[IC] Journey to the East

[Illumin0sity]

The Kelvic was heated both physically and emotionally, warmed by their interactions and them getting along. It had really pained him when they were at odds with one another, either him at her or her at him. In times passed he would’ve folded far more easily than recently, but he had been pushed to the point of breakage, went to resist, and then actually broke. He was healing in all ways from the various wounds to psyche and physick, the warmth provided being a great support needed to his weakened being. He was regaining strength in both areas, attempting to reconnect with his bondmate by sharing what once brought them together in the first place and by playing on the clicking parts of their personalities.

Noah smiled at Elann’s giggle, his hand slowing briefly as his eyes flicked down to the card that had yet to be turned off as Elann rattled off the immediate concerns to be addressed before she started volunteering anywhere. A chuckle came out of him as she pointed out her adopting all the children would drive him crazy, and it would, so he nodded and hummed to affirm it. Noah did like children, easily syncing with their already innocent and naive personalities because he was both of those as well to a point, but they were overwhelming en masse.

“I don’t think it’ll be hard to get my courier job back there,” he went. “My boss in Syliras gave me a letter to give to the boss there, so I think it will be easy for me to have my job back... unless I want to do something else.” He shrugged, humming to say he didn’t know yet.

Her question came to bring out a third hum from him, this one in thought as he considered his other hobbies. It was probably already a given he would spend a fair bit of time outside regardless of where they ended up setting up their home. As for hobbies, the only things coming to his mind then were hunting and now drawing again.

“I don’t know,” he admitted. “I want to keep boxing and I wanted to learn how to use the spear again. I was trying to do that before I got hurt last time. When I ran I had to leave my spear in the forest, the same with all the clothes I wore that day.” He paused, thinking about Devi and how she didn’t know of his Kelvic nature until he revisited her an entire season later, thanking her for taking care of him and warding off what was certain death for the then little eagle.

“I’ll keep drawing, so I’ll need to buy another book of paper and more charcoal pencils,” he added, looking down as Elann flipped the card only to look at him, perplexed.

“Put the card back into the deck randomly and draw again,” he instructed softly since he was so close to her ear anyway, this was more breathy and patient, though inside he was eager to see what the next card held.

“Do you still want to work in a weaver’s shop?” he asked. “There are actual clothing stores in West Street and the Market District, you could work at one of those maybe?”

[snelss0]

It was good at least that Noah had job security. His was by word of reputation; Elann's was by her showing skill in tests upon interview. In a town focused on fashion, she wondered if she would truly be good enough to do the quality work they demanded.

He spoke to his hobbies, which brought a smile to her and she perked up a bit at his mentioning of the spear. She didn't know that about him. His vocalizations of what he liked was bringing a bright smile to her face. She loved when he talked to her, and it was in sharp contrast to earlier.

"I don't know honestly if I would be good enough for Zeltiva shops. I would have to see what they are like, but I can give it a try. I don't feel too comfortable opening my own shop there without knowing what the area is like and how people think."

Before she shuffled the offending tied card and flipped the next card over, she stated, "I like that you are learning to use the spear. The warriors of my people use spears and hand axes in combat mostly."

Though she didn't understand why, the thought of him using the spear was highly attractive to her. He perhaps could feel the growing attraction in their bond the more she thought about him weilding it.

"I like that you can fight. I like that you are strong."

Her hands moved down to play over his chest and the muscles there. She was not necessarily trying to engage in making love, but she did love his chest and wanted to touch it.

"It's as the Sylirans say, 'sexy'-- 'shamad'...as we say. Which roughly translated means: desirable in a way that you take pleasure, that you want to covet the person, in a beautiful way."

It was hard for Elann to even remember they were playing cards as she got sucked in mentally to him and his presence, but eventually by pure mental strength, she pulled away a hand to the deck and after sticking the card in the middle, she flopped over an eight.

As she thought, he was likely to win, and only by chance was that not an Ace.

"Low..." she stated as she turned back to him, closely lingering.

[Illumin0sity]

Noah didn’t know Elann’s skill level in comparison to what the professional clothing shops of Zeltiva produce. From what he saw of Elann, he knew he liked what she made, but he could’ve been utterly biased because it was she who made it. Arbitrarily, he could totally dislike something that was otherwise deemed beautiful simply because Elann didn’t make it. It was how his mind worked as a bondmate, unless it was corrected in the right way. Going on, Noah didn’t care for clothing much because he didn’t care to wear them. It was only by Elann’s urging that he even wore as much as shorts when walking around the camp. Then again, should it have not been for her inability to traverse the world quickly, he would’ve been in Zeltiva a week ago.

“You want to open your own shop one day?” he questioned off of Elann revealing her discomfort. That was a curiosity in his mind because Caesarion had wanted the same thing when they would’ve arrived in Riverfall. His interest was piqued, told by the inflection in his voice.

Elann complimented him again in a way, expressing her enjoyment over him being able to fight. He thought it was a given since he was an accomplished predator. Fighting, essentially, was in his bones and feathers. What was both funny and intriguing was she thought it sexy of him being able to fight. He naturally related her thoughts to her previous statement of the men of her tribe using spears and axes. Since she did have her own desire of him to be more manlike, like the men of her people, as much was clear by now, it was easy to make the connection.

“I would be a terrible predator if I couldn’t fight,” he joked, not totally disregarding her interest in him, but moving on because the joke was the first thing that came to mind.

Inside, Noah was on the fence about divulging that it was Caesarion who introduced him to the spear, encouraging him to learn how to fight in his human form just as well as in his eagle’s form. Boxing was some extension of that but the choice to learn hand-to-hand combat was Noah’s own. Caesarion had also encouraged the use of the bow, of which Elann used now. The bow in conjunction with his Stormwarden abilities would’ve been an awesome sight according to Caesarion. It went to show many other things about Noah were still developed by Caesarion’s influence, just not the want to be a normal man.

Elann guessed low, causing Noah to reach into her space again to flip the top card. He had scored his own point with the previous card coming up as an eight but he didn’t revel in it, partly distracted because of Elann’s fluttering closeness and piquing interest in him. Flipping the card over, it came up as a thirteen, making Noah smile a little. He hummed happily and in teasing, his smile broadening a bit.

“We say drracovata or vata,” he explained, the Fratava slipping from his lips in the deeply romantic way it sounded with little effort. The r's were rolled effortlessly from the back of his throat into the a, the rest whispered breathily to denote the intent of the word. “Or, ona toné nu chrroso laoché, ‘you make my heart burn.’” Diving from basic Common to the sensualness of Fratava’s romantics was beyond apparent, Noah’s voice even dipping deeper into a low whisper to mimic the way it was said when attempting to lure someone into another’s boudoir with sweet nothings.

“Lower,” he guessed, knowing there was no where else for the direction to go.

[snelss0]

Noah seemed interested in her wanting to open her own shop. She shrugged in a little wince as if she wasn't sure.

"I can't be sure. I was raised in trade. I know how to run a shop there, but I don't know here. I guess I do, but I'd say I'm very open to anything at this point. Even something that might not be dealing with sewing or weaving."

Her husband joked about the ability to fight and it caused her hands to slide down in a sort of embrace on his sides, but much less personal as she smiled at him.

"I would still think of you as a great predator even if you couldn't."

In her mind, when a lion got old, he was a glorious predator. Not because he was so skilled in catching what a young lion could, but because he had gained honor of many kills in his life. His 'name' as it were was that of a great killer. Even if Noah was injured or an old man, she would always think of him as the young eagle who would snatch fish from rivers, battle rodents, and soar on the skies. He could feel her adoration as she looked up in thought at the subject, showing she was sincere in what she said, even if he felt like it was time to joke.

Noah came into her space, and he would feel piquing senses of desire in her each time he did. While they were small, she had that strong attraction to him, and whenever he came in close, it made her hold her breath; as silly as it was. As Noah flipped over the card, she grumbled playfully at his win and gave him a quick kiss on the side of the mouth before hovering over the deck with a hand.

He expressed how they spoke the words to each other in their sensual way, but Elann wasn't turned on by it. Perhaps if he had ever sought to lure her himself as she had wanted, she then would feel that way, but here she realized they were just playing a game, she was on his lap, and they were enjoying their closeness with each other. With a turn of the hand, she flipped the card to reveal another thirteen, and after shuffling it back in, she revealed a nine.

"Hmm, lower."

[Illumin0sity]

Noah nodded and hummed to acknowledge Elann’s words. He thought it interesting she still wanted a shop, regardless of what it sold. He didn’t know how her experience in the deserts of Mizahar would transfer to the bustling civilization that was Zeltiva. That was mostly because he didn’t know if the Benshiran haggled with currency or bartered goods, the former being the most common form of business exchange in Zeltiva and the latter being for more personal exchange between neighbors, thus rarer, especially for those who needed the coin in order to trade in the markets of Zeltiva.

It wasn’t Noah’s intention to provoke Elann’s passion in any way. He simply meant to reenact the words and teach how they were to be said given the situation. He was really focused on the idleness of the conversation, the game, and their closeness. Fratava as a language just harbored much of the emotion he didn’t display easily and was a language he preferred to speak. As a language, each word had its meanings, or multiple given the context, and each word was said with it’s own flit of emotion, the tiny flares combining into the flame that was the language spoken in full fluidity. It could be loud, hot, and angry, or it could be soft, sensual, and romantic as just seen.

“I wouldn’t,” he replied, not thinking himself much of a predator if he couldn’t fight in the slightest.

In his mind, in order for a predator to reach old age they would need to be able to fight and survive to that age. As for people he revered in that regard, his mother and father were at the top of the list, both masterful hunters in their own regard, having yet to reach the end of their lives. Since they were the ones who taught him how to hunt, it was only natural to regard them so highly. He sought to be as valiant as they were, and even though he was accomplished in hunting, he was far from the mastery of his father or mother. None of his siblings had reached their mastery at all, especially now since they were all so involved with the workings of human society, Noah being the last to be fully dragged into it with the bonding to Elann.

Noah, looking down, waited for Elann to flip the card. Another point was scored for him and he smirked as Elann kissed the corner of his mouth. The card was a nine and she guess lower, to which he hummed as if saying it wouldn’t be her assumption. He brought his hand out over the deck and pulled at the card, hesitating to build whatever suspense would be - if any at all - before flipping it; a ten was revealed, to which he gave a closed-mouth chuckle.

“I told you I was going to win,” he reaffirmed playfully. “I’m going to guess lower too.”

Noah leaned in and kissed her on the corner of her mouth in reply, as if asking for her to remain affectionate despite the loss. He even lingered there, planting another peck in quick succession before pulling back enough to see her clearly, though his sights didn’t remain on her, flicking down to see the next card she drew.

[snelss0]

"Hmm, you are good at this," she voiced to his guessing. She was competitive to a point, but he was injured, was emotional hurt by her, and she was enjoying his presence. It all kept her from feeling too much like a sore loser. "Maybe you're right."

He kissed her back as she looked down toward the deck, pecking on the corner of her mouth. The action caused her to be distracted from pulling his card, particularly due to him lingering close. Her eyes reached for him, studying his face romantically as she was angled from him toward the deck with her mouth. He leaned in again, kissing her there and she swooned despite the quickness of it all, only able to continue her movement downward to the deck as he moved away. It was clear he wanted affection from her, and blatantly obvious she wanted it from him.

She assumed the game was going to be over when the two of them got through all the cards in the deck. Already they were a considerable way through it, but it would take a bit longer to finish if that were the case. Right now he was winning, but she hoped that could turn around for herself.

Elann would continue the game with him until it was finished, unfortunately deeming him the winner in the end as they counted their points.

[Illumin0sity]

“I know,” Noah chimed vainly.

Guess was a game that could be played for hours, until a certain number of points, or until the deck was done. It was often that Noah and his siblings would play until the deck was done then start over, just because it passed the most time when there was a large chunk of it to kill. It was one of Noah’s favorites because of the random factors, a well shuffled deck yielded enough volatility that nothing could be cheated and gloating could be punished by a suddenly bad stream of luck. Elann was his bondmate so he wasn’t attempting to be provocative in his gloating, simply teasing and aiming to draw reactions from Elann based in the playful nature.

The game wound down still, each hand offering a point to either of them, keeping Noah ahead by the few he was by. It seemed he was just lucky this night and he was enjoying it. He was sharing something meagerly personal about himself with Elann, his love for simple card games and games in general. It was small but it meant a great deal to him because they reminded him of Zeltiva and his younger years as a juvenile.

In the end it was him who won as they tallied up their suits. He showed her a tooth bearing grin once their totals had been announced, showing he took pleasure in the win and in teasing her because of it. If Elann remembered Aimee speaking about Noah’s mischievous behavior before she’d know this was but a small display of how devious he could be. She would perhaps recount the tale about Noah stealing Aimee’s cherished toy and putting it on the roof because she couldn’t get up there. Even if the wolf did, he would fly off to the next one, revelling in the teasing of his older sister.

He collected the suits and brought them back into a deck, shuffling through them per habit, going through the motions before reaching for the band which bound the cards together and rewrapping it around the deck to set aside once more. The game was done and he had won, now he was waiting for the next phase of their late night stint.

Noah looked around the pallet they were on in search of the journal. Once found, he reached for it and brought it out in front of the both of them, favoring it closer to Elann. “Did you start another one?” he asked. “You gave the others to Aimee.”

Like before, he hadn’t cracked it open though his curiosity begged to invade whatever was inside. The staunch want to remain in Elann’s good graces prevented it though, forcing him to show some self-control over the situation whereas he would usually, and easily, give into the wants of his inquisition.

[snelss0]

Both times she had played Noah now and lost. She wanted to become more active in playing with him; it was one of her desires. Given their time on the trail, she would have plenty of opportunity. The closer he would come to heal though she would want more and more to see him fly, to become strong again, and to feel like the master over his domain once more.

There in the tent, he was hardly master of anything except winning the card game, and he had to rely on Elann for a great many things in his present state. Noah was becoming more independent though and she was happy to see it. She had written about how she longed to see him soar again, to change before her. While most of her journaling was thoughts of the day, fun experiences she had, or new things she had learned, some of them were her desires for him in language that should anyone read it, they may not understand what was written.

He brought her journal between them and as it was closer to her, she pressed it toward him, showing that between them there were no secrets.

"This is a new one, yes. I started it when we were on our way toward Zeltiva. I was planning on writing a bit in it tonight on what we did, how Aimee helped me set up the tent and seemed to be doing a little better than before, maybe something about how your kisses feel..."

If Noah read it, he would see the passion expressed through their bond in places where she would write down what she thought of him. If he ever read them, he could gain the understanding that at times she seemed satisfied with him completely, and other times she would feel like something was missing between him and her that she saw in normal passionate couples among her people. Though it was rare, she knew of their drive to seek each other sexually and that was not in their relationship, not to the extent she wanted. While her works would not come right out and say that, it would be possible to understand it if you could understand her innuendos in certain areas. She had told him what was on her heart and didn't care to hide it in her writing, but didn't want it to seem like it truly destroyed her. At first it did, but she had since come to know how much he loved her in many other ways.

There were even sections within that spoke of Caesarion and how destroyed it seemed to have made Noah, but for the most part that would have been in earlier volumes of her writing. Elann would let him read to his heart's content. There were pages with tears on them and stained ink that particularly stood out that ranged from tears of sadness with their fighting and her views, and tears of later sadness of apology. There were pages of tears given their redemption and her joy when they got along, but short to say, it would all speak to the woman's strong emotions and desire to see emotion in her husband for her in many ways.

[Illumin0sity]

Extending the journal towards Elann did little since she ended up pushing it more towards him to give him permission to read it. He still didn’t act though, only bringing both hands over it to flip it around and around as she explained what she was going to write about in the new journal started once they got on the road to Zeltiva. He hummed to acknowledge each point, the last hum dying off as his eyes dragged from the journal to her.

“My kisses?” he questioned softly. “What do they feel like?” The second question was more in prompting, prodding for an explanation.

Noah went to open the journal then, cracking it open near the middle at blank pages. He didn’t intend to read just yet, using his thumb to flip through the pages towards the written-on portions until he got to the beginning of it all.

“Do you write every night?” Noah was unsure if he had missed her writing or just dismissed it, wondering if any of it happened while he was sleeping because of the tea or just being flighty with his attention span.

Flicking through the pages still, he landed on a tear stained one, the distorted paper sticking out with it’s smudged ink apparent against the neatly placed scripture. The automatic tilt of his head came as he investigated with keen eyes. He drew quiet, eyes going over the blobbed ink and tear stains before reading the writing itself. Noah’s bottom lip was drawn into his mouth, held there by his teeth as he read on a little longer before closing the journal altogether. He leaned forward a bit, putting the journal back on the floor before them.

“Are you writing tonight?” he asked lowly.

[snelss0]

"They feel nice...It's hard to describe them really. Like the lightest touch of them intoxifies me more than the strongest drink, like I never want to part from them, and sometimes they bring about an urge that makes me feel like it is a crime to stop them."

She watched as he opened the journal then and leaned back so he would have some room between them. Her eyes trailed over the page that he stopped at and she shook her head to him.

"No, not every night. The dates are there. Usually at least a few times a week, if not more. Somedays I'll write a bunch, sometimes not so much. It is all based on what I feel like putting down there."

As he drew in his bottom lip, she searched his bond for what he was feeling and emulated the behavior himself in a more shy manner. He shut it and set it down then, perhaps not liking what he had read and asked if she was going to write tonight.

"I think so. Maybe a little later."

Her hands came up over him to his hair now that the space between them was free at last and no more cardgame was there to distract between them. She played there a little, scratching into his hair and lightly massaging his head before she gave him a kiss. She wanted to ask him what he was thinking about what he read, but she didn't dare. If he wanted to ask, he could, she wanted him to feel comfortable to think about what he had read and eventually could come to her on his own terms instead of her nagging him.

She was actually quite cold, so slipping from him, she sought the comforts of the blanket and lay there looking at him with a loving smile on her face.

[Illumin0sity]

As poetic as Elann’s explanation of Noah’s kisses were, they didn’t draw much of a reaction from him. He had intended to read while giving her his ears but he was distracted by the words, even the smudged ones he tried to read, lingering on them for a moment longer than the others. It was a mood-ruiner, what he read in her journal detailing her emotions and thoughts after their fight. He hadn’t forgotten his own words or how he felt saying them or how he felt after the fact, the passage was a bitter reminder that he disliked. Before he set the book down, as he was reading the two pages, the buzzing sense of happiness faded away to be replaced by growing discomfort.

Setting the book down, he asked his question, to which she answered she would maybe write that night. Given that the night went leagues better than the passage he read he figured she wouldn’t have anything ill-thought to write about, he knew he didn’t want to read it, whatever she wrote.

She brought her hands up into his hair and he looked to her, watching her go about her motions before returning the kiss she gave him. Though there wasn’t a card game to distract the Kelvic from her, there were the new creeping thoughts in mind that were uneasing him from the current situation. He did regret reading the journal even though Elann had said it was allowed, perhaps encouraging him to when she pushed it towards him. It was how he took it anyway. That wasn’t to say he thought his new feelings as her fault because it was his own action which brought the feelings on. Either way, they were heavy.

Elann slid from him and took a place underneath one of the blankets. He retraced her hands’ movements in his hair with his own. Noah reached forward and adjusted the deck of cards aimlessly on the floor before turning and then slowly moving out to lay down on his stomach, his hands tucked under his head as he looked at Elann and her soft smile.

“Why do you write in it?” he wondered innocently, a question brought on by what he had read but asked in the way that was void of ulterior motive. “I don’t understand.”

[snelss0]

It wasn't unnoticed, this loss of happiness. Elann understood why, dependent on what he read. There would be hard thoughts in there that she had written and very good thoughts. Almost all of which she had opened to him about. Her only hope was that he wouldn't be childish and hold it against her for a long period of time. It surely was a mood ruiner, but it was plain to see how she felt about him in that moment.

He shifted to lay on his stomach as she watched him and expressed that he didn't understand. It was not so easily explained, she figured, but she would try so that he could understand her a bit more.

"Well...It helps me think. I feel when I write these things down, no matter how bad or good, it helps me to understand them better; to see what is not so easily seen for me. The reason I am changing right now and before to be a better wife is because I wrote down the things that were bugging me, looked at them, and they helped me to see I was in the wrong in many ways. I also can see more of the good in our relationship."

"I don't know if this is the same, but when you draw art, do you look at it as just art, or is it a part of you? Does it help you remember? Help you think on what was done and what you saw? It's kind of like that. I like to read them too, because sometimes I forget a lot of things and it reminds me."

She wondered if that explanation was good enough for him and yet felt she needed to say more.

"You know...that page you read may have been bad, but there are very good pages too, and they tell our story in a way; like a record.

[Illumin0sity]

Elann started her explanation as Noah lied there and stewed in his thoughts. What she thought was a childish notion was a survival mechanism in his mind, both as a Kelvic and as a bondmate. Knowing what she thought allowed him to navigate around evoking anymore of her ill thoughts and would keep her sated, hopefully. It made sense in his mind. As a Kelvic, it let him watch out for any other telltale signs of repeated misunderstanding and unintentional harm on her side. Seeing more made it hard to get to the point of forgiveness with her, a state he had yet to reach despite their good vibes that evening.

She tried to compare writing in her journal to his art, asking if it was a part of him or if it helped him remember events. She seemed to pause more, attempting to lighten what he read by saying there were also pages of goodness in the journal.

“I don’t know how to explain my drawing,” he admitted truthfully. It had been a long time since he had drawn anything, Elann being the first thing he had drawn since he last put the book down.

He tried to draw when he first arrived in Syliras but he couldn’t concentrate on anything long enough to get a full picture out. Elann had seen the partly done pieces in the more recent parts of the book, they were no more than sketches and outlines of vague and indistinguishable items. He remembered what started him drawing in the first place and what kept him drawing, they weren’t probably what Elann thought though.

He looked at the journal again, reaching out for it despite not wanting much to do with it at this point. He pushed it towards her across the floor. “Can you read me one of them?” he asked in reference to the apparent good parts of her journal.

[snelss0]

Noah explained he didn't know what to say about his drawing and Elann nodded to him in understanding. It appeared she didn't hit the mark exactly, or at least he didn't want to admit it; either way, she would let him think more on what his art meant to him without voicing what she thought it was.

He asked to see one of her good writings and she nodded, taking hold of it and opening it. She propped herself up and flipped through the recently written pages until she stopped at one.

"Here is one,

-He sleeps all day by the workings of his medicine. It may be some time before he comes to. I am so thankful he is getting better. It bothers me a lot to see him in so much pain, but at least I get to see him sleeping. He is so cute when he sleeps. His lips slightly puff out in a cute way and his breathing seems so soft.

-I also saw a bright blue butterfly with black around its blue. It was sitting on a white flower. A flower, can you imagine? It's just sitting there, like it's just another day here. Everything is so abundant out here, I wish Noah could experience this.

-He woke up for just a minute, looked around groggily and said something I didn't understand and then collapsed again. I think I'll cook him something special tonight, though I wonder if he can keep anything spiced down. I'll probably just make something normal afterall. The more I see of him when he is injured there, the more I can see that eagle side of him. Once there was a goat injured by a coyote and it acted a lot like Noah when he's drugged. He didn't want our help and just wanted to sleep away the pain. I will try to get him up soon when he is more healed."

"That was one of the days..." she stated as she looked to him to see what he thought.

[Illumin0sity]

Noah listened to Elann’s otherwise soothing voice. He wasn’t on edge but he was discomforted and sought to regain comfort through Elann’s speech. The words came, his gaze stark on her and unmoving, exchanging looks between her lips and eyes as they move across the words. At the mention of his lips he lifted his head and brought his hand from underneath, touching along his bottom lip as he tried to imagine himself in the scene Elann described, transcribed from memory. He knew he was a fairly quiet sleeper but it was odd being told as much, especially since he was so deeply asleep in the moment she was recounting.

She talked about the butterfly, to which he could imagine vividly. They weren’t a common sight in Syliras, nothing as brightly tuned as what he imagined she saw on that day. If they were as brightly tuned and did come to Syliras, Noah didn’t notice, probably thinking everything looked drab and grey compared to how vibrant and colorful things were out here and in Zeltiva. She then talked about him waking up, of which he had no recollection whatsoever. He didn’t like that, not knowing when woke up and spoke groggily and incomprehensible.

Elann finished and looked to him, meeting the gaze that never left her. His hand was still by his lips, the fingers resting on the bottom one, pulling it slightly off and down to the side. He was quiet in his consideration of her unspoken inquisition, asking him what he thought about the passage read.

“Can you read me another one?” he requested, moving his hand to stretch out between the two of them, resting there in the middle of them as his eyes softly asked the question again, looking between the journal and Elann’s gaze.

“You are going to write about my kisses like that?” he wondered afterwards, before she could start on the next passage. “You said they were stronger than a drink?” He wondered if she had a stiff drink before.

Her words didn’t fall on deaf ears, him just bringing it up now since he was feeling better in mind since she read to him. At the thoughts, his hand crept closer to her still, his gaze falling to her lips because he wanted to kiss her then. The disappointment in his bond was being uplifted and turning into the quiet desire for her person and touch again. The buzzing joy still had yet to come, he had been alleviated though.

[snelss0]

Elann's reading voice was very soothing. Her natural and eventual practiced voice in singing transferred to when she read. In the same way the tones of a flute could sooth a snake, placing it into a hypnotic lull, her voice could have the same soft effect over prolonged time of singing or reading aloud.

Her eyes would trace upward to him in between each section, showing him that she was evaluating him as she read as well. Upon seeing his hand still at his lips, it brought a smile to her face. As he asked her if she could read another one, a hand came up to run through her hair and she nodded as she pulled her locks back behind her shoulders.

In reality, most of the writings were positive in some way or another, only some being neutral when it was around the times of their fights as she played with her thoughts. She didn't dislike him in any way, so there was no real anger directed toward him in any of the writings; she would consider that unfaithful.

"I might," she said as she lay there and flipped through the pages. "Did it make sense?" she asked, seeing how she was using poetry and common still had some sense of uncertainty to it.

"Don't you feel like that- like when you kiss me that you feel like you want another kiss? I do. Strongly."

"Okay, here is another one.

-Today I took a walk ahead of the wagons. The clouds were like huge fluffy bulges. It's so nice to be able to see them instead of grey walls or in the form of sandstorms or the lightning storms we get. They were peaceful, just lazily drifting about as if floating on the surface of water and going with the flow.

-In the distance were mountains with snow still on them. They look close, but I'm pretty sure they are not. I'm glad the snow is over!

-I saw squirrels doing some weird thing. They looked like they were playing or something. One was chasing the other, then a crow came down and chased them off! It was weird, but kind of funny.

[Illumin0sity]

“Yes,” he answered. He didn’t have a problem understanding her writing or the way she structured it. Her calculated reading voice and the fact they were linked emotionally allowed him to glean what he was supposed to feel, or rather, what she felt in the moment she was recalling. The longer they were bonded the deeper they were being connected and the easier it would be to come back from falters and slip ups. As it were, their bond was still young, much older than the one with Caesarion, but young in comparison to the one his mother shared with Lanna. Though they couldn’t read one another’s minds, they would arrive to the point of being able to communicate without speech altogether.

“I do,” he answered again. “I like kissing you.” Though he remembered Caesarion’s kisses as well, and it was the reason for him liking the action, the enjoyment he drew from Elann’s kisses was unparalleled and far outshined Caesarion’s own. Even if he were upset, either with her or not, a kiss could be rid of uncomfortableness and discomfort relatively quickly and easily with a simple action.

The next recitation came to his simmering delight. His eyes were on her again as his mind churned to produce the image she described, walking outside with the wagons and the fluffy clouds. He imagined himself over her as she walked, seeing the clouds more upclose and personal. She shifted to the mountains and he imagined those too, though at a much closer distance. Being in Zeltiva he could see them from the rooftops and feel the very cold breezes as they would blow down from that way from time to time when they weren’t blowing in from the bay. The squirrels and crow came next, of which he imagined as well, this time planting himself beside Elann in the memory as they both watched the squirrels chattering with their twitching tails and rapid movements, how they scampered up and down tree trunks, leaping from the branches to the next tree. He saw them go back down to the ground where the crow came and scared them away, probably attempting to either join in on the fun or terrorize the rodents for its own enjoyment.

Noah drew his arm in back to him and tucked it, bringing himself to roll over his good side to lie on his back, closer to her but not under the blanket like she was. He was still dressed in the trousers from yesterday’s evening. As he settled on his back his face contorted into that of a pained wince, his nose scrunching as his top lip curled up at an angle.

With the two passages she had reinstilled his faith in the journal harboring goodness as well as otherwise darkly recounted memories, though they were written in the way of neutrality. He was feeling better inside, the image of the playing squirrels lifting his mood all the more. Noah brought his hand up and ran the back of his fingers softly against her arm.

“I like when you read to me too,” he said, his hand falling down over his chest, resting over where his heart beat. “It makes me happy.”

He lingered for a moment, looking up at her. “Kiss me.”

[snelss0]

Elann could feel the rapidly dissolving tension in her husband as she read and brought him into simmering delight. Much of her writing was visual as well as emotional. She in fact was a very emotional woman and it expressed itself in her writing. He would feel too through the bond her memories abounding in emotion as she read what she wrote. She saw things in a different light than him. To Noah, nature was his world and he fought and survived in it, Elann was a new being looking into the glass from the outside, seeking to jump inside and be with her husband in the crazy world he lived in. It gave her that unique view on things she didn't often see, such as clouds and fighting squirrels.

She took notice of her husband's movement, ready to help him as he moved to his back. She enjoyed the fact he had volunteered that he liked kissing her. That was something good to remember. Sometimes she just wrote romantic things he had said to her, words that stuck out, even if he himself didn't think much of them. Eventually settled, she watched as he romantically caressed her arm. Eyes of interest set on the fingers and eventually up to him as he relaxed and spoke to her on more of the things he enjoyed. They brought a warm smile upon her face, especially as he lingered a moment. Her eyes studied him curiously as he thought and then as she was asked to kiss him, she seemed like it made her happy; and the bond confirmed it.

Rising, she shifted half out of the blanket so her top half was on him uncovered and the bottom half still under the blanket. She lay down gently on his chest and came above his mouth.

"I guess you do deserve some kisses since you won the game, hmm?"

She brought her hands up to his hair and slowly lowered onto his lips, sensually kissing him. Despite her cold body, her lips were warm, almost hot due to her talking. She was quickly regulated by him and his lips to a nice warm temperature where she fell deeper into kissing him. In her mind she remembered the words she had written in the past, the words she wanted to write now about his kiss and his embrace; how she was spurned on to kiss him as much or as little as he wanted. She had a desire for him and if he had not pushed her away, she would course her hands across his chest in a loving way, seeking to increase his passion for her by hitting the spots that thrilled him.

[Illumin0sity]

Elann complied to his request, moving closer to him to hover over him. She brought up the game, suggesting that since he won he did deserve kisses. He hummed in agreement, smiling slightly as he looked up at her still in their close proximity. She then pressed her heated lips against his. The simple pressing of flesh on flesh was grandly uplifting in this moment, further elevating him up and away from the heavy feelings that once weighed him down. He didn’t forget what he read in Elann’s journal, the memory was there and would remain for the foreseeable future, he let himself be reminded she was making changes and the past was just that. It didn’t need to be dug up, especially if he had wanted to start over from their other slow and sensual night in the tent, the one preceding their morning’s loving.

Her hands went to the places he detailed long ago, going up his unafflicted side slow and light to bring goosebumps to his skin and a spiking in his heart. She spurred him to bring his own hands onto her, one moving to reside on the side of her neck, sliding up to caress and maintain a loose grasp behind her ear, his palm hot to the touch eventually being ebbed out by her cooler temperature. The other hand found her waist underneath the blanket but still above her dress. The fingers favored the small of her back, holding her in that spot loosely as well.

The kiss was sensual and he sought to maintain that, being careful with his lips but remaining physical, as if straddling the line between passion and gentle love. Noah thoroughly enjoyed their new interactions allowed since their marriage, the kissing and her openness to his public displays of affection, ones that were once hesitantly went along with by her in Syliras before their marriage. The more he thought about it the more he realized they never really said they were going steady or were more than friends until their marrying vows. It had grown naturally in the way that became obvious to even Matilda that feelings for one another were developing between the couple with each passing day they spent with one another. Perhaps it was destined from the day they went to the orphanage together, fates aligning to force them into one another’s paths and lives.

They parted naturally to breathe, his inner being warmed and enjoying the touch and taste of her on his lips, of which he licked. As he looked at her he could feel an almost magnetic attraction to her gaze and being, using the quiet love in his heart for her to bring on feelings of want for her to remain in his space whether they had sex here or not. He didn’t care what would happen after their breath was caught, he knew he would enjoy whatever came.

Noah’s gleaming lips parted to let loose a question Elann may have not expected. “Do you want me?” he asked, leaving the way for them entirely up to her. Sensing what he regarded as desire within her, he asked the question to show he wasn’t utterly oblivious to her wants anymore.

[snelss0]

Strong impressions of past love making coursed through her mind as he reached for spots with her that stimulated her enjoyment. Still, Elann was present with him, if not more present than the man himself. She was an emotional person true, but that just made her cling all the more to every intimate detail of every kiss, every hand movement, and every shift of their bodies.

They would part only briefly, her not wanting to stop kissing him, but in those soft moments where their breath intermingled, he seemed to want to say something. She anticipated him and didn't press further into the kiss, either by physical experience with him or through their bond allowing them to know what the other wanted. The question asked was certainly not one that she expected.

Elann had been a driving force in a lot of their love making and it was her passion for him that usually drove them into making love, so to hear him ask almost was an invitation by him to make love to him. In reaction to the question, she curled her feet until at the edge of the blanket and climbed the rest of the way out. She didn't leave his lips, merely letting her body go through its motions as she hovered near him in their connected affection.

"I do..." she voiced as she leaned down to his neck and up to his ear to nip at it. There she whispered, "Do you want me?"

True to Noah's form, he would speak the truth, which was what she wanted. She doubted there was the attraction still that had been missing in their relationship, but it didn't mean that he didn't love and want her, to desire for her to make love with him. She just wanted to hear it as he likely wanted to hear her. She would kiss him there upon his neck, deeply, making him experience her pressing and nudging against his neck for more access to the area as she went down to his chest. There she looked up, slowly hovering back toward his lips to await the answer due to her.