thedevamper | (no subject)

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When Helen asked him, no begged him to go on a little dirty weekend away, well daytrip, how could Nikola say no? He had never been able to say no to her especially when she propositioned him like that. All sultry looks and well, stern Nikola!. A whole day away from the island with Helen alone. Nikola was going to milk today for all its worth and then gloat for weeks to John about it.

Nikola was not surprised that Helen had a contact with a boat, he was however surprised that it didn't have an engine. Really, he had to paddle? Well, at least he hadn't brought his suit for this little mission. He had dressed more appropriately for today

"Honestly Helen, you couldn't have gotten a boat with an engine? I hope you at least managed to bring glasses," Nikola replied as he carried his bag over to the boat. Helen might not have brought glasses but Nikola may have bought a flask of wine along with his water. Well, he could always live in hope that she relax a little.

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"I borrowed the boat from Coraline and, alas, it has no engine. I do hope that doesn't offend your delicate sensibilities," Helen said, wrinkling her nose. Really, she'd wanted a chance to explore the other island to scout a place for her and Will to have a private tryst for his birthday and, as such, couldn't take Will. In hindsight, she should have brought Kate instead.

"Now, we're going to be looking for somewhere romantic. I'm scouting for Will's birthday."

"Ah, yes, your Heinrich of the Island." Nikola muttered, thinking of the irritating blonde who kept continually asking him questions that one time. And she'd also pulled her tongue at him. Ridiculous girl, at least dear Henry had manners and knew to look appropriately in awe at him (at times. Well, very rarely.) "Helen, you're taking me somewhere romantic?"

Nikola smirked at Helen. That wasn't probably what she wanted to take away from the conversation but that's what he was taking. "Well, not a moment to waste then."

"No, Nikola. We're scouting somewhere romantic for me to take Will for his birthday," Helen said, brow furrowing in annoyance. Really, it was a bloody miracle she didn't have constant migraine headaches from being friends with Nikola.

"I trust you'll be able to help me in that endeavor?"

"I still don't see what is in this little trip for me apart from the pleasure of your company." Nikola replied, even as he tucked his bag away in the boat. Nikola smirked at Helen as her brow furrowed. "You'll get wrinkles if you keep looking at me like that Helen. Of course I'll help you."

"The pleasure of my company, Nikola," Helen said, relaxing slightly.

"Besides, I miss spending time with you one on one. We so rarely get to these days and it...I don't know. I don't like feeling like we've drifted. We're both too old to be careless with our friendships, to take them for granted."

"How could I take you for granted Helen? You've put up with me for the last what hundred or so years?" Nikola said removing his shoes and placing them into the boat as well, there was no way he was squelching all day when he could take them off now and save them getting wet. "I think you're the only one who does care to put up with me."

"Oh, that's not true. Alcuin cares for you," Helen said, sliding off her own shoes to step into the boat. It had been a long time since she rowed, probably since she and James were young or, even earlier still, when John was courting her.

"Does he not?"

"He hasn't known me as long as you have. And... I believe he does," Nikola murmured, before diverting the topic of conversation. Nikola always did like to play his cards close to his chest even with Helen. "I've been thinking about repurposing a hut for my own purposes. A new home, perhaps even a lab."

"No longer wanting to stay in the Compound, then? It might be good for you, to have your own space."

Helen had certainly enjoyed being a little further away, that was for sure. Then again, that had been as much to facilitate...things with Will as much as anything else.

"As much as I enjoy being close to civilisation, I'd rather create my own little lair and not have to worry about the idiots spoiling my private experiments." Nikola said before helping to push the boat off. And of course there was always the possibility of Nikola having to share which he certainly did not like the idea of. "I suppose I will have to suffer without my little luxuaries."

"As do I. I don't know what you think I have that might be better but I've had to forgo many luxuries since coming to the island," Helen said, frowning a bit. "I miss how we lived at home. Do you?"

"Do you mean do I miss living in total isolation and drinking your cellar dry every so often?" Nikola asked raising his eyebrow at Helen. In a way he supposed he did. Being alone meant that he was working, sometimes too hard but often making giant leaps in progress. Here, he was stuck socialising and sharing what he thought of as his lab with others. "Of course I do and not just because I can't easily get a decent bottle of red."

"I miss having a wine cellar," Helen admitted, starting to row the boat. It would be hard work, rowing to the second island, but it would be worth it in the end if she could find a nice place to celebrate Will's birthday.

"And a big house and my shoe collection. It's all so trivial, I know, but I miss it."

Nikola smirked as he rowed. Helen was far too good and noble and councilwoman Magnus to ever well, pilfer the best. Nikola on the other hand wasn't above exploiting others and manipulating them into getting what he wanted. And at the moment that meant wine, seeing as he had very few chances of procurring source blood here.

"I miss you having a wine cellar, I miss being able to drink it dry and drink you under the table." Nikola said. He had thought about building underground, beneath whatever island home he decided to inhabit but he wasn't going to tell Helen that. Not when he was going to put perhaps a few little extras in there that would make her quite cross. "I miss... my research coming here and having to start from scratch with basic materials well, it's hardly the lifestyle I imagined myself living."

"Ah, we've gotten soft, Nikola. Remember those years you spent living underground while James and I were French spies? That's when we knew how to go without creature comforts," Helen said, laughing with the memories.

"James got shot I don't know how many times. Man was simply a bullet magnet, I swear."

"Living underground in relative luxuary I might add," Nikola replied as he helped row the boat out. Even the moments when he hadn't been, he'd had work to occupy his mind. When Nikola got absorbed in his work, he really did get absorbed in his work. "He never did know when to duck. Smartest man in the room, except for me, and yet no sense of self preservation."

"Ah, no. James didn't really...he was above it, in a way, and it's not something the rest of us really shared."

It was nice, being able to talk about James because Will always wanted stories, wanted to hear the fantastic. John always seemed to be moody and withdrawn. With Nikola, at least, they could just...talk.

There were some things that Nikola didn't mind talking about, James was one of them as long as Helen didn't ever look too closely or ask too much of course.

"Being above it all?" Nikola asked after a moment. "He could be such... a pompous ass. And no matter what he said he never looked as good in a suit as I do."

"James was...arrogant but Nikola, darling, you are kind of the pot calling the kettle black there," Helen said, unable to keep from laughing.

"You're the most arrogant man I've ever met in my life."

"It's only arrogance if it isn't true and everything they say about my brilliance is true." Nikola replied, turning his nose up a little in mock outrage before smiling as Helen laughed. "I don't know surely you've met someone more arrogant than me in your lifetime Helen, did you meet Edison? Now, that man was an arrogant asshole who deserved a slow, painful death."

Helen arched a brow. "Surely he wasn't so bad as all that, Nikola. I mean, really."

It occurred to her that she seemed to be rowing more than Nikola and she offered the oars to him. "Here, you row for a bit."

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