My Other Half, Liam & Jospeh

[Joseph]

It was dusk, the sky just dark enough for the sliver of a new moon to be viewed. Lazy pink clouds hovered at the horizon, making a beautiful sunset. The orange light of the setting sun drifted through the old library windows and spilled in puddles on the floor. Joseph was busy doing what he loved to do. Taking care of the library wasn't something Joseph expected to enjoy. He thought the monotony of it would drive him crazy, but in fact just the opposite was true. It grounded him, gave him something stable. Providing stability for himself made him feel better. Of course, he wasn't always able to provide the stability... especially when he was several feet in the air, standing on a ladder to dust away the top shelf of books. That was where his other half stepped in.

Joseph threw a glance down to the floor where Liam stood, steady as ever, holding the bottom of the ladder. A purely affectionate smile passed his lips as he placed the last book, fully dusted, back on the shelf and started his decent. "Thanks for helping me," his voice spoke from the back of Liam's mind, like an inner thought. There was a definite difference in communication from when Joseph spoke using his telepathy and when he used their soul bond link. Joseph's telepathy came from the cognitive part of the brain. It tickled the frontal lobes like a delicate invader. The link that they formed through their soul bond felt deeply seated in the subconscious and resonated from deep within the center folds of the mind. It felt like it belonged.

Joseph steadied himself on Liam's shoulder as he stepped off the ladder, giving it a gentle squeeze. "I brought a surprise!" The two had been left alone in the library, and Joseph was feeling particularly friendly. Perhaps some of it came from the guilt he felt over how he'd treated their relationship the past three years, and some was from the fact that knew Liam was having an especially hard time now that Gibs was back in town. He took the other werewolf's hand in his and urged him to one of the tables at the center of the Library. Joseph reached behind one of the chairs to reveal something he'd conveniently left out of his visual description he relayed to Liam.

A picnic basket.

He'd fixed it earlier that evening before he'd asked Liam to help him with the Library. "I figured we could do with some quality time, you've been grumpy." Joseph leaned forward, pressing his lips gently on Liam's cheek, "Besides, we haven't had a date night in ages."

[Liam]

A slight quaking of the ladder within his grip alerted Liam to Joseph's descent, luring him out of the placid lull his thoughts had settled into. A smile teased his lip at the grateful voice that swept across the back of his mind. "What else would I be doing?" It was a rather legitimate question, in more ways than one. There was little else Liam could or would do in the library beyond helping his other half, but, stepping away from the literal interpretation, there was nothing else Liam would chose to do. Passing time in silence at the bottom of a ladder wouldn't appeal to many as something to willingly engage in, but Liam had no complaints to offer. The incident with the hunter jarred more than a few things into perspective.

As Joseph braced a gentle hand on Liam's shoulder, Liam settled a hand against Joseph's lower back to steady him as he finished the final steps. A skeptical brow arched above an easy half smile at the mention of a surprise. "It's not a child, is it?" Not that they'd ever need one. How many honorary kids, nieces, or nephews had been taken under one of their wings? About half the population of youth in Point Grey, Liam assumed, although he withheld any further comment as Joseph took his hand and tugged him along. Warm scents drifted beneath his nose, and he was just wondering at them when Joseph plucked his surprise from behind a chair. A good-natured laugh broke over Liam as a picnic basket was held aloft for him to see in his mind's eye.

"How sweet of you to say." A teasing edge caught his response to the grumpy comment, although a tangible affection graced his thoughts. It was quite a task to keep anything from the other, one that required both tact and luck... And just a little bit of ignorance on the half of the other party. Tugging Joseph closer to him by their joined hands, Liam settled a kiss on his forehead while draping his free arm around Joseph's waist. The words 'thank you' didn't need to be said.

"So this is kind of like our first date." Liam noted coyly, referring to the fact that they hadn't, in fact, had one in decades. In a way, it truly was, for the pair never really had an 'official' date. They hardly needed one, but it fact remained that if either cared to notice, they never really did. "Only, I don't have to wonder if you'll be taking me home at the end of the night."

A smooth smile swept across his features as he released Joseph and settled himself into one of the chairs at the table. "You know, I don't think I've ever eaten anything from one of those things, let alone had a picnic." Not that he felt he was missing out on anything.

A playful glint caught his smile as he raised his brows innocently at Joseph. "Obviously you know what you're doing though."