Finis Chaldea

[Bloodedge]

Artoria agreed to the idea of that lake water being of greater value than some old youth-restoring fountain. The latter functioned better as this glorified bathtub, he thought. Even so, the water of that enchanted lake was as Artoria said: mere drinking water to those who could do nothing with it. There were some old magics that made use of such water, but that was of no real use to anyone either─ not in the current era. Moving onward from this train of thought, Gilgamesh fully submerged himself in water, relaxing against the edge while awaiting Artoria's return from... wherever she'd run off to cover herself. He didn't see much purpose in the additional coverage, but it was always interesting to have something left to the imagination. The Queen of Knights was especially adept at leaving him wondering what the full image of her frame would be like, and today... it would be even better. When she emerged, she did so clad in a towel with that braided bun of choice gone. The king looked up, his brow rising to detract from his eyes' natural inclination to widen.

"H'oh─" he muttered, watching those long, golden locks sway as she stepped toward the water. Perhaps he should have been more concerned about her state of undress, but no, it was the rather shocking quantity of hair she kept hidden from the world at large. Who the hell did she think she was in doing something like that? No, perhaps it was his privilege alone to gaze upon such a spectacle, the true womanly charm of one Artoria Pendragon shown once and for all. It was quite fitting for the moments prior to their proper union. "You've got some gall keeping such a marvel from my sight," he proclaimed while shunning the very idea of a towel for himself. "What, is it your intention to have me attack you immediately? You may get just the result you desire, appearing before me as you do now." With that said, he thought to actually address that pointless mention of towels. "And of course not! If I were to cover myself with something, what would be the point? Or did you think to have something to strip from me when you finally become ravenous? I may entertain the thought, if so."

[Apollymi]

Gilgamesh let one of his very common utterances leave his mouth, though Artoria was not quite sure for what purpose. Much to her own assumption he was staring at her, she was never quite sure why he committed to such acts it wasn't as if she looked any different than she normally did. Eventually, she might come to understand why his reactions worked the way they did, but in the moment she could only be confused by the random attention he gave her current state. There was something he chose to call a marvel and he claimed she'd kept it from his sight? "I do not know what it is you are referring to," she said clearly. Her body was about as covered as it always was, she'd changed nothing serious about herself and only submerged into the bath. But apparently something about this look was worthy of compliments. So now instead of simply feeling annoyed she felt both embarrassed and a bit warm inside. "I really have no idea what you mean... I have done nothing different than I always would," Artoria was beyond confused. She did not even think of what her hair looked like in a moment like this. In fact she was planning on cutting it at her earliest convenience.

Beyond that initial moment of confusion Artoria was soon shocked. Her eyes could not even remain closed as she looked at Gilgamesh shocked by his assertion. He'd considering covering up if she felt like stripping him of his clothes?! Why would she want that? Why would he agree to that? Was this one of those strawberry or chocolate kinks her elder sister mentioned? Every question and confusion moved across Artoria's face before she simply brought a now wet hand to her face. "I am certain I told you not to tease me. I should be more upset with myself for entertaining even in my own mind confusion around the things you say at moments like this," she concluded. Of course, she'd not actually argued the points in any real way. Though she'd never attempted stripping any one of their clothes, she could not say if she'd like or dislike it. It was quite confusing to think about... and one of those things she figured she'd either figure out or not in a random moment. She wasn't sitting too far away, actually if she felt like reaching out to her side she could definitely touch him, but she wouldn't for various reasons.

[Bloodedge]

Artoria hadn't a clue what he was talking about, but he couldn't fathom why. She'd done nothing different? Lies! Already existing in a state of perfection and dignity, an otherwise simple gesture such as loosing hair was tantamount to awakening all feminine features at once. Alas, she was so blind to herself that it couldn't be seen as different. Either way, if this was normal, he demanded access to the routine. "Then this, too, shall become the norm. I will make it a king's order that king and queen shall only bathe as one," he stated. It would not be beyond Gilgamesh at all to invade her every bath, just to see the daily appearance of that shimmering gold drape.

Ah, she reiterated her own insistence against teasing. She had no earthly idea the avenues that could truly be traveled. This was not even a thing to be considered teasing. "I have teased nothing. I swore your eternal happiness for a reason, Artoria Pendragon. If you have a wish, it shall be I who grants it." Surety was in his speech, as always. If the woman so much as expressed a desire to do as he implied, he'd have materialized any articles in his ensemble just to let them be torn away by her hand. Even as she remained in such close proximity to him however, Artoria seemed so keen to shun thoughts of impropriety. At some point, she'd have to take the next step toward discovering her own... thirsts, so to speak. Alas; for now, Gilgamesh would instead continue prodding away at her psyche. "That is unless your wish is to continue sitting there, your charming distant demeanor driving me to a madness that leaves even me grasping at hair and robe alike. Is that more to your preference, I wonder?"

[Apollymi]

Was it a matter of blindness that kept Artoria from realizing what it was he found interesting about her bath-time look? Yes. Yes, it was. The Queen of Knights always took her hair down while she bathed, it was an old habit started by her younger sister which lasted through two lifetimes. A conversation once with Hoshimi Emi went something like, 'If you don't let your hair down while you take a bath the heat from the water will get trapped near your brain and it will fry!' Did that make sense? Absolutely not, and it wasn't even possible, but, Hoshimi Eri was a doting older sister and if it kept tears from her little sister's eyes, fine. She'd let her hair down while in the bath. Irrespective of the random memories associated with it, Gilgamesh was content to make more declarations. "That is way too over the top, and wholly inappropriate. We cannot bathe together all the time!" Artoria had so many problems with his proclamation. She understood socializing in a bath but every time was extreme. She bathed multiple times a day and that would get bothersome for everyone. And she still had no clue what it was about her current state he liked so much as to say something so very outrageous.

What else was there? He claimed he'd not been teasing. That he promised her eternal happiness and made the proclamation that if she had a wish he would grant it. Her eyes shifted over to him for the first time in a while. Why? Because she was quite certain she was surprised. Why did he always say things like that? She was beyond the point of questioning the truth of his words, she had been witnessing since her own Holy Grail War the lack of deception in his very being. Her face reddened at the thought, she had no idea how to respond. He was so certain of that, and given what he was like she knew even without use of any special ability that he would do as she asked. That made that truth no easier to accept. "I... ah..." truly this man would fluster her over absolutely nothing. "You really just say things like that all the time and mean them, it is unfathomable to me," she murmured to herself. This man was truly content to just blow her mind every time he spoke, whether it be rage-inducing, awe-inspiring, or anything on the gambit between those things. Ah, and then there was that other feeling.

What feeling? The feeling associated with those thoughts she would not have had wonder her mind if not for his existence and his insistence upon them. Right now, such a feeling was being expressed, as Gilgamesh decided to place into her mind the thought of some strange interaction between the two of them. Her eyes had shifted towards him and they hadn't moved since, but with his most recent speech came a narrowing connected to both thought and confusion. Was there something about her demeanor that was charming? He thought so, but she was acting as she normally did in a bath... well, aside from lack of wine or the general chatter of other girls which is how such situations were normally undertaken. Would she like him grasping at clothing and hair of hers instead of the other way around? Well... maybe? In thinking about it for a moment or two, Artoria remembered the moment of their meeting when he returned from death. When he'd taken hold of her rather firmly during their embrace and his hand had ended up in her hair. She remembered finding that sensation to be new, and not dislikable in context. He always seemed so interested in her form she was sure if he went to remove her clothing it would be very different from her own movements of such a thing. There was at least a small reference for that as well. Oh... she'd been very quiet while thinking it over and was still staring. "I am not so far away... stop putting images in my head," she stated without the normal firmness such statements usually garnered, only affirming that lack of distance by reaching out to tap his shoulder. At the same time she finally shifted her gaze away as if she had only been staring off into space. Evasive. Yes that was the way.

[Bloodedge]

Over the top, inappropriate, excessive─ all manner of things were used to describe Gilgamesh on a regular basis. In most cases however, he merely upheld the status quo of his own lifestyle. Only in specific scenarios would he actually take the excessive approach, and Artoria had not yet seen the truth of that. "It is very appropriate. Should man and wife not bask in each other's exposure? Perish the thought that you could keep me away from you after teasing my eyes the way you do." Indeed, he would continue to say such things, and he would continue to mean every word. It didn't matter if Artoria couldn't fathom the truth of these things; it only mattered that the truth existed.

"Hmph. To be Gilgamesh is to be unfathomable in all regards; that is nothing new. There is only one thing you must understand, and that is the fact that I shall become everything to the likes of you," he declared further. Her little stammer prior to the latest mention of his statements was noted as another adorable little reaction of the queen's. Gilgamesh addressed it with only a chuckle, which returned moments after he'd spoken as well. Oh... but it could not stay. There was something quite imperative in the works, as Artoria took an unnecessarily long pause before admitted to the imagery in her head. Interestingly enough, she had nothing to say aloud regarding said image. She did, however, enunciate a point of her own by reaching out to touch his shoulder. Surely she knew the danger of being so audacious. If she did not, she would be making that discovery shortly.

How would said discovery be made? For starters, Gilgamesh was akin to a vehicle without brakes. In this case, he shifted around Artoria's outstretched arm, extending both of his own at either side of her to brace against the stone barricade behind her. This was what it meant to not be so far away; he'd almost consumed all the space directly in front of and around her. With this vantage point, Gilgamesh stared into the queen's face, while that chuckle he let go of became more of a challenging huff. "Tell me, with all the distance I have now covered, can it be said that you were not so far? There shall be no such thing as 'close enough' between us. I will seed images into your head. The image will be myself, and it will be only a premonition of reality. Tell me, do you dare speak against this?"

[Apollymi]

Of course, there was some justification from Gilgamesh, to try and make his demands seem lesser than they truly were. The strange thing was, Arotria hadn't even initially disagreed to the idea of taking baths with him sometimes, she simply thought it ridiculous to be something that happened every time she had one. He claimed that man and wife should bask in each other's exposure. She still had not agreed to anything resembling marriage to this man. She did not see that as a point worth arguing in the moment as she was quite sure he remembered she'd said that. "It is a ridiculous thing to demand all the time," she stated somewhat firmly. "Teasing implies an amount of intent I do not always have, I was not trying to do anything to you," Artoria clarified. There was not much to be done about it thought, apparently she could look forward to the idea that she would not be allowed to bathe alone when she was with him, strange.

According to Gilgamesh the only thing she needed to understand was that he would become everything to her. Hm, for a long bit of time, he'd overwhelmed her thoughts anyways. He'd technically already succeeded in changing a bit of her ideology and her thoughts about life. There was now greater show of that than the fact that she was sitting right here, barely dressed in a room with him. A woman like her, alone with someone, unarmed and unarmored was unheard of outside of her capture. "That is not understandable either," she said. Of course, she realized that people liked other people well enough. She understood in theory that she liked him more than others and likely gave him much more credit than anyone outside of her immediate familial relations ever got out of her. But apparently this was not quite enough... she was to gain a new kind of understanding here and now.

The King of Heroes moved around that distance between them. He closed in on Artoria faster than most people should in such a casual situation. He took up most of the space in front of her and had a arm on either side of her tiny frame. He'd been chuckling at her a few seconds before now. In a moment like this he was now staring her down with great intensity. She'd originally not been looking directly at him while speaking... now she wasn't being given a choice. Her eyes flinched reflexively and she was left staring at him, into those very strange eyes of his she was sure she saw in her dreams now. So she stared into his face large eyes stared at him with a great deal of effort. She shouldn't tarry too much in her own thoughts while he was naked directly in front of her. Had he closed a lot of distance. Not really. Given the length of his arms and legs, he could have easily reached her, without this show. Still, something about the effort put in to prove this point was appreciable. Was she strange for thinking so, probably. He would put images in her head, and they would be premonitions of the future. 'You live to test me...' That was the first thought, but what was the rest. "You do understand if you wanted me to sit closer you could have just said," she mentioned, the challenge in that huffing breath of his had not been mentioned and she could not back down from one when it was presented as such. She brought that extended hand back in, that same distance was used to leave it resting against the side of this man's face. "Admittedly, it is difficult even for me, to argue with you when you are so sure, Gil..." This man and his image in her mind was already a thing, whether he was aware of it or not. Did he know the amount of restraint it was currently taking her to keep her eyes up? He was down right ridiculous for backing her against the wall of his hot spring. Something like this should not make her feel anything, but right at the moment she could practically hear her own heart beating in her chest. No one else made her feel such things, it was a problem of this man in particular always doing something strange to her.

[Bloodedge]

"You try for nothing, and yet you succeed all the same. To tease the King of Heroes is not a thing one should be able to accomplish. For you, I will allow it," he said regardless of whether Artoria took the moment as teasing, or otherwise. She was permitted to do such a thing, even accidentally. She was permitted to be lost on the romantic aspects of their conversations for the time being, as he'd yet to lead her fully down the path of understanding. She was even permitted to believe the amount of distance between them had been sufficient enough, wrong though she was. In time, she would think just the opposite of how this distance worked. He'd see the woman clutching desperately at his form in a state resembling addiction soon enough.

He could have said something if he wanted her closer, yes. However, this had nothing to do with what he wanted. Gilgamesh's desires were presented for the whole of creation to witness and understand, but hers remained in question to the world. Nevertheless, she remained unhindered enough by her perpetual state of fluster to reach for his face. A good step, he thought. What more was there? Artoria spoke to the difficulty of arguing with him and his surety, and in doing so, she repeated a form of his name otherwise unused by the masses. Once more, the king quirked a brow. "H'oh," he muttered. If there was a final straw, he'd found it with that statement alone. He'd release the stone wall at Artoria's rear, seeming to have acquired an air of minor seriousness beneath that smirk. Hands were shifted to her sides, and then... "Then argue not with the ferryman," he said. Artoria was to be pulled from the water, placed rear against the edge. The time for waiting had passed, it seemed, though pomp and circumstance was not yet thrown to the wind. Would it ever be? Likely not. "Your destination, euphoria itself, is on the horizon! Prepare yourself for your epic journey!"

With that said, the blonde male would shift his hands once more. He'd be reaching for the edge of her towel, which he'd proceed to grasp with a firm hand. Would she have the audacity to stop him? They'd both be finding out momentarily, as the goal of Gilgamesh in this situation was to immediately jerk the towel away and finally see for himself the unfiltered form of Artoria Pendragon. She'd be under the most intense scrutiny this world could offer in the following moments, and he'd be sure to bask in being the one to apply it.

[Apollymi]

Gilgamesh had a strange understanding of the world. Apparently, it did not matter to him that Artoria had no intention of teasing him, he'd still allow her to do so. This man was so utterly ridiculous. She was trying for nothing and succeeding just the same, there was something rather comforting about that. Though she was classically unbothered by her own behavior, she was at least a little unsure of how to actually behave around this man. Knowing she was not failing at her attempts was reassuring in some way and would leave her behaving as she wished with greater ease than she thought to accomplish. Technically speaking she could say nothing about that and only softened just a bit.

Artoria's acceptance of Gilgamesh was something she barely understood herself, but something she was not willing to abandon. Right at the moment, she had a hand against the side of his face as he surrounded her in him. But what did he do? He found some provocation in her words and took it as an excuse. He told her not to argue with the ferryman and lifted her out of the water. That was a rather sudden motion, her eyes widened after the shift. And a little squeal fell from her face, why was that so sudden? 'Why did he move me like that? Why do I like that?' she mentally questioned of herself. "I will argue where I please." The Queen of Knights stated but even when saying such words she had not denied him at all. why did he have this sort of draw on her person? She did not know but at the very least she understood what was happening now. Time for waiting had come to an end and this man was now aiming to claim her.

That was kind of exciting as a thought wasn't it? He told her to prepare herself for her epic journey. There was not much left by way of preparation. Of course she realized in this moment something was about to happen she'd not really thought too much about before it happened. He aimed to remove her towel which was not something she'd stop him from doing. But that did not mean she would not have an entire internal meltdown about it in the moment. It was a complicated matter, she did not have a problem with her nudity, it was just very different to be naked in front of someone who was actually looking. She could tell he was excited by the prospect and she truly did not understand why this was the case. But that towel would come away, revealing unmarred flesh beneath, smooth cream colored skin with a gentle gleam not caused by the water droplets which remained in place on her skin. Modestly proportioned, not a child in body simply, petite in form with a body toned by years of practice. She managed to maintain her upward gaze, but could not stop the blood from shifting towards her own face. "That was rather sudden..." she murmured softly having no idea what he intended by gazing upon her. Something about being naked in front of him was somewhat embarrassing but would she dislike it?

[Bloodedge]

Finally. At long last, an event centuries in the making was finally unfolding before his very eyes. Gilgamesh tore away that towel as one would jerk open a door, and there beyond the threshold of said door was the light of heaven itself. Radiance in its finest form burst through his retinas and burned away the surface layer of his very soul. Happy Birthday, King of Heroes. Such was what one should say as he stood in the spring water, transfixed by a beacon Celestia itself was unfit to gaze upon. Sudden? "The only thing sudden here is the assault on all eight of my senses." Yes... he had eight, and all eight of them were affected by a single sight.

Every possession in his treasury was thwarted, overwhelmed and made worthless in a single moment. He claimed there were many priceless things in his collection, but could he ever be so audacious again? Surely not. Where could he even begin? His hands were on the move once more, gliding along the flawless skin of Artoria's upper arms until they shifted to her sides. Though he was always so sure of his every action, most seeming even predetermined in nature, his mind appeared to have blanked as he leaned into the Queen of Knights' body. His lips pressed against the space just below her collarbone, just gently and with a tender enough peck to be audible when his lips separated from the flesh. This action continued multiple times over while his hands explored the expanses of Artoria's torso, though there didn't seem to be much innately sexual about his approach just yet. No, he'd taken a path that could not be described so vulgarly as even that. Sensual was the initial route forward, and he would be sure to follow it thoroughly. Once he was satisfied with that, then perhaps Artoria would truly learn the meaning of sudden developments.

[Apollymi]

Artoria was naked before the King of Heroes and he seemed to be taking that in. It was still embarrassing but as far as she could tell it was not negative scrutiny she was receiving. As if she needed further explanation of his pleasant associations with the sight of her nudity he called it a sudden assault on his eight senses. She managed to look surprised in addition to her current level of embarrassment. "Eight?" she questioned. That number seemed a bit outlandish, she knew of six perhaps seven but eight did not seem normal. Whatever the case, she was in for a new experience as Gilgamesh seemed content to inspect her form more thoroughly.

His hands met the exposed flesh of her arms and caused goosed flesh to appear. Interestingly enough this wouldn't be a solo experience. As Gilgamesh took it upon himself to press lips into the space between her collarbone, after moving his hands to her sides. That goosed flesh follow and that audible little popping noise assaulted her ears. No, that wasn't right... it tickled her ears. She was certain her skin heated up specifically where his lips made contact. Why was he doing this? 'Is this... romance? Do I like this?' The questions of her mind were answered by the feelings in her body. Strange tingles were spreading throughout her body and she was quite sure it had the same effect as the those passionate kisses, just different in its spawning. 'Why was he doing this?' She wanted to know, but did not wish to ask, she kind of liked it and did not want him to stop. The hand that had previously occupied the side of his face, had moved of its own accord and was on his shoulder. She was sure he could hear her heart beating, certain she was confused, but not at all inclined to stopping.