The Princess and the Blade

[Emora Deen]

Tenara moaned softly at the feel of his touch, his mouth. It was like lightening on her nerves but his words sparked a hint of dread.

She thought of Artisuren and how ill he was from that bond breaking. Would something like that happen to Havi if she died or they were separated?

And then his touch arched a flash of pleasure and the voice of reason left her. She reached between them, grabbing hold of his large length and stroking her hand over it, wanting to give him the same attention he offered her.

It was heavy and wide in her small hands, and she loved the heat of it, the promise. But she felt the pang of aching in the back of her head and felt betrayed by her own body. “I wish we had enough time for me to put my mouth on you. I wonder what your ending tastes like.” She reached up and grabbed hold of one of his horns, tugging his face up a little so she could kiss him. “I bet it tastes as good as your kiss.”

[Soran Nightblade]

Havi drank in her kiss, huffing low groans between their lips. The picture she'd painted brought his control to its knees. His fingers slid under her soaked panties and pulled the fabric aside, making room to press himself against her. He arched his back, struggling for composure. "I am yours, sword and soul. Sheathe me, Yurivis," he begged softly into her ear. His breath grew wilder as he glided slowly inside of her, inch after inch pushing her wide, filling her.

[Emora Deen]

Her breath hitched at the feel of him pressing into her, filling her. She clutched onto him, nails raking his skin as she drew her legs wide and high to make room for him. In and in and in, impossibly deep. Her magic had made her sensitive, so ready for him, she almost lost it just at the feel of him coming to rest within.

“Havi,” she murmured, pressing kisses to his shoulder and neck and ear. “My Havi. My Ivis. My love…”

She held her breath. It had just slipped out. Did he even know what the word meant. Tenara wasn’t sure why she’d said it, only that she… had and did. She wasn’t certain when or where or how, but she did.

[Soran Nightblade]

Instead of sliding the last portion of himself in slowly as planned, he bucked against her, thrusting to the hilt with a cry. Her words had undone his control for a moment, and now he scrambled to refocus. Whenever she expressed her possession of him, his piqued instincts screamed for release. He had just enough clarity to ponder the endearment she'd just expressed for the first time. He'd heard it once before... something Vladimir had said to Atul. Or had it been Tenele? It seemed to carry more gravity than their typical greetings. He made a note to ask later; anything he tried to say right now would likely emerge as senseless moaning.

"Tenara," he gasped, pumping into her in long, gliding strokes as deep as her body could accommodate him. She was so hot inside.

[Emora Deen]

Tenara's momentary fear of his reaction melted at the feel of him striking the part of her deep inside that sent sparks throbbing through her. One of her legs tangled over him, her nails dragged across his back and sides. "Yes... Havi. Oh, Havi." Then, she reached up for one of his horns and she tugged it so she could drag her lips and teeth along his neck. "This is mine," she said, and grinned as she nipped his jaw. "And this... and this..."

[Soran Nightblade]

"Yes...Tenara... haah..." Havi winced with the effort to control the fire building inside him. Each time she claimed him, he swelled and twitched inside her. His rhythm grew less even. He slid in several long, slow thrusts to control himself, then accelerated until his balls began tightening into climax, then forced himself slow again. After a few more nips from his Yurivis, he had no choice but to pause inside of her, shuddering and hot. "Tenara," he pleaded, panting, "It's so good..."

[Emora Deen]

Tenara burrowed her face into the crook of his neck, feeling dizzy and delirious. Her breath fanned across his skin, and she both hated and relished the relief his pause provided. She had been shattering, breaking into thousands of pieces. But the pause gave her time to feel other sensations besides the aching bliss between her legs. She felt the nagging splinter of her mind, and suddenly the dizziness seemed more to do with the after-effects of her magic than the throes of pleasure. "Come for me Havi," she murmured.

[Soran Nightblade]

Havi hesitated as something changed in her breath and the subtle rhythms of the body below him. "Tenara?" Was it her health? Had she overspent her power again? But just as he began to wonder what was wrong, she gave him the command.

Her order to come was like being pushed off a diving board while he was off balance. More like someone just unbolted the board and threw the whole thing int he pool. Ready or not, the water engulfed him all the same. He arched over Tenara and managed one urgent moan of warning before the release swallowed him whole. He clenched his fists in the sheets and groaned in tight bursts as he came inside her.

[Emora Deen]

Tenara huffed a pleased breath at the sensation of heat filling her. She pressed her cheek to him, tangling her legs tight around his waist and pulling him as close as he could possibly be. Her fingers stroked along his sides. "Good Ivis," she mused, smiling at him in the dark. He was a shadow above her, with the glow of moonlight highlighting the side of his face. He was beautiful. He was hers. "If I commanded you to do it again, would you?" she asked, but mostly in jest. She could feel the warmth of blood budding at the edge of her nose.

[Soran Nightblade]

Havi twitched inside her as he imagined such a thing. But he'd felt it, the subtle shift in her strength and the absence of her climax. "You can test that theory during my next rut," he breathed, touching her cheek gently. "You overexerted yourself today." The words were an observation, but not a judgment. His thumb nudged her nostril gently and came away wet with blood. "How is your pain?"

[Emora Deen]

Tenara shook her head. "Not bad." Yet. "You helped," she said, smiling. "It was nice..." Her fingers danced along his shoulder, brushing a lock of hair behind his ear. "Thank you for... accepting me, even if this is... odd. Even if I am odd." She felt the warmth more now and turned her face away so he couldn't see the dark river spilling free. She grabbed the sheet and pulled it up to her face. She locked her legs around him tighter in case he tried to get away.

[Soran Nightblade]

Havi shook his head. "You are not odd. You are lovely," he spoke quietly. He wanted to attend to her, to clean her body and treat her wounds. But he could feel the unspoken command in the way she clasped him against her. He would care for her the way she wished to be cared for. He cuddled close over her and cradled her head against his neck, careful not to put his weight on her. He could feel her pulse in the contact between their chests and in the place where he had yet to soften inside her. He reached back with one arm and pulled a blanket up over them both.

[Emora Deen]

Tenara closed her eyes and relaxed beneath him. He called her lovely, and the urge to tell him she thought she loved him bubbled up again. But there was so much wrong with that. So much she could break with that confession. She couldn't love him and be who Hajara needed her to be. Tenara felt her heart lurch, her eyes burn, and she willed the thought out of her head. She settled into the comfort of being his, of being tied to him, and she let herself sleep.

[Soran Nightblade]

Artisuren stood before the door and raised his hand slowly up to knock. He didn't hear anything inside. Perhaps she was unaccompanied tonight. Nervous hope bounced up in his chest.

But just as his knuckles brushed the wood, the door swung wide. Artis jumped backwards and stared at the male who had stepped firmly into his space.

"If it isn't Ren," the other male said.

"Kith," he acknowledged the Ivis, his gaze lowered although they were the same height. "Is she awake?"

"A little more than awake," Kith said. He placed his hand on the door, flashing the tattoo on his wrist - a moon bounded by 9 small orbs. He hadn't shown him by accident. "You don't look like you're in rut. Were you summoned?"

Artisuren shook his head. "No. I just thought I might be able to see her."

Kith sighed. "You know what she will say. With only three orbs, you're fortunate she's even keeping you tamed. Don't do something that will anger her further.

Artisuren stretched his jaw and reset it into a practiced calm. Kith's advice was wise. No good would come of losing his temper again, especially not here. Kisva hated pushy Ivie. "If I have a bit more time with her, I know I will be able to earn more."

Kith looked genuinely concerned. "I really don't think it's a good-"

"Let him in, Arekith, a voice called from within the room.

The sound of her voice put him at ease. He stepped in past Kith and beheld his master. She was sitting in her bed, long hair falling in curls around her hips. Another Ivis, one with seven or s displayed on his wrist, lay with his head in her lap. Angry welts and scraped marred his pale gray skin, and he was fully erect. His Yurivis's eyes, however, were cold.

"Answer me, Ren. Did I invite you to my chambers?"

Her sharp voice thrilled and terrified him. "You did not."

"No. If you interested me, I would have summoned you, or are you here to serve yourself?"

His eyes shot wide. The words punched a hole through him. "I am not! Please. I exist for you, Yurivis."

"Then you will get out of my sight, and don't come back until you're aflame, or your next ring will be a black one.
Do not forget you are replaceable. "

Artisuren's soul sank through his feet. Replaceable. The words hit like hammers. The other males in the room looked similarly affected by her displeasure. "Yes," he said in a daze. He took a step backward, but his legs buckled under him.

"Oh, for fuck's sake. Kith, return him to his quarters."

Artisuren didn't hear his peer's respectful reply. He was vaguely aware of someone tugging him up under the arms and dragging him away. It wasn't meant to be like this. He could become what she wanted.

"I can do better," he begged as he watched her disappear behind the closing door. She didn't look at him as he left.

"I'll be better.". The Ivis opened blurry eyes to the silent darkness of Laurius's inn room. He straightened abruptly and checked his surroundings as reality came back to him piece by piece.

It was very dark and felt late. The building held the eerie silence that only came in the middle if the night He had drifted off sitting upright in the wood chair. His captor lay asleep at the opposite end of the room.

His body felt hot again, and a ghost of the throbbing from earlier had returned. The thought raised a pang of despair in him. After all of that earlier, he was already relapsing. He stood slowly and tried to think of what to do.

[Emora Deen]

Laurius blinked his eyes open. In the fog of sleep, he thought he heard the creaking of wood. He murmured something unintelligible, and rolled over onto his back, his sleepy gaze sweeping the room and spotting a shadow of a man against the moonlight coming through the window.

He shot upright, a gasp lodged in his throat. His hand scrambled for the dagger, and he yelped when his hand touched hot metal.

Then, the facts came back to him. He understood who the shadow belonged to, and why. No one had come to kill him.

“Arti,” he said, wiping a hand over his face. He glanced at the dagger. “You’re hot again…” So, what they’d done hadn’t fixed him. He needed Tenara—well, he suspected he really needed her phage—to figure this out. Getting to her at this time of night would prove impossible, even if he were her suitor.

He grimaced at the memory of her face and her anger.

“Tell me what you need,” he said to Artisuren, hand over the dagger with the hand he’d already singed.