Luxe Aeterna

The morning after the ball, the throne room was abuzz with activity.

As the Guardian Fairy of Melody, Musa was afforded the same rights and privileges as any other law maker on Queen Galatea's Council. In her opinion, she deserved to be there more than anyone else. After all, the reconstruction was her domain.

She, alongside all the other guardian fairies who resided within the planets of the Harmonic Nebula, was tasked with the responsibility of rebuilding a half-ruined system. Fairy dust could only work so well, the process of healing what was dead was a burdensome task, but the sacrifice would be worth it. Yes, the magic was tedious and boring, not nearly as exciting as battling with the Trix, but it helped millions of people regain their homes and livelihoods. That in itself made it far more valuable than any petty skirmish.

When she could, Musa spent most of her time in the war zones: the places where her healing magic had not yet reached. As soon as she set her sights on the charred soils and decomposing buildings behind the poisoned sky, she would shudder. In the beginning, she would see flashes of the dead; the smell of burning flesh mixed with the sticky sweetness of freshly spilled blood would tickle her nose. It would keep her up at night, nightmares waking her up in tears, screaming for some kind of reprieve. No amount of therapy or time could undo the mental scars she carried. Still, she suffered through her own demons for the sake of others. She had no right to cower back in her stone mansion while others starved in filthy streets, which was why she was there now, in the throne room, ready to crucify those who would do just that.

There was not much crucifying to be done, however. In fact, Musa counted on one hand how many times she opened her mouth during the entire hours-long session. Most of those times were to vote on new legislature, mostly amendments to current laws. Inconsequential things that did little to further her cause. Musa felt antsy, more than ready to leave when the meeting was adjourned.

Of course, her leaving could not be a simple task. As she watched her fellow guardian fairies leave, Musa was called back by none other than Queen Galatea herself. Whatever the queen had to say, Musa was not expected what came out of her mouth.

"I heard you got engaged."

It was an invitation for Musa to start gushing and spilling her innermost thoughts and feelings. But Musa was not sixteen anymore; she and Galatea were no longer classmates. They were sovereign and subject, so Musa maintained her polite composure.

"I did."

"Let me see," Queen Galatea said, extending her hand expectantly, waiting for Musa to offer hers. Slowly, Musa raised her own arm and Queen Galatea's eyes zoomed in on the enormous, pear-shaped diamond solitaire on her left ring finger. The queen let out a low whistle, clearly impressed. "All this, and you didn't think to tell me?"

"It didn't occur to me."

"Come now Musa," Queen Galatea sighed, getting up from her throne, gauzy blue train flowing behind her. "You don't need my permission; marry whomever you please, but I'd like to think that we are more than just queen and subject. I would like to consider myself your friend. And as your friend, I at least thought that you would tell me out of courtesy."

"Again, it did not occur to me," Musa repeated, feeling defensive. "I apologize if I offended you."

"Offended is not the word I would choose. Hurt, maybe. Confused, definitely," Queen Galatea explained, studying Musa closely. "You just got engaged, and yet, you look as though someone has run you over with a levabike."

"I'm just trying to process everything, really. It happened so fast...I can hardly believe it."

"Can you at least tell me who my right hand woman is attaching herself to?" Queen Galatea asked a bit playfully, nudging Musa's shoulder. "If not out of friendship, than out of necessity. Anyone you bring into your life is bound to reflect in some way on mine. The burden of being close to the crown, I'm afraid."

Musa had not considered things to that extent, and it jolted her nerves. Riven appeared to be more mature, much more in control of himself, but did that really mean he was ready to step into such a public, high-pressure role? He was always such an alpha male, beating on his chest, defensive and brooding. He would not get the chance to shine as much as Musa would. Given that she was the Guardian Fairy, Musa would have far more clout and responsibility than Riven ever could. Would that break his newfound security? He never did like being pushed aside in the past.

In her thoughts, Musa realized that Queen Galatea was still waiting expectantly at her, ready for the name.

"Riven."

"Riven?" Queen Galatea repeated, golden eyebrows arching high on her forehead. "You mean that Red Fountain scoundrel you used to date on and off at Alfea?"

At the word scoundrel, Musa had to fight off a flinch. "The very same."

"Well...I cannot say that the choice is a steadfast one, and I would be lying to say that I am easy in granting my blessing, but you two have always had quite the explosive love affair."

Musa let out a small laugh. "That is an understatement."

"If you're happy, then I am happy," Queen Galatea concluded, pulling Musa in for a hug. "Congratulations."

"Thank you."

The Queen pulled away, studying Musa for a moment, as if validating her feelings. Musa hated being so scrutinized, but she supposed, if she was to go through with this engagement, she should get used to the stares. Riven was an unexpected choice for sure; many of the gentry would have their objections. The thought of having to stand in a room full of them and justify her love like some kind of spectacle made her feel nauseous, but Musa pushed that away. It was a problem for another day.

"You should bring Riven to dinner one night so we can be properly introduced," the sovereign suggested, to which Musa merely smiled politely.

"That's a great idea. I'll let him know."

One last parting smile, and Queen Galatea was sweeping away, off to some other meeting. Dragon help the girl when she finally married, and Musa wished bitterly that the young woman receive at least half the hell she, herself, was going through.

Later that evening, Musa had no greater wish than to pull on her dressing robe and fall into a deep sleep. However, she had returned to her private quarters to find the bed covered in plush red rose petals, and a new gown laid on the edge. The fabric was a slippery silk and lilac in color, delicate floral patterns sewn into the hem that climbed the side of her body. On top there was a note card that read:

Dinner on the terrace at sunset. Wear this.

x Riven

Looking out the window, Musa could see the sun just starting to sink beneath the skyline. She had about half an hour before she needed to meet Riven for this impromptu date, something she felt herself starting to anticipate and dread in equal measures. She was exhausted, weariness creeping into her bones as every day with the council was wont to do to her. There was only so much doom and gloom one person could take before it crept into their soul and settled their like an albatross.

Riven must have thought he was doing something kind, something special to make her feel better. There was no way for him to know that the only kind of kindness she required after days like these were days spent in companionable silence and lots of rest.

Still, she slipped the dress over her head, the fabric clinging to her body like a second skin. It felt more like lingerie than anything else, the low scoop of the front and even lower scoop of the back leaving her exposed to the breeze, puckering the sensitive flesh. Even if she felt out of her element, her reflection was elegant and alluring. Musa pulled her hair up in a quick twist, pinning back the strays with pearl clips. With a few spritzes of perfume and a pair of comfortable sandals, she was heading out the door and climbing the steps to the terrace.

The sight she was met with took her breath away.

The landing was covered in tea lights, flickering flames mimicking the dying sun. There were more rose petals strewn across the ground, creating a path right to a small table and chairs set up with a candlelit dinner, a vase of full roses set as the centerpiece. The amount of effort that Riven had put into this night was astounding. The Riven from their school days never would have done anything like this, no matter how much Musa would have begged.

"There you are," Riven greeted with a smile, getting up from his chair to pull out hers. Musa tilted her cheek so that he could plant a kiss there, his lips sending shivers down her spine. "I was beginning to worry."

"Sorry, long day," Musa apologized with a tight smile, trying not to let the exhaustion or inconvenience settle in her expression. It was not Riven's fault he didn't know about her hectic work schedule; he wasn't doing anything wrong.

"Anything you'd like to talk about?"

"Not particularly," Musa declined, folding the cloth napkin into her lap as she surveyed the dinner: chicken covered in some sort of glaze with wild rice and vegetables. It smelled heavenly, but her stomach was in knots. "Nothing you'd want to talk about before eating. Besides, I doubt you'd find it interesting."

"I find every part of you interesting, Musa." Riven's gaze was focused on her, but he let the subject drop. "I spent my day in the market common. Getting reacquainted with Melody is proving more difficult than I imagined."

"Well, things have changed since the Reconstruction. Fixing the damages allowed for some improvements to the cityscape."

"What kinds of improvements?"

"Mostly infrastructural - new piping, electric, magical fielding. But it's also given us the ability to create more housing and remodel historical spaces to be more compact and economical."

"Impressive," Riven hummed thoughtfully, pushing his food around his plate with his fork. "You've certainly become more aware since school."

"I should hope so," Musa replied with a smile, cutting another piece of chicken and chewing slowly so she would not have to speak any more.

"I hope you don't think I'm too simple now."

Musa never thought Riven was simple. Impossibly and stupidly stubborn to the point of self-destruction? Yes. But simple? Never. He was a brilliant tactician and weapons master, as well as street smart. Riven had many redeeming qualities that made him a good partner. She would have to be blind to miss them. But for some reason, she couldn't put that into words. Her mouth failed her, and so she ended up floundering for a small laugh and a smile which Riven indulged her in returning.

They carried on in silence for the remainder of the meal, making idle talk about how delicious the food was and how the chef was brilliant. Dessert came out: flan with Melodian alto-fruit sauce and a sparkling wine. It was sickeningly sweet, but Musa ate it all, hoping that the sugar would still the roiling in her stomach as the sun kept setting and the mood grew more intimate. The wine was creating a pleasant buzz in the back of her head, easing her nerves a little bit, which made it easier to wander over towards the edge of the terrace and lean up against Riven's side.

"Is it true what you told them, our friends? About why you came back?"

"In a way," Riven shrugged, looking out into the horizon. The light from the sunset did magical things to his profile, shadows cutting across all that matured, sharp angles of his jaw and cheekbones.

"Then why did you come back?"

"I was unhappy," he sighed, running his fingers over his face before settling a hand on her knee, stroking the skin gently. "There's only so much traveling and soul searching you can do before it turns into running away from your problems instead of fixing them."

Musa studied him for a moment, taking in all the finer lines and wrinkles that had not been present all those years ago. "And you're happy now?"

"I'm not sure. All I know is that I was the happiest I had ever been with you. Whether that was really happiness or something else, I'm not sure, but I'm willing to find out."

"So you're just...settling?" Musa surmised, trying to make sense of everything that had transpired in the past day and a half. "Is that why you proposed? Because I'm your best bet at recreating that happiness?"

"I proposed because I love you, I never stopped loving you, and I didn't want to waste anymore time without you," Riven said strongly, looking Musa in the eye. The amount of fierce affection in those irises was enough to make Musa's heart skip a beat. "You could never be considered settling. My fiancée has not only saved the Magical Dimension multiple times, but is the Guardian Fairy of Melody. I'm the luckiest bastard in the whole damn universe."

Once again, Musa was at a loss for words. She suddenly felt choked up, conflicting emotion running amok inside her mind. While Riven was right to feel lucky to have her, she felt like she was being put on a pedestal she could never live up to. Riven was painting her as some kind of god-like savior, if the awe in his voice was any indicator, and while she was a powerful icon, she was also mortal. She made mistakes. Lots of mistakes. And Riven needed to know them, needed to know exactly what he was getting into by choosing her.

"Riven, there is something I need to tell you."

"What?"

"Before I ran into you at the ball, I had a...moment...with another man."

"A moment?" Riven asked, needing clarification, though Musa could tell that he was already putting the pieces together.

"I kissed him," she confessed, feeling a huge weight lift off of her chest. "More than that, I wanted him."

I still want him, were the unspoken words that she kept to herself alongside with the other man's identity. Riven could only handle one shock at a time; she would not ruin his image of her alongside the image he held of his closest friend. It was one thing for the man to be a stranger, but to put a familiar face with the act...Musa knew in her bones that Riven would not take that well at all.

Riven had remained quiet, lost in thought, a pensive look on his face caught between drawn brows.

"Does this change how you look at me? How you think of me?" Musa prompted, needing some kind of response.

"What? Of course not," Riven refuted strongly, shaking his head as if she had lost hers. "Musa, I'm not mad at you. How could I be mad when that happened before I was back in the picture? I was with other people too, you know."

"I know, but - "

"But nothing," Riven cut her off, fierce determination in his eyes, as if willing Musa to believe what he was saying as truth. "Whatever you've done, it doesn't change anything. I still want you, and I still want to marry you."

"I'm so relieved," Musa's voice fluttered, suddenly feeling weak in the knees. Whether it be out of relief or despair, she was unsure.

He leaned in, pulling Musa close to him, his hands framing her face and breath whisping against her cheeks. "Let me show you just how much I still want you..."

The kiss was expected, the logical next step in this elaborate display of affection. A few years ago and those fuck-me-now eyes would have had Musa swooning in a heartbeat. Now, she felt her heartbeat kick up for a whole other reason. She felt like she was being swallowed, Riven consuming her before she could even catch her breath. Musa was breathless, caught up in the storm that was her lover, and before she knew it, she was being whisked back inside to a bedroom - his bedroom.

The door slammed shut and he wasted no time. Riven was tugging at the fabric near the dimple of her back, fingers dipping beneath to squeeze at the bare skin of her ass. She couldn't wear underwear with the dress or the lines would show, and Musa was beginning to wonder if this was his plan all along.

"As much as I love you in this dress, it needs to go."

A harder tug, and Musa heard seams rip. It seemed a shame to ruin such a work of art, but Riven was clawing to get her naked, pulling the garment so that the fragile straps snapped and the side seam busted apart. The purple silk fell from her frame in a puddle, leaving Musa in nothing but her sandals and jewels.

Riven took a step back, eying Musa hungrily. He stared at her like he was a burning man and she was a tall glass of water. She felt a blush creep up her cheeks, staining her throat down to the dip of her cleavage.

In the next second, Riven was divesting himself of his clothing, treating the pieces with much more care than he showed hers. His shirt was the first to go, then his shoes, socks, followed by his pants and finally his boxer briefs. The tight black cotton left nothing to the imagination, exposing the outline of his erection down to the bulging vein that ran down the center. When he finally did peel the last layer away, his cock bobbed up against the taut lines of his stomach, the head already purpled and leaking.

He wasted no time pushing them onto the bed, nestling himself between her legs. Her thighs bracketed his hips, pulling his cock flush to her, pulling a gasp from her lips. It had been so long since she'd been had like this - probably since before she took this job. Before everything in her life became work. And it felt good. It was obscene how good it felt to be touched like this, to be set on fire from the inside out. But there was something in Riven's eyes, some kind of emotion that kept her from losing herself fully to the sensation. There was such a dedication, a devotion in the way he looked at her, admired her, that she could not reciprocate. At least, not now, not yet. So, she closed her eyes and tried to not think at all, instead focusing on the way Riven's cock brushed against her folds, teasing before slowly dipping in.

She wasn't taking any kind of contraception, and they didn't have any other form of protection, but that didn't look like it was going to stop Riven. And why should that be a problem? They were going to be married. They were going to have to have kids one day. It shouldn't be a problem.

But when Riven pushed in, bare and pulsing between her legs, she felt something irrevocable jolt in her chest. This was it; this was permanent. Whatever happened tonight, she could not take it back. She was fucking her longtime love without any barriers between them, giving him her all, and she could not change that.

Did she want to change her mind? If she did, it was too late to back out.

Riven let out a low sigh, groaning as he pushed further and further in until he bottomed out, pelvis flush against hers. He had one hand planted just below her bellybutton, stroking the skin there with his thumb as he experimentally pulled back and pushed back in. Fissions of heat sparked in Musa's gut, pleasure building slowly but surely.

The pace was torturously slow, Riven sliding in and out lazily, watching attentively as he was engulfed by her heat. He seemed enraptured by it, his eyes darting from her own to the place they were joined, his pupils blown black in pleasure. He kept this up for a few strokes, controlled and confident, before saying fuck it and giving into desire, pistoning his hips so that their skin smacked against one another in the most obscene noises.

"Are you close baby?" Riven asked, sweat dripping from his forehead as he leaned down to bury his face into Musa's neck, keeping up the choppy thrust of his hips. It was clear that he was, his thighs quivering and movements erratic.

"Yeah, so close," Musa lied, forcing her tone to pick up a breathy quality.

If she was going to fake an orgasm, she was at least going to do it right and not hurt her fiancé's feelings. Especially because the reason she was unable to get off was because the man on top of her was not the one she wanted.

She snaked her hand between their bodies, reaching for her clit. Rubbing herself seemed to do the trick, her orgasm building much more quickly with the stimulation. It only took a few strokes before she felt herself clamping down on Riven's cock, her walls spasming as she felt release. She felt him orgasm a moment later, flooding her with his come.

Riven held her legs open as he pulled out, stroking her overly-stimulated folds reverently as they leaked thick, white come onto the sheets. Musa thought it was disgusting, the way he ran his fingers through it, dipping them back inside her as if pushing the come deeper. When he pulled away, his fingers were sticky and covered in white, but he wiped them off on the sheets. Musa was finally allowed to close her legs, which she did immediately before getting up off the bed.

"Where are you going?" Riven called, looking at her with confused eyes.

"To the bathroom," Musa replied as if it were obvious, gathering her ruined clothes. "I'm not going to sleep like this."

Riven looked disappointed, his gaze once more focused on where the come was starting to dribble down her inner thighs. Was this some sort of pride thing? Did he feel pleased with himself seeing her like this, covered in him? If that was the case, it only made Musa want to shower more. She did not want anyone to see her as anyone other than her own, including her fiancé.

Finally, he nodded and rolled over, grunting as his head hit the pillow. If Riven was upset, he didn't seem so anymore, the furrowed brow replaced by relaxing sleep. A good fiancée would scurry off to the bathroom, clean herself off as quick as possible, then crawl back into bed for a night full of cuddles and sex. But Riven would have to be disappointed.

Musa waited until Riven's snores evened out, then left.