XI.

"Wait, wait…" Triss begged breathlessly, her dress already bunched down at her waist and her tits completely out. They had barely gotten through the doors of Montecalvo before they were on one another, needing to feel some kind of relief from the absolute awful side-effects of their shared bond. As it turned out, if they were both turned on simultaneously that feeling kept ricocheting between them, intensifying it to rather unbearable levels. Even Philippa was having a hard time controlling the desire she was experiencing, and thus it was her decision that they leave early. Triss was thankful for it, because it wasn't as though it had gone unnoticed either.

Yennefer, of course, had some choice looks to give her, but not like that was anything new. Triss would explain later, as Yennefer was already more than aware how the two women were tied to one another and the ramifications of such a bond.

"What is it?" Philippa asked her through labored breaths, immediately taking her hands from Triss' body. She probably thought she was revoking consent, but considering that was the farthest thing from Triss' mind, she quickly snatched the other woman's hands in her own and placed them back around her hips.

They were a little ways up the stairs, practically stumbling all over themselves as they tried to both undress and get to a bedroom. They only managed about half-way for each. Triss' shoes were at the bottom of the stairs, Philippa's doublet thrown over the banister, leaving the other woman in a half-unbuttoned undershirt that allowed the delicious exposure of a single breast. But halfway there was better than all the way in that moment, as Triss realized she did not want her first time with Philippa to be when she wasn't at her best and right then was… well, not it.

"I should bathe. I don't want…"

Philippa looked amused at the insistence. "We are going to bathe, pet. Did you really think I'd touch you with the day's stink upon me?" She chuckled and took Triss' hand in her own, leading her the rest of the way up the stairs. They turned down the west wing, which was not somewhere Triss had ever been. She knew that was Philippa's private quarters, and so she always made sure to stay in other parts of the house. Now though, she was being privy to the entirety of it, and when they turned into the second door on the left, Triss' eyes went wide.

Philippa's washroom was huge. Her tub, larger than Triss had ever seen, and easily a good fit for two. The younger woman pursed her lips however, a little self conscious about bathing in front of the other woman. Sex was one thing – it was mostly instinctual; quick and messy and raw – but there was something more private about bathing, and Triss just hadn't— she hadn't really mentally prepared for this.

"I'll turn around if you wish, although I must warn you that there's little I haven't seen."

Triss rolled her eyes at the other woman's teasing. "I've just never… done something like this before. It seems, I don't know, intimate."

"And you don't want to be intimate with me," Philippa guessed, her tone oddly even. Triss didn't dwell on it though, as she could feel from their bond that that actually bothered Philippa a little. With how close they had been tonight, their empathetic connection was opened wider than it had ever been, and neither women had to go digging to feel what the other was experiencing.

"I'm wary about being intimate with you," Triss corrected honestly, her fingers nervously playing with the hem of her dress that had bunched up around her hips. At first, she had thought she would be nervous to be naked in front of Philippa, but she was already halfway there and barely gave it another thought. It felt strangely natural. "You know how I feel about you. I know you can feel it. Even if it's just some stupid crush, I don't want you to just—"

Philippa cut her words off with another kiss. "Triss," she breathed against her lips, her grip gentle around the back of the younger woman's neck. Their gaze met, and Philippa's eyes searched hers. "You know I hate it when you needlessly babble. It's just a bath. Don't over think it."

That didn't exactly make Triss feel any better, but Philippa had stepped back from her and was now undressing and, oh, fuck she was beautiful. Triss' breathing shallowed as she took in every dip, every curve of her lover's body, and Philippa just stood there, absolutely loving the way that Triss looked at her. The younger woman approached her then, her bottom lip trapped between her teeth. "You are…" but there were no words. Triss looked at Philippa kind of helplessly, and Philippa smirked softly before she grasped the fabric that was around Triss' waist, pulling the woman toward her as she encouraged the rest of the dress to fall to the ground.

"I know," Philippa breathed as she hooked her fingers around Triss' soaked undergarments. Triss trembled in anticipation as Philippa made a big showing of pulling them down her thighs, and her cheeks flushed red once she realized that Philippa could tell just how wanton she was for her. Her thighs were sticky with arousal already, and she no doubt stunk like desire. Triss had to step away from her.

"Bath," she reiterated desperately.

Philippa complied with her request, magically filling the large tub with water. "Go on," she encouraged, as Triss didn't want to just hop in without her, but Philippa seemed to realize that the other woman wasn't going to able to have sex with her unless she felt she was at her best, and so she allowed Triss some time to clean herself.

Philippa eventually sank into the water across from her, her own sponge lazily trailing across her skin while she looked straight at Triss the entire time she cleaned herself. Triss flushed again, especially because she needed to clean other places and she had never had an audience for that before. "Must you stare at me like that?"

Philippa chuckled, but approved Triss' request for some semblance of privacy as she sank back into the basin, allowing her head to lean back against the edge while her eyes fell closed. She looked relaxed, her chest just out of the water enough that her nipples tightened from the contrasting temperature in the air. Triss tried to clean herself now that she had some sort of space, but in all honestly… "Now it just feels like I'm intruding."

Thankfully, Philippa didn't seem annoyed, even though Triss was certain that she would be annoyed with herself at this point. She did seem a little amused though, and as she opened her eyes and looked at Triss she asked her, "Then tell me, pet, what is it that you want?"

"I… I don't know."

Philippa quirked an eyebrow. Apparently that was not an acceptable answer.

"I want you to tell me what to do because I don't— I've never done this. I don't know what I want. I think…"

"You think what?" Philippa prodded, knowing that Triss had an answer that she had yet to reach.

"I think… I just want you to touch me," Triss finally told her, realizing that she couldn't handle this. Whatever this was. She had such a clear picture in her mind about what her first time with Philippa would be like, and this was no where close. She expected Philippa to just fuck her, consume her, and then ultimately toss her aside. Philippa was… she was looking at her though. She was talking to her. She was treating her like she was really there, and not just some prop in one of her dirty fantasies, and Triss… Triss had no idea how to handle that.

It was what she wanted, if she were to be honest, but because she didn't expect it, it was making her rather uneasy.

"I'm sorry," Triss breathed as Philippa crossed to the other side of the tub to settle in next to her. She placed her hand on Triss' thigh while her other brushed away a strand of hair that had gotten in her eyes. The way that Philippa looked at Triss, it was as though she truly believed her to be beautiful, and Triss wished she could burn that look into her memory so she could recall it anytime she felt like less than such. "You should have just fucked me in the gardens. It would have been better than this."

"I meant it when I told you I do not condone your perverted desires for public sex," Philippa told her, and Triss flushed despite knowing the woman was just teasing her about how she got caught with Keira. A hint of a smirk pulled at Philippa's lips. "Regardless, freezing my tits off did not sound like a pleasant time, as fun as I'm sure it would have been otherwise."

Triss said nothing, and Philippa looked at her for a long time before she told her seriously, "Don't ever apologize for how you feel. You're inexperienced; I'm more than aware that can cause you to have some hesitation and, despite popular assumption, I do know how to exercise patience." Triss wrinkled her nose at the word 'inexperienced', and Philippa's next question only caused those lines to deepen. "How many lovers have you taken?"

"…Two."

Triss was embarrassed to admit that, but she also did not want to lie.

"And how many fucked you for longer than an hour?"

"None?"

Were they supposed to? Keira probably could have if they hadn't gotten interrupted (although whether she would is another matter entirely), but Triss somehow doubted that Piotr would have been able to undertake such a task.

"Sex isn't just supposed to be about that brief moment of gratification," Philippa told her, the hand on the younger woman's thigh encouraging them to part. Triss pursed her lips but allowed them to fall to either side of the tub, her breath catching in the back of her throat at the first feel of Philippa's fingers against her mound. "It can be of course, and when you are young there is nothing wrong with fucking for the sake of fucking, but believe me, pet, when you get older, you'll find you need something far more. Sex by itself is boring. But people… people are not. So if I'm going to experience someone, then I would rather experience all of them… wouldn't you?"

Philippa's fingers gently pressed against the younger woman's clit and Triss shuddered, grasping onto Philippa's arm as she locked eyes with the woman she had desired for so long. "How long does that take?" she asked breathlessly, suddenly realizing that this, all of this, was a part of Philippa's foreplay, and that she meant to extend it far longer than Triss ever thought possible. She wanted to be with her, really with her for a yet undetermined, extended period of time, and that both thrilled and terrified Triss, because she wasn't sure if she could live up to that kind of expectation.

"As long as you need."

The pressure between her began to slowly but steadily grow and Triss whimpered, grasping for the back of her lover's neck as she brought her in for a breathless kiss. As enjoyable as it seemed for Philippa to watch the pleasure play out across her expression, Triss couldn't bear being looked at for that long. She was already having the acute realization in her head that Philippa Eilhart was fucking her, finally, after so long of desiring such a thing, and she did not need the fact that Philippa seemed to want to soak up every moment of fucking her on top of that because, quite honestly, it was more than Triss could accept. Despite the signs, despite the goddamn obvious, for some reason this was still so wildly unbelievable.

Philippa's fingers dipped lower, finding Triss' arousal a different consistency than the water as the older woman allowed it to coat her fingers. Triss sucked in a sharp breath, her fingers curling into the back of the other woman's neck. "Please," she breathed, realizing with sudden and vivid clarity what it was that she wanted. "I need to feel you inside me."

"Patience, pet…" Philippa purred, her lips finding Triss' check, the underside of her jaw, her neck. The pressure found the younger woman's clit just as Philippa took the soft skin of her neck entirely into her mouth. Triss groaned desperately, her eyes falling closed and her hips pressing into her lover's hand as the heat in the base of her abdomen began to spread outward.

But as soon as she began to get too close to the edge, Triss would instinctively move her hips to thwart Philippa from actually finishing the job. It was starting to frustrate Triss, who couldn't understand why she was doing such a thing. She was so close, and yet anytime she got right on the edge…

"Has anyone ever given you an orgasm before, Triss?"

Triss bit down on her lower lip, shaking her head no. Her time with Keira was interrupted before they got that far, and Piotr seemed to care more about his own pleasure than hers. Maybe that was it. Maybe she was just having a hard time letting go in front of someone else because she never had before.

"But you've given yourself one, I assume."

Triss hesitated, but eventually nodded her head yes.

"Put your hand over mine," Philippa instructed. Triss did as asked, feeling her lover's lithe fingers beneath her own. "Show me." Triss opened her eyes to look at her, a little embarrassed about using Philippa's hand to masturbate. She noticeably hesitated. "Would it help if you were able to watch me fuck myself while you do it?" She didn't want Triss to be the only one in a vulnerable position, as she was more than aware that this was all very new to her.

But Philippa said it so candidly that it made Triss wonder why she was so embarrassed about it. Philippa clearly did not view masturbation as something private, nor as something to be ashamed of, so why was Triss? Still, regardless of all that… "Isn't your hand a little busy?" she asked, as Philippa was right-handed, and her right hand was now beneath Triss' hand.

Philippa smirked. "You forget that we have other ways of seeing things now."

She inclined her head until it gently rested against Triss', her eyes falling closed as she concentrated. Suddenly, images of Philippa flooded Triss' mind. Her hand was between her legs, her thighs were covered with arousal, and she was fucking herself with a phallic looking object that made her pant and groan each time it pushed into her. Despite it being a little strange seeing it from Philippa's point of view, Triss helplessly whimpered at the sight, and her hand moved on instinct, guiding Philippa's that was still camped out between her thighs.

"Do you know what night that was, pet?" Philippa breathed into her ear, the words eliciting goosebumps across the back of her neck. "Do you know who I was thinking of while I fucked myself like that?"

"Don't lie to me," Triss begged, not needing Philippa to pretend she desired her that badly.

"I would never."

The sincerity in Philippa's voice startled Triss, and the image of Philippa got clearer in her mind as the other woman furiously fucked herself, sweating and panting and wanting. Her clothes were strewn across her bed, and the dark red men's doublet with silver embroidery looked awfully, awfully familiar.

"The night we had dinner," Triss gasped, her own hand frantically using Philippa's to masturbate as her chest began to flush a deep rose. "You… wanted to fuck me to teach me a lesson."

"I wanted to fuck you. End of sentence," Philippa corrected breathlessly, the images she was projecting into Triss' head along with the feeling of Triss pleasuring herself turning her on quite substantially. "I just needed to find a reason to justify it in my mind, and I was terribly disappointed when you didn't take the bait."

"And what are your reasons for… for justifying this now?" Triss gasped out between moans. She still needed to know. She needed to know what changed, and why now. She still barely understood why Philippa wanted her so badly. "I'm still… your apprentice."

Philippa chuckled softly, but it sounded kind of bittersweet. "Oh, pet. You are far, far more than that," she breathed before she took the lead, and pushed Triss right over the edge. She increased the pressure, the pace, and Triss had already been so close that she easily tumbled over without thinking twice about it, a desperate cry falling past her lips as she arched her back and curled her toes.

"Fuck, fuck," Triss panted as Philippa did not give her a chance to breathe, and finally, finally slipped her fingers inside of her. Triss had barely registered that the other woman had even moved, or that she had stopped projecting her thoughts into hers when suddenly Philippa was on top of her, her lips colliding with Triss' as she kissed her with a fierce, unwavering hunger. Triss clutched at her desperately, spreading her legs as wide as they could do to invite Philippa to go into her harder, deeper. "Take me," she begged, her nails scraping helplessly against olive flesh. "Fuck me. I want to be yours."

– You are mine. –

Triss half-wondered if Philippa even realized she was projecting her thoughts, or with their connection this open that Triss was accidentally wandering where she shouldn't be. Either way, Philippa did not say it out loud. Instead she kissed her harder, the thrusts of her hand making water spill out over the edge of the tub and onto the floor. The water was hindering them in multiple ways, as the force of Philippa's thrusts were having a hard time pushing back against the water. It was good, but it wasn't what either of them wanted, and so when they broke the kiss and Philippa told her to breathlessly, "Get out," Triss did as she was told without question.

They were dripping wet, nearly slipping on the floor, and yet Philippa wasted no time pushing Triss against her vanity. "Up," she instructed, and Triss climbed atop it, leaning her back against the mirror as she spread her legs on either side of the woman between them. Philippa pushed Triss' left leg up to let it rest on her shoulder as she slid her fingers back inside of her, twisting and pulling desperate groans from the woman beneath her. The coolness of the mirror contrasted against the heat of her back, and Triss' wet hair stuck to her cheeks and her shoulders as she allowed Philippa to completely destroy her.

Because she was, you know. She absolutely was destroying her for any other person, because already Triss couldn't imagine sex with anyone being this good.

Philippa's mouth had wrapped around one of her nipples and Triss cried out as she tangled her fingers in a mess of dark hair, realizing Philippa's braid was starting to fall apart. "Take it out," Triss begged breathlessly, realizing that she had never seen Philippa with her hair down before. Even though she requested that Philippa do it, Triss was the one who began to unbraid her hair in a messy, haphazard way as being fucked was absolutely destroying her coordination. She managed most of it on her own, but when Philippa finally detached herself from her chest she raised her head, shaking the rest out of hair. Although it was still half wet, it fell around her face, and Triss' breath left her.

"Oh wow," she whispered, not understanding how someone she already saw as the most beautiful woman in the world could get any more gorgeous, and yet there she was. Philippa smiled at the genuine compliment before she leaned in and kissed her, the passion behind it becoming raw and desperate as she slid another finger inside of Triss, twisting and pulling out yet another trembling orgasm.

"Shit, shit… wait…" Triss begged, knowing Philippa was going to just continue fucking her until she passed out if she didn't have a second to breathe, and considering she did not want this to be all about her, she pushed her lover's hand away from her thighs and requested breathlessly, "—Bedroom."

Philippa chuckled, but nodded her acquiesce before she held out her hand, helping Triss off the vanity. She nearly slipped on a puddle of water but Philippa caught her, holding onto the younger woman's slim form as she guided her out of the washroom and across the hall to the master bedroom. Triss, knowing that if she didn't take control of the situation then Philippa was just going to continue to ravage her, did not waste a second before she pulled on her lover's hand, halting her a few paces in front of her bed. "Wait," she told her, and Philippa waited.

Triss dropped to her knees in front of her. She was not Yennefer, and she did want to reciprocate. She needed Philippa to know that.

"You don't have to be on your knees to pleasure me, pet."

Triss looked up at her, her beautiful wet form glinting under the soft light of the room, and she was certain she had never seen anything more divine. "Maybe I want to be," she softly retorted, allowing her fingernails to rake up olive thighs. Philippa shuddered, watching Triss' pupils dilate as she laid eyes on her prize. Philippa wasn't just wet from the bath, and now that she was close enough, Triss could smell how badly she wanted her. "Sometimes, Mistress, I enjoy being beneath you," she breathed, her words thick with desire. "Let me."

Triss gently touched her then, the soft mound of the other woman's pubic hair tickling her fingers. Her heart was beating in her throat as Triss was suddenly, acutely aware that she had never done this before, but she tried to push all of her fears about not being able to pleasure Philippa to the side because she was certain that Philippa wouldn't have any qualms with teaching her, should the need arise. She understood Triss wasn't going to be perfect, and while Triss wished that she was, there was nothing she could do about it now and quite frankly… a part of her was very glad that Philippa held a lot of her firsts. It felt like it actually meant something.

Triss gently spread the other woman with her fingers before finally leaning in, taking the soft flesh into her mouth. Philippa groaned, her fingers weaving in a mess of chestnut hair as she encouraged her to stay just as she was. Triss wasn't certain how, but she was fairly certain that Philippa tasted much better than Keira had, although perhaps it was just because of how she felt about her. Even if Triss didn't like the taste she probably would have stayed down there regardless, because the honor of pleasuring Philippa Eilhart was unparalleled to anything she had ever felt before.

Triss tried to mimic what Keira had done to her during their brief affair, and allowed her tongue to gently flick against the other woman's clit. Philippa hissed in pleasure, the grip in her hair tightening. As that elicited a good reaction, that ended up being Triss' go to, until she began to realize that she actually got better results when she alternated her technique. The more Philippa praised her with shudders and moans, the more confident Triss got and began to throw herself entirely into it, her hands squeezing tight to the other woman's ass as her mouth completely covered the apex of Philippa's thighs.

She so desperately wanted to make Philippa feel how she had made her feel. She wanted to hear her cry out, she wanted to see her tremble and pant. She wanted the woman to feel something because of Triss, and only because of Triss.

"—Fuck," Philippa panted, getting a little unsteady on her feet. She pushed Triss away from her thighs momentarily. "I need to…" she began, but didn't finish her sentence. Instead she backed up until she was sitting on the edge of the bed, and Triss crawled towards her until she was between her thighs again. She licked a long line up her center and Philippa shuddered, leaning back on her elbows as she allowed her weight to rest against the bed. "Keep doing that," she instructed breathlessly. "But put your fingers inside of me."

Triss did as she was encouraged, and when she slipped two fingers into Philippa she felt the other woman tighten around them. It was easily one of the sexiest things Triss had ever felt and as she wrapped her mouth around the other woman's clit she twisted her fingers inside of her, loving the way Philippa would gasp and writhe beneath her. The woman's chest beginning to flush a deep rose as she began to grow closer to the precipice, and Triss wished they had done this earlier. Truth be told, this was all she wanted to do for the rest of her life. There was nothing more powerful than to make a woman like Philippa Eilhart come apart in her hands, and Triss was absolutely drunk on it.

Triss came up from between the other woman's thighs, replacing her mouth with her thumb as she continued to gently stimulate her. But she wanted to see the look on Philippa's face when she finally fell over the edge, and to that end she rose up on her knees, pressing her lips against the other woman's ear as she breathed in a seductive tone, "You'll come for me… won't you, Mistress?"

"—Mmphh, fuck," Philippa gasped out, the orgasm hitting her like a ton of bricks. Triss smiled deviously. Philippa's cheeks were flushed and her mouth was hanging open, tiny beads of sweat littering her forehead. Triss removed her hand from her thighs, allowing Philippa to collapse against her elbows as she struggled to breathe.

"You've turned that against me," she noted between labored breaths, and Triss' devious grin grew even wider.

"For awhile now," she admitted, because it the only time she used the title 'Mistress' anymore was either to seduce her or manipulate her. Triss had realized that Philippa liked being called that and had begun to use it to her advantage. Philippa chuckled breathlessly.

"…Well done."

"Thank you," Triss responded, proud of herself. Trapping her bottom lip between her teeth, she finally stood, but it was only briefly before she swung her legs on either side of Philippa, straddling her lap. Placing her hand on her chest, Triss forced her lover's back against the bed as she towered over her. Philippa quirked a brow, seemingly amused by her little show of domination, yet allowed it. For now. "Sometimes, you are surprisingly easy to read."

"Am I?" Philippa goaded, allowing Triss to take her wrists into her hands as she pinned them above her head. Triss murmured an affirmative before she rolled her hips, allowing her center to grind against Philippa's leg. Both women groaned. "Then tell me, pet… what am I thinking right now?"

Triss bit her bottom lip, making this big showing of feigning thought, but suddenly, somehow, Philippa managed to get enough leverage in order to quickly flip them over. Triss squealed in surprise as her back hit the bed, and suddenly she was pinned in a position very similar to what Philippa was not moment's ago. "…That's not fair," she complained.

"Life isn't fair, Triss, why should I be any different?"

Triss rolled her eyes, but Philippa had planned to let her go regardless and released her wrists. Instead of being on top of her she settled in on the side of her, still practically hovering over her, but in a way that was much more comfortable. She looked down at the woman beneath her and Triss pursed her lips at the expression on Philippa's face, feeling a warmth in her chest this time instead of at the base of her abdomen. Gentle fingers brushed an errant strand of hair from Triss' face, and though she said nothing, her expression spoke volumes.

"Can we stay here?" Triss asked softly, not ready for it to be over. Not ready for this to end when she felt as though it had barely begun, because this was only a one-time thing, wasn't it? Now that Philippa had had her, the appeal had most likely diminished. Triss was trying to prepare herself for that, but with the way Philippa was looking at her, it was hard for Triss not to want her to always look at her that way.

"You thought I was done with you?" Philippa asked, amusement playing at the edge of her lips.

"You aren't?"

"The night isn't over, pet," she reminded her and oh, she just wasn't done with her for tonight. That was… better. But…

But Triss had to stop obsessing. She had gotten what she wanted, hadn't she? She had Philippa, she will have Philippa for an entire night. Isn't that enough? She shouldn't be greedy. And yet, in that moment, Triss could not feel anything but her own greed as she looked at Philippa and realized that now that she had her… she didn't want to let her go.

TBC…