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Genya was used to the female body. Hours spent with hands trailing over various sections of skin, belonging to various women. At first, she would blush a bright crimson colour, that rivalled her hair, but now it was second nature.
She was caught off guard with Alina. It shouldn’t’ve been anything special, besides the fact that this was the Sun Summoner, the one who would save them all, supposedly. Genya didn’t see a Sun Summoner at first though. She saw muddied skin, and dry blood, and days-old wounds. She was a tailor after all. But then she looked a little more, looked in small stolen glances, and nothing more. And she saw the way the light appeared to cling to her, the way her eyes seemed to shimmer, the way her smile was blinding.
She didn’t look when Alina had snapped about cleaning herself, though she did allow herself to let a small smirk appear on her lips. She looked when Alina stepped out of the water, a necessity, but she found her eyes trailing over certain sections of honied skin a little longer than needed. She hated herself for the frown that tugged at her lips when Alina pulled on a robe.
Her eyes turned critiquing, as she studied Alina’s face, already making notes on what could be perfected, when the hand-made next to her spoke up.
“You should start with making her eyes less Shu” Genya watched as Alina’s smile fell from her face, and clapped her hands, ordering everyone out, before leading Alina over to the chair in front of the vanity, where her Kit had been placed.
She let her hands run free, her mind somewhere else, before she was jolted back into reality, by Alina’s hand on her wrist.
“-a reminder of home.” Oh. Genya stared at her wrist, and tried to remember the last time someone who wasn’t the King had touched her. It must’ve took too long, the delicious warmth that had enveloped her wrist vanishing, as Alina pulled her hand back,
She could faintly hear her apologising, and shook her head, before telling her what her day would entail, and handed her her clothes - a clean First Army uniform.
She walked Alina down the staircase, absent-mindedly making conversation, until they reached the bottom, where General Kirigan was waiting for them, for Alina. He took Alina’s arm, and turned to Genya.
“The King wishes to see you after the demonstration.” She swallowed thickly, and nodded, ignoring Alina’s worried look, before walking off to wait for the King in his quarters, already numb.
-
It hadn’t taken long, before Genya found herself looking forward to her mornings with Alina. There was something about her, about the time they spent together, that was different. That perfectly crafted mask Genya had spent so long perfecting, was finally allowed to fall, if only for a couple glorious hours, and it was addictive. No. Alina was addictive. Her laugh, her poise, the soft shimmer that followed her around. Just Alina herself. Genya had no words that could describe Alina perfectly. None of them even came close. Pretty was too simple. Breath-taking was all wrong. Alina helped her to breathe, to live. Magical was the closest, but Alina was all tantalisingly real. Alina was perfect.
Alina, Alina, Alina.
Her name repeated itself in Genya’s mind, the perfect backing track to the memories of Alina’s laugh, Alina’s smile, Alina’s voice first thing in the morning, Alina’s naked form, an image that had been burned into her mind since the first time she had ever set eyes upon it, an image that had been played over and over as her fingers danced under covers in the safety of her room.
A curse escaped Genya's lips, barely a whisper, as she realised what had happened.
She had fallen in love with the damn girl.