[IC] Journey to the East

[Illumin0sity]

“Knowing Zeltiva,” Ryon started, “there’ll be a few people who’ll walk by and see a good time and just join in.” He smiled to himself at the thought, his nose wriggling to take in the conglomeration of smells in the kitchen. “Is Jocelyn coming to dinner or is she working?”

“Josie said she’ll be working late tonight, so it’s likely we won’t see her until at least the fourth bell of the morning. You know she has to clean up after the shift and all that. She’ll be pretty swamped, as I know she wanted to be here because Noah’s back, but the docks just got a few ships in and you know the sailors,” Isabella explained, moving towards the oven to set the spouted pot on it.

Ryon grunted in acknowledgement, unfolding his arms to twirl one of his rings over his finger thoughtfully. Noah settled into the chair, laying his hand and head on the table and closed his eyes, quickly finding himself in a state of half-sleep.

Outside in the main hall a sliding door could be heard opening, the near-silent pattering of Aimee’s barefeet coming across the floor and rug until she appeared in the opening of the archway, a towel around her body and her hands coursing through her still wet hair. She simply poked her head in, Ryon looking to her briefly before she was gone, her feet padding out into the hall again and then up the stairs.

Ryon’s sights set on Elann then. “You know, it’s hard to imagine that you’re married to Noah. I mean, I hardly thought him the type to get into a serious relationship, let alone with a woman,” he said, looking Elann up and down. “You must be pretty magical to do all that, reining him in.”

[snelss0]

Elann didn't like the sound of Josie even having to work late. Perhaps Noah's family wasn't very well off? The house seemed nice, but Elann could have been fooled. As she stood in silence, she wondered just how conversational Jocelyn was going to exactly be when she got home. Having spent a great deal aboard a ship, she knew just how crude and rude some sailors could be.

Having Ryon's sights on her and saying what he did, Elann was not sure what to think. It had long been suspected that Noah preferred Caesarion physically to her, and how that was possible was likely only because it was his preference, however she didn't know for sure because he seemed to love her too, just in many different ways. She didn't like thinking that she was not his type, not his preference, and if she let the thoughts in, it would really hurt her. Instead she tried to play along.

"Oh, well I'm sure he thinks so."

Her illuminated eyes seemed to twinkle toward Ryon, brightened by her smile and jewelry.

[Illumin0sity]

“I’m sure,” Ryon parroted.

“Ryon,” Isabella piped up, “care to watch the pot while I run upstairs?” Once her son had nodded and moved to where she was, Isabella dismissed herself and went out into the main hall, her slippered feet sounding up the stairs as she went.

After a moment a second pair came as Aimee journeyed down. She appeared in the archway and then the kitchen draped in a darkly tuned dress shaded with purple. To her waist was a satchel of jingling gold tied and in her hand was a small sack. Her hair was up in a bun atop her head, though it was apparently still damp. She adjusted the large neckline that revealed her shoulders and clavicle and fiddled with the belt around her midsection. Much like the others, she found herself garnished in a few rings and a small necklace.

“I’m going to run to the tavern to give these candies to the girls,” she told those present, her eyes looking over Elann and then the napping Noah. Ryon had his back turned, stirring the stew, so he just brought the spoon up and waved without looking. “Is Josie working late tonight or is she coming?”

“She’ll be down there, why don’t you ask her?” Ryon returned, tapping the spoon on the edge of the pot.

“You’d think you’d treat me nicely after I was gone for so long. Didn’t you miss me?” Aimee asked, flashing Elann a smile even though she was talking to her brother.

“You weren’t gone long enough to be missed, my beloved sister.” He turned to face the kitchen, showing a cheeky smile to Aimee.

“I’ll remember that next time I decide to go out of town,” she replied dryly. “Right, I’ll be back in a few, don’t eat without me.”

“No promises.”

“Elann, make sure he doesn’t eat without me.” Aimee knew very well that if Ryon really set his mind to it he’d disregard any warning Elann would give, but this was all in play, which may not have been discernable to Elann because of the seemingly forceful way the Kelvics were talking in.

Aimee doubled checked herself, patting any pockets she had and making sure she had her coin purse and sack of goods in hand before turning, waving a goodbye to Elann in the process. Soon after she disappeared from the kitchen the front door opened and close, giving renewed quietness to the house interrupted by the flames under the oven crackling and the pot boiling. Eventually that too was disturbed entirely by the kettle whistling to announce boiling water.

The whistling made Ryon’s face wince since he was so close to it, making him hurriedly move to pull it out of the oven and set it on a cloth potholder so it wouldn’t scorch the countertop. He then moved to retrieve a collection of mugs out of the cupboard and then grabbing a few loose leaf tea holders.

“Did you say you wanted tea or did you want to wait for coffee?” he asked Elann, looking over his shoulder at her and waiting for confirmation before he started the rest of the preparations.

[snelss0]

Elann gave Isabella a small wave as she disappeared, and a moment later Aimee came into sight. Naturally, Elann's eyes roved over her dress and jewelry, but mainly the dress. Her sewing eyes that had so become accustomed to fashion and style, rapidly picked up on all the various patterns and embroidery it had before looking back. Elann would likely make a few dresses of similar style as a present when Aimee's birthday came.

Wondering who these "girls" were, Elann just gave her a returning smile. Being that only a brothel was mentioned, and Noah frequently went, she couldn't recall any other mentioning of girls associated with the family. She hoped that their family weren't owners of a brothel or something.

"I can't promise anything," Elann said toyingly to her sister with a wink.

Ryon shuffled about in the kitchen and saved the water from spilling from the kettle.

"Honestly, I would like both, but I can wait for coffee."

It had been a long time since she had anything other than water to drink, and even that was a while ago.

Now that their mother was gone, she moved closer to the hearth, soaking up more heat, but not so close as to get into Ryon's way.

"So, brother, where does Jocelyn work?"

Elann wanted to say that someone had told her that she worked at a pub, but couldn't recall.

[Illumin0sity]

“Alright, well, I'll make you a cup of tea now and I'll start on the coffee next,” Ryon said to Elann, packing the holder with loose leaves before steeping it in one of the filled cups. There were four cups in total, one for Elann, Ryon, Noah, and Isabella when she returned.

He had turned his back to Elann as he was pouring and steeping the tea, only hearing her footsteps as she quietly moved closer to the hearth and him. When she spoke his ear wriggled in the slightest bit before he turned to look at her where she was situated.

“Jocelyn works in a tavern by the docks. We have co-ownership with one of our family friends, a sailor who is often away, so we take care of it when he's gone,” he answered. “Jocelyn works there with momma, more than us, mostly seeing over the girls who work there. Right now the other owner is on the trip with Donavan to Mura.”

He turned to face her entirely, two cups in hand. He walked up to Elann, closely, and extended one of the cups between them for her to take. When she took it he moved away from her towards the table and rounded the back of Noah's chair, setting the cut gently down in front of the napping eagle before patting him lightly on his curly head until he stirred. Noah let out a small groan, asking ‘what?’ causing Ryon to point to the teacup.

“It'll wake you up,” Ryon said, moving the cup a little closer to the rousing Kelvic.

Noah scanned the interior of the kitchen, noting his mother's absence and Elann’s new position before he took his cup in hand, drumming his fingers on the hot sides. Ryon returned to the counters and looked into the cupboard, bringing down tea saucers and handing one to Elann. “I forgot about these, sorry,” he apologized to her.

Withdrawing from her, he settled back onto the counter, hoisting himself up to sit atop it with his tea off to the side, cup on one of the saucers. “So, what's it that you do?” he asked, peering searchingly at Elann, looking for something that would give away her preferred profession before she spoke.

[snelss0]

Giving a nod, she agreed the to the drink arrangement and enjoyed the thought of having prepared tea and coffee, even if they weren't as strong or made in the same way her people made them. Milk was abundant among the goat and cow herders they were. It was involved in all the pastries, candies, and drinks they had. Even a sour yogurt drink was preferred over water due to its life giving capabilities. The people here didn't have to face that, but Elann had come to enjoy milk in her drinks.

Elann didn't particularly feel comfortable with Ryon close to her, but as he fled away to the table, she felt better. She began to drink her drink while it was still hot and didn't even notice about a saucer until he had brought up the subject.

"Oh, thank you."

He asked what she did and she assumed he meant what she used to do. With common not as her first language, sometimes it was hard to understand the phrases people used, but this one was not unheard of to her.

"Well, back home I would guard our goats during the night, I would sell and make rugs during the day by hand. In Syliras I worked during the year I was there as a seamstress and rugmaker using a loom and various other implements. I began to learn the bow and arrow, so they've been taking me out hunting at times, but I haven't really been taught much, but I suppose I do that too."

[Illumin0sity]

“Don’t mention it,” Ryon welcomed her plainly.

Settled onto the counter, he hunched over after picking up his teacup and saucer, holding it there in front of him, hanging. Listening to Elann, she would see his brows raise and quirk in the slightest ways, something akin to Noah’s own when he heard or saw something interesting. Before he could speak though, Noah roused and rose, the chair’s sounding against the wooden floor before sounding again as the eagle pushed it back into its correct spot. He came to Elann, scooping a hand underneath her chin to grasp her cheek on the other side of her face lightly. He leaned in, whispering, “I don’t feel well. I’m going upstairs to lie down for a little while,” before kissing her lightly on the temple. He went back to the table and grabbed his tea then went through the archway into the main hall, eventually heading up the stairs.

Ryon waited until Noah was through the archway, peering at Elann and him over his teacup as he sipped. He settled it back into the saucer then spoke, saying, “So, you’re a little bit of everything: guard, seamstress, rugmaker, and a huntress.” He paused, giving her a harder look. “What do you plan on doing here? New town, new path, and all that or whatever they say. You could do pretty much anything, especially with the University, if you’re the learning type.”

He set his teacup off to the side and hopped down from the counter, moving over to the oven and grabbing the paddle leaned against the side. “You could be a huntress full time, there are plenty of those here and they’re needed, seeing as without them we’d hardly get any game meat into the city. You wouldn’t be a lonely woman around a bunch of men either, there’re quite a few women hunters in the city.” He stuck the paddle into the oven, pulling out the pie and setting it onto a prepared rack sitting on the counter. “I dunno, I’m just rambling, making conversation.”

[snelss0]

Elann took a sip of her tea as Noah came over to her and set it down before he arrived. She closed her eyes slightly to hear his words better, though she could likely feel through their bond in part what he was feeling. He had gotten over the worst of his sickness, but who knew if it was emotional or physical. As he left, she began to search their bond for the reason Noah was leaving her side with essentially a stranger.

She took to her tea again, only having a minor worry for her husband's well being in their bond. She turned to Ryon fully and smirked as he titled her a guard. It was obvious she didn't consider herself much of one, but she had saved more than one life the night of the raid on top of many a goat that would have been killed. Perhaps she was part guard?

"I don't know yet," she answered him, waving her hand to show it was alright. "I was thinking either making rugs again or learning hunting. Really I was hoping to run my own business with Noah one day, but really I was thinking it would be nice to live off the land. I'm really open to whatever comes at this point in time.."

Looking to the pot he was asked to watch, she wriggled a finger toward it to remind him should he have forgotten to stir it. It hadn't been that long, but with him drinking, talking, making tea and coffee, attending to his brother with undrunk tea, and pulling a pie out of the oven, it wouldn't surprise her if he did forget before it was time to stir.

"What are you doing right now for work?"

[Illumin0sity]

Looking into the bond, Elann would discern a mixture of emotional downness and physical tiredness, weakness in Noah, something brought up from still fighting off his sickness yet going through the transitioning to being at home again. Mostly, he was just tired and would’ve been asleep in Donavan’s bed already if Elann didn’t say she wanted to see his room. It wasn’t a bother to show her, for he wanted to, but it just delayed his brief pre-supper nap. Eventually she’d feel their bond fade to little more than the buzz denoting that he was asleep, falling that way soon after his head hit the pillow.

Ryon doubled back to the oven, sticking the paddle in again to pull out the loaf of bread, putting it on the same rack with the pie. He did it while he listened to Elann, finding it interesting she was wanting to start a business potentially. He leaned the paddle back against the oven and moved over to the pot again, partly because of Elann’s reminding. He hadn’t forgotten but didn’t keep track of just how long it had been since he last stirred it. He took up the spoon and dipped it in, slowly cranking his arm around and around, his ears perking to Elann’s question.

“I’m finishing up an apprenticeship with the local blacksmith. This is my last year, a few months before I’m done and can work full time. I get about half the day’s pay. I do that in the day and I’ll go help out in the tavern at night to bartend from time to time, usually it’s when Josie just wants a break, which is hardly ever,” he told her. “You’d think she was a horse, how much she works.” He laughed at his joke, unsure if it was lost to Elann or not seeing as his back was to her.

Ryon tapped the spoon off to the side of the pot and set it down on the counter, doubling back to the oven in order to grab the poker off to the side. He squatted down and opened the door to the oven’s fire, poking and spreading out the logs so that it would begin to cool down. He rose and started to prepare the coffee next. From the archway came Isabella running a hand through her hair as she shuffled back towards the hearth and oven and Ryon. She surveyed the pie briefly to make sure they were satisfactory before taking up post at the pot, Ryon moving aside naturally.

“I’m glad everything’s about done,” Isabella commented, gesturing vaguely towards the pie and loaf of bread. “Ryon, could you move this for me?” she asked, tapping the pot with the spoon before she moved towards the smoothed out stone water basin and dropped the spoon in some of the gathered water. She turned to face Elann, smiling briefly then nodded towards the girl. “I like your earrings, dear. You really got prettied up for this get together.”

Going to the hutch, Isabella started to gather plates and cups, moving to set the table rather quickly. She’d deny any help Elann may have had to offer, saying that the Benshira was a guest and not in charge of supper on this night, therefore she didn’t have to lift a finger. After doubling back a few times the table had been set, cloth napkins spread out at each seat with saucers and bowls on the side. Utensils had been put in their proper places, as did a ladle and cutting knife for the bread and pie.

[snelss0]

Not enjoying Noah's emotional downness, she wondered what was bothering him. Was it being around his brother and sisters? Was it having to stay in Donovan's room? She really didn't know. Whatever it was, it faded quickly along with his physical tiredness. For the most part, she had been ignoring his sickness as much as she could through the bond over the last few days so as not to feel utterly destroyed.

"So, you are making a lot of needles and nails right now then?" she asked, figuring an apprentice blacksmith wouldn't really make many suits of armor or anything important like a sword. Perhaps small things? It was a shot in the dark, something her husband didn't enjoy her really doing. Perhaps Ryon would not like her assuming things, even if in question.

From what Elann imagined, they were all furious in temper and hard to deal with except for Aimee and Isabella, but seeing the charisma of Ryon, she wasn't sure that thought process was right.

Isabella came back and evaluated. As she did, Elann commented. "It smells nice, and that pie looks good."

Elann had yet to make a pie, but didn't figure it too hard given she baked many things. Isabella commented about her earrings and it caused a brilliant smile to come over Elann's face.

"Oh, thank you. Not too much. I didn't even wear any makeup or anything. I just brushed my hair and got cleaned up a little."

They began to get things ready, and already she knew she was forbidden from asking to help. She just hoped that didn't last and she would feel useful as a guest in the house. She finished her tea and refrained from the reading of them.

[Illumin0sity]

Ryon shook his head at Elann. “With only a few months left in the apprenticeship, I help him out with some of his large projects and commissions. I take small jobs by myself with him watching over me,” he told her..

With Isabella’s return, and the table being sat, Ryon started to move the dishes over to the the center of the table. It was quite a long dining table, enough seats for everyone and a few guests when they came over for dinner. Elann was the only guest as of now though, meaning a few other seats would remain empty after everyone sat down. Elann would begin to discern that the pie wasn’t that of dessert, but was another entree, a pie filled with chicken and vegetables. The stew itself was made up of onion and hare, something resembling what Isabella cooked in Elann’s home but with meat added instead of just onion flavored broth. The bread had been sliced by Ryon and stacked on a few saucers collected in the middle of the table near the large bowl the soup had been ladled into. The remains within the pot went back onto the hearth’s grate while the flames were poked and spread out like the oven’s had been.

Isabella looked over everything and nodded, satisfied. Ryon looked towards the archway as the front door sounded, opening, two pairs of footsteps marching inside for a moment before they died down, those entering taking their shoes off at the entrance hall. Softly treading, Aimee’s figure reentered the kitchen and alongside her came another man. It was easily ascertainable he was Viktor, his height and mane of hair along with the gruffness of his finished beard announcing as much. His hair came down to his shoulders in wavy browns akin to Ryon’s own with the darkness of Noah’s shade with the occasional flecks of blonde that dressed Noah’s hair in the summer. It seemed all the children so far had his eyes, pale and blue like cold steel. The only thing denoting his possibly elderly age was the silver streaks along the front of his maintained style, the youth in his face seemingly unperturbed aside from slight wrinkles and folds. It clear both Noah and Ryon took after their mother in terms of facial construction while Aimee shared Viktor’s longer face.

He was dressed simply in socks and basic trousers with his shirt thrown over his shoulder. Though he had long ago stopped sweating from work, his fringe and edges of his hair were lain flat near his hairline.

Viktor’s dark, thick brows, angry seeming, rose as his wintry gaze settled on Elann there in his kitchen. There was a cant of his head as he took the fullness of her small frame in, looking over to Isabella who had stayed very much put until his sights were on her. Once their gazes met she moved over to him, smiling and embracing him. He embraced her in return. While they hugged in greeting, Aimee continued into the kitchen, smiling at Elann and grazing her hand over the Benshira’s shoulder before taking a position right beside the girl.

Isabella and Viktor shared a kiss before they both turned to face Elann, Viktor’s hand playing with the the blonde strands on his wife’s head. Isabella took Viktor by the hand and brought him across the way to Elann before parting from him and moving towards Elann, resting her hand on the Benshira’s other shoulder.

“Viktor, this is Elann, the one you’ve heard so much about,” the matriarch said, speaking softly.

Viktor nodded slowly in understanding, taking his time to look over Elann in relative quiet. “Hello,” he finally said, his voice low yet whispering. “So, you married my baby boy?”

[snelss0]

"Well that's great," Elann voiced with excitement.

Isabella then returned and set the place. Elann was sure that supper would be soon, but Noah was asleep. She was about to voice that she was going to go wake him up, but the door sounded. Elann couldn't see Viktor and Aimee until they came into the room, but had a great growing sense of nervousness due to everyone's silence. Perhaps it was intuition, but she knew it just had to be someone of importance- it was Viktor for sure.

The footfalls came closer and Elann stood upright ready to meet whomever it was. Both Aimee and Viktor came into view and she smiled clearly to Aimee and had a more pensive look to her smile as she looked to her new Father-in-law.

The image of Noah's father in her mind had been vastly overpowered as she pictured him some overbearingly powerful man who stood ten feet tall and was a solid wall of muscle or something. He was impressive and powerful she had no doubt, but just in her mind he was much larger and less loving. He seemed to share a kiss with his wife and nearly fawn over her, which grew Elann's smile as she recalled her own husband doing such small things of affection for her at times.

She was eventually surrounded by the women of the Amuel house as if they were protecting her closely as Viktor met her, but Elann wasn't afraid. In the face of danger or moments of risk, she seemed to muster up a braveness from somewhere deep within her and confidently she answered back without fear.

"Hello, yes, I am the one. Elann."

If he seemed to want to shake her hand, she would offer it in greeting, but otherwise would keep to herself. There was no doubt that much like Ryon, he too would want to evaluate her. The brilliance of her eyes was unwavering from him, and the intensity that could outdo Noah's gaze seemed to focus on the the wolf, studying him and his clothes, his face, his hair, all in short glances as she took him in and yet still remained true to his eyes.

"I'm glad to finally meet you. I'm sorry, Noah's sleeping at the moment upstairs."

[Illumin0sity]

Viktor raised a hand to dismiss Elann’s apology. “No worries,” he said in Fratava understandingly. “It was a long trip from Syliras to Zeltiva. I’m happy to have both of you here and to have him home,” he said quietly. “It’s nice to finally meet you as well.”

Viktor, while he wasn’t the bulky and boisterous man Elann may have imagined, he was still larger than the average man seen in Syliras. He was larger still than both Ryon and Noah, and they were a bit taller than the average man as well. Neither of them were angrily bulky, encumbered by muscle. They were mostly streamlined, any muscle they had was toned and sculpted from years of activity. Any strength they possessed may have been surprising to those that underestimated them. As it were, they were fibrous muscle jampacked into tall and almost lean bodies, Noah’s being the leanest of all. Upon see them all transformed into their feral forms, Elann would begin to understand.

“Viktor, why don’t you go change and come back down for dinner,” Isabella said, gently tapping on her husband’s arm. The man nodded, waving a slight goodbye to Elann as he backed away to saunter out into the main hall, finding his way up the stairs.

“Could you go wake Noah up and see if he has the appetite to eat with us?” Isabella continued, turning to look at Elann. “When you’re all back we can start dinner.”

“Josie said she wouldn’t be able to get away from the tavern to come sit down with us,” Aimee informed, pulling away from Elann as well. “I went down there and it was packed full of sailors.”

Isabella nodded in understanding. “Alright. We’ll just save her something for when she gets home tonight.”

[snelss0]

Elann nodded her head slightly to Viktor. He seemed a very quiet man, but she assumed when he was angry he was a force to be reckoned with. He was excused from them to go get changed, and Elann volunteered to wake up her husband. Giving Isabella a nod, she waited until Aimee was finished speaking before speaking herself.

"Okay, I'll try to wake Noah. I am not sure if he will come. He's tired. But even if not, he can eat with Jocelyn tonight."

Elann smiled and pranced off, though not so fast as to play catch up to the large Viktor, and when it came to the stairs, she carefully climbed, feeling a bit more comfortable having been on them twice before. Still, it was slow going for her and once she reached the top, she came to Donovan's room and slipped in quietly.

The door had been left open a crack and so her entry was fairly silent. Coupled with her light frame and bare feet, not a sound was heard. There he lay, sprawled out on the bed facing away from her facing away from her. Her hands closed slightly as she rounded the bed so she could see his face. Gently she sat down next to his nearly bare form and gently ran a nice warm hand up his back in a soothing way to slowly wake him.

"Moon."

She would wait until he slowly came to life and then would plant a loving kiss upon his ribs.

"Love, the food is almost ready. Your father is home too. Did you want to get up, or stay in bed?"

Her hand would come up off his back to run through his hair, perhaps soothing him almost back to sleep should he want to be returned to that realm.

[Illumin0sity]

Noah was none the wiser to Elann’s near silent approach. The window had been pushed open, allowing the cool mid-spring air to flow inside the room. His frames outwardly radiating heat was barely dampened by the cool breezes caressing his nearly bare frame. Over time he had become sensitive to hearing Elann’s voice, and so as she spoke his loving name he groaned softly in reply, eyes not cracking just yet.

He felt her hand on his back as he stirred, the peck at his ribs bringing him to life further still. He turned onto his side and then rolled onto his back, eyes opening to Elann as she spoke again in informing and in question. He closed his eyes again after looking her over in his haze, mostly because her hand came into his hair to comfort him all the more.

He didn't answer her yet, reaching up to take her hand from his hair to hold in his while resting it over his chest. His breaths remained deep and lazy as he kind of slid away again for a moment, his mind reminding him of her question and presence. He stirred again and cracked his eyes open once more, setting his sights on her.

“Love,” he said sleepily. He hadn't been sleep long enough for grogginess to seep into his voice, but the low lazy and deepness of it remained.

Noah reached out to her with both hands and grabbed ahold of her, pulling her, perhaps unexpectedly, onto him. Though the movements were rather quick, the landing wasn't hard enough to hurt either of him, especially with the deeply comfy bed beneath him and now them. He wrapped his arms around her, nuzzling his head into her neck and planting a lazy kiss there in the crook of her neck.

[snelss0]

Noah hardly stirred underneath of her touch, but a moment later seemed to come to life, calling out to her. She hummed curiously, drawing closer still to hear what he had to say.

It was then he suddenly snagged her up gently and held her. With her light frame and willing desire to go, she soon found herself on top of him. His warmth was welcomed in the cool breezes of the room and pressed upon her cheek and his was her earrings as he came in for a kiss upon her neck.

Likewise, finding herself in his, she nuzzled there with feelings of love and comfort therein. She hummed at his neck in a cooing way and nipped at his skin with her lips. The little tugs were just enough to feel the toughness of her lips, but not forceful at all.

"Is this you waking up? I think you are going to get too comfortable like this."

Her hands came to tickle slightly at his sides to encourage him to get up, but she didn't want him to be violently woken, so it was a gentle threat.

[Illumin0sity]

The cool metal of Elann's earrings touched his skin, the coolest things that did since his feet tread the plain floor of Donovan's bedroom. Unlike downstairs, it held no rug, just the wooden slats lain atop the stone floors that made up the house. Noah hummed warmly in agreement to Elann's words, confirming that he may have gotten too comfortable if it weren't for her gentle threats tickling away at his skin. Her threats bore fruit and results though, causing the Kelvic to reach for her hands, sliding off her back, and grabbing her by both wrists.

"No," he murmured, trailing in a soft whine, "stop that."

He figured she wouldn't fight against his strength, though his hold on her was far from harsh and absolute. Noah used his body to roll over again onto his stomach, this time with her beneath him, and stayed true to holding her at the wrists. He adjusted himself to straddle over her midsection and collected both her wrists in one of his hands before holding them over her head. He used his now free hand to prop himself up, hunched down over her, so that he wasn't hurting her wrists by bearing down on her with the whole of his upper body's weight.

"I'm awake," he said, shimmying so that his weight was balanced over his knees pressing into the bed's mattress rather than crushing Elann beneath him. Despite the commanding and dominating position he had over her now he refused to be rough, remaining relatively gentle throughout.

"You met my father?" he asked then, fully opening his eyes and blinking to adjust them to the orange candlelight in the room and to focus intently on her beneath him. "Do you like him, my father?"

[snelss0]

Under Noah's hold, she could do nothing, but that didn't mean she didn't struggle to break free as he whined. When her hands wouldn't get close enough, her fingers would, and when her fingers would no longer reach, he shifted with his whine, and she stopped, letting him pull her to where he wanted.

She really was no match for him even though he was weaker than his father. How much harm could his father do to her? He spun around, pinning her beneath him as he sat on her hips. She could break free if she had wanted to as he fought to put her hands into the hold of one, but she knew they would just end up right back where they were.

It was only when he announced he was awake did she fully stop her resisting him. Innocently, Elann looked up to him, curious about what he planned to do, but if it was anything like the treatment she gave him, he would have some kicks and fighting on his hands. She wouldn't sit idly by while he tickled her with his free hand.

Elann gave him a nod to show that she did meet him, though when he asked whether she liked him or not, she answered, "He's different than what I thought. We only met for a moment before he left to change after work."

She then wriggled under him to test his hold on her and to see if she was free to shift and let slip her hands.

"We should get downstairs. They will wonder about us up here..."

Still she looked to him for what he intended to do with holding her hands gently above her head like he was. It was likely to keep her from tickling him, which she wouldn't likely stop until he started getting dressed.

[Illumin0sity]

Elann's words brought question to Noah's face. He tilted it, looking down at her curiously as she looked up to him in innocence. The pinning was to keep her from tickling him, as it wasn't something he was particularly fond of. He disliked that the reactions, the laugther, was almost purely involuntary, that he couldn't control it. He withstood it with Elann though, knowing it was in play and he liked playing with her in the grand scheme of things. Tickling done by her would not produce the same reactions should one of his siblings do the same. If they were to, the reaction from him would've been far more violent than a little transition of pinning and change of control.

"Different how?" he asked in reply, pausing as she suggested they go downstairs. He looked towards the cracked door, peering through it for what he could see of an empty hallway lit by the same candlelight as in the bedroom there. He looked back down at her, ignoring her worry for favor of her words on his father. "What did you think he was like?" he reinforced his question with another one, asking for an answer. It was probably clear to her that she wasn't getting out of his hold or from up under him until she answered his inquiries in full. Only then would she be free to tickle him until he was dressed adequately. Due to the trailing of her voice announcing her worry, he wasn't ignorant to what she may have thought his family would think with her lingering upstairs. The care in him though, for what they thought he did with his bondmate, his wife, was of little concern to him.

[snelss0]

At first Elann seemed to try her bonds and fail, his hands being too strong, then she tried to resist his question playfully, which also failed, and finally she submitted.

"Different in the image I had of him in my head. The way you described him, he was very big and strong...which he is, but I just pictured larger and scarier. He seemed...nice."

Elann didn't want to comment too much further on her thoughts of his father. The opinions of her often made Noah angry and so she didn't want to do that again.

"Now get up and get ready..." she bossed, not commanded of him. "...or I'll bite you."

It was a weak threat, and a playful one, but she would bite him should she get the chance. A soft gentle bite, but a bite nonetheless.