Title: Friendship
~ Lyrics
" " Speaking
[] Thoughts
***********
Allura sighed as she felt the small waves moving beneath her, she lay floating face-up with her arms beneath her head for support. [This isn´t so bad, even IF we had to come with Mick]
She was thinking of how nice it had felt to be pressed against Lance earlier when she felt a pair of arms snake around her waist and pull her up against a muscular body. She was about to smile when she was pulled down behind a nearby buoy and a hand covered her mouth, the other lifting to one of her breasts.
"So you didn´t miss me even a little?" his voice was low and teasing as his fingers eased beneath her top.
Her hands struggled to pull him away as she tried to kick him, shaking her head frantically. Allura knew he could feel her body trembling and hated herself for the panick she felt. [Lance where are you?!]
"That´s such a shame..." his hand slid out of her bathing suit and down along her body.
The hand over her mouth let her go and held her arms to her sides as he pulled her deeper into the water so she could barely breathe, much less scream, as only her nose and eyes were left out of the water.
"... I´ve definitely missed you."
Allura closed her eyes against the tears slipping from them and wanted to scream for Lance. [You PROMISED! WHERE ARE YOU?!]
Suddenly Mick let her go and pushed her away, "We´ll have to make up for lost time soon princess, but now isn´t a good moment, you´re dear husband may show up and see us."
"We´re not making up for anything Mick, there´s no way Lance would leave me here with you alone..."
"Like he did just now?" he scoffed and gave her a knowing grin, "If he knew anything about us he wouldn´t even be sharing your apartment anymore, after all, I´m sure he doesn´t know anything about his wife´s sordid little past, does he?"
Allura shook her head, "No."
"I thought so, what decent man would accept a woman like YOU knowing the truth?" He laughed as she turned away and swam for shore.
As soon as she was on the beach, Allura ran to her towel and wrapped it around herself, grabbing her sunglasses to cover her eyes. Hurrying up to the house, she was halfway there when she saw Lance and Cassie coming out with a picnic basket and a cooler. She stopped and waited for them to come to her, forcing her breathing to even and her throat to loosen up a bit.
"Where are you going? We were supposed to have lunch on the beach remember?" Cassie smiled and went past her to the steps leading to where Mick was picking up his towel.
Allura realized she couldn´t hide her shaken up state from Lance as he glared over her shoulder and asked what had happened. She tried to smile but gave up when his eyes seemed to look through her dark glasses and ask for the truth. "Just another unpleasant argument with Mick."
"You used to argue a lot?" he asked as he set the cooler down.
"Yeah," Allura shivered as a memory from old arguments came to mind and turned to him angrily. "Why did you leave? You couldn´t have told me?"
"I´m sorry, Cassie asked for help and you and Mick had gone too far out to hear, I figured we wouldn´t be long, and we weren´t." He stepped directly in front of her and took off her glasses to see her eyes. "What the heck happened? If he did..."
He was cut off as she gave a little sigh and threw her arms around his shoulders, her face burying into his neck. Feeling her trembling only served to make him more sure that Mick had done something to her during the few minutes he´d been away. He held her tight and kissed the side of her head as he felt her trying to calm down. After holding her a few more minutes, they were interrupted by Cassie´s voice calling for them and started pulling away slowly.
"Promise to keep close?" she asked quietly.
"I´m sorry about earlier, I won´t leave you again," he leaned down and meant to give her another quick kiss, but she slid her arms around his neck and leaned up to kiss him back.
"Sorry to interrupt but Cassie´s tired of waiting for the drinks," Mick appeared at the top of the steps and came over to take the cooler, "Don´t take too long."
Allura had pulled away when his voice was heard and she sighed when Lance wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her close to him on their way down. Reaching the bottom of the steps, he stopped and leaned down to kiss her again, whispering against her lips, "You´ll explain later."
He saw the worry in her eyes when she pulled away and gave a fake smile as she went to help Cassie set up. Looking over to where Mick was opening the cooler and pulling out a drink, he was bothered by the guy`s casual behavior.
***********
After their picnic and another while in the beach, they went up to the house to get cleaned up and get ready for their night at the festival. As soon as he was finished getting dressed, Lance went downstairs and wasn`t surprised to see Mick was done also and watching television.
"Hey," Mick greeted, rolling his eyes as he pointed at the stairs, "Think they`ll be done in time?"
"Allura will," Lance said, sitting in a nearby chair.
"Yeah, unlike Cassie, she knows how to get ready quicky," Mick grinned, "I`d forgotten."
Lance nodded, making sure to sound casual as he spoke, "So you`ve known each other for a long time?"
"Four years, we met on her fourteenth birthday," Mick shrugged, "Pretty long I guess."
"Allura mentioned that birthday, said it wasn`t the greatest," Lance watched Mick carefully.
His eyes took on a mysterious twinkle as he remembered, "Yeah... I guess it could have been better."
"What could have been better?" Allura asked from the stairs.
"Ready so soon?" Lance changed the subject.
"Yep, how do I look?" Allura struck a pose, putting one hand on her hip, the other stretched out to the side with a snobbish `model` look on her face.
"Good," both men answered at the same time looking over her outfit.
She wore a white sweatshirt over her pink bikini top, a white tennis skirt, and tennis shoes with pink laces. Her make up was done lightly, a small amount of soft & shimmery pink eyeshadow, a touch of rouge on her cheeks and her lips shone thanks to her strawberry lip gloss.
After getting their approval, she went over to Lance`s chair to sit on the armrest while they waited for Cassie to come down. After a few minutes she was ready and they were able to go. The girls sat in the backseat, talking excitedly about the festival during the short ride into town.
Once parked, they headed to the town square where the festivities were taking place. There were all kinds of interesting things going on, a puppet show for the smaller children, a magician, and games.
A stone reader got Cassie`s attention and they all went to see.
The elderly woman was surrounded by people eager to watch as a young lady sat across from her and concentrated on the explanation.
"This figure here means a child in your near future, perhaps you are expecting already..." the reader pointed at another couple of rocks, "But this shows a troubling decision will be involved as well, think wisely about who you choose Marie, only one will stay with you forever."
The young girl nodded and thanked her, moving so that someone else could take her place. The woman looked up at the eager people around her and stopped when she saw the princess.
"You," she pointed at Allura.
"Me? But I was only waiting for my friend..." Allura pointed at Cassie.
"Mm-hmm, I can see yours will have to wait," the woman turned to Cassie, "Very well then, you."
"YAY," Cassie thanked Allura and took her place across from the reader.
The woman picked up the stones and murmured a few words in an ancient arusian toungue before letting them drop before her. "I see... a great pain, very soon... sooner than you`d think."
"Pain?" Cassie paled, staring wide-eyed at the woman.
"Yes, I see... betrayal..." the woman nodded, "A time of great pain before happiness."
Cassie`s eyes lit up, "Happiness? So I wILL be happy?"
"Of course child, you have a good future ahead," the woman smiled.
"Thank you," Cassie stood with a troubled look in her eyes, turning to Mick who led her away from the group assuring her those things were never true.
Allura gulped as her eyes met with the woman`s and she read a silent warning in them. [I`m invovled in that betrayal... oh god please don`t let it be true!]
She and Lance turned away and followed the other couple to where an old man was telling the story of the town and its festivals. They stayed to listen to the stories and afterwords went to eat. The hours seemed to pass quickly as the sun set and a bonfire was set up in the center of the square. Musicians surrounded the fire, playing flutes, drums, a couple had fiddles and spoons, all kinds of simple yet traditional instruments and soon a group of dancers came out and demonstrated the native dances.
The four of them sat in a line on the floor to watch, Lance and Mick on the ends as Allura and Cassie sat between them to talk. The group of dancers was small, consisting of five men and five women, all young and spirited.
"They move so well!" Cassie watched fascinated as they moved their hips and stamped their bare feet on the ground. They stood on their tip toes one instant and then slammed down their heels according to the rhythm.
"Looks like fun," Allura moved her hand to grab her drink and turned to look at Lance briefly as their hands met halfway there.
"Sorry," he grinned and handed her the cup.
[He looks so handsome] Allura was momentarily surprised by the sudden thought, wondering where it had come from as she took it from him and took a sip of the drink they were sharing.
[But its true Allura, be honest with yourself, you find Lance handsome.] She glanced out of the corner of her eye at him and realized it was true. Wearing a pair of black shorts with a casual yellow, button up shirt over them, Lance did look attractive with the shirt slightly open due to the heat. His lightly tanned skin seemed to glow under the firelight which also brought out the natural highlights in his hair. He gave a crooked grin as a girl at the other side of the fire was pulled up by one of the dancers and Allura felt her heart skip a beat, quickly turning her attention forward again.
[No Allie, don`t do this, you CAN`T fall in love with him... you can`t...] But a part of her knew it was too late.
She was brought out of her reverie as Cassie pulled her arm, "Come on girl! We`re gonna learn how to dance!"
"What?" Allura blinked and looked up at the dancer inviting her to join, "I don`t think I should..."
"Go ahead Allie," Lance nudged her, "You`ll have fun."
"Are you sure?" Allura hesitated.
"Of course!" he helped her up and took her shoes from her as she took them off.
For the next ten minutes the female dancers went slowly, showing the group of girls, which consisted of Allura, Cassie, the girl Lance had seen get up and two others, how to move their feet correctly. Cassie and Allura both seemed to get the rhythm right away, the former helping another girl, while one of the male dancers announced it was time for them to show how well they learned.
"The girl we find the most apt during the first half of this piece will be tested by a challenge from myself later on." The young man grinned and signaled for the musicians to start up the music at the regular beat.
A fast-paced fiddle began to play and as the girls followed the steps of the dancer in front of them, the audience smiled and laughed at their mistakes. Lance noticed Cassie take a mis-step or two, losing her concentration from time to time, while Allura focused on the feet before her, ignoring her mistakes to continue with the next step. Finally the music stopped and the young man stepped up with four flowers in hand. He gave one to each girl, except Allura, explaining.
"You get a larger prize if you can keep up with me," he grinned and gave her a wink.
Allura raised an eyebrow at the challenge and smiled.
The music started up again and she was instructed to repeat his steps, keeping her eyes glued on his feet as he moved for a few moments.
After the music stopped, she gave a nod to the musicians and threw her head back, hands going to her hips as she smiled at the dancer, repeating his every move.
The young man then danced again, making his steps more difficult, adding a turn they hadn`t been taught.
Allura managed to follow him perfectly one time after another, after his fifth attempt to confuse her, he gave up and the audience gave a cheer. Allura was prized with a cetire - a thin cloth used by the natives around their waist during the summer to keep cool.
"I have never met someone who picks up on the steps so quickly before, congratulations," the young man said before announcing the next activity they had.
"Thank you," Allura beamed before heading over to her friends. They all congratulated her, Lance handing her their drink as she handed him her prize and sat down. She leaned against him during the rest of their time there and didn`t realize she fell asleep until she felt herself being lifted from the ground.
"Wha-?"
"Shh... go back to sleep," Lance smiled as he followed Cassie and Mick to the car.
"No, I`d rather you set me down," Allura yawned as her feet touched the floor, "But thank you."
"Sure," Lance smiled softly and watched her catch up to the others before following. He was stopped by a hand on his arm and was surprised to see the stone reader at his side.
"She means much to you, do not let appearances blind you, she will need you soon." The old woman said solemly.
Lance frowned, "Appearances?"
The woman nodded, "YOU will not be betrayed, listen and remember to trust your heart."
[What does that mean?] Lance was brought out of his worries as the woman walked away and Allura called his name. Turning back to follow them, he couldn`t get a nagging feeling out of his head.
***********
They arrived at the beach house a little while later. Excusing herself, Cassie went to bed early, saying she was exhausted from the day`s activities.
"I think I`ll go to bed also, good night," Mick followed her up the stairs.
Allura blushed as Cassie`s giggles could be heard before the door closed and stood beside Lance in an awkward silence for a moment before he offered to stay downstairs while she went up to change.
"Right, I should go do that, thanks," Allura hurried up and changed into the nightgown she`d brought.
Being that they were staying with another couple, she`d packed a thin white gown with spaghetti strap sleeves that went down to her ankles. Looking into the body-length mirror by the wall as she let her hair down and brushed it out, she blushed as she noticed the way the gown`s neckline showed quite a bit of her chest and how the material seemed to accentuate her curves. Hearing a soft knock on the door, she hurried to put on the robe that went with it before letting Lance in.
"I`m sorry if you`re not done yet but..." he blushed as a noise from upstairs reached their ears and Allura`s eyes widened, a light blush coming up to her cheeks as well. "You hadn`t heard?"
"I wasn`t really listening," Allura heard another noise and cringed.
Lance shook his head as he set his shoes by the bed, "Think they`ll last very long?"
"Who knows?" Allura squeaked as a particularly loud noise sounded and turned worried eyes to Lance.
Taking a moment to think, he suddenly stood and pulled the covers off the bed, handing Allura a pillow.
"What are we...?"
"I always thought it`d be nice to sleep on the beach, haven`t you?" Lance shrugged and followed her as she stepped outside and made her way downstairs.
They tip-toed out, blushing as the noises continued and hurried outside and away from the house. After reaching the lower beach area, they set up a small bed, using the blanket as a rug and each holding one of the sheets as their blankets.
"I`d never thought of this," Allura smiled, relieved to be out in the fresh air and away from the noises as she set her pillow down and sat on her side.
"I`d thought of it but never imagined I`d do it," Lance sighed and settled down beside her.
They lay silently side by side for a few moments when Allura suddenly remembered, "Today`s our anniversary! I completely forgot!"
"Oh, that`s right!" Lance got up and told her to wait, "I`ll be right back."
Running up to the house, he tip-toed in and up to their room where he`d hidden her gift. He took a few moments in finding both parts, fixing them and then wondering if they`d be ok before leaving. Back outside, he walked slowly for some reason, apprehensive and hoping she`d like it. Once at the bottom of the stairs, he made his way to the blankets and was surprised to see she`d fallen asleep.
[Poor thing must have been tired from all the dancing] He sat down facing her quietly and watched her steady breathing. Under the moonlight she seemed almost ethereal with her pale skin, rosy lips which smiled sweetly and her hair spread about her like a halo. [How could that lady say Allura of all people would be invovled in a betrayal of any kind?]
He was snapped out of his thoughts as she blinked sleepily and smiled up at him, "Hey."
"Hey..." he smiled back and helped her sit up, handing her the two boxes.
"Lance! You shouldn`t have!" Allura bit her lip and watched as he opened them.
She gave a small gasp and stared wide-eyed at the necklace in the box. It was a simple yet elegant Y-shape chain with a diamond at the tip. He opened another box and showed her a small bracelet which had a small kitten at the center of the silver band with diamond eyes.
"I can`t accept these," Allura shook her head and closed the boxes.
Lance felt his heart stop for a moment, asking slowly, "You don`t like them?"
"Oh no!" Allura looked up and saw the dissapointment in his eyes before correcting him, "Of course I like them, I love them! The kitten looks like the one you got me at he carnival and the necklace is beautiful bu..."
"But what?" Lance asked, relieved.
"I... I..." Allura twisted her hands in her lap and looked up at him with tears in her eyes, "I didn`t think you`d do this so I didn`t get you anything and..."
"That`s ok Allie I don`t care about gifts," Lance pulled out the necklace and moved it up to her neck. After placing the bracelet on her wrist, he smiled and sat back.
Allura gulped as a tear slipped from her eye, Lance shook his head and wiped it away, "Don`t cry, its really ok Allura, I..."
He stopped as a sob suddenly escaped her and she moved forward to cover her face with her hands so he wouldn`t see her cry. With a small curse, Lance reached out and pulled her over to cry into his shoulder, trying to calm her down and make out what she said between sobs. After a while he managed to make out `not - fair - impossible.`
"What`s not fair or impossible?" he asked softly a few times.
Allura lifted a hand to his lips to silence him, her other arm snaking around to hold on to his shirt. They stayed that way for a few minutes before she spoke up, "I`m sorry Lance, I do love your gifts, they`re gorgeous."
"Then why..."
"Because I can`t believe I..." Allura sighed and didn`t continue.
"You...?" Lance looked down and lifted her chin with a hand to make her meet his eyes. "What?"
Allura thought about her answer for a moment before replying, "I broke my promise to Nanny."
"What promise? It couldn`t be that serious," Lance wiped a tear from her cheek as she nodded.
"It is, you see..." Allura bit her lip and looked down for a moment before whispering, "I promised not to fall in love with you."
She felt Lance tense and closed her eyes apologizing, "I didn`t mean to, it just... happened!"
Lance was silent for a moment before replying, "You know, that`s the best anniversary gift you could have given me."
With a relieved sigh and wrapped his arms around her, suddenly laying back, eliciting a small cry from Allura before she realized they were lying side by side on the blanket. She watched Lance lean up on one elbow and smile down at her tenderly, "So you`re not upset?"
"Upset? Why would I be upset? I`m almost afraid this is a dream," he leaned down and brushed a soft kiss across her lips. "I love you too Allie, I have for months only I..."
"Really?" Allura`s eyes lit up happily, "Since when?"
"Since... the night we learned to dance," Lance grinned, "How many times did we step on each other?"
Allura giggled, "I lost count after we fell."
"Me too... the third fall," he chuckled and raised a hand to brush back a few locks of hair that were blown into her face by the wind.
They lay quietly for a few more minutes with their gazes locked together, neither knowing who made the first move as their lips met again. The kiss started slowly, tender and sweet, but as Lance felt her arms slip around his shoulders, he nudged her lips open and the kiss took a whole new turn.
Allura was amazed by the emotions that ran through her during their kisses. She could feel the joy and possessiveness in Lance as he held her tighter, his body moving to cover hers. She was breathless when he finally pulled his mouth from hers and trailed soft kisses around her face, on her eyelids, the tip of her nose, her cheekbones, and then down to her neck.
Lance could feel his heart pounding and barely managed to make himself stop there, kissing the spot behind her ear and whispering "I love you" again before raising his head to meet her eyes. Allura smiled and suddenly tried to stifle a yawn.
"You`re tired," he pulled back to lie down beside her again.
"I`m sorry, its been a long day," Allura shivered due to the loss of his warmth and asked him to scoot over, "The sheets aren`t going to be enough to keep us warm."
"Right," Lance made her move over to the edge of the blanket, "but if we only use one side of the blanket we can pull the other side over both of us."
"Sounds good," Allura moved off and watched as he got settled, taking up her space and then moving into his arms while he pulled the other part of the blanket over them. She lay her head on his shoulder with her hands settled against his chest, smiling as his arms held her close.
"Good night," they both whispered soon falling into a deep sleep.
***********
^_^
Aww... fluff!
Hope you liked this chapter, sorry again for the long wait, but I`ve had writer`s block and then couldn`t upload and... anyways I have a bunch of ideas for the next chapter which I`m already starting and hope to have up soon. Thanks for reading and don`t forget to leave a review!
~ K.C ~
~ Lyrics
" " Speaking
[] Thoughts
***********
Allura sighed as she felt the small waves moving beneath her, she lay floating face-up with her arms beneath her head for support. [This isn´t so bad, even IF we had to come with Mick]
She was thinking of how nice it had felt to be pressed against Lance earlier when she felt a pair of arms snake around her waist and pull her up against a muscular body. She was about to smile when she was pulled down behind a nearby buoy and a hand covered her mouth, the other lifting to one of her breasts.
"So you didn´t miss me even a little?" his voice was low and teasing as his fingers eased beneath her top.
Her hands struggled to pull him away as she tried to kick him, shaking her head frantically. Allura knew he could feel her body trembling and hated herself for the panick she felt. [Lance where are you?!]
"That´s such a shame..." his hand slid out of her bathing suit and down along her body.
The hand over her mouth let her go and held her arms to her sides as he pulled her deeper into the water so she could barely breathe, much less scream, as only her nose and eyes were left out of the water.
"... I´ve definitely missed you."
Allura closed her eyes against the tears slipping from them and wanted to scream for Lance. [You PROMISED! WHERE ARE YOU?!]
Suddenly Mick let her go and pushed her away, "We´ll have to make up for lost time soon princess, but now isn´t a good moment, you´re dear husband may show up and see us."
"We´re not making up for anything Mick, there´s no way Lance would leave me here with you alone..."
"Like he did just now?" he scoffed and gave her a knowing grin, "If he knew anything about us he wouldn´t even be sharing your apartment anymore, after all, I´m sure he doesn´t know anything about his wife´s sordid little past, does he?"
Allura shook her head, "No."
"I thought so, what decent man would accept a woman like YOU knowing the truth?" He laughed as she turned away and swam for shore.
As soon as she was on the beach, Allura ran to her towel and wrapped it around herself, grabbing her sunglasses to cover her eyes. Hurrying up to the house, she was halfway there when she saw Lance and Cassie coming out with a picnic basket and a cooler. She stopped and waited for them to come to her, forcing her breathing to even and her throat to loosen up a bit.
"Where are you going? We were supposed to have lunch on the beach remember?" Cassie smiled and went past her to the steps leading to where Mick was picking up his towel.
Allura realized she couldn´t hide her shaken up state from Lance as he glared over her shoulder and asked what had happened. She tried to smile but gave up when his eyes seemed to look through her dark glasses and ask for the truth. "Just another unpleasant argument with Mick."
"You used to argue a lot?" he asked as he set the cooler down.
"Yeah," Allura shivered as a memory from old arguments came to mind and turned to him angrily. "Why did you leave? You couldn´t have told me?"
"I´m sorry, Cassie asked for help and you and Mick had gone too far out to hear, I figured we wouldn´t be long, and we weren´t." He stepped directly in front of her and took off her glasses to see her eyes. "What the heck happened? If he did..."
He was cut off as she gave a little sigh and threw her arms around his shoulders, her face burying into his neck. Feeling her trembling only served to make him more sure that Mick had done something to her during the few minutes he´d been away. He held her tight and kissed the side of her head as he felt her trying to calm down. After holding her a few more minutes, they were interrupted by Cassie´s voice calling for them and started pulling away slowly.
"Promise to keep close?" she asked quietly.
"I´m sorry about earlier, I won´t leave you again," he leaned down and meant to give her another quick kiss, but she slid her arms around his neck and leaned up to kiss him back.
"Sorry to interrupt but Cassie´s tired of waiting for the drinks," Mick appeared at the top of the steps and came over to take the cooler, "Don´t take too long."
Allura had pulled away when his voice was heard and she sighed when Lance wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her close to him on their way down. Reaching the bottom of the steps, he stopped and leaned down to kiss her again, whispering against her lips, "You´ll explain later."
He saw the worry in her eyes when she pulled away and gave a fake smile as she went to help Cassie set up. Looking over to where Mick was opening the cooler and pulling out a drink, he was bothered by the guy`s casual behavior.
***********
After their picnic and another while in the beach, they went up to the house to get cleaned up and get ready for their night at the festival. As soon as he was finished getting dressed, Lance went downstairs and wasn`t surprised to see Mick was done also and watching television.
"Hey," Mick greeted, rolling his eyes as he pointed at the stairs, "Think they`ll be done in time?"
"Allura will," Lance said, sitting in a nearby chair.
"Yeah, unlike Cassie, she knows how to get ready quicky," Mick grinned, "I`d forgotten."
Lance nodded, making sure to sound casual as he spoke, "So you`ve known each other for a long time?"
"Four years, we met on her fourteenth birthday," Mick shrugged, "Pretty long I guess."
"Allura mentioned that birthday, said it wasn`t the greatest," Lance watched Mick carefully.
His eyes took on a mysterious twinkle as he remembered, "Yeah... I guess it could have been better."
"What could have been better?" Allura asked from the stairs.
"Ready so soon?" Lance changed the subject.
"Yep, how do I look?" Allura struck a pose, putting one hand on her hip, the other stretched out to the side with a snobbish `model` look on her face.
"Good," both men answered at the same time looking over her outfit.
She wore a white sweatshirt over her pink bikini top, a white tennis skirt, and tennis shoes with pink laces. Her make up was done lightly, a small amount of soft & shimmery pink eyeshadow, a touch of rouge on her cheeks and her lips shone thanks to her strawberry lip gloss.
After getting their approval, she went over to Lance`s chair to sit on the armrest while they waited for Cassie to come down. After a few minutes she was ready and they were able to go. The girls sat in the backseat, talking excitedly about the festival during the short ride into town.
Once parked, they headed to the town square where the festivities were taking place. There were all kinds of interesting things going on, a puppet show for the smaller children, a magician, and games.
A stone reader got Cassie`s attention and they all went to see.
The elderly woman was surrounded by people eager to watch as a young lady sat across from her and concentrated on the explanation.
"This figure here means a child in your near future, perhaps you are expecting already..." the reader pointed at another couple of rocks, "But this shows a troubling decision will be involved as well, think wisely about who you choose Marie, only one will stay with you forever."
The young girl nodded and thanked her, moving so that someone else could take her place. The woman looked up at the eager people around her and stopped when she saw the princess.
"You," she pointed at Allura.
"Me? But I was only waiting for my friend..." Allura pointed at Cassie.
"Mm-hmm, I can see yours will have to wait," the woman turned to Cassie, "Very well then, you."
"YAY," Cassie thanked Allura and took her place across from the reader.
The woman picked up the stones and murmured a few words in an ancient arusian toungue before letting them drop before her. "I see... a great pain, very soon... sooner than you`d think."
"Pain?" Cassie paled, staring wide-eyed at the woman.
"Yes, I see... betrayal..." the woman nodded, "A time of great pain before happiness."
Cassie`s eyes lit up, "Happiness? So I wILL be happy?"
"Of course child, you have a good future ahead," the woman smiled.
"Thank you," Cassie stood with a troubled look in her eyes, turning to Mick who led her away from the group assuring her those things were never true.
Allura gulped as her eyes met with the woman`s and she read a silent warning in them. [I`m invovled in that betrayal... oh god please don`t let it be true!]
She and Lance turned away and followed the other couple to where an old man was telling the story of the town and its festivals. They stayed to listen to the stories and afterwords went to eat. The hours seemed to pass quickly as the sun set and a bonfire was set up in the center of the square. Musicians surrounded the fire, playing flutes, drums, a couple had fiddles and spoons, all kinds of simple yet traditional instruments and soon a group of dancers came out and demonstrated the native dances.
The four of them sat in a line on the floor to watch, Lance and Mick on the ends as Allura and Cassie sat between them to talk. The group of dancers was small, consisting of five men and five women, all young and spirited.
"They move so well!" Cassie watched fascinated as they moved their hips and stamped their bare feet on the ground. They stood on their tip toes one instant and then slammed down their heels according to the rhythm.
"Looks like fun," Allura moved her hand to grab her drink and turned to look at Lance briefly as their hands met halfway there.
"Sorry," he grinned and handed her the cup.
[He looks so handsome] Allura was momentarily surprised by the sudden thought, wondering where it had come from as she took it from him and took a sip of the drink they were sharing.
[But its true Allura, be honest with yourself, you find Lance handsome.] She glanced out of the corner of her eye at him and realized it was true. Wearing a pair of black shorts with a casual yellow, button up shirt over them, Lance did look attractive with the shirt slightly open due to the heat. His lightly tanned skin seemed to glow under the firelight which also brought out the natural highlights in his hair. He gave a crooked grin as a girl at the other side of the fire was pulled up by one of the dancers and Allura felt her heart skip a beat, quickly turning her attention forward again.
[No Allie, don`t do this, you CAN`T fall in love with him... you can`t...] But a part of her knew it was too late.
She was brought out of her reverie as Cassie pulled her arm, "Come on girl! We`re gonna learn how to dance!"
"What?" Allura blinked and looked up at the dancer inviting her to join, "I don`t think I should..."
"Go ahead Allie," Lance nudged her, "You`ll have fun."
"Are you sure?" Allura hesitated.
"Of course!" he helped her up and took her shoes from her as she took them off.
For the next ten minutes the female dancers went slowly, showing the group of girls, which consisted of Allura, Cassie, the girl Lance had seen get up and two others, how to move their feet correctly. Cassie and Allura both seemed to get the rhythm right away, the former helping another girl, while one of the male dancers announced it was time for them to show how well they learned.
"The girl we find the most apt during the first half of this piece will be tested by a challenge from myself later on." The young man grinned and signaled for the musicians to start up the music at the regular beat.
A fast-paced fiddle began to play and as the girls followed the steps of the dancer in front of them, the audience smiled and laughed at their mistakes. Lance noticed Cassie take a mis-step or two, losing her concentration from time to time, while Allura focused on the feet before her, ignoring her mistakes to continue with the next step. Finally the music stopped and the young man stepped up with four flowers in hand. He gave one to each girl, except Allura, explaining.
"You get a larger prize if you can keep up with me," he grinned and gave her a wink.
Allura raised an eyebrow at the challenge and smiled.
The music started up again and she was instructed to repeat his steps, keeping her eyes glued on his feet as he moved for a few moments.
After the music stopped, she gave a nod to the musicians and threw her head back, hands going to her hips as she smiled at the dancer, repeating his every move.
The young man then danced again, making his steps more difficult, adding a turn they hadn`t been taught.
Allura managed to follow him perfectly one time after another, after his fifth attempt to confuse her, he gave up and the audience gave a cheer. Allura was prized with a cetire - a thin cloth used by the natives around their waist during the summer to keep cool.
"I have never met someone who picks up on the steps so quickly before, congratulations," the young man said before announcing the next activity they had.
"Thank you," Allura beamed before heading over to her friends. They all congratulated her, Lance handing her their drink as she handed him her prize and sat down. She leaned against him during the rest of their time there and didn`t realize she fell asleep until she felt herself being lifted from the ground.
"Wha-?"
"Shh... go back to sleep," Lance smiled as he followed Cassie and Mick to the car.
"No, I`d rather you set me down," Allura yawned as her feet touched the floor, "But thank you."
"Sure," Lance smiled softly and watched her catch up to the others before following. He was stopped by a hand on his arm and was surprised to see the stone reader at his side.
"She means much to you, do not let appearances blind you, she will need you soon." The old woman said solemly.
Lance frowned, "Appearances?"
The woman nodded, "YOU will not be betrayed, listen and remember to trust your heart."
[What does that mean?] Lance was brought out of his worries as the woman walked away and Allura called his name. Turning back to follow them, he couldn`t get a nagging feeling out of his head.
***********
They arrived at the beach house a little while later. Excusing herself, Cassie went to bed early, saying she was exhausted from the day`s activities.
"I think I`ll go to bed also, good night," Mick followed her up the stairs.
Allura blushed as Cassie`s giggles could be heard before the door closed and stood beside Lance in an awkward silence for a moment before he offered to stay downstairs while she went up to change.
"Right, I should go do that, thanks," Allura hurried up and changed into the nightgown she`d brought.
Being that they were staying with another couple, she`d packed a thin white gown with spaghetti strap sleeves that went down to her ankles. Looking into the body-length mirror by the wall as she let her hair down and brushed it out, she blushed as she noticed the way the gown`s neckline showed quite a bit of her chest and how the material seemed to accentuate her curves. Hearing a soft knock on the door, she hurried to put on the robe that went with it before letting Lance in.
"I`m sorry if you`re not done yet but..." he blushed as a noise from upstairs reached their ears and Allura`s eyes widened, a light blush coming up to her cheeks as well. "You hadn`t heard?"
"I wasn`t really listening," Allura heard another noise and cringed.
Lance shook his head as he set his shoes by the bed, "Think they`ll last very long?"
"Who knows?" Allura squeaked as a particularly loud noise sounded and turned worried eyes to Lance.
Taking a moment to think, he suddenly stood and pulled the covers off the bed, handing Allura a pillow.
"What are we...?"
"I always thought it`d be nice to sleep on the beach, haven`t you?" Lance shrugged and followed her as she stepped outside and made her way downstairs.
They tip-toed out, blushing as the noises continued and hurried outside and away from the house. After reaching the lower beach area, they set up a small bed, using the blanket as a rug and each holding one of the sheets as their blankets.
"I`d never thought of this," Allura smiled, relieved to be out in the fresh air and away from the noises as she set her pillow down and sat on her side.
"I`d thought of it but never imagined I`d do it," Lance sighed and settled down beside her.
They lay silently side by side for a few moments when Allura suddenly remembered, "Today`s our anniversary! I completely forgot!"
"Oh, that`s right!" Lance got up and told her to wait, "I`ll be right back."
Running up to the house, he tip-toed in and up to their room where he`d hidden her gift. He took a few moments in finding both parts, fixing them and then wondering if they`d be ok before leaving. Back outside, he walked slowly for some reason, apprehensive and hoping she`d like it. Once at the bottom of the stairs, he made his way to the blankets and was surprised to see she`d fallen asleep.
[Poor thing must have been tired from all the dancing] He sat down facing her quietly and watched her steady breathing. Under the moonlight she seemed almost ethereal with her pale skin, rosy lips which smiled sweetly and her hair spread about her like a halo. [How could that lady say Allura of all people would be invovled in a betrayal of any kind?]
He was snapped out of his thoughts as she blinked sleepily and smiled up at him, "Hey."
"Hey..." he smiled back and helped her sit up, handing her the two boxes.
"Lance! You shouldn`t have!" Allura bit her lip and watched as he opened them.
She gave a small gasp and stared wide-eyed at the necklace in the box. It was a simple yet elegant Y-shape chain with a diamond at the tip. He opened another box and showed her a small bracelet which had a small kitten at the center of the silver band with diamond eyes.
"I can`t accept these," Allura shook her head and closed the boxes.
Lance felt his heart stop for a moment, asking slowly, "You don`t like them?"
"Oh no!" Allura looked up and saw the dissapointment in his eyes before correcting him, "Of course I like them, I love them! The kitten looks like the one you got me at he carnival and the necklace is beautiful bu..."
"But what?" Lance asked, relieved.
"I... I..." Allura twisted her hands in her lap and looked up at him with tears in her eyes, "I didn`t think you`d do this so I didn`t get you anything and..."
"That`s ok Allie I don`t care about gifts," Lance pulled out the necklace and moved it up to her neck. After placing the bracelet on her wrist, he smiled and sat back.
Allura gulped as a tear slipped from her eye, Lance shook his head and wiped it away, "Don`t cry, its really ok Allura, I..."
He stopped as a sob suddenly escaped her and she moved forward to cover her face with her hands so he wouldn`t see her cry. With a small curse, Lance reached out and pulled her over to cry into his shoulder, trying to calm her down and make out what she said between sobs. After a while he managed to make out `not - fair - impossible.`
"What`s not fair or impossible?" he asked softly a few times.
Allura lifted a hand to his lips to silence him, her other arm snaking around to hold on to his shirt. They stayed that way for a few minutes before she spoke up, "I`m sorry Lance, I do love your gifts, they`re gorgeous."
"Then why..."
"Because I can`t believe I..." Allura sighed and didn`t continue.
"You...?" Lance looked down and lifted her chin with a hand to make her meet his eyes. "What?"
Allura thought about her answer for a moment before replying, "I broke my promise to Nanny."
"What promise? It couldn`t be that serious," Lance wiped a tear from her cheek as she nodded.
"It is, you see..." Allura bit her lip and looked down for a moment before whispering, "I promised not to fall in love with you."
She felt Lance tense and closed her eyes apologizing, "I didn`t mean to, it just... happened!"
Lance was silent for a moment before replying, "You know, that`s the best anniversary gift you could have given me."
With a relieved sigh and wrapped his arms around her, suddenly laying back, eliciting a small cry from Allura before she realized they were lying side by side on the blanket. She watched Lance lean up on one elbow and smile down at her tenderly, "So you`re not upset?"
"Upset? Why would I be upset? I`m almost afraid this is a dream," he leaned down and brushed a soft kiss across her lips. "I love you too Allie, I have for months only I..."
"Really?" Allura`s eyes lit up happily, "Since when?"
"Since... the night we learned to dance," Lance grinned, "How many times did we step on each other?"
Allura giggled, "I lost count after we fell."
"Me too... the third fall," he chuckled and raised a hand to brush back a few locks of hair that were blown into her face by the wind.
They lay quietly for a few more minutes with their gazes locked together, neither knowing who made the first move as their lips met again. The kiss started slowly, tender and sweet, but as Lance felt her arms slip around his shoulders, he nudged her lips open and the kiss took a whole new turn.
Allura was amazed by the emotions that ran through her during their kisses. She could feel the joy and possessiveness in Lance as he held her tighter, his body moving to cover hers. She was breathless when he finally pulled his mouth from hers and trailed soft kisses around her face, on her eyelids, the tip of her nose, her cheekbones, and then down to her neck.
Lance could feel his heart pounding and barely managed to make himself stop there, kissing the spot behind her ear and whispering "I love you" again before raising his head to meet her eyes. Allura smiled and suddenly tried to stifle a yawn.
"You`re tired," he pulled back to lie down beside her again.
"I`m sorry, its been a long day," Allura shivered due to the loss of his warmth and asked him to scoot over, "The sheets aren`t going to be enough to keep us warm."
"Right," Lance made her move over to the edge of the blanket, "but if we only use one side of the blanket we can pull the other side over both of us."
"Sounds good," Allura moved off and watched as he got settled, taking up her space and then moving into his arms while he pulled the other part of the blanket over them. She lay her head on his shoulder with her hands settled against his chest, smiling as his arms held her close.
"Good night," they both whispered soon falling into a deep sleep.
***********
^_^
Aww... fluff!
Hope you liked this chapter, sorry again for the long wait, but I`ve had writer`s block and then couldn`t upload and... anyways I have a bunch of ideas for the next chapter which I`m already starting and hope to have up soon. Thanks for reading and don`t forget to leave a review!
~ K.C ~