Closed It wasn't me! (Vanari)

[Rysmarin]

Rysmarin smirked devilishly at his companion, noting the spread and consummate heat of her blush with a certain childish glee. Sure, the two, nearly back-to-back transformations and the accompanying, self inflicted drain on his djed left him a little... tired, and more than a little hungry, but seeing her so flustered was well worth it to the Kelvic rascal.

That was, of course, not to mention that the desire she may have felt upon seeing the image might not have been solely her own. But he was not yet ready to entirely admit that to himself yet, either. He may have been mature of body mostly the same way in mind... but he was still quite inexperienced in those more private aspects of life. Bedroom behavior is, of course, one of those times where learning and talent cannot outweigh actual experience.

With that thought, he suddenly found himself nearly face-to-face with the Vantha woman. Under normal circumstances, he might have stumbled back a step, but he found himself trapped by her hands wrapped about the hem of his cloak, forcing him to quickly recognize what it was that she was doing with that little wooden broach. That done and his surprise abated, he found he couldn't tear his eyes from her as he watched her face... or, more accurately, her lips. There was something... appealing, perhaps even sultry in the way she sucked on them that made his eyes go wide as he tried not to stare.

Of course, even in this stupor, he was able to chuckle through his own blush (caused by the combination of cold and his now somewhat lurid imaginings) when she mentioned his important bits. "Oh y-yes..." He exclaimed, shivering once more as his thin frame tried to burrow deeper into his voluminous cloak. "W-we wouldn't want to let anything happen to th-them, now, would w-we?" He chuckled once more, his own slight coloration already fading fast as they followed the maid and her friend into the family's residence.

Out of the wind and snow, Rysmarin let loose a warm sigh, his shivering slowly dying in the warmer inside air. While the maid led them on inside towards the dining area, Rysmarin quickly walked up beside Vanari, pretending not to notice her there. "My my..." He not-quite whispered, his voice loud enough for her to hear... and possibly the maid as well, should she have been listening. "Who would have thought that the pretty little Vantha who pushed me down and did with me as she pleased -in the street, no less!- would have been some kinda lady of standing?"

He chuckled and shook his head as he glanced over at her, a teasing glint in his eye. "Not me, I can say that much..." With that, he grinned at her fully and slipped back into the tongue of their home. "Ya certainly know how ta keep it interestin', don't ya, snow angel?" He winked at her as they entered the dining room... and was astounded to see that it was much larger than what he'd deign to call a room. This room was, to the starving kelvic, at least, a true work of art.

He could barely even wait for the food to arrive as he sat beside his friend and current host. Indeed, he sat quietly glaring at the table as he idly entertained the idea of gnawing upon it. Thankfully, he didn't have to sit in the cloud of saliva-inducing aroma for overly long, as the housekeeper returned with a plate that made his eyes bulge.

He barely even waited for Vanari to begin before pouncing on the array of meats, some of them simply mysteriously vanishing before they even made it to his plate, though an observant person might notice the way his cheeks bulged as he sat back down, eyeing his plate with a fiery fervor. When he realized she'd spoken, he nodded distractedly to his companion and swallowed hard. "Mmph... Yep... start somewhere..." He took another bite, then added, "Gods, this is delicious!"

[Vanari]

Vanari almost choked on the mutton as she noticed how quick Rys had cleared half the table.

"Where does all that food even go? Here, try some juice while you're at it." She pushed his goblet of winterberry juice closer. Normally there would've been ale or wine, but it seemed Mistress Aida had been informed of her general dislike of alcohol.

As though she had somehow heard those thoughts, the housekeeper stepped forward without warning. "Is everything to your satisfaction, my lady?"

Vanari barely kept from jumping in her seat, but she managed to clear her throat and answer politely. "Oh, yes, everything's perfect. Thank you, Aida."

The maid balked a little at the informality, but she didn't seem to mind it and nodded her head curtly before retreating once more.

"And I'm not a lady," Vanari addressed the Kelvic between mouthfuls. "I don't know what's going on anymore than you do. Probably Sania's doing--"

"I'd know that tone from anywhere," a coy voice called down the stairs, cutting her off mid sentence. A petite woman with a moon shaped face and dark hair that gleamed purple and blue descended slowly, her eyes widening with each step. "It really is you isn't it, Vee?"

Vanari stood abruptly from her seat, nearly knocking everything over. Her eyes felt ridiculously warm as she turned to face her little sister. She was a woman grown now, with the fine jewelry and expensive clothing to show for it. Tirelin must have become quite successful in his architectural pursuits; certainly, it wouldn't be Sania's doing, as she utterly loathed any kind of hard work.

"It is," the elder sister whispered hoarsely, then ran up to bear hug her sibling. "This may sound crazy, but I think I actually missed you, sis."

"I see you've enjoyed the meal we prepared," Sania scoffed. "As wild a beast as ever when it comes to food, Vee. And who is the handsome young man you brought with you? A friend? Or..."

Vanari narrowed her eyes at her sister, who had that predatory look she gets right before she pounces on an unsuspecting young man and makes him her plaything.

"A friend, and don't even think about it. He's our guest, and.... She covered her mouth, trying to hide her amusement as she noticed how exhausted Rys looked. Surely, all that shifting had worn him out, and he had gorged himself silly so the food coma probably wasn't helping either.

"I know we have a lot of catching up to do, but perhaps on the morrow. Rys and I are both worn to the bone."

"Ohh, so that's his name. Well, I certainly wouldn't keep you from some proper rest. Mother and father are out working repairing some important statues right now so they won't be back for some time. Oh Vee, you will attend the festival won't you? It will be so grand! Oh look at me, I'm rambling again. Yes, will that be two rooms, or just one..."

Vanari rolled her eyes, which was an answer enough. Sania smirked and crooked one finger. "This way, lovelies."

"And please," the raggedy Vantha begged, "if you've any kindness in you, send a hot bath up too. I'll love you forever for it, I promise."

The younger sister snorted very unladylike. "I thought you already did. But don't worry, I wouldn't let you ruin my fine linens anyhow. Mistres Aida, have a hot bath sent to her room immediately, if you please."

Aida nodded, the tray still clasped in her hands, and bustled off to who knows where. Vanari sighed wistfully as they climbed the stairs, thanking all the gods of Mizahar for the invention of baths.

[Rysmarin]

Upon finishing his meal, Rysmarin was thoroughly and truly stuffed. He was so stuffed, he had no words to actually describe how comically distended his normally lithe middle was. No little golden nugget of off-color humor as to his own ravenous devouring of meat. Not even a simple word of thanks for the generous meal, even though he knew most of it had been intended for his new bestest, meat-bribing friend. In truth, there was only one word he could really say at the time as to describe the quality of the meal, his own state, or... well, anything at all. That one word was "Hnnngh..."

True, some might argue that that isn't actually a word, but it's the only utterance Rysmarin was capable of at the time of his meal's completion. Well, perhaps that, and "I... think I had too much meat..." After a moment's thought, his brow furrowed deeply and he added in a mumble. "Is... is that... even possible?"

He burped quietly, and realized in horror with the scent and flavor of said emission that it was, indeed, possible to consume too much meat. He sighed morosely. "I'm gonna be feelin' end up this one for a week..."

Once the kelvice heard a new voice in the room, he suddenly realized that there were more women present than he remembered. Rysmarin stood up slowly, nearly painfully... unlike his companion's hastened attempt to rise, forcing a small, reluctant chuckle from the engorged man. He studied Vanari's sister, though he found himself... uncertain of the woman. Sure, she seemed amiable and kind, and he was grateful for the meal, but... her tone somehow grated on him. Was it... condescending? Pretentious? Or just playful, like his?

He quickly decided that it was to much to ask him to deliberate a person's motives or choice of words in his current state. And that he didn't actually even care, because she was kinda pretty, and that was sufficient to completely redirect the slightly-shallow kelvic's train of thought. Still, never one to miss a chance, he didmanage to catch the sister's discourse on his status with Vanari. "Oh, you wound me, madame!" He said in a rather lack-luster attempt at humor, emulating the high-brow tone and speech patterns he'd heard from the uper-class Vantha. At least, that's what he attempted to say.

Again, all he was actually capable of uttering in his slightly-hunched, food-battered state was a quiet series of quiet groans that might have sounded vaguely similar to those fluent in overeatees. Still, he was lucid and capable enough to follow when beckoned... and attempt another joke (with significantly more success as his food started digesting) at the mention of a bath. "What, only one bath?" He grumbled in a faux sour tone. "Am I expected to join you?"

A smile coiled across his face as he pretended to think, following Vanari up the stairs. "Of course... Not that I'd mind, now that I see what I'd be getting... I knew there was a reason they called these infernal constructions "stares..."" He chuckled, cocking his head to the side as he admired the view in a very, very ungentlemanly manner.

[Vanari]

Vanari ground her teeth a little as she could feel Rys staring. She glanced back to confirm this, unsurprised as his rather lurid expression. She had been made fun of plenty of times by her family for being oddly well equipped for childbirth, despite her other less generously endowed areas, but they never stared at her like that.

Shameless, she seethed, then whipped back around to hide her unexpected blush. Gods, how she wished she could somehow control this petching reaction.

Before her, Sania giggled in mock modesty at Rys's comments. "Oh, he's a fun one."

"Don't encourage him. Please.

Her sister shrugged as they reached the top of the stairs, then pointed down the hall. "Your old room is still there. Nothing has changed, minus a few dusty cobwebs. Your lovely friend can take the guest room next door. You know, the one with the door in the wall--"

Vanari slapped her sister soundly on her shoulders. "Well, thank you so much for your hospitality, sis. You go on now, no need to be bothered by us. I'm sure the children need you or...something."

Sania made a face, then held her hands up in defeat. "Do what you will Vee, not my lonely, social funeral." Then she sauntered away to her own chamber, casting one wicked glance behind her before slamming the ornate door shut.

"I don't think we could both fit in one bath tub," Vanari addressed Rys, trying not to think further on the idea, however tempting it may have been. "But I'll help Aida bring it to you and refill it. I would offer to let you go first, but I'm about ready to commit murder for a decent bath right now."

With that said, she led him down the hall and stopped almost at the end, peering curiously into both rooms. She had hoped Sania had been lying and they had long since rid the room of such a useless feature, but there it was. That infernal door that often left her too paranoid to sleep when guests stayed the night. When she was younger, she would stack all the furniture she could against it with the ridiculous fear that a burglar or creature would sneak in during the night. As she got older, such worries eventually abated, but she still felt the ghost of mistrust. Although, if it were just Rys, it wouldn't be much of an issue. Wait a tick, on second thought...

"My lady," Aida suddenly intoned, "the bath is coming up. Perhaps you two may wait in the guest room as we have it prepared."

As if on cue, three burly men appeared, hefting the tub and water up the stairs. No doubt they were part of Sania's new revenue, most likely in charge of transporting all her obnoxious amounts of luggage. Vanari grabbed Rys and stepped hastily into the room as the men moved everything down the hall. Sounds of metal hitting wood and water sloshing could be heard on the other side as she surveyed the room, noting each and every upgrade since the last time she had been home.

She was just about to ask Rys what he thought of the room when Aida knocked on the door. "It is ready, my lady."

Vanari almost leaped with joy. "Thank you, Aida!" She glanced back before she walked out the door. "It'll be your turn soon I promise. Don't fall asleep yet!" It felt a bit silly saying that when it was barely midday, but she knew how tiring multiple shifts could be.

The Vantha winked, then fled to her room, barely waiting for the door to close before stripping off all her dusty clothes and sinking blissfully into the steamy, fragrant water. Neck deep in heaven, it was impossible to think anything in all of Mizahar could feel as good. Her eyelids felt heavy, and she distantly noted with alarm that she was falling asleep...


" "

[Rysmarin]

Rysmarin cocked an eyebrow at the notion of adjoined rooms, but said nothing... for a time, though his truly lecherous grin was a sight to behold, especially when he waggled his eyebrows in an equally inappropriate manner that he found massively humorous. "Ohoh, yes, indeed, thanks very much for being so very... accommodating, madame Sonia!" His subsequent cackle was almost evil in nature... though the innocent lilt to his voice and over-exaggerated pose sorely belied that gesture.

As the door slammed behind her, Rysmarin's grin switched from evil to pure, unadulterated innocence, with only the merest twinkling of his mischief shining through that well practiced mask. "Your sister's all kindsa nice, huh? N' yer mother musta been quite a looker, too, to have had a pair of such pretty daughters..." He winked at her, that wicked glint growing slowly behind his eyes, threatening to tear his sort-of-false veil of purity... Though it dispersed completely once she mentioned the tub.

"Oh, I disagree... but I will respect your wishes." His mouth twisted once more into a feral grin. "Whaaateverrr they miiight beee..." He chuckled as he followed behind her, though his train of thought was lost as he finally began to actually take in the house around them. Gods, was it big! So much larger than his own tiny Arvinta... He quickly found he was growing rather jealous as he peeked into the rooms over Vanari's shoulder.

Since his head wasn't more or less stuck in the room, however, he was far less surprised to find the maid, Aida, coming up the hall... but significantly more so by the sheer mass of the men and object that had followed her up. Had she not grabbed him and tugged him into the room, he had little to no doubt that he would have been nothing more than a poor, flattened puppy under the mens' boots.

He recovered as quickly as ever, though. "Heh... Erm, thanks..." He looked around, then nodded appreciatively... though his voice was deeply inflicted with envy. "Nice digs..." Of course, as he spoke, Aida returned, and Vanari left him alone in his room before it had even occurred to him to make bedroom jokes.

His opportunity presented itself a mere moment later, however, causing him to grin ear to ear. "I wouldn't dream of going to sleep before you, my dear snow angel." He was surprised to see her wink as she practically disappeared from his temporary quarters, making way towards her own room.

Rysmarin stared at the door for a few short minutes after she left. The door that was almost, but not quite closed. The door that held upon it's other side the infinitely alluring idea of a bathing, nude woman. His stare was intent, as if the heated gesture alone would swing the door wide and reveal the glorious sight that no doubt waited upon the other side. While he thought he saw the door move due to the steam curling up and around it, he knew it was unswayed by his plight... but it didn't stop him from trying.

It didn't stop him from plotting on ways to get into that room without getting totally throttled by the very object of his desire. Eventually, however, he simply sighed. "No..." He said, grimacing at himself. "Bad Rys. Bad." His grimace slowly shifted into a quiet, dark grin. "Don't go to the women... let the women come to you!" He let that thought hang in the air, then chuckled loudly at the sheer absurdity of the idea. "Yeah, right!"

Still snickering, he got up and walked purposefully over to the door. His hand only hovered hesitantly over the handle briefly before he resolutely pulled the door completely closed, the mechanism making a clicking with finality. "Whatever I may be, I ain't evil, and I ain't a dirty, rotten peeper!" He muttered, trying mostly to convince himself as he sauntered back over to his bed and plopped down, full of false bravado.

He cast off his cloak and pack, then promptly proceeded to place his knuckles against his forhead and lament after his virtuous decision. "Why does bein' a nice guy have ta be so petching hard?" He groaned, punctuating each word with a grind of his knuckles against his brow.

[Vanari]

Vanari woke with a gasp, splashing water everywhere. How long had it been? Her heart pounded away for a while at the thought of almost having drowned herself, but she calmed as she realized the water was still quite warm. Woozily, she extracted herself from the tub, trying her best not to slip and crack her skull. The towel they'd left behind was luxuriously soft and fluffy, though she still made quick work of drying herself and her hair, worried that Rys had already fallen asleep.

Wrapping the thick towel around herself, she walked gingerly to her old wardrobe, opening it slowly as her mind clouded thick with nostalgia. Vanari sighed. There were about a dozen different colored outfits hanging neatly and she had little to no patience to try them all on. In fact, after being so long on the road, she wouldn't be surprised of she had forgotten how to dress decently altogether.

She picked out a random robe and donned it over the towel, then shut the wardrobe as she thought of a better idea. The bath water was still hot but considerably more fragrant than the Kelvic could probably withstand, so she went outside to find Aida.

"My lady, I see you have finished. Shall we prepare a second for the gentleman next door?"

Vanari was starting to get used to the housekeeper's constant presence, but it still made her jump a little when the woman spoke so abruptly. Gentleman, eh? She had noticed Aida's skepticism before where it concerned Rys, so the maid's change in opinion was sudden and unexpected.

"Yes, please, that would be much appreciated." As Aida left to fetch the men back, Vanari looked at Rys's door and realized why the maid had changed her mind. The room was firmly shut, and now that she thought about it, so was the door in her wall. She smiled. So there was some nobility in him after all, though she looked at the closed door with an odd hint of disappointment.

The Vantha knocked gently on his door. "Are you awake, Rys? They're bringing up your bath now." Then she grinned. "Also, what's your favorite color?"

" "

[Rysmarin]

The Kelvic had indeed fallen into a short slumber, himself... or, at least, he thought he did. Why else would he have removed half of his clothing? Why else would he be sprawled out on the bed, looking more like a pile of pine branches than a man? Why else would he be questioning this, save if his mind was sleep addled? It never even occurred to him that any of this might be strange to a normal resident of Avanthal.

He sat upright, stuffing the bed-fog back into its little box in his brain to be completely ignored once more. Rysmarin wouldn't call himself a morning person, but... well, he was kind of a morning person. "Mmm..." He stretched languidly, feeling each and every one of his joints crack in slow succession. "Yep. I'm awake. Of course I'm awake... Why wouldn't I be? Y'know, other than the food. And... well, I guess everything else that happened today." He chuckled quietly to himself as the bed-haze was slowly replaced by the normal, mischievous aura he generally imagined himself to exude.

"My favorite color? It's green... Or, well, that's what it was, at least." He smirked, though he knew she wouldn't be able to see it. "I think pink's startin' to grow on me, though... Oooh, or maybe it's just that pretty color yer eyes turn when ya blush?" He paused a moment for effect, then added "Like I imagine you're doin' right now." He laughed momentarily, but it quickly subsided since he couldn't actually tell if she was blushing through the door.

"Anyway, yeah, thanks for letting me know 'bout the bath, Vanari..." He chuckled a little more. "Oh, and If ya change your mind about joinin' me... No need ta lemme know! Just come on in!" Anticipating the swift and almost unexpected return of the spy-maid, Aida, he quickly hunted down his shirt (which he had, of course, tossed unceremoniously into a corner as he slept) and returned it to its rightful place upon his taught, pale chest.

[Vanari]

Green, Vanari thought. Hmm, I did see something greenish earlier that was quite pretty...

Rys's next words, though, caught her off guard. Again. They sent the heat straight back to her face, just as he had predicted all the way from the other side of the petching door. Gods, what an infernally trying ability he had. The Vantha had never received so many compliments, nor had she ever felt so flustered in the passing of a single morning.

Standing in mute embarassment, she listened as the Kelvic thumped around, presumably making himself decent before Aida came marching back with the three muscular men and another hot bath. Vanari slid her eyes toward where the adjoining door would be, then slid them back in frustrated confusion.

"My lady, is he awake? We have the bath ready to be delivered."

The girl nodded violently at the housekeeper, as though caught in some kind of shady act. Aida merely raised an eyebrow, knocked once on the door, then swung it open for the other servants to carry in the tub.

Vanari shuffled back to her room, closing the door before leaning wearily against it. Her eyes kept straying back to the relatively small piece of wood separating her and a probably very clothingless Rys. Snapping back to stare straight ahead, she marched over to the wardrobe and flipped through them hurriedly. Yes, there it was. An olive green dress cut short for outdoor activity, so as not to get weighed down into the snow. There was a pair of dark green, knitted leggings to go with it, as well as various other matching snowy weather gear.

She was just in the process of pulling down the garments from their hangers when she heard a splash. Setting down the dress on her bed, Vanari slowly crept toward the little door and knelt with one ear pressed against it, listening. Yup, he was definitely in the bath tub. Naked.

Now, the Vantha had always been one of rather scrupulous nature when it came to respecting another living being. Any harm she ever did was usually by accident, and she never intentionally sought to betray a friend's trust. However, every now and then, her curiosity would get the best of her, and her rare but rather forceful impulses were difficult, if not impossible, to tame. And it had been so, so long since she last felt this interested in another human being--even if he was only half human.

Not bothering to think further, she sneakily inched her hand closer to the knob. Her heart was thundering as she grasped it, not daring to breathe, turning it ever so very, very slowly...

Click. Petch! It was locked, and in her panic she had let it go clumsily, creating even more incriminating noise. Darting around, she starting fumbling over every inch of her room, trying to make it sound as though she had been doing something else and definitely not trying to open that forbidden door.

"Hellfire and damnation," she muttered to herself. Why did she have to be so foolishly awkward? Flustered beyond belief, she threw off the robe and towel and started pulling on a linen shift, then furiously stuffed her limbs through the green dress.

Suddenly, the flurry of motion stopped. Vanari sighed, one arm hanging at a strange angle over her head. She tried to wiggle free, but the fabric stayed stubbornly put, barely covering her thighs. Panic overwhelmed her. It was getting hard to breathe.

She was stuck.

[Rysmarin]

Even awake, dressed, and fully prepared, that infuriatingly stealthy maid managed to startle Rysmarin and catch him completely off guard, making him yip slightly in surprise when she knocked, then entered brusquely... And again when the men carrying the bath came in shortly there after. He blinked at them, unable to utter a further sound until they deposited the bath on his floor and turned to leave. "Ah..." He murmured quietly as his brow furrowed at their retreating backs. He cleared his throat, a little irritated with his timidness, then nearly shouted after them. "Thanks much, sirs n' ma'am!"

After they left, he contemplated undressing to hop on into the bath, but his eyes kept on returning to that infernal door and the prospect of a stealthy maid that it hid. Now, Rysmarin was obviously not a particularly shy person... in general. But something about the house, the people, or maybe just the situation had him a little bit on edge. So, he quickly and quietly padded over to both doors and made absolutely certain they were both locked, barring the entrance of that thrice blasted lady-servant and her goons.

Pleased with his work and now feeling much more comfortable with himself, he grinned and stripped out of his remaining clothes. Then he stared at the water for a moment, watching the heated vapors of which slowly coil, dance, and rise from it with a serene smile. Sure, it was probably way too hot for him at the moment, but that was the appeal, as he was still chilled to the bone from all the early morning snow and ice. It would be worth it to look like a boiled shellfish to stop feeling like a frozen snowman.

With that thought, his smile turned into a grin of childish glee and he all but leapt into the hot waters of the tub, letting the somewhat loud splash drown out his significantly quieter and very brief yelp of pain. It was hot, and that just felt... truly amazing. He'd been drawing his own baths for a while now, and knew what temperature he usually liked it at... But this? This was nice after a brief morning out playing in the perpetual blizzard that was Morwen's winter city.

He sighed contentedly and settled back into the hot comfort the liquid offered only momentarily before setting about the task at hand: bathing. A man can only be so vain without taking his personal hygiene seriously, after all. His routine scrubbing was interupted, however, when he was surprised by a click from the door between his and Vanari's room. He blinked at the door, then grinned as he slowly returned to what he was doing. He hadn't expected her to actually try and take him up on his offer.

He found her panicked attempt to hide the fact that she had even tried from his enhanced hearing infinitely amusing. "So sorry, snow angel! I forgot all about our little.... agreement..." he called to her in a slow, teasing tone... though he wasn't sure she'd be able to hear him in her current, extremely flustered state. "Don't worry, though! I'll be sure to sate you 'n your curiosity shortly!"

He finished bathing with the heavily abridged version of his routine, hopped out and toweled most of the moisture off, wrapping the cloth about his waist as he finished. He was still wet, but her attempt to enter his room was all the excuse he needed to return the favor. Of course, he stopped his sauntering when the noise on the other side of the door suddenly stopped.

Thinking something had happened, he set his hand against the knob and called through the door. "Vanari? Are you alright?" He didn't really wait for an answer, an unfortunately buoyant memory deciding to resurface from the sea of thoughts at that precise moment. "I'm coming in. Don't you dare be hurt!" He shouted, his voice losing its childish wonder not in favor of a petulant impishness, but rather a harsh, somewhat fearful and feral edge.

He quickly and bodily unlocked the door, uncaring of the wooden barrier as he entered his friend's room... and was confronted with... well...

He didn't really know how to describe it.

Instead of even trying, or laughing, or making some kind of joke, he walked over to her with a quiet, almost relieved sigh. "Need a hand?" He asked as he slowly helped untangle her, his pale fingers gently brushing against her skin in ways that were probably unintentional, as they were a bit removed from the obvious sites of male attention. "I know ya got two of your own, Vanari, but... well they seemed to be a bit... tied up?" He tugged gently, and the dress basically fell into place, only a little worse for wear. He smiled gently at her... then realized he was pretty much naked with a woman.

He didn't let her go for a moment after that, though. Just turned as red as he had when he jumped in that nigh boiling tub, then slowly released her and walked backwards towards his room, as if attempting to rewind what had just transpired in his brain so he could understand it.

[Vanari]

Gods be damned, why wouldn't the stupid dress budge? She was trying her best not to hyperventilate, but the terrifying feeling of the cloth stretched over her mouth and nose made her heart race so frantically she was half afraid she would pass out. After a chime or two's worth of utterly futile efforts, she felt like weeping hysterically, considering making her way blindly to Sania's room for help like some kind of sad, mutated green toddler.

Wait, what was that? It was hard to hear through the thick fabric, but it sounded like Rys was saying something from the other room...something snow angel...ari something you alright...coming in...

Suddenly, Vanari's panic tripled. He couldn't see her like this; it was too humiliating, and her legs were all but bare. Hearing his voice sent her in a fury of renewed effort, struggling to rid herself of the death trap.

The door clicked open. She froze, panting. He's going to laugh at me, she mentally cringed. He's going to make fun of me and then stare at me shamelessly...

Instead, the Kelvic simply sighed and began patiently untangling her, speaking softly as he did. Where his fingers brushed her skin, she felt tiny, involuntary shivers down her spine, his flesh still warm and slightly moist from the hot water. He was surprisingly gentle, and it wasn't long before the dress finally fell obediently with a tug.

Vanari would have hastily pulled the hem over her legs in embarrassment, had she not been facing forward the entire time and gotten a good eyeful of Rys's naked flesh as soon as her head popped free. Her eyes widened to the size of saucers. The Kelvic let go and began backing away, his face growing redder and redder by the tick. On any other occasion, she would have mirrored his reaction. After all, he was wearing nothing but a towel, and the naked glory of his lean, well-built frame was available for all to behold.

But, this was not any other occasion. She had been flustered all day under his merciless attention, and some wicked corner of her mind told her she she ought to give as good as she got.

Driven by this thought--and completely forgetting her bare leggedness--Vanari marched from her bed to the door before Rys reached it and slammed it shut with both her arms, effectively trapping him between the wood and her very close, very partially clothed self.

"Oohh, it's so your turn for this," she grinned mischievously, her eyes gleaming golden green with vengeance. Then she let her gaze trail lower, her devious smile widening as she licked her lips for good effect. It was utterly ridiculous and not something she'd ever done before, but she was dead set on payback. Besides, what kind of performer would skip out on such a sinfully entertaining act?

One, two, three, four...She counted as she walked her fingers up from his solid belly to his even more solid chest, then tilted her head as she reached his neck. "Mmm, I think have a new favorite color too now: boiling crab red. You know, the color you blush when you're almost completely naked in my room."

Maybe it was cruel, maybe it wasn't. But Vanari found it hard to stop as she brushed up against him and placed a little kiss on his neck, breathing in his scent as she did. It was warm and wild and sweet all at once and completely intoxicating. Her hands were resting on his chest now, his heartbeats resonating through her palms. It was getting harder to drop the act as she pressed closer, feeling rather lost in the bath--amongst other things--induced warmth. Somewhere distantly in the back of her mind, she realized she may have forgotten entirely of her revenge...

A second thought struck her, breaking the momentary spell. She looked at him earnestly, the mischief gone from her eyes. "Hey Rys, have you ever, you know...?"

OOC :

oh god I sound like I have down syndrome when I don't edit at least 10 times...I went and fixed some of my posts from that whole phone fiasco >_> thankfully everything's back to normal now ready for some ice watch shenanigans? it'll be a good chance for me to figure out if the teleporty thing can be used too.