When Flowers Bloom [Private/ Fleur]

"I heard nothing, I swear."

Fleur froze.

'Omg... he... he totally...I'm... Oh no!' 'I'm so embarrassed!'

She saw Lloyd smiling trying not to laugh, that didn't exactly help as Fleur turned as red as a ripe tomato. She looked at Lloyd who was still smiling, he didn't seem out of place at all at her little disturbance. She sighed but let herself go, it wasn't THAT big of a deal... well it was but... you know.

The pair headed towards the food stalls, Lloyd gave HER the option of picking, she grinned. Fleur grabbed his hand and literally almost dragged him by the heels towards the Sushi; Mistral, known for its rainy weather, swamps, portside markets and with that of course; it's fish. A major source of its economy, the fish in Mistral were freshly caught daily and shipped around Remnant. Chances are that these fish wouldn't taste as good as the ones back home but they would be damn close. She decided since Lloyd paid for her coffee before that she would pay for the fish, she ordered two rolls and handed the Lien to the nice gentleman behind the stall who nodded and smiled at the pair. As they were walking towards the music Lloyd nudged her and asked about him and her going on the open mic stage and singing together, she stopped, the red returning to her face.

"Y-you have g-got to b-be joking?!" She freaked out, there's NO WAY she could do that...even if she kinda wanted to. She looked Lloyd in the eyes, he-he was totally seriously. She couldn't form the words as he just gave a sad smile.

"...or nevermind... you must be hungry right now." he chuckled teasingly and continued to listen to the guy on stage. Fleur stood there, speechless.

'Okay... this would TOTALLY IMPRESS HIM. DO IT!' her own voice rang in her head, before another chimed in.

'Yeah, Flora... as if you could accomplish ANYTHING. Useless girl...' she immediately shook her Father's degrading voice from her head. She felt herself get angry at his taunts, normally she would be depressed, thinking he was right. Not. This. Time. She saw the guitar player bow and step off the stage, this was her chance. She grabbed Lloyd's hand and dragged him towards the stage, she would do this out of spite if she had to! She was better than this, better than HIM! SHE WOULD DO THIS!

"Cmon Handsome..." she continued to move to the stage, eyes were on them as they approached, do or die... probably die... but Fleur had then Adrenaline rushing through her veins. For one of the only times in her short life... she was doing something... something for her!

'..... good job Flora....' a soft voice whispered of what seemed like her ear but it was all in her head. She smiled.

"Thanks, Mom..." she whispered as they closed in on the stage.

Lloyd chuckled when his hand was grabbed and that he was once more dragged wherever Fleur was bringing him. Again her spontaneity made him smile, seeing what seemed like the shyest girl when he first met her run around like that was something that he was enjoying a lot. She decided to go for the sushi that were following a recipe from Mistral, which is something that he had never tried. He rarely ate fish in the past as his mother had an allergy to everything that came from the sea. The only times he did were when he would venture in town alone with his brother back in Vale and stopped near the shore where a friendly fisherman would cook his catches on the beach and share them with people. The man behind the stall began preparing the food when she made the order and told them that it would be ready soon.

Fleur was the one paying this time and before he could say anything about it he was pulled towards the guitar player by the blonde, who totally freaked out when Lloyd suggested that they should go on stage themselves. He couldn't help but laugh at how cute her reaction was. He was certain that he would have gotten a blush out of her, but this was priceless. And of course he didn't expect his little teasing to work, so when he was dragged towards the stage he was laughing. Not at her but of pleasure, he was really enjoying his time with Fleur and wasn't about to miss on singing alongside her.

As she called him "Handsome", Lloyd chuckled yet had a redish hue to his cheeks. He really wasn't used to being complimented. But of course, as cheesy as he was, he wouldn't leave it at that. "Handsome huh? Well if you're going to call me that, maybe I should call you Beautiful, what do you say?" Of course he had a teasing tone in his voice, but he would seriously call her that if she continued with the nickname as well.

As both of them stood on the stage, Lloyd looked at Fleur with a smile, waiting for her to start as he wanted to make sure that she absolutely wanted to do it and not freeze after they would have started. "Ready?" is all that he added.

"Handsome huh? Well if you're going to call me that, maybe I should call you Beautiful, what do you say?"

Fleur looked over the crowd and the compliment totally caught her off guard, she lightly hit Lloyd on the shoulder as she blushed. Some of the people in the crowd "Awww'd" which caused Fleur to become even more embarrassed. No comment was made at his remark.

"Ready?"

She nodded, she hummed softly to warm up before she started to sing...

♪ You are the ocean's gray waves, destined to seek
Life beyond the shore just out of reach
Yet the waters ever change, flowing like time
The path is yours to climb...

In the white light, a hand reaches through
A double-edged blade cuts your heart in two
Waking dreams fade away,
Embrace the brand-new day
Sing with me a song of birthrights and love
The light scatters to the sky above
Dawn breaks through the gloom, white as a bone
Lost in thoughts all alone... ♪

She looked at Lloyd and nodded, signaling she was ready for him to jump in...

Lloyd couldn't help but chuckle more when Fleur hit him after his comment, and even more when the crowd played along and made her even more flustered. Smiling to her innocently as if he did nothing to deserve the hit, he nodded back as he was ready as well. He listened carefully to her singing, finding it lovelier than the first time he heard her sing. She looked way more happier as well, which made him happy as well. As she concluded her own part and nodded to signal him that it was his turn, Lloyd nodded back and sang his part.


As he finished his own part, Lloyd looked at Fleur and nodded, signaling her to join him for the last part and continued in hope she'd understand.


As they finished, the crowd began to applaud the two of them while Lloyd grabbed Fleur's hand before bowing. He would then let go of her hand and applaud her along with the crowd. He was indeed really proud of her for singing in front of a crowd while she's been all shy. So people were whistling and shouting as they seemed to really love her singing and Lloyd was ready to give her all the credit, after all she clearly was made for singing, unlike him who did that only for fun. He gave her a moment to both enjoy the praises she was getting from the public before stepping right next to her and nudging her side. "See, wasn't too hard right? You can thank me later." did he say with a teasing smile while waiting for her on the side of the stage.

"♪ You are the ocean's gray waves, destined to seek
Life beyond the shore just out of reach
Yet the waters ever change, flowing like time
The path is yours to climb...

You are you ocean's gray waves... ♪

They concluded their song together, Fleur never felt her heart beat this fast in her entire life! Her face was on fire but she was so excited! She felt so...so... ALIVE! Lloyd grabbed her handed and bowed with her, she was smiling from ear to ear. The crowd was applauding them, people were actually cheering, she was filled with such an unfamiliar feeling... it was like overwelling happiness but just accelerated ten times that! She glanced at Lloyd who looked equally as happy as he applauded her.

"See, wasn't too hard right? You can thank me later." While she certainly not over her shyness... it was a small step... one she was thankful for it. Drastic... that was the only solution, the adrenaline was rushing through her... was she really going to do what she was thinking?!

"I'll thank you now..." no stutter, little hesitation, she leaned over and kissed him...on the cheek. While she was blushing now the roar of the crowd kept her in the moment and by god was it an awesome moment.

Lloyd was still applauding Fleur alongside the cheering crowd. He was totally unsuspecting of what was about to happen and when it did, when her glossy lips met his cheek, it was his turn to be embarrassed. The guy stood there like a total idiot and didn't move for a moment before his face grew red quite a bit as he scratched the back of his head looking away. The crowd cheer on Fleur's action and were making all sorts of comment about how the two of the looked adorable together, which only made Lloyd look even more embarrassed and stupid as he just turned his back to the crowd before looking at Fleur with his usual smile.

As he moved away from the stage and stood near the stall of sushi they were before, Lloyd chuckled before crossing his arms and looking into Fleur's golden eyes with a slight teasing tone in his voice. "Well, who knew that a girl as shy as you could be this bold? I sure didn't. You're full of surprises, you know that? Not that it's a bad thing... quite the opposite in fact."

Giving her a smile once again, Lloyd looked at the man at the food stall who gave them their food. Thanking him with a nod, he walked to a nearby bench and sat down and stared at his food for a moment, thinking. He wondered if Fleur was different from the first time they met because of him, of how he was with her and also why she kissed him. She could have done anything to repay him, or even have revenge and have him do something completely stupid and embarrassing instead, but no, she decided to do that. Well, if she wanted to embarrass him it worked, so maybe that was her plan... maybe.

After staring at his food long enough, he took a bite out of it and was pleasantly surprised of the taste. Not a big fish eater, he was really glad of Fleur's choice. "Wow, it's really good." did he comment before continuing to eat while hearing someone else sing on the stage they just had left not too long ago.

She had no idea why she did that... She still didn't know as they left the stage and headed back to the sushi stall to pick up their food. The rush was beginning to die down but her head was still spinning. So many thoughts coursed through her brain...

'What's wrong with me?!'



.





Fleur took her food from the man and smiled at him, he simply nodded back.

"Well, who knew that a girl as shy as you could be this bold? I sure didn't. You're full of surprises, you know that? Not that it's a bad thing... quite the opposite in fact."

Fleur looked at him, why was he so cute?! No. Stop. Just try to bring everything back into reality. It's not that big a deal, it was just a little kiss... on the cheek, just talk to him like normal.

"W-well..." she turned red, she just lost count of how many times she had been "embarrassed" today. "I-I guess we'll have t-to continue to be acquainted..." she whispered the last part so unless he was straining he wouldn't be able to hear her, it probably would have sounded sly and mysterious anyway which wasn't really what she was trying to accomplish. They both sat down and now the regret was seeping in... She was afraid she totally ruined the day. A silence was between them as they ate, eventually, Lloyd stated the food was good, which made her relieved, home did taste pretty good at least that was a plus.

The afternoon sun was high in the air at this point, in an hour or so it would slowly start transitioning to evening. She sighed, she felt so AWKWARD again. 3 steps forward and 5 backward it seems. Fleur finished her food, she had to ask him. She gathered what left over energy she had and closed her eyes.

"Ididn'tmessanythingupdidI?!" she just spit out a sentence, she wasn't even sure if it made sense! All she knew is that she needed a resolution because she couldn't stand Lloyd not liking her in this moment over a rather impulsive action.

As they were silently eating, or rather as Lloyd was silent and Fleur whispered something -that he totally heard by the way, which made him smile- Lloyd could feel that she was getting more and more nervous as time went on. He figured she probably began to think that she did something completely stupid by "thanking" him the way she did and he wanted to say something to reassure her, but he wasn't sure about what or how to say it so it would work.

As he finished his food, Lloyd sighed of relief for his stomach before Fleur said something pretty fast that he practically missed due to how sudden she had said it. He was able to caught on on her words though and he froze for a second and just looked at her with her distressed face. She looked so scared of his upcoming answer and yet she obviously wanted an answer. This made him admire her, this constant shyness and fear of the repercussion of her actions, yet to courage take them anyway, it made him smile. He was really happy to be in her company right now and had to make her as happy as he was.

Beginning with a light chuckle that slowly turn to a soft laugh, Lloyd brought his hand on top of Fleur's head and brushed her hair slowly before whispering the answer to her question. "Of course not... of course not." He kept on brushing her hair lightly while smiling, hoping it would make her feel at least a bit better and that she wouldn't think of it as weird. It probably was, but it was something his mother used to do to reassure him, so he was giving it a try.

Lloyd hasn't said or did anything else for a moment, simply looking at Fleur while hoping she would feel better, awaiting to see a reaction on her end. Now he was the one stressing out over his action. Geez, this girl was able to turn the table on him by doing nothing. What was she doing to him?

"Of course not... of course not."

Lloyd slowly stroked her hair, she didn't mind that much, relief flooded through her whole body. It was almost a warmth that started at her toes and raised upwards and a rapid pace. She placed her small papered tray were her food once laid into a nearby trashcan next to her. A light breeze rolled through the plaza, a refreshing change to the sun's heat. She leaned herself on his shoulder. She was relaxed, almost enough to fall asleep but the day was still relatively young, they still had time to do one more thing before heading back to Syne.

"So..." she started, she picked her head off him. "Do you want to do anything e-else?" she was unsure of what they could do, Fleur still didn't know the area that well and Lloyd might have a better idea what to do next. She wasn't entirely focused, her mind was still drifting back to the kiss, it was so innocent and harmless... why did it feel... so... right? She didn't know, she had never even thought of kissing a guy... She was probably making this a bigger deal than it was...yet why was she still thinking of it...Fleur was gone, off in her own little world. She twisted her ring on her finger in a nervous habit.

'Why... What is this guy doing to me?"

Lloyd was glad to see that Fleur was calmer after his answer and kept on brushing her hair slowly as she rested her head on his shoulder. He felt like he could stay here doing that for the rest of the day, he was at peace and enjoying it and yet he knew that they would have to go back at Syne at one point today and before the last airship would depart if they could.

It seemed that right now both of them were wondering what to do next as Fleur lifted her head of Lloyd's shoulder, asking him if he wanted to do anything. Leaning his head backward a bit and looking at the sky, he tried to think about something that would be as fun for both of them than how the rest of the day has been. At this moment, Lloyd could hear the bell of the clock tower that was in the northern part of Bellmuse, which gave him an idea. Looking in the general direction of the building, he knew that they would need to walk a bit, but at least it would be too much in order to reach it. Plus it was probably totally worth it.

Lloyd stood up slowly turning towards Fleur and forwarding his hand to her. "I got an idea and it's not too far. I hope you'll like it." He gave her a smile before they began to walk in direction of the landmark. Without being able to help himself but looking from time to time at  her while they walk, Lloyd wanted to know more about Fleur so he decided to ask her some generic question to know her better. He hoped that it wouldn't be seen as awkward though. "Say, tell me a bit about yourself, like where you're coming from, what made you want to become a Huntress; although I think I can guess the answer to that one; or anything really. I'd just like to know you better." He then stopped speaking a moment before smiling and whispering "...although it's true that we'll probably have many more opportunities to do so..." Lloyd turned his head towards Fleur before continuing with a normal volume. "You can ask me anything as well if you want. I'll be happy to answer any question you may have."

After a while, they reached the clock tower, at which Lloyd stared for a moment with a grin while whispering to himself. "I hope this'll do..." Focusing his gaze on Fleur, locking eyes with her, he asked with a smile. "Do you trust me?"

Fleur followed Lloyd's gaze after her initial question, she saw his eyes move towards a large clock tower in the northern section of town. He stood; he turned and faced her. Lloyd extended his hand to her, which she took.

"I got an idea and it's not too far. I hope you'll like it." Fleur had a feeling down in her stomach that she would like it, she a fluttery feeling rising up inside her, was this what it was like? This feeling... it was addicting.

The pair walked down the streets of Bellmuse; they slowly left the cafe, the museum, the kiss. They moved forward towards their current destination. Fleur didn't know exactly where they were headed but based on his look earlier, she had a guess. She was kind of in her own head, just enjoying the different style of culture that Bellmuse seemed to produce. The skies were clear, the building were painted bright and plenty of tall trees and other flowers lined the street. It still gave her a shock how different Mistral was, the dreary and rainy skies of Mistral and grey and blues of cities were a sharp contrast compared to Bellmuse. They walked in silence before Lloyd started to ask her questions about herself.

"Where are you from...?"
"What made you want to become a Huntress; although I think I can guess the answer to that one..." he asked but finished with a statement, she giggled slightly. I guess he had ever right to be curious, she had made the first, the second and the third moves on him and he knew nothing about her. She realized that all her actions probably seemed rushed and silly at this point but Lloyd has assured her earlier that she was good, she couldn't stress about it, what's done is done.

"Well... I-I was b-born in Mistral in the c-city. B-back then I was told that my parents w-were both really happy to s-start a family." she took a deep breath. "I-I guess this is where the q-questions intertwine. M-my M-M-Mother wasn't home very often... M-my Father had to s-stay home and r-raise me. I-I don't think he was very happy..." She composed herself, she knew Lloyd couldn't have know what would happen if this topic come up, so she tried to push her emotions.

"L-let's just say because of my F-father's actions... I become a h-huntress. My Mom may be my idol and someone I look up t-to, but my Father taught me most of what I-I know... even if he was a b-bastard." she whispered the last word, it defiantly had a cut of anger in it. She looked at Lloyd.

"I-I was so weak... I couldn't protect myself... I-I'm stronger now and I will d-dedicate my life to protect t-those we can't protect themselves. It's my personal creed." She awaited his response, she had gotten kind of emotional there, she was passionate about her story and she needed him to understand that. She sighed, she was rambling, not that it matter. By the time she had finished talking and then apologizing to Lloyd for going off like that they had reached their destination; the clocktower. Fleur looked up, it seemed so big... so tall and strangely calming and beautiful. Lloyd had gained her attention again, he had locked eyes with her.

"Do you trust me?" he asked her.

Did she trust him?! Probably? Yes? Defiantly?! Even through this little conflict in her mind, her words came out crystal clear.

"Absolutely." was her response. She wondered what he had in store for her.

Lloyd listened carefully to Fleur's answer, which story sounded very familiar to him. An happy couple wanting eager to start a family, but not everything goes according to expectation and things just turns out bad in general. He was also a bit disappointed that he was wrong, he thought that her mother would have been the main reason she enrolled at Syne, but it seemed that it was because of her father and probably for more than one reason. At least Lloyd's sour expression changed to a smile as he heard her motivation about protecting others. "A personal creed huh? I wonder what else we got in common as I think the same. Hunters are more than Grimm slayers, they're also the people's protectors."

As he heard that he had all her trust, Lloyd's smile grew larger before swiftly picking Fleur up, bridal style and giving her a second to get ready. "Then hold on tight Princess, you're in for a ride." When she'd be ready, he used his Semblance to launch them upward to land on a nearby roof before jumping again, going from roof to roof, the next always slightly higher than the last until they finally reached the top of the clock tower. Lloyd was glad that it had a flat roof as it could have been in a cone or pyramid shape which would have been harder to land on.

Lloyd then let Fleur stand on her own again, offering her a nice view of the whole town from this vantage point as the tower was one of the tallest building besides the ones that were uphill near the airship landing pad that led to Syne. He stayed where he was in the middle of the roof, not wanting to get to close to the edges with his fear of heights and simply looked around with "occasional" glances at Fleur.

After a moment and thinking about what she had told him earlier about her father being the one who trained her, before having a sorry smile on his face. Lloyd knew full well that she hated her father, but he hoped that she would still agree with him on that. "I know you may not like what I'm about to say, but I'm thankful to your father BUT JUST about the fact that he trained you..." Wanting to be sure she'd understand that he meant good with his words, he gave her a warm smile, similar to his own mother's, before continuing. "...because we wouldn't be here together right now. Who knows what you'd be doing if he hadn't taught you what he knew..." He knew full well that he had just stepped on a landmine, he only hoped that it wasn't going to explode on him now.

"Then hold on tight Princess, you're in for a ride..."

Fleur looked at him confused before he picked her up bridal style, she squeaked as she was lifted off the ground. She gripped him as he lifted off with what she thought was his semblance. She remembers screaming and burying her face into his clothes, suddenly... they stood still. Fleur opened her eyes. She gasped, they were at the top of the clock tower. She slowly relinquished her hold on him and stood on her own. They view was breath-taking, quite literally as she felt herself be slightly light-headed. She stepped forward.

"W-wow..." she turned to Lloyd. "It's a-amazing!" she smiled, she sat down and stretched her legs out.

'You're strong Flora... one day... you're going to fly... like me' her mother's words, is this what she meant? Was Lloyd going to make her fly? ... To be honest... he already was. Her heart was racing and not just from the rush of being on top of the tower if you know what I mean. A small silence between the pair, Fleur was to busy taking in the view that she almost missed Lloyd's words.

"I know you may not like what I'm about to say, but I'm thankful to your father BUT JUST about the fact that he trained you..." she looked at him, her head snapped towards him. She was about to say something but he continued.

"...because we wouldn't be here together right now. Who knows what you'd be doing if he hadn't taught you what he knew..."

She stopped and tilted her head down, she knew exactly where she'd be...she knew what would have happened to her... but she wasn't going to let Lloyd in on this knowledge, it would ruin the moment.

"W-well... at least he d-did one thing r-right..." she mumbled, she was blushing, she knew what he meant even if she didn't show that she comprehended. She stood up, she walked up to him and hugged him tight.

"T-thank y-you Lloyd. For e-everything today..."

Lloyd was really happy to see that Fleur was enjoying the view and that she didn't tried to kill him the sudden liftoff. Even him was enjoying being here high above ground, as long as he stayed right where he was and that he wasn't alone. You can be sure that he would have never climbed up here on his own. But why did he do it for her though? Just to make a pretty girl smile or was there more to it than that? The more he thought about it, the more he believed there was.

He suddenly felt her gaze dart towards him as he mention the one good thing he believed her father did. He felt like he could die right now, even though he wasn't sure if Fleur's eyes were filled with rage and anger at what he said or with sadness and disappointment. He was sure to have triggered the landmine, he was going to die. Well... the tower was tall enough, wouldn't be too long and...

Lloyd's dark thoughts came to an end when her heard her mumble something, he wasn't sure he had understood but at least she wasn't shouting at him or crying, right? Fleur the stood up and walked towards him, still expecting something bad, like at least a slap, he was totally taken off guard when she hugged him. Taking a moment to let her thank sink in as he wasn't totally sure if he deserved it. All day he just had been himself, offering her a good time. But thinking about it, he realized that maybe that's all she really wanted.

Sighing in relief that he hadn't ruined everything, Lloyd hugged Fleur back while smiling softly. "My pleasure Princess, I'm happy you're enjoying yourself." Wait a second, rewind a bit... not the "calling her Princess" part... although yeah, why Princess of all nicknames? But no, not that... did he just though that he was relieved that he hadn't ruined everything? Why would he be scared of ruining something? Was he really...

Lloyd stood there, hugging Fleur as tightly as she was, just now realizing what this girl has been doing to him all day. He wasn't sure of how exactly or why, but he genuinely cared a lot for her already. Was it her past as a victim that made him want to be there for her or did she cast a spell on him or something. He figured he'd probably never knew the answer but he didn't really care. Not sure of what to say or do, he simply kept on hugging, now embarrassed to look at Fleur as he felt like his face was probably red right now.

"My pleasure Princess, I'm happy you're enjoying yourself..."


...! Princess?! She smiled into him, never in her life did she ever think that someone, let alone a boy would call her that. It made her feel warm, something made her feel this way. All day she had that tug in her heart, the flash of heat on her face, the way her stress and how she was able to do things she would never ever consider normally! Everything today had a single common factor, it was Lloyd. Him and her together... it seemed right, she had doubts, this way the first boy that ever really paid attention to her. She thought that she felt this way because it felt "new" but even if it was, she was sure, sure that he was special, as a friend... or something more.

They stood embraced for a good moment, they were like North and South, attracted. After a good minute of being close, Fleur reluctantly pulled from him.
She just smiled, she didn't want to leave. Fleur sat herself down and pulled Lloyd with her, they sat in the middle of the roof but close enough to the edge that they could see over and at all the people and buildings below, for the second time that day she used his shoulder as a pillow. She kept her hand interlocked with his.

"I-I know we have to g-go soon but please..." she looked him in the eyes. "L-let's stay a little longer..."

Lloyd could easily tell that Fleur loved the being called "Princess" with how she was trying her best to hide her smiling face against as they were still hugging one another. He couldn't really put his finger on it, but there really was something special about her that was... attracting him. Was it her smile? Her eyes? How innocent she was? He could feel his heart racing for the first time in ages, yet he somehow knew that it has been like that all day, he was just focused on something else than himself... or rather on someone. In their silent embrace, this close to one another, Lloyd finally understood and felt completely stupid. How come he was so blind in the face of the obvious?

After a moment, one that could have continued on and on, Fleur pulled back form the the tight hug, smiling before pulling Lloyd down with her for them to sit down next to each other. Of course he gladly obliged, wrapping his left arm around her to keep her close while his right hand was holding hers. He didn't even mind the fact that they were closer to the edge and just rested his head on hers as she used his shoulder as she rested her own head on it.

They stayed like that for a while, looking at the gorgeous view, Fleur staring at the buildings and people down below while Lloyd had his eyes on her. She then spoke softly, her voice resonating into him as he lifted his head from hers to look back at her, both of their gaze locked into one another as he smiled back at her request. "We can stay as long as you want." Few words were needed, if not any. Lloyd just wanted to stay here in her company and he hoped it was the same for her. Losing himself in her beautiful golden eyes and without noticing or having control over it, his face slowly moved forward...

Lloyd simply followed his instinct right now or rather, his heart, as his face kept on getting closer to Fleur's. With his head slightly tilted to the side and slowly closing his eyes, he finally took a bold step forward and his heart raced like it never did before when his lips met hers, working his mouth into a shy but passionate first kiss. Her glossy lips were so soft that he felt like not letting go of them with his own and simply let them connected that way, enjoying each moment of it, regretting nothing.

Then it happened. Lloyd simply followed his instinct right now or rather, his heart, as his face kept on getting closer to Fleur's. With his head slightly tilted to the side and slowly closing his eyes, he finally took a bold step forward and his heart raced like it never did before when his lips met hers, working his mouth into a shy but passionate first kiss.

When his lips touched hers, Fleur's brain entered meltdown. Imaginary alarms were going off in her head, she was completely scarlet, her eyes wide open in shock. She fiddled her hands, her first reaction was to push him away... yet she didn't... she couldn't. His lips tasted of lemon, but not the sour kind, the sweet kind that made you smile, so she did. She accepted his actions. Her brain was still traveling a million miles a minute but now she realized that it didn't matter, she closed her eyes and awkwardly pushed back.

The kiss was long, roughly two minutes, Fleur naturally, was a mess during it. She had no idea what she was doing and probably fumbled with her hands more than she should have. In fact, she almost fell backward onto the roof, man that would have been awkward! She only came up because being completely inexperienced, she couldn't breathe any longer. Fleur looked at Lloyd, she had her hand on her heart, attempting to calm it. She had this feeling in her chest that she's never experienced... was it... love? Was it... passion...? No....it was desire. Fleur giggled took a breath and moved back towards Lloyd kissing him again.

During the kiss she felt the sun shift positions to her back, illuminating her a bit.

'I could get used to this...' she smiled, this day was truly perfect.

Lloyd felt like he was glued to Fleur's lips, not able to pull away from their unique sweet taste. Was it the gloss she had applied on them or simply their own taste he couldn't compare it to anything he knew and was enamored with it. It was something entirely new to him, everything was, from the feeling of  her soft lips against his to the feeling in his chest, never had he experience something like that and it was all because of her.

After a while she pushed him back. At first Lloyd thought that it was because she didn't want any of this and was just feeling to awkward to push him sooner and was about to apologize. Fortunately for him, it wasn't that, she just needed to breath. He sighed realizing that he probably caught her off guard with kissing her so she might not have been ready. He looked at her while smiling shyly, not knowing what to do before she giggled and came back for more. How Lloyd was the one caught of guard and as the two of them resumed their kiss, he fell backward a bit, but used his left arm to not completely lie on the floor.

Caressing her cheek softly with his other hand while working his lips into the kiss, Lloyd felt like there was no way this day could have been better. He couldn't even think of anything else right now but Fleur, of her radiant beauty, of the softness of her lips. "I definitively can get used to that..." did he thought to himself before slowly breaking the kiss, this one being longer than the last. Smiling while rubbing his nose against hers, Lloyd stared into those golden eyes in front of him before whispering. "So, was that to thank me again from earlier?" he asked teasingly before her hair from her face as he moved it behind her ear.

Now he just didn't want to go back to Syne, he just felt like staying there with Fleur for who knows how long. He couldn't believe what was happening right now and yet, here they were. Really the perfect day.

"So, was that to thank me again from earlier?"

She laughed, finally they had pulled away and she slightly propped herself back up. She looked into his eyes, they were so calming, she felt so safe and secure. She loved it.

"Of course... and t-there's always more" she blushed, she couldn't believe she had just said that but she didn't regret that, no way! Fleur wanted to cliche-ly stay up there forever but looking as the sun was starting to move down, it wasn't close to sunset yet but the trek back to the airship would make it so. She lightly kissed him on the cheek.

"We s-should go..." she started sadly. She stood and offered her hand... She looked around...

"Y-you do have a plan to get down r-right?" she asked.

Lloyd watched Fleur as she propped herself up before his face just froze as she said that "there's always more". He wasn't sure at first if he had heard right, but with the way she was blushing and and laughing, she totally just did that. Did she really just tease him with that kind of sentence? If she really meant it or not though was another story but either way he loved her spontaneity and it made him laugh as well before returning a kiss on her cheek as well.

Fleur then stood up, clearly saddened by the fact that they had to head back now. Gladly accepting her help, Lloyd stood up too before scratching the back of his head really embarrassed about the situation. "Well..." He didn't finished right away, letting his stupidity sink in for a moment as he looked away from her before continuing. "...my Semblance is very useful to go up, but not really go down... sorry, I should have thought all this through before showing off... I just wanted for you to have a good time." As honorable as he wanted to sound, it was still completely stupid on his end. Turning back towards her though, he looked at her with confidence but with a kinda goofy smile. "I'll find a way down, don't worry too much..."

Defying his fear of heights, Lloyd walked slowly towards the edge of the tower, looking down at all the surrounding building. He tried his best to not freak out as he looked for the highest houses, which was just the other side of the street. He then began to walk around the edge in order to spot different buildings, completely focused yet obviously terrified of possibly falling. After a moment, he turned back towards Fleur and took a deep breath. "Alright... do you still trust me, even after I basically stranded us on top of a tower? Because I have an idea but, it's kind of risky." He hoped that his stupid actions would cost him his new bond with her, that's probably what he feared the most right now, not even his own safety mattered at this moment.

"...my Semblance is very useful to go up, but not really go down... sorry, I should have thought all this through before showing off..."

"Do you trust me?"

She saw Lloyd scouring the buildings, he seemed nervous, which in turn made her nervous. She took a deep breath, she trusted him. Of course, she did. Fleur was hoping he wouldn't do anything too drastic, she nearly had a panic attack when he first kissed her, she really didn't need another one free falling off a clock tower. She slowly walked over to him and placed her hand on his shoulder, she was ready... hopefully.

"I-Im r-ready." she managed, in truth, she was extremely nervous, not even about herself. She was more concerned with Lloyd and hoping he didn't strain himself getting them down... it's not like she minded being stuck up here with him, it could be with someone way worse and as far as people go, Lloyd was pretty good. She swallowed, standing by for whatever plan he had, hoping for success. She began to shake. She took a deep breath and hummed a slight tune to calm herself down.

" ♪ Hmmm Mm Hmmm Mmmhmm ♪ " she trailed off her little song. Fleur felt herself steady, she hoped Lloyd would do whatever he was planning fast, before she lost her nerve.

Lloyd was really surprised when Fleur said that she was ready. He wondered how she could trust him so blindly, even though the answer was obvious. Still, he wished she would be a little more careful but at the same time, would things have gone the way they did if it would have been the case? Pushing the thought aside, he tried to focus on his plan, still stressed about the heights but was able to calm down as she began to hum, which made him smile. He then looked at her directly in the eyes before stealing her a quick kiss before slowly walking backward towards the edge of the tower. "Don't panic, just trust me." did he say right before stepping off of the roof on his own.

Of course Lloyd wasn't trying to commit suicide, as he used his left arm to slide slowly along the wall, sparks flashing as the metal was scraping the stone surface. He slid like that for a good 5 meters before he used his Semblance to jump off the wall towards the roof of the tallest house that was around the tower. As he reached it and made a safety roll to land as unscathed as he could, he stood up and waved to Fleur to show that he was fine.

Now was the time to see just how much she trusted him so Lloyd began shooting in her direction to let her know what to do. "Alright, all you need to do is jump. Don't worry, I will catch you, I promise." He was sincere, he would catch her. It was the only solution he had, there was no Plan B. He would probably need to think of something to make up for this dangerous situation. Would bringing her on a date be enough? Probably not... maybe a thousand? He'll see, for now he would need to fly to her rescue, that is if she believed in him enough.

Fleur gasped as Lloyd disappeared over the edge of the tower, she had assumed that he would take her with him. She heard the metal from his arm scrapping against the brickwork, she winced at the noise as it was rather unpleasant. She waited, holding her breath, she hoped that he be fine, he wouldn't just jump to his death in front of her. A few seconds later she saw his figure roll onto the roof and dust himself off, he turned to face her and waved, he called out.

"Alright, all you need to do is jump! Don't worry, I will catch you, I promise!"

Jump?! Was he crazy?! Fleur peaked over the edge of the fall that would happen if she slipped up, her breathing was becoming heavy. She looked at Lloyd and quickly shook her head, there was no way she could do this!

'Don't worry, I will catch you, I promise!' his words echoed through her head, was she actually crazy enough to do this? Did she really have a choice? She looked around for alternate options, she saw none. She lightly cursed under her breath which was uncommon as she was usually soft spoken and not vulgar. She took a few steps back, her hair was now slightly in her eyes. Fleur reached into her pocket and grabbed one of her hair bands, she quickly tied her hair into a neat ponytail. She was going to jump, she didn't have a backup plan, she was relying on him, this was either the bravest thing she'd ever done or the stupidest, probably the latter. Fleur took a deep breath and jumped off the edge. Fleur was actually in the air, flying closer to Lloyd, only a second had passed in flight when she realized that she didn't have enough speed, there was no chance she would make it. Her eyes closed and Fleur screamed.

'Please....!' was her last thought before her brain went into panic mode.

Lloyd suddenly panicked when he saw Fleur jump from the roof, immediately feeling horrible for putting her in this situation right after they had spent a marvelous time together. Surely she would be mad and never forgive him that. He was sure now, he ruined everything.

But now wasn't the time to freak out, not when Fleur was free falling. Soon after she had jumped, Lloyd began to run and launched himself using his Semblance to reach the tower's wall below her current position and waited the right time. When she got closer, he Repelled himself once again with an angle and caught her in his arms as they were flying towards another building. He then activated his Semblance again, and again, bouncing from walls to walls, buildings to buildings in order to lose speed as it was the only way he could actually make their landing safer.

After multiple uses of his power in such a short time though, Lloyd quickly grew exhausted. At least they had reached a good speed to land, which he initiated. Bouncing one last time, he aimed himself towards the ground and landed on his feet and slid for a good distance before stopping and immediately falling to his knees while holding Fleur in his arms. Panting, he rested his head against her before apologizing. "I'm... so sorry about that... I... I have nothing to say beside that I'm an idiot..." He then looked at her, smiling yet obviously looking miserable for what he just had put her through before being totally random with a comment. "You know, you're really pretty with your hair like that."

Expecting her to be completely mad at him, which wasn't impossible and even pretty normal of a reaction from anybody, Lloyd avoided Fleur's gaze, really feeling heavy from his actions. He wondered when did he thought that going up the tower was a good idea before awaiting in terror any reaction from her.

She felt the wind, his hands and the impact of each bounce. Fleur's eyes were shut closed, she only reopened when they weren't moving anymore. Her heart was racing... and not like on top of the tower. They were sitting on the ground, she was still pinned on his chest and he tried to catch his breath.

"I'm... so sorry about that... I... I have nothing to say besides that I'm an idiot..."

'YES! You most defiantly are!' her own angry chibi voice screamed in her head. Fleur huffed, she swallowed. She held her hand out in front of her and saw that it was vibrating like crazy. She was slightly upset but mostly shocked and she sat in silence, he did catch her to be fair but... that was easily the third most scared she'd ever been in her entire life.


"You know, you're really pretty with your hair like that." he was clearly trying to lighten the mood a bit, Fleur didn't blame him but for the first time that day; she didn't want to hear it.

"Please..." she whispered. "W-we should go back to Syne." she stood up and helped him up after he composed himself. The pair walked back toward the airship bay mostly in silence. Fleur was dueling now with some rather unpleasant thoughts. She stopped and turned to Lloyd, she had her head down. She hit him (hard enough) on his shoulder and lightly shoved him before immediately grabbing him in a hug.

"Y-you idiot!" she choked out, she was crying lightly. She looked up at him "You c-could have s-seriously h-hurt yourself!" she was mad at him almost killing her of course but she was more frustrated that he put HIMSELF in a situation where he would have to play hero, only knowing Lloyd for such a short time and her care ran deep for him. She stood there and didn't let go.