Heirot

Tenele laughed, nodding as she stole on of her own. They walked along the streets eating pastries and listening to music. Tenele stayed very close to Knight, sharing the box of sugary treats with him. "Is there anything else you'd like to see?" Tenele asked him as she deposited the empty boxy in a trash can and curled her fingers in his shirt to warm them up.

The guardian wrapped an arm around Tenele's shoulders to warm her as they crossed through the streets. "Perhaps..." he hesitated, calculating again. "The cliffs...where you looked for the man in the moon." He wondered if that memory hurt her. Yet he also wanted to see it himself, to touch a piece of her life.

Tenele nodded. She walked with him to the outskirts of town and to the edge of a cliff overlooking the ocean. Tenele was hesitant at first to stray too close to the edge, but she trusted Knight to catch her before she fell. "Its hard to get down to," Tenele told him as she peered at the rocky base below. "Its a miracle I didn't die on the rocks..." It had changed in many ways, but still the same in others. "I sat on that big one right next to the cliff and waited. The palace guards climbed down to get me." Her eyes turned up to the moon.

Knight surveyed the landscape with that ever-curious stare. "You're cold," he realized as he felt a shiver next to him. He unlaced the top of his shirt and slid it over his head, leaving him bare in the moonlight. He slipped the garment over her head. It was so big on her that she barely even needed to use the arm holes. Satisfied, he dropped to a seat on the grassy ledge and stretched back with his hands behind his head. He analyzed the moon, as she had, and tried to spot a face. "I'm glad you were safe," he whispered, thinking again.

Tenele smiled down at him, curling inside the warmth of his shirt. "Talon and I were grounded for a long time and I wasn't allowed to swim at the beach anymore," she told him. "He felt so bad about it, and tried to make it up to me. It wasn't his fault. I've always been the type to push my boundaries where safety is concerned. I've gotten so much better now that I'm older." Tenele knelt in the cold grass with him, over him, staring down at the perfect muscled torso until she found his impossibly handsome face.

"Are you ready?" she asked him. She meant to finish it, to specify whether he was ready to go back or not, but she didn't. She left it open, her heart racing.

Knight looked at her blankly. "Are you?" he asked, affection climbing into his voice. His gaze changed a little as he rethought her question. "You'd like to return now?"

Tenele looked the city over one more time from where they were. She slipped down next to him, curling her side against his warm body and draping an arm across his chest. "Yes," she told him softly.

Knight narrowed his eyes at the moon as Tenele curled against him. "Thank you," he said softly. "I have memories of a lot of things. But they are not my own. I have never actually seen or touched these places, with these eyes. They are not my memories." He looked over at her. "Now I've created some of my own."

Tenele felt her heart tug at his words, it was enough to make her eyes water with tears. She smiled, reaching up to wipe one away before it could fall on his skin. Tenele sat up slowly, cupping his face with her hand. "I'm glad," she told him, her voice like smooth velvet. "I'm glad I can be with you in these memories." She leaned down slowly, her silver hair falling over her shoulder to tickle his skin. Her lips pressed flush with his, kissing him shyly at first. She'd kissed him before, after the battle with Verin. At that moment it had been fierce excitement and relief. This was gentler acceptance that slowly transformed into a burst of desire. "I want to make you happy." It was true. Tenele wanted him to be happy, to enjoy her, to enjoy the night. She wanted to repay him for the life she both gave him and denied him. Even if it were only for one night a month.

Knight's lips melded to hers. I want to make you happy. The words ingrained in his mind. "You do make me happy. You needn't make any effort," he murmured, returning her kiss plus a little extra. His body shifted slightly to deepen the contact between them. He glided his fingers along her cheek and neck, soft and controlled, like he was learning every curve of her skin.

Tenele let out a soft sigh against his lips as his body pressed tighter to hers. It was hard to imagine that given all she'd experienced that day she was still in the mood for more. But, she was, especially for Knight. She wanted him to have good memories. Memories of her that were his own and not shared with Vlad and Atul. Memories that they could share together. That thought deepened her kiss. Her fingertips glided over his skin, skittering across his ribs and sides. She drew back with a quick breath, pressing her forehead to his. "Not here," she sighed. "Let's go back. Its cold here."

Knight smiled at her. "As you wish." He drew his arms around her, strong and firm. Then they were flying again, like they were passing through a dream world, before returning to the inside of the cottage. They were standing in the bedroom, a few feet away from the bed. The candles in the room flickered with their return. "We are back," he loosened his grip around her back and let his hands slide down to her wrists. His eyes scanned hers, looking for any sign of doubt.

Tenele was nervous, but she had no doubts. Not about this. She really cared for him, even if that seemed strange to most people. She watched his hands gliding around her wrists gentle, and she turned her palms to where she could clasp hold of his wrists as he held hers. "Let us make memories you do not have to share," she told him with a smile, standing on the tips of her toes to plant a soft kiss on his lips.

Knight's eyes drifted shut. He tilted his head toward her, deepening her kiss and looking for access to her mouth. His tongue ran along the edge of her teeth, exploring her completely. The guardian guided her hands to his bare chest and across his muscled stomach. The hot skin was smooth and firm under her touch. Knight drew a low breath, and his hands left hers so he could explore beneath her own clothing. He caressed her sides with slow, studying motions, warm hands sliding until they covered and squeezed around her breasts. His movements were controlling, but not exactly dominant. Not in the way that Vlad or Atul were dominant. His was more a kind of natural, calm knowledge that this was his realm of expertise and he could guide her in any way she needed.

"May I remove these?" he asked so quietly that his voice barely caressed the still air. Phantom hands tugged teasingly at her clothes and the shirt he'd lent her.

Tenele smiled at him, her hands still smoothing along perfect skin. There was a familiarity to his looks and definite perfection. It made her mouth water with desire. She lifted her arms in response to his question, giving him access to draw the clothing over her head.