Cowardly Lion

The name's Giovanni Lowe. 24 and currently residing in Storybrooke, Maine. I teach drama at the local high school and reading is my favorite thing to do, besides looking at cars. You can probably find me in my office or in class. Probably not at home because that place creeps me out. I'm usually very friendly, so don't be intimidated by my height...please. RP blog based here. OOC: Red!

[swanprincess-rp]

Shock & Awe || Genderbend!Cowardly Swan

[swanprincess-rp]

"I wouldn’t dare take anything plaid from you." She smiled and followed the girl into the kitchen. For right now she would focus herself and her male body on the task at hand and keep moving forward one step at a time. The whole idea of having to touch the woman in front of her still freaked her out. It was one thing to braid Ev’s hair, just as it was one thing to touch Geo’s shoulder, but the idea of braiding Geo’s hair in a body that wasn’t familar to her at all. 

She took a deep breath still unnerved by all the different sensations that her body felt. There was no weight on her chest, making the deep breath not as satisfying as she would have liked. She reached her hands out and gently working her way through the mess of hair in front of her. 

"I didn’t know you were a secret master of knots G-" Catching herself before saying either gender name. She held the hair firmly just before the knot and started to work her fingers through the tough spots. She knew this tricked worked for her when she had her long hair. It wouldn’t fix everythingb ut it would at least help. 

"Let me know if it hurts, I don’t want to hurt you." It seemed weird for her to say those words and feel those words. She knew Geo was strong and that he could handle just about anything but seeing this small body in front of her made her think of how fragile things could really be. 

[giovanni-lowe]

The awkward silence that lingers as Odette's stumbles over a name is tangible in the room. Gia taps her fingers on the table, then grasps the edge of it as Odette starts to tug; it didn't necessarily hurt, but the feeling was new, and it made Gia's teeth grind together at the feeling being put on edge.

"G?" As her eyes squint shut in anticipation of tugging pain, Gia tries to find something else to talk about; Odette's hesitation over her name leads to a gender-neutral nickname that perhaps Odette would be comfortable with. "Seems like a good name for now." As much as Geo would have loved to go along with the female part, for the present being a neutral entity was just going to have to work, if Odette was going to feel comfortable.

"It doesn't hurt. Not yet, at least." Gia's snort sounds more masculine than it should, but it makes Geo feel a little more comfortable in his new body; at least he could find boyish things to do while still keeping the girlish look.

"At least you're not brushing it, right?" Gia turns around, raising her brows and smiling softly at the new, male face she was going to have to get used to.

[swanprincess-rp]

Shock & Awe || Genderbend!Cowardly Swan

[swanprincess-rp]

"You’ve always been the good housewife." She could ignore the awkwardness of the situation as best she can. And she honestly was hungry. She smiled back at her and tried to remain calm. She was getting her wish after all even if she was in the wrong body.

She wished that she was the girl swimming in Geo’s clothes making breakfast for her man before he woke up in the morning but that just wasn’t the case today or probably for the next couple of days. She wanted to reach out and hold her hand, even if it didn’t look like the person she was dating she could still want to care and treat her the same way she did Geo, well up to a point. Anything over hand holding would get too close to the idea of her kissing Evelyn and while there was nothing wrong with that idea, it wasn’t something she saw her self doing.

"Do you mind if I roll these? Oh, I still need to do your hair turn around. Do you just want a pony tail?"

[giovanni-lowe]

Odette’s joking makes Geo feel a little bit better about their whole ordeal. Maybe if things went on for far too long, they could get used to it; of course, that was not exactly what Geo wished for, but if push came to shove…it could work out if they were willing to try.

"Roll them, cut them, I don’t mind," Gia turns around to get a good look at the clothes that Odette’s body is now clothed in, making sure that they weren’t a favorite or anything. "Yeah. It’s not plaid, so…do whatever you want." As she turns back around, Gia shrugs, continuing the walk to the kitchen.

"Oh yeah." As Odette suggests, Gia turns around and begins to pull out the elastic — but it tugs at the hair and she finds herself yelping softly. "I don’t know how you…I mean, we, girls do it." Leaving the hair in its current state, still slightly tied in the band, Gia sits on a chair in the kitchen, leaving her hair to Odette’s hands. "Yeah, could you put it a little higher? It’ll probably still be annoying as hell, but it couldn’t hurt." Gia shrugs lightly, waiting for Odette to work her magic on the unruly brunette hair.

[samswarek]

[swanprincess-rp]

Shock & Awe || Genderbend!Cowardly Swan

[swanprincess-rp]

"I-I have no idea if this is permanent." Odette shrugged herself out of the tight clothes and picked out a pair of jeans and a button up shirt. She slid into the clothes quick enough but yet again they still didn’t fit perfectly. The jeans were longer than her legs and the shirt was much too big. She had gone from feeling like a stuffed sausage to feeling like a kid in their father’s clothes. 

"We may need to go clothes shopping.I don’t think these would fit." She turned around and looked over at Geo. She had to admit she could still see Geo a bit in that form. She had a strong jaw and a muscular body. But Odette missed the warmth that came from his eyes, these new eyes seemed so foreign to her. 

She took a few steps forward to her and was honestly terrified of the idea of touching her. She had no idea how Geo would respond or what it would feel like in the different skin. She knew Geo would want to move away from the awkwardness as quickly as possibly and for once she had to agree wholeheartedly. 

[giovanni-lowe]

As Odette walks into the room, Gia turns to look and has to hold back another snort. This time, it's a little easier because of the look on Odette's face; even though it's harder to read, Gia can still find a little disappointment that her body isn't Geo's.

"You look fine, but of course we'll go shopping. I don't think I can wear any of this confidently." Gia runs her fingers over the silk blouses, suddenly feeling self-conscious in her new, female skin.

Odette looks so uncomfortable that Gia can't help but take a step toward her -- him. It feels strange to be comforting another man (physically) as a man (mentally), but to help Odette feel better, Gia's hand reaches out and touches the man's forearm.

"It's alright. Why don't I make you breakfast?" Gia temporarily forgets the clothing troubles and begins to walk to the kitchen, looking behind her to motion for Odette to follow. "Eggs? Sausage? I'll make you anything you want. I'm a good housewife." The girl turns around to find Odette's reaction, worried that she won't accept jokes as freely as Geo does. She smiles brightly, trying to keep the mood light.

[swanprincess-rp]

Shock & Awe || Genderbend!Cowardly Swan

[swanprincess-rp]

"You… you too?" The voice still sounds weird and she can’t even process what has happened to herself let alone what has happened to Geo. And he’s been up longer. She. 

All princess lessons aside Odette is confused and pissed. What ever manners she has have fled with this new body. “Fuck,” she looks down at herself and can’t help but smile. It had to look commical. But the look of another women in Geo’s over sized clothes does cause a pang of jealous to hit her heart. Even if it was Geo herself/himself. It still felt wrong to her. 

She pushed herself up off the bed and couldn’t decide if she should hide herself or just go with it. Geo or whoever it was had never seen her naked but did it count when it wasn’t exactly her body? She shook her head and stood up walking toward where she had pointed. 

"At least you look hot." She muttered as she made her way to the dresser. 

[giovanni-lowe]

Gia turns her head as Odette starts to walk to the dresser, not wanting to get a view of Odette's new body. Odette's comment makes Gia snort again, and look down at herself. The new body was, of course, new, but it was still athletic and strong as Geo's body before. Geo inwardly decides that the girl he now was would be at least a little bit attractive to his inward man.

"I do not! At least not in this clothes." Gia tries to keep the tone light while still keeping her eyes off of Odette. "You finished yet? Because this is getting uncomfortable and I think you need to fix my hair again." Gia reaches back to run a hand through the messy ponytail, tangled and frizzy and a mess. She looks to Odette for help, as Geo didn't know how to handle being in a woman's body, or not yet.

"You think this is permanent?" Gia shifts uncomfortably on the bed, then stands up to pace around nervously, going into what used to be Odette's room -- before she began sleeping in a bed with Geo -- and looking through drawers for a better fitting shirt. "O, a little help here?" Gia's voice calls through the hall, and mentally Geo decides that he needs to keep Odette's mind off of the change, to stay away from a breakdown, so Gia sorts through clothes mindlessly until Odette comes to her aid.

[swanprincess-rp]

Shock & Awe || Genderbend!Cowardly Swan

"GEO!!!!!!!!!!" Odette screamed, in a deep voice and she tried again trying to get her voice back to normal. "GEO!!!" She coughed trying to make her voice back to normal. She sounded so foriegn ot herself and she had no idea how Geo would respond to her being a man but he was someone who read plays he had to be more accustomed to such odd things rather than how she was feeling. How he was feeling? She wasn’t sure how pronouns would workd at this point. 

She/he pushed up out of the bed and swung around. She could feel it pressed tightly against her/his body. The night normal boyshort underwear she had worn to bed coupled with the now too tight yoga pants were causing her to feel ever part of her new anatomy. She refused to look down and accept what it was that was between her legs and she was terrified to figure out how she was going to go about daily life. She had been transformed before but at least she was the same sex and it came to her naturally.

"For fucks sake."  

[giovanni-lowe]

All of Geo's worst fears came true when a man's voice screamed across the house. The same thing had happened to Odette, and Geo couldn't necessarily say that he was happy about it.

"Odette?" It's the first word that Geo -- or rather, someone that could be called Gia -- speaks in her new voice, and it's obvious that the sleep still hasn't gone out of it. "It's alright, just don't freak when you see me." Gia worries that Odette would be less willing to accept the change, as she had already decided to make the best of what had happened.

As Gia is met with the view of a blonde man in clothing that was as tight on him as Gia's clothes was loose, she laughs heartily, doubling over with giggles and holding her stomach as if it would stop them.

"I'm s-sorry, it-it's not f-funny, but...! You're a dude!" It's hard for Gia to end up controlling herself, but she does it, and walks over to sit on the bed across from Odette's new self, trying her best to turn away so she can't see him and start laughing again.

"There's some clothes in there, if you want." Gia points to the dresser lamely, turning to Odette to give a look of comfort, but finding herself snorting again at the sight of the unfamiliar man.

[giovanni-lowe]

New Heights | Self-Para

Bursts of gold dust collide before his line of vision, shaping into flowers that were also fireworks and fairy wings, all full of magic. Unfortunately, the crackling like still-green wood in a fire pit rouse him from a peaceful sleep and into a new nightmare.

First, he notices the lack of height, or rather, the fact that his feet aren't hanging off of the edge of the bed; for once his toes are warm instead of being brushed by the ever present breeze. Next to be missed was the loose fitting of his shirt, for now it was tight around his chest and tugged under his bottom from being far too long.

"Wha--" Giovanni is displeased at the squeak that seems to be coming from his throat, but at first refuses to believe that it is true. This has got to be a nightmare, he remarks to himself, not wanting to speak aloud again.

In an effort to wake himself, he extends a hand to pinch his elbow, but it doesn't work. Giovanni tells himself that he is just stuck, in some kind of dream or REM deep sleep, something he had read about days ago. It only made sense.

For fear of what may be there on the other side of the bed, Giovanni refuses to glance over; what if what had happened to him in the dream had happened to Odette? He doesn't even want to think about it right now.

Pulling off the covers from the bed, he resists the urge to pee but insists on checking the mirror. The long hair isn't a surprise, and neither are the eyes; what completely throws him off is that he can barely reach the doorjamb, even at a tiptoe height. With a heavy sigh, Giovanni realizes that at least ten inches, if not more, has been shaved off of his height in this dream, but he reassures himself by splashing his face and thinking everything is going to be fine, just as soon as I get some water on my face and ---

But even that doesn't work. For extra safe measures, he rubs and scrubs at his face until his girly cheeks are red and sore from all of it. This is when reality hits him -- her? -- and Giovanni decides that this isn't just a dream.

Who would have done this? Was this permanent? Instead of over-thinking, Giovanni puts his hands on his face and decides an order of events slowly.

One, find out if this happened to Odette. Probably the hardest thing that had to be done was first, of course. Two, find out who did this. Three, if two is not an option, just go with it.

If Giovanni was going to be a girl, then all else be damned, he was going to be a good one. After getting to this conclusion, he uncovers his face and looks back into the mirror.

"Oh my god," he mouths, rolling his eyes and watching, pleased, as the girl in the mirror reacts the same way. It was humorous how the hair of this new body was transposed, long and dark and obstructing to his face like usual. But the length was all wrong, and Giovanni decided that everything else aside, he needed to get it out of his face. This now being first on the list of events, he digs around the bathroom until one of Odette's elastics pops up.

Even though Odette had played around with his hair (and maybe put it in a ponytail or two) before, Giovanni still had no idea how the elastic worked. It takes a few tries, and lots of cursing under his breath, but finally the unruly brunette hair is out of his face, despite the messy pieces poking out carelessly from the tightened elastic.

As good as it's going to get, he nods with the girl in the mirror, and with a vacant expression, baggy clothes, and open heart, he turns to face whoever was now sleeping in his bed.

[flying-arch-blog]

[giovanni-lowe]

Better Days (post-Midnight Ways) || Cowardly Swan

[swanprincess-rp]

Odette’s breath caught in her throat as she allowed him to move her. His hands on her body guiding her  cause a lump to rise in her throat. She can’t remember if someone’s every touched her side before and it causes her heart to beat rapidly inside of her chest. 

Compared to the night before having been on top of him and having everything connected. The memory of it causes her to feel warmth spread throughout her body. She allowed her body to respond, feeling everything melt and her muscles to relax. 

When he pulls away from her she strokes the hair away from his face and looks up at him. She wished there was a way to calm him down, to show him it’s okay. She still felt like he was holding back or that he wasn’t really interested. 

She bit her lower lip as a small grin crept on her face. She simply nodded her head looking up at him before she pulled him closer and kissed him again, this time holding him there and parting her lips. 

[giovanni-lowe]

The small action of pushing the hair out of his face makes it easier to handle this situation. Giovanni realizes that Odette isn't trying to get them to fast forward in the relationship, but instead get out of the rut that they were stuck in, physically at least.

A tug in his gut wants him to ask are you sure? and worry some more, but Odette has other plans. Geo decides that hers are better than any that he can come up with, and happily goes along.

At the invitation of Odette's parted lips, his tongue darts out momentarily, hesitant to move too fast, to run across her bottom lip quickly. He finds that his hands are awkwardly placed, one still around Odette's waist and the other supporting his weight on the bed. To make the both of them more comfortable, he disentangles one arm from underneath the girl and brings it up to press against her neck, because he didn't want to go there with his lips yet. Maybe placing a substitute there would make Odette feel less eager to move forward.

Because let's face it, Giovanni was still scared to death. All of this was new and he had never done it before, usually skipped over these parts in books, and the both of them had never crossed any of these lines in the past.

[giovanni-lowe]

Better Days (post-Midnight Ways) || Cowardly Swan

[swanprincess-rp]

Odette tries to move her body in a way that comes natural but for once in her life she felt awkward. Nothing was moving the way she thought it should. Her memory last night was graceful and she knew just were to go just where to place her hands, where she should move her legs, how her lips should move. The whole thing seemed utterly complicated and she sorely wished she could take a time out to consult with a friend, Evelyn to be exact. 

She let’s go of his hand to try and settle herself so that she is fully facing him and on her knees beside him. She tries to relax and let her body take over like it did last night, but nothing comes of her actions. She copies his hand and entangles her fingers in his brown locks. Her other hand travels awkwardly over his chest and shoulders trying to figure out where the best place to land would be. The awkwardness from before is seeping in and she can feel it. She can feel him not wanting to hurt her to want to take things slow. 

If he wanted her he could have her and if he wanted her that meant he wanted her to do this, exactly this. Odette kept telling herself in her head but still she was worried. She could feel her legs wanting to move and for her to sit across his legs but she held back. Her body moving slightly up and down as she kissed him. 

When she pulled away she took a deep breath a locked eyes with him. “Promise me you’ll tell me when to stop, and I’ll tell you. Deal?” She had heard there was a man in the town that was famous for her deals and she had never met him but she was certain he would want no part in the deal they were making. 

[giovanni-lowe]

Everything is awkward. The moving, the hand placements, everything. Giovanni can sense that Odette is on edge, frustrated, and wants to move forward. But it's much, much easier than it seems, especially for a man that has had hardly any human contact in an entire two lives of living.

As Odette pulls away, Geo automatically assumes the worst. This is stupid and if kissing is going to be awkward, it's over, is what she would say. Pack her bags and leave, is what she would do. It was easy; everyone that Giovanni ever had left, at least in Oz, even if there was hardly anyone there to begin with.

But again, Odette surprises the man with doing the complete opposite of what he assumed she would do. She gives him a chance, offers a deal, and as he looks down at her knees -- not wanting to make eye contact -- he nods slowly but surely. If this was what Odette wanted, and it made her happy, he would try.

Not that Giovanni didn't want any of it. That was obvious from the funny feeling in his stomach and the even more funny feeling down below. But it was different, and Giovanni didn't like change. Finally, he decided, it was a good change, and let himself go for a minute, until Odette said it was time to stop.

So he looks up into the girl's eyes, feeling relieved when there isn't a sign of doubt lingering there, and resumes from before. This time, however, things are fluid; it's easier to wrap an arm around Odette's waist to make it easier to turn them both sideways, rolling until Odette is below him and he is giving plenty of room between them just in case. 

He pulls away from the kiss, after being continued for the entire affair of moving, and asks sheepishly, "this okay?" and waits momentarily for a response from Odette.

[giovanni-lowe]

Better Days (post-Midnight Ways) || Cowardly Swan

[swanprincess-rp]

Odette’s heart can’t stop racing listening to him speak. Her whole body was tensed and ready for him to explain that what she did was okay, that there wasn’t anything wrong because he would just take it. For whatever reason she had turned everything negative in her mind and she had prepared herself to be turned out. That he would throw all of it away because of her drunken mistakes. 

But hearing him say that he wants her, that he wants what happened to happen again with only a small alteration she can’t help her reaction. She squeezes his hand before turning up and looking at him, a large smile spreading across her face. “If I am it’s because of you.” She couldn’t believe how cheesy the line was but it was right. There was no one else that could make her feel so whole and at peace. She was so safe and calm when she was around him. He made her laugh he made her free. 

She could feel him shake and she knows how nervous he is how shy he can be but for once they are a lone and the time is right and there isn’t anything or anyone that can ruin the moment for them now. Pushing herself closer to him, Odette leans her head forward and captures his lips with her. She squeezes his hand again lightly trying to tell him that she doesn’t just want a simple kiss. 

[giovanni-lowe]

The cheesy comment makes Giovanni want to laugh and make a joke, but when he looks up at Odette there's a look in her eyes that says not to. It says 'shut up and kiss me,' but he doesn't get the chance to process it until the girl leans over.

Eagerly, Geo leans into the kiss and squeezes Odette's hand back, quickly getting the message. The other reaches to press against the back of her neck that is covered by hair, lightly twisting in the strands to get a better grip.

The kiss deepens on Giovanni's accord, but this is the farthest things have gone and he doesn't know what to do now. It's hard to leave things up to Odette, for self-esteem reasons, but the man settles on letting Odette lead the way. He's still stepping on eggshells on the 'going further' thing and doesn't want to make assumptions that could hurt in the end.

[giovanni-lowe]

Better Days (post-Midnight Ways) || Cowardly Swan

[swanprincess-rp]

She pulls herself closer to him again. Despite the awkwardness between them she really does want to be close to him. She wished there was a way to simply get everything out on the table and get over all of the awkward conversation. She looks up at him and gives him a weak smile. “I guess. I just. You wont hurt me, I’m a lot stronger than I look.” She smiled trying to get things to calm down. 

"What’s okay?" She looked at him puzzled. She knew they were running around on three different conversations but that part needed to be answered. Her head started spinning with all the different options it could be. That it was okay for her to get that drunk, that it was okay for her to get high, that it was okay for her to go running off and act like a heathen, that it was okay for her to mount him in the middle of the night. There were too many options and too many of them where not good things. 

[giovanni-lowe]

What Odette tells him is a simple fact. Giovanni would never hurt a fly, much less Odette, a significant other. The thought of Odette being frightened of him brings an involuntary grin to the surface.

"Sure, but I'm a lot stronger than you think you look. And you look pretty strong. Confused yet?" It doesn't make sense, but Giovanni is trying to come up with something to get the subject very far away from what's being discussed. Odette keeps coming back and it makes Geo want to jump out of bed and go somewhere else.

"Everything. I mean, you weren't you, but if you had been...I guess it would have been alright." Giovanni blushes profusely, taking his mind off of what he's just said by staring at Odette's hand. "But I already said that, so." There's something missing that he hasn't said yet, he realizes, and figures that now is the time to say it. But he can't look Odette in the eye to. "I want you, too." His fingers run over the back of Odette's hand nervously, following the pattern of the vein that sticks out, even though his hand is shaking slightly. "In all those ways, and -- and I just do. You're perfect."

[giovanni-lowe]

Better Days (post-Midnight Ways) || Cowardly Swan

[swanprincess-rp]

Odette couldn’t help but nod along with what he was saying. For whatever reason she couldn’t think of anything better to do and the embarassment for what was happening kept building and she had no idea how to make things better. She didn’t want to assume things anymore. She had assumed for so long that he didn’t want to do those things with her for whatever reason and the way he reacted last night was still burning in her mind. 

She can’t help but wring her hands after his speech trying to push herself to speak but her voice is caught in her throat. She agress whole heartedly but for whatever reason the words aren’t coming to her and her heart is pounding in her her chest. She opened her mouth a few times trying to force the words out of her mouth. But it was stuck. 

She couldn’t tell you why she did what she did next but it was the first thing that popped into ther mind and she couldn’t stop herself. She moved foward, quickly and gracefully cupped his face in her hands and kissed his softly. She pulled back wide eyed. Considering the topic at hand she knew it wasn’t the bes thing to do but it had happeend and she couldn’t take it back now. “I agree.” She squeaked before she turned and sat back on her spot in bed. 

[giovanni-lowe]

The kiss definitely throws Giovanni off guard. Now, he just wants to pull Odette into a hug, snuggle a little, and go back to sleep; but what's been brought up in conversation now has to be discussed, no matter how scared he might be of talking to Odette about it.

"Good. I don't want you to feel like I'm pressuring you or anything, you know? Last night would have been okay, I guess, if you hadn't been -- well. I just don't want to hurt you." It feels so very awkward to be talking about this, Giovanni specifically skirting around a subject that might be a little more intimate than he feels comfortable talking about.

"So is this one of those weird 'morning after' talks? Because this is totally not how I envisioned it to go." He chuckles lightly, looking out the window to see the sunlight shining bright enough to make him squint. 

Since Odette seems to look so alienated over on the other side of the bed, he scoots closer and grabs her hand lightly, pulling it so that both of their hands sit on his knee. "It's okay, you know." He gives the girl a genuine smile, hoping to make her feel less guilty -- if she feels guilty at all -- about what she can remember from the night before.

[giovanni-lowe]

Better Days (post-Midnight Ways) || Cowardly Swan

[swanprincess-rp]

"I-" She leaned back on the bed. This was awkward and not the way she wanted this conversation to go. The one she had in her head was much simpler, Remember when I was on top of you? Yeah. Well I still want to do that. I want to do that most of the time. Do you want to? Yes cool. Let’s get down to business. But the coversation was heading no where near that line of conversation. with each exchange she felt like she was getting farther and farther away from the whole thing. 

"I do remember," she turned looking at him. She swallowed hard. If she wanted to get this out of the way she would have to do it quickly. He had said he loved her and she was hoping it wouldn’t change with what she was going to say. 

"And I’m not talking about what I did when I went out… I’m talking about when I came home, and you were still sleeping. And.. things… went.. far? Is that how I should say that?" She looked at him seriously questioning how she was doing. She knew Geo was just as unexperienced as her in this subject, despite the fact that he was older than her. 

She turned away from him quickly, embarassed by what she knew she had to say next. “Um if you remember it. I-um, god-um. I liked it?” Her voice reached conveying just how hard this was for her to talk about. Polite court ladies didn’t tell their suitors that they wanted to jump their bones. But they weren’t who they were in their past lives so maybe this modern woman could do that. “I liked it, I think you did and I know we want to go slow but… I think we can go past holding hands. If you want to, if you feel comfortable. I want you to know that I do want to do that with you, and you specifically.” She let it all out in one long breath and couldn’t help but breath deeply after she confessed it. She was quite certain her face was bright red. 

[giovanni-lowe]

As Odette admits to remembering everything, Giovanni stares at the sheets on the bed, trying to get the girl out of sight because of embarrassment. Odette was making things awkward, and awkward was something Geo was good at, but not in a good way.

He nods when Odette says that things went 'far,' because that was the truth. The things that had happened last night were a little uncomfortable for Geo, not because it was Odette but because they had agreed not to go that far -- or at least nonverbally -- and it had happened anyway while she was inebriated.

Because Giovanni thought that they had agreed not to go this far, he's shocked when Odette admits to liking it. Sure, it was something that Geo would have enjoyed under other circumstances, but Odette was drunk and he thought that it might have been wrong to continue doing those things in such a state.

Geo finally looks up after Odette finishes her speech, noticing the bright red that colors her cheeks, and stutters around a response. "Uh -- yeah -- I enjoyed it? Or...I would have if you weren't drunk?" A hand runs through his hair nervously as he keeps trying to think of things to say. "I guess if you want to go further we can. I just don't think last night really counts." His eyes go back to the sheets, and his fingers play at a loose string to keep his mind off of how much he probably just embarrassed himself.

[giovanni-lowe]

Better Days (post-Midnight Ways) || Cowardly Swan

[swanprincess-rp]

"I’m horrid at teaching. I really can’t break down dance moves or teach how to do dance. I tried once, my teacher was out sick for a day and put me in charge. It went bad, really bad. I can’t teach." She shook her head playful and scrunched up her nose. 

"I’m much better at being on stage. At least for now, maybe if I knew more I could be better at it, I don’t know." She shook her whole body and flopped back down on the bed,no longer touching him. She tried to come up with something to say, but it was still gnawing away at her. Something had started last night and she didn’t want to just ignore what had happened. 

She took a deep breath and tried to muster the courage that she had. “Geo.. can we talk about what happened.. You know.. when I came home?” She hoped that that would be enough for him to catch what she was trying to say. She could feel her cheeks turning red and she wasn’t sure if she could explain it any more in depth than that. 

[giovanni-lowe]

At first, Giovanni wants to smile and say something about how Odette should maybe perform on the stage sometime soon -- how could would it be to have a ballet dancer in a school play? The man expects for the conversation to steer away from the oncoming, looming conversation about what had happened last night, but instead Odette wants to go toward it; Geo feels a painful collision coming soon.

"Um...what about it? Do you...remember anything at all?" Giovanni has a realization if Odette doesn't remember anything, then that means that she might not remember the 'I love you' that slipped out. It takes him a moment to weight that out as a bad thing, which makes him feel guilty.

"You were just being silly." He tries to pass it off as a simple thing, not wanting to get into the details again. Last night, he was concerned, angry even, but now he just wanted to forget it as much as Odette had wanted to then. "I think you just needed to get out and you did that."

It hurts, but Giovanni realizes that all of that he had said was stupid and would only push them away from the resolution that they need. "I mean, unless you don't think that's it." He looks down sullenly, not wanting to face what Odette might say next.

[giovanni-lowe]

Better Days (post-Midnight Ways) || Cowardly Swan

[swanprincess-rp]

"Me no, sorry I can’t do the whole speaking in front of crowds thing. I perfer to dance." She smiled shaking her heard. She had her way she could easily have kept talking about dance and theatre and everything that was coupled with that. But her heart was nagging at her to fix things to make it better. 

"This… that… it’s not like anything I’ve done before. In any world." She lowered her head slightly trying to bring her point home. She had never done anything like that before and she never wanted to do that again. She wanted to be happy with him, snuggled in bed. She was so close to her fantasy of cooking breakfast. She didn’t want to ruin it by whatever happened last night. 

"I don’t want to go back to my past life. I’ve-" She paused thinking about how much of her past life was gone now. Her father was dead, she had no friends from her past life rather than Derek and she had shut down whatever there was between them. Her and Uberta had never been that close and she highly doubted that she would want to speak to her now. There was nothing for her in her home. There was an empty kingdom and a crazed sorcerrer out to get her. Storybrooke was safer,  happier, it was where she wanted to be. "I’ve given up my past life. I don’t want it, I want you. I want this life, whatever it maybe." She bit her lower lip and broke eye contact with him. 

She had no idea what her future held here. She had no job, her only real talent was dance. She passed by at school with B’s and C’s. She had spent her whole life learning how to be a good wife and rule a country. Her time under the curse had skated by her in mind. She was supposed to marry Derek, unite the Kingdoms, produce heirs. Her life had been planned out and now she had no plan no nothing. She had a Geo, and she was more than happy with him. But something in the pit of her stomach was eating away at her. But she tossed it up to a strange hangover from the night before. 

[giovanni-lowe]

"And so have I, but -- I don't know if parts of it, and parts of us from then, can come back." It's embarrassing to admit, but at times Giovanni feels just as helpless and lost as he was back in Oz. None of the people from there, that are now here, are paying attention to him, and although that might be nice it pulls at a few heartstrings. Coming to Storybrooke didn't change anyone else from Oz, why would it change any other person in this town?

It might be lame, but Giovanni feels like he has to throw something back. "I want you, too," he adds, looking down like Odette and feeling slightly abashed at having to admit things he never has before.

The "I love you" from last night comes rushing back, and Giovanni feels a punch in the chest. The only other person that had heard that from the man's mouth was his own father, and it felt strange to remember -- and say it now -- at all.

"You know what? You should teach dance! How fun would that be? Maybe one day we can teach together." Giovanni winks at Odette, trying to get past all of the serious talk and think of something else to say. All of the lovey-dovey words don't come to him at all, and he doesn't want to embarrass himself anymore in front of Odette than he already has.

[giovanni-lowe]

Better Days (post-Midnight Ways) || Cowardly Swan

[swanprincess-rp]

“Is more sleep an option?” She pulled herself back closer to him. The water did sound lovely, but the confrontation the night before was still resting on her shoulders. She moved in closer to him, snuggling up to him and enjoying the warmth he gave off.

“No, I love you, and that and everything else has nothing to do with whatever was in my system last night.” She didn’t want to look up at him. She had no idea why she did what she did last night. She just had a huge rush to get away. But she had to be strong, for him, for them. He deserved some sort of an answer. Even if it wasn’t a great one.

She wouldn’t look up at him she kept her eyes glued on some spot on the blanket trying to keep herself from looking up and losing her train of thought. She felt so ashamed for having gone off the handle like that she knew it wasn’t like herself. “I-last night… I… I don’t know why I did that. It’s not me I know it’s not me.”

The sudden realization that Geo would think that it was his fault that he would take the blame because that’s who he is and how he acts came crashing down on her and suddenly she had to look up at him she had to be face to face with him to explain. “But that doesn’t make it your fault either. It has nothing to do with you, or with us. I’m happy here. I want to be here I want to be with you. Please don’t think it has anything to do with you.”

She cupped his face in her hands and tried to convey what she was feeling. How she wanted to be with him, more so than what happened last night. That last night had nothing to do with him. That it was something foreign that it was anything but his fault. If it was anyone’s fault it was Derek’s. He shouldn’t have introduced her to the idea of drinking, he shouldn’t have made it okay for her to drink like that. She wanted him to know how she was feeling but the words were at a loss to her and she had no idea what action would speak for her. 

[giovanni-lowe]

It's not hard to believe every thing that Odette says, but it is hard to come up with a good reply. Odette is so comfortable with expressing feelings and saying things that mean so much, and although Giovanni has had so much stage experience and read so many things that should come to mind, love-filled phrases have never been his forte.

"I just -- I wonder if Derek has anything to do with the way that you're acting. I know it's not you, I know you don't really hang around him anymore, but..." Giovanni reaches up to rub at the place that still hurts a little where Derek hit him, and winces slightly at the bruising pains. "I just wonder if all of this 'past life' junk is coming back and I don't want it to."

If anyone in the entire town were to protest against going back home, Giovanni thinks of himself as the biggest advocate. So when Odette began acting funny the night before, he wondered if this was a sign of going back to the old ways -- although he didn't know what Odette's life was like before Storybrooke -- and it scared him half to death.

"You're so good with words, it's scary." He chuckles a little, leaning into Odette's hands and closing his eyes. It felt nice to have someone so lovingly embrace him, like his father never did and his mother never got the chance to. "You should be the drama teacher, not me!" His eyes open again and crinkle slightly with a wide smile.