Through Thick and Thin [Closed]

[Sofia di Castelbuono]

Cauthrien’s touch on her back was gentle, but still a comfort. It was the sort of contact that previously Sofia would have thought about wistfully in quiet moments following the fact; determined to not upset the friendship, but still letting herself daydream about it a bit. It ran a far second in her awareness right now. Kissing Cauthrien felt so right that Sofia didn’t even think for several blissful seconds. Exhaustion, grief and fear were banished, and didn’t even immediately rush back in when the kiss was broken. Sofia touched Cauthrien’s face and the other woman closed her eyes like a cat relaxing into the perfect spot of sunlight - even though it was brief, the moment suggested a trust that tugged at Sofia’s heart.

She aimed to be worthy of that trust.

Expressing how she felt about Cauthrien seemed important even as words seemed completely useless, but somehow Sofia found a few, and Cauthrien reciprocated.

“I never expected to find you.” There was a quality to Cauthrien’s voice that Sofia had never heard before, a tenderness roughened with emotion. “Or this. I-”

Cauthrien paused a moment, and then kissed Sofia again, and Sofia slipped a hand up to cup the back of Cauthrien’s head. There had been more than one occasion when she’d daydreamed about providing support to the warrior that Cauthrien would likely never seek - and the reality of assisting Cauthrien with actual injuries was not romantic in the slightest. But this was the sort of thing she could offer, and to her gratitude, Cauthrien accepted it.

This time, it was Sofia who broke the kiss first, after air became a necessity; she giggled softly, resting her forehead against Cauthrien’s. Andraste knew that Sofia had not been without the occasional affair over the years, but it had been a long time since she could remember actually feeling giddy. “I could do this until the ceiling fell in.”

And more. Cauthrien responded so well to a kiss that Sofia was immediately filled with curiosity as to how the other Warden would react to more intimate contact. Unfortunately, needs of another variety chose that moment to assert themselves - Sofia’s stomach let out a clearly audible rumble, and she chuckled sheepishly. “But perhaps I should actually eat something.”

She pulled away, although not without taking the opportunity to be a little cheeky and press a kiss just below Cauthrien’s ear.

 

[Cauthrien]

The second kiss was even better than the first; with no worrying that she might have misread Sofia’s meaning, Cauthrien savored the experience, lifting her hand to cup the other woman’s cheek, marveling at the softness of her lips and the sweet scent of her hair. She was breathless and a little lightheaded when it ended, but while that sensation had always been one of the reasons that she did not drink to excess, she found that she didn’t mind it in the least right now. Not with Sofia so close, looking up at her with eyes as blue as the ocean beneath a clear summer sky, smiling at her in that way that made something in her chest tighten and take flight at the same time.

“I could do this until the ceiling fell in,” Sofia suggested with a musical laugh.

“Don’t say that.” Cauthrien chuckled as she spoke, but she cast a wary eye upward all the same. The events of the last few days had her leery of tempting fate, but on the other hand, the suggestion itself did not sound like a bad idea -

The gurgling that rose between them put an end to that notion; Cauthrien was reasonably certain that it hadn’t come from her, and Sofia’s abashed laugh confirmed it. “But perhaps I should actually eat something,” she murmured.

“That would be a good idea.” Warden biology waited for no one, and she felt a bit guilty about being the cause of the delay. She relaxed her embrace - though not without regret. Sofia stepped back, then with a saucy gleam in her eyes leaned in and kissed Cauthrien’s neck near her ear, sending a surge of warmth into the warrior's cheeks. Cauthrien drew a startled breath, then acted on impulse, looping an arm about the mage’s waist and pulling her back for another kiss, this one much less tentative, touched with a hunger that she’d all but forgotten that she could feel.

She wasn’t entirely sure whether to be embarrassed or pleased with herself, and the smile that she offered Sofia when she stepped away was almost shy. “Go eat,” she urged her. “I should probably rest some more.” She wasn’t likely to sleep, but Muriel wasn’t going to let her out of the room without a final checkup, and while she’d all but forgotten about the last vestiges of the headache, she could feel the lingering pulses now. She was here at least until tonight, from the feel of it.

 

[Sofia di Castelbuono]

Sofia could have carried on kissing Cauthrien for quite some time - not least because many years of idle fantasies were bearing fruit, and the warrior’s warmth was a comfort she sorely needed at this moment - but some parts of her body were louder than others. She pulled away, a little sheepishly, but she was rarely embarrassed for long, and the pause did give her the opportunity to surprise Cauthrien once again, lips brushing the tender skin beneath her ear.

In the next moment strong arms looped around her waist and she was pulled forward into another kiss, this one somewhat more intense than the first. Sofia couldn’t help the startled noise she made in response, or the somewhat needier one that followed as she sank into it. Cauthrien usually approached everything with caution (unless she was throwing herself at demons to save people she barely knew), and this impulsiveness from the other woman sent a thrill through Sofia that almost had her forgetting her meal again.

Cauthrien wouldn’t let her forget, though. She stepped back, leaving Sofia feeling a little dizzy - by Andraste, she hadn’t been kissed like that in some time - and indicated the food. “Go eat. I should probably rest some more.”

Sofia collected herself. “As a healer, I agree.” She stepped towards the desk, before smiling wickedly over her shoulder at Cauthrien. “For myself I have to admit to wanting to keep you awake a while longer, but there is time for that later.” It would likely be a while - once Cauthrien was fully recovered, there were many things that would need to be done and it might be some time before they had a decent amount of time alone together. Neither of them were the type to shirk their duty for pleasure, although Sofia fully planned on stealing a few more of those breathless kisses when the opportunity arose. “Sleep again, and once I’ve eaten I’ll check and see what’s occured over the last few hours. Everything will be lined up ready for you when you awake.”

 

[Cauthrien]

It was more than concern for Sofia’s well being that made Cauthrien break off the impetuous kiss and instruct her to go for food. The heady thrum of desire along her awareness, while exhilarating, was powerful enough to trigger a balancing wave of caution that was far more familiar. No regrets, but she knew herself well enough to know that they would be along if she allowed impulse to drive her actions any further.

Sofia didn’t protest, which was probably just as well. “As a healer, I agree,” she conceded, stepping away, then looking back with a smile that sent Cauthrien’s heart into a fresh round of acrobatics beneath her sternum. “For myself I have to admit to wanting to keep you awake a while longer, but there is time for that later.”

Cauthrien nodded slowly, her eyes steady on Sofia’s. “Agreed,” she said, feeling the warmth of that simple promise settle in her chest with surprising ease.

“Sleep again, and once I’ve eaten I’ll check and see what’s occured over the last few hours,” Sofia told her. “Everything will be lined up ready for you when you awake.”

It was on the tip of Cauthrien’s tongue to tell the other woman that she could come back later, but she worried that it would be taken as a clumsy attempt at seduction, when what she wanted most in that moment was to feel Sofia’s warmth beside her as she drifted toward sleep, and perhaps to wake first and spend time studying her features in repose. That sudden yearning was even more unexpected than the physical desire, and again the thought rose in her mind that this was all the result of their close call.

So she let Sofia leave, then spent a few minutes prowling the room restlessly, more ready than ever to escape its confines, before stretching out on her bed, resigning herself to the fact that sleep would not only speed the hours by but also aid in ridding her of the last stubborn remnants of the headache. Turning onto her side, she discovered that the scent of Sofia’s hair lingered on the pillow. Floral, but with a hint of spice that she couldn't quite define, it freshened the memory of their kisses, and how very right the mage had felt in her arms. She felt more than a little foolish, but there was no one there to see, so she pressed her face into the pillow, letting the fragrance soothe her restiveness until slumber claimed her.