#valaurius

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.