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+--- Thread: Now Kiss (/showthread.php?tid=37)
Now Kiss - Amanda - 12-04-2024
ONYXIA ;
Life was slowly slipping away from her, faster than she imaged, even more so with Ruel's presence being so near but still so very far. She was feeling distant over the last months especially when she saw the children growing bigger and more independent. Soon they would be off and on their own for the most part, but did he really grasp who they were as small individuals? He was at work most of the time and she knew he was busy, she also knew he was doing his best but a part of her longed for who they were before the children. It was a selfish thought, and it was one that made her feel worse for even thinking, but so much had changed in the course of nearly a year. A long sigh escaped her as she continued on the narrowed cobblestone path towards the small shops.
Onyxia needed some time away and to herself to collect her thoughts, but it seemed she would have more on her plate to consider when she was met with that familiar gold pelt. Her body froze, the bitter chill of the air kissed her cheeks while her fiery orbs laid upon him. Sethos. She could feel the growl bubble in her throat while her ears lay flat against her head. Her skin riddled with goosebumps and she knew she should just turn and leave before he even saw her. He couldn't put her in jail again for trespassing since the lands became open, but she was sure he would find some way of being an asshole regardless.
She swallowed back the lump that formed in her throat, her nails tapped against the hard, cold stone beneath her paws. She drew in another short breath while her lips pursed together, her eyes not once lingering away from him. All the memories of their friendship before flooded through her mind, before they became enemies, before his brother almost killed her, before his outburst.
Before she grew to hate him.
What an odd feeling it was to be so out of touch with reality and feeling almost too exhausted to continue hating him. He was standing where she needed to be, looking over one of the vendors that she'd come to favor over the months. Onyxia's brows knit together as she pressed forward and beside him, ”move Golden boy," she muttered as her shoulder pressed into him, giving him a light shove aside as she looked over the vendors items.
RE: Now Kiss - droid - 12-04-2024
SETHOS;
Frustration infected every memory of the last few months. He was simply unable to uphold his previous duties and was being forced into retirement from the army, but he was pushing back every inch until they literally stripped him from his rank - which they seemed hesitant to do, for whatever reason. And so he pushed on, taking solace in solo patrols even if they took him three times the length they usually did.
It wasn’t like anyone was going to lecture him now. At least it was getting *done.*
Her scent greeted him before anything else; setting his dead nerve endings on fire as his body was quickly engulfed. But it was a different kind of anger this time - much more quiet, more tempered, simply because he was beginning to lack the stamina to keep up this intense hatred. If anything, he just wanted to be left alone, forever.
But just as he figured she would, Onyxia would shove herself into a place she had no right to be - next to him. And in addition to that, she *touched* him, shoving him to the side - or at least attempted to.
Lazily, Sethos finally turned his head to look at the monochromatic firecracker, one white brow arching as if to say *really?*
”I was here first,” the behemoth grumbled at her, but his tone lacked conviction.
RE: Now Kiss - Amanda - 12-04-2024
ONYXIA;
His response back was lackluster, causing her head to swiveled to the side to look at him while a brow arched back at her. Her muzzle wrinkled and lips mocked his words, ‘I was here first,’ with the rolling of her eyes and shrug of her shoulders. ”And?” She spoke back at him in a cold tone, her eyes squinted at him as they burned into the familiar features of face. ”What are you gunna do, lock me up again?” She snorted before peeling her gaze away and returning them back onto the vendors items.
In truth she was still bent out of shape over the whole thing, he hurt her deeper than anything that was physical. There was a care for him some time ago that she never imagined would turn into this, whatever this was. She was caught between a place of hating him, but being exhausted by the feeling. Onyxia’s plate was a little too full for her since having her children and feeling the distance away from Ruel.
This seemed to just be the straw that broke the camels back, considering she could have gone the rest of her life without this encounter.
”You’re window shopping, either get something or get out.” She said while not looking at him and instead over the items. Ironically this was the place where everything went south the first time, when they were suppose to have their date a long time ago. She could feel her heart drop slightly at the thought and in the very back of her mind she couldn’t help but wonder what if things were different?
Onyxia understood his loss and she imagined the weight he felt over it alongside everything else he was forced to face. When she met him the war took quite a toll on him in body, mind and spirit. Though she didn’t know about any of the loses other than Ahkoris, she only imaged it didn’t end there. While she felt only slightly remorseful for his loss and not *who* was lost, her pride kept her from saying so. The actions he chose to follow up with after that encounter were inexcusable, and it created a barrier between her and him that was larger than anything she could even try to compare it to.
She was unaware that he knew she was pregnant when locked up in the cell, or that she had children with Ruel. Onyxia was different in so many ways past what he could understand, but she didn’t even want him to if she was being honest with herself.
RE: Now Kiss - droid - 12-04-2024
SETHOS;
*And?* she shot back immediately, unwavering with her annoyingly stubborn personality. Sethos bit down on the flesh of his cheek, hard enough to puncture the soft tissue and cause small pinpricks of pain - anything to restrain the smile that wanted so badly to display itself upon his muzzle. *What are you gunna do, lock me up again?* The memory of locking the jail cell behind him, her body within the cage was one he didn't often care to reflect back on. Clearly, it was still a fresh wound to her, but he would always defend himself - she was technically breaking the law, and he wasn't willing to expose his neck and be labelled a traitor in the eyes of the Army just to save her sorry ass.
Not after their argument.
And definitely not after finding out she was pregnant with another mans pups.
*You’re window shopping, either get something or get out.* Fire flashed in his eyes as she was as relentless as ever, never seeming to know when to shut up. Instead of cowing to her threats, he instead stepped in closer, eliminating what distance there was between them as his warm, thick coat pressed into her side. With his head above hers and uncaring should the merchant look uncomfortable or dare to say something to him, he leaned down so that his lips were tickled by the fine white furs of her inner ear.
"I pity any man who weds your daughter," he clipped softly before leaning back from her, orange eyes roaming over the flowers present on the tables before them. "I'll need some fragrances now to cover the stench of your sweat. But which, I wonder? Hmm... I guess I'll just have to take my time to find one I like." he challenged, taking care to look at her only when she wasn't looking at him. And then he leisurely roamed, asking simple questions about pricing every now and again, even if he knew them already.
Wherever she was, whatever she was doing now - she at least looked well cared for. For some reason, that gave him a sense of relief.
RE: Now Kiss - Amanda - 12-04-2024
Onyxia should have known that he would be as stubborn as he was when she left him last. There was so much time between then and now that she almost forgot of all that happened in between. After being released from jail she had the children, and her life quickly took a turn for the best, though seeing him now was bringing back memories she could have very well done without. The way she felt in that cell alone and scared still haunted her now and again, but she would never admit that to him. That fear multiplied after learning she was pregnant, afraid that her children would pay for her past mistakes and live an equally unfair life.
She was pulled from her thoughts as his larger body pressed into her side, his thick coat warming the spot behind her shoulder. Due to the sudden, intimate exchange, she felt her heart flutter in the depths of her chest which caused her to grow lowly at herself. What the fuck? Orange eyes lifted to look at him, but his muzzle was already finding the ivory strands of her ear as he whispered into it. He spoke of her daughter, but he seemed unaware that she actually had two of them. Regardless, him knowing that information caused her hair to stand on end, uncomfortable as to how, and why he had that information.
‘Tread lightly.’ She had to warn herself, despite the feeling of wanting to bubble up and over the edge. She wanted to bite him in the face, as she’d done before, but where would that really get her—or them?
Onyxia sighed and allowed herself to release the frustrations, instead she was so more curious how he even knew she had children. “Who told you?” Her voice softened slightly, her eyes not once peeling away from him even as he up and left her side cold without his touch. She inhaled a long, steadied breath to try and calm the racing of her heart due to his sudden touch and then the lack thereof. Why was her body responding this way, and why did she have to remind herself she was angry with him. She remained in silence as he looked over the different fragrances, making light jokes of the prices of them and how he would now have to cover her scent against his skin. Her brows furrowed at him, was he making light of their situation?
He confused her. He always did.
She could feel her heart and mind fighting over the same position. In a way she wanted to just move on and forget about what happened, but on the other hand she wanted to cut him off at the ankles for doing what he did to her. “I really did like you at one point in time,” the admittance came with somewhat of a heavy heart, but Onyxia was not one to lie, and she knew that he was aware of that fact.
RE: Now Kiss - droid - 12-04-2024
SETHOS;
It was the only way he could maintain the upper hand in their conversations - keep her guessing, keep her unaware of what he would say or do next. Which was easy enough now, since he functioned more on impulses than critical thought now. *Who told you?* the fire extinguished for the time being, her expression softened as she searched his face, looking for any tells that he would be unwilling to give up.
"Heard it through the grapevine," Sethos answered, unsure if he was able to keep the hurt from his voice. "I..." he shook his head, unable to admit that he periodically asked about her, through the resources his family possessed. And the request was never directly tied to him, so it was easy enough to find out without Onyxia or Ruel knowing. Plus, the medic definitely helped with their little... conversation.
Why he was still emotional about it all, he didn't know. But seeing her here again brought back everything he had tried so hard over the last almost year to ignore and forget. Lifting his chin, he averted his gaze, not wanting to meet her eyes.
Not wanting her to see the ghost of a smirk that betrayed him.
*I really did like you at one point in time,* He blinked, taken aback by the blunt truth of her statement. She succeeded in pulling his attention back to her now, and he searched her orange eyes with his own in quiet contentment for a moment. "And I you." came his thoughtful, measured response. His expression didn't change as his heart was left vulnerable and bare upon his wrist for her. Would she cut him down now after finding a crack in his armour?
RE: Now Kiss - Amanda - 12-04-2024
ONYXIA;
He kept it vague and made it very clear he had no intentions of selling out whoever it was that told him. She supposed that many knew of Ruel, and his status, so word was going to get out sooner rather than later. This made a heavy breath expel from her nostrils, the anxiety of what he would think of it all clouded her mind momentarily. She knew she shouldn't care and she also knew that, despite everything, he wouldn't judge for something like that—even if life-changing. "I guess you learned your lesson huh," she continued to watch him even as he idly "grazed" over the products. "Gave up your life as a sellout?" Where anyone else would expect her question to be laced in venom, it was surprisingly neutral. If he listened hard enough maybe he would hint at the light joking tone as well. Ony paid close attention to him since the start of their meeting. She read beneath the lines of his words as he mentioned the grapevine. If she knew any better she could assume he was actually saddened by the news, and she wasn't sure how that made her feel.
*And I you.* She felt the lump form in her throat at the admittance back, without even a hint of hesitation. When she met his gaze again she felt the rapid beating of her heart pick up, her mouth gaped slightly while she tried to find the words. "To what degree?" She wanted to hear it because she always had an *idea*. It was hard for her to grow close to others, but before Ruel she was aware of the brewing affections. They shared common, yet not so common interests and opinions and their fallout was due to circumstances beyond their control.
She was wrong in the sense she threatened his family, and, as she would also expect, he defended them fiercely. He was wrong for providing her with the ammo that would load an empty gun, but expecting her not to shoot. She took the moment of shared silence to reflect back to before the war, when he was just a Golden boy who happened to somehow get past her hardened exterior.
Fate just happened to bring them both to a place they didn't want to be, and fate would have it that one of his own would be who she met on the battlefield. While she wasn't sure what she would expect riding into battle, it wasn't that the Golden boy would be linked to that very Tiamat who tried to kill her that day. Her hatred was only for those who left her for dead, until Sethos retaliated against her in the way he did.
That was the thing about fate though, Onyxia never believed in fate, not until now at least.
Because, while cruel, fate had a way of mingling trauma with destiny and bringing forth admittance masked by hatred.
RE: Now Kiss - droid - 12-04-2024
SETHOS;
He could feel her eyes on him. It was unnerving. She refused to give him any breathing space, her catty remarks cutting into his skin. *Gave up your life as a sellout?* she questioned, his ears tilting back against his golden crown as he turned to face her. Orange eyes burned into her matching pair as his face was unreadable, expression just as neutral as she tried to make her voice.
But he saw it — that little glimmer in her eyes. It was brief, and extinguished just as quickly as it appeared, but it was telling enough to him. It was all he needed to let the tense muscles in his shoulders to relax. Their words were armed as swords in a battle of wits, but their blades were dull.
”We all make mistakes,” his voice was gentle, but insinuating all the same. He harboured guilt about how things had ended between them, but he refused to take all the blame. ”and I’m sorry. For all of it.” as he truly, desperately wished it had been anyone else she fought on the battlefield — anyone but his family. Despite it all, he was finding it easy, finding it freeing to just… let go. To release all the anger and resentment he held for the woman in front of him. The fractured, broken banter that currently exchanged was enough for him to relinquish it all.
*To what degree?* another question, one he found to be… pointless. His light brows knit together as he stared hard at her, the muscles in his jaw jumping as he tried to work out a way to answer. Finally, he shrugged his good shoulder with a minute shake of his head. ”It doesn’t matter now. But I…” hesitation. And then he pulled the trigger, deciding he had nothing to lose at this point and like he said, it didn’t matter now. ”but I would have loved loving you, Onyxia.” his voice was a quiet whisper by the end, his gaze dropping as a slight, hardly detectable blush warmed his cheeks.
RE: Now Kiss - Amanda - 12-04-2024
ONYXIA;
*We all make mistakes* she could agree even in the times she wished to keep up her wall and others at bay. Her head nodded in silent response as he continued, surprised by his apology soon after. She swallowed the empty air that lingered in her throat, her eyes glazing over from one of his to the next. She searched his gaze to make sure he was being genuine, taking note that his brows didn’t even flinch.
She knew he wouldn’t have said it if he didn’t mean it and while he was many things, Sethos did have a warm, beating heart. Slowly she inhaled the cool air which pained her ribs a bit, a soft ghost of a smile tugged against dark lips. ”I am too,” her pride was set aside as she released all of her pent up anger and frustrations, the growth over the course of the years began to shine through her cracks of armor. “It hurt me that you thought I could be so vile,” she admitted to him with her gaze still lingering in his bright eyes. “I can be many things. Angry, stubborn, unreasonable sometimes, but a murderer.” She shook her head at him with that closing statement knowing he could very well make up the rest
Something in the air seems to shift between them, the way his body relaxed and his eyes softened. *‘It doesn’t matter now…but I,* the hesitation made him grow silent, but not for long.
*but I would have loved loving you, Onyxia.*
She could feel the heat swell in her chest and the admittance was something she did, in fact, want to hear from him. When she got it, however, it stirred a feeling in her that proved that she could have very well seen herself loving him too. Her mind floated back to Ruel and the love story they shared. How he made her feel warm, secure, safe. He protected her with all his might and went above and beyond to give her a home she never had. He gave her a family, but in the end, work was the motive in his life. She couldn’t find herself to break the barrier between his life’s work and duties solely for her. Onyxia missed him, there was no doubt, but she was feeling her fire dim. Sethos was not Ruel, not even remotely close, but each of them had a different kind of hand to offer.
Her breath was shaky as she exhaled, her eyes warm with the threat of tears. She loved Ruel, he was the father of her children, but she could not deny the feeling of drifting away. ”I’m not the Onyxia you knew before, Sethos.” her brows knit together though her expression remained soft. “I’m different, my situation is….different. I have daughters, and two sons. I have responsibilities that go beyond me now,” she drew silent for a moment before she asked her closing question.
”Could you still see yourself loving me?”