The Durben sat near the gate that divided New Haven from Dragon's Gate, close to Benson Boulevard but not on it, and a good ways away from the better boutiques on that road anyways. It wasn't too much of a walk from where Locke's flat was located on the western side of New Haven, and it was a reasonably nice night for walking. A little warm for the ice elf, but at least the clouds overhead didn't seem likely to turn into rain. He had shed the suit he'd worn to work in exchange for a purple multi-striped dress shirt with a silver collar pin and snowflake cufflinks, cream colored trousers, a black belt, and a well-polished pair of brown leather wingtips. He strolled through the revolving door at the entrance to the Inn that deposited him in the dimly lit lobby, and with a friendly nod to the clerk on duty, headed past the leather sofas and recliners and well-polished faux-bookshelves and coffee tables that were sitting unused, to the stairwell. Once on the second floor, he smoothly counted the numbers on the doors until he had arrived at the correct room. The old, familiar knock soon followed.

"Shave and a hair cut..."

Katarina moved from her seat on the small couch, smoothed down her simple black dress with large, light tan flowers, before moving for the door. A quick ruffle of her hands through her hair to bring it forward, the she opened the door with a large smile. "Hey!" She moved to give him a quick hug, before opening the door further to let him in.

He took a moment to readjust the messenger bag on his arm after the hug, before he stepped into the room. "It is good to see you as well, Katarina." He slid the bag down his arm so the strap was in his hand, looking around for a place to hang it or store it.

She helpfully (or not so helpfully) pointed to the ground by the door, "Ya kin put it 'n th' bed too if ya wan'." She stretched out her arms above her head for a moment, "Ya've go' good timin'. Jist came home nah too long 'go fra th' theatre. I thin' they're tryin' ta own mah soul er somethin', wit' all the time they need bafore th' openin' nigh'."

"The same way Gerard owned mine for the month or so before Fashion Week?" Locke dropped the bag to the floor with an unceremonious *plop*, before mimicking her stretch. "It sounds all too familiar to me."

She couldn't help herself, she reached out to idly tickle his exposed sides, "Yeah, somethin' like tha'. Dun help tha' we're workin' 'n tha' separat' projec', yanno? Bu' dun worray, I wun ferget 'bout ta er anythin'." She smiled again, before returning to her seat on the couch with a sigh.

He dropped his arms to try and protect himself, with little luck. He giggled and squirmed a little, before the tickling ceased. "Don't forget about yourself, either, Katarina." He glanced away for a second, before looking back to the couch. He quickly shuffled over and dropped down beside her rather inelegantly.

She giggled as he all but flopped down next to her on the couch, "Wha's there ta ferget 'bout me, yeah? Only thin' I need's gettin' outta here sooner er later." She motioned around the room with a finger, "Bu' otherwise.. I hav' all tha' I wan', yeah?"

"It will all fall in line, sooner or later. I have a peculiar feeling about that. Though for your sakes, I certainly hope it occurs sooner." He chuckled dryly, as he scooted back on the cushion he'd unceremoniously flounced upon.

"Peculiar feelin's? An' hav' yer peculiar feelin's eva let ya down bafore?" She was looking at him with no hidden amusement and interest.

"I do not believe they have steered me wrong yet," he retorted, with another familiar phrase and a gentle nudge of his elbow into her side.

She laughed lightly at the nudge and shifted so that she was sitting closer to him, "Well then, nah I dun thin' they hav'. Go' any otha peculiar feelin's tha' I should know 'bout now? Migh' save me trouble worryin' ova 'em lata." she grinned.

"None that spring to mind currently. Though you will be the first person to know if I do." He glanced to the side, and gave her a slow, exaggerated wink before dissolving into further giggles.

I betta be!" She giggled along with him, before promptly snuggling close, "I mean, now tha' I know tha' yer jist 'bout righ' 'n everythin', I kin't let ya outta mah sigh'!" Her arms were quick to teasingly bind around him.

He pretended to struggle against her arms, but it was quite clear the effort was half-hearted. "Oi! Have I become your lucky rabbit's foot, or four leaf clover? Because I must say, if you're counting on something for luck, you're wasting your bloody time. You make your own luck, savvy?" His tone was half-teasing, half-serious.

"Yeah yeah, I know." She giggled and relaxed the tension in her arms, but made no move to remove them, "An' jist fer th' record, I thin' higher o' ya 'n some lucky objec'. I mean, jist a li'l bi' 'n all." Her voice obviously teasing.

Rather than use the opportunity to escape, he scooted closer to her, his eyes glowing with mirth. "Regardless, you seem to have captured me. Somehow. How, praytell, did you do it?" His eyes opened wider with the question.

She pursed her lips as if to really consider his question, "I thin' tha' yer charm's rubbed off 'n me, yeah? An' yanno, 'm a Smith. We know how ta choose 'em, savvy? I hate ta break it ta ya, bu' ya didn' hav' a figh'in' chance. An' ya definitely dun hav' one no more."

"I know." He craned and twisted his neck, trying to make eye contact with her. "I am certain it is as plain as the nose on my face, or the eyes in my skull." His last words were a breath, a whisper on the wind. "Amin naa avaene estela*."

She laughed happily, "Well, dun seem too down 'bout it! Amin naa avaene estela, vithel, if tha' makes ya feel any betta."

"It does. It is a good feeling." Now he attempted to squirm free of the cage, though it was more to test and see how hard she was going to try to keep him in.

"Then whay ya tryin' ta leave?" She giggled as her arms tightened, one hand clamping over the other wrist to try and hold onto him.

"I'm not!" Locke said rather unconvicingly, as he weakly struggled against the bonds. "I was just...going...to do something." He found himself struggling for a good excuse, and had to shake his head at the lame one he offered up.

"Yeah huh." She laughed once more, before releasing her grip on him. "I see how it is." She leaned away from him to make her point, even though she was reaching for a folded pair of gloves that were in the pocket of the jacket draped over the other side of the couch.

"Freedom!" Jubilantly, he tossed his hands up in the air and held them there, though he couldn't help but watch Katarina reach for something in her jacket. "You see how what is?"

She feigned innocence, before swiftly putting the gloves on, "Nothin'."



*I am hopeless
I am hopeless also

"It's-" He stopped abruptly, to turn the words over in his head. Once he was satisified with what he had to say, he started back up again, speaking in slow, measured tones. "I must confess, I had ulterior motives for that camping trip in the lobby. That is to say, I had fun eating popsicles and arm wrestling with you, and just being with you in general. But..." He felt the blush creeping across his cheeks, but continued anyways. "What I really wanted was to fall asleep beside you. I would have been perfectly content if that was all that happened." He exhaled into a deep sigh. "I suppose that is my roundabout way of saying, amin merna lle yassen amin vithel,* savvy?"

She sighed gently, a small smile playing on her lips at his confession, "I gotta say, tha' was mah favorite par' o' th' campin', even if I wasn' 'wake fer it, yeah? Look, we'll figure somethin' ou', even if tha' means ya stayin' 'n yer sleepin' bag fer now, I jist.. I jist wanna know tha' yer ready an' okay wit' me startin' ta look inta this, 'cause 'm gonna give it all I go, yeah?" Her eyes were set on his.

"I won't lie and say that I'm not a bit petrified at the thought of this." He resisted the urge to look away, to shake his head, and kept his warm eyes trained on hers. "From more than one perspective. There are the obvious safety concerns that would need to be ironed out." He squeezed her hand again, seeking strength in the gesture. "This is new territory for me, and as much as it makes my heart skip beats like a child playing hop scotch, it also makes me worry. We've talked about these things before, and I'm sure we will again, but it doesn't make them go away any faster, savvy? My hopes and fears and wants and desires." He wanted to lean forward all the way, to rest his forehead against hers, but he settled for bringing his face as close as he comfortably could. "But...cards on the table. I would like that, and I will try my damnedest to make it work." Gaze flicked to the side, nervously, before it darted back up again. "Will-will that work for you?"

Her breath caught in her throat, and all she could do was nod until she reminded herself to breath once more. Her own nerves finally showed in light laughter and her free hand running through her hair, "I dunno wha' 'm doin', eitha. I haven' lived wit' a man bafore tha' nah mah blood, nah ta men'ion deal wit' th' otha concerns we shar'. Bu'.. bu' 've hesitated bafore, yanno? An' I dunno if thin's would be differen', if I had manned up an' made steps forward. I dun wan'ta lose opportunities 'gain, yeah?" That was territory she had not anticipated exploring, and so she shook her head slowly and squeezed his hand, "If i's too fas', er yer nah comfor'able, jist tell me. 'm nah goin' anywheres, yeah?"

"And neither am I. There is certainly no harm in looking into it, and seeing if it is possible. There are several bridges still to cross, and all we can do is take them one at a time, as they come before us." He lifted his free hand up to brush against her temple and trace, feather-soft, across her cheek and chin. "But I will certainly let you know if it is too fast or too uncomfortable."

Her eyes automatically closed at the light caress to her face and she sighed again, only this time with relief. She blushed faintly before saying the only simple words that came to mind, "Thank you."

"You're welcome. And thank you." A genuine smile crossed his face and reached his eyes, as his hand went back to rest on his leg.

She remained quiet for a few moments, returning his genuine smile and once more leaning comfortably against him. Her mind was bombarded with possibilities, both of success and failure. She finally let out breathy laughter, " 'm sorray, mate. Didn' wan'ta quiet brin' it up so suddenly. I was workin' 'n bein' more subtle, yanno?"

He chuckled at that, his smile widening. "You should know that subtlety is not one of my strong suits. I tend to attack problems head on." The chuckle died down just a little bit. "For better or for worse."

"Well, i's nah mine eitha, if ya hadn' noticed." Her free hand reached out to gently bop his nose, "So we'll handle problems righ' then 'n there."

The chuckle mutated into a giggle at the tap on the nose. "It certainly saves a lot of hand-wringing, doesn't it?"

"Well yeah it should, bu' I dun thin' ya quite go' it down." She squeezed his hand gently, before clarifying, "It gives ya 'way, yanno."

"Gives me away, how so?" He lifted an eyebrow at the thought.

"Ya fidge' lot when yer nervous, did'cha know?" she raised their joined hands slightly for emphasis.

"Well, yes, but everybody does that, right? And when it pays for me to keep my cool, I can do it, easy peasy. And I'm good at reading other people's tells, too." He screwed up his face to scrutinize her, though the effect was sillier than he was trying for.

"Yeah? An' wha' do yer readin's say 'bout me?" She posed for his scrutiny, her lips trembling in her attempt to suppress her grin.

"When you get emotional, your accent vanishes. *Poof!*" He let go of her hand so that he could clap his own together, high and in the air for added emphasis. "Just like that."

"Jist like tha'? Poof?!" She giggled at his hand gestures, before grinning, "Okay, an' tha' goes fer all o' family. Anythin' else?"

"If I tell you, I lose my advantage, don't I?" He smirked, folding his arms across his chest. "You never know when we might be across the table from each other at some poker tournament, and I need to bluff you."

She huffed and placed her hands on her hips once more, "Ya thin' tha' ya gotta advan'age now? Jist spit it ou'. I ain' gonna play ya 'n poker."

"What do I get in return, for removing my tactical advantage?"

" 'm already gonna go lookin' ta buy a house, ain't I? Sound like ya ar' th' one owin' me, mate." She raised a brow.

"And you're not even going to ask me to pay rent?" He huffed, pretending to blow an imaginary lock of hair out of his eyes. "Fine, fine, you win. I always know when you're deep in thought, when you purse your lips." He did an exaggerated version of the gesture. "Like this."

"Yeah, bu' tha's a good thin', righ'? Means 'm really thinkin' 'bout wha' yer sayin'. Usin' mah loaf an' wha' no'." She pointed to her temple with a grin.

"Of course it is a good thing." He pouted, suddenly. "I'm not that easy to read, am I?"

"Nah, yer nah. I only know 'cause I like lookin' a' ya lot, savvy?" She giggled, aiming a poke once more for his middle.

He nearly cooed with laughter, even as he attempted to wriggle away. "No fair! You know all my weak spots! No wonder you leave me helpless."

"Ya know mine, too! 'm jist quicker's all." And just because he said that, she was relentless in continuing her pursuit of his laughter.

He kicked, he squirmed, he batted at the air but to no avail. "Ha...that's not...ha! True and you...hehe! Know it, mate." Any further words were drowned out by his laughter.

"Is so! Is so is so!" She laughed alongside with him, before giving his middle a tender squeeze and letting go so that he may catch his breath. Despite the lightness of their time together, she knew that obstacles and disappointment were close and within sight. She would bottle and capture their happiness now to use as a foundation for when their concerns became realities.


*I want you with me, also