the blood you bleed is just the blood you owe

but the darker the weather, the better the man

you can take all you want

His gaze lingers on the Ramphire’s, remaining as Maea hums what they were to him. And he takes in the information just as she does – albeit differently. Where she had more of a Loreseeker’s mind, his own filters it in with what Torchline is about, something along the lines of smuggling, wondering if these creatures were a part of it or not. But he nods, regardless, prepared to turn back to the interior of the home as the will-o-wisp flies at them.

A wide grin crosses his face at Maea’s anguish, and he watches as the companion nears, startling the herd in a serious of grunts and… Honks, perhaps? Before darting away from Shii to focus on a more quiet location without interruption. Sunjata reaches for Maea then, a playful smirk tugging on his lips. “I’m sure they’ll come back once things calm down.” He doesn’t know if they will or not, but only time would tell.

Haai, meanwhile, has given up the game of hide and seek, and focuses her attention on the interior – winding her way around Maea and Sunjata’s legs to step inside and inspect the place. The floor is intact, the walls are too for the most part aside from missing shelves that had fallen as well as plenty of debris and dirt from a broken window or two.

Sunjata steps in and his gaze flits around the place – walking straight to the table in the center and running a hand along the top of the surface. It’s a good table as well, needs some fixing here and there, but everything about this place seems to. From this position, a kitchen is seen, in surprisingly good condition of all things, and he drifts toward that with interest.

but not who i am

SuNJATA

You're so cold

but you feel alive

Maea inched over as he reached for her, leaned her head against Sunjata's chest and just groaned in frustration at his words. Her little friend was a menace, a far cry from Haai's mature calm. Was this how things would be from now on? Never a moments peace? At the very least, the wisp didn't seem as adverse to the griffin as to Sunjata. It pulsed happily, very pleased with itself for 'chasing off' the pesky monsters, and then floated after Haai, to help explore.

"A small mercy..." Maea mumbled. Then sighed, straightened, and followed her lover inside. To see what the place was about.

Leaving him to inspect the kitchen, she picked her way across the room to the far back, where a small corridor branched off into other spaces further back. Bedrooms, it seemed, small enough to have housed children, though she thought they could easily be repurposed into other spaces. It really was in good condition all things considered, and even with the vines covering the porch outside, the light filtering inside showed promise.

"There's a staircase back here," she called back, upon spotting a set of stairs curving up along the wall at the far end of the corridor. "Seems like they've been using the loft for something." Maea tested the steps carefully, and found them sound; she began to make her way up, curiosity burning inside her to see what was up there.

lay your hands on me

one last time

MAEA

but the darker the weather, the better the man

you can take all you want

They move inside, the companions working on their own little explorations. And Sunjata finds the kitchen, surprisingly not having to duck too many times to get within the cramped confines of it. The cabinets are easy to reach, one of the doors had fallen off but aside from the wood being dry it was relatively sound. His fingers trace along the counter tops, through the dust, before he wipes it off on his shorts when her voice pipes up.

He follows the end of the kitchen to another opening, peeking around the exit to find the staircase she’d spied. His gaze lingers on the steps, following them their winding way up to the second floor. He steps toward her, ready to follow her up them, testing the stairs as well with his weight. When it seems sound enough as well, he rests a hand along the metal railing, stepping up carefully behind her and ducking when the space becomes too small before it opens up.

Something to get used to, he supposes, though it’s truly no surprise.

As the stairs give way to the loft, it appears as though it were some bedroom of sorts. A wide expanse, left behind drawers and dressers, a dusty mirror in the corner. He’s too distracted by the connecting rooms to focus too much on the loft itself – slipping away to inspect one room which was a bathroom of sorts with a large tub and a shower, then to the other that seemed to be a space to store things – though everything was missing.

He turns back to her, leaning against the doorframe of the storage room, gaze focusing on her with a small smirk. “I have to say, I really like it.”

but not who i am

SuNJATA

You're so cold

but you feel alive

As they reached the top of the stair, Maea stepped aside to let him pass, and watched him roam off towards the other rooms. She in turn was fascinated by the large windows at the far end of the loft. They were huge, covering almost the entire wall, and the light that spilled in across the floor was warm and golden.

The whole room seemed to breathe, and there was indeed a gust of wind sweeping through the space... which, as it turned out, was because of a hole in the roof where a few boards had broken off. In some storm perhaps... it actually looked rather recent, because there was no sign of water damage on the floor.

"I do too," Maea agreed, voice soft and thoughtful as she slowly turned, eyes sweeping the details of it all. Halting when she reached Sunjata, she looked at him for a good while, leaned against the frame. Smiling and at ease, happier than she had seen him in a long time.

"Does it feel like a place you could come home to?" she asked, and made her way over to him. Confident about the solidity of the floor now. Maea held her arms out for him, to hug herself into his arms.

lay your hands on me

one last time

MAEA

but the darker the weather, the better the man

you can take all you want

The room was in relatively good condition too – aside from a few boards that would be easy to fix. After all, he’d repaired a Temple, reinforced the very same for LongNight… A bit of home maintenance would be simple in comparison. In theory, at least… Right? His gaze remains on her when she looks around and eventually lands on him and his smile widens a small amount with her agreement. “The inside is nice, just needs some fixing here and there. It’s far enough away and yet close enough…” He trails off, looking around the loft of the bedroom, before she’s walking over to him with a question.

A freeing question, at the very least, and he hums – pushing himself off the wall to embrace her close to his shirtless chest. “I do.” He agrees quietly, leaning down to try and capture her gaze. “Once the dust is cleared.” Another playful wink sent her way, referring to either the dust of the inside of the home or any of the dramatics happening back in the Grounds – he doesn’t particularly care which.

But once it’s said and done, he leans down a bit more, pressing a kiss to her lips – soft and gentle at first.

but not who i am

SuNJATA

You're so cold

but you feel alive

She nodded, agreeing with everything he said. The location was everything they wanted, the house was spacious yet not so much that they would get lost. Spaces to live, to breathe, to be together and apart, as they wished. To work in, to store things, to live within. The potentials of the garden aside, the house was beauitful. With some work, it could become perfect.

A home. Their home... and that thought was enough to make her head spin.  

"You do swing a mean broom," she teased gently, trying to ground herself. Accept the reality of this insane happiness. Her arms slipped around his bare back, sunwarm and smooth; he smelled of sun and wind and oceans today, the smoke and whiskey tones very faint. Barely there at all. Her hands trailed over the healing scars, aching at the patches where inked feathers had been chipped away. Marring the beautiful design. Marking his skin even more, like a map over the stories of his life.

He leaned down, and Maea tilted her head back. Melted into the kiss with a soft sigh, as gentle as his mouth over her lips. She raised herself up on tiptoes, to get closer, pressing her body into his.

lay your hands on me

one last time

MAEA

but the darker the weather, the better the man

you can take all you want

A huff leaves him at her comment, a small shake of his head that disrupts the dark wind-tossed waves of his hair there, thinking of commenting about it again and yet refraining – refraining for the softness of her lips against his, so much more sure than the shack they’d recovered in where the kisses had been tender and light. It’s a faint memory to him now, though some of the promises made would surely rear their heads again – perhaps in this house… Perhaps not.

But there comes a point where he chooses to ignore those topics for her and how she lifts herself up on her tiptoes, pressing into him, and he leans back against the wall a small amount, shifting to give her more room to press against. But he knows that her leg is still healing, still wounded a small amount – if the limp was any indication. So he bends over, reaching for her to pick her up again – deepening the kiss as he does so with playful nips to her lower lip.

He tries to lift her into his arms again in a way that her legs could wrap around his waist, and he could feel every inch of her along his torso – neither of them having to strain to reach one another.

but not who i am

SuNJATA

You're so cold

but you feel alive

Humming a quiet laugh against his lips as he lifted her up, she hooked her legs about him, skirts hitching up around her thighs. Maea barely noticed, too distracted with by his mouth, the way he nipped her lower lip, and how soft his hair was when she threaded her fingers through it. No need to strain her neck to reach him, no dull ache in her leg from putting too much weight on it; the world shrunk to him and her and the places where their bodies met. His arms around her. His bare chest and shoulders, the way she absolutely preferred them; it's how she had come to know him first. All bronze and navy, water slick and sunwarm.

There was a slight stirring down the bond to her companion, of jealous upset and alarm, but this time Maea just blocked it out. Did not feel like dealing with it just now. She pressed her lips harder against Sunjata's, hungry for him. It felt like it had been a long time since they shared more than light pecks... and she had missed this.

lay your hands on me

one last time

MAEA

but the darker the weather, the better the man

you can take all you want

Her hands find his hair, a place that certainly gets that buzz within his blood when they’re this close. And he leans into her touch a small amount more, hands slipping to support her from her back and hips, lingering as she melts against him. Her kisses grow hungrier and harder against his own, and he hums an approving sound against her lips.

But he’s still a bit weak because of the recovery of the shark bites, and he finds that he can’t quite support her the way he wants to. So he shifts, with her wrapped around him, to place her with her back to the wall for the added support – to pin her there so his hands are a bit more free. He breaks the kiss to her lips to trail along her neck, the space he’d always loved them to be, hands sliding against her legs that remain against him, creeping toward her thighs.

“I missed you like this.” He says softly, against her skin, pressing a soft kiss to the space beneath her ear.

but not who i am

SuNJATA

You're so cold

but you feel alive

He could move her whichever way, and she wouldn't mind. Was not about to leave or go anywhere, not when the taste of his lips was making her blood hum and thrill. Or perhaps it was the wall behind her back, the feeling of his hips pressing in between her thighs to keep her pinned... and either way his hands traveling up her bared legs definitely did the trick. Made her hum against his lips, into his mouth, until it moved down to her neck

"I missed you too," she responed, leaning her head back to give him room, let him claim her throat as he wished. It made her skin prickle, goosebumps flaring; she released his hair for a brief moment to free herself of the shawl before her hands plunged back into his curls, fingernails scraping across his scalp, down the back of his neck.

It did amuse her slightly, how the house really didn't seem to matter in the end. It was just another space, another shelter... Everything that mattered was right here, under her hands.

lay your hands on me

one last time

MAEA

but the darker the weather, the better the man

you can take all you want

”I missed you too.” And it was a beautiful set of words that have him continuing the kisses along her neck, hips pressing against her to keep her there as she takes the shawl off and gives him more room to work with – his hands trail further up, slipping beneath the skirts that have hitched up on her legs, to run until he’s reached a point he can easily support her.

Her hands find his hair again, fingernails stroking through it and to the back of his neck, and he nearly purrs against the feeling, goosebumps rising along his skin in waves and he kisses her neck a bit harder, a bit more possessively. His canines extend a small amount with the partial shift, biting down just below her ear to give her the first of many marks – kissing the pain away after before he reluctantly pulls away to view her face.

His eyes are a smoldering steel, and he gives her a somewhat arrogant smirk within the confines of what would soon be their bedroom – the light glinting through the windows to illuminate half of their faces in a golden glow. “I could take you here, you know.” A quiet confident purr as he leans in to kiss her jaw, avoiding her lips as a certain tease. “You could be as loud as you want and nobody would be around to hear it.” A sultry whisper against her skin.

but not who i am

SuNJATA

You're so cold

but you feel alive

His lips hardened on her skin, became greedier, more persistent, and her stomach tightened. Thrilled, as she felt his hands slide up to cup her rear, hold her up, keep her in place. Maea swallowed thickly when he pulled away to look at her. His eyes were already darkening, hungry as they took her in, and she blushed at his words. The suggestion, half a promise already; her breath hitched. Throat bobbing under his lips, her jaw tingling; ah, her lips felt so empty already. Neglected.

"You want me to be loud?" she murmured, trying to angle her head down. Get closer to his lips, so she could maybe steal another kiss. Her hands had begun to travel lowed, stroking his neck with pale fingers. Tracing the lines of his compass, his feathers, so familiar with the path of them that she could do it with her eyes closed.

lay your hands on me

one last time

MAEA

but the darker the weather, the better the man

you can take all you want

She angles her head down toward him, trying to steal another kiss — and he doesn’t give in just yet, trailing a blazing path with his lips along her jaw and throat, stopping so carefully at the corner of her lips before he slips away again. His hips press against her again as her hands travel along his tattoos, tracing and giving them all the attention in the world as the compasses point to her. “I do.” He answers her a bit gruffly, a bit gravelly. “I want the world to know.”

He wants her to let go, to loosen up, without the possibility of anyone finding them here.

One hand remains to support her, the other abandoning the touch to her skin to try and untie the dress she wears, to get her within full view of him. Already the anticipation builds within him, a dull ache in his lower stomach, already craving her. Finally, he tilts his head from her neck just enough to give her that kiss she seeks, hips pulling away and pressing in again with a quiet unsaid promise.

but not who i am

SuNJATA

You're so cold

but you feel alive

Ah, he teased her. Brought his mouth so tantilizingly close, only to slip away, trailing hot lines of breath over her skin. His voice was rough, hoarse as he replied, and it sent tingles down her spine, made a sweet ache build between her legs. Stoked by the shift of his hips; Maea whimpered softly in response. Arched her back, pressing her chest into his to give his hand room enough to untie the laces at her back.

"What do you want... them to know?" she breathed, eyes clouding over with lust from the attention to her neck. From the feeling of his lips traveling over her skin, her jaw...

Then he finally kissed her again, and she met his mouth eagerly, lips parted. Already puffy and swollen, soft and warm, so willing to let him in, let her tongue stroke against his, tangle up in a hungry dance. Again his hips bucked, and she moaned, ground herself into him. Already burning, from just a few touches. Gods, how easily he made her melt.

lay your hands on me

one last time

MAEA