[Mature] Thin Line (Aura)

[Fionn]

Hamis 32, 2719 | Midday
Laboratory Beta

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This meeting had become truly delicious, definitely not what he’d expected when she’d walked into the room; he didn’t think that either of them could have predicted this. It wasn’t just good on his end though, he could see that and so he didn’t think she’d actually have cared about the admittance that he’d kept walled up even before she’d arrived: he had no idea what to say to her about the research. He hadn’t known what his sister had wanted from him, what Aura had wanted from him — not this, she certainly hadn’t come for this — and he’d been bewildered when the responsibility was passed back to him. He’d talked with her and paved the way but then he’d pushed responsibility to his sister who he’d thought would either initiate her or allow one of the professors to do it. That it should have come back to him was unbelievable but he’d accepted it and he’d used it as ammunict against his sister to hurry her departure. But he hadn’t wanted to discuss the research further with Aurelie. He had nothing to say on that matter at all, wasn’t that funny?

Fionn certainly found it funny but then he was pretty inclined to chuckle away at anything right about now. Well, maybe laughter wasn’t his response to everything.

For instance, when she pressed into him and he reacted instinctually instead of engaging his brain, her expression was marvellous, her surprise hardly the most delicious part. There was a glint in her eye, an awe at witnessing such a thing. When he pressed up into her, he was gratified to see a sort of wonder there as well as an answering lust. She wasn’t put off, no — far from it in fact — and it was made all the better by her shy admittance.

Was she breathing a little heavier? Yes, she seemed to be. It was his turn to wonder, his turn to question how girls even- Could they be pushed to the same point that he be pushed? Was there something in them for that? Something that could break? Fionn had no idea and was strangely embarrassed to ask but if it was possible, it apparently wasn’t necessary for pregnancy. Not that he wanted- It just hadn’t been mentioned in that regard so he didn’t know and the only way he’d find out was to ask. Just… not yet. She did seem to be edging towards something though. The teenager was having some sort of effect, he simply didn’t understand how.

“No. Not bad,” he whispered, smirking slightly albeit a little shy himself. He didn’t think it was bad — he certainly hoped it wasn’t bad — for her. She clearly desired things too so it was ridiculous to think that she couldn’t get off the same as he did. He just… had no idea how and that worried him a little because he was used to knowing how to push buttons. He’d always ensured that whoever he was with was satisfied, even if they didn’t always have the courtesy — or frankly give a damn — to do the same for him. Even if he broke first, he always repaid his partner in kind so what if he- No, he was pretty much guaranteed to if she remained in his lap but if Aura didn’t, he didn’t know how-

It was an awful way to be thinking, nerve wracking enough that he felt himself wilt a bit, shoulders hunching for a reason other than the scar he’d just mentioned. It didn’t help that she had seen it before but hadn’t mentioned it, that knowledge worrying him immensely because she’d had all this time to think that he might have- Fionn has wanted to prepare her and apparently that wasn’t going to happen.

“It’s a l-l-long story. I don’t know if- It’s not a good story…” he admitted in a whisper, the last part voiced hardly above his breath. He averted his gaze, unable to look at her and keep thoughts of that- that man in his head at the same time as if that association alone would sully her. The servant did his best to shove Ayden from his mind but the mood had changed and he feared it was his fault. No wonder she didn’t move to unfasten buttons as she’d seemed so eager to do before. No wonder she glanced at the door, her mind obviously sobered by his own self-conscious anxiety. But then she reached behind her and he got confused.

The middle Madden was quite slow on the uptake until she shrugged out of the pinafore and moved to her own buttons. It was his turn to glance at the door, panic setting in as he found himself unable to think of what to do. What was he meant to do with- with this?

“Aura, you don’t have to- Maybe now isn’t-”

His protests were weak because they were hardly protests at all, the young man hypnotised by the movements of her fingers. They couldn’t—shouldn’t—do this.

You aren’t doing anything though, an inner voice pointed out. He told it to piss off. He would pick a time like this to be smart with himself, wouldn’t he?

In spite his farcical protests, the boy watched her with eager anticipation, unsure just what would be revealed like a present being unwrapped. Mainly, he had no idea how far she’d go.

And then she uncovered the burn, shoulders hunching even as she stutteringly explained. It was ugly — what scar wasn’t? — and livid, despite evidently being healed. It looked like a sore one. He knew that his own burns still ached a bit sometimes, all of his scar tissue ached at times, but he did worry that it would hurt as he touched her. He couldn’t help himself, he didn’t even think about it, he just reached out, fingertips barely skimming across its surface for fear she’d flinch or wince.

Did it look bad? Yes, but it wasn’t really that interesting, just a scar. In truth, he was far more interested in the tops of her breasts, eyes finding them more frequently than the angry scar she bore in spite of the fact it screamed for attention. He could understand why she was self-conscious about it although hers kind of made sense; he doubted that its origins were as shameful as the one on his shoulder. Which… was what this was about, wasn’t it? She’d seen how he’d been about the bite mark and had decided to reveal something of her own.

He swallowed around a lump in his throat. He was touched.

“Aurelie…” he murmured, soft and almost reverent. He didn’t know what to say, didn’t know how to acknowledge this without it coming out of his mouth all wrong. So instead, he let his actions do the talking. When her hands moved hesitantly back to the buttons at his collar, he caught them in his, setting them on his shoulders so that they wouldn’t get in his way and then leaned forward and very gently kissed the mark.

He drew back, face flaming, dark eyes full of uncertainty.

“I’m sorry…” Fionn whispered. He thought it was an apology for touching without permission, or for putting his lips so close to her breasts but he wasn’t sure. He was simply apologising. It’d serve for something.

He glanced away for a moment, gaze finding the door and wondering. It was unlocked so anyone could walk in, unlikely given that no professors were here and he didn’t think that either of them would enter but it didn’t matter to them if the door was unlocked or not. They both had keys. In fact there was a key in the-

“Circle forgive me!” he exclaimed and then gently went to move her off his lap. “I just need to- Won’t be a minute!”

If she’d let him get up then he’d fetch the key from its hiding place and place it in the lock, the object slipping and fumbling in his fingers before he got it in and he said a silent prayer before he turned it, the mechanism clicking shut. He would pause, pondering leaving it there but then withdrawing it and putting it on the table where his teacup still sat, largely untouched and filled with stone-cold liquid. He’d be hesitant in his return to the couch, chuckling self-consciously before he sat again and patted his lap, expression a little sheepish.

[Aurelie Steerpike]

The scar wasn't anything special, really. She knew that, and yet she couldn't help but feel ashamed of it. There were other scars she had with more shameful origins, the one on the inside of her arm the one she had acquired in the most directly foolish way, but this was the biggest and the ugliest and somehow the one she felt the worst about. Even if it had only been an accident, when she was very young--just a child, really. Clumsy. Aurelie had been twelve years old when she had tried to carry a pot of boiling water too big and too heavy for her childish arms, colliding with a corner in the kitchen and splashing it all over herself. And her stupid, stubborn pride, that had already come to love the kitchens and wanted to belong there, had pushed aside all treatment. Taking time to treat her would upset the rhythm of the work. Nobody had pushed very hard, of course--she could still work around it, couldn't she? And she hadn't cried, so it couldn't have been too terrible. No treatment she could have received would likely have made it heal without blemish, but it was uglier for her stubbornness.

Maybe she shouldn't have done it after all. It had probably been a stupid idea--she didn't really know what she had hoped would come out of this, her showing him. Compounding her embarrassment about the scar itself was the slow realization of just how forward it was, given the location. Not, she thought, that it was wildly out of line with anything else they'd been doing, but... it was still... He'd even tried to stop her, but her stupid fingers kept moving. That was--she was so stupid, and it was just an ugly scar and it probably wasn't the same and--

Her breath caught a little when he reached out to brush his fingers over the mark. Caught again when he said her name. And stopped entirely when he kissed her. The feeling was thrilling and touching all at once. Again, he hadn't done what she expected but something sweet instead that reached a tender part of her feelings. The girl didn't know what to do in response. It seemed a little too much to admit that she had liked it on more levels than one, sweetness and impropriety mixed together. And he'd caught her hands and made her stop, apologized. Aurelie was certain she had made a mistake with this somehow. Her stomach dropped.

"N-no I'm sorry for... I shouldn't have..." Her voice was stuck in her throat. "I didn't mean to... Y-you know me, always... always doing too much." Aurelie's wide mouth crooked in a weak smile. The worst of all of this was, of course, that she was still straddled across his lap and all of her ached. Just one feeling at a time would have been plenty to deal with, but no. All things had to be present. The hands that caught hers and stilled her movements were a clear signal to go no further. Frustrated and miserable as that made her, she wouldn't push for any more.

Fionn looked at the door. Maybe he wanted to leave. She had--it had been too much to hope for, she knew. Either something she had done had been too much, or not enough, or maybe it was just that looking at her, really looking at her had been... disappointing. Why else would he be moving her off his lap and getting up? She let him, of course. She had no reason to stop him. Aurelie clambered a little awkwardly off of Fionn's lap and sat on the sofa instead, drawing her knees to her chest. One of her hands found her discarded pinafore, and she bunched it up in her fist. The other held her shirt closed again, too embarrassed still to button it back up just yet.

What was he doing though? If he was leaving, this was a very odd way of doing it. Aurelie watched him, puzzled. He moved around the room and got--something, went to the door. Didn't open it, though he touched it. Her disappointment at what felt like, to her, a rejection made her slow to process what was happening. It wasn't until Fionn came back and set the key on the table next to his teacup that she realized what he had been doing.

"Oh. ...Oh!" Not leaving--not leaving at all. Fionn had--he'd been doing the sensible thing, the thing she should have thought about before--he'd been locking the door. A wave of relief went through her, made her giddy. Aurelie couldn't help but burst out with a laugh, nervous and reassured at once. Not leaving! And maybe not disappointed or disinterested now, either. Oh, she was so happy she could cry.

"Locking the door! You were locking the door. Smart, I didn't even think--" Aurelie dissolved into a fit of giggling. She withdrew her knees from her chest and sat up properly when he came and sat down, too overwhelmed to reign in her expression. The redhead was grinning from ear to ear as she came over to settle back across him, happier even than before to do so. "I thought, er. I thought you might be... that you might not have wanted to... I'm, ah, h-happy to be wrong."

Aurelie bit her lip and her smile turned a little self-conscious after her admission. She had hiked her skirts up again, more deliberately this time because she had liked it. She pressed her chest against his and tried to catch his mouth to kiss him again, giddy and devouring. The fabric of his shirt pressed into her bare skin where hers was still open, a sensation strange and strangely thrilling. The moment Aurelie realized she wasn't being rejected or halted after all, every bit of her nervous excitement had returned to her, an electric energy that crackled just under her skin that she had no idea where or how to direct. She ran her hands up his sides again, taking a moment to just enjoy the taste of him, the solid weight of him under her. Wonderful, that's what he was.

"You're so... You're wonderful, you know that?" She decided to draw back from kissing him and say it out loud after all--what was the harm? It was true and she wanted him to know. It came out breathless and giddy. Aurelie tugged a little at the hem of his shirt, catching his dark eyes with hers. "C-can I, after all...? I, er--I just want to..." Though she stopped short of finishing the thought, too shy to admit she just wanted to look at him more, the bright eagerness in her face hadn't dimmed.

[Fionn]

Hamis 32, 2719 | Midday
Laboratory Beta

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It hadn’t occurred to him that she might misinterpret his actions. In fact, he was very slow to realise that there was anything wrong at all. Her words before he got up were simply odd to him, earning no more than a quizzical quirk of his brows. He didn’t consider her words more deeply after that, too concerned with the terrible little task he was going to undertake. He shouldn’t be doing this, he knew it was wrong but he also knew that he didn’t want to be barged in on while they were doing… things. They weren’t going to be doing anything particularly scandalous — by Fionn’s standards at least — but he didn’t want Aura to be embarrassed or uncomfortable. He wanted her to feel safe and he couldn’t deny that he’d like to feel that way himself; he welcomed the idea of privacy. They’d already done plenty that would be considered wrong so it wasn’t as if one more thing would really be that bad in the scheme of things and they could both feel secure. So he hoped at least.

Once he had the door locked, the young man found himself feeling oddly nervous to return to her. Did the lock mean that he could trust himself less? Did he think that he was going to throw himself at her with reckless abandon? His heart definitely felt more fluttery than before, his pulse seemingly unsteady. He was nervous — Fionn just didn’t know why.

The blond read her body language as he put the key down, puzzled once more because something tugged at the back of his mind, some feeling of unease that seemed to be attached to the nerves that he was feeling. The knees to her chest seemed to be a protective gesture, the girl no doubt self-conscious again but it felt like there was more going on. It was only when she stated the obvious and told him what he’d just done that the pieces clicked into place, albeit with embarrassing slowness. Initially, an odd little smile curved his lips as he thought she’d gone a bit funny in all the excitement but then he realised that she had been upset.

“Oh! You thought I- Aura, did you think that I was going to leave?” he asked, genuinely shocked. He tried to lighten the mood with a joke. “What? Without my shoes?”

He giggled nervously, hand sliding through his hair as he seated himself. It was a poor joke and they both knew it but he was trying. He wanted her to feel better because he hadn’t meant to hurt her. He’d been trying so hard not to hurt her and he’d done it unintentionally. Of course she’d thought that he was rejecting her, the timing couldn’t have been worse and if he’d just explained, instead of being so wrapped up in himself-

But she was smiling so broadly. He could hardly believe just how elated the kitchen maid was and he found himself answering it, although his own was a pale version in comparison. She settled on his lap anew and he could only stare at her wonderingly, questioning how she could be shy and eager at the same time. And so beautiful. She was, he realised and he hadn’t known that until now. How had he ever thought her merely pretty? Well, he supposed that he’d never seen her like this before. So much power, so much joy, so much- Gods, he didn’t even know what else!

Her mouth found his and he kissed her back eagerly, the active role that she was taking was a definite turn on, especially as she almost writhed against him, her hands running over him fervently. It was a lot. The teenager could feel himself unravelling faster now and he was hot, extremely hot. He didn’t know whether to draw her into him harder to speed things up or get her to slow down for both their sakes. No doubt, she could feel how he pressed up against her but apparently, it didn’t surprise her now, or make her feel uncomfortable.

The servant drew back and he had no idea what prompted her to say what she did but he felt that she couldn’t have been any more wrong.

“I’m not. I’m really not,” he whispered, helping her tug out the hem of his shirt. His gaze dropped from hers, gently swatting her hands away as he reached up to undo his own buttons, working his way down his front.

“I’m not w-w-wonderful, Aura. You don’t… you don’t know me. We’re shared a lot but we haven’t-”

He broke off and stopped what he was doing, shirt hanging open down to his belly. He started to laugh, unable to help himself.

“We’ve talked about secrets and shown each other scars and we’re- Well, we’re… you know but we don’t- We don’t know anything basic about each other! I don’t know what age you are but-”

Here he began to laugh heartily, almost uncontrollably, tears coming to his eyes even as he wrapped his arms around tightly around her waist so that she was pressed up against his mirth-shaken body. He buried his face against her neck, breath chuckling out of him, almost wheezed out.

“-but you know that I like the colour blue,” Fionn managed at last, breathless and smiling as he planted a kiss below her ear. He tilted his hips up again, unable to help himself. His body felt weak after the laughter, his belly actually aching a bit and the shudder that went through him at the pleasure of contact felt as if it might shake him apart.

“I’m… I’m nineteen by the way. If it interests you,” the passive confided a bit shyly. Of all the things to feel awkward about it was his age! Well, he had had a thought at the same time, possibly because of how deliciously they were pressed together and with his face buried against her neck, he felt that it might be easier to voice — he’d still feel stupid though.

His lips whispered against her hair, inhaling its scent as his mouth hovered by her ear. He wouldn’t have to meet her eye. If he had to meet the girl’s eye when he said it then he might just die. He wasn’t sure that she’d be able to keep amusement from her gaze if their eyes met.

“Aura… h-h-how do girls- I mean, you seem to be uh… enjoying th-things but I don’t know- I don’t know how to- If you k-k-keep rubbing against me then I’ll uh… erm…”

No, being hidden in her hair wasn’t making this any easier. Fionn didn’t have the vocabulary for this. Well, he did. He had childish language, which seemed awkward now he thought to say it, or very sophisticated language, which felt overly clinical. He’d just have to say whatever came to mind.

“I’ll enjoy myself a lot and uh… spi- be satisfied, um… yeah,” he mumbled, sure that she was going to start tanning as a result of the heat coming from his face. He continued in a rush.

“I don’t know h-how girls get off and I want to be able to give you pleasure to so th-that you’re satisfied too.”

Could he leave his face here and just… never emerge again? Honestly, he didn’t think that he could have phrased it more poorly if he tried. He hadn’t put his foot in his mouth this time, he’d possibly inserted his whole leg — he hoped he managed to choke on it.

[Aurelie Steerpike]

If Aurelie hadn't been so happy to be wrong, she might have been more embarrassed at his joke, however it was meant. Shoes. She hadn't even... Well. Wasn't she being clever? Neither of them were wearing shoes, where were they going to go? As it was, she was happy enough she just laughed instead. If it had a slight edge of hysteria--well, she had been rather upset, after all.

"W-well. I hadn't... I'm not always very observant." That, too, dissolved into laughter, more breathless by virtue of her position on his lap. She was foolish and ridiculous and incandescent. Absently she wondered if she ought to do something about her buttons after all, but she wasn't sure what "something" would be. Do them up? Finish what she'd started? She couldn't decide so she left her shirt in the limbo it was in.

Aurelie's smile faltered a little when Fionn dropped his eyes from her and he moved to undo his buttons himself. Not because of that--that was more sensible really--but because he was so quick to reject her opinion of him. Though he was right--she didn't really know him, in a lot of ways. Hadn't she thought so herself? Hadn't she been thinking that, earlier that very day? She opened her mouth to protest, but Fionn had started to laugh. She made a small squeak of surprise when he tugged her close, face against her neck. The squeak turned into a gasp and the gasp into something else when he pressed up against her again.

"Ah...! That's, ah, that's true I don't--" She was trying to talk, to think and respond to what he was saying. He was making it very difficult. For one thing, he had undone his shirt first, and then gone to pull her in closer so there was really a great deal of direct skin contact being made that she wasn't used to. It was absolutely wonderful, but hard to think around. For another, every time he pressed up towards her, she wanted to press her own hips back down in response and it was--it was a lot.

Nineteen! So she was right--they were about the same age. She was a little older. She wondered by how many months. Which, she supposed, really just meant she wanted to know what his birthday was. His face was still pressed up against her so she felt safe to smile as foolishly as she wanted. After all, he couldn't see her doing it.

She knew his age now, and his favorite color. And a little bit about his family, too, didn't she? Not just the heavy parts, but a little bit of Niamh too. (She resolutely was not thinking about Niamh, beyond sending her a silent apology for abusing her trust the moment she'd left the room.) She knew that he liked to draw, that he was funny, that he'd been sweet to her in a way nobody else had. That he ran his hands through his hair in what she thought must be a nervous habit. Clever, too, and interested in things she hadn't the first idea about. The way he lit up when talking about the nexus, so absorbed by what he was saying he forgot himself in his explanation. A deft hand with plucking a bird, to boot. And that being here wrapped up in him and feeling the heat of his body and the smell and the taste of him made her happy in a way she didn't know she could be.

She knew, too, that there were things in him she couldn't touch. She knew because she had been told by others, by Fionn himself. Had seen a flash of it on his face today. Sad and terrifying, at once. That he had a temper, and could be very frustrating if he chose to be. She was sure there was more, good and bad both.

No, she thought, she didn't know everything. But she knew enough, she thought, to stand by what she said. Aurelie turned her face to press it into the hollow between his neck and shoulder, kissing him there while she thought about what she was going to say.

"I'm... My favorite color is yellow, I think, though I'm not sure. I was born outside of Vienda. I have two roommates now. I like... needlework, though I'm not very good. And cats. And you, b-because I do think you're... you're wonderful. Y-you have to listen to me, b-because I'm your elder and you have to listen to your elders. I'm twenty," she concluded, her mouth curving into a shy smile against his neck. The passive girl was suddenly grateful he couldn't see her face. "Just this past Loshis. S-so. There. And if you want to... to know anything else you can... you can just ask." Aurelie cleared her throat, embarrassed.

Strangely, somehow, despite what they were doing, what they had been doing, Aurelie hadn't really thought about... about the conclusion, so to speak. She'd really just been carried along by the delight of it all, everything new and terrifying and exciting. So what Fionn mumbled in her ear came as something of a surprise to her on multiple levels. She could feel the heat rising off his face, so near to her own as it was. Was he--was he really that embarrassed? Aurelie wanted to laugh, but she didn't think that would end well, so she bit her lip. Not because she had expected him to know, of course not. It wasn't like she knew... well, anything really. He just seemed so worked up about it, the not knowing. It was sweet, she thought. He didn't have to care one way or the other.

Maybe he wanted to keep his face by her ear, but Aurelie wanted to look at him. She leaned back to put some space between them, to grasp for words of her own. There was no mockery or laughter on her face; plenty of awkwardness, but an enthusiastic kind. How did anyone--did one generally talk about this? She had no vocabulary for this conversation at all. Nothing a lady would say, not even one in such disgrace as she was.

"O-oh! I don't--I don't know if it is... terribly different. Uhm. I am, er, enjoying myself, ah... M-maybe not to... er. Hmm." She paused, awkward. While she thought about it, she let her hands wander over the planes of his torso. Blessed Lady but he was attractive. No, she was focusing--she had... things to say. Somehow. Couldn't she just... develop telepathy, for this one moment? It wasn't like she didn't know--she had herself but--that was different and--oh no. She felt so foolish and shy and too bold at once, sitting here with her top half-open on his lap grasping for the words to describe getting to... to some kind of satisfaction. Now it was her turn to avoid looking at him, again.

"I--I like it, er, when you... t-touch me, quite a lot and... Er, that is, generally, er. I think it's the same general... idea, maybe, but you could do it m-more or... Oh bells and chimes!" Aurelie left off lightly running her hands over every part of Fionn she could to drop her face into them with a groan. How hideously, horribly childish she felt. "I don't know how to say this! And there's all this--skirt, here and--"

How did anyone do this? How did anyone survive this--this level of sheer embarrassment? Surely someone must have done, once or twice in all of history. She just didn't know how.

[Fionn]

Hamis 32, 2719 | Midday
Laboratory Beta

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Everything about this situation seemed to continue to be a little hilarious. It was probably why they’d both managed to be so giggly, although much of it was that nervous sort of laughter, almost on the edge of something hysterical because the whole thing was a lot to deal with and neither of them really knew how to cope. Despite all of his experience, Fionn was vastly out of his depth here and knew it, flailing around in the dark but that was okay. At the same time, it really wasn’t and so… he laughed.

You really had to find it funny though! The two passives trading silly bits of information about such normal things, so very mundane and yet both of them seemed to delight in them — despite the fact that there were rather more pressing matters to keep them occupied!

Her admittance that she liked him shouldn’t have come as a surprise, given that she was clearly quite fond of him based on their current entanglement, but it was good to hear her say it. It was strange just how affirming it was for her state it, no room for ambiguity or second guessing. It made something within him glow, happy and warm, not the same heat as embarrassment but something cosy and comfortable and… well, safe. Yes, that’s how it felt, even though it seemed so bizarre but that’s exactly what it was and he was glad of the sensation. It wasn’t wholly unfamiliar but he couldn’t remember why.

Given all the information she’d just given him, he actually realised that he already had a little collection of tidbits he’d picked up about her. He’d thought she was around his age and he hadn’t been that far off, the kitchen maid almost a full year older than him. He couldn’t help but he pleased that he’d gotten so close, feeling that many people must misjudge her because of her diminutive height. Her manner was mature and she was competent when she was working — being around him did seem to unravel that image a bit — so she might also have seemed older to others. It didn’t make any difference to him really. Aurelie could have been a decade older and he wouldn’t have minded in the least. So he had her age, the time of her birthday, things that she liked. He knew that family was important to her because she had kept the name and the locket from her parents, wept for their deaths and evidently cared about her sister as well. Being in the kitchens seemed to delight her, adding a warm air that hadn’t been present when he met her in the laundries or the canteen. She was incredibly sweet and thoughtful, going out of her way to embroider that handkerchief and deliver it to him despite how much trouble she could have gotten herself into and she was brave too — braver than she likely realised. Emotional and deliciously expressive.

And she liked him. She had seen the scars on his knuckles, had heard his ribald speech and curses, and the way he could use his tongue as a weapon to goad or insult. She had heard all manner of rumours and been assured that some of them were indeed true, but the young woman had also seen some evidence of them — his promiscuity — with her own eyes. She had seen the bad and the ugly and she hadn’t judged him for it, hadn’t turned her face away as so many others had. She was not only willing to forgive him for anything he might have done in the past but she was also willing to look beyond it. Fionn did feel like something twisted and broken, his heart darker than either what others believed and yet, he felt redeemable in her eyes.

He’d felt redeemable in Lars’ eyes too, the Hessean having commented on a ‘lightness’ within him. He’d been so sure that there was something good in the teenager’s heart so how could Fionn have betrayed that belief? He had strived to be better, had spent so many months keeping his lingering bitterness at bay and others had seemed to see what Lars had seen and it had made things easier. The irony was that he wouldn’t even have had Aurelie if his former roommate hadn’t believed in something within him, and the girl was at least part of the wedge that had driven them apart.

A dark cloud descended on him and the smile faltered on his lips, a good thing that he was nestled against the other passive so that she didn’t see it…

He squeezed his eyes shut as if blocking out the light would ease the stinging in them and he took a few steadying breaths. He was able to bring the smile again, not wanting to start crying again, especially when it would so no good. Better to find comfort in her arms. Better this than tears. They did nothing to make him feel better, even for a short while. They just left him feeling hollowed out and hurting. He found himself shoving the emotions down, not wanting to deal with them again, not now. Maybe not ever.

“Yes, ma’am,” he mumbled, yet another poor joke as he treated her as an authority figure rather than as a woman barely older than he was. He certainly didn’t afford Niamh that respect or listen to her and she was not only older but a galdor too. This situation would horrify her but it was his pleasure, not his, and there was more than that here. Mutual attraction, comfort, companionship. She’d understand it if she ever got properly near Harper Moore but-

But he didn’t want to be thinking about his sister right now.

Once he’d said his piece about… that stuff, there was a pregnant pause, the young man finding himself waiting for laughter. He’d tripped over his own tongue after tying it in knots and had stated some of the most idiotic things imaginable. He couldn’t have sounded more foolish if he’d tried and he hadn’t been trying, godsdamnit! However, she drew back from him, Fionn reluctantly letting her go, incredibly shy as he looked away from her eye, finding his focus on her chest, which wasn’t helpful right now. Slowly, he raised his head, peeking from beneath his lashes as his face flamed. There was no laughter in her face as he’d feared or derision, not even disgust. Actually, she seemed rather serious and that was- Presumably his message had gotten across after all.

The redhead was awkward as well and bloody distracting, hands moving over his skin in a way that felt entirely too good. If her touch had been firmer, it might not have been quite as pleasurable but it was light and titillating, producing a shivering sensation beneath the surface where her fingers trailed. His heart rate was high, making him throb with it and he wondered if Aurelie could feel-

Focus!

It was difficult to focus and even more difficult to think mundane or even dull thoughts so he could slow himself down. This was a lot. He almost wanted to still her questing hands but selfishly, he didn’t want the sensation to stop either. The blond just needed to listen to what she was saying, stuttering and shy though it was and read between the lines.

She liked being touched by him but it wasn’t enough? Maybe? He wasn’t really sure and then she mentioned her skirts and he glanced down, brow furrowed as he tried to understand why that was- Oh! Oh!

“Oh the skirt is uh… it’s a hindrance? I don’t have to take anything off but- What I mean is, I didn’t think about- Although it lifts up so you could just-”

He broke off, mortified by what he was saying. Had he actually just casually suggested that she lift her skirt right up? Gods no, that was a lot to ask! He wouldn’t even have asked her to open the front of her uniform, even though he couldn’t see much of anything. He wouldn’t expect her to reveal so much even if it meant that she’d enjoy herself more.

“I didn’t- I wouldn’t ask you to- I’m so sorry, I sh-shouldn’t have- I’m sorry. Is there anything I can do without- Would you be able to do anything without-”

Sweet Lady, this was getting worse! Was he really trying to suggest that she should see to herself while he sat here and-

“Would r-r-rocking against you do anything for you? Then I could- And you could uh-”

He could only end his speech in a spluttering, incoherent embarrassment, words giving way to noises alone, a mix of distress and embarrassment. His eyes stared at the region of her navel, perhaps the safest spot that he could look without gazing up at the ceiling but there was always the chance that she’d manage to catch his eye somehow that way.

He traced shapes on her back and then shifted a hand to the back of one of her knees, idly tracing patterns through her stocking. He didn’t really know where to put himself.

[Aurelie Steerpike]

Maybe her diablerie was invisibility, and if she just sat here with her face in her hands for long enough it would go off and she could disappear. If she was very lucky, the effects would be permanent and nobody would ever have to look her in the eye again. Certainly she didn't think she was capable of such a thing for oh, at least the next hundred years or so.

"Please stop talking," she begged. Her blush was so fierce she might melt through her hands. Which one of them she was talking to wasn't really clear--it was equally applicable to both of them. "Which isn't to say--I do normally like listening to you talk very much--that is--oh no I'm doing it again."

It had been a good run, it really had. Maybe not all of it. Actually if she thought about it, large swaths of her life hadn't been particularly good at all. Still. Overall, probably, worth the try. Unfortunately, she was going to die here and now in this office because she couldn't keep her mouth shut. Aurelie felt a little sorry for Fionn, who presumeably would outlive her and maybe have to explain why she was dead and also had her shirt unbuttoned. Perhaps he would think to button it back up before alerting anyone to her recent demise. That would be best, she thought. Propriety and all that.

Aurelie sat there while Fionn made some kind of noise, and it seemed that she was to live after all. A pity, although as a dead person she wouldn't much be able to appreciate his hands on her back, so there was that. It might, maybe, be okay to continue to live after all. Still. With her death, it seemed, not on the immediate horizon, it did mean she had to say or do something that wasn't make a distressed squeaking noise into her hands. Cautiously she peeked between her fingers at Fionn's face. He was looking down--a sensible move, given that if he didn't they might make eye contact and neither one of them seemed capable of surviving that little maneuver.

This was absurd. She knew this was absurd. She almost said something terrible about her skirts being rather lifted already, needing to be so arranged for her to sit the way she was, but she chose not to point that out. She had already said far, far too much. On another level, Aurelie also had to wonder at getting this far and only having the grace to be truly embarrassed now that she was already sitting on Fionn's lap with her stockings visible and their hips pressed together and the door locked. To think that not too long ago--how long had she been here, anyway?--she had thought that letting him use her knees as a pillow was the most scandalous thing she would do that day. That week. Her entire lifetime. Aurelie couldn't help but laugh again.

Aurelie bit her lip, thinking. The problem was the same problem she had been having the entire time--thinking was very difficult. With her brain, anyway, and not the rest of her nerves. They had plenty of opinions, but she had to keep some kind of grip on herself. Some kind of grip--no, that wasn't helpful. She was not going to entertain that thought. Eventually she came to bring her hands up to Fionn's face, hoping to make him look up at her. They were both embarrassed, so maybe that made it okay. Maybe they would cancel each other out and both of them would survive a little eye contact after all. Besides, she liked looking at him.

"Uhm," Aurelie began, clearing her throat and trying not to wince at how pitched her voice was. "That--yes. That should. Uhm. J-just--I can't talk about this any more or... or... I'll... Catch fire, I think. S-so. Ah." The girl attempted a smile, and if she had gotten him to look at her would draw him back to kiss her. That was probably a much better use for her mouth than trying to make words come out of it--safer.

Embarrassed or not, sure of her imminent demise or not, Aurelie was also determined to not let herself get in her own way. She arched her back and shifted her position slightly, trying not to think too much about what she was doing, until she had found a better angle to fit their hips together. A small sigh escaped her--she couldn't help it. Yes that would--that would do just fine.

"Is this... is this fine...?" The question came out as a quiet, shy mumble, punctuated by a much less shy roll of her hips and a hitch of her breath. Aurelie let a hand trail up the back of his neck again; the other she let resume travelling along as much of his side as she could manage with them pressed up together at this angle.

[Fionn]

Hamis 32, 2719 | Midday
Laboratory Beta

.

It wasn’t surprising that she asked him to stop talking. In fact, it was the most unsurprising thing out of all unsurprising things! He was embarrassing himself, her—they were both being embarrassed actually—and he must sound like a real clocking idiot—a towhead—so of course she wanted him to stop making words come out of his mouth. Not that words could come out anywhere else, although maybe all this time they’d been coming out of his erse and he hadn’t realised because what in the Circle had he been spouting?

Of course, he couldn’t stop his tongue, not until it had done the maximum amount of damage possible before committing something akin to suicide as it finally descended into useless spluttering. He could have wished for an earlier cessation of speech but now he found that he’d said foolish things and couldn’t even manage an apology, never mind retract them!

Some part of his brain seemed to have floated away to a happy place where mortification hadn’t paralysed his vocal cords or left him with the sensation that he could spontaneously combust at any moment. The floating, seemingly unbothered part of his brain decided to tell him in a rather dreamy fashion that she liked listening to him talk. There was a situation happening right this instant and some moony part of his brain—delirious, it must have become unbalanced by the stress—telling him that she enjoyed his talking. Maybe later, he could take out that information and use it to fuel the warm glow of affection that resided within him but right now, it took everything he had not to smack himself in the head to try to burst whatever moony bubble had managed to take up residence.

At least the words had stopped though so he didn’t have to dig a deeper hole for himself. As it was, what he had dug so far had rather steep sides indeed and he didn’t think that he would be able to climb out of it. Maybe she’d kill him. At the very least, he expected something shocked, indignant for suggesting that she lift her skirt up — and he meant all the way because he could see for himself that they were well lifted already — and it wouldn’t be a surprise if she smacked him. Fionn would deserve it. Yes, they’d gotten this far but there had to be a line somewhere and really, he could strip off his shirt and trousers—maybe not his trousers—and it wouldn’t be a bother for him. There was really very little barrier for him, just a few buttons between her and his underwear but a skirt provided far more cover, not like trousers at all. To ask her to hike it up all the way- So casually-

Given that he was gazing at her navel, he couldn’t even guess how far along she might be in her response and he was far too nervous to look up of his own accord. In fact, he didn’t know that merely averting his eyes was enough. Perhaps if he just scrunched them shut and didn’t have to see any part of her then Aurelie would realise just how apologetic he was and decide to leave him to his misery without adding to it further.

Her hands found his face and he looked up slowly, hesitantly, the plan to close his eyes seeming all the more appealing but she didn’t seem angry or anything, just embarrassed — the same as him. Was that a relief? The wild flutter in his stomach said that it didn’t think so.

The blond couldn’t even muster as much as a smile before her comment about catching fire but then he found himself giggling. It was nervous, dancing along the line edging hysteria.

“So it’s not just me!” he blurted stupidly, almost relieved but it didn’t remove the flutter from his stomach. The kiss helped though, the action safer than words and safer again than looking at each other. It didn’t slow down his heart—far from it—but it did seem to take the near terrified stutter out of it so he didn’t feel as if he might eject it via his mouth at any moment. He moved his lips gently against hers, trying to make it sweet, and something of an apology. However, she adjusted her position at the same time, which he hadn’t expected at all. He released a little whimpering sigh as she took up her new position.

Maybe being on top of him did bother her after all, despite the young man believing that it didn’t concern her anymore, not after the eager way she’d returned to his lap. Maybe it had been uncomfortable and they did seem to fit better.

“Yeah, it’s — fine!” he replied, the last word coming out as a veritable squeak!

Blessed Lady!

Oh Circle!

She had rolled against him with far more vigor than before and as he gasped, he thought that she’d pretty much undone him all together. But the waves of pleasure that had flooded through him had receded to more tolerable levels before he could break under her but that didn’t stop him from being absolutely gobsmacked. It had been sudden and unexpected. It had been surprisingly aggressive.

It had been thrilling!

The teenager found himself staring at her admiringly, appreciatively as he positioned hands on her lower back and rear. This time, her expression was one of surprise or even a shy sort of satisfaction but a real look of pleasure. She hadn’t looked like that before, not when he’d kissed or touched her, not even when they’d pressed together like that before. It had been novel, a bit exciting for her in its strangeness but he’d been the only one affected, of course. The friction was good, enough to make his breathing hitch and pant but she-

She’d moved herself before doing it and-

Oh! There was a way to- Even with the skirts-

“Oh!”

It was his turn to exclaim aloud, laughing and smiling somewhat sheepishly.

“M-M-More than fine, I think!” he murmured huskily, enthusiastically, hand sliding up her spine to the back of her neck, pulling her in for a kiss even as he leaned up to meet her, hips tilting up.

He groaned.

Fionn wanted to kiss her, something in him snapping so that he was suddenly desperate. His hands ran over her back, her buttocks, spreading over her thighs. Everywhere he touched, it seemed to burn and he didn’t know if it was her or him, both of them; they were on fire. The young man rocked up against her, telling himself to be slow, to be gentle, hanging on to some thread of reason so that he wouldn’t hurt her. It was perhaps the only thing that he could keep in his mind as his blood seemed to fizz and his nerves spark, sensation jumping from one point in his body to another.

It was good. It was really fucking good.

He could die now, he’d be all right with that. It’d be a very good death, at least he’d die happy. After just about every godsdamn nerve in his fucking body had exploded like Hoxian fireworks.

[Aurelie Steerpike]

In a way, she was pleased that they could both be this awkward, together. Aurelie wasn't precisely enjoying that specific aspect of the experience--far from it, as it was distracting and kept making her stop what they were doing in order to process what she had decided to add from the stupider parts of her brain. But it was comforting, if not comfortable, for them to be on the same page. Aurelie kept waiting for when her inexperience would make something truly unpleasant or at least make him look at her askance. It never seemed to happen. Instead they both seemed out of their depth, and it gave her a kind of strange satisfaction to feel like they were both doing something new.

Kissing him was nice--it was always nice. Aurelie lingered in that feeling, adding it to the careful catalogue of memories of her time with Fionn she was maintaining in her heart. Still, still, she was expecting each one to be the last she added. Though now she found that she was a little more hopeful that maybe she would be wrong. Perhaps not--this was not, she knew, something they could replicate. Not easily, anyway. She wasn't even sure she wanted to, all things considered. (Most of the things were Niamh.) But maybe... maybe it wouldn't be too much if she really did gather up the courage to seek him out, later. One day she wanted the courage too, to tell him what her sister had offered her and that she had refused it. She'd been too much a coward today, even though she had tried.

Aurelie was thinking about kissing and she was thinking about next times, but she stopped thinking about either of those things when he gasped underneath her. All of her attention refocused on the present moment, different activities. A pleased grin spread across her face, regarding him. What she was doing was perfectly satisfactory for her own purposes of course, but she liked the effect she seemed to have. Liked it a lot. Everything seemed better because of it. She felt a thrill run through her at the appreciative way he looked at her, distinct from the thrill from her nerves as he moved his hands.

Laughter escaped her at his "oh!". She hadn't thought about it, had deliberately tried not to think about it so she could actually get over herself enough to move, but it was quite likely her action hadn't quite... made sense. She bit her lip and tried to resist the urge to make a face at him. Humor wasn't the feeling she was going for, not right this moment. Watching it dawn on him was charming though. Circle keep her but she was smitten.

"That's-- that's good--" She gasped into his mouth when he pulled her in to kiss her and pressed against her. Yes, adjusting had been a very... a very good idea. "You're g--ah...!"

She was coming apart at the seams, she thought. Everywhere his hands moved Aurelie felt like an electric shock that went right to the core of her. Her mouth had to catch his to kiss him again, desperate and wanting, to keep herself from getting embarrassingly loud. No matter how locked that door was, she didn't really think that was a good idea. That was about as far as her thoughts could go. This wasn't, strictly speaking, what they were truly supposed to avoid but it was plenty for her right now. As ever, she wasn't quite sure where to put her hands, so she put them everywhere. Restless grasping, wanting to somehow pull even more of him to herself.

Was he holding back a little? She certainly hoped not--she punctuated the thought with a more aggressive press against him than usual. Aurelie couldn't help herself; she was falling apart and it was his fault and it was wonderful. She didn't know how much longer she could last before she broke apart completely, really. Her breath was heavy and fast. Oh, she hoped--was it good for both of them? She really hoped so. Aurelie squeezed his hips between her knees, her thighs, let his name fall from her mouth.

"F-Fionn, you... Y-you're so... I li... you're...!" For all her efforts to keep herself quiet, she couldn't seem to stop from babbling some stream of at least approached words between them anyway. Yes, this was certainly worth all the embarrassment, past and future. So very, very worth it.

[Fionn]

Hamis 32, 2719 | Midday
Laboratory Beta

.

This was… this was very hot. There was no other word for it. There was a lot of heat — a lot. Fionn was rather active right now so of course he was getting hot, very hot, hot enough to begin pouring off his skin. He probably felt fiery to his companion, although most of the heat seemed to be contained by his clothing, which insulated him and made sweat prickle across his body. Maybe he was going to spontaneously combust after all. He was hot, he was sticky, things would only get messier but it was more than worth it to experience this.

He’d had sex before — a lot of sex — and probably done anything and everything—everything—around it and leading up to it and while there had been plenty of times where he hadn’t enjoyed it or hadn’t wanted to do it, he had managed to have fun before. Well, he’d managed to get something enjoyable out of it beyond his own satisfaction, albeit that fun had often had a nasty edge to it, sometimes born out of spite or a cruel sort of amusement. Where pleasure was concerned, he’d gotten plenty of that too, even when that had meant simply gratifying a physical urge or making the best of things.

There was so much that himself and Aurelie weren’t doing but blessed Lady, this was fun and fantastic and better than- It might be better than anything he’d done before. It seemed totally moony but it might actually be true. On reflection, he’d probably realise that it was a bit sad, quite sad actually. Yes, what he’d had with Lars had been… lovely but it had been cut far too short, long before they could reach this point because the man was so closed off, so unemotive and he hadn’t wanted to hurt him, not again. Lars hadn’t tried to offer himself to Fionn on a platter but they could have enjoyed themselves, he thought. Really enjoyed themselves.

Right now, he wasn’t thinking about that, especially not Lars because if he’d thought about the Hessean then he’d have probably folded in on himself again. Right now, he could only think about how it had never been this good before. Exquisite really.

The kitchen maid seemed genuinely delighted to be doing this, apparently revelling in the effect that she was having on him and it was exhilarating to see her enjoying herself in this way, self-satisfied. Her assertiveness was also quite seductive, the confidence that the other seemed to exude truly irresistible. If he didn’t already want her at this point then her demeanour would probably have made the teenager drop down at her feet and beg to have her. Thankfully, the passive woman had already landed—quite literally—in his lap. It made him think that the gods might love him after all.

The youth did his best to wear the face off the girl, lips moving frantically, tongue flicking, teeth grazing and lightly nipping, almost trying to consume her. His hands couldn’t get enough of her, couldn’t feel enough of her and if he could have, he would have pulled her into his skin. Fionn couldn’t get enough of her, his lust for her reigniting every time she moved against him. The way her hands pawed over him was just as exciting as the rest of the friction she was producing. The cherry on top of it all was how she was practically crying out against his mouth as they kissed, the sound only smothered by the press of their lips.

He didn’t have the chance to grin because there was no room for such an expression. How could he take the time to manoeuvre his lips in such a way when they could be smashed against her own? Greedy and needy, he had no time for smiles that she wouldn’t even see, smiles that didn’t even have a chance to form, not when they were moving against one another and she was very clearly into it, which didn’t help anything.

… okay, maybe it helped a bit too.

Her aggression ramped up and he forgot all about being gentle and all about letting his hands move over her. Instead, he settled for a firm grip, both hands locking into her rump so that he could drag her into him when her movement brought her against him. When she pressed, he pulled her to him, pushing up at the same time and rolling his hips in a way that added to the friction. The blond found himself groaning against her, her name escaping his lips to be matched with curses and blasphemous exclamations. As the pressure within him built and the sense of impending release grew stronger, her name picked up greater use.

“Aura, I- Sweet Lady! I nev- I tho- Aura!”

The young man couldn’t help himself, couldn’t manage to keep himself quiet and his breathing was becoming so heavy that he could scarcely kiss at the same time, gasping for air as he planted feverish attention on her skin. He broke away from her mouth, burning lips finding her cheek, her nose, her jaw. At last his head bowed so he could bury his face against the side of her neck, her name the only coherent thing he could manage in amidst grunts and whimpers.

His lips parted and caught the skin near her collarbone, suction affixing him there just before his body grew tense, his movements briefly frantic before something broke within him. He shuddered lightly, the rock of his hips continuing at a slower pace now, gentler as if afraid to touch her and he moaned into her neck, giving a final shiver before his head sought a temporary perch on her shoulder.

Everything in him relaxed. Fionn felt ready to sink into the couch, head ready to flop back but he stayed close to her, hands stroking her lower back and buttocks, a contented sigh escaping him. He nipped lightly, affectionately at the taut skin over her collarbone.

“Th-Thank you,” he whispered, a breeze across her skin. “I didn’t- I never- You were wonderful—wonderful! Can I- Is there anything-”

Talking was hard. He felt too lazy to do it or much of anything else really. But he tried. At the very least, he hoped that she could understand what he was getting at because right now, the middle Madden doubted that he could articulate himself any better.

[Aurelie Steerpike]

Where had this version of her come from, she wondered? The version that could seem so confident, the version that was burning up and coming apart in the best way? Something of the Steerpike line in her after all, she thought. Or maybe it was just that she wasn't thinking about anything, and happy to be close in this way to someone for whom she felt such affection. Affection and attraction both, because she couldn't pretend one had not led to the other even though now she couldn't really say where one ended and the other began. Aurelie liked to look at him so she had wanted to know him; she had come to know him so looking at him became more pleasing still. On and on like this, tangled up together. If she wasn't careful, she would come to love him and be well and truly lost.

Fionn was hot beneath her, kissing her like he meant to devour her entirely. Aurelie couldn't say she had any complaints, not when she was doing the same, all tongue and teeth and overpowering need. She wanted to melt completely, every movement he made against her building pressure inside of her, making her shiver. Fionn's hands on her, the way it felt like he couldn't not touch her, made her more frantic still. It was intoxicating, to feel so wanted by someone she wanted just as much.

That aggressive press of her hips had the desired effect; so he'd been being careful after all. On thinking about it later, that care would make her happy. Now Aurelie didn't want care, didn't want slowness. She wanted what she got--Fionn's hands on her pulling her closer, friction and resistance. The skin of his chest against her own, sticky because both of them were close to burning up, felt--she wished she'd done what she wanted and gotten more of him, but this was enough too. Next time--well. If there was one. She hoped there would be one.

But that was a maybe-next time. Aurelie stayed firmly grounded in the current moment for now. Every time her name left Fionn's mouth she thought she might die, tension stretching tight in her. It also made it very difficult for her to be quiet, and she was still trying to be despite everything. Despite Fionn not managing to do the same, and Blessed Lady if that wasn't satisfying in and of itself. Completely unexpected, but delightful.

Aurelie made some incoherent sound of loss when he moved his mouth away from hers, though truthfully kissing had grown difficult. It was more like sharing breath than kissing now. Hot, feverish gasping traded back and forth. Still, she liked it. And without it, she had nothing stop her from saying things or making quite as much noise. Not that anything she said was coherent, just a babbled stream of breathy syllables mostly shaped into Fionn's name. When his head dropped to her neck she put her hands in his hair, and her mouth on every part of him she could reach.

"Ah, y-you...!" Aurelie gasped at the feeling of his mouth on her collarbone, somehow more intimate with her buttons undone like this. Her buttons and all of her with them. The tension that had been building and building and building inside of her finally broke with a shudder, her hands scrabbling for purchase in his hair and at his side. She bit her lip so hard she almost broke the skin, trying to hold back some final sound she knew would be far, far too loud.

A great wave of feeling rushed over her as Fionn's head dropped to her shoulder. Aurelie had unraveled completely, anything keeping her upright having come untied. Wonderful? There it went again--a fluttering in her heart and stomach. The girl couldn't help it--she giggled. A nervous, pleased sound. Had she actually...? That was almost as good as all the rest of it. She could get very, very used to that. Aurelie smiled, pressing a kiss to his hair. Not so frantic, just gentle and fond.

"You don't, uhm--there's... there's no need." Somehow that made her self-conscious to admit. In an almost pleasant way, if there was a pleasant way to be overly aware of yourself. "...Though, I don't, er, think I can, uh. Get up. Just yet." She laughed again, leaning into him. It was true, she couldn't--she had rather lost all circulation below her knees. Besides, she didn't really want to. She knew she had to, and soon. No matter what, she couldn't stay here forever. No amount of locked doors could let her have that. Just--she wanted just a moment longer. She lazily clasped her arms around Fionn's waist, eyes fluttering closed. Couldn't reality wait for just a little while? Aurelie was happy where she was.

Eventually, though, she had to go back. As much as she wanted to put it off, maybe it would be better if she at least got off Fionn's lap. Baby steps. With a sigh she did so, though she didn't go far; just next to him again. She couldn't have gotten much further if she wanted to be, and she didn't want to. If anything, all Aurelie wanted to do was fold herself against him and stay there. That would probably get uncomfortable rather quickly, and she needed to do up her buttons and probably... probably straighten out in general. But it was a nice thought. As a concession, she leaned against his shoulder instead. Her index finger traced a slow pattern on his thigh. She watched it, thinking.

"...I really--I really do like you, you know that? I feel like I've said it a lot but, uhm... I feel like maybe I should say it again. F-for... for posterity."