Ivanna opened her eyes and found herself staring at the moon that hung high in the sky, it's waning crescent making her think of the inuyoukai she traveled with. She felt Rin wiggle closer to her under the pelts they were sandwich in between. She flexed her muscles to figure out the progress of the fading paralysis and frowned, not able to feel from mid thigh down. She sighed and brought her arm up behind her head as she looked over at the fire that was close to dying.
She lifted her head and noticed Sesshomaru was missing while Jaken was snoring obnoxiously. She carefully untangled herself from Rin and shifted out from under the covers so she could pull herself over to the fire so she could add some more wood to the dying flames before it went out. At the sound of the cut logs hitting the fire, she saw Ah-In lift his head and look around. He shifted Jaken off his paw and padded over to lay behind her, lending her his warmth.
"Thank you. Has our lord been gone long?" she asked softly as she leaned against him. The dragon shook one of his heads in reply and she hummed in response as she closed her eyes as she felt the fire come back to life.
"Ivanna?" His voice woke her from the light sleep she had fallen into and she looked around to see him come into the clearing. "You okay?"
"Y-yeah," she frowned and glanced up at the sky no longer able to see the moon. "You were gone a while."
"When did you wake?"
"Midnight, I think? What's the moon's position?"
"Near the horizon," he answered as he placed a long onto the fire to keep it going.
"Hm," she yawned as she sat up and stretched her arms above her head, stiff from the way she slept.
"How's the progression of feeling returning to your legs?"
"Mid... no, lower thigh," she answered as she prodded her legs. "It's returning slower than other times. Want to help me out?"
"Hn."
He came over and pulled her into his arm. He turned to walk towards her bedding and she shook her head as she wrapped her arms around his neck. She felt him glance down at her and she simply laid her head on his shoulder, wanting to be near him despite the events of the day before.
"I have slept near you for weeks and even though yesterday happened, I haven't slept well tonight knowing you had disappeared," she whispered.
"This one had to hunt," he spoke as he carried her over to where he had been sitting earlier and jumped into the tree above where there was a branch large enough for them both. He sat her in front of him and she shifted her body and pulled her legs up so they were on the branch as she leaned against his armored chest. "Speak your thoughts Ivanna."
"I haven't even tried to piece my thoughts to make sense of it all. Any normal person would still not want to be touched after going through something like what 'Sho did to me, but... I don't know... now that I've had time to process it, a little grateful...? I don't know if that is the right word to use..." she frowned as she unbraided her hair so she could run her hands through the strands as she worked through her thoughts allowed. "I never thought I'd actually be able to experience that... It's just..."
"Just what?" He spoke after several moments when he realized she wasn't saying anything more.
"I've been given a hint of how it feels but I hate that I have to feel like I'm high just to bypass any pain..."
"That was not your thoughts yesterday."
"I know," she muttered. "Like I said, I am still trying to process my thoughts. The foreplay was enjoyable, but I had no control, you lost your control, and that damn beast just took without listening or thinking of what I had wanted. I keep thinking back on the whole thing and the same thought plays over in my mind."
"What's that?" He asked and she took a breath before moving to let her legs hang of the side so she could turn to look at him.
"The one thing I hate more than anything..." she hesitated and felt her cheeks flush, "is that it wasn't you... I think that's why I said I hated you... Apart from impaling me with your claws to wake me, every action you've ever taken with me has been gentle and makes me loose all thoughts from wanting more. That's not even when I've taken in your Youkai or blood. When you have kissed me, yeah I would feel some minor pain, but it never becomes more than that... I feel like 'Sho would never be able to do that. And despite you actually listening to when I asked you to treat me only like a servant, I felt so hollow yesterday..."
Ivanna watched his eyes because that was the only place he usually expressed his emotions the most, but only saw cold and collected emotions like when he put up his walls. She waited quietly, waiting for some kind of response, her chest slowly becoming heavier with each passing minute. She was about to turn away when she saw a flicker of blue near the center of his golden orbs and frowned in confusion. She scooted closer and he didn't even react so she lifted her hand up and touched his cheek.
"'Maru?" She whispered and saw his eyes suddenly focus on her, warmth pooling into his eyes. "Are you okay?"
His lips were suddenly on hers as his hand slid into her hair, pulling her closer and she groaned as heat rushed through her entire body, causing her toes to curl at the feeling. Realizing that for some reason or another, the paralysis disappeared like the last time he had kissed her, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled herself closer and onto her knees. Before he could turn the kiss into what she was learning was one of his favorites, she slid her tongue into his mouth, carefully tracing his fangs as she exploded his mouth.
His hand slid down to her waist and pulled her against his armored chest and she shifted her legs to fall on either side of his as he shifted his legs under her. She felt his pelt, Mokomoko, move to curl around her as his hand moved to her side before gripping her hip, his thumb moving in circles along the inside of her hip. A tremor shook through her and she whimpered as he nipped her tongue, making her pull back before he slid his tongue into her mouth. As she started feeling lightheaded and needing air, he seemed to realize that and pulled back, his own breathing quicker than normal.
"This one must apology for not responding immediately, the beast tried to come out," he spoke as he moved his hand up to caress her cheek, his large hand covering a part of her chin as well.
"Was that why there was the slightest flicker of blue in your eyes?"
"Hn."
"He tried to take over even when I insulted his technique? Talk about wounding his pride," she snorted and he smirked. "He'll get over it. After all, two different personalities cannot copy the same thing perfectly."
"You insult him then help lick his wounds?"
"And have the primal beast mad at me? No, thank you."
"Hn. It seems this one knows the technique to reverse your paralysis."
"Just because it was successful two times doesn't actually confirm that theory," she chuckled as she relaxed her arms around his neck and laid her head on his shoulder, being mindful of the spikes in his armor.
"You tempt this one," he growled quietly as his hand moved down to her ass and tensed his fingers slightly making her flinch. "If not for that armor you wear, it would be all too easy."
"I don't know if I'd be ready for that," she whispered, feeling her face turn red as she moved her legs and turned around in his lap. She leaned her back against the crook of his right arm between his armored chest and his Mokomoko as it remained wrapped around her waist and straightened her legs out along the branch. "Probably shouldn't push boundaries myself if I ask the same of you."
"Indeed," he mused as he wrapped his arm around her waist as the end of his Mokomoko lazily moved to cover her legs back and forth to end up covering her lap completely down to her feet. She yawned and nuzzled her face into the pelt by her face. "Sleep. This one will not let you fall."
"I know," she mumbled as her body relaxed against him.
