Michellin

Wanderers

Kire grinned against his lips. "Morning," she greeted back, kissing him a little longer before breaking it. "Slept well, I take it?" She rolled onto her side so she was facing him. She ran her fingers through his hair softly, draping a leg over his, torn between just letting him sleep and wanting to talk to him. You are so horribly smitten, Kay. Kire stopped herself from rolling her eyes at herself.

"So. In the interest of research, I'd say the experiment went very well," she murmured, smirking for a moment. She paused for a while to just enjoy the embrace, though her mind wondered how much she should explain about the visions, or what she thought about them. "I had them again. The images." She explained what she saw, particularly the last two. "The first ones, could explain that away because we were, you know, in the middle of it. The last two are just peculiar. I don't know why. Only-- they were accompanied by strong feeling."

--

"Morning, Zeke." Ed glanced at the training sword and smirked when he mentioned Ysaryn. "Should be interesting to see. I owe her a match, myself, so I need to know how much pain I should be ready for," he said with a chuckle, following the ex-captain. "I'm actually here for Kire, but think I'll stop by Ysaryn's place first."

Wanderers

Kire lay awake early in the morning, but she didn’t move, content with the feeling of Ruli’s warm breath against her collarbone, feeling his steady breathing, his arm around her. Her scarred hand rested on his hair, softly caressing it. Though their first two times laying with each other had been pleasing, last night was something else: for once, she didn’t feel the need to muffle herself, and they took and gave pleasure without hurry, without simply filling a need, enjoying each other thoroughly. Kire closed her eyes, a smile playing at her lips as she recalled every sensation, and this time, neither of them had to hurry away from each other’s embrace after they were done.

And the Touch. Kire still had no adequate words for it. She didn’t know it was possible to feel such shared, intense pleasure. “Gods,” she breathed out loud, almost shuddering at the memory. What was even stranger, though, was what had happened afterward. She waited for the visions, or hallucinations, or whatever they were, and they came in an onslaught. She and Ruli, intertwined just as they were last night, in different places. A manor, the Palace, hot springs, a cabin. But the last two in the series of images were the strangest of all, if only because they broke the pattern of the other visions: him holding onto her tight as they stood on a beach, then, lastly, sitting nestled against him, his hands shaking as he held hers tight, while tears streamed down her face. Some part of her started to understand what these could possibly be, but it was just so strange to consider that she was almost ready to dismiss the thought.

She glanced down at Ruli, his face nestled against her shoulder. Another life, another time? she wondered. What did it mean? Sighing, she bent her head just enough to nuzzle and kiss his.

--
Back at the gate, the runes lit up as Ed crossed over, already dressed smartly for the day. Partly, he wished Ysaryn would be the one to welcome him, but also he wished he didn’t have to interrupt his cousin’s morning.

Wanderers

“Ah.” Kire blinked, realizing that, too. She smiled, looking over her shoulder at him. “Really? Huh.” She loosened her dress from her shoulders. “They are quite comfortable. I suppose I could borrow a shirt.” She finished undressing in front of him, letting the dress fall to her feet as she waited to be handed the shirt. When she pulled in on, the shirt covered her up to mid-thigh. "So. Do I need to wear the pants, or do you fancy this one just the same?" she teased.

Wanderers

“Eh. All I have lined up for tomorrow is more paperwork. I can shove all that at Ed if I’m too tired to sign things,” she said with a grin. She nodded when he agreed to stay in the house for the night. “Oh, we have no problems with size,” she commented cheekily, draining her second glass. Once they were both done with drinking and dessert, she put everything away to clean, hurrying a bit and making a mental note to just clean it again tomorrow if needed.
Once inside her room, she turned her back to Ruli, gesturing at the clasp before taking off her earrings. “Could you?” she asked, her eyes on the bed. The last time she was here was after their failed first attempt at dinner, she realized. Funny how things turned out.

Wanderers

“Research,” Kire repeated, grinning through her blush. “This is probably the most excited I’ve ever been when it comes to ‘research’.” She set the glass down and continued with her meal, both embarrassed and grateful that she had asked it at all. After she finished, she eagerly cut herself and Ruli a slice of cake after refilling the glasses.
“Think I’ll stay the night. I don’t have to be back early tomorrow.” She peered at him over her glass. “Here, or your place?”

Wanderers

She sank down a little on her chair, holding the wine glass close as she fidgeted with it. "Well. It's-- we were on the subject of what one can or can't do with magic. So it's largely really curiosity. And ever since the hallucinations, I have wondered about your ability, the way it works. Like the first time you used it, how vivid everything was, like I was there, experiencing it. It seems...intriguing."

She frowned slightly. "The hallucinations, they almost feel as real as the memories, but don't last very long, like waking from a vivid dream. I haven't seen this in the visions, but-- there's something about your Touch that connects them. I've only ever had visions a couple of times: when my heart stopped, and one other time, my first time meeting the Seer." She took another sip. "And then of course, because I'm apparently a degenerate, my mind just eventually went to the gutter with my speculations."

Wanderers

"Fuck sorry," Kire said, cringing as he nearly choked in reaction. She was about to get up to get him water, but when it looked like he would be alright, she stayed where she was. "Uh. If you're willing to give it, then yes-- the answer, I mean," she clarified, rubbing her nape. "And this is just pure curiousity. Again, just to be clear." She took a gulp of wine to distract herself.

Wanderers

Kire’s eyes widened at the thought of her citizens suddenly gaining the ability to fly, her mind conjuring the image of people suddenly tossed to the sky at random. “Oh gods,” she said, slightly horrified. “Though, fair enough, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. I suppose it would be like when I had first gotten the Ring.” She paused. “Wonder if we get someone who wakes up one day and shits gold. That’d be useful. Then everyone else will stop looking to me for that, hah.”

She leaned her cheek on her hand for a moment, smiling as she looked at him. “Progress, yes. I usually have a problem sitting still and quietly. But this, I don’t mind.” She went back to her meal, sinking back into her previous train of thought about people suddenly gaining powers. “Uh…I have a rather cheeky question. Which you do not have to answer at all, in which case I’ll pretend I never asked it.” She went a little red as she spoke. “Have you ever used that Touch of yours in bed….in the middle of…you know.” She went beet red then. “Okay, I heard myself asking that and I’ll promptly forget I did now.”

Wanderers

"I know!--whoops, sorry." Kire had flung up her hand in frustration and almost sent her fork flying. "Fucking-- why do prophecies have to always be so gods-be-damned vague?" She groaned a little, before calming down a bit and continuing with her meal. "Tried asking that before, of course. The explanation I got was that, while they would choose and guide Paladins as protectors, they couldn't overly meddle. Something about preventing undesirable futures they've seen while they--whatever it is they do to cast their vision into the future."

She pushed around the food on her plate with her fork, frowning. "That'd be interesting if shit starts to happen right before Jan gets married. 'Hey, coz, congratulations, also I'm thinking of handing you the throne in a few years, and by the way, magic is coming back to Amria, expect unicorns." She huffed, continuing with her dinner, sinking into silence as she thought about the possibilities of that. When she realized she hadn't spoken in a while, she cleared her throat. "Sorry. Thoughts got carried away. Domestic bliss is still new to me," she said, chuckling a bit.

Wanderers

"Would be helpful to know the criteria for his tests, though," Kire said, grinning before taking another bite. She wondered what the waterfall would look like here, already imagining how that visit would go. "Might be nice to have a picnic by it, too, if the location allows," she mused aloud. She laughed softly at his comment about domesticity. "'Domestic' would've been the last word I'd have associated myself with. It's a welcome respite, in between magical quests and matters of state." She sipped some wine. "My week was mostly more meetings. Half the work of keeping an empire together is sitting on your ass and putting together contracts. There's my cousin's wedding, too. I haven't had a sit- down with her about the abdication thing yet, but figure I need to get on that very soon."

She mulled over the matter with the Seer again, frowning. "Last week, right after I came back home, I had a visit from the Seer who had given me the Ring." She recounted the meeting in between sips of wine, then paused afterward to cut into her meal some more. "Magic-wise, nothing seemed to have happened yet, but I've just been waiting for the other shoe to drop all week, which I suppose made everything else all the more tedious."