Aaryona was in the heat of the moment the sword appeared in her hands. She felt the ends of her mana streams hurting and burning. She could see them on fire from her skin. The way the black pulsed all around but she had done it. She had ripped them open premature and now it was flooding her completely, it felt like she was drowning in it. So much build up.

Her brown eyes watched him as he panicked. He was holding her now with harsh breaths and all she could do was give him a smile. “Because I am a Draconis and we are stupid like that. Even in the darkest shadows, we find our way home and home is not always a physical place.” She wanted home. She wanted her people. 

She took his hand and looked towards her sword of light. It was still as beautiful as the day it was handed to her from Lilith. “Yes, I know where they are. Kurayo, that’s the name. We shall go there. We shall reclaim what is mine.” And they were hers. “This will be difficult. There appear to be many new bloods in an attempt to get power in Kurayo but they can’t do it without me.”

There was a fire in her eyes now. “Let’s make haste.” She went to leave with him but before she did she came back and kissed him hard on the lips. “Thank you for staying with me Eirik.” She gave a smile before finding their way to a port.

The journey there was long. Aaryona forgot how much she hated boats but she stood there at the bow of the ship like an unmoving statue. She had bartered for a black cloak and it billowed around her like a shadow even in the mornings and days.

She was so patient like her father before her, it scared the people on the boat she was. She had this determined look on her face like she had seen something she did not like. As soon as the boat ported she departed from the ship with Eirik in tow. The light saber by her side. She strolled through the streets letting her fingers feel the air about them like she was playing a harp.

“This might be a tad difficult to watch. I’m not sure all of who was turned here.” She pulled herself up onto a tall barrel and looked out over the crowded place. It was hard to even tell the races but she was the leader of the Draconis, the true leader. She took her blade out and held it up. “I CALL YOU.” She yelled it.

The master magic that was passed down in her blood was easily so visible in the air like blood trails. There were a few in front of her. They were faces she had never seen. They were in rags and it broke her heart. “Lady Aaryona?!” There were a few who did remember her. “YOU LIVE!”

“Yes, I live. I need Lilith at once.”

“Who is she? What we’re just going to listen to her? Lilith is the leader now.” Obviously, a young one as they spat at her.

“Wouldn’t do that if I were you, lad.”

Aaryona tilted her head. “Bow,” she snapped her fingers at the young vampire and the man snapped at the waist in a scream. “Lilith might have turned you. She might have lead in my stead but do not ever disrespect me. I’ve killed elders and ancients to show my power. You are but a fly, remember that.” Aaryona got down off her barrel. “I did not think I would have to prove my powers again.” She met the man with a hug.

“New blood, new reasoning. The vampires here are vicious enough. Lilith is attempting to get us chattle to feed on but the ruling house we’re dealing with isn’t the greatest.” 

Aaryona scoffed a bit. “Let me guess your magic is down?” The vampire nodded a bit at her. “Eirik feel like roughing up a vampire house?” She put her hand on her hip.

He had no idea what the hell Aaryona was seeking by casting magic despite her current status, but Eirik wasn’t amused by no means. Why in the world did she challenge her limitations and more so, his patience? The wolf had been downright worried over her well being though he was able to recover enough from drawing too much attention towards his behavior. His temper ceased for the time being but her answer did little to satisfy him. Not only that, but it also made him swear beneath his breath. “Draconis or not, you can not lead a clan if you are dead”, he frowned and shook his head.

He calmed down once more and listened to her confirmation, he acknowledged the place where she sensed Lilith. Eirik had heard of Kurayo in passing a few times, but had never been there himself. It seemed fairly dangerous but she was determined to head there, and as such Eirik would follow her. “Wherever you go, I will go”, he spoke without hesitation in his voice. She was to lead the way before he could even take his own first step, Aaryona returned and without warning kissed him. He stood there, confused about what transpired just then, but he came to assume that it was because of his promise to help her. “You’re…welcomed…” He nodded with a smile before heading along with her.

The journey was not an easy nor short one as they sailed to the island, but he was ever on the look for her, to make sure nothing happened to the Draconis leader before they hit land. She didn’t seem very comfortable and he did everything in his power to try and ease her throughout the trip. Once they made it, little time was wasted before the two set out for the town. Aaryona seemed as though she knew where to head, and Eirik trailed alongside her, keeping a weary eye in case they were met with anyone that didn’t wish for her presence here. There wasn’t too much to worry about, he found out as they made it to the heart of the city before she drew attention upon herself and soon they were surrounded by vampires. Some seemed to know of her and others didn’t, all the while he stood in the background with crossed arms as he watched one of them get punished for speaking boldly against her. Eirik didn’t say or do anything against it, it was her people after all. His own concern was to look after her. The situation was squashed soon enough anyway and he turned his attention to her with fearless eyes. Apparently they needed to teach some more vampires some lessons, it was something that he could get behind. “Just lead me to them.”

Aaryona knew that she was going to be scolded for the way she handled the young one. There was a feeling deep down in her bones as she moved with him. Her eyes were laid on them. “Know that I had to.” She spoke to the little one she had forced. “For the next part that comes will need that sort of thing.” Maybe she was showing him that she was the true leader. The man stared at her sort of at a loss for why she had apologized. Vampires hardly admitted when they were wrong and in a way Aaryona had. 

“What’s been going on here anyways? You lot look terrible,” Aaryona moved closer to Eirik as if it comforted her but still her mind and eyes were on her lot that had shown up.

“Well when we got here we were a pile of a mess. Daylight and everything, a lot of us died. Lilith built up our ranks and we heard about this place. When we got here it was a mistake I wish we could take back. We would have been better off in other places recovering. This house that we’re under is a crock of shit and everyone knows it. The leader Levas, he has been making Lilith do some awful stuff in order to even get us proper food and shelter.”

Aaryona stopped and turned to him. “First off, Lilith isn’t being forced not in the way you would think. She’s doing it for you. This isn’t the first time she’s done things like this. Unlike you she earned her daylight walking skill a long time ago so she didn’t need to come here but she was waiting for me. She must have thought I would find out about this place eventually. I’ll take care of this Levas guy.”

The vampires that didn’t know her were echoing their worry and she waved her hand. “My Rosenite blood is good for this kind of stuff. I use to be able to make my father on par once my skills got good enough. My mother, though? That’s a different beast. She use to stand in the kitchen making lunch while I got the shit kicked out of me by her magic plants. My parents ended up separating because the power struggle in their marriage was too much.” She looked up to Eirik and chuckled. “They couldn’t stand each other anymore. Two titans pretty much and this was before, in my land, that my mother ascended. From what I gathered she just always has been here. Which is odd to me. My siblings must be pampered. I remember Nathaniel when I was real young telling me about how he had helped carry the wood that became our cabin in the woods. I suppose it was a different Angela altogether.”

They were lead to a dark manor in what appeared to be a vampire quarter. She knocked on the door only to be greeted with a brooding man. “I’ve come for what’s mine. I do believe Lilith Draconis is here.”

The man stared at her for a moment before leading the party in. Aaryona pushed her red hair back and when her eyes finally met the red ones of Lilith, relief filled the room. Though Lilith was dressed like a whore. It pained Aaryona to see it. “Aaryona! We didn’t know if you had made it!”

“Mother had me on the other continent. Appears Father threw me in the right direction to be caught by her.”

The man behind Lilith was grinding his teeth. “Who is this?” He went to go grab Lilith and Aaryona was quick on the draw to grab Lux and point it at his neck. The holy magic radiating off the blade was making him flinch. 

“Don’t even touch her. You see, I’ve heard things. Pretty little stories about a man spitting on what is mine. You don’t hear that every day. In her reigning days, Lilith would have ripped you apart. You are what? 600? 800?”

“Child I am 974.” He spat at her.

Aaryona tilted her sword and smiled. “If Lilith had her magic… She would blow you sky high. She is an ancient compared to you. The battles she has been through would terrify you.” Aaryona leaned in. “You’ll continue to give us lodgings and the food required but I don’t think this will be continued.” She waved her hand at Lilith who was nodding. 

The man was furious now and it was something that she was familiar with when it came to vampires that didn’t know their place. He was acting like Nathaniel as he lunged at her. “Kill them all.” The order had been given by Levas but that had been Aaryona’s intent after all. In a place like this, there had to be rules and she didn’t know them so she would play defense or what it would appear.

“You heard them,” She chuckled towards Eirik. “Lilith protect the young ones.” She came over and wedged her wrist in the vampire’s mouth. “Use my blood as a catalyst. You should be fine after that.” Levas charged the young red head who easily parried him off and stared him down. “I’ve trained with a vampire ten times the man you are. You are no leader.” She stabbed him with the light blade after pinning him. He was no match for the holy magic the blade had. “Empty the house looks like we’ve found home.”

She had never seen that bloodthirsty look in Lilith's eyes like that before as magic erupted into the room from the vampiress. "I can only give my blood to Lilith at the moment. So we need to make this quick."

Eirik knew not why Lilith hadn’t told the clan about Aaryona, perhaps there hadn’t been enough time in-between them arriving her and their current situation. Regardless to the ordeal, it should have been brought up to avoid her need to show them who was in the charge. In-fighting would bring nothing but devastation to both leadership and the rest of the clan. Apparently another vampire clan imposed its might upon hers, and had taken in her consultant for his own private matters.

Letting out a long, drawn out sigh, he was itching for battle. All these politics bored him to death and weren’t a factor in his uprising nor his former status. What mattered was that might was right and the strong ruled over the weak. For this time, her clan had been weak and other strong. It was time to rectify that for her sake. After all, Eirik had swore that he would be her blade of destruction and shield of protection, and this wouldn’t change that matter.

She lead the way to a manor where their quarry resided, and he remained steady fast, his hands gripping and tightening around the hilt of his blades. On her order, he would be prepared to unleash carnage upon them. They entered to find the one she sought out, but also the one that held her prisoner here too. His eyes narrowed darkly at him as Aaryona armed herself and encountered him. Standing close by, he searched for any more of the opposition that might have been lurking around.

When the order finally came out, the wolf nodded and unsheathed his swords and headed off to where he spotted an incoming group coming from the hall east of them. The life of luxury made them weak and easily cut down by him, their blood staining the lovely floor they stood on. He had hoped for better opponents as they continued to pour onto the main hall, but he was quick to end them before they could even reach Aaryona and Lilith. Any stragglers that he missed would have been easy for them to take out while he dealt with the rest. Without a leader, they were no better than flys. 

Aaryona watched with an interested eye at how much blood shed her friend brought with him. While she was able to strike some down, it was Eirik who made himself most known. She took a heavy sigh of relief as they ran the peasants out of their house and single-handedly destroyed a small clan. At the end of her sword, she pressed it down into the chest cavity of the head family member of the Levas. The vampire sparked into flames and finally she sheathed her sword.

When all things were done she sent Lilith to make sure all of the young ones were fine. Aaryona went in another direction. She found Eirik and she gently wrapped her arm around his. A chuckle left her lips as it truly looked odd with a man of his size having someone like her clinging to him. “Thank you for what you did for my family today.”

There was a sad look on her face, though. Something was a miss and she couldn’t put her finger on it. At least that was until Lilith finally came over. “You know you don’t have to hover over us now. Even I know you get restless when sitting still for too long.” It was just a reminder that Aaryona did not need to sit still. A heavy sigh of relief left her lips. 

“I needed to make sure you all were alright.”

“Please, we were fine. No harm done, at least not physically. Our prides were damaged, though. We need to lay low for a while and let the leaders of the city look over the incident most likely. I imagine it wasn’t completely smiled upon what just happened. If I were you, I would figure out the lands. I doubt you’ll want to stay in Kurayo with the way it’s run.”

“It’s not very healthy for us to stay here. I  mean, we aren’t restricted by the sun here but the people on the other hand… they are the problems. We will probably try to reestablish a city elsewhere. For now, we need the funds, the people, and a little more knowledge of Revaliir.” Lilith nodded to the young queen and smiled up at Eirik before leaving them.

She took a heavy sigh again. “I’m sorry for the way I acted earlier, again. I’ve been stressed since we arrived and I acted harshly. It wasn’t fair to them.” She put her forehead against his bare arm and took a heavy sigh once more. She was doing that a lot lately. “I need a bath… or something to relax me. I swear my hair is going to fall out if I don’t stop over thinking all of this. I just hope this works out for the time being.” Her tired eyes looked up at Eirik. She was tired now because she had room to breathe and the adrenaline was wearing off.

“My Lady? There is a room upstairs that you and  your friend can rest in.” A more petite vampire had spoken up now after they finished clearing out the rooms. “No blood in it and the bed is freshly made.”

Aaryona was about to protest that Eirik didn’t need to go with her when she just gave in. “Come on, I suppose.” She rubbed her red curls in frustration as they left the gathering group. They were all talking about their next move. The plan that Aaryona had was already being spread like wildfire. 

She collapsed on the bed as soon as she saw it and looked up at Eirik. “I don’t know if my father ever had to deal with half of the things I’ve dealt with this early on. I wish he was here so I could ask him if tearing my hair out is appropriate. He would have yelled at me and told me to be more ladylike earlier. At least in that moment.” She groaned and put her face into the pillow. “It’s going to be hard starting from scratch. Before I had the catacombs of the guild my uncle ran to build a city in… and now I know nothing about the world we live in.” She rolled over and stared up at Eirik. “I’m lost again.” She chuckled softly.
“All I’ve got… is you and that small clan downstairs.” She lightly blushed as she put him before the others but the color went away as she stared out towards the window. “We’ll stay here for a while… but I think our next objective is finding a place that we can call home for real. Build a city away from this one or at least a home. Someplace where we don’t really have to worry about the boot of another.”

Battle was his life, he had been fighting since he was a pup. At first, it was merely play fighting with the other children, both in their human guises and in their wolven forms. The playing ceased as they grew and the brawls got progressively tougher with participates went back to their homes with bruises and cuts. Nearing adulthood, blood wasn’t really uncommon and by then they were all used to it as they reach the age of becoming true warriors and hunters. Eirik thrived in this setting as he cut down their foes; this was his art and he did so exceptionally. Still he was disappointed that it had been so easy though his real reason for fighting wasn’t to prove himself better than them. As he looked back to Aaryona and her clan, he was reminded that he was fighting for them.

By the end of it, most of the vampires had been either slaughtered or the few lucky ones were able to escape with their tails between their legs. Resheathing his blades, Eirik turned as the redhead came over to him and offered her thanks towards his actions. “Just doing as I promised you and yours that I would”, he responded humbly. It was his oath to her and he was one that kept his word no matter what. He wasn’t about to let any harm come before them or her if he could help it. Lilith then came over and the two women talked about the what was to come after this. “She’s right”, he huffed, agreeing with the elder, “It would be unwise to remain here too long. Those that rule the island will likely try and look for us.” While Eirik didn’t mind the fought of battle, going against possible an army would not be suited well for the ragtag group. Sometimes retreat was a wise choice to be made. They would have to figure how to obtain all that they need before departing though.    

He glanced down to Aaryona and patted her slender hand, “The life of a leader is hard and has to bear more than most realize. Your people will be alright. You did what you thought you had to do at the time.” He wasn’t going to blame her for what happened back then since she was stressed and her right to rule had been challenged. “You need not be hard on yourself.”

The wolf fell silent once they were told of a room they could rest in during their stay. While It didn’t bother him any, it seemed that Aaryona had if for a brief moment but refrained. The two went upstairs and into the now vacant room where he went towards the window first that oversaw parts of the city. He was wondering about how this city ran and what would happen soon enough. Perhaps the last of this clan they ran out were telling the officials now? Did they get preyed upon by the other predators out there? His concentration broke once she spoke up and he went back to the bed to sit on top of it and dropped his weapons onto the floor. “You will thieve, you had in the wilderness and you will here and everywhere else. You are stronger than you believe you are. I know how it is to start all over again; you are right that it won’t be easy. But life hardly ever is for most of us, but it is what makes us strong.” He lightly pounded his fist against his chest. “Like I said, I will remain with you as long as you want. That is my purpose now. Where you go, I will go.” He got up and headed for the door. “I will return shortly, I need to wash the blood off” There was a bathing room where he brought up heated water to the tub, undressed and soon fell into it. He felt much cleaner as the blood and grime fell off his person. He remained there for quite a while before coming out and took to a fresh set of looser clothes he had with him. That and his appearance made him look more like someone that belonged to the cities than the wilds as he returned to the room.

Aary’s brown eyes stared up at him as he fell onto the bed. She seemed so exhausted but still, she pulled herself up to sit next to him. He was more like a looming shadow over her and it in a way was comforting. She was almost reluctant to let him go clean up but she stopped herself. Clinging didn’t do anything for her image and it looked rather bad in her eyes. Still, though a piece of her was quite curious. She found herself in a loss of thought and time slipped away.

When she finally did snap to, she began to change her clothes. The tattered dress fell to the floor and she began to rummage about the room looking for anything that could fit her slender form. Pulling her red curls off her shoulders she bunched it up and tied it up. She wasn’t nearly as dirty as Eirik had been but the clothes were another thing that seemed to bother her. Shifting through the dressers she let out an agitated sigh.

The time loss was lost on her as she looked up at Eirik as he came in. If she wasn’t so tired she would have probably hit herself behind the tattered remains he had found her in. “There’s nothing that fits me here.” She sounded tired but behind Eirik a light tap on his shoulder as Lilith moved around him. If Aaryona was small to Eirik than Lilith would be tiny. 

“You are about my size at least top wise.” The elder vampire came in and like a mother started to dress Aaryona. “Thank you Eirik for bringing her here. I’m surprised that Angela didn’t give her better clothing. When I threw her in the void, I honestly expected her to be dressed better than I.” Aaryona rolled her eyes. Lilith sat the woman down and put a tunic over her and threw a pair of pants at her. “Not the best but you can get more clothes out in the town.”

“Will they come after us?” Aaryona sounded tired as she continued her role.

“Let me worry about that. I have magic now and I am capable of keeping the clan safe until we can leave.” Lilith kissed the top of the girl’s head and sighed. “Your father would have burned down the entire estate and probably stuck one in a sun pit.”

“Really?” Aaryona’s eyes got wide and Lilith laughed as she shook the head. “Oh… you are lying to me.” Lilith looked up at Eirik and winked softly.

“You need sleep. I would say get some rest you two and in the coming days we can go through where we can go through what the next options are. Most likely maps will get involved.”

Aaryona groaned and Lilith rolled her eyes. “Or, Eirik and I can go and find a suitable spot.”

“That works better than maps but if that is what you want to do… Then you can do it. It will take time for us to get the resources and I do know how you hate to sit still.” Lilith waved her hand as if she didn’t expect Aaryona to do more than her fair share. Walking out Lilith looked up at Eirik. “Take care of our wayward queen.” A soft smile came to her face as she left.

Even the tunic that Lilith had brought seemed very loose on the woman. She was pulling at the fabric. Soon though Aaryona reached out and grabbed him. Tugging at him gently she pulled him down to the bed and she curled up on him. “Sorry about that. I feel like being a tad rebellious. They’re safe and looking on maps won’t do a damn thing. Nothing tells more about a place than actually going there.” She reached up and for a second cupped his face with her small hand. There was a realization that it might be weird and she dropped the hand after a while. “Sorry, I know I’ve been awfully weird about things… like the kiss in the woods. Now in here too.”

As he was bathing, Eirik thought about the sudden change in his life. It hadn’t dawn on him before until he finally had a chance to settle down and relax. He had been a loner since he was thrown out from his tribe and that lasted for a while until he found Aaryona back in the plains. She had changed his life over the course of a few weeks, and he could only thank her for giving him a purpose by fulfilling it and obliging by his oath to her. There were other things that came over his mind, some that were not as innocent but he shook himself of them and finished his bath.

As he came back fully dressed, he opened the door expecting her to be asleep or still thinking about her next move but lo and behold, neither were the case. In fact it took him a few second to fully understand the scene before him now as his eyes latched onto her nude form. It hadn’t been his intention to have walked in on her like that, but his eyes didn’t lie. He looked on with a wolven hunger stirring in him the long he watched her. While most civilized men would have turned or shied away from such a sight, he did not. “That’s a shame, but I think you look much better that way”, he said half jokingly, but there was an edge of seriousness in his tone before Lilith arrived and he stepped to the side to allow her inside. While she helped Aaryona dress, he lingered around the doorframe still. “It was my oath to her to see her to her family and her clan. I wasn’t going to leave until then but she insisted that I stay on. It will be my duty to oversee and protect her.” He scratched at his still wet mane as and laughed a little about her coming back likely dressed like an aristocrat. That surely wouldn’t have been helpful for her during their journey; hell even the dress she was in when they met hadn’t done her any justice out there until she adjusted it.

If they were to venture out into the town for supplies and wears, then he would make sure that no one would lay a finger upon her head, lest they’d be a digit short. But for now, they had to rest weary bones and minds and then continue onward. Lilith was wise which spoke volumes of her years as she laid out a plan to help get the clan one step further into safety. “I will”, he nodded to the elder as she made her leave. He swore on his life to do that. He closed the door and felt himself pulled by the redhead into the bed where both of them soon laid and she fell onto him while his hands rested behind his head. “That is true, but it doesn’t hurt to prepared just in case”, he sighed as he felt her warm body against his own. The image of her from earlier was still fresh in his mind. His eyes trailed down to her her as it caressed his face and then to her.  She apologized for her actions before and now but he was conflicted on whether or not she should have anything to apologize to. After a while of thought, he turned her and tilted his head. “Perhaps it was all done by instinct. I have no idea why you had done it, but you don’t need to apologize. It’s not like I had been bothered by anything you have done.” One hand reached to her face, slipping beneath her chin. It was a strange sight since he could have likely hurt her with ease with it, yet it was surprising gentle despite the type of person he was. For the first time since they traveled together, his eyes dropped. Perhaps it is improper for us to step over a boundary. If it is your wish to not to, then I will oblige by it and remain your protector and just that. It seemed obvious that she wasn’t the only one that was confused by all this. The wolf was unsure about any of this and didn’t wish to overstep himself or this would be a complex relationship with his mistress.

Regardless, he left her with a parting gift- he moved in and returned the kiss that she had gave him back in that jungle. He lingered for a few moments before he started to turn to get off the bed, his objective was to get to the door and leave her be.  

The situation was truly escalating with Eirik. While Aaryona was confused it looked like she had confused him as well. “True, we can look at maps in the morning I suppose.” She had been wrapped around him, at least in the beginning for his warmth. “That’s the thing about it, though. Without words, I wouldn’t know if I had or not. That’s why I apologized just in case.” She smiled at him. It was so odd with how large he was compared to her, at least muscle wise. The way he gently cradled her face.  “Improper is subjective at best.” A chuckle left her lips. 

When he kissed her she was rather shocked but at the same time, it was something she had anticipated from their conversation. She kissed him back and she could feel the force he could have had with her. She said nothing else because there were things on her mind but once he started to get up Aaryona grabbed his hand. “I wasn’t done just thinking. You don’t have to just be my protector. I’ve been confused for a while now. However, our time hasn’t gone unnoticed. These last few weeks even in a panic have been wonderful compared to my last few years. I’ve been awfully lonely and you’ve fixed that. I want you to keep fixing that.” She pulled him back down with a light tug. 

“We’ve both been soul searching in a way. Finding us and each other on the way. I don’t want to be alone anymore and if you are here than I am not. It won’t be complicated at all. Hell, if we were to ignore the things we feel… I feel like that would be more distracting than anything we could do with each other.” She gave him a smile and pushed his wet hair back more with her fingertips. “It’s been a while since someone looked at me the way you did earlier.” She kissed him again a bit longer than they had before. Of course, her problem had always been that she was behind her mother. No one thought twice about looking at her with Angela around.

This was different and while she had been jealous of her mother in the past, this time she got what she wanted. “Stay here with me.” She pulled him down even more until he was over her. She offered a smile and pulled him even further until she could kiss him again. “However, if it makes you uncomfortable you could always leave. I’m not going to force you to stay.”

Her words were strange yet they also sounded fitting for their situation. It was like they were dancing around a bed of nails with one another, trying to not have their feet met with the sharp tips yet trying to dance with one another, inching slowly closer but then quickly back away. He felt like it was pure instinct that she had responded to him with the kiss previously and how she took to him and it felt the same way when he kissed her. As he went with hit, he was just a bit surprised that she returned it though he figured that once again her actions came before her thoughts and they embraced the moment. Still, it had bothered him enough to pull away and to allow her time to think before something happened between them that was hasty, but as he was climbing off the bed, he felt her hand and he instantly stopped. He turned to her with those strong ivy eyes, only this time they looked softer than before. The wall that once been sturdy and fortified he had always carried in their time was crumbling, exposing the brutal man for the man he was beneath the exterior. It had only happened once before with his lost love. His mouth became dry with each word she spoke; it wasn’t strange to him how she felt since he had been the same way. They had just been handling it differently but the pain was there. Pain, regret, sorrow- all were evident between them over time. It would have been the right thing for him to leave all this be, to not cross the line that they were slipping towards, yet he couldn’t leave well enough alone. He didn’t want to leave it like this. Was she saying this because he was there and she needed someone? Was it that she wanted him to be the one with her? He was unsure but he felt like the latter was the more plausible reason. Either way, he wasn’t going to leave and when she tug at him to come back, he didn’t hesitate to fall back onto the bed.

Reason be damned, she was right. Even if they weren’t to act on their feelings, it would likely be more awkward to keep dancing around the nails. The wolf was lusting beast, but it wasn’t simply that when it came to Aaryona. Of course she was a beautiful woman and there were private thoughts he held that would have been inappropriate to think about, let alone undergo. But he needed much more than that. He needed a mate, a strong and loyal one. While she may have not been wolven in blood or body, she seemed as such in heart. Nay, like his nickname for her, she was much more like a fox.

Again his head tilted and was curious. “It isn’t truly that hard. You are a natural beauty, kis róka. I see no reason for others not to see you like that.” She would know that he was brutally honest about how he thought, not afraid to voice his opinion. His feelings about her, on the other hand, was much harder to speak of, but he wasn’t alone in that. But if anything, she seemed more braver there than he had. Had the situation not been so serious, then he would have found humor at the irony. Before he could tell her that he was going to stay, she pulled him on top of her, his battle tested body against her supple and lithe form. Had she been something more fragile than her race, then he would have crushed her likely, though even with that in mind he kept much of his weight off her by putting it onto his knees and elbows. He looked into her eyes deeply before her lips embraced his again and he followed suit. His blood was heated and his muscles tensed up as he engulfed in her scent. The kiss was broken and he looked onto her with slight dismay. What sort of fool would walk away from a woman like her if they had the chance to be with her? Even he wasn’t that foolish and he placed his forehead onto hers and fell silent for a bit. “…I’m not…going…anywhere…” Closing his eyes, his breathing became more audible, his chest heaving with each breath as he opened his eyes again and threw caution to the wind now and locked his lips with her once more, more passionate this time than any other. As if he would never see her again. Eirik moved down from her lips to her neck leaving no inch of her sunkissed skin untouched and untended. He kissed down to her chest, engulfing more of her smell into his memory before he pulled away momentarily to pull his shirt off and expose his strong torso and fell back onto her, bring her back into a deep kiss. Had anyone walked in, he would have likely wanted to rip their heads off, or more so at least threaten to do so at this moment. But it faded from his mind as it fell into a fog of desire and passion as clothes were removed between the two of them, the details of who removed what were lost to him as they lost themselves in that moment and the long ones that came afterwards.

[time skip]

Time was irrelevant in their room, but he felt as though at least half the day was gone by the time they were through. Had anyone wanted to disturb them, the sounds that came from there were likely to keep them from knocking on the door or coming in and simply rush off and leave them be. The bed itself, he was assure that it was going to break at some point. As a matter of fact, as his exhausted eyes looked wearily onto the rest of the room, he could see that they had caused a mess that a hurricane would be jealous of. He had been in rough fights and good battles before, yet his time with Aaryona here was enough to tire him out in a way that they could not. His body felt heavy but oddly pleasant too. He looked onto her and smiled before he couldn’t help but to laugh. “Suppose it was a good thing that this was someone else’s room.” He could still taste her skin on his tongue, her smell still fresh in his nose. The lust hadn’t been satisfied just yet, despite the numerous times they made love. The mind was willing but the body was not, at least for the time being. “You feeling alright?”, he asked, reeling his head back and tried to catch his breathing.            

[Gmoding permission granted from Aaryona and is given to her for Eirik as well.]