Lucifer's Mansion, Sunday Night

[okteiviakom]

As requested, date night dinner had been Thai, and delicious. And dessert, right now, also delivered on both because it was banana roti.

And yet, Octavia could barely focus on it at all. Because of a talk, earlier in the week, there was... an anticipation, here. Still a little vague, still only mostly-but-not-entirely certain. Just hanging over the scene at the table, unspoken of but present.

About half of Octavia's serving of roti was still there, though rapidly vanishing. "You can really taste the banana."

[ooc: For that guy, and likely NSFW-bound.]

Comments

[okteiviakom]

"Does that --"

She really didn't want to ask if that mattered, because that just sounded like it would be confusing.

Okay, rephrase.

"It feels kind of pointless to have an opinion on that," she settled on. "Either it matters to you, or it doesn't."

[my_own_advocate]

"It matters if we're going to talk about it," Lucifer said quietly. "So neither of us runs roughshod over each other."

[okteiviakom]

Octavia shifted a little, trying to bury her face in his neck.

"I'm not even sure what we're talking about anymore," she muttered.

[my_own_advocate]

"Whether it matters that you can't be everything you used to be right now, I think," Lucifer said, his arms tightening around her.

[okteiviakom]

God, that felt good. Octavia burrowed further, pressed in closer.

"I just wish I could be."

Yeah, everyone knew that, Tavi.

[my_own_advocate]

"One step at a time, niron," Lucifer murmured. "And you made some rather big ones today."

[okteiviakom]

"I know," Octavia muttered. "I just... miss being free."

[my_own_advocate]

"You will be again," Lucifer said softly. "After all this, I'm sure of it."

[okteiviakom]

But when? demanded the impatient part of her.

She gave a tiny sigh. Nodded, against his neck, and tried to loop around the impatience. "This was really good, Lucifer," she murmured. "You were... incredible. And it helped me forget."

[my_own_advocate]

"You didn't hesitate for even a moment," Lucifer marvelled.

[okteiviakom]

"I guess we set the right rules," Octavia said. "Because it... helped. That you stayed in it."

[my_own_advocate]

"I wanted to break it, once or twice," Lucifer admitted. "But I couldn't do that to you."

[okteiviakom]

"Thank you," Octavia murmured. "Because it was... beautiful."

She didn't have a better word for it.

But: "When did you want to?"

[my_own_advocate]

"Just... moments," Lucifer said softly. "When I wanted to hold you. Or when you came up here just now, and I wanted to ask how you were doing."

[okteiviakom]

Octavia nodded. That sounded about right.

"You can always ask for permission," she murmured. "To touch me, I mean. Not so much for... asking how I'm doing." Another thoughtful pause. "Unless you feel you need to."

Because that seemed like it could come up.

[my_own_advocate]

"Only if... things... got especially out of hand," Lucifer said softly.

[okteiviakom]

Another nod.

Because that sounded about right, too.

"Consider it sort of a safeword kind of thing."

[my_own_advocate]

Lucifer nodded. "All right," he said.

He was silent for a moment. Then: "So shall this be our new date nights, for the forseeable future?"

[okteiviakom]

Octavia was quiet for a moment, too.

"I guess so," she murmured. "I mean. Something like this, anyway. It's... kind of a changeable thing, I think. 'Cause, I didn't go into this today thinking I would be able to let you, you know."

Small pause.

"Touch me."

[my_own_advocate]

"I think we should just... keep the ground rules intact," Lucifer said slowly. "We have dinner. You decide if I go upstairs. Or, I suppose, use some other phrase if you don't want me to... well, be upstairs. And you're the one who says when it ends."

[okteiviakom]

Octavia nodded against his chest. Then, she tilted her head up to look at him.

"That sounds smart."

Like a solid framework to fall back on.

[my_own_advocate]

Lucifer smiled at her. "The important part is that you're in control," he said. "But only when you signal you want to be. It's fine if you want to skip a night, and we'll just... take it to the couch, have a cuddle, perhaps watch something together."

[okteiviakom]

"I think that means I'm in control all the time, technically," Octavia murmured, with a lopsided but soft smile.

[my_own_advocate]

"Until you decide to relinquish it," Lucifer murmured. "Which may come again some day."

[okteiviakom]

"Will."

She needed it too much not to get back to it.

(That was the hope she was clinging to, anyway.)