Cause we have chemistry together~ [priv/penguin]

Of course it was a big deal! For Scarlett it was, at least. Unlike how Avery may have been raised, the redhead didn't have many people that she knew close enough to take baths with when she was younger. That and, perhaps it said something about Scarlett herself when she felt that imagining a girl less-clothed made her just as nervous and antsy as most girls, including her, would be if they imagined a guy in such a state. Although that was never something that Scar ever considered deeply on, merely accepting it as a fact about herself. After all, she was the same young woman that had anxiety when someone touched her, so it made sense that, for Scarlett, someone even being slightly more less-dressed would be more than a small issue.

But that's not where Scarlett's mind was. No, she was far away from thinking about Avery without a top on. Instead, she focused on something even more amazing that was happening. She was quite awe-struck, her eyes glistening as she watched the scene unfold around her and her companion for the afternoon. The ice walls had shattered and were raining down onto the ground like their own personal winter, a private view that was breathtaking. For a few moments, Scar had forgotten her problems. Sure, she was on someone's lap and was holding onto her, but she didn't mind. A feat that had never been done before in all of her years of being the shy blushing mess that she was, Avery had managed to get the girl in a state that she was on someone's lap and not nervous. She didn't feel anxiety or fear. Just happiness and pure awe.

The moment felt like that it went on forever, and in a way Scarlett wished that it could have. But as the ice slowly drifted to the ground, she felt like she needed to speak finally. Licking her lips, "It's'... all so... amazi-" She stopped her thought mid-sentence as she turned her head to face her partner Avery. Almost having forgotten that she was in her lap and holding onto her as tightly as the weaker girl could manage, she found it as quite a surprise when she was still doing those things, "I... I..." Scar managed to let out, unsure of what she could say until her attention was drawn to the blushing of her friend, "Av-Avery..? Are you.. alright? You're looking really.. red..." she spoke. Although, Scar's face was just as red, showing her embarrassment openly. For once, were the two girls on equal footing..?

It's not coming down. The heat's not going down... Avery was bewildered by how the warmth she was feeling a while ago was turning into something hot. She was trying her best to not look at the girl in hopes of calming herself, but the feeling of that person still on her lap and shifting every now and then only made each second a struggle. Had Avery been any other person, she would've started perspiring by now. But since Frosts had a natural cooling mechanism that didn't involve sweating, her skin was beginning to turn icy-cold. She figured it wouldn't be pleasant to the redhead who was still clinging to her so it was time to break the hug.

"G-get off my lap..." She said, trying to hide her embarrassment with her typically rude personality, but it merely came off as a mere whine. Even that made her blush intensify. How could this girl have such an effect on her? She waited for the girl to move off before she practically scrambled far away from her.

Avery began pacing back and forth trying to calm herself. That's right. It's normal. Stop overreacting. You're acting totally weird right now. Distract yourself. She buttoned up her shirt and placed her tie back to her neck. Yea. The necktie, distract yourself with the necktie. As she glanced down to fix her tie though, inappropriate images involving a necktie and Scarlett suddenly sprang on her mind and she was back to blushing wildly.

She began stomping the ground to release her frustration and embarrassment. The pattern continued with her pacing back and forth, some thoughts springing on her mind, then stomping the poor ground. Eventually she had calmed herself down but took quite a while. She wasn't even able to finish fixing her tie and it just hang precariously around her neck. Avery turned around and walked to Scarlett, flipping her hair back as though nothing weird just happened.

"As I was saying, are you all good? Let's go."

"E-eh..? R-right..!" Scarlett managed out at Avery's command for the redhead to get of of her partner. She stood up quickly, careful not to lose her footing or else get the two in some even more awkward situation. It was clear to even Scar that something was wrong with the blonde. Between the red face and weak voice there was really only two possibilities. The first being that Avy had gotten sick suddenly, possibly from Scar having touched dirt and then her. Or the second was that she was simply bothered by the redhead hugging and touching her. Either one of those certainly didn't make Scar feel any better about the situation, one option being that she got her friend sick and the other that she didn't enjoy physical contact. Not exactly confidence boosting.

Scarlett merely stood there, being as awkward as she ever was as she shifted her weight to one foot and the other over and over again. Her hands were at her waist together, her fingers interlocked with one another while her thumbs' tips pressed against its counterpart in a display of anxiety. Suffice to say, it was quite clear that she was nervous about interacting with Avery again after she did something so... sudden.

As Avery returned, Scarlett looked towards her with curiosity hid behind nervousness, wondering if she was still ill or not. Much to her dismay, Avy seemed more than fine, back to her casual, teasing self. Scar lowered her shoulders in response, confirming in her head that it wasn't because she was ill, but because the redhead was touching her. So much for being able to touch someone for any period of time, Scarlett thought to herself. The one person that she felt close enough to try disliked it and probably disliked her now.

Licking her lips lightly, Scarlett nodded in reply as Avery beckoned her to go, "Y-yeah..." she said lowly. Quickly getting in step with Avery again, she let out a soft sigh, allowing the silence to linger between the redhead and her partner for the time being. So much had happened in the past few hours, more than she ever had expected. This young woman that she was with was more than just an acquaintance. Sure, she picked on Scar, but as time went on, she found that her words bothered her less and less, almost as if Avery had lost the meaning of such insults. But no matter what, she felt that she needed to speak her mind, now at the very least, "A-and... I'm sor-" she paused, shaking her head, "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. I, erm... won't do something like that again, I promise..."

Creep, stop staring! Avery admonished herself and tore her eyes away from the redhead's lips. Yeah, that habit of licking them again. That would be the death of her someday. While walking, Avery kept glancing at Scarlett from the corner of her eyes. She did notice the sudden drop in her mood from before but couldn't figure out why. Did she not like the hug maybe? But she was the one who initiated it in the first place. Or maybe she just tried it out and finally realised it really was not for her. That made the blonde's shoulders drop. A little smile curved on her lips though as she caught Scarlett stopping mid-apology, proud that the girl was able to.

"I, erm... won't do something like that again, I promise..."

"Wait, what? NO!" Avery protested as she stopped in her tracks and looked at the girl incredulously. Okay, so that might've been a little too strong of a disagreement. Composure, my dear. She cleared her throat and continued walking. So that's why the redhead's mood was down; they were both worried they made each other uncomfortable. How funny.

"What I mean to say is, no it wasn't uncomfortable. The hug was actually..." she paused and lowered her head, cheeks heating up again at the memory. "I-I actually.. you know.." She bit her bottom lip, unable to have the courage to say it out loud. Woah, this was harder than she thought! How do people voice out their emotions without dying of embarrassment? She glared at the girl, her competitive side suddenly springing up. If this person managed to conquer her fear of touching, surely Avery could say something so trivial, right?

"I-I.." Ah screw it. "I actually liked the hug," she murmured almost inaudibly as she tried to hide behind the strands of her golden hair. "A-and.. you know.. if you need or.. want someone to talk to and.. uhm... a person to err.. hold on to.. for some reason.. maybe?.. I don't know.. I'm just.. you know.. I'm always.." she paused to stop her stammering.

"I'm here," she said simply. It appeared as if she's shrinking smaller and smaller, wanting the ground to swallow her whole to save her from this embarrassment.

"Wait, what? NO!"

Scarlett was suddenly taken aback by her partner's sudden outburst, no longer walking forward just as Avery did. She was half-turned towards the blonde as confusion showed on her face. Had she done or said something wrong, she wondered silently. Her eyes slightly widened in surprise and bemusement, she allowed her gaze to stay away from Avy's face as she figured out just what it was that had gotten her so upset with Scar. This caused the redhead to tilt her head curiously at her friend, trying to determine just what she was about to say.

Was Scarlett right? Did Avery not like the hug afterall? She bit down on her bottom lip, knowing that it was better to hear the truth directly than to continue pondering her friend's feelings and not know. But... the way that Avery was acting was more than simply curious. A simple disliking of hugs wouldn't really fit in with all the blushing and stammering that was going on. If someone were to look at the two at that moment, it wouldn't be too unreasonable of a presumption that Avy was the shyer of the two. But before that thought could linger in her mind any longer, Avery began to speak the most wonderful of sentences.

"I-I.. I actually liked the hug,"

Scarlett took in a light breath of air, causing her chest to puff out slightly at the admittance of it. She was... relieved, certainly, but it felt more than that. As Avery continued talking and assuring that she was there for the meeker girl, Scarlett felt something wonderful. Her gaze softened as she looked towards her friend, glistening slightly as water began to lightly form at the corners of her eyes. She wasn't crying, but she was beginning to tear up. There was no pain or sorrow on her face, but a wonderful smile appeared on the lips that Avery was so fond of creeping on. Without thinking about the moment, she moved a hand to over her heart, "A-avery... thank you... that means... so much to me." With that, she let out a soft sigh, "I promise... I'll be sure to when I need to." she said, giving a short nod.

Still dying of shame, Avery spared a glance at the target of her words and almost choked at sight of tears forming on the corner of the redhead's eyes. Panic quickly replaced her fluster and her head scrambled for the possible reason why. Did she say something wrong? Did her words come out creepy or criminal-esque? Or maybe it was too cheesy that it made her cry? But she's smiling. What does that even mean?

Just as she was about to ask what's wrong, Scarlett placed a hand on her chest. Her chest. Her eyes are up there! Avery once again found herself tearing her gaze away from the girl. It's confirmed. She's a creep. Well, she's done worse to her roommate to be perfectly honest. And her excuse was always the usual 'I'm an art-lover, so I appreciate beauty when I see one' or 'It's human nature to appreciate aesthetics'. But something about this girl made her feel guilty of her actions. Perhaps it's her natural meekness that made Avery feel like she's preying on the defenseless.

She sighed and snapped her fingers, producing an ice board that floated in the air parallel to the ground. All this walking was tiring her out and Avery wasn't used to physical work. She flopped down on the board and laid on her back, treating it as her bed. She placed her arms behind her head while the board continued to float beside the girl, moving in her pace.

"Also, that applies to people who keep harassing you in school. Just give me a call and I'll deal with them myself. They're most likely within my social circle anyway," she said nonchalantly.

"Oh by the way, you want one too?" Avery offered pertaining to the board, though that was pretty stupid now that she thought of it. Ice was cold to the touch whatever form it may be.

She let a few moments of silence pass by before her eyes trailed to Scarlett. "Sooo, you know... I still won our game... and there was a bet.." she murmured. Yep. There's no way she's letting this one go.

Scarlett of course, didn't linger in the moment. She rather quickly brought her arms to her teary eyes and wiped them on her sleeve, letting out a soft sigh as she composed herself. Feeling more than happy at the moment, she was fine with them being how they were for the time being. Sure, perhaps the relationship that they had wouldn't be the easiest to maintain because of their drastic differences, but it was already shown how far Scar was willing to go to maintain their newly formed friendship. Being more than willing to let everything uncomfortable that had happened between them to simply be pushed back and ignored, she allowed for even more wonderful memories and times to be had. She only hoped that Avery felt the same way.

Scarlett allowed her eyes to trail downwards to Avery as she laid down on the ice board. She tilt her head curiously, finding that Avy's semblance was one that was quite impressive, so many things being able to be done with it. Blinking at the offer, Scarlett smiled once again, "Thank you, but... I don't want to bother you or rely on you too much." she said, knowing that relying on someone for things like that wouldn't help her get over her social issues, but she smiled warmly at the offer.

At the offer a board, Scarlett shook her head, "Erm... no thanks. I don't really need to, I'm fine with walking." she said. Although an image did flash in her mind where both she and Avy were riding on one o the girl's ice boards, Scar simply laying on top of the blonde as they made their way. This thought caused the redhead to blush slightly, shaking her head to remove any such thoughts from her mind.

"Sooo, you know... I still won our game... and there was a bet.."

Avery's words certainly got Scarlett's attention though. Shame caused the girl's cheeks to blush slightly, lowering her shoulders at the memory of how she was acting just after the game. Not planning on acting like that again, she simply gave a short nod, "Y-yeah... I know, I owe you something... As long as it's not too, uh... problematic... I'll do my best to do it." She promised. She even considered that perhaps what Avery would want would be fun? Like playing a game with her, making her more lunch or them cuddli- Nope, bad Scarlett, wrong thoughts.

So the redhead politely refused her offer, that much was to be expected. It's an ice board after all; it'd bring more discomfort to her than good. Though Avy could think of a few ways to fix that problem. With them on one board and Scarlett laying on top of her and-- No! Bad Avy, behave! She scolded her idiotic self. How much had she reprimanded herself for the past hour or so? Seriously, she should try being like Scarlett, very pure and innocent with no inappropriate thoughts in mind.

As the girl agreed to the prize of their game, Avery's eyes sparkled and she bolted up into a sit, dangling her feet off the board before crossing her legs. The board then moved in front of Scarlett so the two were face to face, the board now hovering backwards in pace with the redhead's walking. Avery leaned forward and propped an elbow on her knee and her chin on her hand. She was staring at Scarlett, hard. She wasn't exactly looking at her though, she was simply thinking what to do with this girl.

Should she go with her initial plan? The very same reason she challenged Scarlett in that game? But that maybe too much for her. She didn't want to risk hurting her feelings again. But weren't they closer now? So maybe it's fine.

Avery narrowed her eyes at the girl while biting her nail, lost in her thoughts. Eh, screw it. Whatever the queen wants, the queen gets. "As a consequence of losing our game of modified tag, you, my dear Scarlett Winchester..."

"...will be my slave~"

Avery placed her hands on her sides against the board and raised an eyebrow "Well, not slave, such a savage term. My personal genie perhaps? Or a pet~ Anything that involves you, granting me unlimited wishes." she grinned, already knowing how the girl would react. "What, did you expect something mild? From an Avery Frost? You know me better than that, Scarlett~"

Scarlett tilt her head towards Avery as they spoke, curious as to where the girl was going with this conversation. Although it didn't take much of an intuition to figure out that she was preparing to cash in her 'winnings' so to speak. As she watched, her gaze followed the blonde, moving along with her as she moved her board to instead float right in front of the meeker of the two. Scarlett swallowed hard, averting her gaze to both hide her slightly blushing cheeks and because she just wasn't confident enough to look someone in the eyes right now, even her friend. Why did Avery always have to do the exact things that made Scar the most nervous? Well, more so than typical.

"...will be my slave~"

Scarlett blinked, "W-what..?" she asked and continued to listen more for Avery's explanation. It was true! Scar probably should have expected something like this to happen; was this the blonde's plan all along? Was this what she was meaning to lead up to the entire time she was with Scarlett? Probably not, thought the redhead. Avery couldn't be that malicious... could she? While the answer was rather vague, Scar certainly couldn't just deny such a thing, not wanting another scene like the last time she simply ignored Avery, "E-erm... I don't... really know... she said, moving her hands to her sides and fidgeting somewhat awkwardly at the idea of being someone's genie.

"B-before I agree..." Scarlett paused, forcing herself to face forward as she lightly bit the bottom of her lip. While she may not be able to look someone directly in the eyes at times, she has developed a decent method of making it seem like she was. Instead of looking into the blonde's gaze, she turned her attention to the ridge of the girl's node or the spot inbetween her eyebrows, depending on how close. This at least gave the illusion that she was looking them in the eyes, "What... would that entail..?" Scarlett wanted answers. She wasn't going to agree to something like that without first understanding the terms. But if she were a pet, would that mean she'd get treated like an animal? That certainly didn't sound that great of a situation to be in.

Avery found it adorable that the redhead couldn't as much as look her in the eye. It's sad and cute at the same time. Even as she used that trick of looking in the middle of the eyebrows, Avery caught on it pretty quickly. It's something that she knew fairly well. Still, she decided not to speak of it as to not make the girl uncomfortable. And then came Scarlett's question of what the deal would entail.

What it would entail?

Flashes of various images both appropriate and not raced through her head and her face burned red. No no no, she couldn't lose her composure now! She ran her fingers through the fringe of her hair, going to the side down its length and brushing it off her shoulder. Queen mode: activate!

"Scarlett, Scarlett, Scarlett. That's why it's a bet. You don't have a choice but to agree~" She smiled then tilted her head. "A humble person like you who doesn't have any pride can easily go back on her words eh? Guess I'll resort to other ways then."

"You will agree to my conditions or I will tell everyone that you and Warren are going out!!!"

Ha, brilliant. "It would only take a text message from me to let everyone know the latest gossip. Wouldn't that be juicy?" Avery grinned. While that was a brilliant plan, she wasn't serious of course. She simply wanted to see the redhead's reaction. In the end, she dropped the tease and continued. "I kid, I kid of course~ But seriously though, it's not much. You know me, I'm the kindest, gentlest person out there. Do I look like I'd do anything bad to you~?" She chirped, batting her eyelashes with the most innocent smile plastered on her face.

"Now then, say yes, right now. Now now now. Yes?" She urged with several nods still with that innocent smile.

"... Huh..?" Scarlett tilt her head slightly as she listened to Avery. So that's what it was coming to then. Blackmail. If she didn't agree then the blonde would tell everyone in the school that Scar was dating her roommate. Or so she claimed at the very least. More realistically, either nobody would know who this mysterious 'Scarlett' girl was or they simply wouldn't care. That's what the redhead believed would have been the case at the very least. But the way Avery talked about it like some sort of master plan, Scar just didn't have it in her heart to attempt to tell her otherwise. Plus, it wouldn't be all that bad, right?

Scarlett moved her hand to her arm opposite it, lightly rubbing it awkwardly, "Erm... I suppose so... so long as I don't need to do anything, well... too 'bad'. I guess that's the best way to put it." With that, she sealed her fate, beginning to lightly chew on the inside of her cheek after she spoke. It certainly wouldn't be too bad, right? Surely, all that it meant was that she was going to be able to spend even more time with someone that she undoubtedly adored, right? Hopefully she wasn't agreeing to something that she would later come to regret, but for now, she had that precious time with Avery to look forward to and to urge her on.

"Really?"

Avery almost couldn't believe the girl finally agreed to the deal. She was so prepared to use other methods to persuade the redhead but since she agreed, then better! The blonde couldn't help a grin. Just thinking of all the possibilities that she could use this opportunity with was making her giddy. Oh fun. With a light tap of the hand on her board, it moved beside Scarlett so they were side to side.

"Well, now that's settled. Let set up a few ground rules. Number one!" she paused for dramatic effect as she held one finger. "You are not allowed to say 'sorry' to anyone even me. If you make a mistake, just tell the person to 'deal with it'." Haha! This is too funny. Avery looked forward to seeing that from Scarlett.

"Number two! Um.." she paused as she lowered her head again. "I-I would appreciate it if you could... you know... prepare lunch for me. Anything would be fine, even leftovers, just so I have something decent to eat... if that's not too much to ask. Y-you don't have to do it if you don't want to."

Avery sighed and cleared her throat. "And number three! N-number three... number three is..." Her face flushed and she turned her head away. "N-never mind. No number three. Those two for now. I'll add more when I think of one. You okay with those two?"

Scarlett gave a hesitant nod, but it was a nod, confirming that she had really accepted the deal. It was only going to be a day or two, she told herself mentally. Perhaps a week tops. She hoped. Sure, there wasn't a predetermined end-date, but it certainly couldn't last forever. And at this point, she was a bit too worried that Avery claimed that it would be forever if she had asked, causing the meek girl to avoid questioning it directly. If it were only a short time, well, the blonde looked so happy that Scarlett didn't want to ruin it. Even seeing Avy in such a delight mood, caused Scar to smile in return, happy in herself that she could make her friend feel such a way.

And then came the rules that she had to follow, causing Scarlett to once again feel somewhat uneasy about the entire situation. She bit down on her lower lip lightly as she listened, eventually speaking up once Avery was done, "I, erm... I mean, I can cook you lunch no problem... I already said I would and... well, of course I'd enjoy it..." she admitted with a slight blush, "B-but.. I don't know if I can do the, uh... d-deal with it part, so... B-but I'll try..."

Perhaps it was because how Avery seemed to enjoy the roles they had at the moment. Or just that she was trying to ease herself in accepting that she was going to be someone's pet for a while. Either way, something made her want to see Avy even more delighted about the situation. She furrowed her brow as the blonde asked if Scarlett was okay with the terms, the redhead giving another nod and parting her lips to speak. But she hesitated, finding it hard to get the words out. After all, they were so embarrassing! But she needed to, all to make Avery happier! Giving a soft breath of air, she found it way too hard to even look at Avy directly, averting her gaze as she stammered out, "T-those two are fine... erm... whatever you want really..." here it came, "... M... mas... master..." Was there steam coming from her cheeks?

"Haha~ Of course you can do it. Don't worry, it'll be fun," Avery stated with a grin, pertaining to the 'deal with it' part. Hmm. Maybe she she should try it out later and witness it for herself. It'd be gold, she bet. And then came the forbidden words.

"..M... mas... master..."

A mini heart attack and Avery flopped down on the board face first, hugging it for dear life. Ah. Paradise! Too much happiness, where should she be releasing this onto? Unlike normal girls who screamed in their pillows when they were feeling too giddy, Avery had a different approach. She hopped off the board, walked a few distance behind them, formed a giant ice hammer and smashed the poor ground with all the pent-up happiness and giddiness inside. She would giggle at the memory then kept pounding at the ground again, the pattern going as such for a while; a classic example of 'It's so good I can't stop.' After releasing those emotions, she tossed the hammer aside and walked back to Scarlett as though nothing happened.

"There was a bug on the ground so I just had to kill it, you know?" Avery said nonchalantly with a flip of her hair back. "Anyway, you don't have to call me that, really. I'm fine with you addressing me by my name."

As she settled back on her board, she placed a hand over her racing heart. Avery was used to hearing those words from her family's household workers but something about it coming from Scarlett made it all the more... sensual? Personal? Exciting? She blushed at the memory again. AH! She needed to distract herself. As if on cue, an idea popped up on her head. She moved the board so she was directly in front of Scarlett again and she flashed a smile.

"Hey, I was thinking.. for the winter break..." she started out, but her eyes briefly went down to the girl's left foot, forming a subtle ice rock on its way big enough to trip the girl and send her forward right towards the blonde. Almost immediately the ice rock vanished, erasing all evidence of her mischief and making it look like Scarlett tripped on her own. Heh. It was time to hear that 'deal with it' part~

Scarlett simply watched in mild bemusement as Avery did... something that was very hard to describe. At the same time various questions went through her head. What was the deal with the hammer? Was this reaction in direct response to her 'master' comment? If so, was this a good reaction? Did it perhaps work too well or not enough? Truly, Avy was quite the enigma to the redhead, one that as she learned more about how nothing made sense, the more she wanted to understand why she was. It was quite the vague desire, but it certainly was there. Eventually, her bemusement simply turned into acceptance, settling in to watch the blonde do her thing as she waited patiently for her to return.

As Avery returned and they continued on their way, Scarlett merely giggled in response to her partner's claim about a bug, "Ehehe... You're... really silly still." she said, giving a happy smile towards the girl. Then came a blink, causing her to follow up with, "Oh, erm... well, I wasn't planning on calling you that often... like... in public or all the time or... at all, really. I just thought, well... n-nevermind what I thought." A blush returned to Scar's face, seeming to never last long before her cheeks eventually gain a hint of pink. Well, around Avery that is.


"Hey, I was thinking.. for the winter break..."

"... Eh?" Scarlett let out, Avery's beginning of a thought certainly catching her attention. Was she thinking of inviting Scar to do something with her? Perhaps a hunt or a mission? Or was this going to be more personal and maybe invite her over to spend the holidays with her? As the thought crossed her mind, her eyes widened in surprise at the idea alone, making her need to forcefully suppress her interest, excitement, and even nervousness from being so obvious, "Y-yeah..? W-what is- Ahh!"

Suddenly tragedy struck Scarlett, for as she was walking, she seemed to have not noticed a fairly large rock in the road. She lost her footing immediately, her ankle bending in just a bit of an unpleasant way, causing the girl to let out a soft cry of pain. She held her hands out in front of her as she knew where this was going. Wincing lightly, she fell forwards, not much she could do besides attempt to grab something to prevent her from falling on the ground. But the only thing to grab, were, well... Avery and her board.

Perhaps it's her perceptive behaviour towards the redhead that Avery swore she saw a glimpse of something akin to excitement at the mention of winter break. At the very least, interest. Did that mean Scarlett wouldn't mind if they made plans for winter break? This in turn made Avery delighted. Seems the third request was plausible after all. And then Scarlett trip. Not just any other trip, she managed to almost dislocate her ankle in the process so much so that the blonde winced at the sight.

Ah crap. How fragile is this girl? Avery was suddenly overwhelmed by a sense of self-loathing again. She didn't want to hurt her pet! The plan was to just to trip the girl crash onto Avery and see if Scarlett would apologise or not. A fracture was so not in the plan. Maybe her pranks were too much for this redhead; she noted never to use any of her shenanigans again.

As Avery was still sitting on her board, she moved forward a little closer to make sure Scarlett was able to grab a hold of her as the girl fell. No, she wouldn't touch her. She already made a promise not to do any of that. Though it did end up with them being inches apart again. "H-Hey, are you okay? Uhm... that was a rather large rock you tripped on there.. Hehe..heee.." She mentally facepalmed. She knew it was wrong to lie, but really, it wasn't her fault!

Avery cleared her throat and scratched her cheek. "Is your ankle okay?" she asked, genuinely concerned.

Fortunately, as clumsy as Scarlett may be, she isn't so clumsy as to tumble onto the ground from simply tripping over a rock. She managed to grab onto something as she fell, that something just happen to being Avery's arm. Catching herself, her feet did a little 'dance' as she regained her footing, most of her weight still being put onto the blonde's arm, but surely she was strong enough to keep up such a fragile girl, right? She certainly didn't seem too hurt, but she did wince with every step that her right foot - also the foot that she tripped with - touched the ground, signaling that she certainly wasn't entirely well off from the situation.

"Nn..." Scarlett let out in more annoyance and discomfort than pain, "I... I'm fine, I think I just sprained it and... owie, that really doesn't feel great..." she mentions, "I'm... I need to get off my feet for a moment, just be-" And then it hit her. She didn't have anywhere to sit down at. There was the ground, but Avery would just chastise her for once again sitting on it. There was the ice board with plenty of room, but sitting down on solid ice didn't seem like a fun idea. Which simply left... Scar's eyes trailed downwards to Avy's lap momentarily, swallowing quite hard as she flushed bright red, "N-not again..." she mumbled.

But Scarlett didn't have much choice in the matter, knowing that this was the best way to do rest. That and the two of them could actually still make progress even if she was sitting down. There were no downsides... right? Before she could argue in her mind any longer, she too the initiative, lifting herself off the ground just enough to plant her bottom right in Avery's lap. This situation was getting rather uncomfortable with how often it was happening, and she certainly hoped it didn't happen much often. Wait, did she? With every time she touched Avery, it seemed to get easier and easier, almost to the point where she thinks she was starting to enjoy it and even do it on her own.

Scarlett wanted to apologize, of course, not knowing what else to say when you just volunteer someone to be your own personal throne. But she couldn't. Instead, she let out a cute, "... D... deal with it..." and lowered her shoulders defeated while she leaned back into the girl, not having through about the repercussions. "Y... yeah... deal with it..." she repeated, her resolve returning to her somewhat as she considered how Avery deserved something like this as the situation was all her fault. If she weren't the one distracting her with her pretty face and hair and eyes then Scarlett would have been much more attentive! So she repeated once again, "Deal with it." as she pouted.

It was difficult for Avery to justo watch the girl struggle on her own. She wanted to physically assist her in standing up but she knew better than to make the situation worse. Besides, Scarlett seemed to be holding fine anyway, informing the blonde that she only needed a moment to rest the said ankle. And she's going to sit where exactly? Avery followed her stare which ended up on her own lap. Her eyes widened at the realisation. N-no way... Scarlett couldn't be thinking of...

Avery bit her bottom lip and turned her head away as the burning feeling scorched her face and lap. Not again! Did this girl have a hidden grudge on her or something? Was she trying to kill her? That was the only reasonable explanation as to why the redhead settled on her lap again. Well, either that or this girl was just too oblivious of her effect on Avery. Wasn't she uncomfortable with physical contact? Why did she not have a problem with something so personal at all? Not that Avery had a problem with it either.

She shuddered upon feeling Scarlett's back press against her front, the ice board threatening to collapse underneath due to shock. She shouldn't be reacting this way when something like this happened before, but still! There was no way she's ever going to get used to this! Her face remained turned to the side as she tried her best not to look like a major creep breathing on someone's neck like that. Both her hands also just rested on her sides against the board.

"E-erm.. are you comfortable? It's not too cold, is it? J-Just tell me if maybe.. you're cold and.. I'll try to.. find something to do." She blabbered nonsense words and shook her head at her stupidity.

And then came the 'deal with it' part. While at first Avery was amused and proud of the redhead, she started to doubt that it's simply from their deal. Scarlett sounded like she actually meant the words behind it so much so that Avery pouted. This girl could pass as a bully of her own if she tried. Well, Avery took that as a challenge.

"You know, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you're pretending to be in pain just so you can do all this~ Naughty girl." she teased with a grin. Ah, shame the girl was facing away; she would've enjoyed her reaction from that.

Scarlett lightly squirmed in Avery's lap, showing her discomfort, but apparently that's all the situation really bothered her at this point. Or perhaps she was just really good at hiding how discomforted she was? Even Scar wasn't sure what she was supposed to be doing right now. Sitting on someone's lap was a huge deal, but here she was doing it almost casually! Her heart raced and her entire form got a slight blush on her body, showing her embarrassment, but only that, not trying to pull away or do anything to retreat.

Avery's words did give Scarlett pause, however. As she crossed her legs, she reached out with both of her hands, grabbing onto the ankle that was sprained and began to lightly massage it. But was she just using the light pain as an excuse to be close to Avery again? Of course not! O-or she told herself it wasn't the case at the very least. Really, she found herself enjoying this time just as she enjoyed the last wondrous moments she spent on her partner's lap. And that only caused her to want to do it more and more, this realization causing Scar to begin biting down on her lower lip.

"N-no... Of course not..." Scarlett said back at Avery's claims that she was just using the opportunity to sit on the girl's lap once again, "I... suppose I did sit on it rather suddenly without really thinking of anything else, but... all I could think of was the ice board or the ground, but I could do that!" She argued, trying to convince her friend that this wasn't her being a pervert or anything, "S-so... deal with it... yeah..." Scar said once more, pouting by gently biting on the inside of her cheek. She was going to win this war... she hoped.

Scarlett's body did give a light involuntary shiver suddenly, "Nn..! I, uh... I suppose I'm a bit cold... n-not from you, of course! You're... actually really nice and warm and..." Wait, where exactly was she going with this? "S-so... yeah..." She supposed that was a good of a finish as any. But her mind did flash with various images of Avery doing her best to keep the girl warm, causing her to lick her lips on reflex, "E-erm..."

Avery fidgeted on her seat whenever Scarlett shifted on her lap. What's with this situation?! The blonde never allowed filthy lower beings to touch her before, what more have a person sit on her lap. Yet here the redhead was, using Av as her personal chair. Worse, the latter wouldn't do anything about. She couldn't for some reason. Instead, she sat there silently, head turned to her side to see where they're going and to not make the situation any more awkward.

And apparently, the redhead wasn't bothered either. She wasn't even fazed by Avery's statement like she thought she would be. While it was a huge step from her normal meek personality, Avery slightly grumbled to be at the receiving end of it. Just for this girl. Just for this girl she'd willingly back down. Besides, she did have a point. Where would the girl sit anyway while resting her feet? And in a way it was her fault they were in this situation so she didn't exactly have the right to complain.

Just as she thought it couldn't get any worse, Scarlett was feeling cold. Avery mentally facepalmed. Her statement before was a spur of a moment; she didn't mean them at all. How exactly would Avery warm the girl up anyway? Sure she could offer her shirt but.. like.. in their current position, she didn't feel like it'd be appropriate. And for the first time she suddenly felt conscious of her own body and... shy?! What's with these swapping of personalities?!

Thus she was left with only one thing in mind. Avery went even redder at her own idea. Taking a huge gulp, she tried not to stammer and be casual about it.

"I don't have any other piece of clothing with me as you know, and survival 101 said the best way to stay warm is to share body heat so.. uh.. I can.. you know.. if it's alright with you." She didn't know how to describe a hug without it sounding creepy or awkward. "I understand if you can't handle it. I'll just lend you my shirt in that's the case."

Scarlett blinked as her friend made her offer, her face flushing more and more as she considered that the thoughts that she had may actually come true. Would it be as comforting and wonderful as she hoped? Would she even be able to handle what her mind caused her to imagine images of? It was uncertain to her, but one thing that she was certain about was that if there was anyone that she would be somewhat comfortable with, it'd be Avery. Biting down on her lower lip, she wasn't entirely sure how to respond.

Pressing more of her back into Avery's front, Scarlett let out a soft sigh, "I... think I'll be able to handle it, yeah... maybe if it's with you and everything so... I'd appreciate it if you'd do whatever you think would help yeah. And, if I can't then... well... I'm... I-I mean... I'll 'deal with it'." she answered. Seemed that she was quite ready to go through with whatever it possibly could have been that Avy had in her mind. Were they even thinking of the same thing? Impossible to know, but she certainly hoped it was the case.

Scarlett's mind raced as her heart seemed to attempt to beat out from her chest. Luckily none of her body was touching any of the ice or it may have begun to melt it, judging by how hot she felt through her embarrassed state. Was this really okay for her to do? Would she really be able to handle it? Well, there was only one way to find out, and she wasn't going to back down now. But were the two of them moving rather fast? It had just been a few hours - a few wonderful hours - that the two had started to really get to know eachother after all. But no matter what, it felt right, and she couldn't deny that she felt safe. And most of all, she felt happy.

Okay. So the girl agreed. Hesitant, but still agreed. Good. Now what? Avery nibbled on her bottom lip trying to assess the situation. She was figuring out the best way to deal with the cold while trying to accommodate Scarlett's fear of touching. Ah crap. She's tired of thinking. She'd just wing through it and hope she didn't scare the fragile girl away.

"Uh.. okay. I'm gonna.. do it now?" She planned to inform the girl but ended the statement with a questioning tone as she was unsure of herself. She first unslung her bag and placed it on Scarlett's lap hoping to warm her thighs with it. Since the redhead took it upon herself to get her back cozy against Avy's front, she had one less area to deal with it.

Avery flushed and fidgeted a little at the thought of what she had do next. She kept reminding herself that it wasn't her being a creep or a pervert but rather a call of duty. It's an emergency, you know. People could die from hypothermia, or so she kept repeating in her mind. With a sigh, she decided to just be casual with it.

She placed each hand over Scarlett's and wrapped her arms around the girl's small frame, ending with both their arms crossed in front of her by her waist. This allowed Avery to warm the redhead's arms and upper body in the process. But then a sudden thought crossed her mind. The position was very restrictive! It appeared as though Avery was pinning both her arms and hands against her body and that was something she knew the girl feared.

Avery was quick to let go and mutter a small "Deal with it." statement as her form of apology. Instead, she slid and wrapped her arms around Scarlett's waist loosely. "I-is this better?" she whispered, unconsciously speaking so close to her ear.

Scarlett gave a slow nod in reply to Avery. The blonde was getting ready to do it, meaning Scar only had a few moments to prepare herself and steel her mind. There were so many questions that flooded her mind, but there wasn't time to focus on any of them. The redhead let out a slow, soft sigh as she cleared her mind of such thoughts, or attempted to at the very least. As her shoulders relaxed, she instead decided to focus on the positives instead of worrying. The warmth that was behind her, the faint sensation of Avery's heartbeat and her breathing were all things that she could rely on to get her through this ordeal. Now all it took was for Avery to make her move.

Arms came around her, Scarlett taking in a sharp breath of air immediately in response. Holding it in for a moment, she allowed the feeling to settle before letting the breath out in a long sigh. She was nervous and scared, fearful of what may become of her in such a situation. But once again, and this time in an even greater amount, she felt absolute comfort in the arms of her project partner, something that she didn't want to leave. No matter how uncomfortable she was with being touched, Avy seemed to be the one person that she could let through that barrier of fear, somewhat at the very least.

While Avery's arms were around her in an almost constricting way, that wasn't how Scarlett saw it. Instead of being trapped and at Avy's mercy, she felt secure and safe, almost as if nothing could hurt her so long as the blonde held onto her like this. It was so fine with Scar that she blinked as Avy repositioned, freeing her arms and beginning to hold her by the waist in a loose embrace. As much as she missed the absolute sense of security, she wasn't one to complain about more freedom, moving her hands and placing them gently over Avery's to comfort her, rubbing the back of her hands in a soft, adoring display.

Had she ever felt this strong mixture of emotions before in her life? This myriad of sensations and thoughts that made her wonder if this was the right thing to do. That side of her that was fearful of being touched was being beaten and silenced by the side that adored her friend, allowing her to act as such. Biting down on her lower lip, she relaxed herself even more, leaning her head back to begin resting it on Avy's shoulder, the side of her head brushing against the girl's neck, "D... deal with it..." Was she even apologizing at this point or telling herself to push through it because they were both enjoying it? "You're... really comfortable and..." she began to simply melt in the girl's embrace, allowing her eyes to close as she rested on Avery's form. If things went like this, the blonde might come to find a sleeping redhead on her.

Avery had to admit, Scarlett's touch sent shivers down her spine, something she didn't feel often what with her natural affinity to the cold. Her blush never seem to leave her cheeks and intensified with each rub on the back of her hands. She was caught in the middle of disliking the heat throughout her body yet liking the warmth at the same time. What's up with this redhead? Not only was she such an emotionally stirring person but apparently physically too.

The blonde smiled fondly at Scarlett leaning on her shoulder, glad she was starting to feel comfortable. Though the girl's hair tickled her exposed neck and she resisted the urge to giggle as that was so not an Avery type of thing to do. From her periphery she noticed Scarlett was feeling too comfortable with her eyes closed and resting with a peaceful expression. This caused Avery to let out a silent chuckle.

She dug through her bag and took out her headphones, placing it gently over the girl's ears. "Go sleep. I'll wake you up when we arrive," she whispered before she took out her scroll and searched for a ballad song, which was quite hard considering her playlists consisted mostly of EDM and Dubstep. Once done, she returned the device back in her bag and tightened her arms around the redhead's waist to prevent her from falling if she ever did decide to sleep.

Avery on the other hand looked to the side to watch their path. If it were up to her, she'd let the board move in a crawling pace or maybe stop right there and then. But then again she needed to make sure Scarlett got home safe and her ankle tended to. And more than that, her skin was starting to turn cold to touch in response to the heat from all the blushing and flustering, not to mention physical contact that she'd done.

Scarlett certainly found herself in an interesting situation, all things considered. She was sitting atop her friend's lap as they cruised at a steady pace back to the academy campus. Quite the events that had led up to them being in such a way. They went out to do a project, but in some strange turn of events, they've found out quite a lot about eachother and possibly even themselves. It was a warm, comforting sensation, not unlike the warmth from Avery, Scar smiling happily as she considered that she not just a new friend, but someone that meant quite a lot to her already. But would that be as far as they went or would their friendship become even more heartwarming? The redhead certainly didn't have enough time to think on the matter as she was too busy falling asleep on Avery's shoulder.

"I'm... not falling asleep..." Scarlett argued at just over a mumble. But despite her protests, when the headphones were put on and the music began to play, the redhead was lightly snoozing within a minute. Her lips lightly parted, as the breathed in and out softly, her breath managing to tickle the blonde's neck from the angle that she was laying on. Meanwhile, her hands continued to stay stop Avery's, randomly gripping at them lightly as she dreamed about Scarlett things. And to make matters worse, there were rare occasions where she would try to adjust in her sleep, causing her bottom to shift in the lap and for her head to almost nuzzle the shoulder she was laying on. Those subtle, but intense movements happened on their journey, but of course it wasn't Scarlett's fault directly. She can't help what she did while sleeping!