* 98 * 3/24/13, 3/27/13, 3/30/13

"...May I join you, my lady?" he asked after a few more minutes, deciding to start his exploration by sitting with her. The elf immediately looked at him with a glint of hope and nodded, readily making room for him. Her demeanor had changed for the better awfully quickly, which led the paladin to believe he might have made the right choice.

Casavir climbed on the bed and sat down. He gazed at her and leaned back against the wall behind his pillow, at a loss for words as he prepared to act. He sat with Lily for a few moments as she glanced over at him now and then, wondering what he was going to do, if anything. Then, hesitantly, he held his right arm out to her.

Lily blinked. She positioned herself parallel to him and got a little closer. With his arm still extended, though, Lily could tell that's not entirely what the paladin meant. She scooted closer, and Casavir placed his right hand on her shoulder.

Lily then understood. She leaned her head down and put it on his shoulder. Casavir repositioned his arm around her back when she got close enough, letting it rest completely still against her.

Lily looked off into space. She grinned happily to herself, surprised at having gotten a good deal of what she wanted.

There, she thought. Is this kind of gentle closeness with him really that much to ask for?

Now embarrassed by her own nonsensical actions, she tried to explain her distraught and probably very difficult behavior: "Sometimes I just need a shoulder...someone to be close to." She purposefully left out the words "to cry on" in fear that their sweet, tender connotation would overwhelm the paladin.

"In such times, I will be there," Casavir promised softly, speaking with gentle breath against her hair.

Lily felt a grin play over her lips. "Really?" she asked, looking down at his still hand lying on his leg.

"Yes," he answered. He almost continued, "It is my duty," but he did not feel that would please her, and besides that, it wasn't fully true; that was hardly the main reason he would be there for her in such moments. He felt he was very slowly starting to understand what she did and did not want to hear, which comments frustrated more than soothed her.

"I will be right here for you," he repeated clearly.

Lily inhaled deeply and gave a warm sigh. "I'm very lucky to have you by my side, Casavir." She wrapped her arms around his right arm and held loosely onto him.

She was so happy that she could feel his warmth now, that there was only a thin, cloth material separating her from his skin. His shoulder was a far more relaxing and comfortable pillow this time than when she had dozed off on his shoulderplate in the dining hall.

She was also still a little tipsy, and she was learning that being close to Casavir was one of her most compelling desires at such times.

Why?... she wondered, completely puzzled. Is it because it's so hard to get him to soften up?

Or is it because he's...

Casavir's unarmored fingers made their way to Lily's neck.

So...

"May I?"

Lily nodded uncertainly, but leaned forward just a bit. The paladin's fingers then began pushing gently into her muscles.

Wonderful... she thought with a gasp as the novel feeling of Casavir's focused touch washed over her. As the paladin moved his thumbs to lightly knead the bare nape of her neck, she felt relaxation begin to creep into each of her limbs.

She couldn't help but compare Casavir's massage to Bishop's. Of course, they hadn't covered quite the same areas, so she couldn't be too biased, but she noticed a key difference in their methods. Bishop pushed fairly hard into her skin – almost too hard – but had good technique regardless. Casavir's touch, on the other hand, was a slight too gentle for her tastes. He seemed to know just where to press, though, but she just wished...

"Harder there," Lily suggested softly, directing him to where her neck met her shoulder. When Casavir obeyed, the elf immediately let out a breathless, pleased moan. She felt floored as the paladin traced harder circles with his fingertips into her pliant, yielding skin, reaching muscles deeper beneath her skin.

"Cas... This is fantastic..."

Casavir smiled. "I am pleased to hear that."

He continued for several minutes, the sensation of his strong hands working over the elf's sore neck muscles eliciting soft cries from her every now and then. The longer he touched her, the more she laid back on him, and the less room he had to continue. He stopped only when her head leaning against his chest and to his left kept one of his hands from moving any further.

The silence that followed was peaceful, comfortable. Lily once again thought of how happy she was that Casavir wasn't wearing his hard armor, and she was now nearly snuggling up against his chest. The paladin was similarly pleased, quite gladly serving as her makeshift pillow in the quiet moment.

Then, a whisper from the elf: "I love when you're like this."

The paladin heaved a deeply satisfied sigh from just behind her. "Like what?" His low voice matched her volume now.

"Affectionate, and warm."

Casavir considered this for a full minute.

The next thing Lily knew, she felt a strong pair of arms wrap themselves around her front and settle her closely against his chest. The incredible, sudden warmth, combined with the paladin's closeness and having his cheek pressed right up against hers, made Lily stammer as she flushed red.

"U-um..."

Casavir let go immediately at the sound of her hesitation. He said, with considerable regret in his voice, "I apologize, my lady..."

Lily bit her lip. "No, hush!" she said quickly, pulling his arms back into place. "I've...wanted something like this for a long time," she whispered, the last fragment nearly incoherent.

Casavir's whole being stilled at her confession, and her desire to pull him close again. Only one word came to his mind.

...Lily...?

The room was quiet again, but after what was just said, the silence was unnerving to the elf. Getting the impression that he was thinking awfully hard about her words, Lily stuttered, "I-I mean... I wanted someone to be there for me."

And this feels so good...

Lily couldn't imagine feeling safer. Never had her noble paladin made her feel any more protected than she felt now, lingering longingly in his embrace, his tremendous warmth.

Casavir had been quiet since his apology, which now seemed ages ago despite being only a minute prior. He had retracted his very premature assumption about Lily's feelings after what she said, but hadn't believed any of it anyway. Still, he was happy just to embrace her like this, knowing that any malignant form of rain or wind would have to wend its way around him to make it to her glowing skin again...

Recalling the terrifying recent experience, and encouraged by the gentle atmosphere, Casavir breathed out. "Lily...I am truly glad you are all right. I was so worried," he whispered with firmness, squeezing her tighter.

His voice almost sounds like it's...trembling? No. That can't be right; this is Casavir, Lily thought, almost shocked.

"I'm okay now," she reassured him.

"But you were not." He couldn't say any more. His words stuck in the lump that formed in his throat.

"Yeah... I didn't really know how to find my way around, especially in the dark. I don't suppose I really have a knack for that kind of thing yet."

Casavir considered this.

"We must learn, then."

Lily chanced a look to her left, directly into his face. Her cheeks colored when she saw just how close he was. "You and me?"

"Well... Yes..." he started. After staring into her green globes and letting the affirmation linger in the air for a mere second, the paladin caught wind of how forward his idea sounded – practicing in the woods alone together indeed had a rather piquant underlying insinuation. "As well as the rest of the group," he finished in a rush.

"Oh. That might be a good idea," the elf granted. "We probably should."

The next plan of action was set, but despite that, neither of them moved, nor had any desire to.

"Hold me like this for a little longer?" Lily requested almost shyly. "I just got you to show me affection; we can't go now," she whined lightly.

Comments like that were what Casavir found absolutely irresistible about Lily.

"Of course," he permitted with an indulgent grin. A deep calmness overcame him in the seconds that followed.

In the next moment, however, the paladin's clear head was interrupted by a loving nuzzle from the elf in his arms. Lily couldn't help it; being where she was, nestled just against his chest, made her feel like she was his lover. Giving him doting affection felt so natural then.

Casavir was pleasantly flustered, if such a thing existed. "We...do not have to leave immediately," he managed. Having thought of no other way to word his sentence, he was twice as aware that it had come out almost boyishly.

"Okay," Lily giggled, enjoying his lapse, one that would make his powerful affections for her stand out rather plainly to anyone else. But while the elf noticed, she refused to think anything of it, not wanting to make quick assumptions about anything again, at least not regarding him. She heaved a sigh and relaxed, largely due to the steady movement of the paladin's chest against her head and back. Casavir responded by leaning his head back gently against the stone wall.

The elf closed her eyes, divinely soothed in all of her limbs by the comforting fortress of Casavir's warmth.

We are close, the paladin's mind reaffirmed. He felt this now more than ever before, considering how true, even literally, his words were in their quiet moment.

Many minutes passed, and Lily's breaths became audible, albeit barely. The paladin leaned his head forward and checked her face.

She had fallen asleep.

The drink must have finally taken her, Casavir reasoned, in awe – and hardly unpleasantly – of that it had been while she lay against him. That it made sense given the circumstances didn't make the experience any less majestic.

The paladin felt peaceful, both in body and mind. He used his calm mental presence to think about what Lily had said. She wanted him to be more affectionate, and less "stiff". Thinking about the party member she desired to have, he figured this might be so she would feel comfortable relaying her emotions to him without being judged by his always-stoic expression. And she wanted to know more about him, even the things most often considered unimportant.

Casavir closed his eyes as this train of thought continued, slowly building resolve to talk to her more, perhaps even if there was no tangible reason to, as she hinted. He normally would not have picked up on such a hint, but she had thankfully clarified she meant both pertinent information as well as minutiae were relevant to her. He could not begrudge her that; as the group's Leader, she would do well to know more about her companions. Perhaps he himself would do well to relay some of his thoughts and feelings to her, though he could not say he was used to the act. But, he wanted to know more about her, too. Revealing bits of himself might encourage her to tell him more about her history.

But these thoughts were interrupted with a sudden CRASH!

The sound came from the direction of the dining hall, right behind his head. Casavir was greatly irritated by this, especially so when it caused Lily's eyes to shoot open. She immediately broke out of the paladin's arms and stood up, facing toward him and the din.

"What was that?" she demanded, heart pounding.

Normally Casavir would care a lot more about the answer, but right now, all that mattered was that the antics of those currently in the dining room had made Lily wake up and disengage herself from him. He sighed, not even bothering to hide his frustration. "Likely broken dishes in the dining hall, my lady."

Lily looked at him blankly for a moment, still waking up. Then, she turned and walked quickly out of the room to investigate the commotion. Casavir waited awhile before getting up with another impatient sigh, following her to the dining hall.