The Honorary Ball, Part II

[Lawric]

Lawric looked at her, grinning yet again. She had him grinning all over the place tonight. "Oh, come now... fall in love?" He raised his eyebrows a bit and looked at her pointedly, before looking away and laughing. "Chivalrous--alright. But charming? If I'm charming at all, I can guarantee you it is unintentional and transitive." He smirked. "I actually have a theory that it might just be a side-effect of this suit, or something.

"Nevertheless, thank you for the compliments." Looking over at her, he admired the pale glow the moon cast against her face. The wind moved her shimmering dark hair, pushing it against her cheek softly. The curve of her eyes was delicately lovely, and the whole look of her face had a certain porcelain-doll reminiscent quality to it. Too perfect to be real, right? But unlike a doll, her eyes were warm and full of life, her skin soft. He found that he didn't really want to look away from her, even if it looked like he was staring.

"Anyway," he said, finally. "I appreciate you accompanying me out here, Jun." he paused, before adding, tentatively. "You're a very alluring woman. I would like to know you better."

[junkuroki]

Alluring? She thought, blushing yet again. Every single compliment he paid her was special. And she was aware of it. She didn't have this kind of effect when Zacke told her she was pretty, but when Lawric did (and he used totally different words) she couldn't help the warmth rising up from her insides. She was always blushing around him. Even the way he looked at her or when he simply grinned, brightening his eyes in a mesmerising way she could still blush if she wasn't careful about controlling her emotions. He would think that red was her natural cheek colour.

"I...I don't know what you're talking about. I'm not alluring." She looked at him furtively, a fleeting meeting with his eyes before turning her glance down again. He kept flattering her all night long, and although he sounded sincere about it, she couldn't help thinking maybe there was a misrepresentation on her part, and besides, she didn't normally go around pecking guys on the cheeks. And she wasn't really dressed like that all the time. Was that it? Why he called her alluring?

If that's true...he might be disappointed. She thought, a sad little smile quirking the ends of her lips.

"You might...have completely different ideas once you get to know me better." She gazed straight into his eyes again. "But I'd like to know you better too. It's all I've been wanting to do the whole time we're out here, really."

Her eyes veered away from his, distracted by a certain imprint on his cheek. It had been catching a tiny edge of her attention everytime she looked at his face. And although she wouldn't mind leaving it there (oh no, not at all), she doubted he would feel the same.

She leaned across him, her bare arm brushing slightly against him as she did. Jun held up her thumb and brushed his cheek with her thumb softly trying to rub the lipstick off his skin.

[jaimelewis]

Jaime's face became the epitome of "wide-eyed shock". She could barely speak at Jax's words, opening and closing her mouth like a goldfish.

'Youyouyouyouyou.....YOU CAN SEE DEAD PEOPLE?" She burst out loudly. By now the people around them had been rather used to her outbursts and decided to ignore her, going back to their own businesses dancing and talking and drinking. Only "Horace" the bartender had the slightest reaction, the shaker he was handling almost slipping from his grasp when she yelled out but he recovered without anyone noticing.

She grabbed Jax's hand again, exerting a little bit of force due to her excitement.

"CAN YOU SPEAK TO THEM TOO? CAN YOU???" She asked, breathless with anticipation of his answer. "CAN YOU SEE ABLE AND SIGNE TOO? WHAT DID THEY SAY? ARE THEY OKAY? QUICK TELL ME!"

[Gemma Ridean]

“Of course I want to dance. And you don’t have to thank me for it.” Hearing those words, Gemma’s heart skipped a beat. He was acting so charming and funny as he bobbed his head from side to side, trying to get her to look back at him.

“Ridean, right?” She smiled wordlessly. “Err, I remembered the ‘Gemma’ part. I thought it was pretty.” Her grin grew even wider. Her feelings of insecurity were slowly slipping away to the point that she didn’t even realize it when her hands had somehow wrapped themselves around Zacke’s shoulders, and his around her waist.

“…I usually try not to make a half-naked first impression, but I guess shit happens.” He suddenly winced, as if he regretted swearing in front of her. A tinkle of laughter escaped from her. It was quite cute how careful he was behaving around her. Then again, the last thing she wanted was for him to think of her as some kind of fragile doll that could shatter any moment. She glanced upward at Zacke. He was so much taller than her that the top of her head barely tickled his chin To her relief, he was looking back at her, grinning ruefully. “Hanging around with mouths like Reese and Blaze has apparently rubbed off on me." He bowed his head as though he was slightly embarressed. Sorry.”

Gemma remembered her last “encounter” with the two SeeDs, and a small smirk appeared on her face. “I guess that’s true for the both of us.”

Without even thinking, she suddenly rested her head against his chest. She breathed in his scent. He smelled good.

[Lawric]

Lawric watched as she leaned over before him. The sudden movement caught him a bit off guard, but he didn't move. He figured out what she was on about only when she lifted her arm and brushed her thumb against his cheek, right where she'd kissed him earlier.

He smirked at the sweetness of the gesture.

Taking hold of her wrist gently, he stopped her and brought her hand downward. Reaching into his coat with the other hand, he withdrew a pristine white cotton handkerchief. "You'll get it all over your finger." he explained quietly, glancing at her. He looked down, turned her hand over in his own, and began to clean her thumb off carefully with the handkerchief.

"You are too modest, Jun." he murmured. "You're lovely. Don't fool yourself into thinking anything less." He released her hand when he was satisfied with his task. Flashing a brief smile, he brought the cloth to his cheek and rubbed absently. He actually hadn't minded it--the lipstick. Well, he didn't know it was there. Just hadn't occurred to him that the kiss might leave a mark. But now that he did know, he couldn't care less. If anything, it was a good thing. But since she smudged it already, anyway...

"Did I get it?" he asked, moving the cloth away and turning his cheek toward her. He let out a laugh, suddenly pushing the handkerchief into her hand. "Here, you do it. I probably just smeared it around and made it worse."

[Zacke]

“I guess that’s true for the both of us.”

Zacke's eyebrows raised a bit at the words. He couldn't imagine a girl like Gemma using foul language. She seemed like such a sweetie-pie. The kind of girl a guy would be proud to take home to his mother.

When he felt her lean into his chest, and he glanced down at the top of her head. She seemed to be getting a little more comfortable about the dance. He smiled and moved his hands around to her lower back, lacing his fingers. She felt soft against him. Even though they barely knew eachother, it was nice for Zacke just to simply hold someone for a change. Being a creature of companionship, it was the type of thing he enjoyed. And the mission had been such a grueling thing. Pleasant music, pleasant atmosphere, pleasant girl... This was definitely a nice change of pace.

The fact that she happened to be cute didn't hurt, either.

"So," he ventured quietly. "Pretty upscale affair, huh? And everyone all dressed up... You look really pretty, by the way." He glanced down at her. "So how many guys have dragged you out here for a dance? I must be number ten or eleven, at least... " he joked.

[junkuroki]

Her eyes followed his hands as he carefully cleaned off the lipstick staining her fingers. She didn't even mind that she had lipstick on them; it was her own afterall. Her hands slightly trembled at his touch, his hands warm and delicious to her cold ones. She wanted to bury her fingers in his hands, it was becoming too comfortable and she almost frowned when he let go of them.

But she giggled softly when he tried to rub at his cheek with the hankerchief and smudged his face in the process. She took the handkerchief from him, tiptoeing and reaching up and dabbed at his face carefully until she was satisfied with it.

But when she lowered herself to ground level her heels suddenly skidded under the movement and she started to lose balance.

[Lawric]

Lawric watched her face as she patiently cleaned off the lipstick, a smile teasing at the corner of his lips. She had to rise to her tiptoes for the task, and she was so careful. It was cute.

She moved backward from him and began lowering herself down, when suddenly she seemed to lose her balance and waver to one side. He reacted quickly, reaching out and catching her waist with both hands, pulling her so that she fell toward him instead. Her body collided into his, her head falling against his chest and her hands gripping at his shoulders.

"Are you okay?" he asked with a little laugh, angling his face downward. She looked up at him, and even in the scarce lighting out here he could see that her cheeks were flushed a deep pink. Her eyes were apologetic--she probably felt a little embarrassed. She seemed so delicate, both in her physique and in her demeanor. She had mentioned that she tried not to be such a damsel-in-distress, but he found that she played the part extremely well--and he didn't mind one bit. It was incredibly endearing. The light weight of her against him was stifling his sense of self-control.

Without thought Lawric leaned over slightly and bowed his head, pressing his lips into hers. His hands slid from her waist to her hips, his grip tightening. He used that grip to hold her against him and keep her close. This time he did not brush sweetly, this time he took her lip between his and tasted it with his tongue. He felt the vacuum again, pulling at him, urging him to take just a second more, regardless of how she felt. The feeling was not comparable to anything he had experienced before. There was a rush in kissing Jun that he hadn't encountered yet. Something he didn't quite understand but thoroughly enjoyed, whirring around inside of him wildly.

He pulled himself away a moment later, looking back into her eyes, his focus intense. He smoothed one hand up the side of her waist, and then back down to her hip. The whirring feeling still lingered.

A smirk tugged at the corner of his lip. "We should probably rejoin the party," he said quietly.

[junkuroki]

She was embarrassing herself again. Why was she so clumsy around Lawric, when he's the only guy she had wanted to impress the most? Was her body purposely acting in a way to make her appear vulnerable? Was that it? She supposed if he was the saviour and she the damsel in distress she wouldn't mind it that much but...what would he think?

She caught him by the shoulders, enjoying the stability of his tall frame as she leaned against him.

"Sorry...I..." She started apologising and blushing at the same time, but she could barely get the words out before she was silenced by his lips pressing against hers.

If she thought the first time was confusing, this one simply threw her internal system out of orbit, her mind a whirly mess of fuzzy warmth and cries of 'He's kissing me again by Hyne I love it!', her skin tingling all over with a rush of heat. But she pulled it back in sufficiently to be able to relish his kiss this time, feeling a little jolt of pleasure when his lips oved over hers, his tongue tasting her, her heart accelerating so fast that she was afraid it would fail anytime. But she couldn't let it fail, she loved the feeling of him pressing her hips against him, she started to respond by leaning closer to him

And then he pulled apart.

Once again, she didn't want it to end, but good things really did came to an end. She shivered a little when he slid his hand up her side, resting it on her hip. It felt so good, his touch was invoking feelings so foreign in her she didn't feel like herself. He was awakening something that had been dormant in her and now it was demanding all of her attention.

A smirk tugged at the corner of his lip. "We should probably rejoin the party," he said quietly.

She ignored his question, and stepped forward in an abnormally bold manner. It was the boldest thing she'd ever done. Ever.

She circled her arms around his neck and brushed her lips briefly upon his, leaning slightly against him while she raised her feet to their tips. There was that sudden rush of adrenaline and unknown chemical reaction in her again, but this time icreased severalfold because she had initiated it. She breathed heavily, her lips hovering merely an inch away and her eyes still staring into his.

"That's my answer." She whispered, letting a deep blush overtake her cheek again.

[Lawric]

<sup>OH NOEZ LAWRIC/JUN PR0N WARNING!!

hahaha. neither one of us expected the balcony scene to take this turn. ^^; sorry</sup>

---

Lawric's hands slid over the back of her dress, arms coming around her as she tiptoed and pushed herself into another kiss with him. It was totally unexpected and he leaned heavily against the railing behind him. The kiss lasted only a moment or two and she broke away but lingered near, staring back at him.

"That's my answer." She whispered.

With her breath blowing lightly on his lips and the softness of her chest pressed against his, he found that he was becoming very aroused. Mentally he knew he was treading on unstable ground, but he couldn't physically help the warmth she sent roiling through his system. And here she had him, pinned between her body and the railing. There was no escape, and no hiding what was inevitably going to happen, should they stay like this much longer. It was not a good position for him if he was trying to be a gentleman. His better judgment had told him it would have been wise to return to the ballroom minutes ago, but now he felt pretty helpless to this temptation. In fact, if it was up to him...

He decided that it probably shouldn't be.

"That's a rather vague answer." he breathed back. He looked downward, slipping his hand down her waist, down to the side of her thigh just below her hip, then sliding it back up, admiring the curve. "Anyway, I don't think you want to miss your Ball." He met her eyes again.

[junkuroki]

"I...couldn't care less...about the Ball." Jun could hardly utter out the words, her eyes glazed over dreamily. Lawric ran his hand over her waist and down her hips, caressing her thigh and she inhaled sharply, her breaths quickening and heartbeats so irregular she would've failed an ECG test.

"Lawric..." She whispered, loving the way her tongue wrapped around the syllables. Just uttering his name alone was enough to send her heart spiralling into irregularity. She glanced at his eyes with longing, then down at his lips hovering too close to hers to resist. There was something about him that was giving her an injection of wildness she didn't knew existed in her.

Wild definitely wasn't something people associated Jun with. But for once she didn't care.

So she didn't resist, giving him several light, feathery kisses in rapid succession.

[Lawric]

Lawric smiled at the way his name left her mouth, just before she rose to the tips of her feet again and graced him with several light and fleeting kisses. Her lips were so soft and almost tickling. He resisted the urge to smile against her mouth, leaning over a bit so she didn't have to push herself up so high.

Only after enjoying several moments of this, he slowly moved his hands up and placed them on the sides of her arms, gently breaking away. He looked down at her, one eyebrow arching just slightly.

"You say you've never kissed before... " he ventured, a tiny hint of skepticism evident in his tone. "You're actually quite good at it." His eyebrow raised a little higher, in a teasing sort of way.

[junkuroki]

"I wouldn't lie about something like that." She said, resting back on her feet. "I had no idea I'd be so...daring." She smirked at him. "There's something special about you that makes my entire body react by itself. So technically it's your fault." She looked straight at him without the any hint of reproach. "I'm sorry if you expected an innocent girl and got disappointed..." She trailed off, looking away from him a little hurt by her own words.

[Lawric]

Lawric's eyebrows raised a bit. My fault? Really, now...

He let out a 'hah,' looking down at her in mild surprise.

"Well, I certainly never meant to imply that you're a liar." he started. "And I have no expectations of you, Jun. Regardless of innocence, you are obviously a sweetheart through and through.

"Which is precisely why I feel somewhat like a dirty scumbag right now." He he smiled slightly. "Out of moral obligation, I've got to warn you... " He laughed, sliding his hands down her arms and taking hold of each of her hands. "You keep treating me to your lips, and I'm definitely going to forget all about chivalry."

[junkuroki]

"But I don't expect you to be chivalrous around me." She teased with a smirk, relieved that she hadn't let down his expectations or anything. "And if you really are a dirty scumbag you wouldn't be standing upright, I assure you." She looked down shyly at his hands holding on to hers. It was miracle that she could still feel shyness after exchanging so many kisses between them (well, it felt many to her). But there was something sweet about looking at her hands placed against his bigger ones. She felt kinda protected.

"You have wonderful hands." She said softly.