2019-09-03 - Back in...Lavender

Isolde had been something of a nervous wreck for the past week or so, but had managed to keep it together! More or less. At least in front of people. Alexander REALLY needed to stop getting hospitalized. She'd had a minor freak out when Isabella texted her and then hovered around the hospital more than was likely healthy. Then when the hospital started getting to her and bad memories started creeping back in, she was more than grateful for the Lavender Farm as an escape. A place to channel all the negative energy she was feeling and try to turn it into something positive as the harvesting season was drawing to a close. The workers were winding down for the day and the sun was getting ready to set over the horizon that was Firefly Forest.

Either there was too much lavender and not enough workers, or just enough lavender and not many people wanting to do actual work because it still seemed like there was a decent amount of lavender to be brought in. Itzhak was going to be picking her up tonight. So she told him where he could park and to follow around the right side of the farm house to the giant twin oaks and that's where she'd be. Because she wanted to watch the sunset. That long red hair was pulled back into a ponytail, little bits of leaves, petals, and grass clung in her hair here and there. Her tank top clung to her from the sweat of working in the summer heat, but at least she was getting a nice tan now instead of the sunburn. She also smelled heavily of lavender and earth. Just standing, leaning up against the tree, back towards the house so she could watch the sun.

Itzhak roars up the freeway, letting the Vette run like she's made to do. What a week! A lot's happened, and a lot of it's been good. Really good. Almost as much as been really bad. He's had an unpleasant feeling lurking around his brain, like all this Ghoul stuff is coming to a head. So of course he agreed to protect Rebecca, although he's not sure what he can do against the Ghoul. Can he punch a ghost? Maybe he'll get to find out.

The evening is gorgeous, warm and clear with high wispy clouds, as he rumbles carefully onto the farmroad. He pulls around to where Izzy told him to park, gets out, and walks around the farmhouse towards the oaks. Man, it's pretty out here.

There's Izeleh, and Itzhak's heart does a funny little flutter, seeing her leaning against the oak. She looks like some wild creature, maybe she came out of the oak like a fairy maiden in those old stories. The low sun lights up her eyes and her hair and oh. Oh he's got it bad.

"Hey," he calls to her, smiling, sauntering up the path.

It's really for the best that Isolde has been in the dark on a lot of the Ghoul stuff, aside some very minor assistance with research at the start of it all. Because it's very likely it all might've shot her anxiety right through the roof twice over. Thrice perhaps. Hearing someone approaching, and Itzhak's voice, Isolde turned a bit giving the man a grin. Though clear blue eyes lingering on him. She has a lot of feelings that twist and turn inside when she sees Itzhak, when she thinks about him, the majority of them are good feelings though she thinks. They're definitely good right now. Seeing him here in the flesh after all the stress and nerves, it's like seeing that ray of sunshine breaking through a stormy day.

When he gets closer, she pushes off the tree and moves to greet him with a tight hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Hey." She nuzzled against him some as well before smiling up at him. "Did you find it here okay? Thank you for picking me up."

Itzhak wraps Isolde up in those long arms, swaying her. He buries his nose in her neck, shamelessly inhaling the scent of her sun-warm skin, sweat, lavender, and earth. He kind of wants to shove her against the oak tree and do some serious kissing--holds back. "Yeah, easy as. Ya welcome. I been missing you."

"I've missed you too." Isolde admits, hands curling to grip his shirt, like she doesn't want to let go. She does though, after another moment or two, reluctantly detangling from him so she can bring him back closer to the tree. "This is the best view." Spoken very matter-of-factly as she wraps him up again, enjoying his scent and being so close after what feels like forever. Head turned, leaning against his chest, watching the sun. "How have you been?"

Itzhak's happy to have Isolde in his arms, tucking her to his chest. He rests his back against the sturdy old tree. He'll be covered in bark bits and potentially ants but does he care? "It's a damn nice view. Been okay. Talked with Alexander a lot. Not about anything, just talking. He's great to talk to." Itzhak rocks Isolde a little, gently, watching the sun set with majestic slow grace. The days are so long up here. "How about you? Did you do a lot of...lavendering?"

Long, but worth it. "Alexander is great." Isolde agreed. "Luigi and I will be happy when he is home. Hospitals are bad and he needs to stop almost dying." She wrinkled her nose and then chuckled at his question. "Sort of a lot." Eyes closing for a brief moment, she's liable to fall asleep like this! She feels so comfortable. Then they opened again as the sun sank lower, no sleeping yet. "I have been okay. It's relaxing here. Which is a good thing." Head tilting to focus up on Itzhak then. "But I can't stay here forever. It's too far away from everyone. From you." There's a soft little laugh to go with it.

"God, does he ever need to stop almost dying. I like that about him, though. He's a fighter." Itzhak finds himself stroking Isolde's hair, freeing an occasional lavender petal or twig or leaf. He looks down when she looks up, smiling at her with the corners of his eyes crinkled. "Seems like it's good for ya, coming out here. You should get all you can in anyway before the season's over, right? I ain't goin' nowhere."

...Isn't he? Itzhak hesitates. No. No he doesn't think he is going anywhere. He's been living in town like he means to drop everything and scramble back to New York, but...it's different now.

"Fighter, survivor. But it would be much less worrying." Isolde agrees wholeheartedly. Those inquisitive blue eyes study Itzhak, leaning into his touch as he strokes her hair. Another smile resting on her lips, bringing a hand up to run through his hair. "I hope you don't." She relaxes into him a little more. "I will come up more. I want to explore the Forest up here too. To find the frogs." There's a beat of pause and then a sharp intake of breath like she's just remembered something super important!

Rather suddenly, Isolde is grinning brightly and shifting to fish her phone out of her pocket. "I didn't tell you about the frogs!!" Which she had fully intended to do the night it happened. But she fell asleep almost as soon as she and Alexander got home. Then things just got crazy. "They were so cute! And adorable! And tiny!" A squeak of excitement bubbling up as she navigated to the pictures so Itzhak could see. A few on the ground and then a few more that Alexander had taken of Isolde with about 10 tree frogs chilling out on her. One on her head too.

"There's things in that forest, from the Other Side. So yeah, obviously, we gotta explore it." Itzhak eyes the forest, golden in the late light, with anticipatory relish. Then...frogs! He cups his hand around Izzy's so he can see, squinting a little. He laughs in real delight. "Look at you! You're so happy. Frogs all over you. Izeleh heaven." She's so adorable herself, and he hasn't seen her in too many days, and she's squeaky and excited and anyway he tips her chin up and kisses her.

Isolde is all for looking for weird and strange things in the forest. "Yes! They were all there and I wanted to-" take them home. The words get lost when Itzhak's lips touch hers. There's an enthusiastic return of the kiss as she fumbles with one hand to repocket her phone, then just decides holding it is fine. The kiss lingers for a longer moment and then slowly pulled back. Just enough to be able to draw in a breath and talk. Giggling a little. "I like your kisses."

A tiny groan is in Itzhak's throat as Izzy responds to him. He lets her pull back, though he doesn't let her go. "I like kissing you," he says, voice gone a touch lower. "But, uh, guess I oughta behave myself. Tell me more about the frogs."

Isolde casts a glance to the left and then the right, as if she was looking to see if there were any people around, mischief flashing in her eyes, but ultimately she sighed and agreed with a smile. "I guess. Maybe..." She starts, and then blushes a little before shaking her head. Frogs! Yes. Frogs were a good topic to stick with. Clearing her throat a touch and lifted her phone again. "I saw these two." She shows him the picture again of two frogs sitting on the ground. "Alexander reached out. With his mind. I heard so much croaking!" The blush is starting to fade at least. "I've never had them so close like that. Or so many at once!" Wiggling a little in his arms with that excitement. "I'm going to have lots of frogs! One day. When I'm in my own place." Eventually.

So of course, Itzhak just wants to make her blush again. Blush more. Bite her neck and--okay, down boy. He makes himself look at Isolde's phone when she holds it up. "Jeez, they're small. I'd never think they're so small from all the racket they make. Aww, Izeleh, they're so cute, but not near so cute as you. When you get your own place I'll build you a great big vivarium."

"Soo tiny! Big bark, no bite." Isolde giggled and grinned up at him. "A vivarium?" She asked, wide-eyed. "That's what a frog house is called? I like it!" Giving him a squeeze after she finally properly pocketed her phone now. "We could build it together!" Read: Itzhak would do the bulk of the work and Isolde would be his trusty tool/material/item hander more than likely. "I haven't looked much. For houses yet. But. It would be good...to get one. Soon. Maybe." There's that blush creeping right back up her neck. "How is Stephanie?" Abruptly changing the subject - for all the reasons.

"A vivarium means it's alive. So it'll have real dirt, bugs, and water and live plants. Like Iris's tank, that's a vivarium. You can't see 'em mostly but there's a ton of bugs in there, good bugs that keep the place clean. Makes its own little ecosystem. She doesn't eat them, doesn't even know they're there, too tiny." Itzhak's eyebrows go up and he grins a little wickedly down at Isolde as she reddens. He didn't even have to do anything, score. "She's okay, I guess. She's always tired," he says absently about Stephanie. "Works a lot. My ma was the same way when I was a kid."

Isolde listens intently with that wide-eyed curiosity as Itzhak explains what a vivarium is. Her fingers are idly toying at the hem of his shirt. "That sounds cool! Tiny superbugs." She chuckled. "She needs a vacation." Isolde agreed, though the way she's watching him--and damn if her cheeks and neck aren't still red -- there are other things on her mind. "We should, uhm, go soon.Before it gets toooo dark..." The sun's long set by now, though Isolde doesn't particularly seem in a rush to walk back to his car despite the words.

"She could use one," Itzhak says, still absent, not thinking about Stephanie. Even though Stephanie almost certainly thinks about him. Which he has no idea about because he's clueless like that.

The blush on Isolde is irresistible and he dips his head to kiss her ear. "Oh, I dunno. The dark's perfect for what I got in mind."

There's a barely audible squeak when Itzhak kisses her ear and speaks those words. She really shouldn't be so shy about all this, especially after the other night with him but she can't help it. He's just so...everything. And she loves all of it. Drawing in a soft breath, Isolde nuzzles into him again, "Whatcha got in mind?" Her fingers hooking into his belt loops lightly.

The early evening is beautiful. All this nature and lavender and stuff is surprisingly stimulating. Itzhak nudges Isolde's ear with that huge damn nose of his. "I'll tell ya." So then he tells her, in a low warm murmur.

"...Whaddaya think?"

Itzhak can feel Isolde's heartbeat increase just a tick as he explains his plans for them. There's a grin though, tilting her head a touch, lips close to his. "I think that sounds perfect." Before closing the distance and wrapping him up in slow, but passionate kiss.