~ Cakes and Compromises ~

A book on crystal morphology was open on her lap, but she hadn't absorbed a word. Her head was too busy thinking. Not about her experiments, but about Furor. Specifically, about his tactful offer; he wanted her as his mistress.

Furor was old enough to be her father (possibly her grandfather) but such arrangements weren't uncommon; such trysts were usually between a Master and another Master's daughter, though discretion was always upheld. In any case, it strengthened political ties between political allies. And it would give her more clout in the Council Halls.

It also carried a small personal level of security. Mistresses were typically well looked after.

It was a really strong political move on her part if she was to accept it. She had to admit, though, that there were personal motives as well. No matter how much she wanted to deny it, there was a small kernel of loneliness that she couldn't get rid of, and it only seemed to grow as she aged.

The Sky Knight's kiss had made her realized how long it had been since her last roll in the hay. She had been focusing on her work, on politics, everything and anything. But it didn't change the fact that it had been ages since anyone had wanted her physically. And that pain was made all the more sharp from Aerrow's withdrawal from a kiss he instigated.

She was used to getting what she wanted; she could take from Aerrow what she needed, but some part of her knew that it would feel cheapened. She also knew accepting Furor's offer would be settling.

In the back of her mind, she could hear her grandmother chiding her about wanting to keep her cake and eat it, too.

~ Chances Are ~

Aerrow watched Cyclonis from the corner of his eye. Her hair was hanging like a curtain around her face, making the sombre expression she wore look more aggrieved. It sent little pangs of heart ache stabbing in his chest.

Her eyelashes were dark smudges on her cheeks, her amethyst eyes hooded. A book was open in her lap, but he could tell that she wasn't reading. In the soft crystal light, she looked so fragile and sad.

His concern had carried him off the bed and crouching in front of her before he realized it.

"Are you alright?"

Her eyes flickered to his before she shrugged as way of an answer. "Why wouldn't I be?"

He was spilling another apology from his lips. "You know I'm sorry about what happened, the other day?"

It was the damn look in her eyes. He wanted to see the haughty, confident pride in them, not the weariness that seemed to have settled there.

Cyclonis's eyes hardened. "You'll have to get more specific. You do lot of idiotic things that require an apology."

Aerrow licked his lips, noticing the way Cyclonis watched the nervous motion. "About kissing you."

The glare that she shot him was like ice in his bones. "I think you've apologized more than enough, so please quit moaning about it. It's not my fault you had a lapse in judgement."

Aerrow could have sworn that he heard her voice crack a little at that. "I know. And I know you're tired of hearing it but I really am sorry..."

If looks could kill, Aerrow was sure that he would be dead ten times over. Cyclonis's glare was just plain poisonous.

"...but I just want you to know this. I don't regret it."

"What the hell does that mean?"

And Aerrow took another chance.

~ Dominance ~

Kissing her the second time was a rush, just like before. There was also the added danger of expecting to be brutally killed by an angry crystal mage.

But, hell, if this isn't a way to go...

It was a little awkward, because she was sitting, her knees tucked underneath her, and he was half crouched, but the burn in his legs was worth it.

He kept the kiss chaste, just brushing his lips with hers. But as the seconds drifted by he grew bolder. He even indulged himself by letting his hand rest where her neck and shoulder curved together. He could her heartbeat fluttering under his fingertips.

So the crystal witch has a pulse after all...

When Aerrow felt Cyclonis's fisting his shirt, he was pretty sure that she was going to throw him off. He wasn't expecting to be forcefully dragged closer, her other hand snaking up his neck, or her lips hungrily meeting his.

It even seemed when kissing it was a quest of dominance between the two of them. Their lips were pressed hard enough together, Aerrow was sure one of them was going to land up with bruises. Fingers were tangled in hair, and every nerve was hyper sensitive.

Reality crashed into him when a sharp pain burned in his lip and Cyclonis's sudden weight carried them to the floor.

Her lithe body was perched over his, his arms pinned under her hands. His widened green eyes met Cyclonis's icy glare. Despite the heated flush to her face her eyes were cold.

Crap...

~ Want For Nothing~

She was hissing the words before she realized they had exited her mouth. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

Aerrow tried to shrink away, despite his trapped position.

"Whaaa-?"

Her face hovered over his, their lips almost brushing again. She was roiling with emotion; lust, elation, and there was also rage and confusion. It had been a while since anything had driven her so crazy, and she hated the breathlessness that her battling emotions left her with.

"You heard me." Anger was the safest thing to latch onto. It was the most easily understood. She knew what she could do with anger and how to satisfy it; usually it demanded blood and pain.

"What do you want?" she whispered dangerously soft.

"What I want?"

"Yes, what do you want? "

"I... I just" Aerrow offered meekly.

Her voice lost its venomous edge, and just carried scathing sarcasm.

"You just what?" she purred into his ear. She was confident again, steeped in all familiar rage.

She nudged his ear with her nose and felt him tremble a little beneath her. Damn right he should be scared, the mouse has gotten far too comfortable with the cat I think.

~Burn, Baby, Burn~

"Does the little Sky Knight like playing with fire?" She taunted, grinding her hips against his painfully slow. He gasped and wiggled, but her straddling hips kept him pinned securely under her.

"You know what happens when you play with fire?" she asked rhetorically.

Her lips moved from his ear and she kissed him hard, cutting off any answer, and she let her tongue run along Aerrow's lip that she had bitten none too kindly. She tasted blood.

"You get burned," she whispered, "And you know the really nasty thing about burns? If you don't put cold water on them real quick they keep burning," she gave another slow grind of her hips, not hiding the Cheshire grin as Aerrow tried to not to thrash.

"And burning. If you're not careful, it could get real serious. You'd have some nasty scars."

Her mouth travelled down his neck, her teeth nipping hard. "You look like the type who would scar easily too. What with that oh-so-fair skin of yours. A lot of girls must envy you for your complexion," she added snidely.

She leaned back, admiring her work. Aerrow was breathless beneath her, his neck bruising and his lips smudged with blood. His green eyes were hard, practically glittering with something dark. Probably hatred or anger. Maybe a bit of both.

"You know, you surprise me. Really Aerrow, I thought you were a gentleman, and a gentleman doesn't carry on with a lady like you have. You're a touch too familiar with me."

~Don't Make Me Ask Twice~

"I already apologized," he managed to spit out, tripping over the words.

Cyclonis rolled her head in a nonchalant manner, but the grip she had on his wrists tightened. "You've apologized more than once, if I do recall. And yet, it doesn't change that you've kissed me. More than once. So it makes me wonder what you want. Which brings me back to the original question. What do you want?"

Aerrow opened his mouth to answer before clicking it shut.

Cyclonis narrowed her eyes at the growing silence.

"I think I know what you want."

"And what's that?" Aerrow asked hesitantly.

Cyclonis tilted her head and quirked an eyebrow. "To fuck me."

The furious colours the Sky Knight turned were lovely. His face was practically the same shade as his hair. His brilliant eyes widened even more. It was really an enjoyable sight.

"N-no I don't," Aerrow indignantly sputtered.

The smile Cyclonis carried on her lips was not in any way kind. "I think someone would care to argue." She ground her hips hard against his to prove her point. The sadistic part of her enjoyed his half strangled moan a little too much. She was going to have him begging her for it. And she had no intention of giving him anything.

This Sky Knight was going to learn the hard way that she was not to be trifled with.

~I Shall Not Bow~

"I don't want to... to fuck you," Aerrow spit out, the words acerbic on his tongue.

"Oh, does the Sky Knight not want to get his hands dirty? Doesn't want his honour sullied? Doesn't want to admit that he's not any better than any other man? That you don't have base instincts like everybody else? Your innocence is disgusting," Cyclonis hissed cruelly. "Honestly, with your suppressed sexuality can you even find it in yourself to pleasure a woman? Or are you too much of a coward? Tell me, Sky Knight, are you still a little virgin or have you actually managed to have carry on with an intimate relationship?"

Aerrow didn't rise to the bait quite like she hoped. "Why are you being so mean?" he asked, honest surprise in his voice.

"Mean? Mean? Oh, silly Sky Knight. This is me being nice. And I can continue to be nice, provided you don't aggravate me. And denying that you don't want to fuck me when there is very clear evidence that do will aggravate me. Unless you really can't feel anything below the waist down?" Cyclonis taunted.

"I can say with complete honesty that I don't want to fuck you, Cyclonis. I want to make love to you. There's a distinct difference between the two."

A/N: Getting sick of my cliffhangers yet? And I apologize in advance if there are spelling and/or grammatical errors in this chapter and the following chapter. I've been writing this one on and off for a while - so very different it is from what started. Expect a new chapter likely tommorow - it's just being a pain to edit. I keep giggling or blushing from embarrassment. Let's just say that Cyclonis and Aerrow are definitly getting coal for Christmas. I'll stop teasing, 'til then!