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Fantasy Draconic Disagreements

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"Don't tempt me," Dahlia joked when Thane asked her if she was going to dare him to sleep a full eight hours and eat his vegetables. As boring and tedious as her dares could be, she was using it as a bit of a tool to have Thane open up a little bit and perhaps do things he wouldn't normally do. He always had the right to decline the dare if it was something he really didn't want to bother with. Perhaps her next dare should cater to his Warlord image, something masculine that he felt was more impressive than showing a different side of himself was possible.

He returned to the topic about her silly childhood dreams, also not keen on the idea of her being an alchemist and risking some disastrous fire. She could have pointed out that is why there are special separate labs to prevent any disasters from spreading and help contain them. Dahlia opened her eyes for a moment when Thane said she could be trained by someone for self-defense reasons, but before she could say anything on the matter he had moved on after a comment about their mateship and began to read the book aloud and she closed her eyes once again.

Dahlia found that she really did enjoy the sound of his voice. It wasn't weak or nasally and carried a confidence within it. She didn't know how much time had gone by, but she did know based on her familiarity with the book he had read at least three chapters instead of one. She opened her to look at him when he suggested they stop there for now after his stomach made a sound. She could help but let out a light laugh as she moved to sit up on the blanket, crossing her legs casually and not sitting with the standard pose of a lady.

When he asked his question for completing the dare, she didn't know if she should be worried about him asking such a thing or not, but she was required to answer truthfully so she did. "I'm not sure one could exactly call it love, more like a young girl's crush. I thought I was in love at the time, of course, but how can you actually say you love someone if you don't know them? I'd never even spoken to him, just stupidly fawning over him at a distance. I-It's kind of embarrassing, saying it out loud like this."

She took the wine bottle and drank from it before placing it back down where Thane had set it. The question made her slightly curious if Thane had ever had a crush on someone before. There weren't many females around so she wasn't sure if he had the opportunity to experience such a thing in his life before. Dahlia only ever had the one crush during her adolescent years until her mother 'corrected' her perceptions, telling her it would only make her heart hurt to get emotionally attached to any male when she didn't have a choice in who she was mated to. Dahlia had been depressed for a while after that conversation and decided it was probably best to avoid her crush.

Dahlia took out one of the sandwiches that Greta had packed and began to eat it, hoping that she could use it to spare her a bit and try to push off the urge to ask him a question. However, even after three minutes she eventually asked him, "What about you? Have you ever had a crush or been in love?" He could always dare her in exchange to answer the question, but she was curious. Hopefully if he did decide to dare her it wasn't anything too terrible, like drinking the green water. Bleh!

"I have to admit my imagination is limited as I don't see you feeling affection towards in that manner, but I'm open to being told I'm wrong. Oh, and since you didn't allow me to answer earlier to your suggestion of training... I already have a bit. Just because my mother didn't approve doesn't mean I actually listened to her. My eldest brother taught me a few things, nothing like swinging a sword of course, but small things such as smashing the heel of my palm upwards into someone's nose to break it. Then there is always grabbing the throat. I'd show you that but you might think I'm trying to kill you."

It was said as a joke, but he probably thought she meant a normal choke hold when it was more grabbed around the adam's apple firmly which was supposed to be so severely painful it was surprising to an attacker and also left her other hand free. (it's a move from the remake of assault on precinct 13, lol.)
 
Fable Fable

A swirl of conflicting feelings whirled through Thane at her answer. He wasn’t sure how exactly to name and quantify the way it made him feel to know she had once fancied herself in love—even if it were merely a girlhood crush. On a purely logical level he knew that feeling anything was foolishness… and yet somehow it bothered him. There was a perverse desire to know what this male she’d had a crush on looked like, what his position in life was, what his abilities were, and whether he had felt a similar attraction to Dahlia. Thane couldn’t imagine that he wouldn’t have, though that in itself brought up a confusing well of feeling that he didn’t know how to deal with either. In the end he merely sighed, irritated with himself that he had asked such an annoying question in the first place.

Dahlia had followed up her answer with a pull on the wine bottle and now Thane took his own turn with it, taking a deep and long drink of it in the hopes that it might clear his head a touch—or at least take his mind off of wondering about Dahlia’s first love like some fool. Once again it was probably not the most prudent response to his feelings, but Thane didn’t care for once.

He had been directing his distractedly unfocused gaze out towards the pool, but at the sound of rustling from the saddlebags he turned back and took note of the sandwich Dahlia had taken out and was beginning to eat. The Warlord debated taking some for himself as well, but his stomach was still churning over the thought of Dahlia’s answer, so he sighed and decided to leave it for the time being. The rumbling hunger he had felt earlier would surely reinstate itself once the wine calmed his nerves so he wasn’t too concerned.

It seemed she’d only just begun eating when suddenly she asked him whether he’d ever been in love or had a crush. “Aren’t you supposed to be daring me, not questioning me?” he murmured but sighed, tilting his head to look up at the sky as he considered it. Her further elaboration on her doubts about him having had a crush made the male snort, but he tilted his head to look at her in interest when she mentioned the training she’d undergone with her brothers despite her mother’s disapproval.

“I’d be interested in seeing the technique. If it’s you I don’t think I’d be concerned about you trying to kill me,” he said dryly, “And it’s always beneficial to know of methods that may one day cause harm to me or be necessary for you to use… if nothing else you could think of it as practice. Again… I’m accustomed to pain, even if it was excruciating, I’m sure I’d recover.” Besides, it would be a good measure of how effective this move might be against an actual enemy if he could feel it himself.

A small smile curled his lips up to picture Dahlia fighting someone… he imagined that she put the same energy into it as she seemed to do with everything else. “Even so, I think it would be useful for you to know how to wield a dagger efficiently. It’s excellent that you already have a base of knowledge when it comes to fighting, but this will build on that and give you a much better chance should trouble ever find you. If you’re interested, that is,” he said with a small shrug.

He blew out a breath, shifting his gaze away from her then, “As to your question… no, I’ve never been in love or had a crush. Unless you care to count fictional characters,” a small smile played upon his lips, “In which case I suppose it would be Laleia from The Bonds of a Heart. My mother used to tease me about my affection for the character, though I grew out of it with time,” it didn’t really count as far as he was concerned. Not only because she was fictional, but also because he had been quite young at the time and hadn’t even understood what love or romantic affection really were. “Females are scarce. The ability to develop a crush or fall in love does not favour males with the way the gender ratio works out,” he shrugged a powerful shoulder, “I can’t even say I’ve spared time to find the mates of other Warlords, nobles, or princes attractive. It always seemed pointless to me if I couldn’t turn it into a reality.” It was not a romantic answer, but it was the truth and Thane was nothing if not honest.

At last he took a couple of the sandwiches Greta had made, unwrapping them and eating the first one in three massive bites. Once he’d finished swallowing and felt a little less hungry, he cleared his throat and gave Dahlia an amused look. “I believe this time I get to dare you, and I’ve decided that I want you to read me a chapter of the book,” it was tame… but anything racy that he might have requested of her seemed unacceptable given his behaviour yesterday and the thought of lounging in the sun while she read to him held a strange appeal.
 
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"I figured I would give questioning you a shot and see how you would react," Dahlia calmly replied before taking another bite of the sandwich. She looked at him through the corner of her eyes when he spoke, first on the matter of her self-defense. He didn't seem threatened by her in the slightest even going so far as to say he might find the method beneficial in knowing. Did he really think she'd just attack him violently to show him? There were other ways to display the throat grab without inflicting any pain upon the person.

Thane changed the topic back to answer her question if he had a crush before, saying he didn't unless she counted a fictional character. She let out a small laugh, not to mock him but rather thinking to her own fictional character crushes when she was a young girl. "I would say that having a crush on a character doesn't count, otherwise I'd have a much longer list myself. I'll be honest and say I wondered if there was some ill pursuit you attempted, some forbidden love. Seems you are a realist more than anything."

When he dared her to read a chapter from the book she smiled, "What, are you going to dare me to eat more meat and with only using my hands and fingers at meal time?" Her question was meant to be a mocking reflection of his earlier reaction when she had asked him to read a chapter from the book.

"I'll read it in a moment. First I'll show you what I was talking about with the throat grab and not try to hurt you. Honestly, someone might think you're masochist thinking automatically that to display something requires pain." She shifted to get onto her knees and then walked on her knees to get in front of Thane. She brought up one hand to grab the front area of his throat where his adam's apple was, she applied a bit of pressure though not enough to cause pain of inflict injury.

"I can't say how practical it is, but it can hinder breathing and with my nails I might be able to break someone's skin if I grabbed hard enough." She removed her hand and went back to where she had been lounging, picking up the book. She had a rough idea of where he had left off, flipping through a few pages till she found the correct chapter. She was very tempted to toy with me, reading it in an awful annoying shrill voice, but she fought against the urge though she did smile to herself imagining his reaction to such a thing.

She finished her sandwich and took another drink of the wine before she settled to read. She didn't do any voices for characters, but she did read with emotion which could sometimes be melodic. She was very familiar with the words on the pages since she had read this way too many times, more than she would ever admit. It wasn't read that much because it was her favorite, but rather because she just didn't understand the relationship dynamic very well. Belle was a prisoner the entire time and just seemed to ignore that fact and fell in love with the Beast. It just seemed strange for her character to develop in such a way.

As she read the chapter dark clouds grew closer along with the increased scent of petrichor and strong winds. She had managed to finish the chapter and turned to Thane, "I'd rather not get drenched. Or get the book wet." She got up and dusted off her pants, though there wasn't really much on them since they had been using the blanket. They were probably going to get caught in the rain on their way back and she made a note to next time pack some sort of cloak. She helped where she could in packing up their picnic and folding the blanket and quickly putting them back into the saddle bags, letting Thane do the heavy lifting.

Dahlia tried the mount Levent by herself but it wasn't working out too well because of his height and her not quite figuring out how to mount the saddle without pulling on the horse. She eventually would just ask Thane to help her though she had been trying to avoid that since it would mean she would feel his hands on her waist once again, causing her heart to flutter with the physical contact.
 
Fable Fable

“Perhaps I will dare you to be an uncivilized beast like me the next time,” Thane replied dryly, eyes closed but lips quirking up into a smile, “I imagine that would be a challenge for you,” or maybe it wouldn’t be. He struggled somewhat to understand the female so there was every chance that this would align perfectly well with some of her other tomboyish mannerisms.

At her declaration that she would read to him after she had showed him the move, the Warlord flicked his eyes open and sat up, watching with some amusement as she knee-walked towards him. “It’s more that experiencing it in actual practice is more telling of its usefulness. Many things seem effective in theory, but when you actually try them seriously, they fall flat,” he murmured as she came to a stop in front of him. He tilted his chin up ever so slightly, peering down at her as Dahlia lifted a hand and curled it around his adam’s apple. The force she applied was only enough to be mildly uncomfortable and Thane’s eyes were thoughtful when she removed her touch and explained the damage she might be able to do with it. In this particular instance her touch did not affect him, with the male being distracted by dissecting the efficacy of the move.

“I’m unsure. If your attacker is tall you may not be able to reach well enough to squeeze with the force needed to do proper damage. Let alone the fact that you leave yourself vulnerable to kicks or strikes by your enemy’s unoccupied hands or legs while you’re grabbing the throat,” Thane sighed and leaned his head back, looking up to the sky as he mulled it over. “It bears further investigation,” he said at last, “And it would be helpful to see it performed as it would be in an actual fight—though you could leave out the tearing of skin,” he added with a slight smile.

Dahlia retreated back to where she had been lying previously, flipping through the book until she reached the part where he had left off. Thane let himself ease down onto his back again, folding his hands neatly over his belly and closing his eyes as he listened.

While she did not change her voice to suit the characters, the way in which she read showed an obvious familiarity with the contents and was done smoothly and with the perfect amount of emotion needed for the scene. It took no time at all for Thane to be suitably transported, feeling like an invisible onlooker in the epic saga of the Beast and Belle’s love.

He was somewhat startled when Dahlia stopped, feeling disoriented as he was pulled back to reality. Things seemed vaguely unhinged, as though his life were not his own and he wandered in a dream. It took a few nauseating seconds before everything seemed to settle in place once again and he processed her concerns. Indeed, looking up at the sky he could see the darkness there and the swollen heaviness of the clouds. Coupled with the increasing winds and that delightful pre-rain scent in the air he knew they were in for a drenching.

In the time it took him to recover his bearings, Dahlia had already quickly packed up their things into the saddlebag and left it waiting for him to lift. Thane did so, lugging the heavy bags up and tossing them with care over Laleia’s back. The mare did not seem put out—this had been a nice lazy session of grazing and she was not eager to be caught in a storm either. It was at this point that he realized Dahlia was struggling with Levent’s height, and after a brief hesitation he walked over to her.

The thought of having to touch her, to help lift her into the saddle, made Thane’s heart squeeze and his fingers itch, but he did his best to shove those feelings down. “If you’ll permit me to lift you I can help with mounting this time,” he offered, his voice slightly subdued and unsure, “We can teach you how to mount on your own once we’re in the safety of the barns,” he tipped his head up to study the sky once more. “I do fear that we will be soaked before we make the return though,” the thirty-minute ride would undoubtedly be too long to avoid it. “I… rather enjoy riding in the rain, but I ought to have had a cloak brought for you,” he muttered with a sigh, feeling somewhat guilty considering the fact that he’d been hoping for this before they set out.

An idea occurred to him and he went to the saddlebag again, pulling out the picnic blanket before returning to Dahlia’s side and nodding his head to it. “You could wrap yourself up in the blanket, if you wish. That ought to keep the rain off of you long enough for us to return,” he tossed it over his shoulder so his hands would be free and took another step closer to her, doing his best to pretend he wasn’t feeling a thrill of anticipation at the thought of touching her and being so near, “Now… will you let me help you up?”
 

Just as she was about to ask Thane if he could help her he was already there asking if she would permit him so. He pointed out they'd likely still be soaked by the time they reached the barns and Dahlia thought of having to wear soggy clothes unhappily. She hated cold, wet, damp clothes. "I-It's fine, about the cloak, I didn't think to bring one either." When he pulled out the blanket and offered Dahlia to use it in place of the cloak she laughed a bit at the strange way she would be dressed.

"Put it back, if I'm going to get rained on at least after I can use it to dry off, so using it now would only make it and me soaked. It's not designed to deal with rain," she replied, refusing to use the blanket since she'd end up using it as a towel later. Based on the fabric it would just soak up any moisture rather than deter it and if they were going to be in the rain for most of the ride back the blanket was going to just be heavily laden with moisture by the time they got back to the barn.

"And yes, you can help me up," she finally answered, raising her foot to try and get it back into the stirrup so when Thane helped her he'd not have to practically lift her into the saddle entirely on his own, though he'd probably have no problem with that task.

She swallowed nervously as Thane's hands went atop her waist to guide her upwards to help her mount Levent. The heat of his hands could be felt through her layers of clothes and she blushes furiously as her thoughts became... deviant. She inhaled deeply as she used her foot to help lift herself, using it as a way to push past her very inappropriate thoughts and regain control of her mental faculties.

Once on Levent she waited for Thane to mount Laleia and then followed after him, "Maybe we could go just a tad bit faster on the way back. I could probably handle a canter." It was a suggest to get them to their destination sooner rather than later. She boldly pushed Levent to move slightly faster after he had begun to trot after Thane, easily moving to a smooth canter. Dahlia took a moment to adjust since she had only ever ridden quickly side saddle, which was always terrifying because she always felt like she could slip off at any moment. So riding with one leg on each side of Levent gave her a feeling of more control and balance because she had two feet in stirrups and wasn't twisted at the hips in order to face forward. Her form was probably completely lacking, but she wasn't going to fall off.

It was perhaps only five or so minutes before the rain finally pour from the sky in large wet drops soaking them both and the horses. With the wind roughly blowing against them the rain sometimes sprayed on them at an angle and chilled Dahlia. If this was perhaps a calmer storm she wouldn't have minded as much, but this was a more violent and sudden storm with harsh powerful gusts. Her hair at first was whipped around until soaked and then it was just plastered to her and dripping by the time they finally saw the barn in the distance.

Dahlia was tempted to push Levent into a gallop to reach the barn in the final stretch they had do go, but she refrained from doing so. The saddle was slick with water and last thing she needed was to slip off. Eventually they did reach the safety and cover of the barn, Levent huffing slightly making Dahlia believe he wasn't a fan of riding in the rain either. She was completely soaked from head to toe.

"Next time I am bringing a cloak," she sighed as she pushed the damp hair off of her face. Maddock was off somewhere leaving Dahlia to consider dismounting without the mounting block. She got creative and led Levent to his stall, dismounting and using the wall of the stall to help get down. It was a bit tricky but she managed, though she was sure Thane was going to say something about it, such as saying he could have helped her. That was something she was avoiding right now.

She went to get the picnic blanket from the saddle bag, the leather having repelled the water so it had stayed dry. She used to to dry herself from top to bottom as best as she could, though she was obviously going to be damp until she could change her clothes back at the castle and it didn't appear the rain was going to let up anytime soon. "Guess we can finish our picnic here then," she laughed lightly. "Though the blanket is unusable now."
 
Fable Fable

His offer of the blanket to help ward off the rain was rejected, but Thane only shrugged and shot her an amused look as he patted it in its place on his shoulder. “It would have bought you a bit more time before you were wet but using it later to dry off is a wise decision.” He snorted to himself in amusement as he went to go help her up. “I suppose using the horse blankets in the barn would not be ideal… they’re rather scratchy.” The picnic blanket was substantially softer and more agreeable to dry off with, so he took no offense at her rejection of the offer. If she had given some other illogical reason for not wishing to use it, Thane would have tossed it at her and given her no choice, but Dahlia’s answer was reasonable enough so he respected it.

As the Warlord had suspected, the feel of Dahlia’s slim waist in his hands was a peculiar kind of torture. It took every ounce of his willpower to maintain a neutral expression while a thrill of electricity ran itself up and down his entire body for those few brief seconds while she was in his hands. Letting her go was a slight challenge too, though Thane managed it and turned immediately to stride towards where Laleia was waiting for him. Lingering near the dragoness was a danger, distance was the solution.

He pulled himself into the saddle in a smooth motion, blowing out a breath to steady himself before kicking Laleia into a trot. From the corner of his eyes he could see that Dahlia was following him on Levent, but for the time being he didn’t wish to make eye contact. There was a slight fear in him that she’d see the hunger still lingering in his eyes and be frightened. Considering the tenuous peace they had come to over the matter, that was the last thing he wanted.

At Dahlia’s request to go faster, Thane had no trouble obliging. She had kicked Levent into a canter before the Warlord had a chance to do the same on Laleia, so for the brief moment she was ahead of him on the horse he was able to carefully study her form. For the purpose of instructing her in riding lessons, of course, not to indulge his own attraction to her. Certainly not. It was a pretty form though, there was no denying that. He sighed to himself at the direction his thoughts were taking and gave a quick shake of the head to try and dislodge them.

Laleia always hated having other horses ahead of her, so it took no encouragement at all to push her up to a canter. The mare surged forward faster than was necessary, slowing down only when she was neck and neck with Levent and then keeping pace. Thane was just beginning to question whether he should push her faster or pull the mare back (as being directly beside Dahlia was distracting) when the first raindrops began to fall.

Thane tilted his head back to look up at the sky, feeling some of the tension immediately leave his shoulders as the drops began to hit his face. A smile, surprisingly peaceful and relaxed, stretched across his lips as the rain picked up and the wind began to blow it onto them. No matter how many times he encountered a rainstorm it always had the same effect on him. It was as though it washed away everything—all his sorrows, memories, fears, thoughts… leaving him clean and unencumbered. The feeling did not last long beyond his time spent in the rain itself, but while he was able to experience it… he enjoyed every second.

He grinned the entire way, spending a good deal of time with his eyes closed and head tilted towards the sky, blissfully unaware of everything else around him. Even his feelings towards Dahlia seemed uncomplicated and unproblematic while the rain beat itself against him, all concerns swept away by the torrent of water. It was with a feeling of regret that he saw the barn looming in the distance, a wave of melancholy touching him briefly to know this feeling would soon be over, but the melancholy, too, could not last long beneath the rain.

They entered the barn and Thane sighed softly in contentment and a bit of sorrow, blinking his eyes when Dahlia spoke as though remembering that she was there. “With rain like that it would still have found a way to get at you somewhat, even with a cloak,” he said cheerfully, the thought of a cloak seeming horridly unappealing to him. The female clearly did not enjoy the rain the way he did, and while Thane couldn’t imagine a world in which rain was not the healing balm he found it to be, he did silently resolve to bring a cloak for her next time whether she remembered herself or not. If nothing else she could be doubly cloaked by wearing one of his as well—now that would keep the water out.

“That’s certainly one way to dismount,” he murmured with a chuckle as Dahlia managed it by using the stall wall for support. Not particularly graceful, but it worked and that was the main thing. He’d have Maddock teach her some alternate strategies once he was back to his duties—those were not lessons that he was keen to give her. They would likely involve a great deal of touching and appealing as the thought was on a surface level… he knew better than to permit the temptation to take root.

He hadn’t meant to, but Thane found he couldn’t quite keep his eyes off of her as she dried herself off. There was nothing inherently seductive in her actions but there was something about the way the damp fabric stuck to her skin and the methodical motion of her drying herself that was—Thane closed his eyes and gritted his teeth, willing his thoughts in a more appropriate direction.

His clothing was similarly afflicted, only without the picnic blanket to dry off he remained thoroughly soaked. The shirt might as well have been a second skin and his pants weren’t much better. Had he been slightly more self-aware he might have been embarrassed, but his own inappropriate appearance was the last thing on his mind.

“We certainly could continue the picnic,” he agreed, hands on his hips as he looked around the barn thoughtfully, “I find that sitting in piles of clean hay can actually be quite comfortable. Throw in a bottle of wine and Greta’s sandwiches and there’s no problem,” he grinned a little toothily, “And I can scare Maddock off easily enough if he bothers us.” Then the Warlord looked her over and the enthusiasm fizzled slightly, “Though perhaps you’d rather cut it short and return to the castle to get changed.” He wouldn’t blame her for it, most normal people didn’t enjoy sitting around in soaking wet or damp clothes.

Thane hesitated for a moment and then walked up to her where she was by the saddlebag. Her nearness and the lingering exhilaration from the ride in the rain battled against his own inhibitions, but the high spirits won out and he couldn’t stop himself from reaching to brush his fingers lightly against her cheek as he tucked an errant strand of auburn hair back behind her ear. The Warlord cleared his throat and turned to the saddlebag as though nothing had happened, cursing himself and hoping in vain that his heart would settle down. He’d need to be careful about riding in the rain with her, it did dangerous things to his self-control.

Regardless, he plucked Beauty and the Beast from its location in the saddlebag and then quickly retreated back from Dahlia to an open stall where the hay was stored. Heedless of everything else, Thane let himself fall into the hay and sat there, comfortably ensconced and looking utterly ridiculous. “I might continue reading. I could read aloud if you liked… or we could continue the game,” he finally hazarded a look towards her, offering a slightly apologetic smile though it came a little too late after touching her, “Or you can return to the castle and I’ll stay here awhile—the choice is yours.”
 

Dahlia hadn't been paying attention to Thane as she had been drying herself off as best as she could. She finally looked over at him just as he had closed his eyes and she quickly averted her gaze when she realized that his soaking clothes were clinging to him revealing way too much about his physique. Her cheeks flushed furiously and wondered which was worse, him being in only the towel or soaked completely.

Both. Both were equally bad things to think about! He wasn't even the slightest bit bothered either!

She continued to use the excuse of drying herself off so she wouldn't have to look at Thane as he spoke on them possibly lounging in the hay, though soon he mentioned returning to the castle was also an option. Since she had been purposefully looking elsewhere - outside the barn to be exact - when she turned in reaction to the sound of his steps being closer to her she felt his fingers graze across her skin to tuck away a stray damp strand of hair behind her ear. Her heart jumped for two reason, suddenly being very close to Thane in his dripping wet and revealing state and the feeling of his fingers on her cheekbone.

Dahlia released the air in her lungs that she hadn't even realized she had been holding when he retreated as though the action had been casual for him, taking out the book from the saddlebag before letting himself fall and settle into the hay. He offered may possible choices and Dahlia was not sure on what to do. If she left would it mean he'd pick up she was bothered? If she stayed she would feel so anxious around him. Gah!

A quick sigh was released as she fell back into her stubbornness. She shouldn't let herself be so affected by him! Running away like a coward would only prove she was weak willed and so she would stay. Dahlia tossed the damp picnic blanket over him - face and all - before flopping backside into the hay herself which allowed there to be some obscured vision between them with the puffy dry hay sinking to accommodate their bodies.

"I'd rather not go dashing back out and getting soaked again, and the games are never-ending with me. Consider yourself cursed" she joked trying mostly to pull her thoughts back to more acceptable topics and matters rather than Thane's body. So she stared upwards at the barn's solid roof and resisted any temptation to look at Thane... even as her stupid brain wondered if she dared him to streak out in the rain in the nude if Thane would actually do such a thing.

The thought made her laugh out loud and she tried to cover her mouth to stop it but ended up just laughing harder because she wasn't imagining him doing the dare but rather the face he would have probably given her in reaction to such a dare being one of confused shock.

"S-Sorry, funny thought," she managed to explain. "If you want to read aloud I won't stop you. I do like the way to read." She gave the compliment freely, not really thinking much of it but simply her stating a fact.
 
Fable Fable

“Mmmph!” the Warlord said in surprise as the blanket landed on him. His first instinct was to escape the claustrophobic dark, a minute finger of irrational panic slithering up his spine at the obscuring of his senses. It was the understandable reaction of a warrior. Losing vision, being even mildly incapacitated, was often the difference between life and death. But there was more to it than that. Fragments of terrible memory that made his throat tighten and nerves tingle in panic. In a movement that was both lightning fast and hinting at a capability for violence, Thane tore the blanket off of him, slamming it through the hay—though the sound was muffled enough by the hay to sound like nothing.

The instant it was off of him, senses re-established, and he knew again that he was safe in the barn with only Dahlia beside him, he felt a touch ridiculous about his overreaction. To look at him the casual observer might easily miss the adrenaline fuelled panic that was only now beginning to ebb, but Thane’s heart still pounded in his chest, ears ringing slightly. He chanced a glance towards where Dahlia had sank into the hay herself, relieved that she had not seen his reaction.

The male pulled a slightly trembling hand through his hair. It had all happened within a fraction of a second, Dahlia still in the middle of her sentence as she declared that the games were never-ending with her. That he was cursed. Thane’s eyes fell shut with a wince at this, his fingers absently tracing over the scar on his chest.

“That’s not the kind of curse that frightens me,” he murmured, the euphoria induced by the rain all dried up now. It was occurring to him that she might have had some reason for tossing the blanket over him like that. It might well have been nothing more than a playful gesture, but all the same the Warlord looked over himself and understood immediately. He had given her quite a show. This lifted his spirits a little, his low chuckle at this discovery sounding only mildly tremulous.

Her laugh startled him all over again, nerves still bruised, but it was a much milder shock and he recovered a great deal quicker this time, giving Dahlia a quizzical look and a frown as he tried to puzzle out what might have caused such amusement. Her apology only piqued his interest more. “Not a thought you intend to share?” he said, managing to sound mildly wounded by her secrecy.

The compliment was welcome however, and Thane puffed out his chest a little, a smirk reinstating itself on his countenance. “Oh? What part do you enjoy most? My deep voice or the smoothness of the delivery?” he said in a teasing purr, hoping he might fluster her. It would only be fair, even though her triggering of panic in him had been entirely unintentional.

Still, he didn’t want to torture her too badly and leaned back down into the hay with a sigh. “Perhaps one more chapter, then we can do a few more rounds of your game if you’d like,” he offered. Reading would soothe what little anxiety still rattled around in his chest, something he definitely wanted before Dahlia chose to pay closer attention to him during their game. As to the issue of his clothing sitting against his skin like a second skin… well, he’d use one of the scratchy horse blankets if she insisted. He didn’t see the point of covering up now though. Dahlia had clearly seen what she had seen, it wasn’t as though it could be unseen so covering up now seemed unnecessary.

Then again, the entire issue yesterday had come from her “revenge” over his shirtlessness. Being all but completely naked now likely crossed the rules they had set for each other—even if he was technically fully clothed. Ah well, it would be a problem for later.

Taking in another soft breath to steady himself, Thane thumbed through the book until he was at the spot they had left off at before the rainstorm. Clearing his throat quietly, the Warlord prepared to read.
 

Her eyes tried to look over at Thane through the hay when he replied that her curse of never-ending games wasn't the kind that frightened him. This simple unguarded statement revealed more than what Thane would have probable wanted. He was labeled as the most ruthless Warlord out of all of them and to even hint that he was capable of fear would have been probably pounced on by anyone who wanted to exploit it.

Dahlia was curious what Thane could ever be afraid of. He fought in this long war and numerous battles from the information that was whispered around her when the announcement of their mateship was made. Of course she wasn't going to ask him that, at least not right now. It wasn't probably something silly like her own fears; something like a spider wouldn't bother Thane in the slightest.

"Nope, very much not going to share this one with you," she answered quickly and regretted she couldn't keep herself more neutral and ambiguous. She pouted slightly to herself for quick moment after that thought because she knew it was an advantage for Thane for her to struggle with filtering herself. It's not like she cold change herself, but she didn't want him to know the things she thought because it was the last place of true privacy she had.

Thane would get the reaction he wanted, though thankfully with the hay between them he'd likely not see it unless he decided to make and effort to move to look. There was a small scowl his question produced though her cheeks did flush from being flustered at him teasing her about such a simply compliment.

"One more chapter then," she agreed, shimmying a bit to nestle further into the hay which would help soak the moisture from her clothes. She closed her eyes and listened to the rain pattering against the roof of the barn before Thane's smooth voice began to read the next chapter. If she hadn't been stuck in slightly cold, damp clothing she probably would have easily dozed off. Dahlia didn't however and instead simply laid there and enjoyed listening to Thane read. He really did have a nice voice.

When he finished the chapter she stretched out her limbs. Her clothes were mostly dry now and the rain had stopped pouring and was now more of a drizzle. It was still enough to get someone soaked in the distance it would take to move from the barn to the castle, but there were signs it was letting up so it was only a matter of time before it would change to a sprinkle. How long that would take was questionable and Dahlia didn't want to stay here in the barn all day.

"There isn't much I can dare you to do in the barn," she commented idly, mostly speaking out loud to herself. "Daring you to do push ups or something like that is just too boring. Oh! I have an idea!" Dahlia sat up so she could peer over at Thane with a grin. "I dare you to let me braid your hair!"
 
Fable Fable

“Hmph,” for a moment Thane contemplated pushing her further on what had made her laugh so hysterically, but in the end, he decided it didn’t matter. Odds were she’d just come up with some lie to placate him anyway. Besides, questioning her would require him to actually straighten up and stare at her, which Thane feared might give away some of the residual anxiety he still was feeling. Instead, he focused on reading.

The words spilled from the page, his voice richly embodying the story as Thane lost himself to it. Nerves and panic faded, replaced by the Beast’s castle and his blooming romance with Belle. The barn disappeared, re-forged into an ancient structure of stone and forgotten hallways. The dampness of his clothes transformed into an elegant suit much better suited to the setting of the tale. Thane didn’t quite find himself inhabiting Beast’s character, but he hovered beside him—a witness to their love with a particular feeling of empathy linked to the cursed prince.

All too soon the chapter ended, leaving only a few before the entire book would be finished. It gave Thane the usual feeling of melancholy he associated with the impending completion of a good story. It was satisfying to reach the conclusion, but also hollow in a way. Once it was over, it was over.

That Dahlia had chosen this one for him was somewhat amusing. This far along in the story, Thane was well aware that the point of it was largely for a beast to learn how to love unselfishly and be loved in turn. There were parallels between his life and that of the Beast, but they differed greatly in quite a few other ways. Particularly when it came to the initial selfish unkindness that the Beast directed at the haggard old witch, the act which led to the curse. If anything, the Warlord sought for fairness in all things, and Thane would not consider himself unkind. He’d have to ask Dahlia for further insight as to how she thought he compared to the Beast once the entire thing was finished.

On the roof above them the patter of rain had grown softer, though it was still audible enough that Thane felt relatively confident that leaving for the castle would not be an option yet. Not unless Dahlia intended to get soaked for a second time. Undoubtedly it would ease up soon, but for the time being he accepted that they were stuck here. Mercifully, Maddock was nowhere in sight, so the Warlord wagered he had taken shelter in some other outbuilding.

Now that he had finished reading, it was Dahlia’s turn to dare him to do something. He was about to protest that push-ups could certainly make for a good dare—one handed with Dahlia sitting on him could be amusing—but before he could say so she sat up with a sudden sparkle in her eye and grinned broadly at him.

“You want to braid my hair?” he questioned in confusion. “I don’t see how that’s a dare for me… I do nothing save sit and let you do it,” oh, but that wasn’t an unpleasant thought, was it? Having Dahlia’s fingers in his hair, fingertips grazing his skin as she worked… no, he didn’t think that would be much of a trial. On the contrary, the thought seemed dangerously enjoyable, “Very well, I’m not about to turn down a dare that’s easy for me to win,” he said before he could stop himself. He’d need to sit on his hands if he had any hope of keeping them off her, and in preparation the Warlord grew very still, intending to remain a sort of living statue for her while she worked.
 

Thane's confusion didn't affect Dahlia's eagerness to braid his hair. He didn't seem bothered by it at all, but she had dared him because she wasn't sure he would allow her to unless she did so. He could have seen it as a girly or feminine act and insulting to his masculinity for all she knew. He didn't see any challenge in her dare which meant he still didn't quite understand the purpose of her games.

She let him get comfortable and sit how he wished, though if he had actually sat on his hands she would simply quirk a brow at the odd position. Since they had been riding and in the rain this result in quite a few tangles in his long ebony hair. Her first task was to remove as much of these tangles as painlessly as possible. This was a bit complicated since some of his hair had wrapped around his horns which took the most time to untangle.

Once that was done Dahlia split only took the top half of his hair and began a type of french brain from the very front and braided it towards the back, though she didn't brain all the hair she had separated. She took the braided hair and the look hair and pulled it back into a bun, securing it with some spare ribbon she usually kept on her person. The other half of his hair that had been left loose she braided a few strands here and there, though she didn't tie those off with a ribbon since she didn't have any more to use.

With her task done Dahlia got up and patted the linger hay on her mostly dry clothes before she stepped around to check her work from the front. She tilted her head to the side trying to determine if the style fit him and found the loose braids didn't satisfy her, so she reached over and undid them. "You won't be able to see it till you find a mirror," she commented as she did so. It didn't take very long to undo the few she had done and she moved back once again, taking a seat soon after.

"Next time I'll be sure to dare you to wear a dress and heels," she teased since he seemed to think little of her dares. She expected he wouldn't do something that he would consider disgraceful. "To be honest it is very tempting to dare. I could even go so far as to adding you wear some makeup."
 
Fable Fable

As Dahlia began to work on his hair, Thane’s eyelids drooped until he stared out at nothing, eyes half-lidded. He had expected quivers of pleasure at her touch, not the soothing comfort it elicited, tugging at old memories from deep within the confines of his mind. Half remembered moments of his mother scolding him to stay still while she combed and wove his hair into elaborate buns and braids to keep it out of his face. His brothers had teased him about it, but at their next play sessions when they came out similarly styled, he had been the one to laugh the hardest.

A small smile crept across his lips at the memory, a sigh escaping alongside some of the ever-present tension he held in his shoulders as Dahlia continued to work through the inky locks of hair. It took some time for her to finish the braiding to her satisfaction, but when she finally stood and brushed herself off—stepping back to give him a critical eye as she examined her handiwork—it seemed there were only a few minor details that required correcting as she came closer to him once again.

What she said, something about a mirror, was far less impactful to the Warlord then her closeness and her breath brushing his cheek as she undid the braids that didn’t pass muster. It had a dizzying effect on him, and Thane was careful to keep his hands clenched and pinned firmly to his side. The earlier slip where he had brushed her cheek had been bad enough, with her this close in proximity to him, the dragon did not entirely trust himself to remember restraint.

Fortunately, she moved back shortly after, settling herself into the hay once more and Thane felt he could breathe again. Her teasing declaration that she should dare him to wear a dress and heels next time had the Warlord slowly narrowing his eyes at her, intensifying their focus until they were nearly predatory. “Are you sure that’s what you’d like to see, Dahlia? I can only imagine what I’d choose to dare you to do in retribution,” his eyes gleamed with ideas and Thane felt the threat was fairly clear. She’d established that he had the opportunity to dare her to do things too, and his genteel dares ended the instant he was dared into dragoness clothing.

He didn’t think she was very serious though and leaned back into the hay after a moment, eyes flicking towards the rafters of the barn. “I suppose I’m entitled to ask you a question now… or else dare you in turn, if you wish to ask me something,” perhaps that was the better option, to give her an opportunity to ask some of the questions he imagined were swirling around her head.

“Alright, I dare you to…” the things that first came to mind were woefully inappropriate, so Thane silently waved them off. It took a few beats but at last he landed on one. It was a touch devious and he knew he was asking for trouble with it, but half the fun was seeing if she would dare go through with it. “I dare you to massage my shoulders,” he rumbled with a smirk. If having her toy with his hair had been bad, he knew this would be worse, but he couldn’t quite help himself. Besides, the amount of tension he held there was nearly criminal and the massage would have a practical benefit if she didn’t bow out.
 

"I did say you could always decline a dare, it just means doing so you don't get to ask a question that I have to answer. What would you dare me to do anyway in retribution?," she asked rising to his challenge that she believed he was trying to use to scare her from daring such a thing. It only tempted her more actually because just as he could decline a dare, so could see. The thing with Thane though it that it seemed he might have trouble backing down from a challenge even if it was something as preposterous as dressing in a woman's clothing.

Dahlia wondered if Thane couldn't think of a question and instead was now just daring her so she could ask him something. She turned her face towards him wondering what it was that he would dare her. She hadn't expected a shoulder massage to be the dare. She knew she had no right to feel slightly annoyed at the dare since she asked him to complete things he probably considered mundane. She let out a small huff as she got up and moved to kneel behind him once more, it was easier on her arms since she was taller than her.

She swallowed nervously as she placed one hand on the taut muscle that connected his shoulders to his neck. She'd given her elder grandmother massages before and this wasn't exactly a complicated task in the slightest, but touching him reminded her of his physical appearance and that was something she was trying to avoid. She'd have to suck it up though. It was just a shoulder massage! Honestly, her nervousness around him in these situations only seemed to have worsened with their prolonged exposure. Maybe him being gone for a most of the time when he returned to work was good. Giving her some distance meant she could remind herself of her senses in that physical attraction shouldn't sway her.

Her hands have an experimental squeeze to apply some mild pressure. She wasn't sure how much pressure he would consider painful and so she didn't jab her fingers into his flesh harshly, her nails weren't so long they'd be a problem, but she didn't want to accidentally jab him with them either. She at first cautiously kneaded the muscles with her fingers and after a few minutes increased the pressure slightly to try and work out the tension in his shoulders.

She wasn't exactly capable of making small talk in this strange situation. She had been calm when he allowed her to braid his hair, but now she was back to being nervous and she didn't want him to pick that up if she spoke. Of course her mind was still bustling with curious things, such as why he was so tense when he always seemed at ease about everything, to the point that Dahlia was starting to hold it against him. Then of course her evil, traitorous mind then asked 'is the rest of him this tense?' Which led to her remembering specific events which she had been trying to avoid. Maybe she should just let her mind wear itself out with his imagery until it no longer bothered her...

Dahlia resisted that temptation; for now. She returned her focus to her task and massaged his shoulders silently for a decent period of time before retreating to a safe distance, basically out of arms reach. "What are you thinking?"

It was a simple question and one mostly asked in an effort to try and understand Thane better because his actions and words confused her as it conflicted with what others said about him. It wasn't just the fact that she was being forced into a mateship which had upset her, she had been scared because she was to be Thane's mate and those around her tried to whisper their worries about her safety with such a cruel male with a terrifying reputation. While she was still shaken by the memory of their conversation in the carriage ride where he made it clear he could kill her family, knowing his own had been cruelly taken from him she wasn't so sure he would have, even if she had resisted him violently.

He was still intimidating and downright scary when he was mad, but he hadn't harmed her thus far.
 
Fable Fable

“Only a coward would decline a dare,” Thane said, almost primly. “As for what I’d dare you to do in retribution,” he tilted his head and looked at her, a predatory gleam twinkling in his eyes, “You might wish to see me in a dress—I’d sooner see you in nothing at all,” he shot her a smile that was all teeth, “So perhaps a dare to dance naked in the rain would do.” It was still tamer than some of the others he could think of, but they involved his bed and even with Dahlia asking him directly he feared it might be going too far to say so aloud.

The dragoness was just as stubborn as he was. Thane’s pride would not allow him to deny a dare, and it seemed that Dahlia’s would not allow her to back down either. Every time he had phrased things as a challenge, she had rose to meet them. This dare, it seemed, was no different. Not that it was particularly challenging beyond forcing her to touch him.

She settled behind him, the hay rustling as she adjusted her position and Thane found himself swallowing with a sudden quiver of nervousness. She had touched him before, yes, but always out of necessity save for the one time she had hugged him… and that had been a touch of comfort. There was something inherently different about a shoulder massage—even on a dare. He almost regretted challenging her to it. And then her fingers tentatively began to work his muscles.

At first, the tension he had thought the massage might ease spread throughout him instead, every part of him tightening. Whether from desire, nerves, fear or some combination of the three... he did not know. But, as Dahlia’s fingers worked skillfully against his muscles and he grew used to the touch, Thane began to relax. It felt good. Not just the working of his tight muscles but her, her touch.

He had been through a great deal in the past week: going from a life of uncomplicated solitude to suddenly having a mate with a mind of her own. Ultimatums had been laid down, challenges had been made, games had been played, and an embarking of a strange sort of courtship had begun. All of these were things he had never anticipated encountering in his life. As a Warlord, Thane was brutal and unyielding, but his mother had drilled into him a rooted respect of females that conflicted with the brutal side of himself. Still, he had not anticipated putting aside duty in favour of granting Dahlia autonomy… and now look! Here they were, huddled in the hay of the barn with a rainstorm outside and her hands kneading the tension-filled muscles of his shoulder. Life was strange. Nothing stranger, though, than the fact that he liked her touch—just like this, nothing more required.

It ended sooner than Thane would have liked, though he knew she had more than fulfilled her part of the dare. As Dahlia moved away he was prepared to thank her, but before he had a chance, she quietly asked him what he was thinking.

“That I like your touch,” he froze for a moment, having answered without thinking. It was honest, yes, but perhaps too honest and he shifted his gaze away from her. “Is… that your question for me? Or would you like to be more specific?” it might have technically been against the rules to allow her to clarify (counting as a second question) but Thane was eager to brush away his first statement as quickly as possible.
 

Dahlia - had been been braver and bolder - would have taken revenge for Thane's suggestion that he would dare her to wear nothing and dance out in the rain. She could have tugged a bit roughly on his hair and lied saying it was a difficult tangle. She managed to restrain herself, for now. She'd perhaps suggest Greta serve him his least favorite vegetable and Dahlia could dare him to eat it, then throw back his comment that only a coward would reject a dare. It was something she considered while she retreated to a 'safe' distance.

She paused in her retreat when Thane answered her question with something that she didn't believe he would have actually have ever admitted or said out loud. He quickly asked her if that was her question or if she had a more specific one in mind. She could have cheated perhaps, saying her earlier question she hadn't expected him to answer. Which was true to a degree, she expected Thane to be more evasive on such such a question or to have given her a completely dull answer.

Now she sat there in stunned silence trying to process what he had said. He liked her touch? Equally confusing was her quickened pulse at his admittance. She liked that he liked her touch and that was startling. Even worse it reminded her she had liked his hands on her waist earlier when he had been helping her mount and dismount Levent. He hadn't asked her if she liked such things so clearly she was not going to admit to it.

"O-Oh?" was all she managed to say for a moment. "That was my question, just.. a bit shocking of a reply."

Silence, awkward silence. Dahlia needed to change the topic, but changing it would be so obvious that it could work against her. Then again, she had said she was also trying to equally court him; such a thing was only fair towards him. This was a possible sign she had some affect on him, but what did he mean exactly by liking her touch? Liked in what way exactly? Was it provocative towards his physical desires? Or soothing? Would he answer her question or would he demand another dare to obtain the answer?

Dahlia took in a shaky breath as she tried to calm her fluttering heart. She'd had similar reactions when she had a crush, but not nearly this frequent or intense. Perhaps because she'd always been a distant admirer of her crush rather than placing herself in a path of interaction with him. Then her brain smacked her with the connection between her reaction and her train of thought made her realize... she had a crush.. on Thane?!

P-Preposterous!

Crap. She did, didn't she?

This realization jump started her nervous heart again and she wasn't sure if she could stick around Thane because he might pick up on it. "You never asked me a question for your own dare," she reminded him, quickly scooting to hide in the hay as best as she could, trying to keep her tone of voice even. There was no way she was going to say what she just thought just then; ever. Nope! This secret was going to be shoved deep deep down until she forgot it herself!
 
Fable Fable

A grimace tugged at his lips as the silence stretched following his admission. Part of him expected her to bolt out of the barn, and he wouldn’t have blamed her. That was stupid. Control yourself, he snarled to himself mentally. Thane didn’t imagine that courting her would go well if he lost control of his tongue and said every little thing that came into his head. That was usually Dahlia’s department.

This admission was worse, in some ways, than simply admitting to physical desire or attraction. It held greater implications of intimacy and feelings which he would just as soon not have… and certainly not allow her to know about. Especially since it gave Dahlia a degree of power over him that he did not think for a second was reciprocated.

Here was a dragoness who was forced into a mateship with him… and not only had she managed to get out of any expectation of consummation, but she had also managed to convince him to try properly courting her. Acceptable, maybe, if not for the sinking feeling in Thane’s gut that spoke to potential consequences. If he wasn’t exceedingly careful, she would have him wrapped around her little finger before he even knew what had happened. Perhaps that had been her plan all along… seduce him emotionally and then keep him at arms reach. That conclusion felt wrong to him, not at all in line with who he believed Dahlia to be, but what if that was the point?

Work could not reinstate itself soon enough. Some distance might help him gain valuable perspective, or make you miss her more, mentally he waved that thought away angrily.

She had been silent for only a few long seconds but that was more than enough time for his mind to run away with him, enough so that he actually flinched when she finally stammered out an ‘oh’ and very honestly admitted she hadn’t expected such a shocking answer.

Thane’s eyes flicked shut, torn between a quiver of embarrassment and frustration. Her free way of talking was rubbing off on him and now here they were; sitting in a barn together, the silence stretching awkwardly between them. Worse, now the Warlord had to fret about her intentions and feelings towards him. It would never have occurred to him that she could be manipulating him had he not blabbed so foolishly without thinking.

There was a further rustling in the hay as Dahlia seemed to settle herself deeper in it—further from him—which caused a bolt of unexpected pain to shoot through him. Had he truly chased her away now? Her voice was fairly even when she spoke, and though Thane felt that his daring her should have counted as his turn, he couldn’t stop himself from asking a question anyways.

“Is this—? Are you simply manipulating me into feeling this way? No, that’s not what I—What I meant is… Do you believe you could even come to care for me? No, I…” none of it was coming out right, and he realized abruptly that he didn’t want to know the answer either. “Never mind, the rain has stopped,” he pushed himself to his feet abruptly, striding with nervous energy to the stall full of supplies and grabbing a clean horse blanket to wrap around his waist. “Game is over, let’s go back to the castle—you should change,” he didn’t dare risk looking at her, turning towards the barn door and beginning to walk that way instead.
 

Dahlia peered through the small gaps in the hay stalks at Thane's back which seemed to have gone tense once again, but she could have been wrong. She nervously observed him wondering what he was going to ask her. He started to ask her a question and seemed to struggle with how he wanted to phrase it. She felt a pang of pain when he asked her if she was manipulating him to feel a certain way. Did he really think she was so deceitful? It actually hurt her to think he regarded her in such a way, not understanding why he could have come to such a conclusion.

Thane altered he question, changing it to ask her if she believed it was possible for her to care fir him and then just as quickly moved to drop the questions he had asked. He commented the rain had stopped and proclaimed the game was over and for them to return to the castle where she could change her clothes. He was clearly running away and that provoked the impulsive side of Dahlia.

She got up and raced after him only to quickly block his path, even spreading her arms to try and prevent him from continuing to flee from what she believed were actual fears of rejection. Dahlia knew he could easily shove her out of the way or go around her, but she had to try to talk to him rather than let him run away, because she wanted to know if her questions meant he was feeling something for her outside of just physical desire or viewing her as a tool to be used.

"S-Stop," she demanded in a unsure tone. "You can't just.. ask those types of questions and then try to avoid hearing the answers." Her heart was pounding so loudly she was certain even Thane could probably hear it.

"Do you really consider me a deceitful person? Since we've met have I done something you've considered deceptive? Manipulative?" Dahlia was clearly bothered by Thane thinking so lowly of her person. She lowered her arms then, taking on a more naturally defensive posture with her one of her arms crossed over her chest.

"It clearly doesn't matter what I believe if you regard me in such a way. The answer is so obvious behind what I believed. These games? To get to know you better, to invite you to know me better and have some fun in each other's company. I was being honest when I said I was equally trying to earn your favor as well. It's only fair isn't it? If I make you try then why shouldn't I try myself?"

"Everything I've done was to just try. How do you think I feel? It's hard not to be suspicious that you're playing nice in order to gain my favor while feeling nothing towards me. Those doubts are there because when we first met you made your goal clear. And I am left here wondering if I've been a fool this entire time and if you really want to try and love someone."

She was shaking from her nerves even as she stood there trying her best to not just run away from this confrontation she had brought upon herself, but she was actually hurt more deeply than she wanted to let on. Dahlia couldn't back down now despite her urge to flee rising. They'd have to talk about this eventually anyway, they were stuck together as mate after all.

"If your goal hasn't changed from what it was, if I'm only here to be a tool then the answer is no, I don't believe I could care for you. If that goal has changed. If I am not a tool to you then there is always the chance." Dahlia wanted to run so badly, but she wanted to know the answer just as much as she feared it. That he'd scoff and tell her that his goal remained the same, or worse lie to her directly and claim it wasn't.
 
Fable Fable (sorry it's a bit short, I didn't want to get too far ahead and trample over anything Dahlia might want to do)

He came to a dead stop. Dahlia had raced in front of him with her arms spread as she blocked his escape. It was ridiculous. This tiny female whose neck he could snap like a twig if he so desired felt as though she was an impassable boulder in his path. Thane knew he could push her out of the way or go around if he wished but doing so seemed strangely heinous to him. No matter where his restless eyes darted, no alternate route presented itself to him either. So, he remained rooted in place, his entire body quivering with nervous energy.

Thane refocused on her as she began to speak, her voice wavering as she demanded he stop and not run from the answers to his questions. His eyes fluttered shut at this, heart beginning to pound furiously in his ears. He didn’t want to hear the answers—they would demand things of him either way that the Warlord didn’t think he was ready for. All he wanted was to flee. Running away was not something he was accustomed to doing… but then, emotional assaults were not something he had learned to build defenses for either.

Dahlia continued to speak, each word hitting him like a physical blow. The truth of it was, he didn’t think she was being deceptive or manipulative. Neither of those things fit with anything he had learned about her, and from the way she spoke it was clear that he had hurt her with his implication that the opposite might be true. But that meant that his feelings were genuine and natural which was almost more frightening. She was supposed to fall madly in love with him… not the other way around. Not to say he was in love with her now, certainly not, but they were dancing around a treacherous precipice and he could feel himself beginning to slip.

Her final words hung in the air and abruptly it was all too much. A powerful shudder shook him, and Thane closed the distance between them with two strides, catching her chin and staring dangerously deeply into her eyes. “You’re driving me insane, Dahlia,” he growled, his eyes flicking over her and coming to a brief rest on her lips, so tantalizingly near to his own, but he managed to force his gaze back up to hers after a moment. “No, I don’t see you as a tool anymore—damn you—and I don’t have the faintest idea what to do about it.”

Thane knew he would do something he regretted if he didn’t extricate himself, now. Ever so gently he released his hold and slipped around her, not quite breaking into a run as he headed towards the castle, but it was close.
 
ashwynne ashwynne (It's fine. I just sort of had Dahlia find Thane without writing where he was since I don't know where you would have placed him.)

Dahlia's body went stiff when Thane suddenly closed the distance between them, wondering what he was thinking and what he was going to do. She was too stunned by his actions when his hand went under his chin and his hazel eyes stared into her widened amber ones. She could only watch him silently as his eyes flicked over her face and swallowed nervously as he state she was driving him insane. That he didn't see her as a tool anymore and had no idea what to do about it.

It was immensely nerve wrecking to stand there with Thane like this and the emotional confusion she was experiencing. In that one, simple answer - that she was no longer a tool to him - meant that he could potentially feel something for her. Dahlia could only stand there even as Thane released he chin and moved around her to return to the castle. She didn't even turn around to look at him as he left, all she could do was stand there and try and process what exactly had just happened.

Thane was bothered by whatever he was feeling and Dahlia wasn't so conceited to just automatically assume it meant he felt something like love towards her. Whatever it was, it wasn't an empty neutrality because Thane was clearly bothered by it. She knew what she thought was a disinterest in her as a person was because that had been the Thane from their mateship ceremony and the carriage ride. Since then he'd made it known he had at least a physical attraction towards her, though that was an error in her judgement because she had just been trying to make him uncomfortable so he'd try and be more modest rather than just wandering around lacking in clothing.

She wasn't sure how long she had stood there looking dumbfounded. It could have been seconds, minutes, or even an hour. When she did finally turn to look in the direction Thane had gone he was already out of sight. Dahlia headed back to the castle in a bit of a daze where she didn't even notice Ilia calling out to her at first, not until the woman was right in front of her waving her hands trying to get Dahlia's attention.

"Hm? Oh! Uhm, sorry. I was distracted," she managed to sputter out as she was brought back to reality.

"Are you alight m'lady? You should change out of those clothes and I'll make some tea," Ilia said, ushering Dahlia towards her room, but Dahlia ended up insisting on having tea first. This was mostly out of concern Thane might be in his room changing out of his own damp clothes. She wasn't exactly ready to see him again. Ilia was bothered by Dahlia's insistence and in the end said she'd bring her some clothes to change into anyway while Greta prepared and served tea in the kitchen.

"Caught in the rain then?" Greta asked as she set down a steamy cup of tea on the table before Dahlia. "Got some hay in your hair as well, tousle in the hay then as well?"

That comment made Dahlia blush. She knew the phrase could allude to being intimate with someone and right now she was still very flustered and such comments only made her more anxious. "Hey helps absorb moisture," she tried to reply in a matter-of-fact manner which earned a smirk from the elder woman who returned to her normal tasks. Dahlia sipped the tea silently and soon enough Ilia arrived clothes and a brush in hand.

"Best to change somewhere else where no servants can stumble in on you changing," Ilia suggested. It was awkward, but Ilia helped Dahlia change her clothes in one of the large pantries which Greta standing watch to make sure no one wandered in. Out of the damp riding clothes and into a dry casual red dress with a black overcoat where the sleeves were open from the top of her arms. Ilia then set work fixing Dahlia hair, brushing out the hay and tangles and leaving it to lay naturally and unstyled so that it could dry.

These monotonous tasks let Dahlia's mind ponder her situation with Thane and his words. He had been clearly bothered based on his behavior and for a split second he looked as though he might have kissed her. Saying he didn't know what to do about his regards towards her made him seem confused as well, but he always seemed so casual about everything. But he had left her abruptly; twice!

He had asked her ultimately if she could ever feel something for him and so she was now truly examining how she did feel about him currently. She knew at minimum she had what could be defined as a crush. Something that wasn't a deep feeling, just attraction to surface level things like physical appearance. She sighed and closed her eyes trying to do some serious self-reflection. She couldn't say she'd ever been in real love before and it was really such an abstract thing that she couldn't even define. All the romance novels she had read failed her in her musings on the subject.

She let out a heavy sigh as she opened her eyes still not having a true answer. The only thing she could do was to be honest with Thane, even though the thought of doing so scared her. If telling him eased his own worries, perhaps it could help her as well to face these things she feels towards him. She couldn't say if her previous hesitance to admit such things was cowardly or not, but she needed to be brave now and face it head on.

Dahlia sought Thane out after she finished her tea, thanking Greta before going on her quest. As she walked the hallways she tried to think of how to speak, what to say and numerous other things, going so far as planning a speech. Of course when she actually found Thane all that effort and planning was out the window as her a nervousness washed over her. "A-A crush," she blurted out suddenly, followed by looking mortified as she covered her burning cheeks with her hands in trying to cover her face. Oh yes, very elegant. Perfect execution of idiocy!

"T-That is to say, it's what you could define my regards towards your person." Progress, able to speak in proper words!

"It's a factor behind my reservations regarding you being sh-shirtless and so forth. B-But! T-There are other things as well, like me l-liking your voice..." and your hands, like hell she was going to manage to admit that out loud.

"S-So at minimum there is perhaps a mutual attraction. Basically what could be defined as a c-crush." This was absolutely mortifying to stand here and blabber all this out, she couldn't even bring herself to look at him because that fear of cold rejection was entirely possible, and she wasn't sure she could exactly handle such a thing after openly admitting she had a crush on him after such a short time. That's what crushes were though, quick and based on physical attraction.

"Now that I've thoroughly humiliated myself I'm going... to find a rock to hide under," she proclaimed, already turning and thinking of where a good place to hide would be.
 
Fable Fable

The Warlord found himself in their rooms and immediately felt like a fool. If the aim was to avoid her, the best place for him would likely be anywhere else other than the rooms they shared. Where she would undoubtedly want to come to change. Groaning, the only thing Thane could think of was to go to the baths. Surely, Dahlia wouldn’t bother him there.

Grabbing a change of clothes, the male strode quickly into the steam-filled room. He peeled off the soaked clothes that clung to his body, discarding the horse blanket as well, before slipping into the perfumed water.

Ordinarily, a bath had the power to chase away the bulk of his worries… but today, Thane found that his mind was too busy with a chaotic flurry of thoughts and feelings to allow itself to be settled. Instead, he leaned his head back with a soft thud against the edge of the bath, sighing loudly in frustration.

He should never have admitted as much as he had to Dahlia. Thane wasn’t even sure what his own feelings were, to try and communicate them was foolish when he was operating on so very little information. His hazel eyes fluttered shut and he sank below the water, holding his breath and forcing his brain to focus. What was the first step? That was fairly easy, he needed to figure out what exactly it was that he was feeling. Well, maybe not so easy. He had no experience with this after all. But you’ve certainly read enough novels to have a basic idea, his mind accused him, and he broke the surface again, sucking in a breath and tugging a hand roughly through his hair. Yes, he did, but it was horrifyingly humiliating. Infatuation didn’t suit a Warlord at all. He didn’t want to admit that to himself, much less to Dahlia.

Brooding, Thane scrubbed himself clean—more out of habit than necessity, the rain had done a good enough job—before pulling himself out of the water and toweling off. He hadn’t been discerning in the clothes that he chose and so it was simply a basic dark grey t-shirt and his standard pair of black pants that he wore as he padded barefoot back into their rooms.

He was still silently drying his hair with the towel when the doors to their rooms opened and Dahlia herself appeared. Thane froze and then slowly straightened up, slinging the towel over his shoulder and preparing to make some excuse to spend the night elsewhere. And then what she blurted out hit him.

A crush? Her cheeks were crimson, and she quickly tried to cover them, but it did not stop her from carrying on with her confession. Thane listened silently, growing more and more dumbstruck the more that Dahlia said. Simultaneously, he felt a fluttery warmth building in his chest—something that was new and yet not unwelcome.

By the end of it, she whirled to go, visibly embarrassed, but Thane caught her arm before she could leave. “Dahlia, wait,” he rumbled, feeling a quiver of pleasure as he wondered whether she liked the way he said her name—considering the fact that she’d admitted to liking his voice. “I… suppose it could be said that I, too, have a—” his nose wrinkled slightly, not sure he liked the juvenile way ‘crush’ sounded, but from how she’d defined it, it was most accurate description of his feelings, “—crush on you too.”

“Only, in my case, it’s not your voice that intrigues me half as much as your—” a small smile tugged at his lips, “—your unwavering spirit,” how could it not move him, really? Despite the awful situation she had found herself in, Dahlia had not allowed it to break her. Even now, she had chased after him to confess her own feelings when he was incapable of it himself. “I fear you might be braver than I am,” he admitted with a low chuckle.

It occurred to him at last that she had changed outfits. Now, Dahlia wore a simple red dress beneath a cloak that accented her trim figure. “Apart, of course, from a general attraction,” he murmured, unable to keep himself from looking her over again.

After a moment, Thane released her, clearing his throat and taking a step back. “So… what do we do now?”
 

When Thane caught her arm and prevented her from leaving she closed her eyes tightly. She didn't want to stay to observe his reaction to her words. It had been hard enough to say them and her heart was pounding. Her body felt shaky from the adrenaline coursing through her body which screamed at her to flee. She did her best to keep her breathing calm but it was difficult, all she could do was stand there and listen to him say her name before continuing to speak.

He seemed to wrestle with his words as he admitted he considered what he felt for her as a crush, adding that he was 'intrigued by her unwavering spirit.' He followed this with a statement that she might be braver than him and this caused her to let out a shaky laugh. Brave? Her entire being felt otherwise. If she had really been brave she wouldn't have been bothered by saying such a thing to him, but she was for a variety of reasons. It made her feel uncomfortably vulnerable to allow him insight into her developed feelings towards him. Dahlia feared it would give him an advantage with such knowledge that he could potentially abuse.

Even with his own statement that he perhaps felt the same way on a certain level, he seemed relatively calm about it. Well, calm compared to her. Dahlia took in a unsettled breath as she tried to calm herself down when he finally released her, asking what they were to do now.

"My original plan was to hide," she admitted, though still was unable to turn and face him so all she could do was look straight ahead. She had no idea what to do from this point. She hadn't really thought of what she would do when she faced him after confessing such a thing. Hiding would have given her time to sort that out, but he hadn't allowed her to leave and now she was having to process his reaction without the safety of solitude.

Dahlia turned her head to the side hesitantly to look back at Thane, but she was still too flustered to face him and quickly went back to looking away from him. "I-I don't know. This isn't a romance novel so it's not as easy as they make it seem. It's really scary, telling someone how you feel. I-It really doesn't help you're shirtless again either."
 
Fable Fable

It appeared as though Dahlia couldn’t quite bring herself to look at him and Thane didn’t really blame her. It came as a bit of a relief to him as well, to not have her staring at him and reading his expression. Compartmentalizing came quite easily to the Warlord, a skill built from childhood, so while he projected an outward calm, he was anything but that inside. Had she really studied him closely, Thane felt quite confident that cracks would have appeared in his composed façade and she would have seen the vulnerability, uncertainty, confusion and quiver of warmth that dominated his mind right now.

“Hiding sounds good,” he muttered, though he had already done his hiding in the bath and had found it woefully ineffective in the end. She turned to glance at him again but quickly looked away, and while initially Thane nodded along in agreement at her assertion that this was much more difficult than romance novels made it seem, he froze when she reminded him that he was shirtless and cursed softly.

“I’m sorry,” he muttered, grabbing the grey shirt from where he had tossed it aside while he dried his hair, “I didn’t want my wet hair to soak it through.” It was a poor excuse; he should have thrown it on immediately when she entered the room, but he’d been so distracted by her presence and the entire debacle of the day that it had slipped his mind. Quickly, the male tugged it on, clearing his throat a little uncertainly. “There, I’m properly dressed now,” he said.

His hair was still damp and darkened his shirt with moisture in the spots that it lay coiled against. Distracted, he also hadn’t properly pulled out all the braids that Dahlia had made, so a few still remained, hanging long and loose along the sides of his face. “Perhaps… it would be easiest if I leave you be for the remainder of the day. Those two idiot princes will be darkening our door tomorrow and we’ll both need all the energy we can muster for that,” still, even as he said it, Thane stepped away from her and settled in his armchair, looking away from her and out the window. His eyes remained unfocused though, not really seeing anything.

“I suppose I really am the Beast,” he muttered a little darkly, more to himself than to her, leaning back into the chair with a soft sigh and drumming his fingers on its arm. “Well…” his eyes drifted to the coffee table between his armchair and the other one, landing on The Beauty and the Beast which he had seemingly carried from the barn and into the room without even realizing it. “Maybe I’ll take the book and go finish it somewhere else, give you some space that way… would you like that?” he finally hazarded another glance her way. Part of him hoped she would release him so that he could bury himself in the story and forget everything else… but a different traitorous part wanted her to tell him to stay.
 
ashwynne ashwynne (Just going to assume there is another comfy chair she can use in the room, lol.)

Thane apologized and quickly went to put on a shirt, saying he hadn't wanted to get it wet due to his damp hair. It was an understandable concern, honestly Dahlia had just sort of stormed in her impulsive way so she wasn't exactly putting blame on his state of undress, just pointing out it made looking at him more trying. She turned with a tentative gaze when she heard him state he was properly dressed. Finding he was she forced herself to turn her body towards him, as much as she was still partial to finding a place to hide out.

He suggested they separate for the day as it would be easier, claiming they would need the energy tomorrow to deal with the princely visit. She watched his form as he stepped away and sat in his usual armchair, not looking at her but rather anywhere else but her it seemed. She felt a bit bad when she heard him mutter how he supposed he really was the Beast character from the story. She had suggested the book as a way to try and change his perception in the smallest way to try and understand how she felt in this situation, but... it had changed since her arrival.

Thane glanced at her as he asked her if she would like him to give her space. Dahlia sighed as she thought, rather than to let herself be carried away by her emotions into hiding; as though hiding could solve anything. She fidgeted slightly as her mind blazed through thoughts. "I-Isn't it a bit silly though? To avoid each other? It's not like either of us have rejected one another at this point." Was she even explaining her thoughts right where he would understand?

"W-Wait here," she asked, leaving to go into her room to fetch a book. It wasn't a romance novel, she really didn't need that dragging her thoughts places she didn't want to go into deeply right now. The last time she'd had a crush she'd imagined herself and the object of her infatuation as the characters in the story. Unlike then, Thane had stated he felt attraction towards her as well and he was present and not some distant figure she'd never spoken to or approached, forcing her fascination and desires onto a stranger. This much a much different scenario, but she didn't want to create some false fantasy in her mind when it came to Thane; it would be unfair to them both.

Dahlia returned to Thane's room when a book on floriography, taking a seat in one of the other chairs in the room where she could read. Once she was settled she looked back over at Thane with a gaze that was trying to gauge if this would be bothersome to him. "I won't run away if you won't," she offered though she was still anxious. She picked up her book then and quickly opened it to a random page to try and read.

Reading was not going to happen. The moment she tried she'd get distracted by her own thoughts and end up re-reading the same section over again. Every now and then her eyes would lift up from the page to glance at Thane before quickly darting to try and focus and read. Now with them confessing such a thing to each other it changed quite a bit and she didn't know where to go from here. Usually in romance novels things progress so quickly once a confession is made and feelings are mutual. The characters so easily progressed their relationship but Dahlia hadn't a clue what to do now.

Thinking more deeply into her analysis she came to the realization that from the point of confession came a period of open affection towards each other. Is that what they were meant to do now? The thought caused Dahlia to blush. She wasn't sure she'd be able to be so bold, but she could try right? She went into this with the intent to try, so try she would... or she would try to try.

Her attempts at reading went on for a while, even resulting in a fake page turn here and there to try and give the illusion she wasn't consumed by her thoughts and unable to actually retain any words her eyes slid over. How exactly was she supposed to engage in showing signs of affection? She wasn't about to just kiss him! That would send the wrong message. Thinking about this made her recall when he had brushed his fingers across her cheek, that had been a show of affection.

Dahlia flushed at the memory trying to push it out of her mind. She wanted to sort these things out before the royal visit tomorrow because she didn't want them to pick up on any odd behavior. The last thing Thane needed was for them to find out the truth. She peered up at him again, this time her gaze linger before she sighed and closed her book. "Prince Raskar won't make any other lewd jokes when he visits, will he?" Dahlia was still bothered by his drunken comments about a former right to a bride's first night. She'd rather focus on this coming visit instead of her feelings towards Thane which she was struggling to sort out.
 
Fable Fable

Thane had not expected that Dahlia would want to stay. Truthfully, he had been counting on the fact that she would take up his offer and leave him to mull over the implications of what their mutual confession meant for them now. How it would change things, Thane did not know. Previously, their interactions had all been based on a theoretical pursuit of a relationship that had felt more like a game than anything else. This, now, felt dangerously real.

She told him to wait there—not that Thane was much inclined to move—before darting away. He did as she asked, sitting there and turning to look back out the window, eyes unfocusing again as his mind drifted.

In similar fashion to how Thane had become mated to Dahlia, his father had stolen his mother away from another male. In his case, it had been from a fellow Warlord and so the fallout had not been as dangerous. But there had been fallout. A bloody feud between the two that saw his father, Alduin, completely wipe out the other Warlord’s bloodline in the end. When Thane and his brothers had asked why he would take such a risk, the answer their father gave had been simple: love. It had never made a great deal of sense to young Thane, this thought of starting a feud for the sake of a female, and he had never stopped claiming it was foolish—even though he adored his mother and was uncommonly fond of romance novels. “If it were me, I’d just find another female… why start a war? What if you had been killed? Far too risky.” And their answer had been the same, time after time; “One day, you’ll understand.”

He hadn’t. But Jorgen had.

The soft sound of Dahlia’s footsteps roused Thane from the memory, and he looked up as she settled herself in the armchair across from his with a large tome. The Warlord couldn’t see what it was, but by its size he doubted it was a novel. “Mmm, I’m still tempted but I won’t,” he replied, only half joking. She flipped it open and for a few seconds Thane found himself studying her as she focused on the page, his mind tugging him in a hundred different directions. Most of them ending somewhere along the lines of wanting to touch her again, which was dangerous territory and still probably over-stepping... no, definitely overstepping, even if she had admitted to a mutual attraction.

Reluctantly, he managed to drag his eyes off of her and onto his own book. Unfortunately, though not surprisingly, the words might as well have been scrawled in a foreign language and after re-reading the same line for the tenth time he sighed noisily and closed the book with a decided ‘thunk.’ Faking it wasn’t Thane’s style, so he tipped his head back and silently stared at the ceiling instead, feet lifting to rest on top of the coffee-table between them as he let his thoughts spiral into a mess he had no hope of untangling.

Eventually, Dahlia broke the silence with a question about Raskar, and he blinked his eyes a few times as he processed it. When it registered, the weary expression on his face vanished—answering her in a low growl that spoke volumes.

“Oh, he might very well manage to shoot one off,” Thane’s eyes narrowed dangerously, “But it will only be one. This is my home… prince or no, I won’t permit him to disrespect you.” Anger at the memory now hovered in the margins of his expression, made visible in the faint sneering curl of his lip and clear tension in his jaw. In truth, he didn’t think he’d be able to tolerate it anywhere. Had their mateship ceremony occurred now, after getting to know her better, Thane was quite sure he would have caved in Raskar’s idiot face had he made such a comment.

Slowly, he managed to blow out a huff of air and calm himself slightly, eyes closing and arms crossing over his chest. “I don’t anticipate him causing too much trouble, though. You’re my mate and he knows I take such things seriously. If nothing else, I think Liordan will likely keep him in line,” that or goad him to get a rise out of Thane, but he wasn’t about to tell Dahlia of that possibility.

He cracked open his eyes and looked at her, a faint frown appearing on his lips. “It bothered you that much, did it? His comment at the ceremony?” the dragon cursed softly under his breath and studied her carefully, “Of course it did, but you do know I wouldn’t let anything happen to you, correct? Even if I didn’t care for you at all, which—as we’ve established—I do, I would never permit him or anyone else to lay a finger on you.”
 

Dahlia tensed at Thane's reaction to her question. She hadn't expected him to be bothered by it since he didn't really seemed much bothered by Rasker's behavior at the mateship ceremony. Though things had changed since then or perhaps at the time he had actually been bothered. As much as she disliked to assume something about him, Thane seemed likely to have a small bit of possessiveness in his personality if she had to take a guess. Not the kind that probably led to what characters in her books had where it lead to a terrible tendency towards enraged jealously like those who were a rival love interest though.

She watched his sneer faded as she crossed his arms over his chest and seemed to calm down from his first displeased reaction to her question, eventually cracking an eye open to look at her with a frown as he continued. "It... well it was a shock to have someone just openly suggest such a thing. Even as a joke. It caught me off guard and because at the time I didn't know you by anything except your reputation I really didn't know.. well..." She didn't want to say she thought there was a risk he'd have permitted it, seeing as there was the rumor of his sexual preference for men. Dahlia swallowed nervously, "You have a reputation of preferring men... so..."

Dahlia blushed as she basically admitted she had figured he would have handed her over. "B-But I trust you enough now to know you're not really the type to share." She was trying to joke but struggled. It was such an awkward topic to be discussing. Internally she groaned as her eyes decided to study the cover of the book in her hands. Romances novels were such a lie. None of the characters ever seemed to be nervous like this.

In a desperate attempt to change the topic she looked up at Thane's hair and noted he'd messed up the braids a bit, but re-doing the braid meant she'd have to touch him and he might not want her near him since he had offered many times for her to not be in the same space as him. However, she did say she wouldn't run away if he wouldn't. She cleared her throat as she set the book down where she could on the table which Thane had decided to rest his feet on. Her mother would have scolded her brothers for such a thing, but this was Thane's space so he could do as he pleased.

She got up and silently went behind him and went to fix the braids in his hair. "You probably didn't even look your hair so I can't let you look in a mirror with my handiwork messed up," she quickly explained. Dahlia managed to get it done fairly quickly and went to go sit back down in the other chair. Now she was back to the uncomfortable feeling of being unsure of what to speak about with Thane. She didn't want to always just fall back on talking about plants and such, but right now things felt strange between them. It was like not knowing where to place your hands or where to step when you first learned to dance. You'd stagger and stumble or worse step on your dance partners toes.

Even the subject of the visit was bothersome because Prince Raskar has made her feel uncomfortable during the mateship ceremony and then there was Prince Liordan who she was originally planned to be mated to. It was just a recipe for socialization disaster!

As if the heavens knew things needed a change of pace their dinner was brought and it was only then that Dahlia had realized she'd been struggled to read her book for longer than she had realized. As if Greta was enjoying Dahlia's more balanced diet, their dinner came served with a salad for each of them this time. The main course did have meat, but there was also a side of seasonal vegetables and risotto. Dahlia went over to the table where they normally ate since their current location was more for lounging and relaxing. A thought crossed her mind as she sat down at the table and waited for Thane to join her.

"Who did you eat with before I arrived? I mean, you didn't eat alone, did you?" For some reason the thought of Thane sitting alone, eating his meals with no one while at home hurt. She was so used to always having meals with her family that the very thought of eating alone unsettled her. Maybe since he spent most of his time away from home he ate with those he worked with? Since he was going to be returning to his normal schedule of work she'd probably end up eating with Greta and Ilia since he'd be gone for the majority of the time. For some reason that bothered her.
 
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