ishisstrength | IC CONTACT

[Justine feels her legs sweep out from beneath her and she clings to him as he controls the force and direction of the motion. A soft exhale brushes against his chest as her eyes rose to meet his.]

No but I have a guess.

[After their conversation at the masquerade and then again when they took a walk along the lake.]

Why do you ask? [Her eyes flash as if knowingly.] You don't have to worry about telling me anything Majima. You've already captured my attention. [She doubts that there is anything he could say that would hinder her growing affection for him.]

I don't, huh?

It's nothin' untoward or anything. I was just thinking about how I was always smiling back then. But fakin' a smile, it was just part of the job.

[ He bore her weight easily, just resisting the urge to dip in a little lower and steal a kiss. Justine was always at least a little distracting. ]

Guess I wanted to say that it never feels that way around you. It's... natural. Feels kinda nice.

[ Ooookay this was a little embarrassing to talk about, maybe he should have kept his mouth shut. Hopefully Justine didn't notice his face turning a little red here. ]

[Her fingers curl against the back of his neck and his shoulder as they remain posed. She isn't sure how to turn their grapple into something that benefits her but she's planning on bidding her time. Justine hasn't forgotten that they're technically wrestling right now.]

Really?

[She smiles and absolutely notices the red tint to his cheeks.]

You're very cute when you blush.

[Her fingers slowly drag along his scalp before she softly adds.] It does feel nice. [She feels the same way though she isn't admitting it directly. Justine has never been very good at simply admitting how she feels.]

You're pretty cute yourself, when ya get flustered.

[ Well, he wouldn't quite give away the farm, but he might murmur a little something related, just to get some attention off of himself. ]

....It's all about balance.

[ Someone had probably mentioned to her the importance of the placement of one's feet in maintaining balance and guarding against attack. Because of the way Majima had swept his foot, however, he was side-by-side with her rather than intertwined. He was also bearing a good deal of Justine's weight.

A push to Majima's side would force him to regain his balance, while Justine would be able to fully regain her feet. ]

[She inhales a slow breath and tries not to blush at his compliment.]

Balance.

[Justine repeats as she lets her attention focus on how they're standing.

Majima's feet aren't squared beneath his shoulder, one foot is placed closer to her, which means he'd fall if she pushes him with enough force. She might not have enough force but she doesn't want to remain trapped like this. Her teeth gently bite her lower lip before she leans her weight against him and shifts her hip to push him away and return her feet to the ground.

She doesn't have a lot of strength but she uses her body weight, only to stumble if she gets freed.]

[ He stumbled backward (good work, Justine), regaining himself with the natural grace of an experienced fighter. There was a look of approval in his expression, though it wasn't quite the time to stop for congratulations. ]

Nice job. How 'bout that follow-through?

[ She did have options, after all... ]

[She lets her thoughts calmly access the situation. Majima has stumbled which is Justine's chance at turning the grapple to her favor. Justine continues to push him and if Majima doesn't stop her then they're body tumbling to the ground, with Justine pinning him there.

She breathes heavily against his hear while the heat of the fire lights her face.]

Who's that?

Not bad.

[ With the amount of time that had elapsed, it would have been possible to shift his weight and avoid the floor -- but the ground game was much more useful here. He brought up his arms, pushing at her shoulders to manipulate her upward and take advantage of the natural instability of trying to lock down someone despite a significant size difference.

Once he was free, he'd slide an arm under her neck and press down and out, instead seeking to flip Justine on her back. ]

Whatever ya do, don't let both your shoulderblades hit the floor. Lot harder to get free when you're lyin' flat. Try to stay on your side instead.

[It's somehow harder and easier on the floor of her apartment.

Justine is slight and doesn't have the weight or size that Majima does but she's also very flexible and finds a way to wiggle her hips and slide away from his hold. She still ends up on her back for a moment or two but she doesn't stay there. Justine laces her leg around Majima's and twists her hips, using the ground to push her onto her side and tangle them further.

It's a mess and likely not comfortable for either of them.]

And what do I do from here?

[She has a lock on one of his legs, has managed to get to her side and she's stuck.

Justine feels the warmth of his breath against her cheek and wants to lean in and kiss him though that would defeat the purpose of these exorcises.]

From where ya are? You're in a good position to go for a kneebar, but you wanna bow away from me, so you can force me into overextendin'. Don't give me any space to work with.

[ Not that he was going to make it entirely easy for her, of course -- if he managed to slip an arm around her neck, it'd be simple enough to restrict enough blood flow to drain the strength from her.

The floor was hard and a little cold, but what was a little discomfort? His movements were unhurried here, deceptively gentle as his hands moved up the planes of her body. ]

[She lifts her frame and positions herself as if she's going to break his knee before pausing.] I don't actually want to break your knee but I assume that I apply force here? [Justine keeps her frame close to Majima's as she bows away from him, curving her body in a surprisingly erotic arc.]

You have longer arms than me.

[Which means that he'll probably have no trouble removing her from her position on top of him.]

That's right. Doesn't matter how strong they are; if they're human, their joints have a limit to how much they'll bend.

[ His breath caught for a moment as she moved... but now wasn't the time. Her hold wasn't quite complete, and with some quick application of his limbs, he slipped loose. ]

It ain't just about who's bigger. If ya feel them trying to slip ya out of position, you move to regain it, and work toward what you want to happen. You're gonna get better at it; you've already got a better sense of your own body than most people.

[ A... great sense of her own body, in fact. ]

[Justine looses her hold for only a second before reaching for his wrists and pinning them to his sides. She doesn't have the strength to hold him but she doesn't have to give him the leverage to break free either. He'd told her not to let her pray wiggle away and she's an apt teacher.]

Like this?

[She exhales as she keeps her body positioned above him. Her skirt rides up a bit, her heels pinning Majima's legs in a way that would cause him to get caught by the sharp stiletto should he struggle too much. Justine had given him one avenue of escape, specifically to get Majima into this position. The plan had paid off though only because they'd been speaking through their grapple.

Justine leans forward and presses a light kiss against his cheek.]

Like that.

[ What was this, though? A kiss? ]

Can I take that to mean you're callin' the match?

[ Suddenly, Majima rolled his body fluidly upward, starting from the hips. The motion both unbalanced Justine's current position and dug her stilettos into his legs, but he'd felt plenty of pain before, and he didn't shrink from it now. If Justine lost her balance, he'd support her fall. And if she merely slipped a bit forward, he'd lean up to meet her in a kiss of his own -- the pleasure of even this brief contact all the sweeter for the effort. ]

[She falls forward and meets his kiss.

It's amazing that they hadn't banged their teeth together in the process. Justine's palms are resting on his shoulders as her frame lays across his chest. Her heel had slipped and the sharp point is now around Majima's ankle with a small red mark down his leg.]

I think so.

[She exhales against his lips before kissing him again.]

Does that mean it's time for our date?

[ And so he returned the favor, wrapping his arms around her not to pull her off but to draw her closer. In fact, his left hand seemed to have strayed a bit from its original course, now resting lightly (and entirely innocently, no doubt) over the curve of her ass.

When he broke from their kiss, he was smiling. ]

I'd say so. Feel like lettin' me up?

[ Hard to make pizza on the floor, said the teasing tone of his voice. ]

[A light pleased note of laughter escapes Justine's lips as she looks down at Majima. Warmth and affection dance in her dark eyes as she places one last chaste kiss against his forehead.]

If I must.

[She slides her legs to either side of his hips before pushing herself up into a seat position. Justine stares down at him for a second more and then shifts and gracefully rises to her feet. Her dark eyes move down his frame, pausing when she caught sight of what her heel had done to his leg.]

You should wrap that. It'll get infected.

[Nothing about her tone makes it sound like a suggestion.]

[ Majima was honestly tempted to suggest to Justine that she could stay right where she was... but of course, that would defeat the purpose of collecting all those ingredients. Something in her expression seemed to interest him, and it took him half a moment to realize she was talking about his leg. ]

I heal fast.

[ By all rights, he should have been covered in scars from the life he'd apparently lived back home, or even the treatment to which he'd been subjected for that hellish year in 1985. But Majima's only real souvenir was the loss of sight in his left eye. Maybe that was why he rarely bothered to treat himself.

It was something about the quality of Justine's care, however, that he'd never refused it. In fact, he'd even retrieve the first aid supplies. ]

[Her expression doesn't change but her voice becomes a touch more dry.]

Be that as it may. I'm going to wrap your leg so it doesn't get infected.

[Justine steps from the main room, her heels clicking softly on the hardwood floor as she searches for her first aid kit. It only takes a moment or two to locate before she's returning to the family room and setting herself in front of the fire.]

Come here.

Once this is done we can see about the rest of the night.

[ Majima sat down. Something in his manner was that of a large, oversized Shepherd -- one that knew when to put out its paw. Maybe he'd been through this kind of thing before.

He rolled up the leg of his slacks, revealing the tattoo Deerington had branded him with: a stag, its antlers covered in flowers. He wasn't a huge fan of impromptu tattoos, but it could have been worse. ]

This's a pretty strange feelin'.

Why is that?

[Justine smiles as she gently cleans his wound and wraps it in gauze. It isn't likely to get infected but with the strange body parts outside... she doesn't want to take any chances. It should be fully closed by the morning.

Her finger gently brushes against the deer tattoo. She has one too, over her heart, with flower petals around it as well and while its the only tattoo on her, Justine found that she likes it. There is something elegant in the mark of both hers and Majima's.]

Just not used to someone lookin' after me, I guess.

[ He watched her work and, when she was near done, reached out a hand to gently hold the tips of her fingers with his own. ]

Usually people don't get this close.

[ Or more accurately, he didn't let them get as close as Justine was now. He'd let doctors patch him up if he was close to dead, sure, but more often than not if he was in trouble, he'd drag himself back to wherever he thought was safe, sleep it off until he was reasonably back to rights.

That safe could be a person and not a place was a relatively new development. ]

[She met his gaze as she began to put away the left over pieces of gauze, scissors and tape.]

It takes time to get used too but I hope you do.

[Justine smiles then, her lips curving into a sweet but subdued expression. The first aid kit is out of the way next to the fire place and quickly forgotten.] I like being close to you. [She reaches forward to take one of his hands and press a kiss against each knuckle. She isn't ready to put how she feels into words but Majima is important to her and she's going to protect him in the ways she knows how too.]

You're all set. I trust that you'll wash it tomorrow. You won't need a bandage after that.

[Justine rises to her feet, never looking away from Majima.]

I...

[ He shook his head gently, smiling. Maybe he was already in the process of doing just that -- getting used to have someone else around. Not minding so much if someone saw him hurt. ]

Thanks, Justine. I like bein' close to you, too.

[ Then he stood, took her by the hand, and made his way over to the counter. If he kept smiling like this, he was surely going to ruin his reputation... but maybe that wasn't so bad, after all. ]

So, I brought everything we might need for toppings. Basil, tomatoes... got a bunch of different vegetables and pepperoni and so on. If we're going to be makin' those little pizzas, why don't we try different kinds?

[ There was always the possibility of letting other people sample whatever ended up being extra, right? ]

[She follows at his heels, her eyes watching the corner of his mouth as it lifts into a warm smile. He has a lovely smile and day by day, Justine finds herself being drawn in by it.] Good. [She exhales the word softly beneath her breath as they step into the kitchen.

The space is attached to the main room and the heat of the fireplace can be felt in the small kitchen.]

Sounds like fun.

[Justine begins to set everything up on one of the small counters before grabbing a bottle of red wine from her cabinet.] I have wine. Where would you like to start? I don't have a lot of practice making pizza. [She's a fairly decent cook and can prepare anything with the proper instructions.]

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