[stanley kowalski voice] BELLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

[hydesout]

you know what, much like the AUs I'm just going to put down a catchall post for anything we want to do with them

Comments

[hydesout]

No, no, certainly not! Well, I suppose technically they could, seeing as they did, but it wasn't just open to waltz right into!

[There are a lot of ways in which he's a dumbass, leaving the door to a laboratory wide open when small children are around is not one of them.]

I'm sure they just came across it and were curious.

[alamob]

[Bella subsides, accepting the explanation not for being impressed by it but for remembering what Monty Charming had to deal with in her early years. She forks up a bite of meat.]

Can't hardly blame you for their cleverness, s'pose. [The prongs point squarely at his nose.] I shouldn't even tell you what I put my pa through.

[hydesout]

It's a good thing, really.

[He initially smiles because of that, but then he starts thinking about what sort of things Bella could have possibly gotten into and can't help grinning like a fool.]

Well now you can't tell me that and not go into detail. What did you do, if the present is any indication, I'm sure you were a real handful.

[alamob]

[She splutters an indignant laugh in the middle of another forkful and nearabout snorts a potato; one finger waves.]

Me! When's the last time you checked a mirror!

[Giving him a pseudo-scornful onceover is a mistake. He's as striking and fit as the last time she looked. Bella doesn't look quite so exasperated as she ought.]

[hydesout]

I was a very good child!

[Besides the occasional temper flareup that's now explained by Hyde... But since Hyde didn't properly exist then, there was no one to misbehave, only the little boy who tried very hard to be good that Hyde told her about before!]

[alamob]

[Her arched brows show how much she believes that. He can't be telling the truth, not entirely. No child is 'very good' all the time.]

Leaving something out, eh? Would you come clean if I do the same?

[hydesout]

[Why doesn't she believe him, it's true, he was very good!!]

...Alright. Who goes first?

[alamob]

[But he agreed to an exchange anyway, so he's got something to share with the class.]

Me.

[Rule of thumb: Bella sets the game when you let her. A smile pulls at the corners of her mouth even before the good parts of telling. It's warm, and one of those rare times she shares that warmth with him.]

Pa-- his name was Monty-- he wasn't badly off. Kept his own cab and horses. Could take or leave the gelding, but the mare, I loved her. Loved her so well that I'd take ink to her white spots. Thought I was the next da Vinci! Except I did it before he tried selling. Something'd come up what cost him dear.

[hydesout]

Oh, is that all? I was expecting much worse.

[Sounds like something that would be mild for someone like Bella. Or maybe it's that she's gotten to be even more of a rascal as time's gone on. That would make sense, actually. Her being a relatively good kid (okay relative to the story...) and growing into a spitfire...]

[alamob]

Tell you mine if you tell me yours.

[He's not wrong. It is a milder story than the mischief a young girl could cause with free rein inside a drinking hall. Her smirk confirms that for Robert.]

[hydesout]

[And here she said she'd go first!!]

Well... [He dips his head, pressing his lips together. It's more than embarrassing, it's really terrible.] I broke another boy's nose, punched him right in his face because I thought he'd cheated at a game.

...As it turns out, he hadn't.

[alamob]

Oh, is that all?

[She echoes him deliberately, poking fun at his residual shame all these years later. Past is past. He'll get over the tragedy of punching an innocent during his boyhood.]

Chin up. Who's to say he hadn't earned it otherwise?

[hydesout]

I don't think there's any reason he should have earned such a thing - besides if he somehow had, it was for the wrong reason!

[It's a big deal to him okay? He was a tiny adult as a child, upright and hardworking, polite, listened to his parents and teachers.]

I had outbursts now and then. That's the worst instance I can recall, but there's also a period I don't remember, it might have been worse then?

[This is what he's reduced to, trying to find something bad he did.]

[alamob]

[Bella isn't half as worried for his childhood mental state as he apparently is. Unpack that shit, brah. Let it go.

Her head shakes at the dilemma he's made for himself, and she abandons the half-finished plate to take up both their glasses for a refill. He needs it.]

I wonder who you killed with your wee boy hands? I'm fetching us more brandy. How much?

[hydesout]

[As much as he seriously doubts he even could have killed anyone, it does bring up a point. What was it like before he was medicated to keep Hyde at bay? How would a child act in that situation? Luckily he's pulled away from his thoughts by the question.]

Oh, ah, alright, I'll take a glass. [What does that mean, like a shot size, as much as was poured before, a full glass, what.]

Really, I told you, I was very good.

[alamob]

[He's getting two fingers' worth, like her. This is good stuff and he had better appreciate the label.]

Yeah, you said.

[Even with her customary sardonic edge, the banter hasn't become malicious or mean-spirited. Robert Jekyll leaves himself wide open to be poked and prodded, that's all. It's a fun game.

Bella's saunter to their table is astonishingly feline. Even the way she pours his share has a coyness to it.]

I thought pa's friends were dull and dry for never including me in their business chats, so I planted manure in their coat pockets. Only thing I regret is blaming it on a cabbie. Lost him a job, although pa knew.

[hydesout]

Thanks. [He does appreciate it, even taking the time to twirl it about before sipping at it.]

You did what?

[His laugh rings through the empty hall as he pictures the men's faces on discovering her prank. Clearly she comes by her name honestly, because as disgusting as it is, that she'd do something like that is incredibly charming.]

How old were you?

[alamob]

[Late. Early. Whatever. Although the faint buzz of tiredness nags at her hindbrain, a meal, a drink, and reasonably good company help stay the need for rest. The Empire's no slouch in decor and atmosphere even with the lights dimmed.

But that might be because all of it belongs to Bella, who sinks with relish into the plush chair she owns.]

Old enough to know I deserved the spanking I got. I might've earned another since, but nobody's fool enough to have a go at my arse. [As though discussing weather changes, she sips the brandy.]

[hydesout]

[Hyde would have something sarcastic and lewd to say to that, and the thought occurs to Robert, but he doesn't let it get past that stage for even a moment.]

Ah. Well, I hope it was worthwhile even so. It sounds to be.

[How could it not be, really.]

I really admire that.

[alamob]

Mm.

[The food's gone lukewarm. Bella tucks in, hating waste. Times weren't always bountiful. The meat wasn't always this succulent, vegetables this fresh. The liquor coats her tongue and throat for one hell of an aftertaste.]

Really? It was all childhood silliness. The stakes are higher for us now.

[hydesout]

Of course, not only that, I mean now too.

[But he's so shy about saying that, his throat dries up and he has to struggle to swallow away the lump in it, avoiding her gaze, or giving his in return.]

[alamob]

[Bella's not nearly drunk enough to gloss over it, or mistake his withdrawal for anything else. Slowly, she places fork and knife on either side of the emptied plate.

If he dares look up, there she'll be. Her eyes could drown a man or pull him out of deep waters. Depends.]

And that sounds like more than a compliment. Am I wrong?

[What the hell kind of drumbeat is her heart playing at?]

[hydesout]

It's- [He chances a glance. But that was a mistake.]

I mean it as I said it, I admire you for it, it's a - an attractive quality.

[Could he possibly be more careful about what words he chooses? Probably, actually. If he was going to do as good a job of avoiding as he wants, he wouldn't have called it attractive.]

[alamob]

[The beginning of their reconciliation had come with unspoken rules. They never discussed what transpired between them, she didn't mention Lily's duplicity, and actually grew to respect the woman after her part in dismantling the traffickers' organization.

Mostly, they never put out the thought of resuming her and Hyde's trysts. Or starting again. It was unheard of.

This time Bella looks away first. Her chest is on fire.]

Attractive to?

[hydesout]

To? That doesn't particularly matter does it? It's only my opinion.

[What does it matter if he thinks she's attractive (in more than just a physical sense), of course whatever they had is over. It's just good to be friendly again. And as a friend, he thinks she's very impressive and desirable. And he can't seem to feel or hear anything but his heart beating.]