Guild Hunt Part 2!

Elaine woke up at the sound of a startled gasp, she opened her eyes and saw her partner, flustered and pushing out a worried apology. She started to laugh, first it was small but then it grew into fit. "I-I'm sorry! It's just, you look so flustered." She pushed out between gasping breaths. "It's alright though," she said wiping away any tears on her face, "I don't mind, if it's comforting for you, I don't mind at all." She smiled, letting her hair down and grabbing her hat once more, placing it on her head.

She looked out the window and saw that they were near the water, she got up and pressed her hands against the window, eyes wide. "The ocean!" She gasped, childishly she pressed her hands harder against the glass. The ocean was the place she loved the most back home. Endless waters, different types of new life, shells and sea glass. She adored every second of it. She turned back to her partner, gripping her dress tightly and nervously, "can we go there? To the beach I mean." She asked sheepishly, not meeting his eyes; worried of rejection of the idea.

As Azurius told her not to make such a pained face, looking directly into her eyes as he said so she gave him a small smile, something of reassurance and comfort. Finally he agreed to go to the beach as well and her smile grew even further. "You'll love it, it's absolutely wonderful in every way. The ocean is amazing." She gushed, turning back around to the window briefly. By now, she had not noticed that the train has already pulled back into the station, and began its very loud stop. She had never been on a train so she was no prepared for another lurching movement.

This made her tople over towards her partner, sidestepping in a cruel attempt to catch herself before accidentally ramming into her partner. She couldn't honestly stop the force of gravity once she started to fall, so all she did was close her eyes and hope that she didn't hurt him when she did.

In a very brief moment she was engulfed in black, even when she opened her eyes she was surrounded by black, and warmth. She remembered that the train stopped and she had fallen forward. When light did hit her eyes she realized that she was sitting on top of her partner and surrounded by two wings. Pure white and beautiful. "He's an angel what else did I expect?" She mumbled to herself. She looked to Azurius, obviously concerned about her well being she smiled and nodded, "yes I'm fine thanks to you." She was just about to push herself off of him when the conductor passed in front of their booth. Pausing he made some sort of innuendo that made Elaine turn red. Azurius' response was even more embarrassing. This caused her to push herself off of him and sit on the ground.

"I-it really isn't like that!!" She exclaimed, waving her hands in front of her. The conductor then asked her an even more embarrassing question in which she shook her head, "n-no! He did nothing of the sorts!" She said, pushing her hair out of her face, still extremely red. Once Azurius got up, he helped her up as well, she then brushed off her dress and grabbed her hat off the floor. Placing it back on her head she turned to him, "well? Let's get out of here, I'd love to explore Hargeon!"

That's right. She stopped, she loves the beach but out of all the limitless things she owned in her arsenal, a swimsuit was not one of them. She laughed nervously and turned to him, "you wouldn't mind then? Picking up a swimsuit before we went to the beach?" She asked, looking up at him. If there was one thing she couldn't tear her gaze away from, it was his eyes. That amber-golden colour seemed for to intrancing for her to want to ever look away. Not to mention the way he made her feel, knowing that it was true they did only first meet, but he made her feel safe, and protected, and for once in her life, she didn't mind.

She found herself shaking her head and moving away from his stare, red-faced. "R-right. Swimsuit." She mumbled. "So, Azurius, how did you become a member of Lamia Scale?" She asked him, if he had chose to start moving through out the city, she would have been following slightly behind.

She nodded as she heard the story, "that makes sense, then I'm really glad that I joined the guild too. The more the merrier right?" She smiled as the two walked into the shop, it was fairly large and everything in the store looked fairly pricey. Checking the price her suspicions were confirmed and she gulped, "ah-they look expensive.... Are you sure it's alright?" She asked. While waiting for a response she began to leaf through some of the less expensive ones. One pieces and bikinis, some of which were either far to small or far to big.

If she was still waiting a response she had already gathered a few in her arms. A cream bikini with brown ribbons, much like her hat. A small deep blue one piece that cut out in the sides and finally, a forest green bikini that had a small skirt that tied at the hip to match. "Umm. Am I allowed to try these on?" She turned to her partner, pushing back her hair. "A-and I really can't thank you enough! You're being so kind to me even though you do not know much about me," she looked down slightly. "Please let me know, is there anything else you wish to know about me?" She asked, pretty determined to answer any question if he had chosen to take her up upon her offer and ask her something.

"Ah?" She hummed out, popping her head out of the changing room door, "please, ask away. I don't mind. I have no dark past. I'm an open book." She called out to him. There was a ruffling of clothes and a bright light. She had used her magic to switch the outfits. She stepped out in a cream coloured one, smiling brightly, her hat still on her head, the bows tied on her chest and waist. "What do you think?" She smiled and did a small twirl, just to give a once over. She had hoped this wasn't to forward, but the two of them seemed to get along well. So she remained quite comfortable with it all.

"I guess it was a bit silly of me to come to a country surrounded by water and not bring a swim suit." She laughed and shook her head. Still seeing if Azurius had anything to say on her first choice, if it was positive she would most likely choose this one, as it was a common colour coordination that she wore almost daily. In both her civilian clothing and armour.

"Ah?! I don't want to look as though I'm not wearing any clothing!" She panicked and hurried back into the changing stall. "I'm sorry, that must have been so uncomfortable for you....I should've worn something else." She mumbled, another quick glow of light coming from the bottom of the stall. She stepped out in the dark green one, not really able to meet his eyes after the previous incident. "I really am sorry. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable." She managed out, "if you'd like to know something funny....I've never even been in the sea. I've read all about it though. All the wild life and what not. But I am just to afraid to go in, after reading all about. Reading about all the things that could happen....isn't that silly? I love the ocean but I'm to scared to go in it?" She laughed, looking in the mirror at her new swim suit.

She was worried Azurius too, would laugh at her for such nonsense. She hoped he didn't though and she waited for him to turn around and speak his reply.

"I'm sorry, this must be....awkward." She mumbled out, a quick semicircle with her foot and flash of white light and her old sundress was back snug on her body. Though she did feel the need to pull it down even further than the knee length it already was. "I'll just....um," She began slowly, she didn't realize that this probably was strange for him, seeing a girl he hardly new in something so, scandalous as her mother would have said. "I'll just take this one then...." She murmured and held out the green swimsuit slightly.

"You know, you and your boyfriend are quite cute." smiled the clerk to her, it was Elaine's turn to blush a deep red.
"W-we aren't-!!" Elaine started then sighed, this was the second time today, of course, the first she could see how the man had come to the assumption but now this? It was just silly! What did they give off some air that they were together? And if anyone, it wouldn't be a man she just met. She'd go through all the steps she had back home, meeting, courting, deciding, decision. That's how it went, that's how it always went. But she could not be sure why that whenever he completed her, it was different. It struck her to the heart rather than just laying on skin.
She shook her head and turned her attention back to the clerk, "We aren't together together. Just together. As in, next to one another, traveling, together." She managed out, mentally slapping herself for such a stupid answer. "Now, excuse us." She said softly, still quite embarrassed from the remark. Without thinking she took Azurius' hand and led him toward the check out.
Once there she let out a breath, "that was, awkward, again." She mumbled, not realizing that she still had quite a grip on her partner's hand.

Elaine had not expected him to answer so casually. Or throw his arm around her so playfully, or even proceed to hold her hand like nothing had happened; and, even though all her morals were screaming at her, she did not disapprove of it either. When he apologized after they left the store she shook her head and tossed him a casual smile, "it's fine, really. It's just, where I'm from....I didn't have many friends, let alone male friends." She confessed, a mixture of shame and embrrasment flooding her. "So, I'm not used to all of this. I had my, handmaiden. Rosalind. She was the closest thing I had to a friend, the rest was just, proper, organized, classy, modest." she moaned on and on, the memories of her life back home were not pleasant, neither were particularly both her parents.

"And the courting. Mon Dieu. The courting. It was awful, man after man. Not even interested in anything I did or said. It was money. Status. Marry someone of status, my parents had said. It was awful.... She snapped her head up, covering her mouth sheepishly, "I-I'm so sorry, you don't want to hear about my problems back home!" she mentally face palmed, now believing that the man she had met must thing she was a giant drag.

She turned a slight red then started to laugh, it wasn't one like back on the train, but it was still pretty uncontrollable. That's cute.... she found herself thinking, the way he was so afraid to offend her, the way that he was always covering up what he said; not wanting her to get the wrong message, it was noble. "No need to worry about that Azurius, I can tell when a guy is flirting and when he is trying to just be friendly, you don't have to constantly apologize to me. And I assume I should learn to take your jokes a bit more lightly...." she murmured the last part. She looked up towards the sky and the sun say lazily above her. "Do you think....we could go to the beach now?" she asked her partner, looking up at him while holding her hat and squinting her eyes just enough because of where the sun was.

When he held her hand, obviously to make sure she didn't fall off, she didn't mind it; in change she took took his hand, interlocking her finger with his. She smiled and watched the town go by them as they passed through, heading to the beach. Slowly yet surely they came to a stop and she was quick to untangle herself form him and leap down off. She kicked off her shoes once she hit the sand and smiled. Spinning around and letting the sunlight hit her face; she took in a deep breath of the ocean and smiled. Turning herself back to Azurius she held her arms open wide and smiled, "We're here!" She smiled widely and beckoned him to come join her.

She was stunned. There was every fiber in her body telling her to freak out and slice the head off what ever had just began kissing her. She was freaking out. But she couldn't move. Every order her brain told her her body did the opposite. But that wasn't like her. And the creature that kissed her, Elaine knew wasn't human, a celestial being. She was red. Embarrassed. But also, angry. She wasn't used to being kissed out on a whim. She may be free of her life back home, but she kept her morals. She lowered Azurius' gun, summoning a blade of her own, tapping it to the beings' chest. "No, I do not know of her. Perhaps my master did, she was very fond of celestial beings and often brought me into the realm to visit. But never have I met one such as her." The tone of her voice had changed, it was reverted to how she spoke back home, quickly and with poise.

"I will not lie. I enjoyed it, but my thoughts were not my own, so why don't you tell your master your little trick? Hm? Stop being so childish." Elaine tempted, she knew little of Celestial spirits, but she knew herself enough, and she knew that Her first kiss should not have been like that. "So uncouth towards a lady." Elaine murmured, a small spark in her eyes, mishevous. She dropped her weapon and stepped closer, examining Suriel closer, "You should know I do not like being kissed without first being courted." She said icily, a bit of sarcasm in her voice. "You could have at least bought me dinner first. At least Azurius did." She casually tossed in the phrase at the end as a joke, knowing with his personality he would most likely get it.