Shadow: Ahah! n.n; After writing A Mere Drawing, I felt like planning on making something...different. Yep, EphraimxInnes! x3 I haven't seen much of this pairing...Weeeell...
William: Shadow doesn't own Fire Emblem. Or else, Innes would have supports with Ephraim and Lyon would have never died...:waits for me to have pervy thoughts: T.T Disgusting fangirl.
Shadow: Shaddup. T.T
"Look at the snow, brother! Isn't it beautiful?"
Ephraim snickered and glanced at his twin, who continued to gaze out their window with amazement and fascination. "Quite. Perfect time of year to begin ice skating..." His gaze averted to a nearby frozen pond, catching sight of a certain childhood friend of his skating on the glassylike frozen water. Lyon stopped for enough time to wave, then continue skating, his hair flowing in the gentle breeze.
Eirika's brows furrowed and she elbowed his chest. "It's the only time of year for ice skating. There's only one winter. One season of snow. Not like it snows in spring or anything."
The teal-haired man rolled his eyes and continued to gaze out the window.
"So, if...If it's the perfect time for ice skating, why aren't you out there with Lyon?" Eirika asked quizzically.
Another snicker. "I sent Joshua to get me...a new partner, simply put."
"Sent him? Why couldn't you find a new partner yourself?"
"Trust me, the person I have in mind wouldn't dare come if I asked him. But Joshua, he knows the best way to..." He trailed off, thinking of a suitable word.
"Get him to skate?"
"Yes. To put it simply..."
"Oh..." Eirika blinked. "How?"
(o.o)
"Just try it. Once." Joshua blinked, raising an eyebrow. "It's not as bad as you think...Not you'll be skating on thin ice, or something." He snickered and twirled his own crimson locks. "I mean, your sister does it and you don't see her frozen over or anything, don'cha?" He grinned.
"Look, it's none of your business. I'll give it a try if I want to. If not, oh well, too bad. I've had bad...experiences with ice skating." Innes grumbled before taking another bite of baked potato.
"A very pathetic attempt for an excuse, an' a way out of it, y'know? C'mon, Artur and I do it all the time...skating is quite interesting, especially with a partner." He winked at the said man beside him, who turned a glowing crimson in response.
Receiving no response, he scanned the room and pulled out a silver, round object. "Say, how 'bout a little wager, neh? I win, you'll have to skate. With whoever I'll choose for your partner...And teacher, since you've never actually tried it." If Innes could read minds at that point, Joshua would be...just about stabbed with a knife within a split second. "If you win, I'll obey your commands for one week. Got it?" A smirk.
"...Fine." Innes raised an eyebrow in suspicion.
"Splendid!" Joshua's eyes twinkled with excitement and he rubbed his hands together. "Heads or tails?"
"...For a WHOLE week?"
"Yes, a whole week."
"Fine, tails."
The coin was tossed.
Aaaaand...
Tails.
Joshua's eyes widened slightly. He made a slight, almost unnoticeable shifting with his fingers to flip the coin to his desired side.
"Heads! Too bad, I win. Now I must choose your...partner." Joshua's eyes now twinkled with mischief.
Artur coughed into his hand and shifted in his seat. "I-I, Joshua, I don't think-"
"Oh, come now, Artur..." He emphasized his name and his eye twitched. He brought his lips to his ear. "Besides, the suspense on the outcome will be quite...overwhelming, don'cha think? Who knows what might happen, mmm...?" His tongue gently made contact with his earlobe, and he separated from him.
The flustered man gaped at the other, and turned his head to the floor, not noticing the other man wink.
"Now...about your partner..."
"Oh..." Innes cocked his head to the side, eyes half-lidded...making him seem somewhat annoyed with a semi-glare. His silver bangs fell into his eyes. "Have you made your decision?"
The other man snickered. How would THIS turn out...? "...Well..." He bent over the table and placed his chapped lips onto his temple for a brief moment, causing him to shiver, and whispered a name into his ear...
Innes' eyes widened for a moment...
(o.o)
"Grrr...Joshua, I SWEAR it, by the love of Saint Latona..." Innes growled, scribbling on a thin piece of paper. He rocked back and forth slightly in his seat on the wooden bench. "Why Ephraim, out of ALL people! Why couldn't it be Eirika, or Lyon!"
"Joshua must have his reasons, you know."
"Speaking of which..." He snarled, scribbling some more on that...paper.
Ephraim took a seat beside him. He sighed, almost inaudibly, wrapping an arm around his waist. "Now, it wouldn't be THAT bad..." He sighed once more. "Are you afraid or something? Afraid you'll fall through the ice? We won't be skating on thin ice or anything."
He felt VERY strange sitting beside Ephraim and shifted slightly, as if to shake off his arm. "I'm not afraid." He said simply. "I'd probably actually enjoy it, besides the fact I'd be skating with you." He doodled something on the paper and muttered something under his breath.
"Oh really...?" Ephraim grinned and rose an eyebrow, curling his arm tighter around his waist, as if to keep him from shaking his arm off of him. "So, you are saying you dislike being around me?"
What? Did he just NOTICE that? Innes thought, his eyes widening a tad.
"Because, well...I don't exactly dislike the fact I'd be skating with you, teaching you...It'd be quite interesting." He pulled the silver-haired man closer to him. It was no surprise that Innes' face turned a deep shade of crimson afterwards.
"Interesting, indeed." Innes sighed, rolling his eyes. "Very, very interesting..." He smashed the paper into a ball and tossed it at the nearby garbage bin.
"Hello Ephraim, Innes..."
Lyon walked over to his childhood friend and blinked. He very well noticed how...close they were there. And something bothered him about that. "Am I...interrupting something here?"
Innes twitched. "Not exactly...I'm actually very glad you arrived." He feigned a smile, sliding away from Ephraim. "Anything you need, Lyon...?"
Lyon blinked once more. "Urrm, actually...I was about to ask Ephraim if he would, uhh..."
"If I would what?" Ephraim blinked, rising from his seat.
"...If you would...skate with me." He squeaked, averting his gaze to the fluffy white snow, his eyes shut tightly. "B-But, well, I heard your current conversation and...you seemed, well, uhh..."
"Oh, no!" Innes stood up as well, twitching like a maniacal psycho. "I-It's okay, you can skate with him! I-I-I wouldn't mind, oh, of course not! Skate with him for as long as you lik--hey, wait!"
Joshua walked up casually to the three and wrapped an arm around Innes' waist and pulled him close. "Now, now, we had a deal..." He semi-growled.
Innes blushed and tried to pull out of Joshua's grip on his waist. "Okay, fine, now...just lemme go!"
Joshua snickered. "You're not getting rid of me that easily, my sweet little Innes..." His nose made contact with Innes', causing his face to redden.
"J-Joshua, what...? I said lemme go-"
He was silenced when the crimsom haired man pecked his lips and winked. "Well, alright, but remember, we had a deal. You will be skating with Ephraim. Or...hmm," He scratched his chin for a moment, then grinned. "You will skate with me."
Innes separated from him slowly, switched his gaze to Ephraim. Then back to Joshua. Then Lyon. "Uhh, well..." Well, this can't turn out THAT bad...It's not like it'll mean anything... "Fine, it's a deal, so I have no choice."
"Excellent!" Joshua made a clicking noise with his tongue. "Hmm, well, you wouldn't happen to have your ice skates with you, wouldn't you?"
Receiving no response, he blinked. "Oh yes, you've never skated. You wouldn't have a reason to have ice skates. Hn..." He muttered something under his breath. "Well, I happened to bring mine, so you can borrow them. But I'll need them back, mmkay?"
He handed the skates over and whispered something that sounded like "Have fun...", then winked before he took a seat on the bench.
(o.o)
"It won't be that bad. Trust me."
"Pfft, trust you?" Innes grumbled. It's hard to trust you, Ephraim...What if you let me go without warning me about it first? Or pushing me into thin ice and letting me fall through? What if you were to-ack!
Innes' eyes widened twice their size as Ephraim slipped his arms around the other's waist, deeply inhaling, the sweet smell of grapes calming him down. He slowly moved him over, onto the ice.
Innes held his breath in, his legs shaking slightly, ignoring the fact that he was on the ice, but paying more attention to the fact that Ephraim was holding him.
But it...wasn't that bad. Quite enjoyable, actually.
Innes shook his head frantically. No, Innes, don't THINK like that!
"What? Afraid, aren't you?" Ephraim chuckled lightly, pressed his lips gently onto the nape of his neck.
"O-Of...course not..." Innes breathed, leaning back slightly for support. His heart pounded against his chest as he shifted slightly in his grasp.
"Oh...Hmm, shall we get started?" He smiled, pulling some of Innes' silver bangs out of his face. "I mean, we don't have all day..."
Eirika watched the scene before her, her face almost as red as a ripe tomato. Lyon sat beside her, eyes wide. She could've sworn she saw his eyes water slightly.
"I...didn't know Ephraim was planning on doing that!" Eirika gasped, still dumbfounded from what had happened.
Lyon slowly nodded, his eyes closing shut to try to prevent his tears from falling. And it didn't help one bit.
"Lyon...you're..."
"No, Eirika...I-I am alright." Lyon replied almost inaudibly, wiping the moisture from his eyes. "I...I'll be alright."
"Lyon-- ..." Eirika fell silent for a moment. "My brother...do you...?"
"...He has feelings for Innes. That, I cannot stop. I...know that."
"...The question is, though, does Innes have feelings for Ephraim?" Interrupted Joshua, watching as Ephraim tried to help Innes keep his balance on the ice. He nearly fell out of his seat in laughter when Innes lost his balance and fell back into Ephraim's arms. Then...Ephraim's hands wandered lower. Innes blinked for second, and when he snapped back to reality, shoved Ephraim off of him and fell face-flat unto the ice.
Eirika's face was now a VERY deep red. "Err..."
Joshua snickered, wiping the tears of laughter from his eyes. "Okay, maybe he does, but...hehahah...just doesn't...ahahah...wanna admit it! GAHAHAH!" Joshua, indeed, fell off of his seat this time, tears streaming down his face from laughing.
"Oh, Joshua, it wasn't THAT amusing! If I were Innes at the moment, I would feel horribly embarassed...Although you are quite right. He might just...not want to admit it. But..."
Eirika sighed and sat up straight, as if nothing happened, and glanced back at a wide-eyed Lyon. "Lyon...?"
"Ahh...Forgive me...I was only...pondering..." He smiled painfully. Ephraim...
"Th-That wasn't very funny!" Innes nearly screamed, dusting off the snow on his pants as Ephraim tried to control his laughter.
"Aw, come on, it was an accident, anyway." Ephraim sighed. "You're the one who lost your balance."
Innes opened his mouth to speak, then closed it. He repeated the process a few times.
"...Never mind." Ephraim shrugged, sliding his arms around his waist again, his hands moving up his back as he did. "Now let's continue, shall we? We'll start a bit slow..."
(o.O)
"You enjoyed it. Admit it." Ephraim sighed, sitting at Innes' bedside.
The said man glared daggers at him. "Fine, I enjoyed it. Besides the fact that I was 'skating' with you," Grumbled Innes, pulling the thin sheets over his head. "But it wasn't that bad."
Ephraim grinned his 'hah-I-told-you-so' grin. "I had a feeling you would say that. You are very predictable."
His head peeked out of the covers. "...And that's bad thing?"
"Of course not."
Innes felt the corners of his lips tug slightly, turning into a...smile. Not that sarcastic smile, but more of an 'I-enjoyed-that' kind of smile.
He realized what he did when Ephraim's grin widened, and he pulled the sheets over his head once more and cursed to himself. "Look, th-that smile...It didn't mean anything...I never--Ah!"
He gasped softly as he felt a warm body press against his back and arms slide around his waist. Innes shifted slightly, showing some discomfort. "Ep-Ephraim...! What...?"
The blue-haired man smiled softly and gently licked the nape of his neck. "You smiled because you...did not dislike being around me...didn't you...? You enjoyed it..."
Innes turned a deep shade of crimson. "I...I..."
"I know it, Innes...There is no need to hide it from me..." Ephraim growled, nipping at his neck. "You can't hide it from me..."
Innes groaned and slowly turned to face him. "Stop...That was just--"
"A set up."
"...What?"
"Nothing, nothing..." Ephraim chuckled, brushing some of his sapphire bangs out of his face.
A scowl came upon Innes' face. "You just set me up to--"
"Look, I couldn't just blow up all of a sudden and say I love you. That would be very corny, you know..." Ephraim interrupted huskily, gently stroking his face with a grin.
Innes was silent, eyes wide in shock, for a moment. Ephraim...loved him? Ephraim...? Out of...all people? Ephraim?
"...Ephraim...?" Innes shifted, not of discomfort, but a very...strange feeling that just came up out of blue, all of a sudden. Was it...love, perhaps? Nah, it couldn't have been...
But that feeling began to grow stronger.
Innes gasped sharply when he felt Ephraim's tongue making it's way into his mouth, lips brushing roughly against his...felt his tongue explore the contours of his mouth. Ran over each tooth in his mouth...And made contact with his own tongue.
Innes moaned softly and moved against the other man's body. Now, he could admit he was enjoying this.
"...Mm, Innes...?"
Innes had just noticed Ephraim had separated from him, and shrunk beneath the covers. "...Y-You...! You..."
"I what?" Ephraim chuckled, running his hands up into his shirt.
"It's..." Say something, idiot! "...you...love me?" Oh, niiiice. Act like the timid and questionable one, Innes.
"I said it, didn't I?" Ephraim rose an eyebrow. "You're awfully questionable..."
Innes growled softly and nuzzled up to the other man. "Shut up, Ephraim."
"Shut up?" Ephraim smiled, a hint of amusement in his voice. "Boy, do you act childish."
"Speak for yourself..." Innes muttered softly, eyelids growing heavy, his speech hinting with fatigue. All Ephraim could do at that point was smile.
It sure felt like he just skated on thin ice.
Fell through.
And into Ephraim's loving arms.
And his eyes closed shut.
And another morning, would Lyon suffer another day without him.
But that was...another story.
Shadow: No, there's no sequel. o.o; NO SEQUEL. I have no sequel planned for this...Meh, corny ending.
Lily: Sure is corny. :snicker:
Shadow: Ehh, review please, for this not-one-of-my-best-writings-but-my-longest-one-shot fic. O.o