CHAPTER 20: Ablaze
"Earth my body, water my blood. Air my breath and fire my spirit."
Aang tried to grapple with the newfound insights that Nii had presented to him.
His mind became a tempest of conflicting emotions and ideas, swirling like eddies in a vast river. He pondered the teachings of his past, the wisdom of his mentors, and the experiences that had shaped him into the person he had become.
Yet he could not help but to take in her words.
He felt his heart flutter in his chest at the challenge she posed him with. It was like she was inviting him to question each of his preconceived notions, the very foundations of his beliefs even.
He felt doubt and uncertainty but curiosity too.
He could not simply discard it.
Last night, he had felt another sense of wholeness that he had never thought was possible. The sensation of total surrender to himself, his body and the waves of pleasure that washed over it with the strokes of her hands.
He could not just forget that.
His mind wandered to monk Gyatso. He wondered what he would think of Nii and her viewpoints.
"I'd like to invite you to something," he heard Nii say, and he lifted his eyes to fix his gaze on her soft smile.
When she had let go of her hand, she had moved herself closer to the edge of the pond.
Its surface mirrored the deepening hues of the night sky above them, as the stars had begun to emerge one by one, and their twinkling reflections danced upon the rippling water, creating a mesmerizing display of shimmering patterns that seemed to stretch out into infinity.
The air seemed filled with mystery and enchantment, and Aang felt a rush of nervous energy as he watched the light shining from Nii's eyes.
"In my tribe," she breathed. "We have a ritual during every full moon. We honor the wisdom of the body in a sacred ritual that celebrates the interconnectedness of mind, body and spirit."
A fleeting moment of silence passed between them.
He felt the blood in his body rushing with the beats of his heart, awakening with the moon above them. He felt as if he was misbehaving, but he did not understand why.
"During this ritual, we undress ourselves and bathe together in a spring deep in the heart of the forest. It's a very beautiful and holy ceremony."
Aang felt himself blush as he stood there, listening to her words. He gulped down, afraid of what she might invite him to.
"If you want, I'd like to invite you to look at me while I bathe. Look at my body. See it for what it is, naked and free. Sacred. Holy."
Nii smiled innocently.
"You don't have to bathe with me. Just let yourself feel whatever seeing me naked does to your body. Let the sensations run through you, without changing them or having to do something with them. Just be with them."
Aang felt a surge of energy, a sudden burst of vitality coursing through his veins like liquid fire, as he took in her invitation. His heart pounded in his chest, its rhythm quickening, and his senses seemed to sharpen, as if they awakened from a deep slumber.
His breath felt charged with electric intensity, and he felt his muscles tense and coil.
He could not believe what Nii had just said, and he heard himself exhale in something that sounded like a mix between a gasp and a sigh.
"You don't have to, Aang," she said in a soft smile as she turned around to face the pond. "It's just an invitation. You're free to do what you want."
Aang felt as if he was frozen in place when he saw her reach up her hand to gently push down the strap over her shoulder, allowing the fabric to slide down. It revealed a tantalizing glimpse of her smooth, sun-kissed skin that was bathed in the glow of the stars above.
It felt wrong.
He wanted to turn around.
Run away from this jungle girl and her body that was so vital, so enchanting. This body that she wanted him to see.
He could not move.
He just stood there with his eyes widened at the girl in front of him. He did not know what to do.
Her movements were effortless, almost casual, yet it carried with it an undeniable sense of allure and confidence. With a coy smile playing upon her lips, Nii exposed yet another gentle slope of her shoulder, and it was as if it was beckoning, inviting touch and exploration, a tantalizing invitation.
Aang felt himself gulp down yet again, feeling lightheaded.
He felt himself sit down.
What was going on?
He had to run. He had to get away.
But he could not.
It was like time itself had slowed to a standstill. Like his breathing had stopped. Like a deep rhythmic pulse was coursing through his body, that left him paralyzed somehow.
As the fabric that covered her torso fell, his eyes hungrily coursed over her bare back. He could see her tattoos that unfurled over her skin like a blossoming flower, its tendrils reaching outwards in graceful arcs and sweeping curves. Intricate filigree adorned the edges, tracing delicate patterns that seemed to shimmer and shift with every movement.
He followed the design with his eyes as it descended down her spine, transforming into a tableau of imagery and symbolism. Elaborate motifs of nature intertwined with celestial symbols and mystical creatures, created a mesmerizing fusion of the earthly and the divine.
And as she moved, the tattoo seemed to come alive, shifting and changing with the play of light and shadow.
Aang closed his eyes and tried to focus on the sensations he felt within him, as she had told him to. He tried to be curious.
He exhaled deeply.
He felt like his body was ablaze with a sort of fever. As if a whirlwind left his heart racing in his chest, pumping the blood eagerly around his body with a deep, primal rhythm. It felt raw, unbridled and untamed.
He opened his eyes again, and he sucked in a hard breath when he saw that she had uncovered herself completely, not a trace of clothing left on her body.
His belly tingled again, this time more ferociously, and he felt his body react like it had when she had massaged him, earning him to blush heavily. He felt out of control.
He could not help but to let his eyes follow the curves of her body, as she started gracefully making her way into the water. The sound felt good in his ears, as if it licked his eardrums.
Aang shivered as his eyes moved downward, over the curve of her waist like an hourglass silhouette, her hips, rounded and voluptuous curved outwards in a sensual arc. He felt his body twitching, his hips moving slightly.
Another deep exhale left his lips, when he saw her bent down, slowly immersing herself into the water, and his eyes could not help but to land on her bottom, and he heard himself hiss out when he looked at the small space between her thighs as she bent over.
Aang clasped his eyes shut.
His body was shivering.
"This is too much," he whispered into the night air.
He heard a gentle rush of the sound of water as a symphony of liquid melodies, a soft bubbling crescendo, and he knew that it meant she had emerged from the water. He heard the ripples of droplets from her hair.
She giggled.
"Feel the magic of your body. Open yourself to it," he heard her voice coo out over the pond.
Aang suddenly became aware of a tension in his jaws, and he opened his mouth to let the tightness melt. He traced his fingers along the curve of his jawline, as the tension eased.
When he opened his eyes again, he felt something that reminded him of an explosion in his lower stomach, another rush of primal energy shooting out in his legs and up into his chest and throat, earning his breath to become stuck.
She had turned around now, and his eyes hungrily traveled over her body.
Her collarbones, delicate and refined, framed the graceful arc of her neck, leading his eyes down to the gentle swell of her chest. There, the curve of her breasts, soft and inviting, rose and fell with each breath.
His breathing deepened as he let his eyes gaze upon her stomach, her hips, the curve of her thighs, strong and shapely, the space right there between her legs, dark and mysterious.
He was totally losing control of himself.
He closed his eyes again, but it did not help, as images of her bathed in the celestial light of the sky above, flashed before his eyes. Her wet skin that seemed to gleam like polished marble, its surface aglow with subtle iridescence that seemed to dance with the rhythm of the cosmos.
Each droplet of water caught the starlight above, refracting it into a spectrum of colors - azure blues, emerald greens, and hues of violet and indigo. It was as if she was sparkling and shimmering, adorned with a veil of stardust.
When he heard another wave of water splashing, he opened his eyes once more only to see her walking towards him, and he felt panic shivering over his skin, as she smiled at him.
The contours of her body seemed alive in this soft, celestial light, her curves accentuated by the play of shadows and highlights. Every dip and curve was illuminated with a luminous sheen, and with each movement, her wet skin seemed to ripple and undulate.
She was enchanting. Mesmerizing.
He was shivering, fidgeting, and he twisted his hands in his lap, as she came closer.
He felt like an animal lived inside of him. A ferocious beast that wanted to attack her. Devour her.
He gasped out when she sat down next to him, and he squeezed his eyes shut.
It only worsened when she was close to him.
He could feel her movement in the air beside him.
He heard her breathing.
"Mh," she sighed next to him. "Just breathe, Aang. Take it in. This is also who you are."
"It's too much," he heard himself say in a shaky voice. "I can't control it."
The sudden sensation of her wet and cool hand on his arm had his body jerking forward, as if the reconnection between them only urged his body to move even more.
"Then don't," he heard her say. "Why don't you lie down?"
He complied, even though he felt heat almost burn his face as he knew that she would be able to see the entirety of his body's reactions.
He was embarrassed. Shameful of the desire that pumped through his veins.
"You're not just your spirit," she said, and he felt her taking his hand into hers. "You're also human, just like the rest of us."
He heard a whimper escape his lips, and he felt his hips thrust slowly upwards, furrowing his brows at these involuntary movements of his body.
"Right, just let it race through you. We'll stay here until it's over. I'm here with you."
They laid there together, looking at the stars above for a long time it seemed.
Aang was relieved when he felt the fire retrieving. He had never imagined that he was capable of feeling all that.
When Nii had dressed herself again, and they were making their way back to the temple, Aang found himself wondering what the experience had been like for her. He wanted to ask her, but he could not get himself to do it.
But when he had followed her to her room, and she turned around to say goodnight, he noticed a certain twinkle in her eye and a strange curve over her lips as she looked at him.
It sparked that tingling sensation in his belly again immediately.
""You're beautiful, you know," she said before she leaned closer to him, and in a swift movement, she left a kiss on his cheek. "Thank you for accepting my invitation. Goodnight Aang."
