She was lifted up, feeling his hands hold her steady, and let out a soft, contented purr of her own. She had the sudden and overwhelming want to be closer. She shifted her legs, which were regaining some strength after being turned to liquid, and wrapped them around Thren's hips, tightening her arms and pulling herself closer so that she was lifted entirely off the crate and against him. She was stronger than she looked, especially in the legs, and she glided her tongue slowly into his mouth in a deep, but not demanding sweep as she pressed herself more against him. She held herself up as much as she could, trying not to put too much of a demand on him.
Viara was suddenly pulling against him, clambering up onto him in a tight embrace. He spread his feet firmly against the floor, distributing their weight against his weary legs. He chuckled into her mouth, squeezed his arms around her. Thren's hand fisted at the back of her tunic.
"Mm." Vi usually never questioned such impulses; they spoke of needs or wants that she didn't want to think about, and so she indulged herself. At the squeeze, her heart and stomach swelled together and she sighed, squeezing back as best she could. Something in her kiss turned grateful and softer at the sensation. "I think this is my favorite storage now."
"Mmm." Thren tipped forward playfully, squeezing tighter not to upend her. "Really? I've not spent much time in storage, but if they are all this congenial..." He was already slipping past her lips, as if he'd never parted from her in the first place.
Viara giggled playfully as he dipped her backwards, her legs shifting against him in accommodation to the movement. "It's a new development." She murmured against his mouth, the end of the sentence trailing off as she kissed him for a long moment. "At least for me."
"You mean you never?" He lifted her back up, bracing her lower back with his forearm.
"Never anywhere on the boat." She dropped a kiss on his nose with a smile.
She'd hinted at it the other night, but hearing it explicitly in a strange afterglow, it bowled him. He wanted to ask her, but wondered if it was an invasion of her privacy. Which, he noted wryly, was absurd. He was holding her, his pants pooled at his ankles, hers abandoned. "That... seems odd to me."
"I suppose it might, but I had my reasons." She pressed a kiss to him gently, and then sighed. She was sure he wanted an explanation; perhaps he didn't, maybe he was just making an observation - but he had professed a desire to know her. "It's... a long story." She felt herself hesitating, and she didn't want to force it; she reminded herself she wasn't obligated. If they were going to know each other, it should be on the right terms.
"If you want to tell me, I want to hear it. If not? Tell me something else, and I'm content to just hear the sound of your voice." Thren squeezed her again, bouncing her gently.
She smiled, dark eyes glinting in the dim light. She re-adjusted as he bounced her, aware that he might be tired. She tried to squeeze him more tightly, hold herself up, keep herself close. "Has anyone ever told you that you're very charming when you want to be? I don't even care if that's a line; it worked." She leaned closer. "I happen to like your voice too. And it is a long story, and I...would rather save it." She wasn't quite ready to relate her thoughts, not while they were swimming.
"Of course I'm charming, I was raised by a dwarf." Vi was light and strong, and while he was tired, he felt no desire to end this. He adjusted her against his torso, pulling her up by her thigh. "Then we'll save it." It wasn't a line, it had been an honest sentiment, but he wouldn't argue with her on the matter. Thren kissed her neck, blew at the hair off of her sweaty throat.
"Then Bob must have been raised by ogres." She shivered when he blew on her neck, causing some of the sweat to dry, raising her skin to goosebumps. She nuzzled into Thren's shoulder with a little smile, and then a long sigh of contentment. "What sorts of things would you like to hear?" The presence of time was starting to make itself known at the back of her mind and she frowned, curling her fingers.