thank you all for the kind comments so far! this part is a little shorter, but i have the rest of the story sketched out. hope to finish posting by the end of the week :D
***
They put lunch together from whatever Booker had left in the kitchen then spent the afternoon brainstorming, arranged around the living room with Booker and Andy on the small sofa, Nile in the armchair, and Nicky and Joe sitting shoulder to shoulder on the floor. Between the five of them they came up with plenty of theories and absolutely no useful ideas.
“Are you sure spells aren’t real?” Nile said, sounding far too happy about the possibility that they were. “Because this seems like a spell. Or a curse.”
Booker blinked when Andy and Joe and Nicky looked at him expectantly. “What?”
“Oh,” Joe said, “this is where you usually say something like—” he screwed his face up in a parody of despair and dropped his voice into a passable imitation of Booker’s— “Immortal life is a curse.” Then his eyes lit up, and he elbowed Nicky. “You say it!”
“Immortal life is a curse,” Nicky said obediently, but Joe sighed in disappointment.
“Never mind. You said it wrong.”
“How could he say it wrong?” Booker asked, feeling vaguely offended, though he wasn’t sure in which direction.
“Well he’s not drunk,” Andy said amiably, “and he doesn’t mean it. So, really, how could he say it right?” She stretched, letting her arm fall behind Booker along the back of the sofa. He leaned against it, trying to let himself enjoy the sensation of home, family, good without worrying about how much he’d miss it when they left. “You sure you didn’t do anything weird, Book? Rub an old lamp? Wish on a shooting star?”
“No,” Booker said. He scrubbed a hand through his too-short hair. He wished it were longer; it would be so much more satisfying when he clutched it in frustration. “Maybe we did the same thing at the same time? Thought the same thing at the same time?"
"If that was all it took," Joe said, "Nicky and I would have switched bodies a thousand times."
Booker, who knew these besotted lunatics extremely well, watched without surprise as that idea hit them both. They turned to each other. Their eyes widened. Then they both blushed furiously, leaning together and snickering against each other’s mouths between kisses.
Watching them, Andy said to Booker, appalled, “I didn't know your face could do that.”
"It's not supposed to," Booker hissed, tugging again on his stupid hair. "Come on, everybody, focus. There must be something."
“When we dream about each other,” Nile mused, as Joe and Nicky leaned one inch away from each other, restraining themselves to suggestive glances that were, honestly, worse than the kisses, “that’s a kind of mind sharing. It’s more than seeing the other person. You actually feel what they’re feeling. Maybe this is related, somehow?”
“When I first woke up,” Booker said, before he could think not to, “I did think it was just a good dream.”
Andy patted his shoulder. Nicky gave him a thoughtful look as Nile said, sincerely, “That’s sweet.”
Joe leaned back on his hands and asked, straight-faced, "You dream about being inside Nicky a lot?" and laughed when Booker threw a pillow at him.
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timeasmymeasure
Fill: Nicky/Joe + Booker and Nicky Bodyswap 5/?
Date: 2020-10-20 05:13 am (UTC)***
They put lunch together from whatever Booker had left in the kitchen then spent the afternoon brainstorming, arranged around the living room with Booker and Andy on the small sofa, Nile in the armchair, and Nicky and Joe sitting shoulder to shoulder on the floor. Between the five of them they came up with plenty of theories and absolutely no useful ideas.
“Are you sure spells aren’t real?” Nile said, sounding far too happy about the possibility that they were. “Because this seems like a spell. Or a curse.”
Booker blinked when Andy and Joe and Nicky looked at him expectantly. “What?”
“Oh,” Joe said, “this is where you usually say something like—” he screwed his face up in a parody of despair and dropped his voice into a passable imitation of Booker’s— “Immortal life is a curse.” Then his eyes lit up, and he elbowed Nicky. “You say it!”
“Immortal life is a curse,” Nicky said obediently, but Joe sighed in disappointment.
“Never mind. You said it wrong.”
“How could he say it wrong?” Booker asked, feeling vaguely offended, though he wasn’t sure in which direction.
“Well he’s not drunk,” Andy said amiably, “and he doesn’t mean it. So, really, how could he say it right?” She stretched, letting her arm fall behind Booker along the back of the sofa. He leaned against it, trying to let himself enjoy the sensation of home, family, good without worrying about how much he’d miss it when they left. “You sure you didn’t do anything weird, Book? Rub an old lamp? Wish on a shooting star?”
“No,” Booker said. He scrubbed a hand through his too-short hair. He wished it were longer; it would be so much more satisfying when he clutched it in frustration. “Maybe we did the same thing at the same time? Thought the same thing at the same time?"
"If that was all it took," Joe said, "Nicky and I would have switched bodies a thousand times."
Booker, who knew these besotted lunatics extremely well, watched without surprise as that idea hit them both. They turned to each other. Their eyes widened. Then they both blushed furiously, leaning together and snickering against each other’s mouths between kisses.
Watching them, Andy said to Booker, appalled, “I didn't know your face could do that.”
"It's not supposed to," Booker hissed, tugging again on his stupid hair. "Come on, everybody, focus. There must be something."
“When we dream about each other,” Nile mused, as Joe and Nicky leaned one inch away from each other, restraining themselves to suggestive glances that were, honestly, worse than the kisses, “that’s a kind of mind sharing. It’s more than seeing the other person. You actually feel what they’re feeling. Maybe this is related, somehow?”
“When I first woke up,” Booker said, before he could think not to, “I did think it was just a good dream.”
Andy patted his shoulder. Nicky gave him a thoughtful look as Nile said, sincerely, “That’s sweet.”
Joe leaned back on his hands and asked, straight-faced, "You dream about being inside Nicky a lot?" and laughed when Booker threw a pillow at him.