Another very long, un-betaed chapter, so be forewarned.
A Dragon's Heart – Chapter 19
It was official. She had an alice. And not that weird nullifying thing either. No he was absolutely positive that she had the alice of making-him-do-stupid-dumbass-reckless things whenever he was around her. No matter how hard his brain was screaming at him to stop and turnaround, his feet refused to listen to it.
It had to be an alice because he was not this stupid and reckless. If he was, he'd be dead by now. No, this affliction only broke out with her close proximity. Like an allergic reaction. It was mere luck that he had put on a pair of sandals and a shirt at lunch because it was entirely likely he would have taken off even if he was barefoot and shirtless. Crazy and stupid.
Natsume could try and justify his actions all he wanted, but to put it simply, he just wasn't ready to have Mikan anywhere near the king yet. For reasons that he was not ready to explore, he just felt there was something terribly wrong with having her anywhere near him.
"Natsume!' His brother yelled inside his head. 'What are you doing?'
Nothing… I-I don't know… I just… Natsume could not even put what he was feeling into words. It was just imperative that Mikan and the king not meet each other. It was a compulsion so strong he could not ignore it. He slightly pried the lid off those feelings and showed them to his brother with the hopes that the draman would understand better than Natsume did.
Thankfully his brother did not judge him or call him the idiot or any of the other things that he felt he was acting like. If anything, he felt a wash of sympathy and understanding from Luka. "What do we tell Persona? Imai says he is coming our way.' He asked calmly even though Natsume knew he had to be worried. The only one who could really handle Persona was Natsume. Aoi might have been able to fill in a short time, but Persona had a pretty forceful personality that tended to just roll over Aoi's gentle nature. Not only that, but Luka and Aoi had been far too close lately, their scent was starting to mingle together. A fact that he could tell they were already panicking over.
At that point Natsume should have paused and turned around, but his gut and his feet kept him moving forward.
Just… tell him the truth. That I took off with Mikan unexpectedly and you don't know where I've gone or when I'll be back. Yeah right, like that will work. His uncle would have Luka contact him immediately to return. Crap what was he going to say? His mind felt like it was in disarray. He could not focus enough to think clearly. He definitely was having troubles making things up on the fly which was not like him at all.
'Where are you going anyway?' Luka asked.
Natsume gave a mental sigh and made a quick decision. The hot spring. Tell him I took her to the hot spring.
'He may follow you.'
He might, but I doubt it. At least not tonight he won't.
'Decided she was worth it little brother?' Luka asked with a light humor in his tone to hide his worry.
Shut up. He retorted without any heat. I just… I just can't. I can't explain it.
'I know. Do what you have to do and get back quick.' Luka said quickly before his presence left Natsume's mind.
What the hell am I doing? This is so stupid. He told himself for the thousandth time. If Luka understood it, then Natsume wished his brother would have explained it to him.
Now that he was no longer just running away from his grandfather and had a destination in mind, his feet adjusted course accordingly. He tightened his hold on Mikan and picked up speed.
Mikan picked up the change in him. "Natsume? Where are we going?"
"We own a rather isolated hot spring. I thought we could go there."
Mikan nodded her understanding, but kept quiet. Actually, the hot spring was one of his favorite places. He was almost surprised he did not take her there sooner.
And because it was owned by the clan and had only a handful of very loyal staff, they would be virtually alone there. Natsume tried to ignore the way his stomach tightened at the thought of being alone with Mikan with no water spirits or family to interfere.
Maybe they could continue their flirtatious play from earlier.
Spurred on by that thought, they found themselves at the hot spring in almost record time. Mikan looked at the tiny building and was apparently quite underwhelmed. "Is this it?" she asked tentatively while examining the tiny building in with a dubious eye.
The inn was an old traditional style building that appeared to be in major disrepair. Well okay, it looked like a dump alright?
The wood looked faded and brittle, any paint on the exterior was chipping, and the overall structure looked like it could collapse at any second. Any random person passing by would certainly not find it inviting. A feeling that would be reinforced if they talked to the locals who would swear the place was cursed.
Not that the uninviting appearance kept everyone away. More than one local had tried to have it destroyed and more than a few investors had tried to purchase the land only to mysteriously give up after various failed attempts. This of course, reinforced the rumors that the building was somehow cursed.
Natsume knew full well what the place looked like but he still felt a bit miffed at her lack of appreciation for one of his most favorite places. "Were you expecting something else?"
She blinked at him and gave him an odd look "I don't know, I guess when I think of hot springs, I think of resorts and spas, not rickety old houses."
"This is an inn, and the hot spring belongs to the clan exclusively. We don't cater to spoiled, tourist, outsiders." He said pointedly and Mikan had the decency to look a bit ashamed at her attitude.
"Sorry, I just didn't know what to expect. So~o now that we are here, what now?" She asked in a light, singsong voice. Her demeanor had instantly changed to the hyper enthusiasm that he found so cute at the festival.
Not bothering to answer her, he guided her in and enjoyed her gasp of surprise. The outside may have been spelled to look old, rickety and uninviting, but the inside had been retrofitted for modern needs while still maintaining its traditional appearance.
Almost as soon as they walked through the door they were met by a striking blond woman along with a man and a younger woman both with silvery hair and wearing a faraway look in their eyes. "Master Hyuuga, we had foreseen your arrival today." Serina said while they bowed respectfully to him. She then turned her focus on Mikan, "Along with a very important guest."
The inn was mostly staffed by dramans or humans that were bound to the clan. They were also mostly gifted with various abilities to look into the past or future. To this day Natsume still could not figure out why the king kept them here and not close to his side. One would think that it would be advantageous to have a psychic near, but he kept them at a surprising distance. His best guess was it was because they were lesser creatures rather than dragons, but he knew better than to rely on assumptions.
A bit annoyed that he had to resume his role as clan heir, he nodded politely to Serina, Noda and Otonashi, prompting Serina to continue. "We have prepared everything for your arrival. Your room is ready and an early dinner will be served to you after you have cleaned up." One of the worst things about psychics is their tendency to know and do things before he acted on them. Sure it was nice that they had then onsen ready before he had even decided to come, but trying to have a conversation with them was enough to make him want to pull his hair out. Having someone answer questions he had yet to ask, and finish sentences he had yet to speak was maddening. He nodded again in their direction and briefly introduced Mikan to them before placing his hand on her lower back and directing her towards the bathing rooms.
Ugh, except the bathing rooms were segregated into men's and women's. He was rather tempted to follow her into the women's anyway, but Otonashi foresaw his intention and intervened by volunteering to show Mikan personally. With his attention on the two young women leaving, he almost missed it when Serina spoke again.
"After dinner, the others and I have made arrangements to stay elsewhere for the night. We have not anticipated that you will need anything else, but if circumstances change, you need only call."
That caused Natsume to stop in his tracks while Mikan and Otonashi continued on. The staff was leaving for the night and he would be totally alone with Mikan? Did that mean he would finally, finally get to make love to her? Oh gods he hoped so. "Did you see something about her?" he asked, hating the way his voice cracked when he said it.
The woman moved closer to him in the swaying, dreamy, way psychics had. Like there was a tune only they could hear. It least Serina wasn't as bad as Otonashi who actually started dancing violently at odd moments. "You should be warned. What happens tonight will set the pace for the rest of your relationship with her. There are many possible outcomes and neither I nor any of the others can predict clearly what will happen. You may end up as lovers, acquaintances, strangers or even enemies."
Natsume was a little taken aback by that. He couldn't picture being enemies with Mikan. It was impossible. He was going to say something along those lines, but Serina answered his thought before he even had a chance to voice it in that frustrating way psychics had.
"Do not underestimate what her presence in Japan means. There is a part of her that she keeps locked away and refuses to accept, but it is the key to what you have been long waiting for." The blond psychic paused and Natsume concealed his irritation with a smooth mask. Typical cryptic psychic mumbo-jumbo backtalk he thought to himself. As far as he was concerned, it was a long winded roundabout way of her saying he was lonely and needed to get laid. Yeah, tell me something I don't know.
Eventually, she closed her eyes and started to breathe deeply. When she spoke, it was in the distant, airy tone that he recognized as her trying to use her gift. "You were wise to bring her here for she is not only a creature of water, but of fire as well. In this place fire and water live harmoniously and they will sing to her in a way that few others would understand." Again she paused and opened her eyes to give him a serious look. "You should be careful not to leave her alone in the water too long."
Shit. Again with the manipulative water? Was there anything that was not conspiring against him? "Are you saying the water will affect her in a bad way?"
"No. I'm saying the energy in the water might make her feel disoriented, weak, or perhaps even ill. Since we are leaving, you will have to take care of her and hopefully reinforce her trust in you. Good luck tonight."
At that moment, Otonashi emerged from the women's bathing rooms and walked up to Natsume. "Your guest is getting cleaned up right now and I gave her a quick tour of the facilities." She said simply and Natsume took that as his cue to go clean up himself.
Ten minutes later he emerged wearing a blue cotton yukata feeling better now that he was rid of any sand, salt water or sweat. Mikan came out several minutes later wearing a similar robe and her damp hair pulled into a pair of low loose pigtails. She spotted him and gave him a smile that warmed him to his toes and he wondered if they could just skip dinner altogether. Only she could pull off looking beautiful wearing pigtails and a robe that was just one step up from a belted blue sack. But he wasn't a fool. Of course, he was beginning to realize that she only needed to breathe for him to find her beautiful.
He was also beginning to realize that his favorite look for her was times like this when she was relaxed and smiled easily. The lust he always felt around her had mostly blended into the background noise, but at quiet times like these it sprang up and filled his mind with images of throwing her up against the nearest flat surface and tearing her clothes off so he could have his way with her.
She must have picked up the change in his mood because her bright smile faltered and the creamy skin of her cheeks stained pink.
Gods she is so beautiful. He thought with a hint of wonder.
"Ready for dinner?" he asked. His voice had gone husky with his wayward thoughts. Her cheeks remained tinted, but she still gave him a small smile.
"Not really. I feel like we just ate lunch." Natsume didn't say anything to that. He just nodded his head in agreement and guided her to the dining room.
Dinner went by in a rather fuzzy haze for him. He talked and ate but the only thing that felt real or clear to him was the woman across from him. He supposed this was what a date should feel like, but he was not exactly qualified to make that comparison. It did feel like there was a light, yet not uncomfortable tension in the air and it seemed to be affecting his mood. It felt like the air around them was re-charging itself, waiting for something. The calm before the storm.
Dinner passed quickly and before Natsume knew it, he was guiding her back towards the bathing rooms.
"Thank gods they are private baths and separate from the men's." He heard Mikan mutter to herself causing him to give her an evil grin.
"Oh? You do not trust yourself to keep your hands off of me?" he asked her smugly, causing her face to turn red.
"The one I don't trust is you. Otonashi explained the rules of this place, and there is no way I want to sit naked in a pool with you."
"Meaning you really do not trust yourself to keep your hands me." He said with that same evil grin.
"At least the pools are separate so I won't have to be around for your deluded perversion."
Oh they were separate alright, but he had no intention of bathing in the men's pool.
Not like he was going to tell her that though.
He took an excessively long time washing before getting ready to go into the hot spring. Mainly because he had to make sure Mikan had plenty of time to already be in the water and he could backtrack around and go in through the women's bathing rooms. Technically, he was strong and agile enough to hop the fence to the women's side, but since he only had a very small towel to cover himself with, he figured the more prudent action would be to walk around. The last thing he needed was to slip on a wet patch of floor and injure something… er… valuable.
Quickly and stealthily, he maneuvered his way out of the men's room and through the door of the women's pausing for a long moment to be sure she was not still in there. He strained his keen hearing as far as he could, and did not catch even the slightest sound of breathing. Ever so slowly, he crept in further, pausing long between footsteps to listen for any changes. Finally a sound did reach his ears, but it wasn't coming from the room.
He clearly heard the sound of a small splash followed quickly by a yelp of surprise by Mikan.
Concerned that she might have slipped, he sped up his movements. He quickly made it outside only to stop dead in his tracks.
Mikan was sitting at the edge of the hot spring pool with her knees folded up near her chest tentatively dipping a toe in the heated water. She was partially facing away from him, with her left profile exposed to him.
She also had a towel for modesty purposes, but for the moment other than the part she held against her breasts, the rest had gone slack and was pooled loosely at her hips. Her long hair was pinned up in a messy bun so he was treated to a completely unobstructed view of her smooth arms and shoulders. The fading light of day highlighted the curve of her neck, the slight flare of her hips and the flowing line of her back. Once again he was struck speechless by her.
If she says no tonight I may have to kill myself he thought, only half joking. Truth was he didn't think he could handle another rejection. If he was smart he would turn around and run back to the men's side, but has mentioned earlier he was prone to acts of major stupidity around her.
Instinctively, he started to move closer, his footsteps were virtually soundless, but she picked up his presence anyway. Her head quickly snapped in his direction and her luminous eyes managed to reflect surprise for just a moment before narrowing suspiciously at him.
"What do you think you are doing here?" she demanded. Natsume wisely chose not to answer, so she continued on. "You are supposed to be on the men's side! So shoo! Back to your own side!" she ordered while swatting the air with her hand at him.
"I'm here to make sure you are okay." He said and barely recognized the sound of his own voice, it had gone so raspy. Mikan picked up on his mood and he watched her telltale eyes turn cloudy and drop just for a moment to roam over his body before she blushed and looked quickly away. He felt her gaze as surely as if it had been a touch.
Out of nowhere he wondered idly if she was aware how much those eyes of hers gave away her thoughts. She would make the world's worst poker player. One look at those eyes and her opponents would know everything about her.
"I'm fine. I was just surprised by the heat of the water." She said in a somewhat strangled voice. "Now would you mind going to put something on? A pair of shorts or something? Or at least a bigger towel?" her voice was getting higher and more strangled with each passing word and he couldn't hide the smile that tugged at his lips.
"I thought you said Otonashi explained the rules to you. No clothes allowed in the water." He said teasingly. Some of his playful mood from this morning was returning and instead of leaving, he continued to walk across to cool stone to the water's edge adjacent to her.
The closer he moved towards her, the further she turned her head away from him until he was finally looking at the back of her head. He was sorely tempted to touch her soft looking shoulders but that would probably send her running.
Instead, he removed his towel and slipped into the water in one, graceful, fluid move.
The shocking temperature of the water didn't bother him like it would for Mikan or ordinary humans. Being a creature of fire, the volcanic energies that heated the water surrounded him and were absorbed into his very being. For air dragons, it was a giddy rush. Almost like soaking in a glass of champagne and getting tipsy from it.
He found himself a seat along the wall and emersed himself up to his neck. He paused for a moment to allow the rush of volcanic energy to soak in before turning back to teasing her. His mind drifted back to what Serena had told him about Mikan being a creature of fire and water and that the hot spring would feel different to her. But just as quickly as the thought entered his head, he let it leave. He knew he was entering dangerous territory, and that he should leave before things got too carried away.
He just wanted a little time to tease and flirt with her. Some kissing and a little groping would be nice.
Out of sheer maliciousness he threw his discarded towel at her. The cloth hit her side and rolled harmlessly to the stone edge, but her reaction when she saw what she was hit with almost sent him in to fits of laughter. Her eyes goggled at the offensive piece of cloth and one would have thought it was a rotting dead carcass with the way she was looking at it. Too late, Natsume could not hold it in anymore and let out a deep chuckle.
Mikan's face turned beet red and she turned to shoot him a murderous look only realize she was glaring at a naked man. With a squawk, she quickly swiveled her head away from him and used her hand to act as a barrier between her eyes and his body. Entertained by her reaction to him, he leaned back against the edge in a casual pose.
Teasing her was just too much fun. "Still don't trust yourself to keep your hands off me?" he asked, oozing smug superiority. He couldn't see her eyes, but he did see the way her whole body stiffened and she tightened her hold on her towel. "Relax polka-dot panty girl, I'm sure I can fight you off if you get too frisky with me." He told her in a light, teasing tone, hoping he had not overplayed his hand. The very last thing he wanted to do was to send her bolting out of here.
On a more serious, but still light tone he added, "Seriously, you can relax. We have less than an hour to sunset and with the steam and the properties of the water the view is not exactly crystal clear. I'm just here because the staff has left for the day and some people get dizzy in the hot water."
Well, that was partly true anyway. Mostly, he was there because he really did want to be in the same spot as she was while naked. Really, what healthy male could pass up an opportunity like that? Definitely not him.
"I'm a sea dragon. I can handle myself in the water. I don't need your help." She sat still for several minutes deep in thought. Eventually, she extended one slim leg and carefully dipped her foot into it. She let out a hiss and he couldn't tell if it was from shock or discomfort. Maybe a little of both.
"The water feels strange." She said quietly.
"It's the energy heating the water. This place has been attracting dragons for millennia. The hot spring is saturated with rejuvenating fire energy." It was probably the reason why it was one of his most favorite places. When he was here, all his worries disappeared for a short while and he felt connected to the fire that ran so deeply within him.
Beside him, Mikan had extended her other foot and was easing it into the steaming water. She let out the tiniest squeak, but other than that she made no sound. The sun had yet to set so he could see the way her cheeks were already starting to turn pink. Perhaps the water would prove to be too hot for her. Her body temperature already ran much cooler than his. Natsume tried to stretch out his energy and pick up on her feelings, but they were a chaotic mess. He was just thinking of telling her to enter the water slowly, when she ordered him to turn around.
"What?"
"Turn around, I'm going in and I don't want you to look." She gave him a determined look and he noticed how her eyes refused to drop below his chin. In her eyes he could see nothing but determination. There was no way she was getting in the water if he did not turn around. Rolling his eyes at her, he stood up and faced away from her not liking the loss of heat to the upper half of his torso.
With soft lapping sounds, he heard Mikan slip into the water only to utter a quiet "Oh!" when she was in.
He did not consciously turn around. It was more of an instinctive reaction to her sound of surprise only to find himself staring at her smooth, bare back as she stood facing away from him, waist deep in the water.
His hormones and lust kicked into overdrive so fast he felt a bit dizzy himself and he realized he had made a terrible mistake sneaking into the women's hot spring. The dragon within him that he could barely keep dormant around her had surged to the forefront. He may not have transformed, but he could feel it in him, like a cat crouching, waiting to pounce on its prey.
Shit. Forget his games and plans to tease and flirt with her. There was no way he was going to make it out of this water alive and sane.
With unsteady footing, Mikan slowly pivoted in the water to look at him. Thankfully, she still held her arms close to her body covering her chest. He wouldn't know what to do if she was topless and uncovered. He slowly moved his hands in front of him. The water might not be crystal clear, but he was standing which meant his reaction to her was not as well hidden as it was sitting.
Wait.
Something wasn't right.
Her face had an allover flushed glow about it. It looked like she was blushing and sweating and glowing all at once. Her pupils were so heavily dilated her eyes looked black with a brown and green flecked rim around them. Her cute, pouty mouth was partly open and he could hear the shaky passage of air into it.
"Are you alright?" He asked cautiously, his concern barely winning over his need to flee to safety.
Mutely, she nodded at him and that made him worry more. "Do you feel sick?" again she said nothing, only shaking her head no in response. "Is the water too hot for you?" he asked again and again he got a head shake although it was slower than the last one. Her expression had a dazed quality about it, like she was drunk or high. Damn it, he needed to get out and away from her right now.
She took a wobbly step forward and he saw her cheeks were no longer pink, but red and he started to worry more. "I'm going to get you a cold towel and glass of water." And maybe a cold shower for myself.
Slowly turning away from her, he moved to exit the water, but her voice froze him to the spot.
"You have an unusual dragon stain." He didn't need her to tell him what his stain looked like. He already knew it was unusual. It was red, and fanned out across his shoulder blades like tiny wings.
"I know." He answered, hoarsely. He had to get out of here quick. He needed to be out of here five minutes ago. For the first real time in his life he could feel the dragon lust boiling under his skin threatening to drive him insane. If he didn't leave soon, he might do something they would both regret later.
"It's very nice." she said while moving closer. She was now right behind him and his whole body had gone rigid against his will. He could feel her breath on his back as she exhaled. A second later he felt her fingertips running along his stain with feathery touches.
A strangled sound escaped his throat and he clenched his shaking fists tightly. I've got to get out. I've got to get out NOW! If I don't I could do something horrible or painful to Mikan. I've got to get out.
"I really like the way they look like wings." She continued in a husky, yet dreamy tone. At any other time he would have pointed out that hers looked like a serpent coiled around her spine, but words were currently failing him. Right now he was using all of his willpower to try and move from the spot he was rooted to.
MOVE NATSUME, MOVE! He screamed silently to himself. His feet and legs were beyond his control. They might as well have been on another body for the control he had over them. All he could get to move was his arms and with them he reached behind himself to snatch her questing hands away and to pull them out to the sides. Far away from his over sensitized body.
"Mikan, you need to go." He said and his voice had transformed into something deep and gravely. Something dangerous.
"Hmm?" the sound of her voice pulled at his already unraveling sanity. To hell with his pride, he was just going to spell it out to her. It was better than the pent up violence within him.
"Mikan, you were right. I did have a motive for bringing you here, but I'm giving you this chance to back out and leave now." He told her harshly.
"Oh?" was all she said and his restraint slipped a little further. He couldn't do this. He needed her too badly. He had been waiting too long. If she was going to run, she needed to run now.
"Please, run." He whispered. The hands holding hers at his sides were shaking, his pulse was racing, and he was panting like he had run a marathon. Gods, please run Mikan.
The soft feel of a pair of lips on his dragon stain caused the last thread of his sanity to snap.
He whirled around in the water, grabbed her, and pulled her up against him. Her legs instinctively wrapped around his waist and his mouth was on hers before he could take another breath. He growled darkly into the kiss.
Mikan, Mikan, Mikan, Mikan her name went over and over in his head like a fervent prayer. His whole world consisted of her and him now. Even the water he was standing in was too distant for him to be aware of.
Their intimate embrace placed him so close yet so maddeningly far away from where he so needed to be. Mikan, I'm so sorry, I've waited too long, I need you now. I promise next time I'll be better. Next time, I promise. He swore, using up the last residue of sanity in him. And with one quick violent movement, he drove himself home.
…
It was quite possibly the most perfect moment of his life. He had never felt more complete or more right than he did at that moment.
But even saying that there was one rather glaring flaw to his piece of heaven.
No matter how aroused he was, and still was for that matter, he could not miss or ignore the pained yelp that had punched through his blissful haze.
By now every instinct he had was screaming at him to move and finish what he started. To ignore what he must have imagined as impossible, but his body and mind had bore evidence to the contrary. Blinking away the graying edges to his vision he forced his eyes to focus on the woman in his arms.
The sight was unable to kill off his arousal; hell, not even a nuclear attack could have done that. But what he did see caused his stomach to drop to his feet. His mind still wanted to flatly reject what he was seeing and feeling, but there was no way he could lie to himself that well.
Instead of the flushed glowing face she had a few moments ago, Mikan's face was now pale, her eyes scrunched up tightly, and her breath was hissing between tightly clenched teeth. Her whole body was so tensed up she felt like stone in his arms rather than soft pliant flesh. Even her energy had tightened and tensed around her protectively with flashes and arcs of pain that he could feel like static discharges against his own energy.
"Mikan?" he said tentatively with a hint of pleading. How? How could this be possible?
She didn't open her eyes at him. Instead she kept them closed tightly, but at least she did answer him. "Just give me a moment." She hissed. "The water is helping somewhat" she said in a strained voice.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"What difference does it make now?" she bit out painfully.
He wanted to tell her he could have been gentler, but that would have been a gross lie. He was so far gone –was still too far gone- to be able to control himself even if he knew she was a virgin.
Damn it! Even his sister wasn't one! He had never even heard of a dragon remaining a virgin past puberty. They were not like normal hormone driven humans. Their instincts were on a whole different level. It was a basic and elemental need in them. Sensuality and lust were a part of dragon nature. He would have hated it, but he would have understood her having past lovers.
But her being untouched was totally unexpected. Even now he was having difficulty wrapping his mind around it. He could not even begin to guess how she even managed it. Questions flooded his mind and he would damn well get answers to but he did not have time for them now.
Later though, much later.
Gently and lovingly, he kissed every part of her face trying to will the tense lines away from it. The water must have helped somewhat because he felt the muscles protesting his invasion let up by the smallest fraction. She might not be in any intense pain anymore, but she was a hell of a long way from enjoying herself. Mikan, sweetheart, I wish you had told me. I never wanted to hurt you. I promise I'll make it up to you.
Shit. Even as he was promising to make sure she would have pleasure tonight, he knew it would not be this time. He might have been able to force his body to hold still for a few seconds, to give her a chance to adjust, but his restraint rapidly vanishing. Little Natsume, who was quite ecstatic with his new home regardless of the discomfort he brought Mikan, was demanding he start moving again and the dragon in him was starting to add his own urgent rumblings.
As alarmed as he was, the dragon in him was practically screaming to the universe a harsh bugle of possessive victory at finally having Mikan and knowing that no other man had. She was his and his alone. She would never be anyone else's.
The longer he held still though, the more impatient and agitated his dragon became. If he did not start moving soon, he would go berserk and he knew it. Even now he did not know where he was finding the will for even this much restraint. He needed more than anything, more than his next breath; he needed to finish claiming the woman that he now flatly considered his.
He leaned his forehead against hers and took a deep breath. "Mikan, I need you to focus on me."
"You're a little hard to ignore at the moment." She snapped, and he would have laughed if he wasn't wound so tight and on the verge of breaking.
"I mean what I'm feeling. Mikan feel me. Feel what you are to me." He was fairly sure their bond worked both ways. With any luck he could give her his pleasure. It was the best he could offer for now.
Natsume felt Mikan's energy lightly brush against his and he quickly latched on to it. He meshed and wove them together so tightly he almost could not feel the difference between them. Across the net he fed his overwhelming need for her. He heard her let out a soft gasp before his willpower gave out.
He slammed his lips against hers and allowed his body to move freely.
Natsume would love nothing more than to say he was an expert lover and that he brought Mikan endless amounts of pleasure, but the truth was he had been hovering on the brink for the last two days. And now that he finally had what he so desperately wanted, he didn't last much more than a few exquisite minutes before he broke the night air with a loud roar and went temporarily blind.
Reality slowly crept back into his awareness and he was rather surprised to find he was still standing in the same spot. He was lucky he did not drown them both.
With legs as steady as a newborn colt, he wobbled over to the edge where their towels lay. He took one hand off of her long enough to spread them out over the stone in a half-hazard mat which he gently laid her upper torso on while still keeping their lower halves joined.
He was suddenly aware that had never even had a chance to appreciate how she looked in the nude. He was tempted to look and explore, but he had a more pressing concern at the moment.
His lover was still looking a bit dazed and although she no longer looked in pain, her face showed only a shadow of the flushed glow from earlier. He continued to watch as her breathing evened out and she became more aware of her surroundings. He knew the exact moment she fell back to reality because she looked up at him and he felt her whole body tense again. He endured that slight insult, but was annoyed by the way she turned her head away, refusing to look at him. After only a few seconds a small crease appeared between her brows and she squirmed slightly. From their still partially merged energy he could clearly pick up feelings of embarrassment and awkwardness.
"Whatever you have going on behind those pretty eyes of yours, stop it now." He commanded. His words surprised her enough for her to forget that she was avoiding making eye contact and look at him.
"Huh?" she asked rather stupidly. He could understand her lack of words. He was having trouble gathering all of his wits back together again.
"You crazy, hyperactive, troublesome, polka-dot panty wearing girl, I don't know what you have going on in that head of yours, but I can already tell I don't like it. So knock it off."
She frowned up at him and started trying to squirm away from him more. "Typical guy. Goes right back to acting like a jerk once he gets what he wants." She muttered loud enough to hear.
Was she just determined to ruin this moment? Like hell he was going to let her.
He tightened his grip on her hips and with only her upper half on solid ground while the rest was being held by him in the water; she had no leverage or ability to maneuver away from him. If anything, her tiny movements were creating some interesting sensations for him because they were still coupled. At this rate he would be ready to go again before he got any answers.
He started to lean forward, and his movements caused her to stop and give him a wary look. Natsume leaned over and lightly kissed the crinkle between her eyebrows causing her to give him a confused look. "Who are you to say what men are like? Last time I checked, the sum of your lovers came to a grand total of one. Me." And it would bloody well stay that way if he had anything to say about it. "Now start explaining." He ordered.
Mikan scoffed at him and rolled her eyes. "What is there to explain we… did… it. End of story." She said awkwardly causing him to snort at her.
"Tch, you're not such a grown up woman after all are you? You know if you are doing it you should at least have the guts to say it little girl." He said mockingly.
Red blossomed on her cheeks and she looked at him like he had just slapped her. With that glare of hers that looked as dangerous as a hissing kitten, she crossed her arms over her breasts. "Fine! We had sex! Happy? Now let me go!" she spat at him.
"You know, you are developing a real bad habit of trying to run away whenever you are in my arms. I'm going to have to do something about that, but right now what I want to know is why. Why here? Why now?"
"What difference does it make?" she asked, but he answered with a very dark look. Just answer the question before I wring it out of you. Again, she rolled her eyes at him as if she felt the answer was none of his business. "Alright fine, I don't really know why. I admit I was thinking about it before, but I wasn't planning to do anything. But then I got in the water… and somehow I just felt all relaxed and tingly… like… "
"Like you were drunk?" he offered, feeling a bit pissed that her element was interfering again. Although he was partially to blame, he knew the water could have an effect on her.
She gave him an odd look, but continued "Kind of, but it wasn't like I was impaired or anything. I just felt… free. Like all of my worries just disappeared. I just couldn't understand why I was still resisting you. You were kind of sweet and tried to be noble by telling me to leave."
"I wasn't being noble, I was giving a warning."
"Somehow my reasons just didn't feel that important anymore. It just felt like the right thing to do." She finished lamely with a little frown back on her face. She turned her head away from him and began trying to squirm again. "So I told you, can you let me go now?"
"No."
"But aren't you… you know… done?" she asked awkwardly, and he was tempted to laugh in her face. Was he done? Not hardly.
"Why would I waste my time letting you go when we are just going to end up back in this same position? Better to save a few steps and stay right where I am." Yes, little Natsume was quite happy where he was. So much so that he was starting to get worked up for another round.
"What?"
"I'm nowhere even close to finished with you. What I have planned for you will probably take most of the night." He warned, and adjusted his grip on her hips so he could hold her with one arm while he used the other to pull her crossed arms away from her breasts. He pulled one away the other moved over to cover her up again. He nudged the other hand but it wouldn't budge. "Stop that. Who do you think you are hiding from?"
Slowly and with great reluctance she lowered her protective arms and held them stiffly at her sides, ready to cover them up at the slightest negative word from him. By now the sun had set and her skin was glowing with the moonlight and her cheeks were back to a cute embarrassed pink color.
"You really are quite beautiful." The words slipped out of his mouth before he had a chance to censor them.
The pink in her cheeks deepened and she looked away again. "No I'm not. I've got boring brown hair and eyes, I'm not that smart, I have the figure of a chopstick and weird magic to top it off."
Annoyed, he flicked her hard in the forehead causing her to let out a yell of protest and do her hissing kitten thing again. Ooo scary.
"Idiot. I don't make a habit of paying people compliments so don't argue with me when I give you one. As for your figure, I'll tell you three truths about breasts. One: if a woman is lying on her back as you are and they are defying gravity by pointing in the air, she bought them." That caused her lips to twitch into a small smile. "Two: women who have large breasts when they are young almost always end up with a huge butt to match." When he said that, she let out a giggle and most of the self-conscious tension in her melted away.
"And lastly," he said with his voice dropping a little lower as he leaned into her, "small breasts are incredibly sensitive." To prove his point, he pursed his lips and blew a stream of air at her chest.
Her response was instant. She let out a sound that fell somewhere between a strangled shriek and a shocked gasp. Her back arched off the ground and the area she had been trying to hide from him earlier responded quite eagerly to his attention. If that was how she reacted to a short burst of air, he could just imagine what a touch would be like. The idea made his already stirring body spring back to full life.
Natsume silently vowed to himself that he would find every sensitive and responsive part of her body before the night was over. There was no way he was going to be satisfied until her pleasure matched his.
~*~
The morning sun was making the room far too bright. He wanted to sleep some more, he had earned it. Last night was an enlightening experience for both of them. For Mikan, obviously because of her total inexperience, but for Natsume as well because up until last night he had never had to employ any tricks or techniques for seduction. Sex was always a sure thing for him. He had of course heard and read things, so he knew theoretically what he needed to do, but theory and practice are two completely different things. There were times last night where he kind of felt like it was his first time too.
He did not get too exotic for their first time. There were a few things he had always wanted to try but he wanted to pleasure her, not freak her out. Besides he was in no rush, there would be plenty of time to try new things with his mate.
Mate.
In the small hours of morning, just after he had finally got her to scream his name in ecstasy, he finally accepted the truth he had been denying all along. Mikan was his mate. No other woman would ever do for him now. The thought of another woman was distasteful. The thought of her with another man made him want to slaughter something. His need for her was insatiable. After last night his lust should have gone into a long hibernation, but he was already craving her again.
Still refusing to open his eyes, he sleepily reached over to her and found the spot vacant. That had him opening his eyes real quick regardless of the obscenely bright sunlight.
"Mikan?" he mumbled and pushed out his energy to see if he could pinpoint her with their bond.
Something wasn't right.
Something was very wrong.
He stretched his awareness as far as it would go and could not find her anywhere. She wasn't in the bathroom or the kitchen or outside in the hot spring.
Where the hell is she?
Tbc
Oo~kayyy I think I managed to push the 'no NC-17 graphic sex scenes' rule to its limits. Hopefully I did not disappoint, offend, traumatize or mentally scar anyone.
Anyway, I hope everyone has or had (depending on your location) a nice spring break. Things are getting pretty busy for me so all I can say is that I hope to have the next chapter up in about a week.