Private Tales Graceless and Divine

[Kilien Basmarc]

Those first moments were daunting in the unknown of her reaction. She'd threatened harm against those who would take her for a fool and had reported doing so to another who had tried this very thing. Kilien wasn't a man who shrank away from fear of risk when it came to his own comfort or pleasure - but he'd be regretful if she hadn't taken to the gesture as well as she did.

Inch by inch he slowly let her down until her feet settled upon the grass, though his embrace of her did not loosen. Instead he pulled her snug against him when she leaned back into his lips once the surprise and shyness wore off. There was never any good reason to rush a kiss that meant something and Kilien fully intended to savor every second that he could taste her and wallow in the scents that presently made her day's perfume.

Forest and leaves. Peaches and citrus. The lemonade lingered on her lips among the notes of their dinner. He could still smell the bonfire in her hair and on her clothes. Beneath that? The scent of her skin and the beat of her heart. Truly it could drive a man to madness with want for indulgence and he briefly entertained the thought of putting the tree behind her to use. That was simply the beast of him, or so he liked to think. He couldn't help the thoughts, but he could stay the urges.

Instead he chose to end the moment on the right note, pulling his lips away as she took a breath but holding that closeness between them for a bit longer. He lingered before her face, looking over the features of her own at such proximity allowed him to see the striations of color in her eyes he'd not seen before. She'd always been quite pretty from afar, but up close she was downright stunning.

"Look at that," Kilien said low, one of his hands lifting to pluck an errant leaf from her hair, the other arm still holding her snug, "I caught the prettiest peach in that tree."

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

Vittoria breathed a laugh, her eyes flittering open to see his lips still so close. They quirked upwards at the corners, and she wondered if he would smile the way she had grown to like.

"I am no peach." She insisted. "I would like to think I am a citrus."

But the way he looked at her, it did not matter what fruit she preferred. Not when he stared at her so... awakened. For Vitt felt it too. There was no going back now, not when her curiosities were sated, but now born many other curiosities she would look to being seen through to the end.

"You fooled me." Vittoria instead whispered. Her eyes gave away nothing, but not in the way she was guarding herself. No, Vittoria was taking it all in, looking into those hazel eyes and becoming lost in their hues. "Fooled me into a... kiss."

But there was no regrets. No urge to force her magic into his veins and tear him apart.

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

"Hmm," a toothless smirk replied to her preference of fruit. Perhaps to everyone else she was a citrus, but he was finding she was far sweeter than her outward appearances would suggest. It was no simple thing, being a Dreadlord Initiate, and being sweet only made things more difficult.

That was fine, he decided, it could be his little secret for her.

His head tilted at the quiet accusation, expression warming in amusement. He gently used the same hand that had plucked away the leaf to brush the dark hair from her face and back over her shoulder. The fine silkiness of the strands begged to be played with, but all in good time.

"Sorry," he said in return, though he did not look sorry at all but rather affected his standard mode of casual mischief, "I can put you back up in that tree and we can do it again if you want the credit."

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

"You are uncouth." Yet her voice lacked any trace of being rueful of his actions. Vittoria did not shy away to put distance between them, not as her arms still draped down from his shoulders, her fingers beginning to lightly brush at the jacket he wore. "I do not believe you should do that again, or else I would..."

But what would she do? The threat died on her lips before her thoughts could even think of a valid retaliation. Her mind wanted to leave, to continue their walk and to return to the carriage onwards back to the Academy, but her body acted all on it's own. Vittoria drew closer, her head tilting upwards just slightly to offer her lips to him as they where inches apart.

"I would break your heart." Vittoria promised.

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

Uncouth.

That was probably the nicest way of putting it he'd heard yet. Leave it to the noble girl to come up with such fancy words to describe a scoundrel.

Kilien remained, his arms crossing at her back to cinch her in even more securely to him. She wasn't squirming or trying to get away, so that had to count for something. She could threaten all she wanted, but until she actually told him not to do such things again, he'd tempt fate again and again simply for the thrill and the taste of her.

"I would break your heart."

His expression sobered at that. A poignant threat indeed and one he fully believed her capable of carrying out.

"Probably," he agreed, staring back into her eyes where his Ma Paksi had once told him a man could see the future if his mind was clear and his heart was truthful. He didn't need to look for a hint of what might come to pass there, though, since he knew he wouldn't see anything more than what her tea leaves had already told him.

Leaning in, he didn't take her lips again but craned his head into the side of her own to whisper something in her ear.

"But not before I've stolen yours," and planted a lingering kiss just before her ear. Then another on her jaw.
Warm and gentle pecks that mimicked her earlier testing with his own cheeks.

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

He would feel her shudder at his own returned promise to her. The effect he had on her by whispering at her ear felt like a betrayal of her own accord, that she could react in such a way when she was useless to fighting it. Her hands braced at his back, fingers curling to lightly dig into the flesh beneath the clothing.

"Stop that." She whispered, hating that she sounded breathless. "Stop making me feel these sensations each time you ki—" But her breath hitched and broke off her intended threats. Vittoria's eyes fluttered closed as his lips lingered there at her jaw. Vittoria thought it the utmost betrayal to herself for liking the way he made her feel.

But the longer she stood there, in his arms, the more she began to accept she did not want to leave.

Vittoria moved her head so that she could stare into those hazel eyes once again.

"I dare you to kiss me again." Perhaps she would finally fight against it this time.

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

Just two little words was all it took to keep him from kissing all the way down her neck. Kilien wasn't a taker. His mother had raised him to honor women and his father had ensured the message struck home. Beyond that, an innate mechanism to follow orders had stayed with him since prison, though it had dulled quite a bit over the last two years given his penchant for ignoring things now.

"Stop making me feel these sensations each time you ki—"

He stopped, but he didn't retreat. Instead he remained close, lightly nuzzling along the line of her jaw where his lips so hungrily wished to pursue their course, and instead murmured words of Rovani in a warmth breath down her neck.

"Si bul butja save shaj te kerav te hatjares..."​

When she forced herself into his gaze again she'd find hunger in his eyes mirrored by the wanting grip of his hands. He was expecting her to push him away and frowned at the sudden dare issued at him.

"Noh," his brows furrowed but his gaze remained steady, "it's not a joke to me. I won't unless you want me to."

Anything outside of that he couldn't permit.

"If you want me to, just say so."

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

Vittoria felt her chest tighten hearing him speak Rovani.

In fact, she cherished hearing the language on his tongue, feeling it roll towards her and made her feel as if she needed to be impossibly closer to him. She would crush into him in order to hear more of it.

"Do not... stop..."

She sounded pained, but that was that yearning sounded to her own ears. This spell upon her made her feel as if her chest was being forced apart to bear her heart, to be vulnerable here with him, but she trusted him to not pierce it.

No, Kilien was a lover. Perhaps that was the very thing that made her wary of him from the start. How easily he was unfazed by her, how deftly he accepted her barbed words.

"Do not stop kissing me."

She shuddered again, freed by her honest admittance. It was what she wanted, despite the fighting against it, Vittoria wanted his lips on her own again. He was a taste of peaches and the meal they shared earlier. He tasted like a freedom she had never experienced.

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

By the torturous God of the Hearth this woman needed to make up her mind.

Stop. Dare. Don't stop.

His smile returned to hear it, though he couldn't help the morsel of hesitation yet given her penchant for swift changes of mind thus far. It wasn't enough to stay his own want, so he closed the distance between them again and planted his lips upon hers. Pressed more easily into his own desire now that he felt more sure of hers, his hands began to rove and his weight leaned into the moment.

And the moment continued to get more heated the more he felt her meld against him, indulging in his advances. He wanted to dive into the warmth of her breath and count her teeth with his tongue. He wanted to peel away the layers and fill his hands with the touch of her flesh. He wanted to press her against that tree, and find other places to kiss that would bring forth more of her delectable shudders.

But the moment his keen ears picked up the sound of footsteps over the thunder of her beating heart, he was reminded that this was neither the place nor the time.

A loud, calling whistle sounded from a passerby in a party of people on the walk.

Kilien hummed into her lips, his hands drawing slow arcs across her back as he drew her up once again off her feet. He leaned back, holding her against him, and twirled her around on the spot before ever so gently setting her back down again.

When he drew away, regretful of having to stop when she had so clearly told him not to, he offered her a wane smile, "You're cute." He said, smirking, and then glanced around, "What were we out here for again? I feel like we got a bit distracted..."

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

She was convinced that Kilien had her under a spell of sorts. The way she was so easily swept up in another kiss was evidence that she was indeed hoodwinked, but again, made no move to leave his arms and embrace. In fact, Vittoria did not care other than to return the kiss she was beginning to learn how to execute under his careful tutelage. His hunger was something she wanted to feed, to be the saving grace that made him satiated.

His humming brought her back to a somewhat reality, one that still had her wrapped up within him. She scowled, almost pouting as he pulled back to speak, that damning smirk on his lips begging to be kissed.

Goodness, what was she thinking?

"Strawberries... and blueberries..." She answered, not missing a beat, but still staring into his eyes with frustration that he put a stop to their moment. The whistle was too far for her to register, but she could pick up on the sense they were not alone. "Scared to be seen with a Lady, Kilien Basmarc?"

A reminder of who she was. Of course, she was free to choose her future, but the one she chose was to be arranged for marriage at her cousin Elise Virak's discretion, all to make powerful allies for the House.

But Kilien was right, that she had indeed become distracted. This whole evening, perhaps even earlier, Kilien had wormed his way into her care and thoughts. "Let us get our fruits, we should be heading back to the Academy..." Curfew would most definitely be in effect by the time they make it back.

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

Strawberries and blueberries.

Well, he wasn't sure where to find those in the orchard, so he'd be following her lead regardless. As for the fear of being seen with a Lady? Here? Where a grand total of zero people knew who he was or what he was? Not that any of that really mattered much - who he was seen with never made a difference to those who were already intent on summoning prejudice or opinion for others.

No, it had nothing to do with who he was seen with.

It had more to do with what they were seen doing and whether or not he was able to contain his... enthusiasm. Kissing wasn't the problem, it was all the other things he'd like to be doing with her that weren't exactly publicly acceptable.

He decided she didn't need to know that and instead amused himself with her pouting and recalling the words she'd spoken to him earlier in the day. He would never forget how easily and quickly her own opinion of him had changed in the span of a single afternoon. His arms loosened around her, giving Vittoria freedom to depart on the mission of collecting the rest of the necessary fruits.

"Lead the way," he said to her, making the gesture of Ladies first and falling in stride.

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

How she loathed the idea she had to be the one to step away.

But she had to. Vittoria was given that freedom to step back and remove herself, watching as Kilien had the room to gesture for her to take the lead. She was left even more puzzled than she had when these feelings for him had crept up upon her. How could she wish to entangle herself within him now? Had the kiss not been enough to satisfy?

A stranger to the idea of addiction, Vittoria lead Kilien to the bushes lining up against the fence line that were made of trellises where strawberries dangled low given their weight. They were larger than usual, practically the size of two berries together! Vittoria stopped, plucking a wicker punnet from where it had fallen and left behind to offer to Kilien to hold.

"I cannot see if they are ripe yet. The moonslight..." Had become hidden behind cloud cover and leaving Vittoria and her mundane sight unable to see the colouring of the strawberries. She did not trust just testing how firm it was either. "Perhaps... blueberries then?"

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

He could see just fine, but that was hardly anything to brag about given the reason for why he had such unimpaired vision in the dark. Kilien instead reached into his inner jacket and withdrew his wand and with a little whirl of the tip flooded the area about them with the glow of magical wandlight.

If she looked toward him, he'd give her a little wink before turning his attention to the berries in question.

"I'd say those look pretty ripe to me." He said, pointing to a bunch off her left.

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

It was hard for her to not stare at him, but the moment he produced his wand to emit much needed light, her eyes seemed to dazzle as she peered at the strawberries. Then he pointed, steering her gaze to the ready to be picked berry fruits. Silently, she strode over to begin her harvest.

"Have you ever had strawberries on your pancakes? My father used to melt chocolate with them too. A different kind of decadence, he would say." She turned to see Kilien, holding a strawberry out as she took the few steps towards him and placed the fruit at his lips. "What do you think? Should we make more pancakes once we return to the Academy?"

The idea of spending more time with him was almost too consuming. Vittoria had no clue on how to deal with hit, but to make plans and promises to see him again made her heart flutter a little faster.

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

"Noh," he replied simply, "can't say I have."

Fruit was generally hard to come by for Rovani. They never stayed in one place long enough to sow and grow a full harvest. Most of their diet was based around foraging and livestock. Eggs. Milk. Cheese. Meat. Berries. Roots. Tubers. Wild spices and flora. Were they lucky enough to pack-out near a city, they stocked up on the luxury items they couldn't find while on the move.

Kilien's brow furrowed while she picked and plucked. He couldn't honestly remember the last time he'd eaten a strawberry. When he looked up, suddenly he was met with the opportunity to taste one for the first time in what felt like a very long time.

He stared at her past the strawberry and then very suddenly latched onto the berry with a bright grin on his face.

Auhm.

Delicious.

He gave her a rueful chuckle as he pinched the little green leafy stem away from his teeth with his fingers, "I fink-" he said with his mouth full, chewing and then swallowing with a very pleased look on his face, "it will be very late by the time we get back. Wouldn't want you gettin' in trouble with the Proctors on account of me."

They expected tardiness and outright belligerence when it came to curfew from him. From her? Feth, she was probably never late. She'd be early to detention if she ever got it.

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

"No, I suppose we would need to sleep and..." She stared at him a moment, thinking to herself a moment before smiling softly. "What have you done to me?"

But there was no regret in her voice, no chance of her wishing for things to go differently. She remembered the way he held her, the way he made her feel in that moment as he supported all of her in a gentle manner. She had never experienced such a thing before, but it made her  feel as if she had deserved softness instead of the grit and ground.

"No one has ever..." Affections for Kilien had been the last thing on her mind, but still, it had crept up on her and allowed her to put trust in him. "But gods do I want you..." Vittoria frowned, watching him. There it was, plain as day on her face. It was only a small sliver of it, for Larrainth truly never felt fear.

Until this moment she had opened herself to him.

"No one has ever made me want to be with them every moment I have..."

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

He recognized the shift of her expression to something that demanded attention and silence. So Kilien watched her and listened, his own face shifting through muted intrigue to naked warmth to surprise to amused endearment at the end. Had Vittoria Larrainth truly never had a crush before?

The smile that settled onto his face was ripe with unspoken things. So many things to say in response to her words, most all of them simply inappropriate given the circumstances and the company. Vittoria wasn't some flophouse floosie, nor a simple barmaid. She was a noble Lady and a respectable creature at that. Much as he would have enjoyed tarnishing her good record, in manners of the heart he didn't like to be completely reckless.

With a slow inhale, he lifted his free hand to pluck a strawberry from her, "Well, I guess we can ask the carriage driver to take the long route back then."

He leaned in and placed a kiss on her cheek and then took a bite of the strawberry as he slowly turned to saunter on down the row of raised beds, "You know if you keep eating these while you pick them there won't be any for the ride home-" he said as he picked another strawberry and popped it in his mouth.

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

Vittoria watched as the strawberry was placed into his mouth, how his teeth did not sink into the green hull of the berry. His lips forming over the fruit and fingers discarding the hull to the ground. She watched as his jaw moved, chewing and then swallowing.

"Lucky for us there are plenty to pick from." But Vittoria was quick to fill the basket before coming to stand beside Kilien. A show of her growing affections came in the form of her slowly wrapping an arm around his, leaning into his side.

Without another word, she led him towards the blueberries. It was still lit up by the help of his wand's light he had cast on the area, and she let out a soft sigh as she left his side and filled the basket with blueberries.

Turning back to him, she slowly advanced, holding up a blueberry between thumb and forefinger. She pressed it at his lip, like she had done with the strawberry. "Eat it slowly."

She would come to learn that she rather enjoyed how his mouth went to take something in to eat. Her fascination for his mouth, what it means to feel a pull to him ever since he kissed her... Vittoria would take her time in figuring it all out. Surely, Kilien would not be one to oppose her fascinations and exploring...

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

His wand-arm was ready and willing to lead or be lead wherever their feet might go for the evening. Her feet took them to blueberries and he stood back while she picked, watching her and then admiring the scenery. It really was quite nice here. When he blinked to look back, she was standing before him raising a berry to his lips.

She was feeding him again. If this was going to become a thing... he could get used to it.

He narrowed his eyes at her over a slanted smirk - what was she up to? But really, how could he not oblige when she so nicely commanded him to slowly indulge? His free hand lifted to take hold of her wrist as he leaned in to ever so gently take the berry in his front teeth from her fingers and clamp down on it until the juice pooled just within. Pulling his lips closed, he chewed. He swallowed. He licked the remnants from his lips.

All the while watching her intently.

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

Her eyes were transfixed. The moment the juices released and ran down the blue flesh of the berry, Vittoria sucked in a breath. It disappeared the moment he closed his lips to chew, the fruit not lasting long beneath his teeth. Her eyes followed the slow sweep of his tongue. Without looking, she placed the basket in the raised garden bed of some arrangement by the blueberries, placing both her hands upon Kilien's shoulders before her gaze lifted to meet his ready stare.

"I like watching you eat. The way your jaw moves only slightly as your teeth crush..." Her hands moved without her thinking all that much, wrapping around his neck so that she could pull herself in closer. "Why is that, Kilien Basmarc? Why do I want to be bitten by you like a berry?"

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

If he rated all the strange things women had said to him throughout his life, this would probably be in the top ten. Vittoria had an odd fascination with completely out-there subjects of curiosity - the way in which he chewed certainly taking the cake of all the things she could have been fascinated by. As she looped her hands up and around his neck, his own came to rest on her hips.

He supposed so far as Dreadlord Initiate girls went, this was pretty tame for oddities.

"Could it be..." his hands idly squeezed at her hips, "you just like my pretty teeth?"

A broad grin followed, full of teeth, including those abnormally long and pointed, wolfish canines.

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

Her eyes dropped to his smile, saw the longer points of his canines. How had she not noticed them before? Thoughts of wolves and the moon tried to sneak into the forefront of her mind, but they could not challenge against the distraction that was Kilien before her. One hand moved to rest at his jaw, her thumb running over his lip to press the pad against the point of his canine. "Eliza Wylls bit me once. Our first combat training class, and she kept losing against me so much, she grabbed my arm and bit me. Drew blood, first time I saw my own blood at the Academy..."

Her thumb went back to his lip, pulling it down into a pout before it sprang back into place. Her thumb swept to his cheek, cradling his head in place. "One day, I will like to feel your teeth on me. Not tonight." All she wanted was to kiss him again, and again, and again. She wanted to taste the fruit he ate this night, to feel his breath escape through his mouth and mix with her own air. She wanted to be consumed by him, but even she knew she was not ready for anything more than that.

She was not innocent of the throes of passion. Vittoria in fact had read plenty of books in which detailed such trysts, but never had she had the urges those characters had, not until she watched Kilien eat.

Vittoria lifted her head, brushing her lips to his before the tip of her tongue tasted his lips. Sweetness saturated them, and before she could stop herself, she initiated her first kiss.

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

"Oh yeah?" he said with visible, humored shock at her story, "Eliza Wylls... what a scamp." He'd learned she was a scrappy little thing, but hadn't figured her the type to bite. Though, he supposed, when pitted against the likes of Vittoria one did what one must to come out mostly unscathed.

As for putting his own teeth against her. His smile faded for a look of muted consideration. The desire to sink his teeth into her wasn't just a passing fancy. The more interest she showed in him, the stronger the inclination became. It was good that this evening had fallen well beyond a full moon, or he might find himself fighting a losing battle against his carnal instincts.

"Hmmm..." he hummed in response, committing to nothing but his own continued and developing interest in her. He had little to say on the matter, but there was plenty he could do - which included wrapping his arms around her when she leaned in for another kiss. Her eagerness was infectious and he once again had to check himself to keep from moving beyond what seemed to be her level of experience.

It had been quite a while since he'd tempered himself to take things slow with a woman.

But he was also keenly aware of the time. Second nature to one whose life was lived at the whim of the moon's cycles, he could feel the evening hour without ever having to look to the sky.

"Hey," he snuck between kisses, pulling back just enough to break from her lips but not before trailing a few more smooches across her cheek before reaching her ear. Hovering there, witholding the want to take her earlobe in his teeth, instead he murmured to her about the hour and that they should be heading back.

 

[Vittoria Larrainth]

Almost breathless, she could not stop tasting fruits on her lips and her tongue, her breaths warming his neck as he dipped his head to her side and murmured that they should be going back to the Academy soon. It was hard to pull herself away, but she did so an inch in order to take in a long inhale and smile at him. She released the breath she held, untangling herself from him and turned to collect the basket of berries. She took his head, interlacing their fingers once again so that she could lead him back to the trees where her book bag had been left.
After the orchard, the walk to the main square and their carriage did not take long. Their driver had been waiting patiently, summer flowers tied into a long chain had been placed around his neck, and he had been reading a book by lantern light. He helped them into the carriage, accepted a peach from the Initiates, and soon made arrangements for the horses.

Vittoria placed her bags on one side of the carriage before moving to sit beside Kilien.

"Do you think this would be different... once we return to the Academy?" She asked in a hushed tone. "Or will we be the same?"

 

[Kilien Basmarc]

What a question.

Kilien sat with his left arm looped up and around Vittoria along the top of the bench, his hand draped down just beyond her shoulder where his fingers could play in the long strands of her hair. Idle turns and twists that looped dark locks in and out while she made herself comfortable at his side.

"Why wouldn't it be different?" he returned, a faint raise of a brow as he gave her a questioning look and canted his head to lean in toward her own, "Do you really think after I've tasted those lips I'd leave them alone now?"

Comfortably, confidently, he eased his weight into the cushion of the bench and kicked his boots up to rest on the set across from them. Kilien smiled, wry as he leaned his own head against the backing of the carriage walls with a deeply content sigh, "You're cute."