Some sweet, prolonged fluff while I still try to decide the next plot point...
Maka was laying on what she now had to consider her good side as Shelley was on her belly next to her, a book open between them. "Every door, however, was shut in his face, for no one wished to have any more to do with him. Embittered by this treatment…" Shelley paused, pressing her finger into the page and looking at Maka. "What does 'embittered' mean?"
"Look at the sentence before it," Maka smiled. "If that happened to you, how would you feel?"
"Sad?" Shelley offered.
"Close…" Maka's brow creased as she searched for the way to clarify. "If it keeps happening, no matter how hard you try, it might feel…"
"Unfair?"
Maka nodded. "And that would make you feel…?"
"Angry," Shelley tried again.
"Very good." Maka pulled the book closer, picking up where Shelley had left off, "... he vowed never to set foot in Domleschg again, and he then came to Doerfli where he lived with his little boy. His wife, it seemed, had died shortly after the child's birth. He must have accumulated some money during his absence, for he apprenticed his son Tobias to a carpenter. How about 'accumulated'?"
"He got some money?"
"Right." It was time to push it back towards her, Shelley about to continue until the creak of the front door interrupted.
"Soul?" Shelley was up in a flash and into the hallway and regardless, Maka couldn't help but let a small finger of fear take hold. Or someone else. Someone unexpected.
The hum of Soul's low baritone filled the silence and next it was the view of him, Shelley tucked tightly at his side as he walked into the library. "Reading together, huh?" He leaned to get a clear peek at Shelley's face. "More Grimm's Fairy Tales?"
"Heidi," Shelley corrected.
"Never heard of it," Soul shook his head.
"We just started. Will you read with us?" She looked up at him expectantly and Soul let out a breath that he felt like he'd been holding since he left the hospital.
"Yeah, let's do that." He followed her back to the floor and mirrored Maka, leaving Shelley in the middle of the two.
"We're taking turns reading," Maka grinned.
"Fine, fine," he slid the book closer. "Where?"
"Here!" Shelley pointed to the spot and Soul cleared his throat.
They continued like that for chapter after chapter, Soul still not entirely sure what the fuss was about - a little girl, goats, a cranky old man - but both Shelley and Maka seemed enamored. It wasn't until the fifth chapter that Soul felt drawn in because as Maka read, the sudden realization came to him that the girl was going to be taken away, that she was too young to understand that her family was going to be ripped from her and she was going to be forced from the place she'd called home.
That was main thing he hated about books: powerlessness. His only option was to continue to read and listen, to let the inevitable happen because there was no way to fight against it but turn the page. When it came to his part he couldn't stop the connection as he read the final paragraph:
"The old man took no notice of anybody as he strode through the village on his way to the valley below, where he sold his cheeses and bought what bread and meat he wanted for himself. After he had passed, the villagers all crowded together looking after him. They agreed that it was a great mercy the child had got away from him. Only the blind grandmother would have nothing to say against him, and told those who came to bring her work, how kind and thoughtful he had been with the child, how good to her and her daughter, and how many afternoons he had spent mending the house. All this was repeated down in Doerfli; but most of the people who heard it said that grandmother was too old to understand, and very likely had not heard rightly what was said; as she was blind, probably she was also deaf."
His brow wrinkled and the odd urge to heave a pained sigh struck him. Before he could even get it out Maka was reaching for the book, sliding it towards herself and closing it. "I think that's enough for right now."
"But they took Heidi away!" Shelley shouted.
"They did," Maka nodded sadly. "But you'll see. We'll read more tonight, before bed." She smoothed a hand over Shelley's hair. "But right now I need Soul to help me with something, alright? Do you think you can go back to the big house for a little?"
Shelley considered this before nodding slowly.
"Thank you." Maka was ready for another soft caress before Shelley pattered away but to her surprise, Shelley threw her arms awkwardly around Maka's neck for just a short moment. Soul got the same, though for a few seconds longer before Shelley made her exit, leaving just the book between the two of them.
Soul's fingers inched past the text until they covered hers. "How are you feeling?"
Maka made a sound that was best described as noncommittal as she laid her head against her arm. "How did it go at the hospital?"
"Well, I almost got arrested," Soul sighed as her eyebrows popped up. "Arachne was there with some city cops, if they even were cops, and tried to spin it that I was the aggressor and, well, you and Giriko were an item."
Faking a heave came easily at the thought. "Disgusting!"
Soul grunted in agreement. "He said…" Those things had been cruel to hear but letting them even touch back to his tongue brought unprecedented bitterness. "Did he touch you, Maka?"
"Well, if you count stabbing as touching…" She started but a slow sigh slipped between her lips. "Only twice. I reacted more to the knife so he stuck with that afterward."
Souls grip tightened on her hand as the words hissed from between his teeth, "I should have killed him. I should have hunted him down and killed him after Monday, I never should have-"
"Soul." The sharpness of his name cut the rest off his tongue as he just stared at her helplessly. That's what it was: impotence in the face of her suffering that made his heart lurch in his chest. "So he said those things and you…" She left that open for him, trying to encourage the story along.
"Thought about you being alone tonight if I acted like an idiot so instead I buttoned my big mouth and kept my hands in my pockets," he muttered with distinct disgust.
A smile that threatened to blind him was his reply as she slid her hand out from under his so she could clutch his shirt and pull him forward. Soul scooted on the floor until she'd coaxed him close enough for their lips to meet. She rubbed her hand along his side as they parted. "I'm proud of you. For not killing him then and not killing him now."
He gave her a frustrated sigh as an answer.
She continued to let her hand drift along his side, wrinkling and then straightening the fabric on the next turn. "And what else? You said Arachne was there."
"Free told Giriko he was getting a long jail sentence for what he did to you and gave Arachne a warning that she could be next. Just…" He lifted his hand to her cheek and into her hair, gripping her as if she was about to get away. "Tell me that feels like enough to you. Tell me it's alright that he's just going to go to jail for who knows how long for doing that to you."
"I know it doesn't feel like it for you, Soul," Maka murmured back, "but this has to be the way it is. What's more important is that you and I have our lives, that you're not rotting in some cell because you took the revenge. Speaking of, Eibon will be back on Monday and then again on Thursday. He expects some work, samples, et cetera in the meantime. I took some notes on what he wanted and I called Death who was… interested in what we were up to since he hadn't seen us in the office. So we're going there on Wednesday."
"Huh," Soul offered a crooked smile accompanied by a short laugh. "Gotta admit I almost forgot about work. You email me your notes? Bet you made me a to-do list, too, didn't you?"
"Color-coded," she grinned.
"You're a pain in the ass," he chuckled as he pressed his smile to hers. He took advantage of his grip, stealing two or three or four more kisses before releasing her. "Is that what you needed me for? It's still early, I can probably finish it mostly now, maybe a little into tomorrow."
"No…" Her fingers clenched tighter into his shirt as her eyes fell to the floor. "It's kind of stupid, maybe, embarrassing, but…"
He shook his head, "Probably not any of those things so spit it out."
"I think I might need your help in the bath," she rolled her eyes as a bashful blush hit her cheeks. "I think I can do it by myself but Stein said to keep the stitches dry and…"
His eyebrows started to furrow. "How is that stupid or embarrassing?"
"Because…" and for once Maka lacked the eloquence as the storm that had brewed all afternoon in her head raged on. As she stared into his fiery eyes she admitted what she could, "Boyfriends get to see you the good kind of naked, right? You just started seeing me, all of me, and it… it's too early for the ugly parts, Soul."
"One, you're not allowed to have 'ugly' and 'you' in the same sentence," he griped. "And two, if that's all boyfriends do, look at the good parts and forget everything else then I don't want to be one of those. Call me something else because it's about taking care of you. I sure as hell love the 'good kind of naked' but that doesn't mean I'm not all in for the rest of it." He only let her lip tremble in reply before he was on his feet. "Come on. Let's go."
Maka carefully negotiated the journey to her feet, avoiding as much bending and stretching as possible. "Grab a bowl from the kitchen and I'll meet you upstairs."
Soul knew better than to question anything at that moment and simply followed his orders as he heard her creak up the stairs. When he joined her in the bathroom, he quickly put the bowl down on the sink to help Maka lose her shirt. "Just lift your arm a little," he muttered and she obeyed. Sutures were nothing new to him, neither was the bandage covering her side and his fingers deftly moved along the edges to pull off the tape as painlessly as possible. For his own sanity, he forced his eyes to the gauze and tape, balling it tightly before throwing it in the trash.
While he ran the water, Maka slipped out of her pants and underwear. Again, this was nothing he hadn't seen before but Maka still felt that twinge of anxiety, those self-conscious thoughts shouting in the background of her mind. All of the whispers were suddenly silenced by the gentle touch of his hand to hers, pulling her towards the tub. He kept the water low and as she sat it only just lapped at her hip bone, pleasantly warm just like his hand that moved to her shoulder and squeezed at the tense muscles underneath. "Thank you," she murmured.
"Alright, what's the bowl for?" Soul grabbed it from the sink before kneeling next to her.
"My hair," she laughed. "You get to dump water over my head." Maka leaned forward and let her hair cascade around her face as Soul pressed the dip of her spine softly to get the angle just right. He filled the bowl before tipping it over her hair, making sure the access liquid stayed away from her tender side. "One more." A soft chuckle left his lips as he repeated the process. "Now pour some shampoo in my hand." She offered a palm to him and waited until Soul squeezed enough of a dollop. "Alright."
He was temporarily relieved of his duty as she massaged until a froth of bubbles appeared. As he waited, his hand went back to her shoulder, kneading purposefully as he tried to untangle the knots he knew he could reach. Her soft sighs and hums were music to his ears and by the time she was dipping her hands in the water, the strain in her muscles seemed gone. "Ready?" he asked.
"Go for it." Soul poured the first bowlful, using his other hand to try to ring the suds out of her tresses. He had to make two more attempts before she held out her palm again. "Conditioner." When enough liquid hit her hand, Maka called him off so she could massage it into her hair. After enough rubbing, she twirled the hair on top of her head and let her eyes fall on him again. "You ever washed a girl's hair before?"
"Nah," he laughed, "and I'm just about to make myself look bad by asking why we're not rinsing again."
A grin split her lips, "You're supposed to let your conditioner sit for a little while."
"Eh, maybe that's why my hair looks the way it does," he shrugged.
"I like your hair." She reached out and flicked a spike, getting a laugh in return. "That was second on the list."
He raised an eyebrow. "What list?"
"Of the things I found cute when we first met." Her eyes were twinkling especially as he couldn't dull the little bit of blush that came to his cheeks at the idea. "Your eyes were first."
"My eyes?" he balked incredulously. "Can't believe the albino look did it for you."
"Hey," she chided. "Your skin's got a nice tan, it evens it out."
He cleared his throat before tapping a finger to the button of her nose. "Your nose. I hate the word, but when I saw it, the little upturn you have, all I could think was 'cute'."
She grabbed the finger so she could press his palm to her cheek. "You called me beautiful that day."
"I did," he smirked as he rubbed his thumb over her cheekbone.
"No one's ever, really, and I…" she sighed as her mind's eye sparked nothing more than the image of her side. "I worry that-"
"Hey," he jostled her cheek slightly, breaking the trance Maka was in. "I meant it then. Still think so now, just even more than before, got it?"
"Got it," Maka could barely let out the murmur. It was that same old strange mixture and juxtaposition of rough and soft like the first time he'd ever touched her.
His stare was just as unnerving, his eyes narrowing before leaning in to kiss her in a way that just solidified her thought from before and rose goosebumps on her skin regardless of the warm water. "Time to rinse?"
She answered by leaning forward again, letting her hair unwind.
"Next was your hair. Technically noticed your hair first, before the nose, but…" he sighed as he filled the bowl with water, letting it hover a moment near her neck. "On the list, it was second. Then definitely your eyes." He tipped the water, letting his words flow just as quickly, "And I might have had some thoughts when you were in my shirt."
Maka almost flipped her head up but he let his hand press at her crown, keeping her bent over as he refilled the bowl. He didn't have to see her face though to know the smirk that was there especially as a giggle trickled from her throat, "So that blush was-"
"Hey, I wasn't proud of it, OK?" He emptied the water over her hair for a second rinse, tousling her hair in the process. "Since maybe the morning after look kind of did it for me."
"Pervert," came with another snicker.
"Like you never had one little fantasy, ever." His accusation squeaked as he finally released her head, letting her clear away the dampened hair to smirk at him.
"Never."
"Oh, you liar," he shook his head indignantly.
Her grin was insufferable and it was only getting wider. "I am not! Now can you go get my comb from the bedroom?"
Soul sat back on his heels as he abandoned the bowl in the tub so he could cross his arms. "No, not until you tell the truth."
"Soul," she gaped incredulously.
He was dangerously close to caving as she started to employ those pleading eyes, so he simply shut his and lifted his chin in defiance. "Liar."
"Soul." Since he was refusing to be taken by her eyes, Maka tried to infuse her voice with the plea. His eyelids were trembling and as soon as one gave in and caught the begging curl of her lip the other soon followed suit with a sigh.
"Whipped," Soul muttered for his ears only as he stood up and disappeared out the door.
Maka leaned expectantly against the side of the tub as she tried not to let her smile get too full of gloating. He returned with the comb and miraculously preempted her with a hair tie in the other hand. "Thank you," she purred playfully as he huffed back to the floor.
As she started to comb through her hair he grabbed a washcloth from the rack and dipped it into the water. "What kind of soap?" He tried to make the question sound as mundane as possible but for some reason, this moment was making his heart pound like the first time she kissed him.
"Oh, the bar's fine." She almost added a 'but' since she wasn't totally an invalid and her normal threshold for asking for help had probably already been exceeded for today but when she looked at his face she swallowed it all.
Soul reached for the bar and lathered up the washcloth before slowly starting to run it over her back. Washing like this shouldn't feel so alien, he'd obviously taken showers in his life, but it was her skin and he was unsure of her fragility, both physically and mentally, and he was sure he could toe the line of both. This was a place for easy missteps so his hands were achingly slow, motions so gentle that the bubbles didn't break against her skin, just sat there shining. He was careful to avoid her side, something he still hadn't had the guts to look at because he couldn't trust himself not to feel the vitriol again. Instead, he concentrated on memorizing each inch of her skin, each freckle on her back.
Maka had finished her braid in time for him to dip the cloth in the water again, getting the soap out before starting the process of clearing the suds away along her spine. There had to be something to say, but Maka was at a complete loss for what it should be as she watched him in deep thought. If only I could read his mind, though I bet it's probably pretty loud in there right now.
"Here," he held out the cloth to her. "Think you can manage the rest while I run over to the other house and get the medical stuff to bandage you back up?"
"Been doing it for more than twenty years so I think I can handle it," Maka grinned at him and was thankful that he could snort out a laugh. She listened to him as he plodded down the stairs and as the front door clapped behind him. Without the distraction, the rest of her bath went fairly quickly, just a swift once over with soap everywhere but those itchy stitches. After that, it was a gentle toweling as she watched the water float down the drain. Getting completely dressed would be useless, especially if Soul was going to patch her up again, so Maka slipped into her panties and curled on her side in the bed, waiting for his return.
Soul's absence was brief and he returned with Stein's personal first aid kit. He settled next to her and just after he snapped on a glove he pressed a kiss to her temple. "Sorry if this stings."
"Stein could benefit from watching your bedside manner. That was a lot nicer than how he started the stitching process." Maka forced a laugh, the humor thin as the memory tried to force its way forward.
"Not sure I want to imagine Stein giving you a kiss," he grumbled as he started the cleaning. There were a few hisses, each one pulling on his heartstrings, but he continued through. She was silent as he slicked her skin with ointment and as he carefully put the large pads of gauze and taped them down.
Maka didn't move even as she heard his glove snap as he slid it off. She simply listened to him pack everything back in the first aid kit before the bed creaked as he stood. "Soul?"
He read her thoughts and answered, "Just putting it on the desk," before moving back to the other side of the bed so he could lay to face her. He needed to wash away the vision of her side, the wounds that haunted his mind as if he had watched each one being inflicted, and he was sure the only way was to taste her lips again. Maka let him kiss her until most of the desperation faded away.
"That was nice," she murmured softly.
Soul was trying to resist the frown that was threatening to press across his lips. "What was?"
"Let's just say every minute since you got home." She hoped that her smile was contagious but she could see the doubt and disagreement flutter across his eyes. "Am I wrong?"
He sighed, "The reading with Shelley, sure, that was fine." Actually, it was so goddamn cute. So much I could barely keep in the beaming when I realized that's what you'd been up to while I was gone.
"Fine until you got sad about the story." There was a distinctive teasing tone that instantly ruffled his feathers.
He was ready to deny any attachment especially as that smile parted her lips but he crumbled as her fingers touched his chest. "I wasn't sad, but you gotta be heartless to not feel something when a kid's getting taken away from her only family."
Maka hummed an affirmative before smiling through, "Something."
Soul narrowed his eyes, "But the rest of it-"
"Was nice," she urged again. "I think for the exact reason you said."
"What reason was that?" Because while it hadn't been that long ago the rawness of her pain, of that outrageous destruction of her body had stripped any good of it from his mind.
"Because you were taking care of me." There was something in her eyes then that made all of him turn to putty, everything else useless to fight against her. "I've definitely been feeling that in big ways lately, in scary ways too, but it felt nice today to feel it in the little ways again. Your words, the touches. It felt more everyday for a change."
"Sorry," he muttered.
"Sorry?" Maka huffed back immediately. "I think I've told you before that you apologize for the stupidest stuff."
Soul rested his hand on top of hers, trapping her fingers against his chest. "Guess for the scary ways."
"Again, not something you should apologize for," Maka urged back firmly. "See, and I was going to give you a reward for all of this but if you're going to be stubborn-"
He raised an eyebrow, "A reward?"
"I don't know…" She put on her best frown but she was mostly powerless in the face of his growing smile.
"Alright," he smirked, "I did take care of you today." Even if it feels like all the niceness in it was gone because that mess in your side is all my fault in the first place. Soul swatted away the ugly thought at the end because he actually wanted her to be right, and at that moment he could feel the drive to make that smile wider, to earn more of that reward. "And none of it was ugly, not for one minute. All of it was easy because it's you."
She hummed sweetly as she leaned in again, savoring the meeting of their lips. "So, I am a liar."
"Hm?" He had honestly been sure the kiss was his reward and he was ready to take just that, words being useless and not really part of what he could understand at the moment.
"There was just one little fantasy, maybe," she whispered playfully.
He chuckled hotly against her lips. "Just one, maybe?"
"When I snuck in your room…"
"Which time?"
"There was only once!"
"Just checkin'," he laughed again.
"I looked at you and I… took a second to wonder what it would look like, my skin, so blank against yours, so colorful." The blush stained her cheeks just like he'd hoped, telling him it wasn't just some faked reward but a sweet memory that she held on to.