(SE) when the nighttime comes, say yes

SUNJATA

i'm drowning in all these voices in the sea
and meeting all my vices in the ring

While Maea was completely inexperienced, Sunjata had no shortage of it. Always having been pined after or used his words to seduce. But often times they had been experienced too and knew the game. Maea doesn’t and it gives him pause, uncertain how far she’ll let this go before she can’t continue it, before she chooses to keep things soft, slow, delicate, if she ever does. He’s a bit more of the opposite, always been a strong, nippy lover — to mark and prove a point. A reflecting echo of ‘You’re mine’, though as of late it had only been for a time.

But he just doesn’t know, and so he breaks the kiss, panting lightly to try and catch his breath, to stare up at her and try to glean any sort of answer. He can’t, he finds, but all he finds is a reassurance that she’s not frightened of this — that it’s new and different and she’s set him aflame, and it’s enough that the confusion and uncertainty reflected in his eyes begin to shift so much that the silver smolders as if set alive.

And she does begin to explore, to test, and when her hands find his hair and skull once more, he tilts his horned head back to her and lets her kiss his stubbled cheek, eyes shutting in his slight exhale, a kiss pressed to her own cheek, near her ear, near all the places he wants to kiss and tease and pay attention to. His one hand continues its idle stroke along her neck, and his other squeezes gently at her thin side, keeping her close and near as his voice rasps beneath the flood of emotions. “You can’t hurt me, do whatever you want to.” He tells her, a breathless husky whisper to her ear. He’d do whatever she wanted, let her touch and explore as much as she wanted, here along the shore, on his knees, while the ring sits in the sand beside the griffin still dutifully watching the pile of clothes.

so step inside, i ain't afraid to bleed
there ain't a casket strong enough for me

MAEA

Considering what he'd told her of his illness, the drowning sensation in his lungs, Maea thought she could indeed hurt him quite badly without even meaning to. And for all that this man was a big, burly warrior on the outside, his soul was a broken, confused mess. One he'd handed her all the tools to wreck further, should she become careless with words and actions. But, at least the way his hands and mouth travel over her is steady, sure, and she hummed acknowledgment as she continued to let her hands travel from his face, down the neck and over the chest. The pale fingertips were feather light and inquisitive, tracing the lines of muscle and bone, exploring the strong neck, the scars and the inked patterns ingraved into the skin. For the one little kiss she pressed to his cheek Sunjata gave her three more, and Maea found it a fair trade; at least those felt safe. One of few things that did.

"Are you... okay?" she asked unsteadily, not quite trusting her own voice. She was a little worried by the breathless nature of his words. Feeling his breath on her ear, the voice so close made her shudder and in response her chin tilted up, exposing the slender neck, giving access to his whims.

Perhaps there would come a moment when one of them overstepped. No doubt it would, and that instant was approaching with every shaky breath... but for the moment all was good. It was madness, it was reckless and dangerous but... she couldn't bring her self to really care.

She kissed his mouth again to prove it to herself, to him. One little brush of lip on lip, then another, growing bolder once she discovered that he indeed wasn't breaking - not in the literal sense anyway. Feeling brazen, eager to taste more of him, she parted her lips and let the tip of her tongue touch his bottom lip. So soft, so full of flavors... her legs were growing decidedly weak where she stood, leaned over him.

SUNJATA

i'm drowning in all these voices in the sea
and meeting all my vices in the ring

He follows where her hands trail, from his face to his neck, to his shoulders and his chest, and feathers continue to flare with the sensation. His feathers disappear now as she inspects the tattoos and the scars, and he keeps his head pressed close to her ear as she explores. The question does take him off guard, however, and he tilts his head toward her ever so slightly as she exposes her neck, and his resolve falters as he goes to press a kiss to her slender neck, in the soft space between where her shoulder and neck meet, hand tightening both in her hair as well as along her side.

“Yes.” He breathes to her, voice deep and hoarse, breath raking along her neck. But it doesn’t last long, not as she withdraws somewhat and captures his lips again, and he returns it — soft, gentle, sweet, until she surprises him with the swipe of her tongue, and he gives into her there, his own lips parting slightly, tongue brushing along her own, aiming to tangle with hers as he can feel the shakiness of her legs.

The hand at her side is used to steady her, an attempt to pull her down onto his lap, to wrap her legs around him where he can support them both better along the sand — or they could return to the water. But she’s small enough that he could carry her wherever she wished to go, and at this point it’s about her, exploring and trying it out, seeing what she thinks, learning her boundaries and what she can get away with. And to him? Likely anything.

so step inside, i ain't afraid to bleed
there ain't a casket strong enough for me

MAEA

The answer was brief but made her shudder all the same. Likely Sunjata could whisper anything to her like that and it would still make her head spin. His mouth roamed down her neck, over the pulsing vein and it brought a soft sigh from her, colored with voice just on this side of audible. Her ministrations brought it to a halt though, lips finding each other and tongues being invited out to dance...

It was like a door opening when his lips parted to let her in, a different kind of embrace as their tonges met and breath mingled. She wasn't sure what she had expected, but whatever it was this was different. Peculiar, odd, but better. His mouth was smooth, slick and very warm, a taste like nothing she'd ever experienced. Maea hardly noticed that she followed his guiding hands down onto his lap, too absorbed by this incredible new discovery.

And perhaps he was in control, calm (relatively) and sure of what he was doing but she was not. She was just about drowning in the tingling elation that zipped and shuddered down the spine, through her arms, hands, through the core as she fitted her legs around him. The tremble of her hands was taking on a different meaning, her touch firming as she brushed down along his muscled upper arms, down and up again to wrap them around his neck and squeeze herself closer, chest pressing against his.

Maea was losing herself, forgetting how to think, that it might be necessary at all... But there was a limit. And there were lines she neither could nor should cross, not here. Not now, not today. Things she weren't ready for, no matter how nice the kisses. She just... didn't know it.

SUNJATA

i'm drowning in all these voices in the sea
and meeting all my vices in the ring

A taste of salt and sea, of smoke and drink to meld with the sweetness of her own, far easier to reach her when she settles along him and he sits back on his heels, keeping her right there on his lap, drowning in the scent and taste of her. He can feel her tremble and shiver beneath his touch, as her legs wrap around him, and he smiles into the deepening kiss even more, breaking through the confusion to be dealt with later as he seeks out to envelop her.

She pulls herself closer to where he can feel her body against his, chest rising against him, and he can’t help the feeling of wanting to be even closer — but he restrains, breaking the kiss as his hands move to wrap around her, one splayed at her lower back, one cupping the back of her neck. But the ground is too rough here, too sharp with the rocks that poke out of the sand, and the height difference something that hadn’t been a problem when they’d been in the water.

So he breaks the kiss, trailing more along her jaw to her neck and by her ear, panting ever so slightly as he braces her and himself to lift her. “Hold on.” He whispers in a slight growl in her ear, lifting one of his own legs to get some sort of standing, to move to the shadowed alcove he had been in at first when she’d stumbled across him trying to capture the sun. He keeps her close, keeping kisses pressed to her neck, breaking only to ensure the direction he takes them in, before the chill of the water has his skin rising with goosebumps once more. Deeper and deeper he goes, wondering if she’ll cling to him to avoid the cold, or dive straight in with him.

so step inside, i ain't afraid to bleed
there ain't a casket strong enough for me

MAEA

Hers was a flavor of honey and lavender, of icy clear waters and crisp apples not quite ripe. A scent of parchment and ink, of clean clothes and the last sliver of fragrant soap cut by hands now gone forever. She inhaled him and offered herself in return, what little there was to take.

Then he broke away and she hummed a little complaint, grateful for the chance to breathe though she was. Her lips felt empty without his against them, quite keen to continue where they left off. She didn't know how he was able to stand, to lift her up while she was still attached around his neck, his waist, clinging to him so as not to fall down - not quite like a child, but close at least in size and lightness - even as he stood and headed for the water. Maea's clothes had barely begun to dry, and still damp they chilled her so much that the waters felt cold, rather than cool. With his face buried against her neck she felt no desire at all to let go, to put herself at the mercy of the currents.

Holding on to Sunjata, she breathed in a shuddering gasp as the cold crept up her legs, over the hips, higher and higher as he brought them deeper. "It's cold," she shuddered, surprised that her voice was so hoarse, that she could still speak at all. Nuzzling her head down to his neck, Maea let her lips stroke over the skin, feeling the pulse of his jugular against her mouth; it beat hard, quick as her own and she lapped at it with her tongue, tasting salt and sweat and a little more of that smokey liquour hint... and beneath it, the one that was simply him.

She could grow used to this.

SUNJATA

i'm drowning in all these voices in the sea
and meeting all my vices in the ring

She’s clay to be molded within his touch, melding and becoming something else, something more brazen as he inhales her scent, vibrant and crisp and fresh, tastes the same on his tongue. There’s the briefest hint of a smile along his face as he lifts her, breaking the kiss, hearing her complaint. Not long now, not long as he hoists her up and carries her with him to the waters edge, the cold embrace to extinguish at least a small amount of the fire she feels, only to ignite it once more.

He steps deeper into the water until it reaches Maea, and he can feel her shudder in his grip, mouth and lips along her throat under her ear, and there’s the breathy him of a chuckle that leaves his throat, somewhere deep and husky as he brushes his nose by her ear. “Not for long.” He tells her, shifting slightly to let her kiss along his neck, tilting his horned head the other way to grant her as much room to explore as she wishes, bringing them deeper until they’re like they were before, only this time she’s wrapped around him and his back is to the rocks that had been his cove before. And he lets her go then, to let the water lap over the two of them and chill the burn just enough that there’s some clarity.

Some, until she’s kissing at the vein on his neck and he can’t help the growl of a sound that leaves him as she continues, tasting him and his hand raises back to her hair, lifting his chin lightly to grant her more room, his other hand drifting lower to rest along her hip now, to keep her from drifting away from him, something possessive in the touch. He sinks down enough that one of his horns clicks against the rock, and he straightens out somewhat, half lidded and in a daze as he watches her and lets her do whatever it was she wished.

so step inside, i ain't afraid to bleed
there ain't a casket strong enough for me

MAEA

Had she ever actually been afraid of herself? Well, it seemed it was a feeling that changed quite easily, at least on the surface. Maybe it was the quiet confidence in the way Sunjata touched her that did it. The way he let her decide the pace, so subtly that she didn't even notice it. If it was going too quickly, it was all because Maea didn't know what pacing was, because she burned and had no idea that it was possible to smoulder quietly, slowly, make it all last for a long time.

The chilly touch of the water grounded her some. Feeling it rush in to the places where his arms had been when he let go made her shudder, gasp a little, and ultimately breathe more deeply. Tasting his neck for a while, she found that the buzzing of her head settled a little... and when she heard his groan she looked up, seeking his gaze to see what was wrong. The dazed look on his face made her eyes widen in surprise. A little flushed, full lips red and swollen, his hands on her hips and at the back of her head enough to keep a little smolder still alive in her gaze... Maea smiled at him, a little embarrassed. Somewhat pleased. All in all a rather feline smirk of contentment that she'd made him react.

But... nice as it was, she sensed that the water might have been a better idea than he knew. Than she'd understood. "Maybe we should... slow down?" she suggested, a touch timid. This was already so much further than she'd ever planned to go - heck, she'd not planned anything at all with this man, yet here they were - and now might be a good place to... stop. Pause. At least linger, and figure out what was actually going on.

She thought of a ring left on the sand, and reeled at the implications of him taking it off. For her? Maea wasn't sure.

SUNJATA

i'm drowning in all these voices in the sea
and meeting all my vices in the ring

He could burn as long as she’d let him, keeping boundaries despite how much he wished not to. But they were there, a line in the sand, and as he settles in the water and she continues her explorations, he watches her breathless and tired and content and happy despite what will rage within him when this feeling dissipates. But she looks up with that slight smolder to her colorless gaze, and in his own gaze he offers a half smirk of a smile to her.

The suggestion of slowing down is met with him recovering slightly, letting the water drift along his shoulders as it laps idly and he blinks a few times to focus on her again. The thing is, is that he can contain himself enough, but gods he wants her to just explore, touch, learn — everything she wanted. And she could stop whenever she wanted to. His horned clinks against the rockery again as he tilts his head back with a quiet sigh, hand stilling at her hip, his other stroking idly against her pale hair.

He runs his thumb along her temple briefly, gazing at her with a soft smile. “Whatever you want.” He hums to her. But he doesn’t want to let her go just yet, wants her to figure it out, do whatever it is she wants. She’s already figured out a way to get him to vibrate beneath her, met with the way he’s well versed in ways to keep the fire burning. He can feel it simmering in his gut as he clears his throat and focuses on her a bit more clearly. “Take the time to learn if you want, Maea.” He rumbles to her, accented and deep, giving her the free reign to do whatever she wanted, see what kind of reactions she could get out of him.

so step inside, i ain't afraid to bleed
there ain't a casket strong enough for me

MAEA

See, giving her the option to back away or keep going all according to her wishes was a wonderful thing to do. Because without the need to keep his pace, she relaxed. When he gave her all the time, whatever she needed, she believed him, trusted that he meant it. That she wasn't boring for needing to think, breathe, understand this curious new turn of events.

He had struck down like a lightning from clear skies, and all of her reeled with the impact.

Though the implication that she could keep 'learning' all she wanted made her blood heat, the girl felt the need to steady herself. Her legs slipped from his waist, regretting the cold water that replaced the warmth of his body. But she held her arms in place still, and did not shrug off his hands on her either. Instead she kissed him lightly and shifted slightly sideways so that she could nestle in against him, head coming down to rest on his shoulder. It was so strange, to be able to take such liberties. To impose herself to such an extent on another person and realize it was allowed, welcomed even. That he in so many ways was still a stranger only made it more alien, like this scene was one she couldn't quite believe.

"It feels... like this is the part where I'm supposed to wake up," she said quietly. "Get out of bed and go to work... and the farm will still be standing, my brother just come back from the fields, and the kids are prattling with their mother around the breakfast table."

Except, such miracles never happened. Not for her. Maea couldn't decide if it was really a bad thing, all things considered.

SUNJATA

i'm drowning in all these voices in the sea
and meeting all my vices in the ring

She moved away from him and he feels so cold where the water takes over his skin in the place she had been, but she doesn’t stray, and his arm finds its way across her shoulder as she nestled into his side. He shifts his legs in the water a small amount, fingers idly running through her hair and the water as he tries to recover, watching the sun glint along the waves rippling past. It’s quiet, serene, and he doesn’t know what to say to her.

She picks up the talking portion, and he listens silently, his free hand cupping some water to run through his hair, to cool off the flush and cool down the swelling to his lips from her, the redness of his skin from where she’d kissed and tasted. It trails along his horns and down the sides of his face as he gives her a light squeeze, brushing it from his eyes before he turns his head to her finally.

And he doesn’t know if it’s meant to be sweet or sad, the way that it wasn’t a dream and that none would come true — or that he was here, the equivalent of a dream of hers. “Do you often dream of dark and stormy strangers giving you your first kiss?” He asks her, voice rough, lips quirking in a slight smirk as he looks to her with that same stormy gaze as before but far clearer than it had been.

so step inside, i ain't afraid to bleed
there ain't a casket strong enough for me

MAEA

His throat vibrated against her cheek when he spoke, and she sensed the smile more than saw it. She chuckled, soft breathless laughter at the question, and shook her head. A small gesture, that did not let her head rise from its perch. She quite liked it there, felt like falling asleep might not be impossible. Though hardly wise, given how easily she caught colds. A thought had her wondering whether Sunjata's condition was at all contagious... but pushed the thought aside. Didn't matter.

I used to," she admitted, rather amused. "When I was young. But no one ever showed... so I stopped waiting. Keeping to yourself is far easier than putting up with someone who doesn't want to be there, and as long as there's family around it doesn't get lonely."

Scooping some water up, she washed her face and felt the relief against her flushed skin. She would have to see a healer about the burns when she got home. At this rate it would only get worse, and keeping to the shade was not always possible. At least her eyes weren't as sensitive as they had been. (Thank you, Ludo.) Gathering up more water, she raised the hand high and let the drops trickle down onto Sunjata's head, a playful smile tugging on her lips.

Messing with him was fun. One more thing she'd learned today; there was always the promise of a good reaction whenever she did something.

SUNJATA

i'm drowning in all these voices in the sea
and meeting all my vices in the ring

He isn’t contagious, the sickness long moved past it in fact. Now it was only him that has to deal with the outcomes, whether good or bad, he couldn’t be too sure. He knew he had pushed it today, and likely wouldn’t stop until his body decided to for him. He’s still thankful for the distraction of warmth at his side, soft porcelain cheek at his neck, body remaining a pillar unmoved by the river as it rushes past.

And when she explains that she did indeed dream of that upon the occasion, his smirk deepens ever so slightly, dark brow raising in an almost conspirator look. But it fades quickly as he sinks into the water a bit more, thinking on what she’s said before closing his eyes and just… Enjoying something for once. It doesn’t last long as he can feel the drops of water tap along his head, along the horns, along his brow. He opens one eye to slyly look at her beside him, raising another dark brow in a silent question, shaking his head and letting the water roll off him wherever it chose to.

“In my experience, family is who you choose.” He offers, because while yes he had a sister by blood, and how he cared for her very much, the only one that had felt like family had been the resistance. Had been surrounded by Lusea and people that once he’d gained the trust of had opened their arms wide to him. But his family for the most part had been chosen, those that accepted him for him, nothing by blood.

But for added benefit of a slight retaliation from where she’d dropped the water onto his head, he splashes a small wave at her with a cheeky smirk.

so step inside, i ain't afraid to bleed
there ain't a casket strong enough for me

MAEA

He splashed back, and Maea accepted the retaliation with another laugh, not caring to escalate it into another playfight. Her reserves of magic were all but spent, the toll taken on her body a price she too would pay for over a the coming days. No doubt she would catch a cold, but with some luck it would be nothing too serious. Not enough to keep her from training, from reading, from learning new things and expanding her understanding of the world.

"Mmh. Finding the right people for that is the hard part," she agreed. "It's something I never thought I'd have to do. Just goes to show that one can't be sure of anything in Caido."

Content to let the restlessness of her body settle, she settled into a peaceful quiet, fingers lightly tracing the line of a feather on his shoulder. Not meant to tease or taunt, just... admire. Her mind was a sky full of drifting clouds, all blue and white and full of sunshine. Not quite able to recall the last time she felt this happy, this content, the feeling was almost uncomfortable before she adjusted to it. What a precious gift. If such a moment was all that really came out of this, then she could not regret it. Not even if it ended up costing her the regard of someone she considered a friend. But she hadn't seen Phoebe in such a long time, had not hurried to seek her out or find what the world had done to her in a year. They were not exactly close... perhaps she didn't owe the girl as much as she thought. Not that it excused her of touching Sunjata, but... he had made a choice before she let it get this far.

She wondered what he would do with it after this, once they left the water and went their separate ways.