Disclaimer: All characters and previous events belong to Marissa Meyer and The Lunar Chronicles

Author's Note: Take 2! Post-Winter, cannon edition! As a note...these are a little sexier than the last batch. Upping the rating.

Interludes Prt. 2

Cress

-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Cress jerked awake suddenly.

Her ears were ringing and her mouth was dry. She must have been deeply asleep. She placed a hand over her chest, trying to soothe her heart while she attempted to piece together her surroundings. The constant, deep hum of the Rampion was blasting in her ears and she squelched down the feeling of terror that she was somewhere she wasn't supposed to be.

Her legs were twisted in her bed clothes and she tugged her nightshirt down from her neck - a fine, rose pink, silky garment that Iko had let her steal from the palace. Although, "stealing" was a little harsh when the Counselor to the Lunar Queen had given it to her in a wrapped box with ribbon and tissue.

The rest of her sparse belongings rattled quietly inside the cabinet next to her bunk. Her clothes were hanging from a pipe overhead, wavering slightly with the motion of the ship and the slow gusts of air through the vent.

What had woken her? She instinctively touched the side of her stomach, where she could still feel the indentation of her scar. No pain, and there hadn't been for a few weeks. Not since the crew had all started their Letumosis assignment on the Rampion. If anything, her arms were sore from stacking the newest shipment of vaccines.

There was a knock on her door and she nearly jumped out of her skin. She sat bolt upright and clutched the sheets to her chest.

"Hello?" Cress asked, unable to hide the panic in her voice. She sucked in deep lungfuls of air.

"It's me."

Thorne. The relief was instant. Of course it was Thorne. Who else would it be? She practically melted back into her pillow. Was his knock what had woken her to begin with?

Spades. Thorne was knocking on her door in the middle of the night. Thorne, who loved her. Thorne, who she was alone with on the ship.

Her heart started to gallop.

"Hang on," she said, loud enough for him to hopefully hear. When she slipped out of her covers, she stared down at her bare feet and legs. Was this...inappropriate? Surely not more inappropriate than her orange butterfly outfit at the palace.

Cress shook her head and got to her feet. The cold steel of the floor stung her feet like ice and she tip-toed to the door. He was leaning against the doorframe as the panel slid open between them.

He caught her glance through his lashes. "Hey there, gorgeous. Do you come here often?"

His tone was teasing, but he still made her body blush from head to toe. He thought she was gorgeous. He wasn't a bad specimen either, not that he would ever fail to admit that himself.

The lights in the ship had dimmed automatically after curfew and the hallway behind him was dark. Thorne was illuminated from the small light above her door. She marvelled at him, and the delicate features of his face. The gold tips of his eyelashes, the way his whiskers caught the light, and the delicious smirk on his lips.

"Hi." It was an exhale. As the words left her mouth, his smile grew until his eyes crinkled.

A week ago when they had boarded the ship together, he told her to pick a bunk. She had chosen the one closest to his quarters while Scarlet and Wolf populated the other end of the hall. As she was about to leave his side to arrange her things, he had reached for her hand. "I thought this would be right...is it right? I don't want you far away but everything is so new. I mean…" He sighed and dropped his chin to his chest, obviously frustrated. "I don't know what I'm doing. I thought you would want your own space. Is that okay?"

Cress had stepped towards him and wrapped her arms slowly around his neck. Thorne visibly relaxed into her embrace, pulling her tight against his body. "It's okay," she said, before kissing him.

Now that quite a few days had passed, Cress understood his dilemma. While she could admit that the flat out terror she used to feel when they were alone together had vanished, she now had a pleasant, nervous bubble in her chest. It seemed to intensify at night when they were apart.

She smiled up at the captain. "Can I help you?"

He pushed his lips to one side and tapped his chin comically. "Hmmm…"

It was only now that she noticed he was wearing sleeping clothes. Loose, thin pants that clung to his hips in a way she wasn't entirely prepared for. His cotton shirt looked worn and soft. She wanted to touch it.

She did.

He covered her hand with his, and pressed it hard into his chest. She could feel the stiff edges of the bandages around his fingers, or lack thereof. The thought of his injured hand still made her heart hurt, but she tried her best to push the feeling away.

Eventually. Someday, it would all be a distant memory.

"Well," Thorne started, tapping his finger on the top of her hand. "I'm going to admit, I don't fully know how to answer your question." His smile was a little flustered, and he looked down at their hands.

"Oh?"

When he looked back up, his cheeks were tinged red. It was an unusual look for him. He cleared his throat. "I'm going to rely on the fact that you trust me when I ask you this...but...will you come to my room?"

She couldn't help her eyebrows from shooting upwards. His room?

His face smoothed out into his well-worn mask of confidence and he pointed a finger at her. "I know what you're thinking, of course. 'Captain Thorne isn't the kind of man who has to ask girls to his room.' Now Cress, maybe a few years ago that was true, but…" He met her eyes and they seemed to glimmer at her in a way she'd come to associate with his feelings for her. "Well, that was before I was a respectable war hero, wasn't it?"

Cress rolled her eyes at him. He still hid behind his sarcasm, even now, but she could see through it. He was nervous. She began to ponder his original question.

She had been in his room, of course, many times. Mostly to put drops in his eyes. There were a lot of things displayed on the shelves, a large attached washroom, a wide, soft rug and...a bed. A big bed. A comfortable bed.

As she watched him, waiting for a real explanation, Thorne lifted their joined hands to his lips and kissed the top of her hand, her wrist, her palm. Her knees shook threateningly under her gown. She drew a shaky breath.

"I keep having nightmares about being separated. And about what...happened." His voice was as soft as she had ever heard it, and she squeezed his hand. His false bravado crumbled around them. "I know you're here, safe in your room, but each time it carves a hole in my chest. I can't sleep."

"Thorne," she said, stepping forward. With his other hand he pulled her closer. She lifted her chin and wordlessly asked for a kiss. He complied.

He smelled like sleep and him, and something more. Something musky. Maybe it was the shirt.

"I can't go anywhere, we're in space."

He rolled his eyes. "When you put it that way..."

"What can I do?" she said, before curling deeper into his arms and pressing her cheek to his chest. His heart beat steadily in her ear.

"Come to my room. Please." The soft voice again. It was a tender plea, a moment of admitted vulnerability from the man who once claimed to be untouchable. "I know it's inappropriate and a lot to ask but...I'm not going to try anything. I promise. I mean, I will probably kiss you somewhere around the realm of 'a lot' but I don't imagine you protesting to that."

She hid her face in the soft fabric of her shirt. "No, I won't protest to that."

"So...will you? My feet are cold."

Cress giggled. "Mine too. Um…" she looked up at his face, feeling suddenly so young and so naive and so...inexperienced. Was this even normal behavior? They weren't strangers anymore, necessarily, and they were in love. But then, he had never overstayed his welcome in her room on Luna. Not even when she was convalescing and needed tending to. After a lengthy goodnight he had always excused himself to his room across the hall. With a gulp, she forced herself to focus on the warm, sure strength of his arms as they held her, the gentle tone of his voice in her ear. She trusted him. "Okay."

He let out a breath as he said, "Thank stars." He tugged her through the door with their joined hands and lead her down the passageway without another word. His quarters were only down the hall, a mere few paces from her door. He keyed in the code to his room and pulled her inside.

When they reached the center of the space, Thorne turned to face her with an embarrassed and amused look on his face. He lifted his hand and scratched the back of his neck awkwardly.

"So, I forgot to stress that this would mostly involve us sleeping in the same bed. That's kind of a big thing. I probably should have mentioned that before, in your room. Did I say we'd be sleeping?"

Even though she was far from sleepy and terrified of what the future of their relationship would look like (especially when it came to BEDS), Cress bravely reached forward and tugged at his shirt with both of her hands. He chuckled as he stumbled into her, but leaned down to skillfully capture her lips. His hands cradled her head on either side of her neck, calluses scratching her sensitive skin.

She spread out her fingers against his chest, feeling the tautness of muscle, as well as the curve of his ribs. He was so...strong. So broad. So tall. The thought of getting to know him this way was almost more than she could comprehend. To know the feel of his strong shoulders under her hands, the wiry hair on his arms, or the warmth of his palms on her cheeks. How on earth would she ever catalog it all?

"Aces," Thorne breathed over her lips between kisses.

If he felt her knees give out slightly, he didn't seem to notice. His hands slid further around her neck, into her hair so he could tip her head back to deepen the kiss. Her chest was so full, she felt as though she would float away from him like a balloon, and he would have to pull her back down to him. She wrapped her arms around his waist to hold her to the ground.

She pulled away enough to kiss the corner of his lips, then his chin, and the hard line of his jaw. He let out a shaky breath and leaned into her touch. She felt him murmur against her temple and she worked her way down to his neck. "Cress," he sighed.

His skin was warm, and his stubble pricked her lips. He smelled so good.

"Cress," he said again, this time a warning.

She pulled back with a gasp. "Sorry, did I do something wrong?"

He laughed loudly. "No. Heavens above, no."

"Then...what?"

He leaned close so their noses touched. His erratic breaths beat heavily on her moist lips. "I said that we would be sleeping in here. You're making that a very difficult promise to keep."

Cress bit down hard on her lip to hid a wide grin. "Oh." The air was crackling around them like a lightning storm. All she could think about was kissing him like that, just to see what would happen each time she moved her lips.

They hadn't had much time alone alone, since leaving Luna. Scarlet and Wolf had been their crewmates until a day ago, when Scarlet requested a few days at the farm to check on everything. Thorne naively expected Wolf to stay on, but even Cress knew that was an impossibility. She and the Captain were currently on their way back to Luna for the next batch of antidotes, and when they returned, they would retrieve their crewmates from Rieux.

On earth, when they had been working, Thorne would check in on her with a warm hand on her shoulder, or a kiss to her cheek. He was taking his new job very seriously and she'd never been more proud of him. In the evenings, back on board the ship, she could see the lines of worry on his face. She wanted to go to him, or to offer him some comfort, but she didn't know how. Not yet. Eventually she would learn. It had been several days since she'd been gathered in his arms and reduced to a silly, love-struck girl.

"I'm going to get a drink of water," she said eventually, nodding towards the washroom.

"Okay," he said, pressing a kiss to her hair and releasing her. "I'll, er...well, I'll be in bed." Even he couldn't resist a wide grin and waggling of his eyebrows.

She snorted and walked quickly into the next room to compose herself. Her reflection met her the mirror above the sink. A blatant look of happiness was plastered across her features and practically radiating from skin. She allowed herself a dreamy sigh, and leaned towards the sink to capture some water in her cupped hands. When she had finished, she pressed her damp fingers to her face and let them cool her skin.

She was in Captain Carswell Thorne's bedroom. The man she had loved for months, who now loved her back. He was in bed, and she was supposed to climb next to him like it was the most natural thing in the world. How on earth was she supposed to do that without looking like a complete fool?

Her reflection was now staring back at her with wide eyes and a slack mouth. She pulled her fingers away, wiped her face with a towel, then turned away. She was the Captain's lover. She belonged in this room. She was an elegant, coordinated human being.

When she turned the corner, back into his quarters, she froze. He was sitting up against a stack of pillows, fiddling with his portscreen. Her portscreen, if she wanted to be exact about it. The room was dark now, illuminated only by dim overhead lights and the blue screen in his hands. He looked up at her and smiled.

"Do I need to take you back to your room?" he asked, teasingly, even though she knew that he would if she asked.

"No," and with more bravery than she thought she had, she walked over to the empty side of the bed. There were two bunched up pillows, and he'd already pulled back to the blankets. He was watching her with an amused smile on his face.

"So you're the one who's been hoarding the pillows," she quipped with a grin.

Thorne smirked proudly. "It is my ship, after all." He eyed her after a moment and patted the sheets next to him. "We have slept beside one another before, you know," he said, offering her a warm smile. "In fact, if I remember correctly, you've actually slept in my arms."

With a helpless sigh, she sunk down onto the bed and hid herself under the covers in one quick motion. She wanted to cover her face as she remembered that fevered night, waking up tight in his embrace, the way he pulled her closer… And of course, the bittersweet knowledge that it meant nothing at the time. "In the desert," she clarified, after a long moment. The sheet billowed up around her face as she spoke. "When we were both half delirious and before you cared about me."

Thorne was silent. She felt the mattress shift and heard the portscreen being placed on the nightstand beside his bed. Then he was pulling down the covers from her face.

"Hey now," he said. His face was serious. "That's not true."

His eyes were so blue, even in the dark. "It's not?"

He moved closer and she felt the mattress sink with their combined weight. His knee touched her leg, his hipbone touched hers. He was propped up on his elbow above her. "I think there was about one hour from when I entered that satellite, was unconscious, and focused on getting us out alive, where I didn't think long enough to feel anything for you. Once we were outside, well… You were my eyes, Cress. You lead me through a desert! You fought through dehydration, a bunch of lunar-hating scumbags and an army of republic soldiers! Do you have any idea how hard that is to find in a woman?"

When she didn't answer his question he leaned closer. Cress watched his eyes flutter closed at the memories. "You were so brave…" He let out a sigh, and pressed his fingertips against her cheek. A look of pain flashed across his face and he moved his hand down to the side of her stomach, over her scar. "Are brave."

Thorne's eyes were bright and soft and everything. She felt her chest hitch and the tears prick the back of my eyes.

"So you see, there was hardly a moment when I wasn't falling in love with you. Not really."

The knot in her throat so painful that she couldn't stop a few tears from spilling out the side of her eyes. He caught them with his fingers.

"Oh dear," he murmured. She felt his hand slip under her shoulders and around her back, and suddenly she was rolling into him, against his chest. Thorne held her tightly, one hand clasping around her shoulder, and the other tracing the edge of her hairline. "I didn't mean to make you cry," he said into her hair.

"I know," she managed, swiping the back of her hand across her eyes. "There's still so much to be overwhelmed by."

She felt him nod in agreement. "You're right."

She tried to relax and let the tears pass, and focused on the rhythmic movements of his chest as he took in deep, relaxed breaths. "Being loved by you...by anyone still doesn't make sense sometimes."

"Well," he said, tipping her chin up so he could see her face, "fixing that is really another part of my job."

Cress drew in a deep, shaky breath, willing her heart not to beat right out of her ribcage. "Can you...say it just one more time?"

"Say what?"

"You know…" Stars above, she had to be bashful now?

Thorne smiled knowingly. "That you're brave?"

Cress laughed softly. "No, not that. But thank you."

"That…" He was enjoying this now. "You have top notch legs?"

"No."

"That kissing you in the atrium was the single most erotic moment of my life?"

She blinked. "No...what?"

Thorne winked. "It was."

"I suppose it was very romantic." She pulled herself up on her elbow and looked at him. He watched her with smiling eyes as she lifted a hand and traced the lines of his face. The strong brow, the straight nose, the smirking lips.

"Tell me you love me again," she whispered.

He smiled under her fingers, drawing out the moment. A hand closed around her wrist and he pulled her fingers to his lips one by one. Each kiss sent a jolt through her elbow down to her toes. When he kissed her thumb, he tucked their hands against his chest. His voice was clear and deep as he said, "I love you."

Cress sighed and felt as though she could explode into a thousand stars.

"Now, considering I made that promise to you about sleeping, I think now would be a good time to do that. As much as I'd like to kiss you all night-"

She wasn't listening, instead, she leaned down and kissed him. Part of her didn't care what happened now. She didn't care what little she knew about real life, and by contrast, the abundance she knew about biology and how the body works. She didn't blush when Thorne pulled her on top of him, or when her legs moved to either side of his hips. One of his hands slid up her thigh and she shuddered as he dragged the other down her spine, fingers moving over every vertebrae through the silky fabric of her nightdress. Her skin felt like it was burning all over, and she didn't want it to stop.

She tried not to think about a deep-rooted, hungry feeling she felt in her gut when Thorne deepened the kiss. Or how he tasted…

No, she thought about that.

Toothpaste.

She definitely didn't think about the tiny groans from Thorne, especially when she started kissing his neck again. The deep, throaty sound seemed to vibrate inside her bones. He gripped fistfulls of her nightdress so that it fit tight against her body. Her lips started to burn from his stubble but she didn't want to stop. She moved down to his collarbone, and the fleshy hollow of his throat.

That was, however, when Thorne seized both of her arms, rolled her off of him and onto her pillow with a thump. He kept his hands clasped around her upper arms and stared at her with wide, hungry eyes.

"You have to stop," he said, breathlessly.

Was he scolding her? "Why?"

He released one arm and ran his hand over his face. "Because, you're making it increasingly hard for me to stop."

She was about to counter, petulantly, but he shook his head.

"Please," he said. He smiled a little. "And don't be hurt. It's not that I don't want to… In fact, you'll find that I really want to keep going. I just...think it would be a good idea to stop."

Biology, Cress reminded herself.

"Something like that."

Her eyes widened. Had she said that out loud?

"Eventually...hopefully. Someday. Not even someday soon, but someday," he sighed. "We won't have to stop."

She nodded. "Okay."

"You said you don't want to be one of my girls. You're not, I hope you know that. But I need to do this right."

"I understand." She held up her hands, in surrender. "We can sleep now."

He laughed again. "Easy for you to say." He released her other arm and rolled onto his back so he could rub his face with both of his hands. She watched him from her pillow, and tucked both hands under her cheek. Her heart was still racing, even though her sleepy eyes began to betray her.

Thorne looked over and smiled at her droopy eyes. "Goodnight, Cress."

"Goodnight."

"Feel free to kiss me again tomorrow. Or in a few hours, if the urge arises. I'm here for you."

"Yes, Captain." She said it without thinking, only half awake.

He laughed and threw his arms over his face. "You're going to kill me, do you know that?"

Her eyes were already closed. "Hm? Oh, tomorrow. I'll try to kill you again tomorrow."

She heard him chuckle and then lean close. His lips brushed against her hair, her forehead, the tip of her nose. "I'll count on it."

It was the last thing she heard before she started to fall asleep. She felt the warmth from his body close to hers, like a comforting cocoon.

-.-.-.-.-.-

Author's Note: I've got three and a half of these written. Planning to include Cress, Thorne, Cinder, Wolf, and Scarlet. Bear with me as I try to finish them all!