I am all you want me to be. [Rated R] (Tebbalicious)

[Anonymous]

Alyxsi was a creature of habit, and his habit was to be social. He was to be well known, to be at all the grand galas and balls. His life, was all about being social, being known, recognized, wanted, and desired. He wanted people to see him walk down the street with a woman at his side, and be envious of two things. He wanted them to be jealous of him for having such a beautiful person accompanying him, and he wanted them to be jealous of her, for being with him. He wanted them to just feel so much jealousy, to be envious, and to be in awe of him. He would have liked for people to worship the ground he walked upon, and to bless the ground in front of him.

A smile thrown their way should have sent fits of jealous rage into others who didn't receive it. He was a social person, and he knew the dance of being a socialite so well.

This situation was...not all that different. He liked it as well, because...she was here beside him. His kitten, his woman, the woman who had been so disgusted by him, and now she couldn't bear to leave his side. He could only wonder what he could get her to do for him, or what he would get her to do for him eventually. He was always a man of exhibition, he might like to see how that works out. For now however, it was all baby steps. He had to get her completely indoctrinated to his particular will. Where saying no would cause harm to herself, not by him, but her own psyche. Then he could start to up the ante and see where things went from there.

He smiled as she answered, nodding his head. "A beige house with a dark roof. I'm sure that shouldn't be too difficult, and have to agree that it probably will look good." The houses all seemed to have the particular colour down pat, though not everything was such a beige or cream colour. It shouldn't be hard to find a house to that specification, but he did want to find a large one, find a very nice one that he and his kitten could live in without too much disruption. Maybe something with a basement or cellar. Such an evil notion and connotation but...for now, she would never have to know.

All he had to do now was find some sort of housing registry, find a particular building that dealt with city housing affairs. He assumed of course, it was in the nicest district of town, close to the palace for all it's officialness. He quite enjoyed walking with her though, even in the silence, every so often he felt her fingers playing with his, and he would smile unconsciously. Her sudden words however almost made him falter and trip up, though eh did have to stop to look at her. Asyel. So that was her name, after all this...he finally had her name. She tried not to look at him, but he was looking at her eyes, and when she darted to look at him, she would find the grandest of smiles upon his face. "Asyel. It is...such a beautiful name, that even if you made me wait a week it would still be worth it." He wasn't lying to her either, that's what surprised him. Her name was beautiful, and it was most certainly worth any amount of wait. It rolled, it flowed, it was fluid...and it so perfectly matched his name. Asyel and Alyxsi. He leaned in suddenly and placed a kiss upon her lips, just a gentle one.

"Thank you Asyel. For letting me know that even the Gods name their angels as perfect as they make them." Oh he was a bit corny sure, but she loved compliments, and he really did believe her name was truly excellent. It seemed so fitting...short, and yet...so beautiful. On the tongue it was perfect, just as it rolled off and made absolute harmony.

Perhaps he was letting his persona run away a bit too much...

[Anonymous]

It was a strange thing really. Asyel had always thought of herself as an independent person, one who doesn't rely on others for help or company. She had, after all, lived alone, secluded from others for who knows how long. And being an elf in Connlaoth only made it easier to convince herself that she didn't need people around her to survive in the world. But now...now she couldn't be so sure that she could be alone. She looked at the man next to her and felt somehow connected to him. He had all the characteristics of a person she had been taught to hate or scorn, and yet, here she was with him after a night of bliss. She had never imagined in all her life to find a man, and now she had one quite the opposite of what she imagined and she...

She loved it.

She loved every minute they spent together. She loved every word, every action, each kiss and touch. She had loved them from that first kiss and she would love them until the last word he spoke to her. She couldn't quite imagine her life without him anymore, and she hoped he felt the same. But even if he didn't, she hoped maybe she could convince him that she was good enough to stay by him. She had to convince him. There would have to be a way.

Telling him her name seemed to work.

Even though she felt highly embarrassed about the whole thing, she was thrilled to have him know her name. She felt as if a wall that she was trying to get past had cleared itself out of her path to him. That smile. Her favorite smile. It greeted her and reassured her that she hadn't made a mistake. She felt her heart pound hard in her chest at the sight of it. She gave him a small smile in return; half of her knowing it would never be as grand as his, half of her no longer caring. She no longer felt the need to prove her worth to him. His words, his smile, his kiss; it all spoke on his behalf.

His words, of course, made her blush turn a shade darker. "Why thank you, Alyxsi, but it's just a name." She let out a small giggle. She tried to collect herself back up, controlling her heartbeat and taking a deep breath to stop herself from giggling more. She leaned up on her tiptoes and pressed her lips to his. She brought her hands up around his neck, holding onto him for a few, grand moments. When she broke the kiss, she lightly bit her lip, holding back another fit of nervous giggles that threatened to break through.

Everything seemed to come easier to her now.

She continued smiling, but she began to start walking again. She could see the houses changing slightly as they continued to walk forward. They were getting larger and more complex looking. The lawns were greener and covered more area. Overall, they just looked more expensive. She held onto Alyxsi so he could direct her body where to walk while her eyes were elsewhere. Asyel looked around at all of them like a child in a candy store. Each one was different, had a slightly different feel to it, and she couldn't help but be excited to have the opportunity to look at them.

She pulled her eyes away from all the houses and looked back at Alyxsi. She was still curious as the whether him taking her along to look for houses was an invitation or not. Would she be welcome to stay with him once he found a house he was fond of? And if so, for how long? She couldn't be sure if they were official as a couple, but she couldn't help but think of them as one. And even though neither of them said it, people watching them would call them a couple. She smiled. Asyel and Alyxsi. It rolled off the tongue. It flowed, in every sense of the word. Her mind mentally drew a heart around their names. She looked up at him from the corner of her eyes.

Asyel and Alyxsi.

Together 4-ever.

[Anonymous]

All of his life, even in the earliest of childhood, Alyxsi had relied on others to help him in his life. It was a strange thing, to figure that this man...this...very odd man, wasn't independent. Not even a little really. When he was younger, he relied on his sister for help and support. That worked out usually for the better, a formidable duo that none dare upset. After his sister had to go a different way than him, he had to turn to others for support. Oh sure, he used his powers to convince a lot of them to let him lean on them, but he still had to. He was a social leech, who lived off people, and couldn't be alone. Oh no...he had to have people around him, or with him. People like Asyel, who unfortunately fell into his web and got trapped like a fly.

The wicked webs we weave.

However, it wasn't as if he wasn't trapped in a web either. He knew he was, and he was quite enjoying it. Most likely, he would have erased her mind by now and left to go and enjoy another tawdry scene of passion and desire. She had however, stopped him from that, by catching him in a web of her own. It wasn't as if it weren't fun of course, he found this woman to be very refreshing. And from Connlaoth none the less! Her kind, well, her culture, hated people like him, and here he was now holding onto her and having a grand old time.

If only they could see her now!

Now he knew her name, he knew some of her life, he knew her body quite well, and everything was falling together. Whether he figured she was easily to manipulate, it was hard to tell. On one hand, he had slept with her after only a few hours of acting like a right gentleman...but...on the other hand. She had made him stay. It was a disconcerting thought if he ever had one, she had made him stay with her, she had manipulated him for her own ends...and it was good. He could flash a smile and her knees went weak, but she just had this way about her that made him feel...regret that he would eventually get bored and leave her. She also had a way about her that made him want to stay even more. It was probably the spots, and her smile, her voice, her name, her body, her...everything.

A scary thought, but this was another exhilarating experience!

"But it's your name, and every bit as beautiful my dear." Alyxsi smiled after he spoke to her. He did not expect her to kiss him, no, that was completely unexpected, and he couldn't help but let his hands find their way to her waist to help her lift a bit better into the kiss. The height difference may have been a tad noticeable, but at the same time, it was quite enjoyable. It made for moments like this, which no doubt if anyone was watching, would seem very cutesy. Not that he minded looking cutesy, it meant he would get a better reputation, people would remember him as a sweet man.

He barely even noticed that the kiss had stopped, and was disappointed when she started walking again. He had liked that kiss...no matter though, it was onward and upward! More so because she was walking and he had to lead, since he had a general idea as to where he was going. The houses were getting better, the quality was improving, so was the general area. A lot more...picture perfect really. Walking beside Asyel, his eyes spied different houses. He wanted the right one...the perfect house. The basement would be a must, but he wanted one that reflected who he pretended to be.

The son of a noble, perhaps that of a baron or a duke, something very nice that people would respect and fear slightly. The house had to reflect exactly that. It had to be grand...but it couldn't be too big. After all, the premise was that it was more for his parents being landholders here, and just a place for him to stay on occasion. Granted, now he had Asyel, and that meant that he might end up having company quite a bit. He wasn't sure what to think on her, she was a prize, a peach, an angel come to the mortal world but...he was a sinner, he was a man without care and wild abandon. How long could they last? She generally seemed uninterested in his wealth, his status, she seemed to like him for...who he pretended to be.

For the Alyxsi that wasn't real.

Back to the houses however. He was unaware of what she was thinking, of a life that she was planning. He was busy looking for some place that didn't have owners and occupants. There wouldn't be a sign out front saying so, the place would simply look like it had no owner to it. Then you'd go to the registry in the city centre, and ask to buy the house, and so on and so forth. Luckily Alyxsi had a few tricks up his sleeve, and the house he wanted would be his. It didn't take him long to find a house that looked like the previous owner had left. Nice quaint looking place too, it had two floors, and he was sure by the cellar doors at the side that it had a basement. It wasn't all together bad, and it was in their colour too! It had a small sort of lawn, no fence, but that was to be expected in a city.

The stone walk way to the door looked nice. It was definitely without an owner, the long grass, the peeling paint, all of it sort of indicated someone probably didn't live here. He memorized the house, and the street they were on, before looking to Asyel. "What do you think my dear? A bit of paint and it will be perfect for us." He said it. He could have winced afterwards, but he kept a straight face and a smile on his lips. He had said us. While they both probably knew this would happen, he hadn't meant to be so...forthright about it. Not yet anyway.

Ah well.

Together 4-ever.

[Anonymous]

It was official.

Asyel was stuck in her own little fantasy world. Sunshine, slight breeze blowing through her hair, birds chirping in the background, green all around, a walk through a beautiful neighborhood on the arm of her perfect guy. It all seemed so perfect. But there was one problem. She didn't feel like it was really her living it all. She imagined someone who looked like her taking her place, someone who wasn't afraid to try new things or speak her mind. Someone quite the opposite of herself. It was almost as if she had built a new persona to match Alyxsi's outgoing personality, so she could avoid being left behind. She didn't feel like herself, but not being herself almost seemed....natural.

Natural and perfect.

And she didn't think Alyxsi minded the new her. It was probably less frustrating for him now that she was opening up and actually telling him information about her life, small details like where she was from and her favorite color, and...her name. She giggled silently. He must have the patience of a saint.

She followed Alyxsi up the stone walk of a beautiful house. It reminded her something of what she used to have as a young girl, a twinge of sadness shooting through her. She clutched his shirt in her fist, trying to control herself, hoping he didn't notice. It truly was a beautiful house; decent sized yard, big, several trees around and then there was the house itself. The paint was chipping slightly, but it was nothing they couldn't fix. She glanced up at the second story of the house, smiling. Her room was on the second floor of her old house, looking out into the street. It was painful to think about sometimes, but now she could relive it. She was thinking when Alyxsi said something to make her thoughts stop dead in their tracks.

Us?

She froze at his side. Did she hear him correct? Was he being serious about allowing her to live with him? She stared straight forward at the door of the house. Would this be his house...their house? She looked up at Alyxsi, trying to keep the expression on her face the same as it was, an impossible task. She thought she expected him to say she could live with him, but when she actually heard it from his lips...she couldn't believe it. She was happy, excited, ecstatic, but she didn't know how to react. She opened her mouth to respond to his question, but no words came out. She had forgotten to breath. She inhaled deeply, the oh-so-familiar blush returning to her cheeks. She glanced back at the house, smiling. "It's beautiful. Absolutely stunning." She sighed happily.

She narrowed her eyes. "Can we take a look inside of it?" She wondered if it would look at all like her house on the inside. Would it have the hard floors, the curved staircase, the double fire place? The more she thought about her old house, the more curious she grew about this one. And the more curious she grew, the more anxious she got. She stood on her tip toes so she could try to be equal height to Alyxsi, hoping maybe that would make him say yes. Her eyes darted to all the windows, glanced over the walls, and stopped on the front door again. She wondered idly if there were any sort of pond or lake in the back yard. That could be fun. A small smirk came to her lips.

She had definitely changed a lot since yesterday.

[Anonymous]

The new Asyel, oh Gods how he loved knowing her name, was definitely a change of pace from the old unnamed woman. Both of them had their own special merits to him. Asyel was bold and exciting, she was open and able to display her emotions, while Kitten was shy and timid, she had a hard time accepting gifts as well as food. Kitten had been rather fun, trying his best to keep her around, to keep her interested in him, paying her little compliments and little treats to keep her occupied. She had been a rather tough little egg to crack, and he wouldn't deny that he had loved every moment of it. She had been so against him, so afraid, so disgusted with him, she had tried to get out of his grasp and just escape him at every turn.

Now she was holding onto him, walking down the street in broad daylight. A young woman from Connlaoth, raised to hate the magical folk, walking with a man who was almost an epitome of magical nature. She didn't know how magical of course, and he probably wouldn't let on how much either. Not at first. Maybe not...ever. Again, two Alyxsi, fighting over the proper dominance of the mind. He wouldn't admit it, but he did have trouble like this before, where a persona of his had felt a bit more real than who he actually was.

He was happy however to stay like this and simply...ignore his true nature. For the time being, he was Alyxsi, the nice and helpful young noble estranged from his family. It was a good enough cover, and it wasn't a complete lie. He was estranged from his family after all, but it wasn't because they were always busy or anything. There were...reasons, ones that probably wouldn't be liked by Asyel. He'd ensure she never found out, and she probably wouldn't, all things considered. People just didn't really know him here, and at that was fine by him honestly. He didn't want them to know him, he didn't want any of them to really figure out what he was all about. Then again...only the people of his small village knew his true...crimes, while any others he had harassed and done such terrible things to would never know...not unless someone was able to make them remember.

Being a psychic was a pretty terrific thing.

She was lucky, he didn't notice her as she gripped his shirt into her fist. If he did, he probably wouldn't have known what to say. For her benefit, he would have ignored it and not bring up anything. It would have been obvious that she was having a bad emotional reaction. Luckily though, it wasn't noticed, he just kept his eye on the house in front of him. It was a rather nice house, living in the city, in a better district like this where you could have a bit of room, a bit of privacy was always welcome. He definitely had plans for this house, it would be a good base of operations. He just didn't like the idea of having to psychically influence a lot of people to keep his house. Some things showed up in tax records and housing records...which would be...well...bad? Of course, he could always get the person at the registry to just say that he paid...and he'd have to find the tax recorder and...convince them that he paid his taxes on time.

He was almost lost in his own little world, barely noticing that Asyel didn't walk forward with him. She was frozen there, and instead of saying anything Alyxsi just didn't walk forward. Something had obviously stopped her, and he wasn't going to start dragging her along. It was cute to see her suddenly flustered, just like she had been. She tried to speak, but there were no words, but soon things returned to a somewhat normal manner. "Not as stunning as you my pet." He told her as he gently caressed the side of her face, feeling the heat from her blushing cheeks.

Alyxsi shook his head though. "I'm afraid not. They don't leave them unlocked, for fear of vagabonds and vandals. We'd have to get someone from the city to come and unlock the door for us." Which was actually easy enough, they'd just have to find the housing registry, or some sort of official city building. He considered asking a guard, but no doubt the housing registry was somewhere near the castle, or in the more official looking part of town. "Let's go see if we can't find someone to let us take a look inside." Then they'd have to go find an artisan or two to get furniture made up for them, and a clothier and textile master to get...well...clothes and blankets and what not. It wasn't going to be a huge deal, but it just meant more people had to be hypnotized.

"Then we can decide if we want this house or not."

[Anonymous]

She couldn't help it.

She was hooked. He had broken through her barrier, the one she had built up for years. The one that she had made to keep people out. The one that would protect her from being harmed by hurtful words or gestures. The one that she hoped was strong enough to keep even her own emotions from breaking through. The one that had failed to do that. He had broken through it and now she was walking on a tight rope that was their relationship, whatever it was. But on either side of her were the more-than-likely situations that she would fall into. She knew that she would eventually have to fall, which would hurt. And when she fell, she would either be harmed and then recover, building up a stronger shield than her previous one, or die.

Perhaps that was a bit extreme, but she couldn't help thinking it. She wanted to be near him, yes, but she didn't trust him. It wasn't so much him she didn't trust, but it was the entire human-esc species that she didn't trust. She found that more often than not, people would get bored. And when they get bored, bad things happen. Normally they pick out things that they don't like about a person, nit-picky things like their voice or the way they walk. Eventually those things build up until they find that they can't stand the other person. That then results in things being said between the two people until neither one can stand the other. She knew that's not how all relationships were, but she saw that sort of thing happen more than a few times, and she didn't want it to happen to her, especially now that he broke through to who she really was.

But that didn't mean she didn't want to spend as much time as possible with him. She still wanted to see what would happen later on in the future. She wanted to see what it would be like to like someone the way she did and have them like her back. She wanted to know what it was like to have someone at her side, telling her things she wanted to hear, even if she didn't know she wanted to hear them. She wanted so much, and she hoped Alyxsi would be able to make a dent in the list she made in her head. A bucket list, so to speak. She smiled. That was exactly it.

She was slightly disappointed when he said they wouldn't be able to look inside, not yet anyway. She was anxious to see the inside of the house, but she would just have to be patient. What was with her? She had always been patient, but now she was unable to control herself. She took a deep breath and nodded at him. "Shall we go find someone then?" she said, almost too eagerly. She channeled the old Asyel to help her relax a bit, looking up in the sky as she did so. There were a few clouds in the sky, and not the light, fluffy ones. They were more like the ones that you might see before a thunderstorm. They were pretty far away, but eventually they would be over both of them and then...well they'd be wet. "Because if we are, we may want to do it quick. I think it's going to rain." May as well bring it to his attention. She didn't necessarily mind the rain, but some didn't like it.

(oy...short post -.-)

[Anonymous]

((More like "Oi, awesome post" if you ask me. Which you will. So that's what I say. ALSO! You're TebbyCat now! *SNUGGLES TIGHT* I love it! <333))

This was going a whole lot better than he expected.

Well. There were two halves of that particular argument actually. There was one half, the new Alyxsi that said things were going a lot better than expected. Then...there was the old half of Alyxsi. It was just a small voice in the back of his head, but it said a lot. It said things like 'You're getting attached to this woman.' and 'You need to stop this.' There were those words, but it really wasn't a strong voice, it wasn't going to affect him. He was really surprised actually, he usually didn't get this way...but...for some reason she was...changing him.

It was a very scary thought.

Alyxsi knew that he had to be careful. The two of them were...getting somewhere together. They were talking about...getting a home...about...starting a life in this city. What sort of...trouble was he getting in anyway? Serious with a woman? No! Not him! NOT HIM EVER. He was a hunter. She was prey. She was HIS prey. That's all she was, prey, a toy for his amusement, she was...going to live with him like an equal...like...no. Not even an equal. Like his lover.

How exactly was this going to work anyway?

He was a crazy psychopath with psychic powers that liked to rape, torture, and mentally damage people. She was...she was innocent...harmless...alone. Ugh, he couldn't...even believe he was thinking that. Well, he wasn't thinking that, new Alyxsi was. New Alyxsi was...better than old Alyxsi, but new Alyxsi was just temporary, that was all. Temporary...he could believe that. He had to believe that. He wasn't going to let...her change him.

It was impossible.

"Aye, that sounds like a good idea. Don't want to purchase a house that could be faulty." With everything in mind, he was sure that he'd be able to find the house on a registry list. Hopefully the building was actually for sale and not reserved. It wasn't as if...he could ah...persuade them to sell it anyway. That was on of his greatest little tricks. He smiled knowingly to himself at that though. "Really?" He looked skyward and blinked a few times. Yeah, she was right, it looked like it was actually going to rain. Huh, well that wasn't good now was it? Not that it meant too much of course, it was just rain. Granted, he could get sick if it got too cold and he was wet and his immune system got all weak because of it. Still, it seemed warm enough that if it did rain that wouldn't be too.

"A good spring rain never hurt anyone. Been stuck in a few downpours myself...heh, that had been kinda fun. Mother was furious of course, ruined my clothes with mud but...sliding down a hill can be exceptionally fun." Granted, it had been rolling down the hill with a woman in a rather passionate embrace, and well...his mother didn't actually know. He didn't care that his parents were alive, or if they were dead. They served their purpose, gave birth to him...and now he couldn't care less about them.

With a charming smile and a kiss on the cheek however he started off with her. "But we wouldn't want to get in a downpour. That would be terrible, we'd be all wet, then we'd have to strip off the wet clothes, cuddle up together in such indecency together in a blanket and keep each other warm. Terrible thought that?" His voice of course was playful. He was quite up for that, and of course, for more, but he wanted to play somewhat coy with her. He couldn't have her thinking he was easy or anything! Heaven no! Not him!

Now was just trying to look for an official looking building. That would be the housing board, the registry and all that. Really, he was just looking for the large ornate place with a big sign and a bunch of guards out front of it. He knew that would be the place, without a doubt. The question was just where it was? Damn this city was big, but damn if it wasn't a great place to keep him safe.

Safe from those who would seek to destroy him. Those would view him as the monster he was.

[Anonymous]

What if.

What if she had trusted her initial instinct? The one that told her to flee, to go back to the world she knew, the familiar one where she could quickly hide herself and be away from the confusing world around her. What if she had denied him access to the room he got for her? The night of confusion, learning, and passion; it never would have happened. What if she had left without a trace during the night? They would not be where they are now, he would not know her name, and many, many questions would be left unanswered.

Questions like 'what happens next?', or 'what exactly was their relationship?', two questions she hoped to have answered in the near future. But this was new to both of them; he had said so when he met her. He had said he never met anyone like her. Perhaps...he didn't know the answers either. That could be problematic. She wasn't the type who needed to know what the next step was, but it sure helped. She didn't know what she was doing, and uncertainty for her never led to anything good. She was falling back to the old Asyel, the one who shied away from change, and even though she didn't want to, it would happen eventually.

But Alyxsi made everything seem so easy. Each move seemed like he had planned it, and she was given easy directions to follow along. A dance, each step following after the previous, gracefully twisting to where they were now. And Alyxsi was the choreographer, carefully guiding his new dancer along to the music. He kept her moving, and even though she was cautious as to what the next step was, he didn't misstep. He had successfully guided her through everything, and he was still going. Even now, when they were only walking down the street, she was at full attention. She was worried if she let her guard down, he would do something to completely sweep her off her feet.

She smiled at him when he kissed her cheek, touching the spot lightly with her fingers. And his next words made her smirk and bit her lower lip. Yes, it would be terrible, if terrible was another word for extraordinary. She could hear the playful tone in his voice, see the twinkle in his eye. His smile only added to the powerful effect he had on her, and it took much of her effort to concentrate on breathing. It was amazing how much everything he did still affected her.

As they hurried to the registry building, the clouds were quickly catching up overhead. Neither was in hurry to escape the rain, or at least that's how Asyel saw it. She enjoyed the thought of curling up with Alyxsi to warm up after being soaked to the bone in a rain storm. She shivered. Even now, it was still weird to be thinking thoughts like that. But as they got nearer to the more official looking buildings, the weird feeling disappeared.  There were guards by many of the buildings, a sight that made her slightly nervous. In Connlaoth, this many guards would usually mean they were after a magic-user, or someone who looked like they were going to cause trouble for the city. But she was in Serendipity, and lucky for her, she was also with Alyxsi. She would be fine here.

She looked around at everything and then up at Alyxsi. There was one question looming in her mind. "How...how are you going to afford a house?" She was aware that there were some people lucky enough to be heirs to large amounts of money, or maybe even have jobs that made them rich at an early age.  He had said that his parents had wanted him to buy a house out here, but would they help him pay for it? He told her he didn't talk to his family much anymore, so it was anyone's guess. She didn't want to accuse him of anything, but she couldn't help her curiosity. Houses were not the cheapest things around.

She grimaced slightly. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked that. It's none of my business." Maybe he would just politely ignore her question, forgetting her mistake. She could only hope that that was what would happen. He looked so important: the way he dressed, the way he carried himself. He was obviously ok financially. Would he be upset that she had even questioned him on such a thing? She walked next to him, avoiding his eyes, mentally slapping herself. She was stupid. As she was beating herself up over her silly little mistake, she felt a raindrop on her cheek.  She looked up and saw the edges of the clouds starting to catch up to them.

[Anonymous]

Not everything that Alyxsi did was perfectly planned. He found that if he planned out every little detail, accounted for every action and reaction, things would obviously become boring and predictable. He liked to leave things to mystery and chance once in a while. Buying a house had not been on his plan of things, but now with Asyel at his side and somewhat in his heart, he felt it prudent to get one. He didn't know exactly why, perhaps he wanted some privacy...after all, he had planned to enjoy this girl quite a bit. Yes. Privacy would be a virtue for this relationship.

He just had to be very careful with her. She was a delicate and fragile psyche. Trying to get her involved in too many things at once might reactive that flight instinct of hers. The one that would tell her to just run and flee from him. No, he had to be extraordinarily careful with her.

It was a dance of perversion, deception, and dominance. Alyxsi could train her well in it, make her follow along like a happy puppy, she'd never even know either. He just had to be careful. If he dipped her too soon, or spun her too quickly, it could all be over. To put it lightly, he might step on his partner's toes and send her running. As it stood, she didn't know how odd Alyxsi really was. She saw the man of dashing smiles and kind words, and...he almost wanted it to stay that way. It's like he was being infected by this persona. He had been doing this particular dance too long maybe. Did he want to stop though? He wasn't honestly sure about that one.

Alyxsi could feel something from Asyel. A tightening of grip, a slight catch her step, even her eyes had changed slightly, the pupils dilating and her eyes widening. She was nervous. Of what? Had she suddenly decided to regret her decision? No...he followed her gaze to the guards. Ah. Of course. The guards. Now it all made sense didn't it? He gave her arm a reassuring squeeze, knowing that in Connlaoth a guard wasn't always your friend. That wasn't the case here, it usually never was.

He had found time and time again just how good guards could be.

Alyxsi smiled at her question, and even laughed afterwards when she said it was none of her business. He leaned down and placed a kiss on the top of her head. "My business is your business. This house will...probably be as much for me as it will be for you. I'll basically tell them who I am, who my parents are, we'll straighten out a deal, then I'll work out a payment plan for my parents...they'll get the bill and start sending money to Arca, then the house will be paid off." It wasn't a particularly complicated thing, quite simple really. It wasn't the truth, oh not by a long shot actually. He would go in there, talk a little bit about the house they wanted, then he'd excuse Asyel, saying that the next little bit was sensitive matters that his parents would be appalled if he shared, hypnotized the registry commissioner or whoever he was dealing with, and they'd have the key to the house in no time.

"Now, let's go inside, before we're rained on." He had noticed a few drops on his own person, as on her as well. For some reason he almost wanted to lick one of them off of her. He had seen one right on her neck, and knew how sensitive that spot could be on her. Heh. He shook that thought from his mind as the guards opened the door for Asyel and himself, quickly getting inside. The place wasn't all together busy, and it was very official looking actually. There were some people milling about, and a few people behind counters doing paperwork. He approached one with a noble stride, placing his hand on the counter top. "I would like to see someone about purchasing a house in Arca." Alyxsi stated to the somewhat older gentleman behind the counter. The man had a feather quill in his hand, looked almost bored as he addressed Alyxsi. "Yes, I can help you with that."

Now things were looking up. Alyxsi told the man the place he wanted to purchase, then took the two of them into a back room to explain how things worked, the purchase agreement, payment plan, that sort of thing. When it was getting down to the wire, Alyxsi leaned into Asyel to speak quietly to her. "Could you excuse me and the gentleman now kitten? I have some sensitive business matters to discuss with him about my parents, who don't often enjoy people knowing about them. It shan't take more than a few minutes, and by the time you blink we'll be heading off to our new home."

[Anonymous]

They hurried on inside the building, away from the rain, the guards, the outside world. She relaxed more once she couldn't see the guards staring anymore. In Connlaoth, if you were someone who looked liked a magic user or someone who looked suspicious in anyway, guards were there to arrest and question you. She had grown up with that as the way life was, and it would take more than a few days to break her of that mindset. But inside, everything seemed less intimidating. She glanced around at the room they were in; a well put together area with plants and people and fancy decorations all around them. It kept her mind preoccupied and allowed her to organize her thoughts.

Alyxsi spoke to the man behind the counter. They were quickly escorted to a room in the back, well furnished like the previous one had been, though smaller of course. All three of them sat down in the chairs and Asyel looked around nervously. She was startled the slightest bit when Alyxsi leaned over to speak to her, though his voice instantly soothed her nerves. When she heard his wishes, she smiled. "Sure thing," she whispered back, kissing him quickly before excusing herself from the room. No need to get into business she wouldn't understand anyways. And with that, she walked back into the main room.

But without Alyxsi by her side, she grew nervous again. Not as much as before, but still enough to make her walk about the room instead of sitting still. She wandered from portrait to portrait, reading useless information about the people in the picture that she wouldn't remember once she read the next one. She came across a painting of a rather large woman with average features and a name that didn't matter. She was reading the information lazily as her mind raced with thoughts of what could be going on in the other room. What if his parents couldn't afford that particular house? Would he apologize and politely send her back to live on the streets? What if the house was not for sale? What if he changed his mind? She wouldn't be able to handle that.

She took a deep breath, remembering the words he had said to her. He had said the house would be for them, and that they would find the perfect one. She smiled. he wouldn't do that to me. He must care at least a little bit if he kept me around this long. She relaxed and took a break from reading the pictures. She took a seat on a chair that was nearby, sitting patiently waiting for Alyxsi to return. Her thoughts never slowed though. She was having constant arguments with herself. He doesn't love you. He could never love you. You are just a filthy elf from Connlaoth. You don't deserve him. But he didn't give up. He tried too hard to change my mind about him to give up now. this continued for several minutes until she was thoroughly convinced she was insane.

Her thoughts continued until they were interrupted by a voice she didn't recognize, simply saying Oh how I love the rain.  It was deep, sounded aged and sarcastic...

And it was right next to her.

Her head snapped up and she jumped slightly at the sound of it. She glanced around, looking for who could have possibly said it. But the nearest person was on the opposite side of the room. She glanced behind her quickly before standing up and walking over to the person. "um...excuse me sir" she said, lightly tapping the man on his shoulder. He turned quickly to look at the person addressing him and smiled when he saw Asyel. "why yes, young lady, what may I help you with?" He was an older man, his hair graying and his skin wrinkling. His voice sounded just like the one Asyel had heard a few seconds ago. She cleared her throat and shifted her weight nervously. "I..uh..did you say something just a moment ago?" The man gave her a confused look and she blushed slightly. He thought for a moment before saying "I don't believe so, miss. Why do you ask?" She glanced away from him before responding. "Oh no reason, I just thought I heard something," and with that, she found her seat again, leaving the confused man behind her.

What had just happened? It had been that man's voice, so he had to have spoken. Maybe he had lied to her. But why would he lie about something so small and insignificant? She shook her head. Maybe she could ask Alyxsi. Maybe he could explain. No. She couldn't tell him she is hearing voices. He would think her unfit to live with him. He would dump her on the streets. She couldn't have that happen.

[Anonymous]

She was certainly a good little doll wasn't she? There wasn't the slightest bit of hurt when he asked her to leave. She even smiled at him, and returned his kiss. This was perfect. In the back of his head, he wished he had done a little...thing to make sure she didn't suddenly feel like running away after she was outside alone. That would be the most annoying thing, to have her suddenly gone when he walked outside. He'd hopefully be able to find her afterwards, but she was a delicate one, and he knew he'd have to be very careful. "Thank you my dear." He told her graciously as she stood to leave.

Absolutely perfect.

When she left the room, Alyxsi's expression melted away into one of seriousness. His eyes were already alight with power and he was staring down the man intently, their eyes locked on each other. "You will carry the house to be free, balancing the books to seem like someone is paying the King taxes on it. If anyone asks, you will tell them that it is owned by a lesser noble family from the outskirts of Serendipity. You will ensure that the family name you use never finds out of course." Alyxsi began, making sure that his dominance was going through correctly. The man just stared dumbly as his sharp mind took in this new information. Bureaucrats were tough people, they had good minds, they weren't feeble minded shop keepers or simple peasants, they had a head for numbers and logic.

They could be beat though, Alyxsi was good after all, he had to be if he wanted to survive.

It took a few more minutes of talking and getting everything worked out, but he was soon done with the man, who was furiously working out the deed. The man didn't even seem to notice that he had been duped, that he hadn't been paid money but had just been made 'promises' of money. He'd be adjusting things here and there to bring in a tad more money that would then be used to pay for the house Alyxsi had claimed. It was rather perfect really...he was actually quite proud of himself, and of the little quill pushing man behind the desk.

The man had to look through a book of nobles and such, finding the right family to put in the deed, but soon he was handing over all the work to Alyxsi, who took it gratefully. He'd even managed to get the man to put out money for furnishing. He wasn't sure exactly how it was going to work, but apparently there were ways of doing it. Alyxsi realized he had found the exact right person to make all of his little...dreams come true. Sure, they may have had a touch of perverted fantasy to them, but they were still dreams.

With his business concluded, he thanked the man, shook his hand, and took his new house key into the hall. A nearby mirror was used to check his appearance, make sure his hair was all in the right place, that his clothes were straight and neat...though the shoulders had a few wet spots on them from rain, he quickly tried to smooth them out a little to make them less noticeable. He made sure to put the key away in his inner shirt pocket, nice and safe just in case. They were just With everything said and done he headed into the main room to find Asyel. To his...delight actually, she was still there, sitting on a bench waiting for him. He strode over to her, smiling as he did so.

He couldn't explain it, but...Alyxsi was actually happy she was still there. Genuinely happy...and not just because of the things he wanted to do to her but...he was actually...happy. Quickly he pushed it aside though as he stopped in front of her, holding his hand out to her. "Shall we head back to the Inn now kitten? I'd say we should go to the house but without any furnishings we wouldn't want to be stuck in an empty house waiting out the rain." Of course, they might get lucky and a couch or chair could be left behind...and if it was too cold in there they could always make their own warmth but...it was a lot of 'if's and hopefullys' and he didn't want to take the chance really. They could go back to the inn, and tomorrow morning they could go shopping for a bed and some furniture for their house...probably look into some firewood for the stove and fireplaces...food...oh so much to do.

For now he wanted to go back to the Inn and enjoy some more closeness with Asyel. Oddly, he didn't care if they ended up in a romantic situation...he just wanted to hold her and be close with her. It was the damndest feeling really...but he was sure that it was to help her grow accustomed to him holding her and touching her. Yes. That's what it must have been.

[Anonymous]

Her mind was racing, finding any explanation as to how the man could have spoken to her and said nothing at all at the same time. Perhaps it had been a mistake, and she only thought she had heard something. That seemed logical, and could very well be true. She hadn't slept much last night, so perhaps it was the lack of sleep messing with her mind. Yes. That had to be it.

But the voice had matched up with that man's perfectly. Same deep, aged sound, with a hint of rasp to it. She couldn't have imagined the same sound and she hadn't heard the man speak. It didn't make sense to her. She put her hands to her temples, pressing gently to try to relieve the pressure building as more and more possibilities popped into her head. She focused on anything else...the floor, the walls, the plants. But it didn't work to well. Her mind kept snapping back to details about why she was hearing voices. She hissed slightly and closed her eyes, leaning back against the bench.

She heard footsteps approaching her and looked up to see Alyxsi. Sweet relief. Her mind was swept of all previous thoughts and she couldn't help but smile as he neared her. With each step, she was reminded why she loved being with him. He stopped in front of her and held out his hand, which she took happily, allowing him to help pull her to her feet. She took her place at his side, still looking up at him. His words confused her for but a moment, but it made sense. Sitting in an empty house while the rain poured around them would not be ideal. In fact, she shuddered a bit at the idea. It would remind her a lot of her life back in Connlaoth: hiding in abandoned buildings to hide from people passing by. She didn't want to go back to that life.

They walked together out of the building and into the light rain. The rain was warm, and it definitely soothed the remaining nerves she had. As they walked, the rain picked up. They tried their best to stay under the shelter over trees or overhangs, but inevitably, they got wet. Asyel thought about having fun with the situation, perhaps splashing him with water from a puddle, or perhaps twirling out in the open, or maybe even sharing a kiss as the rain came down on them. But she was not about to be the one to initiate those kinds of acts. She may have changed a lot from last night, but that was not her strong point. So instead, she fantasized about them as they made their way back to the Inn.

She stayed fairly silent as the walked, answering every so often if he were to speak to her. Her thoughts were still everywhere. The new house, the man standing next to her, her new personality, the unexplained voice in her head, it all made her head a very crowded place. Just as she thought she was starting to organize her thoughts, a voice spoke to her, though not the same one as before. She froze. It was a woman's voice, speaking a language she didn't understand. The voice sounded distraught, almost frustrated. She glanced around her, seeing a few people rushing to get to their destinations without getting to wet. There was one woman that caught Asyel's eye. She was crouching down on the sidewalk, curled over what appeared to be shattered glass. Perhaps she had spoken out after dropping the object? Asyel's expression showed her discomfort with that explanation. If she had indeed spoken, Alyxsi would have heard it too. He showed no reaction towards the sound.

She tried to push the thought out of her head and went back to walking. Soon they would be back to the Inn, cuddling together as they dried off. She inhaled deeply, letting the thought of Alyxsi's arms wrapped around her work its magic. That was definitely a good way to spend an afternoon. In fact, she was now anxious to get back to their room, speeding up the pace of her walk ever so slightly. They would get there, shed their wet clothes, and wrap themselves together, and all worries would be lifted away. She smiled.

Hopefully her mind would behave itself.

[Anonymous]

He only wished he could hear what was going on in Asyel's head.

His approach toward her seemed...almost like something may have been wrong. Of course, she was a shy woman who was pretty lost without him so he wasn't too surprised. She seemed incredibly relieved to see him so that usually meant that he was quite right in his assumption that she had just been lost and waiting for him. It was adorable to see her so dependant on him already, quite nice really....it meant that everything he was doing was right now wasn't it?

She cuddled right up beside him after he helped her up, and he felt much better with her there. That's where she should be anyway, right at his side. It was the right place for her to be, and he wanted to make sure she'd be there for a while. Though, it wasn't like she was going to leave him any time soon if he was smart.

As they walked into the rain, he wished that he had brought a cloak or something like that, something that he could just wrap around the top of their heads to keep them dry. Alas, he hadn't remembered to bring anything nice like that. He did his best to make sure they stayed under overhangs and trees, but they were gonna get wet. He was more or less thinking about how much fun the two of them could have when they got back to the Inn. Alyxsi had no idea that Asyel would actually like to enjoy their time outside in the rain. He could be romantic, but there were some things that he just didn't think about. Twirling about in the water and skipping through puddles just wasn't something that he viewed as completely romantic. He did however keep her as close as possible, trying to shield her from the rain as much as he could.

He...he uh couldn't have her getting sick after all. Yes. That was it.

It was a good as time as any to talk and ask her questions about her life, about travelling mostly. He knew that her life was a little...well it was something he had to be careful talking to her about. He knew that it was a sensitive subject. He wasn't paying attention much to what was going on, but when Asyel froze, Alyxsi did too, looking at her with a raised eyebrow. Something was wrong, and he wasn't sure what was going on. She just seemed to be...looking for something perhaps? He wasn't actually sure, she just seemed...preoccupied with something. Of course with her, he was used to her having a little bit of...well...things like this. She might just have suddenly had a little panic attack. She started walking again, and he made sure to give her a little kiss on the top of the head and tried to find out what happened but she wasn't talking.

They finally got back to the Inn, and Alyxsi led Asyel back up to the room, though he made sure to have some food ordered for later...right now he just wanted to dry off with Asyel. When they got into the room, Alyxsi made sure to get his clothes off, changing simply into a pair of black leggings. Of course, he helped Asyel out of her dress, slowly undoing each button. With each button he undid, he would place a kiss upon her neck. When the dress was finally all undone, he slowly helped to strip it off her, pressing himself against her body as he wrapped his arms around her. "I don't know about you Asyel...but I'm feeling quite...cold...want to help warm me up?" He asked her with a slightly mischievous grin on his face. Oh he did love her body...but...he didn't even want sex.

He just wanted her to be with him...to hold her in his arms. "I think we should snuggle up to each other on the lounger."

[Anonymous]

Just when things seemed to be settling down, turning normal...

Dammit! Damn that stupid mind of hers! Damn those stupid fears! Damn that protective shell! She wished at that moment that they would all disappear. She wished she could know what it was like to live the life of a normal person with normal thoughts. She wished she could start over and make it so she wasn't so afraid and didn't rely on a silly persona to interact with others. She wanted to scream out in frustration 'Why can't I be like everyone else!?' She wanted to collapse, let all her emotions go and pray to the Gods that that would solve all her problems. She wanted to grab Alyxsi's hand and run until her legs couldn't carry her anymore.

She wanted to do all of that, but she knew it would solve nothing.

She was sure Alyxsi could sense something was wrong. She tried to cover up the way she was acting by smiling and giggling. She played with his fingers, pretending to the best of her ability that everything was ok. Would that fool him? It wasn't fooling her. She continued to think about the strange, unfamiliar voices she had heard. They seemed so close to her, and she was frightened. But they were almost back to their room, their sanctuary, their temporary home. She would be back in a place where she felt secure. She inhaled deeply.

When they reached their room, Alyxsi changed into something dry. Asyel was pleased he decided to go shirtless, his skin was both welcoming and tempting to her. Once he was situated, he helped her out of her dress. She shuddered slightly with each kiss he placed on her neck. But once her dress was completely undone, her damp skin caused her to shiver. She quickly accepted his invitation to warm up together. Afterall, neither of them wanted to catch a cold or, perhaps, something worse. It seemed curling up together would be the only solution.

They found themselves together in the lounger, holding each other to keep themselves warm. Asyel smiled happily, her head laying on his shoulder, her fingers absently playing with his. She closed her eyes, keeping her mind only on Alyxsi, fearful to let it wander anywhere else. She thought of his eyes, his hair, his body, and that smile of his. She thanked the Gods for that smile. Without it, she surely would have collapsed back into her shell at breakfast this morning. He knew how it affected her too. When she was scared or anxious, he could calm her. When she was shy and timid, he could encourage her. Such a powerful gift.

When she felt warmed up, she opened her eyes and looked up at Alyxsi. "So that was a nice walk, you know, aside from the rain." And the unexplainable voices. Her breath caught for a moment, but she relaxed soon there after. He didn't know what was going on in her head. And unless she said something, he never would. "Was there anything else you had on the agenda? The day is still young, and I am sure the rain will clear up soon."

[Anonymous]

For Alyxsi, everything was normal...well, it was as normal as it could be all things considered.

As normal as he could make them, as normal as he could have them...and far more normal than he should ever have. He didn't believe in any karmic vengeance, he didn't believe that what he did would ever come back at him in full circle because that's how the universe worked. No, for Alyxsi, he was always safe, because he was always careful, and far too good to be caught by something like universal balance.

But he was feeling his own...well not his own...well sort of his own conscience. It wasn't...the actual Alyxsi's conscience, but it was the conscience of the new Alyxsi that he had created. It was bugging him, it was continuously nagging at him that all he was going to do was use this girl for sex and then get rid of her. It wasn't...it wasn't nice, at least, that's what one part of him told him. Of course right now was telling him that she was a beautiful girl, and that he was lucky to have her.

The other part of him would gag with a spoon if they heard that.

Everything was nice right now though. She shuddered under his kisses, and didn't complain or want to cover up even! That was pretty amazing for even her. Asyel was even okay with cuddling up to him...and that made him rather...happy to say the least. Soon they were both upon the lounger, and wrapped tightly in each other. Her fingers in his, her head on his shoulder...their bodies so close together. But it wasn't...it wasn't sexual. Though there was heat and tension there, there was a desire...right now wasn't all about that. It wasn't even close to this. It was about them being together, it was about them sharing each other's closeness and space. It was...something he didn't actually know. This woman WANTED to be with him, and...it wasn't cause of his powers or anything along those lines...

Alyxsi looked down at the young woman and smiled at her, a truly grateful smile. Maybe he'd...maybe he'd be able to give up this life. It was a terrifying thought really, giving up all that he knew? How could he even do that? His mind began to race and he began to think about everything. He'd still have to trick people to get free stuff...he'd still have to use his powers though wouldn't he? He couldn't...he couldn't get a job. He was glad that she suddenly started talking, he stopped allowing all the strange things to get into his brain.

"Oh I don't know, the rain was nice I thought..led to something nice." He told her with a little grin and a wink to her. "Well, if the rain clears up...I'm not sure. We could always go back out and do some more...shopping. I heard there were some seamstresses in the merchant who make some very...interesting clothes. More private clothes...and we need to get you a nice full wardrobe too. Can't just...have you like this all the time." He told her as he ran his fingers gently down her naked arm and side, smiling slightly wickedly. While he liked it, he was sure that she didn't.