Thread: Dominant Paladin, Innocent Bard (PsionicCuttlefish & SweetandSour)

Gwen's words of encouragement about cooking, along with her smile, had indeed given Tyler some small reassurance about the situation, before the revelation that had driven everything else from his mind in such a storm of mixed emotions, as he let his fears out. He was still slumped in his chair after he finished, not quite sure what he felt right then, but the next moment a strong hand playfully ruffled the top of his hair, making him blink and look up slightly startled from the unexpected action...but he didn't flinch away from it, either. It actually felt...kinda nice to him. When she spoke, he looked at her attentively--blunt though they may have been, he had never gotten words of support like this before. It was strange and unfamiliar, which made him slightly apprehensive...but also hopeful. The idea of not having such strict expectations, and instead being able to just...explore and find out for himself what worked best? His father's demands and imposed goals vanishing from his shoulders, even if for just a while? I...yeah, okay. He replied to her in a small but earnest voice. Most of his life, he had always 'known' what the future would hold, and it had always made him either stressed or depressed. Now, he was starting to realize that for the first time, he really didn't know what the next day would bring--or the next day after that, or the one after that--which gave him that fluttery-stomach feeling that was both anxious and excited. It was one of the aspects of being a travelling bard that he had always been enamored with, when he thought about his dreams for such, and now it was happening . A feeling that flashed a little stronger in Tyler for a moment, as Gwen's hand slid down to cup his cheek and chin. Without realizing it, he sucked in a small, sharp breath. He had never actually really been touched even this 'intimately' before by anyone so far as he had memory of he had never known his mother, only that she had died shortly after he was born. Or at least, Tyler assumed she had died--his father would never talk about it, and only got sad and stern whenever Tyler tried to ask. Plus there was the fact that Gwen's hand was comparatively so big, so rough-built, so strong...and yet, so gentle , an instinctively-recognized feminine touch. That someone could be so powerful, and yet have such delicate control, fascinated him a little. However, he hadn't realized just how much of a trusting expression he had been giving Gwen as she spoke, nor did he realize that, when she leaned over towards him, his eyes flicked downward to the sudden view of her immense cleavage until she started speaking again and he looked back up to listen... And when she was finished, there was a perfect brief and comedic second where Tyler didn't react, enabling the very instant he caught up with what Gwen had said to be starkly identifiable...realizing abruptly that, yes, he had been staring, yes, he was in fact hard, and yes, she did notice! All at once, his eyes popped open, he quickly gasped, a reddish tint bloomed on his cheeks and ears, and he shyly jolted back as he began sputtering and stammering, scarcely able to even form a single coherent word in his highly flustered attempt to deny and apologize at the same time. Just at the same time, the tavern server was setting plates on the table while Gwen sat back as well. The normalcy and momentary 'intrusion' of the 'public' managed to very quickly settle Tyler down through strongly-trained reflexes, giving him time to re-collect his thoughts and keep up as the orcess continued speaking again. When she mentioned the real possibility of fight back or be killed, he did look slightly downwards with another rather thoughtful expression on his face. There...might actually be a way he could be of use in a fight, even if he didn't fight directly himself...but he didn't have too much practice with it yet, and he still had only just met Gwen and was just beginning to know her--she had been more understanding that he could have dreamed of so far, but he still couldn't yet tell what her opinion might be on the frivolous and amateurish skill of weaving magic via music as opposed to more superior and comprehensive traditions, specifically, magic that would enhance Gwen's fighting prowess. He had hardly really spoken since he let his original fears out to Gwen, but as she finished talking and settled to dig into her food, he nodded at her. 'R-right. That's...actually really incredible, the idea of having ways to defeat enemies other than kill, using that whenever possible? I...could barely have imagined that. I think that's great . Which was quite an understatement. If she could really do what she said and he had no reason to doubt her, then already that made her one of the most amazing people Tyler had ever heard of, in his opinion. And just, all of that, helping each other, as best as we can...that all sounds like...a good plan. A really good plan. He looked up to her eyes...and gave her the first genuinely confident, resolved expression she had seen on him. I'll work hard for you, I promise. The young elf man then settled in for his own meal and didn't say much more right away. The way he ate naturally defaulted to the 'refined' eating mannerisms drilled into him when compared to Gwen, but as the orcess really let herself enjoy the meal without much concern for a mess, the next time Tyler glanced up at her...his eyes caught how the juices from the succulent meats were dripping down almost ...almost erotically onto the tops of her amazingly hefty bust to create a splattered glistening sheen on her green skin. Immediately he blushed again cheeks and ears all and quickly looked back down at his food. From that point, he managed to catch when his eyes were drifting back towards Gwen and averted his gaze at the last moment, while the tips of his long pointed ears briefly flushed pink every time. Gods, he...he really had been hard when he was looking at her...'assets' earlier, and....and she had seen somehow! He didn't think his trousers were that tight...but either way, he had to start controlling himself better, in a way he didn't have practice with. The fact that he found her to be quite physically attractive, which he had dismissed from his mind back at the estate, was charging back to the front of his mind even stronger...strong enough that it surprised him, even by his deviant standards for an elf. But she was going to be his mentor, and he her squire, he had to tamp down such base, immoral urges. As supportive as she had been so far, her earlier mention of his impropriety had surely been a warning or a test or both--she'd still be well within her rights to bring down all kinds of harsh punishment on him, and then abandon him anyway, if he continued to display such unseemly and callow lack of self-control! ...Yet--and it would likely be obvious to her when it was not to him--he was having to catch his gaze from settling on her a bit often .