Who: Anna of Arendelle, Agent Washington When: Memorial Day Where: Casa de Lexi/Stefan/Anna What: Drunken shenanigans Rating/Warnings: Pretty medium to high on adult content Status: Part 1 complete, part 2 to be posted later! ;)
A lot of the guests had wandered off. Headed home, maybe. Anna was sitting on the side of the hot tub with her feet dangling in. She’d been hanging out with all her friends, with Stefan and Lexi, and she’d met some great new people, too! Anna was one of those girls who felt like she needed to visit with everyone who stepped through the front door--and, when asked, to drink with them, too. So she’d had quite a bit for a girl her size tonight. The good news, though, was that she was happy. Like ninety percent of her life, Anna was still a bubbly, happy, charismatic, positive, upbeat person. Only when she was drunk, she got a whole lot more giggly. And her inhibitions were definitely lowered.
Someone moved out of the corner of her eye and Anna turned. Without really knowing who it was, she called out, “Hey! Hey you! Can you fetch me that bottle?” One elegant hand reached over and pointed a finger at a bottle of hard, apple cider that was sitting on the railing around the hot tub. Anna broke into a somewhat lopsided smile that still, somehow, managed to light up the patio.
The hour was late and Wash probably should have gone home along with several of the other guests. However, even though he hadn’t quite reached the level of sloppy drunk, he was in no condition to drive. He also had lost track of Carolina and Kanan, not that he assumed either one of them would be sober enough to drive. Carolina was a drinker, like him. Must have been a family trait Wash had been previously unaware of. Although, Carolina seemed to prefer to do her drinking in the company of others, at a bar, while Wash was as content to drink whenever and wherever the opportunity arose, alone or with company.
Kanan, on the other hand, seemed to have done a much better job at pacing himself then Wash had and at one point, Wash was pretty sure he had seen the man walking around with a soda in hand instead of a beer, as if he had designated himself as their designated driver for the night. Well, one of them had to be and considering Wash had started drinking before they’d even left the house, Kanan seemed like the better candidate. Wash wondered vaguely where the fuck he and Carolina had gotten off to. Maybe to seek out some “alone time” while they had the chance. It still amused Wash that of all the people in Orange County Carolina had chosen to have a friends with benefits relationship with, she had chosen a Jedi. Ironic, to say the least.
However, as Wash was stumbling drunkenly through Stefan’s backyard, he was far more concerned with what the fuck he had done with his boots than he was finding a ride home. That was what apps like Lyft and Uber were for. With all the amazing things one could do with one’s phone that didn’t involve actually calling someone, no one had yet come up with an app that helped you track your shoes when you took them off while drunk at a party.
He paused his search when he heard someone call out across the yard. He squinted a little and saw Anna seated with her feet in the hot tub. His eyes followed her slender hand towards the railing towards a bottle. “Yeah,” he answered as he ambled towards her, “I got it.” Somewhere between where he had been searching for his boots and arriving at the hot tub, he had picked up his own bottle of hard apple cider. He retrieved Anna’s bottle from the rail and handed it to her. “There you are,” he said and joined her on the deck. “This...was a good party. I needed this. Didja have a good time?” He smirked at her. “You look as though you had a good time.”
Anna sat up when Wash came over. Stefan hadn't mentioned how handsome his friend was, though he had mentioned how wonderful he was. Anna hadn't spent all that much time with him individually, but she'd heard the story about Carolina and Stefan's kneecap (WOW.) and knew that Wash was the one who pretty much saved Stefan from going on a killing rampage. So Wash was a good man in her book. And now that she was getting to know him better at the party? Awesome.
"Thanks!" She accepted the bottle and brought it instantly to her lips for a gulp. Her eyes never left him, though, once she realized he was still talking to her. He looked like he'd been having a good time, too, though she was a little upset that he wasn't dangling his feet in the hot tub with her. "Oh my god, I had the best time. Did you? I mean, you looked like you were having fun." She patted the deck next to her, an invitation for him to come and sit by her side. "And it's not really over yet! I mean, there's still... moonlight?" Her nose crinkled when she smiled.
Wash climbed up onto the deck and had a seat next to Anna where she had indicated. At first he folded his legs so that his feet were under him, but it didn’t take long before the hardwood of the deck became uncomfortable against his bare ankles. He wasn’t used to being out and about without his signature combat boots. His feet felt funny, and he didn’t really like it. It took a couple of moments of repositioning himself before he gave up, rolled the legs of his pants and stuck his feet into the water. That was a little better, and truth be told, the water felt damn good.
He unscrewed the cap to his own bottle and took a generous drink, steel grey eyes flickered towards her when she spoke to him. It crossed his mind that for as many times as he’d been to Stefan’s place, he and Anna had never actually met. It was as though Fate – or whatever – had purposefully kept them apart. He wondered why that would have been. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that she reminded him of Kyu a little bit. Earlier that year that would have probably caused him more pain than anything else. Now, though – especially with the current level of alcohol in his blood – it was actually kind of nice.
Anna was pretty, bouncy, bubbly and outgoing. She was a good match for Stefan, Wash thought. His brother-in-arms needed someone like that in his life to balance out all the shit he went through when he slept. In fact, Anna herself was a rare find among Orange County’s Dreamers. A genuinely happy person. Wash understood why Stefan wanted to protect her.
Wash gave her a smile, a faint, but genuine, which was rare for him. He couldn’t help it. There was something about the way her nose scrunched up when she smiled that just pulled it out of him.
“Yeah, I had a good time,” he answered her. He leaned back, bracing himself with one hand behind him. “I think I really needed this.” He laughed. “I guess the party’ll go for as long as you and Stefan want it to. Though…” he glanced around the mostly empty backyard. “Looks like a lot of people have already left.”
Anna took another gulp from her bottle as Wash sat beside her. And then she turned to sit and watch as he wattled in and put his feet in the tub, too. Anna was wearing her bathing suit; a one-piece, orange suit that enhanced her curves. She wasn't the most curvy of girls, but with the help of a form-fitting suit and a slightly padded bra, she looked pretty good. At least, that's what her friend told her when they went shopping together for bathing suits.
She grinned, eyes blinking slowly and lazily as she watched him getting more comfortable. It was nice to sit next to a handsome guy, feeling warm and silly, and dipping her feet in the hot tub. Might be even better with her whole body in, but Wash didn't seem to be dressed for that sort of thing.
"I think we all needed this tonight." She said, nudging her elbow against his, playfully. "It's their loss! There's still party here! There's hot tub and drinks! And it's totally not my bedtime yet." She paused. "Not that I have a bedtime! I just... you know. Try to get as much sleep as I can. When I'm not studying. I drink a lot of Red Bull." Anna realized she was babbling, and lifted the bottle to gulp from it.
Wash actually owned a pair of swim trunks, bought around the time of his ill fated attempt to learn how to surf. He had arrived wearing them and after having a dip or two in the hot tub throughout the day had swapped them out for his cargo pants once a beer had been spilled all over the front of them. This had probably been about the same time he’d taken off his boots. They were hanging up on the rail that surrounded the tub to dry. If Anna was so inclined to want to get into the hot tub, it wouldn’t have been a bother for Wash to change again.
He gave her a lopsided semi-drunk grin. His eyes passed over her once and noted she was still in her swim suit. He hadn’t really noticed before when he and Anna had first met, but she was cute. Her suit fit her well, accentuated what a swimsuit was supposed to. His eyes lingered a bit longer than they should have before looking back up towards her face when she spoke again.
Her babbling brought a smile to his mouth. “There’s nothing wrong with having a set bedtime, ‘yknow.” He told her matter-of-factly. “I was in the service for ten years. When we weren’t out on assignment it was lights out at the same time every night. After I got out, I had no fucking idea what to do with myself at night.”
He took a liberal pull from his bottle. “I figured it out pretty quick, though,” he glanced at her, still grinning that semi-drunk grin, “and discovered I’m more of a night owl than I thought I was. As long as there’s drink and company – and Stefan doesn’t try to throw us out – I’m good to stay for however long.”
Anna thought she'd seen him in the tub earlier. She was just trying to be a good host and hadn't climbed in until later in the day, when things seemed to be winding down a little and she didn't need to act the part of the good host. (Even though this was really more Stefan's shindig than it was hers or Lexi's. Most of the people here were Stefan's friends and coworkers. Anna pretty much got along with everyone, so it didn't bother her. She liked getting to know new people. Like Wash.
His grin was amazing. She sort of gazed at him in return, giving a deep breath that wasn't quite a sigh. It was more happy than anything else. Satisfied. Pleased. She lifted her bottle to gulp from it again, giving a stronger pull than she might have if she was sober. The warm, drunk feeling made her drink a little heavier, which could probably lead to disaster. But she felt safe with Wash. He wouldn't let her get falling down drunk, right?
"Stefan mentioned you were in the military. And... well, it's cliche, but thank you. For your service. It's guys like you and Stefan and Peeta who work so hard and take such risks to make sure that the rest of us are... safe. And stuff." She went very pink, gulped again from the bottle to stop her babbling, then turned back to him again. "I'm glad you figured it out. It means you get to be here with me! Which is my favorite thing right now." She gave him a very happy smile, then brought her hand over to touch his arm. Just below his elbow, her hand came to rest on his forearm; a warm, soft weight, resting gently against him. "I don't think Stefan would ever throw you out. I wanted to tell you... I wanted to say thank you. He told me what happened in the bar, and... if you hadn't been there to stop him?" She shook her head a little. "I owe you for bringing him home."
There was a fine line between happily drunk and wasted. Wash had gotten very good about walking comfortably along that line and maintaining it for as long as he needed to. At that moment he was walking that line easily, feeling very warm and pleasant with the buzzing going on at the back of his head. Epsilon was thankfully quiet and Wash could pay attention to what Anna was saying.
Wash wasn’t used to being thanked for his military service. Truth be told he hadn’t become a Marine due to some patriotic need or sense of duty. He had done it to save himself. He didn’t say this to Anna, though. He didn’t like to talk about that life. He hadn’t even mentioned it to Stefan. Not yet. Wash took a gulp from his bottle to preemptively shut Epsilon up when he felt the ghost at the back of his mind start to stir.
Anna’s touch drew him back. He looked at her carefully, trying to ignore the pleasant warm feeling of her hand on him. At first he wasn’t sure what she was thanking him for. Stefan would have done the same thing for Wash had their roles been reversed. That was what friends did for one another, and after everything the two of them had been through, Stefan had become a trusted friend.
Wash gave her a small shrug. “You’re welcome,” he said. “He’s always been there for me. Just seemed like the right thing to do. I’m not gonna let him fall, Anna. I promise.”
"I hope not." Anna said, though her tone wasn't angry. Maybe just slightly fearful. She was optimistic about Wash's ability to keep Stefan in check--after all, he'd done it when it felt like no one else could--she wanted to make sure he knew how serious the consequences were. She lifted her free hand and tugged her hair off her neck, exposing the bite scar there. Sure, she could have healed it by drinking vampire blood... but drinking blood? Totally gross. She just couldn't bring herself to do it. (One time Caroline had put it in her coffee without telling her, and Anna was ticked.) So... scar. She didn't mind the scar. It wasn't dark or obvious, really. And it was a constant reminder to both of them.
"When he loses control it's... it can be pretty bad. But I know you can help him. You've already been so amazing." She said, and then turned to face Wash again. But this time there was a smile on her face. She wanted to let the whole topic go. Why were they talking about Stefan? She moved the hand from his arm and slid it up over his shoulder so she could adjust his collar. A sober Anna might not have lingered so close, or been so forward with touching him. But in that moment it felt good to be close, to touch his shirt, to--
"Ooh!" Anna brightened considerably, and her hand darted forward to wrap a finger around the chain around his neck. "What's this?"
Wash had seen for himself the consequences of Stefan losing control, or coming close to it. But a chill ran down his spine when Anna moved her hair to reveal the bite scar on her neck. Wash had a memory of Stefan telling him he’d done something, lost control around his roommates and had hurt one of them. Wash remembered talking to him about it, trying to calm him down. It had happened sometime before Wash’s own mental break and his memories were not the most reliable for that time period. He’d actually had forgotten all about it until Anna showed him the scar. He leaned in to get a better look. Sure enough, the scar was definitely from a bite, a reminder. As macabre as it may have been, sometimes they needed reminders like this.
Steel grey eyes flickered from Anna’s neck towards her face when she spoke again. He felt the rueful smile on his face, made a little crooked by the day’s drinking. “I made a promise,” he said. “So, don’t worry, alright?”
Anna didn’t seem as though she was too worried. At least not at that moment. She was smiling at him. Wash thought she had a nice smile. It was sweet and genuine. Wash liked the way it brightened not only her face, but the space around her. Even though they had been talking about something that had frightened her and worried him, she still somehow managed to lift the mood with a simple smile. There was something to be said for that.
It was probably the alcohol, but for a moment Wash was satisfied with just sitting there, Anna’s hand on his arm, just looking at her. He was aware when her hand moved from his arm up towards his collar. His muscles tensed, just slightly, a reflexive action that only lasted a fraction of a second. Anna was Stefan’s trusted friend, and therefore Wash felt as though he could trust her as well.
He did look down when her hands caught on the chain around his neck. “Hm? Oh, these are my dog tags.” He pulled away from her just enough to tug the chain out from under his shirt for her to see. “I don’t really need to keep wearing them like this, but it’s kind of a force of habit. Besides, today it seemed kind of appropriate.”
Anna would try not to worry. Of course, she did worry--she worried a lot--but she would try, anyway. It was like she consciously worried. Was it? She wasn't in that much control over her fears, as much as she'd like to be. Living with vampires was good for some things--she wasn't afraid of intruders or whatever, but it also meant there were some fears she'd never even considered. Fear of her roommates, for example. They could kill her in an instant if they wanted to. Though she had to remain constantly vigilant, she still had trust and faith. She loved them, really. Lexi and Stefan both.
Besides, being told not to worry by such a handsome guy, with his face so close to hers? How could she not oblige? He could have asked her to do almost anything in that moment, and she probably would have. When it came to cute boys, Anna was highly suggestible.
But they moved on quickly, Anna leaning in again so she could get a look at his dog tags. Stefan didn't wear his, and she wasn't sure she'd ever seen Peeta in his, either. She reached forward to take hold of them, inspecting them carefully. "David," she read aloud. Then her nose crinkled in adorable confusion. "Where does Wash come from then?"
“Wash is short for Washington,” Wash explained. “It was my callsign - that is, what my squadmates called me while I was in the service.” Not every branch of the military used callsigns. In fact callsigns were usually reserved for the Air Force. But his squad, the men and women who more often than not found themselves behind enemy lines conducting dangerous clandestine missions had relied on callsigns to communicate with each other, almost like codenames. But they were more than that. The callsigns they had given each other had served to strengthen their bond not just as a team, but as a family. They had been the first real family Wash had ever had and they had given him his name. Much like The Director had given him the same name in his Dreams.
The name David represented everything Wash had left behind when he joined the Marines. David had been a scared little kid, desperate to get out of a bad situation any way he could, willing to do anything to get away. Wash was the marine, tougher, more experienced. Using his given name felt strange, like putting on an old suit that didn’t quite fit him anymore. Even though Wash carried the same baggage and scars from his youth, and had even added to both, he had stopped being David a long time ago.
“I got Washington because that’s where I’m from originally.” He explained, “I was the only member of my squad from the Pacific Northwest. Everyone else had similar callsigns: York, Wyoming, Maine, North and South….I guess Carolina started it, but I don’t really know. I was the rookie, the last person to join the squad.” He smiled a little wistfully as he thought back to those early days. How close they all had been. His smile took on a look of sadness. Everything had changed when he’d gotten hurt. Where were York and the others now? Where they even alive? Or were they all dead...like they were in his Dreams?
Wash’s eyes flickered up towards Anna. She was studying his dog tags. Up close, Wash decided Anna was more than simply cute. She was very pretty. Wash pushed his feelings of sadness and longing for his old squad deep within him where he didn’t have to think about them. He raised a hand to Anna’s cheek, lifting her head up to look at him. He only realized what it was he was doing when his lips met hers.
Anna could understand about the callsign. She nodded, eyes back on the dog tags still held in her delicate fingers. While her gaze wandered over the name and the numbers on the tags, she thought about all the questions she wanted to ask. Did he prefer Wash, or should she start calling him something else? How long had he had the new name? How did the callsign make him feel? It wasn't until he finished speaking that she realized how close they'd become. She could feel his shoulder against hers, the warmth radiating from his body. He lifted her face and her eyes met his. There was an intensity there that was endearing, intriguing, and a little unsettling. But Anna didn't have time to comment on any of it, because he was leaning in to kiss her.
In that split second before their lips met, Anna was terrified that she wouldn't remember how to kiss someone. It felt like it'd been such a long time since she'd been kissed, that she might not remember how to do it properly. And the last thing in the world she wanted was to mess this up. Anna found she liked Wash a lot--his eyes, his smile, the way he smelled, the warmth coming from him--and before it even started she didn't want it to end.
But Anna hadn't forgotten. She was a tender, sometimes playful kisser. Her lips met his and she sighed deeply through her nose, melting against him. The dog tags fell as she brought both hands to rest against his chest.
Somewhere under the alcohol that hazed his mind, Wash was aware that what he was doing was both presumptuous and inappropriate. He had only just met Anna and she hadn’t exactly been giving him signals that this was what she wanted. He had half expected her to pull away from him, to shove him into the hot tub and rush off to tell Stefan that his friend was a major creeper.
But she didn’t. The feel of her warm breath against his face when she sighed was enough to tell him that his move, as presumptuous as it was, wasn’t disliked. He felt her body against his, warm and inviting, telling him with a simple touch of her hands to his chest that this was ok. His heart had already started to beat quickly when he’d leaned in to kiss her and now it raced, pounding against his sternum under Anna’s delicate hands.
It had been a while since the last time Wash had kissed anyone either and he didn’t allow himself to think about what it was he was doing, just enjoy the moment for what it was. Anna kissed just as sweetly as she was, tender, playful, but a little longing just the same. Wash deepened the kiss, raising his other hand from the deck to touch the side of her face gently with his palm. His other hand fell away to her shoulder near her neck, drawing her into him.
Oh, goodness. This was so much fun! Anna couldn't remember the last time her heart had raced like this, her lips tingled this way. She grinned between kisses, nuzzling her nose against his. She'd pull back just enough that he'd have to chase her down for the next kiss. When he pulled her in closer, she gave a gentle, high- pitched whimper of pleasure, then parted her lips to the kiss. Her arms wrapped around him as she tried to get closer. Kissing was fun, making out was better. So long as they didn't lose balance and fall into the hot tub.
Somehow Wash had even forgotten the hot tub was there. He was lost in the heat of Anna’s mouth and the feel of her body against his. The way she felt, the way she smelled, it was giving him an entirely different sort of high. She pulled away and he chased after her, pulling her back towards him with his hands, with his mouth. That pleased whimper sent a wave of arousal through him, eliciting a deeper one of his own.
The more they were tangled in this embrace the more Wash wanted her. With her arms around him, his hands ventured lower, caressing the line of her arms and the curve of her belly over her swimsuit until it came to rest for a moment on her hip, rocking her forward just a little. His heart was racing and his breaths came in short pants when he broke the kiss to look at her. Locking eyes, searching to see if there was even the slightest bit of doubt in her face. “This...is alright...right?” he asked her breathlessly. “Should we…” his eyes flickered towards the house and then back at Anna.
The more passionate the kisses, the hungrier Anna's hands became. They moved up over his chest, his shoulders, his neck. As their tongues entwined, her fingers threaded in his hair, holding his head against hers with gentle pressure. When his hand moved to her hip, she was ready to climb straight into his lap. She would have, too, if he hadn't pulled back to look into her eyes. Anna's face was pink, she was panting, but smiling brightly. Everything about today had been exciting for her, but the best part was right now. This. Wash. His mouth, his hands, his eyes. She wanted it all.
"This is great," she purred, leaning in to nuzzle her nose into his cheek. Then she stopped to whisper in his ear. "If we go into my bedroom, I won't let you go until morning."
Without waiting for a response, Anna pulled herself up to her feet and reached a hand out to him.
Wash wasted no time at all reaching up and taking her hand. There was no way he was turning down an invitation like that. Especially after such a heated make-out session had left him wanting so much more. Anna’s suggestion of going to her bedroom held that unspoken promise.
He got to his feet quickly, the quest to find his boots and the mystery of where Kanan and Carolina had gone all forgotten in lieu of this moment of passion. Hand in hand with Anna, Wash made his way towards the house. It was all he could do to keep his hands off her until they were safely inside the privacy of her bedroom. Once there any and all inhibitions that had limited him while they were on the deck vanished. He kissed her again, deeply and with heated desire. Hands that had mostly behaved themselves earlier caressed her soft body, as if trying to map out each line and dip and commit it to memory.