Who: Eden & Cyrus What: I WILL HUG YOU WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT Where: Aerodrome district When: Backdated: 5/17, shortly after this. Rating: Tame (unless you object to tackle-glomps) Status: Complete
It had been a while since Eden had seen Cyrus. He was adorable in his own shy way, often dodging her advances… quite literally if she remembered correctly. She did remember, because it had been one of the best exercises she’d had the pleasure of running through and her prize had been great.
Everyone knew that the small knight was a very physical person. She was quite free with her affections, spreading her joy and good intentions to everyone she came across, or at least attempting to do so. The girl appeared to have no concept of shame, which she didn’t mind. Let the people talk. They were perpetuating negativity in their own lives not hers. She was a bundle of sunshine, or at least she tried to be, but it was hard. It was so hard keeping up her spirits in the last few days. She hadn’t talked to much of anyone, so seeing Cyrus announce himself on the boards had been a much welcome distraction.
He had said he was over by the Aerodrome, which was good. There were plenty of places to hide and things to climb upon that would work to her advantage. Maybe she’d get it in one go, the prize that was a hug. She just had be really quiet about it...or she could just walk up to him and say hello and try to sneak it in while he wasn’t looking.
As his figure came into view, a smile split across her face where her thoughtful “strategy” frown had sat. “Nah,” she said trying to sneak around a building and catching sight him only a few feet away. Believing she had clearly gotten him by surprise this time, she bound out from her hiding place to pounce him.
Unfortunately for her, he’d known exactly who was coming to find him. It was harder to be on full alert in such a big, noisy crowd, but he’d heard her literally a moment before she was on him -- her hand brushed the edge of his shirt as he dodged out of the way.
A very odd game (but then, his fellow Ranger was a very odd woman), one they hadn’t played in months, but he remembered the steps. The funny thing was, he knew her well enough by now -- more or less -- to ignore the sunny tumble of her hair and the pretty curve of her cheek and everything else that made her a woman and just let her hug him despite his innate discomfort if she wanted to so badly but…
She seemed to enjoy the game. And he had to admit, sometimes, it could be amusing (sometimes, it could also be incredibly embarrassing, but he tried not to dwell on those times). Like now, as he danced out of the way, more fleet-footed than a large man ought to be, perhaps, with a laugh coming to his lips easily. “Careful there,” he said, offering her a bright smile even as he watched for her next move.
One would think Eden would be dejected by the fact that she’d clearly missed him, despite the feel of his fabric beneath her fingertips, but she wasn’t. She was quite amazed that he managed to sense her with all the bustling about them. There were different sounds and people constantly moving about. It was enough to make her almost feel embarrassed that he’d noticed it was her. It could have been anyone. But Eden wasn’t embarrassed.
She’d nearly windmilled into a couple passing by, but managed to catch her footing and lean back into a composed step. She wiggled her fingers at them, before turning on a heel. “It’s good to see you again, Cy.” The radiance of her smile, the joy flooding her eyes at the challenge was quite clear. There was no hiding the shift of her stance as she moved toward him again. Sometimes it looked like hugging, sometimes it looked more like a grappling maneuver. It wasn’t something she’d particularly done in cities often, but it made it harder to conduct.
The lack of open area made her have to keep many variables in mind, including the citizens milling around the way. They had to be avoided while they danced along the thoroughfare.
This time, it would be a grapple -- he might have laughed at the odd looks they were getting for practically wrestling in the middle of the street, but he had to focus or he’d lose his grip on her. She was small, but she wasn’t weak.
She was, however, light enough to lift and set firmly at arms’ length (not thinking about his hands on her waist or her rather daring sundress, nope, definitely not at all). “Good to see you too,” he said, as though he hadn’t just manhandled her. Then, a bit sheepishly, he added, “I guess you’re better at finding your way around here than I am.”
The knight felt herself restrained. It wasn't enough to hurt, but it was enough to keep her from moving for a moment. Yes, she was small, and strong, and most importantly flexible. Also, she was trained to deal with being held in such a fashion.
But then he turned her and lifted her, so that she had no footing. The way he held her up like a child made her frown at him. A moment later, her hands came to rest upon his wrists. They seemed to rest long enough for, "I hope so. This is where I grew up," before she flipped backwards and landed in a crouch, only to move toward him again. This time, she went low. One would say go for the knees, but she went for a little higher. People had a tendency to jump when they thought you were sweeping. Aiming for the thighs felt about right.
This was no way for a young woman to be conducting herself in the streets of Emillion. If only Eden was a young woman who cared.
He dodged -- or tried. An unexpectedly raised cobblestone caught his heel, and as he teetered off-balance, she grabbed him around the knees, and down he went like a felled tree right on top of her. Admitting defeat, he laughed and rolled -- his weight was considerable, no need to flatten her in the process -- but didn’t try to kick her loose. “I hope,” he said, trying to ignore the fact that she was hugging his legs, “that being raised here means you know where I can find something to eat.”
"Oh, oof!" the ranger said as the man's weight fell on top of her. He managed to roll so that she was on the top, which made life a lot easier. While she was resilient and not made of porcelain, the size difference was quite considerable. But she'd managed to get a hold of him. She rolled to sit triumphantly on his stomach. "Uh... good place to eat." She said as if they weren't doing this in the middle of the street.
Eden rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Well, there are a couple of places we could go. I mean, what are you in the mood for?"
He looked up at her and told her, “Standing?” It didn’t hurt to try. He could probably dislodge her, but then they really would be wrestling in the middle of the street.
He might have spent some time running with wolves, but he hadn’t been raised by them.
“And also food.” Having spent time making do in the wilderness didn’t tend to result in picky eaters.
"Oh, right," Eden said smiling down at him for a moment. While it was a wonderful view, she slipped her feet under her and stood up, before offering him a hand to help him too. He probably didn't need it, but it didn't mean she couldn't be friendly or helpful. She'd put him on the ground after all.
"But what kind of food. We've got restaurants with foods from all over. Local Emillion stuff, Ordalian stuff, Kerwonian stuff, all veggie places, all meat places, grills, bakeries, soups and salads, seafoods. I could go on. No seriously, there is food everywhere in this city. There’s a nice small place that makes sandwiches around the corner? Then there’s a pastry shop two blocks over.” Her eyes glazed over as she spoke.
He did take the hand, as ignoring it seemed like it would be rude, but mostly got up on his own and quickly released his grip on her. Dusting off his pants, he practically felt his eyes widening as she began to list seemingly endless options. Food everywhere, so why was he never able to find it when he wanted it? He really needed to get a map and start memorizing.
“I… don’t know,” he said when she’d finished (or rather, it appeared, gotten distracted by the thought of sweets). “I... like meat?” he ventured at last. “But… if you prefer pastries…”
Eden had somehow managed to catch whatever it was that Cy had said to her and blinked. "Pastries come after the sandwiches, but if you want meat, I know just the place." She slipped her arm into his and began to lead him in the opposite direction. "There's a great ice cream parlour about two doors down from the place."