ElfStruck 02

She walked a few paces ahead of him, arms swinging from side to side, her stance one of confidence. It hadn’t always been like this, Rufus could still remember back to the days when he first met the Princess of Dipan. Alicia had been timid then, an extremely shy girl that flinched back from loud noises. Back then she could barely find the strength to draw her sword, always sounding so uncertain when it came time to battle.

But little by little she had changed, blossoming from scared little girl, into a self assured young lady. No longer did she stumble along her path, moving with an assurance that came from within. He knew that if they were attacked, her hands would not hesitate, drawing her sword with the intent to defend herself and him at all costs. He loved that about her, loved her he realized, knowing that at some point through her transformation, he too had gone through one of his own.

Once alone and aloof, hardly caring for himself, let alone any of his companions, he had grown to appreciate their friendship. Rufus had learned their was no weakness in depending on others, in turn helping and being helped for purely non selfish reasons. But more than that, he had found himself turning towards one person in particular. Alicia. The princess was his closest confidant, his dearest friend, and at some point she had become the keeper of his heart.

She was also, unfortunately not talking to him at the moment. Rufus found it hard to remember ever seeing her so angry, and trust him when he said they had been through enough for the girl to have displayed her temper. The only time that came close was when she had challenged Hrist Valkyrie, believing the Goddess responsible for her mother’s suicide. And even that had been only a temporary anger, nothing like the flame that smoldered now, her eyes stormy every time she looked at him.

He supposed he couldn’t blame her, she had been shocked to come out of her trance, clothing dishelved, with one of her boots removed from her leg. He had offered a hasty explanation, Rufus explaining how he had accidentally charmed her, a condition known as elf struck. She had listened quietly to his words, her face turning redder and redder, and that was before he wised up and decided to leave out some of the details of what she had attempted to do to him.

Alicia hadn’t spoken right away, just sitting on the bed, boot still misplaced, her hands curled up into fists in her lap. He had pointed at the wildflowers placed around her neck, explaining how it was soaked in a mixture that contained pinalope seeds. He stressed the importance of her not removing the necklace, at least not until they got SIlmeria back. Alicia had nodded, and slowly inched off the bed, moving closer to him. He almost didn’t see it coming, his face rocked to the side as she slapped him with all her might.

And that had been the start of her silence treatment, Alicia refusing to talk to him, barely even acknowledging him when they weren’t battling monsters. If he tried to walk side by side with her, she turned to glare at him, eyes narrowed into thin slits that caused him to stumble and falter. She ignored all his attempts at speaking to her, the princess surely holding one heck of a grudge.

It wasn’t hard to understand, he knew she was embarrassed by the way she had acted. She claimed not to remember, but Rufus wondered if some part of her did not retain some memory of the past day. He wasn’t sure what he hoped for, knowing she had revealed some important things to him, but not wanting her to remember the way he had run his hands all over her pert little body. He tried not to think about it, knowing the memory was vivid in his mind. He could still feel the roundness of her ass in his hands, and how plump and pliant her breasts had been. And most of all, he remembered the sounds, the way she gasped and moaned, giggled and sighed, eager to help him remove her clothing.

Rufus had lost himself in Alicia, for one brief moment forgetting she was under a spell, letting himself get carried away by her actions. He didn’t want her to remember how close they had come to making love, didn’t want her to have another reason to hate him. He had stopped, but just barely, and it had taken all his strength to render her unconscious. Even now, some small part of him regretted not going all the way, but Rufus locked up that remorse tight within him, determined to not be bogged down by it.

Instead he let other thoughts distract him, remembering how she had come close to telling him she loved him. It wasn’t a true love confession, even under the spell she had been hesitant, confused by her feelings. But what she did know came tumbling out of her lips, Alicia telling him how she wanted to explore what they had. And Rufus was all too quick to agree, knowing he had similar feelings boiling under the surface of his skin.

But, and this was a big one, he didn’t know how to broach the topic to her. Had she really meant those words, or was she being manipulative, trying to say anything to get him to bed her? He did not know, and he realized he was a coward, Rufus hesitating to ask her point blank. He tried telling himself it was her fault, that angry mood of hers kept him from speaking his mind, but he knew even should she revert back to her kind, smiling self he would find an excuse not to speak of love to her.

And so here he was, inwardly musing, his eyes boring into her back, studying her intently. He felt her image would be imprinted on his mind, the way her golden hair glinted in the sunlight, the threaded designs embroidered into the leather of her vest, the long green half skirt she wore that hid the back of her thighs from him. Rufus found it hard to take his eyes off Alicia, finding even her back was entrancing.

Perhaps too much so, for he wasn’t paying attention to his surroundings, hearing too late the heavy tread of a monster. He didn’t have time to draw his weapon, Rufus spinning around just in time for a large hammy fist to smash into his upper body and a good portion of his face. It was a troll, and it looked angry, though the ugly beasts always wore enraged grimaces on their scarred faces.

“Rufus!” He heard Alicia cry out, even as he went sailing through the air, catching sight of her drawing her sword out the corner of his eye. He crashed against a tree, slumping to the ground, stunned momentarily from the experience. Vaguely he could make out Alicia’s voice issuing a challenge, and enraged screaming from the troll, the princess surely giving it her all as she battled him.

He tried to stay awake, wanting nothing more than to rush to her side, and shoot arrow after arrow into the beast. But his eyes felt too heavy, Rufus struggling to sit up. He succeeded only to fall forward, landing face first in the grass. He opened his eyes, seeing a pretty red insect with black dots crawl near him. One minute it was several inches away, the next it was on his nose, Rufus realizing he had lost consciousness for a second there. It happened again, he was suddenly hearing the dying screams of the troll, and footsteps pounding as Alicia ran off the highway to check on him.

Her hands found their way to his shoulders, lifting him up off the ground, gently easing his head onto her lap. “Rufus..” Alicia said, her fingers brushing the dirt off his face. “Can you hear me?”

“Al…Alicia?” He muttered, fighting to open his eyes.

“Yes…” She said, and he saw her then, tears streaming down her face.

“Why are you crying?” He asked, Rufus reaching upwards to touch her cheek. She leaned into his touch, one hand touching the back of his hand, the other playing with his bangs.

“I just couldn’t bear the thought of losing you too….” Alicia whispered. She said something else, but once again he blacked out. The next thing he was aware of was her hand hovering over his face, Alicia chanting out the words to a healing spell. Her hand glowed pure white, light shining into him, and he slowly felt the spell take hold, healing his injuries. Strength returned to him, and suddenly he was sure he could move, confidant he wouldn’t fall over. But he hesitated, Rufus finding her lap a far too comfortable spot for his head.

She didn’t protest his perch, smiling down at him, tear drops hitting his cheeks. She continued to hold his hand to her face, his fingers rubbing against her soft skin. “Alicia…” He said, marveling at how smooth her skin was. “Please….don’t cry anymore…” He was rubbing at her cheeks, smearing her tears, hearing her sniffle.

“I’ll try…” She promised, and he watched as she took a deep breath, slowly trying to get a rein on her emotions. “I just…when I saw you go flying, I thought oh no, please not him!” A crooked smile, the princess continuing. “I…don’t want to be alone again…I lost Silmeria…I lost Dylan and Lezard, Leone and Arngrim…I couldn’t stand it if you were gone too!”

He was quiet, trying to work his nerve to speak, realizing he had truly frightened her when he had fallen victim to the troll. “Is that all it is?” He wondered out loud, seeing her blue eyes widen. “The desire not to be alone, or is it something more?”

“More? What do you mean?” She asked, innocently enough.

This was his chance he realized, and he didn’t want to waste it. “Back at the inn….you….you told me some things.” He started, and saw her lower her hand, resting it by the side of his face.

“Things?” She asked cautiously. “What sort of things?”

“You expressed certain….feelings to me…that went beyond mere lust.” Rufus continued, and if he wasn’t watching her face so intently, he would have missed the slight pinkening of her cheeks.

“Oh?” Her tone was guarded, Alicia determined not to betray any emotions to him.

“Yes….you said….well…you didn’t outright say you love me but….you said it was close to love.” Rufus felt heat in his own cheeks, staring up at her blushing face.

“I do love you Rufus.” She said it so quickly his eyes widened in amazement. Just as easily she crushed him, telling him, “I love you as a friend, as family…like a…”

“Don’t!” Rufus barked out, and she flashed startled blue eyes at him. “Don’t say I am like a brother to you. I couldn’t bear it!”

“Why not?” She whispered, and he swallowed nervously.

“Because!” A dramatic pause from him, Rufus slowly sitting up. “Because I love you!”

“Oh!!” Her eyes had grown even wider, Alicia staring at him, her lips parted in shock. “Rufus…” She shook her head head, and he frowned, nodding at her.

“It’s true! I love you…I’ve been IN love with you for a while now!” Rufus told her.

She started to push herself upright, still shaking her head no. “It’s the concussion making you confused. You don’t love me….you can’t!”

“I can and I do!” Rufus said, leaping to his feet, feeling momentarily dizzy. She was trying to back away, and he grabbed at her arm, trying to keep her from fleeing. “Alicia!”

“No Rufus…” She shook her head, and he let out a frustrated sound.

“Why not?” He demanded, the princess lowering her eyes.

“Because no one, not even my own parents, can love me!” She whispered, and the raw pain in his eyes made him pull her towards him. “People who love me die!”

“Oh Alicia, that’s not true.” He whispered in her ear, hugging her. He felt her shaking from the effort to not cry, the girl hesitant to touch him. “Your parents may be dead, but what about Silmeria? She’s still out there somewhere! And I’m still here, nothing has happened to me?”

“But mother, father…Dallas!” She weakly protested, and he hugged her tighter.

“It was their time to die, it’s a cruel and it’s awful, but it wasn’t your fault. None of it, do you understand me?” Rufus asked her, pulling back to look her in the eyes. That beautiful blue color was brimming over with unshed tears, Alicia fighting back sniffles as she nodded. “So it’s okay to love…to be happy…they, your parents, would want that for you.”

“Really?” She asked, and he nodded. “Oh Rufus…” Her blush was in full bloom, eyes still holding wetness to him as she looked at him. “I think I do love you.”

“And I know I love you.” He told her, smiling. “So what are we going to do about it?”

“Um…” She lowered her eyes, staring downwards. He smiled, and tilted her chin up, making her look at him. “Well….when people are in love…they do things together…”

“Like?”

“Like hold hands…and….and kiss…” She whispered the last words, looking extremely embarrassed.

“Do you want me to kiss you?” He asked, holding his breath as he waited for her answer.

“Oh yes.” She breathed out, eyes glancing at his lips. “I very much want that!”

“Good…” He moved in to claim her lips, gentle so as not to scare her off with the depths of his desire. She sighed against his lips, mouth parted slightly, Rufus nibbling on her lower lip. He let his tongue come into play, tracing it along her top and bottom lip, Alicia letting out a giggle at the odd sensation of being licked. He kissed her one last time, then pulled back to smile at her. “I like hearing you laugh. You don’t do enough of it.”

“I haven’t had much reason to laugh or be happy.” She confessed.

“Yeah…yeah that’s true.” He had to agree, and he hugged her once more, petting her hair. “But I’ll change all that. We’ll get to Yggsdrasil, and with the power of the Gods, we’ll get Silmeria, get all our friends back, and start making some changes around the realms.”

“I’d like that.” She smiled slowly, eyes now dry of her tears. “As long as I can be by your side….you and Silmeria, I’d go anywhere with you two.”

A part of him felt jealous at the thought of mixing Silmeria into the equation, but he couldn’t begrudge Alicia her life long companion. He pushed back the jealous feelings, placing his lips against her forehead as he urged her to sit down with him on the grass. She sighed happily, cuddling against him as Rufus leaned back against the tree, whispering into her ear. “Together we’ll be unstoppable!”

“Yes!” She happily agreed, and then glanced up at him. “Rufus?”

“Yes Alicia?”

“Kissing and hand holding is not the only thing Silmeria told me couples can do.” Her blue eyes twinkled mischievously, and Rufus found himself grow breathless as her hand went to land on his thigh. Her hand moved, and her fingers found a sensitive spot to squeeze.

“Alicia!” His startled but pleased cry echoed among the road, birds taking startled flight from the trees. They were fortunate no one came to investigate the cry, no monsters being drawn towards the pair, for the two would have been most unprepared for a fight. They were only a few miles away from the town of Quiryl, but Rufus and Alicia would delay their arrival into town for hours more, frolicking among the trees. Love was in the air, and it was a splendid thing indeed.