"But the dream, the echo, slips from him as quickly as he had found it and as consciousness comes to him (a slap and not the gentle waves of oceanic tides), it dissolves entirely. His muscles relax as the cold claims him again, as the numbness sets in, and when his grey eyes open, there’s nothing but the faint after burn of a dream often trod and never remembered." --Brigade, written by Laura
When it’s said and done, we’ll have our scars to show
Milky hues are still drawn to the sky where the flame bird had long since dissipated into the stars. She watches as it evaporated, hot flames turning to ash and smoke as quickly as they had appeared before her. Her ears are tilted in Longclaw's direction as he speaks, and she lets out a girlish chuckle.
"I'll be sure to inform you first, Longclaw," She jests, finally peeling her eyes from the sky to look over his sleek blue frame. He is the first horse she has ever gotten a true look at, and she allows herself to mull over the long legs that carry his thick, muscled frame and broad chest. When she notices how long her eyes have been lingering over his handsome structure, her face grows hot and she diverts her gaze to the ground.
"Who else do you know here?" He inquires, and her chest tightens at the thought of Krigare. It had been so long since she had seen him, since he had breathed her name. She is unsure of where he has gone, if he even loved her anymore. Her breath catches and she closes her eyes as the pain of heartbreak consumes her (this isn't the first time she has felt it, and it wouldn't be the last).
"His name...is Krigare," She mutters to Claw, eyes remaining closed in her familiar darkness. "But he left." She states matter-of-factly; but that hint of anger burns on her tongue.
Zephyr can’t possibly know or even begin to understand the quiver of pleasure he receives when she affirms his request. “I’ll be sure to inform you first, Longclaw,” She says, rousing a wickedly fanged grin over his darkened lips. He rather liked this side of Zephyr, the side that could take a nip and give it right back. Where the hell had she been hiding away all this time, and how had he not sniffed her out earlier?
No matter. He can see the quick diversion of her eyes, the way her mouth sets to stone as it forms the word Krigare. Longclaw can’t say that he blames her, not his idea of a dashing prince charming either. “His loss, your gain.” The blue stallion grunts, navy tail darting sideways to slap at his hide. “I wouldn’t be so quick to toss away a gem for a rock.” Claw offers, the first hint of his thoughts escaping in a low, inflamed tone.
Slowly, so that he wouldn’t be mistaken in his actions, the guard of Tephra extends his supple neck to brush the narrow curve of his lips reassuringly against her bared neck. The heat beneath his skin is unmistakable; his flame was always a part of everything he did. Retracting the touch after a moment’s rest, Longclaw turns aside with intentions to meander along the beach. It’s an apt night for the activity and right now, he’s restless.
“What’s the most shocking thing about having your sight restored?” He asks, waiting for her to match pace and join him at his side. Beneath them both, the waves curl up to break against their hooves. “Does everyone look how you imagined they would?”
When it’s said and done, we’ll have our scars to show
"His loss, your gain." Longclaw's words cause her attention to divert back to him, and she stares into the deep forest green of his eyes. "I wouldn't be so quick to toss away a gem for a rock." A smile curls upon her gray lips at this comment, and suddenly her mind is far away from Krigare.
Later, she will feel the guilt of this action. Of how quickly he can slip her mind for the charming words of another man. Was she in love with him as she had claimed before, or had she just been so lonely she would've jumped on the first man who gave her the slightest bit of attention?
It doesn't seem to matter now, as she looks at the beautiful figure before her. His lips are trailing along the bend of her neck, and she doesn't shy away like she might've when she didn't have the gift of sight. Instead, she leans into him, the heat beneath his skin sending a ripple along her spine.
Longclaw withdraws his touch, and begins to walk away, careful to wait for her. Zephyr matches his pace. He inquires about having her sight restored, and for a moment she hesitates on an answer.
"Everything has been shocking," She replies. "It is all new to me." She remembers the haze before she had completely lost her vision completely, before the darkness (her life had always been a blur). Her legs carry her further into the ocean, until she is nearly in front of him. Tail flicks from side to side, as she watches the waves crash in the distance. "The horses around me have been most shocking. I've never gotten a clear picture until now."
She turns her neck, peering at him through long tresses of forelock. "But from what I've seen, well, I must say they are rather beautiful." A subtle grin stretches across her lips, and then her head is turned back to the sea.
He has all the time in the world to give the attention she’s been longing for. (Knows, too, that it’s what she longs for because he seeks it out himself) So when Zephyr becomes like supple leather beneath his warm touch, Longclaw feels the thrill of winning her to his side. A touch is a claim, is a win - it can be anything you want it to be - but for him, it’s a start. Already there’s an absence of knowledge where there should be boundless tomes of it; Zephyr is nearly a woman grown and should understand the feeling of being wanted, of being a woman.
He can sense that she longs for it, why else would she succumb to his feverish affections?
“There’s so much I can teach you…” He thinks as they pull apart, “So much for you to discover.” But she’s beside him now, the shimmering angles of her silver-lined body rolling with every step she takes until, at last, she’s outpaced him and found her stride leading. Longclaw can’t say that he cares all that much (His craft is more subtle, almost unnoticeable) and the pleasant curve of her hips as she sways down the beach is a most welcoming image to follow.
Above them, the countless stars stretch across the curve of the sky and the quiet lull of the ocean gives them noise to contemplate silently over. Claw appreciates the break in the monotony when her voice filters over the lapping waves to reach his upturned ears. I’ve never gotten a clear picture, she’s saying and the blue-toned stallion tries hard to suppress a bitter laugh. Blind or not, you could never get a clear picture of another Beqanna inhabitant from first glances.
Coyly, her head curves over her shoulder and for a moment, Longclaw stops in his tracks.
“Was that compliment for me?” He teases, stretching forward into a brief trot so that they might become parallel again. His shoulder takes liberties, choosing to brush casually against hers every now and then while they stroll. “Because I like it.” He murmurs, a wide grin mirroring her own. “Tell me another one, Zephyr.” He demands playfully, reaching aside to tug gingerly on a strand of her shadowy mane.
“My compliment to you is that I can’t decide which end of you looks nicer - the front half, or the back.” The devilish rogue flirts.
When it’s said and done, we’ll have our scars to show
The feeling she gets as his shoulder brushes against her own is one she cannot explain. It is one that sends electricity throughout her body, one that makes her body quiver. How could only a touch make her feel this way? What she lacks in understanding, she makes up for in enjoyment, and she allows the soft touch of his body against hers to continue. She is too naive, that poor soul.
"You've caught me red-handed," She replies to him with a flirtatious smile. "There are other things you may like as well." She does not say what, simply allowing the curve of her delicate hips to bump into him playfully as they walk.
Tell me another one, Zephyr. A coy demand followed by a tender tug at the wisps of her mane. The damn electricity returns, more intense this time, and she finds herself stopping to relieve the feeling beneath her chest. Had Krigare ever flirted with her like this?
And then the handsome warg speaks again, My compliment to you is that I can't decide which end of you looks nicer, the front half, or the back.
"You are damn good at making a woman feel wanted," She says in reply, lips tracing the line of his neck up to his ear. "And you're just as good at making a woman want you, Longclaw." The young blood purrs.
There’s nothing about her naivety that isn’t charming. Longclaw relishes in every touch that’s returned with equal gusto, goes as far as contemplating which areas would be best to begin with (Perhaps the scarred jut of her breast, milk-white and inviting - or maybe the shadowy curve of her belly; he doubts she’s been teased there before, if ever) and then wipes all thoughts clean with pure surprise as she trails his skin with her lips.
The shiver of heavy need courses beneath his skin. She’s getting good at this, and quickly. “Krigare was a fool to leave this one alone,” He thinks, inclining his skull to grasp every whispered breath she expels against his waiting ear. It’s in this moment he resolves not to let such a creature go to absolute waste. “Ohhh Zephyr,” He smirks in response, ducking his own head beneath hers to rake the fine points of his fangs softly over her chest.
“Making you feel wanted is only the first step.” The brute chuckles, pulling apart from her to shift their direction away from the shoreline. To their right, the waiting darkness of his shared island home is inviting them in, begging to envelop the two in secrecy and shadows among the jungle-like forest. It’s here that Longclaw strikes out for, pausing briefly to look back and wonder if she’ll follow.
“Come with me, Zephyr.” He murmurs out to her, the wild flash of his evergreen eyes nearly glowing in the starlit night. “Not because I ask, because you want to.”
When it’s said and done, we’ll have our scars to show
The sharpness of his fangs drags over her body, and she can hardly contain the moan that is forming in her throat. It is a welcomed touch, something she has never felt before. A feeling burns within her, something tucked so deeply within her that was just begging to get out. He pulls away from her, towards an expanse of trees, as candy words drip from his mouth.
"Come with me Zephyr. Not because I ask, because you want to." Her decision had been made long before he speaks those words, and she draws closer to Longclaw as he leads them towards the secluded stretch of trees.
Her stomach feels light and airy, a nervous feeling she hadn't experienced since she had last seen Krigare. Milky eyes look up to Lonclaw's handsome face - what was the point in dwelling on the past, when the present was so inviting? She is hungry for something more, and she can't help the beating of her heart as she stares at him.
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