Chapter rating is yet again PG13, for the same reasons. This gets a wee bit
more suggestive, so read on if you dare. UPDATED! And to a beloved reviewer
named Nabooru: if I do end up going past the sweet stuff, it'll be way, WAY
into the story. Millerna may be from a disrespectable background, but she's
not a slut.
Millerna and I rode in silence for a few hours after that little scuffle. Alright, so it was a rude thing to say, but it had served the intended purpose of allowing me to breathe again. Millerna looked thoroughly embarrassed, shocked, and pissed off at the same time - more pissed than anything -, although she managed somehow to be absolutely beautiful even when she was considering ripping my lungs out. Okay, so she hadn't said she wanted to rip my lungs out, but when a woman yells at you to go to hell first thing in the morning and doesn't speak to you until almost sundown, it's all that can be assumed.
"You're still angry, aren't you?" I asked when I couldn't take the silence anymore.
"You bet your ass I am."
"Ooookay, then." About five minutes of silence. "I don't get how you can stay mad at me for so long over something like that." Millerna looked like she was thinking this over.
"Okay, maybe I over-reacted a little about that 'worse ways to go' thing," she admitted. "But it...it brought back unpleasant memories when you said that. Carlos said things like that."
"Uh, yeah, I figured that may have been what was bothering you. Sorry. But I couldn't breathe, it was a last resort. You have very good moves, by the way. I withdraw the remark about women and fighting."
"Because that was what pissed me off in the first place, and got your neck between my legs. If you hadn't said something so damn cheauvenistic, I wouldn't have felt the need to choke you."
"I have learned my lesson, believe me," I said, massaging my throat.
"I didn't do any permanent damage, did I?" Millerna asked, looking a little embarrassed.
"I'm not sure. But I know that my neck hurts."
"Sorry about that. I was a little overenthusiastic in my murderous rage. We can stop up here and I'll make sure you're okay," she said, nodding toward a stream a few yards ahead. When we got to the stream we let the horses go and do what they wanted, then settled down under a tree.
"Okay, let me see what kind of damage I've inflicted," Millerna said in a much gentler voice than she used normally. She stroked her fingers lightly over my neck. That feels good, a voice in the back of my head stated. That feels very good. Maybe I should let her choke me more often- I tried to erase the thoughts from my head.
"I don't think I've wounded you fatally," Millerna said, after she'd finished examining me. "I guess it's time for my dear Aunt Miranda's old standby of 'kiss it and make it better'." She leaned over and kissed my throat. That feels even better, the little voice in my head informed. I could get used to this. No, no it wasn't proper to have thoughts like that. A second kiss on my neck. I love this. This is heaven. I wasn't supposed to feel like this. What was happening to me?
"I didn't kill you, did I?" Millerna laughed. I had closed my eyes, half in sheer terror, half in ecstasy.
"Uh, no," I said, coming back to my senses. "I guess I zoned out for a minute. We should get going."
***
"You know what?" I announced at around midnight. "I'm tired."
"So am I," Link replied. "But you don't see me complaining."
"Yeah," I said, "but you're the big, strong, hero guy. I'm the sweet, innocent, damsel in distress, remember?"
"Innocent? I beg to differ." He rubbed his throat. Maybe I'd gone a little overboard with the leg chokes today.
"Sorry about the choking thing," I said, feeling a little guilty.
"Uh, I wasn't really referring to the choking..." he mumbled.
"Then what were you-? Oh." Had the kisses on his neck bothered him? Strange, when I was little it comforted me to have my mother or my Auntie kiss the various wounds I got. "Sorry," I said. "When I got hurt as a kid, that always made me feel better, so I figured..." I shrugged.
"You kissing me didn't bother me," he said. "My reaction to it is what bothered me."
"What was your reaction?" I asked, curious about this odd proclamation.
"Nevermind," he said quickly, looking embarrassed. "It's not important."
"Okay," I said. If he didn't want to talk about it, I wasn't going to make him. I hated it when people tried to make me talk about things I didn't want to talk about, so it would have been hypocritical of me to do so to him. I may be a bitter, self-righteous bitch, but I am not a hypocrite. "I can take a hint." I yawned and leaned on Ebony, closing my eyes.
"Wait," Link said. "Get on with me. I don't want you falling off your horse." I gave him a look.
"Why do you care if I fall off?" I challenged.
"Because I'm a gentleman," he replied in an equally challenging tone. I shrugged.
"I'll buy that," I said. We stopped, and I climbed on with him. Ebony followed us obediently like a little puppy. I'm so loved. I yawned again, and rested my head against Pretty Boy's chest (he'd had me get on in front of him, so I didn't fall off the back of the horse).
"Don't let this go to your head," I said. "This doesn't mean I like you."
"Really?"
"Absolutely. You mean nothing to me."
Millerna and I rode in silence for a few hours after that little scuffle. Alright, so it was a rude thing to say, but it had served the intended purpose of allowing me to breathe again. Millerna looked thoroughly embarrassed, shocked, and pissed off at the same time - more pissed than anything -, although she managed somehow to be absolutely beautiful even when she was considering ripping my lungs out. Okay, so she hadn't said she wanted to rip my lungs out, but when a woman yells at you to go to hell first thing in the morning and doesn't speak to you until almost sundown, it's all that can be assumed.
"You're still angry, aren't you?" I asked when I couldn't take the silence anymore.
"You bet your ass I am."
"Ooookay, then." About five minutes of silence. "I don't get how you can stay mad at me for so long over something like that." Millerna looked like she was thinking this over.
"Okay, maybe I over-reacted a little about that 'worse ways to go' thing," she admitted. "But it...it brought back unpleasant memories when you said that. Carlos said things like that."
"Uh, yeah, I figured that may have been what was bothering you. Sorry. But I couldn't breathe, it was a last resort. You have very good moves, by the way. I withdraw the remark about women and fighting."
"Because that was what pissed me off in the first place, and got your neck between my legs. If you hadn't said something so damn cheauvenistic, I wouldn't have felt the need to choke you."
"I have learned my lesson, believe me," I said, massaging my throat.
"I didn't do any permanent damage, did I?" Millerna asked, looking a little embarrassed.
"I'm not sure. But I know that my neck hurts."
"Sorry about that. I was a little overenthusiastic in my murderous rage. We can stop up here and I'll make sure you're okay," she said, nodding toward a stream a few yards ahead. When we got to the stream we let the horses go and do what they wanted, then settled down under a tree.
"Okay, let me see what kind of damage I've inflicted," Millerna said in a much gentler voice than she used normally. She stroked her fingers lightly over my neck. That feels good, a voice in the back of my head stated. That feels very good. Maybe I should let her choke me more often- I tried to erase the thoughts from my head.
"I don't think I've wounded you fatally," Millerna said, after she'd finished examining me. "I guess it's time for my dear Aunt Miranda's old standby of 'kiss it and make it better'." She leaned over and kissed my throat. That feels even better, the little voice in my head informed. I could get used to this. No, no it wasn't proper to have thoughts like that. A second kiss on my neck. I love this. This is heaven. I wasn't supposed to feel like this. What was happening to me?
"I didn't kill you, did I?" Millerna laughed. I had closed my eyes, half in sheer terror, half in ecstasy.
"Uh, no," I said, coming back to my senses. "I guess I zoned out for a minute. We should get going."
***
"You know what?" I announced at around midnight. "I'm tired."
"So am I," Link replied. "But you don't see me complaining."
"Yeah," I said, "but you're the big, strong, hero guy. I'm the sweet, innocent, damsel in distress, remember?"
"Innocent? I beg to differ." He rubbed his throat. Maybe I'd gone a little overboard with the leg chokes today.
"Sorry about the choking thing," I said, feeling a little guilty.
"Uh, I wasn't really referring to the choking..." he mumbled.
"Then what were you-? Oh." Had the kisses on his neck bothered him? Strange, when I was little it comforted me to have my mother or my Auntie kiss the various wounds I got. "Sorry," I said. "When I got hurt as a kid, that always made me feel better, so I figured..." I shrugged.
"You kissing me didn't bother me," he said. "My reaction to it is what bothered me."
"What was your reaction?" I asked, curious about this odd proclamation.
"Nevermind," he said quickly, looking embarrassed. "It's not important."
"Okay," I said. If he didn't want to talk about it, I wasn't going to make him. I hated it when people tried to make me talk about things I didn't want to talk about, so it would have been hypocritical of me to do so to him. I may be a bitter, self-righteous bitch, but I am not a hypocrite. "I can take a hint." I yawned and leaned on Ebony, closing my eyes.
"Wait," Link said. "Get on with me. I don't want you falling off your horse." I gave him a look.
"Why do you care if I fall off?" I challenged.
"Because I'm a gentleman," he replied in an equally challenging tone. I shrugged.
"I'll buy that," I said. We stopped, and I climbed on with him. Ebony followed us obediently like a little puppy. I'm so loved. I yawned again, and rested my head against Pretty Boy's chest (he'd had me get on in front of him, so I didn't fall off the back of the horse).
"Don't let this go to your head," I said. "This doesn't mean I like you."
"Really?"
"Absolutely. You mean nothing to me."