songerein | fifteenth shot ⊗ closed log

[He really is going to make her say it, isn't he? Once a devious wolf, always a devious wolf...

But he is her devious wolf.

There's a sound that comes from the back of her throat that sounds a lot like a sigh, and the air buzzes around her so much that the flowers have started to quiver in the heat that she's giving off.]

I...

[Shiva save her...]

I've always wanted to...

[Can she do this? She doesn't think she can do this, and she's already feeling the words starting to tangle on the tip of her tongue.]

...see what it might be like to...be in control...

Hmmm....

[He is not going to go on easy on her at all.]

And...? Did you like it?

[Tifa lifts her face from his chest then, his question actually provoking something in her.

Despite her fears, her worries that she had ruined things for them, her shame for having gone so far and fallen to that thing's whims so quickly—fallen to her own so quickly... there was a thrill to it, too. Seeing him like that beneath her had awakened something new in her that she never thought possible, and she understood then why he likes it so much.

She looks him straight in his eyes, her cheeks burning with a rosy colour.]

I... I think I did...

[As long as he liked it too, of course.]

[Just a low, deep chuckle as he brushes his lips over the tip of her nose.]

I think you did, too.

[A mischievous gleam in his eye as continues to probe her further.]

You were very into it... And I thought it very captivating... [His lips bright against hers.] ...Provocative. [A light nip before he moves to her ear.] Erotic.

[A low whisper as his hands move more suggestively up to her chest and hips.]

You truly seemed like a queen whom I was more than willing to serve whatever desire...whatever need she had.

Edited 2023-03-08 22:20 (UTC)

[Tifa melts further and further, every touch of his helping to chase away whatever tension she's still carrying in her, but it's his words that make the temperature spike around them, or rather, in her. The tingling in the air, that buzz of heat grows more intense, and the steam slowly starts to build up into a cloud that surrounds them...

...

And Tifa feels like she might burst with how hot her face has become.

Yes, she liked it, and so did he, but does he need to say it like that!?]

I... [Her voice is trembling again, but for a different reason now. She pauses to try to come up with an excuse, a reason for why she had done it all, but nothing comes.] I didn't know if I would be... If I could do something like that... Or if you would...

[Yes he does. He'll just call it "exposure therapy."]

I think you've proven yourself well. But if you ever want to try again...

[And he just smirks before he gives her a playful little nip on the ear before pulling back his eyes gleaming both with that unbridled desire but also a more lighthearted gaze. Yes he's being a scoundrel, but he really is just teasing her, trying to help ease and coax away those insecurities, reassure her that her negative thoughts are unfounded. Of course he also knows that it will take some time.]

[Those insecurities are her biggest obstacle right now, and as much as she's blushing, she's also wondering if she has the confidence to do something like that again... in her right mind. Without the influence of something pushing her past the brink into a very real possessiveness, rather than just the playful one that she imagined...

But she doesn't want to let today sully what could be, and his encouragement only makes her think about it more.

She wiggles a bit in his arms when he nips at her ear and shuffles a little closer when he pulls back, that look in his eyes only making this nervous tingle inside her harder to ignore.]

I... wouldn't mind...

[Her voice is so small as she slides her arms around him, but now it's her turn to add that slightly playful ring to it.]

But you have to let me...

Hmm..... Let is a little difficult... It's more fun if you try to persuade me... Or order me to.

[Of course even then he's a difficult, rebellious wolf.]

[It does still feel a little strange to be talking about it like this, like how it had all been perfectly normal when it hadn't been, but maybe it's better that they do. Maybe she really should try to embrace those feelings and desires rather than try to run away from them, scared that they mean something worse.

He seems to be embracing it fully, encouraging it, so...

Now she looks at him with a dubious arch of her brow, and there's another drawn out pause as she tries to muster up the courage to say it. His "bindings."]

... I did. But then you burned the vines away.

Only because you pushed me too far. I can only hold out for so long.

[Honestly if she wanted him to stop he would. But he does think it important that he still didn't mind it all... Except for that part. Seriously woman he's only a man who can only take so much—]

Unless I shouldn't next time.

Edited 2023-03-09 15:02 (UTC)

You...

[Why is it harder to talk about what she wants openly than it is to talk about it with everything else that happened hanging over their heads—]

Shouldn't. I was going to give it eventually...

[Some of the flowers nearest her curl their petals up tight.]

I can only hold out for so long too, you know... but I just...

[Liked how he looked. Sounded. Felt. But she can't even bring herself to say that, so instead, she steers it around on him.]

Is that why you like it so much...?

[She might not be saying it, but he knows. Something that is clearly reflected in the gleam in his eyes and the light smirk on his lips.]

That's part of it.

[Is she going to regret asking this? But her curiosity is getting the better of her, and that is reflected in her own gaze, as her embarrassment ripples over more of the flowerbed.]

... What's the other part?

[Maybe. Maybe not. He just leans in closer, close enough that their lips almost touch, and with his voice low, almost rumbling...]

...Secret.

[:P]

[She can't help it. Her eyes close as he moves in, so close that she can almost taste his lips when she lets hers part just so... Feeling his breath tickling them, a shiver runs over her, and the petals that had hidden away slowly begin to open...

But as soon as his voice rumbles through her with that one word...]

Eustace—!

[Tifa pulls back, covers his face with her hand, and gently pushes it away.

Why does he keep doing that!!!

Really, though... she's smiling again, and she can feel a giggle bubbling up in her chest, ready to burst. When she came to, she was worried that things would be different between them—that it would be tense or awkward, or he wouldn't know how to react to everything, but she really should have had more faith.

He always finds a way to make her smile again. To make all those warm feelings wash away the bad ones, and she's forever grateful that she had been so lucky to find him.

With that, however, she rolls away from him and steals the blanket of flowers with her, a pretend pout puckering her lips as some of the petals rustle away and fall to get stuck in her hair.]

[She really would have. As much as he hates that time, in many ways he's grateful that he's been through this before. He would have been more at a loss and uncertain as to how to proceed. Should he be more delicate? Give her space? Would he even be as possessive as he is now if not for the Bleeding Heart? Sometimes he wonders if that creature is the reason he had his own awakening, but it doesn't matter. And at least thanks to that, he knows exactly what she's feeling and can at least be more genuine and adamant in helping her.

So he just laughs quietly when she pushes him away and then rolls over, pouting. He watches her for a moment, his eyes so soft and filled with love before he slips his arm through the flowers (well it's not the most solid thing) to wrap around her waist and press up against her from behind.]

I can always tell you next time if you really want to know.

[His voice will now tickle her ear as he gently nuzzles her.]

[Still!!! pouting!! as she lifts the flowers up closer to hide her face beneath them, but she does wiggle her hips a little in acknowledgement when she feels him from behind, pressing up against her.]

... Why not now?

[Cute. So cute that he can't help but gently tug her sweet, soft ear with his teeth as he continues to whisper into it.]

It will make more sense when you're experiencing it yourself.

[Shameless wolf is shameless. And daring as he suddenly sweeps his hand lightly over her stomach—more of a ticklish motion than suggestive.]

[That finally provokes the laugh that she'd been holding in out of her, his fingers over her stomach making her muscles tense as he tickles and leaves goosebumps behind.]

... Okay. Next time, then.

[She turns around again so that she's on her back and can look at him, her gaze no longer playful or teasing, but soft, filled with love and appreciation, cheeks flushed pink still, that flower in her hair glowing a brighter as the white slowly begins to spread through the petals.]

Next time, I... we can try...?

[And she'll know what she's doing. Know how far she's going, and won't push. Although the feelings she felt before were genuine, they were still tainted. She wants to make this right. Wants to do it right next time.]

[Although he still had that playful gleam, his smile is warm and filled with affection as he leans in to drop a light kiss on her cheek.]

I'll be looking forward to it.

[Her eyes close again, that kiss washing away every last bit of worry she had left, and just before he can pull away from her, she captures his lips with hers. It isn't forceful. It's tentative but deliberate, as soft as can be as she very, very delicately presses a kiss to his. It's the kind of kiss that makes their love swell in the air around them with a palpable flutter of warmth around them as the emotions come over her, overwhelming and powerful like a tide, but beautiful. Sweet.

And, as if the cave were reacting similarly, the flowers spread, and while there new vines that creep downward over the walls, they push away the broken, burnt ones that had lingered behind. No longer is their little secret cove black and charred, but green and glowing with flowers again, some blue while others bear the same red as the one in her hair.

When she parts, she whispers with a smile, and a gentle breeze rocks through the flowers.]

... Me, too.

[She wants to steal him for another kiss, to pull him under with her, but before that, she just wants to be sure that he knows where she stands.]

Thank you, Eustace...

[She wants to say "I'm sorry" again, but she knows that it won't do either of them any good. So, she leaves it at that, holding onto that apology instead.]

I... I still don't know how it all happened, and I don't really understand, still... but... we'll figure it out.

[Tifa moves in to nuzzle him, her nose nudging gently against his.]

I'm just... I'm glad I have you.

[Glad that he understands where those feelings come from, and why she feels them. That he would encourage her to embrace them rather than fear them... and that he feels the very same way.]

[He smiles into that sweet kiss, savoring it as his fingertips brush over her cheek, light gentle traces. And when she pulls away, he waits before stealing the kiss she had been wanting herself, one just as gentle and sweet as the last.]

I'll always be with you... No matter what happens.

[A quiet, soft affirmation of his vows and his love to her. A love so deep that even he can barely believe it. Yet it's right there... Staring right back at him in those clear, ruby red eyes. Right there in that soft smile, that gentle warmth.

...Right there...still healing from the numerous wounds she had to suffer and deal within the past few days. Not just with the Bleeding Heart, but with parts of her past now appearing without warning or time for her to prepare for it.

Unable to resist the swell of emotions, his arms slip around her and pull her to him into a close hug, not wanting to let her go. Both out of want from his own selfishness, but also because he doesn't want her dealing with any of this alone anymore. Wants to remind her she will always have a safe refuge—a home—right here with him, in his arms. Just as he knows he can turn to her when he needs it.]

[He may never know how much she's come to appreciate hearing those words, or how badly she needs to hear them on some days, like today. It never changes, he will always be that constant in her life for as long as they are both here, but those fears of being all alone get swept away in the tide that comes when he reassures her with the same conviction, that same pledge again.]

I love you...

[It's said quietly as he pulls her into his arms, and as she buries herself into his arms, melting completely into him. Into her safe place where nothing can reach her, and nothing can hurt her tired, worn-down heart. After everything that's happened in the past few days, between the night of the masquerade and now, it felt heavy. Weak... But he's lifted her back up, helped her onto her feet, and holds her hand as he continues to guide her out of the shadows and back into the light.

His light, like the moon, is safe. Warm.

Tifa's arms wrap around him in turn, and she focuses on the sound of his breathing. The beat of his heart. The way he feels up against her and around her, their bodies locked and tangled up together in an embrace. She wants to make this moment last for as long as possible, to cherish every moment, but his heart beating along with hers starts to rock her into a light sleep. She hadn't realized how weary she was until he had taken her and pulled her close, but now that she's blanketed in his warmth and the scent of the flowers around them is filling her head, mixing with his, she can feel her mind already starting to clear, and the bed of petals calling her into a dream...

She wants to fight it, wants to stay awake with him and savour his presence—she wants to appreciate as much and for as long as she possibly can—but it's difficult.

So, her eyes begin to close, her breathing starts to steady, and so does her heart.

How long she sleeps for, she doesn't know, but by the time she awakens, the light in the cave has grown dimmer, the early dusk colours starting to creep in with their oranges and reds. And he's still right next to her, just as she knew he would be...

But before they leave the cave and return home, there was something else that Tifa needed to do. Among the flowers, as they grew tall, the two of them reaffirm their feelings for each other once more. Now, they can take their time. It's gentle, slow, loving... exactly what she needs. Her confidence had wavered at the beginning as she sought out kisses from him, silently pleading with him to help her, but by the end, it had returned, and she could feel that love swelling out of her chest and pouring into the cave.

Their cave that is now filled with vines and flowers, a beautiful mix of blue and red. They bloom big and vibrant, their light filling the darkness, flickering as they reflect in the ripples of the pool. But the remnants of their deeper desires do not go unnoticed. Those same vines coil upwards around the bed of flowers they lay in, as well as the entrance into the cave, and they only part when they take their leave, their interlocking threads opening up for them once they're finished.

Not only has this special place of theirs been restored to its former beauty, but it's even more beautiful than before. No longer can they see the rocky walls or floor, as it's covered completely in a blanket of those symbols of their love for one another, and even after they leave the cave to head home together, hand in hand, they continue to spread outwards, past the walls of the small cavern, down into the water, and out to their secret campsite, their buds poking out through the snow that's still left behind.]

fifteenth shot ⊗ closed log

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