Chapter Text
The wedding had fallen to a being buried a few days in the past, which was a disappointment for Ryza and Klaudia, but the memories were still as fresh as could be. Their photos from the occasion were also as lovely as they could have hoped; their shared favorite was the moment of truth captured in photograph form: their kiss on the pavilion. No other moment could be so magical. By now, the couple was far from Kurken or Ashra-Am Baird for a week or two, for their honeymoon. Klaudia's father happened to have a private vacation home going unused post-summer far away from where they could be bothered, so it became the perfect opportunity to get away from everyone else and bask in the revelations of marriage.
Today was warm and sunny with plenty of smaller clouds floating about, just like the wedding day, and perfect for idling about doing nothing productive, or going outside - and idling about doing nothing productive. Of course, both had their difficulties with that sometimes, particularly when they weren't physically together, but right now it was especially enticing. There was a small beach nearby that they had surveyed once already, and they had planned to go again to properly spend time by the waves. Ryza additionally admitted to wanting to fish, which made a good excuse to plan for a seafood lunch - if it was actually a sea of course; in this case it was just a large lake, though not salty like Lake Elm.
“Today's so nice today… I wonder what's brighter, Klaudia - the sunshine, or your hair?”
“I'd say your grins outmatch both, dear. It's always so delightful to see you smile or grin like that. Bonus if I get to hear your silly giggles from you in addition.”
“Klaudia, stooop iiit, you're gonna make me blush!~”
“A bit late for that, don’t you think? You're so funny, Ryza. So much joy all in one singular package, anyone would be lucky to have you. Not that I'd permit anyone else to steal you from me, of course.”
“They'd go through hell trying to take your wife from you, huh?”
Damn right they would. Klaudia had proven to be slightly possessive of Ryza even before they were married, particularly following their engagement. She wasn't really jealous when other people looked at her or interacted with her, but she experienced inclinations to make it especially clear to other people in general that Ryza was hers and hers only in the truest sense. Of course, Klaudia was also practiced in the ways of discretion, so she didn't actually force such messages onto anyone else. Thankfully that wouldn’t apply at all for the time being, and for Ryza, that much was a relief; she knew how her wife was, though she couldn't fault her.
Their day started ordinarily, with breakfast and helping each other get ready for the day - from picking outfits, to brushing each other's hair, they were keen on treating such matters as partner work where such opportunities presented themselves; it was just more fun like that for them. Klaudia had also brought with her something she knew Ryza would enjoy, contained within the same case it always resided.
“I always love hearing your flute, but I don’t think I've ever tried fishing while listening to it. I wonder if it'll help or if I'll get distracted instead by the beauty of it, ehehe.”
“I suppose we will see for ourselves, won't we? You could think of it as a challenge of sorts.”
“Maybe I will! I feel like I'll probably lose in the end… But not to the flute!”
Klaudia flashed a smug smirk, she knew what Ryza meant by that, and she knew how things would probably turn out. Of course, she didn't voice her prediction; it was more appealing to let things just play out and steer things on course if needed. They wasted no more time as they finished up and departed for the beach to enjoy themselves.
There were seats waiting for them from their previous brief excursion here, and Klaudia made herself right at home in the first one she came to. Ryza, who was almost ready to run to the water's edge, was affixing the bait to her line - and then the urge to meet the water overcame her. It wasn’t surprising, but Klaudia found it silly to watch as she opened the case on her lap and retrieved the flute she played for Ryza every so often. Of course, others had heard it too, but Klaudia typically only brought it out for her wife when they were alone. Also in the case were some sheets of music scores. These weren't chosen randomly; rather, they were pieces that Klaudia had played previously that Ryza had especially taken a liking to. Klaudia had them memorized for that purpose, but she brought the sheets to help herself choose what to play, though she didn’t have any particular method for choosing.
Ryza was gamely watching over where her line was now reaching into the ripples of the lake and was idly moving her hips side to side as she waited for a bite. Klaudia hadn’t even begun to play before she found herself staring at her beloved's stance. She smiled, before she met her flute and began to play. Unknowingly at first, Ryza’s movements began to slow and start to follow the rhythms of the tunes that she knew and loved from Klaudia's flute not far behind her. She began to hum along with the music as the lake's surface made the line bounce and slack, waiting for that sudden jerk of a bite. Her eyes closed subsequently, and she felt the rapture having overtaken her. Klaudia meanwhile, was watching her wife contentedly as she played. Before too long, Ryza's gentle air became, in one moment, a rush of adrenaline as the line's slack was lost to a tug from below the lake's surface, and she fought back. Klaudia's music slowly became more uncoordinated, until she had to stop, and around that moment, Ryza yanked a smaller, but very disgruntled Mace Fish from the lake, and it thrashed about as it hit the sands of the beach.
“Ah! That's not what I wanted! Ah jeez… Can I get a hand, love?”
“I’m coming! Don’t touch it yet!
At once, Klaudia's seat had been occupied by the flute alone, as Klaudia rushed to help get the fish back to the water - they weren't especially delectable AND they were usually rather aggressive; a wrong move could cost a finger or two. Ryza grabbed the tail end of the fish while Klaudia grasped the dorsal fin, making sure to stay clear of the fish's maw. Ryza initiated a countdown, and on “three”, they tossed the fish to the water and subsequently bolted back to the safety of the sand, as the angry fish retreated back to its lair in the lake.
“Well, I didn’t expect you to hook that of all things. You fought it well, dear.”
“Ahaha… Uhhh, yeah…. I think I'm… gonna wait before I try again later. Sorry about that, Klaudia.”
“No, no, it's okay, Ryza. I'm just glad you didn't get bit by the thing… and that it was small.”
“Why don't we go back to the house for now? We can try again tonight, I know fish sounds great for dinner, too.”
“Alright. There's plenty we can do otherwise.”
They retrieved their belongings and traveled back to the vacation home, where Ryza had an idea, something they hadn't done in a while. She knew Klaudia would be interested and was eager to share once they set their stuff down.
“Klaudia, I was thinking… I don't know what you had in mind when we got back, but… Given the phonograph and records in the lounge… Would you care to dance with me?”
“Ryza… Yes, yes, I would love to dance with you… my wife.”
“Let's pick a good record to start with… Shall we?”
Their hearts were a mess of pitter patters now, they hadn't danced together in quite a while due in part to their working, but this was the perfect getaway to revisit the idea. Of course, the furniture in the lounge needed a bit of rearranging to grant room, but it was fairly simple for the couple to do. Upon that completion, they sat on the sofa, overlooking a selection of records they could play, taking this as a chance to rest from moving things around a bit. They kept to choices they both liked, and they eventually selected three they could play in succession if they wanted. Klaudia loaded the phonograph with the first, and turned to her lover, taking her hands as she stood up to meet her in the room's center.
“Since it's been a while… You wanna start with a waltz? It'll be like our first time when we were both sick…”
“That sounds like such a romantic idea, Ryza… I'd love that.”
As the music played, the two joined Klaudia's left hand with Ryza's right, and their other hands took to circling around to support each other from behind. Their dance started off a bit rusty, with Ryza accidentally stepping on Klaudia's toes a couple times at first. They found their rhythm soon enough, and their movements began to pick up vigor. Their favorite parts were the twirls; when Klaudia raised her arm to allow Ryza hers, her laughs and smiles from her gave Klaudia all sorts of renewed life. Their dance came to its conclusion after about five or six minutes with their faces close, and they both only chuckled delightedly.
“Gosh, I think dancing with you is even more fun now that we're married, Klaudia. Don't you agree?”
“Absolutely, Ryza… I'd like to continue for a while… I would love a tango or two, if you wouldn't mind.
“You're so demanding, sugar… And I can only go along with your needs… I hope you're happy, hehe.”
There wasn’t any doubt that Klaudia was, the smile on her face as Ryza said it conveyed everything, but it was fun to pose the “question” nonetheless. They shared several hours in the afternoon like this, with dances that were more intense, dances that featured kisses in their middles, and even picking each other up at points. Records were replayed to provide music throughout the duration, and the air in the room was nothing short of pure joy. At roughly four thirty in the afternoon, their session came to an end, and the only acceptable ending was a final kiss to end it.
“I have no words for how magical that was for me, Ryza… I think we could hold stage careers if we wanted.”
“I dunno if I'd go that far… but I'd like to think we could put on a show for our friends if they were here!”
“I think their jaws would drop… I don’t even know if any of them know we dance from time to time when we can be afforded the chance.”
“Who knows! Might be fun to ask them sometime. I'd rather just show, but… where could we really do that?”
“It is a shame, yes. That being said… I think we should head back to the beach to try to catch dinner again if we want fish tonight.”
Ryza had just about forgotten dinner; her mind was dancing with thoughts akin to how she and her wife were just dancing. A bit embarrassing, if not for Ryza's fish craving apparently being a driving force in her mind. They grabbed Ryza's fishing rod and bait, and made apace to the shoreline - Klaudia was more being dragged along than actually traveling alongside, but she didn't mind. Ryza had her hand in her grip the whole time and that was perfectly fine with Klaudia. In no time, Ryza was almost knee deep in the water, had her bait readied and the line in the water. This time with her love was standing beside her, also in the water, observing.
“Brrr… Ryza, this water's absolutely cold… How do you stand this, honey?”
“Years of experience, I guess. I don't like the cold water either, but I'm sorta used to it. For some reason all the lakes like to be chilly unless they're getting beat down by the sun directly.”
“I suppose you have been fishing since you were a kid… It makes sense you would be used to this.”
“Yeah, I'm used to a lot of things but one thing I hate with it is fishing in the rain. I try to avoid it unless I'm fulfilling a job back in the atelier.”
“Mmm… I can imagine why; it probably gets real cold in cases like that. I know I'd probably hate it. I'm better with idle cold like winter air.”
They weren't waiting for very long when a bite took the line, this one stronger than the Mace Fish before; it nearly stole the whole rod from Ryza with how sudden it was and the fact she was talking to Klaudia. It was enough to throw Ryza off guard, and she needed help.
“Klaudia, brace me!”
“O-okay!”
Klaudia wrapped her arms around Ryza's midriff as the alchemist leaned forward and back fighting the apparent lunker she'd snagged, yanking the rod somewhat every so often. Eventually, she chose to change her ground as the fish wore itself down.
“Reverse with me, Klaudia, I gotta get this fish to shallower water so I can get it out!”
"Understood! I’m right with you!”
Eventually, after about five solid minutes, Ryza heaved the rod a final time, and an entire Lake Master came flying at them, and both girls had to abandon their positions to avoid getting clobbered by the fish.
“Ryza… Did you miraculously hook a whole Lake Master in one try? Normally in the past you spent ages trying to catch them.”
“Uhhh… I guess so! Umm… It seems a fair bit smaller from the ones I've mainly seen, but that sucker had a lotta fight in it… Crap, I need a minute…”
The fish flounced about, and soon its writhing came to an end. Ryza almost felt bad for the fish, but seafood had to come from somewhere; especially if they wanted it fresh. Plus, it almost made off with the whole rod, which wasn't so forgivable. She put a lot of care into that rod, she would rather keep it instead of it becoming part of the lake’s possessions.
“So, umm… I guess this'll be dinner? Seems a bit much…”
“We can prepare later servings for tomorrow if you want. The house does have a refrigerator, after all.”
“That sounds great! Especially a rarer thing like this… I did good!”
“Ehehe… that you did, love. That you did.”
They brought the fish home and Klaudia took to preparing several portions first and began cooking two of them up on the gas stove they had. Ryza was standing right behind her, and after a bit, couldn't resist hugging her wife then and there around the midriff - not unlike what Klaudia had been doing earlier, minus the different circumstances and not outright squeezing her.
“Goodness me, honey; I'm making dinner…”
“I know, but you bracing me earlier just felt like a bear hug to me after the fact, and while nice, I love the gentle hugs with you. I think these ones from behind are some of my favorite ones, because I can just lay my chin on your shoulder like this. And really, I just enjoy your touch, as I'm sure you do mine.”
“You really are a sap, aren’t you? You're so cute, silly, and energetic, but even when that energy subsides, you become so affectionate. What am I going to do with you, my love?”
“You’re gonna return that affection tenfold because you love me and can't resist, ehehe.”
“I- Gracious, I can't argue with that, now can I? Alright then, kiss the cook to start, why don't you?”
“Don’t mind if I do!”
She might have aimed for the lips in her usual fashion if Klaudia wasn't handling food over a flame right now, so she instead settled for a firm peck planted on her cheek as compensation for the fact. Klaudia visibly blushed in response, to have her beloved with her even during simple everyday things was the best thing she could ask for. After a bit of further seasoning, simmering, and listening to Ryza's stomach grumbling audibly, dinner was served, and they were seated at the table.
“Dang, Klaudia, this is good! Who knew a Lake Master was this tasty?”
“That sounds so goofy when you say it like that, love.”
“It does not! You’re just jealous I'm able to catch such a beast!”
“Maybe a bit, but the fish was pulled in and claimed by a goofy woman - my goofy wife - so that makes your statement goofy.”
“Wh-what kinda sense does that make???”
“It doesn't, but I don’t need it to. I got my little blush and fluster out of you, didn't I?”
“Darn you, Klaudia! That's so evil of you!”
Dinner persisted back and forth like this, with Klaudia teasing and Ryza not having good defenses to it. The blonde knew she didn't try particularly hard to defend; she knew Ryza liked being teased affectionately. She knew too that the alchemist liked to do the same back, so she humored it whenever Ryza did it, and her heart fluttered any time Ryza flattered her in joking form. Anyone else might have told them to get a room at that point, which Klaudia was thinking about. She secretly was pondering Ryza's words of “returning it tenfold”, and what she could do to really get a silly reaction out of her. They finished eating and felt particularly full from it; apparently Lake Master was quite filling, which was convenient that they had more servings being stored for later.
“Well, I'd love to get changed out of my daily wear… It smells a bit like fish and now that I've eaten fish, I don't wanna smell like it.”
“Ehehe, I know what you mean. I'll come with you; I swear you contaminated me when you were hugging me by the stove.”
“Are you calling me stinky? Blame the fish for that…”
“Maybe, maybe not! I'll leave that up to you to decide.”
“Ooh… One day I'll learn your ways of teasing, I swear!”
“Hehe, I'm sure you will. But first let's clean these dishes, they won't do it themselves.”
Ryza assisted Klaudia once more with this task, and since there weren't many dishes, it didn't take particularly long, but there was the matter of cleaning up the counter as well. Wiped off and rinsed once they were left in the sink to soak, and from there they traversed upstairs to the master bedroom. What Ryza hadn’t seemed to pick up on as she dashed up the stairs, since she went ahead first, was that a shade of pink began to tint Klaudia’s face with whatever devices she was plotting.
Once in, the door shut and locked as if they weren't alone in the house, Ryza sat on the bed and began to get the current “fishwear” - as she called it in jest - off. Klaudia had started to disrobe as well while standing near her lover, but not yet looking at her. Secretly, she was plotting something unbeknownst to Ryza up to this point and had been ever since she was preparing dinner. Klaudia looked back at her wife, now topless on the bed, with a smug look. Ryza had now realized she'd gone slightly quiet and was about to ask if something was wrong when she was overtaken by a different question on the spot.
“Klaudia? W-why are you looking at me like that? Don't tell me you've got more teasing in store…”
“I have my reasons, sweetheart. They’re not unfounded, at least in my opinion.”
“Unfounded? Klaudia, what does that even mean…? You look like you're plotting something all of a sudden…”
“Oh, nothing much, really. Just something I've considered every now and then for a while. It's most appropriate now that you and I are married.”
Upon that line, Klaudia, who was now also bare in her upper half, sauntered over to Ryza, and gently pushed her to the bed, which threw her off big time. Ryza's face when red with sudden embarrassment, and realized Klaudia was also red from blush… But a different kind of blush was at work here. Her eyes looked like she'd just secured an amazing business deal, but what business was there to be had here? Ryza would find out momentarily as Klaudia crawled over her until they were directly eye-to-eye.
“You said earlier that I'd ‘give that affection back tenfold because I love you and can't resist’… And you were right, I think. I've wondered for some time what it would be like to get… intimate, both in general and especially with you… And I would love to learn with you.”
“K-Klaudia, y-you're not just teasing me are you… No, that face says you're being honest…”
“I certainly am, my love. Of course, I won't force this on you if you're not ready or interested. If you would rather not do this, we don't have-”
“N-No, it's okay, I just… wanna take this slow to start. It's all new territory, assuming you… mean what I think you mean.”
At this point Ryza's blush was perhaps as deep and rich in color as Klaudia had ever seen. She gave a strong case of side eye as she considered what was being laid out on the table - or bed, in this case - while Klaudia stared gazed at her with eyes of desire. She was definitely wanting, and Ryza was, needless to say, taken aback by the developments.
“I can hardly think of what else it might mean, considering we're both bare-chested like this, hm?”
“I-I guess you're right. I still smell like fish a little… Then again, so do you sorta… Okay then, if you're willing… then so am I.”
This was happening. This was really happening. There was a first time for everything, sure, but it wasn’t like the thought had never been put in Ryza’s head before. She just never expected this “first time” to come up like this. Truth be told, Klaudia didn't either; she just seized the opportunity as it arose just because she could and wanted to.
“So, Reisalin Valentz… You'll take good care of me tonight, won't you?”
“Of course, Klaudia. Anything for you, my darling.”