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Post by moralhazard on Mar 25, 2019 15:30:02 GMT
Somewhat to Thea’s surprise, Arioch didn’t seem to mind as much as she’d thought. Maybe he didn’t realize how limited she really was? Thea could feel that she’d let him down, a sinking swirl of misery in her stomach that threatened to spoil a little of the pleasure of their evening together. How disappointed would he be if she couldn’t do it? When she couldn’t do it?
There was a last moment, as they left the city, when Thea contemplated turning back. It would disappoint Arioch, she was sure, but – maybe then he’d still look at her the way he did when she cast, if – if he didn’t know – if he didn’t understand –
But then they were out of the city and the moment was gone. Thea followed him down to the beach, trying her best to relax; it was hard with the weight of magic on her, hard to find that easy balance she’d reached when casting for herself. She couldn’t help thinking about all the times when she’d failed something Dom had wanted her to try, because there had always been something he’d wanted her to try. She didn’t want him there, standing like a shadow over tonight, but it was so hard to get him to leave.
Thea was working herself up to explain to Arioch that she really couldn’t, she was sure she couldn’t, when they stopped and Arioch pointed up to the midpoint of the cliff. Thea looked up at it, slowly, heart sinking, and looked at him, ready to say she couldn’t – and then stopped. She let go of his hand, taking a step back, and then – it was like all the magic came back into her, her eyes lighting up, her whole body bright and eager.
“I can,” Thea promised, shaking. “Not exactly – not exactly flying, but I can give you a boost up. If you want,” she grinned widely at Arioch, feeling like she really could fly, so happy not to let him down just yet. “If you trust me,” she giggled. “It will be more like a push up than flying but – but I can do it.” She took a deep breath. “You’ll have to move forward onto the ledge the moment you’re high enough though, you can’t hesitate even a second.” Thea bit her lip, looking at him. “Don’t fight it, either, okay?” She grinned at him.
Once Arioch agreed, Thea would kneel down in the sand at his feet, carefully, one hand sort of easing under his foot. She took a deep breath, murmuring softly in primordial, and a massive gust of wind would shoot up from her hand, pushing at the bottom of Arioch’s feet. If he relaxed, and let the wind take him, it would shoot him fifteen feet straight up, high enough to get onto the midpoint of the cliff.
Not only that, but soft winds would swirl at Thea’s feet, lifting her much more delicately than they had Arioch, ten feet into the air, high enough that she too could climb onto the cliffside.
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Arioch
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Post by Arioch on Mar 25, 2019 15:57:20 GMT
Arioch nodded eagerly when she mentioned the boost, that was flying already, but he felt like he shouldn't point that out just yet.
"I trust you"
He declared, without the shadow of a doubt in his voice or expression, not a change from what it had been before. If it was her, he felt safe about experiencing magic. Her kind of magic, so far it hadn't hurt him at all, even when it was clearly a possibility. And that had gone a long way into slowly building his trust of her and her magical prowess. The way she was making it sound like a challenge only gave him more of a thrill. He smiled at the feeling, the excitement.
"Yes, I can do it"
He said, full of confidence, though aware that he didn't really know what to expect or how would it feel.
"I'll try"
Added then with a small giggle? Not to fight it? Perhaps that would be harder depending on how it would feel, it was more of an instinctual reaction on him, to willingly prevent his body from trying to resist a foreign force that he knew was Thea's. Surrender was an act of trust, naturally, and he didn't want to betray either his own trust in her, or the trust that she was putting in his words. He hoped it wouldn't feel so weird that it would force an impulsive reaction like that out of him.
Then he glared at her at his feet, the sight briefly distracted him with other thoughts; some of those wondering just what she was doing. And in a manner of seconds a massive gust of wind flew him upwards. He shouted laughing, irresistibly, just out of the sheer enjoyment and fun of the moment as he tried to land himself on the middle of the grass plateau by the middle. For a brief second he was a bit worried Thea might have overdone it and just catapulted him over the cliffs, but that quick fear, like lightning turned into laughter, impossible to resist. It didn't even end when he landed and then rolled forward into the new soft surface.
He stood there laughing for a second before getting up and walking back to the edge to see Thea; who had also just made her ascent though instead of landing nearly on top of it was climbing upwards. He offered his hand again, though he didn't know if by that point it had been needed at all. The joke would be on her should she accept it however, because he would use that to then pull her into himself; shifting his body just slightly to the side to then embrace her, her back against his chest, his arms holding her thightly... Only to then fall down seemingly on his back. It was cruel of him, but he wanted to hear her squeal. That little bit of vertigo at an uncertain fall, specially trap and falling backwards like that... But there would be no crude landing, no crashing, only a soft cushioning as he ended up sitting with her on top of his lap balancing only once back and then forth, his hard upper body only barely tensing at the extra weight; the sunset over the water right in front of them. Arioch was still laughing, but it was more than enjoyement, or just that funny feeling at flying and falling, it was also hugging her like that, feeling her body against his, even her ever-shifting hair against his chin and face now.
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Post by moralhazard on Mar 25, 2019 16:06:08 GMT
Thea smiled up at Arioch, taking his hand in hers; she didn’t really need the support with just a few feet to go, but she felt so unbearably happy that it seemed like the thing to do – and then Arioch pulled her up, almost like flying, sort of twirling her around; it felt like he barely even had to try to move her, he was so strong – and then, before Thea even had time to process the feeling of her back against his chest, he tumbled straight back.
Thea squealed, and even squirmed against him, unable to resist it, tensing up at the last moment – and then in a movement so smooth she couldn’t even follow it they were sitting, her back resting against his chest, which was – shaking with laughter?
Thea’s pounding heart slowed a little, and then she began to laugh as well, shaking a little against him, bent forward a little. “Oh, that wasn’t nice!” Thea sat up, slowly, and smacked his leg very lightly with one hand, giggling still. She relaxed back, slowly, almost without thinking, until she was fully cuddled into him. It was only then that Thea realized how solidly she was sitting in Arioch's lap – and how comfortable it was. Her heart was pounding again, she realized; a very different kind of adrenaline this time. In all the excitement of getting up the cliff it hadn’t occurred to Thea to worry about being so alone with him, in the midst of the seashore, up a cliff, and –
And now that she was there? Thea found she didn’t mind at all.
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Arioch
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Post by Arioch on Mar 25, 2019 16:52:18 GMT
That little hit against his leg nothing if not produce another chuckle out of him, it had been everything he had expected of that little moment. Both satisfactory, and pleasant as well.
"I'm not nice" He admitted, that radiant smile on his lips now with a speck of complicity.
The view was nice, but the company was nicer; as the last vestiges of the sun were reflected on them leaving only the constant warm breeze of the shore to replace the sounds of the city, a much more calming melody he gave himself the moment to appreciate the situation. Thea's warmth and the wind together had a way to make his entire body feel good; yet his heart was not relaxed and slow after that last prance. It was certainly not racing, but it was beating with expectation. That burning courage, now like ever present embers spread over slowly as he held her thight. He could feel her heart beating, not quite unlike his.
He took a slow, deep breath looking at the sunset. And then his gaze turned towards Thea; appreciating up close her hair; the color of her skin. He shamelessly brought one hand up up to her hair and slowly touched it with his fingers, brushing it to the side. It felt so soft to him. Most about her felt so soft to him, though there was strength underneath. It almost tingled a bit in his hand. He looked at her ear, and further down. And then he moved only a bit of a inch forward, softly pressing his lips against the side of her ear.
"And I don't think you really vant me to be right now..."
The words, fiery winds made their way up to her ear; their meaning accompanied by a small gesture as his fingers curled up on her hair. The smallest of pulls then, but with a strength beneath the gesture that quickly reached the edge of the sensation as it made itself manifest, confidently reach it's zenith. To be hold briefly as his lips reached her neck for a simple, chaste kiss, strong enough to be both felt and heard without a rush. The pull in his hand remained, her hair tightly held... But only for a few seconds as he then released her; letting his hand fall in a long caress just opposite of the direction his lips were going.
He watched her skin. He thought it had a good taste to it. And certainly his body did too. He looked at her face that close, and definitely decided he really liked it when she got that blue.
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Post by moralhazard on Mar 25, 2019 17:03:27 GMT
Thea thought she could feel Arioch’s heart beat against her back. She wasn’t sure – it was hard to tell. The sunset was nearly coming to an end, the last glowing rays shining out over the ocean; from the flowers bursting into flame at twilight to this last shimmer of sun seemed to have stretched out over hours, but at the same time it felt like only a moment ago that Thea had turned to see Arioch outside the fire festival.
Thea’s hair was soft but not pliant against his fingers; the breeze in it was almost playful, twisting the strands out of his fingers sometimes, and wrapping them around others, almost as if it was caressing his hand.
Thea shivered at the touch of Arioch’s lips to her ear. He tugged her hair, just hard enough to move her head a little, but not hard enough to hurt. His lips brushed her neck now, and Thea shivered again, goosebumps rising on her skin and a blush rising on her cheeks. His hand trailed slowly down to her shoulder, firm and warm against her.
It would be easy, Thea decided, to just go along with him – to let him set the pace and acquiesce, easily and slowly, to let herself be seduced. Not just easy, but effortless. She would be blameless; she could tell herself that she just hadn’t been able to resist. She could drift along, a pretty, helpless thing caught up in his net. Hadn’t she done that before?
And then something in her twisted, something pushed back, something rebelled. What had Arioch said? That by doing nothing they were dying already? She could yield, let him take control. It would be so easy. It would be just what the Thea-of-Urmlaspyr would have done, that silly girl who’d yielded to Dom, who’d let him control her magic for her. But Thea didn’t want to be that girl anymore; she never wanted to be her again.
And so she twisted in Arioch’s lap, pressing firmly against him, and kissed him again – no chaste, closed-mouth kiss this time, but a promise, fierce and passionate, not a yielding but a firm and insistent joining; if there was to be a seduction, Thea decided, she would be one of the seducers.
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Arioch
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Level 6 — Barbarian
Posts: 333
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Post by Arioch on Mar 25, 2019 17:56:03 GMT
There was a smile on Arioch's face that lasted just a fraction of a second before that very gesture was melted into a kiss, and that joy and fun slowly softened into passion. His had been a rather straighforward invitation, part of him had wondered inside what would Thea do then. If she would say something, if she would shrivel in place. But then she turned around and met him with a fierce kiss. There were pleasant surprises, he thought then, and pleasant surprises. And he did enjoy that kiss more than he thought he would; this time not as chaste. As their lips joined, as his tonge briefly ran against hers, twisted, and pushed slowly; his hands then ran the sides of her body. Big and strong as they were they seemed quite determined and confident in finding their way blindly. They set upon her hips and brought her closer, bodies nearly shifting face to face.
The kiss was done; but he didn't pull away. He went for her again his lips brushing against her, opening in a feint and then closing on her lower lip. Biting, tightly but enough to really hurt. And he pulled back very slowly letting her lip get away a centimeter at a time, feeling her breath, with fire in it's intent, blow against him briefly. He enjoyed it. His hands pressed against her more firmly and he grabbed her, bringing her around alongside him with ease, sitting her behind where he had just been, leaving them face to face now.
Their faces so near, placed one hand on her thigh. One on her neck, completely surrounding it. Pressed tightly. Tighter. Taking her breath away. His lips approached her. His lips brushing hers before moving back slowly, a controlled savagery in his eyes, held back by will and enjoyment alone, as he gazed into her eyes taking that sensation to it's limit. To the very moment just before her body twitched in need, and released. A smile of satisfaction in his lips.
"I'm loving this side of you"
He admitted, his voice a low roar, deeper, and as firm as ever, moving forward to her. That fire in his eyes part provokation, part declaration.
"I've always vanted to know if your body really vas vhite all over..."
Arioch confessed in that fierce intimacy.
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Post by moralhazard on Mar 25, 2019 18:12:54 GMT
Some time later…
The grass was cool and soft, half-crushed in parts; it was a warm night, after a week of warm days, and even the breeze that danced in off the sea wasn’t too cool. The cliffs screened them from the lights of Waterdeep well enough that the stars were visible above, twinkling brightly in the sky; the moon was nearing full, rising up and glowing white over the ocean.
Thea shifted against the grass, slowly stretching out. She felt a pleasant, warm sort of haze, like embers after a fire has gone out, satisfied with the burning. She didn’t say anything; she hadn’t for quite some time. In truth, all thoughts were thoroughly gone from her head; all the worries and fears she’d nursed so tenderly had been evaporated into a fine steam.
Her cheek was already resting on Arioch’s shoulder, her body curled towards him. The grass was tickling her arm, though, and so Thea shifted a little more, half-turning so her chin curled over his shoulder, her back towards the sky. She let out a happy little sigh, closing her eyes, already well more than half asleep. Her hair swayed gently against him, shifting in its own breeze.
The scar started between her shoulder blades, a dark, rough blue against the pale bluish-white skin, and zig-zagged across her back, all the way down to the small of her spine, like a lightning bolt. It wasn’t just a main bolt either; little jagged branches zigged and zagged off on either side, stretching out onto her shoulder blades, her ribs, onto the smooth soft skin above her hips. There was plenty of her back left unscarred, but there also wasn’t almost any part of it where the scar wasn’t visible.
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Arioch
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Level 6 — Barbarian
Posts: 333
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Post by Arioch on Mar 26, 2019 15:34:36 GMT
Arioch was deep in his thoughts; there was a point for him reached only after maximum exhaustion and pleasure that felt like... a trance state, a kind of meditation. Deeply reflexive, it was a fleeting thing but a highly sought after experience. It didn't last long, for the earthly pleasantness and joy that was Thea's touch was slowly but surely bringing him back down to the earth; even though he was spent he could already feel that desire began to bubble up again within him, absolutely unsatiable. Striking conversation was something that happened when there was still some energy left for that. For him, it was doubly pleasant when there was not even enough left for that, just another heart beating wildly and someone trying to catch it's breath and slow it down.
His hand idly went about discovering her body, fingertips leaving small trails of warmth across her skin until they ran into something he had seen before, and now was feeling with all his attention: That scar between the shoulderblades, which now he shamelessly, slowly caressed with his fingers. Only when his fingers finished the course they were running did he open his mouth again, a deep low roar in his hoarse voice as he spoke.
"How did you get this...?"
He asked with a slow curiosity, the tip of his finger now running the opposite way trailing along the edge of the scar softly. His own body was no stranger to scars and some of those even she would be able to realise where they had been earned: The arena. The burns, the deep cuts, the thrusts. However, he had no scar so rough looking, so large as the one she did. He didn't ask when at first he saw it because he was deeply caught in his own desire for her, for what she was right then and there but now... there was time. It was not something he would have imagined she posssessed, felt out of place for the kind of tenderness she seemed to have.
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Post by moralhazard on Mar 26, 2019 15:48:37 GMT
“Mm…” Thea shifted more against him, only half-aware of Arioch’s fingers trailing slowly, slowly down her back. She dug her chin into his shoulder a little, wondering if he meant to reignite? She couldn’t imagine it was possible,
He spoke, and Thea opened her eyes, slowly, blinking at him. “Oh – ” Thea sighed a little, curling closer against him. Impossible as it sounded, she'd nearly forgotten the scar. “The storm,” She said, simply, eyes fluttering closed again.
Thea wasn’t sure she’d ever spoken of it. Everyone at the keep knew, of course, but Thea had never had to discuss it; she’d been grateful for that for years. Maybe she’d sobbed some of it to Maude in the midst of a nightmare; she had never been able to remember what she’d said, come the next day. Citrine knew the substance of it, what had happened, but not… not the exact cause of the scar. It was dark, though, and Thea had been nearly asleep, and she felt – so relaxed, like nothing could touch her, not her memories, not fear, not guilt, not shame; Arioch had banished them all.
“My mother captained a ship,” Thea’s voice was low and soft. She was awake now, but not too awake. One hand played over Arioch’s chest, slowly, fingers tracing his contours with as much curiosity as he was searching hers, pausing at each and every scar as if to memorize its outlines. “The Dragonfly. She took me to sea when I was twelve.”
“There was… a storm,” Thea sighed. “I’d been sailing with her two years then, I knew… we’d sailed through storms before. This was different, it… came out of nowhere, lightning and thunder, wind that could knock you off your feet, and the tallest waves I’d ever seen. It was midday but… pitch black. I was on deck, the storm was tossing us about like a child’s toy. I remember – flashes of it,” Thea’s eyes slowly closed again. “A jolt when a break broke beneath us, lightning hitting the mast, waves… crashing on the deck.”
“She went overboard,” Thea turned a little more, cuddling her cheek into Arioch’s shoulder. There was almost no sadness in her voice – just a simple statement of fact. “I was there – at the railing – reaching for her. She was so close – I remember thinking that if only my arms had been longer. Then – I could see the lightning reflected in her eyes and it… hit me. I felt it – it spoke to me, it…” Thea shivered. “Then the pain came. I remember – falling, and then – nothing.”
Thea was quiet for a long few moments, fingers still working their way over Arioch’s skin. “That’s how I became a sorcerer.”
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Arioch
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Posts: 333
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Post by Arioch on Mar 26, 2019 16:28:10 GMT
The storm? He thought to himself, but didn't utter a word yet to interrupt what looked like beginning of a tale. He almost regretted asking the question when he heard the sleepiness in her voice. He had always thought that she would have belonged to a high class family, maybe renowned artisans or wealthy merchants. That her mother had capitained a ship seemed a bit foreign to that idea. And twelve years old. Her mother must have been a hardy woman then, Arioch thought, she would've of had to be in order to keep a ship together at sea. He knew for a fact that sometimes sailors brought their offspring on board with them so that they might gather experience. Twelve seemed like a fine age for that.
"She sounds like a a strong voman"
As she spoke his hand slowly reached the upper end of the scar again and lingered there for a bit, before finally drifting further ahead reaching hear neck with only the tip of one finger running by the middle of it only to then drop again, and then be replaced by his thumb, slowly becoming acquainted with every mark in her body, every turn and every outline her shape described.
Thea's description of the storm sounded frightening. He had been at sea once already and he felt that had been enough. He had felt like a rat in a cage. Trapped in a floating coffin. At the mercy of the elements. Ready to die an undignified death at any turn, unable to fight water itself, unable to grab a hold of the wind, the entire ship creaking making him think it would break at any moment and they would sink. But the way she described the storm was much, much worse than that. It was nothing short of a horror story, and something completely unnatural. He held her tighter against him as she went on, rubbing of his warmth against her.
And when she reached his shoulder he turned his head slightly looking at her up closer.
He waited a few moments after she was done before speaking.
"Vhat...?"
Were his first words, spoken slowly just as the following
"The lighting hit you?"
He knew nothing about sorcery or magic, but neither did he know about anyone to have been struck by lightning and then survive to tell the tale, less so even a child of fourteen years of age with her complexion.
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Post by moralhazard on Mar 26, 2019 16:41:43 GMT
“Yes,” Thea said, simply, opening her eyes again, meeting his gaze with hers. “That’s what caused the scar.” She shrugged a little and snuggled a little closer against him. It was starting to grow a little cold, but Arioch was still remarkably warm.
The lightning had struck her in the back. There was no doubt that it had hit her; the odd branching scar couldn’t have been caused by anything else. Worse than the touch of the lightning, worse than the pain, had been the feeling that it was… calling to her, that it had awoken something inside of her. At least, that was how she had felt in the months of her recovery, fighting to regain control of her damaged body and to learn how to manage her magic. The memory of seeing it in her mother's eyes - the last time she'd ever seen her - was something she had never shared.
“The ship sank, of course,” Thea’s voice was slow and thoughtful; she could have been discussing some intricate part of glassblowing, rather than a nightmare that she’d lived through. “I woke up drifting in the ocean, lying on a piece of the hull. The sea was so calm, then, glassy. I – didn’t find out until later that no one else had survived.” Her hand was still on Arioch’s stomach now.
“A passing ship picked me up. I was mostly delirious by then,” Thea hesitated. “I – couldn’t control my magic then. I didn’t even know it was magic. I’m sure I frightened them – I was screaming, and with the lighting and wind… well. I half-think they almost threw me back overboard, but I… I don’t really remember. I'm grateful for that.” A little roughness had seeped into her voice, making it rasp.
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Arioch
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Post by Arioch on Mar 26, 2019 17:08:22 GMT
As he ran his fingers tenderly across her body he could imagine the searing pain that must have gone through her body, on top of the despair of the situation. Specially at such a young age. That the ship sank came as no surprise to him, it was a miracle alone that she survived at all, not only the storm but after being struck by lightning on top of all. His hand then reached all the way up again and this time it continued until it was directly on her head, brushing her hair to the side in a swooping, small motion, softly as he listened.
"It vas a miracle you survived at all"
He said then, a contemplative whisper, reflexive concern, his voice still hoarse and low.
"I alvays thought your magic had been something you'd been born vith and avare of, since you vere little. Or, perhaps, something you developed later on. Vhen you told me about the difference betveen vizard and sorcerers I honestly didn't paid it much mind then. Magic is magic."
He paused for a bit, thinking about just how much death and destruction that storm had caused. And for why? No discernible reason.
"I guess being around you, I had forgotten just how dangerous magic is..."
A faint smile took shape on his lips, it was true. He felt safe around her, and that trust had inspired him to let her do things he wouldn't even allow someone else to even think of doing.
"And you say this storm... spoke to you...?"
The revelation was a bit shocking for him, that she hadn't come from a nice family and a comforting schooling. That alone made him wonder how did she end up doing glassblowing at all, let alone being how she was. The people he had known who had lost everything were not... Couldn't even begin to compare to her. Now that could have been because of her magic, which certainly set a difference. Or simply, and more plausibly, could be because of who she was and how she was. It felt cheap to boil it down to the fact that she was a magic user, a gross oversimplification of every other factor, however small or big.
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Post by moralhazard on Mar 26, 2019 17:16:32 GMT
Arioch’s hand on her hair felt nice; the breeze in it shifted against him a little, almost feebly, as if it was nearly as worn out as she was.
“Yes,” Thea agreed with Arioch’s whisper. He wasn’t the only one to have said it; she had heard whispers of it in the keep for years. It was one of the first things she remembered after waking up back at home, the healer whispering to Maude that he didn’t know how she’d survived, and Maude’s soft, breathy voice barely audible through her sobs, calling it a miracle. Then, Thea had thought of them as a curse, both her survival and her magic.
“I’m very dangerous!” Something about Arioch’s tone sparked her a little, and Thea laughed, shaken out of her reverie, and shifted against him, her hand resuming its exploration, sloping downwards. She stuck her tongue out at him, smiling again.
“Oh, well,” The moment was over. Thea shrugged a little. “Not in words. It’s hard to explain. They still call to me sometimes,” she sighed. “I hated it for a long time, I mean – it was terrifying. I thought the thunderstorms outside the keep were coming to finish me off,” Thea shrugged again. “I was – young. It was a long time ago, Ari.”
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Arioch
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Posts: 333
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Post by Arioch on Mar 26, 2019 17:43:05 GMT
He chuckled at the dangerous sight of Thea sticking her head out, a deep and brief laugh, yet joyful and contagious.
"I know, you did use the magic dress against me. It vorked."
Confessed to her, in a mockery of an accusatory tone, almost offended as if he hadn't actually had one of the most remarkable nights so far, complete with amazing scenery and amazing company. He was not so deaf to human interaction that he couldn't tell the underlying hardness of the subject they were currently addressing however. He cared for that, though sometimes it was true he lacked tact or the ability to listen passively and not asume everything shared on to him was a problem to solve. His thumb ran from the side of her forehead to the back of her head, aiding itself with the rest of his fingers to brush her hair back and leave her face properly exposed, so he could watch it whole for his pleasure.
It made sense to him, being afraid of storms after they killed her family, almost killed her and left her drifting across the ocean just waiting to die, probably being burnt under the sun for days on end to the point of being delirious. Moreso if, on top of that, the storm also talked to you while doing it. For a moment he was concerned that the storms meant completely different things to one another.
"Does it still happen...?"
He asked, and he wasn't mocking her
Once he had known a girl that had been afraid of the dark even after she became a woman, and that was not even because the darkness had killed her family and nearly killed her. It was more than justified.
"I knew you vere stronger than your exterior lets on" Arioch admitted "Now I know vhy. You had to be."
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Post by moralhazard on Mar 26, 2019 17:52:37 GMT
Thea laughed as well at Arioch’s comment about the magic dress, smiling at him still. She leaned her head into his hand, enjoying the touch of his fingers, the tingle that still lingered beneath her skin with each gentle caress. “The fear? No,” Thea smiled at him, softly. “Not anymore.” Not for years, in fact. She did have Dom to thank for that. He had pushed her – he had always pushed her. Not for her sake, she could see that now, but for his. But – Thea had been the one to take the step, in the end, not Dom. She hadn’t, Thea realized, given herself enough credit for that. She would have to do better. If the strength to overcome that fear had been in her with Dom - Thea could see that it would have been there anyway. Or, rather, it had been there all along; Dom hadn't made her strong, he had only been the tool that let her uncover her own strength.
“The storm orbs helped,” Thea admitted. “The first ones I made I… well, it’s hard to explain. There's a memory of a storm, in them and it was that storm that I remembered best, and…” Thea shrugged a little. “It’s hard to be afraid of a storm after you’ve trapped it in glass.” She was treating the subject a little lightly; she had been very afraid, the first storm orb she'd made, but - driven too.
“Stronger than…?” Thea glanced down at herself, then back at Arioch. “What do you mean?” She asked. She knew she wasn’t terribly intimidating, physically – rather the opposite, although she could summon up the strength to intimidate someone if need be. Mostly, she wondered why Arioch thought she was stronger than she looked; she had always thought he saw her as… weak, maybe a little helpless.
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