Temp Board - Full Moon

[Amelia]

Oh, no. Not those two, Amelia thought dejectedly. How awkward.

Forcing a smile she fanned a hand at the bloody rake of a pirate from last night, and found that in the clean light of day, after a rather enjoyable night with the man currently dozing in her room, Dutch was not quite as devastatingly handsome as she’d previously remembered.

He was still god looking, of course, but he was too….pretty. Maverick was more ruggedly untamable.

Moving her gaze over to the woman with him, Ames decided this must be Giselle, Maverick’s Tandem. The little bird liked her immediately. She had that same wildness that Mavs did. And her hair was cute.

Striding up to her and switching the bag over to her left hand, Amelia extended her arm for a handshake.

“Hi, I’m Amelia. You must be Giselle, nice to meet you. Sorry if I was a little testy last night and didn’t hang around for introductions. I’m not going to apologize for knocking your boyfriend’s lights out, though,” she said, looking pointedly at Dutch.

[Giselle Danielle]

Giselle hoped Dutch hadn't seen her movements. She didn't want him to think that she wanted children. Especially not now, not when they weren't settled down at all. Yet, it was a natural part of her that tugged at the back of her mind saying 'children children children' in an annoying rant that was almost impossible to give into. The rant simply annoyed her for a moment and she removed her hand from her stomach as she looked at him teasingly.

"Oh, I think you'll live." she said, grinning at him before turning around.

That's when she saw the bird. Speak of the devil, they had just been talking about her a moment ago and here she was. The little iccaru was someone that Giselle thought that she would enjoy very much. She had the spunk needed to survive in the world and a good punch.

"You guessed correctly," she said as she shook the bird's arm. "And no worries, I wasn't exactly in a greeting mood either. I was actually going to congratulate you on punching him. You've got a powerful punch and he more than well deserved it." She turned her head to look at him before looking back at Amelia. "Saved me having to do it myself."

Knowing that she was being mean to Dutch, she squeezed his hand gently and ran her thumb along his skin. She drew closer to him slightly, as if silently saying 'sorry for being a bitch to you right now.' She meant everything in the lightest heart, except for the punching bit. She still thought he deserved it and it probably hadn't had been a good idea rewarding him with last night.

[Dutch]

Dutch was so confused.

Why wasn’t the Iccaru just as mad at Giselle as she was at him? In his experience, the scorned women were usually quite angry at the new ones for encroaching on their territory, as well as him for sleeping around. These two, however, seemed to be well on their was to being best pals. And then Giselle was chastising him, while at the same time squeezing his hand affectionately and leaning closer. He looked warily between the two of them, certain he was going to get injured somehow.

Giselle was unpredictable to begin with, so he was more inclined to accept her reaction, but the Iccaru… she was more difficult to understand. She certainly seemed the sort to seek vengeance on both parties, yet here she was shaking hands and making nice with Giselle. Dutch wondered if she was prone to mental instability. It would explain her mood swings…

Eyes falling on the over-stuffed bag of food in the feathered one’s hand, Dutch suddenly made a connection. There was no possible way someone of her stature could eat all that food, which meant she was probably bringing it back to someone, who had most likely spent the night. And Maverick had been quite friendly with the crazy little bird, and Dutch suspected he may have been inclined to find some form of distraction of his own to help him ignore what Giselle and he were up to. Amelia’s reactions seemed a little more reasonable now; she wasn’t irritable because she’d had her affections diverted to someone else. The pirate suppressed a smirk. Mavs, that sly dog.

[Amelia]

Amelia grinned at the compliments. She took pride in her self-defense skills, even when they were only defending her ego. She looked smugly over at the pirate, maybe gloating just a little, and caught the look he was giving the bag of food in her hand. Her heart fluttered. Had he figured it out too? Really?! Good gods, did everyone in town know what she’d been up to last night!?

Blushing a little, she hid the bag behind her and shot the pirate a ‘keep your mouth shut or I’ll shut if for you’ glare.

[Giselle Danielle]

Giselle oftentimes acted differently towards different people. She knew how to act around certain people, how to make them appreciate her. She had a feeling that complimenting the iccaru and making fun of Dutch would make the conversation easier, yet at the same time all she meant was fun and games and she didn't want to make Dutch feel bad. Then again, she usually just acted on a whim and did whatever she felt like doing at that time. She was a bit random at times.

She wouldn't have noticed the bag if the iccaru hadn't attempted to move it behind her. Was that food? There was no possible way that the bird could be able to eat all of that in one sitting. She leaned to the side to get a better look and smiled. Meats, Maverick loved meat. Then that reminded her, Maverick had gone in to try and settle the girl after she had punched Dutch.

"Ah, a breakfast for two then?" She asked curiously before smiling. "Don't let the white wolf sleep too long, he tends to get really hyper later in the day. Oh...don't be surprised if he starts chewing on things...he still acts like a puppy sometimes."

She laughed and leaned back against Dutch's chest, as if feeling too tired to stand. She wouldn't admit it, but she was still sore from having the keg fall on her. Her back was complaining and her knee was about ready to give her hell. She acted as though she simply wanted to lean against him.

[Dutch]

Smiling in a self-satisfied manner, Dutch watched as the Iccaru tried to hide the enormous bag of incriminating food behind her tiny frame, thus drawing attention to it. He kept a close eye on her features as Giselle made the obvious connection as well, and chuckled a little as Giselle warned against her Tandem’s puppyish habits.

As she leaned back against his chest, Dutch automatically wrapped an arm around her, at the same time drawing her closer and supporting her out of natural reaction. He rested his chin on the top of her head, the contented glow rekindling in his stomach. He vaguely tried to remember the last time he’d drawn so much comfort from the presence of another, and unsurprisingly came up blank. Very rarely did he get into things as deeply as he had with Giselle. A sudden, distant echo pf loneliness passed through him - did he really have to go a whole month without her? Maybe he could accompany her on her trip - and he unconsciously stroked her arm. He really didn’t want to let her go…

Pushing such unpleasant and temporarily unnecessary thoughts aside, he gave Amelia a charming grin. “Yes, do tell my friend hello for me. I wondered what had become of him last night,” he said teasingly.

[Amelia]

Amelia had decided to spontaneously combust on the spot. Just snap her fingers and whoosh, burn herself to cinders. Surely, with as hot as her face was, she was about to catch flame anyways.

She stood rooted to the spot, utterly mortified, as both the damn pirate and Maverick’s equally observant Tandem both figured out (within the span of mere seconds, she might add) exactly what, where, and with who she’d found her entertainment last night.

This was humiliating.

“Ah, well, uhm, it’s not really….I mean, Maverick wasn’t actually… I’m going to go now, must eat, you know, nice meeting you!” she stumbled, and immediately raced past them to her own room, flying through the doorway and shutting it quickly behind her, bracing it closed with her body as though everyone’s assumptions might be following her and hammering down the door. She groaned and thunked her head back against the wooden frame.

“Gods, I may as well just wear a sign around my neck stating “I had amazing sex last night with that hot white haired Native wolf, in case anyone was wondering”. this is [/I]so embarrassing[/I],” she told no one in particular. Sighing heavily, she closed her eyes and hauled herself forward, trudging over to the bed where she’d left Maverick. Hopefully she could just eat and forget about her awkward morning. [/color]

[Giselle Danielle]

As he stroked her arm, she was reminded of how much she didn't want to let him go. Ever. She didn't want to move either, quite content in his arms with his head on top of hers. His chin wasn't even that pointy, always a good sign. Plus, his support helped with the pain. Her back morphed to his chest and his arm spared her most of the weight on her legs.

She smiled softly as Amelia's face turned red. Ah, the bird was so modest. She liked her. And of course, the bird had to eat all of that. Maverick of course was not laying asleep in the other room. No, of course not. She opened her mouth to call 'good bye' after her, but it was too late. She was already in her room. She frowned and simply relaxed against Dutch.

"At least we know those two had fun." She said softly, reaching up to dance her fingers across his neck. "So, Mr. Pirate, aren't you going to show me 'your' city now?"

~~~

Maverick, in his slumber, had turned into his natural form. There, laying on the bed with paws in the air was a very content looking wolf. His nose was pointed towards the wall above his head. He looked rather comfortable.

An ear twitched as the door shut and an eye creaked open as she spoke to herself. Oh, so it had been amazing? Well, that was good. It was embarrassing for others to know? That was not so good. Maverick had absolutely no problem discussing last night's activities with Giselle or Jive. Maybe not Dutch...because Dutch probably would show off and tell him what he had done. He rolled over onto his side, the scent of food reaching his nose. Surprisingly he made no movement towards the food. He was worried about who she had ran into.

His body sparkled and soon he was human again. He sat upright on the edge of the bed, massaging his temple for a moment before looking up to Amelia.

"Well, if it was amazing than why is it so bad to let people know?" Maverick smiled, cocking his head to one side. "I bet you ten gold coins people won't think less of you if you do. In any case, who did you run into? You look as red as a fire wagon."

He stood up and made his way towards her.

[Dutch]

Chuckling, Dutch watched the bird’s hasty retreat with unconcealed amusement. He’d always found overly modest women cute. They were so adorable when they blushed. He had a hard time not pinching their cheeks (though, he doubted he’d have trouble resisting Amelia’s- even if he managed to catch the flighty little thing, her right hook was sufficient discouragement to leave her cheeks well enough alone).

“Mm-hmm,” Dutch replied, arching his neck towards her fingers and closing his eyes briefly. He grinned mischievously.

“Hrm. I don’t know, perhaps we should go swap stories. Judging by Amelia’s vivid coloration, we might pick a few tips,” he joked. Before she swatted him or something, he gave her a quick squeeze and kissed the top of her head, smiling in a less wicked manner.

“I jest. I’d much rather spend my day revisiting my old haunts with you.” Dutch felt hius chest tighten a little - he’d almost said ’spend the rest of our time together’, but had stopped himself. Dimly, he hoped that perhaps he could find a way not to be separated from her, though he knew better than to dwell on problems with no solutions. He couldn’t be with her all the time… “Would you prefer to start at the docks, the tunnels, or the rooftops, love?” he asked casually, trying to sound carefree.

[Amelia]

Green eyes wide with mild surprise, Amelia looked at the utterly relaxed wolf on the bed, and felt a little disappointed when he became a human again. She’d almost wanted to rub his cute little furry tummy…

Blinking, she let her eyes roam a bit as he talked to her, and felt her cheeks heat a little more.

“Well, it’s not bad, per se, but you know…the whole ‘what happens behind closed doors, stays behind closed doors?’ It’s just…awkward,” she said, moving to wrap her arms around his middle and lean her head on his chest, heaving a huge sigh.

“Plus, it’s a little different for women, usually,” she said. At least, it had been in her little hometown. “But I had to go see Ben, and he’s suddenly turned clairvoyant on me and figured it out in then seconds and time to spare, and then I bumped into Giselle, your Tandem, and that damn Dutch, and of course they knew because Dutch is a bloody whore ( no offense to Giselle or anything), and I’m not very good at the whole ‘cool under pressure thing‘,” she gushed, and sagged against him.

“It most definitely was totally amazing, though,” she said reassuringly.

[Giselle Danielle]

Surprisingly, Giselle felt no urge to hit him. Instead, she laughed and turned in his arms to reach up and kiss him. He was so silly.

"I think I'd much prefer your originality than Maverick's. I would be utterly horror-stricken if you suddenly started acting like him in bed."

She grinned up at him and ruffled his hair. She didn't want to part ways with him, not for a long time. Not at all, actually. She may get in her tiffs with him, but she didn't think there could be a way for her to stay too mad at him. He was simply too adorable to stay upset with him. Yet, he wasn't too adorable to not worry. There was something different in his voice, something that made the smile on her face falter for a moment.

"Well, first I'd like for you to tell me what's wrong." She smiled softly at him. "Then the tunnels."

She may have just been hearing things, it was always possible. Yet, she often used people's tone to decide whether or not she should actually kill the person they wanted her to kill. Sometimes a wife was just angry at her husband for cheating, but didn't want him to die. So, instead, she just beat the man up, told the wife, got her money and left. But, this was slightly different.

~~~

His arms automatically wrapped around her and he squeezed her slightly. He leaned his head down, kissing the top of her head gently before leaning back a bit to look at her. He cupped her cheek for a moment before smiling.

"No, Dutch is a whore." He chuckled. "But, I think Giselle is going to change him of his wicked ways. And now that I am reassured that you thought it was amazing, I'd like to point out that whatever anyone else thinks of us that I frankly don't care. Of course, if someone is badmouthing you I'd gladly knock their lights out."

He smiled as he looked at her. She really was cute, the kind of girl that you almost wanted to make blush just to see those reddened cheeks. But, he was nicer than that.

"I smell food."

Though, he was easily distracted when it came to food.

[Dutch]

Dutch was a little surprised when Giselle caught the little hitch of impending depression in his tone. He’d rather thought he’d hid it well. However, she was a woman, and they were known to be extremely intuitive.

Smiling down at her, he gave her a quick peck on the cheek. “Nothing to worry yourself over, my dear,” he said automatically. He wasn’t used to sharing things with women, and deflection was his knee-jerk response. He caught himself, however, and decided if he wanted to preserve whatever it was he had with Giselle, honesty and all that would probably be required. He didn’t want her to be upset, though…

“I was just wondering how on earth I’m going to fill eight whole hours a night without a gorgeous spiky brunette by my side to keep me occupied,” he said dramatically, looking off into the distance with a melancholy air, trying to make light of it. The last thing he wanted was for her to feel guilty or reluctant to spend time with her horse. He understood how strong the pull of a passion could be.

[Amelia]

Leaning into his hand for a moment, Amelia smiled up at Maverick. He really was sweet.

Letting her head fall back, she laughed at Maverick’s straightforward offer.

“Well, Ben wasn’t technically badmouthing me, but he was being annoyingly observant. And I don’t think I’d mind seeing you knock his lights out, especially if you did it shirtless,” she teased, and was quite proud of herself when she didn’t blush in the slightest.

She laughed lightly again as he noticed the food, and grinned as she held up her prize.

“Plenty for the both of us. See, I can hunt, too,” she joked. “I call it urban tracking.”

Pulling it quickly behind her back, she adopted a concerned expression. “Of course, if you’re still too exhausted to eat, I could just put it away until later. Wouldn’t want you to miss out on enjoying such good steak…” she said coyly.

[Giselle Danielle]

She frowned when he kissed her cheek and acted like nothing was going on. She would have thought, that at least at this point, that he would be honest with her. She would always be honest with him. Plus, she didn't have much to hide. But the frown soon disappeared as he explained what was bothering him. He was acting as if it was a joke, but she knew it bothered him. She almost wanted to just go on the ship with him. She was planning on hiding there, anyway. But, she still needed to test him. She still needed to know that she could walk away from him and not worry.

"Well, you could always come with me." She offered, taking his hand as she began to lead him towards the door of the inn. "But, I understand that you have to stay on the ship."

She smiled at him with understanding. She didn't want to leave him, either. Watching him and not being able to go to him would simply be too painful. She bit her lip subconsciously as she thought.

"Or, I could go with you."

Blast it, she still needed to test him. Hmm, she could just refuse sex for a while. Though, he was very convincing, she might have to give in at some point. Oh, there was no real solution here.

~~~

Maverick grinned down at her. She liked seeing him shirtless, did she? The wolf's insides nearly jumped around with happiness. For once he had found someone who actually liked how he looked. Well, he probably had bumped into people that stared at him, but Giselle never had complimented him. Then again, he never complimented her.

"Well, I'm afraid I'll have to let annoyingly observant go. Especially when it comes to a man who makes amazing steak."

His grin disappeared, however, as she teased him with the food. "No, I'm not that exhausted." His face slowly turned into the classic 'puppy dog' look. He pulled it off rather well, it worked even on Giselle. His lower lip quivered and his eyes watered as he looked at her. "Please can I have some food?"

Of course, he wasn't actually upset, but he looked very convincingly so, as if he was.

[Dutch]

A spark of elation whipped through Dutch’s system as Giselle offered to negate the need for separation, but it died just as quickly as it had arisen. She was right when she’d said he couldn’t leave his ship - his crew had made that clear when he’d tried to stay in port too long. They were pirates, after all - the only way for them to make money was to go out pirating.

Besides, as much as he was loathe to leave her, he knew she needed the time. If she never got her spy test out of her system, the doubt would nag at her. He could be good and suffer for a few weeks. Probably.

Using the hand he was holding, he pulled her back to him and smiled sympathetically down at her.

“It’s alright. I know you need to spend some time with your horse, and it isn’t so long,” he told her, and cupped a hand against her cheek, leaning down to kiss her. “Go. I’ll wait for you,” he said, his voice quietly reassuring.

Straightening back up, he flashed a grin down at her. “Besides, I need a little time to recover. My poor, dainty frame can only handle having wild, vigorously passionate sex a few times a week, you know. I’m quite delicate,” he said, face the picture of sincerity, as he resumed Giselle’s course and led them outside.