Houkago Slashertime (Eriko)

[Eriko Tokisaka]

Ten minutes passed, then twenty. Well after thirty had expired by the time Eriko had finally cut off the water. She had sufficiently cleaned her hair and body, but she did imagine that she would take another shower later that evening. She dried herself, wrapped a towel around her, and grabbed a hair brush before stepping out of the bathroom. Steam drifted out of the room, the thickness reducing its visibility great. Between that and the slightly red tint the raven-haired maiden's flushed skin possessed, it was obvious that she had taken a shower well on the warmer side of the temperature scale.

Black streaks clung to her arms, shoulders, and back, as well as a portion of the girl's face. Her hair's length truly was emphasized when it was wet. Though her hair did act as a slightly bit of coverage, the fact still stood that the girl was covered only by a towel. And, just like that, she plopped her rear on the edge of Sakuya's bed. Since her departure from the impromptu sauna, she had remained silent, though her expression, when it did peak out from behind her hair, was more content than annoyed or angry. Her eyes were half-shut, and her arms moved rhythmically to gradually tame the black beast she called her hair. Despite the fact that her hair was fairly clear of tangles, it still took a while to properly brush it.

“I'll bag and burn the old clothes. I don't like borrowing, but I appreciate you giving me a choice of things to wear. I'll give them back and pay you back for it tomorrow.” She finally noted, finally giving verbalized attention to the knight that had helped her get clean sooner. “Regardless of that, I do owe you my gratitude.” She tilted her head to one side, a pop crying out, then the other side, doing the same. “So, for coming to my assistance, you have my thanks, lady knight.” She smiled pleasantly, her eyes still only half-closed.

[Kyoudou Sakuya]

Sakuya had just finished cleaning Nameless within this time, having painstakingly polished and cleaned the blade of any of its impurities which lay within the metal; she had also dusted out the cylindrical case in which she stored Nameless, and before Eriko who had just come out of the bathroom and placed herself on the edge of Sak's bed lay a plethora of cloths, a half-full basin of hot water, and a feather duster. Sakuya turned to face Eriko who was covered in simply just a towel, and upon this heavenly sight Sakuya looked incredibly flustered, blushing madly as she turned her face aside and looked quite verily embarrassed. Squeaky clean she was, and Sakuya felt so... strange upon seeing her; she did hear, however, Eriko's brief statement of gratitude, and this only served to make Sakuya blush even more. She had never been thanked like this before, not in her life, and to hear such things made her really feel nice inside.

"it's... it's not a problem at all!" Sakuya faced Eriko again, a wavering smile borne of a mixture of embarrassment and happiness, and in her sitting position, tried to bow in response. "it is a pleasure to be able to help someone in need!" she continued with an incredibly red face, and fidgeted. Eriko looked... beautiful to Sakuya, but she dared not mention it... She was too nervous.

[Eriko Tokisaka]

Eriko did not speak a word after Sakuya's response as she continued brushing her hair. It was obvious that she would be busy with that for a while, but, despite having not finished, she laid the brush down by her side. “Even so, a good deed should never go unrewarded. Now, I know some people can be impatient, though- or perhaps eager. I do intend to pay you back tomorrow, but-” She paused, looking over her shoulder as her eyes opened all the way. That light in her eyes and that impishly playful smile on her lips, together, showed that she was already contemplating something that would be nothing short of embarrassing for the other girl.

“If you're the sort that is too eager to have a reward, I suppose I wouldn't be against paying you back right now.” She noted before shifting around and onto her knees, moving further up the bed on all-fours. The towel was wrapped tightly enough that there was no danger of it becoming undone without a bit of persuasion. The raven-haired girl's cheeks were a slight red, but it was impossible to tell if it lingered from the hot shower, or if it was from embarrassment. “Would you prefer that? There's even a bed beneath us. It's all very convenient.” The smile grew wider at that point.

“Though, if you wanted that kind of repayment, I would expect you to take responsibility.” How that could be interpreted really varied depending on the individual. Eriko knew that the line inspired a number of ridiculous or embarrassing thoughts on the right targets. She did wonder if it would be the coup de grace, but, all in all, she had high hopes for Sakuya's response. The girl was simply too. . . Eriko did not quite have the term in her mind, but she did like this girl in the same way a child loved a toy, at the very least.

[Kyoudou Sakuya]

Sakuya tilted her head once more as she heard all these utterances from Eriko, as the latter shifted about on her bed in such a position, and this, in combination with the words the raven-haired maiden was saying, all served to completely fluster Sakuya, who was now entirely unsure of what to do. An incredibly wavering smile could now be seen on Sakuya as, continuing to look at Eriko, she put her now-clean blade into the cylindrical case, beginning to blush a very beet red. She could see faint hints of red on Eriko too, but it seemed more likely to be from the hot shower she had rather than anything else, and that served as a minor comfort, but in the end, what did it matter? This certainly sounded like a THING. Sakuya placed one of her own hands on her chest, feeling it beat madly, she could feel butterflies in her stomach, and was unsure of what to say. "Ueh...!? T-t-t-t-tokisaka-senpai! I-I-I-I d-d-d-don't know what to say...! Pyuu..." Sakuya had suddenly fallen into a minor state of 'broken,' unclear of her own emotions, unclear of Eriko's true motives, unclear of anything but what it is that's happening, THAT. "I-I-I-I-I mean...! Uuu...~!" Sakuya couldn't even articulate what she wanted to say properly. Her face was still incredibly red of blushing.

But one would suppose Sakuya had never really experienced something like this before.

It was always rough and violence.

Nothing like this...

It was odd.

[Eriko Tokisaka]

Sakuya's panic was like a trickle of the gods' sinful pleasures being dropped before Eriko. Her means of torture for cases like this were much more subtle. More gentle, but no less twisted. She would get closer. She would make that girl's heart go wild. Then, before actually giving her anything, retreat. At the most, perhaps a kiss. Though that was, perhaps, her “treatment” for the torture, if she did go that for. Of course, that was assuming that pook Sakuya's heart did not explode as a result. Eriko rarely had the chance to play with someone so fidgety like that, so she could not dismiss the exceedingly small chance.

“Calm down, girl. You'll bite your tongue.” Eriko chided before giggling, her tone playful. As she spoke, she drew closer and closer. “I must say, you're acting absolutely adorable. A few words and you're already like this. I wonder what you'd do if. . . my towel fell off?” She half-asked, half-thought aloud. She made no movement to cause such an event, but simply throwing those words out had a purpose in and of themselves. “Would the shock incapacitate you?” She asked as she tilted her head to the side slightly, her still damp locks of blackness filtering in front of her face. Another moment passed, and she was within a foot of the other girl. “Are you a little flower that'll shed its petals if I touch you?” She asked, the question general, but having far too many possible meanings.

Without a word of warning, the girl's hand moved forward and gently gripped Sakuya's chin. Another moment passed, and Eriko had slowly risen, so that her face hovered over the other girl's. Even had someone else been there, they would not have been able to see either face, the black veil creating a small universe between the two. “I wonder. . . just what would happen if I went so far as to kiss you?” She smiled angelically as she stared down at the other girl. “Shall we find out?”

[Kyoudou Sakuya]

Eriko's behavior, was so like that of a stunning, beautiful temptress, Sakuya, in her mind, had been smitten, taken off her feet; at what cost, no wonder? Was this truly genuine? She could not tell, Sakuya's judgment had been clouded by the sheer forwardness that this Tokisaka-senpai was displaying, each statement that she made, all served to make Sakuya feel even more strange, she wasn't sure at all how to respond, the words in her mind all in a jumble of emotion. She was fidgety indeed, and Sakuya's hands were placed down, her heart continued to beat rapidly... Doki, doki!

"I must say, you're acting absolutely adorable. A few words and you're already like this. I wonder what you'd do if. . . my towel fell off?" Eriko uttered these words, and continued on. "Would the shock incapacitate you?"

"Are you a little flower that'll shed its petals if I touch you?"

Sakuya shuddered ever so slightly, her face still beet red, an quivering emotional wreck at this point, unsure of Eriko's feelings, unsure of everything at that precise moment in time. She opened her mouth to say something, but it was at that moment that Eriko had gently gripped Sakuya's chin, and soon her form had hovered over Sakuya's in such a way that the former's face was right over Sakuya's, staring down with an incredibly attractive smile.

Sakuya's smile wavered more. "Aah... Uh... I... Tokisaka-senpai... Oh my gosh... I..." Sakuya's form shivered ever so slightly, she was entirely not sure what to make of this... "Haauuu..." Sakuya had lost all semblance of rationality at this point, she could not grasp for the right words in her head, she could not grope about in her mind for the correct expressions, they all came out as garbled nonsense, and it certainly showed in her incredibly embarrassed and blushy-blushy face.

[Eriko Tokisaka]

Eriko wanted to maintain that posture, to keep that situation going on as long as possible, but she knew better. If she prolonged it too much, Sakuya would regain her composure. If not that, then she herself would slowly grow bored with it. The latter was much worse than the prior. Shifting closer at a speed just slow enough that Sakuya could realize what was happened (it was a very specific and calculated speed, mind you), Eriko kissed the girl on the cheek. It was soft, fleeting, and innocent. While she could have gone for the lips, she at least respected the girl enough to not violate that special place. She herself recognized the significance of a kiss to the lips. Those were reserved to consensual kisses alone. After all, even a toy had some rights, some boundaries that the devil herself refused to cross.

Slowly, she pulled back. Letting her hair trail over Sakuya just a bit as she pulled away. Sitting on her knees for just a moment, she tilted her head to the side and gave a perfectly sweet smile. “See? Unlike a doctor, my shots don't hurt at all.” With that teasing jab, she whirled once- just short of hair-whipping the girl behind her- and inched towards the edge of the bed. Of course, she still had the towel wrapped nicely, but Sakuya still had a perfect sight of legs. Sliding those sames legs under her, she regained her original stance, sitting on the edge of the bed as she resumed brushing her hair. By then, the flush of her skin gradually began to fade. Eriko noticed that, figuring that her scarring would soon show.

Frankly, she was too lazy to get dressed at that exact moment, so, with a mental click of the tongue, she decided to leave that issue alone, so long as the other did not notice while it was bare.

“Oh, but, Sakuya? I wasn't lying, you know. Acting like that is absolutely adorable. It's just that. . . you should be careful. Really careful. Especially around me, acting like that.” She flashed an impish smile over her shoulder. “It really makes me wanna just. . . gobble you up.”

[Kyoudou Sakuya]

The moment was passing faster and faster, but eventually, it seemed like, time stopped for Sakuya. Eriko had maintained her posture for a moment, but eventually, she had kissed Sakuya on the cheek, it was certainly a strange feeling, a gentle feeling, one that was unlike her prior experiences and runins with the kind, it was... the polar opposite of those traumatic experiences. It suddenly did remind her slightly of those times, but in the end, Sakuya banished them and tried to make sense of this moment, Tokisaka-senpai had pulled herself back at this time. "See? Unlike a doctor, my shots don't hurt at all." she said, with that sweet smile again. Her movements to Sakuya seemed a little mesmerizing, though she couldn't tell if they were deliberate or not, the poor knight's mind was still clouded with all these different thoughts and rushing emotions. She could not discern proper reaction to this at all. Sakuya had noticed the flush of the fair maiden's skin slowly dissipating, but could not see any imperfections; was she blinded? She did not know.

She had simply looked in awe at Eriko for a few more moments, before she heard...

"It really makes me wanna just. . . gobble you up."

Sakuya stared, wide-eyed in amazement and embarrasment, her face still beet-red, until suddenly, her face became a little feverish, and she started to fan herself with her hand, feeling a strange spell fall over her. Was she... swooning?! And Eriko's impish smile... Sakuya was most certainly reacting to this all strangely.

"Oh... ohh... T-t-t-tokisaka-senpai... Auuu... I-I-I-I c-c-c-can't h-h-h-help it... muuu... I've just... I mean...! Oh gosh..." Sakuya almost fell over and fainted, but tried to keep herself conscious...

[Eriko Tokisaka]

While Sakuya had something comparable to a breakdown, Eriko simply redirected her gaze forward as she went back to the chore of brushing her hair. She had had her fun for the moment. Anything more, at that point, would have been far too tempting. That, and it was unlikely, going by what she had just seen, that her victim would retain consciousness. Really, the girl was quite fragile in that regard. It was amusing, but it also meant that she had to moderate herself, lest her toy break. A few moments had passed, and the girl was at least certain that there were no knots in her hair, though plenty of locks still needed to be straightened out.

“Though, really, Sakuya, you should calm down. At this rate, you might have a heart attack.” She warned innocently, as if she had had nothing to do with that little fact. “Or, at the very least, pass out. I'd hate to have to drag you to a sink and splash you with water, you know.” She went on, not really teasing, but genuinely making note of it. She was much too lazy to drag a body places, even if it was just from one room to another. She faked a pout and looked over her shoulder. “A fainting knight isn't a very good knight, anyway.” She teased, hoping to provoke some form of comeback to calm the girl down.

“Just imagine doing battle with a seductress. You'd fall over, red and hot enough to melt snow!”

[Kyoudou Sakuya]

Sakuya continued to twitch, though this time, it appeared that Eriko had backed off this time and seemed to act more like what Sakuya had already observed in her in the past, which was quite the great relief on the former's part. Sakuya attempted to regain her composure by taking deep breaths to herself as she slowly looked up to see Eriko again. Indeed, she was not entirely sure at this point what exactly the raven-haired fair maiden was planning anymore, though at this rate Sakuya didn't really care, she was actually a little relieved that she had retreated; she was unsure of what would happen in the instance that it had gone further! It seemed like it wouldn't happen anyway, but the reassurance was good enough in and of itself.

"A fainting knight isn't a very good knight, anyway." Eriko had mentioned towards the tail end of something she was saying prior, Sakuya did not catch it, at the time, she was too busy trying to calm herself at that precise moment in time. But that seemed to be the most important thing, anyway. Sakuya sighed, trying to gain her senses and wits once more. "Tokisaka-senpai... I... I just don't do good with the whole knightly courtship, you know? Bad experiences. Auu, what am I saying? Hahaha..." Sakuya squeaked, chuckling to herself. Despite this, though, she still looked a little feverish.

[Eriko Tokisaka]

A feeble excuse was delivered, then forsaken. Sakuya laughed it off, and, frankly, Eriko felt that pestering the knight over that little issue would have led to annoyances rather than amusements. Slowly, the maiden shrugged, visibly letting the issue go. A large portion of her hair had become a bit more presentable, hanging straight as it curled only where it met the bed. The mass shifted as the girl looked over her shoulder again. Her skin had mostly regained its natural color, not exactly pale, but nowhere near as tan as the average girl her age.

“Deep breath, Sakuya, deep breath.” She smirked for just a moment. “But not too deep. You wouldn't wanna swallow a fly, after all.” Blinking, she tilted her head to the side. “Or maybe you do. I'm not judging, or anything, but that'd be a little odd, methinks.” She let out a half-silenced giggle before slowly standing up, stretching her arms upwards while shifting to the tips of her toes as she stretched her legs out. She had actually forgotten about it, but, as she stretched, the scar on her right arm was practically advertised to the girl behind her. Even in the shadow of her arm, the minor discoloration was very noticeable with her skin's tone having recovered.

“I'll get dressed shortly.” She finally noted. “I just don't change into clothes until I'm really done with all the chores after a shower.” She explained, more to prevent any weird questions Sakuya might have had, rather than honestly trying to answer them. Turning to face the girl, she donned that characteristically impish grin just once more for a final jab. “But going by everything up to this point, I daresay you would prefer it I had as little clothing on as possible.” She teased.

[Kyoudou Sakuya]

Sakuya did not make a sound anymore, she could tell that she had said something awkward, something perhaps that should not have been said; then again, Sakuya was very used to this, she was not the brightest bulb in the box and sometimes was not aware of what she was uttering out of her own lips. Soon, Eriko had turned and looked over her shoulder, her hair was now quite straight, and the color had mostly returned itself. Most certainly, Sakuya was unable to really keep herself in check when faced with someone like her, as she was unsure of her own emotions... Sakuya's face was still red, though it was a lot fainter than it was earlier. All this time, she had been taking some breaths to calm herself, and whilst Eriko was commenting about this, Sakuya could not help but not notice that Tokisaka-senpai had a scar on her right arm... The polite person that she was; Sakuya dared not ask about it, but it did bring a faint expression of concern upon her, and she continued to keep her lips sealed.

However...

"But going by everything up to this point, I daresay you would prefer it I had as little clothing on as possible." Eriko had mentioned eventually, as Sakuya tried to maintain her composure, and there it went again! Was she making fun of Sakuya? Sakuya brought one of her hands to her mouth.

"W-w-w-w-what do you meaaaaan?!" Sakuya squeaked out rather uncharacteristically, and blushed again. "Uuu... Tokisaka-senpai" Sakuya pouted.

[Eriko Tokisaka]

“I meant exactly what I said, of course.” Eriko replied sweetly as she purred. True, she had had her fill, but there was nothing wrong with following up on things just a little. Well, there was, but the temptation was too great. Finally, the girl's expression faded into something a slight bit more serious- or as serious as it could be, given the situation. Whirling the brush around in her fingers, the raven Dragon-whelp planted her free hand on her hip, staring straight at Sakuya. Her eyes were not quite as easy-going as before, but analytical. She was conjugating on the girl's circumstances. It was not concern that spurred this on, but curiosity.

“Moving along, I'm going to theorize aloud. You're free to comment or argue or just listen. After all, these are just thoughts that happen to be given voice.” She calmly noted before her gaze finally drifted off. Beginning to pace about at a stately pace, the young woman brought the hand from her hip and had it cross her belly. “Starting with what you said earlier, and during our first meeting, I do believe that you have little to no social life, with a relatively small circle of friends. There's nothing wrong with that much- that's just an observation of the state of things.”

The brush had been caught between her index and middle finger. Rather than spinning it between her fingers, Eriko had begun tossing it up and catching it between her fingers. While the action itself seemed careless, the fact that she was able to catch it without looking showed that she had performed the act more than just a little during her free time. In truth, she often did it after a shower, using it as a means of keeping her hands busy while thinking.

“However, now the formula becomes a bit more complicated by my adding your knightly values. I will risk a guess and say that you go out during the night and try acting the place of a vigilante. The blood on your blade in our first meeting was proof enough that you've used the thing, but nothing conclusive by itself. So, finally, we combine these three facts with supposition on my part.” She had already decided what was fact or fiction by that point. Whether it was purely faith in her own abilities or conceited and lucky thought was an entirely different matter.

Then, she smiled again. “I'm about half-and-half that you were going to go out tonight if I did not keep you too busy. That's where my thought train ends. It's also where my real question begins.” The seriousness from her expression finally died out, replaced by that impish quality again. The fact that she could switch between those outward displays so quickly- so easily- would probably have been just a little disconcerting to the average person. If someone switched between displays so easily, which was the real set?

“Kyoudou Sakuya-dono~” She purred, the brush having been caught in her palm easily. “I think I'll still have you accompany me. But the question right now is where you'll be taking me, and how long we'll be gone. Can you answer me that, just yet?”

[Kyoudou Sakuya]

Sakuya remained as demure as she had been just moments ago, though the mere fact that Eriko's expression had changed into something a little less impish and something slightly more serious (though it definitely didn't seem like it was an actual difference in change...) had served to comfort Sakuya a little. Eriko seemed to be looking at Sakuya in some sort of fashion that appeared to be reminiscent of... study? Not quite... But it certainly seemed that way. Sakuya simply shuffled about in place a bit, a hand still on her own chest, and took another breath in. Eventually, Eriko stated that she was to literally think out loud, and while this didn't really bother Sakuya very much, she wondered what spurred the sudden curiosity and inspiration of thought. Beginning to pace about, Eriko made her thoughts most definitely clear.

"Starting with what you said earlier, and during our first meeting, I do believe that you have little to no social life, with a relatively small circle of friends. There's nothing wrong with that much- that's just an observation of the state of things." was the first point Eriko had observed, and if someone had failed to observe that, they most certainly weren't very bright. Or they just did not care. It was true; Sakuya did not have much of a social life at all. Her only male interaction was forced, and that was with a small selection of people from SEES. Her interaction with other females was tenuous and shaky at best, they did not understand her motives at all, and she most certainly did not want to bog down Eriko with it (though the raven-haired maiden most certainly would be the most likely out of them to actually get it). Deep down, Sakuya wanted to be understood... But she has recognized that she wouldn't be getting it so easily.

"However, now the formula becomes a bit more complicated by my adding your knightly values. I will risk a guess and say that you go out during the night and try acting the place of a vigilante. The blood on your blade in our first meeting was proof enough that you've used the thing, but nothing conclusive by itself. So, finally, we combine these three facts with supposition on my part." The second point. Sakuya fidgeted about and was on the verge of sighing, but stopped herself before anything awkward happened. "not always during the night..." Sakuya meekly spoke in response to the comment. She did go out at night when investigations spurred by SEES and/or her father were needed, but her role as self-proclaimed vigilante (redundant indeed, yet it sounded 'cool' in Sakuya's mind) was most certainly almost only actuated at night time. So the said theory was only a half-truth.

"I'm about half-and-half that you were going to go out tonight if I did not keep you too busy. That's where my thought train ends. It's also where my real question begins." Sakuya could see Eriko switch gears again. It was beginning to grow tiresome to keep up with; and she most certainly could not tell how the latter was really like now given how casually and how easily she was able to actually change her disposition so drastically. Sakuya remained plain and simple at this moment, fidgeting about and twiddling with her thumbs.

"...But the question right now is where you'll be taking me, and how long we'll be gone. Can you answer me that, just yet?"

What a question Eriko had asked at last.

"unyu? where... will... i be taking you?" Sakuya blushed a light red. Was she serious? What kind of offer was this?! "tokisaka-senpai... muu... a-a-answer just yet... i... i don't know..." Sakuya was fidgeting furiously at this point, grasping for words. But nothing came out and nothing materialized.

"b-b-b-but i-i-i-i-i-i am confident t-t-that if t-t-t-there is somewhere y-y-you need me t-t-to take you, i, i will do it!!" Sakuya suddenly proclaimed, in an incredibly childish fashion, her eyes closed and her face blushing again. Unfortunately, it seemed more likely that her demeanor and disposition completely betrayed what she really meant to say... What a shame~

[Eriko Tokisaka]

Eriko made no effort to hide the sigh that came out at that point. While she did relish in the treatment she gave others, that was typically when she wanted it, or was all right with it happening. While she did expect it to some degree, she did not desired so much embarrassment as to receive what seemed to be a useless response. She did suppose that she could at least get the bigger part of her debt taken care of, though. Bringing her free hand to her chin for a moment, she seemed to go into thought. Then, nodding, the young woman came to a decision.

“You need to work on your nerves a bit, girl. Your embarrassment is delicious, I'll admit to that, but it's only fun to watch so long as it isn't counterproductive.” She chided the girl, not really caring too much about what Sakuya thought about that. “You just passed up an easy way to get a date, for example. But that's fine. I have come to a decision that helps me. I'm taking you shopping.” She purred, whirling on her heel as she drifted closer to the bed, snatching up the clothes that had been prepared for her, and lightly dancing towards the bathroom, which had mostly steamed out.

“And it is while we go shopping that I'll learn the details of your body and buy you new things to wear.” She announced before closing the door, very obviously meaning to tease the lady knight just then.