The Doe-Taur & Her Lover Pt. 03

"Hey, you," he snapped, back straight, even though he would swiftly revert to being the easy-going fox that he was truly soon enough. "Keep your nose to yourself! If you've got something to say, you can say it to my face -- or aren't you brave enough to stand against me?"

The stoat snarled and glowered, though the message had well enough been received and he slunk away and back to his friends, clearly merely on his way through the tavern. Alyssa shivered, their attention diverted. She wasn't all that sure that having their attention shifted from dirtier things was a good thing, considering the topic that had come to light.

"Hm..." Alyssa frowned, sitting back, taking her hand from him and accepting a glass of beer from the waitress with a smile as she discreetly slid the drinks into place on the table. "Maybe it wasn't such a good idea for me to join you here... Things have been quieter around town lately, so I didn't honestly think we would attract this much attention, you know?"

"No!" Sandor smiled and clapped his hands together, a sharp, startling sound that didn't really suit the environment, turning more heads than they had managed to get averting their eyes from them already. "None of that tonight! Everyone here can go chew on their own tail for all I care for their opinion. It's a problem that they hold, not us. Tonight, it's all about us and we don't have to worry about anyone else, not like that. We never do."

He smiled widely, taking both of her hands in his, though that did mean that, briefly, they didn't have a free hand with which to drink. Bringing her hand to his muzzle, he kissed her fingers gently and even Alyssa had to giggle at how the light whiskers of his foxish face tickled her skin.

"Sandor!"

But she couldn't stop him, not when he had already lightened the load hanging over her so easily, making it seem simple. He always had done that for her, taking away the worries that Alyssa had not even known or understood were not hers to carry.

"Oh, sweetheart..." She leaned in, eyes twinkling. "You are sweet... But I still don't think you're able to outdrink me! The mighty mage is so felled by a single flagon, or even a glass, of beer!"

Sandor half-yelped, indignant, snatching up his glass as if it had been forgotten.

"I'll have you know that I hold my drink a lot better than I used to!"

Alyssa laughed.

"Oh, that's a jest! I remember all the times that I had to tuck you into bed because you'd gotten carried away celebrating with the other young mages, drinking and drinking... They said you must have had a lot more than what they saw because you were "laid out", as they put it, but I know that it was one, maybe two glasses!"

Sandor blushed and pouted, slumping back into the booth as the chatter rose around them. Though the fox was secretly pleased that he had, at the very least, managed to distract Alyssa from the stares and strange looks they were getting still, eyes on them when they really could have done with a little more privacy. But he didn't want to always have Alyssa tucked away either.

That wasn't right for her. That wasn't right for either of them.

Alyssa downed her drink easily in a way that would have made a full-grown centaur stare, perhaps hungry for whatever else her mouth and tongue could do as she swallowed repeatedly, the glass dropping heavily back to the table. She refilled it quickly, not realising how parched she was. Grinning, Sandor licked his lips.

"You, on the other hand," he said, eyes dancing. "You can hold your liquor, Alyssa... Perhaps you should be the one getting into the drinking competitions with the other mages... They'd be spellbound by your, ah, abilities."

She rolled her eyes at him, draining half of her next glass too, while Sandor had only had a couple of mouthfuls of his.

"They wouldn't want to spend time with me," she said, half-shrugging. "Besides, is drinking really something to be proud of?"

Sandor thought about that question before answering, drinking more, eyes already sliding away, eagerly anticipating his food.

"Hm... Probably not," he said, agreeing with her. "It's a big socialising thing still. I was wondering about a spell to enchant it, in public places, not when it's a friendly competition thing... Then the mages wouldn't think that I was not drinking and I wouldn't get inebriated as swiftly."

"Hm, that is an idea, but I don't feel comfortable that it's something that you should have to do," Alyssa said slowly. "It's not right that you should feel forced, by a group, to consume more liquor than you are comfortable drinking."

Sandor shrugged.

"Either way, it's not going to be much of a problem anymore. Ah! Look -- there's our food coming!"

The waitress laughed, a plate balanced on each hand, though Alyssa noted that she held both with a towel, likely from the kitchen, over each hand: the plates must have been hot.

"You have a good eye, sir -- Sandor!" The pine marten quipped, setting the plates down smoothly, every bit the professional, even though it had taken her a moment to remember exactly how it was that Sandor preferred being addressed. "Here are your meals, please let me know if there is anything else at all that I can get for you. Would you like another pitcher, Alyssa? There's a dark ale in that I think you may enjoy."

"Oh!" Alyssa grinned widely, her ears twitching. "Yes, of course! If that's...okay, Sandor?"

The fox, of course, was already nodding and waving the waitress on -- not to be rude or anything like that, but he was just more interested in his food. And Alyssa could always have everything and anything she wanted, he would never deny her. Making that commonplace was just another way he wanted to show her, every day, that she was his equal.

Regardless of what the rest of the town and even beyond too thought of that... It was none of their concern.

But he set that from his mind as he devoured his food, the succulent sausages and potatoes mixing wonderfully, all so that he didn't know where to start with his meal. Alyssa clearly enjoyed hers too, though after settling the starving pangs from their stomachs, they slowed down in their consumption.

"How is your meal, Alyssa?" He asked, smiling gently, his nose twitching. "It smells...almost... Is there chilli in there?"

Alyssa grinned.

"Yes! But I wouldn't have thought that you'd be interested in only veggies!"

Sandor wrinkled his nose.

"Yes, well... I said it smells nice, not that I'd want only that to eat myself! It could make a nice side though... But it's not these sausages. Do you think there's a way we can take them along with us?"

Alyssa considered that, though gave a slow shake of her head.

"Well, I guess... You could preserve them, but you'd have to think about that ahead of time, there's no time for that now, not with your magic. We don't know enough about how the magic of the...the tree works for now."

It was easier for Alyssa to talk about what had happened to them with the ancient evil of the tree, but still not comfortable. Sandor, however, tilted his head, a slice of sausage speared on his fork. Alyssa smirked behind her hand, covering her lips delicately with it so that her partner would not see. No wonder he liked the sausages so much when they were glistening with grease and fat, though if it helped the flavour even more for him she was not going to say anything. He only had to take the right steps to look after his health too.

"I guess that's right," he said, following her line of thought. "Maybe I could do more with that magic, because I don't just have fire and nature magic now, not only in my training... There's so much I just haven't had time to explore."

"And things are only going to get busier when we move," she said, taking his hand and rubbing her fingers over the back of it. "But we're going to make the time, sweetheart, for you to learn, to do everything you want to. I can be even more help around the house and with planning than before!"

Sandor grinned.

"You never fail to amaze me, Alyssa. How you have taken everything in your stride, as if it was totally normal for you! You've faced down so much that would have sent many, even other mages, running for the hills. How do you do it?"

She opened her mouth and tried to say something, but, well, the blush that spread across her cheeks, sending a prickling rise of heat down her neck too, told the tale for her.

"Oh!" She waved him off, trying to fan her face, though some of the looks that the doe-taur and the fox were getting were softening a little, almost becoming a little lighter and more romantic in nature. "You are mean to me, teasing me like that! You knew that would make me blush -- and it's not true too!"

"Oh, but it is true, Alyssa," he said, taking her hand and bringing it to his lips for a kiss, thankful that he had dabbed the grease from his lips only a moment before. "You are the most amazing person that I know. You've met everything so well, even your fears. And those would fell most others. You should know that, because you truly deserve to know how wonderful you are, day in and day out."

He paused, a touch of shyness pulling at him. Where were his crude words, his teases and his touches? All that went out the window when he looked deep into her eyes, when she made his heart flutter, when he spilt out all his admiration for her, how much he loved her, how the doe-taur had changed his life for the better.

He would tell her that, every day, for the rest of their lives. Together.

He let her take a moment to compose herself, mumbling something further under her breath about him embarrassing her. The doe-taur occupied herself with her dinner, though Sandor caught the pull of a smile on her lips.

She's so cute...

Sandor took in the changing looks around them, the sense of something shifting in the air of the tavern. In a way, it was as if those watching saw their connection more and more, rather than what or who Alyssa and Sandor were. It was something that the fox had been trying to convey especially to other anthros for too long, increasingly bluntly and directly, yet some were still too bone-headed to get it into their thick skulls that class differences were just manufactured by those that wanted to feel powerful. It was something, a notion, that had helped him advance in his magic training, but it was not all that easy to convey.

Maybe because not many have tried to show that power difference before, he thought. Not even how relinquishing it gives you the true power.

But that was a thought for another time and night as they drank and enjoyed their meal together, Sandor's tail flicking around to brush against Alyssa where she squirmed. The doe-taur had slid a little further into the booth in an attempt to get comfortable, though there were not many seating arrangements that suited taurs. It was only as she was so small that she could squeeze in there at all.

"Are you going to slip off, Alyssa?" He teased, even as the doe-taur squeaked. "Maybe you should have stood this time... If we were staying, we could have had a seat left here that would fit your legs more comfortably."

"And you think you're teasing me even when you're saying really sweet things to me," Alyssa quipped back, the doe-taur better placed to give as good as she got with the fox than she had been before. "You don't have to do that. If you want to say nice things about me, you can."

She shot him a flirty look, though, in Alyssa's case, that sudden boldness probably came in a sense from the alcohol she had consumed. The fox tried to grin, but his body didn't want to obey him all that much anymore, laughing, swaying, tipping back and forth in his seat.

Leaning in closer to him, Alyssa rested a hand on his arm, steadying him.

"Sandor... You finished your glass too quickly," she said, shaking her head. "Come on, eat your food."

She treated him as if she really was there looking after him, but she was his partner too. He leaned heavily on her, even though he managed to clear his plate. Dimly, the fox was aware that he shouldn't have drunk so quickly, but he had been thirsty! Was that such a bad thing?

Not really, but he should have thought about what they were going to do that night, especially when their sleeping arrangements were still so up in the air, nothing quite decided.

"Mmm... Alyssa..."

He leaned heavily on her, not realising that the doe-taur had gotten him up and out of the booth and that she had paid the waitress.

"Hush now, sweetheart, don't worry. Just stand, that's okay, breathe slowly and evenly."

He didn't realise that she was telling him to breathe like that because he was drunk, but, well, there was only so much that he could do about that. The time to worry about being drunk had passed.

Shoot, he perhaps had drunk it too quickly...

"Sandor... Can you hear me?"

She prodded him, though the fox groaned in reply. It was hard to raise her voice naturally loud enough in the tavern, the doe-taur sighing.

Outside, fresh air. That would help.

"Come on, Sandor, we're walking now, you're doing well."

At least they had had a nice meal out of it and, honestly, Alyssa could not help but giggle as she drew him outside with her into the fresh air. Honestly, the fox really did need to think ahead a little more! But they were still young and there was nothing to worry about there, not truly.

"Now... I can't get you to ride me, not with my saddle bags in place still, hm..."

Alyssa talked out loud to herself, as if that was how she better worked things out. There were, after all, some logistical problems to be dealt with that night. An inn would be more comfortable and they should have enough to last them the night with what she had bought for their travels...but was that the most practical thing anymore?

Alyssa sighed, drawing his arm more tightly over her shoulder. She didn't know where to take him, whether she would even be able to get him up the stairs to a room at the inn -- and she doubted there would be any lower-floor ones left after everything. Did that mean that there was only the house remaining for her to stop by at?

"Mm... Alyssa..."

"Yes, Sandor?"

She leaned in close to him, putting her ear close to his mouth, which was difficult with how much the fox was slumping forward, more than half a dead weight on her. It was a good thing that she was strong.

"Mmm... Sent message..."

Had he? When had the fox done that? Perhaps when she used the lavatory behind the tavern. Oh, dear...

"To Elder Ron... Yes... Meeting at home..."

Alyssa sighed.

"Okay, Sandor, no problem."

That meant that she couldn't go to the inn, making her decision. If he had to meet Elder Ron at home, that was where she had to be. It didn't matter too much to her, to be honest, as she could easily sleep standing up against the wall, even if it might leave her still with a crick in her neck (the head was quite a bit heavier than many gave it credit for, after all). Sandor, on the other hand, might be quite sore. She would have to check if there were some old camping supplies, which might be enough to make sure that he was comfortable enough for the night, a pillow and something soft to lie on.

"Mmhm... It's...mmm...want..."

"What?"

She tried to listen, ears pricking. But the fox's tongue must have been so thick in his mouth that he could barely get the words out.

Still, coming in close to him made it clear enough as he mumbled.

"Mm... Want...doe... Mm...so furry, so warm... Dick deep...inside her... Mmph... Yes... Mmm..."

Alyssa scoffed and rolled her eyes. That fox!

"Sandor! Are you always thinking about sex?"

She might have meant to chide him, but, really, who wouldn't have been flattered in a strange way to know that their partner wanted him like that? The doe-taur shrugged helplessly at his one-track mind, but secretly was pleased that she was enticing and alluring to him still. That was all she wanted, well, at least when it came to the bedroom and attraction, and was something that she had so very desperately had hoped would not fade. On the contrary, things between them had become even more erotic than before, the fox more and more forceful in a way that made her legs bow and quiver deliciously.

That, however, was something to be explored at another time.

At home, stumbling up the short path, at last, she fumbled with the key and dragged the only semi-conscious fox through the door.

"Honestly, Sandor..." She couldn't help but chuckle, even if his slurring had long gone past coherent. "You've got to...unff...watch what you drink."

That he didn't drink that often, to be fair, was a good thing though. No one wanted a partner that was completely inebriated all the time, after all. It wouldn't have been something that would have drawn her to him in the first place too, to be fair.

"Here you go, Sandor, come on now..."

She settled him down in the living area where the furniture had been mostly cleared out, not trusting herself to be able to get him up the stairs without bumping him far too uncomfortably. No, best to bring items down there and, well, there was that old sofa still that they had not been able to get rid of. They were going to work out something with his magic to get that outside to a safe distance in the morning (possibly by growing vines so that it could be moved from one location to another, using his nature magic), so that it could be burned. If no one wanted it, after all, there was little that either of them felt they could do with it. It could be a fitting end to their time there.

She settled him onto it, though muttered her apologies to him as she was forced to heft and heave the fox onto the last piece of furniture.

"Mmhm... Al...Alyssa..."

Alyssa leaned in close to him, dropping a gentle kiss on his nose. Oh, her sweet fox... He was so silly to have drunk a full glass when he knew he couldn't handle it, but it was not that bad, no, not that bad at all. It could not be helped, not even then, and she was not all that concerned about it, not all that concerned about him. One glass of beer, a pint or so... It was not something that could not be slept off.

And yet she was still struck with the urge to take care of him, to look after him, to care for him, all as he had done for her for so very long, all in his own way. She knew that he tried to keep up a cheerful front and face, despite the difficulties that their relationship posed when it came to his relationships with the rest of the world. People judged him for being with her, even though it was quite clear, even to her, by then that they were together for the long haul -- and that their relationship had been going on for much longer than anyone had suspected in the public eye. And yet his only thought was of her, of her comfort.

He was a special fox indeed. Alyssa only hoped that she would be able to do right by him, all in time.

"Yes, you're okay, Sandor, I'm taking care of everything, don't worry. Just go to sleep, honey."

She brushed the fur on his face tenderly, leaving him on his back, muttering in his sleep to himself. Oh, the fox was by no means awake and her casting a blanket from the camping gear and cupboard -- they needed that on their travels anyway, even though it would not have been her first choice of something to sleep on at home -- over him only sent him deeper down. Gently, the doe-taur slipped off his trousers, though did not reach his shirt before there was a gentle knock on the door.

Oh, dear...

That had to be Elder Ron, though at least she would be able to sleep soon if she dealt with whatever that business was. It was just something that he was dropping off, right? He had been strange with Sandor since her relationship with the fox had become public and, well... It was hard for Alyssa to face him, her stomach clenching, twisting up into knots while she trotted lightly to the door. Even after everything that she had drunk, she only felt a little sleepy. That was about as inebriated as she got, for which she was thankful.