Lance felt her grip slip on the Flame once again, but she was almost there, she was so close to finally getting it. Not too much longer now, maybe she could even get it today before bed. It had been hard to focus earlier, when Jason was describing to Lithia how he'd hang her skin around his armor and the like, but he'd calmed down significantly since then. Only mild grunting and growling could be heard from the man, which was a great deal less distracting than his hate-induced screams. Deciding that it was time for a break, Lance stood, turning to see Hoplite with his eyes wide open, staring daggers at Lithia.
"How do you feel now?" Lithia asked in an uncaring tone.
"Fine." Jason replied sharply.
Lithia grinned, "That's a good little boy, not thinking about your father, yes?"
Jason just glared.
"A marked improvement!" Lithia yelled, clapping her hands together, 'You aren't even steaming anymore."
"I would like a break." He told her through clenched teeth.
Just like that, Jason was released, shutting his eyes and taking deep breaths, "I think that will be sufficient for my needs. You said that Kazon's effect is less powerful than that, I believe I'll be fine now."
"I'll project at his level and we'll see." Lithia told him, "Go rest up, once you come back it will be the final test."
Jason didn't reply, striding out of the chamber. Lance followed after him, Lithia complaining about her laziness as she went. Once they were both out of the chamber, Lance let out a sigh.
"I'm almost there. I can feel it." Lance told him, "The Flame is just right there, but it keeps getting away from me. How do you do it?"
Jason held up a finger as he began to greedily guzzle from his canteen, once he was done, he gasped, "I imagine it flowing into me and warming up my skin. That's what it feels like when you actually have it too."
"You feel warm?" Lance asked, "Lolena always told me that too."
"Your cousin right?" Jason asked, "I think you mentioned her before."
She nodded, "She's a talented mage, but her only explanation was that she'd feel warm and 'tingly'."
"I suppose it could be classified as that as well, but the warmth is what sticks out to me the most. That, and the slight euphoria that comes along with it." Jason told her, "It feels good to have it, you feel energized, glad to be alive, I wouldn't be shocked if it turned out to be mildly addictive."
"It is addictive, Jason." Lance told him, "I've had dozens of mages tell me that it's hard to abstain from drawing on it, even when there isn't a reason to use magic. Foundation is to mages what tobacco is to normal folk. Besides the danger of drawing too much though, it has no ill side-effects." Lance told him, "So don't worry about that."
Jason nodded, "That's good, but I don't want to waste it for personal pleasure." He said, "I'm just about done with this…" Hoplite squinted, "Hate training? My final test will be soon, I just need to rehydrate myself first."
Lance hesitated, "Speaking of which, Lithia claimed you feel emotion at five times a greater level than a normal person, right?"
Jason shook his head, "I think I just have a higher ceiling for it, not that I'm five times more emotional."
"Maybe it could be both?" Lance asked, stepping closer, "Jason, tell me honestly, how do you feel about me?"
Ever since Lithia brought up how… attached Dragon's could become to objects and people, the same idea had been bouncing around in her head since. Was Jason in love with her now? The thought was alien to her, in her mind she still thought of Jason as being unable to express such feelings- romantic ones anyhow. He certainly hadn't been interested in her when she was bereft of clothing, but he'd never cared about nudity in the first place, she couldn't use that apparent disinterest to get to the truth here. He wouldn't lie about it, he wasn't the type to dodge around such things, as he himself claimed, and neither would she.
Jason smiled, "You're a good friend of mine." He told her, his tone and eyes genuine.
Lance hesitated, "...Is that all you feel about me?"
Jason's eyes filled with confusion, "I don't know what you're asking."
There was no way he could possibly be this thick-headed, but the confusion in his eyes didn't lie.
"Alright, how do you feel about me as a woman?" She asked him, crossing her arms.
Jason stared, still confused before saying, "That you're a good one?" He asked.
Her ears perked up, "In what way?" She pressed, taking a step toward him.
The confusion didn't leave, but he answered anyway, "You're brave, tough, and willing to suffer pain for your friends." He told her honestly, "Why are you asking me these things?"
She could hear Lithia cackling from the chamber, clearly the old bag was listening in on this, but Lance chose to ignore her.
"Do you view me as a woman, as a man?" Lance pressed.
Look at her, thinking she wouldn't dance around the subject, but now here she was, doing exactly that. Why was it hard to just ask him directly? Her mouth failed to voice that exact question and instead pumped out drivel that only confused him.
"Of course I do. What does that even mean?" He asked, squinting at her, "Are you feeling okay?"
She drew her lips to a line, suddenly feeling embarrassed, "I'm feeling fine, thank you." She told him, pausing to take a breath, "Let me make this clear. Do you find me to be beautiful?"
There, she said it. Her face was practically melting off but she'd finally gotten it out there in the open. He'd probably misunderstand what she meant somehow though.
Jason blinked, the confusion in his eyes fading away only for perfect clarity to fill them instead, "Yes." He nodded, voice unshaking, "Objectively you have a very symmetrical face, clear skin, great hair, not to mention you're in fantastic physical shape."
Her hands instinctively moved to cover the tips of her ears, "How can you say things like that?" She asked him, barely able to maintain eye contact.
Confusion returned, "Are you upset?" He asked, concerned.
"No- I just, I'm not used to praise, not in this sense." She told him honestly, "I didn't expect you to find me attractive either, I didn't think you were capable of that."
Surprisingly, Jason let out a small laugh, eyes filling with mirth, "I'm a person, aren't I?" He asked, shaking his head, amused, "I'm not a machine, like I was taught my whole life. I can find things beautiful- people beautiful," He emphasized, "I don't have to pretend I don't anymore, when we fought Fiends back in the Faewood, I loved the forests, I tried to deny it at the time, but seeing the greenery, the animals and life…" He sighed, "It was amazing, and I want to see more of this world, along with the beautiful people and places in it. I'll save this world, if I can't, I won't be able to appreciate it."
Ah, so he found everything beautiful now, not just her. Strangely feeling disappointed, she released her ears. It was heartening to hear him acknowledge the beauty of the Faewood, even back when he was Hoplite, he hadn't been a complete block of wood.
"I suppose that I won't be impressed with the other people we'll meet on our journey though." He told her with a frown.
Lance's brow furrowed, "Why do you say that?"
"Because no one else will be as beautiful as you." He told her, eyes once again genuine.
The peaks of her ears burned hot, but she forgot to hide them, staring in shock at Jason. Her jaw trembled slightly as she continued to look into his eyes. There was no other emotion there besides pure unadulterated honesty. He wasn't saying that to try and charm her, what he had just said was what he truly believed. Lithia's cackling ceased, but Lance only barely noticed that detail over the beating of her own heart.
Jason himself seemed unbothered, not embarrassed by what he'd just said in the slightest. In fact his eyes now looked concerned.
"Do you have a fever? You're turning red, drink some water." He said, offering her his canteen, "We have a lot we still need to get done before we can leave for the surface, you need to be in good health or the mission will be in jeopardy."
Lance couldn't reply, nor could she raise her hands to take the offered canteen. He really thought she was that great? Her of all people? Her hands shook slightly as she struggled to process his words, her heartbeat blocking out any attempts at coherent thought. Is this what going mad felt like? Confused, unable to think, sweaty palms- she remembered to breathe.
"Lance?" Jason asked, concerned. "What's wrong?"
"I j-" She stuttered, "I can't-"
No man had said such things to her before and had meant it. There had always been other, nastier emotions present in their gaze… nothing as pure as what had been in Jason's eyes.
"Can't what!?" Jason asked, immediately drawing closer, "Are you having an allergic reaction? Can you breathe?"
Lance shook her head, "I can," She continued, trembling as Jason put a hand on her shoulder, "I need a minute to myself." She barely managed to get out, "You really should think about what you say to people." She finished, finally averting her eyes, "Words have more power than you think."
Jason hesitated, "I don't know what you mean, but alright." He finished, releasing his hold on her, "Drink out of this, alright?" He offered her the canteen.
She took it, her hands still shaking, "T-thank you." She said, sitting down with a sigh.
Jason hovered for a moment before returning to Lithia's chamber, leaving Lance alone with her thoughts. She simply stared down at his canteen, trying to gather herself. Once she felt more stable, she sipped from it, the water helping to cool her down. The peaks of her ears were still burning, a display that should have only happened to younger elf women, ones that were still hopelessly romantic. This was so embarrassing, but more than that, she had been so overjoyed to have heard those words from him. To know that it wasn't an empty compliment only reignited the heat in her ears, her Dok-ah revealing that what Jason said was how he really felt.
It was clear to her that Jason loved her, Lithia had been correct in what she'd said. Not only that, but the more time they spent together, the more he'd come to love her. Lance wasn't sure how she felt about that, but this was what would happen, no matter what. He had no sense for romance at all, all he did was speak his mind. If he did seek something like that with her, he'd openly state it at some point, likely with no sense of tact as he usually did.
Disturbingly, she couldn't outright dismiss the idea of it as ludicrous. After what he had just told her, it seemed all the more possible. Even worse, she could not bring herself to deny him in the fake scenarios she made up in her mind. What the hells was wrong with her, acting like some thirty-year-old lovestruck sap? This wasn't her, she'd never taken a lover before in her life! She'd never wanted to, so why was she even entertaining such thoughts? Jason wasn't even an elf, he was half-Dragon! It could never work between them, he was far out of her league. Who was she to consider trying to court a scion of divinity? It was simply absurd.
There was also the fact that they had only known one another for a matter of weeks, that was hardly enough time to consider courting someone! She needed to put these thoughts out of her mind, and to make sure Jason understood that things wouldn't move past friendship. That's right: friendship is where they should stay, no ifs ands or buts.
Not only that, but he was massive! The sizes were too off, she'd need to be a foot taller, or he'd need to be a foot shorter- or something! He was too blunt as well, he had no sense of politeness or tact, a pure brute both in battle and outside it… Yet that brutishness was honest, it didn't lie. His size wasn't truly an issue either, and- She buried her face in her hands, dropping the canteen. Hells, all the hells, was this really all it would take to do this to her, a few nice words and honest eyes? Was she so weak to such a thing?
…Well…
Perhaps she was.