Starring:
Summary: Samuel has a sudden problem, but so does the man he goes to see about it.
Date It Happened: December 14th, 2001
Out of the Curse Closet
Wolfram and Hart
Sleek and stylish, Wolfram and Hart is state of the art in everything. The security is always watchful to keep the riff raff and anyone without a proper appointment from entering. The large, open lobby is filled with windows and cheery sunlight is in sharp contrast to the business that is down on the upper floors. Once past security and various other checkpoints, the decor remains bright and welcoming, but the atmosphere lends to something more cutthroat. It's not uncommon to see many different species walking the expensive carpets and hardwood floors as both employees and as clients. The conference rooms are huge and filled with plush office chairs and long tables. The offices of the higher ups are even more luxurious. Long hallways are filled with doors that lead off to the varying departments with names like Corporal Acquisition and Prophesies and Harbinger Division. To the evil and the rich, these lawyers can get anyone out of just about anything. Of course, they always come a price.
It is hard enough being a demon underneath and going out every day, but when you're freshly cursed with an awkward sort of affliction, it makes everything significantly more stressful. Samuel has not even gone to the lengths of appearing at Wolfram and Hart in any manner of suit; he has simply come into the offices from the street after a few moments of enough-is-enough. The clothing of the day is a pair of clean jeans and a shirt that seems to be at least an inch too small, and being so it does cling to him. The man looks out of place as he makes his way through to the elevator and onto the proper floor, seeking out the best clue to his condition. Stopping in front of Edgar Montero's office, he raps on the door with a somewhat heavy hand. No appointment, so it is best to be courteous.
Edgar is used to seeing his clients without appointments. Usually they run in screaming or in a panic if that happens to be the case - but this doesn't seem to be one of those times, because knocking is Polite. Similarly cursed and highly irritated about it, the lawyer hasn't left his desk for much of the day. He sits patiently, arms folded tightly across his chest. Hopefully it'll end itself soon. "Come in." As usual Edgar is in one of his many suits. This one is a grey pinstriped affair.
The door of the office clicks open, and it takes an extra second for Samuel to actually step inside. He looks uncertain, and possibly nervous- it is understandable, right? One hand plucks at the stomach of his shirt, the other one hanging free, and his eyes swivel over the room to check for any other possible exits or persons. Just Edgar. "Good afternoon, mister Montero." Samuel's eyes glance at Edgar's folded arms "If right now is a bad time, I can possibly come back…"
"Not at all. I'm just finding myself rather stressed today - and, please. Edgar." How many times does it need to be said? The man makes as if to gesture to one of the vacant chairs in front of his desk but just ends up fidgeting uncomfortably, lips pursing a moment later while he exhales through his nose. Annoyance is go. Despite the lawyer's personal issues at the moment he manages to present Samuel with one of his more customary bright smiles. "What can I do for you?"
"Right. Edgar. What do you think of nicknames?" Maybe Sam will start calling him Eddie instead. But that is not why he is here, obviously. The demon takes a tentative seat on one of the chairs, keeping his eyes on Edgar, but his brain elsewhere. Perhaps if he fights with it, it won't happen! "I seem to have a…problem. One that has only come up in the last day, or so."
What a coincidence. "I'm fine with nicknames as long as they don't get absurd, and you're not the only one who's developed a 'problem'." To demonstrate, Edgar lifts his arms and gives them a tug. It should be clear that his hands are stuck to his sleeves. His smile thins out a little and he leans back in his chair, relaxing his posture again. "I'm running under the assumption that something happened at the florist's yesterday."
Samuel watches the hand-sleeves tug with a slight tilt of his head, eyebrows squeezing together when both of Edgar's hands are shown to actually be stuck. "Here I thought that you were angry with me coming." Speaking is all that he can do to keep from letting out a laugh- it is best not to laugh at the person you came to for help. "Do you think? That was bizarre, I suppose…" Compared to some other things it was actually normal, but apparently things like that do not happen in the normal world.
Sam had better not laugh, because personal humiliation is one of those few things that can actually succeed in making Edgar Very Very Angry. "I'm not angry with you for coming. I'm your lawyer. And it's the only thing that makes sense; I wasn't exposed to anything else yesterday, and if you're suffering some sort of curse-symptom too that supports the theory." Edgar spins a few degrees in his chair, tapping his feet against his desk. His hands should be coming unstuck again soon.
A symptom which has gone without occurring so far. Samuel lifts a hand to brush back his hair, looking quite seriously at the edge of Edgar's desk, then up at the taller man again. "That does sound correct. I was busy yesterday afternoon, but it does seem like it began soon after that incident." Sam's jaw shifts, his bottom lip pulling in slightly while he considers this. "Do you think that we are going to be like this for long? Or must we be dispelled somehow?"
"I'm going to have the firm look into my problem for me. If they turn up anything that might be useful to you I'll be sure to pass along the information. For the time being I'd suggest staying at home with a trustworthy friend to help you with whatever your problem is." Edgar could certainly use one of those, and he's probably going to end up calling someone by the time he goes home for just that purpose. He glances up at the other man for a moment, lifting his eyebrows. "What is your problem?"
"Well, you see, I should not have…someone-" Uh-oh. The look of thought on Samuel's face turns increasingly nervous. It lasts for about three more seconds before the demon starts moving up from his seat. His hands find a purchase on that side of Edgar's desk, and instead of really only pushing himself to his feet- Samuel practically lunges across the hardwood desk at the lawyer on the other side. This may be frightening, depending on if Edgar has ever seen Samuel in his true form, or possibly…interesting depending on Edgar's state of mind; the Naga is not attacking him, per se. His hands have gone out to grab the lawyer by the tie and yank him closer in order to kiss him. This could possibly be that 'problem'. Problem being how someone might look at it, but maybe not much of a problem for Edgar.
Okay, weird. Edgar watches Samuel with a decidedly perturbed expression as the man comes at him across his desk, but his unflappable nature holds true and he barely reacts - until his tie is grabbed and he's hauled forward by the neck. It's around that point that the lawyer's hands choose to unstick. They fly upwards to grasp Samuel's shoulders in a tight grip, originally intending to push the man away… but he doesn't exactly do that. If this is Samuel's problem then that's all good, and if it's not, it might just be better. Overall, though? Edgar is confused.
Even from the start, there is a remote noise of frustration from Sam. A sort of muffled exhale. For a snake, he is a pretty good kisser; but it does not last as long as Edgar might like it to, and Samuel draws his head away after a few more seconds of being forceful and still having a lawyer literally by his leash. He hasn't let go of that tie yet, and even one knee is up on the side of the desk.
Awkward.
"I. Yes. That."
Edgar doesn't so much as twitch when the naga pulls away, doing little more than letting out a long breath now that the kiss has ended. He'd be lying if he claimed he hadn't been kissing back but that's a story for another day. No resistance is offered to the tie-grip; it's just the opposite. Edgar rises from his seat to lessen the tension on his neck and simply stands, looking down at the man who appears to be about ready to crawl across his desk. Since he keeps it so neat there wasn't really anything to have gotten knocked off, though a glass paperweight has thumped to the floor to be cradled by the thick carpeting. At least it hasn't broken. "…Interesting."
Mind the decor, Sammy! The demon half-perched on the desk slowly lets go of Edgar's now rumpled tie, balancing when his hands move up to fix it for him. There. As good as new, right? "That.. is one word for it."
Edgar drops his hands from the other man's shoulders when Sam starts fixing his tie, clasping neatly together behind his back. He watches the smoothing of his tie with a small smirk on his face - and his gaze is soon drawn to the demon's features. "It is," he agrees. "And this is your recently-developed problem? I haven't even bought you dinner."
Samuel slips backwards off of the desk, feet scuffing lightly on the carpet below. His face is bent in confusion again, eyes especially more alert. When Edgar sees fit to make a joke, his eyes dart up to the man's face again, a sharp contrast to the rest of him that still seems very dizzy. "I do not recall having the overwhelming urge to kiss…anyone, before." An issue it might be, though Samuel does not sound particularly disgusted so much as he does frustrated. "Yes, it seems to be a problem for me, dinner or not. I doubt that variable would have much effect." Though dinner sounds nicer than leaping onto people in their workplaces.
The way Samuel is reacting to the kiss is endearing, but the fact that it happened at all is all the proof Edgar needs to link his own problem with the flower shop. He tucks his hands into the pockets of his trousers and smiles, rolling his shoulders in a shrug. "So maybe you wouldn't be better off having people to keep you company. Unless that'd be a rewarding experience for you." As far as Edgar is concerned Samuel can stay in his office as long as he likes. "I still think it's interesting."
"It could certainly be, depending on who." He does give Edgar the tiniest of squints. Samuel takes a half step back from the desk, neck craning to the side and his own arms crossing over his stomach. "But, Eddie, as it happens, I do have schedules to keep and things to keep ahead of. It may become a worse problem if I find myself flung into the arms of the wrong person. The last thing that I want to do is plant a wet one on anything that may bite my head off of my neck. Is there nothing we can do to reverse this?"
"As far as I can tell this is all acting like a curse. Unfortunately I'm not all that knowledgeable in that area so I don't think I can help with reversing it. Trust me, though, I'll be keeping an eye out for anyone capable of doing just that. Your problem is a little harder to contain than mine is - I'd suggest canceling everything on your schedule and staying home. That or just rolling with it. Pretend you're drunk." Edgar grins to himself, unable to help it, and then takes a quick glance down towards the telephone on his desk. "Do you need to call anyone to come pick you up?"
Samuel looks like he does consider playing drunkard. He does a lot of that drinking thing anyway, these days- so at least it would not be so out of place. "I think that I could play drunk. Possibly." The demon lets out a sigh of air. "I had been looking forward to some of the week." Next, Samuel glances down at the phone. "I came here alone. I do not know anyone that is free, but I could try calling one. I may be able to catch a cab, but I doubt that a driver would see it my way if-" Well. That.
The lawyer drops his hands again, this time letting them hang at his sides so they're not in danger of touching anything. Which might just be catastrophic if it happens at the wrong moment. "Please feel free. If you need a neutral space you can sleep here for the night. The couch isn't exactly a bed," Edgar nods over towards the couch lining the far wall, "but it's comfortable enough."
Stepping towards the desk again, Samuel turns his head to peer at the aforementioned couch, fingers perching on the edge of the desk by the phone. Sleep on the sofa? Excuse me? The sound out of him is almost a scoff. "Thank you anyway." With that, he lifts up the phone receiver. "I am much too used to sleeping on something larger. I do not think I can afford a backache, seeing as I sometimes possess a six and a half-meter spine."
It's entirely amusing to Edgar that the couch has been turned down by the naga. He shrugs once and walks to the edge of his desk, crouching down to pick up his fallen paperweight. "Well, Sam. Whatever you think is best." He probably doesn't have to have a six and a half meter spine in order to sleep.
Even before dialing anything, Samuel puts the phone back down again with a dull click of plastic. "The last time that I slept as a man on a sofa, it took a toll on my back both like that, and when I did turn back. Seeing as serpents are all spine…" The demon trails off at the end. As Edgar is crouching to pick up his fallen paperweight, Samuel has stepped after him; it looks like it came back again, when both of his hands grab Edgar by his suit jacket in order to swivel him around. No matter how successful this may or may not be, Samuel is back with trying to lock lips with the lawyer, no matter which way they stand. A man possessed. So to speak.
Blargwhat. This is all very irregular. Edgar once again finds himself manhandled around and more or less attacked with physical affection, but he manages to keep his senses enough to not try grabbing Sam again. It would probably just end badly. As it is the lawyer just waits it out, assuming that this second kiss will get itself out of the naga's system soon enough. It's awkward. Really awkward.
Watch out for those stickyfingers. Samuel pulls himself away after a few moments, eyes shutting and hands gripping at Edgar's arms. D'oh. He opens one eye at a time, hands floating back to his own bubble again. "Maybe I should try that phonecall." The Naga takes a deep breath, letting it out through his nose.
"…Okay. I'm going to leave the room and let you do that." Maybe it's time for Edgar to go on home and flee ground zero of the Awkward Kissing Event of '01. Before Samuel has much of a chance to respond the lawyer is off and moving, slipping out of the other man's grip. The door to his office is turned with the aid of a sleeve to avoid skin contact, and then POOF. He's gone.
