Here is my latest offering to my loyal readers...Just in time for Valentine's day ;-)
Warning: this chapter contains an intimate encounter between consenting adults and is rated M. Underage or not into sex - don't read.
The mind works in strange ways because, though it was plain that I was mistaken about the sword, my fear evaporated as he approached. I knew his intentions, or so I thought, and my steps backward were taken more out of instinct than fear. I had seen naked men before but the sight of him still stunned me. Ares was beautiful in his nakedness, more so than in his armour, as every line and curve of him was cleanly cut and skillfully shaped, with no excess muscle or fat. Fascinated, I watched the way his muscles moved until he came so close that I was unable to look anywhere but up at his face. My back touched the wall and he came to within a hand's breadth of me, close enough that I could feel the heat radiating from him, then hooked his hands under my arms.
In a seemingly effortless motion, he lifted me until I was staring straight ahead into his eyes and I refused to flinch or show any discomfort, though my feet were dangling uselessly above the floor. Raising my hands, I let them rest on either side of his neck and merely looked at him.
"Ismena of Troy...how very different you are" he said, his voice wavering very slightly but I caught it and tipped my head to the side questioningly. He pulled me to him then and my arms slid around his neck, allowing him to put an arm around my back to anchor our bodies together. I could feel the hard contours of his body through my thin clothing and swore that his breath caught when I shifted even slightly. We stared at each other in silence for a while then he began to speak and what he told me would stay with me for the rest of my days, much longer than he himself would.
"You asked my father if the gods could love mortals beyond physical desire. We cannot allow ourselves to, not only because our emotions are not as raw as those of mortals but because of your fragility and brief lifespan. Were I to love you as the gods love each other, your fragile body would be shattered beyond repair and your spirit would go to the underworld where even I would be unable to reach you. As you know, I am not exactly popular among my kin and, therefore, they would be disinclined to aid me. Therefore, I can only give what I am able to while still preserving your life. The question is: will you accept it?" he asked gravely.
He loves you as he is able. Comprehension came with an almost visceral clarity and emotion rose up so strongly in me that words would not come. Tears burned my eyes and I swallowed against the lump in my throat as conflicting emotions warred within me. My virtue had long been considered an important part of my armour, a reason for me to refuse every man who approached me...even Paris. Especially Paris. But, as had been said many times, Ares was no man and so, in his case, it was a vulnerability. I had no idea what to expect from his touch, or any man's really, so this was a battle for which I was completely unprepared.
However, despite his immortality, supposed immunity to human emotions, and immense strength, I was not meaningless to him and he would lose far more than I would in the long run. The terms of his agreement with my lady were, as of yet, unknown to me but I reasoned that, after Troy had met her fate, he would have to remove himself from my life and watch powerlessly as I withered and died. To do any more would be to interfere in path of my life and that would definitely incur the wrath of his father.
Immortality, it seemed, was not a blessing but a curse. Especially for the black sheep of the Olympians.
This, however, I could give him without blame. They would assume I had been forced. But Cassandra would know and, if we survived the war and its end, I would tell my cousin the truth about what happened in my rooms the night Helenus disappeared. After all, I was many things but a coward was not one of them and I did not shy away from conflict. Love, however, I ran from as though it were the plague. Considering what I had seen of it in my life and what it had done to my father, my cousin, and our country thus far, it was no surprise that I thought of it as an emotion to be avoided unless it regarded one's close family but even that was fraught with peril. Hektor had loved his foolish younger brother and died because said younger brother had loved an enemy woman. Or, at least, managed to convince everyone that he did.
What I felt for Ares was not love but was the closest thing to it that I had encountered up until then. But, though my choice was clear, that little nagging voice wouldn't stop in the back of my mind and I wondered just why he was even giving me the choice. If mortals really were just a source of amusement for the gods, why did he allow himself to care so much for me?
His eyes betrayed nothing in the way of an answer and I decided that it did not really matter. All that mattered was that he cared at all and, not quite knowing what I was getting myself into, I nodded "I will".
Aware that time was of the essence, especially for me, he did not hesitate. Before I could blink, he was kissing me and my thoughts quieted then stopped altogether. If the previous kiss was fire and ice, this one was like lightening. Heat surged through me, awakening every fibre of my being, and intensified as his mouth left mine and travelled down my neck, nipping lightly at my skin. A soft moan sounded and it took a moment before I realized it had come from me.
He carried me over to my bed and my nightgown disappeared, though I couldn't say exactly how or when. I was too busy mapping the contours of his body with my hands, feeling the warmth and smoothness of his skin and the hardness of his muscles, listening and watching intently for his reaction...and I was not disappointed. He was not loud and I tried my hardest to be quiet myself because if anyone outside my rooms heard us, there would most definitely be trouble.
He gave a sharp intake of breath when my nails grazed his scalp, a low hiss when I tugged lightly on his nipples, and growled low in his chest when my fingertips grazed the top of his erection then my hand closed around it. How can something so hard be so soft as well? I wondered and was amazed to feel him pulsing in my hand.
I did not have long to think on it because I suddenly found myself on my back with him atop me, his hands gripping my thighs and drawing them upwards. Then he slid his hands up to cup my breasts, tormenting the sensitive peaks with his fingers and mouth until my back arched and I was squirming against the hollow ache throbbing between my thighs.
His eyes glowing with blue fire, he leaned down and kissed me again and I felt him positioning himself then he entered me in a single swift thrust. None of the tales told by gossipy maids or even by my cousin could have prepared me for the pain that shot through me, for it felt like I had truly been stabbed with a sword. My entire body clenched and I clenched my teeth but was still aware enough to feel him go very still.
"Ismena, relax" he mumbled and I glared indignantly up at him, feeling a familiar rush of anger. How like a man to tell me thus because he certainly wasn't hurting. His hands tightened very slightly on my hips and I saw a corner of his mouth twitch upwards "ah, there you are again" he said huskily and, steeling myself against the pain, I clenched my inner muscles in retribution. He growled and withdrew, pulling out slowly then driving forwards into me again and, again, there was the pain but it had lessened and was accompanied by a pleasant warm tingling sensation deep within.
Instinctively, my body began to move with his, meeting his thrusts, and I gave up any attempt to be silent. My nails dug into his back and I shuddered as a feeling of pressure began to build deep in my belly, a need for...something I couldn't name. His fingers slid between our bodies and moved to my centre then he pressed down and the pleasure was so unexpected and intense that I cried out, my hips jerking upwards involuntarily.
A split second later, the snake in my belly lashed out and there was a rush of ecstasy, the likes of which I had never even come close to feeling before. I swore I saw stars explode in front of my eyes and, vaguely, heard my voice call his name even as he still moved inside me. As I came down from my peak. his thrusts had become urgent and he was trembling, his breathing heavy and rushed against my neck. Wanting to give him the same pleasure he had given me, I moved with him again, kissing whatever part of him I could reach and running my hands down his chest and arms.
He truly had endurance, though, because he brought me to that peak twice more before finally succumbing to the pleasure himself with a hoarse shout, grinding his hips against mine before I felt the hot liquid rush of his release inside. Panting softly, my mind reeling from the various feelings and sensations, I stared up at my ceiling, unable to form words, sifting through his soft hair with my fingers.
I half expected him to disappear as soon as the last tendrils of pleasure had receded from our forms but he seemed ill-inclined to leave. Instead, he shifted onto his side and gathered me close and we spent the next hour or so just laying there, staring at each other in comfortable silence. "Ares" I whispered and he nodded, which I took as permission to ask my question "do the gods sleep?".
"Not as mortals do" was his quiet reply "we rest whenever we wish to but mainly for enjoyment and it is not required for the health of our bodies and minds. The same applies to eating and drinking. Dionysus is an exception because he is half mortal, which is why he alone is capable of being perpetually drunk on earthly wine".
His tone brought a smile to my face "ah, but the rest of you consume nectar"
One corner of his mouth quirked upwards ever so slightly "yes, curious one"
"Though I am incapable of fully understanding your kin due to my limited abilities and lifespan; there is no reason for me not to try to understand as much as I am able in the time I am given".
"Why do you bother if you know you are going to die?"
"Because I live to learn and learning is only useful if the knowledge one acquires is actually true. If you learn nothing but lies, you have- in fact- learned nothing at all"
"True but how do you know I am not lying to you?"
"About the nectar? I can taste it in your mouth and your skin smells of honey"
"What does a man taste and smell of?"
"I do not know. I have never been with a man in this way"
"Apparently, but you kissed Paris of Troy" he stated coolly and my stomach did a little flip in alarm.
"Yes but I was drunk on wine so everything tasted and smelled like wine" I explained, embarrassed. One of his eyebrows rose upwards "I should introduce you to Dionysus then" he muttered "you already have something in common". I rolled my eyes, but part of me was shocked because he had actually teased me "you flatter me, my lord".
"Would you rather that I yell at you?"
"You were shouting a few moments ago"
"That was different"
"Indeed?"
"I also nearly destroyed your bed a few moments ago"
I pursed my lips thoughtfully and glanced up at the headboard then back at him "my bed is still standing".
"Is that a challenge, mortal?" he growled and, well aware that I was playing with fire, I gave him my most becoming smile then slid my leg up and draped it over his hip, feeling him harden in response "if you want it to be".
I learned then that I was possibly the only person who had nothing to fear from him. For, even as he rolled atop me and entered me again with the swiftness only a god could possess, I felt him holding back. Tempering his strength to avoid crushing my fragile human body. And some time later, when I finally fell asleep in his arms while mentally cursing the weakness of mortal flesh, my bed still stood.