A/N: You have no idea how long I've wanted to post this ;) thank you to Jolanikati for editing!
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The talk with Enkidu strangely helped Arturia's restless nerves quiet down a bit. If she wasn't completely calm, she was at least able to be back to her normal self at work and with her family. That was extremely positive, since she was too busy to indulge in any kind of distracting considerations about Gilgamesh.
Iri had made several appointments with a realtor to go look at some apartments, and the process had been so swift that they were going to see quite a few possible choices already during the following week.
Arturia made the offer of having her sister stay at her own house, since she was about to be discharged from the hospital, but Iri declined politely. The blonde woman knew that her sister intended to be as independent as possible in starting her new life and, understanding her reasons, did not insist, making her however promise that if the need arose, she would not hesitate to come stay at her place, at least in the interest of her children.
Iri promised, and then told her about the call she had received regarding a job interview two weeks from then. It was for a position as junior editor of a magazine of sports cars' articles, and Arturia knew that Iri very much hoped be able to obtain it.
Meanwhile, Friday came, and with Friday, Gilgamesh came home as well. Sakura, who was now always tasked with breakfast and much more rarely with dinner, cooked a hearty meal together with Arturia.
However, as soon as the girl was gone, the green-eyed woman found that she had difficulties in starting any kind of talk with her husband during dinner.
After a prolonged, awkward silence, she eventually inquired about his trip, but his short answers were no help in having a proper conversation. Finding all her attempts failing, she ultimately gave up, and they spent the rest of the evening in tense silence once again.
Only when they were in their room, and as she was separating the beds, did he ask her if she had her luggage ready, since they would be leaving early in the morning. At her affirmative answer, he simply gave a soundless nod.
The entire situation felt… strange.
Even though Gilgamesh was finally back – she had felt his absence more acutely than she had thought – it seemed as if he was far away, as if the invisible walls she had felt weeks before, on their wedding anniversary, were up again.
It was an unsettling and even slightly depressing thought, but it was the only explanation she could consider plausible, and she was inclined to believe that it was probably the truth.
The beginning of the following two days together was peculiar, yet more relaxed. They were away from the unwanted attention of the press – they had managed to leave the house for their trip without being seen or followed – and the sceneries of the places they visited were breathtaking.
The lakes were mesmerizing, and Arturia could not stop admiring the natural beauties with wide, sparkling eyes, even while she felt strangely fidgety about being completely alone with Gilgamesh.
It was far from being the first time, of course; they had been alone on their three-week trip to Europe as well, but they had been there mainly for work. On this tour, it was for leisure; it was therefore different, and it was hard to focus and actually try to understand the reasons for her nervousness.
It wasn't about trust. Goodness, no.
She trusted him, fully. She knew she could rely on him, and she knew that she had nothing to fear from him.
But there was something, something she couldn't quite put her finger on, that was making her slightly uncomfortable, the entire time.
It was something between her husband and herself, something not explainable with mere words.
Something that shot through her veins when he grabbed her by the waist, as a group of children stormed past her when they were on the edge of a cliff and she almost lost her balance.
Something that fluttered towards her heart when he did not release her and kept her close to him after that, without saying a word.
During the entire first day of the weekend, they barely exchanged a word, and yet, Arturia had to admit that she had oddly never felt closer to the man she had married, even after spending the entire time filled with tension and still feeling those invisible walls between them.
His behaviour was something she could observe keenly during that day – as Enkidu had advised her to do – since there was so little talk to distract her, and it was disconcerting to see how everything he did around her looked… as if… he cared. As if he cared about making sure she enjoyed the trip and the places they were visiting.
A few months before – or maybe several months before – she would have snorted. Gilgamesh Uruk, a caring person? That was more or less as likely as Enkidu being a deathly serious and boring one.
Yet even though they talked very little – they would share a bed, of course, but they would rigorously keep away from each other – they were not exactly uneasy with one another. They were just… wary.
That was the problem, Arturia eventually realized on the first evening. They had found some kind of stability in their peculiar relationship, and they did not want that to change. They were both afraid of that changing.
Or rather, to be completely fair, she was. Who knew what he was truly thinking.
Enough was however enough, she decided, and on Sunday morning, she tentatively started a conversation with him. She could not bear being on a vacation of sorts with the man she had married and barely exchange more than two syllables with him.
The subject she talked about was trivial – the weather – but it seemed to work, as it finally made him reply to her, and before they knew it, they were engaged in normal talk, the uneasiness not entirely gone but at least successfully stifled.
As they were climbing up a small hill, since she had expressed the wish to have a better view of one of the lakes – especially as there was the beautiful Mount Fuji behind it – Arturia's eye was caught by a tourist shop nearby.
A sudden idea flashed through her mind, and she smiled slightly.
Enkidu had playfully suggested she take pictures, hadn't he? And if they did indeed take pictures… then maybe she would have a present for her husband, or at least something that would show her gratitude for the birthday dinner he had taken her to.
Grabbing his hand lightly and almost without realizing it, she guided Gilgamesh – who gave her a look filled with curiosity – towards the shop, and as they entered, she immediately released him, starting to search.
In the section that featured technological devices, she went through the articles, studying them quickly. A warm arm was suddenly passed around her waist, pulling her close to her husband's body.
"Arturia, what are you looking for?"
She didn't stop to consider the fact that he had strangely not commented on how ordinary the place was, and her eyes travelled over the objects on display until she ultimately found it.
"This," she stated simply, holding up a small camera, one of the most recent models that would however snap only one picture.
His hold on her became securer as he lifted an eyebrow.
"This is a simple, cheap article meant for tourists."
A small smile tugged at the corner of her lips, both at his predictable objection and her own ready reply.
"But we are tourists, Gilgamesh."
He did not say anything, but the mild amusement in his crimson eyes was unmistakable, and she knew he was not going to protest anymore.
They went up to the counter to pay for the camera, and she didn't add a word as the owner of the shop took the article and named the price. However, she didn't have the time to take her purse to pay because her husband had already taken out the money from his own wallet, and his arm went back around her waist, pulling her body next to his once again.
As the shop owner was handing her the camera back, his eyes suddenly widened.
"E-excuse me," he stuttered, and then he opened a drawer, taking out a newspaper magazine. It was from about two months before, and it featured a picture from the party for their first anniversary on it. "Are you… are you Mr. and Mrs. Uruk?"
Since there was no one else in the shop, Arturia decided there was nothing wrong with giving a truthful reply to that legitimate question.
"We are," she confirmed.
The man's reaction startled them both, as tears suddenly filled his eyes and he bowed deeply.
"You support the children's charity, don't you?" At Arturia's brief nod, he went on, "Please forgive me, but allow me to explain. My daughter was born with a genetic problem at her spinal cord that did not allow her to walk. But thanks to your charity covering the expenses and medical fees and giving support, she can now have a normal life."
He bowed deeply to them once again. "I will forever be grateful for it. I cannot accept your money."
He then took the money they had given him and tried to give it back, but both Gilgamesh and Arturia said at the same time, "No, there's no–" and then interrupted themselves, staring at each other, mildly shocked that they had been about to say the same thing.
She had meant to turn down the offer politely, he had meant to do it a bit more haughtily, but they had been thinking the same. Arturia felt his hold around her waist tighten almost imperceptibly, and saw how close they were: almost touching, a mere breath away…
To avoid thinking about that, she quickly turned towards the shop owner again.
"Please, there is no need for this. We are very glad to hear about your daughter's regained health. It is not related to this article though, so we will pay for the camera." Her eyes were gentle but firm as she bowed to him as well.
Understanding that the two people in front of him were not going to change their mind, the man nodded in hesitant acceptance and bowed to them again.
"If there is anything I can do to express my gratitude to you, please let me know at once."
Arturia was about to say that it was not necessary, when she unexpectedly had an idea. The shop owner was clearly anxious to do something for them, and if she asked for something minor, it was bound to make him happy.
Therefore, she looked a bit sheepish for a second.
"As a matter of fact," she began, and she could feel Gilgamesh's eyes on her, "if it's fine with you, could we trouble you by asking you to take a picture of us, right outside this shop?"
The man's expression lit up as he nodded immediately.
"It would be an honour for me, Mrs. Uruk."
Arturia did not meet her husband's eyes, knowing that he had probably raised an eyebrow in surprise, but she simply took his hand and guided him outside with her.
The weather was sunny without being blinding, and it was ideal for taking a picture.
Placing themselves so to have Mount Fuji behind them on one side and the lake on the other – Gilgamesh's arm was firmly back around her body, pulling her possessively close to him – they waited for the shop owner to take the picture of them, and then Arturia thanked him warmly for his kindness.
As they walked towards the private taxi car that would take them to the next lake, Gilgamesh asked her what her intentions were regarding the photo. She shrugged lightly, saying that she would take care of having the picture developed in the next few days.
"I know that having a picture with Mount Fuji is probably a tourism cliché for Japan, but I hope that it doesn't displease you too much, Gilgamesh," she teased him wryly, and he gave her a look that would have looked haughty to anyone else, but allowed her to see the brighter glint in it.
"We are supposed to be tourists after all, Arturia," he teased right back, using her earlier words, and she could not suppress a small smile. He seemed pleased to see that, and his arm was once again back around her waist, enveloping her body in a warm hold.
He was actually very pleased to see Arturia smile at him. He had missed her the previous week, because he had not been able to spend even a small amount of time with her since her birthday. He quite liked being alone with her on this weekend, especially if they could have relaxed interactions without quarrelling.
Comfortable in their seats, knowing he had the excuse of other people being present – well, just the taxi driver, but that was beside the point – he pulled her closer to him, and she accepted to lean her head between his neck and his shoulder without any actual hesitation.
Gilgamesh gave up on trying to suppress the surprisingly delighted feeling in his chest when she did that.
On the day of their wedding, he had made the decision of being magnanimous towards her, because he thought it was generous on his part. But he had considered her as an object, not a person; he had treated her as if she was a possession he could choose how to treat.
How foolish, selfish and arrogant that had been, and how humiliating it was to reach such a realization.
Aside from most certainly not being an object, she had not been his back then, and she wasn't his now, either. But it was no longer important to consider what he had thought back then, for he had come to know her and understand a lot of things about her.
He knew that she fascinated him, even though she was a minx of a stubborn woman. Yet he also knew that he probably loved her because of that as well.
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They were extremely careful when they got back to the mansion in the late evening on Sunday, as they had realized that their brief encounter with the tourist shop owner – and their acknowledging their identities – could have inadvertently produced some unwanted publicity.
They were however relieved to find out that there was no visible change in the usual number of reporters stationed outside the gates, which meant that the man they had met had not attempted to exploit their visit to his shop for his personal gain. Arturia was very pleased by the discovery; when she did not fail to let Gilgamesh know her thoughts about it, he looked at her with amusement, even though he chose not comment further.
It wasn't entirely easy to go back to their normal lives on Monday, after the pleasant and slightly awkward weekend they had spent together. Work was hectic, with the entire schedule of the week having to be determined, plus Gilgamesh having to consider the calls from Hong Kong from Enkidu and settling the work he had done in Osaka.
Only in the middle of the week did Arturia have the time to go to the hospital to see her family, since it had been too busy at work to leave beforehand.
However, she did not stay long, not only because she wanted to avoid Iri's prying eyes and veiled questions about her 'vacation', but also because she intended to develop the picture that had been taken during the weekend.
It took her another few days, but eventually, she finished her gift. At dinner, she waited until Sakura left – since they had a lot of work those days, both Gilgamesh and Arturia arrived home later than usual and therefore the girl had been instructed to cook the evening meals once again – and then presented him with a small parcel.
"It's for you," she said simply, in reply to his quizzical gaze. "Although your birthday already passed, I owed you a present."
Seeing that he was displaying curiously mixed feelings about what she had just said, she firmly added, "And I wanted to give you this."
His eyes weighed her for a few seconds longer, before ultimately lowering on the present, and he swiftly opened it.
The unfamiliar way in which he handled it made Arturia wonder if he was as unused to receiving presents as she was… and then she inwardly shook her head at herself at her own reaction, knowing that her assumption was indeed very likely to be correct.
Inside there were two pictures: one was the photo of their wedding, the other was from their trip from the previous weekend, and both were carefully framed.
She saw that he recognized the most recent one right away, and she thought she saw a ghost of a smile on his lips as he observed it; but then he brought his eyes on the other one, and his expression became strikingly unreadable.
"How did you manage to get this photograph?"
A bit uncomfortable, she explained, "Just before our wedding anniversary, I called the National newspapers. They had been the ones to publish an article on the special magazine last year, one month after our wedding, and I asked them for this picture." She recalled that the phone call had been quite amusing because of their quick acquiescence, but she wasn't going to dwell on that, nor would she bring it up.
He stared at her, mildly surprised.
"If you went to such lengths," he then said slowly, "does this mean that you've had this picture for months?"
She had to be honest–… no, that was incorrect: she wanted to be honest.
Therefore, unable to avoid giving an answer to his perplexed inquiry about the matter, she admitted, with a little difficulty, "I was very upset on the day of the party. It was all so false, I didn't think that having this picture around would have been good."
The intensity in his eyes was difficult to ignore, but she held his gaze nonetheless.
He was never going to tell her that he had actually kept the newspaper's magazine from a year before – he still had it, in his 'side of the room' – and just because of that picture.
And to his enormous surprise, she had not only actually remembered his interest in it; she had also obtained the original photograph and had given it to him as a present.
That was truly impressive in his opinion, especially considering that a year before, she had disliked him quite a bit.
It was rather obvious to them both that they were consciously dodging talking about the fact that they seemed to consider pictures of them – pictures of them together – as something important and precious to them.
His tone was once again measured as he finally gave her a reply.
"While I share your opinion on the falseness of that party, I don't think that will stop me from thanking you for this present, Arturia."
She inclined her head a bit.
"So you like it?"
Her voice wasn't pleading, nor was it uncertain, but she did want a confirmation about the fact that he appreciated it.
In spite of the thick tension between them, his crimson eyes did not leave her green ones as he smirked slightly, and it was a smirk very, very close to a smile.
"Indeed I do."
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The following day, since she had the morning free, Arturia went through the halls of her house together with the housekeeper, Mrs. Stark, who was suggesting the possibility of changing the tapestry in the main corridors.
The blonde woman wasn't in favour of such a thing unless there was a valid reason for it, therefore she intended to check the rooms to make sure the current tapestry was in reasonably good shape.
Passing next to her husband's study, she was surprised to see the door slightly ajar, since it was usually closed and she knew that he had already gone to the office. It was obvious that he had briefly been there in the morning, for who knew what reason.
Had he perhaps forgotten something there? She was not prohibited from accessing his rooms, and while a few months before she probably wouldn't have been curious enough to investigate further, this occurrence was strange; therefore, after a second of hesitation, she entered.
The monitor on the wall – the one he used for his Skype conferences across the world – was turned off, as it should have been, and all his files and documents were neatly ordered as usual. The only real change was a new object on his desk, and Arturia had to hold back a small gasp of surprise.
Proudly displayed and located so that anyone who sat there had to see it, there was the wedding photo that she had given him the evening before. Sudden warmth filled her as she saw it, even though she tried to reason with herself by concluding that there was nothing special for her to be so happy about.
She looked around – discreetly, since Mrs. Stark was still in the corridor outside and could come in any second – but she could not find the other picture.
That was strange; he had perhaps put it somewhere else, but where? It certainly wasn't in their room, nor was it in one of the many living rooms, not even the one on the upper floor that they both favoured.
Arturia snapped herself out of it. What did it matter?
She had given him a present; he had the right to do with it whatever he saw fit. It was none of her business, much less her concern.
She resolved to carefully keep her mind on more important things than her husband's use of her gifts, and focused back on her conversation with the housekeeper, making it clear that she believed that only a couple of rooms actually needed new tapestry, and definitely not the whole house.
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In the afternoon, at work, Arturia considered whether or not to speak with Gilgamesh about an idea she had been thinking of for a while. It had been Ninsun, actually, who had made her come up with it.
In the past months, ever since her sister had started to get better, Arturia's job at Uruk Enterprises had undergone a change. Aside from regularly taking part to meetings and therefore being actively involved in coordinating the company's many deals and activities, she could now give her work her full concentration, and she knew that Gilgamesh liked what she was capable of doing.
She also knew that he was not playing favourites because she was married to him, and he had been tolerant with her missing days of work in the past and having a less busy schedule for the sole reason that they had a contract to respect.
But now that Iri was improving rapidly, he did ask her to be a little more focused on her job, and she had to admit that she had no reason to decline such a request.
Being more involved at work, however, did not mean that she could just go up to the boss with an idea of hers. It was true that Uruk Enterprises encouraged creativity and effort, but she was still a fairly new employee and was building up experience, and she knew very well that one thing was expressing an opinion, another was suggesting a whole new direction to take.
This was especially important when she kept in mind who the boss was.
She eventually decided that trying would not hurt anyone. Ever since Ninsun had told her that she had been headmistress of the Central College in New York, Arturia had been thinking more about her days at university, and especially the internship she had done during the summer.
Uruk Enterprises did not offer many internships in Japan; she thought that maybe it could be beneficial to instead offer more of them, and perhaps make them seasonal, not just for the summer. It would be good for the reputation of the company, and it would create opportunities for college students and give them some experience.
She believed it could be a good enough idea, but she did not know whether Gilgamesh was interested in anything of the kind. However, since it was almost closing time and they were soon going home together for dinner, Arturia decided she might as well go see him in his office and address her thoughts as she was there.
He was sitting at his desk as she knocked and then entered, having just finished a phone call, and seemed surprised to see her. After glancing at the clock he smirked briefly though, and took his suit jacket, standing up to leave.
However, she stopped him, asking if she could talk to him about work first.
She was ready for him to dismiss her as they sat down and she explained her suggestion about internships, yet she was surprised when not only did he listen, but, after pondering briefly, he also gave her a slow nod.
"It's a very reasonable idea, and the benefits are indeed numerous. There is, however, one condition for it." He gave her another slow smirk. "Organizing the internships will be your job, Arturia. It's high time you prove how much you've learned since starting to work for this company by having a position of higher responsibility, therefore you will be the one in charge of the whole project."
She lifted an eyebrow. She had not expected him to agree with the idea, much less to put her at the head of it.
"Gilgamesh, please wait a second. While I appreciate the faith, shouldn't someone with more experience–"
He shook his head.
"Having interns every season is not something that is common for Uruk Enterprises, it's an entirely new change. It was your idea, and I give you my approval to proceed with it, but it will also be your responsibility and your job to care for it and organize everything. You had better talk with the directors of the various offices and work out with them the best schedule for the internships as well."
He paused briefly, studying her. "Besides, you do have experience, having been an intern yourself, and these past months you have been in charge of many smaller projects already – not to mention the fact that everything concerning the charities we support has always been managed by you."
His reasoning didn't have a single flaw in it; then why was Arturia finding it hard to hold his gaze steadily?
She could not help it: his candid way of telling her that she was going to be given those responsibilities was making her slightly uneasy.
Aside from meaning that her workload was going to increase exponentially – it was likely that she was going to have a full-time schedule, no longer a part-time one – the fact that he was so openly putting his faith in her to lead this project was rather astonishing.
She thought, if she was being honest with herself, that she was fully capable of living up to the task, but his confidence in her was still quite unexpected. She could not stop herself from looking away.
But looking away made her eyes land on the desk, and a framed picture on it caught her attention.
"Oh."
A small sound of astonishment escaped her, for she had just discovered where the other picture was, one of the two she had given him the day before. She had seen the wedding picture at home, in his studio; now she could see the photo they had taken on their vacation together, as it was there on his desk.
He followed the direction of her gaze and smirked at her.
"You're surprised? I told you I liked your present." He looked at the picture as well. "It's peculiar. The frame complements the photo very nicely."
Arturia smiled slightly at his comment.
"Shirou taught me how to make it."
He leaned forward, something very close to wonder flashing through his eyes.
"You made it yourself?"
The way he was looking at her made it impossible, once more, to hold his gaze.
"I did," she acknowledged, slightly reluctantly. It felt rather difficult to say, because she realized that for some reason he seemed oddly impressed by that.
She could sense his eyes on her for the following several seconds, but neither of them added another word for quite a while, as they could both feel the sudden tension spiking up.
Why. Why did it look like he cared about everything she did? Why did it look like he cared so much…?
She cleared her throat, feeling uncomfortable again as she stood up and shifted her weight from one foot to the other.
"Dinner?" she tentatively suggested.
Changing the subject by reminding him of their meal had already worked in the past, and it was also the only thing she could think of to say to break the tense silence.
He was next to her a few seconds later, nodding without looking at her directly.
"Dinner," he confirmed.
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As the days went by, everything became more and more hectic. At work, Arturia started on her project about internships right away, intending to make sure Uruk Enterprises had its first interns by fall.
At the same time, she did not intend to neglect her other responsibilities, and she doubted Gilgamesh would have let her anyway. What was being needed to do at work became indeed more demanding, but if she organized her every day carefully, she found out she had no real problems in managing everything reasonably well.
Iri had meanwhile started to see several places, and had already decided on an apartment a little outside of Tokyo's centre, very close to where Kariya lived.
Arturia made some time to go see it with her as well – Iri had told her that, while it was ultimately her own decision, she did want to have her opinion first – and found it to be a very nice place. It was more than big enough for Iri, Shirou and Illya, and it had extra space as well (but still not enough for Kariya, Sakura and Rin, Arturia privately considered). Another bonus was that there was already some furniture there.
Everything from their old apartment in New York had been brought to the Uruk mansion in Japan, and as soon as Iri signed the lease for the new apartment, all the boxes were sent to the new place following Arturia's instructions.
Before being discharged from the hospital, the doctors – Bedivere and Gawain – told Iri that she was going to have to come back for check-ups twice a month for about a year, but she was otherwise fully back on her feet, and could resume her life normally.
Shirou was obviously overjoyed when his mother told him that they were going to leave the hospital and go live in a house again. He was less happy when it was confirmed that Auntie Ria would not be living with them anymore, and he was decidedly grumpy when he was told that he would have to go back to school as well. Rin however managed to cheer him up, by huffing and flatly telling him that he was going to be in school with her, and therefore she would not tolerate such an attitude from him.
Iri also went to the job interview for the junior editor position and, to her own surprise, landed it. She was told that she was going to have to start working only in October, and that was a slight let down, but merely having gotten the job was very satisfying for her. It was well paid, and aside from the fact that she would occasionally be allowed to work from home, she was going to be able to provide for herself and her two children without too much trouble.
Arturia had then been absolutely inflexible about the apartment: she would not let her sister pay for it, at least at the beginning. Iri had protested, but it had been in vain: Arturia paid with her own money for three months of the rent in advance, telling her sister that it was a gift to celebrate her discharge from the hospital.
It was good that Iri meant to be self-sufficient, but having yet to start her job and adapt to normal life again after such a long time spent in hospitals was going to be challenging, and paying for the apartment was only going to add stress, especially at the beginning.
With everything so chaotic and hectic, Arturia and Gilgamesh barely spent any time together.
As far as she was concerned, Arturia was… confused. She could not deny that she missed the more relaxed moments she had spent with her husband, but at the same time, there was just so much edginess in their interactions lately…
Every time they were in a room together, the tension was insane. She tried to convince herself that she was imagining it, but she couldn't.
At work, during meetings, she concentrated on what needed to be done and therefore managed to ignore the internal struggle she could feel about the situation.
But the rest of the time, it was just impossible.
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As three weeks of stressful work drew to a close, Arturia was relieved when it was finally Friday evening. On Monday she was going to start working with the new interns, and while slightly nervous, she was looking forward to it as well.
The edginess around her husband was becoming harder and harder to ignore, and she was glad that on this evening they had not been able to share a meal, as she had been at Iri's apartment. The two sisters had agreed that the following day – a Saturday – they would start unpacking all the boxes of their stuff, which hadn't been opened for more than a year.
For now, Iri, Shirou and Illya were sleeping on cots, but they would use the weekend to get fully settled in and decide what they needed to buy to complete the interior decoration of the place. It was of course going to be more practical rather than elegant, but Arturia knew that her sister would manage to give her personal touch to the apartment in a very short time anyway.
As she untied the ribbon in her hair and allowed the golden locks to cascade down her shoulders, Arturia grabbed a hairbrush and considered all that she had to do.
She was tired, and the following day was going to be filled with moving furniture; she wanted to relax a little bit. Perhaps a book would help?
Her husband wasn't home yet, and she decided she could wait before separating the beds. As she went to the upstairs living room, where she had brought enough books to have her own library – much smaller than the large one downstairs but more familiar to her – she was however taken aback at finding Gilgamesh lying down on one of the couches, a glass of red wine in hand.
He had come home earlier than she had thought.
She stopped and stared at him, unconsciously stiffening. He looked up and, upon seeing her, moved to a sitting position. Arturia found it odd that the glass in his hand seemed to be untouched so far.
"Good evening, Arturia," he said, quite pleasantly yet formally, and she swallowed, trying not to make him notice. She could not mistake the note of wariness in his voice, even though his expression was undecipherable.
She entered the room, approaching the other couch, next to which there was a small pile of her favourite books, and sat down.
"Good evening, Gilgamesh," she replied, relieved to hear sufficient composure in her tone, and then asked, "How was work today?"
It was a dull question, but it was harmless, and therefore fine. She had not thought him to be already back from the office; she had not had the time to… prepare herself to deal with him.
He replied by informing her that he was going to have to work from home the entire following day, in Skype conferences with his venues around the world. After saying that, he was silent.
They studied each other for a while, and then he took her by surprise by inquiring after her sister.
"Is Irisviel going to move into her apartment soon?"
She remembered that she had not actually told him much about her family lately, since they had had very little time together, not just because of other matters but also because she had avoided remaining alone with him for too long.
She had to stop being so ridiculous in her behaviour though; therefore, she answered him as normally as possible.
"She has already moved there. In fact, tomorrow I will go help her settle in."
She hesitated; she had not told Iri yet, but she had already thought about another arrangement as well. "I will be there the whole day, and probably… I am probably going to sleep there as well."
The atmosphere in the room changed instantly, becoming several degrees colder.
Gilgamesh's eyes narrowed at her in the slowly darkening space between them.
"Is your sister ill? Are your nephew and niece ill, or in need of help?"
Slowly and circumspectly, Arturia shook her head.
"No, they aren't. They are all fine. But–"
He made a sudden movement with his arm, the contents of his glass dangerously threatening to spill. They were no longer sitting; she had no idea at what point they had both stood up, but she could not find it in herself to care.
"For what reason do you intend to spend the night there then? There is no need for that to happen."
She was not sure what was making him be so hostile to the idea, but she felt herself becoming frustrated, even though she did her best to keep her tone calm.
"Iri is my sister and I intend to help her settle in, that's all."
But he did not seem pleased in the least, and leaned towards her. She felt as if the air between them was becoming full of sparks, and in spite of the fact that the room was still darkening slowly, she could see his eyes ablaze with fury.
"And to do that you need to sleep at her place? I think not."
Her green eyes flashed in defiance, unconsciously taking a step closer to him as well. How dare he dismiss her decisions like this!
"As I said, I only want to help my family!"
His crimson eyes flashed, too, and he leaned even closer to her, still with his wine glass in hand.
"You are already helping them the entire day tomorrow – how would your sleeping there be of any further help?"
She was becoming truly angry. They were discussing so senselessly! And they were not reaching an agreement at all!
"I want to help them with everything I can, and after going through all the boxes tomorrow and fixing the house, who knows what else might be needed!"
The next step he took brought them once again closer, and they could both feel the electricity running between them as their arguing didn't seem inclined to stop.
"That does not make it necessary for you to sleep there!"
His anger was barely repressed as he leaned towards her face. "Why do you wish to leave this house so badly, Arturia? Why do you seem to want to be away from here?"
His voice lowered, becoming almost a whisper. "Away… from me?"
He seemed suddenly unable to continue. He stared at her for a long, silent, electrified moment, burning fire in his eyes.
The next instant, his glass was thrown against the furthest wall, shattering into pieces against it and spilling wine around, while his hands sank into her hair, pulling her face to his to passionately kiss her.
His lips were crashing against hers, his mouth was pressed hotly against hers, demanding and harsh. She was shocked for only a second; then her own mouth began its greedy exploration as well, pushing back against him.
They had not kissed in months – not since their making out at the hospital – as the fleeting kiss on her birthday had only been a moment and, while intense, it had been too short to become mutual.
Unlike this time.
She responded eagerly to every assault of his, and by the time his fingers came to impatiently tug at her nightgown, she had already ripped his shirt open and her hands had started to feverishly explore his body.
Without knowing how, she found her back slammed against the wall, her body encased by his, and he did not break the kiss for even a second as the rest of their clothes was vehemently discarded.
Neither of them wasted any time in thinking about what they were doing. Not that there was the need for such a thing, since the tension between them had grown so much during the previous months that it had made many of their interactions stiffly uncomfortable.
But now… now…
His arms were pulling her closer to him, hoisting her up, and he was now taking steps back, away from the living room and towards the bedroom – pushed by her – as his mouth remained on hers, insisting on stealing her breath and her ability to think and–
She landed on the pillows, her body bare of everything but missing only his touch, and as if he knew that, he immediately leaned over her to give himself to her again.
Every inch of her skin was afire, concentrated on keeping him there, together with her, and with no intention of letting him go again now that she finally had him so close to her–…
Everything. She wanted everything.
A breathless moan left her lips.
"Gil…ga…mesh… AH!"
His actions weren't any less intense than hers. Every touch, every accidental graze, every look, everything had such intensity that it made their breathing increase and they both had to close their eyes to avoid getting lost in the depth and complexity of the sensations…
It was too much, Arturia realized. Too much. Too intense, too strong, too deep, too–
His lips made her once again forget what she had been thinking, and she only remembered when she opened her eyes again and looked into his blood red orbs – darker than she had ever seen them – that were unabashedly and hungrily staring into her flaming emerald green ones.
And she understood.
He knew, as well as she did, that it was too much. And he, as well as she – or rather, they… Did. Not. Care.
It was only them – and they had each other. In this moment, they had each other.
Complexity could wait. Everything else could wait.
Now it was just them.
...
...
