The Morning After The Night Before

Briony looked at Richard hoping that her comment would be received well and by the goofy look upon his face it had been, she couldn't help but giggle at the silly smile that played across his lips and she blushed a little at the implications of what she had said.

"Ah well then I shall stop speaking French just for you, have you been chases across every country?"

Briony asked with a smile, wondering what the reaction would be if she decided to act upon the plan that suddenly popped into her head she decided it would be too funny not to try it. She gently kissed him on the lips, only for a second before whispering into his ear.

"Nur diese für jetzt Richard, der beste kommt erst noch, natürlich nur wenn du nett zu mir bist."

Richard chuckled and thought about it for a minute before finally answering,

"No. I haven't been chased outside of Europe. Or in Portugal, Sweenden or Macedonia." he smirked, "But I've at least flitted into every other country in Europe."

He was caught off guard by the brief kiss. His brain seemed to shut down again, and his eyes widened. Her breath against his ear sent a shudder down his spine and he smiled widely,

"Sie verwöhnen mich. So eine schöne Sache zu sagen ... und in einer zivilisierten zunge!" he chuckled a little and leant in to whisper back in her ear, still playing with her hair, "Sie müssen nur fragen ... und ich werde dir alles geben. Meine liebe."

Briony blushed and she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, she had to try and suppress the girlish instinct to laugh and giggle at what he said but the smile still played upon her face none the less. It seemed that most of the time it never left, especially when they were talking normally. Briony thought for a minute about what to say next, she was a little rusty on her German...

"I suppose that still makes you a very well travelled man Richard, you must know a little about each country you went to. More than me anyway, England and France they're all I've visited."

She paused and smirked, wondering if she should do what she was thinking or not, biting the bullet she physically bit Richard's ear, but only lightly.

"Weil du es so sehr wie meine liebe, werde ich von Ihnen entfernt, so dass Sie meine Hüften und ihre Herrschaft zu beobachten. Wer weiß, vielleicht werde ich sogar bücken."

He chuckled,

"Russia is cold, especially in the north. Norway has beautiful night skies, near the northern lights. Italy... well Itally is filled with cutlure and great food." he shrugged a little and nuzzled her neck, "But the journey means nothing... the destination is what counts. And what a destination I have..."

A shiver went down his spine when she bit down on his ear and he grinned at her words. He kissed her neck once before nipping it gently with his teeth,

"Und vielleicht werde ich pflegen können, um mich zu stoppen ..." he purred into her ear.

Briony grinned at his reaction and she didn't move her head from his neck, her breath still curling around his skin. She wondered what she should do now, after all she might as well appeal to Richard's wide language skills and use her more fluent Russian, she had to learn many things as a child but languages was the one thing she truly loved, except her music.

"Тогда я полагаю, я должен буду стараться будет не так ли? Возможно, если бы я должен был это сделать?"

Hoping that he understood Russian she turned his head towards her and softly kissed his lips, one hand curling in his hair the other resting on his shoulder. Pulling away with a smirk she got up from the chair and walked over on purpose to the fire where she sat in front of it, lighting it with her wand.

"Ты двигаться дорогой."

Richard groaned a little and playfully gritted his teeth,

"Oh you're the devil Miss Blake..." he replied teasingly before moving to sit behind her in front of the fire. He kissed her neck lightly, hugging her to him from behind, "My russian is weak but..."

He nipped on her neck again before leading a few kisses up to her ear to whisper,

"И в какую игру мы играем?" he breathed huskily into her ear.

Briony grinned playfully and crossed her legs as she sat in front of the fire, wondering if he would make the next move or she would have to again. She delighted in the reactions she got from Richard and she immediately began to think of other things to say to him. When she felt him nip her neck she shivered a little bit and she placed her icy hands on his shoulders, looking intently at him.

"Я прошу прощения за мои холодные руки, я хотел бы согреть их, но вы знаете, что они говорят, холодные руки теплым сердцем."

Briony grinned and wiggled her finger tips, gently kissing Richard once more playing with his hair as she did so. Through his shirt she traced his muscles like she did last night and she tried her best to avoid the scar. She smirked trying to explain the game she was thinking of in her mind.

"игры? Я планировал знать, кто бы трещины сначала ... если вы меня понимаете?"

(OOC: If ANY of you except Rich is reading this. You're GROUNDED!!! Even if you aren't my kids...)

He smiled a little,

"You hands could be as cold as ice and they will still warm me." he replied, putting a hand over one of Briony's while it was on his shoulder, "I'm a warm person... I can warm the both of us."

After melting in the kiss, he let out the breath he'd been holding when her fingertips began to explore his chest. He grinned at her explanation of the game she was planning,

"Mmm... sounds like an interesting game..." he replied running one of his hands through her hair while the other rested on her hip, "Let me see if I can remember enough Italian..."

He leant in and kissed her briefly on the lips before dipping his head to trail kisses up and down her neck,

"Lasciate che il gioco comincia ..."

(OOC: Listen to your mother kids! If you're reading this then you're so grounded!)

Briony shuddered lightly as he kissed her neck, it was one of her weaker spots and hopefully he wouldn't be exploiting it even more, she couldn't help but gasp at the use of Italian, again another of her weaknesses. Briony was unsure of what to do but she decided she might as well stay in this dialect since she knew it well enough to speak fluently.

"Pensi di poter vincere? Non hanno nemmeno scalfito la superficie delle mie capacità ma il mio giocattolo."

Briony smirked and deciding to use her best asset she wiggled her hips a little trying her best seductive face she could without laughing, she was sure she looked so odd it must have been funny. Lightly Briony nipped at Richard's neck, kissing down to his collarbone.

(OOC: Darn straight.)

Richard chuckled a little at her half-funny, half-seductive look and sighed contentedly as she nipped his neck. He smiled as she kissed down to his collar bone,

"Penso che godono 'di graffiare la superficie'" he teased a little before taking some initiative and pulling Briony in for a kiss, lightly, by the hand that had been playing with her hair. He kissed her a little bit more firmly than before and pulled away only to begin kissing down her neck again, his left hand squeezing her hip slightly. He stopped at the edge of her top and kissed his way back up to nibble on her earlobe, "La mia rosa ... Io ti amo."

Briony gasped a little when she was pulled in for a kiss, she hadn't been expecting it at all and she certainly didn't think she would hear what she heard next coming from Richard, even though it was in a different language it meant just as much to her. She slowly came to realise that she too felt something for Richard and she knew now that it must be love, it scared and thrilled her at the same time as all love does.

"Anch'io ti amo, tesoro mio."

Briony left the statement hang in the air for a while until she felt that it was time to move on, back to their game. She gently pushed Richard onto his back, kissing his lips softly, biting his lip as she did so, breaking away she kissed down his neck and back up to his ear where she bit it once more and whispered silkily;

"Coraggioso Richard, le offerte Principessa fai come vuoi, dimmi cosa fare e mi ..."

Richard shook his head slightly,

"Solo tu essere Briony. Questo è ciò che io ti amo per." he whispered into her ear as he kissed her neck again, "Io sono tuo. Tutto ciò che sono ... tutto ciò che posso essere ... è per voi."

He pulled away from her ear and smiled at her before kissing her quickly on the lips,

"Io ti amo. Я люблю тебя. Ich liebe dich." he paused a little and looked her square in the eyes, "Briony Blake, I love you. I will do anything for you... name it and I shall obey."

He gently pushed Briony back so that she was lying on the floor in front of the fire. He slowly crawled over her, not touching her anywhere, until he kissed her gently on the lips,

"All that I am, is yours."

Briony couldn't stand it any longer, she had just been told that she was loved in four different languages she let the feeling that had been building up in her heart for the past days out and she pulled Richard towards her quickly, softly moulding her mouth to his own and passionately kissing him. Briony's cool fingers curling and uncurling in his hair as she kissed him.

"Richard, I love you, no-one else can make me feel like this, and I doubt anyone else will. I'm only sorry that you have to put up with all my annoying traits and my stupid hair which is always knotty and of course we both know you find my hips revolting."

Briony laughed and she bit hard (but not too hard) on Richard's neck, sucking the skin softly, grinning triumphantly when she sees that there is a blueish bruise left there.

He grinned wildly at the kiss, it had been enough to curl his toes. With a grin, he kissed her. Hard. He pulled away again, the same, wide, smile still in place,

"You have no idea how much I've wanted you to say that Briony..." he kissed her again, biting her lower lip a little as he drew back. He ran his fingers through her hair, "And I love you hair... it's so silky smooth..."

He grinned and squeezed the side of her hip,

"And don't get me started about the rest of you..."

Briony smiled into the kiss that Richard gave her while she ran her hands down his chest pulling him closer by his shirt and kissing softly down his jaw line nibbling at his ear. Looking up into his eyes she let hers smile and shine into his own, Briony cranes her head up to his ear and whispers;

"Oh, I'll get you started on the rest of me alright."

Briony grinned and started to play with Richards hair once more, gently planting kisses upon his lips gently tugging on his hair. Wondering what she could do next, Briony grinned and slipped her cold hands up his shirt and re traces his muscles, she could feel them a lot more clearly now.

"Your hair isn't half bad either, but your so much more kissable when you've shaved."

Richard groaned a little as he felt her cool fingertips running through his hair as well as over his chest. He leant in close and kissed her hungrily,

"Is that a promise?" he teased, the hand that had been positioned on her hip moving ever so slightly up, the tips of his fingers under her top. With a smile, he nuzzled into her neck again, "I guess you're right... I'm all smooth this way."

He chuckled a little and kissed her before rolling them both over, while making sure not to break the kiss. He broke the kiss and stopped rolling when he was on his back, with her above him. He gently ran his fingers through her hair,

"God you're beautiful..." he breathed before kissing her again, one hand now tracing patterns into the small of her back and the other running through her hair.

Briony smiled deeply when she heard a very satisfactory moan escape his lips, she stroked the warm skin of his chest while she listened to him talk, she grinned and moved her head next to his ear, whispering quietly;

"Of course it's a promise. You will of course get to see all of me, in due course. Where's the fun in showing you everything at once?"

Briony winked and decided that she would do something rather risky but assumed that it would give her the desired reaction from Richard, she bent down and placed a trail of kisses from his neck to his stomach pausing slightly before his trousers and kissing back up to his lips. Which she kissed ferociously.

"Thank you, I've been told that my eyes are quite breathtaking, hmmm that feels quite nice." Briony muttered as he drew shapes on her back

He groaned a little before grinning back up at her,

"Oh you are such a tease..." he joked, nipping on her lower lip lightly before kissing her again, "Don't ever change."

Richard smiled a little and kissed her again, playing with her hair with his left hand again,

"Are you kidding me Briony? It's not just your eyes..." he nuzzled into her neck, biting it a little before sucking on the bit with a smile, "Everything about you is beautiful Bri..."

He grinned and ran his other hand up and down her upper thigh,

"And not just your eyes, your hair and your hips..." he joked before wriggling his hand up under the back of Briony's top again, so that it was carelessly wrapped around enough for him to lightly stroke her stomach, "Every part of you is beautiful"

(OOC: I managaed to get this post in just before I left )

Briony grinned wickedly, she had gotten the result that she wanted and even better he hadn't been able to make her groan which made it all the more fun for her, she knew that she had the power to do anything she wanted to him and she would do, in this situation. Briony giggled a little when she felt his hand on her stomach and the peculiar position that his own arm was in, sighing she flipped herself off of him and tugged him on top.

"There, that might be less uncomfortable for your poor arm."

She smiled up at him from her position on the floor, her hair splayed out across the mat, gently she wound her hands down his shirt and began to slowly massage his neck, she knew she always liked that. Briony placed small soft kisses on his lips as she did so, leading up to his ear where she laughed quietly and whispered:

"Anywhere else you would like a massage my darling?"

(OOC: I answered it WAY to early...I should have waited until Sunday )

Richard chuckled a little and kissed her lightly on the lips,

"You have no idea..." he purred into her ear, nibbling on her ear lobe as he did so, "But I think I need to massage you first... you've already started with me after all."

He smiled and slowly turned Briony over so that she was lying on her stomach,

"Now just relax..." he instructed her as he gently began to rub the tension out of her neck and upper shoulders, "I hid out as a massage artist for a few months in Poland... I got quite good at it..."

He slowly moved down from her neck to start massaging her shoulder blades, through her top. He smiled a little and slipped his hands underneath her top to massage her lower back,

"Don't worry... my hands will only wandered where you want them to."

(OOC: Good thing I'm back now then isn't it )

Briony jumped a little when he turned her over and started to massage her but she quickly found herself relaxing, she lay her head on her folded arms and closed her eyes. As she felt Richard's hands slide up her T-shirt she couldn't help but blush a little, but she found herself getting more and more relaxed and she had to suddenly stop herself when she found out that she had been purring for the best part of 3 minutes.

"Oh that's not fair, you're a professional, but it does feel nice. I'm so tense these days."

Briony didn't really want to move up off the floor but she gently twisted herself around so she lay on her back now instead of her front and flipped Richard onto his back with a smile. Slowly she moved her hands up under his shirt and caressed his shoulder muscles pushing down with her palms to work out the tension.

"Your turn now."

Richard shivered pleasantly as he felt Briony's cold fingers rubbing at his tense muscles,

"Oh I could get used to this..." he drawled, his body relaxing at Briony's touch. After a few minutes of this, he yawned a little and gave her a side-long glance, smirking, "You're a natural at this Bri... I'm so relaxed I feel sleepy."

He smiled a little and decided that it was time to finally stand up again. He stretched a little and pulled Briony up to her feet alongside him,

"But we can't do this all day Bri..." he paused a second and looked thoughtful, "Well we could but our lips would get awfully chaffed after awhile."

"I see your point, besides, we need to get you some new robes don't we?"

Briony smiled and took her arms away from Richards skin and stood up, coming to stand by the fireplace resting her head upon the wooden mantle and smiling down at Richard from where she stood. She walked towards one of the large sash windows and sat in the ledge that jutted out from it, gently she rested her head on the cool frame.

Rather without her intention Briony saw out of the corner of her eye the garden shed, it wasn't very big, more like a toilet cubicle if anything with a rotted door and wooden planks. She shuddered and tried to block the thoughts surfacing in her brain but she couldn't stop them completely, smiling sadly at Richard she sprawled out on the ledge.

"It would be interesting wouldn't it, to think how we might have turned out if certain things had been different?"

Richard chuckled a little bit as he rolled his shoulders to relax more,

"I suppose we'll have to go shopping..." he replied with a fake sigh. He grinned at her, "I hope you're not planning on dragging me through every shop."

He wandered over to where Briony was sitting on the window ledge and he smiled at her before casually looking out at the grounds. With a sad smile, he shook his head,

"It is interesting but I find it oh so depressing most of the time..." he looked up at the sky and his mind drifted back as he followed a cloud with his eyes, "We naturally dwell more on the tragedies in our lives and how we could have changed them. And people like us... people who have suffered hardships... well we're more prone to it than others."

He closed his eyes and rested his head against the window pane,

"I could be dead. Several times over. I could be a mindless slave of my father." he smiled a little, "Or I could be happy. But I find myself not wishing so much for that last one..."

He opened his eyes and leant down to lightly kiss Briony on the lips,

"Because the more time I spend with you Briony, the more happiness because a reality for me and less of a dream I have to wish for." he smiled a little, "We can't change the past Bri, no matter how hard we try. But you can shape the future. I want you to be happy and all you need is for you to want to be happy as well and then... well then nothing will stop you from being happy in the future."

He smiled and rested his forehead lightly against her own,

"I promise."

Briony smiled sadly and curled herself up into a ball, her head resting on top of her folded arms and they resting on top of her bent legs, she tried to fit into the dent in the wall where she had sat so many times. No matter how hard she tried she couldn't help but look out into the garden still, her eyes fixated on the small damp wooden cubical.

She wondered why she hadn't chopped it down, burnt it, or destroyed it in some other way. The reason was she was too weak...she had walked up to it once, felt brave but as soon as she had opened the door she had fled back into the house. Sighing Briony shook her head to try and get rid of those memories, she diverted her head to look at a suit of armour leaning against a wall, looking at the intricate metal work.

"Yes, I do so want to be happy. To get these ghosts out of my closet...one day it will happen." Briony smiled "Speaking of ghosts I'm surprised you haven't met Finley..."