"But now I.." Holo began, turning her body so her eyes looked directly up at him, "I truly, truly enjoy looking up at you thus."

There beside Lawrence, she looked for all the world like a fetching maiden with gaze upturned. Though he might have become accustomed to their exchanges, this was something he could never get used to.

"No doubt because the face you're looking up at is a fool's face indeed," he answered with a wince, to which the wolf girl clung to him in delight.

Her tail wagged, sending fleas jumping free, as though they couldn't be expected to stay on such an appendage. "It stands to reason," he thought to himself, a warmth rising in his chest. Holo smiled, her face pressed against him.

He returned her smile. It was true - their exchanges were so foolish that even the most faithful apprentice would have a hard time calling him master, seeing him now. But on another level, it felt quite good to have this kind of problem.

He felt the boat gently rocking and realized that he'd been staring into her eyes for quite a while, and was just about to unconsciously lower his face down to hers. That wouldn't do.. not with the barely-perceptible tinge of maliciousness about her.

But why not, he thought to himself, and lowered his head anyway. He felt her tense up slightly as he tilted her chin upward, closed his eyes, and lowered his face, his lips pursed.

And then.. he brushed his cheek up against hers, and blew a flea off of her shoulder, intentionally blowing past her ear to do so. It was everything he could do stifle the smile that wanted to form on his face.

But when he'd straightened his back, he felt her hand grab his, and watched her nuzzle it affectionately. Her smile was bashful, its maliciousness having been transferred to her eyes.

He couldn't tell if the redness on her face was an affect. He simply sighed and looked up to the sky.

"You know I've never heard a master refer to herself as a rabbit before.."

She chuckled under her breath.

"And I am certain no rabbit has ever been chased by such a hopeless hound."

He wondered if she'd snuck a drink of the liquor while he wasn't watching, but thought better of it.. he felt rather drunk himself at the moment.

"Nor I any rabbit that nuzzled up to the hound as though begging to be caught."

His heart was itching, and mere words weren't going to scratch it. His mind was so set on avoiding making a move that he didn't realize what he was doing.

He felt her turn in his arms, and wondered what he'd done wrong.. only to realize that he was rubbing and picking fleas out of her tail. In his effort to cool his jets, he'd done the one thing she never let him do.

"I'm s-sorry!"

He nearly jumped up, but with her still in his arms, he only ended up flinching in realization of how stupid that would have been. His panic only increased when noticed that her hand had caught his, and was holding it down on her tail.

"T'is.. alright.. please.."

- Read the rest at AdultFanfiction, story #600055878 -