Thanks to everyone who left reviews on the last chapter - you're all wonderful xx
Sorry for the delay - writers block and working like 60 hour weeks! Hope you enjoy this update :)
Chapter 6. Huge.
It had taken Cristoff several painstaking hours to clear up all the damage from the berserker attack, carefully knitting layers of muscle back together and clearing up any internal damage caused by the poison before focusing on her skin, healing it so there was barely a scar left. He was annoyed about the blemish, but it was minimal and couldn't be helped. She was covered in scars anyway, so he doubted she'd really mind.
The pinkette had fallen asleep after Cobra's antidote had taken full affect, though it took him a couple of goes to get it right due to the synthetic nature of it. The Poison Slayer hadn't encountered anything like it before. She hadn't complained once, though, and sat through the cold sweats and nosebleed reactions to the incorrect formulas silently - her white knuckled grip on Zen's hand and rapid shallow breaths the most obvious indicators of her discomfort while Cobra muttered expletive laden apologies.
The lengthy work gave the healer plenty of time to chat with his long lost brother, and he told Zen about their father, Kaleb, Bicklsow, Emzadi, Xally and Vander. He filled him in on how Bosco had changed for the better following the war, and about his Guild, White Sea. His siblings had visited for brief periods, never more than one at a time, and his older brother seemed to be coping well with the intrusions.
The Lunar Slayer looked over the pair, both now asleep, smiling at the way Amalie snuggled against his brother's bare chest, her head tucked under his chin and a hand tangled in his hair while the big man had both arms wrapped around her.
The gladiator had told him a little of what his life had been like in the pits, and the hideous laboratories the Pergrandian king had been hiding from the rest of Earthland. It was where the poison had been developed, so potent that Cobra had actually gotten a little high from it, and where Zen had spent several years while they tested and tried to replicate his unique magic. Cristoff couldn't imagine how hard life must have been on a daily basis, constantly fighting for survival. It was why he'd gently used his magic to help the other mage fall into a undisturbed slumber and he intended to monitor him until he woke up on his own accord.
"How are they?" a voice asked softly. "Can I get you anything?"
Cristoff turned in his seat to smile at the blonde Celestial mage. Her sweet nature would perfectly balance out his younger brother's darkness, if he were to actually calm his flirtatious ways long enough to see for himself just how perfect she was for him.
"I'm fine, thank you Lucy," the Lunar Slayer replied. "But would you mind sitting with them while I stretch my legs?"
She nodded and moved into the room, curling herself up in the chair Cristoff had vacated and opening the book she'd been carrying. The big Slayer chuckled and pressed a quick kiss to the top of her golden crown. He was unashamedly affectionate, especially when it came to women, and the blonde was no exception. It was a shame, truly, that his dragon didn't react to her. "I won't be long."
"Go. It's fine," the Celestial mage responded, eyes not leaving the page she was reading as she waved him off blindly. "You need a shower. You stink."
He barked a laugh at that and left.
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It was a huge thing for him to even contemplate, but he knew he was lost to those doe eyes the instant they met his and he'd do anything to be blinded by her brilliant smile. Still, he wanted to resist. He wanted to keep his freedom; he didn't want to be tied down to someone, especially not with his occupation and precarious position in the Steel Council. Gods, he could die tomorrow and what would that do to her?!
Vander scrubbed his hands through his hair in frustration. This situation was so far out of his comfort zone - he was usually a casual fling sort of person and noone had ever held his attentions long enough to contemplate otherwise.
It wasn't that she was crowding him. It was actually quite the opposite - he was the one seeking out her company. Sure, it had started as a delicious game of cat and mouse but, after she managed to preempt his moves and escape him again and again, it had become much more. She intrigued him, and challenged him, and he was drawn in like a moth to a flame. It was all a damned mind fuck, really.
Maybe he just needed to finally have sex with her, fuck her out of his system.
He lay back on the bed and stared at the ceiling of the airship. He was sure that was it, that he'd lose interest when he no longer had to chase her.
With that decision made, the Shadowquip mage stood, determined to find the object of his confusion.
The blonde was easy to find when she wasn't trying to avoid him, and she jumped when Vander's fingers slid across her collarbone. She looked up at him, a startled squeak escaping her own lips when his descended on hers without preamble, capturing them in a hungry kiss. It did nothing to sate his want for her, only stoked the fire of his need.
"Don't mean to interrupt your foreplay," a hoarse voice whispered, breaking through the haze of their lust. "But I could use some water."
Lucy pulled away, panting, face a delicious shade of crimson. They both looked over at the Change mage, still worryingly pale and curled up with the missing Pradesh on the infirmary bed, but obviously well enough to cock block the shit out of her friends as evidenced by her knowing smirk.
"Get your own fucking water," Vander snarled, snatching Lucy up and stepping into the shadows. To hell with waiting. If she consented, he'd have her now, on their way back to Bosco. He hurried through the shadows, to the room he knew had a lock on the door. Lucy made no objection to this form of travel, if her teeth scraping against his jaw was anything to go by. He nearly lost control of his magic, faltered when her lips closed over his earlobe. Her devious tongue sent blood pumping straight down to his crotch. Never before had a woman had this affect on him and he hissed in warning only for her to giggle in response.
It felt like a lifetime before they'd finally made it to the room, progress slowed by the blonde's wicked mouth and his waning self control. He tossed her onto the bed, delighted by the way her eyes widened when he commanded his shadow made clothes to dissipate, leaving him completely bare before her.
"Wow," Lucy whispered, her eyes drinking him in. She rolled over onto her knees, looking up at him through her bangs and biting her bottom lip shyly. With a small blush, she pulled her shirt over her head, revealing her lacy bra and full bust to him. She met his crimson eyes with a hint of a challenge. "Well? Are you just going to watch?"
Vander didn't need a second invitation and pounced.