For a while, he spoke no words - The man's remaining arm slipped about her slender form, and Alaine allowed herself to be drawn close, seeking the warmth and reassurance that Jefferson could provide. Her hands rose to rest cool palms against his chest, and without thinking about it, she leant her head against him. His heart beat soundly there, and the Apothecary found its continuous pulse reassurance. Thump-thump, thump-thump, thump-thump...
He spoke again, voice rumbling up through his body, and the exotic woman scowled into the fur of his chest. She would voice her denial until the day they both died - Jefferson Soul meant more to her than she would like to know. Once, they had spoken of the devil known to him as Maluki, of the sins that creature had committed. And she had forgiven him for them; A victim of the atrocities thus committed, she had finally been able to spare him her misery, and in doing so, release some of it. It had been easier after that, to forget the past, to forget what was carved in four neat scars into the flesh of her upper arm. That discussion with him, it had felt a little bit like healing, from the inside out.
This one, however, hinted at darker things. He sighed heavily, and she lifted her head, unwilling to meet the Cyclops' gaze as he spoke and made light of her worry. "I waste nothing." Came the stubborn reply, almost petulant in voice, a blatant denial of his sentiments. However, his hand rose behind her head to cradle her close. Although surprise jittered through her veins, Alaine did not resist. A strange warmth bloomed in her for such closeness, and an inexplicable sense of loss stole through her. It was though she was being allowed a sample of something she might have had - In another life, for this one mocked such childish sentiments.
Feeling confused, a potent mixture of warring emotions bubbling within her, the woman tipped her head back to give the one-eyes man a gentle lick on the nose. She wished to show her affection, and this seemed a simple enough manner.