Sure the world is going to hell... [Closed]

[myworknotme]

Characters: Ariane Emory and Iroh
Content: Both ships are out in the same area, so Iroh comes to visit his tsundere love interest the acting Captain of the Amestris.
Setting: Ari's quarters on the Amestris.
Time: Evening, the day that the Convoy arrives near Shashta.
Warnings: TBA, though will likely be just extreme sappiness, tsun, and lots of

Comments

[myfavoritetea]

Very aware that her present state of dress was a deliberate attempt at demonstrating her own power over the situation, Iroh had to stifle a chuckle. Apparently she wasn't aware that she'd given him all the pieces he needed to win this particular game a long time ago. He certainly wasn't about to inform her of the fact. He was enjoying watching the game unfold, even if the ending was assured. As much as it could be, anyway, provided the damned continent managed to stay in one piece long enough for him to formally declare victory.

For now, he accepted her nod and began his work, digging his heated fingers into her muscles. He alternated with strong, small prods and lighter, more expansive rubs, getting as many kinks that he could out of her neck. He could tell it was subluxed, most likely from stress. It needed to be realigned, but he wasn't sure she would allow him the control necessary to do so. He decided to ask her directly. The worst she could do was refuse, after all. "Ari," he began gently. "Your neck is misaligned. I can help that, but you will need to completely relax or I will end up doing more harm than good. If you are not comfortable enough to do that, kindly let me know, and I will simply move on." He wouldn't be offended if she wasn't. But she'd given him control over her before, and thoroughly enjoyed the result. He was incredibly curious to see if she would do so again now.

[myworknotme]

Ari was beginning to relax from the rhythmic and steady strokes, even through her clothing. Would it really be conceding defeat if she took the camisole off, she wondered? Most likely yes, though she would then be able to use the leverage that she might be granted to her advantage. It was a situation where she was actually uncertain of how she wanted to proceed, and that in turn frustrated her.

When he spoke, she considered his words in full while he waited. It would be best for him to adjust the subluxation. All of her medical knowledge told her that, left untreated, the injury would only get worse. Giving up some ground was worth that. "I'll relax, then, sweet. The sooner that's properly aligned again, the better." She felt ambivalent about the words as she said them, knowing that she was giving in. It would be better this way, she told herself. She couldn't continue to be acting Captain if she didn't take care of herself, after all.

[myfavoritetea]

He nodded again, though he knew she couldn't really see it from her current position, and lightly placed his hands around the back of her neck. He tested his control over it, waiting for her to completely relax into his touch before he made a move. He paid careful attention to her breathing, and when he felt she was ready, he exhaled himself. "Drop your shoulders," he said gently. It was more a distraction than anything else, for on her next exhale, he sharply twisted her neck first one direction and then the other, realigning her vertebrae to the sound of very loud cracks.

He ran his fingers up and down the back of her neck, checking its positioning. Much, much better. He smiled, both at the corrected state of her spine and that she seemed to trust him enough to do this. "Very good." Digging his fingers in just a bit more, he began to move down to her shoulders, and continued his earlier pattern of high pressure and relaxing rubbing.

[myworknotme]

Ari felt his hands change position even if she couldn't see the nod. He felt very sure of himself, and she trusted that. It was a surety that came from years of practice at something, and as such, helped her to relax. Iroh understood what he was doing, she thought as she slowed her breathing to help with the relaxation. She dropped her shoulders as he instructed her to, though it didn't quite prepare her for his next action. It came with startling quickness, and the pain was over almost as soon as it had started, but a definite ache remained afterward.

Another deep breath, then another, as he checked her new alignment and seemed satisfied with it. "Excellent," she murmured, as much to herself as to anyone else. The pressure that he was putting on her shoulders now might have ached a little, but it was at least a familiar pattern.

[myfavoritetea]

Her clothing was getting in the way a bit now, but Iroh made no complaint. This was about her comfort level, after all. If she wanted to keep her chemise on, he would simply heat his hands a little more and penetrate her muscles just a little deeper. He was rough with her, but he had to be, and went gentle immediately after each strong pulse to relax away the discomfort. Her shoulders were not quite as bad as her neck had been, and after a few moments of working at them and releasing her tension, he moved down to her back.

Rather than keep working his way down, he slid his hands to the small of her back and began working up. The corset, he knew, would put strain here, so it should be released first. He said nothing in reply to her, and merely concentrated to getting her back into acceptable maneuverability. It was slow going, but progress was being made.

[myworknotme]

The roughness made her wince once or twice, but it was ultimately for the best, so Ari made no complaint. Any thoughts she'd had about taking the top of her clothing off were pushed to the back of her mind for now. Iroh seemed quite able to relax her through the fabric, and she privately admitted that the extra heat felt lovely. Little by little, she felt her muscles loosening up, and Ari felt cautiously glad that she'd invited him here tonight.

The irritation that she'd felt toward him for the past several months was subsiding, though only a bit. Ari knew damned well that a portion of that reaction to the Firebender was a defense mechanism, though she wasn't sure just yet that she wanted to drop it. As she relaxed under his strong and steady hands, though, she was reminded of the behavioral patterns and turns of phrase that had interested her at their initial meeting. He hadn't demanded anything more than her attention, which he got regardless of how she reacted to him. He'd been winning this all along, even as she grew steadily more annoyed with him. Yet even with all of that, he remained affectionate and curiously frank with her. She appreciated the honesty on a level that few other people might truly understand, given the facility that she ran. The affection was something new, to be shied away from. It usually meant that the person offering the sweet words wanted more than she was willing to give.

[myfavoritetea]

He was happy to note that she seemed to relax more and more as the massage went on. A small frown crossed his face at just how bad her muscles had been. Understanding that a lot of it was probably from stress at the new responsibility she'd taken on, he nevertheless thought that only another reason that she needed to take better care of herself.

From her silence, he guessed she was probably taking this opportunity to do a little thinking, and he did not want to interrupt that. Especially as he could guess she was probably thinking about him. The knowledge made him smile again. Running his hands along her spine, he checked the alignment of it. It too, could use an adjustment. Placing his hands at the base of her shoulders, he waited for her to exhale, and shifted his weight. The joints shifted, nitrogen gas was released, and the subluxation was corrected. He moved down to the center of her back, intending on adjusting it next.

[myworknotme]

She'd been carrying more stress in her body than she'd been entirely aware of, and was glad that he had offered his services. What he'd already worked, while certainly sore, was almost pleasantly so, as she knew that it meant that the tension had been released. He really was damned good with his hands, she thought, and then frowned inwardly as she fluxed, and her mind wandered back to the other things that she knew he was capable of.

As her shoulders were realigned and her spine's position corrected, Ari pondered her next move. What was it that she wanted out of this meeting, in the end? Poking about in the mixture of her feelings about it, Ari was both curious and dismayed that what she wanted was his company, either just for now or, ideally, for the night. Out loud, she said as his hands moved further down her back, "Go ahead, sweet." Ari drew a deep breath, then released it, and decided on her course of action.

[myfavoritetea]

He was tempted- very, very tempted- to place a kiss at the nape of her neck, as he had done on the last occasion he'd given her a massage. He leaned forward automatically to do so, but stopped himself, instead using the motion to help shift his weight as he cracked her back. He didn't want to throw her off, after all. And the rest of this evening was going so well.

His fingers ran down a little further, back to the small of her back. Pleased to note that this area seemed limber enough from his earlier attention to it, he did not need to adjust it. Now that her spine was back where it should be, he concentrated his effort on a much lighter massage. The deep digging into the muscles should really no longer be needed. What he did now was only meant to further her relaxation.

"Feeling a bit less tense?" he asked gently as his hands slowly made the journey back to her neck, rubbing the entire way.

[myworknotme]

Ari felt the slight hesitation--the shifting from one arm to the other in indecision, the change of direction--in his posture before he shifted his weight. She would have liked to have smiled to herself with the knowledge that he had been about to express more of that damnable affection, but knew too that he'd likely look at her at just the wrong moment, and see that smile.

The contrast between the heavier strokes and these newer, lighter ones was obvious, and she closed her eyes in enjoyment as he soothed away and of the exhaustion that was left. She was still tired, of course, but the bone-deep ache was lessened, leaving her feeling pleasantly sleepy. "More than a bit," she agreed, but then hesitated for a moment. "I do have other things that I should be getting to tonight, though..."

[myfavoritetea]

Largely finishing in relaxing her, his hands gradually began to still, and he rested them on the center of her back, lightly stroking her through the fabric of her chemise. He shook his head at her words, and released a little breath of air through his nose- a mix of a sigh and a tiny scoff. No wonder she'd been so tense, if she was working herself this hard. "The only thing you should be getting tonight is rest," he offered gently. "Your muscles may well seize up again should you try anything... strenuous."

He was not meaning to tell her what to do- it was really only a helpful suggestion from a concerned friend, and he hoped she would take it as such. He knew well enough that she was stubborn enough to do what she wanted no matter what anyone else thought... though not as stubborn as he was. He smiled inwardly just a little at the thought, but his face remained calmly neutral. He felt his own body protesting the hard days he'd been having lately, and suppressed the urge to yawn. He could use more rest himself, really....

[myworknotme]

She caught the sound that he made, and opened her mouth to protest his implication that he knew what she needed better than she did, but just as quickly shut it. They were in agreement on the rest issue, even if she hadn't gotten around to telling him that just yet, and there really was little point in arguing. Ari instead rolled onto her side, the better to face him and be able to watch his face, as well as to make her own point the clearer.

"I agree," she stated, pushing herself with an elbow into a half-sitting position. She looked far more tired than she would have liked, she knew, but it would have to do for now. "Getting some rest is far more important than any of those things. I won't be able to do them at all if I've not slept." Did she really want to do this? It was a risk, that was certain, but it also would bring her a new set of challenges, and that would be worth it, in her mental estimation. Very slowly, she brought her hand to his, and brushed his fingers lightly. "Stay. For the night." Her eyes locked on his, and she sighed at what she knew she was going to say next. "Please."

[myfavoritetea]

He was smiling at her when she turned over, genuine concern for her well-being in his eyes. His hands slid off of her and fell against the bed, and he made no attempt to move them, despite longing to touch her and hold her close to him. At the first part of her words, he nodded, about to comment that one was generally able to face challenges when one had had a good night's rest, but he froze as her fingers found his and she continued.

Iroh hadn't really expected that. He stared at her, and swallowed; his mouth was suddenly dry. His smile only widened, though there was nothing mischievous or knowing or planning in it, this time. He was simply pleased. And shocked, at her last word. Nodding, his hand stroked hers and he finally found his words, and said gently, "...You never need to beg that of me, Ari. Though it is very, very much appreciated." He raised her hand to his lips, and kissed the back of it lightly. "Of course I'll stay." He was, as he had said, hers for as long as she wanted him.

Even if she wasn't always aware that that was what she wanted.

[myworknotme]

Ari found that watching that smile spread across his face did unexpected things to her. A little thrill of pleasure went along with it, as well as a sense of relief that he'd agreed. And, she thought as he pressed his warm lips to her skin and caressed her fingers, a certain sort of smugness. She'd Gotten him with the request--she'd seen that in how he'd reacted--and it was the first time she'd ever truly had the upper hand with Iroh.

She felt almost uncomfortably flushed, and made no move to get closer to him, electing instead to simply let him hold onto her hand. It had been a major decision for her, and she was still fluxing like hell over it. "We should get some sleep," she said at last, and decided to go with the fluxing instead of fighting it. Leaning in the extra few inches or so necessary to reach him, she kissed him cheek quickly. "There's a long day ahead of us tomorrow."

[myfavoritetea]

Insanely pleased when she kissed his cheek, Iroh inwardly smirked at how her reactions to him had changed over the last few months. He was almost happy that the world was currently in such a terrible state, as it being so had caused his long term plan with her to advance so quickly. It was similar to how he had actually ended up happy to have gone into Antrim, since he had met her because of it. He laughed a little. "It seems all days are long ones, lately. All the more reason to enjoy these moments of calm while we can...."

Caressing her hand in his own, he slowly moved more fully onto the bed beside her. Facing her, his fingers trailed up along her arm, gently going up to her shoulder. He curled his arm around her very, very slowly, not wanting it to put her off, but also no longer able to resist his desire to hold her. There was nothing sexual in it, really, and he did not do it for long, but merely enjoyed the closeness while it lasted. He was, of course, still wearing his tunics, but he left them for now. Emotional high from being in her presence or no, he was still tired enough that he could sleep with them on.

[myworknotme]

She let him come to her, and did not shrink away or snap at him when he embraced her. In her mind there was more than the normal share of turmoil, but outwardly, she let out a long, slow exhale and wrapped her own arm about his shoulders. Iroh still had that curious calming effect on her that he'd had in Antrim, and she closed her eyes as they held one another. Her mind, casting about for one solid thing to pay attention to, focused on their breathing and on his heartbeat. It was something regular and measured, and therefore what she needed right now.

When he pulled away from her, she sat up again and pulled out the large hairpin that held her tresses up in a businesslike twist. Ari shook her head, feeling slightly relieved to have her hair down after a very long day of it being pulled tight against her head. Keeping a close watch on him the whole time, she slowly shed her last two remaining garments and cast them to the floor, then pulled back the covers and crawled under them. "I'll get far too warm with you here if I kept that additional layer on," she said with a small laugh, and glanced at the lamps in the room. "Would you put those out?" she asked, and turned back the covers on his side of the bed.