From being an Abandoned who had rarely left the Hollowed Grounds, to embracing the call of adventure, to dying and being reborn first as an Ascended and then as an Ancient, Maea has gone through quite the amount of changes in her life. One thing remains common, though, in her attempts to find out just where she belongs; she’s always had a craving for knowledge which has brought her to so many places and to meet so many people here in Caido. We can’t wait to see what else is in store for her!
Congratulations, Maea!
Credits
Court of the Fallen was created in October of 2018 by Odd, Honey, and Crooked.
Skinning and hosting by the epically talented Kaons, and functionality fanciness by the coding magic of Neowulf. If you ever see either of them around, make sure to show them some love!
12-24-2018, 12:31 PM (This post was last modified: 01-22-2019, 09:03 PM by Alistair.)
ALISTAIR
It was an evening of exploration. Of himself and of the limits of just how much alcohol he could consume. So far, Alistair had actually impressed even himself at the amount consumed without so much as a mini blackout.
Having walked Rexanna home after their rather fun romp in the fields, and the oasis, and hunt in the woodlands, he recalled how she spoke of speaking with the gods to right a wrong.
Perhaps it was his own selfless nature that brought him to her door. Though as he stood there, at the door, staring at it for nearly 45 minutes as if expecting it to magically knock itself, Alistair realized something.
He was actually...nervous. His hands were clammy, eyes went in and out of focus, last thing he wanted to do was make a fool of himself.
He glanced around, realizing he was empty-handed and found a blooming weed. It was small, petite, but bloomed a brilliant orange-yellow on its petals.
Plucking the single weed-flower free he held it as if he held a dozen roses, and finally...finally knocked against the door.
Of course this would all appear all too comical perhaps if Rexanna had been watching him this whole time, and all the more humiliating for himself.
Taking a deep breath, Alistair staggered back one step before righting the ship.
12-28-2018, 02:56 AM (This post was last modified: 12-28-2018, 05:43 AM by Rexanna.)
RexannA
just how far would you go
when the drugs aren't hitting home?
She hadn’t officially found a place to stay yet – but this seemed like the easiest bet. There was a roof overhead, nobody else sleeping within the walls, and solitude. So far, so good. Pleasantly, she found that it even had a decent place to sleep at night, dusty as it might be, but it would do for the time being before she attempted to clean it up a bit and possibly claim it as her own. She still wasn’t certain how these things went, if she was simply staying in a house she shouldn’t have been, but she did it anyway. Let someone tell her not to before changing her mind.
For the most part, Rexanna was sound asleep in that dusty bed. She had absolutely zero idea that Alistair had stood outside for nearly an hour before gaining the courage to knock on her haphazard door. Her eyes opened and curiously she wondered if it would be an eviction from whoever owned the property – though she didn’t make much of an effort to gather all of her things before she opened the door.
Her hair was somewhat tangled, though it appeared as though she had ran a hand through it. She leaned up against the door frame as she regarded who it was that had knocked on her door with a small smile blooming across her features. “Hello handsome.” Her voice purred to him, though the fliration wasn’t mimicked in her eyes. She looked at him for a brief moment, noticing the small flower he held in his hands and she smiled a bit wider, opening the door further to make room for him to enter should he want to.
As he entered, she looked to him, wondering what had prompted him to find her this late at night before she realized it. “Oh.” That sultry voice moved toward him. “You’re drunk!” She said with a chiming laugh. She took the flower from him then, her fingers trailing gently along his callused hands, and admired it before her sapphire gaze flickered toward him.
Alistair drunkenly grinned and smoothed his hair and pants attempted to wink but instead blinked both eyes before stepping through the opening of the door.
He turned as Rexanna took the flower, if you felt charitable enough to call it that.
"Wait-wait...wait..."
Alistair called out as he tetered in front of her, taking the flower from her fingers and tucked it in her hair, just above her ear.
"There. Better."
Eyes danced over her full lips, as his tongue ran over his own. Awfully tempted to make this much more than a social visit...but instead he turned and looked over the interior of the home, bourbon swaying in his free hand.
"Tonight, tonight was supposed to be a night of self reflection
Looking myself in the mirror and questioning if I liked what I saw. You know? Sometimes our own bias toward ourself gets in the way of a proper assessment, so needed so help...guess you can say."
He explained with a wiggle of the bottle, chuckling as he turned to face Rex.
"Got to be honest, wasn't thrilled by who I saw at first. Soft, predictable, gullible...willing to believe anything and anyone who presented any sort of weakness. As if I was obligated to take on their troubles for them... which I did, countless times.
I was so caught up on what was the good thing to do, never thought about what was right. They are not one in the same.
Sometimes good guys got to do bad things to make the bad people pay. I never would have once considered that. I was just so concerned about being that good guy...in truth it bordered on cowardice."
Alistair walked over, twirled a dark strand of Rex's hair in his finger.
"The old me, would say Alistair...you're drunk. Go home, sleep it off. You'll wake fine in the morning. Yet here I am. Standing here, in front of you. No expectations, no reservations. Nothing between us but a bottle of bourbon that I don't want to drink alone. I want to sit there..."
He would point to a vacant chair in what appeared to be in the living room.
"I want you to sit on my lap, and I want you to drink with me. We'll get drunk, spill as many truths as this bottle will allow...and if there is time for it, take advantage of our pour choices and spontaneity that comes with all of this."
He'd lift the bottle between their lips as he grinned and motioned to the chair with his head.
He stuttered, calling for her to wait and with it she did, standing there with flower in hand as he approached – a bit more of a wobbled walk, taking the flower and placing it behind her ear. She offered him a brilliant smile and a small nod before he turned to look at the interior of this oddly placed, somewhat ransacked home, and she listened while he swayed and talked. Her eyes drifting to the bottle as he wiggled it, speaking of help on self-reflection, and her gaze followed from his hand to his face as he turned to look at her again.
The more he spoke, however, the more her brows knitted together slightly. But she didn’t interrupt him. Instead, she allowed him to speak his concerns and worries, though the first set of words he spoke she felt deep down. Yet beside it, she also felt the realization from Frey that it was a path she didn’t deserve. She didn’t need to bend and break herself for others, and it seemed with a bottle of alcohol and his own self, Alistair had realized it too. And with it, Rexanna had realized just how similar they were in that regard.
He stepped closer to her then, the smell of alcohol wafting toward her as he twirled one strand of her hair. She softly smiled to him, her gaze searching his own dark ones and the pink that tinged his stubbled cheeks. As he pointed to a chair, she turned her head to look and see which it was he was talking about before looking back at him as he lifted the bottle and grinned to her. Another chimed laugh escaped her lips and she gave him a bit of a skeptical look. “I think you’re just looking for a way in my bed again, hmm?” She purred, an eyebrow lifting in question before she laughed.
But she moved away from him then, gesturing to the chair as she took the drink from him and took a deep drink, wincing as it burned down her throat. Then, she turned back to him and placed the bottle on the rickety table beside the chair. It would be hard for her to talk about all her truths like this, for serious conversations just didn’t happen. She couldn’t actually say them without them coming out wrong, and so she mostly chose not to, but she would try. If for nothing else, but for him. To make sure that he wasn’t alone tonight.
Rex stepped closer to him then, raising her pale hand to gently brush her fingers along his cheekbone before her eyes scanned his face. “I have to show you something.” Her sultry voice cooed to him as she pulled her shirt to the side where her brand was – where he had kissed the brand before. Now there was nothing but fresh, clean, unmarred skin. As if she hadn’t ever been marked. And she scanned his face more to see what kind of reaction it would receive.
Alistair followed Rexanna as she stepped away, taking a seat at first as she assumed his intentions. Part of him wanted to tell her she was right, part of him didn't want to say anything at all.
Say too much you leave yourself vulnerable, say too little you risk shutting people out. For now he opted for amused silence until she spoke of having something to show him.
As she moved her shirt to the side, Alistair thought perhaps things would be taking a similar tone as before, and he briefly sobered up as he moved to ease her from removing her shirt...only to find she actually did want to show him something.
Curiously he squinted, fingers reaching out to touch and caress where the brand had been.
"How did you..."
Then as if by answering his own question, Alistair looked into Rex's sapphire gaze. He took a deep breath and arched a brow. Recalling how she spoke of calling upon the god that wronged her friend.
"What did it cost you to lose this?"
He asked, his voice sobering for a moment, spoken softly as he continued to rub the spot where the brand had been, gently.
"Was it worth it? The price?"
That's what mattered. It wasn't the what had to be done, but the end that justified the means that really mattered. As far as he saw it that is.
"Are you happy?"
The question seemed simple enough, though he wasn't sure how often she was ever really asked such a simple and genuine question. It was ultimately what made the price worth it in the end wasn't It?
“How did you…?” Alistair began and she beamed a brilliant smile to him as his hand touched her collarbone, his thumb rubbing against the fresh skin. His dark eyes lifted to meet hers and there was nothing but pure joy in it. Yet there was apprehension and worry in Alistair’s that caused her brow to furrow slightly. She reached up, placing her hand on his that sat on her chest and opened her mouth to speak — before she could, Alistair was beginning again. What did it cost? Well she could have said her voice, but that wasn’t entirely it. It was only partially her voice, and a gift she enjoyed far more than expected.
She was no one. She was her own person. And even if Frey didn’t think she’d follow through with the advice and counsel given, they would be wrong.
Her eyes softened slightly as he rubbed the clear skin, asking if the price was worth it. She nodded her head, uncertain of how to respond to everything at once. So she allowed him to finish his words before she would open her mouth again. Was she happy? Yes, immensely. Far happier than she’d ever been despite everything.
“I couldn’t fix what happened to Remi, but I got some very much needed advice from the god. I feel like a new woman!” She purred, not realizing that she hadn’t told Alistair the name of the man she was with at the time. But the realization that Alistair knew Remi caused the name to fall from her lips unknowingly. Rexanna pointed to her neck then, a her mouth opening to explain what happened but nothing would quite come out right. She sighed quietly with a shrug, slipping away from him to the table where the quill Remi had let her borrow and the parchment sat. “I can’t speak normally. I can only flirt anymore until I fix this.” She wrote in her swooping handwriting, turning to Alistair to get his attention to come with her to see. She turned to the page again to write. “The removal of the brand was a gift for me. To stop putting others before myself. I don’t owe anyone anything, I can simply just be. They told me to stop punishing myself, and I intend to listen to that advice.” She turned to look at him and place a hand on his cheek.
“I can only fix my voice by enjoying myself and others. That is the price.” She hummed to him with a smile and her sultry voice. He didn’t need to know the specifics just yet, but she hoped he wouldn’t be upset at the idea of her spending time with others to fix the curse as well.
At first Alistair appeared confused as he looked over what she had written, when she spoke of no longer having to put people before her, but to simply just be, that much he understood, but as she continued as to what needed to be done in order to get her voice back, he grew confused once again at the contradiction...Remi? That simply didn't make sense, so his drunken brain tossed that up to the booze.
"So...in order to get your voice back, the price paid for removing the brand, the symbol of just being and not putting others before you...You must pleasure others? I'm in no position to question, but there is irony in that. Unless you don't see it."
Alistair sat, took a pull from his bottle and chuckled. Not so much at Rexanna and her position, but more at his own.
"What I say shouldn't matter, we've made it abundantly clear what this is, is purely for mutual benefit should the need arise."
He reasoned, not appearing at all agitated. He held no expectations from anyone, there for was never truly disappointed, not anymore. Instead he looked simply looked at her and lifted his bottle in a toast.
"To your happiness Rexanna . May it come however it does. Your freedom is yours to enjoy. Do it, love it. However you want...just be careful. It's a slippery road this god has put you on, the prize seems worth it but don't lose yourself in the path to getting it.
You're more than a warm body to be shared with. As long as you know that you'll be ok. I'm truly...So happy for you. Just...be careful."
His voice softened at the end as he took another pull.
"Don't mind me...words of a drunken fool right? So how does it work? You simply speak and they approach you like this..."
Alistair stood and walked over to Rexanna, teetering slightly as he held her arms for balance with a chuckle.
"Maybe not that terribly of course..."
Alistair continued to chuckle as his tumble made him lean over to wear they nearly kissed.
He sighed with a smile, nodding as he looked her over.
"If they make you feel like anything less than beautiful...they don't deserve you, and you don't deserve them."
As Alistair spoke she emitted a quiet laugh. “No, Alistair. I’m not the one doing the pleasing. They suggested others please me.” She winked to him as her voice continued its purring tone. Though while he spoke she watched him, watched as he slurred through his words and a faint smile grew on his face. She let him speak, to express his thoughts on the matter and them, whatever they were at the moment.
Still she cared for him, and she watched as he took another swig from the bottle as he told her to be careful. She eyed him briefly, thinking about opening her mouth and responding to him before he stood again and awkwardly yet adorably made his way to her. She looked up at him, a ghost of a smile on her face as he held her arms to keep himself upright. She waited for him to finish speaking before raising an eyebrow at him, her arms finding their way around his neck. “You could help me if you want… if you don’t mind sharing.” Her voice was soft but still bore that honey dipped tone. He leaned forward to kiss her forehead and she leaned into it, turning her head up to him as he asked if she wanted to see something remarkable. She paused for a moment, leaning up to plant a gentle kiss on his lips before nodding to him.
She wanted to see what kind of remarkable thing he had, or amusingly wanted to see how he would go about showing her if he couldn’t stand straight up without the wobbling. Her head tilted to him curiously, her teeth biting onto her lip gently. She didn’t know where this would go, but Alistair was kind and gentle, and surprisingly had no qualms with her flirting with the world until she happened to get it fixed — if she ever got it fixed. At least despite it all she had the power to decline, to refrain from putting out despite what her words might suggest. That, at least, had been helpful with the curse. And if nothing else, at least she could speak. She wasn’t sure how she’d go about trying to fix herself if she was mute. Where would the fun in that be? And perhaps Frey had known that too and wanted her to indulge, enjoy herself in the company of many who would care for her rather than the other way around.
The more she thought about it, the more she realized that perhaps Frey had been her saving grace.
Alistair laughed and qwirked his head aside as if asking 'really'?
But she was serious, at least he thought she was. Share? Share with who? Another man? Another woman? If it were another man, if they didn't cross swords would that even be acceptable?
Why was he even considering this?
"Sure...in the end its you I'd want...I would take you however you want me to...If you wanted me to that is. I think we've been nothing short of, creative for lack of a better word since we've met...Why stop now?"
What...the fuck...did he just say? Alistair paused a moment to make sure he heard and understood his own words before he looked back at Rexanna and smiled into the kiss she gave him.
He sighed into her lips, their full pouty warmth easing every muscle in his body.
He nearly forgot his remarkable thing until his eyes opened and he felt the pouch tethered to his hip and grinned.
"Whatever you see...trust me, it's ok."
Alistair slipped the mask from its pouch, it was fierce looking. Beautiful in the mechanisms and hissed and hummed as he slipped it over his face, and clicked his palm to power it on.
A distorted voice could be heard laughing before he spoke.
"Ready? Don't blink or you'll miss it."
The distorted voice spoke before his fingers curled under her chin.
Suddenly he was gone. His body rippling and fading like a puff of smoke taken by the wind only for him to knock against her door outside.
Had Rexanna gone to answer the door, she would find no one there, for Alistair had appeared right behind her. Arms would wrap around her waist lifting her up and slinging her over his shoulder.
He staggered a moment to gain his balance, knocking over the table before spinning and lowering her back to her feet.
The distorted voice heard laughing as he slipped it off, the smile remained as his hand brushed against her hair.
"See? Remarkable."
While it appeared he was speaking of the mask and it's ability, in truth he was speaking about her and how beautiful she looked tonight.
"There's one charge left...want to give it a shot?"
As the realization sunk into Alistair, she wiggled her eyebrows playfully. His head cocking to the side as if to ask if it were truly what she was asking for. A small breathless laugh left her lips and she nodded encouragingly to him. As he began to speak, though, her attention slipped between his eyes and his lips as her swig of alcohol began to take root. It wasn’t much, but enough to get her buzzed to where she couldn’t help but stare at him in some kind of amusement. She lifted her hand to his face, tracing his cheek briefly as he accepted her offer and she opened her mouth to thank him, but he had already begun to move on.
Right, the remarkable thing. Her attention slipped to his hip as he pulled out the mask – the same one from the night of the fire and the pumpkins, and she raised an eyebrow encouraging him to speak about what the mask indeed did. She watched him, however, as he placed it over his face and it whirled and hissed while it began to work. His voice was distorted, and she found herself tilting her head but nodding all the same – eyes opening up a bit wider as she waited to see what was so remarkable about a strange, hissing mask, though she did lean into his touch a bit.
But then he was gone! Her eyes widened a bit before the knock at the door caught her attention and she playfully rolled her eyes. Teleportation? Or super speed? Anything seemed possible in this world, and she moved to the door to open before thinking better of it. If he could teleport outside, he could certainly find his way back in. Though her hand remained on the knob of the door as she debated, deciding that she could leave him out there if he chose to be let in through the door again. She didn’t have much time for a choice, however, as her hand slipped from the doorknob and Alistair wrapped his arms around her and sliding her over his shoulder. A surprised squeal left her lips as he staggered beneath her, a bright charming laugh bellowed from her at the act.
The table fell, but she didn’t particularly care about the furniture here. It wasn’t a loss to her if he broke it, though he set her down and she felt the ground with a laugh and a playful glare sent his way. She wanted to speak, to say something, but instead remained silent while his hand brushed against her hair and he spoke. A skeptical look crossed her features at the offer he gave her. “I’m not sure. You might need it to sneak into my room later.” She winked before taking the mask from him to look at it. Her fingertips traced along the finery of the gears and the design before looking up to Alistair with a thoughtful look upon her face.
She turned to right the table back on its feet before turning back to Alistair. “I’m not sure if we should, I’m afraid you might get sick and despite the fact we’ve been experimenting, I’m not into that.” She laughed, flashing him a bright smile. “But… Perhaps in the morning?” She questioned in her sultry voice, stepping toward him and cupping his cheek gently and placing a cheek on his jawbone. She pulled away enough to eye him for a moment, her hand leaving his cheek. “Where’s that bottle, hmm?” She purred with a wink. “Tonight it’s just you and I.”
The distorted voice asked, tilting to the side as he laughed beneath the mask before slipping it off. Clicking the sensor in his palm to power it down, resting the mask on the table as he reached over and took the bottle.
An arm reached around and wrapped around Rexanna 's waist as Alistair lifted her rather easily against him, walking around in a makeshift tour.
"No mark, now voice, just a mission for to find pleasure..."
Alistair thought out loud, hefting Rex up slightly to get a better grip, his arm tucking beneath her so she was essentially sitting on his arm.
"At first, wasn't sure what to make of that...but seems we have both been guilty of selflessness to a fault. Somewhere along the way we forgot what it was like to do something for ourselves, for no other reason than it's what we wanted to do."
He'd glance up and smirk at Rex, walking her into what appeared to be a kitchen and sitting her on the counter, resting his hands on the counter opposite her hips.
"Tragic...yet here we are. You, a survivor...given the gift of pure freedom to explore yourself. Me..."
Alistair paused a moment as he thought, taking a pull of his drink before resting the bottle in Rex's hand.
"...just a man who realized there is no happy ending when investing in a lost cause. Just disappointment. So why think? Why invest? Why hold any sort of expectations? Just act."
Leaning in, had Rex accepted, he would give a quick peck-like kiss. Hands reaching and running along her legs as he looked them over in admiration. The floor appearing a bit uneven again Alistair teetered a little once more with a chuckle.
"So...this sharing you speak of...was it specific as to who the other partner had to be? Another gent? Another woman? Or was that freedom to choose also given to you."
She shook her head to him with a laugh. She’d more than likely find him attractive wearing anything, but the idea of the mask and the jumping while he was absolutely hammered is what concerned her. However, he grabbed the bottle and wrapped his arm around her and picked her up with ease, taking her on a tour of her own makeshift house. She sighed with a slight breathy laugh at the idea before he spoke and hefted her up, a small “oomph” at the movement left her lips. She shrugged her shoulders in response, though said nothing. He probably couldn’t tell that she did shrug, but it didn’t matter.
He continued to move toward the kitchen, her on his arm as he spoke of selflessness. She nodded, agreeing. It was something Rexanna had thought she had to do. That all the bad things that had happened to her in the world were because she deserved it – for not protecting her people, for letting them die and running away amid the chaos. Frey had shown her otherwise, showed her the flaws she carried with her every day, and ensuring that it wasn’t something to be defined by. She appreciated the second chance, and she enjoyed being here with Alistair through it all.
Placing her on a counter, he stood in front of her with his arms on either side of her – his boozy speech actually speaking volumes on what had happened to them. Her head tilted, eyebrows pulling together as she watched him take a drink from the bottle and place it in her hand. She took a sip of it as well before placing it on the counter, a good distance from them as to not break it should things go where it seemed. When he finished speaking, she wanted to reach up and touch his face with a soft, comforting motion, but he had leaned forward and kissed her gently – his hands roving over her legs as she offered him a small smile.
She couldn’t exactly tell him without the paper what she wanted to, and that was now in the other room. So she did what she could, expressed it with her body, leaning in to kiss him a bit deeper with a roguish grin. When he began to talk about the proposition Frey had given her, she laughed a small breathy laugh. “I get to choose.” She purred, eyes scanning his face. “And I choose you for the first part. Perhaps I’ll flirt with everyone and take a poll?” Her voice remained trapped in that honey tone, but laughter lit up her eyes at the idea.
Her hands reached up to wrap around his neck, her legs moving to wrap around him and pull him closer while she smiled to him. “I’m in no rush.” She hummed, leaning down to press another kiss to his lips, her thumb trailing along the column of his neck.
In no rush, that seemed to be the sentiment they both shared. They both seemed content in riding the current.
As Rexanna pressed her lips against his, deepening the kiss, Alistair leaned into her with a sigh. His body resting, content with the warmth she offered him.
In that brief moment Alistair though about what Ronin had said, Rex was a rebound...easy as that. While Alistair didn't necessarily agree, he didn't exactly know what to consider her.
Rexanna was...Rexanna, and he was content with just that. So many times had he over thought every little thing and it cost him. It was so much easier , he found out, to just go with it.
Rexanna wasn't his girlfriend, or his truest love...she was freedom. She offered Alistair the freedom to be anything and she seemed to accept that, as he accepted her simply as she was.
"Pleasure...I can do that..."
He whispered quietly with a smile against her lips, nodding softly as he held her eyes.
Slowly he began to slide down, hands holding Rex's knees gently as he parted her legs. If she attempted to refuse, though he's not sure why she would Alistair would look up with a 'shhh' gesture. If she simply accepted the special attention she was getting, it simply made it all that much easier.
It was a unique thing, spending your life worrying about how others felt, catering to their needs and neglecting your own...and to simply just flip a switch and realize you deserve a moment to sit back, and feel good.
That was exactly what Alistair was offering Rex, for her to lean back onto the counter, take a breath...and feel good.
Stubbled lips pricked and kissed along the insides of her thighs. His free hand reaching in without so much as a warning and, had she worn panties, they were promptly snapped and throw into the abyss.
Lips pressed further into her inner thigh as he brought her legs over his shoulder and hooked her in with a hug. His tongue gently sliding along her moistened lips before sliding into her. Gliding, slowly, searching...though in truth he knew well enough where her love nub was hiding. The search was part of the play before he gently latched onto it, pinning it gently but firm between his lips, running his tongue along it.
Slowly at first, though the momentum increasing before he released and latched onto it. Teasing it first before his grip of her thighs tightened, pinning his tongue inside of her as he rolled it, slid it, and dipped it with talent of a man who memorized every delicious crevas of her body.
Whatever they were, Rexanna wasn’t certain. Friends that could keep each other company whether through conversations or their bodies, nothing more and nothing less. She cared for Alistair, but not in a way she imagined he deserved. But if it helped keep his mind off of everything that had happened, she was glad enough to give it to him. She wasn’t prepared for a relationship, wasn’t certain if she ever would be. She hadn’t gotten that far yet. She was just happy that Alistair didn’t mind it, whatever this was.
For the first time Rexanna was free, to do what she wanted, to do whomever she wanted, and she intended on doing that.
As he spoke, slurred speech met her lips with a smile. She remained easily on the counter while he moved, surprised at the dexterity he carried despite having wobbled around before in his drunkenness. He slid down her body, his hands holding onto her knees before moving them and she watched on with a hungry look in her dark eyes. She helped him along, somewhat afraid of if she made it challenging for him he might simply fall over.
When he moved, she leaned back – finding her shoulders resting gently against the wall of the kitchen. His lips kissed along her thighs and the feeling sent a shiver down her spine – her body inadvertently sliding closer to him as though she were pleading with him. She helped him when he raised her legs over his shoulder, hugging her in a way that allowed him a better grip and she found herself gripping onto the counter top with white knuckles, breathless and surprised.
She hadn’t experienced anything like this before. It was bliss, beauty, and she felt as though she could erupt with the fireworks that were buried beneath her skin. Though of course, she tried to restrain them, afraid that they might cause a fire and her house go up in flame. She craved more, and found herself being able to release it in other ways, the way Alistair’s name left her lips in a soft yet nearly begging tone, and much to her pleasure he didn’t stop. She adjusted herself, finding herself moving against him with the added leverage of her hands gripping the countertop.
Soon enough Alistair had found it, and her legs were tightening around him as she let go of the countertop with one hand, to bury it into his dark curls as sound continued to leave her lips like a prayer – one that Alistair seemed to be answering with ease despite his bumbling drunkenness. She knew she needed to repay the favor, she wanted to repay him, but her body was vibrating so hard with the treat he had done to her that she wasn’t sure she’d be able to breathe after, let alone move.
