Is it really you? - Yakov (fremtidsemne)

This was Alexei's first fencing lesson. He had moved into the dorms of the Academy just about a month ago, when he'd finally gotten to Gaia, and thereby, the Academy as well. He hadn't had any money for traveling or anything else... So, really... His only way of traveling had been to fly, which made sure that, even though he had been an angel for less than a year, he was a very good flier by now. He had gotten settled in to his room, still waiting to get a roomie - but for now, it might be a good thing that he didn't have a room mate. He had so bad night terrors that he woke up screaming almost every night, and he was already talking to the school psychiatrist about it all. Of course, it wasn't any wonder why he had those night terrors, with the horrible way he and his family had died.

But here he was - all dressed up in the fencing equipment, holding the fencing mask at his side while he waited for the teacher to enter, standing at the end of the row of students, closest to the door. At the very least, he had heard from the others that the teacher was Russian - so if his English failed him, as it sometimes did, he wouldn't have to worry about that on top of everything else he was fighting with. Before he was resurrected, he wouldn't have dared to enter a class such as this, knowing any injury could have been fatal. But in this day and age - and with help from the school, he had begun getting infusions that were supposed to replace the clotting factors he didn't produce himself, and therefore, he should be able to do this, and get injured, without the same dire consequences as before. So here he was... All giddy and excited to finally be doing something a lot more physical than he had ever really been allowed to, or able to, as often as his joints had been too sore for him to even walk, in the past.

Yakov was talking to his assisting teacher while they walked from the teacher's changing room, discussing the plan for the day. This was a class of beginners, so it wouldn't be anything super fancy. Mostly it was about getting to know where they all were and if he should be aware of anything. You never knew at a school like this, after all, the students could be his age and fencing masters because they fought in a war or something of the like.

As they walked into the room, Yakov's eyes quickly swept over the students, pinpointing who might be problematic in one way or the other and which ones might need that extra push. "Good morning everyone, I'm your fencing teacher this year. My name is Yakov Romanov, like the Russian royal family, but since I don't like hearing it butchered, call me Jacob or Mr Roma," he said in a light tone, but underneath that, there was no doubt that he was serious about it. "Since today is the first day, I'm not gonna start you up on anything too difficult. We'll do some warmups at first, and if anyone have anything I should be aware of, come over here and talk to me straight away" He nodded to the assisting teacher who quickly introduced himself and took over to warm up everyone, while Yakov observed them for now.

When their teacher entered, though... Alexei froze. He had been tilting back and forth on his feet, heel to toe and back to heel again, just to get rid of some of the anxious energy, but it all disappeared when he saw the man and immediately realized who it was. Yasha. He swallowed as the shock hit him - the angel was still alive! He hadn't lost everybody to that horrible massacre... Yakov was still around.

He swallowed, but took the man up on his word, with going to him if he needed to be aware of something - there definitely was, after all. He knew that he himself was, bodily, about four years older than he had been when he was executed, but... The man should still be able to recognize him when he saw him up close, right? Ignoring the few looks from his classmates, he walked up to the angel, standing just a bit closer than any strangers would.

Standing there, he waited to get Yakov's attention, swallowing when the guy did turn to look at him. "I-" his voice shook too much, so he shook his head, swallowed once more, and then looked up at the angel, dead straight into his eyes. "Yasha... Is it really you?" his voice was low and still a bit shaky, his heart was thumping like crazy in his chest, his breath quick and shallow... With all the emotions overwhelming him just at the sight of the guy, the sound of his voice bringing back countless memories of his entire childhood. And, of course, he had spoken in Russian when he talked to him.

Yakov looked around, and it didn't seem like a lot of the students were going up to him, so that was a plus. The only one was an anxious-looking fella, so he had a feeling what might come up - especially when he came closer and was oh-so obviously an angel. Quite a few had talked to him about not wanting to be paired with vampires and the like, which he understood perfectly well. But even so, something was nagging him. The kid seemed so familiar, but he knew for a fact that he wasn't in any of his other classes.

But as soon as that familiar nickname was said, all confusion disappeared and he knew exactly who he was looking at. The sternness in his eyes all but disappeared and was replaced with awe, and something different. "L... Lyosha" It wasn't a question. He knew exactly who he was looking at. "You're... alive?" his voice almost broke when he started talking Russian to the boy and he reached a hand out to ever so gently touch the warm rosy cheek of the boy with the tip of his fingers. An angel. God knew there was nothing more fitting for the boy to become than that. "I thought I lost you. All of you" he said, only barely containing the tears that welled up in his eyes.

Now, normally Yakov could control his feelings, but waves upon waves of relief and sorrow welled up inside him and clashed down at once. Memories of that night, seeing not only Nikolay fall to the ground, but Alexandra and the children too flashed before him. He only barely managed to collect himself enough to croak out for the assisting teacher to take over for today and then all but drag Alexei out of the room. And as soon as he closed the door behind them, he pulled the boy close to him in a hug, like he so often would've done before the world went to hell. "I'm not imagining this, right? You're really here?"

And so clearly seeing the recognition in Yakov's eyes,hearing his own old nickname - Alexei let go of a breath he hadn't known he was holding, getting quite teary-eyed as well. "... I am." he confirmed, smiling when he felt the warm fingertips on his cheek. For now, he disregarded that the feeling around the guy wasn't quite the same as it had been, once upon a time - he was just so insanely happy that the angel was still alive, and he'd found him.

"... I thought it was the end for me as well." he muttered, voice thick with emotion. He felt every ounce of what Yakov was feeling, on top of his own emotions. That empathy ability Michael had talked about... It was sort of overwhelming right now, but the situation was already overwhelming without it. He didn't blame the guy for almost losing his composure. Himself, he was already sniffling a little with the tears threatening to spill over any second now. He had always been a very emotional kid, after all, and that hadn't changed with his death and resurrection.

Yakov didn't really need to drag him, however - he quite happily followed him outside, and just as Yakov's arms wrapped around him, so did his wrap around Yakov, a few sobs slipping past his lips as he cried into the other angel's shoulder. "No, you aren't..." he sniffled, pulling his head back a little and reaching up to stroke some tears away from his own cheeks. "I'm here. I... I woke up in the forest... You know... The one close by where the house used to be... Back in November." and it had been so damn cold... Good thing Michael had found him as quickly as he did, taken him under his wing so to speak, and helped him figure things out, including how to fly, and the very basics about the electronics used today.

Yakov just kept holding the boy close, petting his hair, rubbing his back, not able to pull back just yet. Not only was his little Lyosha still alive, but that calming aura did wonders to his anxiety and mild panic that the little flashback had caused. And then he mentioned the forest. He knew exactly the one. He had wandered around in it countless times, trying to find his family before ultimately leaving Yekaterinburg and later Russia altogether. "I'm just happy you didn't come back before the wars," he muttered softly, placing the tiniest kiss on the top of his head. No, the thought of Alexei, his little Lyosha, having to live through World War II or the cold war would've been too much. Especially when he was alone - and worse, while in Russia.

"Although your grandmama would've been happy to have you in Denmark. A day didn't pass without her praying for all of you," he said smiling softly. Then the smile faltered a bit. "Are you the only one to... uhm... You know?" He didn't want to get his hopes up, but maybe the rumors could've been true? Maybe...

"... I did hear a little about those." Alexei sighed. "... I'm pretty happy for not being around for that." Especially with how bad anxiety and night terrors he already had, he wasn't sure he'd have been able to handle that kind of stuff on top of it, especially with as bad as psychiatry had been back then. It was much better now - that first session with the school psychiatrist had been a good experience. Terrible to live it all through again, but the guy was good at calming him down again and giving him good coping mechanisms. He smiled when he felt the kiss upon the top of his head, and just leant in against Yakov, sensing the guy needed this at least as much as he himself did.

"I bet she would.." he said with a small smile, and then sighed. "I guess God did hear my prayers, after all, then." the ones he'd both written in his diary the nights before they died, and said out loud before he went to sleep. Seeing as he was here, again, now - and an angel no less... He truly did believe it was those prayers that had been heard. He still had his old cross around his neck as well, hidden beneath his clothes right now. ".. As far as I know, I am." Alexei sighed. "At least, Michael told me they're all up in Heaven, and the Bolsheviks are in Hell." his tone was somber, as he looked down for a few seconds. He was happy to know that they had gone up there rather than 'downstairs', but he still missed them an awful lot.

Yakov nodded. "You should be. They weren't great to be part of," he muttered, remembering all the shit he got during it. He didn't really care about which side he was on at the time, he just tried to dull the pain of... well, everything really. And maybe also try to piss off god for not helping him out of the impossible mission he was put into.

So the bitterness he felt for a second was understandable when the bastard's name was dropped. But it was soon gone anyway because it meant he had Alexei back in his life. And hearing that the rest of the family was in heaven... well, it was a relief. "I'm happy they ended up there. I didn't think they'd end up in hell, but you never know. A good chunk of Russia sure thought they would for a while," he said, with a deep sigh, before finally pulling away from the hug, but not too far. He could still easily reach out and touch him if he wanted to. "How are you feeling? About being back here?" he then asked, a tint of worry in his tone. If you came back in November... Well, it must've been quite the world to get used to."

"... I figured, with all I've been reading and watching these past few months. I figured history documentaries would be the best way to get up to date, as soon as Michael had shown me this... Streaming?... Thing. I've gotten a lot of help setting it up and all, both from classmates and teachers. I... Guess it's a good thing I've always been a quick learner..." he said with a bit of a smile, although it was sort of exhausted in nature, as well.

"I mean... Considering my circumstances.. I'm doing pretty fine. Seeing the school psychiatrist and the nurse as well. She put me through to the hospital here in Gaia. I sort of... Still have hemophilia." he sighed and shrugged. "But at least they have proper treatments for it now - my joints haven't ached even once since I've come back." he said with a bright, broad smile, as he was, of course, extremely happy about that development. "But it has been uphill with all of the electronics and everything... I can still only do the very basics on a computer, and the phones... Let's just not talk about that, they're completely out of my league right now." he said with a sigh. "At least the new ones. Smartphones, they're called, right? I like the older ones better. "

Yakov just looked at the boy and listened. He looked a few years older, but he chalked that up to God working in mysterious (read: stupid) ways. He simply frowned a little when hearing about Alexei still having hemophilia - why wouldn't he fix that, if he's so almighty? - but nodded. At least he was alive again. And he was right, today he could live a somewhat normal life because of modern medicine. At least there was that.

The next part made Yakov chuckle though. "Don't worry about it, I've lived through all of the changes, and I still don't get it completely. I'd much prefer a book than watching TV all the time. Although a friend of mine showed me that I could read books on my phone, but I still need his help sometimes" he said and shrugged. Sam was a great help with all these popular modern things and showed him what the hell ebooks and audiobooks were. The latter was especially nice when going for a run or jog in the woods in the morning.

"So... I know this might be a little odd, but do you have any other classes today?" he asked, a little nervous for some reasons. "I have a lot of stuff from the palace at my place which are... well, they're technically yours I suppose. I just tried to save what I could before the Bolsheviks took away everything," he said, smiling a little. "I don't have any classes to teach today, I'll just tell my assistant to take over - and if you have classes, I can pick you up afterwards too, that's fine. I just... There are some things I want to give you. And I don't think I can concentrate on fencing if I'm being completely honest."

"... Thank God," Alexei chuckled just a little. "I was worrying I might be the only one struggling with it all." he said, smiling - he smiled rather constantly now, just so incredibly elated that Yakov was still around, even though he would have to ask him about that changed aura of his... And the sort of... Dark grey glow around him. The thing he'd learned was the moral compass sensing thing he could do now. It was quite obvious a lot of stuff had happened after he'd died, not just with the world, but with Yakov, too.

"It does make me feel older than I look or feel most of the time, though... I've gotten... Uhm... Quite some weird looks from other teenagers at not knowing any of this stuff," he said with a slightly awkward grin and scratch of his neck. But hey, at least he and Yakov agreed on the book part. Alexei had always liked to read - it was one of the few things he had always been able to do, even if bedridden, so of course it had become something he enjoyed doing.

He then thought about it for a bit, and shook his head with a smile. "No... I had a riding class this morning, and this lesson, but the rest of today is study time." and when he heard the reason why Yakov was asking, he looked surprised for a moment, then chuckled. "Of course you did... Well... I left my phone back at my dorm room, so if I can just get to fetch it, I can go with you after that? I just want to be sure if someone wants to get a hold of me, they can... Oh, and of course I need to change out of this, too." gesturing towards the fencing suit.

"Don't I know the feeling" Yakov said, chuckling slightly. People definitely questioned his age every now and then, because he looked fairly young. Mid-20's to early 30's were what people usually guestimated him to be - but for a 424 year old, he'd say he was pretty hip and modern!

Yakov's smile widened a bid and he nodded. "Of course! I'll just get changed and into my car, then I can pick you up, if you want? I don't live all that close to the school, so it'll be a lot faster," he said, gently fixing a few strands of hairs that had been moved around during their hug. He'd been with the kid for a whole 5 minutes now, and he was already fixing the boy's appearance, as he'd always done to him and his sisters.

"Sounds good!" a bright smile lit up Alexei's face, perhaps betraying that he was, mentally, still a bit younger than he looked to be now. "So... Do we meet in the front hall, or will you come to the dorm and fetch me?" if it was the latter, he would of course just tell him which room number he was in. No matter what it ended up with, the smile stayed, especially as he felt Yakov fixing his hair as he always had.

Either way, he gave Yakov another tight hug before they parted, and he went to change back into his normal clothes, before heading back to the dorm, throwing his bag there as he went over and disconnected his phone from the charger, turning it back on as well, before he stuffed it into his pants pocket. That done, he corrected his clothes a bit, made sure everything sat as it should - and with the silver cross now fully visible on top of his shirt. And then he just sort of... Waited there.

Unlike most other teens' rooms, the only electronic in here except for his phone, was a small mp3 player, connected to a small speaker system as he had found music often helped a great deal with the anxiety he was fighting with as of recently. The mirror and other such pieces in the room were ones he had found in thrift stores, with just a hint of the extravagant style he had grown up with. Although it was only cheap imitations - it still made him feel more at home than without them.

"I'll pick you up at the dorm, that's easier right?" Yakov replied. He was a little curious as to how the little tsarevich faired living in a dorm. Sure, Alexei wasn't very materialistic - to be honest, his sisters would probably have a harder time adjusting - but still, it was very different from a palace and all that.

The hug surprised Yakov for a second, but he quickly wrapped his arms around the boy without even thinking. It was so odd to have Alexei back after all these years of being alone - maybe not as much physically as he was alone mentally - but it was a welcome oddness. And then he left to change clothes. Yakov just stayed back for a few seconds, taking in the entire situation, before heading back into the fencing class. He talked to the assisting teacher for a second, asking him to take over after explaining that some stuff had come up and he had to leave for the day. Some odd excuse about his PTSD and the boy having triggered it and that he had given the boy the day off because reasons. He got some odd looks, but as Yakov wasn't a guy who did this sort of stuff very often and did look very shaken and a bit pale, he got to leave nonetheless.

After changing into the clothes he came in, he went to his car and drove to the address to pick up Alexei. When he arrived tho, Yakov remembered that he didn't have the boy's number, so he couldn't text him and say he was there. So he quickly parked his car and went to the room that Alexei had told him he lived in. He knocked on the door, feeling very misplaced here. At least there were no students around at the moment, so no one would question what he was doing there.

// Påklædning: link + sorte converse //

"Sounds good - see you there!" Alexei smiled and waved goodbye to Yakov before he'd gone and got dressed properly again. Once back at the dorm, he had, while waiting, put on a bit of music - he had found quite a bit of Russian rock in the time he'd been back - music was just so extremely varied now, and he liked a lot of it - though mainly rock and classical.

The adjustment to a dorm had actually not been too bad, at least not after he'd decorated the place to his own liking. The only thing he hated about the dorm was the inconsiderate pricks who from time to time slammed their doors so hard that it triggered his PTSD, as the sharp, loud, quick sound was slightly reminiscent of the sound of a gunshot... At least, to Alexei, it was. And he had had people coming to knock on his door telling him to be quiet in the night, when he had no control of his night terrors... Sigh.

But either way, he looked up when he heard the knocking on his door, opening it to see Yakov standing there, smiling brightly at him again. "Just a sec," he then said, turning around to grab the phone, a small pill case, and his keys. "There... I'm ready." he then said, as he really didn't need anything else. He locked the door behind himself again, and then readily followed with Yakov out to the car - another thing he' d had to get used to, how vastly different they looked today, and just how many there were, too. Not just the rich being able to afford them, anymore. Either way, he got into the passenger side, and strapped himself in.

Yakov only got a very quick glance into the apartment when Alexei opened the door, but it didn't look like the messy dorms that he had come to expect from his students, which was a relief. He did remind himself to get Alexei some nicer stuff at one point though, he didn't like the cheap imitations of nice furniture. "Perfect. I've parked just down here," he said, nodding his head, before leading the way. Yakov didn't have the nicest car, sure, but considering he was a teacher, he supposed it was pretty neat. He could afford better though, but he didn't feel like spending too much unnecessary money.

It didn't take long to drive to his home from there and the silence was filled by music. His phone was plugged into the car and was playing some classical Russian music, not very unlike what he and Nikolay often listened to while working. It sure brought memories back.
Driving through Gaia and finally getting to the outskirts of Grounds of Lily, they arrived at his house. It was fairly modern and definitely not something a normal teacher could afford. "Here we are. Welcome to my humble abode," He said, as he pulled up to the driveway. With a click of a button, the garage door opened, and he drove up to park the car. Getting out of the car, he showed Alexei the way to the front door, closing the garage door behind them, before starting to unlock the door - and immediately you could hear barking form inside. "Mishka, it's me, calm down," he called sternly through the door, and immediately the dog calmed down.

As he opened the door, what looked like a mix between a dog and a bear poked its' head out, curiously sniffing around, but Yakov just gently pushed the giant dog backwards while he walked in. My apologies, I hope you don't mind big dogs. Mishka is a little big, but he's really just a cuddlebug. If you pet him for a second, he's your new best friend, isn't that right, Mishka?" he explained, and the giant dog gave a low 'ruff' as if to reply while his tail just wagged lazily back and forth and he looked up at the stranger in his house with curious eyes.

Alexei always kept his space extremely tidy - he didn't have servants to do it for him like at the castle, but, well, he was still used to things being tidy, so now it just meant he had to do it himself. With the room de-cluttered, it also helped his anxiety just a little bit. Nodding, and smiling, he simply followed, looking a slight bit curiously around the car as he got inside. he hadn't really been in many private cars yet. Mostly just trains and buses, so it was always interesting to see the interior of a private car, perhaps doubly so now that it was Yakov's.

When they arrived - well, from the outside, it wasn't quite what he had expected Yakov to choose, and it was perhaps a bit obvious to see in his expression. Still, he was smiling as he got out of the car and followed the other angel over to the door, at first raising an eyebrow when he heard the dog - but then, a wide grin spread over his face as he saw just how cute that massive dog looked!

Yakov didn't even manage to get halfway through his sentence, before Alexei was already petting the dog, loving the soft fur and giving some good, deep scratches around the neck and ears. "Awwh, he's adorable!" he said before he without thinking too much about it, bent down just enough to hug the dog while his hands scratched the back. "Yes you are, aren't you, big boy??" his big love for animals was very much still there, after all. He used a few minutes on greeting the dog like that, before he pulled back and then smiled perhaps a bit sheepishly over at Yakov. "Sorry... I.. You know how I get around most animals..." he apologized - when he was small he'd coo over even just a small larvae crawling on his finger, and absolutely lose his shit, in the best way possible, if a butterfly sat on him or a cat wanted to be pet by him.

Mishka's tail wagged more enthusiastically when he was being scratched and with his big tongue hanging out of his mouth, he looked perfectly content being scratched. In fact, he sat down as close to Alexei as possible, closing his eyes and leaning into the scratches. Yakov certainly wasn't kidding when he called Mishka a cuddle bug. Originally Yakov got him for security, but today he was more of a calming presence. Yakov knew he only barked if someone got into the house and the dog knew when Yakov was having an episode and needed something tactile to ground him. He wasn't an actual therapy dog, he had never been trained, he was just very friendly and caring by nature.

And Yakov... Well, the sight bought one of those rare smiles to his face. The ones that had been there plenty when he lived with the Romanovs, but since then had all but vanished. Of course he missed the family, but he didn't realize that having Alexei back would make him feel so much better. If only the rest would come back too... "Don't apologize, he liked it. It's just a good thing he isn't shedding too badly at the moment, otherwise you'd be covered in fur," he said, chuckling. Having a dog who was that big and fluffy sure had its' downsides - but the good thing was that he could bring him to Russia no matter what time of the year he went.

"It's not a very big house, but at the moment it's just me and Mishka here, so it's fine. I have some stuff I'd like you to see upstairs though," he said, before starting to show the way. In the hallway they stepped into, there wasn't much, besides a few closed doors and a staircase. So taking off his shoes and putting them aside, he started showing Alexei the way. Upstairs there were four doors, one to their right - his bedroom - one right ahead - the bathroom - and two on their left. He went to the room to their left, the furthest away from the staircase and pulled out his keys to open not just one or two locks, but four. And when he opened it, he removed one last thing, before opening the door completely and turning on the lights.
Without the light, it would've been completely dark, as the windows had been basically boarded up - and the items inside made it pretty obvious why. Several paintings, decorations and knickknacks that looked like they belonged in a museum were scattered, hung up or stacked up in the room, only hidden by thin translucent fabric to protect them from dust. There was one writing desk against the far wall were the small ornaments and decorations were placed - and all of the things should be very familiar to Alexei. Most of them were from the palace and had belonged in Yakov's champers and the rest were from all around the palace. Paintings of past stars, their families and other such things hung on the walls or leaned against them, but the most prominent were the largest two. One of Alexei, his siblings, parents and grandmother, and one of Yakov, with his wings out, sitting with all the children.

"After I went to Denmark to your grandmother, I came back to Russia to collect a few personal items and whatever I could get transported out of the country. The rest was stuff I bought off of scavengers or collectors down the line. If there's anything specific you want, you can just look around -I actually think that I have one of your dad's albums lying around somewhere in here-," he rambled on for a little while, unsure of what to do or say. He rarely went in there these days and no one had really seen his collection of stuff.

Alexei already loved this big cutie of a dog. He was just so cuddly, so soft - big, warm... One last, tight hug to the dog and even a soft kiss to the top of the dog's head, and he pulled back - his own grin staying put the second he heard Yakov chuckling, saw that smile on the angel's lips. He had always loved to see Yasha smile. It was just so precious.

"I know it isn't big compared to what either of us has been used to - I mean, even the school isn't quite coming close to it... But this is still miles better than a dorm room. I mean, I still have to share bathroom and kitchen with the  other people in the dorm." he said, shrugging - before he just followed Yakov, still a soft smile on his lips.

His eyes widened a bit when he saw it all, though. Yes, the angel had told him he had scraped quite a few things together. But this much... He hadn't expected that. His breath turned just the slightest bit shaky, his eyes a little wetter, as he thought about all of the possibilities with this. He... He could get to see and talk with his family again... And so could Yasha! "I... Yasha..." he raised a finger to gently place it on Yakov's lips, to stop his rambling.

"... There's... Something I need to tell you. Something that has everything to do with... All of... This." he said, and swallowed, as he pulled his hand back to himself. "You... You remember the ability I've had ever since I was little, right? The one to make people do things for me?" he had very rarely used it, though, as people usually did what he told them to, anyway, back then. But he'd already had it by then.

"I... When I was reborn... I got another one." he said, looking straight into Yakov's eyes. "... I can let you see Dad again. Talk to him. All of the family. I just... I sort of need to touch something that belonged to the person, and... Then I can sort of... Call on the spirit, so to speak." he explained. "I've... I've been looking all over to try to find some of theirs... All of this... Is... Is the ticket to see and speak with all of them again."

"Glad I'm a teacher and not a student. I don't think I could live like that anymore," Yakov muttered, grimacing at the thought. Other than during the wars and right after everything went down in Yekaterinburg, he hadn't lived too shabbily. He had gotten quite the inheritance from Maria after all, and later made a name for himself after the wars. This was probably the least well-paying job he had ever taken, but he enjoyed it nonetheless.

As his rambling was silenced by Alexei, he just looked slightly confused at the boy. He nodded when Alexei talked about his ability - Yakov had definitely talked to the boy a lot about it. It was a gift, but one he should be careful with. But then the boy explained the new ability and the surprise was apparent on the Russian's face.

For a moment, he didn't know what to say or do or think. First, he got Alexei back - something that seemed impossible in and of itself - and now he could... he could see the others too? He was speechless. He had been alone on earth for so long (102 to be precise). It seemed like an eternity had passed since his life had any meaning and now... If he wasn't as shocked, he would've probably bawled his eyes out, but as it was, he simply nodded his head to show he understood.
"I... I think I have the perfect thing for that," he said, voice barely above a whisper, before walking over to the table in the room. He pulled out a drawer under the table and took out what seemed like a very expensive jewellery box. Its base was of a deep warm wood, with golden details all around and real pearls imbedded into it. It was a lot more fancy and overly decorated than anything Yakov otherwise owned now or back then. Alexei might even be able to recognize it, because his dad had gifted it to Yakov for one of his last birthdays before everything went to shit. What he didn't know about, was what it was for.

He put it on the table before carefully opening it. Inside, it was lined with dark red velvet, and four cylinders of velvet were inside, with an array of somewhat similar and yet different bracelets were wrapped around the cylinders. Some of them were gold, some were silver, some had crystals on them, some were more plain chains. And the last five on the bottom cylinder should be very familiar to Alexei, one of them used to be his after all. "It wasn't easy to get my hands on after your bodies were found, and getting them restored without changing anything about them was expensive, but... Well, it was worth it if you ask me. It felt like closure if you can call it that," he explained, taking out one of them. It was one of silver, matching the cross that Alexei was wearing, encrusted with tiny diamonds. "But now that you're back, I want you to have yours. I got it made for you after all. And if you need it to be extended, we can go ahead and get that done too," he said, a small smile on his face, as he walked over to the reborn angel and handed him the bracelet. "I have your dad's and sisters' bracelets too, but... well, I never got one for your mother- I'm sure I have something of hers in here though."

"To be completely honest... I'm going to get out of there as soon as I can. As recently as yesterday the other idiots in my hallway set off my PTSD." he muttered, scraping his foot on the floor a bit. "... They kept banging their doors loudly though I've told them before not to do that. And as cleanly as our doors close, that is... A very sharp noise. I don't think I have to tell you what it reminds me of." he sighed - it had, of course - to him - sounded a bit like gunshots, and as such, had brought back the horrific memory of the execution.

But then he'd explained everything about his newfound ability, and was, sort of anxiously, awaiting Yakov's reaction to it all. He took it pretty calmly, but perhaps he was just in shock? That would seem reasonable if he had come to terms with never getting to speak with any of them again, and Alexei now coming here with a way to do just that.

Curiously, Alexei walked the few steps over to the table with Yakov, watching with interest as he, indeed, recognized the box immediately. He could remember so vividly seeing his father give it to Yakov... And when it was opened, his eyes did, of course, immediately go to the bracelets he recognized on the spot. They had all worn them as often as they could - with as much as everybody had loved Yakov, they had treasured those bracelets immensely. Alexei included... The angel at his side had been as much of a father figure as his actual father had been, sometimes even more, entertaining him and his sisters when Nikolai was out of the palace. So of course, any gift from the guy had been highly valued.

"I... Thank you, Yasha..." he said in a low voice, accepting it with a soft smile and slightly teary eyes. Putting it on, he found that his wrist size hadn't really changed, so the bracelet still fit rather well. "I... I'm just so happy you're still around. I had feared the worst... That they'd killed you, too..." he muttered, and swallowed a lump in his throat. "I just... I want you to know... Even though you were our guardian angel... I... It's not your fault. Any of it. Not from my viewpoint, anyway." he only said it because he could so clearly see how Yakov might put all of the blame on himself, with what he was - or at least had been. "You did everything right."

The worry was apparent on Yakov's face, when Alexei talked about PTSD. Oh yeah, he knew what he meant. Sometimes the smallest things could trigger panic attacks and flashbacks. Certain smells, sounds, tastes and feelings could send him. Hell, sometimes his own thoughts could fuck him up for weeks. Flashes of fire, echoes of screams, the taste of iron and memories immense pain had been a frequent part of his nights for many many years. But for Alexei... He said he couldn't remember anything happening the past 102 years... So it must've been less than a year for him since everything happened. And Yakov remembered the first year for him had been the worst, even when he had Maria. "You're always welcome here, Lyoshka. I can make room for you anytime you'd like," he muttered softly, his urge to watch over the kid kicking in again.

And then the kid started getting teary, and immediately Yakov pulled him in for a hug. He petted the boy's hair, running his fingers through it, much like he'd do when he was a kid and needed any kind of assurance. "What happened might not be my fault; that the Bolsheviks did what they did... But it wasn't your time to go, nor was it your dad's. I...  I failed my task to protect you all that night, and well... God punished me for it," he finally admitted, loosening his grip around the boy so he could look into those pretty blue eyes. "I didn't just lose my family, Lyoshka. I lost everything that night. And that's my fault."

Alexei had even had a note written in his student scheme about it, the one the teachers could access - no clapping, slamming of doors or other similarly loud and very sudden noises, as it had already put him straight into panic attacks before, where he'd needed to be sent to the school psychiatrist immediately, or rather - they'd had to call him to the classroom as Alexei could barely move if the panic really got a hold of him. So the thought of being able to stay here with Yakov... At least just until he could find his very own place... Was a very, very inviting one. "I... I'd really like that. A lot of the others don't really get it." he muttered. At the very least, he knew that Yakov would, all too well, understand why he reacted so strongly.

He had rested his head on Yakov's shoulder as he told him it wasn't his fault. And truly, he didn't blame him for anything. He was just happy he had gotten as much time as he had with him and his family, and well - had the angel not been there at all, he'd have died much earlier than he did. But then... That one sentence about God punishing him... And it all clicked. With what he'd heard from Michael. The changed aura... The... Darker glow around him, indicating one's moral code...

"You... You fell, didn't you?" he said, barely a whisper, tearing up again, sympathy edged into every small feature of his face, the tone of his voice. "That's... That's why your aura is different... And... Your morals, too..." he didn't wait for confirmation, he just hugged Yakov tightly again. "It doesn't matter to me. You're still you, no matter what changes might have happened. You're still my Yasha. I just... Wish you didn't have to go through that..."

Yakov sighed knowing exactly what Alexei meant. "They really don't. We'll figure something out, I can rearrange my office to make space for a bed,"he said, gently ruffling Alexei's hair. What he wouldn't do for that kid... He'd just have to warn Sam if he ended up getting a permanent housemate.

Yet another sigh left Yakov's lips when Alexei asked if he fell, and he gave a curt nod, before being hugged tightly by the boy. "It's fine. At least I have you here again - and I might not be a guardian angel anymore, but I'd just like you to know that you can always come to me if anything is wrong," he muttered, squeezing him a little, before finally letting go. "Now, let's go downstairs, alright? I'll get the jewelry box and make us some tea. Or coffee. Whatever comfort-drink you prefer nowadays. No need to rush anything, alright?" He then went over and closed the jewelry box - telling himself to rearrange them later, now that there was one less bracelet before bringing it with him. He ushered Alexei out of the room, closing it behind him, not bothering to lock it for now, and then showed him downstairs.

He opened one of the closed doors, the one leading to his living room. It wasn't gigantic, but very cozy. He had a dark brown velvet couch, with a dog bed on one end and a beige blanket folded neatly on the backrest. In front of the couch was a black stained wooden coffee table with nothing but a book on. Then against the wall, he had a giant TV. He also had a small black dinner table with four matching chairs around it Against all the free walls, he had bookshelves, with tonnes of books and small ornaments. Some were distinctly Russian, some seemed to be from Western Europe, some were Scandinavian, and some were even African or Asian - obviously stuff he had collected around the world. The walls were a soft off-white and the floor was wooden. One of the walls were only a half-wall though, and you could look into the kitchen from the living room.
All in all, it wasn't super personal - no paintings or photographs on the walls - but it wasn't impersonal either. Everything was neatly cleaned though and even though Mishka was lounging on the dog bed placed on the couch, there were no signs of dog hairs anywhere.

"So, tea or coffee? I actually have some stuff for making lattes too, if you've tried that," he asked, putting the jewelry box on the small table.

"... Thank you." he said with a warm, genuine smile. "It means a lot. Oh. And, uhm... I guess I would sort of need to warn you, too... I..." he but his lip and looked off to the side. "... Sort of wake up every other night, screaming." for obvious reasons - and he was working on it with the psychiatrist, too, it was just... Very slow progress. At least it wasn't each and every night anymore, and he could actually calm down enough to sleep again, after waking up like that, too. In the start, he might as well just forget even thinking about going to sleep after waking up like that. "I just... Don't want that to come as a nasty surprise for you." as he knew how much some of the others were complaining, and that it had been the reason for him to get the room at the very end of the hallway, too.

"I wasn't doubting that I can count on you, Yasha." he said with a small smile. "I've known you all my life... Of course I trust you - from the bottom of my heart." and he meant every word, of course - as close and dear as the angel had always been to him... He would always love him as his sort of second father. Fallen or not, broken or not.

"Alright." he agreed, smiling and following Yakov back down the stairs again, looking around the living room as they entered, a bit surprised at just how meticulously clean the other angel managed to keep this place, especially with Mishka around. But either way, he sat down before his eyes trailed over the many books - and of course, not getting what even half of them would be about. Clearly, Yakov had learned some languages while Alexei had been gone... Alexei himself only understood the Russian, English and French titles of the books, as those were the languages that had been prioritized during his and his sisters' upbringings.

"I still prefer tea. Or hot cocoa, when that's available." he then answered with a bit of a chuckle. He had never really learned to drink coffee - it just really wasn't him, it was way too bitter. Alcohol wasn't really something he had tried yet, either - and had also been advised by the doctors at the hospital to avoid, due to alcohol's blood-thinning properties. So he guessed he would just remain a 'weird' teen in the eyes of all the others, forever, because of that. "Anyway... How did you get to this place? I mean, I, myself, was suggested to go here, by Michael... But... How exactly did you end up here, of all places?"