Closed Not Alone

[Taurina]

Mine. His arms wrapped around her with a grip so tight it was claiming. She did not mind. Mine. She whispered it through a hum in her throat as lips met and every ounce of fear of rejection melted away. Was this what it was like to belong to another? Was this what it meant to be accepted and loved and cherished? She hoped so. Mine. One arm wrapped around his back to pull him close and the other remained where it was around his neck so she could rub fingers against his shaven hair. She was not going to let him go. No god or army or fate or chance was stealing him from her. Once they had tried but they had failed. For he was here now with her, claiming her as she claimed him. Mine. Wholly and irrevocably mine.

Taurina had not known it possible to be as happy, as content and relaxed, as she was here in Azmere’s arms. There was little tension in her muscles, little force in her grip, the kiss something soft and beautiful. Fingertips worn from life trailed up her spine till they met with her neck, tangled in her hair. His request was silent but his urging for a slight change in the angle of her head strong, though it was unneeded. She would have given him anything he desired in that moment. Wanted to. Needed to. Deeper became the kiss and the world shattered for it. Suddenly nothing else even existed outside of the bubble they had created for themselves. There was just him and her, the couch they sat upon, and the fire crackling in the distance. Eyes closed shut as color danced and sparks ignited. Theirs was a love burning brightly.

The scent of flowers and earth and salt and something sweet surrounded them as they pressed into each other body to body. Taurina was thankful he had taken his bracers off. Thankful for the warmth of his skin against her as he pulled her close and brought her into his lap over his legs. She went easy, needing to be near him. Needing to feel him all around her in every way he would give her this night. Pressing into that warmth, she gave him some of her own in exchange. Fingers found his hair and traveled down his neck, over his shoulders and arms. They came close to his back and then his chest over his thundering heart, but she was met with the thickness of armor that blocked her from him. A low grumble echoed when met with the obstacle. A hatred for it creeping up on her. She pushed it down quickly for there was no place for it here. Only happiness was allowed to exist here. She kissed him a little harder, a little deeper, molding pouty lips to his.

Fingertips trailed along her body, the bumps of goose flesh rising beneath her dress in their wake. It seemed unfair what he was doing to her but she did not even imagine asking him to stop. She did not want it to stop. Weathered hands found her head where they made shapes around her horns and massaged her skull. Taurina could not keep back the soft moan that rose in her throat. It mattered not that she was used to them, that they were apart of her, the horns wore on her head like a weight she did not even know about until relief -even mild- was suddenly brought. Gods if only they could stay here like this forever. If only the kiss so sweet could go on and on, his touch upon her head never ending. But then, all things good and bad must come to an end. Even a kiss so glorious as this.

Azmere kept them close with forehead against forehead. His fingers still worked against her scalp, relief she did not know she needed found. Taurina closed her eyes for a tick, just a tick, reveling in it all as things began to find their place and settle in her mind. Chosen. Azmere had chosen her. Loved. She had finally told him she loved him. A kiss shared. It meant something. It meant everything. Taurina did not think she would ever be the same again. Could ever be the same again. Things were different now, something solidified into reality that had been an abstract concept until now. The puzzle pieces were falling into place.

The gaze of blue violet opened so that she might see him. So that she might smile as she watched him taste his lips. Her own pants for breath matched his, rapid and shallow. It seemed no air was enough to satisfy. She smiled, it was worth it. Even if she never breathed normally again, it was worth it. He was worth it. Her hands reached up to cup his face, to rub the scruff of his short beard and trace the lines of age and scars. She could have spent an eternity just learning his face. Just tracing it over and over against until she got it perfectly right. She wanted that, the chance to do that, the time to learn all there was to learn. She was unsure if an eternity was even enough. Perhaps she was selfish, wanting so much time. But then again, who wasn’t selfish when the mate of their soul was found?

No words passed between them in those moments sat with forehead to forehead. No words were needed. Somehow they just knew everything they needed to know. Taurina followed his guiding hands easily as he pulled her down to lay against him. She did not know what he was asking, what he wanted or meant, but she had already decided that she did not care. She would give him anything, everything, whatever he asked for. His smile was contagious, her own growing into something beautiful and dazzling. She settled against him, curling around him where she could as she rested her head against his shoulder in a way that let her still look up and gaze into his eyes. She found joy dancing in the eyes filled with stars. No trace of the tears she had kissed away, just pure and unhindered joy. If her smile could have grown it would have.

“Do what you need to do,” Taurina murmured soft as he explained why it was he shifted and pulled at the various latches of his armor.

She would have been lying if she said she was upset the armor was coming off. In fact, she was very very happy about it. Even went so far as to search for where it came together with her fingers and pull out ties to help him. She needed to feel him against her skin too. Feel his warmth, press her head against his heart, learn what it was to be near him. The armor was not cast aside quick enough. When it was finally gone, Taurina sighed softly and happily. She pressed herself between his body and the cushions of her couch, legs draped over his and head pressed against the space over his heart. She let the steady beat of it settle her, soothe her, as she stared at her own fingertips tracing patterns across his chest.

“Don’t leave me again,” she requested when emotions calmed, her voice small and soft, “no matter what you learn, no matter what the future brings, don’t leave me again.”

A sigh shook through her like a strangled sob that she shook her head to. She pressed her palm flat against the center of his chest, right over what remained of the wound he had inflicted upon himself last they met. Images of that day flickered in the corners of her mind. All that despair and self hatred. That wish to just be dead because all that was precious had been stolen. Taurina squeezed her eyes shut and opened them again, trying to rub the memory from her mind for now. Tonight she had changed that. She had given him something precious again, a piece of herself, and whether he knew it or not, he had the power to destroy her.

The Ethaefal sighed again, a little more peacefully, and rose her head so she could press her lips against that same spot on his chest. Slow was her kiss before she lifted her gaze to meet with his once more. Her smile was soft, kind, her eyes dancing with an echo of the joy that had been in his.

“I love you,” she repeated again, “I chose you. I want this. I want us, nothing else. No matter what. This, you, us, is where my soul belongs.”

Fingertips were brought up to touch his cheek and then lower to his neck where she rubbed her thumb back and forth along his jaw. Face lowered to meet his, lips just a hairsbreadth away before she was kissing him again. This time just soft and sweet and simple. Too short it lasted before she was resting forehead against forehead again. A smile lingering.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Common | Pavi | 'Thoughts'

[Azmere]

So this was love. Azmere felt alive for the first time since he could remember. Her scent, her smell and the way she fell perfectly into his weathered hands made the kiss all the sweeter. Take a man without belief and place a gorgeous woman in his arms and watch his devout desires of reverence bloom. The height of her shoulders, the length of her torso and the bends of her arms all met his scarred and tough figure in all the right places. They fit together like he did inside his armor and the comfort which this realization brought forth more questions of faith soon to be answered.

The scarred man was in another world. Like a spirit that was both in his body and above it, he rotated around the situation with a detached sort of awe. The armor took mere moments to cast aside once the woman’s graceful fingers helped release the latches and buckles. Her lean elegance was spread across his body for a few ticks that gave Taurina an almost impish look of contentment. The dichromatic gaze was not bored as it drifted over the smooth skin, soft dress and delicate curves that pressed upon him. He felt the bumps of her skin that rose behind his tracing touch. Taurina played her own game, too. She drew his face in a molded space that took the painfully numb scars and set them into a frame of something pure -natural.

The smile that crested over her face was warm like the fire but possessed a much brighter light. Azmere felt like he was staring into something holy and the magnitude of it all sank in like a rock that searches the water for its depths. The way she curled up against him was a dream and his heart beat harder so that she might feel the happiness that grew with each passing tick they shared the same space. Rough hands helped her to readjust astride him while she told of her heart and soul. The link they shared -a bond- and its importance filtered through to process within him that tried to deal with such an overload of information. Azmere had to put his life into perspective now. He had to find a peace within himself to accommodate such overwhelming blessings like the love being shown by the beautiful Ethaefal.

He wasn’t sure what love meant. He couldn’t know how wide such a phrase could span but he did see how it affected this woman. Taurina. Taurina. Just thinking her name made his heart flutter and he wrapped his arms around her tightly. Fingertips found lines of muscle to follow up and down as he accepted the second kiss, brief but just as sweet. How will my lips ever be able to remain alone after this? He wondered. Subconsciously, as their faces pressed together in a dance that waved up up and down their bodies like a tide washing up against a beach, he drew in his bottom lip and ran his tongue across his flesh to taste the joy she had left behind.

Never leave. Never alone. These were the things she asked and promised. This was all Taurina wanted. It was not just him. Not alone. His mind coached. The woman wanted them to be together. How could he blame her? If she felt a fraction of the emotions that the scarred man was experiencing then he was certain this was as good and wonderful for her, as well. I am home. Azmere thought as they held one another close. I am no longer a wanderer. This was worthy of a pause and the contrasting stare shot open with an intense look that quickly found hers. His right hand filtered up into her hair once more and drew her face back so that he could see her eyes. Those gorgeous indigo orbs that saturated the sadness from him and turned it into serenity was all the light he would ever need so long as they rested atop her smile. Once he had her focus, he began to speak in hushed tones that were rushed in his enthusiasm.

“Taurina-” His skin shivered with the sound of her name passing through his lips. He smiled a small half at her, eyes on fire with love. “I wandered for so long.” His heart thumped as his hands ran up her body, one taking her cheek and the other slipped beneath her arm and around her waist to draw her abdomen against his chest. It was no coincidence that he held her slightly above him. “Dark places with foul air and devious creatures chased me in my waking hours until the emptiness in mind was a welcomed escape.” Unable to refrain, he pulled her face down with a gentle grip that slid along her jaw to wrap a few fingers behind her neck. His lips soaked in hers for a tick..then two before he allowed their mouths to part again. “When I came here, the emptiness consumed me and stole my sleep while I wandered aimlessly through the city.” A tinge of sadness pushed its way into his gaze. “Then you found me.”

The warrior’s voice trembled as his heart sped up its dance within his chest. “You spoke beauty and light into my soul.” His hand moved back to hold her jaw and cheek, the rough thumb pressed over her lips as his eyes followed from one feature to another. He would memorize every line and soft rise of tissue on her blessed face before the night was over. “You sought me time and again to bring me back to who I used to be; a man you loved and respected.” Goosebumps chased themselves up his spine as his words flowed faster and more desperately through the crackling of the fire. “Then you found that man buried beneath my emptiness and you-” he choked upon the words. The look he bore her was bordering upon worship.

“I know not what led us together. For once in my life, I do not care.” His hands ran down her body to pull her hips up against his belly. The warmth they made caused him to want to melt but the rough fingers ran up and looped under her arms to take her face in his hands again. The angle forced her arm up around his neck- the newly discovered sensation was something he absolutely adored. “Whatever reason we are together is enough for me.” He leaned up and kissed her chin, his hands having tilted her head back so he could speak against her jawline then leave nips and kisses along the way towards her ear. “I’m. not. ashamed. to be. selfish. for you.” Her skin was a delicacy and he found his hunger growing but his spirit demanded release of the words that ran like a hymn through his being. His lips pressed against her ear lobe and he whispered “I love you, Taurina.” against the soft cartilage, her hair pushing against his face.

Azmere was quick to move their faces in line, nose to nose, where breath met lips in every strangled breath. “I love you.” He repeated it and his body felt like he had grown wings. “I don’t know if it means what it does to you but to me, it is simple.” He stole a kiss with closed eyes and steep pressure that was here and gone in a tick. “I am home only when I am with you.” The right side of his face curled up into a brilliant smile that touched the corner of his blue eye which was thick with elation. “I never have to wander when you are with me.” HIs hands moved against her cheeks, through her hair and along her neck; restless things. “That is how I know- believe and trust- that we’re one soul.” The scarred man pressed their lips together once more for a longer duration. The sparks that ignited the world around him seemed to brighten only her as everything else drew dim.

“All that I am,” His mouth formed words against her lips and his eyes were shut so tight that crow’s feet formed behind them. He made sure they never moved farther away that this as his fingertips curled into her scalp. “All that I ever was,” His lips pressed against hers as he inhaled breath from her mouth. “All that I will ever be, Taurina,” Azmere stole a kiss, he drew in as much of her as he could in a tick then he separated their faces so that she could see the look in his eyes. He registered every ounce of affection, love and desire that he held for her them circled it with devotion that was tempered in adoration. “Is yours.”

[Taurina]

Once upon a time her world had been bleak and empty. A grey cast over everything dulling all color and making it hardly seeming like a life worth living. Fear and sorrow and hate had found her in that place and manifested in the form of a little girl. A girl who had no name and no purpose other than to wreak havoc on the mind of the Ethaefal so weak of spirit. It had taken others to help push that child back into a corner of darkness. It had taken the fire of the golden haired Jasmine, the adventurous spirit of the curious Rufio, and the solid, unmoving, nature of the kind hearted Azmere. Taurina was taught what it was to stand on her own to feet. What it was to be apart of something bigger than herself, what it was to be apart of a family, to be loved by a family. And that child and all she represented only came out at the worst of times for colors had begun to spark.

Now, as Azmere held her close to him and spoke her name in a way that sent shivers up her spine, as the world exploded with colors so vibrant it would take decades to stop being in awe of them, Taurina would watch that same girl shatter into a million pieces. ‘I don’t need you anymore. You have no place here.’ The voice in her head that was her own was silent, but it was strong. The child fought as fear reared its ugly head. As doubt pressed against her and tried to make her second guess. ‘What happens when he gets his memories back? Will he still love you then? Will he still want to be with you then? Or will he just want to go back to Jasmine? To his baby?’ Taurina pushed back with all her might, the touch of weathered hands in her hair giving her strength. She was not giving that ugly beast one more inch. ‘Go.’ Protest flared, she clamped down on it tight. ‘Go.’

Suddenly, the pieces began to break one by one. Shackles released as the long time prisoner was set free. She could have wept at the lightness of it. All that weight she had been carrying finally gone. Evaporated in an instant.

Azmere ran hands up her body as he told her of the things that had haunted his nightmares. He spoke of how beasts had chased him in the dark and how the emptiness of his mind had been welcome. Though these things were dark and ugly, she did not lose him as she had before. Instead he held her close and spoke with something near happiness in his voice. His half smile was small, his eyes like a mirror to her own with all the love that swirled within. She pressed her body easy against his as he requested with his grip, her lips coming down to meet his own as fingers slid to the place behind her neck. One tick. Two. She would never tire of the taste of his lips against her own. Never tire of being so close to him.

Sadness seemed to chase him as his heart began to race and the pace of his words became faster. Taurina disliked seeing sadness where there was only meant to be happiness. Disliked knowing that something had shifted. But she was made glad when it began to disappear. When his words took another turn and a bright blush was made to bloom across her cheeks. Beauty and light. The man he used to be still within the man he was. Taurina smiled, she believed all of that. All she had said tonight. She might have said as much, perhaps more, but he was not done. His hand was on her face, his thumb upon her lips, the look in his eyes something deep and full of reverence. The heat of her blush touched her ears though her smile was wide even if a little shy.

Warmth continued to spread as hands ran down her body and settled around her hips, pulling them towards him at a different angle. The Ethaefal gave in easy. Hips settled against belly and arms came up to loop around his neck. Gods.. to be so close to him, to hear him say such things, how had she gotten so lucky? Lips rose to touch her chin, a small and breathy laugh breaking from her at the feeling, and then a trail was made across her jaw. Nips and kisses so sweet she bit her bottom lip to keep in a moan. She could still feel his lips on her own, the taste of them something she hoped lingered forever.

“I’m. not. ashamed. to be. selfish. for you.” Taurina did moan at that, a breath of air escaping as she did. The grip of her hands, one at his shoulder and the other against his side, tightened. Not fair what he was doing to her. The building ache he had caused to rise in her core. The warmth that left goosebumps along her skin. Not fair. Yet she did not want him to stop, did not want this to end. Not yet. Lips pressed against her ear, the warmth of his breath tickling against her lobe. She might have pulled away at the agony of it but then his words came, and she thought she might melt.

“I love you, Taurina.”

That was when the world froze. That was when the little girl of her fears took form and walked right up to her. There was no fear. There was no sorrow. There was no hate. Just pure unending love. The child with piercing blue eyes smiled and pressed a kiss on the Ethaefal’s forehead. ‘Goodbye mommy. You don’t need me anymore. You have him. Be happy.’ Final words spoken before the child of the past turned and walked away. Understanding came as Taurina watched her as far as the door where two other shapes seemed to greet her. The family she had forgotten. Then, in a show of light and color that she knew only she could see, all three met the darkness, and Taurina knew she would never see any of them ever again.

“I love you.”

Azmere’s words brought her back to him and she smiled so bright in response. He loved her. It was all she had ever wanted to hear. She loved him. It was all she had ever wanted to say. He claimed another kiss deep and quick. It did not last long enough. Taurina went to change that be he had more to say. Never wander, always home, as long as they were together. His hands were restless but so were hers as she traced lines up his torso to his neck and then face. One soul. Yes. He kissed her again and she kissed him back, breaths heavy as sparks flew and color danced. This would always be enough for her. He would always be enough for her. More than enough.

“All that I am.” Lips parted but never far as breath was shared. “All that I ever was.” Taurina’s eyes closed to mirror his as a breath from her was given to him. “All that I will ever be, Taurina.” Her heart fluttered hard in her chest as another kiss was stolen and allowed to linger, but only for a tick. Then he drew her away so that their gazes might meet and she might know the depth of his feelings. “Is yours.”

Nothing was held back as Taurina pressed her lips to his in a kiss that was long, deep, and lingering. She stole as much from his as she dared, hands cupping his face till they trailed down his neck and over his shoulders. Fingertips traced down the muscles of his arms as air became needed and the kiss was ended. Forehead rested against forehead again as the Ethaefal panted softly. She smiled and rubbed her nose against his.

“All that I am my love,” Taurina promised breathy as she sunk lower so that she might press gentle kisses against his neck, each word spoken in-between, “Every piece, every life, every memory missing and whole, every form that was and is to come..”

She rose her gaze to meet his once more. Her lingering smile grew as she kissed his nose and then his chin and then his mouth. Each soft, quick, and full of love. Gaze met gaze, the indigo eyes full of happiness and love and passion and promise. Everything finally was as it had always been meant to be.

“Forever into eternity. I. Am. Yours.”

Common | Pavi | 'Thoughts'