Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters from The Seven Deadly Sins/ Nanatsu No Taizai. They all belong to the wonderful Nakaba Suzuki.

This story, however, belongs to me.

-The Time We Share-

The evening air is cool, filled with soft winds that carry the scent of fresh flora to anyone out and about. The grass is crisp as she sits in wait, idly fidgeting a piece of her pristine white gown, an unusual choice of wear during these times of war. Tonight though is one of the few days she's allowed to rest easy and enjoy her life, although as of late she does not do so alone.

"Now where is that little scoundrel," she chides without any heat as her eyes wander to the surprise she brought with her, then swivel around to observe the tall brush surrounding the lush meadow she resides in. As a small breeze forces her softly glowing silver hair into brief disarray, a pout adorns her lips at the idea of having to fix it. "He should be here by now…"

Just as her fingers comb everything back in place, her ears pick up the sound of light footsteps, so faint you'd have to be listening for them in order to hear. On her feet at once, she stands at the ready in case her visitor is not one whom she invited.

The tall brush rustles for a moment before a figure emerges under the luminescent moonlight. Golden locks top the male beings head in a messy, but no less handsome way. His clothing like hers are those of casual, consisting of a dark tunic and knee length pants, and a black pair of boots. The most noticeable feature of the newly revealed male though are his eyes. Vibrant greens streaked with dark undertones seem to announce his emotions under the weight of his stare.

Having assessed the newcomer, she locks eyes fearlessly with him as the tension in the air seems to grow with their continued silence. She notes his energy, any magic laden creature could sense it with ease, and for a moment swallows under the significance of it. Raw and powerful it wafts off his form in waves, yet it remains tamed for the moment as he continues to watch her unwaveringly.

Her brilliant blue eyes harden for a moment before she utters an acknowledgment. "Demon."

His brows lower just slightly as he returns, "Goddess."

The air between them swells for what seems like eternity, until the goddess flashes a warm smile dispelling the tension in a moments glance. With arms wide open, she practically glides over to the admittedly short demon. "Meliodas! What took you so long?" her arms circle around his shoulders in order to pull him flush against her, much to his liking, as his eyes haze over at the nice set of cushions jammed into his face.

"Uh… sorry about that Elizabeth. It took a little longer than usual to shake off my brothers." He explains through the confines of her chest just as his hands settle on her wide waist atop the soft fine fabric of her gown. They begin to wander towards her backside in hopes of a nice squeeze.

Her pulling away to appraise him in worry thoroughly derails that idea. "Brothers? Is everything alright?"

The concern is quite clear in his ethereal companion's visage. The sight alone warms something deep inside his being. He turns his eyes to the crystal clear sky. The moon is on perfect display as it adds to the near breathtaking glow of his friend. He answers her questions truthfully. "It's really just the same old, Elizabeth. They're jealous of my power and hate the fact that I fight against using it. Tonight they wanted me to help them put a dent in the human's numbers… I managed to slip away during the chaos of it all."

There's silence for a while. Only the quiet sounds of insects singing in their own language. With a hand raised slightly to her chest in unease, Elizabeth takes in the dulling of the demon's eyes, frankly the only change in his demeanor to give away his lackluster mood. She takes a gliding step towards him. A surprised gasp escapes her as his attention trains on her and all traces of his once abysmal mood are wiped clear.

With a cheeky smile he reaches to take her hand. The utter smoothness of it against his rough callous one never ceases to get his heart racing. He pulls her gently towards the center of the meadow. "But enough of that! We came to relax and forget about the war raging on. Tonight it's just you and me, remember?" The clear easygoing in his voice soothes the tight ache that began to settle in her chest as she watched his plight. The bright green of his eyes urges her to believe that he will be okay. So as a heat flushes her cheeks at his gaze and touch, she nods and allows him to guide her without question.

They halt once they reach a clear glass bottle filled with a rich red liquid, sitting next to it are two smooth wooden mugs. His head tilts curiously. Meliodas turns to look at Elizabeth who smiles in excitement at getting to share her surprise with him. "So what's this?" the question is asked with interest as the demon takes a seat next to the goddess who's gown had billowed around her in her haste to get to the items. Her visage now appears like that of a moonflower.

He can't seem to take his eyes off of her.

The way she clasps the glass in glee, her blue eyes as they twinkle with a soothing warmth while gazing at him so trustingly, and her lips that curve ever so slightly in an ever present smile that he can't help but covet… These are the things he looks forward to seeing with every visit between them. He'd give anything to just hear her laugh, just to feel her touch, just to have… her. He knows his feelings and how wrong they are with everything going on in the world, but…

He'd be hard pressed to ever give her up.

"It's a popular beverage among the humans. Have you ever tried any of the ale, Meliodas?" her melodic voice fills the air as she opens up the bottle. Its sweet scent tinged with alcoholic undercurrents catches his sharp senses immediately.

He takes a more comfortable seat with his leg bent at the knee so that his right arm can rest over it. Meliodas considers her question thoroughly. "Well, my brothers drink it a lot and I do on occasion… every time I do though they say I'm even more of an oddity than usual."

A frown mars her face at this, causing him to frown in turn. Such a beautiful face should never look so down…

"You're not abnormal Meliodas!" she argues with passion.

"No they're right." His response is quick and filled with certainty, not the least bit upset over the situation, much to her wonder. She seeks his eyes for answers and finds only a shifting of emotions. A settling between peace and acceptance. "I'm not like other demons, not really, and I'm okay with that, Elizabeth," he offers her words with a quirk of a smile.

And then she understands as she remembers meeting this demon, seeing him struggle to fight against his inner nature as his brethren ragged on against the fairy, giant, human, and goddess races. As the battle waged on around her, the sight of his pain as he tried valiantly not to give in to the darkness, held her attention and she simply had to understand this strange, unique being.

"No more heavy thoughts! Let's try some of that ale!" his boyish grin dominates as he takes a mug and holds it out towards her.

With a firm nod to her head Elizabeth agrees and pours a generous amount in his cup before doing the same to her own. She lifts the container to her mouth. She lets the warm liquid slide down her throat and settle into her system nicely. Exhaling softly she focuses her gaze on her companion, only to feel her eyes widen as she takes in the sight of him consuming his ale as if it's the last liquid left available.

"Elizabeth... this is really good." His cheeks are no longer their creamy pallor, but flushed bright under the ale's influence. His overall appearance is a bit more disheveled as his eyes take on a hazy look. Glancing at the cup in her hand for a moment, she understands the level of strength of its influence, but having shared it many times with her comrades over the years, the effects are far less potent on her. She had assumed the same would be for Meliodas…

"Meliodas? How often do you drink with your brothers?" she inquires curiously.

His eyes wander around the grassy area lazily before settling back on her with a smile. "Every few years maybe… I don't like to hang out unnecessarily with them too often a-and I haven't had much of a reason to take it easy, at least until I met you." He explains with a slight waver, moving ever so closer to the alluring woman before him.

"So for tonight I get to be your guardian?" the glowing beauty questions with a hint of mirth at the thought of being the supervisor of someone 100 years her senior. The mug she holds is a good cover for the growing curve that appears to grace her soft pink lips.

A sly grin spreads across his visage as he penetrates the higher being's personal space. "Well, sure I'd let you be my guardian. In fact, you can be anything you want, Ellie."

Her blue eyes widen beyond belief while her hold on her mug becomes unbearably tight. She stares into his hazy yet truthful gaze. The lack of space between them becomes even more apparent as well as the burning heat radiating from his form. "E-Ellie?" the question stumbles from her lips due to the stuttering of her quivering heart. A rosy flush begins to spread across her cheeks as he seems to get closer. He is rather handsome… the thought comes unbidden to her which further intensifies her blush.

"Uh-huh." Things only seem to get worse once he sets his empty cup down in favor of wrapping his arms around her thin waist as he settles his head onto her lap and buries his face within the cushion of her stomach, releasing a contented sigh soon after.

A surprised squeak leaves her lips at his bold move. The heat from her blush now spreading down to her neck. Her thoughts are rattled as she attempts to form a coherent thought that doesn't center on his welcoming heat, and comforting hold. Surely this isn't what his brothers meant about him becoming more of an oddity, right? She can't seem to picture him doing this type of thing to anyone else… or perhaps her mind is unwilling to.

"So Ellie…" the sound of his voice rumbles through her belly igniting a warmth that has nothing to do with the ale she tries desperately to drink in order to cool down. "Would you be interested in a bit of alone time…?"

She's unsure of his words. She tilts her head which causes a bit of her hair to tumble across her shoulder. Then she asks a question of her own, "But Meliodas… aren't we already alone?"

His eyes open from their closed bliss in order to stare at her face above him. A chuckle at her purity rumbles his chest before he shakes his head wistfully. "Say Ellie?"

"Yes…" her answer is hesitant as she places her now empty cup down in wait of his answer. Unsure of what he might ask in this state, she regards him with a slightly arched eyebrow. He still hasn't told her what he meant about "alone time"…

"Can you do something for me?" His arms loosen from her waist as he rolls into a position where his head faces hers completely and his hands rest innocently upon his stomach. Searching his cloudy orbs, she finds nothing to go by there, just plain innocence… which makes her all the more wary.

"Sure Meliodas. What do you need?"

"Eh, I did mention before that my brothers tried to get me to fight against the humans earlier… well I didn't come out completely unscathed," at this his eyes start to roam from the sky, to her eyes, then lower…

Alarm washes through her causing her hair to flare out briefly as her power swells. "You're hurt!? Please tell me where!"

He appears not all too concerned as one of his hands stray from its harmless position on his stomach to her hip where it steadily kneads the area there. He tells her simply, "Just under my shirt."

Rushing to move all obstacles out of her way, Elizabeth moves his remaining hand then pushes his dark tunic as far as it can go up. Once she can clearly see the mentioned area, even she can't judge herself for taking pause to admire the magnificent physique before her. Most would believe at first glance that he was indeed just a boy, but she knows better. He is a man and certainly very glorious.

Steadying her hands she places them upon the warm muscles of his torso, never once taking a glance at the demon's eyes for surely her face would explode from heat at the sight of him. Searching for injuries with her ability, she can't seem to locate any on his lower stomach, so maybe higher? Keeping her touch light and soothing, she moves her hands all about, knowing that her hair is flowing to invisible winds around them, that her eyes have taken on the symbol of the goddess', and that his eyes are most definitely boring into her.

When she can't seem to come up with anything, she relinquishes her power in confusion and finally turns to glance at the demon in her lap. His eyes are in fact staring at her. They retain the hazy effects of alcohol, but they also hold something else: mischief.

"Meliodas? I couldn't find anything."

With a wide grin, the blond haired demon begins to laugh in mirth. "Yeah, I know."

"W-what? Why then…" bewilderment fills her as she slowly begins to take her hands away from his chest.

Quicker than someone under the influence of some of the strongest ale found in the land should be able to, his strong hands grasp hers gently and keep them in place. "I just like the feel of your touch, Ellie." The honesty in his voice in conjunction with the clear earnest within his eyes becomes almost too much for her.

She grew up hearing about demons and their wicked ways and how she was to never trust them no matter what. In all her years, 209 little at that is, she believed those tellings faithfully. Until him. Never before has she met such an honest, caring, tortured soul as his. She knows it's forbidden what they're doing, but she's done something far worse than just cohorting with the enemy.

She's fallen in love with him.

"Ellie?" his voice draws her out of her revelations to see his focus flowing in his own little world, but his hands remain on hers, rubbing idly as if in thought.

"Hmm?"

"The other races… they're going to team up against the demons aren't they." It's not stated as a question, but a fact. He knows the fate of his race if this happens and he's okay with it.

She bites her lip as she realizes this with certain clarity. She doesn't attempt to stop the hot tears that well up in her eyes at the sheer thought of him not existing any longer. "Yes."

He looks to her now while raising a palm to her cheek softly as his thumb brushes away a fallen tear. "Don't cry, Ellie. It's for the best and you know it. I want whatever will make it so that you'll always be safe." He didn't say the rest, but his telling green eyes spoke volumes. If that meant he had to turn his back on his brothers, he'd do it. If that meant he'd have to abandon his race, he'd do it.

If it meant he'd have to sacrifice himself, he'd do it.

She swallows against the lump that tightens her throat. All Elizabeth can do is nod to his resolve. There is nothing she could do that would change his mind, but he had to know the feeling went both ways. She would make it her mission to see that he survives this war.

"I guess I went against my own word and brought up heavy things, huh? Sorry about that…" the genuine sincerity carries through the quiet night air as his hand returns to grasp hers warmly.

She offers a smile befitting that of her race. The silverette brushes his concerns away. "It's fine Meliodas. I don't care what we end up speak of or doing as long as we're together…" flushing madly at revealing such an idea she fails to notice the shift in his seemingly innocent behavior to that of the more suggestive kind.

"Really…? Say Ellie, I noticed something interesting."

"Oh really?" curiosity peeked, she moves one of her hands from his in order to run her fingers through the front of his wild locks. Such a strong, glorious demon she has…

"You goddesses don't wear anything under those gowns, do you?" the sheer delight in his voice causes her eyes to shoot down to his startled.

"W-wha?" He can see the perplexity that lies there in her eyes. It just makes him all the more interested in teasing her… and maybe doing a little more if the moment allows for it.

"Yeah! Being a bit naughty aren't we, Ellie?" Deciding to move from his idle position in her lap, the tempting demon repositions to where his hands are on either side of her hips and his face is just before hers. Watching as the lushes red hue blossoms across her visage is a truly enchanting display.

"W-what! No? I-I um…" splutters of nonsensical words spill from her lips as thoughts become muddled then consumed with nothing but the attractive demon who smiles knowingly before her.

"It's okay, Ellie. You can be naughty all you want. In fact, it can be our little secret," the smile upon his face widens then grows a bit devious before he pounces, sending the two into the soft, ticklish grass.

"Mel-Meliodas!" her cry of surprise is followed by delirious peels of giggles as the two lose themselves to the time they share together. Hidden from the judging eyes of their brethren, the demon and the goddess relish in the happiness they find within the other under the watchful view of the moon.

My first ever story for the Seven Deadly Sins fandom! I was talking with Luv (fanficlove2014) about what Meliodas would be like way back when he used to feel the effects of alcohol and well... I couldn't get the idea out of my head, so I hope you all like this!