Author's Note: Wow, Chapter 7 has gotten the most reviews out of all the chapters (10 reviews out of 94 readers, my percentage has gone up! YAY!) and at the quickest rate out of all the chapters as well! That makes me very happy. :-D
Thank you jennperry22 for your, dare I say, detailed review. It was very comprehensive and very flattering I must say. I'd give you cookies but I'm afraid the only cookies you'll get via internet might clutter up your connection LOL!
theshadowcat and Libertad23- Too short! Why that's preposterous! The last chapter was well over 1,000 words:-P Chapter 1 & 4 are the only ones that are under 1,000 words, although if you compare this story's word count average per chapter to that of my Escaflowne fanfiction "For Want of a Nail" at average word count per chapter being 2,500, VfV chapters are somewhat short in comparison since I consider this as a small project, but I also update a lot.
peachi- Yes, I too have read without reviewing since I started reading a lot of fanfiction, but lately I have been reviewing since it would be hypocritical of me to ask for reviews when I myself haven't been reviewing.
SupportSeverusSnape- Yah, I can't wait for the movie to come out on DVD/VHS! Must have it!
Thank you Paige, anaticulapraecantrix, princess moon shadow, and GoldenLyre for taking the time to put in a review!
squishmich- Yes, how very astute of you. A certain amount of reviews in exchange for a chapter, not too high a price… J Thank you very much for your kind review, I am very happy to see new names popping up who are reviewing. I have to say that VfV is actually rather a dark story anyhow, especially the original comic that the movie is based on. It shows the worst of humanity and government, but like I said in my summary we are looking at the softer side of life after such harshness. A little fluff to go with V's frilly apron LOL!
Chapter 8
Another week had passed since V's recovery. During that time he had quickly gone about re-training himself. To Evey his behaviour seemed almost manic, but realized that it was probably quite normal for him. She had gotten used to the slow, quiet days of his recuperation and now that she thought about it it had been a rare occurrence for V to be home all day, doing nothing, so rare that she couldn't remember a day when he was not active, recent events aside. His form appeared excellent to her eyes, the same old V, but apparently he found himself lacking by the way he horribly clashed against the beat up suit of armor. He has been in quite a mood since returning with their ill-gotten goods, or woke up on the wrong side of the bed, he had been at the armor the whole morning. She felt sorry for the inanimate object of his wrath, not to mention her numb ears…
"V," Evey finally called out, her pity for the armor taking action, "You're not going to have a sparring partner anymore by the way you're going at it. Why don't you take a break?"
V continued thrashing the miserable armor for another moment before finally relenting with a last thrust to his opponent's heart. He brought his legs together with a click of his heels and saluted the defeated suit with his rapier before putting it and the weapon away against a wall and going to the kitchen where Evey, tea and cookies awaited him.
"Now can you tell me what happened at the storehouse that you 'liberated' the food from last night?" Evey asked him when he sat down at the table, "And don't tell me 'nothing' because you are clearly upset!"
V gave a deep sigh and clasped his hands together on the table, collecting himself he began, "It really was noth-"
He stopped mid-word at the infamous "look" Evey gave him, the one all people in a relationship with a woman got to know. He sighed again.
"I ran into some trouble on the way, nothing I couldn't handle, but something I should have been easily able to avoid had I truly been in 100 condition."
"What happened?" Evey gently pressed.
"I was observing the streets from the rooftops and going in for a closer look around the storehouse when I tripped," he finally confessed.
"And then what happened?"
"I got up."
Evey stared at the masked man in front of her, there had to be more to it, right?
"And what's wrong?" she asked.
"I tripped!" he growled out in frustration.
Evey rolled her eyes and fell back against her chair, "And here I thought you came into some sort of confrontation, nothing else happened right?"
"Nothing! Had I been more careful and observant of the placement of my feet I would not have tripped! Do you know how dangerous it is to fall on a roof? Or to fall at all? Had I not been careful I could very well have been heard. Not to say I still wouldn't have completed my mission to bring back sustenance," he said rather peeved. He crossed his arms across his chest stiffly.
Evey smiled at him, eyebrow quirked as she got up from her seat, "But no one heard you, or at least didn't come after you and you came back safely, which is all that matters to me."
She stood behind him, V turned his head to her in question, arms still crossed against his wide chest. She put her hands up on his black-clothed broad shoulders and began rubbing and kneading them. With yet another sigh he released his irritation and relaxed his body, allowing himself to enjoy her massage as he lifted his mask enough to drink his tea and eat some cookies. Evey had yet to see him, but felt they made a little progress since they now had their meals together and avoided looking at his face when he lifted it to eat for his comfort.
"All I'm saying is that beating the tar out of that poor old armor for something like that won't change what happened. I'm rather surprised you let yourself become worked up over something like that since you know how much worse things could have been," she finally said as he finished his tea and brought his mask back down. She smoothed her hands across his shoulders and leaned in against his back, wrapping her arms around his neck. She pressed a kiss into his black wig where she supposed his ear would be. He leaned back into her, putting a hand up on her arm as he turned his head, his hair brushing against her arms.
V cherished each of these moments with her and looked forward to more intimacy with no little amount of trepidation. Had things been different he could have lived with just being with her, being able to talk with her was bliss, even with the arguments, or even because of the arguments. He couldn't deny that he yearned for her physically, like this with arms around him, them holding hands, she leaning against him when they watched a movie, but had she not wanted him like that he could have lived with just talking with her. He would have died happily as it was more than he had expected in his lot in life.
"Would you be interested in watching a movie with me?" V asked, breaking the moment of peace.
"Yes, of course V," Evey replied, a little surprised. They usually watched one at night, not in the early afternoon. Not that there was anything particularly pressing to be done this day that they couldn't watch it now.
They walked to the… what would probably be termed the "living room" and V went about setting up the DVD and the telly. Evey sank into the couch and allowed him to handle all the details as she watched him moving around, turning down the Gallery lights and joining her on the couch.
As the movie began, beginning credits showing on the screen V turned his mask to her hesitantly, in thought probably. Evey observed him out of her peripheral vision while keeping her eyes on the screen, wondering what he was about to do. He seemed to face the screen again, his fingers twitching. Leaning back lightly into the couch, he slowly, uncertainly, lifted his arm as one would to a frightened animal, although he was probably that animal. Arm hovering between them Evey was quite sure she knew his intensions and mentally urged him, this would be the first time he initiated contact of this sort. She sat very still, not wanting to change his unsure mind. After another moment of hesitation he finally brought his black-clothed arm up and slowly around her back, curling it around her waist gently. Evey looked up at him with a warm smile and scooted herself right up against him and rested her head on his shoulder as they watched the movie in silence. Under the smiling mask was another smile.
The movie had finished a while ago, credits rolled off screen and V had turned off the telly with the remote. Evey felt lethargic even though she knew it was barely evening. The Shadow Gallery was just as its name, the lights were still dimmed, the living room lights off. Even V's head was resting atop of hers, although whether it was from also feeling the lethargy or intimacy, Evey wasn't completely sure, but suspected the latter happily. Little steps, little steps…
Evey closed her eyes, perhaps they could take a nap together? She breathed in his scent as she had throughout the whole movie. He had not taken a shower after that workout with his "sparring partner" as he normally would have. Instead they had gone directly to watch the movie, allowing Evey the rare chance to smell his scent, not that of his polished leather or soap (or on a few dreadful occasions Pre-Parliament detonation, blood) but the warm comforting smell of another breathing being.
V was very alert, as per usual, but he was also relaxed. He was not tired as others may have been after such a long sparring session, not close to lethargy as Evey seemed to be… And was she scenting him? His thoughts paused as he realized that his love had been discreetly smelling him- There! She was doing it again! Going so far as to press her nose into his chest! Was she enjoying this? She must be, V realized, and now that he thought about it this was perhaps the first time he presented himself to her after a workout without a shower.
Would he be permitted a simple pleasure? V wondered, she allowed him so much, encouraged him so much. He swallowed. He slowly trailed his left hand up, the one that had been holding Evey to his side, bringing it up her arm, now at her shoulder. He felt her go still at his hand's movement. He gently brought the hand to her shorn head that rested upon his chest, his chin no longer upon her, and hesitantly started stroking her up along her delicate neck to the top of her head. He was ready to stop at a moment's notice should she show any tiny amount of discomfort. Instead Evey relaxed, pressing her face and a smile into V's chest she brought her arms around his torso into a hug. V brought his left hand down to go around her and brought his right hand up to continue running his scarred fingers through her short hair happily.
Yes, there were firsts for everything and Evey made it so very delightful.
"I love you V."
Soft eyes looked down through eye slits, returning her words, "I love you too."