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Eyes closed and sitting with his knees bent, the man breathed deeply and slowly in and out, uncaring at the fact that he couldn't feel the ground beneath him. He was aware that the place he found himself into wasn't reality, but one of the Dreamworlds.
Whenever physical perceptions started to manifest, it meant that a dream was beginning to form. They were mostly nightmares, visions of his past which appeared in a distorted fashion, or even parts of the Holy War, which the Capricorn saint knew to be lost. He had been shown what happened after his death, through those very dreams and visions, and if at first he thought they were just images with no relation to reality, he had eventually come to understand.
The presence of the four dream deities was one of the proofs he needed. He knew to have slain them, so seeing them again meant that a power to surpass death itself had brought them back… thus, only the Lord of the Underworld could have done such a thing.
From time to time, Capricorn had wondered what had been of his comrades and pupils, but had no means to know. More nightmares appeared when he thought too much about it, showing him horrifying tortures that humans had to withstand at the hands of specters and their kin, but he would not be affected by those.
He couldn't keep his thoughts for himself, there in the Dreamworld, as if his mind was an open book to read and tamper with. So he couldn't sway even if shown his most unbearable weaknesses, his faults, the mistakes he had been making during his life…
«Hello, little one.»
Cid opened his eyes at the sound of a voice, and at the sudden feeling of grass under his bent knees. He had already recognized the soft tone as belonging to the Portrayer, and her elegant figure was sitting right before him, as the surroundings were now those of a peaceful clearing amongst trees.
The creature wasn't wearing in any sort of armor, now clothed in a simple white dress, a wing displaying on the side of her head.
«Portrayer.» He saluted with a small nod, and she smiled.
«I hear you don't care about nightmares.» She said then, leaning in towards him. «My little brother says you just watch them… you do not despair, do not get distressed, and if you do, you never show. He's starting to get angry.» She sat with her back straightened again, giving a small shrug. «Icelus is not patient, he's more like my uncle than my father. He says also that if you keep doing this, he will come and punish you for what you did, without using nightmares. He bites, you know? Like a wild creature, if you make him angry.»
«I saw he's capable of great deals.» The saint answered. «As you all are. You are demigods, thus I cannot be astonished at anything you manage.» She didn't respond, blinking and propping her chin on both hands, elbows now rested on her crossed legs, so he kept talking. «It is not my intention to thwart his attempts. But I shall not be troubled by mere images. I couldn't be.»
«And why's that…?» She insisted, appearing to be looking directly at him, but it wasn't easy to tell for her eyes had no black center.
«Because I've done what I was supposed to do. I fulfilled my task, and managed to make my sword perfect, although being able to wield it only for a brief moment.» Capricorn answered, then twined fingers on his lap and returner her look. «Unfortunately, I am unsure whether the meaning of my words is being comprehensible or not. I am a warrior and I've always been, and I'm less used to speeches than I am to the sound of swords clashing.»
The demigoddess blinked again, pursing her lips into a curious expression, and moved slightly closer to him.
«What I understand is that you're not mad at me.» Said then, tilting her head. «Are you? You look very calm. Even if you died because of me and my brethren.»
«I died in the course of a war.» The saint answered again. «And I knew I would not survive. I faced every enemy with the knowledge that it could have been my last, and my sole fear was of dying before my blade could reach perfection. Hence I am considering myself glad to have lost my life against a worthy opponent, and during a confrontation where my sword could reach its full potential.»
«So… you're not angry.»
Cid paused for a moment, watching her slightly perplexed expression.
«I'm not angry.» Said eventually.
He waited for her to speak then, now wondering how was it that the Portrayer had decided to visit him by herself. It would have been the first time.
«But aren't you sad that you lost the Holy War?» She asked again, again moving closer. «You were fighting for that, right?»
«I am displeased, yes.» Capricorn nodded vaguely. «Still, I am aware that wars always have a winning and a losing side. Losing was something that could happen, and if it did, it means that our opponents were worth of winning. My hope is that now, they will be worthy of keeping the peace. I am a swordsman, and now that conflict is over, my role ceases to be needed… it would have been the same in any case, regardless of the circumstances of victory.»
«You are so serious.» The creature smiled, taking one of his wrists to cup his hand with both of hers. «I like you. I liked you also before, even if you've been mean to me.»
He vaguely frowned both at the contact and at her words, trying to recollect memories of the fight, since he had no perceptions of having been "mean". It was a confrontation, and he had done what he needed to do.
«Your brows move, from time to time.» She said, still smiling, and this time placing his palm on her cheek. «I thought your face was made of stone, it's always the same.»
As she was probably trying to play around, Capricorn said nothing to that. Then he kept looking at her slightly amused expression, feeling the smooth texture of her skin under the fingers.
«I might have understood.» Cid eventually said, again vaguely frowning. «I remember, while fighting you, that my blade cut through your appearance. If this is what you intend, saying that I've been "mean"... and I wish to tell you, about the hereby issue, that I never wanted to show any disrespect towards you.»
«Oh.» The look on the Portrayer's eyes became all the more amused. «I guess you didn't… you're a warrior, after all. With a face made of stone. You were just cutting, and happened to cut that too.»
«Exactly.» The saint answered.
«So given the chance, you wouldn't do that again…?»
The saint found himself unsure about how to answer. Frowning, he almost retracted his arm in a reflexive movement, but she held his wrist still, keeping his hand there on her cheek.
«The chance would never be given.» He ended up saying. «I am now in the condition of a fallen warrior of the losing side. I cannot wield my weapons anymore, and fighting isn't my privilege. I am aware of the ancient habit of keeping defeated opponents as servants, and I suppose I couldn't consider myself anything more than that.»
«But if you had the chance...» She insisted. «Would you do that again?»
«If the chance was given,» he answered again. «I would act as if I was fighting against a fearsome opponent, such as you are. The consequences of our confrontation aren't something I could contemplate beforehand… but then again, I wouldn't want to be lacking of respect towards you. Everyone has weaknesses, and your appearance is unimportant to the sake of the fight. Whatever its form, a sword will always be a sword.»
The Portrayer smiled widely, taking his other wrist and placing both his palms at the sides of her neck, all the while getting so close that he had to lean backwards to look at her properly.
«You know, little one...» She said then, slowly tilting her head. «For someone "not very used to speeches", you do speak very well.» She rose on her knees, and to his surprise, moved to sit on his legs. «Do you think I'm pretty, then? For I think you're handsome. And also very cute, all serious like that.»
Cid found himself frowning at both her gesture and the question, looking back at her smile with a perplexed expression.
«Is this a real question, Portrayer?»
«What do you mean by a "real" question?» She asked back, frowning as well, almost pouting. «It's a question. Just answer.»
«I… I don't think my opinion could be of any relevance.» He begun answering. «You are a demigoddess, and a beautiful creature. I suppose you don't need my words to support the fact.»
«Of course I do.» She retorted, lifting both hands to cup his face, then slid the thumbs on his cheekbones. «I like you, I told you. I wanted to know if you liked me back… also because I don't want Icelus to come here and mistreat you, I like your pretty face such as it is.»
«I suppose I should be grateful, then.» Capricorn said, sitting with his legs crossed for she was almost sliding down his bent knees. «I never thought I could escape tortures, and was aware that angering demigods could have brought an ill fate on myself.»
«Nah, I won't let that little brat come and maim you.» This time the Portrayer grinned and pushed her hands on his chest, making him fall on his back. «You'll be all mine to mistreat. And if he complains, I'll chew up his wing.»
Cid blinked, unsure of what she could be talking about, even if her intentions were being quite clear by now. She was in fact still sitting on his lap, and while lightly swaying on it, she took his hands again and put both on her navel.
«You humans are so very easy to provoke.» Said then, smiling again, as the saint tensed up while feeling his body respond to the rubbing on his lower waist. «Here you're telling me that you want me, little one. Have you been wanting me even while we were fighting, perhaps…?»
«I must say that I haven't.» He answered, after taking a deep breath. «You were an opponent, and I saw you like an adversary only.»
She bent down on his chest, smiling again and brushing his chin with the tip of the nose.
«But we're not adversaries anymore, now.» She whispered then, again moving her waist. «You can touch me, if you like. I'm right here for you to enjoy.»
«I don't…» Cid swallowed, keeping his eyes on the light blue sky above him and his fingers stuck on her hips. «I don't want to be disrespectful again.»
«I said you can, you little fawn.» She took his wrist again, making his hand slide on her side and under the fabric of her dress. «What is it, have you been lying to me? Is it not true that you like me…?»
With another deep breath he looked down, finding himself staring directly at her golden orbs.
«It would be inappropriate of a warrior, to let myself get carried away by such advances.» Said then. «But if this is what is asked of me, I can fulfill your desire and pleasure you.»
She sat more straight and laughed, then took the edges of her dress and pulled it up, uncovering her body whole.
«Let me tell you that the opposite is most likely to happen.» Said then, bringing her arms behind to unlace his trousers, thus exposing as she arched backwards. Cid blinked while looking at her fair skin, which almost shone in the dim light for how white and flawless it was. «Now let's see how happy you can be.»
Capricorn winced and tensed up again, as he felt himself sliding into her body, finding it oddly colder than he had imagined. Her muscles tightened and he sighed, feeling his length pleasantly compressed by her cervix, and the Portrayer kept staring at him while the heat on his waist slowly rose, until the saint had to strain not to jolt it up.
«Don't do this, little one.» She cooed, stroking his legs and making his trousers slide down some more. «Just loosen up, let yourself go.»
She moved down while still talking, and he gave another sigh, lifting hands to hold her hips again.
«There, like this…» She whispered, swaying back and forth on his lap. «Let me see that you like me, come on.»
He pushed on his lower back to sit up and folded an arm on her waist, bending a leg to move more freely, and the demigoddess grabbed onto his shoulders and nodded vaguely, rubbing her face against his cheek.
«Good.» She whispered again. «You need this, you know? You've been enduring a lot.»
Her legs twined around his waist and albeit still strangely cold, the contact became deeper. She wrapped a hand on his nape and gave back every thrust, moving up and down as if she weighted nothing, and the saint's breathing became heavier as he started to give in to the embrace.
He turned around, pressing her back against a tree log, and took one of her legs under the knee to lift it, all the while never ceasing to move. She was vaguely smiling, a part of him realized, and even if she seemed somehow enjoying, it was as if she wasn't actually feeling much of the contact. Something suggested him that it could have been a dream of some sort, probably sent by the Portrayer herself, but he was too carried on to care at that point.
He lowered his head and pressed his brows on her shoulder, his movements now more erratic, and wrapped an arm on her back while feeling the conclusion drawing nearer. He straightened up when the time came, lifting her as well and finishing out of her body, and then felt a light stroke on both sides of his face as he was breathing heavily.
«You're all sweaty.» Cid heard her murmur, as her fingers slid into his hair. «Now I like you even more… you can be sure that you'll be all mine, from this moment on. No one but me will ever touch you.»
«I-» He begun, still trying to catch his breath, but she pressed a finger on his lips and smiled.
«I don't want to hear you talking, right now. It's fine like this, let me look at you some more.» Said then, still caressing his hair with the free hand. «I should have tried to seduce you, back then. A pity that my brothers wouldn't have let me, melodramatic killjoys as they are.»
Closing his eyes and feeling his muscles numb, the saint complied and stayed silent, realizing after a while that the demigoddess hadn't moved from his lap, caressing him, and he was still holding her body with an arm around her back.
«You've been through a lot, little one…» She said softly, and her thumbs went on his forehead, pressing as to make him lose his frown. «Warriors can be tired too, you know? Especially if they die fighting and then come back, and then spend a great deal of time having horrible bad dreams. I think you earned a rest.»
Capricorn opened his eyes when he felt that she was moving, but frowned again as the Portrayer had placed herself behind him, making him lean against her body.
«Here, you can sleep now.» She resumed, covering his lids with a palm. «And no nightmares this time. I promise.»
As her powers enveloped him, slumber came and Cid realized he couldn't fight it even if he wanted. He relaxed against her body with a deep sigh, as his conscience slowly faded out.
Some notes~
El Cid finds himself in the dimensional layer of the Dreamworld, so his mind is completely helpless against the four dream deities' powers, which can read it and use what they see to "shape" Capricorn's surroundings. Still, El Cid is there with his body, so he can feel physical sensations such as pain, pleasure and fatigue, and he can also fall asleep.
You probably remember that Phantasos has the physical appearance of a young girl, which "covers" her male identity. The "shell" which she uses to appear female was cut by Cid during their fight, and this is what she means when saying "you happened to cut that too".