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[COLOR=tan][indent][sub][B]Location:[/B] [COLOR=SILVER][I]Home - Debolt, Alberta, Canada
[/I][/COLOR][/sub][sup][right][b] Human: #5.069 [/B][COLOR=SILVER][I]I’d Love You Without Any Wings Attached[/I][/COLOR][/right][/sup][/indent][sub][hr][/sub][INDENT][sub][B]Interaction(s):[/B] [COLOR=SILVER][I]N/A[/I][/COLOR][/sub][SUP][RIGHT][b]Previously:[/b] [COLOR=SILVER][I]Growing Vanes[/I][/COLOR][/right][/SUP][/INDENT][/COLOR]

[indent][color=gray]The crackling of fire in the hearth was gentle as it reached Haven’s ears. Daylight warmed her bare skin where she laid across the bed. Her head rested flat against the mattress. Rory’s firm chest had been replaced by the cotton sheets beneath her.

Sleep had fallen onto her like a heavy blanket last night. No nightmare touched her in her peaceful sleep. If she’d had any dreams, she couldn’t recall them. Her mind felt rested and at ease; her body languid and loose throughout. A stark contrast to the usual tension she held in her shoulders and back since coming to the cabin. She hadn’t even felt Rory leave the bed, she realized, as her hand splayed open to search for him beside her.

Her eyes opened slowly, blinking once as they adjusted to the bright light streaming through the window. Outside the sun shone down through the yellow and green treetops. The forest wall was brightly illuminated by the afternoon light, save for the few shadows the branches and leaves cast on the ground beneath them. She’d slept longer than she expected to. As if her body was catching up on weeks of interrupted sleep, exhausting days of travel, and an eventful night of growth and rekindled passion.

The sound of wheels rolling over wood caught her attention then, soon followed by the soft clinking of silverware in the sink. It brought a smile to her face to hear Rory moving within the cabin. It grew wider as she remembered the feel of him last night, and the words that they’d shared with each other before she had closed her eyes.

Had he heard her say them? Did the admission carry him into the same blissful rest that had come over her?

Haven roused from her position on the bed to go to him, to remind him of those words. Only for her muscles to ache and protest the movement in a reminder of the display of her hype gene so many hours ago. She groaned softly as she sat upright. Her legs shifted to hang off the side of the bed. Before she even dared to stand, her hands moved to rub at her sore shoulders and back. The muscles there had taken the brunt of the development. In an effort to test the pain, she stretched out her arms and wings beside her. Her eyes fell shut as she felt the shifting of her muscles beneath the integument. Her small wings weighed heavily on her back; their muscles fully developed for their size but not yet trained to hold themselves up naturally. She’d have to work on honing them like she’d done many years ago. Which, she could only hope, would be a lot easier this time. Her feathered limbs returned to lazily rest at her back as she ran her fingers through her messy hair.

She’d gotten enough sleep to rest her mind, but it seemed like her body needed more time to recover. The thought sparked the usual million questions within her mind. Questions that wanted to ruin the happiness of last night and the quiet of this morning. Questions that would make the tension return in her shoulders.

Rory called her over for lunch, then, having noticed she was awake. His voice easily calmed her mind. She stood from the bed, moving to pull on a clean shirt and underwear, and was surprised to find that the dirt was gone from the floors already. She looked Rory’s way, and her smile returned as her heart warmed. Her worries faded into the back of her mind. The ache in her muscles dulled with each step she took to get to him. Her gaze turned to two plates he set on the table, each of them adorned with a sandwich and a pile of chips. A pang of hunger hit her in her stomach like a fist and her stomach growled in response.

A sheepish grin formed on her lips as Haven looked back to Rory, which seemed to be contagious as he gave her a goofy grin in return. The sight distracted her from her hunger, easily. She leaned down to greet him with a gentle kiss upon his lips. Her hands lifted to rest on his broad shoulders, and she soon felt his fingers graze her hips. The sensation that spread across her skin had her kissing him deeper. His hand firmly took hold of her hip now as the other moved to push her hair back from her face, gently pushing it to the back of her neck where he pulled her further into the kiss. She moved closer to him on instinct. Her hands squeezed his shoulders as she lifted one knee and rested it beside his leg. All thoughts consumed by his touch, by the need to get closer to him as she felt a different type of hunger take hold of her.

Her stomach growled louder, as if it was annoyed by the delay.

Their kiss was broken by soft laughter, the two lovers taking a deep breath as they reigned in their desires to focus on the meal. Rory positioned his wheelchair at the head of the table while Haven took the seat catty-corner to him. She wasted no time pulling the plate closer to her. Her fingers took the soft bread into hand and she tried her best to eat it slowly.

It was a simple sandwich, with mayo, a slice of cheese, and two slices of sweet ham placed between white bread. Somehow, to Haven’s current appetite, it tasted like heaven on her tongue. She had always thought that sandwiches taste better when someone else made them for her, anyways. So she happily ate it, and took her time eating the chips as Rory finished his lunch.

She thanked Rory for lunch by crawling into his lap.

Haven brought in more wood for the fire as Rory cleaned up the mess from lunch. Rory finished before her, of course, because she’d gotten distracted by the beauty of the fall colors outside. The forest seemed to call to her now, more than it ever had before. She brought in more than wood, having gathered a few lingering blooms among the aspens and pines. She cut them small, and placed them in the tallest glass with a bit of water at the bottom. One particular flower stood taller than the rest, resembling a paintbrush that reminded her of her sister.

[i]Harper.[/i]

She wondered if anyone had answered her texts yet as she sat at the table, admiring the flowers she’d brought in. If they truly didn’t have service at the cabin, she’d have to wait until she went into town to find out. Aurora surely would have texted back by now, but Harper? She wasn’t even sure if there was a cell signal beneath the waters of the Atlantic. How could she know that Harper was safe there? That anyone that had chosen to go to The Foundation were welcomed with open arms?

Rory’s touch on her shoulder brought her back to the present. As if he’d seen the way her face fell and thought to pull her out of the darkness of them. She turned to him, offering a small smile, before she distracted herself from what had been bothering her by suggesting they tackle the laundry. Thankfully, he accepted the deflection.

Hand-washing laundry wasn’t new to Haven. She may not have done it right when she lived on her own, but she never let her clothes get entirely filthy. For Rory, though, it was a new experience. Haven sat on the edge of the tub as it filled, smiling at her partner where he placed himself in the same spot as last night. Each of them thinking of what they’d done together in the bath the night before, and trying their best to focus on the chore instead of the temptation to recreate it. She started scrubbing with him, sharing the story of the first time she’d washed her own clothes in a cabin similar to this one. Once they’d gotten through enough clothes, Haven carried the damp fabric out to the hearth where she hung them on the chairs and laid them on the table to dry by the heat of the fire. In between trips she’d linger to place a kiss on Rory’s forehead, or his lips, or allow their hands to wander across each other as the tension between them grew.

By the time they finished, the sun was setting. Haven made grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner. One of her specialties, she explained to him. It had always been a cheap and easy meal to make, for both her mother and herself when she was younger. The two ate together by the fire. She’d pulled the rocking chair over to face him, with her feet resting on the space between his legs as the two enjoyed the cheesy meal.

Haven cleaned the dishes while Rory ran another round of hot water for their bath. They repeated the routine of last night, the two of them undressing each other with tender kisses and wandering hands. As Haven lowered herself into the tub once more, she was gently surprised by Rory’s hands against the skin of her back and not her feathers. He massaged the sore muscles with firm ministrations that had Haven melting into the water. Soon his hands were replaced by a soapy washcloth, as he washed away the day’s sweat for her. She turned around when he finished. Her hand took the cloth from his and she set to treating him to the same luxury he’d afforded her.

They managed to make it to the bed before the tension broke between them. The lovers exchanged those three wonderful words many, many times, before their shared exhaustion pulled them under.[/color][/indent]