Chapter 11: kiss me with your last breath.

Shuri felt her head spin and she had the urge to puke.

"ch'ah." she gasped.

She couldn't breathe.

"Just hang on my love."

Her husband was quick to pick her up and run.

…

Namor pov:

Namor wanted to kick himself. He internally screamed for neglecting his wife's physical needs. He should have been paying attention to her gills more. With the change so new, she was going to need a lot more care. Her body still needed time to adjust.

With urgency, he made his way past people and down a dark alley. He then kicked off the darn human shoes and flew into the sky. He was very grateful for the setting sun, he wouldn't draw as much attention.

He made sure to go above the lingering clouds, so he wasn't spotted.

"Just hang on mia amore. Hang on, almost there," he assured her.

Within seconds, he was diving into the ocean depths. Going deeper than any human could ever comprehend.

…

Shuri felt a haze flicker behind her eyes, and her lungs opened up.

She could breathe again.

When she opened her eyes, her husband's brown eyes were staring loveling back at her.

"Cha'ah.." she groaned.

"Mia amore…" he murmured against her skin.

Shuri breathed in deeply, the taste of the ocean filling her lungs. It felt good. Her skin which was once dry and sore, was now soft and smooth.

Ch'ah swam around her in circles and Shuri followed him.

"What ocean are we in?" she asked

"The Atlantic. I would never allow your body to touch that horrid Hudson River. It's filthy. I flew us here. I am so glad you are breathing better. I am sorry my love. I should have done a better job of instructing you on your gills. They require saltwater to stay fresh and not dry out. Right now the change is too new, so your body is having a hard time adjusting. Promise me you will contact me if you feel odd."

"I will. Don't beat yourself up ch'ah. You have had a lot on your plate to take care of."

"My plate? I don't understand?" he questioned.

"It's a metaphor ch'ah. It means you have been doing a lot of work and you simply forgot something."

Namor wrapped his arms around her waist as a small school of fish swam past them.

Shuri relaxed in his arms as she looked around the ocean. It seemed so empty and yet full of life.

"It's quiet…" she told him.

"The ocean is settling, for the night. Even ocean creatures have to sleep."

"And so does a king.." Shuri admonished as she looked at him. How had she not noticed the dark circles under his eyes?

"Oh, my king." She said in concern. "You need to get back to our kingdom…"

"A kingdom without its queen…"

Shuri sighed.

"I promise as soon as I get back to Wakanda our kingdom is the first place I will visit…"

"I don't want to wait any longer to approach Wakanda… " he told her stubbornly.

Shuri shook her head.

"Give me two more weeks before you go strutting out the ocean in all your wet glory…"

"Wet glory?" he questioned.

Shuri laughed and watched as air bubbles bubbled around her.

"You my king are what the colonizers call sex on legs. And I want to enjoy you just a little while longer before we go into political disputes. Besides, we should probably have Wakanda simply get to know you before we announce our relationship. It will cause us more trouble."

"Ah, you want me to ally with Wakanda first. Gain their trust and then claim my prize? So devious my queen.."

"Devious!?" Shuri pouted and pushed namor away, not that he budged.

She then swam away laughing as he gave chase.

She allowed the current to pull her as the giant ocean seemed to open around her.

When she stopped, she noticed her husband was nowhere to be found.

"ch'ah? Where did-"

Shuri screamed when she felt something under her, pull her into the dark depths.

"Gotcha…" ch'ah laughed in her ear.

"You scared me!" she laughed as she swatted at him.

He pinned her arms and kissed her passionately.

Shuri moaned.

"Mia amore…" he whispered seductively into her ear.

""In reina, in ki'ichpanil, tin in k'aaba.." ( my queen, my beauty, say my name.."

Shuri opened her mouth but no words came out.

Her husband simply chuckled, as he removed her pants.

She couldn't care less that the fish were watching her.

…

A week later, When her time with the Avengers came to an end, Shuri managed to help update Captain America's shield, make steel arrows for Hawkeye, and various other weapons.

Her heart, however, longed for the ocean. After their long and slow lovemaking, she returned to the Avengers compound alone. She urged her husband to go home to their kingdom and rest. She promised she would create a saltwater solution to spray on herself twice a day so that her gills wouldn't dry out. but she also needed to stay well hydrated.

She spent the rest of her time in Tony's lab, working on projects with him. She trained with black widow and Bucky while still making time to hang out with Riri and Peter.

Before she knew it they were boarding the jet and flying to Philadelphia Pennsylvania. Currently, she was sitting in one of the seats going over her notes. She was going to teach for the whole week and according to Oro, the students were very excited to hear her speak.

A clearing of the throat made her look up. Her brother was across from her looking at important documents himself. Ever since she returned from her day out, he had been very petty. Giving her the silent treatment and disapproving glances.

She had had enough.

"Something you want to say, brother?"

T'challa put his paper down and looked at her. his hands folded in front of him.

"Hmm, what shall I say sister? When the princess of Wakanda, and best scientist in the world abandons her duties and embrasses our kingdom, what shall I ever do?"

Shuri opened her mouth to rebuttal but quickly shut it. She was the princess of Wakanda but she was also the queen of Talokon and she wasn't acting like her. She supposed her behavior had been rebellious and somewhat childish.

She could have just communicated with her brother that she would have liked to leave early to sightsee. He would have been compromisable, wouldn't he?

With a sigh, she swallowed her pride.

"you… you are right Brother. I should not have just disappeared. It was …childish of me not to communicate with you. I could have…should have …just expressed my desires and im sure we could have come up with some form of agreement. But I didn't think about the consequences of my actions. I didn't think about the predicament I put you or the Dora in. I truly apologize…it won't happen again."

Her brother looked at her in shock and even Okoye was leaning over the cockpit to look at her.

"You know, you make it hard to argue with you and be angry when you're being responsible…" her brother finally managed to say.

He then gestured for her to sit next to him. She did and laid her head on his shoulder.

"You know…I used to slip away at times before when father ruled."

Shuri looked at him in surprise. She always thought her brother followed the rules.

" he caught me one day though. To my shock he had not been angry…he just wanted me to be aware. Aware of my surroundings and what could happen to me when no one knew where I was. Our future could have been snuffed out at any moment. I just want you to be aware sister. Don't stop being a young adult. I want you to have fun but…just be aware and stop stressing out the dora…"

Shuri smiled.

"I make no promises bother."

And before she knew it, they were landing in Philadelphia and on the move again. but this time, Shuri didn't disappear.

She committed to her duties like the princess and queen she was. But It wasn't going to last very long.

No one could keep the pather princess bound for long.