Think of me, oh say you'll think of me...

After recieving a very polite Owl from my Mother, a very interesting one from Dad, and two scribbled pictures from Clara and Caelum I headed off to the RoR.
I knew how much the elves like hearing me practice, but it was too close to the dungeons and if any slytherins heard me they'd probably laugh their arses off.
So pushing my glasses up my nose and pulling my pink hair back into a messy bun I entered the room, smiling as what i needed materialized. A grand piano, dark mahagony wood, simple dark walls and a wooden flooring with enough light to read the sheets of music awaiting me.
I sat down at the piano and took a deep breath before playing, Mothers letter hadbeen precise on what I was too be singing and how long I should practice.
What I didnt understand was why the room created a sofa opposite me. It wasnt like I had an audience, right?
Whatever, I warmed up my voice and started.
"think of me, think of me fondly, when we've said goodbye, remember me, once in a while, please promise me you'll try...(...)recall those days, think back on all those times, think of the things we'll never do, there will never be a day when I won't think of you..."
While I practiced I didnt notice the room opening the door ever so slightly, my voice carrying down the halls...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4GDf1LCpzN0&feature=related

Im obsessed soulmate!
http://www.polyvore.com/cgi/set?id=37787737&.locale=de

Tristan knew he hadn't been very social-able as of late and that was pretty much the reason why he was rolling off of his comfortable bed in the dormitories and making an effort to wander down the hall. Why would he even bother doing such a thing if he had no particular destination in mind? He wasn't exactly sure, because he never usually did think things completely through before doing them. Dragging a hand through his messy hair, he was well aware of his rather.. crumpled appearance. His hair was sticking up in whatever direction it found suitable, and he had a light stubble forming from his laziness and lack of shaving. He'd thought to pull on a hat at the last minute, but that was as far as he'd attempted to go in correcting his appearance. Oh, and he'd spritzed on some cologne as well in an effort to make up for his lack of caring when it came to what he looked like. What were the chances that he'd even see anyone he'd want to talk to, anyhow?

It felt like an eternity as he wandered down hallway after hallway, each one just as uninteresting as the last. It was a wonder he actually made it all the way up to the seventh floor without rolling his eyes in annoyance, giving up, and turning to go hibernate back in his bed. Although just as he was about to scoff and head back in the direction he'd came in, some noise caught his attention. Slowly he began to pivot on his heel, his expression concentrated as he tried to locate where the noise was coming from.. and what it even was, exactly. He licked his lips in thought as he absently began to wander in the direction of the music, almost like a magnetic pull. He'd never heard someone sing like that before.. and was that the piano that was being played?

Before he knew it he was at the door of the RoR, and it was partially ajar. Now, he realized that he probably shouldn't be eavesdropping but with the boredom he was feeling.. he leaned even closer in and was surprised to see the flash of pink hair. Where had he'd seen that before? What was her name.. Charlotte.. Scarlet! That was it. He hadn't seen the girl in a long time... she was singing like that? He was leaning in so far his chest accidently hit the door, sending it creaking open. He winced, his expression guilty when he realized that he'd probably just gotten caught. Oops, real smooth of him.

- Appearance -

As the door creaked open I broke off playing and looked up, pulling my
grey cardigan closer around me I adjusted my glasses an saw who it was.
Tristan....? Yeah Tristan.
"Gosh, scared me for a moment. Tristan, right? With The runaway cat.?"
I remembered with a nod. Yeah.
OhGod, had he heard-
"Oh, did you hear me- I mean was it loud- eh, did anyone else...?" I
managed to bring out.
Damn shyness! It wasn't me! 'me' was trapped somwhere in my mind and
was screaming bloody murder. Ever since It had happened I'd been
reserved.
'It's been six years, I should be over it..' I thought.
But I wasn't and I knew it. It had been too much, too impactful on my
life.
I still couldn't face my mother, after all, she'd inflicted all those
months of torture-
Enough. Concentrate. Tristan. Just heard you sing a bloody Aria from
an opera.
Tutles stared at him from the piano and assumed her concentrated look
as her features were lost in green wrinkles. Good grief...

Tristan continued to stand still, wondering if maybe it was too late to duck and act as if he hadn't been standing there eavesdropping. But all at once she stopped playing and he knew in that moment that she'd heard the door creaking. He swallowed and tried to erase the obviously guilty expression from his features, but he knew it wasn't going to work. Now she was looking up, adjusting her glasses.. and he met her eyes with a sheepish smirk. Slowly he edged even further into the room so that he didn't look like an idiot just standing there without a clue of what to do, his eyes flashing with brief amusement before he replied. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you. Thought my ninja skills were a bit better then that..." He mused in mock disappointment, shaking his head back and forth and acting as if he were truly saddened by the thought. He was quick to smirk again though to show her he was just playing around. "Yeah. That's me. Scarlet, right?" He said, her name unfamiliar on his tongue. He knew he was right, but it didn't hurt to make sure. After all, having any sort of conversation with someone and then it turned out you had no idea who they were.. yeah, would not be one of his finer moments. And besides, he would have felt guilty if that were to happen.

Leaning against the door-frame for a moment, his hands in his pockets, he watched as she stuttered through her first statement. He didn't laugh or even so much as chuckle at her difficulty, he just ended up strolling even further into the room. Glancing toward the couch questioningly, he instead didn't answer her original question at first, instead jerking his chin toward the couch. "Can I sit?" If she didn't want him to he wouldn't, but for some reason something was telling him to stay and chat with her. Just what it was, he couldn't be certain. "But yeah, I heard you. And you sound well.. you sound really good. No, no one else but me." He assured her with honestly. For once, he didn't have a smartass remark to anything being said.

He stood still then, eyes back on her, as he waited for her answer to his question from before. He wasn't sure why she'd be embarrassed about people hearing her, not with a voice like that!

"Well, even Ninjas have off days." she smiled slightly and pulled off her glasses, setting them on the piano and pulling her hair back away from her face, "Yes, Scarlet, that's it," she paused, "Or Scar, Scar is alright, too." The room had probably opened the door for a reason, silly thing. Sigh.

Sit? Why did he want to sit? Oh Merlin, did he actually want to talk to her?! Or make fun of her in a comfortable position? Mhm. Best not to dwell on that. Yes...

"Ehm, sure, sit, lay down, go fetch-" she bit her tongue and stifled a laugh, "Sorry, yeah, sit. Sure." Okay Scar, shut the hoot up now. It's just pathetic. Her social skills were laughable, she'd admit. But she didn't mean any harm. She just had a...funky sense of humor.

"Oh, thank you. And thank Merlin, I'm very good at being invisible, having people hear me would not be very helpful." Again with the thinking out loud. Really. Jeez.

Tristan found a vague smirk creeping it's way onto his lips as she went along with his ninja statement, and he nodded in agreement. "True, but I was hoping my skills wouldn't pick today, of all days, to fail me." He continued along playfully with the entire joke, before his smirk morphed into a playful grin. "I can't say I mind too much though.. at least now I'm talking to you." He hardly even realized what he was saying until it was out in the air, but instead of apologizing for it or even being embarrassed by how it could have been taken, he just shrugged with indifference. After all, it was true. The last run-in he'd had with her hadn't been a long one, but she'd seemed like a nice girl. Why wouldn't he want to spend some time talking to her again? He was still smiling softly when she confirmed her name, and he was almost surprised that she'd offered up a nickname of the sorts. "Well, Scar it is, then." He replied without missing a beat. Whatever she preferred being called, well he'd just have to go ahead and call her that. Didn't make any difference to him.

He couldn't help but let his eyebrow raise when she agreed that he could sit down, but also continued rambling in a way that soon made him laugh. He wasn't laughing at her, it was a more surprised sound if anything. "Last time I checked, I'm not part of the canine family." He replied wryly but in good nature, before allowing himself to settle down on the couch he'd been requesting before. His rather large body automatically took up a lounging position in order to be more comfortable. His hazel eyes instantly returned to her. He wondered if his presence was making her uncomfortable, because that wasn't what he wanted.

"No problem.." He mused, although he was slightly confused as to her next statement. "Why? With a voice like that, you shouldn't want to be invisible." He said, his head tilting vaguely to the side in genuine confusion. "Unless that's just your choice." Which he assumed it was. In which case he should have been shutting up.

Her eyes widened slightly at his words. He wanted to talk to her? Whoa, okay, new territory.
"Ehm, thanks. And that's good, I'm more of a turtle person." she quipped when replied to her rambling about him being canine.

Tutle, in the meantime had scuttled down and was at his feet, staring up at him with such concentration that her wrinkles bunched up and you could barely see her eyes. And her mouth was hanging open. It looked cramped and not very intimidating, though perhaps a bit creepy. Or very creepy.

"Still sorry about Tutle..." Scar regarded her familiar warily, "She is very protective. She'll get over herself..." she shook her head though smiling fondly.

At his question she bit back her original answer, which was 'If you're invisible no one can hurt you.' And instead, after a bit of thought, answered:

"I'm not- Hmm. It's hard to explain. Well, not really, just hard. But, nothing bad can happen to you, if nobody knows you're there. I can safely say that barely anyone here knows who I am." Scar bit her lip, it wasn't a fact she liked, on the contrary, she wanted to change it, but the reluctance was there, hidden like the scars.

"Thanks though, I've been singing since I can remember."

A new smirk found it's way onto Tristan's lips as she thanked him. Well, that was certainly different. He couldn't think of the last time he'd actually been thanked for wanting to talk to someone, but he wasn't going to complain. He'd known from the moment he met Scarlet that there was something different about her, but that wasn't a bad thing. It was refreshing, different, unique. So what if she was a little socially awkward? It didn't bother him any, it was new territory to explore and it made things well.. less boring, for a lack of a better term. Usually all there was around here these days were cocky girls who thought they were queen shits, and they didn't hesitate in letting him know either. It grew to be tiresome, and Scarlet was like a breath of fresh air. She wasn't innocent and naive, he wouldn't go as far as to say that. But she did have this cute way about her that had him thinking. About time to stop thinking then, Tristan. He inwardly scolded himself.

He chuckled when she said that she was more of a turtle person, and it was that moment that he realized her own pet was in front of him. His eyebrows rose in spite of himself, amusement evident on his features. He couldn't tell if the turtle was trying to intimidate him, or if she was just sizing him up, but either way the sight was a comical one. His attention shifted back to Scarlet when she spoke, and one of his hands rose in the air, waving off her apology. "It's no big deal." He assured her. Looking back down toward the turtle, he told her in a matter-of-fact way - "I won't hurt her, Ms. Tutle. You have my word." He couldn't believe he was talking to an animal that wouldn't speak back, but instead of feeling stupid about it he just smirked up at Scarlet as he leaned back up, allowing himself to fall back into the cushions of the couch.

He listened to her silently, his expression thoughtful as he mulled over her words. After a moment of silence he found himself shrugging, his fingertips pressing together. "I get what you mean I guess," He mused, licking his lower lip. "I'm glad you're letting me know who you are, then." Again, he hardly realized the double meaning that could be held behind his words but he barely noticed it, because he was being honest. She truly did seem like she'd be fun to be around and talk to, though he'd know that for sure within time. If she continued to let him, that was. Smiling slightly, he let his hands fall to either side of his legs. "Any other special talents, or just blessed with the awesome singing and piano skills?"

Scar watched him interact with Tutle curiously and couldn't hide the happy and surprised look on her face when he actually spoke to her.
That was also new. But nice. Scarlet found herself smiling warmly, a genuine smile, not the polite one she normally used. Being so reclusive had led to Scarlet being very, very new to guys. Butshe wasn't stupid, she did observe a lot. But she knew that he was being rather accepting, which was rare. And she liked it.
Scar...watch what you're thinking, girl..
The weirdest thing was Tutle nodded and sort of smiled.
The fact that Tutle understood wasn't weird, no, sometimes Scar had full blown conversations/arguments with the amphibian, but thefact that she seemed not only to believe, but now like and accept Tristan...that was weird.
Satisfied, Tutle crawled up his leg and sat down next to him, promptly falling asleep, one eye open and some drool at the corner of her mouth.

"Oookaay..." Scar tried hard not to burst out laughing at her familiars strange conduct. "Right, I'll say thank you on her behalf... you seem to be clear now." she shook her head and stifled a laugh behind her hand.

"Well, glad you're glad. And ehm, I paint. Ramember that picture I took of you? Painted it. It's in my dorm, I can summon it, if you want to see it?" she bit her lip.

"What about you? What do you do all day?"

-ughdoublpostwheteverBUMPedited!-

Tristan noticed how surprised Scarlet looked when he'd talked to Tutle, and he would admit that anyone else probably would have worn quite the same expression. But instead of looking at him as if he had twelve heads, she actually looked genuinely happy, which made him glad for what he'd done. He found himself smiling back at her, and while he hadn't been the most observant, he could have sworn there seemed to be a difference in the way she was looking at him. He thought he could have just been seeing things though, and not wanting to over-think something that wasn't even close to being true, he glanced back down toward her pet. He thought he could see her nodding, but he couldn't be absolutely certain. He let out a chuckle of surprise though once she decided to climb up his leg. The sensation felt weird and he was tempted to squirm when her claws hit a particularly ticklish area, but he managed to sit still until the turtle settled in next to him.

The sight was certainly a comical one and he found himself staring for a couple of moments longer then he probably should have before he began to laugh, eyes bouncing back up to Scarlet. "Well, seems like I got the stamp of approval." He said in good-nature, his boyish grin still in place. And while he'd only been accepted by an amphibian, in a sense, he still felt triumphant. For what reason, he wasn't sure yet. Hearing Scarlet thank him, he only shrugged nonchalantly. "Only was speaking the truth." He said honestly. He noticed the way she hid her laugh behind her hand, and before he could stop himself from thinking it, he noticed just how cute the gesture was. Watch yourself, Tristan. His mind warned.

When she reminded him of the picture she'd taken of him back when he had to chase the kitten down, he smiled slightly at the memory. "Oh, right. I remember that." He paused, brow furrowing, before he nodded. "Yeah, I want to see it." He said almost eagerly, wondering how well her painting skills also were. When she reversed the question, he looked almost sheepish as he rubbed his chin between his thumb and forefinger. "Well.. I'm usually always outside. Or getting into some sort of mischief. Or just being active in general. Nothing specific." He said, shrugging. "No special talents like you." He teased with a smirk.

“Or the drop of drool of approval. Both equally important,” she shook her head and crossed her legs, resting her elbows on her knees and her chin on her palms, looking at them.
“That’s nice to hear, then.” her blush was hidden partially by her fingers and she scrunched up her nose and smiled when Tutles open eye came to rest on her, satisfied that her witch was satisfied Tutle closed that eye as well.
Odd thing, really.
At his approval she flicked her wand, "Accio Tristans painting," and waited, moment later a 1x1 foot large painting landed in her grip. Now a little shy again, she turned it over and handed it to him. It looked almost like a photograph, but you could see the brush strokes and it was a little...warmer? Friendlier? Tristan was caprtured well, the light falling more on the kitten in his arms and in his eyes, the leaves from the trees behind were less in focus than him. The background was softer than in a photo. But it was a great painting.

"I don't know if you can call it talent if it's been worked on for ages." she laughed softly.

"You're right, they both mean about the same thing though, right?" Came Tristan's response, the smirk still painted across his lips. While the turtle was an odd pet -- he'd never seen another in the castle -- he had to admit there was also something endearing about her. And so he didn't disturb her from the apparent sleep it seemed she'd slipped off into, instead allowing his gaze to rest on the pink-haired girl in front of him. She was shy and quiet, quirky and unique; and entirely different from many of the others he'd met within the castle walls.

"I'm surprised you don't hear it more often," came the sincerity once more and he shrugged his shoulders. He wasn't trying to douse her with compliments as much as he just wanted her to see that he wouldn't lie to her. He carefully moved around the sleeping Tutle as Scarlet summoned the painting he'd wanted to see, and he stepped closer so that he could take it from her grasp. His eyes widened immediately at the sight, his mouth dropping open. "Dear Merlin, Scarlet," he breathed, unable to tear his eyes away from the creation. "This is bloody amazing!" And that he truly meant. It looked so much like a photograph it was hard for him to believe it was even a painting.

"This, this is definitely talent! Don't you even dare say otherwise!" He chastised playfully, still drawn to all the detail she'd spent time on. "Who cares how long you worked on it. I can't do this sort of thing at all, you know."

Scarlet truly lived up to her name at his compliments, her cheeks turning a vivid shade of red that she quickly hid by turning to scoop up the turtle and place her on a pillow, awaiting that her cheeks cool off.

"I- uhm- w-w-well I-" she could have slapped herself, no! Her stutter! Her nervous, pathetic, horrible stutter.
The girl took a moment, closing her mouth and breathing deeply, calming her nervous brain in the manner she had learned. Finally Scar looked up gently and managed to softly speak; "Thank you."

She took another breath, "I'm sorry, I developed a nervous stutter when I was little, it's not usually a problem..." she explained, sitting on the couch,  "You can keep it, you know, I make them constantly. I guess artistic ability makes up for crappy magic skills." she chuckled.

"Look, I'm sure you've noticed that I don't really have many- er- any friends here. And that's okay! It's just- you don't, well, have to, be nice to me." she looked up at him, with her stoic, yet resigned gaze.

Although Tristan hadn't been specifically complimenting her with hopes of getting her to turn different hues of red, he had to admit that it was cute. He never realized beforehand how enjoyable it was to talk to someone quite so modest. Most of the girls filtering around the castle were cocky and confident, and while that was always attractive, he found that for some reason, he felt even more attracted in that moment to Scarlet than he could ever remember being with anyone else. His thoughts alone nearly turned him red but he combated with the emotions.

And when she began to stutter, he felt bad for causing it. "You're welcome," was all he decided to stick to, because it was easier that way. He wouldn't tease her for something she couldn't control, he wasn't cruel. He shook his head and waved her apology off with one of his larger hands. "Don't apologize, Scarlet, it's alright." But after a moment, a smirk flickered across his lips and he tilted his head to the side. "I make you nervous?" It was more of a curious question than anything else, not one that he was asking to cause her to stutter again. The smirk turned into a smile when she said he could keep it. "Really? That would be awesome. Thank you."

He didn't even think it was embarrassing that he was holding a kitten, while others would dub it as not masculine. "I'm sure your magic is fine, just needs practice," he reasoned, before blinking at her next set of words. His own hazel eyes moved to meet hers, seriousness melting into his expression. "I'm not being nice out of any sort of obligation, Scarlet. I'm being nice because I want to be. And because you deserve it." A look of confusion appeared before he hesitated, then gestured to the open seat on the couch beside her. "May I?"

"and what if you do?" she countered smiling at his friendly disposition. Hmm, maybe he was just being nice to her because he wanted to.
Strange.
She gestured that it was okay to sit, but her brows creased in thought"Of course, it's just.."

"Nah, I really am not a very good witch I'm afraid, charms and such evade me completely. Practice would help if i knew what i was doing wrong." she shrugged softly, glancing at her wand pocket.
"Really? Bu how- I mean- why- I what? I don't, I'm nothing special. I sing well because I took lessons since I was four, I paint well because I paint all the time, none of this comes all that naturally to me. I'm socially stunted, I stutter, I ramble, I'm not super smart, I'm not super pretty and I'm not being modest, this is who I am I accepted that a long time ago." Her heart ached, knowing that she was different, truly, but couldn't live that way, because she couldn't trust anyone with knowing what had happened to her that made her so fearful and cautious.

"Then you should let me know," came Tristan's response as he arched an eyebrow, a small smirk stealing across his lips. If he made her nervous, well -- what did that mean, exactly? He wasn't about to question that far into it, though. It was just friendly banter, he figured. Between a growing friendship, if that was what they were calling this. Nodding when she gave him the approval to sit, he sunk down onto the comfortable cushion beside her, angling his body in her direction so it was easier to look at her as she spoke to him.

"It's just what?" He prompted curiously, and when she spoke of her magical skills, he shrugged. "I can always help you out, if you want of course. Figure out what you're doing wrong and go from there?" He offered. He'd always been plenty good at school, even if he didn't like outright admitting it. Yet with Scarlet, he didn't see the big deal. Honesty was the best policy, was it not? Unless the truth was going to hurt, then white lies never did much damage. When she began to stutter again, he paid complete attention, frowning at the words coming out of her mouth.

Leaning closer to her without even realizing it, he shook his head. "Give yourself some credit, Scarlet. I know we aren't incredibly close or anything yet, but just listen to me. Who cares if you stutter? And who cares if you're awkward sometimes? It just makes you different, and to me, that's better than conforming with the crowd. And I'm sure you're smart, and you're right -- you aren't just pretty, you're beautiful. Okay?" He took a breath, finally looking away as he shrugged. "Believe me or don't, I'm telling the truth."

"Well consider this me letting you know. And yes, that would be very nice of you, I could use all the help I can get."

Oh jesus he was coming closer and so was Scar though she also was unaware of her own movement. With wide eyes and slightly parted lips she listened in surprise, never having imagine her words to cause such a passionate reaction. Her eyebrows shot up when he called her beautiful and only fell ever so slightly when he looked away- because he looked away.

"Wow you're...so...wow. You're incredible. You've no reason to even bother trying to tell me any of that but you did. You're nice, you're kind you're sweet, attractive, funny... and You are telling me how beautiful I am? You're really something, please don't hide from me-" she smiled incredulously and placed a hand on his shoulder, hoping for him to turn back to her again.

Tristan figured it was a given that he'd help Scarlet out, seeing as he was the one who had suggested it in the first place. But now, he was much too distracted and stuck on the fact that he'd said all of those things. Not because he hadn't meant them -- of course he did -- but because he was shocked by how easily they'd come out. And how he didn't feel an ounce of embarrassment otherwise about them, either. Maybe he ought to have felt as if he'd been coming on a bit too strong, and maybe that was why he'd looked away. Because he didn't want Scarlet to be freaked out.

Her voice caused him to glance back in her direction, though now he'd leaned forward which made his body turn ever so slightly away from hers. Her words surprised him, sure enough, but he did listen to them, eyebrows pulled together in curiosity. Did she really think all of those things? It amazed him, to be honest, but he drank them in, enjoying the fact that they were coming from her of all people. His self esteem wasn't low by a long shot, but all of her compliments still did manage to penetrate deep into his heart, warming it at the core. "You think so?" He mused.

What he didn't expect was for her to reach out to touch his shoulder, and for a moment all he could do was stare at her with a look of wonder. "I'm never gonna hide from you, Scarlet." The words were spoken with an air of seriousness as he straightened up slowly, again turning to face toward her. They were much closer now, and without his thoughts clouding his judgment, he noticed just how close they'd become. And while under any normal circumstance, he would have given in to the sudden want that had blossomed within him, to just lean in and steal her lips in a kiss, he found himself politely asking, "Scar.. can I.. can I kiss you?"

Scar didn't answer immediately, instead her expression softened to one more vulnerable, though weak was not what she felt at all, she felt a multitude of emotions welling up; nervousness, adoration, joy, fear, infatuation, giddiness, courage...
So instead, she glanced at his lips and then his eyes, moving closer until her eyes were half closed and their lips only a breath apart, before closing the distance softly and sweetly.

"You're sweet." she murmured, eyes still closed, against his lips, smiling as she kissed him one more time before parting lips and looking up at him, uncertainty riddling her features along with a bit of hopeful happiness.

When she didn't at first answer, Tristan grew wary. He'd been rejected a couple of times before by girls, sure enough, but it didn't happen often. That wasn't even what seemed to plague the teens mind the most, however; he was suddenly worried that she would again get the wrong idea. He didn't want just some snog from her and nothing more, which did surprise him probably as much as it might have surprised her. He wasn't one who normally did relationships -- in fact, he couldn't remember the last time he'd even had a proper one, if ever. He just knew he liked to flirt and kiss, but crushes didn't happen often. Not until now, apparently.

But he had to admit, he found it incredibly attractive when she seemed to take initiative herself, mostly because he hadn't expected it. His breath caught in his throat for a moment when she closed the distance between them, because it meant he hadn't pushed her away. It meant he wasn't coming on too strong and that she wanted it just as much as he did. It wasn't a figment of his imagination, and there was no guessing involved. His eyelids fluttered closed when her soft lips finally found his, and he didn't push for more. Instead, he let her guide them and he just responded in an equal way.

Gently, his hand moved up to cup the side of her face before it slid to rest on the curve of her neck, chuckling when she called him sweet. He was much more interested in the taste of her lips as she kissed him again, however, and he returned the pressure happily, his heart fluttering in a very much foreign way. He wasn't sure what was happening and then again couldn't even be bothered to care as she pulled back and he gently lowered his hand. "Scar.. I know this may seem awfully random and maybe a bit too forward but.." Slowly he reached out to take her hand, swallowing. Where was this all bloody coming from? "I.. I think I like you.." No, that was wrong. "No. I'm positive I do."

Scar adored the feeling of his hand on her skin- of him in general. It made her feel light and happy and fine for once. Not nervous in a bad way- but in a nice way, because he could cure her nervousness easily.
"But what? You can tell me..." she smiling softly.

When he took her hand she glanced at him questioningly, but still smiling, letting her own hand curl to hold his reassuringly.

At his words an unstoppable grin found its way onto her face and she let go of his hand to wrap her arms around his neck and hug him tightly.
Scarlet's lips kissed his cheek and brushed his ear to whisper shyly, yet happily "I like you, too, Tristan."

At first, Tristan hadn't been sure he was doing the right thing. He was being spurred on by adrenaline, and he wasn't thinking before speaking. Normally, that was a recipe for disaster and yet the words were out before he could stop them. His confession seemed to hang in the air, but he'd only admitted it after her encouragement. Instinctively his hold tightened on her hand, the warmth comforting. He wasn't unfamiliar with affection, because he could get it whenever he pleased. Yet with Scarlet, it was different. She was different and it felt all that much more better that way.

Seeing her grin made his heart flutter some more, and it wasn't long before a huge one was being directed back at her. He didn't even hesitate, couldn't even stop the reaction before it happened all on it's own accord. He didn't expect for her to let go of his hand but he was even more pleased by the sudden closeness as she wrapped her arms around his neck and held on tight. Laughing softly, his own arms instinctively wrapped around her, drawing her even closer as he breathed in the sweet smell of her shampoo. He could feel his cheeks warming pleasantly as she kissed his cheek and whispered in his ear that she liked him too, and he could have sworn his cheeks were beginning to hurt from the amount of smiling he was doing.

He pulled back ever so slightly so that he could see her face, reaching up to tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear as he tilted his head to the side. "What do you propose we do about it, then?" He asked playfully and teasingly, raising an eyebrow, interested in hearing what she had to say.

"I don't know, I've never done...well anything in this area. M-m-" she clamped her mouth shut and closed her eyes, tensing with frustration. 'come on...come on...' She sighed, frustrated her her trauma-induced speech impediment. "W-well, would-d that m-make-" she took on a focused look and kissed him full on the lips, "makeusboyfriendandgirlfriend?" she finished in one breath so as to avoid stuttering again, her hands still on his shoulders.

Her uncertainty was endearing more than anything else, and Tristan found himself smiling, though he hoped she didn't think it was because he was laughing at her. That wasn't the case in the least, but he figured he'd only remedy that if she thought negatively of his actions. "That actually just makes you that much cuter, then," he said honestly and with a teasing lilt to his voice. He wasn't all that experienced technically, either, but he'd snogged his fair share of girls over the years. Relationships, however, were an entirely different story.

His head tilted to the side curiously as she spoke once more, and he listened closely so that there wasn't any way he'd somehow miss what she was trying to convey. He was distracted -- pleasantly -- however when she kissed him full on the lips, to which of course he kissed her back. Her words reached his ears and he hesitated for a moment, yet it wasn't long before he was grinning stupidly once more, his entire body growing warm. She was being incredibly forward, despite insisting she was new to all of this, and he liked it. "It very well could, if you'd do me the honor of being my girlfriend?" Though she'd been the one to suggest it, he still couldn't help but feel a small flutter of nervousness as he asked her, eyes never once leaving hers.