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femslashficlets2015-08-14 12:06 am
rosage) wrote in femslashficlets2015-08-14 12:06 am
Toil and Trouble (Sappho 7)
Title: Toil and Trouble
Fandom: Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn
Pairing: Almedha/Titania
Rating: PG?
Prompt: Sappho #7 - you burn me
Word Count: 922
Summary: Almedha and Titania get on each others' nerves, for better or worse. For my pal who got me into this pair.
The voice cuts through the air around the lake, muggy and thick with buzzing bugs. “Such a beautiful axe—when was the last time it cut more than wood?”
Titania sighs and lowers her weapon, wiping sweat from her temples with a grimy glove. “Lady Almedha. What can I do for you?” Almedha sits perched on a nearby rock as if to make it her throne, yet there’s something improper in the bend of her knees, and the hand curled beneath her chin gives the impression of a cat eyeing a curiosity. When Almedha crosses her legs, Titania sees that the hem of her gown is dirtied and torn. She does not seem to care.
“Oh, I’m simply passing through.” For someone who claims to find the company’s base and workload scandalously dull, Lady Almedha comes around often. What of that tactician? she always asks. Have you received word from him? Goodness me if he’s not working for someone who can make proper use of his talents! Titania’s tiredness penetrates her bones, and she only ever says I don’t know.
Today Almedha does not ask about Soren. She catches an insect between her thumb and forefinger, eyeing the smear on her skin with disinterest before popping it in her mouth. Titania looks away and plants her axe in the ground, leaning on it. Peacetime does not work her muscles the way war does, and she’s found herself seeking that perpetual ache by training almost to the peak of too much—almost. Restraint is her most necessary virtue.
Almedha is licking her fingers when Titania turns back. This lakeside must be a veritable feast—perhaps that’s what she’s here for, Titania thinks humorlessly. “But there is something you can do for me,” Almedha concludes.
Even now Titania inclines her head to nobility. “Yes, my lady? Speak and it shall be done, if I am able.”
Without drying her fingers, Almedha waves a hand to gesture at their surroundings. “Quit this company. Rejoin the army. Your power is being wasted.”
It’s nothing Titania hasn’t heard before, but from those lips it makes her jaw set. “With all due respect, that is one thing I am not able—or will not do. I’m as sworn to the Greil Mercenaries as is a knight to any liege.”
“Quaint,” Almedha drawls. “And disappointing.”
“May I ask the reason? If you don’t mind my saying so, recruiting a knight to Crimea’s service does you no good.”
“I told you—your power is being wasted. Nothing burns me more.”
“I’m proud of the work I do,” Titania says, her tone even from reciting the same line Ashera—Yune…?—knows how many times, yet her hand clenches around the axe’s pole. Perhaps it’s the way Almedha makes it out to be a personal offense, as if what this mercenary in a foreign land does concerns her. Titania has done plenty in her career that might draw attention, but that’s all in the past. “Knight or no, I can still protect those in need and those I care for.”
In lieu of response Almedha runs her tongue along her teeth—picking out a stuck fly?—which Titania notices are pointed. It seems rude to look, so she lowers her gaze. Red embroidery is worked into the bosom of Almedha’s dress, pulling Titania up into Almedha’s lava-like eyes and causing a twinge she knows comes with a memory. Before it can solidify, Almedha closes them.
“Then be my knight. Protecting my assets shouldn’t keep you busy enough to tear you away from your post.” Almedha’s eyes glint—she’s joking. She hardly has land or vassals to appoint now. She must be more than bored, hanging around this place without attendants; though Titania knows little about her, Ike had some sympathy for her, and that holds weight considering how few nobles he gives the benefit of the doubt. Titania humors her.
“Oh? In that case, what would you have me do in your service?”
Almedha raises her chin and tosses her head, hair falling back from her shoulder. “I was watching you train. Your technique is honed, but you’re holding back. Your body is built for greater strikes.”
Titania considers her, pursing her lips. It’s true, she has no need to exert herself near to her limits, let alone beyond. It’s peacetime, and she’s better equipped to perform her duties if she’s healthy. Even if the family she’s sworn to is splintering, sense must prevail.
Yet she remembers how she changes in the heat of battle, the way her body quivers when faced with a worthy foe, the feeling of tapping into primal rawness and moving outside of herself. The challenge.
“I can’t deny what you say, Lady Almedha—but then, I ask again, what would you have me do?”
When Almedha smiles, her fangs flash. “Show me what you’re capable of. If I’m interested enough, we shall see.”
Titania turns the proposition around in her head. The burn is still there, slicing a patch between her ribs. She knows from experience there’s only one way to work it off.
Pulling the axe from the ground, Titania adjusts her weight and levels it. “Gladly,” she says. “But if I may, I’m interested in learning your capabilities as well.”
Almedha’s laughter is reminiscent of the berries that give one burst of juice before leaving prickling seeds and a bitter taste, the ones that make Mist scratch at her tongue. “We shall see,” she says again, and Titania’s insides run molten.
Fandom: Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn
Pairing: Almedha/Titania
Rating: PG?
Prompt: Sappho #7 - you burn me
Word Count: 922
Summary: Almedha and Titania get on each others' nerves, for better or worse. For my pal who got me into this pair.
The voice cuts through the air around the lake, muggy and thick with buzzing bugs. “Such a beautiful axe—when was the last time it cut more than wood?”
Titania sighs and lowers her weapon, wiping sweat from her temples with a grimy glove. “Lady Almedha. What can I do for you?” Almedha sits perched on a nearby rock as if to make it her throne, yet there’s something improper in the bend of her knees, and the hand curled beneath her chin gives the impression of a cat eyeing a curiosity. When Almedha crosses her legs, Titania sees that the hem of her gown is dirtied and torn. She does not seem to care.
“Oh, I’m simply passing through.” For someone who claims to find the company’s base and workload scandalously dull, Lady Almedha comes around often. What of that tactician? she always asks. Have you received word from him? Goodness me if he’s not working for someone who can make proper use of his talents! Titania’s tiredness penetrates her bones, and she only ever says I don’t know.
Today Almedha does not ask about Soren. She catches an insect between her thumb and forefinger, eyeing the smear on her skin with disinterest before popping it in her mouth. Titania looks away and plants her axe in the ground, leaning on it. Peacetime does not work her muscles the way war does, and she’s found herself seeking that perpetual ache by training almost to the peak of too much—almost. Restraint is her most necessary virtue.
Almedha is licking her fingers when Titania turns back. This lakeside must be a veritable feast—perhaps that’s what she’s here for, Titania thinks humorlessly. “But there is something you can do for me,” Almedha concludes.
Even now Titania inclines her head to nobility. “Yes, my lady? Speak and it shall be done, if I am able.”
Without drying her fingers, Almedha waves a hand to gesture at their surroundings. “Quit this company. Rejoin the army. Your power is being wasted.”
It’s nothing Titania hasn’t heard before, but from those lips it makes her jaw set. “With all due respect, that is one thing I am not able—or will not do. I’m as sworn to the Greil Mercenaries as is a knight to any liege.”
“Quaint,” Almedha drawls. “And disappointing.”
“May I ask the reason? If you don’t mind my saying so, recruiting a knight to Crimea’s service does you no good.”
“I told you—your power is being wasted. Nothing burns me more.”
“I’m proud of the work I do,” Titania says, her tone even from reciting the same line Ashera—Yune…?—knows how many times, yet her hand clenches around the axe’s pole. Perhaps it’s the way Almedha makes it out to be a personal offense, as if what this mercenary in a foreign land does concerns her. Titania has done plenty in her career that might draw attention, but that’s all in the past. “Knight or no, I can still protect those in need and those I care for.”
In lieu of response Almedha runs her tongue along her teeth—picking out a stuck fly?—which Titania notices are pointed. It seems rude to look, so she lowers her gaze. Red embroidery is worked into the bosom of Almedha’s dress, pulling Titania up into Almedha’s lava-like eyes and causing a twinge she knows comes with a memory. Before it can solidify, Almedha closes them.
“Then be my knight. Protecting my assets shouldn’t keep you busy enough to tear you away from your post.” Almedha’s eyes glint—she’s joking. She hardly has land or vassals to appoint now. She must be more than bored, hanging around this place without attendants; though Titania knows little about her, Ike had some sympathy for her, and that holds weight considering how few nobles he gives the benefit of the doubt. Titania humors her.
“Oh? In that case, what would you have me do in your service?”
Almedha raises her chin and tosses her head, hair falling back from her shoulder. “I was watching you train. Your technique is honed, but you’re holding back. Your body is built for greater strikes.”
Titania considers her, pursing her lips. It’s true, she has no need to exert herself near to her limits, let alone beyond. It’s peacetime, and she’s better equipped to perform her duties if she’s healthy. Even if the family she’s sworn to is splintering, sense must prevail.
Yet she remembers how she changes in the heat of battle, the way her body quivers when faced with a worthy foe, the feeling of tapping into primal rawness and moving outside of herself. The challenge.
“I can’t deny what you say, Lady Almedha—but then, I ask again, what would you have me do?”
When Almedha smiles, her fangs flash. “Show me what you’re capable of. If I’m interested enough, we shall see.”
Titania turns the proposition around in her head. The burn is still there, slicing a patch between her ribs. She knows from experience there’s only one way to work it off.
Pulling the axe from the ground, Titania adjusts her weight and levels it. “Gladly,” she says. “But if I may, I’m interested in learning your capabilities as well.”
Almedha’s laughter is reminiscent of the berries that give one burst of juice before leaving prickling seeds and a bitter taste, the ones that make Mist scratch at her tongue. “We shall see,” she says again, and Titania’s insides run molten.