[ She realises what he's about to do only a split second before it happens and panic crests in her stomach. She can't pull back - he's swallowed so much of her mana that surely he must be back to full strength and there's no way Ai could fight back against him, even if she tried.
Once was necessary. Twice was a precaution. Three times was testing their luck. But this is -
What else can she can it but pure indulgence? Not that there's anything pure about a kiss like this. But if this is what he's indulging in, wanting it instead of needing it, wanting it badly enough to take it like this-
What is she supposed to do?
Her fingers catch his shirt, tug urgently for his attention. ]
Oberon- wait- I can't breathe like this-
[ It's true. When she manages to get her voice out, it's gasping and breathless. But it's also a surrender - you've won, so please let me retreat. ]
[ She's not wrong. His body is no longer fraying at the seems, his body has rematerialized and isn't on the verge of falling apart. He's certainly not in fighting condition, but she's succeeded at her goal. He isn't disappearing. From here, all he needs is rest, to let Ai's mana flow into him naturally through their spiritual path.
He releases the kiss with a gasp, not breathless like Ai, but still heavy. His face, normally pale, is unusually flushed. ]
[ It's always about what she wants, isn't it? As if it's that easy. As if she's allowed to have any of it. Her expression wavers, her alarmed dismay turning into something frustrated, messier and harder to read.
After a moment, she shakes her head. But then- ]
I don't know... I don't know, but...!
[ Her voice is ragged and shaky in a way that has nothing to do with her needing a breath. ]
I can't do it like this. I can't...
[ Like this. Whatever that means. It's the truth but it's impossible to read anything from it even so. ]
[ He grabs her again, but not with an arm snaked around to pull her in from behind, but with a hand gripping at the loose-fitting hoodie she's wearing. He doesn't kiss her, he just pulls her close. ]
Don't give me that...!
[ You, the greedy woman who pursued two kinds of happiness at once... you, who he understands so much that it hurts. Understands so well that he can't help but try to drag the truth out of her, kicking and screaming if need be.
Because the truth may not exist for him, but it does for her, whether she realizes it or not. ]
Why did you save me, then!? Why did you go to such lengths...
[ Go to the point of hurting herself in order to keep him from leaving her. Ai may not realize it... hell, Oberon may not even realize it just yet, but... far more of his feelings have been forcefully dragged out of him than either of them realize. ]
[ She yelps, and has to brace herself again, both hands flat on the ground either side of him once more. She doesn't fight to free herself but she leans back as far as she can - she can bear to meet the intensity of his eyes, not right now. ]
It- it was the only thing I could think to do! If you vanished- nobody here knows what happens if someone loses their Servant!
[ It's all true. And yet it's a lie at the same time - one of omission. ]
I was... scared. I panicked. Are you trying to say I shouldn't have bothered?!
[ That she didn't need to go that far, to be so desperate to save him that she was willing to draw her own blood if it meant ensuring that he stayed.
He bites his tongue before he says that, but instead of that, he brings his hand up to tenderly put his thumb on her lip and wipe away the lingering blood on it. ]
...yeah, that's exactly what I'm saying. Who in their right mind would go this far!?
[ She knows what she wants, he knows that she knows, and he's had enough of her running. ]
[ And retreat she does - but only barely. She sits back enough to him to rise as well, but she doesn't leave his side. The immediate fear has left her eyes, even if her heart is still pounding uncertainly in her throat. ]
... are you really... [ A pause and another convulsive swallow. The bite is still welling with blood and she lifts her arm so she can press her sleeve there and try to stem it. Her voice comes out muffled by the fabric. ] Is that all I had to do?
[ It looks as though he's back in one piece but she can't shake the feeling that it'd been just a little too... convenient. Isn't it just a little too much of a cliche for her to patch things back up with a kiss like that? ]
[ He forces himself to sit up, still not looking at her. ]
Of course not. But you wouldn't like going that far, so I'll manage.
[ He scoffs, leaning back and staring up at the night sky. He feels slow and weak, but that's just in comparison to his standards as a Servant. He's not much different in strength compared to your everyday human right now. ]
...who the hell taught you that, anyway? Seriously...
[ Behind her sleeve, her mouth tugs into a rueful smile. ]
Nagiko-chan did. Or, well - not exactly. She's been teaching me about magic and some of the things I don't understand yet. She told me a mage's magic gets stored in every part of their body, like their hair and their blood and their spit. So... I kind of put the rest of it together myself.
[ She'll have to thank her for the save. Or, uh, try to thank her while very carefully avoiding why the lesson had become so relevant. ]
[ There is a 100% chance that she would be able to put two and two together and realize why it became relevant, and that neither she nor her Master would shut up about it afterwards. He'll have to kick her ass later.
Because sure, he's alive, but how the hell is he supposed to deal with Ai now? It'd be nice if he could retreat himself and just be the Fairy King for a while, but this frustrating woman won't even allow that. ]
...Well, as long as that's all she told you, then it's fine.
[ Surely she wouldn't go into that much detail, right? ]
That's all. [ She tilts her head and there's something about her expression that's innocently, infuriatingly clueless. ] It just came up in passing, so it wasn't like we went into a lot of detail...
[ It's true. But once again, it rings of a lie of omission. Nagiko had only told her as much as she'd said - all the outlets for mana that were in her own body. The rest, she'd playfully inferred with a nudge and a wink in the manner of a girl teasing scandalous secrets at a sleepover.
Ai had put the rest together herself. It's not like it'll ever be necessary, but knowing it's a possibility makes her feel a little weird. There's no way mages are getting up to this kind of thing all the time, right? How would they find the time to get anything else done? ]
... Besides. It worked, didn't it? That's all that matters.
[ "It worked, didn't it? So we can go back to pretending none of this happened." ]
[ ...he's gonna kick that Archer's ass, he thinks. ]
...yeah, exactly.
[ Just barely. With Ai's output, a full recovery will take a while. Pretending none of this happened. Yeah, no problem, right? He's Pretender, it's what he does best. Pretend she hadn't begged him not to go, pretend he hadn't desired her carnally in that moment. Pretend and never stop pretending. ]
[ She's surprised none of the others are here already - and relieved. The last thing she needs is for any of what'd just happened to be seen by literally anyone else. It's bad enough that she and Oberon had been here for it.
She rises to her feet, feeling a little wobbly. Her knees and hands are both a little chewed up with how hard she'd hit the ground next to him but when she thinks about how bad things could've been... she definitely got off easy this time.
She stares down at him for just a second. Even with Fae Eyes, it's hard to read what's going on with her expression.
But then, hesitantly, she offers him her hand. The one bearing the final stroke of her Command Seal. ]
[ Their sloppy, bloody make-out session, followed by the worst handling of high emotions ever. Yeah, he'd like to keep that between them as well. Otherwise he might actually want to disappear.
He looks up at her, looking into her frustratingly complex expression... and sighs. In the end, no matter how infuriating she is, all he can do is take her hand. ]
...right.
[ It was all just a midsummer night's dream, a single night of revelry undeserving of being the truth.
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no subject
He can't stand it anymore.
He allowed her to retreat before. He reached out to pull her back, but stopped himself. In a sense, in that moment, he had retreated as well.
He refuses to do so again.
So he pulls her back in. Forcefully, roughly, hungrily. ]
I'm not done.
[ He's just following orders, isn't he? She told him not to go, that's all.
...even in his own thoughts, he can't help but lie.
He kisses her again, his strength having clearly returned enough for him to do so, and refuses to let go. ]
no subject
Once was necessary. Twice was a precaution. Three times was testing their luck. But this is -
What else can she can it but pure indulgence? Not that there's anything pure about a kiss like this. But if this is what he's indulging in, wanting it instead of needing it, wanting it badly enough to take it like this-
What is she supposed to do?
Her fingers catch his shirt, tug urgently for his attention. ]
Oberon- wait- I can't breathe like this-
[ It's true. When she manages to get her voice out, it's gasping and breathless. But it's also a surrender - you've won, so please let me retreat. ]
no subject
He releases the kiss with a gasp, not breathless like Ai, but still heavy. His face, normally pale, is unusually flushed. ]
...is that what you want?
[ To retreat? To run from him again? ]
no subject
After a moment, she shakes her head. But then- ]
I don't know... I don't know, but...!
[ Her voice is ragged and shaky in a way that has nothing to do with her needing a breath. ]
I can't do it like this. I can't...
[ Like this. Whatever that means. It's the truth but it's impossible to read anything from it even so. ]
S-so... please don't ask me again.
no subject
[ He grabs her again, but not with an arm snaked around to pull her in from behind, but with a hand gripping at the loose-fitting hoodie she's wearing. He doesn't kiss her, he just pulls her close. ]
Don't give me that...!
[ You, the greedy woman who pursued two kinds of happiness at once... you, who he understands so much that it hurts. Understands so well that he can't help but try to drag the truth out of her, kicking and screaming if need be.
Because the truth may not exist for him, but it does for her, whether she realizes it or not. ]
Why did you save me, then!? Why did you go to such lengths...
[ Go to the point of hurting herself in order to keep him from leaving her. Ai may not realize it... hell, Oberon may not even realize it just yet, but... far more of his feelings have been forcefully dragged out of him than either of them realize. ]
no subject
It- it was the only thing I could think to do! If you vanished- nobody here knows what happens if someone loses their Servant!
[ It's all true. And yet it's a lie at the same time - one of omission. ]
I was... scared. I panicked. Are you trying to say I shouldn't have bothered?!
no subject
[ That she didn't need to go that far, to be so desperate to save him that she was willing to draw her own blood if it meant ensuring that he stayed.
He bites his tongue before he says that, but instead of that, he brings his hand up to tenderly put his thumb on her lip and wipe away the lingering blood on it. ]
...yeah, that's exactly what I'm saying. Who in their right mind would go this far!?
[ She knows what she wants, he knows that she knows, and he's had enough of her running. ]
no subject
I wasn't. I just told you I was scared, didn't I?! It was this or let you just disappear and you-
[ Pause. Swallow. Her mouth still tastes horribly like blood. ]
... You've already saved me so many times. How could I just give up on you without at least trying?
[ It's not entirely the truth. Maybe Ai herself doesn't know it well enough to give it to him.
But it's true enough. ]
no subject
You're such a pain... dragging this out of me...
[ He lets his hands fall to his sides, and for once, is the one to look away. ]
...fine, go on then.
[ She's free to retreat. ]
no subject
... are you really... [ A pause and another convulsive swallow. The bite is still welling with blood and she lifts her arm so she can press her sleeve there and try to stem it. Her voice comes out muffled by the fabric. ] Is that all I had to do?
[ It looks as though he's back in one piece but she can't shake the feeling that it'd been just a little too... convenient. Isn't it just a little too much of a cliche for her to patch things back up with a kiss like that? ]
no subject
Of course not. But you wouldn't like going that far, so I'll manage.
[ He scoffs, leaning back and staring up at the night sky. He feels slow and weak, but that's just in comparison to his standards as a Servant. He's not much different in strength compared to your everyday human right now. ]
...who the hell taught you that, anyway? Seriously...
no subject
Nagiko-chan did. Or, well - not exactly. She's been teaching me about magic and some of the things I don't understand yet. She told me a mage's magic gets stored in every part of their body, like their hair and their blood and their spit. So... I kind of put the rest of it together myself.
[ She'll have to thank her for the save. Or, uh, try to thank her while very carefully avoiding why the lesson had become so relevant. ]
no subject
[ There is a 100% chance that she would be able to put two and two together and realize why it became relevant, and that neither she nor her Master would shut up about it afterwards. He'll have to kick her ass later.
Because sure, he's alive, but how the hell is he supposed to deal with Ai now? It'd be nice if he could retreat himself and just be the Fairy King for a while, but this frustrating woman won't even allow that. ]
...Well, as long as that's all she told you, then it's fine.
[ Surely she wouldn't go into that much detail, right? ]
no subject
[ It's true. But once again, it rings of a lie of omission. Nagiko had only told her as much as she'd said - all the outlets for mana that were in her own body. The rest, she'd playfully inferred with a nudge and a wink in the manner of a girl teasing scandalous secrets at a sleepover.
Ai had put the rest together herself. It's not like it'll ever be necessary, but knowing it's a possibility makes her feel a little weird. There's no way mages are getting up to this kind of thing all the time, right? How would they find the time to get anything else done? ]
... Besides. It worked, didn't it? That's all that matters.
[ "It worked, didn't it? So we can go back to pretending none of this happened." ]
no subject
...yeah, exactly.
[
Just barely. With Ai's output, a full recovery will take a while.Pretending none of this happened. Yeah, no problem, right? He's Pretender, it's what he does best. Pretend she hadn't begged him not to go, pretend he hadn't desired her carnally in that moment. Pretend and never stop pretending. ]...let's go, then.
no subject
[ She's surprised none of the others are here already - and relieved. The last thing she needs is for any of what'd just happened to be seen by literally anyone else. It's bad enough that she and Oberon had been here for it.
She rises to her feet, feeling a little wobbly. Her knees and hands are both a little chewed up with how hard she'd hit the ground next to him but when she thinks about how bad things could've been... she definitely got off easy this time.
She stares down at him for just a second. Even with Fae Eyes, it's hard to read what's going on with her expression.
But then, hesitantly, she offers him her hand. The one bearing the final stroke of her Command Seal. ]
... let's go home.
no subject
He looks up at her, looking into her frustratingly complex expression... and sighs. In the end, no matter how infuriating she is, all he can do is take her hand. ]
...right.
[ It was all just a midsummer night's dream, a single night of revelry undeserving of being the truth.
Damn you, Shakespeare. ]