Different Kinds of Borrowers, Chapter 4

~ In which Arrietty tries to get some straight answers out of the Borrower whose least favorite thing in life is answering questions~


…..

Aunt Lupy had been moved to tears at the arrival of Eggletina, and despite the gentle attitude she had acquired from living in a church, she still seemed displeased that her daughter had stayed with Arrietty's family and not come straight home.

Arrietty had stayed with them for lunch, but it was only at the insistence of her little cousin Timmus, whom she adored, that she even bothered to stay that long.

It wasn't that she hated Eggletina, or even that she was angry at her – the girl had tried to be kind about everything after all – but she didn't want to be reminded of the morning's conversation or have to think about the anger with which Peagreen had looked at her.

But back home, alone in her room, there was nothing to distract her from the replay of his harsh words.

'Your parents taught you better than that'

'You're reading too much into his actions'

'He never even said he loved you'

Her eyes filled with tears and her lip quivered, but she refused to cry.

With a frustrated growl she sat up and tore her plush blanket off, jamming her feet into her shoes and heading for her door.

She was on a mission to find someone, and she knew right where he would be.

Stomping into the old store room, she saw Spiller assisting her father with removing cogs and wheels and springs from an old and broken record player.

With no introduction and no explanation she waltzed right up to Spiller, grabbed his hand, and proceeded to drag him from the room.

Her father stared after them with open confusion, venturing "Arrietty?"

"I need to talk to him for a moment!" She shouted, and Spiller cast a questioning glance at Pod before Arrietty pulled him round the corner and out of sight.

Pod only shrugged, a light smile on his face, before continuing his borrowing.

With an urgent pace Arrietty pulled Spiller down the hall and into the rundown greenhouse, making her way over and up into the old wood-burning oven where her family had spent the night when they first arrived at the house.

The door to the oven was rusted so that it only stood open a crack, and the smoke pipe was stopped up with soot, so Arrietty felt comfortable that here at least she could have a truly private conversation with Spiller.

The glass walls of the greenhouse reflected the light of the late afternoon sun, creating a shaft of light which slipped through the open door and lit the inside of the oven with an eerie orange glow.

Arrietty moved herself and Spiller to where the light was strongest so that she could clearly see his face, which at the moment told her nothing, and finally she stopped moving and stared at him, her hands squarely on her hips.

Spiller looked away from her, glancing around the stove, then leaned out of the open door to scan the surrounding room. Apparently satisfied that there was no one around and they were truly alone, he promptly grabbed Arrietty round the waist and kissed her full on the mouth.

Caught completely off guard, Arrietty didn't respond immediately, but just as she caught herself melting into his arms and closing her eyes, she gasped and pushed back against his chest.

"Spiller," she said breathlessly, "we need to talk."

He stared at her, surprised, and then nodded.

"No, Spiller, I mean we really need to talk! I need some actual answers from you! You need to talk to me!"

His face fell into a slight frown, but after a minute he cleared his throat, opened his mouth, and said in his rough voice "'Kay."

Arrietty smiled softly, grateful to see he was going to try. She had learned long ago not to press him like this, and she hoped he wouldn't hold it against her, but she needed to talk to him and quell the fears that had been festering in her mind from Peagreen's comments.

"Spiller, we've known each other for a long time now, and I wanted you to know… I like you very much. I like spending time with you, I like talking to you, and I even like your silence!"

She smiled warmly at him, and a small smile quirked his mouth in response.

"We've been through a lot over the years, and I think you'd agree that we work well together. Wouldn't you?"

He nodded, but then caught himself, and said "Yeah."

"And, as you… may have guessed from yesterday…" she blushed and turned her head away slightly, though her eyes flicked back to meet his, "I'm… quite attracted to you as well."

Spiller grinned mischievously and nodded with an affirmative "Mm."

Her mouth fell into a comical pout, but it quickly changed into a smile and a soft giggle.

"Really though Spiller, having said all that… what to do you think of me? Do you like me?"

His grin remained as he said "Of course I like you."

It was so matter-of-fact and so business-like that Arrietty didn't quite believe him.

"Do you really mean that?"

"I wouldn't have said if I didn't."

Her frown returned as she said "I don't mean just… physically… I mean, do you like me as a person? Do you like spending time with me? Do you… respect me?"

"I wouldn't be here if I didn't."

She looked slightly abashed as she answered "I… I know." She looked down at the ground then, her fingers clasped and turning white as she continued "Spiller, what I really need to tell you is, is…" 'This shouldn't be this hard – it's not like I'm afraid of what he'll say! It's not as if he'd… reject me. ' "Miss Menzies once told me of a boy she knew… one she loved very much… and how she never told him, and one day he married another girl… I think it broke her heart. It happened years and years before she ever told me about it, and yet she was still so sad. And it made me realize I never wanted to have that kind of regret. So, I just want you to know… I love you. And I want to spend the rest of my life with you."

She glanced up to see him still watching her, and his expression was pensive, but other than that she could decipher nothing.

"I've been thinking about last night a lot Spiller, and I've been so confused about what it all meant. I need to know if… if you kissed me because you love me back, or if it was because you just couldn't... control yourself."

Arrietty cringed at her own wording, hoping she hadn't offended him; his only reaction however was to smile, cock his head, and ask "So it's either or?"

She blinked, confused by his response. "What do you mean?"

He almost laughed as he said "How about both. I couldn't control myself because I love you."

Her breath caught in her throat at his words, and her eyes glistened as she stared at him.

"W-what did you say?"

His look was slightly confused, and in a more sober tone he repeated "…Couldn't control myself because I love you."

"Spiller… that last part: say that again."

He nodded, and with his usual business-like tone said "I love you."

She watched him closely, staring into his eyes, searching for an emotion.

But he was too good at hiding them.

With a tired sigh she slumped forward, her hair starting to fall over her face as she said sadly "You know… I had thought hearing those words would make me feel better… but now I think I'm more confused than ever."

For a moment there was silence; Arrietty didn't know what to do anymore. Spiller had told her, outright, that he loved her. But there was something missing. Somehow… she didn't feel it like she had the night before.

Just as her eyes began to fill with tears, romantic dreams of her and Spiller starting to crumble in her mind, she felt a light touch under her chin, lifting her face till she was once again staring at Spiller.

His face was still expressionless and stoic, but there was a bit more feeling in his words, a certain level of urgency, as he said "Can I show you?"

Her mind went blank as she looked at him, and all she could do was stutter out "W-what?"

He grimaced slightly and scratched at the back of his head, saying "I'm no good with words. If it helps… maybe I can show you I love you?"

She wasn't quite sure what to think, but she found herself nodding anyways.

He smiled then, in that broad, grinning smile he sometimes gave her, and slowly, carefully, moved forward and gathered her into a hug.

This was not what she expected.

She had expected – hoped – that he would kiss her again; but she knew he was trying to say something, so she waited and listened.

And as he held her, she began to understand.

He loved her.

Slowly her arms wrapped around Spiller's back, her hands grasping the soft fur of his tunic as he gripped her tighter.

There was something in the way he held her that told her he would never let her go.

And somehow, despite him telling her just the night before that she was different, that she was special to him… she only now knew it was true.

She sighed and fell into him, savoring the flow of emotions she was feeling from him.

He really wasn't one for words; even the most romantic phrases seemed strange coming from Spiller. No, the only way he could truly express what he felt was through actions and touch, and Arrietty knew through that simple embrace that he loved her more than his words could have ever said.

She thought of her conversation just that morning, and in her mind she scoffed at Peagreen's worries about Spiller's sincerity. Not everyone was a word-smith like him; some borrowers, it seemed, didn't need to say something to actually say it.

Any doubts she had harbored had been swept from her mind at his touch.

Spiller continued to hold her in that same loving manner, but Arrietty could tell – from the twitching of his hands to the stiffening of his posture – that he was holding himself back.

She wondered if it was because she had stopped him earlier, or if there was another, more mysterious reason. Perhaps he was trying to be gentler, to go slower because it was more… proper. She paused, wondering if he had heard any of the confrontation that morning. Come to think of it, she hadn't known where he was, and with how quiet he could be… well, he could have been right beside them.

A sudden feeling of rebellion flared up in her mind, and stubbornly she thought 'I don't care if he did hear it. He's proven he loves me as gently as he could and now he won't let himself do anything more; but I want him to! We've shared our feelings – what's the harm in indulging?'

With a smile Arrietty lifted her head and kissed Spiller, gripping him all the more tightly as she did.

He made a small sound of surprise, and a strange feeling of triumph engulfed her; it wasn't often that she got the 'one up' on him.

But he quickly kissed her back, though his kiss was much gentler than hers.

Arrietty was confused: it hadn't taken him long last night to get worked up, and they had both confessed their feelings for each other, so… why did he seem so inhibited?

'Perhaps he really did hear Peagreen… perhaps he's worried that we went too far, or that I'll get in trouble with those two again, or even that I don't want to do this. But I can tell he wants more, and I want more as well! I'm not a fragile little lady like Eggletina. He can go ahead and kiss me till I'm seeing stars – I can dish it right back!'

And with that thought she opened her mouth, inviting him into a deeper kiss while she pushed against him, backing them both against the cast-iron wall of the oven.

It didn't take Spiller long to grasp the meaning of her actions, and he responded with wild abandon, only too eager to no longer have to hold back on her account.

Arrietty laughed in her mind as she realized just how much his desire to kiss her like this had been building up, for soon he had turned the tables, pinning her against the wall and kissing her soundly.

They were never still: her hands explored his back, feeling the muscles and planes and basking in his strength as she arched herself into him, and he pressed back against her as much as he could, with one hand stroking the side of her face while the other ran along the curve from her shoulder to hip.

This was the Spiller she loved, thought Arrietty as he ravished her mouth: wild and unimpeded.

There was always a thrill of danger and adventure around him, but there was also no one with whom she felt safer.

She had tried many times to explain it to others, particularly her mother, but it was a difficult feeling to put into words… and her mother was hard enough to convince about Spiller already.

The sudden thought of her mother jarred her mind and had her pausing in her actions.

What would she say if she saw them right now?

The thought of what her parents might think if they knew, and the fact that she hadn't told them about the new level of her relationship with Spiller, brought her euphoria crashing down around her.

Her sudden lack of enthusiasm was not lost on Spiller, and he quickly pulled away to look at her, his breathing still labored and pulse racing.

The distant look in her eyes caught him off guard, and he leaned down slightly, trying to catch her gaze.

She snapped back to the present and met his searching eyes, and after a moment said, in a serious tone, "Spiller, do you really want to spend your life with me?"

"Yes." He responded forcefully, surprising Arrietty with how suddenly he answered.

"I mean bindingly. As husband and wife."

He nodded, straight-faced and in all seriousness, repeating firmly "As husband and wife."

Arrietty smiled broadly then, playfully kissing him on the nose before pushing him back so as to give her room to walk.

He watched her with bright eyes, and she could tell that he really hadn't wanted to stop, but she only laughed in response, grabbing his hand and tugging him towards the oven door and the red light of the setting sun outside.

"Come on; we need to go have a talk with my parents."


*Author's Note:

… I did give this a "T" rating.

That's about as 'steamy' as it's gonna get though.

So now they're basically engaged… but they have yet to hear from Mr. and Mrs. Clock on the matter! What will Arrietty's parents think? Will they allow it?

And what about Eggletina and Peagreen? Will he ever forgive Arrietty? Will he ever get over her?

And what the heck happened to Ditchley and Elrich? Have I forgotten them already?!

Tune in… uh, soon, for…. Some of these answers.

Possibly.

I can't promise all of them.

Please read and review! It means a lot to me! :3