Wicked Moon, Wicked Night (M) (Countess!)

[Lion]

When it came to figuring out exactly how to react, Hysaeda, frankly, was torn.  He wasn't quite sure whether he ought to take offense, forget about the whole thing, or strike her.  But other than asking questions, what was the code of conduct for this kind of...thing?  Was he supposed to simply accept the fact and move on?  He couldn't be certain that was for sure, but he understood what she had done.  And while he also knew that there were reasons for most things, he'd take this one as the other inexplicable ten percent.

And then a sudden giggle burst from her lips causing his face to grow hot.  Of course, with his skin so dark, it would have been incredibly difficult to detect a blush from his skin but if felt, his flesh undoubtedly would be as heated at the fire itself!  He set his jaw and sniffed indignantly in the face of this impudence, this mockery of his dignity.  Or maybe he just didn't get the fact that he asked too many questions for his own good or perhaps he couldn't comprehend that something just shouldn't be questioned.  Still he waited, impatiently, for some sign of an answer from this now infuriating woman.

Her laugh incited his comparison to those dozens of stories he heard of ancient voices crying out into the night because they had successfully led some wanderer astray through trickery and cunning.  Was she intending to trick him in some way?  He was beginning to suspect that this was all just one big joke and he almost furrowed his brows in anger that she was amused at his expense.  Then, she spoke.  "It seemed to be the right sort of response."  He scrutinized his eyes over her in silence for a second, mulling over Umbra knew what.

Then Hysaeda nodded in mild understanding and asked, "And just what would compel you to think so?  I suppose you go around kissing everyone you get close to."   What was rather interesting now though was the fact that even with this knowledge, even with his minute sense of anger, he still didn't move back.  Her presence was oddly comforting compared to being back in the corner alone.  He could feel the warmth emanate from her skin and, in a fashion, it was as tepid, flushed and glowing as the fire he'd manipulated into manifesting in the hearth.  The difference was, however, the fire he created was coaxed into reality from ancient techniques that beguiled nature into doing as the Ankuman pleaded with it.  In a sense it was a prospect of nature and, in another, it was tricking it into doing the manipulator's bidding.

"Perhaps you already know," he started slowly, unsure exactly how to put this as he watched her reach for the jerky he'd laid out earlier, the meat still retained much of its spice despite having been made a week ago.  Part of being a hunter also required one to be able to prepare food in the wild without entering a single settlement of civilization.  To live alone required one to be content with the art of solitude; it was the first lesson of living in the wild and something Hysaeda was already used to.  Therefore all that was left was the learning of the ways of survival.

And still the words found difficulty exiting his mouth.  But, eventually, with enough tenacity and push from his inherent determination, he ushered the verbalizations forth.  "Nobody has kissed me before...."  When it was out, his confidence doubled and he grinned a little as he added, "Is that how all Drow kiss or just you?"

[Anonymous]

Even thought Bresthra was studying the jerky in her hand, she could feel his eyes play over her. Bresthra had been the source of so much curiosity over her life, she had an uncanny sense when someone was looking at her. Not stalking so much as... really looking. Like they were trying to figure her out. She didn't actually look at him until he said something. Bresthra's amused expression remained fixed when she heard him say, "And just what would compel you to think so? I suppose you go around kissing everyone you get close to." Bresthra giggled at that as well. Did she go around kissing everyone? Hardly. Of course the image of her doing so was rather silly and ridiculous... if not something to consider next time she was somewhere a little more friendly.

Bresthra shook her head a little, silver strands of hair slipping over her shoulder. "No, no, I don't just run around kissing people I am close to." Her smile turned sly and she winked at him. "I only do so to people I'm attracted to." She was teasing a little. Well, Bresthra did happen to think that Hysaeda was terribly exotic, and that she was attracted to. But she didn't go around just kissing anyone. Her answer to his question had been the truth. The response had seemed appropriate.

She kept watching him as he appeared to struggle with something. The jerky was forgotten. What was he finding so hard to get across...? Thankfully, he didn't leave her wondering for too long. "Nobody has kissed me before...." She had to have heard him wrong. Bresthra just stared at him, clearly not believing what he'd just said. The he smiled a little and her breath caught in her throat. She was a pause, like her whole body was waiting... then he said, "Is that how all Drow kiss or just you?" Bresthra actually felt her face flush at his question. It was terribly amusing to her that he'd asked that. And here she thought he'd been upset that she had kissed him. And he'd never been kissed?! Bresthra couldn't quite understand that... but it thrilled her never the less. She could remember her first, though it had led to a little more than just a kiss.

Bresthra eyed him for a long moment, trying to figure out how to answer that. And despite it all, he remained close to her. That more than anything encouraged Bresthra to be a little bold. Not enough that she would scare him away, or possibly upset him... She didn't want that... Bresthra took in his smile, mirroring it with one of her own, before shrugging and watching him out of the corner of her eyes. A rather sly look. "I happen to kiss many different ways," she admitted conversationally. Like they were talking about the weather. She didn't really expect much out of him at that response. But that smile he gave her was rather... playful in its own way. As was the question he'd asked. And Bresthra was always up for being playful. There was nothing wrong with idle, harmless banter. Especially if the other person was up for it. Besides that, it was nice to see him... smile. After being alone for so long, Bresthra was happy he could at least manage that. Her gaze lingered on his smile, on his lips, wondering for the briefest of moments what he would've done if she'd done something a little less chaste, a little less innocent. While amusing to ponder, the reality of it was that he probably would've freaked out and been rather upset with her...

[Lion]

Just as no person was exactly the same characteristically, no one Umbraeon was either.  Their kind shared merely superstitions and folklore, they had a common culture and a faith and even if there was one who tried to pull away from that, deep down their origins would always somehow resurface.  "You can't escape from your blood," Heilrak always told Hysaeda when he was child.  "Like the spirit of Umbra, it is always with you, in whatever direction you step in."  And this was a lesson the hunter adhered to for all his known years; even if the Xelikuda camp didn't feel like home at times, he would always carry with him the knowledge and lessons of his people.  This stemmed to something that resembled cultural loyalty, in a way.

It would probably be in this method only that he could be predictable by others had they understood him.  The problem with that though was that outsiders were not welcome in most camps, certainly not in any of the high-clan tribes unless they were initiated in some fashion and accepted by the tribe as a whole, for a single voice of disapproval would demolish all chance of acceptance.  Because he was not around others so much gave much room for myths and presumptions to be concocted about him.  And of course, if he knew what they thought, he'd let them continue on their paths unless the notions mattered enough to him that he had to dispel the lies immediately.

And thus was probably why he didn't react as...overzealously as he probably would if he were in an open space with the drow woman.  Because then that would mean there was more space to run....  She seemed different now, as he did.  Comfort settled him and affixed him to the spot beside her and all desire to move away had vaporized like a droplet of water in the desert sun: it was there in all its own glory but it would soon vanish as all else did when the wind blew.  He said nothing as she spoke, merely feeling a fine layer of heat added to his already flushed faced as she said what he didn't expect to hear.  It seemed all chances of expecting anything were vanquished along with his need to retreat.

So there it was out in the open and yet he still found it hard to believe.  She was attracted to him?  Him?  Had he heard her right?  He obviously wasn't going deaf for he still heard the voices of the night audible without.  But still the idea itself was hard to fathom.  What in the world did she find so remarkable about him?  He needed another drink!  Something to calm his ragged nerves (if such a thing was possible).  He might have been capable of moving an inch from her provided Bresthra's voice hadn't captured his attention once more.  And again that inviting smoke threatened to spread across his senses.  

His grin was glued to his face and barely fluxed any until she said, "I happen to kiss many different ways."  With that his eyes went wide slightly and his breath caught.  That it; he'd officially lost his mind!  Never in a thousand years (or however long he was destined to live) did he suspect that he'd be caught in a situation so rampant with prurient tension that he nearly felt his lungs snap from lack of air.  Was it getting hotter in here or was it just him?

Just exactly how was he was going to respond to that was nigh well beyond him.  Still he had to think fast, for he wasn't about to let himself made and ass out of his own hide.  If she was going to wrestle words at him, he'd have to double his defenses.  "I see," he muttered.  "So you are...adaptable.  That's good.  But..."  And now his mind was beginning to piece everything together.  "Is that why you've been looking at me so much?  Staring at me while I've been leading you here and while I lighted the fire?  Because you were attracted to me?"  His voice was smooth and calm as he was beginning to finally understand this—whatever they were doing.  He wasn't incredulous about his questions because, he thought, that if he was, she'd refuse to answer it and he couldn't have that now, could he?

[Anonymous]

Bresthra was delighted that he continued to remain close. Apparently she'd yet to strike that mark that would drive him away from her. And hopefully she wouldn't. Bresthra liked to think she could read people relatively well. It was something she'd learned and what's more, enjoyed. The drowess was the sort to sit and watch when she had nothing better to do. The varying responses of everyone to different stimuli were near as exciting and captivating as any dramatic play. Besides, it was fun to guess what people were really like. Even if she never got the opportunity to find out.

The drowess found it incredibly amusing when his eyes widened a fraction at what she said. Was he truly not so used to what she'd call light flirting? How utterly alien that thought was to her. Bresthra had always been told, for as long as she could remember liking boys, how they would tease and compliment her. It was a part of growing up. Then she'd filled out and definitely had attracted quite a bit of attention. It was natural to her. Obviously not so much to him. Which made her all the more curious about –who- he was. She was paying such close attention to him Bresthra would've sworn he'd lost his breath for a moment, Much like she had.

Her attention shifted back to the conversation when she heard him mutter, "I see. So you are...adaptable. That's good." Bresthra couldn't help but laugh. She'd never heard anyone say she was adaptable. Certainly a different sort of comment. Or was that a compliment? Regardless, she found it rather humorous. She tried to hide her laughter as he kept talking. His question of why she'd been looking at him explained oh so much. Did he truly not know when someone was genuinely interested? More than that, she felt a little scandalous that she'd happened to be the first one he had kissed. Or rather, she'd kissed him. Though that had rather explained the way he'd gaped at her afterwords.

Bresthra eyed him for a moment, a pleased smile fixed on her lips as she reached out to touch him again. It was a simple whim of hers. And Bresthra always indulged in whims. The back of her fingers brushed against his cheek, rather liking the warmth of his skin. "You could say that is why I've been looking at you, yes. At first, I was just curious." Her fingers brushed along his jaw before they returned to her lap. "I must say, you are rather exotic. At least to me." She winked at him then and pushed her bag off of her lap. More so she'd have a place to put her hands than any real need to move it. Bresthra continued to watch him with that same smile. It had never occurred to her that he might find the fact she was a drow a turn off. Even after he'd stressed how much his people didn't agree with her own. But he'd not killed her... and he'd been the one to move closer to her to begin with. All and all, this whole situation was going rather well.

The drowess briefly considered where this conversation might go. Not that she ever thought so very far ahead. The most she'd thought about the future happened to be how long it would take for him to leave her out here. Bresthra hated being alone. Not that she couldn't tolerate it. But a priestess of Sharess wasn't the sort that took much joy in solitude. It just meant she'd have plenty of time to consider what she would do when she finally arrived.... wherever she might arrive.

[ A little shorter than I'd prefer... >.> Sorry. ]

[Lion]

It was safe to say that Hysaeda was almost utterly dumbfounded.  Not precisely by her actions for anyone with a brain could easily she was tossing herself in his direction but what truly lead him to stray thoughts was the odd feelings that zipped like jagged wild currents of electricity throughout his body.  It zapped every part of him: the tips of his fingers, the ends of his limbs, the maze of his ears, every artery, every vein, every capillary, and every nerve that existed in his body and even down to his brain.  Then the foreboding mist as licentious as it was a moment before seeped into the cracks of his conscious mind.  Like a dry landscape that was damaged by years of ocean wear, eventually the waters broke through.

The laughter Bresthra emitted was becoming something he expected now, at least from her.  For some reason she found every sort of reaction he did as a reason for amusement.  This no longer bothered him in the sense that he found it irritating but moreover just one of those aspects of a person one couldn't skip without happening in some fashion.  He was getting used to it.  But he wasn't so accustomed to her touch just yet.  He jumped a little as she moved her hand to caress his skin, well cheek to be exact, stroking the darkness of his flesh and then proceeding down to his jaw line.

Each grace of her fingers incited an extremely minor gasp from him as she spoke.  He tried to keep his breathing steady and his face stoic; the latter more successful than the other.  Air was forced from his lungs and came through his nostrils like a scoffing sniff but still he remained in control of his senses.  However the same could not be said for the rest of his body.  He found it particularly peculiar how his blood seemed to seep into an...unusual part of his body.  And seem to want to take over every condition of free volition.  The mist grew thick in his mind once more, his sense, where they were once under control, were now getting clouded, blinded by a sheer sensation of instinct.

Then he recognized it.

It was that primal feeling that engulfed his senses before in the forest.  When he'd first met her, with that first stare he felt as if he were an animal himself; a symbolic aspect of a beings attempt to survive in the wild and yet his heartbeat blocked out all sound.  Instead of the noises of the night, he heard only the beat of a consistent drum, the drum of the night that touched all creatures active during the dark hours.  And yet this drum, present now, seemed to take over his mind now, govern his actions and his thoughts.  He almost didn't need to know anything except allow the nature of the beast take over.

He watched with faint curiosity as the drow slid the bag off her lap and he suddenly found himself staring at her form, in a fashion similar to how she gazed upon him earlier.  He didn't speak but thought only of the matter of her nature.  So she kissed him, he thought, she looks like me and yet...all I've ever known was that drow were monsters.  How could she be a monster if she kissed me?

When he finally did find the words to take leave of his lips, he spoke softly and almost mysteriously, "So you find things that are exotic appealing, I take it?  That explains much."  He leaned forward slightly, still not grinning.  "You're very interesting.  Not at all like I'd thought you'd be.  I'd like to know what you might have to teach me Bresthra.  Show me the other ways you kiss."

[Anonymous]

When her attention shifted back to him, Bresthra took note that he was really looking at her. As she looked at everyone else. No longer pondering the mysteries of her race, but rather he was noticing the lines of her body. Looking at what there was for anyone to see if they truly wanted to. Her fair skin, dark because of what she was, had a honeyed glow to it from the fire. Her silver hair shone, near glittered, in what light was available. Bresthra brought a hand up to idly toy with the strings along the front of her corset. It was easier to lace up and put on this way. It also complimented and accented her ample chest. She allowed the silence that settled over them as Hysaeda watched her. Whatever he seemed to be thinking, Bresthra was clearly the source of it. And that made her feel... ah, wonderful. The drowess adored having someone's attention, no matter the cause. Preferably for more pleasurable reasons, though not necessarily carnal.

When he spoke, she felt a tingle of excitable want shoot down her back. The type that made the fine hairs along the back of her neck prick and a shiver slip through her body. Just a fine tremble. His tone was quiet, secretive... borderline sensual. Sometimes, the right works spoken in such a way could be just as delicious as a real touch. The sound was as much a tease as the ghost of a touch along bare flesh. Then he leaned forward. Every bit of Bresthra was tuned in to the motions of his body, the presence of Hysaeda. This feeling, the warmth that spread to her fingers and toes, the way her heart beat resounded in her ears, and that inner fire that roared was what Bresthra lived for. This was her Goddess, this was her religion. Not the litany of prayer, not the vocal adoration or the blood sacrifice some may do. No, it was the rush of life through her on the cusp of... of something that needed no words to be shared between two people.

Bresthra's blood red eyes peered into his amber red, watching him closely. There was a hitch in her breathing when he said she was interesting, and a small flare of warmth across her face when he said she was not at all what he'd expected. But the last of what he said truly made the drowess watch him. "Show me the other ways you kiss." The words were swallowed in the silence of the cave, but they'd become lodged in Bresthra. Slowly, her hand came up to cup his cheek. Utterly tender, as though he was something so very fragile and important. The warmth of him against her palm was wonderful but not where her focus was.

Bresthra watched him as she leaned forward, closing the distance between them. What response was needed to his request could not be given voice. He'd wished to be shown, and Bresthra was more than happy to accommodate him. They were close enough to share the warmth of a breath, their lips so close. But she didn't kiss him. Not yet. Rather, her eyes slowly closed as she took a brief moment to feel the warmth that his body gave off. His presence that slid along her skin, that feeling that he was there... Only when she'd taken a moment to truly appreciate that heat did Bresthra press her lips to his. This was more that the brief contact she'd shared before. This was fully committing herself to him, to the contact and the physicality of the moment. Her head tilted to the side a little, allowing her to be as close as such a full kiss required. Her hand on his cheek slid down his neck, moving along his skin. She pulled gently on him, translating her want of him to be closer through that small touch.

[Lion]

In the yearlong seconds it took for the Drow to close the distance between them, Hysaeda was near deafened by the thrusts and bumps of his beating heart.  He had a strange inclination to believe that if it went any crazier it was bound to tear right through his chest.  Yet still the incessant tribal drumming buzzed in his elongated ears, knocking wildly at his ribcage.  His heart rate made him warm to the touch and the point of her contact as enough cause to send further surges of electricity throughout the various parts of his body.  A shiver ran rampant and the world outside them seemed still.

For all his life, youth and maturity, Hysaeda hadn't experienced such emotions and perceptions before.  So, naturally he found himself vulnerable to that midnight drum.  But maybe it wasn't the drumming of his heart that blinded him so to the blur of the world surrounding the cavern inlet.  Perhaps it was a force beyond his understanding.  In all his existence, Hysaeda had been raised to open up his mind and spirit to the world around him, to better understand his surroundings.  In doing so, he learned to feel the energies of life, its definitions and differences between crude matter and true luminescence.  Such was pertinent even to the vocation of a hunter who had to be able to quickly interpret his surroundings so that he may best be able maneuver about them.  There were lessons to be learned on either side of this dual-planed world; both in the spirit realm and in the mortal realm.  Currently, as his body provoked him, Hysaeda was preoccupied with the mortal realm.

It was now that, with his mind caught between here and the door to the spirit world, that he too could feel the heat resonate off her flesh.  It was glowing and incandescent yet still maintained that blackish sheen that marked her for what she was.  He couldn't quite comprehend why he suddenly found himself drawn to the warmth.  There's a fire nearby, his subconscious whispered delicately.  You're too close to the flame.  Back away before it burns you.  But the thoughts were barely audible beneath the relentlessness of the drum.

He dared not to threaten to break the silence that settled to make the moment all the more ludic yet overtly sensual in a confining way.  There was an underlying feeling in the Umbraeon hunter that this was more than play.  But then again he wasn't very deft with games.

Her fervent breath washed over his lips compellingly, jolting at his spine and tugging at his sanity.  Still Hysaeda's actions were involuntary and he kept his defenses low as she finally sealed what remained of the quarter inch that kept them apart.  Bresthra pressed her lips to his fully and utterly as if in surrender.  As if he knew all along how to react, the Umbraeon allowed the pressure of her mouth against his.  They parted and accepted the warmth of her tongue while his alone was sent to explore her own warm hollows.  A fire dance exploded in his mind and all over he felt the electricity that became of her contact.  Though she was only touching his cheek, the source was a generator for all he knew.

She then transferred her point of contact to his neck, giving a tender pull to his neck as sign she wanted him closer.  Wasn't this close enough?  She was practically eating him from the inside out!  Still his form obeyed as if possessed, a puppet to a primal force that drove him to deepen the already full kiss that she surrendered to him.  He found his arms wrapping around her and enticing her to conform her body to his.  His hands tinged with all the electricity that seemed stored in them as he teasingly braced them over her flesh.

[Anonymous]

Bresthra was no stranger to this, but every time it was different. New. To a follower of Sharess, that was the true joy. That every wonderful, blissful moment me some new experience. One that should be reveled in. Because of that, there was no hesitation in her actions. There never was. Bresthra was the type to commit wholly to every moment. So when she leaned in to kiss Hysaeda, it was a giving of that part of herself to him. The chaste one before now was a mere sigh compared to what she put forth now. Like taking a dive off a cliff to the ocean below, the differences were breathtaking. To try and find words to describe, or to differentiate would be to lose the true depth to this kiss, and the chaste promise of the other.

To her utter delight, he responded in kind to her kiss. As though this had been writ out, with each one assigned a part, they reacted in sync. As she tilted her head and parted her lips, he moved to do the same. When Bresthra wanted to explore, she found him more than willing and eager to respond. His own warmth meshed with hers in something she could only call harmony. What thought had been there before was nothing more than reaction, want. Such civilized things as vocal communication were lost here. This was more primal, more base than anything so complex. The simplicity of desire drove her to press her body to his, as though she were made to be against him from the first breath of life. That was the beauty of pleasure. It was universal. Whether found through the joy of celebration, of the heat of one body with another, it was easily understood. What Bresthra offered to Hysaeda was a way of turning to that more base self. The side everyone had, but not everyone investigated.

It was only natural then that Bresthra found her body against his, that Bresthra was leaning against him. Her hands were seeking a way to shed the barriers between them. Though he was so warm through his clothes, Bresthra needed the cloth gone. It became as pertinent as the kiss that she actually touch him, that she be as physically close to him as they were on a more primal level. Bresthra had to break the kiss for a deep breath of air. As her hands found the hem of his shirt, pushing it up to actually touch his skin, she shared her breath with him. The drowess had no desire to pull away. This close, with her lips brushing his, with the soft breaths she shared... any more distance between them was too much. Bresthra looked into his eyes, really looking as though she could see all of who he was... and smiled just a little. Just a fraction of the corner of her lips tilting in a smile before she kissed him again. It was different this time, but no less erotic.

This kiss was slow. Her hands began to work their way up his back, memorizing the feel of his skin as she ever so slightly tilted her head. When her lips parted this time, it was with the intent to consume in an entirely different manner. This was not the hurried passion of the previous kiss, but the all encompassing surrender of so much more. It went beyond passion and into the realm of intimacy. Her tongue traced along his lips before leisurely gliding along his. Bresthra wanted to show him just how fiery such a kiss could be, though the motions of it all had slowed considerably.

[Lion]

A color burst split, ruptured and thundered in his mind, bleeding together and contrasting one another.  A storm raged across the landscape of consciousness and in and out of that disturbing, libidinous mist that surrounded him all over.  As the thunder ravaged the land, swiftly following the lightning that blinded him, Hysaeda was neither here nor there in terms of reality.  He wandered, lost in the mist, dodging the trees and the mounds, searching for light and sound, and yet all he found was it thickening around him and slowly all senses lost consciousness.  Sight faded, scent drifted, flesh was numbed, hearing deafened, and taste was dulled in all as if he was falling headfirst into the darkness of the void.

Hysaeda was consumed now by a mysterious heat that tore angrily at the threads of sanity that left his suspended in light.  As he was cut down by desire, he looked at Bresthra with a vision he'd never before utilized before: pure want.  These emotions were foreign to him.  And though he couldn't exactly be defined as an innocent, for no innocent would have witnessed bloodshed as he did or kill when necessary, he was not used to the emotions that went through him like a livewire.  This was a foreign smoke this was, and as confused as it made him, it also made so unwaveringly focused on one thing.

In the blur of confusion, he was both animal and elf; he was simultaneously ashes and flesh, dying and living, suffocating and breathing, repelling and yearning, chained yet freer than he'd ever been in his life.  He felt drowned in the base of carnal desire, skipping over the brim of intimacy, and in him beat the heart of a beast.  He eyed Bresthra with scarcely concealed want, losing the remnants of himself completely almost utterly.  She withdrew temporarily to regain her breath which he thought was a way of hers to tease him further.  He hated being made the ass end of any joke but because she stayed literally a breath's distance away, he didn't feel anger overcome the primary heat in his veins.

He was baited, given the opportunity to kiss her but mesmerized by the warmth of her breath against his lips.  A shiver sliced through him as she reached below his line of sight and pushed the leathery ends of his armor off.  Like an electric connection, he figured she wanted the thick and flexible obstruction off of him and he found himself more than willing to harmonize with her every action.  But still another side of him screamed in protest, wanting more than anything to fight its way through the mist and back to sanity (if such a thing existed still).  However, his hands busied themselves by unbuckling the ties along his sternum in order to satisfy her desire.  He reached the shoulder straps, deftly unbuckling them in an effort to breath in her mystifying scent.

With the ties of the armor loosened and her own efforts and taking it off of him, Hysaeda shuddered a fluttering sigh of relief.  She returned to him, slowly, sliding her tongue onto his before slowly entering his mouth.  The kiss was definitely not the rough and tumble one they shared only a moment earlier, but his body was no less electrified by her contact.

[Anonymous]

Bresthra had no real thought as they both worked to shed his armor. It was something that she wanted gone, and through that simplistic connection, he picked up on that desire. The want to touch him, his skin with no obstruction, was supremely natural. It was a step in a journey that she'd taken often. The kiss was the connection, translating everything to him that she wanted, needed, and desired of him on such a physical level. And it truth, if Bresthra had simply gave in like she always did, then she would've pressed for more. The drowess typically had no qualms with pressing for more, for taking a kiss and turning it into more. She sampled Hysaeda, the taste and feel of him with a breathless want that was contained only because she did not commit to something more carnal than this kiss. Like freefalling, she'd gone through the fall... and had reached the ground.

A grain of hesitancy in a Sharessan was unheard of. A feeling of pause was anathema to them. Any thought above and beyond the physical want was cause for serious concern. So what started out as Bresthra having barely more than a feeling, nothing so substantial as a thought but something as base as the desire she'd expressed... she ended the kiss. Breathless, blood red eyes on Hysaeda with a flicker of wonderlust and, for once, confusion. Her skin was inflamed. It could burn her, how much she was ready for something more between them. Her pulse had drummed out any other sound, any other presence but his own. Bresthra could feel the warmth of his body, could taste him on her tongue. Even thinking of how he'd responded to her had Bresthra aching for more. But that flicker of something so insubstantial, that minutiae of.... of.... Bresthra didn't even know.

She smiled to soften the way she'd broken the kiss. It was a first for her. The drowess had never pulled back.... and it confused her. But Bresthra wasn't about to express that to him. It would require reflection on her part, and truthfully... she should go see Veithean, her teacher. He'd understand, wouldn't he. Bresthra's hand came up to brush along Hysaeda's cheek. He truly was gorgeous, stunning... exotic. Someone so very different than what she'd ever met. Someone as dark as her but not the same. Bresthra had never met a drow that did not claim being a drow, and she'd never met, before this, a dark elf that was called anything but that – a dark elf. He was fascinating in that regard, alluring because she simply did not know who or what he was. There was magic in that, the same sort she felt when she entered an area of natural splendor. She couldn't explain it, she didn't understand it, but every fiber of her appreciated it.

Bresthra's thumb traced along his lower lip as she watched him, wondering what she could say... wondering what he would. She took that opportunity to actually look at him now that there was no armor. The play of the fire light, so very warm now, made him glow. For all the similarities, Bresthra could feel the difference about them. Not because he was an Umbreaon, but because he was Hysaeda. They were inherently different, and the only way to make a real connection between them had been what Bresthra had done. Expressed herself in a way that he understood, that anyone could, without the need for words. But now, settling back into a high functioning level, she knew they were contrasting. He could've been drow and the gulf between them would have still been there.  

[[ I'm so sorry this took me so long. >_< I fretted over it forever... ]]

[Lion]

This was a completely new experience for him.  The kiss, the heat, the contact, the electric torture that racked his body was a mind numbing experience that opened new horizons for Hysaeda.  The explosion in his senses came over him as a tidal wave or a powerful tsunami would a small fishing town.  Nothing made sense and thought came only in small, incomprehensible blurs of cognition.  What was he doing?  Where was his sense?  And why couldn't he control himself?

It was almost as if a great fire was burning inside of him, and the heat in his chest, combined with the nigh uncontrollable beating of his heart, made for a prison of pure torrid swelter.  A bead of sweat dribbled down his temple and it was almost inconceivable how he might be driven mad by her touch.  But, fortunately, it was gentle enough and came in small, luscious doses.  Hysaeda was only vaguely aware of small change inside of him, a breath of resistance that fought valiantly against the tide of instinct that momentarily swept him away.  It started out as a gentle, serene whisper and, within a few seconds, it came into become an audible voice in the back of his mind.  You're merely responding, it chided him.  Pull back.  Don't take the plunge.  You're making a grave mistake!

For a moment, as the kiss reached it's peak, he was lost in translation.  For what his body so desired was not quite was his mind was telling him.  It was as if his body questioned, Mistake?  How can something so good become a mistake?  It was a struggle for domination; one between reasonable sense and instinctual response.  He couldn't understand it, but the things the voice of reason claimed seem to make more sense to him and his body was losing the argument.  At the moment's notice he did pull back and, it seemed, at the same time Bresthra did too.  And he looked at her with scarcely veiled bewilderment.

Realizing what his face might tell her, he shifted his expression and tried to keep the fine lines of his face as apathetic as possible.  There was no need to say anything in the seconds that followed the kiss.  And, to soothe the moment, he allowed her to stroke his cheek.  His skin was still static to the touch and the heat that raged in his chest was slowly leaving him.  Apparently reason triumphed over natural intuitive power...for now.  But he wasn't so sure if he could resist the next time, if there was a next time.  He had stood on the precipice of desire and nearly dived headfirst into a volcano's pit.  Umbraeons don't act like this, he thought.

Hysaeda eyed her oddly; curious as why she scrutinized him so.  He too looked her up and down, obviously unaware that an article of clothing was missing from his form.  His body was athletically constructed and, like a kite with a smooth piece of cloth stretched over it, his flesh was tight over his muscles and bones.  The tattoo designs that flowed from his face extended down to his neck and onto the wall of his chest.  The marks were black and stood out even against the darkness of his skin.  It was one aspect that surely made him decidedly different from any other dark elf.  For he was but not in the sense of a drow.  Humans would use 'Drow' as a common term for any dark elf, regardless of true origins.  But even if they knew the difference between and Umbraeon and a Drow, they would never understand why Umbraeons would want to mark themselves with such archaic designs.

The silence settled now and, to prevent it from becoming awkward, Hysaeda felt it was a good time to say something. His throat was dry and the words hurt a little as he spoke.  "That...was an invigorating experience.  Thank you...for showing me."  One might not be able to see it from the outside, but he was still a little dizzy from the whole thing.

[I understand; its okay.  Just try not to take so long next time. ^_^]

[Anonymous]

Bresthra wasn't completely sure where to go from here. What she'd believed would lead to something more left her... confused and apparently he felt the same way. That meant that had been the right thing to do... right? While Bresthra had thought whole heartedly Hysaeda would've wanted more, maybe she was... wrong.  Maybe she'd actually misread someone. That made her more uneasy than breaking the kiss had. Bresthra spent so much time, energy... She'd prided herself in that ability. Had she been so wrong? And if this time... had she been wrong before? Had Bresthra unknowingly pressured anyone into doing something they didn't want to?

That did not sit well with her.

Bresthra watched as his confusion was hidden. She assumed his new expression was a mask because of how quickly the transition took place. She said nothing as her hand continued to touch his skin. Reveling in the moment and pushing her doubts aside, Bresthra took the time to look him over. Hysaeda really was a stunning elf. How he'd never attracted any sort of attention before startled and confused her. Even if the Umbraeon criteria for attractiveness didn't match her own, how could he be so... pariah that no one had ever expressed the desire she had? It seemed such a foreign concept she couldn't even begin to imagine...

Bresthra's gaze slid down his chest. As though it had a mind of its own, her hand traced the line of a marking from his cheek down to his chest. She did not understand what it meant, but it was no less alluring. She was so wrapped up in eyeing him she nearly missed him saying, "That... was an invigorating experience. Thank you... for showing me."

That made her smile. Invigorating was definitely one way to describe it. Bresthra shook her head, free silver strands shifting about as she did. "Nothing to thank me for, Hysaeda," she breathed, unintentionally sounding rather sensual. Despite the way she'd hesitated, there was a very large part of her that still sang with want. He'd been delicious, hot... pleasurable. But a Sharressan never committed unless they did so fully. It was that thought that made in relatively easy for her to look and touch without throwing herself at him. No matter how appealing that though really was...

For whatever reason, Bresthra was at peace. The heat of the contact was there, the awareness of his body, and her pulse along her lips where they'd touched, but she looked for all the world like a cat content with it's lot is life. She even smiled and, with a teasing wink, purred, "There are a lot of more invigorating things I could show you." Never in a millennia did she think he'd take the offer as anything more than a tease... Her smile grew slightly. Well, wouldn't that be terribly amusing?

[ Not as long as I wanted, but it is 5:20 A.M.... >_> ]

[Lion]

Despite any and all things, Hysaeda knew the reasons behind the neglect bestowed upon him by his fellow Umbraeons; if only vaguely.  The subject of tribes was a serious matter to his kind and there was no law that mattered more than an Umbraeon's own clan laws.  It was y their won tribunal and judgments that marriages were conducted, local disputes were settled, sentences commenced, and clan wars were strategized.  No other clan influenced another's laws, for the only associations between tribes were either through wars or trade.  No one stood above it and no one below it, and though punishments differed, there was but one law that was shared amongst all tribes: Association with Drow was absolutely prohibited.  Because Hysaeda looked like the enemy, he was treated as such.  No Umbraeon woman would have him if he were the last male in the tribe.  And as anti-social as he was, Hysaeda didn't really care to look beyond in the cities.  For all his experiences, he was content to be alone.

His first association with a drow, a female one at that, was over all pleasant and, from the experience of the past several seconds, very touchy.  He knew that most of the hate and feelings held against her kind was just insignificant prejudice.  He was smart enough to overlook meager matters for it wasn't like him to despise someone based on their skin color, appearance, religion, or culture.  Umbraeons prided themselves in being an understanding people and Hysaeda prided himself in being no different in such characteristics.

He didn't even realize he'd lost himself in the moment before, for now he was just barely regaining his thoughts.  He supposed he could compare his current feeling to the recovery process after one got struck by lightning.  Of course, he'd never been struck by lightning before but he was sure the riveting, electrified feeling was no different.  There he sat, as if he'd just been slapped hard in the face, and was only partially aware of the fact that she was still touching him.  Only when her hand reached a sensitive part of his neck did he flinch a little and look down at the tattoo line she was tracing with her fingers.  Her touch was gentle and strangely inviting as it finished its journey along his chest.  The lines there extended into a few below on his stomach but other than that, there were no more.

After clearing his throat, his hand reached up and scratched his head in seeming confusion.  He wasn't quite sure what to say next.  So she didn't want to be thanked?  What kind of person didn't want to be thanked after a request?  He supposed that perhaps Umbraeon manners weren't the same as Drow manners.  Then something caught him off guard.  It wasn't what he thought about before with the whole manner thing but what she had said.  "There are a lot of more invigorating things I could show you."  

Suddenly his brows furrowed in utter bewilderment and it was quite obvious he didn't understand what she meant by her words.  "Other things?  You mean to tell me there are more than things than that kiss?"  Hysaeda eyed her curiously, still not comprehending after he thought about it for a moment.  Tilting his head, he asked, "What kind of things?"

[That's alright.  Don't worry about the length.]

[Anonymous]

Bresthra felt no need to fill the silence that had settled between them as he collected himself. She was perfectly content to trace the markings, to just look at him. She was still fairly confused as to what... well, as to what had happened. Whatever it was, it left her and Hysaeda not naked. Which could be a good thing since he seemed rather lost about the whole ordeal. Bresthra didn't want to be the one to press anything between them. And maybe she was being extra careful since he'd expressed so much racism against drow. She had to make her race look good. Bresthra chuckled at that thought. No, she'd not pressed anything because of something more. Her being careful was because that's how she was. The rest of her race be damned. No matter what way she tried to explain it, or what justifications she'd managed to formulate, it all came down to she was confused. Again. She'd ran away from home, hated her Mother, denied who she was, figured it out again... or she thought she had. Hells, Bresthra had thought she'd grown up some. Maybe not a lot... But to be so off kilter because of Hysaeda? Or rather, because of her actions regarding him... this just wasn't good. Maybe her teacher had been right. Bresthra didn't know where she belonged. That was rather infuriating in of itself.

Bresthra was snapped out of her mulling thoughts when Hysaeda responded to her teasing offer. His words were simply too unexpected, so innocent that she laughed. She should've know he would have said that. After his curious uncertainty about the kiss, it would only make sense he'd respond the same way when posed with something he didn't know. Bresthra smirked at him, even winking as she said in a teasing, self satisfied voice, "You'd have to take off the rest of your clothes." Surely he'd understand then where she was going with the jest. What else could being naked with her possibly mean?

[woo with fail! ]

[Lion]

Inherently, Hysaeda was a curious Umbraeon and despite his vast knowledge of the world around him, there was still much he wasn't exposed to.  He knew of things he readily understood.  Like rocks, trees, ground, water, and animals were things he could easily recognize and respond to for they were solid and apart of the nature he belonged to.  He residing here amongst the heart of a gentle but carefully chastising mother; nature offered a comfortable world to those who knew how to survive, away from the troubles of cities and clan.  And while clans too resided in nature, they were still tight-knit communities that abhorred major anomalies.  Mother Nature would never reject a child of hers.

Nature was a world he could live in harmony with, a place that called for no strict conformities, one that welcomed all that were capable of survival.  But it was all possible to be both wise and yet simultaneously ignorant.  Hysaeda, as ever curious, knew that there was a whole world beyond the forests, mountains, lakes, and deserts just waiting to be explored.  He was both eager to explore and learn yet completely content to stay within the confines of the thickness of mountains and mist.  But as he explored the danger of this terrain, he had to contend with invaders into Umbraeon territory.  One of which had coaxed him into removing his defenses.

This was not a usual encounter for the hunter and Ankuman apprentice, her touch and lustful gaze.  And such was easily written on the expression of his face.  He wasn't accustomed to being teased nor tricked into removing the rest of his attire.  Like the rest of his kind, if there was an unexpected encounter with something foreign, he would responded with sheer defiance.  Had he known this instead of looking like an idiot, he probably would have darted for the cave exit and ran as fast at the night wind.  Physically, this was something he was capable of.  Umbraeons were rather notorious for their incredible endurance.

Instead, he mulled over her words, trying at the same time to decipher them and decipher the situation.  It was all very cryptic this was until she spoke once more.  "You'd have to take off the rest of your clothes."  Her expression was what he would describe as systematically sadistic, with something prurient burning in the blood red of her eyes.  He couldn't tell exactly what it was but his eyes felt compelled to trace the lines of her visage.  There was something in the pulchritude of her skin that he found morbidly fascinating.

Hysaeda ruminated over what she said, letting the blunt statement sink into thought.  "Oh," he said, childlike.  But when the thought finally permeated revelation, his eyes shot wide and he exclaimed, "Oh!"  She wanted to do that!?  In response, he reached across to his flask, popped the top and took a massive swig.  The liquid burned down his throat and settled his flustered nerves.

When calm seeped through him once more, he looked at her awkwardly, unsure but still undoubtedly curious.  Tilting his head, he said, "Are you sure about this?"  He glanced down at the ties along the crotch of his hide pants, squirming a little at the fact that it was tighter in that area than usual.

[A little on the short side but I can manage. ^^]

[Anonymous]

Bresthra wasn't sure what to expect. Given how he'd responded to everything else, half of her truly thought he might accept her offer. Granted, this wasn't just a kiss she was referring to. This was something a little more... vulnerable. Revealing. Submissive. While Bresthra had absolutely no problem with committing all of herself to a stranger, Hysaeda simply didn't seem the type. He was curious, but he didn't seem trusting. And he certainly had absolutely no reason to trust her. Her eyes played over his bare skin as she contemplated his potential response. And her own. On the one hand, if he laughed it off and said no, then clearly nothing would happen. That was the easy route, as it had the shortest end. He said no, nothing happened. She could say she was tired... or she could visit that stream. Either way, the moment was cut and there... may not be any more tension between them. Or it would still be there, but nothing would be done about it. Hysaeda was obviously physically attracted to her. She'd gotten that much out of the kiss. Was he curious enough for more?

Now on the very slim chance that he said yes... Now that was... certainly different. Even thinking about that possibility had her pulse quicken just a little. Bresthra was a creature of base instincts and wants. Higher thought rarely had anything to do with her actions because, as a Sharressan, one did what one wanted. Bresthra had been indulging her body's wants for so long that it was already finely tuned to simply respond. Reasoning had little to do with it. And the possibility that Hysaeda would want her on that level... ah, well, that turned her cursory look at him into something a little more primal. Sizing him up as a potential partner rather than figure of interest.

His actual response was much more animated than either of her guesses, making Bresthra laugh as he reached over for a drink and took a substantial swallow. So it seemed he actually did grasp what meaning she was going for. Good, at least they were on the same page. But what he said took the smile off of her lips and made her seriously consider him. "Are you sure about this?" Was she? Hells no. She'd stopped before, for a reason.... What it was, she had no idea. And this... he just was so... so different. Innocent, almost, to what she was offering. The very idea that he would accept such a move from her, a stranger and a drow, surprised her. Ultimately making her terribly curious why. That connection they'd made before... when she'd kissed him... was that it? Her eyes narrowed as though the answer was right there, but she couldn't see it. There had to be a reason he felt so... comfortable.... And she wanted to know.

Slowly, Bresthra shifted to her knees. Her red eyes remained on his as though pinning him to the spot. Her hands slid over his legs before she straddled them, sitting on him. Her hands moved from his thighs, up his hips and sides, before moving around to his chest. Still though, Bresthra watched those beautifully amber red eyes of his. When she was settled, her hands lightly brushed along his jaw before she leaned in as though to kiss him. Even then she did not break the eye contact, which had turned into something a little more... personal. Before their lips connected, she breathed, "Do you want to?"

[Lion]

Suddenly, the mist returned with a vengeance.  Unlike before, when the smoke had gradually clouded his senses as their lips connected, thickening over his ability to think rationally over what he was doing, now it all washed and rushed back.  The tsunami returned and he was caught beneath the force of the wave.  It dislodged his footing, almost quite literally, sending him reeling down to drown in a sea of desire.  He was at a loss and the lightning blast of white over his sights blinded him and suddenly he felt completely and utterly vulnerable for the first time in his life.
 
Hysaeda felt a small fire begin to burn inside the pit of his stomach as he sat there fixated with Bresthra's steady approach.  Each motion was slow and sensual and the first touch of her hand on his leg sent ten thousand volts darting up his thighs and through his lungs.  They became constricted and it didn't help that his breath was already caught in this throat.  He remained pinned by her heart-stopping gaze.  He fell back a little as she got closer, adjusting his legs so that he was more comfortable.  A rush of blood seeped coolly throughout his limbs, allowing a small feeling of relief to enter him and perhaps calm him some.
 
But it seemed she was intent on keeping such feelings at bay.  The heat of the fire made him all the more aware of her presence.  A part of him begged him to back away but, seeing as there really was nowhere else to go, he had no choice but to let her weight fall on him.  The flames burning, both in his belly and in the hearth, pushed him closer to her.  And that part of him, the one that refused to tear away, encouraged him to inspect the prize that landed in his lap.
 
She settled on his legs, straddling him as if he were animal while her hands explored the muscular passages of his thighs. He shuddered beneath her touch, that breath finally being released in a shaking stream.  They moved up to his hips, sending a tingling sensation zipping through him.  He felt a warmth spread to his lower half and the electricity that transfered from her finger tips accelerated his heart rate.  Knowing that there was no where to escape, Hysaeda focused on forcing his own hands to be pinned to the ground, in an attempt to keep them from travelling up her own sides.  The temptation was mind-numbing but his head was too enthralled by her gaze, by her breath, by her closeness to really worry about anything else.

She leaned in, making the pounding of his heart possibly audible to the both of them.  "Do you want to?" she asked.  She barely a millimeter away that he could practically taste the lust leaking from her lips.  What was he to say?  But the fire that scorched his stomach, now raged and overthrew the rule of rationality.  For a moment he was silent and was tempted to close the distance between them.  The last rays of logic were buried beneath the growing pressure down below.  "Y-yes," he breathed, too lost in that swirling mist to really say anything else.

[Anonymous]

There was something so very alluring in the way that Hysaeda responded to her. Was it because he was new to the sensations? Overwhelmed? Unprepared? The way her touch made his breath catch, barely audible except for the fact she was so in tune with him. Or the way his body trembled slightly as her hands ghosted up his thighs. She knew those feelings, had felt them so many times herself. Even now, the way the warmth if him beneath her hands. His skin against her own had her pulse drumming in her ears. But to see him respond the way she did, to watch that fine shudder course through him was, for lack of a better word, exciting. It was those little cues, the minute physical responses she noticed, that let Bresthra know he was fully aware of her. While he didn't move otherwise, to meet her or touch her, Hysaeda was as in the moment as Bresthra. Maybe he just needed a little... encouragement.

Hovering so close they shared the same breath, the warmth of it passing from him to her, then back again, Bresthra was able to watch the small conflict as he tried to come up with an answer. She wondered how long that battle would rage, how long she'd have to torment herself by being so close to him, to feeling the heat if his lips and not do anything about it. Bresthra briefly considered not waiting and just... kissing him. However, Hysaeda didn't make her wait long. "Y-yes," he breathed in response to her question. It was the sweetest sound she'd heard all night. A slow, sensual smile spread on her lips before she pressed them to his. A hand came up, wrapping around the back of neck as though to hold him in place. There were no other thoughts but her want of him. No more concerns. He was too hot, too willing, and too exotic. Whatever had held her back before became lost in the rush of her base wants, of her carnal desire. As she had so many times before, she simply gave in to it. No hesitation, no doubt. She wanted him, he wanted her. Bresthra tilted her head, running her tongue along his lower lip before seeking entrance to his mouth. She wanted to taste him again. Even so, her free hand slid down his arm before lightly pulling in it, expressing her desire that his hand move to the whim of hers. Bresthra wanted out of her clothes, and the best way to do that was if Hysaeda took them off. The corset top laced up the front, where it could be loosen and pulled up and off, or the ties could be pulled completely off and it would fall away from her. Either way, she wanted his hands on her bare skin... and the top was in the way.

[Lion]

Like with her, there was no room for conscious thought.  There was no space to believe that what she was doing as wrong or a mistake in any fashion.  The way she touched him, invited him, wanted him, made this moment feel so right.  He was lost in that twilighted space between light and dark, floating and drifting aimlessly along still waters.  And simultaneously a tempest raged within..  This process--this thing--needed little understanding.  He didn't have room to think if he was doing anything right because, in the end, none of it would matter.  Instinct would take over and the wild of the forest around him would drive him, both in action and determination.
 
Did he truly want this?  The pressure below would undoubtedly agree.  He ached, almost quite literally, for her touch.  And waiting for the moment to consummate seemed a tormenting eternity.  Yet the questioned still remained: Did he waant this?  A bell in his brain rang wildly as if answering, Why wouldn't you want this?
 
When she kissed him for what seemed like the third time (was he subconsciously counting?), Hysaeda could no longer focus on keeping his hands away from her as the invasionn of her tongue in his mouth distracted his attention.  Thus his head leaned in at an angle, accepting her fully.  The kiss was not exactly the rough one of before, when she chose to tutor him, but matched the slowed but enticing passion of the second.  Her mouth was torrid against his, moist inviting and he was as eager as she taste.  
 
He felt the tug on his arm and he "imprisonment" instigated by her opposite hand.  At this signal, his hands had a mind of their own and took their newfound freedom as a chance to explore her form.  The fabric of the corset was somewhat rough against the coarseness of his fingertips.  Hysaeda never had soft hands.  With the majority of his time spent in the woods, they were also physically designed for hard work.  Still they roved over her clothing and soon found the the cloth to be nothing but an obstacle.  Frustratedly, he pushed against her front, coming up to the ties and subsequently yanking to untie them.  The first few tugs were relatively unsuccessful and it wasn't until he pulled for the fourth time that the knot came loose; after that, the rest of the loosening was easy, each finger taking it's time.  He reached the bottom loopholes in no time and pulled the article of clothing from he body.  It fell away and with that, he pulled her evermore to his heated flesh, wrapping his arms tightly around her.  She would be his this night, and, once commenced, there would be no going back.

[Lion]

Like with her, there was no room for conscious thought.  There was no space to believe that what she was doing as wrong or a mistake in any fashion.  The way she touched him, invited him, wanted him, made this moment feel so right.  He was lost in that twilighted space between light and dark, floating and drifting aimlessly along still waters.  And simultaneously a tempest raged within..  This process--this thing--needed little understanding.  He didn't have room to think if he was doing anything right because, in the end, none of it would matter.  Instinct would take over and the wild of the forest around him would drive him, both in action and determination.
 
Did he truly want this?  The pressure below would undoubtedly agree.  He ached, almost quite literally, for her touch.  And waiting for the moment to consummate seemed a tormenting eternity.  Yet the questioned still remained: Did he waant this?  A bell in his brain rang wildly as if answering, Why wouldn't you want this?
 
When she kissed him for what seemed like the third time (was he subconsciously counting?), Hysaeda could no longer focus on keeping his hands away from her as the invasionn of her tongue in his mouth distracted his attention.  Thus his head leaned in at an angle, accepting her fully.  The kiss was not exactly the rough one of before, when she chose to tutor him, but matched the slowed but enticing passion of the second.  Her mouth was torrid against his, moist inviting and he was as eager as she taste.  
 
He felt the tug on his arm and he "imprisonment" instigated by her opposite hand.  At this signal, his hands had a mind of their own and took their newfound freedom as a chance to explore her form.  The fabric of the corset was somewhat rough against the coarseness of his fingertips.  Hysaeda never had soft hands.  With the majority of his time spent in the woods, they were also physically designed for hard work.  Still they roved over her clothing and soon found the the cloth to be nothing but an obstacle.  Frustratedly, he pushed against her front, coming up to the ties and subsequently yanking to untie them.  The first few tugs were relatively unsuccessful and it wasn't until he pulled for the fourth time that the knot came loose; after that, the rest of the loosening was easy, each finger taking it's time.  He reached the bottom loopholes in no time and pulled the article of clothing from he body.  It fell away and with that, he pulled her evermore to his heated flesh, wrapping his arms tightly around her.  She would be his this night, and, once commenced, there would be no going back.