Winter's Gift [Closed]

"Finally!!" Alison dropped her things near the rather well-made couch. She and Mikhail had been traveling for quite a while, stopping only twice on their way to Aria. Although it was a very interesting adventure (Mikhail was a rather interesting man), Alison needed a bit of a break. Over the past couple of months, she had practically destroyed her hands, gotten no sleep, and tired herself out of her favorite hobby just to pay this man back. She refused to tell him anything about her financial situation, so he didn't know the amount of gold she had. It also didn't help that she felt responsible for messing up his trip, so she continuously made sure to pay for his things. In situations like that, he was just as stubborn as she was. She could have sworn she caught him sneaking off to buy things once or twice.

Either way, the two of them were finally going to be able to have a good nights sleep. It was somewhere around seven o'clock when the two arrived, so the sun was long gone. Neither of them had eaten, but with this deluxe inn package, they already had the ability to order room service without making the bill worse! "Well..." Alison said in a tired tone, yawning as she turned back to him, "You can choose which room you want to sleep in... I'll pick the one you don't want, that's fine." Alison had come to really enjoy having Mikhail around. "Once you get done settling in, there's something I'd like to talk to you about..." she said with a smile. She stepped up behind him and pat her hands lightly against his back, "Go, go. Pick your room and come back out once you're ready to talk."

Once he walked off, which he hopefully would, Alison would begin digging through her bags and pulling out a rather large sack. She added a few more gold pieces she had counted out and smiled. "I'll finally be able to pay him back!" she said to herself with an excited smile as she sat down and waited.

Alison was not suprised by Mikhail's choice in room. Over their time together, she noticed his choices were usually unexpected. She found herself trying her best to guess what he would do next, but often failed. His way of thinking was so different from her own that it was practically impossible for her to predict him. As she observed him, she became enthralled with his extraordinary mannerisms. It also helped that she found him extraordinarily attractive, which was odd for her. Rarely were men as alluring as he. And as he stepped back into the room from packing up, her gaze was pulled from the lovely view that was Aria and back toward the view that was Mikhail. At times, Alison couldn't help but wonder what he'd think if she ever told him that she thought about him like some artists masterpiece. Of course, she had spoken of him like that before and he brushed it off like a daily compliment. There was no need to a cater to an ego that was already filling his mind.

And suddenly Alison was pulled from her thoughts by the very man she was thinking about. She shook her head, blinked once, and looked up to him. "Actually, that'd be quite nice, if you don't mind." she said with a soft smile. Once he handed her the cup, she sniffed the warm aroma that raised from the dark liquid and smiled. Bringing the cup to her lips, she slowly took a sip, careful not to burn herself. Swallowing, she took a deep breath and set the cup on a small table to the side of her chair. He spoke up again and her attention was quickly returned to him. She smiled, her entire demeanor completely relaxed as the previous pressure and ache that her body was overcome with slowly eased from her sore muscles. It had been a while since she felt this calm, this comfortable. And it was all because she was able to make the amount of gold to pay him back. Nothing felt better to her than being able to keep her word, but with that thought her smile dropped and she looked worried.

"Uh... Yes, actually." she sat up straight, adjusting herself to seem less relaxed, "Well... Mikhail, I was wondering what your plans were once I paid you back all of the money I owed you..." As she asked this question, she unconsciously began fiddling with her sore, bruised, and calloused hands. She had been working so hard to sell, sell, sell every single thing she could push herself to knit over their time together. She's be surprised if someone as observant as he had shown himself to be had not noticed her efforts. She looked back to him from her hands and smiled softly. "The reason I ask is because... well, I kind of like having you around. You're one of the few people who at least seem to be able to handle being around me for a decent amount of time..." she explained in a very nervous tone, "If you didn't have anywhere to go... or anyone to see, I thought maybe we could travel together? A-A-At least until you decide you'd no longer want to... and then... well, you'd go..."

"I see one problem with you continuing to travel with me."

Alison's heart sank. A whole bunch of things kept coming to her mind. What could the problem be? Was it the way she talked all the time? He was more on the quiet side, so maybe he annoyed her? Was it her obsession with knitting? Did he think she was obsessed? She wasn't! She was just trying to make money to pay him back! She even succeeded! Or did he just not like her? Did he think she is ugly? Maybe he was going the opposite direction of her? Maybe he was a known criminal who had a huge bounty on his head and didn't want to get her involved? Maybe she just sucked at making tea! Did he not like her cooking? Or was it the fact that they kept sharing inn rooms. It's not like they laid in the same bed! Maybe this is what he didn't like: The fact that she went off on rants when it really wasn't needed. What is it?!

Oh... "That's it...?" she said almost immediately after. She stared at him for a few moments while silence continued. A couple seconds later, she smiled and covered her face with her hands, curling her knees up to her chest as she tried not to laugh. She couldn't help it and ended up giggling in her chair, playfully kicking her feet a bit. "Mikhail, you're amazing." she said, wiping a tear of joy from her eye, "I thought you didn't like me, or I annoyed you in some way, but no... All you want is to go fifty-fifty? Honey, that's fine. I have no problem with that... I paid for everything up until now because I am the one that messed up whatever plans you had. Because I got robbed, you were now stuck with me, and I thought it was a nice way of paying you back. I am sorry if it bothered you, but I have enjoyed your time here with me."

"If that is all it will take to get you to continue your travels with me, then of course." she said as she leaned forward and picked up her tea. When her hands grasped the cup, she froze as a pain shot up her fingers, to her wrist, and up to the middle of her arm. She had a light expression of pain on her face, but that soon calmed down. She took a deep breath and sighed before finally bringing the cup up. As she brought it to her lips, she was shaking a bit. She took the drink and quickly set the cup back down before opening and closing both of her hands to stretch them  out. "A little stiff..." she said with a sheepish smile, but then her expression changed as she reminded herself of something, "Oh right, I was wondering if you'd go shopping with me today and maybe to one of the restaurants for dinner?"

"Uh... No. No, you wouldn't have." Alison sighed and shook her head at his comment on selling her. That thought was disgusting and actually lowered her opinion of him. Selling any person just because they owed you money is something she would not ever approve of. Selling a person for any reason is something she would not ever approve of, actually. People like that, she considered lower than scum. There is a certain amount of honor this world needed to keep and that, along with things like rape, slavery, and forced prostitution (things that often followed being sold), were crimes that Alison would have no problem killing him over. It was just a good thing she could never really tell whether he was serious or joking. Even times where she thought he was joking, he ended up being serious, and vise versa. "Mikhail... Right now, my opinion of you is quite high. You're intelligent, strong, and I enjoy having you around." she continued talking immediately after her previous comment, "But since selling someone and the things that follow that are something that I am disgusted in, I would prefer you not continuing any thoughts you had on it. I still don't fully know where your morals are, but no matter how much money someone owed you or how annoying they are... No one deserves the horror that comes from being sold." Though he'd probably ignore it, or not really care, there was a certain fire in her eyes and in her tone that made it obvious that she was more than serious about everything she had just said. She liked him; he was interesting, but there are certain lines that Alison was not going to cross. With the respect she had given him, she hoped he'd have the decency to actually return it.

"Now..." Alison stood up and stretched her back and arms, "Since you wish to rest, I am going to have a nice day of shopping ahead of me." Alison's mood completely shifted from that fiery seriousness to her normal happy and cheerful self. She made sure she had her money pouch and smiled to Mikhail. "Alright, you rest as much as you can. When I get back, I'll probably bring food with me, so we can share a meal then." she said as she waved to him and began making her way toward the door, "See you then. I'll put the do not disturb thing on here." Alison stepped out of the door and closed it, locking it with her key behind her after putting the marker up. Even as she did that, Alison stayed standing outside of the door like a statue. What Mikhail had said about selling her bothered her more than even he probably knew. There was no way that Mikhail was that cold hearted, was he? With this on her mind, Alison was now worried about what type of man she was wanting to travel with. She could more than likely take him and she knew that, but thinking that he'd do something so cruel hurt her.

Oh well, there was no thinking about it now. She had a couple ours of shopping a head of her. Looking down to her bag, which she had grabbed on her way out, she made sure the film was in there. She was going to be getting those developed as well. That was the first stop, since the developing office wasn't too far away and would also take the longest. She'd drop it off and then head out, coming back to pick it up later. And that's exactly what Alison did. She dropped the film off and immediately hurried down to the shopping center to hunt down a good gift for Mikhail. She had to get him something nice, something he'd actually enjoy having. This was going to be extremely difficult. Mikhail wasn't someone who seemed to like the material things. He was so efficient that Alison wondered whether a pen would be good for him. No. It just came to her. As she walked passed a certain shop, after searching for the past hour, Alison realized exactly what she wanted to get him. She hurried in and made her request. Frankly, this might not have been the best idea, but Alison was often a little impulsive.

Deeeep Inhale.... Looong Exhale....

"Finally..." Alison walked back into the hotel room with quite a few bags in hand. She set all of them down at once and then separated them real quick. She hurried to her room with one of the bags, hiding it under her pillow. With a giggle, she hurried back and put bags full of food she had brought home on the counter, ready to be passed out once she figured out where the hell Mikhail was. "Sleep... right." she thought as she placed the other bags on the couch. Stretching first, causing her back to pop a bit, she sighed in relief as pressure had been released. "Much better." she mumbled as she went over to Mikhail's room. Since she was assuming that he was asleep, she didn't bother knocking. She liked seeing him before he woke up anyway. His face was always softer when he wasn't awake.

Unfortunately and pretty damn fortunately, Mikhail wasn't actually asleep when she scuttled her way into his room. Before she even noticed him, Alison ran into Mikhail's back. His skin was cool; she could tell he had just gotten out of the shower and wasn't dressed. She was a little startled at it, but what happened next startled her more. Her intentions were to aplogize and walk out, but his reflexes in this sudden situation were more offensive, or defensive, than that. She couldn't tell which one he was being. All she could tell was that he spun around quicker than she could react. She was in a mid-back step when her right lower arm was grabbed and then half a moment later her left one was too. Next thing she knew, her back was up against the wall and Mikhail's towel had fallen.

"It's me! It's me! It's me!" she said in a panic. His face was so close to hers. Her eyes were wide and her heart was racing. It wasn't because of this odd situation though. It was because there was a brief moment that she had begun to collect the air behind him and was ready to use it to throw his naked ass out of the window of this room. He didn't hurt her though, so she instantly stopped. A seconds later, he let go her and she placed her hand on her chest, sliding her back down the wall and sitting there for a second to catch her breath. She couldn't completely do that though, because by sitting down, it was right in front of her. The moment she realized this, Alison's face blanked. She stared at it without a change in her expression, then looked up to him, "Good genes or blessed?"

Mikhail's response made her giggle. "You certainly are a cocky one... pun intended." Alison said as she stood up and dusted off her clothes to straighten them up, "I'll be in the lounge area. Sorry about running in on you." Alison waved as she stepped out of the room to allow him to get dressed. As she closed the door behind her, she smacked both of her hands over her face and as her faced thermometered a tomato red color. She ran across the lounge to her own room, ran in, closed the door, and went to the bathroom. There, she splashed water on her face and dried herself off. Taking a few deep breaths, she calmed herself down and paced back and forth in the room for about thirty seconds until another deep breath and slow exhale confirmed she was calm enough to step out.

It seemed she made it back out right as he did. She merely gave him a smile and pointed toward the kitchen area. "I brought some food back like I said." she told him as she began unpacking the food. "Hm?" she looked to him as he asked his question, "Uh... No trouble, but I did get something that I hope is going to be worth while." She put up her index finger as if to tell him to give her a second and returned to her room. A moment later, she returned with two small boxes. She sat down on the other chair and handed him the first one. "It's my first gift to you. It is the gifting season after all" Alison said with a smile, a light tint of pink on her cheeks, "Go on. Open it, so you can open your second gift too!" Alison waited for him to open the gift to see what it is and inspect it a bit.

"It's an Arcane Wallet with the capacity value of five thousand gold." At first glance, it seemed like an oddly folded bunch of leather, but to someone who knew what it was, they would realize that it's actually an expensive piece. "From what they told me, you throw your coins in and they fall into a pocket dimension of sorts that you can't access without the wallet. The numbers you see there..." she pointed at the inside number that said '2,103', "That's how much you've got in there total. And see here..." she opened it a bit more to show him that his name was engraved on the inside, "Put a tiny bit of your blood right there and the wallet will absorb it, making it where only you can access it, even if someone else is holding it." That was a feature of this thing that well broke her.

Mikhail smiled and Alison's face softened. That smile made every ounce of coin she just used worth it. When he asked her about the debt, she nodded. "It's why I asked you that stuff earlier... about whether you'd leave." Alison looked away and toward the floor with a saddened expression, "I knew I was able to pay you back, so I wanted to know whether the moment you got your money you'd bolt. I wouldn't have held it back from you of course; I'm not that kind of person, but I guess I felt I needed to be prepared." Alison looked back to him with an appreciative smile. "I am glad you like it." she said with a much more cheerful tone. Her smile dropped quickly, turning into surprise when he pulled out a gift for her. She took it with an excited look in her eyes, but kept calm.

Alison went back over to her chair and sat down, unwrapping her gift with care, just in case something was breakable. When she opened the box, she stared for a few moments at the first thing she saw. She took the ivory knitting needles in her hand and smiled, a quick chuckle escaping through her nose. "I..." she hesitated for a moment, causing him to speak up. She looked to him, a gloss shining over her eyes. Was she ready to cry? Yes. Would she? No? He mentioned the ointments, so she looked back into the box to see them. "I have never had someone actually give me a gift like this." she said with a giggle, "And I'm not talking about the medicines, either. Thank you Mikhail, for actually paying attention to my likes and realizing something I needed."

"Now I have to find something to keep them in, but I'll do that after you open this one..." Alison picked up his other gift and handed it to him. This gift was qite a bit larger, so Alison had to hold it with two hands. She set it down on his lap and smiled. "Go, go. Open!" she said excitedly as she gently set her new knitting needles back into the box where they'd be safe. Once he opened, the first thing he'd be greeted with was her favorite picture (framed). It was one she had taken of him the first day she met and it was what she would call perfect! "I got them all developed while I was out. I didn't know whether you'd want to see all of them, so I just showed you my favorite one." she said bouncing up and down in excitement, "The lighting on your hair in face is so amazing!"

"Now the rest!" she pointed toward the box. The rest of his gift was a little on the normal side. He was always wearing white! She decided she wanted to see him in darker, more casual clothes. It would be fine if he didn't like them, but once he got to the very bottom, there was something casual, but not normal. It was a little heavy. "That's one of those long coat things... I liked the color and thought it'd look good on you." she said as she stood up and stepped up behind his chair. She leaned over his shoulder, placing her head by his and tapped on the pictures glass. "As you can see, I have a good eye for beauty and color, so I know it will look great on you." she reached out and ran her hand along the coat, "Fire and electricity resistant by one hundred percent... When you button it up, it works to keep you warm, while if you let it hang loose, it keeps your body temperature stable..." she looked at him and quickly kissed his cheek, "No matter what environment you're in."

"Actually, I might end up needing help..." Alison smiled sheepishly as she looked down to her hands. They really had been roughed up. She knew she was going over board on all of the knitting she had been doing. For a while, it wasn't for fun like she preferred, but that was gone now. "Once my hands heal up and the pain is gone, I'll be getting right back into knitting..." Alison said, holding her injured hands up and flexing the fingers, "It's one of the few things that is able to calm me down." And with that Alison excitedly gave him his second gift and watched him open it with a gleeful look. She loved the impressed looks he was actually getting on his face while he opened his gift. When he saw the picture though, he kind of did something she didn't expect by saying he'd keep it.

"Oh... Uh." Alison's face stayed normal, but she really wanted to cry at that point! She didn't want him to keep the picture, just to see it! She'd have to get a copy! Though, him staying around her is kind of a good trade? Yeah, that's how she'll look at it. "Okay then. I'm glad you like it. You look great." He continued through the clothes until he got to the jacket, where she felt she needed to explain exactly why this jacket was amazing. He looked at her, but she wasn't able to tell whether he was surprised by that little kiss of hers. That was okay though; he decided to surprise her with the three F's. She nodded, mouth slightly open as if she was to say something, but she just smiled and bit her bottom lip. "You... are so cute." Alison told him, "Stop making me think you're cute."

"A man that is handsome, interesting, fun, true to his word, and cute..." she thought to herself, pointing at different spots in the air as if there was some sort of list she was checking off. Looking back down to him, she raised an eyebrow and smiled more. She was about to talk, but he apparently had a second gift for her too. "Oh my..." she said in pleasant surprise, "Really?" Alison stared curiously at the gift as she returned to her chair. She opened it up and was surprised by the scarf. "So soft..." she ran the back of her hand along it and then unwrapped it from an ebony box that looked hand carved and well made. She glanced to Mikhail and he explained it all. "You made this... for me?" Alison felt a pull at her heart and at the corners of her eyes, "Wow... Mikhail, thank you."

Alison was a little silent for a moment. She picked up the knitting needles and placed them into their ebony box, loving the contrast between ebony and ivory. She neatly folded the scarf and set them both down on the table, making sure they couldn't fall. She quickly cleaned up all the paper and threw the trash away, making sure everything was back to being neat and clean. After she was done, she walked casually over to Mikhail, leaned over, and wrapped her arms tightly around him. She held on pretty tight, but it was obvious she didn't want to hurt him. With another kiss to his cheek, she let him go, revealing a few tears before picking up the precious gifts she had been given. "I-I'm gonna go put these away." she told him as she stepped toward her room, "Don't forget to eat."

He returned the hug and that's what mattered. She expected him to just let her hug him. The fact that he returned it showed that the two of them had become at least somewhat close. Alison returned to her room to put her things away, but she did take a moment to wash her face and straight up her hair. Tears were not a look that she wanted to stay. It was then that she returned to the other room and grabbed her plate. "You didn't have to wait for me." she blinked as she noticed he hadn't touched his food, "Thank you though." She smiled sweetly at him and sat down on the other chair. She placed her plate in her lap and began enjoying a chicken salad with ranch dressing. It had been a while since she got to enjoy one of these, and not something she ate while traveling.

After a few moments of silence, relaxing, and getting some delicious food into her belly, she decided to break the silence with something she had been curious about for a while now. "If you don't mind... There is something I wanted to ask you." she wiped her lips with a napkin and lightly cleared her throat, "I've... never really had a goal when it comes to my traveling. I sort of go where my feet take me, so I don't have a destination or anything like that in mind. I was wondering if you did? Before your plans were sort of bombarded by my photography, was there a place you had to go? Since..." Alison suddenly got a little shy and looked away, "...you said that you wouldn't mind traveling with me as long as I didn't pay for everything, I wanted to know where we'd be going."

After that bit was answered and discussed, Alison nodded and continued eating her food. Once she was done, she'd wait for him to finish and then take his plate over to the kitchen and clean everything up. Once that was done, she'd walk over to him and took a deep breath. "We're staying in Aria for a couple of days, right? To get a few odd jobs done and a little bit of money?" Alison asked, assuming he'd automatically confirm, "Then... Do not go over to Eighth Street." The way she said it was almost threatening, but in an odd way, "I am telling you Mikhail, do not go over to Eighth Street. The woman there that developed the photos was practically begging me to introduce you. She's got this strong thick hands, large puffy hair, and she's like the size of a horse... I couldn't get out of there quick enough! She tried to buy a picture off of me, but I told her not for sale. Did she listen? No! I got out of there safe and with all of the pictures, but..." Alison turned her head toward Mikhail with a horrified look on her face, "You have a fan... So no going over there, alright?"

"Hm." Alison had listened to everything Mikhail just said and was a little taken aback. Was he cocky or actually serious? He never seemed to have an ego begore? Well, he never seemed to have a huge ego at least. But with this, he said he was actually traveling around to find someone who can beat him. Apparently he was the best, but should she believe something like that? Alison looked away, as if a few images popped into her head. A moment later, she put her hand in front of her mouth and giggled. "I see. Alright then." Alison said, giving a short sigh afterwards, "If that is what your goal is, then sure. If you wouldn't mind it, I have no problem traveling around with you until you find that someone... Before I met you, I was always alone, so now I'll have someone to travel with."

And then that conversation started. "No, no, no, no, no, no!!" Alison waved her hands in front of her and shook her head, "She's just a super big unattractive woman. She has no powers and no fighting skill, but she was just so clingy and really wanted to meet you." She scratched sheepishly at the side of her face and glanced away. The fact was, the woman Alison was talking about was actually rather petite, cute, and well-dressed. She was too pretty for Alison's liking and she didn't want  Mikhail anywhere near that stupid girl. As she thought about this though, why was she so protective over him in the first place? It's not like they were interested in each other, or her in him, or him in her... or whatever. Right? He wasn't her man, so there was no reason to hold him back!

"Trust me... You'll have no reason to go to that shop except to be bombarded by giant saggy breasts, over sized lips, and a massive amount of perfume that would kill over any beast who came near her... Also her trying to get you naked, but... That's all that will welcome you there!" Alison crossed her arms and nodded seriously, hoping her fake warnings were enough to keep him away from the cute girl.

"I can tell that you and I are going to have a good time traveling together." Alison said happily in reply to his comment. The only thing she had to do now was make sure that he wasn't going to go toward that horrid woman. Whether or not she was actually beautiful is not the problem. Okay, that's a lie. It is the problem, and Alison did not understand why she was so... protective over Mikhail. It's like she was trying to put this big sign over his head saying 'Belongs To Alison'. Ugh. Frustrating. Either way, trying to keep him away from her would be a pain. If everything he said was true, he wasn't going to stick around that woman even if he did go see how pretty she was. She was so damn dainty, Alison wondered whether she would be his typ-... Ugh! Alison shook her head, trying to rid herself of these thoughts. Taking a deep breath, she hurried to get done eating. Once she was finished, she shot Mikhail a nice smile. "I think it's my turn to take a shower and rest." she said, standing up and putting her dishes in the kitchen area. She'd clean them up later. "I'll be taking a nap and resting my feet for as loong as possible. If ya need me, don't hesitate to gimme a call." Alison waved back to him as she made her way to her room. From there, she took a nice hot shower and went to bed...

~End~