( closed to locktouches )

[hoasen]

[And so is another normal day, or at least as normal as one can have it in a place like Blanc. And by normal, we mean that two of our Heroes now are trapped in a situation where they're out and about on their own mission, and find themselves both lost and nearly depleted of mana. At least they managed to find shelter, a neat looking hut that seems long abandoned, because while all the facilities are there and it provided fresh water, there was absolutely no food.

At least Vietnam packed them some.]

Do you want to taste yourself or should I?

[Unfortunately, the cookies themselves have been processed over and over to the point where eating them does nothing to replenish mana. They may have to go out hunting soon for dinner, after they rest a bit.

Still she holds two up, one that looks like him, the other looking like her.]

Comments

[locktouches]

My mana?

[Niles tilts his head back thoughtfully.]

What does it feel like to you? [He didn't even realise they it could feel like anything.]

[hoasen]

[She thinks on this, how do you put it in words, this feeling? Inside? It's a little bit funny--

Okay I'll be good.]

It feels...a little like the night. Something calming about it. Still.

[locktouches]

Like the night?

[He grins, showing a little teeth.]

Cold, lonely and dark?

[hoasen]

[She immediately frowns.]

No. The night is all encompassing. It's powerful.

[locktouches]

You could say the same about the day, really.

[He shifts a little, leaning back against the wall and shifting Vietnam's weight against him so she's sprawled a little more comfortably in his lap. The wall takes his weight now, and it's fairly comfortable overall.]

Still, I prefer the nighttime. I can't say I dislike that comparison.

[hoasen]

I suppose so...they both have their charms. But differently.

[She tries to move so that not only is she comfortable, but so is he. At least she's small and light, and so she leans closer to his body to let the mana keep flowing. It's getting a bit too comfortable that she is leaning her head just by his neck.]

I do think it suits you too. Not just for nefarious purposes.

[locktouches]

[She's warm and not obtrusive, he can't really complain. And with her moving closer, she's actually placed herself in a much more mutually comfortable position. Absentmindedly, he rubs the pad of his thumb against her side.]

Oh, I think the nefarious purposes suit me very well. But I'll take the calm and quiet of a night as well.

[hoasen]

[This, how his thumb brushes along her side, feels very nice, soothing. She practically melts his arms this way, and by habit starts to respond, moving to smooth her hands over his collar bone.]

I suppose best of both worlds? It's nice and calm right now.

[locktouches]

[Hmm. He can't say he really minds the brush of her fingers against his collar bone. If he's right, he can feel an increase in the mana flow with skin on skin contact. That's something to remember for future encounters.]

I'd say we're both fairly calm, so it's not surprising.

[hoasen]

[He's learning! And she can feel that, a sudden surge of mana. She forgot all about it, just because of how at peace she was for a moment.]

So when you put two level-headed individuals in one room... [Then she laughs, softly.] Although you use such power while misbehaving as well.

[locktouches]

Level headed is a rather large assumption.

[He has his moments.]

How so?

[hoasen]

Alright, one level-headed individual, one selective one.

[Which was what she was trying to prove to him in the first place. She looks up for a moment.]

You speak terrible things so calmly. ["Calmly".]

[locktouches]

How else am I supposed to say terrible things?

[He tilts his head at her.]

With a deep, evil overtone?

[hoasen]

[She clears her throat because she nearly laughed. JUST NEARLY.]

You already have a very deep voice. You've covered half of that.

[locktouches]

[he heard that.]

And how exactly does one create an "evil" overtone to their voice?

[hoasen]

[She furrows her brows, and she has to think about this.]

Hmm...

[Clearing her throat, she tries to deepen her voice, and murmurs.]

I'll be stealing something from you tonight.

[Does that work, let her think about this.]

[locktouches]

[... Niles snort laughs, and it's not subtle. Nice try, Vietnam.]

Really, now. And what were you planning on stealing from me, oh-evil one?

[hoasen]

[SHE TRIED!!! Which is why she gets a little huffy and tries to keep it going.]

I don't know, do you have anything worth stealing?

[locktouches]

Probably not.

[Unrepentant, this one.]

You might have to get a little creative.

[hoasen]

So if not material things, I suppose I will have to leech as much of your mana as possible.

[Although, she didn't quite mean all the implications that could result from saying that. Not yet. She did, however, wrap her arms so firmly around his waist to leech it!! Alright, she's teasing, just a little, and it's not that firm.]

[locktouches]

Hmm. Well, it's a mutually beneficial activity.

[He lets out a slightly "oof" when she leeches onto his waist, and shifts an arm so that he can rest a hand against her hip - loose and comfortable.]

Of course if skin-to-skin works best for this whole leeching process then technically someone here should be shirtless if you're going to make the most of this.

[Niles, on the other hand, has exactly zero issues with taking those implications and running with them.]

[hoasen]

[She sits up slightly, letting her eyes sweep over his form for a moment before clearing her throat. Well, it wasn't like she never saw him shirtless before.]

Then... [Her hands move to fiddle with the hem of his shirt.] Would you rather I steal your shirt as well?

[locktouches]

[It's true, she has seen him without a shirt before.

Still, from the way he cups his cheeks with his hands in mock, affronted shock, you'd think she hadn't.]

How forward of you.

[Niles, stop being an asshole.]

But I suppose if you can take possession of it then it's yours. [Thaaaat's how it works, usually.]

[hoasen]

[Exactly, what's new...other than pure embarrassment sometimes.

And whoa! She's getting flustered, but at the same time she's driven by the challenge to defeat him once and for all. Which means she's definitely going to steal his shirt, sliding her hands up from his back.]

You're going to make it difficult, no?

[locktouches]

[It's a state of being she'll have to get used to here.

He has his arms folded now. Of course he's not making it easy.]

Anything worth having shouldn't be easy to obtain, don't you think?