[The scene opens in a cloud of smoke, to a familiar reaper man on his knees, on a disc of pure sapphire. Around him are half-busted walls, buildings, and he's pulling himself up, eyes wide and shocked as he speaks to Taako, kneeling on the edge of this disc, hands planted directly on top of it. He looks only slightly disheveled, but entirely consumed with emotion as he talks- Taako, meanwhile, is already beginning to move.]
How… how did you do that?
[By this point, Taako looks tired, like he's already been fighting, but he's smiling and going straight for Kravitz in a way that proves he isn’t fucking around here. As the scene around them clears, the sky is plastered over a dark grey, pillars of black stretching down from the clouds in the distance to meet the floor. But none of that seems to be important as the two get close. However, Kravitz seems to return to himself, slapping his hands over his mouth and breathing in quick huffs as he speaks between them hurriedly.]
Hold on I— I wanna— I wanna warm up my face. I don’t want it to be cold and weird--
[But it's like he can only handle himself away from Taako for a few quick seconds before Taako slaps his hands away, grabs his face, and kisses him directly on the mouth. Kravitz returns the favor quickly, clinging to him like he's the last thing in the entire world. When Taako pulls back, Kravitz keeps his hands on him, arm on his shoulder, hand on his back, seemingly refusing to let go from the way his fingers dig into his clothes and his hands shake. Taako speaks first, after a few pants of breath from them both.]
Okay, forget about how I, uh, short story short, uh, long story short it was— I was rad, natch. How do you still look this good? You’ve been locked in like mud or tar or something in the Astral Plane, you look fantastic!
[Kravitz just laughs, bright and so, so absolutely happy as he responds, holding Taako's face like it's everything he's ever wanted.]
It’s a lot of work to look this good-- I mean, I— Taako, I was trying to get out to get a message to you. I thought— I thought you were gone. I thought everything was gone.
Well, you’re not that far off.
[Taako breaks the contact, but not without a bit of force, as Kravitz seems reluctant to let go of anything ever again. The elf is curling away in uncertainty, hands going to his hair as his shoulders fold. This… is probably the time for this, huh? He can’t just have his cake and eat it too. He can’t just bust Kravitz out and have this beautiful, beautiful thing without him fucking saying something about it.]
Uh, it’s… but you’re right, there has been a terrible loss that you should know about.
[In the blink of an eye, his face shifts. It's not-- different, per se, in a jarring way. He's just missing more of that elven beauty that seems to come naturally to him, those sharp cheekbones and bright eyes. It’s different, and apparently it means a lot to him- more than anything, he looks scared, an expression so unlike him as he trips over his words and won't meet Kravitz' eyes.]
So, I just wanted to be honest. I’m— I didn’t wanna catfish you or anything-- this is Taako today, um, I had a bad run in while I was saving the world again, and this is what I really look like. And I just wanted you to know that in case it changes anything for you, personally. I thought you should know, now.
[He’s still not looking, which means he’s taken by surprise when Kravitz sweeps Taako up in his arms again, cradling him like something precious and beautiful and the center of his whole world. It’s rare for Taako to show emotion on his face like this, but it’s certainly and undoubtedly there- this is not the reaction he dared to let himself hope for.]
Taako, I… was crazy about you, before some weird light told me a story about your one hundred year journey through existence where you were fighting for a century to save the world.
[He presses back some of his hair, palm on his jaw, words urgent and pressing and full of emotion.]
I love you, Taako, and at this point, I think that everyone in reality is going to love you after hearing your story, and... nothing’s gonna change that.
[There's a moment here, something quiet and desperate and real, where Taako looks at him and finally believes the words he says. It's touching. It's kind. It’s everything he never thought he could ever have.
And then he laughs, loud and right in Kravitz’ goddamn face as he brings whatever magic he had previously dropped back in the blink of an eye.]
That was actually a test, your face is a skull half the time —so I just wanted to make sure we— yeah, no fucking kidding. Okay, anyway...
[Kravitz' face immediately scrunches up as he tries to stop from laughing back, pressing his forehead to Taako's even as an explosion rocks the landscape in the background. The world may be falling apart, the planet under siege- but this was a moment worth remembering. Something before the chaos takes them both back into the apocalypse. Something soft, sorely needed.]
ii. [reunion] i know its just a number but you're the eighth wonder
How… how did you do that?
[By this point, Taako looks tired, like he's already been fighting, but he's smiling and going straight for Kravitz in a way that proves he isn’t fucking around here. As the scene around them clears, the sky is plastered over a dark grey, pillars of black stretching down from the clouds in the distance to meet the floor. But none of that seems to be important as the two get close. However, Kravitz seems to return to himself, slapping his hands over his mouth and breathing in quick huffs as he speaks between them hurriedly.]
Hold on I— I wanna— I wanna warm up my face. I don’t want it to be cold and weird--
[But it's like he can only handle himself away from Taako for a few quick seconds before Taako slaps his hands away, grabs his face, and kisses him directly on the mouth. Kravitz returns the favor quickly, clinging to him like he's the last thing in the entire world. When Taako pulls back, Kravitz keeps his hands on him, arm on his shoulder, hand on his back, seemingly refusing to let go from the way his fingers dig into his clothes and his hands shake. Taako speaks first, after a few pants of breath from them both.]
Okay, forget about how I, uh, short story short, uh, long story short it was— I was rad, natch. How do you still look this good? You’ve been locked in like mud or tar or something in the Astral Plane, you look fantastic!
[Kravitz just laughs, bright and so, so absolutely happy as he responds, holding Taako's face like it's everything he's ever wanted.]
It’s a lot of work to look this good-- I mean, I— Taako, I was trying to get out to get a message to you. I thought— I thought you were gone. I thought everything was gone.
Well, you’re not that far off.
[Taako breaks the contact, but not without a bit of force, as Kravitz seems reluctant to let go of anything ever again. The elf is curling away in uncertainty, hands going to his hair as his shoulders fold. This… is probably the time for this, huh? He can’t just have his cake and eat it too. He can’t just bust Kravitz out and have this beautiful, beautiful thing without him fucking saying something about it.]
Uh, it’s… but you’re right, there has been a terrible loss that you should know about.
[In the blink of an eye, his face shifts. It's not-- different, per se, in a jarring way. He's just missing more of that elven beauty that seems to come naturally to him, those sharp cheekbones and bright eyes. It’s different, and apparently it means a lot to him- more than anything, he looks scared, an expression so unlike him as he trips over his words and won't meet Kravitz' eyes.]
So, I just wanted to be honest. I’m— I didn’t wanna catfish you or anything-- this is Taako today, um, I had a bad run in while I was saving the world again, and this is what I really look like. And I just wanted you to know that in case it changes anything for you, personally. I thought you should know, now.
[He’s still not looking, which means he’s taken by surprise when Kravitz sweeps Taako up in his arms again, cradling him like something precious and beautiful and the center of his whole world. It’s rare for Taako to show emotion on his face like this, but it’s certainly and undoubtedly there- this is not the reaction he dared to let himself hope for.]
Taako, I… was crazy about you, before some weird light told me a story about your one hundred year journey through existence where you were fighting for a century to save the world.
[He presses back some of his hair, palm on his jaw, words urgent and pressing and full of emotion.]
I love you, Taako, and at this point, I think that everyone in reality is going to love you after hearing your story, and... nothing’s gonna change that.
[There's a moment here, something quiet and desperate and real, where Taako looks at him and finally believes the words he says. It's touching. It's kind. It’s everything he never thought he could ever have.
And then he laughs, loud and right in Kravitz’ goddamn face as he brings whatever magic he had previously dropped back in the blink of an eye.]
That was actually a test, your face is a skull half the time —so I just wanted to make sure we— yeah, no fucking kidding. Okay, anyway...
[Kravitz' face immediately scrunches up as he tries to stop from laughing back, pressing his forehead to Taako's even as an explosion rocks the landscape in the background. The world may be falling apart, the planet under siege- but this was a moment worth remembering. Something before the chaos takes them both back into the apocalypse. Something soft, sorely needed.]