Promised Rendezvous

[Nayt]

((Continued from The Definition of Fun.))

Eroina's room could be best described as a work in progress. There were cool colors everywhere--blues, greens, purples, turquoises . . . everywhere, with no rhyme or reason, painted about the walls, and as the buckets of paint and brushes upon the wooden floor suggested, Eroina must have been given paint and told to "have fun."

Her choice of design was surreal; in so much, it was chaotic and meaningless. Her bed, small and worn as it was, was in the corner, while a nightstand was splotched with paint over on the other side of the room. She had a dresser that wasn't even set against a wall, but three feet from it, and rather than having candlesticks arranged on top of it, they were arranged right in front of it. This seemed to have no purpose, as it could not possibly light up the entirety of a room without being up high, but she had them there for a reason.

Some reason or the other.

Other furniture, such as a couch and a coffee table, were also scattered, with a couch set diagonal in a corner, and the coffee table too far from it to be of any use. Nothing was in the path to her bed, though. Eroina also didn't keep the door locked, unafraid of the potential for thieves. Who would want to steal from her? Something that crazy would never happen! Nonetheless, every time she saw her room, she felt just a bit happier, and she was able to smile again as she let go of the hooded man's hand and skipped to the center of the room, before turning around to face him, her hands holding one another behind her back.

"Well--this is it! My room!" Eroina announced cheerily.

[Titan]

"Indeed it is." Thinking to myself as I took in the contents of her place, with as little movement as possible I'd again shirked my bag, setting it just to the side of the door's hinge. With as brief and quiet a motion the closed door behind me was locked. She could figure, even as I was casually walking towards her, that I was looking around by the way my hood turned this way and that. Odd how when I wished it not to, no light seemed able to pierce the shadow my cloak cast upon me.

Eventually I was just before her, a good head taller than she was, forcing me to look down upon her face. She wished to know more about me, just as I wished to learn of her. It was true she didn't know my name or even my face, and even Baleron had been given a mask of sorts. This I dropped all at once when I gracefully dropped my cloak to the ground at my feet.

Without the facade I was no longer golden of skin but a milky white tone. My dark brown hair was more black than anything else and my irises held captive such a bright cerulean blue, they appeared to glow in the dark. So too did the points of my ears extend further than Baleron had seen. Other than this physical discrepency I looked just as I had when revealed to the other smoker, excepting the tonal varations.

Gloved fingers moved to cup Eroina's cheek, that smile which my cloak had shielded now hidden from sight by sheer will. Still, there was a hint of something more than just impassiveness in my eyes. "It's nice. Just, like, you." The whispery inflection used with Fifteen's presence was gone as well. I truth, it sounded more as if I were quietly singing rather than speaking the words.

[Nayt]

There were few places on her body where Eroina felt the most sensation. The closer to her brain, the more she felt; that was the general rule of thumb. Thus, her cheeks, forehead, nose, and such had the full extent of sensation, the same amount that any normal, living person would have felt. Eroina felt a chill throughout her entire body, followed by a warmth upon her cheek. A warmth--a familiar warmth. Had she felt that with Fifteen earlier, when he touched her cheek, as well? The answer must have been yes!

Finally, though, she had seen his face. He was no longer just the hooded man to her--but a face. A face with no name, of course, but a face nonetheless! And his hand was . . . so distracting. Eroina kept looking up at his eyes down to his wrist, then back to his face--so distracting. Not that it was a bad thing, of course. She rather enjoyed that feeling of personal warmth. After all, her body temperature wasn't regulated well; she felt warm enough on the outside, but that was only because of the environment. Her body heat was a few degrees lower than most at the party; the place was kept very warm, after all, but had it have been a lower temperature, she'd have been colder. Much colder.

"A-ah, um, I, um, you . . ." Eroina stumbled over her words, "Th-thank you . . ."

She was nervous. A whole different kind of nervousness, too; she felt it in her spine. She felt it in her fingers--even her toes. Digits that shouldn't have had feeling, shaking ever nervously. Just what did he want? To see her unclothed? Why would he approach her like this, then?

And why did it make her feel so darn nervous?

"Wh-wha-t's . . ." Eroina whispered, so shaky and fidgety, "What's your name . . .?"

[Titan]

Fingers that before had been idle on her flesh were put to use; instead of merely cupping her cheek I sent gloved-fingers dancing across it until just my index was tracing the bridge of her nose. Upon reaching the end I gave it a soft flick, laying my palm on her arm afterwards. With fingers coiling about the joint to turn her, I was free to slip my arm across her shoulders, guiding her towards her bed.

"Tantholas. Though, I much prefer Tanis." After reaching the mattress I'd put to good use the grace of my kind. Instead of luring her down to sit on the bed next to me, even as we lowered I crooked a leg so instead she would be sitting in my lap more than anything. From here, my other hand came up, ungloved while passing by her further shoulder, so that bare fingers could find her sensitive cheek.

As I had before when first talking with her at the throne, I made sure that our pupils did not meet. I was enjoying her reactions far too well to wish to change anything; such a darling girl. Still, with great perception I looked into her irises, giving the illusion of staring her in the eyes. Every infrequent blink of my eyes caused them to flare up in brightness before resettling into their luminous tone.

Did she wish to ask another question; if so I was ready to answer, leaving off anything that I wanted to ask until later when she was more comfortable and satisfied. Did she find our new position uncomfortable; I would not keep her from moving if she wished, but the attention of my hand to her face was a sort of ploy to distract her again and put it out of her mind. Ever-so-slowly, a smile curled up the right corner of my lips.

[Nayt]

She felt every single trailing movement of his hand. So strange it was, the sensation of gloved fingers upon her skin, trailing across so slowly--leather or cloth, it mattered not, it was skin all the same! Skin--skin not of his own, but skin nonetheless--something with which an animal once used for warmth. To her, that was skin.

Eroina couldn't bring herself to smile. She was usually so joyous--but now, she couldn't bring that out. That did not mean she was solemn, however. Nervous. That was it. She was nervous, even frightened to an extent. She did not think that Tanis would harm her, but his motives had her so confounded that she couldn't help but be shaky. Excitement was there, as well, but it, too, perplexed her. The same endorphins released in her brain at this very moment were the same as a thrill seeker: endorphins linked to adrenaline--except to Eroina, adrenaline made her feel more, not less. This, in turn, caused her to shiver, as her body suddenly required more warmth.

Turned and pointed towards the bed, she quietly did as suggested, but she could not help but wonder why. What was the point of leading her to her bed? Did he intend to sleep? There was not room for two, though! And the party was still on downstairs--sleeping through it would have been such a disappointment for her.

"Tanis it is, then--" Eroina would have normally exclaimed this cheerily, had she not been so nervous.

She was lead by him at her back, and when he sat upon her bed, he guided her to sit on his lap. Surely se had done this before--not on her bed and not in private, but she had lounged in the lap of another. It was purely innocent, however--innocent as far as the rest of the world was concerned, that is. Had she been able to recognize the morals of the outside world, she'd have felt something wrong. Instead, she was just nervous and a bit cold, and nothing more. She'd have been light-headed if she had blood in her body.

"What is it . . . th-that-------what is it that you do?" Eroina whispered her question, adding onto it shortly thereafter: "Where you come from--where do you come from?"

[Titan]

"Ah. How deliciously young and innocent." I almost felt the need to chuckle at her naivety, but force of will prohibited that. No; instead I maintained as impassive a gaze as was possible, though a sense of victory and content was gradually seeping through the cracks of my mask. It fell away abruptly. The walking had helped hide her trembling, though sat in my lap as she was it was hard not to notice.

I sat up a bit straighter and my bared hand left her face to encricle her waist, holding her against the warmth of myself. With my chin resting atop her head I chewed at the inside of my lower lip and left cheek, as I oft did when thinking or simply trying to pass the time. This too came to an end though with her question. Or, more correctly, the ones following her initial askance. For the briefest moments my jaw clenched and the cerulean stone at my throat took on a more violet hue.

"I don't have to share everything." Yet even so, when I opened my mouth to speak... So I shut it, absentmindedly rocking side-to-side with her cradled against me, repeatedly tensing my jaw. In all honesty, I had no clue how I had even reached this place; obviously, I had even less of an idea on how to get back. Not that I would really wish to. There were acquaintances there, yes, but nothing more. No friends. "No family."

How could I answer her questions, now that they'd been posed? The first was easiest to answer, so I gave it a try. "Whatever I can, I suppose." Amongst the elves I'd done little more than live and train, developing further into the heritage my mother blessed me with. With that, I found the answer to her final question; or at least, the best I felt I could give her.

"From the stars."

[Nayt]

He was warm--very warm. It was just. so. bizarre. the way her body felt more when she was this nervous. Eroina knew not what it was like to be cold or warm; she always felt a moderate that she paid no attention to; a true lack of sensation. Likewise, touch upon her body primarily allowed only the sensation of pressure, not the softness or roughness of texture. When Tanis held her close to him, she started to feel that. Why hadn't she before, with Fifteen? She had been nervous all the while there, too!

It must have been the opium; a heightening of the mental senses, but a dampening of the physical. So unfortunate--but it had worn off, now. She would have to get close to Fifteen again later, and hopefully better share these kinds of experiences with him! That thought was cut off so suddenly, however, when Tanis answered her question.

Eroina, surprised, whispered, "The stars? That's . . ."

Incredible.

The stars--she had to wonder how. Was he like their king? A god amongst men, descended from the heavens, ascended from the depths? Or, rather, an incomplete being? He who came from the sky, but experienced not the torments of the lower earth. Their king never explained his origins as "from the stars," though. The sky, heaven--all the sorts, but he so rarely spoke of it, at least from what Eroina had seen and heard, that she couldn't be too sure. Even when she had listened in on that one conversation yesterday, she hadn't the chance to make any particular about it.

Which prompted her question: "What is it like . . .? In the sky--with the stars . . .?"

[Titan]

I chuckled, softly, so much as to not seem to have done anything at all. "Ah yes, she is so precious." Closing my eyes and enjoying the company, I stayed silent for a good while in contemplation. "How much should I share? Would she tell anyone else?" Judging by her personality I found the latter to be very likely; so there were some things that I would be sure to keep to myself. Still, there were others that I had no qualms about sharing.

"I do not know myself, for though my origins do not lie here, it was on this planet I was born. From stories my mother told, though, I know it is not a friendly place. It is war. Deadly and dangerous, different species fighting for their own survival, or the domination of all other life that exists." I was actually quite surprised at how peaceful this planet seemed, that so many people could live here and actually enjoy themselves, rather than simply preparing for the next fight. In the end, I supposed it was why mother had come.

Thinking though, I thought such knowledge might freighten Eroina, so added in with little delay. "There are some places where it is quiet and calm, like this world, but they are rather infrequent. You should feel lucky to be here, rather than out there in the darkness." I removed my right hand from her shoulder long enough to discard that glove as well, bringing it then to her head so I could touch her hair. I sent my slender digits dancing through those locks of her's, idly scratching at her scalp every-so-often.

Once more my eyes were open, lids parted so that when I leaned back my head somewhat, I could see her. "What of you; how did you come to be here, in this place?" Now I was getting more to the heart of things. I'd wished alone time to learn more about her, but ultimately didn't feel regret letting her know some things of myself. Still though, what of her?

[Nayt]

War--chaos--disorder-- such distinctly negative concepts for such a beautiful place! Eroina shut her eyes half-way, pouting out her lower lip. It couldn't all be bad, could it? It didn't look bad. The few nights of her conscious thoughts when she was allowed to stare up at the night sky, Eroina had wondered effortlessly how it would be like to sing among the stars. And now, she understood a little more.

Sadly, that understanding came at a price. Eroina had to wonder, now, how something so beautiful could be so volatile, so violent. It made her sad just think of it. It was a relief to know that there was some good to it, though. Peaceful places, like this one--that was something she could think about, then. Focus on the smaller, less dense areas of the night and appreciate their magnificence--that she could do. Those had to be the peaceful places. Still, she couldn't understand the purpose of superiority and dominance; violence as a whole, even. The entire fall-out between Baleron and Fifteen earlier still had the girl confused, and had Tanis not kept the discussion on that subject, she'd have asked immediately the most simplistic question she'd ever come up with, which had an answer that was more complex than she could ever imagine:

Why do people fight?

Eroina wound up refraining from presenting such an inquiry, however, as Tanis retained the subject matter and swapped the topic to focus upon her. Why was she here? This, too, drudged up the question of who she was--neither of which Eroina could truthfully answer. It wasn't that she had something to hide, but that she didn't have the information at all--a complete loss for words and knowledge.

But alas, Tanis helped her think! Even in her nervous state, where she was capable of feeling hot and cold, Eroina felt more when the sensation was close to her skull. Him running his hand fingers through her hair progressively diminished her flared nerves-- he was calming her. She relaxed visibly.

"I was made," she replied simply, "They told me that . . . I was dead once, and that they ran many tests on trying to bring back the dead, and that I was the only success."

[Titan]

Silently and quite motionlessly I sighed; from her posture, tone and demeanor I judged that she honestly knew little to nothing more than that. They had made her and hadn't bothered letting her into the intricate details of her resurrection. I could understand why they might choose to deny her such knowledge, but I knew it was something I myself would wish to know. So, just how was this patchwork girl put back together and reanimated?

Hooking my extended leg against the bed I lowered the two of us down to it, her laying on her back while I was more on my side, somewhat perched above her. My Spirit Stone was left to dangle. Slowly did my fingers trickle down from her hair, finding again their way across her cheek. Around her chin I sent them, bringing their backs' up against the other side of her face. With the change in position it was easy to slip free of my shoes, pushing them off to a quiet drop on the floor. Deftly I worked my toes to be rid of my socks as well.

"Who are they?" Though I'd noticed her loosening up and breaking free of her nervousness I figured the new position we found ourselves to be in might cause it to resurface. So I was keen to keep her more focused on the attention of my hands to her feeling-awakening skin and the conversation.

[Nayt]

Eroina was duly surprised by Tanis's movements. He was drawing her into bed, pulling her back gently, getting her to lay upon her back. Indeed, that drove her nerves right up again; things like this, which she could not understand, wound up getting her thinking, then worrying, then self-conscious, and finally nervous. She was shaky and hesitant to go along with him, but after a moment, she finally did, laying upon her back. For his sake, she scooted closer to the edge, so he could sit . . . or lay on his side, rather . . . if he liked. This whole event was overall nerve-wracking. Though, if this were Fifteen laying her down, there was a good chance that she might have been far less nervous. Eroina folded her hands over her belly and averted her eyes from Tanis, hesitant--closing her eyes, in fact.

He did a good job of occupying her mind, however. By gently trailing his hand from one cheek, across the chin, and then to her other cheek, Tanis effectively drew her mind away from the nervous banter she had on repeat. Rather than shutting her eyes, she looked up to him. Eroina did not smile, but she did not frown--nor was her expression without feeling. She gazed up into his eyes, inquiry all over her features.

Sadly, she couldn't answer his question. There were certain things she knew that she couldn't talk about it freely, even to someone that was unlikely to ever return to the Rift. The three gifts had yet to be given, but Eroina figured that those that she spoke to the most would not be returning--why, she did not know. Pessimism, perhaps, but she was still doubtful. Nonetheless, speaking about the enigmatic "they" wasn't an option. She wished that she could; Eroina hated to disappoint, but it just wasn't an option . . .

"I . . . um, I-I'm not supposed to talk about them," Eroina replied quietly, "I'm sorry."

[Titan]

"I see." Well, that was somewhat disappointing but not entirely mood shattering. I didn't feel drug down when she said she couldn't talk about these strange individuals that managed to bring her back into a state of life-likeness. Instead... I met her gaze. Just as she stared into my eyes so too did I stare into her's, finally stepping over the boundary. If before the blue of my eyes had seemed bright and entrancing, now they would appear utterly mesmerizing.

Repositioning the arm I'd before had wrapped around Eroina, I could keep the attention to her face with the back of that hand's knuckles. Then free and more maneuverable hand came to rest on her waist, fingers delicately curling around her side to gently pull her a bit closer. A smile crossed my lips. "Is there anything else you wish to ask of me or might we begin with the examination?" I had a feeling she might be at a loss for words, possibly lost within my gaze.

[Nayt]

His eyes . . . when he finally--fully--met her gaze, his eyes seemed more entrancing than ever before. She didn't look away, and suddenly felt her nerves far less frayed. It wasn't hypnotic, though; he didn't have that effect on her, if only because she was well under the influence of hypnotics as it was. Fumes all over the island were breathed in every day, and even though she had been re-alive for such a short period of time, it was enough to have a strong influence on her. Of course, as experienced earlier, she was still a lightweight . . .

Thus, she was almost hypnotized. Almost. Calmed unnaturally was the best way to describe it, much like taking a drug. Yes, that was how his eyes were--gazing into them, when he locked with her gaze, was like a drug, something she couldn't necessarily get enough of.

And it worked vastly in his favor, too. With her calmed, she was much more ambivalent to the notion of her own nudity. Of course, as soon as she looked away--and she did, when she was gently tugged to a position where she faced Tanis on her side--she felt nervous once more.

"N-no, I . . . I don't . . ." Eroina whispered, shaking her head, though the movement was so subtle that it could hardly be called a movement in the slightest.

Eroina brought her left hand down, setting it upon Tanis's hand on her waist. She was staring at his chest, breathing quickly again. All the self conscious notions were coming back to her, and she was starting to feel reservations again. If she was doing it, she'd have probably disappointed--she'd have probably acted the coward and inevitably claimed that she couldn't do it. But if he did it for her, and undid the sun dress in her stead, she'd not be able to complain. And so, Eroina gently tugged on his hand, pulling it up to be at level with her neck.

"I-it ties up here, a-and . . . down here," the girl instructed while tugging his hand down to the small of her back--innocent though it may be, naive perhaps--trying to act as if he were doing maintenance on her, and nervous all the while.

[Titan]

The ties were as nothing to fingers such as mine, digits that could unbind some of the toughest of knots with little more than a flex of their dextrous power. I was not hestitant in the least to aid in her undressing for it was what I was after. I already had the desire, she presented the opportunity. All the while my eyes sought to catch her's once again. Though I knew not why it happened, the longer one looked into my eyes the harder it was to look away; the harder it was not to do as I wished them to.

Despite the fact she had broken the contact and fell into her usual state once more was of no surprise to me. Plenty had resisted my gaze; though, most were not so fortunate. The minute fade in Fifteen's eyes as we met flashed briefly through my mind. My concentration was halted only a moment more while I reflected on that, since I had once confronted him the next time would be harder for him to resist. Eventually, even eye contact would not be needed for my dominion to work.

A soft quiver from the nervous girl held against me brought me back to her and I couldn't help the smile that lashed at my mouth. It was gone fast enough for one to question whether it had truly appeared first off. With the material loosened, and based on the way in which it held to her, I realized the dress could be pulled up and off over her head or down along her legs. I chose to go the other route. With so little effort as to seem putting forth none I was upon a knee on the bed.

One hand I had to the bare flesh of her back, supporting her body to make my other limb's task of easing down the cloth from her bodice less of a chore. What aid she might give in this venture would only be a bonus. Still did I seek her eyes; as much as it was difficult for others to break my sight when met it was hard for me to as well. The more I pushed the harder I wanted to, an odd hunger growing for the influence over another. It was why I did my best not to make the link in the first place.

[Nayt]

The girl cooperated and didn't try to stop him from pulling her dress down off of her. It was much more comfortable than pulling it over her head, at least. She did plan to put it back on sometime later, though; she couldn't go out of her room naked, after all!

One of the main things that one could notice about Eroina's body as that it was original. The patchwork girl's original body was retained, and her head was part of it. It had been sewn on, of course, as stitching marks were evident upon her neck, but the same light shade of green on the skin of her face was the same on her torso--her shoulders, chest, belly, hips, and thighs. They had minimal stitch marks on them. There were absolutely not stitches, or skin color off of the norm, on her chest, and only across her belly--presumably for the sake of replacing organs that weren't going to function under any circumstances. With his hand on her back, he'd feel stitches running down her spine and horizontally below her shoulder blades--relatively recent ones, without the attention to detail to make them blend in with the rest of her skin. Though, even still, every inch of her skin was uncharacteristically soft, considered her physical lack of a heart.

She was self conscious, though. Normally, she wasn't; it only changed when someone was particularly interested in her or her appearance, which hadn't happened before today--before Tanis. There were certain morals she adhered to--not because there were any morals at all ingrained into her, but out of instinct. As soon as Tanis had her dress pulled down enough, she made it a point to cover her breasts, folding her arms over chest--not tightly, and her arms could even be pulled away without any difficulty if he made it a point to try, but she was still trying to be modest.

Eroina wasn't much concerned about the rest of her body, though; she was wearing panties. A bra, though, she was lacking, and made it a point to keep herself covered in that respect. The girl didn't look up into Tanis's eyes again; she was hesitant to. It made her feel weird; too entranced, as if she were losing her own will. She didn't fault Tanis for it, and just figured that it was the effects of the opium having yet to leave her system--but even still, she wanted to avoid it just as much as she wanted to avoid scrutiny for the way she looked.

"I'm . . . I'm not . . ." Eroina whispered shakily, "I'm not pretty l-like . . . people alive. Corpses can't be beautiful. Y-you're probably disappointed a-and . . . I'm sorry . . ."