"Excuse me. That's my throne."
Malva glanced over her glasses to see the insufferably soft face of the Champion. With her golden hair and her bright eyes and her smiling. Always with the smiling.
"That I am." Malva spoke softly, with just a hint of venom. "My feet have tired themselves out on your rehearsals and the rest of my body is giving them a rest. Find your own seat."
Serena put her hands on her hips and cast her eyes about the room, much to Malva's delight. They were in the champion's room, with its vaulted ceiling, ornately decorated walls, and, most importantly, the lone chair it needed to serve the Champion.
"Okay. I will." Serena got that look in her eyes that Malva never trusted on anyone. She didn't have time to start worrying about what it meant, because the younger woman had already turned on her heal and parked her posterior on Malva's lap.
"You...loathsome little girl." Malva's hiss was as much a reaction to herself as to Serena. She liked to think of herself as sitting at a constant simmer, a low flame that would scorch the fingers of those who got too close. And Serena had done the metaphorical equivalent of shoving her whole hand in.
"Little girl?" Serena blinked and did her best to turn to look at Malva, which didn't do much more than push their bodies closer. Malva could already feel the traitorous thoughts brewing in the back of her head. Some wanted to throttle her, while others wanted to pull her in for a cuddle, and she didn't know which to get more angry at. "I'm eighteen, Malva."
"Please." Malva rolled her eyes. "You're scrawny and short. Even on my lap, I'm a head above you. And who do you know who sits on people's laps without permission?" It didn't escape Malva's notice that she wasn't trying to push her off. Probably just because she was too elegant to be so brutish. Probably.
"The rightful Champion, the Honor of Kalos," Serena held up her fingers as she listed her accomplishments. "And a woman who's just as tired of rehearsals as her seat. You'll have to get to used to it." She leaned back against Malva, firmly settling herself in for the long haul.
Her hair smelled like jasmine flowers. Her body was warm, which Malva was happy for, especially in the wide open chamber with her midriff exposed. She could have settled in for the long haul, not that she'd have admitted as such.
Then the lights went out.
"Oh no!" Serena hopped off of Malva's lap and stumbled. Malva just managed to catch her arm before she crashed into the floor.
"Somebody's eager to fall over themselves," Malva said, as she lit up her holocaster. It didn't provide much light, but it was enough for them to see their immediate surroundings. And enough to see Serena's face cast in all new shadows.
"Yeah, yeah." Serena said, then carefully made her way over to one of the giant windows. Malva followed behind her, heels clicking on the tiles, and watched her put both hands up to the glass to see into the grounds below. "It looks like the whole castle's run out of power. We need to fix this."
"What do you mean, we? There are janitors aplenty." Malva said. "Let them sort it out."
"Somebody could get hurt if we don't. There are costumers, catering, organizers, all kinds of people who don't know the layout of the castle." Serena's skirt floated as she span around. It took one look to see that her face was set in determination. "Any one of them could get hurt if the emergency lights aren't put back on."
"Don't be absurd." Malva scoffed. "The janitors will know the way better than you, and it's their job to fix these things. There's no need to risk getting lost and hurt in the dark."
"There's an escape route right through there." Serena pointed a finger to the entrance of the room. "You just pull the sconce and it will take me down some stairs right next to an emergency power switch. It's not dangerous at all."
"… Oh." Malva rankled at being soundly defeated with such ease, but Serena had a habit of making her feel that way. Serena flashed her a smile, lit up her own holocaster, and started to stroll towards the secret route. Malva watched her for a second, then hurried up to her side and took her hand. "Excuse me," Serena glanced up at the other woman. "That's my hand."
"I'm hardly going to let the Champion fall down the stairs during a blackout, much less when she's you," Malva said. "The public might not be aware, but the elite four's eyes will be on me. She did it, they'll say. She tried to kill the Champion the first chance she got."
"Oh." Serena licked her lips. "You could stop saying that you want to set me on fire. That might work, too."
"I haven't done it in the last ten minutes." Malva said. "So I'll consider it and that will be the last we say on the matter. Shall we?" They were at one of the sconces then. She hadn't been informed of all the secret paths through the castle, much to her chagrin, and she was just about to see one revealed. That was definitely why her heart was pounding.
Serena had to go on her tiptoes to pull the sconce. How someone so lacking in elegance had ever managed to beat her, she didn't know. She even smiled when she heard the gears turn, like it was some kind of accomplishment just to pull on a light fixture. It was completely insufferable and not at all adorable.
"Here we go. Are you ready, Malva?" A tight stairway was revealed to them, its stairs threatening to trip them with every step, and a blanket of shadows awaited them further on. Malva tightened her grip on Serena's soft hand.
"Does the question even need to be asked?"
"I don't want you to be afraid, either." Serena said. "You might be scared of the dark."
"… Just get on with the walking."
"It's okay if you are." Serena went on, though she did start to walk down the stairs and Malva followed. Their footsteps echoed around them. "You can't be brave unless you're afraid."
"There's some wisdom in that." Malva admitted. "But I'm simply not. The darkness is just an absence of light. The world is the same, whether I can see it or not. I have no more cause to fear these stairs than I have my bedroom or the-" Serena squealed, and Malva did the same. Their hands were still tightly linked, and she had to squeeze it just to make sure there was still life on the other end. "Serena?" She lifted up her free hand to reveal Serena's grinning face.
"You are scared!" Serena giggled.
"You are lucky you're pretty." Malva growled. "Or I would slap that look right off of your face."
"Did you just say something nice about me?" Serena's arrogance turned to affection, only annoyed Malva more. She was meant to be at least a little intimidated by her threat. "Thank you, Malva. You're pretty too."
"Shut up." It wasn't the most eloquent put-down, but Malva wasn't about to let herself be put speechless by a teenager. She could count one blessing in the form of the darkness hiding her blush.
"Oh, here it is!" Serena seemed to ignore Malva's comeback, as they came upon a door to the side with a large handle and a sign that unambiguously read 'Power'. She gave it one quick tug, and it stayed shut. She released Malva's hand and tried to pull it until her skirt swayed with the effort. "It won't budge! Can you help me, Malva?"
"If I must." Malva sighed, then stepped up behind Serena and wrapped her fingers around the space between Serena's hand. She was standing right behind her again, smelling her hair and just inches away from her warmth. She wasn't a pervert. She was trying to restore power. It would be impossible to combine the two. "One, two, three-"
She was interrupted by a sudden tug from Serena, one that sent the girl flying right back into Malve. The older woman instinctively caught her by the shoulders, lest she crumple to the ground. They spent a few seconds breathing in the dark, and then she deemed that Serena was fit enough to stand.
"What were you thinking?" Malva asked, as she helped Serena to her full height.
"You got to three!" Serena said.
"It's one, two, three, pull." Malva insisted. "What manner of idiot goes on three?" Serene pursed her lips, crossed her arms, and raised a single, perfectly-plucked eyebrow. "...I apologize. We'll go on three next time."
Serena nodded, satisfied, and they set their hands back on the handle. With a count of three, they tugged the door and it swung open with all of its weight. They just managed to dodge out of its way and hurried inside. They soon found themselves squished together.
"Why are you standing so close to me?" Malva demanded, as she felt a shoulder against her ribcage. Then she looked around, and the whole room was cast in the light of their holocasters. It was barely large enough for the both of them, completely blank save for a single switch on the wall. "Well...how annoying."
"We don't have to stay in here." Serena said brightly, then flicked the switch. A low hum echoed through the rooms around them, the light above lit up, and the proud smile spreading across her lips froze when something clicked behind them. She span around, half-knocking Malva into the wall, to see the door closed. "No… No… Nononono!" She threw herself at the door and it didn't budge an inch.
"What a fine mess you've gotten us into." Malva groaned as she tapped out a message on her holocaster. A janitor would be with them soon enough, especially for the Champion's sake, but she wasn't going to miss out on some good complaining.
"Me? You volunteered to come with me!" Serena put her hands on her hips and gazed up at Malva. "It's not my fault that you came right in with me! You should have held the door open!"
"I thought there would be more room." Malva frowned. She didn't like the look of frustration on Serena's face. It wasn't that she was ugly, but it unsettled something deep in her gut.
"Well, there's not! And now we're stuck!" Serena slammed her fist against the door, which didn't achieve much more than making her wince. "And my hand is hurt..."
"Well. You know what?" Malva asked.
"What?" Serena pouted.
"I still need to sit down." Malva said, then pushed herself against the wall and sunk to the floor. It wasn't the most comfortable of positions, with her long legs reaching to the opposite wall, but at least she wasn't on her feet. And with any luck, Serena would calm down, too.
Serena gaped at her.
Malva quirked an eyebrow.
Eventually, Serena sighed and smiled.
"I guess that's as comfortable as we're going to get in here." Serena agreed, then turned around and sat between Malva's legs. It was like they back in the throne room, with Serena's head against her shoulder and her warmth thwarting the pervasive cold. It wasn't like emergency power rooms needed heating.
If Malva was cold, she had no doubt that Serena was, too. Her arms were completely exposed, she wore a remarkably short skirt, and the fabric was fashionable, but far from thick. Perhaps she wanted to be warmed up, and that was why she'd sat so close to Malva. There was plenty of space for her to take another position, after all.
Malva slowly slid her arms around Serena's waist, bringing her in just a little more, before letting her arms rest. The younger woman's head shifted against Malva's shoulder, and she worried for a moment that she'd gone too far. Or one part of her had; the part that insisted on seeing Serena as a beautiful, captivating young woman rather than an annoyingly persistent pest.
"What are you doing?" Serena asked. Her voice was soft, a little bemused, but not outwardly hostile.
"I'm throttling you,"
"Oh. Okay. Let me help you with that." Serena shifted her rump a little further back, so Malva's front as against her, and laid one hand over Malva's. "I'm gonna be so dead in a minute."
"Hopefully." Malva's heart wasn't in it, because it was so busy with all the other emotions bubbling and boiling inside her. It was positively pleasant, the warmth, the softness, Serena's apparent comfort despite Malva's cruel words. She was so close, she could just-
"Are you smelling my hair?"
"… No," Malva lied.
"Hmm..." Serena started to trace the back of Malva's hand with her fingertips. "Thanks for this."
"Enjoy it while it lasts," Malva muttered. "You won't be getting any more hugs from me, runt."
"You know," Serena smiled. "A lot of people in Team Flare have told me a lot of things. How they're gonna beat me, how they're the most beautiful people, how they're gonna take over the world… And somehow, what you just said is the least believable."
"Wh-" Malva couldn't finish her sentence before the handle on the door rattled.
"We're here, Misses!" Came a female voice from the other side of the door. Serena slowly got to her feet, and Malva resented the efficiency of the castle's staff as she did the same. "Just one… Okay, just two… Third time's the… Aha!" The door flung open to reveal a young woman clad in a janitor's uniform, with brawny arms and a mess of dark hair.
"Thank you ever so much!" Serena beamed at the janitor. "You're our savior."
"Just doing my job, Miss," The janitor said, then Serena kissed her cheek, and Malva had the sudden urge to shoe the janitor down the stairs.
"And thank you for keeping me company, Malva." Serena went on the very tips of her toes to place a kiss on Malva's cheek, and all murderous intent faded away. "I'd better go and check everyone's okay." And then she was off, hustling down the stairs with her skirt swaying and her hair trailing behind her.
Malva stared as Serena left and touched a finger to her own cheek.
"You okay, Miss?" The janitor asked. Malva shot her a glare, then strode downthe stairs. She needed a shower as cold as they came.