Chapter Eighteen: Her Gift, and Unbridled Passion

Y'lorani cursed--a habit she had come into when Dharketh had refused her and chosen Liayela instead--as she packed her clothes and the few items she needed. The memory crystal would have to come with, she thought to herself as she held the warmly glowing crystal. Who knew what interesting things she could place inside it?
She caressed the beautiful thing that held so many memories from before the time they had been driven to live in these awful caves. She had stolen this from Liayela many years ago when the wicked elf had taken it against all tradition from her dead grandmother's neck. It had been then that she had begun to See things--both of the future and the past. It was the gift that had been passed down every other generation to the women of this family, and her heritage. When Liayela had stolen it, she had gone mad with fury.
She wished she had not told the human of her vision, did not even know why she had or what she had said. She had seen his death, seen his daughter commanding his ship with a crew of strangely beautiful (if brown) people. This vision, however, had left her with very little detail--as was true with all of the others. The crystal told her that when her power peaked, she would better remember the visions. It had also told her that she would still understand little that she saw until it happened, and to remember that things could change. The future was not governed by fate, but by free will. All she saw in visions was how something would turn out if things continued at their present course.
Involving herself, though...she invariably interpreted visions involving herself accurately. Such as Seeing herself leaving with the Goddess and the human. She shook her head. One day, life was as it had always been, and the next her world was turned upside down. Ah well. An adventure might well do her some good.

************************

When he came to tell her the results of the council, she was sitting on her bed, still holding the crystal, her thoughts lost in the past. He sent a tendril of good will towards her and she came out of her reverie to glare slightly at him.
"I already know," she said frostily.
"I--I'm sorry, Y'lorani. I never meant to hurt you," he said, and to his surprise and slight pleasure, she looked surprised. "I know that what I did was terrible--to you and to all of our people--but I would so much like to redeem myself in your eyes. That's why..."
"You're coming too," she said matter-of-factly. He hated how she knew what he was going to say an instant before he said it. She only did it to irritate him, he knew full well, and tried not to show his annoyance. It was futile, however, since she already knew how he felt. He wished things between them had remained the way they had been when they were children. She had always had a touch of the Gift, but it had never been so intense as when she had received that stone.
He knew, of course, that she had stolen it from Liayela after Liayela had stolen it from her, and he had never said a word to Liayela--even though he had been her lover then.
Liayela had known, however, when Y'lorani's eyes had changed from purple to silver, when her hair had turned from the blackest of black to pure white. By then, she had had no choice but to allow Y'lorani to keep the stone. She had already bonded with it, after all, and Liayela could no more take it from her than she could fly. It had been a source of great frustration for Liayela, Dharketh remembered, and she had refused him her bed for many weeks after.
"Y'lorani--and PLEASE don't read my mind again!--I want to start over, I want to go back to the way we used to be," he pleaded. "I miss you."
"Perhaps some day," she said with a cryptic smile on her face. He knew, of course, that she had seen whether they would or not, and in that moment he hated her for not telling him.
"We will leave on the morrow, Dharketh," she stated. "You had better begin preparing."
With that, he left her doorway cursing her as well as himself.

She heard him and smiled wider. This voyage could be...interesting.

************************

When Arianne woke up, she found Jack staring at her. She smiled and stroked the side of his face tenderly, relieved that he did not appear to be completely overwhelmed by all that had happened. When she kissed his lips softly, he held her close with his hand on her back, kissing her back with passion. Now that the danger of Liayela had passed, the pent-up tension could finally be released as sexual energy.
She gave in to him willingly and with much enthusiasm, and at the climax it seemed as though they were back in the field of stars. She stifled a cry of ecstasy when they reached their utter limit together, and held him close when he collapsed on top of her, sated.
What had she done to deserve this wonderful man? she asked herself as she slid towards a blissful slumber.

************************

Later, when they finally woke, they found a tub of steaming water seeming to beckon them to it. Arianne, with her fastidious nature, hurried directly over to it, Jack following a little more slowly behind. He still had not quite gotten used to bathing all the time (once a week seemed like all the time to him), but he humored Arianne in her desire to keep him relatively clean. It was about time to re-braid his hair anyway, he thought, and the tub was huge--big enough for two, he noticed with a sly grin.
Arianne had already climbed in and was sighing with pleasure at the hot water relaxing her muscles. She dunked her head under the water to get her hair wet, and when she came up she found Jack standing beside her with the soap in his hand.
"I'll wash you," he said with a wicked grin. She blushed slightly and allowed him to lather up her hair and rinse it before he moved to her body. By the time he was finished, she was panting with desire.
She made him get in the water before she would allow him to relieve that burning desire, and she proceeded to tease him as mercilessly as he had teased her. She first unbraided his hair, and then pushed his head under the water to fully wet it. Then, much to his dismay, she washed his hair, rinsed it, and then brushed it out before moving on to his body. By the time she was halfway finished cleaning his body, he wanted to pull her to him and finish it then and there, but she would not allow their consummation until she had finished cleaning him.
When they had once more completed their lovemaking, they simply relaxed in the tub, Arianne leaning against Jack's chest as he stroked her belly. This was the way things should be, Jack thought to himself. No more stress, no more adventures, for he was heartily sick of both and simply wanted to settle down in a nice home. He would, of course, take Arianne and the Pearl out for journeys between isles, but no longer would he seek such dangerous adventures. He had more than just himself and his wife to think about now, and though he was surprised to admit it even to himself, he did not regret a moment of it.
He knew that the adventure might not be over for a few months, but he could handle that knowing that soon there would be a measure of rest.
How little he really knew about raising a child.

************************************************************************

Right! Two chapters in two days, cool, huh? Anyway, you finally got your "Jack/Arianne" action, Nikee, lol. Raislyn-Ari, yes, I know that cliffhangers are mean...but it keeps you reading, doesn't it? lol. And I would write and write until my fingers fell off if I had the time, I really would. Sadly, I don't have the time--I've got a baby to take care of, and not a whole heck of a lot of free time. Usually when I get on the computer to write, it's with express permission, lol. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter:P