geonomy | Drift Fleet Inbox/Appointments

[At first, Clay's attention is on making sure he's good and balanced, laughing at what Allen said, and watching the ribbon fade. But then he turns to look at where they are, and...

Wow. Wow. Clay's jaw drops slightly at the sight, and he's immediately drawn towards it. He first walks, then jogs a bit to the window, where he presses his palms to it and looks out at the planet below them.]

Check it out...

[He says it quietly, as if he were talking to himself more than anything. Before this planet, he'd never seen an aurora outside of nature documentaries and pictures. So to see it in real life - like this, blanketing a planet while they're in the space that he loves so much... It's amazing. It's completely and utterly breathtaking.]

This is incredible.

[He'll follow along, keeping at a walking pace towards the window. It is a beautiful view- Allen's always appreciated coming up here. Not that he knew they'd be by the aurora when he decided to bring Clay up here- that was by pure lucky chance]

[Still, even if it's a beautiful view, Allen's more drawn by watching Clay's reaction to it all. The dropping jaw, the hushed tone, his wide eyes. It's just the sort of reaction that he wanted. He loved seeing it on him]

I thought you'd like it.

[He doesn't want to look away; he's not sure how long this aurora will last, whether it's minutes or hours or days. Still, he does look away briefly to give Allen a thrilled smile and a small huff of laughter before he turns his gaze to the aurora again, his hand reaching out a bit to blindly search for Allen's.]

You know how auroras happen?

[Clay's searching hand will get taken by Allen, intertwining his fingers with Clay's]

Not really. How do they happen?

When the charged particles of a star's upper atmosphere get powerful enough, it escapes its gravity and gets released into space. That's called a solar wind. And if that solar wind stays strong when it hits the Earth's magnetic field - or in this case, Arslae's magnetic field, it causes an aurora. You know how you drop a stone into water, and the surface ripples? It's like that, only it shows with an aurora.

[It's way more complicated than that, but Clay's all about simplifying something so that those who don't have a science degree can understand and appreciate it.]

[And he listens, trying to wrap his mind around that. Which yes, he deeply appreciates him simplifying it because let's face it- even if Allen's reading up on space he's still very much a guy who never attended school]

So they're caused when a strong wind from a star hits a planet's magnetic field....

[Huh okay, he could get that. He knows what magnets are so...magnetic field must be an invisible force field that has to do with that]

But then why do they only happen at the poles?

[Clay squeezes his hand; he's always so passionate about teaching others, so seeing the gears turn in Allen's head is thrilling to Clay.]

Because the poles are where the magnetic pull is the strongest. Think of it this way...

[He takes his eyes off the aurora again, lifting their entwined hands and turning them so that the back of Allen's hand faces them.]

This whole part - [He runs the fingers of his free hand over Allen's,] is a magnet, but the strongest pull is here. [And a tap to the top of Allen's hand, then his wrist] So whatever gets caught in the field? Would get pulled to here and here. [Another couple of taps, to the same spots] The same thing's happening out there. [He gestures outside again, to the aurora.] The charged particles of a solar wind gather at the poles, hit the atmosphere, and make the aurora.

[He watches and listens to Clay's demonstration, taking it all in. He knows Clay is passionate about teaching, he can see it every time Clay gives one of these explanations. And that passion? Well, it sure makes for an easier lesson. A lesson that would probably go over Allen's head if someone less skilled at teaching had said it]

[But still, he watches and tries to imagine the planet in that manner...trying to imagine this magnetic field that is strong enough to pull winds from a star to create such a light show]

Is that really...

[Possible? But then, something clicks]

Oh- wait! Is that the same reason compasses on Earth always point north? Because of that magnetic pull?

[And that click is why Clay loves doing this. It's the way the eyes light up in understanding, that oh that's visible throughout the entire body. He gives a big smile, then moves his hand up to give a pointed gesture, as if to tell Allen that he's got it.]

Exactly. Compasses are aligned to follow the magnetic field, and that's why they always point towards the North Pole.

Wow, I had no idea they were connected...

[The lights and the compass. It really wasn't something that ever crossed his mind. And wouldn't have, if it wasn't for Clay]

[He smiles, giving a squeeze of his hand]

I always learn so much from you.

[He squeezes his hand in return, a light blush of pleasure and happiness on his cheeks. This whole thing is just making his entire Christmas already.]

And I love teaching you. You always listen to everything and really take it all in.

[He reaches his free hand up to cup Allen's cheek, turning himself away from the view ahead to face his boyfriend]

I'm really glad you took me out here. Thank you.

[And with that, he leans him to give him a slow kiss on the lips, the aurora's light still shining enough to be noticed even from behind his closed eyes]

You make it easy to listen to everything. Though...it helps a little that I have a thing for the teacher...

[Teasing aside- He'll face him when Clay faces him, a smile on his face.]

I'm just glad I got to show you before this area gets fixed up and more populated.

[Since really, it's only a matter of time until there's other people coming up to see these views. But no matter right now. He'll lean in with Clay, returning that slow kiss. It gives him a warm feeling in his chest, a welcome change from the hollow cold this week usually brought him]

[It means the world for Allen to listen the way he does, to learn, to expand his horizons both from hearing Clay talk and studying in his own time. He may never have the love of space that Clay has, but to try to understand it, to see the universe in even the slightest view that Clay does... Clay's not sure he could ever really express how much that means to him.

It takes a long moment for the kiss to break, and Clay keeps his eyes shut while tilting his head forward enough to touch their foreheads together with a light, content smile. Moon and stars, he loves this man. He loves him so much.]

[No, he would never have the same love for space that Clay has. He knew that. But he knew he loved Clay. Clay who had a way of seeing the universe as a beautiful place, full of wonder and incredible things. He loved him so much that learning about this universe of Clay's seemed only natural. To understand how Clay saw the universe, to learn just a little what it's like to see through those eyes he loved so much.]

[He lets their foreheads rest together for a long moment, basking in the glow of the Aurora and the warmth of Clay. Finally, he'll speak quietly]

Ah...I still need to give you my present.

[He too was basking in it all, the glow and the warmth, when... Ah! That's right! Clay opens his eyes and leans back, a quiet little laugh escaping.]

Ha, that's right, the present... [He reaches into his coat pocket, where his own present for Allen is, before he pauses and looks up at him again] Uh, you want to go first, or me?

Um...

[Okay so he has a really good feeling about the present he's going to give Clay, and he doesn't want Clay to compare the two, so...]

I'll take my present first! If that's fine, I mean.

That's fine! You're fine. I mean, I'm fine.

[Gift giving kind of makes him nervous sometimes, especially since this is the first gift he's really giving to Allen. Gotta impress the boyfriend and all! With a nervous little laugh, Clay pulls out the gift from his pocket and holds it out to him. It's small and it's light, but he hopes that what's inside will make up for essentially feeling like an empty box.]

[He chuckles and puts his hand on his cheek to reassure him for a moment. He pulls away to take the box and open it. Which when he sees what they are? His eyes lit up]

Ah- earrings! They're beautiful!

[Oh thank goodness, he doesn't think they're too girly or anything. Clay gives a relieved smile at that]

I saw you had pierced ears so, um, yeah. And I tried to get ones that really looked like starlight, since you're... well, my Starlight. [Awkward sounding, but - the point got across! Yes!!]

[Allen's smile only seems to grow when he hears the explanation. He lean over again, this time to give a kiss on Clay's cheek]

I love them. Thank you. I'll put them on right now.

[Which he'll set the box on a nearby surface and pull off his gloves so he can take out the silver studs that were in his ears already. Then he'll put on the ones Clay gave.]

How do they look?

[Wow. The earrings look better on him than he imagined! Clay gives a big smile, hands lifting brush Allen's bangs behind his ears, then keeps his fingers there for a better look.]

They look stellar. Especially when they're on you.

[He grins]

Well you have fine tastes in jewelry. [Yep, definitely happy with this] I've been meaning to get more earrings, but I never seemed to get around to it.

[So well done Terran! But now he'll dig into his coat pocket and pull out his present- holding it out to Clay]

Here, it's your turn. I hope you like it.

[The package is pretty light as well, though slightly heavier. He's fairly confident that the item inside the wrapping will get a reaction...]

[And he even needed more earrings! Good, awesome! Clay gives a pleased, happy grin at that. One that looks more anticipating as he reaches out to take the gift Allen's giving him.]

You know I'll like whatever you give me.

[He says it as he starts to tear open the paper. There's a frame, and hey, it's space-themed! That's always cause for a huge bonus in his book. But once it's unwrapped to about the middle, and it's really revealed just what it is, Clay freezes mid-unwrapping to stare.

It's Apollo. Or, rather, it's a picture of Apollo, one he's never seen before.]

Where did you... [He slowly pulls off the rest of the paper and lets it fall to the floor]

Ah...Timcanpy, actually. He records everything he sees. That's why I never let him in the room when we're...

[Ahem. Right. Yeah, anyway!]

Anyway, Apollo liked spending time with Ino in Paradisa, and so did Tim. So I looked through his recordings to see if there was any footage of him, and I found that!

[He rubs his neck a bit awkwardly, trying to read Clay's reaction.]

Sorry, it's not the best quality photo. I mean, it is a photo taken of a recording. I just thought...well, you seem to miss him a lot, so I thought maybe you having a photo would be nice.

Yeah... all I've got is a drawing.

[And he's not exactly the best at drawing people; objects and angles are more his thing. He does have the video too, which he still loves. But this... This is completely new. It's of Apollo's time in Paradisa, which just seems so abstract to Clay that it's sometimes hard to imagine or even believe, like hearing your friend went to some far off place with no pictures or a personal account of it or anything.

Good lord, it's a picture of his best friend, the person who'd always be just a bike ride or a phone call away, who'd always come over to hang out, watch TV, gossip, and talk well into the night without ever growing tired of it. The one who'd been a constant staple in his life for more than ten years now, who was suddenly ripped out of it the moment Clay was brought here. It's like a huge hole in his heart that he never talked about, preferred to hide from others and tried filling it himself in various ways, though he knew it'd never happen unless Apollo himself was there. Like the hole his mother left that, while healed, would never properly be the same again.

This doesn't fill it, of course, but god... Seeing him like this, with a smile on his face as if he heard something funny, happy in a world where he heard some terrible things happened...

He can't help it. His eyes burn and water, but he still smiles as he wipes at one of them with with his palm.]

Ha, he looks - He looks like such a dork - he looks happy here...

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