[The Bronze Woods]A New Sensation (Razkar)

[Edreina]

Well Edreina had certainly planned upon making a remark in favor of finding somewhere to wash off; she felt filthy just from the stench of the creature clinging to her skin. That was, of course, until the forest growled at them.

At least that was what it sounded like to Edreina. It was a low, angry roaring that went on for nearly a chime before fading away into nothingness. Eyes wide, Edreina turned to Razkar, but found no explanation in his black eyes. Was the forest angry with them? Was Caihya? Or was there some great beast in the forest with them? After a tick, Edreina was hit with an oddly familiar scent: water.

Why was she smelling water? There was no storm in the air, and it was not salty like the Suvan would have been had they somehow wandered back towards the Sea. So, where had the scent come from? Edreina felt that, somehow, the scent of water and the roar were related, but... how? "C'mon! Let's go check it out!" Her bubbling curiosity escaped in her voice, in the way that she was quite literally bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet. With one hand, she grabbed her rucksak, threw it over her shoulder, and took off in the direction of the sound's origin as well as from where the scent of water had blown towards them.

The woman moved at a brisk walk, high stepping over various undergrowth, upsetting a variety of small, chittering animals as she clomped through the woods. Perhaps Razkar would be upset with her, perhaps he stayed behind to finish tending to the boar. Either way, it mattered not to the Svefra. She was on a mission. So, she walked. And walked. And as she walked, the woman was very aware of the scent of warm water getting stronger, the air getting thicker with moisture - or maybe that was just a bit of wishful thinking. A quarter of a bell passed, and Edreina found herself idly wondering how many miles she had traipsed across. Then again, land miles were different from sea-miles, to her. For all she knew, she could have been creating her own little game trail as she traveled in one large, endless circle.

But, eventually, a larger gap appeared in the trees ahead, Syna's rays dancing in between the trees like a woodland sprite of lore. With renewed vigor, the redhead dashed across the remaining expanse of woodland and rushed into Syna's warmth-

-only to be blinded by it for a few ticks as her eyes were forced to adjust from the dim green light of the woods. After blinking her blue eyes rapidly until finally her vision returned with clarity, Edreina's mouth fell open with a faint pop.

Stretched out before her, dominating the clearing, rising up from a patch of bare stone, was one of the most fascinating rock formations she had ever seen. Most obvious were the three uneven pillars that rose from the center of the bald head. Years of constant water flow had painted the stone yellow and green and a sunset orange, giving it an unearthly appearance, as if it was the masterpiece of some long forgotten god. The towers, she shortly realized, were geysers. Odd stone tubes that led to underground water and would occasionally spurt it forth into the air; she had been lucky to hear it, and would be even luckier to see it.

Almost reverently, the redhead removed her boots and socks - bare toes gripped stone better than those damn slick soles, in her opinion - and began carefully traversing the rounded, tiered stone pools that circled the geysers. Carefully because if caving had taught her one thing it was that clear, still water could be far deeper than appearances led one to believe. A few cautiously chosen steps later, she was at the geyser heads, marveling at how they towered over her. Gently, the redhead laid a pale hand upon the warm, smooth stone, blue eyes roaming over the foreign surface. It had the texture of stone that she found in caves, meaning that it was created in much the same way, by minerals that were deposited over endless years as water flowed through the earth below. The only difference was that in this case, the water was flowing towards the surface, propelled by some unknown force, instead of from the surface down into a cave.

The fact that these stones had stood the test of uncountable years humbled the comparatively ephemeral Svefra. With eyes oddly soft, Edreina turned to see if the Myrian had in fact followed her, one hand still upon the central geyser head. It was so beautiful that she could do naught but smile, even if she found herself to be alone.

The wonders of water never ceased to amaze her.

[Razkar]

And that's... sixteen.

Razkar placed the last cutlet of boar onto the camouflage sheet he'd laid out to one side, the best way to carry their spoils. He'd spent a few chimes rubbing the preserving herbs into it, just like the rest, knowing from experience how easy it was for the meat to spoil... especially in this heat.

Then he heard it, and like the Svefra, the Myrian's head jerked up like a deer hearing a twig snap. A low, rushing roar like some great beast awakened and yawning after a long sleep. He frowned minutely, muscles tensing a little and fingers itching for his blade... but it kept on... too steady to be an animal, almost like...

... water?

"C'mon! Let's go check it out!"

"Eh? Edri, we are not-"

Yeah, like that was going to even make a dent in her child-like exuberance. Razkar barely got the last word out before she was bounding off, shrubs and plants bobbing aside as her long legs strode through them, leaving the male behind.

And with the work. Wonderful.

Muttering to himself, the Myrian hurried his hands to their conclusion. He wrapped the chunks of meat in the sheeting, tied it off and stuffed the thing back into his rucksack. The arrows he'd used had been cut free, cleaned off and slid back into his quiver, he grabbed his bow, his dagger, gladius-

-and with one swipe, sent the boar tumbling back to the ground with a thump of dead flesh on dead leaves.

For a tick, Razkar stood before the decimated carcass. So much taken, but for good purpose. He understood the idea of hunting simply for the pleasure of it, and had done it himself from time to time... but the more he understood the nature and wonder of Caiyha, the more he felt a twinge of guilt whenever his thoughts lingered on those memories.

"My thanks to you, brother," he said quietly, with a respectful nod, "Now go back to the dirt, in the embrace of the Green Goddess, and find your peace."

Then he went running after that damned Svefra.

Who was not exactly difficult to track. The sounds of her feet tramping through the undergrowth could have been heard by a deaf man, and that bobbing mane of hair was even easier. Burdened by a few dozen pounds of meat, however, Razkar made a slower going of it, glaring after that oblivious, giggling shade that dipped and hid behind trees and shrubs like some...

Forest sprite, he thought with a smirk, remembering the stories his grandmother had told them as a boy, tricking and teasing travelers.

And all the while, the roaring grew louder. No longer some shapeless roll of almost-thunder, he could hear individual sounds buried in there, too. Splashes and impacts, even trickles, though the "trickles" were probably several thousand gallons crashing down from on high.

A waterfall?

No, as it turned out. Nothing so simple...

"Goddess."

Trees fell away, gloom and fractured light evaporated into glorious rays from Syna above them, still strong and bright even late in the day. It was more than a clearing, far too large and broad, and dominated by...

"What are they...?"

A trio of stone columns like massive pillars, each one as tall as The Temple of Taloba, stretched towards the sky and smoked. Smoked? No, Razkar realized as he peered closer, not smoke... steam.

Endless waves of water trickled and meandered down the sides of them, bubbling up from inside the pillars like watery smoke stacks. Dozens, hundreds of rivers and rivulets wound their way down the stone, millenia of progress carving channels for their flow, culminating in a dozen pools around their base. But marvelous and towering as they were, they were only mere details to the rainbow.

Razkar stepped forwards as if in a daze, the weight of his load forgotten as his slack-jawed gaze took in the impossible. It was as if a rainbow, those strange paintings that Syna weaved from light and rain, had been dragged from the sky and plastered across the rocks. Green hues, orange shades, yellow curls, all of them split the rocks in spirals that... couldn't have just been chance.

A bobbing red bundle made him blink, shift his gaze and he remembered what he was here for. He set down his rucksack and followed her, not seeing anyone else disturbing the pristine beauty of this place. The rocks under his feet, they were... smooth. They didn't nip and stab into his feet, they were as polished and pleasant as the best marble works of Syliras.

And they were warm. By the time he'd caught up with the Svefra, the ache on his soles was almost dispelled, massaged and soothed by this sanctuary of stone, steam and spray... and so was he.

Edreina turned to him, smile of childish, innocent wonder on her face so infectious. His own lips split open and he joined her, standing by her side and looking up. Razkar felt so small next to the majesty of... what was it again?

"Called 'geyser'." He said after a moment, hand curling itself almost of its own accord, eyes dragged over to the waves of steaming liquid, making the dazzling mix of colors dance and shimmy under them. "We have... back home, in jungle. But... nothing like this..."

The Myrian sounded awed. Humbled. Honored. Exhaustion fell from him as steam wrapped around his nearly-naked form, a warm blanket from the bowels of the earth. He felt the softness of her skin under his hand and turned.

Guileless blue eyes tinged with green stared back at him... and he rested his forehead to hers.

"Not plan to see this," he whispered, lips almost brushing hers, "But glad I saw with you... Edri..."

[Edreina]

"Not plan to see this. But glad I saw with you... Edri..."

At his words, Edreina trembled lightly, averting her eyes as if that would keep him from seeing the faint pinking of her cheeks. Looking down, her gaze fell finally upon their interlocked fingers, upon her thumb as it made lazy strokes along his hand. Slowly, she brought their hands up and pressed her lips to his knuckles, bringing her eyes to meet his as she did. There was a surprising amount of warmth held in those two blue orbs, as if they were the geysers fueled by her heart, by her soul.

An instant after she did it, however, the redhead's face contorted in a mixture of laughter and disgust as viscera painted her lips. Shaking her head, she lowered their hands and stepped around him on the lip of the adjoining pools. "C'mon... You wished for water and Caihya provided," she said with a smirk, leading him to the outermost pools, the one that would likely be the most shallow for she did not feel like sullying one of the great pools with Razkar's tainted hands.

As she walked, she quietly remembered the time that Matthew had bathed her, how intimate and - not that she would admit it out loud - erotic the process could have been had they not been the very definition of platonic. That was, of course, if that definition included one experimental kiss. Either way, the memory gave Edreina an idea. When they reached the pool she wanted to use, the Svefra knelt upon the bare stone and motioned for Razkar to do the same. When he went to wash his hands, Edreina stopped him with a gentle touch upon his hand, smiling. "Allow me..." Her voice was low, quiet, barely audible when mixed with the constant gurgling coming from the hot springs.

Her motions were slow, as Matthew's had been, and her touch soft, as she first took Razkar's right hand in both of hers. His palm was cleaned ever so carefully, her thumbs massaging the muscles of his palm carefully, and then tracing out the fine lines of his hand. Without looking up to see Razkar's reaction to her admittedly odd behavior, she turned his hand over and began working the grime away from his hand as well. From above, her fingers trailed down and in between his, fingertips trailing infuriatingly softly along the delicate skin in between one's fingers. Once his hand was perfectly clean, she brought it up to kiss his fingertips with a smile, still refusing to meet his eyes as her soft behavior might be off putting to him. At any point, he could roll his eyes, jerk his hand away, and commence washing himself. But, Edreina dearly hoped that he did not.

From his hand, Edreina moved on to cleaning off his forearm. She submerged her own hand briefly before raising it and allowing droplets of water to fall onto the top of the pig mess and slide ever so slowly down his arm, leaving them to make tracks across his grimy skin. Turning his arm over, she slid her hand into the water and then, with one wet finger, made a slow, sensual journey down his forearm, following the trails left by his veins just below the surface. She repeated the process but with all five fingertips that time, taking advantage of how the first pass would have sensitized his skin. When that was done, she finished cleaning off his arm, scrubbing and massaging with careful fingers. Finally, she lifted his cleaned arm and blew on it softly, a shock of cool air after the warm water's caress. With another smile, she leaned forward and kissed the pulse points that lay at his wrist and the crook of his elbow, lips barely more than the touch of a butterfly's wings.

Refusing, still, to meet his surely questioning gaze, the redhead repeated her ministrations over his other arm. Part of her worried that her behavior was too soft, too gentle for the savage Myrian. And yet, she continued. All the while she wondered in silence if what she was doing was coming off as seductive, or simply odd. In truth, she was doing this mainly to show the Myrian what her words could not; she felt as if he had to know how much he meant to her... and how much that terrified her. The soft motions of her hands over his skin were nearly hypnotic, lulling her into a sense of calm unlike any she had felt before. When finished, instead of kissing his arm once she was done, she took both of his large, battle-gnarled hands in between hers, and brought them both to her lips, allowing them to rest there. Finally, she turned her unsure gaze upwards, and met his ebony one. "Thank you... for letting me come..."

[Razkar]

It was the simplest things she did that struck to the core of him. Little gestures that spoke of such vast and awe-full things. as the spray from the falls pattered onto them, she raised his hand to her lips and pressed their soft pinkness to the scar tissue that covered them. Such... affection. So little concern as to his fearsome appearance, nor the blood he'd spilled since he was even able to.

She looked up at Razkar and he saw not only a lack of fear... but the presence of something more. Something she felt so strongly that she was acting on it, having the courage to do what even the oh-so-brave Wrath of Myri could not.

Not too late, though. And will you ever get a better setting for it?

Some old and unwanted part of his mind clamped down on that just as her blue eyes caught him, spider-and-fly fashion. Razkar looked back and swallowed heavily, feeling like some dumb youngling all over again whose mind wouldn't catch up with his tongue or his loins-

-then her face twisted in disgust and his guts did the same, wondering if she'd finally decided-

"... oh. Yes. Guts."

They both shared an awkward chuckle that seemed to drain some of the tension, but the moment was far too intense to be frittered quickly away. She led him and he allowed himself to be led... because he... trusted her?

Yes. You do.

"C'mon... You wished for water and Caiyha provided."

The Myrian couldn't help but snort as they traipsed lightly through Caiyha's splendor.

"Not think all... this..." His head craned about, trying to take in at once all the wonder that had taken countless centuries to create. "... just for me. This was... for world, I think."

She stopped at one of the pools at the edge, near the treeline, and she sat down with his hand still wrapped in hers. Some memory fired at the sight of her and before he could voice it, she took his filthy paw in both of hers and bought her down with him to the water's edge.

"Allow me..."

Soft as the water that bubbled from the ground... as the steam that rose up from the pure surface. Razkar was almost afraid to disturb it with his form, let alone the viscera caking him. And when the thought struck him, his black eyes roved back to her. Was that the worry? That by... being with her, he would somehow mar her?

He knew many barbarians would think so; he'd seen the black looks and haughty sneers leveled her way (though not when he was looking) when they'd walked together in Syliras. The whispers he'd half-imagined those perfumed townsfolk would utter, a cloud of scurrilous rumor and gossip that would follow his Edri around like flies around dung.

"You... You don't need to... do that..."

Razkar spoke the words and meant them, but his body did not have the strength to draw away from her. She was his warmth in this place: the steam and water were just... additions. She looked up at him with a glimmer of pain in her eyes and when his hands were clean he licked his lips, feeling he owed her an explanation.

"With my people, males clean females. It is... proper. Females have power, and..."

She kissed his fingers, and there was a reverence there. It reminded him of Ayatah, and for the first time he thought of that golden face without a tremor of fear or betrayal. They were so alike in some ways... but one was past and gone, without word or correspondence. The other... was right here.

More than that. He and wanting you. Opening herself to you.

"Edri..."

It was whispered and lost among the crashing water and hissing steam, the busy bubbles from the lake they washed in. Razkar looked over the surface and took some strange solace in the fact that despite how caked his flesh seemed, when dispersed in that unnaturally warm water, all that blood just... melted away.

His tension seemed as that steam whilst she continued: insubstantial. He surrendered himself to the strange sensation of droplets careening down his arms, and imagined she was in those cleansing drops. It would not surprise him: she was Svefra, after all. As Razkar was chosen of the Goddess of War, she was chosen of the God of the Sea.

The ache from the day, bells spent in a crouching stalk or hunched in waiting or hacking at tough, furry flesh... they melted, too. By the time she felt her lips on him, gasped lightly at their touch, Razkar was more at peace than he'd been since... since...

His eyes screwed shut. The past... we are all chained to it. Memories cling to us like a death shroud and they... hold us. They empower us and their teachings mold whom we are. But... sometimes... no matter how hard it is, no matter how strange the blurry shades of possible futures might be-

You have to let go.

"Thank you... for letting me come..."

Razkar blinked. Chimes had passed, and for all he'd been staring into the insides of his eyelids. His other arm had been scrubbed and massaged, too, loose and fresh as it had been when he awoke that morning. Edreina was before him again, eyes open as the sky was blue, and she held his hands under her chin like an offering...

Words stumbled over themselves in his mind. Thoughts and memories and... oh, petch it-!

Razkar's hands folded upwards and cupped her face, his own moving forwards without pause or fear. His lips pressed against hers and she tasted that heat she'd longed for... as did he. Then they shifted slightly, his tongue massaging hers gently, softly, willing himself not to just... take her, like she'd probably heard all Myrians did.

She was worth more than that, but he had not the words to tell her.

Finally, though, he'd realized he did not need them... and had lost his fear of what he did need.

"I am tired of wait." He said the words in a low, gasping rasp, once their lips parted and that rough tingle danced on them. His hands stroked her cheeks, fingertips stroking her neck under her ears, relishing the simple joy of touching her so intimately. "You... not need to thank, Edri. Give so much. Mean so much..."

There. In the open, and in words, despite his protestations. A flurry of feelings he could not name danced in her eyes and he quelled them all with another kiss, tongue massaging her own this time, deepening it from something chaste, past romance and into the sheer physicality they'd been wrestling with for far too long.

But beyond it, something more. Djed or soul, he did not know, but Razkar leaned forward, pressing himself against her gently, hungrily-

-which was somewhat ruined as they both went off balance on the wet rock and, thus, into the steaming pool.

[Edreina]

Gods only knew how many times they had lost themselves in this. The tumble of lips, the rushing sounds of a sharp inhale as one surprised the other. This time, however, it felt different. Each degree of passion the Myrian poured from his lips into hers was multiplied and returned tenfold. Her hands came up to grasp his face, to pull him firmly against her. As he pulled away, even a little, her teeth caught his lip briefly, making a small sound of distaste. It seemed as if, as always, this kiss would end with hot, aching disappointment as all others did.

"I am tired of wait."

The obvious attempt at restraint in his words sent a familiar tingle dancing across Edreina's skin. She wanted to beg and to plead and use everything in her - sadly mediocre - arsenal against him. But, the proud young woman would not stoop to such a level. At his last statement, Edreina's heart leapt into her throat, giving her the energy to backflip off of a cliff into the Suvan. Joy, passion, excitement, confirmation, and l-... So many emotions managed to flit through the Svefra's blue eyes in a single tick, giving them an oddly sparkling quality.

Again they kissed and again Edreina felt something that had lain in hibernation for too long finally awaken, stretching lazily before growling out its hunger. Razkar's fingers continued their infuriating dance along the redhead's jugular, sending little bolts of energy pulsing through her veins, setting her skin tingling and her body aching. To be touched where she was most vulnerable implied a level of trust in whom Edreina had placed few others. As their bodies seemed to edge ever closer, some little bit of Edreina started to dance about happily, shaking her little freckled fists in the air with the joyful realization that they were - probably... hopefully - about to-

Splash into the water... great. It always had to be something, did it not? Shaking her head, the redhead glared at the water that came up to her sitting shoulders, sending her red hair out in all directions around her. For the amount of gore she had just pushed off into the water, she was surprised to find that it was not even faintly pink.

Something about the stunned look on the Myrian's face sent Edreina's annoyance off without a word of goodbye and welcomed a burst of laughter. Standing up, she noted disdainfully how tightly her breeches now clung to her lithely muscled legs; surely walking would cause them to chafe. With a groan and a shake of her head, the redhead sat back down in the water, fixing Razkar in a pseudo-stern, raised-eyebrow look of utter exasperation. Sometimes she wondered if he knew absolutely every way to keep himself from getting laid. Think about ex lovers? Check. Make a joke so stupid that Edreina cannot help but laugh? Check. Pretend that you'll be late for whatever it is you do? Check. Push her into a pool of hot water in the middle of the woods after she just cleaned your hands off for you? Yeah, check.

Well, little did he know, he had just created a whole new mess of trouble for himself because Edreina would outright refuse to walk home in wet breeches. But that would mean either walking through the woods at night - When did he say Chipmunks tended to hunt, again? - or staying the night out here. Either way, the Svefra was probably going to be naught but a pile of redhair and disappointment the next morning, covered in the tracks of a local Chipmunk pack. At the rather unsavory dilemma, she reacted upon her first instinct and slid beneath the water, hoping that having to focus on holding her breath would make her thoughts on the situation simpler, as it normally did.

Instead, she just emerged flushed from the water's warmth and lost in a tangle of unruly red hair. Pursing her lips, she moved back towards the edge of the pool until she could lay her head against it, eyes drifting halfway shut. "Now what will we do, genius?" She sighed, peering at him through her lashes as she stared over the sharp rise of her cheekbones. Without waiting for an answer, Edreina rose once again and fumbled her way quickly out of the sodden pants, hopping up onto the side ledge of the pool to pull them past her feet. Once she was once more in her traditional garb of nearly nothing, she turned and laid the breeches out on the stone. "Actually... A moment to relax would be fine with me. What about you, oh mighty hunter?" With a wink, the siren slid back into her natural element until she was naught but a pair of smiling blue eyes barely above the water's surface, framed by a mess of floating red locks.

[Razkar]

Pressure. The problem was pressure. You'll see what I mean.

Goddess, this is no longer funny!

Razkar broke the surface of the warm water spiting out words in his native tongue a lot less polite than that, snapping his head back and forth, long hair whipping around his head... which of course meant most of it was plastered to his face.

"Now what will we do, genius?"

The impish humor in her voice broke through the turgid spill of stunted lust, touched on their usual teasing and joking. The Myrian glared at her through the curtains of hair soaking his face, before pulling it all back to the back of his head, warm droplets cascading down his back. Gods... it was so warm. He'd been in baths that were cooler than this, and that was in Syliras... where he'd petching paid for it!

"Not exactly planned, female! And you go in water... too..."

His words trailed off as she fumbled under the surface, water rippling about her-

-and casually depositing her breeches on the stones ringing them

Razakr froze as if the water in the pool had just turned into a freshly melted Kalean glacier. He knew from experience that the female was... liberal-minded, when it came to the issue of undergarments, and save for the binding across her bosom, wore nothing else. Immediately the temperature of the water turned against him (in a way), caressing below his waist, hardening him-

"Actually... A moment to relax would be fine with me. What about you, oh mighty hunter?"

That time, her tone was lost on him, though "hunter" as certainly apt for that moment. His gaze could have melted Isurian Steel, focused keenly and unwavering on those beautiful blue eyes that seemed like an extension of the water they were in. She blinked, seeing the change in him, the hunger that made her insides quiver-

Pressure. Far too much of it, day after day, season after season now, backed up like a stopped volcano that had finally been released.

-and he surged forward, water splashing around him like it would round the prow of a ship at full-speed, the Svefra jerking upright in surprise-

Just as Razkar pressed his lips to hers again, all intense heat and fiery passion, possessive and... needy? No, the word didn't fit the Myrian at all, but... it was there. Something more than simple desire that he was finally able to indulge and release, just like... pressure.

Lips made soft by steam and water undulated against hers, tongue opening her own lips and the taste of her flooded into him. His hands wandered over her arms, cupping her face again, one hand reaching under the water to tug away his loincloth with an angry jerk, tossing it atop her breeches.

Razkar broke from the kiss again, breath coming hard and urgent now, eyes wide and... so strange. There was a vulnerability there, some lack of control that she'd never seen the Myrian give into before... aside from the look in his eyes when he stabbed her to kill Ekvan. That fear of losing her... that was close to the look in his eyes now.

If it was a whore in the Stallion, it would be nothing. But when you open your soul and body to another... there is risk.

"Not want to scare you, Edri," he whispered, callused fingers stroking her cheeks, feeling some stab of disbelief that something so fine and smooth and beautiful would let someone as blood-maddened as him touch her. But he forced it aside, kissing her softly again. "But... long time to wait." He leaned closer to her ear, so close the heart from his breath warmed her lobe. "And I have wanted this... so long..."

Razkar's body moved against hers of its own accord, unseen by all but the silent Caiyha.

[Edreina]

The immediate passion in Razkar's lips as he pinned her against the side of the pool surprised Edreina. She had thought that falling into the water would have quelled his arousal, but, it appeared as if the hot water had only heightened it. With a soft sound of pleasure, Edreina's pale form curved to fit against Razkar's darker one as she let his lips dominate hers. They parted at the gentle insistence of his tongue as hers slid out to meet his. As always, the chemical reaction this intimate touch created sent a quick flush of pleasure racing from the top of her head to her toes. As his hands came up to cup her face, hers rested upon his broad shoulders, luxuriating in the air of masculinity that absolutely radiated from him.

When his loincloth was discarded, Edreina nearly melted into the pool. Is... is this finally happening? The kiss broke and they found themselves fighting for the same air with each gasping breath. Whatever unnamed emotion danced in Razkar's wide, ebony eyes was reflected in Edreina's own along with an added air of surprise. His advance was so unexpected, so... primal.

"Not want to scare you, Edri... "

As his fingers trailed over her freckled cheek, Edreina leaned into his touch, eyes closing for an instant as strength in his rough touch soothed nerves she had not even been aware of. The kiss that followed was so tender, as if the savage was afraid that the woman in his arms would shatter were he too reckless.

"But... long time to wait. And I have wanted this..."

Edreina all but cried out in surprise at the gentle pressure he applied to her hip, her head tilted back as her body automatically arched insistently against him. He was so obviously ready for her. And Edreina? She was the same.

"...so long..."

The delayed words invoked an odd sort of reaction from Edreina. Hearing that he had been lusting after her, as she had been him, it made her only want to build upon the moment. So frequently when she was with a man, they went from conversation to sex as quickly as the tide. With Razkar, Edreina wanted things to be different. Well, they already were different in so many ways, but she wanted to prove to him that she wanted more than his body, as she had proven it to herself earlier in the season.

With a groan - Damn her and her self-restraint! - Edreina pushed the Myrian off of her, ignoring his confusion, until they were both on their knees, facing one another. Liquid blue eyes were locked hotly upon Razkar's as she reached behind herself and, with nimble fingers, undid the knot that held her linen chest bindings together. Abruptly, her self-consciousness took over once again, as it always seemed to at the wrong moment, and her hands stopped.

Among her people, her build was not favored for it was not as hydrodynamic as a woman without curves. Paired with her height and her complexion it was not a surprise that she had more luck on land than at sea. And so, she paused. Two more rotations and her breasts would have sprung - Quite literally as they resented the way that the Svefra bound them - free. A chime passed as she sat there, utterly still, lip caught between her teeth, blue eyes dancing with a lack of surety. "I'm sorry..." She whispered, silently willing her hands to move.

There was no reason for her to afraid of her own body around Razkar, he had seen ever side of her and yet he remained. Two little - hah! - mounds of flesh could not change that, surely. But the fear of rejection remained. No, he had seen her before... But like this? Her eyes narrowed for an instant, annoyance directed internally as she finally found her steel."I'm sorry..." she repeated and, looking up to meet Razkar's even gaze, finally removed the linen and tossed it aside, sinking back into the water and allowing it to wash up to her collarbone. Whenever she moved, the nearly-clear water was disturbed just enough for her to be able to ignore how she now looked, but a sour tinge of her fear remained. In quick order, she rose from the water to slide her undershorts down, over the curve of her rear, and to toss them onto the pile of clothes that was slowly growing upon the bald stone. Her smile was sheepish and more than a bit playful as she sank into the water once again, now utterly nude beneath the water's surface.

And then, the redhead focused on something other than herself: Razkar. How long had she imagined what he would look like without that loincloth, how his flesh would feel beneath her fingertips... And here he was, dusky skin bared beneath the water, and just an instant away. Without hesitating, she leaned forward and captured his lips with hers. There was that fear of rejection, driving her desperation as she kissed him passionately, teeth falling ever so gently upon his lips so that when his lips parted in surprise, her tongue could slip into his mouth, exploring and tasting and tormenting. Her hands, so long restrained by vows and duty, moved from cupping his harshly angled face, to sliding down his neck, thumb stroking his pulse point softly, to his chest. For only an instant, habit caused them to pause there, fingers tensing and relaxing against the broad, powerful muscles of his chest. Her sensitive fingertips were aware of a myriad of scars crisscrossing his chest. But, as the kiss intensified and she found Razkar's own hands wandering and exploring her body with abandon, she was given the courage to do the same.

Gentle fingertips continued to blaze a trail down into unknown territory, tracing each sculpted muscle of his core, committing the landscape to memory. Eventually, both hands fell upon his hips. Heart racing with the prospect of what was to come, Edreina chose a self-taunting path onward. She wanted the Myrian, her body needed him. But this was something she wanted to savor... And so, shemoved her hands up to his chest once more, biting his lower lip as her fingernails skimmed down his chest, their gentle bite likely sending chills dancing across the Myrian's skin despite the warm water that blanketed them. Breathing rough and quavering, she pulled her lips down to trail along his jaw, to suck lightly upon the pulse point that existed where his jaw met his throat. And, in that same instant, her hands found what they had been seeking for so long.

"Gods..." she sighed against his ear, fingers enveloping his length as her body arched towards him once again. He was ready, she was a season past ready... so the only thing keeping them from finally losing themselves in the embrace of one another... well there really was nothing, now, was there? Lips on his neck, fingers gently tormenting his manhood, soft, supple body arched to press closer to him, Edreina sighed out the Myrian's name in a way never before uttered. In that single, harsh word made soft, Edreina acknowledged that she was ready... That she was his...

[Razkar]

When she groaned and pushed him away from her, Razkar knew fear the likes of which he'd not felt in a long time. Fear of rejection. Something so primal to a male, written into their genes that no amount of success elsewhere could compensate for. And, remember: Razkar is not that old for his kind.

But... no... not all the way away from her. Edreina sunk down to her knees in the pool, one hand on his shoulders pushing him down to do likewise. Now they were partially covered by the surface, her chest submerged just underneath it, linen wrappings shimmering and morphing under the lapping water.

But when her hand disappeared behind her back... she hesitated.

"I'm sorry..."

Razkar's eyes flickered up, eyebrows crushing them in worry, seeing so much aged shame in that youthful face. Fears and worries spawned and multiplied in frantic numbers. Was she afraid? Was she disgusted? Would she run? Would she change her mind? Was it Matthew? Kreig? One of the other Svefra's that she-

"I'm sorry..."

Razkar looked down as the linen began to loosen... and some fragment of conversation from the Flotilla returned to him. Something about females generously proportioned in their breasts being called "dead fish" by some of the coarser males, because they could not swim so well. Razkar blinked, remembering his own people.

They called them "breeders", because that was all they were good for. Too top-heavy to fight in the jungle, breasts getting in the way of their bows... always shunned and mocked.

"No... No, no, Edri..."

When she sunk back down, undershorts discarded like shackles from a slave, shamelessly bare body submerged again, Razkar moved close to her, willing her blue eyes to look into his. He shook his head as she did, dropping a gentle kiss on her lips.

"Not need to be sorry, Edri..." He grinned quickly, a lightning twitching of his lips showing white teeth against dark skin, and kissed her again and again, hands gently cupping the mounds of flesh, each one filling his palms perfectly. He gasped almost imperceptibly against her lips. "... not for you body..."

Razkar didn't know if it was his words or her spirit that did it, but that fear... it did not vanish, but it changed. She surged against him like the Suvan wave that she wash, battering against his body like the trees of Falyndar. A warm wall of soft flesh pressed against him and he moaned against her lips, and suddenly, both of them seemed to break down some barrier between them.

Their hands slid and roved and explored each other. He felt hers stroking his arms, his chest, his core and Razkar was not too humble to say he didn't smirk a little into her lips as she appreciated the taut, fat-less figure he'd worked hard for. But he own was doing the same, fingertips gliding over the curves he'd watched and dreamed of for many nights. The dip of her collarbone, the hollowof her neck, the swell of her breasts and that tight stomach, so very much like a Myrian female's-

And... he kept going. Because what was left to stop them, inside or outside? Nothing. They were free.

The Myrian gritted his teeth and willed, forced, bullied his body to slow itself. For too long he had waited for this, and he would not squander it in a whirlwind of rushed passion, pleasurable though it would be. He wanted this afternoon to be burned on his mind forever, slowly and... memorably.

Razkar growled in the back of his throat as his fingers found the slickness between his legs, something more than just the soaking water they were kneeling in. Her tremble against his arms proved it, and then her lips found his throat and her teeth snapped together, sharp and fanged and eyes screwed shut suddenly-

-before his mouth opened in a silent moan of pleasure as she began to suck... and her fingers wrapped around him, moving back and forth.

"Gods..."

The word send fire down his spine, traveling straight from his ears to what was suddenly aching between his legs. Edreina didn't need to say anymore and finally Razkar's arms and hands moved with sureness, cupping under her bare ass and lifting her up. Even out of the water her weight was manageable to him - their sparring sessions were proof of that, when he'd hurled her around like a child - but in the water she was almost... weightless.

Almost like a dream.

A tiny voice warned him that could be the truth, but he pressed his lips to hers and all fears and vows and oaths and whispering doubts were obliterated like shadows by Syna. He inhaled deep from her lungs, desperate and hungry, swollen and supple breasts pressed against his chest and lowered her... slowly... patiently...

"Not want to hurt you," he managed to murmur between kisses, until both of them were slack-jawed and shuddering as he filled her, steam hissing around the two gently writhing bodies.

[Edreina]

For such a free spirit, Edreina adored with every fiber of every muscle stretched taut across her willowy frame the feeling of Razkar grabbing her, lifting her, doing what he pleased with her. He was not going to force her to take charge, to guess what he wanted or enjoyed... He was going to show her. And that was so far beyond perfect, to her.

As he carefully moved her into place, rough hands so surprisingly gentle, Edreina placed her hands upon his shoulders, steadying herself. Every nerve in her body was on fire, and gentle tremors racked her frame every few ticks. For so long she had wanted this, and now, finally... Razkar would be hers. He claimed her lips once again, and there was such warmth and such passion in that kiss that Edreina could do naught but melt against him, hands sliding up behind his head to hold him closer as their lips danced and she sunk ever lower into the water, ever closer to him.

"Not want to hurt you."

At his words, Edreina's heart did an odd little dance. Unable to word her emotions, Edreina reignited the kiss, grinning all the while. When she pulled back for breath, she also nodded, blue gaze upon his. Already she felt him pressed against the most intimate part of her, bodies aching in unison. But he had stopped there, tauntingly close, to make sure that the redhead was still entirely prepared for what was to come. Upon her confirmation, they came together. Slowly, carefully, he began to slide himself into her.

And it hurt. It really really hurt.

Living the lifestyle that she did, Edreina's figure remained naturally tight in more than one way. Usually, it was bearable. But, it had been more than two seasons since she had lain with a man. And now, either Razkar was far more gifted than any man Edreina had ever been with, or... Well it had really been awhile. A long while. And, he had not felt like anything superlative beneath her fingers, so it must have been her. A sound that muddled the line between pleasure and pain left Edreina's lips as she pulled away and buried her face against his neck, face contorting for an instant as she bared her teeth.

Of course, Razkar paused at her reaction. Shivering lightly, she turned and kissed his neck, whispering that she was ok. As if to emphasize her words, she wriggled a bit, adjusting to his formidable girth. Slowly, ever so carefully, he continued his path until his hips met hers and they both shuddered. Now that she was beginning to adjust to the feeling of him. She sat upright, smiling at Razkar and leaning forward to kiss him once, teasingly chaste. Biting her lip for an instant, Edreina mouthed "wow" very visibly. Despite her arousal, she was so incredibly... happy. There was no other word for how she felt about finally uniting with Razkar in this manner.

Experimentally, she twisted her hips to one side, then the other. Her body still felt stretched to its limit but at least there was no more pain. At this, she grinned once more, leaning in to kiss him again. Though she had intended for this kiss to be as chaste as the last, something changed as their lips came into contact with one another. Her breath was soft as she sighed in the kiss, lips pausing in his. Abruptly, the Svefra was seized by a feeling of possessiveness. Her teeth caught hold of his lower lip and pulled it into her mouth, sucking gently with a soft moan. The taste of him... it was ambrosia to her. In an instant, her grip upon his shoulders shifted from fingertips to nails, biting at his flesh. So long... so long she had wanted him.

And now...

Surprising both herself, and hopefully the Myrian, Edreina started rising from the water once again, sliding herself up his length, a long, low moan leaving her lips as they warred against his. A long, freckled expanse of throat and chest was exposed as she tilted her head back, eyes drifting shut. She gasped, hesitating with him barely still embedded, inner muscles clenching. With a sharp moan, she leaned forward a bit and allowed their hips to meet once again, more quickly than before, body arching and fingers flexing on his shoulders. "R-raz..." Her lips alighted upon his throat as the words left them.

She wanted more... She wanted it all... For him to mark her and assert his claim on her. She wanted no one to doubt that he was hers... and she was his. With a quiet growl, she bit the joining of his neck and shoulder hard, hard enough that a bite-shaped-welt raised immediately. An instant later, her lips were at his ear, whispering hotly, drunk on pleasure. "Razkar please... I promise I won't break..."

[Razkar]

If ever there was a time to see a male vulnerable, it was in that first moment... when he joined with his female. Razkar had heard that term before, and knew it to be more than just a poetic flourish. Emotions, thoughts, desires, even fears... they all flowed equally like two vessels suddenly brought together.

But Razkar knew pain, too. Its smell and taste... it's feel. And when the Svefra shuddered against him, the tight wetness off her squeezing him in the most delicious way, he knew it was not pleasure. Immediately he froze, war of pleasure and pain nearly breaking him apart, an inch away from lifting her off him-

She whispered to him. Words that caressed his ear and stroked his worried soul. She said that she was OK... and he heard no lie in her voice. Just that same, urgent desire that had him twitching out of control inside her.

Razkar grunted and groaned at the same time. Goddess... it had been a long time for him too. He breathed shallow but deep, forcing some kind of control into his body, as best he could. No way would he allow this to be over that quickly. Within a chime her ass was resting on his inner thighs, the full length of him inside her, pulse against her, gripping him hard, making his head roll back in helpless ecstasy...

"Heavens and hells and d-dirts in between..."

Helpless. The very word bought a dreamy smile to his face as his eyes took in the clear sky over them. With whom else would he even allow that thought to enter his mind? Only one... and she was not with him. Not in body or soul, and certainly not the passion of the moment.

And before that ghost from his memory gained a foothold, her lips mashed into his again and he nibbled at her bottom lip with a smirk. Her lips twisted into a stunned and breathless "wow" and they were both laughing, giggling, two young people wrapped in each other and in the steamy water, the world forgotten and shrunken to this pool, this place where the gods went insane with a paintbrush.

Then Razkar's lips contorted, trembled as she rolled her hips, every inch of his hardness sending sparks up and down his body. The Myrian clenched his teeth at the sheer... heat of her. No, it was the tightness, squeezing him, every twitch of her flashing up his own body. No... no, it was...

It's her. All of her. What she is, what she means to you... and what you know you mean to her.

She grinned and sucked his lip into her mouth, eliciting a groan of aching lust that made her stand on end (or would have, if it wasn't soaking wet). The very fact that she was teasing him, playing with him, not just providing a hole for him to enjoy himself with... it added such a delightful dimension to all of it. And then...

"R-Raz..."

... she started to rise and fall, painfully slow, as if she wanted to torture him with her body. As his hands gripped her ass her back arched, exposing herself to him... and Razakr just stared. At her stomach, the wonderful orbs of her breasts, glistening with sweat and water, the rosy nipples so stark against her freckled skin, hard and ripe-

-for his lips, as his head lunged forwards, mouth fastening around each one in turn, desperate to taste more of her, relishing the shudder that rippled through her as his sharpened teeth rolled each one gently from side to side-

-and then her own teeth were at his neck, biting deep, pain and pleasure mingling once again into something that transcended both but spoke of sheer stimulation. Razkar could feel his balls begin to ache and concentrated on her, not what was between his legs.

"Razkar please... I promise I won't break..."

That was all he needed. Growling, so deep and animal that it send a quiver through his hardness and into her core, one of his hands gripped her hair and jerked her head back. There was a flash of... no, thank the Goddess, it wasn't fear. Just... surprise, then followed a tick later by a sort of ecstasy, like this feral side of him was what she'd wanted all along.

The Myrian grinned, and showed his teeth. Well, if that is what the female desires...

"As you wish-"

He lunged forwards and fastened his lips to the pulsing spot on her neck, fingernails digging into her ass with his free hand, hips rolling and bucking under her. He knew she could take him, now, and rejoiced in it, grinding and twisting under her.

Until she was almost bouncing along his length, end of his hardness teasing the entrance of her slick core before filled her again, and again-

-moans and groans from her lips feeding his lust as his lips peeled back from his teeth, scratching against her throat before he remembered himself... and he sucked hard on her pulse point, body stiffening around him.

Two bodies, joined and writhing in the steam, as Razkar felt a very different kind of pressure begin to build up, and a broad, disbelieving but thankful grin split his face once again.