[Would you be... my neighbor?]
Who: Xigbar and Larxene
What: A little after-dinner date which just might turn into something more
When: Saturday evening, shortly after the ball
Where: Private field in the Old Town quadrant of Radiant Garden
Rating: PG?
It was a lovely night. The air was warm, with a gentle cool breeze from the north. The stars shone brightly against the dark blue sky ( Read more... )
What: A little after-dinner date which just might turn into something more
When: Saturday evening, shortly after the ball
Where: Private field in the Old Town quadrant of Radiant Garden
Rating: PG?
It was a lovely night. The air was warm, with a gentle cool breeze from the north. The stars shone brightly against the dark blue sky ( Read more... )
"A mini-date, you say? In the middle of the night?" Larxene asked curiously, leaning out of the window a little further. "Are you trying to take me out, kill me, hide the body then claim my son for yourself?" the young woman couldn't help but laugh a little at the thought, but she also couldn't deny that she was a little hungry.
The joys of hormones.
"I'll be down in a second, okay?" she nodded to him, reaching out to pull the window back in, closing and locking it before going over to find a pair of shoes. The thought of putting those heels back on her feet made her sick to her stomach, so she resorted instead to a pair of unusually cute, flat ballerina pumps, slipping into them easily. "I hate girls shoes..." she muttered to herself before picking up the long skirt of her dress a little and heading down the stairs quietly to join the man waiting for her outside.
"So... where exactly is this mini-date going to take us, then?" the junior asked when she made it out to Xigbar, standing at the man's side with one hand resting on her hip, the other hanging loose at her side.
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He sighed and leaned against Banquo's shoulder, whistling some random tune until he heard the door click open. He looked up from his feet and grinned widely at the one who stepped from the door.
"Well, I was thinking of this little place I always loved to go when I wanted to be alone... but it's a little distance away, so I asked my friend here if he'd help out. He didn't seem to mind."
That said, he turned and mounted the beast. Afterwards, he held his hand out to the blonde, a warm smile on his lips.
"Not too scared of heights, are ya?"
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"One thing we're taught in our first year in Psychology is not to feel fear," she responded in a rather matter-of-fact tone. "You could throw me on top of the tallest building in town with snakes, scorpions and spiders and I wouldn't even blink. But my real question is as follows." she proceeded then to gesture to herself before casting her gaze over the stallion in their company.
"How in the world am I gonna get up onto that horse in this dress? And am I gonna have to do that high-society lady junk and ride side-saddle?"
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"Oh, right, forgot about that... well, you can either hike it up... or just take it off!"
He grinned widely before dismounting and catching her in a gentle hug.
"Or I can do this!" Without warning, he leaned her back and picked her up bridal style before turning and setting her on the saddle. "HAH! I win!"
He took a step back to put his hands on his hips and admire his handiwork. After a few moments of gloating, he climbed back onto the horse, behind his thin lover, and wrapped his arms around her to tug at the reins.
"Comfy?" he asked her, helping her move her skirt around. Once they were both settled, he set the animal to a gait with a quick speed, smooth ride, and shallow bumps.
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The little yelp that seemed to jump from her mouth upon being lifted came as a huge surprise to herself, still looking rather dazed by what had just transpired as she sat on the saddle of the horse, finally jolting herself back into reality when she felt the other man mounting on behind her, the walk to wherever they were headed beginning.
"I can't believe I'm riding on a horse, side-saddle in a dress that's probably worth more than my parents' house, with a man with one eye and no real depth perception..." she mused aloud, speaking to no one in particular before laughing softly and leaning back a little to kiss Xigbar on the cheek. "Don't tell Hunter, he'll get jealous~"
As they continued to ride in silence at a good speed, the young Twilight Town native watched the night-darkened scenery go by, a question playing on her lips.
"So... where are you taking me for this mini-date anyway, Romeo?"
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"What, Hunter would be jealous of wearing a dress? Is my little buddy a transvestite?! have you caught him in your dresses and heels, Larxene?" He smirked softly before kissing the top of her head gently. "I told him that if he was good at the ball, I'd take him tomorrow for a ride or two. No doubt Granddad's already done that, though."
They passed quite a distance in their travel, the ranch house and stables no longer in view by the time the steed slowed to a cautious walk as he peddled his way through a knee-high stream. On dry ground, he returned to his former gait. Soon, they were deep in the heart of a field covered in thick, soft grass and colorful, plentiful wildflowers in high bloom.
"Uh, I was going to take you about here," Xigbar grinned, tugging the horse to a smooth stop before dismounting and unfolding a thick, soft quilt he fetched out of the basket.
"I used to hide out here as a child during the days when my parents were particularly unbearable. It's prettier in the day time, but I figured if both you and this well-lit place were in the same area at the same time, I would explode from beauty overload."
He held his hands out to catch the woman on her way down from the steed's back.
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As they continued to ride, even through water, Larxene felt a strange sense of calm wash over her. She had seen Radiant Garden before, a long time ago, and she's always found this place to be a lot more pleasant in the evening. Maybe because a lot of the heavy reconstruction work couldn't be seen and it wasn't so noisy.
When they finally came to a stop, she could smell wildflowers everywhere, a part of her grateful Demyx never came out this far, as it would murder his allergic self. She'd have to remember this place for future torturing reference.
"Careful with the excessive flattery there, sweetie," the blonde woman rolled her eyes and smiled at her lover's latest compliment. "I'm diabetic, remember? Too much sugar and I'll get sick!"
With the help of her partner, she managed to gracefully dismount, landing tidily on her feet before moving away from him to examine their surroundings.
"This is beautiful..." she stated softly, a gentle smile forming on her lips. "But, I do have another question for you, darling," she turned her attention to him, the smile still gracing her pale features. "To what occasion do I owe this rather charming, and rather romantic, mini-date of ours?"
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"Yeah, Marly would shit himself in joy out here, wouldn't he? Maybe I'll grab some of the flowers and bring them back for him..."
Xigbar turned towards his lady then smirked to himself as he watched her move around. He seemed to be lost in her movements, and in the glow of her skin in the bright moon light. The sound of her voice directed at him brought him out of his stupor, and with a shake of his head, he laid himself on the quilt and propped his head up with his hand before patting the vacant space beside him.
"I need a reason to spend time with you now? Doesn't 'I love you and I like being with you and around you' count as a valid reason anymore?"
As he complained, he reached into the basket to pull out a few rich flavored, fancy confections, as well as a small loaf of sweet smelling bread and two crystal wine glasses.
"Come join me for a drink!" he told her as he used his arm in an old parlor trick to open a bottle of home made strawberry wine- a bottle made earlier that season so it was still more like strawberry juice instead of wine. He poured himself a glass, but suddenly paused before glancing at her.
"You don't share your cousin's allergy to strawberries, do you? I remember Riku saying they made the mullet's host sick... it doesn't matter if you are, though, 'cause I also have some sparkling apple juice for later, but I can break it out now."
He gave her a small smile before batting their equine companion away from the little petit fours.
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"I'm in the field of psychology, babe," Larxene responded smoothly. "We can see things that people don't want us to see; things inside your hearts and minds that you'd like to keep hidden from us. There are tells all over your face, in the way you move, in the tone of your voice, and I can read them.
"From the fact that we just came back from a party, where we danced, ate and drank together, this little moonlight meeting is designed to either set a mood or soften a potential blow," the blonde woman continued, making herself more comfortable. "So either you're about to drop some god-awful bomb on me, or you're actually going to say something that may make me happy. And that's not just the three plus years of psychology telling me this: it's my woman's intuition as well.
"Oh, and the strawberry allergy is in Demyx's mother's family," the woman finally addressed the strawberry question, taking the glass he had intended for himself and taking a sip. "Demyx's father and my mother are twins, so I don't have a strawberry allergy in my genetics. Plus, they're one of the few vices my dietitian is letting me hold on to, so I'd be pretty messed-up if I couldn't have my strawberries!"
Green eyes then lifted to the skies above their heads as she took another sip from the glass. It wasn't easy to see so many stars in Twilight Town, but in places like this, you could find so many just littering the sky like someone had thrown all the diamonds in the universe up into the inky blackness.
"So..." Larxene brought her attention back down to earth. "What is it that you're either going to destroy my life with or make it?"
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"Well, I hate to tell you, but your psychology and intuition are shot, my dear. You should probably upgrade to the newer models."
He threw a little pout in her direction, but quickly dropped it as he snagged the second, empty glass and poured himself a drink.
He laid back against the blanket, staring up at the stars. Hopefully she wouldn't be too insightful. He was slightly hoping to keep his intentions secret.
He conveniently shut his ears to the last question, and instead let his hand seek hers, locking his fingers between her own.
"I just want to be with you. Not a sin, is it?"
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"You know, just fighting against me is making your intentions out here seem more and more suspicious," she couldn't stop the smirk that worked its way onto her face. "But, I'm sure I'll find out sooner or later, so I don't plan on extracting the information from you using my feminine wiles~"
The thought of whatever he was planning on telling her did, however, have the blonde woman a little on-edge. She wasn't really in the correct physical condition to handle any more bad news, like "I've been drafted off to go to war" or "I've got my guns back already" or even "my darker self has been out on another killing spree". Rare was the occasion when the cyclops could come to her with some genuinely good news, so silently she prayed that this would be one of those times.
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After several long, agonizing moments he was barely able to hold on to his romantic plans. Throwing caution to the wind, he did his best to choke down his fear and act. Fuck this waiting crap. Be a man and get it over with!
He rose sat up and pulled a knee up to lean forward on it, his hand still locked in hers.
"Hey, Larx, there was something I was wanting to talk to you a-... about... get your th-thoughts on the idea... You... I-I've got a question for you. I just want you to know that your answer doesn't affect anything that we've already set in place. Even if I get the answer I don't want, I'll still be there to take care of you and Hunter and our child. You're always welcome at my place. In fact, I hope that whatever you answer, you'll still come live there with me. It's a big place and I would hate to live there alone.
"I wanted to do this sort of... away from everyone. I wanted to hear your honest answer without anyone pressuring you into it. I wanted to hear what Larxene wanted, not what Hunter, or Demyx, or Kairi wanted or anything. I wanted to hear Larxene's answer. And I know I have the worst timing. I mean, we barely met a little more than half a year ago. We've been dating less than three months. My last lover's still practically warm in his grave. It's probably not good to put Hunter through so many changes so quickly.
"But just understand that ... y-you know, everyone keeps trying to give me advice. 'You're taking this relationship too fast' or 'You're moving really slow- the lady's going to get bored' or 'It's too early for that sort of move'... and maybe it's good advice. For anyone else, maybe it's perfect. But for me? It was just confusing. But a few days ago, I was talking to Demyx... and he gave me the most fitting advice I've ever heard-
"He said, 'Listen to your heart'. Just a simple phrase, but... it made a world of difference. I took his advice. I'm listening to the damned thing, and it's telling me to do this, so I am.
"You, Larxene, are the most perfect woman imaginable. You're incredible, beautiful, talented, intelligent, intoxicating, addicting, and... and you make me do some of the stupidest crap I would ever do. In a good way. You've made me change myself in ways no one else in existence has ever done. You've made me a whole new man, I feel. I damn near gave my comrade a heart attack when I told her I was completely unarmed. She thought I was sick and dragged me off away from the party.
"But that's beside the point. The thing is, you are the best thing that's ever happened to this universe. You are the best thing that's ever happened to me. I honestly feel like a demon granted the grace to lay in the arms of the angels.
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"I can't get you off my mind, and I can't take my eye off you when you're near. I want you beside me forever. I would do anything for you, and will stop at nothing to see you happy and smiling. There's nothing I wouldn't do just to hear your voice every day of my life. And as frightening as that cackle is, I'll take that too if it means I get you.
"I know I'm rambling again. My heart won't shut the hell up," he sighed, tugging softly on her hand and wrist to coax her into a sitting position.
"There's absolutely no rush to answer this question. If you want to take some time to think about it, I understand completely and you can feel free to take all the time you want to make up your mind. I love you more than anything. And..." he sighed softly as he shifted his weight onto his knee, facing her with a pleading look on his face.
He dug around in his pocket for a moment, trembling. He smiled softly to himself as he finally found the small box stashed safely in his pocket.
"Larxene?" he pulled the small, hexagonal gold-trimmed onyx box from his pocket and held it out to her with nervously shaking hands. He fumbled with the small latch a second before finally opening it to reveal a small white-gold ring with enough shine to reflect the stars and the moon. In the middle was a heart-shaped ruby of the deepest red, purest clarity, and finest cut, set between two smaller round diamonds. It wasn't too fancy of a ring- he knew she wouldn't wear it if he'd gotten the one he truly wanted to get her.
"... Larxene? Would you ever consider making me the happiest, luckiest, and down right most blessed man in the universe by calling yourself my wife? Will you marry me?"
He was no longer trembling, but that was probably due more to every muscle in his body tense rather than him having gotten over any fear. He held the small box out towards her, both hands wrapped securely around it as he watched her every move. He felt strapped to a rocket, and depending on her answer he was going to either explode or fly off into the sky and float with the clouds. It felt like an eternity to him as he waited patiently, but anxiously.
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Yet nothing. There were no klaxons, no panicking, no increase in her pulse, nothing. Her whole body was as calm as the night that surrounded them. Even when she caught sight of the ring she felt relaxed, thought indeed it was dazzlingly beautiful and had to have cost the man more money than she'd ever seen in her life.
I thought I'd be scared... running away, anything... why am I just... sitting here, looking at him so calmly... am I actually... ready for this?
"Xigbar..." Larxene began, keeping their eye contact, her expression soft. "You're a wonderful man. I don't generally meet or date really good men, as a rule, and Marluxia and yourself have been the only two decent men in my life, save my father. But before I answer your question, I have to have you answer one of mine.
"I see it in your face, every day," she continued. "You're not over Xaldin yet. You still love him, your heart is still with him and you're never going to overcome that grief, I understand that. My question to you is..." the blonde woman sighed softly. "Is this for real? Are you asking what you're asking because this is genuinely what your heart truly wants? Or... is this all connected to the fact you don't know how to cope with his loss and you're trying to fill the void his death has left? If you can answer this question for me, I'll answer yours... but I need the truth from you, Xigbar... I need to know..."
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He couldn't quite understand what she was doing. Turning him down? Bah, he wouldn't care just as long as it meant he'd still get to hold her at night and form everlasting bonds with the children. ... he wouldn't care if she said no, but ... his ego would bleed a for a few days.
No matter his thoughts, he couldn't help his trembling as he tried to tell her about all the thinking he'd been doing lately, everything he'd come to terms with when he saw some of the pictures Xaldin's mother had from the funeral, all the things he could finally grasp when he and the man's father had a few beers together, all the questions answered when the one eyed man made his way to the grassless grave, all the worries that faded when he heard her voice, all the fright that melted when he felt her skin on his, the pain that vanished with the feel of a little boy's arms around his leg...
It was a long moment of silence from the man. He wanted to tell her everything, but he couldn't do it. All he could do was choke back something large before looking her dead in the eye and muttering a soft but strong, "I want you."
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Most women would have been deterred by his appearance straight away, but even though she did find him handsome, it wasn't his appearance that drew her in: it was the fact that he kept her on her toes. He challenged her, was willing to talk back to her and not submit to her just because she was a young woman with a bad attitude and a temper to match. Even when they were just friends, she could feel something she couldn't understand forming between them. The kind of bond that went far deeper than anything she had ever felt before.
She'd go as far as to say 'soul mate', if the very idea that there was someone out there made just for her didn't make her feel dizzy and squeamish. But, if she were to believe in there being 'The One', he would be it.
"That's... not the answer I was looking for," Larxene responded calmly, shifting herself forward a little to kiss his lips tenderly. "But, you know what? It works for me..." soft greens then drifted down to the ring in his hand, casting her gaze critically over the jewellery.
"Well, you'd better have paid at least three months' wages for that thing, cos that's a minimum spend on an engagement ring... and I'm not expecting anything less than minimum if you're expecting me to wear it~" the smile on her face seemed to grow wider as she shuffled back a little bit and held her hand out to her love, waiting to see if the man would take the hint and put the ring on her finger.
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