Smarter Than Your Average Bear

[Haze]

Dorian gave a pleased hum as soon as the thing was pulled from his pocket, and the voice in his head went silent. "So, so much better." He gave her a grin, feeling much more at ease, now that his virility wasn't being questioned. It was all making him feel quite insecure.

But now that the nagging was gone, and his wife was settled beside him, all he really wanted to do was have her close, and remind her of all the promises he'd made, especially after the time they'd had. As he looked over to her, his eyes skimmed the length of her body, stopping just momentarily at where her hands were place. Dorian's brows furrowed, just slightly... Nah... and then carried on sweeping back up to her face. He turned himself back to lean on his side, tucking in close.

His voice was hesitant when he spoke, since the nature of his question was a sensitive one. "You still love me, don't you, Dacia? Do I still make you happy?"

[Juno]

The irritated frown was relaxing to see that he himself was looking much happier now that the bears were temporarily free of their minds, at least directly. All the obvious attention she was getting wasn't going unnoticed, but she didn't mind it in the least right now especially being something she'd become rather accustomed to in their time together. The slight, flickering change in his expression had her curious, but she hadn't spoken of it right away now that he'd drawn himself up close again.

When he spoke she was surprised to hear what it was he wanted to talk about, the cautiousness in his tone being well-noted as well. "Yes... I love you, nothing's changed. And happy... I'm happy, yeah. I mean, we've been having, um, issues, lately, but that's pretty much solved now, hm?

"Why are you asking?" Dacia smoothed out her shirt over her stomach before letting her hands fall limply to her sides again. One, though, reached out to brush against his own hand, if a bit hesitantly as well now that he'd asked such things seemingly out of the blue. "Has something...changed for you?"

[Haze]

He wasn't entirely placated by her answer. Of course, he was relieved to know that she still loved him, but after the time they'd had, he wanted Dacia to be more ... forthcoming with her affections. He took up her hand as she brushed it against his and brought it up to his lips, grazing over her knuckles with a kiss. "No, no... nothing's changed for me. Nothing at all. I still want you just as much as ever. You still take my breath away when I look at you, and I don't think a minute goes by where I don't think about how lucky I am."

Dorian smiled down at her as if to prove his words,and lowered himself to kiss her forehead. It was a slow, long kiss, as he tried to compose himself, and ask the question he really wanted to know. Just because his pride was wounded from Clarity's tirades, and the fact that, well... Dacia didn't seem to want to make things up ... at least, not the way he wanted to.

"I - Dac - am I ... you know ... any good?" He lifted his head away and avoided looking directly at her, and kind of just stared at her cheek, ashamed to be asking for a little confidence booster. "I mean, I just don't know if you even enjoy it, and ... and ... well, you just seem so uninterested in me that way, and so I just was thinking, and ... Clarity was saying ... I'm no good..." he trailed off, face furiously red.

[Juno]

The sincerity of his answer beyond what she'd asked hadn't been something she'd expected from him. Especially after the way things had been lately she hadn't thought he would be so affectionate now when they'd just begun talking again. It put her a bit more at ease nonetheless, though. Lips curling up a bit under his praises, she nestled herself closer as he pressed another kiss to her.

There wasn't really much to say to that, not that might do his words justice, at least. Dacia was quiet, just listening to the nicer silence between them now as opposed to the heavy, tense one they'd shared for weeks. Dorian's next question had her face flushing with surprise and as he moved back again it was easily noticeable how he was avoiding looking her in the eye. She cocked her head to the side a bit, trying to catch his eye as he spoke.

She could handle this conversation. She could handle the questions, but what she was finding it difficult to grasp was that the bear would go so far as to say such things to him. Raising a brow, Dacia untangled her hand from his own to instead reach to cup his bright red cheek. "'No good'? Dorian. Come on, have I ever given you a reason to thi-" Dacia realized that she had, though.

She knew what she felt. She also knew that she hadn't usually been very forthcoming with her personal feelings about and affections for him. Really, the only thing she'd been good at showing lately was her temper. As much as she thought she was trying mighty hard right now, she knew that things had been lackluster at best in the intimacy department for them. "Look, don't listen to her about that. You are good, and I am interested. I'm just not very good at showing it yet, I don't think." Rolling herself over onto her side to face him now and sliding her hand down and around his shoulder, Dacia fiddled with the end of the braid in his hair.

For a long moment she stayed like that, silent and contemplative, neither moving closer nor farther away. In a way she was basking, but she also knew it to just be a way of more comfortably biding her time as she considered again what he'd said. "This is about what you said before, isn't it?" she asked conclusively, voice gentler now for their proximity as she leaned closer to first press a kiss to his cheek and then something slightly more prolonged against his lips. "That I haven't being clear enough?"

[Haze]

Dorian gave a quiet sigh for the feel of her tugging gently as she played with the end of his braid, but let her have her quiet time. After all the serious discussions they'd had this afternoon and evening, he was beginning to be accustomed to her thinking requirements, and he thought it was a good thing that she took her time about this particular subject, close as it was to him. At least she hadn't said he was terrible, and that was why she never approached him.

"It's not that you haven't been clear enough," Dorian started slowly, slightly taken aback at the tender was she was speaking with him, and the way in which she was now initiating the little intimacies between them. You've been just about as clear as mud. "It's just that ... sometimes I don't ... feel loved." His shoulders gave a little awkward shrug, and carried on.

"I mean, I know you love me, right, and you said so just before, but ... it's the little things like... kisses and hugs and ... other stuff that I miss. I sometimes feel like you're not interested at all, and that I have to work to keep you interested - not that I mind that, but sometimes it would just be nice if I knew that my wife was you know ... into me.

"But you know what, maybe I'm just being silly? Who cares who starts things, right?" His lips twisted wryly, and he put a kiss of his own to her cheek, and trailed a number slowly down to her lips, before wrapping his arm over her, and pulling her closer. "Even if we just ... lay here, and you're with me, I'll be okay."

[Juno]

To her, his answer felt somewhat patched together, especially since he was so quick to move on from the subject. It seemed like it was awkward thing for him to talk about, the topic of their intimacy. They'd talked about so much just in this one evening alone, though: their immediate plans, the bears and now this in greater detail. It was really the first day they'd talked civilly about anything of great importance since the day they married, and it kind of frightened her.

She didn't want things to keep being so awkward. She didn't want him feeling like this forever, just settling for whatever he could pry out of her. It was a big jump, though. This was the sort of thing Dacia knew she'd probably be working at for a long time coming, but at least it'd started.

Dacia wrapped her own arms snugly around him as Dorian pulled her over. Even as he tried to brush it off she'd already gotten the idea that this wasn't a light subject for him or something he particularly enjoyed pointing out -but who would?

"I don't think you're being silly. We just have a lot to work out. And... if you're not in the mood anymore then that's what we'll do, but, well, I'm sorry I haven't been giving you what you need lately," she said, cuddling closer to lay her head up on his arm. "I promise you I haven't lost anything I feel about you. In any way, Ri.

"I still think you're sexy," she offered, chuckling for the last context she'd said that in as she nuzzled against his shoulder. "But things are calming down, we'll have plenty of time to work it all out. We're heading...home. And who knows what'll happen then, right?"