[FIN][Zena] Winters Touch [Asa/Ygraine]

[Painted Moose]

"That may be so, but old habits are hard to break." He attempted to laugh - wanted to - but a cough interrupted it. This fit lasted a little longer, leaving him with a slight wheeze afterwards. Asa placed the flat of his palm against his chest and pressed, focusing on his breathing as he'd been taught to do since childhood. It helped to ease the burden, but not enough to leave him as free as he had felt earlier in the day.

"Forgive me, I should have tried harder to hold that in." It was impolite to cough in front of a lady; and despite what his parents may think, that's exactly what Ygraine was. A lady in the truest sense of the word.

And a lady should never be privy to a man's weakness.

"But I asked of your mo- Oh, oh. You have-" Asa's scrunched brows suddenly lifted into his hairline and his skin darkened with a flush. "I'm very sorry for assuming - I shouldn't have -" In his panic Asa began to cough once again, hunching forward to try and get his bearings as best he could.  

[scarlett arbuckle]

As much as Ygraine wanted to be quiet and respectful of his privacy, as this coughing fit went on she felt more and more nervous. What did she need to do if he lost his breath and passed out? Should she carry him somewhere, or would that be bad for him, to move him? But soon enough he finished, and she released a sigh of relief, only to frown, brows furrowing in confusion. How exactly was he expected to control it?

What was he supposed to do, hold it in, and risk busting a lung ??

This time, though, when he realized his mistake (one that she honestly thought very little of), Ygraine scooted closer and gently pat her palm against his back, expression furrowing into one of concern. "Shh- don't be silly, you had no way of knowing, Asa -" Shoot. What should she do? Biting her lip, Ygraine decided to break her boundary, for the moment, and move just a bit closer, continuing to rub her hand along his back as soothingly as possible. For all she knew she was only making it worse; a total stranger, all in his business, but... but! What else should she do, just leave him alone in the midst of his episode? She couldn't just, in good conscience, move away now- not unless he told her to leave himself.  

[Painted Moose]

The teenager crumpled further into himself, hands reaching up on impulse to clasp at the cloth above his aggravated lungs. He hated this. Was it so far fetched for him to have a 'normal' conversation with someone without this getting in the way? It had been so nice, being treated like an average man and now-

-now she was trying to sooth him, which in it's kindness also had it's own sort of sting. That illusion of normalcy was ruptured and surely their talk wouldn't be the same after. She would treat him like something breakable, or worse, as if he were disease incarnate.

At first, when his breathing began to level it shifted into a sort of gasping wheeze. He took great, gulping breaths that were exhaled far too quickly and left him light headed. By the time his coughing fit was over Asa was exhausted; a sign that made itself clear when he leaned over onto Ygraine and closed his eyes. "S-s-sorry, I'll move...in a minute...just can't...now..."  

[scarlett arbuckle]

It was the most painstaking few minutes of her life, and she wasn't even the one experiencing the coughing fit! She stayed patiently still, continuing her soothing motions until she thought better of it, and instead just let him cough. When he finally stopped, she wasn't sure if it was because he'd recovered, or simply worn himself out too much to continue.

She hummed gently in response, her arm dropping so that it casually circled his lithe waist, fingers tucking into the thick folds of coat discarded there. Maybe, as a man, he would resent the overly familiar touch, but it was more comfortable for her than simply letting her arm hang where he leaned against it. "There's no hurry - I'm tired from the road, too." Ygraine responded, quirking a smile. It was still a beautiful place to sit, even if she felt as if her nerves were cut in two from the previous attack.

She had never felt such a rush of protectiveness in her life, and felt ashamed at the fact - it was too close to pity, and from his somewhat worried demeanor she doubted he'd appreciate the gesture, or a stranger seeing him so weak. "Is there... somewhere I can bring you? So that you feel a bit better?"  

[Painted Moose]

Asa hummed in agreement, still far too breathless to formulate anything close to a sentence. He could still feel his lungs constricting; that tight, heavy feeling that never seemed to leave him. It would lighten from time to time, only to return with a vengeance.

It was strange and unnerving to have her holding him so close. Just the casual touch around his waist felt wrong because of the rules that governed him. Such a thing was too...too personal to do with a stranger, and for a moment he tensed. If they were caught then...but the tension didn't stay in Asa. He was too tired to fight it, and honestly, having someone touch him in a positive way felt too nice to shun.

He took deeper breaths, and focused on talking. Asa gestured vaguely to his throat and chest. "It hurts... to breath out here...I think I should go back to the inn." The admission burned more than the chilly air. He was experiencing so much more out here then he ever would indoors, but his body couldn't handle it.  

[scarlett arbuckle]

"Alright." Ygraine agreed, shooting her new friend a concerned look. Carefully she extricated herself from him, using a hand to push herself up. Once standing, she turned to face him and extended a hand for him to take, tilting her head to look at the streets around them. She was still unfamiliar with the place, and while she assumed he was needing to take his leave of her and would shortly be saying good bye, she still rather wanted to escort him home to the inn.

He seemed so exhausted that she feared if she left him alone, he may not make it back, and the prospect terrified her. So, she may as well make her intentions clear, so they weren't sidestepping the topic as he struggled to stand. She'd help him scoop up his many discarded layers once he stood up, but there was no hurry for it.

"You'll have to point me where it is, but I'll take you there, if it helps! Then I can show my father where it is too - saves me quite a bit of time." Ygraine was trying to keep her voice jovial, overly friendly, like her papa did a lot of the time, but was finding it difficult to do so. She'd learned from her fathers' recovery from their Oban trip that people who were injured disliked other people flitting about them, pitying them for their bad luck in life.  

[Painted Moose]

Asa turned his world weary eyes up, following the length of Ygraine's arm to her ethereal features. It seemed so novel to him that he would meet someone so full of life and vigor, unrestrained by the trappings of society, while he could only dream. His hand reached for hers, tentative at first, as if he were afraid, while the other reached back to the tree trunk for additional support. Standing wasn't the most graceful of affairs, but he made it up with as much of his dignity in tact as possible.

"Forgive me, Miss, this...this is all very kind of you and I am sorry- Well, I...I suppose I should just stop talking now, shouldn't I?."

Anymore and Asa may as well stick his boot in his mouth. He released her hand, keeping the contact as brief and polite as possible, before looking around for the discarded layers.  

[scarlett arbuckle]

Painted Moose

Once the boy was standing, their difference in height was only exaggerated - she towered above him, the top of his head reaching her collarbone, if that! Ygraine quirked her lips reassuringly, giving his hand a slight squeeze, before releasing him, instead stooping down to pick up the discarded layers of coats and cloaks, brushing her arm against them to knock away the dirt and bark that had settled on them.

With his instruction, she helped him slip the cloaks back on, stepping back until he'd bundled himself up once again, then followed his directions to the inn.

The walk was quiet, and lasted longer than she'd have expected, given how winded Asa was. But, eventually, they reached a side door to a massive, opulent looking inn. There, as she pulled the door open for him, Ygraine hesitated, knowing she wasn't welcome just yet. "It's been nice, Asa. Hopefully I can talk to you again, before I head home." She reached once more to set a hand at his shoulder, squeezing it, then stepped back, letting the door close heavily behind him.

Now she just... had to find her family again. And try and forget about the sickly boy who she was suddenly so worried about.