It's like christmas in july except just it's cold and everyone is stressed and there are no presents

[heiresy]

Who: [OPEN] Aymeric and you!
What: Catch-all for non-participants and early losers in the fuckening, but everyone is welcome! Come gloat if you like.
When: All day.
Where: In the guard barracks, outside the castle, Yenh's hut, the inn.
Warnings: Will update as needed!



I. In and Around the Castle
[For the entirely-too-manyth in a row now the weather has been getting unrelentingly colder. So much so that he could barely think as he did his duties. It would do no good to lose his work or the possible trust he had earned with his diligence over this, but the temptation to abandon his post became increasingly difficult. During breakfast, if you are a fellow guard, Aymeric will be trying to get your attention. Maybe there is something they can do about their uniforms...? If you are not a guard, he will try to catch your attention anyway. He has requests to make in his miserable state.]

II. The Village
[Once his terrible, miserable shift is over he will run around the village with increasingly conspicuous supplies. First a couple blankets, then some buckets, and eventually he will be rolling a wooden bath down a road. He comes to Yenh's shack and knocks on the door with his arms very much full.]

III. The Inn
[Much later now, he finds himself at his familiar watering hole. Sure, it cost a lot more than drinking with the other guards in the castle, but the illusion of getting out of the Mistress' reach was well worth it. Here you will see him finally changed out of his guard uniform, but back in the clothing he arrived in. Terribly ironic that he was able to acquire some new clothes the very week it was too cold to wear any of them. He's back to looking very over-dressed and out of place. If you sit near him, he will offer you a drink and a warm, weary smile.]

Comments

[heiresy]

Aye, but I am no adventurer. Your own shock was plain on your features. Allow me to keep my composure whilst we shop for the day. I will be free and open to speak once we have returned.

[He fights to keep his face together, his cheeks burning as the thoughts visit him like unpleasant goblins.

He glances at her hand, letting out a soft sigh]

Your lent ear is much appreciated. There are matters than it seems I can entrust to no one.

[takenblack]

[Glad that he took no offense to her awkward comparison to the lewd and brash ways of her fellow adventurers, she nods in quick agreement and offers him her kindest smile.]

[She has no skin in the game of forcing him to talk about embarrassing outbursts, after all. Her natural curiosity is, however, glad that she will hear all about it later.]

It is my pleasure to be of service in any way I can, Lord Aymeric.

[heiresy]

[He lets out his breath, leaning in against her briefly. It's a bit intimate of a gesture, but their friendship had been taking on a new quality in this setting. It was much easier to worry about her when she didn't have the constant backing of her magic, resources, and allies.

It was almost pitiful for them to see one another like this, he thought.]

Your very personage is a blessing, Lady Yenh.

[takenblack]

[ Again she finds herself surprised by him, but not unpleasantly. She hesitates before reciprocating the lean. His warmth is welcome, both physically and emotionally. As willing as she is to be his Warrior of Light, it is interesting and pleasant also to wonder if she could see him as a friend, also. ]

[ Blessedly, they manage to find oil that Yenh is 90% sure wouldn't instantly immolate them with a low burning point. Despite his coat, she is glad at the prospect of getting out of the cold. ]

[heiresy]

[They make haste to a couple other shops so that Aymeric can purchase her some food, wine, and miscellaneous comforts. Once back at the shack, Aymeric unloads all the things he insisted on carrying. It's silly, really, to treat someone so capable like this.

He pulls the several-times-looped sash loose from around her waist. He pulls the throat clasps open on her, smiling as he takes in this really... disarmingly cute image of her again.]

I brought a tent that we may make further shelter. Let us pitch it by your fire... Then I have a favor to ask of you.

[takenblack]

[ As much as Yenh feels she should protest it all, the feeling eases as she realizes there is something she can do in return. A fair exhange pleases her, and she nods gratefully for the chance. Plus, it will be nice to spend more time bonding with her Lord Commander. ]

[ Stretching as she is freed from her prison of blue fabric, she readies herself. ]

Certainly, ser. I am at your service.

[heiresy]

I would have you tend to some wind burn somewhere I cannot see nor reach.

[he picks up the tent to fuss with it, stringing it up across the shack. With the quickness of a military man, he has it set up in no time flat, the mouth of it nicely near the hearth. With that he lays a blanket across the floor, crawls in, and starts removing his boots.]

[takenblack]

[ Ah, she thinks. His back. ]

[ She peels off her boots and crawls in after, expression perfectly calm and pleasant. It isn't her first time tending to the hurts of an ally, after all. She settles in beside him, and is at once grateful for his idea of the tent. ]

Ah! This is much more pleasant. [ feeling less fearful of frostbite, she peels her gloves off and grabs the bottle of oil. ]

[heiresy]

[Oh yes, it's behind him at least.]

[Once his boots and more decorative parts of his uniform are off, he goes for his pants, unhooking them and peeling them away to reveal those godsdamned leather shorts. He pulls away all of his clothes except for those, folding them neatly in the tent. This is probably a lot of super new information for Yenh, including his scarring.]

As you may be able to see, I think there's chafing from the armor and the cold.

[he points to some particularly unhappy looking parts of his backside now, peering over his shoulder.]

[takenblack]

[ His scars, like the vast stretches of skin, are parts of him she never had seen before. Not that she is unfamiliar to the many scars that adorn the bodies of seasoned veterans, but because they belong to Aymeric, she takes them in with simultaneous appreciation and sympathy. However, Yenh doesn't see much windburn- ]

[ And then he points down, and her eyes follow before she registers where they're going. ]

Oh.

[ Remembering that they JUST covered that Aymeric is innocent, she tries to recover. ] Yes, it is very angry indeed. Lie on your belly, please.

[heiresy]

[ He does as he is told, wiggling on the ground a bit to get comfortable. ]

[ he is silent a moment. ]

I fear that the injury is... under the leather, as well. I can't imagine what you would be able to do, but I brought the shorts in the case that there was. You are unendingly resourceful, after all.

[...]

If I need to remove the shorts...

[takenblack]

[ ... ]

[ ... ... ... ]

[ Yenh laughs with very clear giddy anxiety. ]

Well! Should I be unable to, you could, ah, minister yourself, couldn't you?

[ Is it a crime to look at- to touch the Lord Commander's naked butt??? ]

[ Oiling up her hands, she sets them to work on the backs of his thighs, which is still a perfectly reasonable place for her hands to be for a gentle soothing massage, in her book. ]

[heiresy]

Perhaps, but it isn't as if I can see it regardless.

[ he hisses in slight pain, his back tensing before he settles down. He reaches between his legs to unlace the leather shorts, lifting his hips to pull them down to his knees.

unthinkingly giving Yenh an eyeful ]

Does it look worse than the skin around it? It certainly feels that way. I've tried to just bear it for a week now, but I'm at my limit. I fear the skin might crack.

[takenblack]

[ For all her labors not to stare him in the crotch, There It Was, starting at her first. ]

[ Forcing herself to be professional, she turns her gaze up to the actually-aggrieved parts. A butt is just a butt, she reminds herself. No matter how cute and round it is. Plus, she sees quite a lot of genuinely pained and angry skin, and she worries oiling it up is a poor replacement for salve or potions. Her fingertips brush across the tender skin, and she focuses laser-precise on the wounds and not his nudity. This isn't sexual. This is medicine. ]

Yes, it does look rather worse... is there truly no alternative to wear whilst this skin heals?

[heiresy]

I could break uniform code, I suppose. It's terribly tempting to do regardless. [ He props himself up on his elbows, peering back at her. ]

I haven't any idea what the punishment for breaking uniform is. Hopefully it will be worth the risk. I'm not trying to be thrown from the castle, after all.

[ He melts down, sort of trying not to overly-focus on the feeling of her hands on him. This is medicine he reminds himself. ]

Would it be best to leave the flesh uncovered while it heals? Or should I find bandages?

[takenblack]

Bandages. [ She says it at once, and then adds: ] You'll want to apply a soothing ointment, too. Mayhaps something can be found cheaply? Most 'round here seem to have the sense to dress properly.

[She smooths over the wounds and sighs. In her thoughts about feeling so useless, she stops noticing how her movements are becoming more idle and less meant to assess the wounds.]

I've contemplated throwing myself upon the mercy of the potionmaker here. She seems rough around the edges and may take some convincing to teach me, but it would be the fastest way for me to learn more about local reagents.

[heiresy]

[He gives a couple nods, committing her words to memory]

It seems that we all have little choice but to throw ourselves upon one another in this place. [He deflates where he is, sighing.]

I can only pray now that this matter with the Snow Queen is resolved.

[takenblack]

[She bites her lower lip, forgiving him again for every innuendo he utters.]

[Yenh realizes she has essentially been groping him, and slips her hands down to his thighs to actually massage the muscles there. Much more innocent a reason to have her hands on him, she reasons.]

Should I be the one to be sent to her side, I'll do whatever needs must.

[heiresy]

[He figures she must be referring to the Snow Queen, though it applies to the potionmaker too. The Queen was a bit more pressing of an issue. But then, he realizes.]

You— entered the competition.

[In his Ishgardian shame, he looked very restrainedly at only who he would be directly facing off against first. Had Yenh's name borne any resemblance to his own, he might have properly seen it. Since he'd been knocked out, he could hardly bring himself to look at the rest of it. Unlike Estinien.]

... Have you won?

[takenblack]

[She's somewhat surprised he didn't know—Yenh had seen his name, and had felt no small pang of simultaneous relief and disappointment that she would not be encountering him there.]

[Instead, she just responds with a casual, heroic air: confident, but not cocky.]

Not yet. I've still a handful of victories to secure.

[heiresy]

You claimed victory in your first round, though!

[He places his face in his hand and laughs]

I should have figured that you would be up to the task. I simply... Did not want to presume, nor ask such a thing of you. I can rest easy knowing that you are a part of the competition! Had I known your intentions, I would not have bothered...

Well, what's done is done. We shall strive to keep you hale and healthy whilst you face off against your opponents!

[It was a lot easier to just imagine her fighting.]

[takenblack]

[His phrasing makes her laugh, and she digs into a knot in the back of his thigh to avoid feeling too flustered. It is like spitting on a bonfire, but here we are anyway.]

[Inevitably, she finds herself rambling.]

Pray don't misunderstand me, yet... I've been asked to risk life and limb facing every possible danger, yet you thought it too much to ask me to defeat a goddess through more peaceful means?

Or did you not imagine that I've any experience or skill in the intimate arts?

[heiresy]

[He laughs loudly and nervously. Her directness sort of breaks any illusion that this could be about fighting]

Simply! [clears throat] Pardon, 'tis simply such a personal and intimate matter. I hadn't considered your skill.

[He hadn't dared imagine the Warrior of Light doing anything but Warrior of Light things. His cheeks are absolutely burning up. He was well out of his arena like this. Between the wonderful massage on his thighs and the absolutely harrowing turn of conversation-]

I've commanded countless men into battle, yet never one into bed. Quite a different matter, you see?

[takenblack]

[She softens and calms herself—she remembers Ishgard's strange relationship with sexuality. For all of Aymeric's extremely liberal views about not being an isolationist nation, he is still a son of that land.]

[Yenh works her way down toward the bend of his knee.]

Aye, I suppose it is. And truly, I know I may yet meet my match in this arena. I'm no blushing virgin, but it is the first time I've... competed. I only hope that, in the event of failure, I can entrust the task to worthier hands.

[That's a more appropriate Warrior of Light thing to say, she thinks.]

[heiresy]

Aye, 'tis the very nature of competition. Yet I would think that you are still... [he presses through on saying it] well-suited to the task. You fear not cold nor absurdity, and I know that your time in Ishgard has been abundant in both.

[Her words relax him. Enough to consider saying the thing that's been burning inside him since doing it, since even speaking to Estinien.]

Estinien mocked me for entering. Well, entering and losing. [He holds his head between his hands, happily not making any eye contact.]

He said that I was ill-prepared and that he might have helped me prepare. Yet he made it sound like something narrowly preferable over death. I'm... unsure what to do with this kind of information.