midnightstar | Shionne and Alphen in Menancia

They've all come a long way since Calaglia, both in terms of distance and... other things. Things Shionne was forcing herself not to acknowledge. Because what would the point be to acknowledge those thoughts when she couldn't act on them - when at the end of this journey, she had no future? Ah... but that was something she hadn't - couldn't - tell the others, who she's begun thinking of as more than just 'tools'.

Particularly Alphen.

It was the hardest to think of him when she knew how much she was keeping from him. Much to her frustration, however, the group had decided to take a break for a little while since Shionne's pace had been pushing the others quite a lot - and they did just gain two new companions. Shionne was avoiding them as much as possible, deciding to go for a walk through the city almost...baffled by how accepting the Dahnans and Renans were.

It was ... nice. But it felt so alien to her, at the same time.

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Oooh, he liked that that much. She smiled softly, leaning close as she lay on top of him, pressing her lips against his with a tender kiss of her own. "Darling..." She purred softly, her hand turning slightly to grip his, threading her fingers through his.

"Mnnngh! Oh that is...think you could...maybe draw out the R a little longer when you say it?" Alphen's pick for first place was feeling increasingly justified with every moment and every time she spoke it. In that sweet precious and oh so lovely voice.

Shionne's smile warmed, and she nodded happily, "Anything for you," she promised, before leaning more closely to him, "Darrrrrrrrlllinnngg.." LIke that? At least she'd ask him for his approval if she wasn't currenlty claiming his lips in another kiss - he was right there, how could she resist?

"!!! Mhm Mhmhmhm ju-just like that." He nodded vigorously as much as he could while not breaking his lips for more than a split second because he would not give up those kisses just to speak his answer out loud. His body could convey it just fine anyway.

She purred into the kiss, though she did pull back for a second to hear his response, "It really makes you happy to hear me say that." She trailed her fingers along his cheek, "Then good. Everything I find to make you happy, makes me happy." She nuzzled against him, "...so..what should we do now..?" He wasn't tired and..she wasn't tired.. but she didn't want to get up either.

"W-Well....for right now we could...try some of the other things you read about. Anything at all." Again his knowledge in mattress dancing techniques was hearsay and imagination. SO she had the absolute advantage which was why he was coming to her for advice on what to do next~

Hmmm...Actually, it wasn't overly sexual but.. there was one thing she'd wished she could feel him do for her, that she'd never been able to when she was under the curse. "Then.. would you give me a back massage..?" Just wanting to feel him run his hands over her body --at least for now. ANd he'd have the added bonus of being able to touch her even more. And she wouldn't even fuss at him if he moved his hands to more ..daring areas.

What she asked for turned out to be so endearingly innocent he was for a moment genuinely surprised before smiling back with such warmth and adoration before he nuzzled his way into a kiss. A short but oh so loving one.

"Of course~ Leave it to me."

She smiled sweetly into the kiss, leaning into it briefly before she drew back, "Then. .. I should.." Hrm. No, she was being islly. Of course he would behave - she was just lying on her stomach, so there was nothing tempting about that, right? She settled on the mattress, pulling her hair out of the way so he wouldn't have to worry about her hair.

There she goes again underestimating his feelings and her own natural charms. Alphen took a moment to admire that bare back now fully revealed to his eyes since her long hair was out of the way. He had to fight the temptation to just lean down and run a trail of fiery kisses down her neck and back. No massage first, pleasure after.

He shook his head to get those intrusive thoughts under control and then cracked his knuckles and fingers properly before putting them right behind her shoulders to knead and squeeze at the first knots he'd perceived.

That would definitely surprise her. Just as it surprised her at the first touch of his hands on her shoulders. It was almost funny.. with as long as she'd gone without feeling anyone touch her like this, she never knew how much she craved the sensation. "Hmm..." she sighed faintly just from that feel of his hands kneading her shoulders - of course, not only is the sight of her bare back a temptation, he'd have to also content with hearing her moans when he got through the tension in her back and shoulders.

She was so effortlessly distracting but then he didn't want her to stop voicing her feelings either so Alphen found himself clawing at his own resolve to keep going. By some miracle he only occasionally found himself holding still before resuming to massage another part of her back always finding the most tense spots and loosening them so expertly that nothing but relief and a comfortable warm feeling was left in their wake.

"I really should have done this for you so much sooner. All this tension..."

She assumed those pauses were just from making sure he didn't hurt her, naturally! Occasionally he did find an actual tense knot before working it out again, but she muffled any winces she could. Instead all he got to hear were soft sighs- a slight grunt against the pillow once every now and again, "You couldn't before.." she hadn't realized JUST how tense she'd been all this time though.

Alphen shook his head. "I could technically before my helmet came off completely. But that's neither here nor there. I'm with you now and I will be sure to get you to have massages like this on the regular. I won't let you neglect your body like this going forward." He was absolutely serious.

She glanced over her shoulder at him, surprised, then quickly turned her attention away as if she wanted to hide her blush, "Nngh, you're.. not neglecting anything. It wasn't your fault - I didn't know I was that tense But.. it feels good.. what you're doing." she let another sigh from her lips, tucking her head a little against her arm. It was somewhat embarrassing too, but BOY did it feel good~

"As long as it is comforting for you that's all I could ask for." Well no that wasn't quite right anymore but he was going to slowly lead her into the true desires outcome. Because seeing her relax while making those enticing sounds with her voice was having quite the effect on Alphen.

"I love seeing you happy and comfortable. That's been a thing almost since they day we met." Well more accurately since the day she started treating him on a more cooperative footing.

She let out a long sigh, "Mmmh.. I didn't know how good it would feel.. but I don't know if that's because I've never had a massage.. or mmmh, if it's ..because of you." A little of both maybe, though she goes into a semi thoughtful silence at that latter comment, ".. you aren't exaggerating..?" From that far back, that he cared enough to want her to be happy and comfortable was nothing short of incredible. And she'd never even known.

"I'm not kidding. Seeing you hurt or sad made me angry and frustrated in that order." Frustrated because he didn't quite know how to cheer her up being a slave for most of his life as far as he remembered. Plus there weren't many women in the slave pits either and most of them didn't interact with the miners either.

"You were someone truly new in a monotonous life I thought I could only endure until the day my strength would fail me or I end up pissing off the wrong guard."

Shionne let out a surprised little squeal when Alphen touched upon a knot in between her shoulder blades, and then uttered a sigh again, "Hnn..." Actually him saying that made a lot of sense now that she had the context for it. So much so she felt almost the fool to have not noticed sooner. Granted there were times she got an inkling that he might have felt something for her - but with her curse in the way..

"That's why you got as angry as you did in Niez.." More of a confirmation than question - she's had that conversation with him before. "..at the time I thought it was just because we were companions.. allies.. party members and not...mmgh.." Give her a second, she almost melted under his hands there.

He chuckled softly at the variety of sounds he was getting out of Shionne right now. He could feel the way her tension was just seeping out of her body now and that put a smile on his lips as he continue his work and the chat in the interim.

"I thought it was that myself. But in hindsight I can't think of any other explanation that makes things connect properly."

"Hindsight..rmnn.." She tilted her head a little so she could look at him slightly, "I suppose a lot of the little things you do make more sense in hindsight, now that you mention it." The way his smile slowly seemed to change when he looked at her - when he called out whenever she was badly injured...ah... she muffled another moan and glanced away sharply, hiding her face as the blush stealthily crept up her neck.

Nevermind the way he screamed her name when she fell - she's done it too. And when they were attacked by Vholran and she thought .. oof. That was perhaps the most terrifying part of her journey with them.

Feeling almost instinctively that she was going down memory lane into some of the darker parts of their shared past, Alphen stopped his massage and rested his body on top of hers as he wrapped his arms around her in a tight but comforting embrace. No untoward thoughts behind it just being there to chase away those less than happy memories.

At first she did think it was some sort of sneaky untoward plan of his, but when he simply held her in his arms like that, she exhaled softly, smiling in spite of herself. Shifting a hand to gently reach up and touch his cheek, ".. how do you always know..?" It was uncanny the way he knew when she had an uneasy rest, or couldn't sleep, and came to find her - or even now when her thoughts slipped to less pleasant memories. He always, always seemed to know what she needed or wanted most.

"I couldn't tell you. I just felt like you needed this." Some things just defied words or reason. His feelings and his close attunement to Shionne seemed to be one of those things and now that the two of them had taken the big step in their relationship, the number of things he would be second guessing himself over before acting had dwindled to an immense degree.

She grinned slightly, "You were right," she admitted, "..I was just..thinking about things I would rather not remember." Blushing a bit more, she tightened her hand on his arm, "And.. it's still a bit surprising to me that I can have you do this on nights I don't sleep well. And every night - I can just curl up close in your arms, and be with you any way I want."