cinderlea | (no subject)

(no subject)

[ Riku disappears first. Vanished in her sleep, in the middle of the night, collapsing in on herself in a shimmer of starlights. This isn't like last time. No warnings, no chances to say goodbye, no hesitation or resistance. She just isn't there.

Lea goes minutes after Riku, in the same way. But she's awake, lounging on her couch, having a conversation as she flips through her phone. Here and then gone, like a flame. This isn't the first time either of them have gone home, but it's the first time it's so abrupt. At least it isn't death. The last time Riku went home was seven years ago. She was gone for a month, and she came back with shorter hair and the Mark of Mastery. The last time Lea went home, no one really noticed. She thought she was used to it by now.

Things are different this time. Disorienting. Lea meets Kai in the training, for real this time. Riku has her memories, or at least most of them. They're hazy, dreamlike, but real. She has them all. She remembers how old she really is and how long she's been gone. She remembers everyone she cares about, and everyone that won't change here. She keeps her ice magic and takes what she's learned here to use there. But time is fluid. She doesn't feel like she's been gone for seven years.

Lea's are gone, for now. She lives everything new and fresh, with the dressing room appearing only in dreams vivid enough to unsettle her.

Things aren't the same for every world.

Things go better than expected.

The core story is the same. The heroes rescue the ones that need it, they bring everyone back, they defeat the darkness, and they go home. How and when and who — these things vary, but they do it all together and they go home together. And then their story is over, at least for now, and they come back.

Unlike how they went out, Lea and Riku reappear together on the beach. Coming back is just as disorienting, and neither has their phone, so they get their bearings and confirm memories with each other, of the dressing room and of home, and then separate to find their friends.

They've been gone two months. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

You're not, but it feels like you are sometimes because you're such a stick.

[a stick apart from that waist to hip ratio, that is. if either of them allows themselves to look nervous this entire thing will probably implode. Isa does her part for being casual by rolling onto her side to drape an arm over Lea and smooch her cheek. she wishes there was a guidebook for this shit, why is it so scary and difficult!!!]

I know you're not complaining about my high metabolism.

[ Not with your huge muscles and ability to toss me around like a ragdoll and all that. She doesn't really react to the arm, and just turns to face Isa after the smooch. Just to look at her face, probably too close for either of them to keep their cool after too long. It's scary because they haven't done this and they've known each other for so long, and for Lea, it's like being a teenager again. She's not really sure she likes that part. ]

[no, that part sucks, being uncertain about what's okay and what's too much, and for Isa trying to convey that without it just turning into talking about what she personally has and hasn't experienced (and of course who she experienced it with). at least both of them having their shirts off went okay and no one died. Lea will almost certainly lose her shit first; Isa's been winning staring contests since she was a baby, probably.]

I'm glad we don't have to financially support it, that's for sure.

Don't even start. You were hanging out with Axel the whole time we were gone, weren't you?

[ Her appetite is nothing compared to that. Yes, Axel is a unique case with underlying supernatural reasons, but still. She doesn't eat that much.

She just eats like, constantly.

This is a good distraction so she doesn't have to look away, too! Oops. ]

[hang on, Isa's about to do something like blow a raspberry on Lea's stomach to break the tension. she might also be concentrating on how she'd happily just spend the rest of her life kissing Lea.]

Mm. He could kill his own food if he needed to, at least.

What? I'm offended you think I couldn't.

[ Wait what. Is she doing that now, or after? ]

[at the moment she's just kind of staring at Lea's mouth and frowning, but then she makes it worse by slowly sitting up to gaze ominously down at Lea. she's really working the doom face, but sadly it's not distinguishable from the actual i'm-gonna-murder-you doom face.]

You absolutely couldn't. I'm gonna do something.

[ One fear. Just when Lea thinks she's going to kiss her, too. Isa has the privilege of being one of the only people to really see Lea's deer-in-headlights expression, except on extremely rare occasions with Roxas and Xion and maybe once with Kai, during training. Oh god, she's scared, but not really in the fear-for-her-life way that it used to be. ]

Wh— What are you gonna do?

[she's really looming, like "did you do your part of the school project," or "where is that report i asked you about three days ago." it might be for a really serious kiss, but no, the scary face drops, and Isa ducks her head to do a really great raspberry against Lea's bare skin, right under her ribs. take that, anxiety and jitters. this tactic was first used to try and get child-Lea to stop laughing, by idk, giving her hiccups or something, but surely it was used other times, to get her to stop crying or something.]

[ You bitch. In 0.1 seconds Lea goes from mildly terrified for her life to explosive, arm-flailing shock-laughter. She scrambles and tries to get away while shoving at Isa's shoulders. ]

Seriously?!

[ C: Isa laughs and flops sideways across Lea, resting her head on her hand.]

It's just us, and it's weird, but it was getting scary-weird, and it doesn't need to be.

[ She looks distrustful but still in her laugh-jitters, arms and shoulders tense in preparation from another attack. But she does look more relaxed, overall. ]

That's one way to make it not weird.

[ A beat. ]

What else you got?

I mean, I could just jump into things, but that's not very fair.

[like what she did just was. /uh]

Should I, though? Would that be a better or worse way to deal with it? Maybe I should seduce you.

[WHY IS THIS SO HARD it almost makes her miss the days when she was just angry a lot and tired the rest of the time and if she got horny she'd just go and have it taken care of.]

[ "Good luck with that." No.
"You can try." She will.
"I'd like to see you try." ...well. ]

... Being honest here, it wouldn't be hard. Not for you.

[ The main point of evidence is that moment in the doorway that time, and that was before everything hit the fan and shit got real. She can easily resist bullshit flirting and more serious moves from anyone else, but Isa? ⓧDoubt. ]

Yeah, that's true.

[this is what's happening here. what an asshole. alright, fuck it, cards on the table time, and being as relaxed and good-humored about it as possible. she didn't get where she is today by being a shrinking violet.]

Okay, which one would fluster you more, if I just went down there—

[she gestures vaguely towards Lea's knees, as if a) it's a long way away and b) that's where the relevant parts are.]

And went to town, or if I laid up here and gazed tenderly into your eyes while using my hand.

I—

[ No, she's a goner. It was so casual and relaxed, too, and now she's— not uncomfortable, but anyone watching would be able to see the heat and flush rise up in her face and neck. She's bright red and struggling to form words as a result of such clear mental images, and finally gives up, looking away and tossing her arm over her eyes. Consider her seduced. Pathetic. They went from avoiding blatant evidence during makeouts to so obviously horny she's speechless. Good job. ]

[god. it's so easy. Isa snorts in amusement and reorients herself so she can bundle Lea up in her arms and tangle their legs together. Lea's also gettin' kisses all over the parts of her face Isa can get to around the arm.]

I'm sorry, that was mean. But those are your options with me, you know that. Either I ask politely about it or I just do it, or I guess the third option is I open an artery for you before your skull explodes from the pressure.

[ So everything but her eyes and forehead, really. She scrunches up her face at the kisses, but only because she's embarrassed, and if one lands on her mouth she'll return it if there's time. More of an attempt, really. But she's not moving her arm. ]

Why don't I just let you do what you want, and... if I change my mind, I'll just say stop. Not like I'll know the difference before it happens.

[ Tender gazing is impossible, unless she wants to give Lea a real heart attack. ]

[well, Isa won't force the arm to move, and she really is trying to think of some way to do or say things that won't just make things more... not worse, but more like they already are. she doesn't want Lea to be uncomfy. :( and! she is trying to make jokes to lighten the mood! but since that isn't working, she's going to go for the new combo of horny + emotions that she's just thought of, and by she i mean me.]

What I want is for you to feel good, maybe even get off, but mostly just feel good, because I was a shit to you for a long time, and because you're my best friend and I love you.

[ Ah fuck, here goes the dokis. She's getting kind of overwhelmed by all these feelings (that aren't necessarily new) being right on the forefront, and she's still red, but that startles her enough to lift her arm and peek at Isa from under it.

She means as a friend, right? Right. ~~What if she doesn't though.~~ Still, it's coming from Isa. That makes those last two statements world-ending important to Lea. She's hesitating because she's stunned and grounded by it, and because the first part of is embarrassing and blunt. But they're adults. This is her best friend. Jesus Christ. Get it together. ]

Kiss me.

[success! \o/ and you can love people in different, and multiple ways, but sure, let's go with as a friend. Isa's aware she doesn't exactly hand out "I love you"s every day, which is why she's a little pink now, but she does mean it. she meant all of it, and they are adults but they also kind of became adults under not-great circumstances that maybe didn't prepare them for actually having functional relationships.

anyway. Lea gets a soft, brief kiss, and then a longer one, easing back into things slowly so Isa doesn't get ahead of herself, or spook Lea again. she also rests one hand on Lea's hip, because yes. baby steps again, but there are still clothes involved.]

[ She's basically been at Isa's mercy since they were born, so this is nothing new, and it's not like she has intense feelings of weakness when on her back. But she is in a position where she can't get away, and escapes have become her go-to when she felt like she couldn't go toe to toe with someone. It's fine, though. There's tension, but she's forcing it down, because for fuck's sake, it's Isa. She just needs something to do to occupy herself, so it's not just actions being directed at her. A passive person she is not. (Just lazy.) Starting off with putting her hands on either side of Isa's face, at her jawline, fingers tangling into the back of her hair. Kissing is fine, she knows how to do that at this point. ]

[Lea could be on top again, Isa doesn't have any strong preferences in either direction. but the hands are lovely, she likes that very much, and hopefully the little wiggle she does to get even closer conveys that, along with a soft hum. what if she slides a hand into Lea's hair? it's not as easy, the way she's positioned, and it's really more that she has her hand under Lea's head, but hopefully it won't get trapped under there. her other hand's actually relocating to boob territory, since she didn't before, just to feel and maybe rub a little. this is another aspect of this that she has no experience with, but she can pretend otherwise. mumbled against Lea's mouth:]

Is this okay?

[ God, why are they like this. Lea's grinning a little, briefly, pressing her forehead against Isa's. ]

Yeah, jeez, you don't even need to ask.

[It's just a boob, you nerd. If she delicately traces her fingertips along the back of Isa's neck, will she like that too? ]

[they're partially like this because i'm like this because it's been six decades since i rped anything resembling smut and the word choices are scaring me. /um. it is just a boob but she's never really done anything with boobs apart from her own, and too much of this is too foreign for her to stop being a dingus about it. she talked a big game several times but it turns out she's really more at Lea's level, send help.

the back of her neck gets a full-body shiver, and to retaliate, she is going to... do something fairly tame and try not to cut her face open while leaving a decent hickey on Lea's collarbone. if she also moves her hand and, say, brushes her thumb over a nipple, that's good too.]