Fantasy The Dying World Beneath (IC)

[DergTheDergon]

As she stood up, among the wreckage of the formerly spruced-up town hall, from Naomi’s comfortable lap (for now, anyway; she was definitely planning to spend much more time there in future) she found herself wondering the meaning behind Naomi’s wink. Had she really said something like that, or was that simply a playful response with nothing hidden behind it? Xaira found this train of thought pushed out of her mind, however, as Naomi took her outstretched hand, stood up with her, and moved to grab her arm in order to support her even as the still-sore dragoness began to speak that it might be needed. She gave Naomi a warm, grateful smile, choosing to forgo questioning the woman on something so honestly trivial as whether or not she’d truly said something that Xaira heard her say in a dream.

As the couple made thier way, essentially half-hugging each other as Xaira steered the both of them towards thier destination whilst touching on the subject of Naomi's natural talent for motherhood (at least, Xaira was pretty sure she had one whether she even understood what her draconic sweeetheart was getting at or not). She found herself amused by Naomi's curt answer, seeming to betray a sense of doubt, or perhaps an inability to grasp Xaira's sentiment fully, or both. It didn't bother her, and if they were to accquire a child of thier own in some way, shape or form somewhere down the line, mayhaps Naomi would be a biit more open to the concept then. For now, Xaira found herself giggling slightly at Naomi's response. "Yeah, I thought so too," she said teasingly, granting Naomi another affectionate peck on the cheek for how cute Xaira thought her headwinged lover was being.

Once inside, Xaira found herself laughing again at the quip Naomi fired at her the moment she stopped blabbing about this honestly very plain abode of hers, the dragoness immidiately feeling not even a trace of the nerves she felt prior. "I never have either... but I've a feeling the rumors of your kind's... stamina and prowess won't dissappoint." She winked, grinning playfully after making that untoward comment. Despite the by now well-established air of comfort (not to mention sexual tension) between the demoness and dragoness occucpying this quaint little home, Xiara still felt a twinge of anxiety at Naomi's possible oncoming disapproval of this place, especially when she saw her purse her lips.

This anxiety all but vanished mere moments later. The next words to come out of Naomi's mouth, unexpected yet clearly truthful and meaningful by the tone they were uttered in, were "it's cozy." She further reassured Xaira by then pointing out that she didn't have unrealistic expectations to begin with. As a look of clear, joyous relief washed over Xaira's face, she found herself thinking it odd. 'I've never been so eager to please someone before...' She thought. 'But, then again, love and desire haven't slapped me in the face like this before.' Xaira giggled a bit at the comment regarding air matresses, whilst her eyes convewyed a deep understanding of the fact that those words of Naomi's truly had been sincere, the expressdion on her face, look in her eyes and general body language doing far more to assure Xaira of that facrt than mere words ever could. She nodded at Naomi's final verdict on the place. "That's reasonable... it makes me a little hfopeful that i might be able to look lived in one day." She chuckled a little at that little tidbit of self-deprecative humor. "in all honesty i was expecting more critisism, though I'm not sure why." She shook her head slightly with a self-derisive grin, silently and playfully mocking herself for thinking so foolishly. Being around Naomi made the usually rather high-strung Dragoness want to take herself less seriously; yet another mark on the list of things that made her a keeper in Xaira's deep emerald eyes.

The very moment that naomi lifted her gaze to meet Xaira's, the crimson-haired dragoness felt an echo of the desire clear the succubus's eyes, it sending delightful tingles throughout her body, especially in a certain place near where the upper and lower halves of the body met. It had been a very long time since she felt desire for someone so strong; and this time, it seemed tinged with something more innocent, even spiritual, than pure carnal lust.

It was in this moment that she was utterly certain that she had finally found love. The real stuff, not the kind of attraction you think is love untill you realized you've gotten bored of the person or vice-versa and thus understand that it was only lust. She's been through that dreaded cycle quite a few times, honestly. This was something far more sustainable though, as long as both women resolved to work on their relationship and remain with each other through thick and thin. Naomi seemed genuinely determined to do so, and Xaira knew without a doubt that she was herself. That only made thus moment that much more enticing. Xaira smirked, her gaze also sultry, as Naomi remarked just was she was thinking. "You're right... you're the last thing I was missing..." she said, a very deep sense of attraction in her voice. Xaira eyed her back in a taken, yet curious manner, excited both sensually and intellectually for what Naomi had in store for her.

Her heart began to beat like a wardrum at Naomi's welcoming, arousing embrace, enchanced by her untoward question. "Gods, yes," She immidiately purred sultrily in response, wrapping her own arms gently around Naomi's back and staring into her eyes. Xaira giggled, a little nervously, as Naomi said she wasn't keen on putting her through pain tonight. Xaira wasn't entirely keen on it after the events of this evening, truth be told. "While I'm honestly... excited by the idea... not tonight... we'll have plenty of time to explore our bodies later but I'd like to keep it rather plain tonight." Moving her hands down lower, slowly, sensually, she was eager to get started.

The moment the word "anything" left Naomi's lips, Xaira wordlessly expressed her uderstanding of the statement by taking the lead as she was insisted to. Pressing her lips firmly against Naomi's, she held her yet closer as she began to walk the two of them to the side of her bed, falling forward onto her as her movements gain increasing intensity and boldness. The very moment her lips left Naomi's to explore her body, Xaira was lost in the moment, her thoughts never straying from drinking in Naomi with all her senses until the moment she'd exhausted herself in pleasuring her new girlfriend moments later. it felt as if she'd left earth and gone to heaven for thier entire tryst this night, and she could only hope that Naomi felt the same.

The next thing she knew, morning had come. She opened her eyes, and as first all she felt was the warmth of Naomi's head resting against her chest. Xaira found herself simply staring at her with a smile and thinking about how lucky she felt to have met her last night. After a few moments passed, she grinned, deciding to surprise Naomi with a gentle kiss to her lips whilst the Lilin was still asleep. Xaira had been a very early riser for a while now, after all. It came with her profession. Speaking of which, it would be soon that the couple would need to discuss a few important details regarding how thier lives together would work in the longterm. That would have to wait for after the precious first few moments of thier first morning together were enjoyed fully, of course, however long they lasted. xaira would let Naomi decide, through her reaction to this kiss, whether or not they continued where they'd left off due to exhaustion the night before. All Xaira knew was, she'd never felt so intimate with another partner in all her life... it was clear in her heart that she'd certainly found a keeper.
Rustic

 

[PanOtterPus]

Gabriel's face gave a confused expression at Fifer's small sniffle. It was such a foreign sound to come from this particular woman. This wonderful woman. Gabe couldn't help the grin that spread across his face - his woman. Next thing he knew his grin was smooshed by an unexpected kiss. As wonderful as it was, it too the man a good long moment to sink into it, but once he did, he sunk hard.

As the pair parted for air, Gabe gazed down at her slightly flushed face, his own probably looking pretty similar. "That was... wow." Eloquent as always. Though he didn't know what else to say. It was al knew to him. Unexplored and scary, but in the best way possible. Truth be told, his usually steady hands were trembling slightly. A nervous chuckle escaped him as he traced her cheek in an attempt to steady his misbehaving hands. "Unexpected, but wow all the same. Well, m'lady, the day is ours. Anything you want to do we'll do." He left the invitation open, unsure what was expected of him now, even more unsure of what she would be up for doing in her current state. Maybe a trip to the cafeteria or a walk around the building to build her strength. He didn't care. They would be spending the day together and it was enough for him.

DergTheDergon

-----------------------

Orthrus couldn't help but laugh. He found her charm...well, charming. "I'm sure there's dust here somewhere. And the feelin's mutual on the company front." He winked at her before looking around once more. The devastation caused this evening was more than he expected during his earlier encounter with the wolf on the street. Losses would be felt on both sides and for what?

He sighed and shook his head. "Not too sure anymore. The mess they made here, the people they killed... we killed..." He took a breath, closing his eyes for a moment and saw the face of his deceased friend. When he looked at her again, there was a fire there. "This had better be for a damn good reason." Orthrus, trying to distract himself, set about picking up toppled furniture.

Halexia

 

[Rustic]

Naomi's expression had changed, from warm but insouciant to something a bit more curious and serious, at Xaira's comment about expecting more criticism, but it did not stop her from luxuriously draping herself in her arms. Maybe it even somewhat spurred on the more intimate display of affection. But, if at all, only a little bit; she did have, after all, more than enough prompting to by the mood of this scene and by her own budding feelings. And yes, even as she gently caressed Xaira's skin, an intangible, potent yearning welling up in her as her hand brushed over, her feeling still did not seem fully realized yet. Like even the tension of this exchange only kissed the breadth of something still growing between them. The idea seemed deceptive in that way, and her skeptical mind wanted her to pause - to stop, to tread more lightly in the face of something promising so implausible - but it's potential was simply too compelling. With every word that fell from Xaira's mouth in response, that subtle hunger pervaded her every thought, only growing inexorably louder with every small movement of their bodies. She listened, and felt every single one, but her mind drifted toward elsewhere as her eyes languidly traced their way down. Somewhere more carnal, and real, and aware of everything. Familar to her, and yet, now so stunningly new.

It was only a soft, slow and warm longing before she felt the sudden press of Xaira's lips against her own, but against such an overwhelming force, it really began to blossom. Her eyes closed contently as she left herself enjoy the gesture, but as it grew in intensity, so did her excitement. It didn't take very long at all before her throat was tight with anticipation for the events to come and her light touch on Xaira's skin tightened as the two of them began to struggle for the bed. By the time the two of them had hit it's face, Naomi truly felt fully alive, her senses absolutely aflame as her partner began to move across her body. Her usually calm, even temperament felt cracked wide open as her smile widened and her lips parted in a wide grin. It was everything she could keep from doing from throwing herself all over her, if only the work toward that didn't seem just as promising. In the end, it was all she could do but to simmer in her now fevered ardor. To let herself enjoy this love she'd craved, and to return the favor in kind as she could. Now, the rest of night, and into their now blindingly bright future.


The morning after that wild, lovely night, Naomi did not dream. She rarely did after such an exhaustive efforts, but in this case, she simply had nothing more to dream about. Or, that was what she would've assumed, had it not been for Xaira's earliest stirrings, coming with a familiar press of lips against her mouth. The gesture might've proved grating were it from some prior suitor - it was, at it's worst, self-serving and alarmingly inconsiderate - but after the night the two of them had just had together, and the real and almost tangible mutual passion they had shared, she realized quickly as she woke who it was, and why she found it now so intoxicating. She had already been relaxed, but at the gesture, she simply melted, falling limp with pure serenity. Her eyes slowly blinked open only to further fuel her blissful indulgence with the sight of her gorgeous love. She could've just let herself just lay there, and let herself fall prey again to more mindless pleasuring of the senses, but once her mind worked enough to consider her prospective alternatives, she decided against it. So, she gently reached up a hand to grab a hold on Xaira's shoulder, and with that, she unhurriedly pulled herself up to a sitting position. A sitting position leaving them intimately close again, no less.

"I almost thought I was dreaming," she admitted softly, her voice almost a sleepy whisper. She was still clearly tired from the night before, but her lidded eyes still looked bright as she looked toward Xaira. "And, well... it's hard to be sure I'm not." She smiled at her own thought, the wings on her head twitching over slightly in embarrassed amusement. It was a little cheesy, honestly, but the feeling behind it was earnest, and the woman she was talking to was so unpretentious, she felt overall comfortable saying it. And that only reminded her of why she already so much enjoyed being in her presence. There was only the faintest touch of awkwardness at the morning sun peaking through Xaira's windows onto the two of them, but it was not the kind that came with the unavoidable topic of parting ways. No, when that subject came up - and almost unbelievably enough, Naomi had to wonder if it even would - she was sure it would be handled effortlessly. What was causing her to wonder, then, was the future ahead of them. It seemed to already stretch out so far ahead of her, it was hard to imagine how to approach such a potentially long long-term.

Well, in the end, it was as she had heard it said: such a journey began with a single step. She took such initiative by giving a large stretch - of both her arms and her wings- and a yawn. After which, she looked toward her lover with decidedly new eyes. "So?" she sensually asked, her voice still soft but more alert sounding now that she'd woken up a bit. "Did you work up an appetite?"

"Before you answer," she teased, "We are getting to know each other, and I feel it's important to disclose: I am very good at making pancakes." If she could find an apron and the appropriate cut of meat, she might even surprise Xaira with some bacon, if that suited her, but that all depended on two things she doubted seeing. An itinerant like Xaira owning anything resembling a perishable was something she'd have to see to believe, and she didn't even want to consider the actual probability of a dragon owning an apron. She wasn't even sure the woman had a kitchen, let alone frivolities like aprons. But it certainly wasn't as if Xaira had never managed to surprise her before. Either way, a breakfast adventure was surely afoot - with the reward for Xaira at the end potentially being Naomi working on it in an apron. Just an apron.

DergTheDergon

 

[Verdas]

While Chase looked up what hotdogs were without arousing any suspicion whatsoever (other than a curious look and a raised brow), Caroline fiddled with the various tools in the kitchen, namely, knives, knives, more knives, and anything even remotely cylindrical. One could almost say she was warming up to do something. Rather, that was exactly what she doing. Preparing to make hotdogs was something she did rather often, and thanks to the collection of special balloons in her room, she was always prepared for a (sausage) party. She wasn't entirely sure how to go about it yet, especially considering how Chase didn't appear to have registered any of her signals, but at this point, it was all about chicken winging it. Speaking of which, if things didn't work out, then at this point, she would probably even pluck a scrawny chicken, if only to relieve a mere fraction of the frustration she'd built up over the week.

The moment Chase stated that he 'totally knew' what hotdogs were, in a way that was totally not suspicious, her bullshit sensors almost went crazier than she was in bed (she tended to kick and roll in her sleep). Still, she decided not to comment and simply dismissed it as 'Chase stuff.' After all, everyone knew what both types of 'hotdogs' were, right? She was sure he'd made them by hand (with the help of 'cookbooks' and 'online tutorials') at some point in his life, so she doubted it would be much of a problem considering what she had planned. Well, 'planned' was a bit of an overstatement, but in her book, fast and rough wins the race.

With a coy (and slightly nervous) smile on her face, Caroline took Chase's hand, ready to lead him to his doom her room. "I'll show you how I like my hotdogs, b-but, er, it has to be in my room. As for what I like doing the most... That's a surprise." She said, pretending she didn't stutter by adding a wink at the end. Not that Chase might understand what it meant, but old habits die hard, sometimes quite literally. Then, with a gentle tugging, she added, "Come on me, let's go have some fun." The eyes would be looking forward to this for sure. Well, they were always looking forward, but that's besides the point. If all went well, Chase would be getting a new head.

Rustic

 

[DergTheDergon]

That grin of his was replicated by Fifer’s own lips, funnily enough thinking that Gabe was her man now, their thoughts unknowingly synchronizing before she’d finally reached her goal, that being the handsome devil’s lips. Closing her eyes as she leaned into it, she released his shirt only to wrap her arms weakly about his neck as he reciprocated the affectionate gesture with far more force than Fifer had been expecting as he let himself relax and sink into the moment.


The woman found herself giggling, her emerald good eye shimmering with affection for Gabe, and amusement at his speechlessness. Looking down at his trembling hands, her eyes widened. Had he really never been kissed before? She was very glad to be his first, but it was still very hard for her to believe that no woman had tasted those lips before she did, as his nervousness told so clearly of. She found herself shivering as he gently caressed her cheek, however; he certainly knew how to keep her on her toes, despite his inexperience.


His words seemed to clear the fog in her mind, and she laughed again as she righted herself into an upright sitting position. “Y’know… I really didn’t expect you to so readily ask me on a date… or even to answer me the way you did… guess I’m not so hideous and unladylike as they say I am, huh?” Fifer shrugged, not expecting an answer. However, she couldn’t deny that he had to see something in her. If she had any doubts about it before, the way he kissed her back had wiped them all away in a near-instant.


“Anyway, lemme think… not sure if I can walk for too long but, I can walk… what could we...” Suddenly, Fifer’s stomach growled, causing her to blush and look away from him for a second. “I… guess my stomach has an idea, heh... I haven’t eaten real food in waaaay too long. I’ll probably have to come back and rest soon but… I know this place just down the street actually, it’s pretty close to here. It’s chinese. Ever heard of Xhao-Jan’s? If not, you’re in for a treat. Hope ya like chinese cuz, it’s decided.” She stood up, not waiting for an answer. She had to steady herself against him for a second, her hands gripping his shoulders as she found her footing. Slowly releasing his shoulders, she took his hand. With slow footing at first, she led the way, clearly determined to lead him there despite this other the the other way around. “If I stumble, catch me, but I’m taking us there,” she said. “Gotta get used to walking again fast if I’m gonna take on this critical mission they’ve got in store for us…” Every once in a while as she picked up speed, she winced, however it wasn’t long before she had a nice steady rythym. If Gabe moved to so much as support her more steadily than by only holding her hand, she reassured him that she’s got this before continuing to soldier on.


Like this, the pair eventually made it outside the hospital. “It’s just down the street here,” she said, her tone a little cheerful, actually. “The people there know me. I eat there so much that the head chef is kind of like a father to me, you’ll like him. He’s got a good a good sense for people so, he’s let me know about suspicious customers of his. It turned out that they were monsters in disguise ever time. I’m starting to suspect he’s like me, and I’m actually pretty damn sure he reported the werewolf incident, probably just on a basis of ‘suspicious behavior’… so basically, he makes me a lot of money, and I make him a lot of money in return for both that and his damn good food.” She laughed. “I know I don’t look like it, but I can put some food down… especially when I’ve been practically starved for a whole damn week…” her stomach growled again as if to agree with her. Adn she chuckled again as they came upon a quaint little brink building with a sign saying “Xhao-Jan’s Authentic Chinese Cuisine” above the door. Gabe would most certainly have the door for her, which he recieved a beaming smille and a quick peck on the cheek for as Fifer then meandered on inside.


The inside of the building was gaudy, to say the least. Decorated floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall, with fancy gold chinese lettering and exuberant crimson everywhere you looked. It was one room, and only about the size of a large apartment, containing not much in the way of furnitiure other than a bar, a handful of tables and booths, and an open kitchen. There were a couple customers eating, but the person that stood out right now was the portly chinese man, complete with a sterytipical Fu Manchu above his lips, who was busy simultaneously cooking two different meals in two different woks at once. Looking up to see who’d rung the entrance bell (still flipping each dish expertly), his eyes widened as he saw Fifer. “Weeell, look who decided to grace my shop! I’d heard about your injuries… seems the rumors were true…” he frowned a bit looking over the bandages on her arms and legs, as well as the hospital gown she was adorned with. “If I had known they were letting folks see you now, I’d already have been there.” In fact, Gabe would see this man as familliar. He’d been around the hospital a few times while he’d been camping out there. “Don’t worry about it Xahn, I’m a big girl. As you can see, I’m managing.” she said with a bit of a smirk. This perked Xahn right up, getting a robust belly laugh out of him. “That you are my girl, that you are….who’s this one, though? Wait, do not tell me... “ seeing how close they were standing, his smile widened a little. Fifer’s blushed only confirmed his suspicions. “I can’t say I’ve ever seen you walk in here with anyone else all these years… I happy for you. Please sit, both of you.” He gestured for the stools in front of the open kitchen, and as the pair sat, he looked closer at Gabe. Wait a moment… I think I’ve seen you before… aaah, in the hospital waiting room. Every time I checked back, in fact. If you were waiting for Fifer that whole time… mayhaps she’s found a keeper.” With a knowing wink, Xhao smiled warmly, clearly grateful for and admiring of Gabe’s dedication. “This one is on the on the house, what;l you both have?” The usual, Zhao,” Fifer said, to which h nodded with a smile. “And you, mister, ah…?” he raised an eyebrow in search of Gabe’s name.
PanOtterPus

 

[DergTheDergon]

The night before, Xaira washed away Naomi’s serious expression as best she could. It had been true that, in the face of having hit it off so well with such a wonderful, elgant woman, she feared that she would not accept something about her, be it her home, or something else But, as she stared into Naomi’s eyes, seeming like deep pools of desire that yet still seemed to be filling.. And were not quite full to the brim yet. She could see this in her eyes as she felt the same way. She felt as if this attraction they clearly mutually felt for one another was far different than any attraction she’s ever felt for another person. She could feel, even as her mind succumbed more and more to the will of her body,, that she and Naomi would grow to share an intimacy far greater and more meaningful than this first, desire-filled night together could ever grant them.

The moment they hit the bed was the moment that Xaira unleashed the primal, draconic instinct that had been building all night.She was rough at times, gentle at others, yet her actions were always full of passion, with a certain modicum of playfulness. The night seemed to blend into one blurred, seamless moment of passion at some point, right through to the moment Xaira saw Naomi’s eyes opening, the sleepy, yet blissful look in them further egging her on, her smooches even more passionate now. She began to sink into the moment as she had the night before, however, as Naomi sat up, breaking the kiss, instead of succumbing to the pleasure herself, she clearly had less indulgent plans for the morning.

“Good morning…” she said sultrily, tracing one of the woman’s shoulders with one of her hands. She giggled profusely at Naomi’s next quip. ‘Don’t worry, you’re not alone in that… last night felt almost too good to be true… and I can tell it’ll only get better from here, as hard as that itself is to believe.” Xaira knew full well that she was piling on the cheese by now, but she couldn’t care less. Naomi seemed to truly, more than anyone Xaira’s ever met before, want the dragoness to be herself. She, too, was astonished and made curious by the seemingly vast future the pair had in store for themselves from now on. It excited her immensely, in many ways, just thinking of the vast possibilities in front of the head-over-heels pair. Xaira was then brought out of her mind and into the lovely, tantalizing present by Naomi’s stretches, presenting her body quite while either inadvertently or very advertently indeed- probably a bit of both.

Naomi’s suggestion of breakfast then made Xaira very aware indeed of her own stomach’s current rather empty state. Grinning, she opened her mouth to answer the seductive question with an answer very similar in tone. She was halted, however, by further clarification, which caused Xaira to lick her lips (for more than one reason, one might add.) “Mmmm… sounds tasty… and I mean both the getting to know and the pancakes.” The very second after she said “Pancakes”, her stomach growled loudly in approval, causing the dragoness to laugh a little, cheeks reddening just slightly. “Well, I’ve probably got what ya need to make ‘em but, I’m not opposed to taking a quick run- or, more accurately, a quick fly, over to the market and back if you need stuff like eggs, milk and the like. Since I ain’t around here for weeks at a time, keeping perishables was kind of a waste when I didn’t have an amazing girlfriend. ‘She winked. “But, tell me what ya like and i’ll keep it stocked when I’m around best I can… by the way, the traveling thing is something we need to talk about but, let’s save that for the table.”

Rising from the bed, Xaira stood and stretched herself from the wings to the tail, her back facing Naomi and giving her quite the show. Afterwards, she led Naomi to her very modest kitchen; two rather short counters, and oven/stovetop, a sink, a fridge and a set of cabinets. That was literally it. “I know it ain’t much, but, you should have all the utensils and implements you need. Also, the stove and oven is me-powered, so to speak; lemme warm it up for ya.” Bidding Naomi to step back, she breathed a controlled jet of flame onto the surface of the stove, made of a pitch-black rock. The stone curiously absorbed her fire, and in the end, one could feel the heat if hovering their hand above it. “The way it works is, you turn a burner on and it takes that stored fire and channels it into that controlled area. Got it custom-enchanted for me. Save me a looot of money on energy, trust me. Oh and, uh, here’s an apron if you want. I uhh… kinda wanna see how it looks on ya.” taking a folded tiem out of a nearby cupboard, Xaira tossed it to Naomi. It was a cute, frilly housewife apron. Rubbing the back of her neck with a blush, Xaira explained. “That was a joke gift from a friend of mine, heh. Suits you a lot more than it ever would me.” She grinned, licking her lips at just the thought of her trying it on, as well as eating her pancakes… and something else, but that would have to come later.
Rustic

 

[Halexia]

Xanders ears pricked up at the mention of the word 'Pizza' it was one of the foxes favourite foods, the statement regarding pizza had also put his mind at rest "I could totally go for pizza man"
He chuckled slightly at his friends concern about the authorities "The authorities won't do much as far as I am aware, you are more than safe besides you weren't the only one doing some killing, and I an pretty sure they were trying to kill us too, therefore it would be classed as self defence" the fox shrugged, he wasn't sure if what he was saying was right and besides the thought of pizza was making his mouth water and taking his mind far away from everything that had just happened he had even forgotten that he currently looked like he had been the victim of an attempted massacre.

with his thoughts still on the idea of a fresh dough base covered in tomato sauce, cheese and pepperoni he licked his lips "so what about this pizza then?"

Pinconious

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Tyra looked at Orthrus, she could see the sadness in his eyes and curiosity got the better of her she put her hand on his shoulder and gave him a look of both kindness and concern "want to talk about it?" she said in a soft voice. She had only known him for a short time but he had, had such an impact on her already that she wanted nothing more than to comfort him right now, in anyway that she could, she didn't say anymore deciding this was a time to listen, and to let him unload his problems, hoping deep down that he was one of those that believed a problem shared was a problem halved, although she wasn't really a people person per se, she was missing the smile that greeted her earlier on, even if it was after they had quite literally bumped into each other, after all her mother had told her everything happened for a reason so therefore there had to be a reason that Tyra had bumped into this one person... of all the people here

PanOtterPus

 

[Rustic]

Chase looked a little surprised when Caroline took his hand, but the momentary expression passes into an excited looking grin. Still admittedly followed with further confusion as she explained what her plans were to him, but still, he nodded attentively. In... her room? That didn't seem to be the best place for it, but what did he know about making hot dogs? Nothing much. Although, he did have this weird impression that men usually made them around a campfire? Maybe he had confused two separate but similar things again. In any case, he tried not to betray any sense of hesitancy through his face about the whole thing, even if his eyes might've made it obvious he was a bit dazed by this process.

"Oh, that's fine," he assured, reaching up a free hand to scratch the back of his head somewhat bashfully. He'd never really tried making something in a bedroom before, but if she was sure this was how she needed it done, she must be an expert at doing it. He looked at her more confidently at that thought, and then even more so as she gently tugged his arm in insistence. "Let's!" he confirmed, now very enthusiastically following her out of the kitchen.

He followed her through the guild. It was kind of interesting to see halls he usually didn't amble through, but he was kind of more focused on his own thoughts about their trip. Sort of idly, he considered a bit harder about why they were going back to her room of all places. There really was not such an overwhelming need for secrecy, was there? Was she just not the type who liked sharing? Obvious signs something wasn't adding up flitted past his wandering mind, but none really stuck as he went ahead anyway. Really, he had to trust that this would be fine. What else would they be doing anyway? At that thought, the two of them have already arrived, regardless, so he put his hesitancy aside at the opening door to get a look through fresh eyes at what lied beyond.

And, apparently, fresh eyes were what lied beyond. As Chase bounced in, it was quickly apparent that something was off about the decor around here. Bobbing around in sealed containers were - what else? - the seeing organs of what looked to be a wide variety of specimens. Either that, or, human eyes with contact lenses? Ah, no. He was pretty sure that wasn't possible or feasible, especially looking at the schlera on some, among other things. Which made him breathe a small, almost inaudible sigh of relief, because any of them being human would be bad and weird. But he wasn't actually sure what he should be thinking otherwise as he gawked at them all. There were a lot of them here and they kind of freaked him out, maybe? He came to the middle of the room to get a good look at them all anyway, sort of too overloaded by the sight to really form anything resembling a concrete feeling or expression.

"Woooow," he said incredulously. While he was curious, his voice was more flat than it was amazed. This was a lot to take in. Though... as his eyes moved across everything present, there was something more important undeniably missing. "Uh... hmm," he mumbled slowly. The eyes were maybe probably harmless? Yeah. He could totally chalk them up to being the enthusiasm of someone who really liked to remind herself of how much good she was doing. But there was something here that could not be reconciled so easily, and that was what was making him uncomfortable more than anything else. After awhile, he finally looked back over to her. Except, his eyes darted momentarily somewhere else.

"Hmm... yeah," he finally said, looking back toward her somewhat exasperatedly. "I don't know what's happening." It sounded like the very simple declaration of fact it was. He'd been trying to guess, but, that really didn't change the fact that there weren't any cooking implements here. And while she might have some interesting ideas on how raw meat was the hip new thing or something, this was starting to leave the realm of plausible deniability. Which meant it was time to face up to the fact that he'd ended up in a really messy situation. Again. As usual.

"I thought I did... I don't," he admitted with a sigh, one of his hands reaching up to rub his other elbow sheepishly. He looked rather embarrassed, his smile looking a little forced, before he seemed to perk back a bit more. "I... still do like surprises, though?" he offered weakly. That wasn't always true, granted, but, it usually was? And he didn't want her to feel bad if she had been so eager about this before. Besides - people had said before they were similar before, and so they'd probably like similar things, right? And this would probably turn out fine because of that, right?

Verdas

 

[Pinconious]

Rick laughed, "let's head to Pacinis (Random name don't ask >.< )" He suggested as he stood up, "it's not far from here just down the road, but before we leave I think we could both use a shower to clean up" Rick gestured to Xanders fur, "Im pretty sure you would rather be a white fox again then a red one"

"Come on, we can go back to mine, it's not that far off" Rick said as he made his way out of the building that had turned into a war zone.

Walking down the street he took a left turn and walked down to an apartment building. Using his keys he entered the building and gestured for Xander to follow. Instead of using the elevator for connivance Rick decided to walk the four two flights of stairs instead. Upon entering the hall he only had to walk past two doors before coming to a plain looking white door. Using another key he opened said door and entered leaving Xander to close it behind him.

The living room was small with a simple two seater couch, a small Tv sitting on a glass tv unit that looked almost too big for the room with a solid wood coffee table sitting between them. The Kicthen over looking the living room with only a bench top separating the rooms. Again the kitchen was small but it was big enough for the one person who lived here.

"Bathroom is that way" Rick pointed to the open door that lead to his bedroom, which had another door that lead to his bathroom. "I might be able to find some spare clothes" Rick looked the fox over "Yeah you are about my size, i'll find something for you to borrow" He said as he entered his bedroom and began to rifle through his wardrobe that covered an entire wall.

In the middle of the room was a double bed covered in a simple black duva, his room was barely decorated much like the rest of the house which had only a few books scattered about.
"If you need anything else let me know" He smiled as he placed a handful of clothes on the bed for xander to wear once he was done in the shower.

Halexia

 

[Rustic]

Naomi sighed, taking in her sleepy lover's morning greeting and her delicate touch. It was life's greatest joy to be in the company of others, she felt, but it was just especially so with Xaira. Her heart and body were just so heavy with love. Still, her eyes slowly opened again from the pleasant reverie she had been offered with an almost challenging look.

"Better than last night?" she asked. What a bold claim. Her humored expression conveyed exactly that sentiment. But it also hinted at sarcasm, as really, she felt much the same. Not that that really needed to be repeated. While she would normally be too wary of letting such a misinterpretable statement stand on it's own, she felt comfortable in knowing Xaira would know she didn't really mean it. In fact, she even considered adding something extra onto it, to sort of take it even a step further, but in the end, she simply relaxed a little.

"I'm sure you're right," she said warmly, her hand moving to take Xaira's into her own.

But it was then she'd moved to ask her next question - about breakfast. She listened as Xaira made her opinion be known, even adding in a delightful bit of innuendo to the mix. Naomi couldn't help but chuckle at that, happy to hear about her red-haired partner's ravenousness and absolutely delighted at the small bit of modesty that came with hearing it in action. Her legendary appetite seemed to extend to every area of her life, it seemed. Well, that was absolutely fine by her. In fact, she welcomed the challenge it posed. But she continued to follow along as Xaira answered for the rest of their circumstances this morning, nodding attentively once she reached the end.

"Ah, right," she mumbled, her knuckles pensively moving to cover her lips. She had assumed as much about her supplies, but their future conversation about coming and going would be of interest. "We'll just have to see, then," she said. About the groceries and their table conversation. More importantly, she didn't want to send Xaira on her way out just yet if they didn't need anything. Mostly because it would mean they would both unavoidably have to dress. And, of course, because it seemed a bit cruel to ask her to go at such an early hour, but she really couldn't deny her other motive entirely, as much as she wanted to. Especially when faced with her partner's rising frame, giving quite the view of the full of her back. It seemed a little childish to her, especially after having already become acquainted with the view from the night before, but she couldn't help but curl into herself a little like a schoolgirl at the sight. Ah, she really felt lucky. But she quickly climbed to her feet and made her way out, not so ready to be caught gawking just yet. It was hardly ladylike.

So the two of them made their way to the kitchen. Or, what technically qualified. Naomi's knee-jerk reaction was to readjust upon entering, as the room was, well, unexpectedly compact. Even for the close quarters of the apartment. Not that this was a problem, per say - just different. She tried to keep her surprise subtle as she entered, however, coming to a stop beside Xaira as she began to show off the stove top. It was immediately obvious the appliance was quite unique, so without even a prompting, Naomi's eyes locked in on it, curious to it's machination. She didn't even have to wonder, as Xaira had just been getting around to showing it off, prompting Naomi to step back a little. She complied, of course, by standing behind the other woman - trying not to stand right behind her shoulder, and looking ineffectively clingy, but she did hover close, intent on getting a good look. And she did - her eyes and grin wide as she watched the fire disappear and the magic take affect.

It was, informally speaking, really freaking cool. Her hands automatically rose to clasp themselves together in the aftermath. She did her best to smooth herself over as she slowly began to approach the enchanted device, but her eyes still sparkled with wonder at it's design. She did so love modern magecraft - especially when focused on such mundane but very much necessary elements of everyday life. She inquisitively took to inspecting the stone's surface for herself, running a painted nail across it's surface. It was apparently practical, too; from this distance, she could feel the accumulated heat, but could tell touching it's surface would not be enough to burn. How wonderful! She almost lost track of herself in her observation of it, but at the mention of an apron, she stood up straight again and turned to inspect it, doing so just in time to catch it as Xaira tossed it over.

Her understandable first impulse is to get a better look, and so once she felt it in her hands, she let the bottom half it it go, so it could unravel to it's full length. And wasn't it something? In a rare gesture for the lilin, Naomi couldn't help but blush at seeing the full size of it. It had certainly not been what she had been expecting. And, as Xaira alluded to, rightly so. It simply wasn't the type of garment she had expected to be lying around here, with Xaira's disposition. She might have expected it had been purchased for some other purpose, seeing how stereotypically frilled up it was, but it's easy enough to take her partner's explanation on the nose with how honest she'd already been about her history. So, past her initial surprise, she was actually almost taken by a fit of giggles in imagining this having been worn before by it's intended recipient, but, she thought better than to vocalize it. Instead, she grabbed the garment by it's middle, to keep it away from the floor.

"...You think so?" she asked, in response to the draconic woman's previous comment about it suiting her better. While they could maybe both agree that it wasn't Xaira's style, Naomi wasn't entirely sure it was for her. It was cute, but, could she really pull it off in earnest? She put a hand on her face a little embarrassedly, unable to hide her shy smile. It was hard to imagine herself doing, but... she looked toward Xaira. The other woman seemed honestly interested in seeing how it looked, and if there was one thing Naomi loved about her, it was her sincerity. So, with a small, determined inhale, she stretched it to it's full length, and readied it for wear. She tied the back before pulling it over. Though... that wasn't all.

"It's embarrassing, but..." Once it was over her frame, she quickly and easily slipped off a different garment, leaving just the pink frills of the apron and a small bit of lingerie covering her frame. "It's a quaint idea, right?" She gave an impromptu wink. She wasn't exactly the pinnacle of seduction at the moment, but she did hope the thought counted in that regard. Though, after had given it, a bit of the thunder was taking away by a few furious blinks, the ribbon in the back slipping a little further downward. "Ah..." she said quietly, hurriedly moving to readjust it in the back. As it turned out, the garment was a little too long on her to move it up much higher than the bottom of her back, but it worked out well enough. She took the long ribbons as her side and tightened the ribbon definitively, and then, stood up, finally finished.

Looking down to give her own judgment of it, she was feeling a little too shy to offer up anything cheeky about it, but she did run a finger through her hair thoughtfully. "It's not quite my size," she admitted, as the fabric fell much farther than obviously intended. "But, it's... cute?" she asked, finally looked up from herself to gauge Xaira's reaction to it, giving a modest smile. All in all, it was different than how she'd idly considered it might be earlier, but even so, it was still nice. If only because it was real, and she was really doing it, and it was Xaira's, technically. It just made her giddy to think about... well, just doing this for her partner. Not just doing it because it was some request, but doing it because she wanted to do it for them, because she genuinely cared about their opinion. Her opinion.

In any case, after Xaira's reaction, she was riding pretty high once she got back to work on her task for this morning. However, before she could start on it, she quickly went through the cabinet, making sure this little interaction between them wouldn't have to be cut tragically short. Luckily enough, due to the small size, it's easy enough to see everything she's looking for - various sugars, a pancake mix, and... fortunately, just what she needed! Maple extract. It could go bad, for sure, but it generally lasted awhile, so it wasn't unreasonable that it was sitting here, if somewhat unlikely. But, looking on the label, it seemed to still be in date! If only barely. "Oh, and look!" she said, holding the small container up triumphantly. "Looks like you won't have to go." Ergo, she could admire her partner's beauty and enjoy her company just a little longer. She grinned mischievously, and then, finally confidently began her work.

DergTheDergon

 

[PanOtterPus]

Gabe found himself smiling at the sound of her laughter once again, a noise he was beginning to relish. Though her words pulled the smile away and replaced it with a frown. “Hideous? You’re the furthest thing from it. And believe me, if you were lady-like I wouldn’t be interested.” He chuckled. Gabriel had had his run ins with “ladies” in the past and he saw no appeal in the fake smiles and forced gestures. He much preferred his women to be... well, women. Fifer, for a perfect example, wasn’t afraid to speak her mind and take charge, she was strong and she knew it. She wasn’t some prissy, entitled lady that tried to wrap him round her finger.

Red was a good colour on her too. He smirked at the rumbling from her stomach, his own groaning somewhat in unison. “Can’t say I've hear of it, but Chinese it is, m’lady.” And off she went, knowing he’d follow, proving his earlier inner rambling’s point. Sure she was unsteady, her injured body protesting against the work, but still she soldiered on, determination evident in her eyes. He couldn’t help but show at least a little concern, however unwanted it was. “As long as you don’t push it. They won’t send you anywhere till you’ve recovered, and we go as a team. If they don’t have you, they don’t have any of us. The mission will wait.” Gabe knew she would hate the idea of this – her injuries stalling a mission – but he’d rather that than her worsen her condition by pushing too far too fast. He only just got her, he wasn't going to lose her so soon.

Carrying on, however, Gabriel listened intently at her tales of the food and the chef. “Oh I don’t doubt your eating skills for a second. You’d have my arm if I did.” Gabriel had heard tales of past incidents in which someone told Fifer any kind of doubts about her and coming away worse for ware. She knew what she could handle and he reckoned she hated to be told otherwise. Gabriel understood that much, he was similar in that sense.

Pulling the door to the place open, the sharpshooter gave his own blush at the peck he received for the gesture. Fifer executed it so smoothly and naturally, one would assume the two had been doing this for some time. He grinned at the thought and followed her inside. Looking around, he could already tell he was going to like it here. The place was fancy but not over the top, small but not cramped. It was cosy. Homey.

Gabe was so lost in his observations he even jumped slightly at the sound of an unfamiliar voice, matched to a familiar looking face, welcoming the pair to the restaurant. Slipping an arm around Fifer's waist, Gabriel nodded at the mention of the hospital as they made their way to their seats. “Couldn’t have our girl in there alone, now could we?” He grinned at the man, happy Fifer had someone else around after all. Then he realised the man was awaiting his name. “Ah, Gabriel. Most just call me Gabe. I, uh, I guess I’ll have whatever she’s having, must be good if Fifer’s ordering it.”

Once the man had gone, presumably to prepare their food, Gabriel faced Fifer with a coy smile on his face. “So, I’m the first you’ve brought here, hmm? Isn’t that interesting,” he joked, eagerly looking forward to the rest of their unusual date.

DergTheDergon

 

[PanOtterPus]

Orthrus gave a small shrug as he picked up a table, righting it. "Theus was an old friend. Used to work together. He always had these grand plans for our kind to rise to the top again. Seemed to forget that our "top" was hounds being summoned by "masters" and treated like watchdogs. Sure, it was in his nature as a hellhound, but it was anything but grand."

Orthrus had had many a hardship during his working years as a Hound of Hell, and he wouldn't wish them upon even his worst enemy, let alone wish them back upon himself. "He missed the way things used to be, with humans at the bottom of the food chain, worshippin' supernaturals like Gods. All that ever did was piss off the real ones." He chuckled darkly at this, before remembering his company. Tyra was watching him closely, clearly worried.

Shaking his head, Orthrus threw on his usual grin again, shaking away thoughts of the old days. "But hey, he died for what he believed in, and at least it was by my hand. Was a mercy really. I think Danto was about to get a hold of him, and that would've been a much less pleasant death." As if on cue, the vampire wandered past, glaring bloody murder and muttering curses under his breath at the hound for stealing his victory.

Chuckling, Orthrus grasped to change the subject. "Anyway, I'm sure you don't want to spend an age listenin' to me harp on about old grudges. I'm sure ya got somewhere better to be, and I probably should get back to the gate. Better make sure no-one's tried to make use of the distraction to get in or out." He wasn't sure he wanted to leave her, but he didn't want to make her stay either.

Halexia

 

[Halexia]

Xander walked into the appartment looking around "nice little place you have here" he said in a surprised tone, he liked the place, above all he liked how quiet it was, he headed towards the shower room, glad to be able to wash the blood from his fur, hoping that the hot water would ease some of the pain he was now feeling since the adrenalin had worn off.
The hot water stung as it hit his flesh and fur but it also relaxed the young fox. His fur (soon white again) was no longer feeling like he had bathed in tar.
He stepped out of the shower wrapping a towel around himself heading to the room Rick had gone into before and finding the clean fresh clothing on the bed, he dried himself off and got changed into the clothing before going to find Rick "thanks man, I feel much better after that" his stomach growled at the thought of the pizza hew and his new found friend were going to get. "so are you going to grab a shower now mate, theres a pizza out there with our names on it" the fox chuckled

Pinconious

---------------------------------------------------------------

Tyra looked at Orthrus "I don't mind staying" she said "the alternative is going back to my little house and being on my own" she had now had a taste of what it was like to be in the company of others and wasn't quite sure she wanted it to end "besides what kind of friend would I be if I left you alone when you are clearly upset, we may have only met today my friend but I do care about you" she smiled reassuringly.
"As for humanity, I believe they fear what they don't understand, and a lot of us supernaturals used to rely on humans as a food source, particularly both of my kind, wolf and vampire, they were bound to rise up against us eventually, we are safer underground" she said "well most of the time" she added once again looking upon the damage done in the fight.
Tyra sighed and changed the subject "so at the risk of sounding slightly creepy, I would like to stay here with you if I may"

PanOtterPus

 

[Pinconious]

The bathroom was foggy from when xander used it. It didn't bother him though he liked the steam the hot water created in the shower. He scrubbed the dried bits of blood off of himself as quickly as he could before eventually turning the shower off and heading into his room to change clothes.

Once done he walked out with a towel hanging loosely over his head as he lazily attempted to dry his hair a little.

"So know where the best place to go is?" Rick asked as he sat at his little dining table that overlooked the living room.

Halexia

 

[DergTheDergon]

Her Lilin lover’s playful way of replying to Xaira’s admittedly bold, only half-serious statement made her heart (and a lower part of her, of course) warm, a giddy, slightly mischievous grin adorning her face in expression of that light feeling in her chest that only Naomi could claim to have made her feel thus far. This was quite the feat, despite having been involved with quite a few other ‘lovers’ in her past. Compared to Naomi, though, they all made her feel rather empty even when she was with them, not only when they inevitably left; like like a ‘lover’ and more like a distraction from her lonliness, someone who truly didn’t fill the void that had been in her heart. She deserved far better than them, Xaira now realized; and it seemed that she’d finally found someone arguably more than deserving of her, at least in her eyes.

None of her past partners had lasted very much longer than a one night stand in all honesty, despite some of her past suitors’ insistence that they wanted to stay with her forever. The excuses were as many and varied as the men and women that had left her behind; ‘you’re away too often’ was the most common one, understandably, lending to how important she felt their impending conversation over breakfast would be. Truth be told, if she took any less work she wouldn’t be able to hold onto even this dinky little place. She didn’t do her job for the money, anyway: she would’ve quit long ago if not for her burning (no pun intended) desire to protect those who cannot protect themselves. That was a topic for another day, however: considering Naomi’s clearly-communicated dedication to stay with Xaira and treat her as a true lover, and Xaira knowing deep down that she felt the same way towards her, she knew that this was it… she’d found someone who would undoubtedly, she felt, grow to be far more to her than she thought anyone could be, and that she would stay no matter how long Xaira would have to be away; depending on the outcome of thier discussion of that matter, they may be able to stay together wherever she went. Put more simply, no one in Xaira’s past even close to compared to Naomi, and that was that.

As the question of breakfast was raised, and Xaira had cautioned her about what (admittedly little) she had to work with as far as her near-vagabond’s excuse for a kitchen was concerned, her anxiety was brought down a little as Naomi simply said she’d have to see, in a calm, judgement-free tone.

Giving her lover the grand tour of her admittedly not-so-grand kitchen was not as embarrassing an endeavor as she thought it would be, Naomi clearly understanding why she kept so little around. When she got around to showing her the dragonfire-powered stove, her nerves all but flitted away for the duration of her impassion demonstration of what was clearly her favorite appliance in the place. She was absolutely overjoyed that finally, it would now be put to regular use. Naomi’s reaction made her demeanor yet more giddy, to her slight surprise; her sheer wonder at the magitech behind the magnificent cooking implement warmed her draconic girlfriend’s heart very much; more than breathing fire would, and in a more pleasant way, in fact.

Once they’d both come down from their high induced by a simple appliance (perhaps a side effect, at least on Xaira’s part, of her and Naomi’s shared, budding love and the high left over from the passionate night before) Naomi’s butterflies returned near-instantly to her stomach as she decided to take a chance with that frilly, gaudy, grandma-like apron.

Tossing it over to her horny, er, horned, lover, her eyes gleamed with a mix of amusement, anticipation and growing nervousness as naomi looked the apron over and blushed. The look in naomi’s eyes made Xaira feel that, admittedly aptly, she suspected that it was for the purpose of… intimate roleplaying, to put it as politely as possible; in fact, maybe that wasn’t such an idea after breakfast was served.

She was shaken from her gutterbound thoughts by the only thing that could do so at the moment. Namely, Naomi deciding, after receiving a nod of encouragement from her Draconic lover in response to her nervous request for confirmation that it’d suit her better, to wear the comically girly thing after all.

Xaira found herself utterly glued to the spot she was standing in as Naomi took the plunge, slipping it on. The dragoness was so enraptured by the show that all thought left her; Naomi looked like one of those over-sterotyped, girly maids from what she’d seen of those human cartoons…. Animes, she vaguely remembered them having been called. She’d been shown a few by friends who took vacation on the surface and made sure to come back with souvenirs of the endlessly strange and fascinating things that humans called their culture. Naomi seemed right at home in something like that, and she seemed unbelievably beautiful enough to have come right out of one, Xaira thought. It was not this uncanny vision of her that excited her Draconic lover so much, however; rather, it was how flooringly, arousingly cute she was in that apron! Xaira just wanted to squeeze her… in all the right places.

However, that was not all Naomi had in store for her, much to her delight and pleasure. When she saw a familiar pair of undergarments slip to the floor, replaced by something clearly made for… special evenings, as it were, her heart skipped a beat. Her sparkling eyes, flushed cheeks, and excitedly wagging lizard-tail likely made it very clear how Xaira felt about this before Naomi asked. “Oh, don’t be embarrassed… you look… amazing…” she replied. Xaira found herself giggling, stepping up to her and running her hsnad along her curves and bosom, which the apron did a very good job indeed of accentuating. “Quaint isn’t the word I’d use, honey… not sure I can think of a word sexy enough..” Xaira purred in a succulent, sultry tone. “I already know what I want for dessert,” she teased with a whisper into Naomi’s ear, licking her lips so close Naomi cloud feel her ear moistening a little, before pulling away slightlly, caressing her cheek and gazing at her Lilin lover with an intense hunger that was clearly born of a… baser appetite than one for food, a look Naomi should be very accustomed to seeing in her lover’s eyes after last night. Even after all of that, Naomi still had to make sure, after she’d straightened the thing up as best as she could, if it was cute. “it’s the cutest thing I’ve ever seen, honest to the gods; it doesn’t need to be your size for your that body of yours to pull it off,” she reassured, licking her lips once more. Her tone, as always, was one hundred percent genuine. In order to back up her reassurance, however, she leaned forward and gave her a passionate, yet short kiss, halted by her stomach growling once more. “As much as I’d like to taste your lips, both pairs of ‘em in fact, all morning, my stomach wants something more substantial. Ya got everything?”

Once naomi had confirmed that she didn’t need to rush to the store, as evidenced by a bottle of maple extract Xaira had utterly forgotten existed, Xaira smiled wide. “Perfect… that means I can stay and watch you work from start to finish… as long as you’re comfortable with it, anyway.” She sat down at the kitchen table so as not to be in her way (and to be ready to devour her lover’s finished product), she devoured her eye-candy appetizer ravenously, meeting Naomi’s eyes with a smirk and an enthralled, dreamy look in her eyes every time she looked at her draconic lover, the red-headed woman propping her head up with her arms and lazily wagging her trail in delight, leaning as much towards the kitchen as possible without falling out of the chair.

Soon, a delightful smell began to accompany the equally lovely show. “Gods Naomi, you’re a natural at this…” she swooned, the statement identical in both wording and tone to something she uttered at the height of her passion the night before. In fact, it almost felt as if that near-euphric smell combined with Naomi’s “naughtily innocent cook” look was sending her to heaven again… but that would come afterwards, she reckoned.

The moment that Naomi had put the promised pancakes on the table, Naomi dug in like she hadn’t eaten in three days. After a few bites, however, she remembered that she was in the presence of a woman likely used to far more refined settings; that and, eating like a wild dragon was usually only acceptable when you were living alone, even if you really were a dragon in this case. She slowed down and savored it as best she could, and it wasn’t long before the action came as nayturally to her as wolfing it down. Between bites, she let out sounds and phrases that sincerely showed how absolutely heavenly the pancakes tasted, if the look of utter euphoria upon her face didn’t made that clear enough. Once she was finished, she sat back with a satisfied sigh. “Naomi… where the hell have you been all my life? I’m so damn lucky…” she leaned forward and kissed her. Whispering against Naomi’s lips as she pulled away. “Those were the best damn pancakes I’ve ever tasted.” The words were uneccesary after everything else but Naomi was more than deserving of em in Xaira’s book.

Once Naomi was finished with her own plate. “Now… much as I’d like to go straight back to the bedroom for desert,” she began with a wink, “I’m afraid that if we do that, we won’t have time to discuss some pretty damn important things.” She sat up straight, taking Naoimi’s hand gently in her right hand across the table. The main issue is my lifestyle. Like I told ya, I only live here in deepvale about half of the time… the other half is spent on the road. It’s not exactly a romantic life style, so before I met you I’d kinda thrown the idea of a lifelong relationship out of the window. Speaking of that… I heard your kind live… a really long time. I’d like to hear your thoughts on that too, but first, I want your honest answer to this: would you be alright with me being away for months or even weeks at a time? We’ll keep in touch, of course, and I sure as hell won’t fool around when I know I can come back to the best lay in the whol goddamn world far as I know. Or… would you want to travel with me? You can definitely fight, so I could even set you up with the guild and we could earn double wages from each mission. It’s even feasible we could move out that way. But, I’m honestly real damn worried about leading you into danger every damn day for months.” She took a deep breath. ‘It’s up to you, though, and you can take all the time you need to think about it. I won’t have to take a job for at least a week or two, anyway.” She gazed into Naomi’s eyes with curiosity, ready to hear anything and everything she had to say, and clearly more than willing to do anything she needed to keep Naomi as content as she possibly could; preferably, she’d keep her sexy little lover the happiest woman in the world 24/7, but Xaira’d been in enough relationships to know that that was an unrealistic expectation in any relationship. Regardless, she listened and watched attentively for Naomi’s response.

Rustic

 

[DergTheDergon]

Fifer’s chest warmed slightly at Gabe’s smile despite that it still ached from her mending broken ribs, making her giggle for a little longer, until his words brought to surface her misgivings and she let them be known as she was often wont to do. The way he stopped them in their tracks, smile instantly replaced by a frown and denial of her self-deprecating words steadfast, caused her to freeze in place for a moment in disbelief. Once the shock of such unheard insistence that she was beautiful, ad that he even preferred a ‘strong woman’ type unlike most men she’d met, said trait one that she undoubtedly embodied and had done so from a young age, something changed in her. just a little droplet of confidence in her appearance fell back into her from his mouth, so to speak; such confidence was drained dry from her from the ‘dragon incident’, as she and those close to her have referred to the mission that left her faced burned ever since it occurred. Once she’d recomposed herself, she spoke, her tone genuinely grateful but a little coy nonetheless. “Y’know… no one else has ever said anything like that to me… you deserve a reward for that attitude. That’lll get ya somewhere with me.” She winked, then laid a surprise kiss upon Gabe’s cheek before begin to walk him to the door, right through it, and down the street despite her body protesting. She’s made longer journeys in worse conditions, she mentally reminded herself as she walked, in pain, over to the Chinese place. Gabriel’s stomach growling in kind to hers, and his playful, yet respectful answer to her request-cum-demand to go to the place she wanted, only served to lighten her mood even more, making her one hundred percent sure that she hadn’t felt this happy in a very long time… in fact, she knew she hadn’t felt this way ever since she was a little girl and the troubles of the world didn’t seem near to her at all. Those were the days, but, as she held Gabriel’s hand and walked into her favorite restaurant on their first date, she had a feeling that her future, their future, could be far, far brighter than she ever imagined her life could turn out. She’d certainly never felt her heart swell like it was now. The smile on her face dampened and turned into the beginnings of a frown, however, as Gabriel responded in a cautionary manner to her request to allow her the freedom to move as much as she knew she could, despite her injuries. She looked down, frustrated with his words, but thought about it for a moment than sighed. “I admit you’re not wrong... honestly, I’ve already ended up extending a couple of my past hospital stays, to be honest. I promise I won’t do nothing but just walk us back to the hospital when we’re done,” she promised, with an admittedly disappointed ton to her voice, as the pair of them made it to the place in question, Fifer chuckling in response to Gabriel’s quip. ‘Good, you already know not to tell me I can’t do things. I don’t have to train that into ya.” She gave him a playful push, snuggling against his side as the pair settled in, Xhao providing entertaining banter and making Fifer feel right at home indeed.At Gabe’s response to his statement regarding his constant presence at the hospital, Xhao grinned and nodded respectfully. “Yes, of course we cannot. I can see why she finally opened herself up with you. I can tell you are a good man.” He rested his meaty hand gently upon Gabe’s shoulder. He took their orders joyfully, chuckling a bit at Gabe’s statement along with his double order of the Fifer special. “Yes indeed, you’ve already got her down to a t. She’s always, always right. Keep that in mind, and you won’t get hurt.” He guffawed loudly as he walked off to the kitchen to whip up their dinner for two, leaving a brightly blushing Fifer rolling her eyes and shaking her head at him.

“He likes to tease me… he’s one of the very few people that can get away with it, too.” Fifer broke out laughing again at Gabe’s next statement, playfully and gently pushing his shoulder. “What if I told you I’ve never even wanted to bring another guy here before?” her tone was teasing, but her expression grew softer, more serious, after a moment. She hesitated for a moment before slowly leaning into him, planting her head against his chest while she wrapped her arms around him, snuggling into him. “I’m serious, though… I’ve never even cuddled with a guy before. In fact… you were even my first kiss, believe it or not,” she told him quietly, blushing even more. “Even before I became ‘that woman with a burnt face and rage in her eyes’, I had zero interest in romance; I just kinda felt like love wasn’t for me. Only when I met you did I feel like putting myself out there was worth it whatsoever. Looks like I made the right choice, taking my chances with you.” Her tone as she said this was the sweetest way Gabe would undoubtedly have ever heard her speak, accentuated by rubbing his chest gently with one hand, the other grasping for his closest hand to hold. “Hell… I don’t think I’ve ever felt this comfortable around another person before… where the hell’ve you been all my life, huh?”

It was on that note that dinner arrived. Xhao simply laid down a signed note saying ‘paid for, chef’s compliments.’ “You’re a damn good man, Xhao. I promise I’ll pay this dinner for two off and then some, especially since we’ve got quite the mission ahead of us after this.” Xhao stopped in his tracks. “Wait a moment… they’ve already got some other big risk job lined up for you? Look at you! You won’t be able to even run for a couple of weeks, at least!” ‘I know, Xhao… but from the sounds of it, they’ve found something huge… something groundbreaking. They need the best.” Xhao sighed. “yes, yes, I know how it is. Well, I’ve got some things to attend to in my kitchen. You two have a wonderful dinner. And Gabe?” He looked Gabe straight in the eyes. “You make sure nothing happens to our girl, yes?” “Can it Xhao, I’ll be-“ “You might be fine, yes, but as your friend I can’t help but worry that they’re already throwing you back into the fire. I witnessed first hand what that mission did to you… I felt like the guild was killing you inside, Fifer. Now… it seems like they might just kill you outside. They better not happen, you hear?” “It won’t, Xhao, I promise.” “Good. Make sure to come back here lots before you go, alright? You deserve as much damn good food as you can put down before risking your neck again so soon.” Fifer nodded, and as he walked away, she sighed, clinging to Gabe for a few more moments. ‘Way to ruin the mood, Xhao… I guess he has a point but he worries too damn much. I’ll be fine… especially with you by my side.” She hugged him sidelong for a moment, relishing his warmth, before she separated and began to dig in. “Don’t put anything on this,” she warned pushing the soy sauce, salt and pepper in front of them to the side for emphasis. “you’ll ruin it. Xhao knows what he’s doing.”
With that, she began to eat, and her hunger took control. She ate it like a barnyard animal, but didn’t stop long enough to even think about it. Gabe likely wolfed it down just as fast, causing her to raise an eyebrow. ‘Did you starve yourself while you waited for me? Couldn’t even leave for an hour or less just to eat a decent meal?” Her tone was equally shocked and a little grateful.Once they were both finished, she leaned over and hugged Gabe once more, leaning her head against his. ‘Damn good food, am I right?” She asked, grinning, the heaviness of Xhao’s words having more or less left her.

“Y’know… it’s funny… before you came into my hospital room, I was worried sick about that mission we’ve got coming up. Now? I’m not worried at all... I’ve got my own personal sharpshooter watching my back now.” She smiled, turned her head, and leaned in to kiss his lips again. This time, due to the now-empty restaurant dining room around them, she didn’t stop for quite a while, making out with him until Gabe himself pulled away. Once that blissful moment was over, she buried her head in his chest. “Okay… let’s go back to the hospital. Once we get there, though, I need you to go home and get some damn sleep, alright? You look like death. I’ll give you my phone number, and you can come back first thing in the morning. But you need to take care of yourself too, y’know. Oh and, umm… to be honest…” she blushed deep red. “My legs feel like lead from the walk over. Could you… carry me back?” She looked the most vulnerable he’d ever seen her right now, clearly not happy to admit she needed help with something as simple as walking a couple of blocks. But, she just gave him a lecture about taking care of himself so, she figured she had to walk her talk now.
PanOtterPus

 

[Halexia]

Xander thought for a while there were a few pizzerias he liked but he knew which he liked the best "Giuseppes... ain't no place better for pizza, or if there is I haven't found it yet" he smiled at his quick thinking, and stood up eager to get out of the door and to Pizza.

He looked at Rick and gave him an inquisitive look "unless you know someplace better of course, its up to you man" he was new to the whole living vampire deal and didn't know if his friend needed some special requirement with his pizza (rare steak or the like) and didn't want to ask for fear of causing offense, he swished his tails excitedly as he awaited his friends response.

Pinconious

 

[Pinconious]

Rick smiled "Giuseppes sounds great" He said as he stood up from the table, grabbed his coat and walked out of the door heading towards the pizza joint.

"You know I wont kill you right?" Rick asked Xander, "I may be a vampire but I don't get offended that easily" Rick could tell from the foxes body language that he was treading lightly with some of his words.

It was something he noticed in a lot of people he spoke too, of course not many took him for a vampire first go, but once they realised they began to speak as if they were balancing on a tight rope with no safety net beneath them.

"You can come out and ask me anything, I don't mind really, I mean it would make a nice change having someone actually be willing to ask those sorts of questions." Rick smiled though he knew he was probably jumping to conclusions it was best to get that out there just so the Xander knew he was find to ask anything he had on his mind.

Halexia

 

[Rustic]

Naomi's face couldn't help but scrunch up at her partner's supportive reply. Not out of embarrassment, as it sometimes did, but out of sheer, overwhelming delight. It still felt nerve-wracking to be here, to be putting herself on such blatant display in front of someone so rounded, but those nerves were drowned in a torrent of elation.

She trusted Xaira. That felt obvious to her as she strengthened under the other woman's words, felt herself excite at her hungry touch. Maybe doing so was baseless, considered their overall unfamiliarity with each other, but she'd been letting herself anyway. Because, really, she just wanted to. Trusting people was hard. Especially with people who wanted as desperately as they did to coexist, it was hard to be sure what was said in truth from lies said for ulterior purposes. To have some degree of confidence in someone that she might really know, even that confidence was undue, felt heartening to her. Steadying. That showed obviously in her intial overjoyed response - the smiling eyes and the wild grin she tried to hide to better control - but even just as well in what came after. She relaxed into Xaira's arms as she felt them around herself, stared up to her complimentary lover as contented as a cat in the sun. Even in her subdued way, Naomi clearly and earnestly let herself cherish every word.

"Thank you," was all she could softly say as Xaira finished her glowing praise. She straightened up a little after the fact, feeling much more up to the play than she had even before. Certainly helped at first by her lover's cute dip in for a kiss. At least, until she heard a sudden grumbling from below. That little noise was enough to bring them both back to the subject of her real duty, it seemed, but her lips still formed a smile as they parted from Xaira's. She found it so endearing that this, of all ways, was how she was being reminded of what she needed to do. She nodded, then, to Xaira's next comment - nose crinkling only a bit during in faux playful offense to her shameless innuendo - and looked to the world around them for guidance on her response.

"If we're lucky," she concluded vaguely, turning briefly to give her partner a wink. At that, she then sincerely took to the task of actually finding out, which lead into her finding the maple. She giggled, just a bit, to Xaira's response to it, but as she thought it over, it felt... almost strange? Still, she didn't really hesitate, giving an easy, unfettered nod.

"Go right ahead," Naomi abided. And getting to it, it was fun! She even wore a playful smirk as she went about it, finding the whole idea and the situation rather amusing. A secondary task in light of it came to mind, with her suddenly considering and implementing what she considered tasteful ways of moving in such delicate coverings. Still, she couldn't help but find the odd feeling from before creep in on her as she worked. It hadn't just come back, she knew - it had persisted - but through the process of , she suddenly found the words to make it coherent thought. She hadn't really ever liked being looked at before. At least, not especially. And, while she liked Xaira, just being reminded of herself was enough to make her self-conscious like this. Naomi knew it was different with Xaira then for someone else, but the same intrusive thought persisted, regardless. Really, then, it was probably just her nerves.

So then, she'd just work through it, as she usually did. She tried to maintain her smile with that resolution, finishing up her meal in her methodical way and ending with a victorious sigh of relief. Her previous worries fell away easily enough with a look to her eager draconic lover, and the only sign of her previous deeper thoughts - her faroff look - disappeared as she started serving up at her anticipated dish. She let herself be lost in the satisfaction of seeing the stacks easily slide onto the plate, one after another. And then, ever so delicately, just the lightest drizzle of maple syrup following them up. Even when having been so distracted, she still didn't mess cooking up. That fact was grounding. She beamed as she finished setting up both her own and Xaira's plate, and only continued as she sat down to the redhead's ravenous appetite really show it's teeth. She did notice a shift, too, after a moment - as if it had not been appropriate - but she paid it no mind as she bemusedly began to take in her own meal. The real delightful taste of this breakfast came entirely from her partner's way of showing her joy, and she could only watch with quiet appreciation and pride taking in all of her happy sounds.

Once Xaira finished, Naomi quietly set aside the fork she had been twirling around for a small time to better address her sentiments.

"I told you," she whispered jokingly as two of them parted again. She had never really expected to have been given such high praise, but that just meant her practice of the art had all been worthwhile. This frilly apron did denote some sort of status at cooking after all. While she certainly found herself entertained by a sudden idea that maybe it was the apron who had been doing all the work (how spooky!), she already knew there was a shifting tone to the conversation at hand. So instead, she lightly took the empty plates at their table, stacked and pushed them to the side, and leaned in subtly closer, ready for the serious talk she had already anticipated was coming.

She couldn't have anticipated the question, but, after hearing it, she didn't feel too caught off-guard. She had considered it in depth beforehand, but she had at least acknowledge some of it in her own mind before this scene had arisen. Xaira's passing comment about their lifespans was really the only thing she hadn't really thought of recently, but, she still had. Really, though, none of these facts made the question any easier to answer. It was complex, with really several parts to it, and there was no easy way to broach it. Naomi's fingers brushed the table in thought for many few seconds, her eyes downturned and unmoving, but after a slightly longer period of time than perhaps Xaira anticipated, she finally opened her mouth to respond.

"I am... certainly flattered you would say so-" she began, looking fittingly bashful as she admitted as much, but her face fell as she semed to ready herself to continue, suddenly serious, "-but..."

"I wouldn't say I'm much of a fighter," she said. "I believe the young woman from before was just inexperienced - in hand-or-hand, or, maybe just fighting on a whole." Really, it was hard for her to say for certain with the group they had faced. Had she just gotten lucky enough to go against someone so utterly unprepared for her? Was sending someone like her out strategic? As she assessed it further, she could only feel opening an even dizzyingly deeper rabbit hole. It almost shocked her, now that she was to this point, how the events of the night prior hadn't occurred to her again until just now. But, as she was now mulling it over in the light of day, it really seemed unfathomable such an event had ever happened. So many fighters had appeared, forming such a big operation, all working together for such a heavily consequential goal... An organization with palpable weight to potentially accomplish their radical goals had emerged, and she apparently hadn't even heard of them until they'd smashed through the doors. It was disquieting - even acknowledging that she had come to this conclusion by questioning their ineptitude - because the numbers had been enough to make that fact inconsequential, and that made only made it worse, in her mind.

However... this was just not to time or place to try and divine what was going on in the world. It weighed on her mind - and in the few, tensely quiet moments she paused to reflect on it, it might be evident that it did - but she brushed off the traces of her concern again with a more pleasant expression. She was still very sober looking as she continued on, but she left a hint of levity in her gaze. There were plenty of other big questions to wonder about, she knew, ones that she could actually get somewhere with. Those took precedence. Especially considering her parting, lingering feeling on the topic she was leaving behind; that it would be coming up again in the near future. Ugh.

"Against someone decently prepared, I would be easily outclassed," she simply stated. The levity from before is still present, present in her modest tone, but on a whole, the sentiment still read as more of a declaration of what she perceived to be fact more than anything else. And, well... it was. Almost anyone could throw a chair or manage to wrestle someone untrained to the ground. It was a fluke that she had managed to come out of it looking as if she knew much else.

But, that was that. "It does seems alluring, though," she mentioned, looking at the topic of joining up with a guild more. Indeed, after she said as much, her eyes seemed to glaze over just a bit, lost in a fond daydream of what such a lifestyle could bring. Being together, see so many new sights, battling great injustices in such handsome ways... but she gave a small, abrupt cough before she lost herself any further. "In it's own way," she clarified quickly, generally. It probably wasn't best to be romanticizing such a dangerous lifestyle with how little she truly knew about the true perils of being an adventurer. If she knew, it probably wouldn't suit her at all. ...But maybe a little. But right now, she knew, it was foolish, and it seemed best to put it out of her mind, if just for now.

"Let's... put a pin in it," she decided, finally. To that effect, she raised her hand from the table, made a 'C' with her fingers, and pushed her fingers forward, as if to mime the idea of pinning it literally. For a moment, the edge of her mouth cracked an uncomfortable smile at her own action, but her expression promptly smoothed back over to it's former neutrality. She still didn't know why this framework of one or the other was being posed so absolutely, but if these were the paths with which she was being presented, then these were the ones she would entertain. For now, though it left some glaring questions. That meant, it only left...

"Right," she said, before clearing her throat. "The first option."

There's another long pause between her words, and while this one was a bit shorter than the one before, it is maybe, and understandably, a little more tense. For Naomi it was, at least, as it isn't just an idle wondering this time, but a deeply critical, unsure consideration. When she finally comes out with what she has this time, it is markedly more unsure, though it's somewhat clear why from just what it is she decided to say alone.

"It's awhile." Her expression is even and mostly unwavering even in the face of her own uncertainty, but the corner of her mouth frowns, as if even she finds this non-answer unacceptable. She doesn't rush to doing it, but she does quickly clarify.

"The thing is," she said, taking a steadying breath. "I honestly can't tell you anything about what makes relationships stop working. I'm still wrapping myself around the idea they work at all." She smiled a little sheepishly at the admittance, but obviously not from any real joy that came from saying so. Her eyes darted away cautiously, only to slowly fall back on Xaira with, it seemed, a different angle.

"It's nice to think, 'I'll just handle anything', but, I don't really know," she said. Without any hint of a more pessimistic of optimistic thinking behind it, it seemed truly honest. She really had no idea. It almost seems like she might leave it on that thought, to let Xaira decide for herself what to take away from this observation, but her mouth suddenly opened to go on.

"But... I have a life." She said as much just as impartially as her statement before, but once she does, she nodded lightly to herself. Let herself relax a little more. "I have things I do," she said, like was only now forming the thought for herself. "and, like you said, I'll be here awhile. Waiting can be annoying, sometimes even agonizing, but life is mostly waiting, and I've managed so far."

"And..." She smiled, once again, but this time, it was sincerely lighthearted. Warm. "You're worth waiting for." She looked down for a moment, folded her hands together a little nervously, but looked back up to Xaira surely. Almost with arguably the appearance of being more put together now then when she had been being serious.

"And if it doesn't work," she added. "If we're not satisfied, we can, pop-" she mimed again with her fingers, but this time, in reverse, "take the pin down. Revisit our options."

Her smile only widened at that, almost looking eager to be adding something a little more cheery into the conversation, no matter how silly. In any case, when it was said and done - when Xaira, presumably, had something to quip back in response to this overly-long feeling spiel of information she had to get off her chest, there was a question of her own she had to ask. Actually, she had many, and what she was really contemplating was what she was going to put forward. There was so much stuff she need to know right now, and unfortunately, not all of it directly had to to with the two of them. Her expression darkened somewhat. She almost felt shameful for still wanting so imminently to ask about P.O.W, and what she knew and figured from last night. Still, while she knew full well it wasn't an immoral or unreasonable to ask about, it wasn't this conversation's focus. Instead of waiting around, giving Xaira anymore time to notice or worry about her sudden rigidness, she impulsively chose something - something she felt was of an equal importance, if just to her.

"What do you not like?" she asked. She touched one of her nails to the table and coyly traced it across the table. "What would be something I could do, right now, that'd make you like me a little less?"

DergTheDergon

 

[Halexia]

Xanders demeaner changed and he looked a little disappointed that he wasn't as good an actor as he thought he was "that obvious huh?" he wrung his hands "I apologise I am new to this whole 'living vampire' thing, I mean what do you eat? does sunlight affect you? do you sleep in a coffin?" Xander didnt know where all this curiosity had come from but now he had started he couldn't stop "do stakes affect you? what about garlic?" he suddenly stopped and looked at his friend "you do know you can ask me about my race too, I mean I know Kitsune are kinda rare... a dying breed, thats kinda one of the reasons I went to the gala"

Xander looked stopped walking and looked up at the familiar red sign of his favourite pizza house "and here we are" he smiled and started walking in.

Pinconious

 

[Pinconious]

"Defiantly that obvious" Rick said. "I'm not surprised really, there aren't many others out their like me, at least not that I am aware off, never met another living vampire in my entire life" Rick sighed. "AS to what I eat, anything really, normal food is all I need well aside from a little blood especially given what I can do" He followed Xander inside the pizza joint. "as for what harms me, not sure really, never come across anything not that anything gets close enough to do anything"

Rick found a table and sat down, "well then tell me about you, about your race" Rick realised that this was starting to sound a bit like a date. Out in public talking about themselves even though it was just two new friends getting to know each other in reality but since the gala was not that long ago and that was where they met he was starting to wonder if people thought he and the fox were dating.

Halexia

 

[Halexia]

Xander exhaled sharply as he sat down "well Kitsune are the nine tailed variety of fox, our power is linked to our tails most of us our fire spirits thats the most common power amongst Kitsune, though occasionally we have other elements too but its pretty rare, we can shift between full fox and a human disguise but as you can tell" he pointed to his ears "I havent quite got the shift down" he shrugged "we come in a variety of colours.. brown, black, red and, in my case, white" he started flicking through the menu "anything else you want to know just ask, I'd be happy to answer any and all questions"

Pinconious

 

[PanOtterPus]

Orthrus allowed himself to grin at her response. He usually warmed to people quite quickly but his history made folk a little weary around him. As such, he was thankful Tyra would spend time with him so readily. “Well, I think we’ve done all we can to help in here. I wouldn’t say no if ya wanted to come with me to the gate? No asking to get out now, though.” He winked, half joking with her.

Orthrus had had dealings in the past with “friends” who only wanted to know him to get out the gate without following the usual protocol. He was tired of being used for his position, and he didn’t actually believe Tyra would do such a thing, but he was cautious nonetheless. He would love the company though...

Halexia

-----------

So far, Gabe was over the moon with how their day was going. The pair had engaged in playful banter, flirty touches and chuckles here and there; Fifer had swallowed her pride in an effort to ease his worry about her condition, an act he had never expected but was undoubtedly grateful for; he himself had managed to boost Fifer’s confidence in herself, evident in her thoroughly more confident posture next to him, as if she had been holding back slightly. Each was enamoured by the other, anyone could see it as they strolled into the establishment and chatted away with Xhao, Gabe laughing at the man’s admission. “I’ll keep that in mind, my friend.” He playfully nudged the woman in question as Xhao left.

The sound of her laughter was music to his ears, even more so was her confession that followed. He leaned into her soft hand as it caressed his face, a little shocked that she had never been with another man. Her tone softened him though, almost making his heart melt. “I’m honoured to have been given the chance. Truth is, I’ve never felt like this with anyone else, so I get where you’re coming from. Sure I’ve had dates here and there, but nothing serious, it was more so my friends would stop complaining about how lonely I looked. I never truly felt lonely until I realised I wasn’t with you - I was always more of a work guy, and it looks like work has rewarded me in the best way possible.” Gabe let out a laugh at this, turning his face to kiss the palm of her hand. “I promise you wont regret taking that chance.”

Gabe’s stomach rumbled at the smell of the fresh plates of food placed before them then. His mood dampened, however, at Xhao’s concern, giving a simple but forceful nod of agreement at his demand to keep their lady safe. Gabe had no intentions of a repeat of their last mission – never again. Gabe returned Fifer’s small hug as Xhao silently left once again. “He just cares, as I do. It’s understandable, but you know your own limits. As long as you mind them, we’ll pull it off.” With that, and her gentle warning not to ruin the food, they tucked in – and boy did they tuck, each as famished as the other. “Oh, I ate, not much granted, but hospital food sucks – this? This is heaven.”

“Damn straight,” was all he managed before they were entangled in another kiss, hungry for more than food. They seemed to lose themselves in each other, before Gabe remembered breathing was a thing and pulled away with a breathless chuckle. His voice came out in a rasp in response to her demand. “Yes ma’am. Like I wasn’t going to visit anyway.” He gave her a cheeky grin before helping her to her feet, helping her to the door, waiting till they were outside before lifting her fireman style. “I’d say don’t get used to this, but I quite enjoy having you in my arms,” he joked as he walked them back to the hospital.

Once there, Gabe’s heart dropped at the thought that their day was finally over. He knew she needed her rest, as he did his own, but it didn’t make it any easier as he lay her in her bed, kissed her forehead and was forced to leave the room. They both needed sleep, they would both be here tomorrow and they’d both still be just as smitten as they were now. And this kept him going.

DergTheDergon

 

[DergTheDergon]

Xaira found herself smiling, absolutely beaming in fact, at the look on Naomi’s face. It only made her look (somehow) even cuter in the apron she was wearing. Yet another small reason of many that made her feel like a perfect fit in Xaira’s life. Her heart felt as it was being lifted up into the very roof of her chest at Naomi’s clearly elated response to her (perhaps slightly over-the-top) praise. It was immediately clear, before she even spoke, that she was certain that Xaira truly meant what she had said (which, of course, she had, but that was another story altogether). It was obvious that, already, Naomi trusted Xaira with her life… her heart warmed immensely with the thought, as trust had been either hard or impossible to gain from all of her previous partners. Also, Xaira had always felt as if she had a sense for people, and she just knew that Naomi was, by far, the most trustworthy of them all; which was ironic due to her race’s reputation. Xaira sympathized with that aspect of Naomi very much, in fact; not feeling as if she belonged in her own race, if indeed that was how Naomi felt. Xaira suspected that, if she did not struggle with such feelings often, she at least did from time to time; the Dragoness could tell from the way her Lilin lover spoke of herself.

Xaira giggled, the dragoness highly amused by the adorable “thank you” that only seemed to add to the unbelievably cute feel the frilly apron gave Naomi. Giving her one more firm, loving and sensual kiss on the lips, she then dug in to her scrumptious food, pausing to gaze over at Naomi with equal parts loving affection and lustful hunger. It as clear that the outfit she was now adorning both endeared Xaira and turned her on. It was apparent as she ate that Naomi was happy that her food pleased her draconic girlfriend as much as it did.

Sadly, as these things always go, Xaira reliazed once she ate, as she alluded to her lover in her normal playful way to help allieviate the heaviness of the topic a little, that now would be the time for the “what now” talk. Once she was done saying her piece, Xaira met Naomi’s eyes with rapt attention, doing her best not to give into her anxieties and trust that her fears would not come true.

As Naomi began humbly, Xaira nodded solemnly. She already understood, from her admittance that she wasn’t much of a fighter, which option she’d be going for. Of course, those weren’t the only possible solutions for their long distance predicament; she planned to explain why she presented only those two solutions later. However, little did she know, Naomi was gearing up to push her to explain now. It wouldn’t matter in the end, little did either of them know… something was coming that would render the small threats littered throughout the beneath trivial; something that would require everyone’s talents, the entirety of the beneath working together, to give any one of them a chance of survival. As far as they knew, however, the couple’s current conversation was what would decide their near future. As such, the air was heavy as Naomi went about explaining her point of view in all this; slowly, carefully.

Xaira would’ve been lying if she had said she wasn’t a little disheartened when Naomi then, after laying her thoughts on the situation bare, put it in plain words that she had chosen her first option; whilst she was of course worried about Naomi having to fight as much as Xaira herself did, as she had earlier expressed to her Lilin lover, she couldn’t deny that she felt lonely at the very idea of having to be away from Naomi for months at a time, even though she had known since the night before that such had been a very real and likely possibility from the beginning. However, the heaviness that thought had brought to her was all but shattered as Naomi said a small handful of very sweet words.

“You’re worth waiting for.”

At those four words, the heaviness in her heart simply disappeared in that moment, as she realized something. Staring deeply into Naomi’s eyes, she leaned forward and said a very sincere “thank you… that means a lot to me…” then, her loving smile turned into a grin as she licked her lips and said “you’re worth waiting for much more than I am, though… at least as far as I’m concerned.” She ran a hand through her lover’s hair. “Yeah… I think this’ll work out alright... and I understand how yyou feel comepletely… my work is… dangerous, I know that… honestly, I dream to someday settle down and have a bit more of a stable job but… I’m just not sure what I want to do… fighting is what I’ve always been good at, y’know? Either way… just prepare yourself every time the day I return starts rolling around… I don’t think I’ll be able to control myself when I finally see you again… every time.” She wrapped up this discussion with one more kiss, feeling immensely relieved that the conversation went as well as it did. Similarly, she felt reassured that, although they’d be apart rather often, the time they had together in between would be more than worth the wait every time… and in fact, it would be even sweeter simply because of that.

Then, Naomi, to Xaira’s surprise, had her own question to ask. It was more… bold than she was expecte,d and caught her off guard. She thought silently for a moment, becmong anxious that Naomi would not be thrilled at her answer. However, her rational mind countered, why would she be expected to be happy with the answer to sucha question to begin with? She wouldn’t be. So why should she be worried? There was nothing Xiara had said to her so far, despite her previous anxieties, that she had not taken very well. With that thought, she met naomi’s eyes intensely again before speaking softly.

“I suppose, more than anything… I don’t like… uncertainty. If you had told me you could not garuntee that you'd be fine here... I'd honestly be devestated.” she began, her voice a little shaky. “You might be wondering why I only gave you the two options… the reason why is simple. This way, I know you’ll be right here when I come back, every time. With the other option, I know you’ll always be by my side. It’s… comforting to know reliably where you’ll be, I suppose. It might sound silly… I also am not very fond of dishonesty, so much so that I live by the words ‘say what you mean, mean what you say’. I know we won’t have a problem with that, though. I’ve developed a sense for lying over the years, and you are the first person I’ve dated who has never lied to me on the first date. Not only that; you laid everything bare, said everything you felt needed to be said, just like I did. It’s so refreshing, because nearly everyone else I meet is a chronic liar; to themselves, to others, or both. There’s one last thing I despise… discrimination, in all its forms. The audacity of POW, to so violently protest an effort to better the lives of everyone living here, including them, and especially the words of that wolf, denouncing us so fully, angered me beyond belief. I’ve been known to start fights in the streets whenever I see someone treating a member of another race like dirt… it makes me sick. That’s another thing I love about you… you’re the most non-judgemental person I have ever met. Either way… that’s all I can think of, in terms of things I can’t tolerate anyway.“ Pausing for a moment to let it sink in, she then straightened up, giving Naomi her rapt attention once more. “While we’re on the subject, wat about you? What don’t you like, love?” Her posture was relaxed, yet attentive, making it clear that whatever Naomi had to say she would have an open mind to receive it.

Rustic

 

[Halexia]

"Gate?" Tyra asked curiously "Gate to where?" she had no idea about the gate of which he spoke "and why would I want to get out I feel perfectly safe where I am thank you" she smiled cheekily walking with her friend happy that he had asked her to join him, and a strange new feeling in the pit of her stomach, what was that? it resembled a gassy feeling but it wasn't disappearing as easily as the gassy feelings usually did.

She realised she was running to keep up with him, but she assumed that was because of the height difference it didn't really bother her she just didn't want him to get too far ahead and possibly (very unlikely she was aware) lose sight of him again, she remembered how worried she felt when she had lost sight of him before and the million different scenarios that played out in her head, how relieved she was when the large hound with his voice had stood beside her like a great protector, he was protecting her, she smiled at this thought... of all the people in the place it was her he had come looking for , she allowed her mind to play out a series of 'what ifs?', what if he had never come to look for her? What if something had happened to him? How would she feel? she felt her stomach sink at the thought and then another what if came to her mind.. What if I had followed instinct and hugged him as soon as I heard his voice? would he have gone mad? she shook her head trying to shake these thoughts off 'Don't get ahead of yourself Tyra' she thought.

She once again craned her neck to look up at him "by the way" she said quietly "I'm honoured that you came back to help me, thank you." she didn't realise her voice had once again returned to the shy timid little thing she appeared to be when she first arrived.

PanOtterPus