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

Tyler looked up when Gwen jolted slightly with a disbelieving choke on her drink. For a moment, Tyler was quite worried he had said or done something wrong. But then he blinked as the orcess made sarcastic comments about finding glory with an exaggerated gesture and about his father, after which she laughed for several moments. Tyler blinked again, as...for some reason, he found that he instantly liked the sound of her laugh. Deep, strong, and feminine all at the same time, it seemed to resonate in his heart, and it also didn't hurt that it made her huge chest even contained in her clothes bounce in a most enticingly-- Eyes UP you fool! She'll tear your 'man' off with her bare hands... Tyler thought to himself, as he carefully met Gwen's eyes, or eye, as she continued to speak. And she spoke unlike anyone Tyler's father had ever had him meet. She wasn't exalting her heroic deeds and insisting they were something he should aspire to. She even showed off the fierce-looking scar over her left eye as she made a point. Tyler's full attention was on her right now. He was confused, sure, but it was that very confusion that was now making him hang on to every word she said as he tried to make sense of it all. She then turned to more practical matters as she ordered a meal for both of them. Tyler remained attentive and nodded along with her wisdom on travelling foods, and when she asked him about things he could do, he nodded again, more hurriedly--but not in an eager way, more like a concerned way. Oh, yes! I do have some experience with cooking, actually. I'm not great at it, but I can take some ingredients and make them taste decent. And...I know a little bit about armor, can help get it on and off, but haven't had much experience repairing it. I can learn fast, though! But then she asked him another question almost right away...a question that made Tyler freeze, sure that he hadn't heard her correctly. Gwen then made a little show of flexing her muscles, but then continued speaking...Tyler's mouth slowly dropped open slightly as he looked at the orcess in disbelief. You...you're serious... He whispered quietly, once she had finished talking. You mean that I...I don't have to... With a gradual slump, he leaned his slim body back in his chair, looking down at the table with a shocked and conflicted expression. After a few moments, he did reach out for the mug of beer he had left on the table to pull it a little closer. He stared blankly at it for a few moments, then slowly lifted it in both hands again to take another sip, more than before. A moment later, he lowered the mug with another quiet grunt and sigh, then tapped the mug back down onto the table, one hand still hanging onto it as he continued staring blankly at the table, his posture slumped and tensionless where he sat. I...I was gonna say... He mumbled, then shook his head slightly and gathered himself a little more. I was gonna say...I was gonna do everything you asked, give it all the effort I could, but...I can barely swing a sword right, can barely take a hit, and I...I wasn't gonna ask for leniency , I knew there was no way I'd get it, I wasn't trying to duck the standards...the expectations of me, however it sounded, all I meant was to give you forewarning that I... Tyler spoke in a subdued, and largely resigned-sounding tone, and at the very end, his voice got even quieter, almost a whisper, ...I was probably going to be a disappointment...like I always am... After another few moments, he looked back up at Gwen. The boyish-faced elf's crystal-blue eyes stared at Gwen earnestly under his slightly-ruffled light-brown hair. You...you really mean that? That I don't have to...to fight, to kill? He gazed at Gwen with a desperate expression, one afraid to hope but wanting to very much... Last edited Jun 12, 2018