Rally the Whers.

[panther]

She felt her systems riot with that grin, she giggled, trying to laugh off her nerves a little, the nerves that that grin induced, biting her lip a bit she smiled, “as I said, I don’t want a flitter, I want something more. Less controllable, less predictable.” She said as though it was a well known fact that she knew what she wanted – but she didn’t… not really, how could she? She had no comparison.

She lay back and idly thought of random things that were nothing to do with the situation. Her thoughts, in opposition to his, were practical, regular, and a long way from sex, or alder. Well… maybe not so far from Alder, but still, far indeed from Alder in that respect.

He moved in next to her, and not too close to make her uncomfortable, but close enough to make her aware of him. She looked at him, disapproving and sidelong as he made a joke about the bed, alone, together. She shook her head, even as he laughed, she didn’t want to find humour in it, blushing a little. “You really are a cad you know that?” She shook her head and sighed.

He assured her that they would catch the killer, and it did make her feel better. But, she was distracted by his eyes, she hadn’t really noticed their colour before now. She hadn’t concentrated, but now she did, she noticed how green they were, and how not quite green they were. She smiled softly, slightly fond of how they weren’t quite a true green, without being any other colour. She nodded, as though she had been listening the entire time.

He turned the conversation to them, and his fingers on her cheek, and his is upon her forehead, his breath on her. All soft and gentle.

She smiled under him, kissed him on the cheek while he lingered. She wanted to make herself familiar, but she had no idea how to initiate such a thing without him getting the wrong idea, or it ending up sexual. She might ponder on that. But she had very few ideas on the male form, she knew general anatomy, what was present and where, and what it should be like, but she had never the time, or the inclination to explore. She swallowed and looked up at him innocently, then quirked a brow, “Let it be? All I do is analyse Alder, and you expect me to drop it?” She shook her head and laughed. “You know this is the single longest stint I’ve ever gone without doing paper work, except for going to the Weyr? She informed him. In all manner of seriousness.

[Xennai]

Her giggle was fire through him, fire in his blood. It made him blaze with such intense affection it nearly made his head spin. A dark laugh rippled from him, his nose scrunching as he lightly touched her own. “A firelizard you already have. So it’s good that you don’t want another, because you’ll be getting a man.” He laughed once more, flopping back down onto his back.

But the next moment, he was on his elbow, eyebrows raised in her direction. “A cad, am I, now? Well, it’s good that it’s a cad you want.” His head tilted to one side, his smile winning. “A cur, a rascal, a dog, a rat, a dolt.” He stroked her cheek gently, eyes suddenly soft, all wicked joking dissolved. “But, mostly, you want someone to make you laugh.”

She kissed his cheek, making the fire in him roar all the higher. He wanted to tell her sweet, soft words. He wanted to tell her the secret locked within him, a secret told to no woman. He wanted to make gentle love to her. But her fright transferred over to him in the fact that he was frightened to do what he wanted. It was a strange feeling. His thoughts were taken as he laughed softly. “Good,” he purred. “We’re going to try and make it longer and longer each time.” He pulled back, cupping her face, staring into those beautiful, unique eyes. “Dani, you need to learn to take breaks. Pern will not fail if you’re not looking constantly after it for an hour or two.”

Alder suddenly sat up and picked up Danae, setting her in his lap. His arms were looped loosely about her waist, his eyes sparkling with humor and not the lust he knew she expected to see. He wasn’t after that. “You need to live a little, love. Break the ball and chain! Paperwork will always be there. It’s good for a long, rainy afternoon. When it’s brilliant and beautiful and the stars are shining, you need to get out of the ground and out near the sky! It’s a beautiful thing.” He kissed her forehead softly, fingers twining with hers, leaving the other arm about her waist. “Promise me you’ll try?” he asked softly, his face very serious now.

[panther]

“mmm” She murmured as she closed her eyes for a few moments, feeling overly comfortable. She felt him flop down onto the bed beside her. She’d find it difficult getting used to that… Sleeping in the same bed as some one else that was. She’d only ever done the solo thing. She thought idly on it for a moment, he was the first man for her to ever wake up to. Even the Run guys had managed to walk out before she woke every time – they knew she was a bit of a loose cannon, an untameable – because she wasn’t searching for a man.

Well… things changed… didn’t they?

He rose to an elbow, and looked down on her, she opened one eye speculatively. “Rascal has an air of innocence, that doesn’t match you at all.” She laughed and caught his eyes for a few moments, a painfully tender look lingering there. She fought every bone in her body to jump from the bed right there and then. She narrowed her eyes at him, “how do you know what I want?” and what I don’t. She took a curious smile and looked at him hard.

“You’d have me do no work at all Alder, that much I know, but I can’t do that. I know – believe me I do – that Pern will not fall in my absence. I know that.” She nodded, “But, it’s still things I have to do, else Aldesk won’t eat. You won’t eat, we’d have no light, no soapsand, no oil, no hides, no clothes. No furniture, no straps, no wine, no food… We’d be in a mess with transfers, and all sorts. So, please, please don’t tell me you expect me to leave my paperwork to ruin – for you would be the very one to complain when you ran out of something you wanted.” She warned him. Staring at the ceiling.

She sighed and looked back over at him. He kissed her forehead and she felt placated, softened. “I know – ok? And I will try, but it rather goes against the grain to sit and leave paperwork and let it build. I prefer to play after my work is done.” She informed him, looking softly at him, letting her fingers twine with his, and his hand linger on her hip.

She turned into him, so she now lay on her side, facing him, bringing her legs up a little, she seemed serious too now. “Fine. Fine, fine fine.” She struck her hands sharply through the air, and sat bolt upright, shifting his hands from her with just her sharp movements, “Try? I’ll do one better than try. Tomorrow night – provided the weather’s good – after the guards come to take morning duties? We’ll take two runners – and we’ll go watch the sunrise over the cliffs. Get away from it all, where I can’t even think about the paperwork.” She waited. Her heart felt like it stopped, for an entire eternity, and twice again. She realised she’d pretty much jut asked him out. Out out. like a date. She fought the rouging of her cheeks, but she could feel it creep up her neck. That was the first time she’d ever done that… and she done it as a spontaneous backed into a corner sort of lashing out. To prove something. shells why did she have to do that? Silly, silly impulsive Danae!