Author: Simone, Posted: Wed Apr 6, 2022 9:13 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

“We would dive into hell for each other. Until the end of days. Until our final death.” She smiled at Aaya. “These are the promises we’ve made to each other.”

They spent the rest of the day talking about little things and Simone helped Aaya do her nails. “I’m not very good at this, admittedly but it looks cute on you Aaya.” The door unlocked and Simone’s face lit up as Lewis came inside. Lewis paused looking at Aaya with the same .

“You have fun today?” Lewis had fresh lilacs in his hands as he kissed Simone and gave her the flowers.

“They are always so pretty… And yes, of course.”

“I’d slit their throats if they didn’t give me the best,” Lewis said it straight-faced as he went upstairs to change out of his gear.

“See? He’s just rough around the edges,” Simone put her nose in the flowers and inhaled again making a happy noise. “The other ones aren’t wilted yet.” She got up and put the flowers in a free vase. Simone froze and looked back at Aaya. “You should…” She was blushing.

Lewis came downstairs and threw Simone over his shoulder. “Leave.” He started up the stairs with her over his shoulder and stopped. “And thanks… They’ll look good on her.”

Simone had long given up trying to fight Lewis when he did things like this. “Thank you Aaya! Come back soon!” She waved. “Please lock the door on your way out!” And they were gone as the sound of Simone getting tossed almost echoed.

Aaya continued to visit Simone when she could and after a month or two… Aaya walked in to Simone packing things up. “Oh, Aaya…” Simone didn’t quite know what to say so she hurried herself between rooms. “Lewis… bought us a new home. He said we shouldn’t tell others about it right now. We’re waiting for Kali to finish our room and kitchen but it will be soon.”

Author: FalseHope, Posted: Wed Apr 6, 2022 8:40 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

The whole time Ayaa stayed mostly quiet. The story that Simone weaved was more than a drug fueled fantasy, and Ayaa had to concede that it might be truthful. Either that, or Simone was quite the storyteller. When she finished, Ayaa had to keep her mouth shut in order not to start laughing at the fact that Lewis had just been called a sweetheart by this woman.

But, if that’s what he was to her, it was hard to argue. Ayaa took a sip of her tea, and took a cracker with cheese. “That’s quite a lot to take in. I…I’m sorry that you’ve been through so much.” It was hard to say what she said next. “Lewis must be a good match for you if you two care for each other so much.”

Ayaa never would have thought that the mad man would ever find a match, but apparently the gods had other plans. This Angela must have been crazy.

Author: Simone, Posted: Wed Apr 6, 2022 8:16 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Simone put her cup of tea down and held a conflicted look on her face. “Yes,” she took a long breath. “Let me tell you a little bit of my story.” She wasn’t detailed about it at all. “I was born roughly fifteen hundred years ago near Adeluna in a place named Auclair. My father was the king and I was his only child. A man came to covet me and he cursed me with the worst form of immortality we’ve ever seen recorded.” She closed her eyes. “He burned my whole city to the ground. He killed everyone I loved. All of my people. All because I refused to give my body to him. I was sixteen. The curse would activate upon death and reverse my age and erase my memories. I killed myself to deny him but I couldn’t stay dead. He subjected me to many things like rape and torture. He killed the family I would make along my long journey. Finally, when I upset him greatly because I would not break he tied me to a rock and sank me to the bottom of a lake after removing my womb. I stayed there for three hundred years until a duke’s servant pulled me out. I was raised to marry his son and when they realized I couldn’t have children… They hired Lewis to kill me. And he tried to kill me too. When he couldn’t… He brought me back to the tower with him.”

She seemed a bit more comfortable now as she spoke, “Lady Angela is the God of Life and Love. We ended up in her realm on accident after her string appeared on my finger. Lady Angela offered to help us by deciphering the curse on me. Lewis needed the password to unlock the ability to read it. So she sent him into my mind. We spent just over a year together physically in Raith’s tower. We fell in love but my stubbornness… My desire to see the end. I was so tired Aaya, I made Lewis promise to end it. He did. He killed the man who cursed me and released me from the curse. He killed me after fulfilling my wishes for a week including getting married. He lasted two weeks before he ended up in Lady Angela’s realm. She was more than unhappy with him for waking her up. She agreed to bring me back if he agreed to pay the price.”

She took a breath, “The price was heaven and hell. Heaven if we remain in love and hell if we fall out. We are the same person. We share the same life force. We can share every sense we have. There’s even been the case of our bodies combining into one. We call it Resonance. We can even share memories but we have our boundaries and we’ve decided we would rather wait and talk about it when we’re ready to. After all, I’ve not disclosed everything I’ve been through to Lewis yet. I’ve not yet had time to fully come to terms with what’s happened to me.”

There was a warm smile on her face, “When he woke me up… The first thing he did was make me feel loved and apologize for making me wait. Then he told me to shut up and kissed me. My body was made in his image. Angela let him have that and he chose this form. He’s a sweetheart, really.”

Author: FalseHope, Posted: Wed Apr 6, 2022 7:53 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Ayaa gave her a blank stare. The idea of hearing something as absurd as a ‘dream dive’ was a little much even for her. She had heard of some amazing drugs that altered the sense of time and space itself, and he wondered if Lewis just drugged her. His love for her was genuine, but there was no way that they experienced a year’s worth of time in mere minutes…Lewis throwing himself out of the window was probably an avoidance tactic.

“Lady Angela?” Ayaa seemed confused. He had heard that Lewis ended up associating himself with that one god, Lord Raith, but Lady Angela was an entirely separate entity. The drug theory was starting to seem more and more likely.

Yet, despite the theories swimming around in Ayaa’s head, she could believe that the two loved each other. The story of the lilacs was endearing, and even romantic from a twisted point of view.

“So…did all of that really happen, then? Your death and rebirth?” For a small girl like her, the concept of high level rebirth magic was almost impossible to comprehend. Ayaa hadn’t heard everything about Lewis and Simone…she was dealing with a lot of her own inner demons still…

Author: Simone, Posted: Wed Apr 6, 2022 7:42 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Simone looked at Aaya and started to laugh. “Everyone has always had the same response to it.” She blushed and looked at her flowers. “We used to just angrily screw around until… What we call the dream dive happened. Lewis and I got a lot closer during it. He spent what amounted to a year or more inside my head even though only a few minutes had passed in real life.” She took her time explaining it all. “After that… Lewis didn’t know how to handle our relationship. There was a moment when I got tired of him avoiding me so I sat on him while he was on the bed and demanded to know why he wouldn’t touch me. He threw himself out the window to avoid me.”

She took them back into the den once they had tea and snacks. “He ended up asking Lady Angela why he felt the way he did. She told him about his feelings and that if he didn’t hurry up I might leave him. Wrong thing to say… because he scared off the only person willing to get us food at Lord Raith’s temple. He was hurt because he thought I was leaving him. Anyways after that… He went and asked the flower lady what would be good to give me. If I remember right… It was the day that someone had tried to frame Lewis for cheating on me and younger me… Cried and locked the door. So he kicked it in and had to get me to talk to him… and he won me over with lilacs. Lilacs mean first love… So he got me lilacs every day because he liked watching me take care of them.”

She sipped on the tea and thought about it some more. “Lewis wanted to make me happy because he knew that I would die. So he did his best every day. He might not look it but Lewis is very romantic and tries hard every day for our relationship.”

Author: FalseHope, Posted: Wed Apr 6, 2022 7:21 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Ayaa stared at the four separate tea sets and then to a slightly embarrassed Simone. “I can’t believe him…” But when she gave it another few moments of thought, it started to make a little bit of sense. They had grown up without any real access to the things they wanted, so maybe it was his way of making sure that she had everything she wanted.

She could relate…

Ayaa put a kettle on to boil and started to arrange the tea set on a platter. She asked Simone for some snacks, and ended up cutting slices of cheese and crackers to add to the platter while SImone attended to her gifts. When Simone brought the vase of flowers, Ayaa couldn’t help but stare dumbfounded.

Lewis and flowers!? That was something nearly impossible to comprehend for the ex-thief.

“Since when does a feared, brooding assassin play with flowers…” She shook her head. It was like he was a completely different person.

Author: Simone, Posted: Wed Apr 6, 2022 7:05 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

“It helps us a lot. Before my death our biggest issue was communication… The version of me that Lewis was stuck with… She overreacted constantly and I don’t know how many times Lewis had to kick in my door to get me to listen.” She chuckled a bit and smiled towards Aaya. “Shockingly yes. His boundaries are something you should ask him about though. That’s one of those private things you should get from the people who own them.”

Simone nodded, “Sure, there is a bunch of tea in the kitchen.” She helped Aaya get out the teapot and teacups. They were all brand new since they never had a reason to have them before. “Lewis just got me all these… Although I couldn’t decide what set I wanted so…” She motioned to the four full sets of tea ware. “He got me all the ones I wanted.”

Climbing up she took some boxes down and started to put the gifts into them before tying some ribbons around them. “I kept the last few gift boxes that Lewis gave me so I could put things for him into them.” They were a bunch of dress boxes. “Oh!” She got excited and brought out a huge vase of lilacs. “Lewis got these this morning. He gets me new ones everyday. It’s the first thing he does when he wakes up or when he gets home from a job.”

The wife put her nose to the flowers and took their scent in. “This is my favorite thing he does.” She was sure that it would blow Aaya’s mind that Lewis went so far. “He does the peonies in the den too.”

Author: FalseHope, Posted: Wed Apr 6, 2022 6:40 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Ayaa was careful not to give anything else away about her other form and previous profession as she and Simone went through the rest of the smithy looking for items.

“It’s quite impressive really how you two can communicate so easily,” Ayaa said honestly. She may have had issues with Lewis in the past, but someone like her might be good for him. Ayaa certainly couldn’t do anything about his headstrong value of ‘the end justifies the means.’

It didn’t take long after purchasing the few items for the two to return to the townhouse. “Lewis has boundaries?” she asked, rolling her eyes. “Could have fooled me,” she muttered under her breath. “He will probably love the lingerie…” Again, the image of Lewis and Simone being intimate flashed through her mind, and she gagged a little.

It wasn’t that Lewis was a man, but more that it was Lewis. The assassin was a vile creature hellbent on getting his way…and that was just far too much to handle for Ayaa.

Not to mention that, despite it all, Ayaa felt as though Lewis was a brother to her.

“Would it be okay to make some tea? I’ll serve it,” Ayaa looked at Simone hopefully. She hoped that Lewis wouldn’t show up.

Author: Simone, Posted: Wed Apr 6, 2022 6:10 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Simone looked at Aaya and rubbed the back of her neck. “Lewis and I can share experiences. So whatever he knows I can learn pretty easily. The same is true for anything I know with Lewis.” There wasn’t a better way to explain it. “Plus, Lewis wanted to make sure I could defend myself just a bit…” She watched Aaya catch the dagger and clapped a bit. “Oh…” She was impressed but then she knocked the man out with a quick movement. “There we go.”

Picking out a few more daggers and even a bow she pulled out a coin pouch and paid for it. “I think these are a good set of gifts for Lewis. He’s always buying me things. But… He normally doesn’t let me leave by myself so I can’t surprise him often.” Simone explained as she collected the new wares. “He gets twitchy when I’m out of his sight. Worried more so. He’s been like that since we first met. I’m sure it was for different reasons but… the one time I got hurt he chastised Dala for letting me get hurt.”

Aaya and Simone walked back to the small townhouse and Simone stopped to look at it for a while. “This isn’t a bad home. Lewis thinks it's too small but I’m just so glad we’re able to be together. So please be patient with him Aaya. I know he’s a bit rough around the edges but he’s a good man… At least if you don’t cross his boundaries,” Simone laughed a bit as she opened up the door so they could put things away.

“Do you really think he will like the lingerie?”

Author: FalseHope, Posted: Mon May 31, 2021 8:16 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

The next hour or so was a blur of Ayaa more or less using Simone as her own personal model. It was fun, and a great stress relief for the poor ex-thief. And Simone even seemed to be enjoying herself, even if she did assume that everything was too much for her ‘plain’ self.

It wasn’t long after the last dress that Ayaa picked up her own new dresses, and led Simone up to get them paid for. Once again, the entire purchase was put under Raile’s name.

“Oh he won’t mind. This is chump change in comparison to what he has to pay for when Ve-” Ayaa paused. “Nevermind. Let’s just say he won’t mind. Think of it as a housewarming gift.” When Simone asked if they could go to a smithy, Ayaa was more than happy to agree. The fact that Simone was willing to continue their little date was a good sign. It meant that Simone was beginning to relax and was enjoying herself.

At least, Ayaa hoped Simone was enjoying herself.

The smithy wasn’t hard to navigate to. Jayou had two smithies. One was the original, and the other was opened up by Kalina when the talon family moved to Jayou. It was less than a year before the second smithy was ‘integrated’ into the first…so while in name there were two smithy’s, there was truly only one.

The one they entered was not Kali’s, though she tended to stop by and make a lot of the products that were sold. Today, though, it seemed she was at the other smith. “What a shame… I was going to ask her if…” Ayaa sighed, and waved the thought away. Simone got to looking for a set of daggers, and soon after there was a disturbance.

Ayaa saw it coming a mile away, but chose to ignore it. Being an ex-thief herself, she had no real reason to call one out. However, Simone seemed to take offense to the burglary happening, and with amazing reflexes, threw the dagger at the thief. The blade embedded itself mere inches away from the thief’s face, and the man dropped down, eyes wide with shock.

“Wow…that was…” Ayaa stared at Simone. That was almost as good as Lewis. Has he been teaching her? He walked over to Simone and smirked. “Where did you end up learning that?” The thief scrambled up, panicking. Without thinking, he yanked the dagger out of the wall, and threw it back at Simone, trying to use it as a distraction.

Out of reflex, Ayaa caught the dagger with ease. “Oh…look at that. I must have gotten lucky…”

Author: Simone, Posted: Mon May 31, 2021 7:54 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Simone was shocked at the dress and she was looking it over with uncertainty. “Okay, I’ll try it on.” She felt like Ayaa’s personal doll as they spent a few hours trying on dresses. Simone practically had a whole new wardrobe by the time she was done. “Hopefully Raile doesn’t mind too much…” She had a sheepish smile. It wasn’t like Lewis couldn’t afford it but Ayaa was persistent.

“Do you think we can go to the smithy? I want to get a present for Lewis since he’s been good all day. He hasn’t turned on his nose into our business since he knows I’m okay. That’s a good step,” she smiled.

They browsed for a while before she found a nice pair of daggers with azure handles. It was the deepest blue that looked very familiar. She felt the weight and compared it to Lewis’s from his memories. That was when she noticed… Something or someone. She was quick on the draw as she launched the dagger dropping a man to the ground. The dagger was embedded in the wall.

“HEY BE CAREFU–” The shopkeeper noticed the man who was about to piss himself. “Thief!”

“I caught him for you,” Simone smirked a bit. “I’ll pay for the daggers of course.”

Author: FalseHope, Posted: Mon May 31, 2021 7:47 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Listening to the way Simone described the tattoo was almost alarming for Ayaa. The way she so nonchalantly talked about this bond made it seem like there wasn’t as much thought put into it as there should have been. She wasn’t sure about Simone, but Lewis was young. Was he capable of loving someone like this for the rest of his days? Still, it wasn’t her place to question it. All Ayaa could do now was support Simone.

Lewis could deal on his own.

As promised, Ayaa took care of the bill. Though, in her own unique way. “Throw it on Raile Talon’s tab.” It was like a magic spell, and the clerk bagged everything up without question.

“Oh! Yes! There was a new sundress there that I wanted to look at.” Ayaa didn’t have a large variety of things to wear. For the most part, she tried to go with the basic things, something casual that wouldn’t cause her to stand out. Simone, however, deserved to stand out. She spent her entire life thinking she was plain when she was far from it.

Ayaa took Simone’s hand, and practically dragged her towards the shop. “Let’s do it! There are so many dresses that I would NEVER try on myself…but you would look AMAZING in.” The young girl seemed to be really excited by the prospect of getting Simone dressed up.

As they entered the store, the first thing Ayaa did was head for the lowest cut, most scandalous dress she could find. “This. This is for you…”

Author: Simone, Posted: Mon May 31, 2021 7:37 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Simone laughed a bit and waved her hand, “I’m sorry Ayaa. I didn’t think you would care.” Ayaa helped her change out and she thought about the best way to answer it. “It hurts when Lewis is away. He had his longer than I have had mine so he is already healed. At least I wasn’t alive when Lewis applied it… Lewis had to sit for his.”

She batted her eyes at Ayaa and thought about it, “It’s what links the two of us. The price of Lewis bringing me back. A promise. Even if we were to grow to hate each other… We’ll always have each other. Whether it be heaven or hell there’s no escape.”

Simone didn’t see it as a bad thing and the way she spoke about it didn’t carry that tune either. She was simply repeating the words told to Lewis. “It’s more annoying than anything… I’ve been through a lot and this doesn’t really hurt… Not compared to other things.” She physically shivered and picked up the lingerie to look at others.

“That is a good idea Ayaa… Let’s get a few more.” Once Simone had her fill she carried the boxes out and looked over at her companion. “Where to now? There was a cute dress shop not too far.”

Author: FalseHope, Posted: Mon May 31, 2021 7:29 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Ayaa was a little surprised that there was little pushback for her trying on the new outfits. Sure, she didn’t think they worked for her, but she was more than willing to try. The girl sat back and watched as Simone changed. Though, ‘watch’ was not entirely accurate. Ayaa glanced away for most of it, still a little embarrassed herself at the woman changing before her.

Still, once Simone had changed into the outfits, Ayaa nodded with her approval. “And you think you’re plain,” the girl jibbed. “He’ll faint when he sees you. In a good way.” At the mention of her clothes getting ‘ripped’, Ayaa pretended to gag. “Ew…I don’t need to imagine that. It doesn’t matter to me what you do with them. I just want you to be happy.” The next few sets also got Ayaa’s approval, and when asked, she gave a thumbs up.

“Everything looks great on you. You could probably wear a potato sack and look good, Simone. You’re really blessed with good looks.” The girl glanced to the side. “And a chest…”

“Come here, then,” Ayaa said as she helped Simone get out of the dress. Now that she was closer, Ayaa could see the tattoo, including the intricate details of it. “Does…it hurt?” Even with her inexperience with magic, she could feel the power radiating off of it. She was half tempted to touch it.

“Anyway, let’s get these bought. We have your sizes now…so we can get a few other things on the way out. If you’re gonna rip clothes, might as well get a few extra things to spice up the wardrobe.”

Author: Simone, Posted: Mon May 31, 2021 7:21 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

“Oh,” Simone was looking it over and she was relatively speechless. Then again it wasn’t for her. She was training herself to cut the connection herself. She wanted it to be a surprise. After picking out a few more things Simone went to go try them on. She was fussing at herself. Her plain features weren’t so plain in the right attire.

Ayaa sat in the changing room with her so she didn’t have to leave. “This is embarrassing…” She turned to look at herself in the mirror. It was brand on her shoulder was still red and tender in some places with mild burns. It was slowly healing and with that, the tattoo glowed brighter. It was a bright azure where the brand was healed.

“I guess we’ll never know what ones he’ll like until he sees them… He’s got this habit of getting excited though,” she looked at Ayaa. “Just… be prepared for me to tell you they are ripped. Certain things just make him… More excited than normal.” Simone welcomed it and it wasn’t like she didn’t rip his clothes too. “Does everything look good?” She asked after she tried on everything.

She made a nice lightly before reaching to rub at the brand, “Still sore. Can you help me change back?"

Author: FalseHope, Posted: Mon May 31, 2021 7:09 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Ayaa had only ever been in this particular shop once. At the time, she had been far too embarrassed to look around, and had immediately turned tail and ran. This time, though, she was there for someone else. She took a look at Simone, who had said earlier that she lacked the ‘assets’ for this.

“You’re one to talk,” Ayaa said, glaring at Simone’s chest. She definitely had a bigger bust size than Ayaa. “Besides…I think he’ll like just about anything on you.” Which was a shock for Ayaa to admit. Had it been a few years ago, Ayaa would have guessed that Lewis had little to no interest in anyone or anything.

The girl wandered down one of the isles, pulling Simone along. “Here…let’s try…” She picked out a rather racy corset, dyed a ruby red. Along with that, a pair of red lace panties. “Now…for something else…” She pulled the poor housewife along, and picked out a black, see-through nightgown with ‘easy access.’ “Anything that you want to try?” Ayaa was pushing a bit to see what else Simone would like.

“C’mon…my treat. Money isn’t an issue.”

Author: Simone, Posted: Mon May 31, 2021 6:49 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Simone giggled at Ayaa and gave her a smirk, “He’s minding his own business, for now.”

The housewife walked next to Ayaa and checked out storefronts as they walked. “Jayou is a wonderful city.” I’m almost gonna be sad if we leave. It was that feeling of familiarity but wherever they went she would adjust.

The comment on lingerie got a blush out of Simone as her gray eyes got large and looked Ayaa over. “I don’t know if I really have assets for that Ayaa…” Though… Lewis would like it. “But Lewis would adore it.”

Once they got to the lingerie shop Simone seemed to be fussing over everything. She didn’t know where to start. She never exactly had the freedom for such things and when she was in the castle she… would have never even dared to dream of it. “I don’t even know where to start. There’s leather and there’s lace…” She put her hand to her lips as she thought about it. “Lewis doesn’t prefer one over the other. He actually has no clue what he would like more.” She was digging into Lewis’s mind. “Simone is Simone.”

She blinked a bit and chuckled. “Of course. Well… Ayaa where should I start?”

Author: FalseHope, Posted: Sat May 29, 2021 5:16 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Ayaa gave Simone a curious look when she started to talk. Despite the fact that it was only her and Ayaa, Simone seemed to be talking to a third person.

“Oh…is that Lewis?” It was weird, but it made sense. Simone was connected to Lewis at all times. Did that mean that Simone knew that Lewis asked her to be friends? Or was Lewis able to control it? The whole thing was way above Ayaa’s head, and in the end it really didn’t matter. What did matter was that Lewis could hear anything that Ayaa said to Simone.

The girl crossed her arms, and huffed. “Excuse me, Lewis…this is a girl’s date. Keep your business to yourself and what not. Simone will see you when you get home. For now, she’s mine.” As Simone readied herself, Ayaa took Simone’s hand and pulled her along confidently. “C’mon, Simone. I’m gonna get you something that’ll just BLOW Lewis’ tiny little mind…”

It was weird. For some reason, which Ayaa could not for the life of her understand, she wanted nothing more than to get Simone away from Lewis for at least the day. It wasn’t that she didn’t think they weren’t right for each other. More…she wanted to show Simone that there was more than just her life with Lewis. There were things to do, places to see, and people to meet! Ayaa wanted to see Simone happy. That was what it came down to.

“First stop…lingerie. It’s two blocks down.” Ayaa, of course, had absolutely NO idea what to do with lingerie. In fact, Ayaa was as innocent, if not more innocent, than Simone was. Yet, she wanted to show Simone off. Sure, it would be only to Lewis, but maybe it would give the poor woman some much needed confidence.

Author: Simone, Posted: Sat May 29, 2021 4:56 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

“I understand completely. My family was my everything and they got stolen from me.” She frowned a bit. “I have Lewis now and he’s all I need.” Her only family. “Someday you might encounter someone like Lew and when you do hold onto them tightly. Our meeting was unconventional… but I don’t regret it. I just regret how long it took.”

Simone patted her on the head and smirked, “You don’t need to apologize to me. Everyone has their own struggles. We just don’t always show it.”

She blinked a bit and then looked alarmed.

Want me to kill her? I can kill her?!

No! NO NO NO! Simone was suddenly laughing. “She called my clothes plain not me.” It took her a moment to realize she said it out loud and blushed as she put her hand to her lips. Looking down at her clothes she nodded. “I do suppose it can’t hurt. I was always raised in the castle so I got plain-looking clothes a lot so as not to attract attention. I’m just used to it. So change is good.”

Simone grabbed a pouch and daftly tied it to her waist. "Alright… Let's go on an adventure!"

Author: FalseHope, Posted: Sat May 29, 2021 4:46 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

“Of course!” Ayaa replied as she was asked for help. The young girl was used to helping out around the shop, so this was nothing. Besides, she loved keeping busy, as it kept her mind off of complicated things. The next few boxes felt almost weird going through. It was a mix of Simone and Lewis’ more personal things. Watching Simone get sentimental over the pictures of their wedding was quite something.

“I guess…everything happens for a reason.” Ayaa barely believed the words coming out of her mouth. Simone must have noticed, because shortly after she started to apologize about being boring. Immediately, Ayaa cheered herself back up. “Oh, no! Of course not Simone. You’re not boring at all. It’s just…” How to explain?

“I had a family…before all of this. And…now I don’t. They’re gone…” Ayaa tried to keep smiling, but she had to glance away for a moment. “Sorry. I just…need a second.” The girl lightly slapped herself on the cheeks to try and psych herself up, and then turned her attention back to Simone. “Let’s get this done and go out, right? We can get you some new clothes too….” Ayaa smirked. “You’re a really pretty girl, Simone…I’m sure we can get you into something WAY more interesting than those plain clothes. Something that Lewis might like?”

Sure, she may hate Lewis, but she actually didn’t mind Simone. At least, at the moment. Maybe this was good for both of them.

Author: Simone, Posted: Sat May 29, 2021 4:24 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

The moment that the healing magic touching Simone there were sparks of blue magic that jumped at Aaya. It didn’t hurt but it felt warm. There was a calming feeling between the two of them. “Thank you.”

Simone was a bit taken back by Aaya at first and she chuckled. “I would like that. Help me real quick with these last few boxes?” They were personal possessions of hers. Angela had gifted them a portrait from their original wedding. Lewis was looking gloomy and Simone was smiling at him. It made Simone smile. “Where should we hang this?”

To everyone, it would look like Lewis regretted his marriage but that wasn’t it. It was one of the last few days he had had with Simone. “He let me marry him since I was going to die.” She spoke up not wanting Aaya to get confused about the picture. “Lewis was arguing with himself about letting it happen. He had promised me…” She fingered Lewis’s face lovingly and smiled. “It happened for the best I think. Now we are together for the rest of our long lives. Instead of the short lives we had been given. It’s just going to take adjusting to it.”

Once they were unpacked she made a list of everything they would need for the house. Simone was meticulous and kept up to date on everything they would need. “I’m sorry Aaya. This must be so boring for you.”

Author: FalseHope, Posted: Sat May 29, 2021 4:01 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

“O-oh, sure…” Ayaa was caught off guard at how casual Simone was acting. And how casual she looked. Even Ayaa, who felt as though she were plain as day, felt more dressed up in her black, a line dress and petticoat. At least, that’s what Ayaa thought. The older she got, though, the more she noticed men staring at her. It almost made her want to shift back into Xeik, but she couldn’t. Not here.

Besides… living as Xeik was too painful.

Ayaa pushed the thoughts back and instead focused on Simone. She stepped inside at the invitation and looked around. It hadn’t even been a full day and already the town house was looking clean and tidied. Simone was a hard worker, indeed.

“Thank you, Simone,” Ayaa said as she noticed the wound on Simone’s arm. “Oh…what happened there?” Without waiting for Simone’s permission, Ayaa lightly took her arm to examine the wound. The girl was far from a specialist when it came to healing, but she knew a few basic spells and treatments. “Here…let me…” Ayaa took a look at the wound. It was a rather potent toxin that had hit her, but Lewis was right…it wasn’t anything dangerous to her. Still…

Ayaa reached into her pack and pulled out a wrap. It didn’t take her long to tend to the minor wound, and smiled. “Even if it heals quickly, it’s still better to take care of the wound.” Ayaa smiled. “I’m not here for Raile. I’m here for you, Simone. Let’s go on a date!” It was weird asking Simone, but when it came down to it, it felt almost natural for her to ask. She wondered how Simone would respond, though…

Author: Simone, Posted: Sat May 29, 2021 3:48 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Simone took her time answering the door but there was clearly someone inside the house from the shuffling of boxes. “Sorry!” The door finally opened to a pristine-looking Simone. She always looked her best. “I was cooking food. Do you want some?” She was eyeing Aaya curiously. She didn’t know much about the blonde-haired woman in front of her. Just that she helped Raile.

Taking one look at Simone and she looked like a regular everyday housewife. The way her hair was tied back, the modest clothing… She didn’t look like the wife of an assassin. “Come in.” Matter of fact, Simone looked… Plain. Her big lively stormy eyes weren’t anything spectacular unless you were Lewis who could notice the vivid blues.

“I was moving boxes and found the box with the poisons. I got my arm pretty good. Lewis is cussing at me to be careful,” Simone was keeping her sleeve down and laughed. “It’s almost healed now though. Perks of not being human anymore I guess.” She paused and looked back at Aaya, "If you are looking for Raile he isn't here. It's just me."

Author: FalseHope, Posted: Sat May 29, 2021 3:25 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

The night seemed to slip by them, and soon they all realized just how late it was. As the rest of the group started to leave, Lewis couldn’t help but overhear Leilah speaking to Ayaa. He put it in the back of his mind for the time being, and instead focused on Simone as they said their goodbyes. The moment the door shut, Lewis let out a heavy sigh.

“It wasn’t bad,” he said with a half smile. “But it was draining.” He yawned, and stretched. Without waiting for permission, he pulled Simone onto the couch, and laid his head into her lap. Staring up at her, he let out one of the rare, true smiles he had. “We have…friends? We have each other…” It was hard to really wrap his head around, but…

They spent some time like this before heading up to bed. Soon, Lewis felt Simone drift off to sleep. The assassin wasn’t tired yet, though. He looked down at his sleeping wife with a sad smile. They were one. But that meant that Simone might get lonely. Dala wasn’t anywhere near, and she had been her only real friend.

I wonder… Lewis closed his eyes, and held his breath. It was hard to do, but he could feel the resonance split. It was a bit of a struggle to maintain it, but at least on a surface level, his thoughts weren’t being sent directly to Simone. As a test… Simone? Wake up. Usually, that worked. Yet, now, Simone kept sleeping.

So I can temporarily cut the resonance. That’s…useful. Lewis smirked. He had a plan…

With the resonance still cut, LEwis got out of bed and snuck off into Jayou. It wasn’t long before he was standing over a sleeping girl with blond hair. Ayaa.

“Hey. Wake up,” Lewis said with his dull tone.

Ayaa groaned, and opened her eyes. At once, they went wide, and she almost screamed. Lewis put his hand over her mouth, and shook his head.

“Shh. I’m not here to hurt you. I want to talk about….about Simone.”

At once, Ayaa stopped struggling, and Lewis removed his hand.

“W-what about her?” Ayaa asked. Was this it? Was Lewis about to kill her over the woman?

“I…want you to be her friend. And ask her out to do something.” Lewis was dead serious.

Ayaa blinked. “…what? I…that’s…that’s not how friends work, Lewis. You can’t just make someone a friend, and-”

Lewis glared at Ayaa. “You want to change that tone?”

“Shut up and listen,” Ayaa snapped. “It’s hard for me to just ‘be’ her friend…but…I do like her,” she said after a moment. “But she seems sad. And I don’t like that…” The girl looked at Lewis with an almost knowing look. “And I know you don’t either. Despite the way you act all the time. I can’t promise anything, but…I’ll at least see if she wants to get out of the house every so often.”

The assassin thought about it for a moment. “Fine…” He turned and started for the window.

“Lewis,” Ayaa said before he left.

“What?”

“…I don’t like you. In fact. I hate everything you stand for, but…” She paused. “Even you deserve some kind of happiness though…and so does she. So…I promise I’ll try my best.”

Lewis looked back at Ayaa, almost confused. “…thanks…”

Ayaa watched as the assassin disappeared out of the window, and let out a sigh. “Oh…why the hell did I say that!?”

Night turned into morning, and Ayaa left the shop and headed towards the Terrowin residence. It was in a nice part of town, but the girl still saw children who were down and out on their luck playing in the alleys. It hurt her soul, but there wasn’t anything she could do about it. Instead, she focused on the task at hand.

“Simone?” Ayaa asked as she knocked at the door. “Are you home?” She wondered if Simone would even want to go out. Especially with her.

Author: Simone, Posted: Sat May 29, 2021 3:04 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Simone smiled towards Rhenakos, “She’s been trying to get me to call her mother. It’s been a struggle to get her to accept that my mother died a very long time ago so it’s weird for me.” She chuckled a bit. “Angela is fully invested in my happiness. Supposedly she wasn’t sleeping at night to work on the curse. Raine was almost pulling her feathers out trying to get the workaholic to rest.”

Leilah chuckled a bit, “That sounds like her. My brother is always on his toes trying to keep her in check. I won’t lie when I say my mother doesn’t have favorites. She absolutely plays favorites with some of us. My brother Lucian and his twin sister Nerezza are two of them. Lucian is currently the king of the Red Court back home and Nerezza is his adviser. Nerezza is also one of the first ones to give her a grandchild who was attached to mother’s hip. Emmy is a treasure but… she can be a little monster when she wants to be.”

They talked for the better part of the night before Simone and Lewis helped Leilah up to leave. “Thank you for coming to visit us…” It actually wasn’t all that bad… Simone rubbed Aaya’s head of hair and gave her a nice smile. “Thank you for not saying anything.” She whispered to the girl before letting her go.

“I think Simone likes you Aaya. She’s never whispered to us before,” Leilah seemed excited over that. “It’s good for her to have someone other than Lewis. Especially now since they are the same person.”

Author: Dusk, Posted: Sat May 29, 2021 10:14 AM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Raile nodded in agreement at all of Leilah’s statements. It was true that the goddess was quite the shady person when she wanted to be. For the most part, Raile’s deal was less scientific and more a “wedding” gift for him, Leilah, and Kalina. So, he more or less lucked out in the end. For Simone and Lewis though, their life had come at a cost.

Lewis shrugged at all of the information. “I was willing to go against one God for the sake of Simone. If she tries to make us disappear, I’ll simply fight back.” That was a threat all his own.

“I doubt she’ll go that far,” Raile said with a nervous laugh. “Your devotion to Simone is more than enough to keep you in her good graces. And her studies will help you in the long run. She wants this to succeed, for both medical and emotional reasons. After all, she created a life.”

Rhenakos smirked, “Does that make her your mother?”

Ayaa was still silent. They were all talking about the gods. It was a Goddess that had destroyed the guild. It was a powerful God who had swayed Lewis’ heart down the path of death. There was still an anger in her own heart over what the Gods had wrought. Lady Angela…Lord Raith…Lady Sironia. They held so much power over the world….

Author: Simone, Posted: Sat May 29, 2021 9:55 AM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Simone took Lewis’s hand and smiled at him as he spoke about the exams. “Yeah, we can put up with a few.”

Leilah was looking at Raile and nodded, “I don’t think you understand what you signed up for.” She wanted to warn them. “My mother’s new husband used to call her the Redheaded Devil. You never knew what you were getting yourself into with her. She’ll be doing examinations on you until you die because she’s never done anything like this before.”

The blood drained from Simone’s face as she looked at Lewis. “But she seems so nice.”

“My mother is very nice but she is also a scientist. It drives her. You saw what she does to Raine. Plucking out her feathers to use them. Again, my stepfather used to hate dealing with her. She is a wild card and her intentions aren’t always as pure as they seem. You can trust her if she gives you her word but… Be wary of what her end game could be for certain people. She likes to make her problems disappear.” There was darkness in her eyes. “What she does to them I’m not sure. It takes a while to actually make her that upset though. My stepfather is a… Well the best way to say it is he is a mob boss from Kurayo. No super good woman would have married a man like that. She looks the other way and he lets her do what she wants.” Leilah finally took a breath.

“We were at their wedding. He threatened everyone if someone so much as thought about ruining the wedding that he would kill us regardless of blood ties.” Kalina spoke.

“Wow, Angela is married to that scary of a man?” Simone blinked.

“They call him the Dark Kaiser for a reason.” Kalina nodded. “Our mother is a good person but even she has… quirks.”

Author: Dusk, Posted: Sat May 29, 2021 9:47 AM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Rhenakos had been the only one to catch the fact that Lewis had made a joke. Other than Simone, of course, but the fact that she was always in his head might have been a dead giveaway. Though, Lewis knew that Simone had been able to pick up the subtlety in the change of his emotion when he told the jokes. Evidently, she thought they were hysterical.

It took a moment for the rest of the room to calm down from the ‘joke’, but once they did it turned into a conversation about how the resonance worked. It was a whole new type of magic that even the Goddess of Life and Love admitted was a grand experiment. Lewis wasn’t too keen on being a lab rat, but the reality was that Lady Angela had saved them.

“We can put up with a few exams,” Lewis said as he smiled back at Simone.

Raile looked to the side. “Right…a few exams.” There was a tell in his voice, one that spoke of many tortuous examinations. The reality was, that when he asked for the blood of a rosenite, Angela subjected him to far more tests than he would ever have expected. And this was a [i[known process. The merchant couldn’t possibly grasp how much was about to happen to the poor couple sitting across from him. “You have my condolences…”

Lewis cocked his head to the side curiously when Raile said that. “…condolences?” Was this a joke as well? He wasn’t sure, and didn’t know how to take that. In the end, he assumed it had to be. Right? Lady Angela couldn’t be that bad.

Author: Simone, Posted: Fri May 28, 2021 7:55 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Simone held a deadpan look on her face until he told the joke. For a moment, she let it hit the room before she started to laugh hard. She was actually hugging herself because it hurt. Simone was the only one laughing but perhaps she was the only one who got it because she could feel it.

Leilah already was calming down. “Lewis… Since when you make jokes?”

Simone cleared her eyes of some tears and smiled at them all, “We’ve made huge strides together. We did something called a dream dive. Where Lewis met the real me. It activated our resonance…” Her eyes flickered to Rhenakos. “You noticed when we were in Auclair. Lewis has been attempting to make jokes for some time. On and off.”

She patted Lewis on the head. Kali smirked a bit. “Our little Lewis is growing up and becoming a fine ass husband.” Kali slapped Lewis on his back and Simone had the air knocked out of her too. “Oh shit… That affects you both?”

Leilah tilted her head, “I had no idea you two were struggling to adapt.”

“Is it really that obvious?”

“Yes, eventually you’ll learn how to shut certain things off.” Leilah nodded.

“Did your mother tell you that?”

“Yes, but she wasn’t sure when. This is new for her too. She’s never done something like this before.”

“So I’m a science experiment… Oh well… I was aware of that,” Simone blinked a bit and smiled at Lewis.

Author: Dusk, Posted: Fri May 28, 2021 7:39 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

It’s…weird, was all Lewis could think. The fact that so many people seemed to care about Simone’s well being. I don’t know if I like it, he said honestly. It was very overwhelming, and made Lewis feel almost claustrophobic. Yet, it was comforting all the same. He wondered if the feeling was supposed to be this way. Comforting, yet smothering.

“You all…are something else,” Lewis said. He looked around, and with a dead serious look in his eyes, said “It’s a shame I’ll have to kill you all.” The room got weirdly quiet, and Lewis looking around, almost confused. Did…did they not get the joke?

Rhenakos merely blinked, and shook his head. “….was…that…?”

Raile had already been shuffling towards the door. Meanwhile, Ayaa had put herself back into a corner, ready to defend herself if need be.

“It…was a joke,” Lewis said finally. “I made…I made a joke…”

Author: Simone, Posted: Fri May 28, 2021 7:26 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Simone smirked and laughed, “Life has a way of doing the incredible Aaya. Don’t ever forget that. Every road we take. Every painful thing we go through is going for something good. It’s just up to us to latch on and not let go.” Lewis was her something good and overwhelming love flowed through the resonance. “You can just call me Simone. You are after all a friend if you are in our house.”

Simone loved that Lewis was quick to understand her needs and wants. He understood how secretive she was.

Leilah took a sip, “Oh! The sugar in this is perfect. Thank you, Simone!”

“Ah, I was worried I didn’t put enough in,” Simone spoke as she came back in. She looked like she had never cried in the first place as she took a seat next to Lewis and snuggled into him. His arms were tight around her now as he quietly consoled her.

Osiria watched Simone and squinted her eyes a bit, “Are you alright Simone? Rhenakos told me about the trip.”

“I’m fine,” she answered a bit too quickly. “It’s done and taken care of now.”

“Simone…” Osiria frowned a bit. “It was fifteen hundr-”

“I said I’m fine,” Simone said it a bit more confidently and got it out as to cut Os off. “Besides there are worst things.”

“Hardly,” Leilah spoke up. “Don’t downplay what happened.”

“I’m not,” Simone waved her hand. She was hiding it well. “This is supposed to be a happy time.”

“Simone…” Leilah sighed a bit. “As your doctor, you are going to have to be a bit more forthcoming with information. I won’t just let you lie.”

“I don’t think I’m in the middle of any kind of session,” Simone shook her head. “And I’m currently fine.” She was choking it down and even Kali could see it.

The blacksmith reached over and pat Simone on the head which surprised Simone, “All that holding it in is going to destroy you, Simone. It’s okay.”

These people… These people actually care.

Author: FalseHope, Posted: Fri May 28, 2021 7:06 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Ayaa had absolutely no idea what to do or how to react to Simone’s distress. On the best of days, she could barely handle her own distress. Yet, somehow Simone was able to regain her composure. When she mentioned the glasses, Ayaa nodded slowly, and got them out, wiping them out of habit.

“I’m sure it will be fine,” Ayaa said, almost pretending that nothing had happened between the two. Simone seemed almost content to forget that her moment of weakness ever happened, but before Ayaa could understand what was happening, Simone kissed her on the forehead, mentioning that Ayaa should treasure her children ‘when’ she had them.

That made Ayaa blush. “I-I doubt I’ll be having children, Miss…er….Mrs. Simone.” Ayaa wasn’t a biological girl, nevermind the fact that Ayaa was very single and very well doubted she would ever find love in any form. Not like Simone and Lewis had.

Ayaa took the drinks out and distributed them. Lewis gave a distant thank you, as if he were distracted, but as Ayaa started to walk away, he grabbed her hand.

“Don’t…mention it to anyone here,” Lewis said. His eyes locked with hers. “Not a word.” It was barely a whisper, but Ayaa heard it loud and clear.

“Sooo…” Ayaa said as she looked around nervously. “How’s the juice everyone?”

Author: Simone, Posted: Fri May 28, 2021 6:52 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Leilah was surprised by Aaya’s whisper and patted Raile’s leg. He didn’t know but Leilah knew that that they would be good parents just from the way they took care of each other.

When Aaya came into the kitchen she would see Simone leaning against the window sill. Her face had fast-falling tears. “He…” She whimpered. She had asked Lewis not to come save her. She wanted a moment to mourn. It was the one thing they couldn’t save. They had never found what he took from her. “He took it from me.” The whimpers of someone who had been violated repeatedly. Something she was still dealing with.

It was a stupid moment of weakness that caused Simone to realize she was speaking. Quickly, she moved and got a cloth to wash her face, and pointed over to the cupboard. “There are glasses over there.” Her voice was normal again. She was managing to suppress the overwhelming sadness. The resonance leveled out and she was neutral again. Even her body language didn’t show a sign of how sad she was.

She was making some juice. It didn’t take her too long as she poured it into the cups. “Hopefully, it isn’t too tart.”

She paused and looked up at Aaya, “When you have children Aaya. Hold onto them tightly.” It was an off-handed comment. Like a mourning parent who was missing their child. She kissed Aaya’s forehead. “Go ahead take the drinks back.”

Author: FalseHope, Posted: Fri May 28, 2021 6:39 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Despite Ayaa’s initial reluctance to participate in the conversation, she ended up taking notice of how Simone reacted to Raile’s comment. She shot daggers at the merchant, and when she was asked to go help, walked past Raile and stepped on his foot on the way to the kitchen. “Ass,” she whispered.

Her feelings over Lewis and Simone were…complicated. Very complicated. The fight between Lewis and Xeik was one that ended with the banishment of Lewis from the guild, Heaven’s Dawn. And then, in the blink of an eye, the guild was gone and scattered. Those who had fought back were killed. Those who didn’t were trapped and sold off by nobles or unsavory parts of Hoja. In the end, it was Xeik who had survived.

And so, Xeik lived as Ayaa for the longest time. She had seen Lewis around, and even heard of his exploits, but no longer did she hold him in contempt for his methods. Sure, Ayaa still believed in them…that there had to be a way to resolve anything and everything without death, but she lacked the power to back it up. Lewis, on the other hand, had made so much progress on his own path.

Ayaa had suppressed a lot of that frustration, and it had backfired. A massive drug addiction turned into a near death experience, and in the end…

Ayaa walked into the kitchen, and with a meek tone, asking if there was anything she could do to help. It was awkward, because…she knew who Lewis was, and she sort of knew who Simone was. Ayaa had walked in on them having sex on her bed, and that was a moment. Instead of that fiery confidence though, now she looked almost despondent.

“Are you…okay?” Ayaa sked after a moment.

Author: Simone, Posted: Fri May 28, 2021 6:25 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Simone was happy that her friends were there. She got up and cleaned off one of the sofas and chairs. “You can go into the kitchen and fetch some chairs too. We should have enough. I’m afraid we weren’t expecting company.”

“You’re fine, we technically invaded you.” Kali waved her hand as she helped Leilah find a comfortable seat.

Once Raile spoke up about children the color drained from Simone’s face and she frowned. She looked away with shame. “I have to get us drinks.” She looked so defeated. It didn’t escape Leilah. Simone sulked off to the kitchen but it was obvious that she wasn’t doing much but looking out the window.

“Raile…” Leilah looked up at him shaking her head. “Simone can’t have kids.” Her voice was a whisper yet it was so loud in the room. “Mother gave me her file so we can treat her here just in case.” Leilah couldn’t do much for her and she looked over in the direction of the kitchen. “Aaya… Will you go help, Simone? Please?”

Author: Dusk, Posted: Fri May 28, 2021 6:01 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

This serene moment was something of a massive change for Lewis. Compared to the tower, this little house was light and homey. The sense of calm was alluring, in its own way, but Lewis knew that it was only a matter of time before he went back to the blood soaked darkness and smell of death. The juxtaposition of it all would have been more than enough for most people to experience a mental whiplash, but for Lewis, his connection with Simone would grant him some form of stability.

Or, at least, that’s what Lewis thought. The resonance itself wasn’t given much explanation by Lady Angela. She had merely given the most basic of rules, and then tossed Lewis and Simone out into the wild. From what little Lewis knew of the Goddess, it could have been some sort of test from her…but the reality was more that they were her guinea pigs in an experiment that had no known outcome.

Whatever Lewis was going to think about next was thrown out when Rhenakos started banging on the door. And, of course, Raile had a key, so he just let everyone in. Lewis merely stared with his usual deadpan expression as everyone piled into their tiny little living room, remarking on how nice everything was.

Can we leave? I’m pretty sure the window upstairs opens up to a catwalk we can jump to. Lewis was being quite serious about the suggestion, but he had a feeling that Simone would turn him down on the offer. It was, though, getting very crowded.

Ayaa glanced around nervously, sheepishly sticking to the corner closest to the door, idly playing with the hem of her white skirt. It was hard to be here, knowing everything she knew about Lewis. Especially after everything that had happened recently with her recovery…

Rhenakos sat down next to Lewis, and kicked his feet up. “Great place you have here.”

“Drop your feet before I remove them from your body,” Lewis said with a disinterested tone.

“Aw, c’mon….” the hunter complained, taking his feet off the small table. “I was just trying to relax a little.”

Raile crossed his arms and smiled as he looked around. “Not a bad set up. A little small, but I think you’ll love it here. Of course…you’ll need to upgrade for when you plan on having children.”

Author: Simone, Posted: Mon May 24, 2021 8:53 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Simone just offered a gentle smile instead of explaining it. Home was wherever Lewis was. That would never change. “Don’t worry so much about me,” Simone whacked his hand with a wooden spoon and gave a smirk. “I can take a bit of pain. It’s not like I’m holding a baby or anything.”

She kissed his forehead as he ate and watched him. She was eating bits and pieces but her appetite wasn’t what it used to be. It was something about her new body and how much food it needed. “Any time Love.” She was just glad that he liked it.

Simone leaned across the table and put her finger to his lips. “Shh… If it makes you feel better I can go see Leilah during the day. I’m sure they need help around with the new babies and Raile wouldn’t mind. I can even have Kali walk me to and from. I can protect myself but I know that wouldn’t help you feel better.”

She poured him some wine and scooted it towards him. “We can make this work. We’ve dealt with much worse recently.”

Suddenly there was pounding at the door and Simone looked up, "What the hell?"

The door unlocked and in came Raile, Leilah, Kali, Osiria, Aaya, and Rhenakos. "This house is so cute!" Leilah was looking around. "AND YOU ARE SO CLOSE NOW!"

Simone smirked a bit. "I should have known Raile had a key too. I just made dinner but there isn't much. We haven't even really unpacked all the way."

"It's alright. You guys didn't have much notice you had to move." Kali waved her hand. "If you need any work done let me know."

"Somehow I don't think we'll be here too long." Simone sighed a bit. "Lewis doesn't think the house is big enough for me." She teased softly.

Author: Dusk, Posted: Mon May 24, 2021 8:44 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

It was strange, still, having these complicated thoughts come from Simone. One, though, that was easy to understand was her love and admiration. Still, Lewis felt that Simone deserved much more than this, and that somehow he needed to make it up to her. There were ideas brewing in the back of his mind, but this wasn’t something to think about right now…

Simone more or less shooed him out of the kitchen, and moments later he heard the stove come to life. It wasn’t long before the smells of a freshly made meal started to waft through the air. Lewis’ stomach started to rumble, and he looked away from the kitchen almost sheepishly. But Simone had to have felt that…there was no way that she didn’t.

“I just wish that I could-” Lewis started, but Simone hushed him. Your home…is where I am? But that…[/i[ The assassin frowned at that thought. It was hard to grasp. From what he had understood, home was where you could always come back and feel welcome. It was a palace where you were meant to feel safe. How could…

“Ouch,” Lewis said, almost in sync with Simone. They had both flinched at the sudden burn. We feel just about everything from each other. The assassin looked down at his hands. Means I need to be more careful out on jobs. I can’t let you get hurt because of me.

“Thank you…for the food,” Lewis said as he took a bowl. The stew smelled delicious, and it was devoured in mere moments by the hungry assassin. He was already starting to look healthier now that Simone was back and practically force feeding him.

“So…” Lewis sat back as he nibbled at the bread. “I…have a few jobs that were lined up. But…” He hesitated to say it, but his mind practically screamed it at Simone due to his worry. I’m scared to leave you alone. What if you disappear? What if you leave? What if-

Author: Simone, Posted: Mon May 24, 2021 8:24 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

Simone didn’t mention much about what happened in the tower. She knew because she and Lewis were one. It wasn’t her place to say much of anything on the situation at hand. In the end, Lewis chose her and it warmed her heart. Together they had gone hand in hand to the person recommended by Angela.

They had spent time moving everything in the small townhouse and she smiled at him. It was a sad smile but still, it was there. “Lewis, stop apologizing.” She moved the cactus that Dala had gotten them to the window sill of their bedroom.

“I’ve lived in many places and this is one of the better ones.” She looked down as he took her hand and she followed him with much love in her heart. She frowned a bit at the thought he had and kissed his head. “Give me a few moments okay?”

She left and came back with food. She stoked the stove like she had done it hundreds of times and started to cook. “I know how to cook.” It wasn’t something Lewis knew about her. “I’m pretty decent at it. At least I was. It’s all muscle memory now… Been a few hundred years but I think I can make us something yummy.”

Once everything was set she took a good look at Lewis, “My home is wherever you are. Whether that be on the streets, a castle, a tower, or even a pleasant townhouse like this. I would even live in a tent with you. As long as I have you… That’s all that matters to me.” She looked down at her wedding ring and smiled at him. “We promised that to each other.”

She took out some bread and burned her hands a bit. "Ouch." She shook her hand and sighed. "It's been a while." There was stew and bread. "It's not a lot but it's the best for right now."

Author: Dusk, Posted: Mon May 24, 2021 8:15 PM, Post Subject: Adjustments [p/R]

It had been a difficult few days for Lewis. The emotions that he had were stunted at best, but even he could only take so much of the ups and downs before it started to wear on him. It had been only a week and a half since Simone had returned to the land of the living, and already they were experiencing a new set of problems. The week-long stint in Jayou had been amazing, but the return to the tower in Raith’s realm had been far from pleasant.

The details were irrelevant now, due to the whole ordeal being resolved, but it had boiled down to Lewis having to choose between Lord Raith and the power and knowledge offered, or Simone. And Lewis chose Simone. It was no easy choice, either. Lewis had never had a proper home before the tower, and to lose it so quickly and unceremoniously was like a punch to the gut. Or, at least, that was what he assumed the feeling was. After all, it did feel painful.

Human phrases are dumb.

Lady Angela had offered them both a place in Elysium, but Lewis ended up deciding against it. Elysia was a safe place, and for Simone, probably the best place for her overall. But, Lewis had decided against relying on the realm of a deity for a home. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust that Angela would allow them to stay, more so that he couldn’t trust that it would always feel like a home to him. And that was his problem…not hers.

In the end, it came down to a small town house in Jayou, provided by a certain savvy merchant that was recommended by the Goddess herself. Silver was never a problem for Lewis, and soon the pair found themselves a room of a two bedroom townhouse three blocks down the way from the river.

It was a quaint little place with two floors. The bottom floor had a small den and a kitchen in the back, with an outdoor patio. The upstairs was separated into the two rooms, and a shared bathroom. Lewis had taken one of the rooms and had already set up most of his equipment for work, which left just the one room for Simone and Lewis to sleep in.

“Sorry,” Lewis said as he closed the door on the ‘equipment’ room. “There wasn’t much really on the market here…” It was a little awkward for him to be apologizing to Simone. After all, this was technically a major downgrade from the vast five bedroom tower. He led Simone downstairs and into the den, where there was a small couch.

“Here…I’ll…try to make something for lunch.” Lewis wandered into the kitchen, and started to look at what they had on hand. There wasn’t much; neither one of them had gone to the market to stock up. “I…really don’t think there’s anything I can work with.” The assassin frowned. But Simone could tell what he was really thinking.

I’m a worthless cook anyway. Might as well just go out and get something. It was an innocent thought, but it was as loud as day in Simone’s head, as if he had said it right in front of her. This resonance was something new for both of them, and it would take a lot of adjusting to get used to it.