diamonds and buttermilk ((bellona))

Much to his amazement, since it was mere hours ago that Comarth and Dahlia decided to sneak out and break laws, the plan was working. The plan was actually working. Well, as far as he could tell from the extent of sneaking out. Thius was expecting some level of radio silence until the two were on their way back to the castle with the baby dragon captured. Appropriately, he stuck his crystal off to the side somewhere in the bathroom before going into one of the changing room stalls.

Thius wasn't expecting anybody else to contact him. Any noise coming from either of their crystals had to be from their friends, but for now, he was pushing that aside as he changed out of his casual post-class clothing into a mere pair of swimming shorts, the ones he had purchased back in Blackrock. He initially had his stomach tucked in because his grandmother would always get on him about how having it out was immodest, but then he pulled it out and lowered the waistband to be underneath and closer to his hips. There, much more comfortable. It was just him and his girlfriend, and he doubted Bellona would mind. He'd just have to get used to not having Hector or anyone breath down his neck.

Biting his lip, he was imagining Bellona in her bathing suit and what was underneath it. They weren't around his relatives, he was allowed to do that. Thius stepped out of the stall and headed towards the tub to examine all of the many faucets that adorned its sides. He kept looking back towards the changing room and bathroom stalls, eagerly awaiting for her to come out. Thius could feel his heart flutter in anticipation. They were all alone.

@Bellona Lestrange

As her head had been full of planning Selwyn and Traver's excursion, Bellona hadn't really thought about her and Melanthius's trip to the prefect's bathroom. Now that she was in the changing room, however, the realisation was hitting her. The first challenge was getting into her two-piece, which she hadn't worn since Blackrock. Then it was what came after that: sharing a tub with her boyfriend, alone, partially clothed...

The silence was making her more nervous. There was a drip, drip, drip of a leaking tap.

"Do you really think they're going to get away with it?" Bellona asked, hearing her voice echo around the changing cubicle. Being calm and conversational put her at ease, before she was ready to step out.

Putting on the bottoms was the usual wriggling, struggling, hopping, flailing. Once she was satisfied everything was in place, she had to ensure ultimate nonchalance. She wasn't self-conscious, she wasn't thinking about how things stuck out or wobbled or threatened to escape. Taking a breath in, and nodding determinedly, she exited the cubicle.

"You're not in yet?" she asked, turning to the hooks of towels and selecting one in a would-be calm way. "Is it even ready? What have you been doing? We want to bathe - so let's bathe."

@Melanthius Burke

"I'm not sure, but I hope they will since they're putting their lives at risk in numerous ways. I already told Comarth that I wouldn't have seen a thing if he ends up burnt to a crisp by a dragon!"

Thius was contemplating which of the faucets to turn on first. He was squatted down as the swim trunks did the slightest amount of sliding down. He wasn't used to showing so much skin. Normally, he would've worn a tank top or swim shirt because it was considered decent, but it would've been a stupid thing to do in a warm, steamy tub.

Turning towards her, he smiled and replied, "I haven't been in here before, so I hardly have a clue which faucet spews what. All I know from what Ptolemy previously told me is that there is a tap that releases water that relaxes every muscle in your body."

His hand hovered over the taps until it landed on a sapphire-topped tap. Twisting it on, water began pouring into the tub emitting a light ylang-ylang aroma and bubbles that bounced along the sides of the tub.

He was trying to ignore the fact that this was the first time he was ever actually shirtless. It felt freeing, yet a part of him felt scared about it.

@Bellona Lestrange

Perhaps she had little to worry about, then. He offered her a smile, which she returned, and he dutifully turned his attention on the tub. Her eyes trailed along the bare back of him - his skin smooth, with small blemishes and freckles. As she approached, she dropped the towel at the edge of the tub and stood behind him, hands on hips, watching the tub fill with water and bubbles.

"Well, I doubt any of it is going to be unpleasant."

Watching his back while biting the inside of her cheek, her head tilted as a sudden urge struck her.

"But just to make sure. You're going in first."

She placed her bare foot on the small of his back, a rumble of laughter unfurling from her throat. Perhaps she was cruel enough to kick him in now, when the tub was only half full, but he may have some kind of injury, she supposed. Not the best idea. Instead, she just applied more and more pressure to his back, urging him to plop in.

@Melanthius Burke

Another tap added some jasmine oil to the tub, which he turned off just as quickly to prevent it from overwhelming their senses. As he was doing that however, a familiar, exciting pressure was being applied to his back, and his eyes widened in surprise. This time, there wasn't a boot, yet she still managed close to the same force. Why did it feel so good? The blood pumping through his veins were making its appearance known in his ears and elsewhere.

Shit.

He was already feeling extremely ungentlemanly.

And it was...

Hot?

He wasn't even in the water yet!

It had to just be the water.

It's not the water.

Thius ended up jumping into the warm water so the bubbles could disguise his-

"Ahhhh! 'Ona, I think my wrists already lost their tension!"

@Bellona Lestrange

She inhaled deeply, just as he unceremoniously dropped into the water. "Mmm," she sighed, satisfied. "It definitely smells nice."

Now it was her turn to do a graceful descent, she thought, spotting a ladder and using that to lower herself, gently, into the water. At first, it felt a little overwhelming to have so much foam, bubbles and vapours hit her all at once. But once the initial shock wore off, she felt herself relax. She had been tenser than she'd realised.

"This feels amazing, Thius..." she breathed, sighing in contentment, "And what's more: the idea of Estrada and Jetson shivering outside while we're in here... the icing on the cake."

She leant back against the wall of the tub, closing her eyes serenely. "Perhaps we should give Dahlia the password so she and Selwyn can come here. That's if they're actually alive tomorrow."

@Melanthius Burke

As he stood in the tub, he stared at her in awe as she descended down. Merlin... Thius dipped the rest of his body into the water and erupted out, pushing his hair back. There, now that was out of his way.

His eyes followed her as she found a seat near the edge as he mentally unclothed her. That wasn't helping him keep his stiffness under control.

Act natural. Act natural. Act natural.

He gaped slightly, swimming over to her and sat down, scooting close to her. "Comarth may use it, but I'm not sure if Travers would. She's entirely resistant to anything that could be perceived as romantic. I've never witnessed someone be so allergic to love."

At least talking about them subdued some of the raging hormones. For now.

@Bellona Lestrange

But Bellona didn't see Selwyn being romantic, either. She pictured him trying to climb the large extraction tube at the far end of the bathroom, believing it led to one of the Founders' private dragon bone museum, or something. She didn't voice this to Melanthius. Instead she said:

"He'd go in fully clothed."

And giggled.

His thigh was brushing against hers. Far from being disturbed, or nervous in the slightest, however, Bellona trailed the back of her fingernails against his skin there, and rested her hand on his knee. "But they're not here. Nor is anyone else. No Hector - no mundanes..."

@Melanthius Burke

Chuckling, he snorted at the thought. Yeah, Comarth wouldn't use the bathroom right. He'd find some way to tie it into dragons and probably manage to harass the mermaid.

He could feel every hair on every pore of his body stand up; her touch only made the pleading of his body more stronger, more painful. Thius' took a few deep breaths.

"Nobody here to disrupt us..."

His heart raced as he turned his head to directly face hers, slowly moving his hand up to caress her jaw, then her cheek.

"...'Ona..."

He gazed at her eyes and down to her lips longingly.

@Bellona Lestrange

Looking at him, she was drawn in, feeling her head incline to meet his.

"Close your eyes," she whispered, as her heart thudded up to her throat.

Fear gripped her, knowing there was a chance of this going very wrong. But she couldn't let it overwhelm her forever: they were together, and they had to show their affection for one another. She wanted to show her affection. Not just a little peck of the lips, but a proper kiss...

"Let me start, okay? We'll go slowly. And if you feel anything cold, just pull back..." It was embarrassing that their first snog had to come with instructions. She was like any girl: she wanted a spontaneous wave of passion. But she had to be sure he wasn't going to get hurt first.

When she moved to him, her eyes fell shut. Finding his mouth with hers, she felt the tension leave her.

@Melanthius Burke

Merlin, his brain and body felt so titillated and excited; here they were, practically half-naked, alone in a steamy, elegant bathtub getting ready to snog. He was unable to think of anything else other than it was just the two of them.

"I trust you, babe," he reassured her, grinning as his other hand moved to cling around her waist. He could hear the pumping of his blood get louder and louder the closer their faces got.

His thumb stroked her side as their mouths finally met. "Mm..." This was even better than that incidental potion-involved song despite the lack of spontaneity and slight awkwardness. Thius almost didn't want to pull back, as if he was desperate to taste her for eternity.

Finally, he pulled back, reassuring her again by saying, "You didn't feel cold at all, at least I didn't think so. I-I sort of thought that by taking you here that maybe the warmth would help you be less afraid." His eyes were gleaming at her fondly while his cheeks were flushing a cherry red.

He needed to remember that Hector wasn't here to reprimand them for behaving like a normal couple, neither he nor grandmother were there to watch their slightest movements.

Hopefully, his throbbing wasn't too obvious.

@Bellona Lestrange

Although she had no one else to compare to, she imagined, from observation, that certain other people were disappointing, or sloppy kissers. Melanthius wasn't at all. There was no horrible waggling appendage seeking to do battle with her tongue, it was just nice and smooth, wet but warm, and had her insides fluttering with butterflies. She knew, looking at him as they parted, that she was keen to do it again. The fear had evaporated.

But there was one more... test, so to speak.

"Kiss me again," she murmured, hands sliding down his arms and back up again, where they clung around her neck. "But take me by surprise. Let yourself go now. Don't hesitate."

And if her instinct was to protect herself and use her powers...

But she was more confident this time that it wouldn't happen. She wanted to feel his passion, no matter what form it took.

@Melanthius Burke

The hand that had been caressing her face was now wrapped around her waist, his hand unconsciously hovering near the back of her top. His fingers were edging to dive between her skin and the fabric, but he stopped himself, not knowing whether that'd be too far or not.

There were so many places throughout her body that he wanted to kiss, touch, but he needed to show some restraint; they had only just begun to snog!

After taking a deep breath as if to keep his hormones in check, Thius gently pulled her closer to his body; his stomach pressing close as he began to passionately kiss her as if he was desperately savoring every last drop. His leg was inching to intertwine with hers, soft moans occasionally escaping from inside his mouth.

@Bellona Lestrange