no vacancy

save your eyes for someone brighter than i will ever be

The smile broadens a small amount at her scowl. “And is that a bad thing?” He asks, watching her, waiting. Because in the end Sunjata didn’t have many either. Not many that knew a great deal about him anymore after his successful attempts at pushing everyone away. “I don’t have many either anymore.” A shrug that answers that.

But he’s pulled her close again and feels her fingers touch along his skin, and he smiles lightly against the pressure of his warm skin. He holds her tight against him this time, no orca tail in sight — just all of him. And he nods when she speaks, a shrug granted. “I get it. I struggle to keep my shifts within when I’m emotional.” A shrug. The reason he can be totally and utterly himself right now, when he had flashed horns and teeth and feathers at Maea when he was sick.

Her comment though arises his soft smile to shift toward something brighter, amusement glinting through his chuckle. “Is that so?” He asks, head nearing hers again with a brief hint of a smirk. “I’m more of a shower fan, but a bath doesn’t sound bad.” He hums before withdrawing and letting a breathy laugh leave him as if they aren’t currently surrounded by far more water than a bath could handle.

don't hesitate to bring me to my knees

SUNJATA

You're so cold

but you feel alive

"Mmmh, no. Not entirely bad. But... well, you're not always around, are you." It wasn't really meant as an accusation, just fact. There would be long periods of time between their meetings once she went to Halo - if she decided it was worth her guildmasters wrath to go - and without anyone else, it would get lonely.

Relaxing further as she found the inspection of his reddened skin to be satisfactory - no blisters, no frostbite - Maea settled against him, relishing the way he pulled her in tight. Though she tried not to let it show just how much she enjoyed it. Like this, submerged in the cool water and with no clothes to hinder movements or separate her from his hands, his arms, she felt closer to him than ever.

"Indeed? Then be my guest..." The little smile widened, and with a little trickle of magic she leeched warmth into the ocean around them. Raised the temperature gradually, with her eyes on him to see when it became hot enough. "Can't hold it forever, so enjoy while you can," she told him, amused.

lay your hands on me

one last time

MAEA

save your eyes for someone brighter than i will ever be

He doesn’t take it as an accusation, instead he grins through it. “The ocean calls.” A twinkle of laughter in his gaze from that alone before he settles and he pulls her nearer to him, her body molding against his with ease. And unlike the first time, his calloused fingertips can gently stroke along pale skin with no fabric in the way. And it was nice, to forget everything and just float here with her in the ocean.

Though he does have to tease her about the bath, and he doesn’t expect her to do it here. His hands tighten around her slightly as the temperature rises, muscles relaxing beneath the soothing pool of warmth, even against the slightly scalded skin he has. He’s used to that, at the very least.

He sinks a small amount into the water a bit more, letting it lap against the back of his neck and soak into the base of his hair, tilting his head back with a quiet sigh. “Mmm, I’m absolutely enjoying it.” A smile crosses his lips with that before he focuses his steel onto her face. “And I get company, too, which is perfect.” He pulls her closer against him, aiming to bury his face back into her neck and enjoy the warmth that surrounds him, like a cat sunbathing would do to shift anywhere near warmth. “So how long can you hold it for?”

don't hesitate to bring me to my knees

SUNJATA

You're so cold

but you feel alive

Her own skin prickled pleasantly with the heat, and she kept it warm around them, a small bubble of a few feet just big enough that no arms or legs would poke out into the cooler waters beyond. Laughing softly as he pressed his face back into her neck, Maea made the water press in around them, holding them both up so that they didn't have to think about staying afloat, head above the surface. It was easy, took no more than half a thought, and at least that bit she could do for a long time. The heat?

"A few minutes, at most," she mumbled, letting her hands drift back to his head, to tangle into the dark hair. "I've not the stamina for more, yet."

Shifting a little, she settled in better against his body, letting her legs tangle with his to stay close. It was probably a stupid thing to do, letting herself get so comfortable, but... it felt good to be here. With him. She didn't want it to end.

lay your hands on me

one last time

MAEA

save your eyes for someone brighter than i will ever be

He doesn’t have to focus as much on staying afloat, which means that she receives all of his attention when he pulls her near and buries his face into her neck. Her hands find his hair again, and he hums a quiet sound to her for that alone, the touch received from himself being such a touchy person — and somewhat touch starved from arriving in Torchline alone.

Still, her comment causes another small smile to spark on his face as he rubs the bridge of his nose against her and she tangles her legs with his. He moves one arm to rest wrapped around her waist, the other tangling within her white hair, cradling her head gently. “Have you been training with it?” He asks quietly, muffled by the sound of the echo from the water, and his lips hovering just below her ear. He wants her closer, to press his lips against that soft part of her jaw, to her lips, to roam his hands along the curves of her body. But he refrains, savoring this and her in this moment.

don't hesitate to bring me to my knees

SUNJATA

You're so cold

but you feel alive

Oh, it had been a very big mistake. Like unleashing some caged beast. Maea found herself quite surrounded by him, his hands roaming around her waist, into her har, his breath hot against her skin as he spoke against the neck. It was quite overwhelming and she shivered, a breathless little shudder that couldn't be hidden in time.  

"Mmh... Loren taught me a few tricks... when I last met him.."

Focusing on what she was saying was quite difficult. Her pulse had begun to speed up, a heavy warmth flooding her limbs from the contact with him. It was a sweet sensation, the humble beginnings of something she'd been rather ambushed by that one time in the Advocate's hideout, caused by fangs buried in her wrist... and this time Maea recognized it. Understood, knew what it might mean, to linger.

But she didn't want to move, not just yet. A little longer... Just a little while more.

lay your hands on me

one last time

MAEA

save your eyes for someone brighter than i will ever be

He feels the tending of her spine with the slight shudder, but she relaxes against him. “Tricks to control your magic?” He asks, but he doesn’t particularly care to hear the answer. Not as her pulse quickens and his with it, tilting his head again until his fingers tangle in her hair and his hand finds the small of her back, nose brushing against her jaw gently.

He’d absolutely give into her, if she lets him. Nothing aside from the previous conversation keeping him at bay, no weddings, no nothing. Just them in the sea surrounded by moonlight. His head tilts a small amount more, nose and lips brushing by her cheek for a brief second as he goes to scan her gaze, his own a simmering storm so similar to before when he’d watched Maea endure her first bite.

don't hesitate to bring me to my knees

SUNJATA

You're so cold

but you feel alive

It was, again, quite unfair. For hands to hold her so gently, when they shouldn't. For warmth to be so close at hand, and yet be such a mirage. This illusion of closeness, of tender emotion, it wasn't real. It wasn't, was it? Maea wasn't sure, didn't quite know anymore. Not when his fingers tangled in her hair, cradled her head, not with his lips brushing over her cheek and cloud-sky eyes threatened to sweep her up into the storm. How was she supposed to resist this, when it was everything she wanted?

Why was she the only one who cared what happened afterwards?

"... yes," she sighed, not quite sure what it was she replied to anymore. It just seemed like the right word to say (it was not) and perhaps everything would be fine (it wouldn't) and the girl couldn't really remember why she cared either (but she did) and in the end... Her hands tightened their grip on his neck, in his hair. Traitorous limbs overruling her mind, urging him in. Pulling him closer.

It seemed, some things were quite impossible to avoid. This... could very well have been written. Like some prophecy about a flood and the moon, or was that just a story she'd forgotten she knew?

Peace.. it was quite overrated. She'd already fallen in love with the storm. Bring it on.

lay your hands on me

one last time

MAEA

save your eyes for someone brighter than i will ever be

His gaze lingers on her face, on her lips as she sighs, and it’s almost like a lightning crack within his gaze. She’s pulling him to her, and there’s nothing of any kind of force to keep him away. His fingers curl in her hair, and he hovers so closely to her face that he can feel her breath wash over his face, so sweet in comparison to the salt and the ocean around them. His legs tangle with hers to keep her near, an anchor away from drifting into the moonlight.

The hand at the small of her back moves to her hip, gentle tender strokes slow beneath the waves and the resistance of it. “I missed you.” I want you. His voice is deep, hoarse against the ocean that rises around them, but his words are only for her anyway — and he gives in, pulling her that last bit of distance in the hopes to kiss her sweetly, though perhaps a bit hungrily. It’s been a dance they’d tiptoed about for awhile, and Sunjata was slowly becoming the translation of his name the longer it went on.

don't hesitate to bring me to my knees

SUNJATA

You're so cold

but you feel alive

Her answer was a soft prayer of voice colored breath against his lips as she melted into the kiss, into his touch, floated away on his rising tide. So gentle, she knew he would stop if she told him to, if she hesitated, if she gave any indication at all that this wasn't what she wanted but Gods, it really was. Wrong or right or utter madness, it didn't matter. She didn't care anymore, didn't want to think beyond this. single. moment.

He was hungry and she was starving, lips parting willingly to invite him in, tongue lapping at his mouth to taste him, breathe him. I want you too.

The world shrank to single points of awareness, where his mouth connected with hers, where his hand rested on her hip, where her fingers tightened in his hair to pull him in even further, crush herself against him. If the waters cooled around them, if the magic slipped out of her grasp as her attention strayed, she didn't even notice.

Giving in was a wonderful feeling. Like the warm buzz of alcohol in the blood, only better.

Sweeter.

I love you.

But if she ever said that again, he would surely run away and never come back. So the girl let her body do the talking instead. It was a language he understood.

lay your hands on me

one last time

MAEA

save your eyes for someone brighter than i will ever be

She deepens the kiss, and he takes it as his cue — the fam lifting as he pinpoints his focus onto her, following and guiding when need be. But she crushes herself against him and he hums into her, body vibrating beneath her touch as he focuses everything he has onto her.

He breaks the kiss to drift them along her jaw, to her ear that he drifts lower until he’s at her neck, pressing his hungry kisses there. The one hand at her hip squeezes her and holds her as close to him as he can, the other drifts from her hair to rub along her side, from her hip up and up further, while his body sings to hers. The chill from the water rises goosebumps, but he burns beneath her touch. He pauses, pulling away from her neck a fraction, pulling at her to come with him as he brings them closer to the shore, some place with far more traction.

don't hesitate to bring me to my knees

SUNJATA

You're so cold

but you feel alive

She was moonlight glittering on his waves, so willingly allowing herself to be pulled along. Her voice colored the air in a soft whimper as his mouth left hers and trailed down her neck. The long, starlight hair feathered into the water as she leaned her head back, chin rising to give him room, give him access. This was nothing like the gentle, sweet kisses from earlier encounters; there was something wanton and greedy over him now, and it set her heart racing. One of her hands remained in his hair, at the back of his neck, but the other began to drift, trailing down along his spine to feel the muscles of his back play under her palm.

Maea only reluctantly let go a little as he began to tug her along. Searching for the shore, for ground beneath the feet, some harbor to shelter in. She helped them along with a steady wave, aching for him to continue this inevitable conquest. It didn't matter to her where they ended up; her legs were far too weak to let her stand on her own anyway.

At least there was sand beneath her feet when they found the bottom. Better than rocks. Better than the open sea.

lay your hands on me

one last time

MAEA

save your eyes for someone brighter than i will ever be

The hunger burns through him, but he holds her tight and close as Maea helps them get toward the shore with a wave, and perhaps it was a small enough wave with enough force behind it, perhaps he was a bit too focused on her to not notice as the sand rises up toward them. The steady beat of the waves urging them closer and closer toward it, until Sunjata pulls Maea a bit closer into him, bracing her against his chest so his back takes most of the impact of the sand and shells beneath the surface.

They slide to a stop with the force of the sand, as though they’ve paved a small amount of a warpath in their venture inward, but at least the waves only lap occasionally at his hip at this spot, and he looks to her with a fiery smirk, a huff of a chuckle though breathless as it may be. He recovers quickly, twisting and letting her go to brace his arms on either side of her in the sand, searching her gaze. “You alright?” He asks, breathless but luminous in the moonlight. He’s made it out okay, scratches along his spine and shoulders from the sand and a few small rocks, and sand clings to his shoulders from where the water still clings to him, dripping from every curve of his arms, from his nose, from his chest.

don't hesitate to bring me to my knees

SUNJATA

You're so cold

but you feel alive

Perhaps she had helped a bit too much at the end. The impact with the beach rattled her, even cusioned against Sunjata's chest, and as the final surge washed them upon on land she inhaled some of it. Coughing, spluttering, she fought to breathe properly for a while, then fell back onto the sand. Laughed a little, as she looked up and found Sunjata smiling down at her, looking for all the world like some young god of the sea washed ashore, reborn from water and sand.

For her. Just this once... only for her.

Dragging tangles of wet white hair from her face, she reached up to wipe the water from his nose, from the chin. Her fingers trembled slightly, reeling from the crash and from the way he looked at her.

"I'm okay. You?"

The other hand followed, moving to his shoulder where she began to brush the sand from his skin. Away from the inked lines of feathers... she was stalling, postponing what would come next and she knew it, but just... couldn't stand to see the beautiful designs covered with dirt.

lay your hands on me

one last time

MAEA