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Smoke lingers in the air as he opens the door of her office, almost invisible to the eye yet harshly perceptible by the nose. Nothing especially unusual, but the odor still annoys. She's sitting on a wooden chair that has been moved to partly face the grilled windows, chin against one hand, the other hanging in the air with her elbow resting on the desk. A worn-out and full ashtray sits on the wooden surface nearby, paired with an open box of cigarettes. The pile of paper Haku was supposedly pursuing before is closer to the opposite edge of the desk than anything else. At least, it's not windy enough for it to fall off.
A blink, then her gaze turns around to target him, while her head doesn't follow the motion, staying in the same angle and place it previously was. Cold blue eyes stare at his figure, urging Securett to announce his presence.
"Your Excellency," He begins, refraining from sighing. "I'm here to deposit records from this morning."
"Drop the title, Securett." Clear and quick to the point - quite unlike his usual quiet, occasionally slurred speech.
This time, he sighs for real. Any semblance of professionalism he would like to keep afloat shatters so easily with her. Chatting casually in their private, dusty cathedral is a pleasant matter, but doing it anywhere else where other people usually appear feels sacrilegious. If this continues, he might as well end up accidentally calling her by name only while in public.
Securett walks closer to the desk as Haku arranges her posture. At first, he thinks it's so she can face him better or take the record papers filled by workers from his hands, but it was actually simply to grab a cigarette. The bishop produces a lighter from God knows where and lights up the stick while he reviews the filled sheets that were close to slipping away one by one. Nothing odd to declare or fix. His impression of Haku slacking off wasn't very fair today.
There's a few orders for new bundles of supplies directed to the Health Department at the bottom of the pile. That's something to separate from the rest and bring to the concerned later. Before starting to arrange the records he brought in this month's binder, Securett takes a chair and sit. Might as well get slightly more comfortable if possible. He looks up at Haku, cigarette pinched between her fingers as she takes a drag then exhales to the side, smoke escaping the room through the partially open window.
She's not very talkative today. It was already the case this morning, when he helped her prepare herself. Her copious smoking is a side effect of this state. There's no point in commenting on it in this case, really. It simply happens and go. A part of him misses her usual banter, but it's all only fair. The silence allows him to concentrate better, for a good thing.
At some point, he sees her crush the cigarette on the border of the window out of the corner of his eye. The dark ashes does not effectively stick out to the rusted metal, some of it falling on her long white sleeves. Haku doesn't seems to mind, or most likely doesn't notice, while he winces in her place. She then throws the stick in the ashtray before taking another, opening her lighter, and lightening the cigarette up. Securett slips one of the last sheets in the binder while she starts smoking again.
Once the job is done, he puts away the chair where it once belonged and stands up to file away the binder. Haku is now looking at him, slightly squinting. The white fumes coming from the cigarette between her lips blends in with her fine hair, and the purely snow colored sky behind her. Distracting.
"Is something the matter?"
"Can you lend me your hand for a bit?" He moves closer following her request, and she grips his wrist as soon as he's in her range. While surprising, he wasn't far enough for it to sting like it often does. She simply pulled him closer, albeit forcibly.
"For what purpose...?"
After inspecting the back of his hand quickly, Haku glares up at him. It's a strange sight - he's way more used to be the one looked down on.
"My ashtray is full." A slight pause. "You won't mind if I put it off on you, no?"
Securett frowns but clamps his mouth shut, staring at her other hand squeezing the cigarette in answer. Handing her an old paper or napkin, or offering his sleeve, would be more ethical... assuming she even listens. Refusing outright seems equally out of the question. Complying with her wish is ultimately the easy way.
Despite the internal justification running in his brain, his resignation comes out too quickly for it to be normal or reasonable. "I guess not..."
Haku scoffs, changing from her so-far grave expression for the first time that day. "I shouldn't have asked, eh?"
She presses the hot tip of the cigarette on his hand, quickly removing it as he yelps and jerks back as if she effectively didn't ask for any kind of permission.
"Already? It wasn't even that hot." She finally lets his wrist go, taunting him.
"It still stings!" The sudden pain is enough to make him raise his voice uncharacteristically. It's probably part of her intent. A selfish one, born out of a spark of pure emotion rather than logic. That's how Haku is, sometimes.
"Let me do it again." She takes his hand for the second time, somewhat less firmly than before. "It'll feel better this time."
"How can you know th- ah!" Trying to retort in such a situation is a pointless affair. The burning sensation returns, weaker yet lasting for a few more seconds, making him hiss. Tears obscurate his vision, but some clearly visible ash runs on his hand to fall on the ground. Or perhaps rather on his worn-out, rigid boots. It can't stain those, unlike her clothes made out of delicate fabric, so it's not a big deal at all.
"Well? It's not that horrid, is it?" The grip on his wrist tightens, while arousal seeps into her tone. He's been around her enough to recognize that raspiness in her voice whenever she gets excited. It's not essentially a good thing. Yet half of him gravely fails at the sensible task of despising it, whereas an odd emotion mixing up with a sense of fear starts building in his guts. In parallel, she's been tormenting him enough to allow him to register that apprehension as a manifestation of desire.
Securett grunts instead of saying anything back, mind lost in a fog of thoughts. The miasma coming from her cigarette must have been poisoning his brain. Haku seems to have noticed his own enjoyment already, considering she doesn't insists on her question being answered. Or, she simply doesn't care about his opinion.
After a bit, he finally manages to look back at her, still panting lightly. She quietly stares back, to then lower her eyes to his collar.
"Let me do it somewhere else." Like often with her, it's more an order than a demand, and even less so a suggestion. The used cigarette ends up in the ridiculously full ashtray, and Haku stands up for the first time since he dropped in the room, bringing herself closer to him. As she does, an highly faint floral scent briefly appears between the ever-present smoke ; it's a whiff of the rose perfume she sometime sprays on her neck and the inside of her wrists early in the day. It provides a sense of coaxing to his nerves, a brief and pointless respite before being assaulted by smoke again.
With her body in front of the window, the light coming from it is blocked out by her form, projecting Securett in the shadows. While this angle is usual and comfortable, it only makes her appear even taller than she actually is. Gloved hands wander on his collar, gripping it tightly once, to then make the capelet fall from his shoulders as the fabric rustles in the air. Shivers run down his body, the sudden coldness unable to blend with that internal heat making his cheeks and neck burn.
He frowns, but lets her unbutton the top part of his habit in silence. His own uncomfortable panting resounds in his ears, probably in the whole room as well, mind still focused on the burning pain coming from his hand. Haku doesn't make him remove his sleeves, instead firmly pushing out his shirt collar. She keeps it in hand a bit, quietly examining his face.
"Haku...?"
For a second, he thinks - rather, hopes - she's going to lean in and kiss him, or at least craddle his cheeks in her cold, leather-clad hands. Instead, she keeps looking at him, expression unreadable putting aside her slightly raised eyebrows. It's unclear whether she's looking at his pitiful expression or something else beneath. Maybe both.
"Nothing." She then returns to unbutton his shirt, struggling a bit with the buttons. Taking this opportunity, Securett finally manages to grab one of her hands to stop her on the way, while Haku makes a soft noise of disapproval at the sudden motion.
"Please let me keep my shirt on." It's a simple demand, - said as firmly as currently possible given the circumstances, - before quickly adding, "It's cold, today..."
She rolls her eyes and clicks her tongue, clearly exasperated. Even though the weather in the capital often remains on the cloudy side, neither of them are believing his made-up excuse thrown in the air in order to avoid stripping.
"At least bare your shoulders to me, then." Another command said in a low tone, but a surprisingly merciful one.
He nods and obliges, letting the fabric fall from his shoulders, while clutching the rest near his chest. Meanwhile, Haku pulls a new cigarette from the now-empty box, and takes her lighter in hand again. The dark red colored object shines in the accumulated darkness, even moreso when she brings the cigarette to her lips and lights it. The flame being so close makes Securett move away by reflex, before returning to his former position as if having been instructed to do so.
Perhaps waiting a bit more would have been preferable, as Haku takes the opportunity to blow smoke directly in his face. The acrid steam fills his nose, forcing him to choke and hack while the cruel bishop laughs. Somehow, the volume of her laughter surpasses the one of his cough, humiliating him even furthermore.
"Hah! Your reactions will never stop entertaining me, I'm afraid." She says, shortly before taking a proper drag out of the stick. This time, the smoke doesn't end up filling his eyes and throat.
He stays silent, quietly composing himself after the sudden attack. If anything, it's probably his fault for being too obedient and jumping in her trap. Sighing again, he glares back at her as she continues smoking. She takes her time, before walking a few steps to face his back. Even then, the sound of her sharp heels echoes on the woody, cracking floor. Securett gulps down with some difficulty, anticipation once again making his excitement rise.
A cold hand grips his shoulder with force, making him shiver. "Your posture is terrible as always."
She absentmindedly scolds him, before letting his shoulder go to then trace a line on the nape of his neck, feeling almost more like a small icicle being dragged on his feverish skin. The simple gesture only makes him hunch over more, while clenching the fabric of his shirt harder. Something that could either be qualified as a moan or a gasp comes out of his lips as she lightly presses her index on the sensitive area.
"Wow. Does this situation actually turn you on that much?"
The room stays deadly silent, before Haku sneers, resting her free hand on his shoulder again.
She then finally presses her cigarette on its fateful location, before reproducing her move, leaving small round burns on his right shoulder. He pants, swears under his breath once, before calling out her name. She stops upon hearing it. How frustrating. She always knows when to stop at the worst moment, doesn't she?
Tears quietly roll of his cheeks to drop down the floor, while she then resumes her doing, pressing the mellowed end of the stick on his opposite shoulder. Hardly burning anymore, yet still fiery enough to enact a physical reaction from the concerned. Securett sticks his nails in his shirt harder as an attempt to avoid pressing his thighs together, but it doesn't do much to save face.
A sense of filthy frustration fills his body when Haku stops and throws the final cigarette not in the ashtray, but in a small trash can placed next to her desk. He stays in place, turning his head to observe as she sits down again.
They exchange glances in silence for a bit, staying still, as if time came to a stop.
Suddenly, over-consciousness over his physical state washes over him, and Securett bitterly gets to his knees to pick up his capelet from the ground, before adjusting his shirt back on and buttoning it. The fabric brushes against the fresh burns, feeling ugly and hot. Shame adds to the frustration, and yet, the arousal remains. Unfortunately, Haku surely isn't feeling benevolent enough today to help.
Or rather, it was likely part of her plan in the first place.
The bishop dismisses him, reminding to take the few papers he previously sorted out of the binder with him in a following sentence, marking the scene as over. Just like there was no point in fighting back then, there is no point in trying to now. Thus, Securett nods, stepping out of the office to be greeted by a gust of wind. While forcing his numb legs to work, the intensity of his body temperature and feelings gradually decrease, as if they were carried away by the breeze.
Thankfully, Doctor Grette should surely have some soothing cream laying around the infirmary to apply on the burn on his hand...