[Flashback] Silk and Skin (Solo)

[Nashira]

Spring 40, 461 AV There was little light to work by. Little coming in through the window, hung slightly ajar. Tendrils permeating the gossamer shades which had been drawn; fabric which fluttered silently in the wind swept up by the sea. Like the hand of a ghost reaching for the living; she could hear the spray. The inevitable crashing of waves across the rocky shoreline, if only she strained to listen. But it was not that which her senses sought, not that which she kept her eyes on as her fingers kneaded the silk held beneath them, between them. The soft red folds weaving their way through her sparkling flesh as her eyes glimmered with the fading rays. It was nearly time. Any tick of the bell now could signal the end. Those final moments in which she had to complete everything; do her final touches. It caused the Ethaefal to bite her bottom lip as she twisted the fabric, bringing it over on itself, so it ran cleanly over the rise of the down pillows she shared with him. Hopefully he likes it, she thought, as she walked around the bed, making sure the sheets were draped evenly over the sides. Running her hands over the silk not only to feel how smooth it was, but to flatten out the lines so everything seemed... perfect. When she was finished, Nashira stepped back, pulling her teeth off her plump lower lip, she sighed. "This should do," she thought, as she eyed the three candles she had placed on the bedside table. Each a deep cream, of varying sizes so they had a sort of leveling effect. She had lit them a few chimes ago, and now wisps of smoke could clearly be seen hovering over, as the pale yellow light danced merrily against darkening wick. Wax cascading down the sides, pooling at the base; molten lava, simmering to a hardened cool. "Yes, Caleb should like this," she whispered as her amber colored eyes danced over everything and she backed away. Crossing the threshold into the kitchen and taking a seat so as to wait for a time. It proved to be a difficult task for her, in that she could find little more to do than twiddle her thumbs, or run her fingers through her long blonde hair, tearing apart the knots as her hands deftly navigated around her horns. Her heart hammering the entire time, her breath catching in her throat, courtesy more of her own nerves than the moisture that clung to the air. Threatening the city with an impending bout of rain. It felt like an eternity before she heard the knock. A soft rapping at the door. He always knocked before he entered now, just to be sure she was decent. If she said nothing he could enter, and if she spoke, he could not. It was for this reason Nashira said nothing, but as silently as she could, scooted her seat back, and then tip-toed to their bed. There she could crawl onto it, like a mountain lion would stalk its prey. There she could ease herself onto her right side, and lie against the pillows. There she could wait for him; expectantly. The anticipation was killing her.

[Nashira]

A single finger lazily circled the fabric scrunched beneath her waist as she waited. Her eyes chasing the shadowed nail as she listened to the front door creaking, swinging back. Presenting a gaping maw which Caleb readily entered before kicking off his shoes and releasing a rather deep sign. "Welcome home Caleb," Nashira called from her resting place as he began to cross the kitchen, walking so heavily on his heels that the floorboards creaked uneasily beneath his weight. "You sound tired," she wore on, as her finger circled the fabric all the more rapidly, hungrily, as though it too, could sense him drawing near. The single thing she wished to taste; to touch. "Why don't you come to bed? You need to relax. Especially after a long day out at sea." Hypnotic djed wove itself into her words; causing them to seem softer, more alluring. If only he had drawn closer, he could sense it gnawing at the edges of his faculties, but he was still too far away. Just out of her reach. As he crossed the threshold into the room they shared, his shadow crawling across the boards, she looked up. Her eyes sultry, molten amber. Her finger stopped pacing as their eyes caught one another. Come to bed. You need to relax. Rest. For a few breaths, Caleb simply stood there, staring. Taking in the sight of her supple curves, scantily concealed by cotton cloth, draped artfully over her form in rippling folds. A dress which seemed to have been cut from larger scain of fabric and sewn up only with her in mind. Nashira's heart caught in her throat, for in her mind, she had him now. After those few beats, he came forward, lowering himself into the bed next to her. "I just want to go to bed Nashira," he whispered, his voice gruff, almost hoarse, as though he had been doing much shouting during the course of the day, and it was simply beginning to ware out. As soon as the words had left his lips, Caleb turned from her, offering only his back. Dismayed, the Ethaefal's face fell as her fingers unfurled and crawled along the length of silk fabric, up the side of his back and onto his shoulder. There it came to a rest, and offered a soft squeeze of both comfort and reassurance. She could feel her nails biting his skin as she leaned up a little, trying to gaze into the shadows; read his features. "Was it really so bad out there today Caleb?" Nashira asked him. "The skies have been so clear, and here the waves could scarcely be heard over the sound of endless household chores seeking completion. Surely the boat didn't rock so much, and the sea found you within favor today." Caleb merely grunted in response, causing the Ethaefal to drag her hand down a little onto the blades, before circling it back up, producing a light heat between them. Her fingers prodding for more information; waiting for something that never came. "You can share the story Caleb." Again, he said nothing. Relax, her mind urged. Just enough to speak. At the very least. Let your heart calm. Your mind. Relax. Seek serenity. Tranquility. "The sea was the same as it always is," Caleb responded after a time. Causing Nashira to scoot a little closer, narrowing the distance between their two bodies. "A cold, relentless bitch you simply cannot get enough of. One that draws you in with her beauty, with those times she is at peace, and then rips you apart as soon as your ship seeks harbor at the improper port. Or fishes too deeply, reeling in too much of her soul." Nashira said nothing, although her fingers dug all the more deeply now into his skin. More of a scratch than anything else. Her hips rocked then, matching the beat of the waves she heard outside. She was inching closer now. Only a few centimeters hung between. Relax, the magic insisted. Submit.

[Nashira]

Nashira could feel him staving off a piece of himself. His muscles coiling, bunching unpleasantly beneath his skin. He no longer felt quite as pleasant to her touch, causing her to worry. "Are you sure you don't want to wind down a little before going to bed?" she asked. "It won't do you any good letting the feelings fester. It's like leaving an open wound untreated," she insisted as she leaned in a little closer, her lips coming up behind his neck. She could feel her breath ramming into him, only to furl and turn back in on itself; tickling her cheeks as though it were Caleb's ethereal hands working on her. The sensation made her heart skip a few beats; her skin tingle. It only aggravated everything she felt, causing her to dive head first into her endeavors. Recklessly. "We don't have to talk." You don't have to say anything. You can be quiet. "We can go outside and watch the sun set; peer up at the stars. They all shine so brightly. They're so beautiful this time of year..." The Ethaefal's eyes sparkled as though she had caught them all. As though she had caught him. "Not tonight Nashira," Caleb whispered. "Maybe tomorrow." She could feel his muscles rippling beneath his flesh as he readjusted himself. Trying to find the most comfortable position as she lay down his head. The Ethaefal only watched the subtle shifting of his silhouette, her eyes beginning to lose their vibrancy. A hint of their life, Syna's shimmer. She was growing aggravated now that her pupils dilated. Aggravated now that nothing seemed to be working; that her magic seemed to be failing her. Even in this. Was she doing it wrong? Was she not trying hard enough? Or could it be something else her heart and her mind had not yet considered? That he simply was tired, or simply, disinterested in what she had in mind? The night she had envisioned throughout the course of the day, and played over and over again as though it were little more than a fond childhood memory. "But Caleb," Nashira said softly, the ends of the words trembling as much as her lower lip threatened to. "You never want to see the stars. You never want to watch the sun set. To have to wait until morning when it rises." Her face fell as her hand drew down his back. Barely touching now; brushing. Does he loathe me for changing? Does he hate me during the time the sun sets? Not my mind, for that hardly metamorphoses into anything else, but my body? Is it unappealing to him? There was a pause as she considered. No, he has looked, and he has seen. There has been no change yet. But he knows, yes of course he knows, that it is coming, soon enough. Looming on the horizon. Again there was a pause as a single tear trickled down her her skin. Accentuating the glitter that seemed to have been rubbed in. Of course he hates it. To him, that form is of a monster, it cannot possibly match the woman he sees by day. But even that... how obscure. A horned lady; like a beast. A beautiful, temptress of a beast. You must try harder, her mind whispered. To make him see. To make him love you. Nashira's finger danced over his lower back. "Let us go Caleb. Just this once. Just for tonight. Let the stars shower us with their light. Let the sun's rays drag over us before they're swept away." She paused then, allowing each word, laced with magic, to settle over him. Like the dark blanket of night was settling over the sky outside their window. Her lips pressed together, determined, as her finger circled back up. "You need a chance to meditate. To enjoy the simple things in life. To relax." I want you to relax... Still, it wasn't enough. Still, his muscles bunched. "No Nashira," Caleb said, his voice gravel being raked together. Clicking unpleasantly. "You heard what was said. Perhaps tomorrow, and not a minute before."

[Nashira]

With that, his shoulders shifted, turning him even further away from her. The movement was not lost on Nashira, the subtle rise and fall of his bones. "If that is what you wish Caleb, we don't have to go out tonight," she whispered. "It would be nice to go out tomorrow though. Surely the changing of the guard will be just as aesthetically satisfying then," she added through another set of tears. She felt almost resentful then, in that he had rejected her once more, nearly in full. It seemed to her, in that moment, that whatever she did wasn't enough. She could never get everything just right, so that it went the way she wanted, and yet, despite all of this, she was unwilling to relent. She was not yet ready to give up hope. Even so, her hand fell from Caleb's back, breaking their connection. It settled uneasily on the bed between them. Fingers splayed against silk, only a few shades off. Relax. Let me in. I wish to help. "We could still talk now, couldn't we Caleb?" she asked. "You just seem so... unhappy. And there's no need to be. When there are those willing to listen to your plight, and do their best to rid you of it." "Not tonight Nashira," Caleb growled. "For the last time, not tonight. I'm tired." They kept on falling, an endless rain. "Alright," she mouthed through it all. She wouldn't fight anymore. She couldn't fight it anymore. She didn't know how. Just relax. Let yourself smile. Let yourself be happy. Of calm mind. Let the good things flow within your heart. Cast out the bad. Like the sailor you are, ridding the riggings of coiled rope; woven into nets larger than event he tallest of your mates. Let yourself grow calm, so you may sleep easily tonight. Arise fresh tomorrow. With the sun. With that, Nashira's hand came up the length of his back, onto his shoulder, before crawling over the side. Her arm curled over his body, cascading over his front as her own form rolled in. Closing the distance between them; forcing their skin to brush, and the heat between them to rise. She could feel him stiffening then. More than before. More than when she only held a hand to his flesh and bone. He doesn't like it, her mind kept on whispering. But it wasn't enough to make her pull away, even after she had reverted to a more worldly form. She was too desperate for him to. And although she scarcely liked it, seeing as Caleb was unable, she couldn't draw away. Nashira wanted him; and she wanted those feelings to be reciprocated. Sighing, her forehead fell against the place between his shoulder blades. "I'll try again tomorrow," she whispered. "Try harder, maybe then it will be easier for you to like me."

[Arcane]

Rewards and Treasure! Experience Points +3 Seduction +2 Persuasion +1 Hypnotism Lores Caleb's Coldness Miscellaneous n/a Comments Grading these kind of emotional threads is a first for me, so I'm unsure as to what lores to award. In any case, the detailed imagery and eloquent writing was excellent here. Great job; I hope Nashira succeeds on her next try!