Aria -
Seren was sitting at the desk in their room, finishing up some paperwork she'd not gotten done the previous day. Rhys, she thought, would be back soon, and she had just figured she'd do this now, before he got there. She wrote and wrote, and finally finished the papers, before tucking them into the folder she kept things to be submitted in. She opened the drawer, and set it down, then blinked, noticing the piece of Mirror she had gotten after that odd dream, and the belled kitty-like collar Rhys had gotten.

She studied it, then picked it up, carefully, before smirking and setting it on the desk, to wait for her boyfriend, a silly idea in her head. She went and changed into all black clothing, and tucked her scarf into the back of her pants, making a 'Tail,' and looked around, before sighing and getting a second of her scarves out to tie around her hair in a way that it KIND of emulated kitty ears, then put the collar on. She curled up on the bed, and waited.

Pao -
Rhys was on his way back after submitting a stack of paperwork all his own, work he'd gotten done in the blissfully quiet and well-furnished library--at least well-furnished for the sake of getting paperwork done without any interruption. Unfortunately, after submitting that stack he got a brand new pile to work on, a smaller stack but a stack all the same, but there was little on the island that could ruin his day.

It was New Year's, and either Seren was waiting for him in their room or he'd be waiting for her.

When he got to their room he promptly unlocked the door, and for a second holiday in a row he nearly dropped what he was carrying when he saw his girlfriend He smiled, eyes staying on her as he made his way to the desk after locking the door behind him so he could set the papers down.

"I think you're gonna spoil me at this rate, babe."

Aria -
She had to control the urge to laugh, because it wouldn't have worked, but his reaction was absolutely perfect. Instead, she just did her best impression of a cat sitting up, and stretched, slowly, before sitting up in the classic 'Bast' position... or as close to it as a human body could emulate... and went "Mew?", blinking at him several times. She considered, and then made the decision not to crawl off the bed and over to him on all fours.

She thought that might be taking a good thing too far, in the long run. Instead, she shook her head a few times, like a cat waking up, and reached up, batting at the bell she was wearing.

She had been about to continue, but was extremely distracted by the fact that when the bell jingled, a ghostly kitty suddenly materialized in front of her, and did the real version of the stretch she'd pretended to do. Unsurprisingly, this got her to break character completely. "Wh... what the ******** -
He was enjoying watching her take on playing a cat, finding it both cute and amusing, but when the ghostly version of her role showed up he blinked, speechless for a good few seconds. "No ********' clue," he said, walking over to where the creature...thing...was seated. It looked over at him, the sound of purring coming from its direction, staring right back at his curious expression with a rather uninterested one of its own.

"Not one of your surprises, I'm guessing?"

Aria -
"Not that I was aware of!" She said, staring down at it, where it was sitting next to her. Finally, she tentatively reached over and touched it, suspicious that her hand would pass straight through. Much to her relief (and also disbelief because what the ********), her hand rested gently on the Ghost Kitty's head. She blinked, and began to slowly pet it, her eyes going huge. It was surprisingly soft, given that it was a little see-through, and after a moment, her expression was filled with delight at what was going on.

She bit her lip, and shifted into a cross-legged position, then said "Kitty?" In a hopeful tone. The Ghost kitty sat there, looking at her... then climbed into her lap and curled up. She looked up at Rhys, eyes huge and shiny. "Kitty!" Her tone was almost childlike in her excitement.

Pao -
Her reply got a chuckle out of him; after the initial surprise of a ghost-like thing in their room he was more or less over it, and he settled down on the other side of the cat as Seren tried and successfully started to pet it. "After what we see all the damn time a ghost-thing we can touch and interact with shouldn't be surprising, but it still is," he said, slipping his shoes off so he could sit cross-legged on their bed, watching in thorough amusement as Seren played with the cat.

Or...well, let it sit in her lap.

"How'd it get in here, anyway? You bring in somethin' new?"

Aria -
"Can't argue with you there..." She said, her tone soft as she kept petting the cat. "You should try... She's so soft!" Seren had, apparently, done the classic maneuver of 'It's a cat, I haven't checked the gender, therefore it is a girl cat.' The ghost cat didn't seem to care about the gendering, whether it was accurate or not. Maybe ghost cats don't have gender. What mattered was the cat was purring calmly and cuddled in.

His question had her frowning, a little, though. "N...noooooooo." She shook her head, and the bell on the collar jingled again. The cat looked up at it, almost like it was annoyed. "Not unless you count yesterday's paperwork."

Pao -
He was tempted to ask how she knew it was a she, but since it was a ghost cat he didn't really think it mattered much and just nodded, scooting over to pet the cat as well. "Wow, she is soft...holy s**t," he murmured, blinking down at the curled up feline in his girlfriend's lap. The odd part was being able to see his girlfriend's lap through it at the same time...

"I don't think paperwork would do that. Unless maybe it was glowing and fresh out of Life labs." He did not how it got annoyed at the bell, though, so he glanced up at Seren in her new outfit, inspecting anything that didn't look familiar to him and ultimately nodding toward her.

"Maybe something you're wearing? You're supposed to be a cat, maybe that had somethin' to do with it?"

Aria -
She beamed at the way he reacted, and cuddled against him, petting the kitty more. "Did I ever tell you that I always wanted a pet, growing up?" She asked, softly, her expression a little abstract. "I don't know how kitty here got here, but... for the moment, I can pretend that we have a pet cat." She sighed a little, and kept petting her as he mused about the paperwork.

"Nope, it was just reports I had to fill out about my Duty shifts, training, and so on. Nothing new or unusual, in that sense." She gestured at the desk. "It's all over there, anyways. If that caused it, don't you think Kitty would appear there?" She gave the cat some behind the ear rubs, and was rewarded with a motor boat of a purr, and she got that delighted look on her face again.

His last question made her brows come together. "The outfit... I had from before... The scarves are standard issue.... the only new thing is..." She reached up to touch the collar. "I... isn't this the thing you found under your pillow after that weird Wonderland dream? I found it in the drawer, next to that mirror piece I have." She paused, and said "Which I still haven't tried to figure out."

Pao -
Her reactions to the cat could only be described as adorable, and when she leaned against him he turned to give her a kiss on the forehead. "No, you haven't told me that, actually," he raised his brows, not too surprised that she wanted a pet as a kid. At least this helped a little, if only temporarily.

He glanced over at their desk as she answered his question, giving it a curious lookover before deciding that none of that had anything to do with this ghostly cat. A light bulb went off when she mentioned the collar, though, and he nodded as though it made perfect sense. Because in the Deus sense...it did.

"Yeah, if there's anything that could do anything supernatural-ish, it'd be something from a Wonderland dream." He reached over gave the bell a little tap to get it to sound again, and he watched for the cat's reaction.

Aria -
She nodded, and gave him a smile at the kiss, then went back to petting the kitty. "I wish we could keep her, she's so cuddly and soft." She gently reached down and picked the cat up, cuddling her closer, to her chest, and then buried her face in the ghostly fur. "So soft..."

The cat seemed to be just putting up with it, an expression of 'if you must' clearly written across the cat's face. It was watching Rhys as he began to put the pieces together. When he commented on the logic of it being from the dream, the cat purred at him.

And then reached up and VERY gently swatted his hand when he dinged the bell again, almost like it was saying 'DUDE. I'M HERE, stop calling me!'

Pao -
The swat got a snort out of him and he pulled his hand back. "Guess it must be hers," he wound up saying, reaching over to pet its head a little bit. "Or...something. This thing did ring just before she showed up, so...?"

Yeah, that made sense.

"The collar's mine to keep so I guess technically she's ours?"

Aria -
Seren blinked as he worked out the answer, and then his last statement had her eyes lighting up as she looked at him. "We have a ghost kitty! I wonder how long she can stay... I wish this thing came with like..." She paused, then finally said "An instruction manual. Or at least something in the dream that told us how and how often and all that. But. We have a kitty!"

She leaned up to press a soft kiss to his lips, and the cat purred, quietly. When she broke the kiss, the kitty turned onto it's back in her arms, presenting it's belly. Seren looked at the soft belly, with longing, and tried... And got lucky. "D'ya think my Mirror piece does something? And we should name her!"

Pao -
Rhys absently joined in on the petting, chuckling a bit at how thrilled the idea of having a pet, even a ghostly one, she seemed to be. "When has Deus ever come with accurate instructions, anyway? We'll wing it, baby." While she was lavishing attention on the cat he reached up and undid the collar from her neck, peering at it curiously before setting it on his lap.

"I'm gonna guess that the mirror can do somethin', too, since it also came from Wonderland. And yeah, we can name it...I dunno, Casper?" The obvious choice, though he wasn't sure she was familiar with the movie at all. Could it even be used for a girl cat, though?

Aria -
"I mean, I know, but... That wasn't Deus. That was Wonderland. I dunno. We'll figure it out, and then we will know how to summon kitty when we want, how often she can stay, and how often she can visit." Seren leaned and nuzzled the top of the kitty's head, sighing in utter happiness, as she continued to pet the cat's belly.

She nodded a little as she lifted her head back. "I'll test it later, then. In the meantime... Casper? No way." She gave him a weird look. "The kitty appears to have no gender traits, but kitty is still a girl, far as I am concerned. Also, she is way cuter than that weird comic ghost." She looked down at the kitty, then said "Blanca? I think it means white in Spanish."

Pao -
He raised a brow at the weird look she gave him but left it alone, only nodding at the name she decided on for the cat. "Blanca works for me, she's pretty damn white 'cause she's a ghost an all." With that he reached over and took the cat's paw, gently shaking it.

"Good to meet'cha, Blanca," he greeted, and in a rather playful tone, too.

Aria -
The cat just gave him a long, inscrutable look, and then stretched out, purring at them both. "I... think she likes it?" Seren said, in an uncertain tone. "At the least, she doesn't seem to hate it. Blanca." She shifted on the bed, moving until she could settle herself into Rhys' lap. "I have an amazing boyfriend, a wonderful brother, and a sweet and adorable kitty. Rhys, how did life get so goddamn good?"

Pao -
He shrugged, not too familiar with animals in general to know any kind of tell. "As long as she doesn't hate it," he eventually said, smirking as she moved onto his lap. He happily draped his arms around her, mindful of where Blanca was situated, and gave her a kiss. "I'm not really sure about that for myself, actually. Honestly just glad that it did get better."

Aria -
She leaned back against him, cuddling their new ghost kitty, and sighing in happiness. "Well, I can say that some of it started the day I walked in on you at the Pod room. And you've just kept improving my life, so I think it's all you. You're my lucky charm, who's brought me happiness every day." She tickled Blanca's belly, and got a light, no claw swat.


Pao -
"You make that sound like you walked in on me doing somethin' inappropriate," he chuckled before kissing her again. "Same day started changing my life, too, in a way. 'Cause you stepped in, and a little while after that you changed it some more and made it better...and have been doing that ever since."

He glanced down at Blanca and smirked. "The cat's kinda icing on the cake, maybe?"

Aria -
She blinked at his comment, then belly laughed, prompting a protesting mew! from Blanca when she got shaken some. "I didn't think about it but you're right, I did accidentally phrase it that way. Sorry, babe." There was a pause, and then she teased him "Not that it's something I'd mind now. Or even when you asked me if I would, back when." She stuck her tongue out at him, teasingly.

She blinked at the last comment and gave a small shoulder shrug. "However you look at it, she's awesome, you're awesome, and this just rocks."

Pao -
He scrunched his nose up when she teased him, a hand on Blanca to help keep her calm after she was a little disturbed from her spot. "And you're awesome," he tacked on to her list, smiling wide. "Don't forget about that, babe."

He kissed her cheek again, then leaned back a little bit to get a look at her outfit again. "Don't think I ever said anything about a Cat Woman fantasy. Didya just wanna surprise me or is this something of yours?"

Aria -
She grinned at the nose wrinkle on his face, then blushed at his words. "I might be teasing, babe, but I'm not lying, either. And you tell me regularly. Hard to believe, but with how often you tell me, hard to deny, too." She nuzzled his neck a little, cuddling Blanca and petting her happily.

She blinked at his comment about fantasies, and shook her head. "You only told me the one, actually, so until you give me more, I'm guessing in the dark. I uh." She nodded at the drawer. "I went to put my folder with my paperwork away... I'll file tomorrow, by the time I got down to the Sun offices, everyone'll be off to go do New Year's stuff... And noticed it, and my mirror bit, in there. It caught my attention, and the idea just popped into my head." She paused and considered, then said "Given how you reacted, do you have a cat woman fantasy, or did you just think it was hot on gp?"

Pao -
He chuckled as she nuzzled, and then listened, quiet and thoughtful, as she explained how she got to what she was wearing now. "Hot on principle," he wound up answering, and with a little shrug, too. "You in anything tight and even just kinda sexy is hot to me, baby. Most of my fantasies all kinda run in the same vein? Hot Librarian, Hot Astrologist, Hot Cheerleader."

Aria -
She blinked and carefully set Blanca on her lap, before exploding laughing again. It took her a moment to calm down, and then she said "Tell me honestly. Hot Astrologist? Did you come up with that one on your own, because you're with me, babe?" She was turned so she could see his face for this, her expression extremely amused.

Pao -
The laughing did get him blushing, but he shrugged. "That one started after your first took me stargazing on the cliffs here, actually," he admitted, turning his focus to Blanca, who looked upset about all the movement and such, mostly because he was embarrassed but also with at least a little bit of genuine concern for her.

Aria -
Seren managed to calm herself, amused by his blush and his answer. "Well, I'll be your hot astrologist anytime. Even if I don't believe in astrology." She leaned in and whispered "If you meant the scientist, however, babe, that's an astronomer." She then straightened up, and began to pet Blanca again. "Sorry kitty-baby, didn't mean to upset you. Ohhh you're such a cute fluffy girl, I'm so sorry, precious."

Pao -
Her correction had him squinting, going back briefly to the last time he had that particular fantasy before saying, "Well you looked like a scientist so I guess Hot Astronomer." Which only made him blush a slightly darker red, which he again used Blanca to help distract him from being even more embarrassed about it. "Anyway, yeah, those are the more common ones I guess. Nothing fancy or too specifics..."

Aria -
She leaned to press a soft kiss to his cheek. "I can be either, for you, babe." She arched a brow and added "I looked like one?" Her voice sounded softly amused, and also happy. "There's something extremely flattering about knowing you're fantasizing about me. When are you doing this?" She sounded curious, and loving. "And yes, babe. I've been entertaining fantasies about you for some time."

She leaned in to whisper, again, "I think I started having specific fantasies, rather then just a generic wish to be noticed, a little bit after you worked me so hard at the gym. Something along the lines of being pinned to one of the benches, perhaps, and well..." And then she sat up, a serene look on her face, petting Blanca.

Pao -
The kiss was as soothing as her words, and Blanca's purring helped the embarrassment ebb away, leaving nothing but a shy little smile in its wake. "You did, and usually in my dreams when you're on an overnight shift. Or sometimes just when you're not here at night and I've having trouble sleeping." There was a little bit of a pause before he added, "Or if it's been a few days?"

No such thing as too honest, after all.

Her whisper made him shiver slightly, and his smile grew as he recalled that particular training session. "So you've had other fantasies than the one you already told me about?" he asked, leaning in to press a soft kiss to her neck, sort of testing the waters for the moment.

Aria -
She was glad to hear that, and she pressed another kiss to his cheek, and chuckled. "I hope to avoid it being more than a few days, other than that five day no thank you zone." She sighed and muttered "Can't have kids because of this stupid shield, but I can't do anything to stop that nonsense... for the same goddamn reason. Ridiculous." She took a small breath, and then refocused."But yeah. Unless I'm not around, why on earth would it be a few days?"

She smiled a little and tilted her neck, letting him press the kiss in. "Once Blanca has shown us how long we get to have her, for the moment, babe, promise." She shivered at the feeling of the kiss, and added "Of course? I mean, you asked if I had fantasies, and then only asked me to give you one. I promise, there are others."

Pao -
He smirked and nodded, but rather than stop he just went ahead with a few more kisses to her neck. "So what kinda fantasies, then?" he murmured as he finally leaned back, eyes turning to Blanca. The cat was enjoying all the attention Seren was giving it, so Rhys simply smiled before ultimately resting his chin on his love's shoulder, waiting for her answer.

Aria -
She laughed softly, and shivered at the continued kisses, her eyes half closing as she pet Blanca, soft and lovingly. Her brows rose at his question, and she hmmmm'd thoughtfully. "Mmmm, well that dream I mentioned led to one that I found... quite enjoyable, just the idea of that..." Her cheeks tinged pink, at the words. "Mmm... some we can't do just yet, like bathtub games, or kitchen games..." She looked lost in thought.

Pao -
He listened and only nodded slightly so she wasn't uncomfortable with the weight of his head on her shoulder, and his eyes were still settled on Blanca as she spoke. "Bathtub and kitchen games, huh?" he murmured, smirking a little bit. "Yeah, would have to wait either when we go on leave or have a place of our own. I don't think they'd appreciate us havin' our fun in the cafeteria kitchen..."

Aria -
"Kinda what I thought, and I bet they have monitoring cams in there, so... not a go." She chuckled a little, and leaned back, thoughtful. "Mmm beyond that, still... ya know, working out what I want and like, so that's a big thing there. The only one that might be even slightly doable is the gym thing, and that's... risky. I mean, it is usually empty when we're there, but..."

Pao -
His ears perked quite a bit when she said gym thing, and he leaned back a little as well, curling around a bit to get a look at her face. "Gym thing?" he asked, obviously more than a little interested. "Anything you wanna share right now or one of those you wanna surprise me with?" Though he knew she was right about the potential risk of going through with that. Usually empty still meant that someone could walk in on them…

Aria -
She looked at him, amused. "Did you even listen, babe, when I mentioned that dream? I mean, I whispered it right in your ear..." She gazed at him, right in the eye, her brows lifted. She loved her man, but sometimes he was utterly ridiculous.

Pao -
"Can't blame a guy for wanting to hear it again," he said with a little smirk, eyes then turning to Blanca so he could give her a few more pets. She purred quietly in her seat, comfortable and looking more and more at home the longer she stayed. There was a small part of him that was thinking about maybe looking into them taking in a minipet, something feline-esque, so Seren could have a pet of her own. Preferably not a ghost one, or at least one that might potentially disappear…

Aria -
She leaned her head against his, and chuckled. "Mmmm well. If you really want... I have fantasies about you, maybe at the end of a workout, or as a 'new routine'..." She winked, teasingly, at that. "Pin me to one of the benches, and we go from there. Of course, I'd want to know in advance, because while a 'surprise' can be nice, that's the kind that's better to pretend-surprise me with."

Pao -
Gently he tapped her head with his, his smile only getting wider. "Something for me to keep in mind," he murmured,, thoughts on how to make that happen already circling his mind. "If the gym was closer to the dorms I'd say we could get things started there and run home for the finish, but...?"

Aria -
"Mmm yeah. Maybe if we sneak in there late at night some time, and use a very back corner. Maybe 'accidentally' lean some mats in such a way the view is blocked. I dunno." She chuckled and shrugged, then said "Maybe. I don't know. But we have lots to explore as is, so it's not too bad for now.

Pao -
Turning his head, he gave her a little kiss, smirking once he pulled back. "Maybe. We can work it out when we get to it, since you're right. We have other things we can still explore."

Aria -
"Indeed. I need to get me a labcoat, so I can do things like Hot Scientist for you." She chuckled, and teasingly said "Are you ready to give your samples, Mr. Donovan, for science?" and winked. She was still petting the kitty, when there was a soft mew, almost like a warning, and she glanced down, startled. Blanca patted her hand... and then faded out gently.

Pao -
He was grinning at her choice of words, eyes narrowed a little as he tried not to react too much to it. Lab coat or not, there was still something about the way she said it. He would have pushed a little more if Blanca hadn't mewed to get their attention, and just moments later faded away. Despite not being too attached, Rhys did frown a little.

"So about how long was that?" he asked, once again setting his chin on her shoulder.

Aria -
She enjoyed his reactions, as she always did. There was just something comforting about knowing she could get a good rise out of him with very little effort. She sighed, happily, and shifted back against him, eyes half closed.

"Mmmm..." She sighed again, in a wistful way this time, and considered. "I think... About 20ish minutes? Next time, we need to time it properly. We weren't prepared, so we didn't think to do so." She shifted on his lap, to face him, her smile shifting direction. "In the meantime... Mew..."

Pao -
He loosened his grip on her as she shifted, his own smile shifting a little bit to match hers. His brows went up a little before he leaned in for a proper kiss this time, just a little something short and sweet. "What'd you have in mind?" he whispered, lips just hovering above hers.

Aria -
"Anything, love... your own little kitty just wants your love and attention..." Her tone made it clear she meant that in the broadest sense, and she nibbled on his lower lip, before snuggling in close. She even tried to 'purr', making a slightly odd rumbling sound with her tongue, and winking at him.

Pao -
He couldn't help the smile, one more of adoration and love than anything else despite the tone of their conversation, and he closed the little gap between them with a kiss, lingering and so very full of his love for her. "How's that for a start?" he murmured once he eventually but still barely pulled away.

Aria -
She kissed him back, her arms sliding around his shoulders, and her eyes closing happily. "That was, as always, a very good start, babe." She snuggled in close, admiring his eyes from right there, and murmured "I love you, baby, and how you indulge me in my odd moments and interests."

Pao -
His smile only widened before he kissed her again, starting a series of kissed, each of them playful and affectionate. "Love you, too," he said during a little break before he started lying back on the bed, taking her down with him. "You know I'll indulge any kind of moment with you, baby."

Aria -
She kissed him back, each time, her eyes bright with happiness as she followed him down, arms tight around her wonderful boyfriend. She reached up to run her fingers through his hair, eyes on his. "Just like I like indulging you... Still makes me feel so good when you do, though." She gave him a soft, sweet smile, filled with her love.

Pao -
He shivered a little, as he always did, at the feel of her fingers through his hair. In turn he reached up, smile bright as he brushed her hair back as well, a loving gesture as he gazed up into her eyes. "So did you have something specific planned for New Year's, babe? Or are we winging it?"

Aria -
She leaned into his touches, eyes half closed, loving how it felt when he did that. He was the only one who had ever really done that with her, and it just was so sweet feeling. His question had her eyes opening again and she chuckled, softly. "I figured we'd wing it. This..." She gestured at her get up. "Was entirely spur of the moment from finding that collar."

Pao -
He nodded a little, trying to run through the potential things they could be doing to bring in the New Year as she spoke. And then he grinned when she gestured to her outfit. It really was a pleasant surprise, so he leaned up to kiss her softly. "I wouldn't wanna waste your effort, but after that maybe we could put together a picnic type dinner and head over to our spot at the cliff? We could stargaze for a while, then if we're still up we could catch the sunrise..."

Aria -
She kissed him back, then listened to his idea, her brows raising, and a bright smile on her face. "K, but we better make sure one of us sets our phone with an alarm for a minute to midnight... I wanna make sure to get my New Year's Kiss from you right on time." She gave him another kiss, smiling down at her man. "And you are just so thoughtful, as ever. You wanna pack up the blankets and pillows? I'll change... and don't look, I wanna have something on, just in case..." She sounded teasing. "To surprise you with... Then go make the picnic meal."

Pao -
"I'll set it before you leave," he smirked, the idea of a New Year's kiss not new yet still somehow foreign to him. "And yeah, I can grab the blankets and stuff for us. But..." He pulled her in closer then, eyes full of his longing for her despite having set a plan up already. "You think we have a little time before we go?"

Aria -
She was about to pull free when he said that, and the look in his eyes made her cheeks blush, and her lips turn up into a bright smile. "Mmmm it's not even five o'clock, I don't think, baby. We have lots of time, and you bet I'm happy to spend it all with you, doing whatever you want us to do." She leaned in and nipped his lip, softly.

Pao -
He always loved how she looked when she blushed, and the sight softened up his smile quite a bit as he brushed her cheek with his thumb, listening to her speak. "Good," he murmured as she leaned in, "'cause like I said, didn't wanna waste this surprise."

Aria -
She smiled and leaned in to kiss him softly, and whispered "I'm always happy to give you a surprise you'll like, baby." Her fingers slid up to caress his cheek slowly, and she took his other hand down, guiding him to the 'tail', because honestly it was feeling a little weird.

Pao -
His eyes closed as she leaned in, savoring every second of it. He couldn't help smirking again, though, as she guided his hand and, thinking it was maybe what she wanted, he gave the "tail" a little tug and quickly got rid of it. "Uncomfortable?" he chuckled.

Aria -
She grinned wide, enjoying the way he reacted, and began to nibble his lip again, her hand dropping from his, letting him decide where he wanted to rest it now. "A bit... More weird, than anything." She nipped his lower lip again and whispered "What do you want, my love?"

Pao -
His hand eventually came to rest on her rump, pressing her down gently on top of him as he considered her question. "Nothing too specific, I guess," he murmured as he nipped back. "So how 'bout you tell me what you want this time?"

Aria -
She shivered as he pressed her closer, her eyes closing for a moment, just getting lost in the feeling of his touches, and his n**. "Mmmm... Honestly, all I want is what I always want..." She said, voice both teasing and loving. "You..." She kissed him and then, carefully, rolled to the side, pulling him with her until she was beneath him, and coyly smiled up at him.

Pao -
He laughed lightly as she rolled them over, processing her simple request and yet again getting blown away by the realization that she really and truly loved him and wanted to be with him.

"I can do that," he said, smiling as he leaned down to press his lips to hers, a hand drifting up her body, slipping under her shirt, touch soft and simply caressing for the moment.

Aria -
She smiled up at him, her eyes focused on his. "I would hope so, baby." She slid her own fingers in a light dance down his back, letting the fabric of his shirt move with them to add other sensations, and just lost herself in the kiss, and the feeling of his own hand on her skin. Moments with him, like this, where what made everyday worth waking up to, and every day worth looking forwards to as well.

Pao -
He quickly got lost under her touch and in her kisses as well, these moments so easy to just fall into with her. It was these simple intimate moments with her that made dealing with everything else in life well worth the effort...

He pulled the covers loosely over them a while later, breathing still a bit heavy but a smile on his face. "So did you want me to help you with dinner, love?"

Aria -
She was slowly catching her breath, her cheeks a little red from everything they had been up to, and she just lay there, basking in being snuggled into him. His question made her look thoughtful, and make a humming sort of noise, then she shook her head. "Once we're dressed again, I'll go get picnicky stuff packed up. You get the blankets, and pillows, like planned. Meet me up there, maybe? You can get the nest set up, if you beat me." She gave him a slow, soft smile.

Pao -
Rhys kept her close, kissing her softly once she laid out the plans. "Thanks for making dinner again, love," he murmured as he gave her a squeeze. "I can get our nest set up while you put that together, then. Might be a little cold so the sooner we can get settled, the better." Not that he was ready to pull away to get started on that, though.

Aria -
Seren kissed him back and sighed, a happy and satisfied sound. "No problem, baby." She reached over, and in a gently silly-teasing way, patted his more then firm abs. "Gotta keep my handsome man properly fed." She leaned a little and kissed his nose, but despite her words, she too was in no hurry to slide away from him.

Pao -
Rhys was content to lay there with her until the last minute, so at least for the time being he waited for her cue.

He chuckled at the gesture, and flexed his abs as he winked at her. "You do a helluva job, baby," he replied, then leaned up to catch her with a proper kiss. "As part of my thanks, you know I'm all yours, right?"

Aria -
Seren chuckled as well, when he flexed, and grinned up at her handsome man. "I know. You're a wonderful, incredible, and extremely trustworthy man. I know I don't have to worry about anything. I can trust you with every part of me." She leaned up and kissed him again. "And knowing you're all mine is just the best. I never thought I'd find someone as wonderful as you."

Pao -
He happily kissed her back, her words so incredibly meaningful he couldn't quite find the words so he replied in the only other way he thought made sense.

"I never thought I'd get so lucky either," he eventually said, eyes completely focused on hers. "With someone who accepts everything about me..."

Aria -
She could feel the way he was using the kiss to try to communicate what he was feeling. She knew, sometimes, he had trouble expressing himself verbally... And this was just as effective, and it felt good as a bonus.

"Everything about you makes you the man I love." She said, honestly. "And the man who can see me for me, and accept me for who I am, and what I am, and was." Her hand slid back up to his face, tickling his chest a little as it passed, to cup his cheek. "I never want to be where you are not."

Pao -
More moments to live for, with the woman he loved and would do anything for. He basked in her words for a moment, expression soft as he reached up to cup her cheek as well. "Who and what you are and have always been, from what I can tell, is a beautiful and thoughtful and talented woman, full of love and just as deserving of it. I can't imagine my life without you in it anymore, love..."

Aria -
Her cheeks turned that shade of pink-red that only he ever seemed able to earn from her. Others might make her blush, but none quite the way he did. She leaned into his hand, eyes glittering a little, heart beating fast again, simply from the words he was saying. She tilted her head, and pressed her lips against his palm. "Good, cause I never plan on leaving it."

Pao -
That sent a familiar shiver up his spine, his own cheeks flushing ever so slightly pink as he gazed into her eyes. "Good..." was all he could think to say before leaning down for just one more kiss. At the rate they were going he'd be tempted to ask her to stay in bed with him for one more go before they got to their New Year plans.

Aria -
She blushed, realizing how he reacted, and then got lost in the kiss again, her eyes closed tight. She would be more then willing to give in to his wishes, if he asked, as she generally was. She felt her best with him, and he always made her so happy. She held the kiss until she had to break it for air, and whispered "Let's make sure it's a kiss like that one at midnight."

Pao -
When they broke for air, he took slow breaths and nodded, a little smile on his face. "Mm, sounds good to me. We should probably get started on getting ready, then..." Though again he didn't make any kind of moves to do that.

Aria -
She blindly reached for one of their phones, not worried which it was, and checked the time. "Mmm we still have a few hours, but definitely a good idea." She sighed and lay there, in his arms, for another good few minutes, but then, slowly, pulled free of her wonderful man. "Showers, or do we care right now?"

Pao -
"I don't really care," he said as he sat up after her, "but we could since we have time. Start the New Year fresh? I dunno." He got out of bed at that and started to fold up one of the blankets as he waited for her input.

Aria -
She glanced at him, over her shoulder. "D'ya actually think we're gonna just snuggle and star watch up there the whole time?" She asked, honestly curious. They'd be up there awhile, and well... the pair of them and privacy, even of a questionable nature, seemed to lead to distractions, regularly.

Pao -
"Nope," came a very quick answer as he plopped the folded blanket on the bed beside her, shooting her an innocent little smile before he started folding another one. "So we can pass on it for now, I guess. Was just a thought."

Aria -
She couldn't help it, she burst out laughing as she was pulling her pants on. She continued to laugh as she continued getting dressed, and only calmed down once she was ready to head out. She walked over to him, leaned down and pressed a kiss to his cheek. "See you on the cliffs, baby. Make sure that alarm is set. I'll go get our dinner prepped."