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No title.
(2013-06-16 - Now)
No description.
Jihl Nabaat Lovely, futuristic Palumpolum.

In the highest residental tower, locked into her cell, the unoffical military princess of Palumpolum, Jihl Nabaat, rests on her couch. As night fades into true night, long past when most of the city residents are in bed, a light continues glowing in her living room.

Rubbing her eyes with one hand, Jihl tosses the paperwork she was holding onto one stack - a stack full of filled-out paperwork. It is finally much larger than the stack next to it - the unfilled one that requires her attention.

The phrase 'burning the midnight oil' was coined for her nights like this.

Picking up the next paperwork, she settles back down further into the couch, frowning faintly at it for a few minutes, before resting her head against the arm of the couch, flipping the paperwork over to the back to get access to blank space, sketching out lazy lines as she flexes her fingers.

Distracted, it seems...
Maximilien Maximilien Amadeus Renaud-Sylvianne does not use doors. Doors are for people who accept and acknowledge locks and security measures. Doors are for people who are alright with singular entrances, with simple, straightforward exists. Doors are for people who obey keys.

Maximilien Amadeus Renaud-Sylvianne does not obey or need keys. He does not use hallways if he can avoid it, and he does not care about security measures or locks or cameras. They are challenges at best; they are ignorable obstacles at worst. He's long since become skiled at avoiding them.

Similarly, he has long since become skilled at avoiding the eye of those who would see him. In general, it's pretty difficult to be stealthy in a white tuxedo with a big red cape, but Max manages it with an incredible amount of aplomb; he's generally only seen when he wants to be.

Like, for example, the moment he lays himself on Jihl, his lips brushing against hers as he slips under the paperwork she's undoubtedly looking at for a deep, long kiss. "Bonsoir, ma chere. Working hard as ever in my absence, I see."

"It is comforting to know that the only man I am ever in danger of losing you to is your work." His arms wrap around her neck as he lays across her, making himself comfortable in a matter of moments. "Are you so busy, with the war brewing?"
Jihl Nabaat There is a moment of silence when Jihl first recognizes that there is a heavy weight on her, then Max pretty much appears right in front of her face, and the look she gives him before, during, and after the kiss basically reads: 'where the /hell/ did you come from'.

Then, her brain catches up with her mouth: It's Max, she knows where he came from.

He promptly cozies up to her, and she rolls her eyes in a somewhat dramatic motion. "Second of the two men, my dear." She reminds him, gently. "Paperwork, you, and the Primarch all share me equally, each in your own ... way."

"Yes, I am busy. With paperwork. That you are distracting me from."
Maximilien "So I am," Max replies with exactly no amount of apology in his voice as he resumes making himself comfortable against her. He makes exactly no attempts to make her paperwork easier. "As for the Primach, I simply consider the paperwork an extension of his hand, ma chere. After all, I have yet to meet the man; not that I have a great desire to, you understand."

He traces his finger along her cheek. "I do not feel that a man should meet the man he shares his love with; it will probably not end well. Besides-which...there is the small matter of my profession. As understanding and supportive as you are, I have doubts that the leader of your nation will agree with my extralegal choice of lifestyle."

Max rolls over in her arms, sliding his own arm under her waist. He's still a little sore. "Did you miss me, ma chere? Did you stay up late, waiting for my arms to wrap around you in the dead of night? Or did you simply continue processing away like a machine, pitiless, cold, sleek, and beautiful?"

"You must be so *boring* without me in your life."
Jihl Nabaat Jihl lifts her eyes up to the heavens above her - that's the actual heavens, not Max, for the record- and sighs deeply. "Yes, I know, the leader of PSICOM, essentially the Primarchs' personal guard, is dating an out-of-worlder extra-legal /thief/."

"I respect the irony."

She adjusts herself as he wraps his arms around her, propping her paperwork up against his frame as she adjusts her pens' grip, shifting it slightly to the side so that she uses him as a table and continues doing her paperwork.

"Yes, I missed you, but the staying up was more for the paperwork." She admits, a small smile playing on her lips.
Maximilien "Oh, I am under no illusions as to what you remained awake for," Maximilien replies cheerfully. He doesn't seem to mind being used as a table, though he does pull off his cape and tosses it to the side. It settles over a lamp; Max is satisfied by that.

"I imagine you have been very busy, with war brewing in Archades. Is Cocoon preparing to enter a side?" There's a note of concern in his voice - obviously, Max doesn't want to have to pick sides if Jihl and Cirra's nations come to blows. But, also obviously, Jihl is not the person who says which side she winds up on...so all Max can really do is hope. "Or are you staying out of it?"

His fingers reach up, again to brush along her cheek. "...I confess also that I do not wish to think about you in danger. I know that you are well-trained; I know that you are a far better warrior than I. And yet...you are mine, and I would protect you, as a gentleman ought. Even though I know it to be very unnecessary."
Jihl Nabaat Max neatly entraps one of the only two lamps currently lit in the room with a well-tossed cloak. Jihl arches an eyebrow at him, even as the questions fade into the issue with the current war going on in Archades. "As a ... global military force, we might pick a side."

"However, due to the location of everyplace around the various isles in this world of ruin, especially Palumpolum and Eden to Archades, well..."

She shrugs. "We might maintain absolute neutrality. I have had nothing from the Primarch about this." He runs a hand down her face, and she shakes her head. "Very, very unncessary..."

"But thank you for the thought~"
Maximilien Max's ability to create mood via pieces of clothing is matched only by his ability to cook and his ability to steal, evidently. He smiles as she thanks him; the women he loved were such very different people underneath the obvious external similarities. Yes, Jihl and Cirra were both soldiers; yes, Jihl and Cirra were both very cold, beautiful women who had attracted his attention precisely because of that icy exterior. But the way they dealt with him, and with their emotions, were so very different. He appreciated that; it made him more and more sure that it wasn't the image he was in love with, but the women themselves.

That meant a great deal to him. Max knew a lot about encouraging love in an image, after all.

"...you may be in great danger," Max murmurs against her ear after a moment.

"Someone...knows far too much about me. They may send weapons after those I care for; I want you to promise me that you will be prepared for anything that may come your way, ma chere. I could not bear to lose either of you."
Jihl Nabaat Jihl tches faintly as he murmurs into her ear - her green-grey eyes blaze in slight anger as she recognizes what he is commenting on. She pulls her head back to look him in the eye, her pale lips pursed together tightly.

"I am always well prepared." She says. "I am going to preemptively warn you that the access to this building is going to get far, far more harder than it was before, my does-not-use-keys-thief."

"Thank you for the warning." She finally murmurs, softly, her pursed lips deepening into a frown. "Who do I need to ... mm... take care of, to make these things go away?"
Maximilien "I will reasonably be able to find a way around it," Max replies cheerfully, and that has so far in the past been true - any heightened state of security has mostly been evaded, avoided, and exploited. "Besides, you could not go without me for so long; your good humor would shrivel up and die on the vine, or you would come looking for me and throw yourself into my arms for love."

"I personally prefer to imagine the second; it is so very romantic," he jokes.

Then he frowns. "...I do not...it would not be a good idea to become involved in this problem, ma chere. I can handle it myself, I promise. I would...like to try and convince my opponent of the mistake she makes, rather than have her...dealt with." It was another of those little ironies, that a pacifist was in love with two soldiers. Max found it funny.

"If I need your aid, I promise you, I will call upon you the moment I am in danger."
Jihl Nabaat "I am reasonably sure that I've already upped security twice and I don't know how much more I can do without completely turning this into a place where no one can get into due to the security." Jihl responds, arching an eyebrow.

"I ... have good humor?"

She asks this, before he says that he does not truly want her involved in his issues. She is quiet for a few, long, uncomfortable minutes.

"... I ... mm. Nevermind."
Maximilien "There is nowhere I cannot enter," Max replies, pressing his lips against hers.

Fortunately, he's very good at detecting uncomfortable silences. When she tells him to nevermind, Max immediately...well, minds. "Jihl. Are you...worried about me?"
Jihl Nabaat Damn it Max, when Jihl says to not mind something, you're not supposed to mind it.

Jihl purses her lips, before she finally just.. nods in response to his question.
Maximilien Max is bad at not minding things.

But her worry brings a smile to his face, at least; a broad, wide smile, as he tightens his arms around her. "Merci beaucoup, ma chere. That you fear for my safety means more to me than anything you could ever have given me."

"But I do know what I am doing. I have, after all, survived this long without blood on my hands; I intend to survive to a nice, old age, perhaps once I have grandchildren."

But...then again...who knows what he might have to do to save Sylvie? The world was changing for Max; soon he might have to make a decision about what was most important to him...and despite all his attempts to the opposite, now he had things to lose.

It was a chilling thought.
Jihl Nabaat Jihl chuckles faintly, rolling her eyes slightly as he responds to her slight worry but snuggling up to her more and being all frenchism and such. She goes to speak, but... her words are obscured by a sudden snort and Jihl coughs slightly when Max mentions - says - the word 'grandchildren'.

oh god whyyyyyyyyyyy

She nudges him, in an attempt to sit up so she can have a drink without getting it all over herself, which she does, quietly downing her ice water with a cough.

"Okay." She says, faintly.
Maximilien Max is *very* good at reading people. He glances at her as she coughs and snorts; he lets her up to get water, then pulls her back down into his arms when she's done drinking. "I said something you did not approve of, then?"
Jihl Nabaat oh god whyyyyyyyyyyyy

"Not disapprove of, just startled me." She says, which is actually the truth! Jihl is surprisingly truthful, even if most of the time, she wields the truth so it hurts.
Maximilien "*Just* startled?" Max teases, pulling her tight against him. He's quiet for a moment, before he leans very close into her ear, his voice barely above a whisper. It's not like there's anyone who coudl hear or anything; it's purely for effect.

"So you are not, I take it, completely opposed to the idea...?"
Jihl Nabaat Jihl just completely freezes, like a deer caught in headlights. This is mostly due to the position she's in, with him wrapped around her, more than the conversational subject at hand - although to be fair, that also shorts out a few or so brain processes, before she clears her throat awkwardly.

"Uh."

whyyyyyyyyyy
Maximilien Max laughs again as he presses his nose against her neck. "This must be an event that only comes along so often; the fearsome lady Nabaat, struck speechless, frozen silent in the arms of a handsome young man. I shall savor it as I wait for your answer, ma chere~."
Jihl Nabaat Finally, Jihl clears her throat and gets out some words. "I never truly thought about it." She responds, her voice thoughtful. "I was too...dedicated to my work. To my world. To the Primarch, to PSICOM. I still am, of course. I do not have the time."
Maximilien "Be at peace, ma chere." Max laughs, laying back against the couch. "I only wanted to see the look on your face. Your terrible seriousness melts in the face of embarassment or surprise; it is a very, very sweet treat to savor indeed."

Max lays back against the couch. That was mostly true, anyway. "I am not worried. There is too much I need to do before such a day comes, of course."
Jihl Nabaat Jihl gets a suddenly uncomfortably 'uh-oh' sort of look on her face. "Yes, we don't have to worry about this for a very long time." She says, a little bit too calm for everything.

"You ass."
Maximilien "I like teasing you," Max replies. Still, as he notices the look on her face, a look of concern spreads across his. He's quiet for a long moment, just enjoying her presence and the sound of the city; then he leans up and kisses her cheek.

"Is something wrong, ma chere? You look worried."
Jihl Nabaat "Oh, no, there is nothing of importance that need worry us." Now, anyways. Ask in a couple of months. Jihl leans back against him, sighing as she peers at the paperwork stacks.
Maximilien "Are you certain?" Max inquires. "Because the look on your face said otherwise. Is...there something I ought to know, ma chere? Is there something bothering you that I have brought up?"

Max's fingers run through her hair. "Je m'excuse. I did not mean to unsettle you; I merely wanted to see your face at the thought of becoming a mother."
Jihl Nabaat "There is nothing we need to worry about now." Jihl clarifies. "check back in a month or so." She hides her smile behind a /damn/ good pokerface, resting her head on his shoulder absently as she tucks her legs underneath her.
Maximilien Max sits up and looks at her for a very long moment, displacing her head for all of a moment. "In a *month* or so?" Max asks, his eyes narrowing. "What is it you suspect, exactly?"

He lays back down, sliding her head back onto his shoulder, but he's still giving her a Look. "You are being evasive, and you are not normally quite *so* evasive."
Jihl Nabaat "I believe I suspect we might be parents sooner rather than later, Maximilien." She says, utterly gently, resting her head on his shoulder as her eyes close.

Jihl has a small, complacent smile on her face.
Maximilien Max is quiet for a very long moment. He just...lays there against Jihl, silent, considering what she just said. That's, uh...that's interesting news for Max, that's for certain. He's...not sure how to take that, really. It's kind of funny; the minute Max thinks his life is back under control, it goes spiralling...out of it. The grand irony! Max can keep perfect control of his mind, but he can't control anything outside it. Hilarious, really. You'd think a Phantom Thief...

"A month, you say," Max replies quietly, grabbing back onto the solid, the understandable, the *recognizeable*. His fingers go downwards, sliding into Jihl's a moment later; he's quiet again, staring up at the ceiling.

"Then that is a month that we shall not worry. You are right, ma chere, not to worry about such things yet. It will only drive us to wonder and fret, and there is no reason to do either."
Jihl Nabaat Jihl giggles slightly.

"Yes, of course, no need to wonder and fret about the 'what-might-be.'"

Jihl sounds extremely satisified, there is a hint that she may have just gotten him back good to the tone of her voice.
Maximilien Max frowns. "Are you seriously concerned, or are you simply making fun of me in return?"
Jihl Nabaat There is another brief spate of giggles from the woman who normally does not.

"A little more the second than the first."
Maximilien Max laughs. That was a lot of very quickly building tension; despite his pretty words, he wasn't entirely sure he would be *capable* of focusing away from that. It would've bothered him even on the job, where normally his hectic personal life never touches. "I see. Very funny, ma chere. I have not heard you /giggle/ in some time."

"I rather appreciate this side of you."
Jihl Nabaat Jihl gives Max a small, faint smile, even as she clears her throat after giggling at him for a little bit. "I considered it was very even revenge, considering what the topic on hand was. Even? No, no, perhaps I mean it was the best sort of revenge."
Maximilien "It was at first revenge; now it is reward. When you smile, it makes me happy. I do not hear your laugh frequently enough; it seems as though your whole life is frought with nothing but misery and stress. You lock away your feelings deep in your heart," Max lays his free hand on her chest, pressing against her heart as he leans his face up to hers, "And thereby allow yourself to do what you need for your country, abandoning your womanhood in favor of your job. When you smile, it is as if all those feelings you have hidden are lit up, a secret treasure for me and me alone to enjoy; when you laugh, it is like fireworks alight in my soul."

Max leans in, pressing his lips against hers. "I love you. Each time I say it, it does become easier, it does become more true. I feared that I might be lying to myself, at first; that I was simply desperate for affection, for closure. But...as time carries us onwards, I love you more and more."

"So there. There is *my* revenge. I will unlock your heart and steal the secret joys and passions and hopes inside, that I might treasure them - and you - for as long as I live."
Jihl Nabaat Max uses his fancy words, and Jihl blinks slowly, almost embarassed as he ever so smoothly manages to twist her revenge on him into *his* reward. She closes her mouth, tilting her head to the side almost like a rather confused puppy.

Huh.

"... I love you."

 
This scene contained 37 poses. The players who were present were: Maximilien, Jihl Nabaat