[December Catch-All] In the lane, snow is glistening...

[itstillhurt]

Who: Azula and maybe you?
Which: Open log plus closed prompts
Where: Around Songerein
What: An open log for December!
Warnings: None in the toplevels, will warn for anything in threads or if I add a warnable toplevel.

(OOC Note: If you have something else in mind or want to discuss a closed prompt, feel free to hit me up on my plotting post, on the game discord, or on plurk at yonfellow )

Comments

[lemoncandy]

Right?? When I first got to see a movie, I was surprised! They started to get even better looking than this, too.

( Insane, isn't it. Shealtiel looks suitably relaxed by Azula's added on comments, though, and switches the tv off from the credits, relaxing back. The snow has piled up considerably outside. Getting back to Azula's place would be more than a little annoying. Maybe even impossible to open the door, right now... )

...That was fun.

[itstillhurt]

[She follows his glance toward the now-blocked door, and- it's difficult to read his expression- he doesn't seem displeased, and he's normally very easy to read, so she supposes she can take that at face value...]

Perhaps we could watch more in the future.

[There. Relatively noncommittal. Safe. And... well, the idea wasn't wholly unappealing, after all.]

... Meanwhile, I trust you have a preferred place for me to sleep.

[She'd offered it to him when he arrived, after all, she seems to expect the favor to be returned.]

[lemoncandy]

Yeah, let's.

( But as for the sleeping arrangements... He pauses, considering. He doesn't like sleeping on the floor, and the couch is hardly better. If it were Luci, he'd tell him to kick sand and go find his own spot. But somehow, it's different with Azula. )

...You could use my bed, I guess? Unless you'd prefer the couch.

[itstillhurt]

[Ordinarily, she would immediately demand the bed- she's royalty and a guest, after all, she deserves the nicest place to sleep- but somehow, the thought of evicting Shealtiel in particular from his own bed bothers her.

She waves it off dismissively.]

Please. The couch will be more than adequate. Just get me some sort of blanket and I'll be fine.

[lemoncandy]

You're sure?

( Her reaction feels exactly why he'd offer his bed in the first place. He doesn't catch himself smiling. )

I've got some extra comforters laying around. Want me to grab them now?

[itstillhurt]

As opposed to fetching them after we've gone to sleep?

[Okay, probably a little more harsh than was strictly necessary.

...another of those annoying realizations that wouldn't have bothered her until recently. Ugh.]

I could retrieve one myself, but you'll have to tell me where it is.

[lemoncandy]

( He laughs a little, standing up. )

No, I just wasn't sure how soon you wanted to go to bed. Hold on.

( Then, he slips out of the room. The rustling and occasional muffled commentary to himself says that he's working on the task, and it's thankfully not too long before he reappears, the bundles of comforters and pillows overtaking his face. )

Here you go! ( It's muffled. He might topple. )

1/2

[itstillhurt]

[...That... actually provokes a bit of a laugh, and she considers giving him a nudge to see if he actually falls over. She resists the temptation, instead simply relieving him of the burden by taking the blankets and pillows herself.]

It will do. Thank you.

[-"It's fine, thank you." It's barely an acknowledgement, insincere, dismissive, minimizing. Barely better than the sarcasm she'd offered moments before.

-She staggers back from the sink against the bathroom wall, and her fingers squeeze the glass until it starts to crack in her hand.

-"Why are you acting like you care?"

The intrusive memory makes her pause for a moment, but oddly, it's not as... unbalancing as she expects it to be. There's no rush of tension, no weight in her stomach. She wasn't sure what the sensation that it evoked instead was, exactly. It wasn't... unpleasant, but-]

2/2

[itstillhurt]

[-Whatever. She hastily busies herself setting out the blankets and pillows on the couch.]

You needn't go to sleep just because I am. The light won't bother me.

[That wasn't actually true, but somehow she felt the impulse to... minimize her intrusion, if possible.]

[lemoncandy]

Haha, it's not because of you, don't worry.

( Shealtiel pauses as he shifts, then shoots a glance back at Azula, his hand lingering by the light switch. )

Actually, it's been a long time since I've felt comfortable like this. I haven't been able to get a lot of sleep lately, but I'm actually feeling tired.

( That's... sharing more than he normally does, and he's suddenly embarrassed by it, so he flicks the lights off. He does at least make sure Azula is settled first. )

Good night!

1/3

[itstillhurt]

Yes, yes, you as well.

[She waves it off dismissively and lies down. She can't help but suspect it's because of her anyway, but she opts not to push. Instead, she gets reasonably comfortable and drifts off. It's faster than she's fallen asleep in a long time. She's not sure why.]

2/3

[itstillhurt]

[Unfortunately it doesn't take long for the peace to end.

The dream starts off reasonably enough, waking up in the morning and resorting to Shealtiel's abysmal food selection- but then he approaches her. Close. Uncomfortably close. Closer than they ever stand during casual conversation. And just as she's sorting out the odd proximity, the confusing thoughts it provokes, just as she's wondering if there's something she's supposed to do, a grotesque horizontal maw opens from his forehead to his waist and he lunges at her with an inhuman screech.]

3/3

[itstillhurt]

[She doesn't cry out, but she does lash out with a blade of fire as she startles awake- less than an hour after falling asleep.

It takes her a few moments to realize where she is, during which she hyperventilates, entire body tensed so tightly that it hurts, waiting for her heartrate to normalize. It was a dream. It was just a dream. It was just a dream.]

[lemoncandy]

Azula?

( Shealtiel calls out after just a moment. He'd heard the rustle of cloth, the woosh of fire, and something about it had stirred him from his slumber. Now, his hand on the wall, peering into the room from the next one over, he stares worriedly at Azula.

She's sitting up? He moves, then, entering the room properly to get to her side. He doesn't remember to turn the light on. )

Are you okay?

[itstillhurt]

[Shealtiel's voice snaps her out of her panic for a moment, and she flushes with shame. A stupid, ridiculous dream. Like so many others. Over a... a recorded play?

The self-castigations pull her into another momentary distraction, and so Shealtiel's sudden appearance in the darkness makes her flinch with a hiss of terror, arms coming up defensively, grasping his shoulders as if to hold him away.

And then she remembers herself. Remembers who, exactly, she's grabbing. Her hands shake, and she lets them fall from him, averting her eyes.]

I- I'll replace the blanket.

[lemoncandy]

I don't care about the blanket, I care about you!

( His words come out before he can even think about them or second guess them. Seeing her afraid of him was painful, and it makes his gut twist even more in worry. )

Was it a nightmare?

( It must have been. He gets them so often, himself... )

I knew this stupid couch wasn't comfortable enough.

[itstillhurt]

[Ugh. Reduced to this, in front of him, by some stupid dream. The humiliation is unbearable.]

It's not the couch. It's fine. I'm fine.

[She looks toward him again, trying to project her usual cold indifference, but it completely fails. At least the longer she looks at him, the more she reassures herself that his face won't erupt into a horrible row of needle-like teeth again, but she can feel that her composure is completely failing her, her hands still trembling, her expression still vulnerable. Still weak. When did she become so-]

I spent two of the last five months sleeping on the ground.

[...not that she'd had pleasant dreams then, either, but then, she's been having almost nightmares for as long as she can remember. So why did this one... affect her like this?]

[lemoncandy]

...

( Okay. So it wasn't the sleeping arrangements. Then...

He thinks back to the movie they watched, and pulls one of his hands back to his lips as he contemplates the possibility. Could it be...? )

Was it... the movie?

( He guesses it probably wasn't the most normal first thing to watch. Oops. )

I mean, whatever it was, it's fine now, right?

[itstillhurt]

Don't be absurd. What sort of insufferable weakling would be traumatized by a made-up story?

[Aaaaand she says that a little too quickly and sharply to be normal.]

It's nothing. You don't need to concern yourself.

[... How many times had she told him that since they met? He never listened. Sentimental fool.

She eyes him again. No horrible mouth splits his face open. If he wanted to hurt her, he'd had countless occasions. It was safe. He was safe.

He was...

"You'll never deserve him. Never"]

... thank you.

[lemoncandy]

I'll take the thank you.

( But not that other part, he means. The smile on his face is genuine, light, and as he moves to stand up, his other hand lingers at her shoulder for a moment. He pulls it back once he's upright, and after a couple of seconds of standing there semi-awkwardly, smiling, he realizes what he's doing and laughs sheepishly. )

A-anyway, are you going to try to get some more sleep? It looks like we're still snowed in.

[itstillhurt]

[There's an odd feeling as he pulls his hand away. She can't quite name it, but- well, it doesn't matter. Best ignored.]

Yes, I think that's probably for the best.

[Hrmph. She stares out the window at the snow, if only because the unabashed concern on his face is... difficult to contend with.]

If I start making noise in my sleep again, just ignore it this time.

[Yes that's reasonable. Definitely.]

[lemoncandy]

No matter how many times you tell me to, I'm not going to ignore you.

( That's his answer, and he's a little embarrassed by it, but he pushes through anyway. Someone has to! He has to. He thinks. )

Unless it's snoring. I'll ignore snoring. If it's quiet enough.

( Playfully. )

[itstillhurt]

I am a Princess of the Fire Nation, I do not snore.

[She says it with imperious indignation, but there's a clear hint of amusement in her voice. And she feels... relaxed again, for reasons she can't explain. She even finds herself smiling.

Well, it's only rational. It was just a stupid dream. It was unreasonable for her to be so bothered by it to begin with.]

Goodnight, Shealtiel.