Chapter Text
1897 Paris, France
it was really quite sweet the way marianne decided to ditch the men asking her to dance to spend time with her lover. it was really quite nice of marianne to wear such a nice dress. dark purple taffeta with ribbons and a sash in a lighter amethyst color. though she wasn’t wearing the fashionable sleeves of the time, she stood out in a dazzling way. the wide neckline was to be expected from such a fashionable woman, but exposed shoulders made the dress feel almost older than it was. it reminded guinevere of the 80’s when all the evening dresses were practically sleeveless. thank god the ballrooms were warm, lest all the ladies caught a cold. guinevere’s dress was not as enticing as mariannes with its small puffs for sleeves and modest decoration, yet the way marianne looked at her would have made one think it was the most elegant gown anyone at the ball was wearing.
the breeze blew in marianne’s short bangs, not daring to ruin the rest of her intricate updo. guinevere’s bun was already looking disheveled, but the balcony was far away from the party and the summer air was warm and guinevere really needed to break the tension.
“you look very.. nice,” guinevere said. she wasn’t ever very good at this. marianne gave one of her Ladylike Laughs.
“you look very ‘nice’ as well,” she said. guinevere blushed at the compliment, but also from embarrassment.
“well, you look more than nice, i just couldn't think of word for how you looked- not that it is bad, though I think we’ve already established how i think you look very radiant tonight, it’s just none of the words i could think of really encapsulated it exactly,” guinevere rambled. “god, i don’t know why you have to have this effect on me…”
marianne was smiling. she was one of those people who had a gorgeous smile no matter what she was smiling about. it was probably because she was, for lack of more eloquent phrasing, stupid hot.
“it’s not on purpose, i assure you, mon lapin.”
guinevere blushed again. or maybe she was just perpetually red around marianne. “was there.. any specific reason you wanted me to join you up here?” she asked, avoiding marianne’s stare. her blue eyes looked almost purple with the dress she had on.
“well, i do enjoy spending time with you, even if you act like we haven’t been doing this for months,” she said. guinevere was trying even harder not to look at her now.
“oh.. i-i mean, i have been aware of that, i just… it's very difficult to stay put together around you,” guinevere rambled.
“funny, that’s how i feel about you,” marianne said before she placed her gloved hand over one of guinevere’s own on the railing. guinevere looked up at marianne, staring into her eyes. marianne had such a genuine and adoring look on her face that it scared guinevere. she still wasn’t used to this kind of attention. before guinevere was able to prevent herself from receiving more of it, marianne had guinevere’s face cupped in her hands. guinevere was pleasantly surprised by the kiss.
she seldom had the chance to kiss anyone prior to january, but finding out marie liked her back meant that she got plenty of kisses- and by god, did she enjoy them. she enjoyed the way marianne’s hands felt on the back of her neck and her jawline. she enjoyed being able to wrap her arms around marianne and rest her hands on her lower back. she loved marianne’s quick breaths, and the way she moved her hands, and how warm it was. she wasn’t thinking of anything else other than marianne's lips on hers.
it was really quite sweet that marianne decided not to go back to the party- and it was very sweet of marianne’s heavily boned bodice to not allow for much more than a petticoat underneath the dress. by then, though, it didn’t really matter how fancy the dress was. not to guinevere, at least. what mattered was the way marianne looked with her hair falling out of its sophisticated style and how nice it felt. she was with the person she trusted most, and that person truly loved her. guinevere didn’t know how she had managed it, but she was enjoying herself more than she had in a long time. any thoughts of running away or hiding had left her mind when marianne kissed her. guinevere knew she wasn’t going anywhere.