring at that bird in silence for a few moments, as if it held all the answers in the world somehow. "He is yours Del, I have no hold on him nor would I do so." He turned back towards the shopkeeper. "Set him free." He walked over to pay for the bird, wanting to get away before the emotions that always seemed so much closer to the surface around Del boiled over. Someday, he would be able to set his most precious person free of himself.

The Raven flew onto Del's shoulder after Vince turned to leave, Del bringing his hand up to place it over the bird's forehead slightly. "He is me." He corrected softly, following after the blond and looking up at the sky, the Raven didn't initially move from his shoulder, as if he could sense the darkness in the young man he was settled upon. "I once built a sandcastle...and held it together with stones." he told the bird on his shoulder, that had an eerie look about it, one could almost suspiciously say it was Black Swan listening instead of the raven. "The waves came and washed it away...that's the testament of life." The bird took flight then, Del watched it until it disappeared, and then stood there feeling strangely empty.

Vince heard those sort words but didn't acknowledge that he had heard them, simply going through the motions of paying for everything and then leading them outside, stopping a short distance away to glance briefly back at the other man, not feeling like he should be involved in the strangely potent freeing, simply standing next to the carriage and watching with rather hooded eyes. Instead of watching the raven, he focused on Del, musing on that rather unusual expression on his face for a few moments before finally stepping over and putting a hand on his shoulder, smiling gently. "Let's go get you something to eat." He guided him gently back into the carriage, settling him on one side while sitting down on the other, leaning on the sill and staring musingly out the window, feeling almost joyful at the thoughts of when he would be able to do the same someday for his brother.

Del laid down on the seat with his back to Vincent, a very much child-like response to what he was feeling in the pit of his stomach, he could see his mother's face. Her smile, hear her laughter, and watch as she explained to him that everything in life was precious. Awakened had taught them that the very beings on the planet that were often seen as dark and disgusting, were worth every bit as much as they were. He thought of his father then, he had been worth saving, even though he had killed himself in the end that it would hopefully rid his son of Gyspy. He closed his eyes and let the memories swirl with a sorrow that ran deeper than just today. He clutched his hand over his heart and sighed softly. *How much longer till we find a place to belong?* He asked the dark bird deep within him. *Perhaps I should just find a way to end us both along with Gypsy.* The bird coiled in him just said one thing: Your decision is law.