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 Posted: Thu May 21, 2020 8:59 am
Asa couldn't hide his smile. "Yes, well, if I were as tall as you then you wouldn't be 'tall' anymore then, would you?" He had to wonder what that must have been like growing up. He'd surmised that her childhood had taken place in Zena which led him to imagine a pair of hybrid mu- children at least a foot taller than the fairer locals. If her brother is anything like her then is he taller still? Or perhaps he's shorter? Would the alkidike blood discern gender when contemplating height?
Hearing about her own childhood was...painful. Both because of the recent loss she'd suffered and the comparison to his own. "I very much regret not having a chance to dance with you. I'm sure you're quite good at it," Asa murmured. The young scion leaned forward and delicately lifted a few stray curls with his fingers before smoothing them back behind her ear. Instead of dropping his hand, however, Asa kept it against the side of her head.
His other hand stayed interlocked with hers and the feel of this much contact after several years without was beyond precious to him. "I have considered it; I can't deny it. Every time I speak with you it's as if you're speaking another language I can't begin to understand. And rather than feel like I've been replaced I know I have been." He moved even closer so that he could place his forehead against her own, as if the weight of it was too much to bare.
"...Even if I asked they wouldn't. They would tell me I'm a man on the eve of his wedding night and that I should restrain myself. In all honesty, Miss Ygraine, even if they did consent to embracing me I don't think I would feel...comfortable with it. " Asa couldn't remember a time when his parents had looked upon him with anything resembling mild approval let alone affection. Physical contact? The only one who had provided such services was Oona and even then she'd been reserved. She was a kind woman, but one of proper standing so giving out...'hugs' simply wasn't tolerated.
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Posted: Thu May 21, 2020 8:00 pm
He did? Ygraine couldn't help the flood of warmth in her cheeks at that simple statement, reminding her that there was an ulterior reason to her trying to spirit him away. That... brief as their interactions had been, she -- well. Any higher thought flooded away at the soft touch of his cool hand brushing her hair back, the tickle against her ear that sent goosebumps down her neck, then ... instead of pulling away, his hand rested against her face. It was a vulnerable moment for him... a moment where he was listening to her (perhaps cruel) reminders of his situation, and was confirming them. His words were painful, but... he was shifting closer, and she moved up just enough to meet him so he didn't have to drop so far to lean their foreheads together.
This was a moment of pain and loss, not of ... whatever she was hoping for. And yet she couldn't stop the fact her heart was hammering in her ears. Wisely, she ignored her gut instincts and simply squeezed his fingers, shifting just enough that she could bump her nose against his. "So come with me, Asa...! I'd keep you safe, and we could go wherever you wanted, and we could get that dance...! So... come with me?"
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scarlett arbuckle Vice Captain
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Posted: Thu May 21, 2020 8:12 pm
A surge of resolve washed over Asa in that moment. He knew damn well he could never really give her what she wanted, but neither could he bring himself to deny her. Having such a lovely girl getting closer to him made it all the harder to push her away. In that moment he wanted to- to lean forward and-
"At the edge of Zidel there is a small inn called The Frayed Knot. It's...dingey, at best, and attached to a tavern, but my father won't think to look there. Meet me in one week. Anything more than a promise tonight would put us in too much danger."
It's not really saying 'no' if I'm really only promising to talk, is it?
You're lying to her; getting her hopes up when you know you won't go with her.
In one week Asa would likely be married and he would have to make the trip himself to tell Ygraine it was out of his hands. Would she be mad? Of course she will be; you're a liar. What else could he do? As much as he wanted that dance he knew he just couldn't leave.
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Posted: Thu May 21, 2020 8:32 pm
There was something in his eyes... but as much as Ygraine wished it was the opposite, she simply didn't know him quite well enough to decipher that look. Instead... when he spoke, and gave her direction, she took him at his word. Her eyes glittered with joy and a broad, toothy smile overtook her features, far from ladylike in many cases but just so overwhelmingly happy that she couldn't make herself care. True, it wasn't exactly a promise to run away with her, but ... it was, at least, a chance to see him again. He wasn't dismissing her out of hand... and, with their hand still clasped together, she had to believe this meant something.
"Okay." She breathed, completely unaware of his thoughts. Instead, she reached up and very lightly brushed a knuckle against his cheek, then reluctantly let go, shifting to stand. "In a week, then. Asa... thank you." She smiled again, then carefully maneuvered herself back into the narrow servant's door, turning to offer a final lift wave of her hand in farewell.
Exiting the manor was just as painless; the party was well underway, and Miss Oona was gone. Would it be too suspicious to twirl in place, or to smother the beaming smile on her face as she left? What had even happened in there to lead to them clinging to one another like that? Was she taking advantage of him? Trying to lure him from the life he knew, the comforts of home -- she was liable to get him killed within a week, if he fell to his illness she'd have nothing to help him--
But. It... it couldn't be as bad as what his family was doing, right? At least he would be free and...
One week. Ygraine breathed out, then turned her head to look at the manor, wondering if he could see her from his room. One week.
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scarlett arbuckle Vice Captain
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Posted: Thu May 21, 2020 8:51 pm
She was just so...so...unrefined that Asa couldn't help smiling in return. It seemed that everything she did pulled a reaction out of him by sheer surprise. And yet, that smile in itself, so far removed from anything he was used to, made his heart seize. Why was it that she was more beautiful now, hair a flop of curls with a big, goofy grin on her face than she ever was trussed up at the gala? This was what he wanted to remember.
How she even fit through the servant's door, let alone that cramped stairwell, remained a mystery to him. For a long while after she left he simply looked down the empty void as if she would return by sheer force of hope alone until eventually he stood to close the door.
Without Ygraine there the room just felt...colder. So much so that Asa didn't bother changing out of his formal attire when he crawled back into bed. The most he did was remove his boots and loosen his vest so that he could breath easier while he slept. Oona would likely call him out for sleeping in his finery, but he didn't care; he wanted to preserve as much of this warmth as he could.
One week.
In one week he would be married or dead, in which case he wouldn't have to spoil Ygraine's plans, so maybe that was preferable. Only time would tell.
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