"It was fortunate for sure," Janius agreed. "Well, heartless Imperial agent or no, it's good to know that you could stand up to someone like my father." He looked ahead. "I am still surprised that [i]I[/i] was able to. But...so much has changed. He has changed, I have changed." Janius breathed in and sighed, casting his eyes down and lowering his voice. "I never thought I would live to hear either of them say they were proud of me." He squeezed Kaleeth's hand.

Julan had to sustain his look for a while. Rhazii caught it out of the corner of his eyes and double-took. "What are you looking at?" Rhazii stared back until his red eyes widened. "Oh, right, back there. Um..." Rhazii looked ahead and put his hands in his pockets. "What do you want to know?" He asked cautiously with a shrug.

[hr]
Lunise hummed apprehensively at the thought of what Meesei implied. She did not have an answer by the time Meesei moved on.

"If there has been such a coupling before, it was kept just as closely a held secret as us," Lunise responded. "As for me...it is complex. I was raised in a society where Altmer were the superior mortal race. Being close to another race is debasing oneself. Stooping down to a primitive level. It is not unlike marrying an animal, to most Altmer." Lunise frowned. She was avoiding eye contact, though still spoke confidently. "The utilitarian reasons are simple; we do not grow our population fast, so to reproduce with a lesser race was to produce inferior children that would not have two parents over the majority of its lifetime, reducing the numbers of Altmer overall. But I am attracted to women -- I have known that since I started forming attraction to others -- so a birth child is practically infeasible. And like I said, I have accepted your limited lifespan even before you consider extending it. So that only left the shame."

She huffed from her nose. "There is no reason to lie. A part of me is still ashamed to be attracted to an Argonian. And yet, you were the one who was there for me, asking nothing in return. You are helping me come to terms with he biggest change of my life. You are talented enough to answer my challenges as a peer and not a barbarian. I would go as far to say I would be debasing myself by courting an average Altmer woman in comparison to you. Even if all of that was not justification enough, no one else is here to shame me."

Lunise cupped Meesei's cheek in her hand. "And before you let anyone think that, for a moment, I would resort to being with an Argonian because there are so few Altmer women that would reciprocate romance with another woman, know that you are a fitter specimen than the bulk of them. I adore the texture of your scales, the softness of your feathers, the shape of your figure, and your rich, exotic eyes." Her hand brushed up over Meesei's snout. "It was this that I found strangest," she said bluntly. "Your face. I think I had to kiss it before I could look past it. You should count yourself fortunate that, even after your long period of loneliness, you share exceptional kiss."

Once again, Lunise brushed her hand through Meesei's feathers. With her lips open, she placed her hand behind Meesei's head and drew her into a passionate kiss. Lunise held Meesei tighter as they continued. By now, they had enough practice with each other's lips that the differences in their faces were not a barrier to passion. Their hands wandered, pressing them further.

However, another thought made Lunise draw back early. "It occurs to me that the notion may have gone both ways." She laid her fingers on her cheek. "My face does not look...Argonian to you, does it? For an elf, that is?"