Frustrated by her dances with Castiel and Lucifer, Meg flees the ballroom, risking consequence if Cain or Crowley catches her. Deep in the hedge-maze, she finds herself finally starting to relax, until she realizes she isn't alone. rated for sex.

Chapter 5

He was trouble. More trouble than he was worth. The sort of problem she would have undone with a sword thrust if she could have. But Meg knew that Castiel wouldn't be easily dismissed.

Or forgotten.

Damn him.

She'd not expected a dance to be such hell on her nerves. That he had actually wanted to dance with her had been stranger still and she had pulled away before she did something stupid. Lucifer might have shaken her up but Castiel had toppled her over the edge into a confused myriad of emotions. She hadn't expected to want something so badly as to…to… feel. Emotions she had forgotten she could feel. So she had run, for lack of a better word, though she would always deny it if anyone ever figured out she was here. Castiel was a problem and she had come here to discover if there was any plans against Abaddon, not dance and be caught up in some stupid girl crush.

Meg shuddered. That's all it was. She was fascinated by him and his ridiculously naive manner. People weren't innocent in Abaddon.

Escaping into the garden had been easy. There were crowds ten people deep on all sides of the ballroom. He'd have to fight his way to follow her and Meg doubted he would. His interest in her was a passing one and she saw how he looked at other nobles in the room. He might find her interesting but she doubted she was that interesting to him. With any luck she could pass the time alone until they had to leave, then slip in unnoticed back into the entourage. No harm done.

Swirling her skirts around her legs as she passed by a couple on the balcony, Meg walked into the gardens' atrium and reached up to remove her mask from her face. Outside it was refreshingly cold enough to relieve the heat from the ballroom and she inhaled the fragrances of roses of all kinds. The cool air blasted her face and she sighed in relief, not even caring how it sent a chill down her sweat damp skin. It felt so good to be out of that confining space with all those staring eyes.

A low moan close-by made her turn her head and jump a few inches left. But the two men entangled in one another didn't seem to notice her. One had notched the other up into the door frame and had him pinned there, hands roaming over his body in hungry possessive strokes. They were murmuring to one another, words that would have made another woman blush though Meg only watched for a few seconds longer than she should have. She squinted through the dark shadows to see one make a fierce turn that pinned the other up against the wall face first. Meg backed away, recognizing one as the soldier that had greeted the entourage earlier and the other was a tall, dark soldier who wore the trappings of rank. An Arch.

An Arch who would kill her, she didn't doubt, if he saw her here. Though he seemed to be wrapped up in his partner and the mock struggle they were having before he flattened him against the wall and began to kiss the back of his neck. The sight was so strange to Meg; she'd thought that soldiers, especially the angels, of Elysium were celibate. Something about the laws of being a soldier or something like that.

Staggering backward, Meg pressed into the closest alcove and then scooted down the back stairs that led into the gardens. Her satin slippers snagged on the marble and with a muffled curse she kicked them off into the grass. Even though they were of the finest money could buy, it relieved the ache in her feet and she almost curled her toes with delight into the grass. Nudging the slippers into a heap at the bottom of the steps, she stretched her arms up into the sky and inhaled deeply. The garden's thick rose bushes had all been painted silver for the ball and she could smell the mixture of paint and rose in the air, an undercurrent that tickled her nose. Meg turned her attention around her and

Satisfied that she was alone, she gathered her skirts in a hand and jogged as quickly as she could towards the hedge maze. Maybe if she lost herself for an hour or two, then the time would fly by and she would be able to leave before she lost more of her hard-won control over herself. The hedge-maze seemed to be the perfect place. It rose high and she knew from rumours that it ran towards the man-made lake that circled the Elysium palace. The twists and turns of the maze consumed her and she nearly broke into a run when she spotted the centre of the maze. Maybe here she could find some badly needed solitude.

Only it, like the shadows of the garden balcony, was occupied. A tiny blonde woman was sprawled on the bench there, kissing a man who covered her completely. Her moans were soft, and she kept murmuring a name as she clung to the short hair of the man. It was obvious what was happening, even in the shadows.

"Hell," Meg whispered as she pressed back into the hedge to avoid being scene. "Does everyone in Elysium get this way at balls?"

Then she nearly laughed in relief. So it wasn't just her. Maybe there was something in the wine. Smirking, she peeked out and then put her hand over her mouth to stifle her giggle. Apparently it was the Prince, Dean, who had abandoned the ball in favour of seducing some Elysium noblewoman. Meg knew that if he saw her, unmasked like this, he'd recognize her. The thought sobered her as much as her realization that she hadn't had that much wine and neither had Castiel as she recalled.

Damn.

With one last look at Dean, only to see him drawing the woman up off the bench, she jogged around the corner and disappeared deeper into the maze. This time she ran blindly, not sure what she was searching for as she ran her fingers through the lush foliage. Meg let her toes dig into the soil path and looked over her shoulder. She wasn't sure why but she had the strangest feeling that she was being followed.

She shook her head. Out here in the silence she was letting herself get spooked and there was no reason for it. She was safe unless Cain had figured out she was here and the only person she had to fear of giving her up would be Crowley. And how he would jump on the chance to do that to her. There was no love lost between them, not since she'd gotten him demoted just earlier this year. Cain didn't care for him at all but Azazel liked the weasel. Nevermind that she didn't like him; Meg knew Crowley was dangerous.

"Don't think about it," she told herself. "You've only got another hour before you get to leave."

Letting one hand trail in the leaves of the hedge, she followed the maze's deeper trails until she came to a small shadowy corner tucked within a gazebo. The white marble stuck out amongst the foliage but it was quiet and secluded, overlooking to the man-made lake at the outer edges of the maze. With one last look from side to side to make sure she was indeed alone, Meg gathered her skirts up and sat, cursing the voluminous fabric when it made it difficult to lean backward and rest.

Meg looked over the crystalline water and decided that this might have been the worst plan she'd come up with in years. It wasn't going to actual plan, that was the problem, she figured. That stupid angel had interfered with her. Again. She ground her teeth together and lifted her hand. With a savage exercise of magic she cracked one of the gazebo pillars.

What she wouldn't give to fight someone. Just to take out this weird feeling gathering at the bottom of her stomach.

Suddenly it felt like she had too much energy to move and Meg stood to pace around the small interior of the gazebo. The entourage would leave at midnight, she remembered that much, and she had better be with them or she'd be stuck here until someone realized just who had been left behind. Now the last place she wanted to be was here and midnight couldn't come fast enough. She walked towards the other side of the gazebo, grabbed a rose off the vine and hissed when the thorn pricked her fingers. Furiously she tore the flower to pieces.

She was staring at the scattered remains when she felt it. A slow drag of sensation up her spine. It tingled and pressed against the back of her head, triggering a chain reaction down the backs of her arms and across her bare shoulders. The weird feeling in the pit of her stomach blossomed to unrecognizable heat. Something told Meg that she was being watched and with a flourish of silk and lace she whirled on her heel to face him.

Castiel stood just behind her, still wearing his mask and resting one hand behind his back. In his other hand, her slippers dangled like twin jewels, sparkling a little in the moonlight. He had moved so quietly that she wasn't sure how long he'd been following her for. His mask blocked his eyes just enough that she couldn't tell his expression but then he tilted his head and she saw the sparkle in his eyes.

Moving so slowly that it seemed to be in slow motion, Castiel moved a step and immediately she backed off a step from him. Only to find the gazebo's pillar at her back, blocking her from escape. Something in his gaze, in the firm set to his mouth, made her nervous, and she licked her lower lip in reaction. He closed the rest of the distance between them, went to say something and then seemed to think better of it. His mouth closed with an audible click and he merely stared at her, letting the slippers drop to the ground.

Aware that she was oddly self-conscious — a feeling she wasn't familiar with— Meg went to replace her mask over her eyes. She needed its protection from that blue-eyed gaze but just as it met the bridge of her nose he reached out, taking her hand to stop her. Castiel's fingers curled around her wrist, drifted up to her palm and then to her hand, and he squeezed just hard enough that she dropped the mask to the ground in reaction. His fingers slid down her palm until his hand was flat to hers and then his head lowered a little, until she felt the faintest touch of his mask on her cheek. His breath brushed over the side of her neck, drifting and she closed her eyes a little to enjoy the warm drifting sensation. She felt when he licked his dry lips, felt how he inhaled deeply. When he tugged her forward she nearly tripped into his arms, her body aligning with his until she was pressed to him. Castiel held her steady, his eyes searching her face, and she stared back.

"What are you…" she started to say then shook her head. "Nevermind."

Castiel stared down at her, not saying a word.

"Did you follow me all the way out here?" she asked and he shrugged.

"You left in a hurry. I was…concerned."

"About little me?" Meg sneered. "I can take care of,…"

Her head turned and he met her with a kiss, undoing the brief moment of calm that had passed between them. Before she could catch her breath suddenly the kiss turned voracious and consuming as he took a handful of her hair and pulled until her head tipped back and she stepped into him. Groaning, Meg moved up into his body and splayed her fingers across his chest and up to his face.

The ridge of his mask kept bumping her nose and angrily she reached up and removed it with a quick twist of her fingers. When she dropped it to the ground the delicate ceramic shattered. She heard his startled murmur but didn't care as she went back for more. Castiel's hands were roaming over her body with solid, possessive passes as he kissed her, the stubble on his jaw rasping against her skin. His lower lip caught between her teeth and she bit just hard enough to hear him groan. His tongue swept into her mouth and caressed the insides of her cheek, causing her to gasp and open her mouth wider. When his arms closed around her body in a tight hold, Meg brought both arms up to wrap around his shoulders and let him lift her a little. He didn't stop kissing her until her back hit the pillar and even then he only stopped long enough to catch his breath.

Diving her fingers into his hair, Meg pulled him back down for another. His lips were rough against hers but warm and moist from the force of their kisses. Each breath he took skated over her skin and she found herself lifting her one leg to hook around his waist as best as she could through the thick skirts. Eventually though he managed to pull back just a little.

"We…should…stop…." Castiel whispered between kisses. Meg shook her head and squeezed her leg against his hip so she could feel him pressing up between her legs.

"No talking," She said before forcing his head to tilt so she could lick and bite at his throat. "It's just for one night."

"One night," he repeated before he reached between them and touched her bare shoulders. Meg shivered at the feeling and reached up to guide him where she wanted him. Castiel hesitated at first, fingers drawing circles that drifted like fire and ice over her cool skin, but then he was kissing her again, so deeply that she could barely breathe as she tilted her head back and took his lips and tongue as fiercely as he took hers.

Blindly, Castiel's fingers unlaced her corset by several loops and she began to breathe easier at the release of pressure. The fingers then trailed through the open loops and hooks, finding patches of skin to touch as he unravelled the laces. The corset fell apart from her breasts and the relief from the confinement made her moan. His mouth never left her skin, only parting long enough to bend and press an open-mouthed kiss to her collar bone that made her hiss in a breath. Then he came back to her, tongue sliding into her mouth and hands going to cup her breasts as he rolled his thumbs over her nipples. Every move echoed her own; hurried, unpracticed and seductively desperate.

Meg found his need as intoxicating as the wine she'd had earlier. He tasted so strongly of that wine that she lapped at his tongue with her own as if wanting to sip it from his mouth, and then raked her teeth over his tongue gently. Groaning, he pulled back just a little and stared at her in surprise.

Then the hand on her breast reached to twist an escaped tendril of her hair around his two fingers and he tugged so hard that she gasped and rocked forward into him.

"It's just one night," he muttered against her mouth before kissing her. Heat and sweetness seemed to fill her again and she had the feeling of something cleansing her from the inside out. An impossible feeling but she moved up onto her toes as she reached down to undo his shirt laces so she could touch bare skin. Pressing into her, Castiel shrugged out of his black coat and let it fall in a heap atop her shoes. With his shirt undone, Meg bent to bite and lick at his shoulder, desperate for more contact than he was giving her. The urgency she felt she knew was because of all the teasing beforehand and she didn't care how it made her seem to be out here with him like this.

"Don't stop," she whispered against his collarbone before kissing him. Castiel groaned and tugged hard on her hair once more before releasing her. She nearly whimpered in relief as he reached between them and loosened his trousers. He moaned at the release of them and then brought his hands back up to cup and caress her breasts.

The pillar felt like it was roughing up her shoulders but she didn't care. His mouth was wonderful. Whatever skill he did have it was there in the warmth of his mouth. The peeled down bits of corset hung loosely on her arms and as he drew it further down his head bent before he took a hard nipple into his mouth.

Meg moaned and rolled her head back against the pillar, opening her eyes to look at the night sky through the garden trellis overhead. Below her, Castiel was moaning against her breast, drawing hard on the nipple so that she cried out before he turned to the other. Even as he nipped and sucked, his fingers trailed down the smooth slope of her belly. Her heavy skirts stopped him and Meg quickly ducked to help pull them up, with her mouth finding his. She tasted her own perfume on his lips and Castiel breathed into her, his trembling hands searching up her legs as he raised her skirts to her waist.

The smooth expanse of skin now exposed seemed to baffle him a little and Meg reached down to lead his hand between her legs. He murmured something nonsensical at the feel of how hot she was and ran his fingers gently through the moist folds. The touch of those calloused fingers stroking through her wetness made her grind her teeth together and throw her head back, struggling not to moan.

Castiel watched her every reaction, fascinated by what he saw. He stroked back and forth, dipping his fingers inside her now and then just to hear the low sounds she made when he touched her. He had never envisioned being with some Abaddonian soldier like this or even just an Elysium woman. Pinned up against a gazebo pillar and still dressed, groping like teenagers at their first ball.

It made his head spin a little. Judging by how she moaned when he slid his fingers deeper inside of her, she agreed.

Meg stroked his chest, fingers dipping against his hipbones and scratching their way up his abdomen. He went to stop her and she shook her head, giving him a coy smile that took his breath away. She reached between them and took hold of his cock, her head bending to watch her own hand. Castiel watched her even as his own body started to shudder and his hips began to pump and follow the lead of her hand. The relief her hand brought him made his own hands slip free to brace on the pillar behind her. Meg muttered something, something he couldn't hear, and then lifted her head. She took his lower lip between her teeth and pulled roughly, so that he tasted blood and wasn't sure whose it was. He bit back and grabbed her hands away from his cock, and she draped them over his shoulders instead.

Her thighs came up around his hips and he grabbed her beneath her buttocks to lift her up. She hit the pillar hard and growled, grabbing him by the back of the neck and pulling on his hair just hard enough that his head tipped back. He rolled his hips forward and she let him go, hands falling to his shoulders again and her nails digging through his linen and leather shirt.

Meg braced herself for what was next and let him move her how he wanted her. He was whispering to her, nonsensical words of desire and need, and she felt his hand stroking between her buttocks where he held her. Each stroke jolted her and she rested her forehead against his as he breathed out. Then he was moving again and she clutched him tighter to her.

When he entered her he felt her entire body clench up and release. "Did you…" he began and she whimpered, catching his mouth with a sharp bite to his lower lip. Her dark eyes, once so stoic and cold, appeared alive when he looked into them, and he groaned as warm, wet heat clasped his cock. She was so tight. The dancing flecks of flame in her eyes ensnared him and he leaned into her, pressing a kiss to her mouth that let her know what he wanted from her.

Meg returned the kiss fiercely, her thighs clenched around his hips so tightly that he could barely breathe. Her tongue stroked against his, her fingers dug into the back of his neck. He began to thrust in short, staccato movements, and heard her whimper when it came too fast. She ripped her mouth away and pressed it to his neck, holding on.

Castiel felt her hand slip down between them to rub at her clit and he dug his hands into her buttocks to lift her up and down on his cock. Meg moved herself with his thrusts, fingers moving faster even as her mouth latched on his neck. She licked and nipped at him, her eyes squeezing shut as she found his earlobe next. She made muffled moans in his ear, whispering to him.

"Angel, don't stop. Just...don't stop," she said. "Harder."

Groaning, he lifted one hand from her buttocks and slammed it into the pillar, needing to find some way of exploding out the desire he felt. Meg bucked her hips impatiently and he surged upward, giving her a brutal thrust that made her cry out again. Wanting to hear it again, Castiel held her tighter and used his grip on the pillar to drag them tighter together.

"I didn't expect…" he managed just before his knees buckled and sent them down to the ground. She moaned as she widened her legs around his hips and settled down onto his lap. Meg recovered just enough to laugh.

"I think you like this, Clarence."

He grasped her jaw in his free hand and held her still so he could look into her eyes. "You know my name. Say it."

She shifted her head so she could take his thumb in her mouth. Gently she sucked and watched his eyes become heavy-lidded as he watched her suck. When she released him, she leaned forward and pressed her cheek to his so she could breathe in his ear. "Castiel."

He groaned at the way she said his name, all sultry and seductive, and began to move again, lifting her up and down on him. Breasts touching his chest, Meg's hands moved teasingly between them, stroking his abdomen as well while her lips trailed along his jaw. She kept repeating his name in that same voice, knowing what it did to him, feeling what it did to him.

Suddenly his hands grasped hers and he thrust them overhead, pinning them to the pillar behind her just as he drove harder into her. Meg cried out against his shoulder, her hair escaping the ebony comb to hang in ropey tendrils around them. It took only another thrust and then he felt her body clench up and release in a hard flutter around his own body. Burying his face in her hair, Castiel pressed closer and let her use his body as she came. Then he felt her teeth against his ear, her tongue as she licked her lips, and he shuddered. It was just enough for his own orgasm to chase over him and he let go of her hands to clutch her even tighter, needing her in that moment.

When he came he was filled with the scent of her and knew he would never smell roses or smoke the same again. Knew he'd always be reminded of her. Meg's moans were deep and throaty in his ear, her breath panting out in hot wafts of air. But the entire time he stayed deep inside her, still twitching, still throbbing. The only thing that seemed to matter was staying as close to her as possible.

When he let her hands go her arms fell limp to his shoulders. Her head was low on his shoulder and he let himself fall forward into her body. The uncomfortable pose didn't deter him from touching her as aftershocks tore through his body and he knew by the way she shivered she felt the same. His fingers traced the curve of her spine and he moved onto his buttocks, not minding the cold as he drew her into the warmth of his body.

They stayed that way for a time, Castiel holding her and Meg curled into his body like a cat seeking warmth. He stroked her back and kissed the curve of her shoulder and neck, stopping only long enough shift himself on the ground. Then he was touching her again, breathing in her scent and whispering nonsense. He felt her body relaxing with each stroke and he nuzzled her ear before resting his forehead on her shoulder.

Her body hummed with throbbing desire, newly sated and still hot. She couldn't stop herself from shivering with delight whenever his fingers touched her skin. She hadn't expected to react like this to a man, let alone an Elysium angel. Meg pressed her mouth against the ridge of his neck, tasting sweat and salt, and sighed. She was surprised how good it felt to lie still like this. His own head rested on her shoulder and she felt each gentle inhale and exhale as his breathing finally calmed down.

It was terrible, she realized, to think of how willing she was to stay like this.

She heard the faint bong-bong of a distant watchtower and opened her eyes. It cut through her aftershocks, through the afterglow of sex, and made her realize that she was vulnerable out here. Sooner or later, the magic of Abaddon would pull her to them.

Feeling the tension through her, Castiel turned his head and looked in her eyes. Whatever he saw cause him to pull back.

"What's wrong?" he asked, before reaching out to thumb a dark tendril. He pressed a kiss against her forehead, then her cheek, then her neck, and Meg closed her eyes to enjoy the caresses. Only the clock still bonged impatiently and she opened her eyes again to stare at the full moon. It was high in the sky and she knew what it meant. Realizing that the magic that ensured all who came with Crowley and Cain returned to Abaddon was starting to ensnare her, she gave a muted moan and pushed him off.

"I have to go."

"What? Why?"

"I just do," she whispered, gathering her corset and skirts. Castiel fixed his own clothing first, leaving his shirt undone though he buckled his trousers again, and then knelt beside her as she frustratingly fought with tugging the corset back up her arms.

A slow clap filled the air with a smug chuckling voice saying, "Well, well, well."

The man who came through the shrubs was dressed in red with a horned mask pushed back from his bearded face. Handsome in a strange way, above his sly grin his eyes glimmered red and Castiel knew what that meant. This was a sorcerer for Azazel.

"What are you doing here?" he demanded, aware of Meg trying to get dressed behind him.

"I'm with the entourage. I'm sure you've seen me, angelface." He gave a sharp bow. "Crowley. The better question is what are you doing here?"

Castiel swallowed, knowing what that meant. This was the Royal Advisor. But why was he so interested in what was happening? Maybe it was just for the sheer gossip of it. Crowley's eyes matched the leer on his face as he stared openly at Meg's bare skin. She clutched the corset to her chest and fumbled with the laces, cursing herself as she fought to get them hooked properly.

"What a sight," Crowley said. "One I hadn't expected tonight."

Castiel put himself between them and Meg stared at the back of his head, confused by the action. "Leave the lady to dress."

"Not often I see Abaddon royalty in a state of undress so I think I'll watch, if you don't mind."

Castiel stared at him. "What?"

"You heard me." Crowley cleared his throat. "Do you need some help, Meg dear?"

"Pound salt," was the reply and then a curse as Meg fought and failed to get into the corset. Castiel turned away from him and gestured for her to hold the sides to her breasts. With a skill he didn't know he had, he began to lace her up again, aware of how she shivered when the back of his fingers touched her bare skin.

"Are you all right?" he asked and she shrugged.

"Could do without Crowley staring at me like I'm a hunk of meat."

"Not likely going to happen," Crowley said and he leaned against the one pillar. Behind him, a crowd of people were walking through maze. Alerted by Crowley's loud voice, they were headed their way. "You are a sight, Princess."

He spat the title out like an insult but Castiel felt Meg stiffen up as he finished the last of the laces. Once they were in a tight knot he grasped her by the nape of her neck and tugged lightly on her hair so her head lifted. Her eyes were black when she stared up at him and he searched them for answers.

"You're Azazel's daughter?"

"His youngest and most beloved," Crowley said with obvious disdain. The gathering crowd were murmuring to one another as Meg finished hitching herself into her corset. "And clearly little more than a two-bit..."

"Enough, Crowley." Through the crowd, Cain appeared in his grey doublet and pantaloons, imposing and deadly. His hand rested on his ceremonial sword as if he would draw it and run them all through. His bright eyes were like daggers as he stared at Meg.

You've humiliated her enough." Cain stepped forward around Castiel and took Meg's arm in his. "Come on. You will owe the entire court an explanation for your behaviour"

She shrugged his arm off and brushed past Castiel without another look. Cain paused beside him though and grabbed hold him by the arm. Castiel pulled his arm free and glared up at the other man, who looked annoyed more than angry.

"You just seduced a Princess of Abaddon."

Castiel stared at him but didn't deny it. "We seduced each other."

"There will be consequences," Cain threatened. "If they don't have your head for this, Azazel will."

"I didn't know who she was." Castiel held up her lace and ivory mask as proof. "Or I wouldn't have touched her.

Cain snorted. "I really doubt that."

"That's enough." Dean suddenly was beside them and his green eyes sparkled. He too seemed more amused by what was going on than angry. "We'll punish him. Without any of your kind interfering."

"See that you do," Cain threatened. "Azazel will not take kindly to his daughter dallying with a common soldier."

Castiel stiffened but Cain only bowed shortly to Dean before snapping his fingers at Crowley. The sorcerer fell into step and gave Castiel a slow wink. Then he was gone too and Castiel realized that most of the attention was on him. Dean said nothing, having been caught with noblewomen before just before made him less likely to say much to his servant, and gestured for the crowd to leave.

Castiel could only stare after the Abaddon entourage, hoping for and failing to even glimpse the last trail of Meg's black dress as he clutched her mask in his hand.