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Published:
2018-08-21
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2018-10-14
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5/?
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Beautiful Creatures

Summary:

Set some time after entering collage, Chise and Elias are back home on holidays. After waking from a rather explicit dream of Elias, Chise is forced to confront new feelings and thoughts about her to be husband. Elias x Chise, adult themes, light profanity, sexual tension and sexual themes.

Notes:

(See the end of the work for notes.)

Chapter Text

Characters: Elias x Chise, Silver, Ruth, Alice
Timeline: Sometime after the main events of the first series and during collage break.
Warning: Contains adult themes, sexual themes. 


   It came as a sudden rush. The sensation of heat flowing through her entire body, pulsing heat down her chest, stomach and somewhere else. Shadows surrounded her, and yet a warmth that held her captive. A familiar scent brushed against her nostrils before the light pierced her eyes and something else flooded through her entire body.

   Chise stared at the ceiling, her heart beating harder than she knew it should be. There was a light sweat that covered her brow and chest, and something deep inside her belly felt tingly. It wasn’t so much that she didn’t understand what had happened—she did—it merely brought on so many questions to why!?

   The drapes against her window flickered in the breeze, and she felt her cheeks flush a warm red as she recalled such intimate touches. It made her think things that she may have thought about for a fleeting second previously, and yet… now it weighed like a ton of bricks.

   A light groan rumbled in the back of her dry and sleepy throat, her hands rising as she placed them over flushed cheeks. 

   ‘Elias…’

   Why would she ever have such a dream of him? So they were in a relationship, or… some sort of a relationship. She was his bride, after all, and yet, nothing ceremonial had been put in place despite their mutual affections. Maybe Elias didn’t actually know what happened in such situations. It was too embarrassing to talk about, and between the both of them, their communication skills were worse than lacking. But they’d made a promise to make things better between them. That they’d do this together. And yet... this wasn’t the kind of conversation that they’d ever had between them. 

   Opening her eyes, she took a careful breath, pulling her hands back. The sunlight that came through the curtain shimmered against the ring on her finger. A promise that they would walk beside each other. But she couldn’t! How could she tell him of such a dream!? She didn’t even know what he looked like beneath his clothes! Not like that, anyway. When he transformed into what one might call a monster, nothing about him was remotely human. His skin was scaly, he had feathers and fur, and his breath rattled like a beast in the forest. She’d not been in any real position to try and search, let alone that mindset. 

   She realised she was blushing again and made a small grumble. Had she ever thought about Elias in a sexual manner before? She recalled slight moments here and there. The kiss under the mistletoe, when the faerie king asked how many children they’d have, but they were mere seconds that never lingered. She had to admit, it was probably that moment that had been the first: the mention of children. Of course, when Elias sprung that he wanted her to be his bride on her, she’d not even thought about such things. 

   There had been moments, when she’d put herself up for auction. She couldn’t say back then that she was scared to think who might purchase her. Seth had always said she was worth a lot of money and she was special. That whoever bought her, they’d never abuse her. But she couldn’t help but think who might abuse her, and in what ways. She’d been a fifteen year old girl, and she wasn’t that naive to think that someone wouldn’t take her as some kind of sex slave. 

   But then Elias took her in and... every thought of that disappeared when he said that she was free to roam the house, that she wasn’t going to be in chains, and that he wanted her as his apprentice. Admittedly, when she saw his inhuman face, all thought of that had disappeared, too.

   Elias was so... Did he even like being touched in that way? He did that thing where he’d nuzzle her head or hold her hand, or pick her up and cradle her. But even then, sometimes it felt more like he was patting a dog or ruffling her hair like she was some kind of kid. She wasn’t a kid, though. She understood that Elias didn’t know a lot about himself, or even how to express himself in a healthy manner, but surely... Surely he understood what happened when people were wed. 

   But when Oberon asked about them having children, it made Chise see something different in Elias. She didn’t even know what he was—not truly, anyway. Did it matter? Sometimes he was so shut off that it did mattered to her, and that bothered her greatly. But that was other things, not... physical things. She’d never even seen him bathe before—despite knowing that he did. Elias was very proper for someone who everyone called a monster. He was tidy, prim, and private. But despite her lack of knowledge when it came to his past, she also had no idea what Elias looked like under those clothes. 

   Her mind lingered on what she felt within her dream, soft but smooth scaly skin. He was surprisingly warm. The first time he’d pressed himself against her, she’d realised that. She’d been expecting him to be cold, and even violent, like so many of the other monsters she’d seen when she was little, or the relatives that took her in. They all wanted a piece of her one way or another, but Elias? 

   She frowned to herself. She still felt guilty over the fact that she’s struck him, but she couldn’t deny that he deserved it. Using Stella as a sacrifice? What had he been thinking!? She supposed, her reaction wasn’t going to teach him anything good. She shouldn’t have hit him, and she was learning that Elias tended to take things rather literal when they were explained or performed before him. Still, he had deserved it for what he’d attempted to do. 

   And yet... Elias had never physically harmed her. It wouldn’t stop the guilt. Her whole life, she’d felt guilt; guilt for being alive and causing so many problems for everyone around her. Guilt because she was such a hassle to everyone. Even now, when she was finally learning to be happy again, old habits died hard, and that guilt was one of them. When you’d been seen as such a pain to live with, it was hard to accept that you still weren’t in the way, causing trouble. And now, she even felt a sense of guilt at the fact that she didn’t know Elias as much as a bride should. She’d never asked—never even thought to ask.

   That day when she’d seen Elias as a man other than just... whatever he was, she should have mentioned something. Now, it just felt awkward. Even more awkward at the fact that she’d had a sex dream about him. 

   The warm sensation seemed to spread as she shifted her legs, squeezing them together. She could already tell that these thoughts weren’t going to leave her all day. How was she supposed to do her chores and other daily needs when she was going to be so distracted? 

   “You’re uneasy.”

   Chise gasped, feeling her heart leap from her chest. “Ruth!” The large, black dog was laying at the end of the bed, red eyes on her. She felt her cheeks still burning. He could tell, couldn’t he? 

   ‘Please, please don’t know what happened. That’s so embarrassing!’

   Ruth’s eyes were expressionless, but he hummed in response before he laid his chin against his paws. Chise had always been a socially awkward person, much like his Isabel. She kept things to herself far too often, and she avoided most confrontation, especially if it meant backlash. Some of that had changed, which had been good to see, but she seemed to forget that they had shared themselves with each other. Every feeling, every memory, and every desire, Ruth knew and understood. Did that mean he loved Elias like Chise did? Absolutely not. But somewhere, in his heart, he understood the feelings she had for him on a level that only a familiar could. 

   Having sat up in the bed, Chise rubbed her arm. “Please don’t tell him.”

   Ruth almost scoffed, ears flicking upwards. “You love him, Chise. You should be the one who tells him.”

   Her hands tightened, as did her jaw, eyes looking away. They’d not even said those words. Not like that, anyway. Yes, she did love him, and she had a feeling that Elias’ feelings were mutual—even if he didn’t understand them. Maybe she hadn’t said it out loud because she still feared that rejection. The fact that Elias couldn’t return it because it might be a lie...

   Inside her chest, she felt it tug. Anxiety and uncertainty formed cruel, dark webs within her stomach, pulling and stretching. Even humans didn’t understand their emotions half the time, but Elias was... different. If she made a rash decision, she could entirely ruin what they had. But most of all, she feared that he couldn’t say it back, because it would hurt. She could play ignorant for a while longer, surely.

   When this had started, it was just a fear that he might toss her out. That he’d have no use of her anymore, and that she’d have nowhere to go. But now it was different. She feared that he wouldn’t have the same feelings as she did. She feared her own attachments to him and everyone else around him. She was still so selfish.

   “It’s not like that,” she muttered.

   Ruth made a huff from his nostrils. “Still being stubborn, I see.”

   “He wouldn’t understand.” She didn’t quite believe it, at least not entirely, as the words left her lips. Elias had been around for hundreds of years, surely he would understand it, at least on a biological level. How many books did he have in his study and across the house? Surely not all of those were on magic, and even then, common conversation and understanding of humans would mean the topic would have arisen. And yet he’d asked to marry a fifteen year old girl. 

   She remembered when she’s accused him and Angie of being lovers. Elias’ reaction was... oddly human. He’d been uncomfortable when she’d mentioned it. Maybe Elias didn’t know as much as she assumed. Maybe he had no reason to be with someone else in such a manner. There was something odd inside her that felt relieved at such an idea. Maybe Elias was like her; maybe he’d never been with another woman before. But it still felt so unlikely with how old he was. 

   ’How does someone ask something like that? It’s so awkward... Does he even have...’ She stopped her thoughts short. Elias wasn’t a human, but that didn’t mean he didn’t have the proper ‘equipment’. Oberon said they could have children. Surely that meant—

   Her thoughts were stolen from her when she heard a knock at the door and Silver stepped in. For a moment, she thought it may have been Elias, and part of her was glad it wasn’t. Another part was sad, but she was mostly embarrassed, because now she felt like she could never look at him the same way again. In a sense, it felt like a part of her was gone now: that part being innocence. 

*****
   At the breakfast table, Chise moved the fork against her plate, her other hand against her cheek. Elias had never been much of a morning person, so she wasn’t surprised that she had started breakfast without him. Silver was buzzing around the house, cleaning up after her cooking, and made sure to lean down and fill Ruth’s bowl up. He was happily distracted by his food, which gave Chise a moment of privacy with her thoughts. 

   She’d thought that breakfast might have given her the chance to brush her thoughts aside and get on with her day. They had so much to do. There was a list on the corkboard of medicines that needed preparing. Elias has a few clients he needed to speak to today as well. The chickens needed feeding, the garden needed pruning, and she had to study. She also wanted to call Alice. However, none of that was on her mind. Instead, she was still caught up about the uneasiness of her rather explicit dream. It brought on a plethora of questions, and oddly enough, they weren’t questions about herself. They all revolved around Elias. Did he dream? Did he have... thosekinds of dreams? She’d never really thought about him in an over sexualised manner before, which made her even more confused why she’d even had a dream like that in the first place!

   Was it normal? She’d learned from class—or at least some things—about being human and what came with it. While she’d never felt comfortable talking about it, and it was awkward considering she didn’t have anyone she could put her trust in, she still dealt with the everyday things of becoming a teenager and a young woman. Periods, growing pains, her breasts having gotten larger. She was a thin, small girl, and she didn’t feel like she had much to offer. While Chise certainly had put some more meat on her bones since her stay here, her puberty had been late to settle in since her malnutrition. She was petite in all areas. Would that disappoint Elias? Did he have expectations for his bride? What if she wasn’t good enough for him? She’d never had much self confidence in who she was as a person, but now this was bringing on a whole lot of other issues she was smothering and drowning herself in.

   “Good morning, Chise.” 

   She flinched, startled from being lost in her thoughts. “Elias!” She felt her cheeks burn as she tried to settle back down in her seat, appearing normal. Damnit, that was terrible and obvious, and she could tell he was taken aback a bit by his hesitation before he put a gloved hand to her head and patted it. She shrank into her shoulders at the affectionate touch. Just like how she’d pat Ruth on the head...

   “Are you feeling alright? You look flushed.” Elias tilted his head, placing the back of his hand to her forehead to check her temperature. “Hmm, you are not running a fever, and yet, you seem considerably warm around your cheeks.” This was not a reaction he’d woken up to when it came to Chise. He had seen her cheeks grow flushed many times before, but not when he’d greeted her at the kitchen table. 

   Silver placed a plate full of food on the other side of the table, suggesting that Elias sit and eat. There was also a warm mug of tea she sat beside it. Ruth was still happily scoffing his face from his bowl.

   “Mm—no, I’m fine,” Chise mumbled, picking her fork back up and putting her head down. She couldn’t even look at him without feeling utterly embarrassed. Something in her chest felt funny, too. Not like the other times she’d felt butterflies flutter when she thought of Elias, but something else. Something she was afraid she couldn’t actually explain.

   Elias sat himself down and took the newspaper that Silver set down onto the small, two-person sized table. With his other hand, he took to his breakfast.

   They didn’t always talk during meals, and this morning, Chise was more than happy to try and ignore Elias’ presence. She ate in silence, only realising half way through that she was simply eating as a distraction and an excuse not to talk. Somewhere during that time, Ruth had set his chin onto her leg beneath the table, as if awaiting her leftovers now that his bowl was empty. 

   There was something different about Chise this morning, and Elias could tell. What that was, though? He couldn’t quite put his finger on. The girl had never spoken much, but she had become more chatty over time. An odd thing for Elias to deal with, considering he was so used to the house being quiet and the solitude. He supposed, ever since Chise had been here, he, too, had become more social. Whether that was because he was dealing with students or simply because he enjoyed Chise’s company—or everyone else who decided to barge in on him these days.

   His first thought was that she was overworking herself. Again. He had at least learned to identify the feeling that swivelled around in his gut at that thought. It was concern. 

   “Chise, are you sure that you are alright? You seem uneasy.” Just because he could not always understand his own feelings, didn’t mean he couldn’t identify the reactions other people gave. A frown could mean displeasure, worry or sadness. Smiles could mean joy and happiness, or someone found something funny. He hadn’t mastered it yet, but he was learning. Sometimes, leaning was overwhelming, though. It made him very tired.

   She felt her jaw clench a little, still looking down at her plate. She couldn’t tell him, though. Maybe... maybe she could ask Alice about it? Maybe they could have some girl talk? She just knew she couldn’t tell Elias about it right now. He’d give her that look, that he didn’t understand it, and then she’d want to crawl in a hole and never come out. Because, goodness, no, she wasn’t explaining that to him! She could deal with the other feelings, like anger and jealousy, but that? Absolutely not! Surely that was for Lindel, or Renfred even.

   “Chise...?” 

   “It’s nothing. I just had a weird dream.” She offered Elias a smile that felt worlds fake, but she couldn’t do anything else about it now. She didn’t like lying to him, but this was something she wasn’t ready to handle. In a way, it was just withholding information... much like he had. It wasn’t like it was anything overly important either, it was just extremely awkward.

   She didn’t like doing this, especially after their talk. They’d said that they would try and talk things out and communicate with each other better. And while they certainly had, this was something she wasn’t prepared to talk about just yet. It was just too much, and she didn’t want to ruin what they had. Their relationship had become a lot closer since everything that happened. She wasn’t sure if she forgave him for Stella just yet, but even then, they’d moved forward.

   She paused when she felt the soft fabric of his glove cup her beneath the chin and make her eyes raise. When they met his, she felt herself swallow thickly. Everything about him was different now. The twist of his horns, the soft, matted texture of his face... those shoulders. She didn’t even want to imagine anything below them. His hand was as gentle as ever, too.

   “If you are having trouble sleeping, you should have said something.” She was still bad at it, about telling people her problems. He could have concocted a remedy for her with ease. Or she could have come and slept with him. Despite their involvement with one another, they didn’t always sleep together. It took time getting used to, and with school, it meant that they slept in different rooms anyway. Elias had found it oddly difficult at first. For one, it was strange to have someone else in his bed. Chise was small, and he was... well... not. He had that same tightness in his stomach that he understood as worry, that he would accidentally hurt her. But then when she was not there, he felt cold again. It was all very overwhelming for him, and he didn’t like it. How humans dealt with this on a daily basis was beyond him.

   “Do you think you would sleep better in my room tonight?” The question was a purely innocent one, of course. Something was bothering Chise, and he merely wanted her to not be bothered. 

   Chise looked away again. The invitation meant so much more now. She wanted to excuse herself from the breakfast table, but then Elias would surely know something wasn’t right. She wanted to hide in the bathroom or her bedroom, but again... Elias would know she was avoiding him. When it came down to it, she couldn’t avoid him. The house might have been huge (especially for her), but they’d always run into each other, especially if Elias sought her out. 

   She had to say something, otherwise Elias would question her, so she shrugged, admittedly lamenting the loss of his hand as he returned it to himself. “Maybe. I don’t want to be a bother.”

   A little chuckle left the magus. “If it were a bother, I would not insist. And I do insist if it makes your sleeping habits better.” Perhaps he was being just as selfish as Chise was when he enjoyed her presence and attention. He had tried to understand that he could not be too clingy, and that it could come off as negative, despite his clear affections for the woman. Some might even call him a bit of a puppy when it came to his feelings for her, which was ironic since she was his puppy. 

   Now she knew she was being selfish again. Something at his invitation made her pleased, and a warm sensation fluttered in the pits of her stomach. Selfish curiosity, that’s what it was. She’d slept with Elias before in the same bed, but now it was for a different reason other than just sleep, or because of some kind of spell or recovery. This time, it was purely for her own selfish curiosity.

   How was she going to stand this all day? She couldn’t! 

   Elias looked down at his left hand, which had his glove covering it. That didn’t stop the warm sensation that came from the ring on his finger. Did Chise forget that their rings now picked up on one another? Heart rate and pulse, a sense of fear if one of them was in trouble.

   “Chise, something is wrong,” he commented, lifting his hand to signify the ring on his finger was having a reaction. How was it having a reaction when she was not in any danger? 

   Chise’s lips parted as she looked down at her own ring, her hand bare, but charcoal black from the curse that resided within her. Crap. How could she forget!? She hadn’t expected the ring to react to something like this, though.

   “I’m fine, Elias,” she laughed a little sheepishly, though hoping it would sate his worries. “Really, I’m just tired. I’m going to call Alice, okay.” She pushed herself up from the table, Ruth standing beside her now.

   ‘When will you tell him?’ the hound asked her privately. 

   Chise sighed mentally to herself. ‘I don’t know, but now isn’t the right time.’ She gave Silver a smile in thanks before she excused herself entirely. She needed to make a call.

   Elias, still seated (rather stiffly) at the table, lowered his hand and cocked his head in curiosity. Ruth was gone, or he would have asked, but he felt that tight sensation in his stomach tell him not to. No... it would upset Chise to go around her. He had to trust that it was alright, that she would talk to him, even if not immediately. It caused a sensation of annoyance to bubble up inside his chest, but he tried his best to ignore it.

   Something was wrong, though, and it was hard to ignore it when it came to Chise. Nonetheless, he distracted himself with his breakfast, just as Chise had done.

Chapter 2: Chapter II

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Chapter II 

   “That’s why you called me out here?” Alice exclaimed. The look on her face was nothing short of amusement. So the woman had a sex dream about her husband to be? And she was freaking out over it like it was the end of the world? Blimey! She couldn’t contain the laughter that burst out of her mouth, her hand slapping her knee in the process.

   Chise felt her cheeks blush horribly. Well, she hadn’t been expecting Alice to laugh right in her face, but she also didn’t seem to understand how strange this was for Chise. She’d never really cared about other people... She didn’t even care about herself. Ever since her mother committed suicide, she couldn’t think of anything happy in her life. Not until Elias had bought her, anyway.

   Maybe when she was younger, she had a crush on a boy in school, but even then... she couldn’t recall such things. Her mother died when she was so young, and everything after that was like nothing but a big, gaping black hole, trying to consume her. Everything that could have been happy seemed numb. 

   Everyday life for Chise had been nothing but blank emptiness. Some days, she couldn’t even remember how she managed to get from school to home—not that it was much of a home. She’d been passed around so many times, that she’d never felt at home with anyone. At least... no one but Elias. Even then, the mage had purchasedher like she was some kind of item. And in truth, that hadn’t bothered Chise. She’d done what she did, full knowing what might come from it. She was aware that whoever bought her might do something awful. But at that point, she’d become so numb she just didn’t give a damn.

   If anything, Chise now saw herself as somewhat lucky that it was Elias who had bought her and not someone else. He may be strange and not a human, but there was no telling who else might have picked her up at that auction house. Someone could have dissected her—and Elias had those same thoughts when he’d spoken about people looking at her and researching her at school. Those were very valid points and something she couldn’t blame him worrying over. Being a Sleigh Beggy was a curse. One she couldn’t control. If she was ever going to find an answer, it was through the collage.

   So, when Alice laughed at her, she didn’t really know how to react. All she knew was that now she was even more embarrassed for having called Alice out here just to confide in her about something personal that she was having a good laugh at. She knew it probably wasn’t her intention—they’d been friends long enough for that—but Alice had a lot more confidence than she did. She also had more knowledge on these kinds of things. She was a street kid, after all. 

   Alice also just didn’t give a damn...

   When Chise fell quiet, Alice’s expression dropped. Sheesh, she was actually really concerned about this, wasn’t she? Damn, the girl was in collage now, surely she knew about shit like that, right? Maybe not... and it wasn’t like the bonehead taught her much about anything. Elias was an idiot. 

   “Sorry, I didn’t mean to laugh, I just...” Alice paused, shoving her hands into her pants pockets and giving a shrug. “Aren’t you two, like... engaged anyway? I mean, it’s totally normal to have dreams like that, Chise. You don’t need to be worked up about it all, yeah?” 

   It was only a little comforting to hear that, and she still didn’t quite know how to react. She retreated a little from the reaction. It wasn’t Alice’s fault, Chise just didn’t know how to interact with people normally still. Years of torment would do that, though. She’d definitely come out of her shell, but she still had a long way to go. Sometimes, the only time she truly felt comfortable was when she was pressed up against Elias’ chest with his long arms wrapped around her and his soft heartbeat pressed to her ear. It soothed her and made her feel like she was finally home. Someone finally cared about her. Someone was finally willing to take her in.

   Moving her hand to Chise’s shoulder to force the woman to look at her, Alice gave her a concerned look. “Man, this is really bothering you that much? C’mon, Chise. It’s nothing. We all have weird dreams like that, it’s totally human. And normal. You’re basically a young adult now, anyway. Kinda figured if you guys were gunna do it, you already would have by now.” 

   “What!?” Chise gasped. She was sure that her cheeks couldn’t possibly get any redder! Did people actually thinkthat of them!? Surely they didn’t. She supposed... the faerie king did ask when their kids were going to happen. But people really thought about that stuff? What was it any of their business what Elias and she did? And Elias had been nothing but a gentleman when it came to touching her in such ways. Okay, so he may have bathed her like she was some kind of messy pet when she’d just arrived, but she could excuse him from that, especially knowing how he was now compared to back then. Elias wasn’t the smartest person when it came to humans, and she’d learned that over the years of being with him. Sometimes, he was more of a child than she was, and they were both teaching each other new things. 

   “Well, I mean... yeah,” Alice shrugged once more. “You guys have been together for a couple of years now. Not to mention he pretty much says you’re his bride. It’s not uncommon for that kinda stuff, you know? Plenty of mages end up marrying their apprentices. Although... I guess not all of them are him, are they?” Him meaning not human, of course. 

   “But that doesn’t matter. Has any of that ever mattered to you?” Chise all of a sudden seemed so caught up in it all, like she’d never actually thought about the bonehead in such a way. Surely she’d had thoughts! Even Alice had thoughts and she didn’t even care for him in that way! Humans were curious things, though, and it was only human to be so. Shit, some of the things she thought about were just outright ridiculous! It didn’t mean she thought anything by it, really. It was just random thoughts that were intrusive. It wasn’t like she had a way to stop it—did anyone?

   No, she supposed it didn’t. Elias was just Elias to her. She’d seen him in so many different shapes and sizes, but none of that turned her off him—man, woman, fae or not. Even when he’d shifted into that of a giant monster, she’d still not been scared of him. She always knew that it was Elias, no matter what he looked like or what form he took on. Even as a woman. It was always still him. Elias. 

   But it still felt different. Now it wasn’t just Elias. It was him and his body. It was the fact that she was thinking about it in an entirely different manner, and that made her feel all sorts of awkward and guilty. What if it was offensive in some kind of way? She felt like she objectifying him now, when she didn’t want to.

   “Does it... make me selfish, Alice?” she asked, her voice meek now. She was still red, of course. 

   Alice raised a brow, leaning her back against the bench they were seated at. “Selfish? Why would it make you selfish?” 

   Chise shrugged, still unable to bring herself to look the other woman in the eye. “Because I think about it now. Because it’s different. Because... I want to know more.” Her chest was tight with anxiety. If Alice told her she was selfish, she didn’t know how she’d take it. In truth, she half expected laughter again, but it never came. She was thankful for that, at least.

   “Selfish because you’re curious about what your fiancé looks like in the buff?” She snorted and shook her head. “C’mon, Chise, you can’t really think that. Everyone’s curious about that kinda shit. You’re human, too, you know.” She lightly tapped the other girl on the leg playfully. She knew that Chise had always been a bit uptight, but honestly, she’d never thought they’d be having a conversation like this together. It seemed she still had so much to learn about herself—and Ainsworth wasn’t helping with any of that. Maybe he didn’t know how?

   “Have you asked him?” 

   Chise stiffened, looking at Alice finally, her green eyes wide. It was a fair enough question, she knew, but it still struck her in a way she couldn’t quite describe. In all honesty, she thought that he would have tried something on her after he’d mentioned that he intended for them to marry. But nothing ever came. Why would she press it when she’d been so young, anyway? If anything, Elias didn’t even seem to understand what really happened in romantic relationships. Sometimes, she still thought he struggled to understand that Chise was a person and not something to own. Technically, yes, she was his property—in a sense at least—but she was still a person. She still had her free will, which she often expressed when she went out of her way to help someone and out herself in harm’s way.

   They’d always had a strange connection, she knew. At first, it hadn’t been anything faithful; it had been someone and their property. It had been the both of them using each other. But things had certainly grown from then, and they did practically everything together now. They’d grown close, and she knew she loved him, and she knew Elias cared for her in some kind of a romantic way. They were family... The only family she’d ever felt welcome in. 

   “I can’t. What if I ruin it?” she asked, shrinking into her shoulders. 

   Ruin it? Alice’s expression turned into a frown. This was getting deeper than she expected—not that she wasn’t going to be there for Chise, because she was. But this wasn’t a conversation she was any good at either. She’d grown up on the streets as a junky. Her innocence was long lost, in reality. But Chise still had that about her. 

   “Look, if you’re gunna be husband and wife one day, then... doesn’t it kinda mean this comes with the territory? Surely the boneheads gotta know that. I mean, okay, he might not be fully human, but he can’t be that dumb. Besides,” she said with another shrug of her shoulders, “he cares about you. A lot, Chise.” That was bloody obvious with how he acted around her. Sometimes it was weird to see, even if it was the kind of cute that made her want to throw up. 

   “I really doubt that something like this would completely ruin everything. It might just be a bit awkward for a while. Plus, haven’t you guys shared beds and... you do that thing where he nuzzles you on the head and whatever else.” She waved a hand to try and not picture it in her head. Too gross and romantic for her tastes. 

   There was silence between them, and it was awkward. Even for Alice, as an older woman, she still found it weird to talk about. This just wasn’t her forte, and she felt like anything she said might just make Chise freeze up and not move forward. So she sighed, leaning forward and putting her elbows against her knees, her back slouched. 

   “Look, what’s the worst that could happen, Chise? Can he even get embarrassed? I mean, maybe just sit in his lap and see if anything happens. Men are pretty easy to rile up if you know what you’re doing.” 

   There was that blush again. How many times had she actually sat in Elias’ lap, and she’d never even thoughtabout what might be sitting beneath her! Maybe... maybe that could actually work. It definitely was a start. If anything, it could be a subtle way to see if any kind of reaction might happen with him. 

   “I don’t know,” she finally replied, her voice still small. “I’m really sorry, Alice. I didn’t mean to drag you out here and make you feel uncomfortable. I just didn’t have anyone else to talk to.” That made her selfish again, didn’t it? She had been trying desperately not to be so selfish, but she couldn’t help but feel like she always took two steps forward and then one step backwards again. 

   “Hey, what are friends for, right?” Alice smiled at the other woman before she stood up and stretched her legs. “So, you gunna try and do something about it? Or are you gunna wallow about it and let it eat you up inside?” 

   Chise gave a sheepish laugh. She knew Alice wasn’t trying to be cruel, but this hadn’t been the first time she’d kept something to herself and it ate a big, great hole inside her stomach. Her and Elias had been getting better at talking about things over the years, she just never expected this was a conversation that they’d end up having. 

   Again, she wasn’t ready for it, and she wasn’t sure she was comfortable at all seeing Elias as something more sexual, but she did know from the past that keeping it to herself would send her insane, and Elias would eventually get it out of her. She had to be better, and it wasn’t fair on Elias either. He’d know something was wrong... If the ring didn’t indicate such things, then her odd behaviour this morning would have. She really hoped that the ring on her finger wasn’t reacting again, and she did a double take on her own breathing, trying to keep it calm and collected. 

   She could do this.

*****
   Back at the house, Elias had distracted himself with work. He had to prepare a few medicines for the townsfolk, and it took up the better half of a day. With Chise (and Ruth) out, it meant that the house was quiet. He’d usually been one for quiet, but ever since Chise had come into his life, he’d not enjoyed the silence. It was just another one of those things that he’d had to get used to over time: being with and without Chise. 

   Even with work, however, he still didn’t feel as motivated as he usually would. He felt more aloof than he usually was, too; which was a pain to deal with, especially when one needed to be precise with measurements. But it wasn’t just the fact that the house was empty, save for the Silver Lady who was working her chores. It was because he knew something was wrong.

   In the back of his skull, he could feel those thoughts nagging at him. It was making him impatient. It wasn’t anything he hadn’t experienced before because of Chise, but that didn’t mean it made it any easier to deal with when these strange feelings attacked him. And that’s what it felt like, something physically wrong with him, inside his stomach, despite the fact that he hardly had innards. It still felt like something was pulling at them and trying to pluck them out, one long intestine after another. 

   Putting the phial down that had been in his hand, he stepped back from the bench. No, this would not do. If he could not concentrate on his work, then he would make a mistake, and then his mistakes would cost him resources and time. The most logical thing to do was take a step back from it, so he did. 

   But then what was he to do? If he could not work, if he had no motivation... 

   Elias moved out of his study, heading into the living room to take a seat in his usual place. As he sat, he rested his knuckles against the cheek of his skull. Those nagging thoughts were still plaguing his mind, and he wished that there was a way to get rid of them.

   What could Chise be hiding from him, though? To go and seek her out would upset her, and he had that feeling of something strangling his gut. He didn’t want to upset her, and he would rather avoid it if he could. But that didn’t stop the troublesome feelings that he was having, and couldn’t always understand. 

   Lifting his left hand, he gently removed the glove, looking at the ring that was on his ring-finger. It hadn’t reacted since this morning, which was a good sign. That should have been enough proof that Chise was fine, and yet it wasn’t. There was still something inside his chest making him uncomfortable, like something was squirming about inside him and clutching his heart. It made him restless and uneasy.

   He placed his hand against his chest in thought, feeling the soft thud of his own heartbeat. It was once a faint thing, wasn’t it. But now, it seemed to give him so much more trouble than before. It acted up and thumped quicker at times. Most of those times were when Chise was involved: when she was looking at him, or he was looking at her. Sometimes, it thudded against his chest with a hard, fast pulse when she was in danger. He had recognised that that feeling was a reaction of fear, in a sense. But fear came in so many other physical ways as well. It was hard to tell what kind of fear he was experiencing. For these human emotions were not just simple black and white. They were like a language of their own, and one that he was struggling to comprehend.

   He would not go after her. He would not follow her. He would not pester her. He had to remind himself that those things may upset Chise, and he had no intention of upsetting her. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t suffering without truly realising it. 

   Should he ask? If he asked and she turned him down—

   He felt his chest sink, which was another thing that felt so foreign to him. This was eating him alive, and he didn’t like it. He would wait until Chise returned from her outing, but he had a feeling that whatever Chise and Alice were discussing, it had something to do with why Chise was acting to strangely this morning. He could only hope that Alice could convince her to speak with him about whatever it was, even if it was a selfish need of his. He needed closure for some reason, and his body (and apparently mind) would not rest until he knew Chise was safe. It was not a pleasant feeling, the strong urge he had to follow her, to get information from her. It was deep and honestly physically painful, which made him feel like he would throw up. But he had to do better—be better. He could not risk losing Chise.

*****
   It was late afternoon when Chise returned home. The sun hadn’t quite set yet, so dinner would still be an hour or so away. After she’d had breakfast this morning, she’d done some of her chores after she’d called Alice. But come midday, she’d been off to the bus stop to go into town. She should have done more study, but talking with Alice was something she needed, and she didn’t regret it. She still had plenty of time to study tonight before bed as well. She’d be sure to clean up well before sleep came, too.

   Oh, that was right, she’d told Elias that she’d sleep with him tonight. Somehow, with her chat to Alice, she’d forgotten about it. Mostly because she’d been thinking about the other suggestion. Elias slept on his belly most of the time, so there would be little chance to try and do something about that—not that she was going to do anything. That made it sound like she was planning something evil, and that made her feel uncomfortable.

   Damnit, maybe this whole thing was a bad idea! No matter what way she looked at it, she felt like she was manipulating Elias. Was that bad of her? Was it so bad that she wanted to find out about Elias without asking him outright? But just the thought about asking him made her want to run away and never come back. This was her home, though... Elias was her home. Surely—surely he’d not be upset about it.

   Elias rarely got upset when she asked questions, unless they were ones he couldn’t answer about himself. Would that fall under that category? She supposed, most of the things she asked him about were academic in a sense (mostly, there had been the occasional personal question which had earned her utter silence and when he’d answered it wasn’t really direct). Would he do the same thing if she asked about his body? Would he just try and hide it and change the subject, or give her some half arsed response? 

   Why did this have to be so damn hard? She should just march in there and ask. But that also wasn’t Chise Hatori. She couldn’t do it, not when it was something like this. 

   Looking at the house, the lights were on inside, even though the sun was barely just starting to set. She pulled her shoulder bag a little closer to her, holding onto the strap. When she got in there, she wasn’t sure what she was going to do or say to Elias. She hoped that he wasn’t concerned about her, because she always felt guilty when she couldn’t open up to him—even if she wanted to. And she knew exactly what it was like to be on the receiving end of that when it came to him. 

   “Ruth, are you still there?” she asked. The hound had of course accompanied her all day while she was out, but being in public, he’d mostly hid himself. At the question, though, the large, black dog came into view from her shadow, the wisp of smoke forming into a solid shape.

   “Of course,” he responded, voice soft. “I suggest you don’t stand out here too long. If Elias catches you, he will question why you’re staring and waiting.” 

   Chise nodded. He was right. If she stood out here for too long, Elias was sure to catch her soon—unless he was busy working on something. She did wonder what he’d done all day, and hoped that it hadn’t just been him sitting and worrying about her. Surely not, he was a busy man after all. They might have been on break, but that didn’t stop Elias having requests for medicines, the church asking him for favours and the fae customers from dropping by. 

   “I never asked what you thought of all of this, Ruth.” It seemed odd asking such a personal question, especially since Ruth was a boy, but they were more than just friends. Ruth knew everything about her now, whether she liked it or not. In turn, she also knew everything about him. That’s what a familiar was, after all. That answered her own question though, didn’t it? She already knew what he thought, and he went on to confirm that. 

   “Are you really asking me, or are you asking yourself? You know what I already think, Chise.” 

   She took a breath, humming in response. “To be upfront and honest, I know. But... can I maybe just have this one today, Ruth? Being a human... makes things different when it comes to these kinds of things.” 

   “Does it have to?” asked the dog, walking beside her as they reached the front lawn. “You both love each other, why would it matter? You should follow your heart like always.”

   Chise made a soft laugh. Sometimes the heart was a funny thing, though. Oh, if only it was so simple, then she wouldn’t be in this mess. Maybe she’d not even be here in England, living with Elias and going to collage now. But it was what it was, and she didn’t regret any of that anymore. She was finally happy, and she had a feeling that Elias was starting to understand his own happiness as well. He might not be able to smile physically with his mouth, but she could see it in his eyes now. That in turn made her happy.

   She didn’t know if following her heart right now was the right way to bring this topic up. But she did want to be honest. Unfortunately, she knew herself well enough now to know that as soon as she walked through that door, she’d not be able to be upfront. But if she could work a way around the problem, then it was worth a try. 

   “I wish it were that easy, Ruth,” she finally said back, reaching the door. She was hesitant to open it up for a moment, stopping and standing there before she looked down at her familiar. “But at least I know I’m home now. I don’t want to ruin that.”

   He still didn’t see how it would ruin anything, but he merely closed his eyes in response, humming a sigh. She was a stubborn woman, just as much as she had been when they’d first met. Some people never changed in some aspects. 

   Opening the door, she stepped in, making sure her boots were clean. “Elias, I’m back,” she announced before she was suddenly swept up against the warmth of what she recognised was Elias’ shirt and vest. He was warm, and she welcomed it, but apparently he was eager, which made her softly laugh and hum into the affection.

   “Chise. I am glad to see you.” He gave her a loving embrace, not wanting to let go. When he held her now, he felt like he could hold her for eternity and everything would be alright. Of course, he knew that he could not, and he carefully let her settle back onto her own two feet. 

   “How was your visit with Alice?” He leant down and pressed his muzzle to Chise’s cheek, nuzzling against it as he tucked his hands behind his back. He had questions, of course, but he had to remind himself that he could not interrogate her. It was... how had she put it? Intrusive. 

   It was strange. She’d been so nervous to talk to Elias about all of this, but at the sight of him, and the feel of that little Elias kiss to her cheek, everything disappeared. She was just happy. Happy to see him, happy to be back home. As much as she loved her friends, there was always a sense of belonging when she was with Elias, and it was a feeling she didn’t quite have with anyone but him. She really couldn’t ruin that. So, perhaps she would not talk about it tonight. Perhaps she wouldn’t talk about it ever. For now, just seeing him was enough to know that she couldn’t damage what they shared. 

   “Good, but I’m glad to be home,” she smiled, looking up at him. 

   Perhaps he had been worrying about nothing? Chise seemed brighter now than she had this morning. Perhaps her talk with Alice had made her feel better? And yet, she smiled at him. It made something flutter beneath his ribs and his hand went there instinctively.

   “Chise-” 

   Chise just laughed again, feeling her cheeks blush. She knew what it meant when he did that, and while they did not speak of it openly, part of her felt like they didn’t need to. Instead, she took Elias’ hand in her own and pressed it to her forehead. “Silver’s cooking smells good, as always.”

   “Oh yes, she’s making shepherd’s pie.” 

   Ruth’s eyes fell flat at the two before him, watching as they turned to head into the kitchen. It was like watching two children fumble over one another time after time, and he shook his head before following, the scent of that delicious shepherd’s pie wafting past his nostrils.

Notes:

I found out after reading the thunderstorm short comic that Elias has a heart(beat)! And that’s really precious and I love it. <3 Also, I did tag this as sexual tension and unresolved tension, so I apologise for the slow burning ^^; I promise I have an endgame in mind. Until then, I am not sure how long this will go for, but I don’t assume too much longer! Thank you all so much for your lovely, inspiring comments! :D You've really encouraged me <3

Also, the title of this fic is inspired by the lovely AMV that you should all watch - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hst5Ws13qtM&app=desktop <333

Chapter 3

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Chapter III

   Chise had thought against telling Elias what had happened after everything seemed to return back to normal. That night, she’d still slept in his room, but she had been so content just to be with him, that the thought of ruining what they had made her reconsider. 

   That didn’t mean it hadn’t come with its problems, though. Now that Elias had appeared to her in a sexual manner, it seemed impossible to try and brush the thoughts from her head. While she tended to her chores and studies, she caught herself dazed every now and again, her thoughts getting the better of her. It became far worse when she was with Elias.

   When they’d touched, it was a mere comfort before. It had been strange at the start, and she’d never thought someone like Elias could be so gentle. He was, after all, a monster. But he was also one of the nicest individuals she’d ever met.

   Chise had been chased and tormented her whole life by vile creatures, creatures who wanted to eat her, who wanted to enslave her, who would do anything to get their hands on her. Elias was far from that. Even if their relationship had been rocky at times, Elias wanted to learn. She also knew something about him now that separated him from everyone else: Elias cared if he lost her. 

   There had been multiple times he’d shown his compassion and worries. While they hadn’t said those special little words just yet, he’d admitted that he’d dislike if she disappeared, he’d asked for her help when it came to learning human emotions and coping with them, and of course, he’d told her that he needed her. It wasn’t just about learning anymore, though, was it? It was something far deeper shared between the two, even if Elias could still be so childlike in curiosity and nature. He was hundreds of years old, but his isolation away from humans meant he had no one there to teach him what he felt and how to understand and even portray those feelings. He had no healthy ways of coping. 

   While she wasn’t sure how often Elias actually interacted with others before her arrival, it was clear as day that they hadn’t helped shape his understanding much. In turn, being here had made Chise learn so much about herself as well. 

   Depression didn’t just disappear overnight. She still had her episodes, but she knew that things were so much better now. Sometimes, she felt that dark cloud hovering over her, and then she’d remember that she was no longer alone in the world. That she had people who cared about her—truly cared about her. But it wasn’t just that, it was the fact that she’d found happiness here with Elias, Ruth, Silver, and everyone else who’d come into her life. She refused to go back there, to be swallowed up by the vice-like grip and suffocation of what depression was. And she fought every step of the way.

   With that thickened cloud getting lighter and lighter, her vision had become clearer, and in that, apparently other things were waking inside of her, too. Things she always thought she had little interest in. 

   She’d never truly been someone who was sexually active. How could she be thinking on such things when everything else was going on in her life? She hardly had a break, and when she did, her thoughts were anywherebut there. But she was also still human, like Alice had said. Even if she was blooming late, she was still a young woman. 

   Chise would hardly call herself entirely ignorant. Just because she’d never had sex with anyone, didn’t mean she didn’t understand the process of things. She knew what people did with others (and while alone), but those things were still things that would make her blush like mad. She honestly never cared much about it, though. She’d never had a reason to think about herself in such a manner except for what someone might do to her when purchased. That had always been a possibility that she knew could happen.

   Now, though, she had suddenly become so aware of everything, even if it was all centred around Elias, although she’d be lying if she said she’d never touched herself at least a few times in her life. Who knew a dream could be so powerful and awaken such things inside someone? Sleep could be a powerful thing, she knew, but she’d never expected something like that to make such a huge difference to her everyday life.

   A simple touch from Elias now brought heat to her cheeks. The way his hands slipped against her cheek sent a shiver all down her spine. The way the texture of his jaws pressed against her skin in a nuzzle made her fingers twitch. And when he wrapped his arms around her, she felt heat surge all down her lower belly and somewhere else. 

   Touches were something she could understand on a physical level, but it was worse than that. She’d started catching herself staring at Elias, even when he wasn’t doing anything remotely interesting. Just the way he sat when he was comfortable and reading a book late in the evening. The way his hands would move to turn a page. His long, gloved fingers. His exposed neck, where his shirt didn’t quite cover. His long, thin legs and how they crossed, and of course, once her eyes travelled upwards, they lingered right between them, where his pants bunched up just a tad. 

   She had no idea what Elias looked like beneath his clothes other than when he was in a different form, so she had no idea if the way his pants sat simply was because it was how they were, or if they sat bunched because something else was there. Maybe nothing was there! 

   Of course, that’s when intrusive thoughts struck her again. Apparently she still wasn’t over this, and it was getting worse. So worse that she wasn’t sure how much longer she could handle it. How often had he spoke her name while she’d become distracted, staring off into the distance? How many times had Elias caught her looking at him, and she’d had to quickly turn away, cheeks red. 

   Elias, of course, didn’t understand what was going on. Chise wasn’t sure if that made it easier or harder, though. It was a constant reminder that she was certain Elias knew nothing about this kind of thing. Despite his possessive streak and his jealousy that he’d previously shown, that had nothing to do with a sexual relationship, or even a romantic one. Anyone could become jealous of someone else. She’d even been jealous of people.

   How much had she yearned for a perfect family, where she had a mother and father who loved her? How much had she wished that she’d been able to make friends in school? She’d even wished she’d never had magical abilities, and then the whole sleigh beggy thing, of course.  Just because Elias had suffered a jealous episode, didn’t mean it had anything to do with his sexual feelings for her. From what she could tell... he might not havesexual feelings for her. Surely... surely by now he would have said something, other than mentioning their marriage. 

   It didn’t give her much hope, and it made her chest feel tight. Of course, if Elias wasn’t comfortable with something like that, then she was okay with it. She’d never force him into anything he didn’t want, after all. But being in limbo—in a sense—was driving her crazy. There was only so much sexual frustration she could take before she needed to say something. 

   She currently sat in the warmth of a bath, the aroma of grass and flowers lingering heavily in the air. They helped soothe her after a long day, and certainly got her ready for bed. It wasn’t late enough just yet, but they’d already eaten dinner. She’d probably end up sitting on the lounge and reading something, Elias doing the very same.

   The man didn’t have a lot of hobbies, but he apparently enjoyed reading a lot—as if his library and study didn’t state as much. 

   She leant her head against the back of the tub, eyes closing for a moment. The very first day she’d come here, she’d been forced into this very tub. How long ago it seemed now... Back then, she’d been horribly embarrassed when Elias had stripped her of her dirty clothes. She didn’t think too much on it previously—she’d been mortified by it all—but even then... he’d never said anything about her nudity. All Elias did was make sure she got her clothes off and got into the tub. He never bathed her, he never seemed to have taken an interest in her physically, just... nothing. It was a simple task. Remove her clothes, make sure she got in the tub. Done.

   In a sense, she supposed it was gentlemanly of him to have not pried and prodded at her (despite the initial stripping, of course). She still knew how to operate bath, but she did admit that the baths here in England were different. Or at least... this one was. But the house seemed fairly traditional in its decor. It was almost like it had been plucked out of an old book somewhere.

   She knew that Elias wasn’t the one who decorated—he didn’t have a passion for such things. He didn’t have passion for a lot of things, really. Lindel was right in saying that he was missing something. Was it because he was part fae? Most of the fae she’d run into when she was little were nothing but blood thirsty monsters. Elias wasn’t like that. Although... maybe he once was?

   There was still so much she didn’t know about him, but she wasn’t sure Elias even knew those things about himself. Whatever he’d been before, he wasn’t that person anymore. Elias could feel things now, and he’d learned. He still seemed to lack an understanding of human feelings and emotions, but in time, those had grown within him, too.

   Elias cared. He might not always show it in the best of ways, but he did. He cared about her. And as selfish as it was for her to admit it, she was glad. She finally understood what it was like to have someone who actually gave a damn about her again. And that didn’t just go for Elias, but for everyone she’d met over the last few years from being here with Elias. 

   Yes... selfishly, her heart fluttered at the thought of Elias caring about her. 

   Keeping her eyes closed, she sank into the tub so it was just her head outside of the water. It was warm and soothing, and the scent of camomile made her tired. The frustration inside her muscles made her tense, but the bath easily soothed some of that way. 

   Chise had never considered herself to be someone too creative, but lately, her mind had certainly been getting away from her. Even now, as she lay nude in the bath, the water warm against her bare skin, she could only think of the way Elias’ hands would feel against her. 

   A sense of embarrassment washed over her to think that she was no longer as innocent as she had been; that now she thought of such things and had odd reactions. That somehow, and all of a sudden out of nowhere, she had somehow found herself attracted to the horned magus. 

   A soft sigh left her nostrils, a warm, tingling sensation growing inside the depths of her belly and spreading somewhere else. However, if she’d thought of doing anything remotely comforting to her new found desires, she was abruptly stopped when there was a knock at the door.

   “Chise? Are you alright?” 

   Her eyed snapped open and instantly she sat up so her ears were out of the water, her arms wrapping around her knees as the water was disturbed from her hasty movement. 

   “You’ve been in there for over an hour.” 

   Chise felt her cheeks bloom red as she suddenly realised that the water was far colder than she last remembered. Her skin had gone all pruney and wrinkly and she’d not even noticed. Had she been so lost in her own thoughts that she’d completely lost all sense of time!? 

   “I’m fine!” she called back, shrinking into her shoulders. Crap. How could she be so daft at times? Ugh... It was bad enough that she’d been so lost in thought that she’d not even realised that the water had turned stone cold, but Elias had apparently been keeping a tab on how long she’d been in the bathroom for... Either that or she’d seriously worried him by being in here for so damn long. 

   On the other side of the door, Elias lowered his hand, having heard the sloshing of water. Chise took baths often enough—every day—so it was nothing new for him to let her have her private time in there, but she was usually in and out within thirty minutes or so. He had also noticed that she had seemed far more distracted lately. It concerned him. 

   The both of them had made a promise that they would talk things out with each other, that they could give each other closure if they were worried. The ring on his finger definitely alerted him if Chise was in trouble, but this was something different.  

   It wouldn’t be the first time the girl had become spirited away in a sense. But her distractions were not anything physical. It was odd to observe. Sometimes, she paused in mid moment and just... stared at nothing. Or, it seemed like it was nothing. Actually, she appeared outright aloof at times, which was something Elias himself could relate to. He was different, though, he was not a human, and unlike Chise, he was not as riddled with such deep emotions. Sometimes, he merely had nothing else to do. It was not that he got lost in a particular thought at all, it was more that he had no thoughts and just zoned out entirely. That was normal for him, but for Chise? It was something new, and he had noticed that it had only started after the day she said she’d had a funny dream.

   What kind of a dream could make for such a drastic change in behaviour? The dazed and confused expressions that crossed her face were new to him when they came from Chise. Lost in thought was an understatement. Sometimes, he had to say her name three times to bring her back.

   Was this some lingering effect from the dragon’s curse? Was she hiding something from him because she thought he’d make a fuss? Of course he’d fuss over her, he... 

   He didn’t know how to put the words, but when he thought of her not being around, it felt like his innards were being ripped out from his body. He could not lose her. He could not lose her now when they’d been through so damn much. 

   For a moment, he thought that maybe if he hid within the shadows, he could go in there and check to see if she was alright. It would mean spying on her, yes, but he was willing to do something like that if it meant he knew she was alright. The real thing that stopped him was the fact that he felt fear again. Fear in getting caught, and upsetting Chise. He didn’t want that, and he didn’t want to upset her. He’d almost lost Chise once before for doing something she didn’t agree with, so he’d not risk it again. 

   “Are you certain you are alright?” he asked, pressing the side of his skull to the wooden door so he could listen. He could hear her stepping out of the tub and draining the bath.

   “I’m fine, Elias.” Chise grabbed the towel and wrapped it around her nudity, “I just lost track of time is all. I’ll be out in a minute.” She stood still for a few seconds, expecting him to answer, but instead, all she heard was his footsteps disappearing. That wasn’t a good sign...

   Feeling her shoulders drop, she ran her damp hand over her face, brushing her hair back, the water from it running down her nose and off her chin. Elias got silent when he was contemplating things, and she knew her behaviour was probably more obvious than she would have liked it to be. She wasn’t great at keeping things a secret, and being a sleigh beggy, she had to wonder if her frustrations were causing her to consume more magic than usual, even with the ring on her forefinger. 

   Chise dried herself and got dressed into her pyjamas. She threw her dirty clothes into the hamper as well as the damp towel before she headed out to go upstairs to her room. Part of her was horrifically embarrassed that the knock on the door had interrupted thoughts that she wasn’t even aware that she could have, but part of her was thankful about it, too. It felt like she was becoming someone she didn’t know, and it was a little frightening. 

   Alice had explained that this was totally normal of her, but was she obsessing too much about it? The evening she’d come back, prepared to talk to Elias, she’d stopped worrying about it the moment she saw him in the house. The moment she knew that whatever they had going on with each other was perfect as was. The moment she feared that she could ruin everything... 

   Honestly, she thought that it was just a spur of the moment, that once the day was over and a new morning began, she’d be totally over it. For a few days, she was granted that, but apparently it was coming back with a fierce vengeance. So much that the mere sight of Elias made her feel awkward and like she wanted to avoid him from now on.

   Having returned to her bedroom to get her slippers, she slipped them on and then headed back downstairs, her hair still damp from her bath, but messy from having attempted to dry it. She didn’t have a hair dryer, so she did what she could with the towel and let the rest dry naturally. 

   When she rounded the living room, she paused in the doorway when she saw Elias standing there, arms folded across his chest. He looked like he did just before he was going to give her a scolding because she’d been out too long, or got herself in danger, or something else entirely. 

   Standing there with her hands by her sides, she stiffened, looking up at him. He was so tall, and when he looked at her like that, there was something sharp in his eyes. She’d learned that while his face didn’t harbour much emotion (if any at all), his eyes had plenty. 

   “Elias?” she asked, her voice small now. Was she in trouble? Did her taking a long bath upset him? Despite the fact that they lived here together now, there was always the thought in the back of her head that she didn’t own this place. She had been purchased. This was Elias’ home... not hers. And while she did call it hers, sometimes it was hard to forget that Elias wasn’t going to abandon her and kick her out... especially when he looked at her like that.

   “Something has been different with you these last few weeks, Chise, and I have a feeling you are keeping something from me. Have I done something to upset you?” the man asked candidly.

   Chise’s eyes widened. What? He... he thought he had done something wrong!? Damnit, she was being selfish again. Of course he’d picked up on her strange behaviour—which was embarrassing, she knew, but it made her realise that Elias was often worried she might abandon him, too. The both of them were just as bad as one another.

   Guilt took its ugly hand and strangled her with it, emerald eyes lowering to her hands which were now before her. Her voice was small as she mumbled a, “No.” Elias seemed to visibly relax when she answered him, which was odd to see. His broad shoulders did shift, though, and his arms fell down to his sides like her response had made a world of difference. He truly had been worried, then? When he’d told her that he intended to never upset her again, he had meant it... If he was paranoid and worried that he’d upset her, then he was showing signs of emotions connected to his worries. Chise wasn’t sure if she felt guilty or touched. He was still coming to terms with so many new feelings of his own, and she was a terrible teacher. She wished she could do better for him, but she hardly understood her own feelings half of the time. Humans were odd...

   “Elias, have you been worried that I was angry or upset with you all this time?” She’d been so caught up in her own fantasies and what she was feeling over him that she’d somehow managed to completely ignore how Elias might be feeling. In truth, she thought she was a bit better a hiding things, but apparently she was still very awful at it.

   The magus paused for a moment, looking at her from across the room. Had he? His hand lifted to his chin in thought as he mulled it over in his head. He supposed he had. 

   “You have been acting odd, so I thought something was upsetting you. I thought that perhaps it was me.” 

   Chise rubbed her arm. In a sense, it was Elias—but not like that! How could she explain it to him and put his mind at ease without outing herself? 

   “You fall silent such as now,” the man went on to explain, taking a few steps towards her this time, “and sometimes you look at me as if I am transparent.” As if she was looking right through him and not really at him. 

   “At first, I thought perhaps it was your health, but in every other way, you appear to be fine.” He trusted that if something was going on with Cartaphilus, then she would inform him at once. They had already had that conversation, despite Elias’ dislike of Joseph being anywhere near Chise. The ring on his finger had been acting up as well. First, it had been the morning she’d had a strange dream, and then it was fine again. But these last few days, it had been having the same reactions.

   “I did not wish to pry, for I thought I would cause you discomfort. But I am at a loss of what to do next, and that...” There was a pause as his hand raised to his chest, which felt weak, but also it made his heart thump a little faster. “That frightens me.” 

   Chise blinked as she looked up at him. Oh no... no, this wasn’t how she wanted him to feel. Not at all! Not because she’d had some silly sex dream over him, and now she was making him feel worried and scared. It was strange to see Elias scared. While he had been frightened a few times before during their relationship, she’d always found it hard to know that he could become truly scared, especially when he was always so deadpan most of the time. Not to mention Elias was almost indestructible in nature.

   She felt a little queasy in the stomach, because she knew that there was no way around this anymore. She could try and avoid the topic all she wanted, but she’d always known deep down that Elias would pick up on her odd behaviour. On the way she grew warm when he touched her now, and when he looked at her. The last thing she wanted was to make him worry about her, but she still couldn’t find the right words to get it out there. 

   “I’m sorry,” she murmured, her voice still small. She lowered her eyes, looking to the ground. How could she look him in the eye when he was worried about her and it was all over something so stupid? She’d never meant for it to go this far, really... 

   “You haven’t done anything to upset me, Elias, I swear.” She finally looked up then, and once more, he seemed to relax. 

   “But?” There was a but there, even Elias could sense that much. 

   “But...” she repeated, looking away again. Would there ever be a right moment? Even when she’d come back and tried to tell Elias her feelings the first time, the moment had never been right. She was starting to believe that there was no right moment at all anymore. That it was all a lie.

   Her lips went tight, and the grip on her arm went even tighter. She didn’t know how to talk about this, and part of her wanted to flee, but Elias was right there. He was... intimidating in a sense. She’d never been afraid of him, and even now she wasn’t afraid of him. She was afraid of what might come of this, of what could change between them. She didn’t want things to change, she was happy with how they finally were, but... this wasn’t going to go away, and now Elias was asking her directly. 

   “Do you think I’m disappointing?” It was the first thing that came out. She could have said anything. She could have asked about him, about what he was and why the faerie king said that they could have children—not that she was thinking of children just yet! God, no. She could have even asked if Elias dreamed, but instead, it was her own insecurities that got the better of her. Somehow, through all of this, she was still finding it hard to see anything exceptional about herself, even with being a sleigh beggy. That had always been a curse in her eyes, even if it had led to meeting Elias and everyone else. 

   Elias’ head cocked to the side for a moment. He had no idea what kind of disappointment she thought she was and what area she was speaking about, but it caught him by surprise. He wasn’t sure how to respond to such a question, not when it came so all of a sudden.

   “Disappointing?” he echoed, the reds of his eyes going a little smaller momentarily. 

   Chise knew he was about to list a dozen things she’d done wrong in the past, so she stopped him by putting her hand up. That wasn’t what she’d meant, but it was clear his bedazzlement showed that she’d approached the subject wrong. She had to remember that Elias was rather literal in his understanding of things.  

   “I’m... I’m to be your bride, Elias.” It still sounded strange to say it, but over time, it had become somewhat easier. After all, it wasn’t just Elias stating it now, but Chise was accepting it. While the rings they wore weren’t exactly intended as engagement rings, they were still a promise, and she had fully accepted that one day she would be Elias’ bride. She wanted that, too.

   She rubbed at her arm once more, shrinking into her shoulders. “You say I’m beautiful, but... aren’t I disappointing to look at? I’m small, I have red hair, and I don’t have much to offer when it comes to my body. I don’t know how many humans you’ve ever had an interest in, but surely they’ve had more to offer you than me...” Surely.  

   Elias’ fangs parted as he looked at her, completely dumbfounded by her statement. Did Chise not realise just how tempting she was to him? The scent of her blood was enough to send him into a crazed bloodlust just as a human, but she was also a sleigh beggy. He had control over his more primal instincts, but he had a feeling that this was not about his hunger for human flesh. Chise surely already knew she looked tasty to him. 

   No, this was something else. But what?

Notes:

Unless something drastic happens to disturb them, this conversation is going to happen whether they like it or not. Once again, thank you all for your encouraging comments and support! <3 :D

Chapter 4

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Chapter IV 

   There was a moment of utter silence shared between the two, and the tension was so sharp that it could have snapped the air with a mere breath. Chise could feel the anxiety rising to her throat, wanting to make her run from the room and forget she ever said anything. She shouldn’t have put him on the spot like that. It was the wrong timing, but it was never going to get any easier! Still, she couldn’t help but swallow the thick lump of guilt. 

   She knew that it sometimes took a moment for Elias to understand what was happening, but this might have been too much for him—or he might not even understand where she was going with it. It made her shoulders tense up around her neck, and her hands balled tightly, feeling her own nails press into the palms of her hands.

   Her cheeks grew hot and flushed, and she didn’t know how else to continue this conversation. Maybe she wasn’t meant to, maybe that’s why it always ended up being cut off, or why she just couldn’t voice herself. She never really believed much in fate or destiny, but maybe this was one of those things. Maybe, the two of them were just never meant to have this conversation. But that made her feel like maybe they never should have been together, and she didn’t want to believe that, because deep down, she loved Elias. She did. She’d come to love him within the first year of being with him, even if it was all new to her—even with all of the struggles that they shared. Even with Elias discovering himself for the first time. 

   “Chise...”

   His voice made her tense even further, and she panicked. He’d only said her name, but she felt like she was going to faint, the ringing in her ears and tunnel vision setting in. Now wasn’t the time to let her stupid body get the better of her. 

   “No... forget I said anything.” She felt horribly embarrassed, and so she moved towards the hallway so she could run up the stairs and lock herself in her room; except he stopped her when she felt a hand upon her arm.

   “Chise, wait.” 

   She stopped, cringing at knowing that there really was no way out of this now. She could lie to him, she’d done it before, but... that also was a long time ago. She didn’t like lying, especially when Elias was just trying to figure things out. Despite him being in a very adult body, she knew that in many ways she was far more mature than he was. 

   Chise felt her body deflate as she took a step back and turned around. She still couldn’t quite make eye contact, though. Not when her cheeks were beet red. 

   Elias looked down at her, his hand still on her arm. He could feel her pulse rush through his own hand, her heartbeat throbbing and thumping terribly quick. He could hear her lungs, shallow breaths expelling from her parted lips, and her teeth grinding as she pressed them together.

   What was so terrible that she could not talk to him about? She had opened up about her past, about her nightmares, but this, it seemed that she could not get the words off her tongue. She looked embarrassed (as he had come to learn over time), but there was something else.

   Ah... so this was insecurity? Or at least, this was what it looked like on Chise. He wasn’t very fond of it. He didn’t like when she was tense, looking like he was about to scold her despite the fact that he wasn’t—and she had received many over the years. This was not the appropriate response for this conversation, however. 

   She didn’t think that she was beautiful. Elias had learned that beauty was apparently in the eye of the beholder, but he still did not quite understand such things. But when he looked at her, he found that his heart thumped quicker behind his ribs. When he felt them touch, he felt warm, and when she pressed herself against him, and kissed his jaw, he felt tingly in areas he wasn’t quite familiar with, like a shock had travelled all down his spine and around his hips. 

   He hadn’t a name for any of those things, and when he had asked the first time, Chise had said she didn’t know. He saw no reason to pester her over it if she didn’t know what he was feeling. Human emotions were very hard, particularly because they often were not just one thing. It was many, and he had to pull them apart and catalogue them under their correct titles. Figuring out those titles was the hardest thing, and then there was having the correct response to such things as well.

   Maybe now was the correct time to remind her that he felt such things? Would it make her stop acting strange? He could only hope that it would. He didn’t wish to make her upset and feel worse than she already apparently did. 

   Letting her arm go, he cupped her chin with his long fingers, forcing her to look up so her back was straight and her shoulders were back. There, much better than her trying to hide within herself. 

   “When I look at you, I feel warm. When we touch, that warmth spreads. I do not understand why I feel warm, but I suspect it is because I find you beautiful,” he informed, his voice gentle as he said it. “You are my apprentice and my bride, why would you think that I would abandon you now?” Especially after all they’d been through together.

   Chise felt her cheeks warm, and his touch ended up sending a hot flush all through her body. But he still didn’t get it... While what he said was reassuring (as well as touching), he still didn’t understand where she was going with this. It only made that point much more solid. Elias had no idea when it came to sexual attraction, or even how to deal with such things. It was like walking a child through it, and she didn’t know if she was capable of doing that. She’d said she would teach him, but she didn’t know if this was beyond her capabilities.

   “It’s not that...” No, she knew now that he would not abandon her. While she might still get her own episodes of angst and depression, she was aware that Elias wasn’t going to abandon her now. They’d at least moved forward from that. 

   “Then what is it?” The magus lowered his hand from her chin now that she was looking up at him, although she was still trying to avoid her gaze from him. The ring on his finger was having that reaction once more, that something was wrong, that she was hurting in some kind of way. He just didn’t understand what kind of way it was. It was frustrating, actually. He could not force her to talk to him, no matter how much he wished that he could. No, that would upset her. He’d thought of asking Ruth, but again, he always came to the same conclusion: he didn’t want to upset Chise.

   Chise took a long breath, closing her eyes for a moment. She could do this... She’d been through worse, right? She’d wanted to die, she’d been stabbed and almost killed, and she’d taken on a dragon’s curse. She could talk about something like this when it came to someone she cared about. 

   “Maybe... you could sit down for this?”

   “Of course.” Elias moved immediately to lower himself in his chair. He knew that being so much taller made others uncomfortable, after all. Whatever conversation they were about to have, it seemed terribly important to Chise.

   It didn’t help like she thought it may have. She thought that by him lowering himself to her level, that it might have been less scary, but it wasn’t. She could still hear her own heart thumping into her eardrums like it was a cry for retreat.

   Maybe the basics. Maybe that’s where she’d start. She didn’t like the idea of openly talking about sex, especially when it came to herself and Elias. It was awkward and embarrassing, but she had to get some clues off him, that maybe she didn’t have to start from all the way down the bottom. 

   “Why did you want me as your bride?” That was a start.

   Elias looked at her and pressed his forefinger to his bottom jaw. “You were to be my apprentice. It only seemed fitting that we would spend the rest of our lives together, aside from us sharing a home.” 

   Chise blinked, her brows arching a little. Right... of course. This was Elias, and he was rather... logical in his thought process. It probably would have hurt anyone else to hear him put it in that way, but Chise had gotten used to the way he spoke of such things, as if they had little importance to him. But he’d not do it if it wasn’t important in some way or another.

   “Was there any other reason?” she asked, this one a little bit more for her own personal desire. She hardly expected Elias would have wanted her for children or even bedding, since none of those things had been previously spoken of. 

   “Well, I had purchased you, and you are a sleigh beggy. Marriage would mean that we would be legally bound.” He’d purchased a human, which was very illegal. With the right records being tweaked, Chise had an identity here now in England, and he had his own. By law, the both of them could marry, and no one could take his property away then. 

   Of course... things had changed. While that was still beneficial, Elias had come to care for his puppy. More than just care. While he could not outright say those words, he felt something for her that he’d never really felt before. One of those things was happiness. Another was something much bigger.

   “No one could have taken you away from me,” he stated, folding his hands into his lap as he crossed his legs and leant his elbow against the arm of the chair. He was curious why she was asking all of this now, when he figured she would have asked these things many, many months ago. 

   Chise rubbed her arm in thought. Yes, it all made sense to her. Again, others may have been appalled by such things, but Chise had offered herself for purchase. She had set herself up for anything when she’d accepted her fate in that auction house. As easily as the words had come from Elias, she accepted them for what they were. 

   “But you... still want to marry me. Is that for the same reasons?” 

   Elias paused, seeming to hit a wall as she asked the question. Were his reasons still the same? Well... yes, he still wished that she was his, but it was no longer just because she was a sleigh beggy. Having a sleigh beggy in his proximity gave him limitless amounts of power. But how often had he gone out of his way to protect his asset? His property? At the start, it was many times, but somewhere along the way, it had not been that Chise was his property, but that Chise was... something else.

   “I admit, Chise, I do not always understand the concept of family when it comes to humans. They are confusing for me. But we live under the same roof, and we are family, are we not? I have wanted that for you from the beginning.” Part of it had been him saying what he thought she wanted to hear, yes, but now it was what the bothof them wanted to hear. Humans were very confusing in the ways they acted. Then they added families and friends in the mix, but not all families liked one another, and sometimes they called their friends family, too. It was exhausting...!

   Chise looked at him in concern for a moment. Yes, she knew that he didn’t fully understand it, but surely he didn’t truly think that being married was purely for the fact that they shared the same house.  

   A soft hum left the man as he thought. “I feel... something I cannot identify when I think of our ceremony.”

   The girl stiffened. Ceremony? So the honeymoon all that time ago really had just been a joke? Elias’ sense of humour was very strange... and she wasn’t sure it was a real sense of humour at all, or even he fully understood it at times.

    “Ceremony?” she asked, a look of surprise across her face now. It happened to take away the anxiety of their other conversation, but that didn’t mean it was any easier to talk of such things. She hadn’t thought Elias cared to actually marry her with some kind of ceremony. Then again, she was sure it would be something quaint. 

   “Oh, yes. Once your schooling is complete, I had planned that we shall legally marry. You are my bride, Chise. I wish to make that absolute.” She seemed surprised by that, but it had always been his plan that they would marry. Coincidentally, she had offered him a ring that now sat on his engagement finger. The both of them wore them now. From his understanding, they were already engaged, and Chise had accepted his proposal their first night together, only making it permanent when she offered the ring to him. 

   Elias wasn’t wrong in his thoughts. Chise had accepted his proposal, and she did now wish to marry. She’d accepted that, that they were not just master and apprentice, that they were something more. The affection between them was shared, and the silent ‘I love you’s’ as well. It was still just a shock that they were to be properly married, especially when Elias didn’t seem to have a full grasp on what any of this meant for them.

   This conversation was steering in a completely different direction, though, and if she didn’t take control of it, then she knew that it would never happen, or she’d just continue to push it back each time it came up. Marriage was for later, after school, apparently. For now, she needed to focus on the more immediate issue at hand—which also went into the future as well. What did Elias understand of marriage and what generally came with it? 

   She took a seat on the lounge, because she felt rude standing up. She was not as lax looking as Elias as he sat in his chair, resting his cheek on his knuckles now. Instead, her back was straight and her feet were together on the floor, her hands in her lap. 

   “When you think of that day, what do you feel? Describe it to me and maybe I can help you identify it.” She was meant to be his teacher, after all. Lately, she felt like she’d been doing a very poor job at it. 

   Elias took a moment to think of the correct words, his hand pressing to his chest. “There is something tingling in my chest. It is almost as if I’ve swallowed something bubbly, and it is trying to force its way back out and up from my throat.” Almost as if his food was still alive. 

   Looking down, Chise couldn’t help the smile that moved across her lips. “I think that means you’re happy, or even excited.” That was sweet, and it made her blush once more. Well, at least she knew that Elias was excited to marry her. It wasn’t so much just because she was his property, but because he actually wanted to. 

   Happy, he did know, but excitement was definitely something he needed to log. Yes, he was definitely comfortable with the idea of marrying her, and of them becoming true husband and wife. He already knew he cared deeply for her. Because of Chise, he had learned so many new things about himself that he never thought were possible. How many years had he been around, and it took one sleigh beggy to change so much of him. Chise was a very special human.

   “Then I know that I look forward to marrying you, Chise,” he commented with a lightness in his voice which expressed his happiness in a calm manner. “Do you feel the same?” When he’d informed Chise that he intended for her to be his bride, she’d expressed shock, and they’d never really spoken much on the topic until she’d presented the rings for them. But now, it seemed this was a topic she wanted to speak of. There was also the fact that Chise’s feelings mattered to him, now. Once upon a time, they meant very little. Now, they were exceptionally important. 

   Chise’s cheeks were still red, but she felt a flutter of excitement strike her chest when he asked. Yes, she was, but this conversation was still steering away from what she wanted it to be about.

   Looking back up, she met the red of his eyes as he was watching her so intently. It was a little unsettling at times, but she’d never truly been bothered by the way Elias looked at her. His gaze had always been rather unique, unlike anything she’d ever felt. Not like the thirst that was in monsters who stalked her when she was little, and not like the judgement from her relatives and peers in school. No, Elias had his own look, and it had grown over the years of being with him. She had a feeling it was fondness as well as an intense curiosity, and that made her chest flutter once more. 

   “Yes,” she finally replied, giving him a smile of fondness in return. Now they had a date, apparently, even if it was not a specific one. But when she was finished with school, when she’d be twenty-one years of age, they’d marry.

   “Kind of strange to think of myself as Chise Ainsworth...” she muttered. It was kind of strange to think she’d ever be married, though. Let alone to someone who was not a human... 

   “Does that make you feel uncomfortable?” He once had no name, after all. He had been named Elias from Rahab all those years ago, and Ainsworth came after that. It was tradition for the wife to take the husband’s name, but if Chise was uncomfortable with such things...

   “No,” she replied after a moment. There had been far stranger things that had happened to her than changing her surname. It was just another thing being here would do. Plus, if anything... it was normal. This was probably one of the most normal things in their entire relationship, let alone her entire life. 

   She looked back down at her hands. “It’s just different. I never thought I’d be married. I never even thought I’d make it to this age...” She’d been so ready to give up and die that none of this ever seemed possible. She didn’t care for it either. So much had changed in the last few years. Elias had given her so much, and he might not even realise just how much he’d given her. He’d given her a reason to live. That alone was quite literally life changing. 

   “When you bought me, and I told you that I’d never been fortunate in my life, that I’d never been happy about my gifts...” She looked back at him, her eyes on his once more. “You said that perhaps it could change. Well... it did. Because of you, Elias.” Everything would be so much different if he’d not bought her that day, even if he’d bought her for entirely selfish reasons, he’d still shown her a kindness that she’d never known before. 

   She smiled back at him, relaxing a little bit. No, this conversation definitely hadn’t gone the way she thought it might, but it had gone to better places. She was reminded, once more, of what she had in life, and why. And that was all because of the person sitting across from her, and yet, he seemed entirely clueless at just how thankful she was for it all. It was sweet, and humble, and perhaps entirely terrible that he had no real idea just how much it could matter to a person and the feelings of gratitude that came with it. 

   Chise had gone from a girl who was ready to give up her own life, to a woman who wanted to keep it. Elias knew for a fact that that was not his doing. Chise had grown over the years, she had met many people, but knowing that he had at least helped her in some way come to be the person she was now, it did make him feel satisfied in a sense. Perhaps he wasn’t a terrible teacher, master and future husband after all, despite how everyone else viewed him. 

   Elias leant forward in his seat so he could stand, moving towards her and leaning down to press the tip of his nose to Chise’s cheek. “I am glad,” he spoke, nuzzling against her. 

   Chise’s cheeks burned once more at the nuzzle of a kiss. It made her feel warm, and that personal contact made the heat rush through her entire body. The whole time, she had been trying to come up with a way to talk to him about exactly this. Why she was getting so flustered when he touched her, when apparently it did absolutely nothing to cause him trouble. It was unfair, in a sense. Part of her wished that she could not be affected like him.

   “Do you still think that I do not find you beautiful, despite my reassurance?” he asked. That was what this conversation had been about, yes? She felt that she was not enough for him, in a sense? Or something akin to such things? It sounded silly, when she was his apprentice, and she were to be his bride. 

   She still wasn’t even sure that Elias completely understood the concept of beauty yet. It wasn’t her who had really taught him, though... Elias had said it all on his own, and apparently whatever he felt when he looked at her, he had come to think that that was a reaction to beauty. It was sweetly innocent of him, but he still had so much to learn. 

   Chise looked up at him, raising a hand to gently reach up and brush her fingers against the matted texture of his skull. “It’s hard to accept other people’s ideas and views, because people just aren’t that simple.” And it was true. That’s why it was so difficult to teach him about humans when not a single person was the same. There were so many different people in the world, and it was impossible to say what was right and wrong with reactions when everyone reacted differently. 

   “Not a lot of people think they’re beautiful, Elias... and those who usually do? Well... a lot of them are seen as egotistical or vain. Humans are strange, I know, and I know I’m a bad teacher when it comes to explaining things, but we’re just not that simple to understand. We confuse each other most of the time.” 

   Ah, yes, he had heard that before from her, and he had been trying to understand it, but it was hard.

   “Then do you consider yourself to be beautiful?” he asked. 

   Green eyes looked up at him, caught off guard by the question. This really wasn’t the way she’d wanted this conversation to go... It felt like he was learning a lot more about her than she was about him. She’d wanted to learn about his body, about what might happen for them in the future and what it might mean if Elias was... 

   “No... not really,” she finally replied. 

   His head tilted as his eyes watched her. “Why does knowing that make me feel... heavy?” 

   “I’m not sure.” She looked back at him, rubbing her arm idly in her own discomfort. “Maybe you don’t like it when I talk down about myself? Or maybe you don’t like it when I disagree with you?” Although the latter had happened on more than a few occasions. Just because she was his apprentice, never meant they always agreed on everything. Oh no, they definitely had different opinions and thoughts on things, but that never meant they couldn’t try and communicate, after all, they’d promised to be better at that. 

   “Elias, have you ever felt... warm around me? Not... not the usual warm. I mean... somewhere lower, not in your chest?” 

   He stood back up straight, rubbing his chin in thought as his other hand rested on the curve of his hip. “Hmmm...” Yes, he did remember when she’d kissed him the first time. It had made his spine tingle, and somewhere around the back and front of his hips. It didn’t often happen, except for sometimes when she sat in his lap, but even then, it was only when she displayed acts of affection towards him.

   He fell silent at the thought, however. When he’d asked her, she’d said she didn’t know. Was that something that was happening for her? Was it normal? Worse, was it abnormal?

   “Yes, but from what I recall, you did not know what it was. Has that changed?” he asked. 

   Of course... the kiss under the mistletoe. Elias had initiated that kiss, and she’d wondered if it was just because it was tradition that he’d heard... or if it was something he’d wanted to. He seemed a little pushy on it when he’d asked, so she’d kissed him then. Now, they kissed more often, although she’d never seen it as kissing with humans. Kissing with... lovers, really. Elias couldn’t kiss like that, and there was nothing remotely raunchy about it. It was something sweeter than that, and much more emotional. Or at least it was for her. 

   She grew tense once more, her hands going between her legs and tugging on the hem of her pyjama shirt. “I don’t think I really knew what it was back then, but... I think that—that maybe I do now.” 

   She’d been in such a slump back then, and of course, she’d never thought of Elias in such a way, that it didn’t seem possible to her for him to have such feelings. He may have intended to marry her, but other than that, everything had been exceptionally tame when it came to Elias and her. Except now...

   Elias sat himself beside her on the lounge, his torso turned in her direction. “You do? Then, please, I would like to hear it.” He had experienced it on the odd occasion with her, and it had made him feel very strange. But there was something comforting in the thought that maybe she had experienced it as well. 

   Now she was even more nervous, and she could feel her heart thumping hard beneath her ribs. Damnit, she felt that need to flee once more, and the ringing in her ears was deafening. 

   “Chise...” Moving his hand, he caught hers in his own, the soft fabric of his glove running between her fingers as he took hers and linked them. “You are acting strange again. What is this topic that is so bothersome to speak of?” Not only did the ring on his finger alert him that something was wrong, but he could hear her heart from where he was sitting, and he could taste her anxiousness against the tip of his tongue. He was not like a human, and he could hear everything inside of her body, from her tightening intestines to her muscles tensing. It made him uneasy and worried that something wrong was happening to her, or if the curse was making her act strange. 

   She hated that he was so innocent with all of this, and she wished that he at least knew something. How could a man who was hundreds of years old not know about this!? Surely he did, he just didn’t know about it with himself? 

   She closed her eyes to try and calm herself. “I feel it, too. The warmth. Every time you touch me, even when you look at me. I can’t stop it, and it’s sending me mad.”

   Elias instantly dropped her hand and leant back, as if he’s just injured her by the mere touch of their hands. He didn’t understand if it was a bad thing or a good thing, but if it was sending her mad, then he didn’t want her to feel it.

   “Then... I am causing you distress.” He stood back up, ready to move away from her, but was stopped when he felt her hand tug against his sleeve, holding him back. He paused, turning over his shoulder. 

   “N-no! It’s not... it’s not that. I mean, yes, it’s distressing, but not in a bad way. It’s not... it’s not bad, Elias, it’s just...” What was she supposed to say? But she couldn’t leave it at that. She couldn’t leave it as Elias thinking that he was doing something wrong when he wasn’t.

   Her cheeks couldn’t have gone more red, she felt like her entire body was on fire because of this now. 

   “It means I want you.” 

   If Elias required blinking, he may have done so, dumbfounded and confused at her words and reactions. He still didn’t understand what was happening here. But he understood the need and want. Oh yes, desire could be strong—cravings could be strong. He knew those very well. Perhaps not in a sense that Chise may have, but he did desire parts of her as well, and the taste of her flesh against his tongue was an intoxicating thought. 

   He turned his body to her, once more giving her his full attention before he crouched down before her, knowing that he must have appeared ominous when he towered above her like that.  He had never had someone who felt towards him like Chise did. It was a new experience for him, and as confusing as it was, it was also... exciting in many ways. Yes, that sensation of fluttering, threatening to jump from his very throat. That was called excitement, he had just learned. 

   “Chise, I do not wish to distress you any further. Please tell me how I can help.” He moved his hand to cup her cheek, still flushed and warm. She was still embarrassed about something, but it was Elias who looked taken aback when she took his hand and lowered it to her lap. 

   A soft breath of surprise left his opened jaw. She was warm, and her pulse was throbbing, not just against her jugular and through her heart, but just beneath his hand. That tingling sensation sparked against the back of his hips and all up his spine once more.

“Chise...” 

‘What is this?’

Notes:

Sorry for the wait! This chapter took longer than I thought and took a bit of a different direction than I thought, too. Conversations that they needed to have, however. I did say sexual / tension / ... :'D

Chapter 5

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Chapter V

   Chise could feel her cheeks blooming red. Surely Elias could feel the heat from her face, even if he wasn’t touching her and there was space between them. It felt like she could feel it radiating off him nonetheless. She was so embarrassed, and she’d never had someone else’s hand where his lay at the moment. Elias, of course, had not moved or done anything further, and she had to wonder if this was going to be something she’d need to walk him through as well. 

   Chances were that Elias had never touched another person in the way he was now—at least, that’s what she gathered with his lack of knowledge on such topics. He didn’t even seem to understand what marriage was between two people. Not the true sanctity of it, anyway. How could he possibly understand what sex was? But if Titania and Oberon thought that they could have children one day, then it was clear that Elias had... some kind of sexual organs of some sort, right? She didn’t know how fae fell pregnant, but they clearly had some sort of equipment. Of course... Elias was also not fully fae, was he? He had human bits and pieces inside him. Part of her hardly expected him to have a human... that.

   Even with her cheeks a scarlet red, she managed to look at him—although she found that she couldn’t quitelook him in the eye. Her voice was still quiet when she spoke, barely there. Right now she was so glad Ruth wasn’t here to see or hear any of this, she’d need to block him out. Some things were just not meant to be shared with her familiar. 

   “Do you... feel anything? Anything different?” He might not know what it was, but if he felt strange, and had any kind of reaction, then it was at least something to work of—so long as he wasn’t entirely uncomfortable. She’d hate for that to happen. Despite her own selfish desire, she’d never wish that Elias was uncomfortable over all of this, and she’d hardly force him to do anything he wasn’t comfortable with.

   Elias’ eyes had been on the place Chise had put his hand ever since she’d moved it there. It actually took a moment for him to really register that she was talking to him, his head moving up as his eyes finally went back to hers. It felt different now, like something was... alluring in her in a sense he had not quite felt before.

   It was certainly a strange sensation that had gone through him, but he hadn’t the slightest in how to describe it. It was very intense, like nothing he’d ever felt before. It was like a wave had washed over him, except that wave was very hot and tingly. Unlike the kiss that they had shared, where it had made his hips a little strange feeling, this one surged all the way down his body, from his neck, all down his legs. 

   “Yes,” he replied, his hand still in her lap. He could feel her pulse through her pyjama pants. A strange place for someone’s hand to be, he thought. Even more curious why he was getting such an intense reaction from it. One that he hadn’t a clue what to call! Ah... Chise was teaching him so many things, even if they were so very confusing for him. He enjoyed getting to learn, and whatever he was doing, it was apparently pleasing to his bride to be. 

   “It is a rather intense feeling, Chise,” he explained. “Why do I feel... hot?” It was like steam was rolling over his entire body. He didn’t feel heat like humans did in the sun, or summer. It wasn’t the same. No, this was like something was beneath his skin, pulsing hard and making his blood run hot. He didn’t generally summon blood, let alone innards and veins for blood to be pumped. His heart resided there, yes, but his body was hardly human. His magical, fae parts made for an interesting nervous system. But what the strangest thing was, that it was not quite his stomach. It was lower, between his legs.  

   Beneath his fingertips, he could still feel Chise’s pulse thrumming, and she was oddly growing stiff. It was overwhelming to think about, and he felt lost in a daze, like he couldn’t concentrate. His own heart was starting to pump faster and he felt... weak? Was it weakness? He still wasn’t sure what to call whatever he was feeling, but it was definitely new and definitely bizarre. 

   Chise’s legs squeezed a little tighter due to her embarrassment, but also because Elias’ hand felt so warm where it was. Wriggling against it made his fingertips brush against sensitive skin underneath her clothes. It was selfish of her to want more, but damnit how she did! Elias was finally touching her there, and she didn’t want it to stop.

   “That’s good,” she replied, trying to wrap her head around the fact that she was literally having to teach a grown man about sex and pleasure. It wasn’t like she was an expert in this sort of thing! She was definitely inexperienced and ignorant, but maybe together the both of them could learn from each other. They were to be husband and wife, after all. This would be a part of their relationship, especially if they were to have children one day. 

   “I think that... I think that it means you like it, too,” she continued, finally able to bring her eyes to his. She felt herself swallow thickly, and her skin was tingling all over. This was okay to do, right? Why wouldn’t it be! They were already in a relationship, and they were already exploring one another mentally. Why did it feel like such a sin to try something new? To try something physical with him that wasn’t just a kiss or a cuddle. She had to remind herself that this was normal

   Okay, perhaps it wasn’t normal for a human and someone like Elias, but that had never mattered when it came to them. She’d never once cared what Elias looked like, and lately, his appearance had been sending her insane with lust. No, she’d fallen in love with Elias for who he was, not what he was. That had never mattered, and it never would. 

   ‘It’s okay, you can do this. You’re allowed to do this. It’s not a bad thing to love him like any other person does. It’s normal. This is normal. He’s going to be your husband, stop feeling like it’s the end of the world to love and want him.’ 

   “Do you like it?” she finally asked her hand moving to his wrist. She gently drew up his sleeve so she could feel his scaly skin against her fingertips. It was like that of a lizard, smooth, but a little sticky, her fingers getting stuck to the texture as they moved down to gently remove his glove. If he was going to touch her, she would much prefer the skin on skin contact than the fabric of his glove. 

   Elias allowed her to remove the glove, and when her fingers intertwined with his free hand, he gently let his own fingers slip through hers. They had held hands before, but this? This felt different. Worlds different. He was still hot, and his body was still tingling, and his mind felt like a thick fog had settled over it. It was hard to make sense of anything, and it was rather frustrating if he managed to actually care about it. Somehow, he was concentrating on something else, despite his haze. 

   “I do.” His voice was soft as he spoke it. “I feel strange, Chise. Like something is rushing through my veins, even though I do not have them currently.” 

   It was strange to know that Elias felt such human things despite his body being... what it was. She didn’t know if he had veins or innards in what he considered his normal form. She didn’t know if he was merely a creature of shadow, or a shapeshifter. Whatever boundaries were between fae and human, Elias broke that, and mixed them all in one. Who was to say what was right and wrong when his body was that of a curse or something that had gone terribly wrong. 

   “It’s okay,” she reassured, reaching out to give the length of his jaw a gentle caress. His skull did not feel like a skeleton and bone, it was softer than that, and the texture was not smooth but actually matted. Just another thing that made Elias different, and yet alive, like there was still tissue over it, though so thin it was invisible to the naked eye. She was glad that it didn’t feel purely like bone, though, because that would have made this less unique.

   “Elias, I want to ask you something personal. Something about... your body.” She didn’t want to upset him, and asking felt wrong and selfish, she knew. But if they were to ever do something more, then she wanted them both to be comfortable. She wanted them to understand one another, mentally and physically. 

   Elias’ eyes were still on her, but he drew his hand away from betwixt her legs. It was as if he expected her to insult him, to say that he was not what she expected. He was a monster, after all. How was it that Chise had come to care for him at all? What made him special to her, when he was like the monsters that had chased her and wanted to eat her. Had he not done the same at times? Had he not been cruel and saw her as something tasty?

   At the loss of his hand, Chise felt her lips part, her body tensing. Had that been wrong? Was he rejecting her because she wanted to know? Something in her told her that she couldn’t allow it now, and on basic instinct and impulse, she took a hold of his wrist.

   “Wait, please. I didn’t mean to—“

   “Chise, I am not human.” Elias stood up from where he’d been crouching before her, towering over her once more, the lights casting his silhouette over her. Before her, his eyes shone bright compared to his shadow.

   “That’s not what I meant,” she protested, keeping a hold of his hand so he’d not leave. “I mean... is there anything you know about sex!?” The moment she’d heard it leave her lips, the moment she absolutely regretted it, biting her bottom lip and covering her mouth with her hands—in turn, it left Elias’ arm to fall back by his side. 

   Feeling his head tilt, the magus looked at her curiously. Wait, what? Sex? That was what all of this was about!? Suddenly, it made more sense to him, but he was still baffled by the entirety of it all. Why would Chise ever ask him about such a topic? Elias was not entirely ignorant on the subject, but he wasn’t well versed in it either. There was only so much he could learn in reproduction books and human anatomy.

   There was a moments silence shared between them once more, and he felt... awkward. It was unusual for him to feel it so intensely as well. Was it he who was embarrassed of such an intimate subject?

   He tried to put things together, the fact that Chise was upset, that she was asking him about what marriage was and meant, and what he knew of it all. Of course he was aware of how humans procreated, but that was as far as his knowledge went. He did not know intimate details of such things, but he had been around humans long enough to know that they used their bodies in ways to have children. But he did not understand how that came to be such a pleasure-filled thing, let alone the romance it could entail. Most of all, he had never really thought about it when it came to himself, let alone him with Chise.

   Damnit, why did she have to go and open her mouth like that? Now she felt even more embarrassed and worse, she felt guilty now. This whole time, she’d been trying to muster up the courage to talk about it, and she’d even had Elias’ hand between her legs, and now she probably ruined it all! 

   “What did you mean, then?” Elias’ voice broke the silence, curiosity clear, but there was also a softness, as if he was waiting for her to explain herself. Well, at least he was giving her the option to do so, and not just walking away like when he didn’t want to talk about something. He’d always been like that when it came to his personal life and his past. 

   Chise’s hand lowered from her mouth and fell back to her lap. She could feel her knees pressing together as her entire body went stiff, looking back to the floor. 

   “Elias, is there anything you know about...” She drifted off, unable to say it again.

   “Human reproduction?”

   Her ears went red at hearing him say those word. Why did it feel so wrong to hear him say it? He was just repeating it, it wasn’t like he understood how embarrassing it was to hear and say... Nonetheless, it made her feel all strange and tingly and gross in a sense. She felt dirty now, like she’d forced this upon him, and she wasn’t comfortable with that. Maybe she wasn’t really ready for this, and maybe he wasn’t, either. Worse, he spoke so... robotic about it all, like he knew nothing about sex other than what its basic purpose was.

   She’d started this, now she had to end it. But instead of saying the word once more, she merely nodded. “Yes, that.” 

   Well, if it was going to be an educational discussion, he supposed he could take part in it. Although he did feel like Chise still wasn’t being entirely upfront with what was happening here. She was acting strange, and now he felt odd in his intestines. It wasn’t quite a queasy feeling, but it was something strange. 

   “I understand it is how offspring are made,” he pointed out. He did not grasp the romantic understanding of sex, however, of two bodies intertwined and becoming one. If anything, his understanding was purely factual. 

   That... wasn’t exactly romantic, Chise thought, her eyes closing for a moment. “Right, the basics, then...” She couldn’t hide that she was disappointed, but she didn’t want Elias to feel bad about it, either. Who was willing to tell him about it when he lived all by himself? 

   “You’re saying that Lindel never... mentioned anything to you?” Had Lindel even ever had a lover before? She knew less about Lindel then Elias, and that was already very little. 

   “Is that something that happens with acquaintances?” asked the magus. It was not something that he’d ever been interested in asking Lindel about. They’d never had reason to, really. Why would Lindel bring up something like that with him? And when it came to humans, Elias hardly knew much about them from being with Lindel. Lindel was just as much of a recluse as he was! 

   “Acquaintances...?” No, she supposed not. Lindel had always seemed like a father type to Elias. After finding out how they’d met, Lindel had taken Elias in and raised him, had taught him. Lindel had tried to encourage her to talk to him, and maybe that was because Lindel wasn’t the right person for it? Maybe it was because... her relationship with Elias was closer. Well, of course it was! But now, it had been a lot longer, they’d gotten know each other more. Maybe it was meant to be her to teach Elias something like this. 

   Taking a breath, she moved back on the lounge and brought her knees up to her chest. She gestured to the side of the seat and patted it so Elias would sit—which he did so without much hesitation at all. He at least understood that gesture, but that was basic, common and not exactly romantic in nature. Elias had always treated her like a pet, at least, that was how it started. She couldn’t even deny that, because it was true. He had, but she had a feeling that it was the only way how he knew to treat someone else that was welcome in his house and not just as a day guest. He had bought her, after all. 

   “I get the feeling you don’t know much about how humans... do things,” she murmured, gazing across the room and hugging her knees. She felt a number of things right now, from disappointment to embarrassment. This wasn’t an easy conversation to have with a grown man, and she felt it should have been going the other way around, but here they were. 

   “Yes, we do do... it when we wish to have children. But, I think there’s more to it. I mean, I’ve never done it myself, but even in school we learned things. It wasn’t a lot, but people were dating all around me.” Just because they’d been young teenagers never meant they were chaste. There were many people around her who had been sleeping around—although in Japan, the rates were definitely lower than other countries.  She’d never been into it, of course, she hadn’t had any friends, let alone someone who was romantically interested in her.

   “When people get together, and marry, they’re generally... in love.” She swallowed as she said it, because they’d never even said those words to each other. Not properly. She feared that Elias hadn’t said it merely because he didn’t quite understand it yet, and she didn’t say it because in truth, she was scared that Elias couldn’t say it back.

   “When two people love each other, they like to do things together.”

   Elias watched as she spoke, his hands sitting in his lap now. His gloves had been discarded of somewhere on the lunge when Chise had pulled them off. 

   Love was a concept he was not entirely familiar with. He knew people said it to their children, parents, siblings, and lovers. But beyond that, he did not quite understand the full gravity of such words. He could not say them to Chise because he was not sure what love felt like, despite the fact that his feelings for Chise were certainly deeply caring.  If she were to leave, he would be very lonely, empty and sad. And if anything were to happen to her? He would be thrown into a rage.

   But if lovers did things together, then what was the difference between a lover and a friend? Humans had labels and feelings for every, little thing, and trying to understand what was the correct term for one was exceedingly difficult at times. 

   “Do we not partake in activities together?” he asked, it clearly a rhetorical question, considering they spent most of their time together. Elias didn’t like when they were separated, even if he was busy doing something else. He would much rather be with Chise, merely spending time with her. He had been called clingy more than once by others (Renfred, Angelica and Alice mostly), but he did not exactly see how it was a bad thing. He enjoyed Chise’s company. How was it bad that he wished to be around her?

   Chise pressed her chin to her knees, her arms squeezing a little tighter around her legs. She tried not to think that Elias had just, in his own way, admitted that he loved her. She’d already veered when it came to this conversation, and she didn’t need to overwhelm him any more than he already was.

   “We do, yeah, but... that’s not what I mean. Sex isn’t just... reproduction. It’s not just having children when it comes to humans. People do it because... they like it. It feels good. It’s a way for them to be close to the person they care about. It’s... intimate.” Her face was burning again, and she wished she could hide. 

   Elias took it all into consideration, of course. “I see.” Then humans had sex not always to bare children. They simply had it because it was... enjoyable. It was a way for them to connect, in a physical and mental state. He did not entirely understand this, of course, but he was fond of the idea of them being together on more ways than what they already were. 

   Chise bit her bottom lip and closed her eyes for a moment, still feeling the nervousness suffocating her heart. “That’s—that’s why it felt good when your hand was there. That’s why lately, when I’ve been around you, it makes me feel funny. When I said I wanted you, I meant that I wanted you like that. I want to explore you, and see you... with—without the clothes on.” 

   Elias felt his shoulders drop lower. Then Chise... wanted to see more of him? Clothes were a very human concept, he knew. They were not something that he had worn when he’d woken up. There was no need to. He’d simply learned to understand that it was more socially acceptable, and a way for him to fit into human society.

   He had lived many years, and through those years, he had devoured humans. He understood what their nudity looked like. It had not been something that fazed him, as it was nothing to be fazed about. Even when he had purchased Chise, her nudity had meant nothing to him compared to her hygiene. But then why did he get such a reaction when he thought of her in that sense now? Of what might be beneath those clothes of hers? Of his hands feeling against her bare skin? He had felt hunger before, but not like this.

   Elias’ jaws parted as he looked at her. If she felt hot and funny when she thought about it, and he felt hot and funny when she’d asked him how he felt about it, then did that mean that what they felt was the same thing? 

   “I am still hot, Chise...” 

   The girl turned her head when he spoke, surprised by the comment. Her cheeks were still warm, but her eyes were wide as he looked at her. She felt her stomach clench tight with that warmth that spread all down between her legs once more. 

   Green eyes moved down when she felt the warmth of his hand touch against her wrist. 

   “How does one sate such a feeling? It is not uncomfortable, but it is like a thirst, or hunger. It wishes to be quenched. Teach me.” 

   Chise’s heart almost lurched from her chest, making her feel a little nauseated and sick. She looked at him with lips parted and hands falling from their tense position, so tightly wound around her legs. It felt like they’d been having this conversation for forever, and it was exhausting her. If it weren’t for the ring on her finger, maybe she’d have even collapse by now. Her newfound strengths thanks to the dragon curse may have also helped with that—but it also may be why she’d been feeling so strange lately, why she had such a sexual interest in Elias now. Or maybe it had always been there, purely awakened by her dream of him. 

   Shifting to tuck her legs up beside her and face the magus, Chise leant down against her palms on the lounge. She could try and teach him, but truth be told, she’d never touched another man before. She’d never touched anyone but herself, and even that was uncommon. But... it also meant she needed to know what Elias had down there. 

   “Elias, do you have... well...” Right, put it simply, in a term he could understand. “Reproductive organs?” 

   Elias looked down. Ah... of course. If it was why he was feeling strange, then of course she would need to know such things if he were to sate these odd desires that came with that apparent territory. 

   “Like most of my form, I can summon such things.” 

   Awkward. Chise felt her cheeks burning again, her hands tightening against the lounge. “I don’t want to have... I mean, I don’t want to go the full way. I can’t.” She couldn’t yet, anyway. They were both hardly ready for something like that! But getting a feel of him, getting to see him, and see how he enjoyed such things. Yes, that’s what she wanted, and in turn, for them to feel each other. 

   And like always, Elias didn’t give her a straight answer. He obviously had reproductive organs if they could have children, but that wasn’t the point. Did he just... summon them, and poof, they came out of nowhere? Or did he actually have them? Questions for later, maybe—she was finally getting somewhere with him and she didn’t want to go off on another tangent. 

   Moving forward, she placed a hand onto his thigh. It was thin, but she could feel the lean muscle there. His legs were human looking, not like the way they should be. There was something a little disappointing in the fact that he tried to blend in with humans so much in appearance. In fact, she was always oddly happy to know that Elias wasn’t like a human. Humans had been nothing but cruel to her most of her life—even if fae had been, too. Elias was different, he had always been different, mixed somewhere in between. 

   The magus felt himself stiffen when her hands moved up the length of his thighs, pushing the fabric of his pants upwards in a bit of a bunch. Heat spread all up his legs and to his lower belly. Oh, yes, that was definitely a reaction he was not accustomed to, making his stomach feel like it grew tight as he took a breath.

   He stopped her, though, putting his hands to her arms. “Chise... I... I am not human,” he repeated. He did not know what she expected to see when she saw him, but he did not want to give her the wrong idea—that he would look human. “Unless, that is what form you wish for me to take?”

   “No.” Chise looked at him, her features softening a little as she reached up to brush his jaw. “No. I don’t want you to do that. I want to see you, Elias. But please, if you’re uncomfortable during any of this, please let me know. If you feel pain, or discomfort in a way that you don’t like, say so and I will stop.” 

   Consent. He had to remind himself that this was something he was not always used to, but if this was what Chise was teaching him, then he understood that this was a very verbal experience, that there were rules and guidelines to what they were doing. He would follow those, just as he’d been taught other things by Lindel when he was younger. He took these things seriously and oftentimes very literally.

   “I understand,” he stated with a small nod of his head. All thoughts were starting to blur, however, as Chise’s hands moved further up and he felt something tight happen between his loins. Chise’s hands moved up towards his vest where she started on the buttons to undress him. It was an odd sensation overall, having someone undress him. How many years had it been since someone had removed an item of his clothing? Especially since he could summon such things at will. 

   But it was Chise’s hands that he noticed the most. The way they moved against him, and how every part of them left a trail of tingling sensations in their wake. Just how warm they were against his skin when she began to undo the buttons of his shirt, exposing the dark, plum colour of scales. 

   It was awkward to get his vest and shirt off without using magic, and because he was sitting oddly on the angle he was, back now pressed up against the arm of the lounge. He was able to nudge his shoes off so he could put one of his legs onto the lounge while the other stayed on the floor. Chise now had much more room to work with, and she could easily slip between the space between his thighs. It felt good that she was there, too, which was just another thing to confuse him. 

   Feeling his chest beneath her hands, Chise knew her body was definitely flushed now, and it wasn’t just from her blushing. Elias felt good beneath her palms, and she was finally getting to see parts of him that she’d never laid eyes on before. She was finally getting to feel them. If that wasn’t exciting in its own right, then she didn’t know what was. 

   She brushed his shirt open and took a look at his figure. He had broad shoulders, which the shirt still hung off—as well as his vest—that lead down to a rather lean midsection and tapered waist. She knew that despite him having told her that he was not human in appearance, her brain was wired to expect it in a sense. So when she saw that Elias’ nipples were not where a usual man’s were, her hands curiously moved over them, six, three on each side in a line, that were further down his midsection. 

   Elias’ stomach twitched at the touch, making him take a breath as the ruby orbs for eyes squinted a little from the contact. “Would you prefer me change something?” he asked at the hesitation.

   Chise looked up, eyes meeting as her hands were still pressed against his midsection. “No. I like you like this,” she replied. “I don’t want you changing to suit me, Elias. If you were comfortable with it, I’d like to see the full you, but... I’m not sure you’d fit in the house.” She made a little laugh then, which was a good feeling considering how nervous she was about all of this. 

   Elias looked up for a moment, calculating where the roof was. Yes, perhaps that was a bad idea. Silver would also have his head on a pike if he scratched up the place. 

   “Best to now upset The Silver Lady,” he replied. It was very reassuring to hear that Chise was alright with that, however. That she did not find his other forms monstrous and hideous to look at. But if it was her wish, then he could certainly change some of his form to a more ‘natural’ state for her.

   Like smoke over water, Elias’ shape shifted slightly, his legs changing form to look more like that of a wolf. No thanks to his magic, it allowed his clothes to fit accordingly—or until Chise got them off. Dark fur and feathers plumaged around his shoulders and throat, a tuft of dark, black fur spreading down his belly and beneath his waistline, which was still covered by his pants. His hands were now tipped with claws.

   “Is that more desirable to your tastes?” 

   Chise looked over his form. It honestly didn’t matter what Elias looked like, she’d always love him. It was always Elias, so long as she could see him in his eyes. Though, yes, she was very fond of his soft feathers.

   Her cheeks went red as she drank in the view of him, still seated between his long legs. She didn’t say yes, but she did make a soft, little noise from the back of her throat in a hum that signified she enjoyed it. 

   Alas, her curiosity was definitely somewhere else, the lump that had suddenly appeared beneath Elias’ pants. Had he just summoned that? Was that a natural part of him? Was it something he’d done for her tastes? So many questions! But really, she felt greedy and wanted to see—had to see. 

   “I’m going to undo your pants now, okay?” she voiced. She gave him a quick look, and when Elias said nothing, she took it as a sign that it was okay to do so since he didn’t object. Her fingers nervously fumbled with his belt buckle, and she felt like she was shaking because of it. She also felt sweaty because of her nerves and anticipation.

   Once the buckle was undone, she opened up his fly, undoing the zip. Underwear. Of course he had underwear. Trust Elias to wear underwear despite the fact he was a fae creature who clearly probably didn’t need it or understand its purpose. Another obstacle, which she soon pulled down.

   Chise gaped a little at what she found. No, Elias was not human. Hardly anything of him truly resembled a human, and neither did this. There was fur (definitely different from pubic hair) that covered him, and a sheath that covered his appendage. Still with pants on, it was hard to take a real good look at what was going on down there, and all she could really do was swallow thickly.

Notes:

I'm so sorry about the delay! I've been so busy in RL that I've hardly had a moment to sit and concentrate on writing this story >.< But I hope the latest update is worth the wait. ^^ Thank you everyone for being so sweet and encouraging!

Notes:

This is my first time ever writing TAMB, so forgive me if I'm slow, but I fell in absolute love with the series. I've read and watched both the manga and anime, so there might be some hints towards both vs a straight line of one (as there are some minor differences). I hope you enjoy! :) Not sure how many chapters there will be! Just going with the flow, really. ^^