The curtains in the main study were open, allowing the cloud-filled sky to be seen. The clouds had held all morning so Kyle had decided to risk not drawing the curtains when the sun rose, at least until the clouds showed any signs of parting. The study was more of a library with several chairs and a desk, but since he spent most of his time in here reading it suited his needs. It was a surprisingly cozy room, with a large bay window and a currently dormant fireplace. While he often sat at his desk or around near the fire, he had decided to take advantage of the nice weather while it lasted.

Sitting in a chair by the window he was easily visible from the open doorway. When he wasn't doing anything of importance he generally left the door open, since there was no point in shutting himself off from the rest of the house during simple reading. It was more for the sake of others then his own, as he was aware of their presence even when he couldn't see them. An example of this was his betrothed, who had recently been lingering around the study door. On days where it was open, she would occasionally peek in as though to see what he might be up to.

Today seemed to be one of those days, she had stopped by the room several times before wondering off to other parts of the manor. He had counted at least five times her white hair had dropped past of edge of the doorway as she'd stood just out of sight. The girl had become much more comfortable with the house in the past year, beginning to treat it like her own. Despite the inclusion of only one master bedroom Kyle had chosen to sleep in the study, partially because he preferred it and partially to allow his fiance a room to herself. At least until she no longer wanted one, though he doubted that would be anytime soon.

As his thoughts drifted back to his book, he noticed his fiance was once again approaching the study. This was becoming a little unusual, as while it wasn't like she avoided the room, she usually didn't approach this many times in one day. He was beginning to wonder if she needed a book, or simply wanted to use the room. He smirked at the next thought which crossed his mind. Maybe it wasn't the study she was interested in, but him. He entertained this thought for a few moments while she approached the doorway. Once again she simply stood there, as though waiting for something. Slightly amused he looked up, catching her eyes. Holding her gaze he smiled, deciding he might as well ask her intentions.

"Do you want something?" He asked gently before pausing, his smile changing into more of an amused smirk. "Or are you simply enjoying the view?"

From the day Helena was born her parents had known she was meant for greatness. Already when she was simply a kid she could foresee the future. At that time she had seen her unusual power as a gift. Her parents had too, but in a whole other way. A way that made Helena change her "gift" into a curse.

Marriage! Helena hated it. and she was determined to keep hating everything about it.... Or she had been, at first. She had of course been a true lady when they had to meet with the noble and talk about the engagement, which her parents had been very eager to do, while the nobles had mostly seemed interested in her. She most have only been a kid in their eyes. The nobles where old, as in very old.

She had, however only been interested the man that was sitting a bit further away from her. Her fiancée. Her gaze turned to him, from time to time. She wondered what was so special about him. Why she had to join the ranks and become noble, even though her parents had told her the reason when she had been screaming at them, only days ago.

And now she was here. Been here a year and been hating it, or at least that was what she kept telling herself. Her fiancée was there too. He kept mostly to his study, though. He had even given her the master bedroom for herself. They had barely spoken to each other in the year that had past, which was mostly because of herself. She skipped the meal times, and ate in her room, and all the other time Kyle spent his time in the study, while she got the whole house for herself.

But being there a year has made everything known to her. There is nothing more to discover, and everything inside is boring... With the exception of one thing. Kyle... Helena usually peeked into his study once or twice a day to see what he was doing, though she quickly walked away again, so he wouldn't think she wanted to talk. He usually just ignored her and that was fine by her.

Today there was no one in the mansion but the two of them, so she was bored. She had unconsciously wonder around Kyle's office more that she usual did. She never excepted anything new. Just Kyle sitting there.

She was very surprised when he looked up at her and asked if she wanted anything. "I ... I was just ..." She started, a little flustered over getting caught, even if he could sense her, but then Kyle smirked at her and came with his smart comment which made her frown and irritated. Then she crossed her arms and glared at him. "Why would I ever enjoy looking at you?" She said. Why did he always have to be a idiot towards her? Always making her irritated with his smart comments.

Unlike many of the other possible options for engagement, Helena had actually seemed interesting. The other girls were all high-born ladies of status, and sadly this was all they seemed to care about. When they'd been introduced the women would often point out his clothes, speech, air or something similar. They batted their eyes and tried to win him with fancy words and pretty dresses. Kyle hadn't cared much for that, as he wanted an equal not a trophy. His family however didn't really agree, and when they first mentioned his current fiance he had been unsure. The age difference had seemed large, unusually large and as the girl was from a lower family he was sure there was some ulterior motive to the engagement. Considering the excitement among both families he was still sure that was the reason. Her family wanted marriage to a high-class family, his wanted a girl with power and to finally get Kyle married off.

Helena was obviously against the arrangement, but considering the circumstances he wasn't surprised. While she had acted the lady during the negotiation, which mostly consisted of boring conversation between his parents and hers, he couldn't help be feel curious about what thoughts lay behind her red eyes. His family couldn't care less about what kind of person the girl was, but without that detail he probably wouldn't have agreed to be married in the first place. There had been mention of her power, but that wasn't nearly as important to him as the spunk Helena carried in her tiny frame.

The girl was stubborn as well, worse then a mule bearing to much weight. This was definitively an instance of that. Her flushed cheeks and angry demeanor made him want to tease her more, and their interactions were always much more interesting then those he'd had with almost anyone else. Kyle smiled.

"I was referring to the weather, but I can see the misunderstanding." His smile was almost a grin at this point, and he was obviously still amused. Kyle motioned to the open window, looking out at the clouds which were still holding steady. "The weather has been quite lovely all morning. The clouds are just thick enough to block the sun but not enough to cause a gloomy atmosphere. I've been admiring it myself." His eyes drifted to her and he smiled again.

"You can come take look if you'd like. I'm sure you'd get a better view from over here." His voice was gentle, and this was obviously an invitation of kinds. It was like he was testing frozen ice, waiting to fall in at any moment.

Helena opened her mouth, as if she was about to answer, but no word came out. She then shut her mouth close and wanted most of all just to walk away with an inhuman speed. She could feel the blush that was starting to form on her cheeks, and quickly shook her head to try and calm herself. Why did he have to be like that?! Why did he have to find it amusing to tease her and embarrasses her? She shook her head. It didn't matter why. She just needed to be strong enough to take whatever was thrown at her.

She glared up at him. What was his problem anyway? She knew he wasn't messing with her head. He never did. Sometimes it frustrated her. Why was she so special? Was it simply to be polite, or was there some utter motive, like gaining her trust? Or make feel safe and then strike?

But wasn't this what she had wanted to? To interact with her jailer? Her glare softened slowly, as Kyle invited her inside. She turned her head and looked down the hall. Should she just walk away? She still could. Act all hostile and storm away like she normally did, whenever Kyle tried to interact with her. This time was different, though. This time it was Helena that had come to him.

Helena bit her lower lip and looked back at Kyle before she made a small nod. "Fine, if it is really that amazing, then I guess I can stay for a little." She finally said. She sounded much sure of herself than she felt, but with a little hesitation she slowly wondered inside and looked around. She felt a little like a antelope that was walking over to a lion.

She stopped a few feet away from Kyle and looked at the window. He was right, though. The weather was good outside. She didn't look at him. Part of her wanted to, but she suppressed that. she didn't want to give him that satisfaction. She finally took the final steps to stand next to him and looked outside the window.

He was a lot taller than her. She actually hated that. It made her feel inferior and weaker than him. It also made him more intimidating, whenever they where close. That was one of the bigger reasons Helena kept her distance most of the time. She didn't like feeling intimidated. She didn't like that someone had control over her.

"Have you been "admiring" the weather all day?" She asked. The tone was sarcastic. She still wasn't much for admitting to him she wanted to get to know him, so it was probably bast just to play it out like this.

Kyle watched as Helena entered the room. She was obviously nervous, but this was a step up from her simply stomping off. He smiled again, feeling like some progress was finally being made. It wasn't like he needed to read her mind to understand her anger with him, anyone with half a brain would know the reason for that. Then again, who would be happy being forced into an arranged marriage with a man over twice your age? One of the reasons he made sure to give her so much space, to let her come to him, was because of their age difference. He was sure she felt very uncomfortable around him due to this. It didn't really help her was naturally tall, which made him seem even larger then her.

He was suddenly very glad he was sitting down, because while he still had some height on her, it was nearly as much as when they were both standing up. He pondered how much of a difference there would be if she was the one sitting down, but was pulled from this thought as she approached the window. She keep her eyes on the weather, something he didn't feel the need to do. Helena seemed to be making sure her eyes never left the window, so he took that moment to check her facial expression. While she seemed conflicted, it didn't seem any worse then that. Kyle had been pondering ending the interaction right there if she had appeared too uncomfortable.

He looked out the window as well, a gentle breeze was beginning from the west, meaning the clouds would probably only be so steady for another hour or so. This gave him an idea, but he wasn't really sure how to begin. That was when Helena began to speak.

Kyle had to try not to chuckle at her words. It seemed she had decided to return his sarcasm with her own. Smiling he looked back at Helena, taking a moment to decide how to proceed from here. He knew where he wanted to conversation to end, he just wasn't sure where to begin.

"You could say that." He said, looking back out at the sky. "Mostly I've just been reading a few things I was putting off." Kyle held up the book that was no resting in his lap, showing her the title. It was a book about local plant-life. "I was about half-way through last time I read it, so I figured I should finally finish it." He paused, looking down at the book again. "I'm about finished, and I don't have anything else pulled out to read yet." Kyle paused again, unsure of how to continue. After a few moments he began, slightly uncertain of himself. "It seems like the clouds will only hold a few more hours, considering the way the wind is starting to pick up." Once again a slight pause. "Would you like to walk around the garden? Enjoy the weather while we still can?"

((Going to Barcelona until Saturday ... so I probably won't reply in that time ... and if I do, they'll probably not be that long :D))

Helena listened carefully at what Kyle was telling her about his reading. She didn't want to seem too interested, but at the same time, she was actually curious as to what Kyle spent his time on. She turned just in time to see the books title, before she looked away again.

Helena turned to look at Kyle, before she could stop herself, when he suggested that they could go outside. Had he just ... Helena's eyes landed on the man.She was no mind reader, but she could have sworn that it was uncertainty that was playing over Kyle's face. He normally never show much emotion, so when he finally do, she notices them almost instantly. However she always could be wrong. She have been told that she is extremely bad at reading people.

She bit her lower lip and again let the thought of storming away slip through her head. She had never really been this close to Kyle, except when their parents was there, then they was forced, more or less, to sit next to each other, so they could "talk", as his parents kept saying. They never had, though. Helena had never wanted to, and Kyle seemed determined to let Helena be the one to start the conversation.

She finally nodded. "Sure. It would be a waste if you have spent all this time looking at, and not being outside." She said and headed out.

((Alright, I noticed that in your signature, but thanks for telling me! I'll keep that in mind. If you want you can hold off on posting until you get more time, but it's really up to you. I don't want you to feel rushed, this really fun, especially with all the thinking involved in such long posts. Also, love all the mind-reading references. XD))

Kyle almost dropped his book when she agreed. He was sure she would simply leave when it took her so long to respond, especially when she started looking uncertain herself. The fact his book was already in his lap is probably the only thing that kept it clattering from to the floor. The progress him and Helena were making was exceeding his wildest expectations considering their other conversations, which generally didn't involve a conversation.

The only times they had really been in a situation for a discussion was when they're parents were sitting in the same room, and Kyle hadn't really been sure how to react to that. First off, having a private conversation was practically impossible when the people you least wanted to know your emotions were watching your every move. Secondly, he didn't want to have to act all stuffy and formal around his fiance, which was required around their families. Finally, he had been pretty sure she wouldn't have wanted to talk with him anyway considering her obvious hatred of him.

Well, he had been quite sure that she would get fed up with talking to him today so maybe he was a worse judge of people then he thought. Not like that wasn't an easy fix, but he had felt weird about the idea of reading her mind like that. He hadn't had a problem with it before, but unlike everyone he had ever interacted with she wasn't just trying to take advantage of him.

Well, she could be, but that seemed very unlikely. If she was, she was one hell of an actress and probably deserved whatever she got out of the deal. Considering how low a possibility that was it didn't merit much thought, though he didn't have much time to even ponder as Helena was already heading out the study door. Placing his book on the table next to him he quickly grabbed his coat, which he had placed over the armrest, and stood up to follow her. Kyle had to jog a few steps to catch up, but he reached her when she reached the door. Looking down at Helena, who's head was only about as high as his mid-chest, he glanced down the hallway. He was once again very aware of his height, and had to resist the urge to slouch.

"Should we head out the back, or walk around the house? I figure it'll take more time to reach the garden if we use the front door, but it will give us more time outside." Once again, he was testing the waters. Was she just putting up with him, or did she really want to try this out? He hoped it was the later, and from her reactions he felt there was promise in the situation. Kyle smiled at her again, wondering what her reaction would be.

Helena looked up at Kyle as he walked up to him. "Why would we take the back door?" She asked. True, it was faster for getting out in the garden, but Helena didn't see why they needed to get outside fast. Of course, Kyle probably was asking for her sake, in case she would feel uncomfortable about it, but it really wasn't necessary in her point of view.

She looked at the door and smiled slightly. "We'll be more outside if we take the front door. It's closer too." And with that she headed out. She walked over to the front door and waited for Jyle to join her, before walking outside. The mansion they were living in was bigger than the house her parents had. It was actually the biggest house she had ever seen, truth be told.

Her parents wasn't from a poor family, but they were far from Kyle's fortune. She had been living in a small settlement, where she had been living outside of everything. Almost never interacted with the world.

It had been a lot cloudy in her hometown, so she had spent a lot of time outside, while she had mp been little. However, as she grew up, her parents slowly, but steadily, started to forbid her from going outside, since she need to learn to become a proper lady after they discovered her powers, and the nobles took interest in her.

Ah, to be so young again. Kyle almost laughed at himself as being forced to tiptoe around the other nobles for so long made it a hard habit to break. Then again, when you didn't want to lose something you get a little worried. He wondered how long Helena's good mood would last, before pondering if this was just a mood. Maybe she was actually opening up, not just feeling lonely enough to resort to his company. There wasn't really much of a way for him to tell without finding some way of giving her constant company. He wasn't really sure if this would be possible without some drastic actions, ones he doubted their families would appreciate.

This lead him to another thought. Kyle assumed Helena had been tutored at home, as most nobles were, but depending how how many other children were in your household that often limited interaction. He was about to contemplate seeing if she would enjoy spending time with other girl's her age before realizing exactly who that would entail. Noble woman, while a talkative bunch, didn't always speak of the most intuitive things. Kyle's thoughts stopped in their tracks as he came to another conclusion. He had no idea what any of Helena's hobbies were! How could he conclude how she would feel about meeting other noblewoman if he didn't even know what she liked to do?

She seemed to like the outdoors, from what he could tell. Helena appeared to be excited as she headed toward the entrance to the house. Kyle followed, catching up to her quickly and opening the door so they could leave. He waited for her to step through first, as manners were manners no matter the company. Things like this had been engraved his his mind since he was little, and he often did them without thinking to much about it. Small talk was probably the thing he liked the least of all the manners he had been forced to learn as it was horribly boring. The only real enjoyment out of it he'd ever gotten was trying to figure out obscure topics of conversation and watching people try and understand what he was talking about. Kyle still used that method occasionally when he really didn't feel like small talk but someone else obviously did.

The slight breeze he'd noticed earlier was still in the air, he could feel it blowing into the house now that the door was open. It didn't seem strong enough to move the clouds quickly, but he worried it might be picking up. Hopefully it wouldn't, it would be a pity to end such a nice day. The weather was rather finicky this time of year, and a perfect cloudy day like this rarely lasted long. In fact, the fact it was still holding this late in the day was a blessing. He had half expected the clouds to either be gone or pouring rain by now.

Helena looked at him as he stood still and waited for her to get out. "Well?" She asked and looked to him. She knew it was a custom for a man to wait until the lady had exited first, but it hadn't been kale that had opened the door, and it was Helena who held it open at the moment. "Are you going out or not?"

She walked over to him and crossed her arms. "If you are. Going to act all noble and proper around me, I'm going back to my room. I've enough of that whenever your parents are around and I have to act like a proper lady to give a good impression of myself." She did exit first, though. She had for a minute thought about pulling Kyle outside, and force him to go first, but had decided against it, since that involved more physical touch than she was comfortable with.

She paused slightly as she was outside and waited for Kyle to get out form the house, before the two of them headed towards the backward, where the garden was. Helena actually spent a lot of time there during the night, but she kept it a secret for everyone. To be honest she actually had no idea if she was even allowed to be outside without an escort.

Her parents seemed to believe that she would run away from Kyle, if she got the chance, which was partly true, but she would never actually do it. They had wanted servants to follow her around, which they had done the first few months she had been living there.

But now, she was free to roam around on her own. She even got to go outside once in a while, though she had only tried that a couple of times.

She smiled when they were finally at the garden and Helena walked over to the marble bench that was placed on the porch.