#laura writes garbage

It hadn't taken long for the military to move into Hawkins and set up a cordon with her library at the center. Well, it wasn't hers technically but she'd worked and spent enough time there in the past few years to consider the place a second home, which meant it almost felt like moving house when they came to pack up the library's records. She'd told Marissa she'd take on the bulk of the work, though when a group of five men all showed up with the express purpose of moving boxes she felt she didn't need to do much of anything.

Thankfully that gave her time to think… More importantly examine the gaping chasm that had been left before they inevitably found a way to cover it. They were claiming it was an earthquake but this looked like anything but that. She could tell that much from the odd red glow, the stringlike webs stretched lengthways across the gaping maw of the earth and the strange groans she could hear coming from below… Just what exactly was this? It certainly had to be more than what they were saying to everyone as she knew they'd never send out this much military just for an earthquake. Kneeling down and looking closer it almost seemed like the webs kept the chasm knitted together like a wound - almost fleshlike. She would have liked to study it further if it weren't for a gruff voice breaking her from her reverie: "Step back, Miss."

Laura would have taken a step back if she'd had the room, her gaze immediately having to shoot up to the soldier that was standing before her. His arms were folded almost haphazardly and yet his hand still remained a few telltale inches away from the holster that rested at his side which gave her all the warning that she needed already.

"I was just-…"

"Doesn't matter." His hand wraps easily around her forearm before she even manages to say anything else, tugging her up from her knees with an ease that betrayed his strength despite his lithe looking frame. When he lets her go she notes how his pale blue eyes seem to linger over her - a silent assessment. "…Just what're you still doing here anyway?"

"…I'm the librarian here." Laura replies, matching his curtness and folding her arms over her chest as though that would make her seem any more stern to the man that practically towered above her by a good few feet. She had to wonder if all soldiers were this damn tall. Was it some sort of requirement or something?

"…A sweet little thing like you?" He hums, a disbelieving smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. "I thought all librarians were old bats pushing on sixty… Almost makes having to haul all this crap around worth it."

Charming. Laura had to roll her eyes and scoff at the sheer audacity. One minute he's rudely manhandling her and the next minute he's trying to make a pass at her. That damn smirk he was giving her certainly betrayed his enjoyment of the situation and for just a second she thinks he'd almost be handsome if he wasn't such an ass. "Clearly not…" She retorts. "Now are you done? Do you not have other people to manhandle away from your 'totally an earthquake' chasm?" "Nobody in this place 'cept you, me and my men… So as long as you stay out of trouble, then no." "That's your way of saying you're just going to stay and bother me, isn't it…?"

Ah. She wasn't going to end up getting rid of him now, that was for certain - especially when she'd made her suspicion about the situation so clear.

With one last glance at the chasm, she took a few steps away. The action at least made the hand she could see poised by the firearm at the soldier's side finally relax after a moment of scrutiny. Clearly he'd decided she wasn't going to be an issue but given his previous comment she was still acutely aware of the calculated sweep of his eyes over her as she leant against the wall. "…You're still staring."

This observation only seemed to draw a wry chuckle from him as he closed the distance again. "What? Am I not able to keep an eye on you…?"

"Not that much of an eye…." She hums, her eyes momentarily flicking downwards to the patch stitched on the jumpsuit of his uniform. There it is, a name to go with that smug face. "Lieutenant Akers."

Oh. He clearly seemed to like that little challenge, judging by the raise of a brow she was met with when her eyes met his again. Unfortunately for Laura this simply prompted him to set a hand on the wall and lean beside her, using that height of his to his full advantage as he looked down at her. She had to fight to keep a neutral expression as his eyes glistened down at her with unmasked interest. "…You got a name to go with that smart little mouth of yours…?"

"…Laura." Her voice came out quieter than she intended. Perhaps it was how suddenly she'd become aware of how small she felt compared to him now he was that close to her. Had she ever been this close to a man before this? Not that she could ever recall… Did all men smell like-… Well, she wasn't quite sure what he smelled like actually. Probably one part sweat, one part whatever aftershave he was wearing and one part that she could only describe as a mystery scent. Whatever it was it smelt like some sort of mustiness that seemed totally the opposite of the aformentioned sweat. She cleared her throat as she attempted to pull her thoughts back into line. Why the hell did she care so much about what he smelt like anyway? "Just Laura is fine, before you say it…"

The low hum he gives her in response is almost approving, Laura thinks. Or interested… Or perhaps some secret third thing that she couldn't quite figure out yet.

"Well, Laura… I-…" He curses as a string of muffled words blurts loudly out of the radio clipped to his belt, the look on his face switching to annoyance quicker than anything. "Of all the damn times-…" She hopes he doesn't catch the relieved slump of her shoulders as he pushes back off the wall and exchanges a few words with the crackled voice on the other end of the line. Some sort of superior, or thats what she assumes from the way his brow creases even further. This only serves to make the difference even more stark when his eyes meet hers again one last time. "Look. I need to get back to work but keep your pretty ass out of trouble, you hear me?"

"…I hear you." She says, cursing herself for feeling something when he looks at her. Intrigue? Something else? Whatever it is she's asking her next question a bit too quickly for her own liking. "I take it I'll be seeing you around here often then?"

"As long as that's there." He replies quickly, nodding to the chasm she'd been all too focused on only a few moments prior. "So don't think I'm done with you just yet." That cocky smirk returns to his lips for just a moment before he finally turns over his shoulder to leave.

Laura watches him go, smoothing out her clothes and swallowing down a lump she didn't even realise had been sat in her throat until he left. All of a sudden she couldn't tell if she was thankful for the space or not as she suddenly became aware of the cold, pulling her cardigan tight around her. Her lips pursed as she looked over at the chasm again. He'd certainly managed to throw her off balance from her original investigation… Yet still, if he was going to be sticking around specifically because of the chasm then perhaps it may not be as bad of a thing for her as she'd thought. He'd have information after all. Best case scenario - he helps her learn more about whatever is going on. Worst case scenario… She wasn't certain but she knew it would probably have something to do with his attitude which, rather unfortunately, was making her feel intrigued about a man for quite possibly the first time in her life.

Laura had managed to take her leave from the Countess for a moment to go her own ways, following the path she’d seen the Hierophant and Valerius take off into the Vineyard. She’d found herself feeling more pangs of worry for the Consul than usual as of late rather than the distaste she was so clearly mirroring back at him, which she’d find surprising enough already if it weren’t for the attentive way he raised his head to look at her when she finally found him again. If it were any other day back in Vesuvia he’d simply have continued sipping away at his wine with nary a glance in her direction, but upon hearing her footsteps he set the glass he was nursing upon a nearby table and glanced over his shoulder in her direction. “Laura..? Do forgive the reaction but I thought you’d be with the Countess..?” Valerius questioned as she approached, a slight lift in his tone indicating the surprise which he clearly seemed to be masking. “I was… But I suppose I wasn’t ready to stop worrying about you yet.” Laura replies, standing by him just close enough to catch the slight widen of his eyes with the comment. “I know the Hierophant has been looking after you but you are okay, right…? No marks? Faintness? It’d usually take weeks to recover from something like that-”

Whilst Valerius normally would have pulled himself away the instant Laura made to try and touch him, the way she reaches out to take his wrists and turn them over lightly in her hands was… Oddly comforting. Watching the way her fingers ran along them, as though she were feeling for some invisible length of chain still snapped upon his wrist, was something he found himself doing for just a little too long as she finished her rather lengthy explanation and her eyes flicked back up to meet his. He’d only seen her look that concerned one other time and that was before-...  Well… Before she’d freed him. It was the first time he’d seen her look at him with such pity… With such concern in those normally dark eyes, which seemed honeyed in the sunset… Had they always been that way? He’d never noted it in any of the times they’d ended up sitting on the balcony together after some exchange between them and the Countess where she’d offered them a break, left to their own devices as she’d quietly sipped her tea awaiting her return and watched him with quiet contemplation… Always thinking of something… Always scheming, he’d thought… Perhaps it had never been that way-?

“I’m fine.” He says perhaps a little too quickly for his liking, feeling a small flush of embarrassment at the way she’d caught him staring which he quickly brushes aside with narrowed eyes and a firm pressing of his lips into their usual narrowed line. “Though I suppose I must thank you again for your concern… For your…Help… It’s strange… Being able to think so clearly… For you of all people to have done something of that magnitude… I never would have thought you would-” “...And why not..?” Laura interjects, the small pinch of recognisable annoyance in her brow appearing that he seemed to draw out remarkably often. “Just because you always seemed so intent to despise me in some way, doesn’t make you any less worthy of my help than anyone else… No matter how much you always seemed to clearly belittle my magic…” “...You know well enough that’s not what I meant-” Ah gods, of all the times he hadn’t meant to cause some sort of argument with her but had by sheer choice of his poor wording…He’d have thought that the sigh he’d given when she’d let go of his wrists was more than enough to betray his annoyance at himself for that fact, yet it didn’t seem to help him much in that it only serves to make her step away from him and plunge even further into her annoyance.  “Then what did you mean…? Half of the time I can never tell if what you’re saying is even genuine… When you thanked me the first time I was wondering the whole time if you were just doing so to save face in front of Nadia… If as soon as we returned to Vesuvia and everything got back to normal that you’d just get right back to giving me the cold shoulder like none of this ever happened… Honestly, Valerius… I never intended for us to become enemies with one another but-... But I never knew what you were thinking! Everything you ever did seemed to just raise more questions and for once… Just once I’d like to know the truth about how you’re feeling rather than saying everything is fine all the time and trying to get away from me or telling me to leave you alone and not talk to you or-”

Laura isn’t quite sure how it happened, but within a moment she feels her hands caught in mid-air, slender fingers gripped around her wrists and the sensation of being pulled forwards before the words die upon her lips.

Well, they were now otherwise occupied… Wait.

It took a moment to set in but she was being kissed. He was kissing her.

Then before she found herself questioning any differently, she began to return it.

She allowed herself to get closer with her hands grasping at whatever point of the front of his robes she’d managed to set them upon and her lips parting with a small breath of surprise at the contact, then whatever doubt she’d held about the situation had washed away as she felt him take the opportunity to deepen the kiss and the taste of whatever one of the Hierophant’s fancy wines he’d been drinking quickly washed over her. While normally she’d find the taste of most wines acrid, there was a sweetness upon his lips that made itself known far more than the pinch of spice, bitter bite of sour cherry and burnt earthiness if the wine he’d been drinking - which judging by the taste must be rather strong. Not that she’d ever expect any less from Valerius although it did make it much harder to tell if it was the wine or the way he was kissing her that was making her more lightheaded, his hands still grasped upon her wrists as though he were still afraid she could pull away at any moment and scorn him for being so impulsive.

He had been, he really had, but he could scold himself for that once he was able to try and drink this whole moment even slightly out of his mind. Perhaps once he’d finally forgotten some of the details like how soft her skin felt beneath his fingertips, the quick and desperate breaths he’d hear her take whenever their lips parted for a moment, the warmth of her or the smell of residual lavender, clove and a hint of myrrh - perhaps then he could finally let himself feel somewhat ashamed.

The small handful of seconds before they finally parted again had felt so much longer, only seeming to sink into some sort of normal rhythm again once Laura had opened her eyes and began to take note of the whole situation. Valerius silently released her wrists, his pale golden eyes not breaking from hers as he blinked and joined her in taking a moment to catch his breath.

“....Does that make my position on you clear enough, Witch?” Valerius asks, the nickname retaining only a small trace of the bite he usually uttered it with as he stepped away from her and Laura quickly began to make some attempt of remembering just where she was.

“Ah-... Uh-.... Quite.” She replies, fumbling to quickly try and straighten out her hair and her clothes more in an attempt to offer some sort of distraction than anything else. For a second Valerius almost felt a hint of pride at the fact he’d managed to throw her so far off and she was acting so shy all of a sudden as she glanced at him and promptly realized how much she’d ended up creasing his robes with her eagerness to return his advances. “...Though you’ll probably forgive me if I take some time to consider it…?”

“....By all means.” He simply hums in response as he gracefully plucks his wine glass from where he’d previously set it down, taking a long and laboured sip. “...Perhaps once this whole sordid business is done you may grace me with your thoughts.”

“Right-... Of course-… And you most certainly are fine… Uh-... As in healthy… Not-..” Laura stutters as she starts to walk away, only stopping herself once she notices the stare he was giving her over the rim of his wine glass intensifying as she dug herself further into a hole. “Okay-... Forget it… Just keep yourself safe until I get back and don’t cause any issues-…”

Valerius is rather glad Laura doesn’t hear the small and admittedly rather undignified snort of laughter he makes into his wine as he watches her dash away, hands still patting over her clothes as though she had somehow convinced herself he’d used the opportunity to steal something from her… Well, perhaps he had stolen something it seemed though not something physical… Perhaps he’d at least do her the good grace of waiting for her to say so though, as much as he already wished to make some gloat about her being so clearly interested in him.