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It was by the time Ritona had downed the umpteenth shot glass of ale that Rune knew she had made a terrible, terrible mistake in trusting Selphine to manage Ritona's alcohol intake. This was emphasized further by the overpowering redness engulfing Ritona's cheeks like flames, a certain unkemptness lolling about in her usually focused and discerning eyes. Bouts of uncharacteristic giggles bubbled over from her lips every so often, a novelty that you could rarely coax out of a sober Ritona.
Rune couldn't help but feel a bit taken aback by how much her demeanor changed from the inebriation-- was she truly this way every time she became drunk? If so, Rune was both fascinated and shocked by the personality shift.
...Though to tell the truth, she was definitely more on the shocked side.
"Hey, Ritonaaaaa~! How about one more round? It looks like we still have enough ale in the bottle to go around!" Selphine encouraged cheerfully, lifting up the bottle to indicate her point.
In response to this offer, Ritona gratefully raised her shot glass again, eyes sparkling with an anticipatory sheen as she awaited the next dose of ale. "Yes, that sounds absolutely wonderful, Selphine! Tonight I will prove that I undeniably have the most alcohol tolerance out of anyone! Only I alone, Ritona Reighnvhasta, will claim that title! Ahahaha!"
Rune could only watch in subdued horror as Selphine willingly poured yet another glass of ale for her, Ritona gulping down its contents almost instantaneously. A sense of dread started to finally overcome her, beads of sweat forming on her forehead as she wondered just how bad the aftermath of this would be if she didn't stop this immediately.
"U-Um, guys...? Don't you think that's enough ale for the night? Ritona is definitely going to be facing some consequences in the morning if we continue..." Rune warned meekly, cautiously glancing over at Ritona to check how she was holding up from the latest glass.
In response to this, Selphine dismissed her worries with a nonchalant wave of the hand, but still maintained a cheeky smile on her face. "It'll all be alright, Rune! Trust me, I've been by Ritona's side when she was drinking multiple times before, and all she had was a slight hangover in the morning. Nothing to be concerned about at all~!"
A slight hangover...? Rune couldn't help but wonder how much of an understatement that was, or if Selphine was telling the truth. Although Rune didn't possess the capabilities to experience a drunken state, she knew that having a hangover was not a pleasant thing just from common sense.
"Mm, that's right, Rune! It would be unbecoming of myself to have anything worse than a slight hangover... After all, I am trying to prove that I can handle my alcohol well." Ritona piped in thoughtfully, becoming fixated at staring at the light of the bar shining gently on translucent surface of her shot glass. As quickly as that moment of reflection lasted, however, her eyes flicked up wildly to meet Selphine's. "Isn't that right, Selphine!? I am pretty good at this kind of stuff, right!?"
Selphine nodded vigorously in return, her smile never once leaving her face-- she seemed to truly be enjoying herself. "Mmhmm, without a doubt, Ritona! I know no person in the entirety of Rughzenhaide that could best you in the fine art of alcohol tolerance! You truly are an aficionado of ale, my dear Royal Guardian!"
Unsure of where to butt in on this whole exchange, Rune settled on swiveling around awkwardly on the bar stool she was currently sitting at. Selphine and Ritona animatedly chattered away next to her, as if trying to catch up on time lost during the emotional and physical toll of this perilous journey. If there was one thing Rune was happy about with this wacky situation, it was that her friends could find reprieve here... They had truly been through too much adversity, and they deserved to have a break and find solace in the little things again. After all, they did pull her out of the darkness when she most needed it, so they are worthy of the exact same treatment.
Thinking of it that way, Selphine and Ritona are like her heroes: bold and tenacious, but still able to sympathize and care for others when they most need it. She wholeheartedly admires those qualities about them, and is infinitely glad she was blessed to be their friend.
While she was still wrapped up in her gushy thoughts of admiration for Selphine and Ritona, the two in question have ceased their chattering, now much more focused on Rune. Turning her bar stool to the side with one big squeak, Ritona leaned forward to take a better look at the distracted girl. This action continued until she was mere centimeters away from her face, but Rune was still somehow zoning off, light blue eyes seemingly elsewhere than this sentient realm.
Ritona now took to resting her cheek upon her hand on the counter adjacent to her, continuing to gaze at Rune curiously for another few seconds before she finally decided to break the silence, "So... are you going to tell us what you're thinking about or what?"
Rune emerged from her stupor as gracefully as a swan-- or at least she wanted to, but was sure she was about as graceful as a deflated rubber duck with an undignified squawk when you squeezed it.
"Wh-What do you mean? I was totally just spacing out there for a bit! No odd thoughts have ever crossed my mind or anything!"
Laughing nervously to herself, Rune desperately hoped that her fib was enough to avoid suspicion; she most certainly did not want to deal with insistent prying as to what she was thinking about. That would be the worst case scenario!
Ritona hummed softly, as if considering what Rune had claimed. She continued to stare unblinkingly into Rune's eyes, earnestly searching for any shred of truth in what she had said. A few more intense seconds passed like this, and Ritona finally opted to retreat backwards from her leaning position, swiveling back around to face the counter.
Sighing quietly in relief, Rune could feel her shoulders relax from the tension that had built up holding them taut during that staredown. If that staredown had dragged on any longer, Rune was sure she was going to overheat!
The prolonged squeaking of a bar stool snapped Rune right out of her doldrums, Ritona swiveling back around at an agonizingly slow pace. Once she had completely faced her again, she appeared to be in deep contemplation, the previously happy-go-lucky and sporadic attitude gone without a trace. Magenta eyes bore into her own with an even deeper intensity; this act made Rune completely freeze in place, her cheeks growing warm from the charged atmosphere that had begun to develop.
Opening her mouth slightly to speak, Rune found herself unable to utter a sound while being scrutinized so strongly. Instead, she proceeded to have an internal freak-out, alarm bells and wailing sirens going off within her head simultaneously.
Oh no, oh no, oh no! If I continue like this, Selly and Ritona are really going to get suspicious of me! Then that fib would have all been for naught!
"Say, Rune..." Ritona began, which caused Rune to concentrate on her lips subconsciously, "Did you know that you're actually quite cute when you lie so obviously?"
Although Rune didn't realize it since she was so absorbed in the confession, Selphine popped up from her bar stool and discreetly excused herself, a mischievous smile playing upon her features. She disappeared further into the bar, most likely to camp out in the bathroom until this whole thing blew over-- with a satisfactory conclusion, of course!
If Rune's face wasn't already red before, it was indubitably as red as Selphine's beloved pomegranates right about now. She wasn't sure what kind of crazy universe she was in that held such a cliched yet welcomed situation, but she was fairly certain that this wasn't reality. The only possible explanation for an incredibly convenient world like this one only existed in passing daydreams and impossible fantasies.
...Yet here she was, an extremely drunk Ritona in front of her who was stripped of her inhibitions, laying her heart bare with just one simple sentence:
"Did you know you're actually quite cute when you lie so obviously?"
That one teasing comment contained so much of an endearing tone to it that Rune couldn't resist but feeling a swirl of emotions thrumming within her. Giddiness, awe, and pure love just radiated within her core, making her unable to hold back her feelings any longer.
This manifested in an abrupt kiss to her forehead, her hand brushing Ritona's long bangs aside and her lips trying to convey through one chaste kiss how much she meant to her. Rune wasn't even thinking about the rest of the people in the bar watching; she was already far too enveloped by her own overflowing fondness for Ritona to pay attention to that.
After a few moments passed between them, Rune reluctantly removed her lips from Ritona's forehead, but felt like she was able to express herself properly to her with that. If she was rendered speechless by Ritona's words and actions, she should be able to do the same to her!
Feeling a sense of accomplishment at seeing Ritona in the same speechless state as herself awhile back, Rune was promptly taken off guard again with the sly glint in her eyes as she opened her mouth, "Thank you for that, Rune... But didn't you miss your intended target?"
Quirking her head to the side questioningly, Rune replied, "What do you mean by that, Ritona? I was pretty sure I hit the spot I wanted to..."
A smirk twisted itself onto her lips, playfulness almost emanating off herself in waves, all dead-set on washing their target away and leaving them reeling from the impact. With one swift movement she clasped the chin of Rune firmly, determined to hit the mark masterfully. The next action was as decisive and forthright as a tsunami: completely plunging the target into a myriad of all-encompassing passion.
Ritona locked their lips together fervidly, her drunken condition blurring her self-control and only focusing on the one person who mattered most in this moment. Rune struggled to keep up, her mind currently going through a disconnect and still finding this hard to believe--
No, how matter how much you look at it, this is impossible to believe!
Even so, this absurd situation was definitely happening; the proof of it was Ritona pressing up eagerly against her lips, eyelids shut in bliss and concentration on the task at hand. Rune could feel her attempting to deepen the kiss, but she didn't want to do something like that when the other person was so obviously drunk. Just participating in the kiss up until this point seemed a tad scandalous-- so Rune decided to break the kiss before it escalated out of control.
Eyebrows furrowing, Ritona looked more than a little disappointed after their kiss was cut short. She returned her hand that was holding Rune's chin to her lap, a dejected pout that was reminiscent of Selphine now on her face. "Didn't you like the kiss, Rune? I thought what we had was mutual, but perhaps I assumed wrong..."
Gesturing frantically with her hands in the air, Rune shook her head so hard she was afraid it would fall off for a second. She then mustered up all the courage inside herself to adamantly dismiss those vast falsities, "Th-That's not the truth, Ritona! Far from it, actually! I've liked for for quite awhile now-- romantically, I mean-- but augh, that sounds so darn embarrassing when I actually say it out loud!"
A glimmer of hope reignited in Ritona's eyes, mouth agape as if she was trying to process what she just said. Her faltering only lasted a heartbeat though, and she was immediately on the rebound once again, shooting forward in her seat.
"Do you truly mean it!?" Ritona asked enthusiastically, an infectious grin spreading across her face, "Oh, and all along I thought I was alone in my feelings for you! What an absolute fool I must have looked like to be pining after you so ardently, only to believe what I felt was one-sided! Just how hilarious is that!? Ahahaha!"
At the sound of Ritona's overjoyed laughing, Rune also began to laugh in the same manner, the loud noise of their sudden outburst drawing the further attention of the bar's patrons. This only lasted briefly, however, as there was always some sort of ruckus in the bar environment-- a couple of girls getting a bit too familiar with each other was nothing out of the ordinary.
With the knowledge of their reciprocated feelings, Rune experienced a sense of wonder at how this all came into fruition. It seemed just like yesterday that she encountered a pair of travelers in Kadia and offered to guide them around, soon acknowledging them as her friends. She would have never imagined that one of the travelers she initially found beautiful was going to fall in love with her! It was almost like something out of a flowery storybook or something; but Rune had no complaints about that.
...If the Rune of the past were to see this now, I wonder what she would think?
Pushing that somber thought aside, Rune figured it would be no use to ruminate over what took place in the past right now. This was supposed to be a happy occasion, right? So she should take heart in what is happening before her in the present. That would surely be what Cid and Eline assiduously wished for her.
"So, what are we going to do now that we're both aware of each other's feelings?" Rune inquired to draw Ritona's attention, a terribly perplexed look on her face, "Is there like a correct way to go about this, or am I going to have to poke around this foreign territory of, uh-- romantic feelings-- unarmed?"
For the umpteenth time tonight Ritona giggled, but it still made an airy quality float about her being and she truly felt like she could fly if Ritona was there to guide her.
"Silly, don't you know what that means?" Booping the tip of Rune's nose playfully with her index finger, she continued on with her elaboration to the oblivious one listening, "That means that the next natural step would be to, well... date."
Backpedaling in surprise and nearly toppling off her seat to an unceremonious death, Rune clutched the edge of the bar stool to steady herself upright again before responding, "W-Well, I guess that would only be natural, right? It just seems so sudden, though! I'm not entirely confident I'm mentally prepared for all of this dating business!"
Being met with another one of Ritona's heartrending pouts, she automatically changed her tune on instinct, "B-But that doesn't mean I wouldn't be willing to try! Since we both have feelings for each other, that's the correct way to proceed~! Ehehehe..."
Slamming her hand down on the counter next to her jovially, the shot glass she was so focused on previously in the night rattled from the impact, but the startling noise soon lessened to a standstill. Rune breathed a sigh of relief as Ritona flung forward to embrace her without warning, a warm yet comforting sensation encircling her.
"Ritona!?" Rune squeaked out in surprise, lifting her her arms to experimentally return the embrace, her hands resting stiffly on the middle of Ritona's back. The nuzzling of Ritona's face next to her neck filled her with many tempestuous emotions, whirling about her like a ship cornered in the eye of the storm. There was no escape for her now-- the only route for her to take was to boldly sail forth to uncharted waters, teeming with things unbeknownst to her.
"I'm glad to hear that." Ritona whispered tenderly in her ear, strands of purple hair tickling the nape of her neck, "With you by my side, I can unequivocally brave any hardship. So thank you for agreeing to stand by my side, Rune."
Soft lips ghosting briefly over the crook of her neck, she murmured one last thing to the increasingly-flustered girl of her affections, "I love you."
After expressing this in a remarkably honest way to Rune, Ritona's eyelids subsequently began to flutter shut, seemingly content to rest following the confession. With her arms still draped around Rune's shoulders, she slipped off into a peaceful slumber-- one that she had been lacking for quite a long while.
Around this time it was when Selphine conveniently decided to return from her "bathroom break", humming a merry melody in a mock-clueless fashion. Bright blue eyes landing on the questionable position her unsupervised friends worked themselves into, her aura of elation only seemed to amplify even more.
"Oh~? I see that you two have gotten awfully cozy with each other ever since I left." Selphine observed mirthfully, moving to slide back into her vacant bar stool. "Would you care to fill me in on all the juicy details~?"
Barely holding back a yelp, Rune shifted to try and pry Ritona off of her shoulders to evade suspicion, but she was pretty sure that it was too late for that by this point. Even if she was successful in extracting Ritona from herself, that held a possibility that it would rouse her, and she didn't want to risk that possibility. She had such a serene expression on her face, and Rune almost just wanted to kiss--
Wait, wait, wait a minute here! How in the world did I get steered onto that line of thought!?
Shoving that inopportune and embarrassing thought to the back of her mind, she zeroed in on Selphine in attempts to calm her shaken nerves. "Nothing really that interesting happened while you were gone, Selly! Ritona just drank a few more shots of ale and then she, uh, fell asleep on me! And as you can see, I wouldn't want to make any sudden movements and wake her up after she was so exhausted to doze off on me, right~?"
Pursing her lips together, Selphine scoured Rune's body language for any signs of a lie. She then reverted back to her regular carefree self, casually shrugging her shoulders. "Well, I guess I can see the truth behind that, Rune... But are you totally sure that nothing else happened while I was gone? I dreadfully hate to be left out of the loop, you know..."
"Of course not! Ritona and I are just bosom buddies, so there's no chance that we would end up in this position by some other convoluted way~!" Rune countered, trying to mask the nervous laugh that was about to surface up from her throat. Maybe Ritona was right about fixing her "weird laugh"; if she managed to conceal it more efficiently, perhaps it wouldn't pop up at the most inconvenient times!
Selphine now pouted in the exact same way Ritona did earlier, lower lip jutting out in an attempt to get her to lower her defenses. "Are you totally, totally, sure that there was nothing of substance to be mentioned to little ol' me here? I promise that I won't tell anyone if something did happen! Cross my heart!"
Rune wondered fleetingly who Selphine would even tell if something did happen while she was gone. It's not like she had anyone outside of Ritona and Rune she would expose them to currently, so why did she even say that? Other than try to coax her into disclosing what had occurred tonight, there was no other motivation she could think of--
Hold on, wasn't that actually a pretty perceptive thought!? Maybe Ritona's deductive nature is finally rubbing off on me!
However, with the way Selphine kept insistently pleading for answers, the fabricated cover of her facade began to develop more and more cracks. Before long her patience to withstand Selphine's flurry of meddling questions whittled away, and she blurted out what actually happened, "W-We kissed, alright!? I couldn't resist planting a kiss on Ritona's forehead because of how utterly adorable she was being, and then that somehow led to Ritona giving me a kiss! On the lips! Then we talked some things over-- like our feelings for each other, for example-- and it then ended in some way or another with me being in a relationship! A romantic one! And now I'm completely dumbfounded by how this whole situation even came into fruition! How do I proceed from here!? Oh, I'm going to be such a goner when Ritona actually wakes up and realizes what she drunkenly did and she doesn't want to be in a relationship with me after all and--!"
Silencing the blubbering girl with a firm finger over her lips, Selphine waited until Rune regained her composure until she lifted the finger from its place. She then straightened up her back, a regal semblance hovering around her form. Gazing at Rune with a steady determination, Selphine advised her forlorn friend with an air of maturity, "I don't think you need to be worrying so much, Rune. From what I've heard and observed from Ritona, there's not an ounce of doubt in my mind that she reciprocates the same heartfelt feelings for you that you divulged to me. So keep your head up, okay?"
Gasping slightly at Selphine's earnest proclamation, Rune gleefully replied, "Yes, I'll do my best to keep my head up! All these feelings are brand new and foreign to me, but I'm certain that I'll be able to power through them with you and Ritona's support!" Pausing to free one of her arms from holding onto Ritona, she flexed jokingly before resuming her speech, "And if we can't beat them together, I can always whack those confounding feelings into submission with a good Rune punch~!"
"That's the spirit!" Selphine cheered, hoisting her fist into the air in a victory celebration. She then acknowledged the state Ritona and Rune were still tangled up in again, crossing her arms as she tilted her head to the side thoughtfully. "We still need to brainstorm a way to get you two out of that conundrum, though..."
Glancing back down at Ritona's sleeping self coiled around her, Rune tried to devise a master plan that would free them from this rut. She was almost nearing her wit's end when she perked up with an exclamation of accomplishment-- well, as exclamatory as you could be with a conked out Royal Guardian on you.
"I've got it! Since I have a surplus of strength within my body, how about I just carry Ritona out without shifting her from her position very much?" Seeing that Selphine wasn't catching on right away, Rune elaborated further, "To do that, all I would have to support would be underneath her legs and behind her back since she's already latched onto me. It would be a win-win situation, don't you think~?"
"Now that you explained it better, I think that might actually work out!" Selphine agreed, eyes scanning over the two of them to look for any faults in the new grand escape plan. As if something clicked in her mind, a smug grin suddenly appeared on her face as she voiced her revelation, "You're sure trying to maximize your physical contact with Ritona, Rune... Though I can't blame you; few can resist falling for the elusive charm of a Royal Guardian!"
Cheeks exploding in a flurry of pink, Rune fought valiantly against the impulse to scream at the loudest volume possible; that would disturb all the other patrons and most likely get them kicked out. So instead she settled on simmering in her own embarrassment at Selphine's correct deduction, feeling as if she just ate the world's spiciest dish or something equally as scalding. "I-I suppose you caught me red-handed on that one, Selly... Ahahaha... haaaa..."
Cheeky smile widening, Selphine seemed satisfied after poking fun at easily-embarrassed Rune. "I thought that might have been the case~! Maybe I should consider starting up a soothsaying business in the future or something... I was able to guess that without the use of a mind dive, after all!"
Rune sweatdropped at the mental image of Selphine surrounded by dripping candles, fortune-telling orbs, and dusty old books. She didn't think she would blend in very well in that environment with an oversized cowl shadowing her face and a sinister cackle echoing through the room. It was possible that the actual Rughzenhaide variant of that profession was different than her view on it, but she just couldn't see Selphine doing that.
"If that would make you happy to take up as a hobby, then I'm not going to stop you, Selly... But I still think you shine the brightest as you are now."
Placing a hand over her chest in bashfulness, Selphine lowered her eyes shyly from the praise. "Aww, that's very kind of you to say, Rune... I do try my hardest to be the best version of myself I can be so I can represent Rughzenhaide proudly."
A few beats of silence lingering between them shortly, Selphine raised her eyes once more, her jubilant attitude returning. "But enough of all this sentimental stuff! We need to turn our attention back to getting Ritona safely out of here lickety-split!"
Taken abruptly out of her reverie, Rune remembered the sleeping Ritona that was still quite evidently wrapped around her, warmth radiating off her body steadily. She was still slumbering undisturbed by the girls' banter, shoulders rising and falling with each soft breath she took. Rune mused that Ritona was quite a quiet sleeper-- was there any reason behind it? Had she always had this sort of sleeping pattern? The more Rune mulled over it the more curious she became, which led her to a realization:
I want to know more about you, Ritona...
Rune wondered if that was a selfish request. It just seemed like this night opened up a whole new realm of possibilities for her, and now that she was actually dating her, it would only be natural to want to see the depths of her psyche. She desperately desired to know all the things that made Ritona tick: her past, her present, her future... She wanted to reach her hands into her inner workings and experience everything that made Ritona... Ritona.
...Aaaah, I really am sounding lovesick now! But maybe being afflicted with lovesickness isn't such a bad thing when it involves her.
Figuring that she's spent enough time stalling, Rune moved to put her aforementioned plan into effect, preparing to pick Ritona up. Sliding one of her arms underneath her legs and using the other to support her back, she lifted Ritona up as if she weighed nothing at all-- this was probably attributed to the fact that her automaton body was constructed to handle much heavier things than this.
"Alright, I think we're all ready to go~!" Rune announced, Ritona somehow still maintaining her hold around her shoulders awkwardly.
"Roger that! Let's get going, then!" Selphine replied, hoisting herself off the bar stool she was sitting on, and walking with a skip in her step to join the departing pair.
Wading through the crowd of bar-goers, they soon arrived at the door to the establishment. Swinging open the door wide enough to accommodate for Ritona and Rune, Selphine motioned for them to go ahead of her.
Accepting this notion with a smile, Rune exited through the door and onto the cobblestone streets, the tinkling of bells and Selphine following behind her.
~~~
The next morning Ritona woke up with a dull and throbbing pain in her head, which caused her to groan involuntarily. Several velvet-like blankets and sheets of the hotel bed surrounded her, making her not feel entirely uncomfortable. However, she couldn't afford to lay around in leisure all day, no matter how bad her hangover was.
..."Hangover"?
Immediately propping herself up with her elbow, Ritona's eyes searched the room hurriedly, a scowl slowly working its way onto her face. If she was beleaguered with a hangover, that meant that Selphine was meddling with how much alcohol she was drinking again. Judging by if that was the case, Ritona pondered worriedly if she did anything regrettable or embarrassing last night. She has been told that she can get a bit... unpredictable... when she's drunk.
Just as she was thinking this, the wooden door of the hotel room clicked open, swinging aside to reveal Rune holding a breakfast tray aloft in one of her hands. Golden sunlight streamed in from one of the windows adjacent to her, basking her in the incandescent and immaculate light of the early morning. If Ritona hadn't known any better, she would have speculated that Rune was an angel with the way the sunlight was delicately framing her hair.
"Just like a painting from one of the masters", huh?
Remembering that one offhand comment she made to herself when she first saw Rune sleeping, Ritona began to think that it applied more and more to her. There was no understatement in saying she was flawless; and there was no fooling herself any longer by thinking this feeling wasn't love. She had accepted that she was in love with Rune ages ago, but she decided to stay quiet about it due to the nature of their journey.
For some odd reason Rune jumped slightly in astonishment from seeing Ritona awake, letting go of the doorknob and allowing the door to slam shut behind her. She ducked her head away from Ritona, pacing over to set the food on the bedside table, a blush present on her cheeks. With this task done she moved back over to the door she entered from, but was still somehow managing to speak in one long and jumbled run-on sentence,
"GoodmorningRitonaIhopeyou'redoinggoodtodayyoudefinitelydidn'tdoanythingsuspiciousoroutoftheordinarywhileyouweredrunksodon'tworryaboutthatandjustfocusonrecoveringfromyourhangover!" Taking a breath for air, Rune continued to garble on this nonsense, "AlrightthenIbetterbegoingnowsoenjoyyourbreakfastandcomedowntothelobbyifyouneedmeforanythingbye!"
"...Rune." Ritona said before Rune was about to leave the room without an explanation, which triggered Rune to jump once again, clearly alarmed. "I know you're not telling the truth from the way you're slurring your sentences incomprehensibly, so please just tell me what happened last night. I need to know so I can patch things up with you if I said something offensive to you while I wasn't completely with it."
Slowly turning back around, Rune's face was totally besieged by her formerly faint blush; it was now even inching its way up the tips of her ears. Her eyes seemed to be drowning and swirling all at once, as if caught in the middle of the ocean without any life jacket or safety net to fall back into. The whirlpool threatened to overpower her, but it was only through the grace of the deities of the sea alone was she able to navigate the treacherous waters.
"...Something did happen, but I sort of thought you would remember it." Rune admitted in disappointment, but quickly moved to fix her disheartened tone, "B-But I can understand why you wouldn't remember it! You were pretty drunk last night, so I can see why your memories would be muddled or nonexistent on what took place! It wouldn't be strange for that to be the case! After all, it's not like you did anything scandalous like kiss someone on the lips, or confess to someone, or--"
Clamping her hands down over her mouth, Rune's eyes grew as large as saucers, something that sounded suspiciously like muffled screaming coming from behind her hands. Black boots backtracking toward the door, Rune tried inconspicuously to make a run for it. "Tried" being the key word, since Ritona seemed to have other plans:
"...What exactly do you mean by "kissing someone on the lips" and "confessing to someone"? Unless-- don't tell me-- did I actually do something as mortifying as that!?" Ritona began to break out into a cold sweat, an assortment of unsavory possibilities darting throughout her mind. "If that truly is the case, who was the recipient of it!?"
Gnawing on her bottom lip, Rune suddenly developed an acute interest in staring anywhere but Ritona's face. Currently her eyes were glued to the ceiling, tracing over the ornate patterns that were chiseled there long ago. The perusing of the interior design of the room stretched on for what seemed like an indefinite span of time; this made Ritona become increasingly impatient with this turn of events.
At long last, Rune decided to speak to appease the waiting audience of one person before her, "...How would you react if I said that the recipient of those things was, well..." Gulping slightly to ease her dry throat, Rune said the next word in a small and timid voice, "...me?"
Unbelievable.
That was the only phrase Ritona could spawn in her addled mind that fit this situation perfectly. Totally and utterly unbelievable. To think that the object of her seemingly-doomed affections was the one she drunkenly flirted with-- and kissed, on top of all that! How in the world was she supposed to make this up to Rune now!?
Taking a deep breath to regain some sense of clarity and control in her mind, Ritona answered Rune tentatively, "To be frank, I'm not entirely sure... I'm not entirely sure what to think of this predicament in general, even. However, if I came clean about the extent of my feelings for you while my inhibitions were lowered, then you should know that's how I sincerely feel about you."
Heart hammering away in her chest as if to remind her that this situation wasn't a ruse, Ritona clutched the material of her sheets in an attempt to keep herself grounded. The nagging pain of her headache had long since been forgotten, replaced with the lightheadness that came from a whirlwind of love. She wanted to know what Rune felt for her, even if it would lead to her plummeting from that very whirlwind due to rejection-- if that was meant to be her fate, then she would take it as an honor to be rejected by her.
"I-I see..." Rune trailed off vaguely, arms falling limp at her sides. After taking a moment for Ritona's confirmation to sink in, the gears inside her head appeared to be turning at full speed, a metaphorical exclamation point suddenly hanging over herself. "I see! So you really do hold romantic feelings for me like you said last night! What a relief... you had me worried there for a second, Ritona."
"My apologies for that, Rune... Most of the time when I get blackout drunk like that, I find it near impossible to retain the memories of what happened during my intoxication spell." she admitted, scratching her cheek absentmindedly with her index finger. "There is one thing I feel guilty about, though: If I caused you any discomfort with my actions last night. Even if I was drunk the night prior, I shouldn't have done any of those more intimate things without your explicit consent, and for that I'm sorr--" "
Ritona!" Rune interjected, a flustered yet resolute expression on her face. Leaving the spot in front of the door which she remained rooted to before, she approached the bed where Ritona was sitting, not stopping until she was directly in front of it. "Listen, I know you're feeling guilty for being too forward with me while you weren't sober, but even so! I don't think you should be beating yourself up over it. After all, I..."
Glancing down at her feet for a couple wavering seconds, Rune clenched her fists and steeled herself to carry on. "I liked it! I liked when you confessed to me so earnestly! I liked when you kissed me, when you teased me, when you laughed with all of your heart! There's so many more things about you that I admire or adore, but all of my feelings can be summarized in one simple phrase!"
Gulping, Ritona watched completely stupefied as Rune sang all of her praises and expressed the scope of her feelings for her. She didn't even want to imagine what her face looked like right now, because she was positive it would be inundated with red.
Bracing herself with her eyes squeezed shut, Rune proclaimed passionately, "I love you!"
Mentally halting herself from placing a hand over her chest to check if her heart was still beating, Ritona gawked at Rune incredulously, her entire body heating up from the unexpected statement. If both of their feelings were truly mutual, then...?
"That was... pretty impressive, Rune... Both unexpected and impressive to hear from you." Ritona complimented, tucking a lock of her hair behind her ear demurely. "Since we're both on equal standing with each other's genuine feelings now, I guess it's only fair of me to return the sentiment."
Lowering her eyes down to her bedding transiently, she reminisced about how everything came together up to this point, how everything seemed to weave together so flawlessly. Fate was doubtlessly a thing of mystery, one she would never be able to pick apart. If there was some sort of omnipotent being out there that was puppeteering every person's move behind the scenes, stringing them along the picaresque play of life, Ritona thought that may have been the reason for her to meet Rune. With the stray effect being the shoehorn to get the story rolling, that was an irremovable component in the grand play of this omnipotent being's theatrics. Remove the stray effect deviating them off their original course, Ritona would have never been teleported to the Outer-Pole; that meant that she would have never become acquainted with Rune, and life would continue on. Plain and simple.
...But who was she to resort to using such poetic analogies anyways?
Keeping that in mind, Ritona narrowed her vision on Rune again, taking note of how poised she looked standing there, despite consuming a lot of energy to confess such a personal thing to someone. With one fluid motion she pushed her bedding off herself, creasing it neatly on the opposite side of the bed. Shifting to swing her legs over the edge of the bed, she then pushed herself off the mattress with a slight squeak, turning to approach Rune who was still positioned in front of the bed.In a few short steps she reached Rune, squeezing herself between the area between the bed and Rune, who was beginning to look more flustered from the close proximity.
"Wh-What are you doing, Ritona...?" Rune asked nervously in a near-whisper, her hands hovering habitually in the air without a purpose.
Taking one more step closer, Ritona cautiously grabbed one of her hands in midair to test the waters, intertwining their fingers experimentally. Bringing their hands down to their sides, she also repeated this action to Rune's neglected hand, which she noticed was starting to feel somewhat clammy. They were both so close to each other that Ritona could almost lean forward and bump their noses together, which both emboldened her yet made her feel timidity lurking at the back recesses of her psyche.
"Like I said before, I wanted to return the sentiment you showed so candidly to me." Ritona answered softly, daring to rub circles on Rune's hands with her thumbs. Rune tensed up marginally from this movement, but soon surrendered and relaxed into the touch. Eyes lifting from their entangled hands to Rune's face, she could see Rune's pupils follow suit, now staring her in the eye in wonderment.
Exhaling from her nostrils, Ritona extracted one of her hands from Rune's sweaty grasp, raising it to cup her right cheek and stroke it tenderly. With no objection escaping from Rune's mouth, Ritona took the initiative and continued on with her affections. The next gesture was as clear and concise as the sunlight glimmering through the window, bathing the atmosphere in an unprejudiced and precise fashion.
Leaning forward until their noses were mere centimeters away from each other, Ritona returned the sentiment with her full being brimming with unadulterated love for the girl in front of her, "I love you, too."
There was no sound in the room proceeding that riveting confession; all there was to hear was the bated breath exchanged between them, anticipating what would come next. In preparation for that, Ritona pulled her other hand out of Rune's tight hold, snaking her arm around Rune's frame and resting her hand on the small of her back.
It seemed like an eternity they were in that position; maybe longer if Ritona didn't know that an eternity was as far as you could go. Infinity, perhaps? Nevertheless, it was as if time came to a standstill around them, gallantly attempting to be courteous to their private time. It just made things feel even more surreal around them, and Ritona had to resist pinching herself to confirm it wasn't a dream. But lo and behold, Rune was right here before her, an undeniable presence that she was in physical contact with now; this was the substantial proof that Ritona needed to press on.
"May I..." Ritona began apprehensively, peering into Rune's eyes and harnessing all the self-control inside herself not to stare at her lips, "...kiss you?"
As if in a trance, Rune stood motionless as a statue before her, entirely mystified by what was occurring. Blinking twice, she was ostensibly emancipated from Medusa's curse, opening her mouth breathlessly to respond, "...Yes, you may."
Tugging Rune's body closer to herself, she angled her head and gingerly placed a kiss on her lips, which were very soft and malleable. This feature of hers made the experience even more enjoyable; but Ritona wouldn't have minded if Rune's lips were chapped and scab-riddled, because this was the girl she was so hopelessly enamored with. While looks were something that would be appealing on the surface level, Ritona just considered them an add-on to the whole package. She never was one for vanity, anyways.
Despite that, Rune was being horribly, horribly adorable right now. She could tell from her body language that her body was as stiff as a board, back muscles tensed and lips slack against her own. While some people may have found this a turn-off for a kiss, Ritona found it awfully endearing-- a typical Rune-like trait. This was one of their first kisses, after all... There would be plenty of opportunities for improvement in the future.
Pressing up against Rune's body eagerly, Ritona savored the lingering sensation of their lips mingling together in harmony, as if a soft melody played solely for them every time their lips met. This courting dance continued between them indefinitely, the brushing of lips feeling curiously like the blooming of spring-- petals unfurling and unfurling until they achieved their full splendor. She didn't want this unraveling spring to ever wilt away.
Nipping playfully on her bottom lip, Ritona reluctantly bowed out of their exchange, ending their kiss with a pop. Rune's eyelids were still closed in enchantment, a reddish tint splayed across her face from the varying degrees of stress she had just experienced. They were both riding high on emotions, adrenaline pumping through their bodies after the height of their kiss.
"...How was that?" Ritona inquired, a breathy quality still present in her voice. "I hope that I lived up to your expectations."
Languidly opening her eyes, Rune then proceeded to blink rapidly, trying to snap herself out of her daze. She didn't trust her voice to remain unfaltering, but she knew that she had to answer Ritona. Parting her lips that still tingled faintly with the memory of their kiss, Rune replied with a stutter, "B-Beyond amazing... I don't even imagine I could have words to describe that! But you definitely surpassed all of my expectations, Ritona-- I think you have a knack for that~!"
"Hmhmhm~! A knack, indeed! There's no fair maiden in all of Rughzenhaide-- no, in all of the world-- that wouldn't swoon over how dashing and chivalrous Ritona is!" A familiar voice bellowed from the entrance of the room, telltale blonde curls peeking out from behind the door.
Ritona's expression cycled through the five stages of grief-- denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance-- before she turned her head to look at Selphine. "...And precisely how long have you been standing there and spying on us?"
Tapping her finger on her chin contemplatively, she hummed meditatively before answering, "Oh, I don't know... Maybe since you two started to make ou--"
"Okay. Okay. That's all I needed to know." Ritona said, sighing exasperatedly at this entire turn of events. "One more thing... Please do not use the term "making out" so liberally in front of me again. It makes me feel like I participated in something vulgar or indecent, despite it clearly being the opposite."
Giggling with an overly-wide smile on her face, Selphine agreed, "Of course, of course! It wasn't my intention to detract from the whole "smooching Rune smack-dab on the lips" experience~!"
Sighing even heavier, Ritona rubbed her temples in an attempt to not completely blow a fuse in front of Selphine and Rune. "Somehow, that wording makes things even worse..."
From behind Ritona, Rune was covering her face with her hands in mortal embarrassment, allotting only a tiny slit through her fingers to look at both of them. "A-Ahhhh... this is so embarrassing...! Why out of all times did you have to walk in then, Selly!? I think I could literally overheat right now from all this overstimulation..."
..."Overstimulation"? Is that really the correct word to use?
Glossing over that wording, Ritona fought off the... images... that would come to mind from that suggestive phrasing. She certainly wouldn't want those thoughts swirling inside her head right now!
"My deepest apologies for that, Rune! It was just that I was getting bored munching on toast for breakfast in the lobby and waiting forever for you to return, so I thought I would check to see what was taking so long." Selphine said sheepishly, fully entering the room and letting the door shut neatly behind her. "Though... I guess I know now what was taking you so long in here. How bold to take the initiative like that~!"
Rune seemed to shrink even more inwardly on herself after hearing this, somehow maneuvering herself around Ritona to plop down on the bed in defeat. If there could have been a miniature flagpole sprouting out of her head and a stark white flag of surrender fluttering on it, that would have perfectly described the humiliation she was feeling right now. That, and she was now curling up on the bed and muffling her screaming into her palms-- but that was besides the point!
Watching Rune vent her extreme embarrassment out undeterred, Ritona felt a pang of pity deep in her gut for her now-girlfriend. This day-- and the night before-- were both surely major stressors for Rune. It didn't help that Selphine was now utterly insistent on teasing Rune unrelentingly, not planning on stopping anytime soon. If this were to be prolonged, it was entirely possible that Rune could overheat...
"Alright, Selphine... Don't you think that's enough teasing for today? The poor girl is quite literally writhing on the bed right now due to your antics." Ritona reprimanded in a stern tone, taking mercy on the victim of the onslaught of tomfoolery. She knew she wouldn't want to be in an unpleasant position like that, so it was only sensible to toss a line out to Rune when she needed it.
Mumbling dejectedly like a child whose favorite toy was taken away, Selphine pouted for a smidgen, but ultimately bent obediently to Ritona's whims. "Okay, I'll end my teasing for now. Sorry about that, Rune... I may have went a teensy bit overboard in my excitement for you."
Slowly peeling her hands off her blushing face, Rune glanced warily the two of them. Locks of her light blue hair were now obscuring her vision in replacement of her hands, so she didn't get very far in that endeavor-- all she succeeded in was getting a mouthful of hair in her mouth when she opened it. It seemed like it began to dawn on her that remaining in that fetal position was counterproductive now, so she shifted into a seated position on the bed.
"It's fine; I think I might have overreacted a bit anyways." Rune confessed, secretly relieved her mouth wasn't having hair cling inside it like a koala to a eucalyptus tree anymore. "I'm glad that you're so supportive of our relationship though, Selly... It really fires up my spirits~! Or something along those lines!"
This time it was Ritona's turn to blush, subtly shielding her face from Selphine's notice with the back of her hand. Magenta eyes flitting off to the side, she tried her damndest not to focus on the "our relationship" comment, but to no avail. Instead, she redirected her attention into the ongoing conversation, lowering her hand and praying her face didn't look too suspicious.
"While it is uplifting news to hear of our new relationship status, I think we may have been forgetting one crucial detail this morning." Ritona informed, continuing on when Rune and Selphine didn't appear to be aware of what they overlooked, "We forgot to eat breakfast-- or rather, I haven't eaten breakfast yet due to some... unforeseen circumstances."
As if on cue, both of the clueless girls became cognizant of the mouth-watering aroma wafting from the breakfast tray on the bedside table. On the tray was a batch of pancakes drizzled in chocolate syrup with freshly-cut strawberries nestled on top, a dab of whipped cream on the side for good measure. Some sort of vanilla protein shake-- most likely Rune's choice-- was placed next to the plate of food, just waiting for someone to take a sip of its nutrients.
"That's right! Ritona still hasn't eaten her breakfast yet!" Rune exclaimed in a tizzy, crossing over quickly to see if the pancakes were still warm. After determining that the pancakes were still mildly warm, she breathed a terse sigh of relief. "Well, it looks like Ritona's breakfast hasn't cooled off that much, but she still should dig in pretty soon-- she needs to regain her strength from her hangover, after all!"
Selphine hummed in agreement, ogling the delicious tower of pancakes with a gluttonous gleam in her eyes. "That aroma does smell pretty tantalizing from over here... Ritona better scarf down those pancakes soon, or else I'm going to devour them all in one bite!"
"...You just said you had breakfast down in the lobby, Selphine; there's no need for you to inhale all my pancakes like some starving circus animal who just got tossed the last scraps of food." Ritona chastised, walking over next to Rune and casually brushing against her arm, eliciting a slight jolt of surprise from her.
How cute.
Sticking out her tongue childishly in rebuttal, Selphine turned around with her arms crossed and head pointed up into the air. "Well, whatever! Enjoy your extravagant chocolate syrupy feast, Miss Royal Guardian! Bleeee~gh!"
"Oh, I will; and I'll make sure to emphasize how delicious it is while I'm eating it too, Selphine." Ritona replied with a bantering lilt, picking up the fork and knife that were resting on a napkin next to the plate.
Just as she was about to cut the pancakes into bite-size pieces, she saw Rune delicately place a hand on her own in the corner of her peripheral, which caused her to pause. Raising an eyebrow trivially, she asked in a quiet tone, "What's the matter, Rune?" "
"Here, allow me to cut the pancakes up for you, Ritona. You should just relax for now because of your current condition." Rune murmured close to her ear, which almost evoked a shudder from her. "Let me pamper you for now, alright? You always take such good care of Selly and me, so let me return the favor just this once."
Gazing at Rune, she could automatically tell that what she said was heartfelt. She was absolutely certain her face was flaring up with a blush right now, but what person wouldn't blush at something so sincere and genuine? It just made her even more grateful for the unusual circumstances of their meeting.
"Alright, I'll go along with it. Thank you, Rune." Ritona replied softly, feeling a bit self-conscious now with Selphine being in the room and listening to them. Even though their backs were turned, she still didn't want her eavesdropping on their conversation right now-- she was pretty positive that Rune felt the same way.
Peeking back surreptitiously over her shoulder, she observed that Selphine had now moved to a rather large recliner in the corner of the room, obviously being snoopy with their interaction. Her eyebrows were wiggling at a furious rate, as if trying to send a signal to "go for it" or something equally as corny. As much as she appreciated her encouragement, she really didn't need an overly-zealous princess to be her wingman right now.
Electing to ignore Selphine as much as possible, she shifted her attention back to Rune again. She had already began slicing into her pancakes, nimbly cutting them with ease. Her movements were so deft that Ritona was reminded that Rune wasn't entirely human; but even though that made her curious of some aspects of her creation, it didn't matter much to her whether she was human or not. Rune was Rune.
While she was left to her own devices, Rune had stabbed a pancake piece with a generous amount of whipped cream onto her fork and lifted it up to Ritona's mouth. Ritona blinked upon seeing the piece of pancakes hovering in front of her, wondering if Rune truly intended to feed her like this.
Was this what she had meant by "pampering"...?
Nonetheless, if this is what she intended to do, Ritona wasn't going to stand in front of her and space out like an insufferable idiot. Mentally kicking herself to spring into action, she leaned forward to take a bite of the pancakes. She slid them off the fork cleanly, retracting her head to chew for a moment. While she did this, she glanced back at Rune's face briefly, noticing that she was blushing profusely. That just made her feel even more self-conscious, so she instead redirected her gaze to the sunlight gliding gracefully through the window.
As she watched the luminous sunlight flowing through the windowpanes, she could only taste the lingering and light flavor of whipped cream melting on her tongue.
...She wished that this sweetness would last for a very long time.