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Enchanted Night	By : EmpressMoonchildOfFantasia Category: M through R > Neverending Story Views: 3814 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: The names, people, places, etc of The NES are all owned by the late Michal Ende & Warrnor Bros. Copyright � 1984. I'm just borrowing them for fun. I do not own anything but the plotline of this fic.

Chapter List
- 7
- 8
- 9
Chapter Rating: Hard T/Soft M: [for Profanity, Suggestive Dark Theme, 'naughty thoughts' on Atreyu's part, and Atreyu and Moonchild 'daring to interact with one another on a forbidden level' on multiple occasions. :wicked grin :) ]
DISCLAIMER: The names, people, places, etc of The NES are all owned by the late Michal Ende & Warrnor Bros. Copyright © 1984. I'm just borrowing them for fun. I do not own anything but Brijatte, Luanna, Twyla, Lupianya, Sertala, Eldarmarh, Moonchild's other four handmaidens, the Head Cook and the plotline of this fic.
The tense, moody expression that could been seen on the face of The Empress melted into a delicate smile of relief when she saw her hunter-warrior emerging from one of the many doors which lead out to the Royal Gardens. She waved, nearly hopping up and down on her heels as he bounded down the circular ivory stone steps. A second later his arms had enveloped her in a huge bear hug, subtly rocking her back and forth in his embrace as she returned his gesture, her own arms wrapped around his upper back, her face buried in the warmth of his torso.
"Mmmm...there you are..." her voice was muffled as he pulled her as close to him as was bodily possible.
"And here you are." He teased. "Did your meeting with the ambassadors go well?"
Moonchild, still smiling delicately, stepped out of her warrior's embrace.
"Yes, it did." Then her smile faded. Her body went rigid and she folded her arms stiffly over her upper body as if she were fighting away the icy breeze of winter even though the weather held the telltale signs of what was indefinitely the last few closing days of spring and the oncoming beginning of summer in the air. She turned her head away from her warrior, her eyes darkening uncharacteristically as she stood in front of him, shrugging her shoulders in what appeared to be a stiff yet nonchanlantery manner while her eyes held an oddly far-away look of lingering frustrated anger about them. "It went as well as any other meeting I suppose..." From the way she spoke, Atreyu thought there was 'something a bit off'' about her demeanor... Something she was reluctant to tell him about... Whatever this was, he did not know. He guessed it had to do with something that happened during the meeting. For now, he shrugged it off. If she wanted to, Moonchild would tell him whatever it was later on. Atreyu respected His Empress enough not to try to push for any in-depth details pertaining to business matters he sensed-or felt-she wasn't ready to discuss. Nor did he try to go about prying information out of her on a subject she didn't feel comfortable talking about. [The ONLY exceptional times he WOULD try push for or pry information on a subject or in-depth details regarding a business matter out of The Empress of Fantasia was if that subject or business matter was VERY important or serious-which was EXCEEDINGLY RARE-and NEEDED to be disclosed, no matter what. But there'd only been a handful-if that-of times where Atreyu felt he wanted-or needed-to know more then what she'd initially tell him. Other then that, he'd respectfully let the matter go and allowed his Angelic Empress to open up to him about a particular subject or buisness affair on her own terms in her own way] "But," She continued with a shake of her head and what was now a genuine smile-with NO traces of frustrated anger or rigidness behind it-back on her lovely face and her fingers finding their way to the crown of her head with the nails digging into her scalp as she vigorously scratched the top of her head,"I am SO relieved not to be all dressed up anymore! Ahhhh..." She sighed happily as her short, rounded fingernails continued to attack her hair."It feels SO good NOT having my hair all tightly bound and pinned up any longer!"
Atreyu was grinning at the ecstatic look that was slowly but surely appearing on her face. Soon she was unreservedly grinning along with him as her hands left her hair to take hold of his. She looked so pretty and casual standing there before him in her loose ankle-length dress. He couldn't help noticing though, how the scooped neckline of the close-fitting bodice of her dress was revealing a small yet fair amount of cleavage. Not a lot, but still, there was just enough skin exposed between her collarbone and the edge of her petite breasts to make the simplicity of her attire look enticing.
They started to walk away from the steps.
"I tell you Atreyu," The Empress went on, "I cannot even begin to describe to you how wonderful it is not having to be stuffed into a fancy gown." One hand tossed a few strands of unbound hair over her shoulder. "Complete with a corset and crinolines." She added sarcastically.
Atreyu nodded in agreement. He hated those contraptions called corsets every bit as much as The Empress. From the pained expressions she was forced to hide every time she wore one, he could see how uncomfortable she was. He absolutely detested the fact that Cairon and Brijatte forced such devices on her little body. As far as Atreyu was concerned and as far as he could tell, The Empress's Head Adviser/Servant and Head Handmaiden didn't care HOW much the stiff material painfully flattened her breasts to nothingness OR how The Empress was unable to draw in a normal breath from the way the thin wire mesh, sewn along the edges of the corsets, squeezed and dug into the sides of her upper body to the point where her mature feminine curves would disappear alltogeather. In addition to all of this ridiculously, hot, itchy, and painful series of undergarments, The Empress would then be forcibly made to wear an elaborate gown, complete with wide, sweeping skirts-which were held outwardly with multiple layers of stiff crinolines-of either silver, cream, ivory-white or lace [sometimes ALL four colors could be found enwoven upon a gown] that concealed the fact that she was a mature woman. Altogether, these outfits made The Empress of Fantasia look as if she were seven years younger then she actually was. It was as if Cairon and Brijatte wanted to hide the fact that, physically, Their Empress was no longer the ethereal child, but an ethereal grown woman, from the rest of Fantasia. Only Atreyu, Bastian, the remaining members of The Empress's Royal Staff and less then a handful of other Fantasians-Urgl, Engywook, Falkor and the members of Atreyu's tribe-saw and treated her as the woman she was now and not as the child she had been.
"Are you ready for our afternoon together?" He asked, giving her fingers a gentle squeeze to compensate the fact he was unable to kiss her at the moment.
"Yes I am." Her grin widened, her beautiful eyes lighting up.
"And Cairon and Brijatte, I take it they'll be busy the rest of the day?"
"Oh, definitely. They've both have been going on and on all morning about how backlogged they are with their workload. They'll be so swamped with work, they've informed me that neither of them will be able to join us for dinner this evening." Her eyes danced with mischief. "So there'll be no chance in hell, they'll be able to 'be any trouble' to us today." She added this last line with a wink.
"Perfect. I'd rather have you all to myself till bedtime anyways."
"So would I, My Atreyu. So would I."
Atreyu tugged at her hand. "Come on, let's go then."
Giggling like children, they half-walked, half-ran all the way to the back door of the Royal Kitchens. Here, they released each others left hand long enough for Moonchild to rap on the dark oakwood door. It opened to reveal Twyla, one of her handmaidens. The half-elf, who was a few inches shorter then The Empress herself and who looked to be about eleven years of age but was actually many, many centuries older, threw herself into their arms, hugging them tightly. Both Atreyu and Moonchild hugged her back, loving how the half-elf was always optimistic and full of bubbly cheeriness. Breaking away from Her Empress and the Great Warrior Twyla darted back inside then reappeared a few minutes later, lugging a large picnic basket containing Moonchild and Atreyu's lunch.
"Thanks Twy. We'll send a message via bird to let you and the other six handmaidens know when we're on our way back." Atreyu said, taking the heavy basket in one hand.
"You're welcome and Thanks to you too, Atreyu!" The half-elf was practically jumping up and down she was so excited from seeing them. "Have fun you two!"
"Bye Twyla." The Empress called as she and Atreyu left the Royal Kitchen's back door. "Have fun in the Kitchens today!"
"I will!" Then the half-elf shut the door as the Head Cook called her back to work.
"I can't believe how much energy that 'kid' has!" Atreyu remarked to his Angel as he slipped his hand back into hers.
"I know, Twyla just goes, goes, goes from the time she gets up to the time she goes to bed!" Moonchild was laughing as he grinned down at her. "It seems the only time she's still for longer then ten seconds is either when she's cooking-which is her favorite hobby-or when she's asked to by Brijatte, Cairon or one of my other handmaidens. That's why I let her work in the Royal Kitchens once a day and with the exotic animals we have here at the Tower two or three times a week-so she can burn off all that energy for those times when it is required of her to go about her handmaiden duties in a calmer manner."
"Still, you have to admit,Twyla's fun to be around."
"She is, she truly is. It's always a pleasure when Twyla's with me. Her bright personality and optimism has unstressed me many times over the centuries."
"I'm glad to hear that." Atreyu leaned over and gave the top of her head such a quick kiss-hidden by a flickering cupped hand of course-one would have thought he was merely brushing a leaf out of her hair and nothing more platonic then that. With this said, the hunter-warrior headed off, with Moonchild, back to the Royal Gardens.
. . . . . . . .
Wandering aimlessly in the Royal Gardens, they eventually came upon maze they each knew contained the Secret Garden.
Their eyes met.
And, once again, Atreyu and The Empress spoke to each other in silent communication.-completely unaware of WHAT was really happening between their souls whenever their eyes met. They were entirely incognizant to WHAT was slowly but surely taking place within their subconsciousness each and every single time their gazes held one another. Neither Atreyu nor Moonchild truly realized the extent of WHAT they had started-of WHAT they had begun to set in motion the moment their lips had met for the FIRST time in their lives, LET ALONE of WHAT was already beginning to take shape and form since their open acknowledgment of their love the night before,
'Do you think we should go ahead and spend our day 'there'? In the Secret Garden?'
'Do you want to Ogliglewakan?' Atreyu's eyes were tender as they held those of The Empress.
'Yes, I do, very much so.' Her lips softened as she smiled up at him, her dark azure orbs glowing.
'All right, then that's where we'll spend our day.'
'Great! See you at the Leaf-Curtain!'
'What!? Moonchild-' Before he could react, Moonchild, feeling mischievously spontaneous, reached up and, with her fingertips, lightly tickled Atreyu on the side of the neck before she took off running, laughing, into the maze
"Oh, you!" Atreyu, with a mischievous 'wait till I catch you' glint in his eyes, ran after her, all the while maintaining a surprisingly firm grip on the handle of their picnic basket."Hey! Where are you going!? Slow down Ogliglewakan! Wait for me!"
"Try and catch me!" she called back, playfully challenging him. "Better yet, let's see who can get 'there' first!"
"I'll get there before you do!"
"Oh, no you won't! I will!"
'Oh, yes, you just WAIT till I catch you, you little mischievous wildcat...'
Their shrieks of laughter rang through the air as Atreyu and Moonchild chased one another through the twisting, turning, maze, all the while gently, playfully, shoving each other out of the way of the pathway's middle as they both went about silently challenging each other with their eyes as to who was going to be the one to reach the leaf-curtain before the other did.
Breathless, Moonchild ended up being the one who reached the leaf-curtain first.
Panting, she leaned against the hedge, bending over, hands on her knees, breathing hard as she paused to catch her breath.
She jumped and let out a soft shriek as she felt a pair of hands slapping themselves down on her shoulders from behind.
"Gotcha!"
"Oh, for the Gods Sake!" Moonchild yelped. "Atreyu!" She tried to give her very best friend a indignant look but failed miserably. She ended up laughing instead. A moment later she found herself straightening up and turning around to melt in his arms. "You prat..." She murmured against his lips all the while returning the loving kiss he gave her the second she was facing him. "You scared the shit out of me... Do you know that?"
"Mmmmm...I'm sorry Ogliglewakan...will you forgive me?" His lips nuzzled hers, welcoming the warm feeling of her arms looping themselves around his neck.
"Mmm, Maybe..." she teased. Then, "Oh, all right mitawa akicita. I'll forgive you...You know I will always forgive you..."
"Pilamayaye, mitawa cikala igmutaka."
Breaking their kiss, Moonchild stepped away, giving them an inch or two of space between them with her arms still looped around his neck, now looking up at her warrior in wonderment. "Is that what I am in your eyes My Atreyu?" she asked softly, her eyes shimmering with delight, "A little Lioness as well as an Angel and a wildcat?"
"Hau, mitawa Empress. You most certainly are..." He kissed her a second time, beaming down at her. "...a wonderfully playful, courageous, delightful cikala igmutaka. And I am honored to be at your side..."
"And I am honored to have you at my side My Atreyu..." Moonchild paused, then added, "...mitawa Koi... It means," She explained, looking up at her proud, gentle warrior with the deepest love and respect her eyes had EVER shown, " 'my Panther.' "
"Koi?" Atreyu was perplexed for a moment, then as he thought about it, he grinned wickedly, his own eyes lighting up. "I guess you're right Ogliglewakan, now that I think about it, I am a panther." He dipped his head to brush another kiss along her mouth, his arms pulling her against his tall, lean body. "A dark, rugged panther who is VERY skilled at stalking...and catching his prey..."
Moonchild shivered. her lips parting under his. "And so it seems to appear that this panther in front of me has finally caught his 'prey'..."
"Do you surrender, mitawa Igmutaka?"
"I do..."
Her words faded away as their tongues met and briefly mated yet again that day.
After what seemed like aeons he lifted his head, his dark eyes still glittering with love and desire for the 'child'-woman in his arms.
"We'd better go in the Garden now, mitawa Igmutaka, Before anyone catches us..."
"I suppose you're right, My Atreyu. It's better to be safe now then sorry later."
Without breaking their embrace or their gazes, Atreyu bent down and picked up the basket he'd previously set on the ground next to them before he'd jovially startled His Empress. He then reached over her shoulder and, reaching through the leaf-curtain, pushed open the wooden handless door before stepping behind The Empress and entering their private haven. After a moment, Moonchild, still breathless from his kisses. followed suit.
As it had done the night before, the wooden, handless door closed soundlessly behind them and the leaf-curtain dissolved back into place.
. . . . . . .
The Garden was even MORE breathtaking during the day then it was at night. Atreyu and The Empress just stood there in front of the entrance to the Secret Garden for several moments, taking all this wondrous beauty in: The warm late spring/early summer sun dappling through the trees-its rays gleaming down upon the pale fawn and dark honeyed-colored fields full of sparatical patches of wildflowers, their silky, fragile petals of white, pale yellow or other pastel colors barely moving through the early afternoon breeze. Their eyes caught fleeting glimpses of butterflies flittering to and fro among the array of assorted flowerbeds and their ears picked up the soft chorus of animal sounds coming from their hiding places admist both sections of the Garden.
A soft rustling from behind nearly made the couple jump. Atreyu and Moonchild turned their heads in the direction of an twisted old tree delicately covered in moss and leaves in different shades of green. Both of then watched with startled amazement as a thin, curved branch unfurled itself. It reached downwards to where it delicately hooked its tip through the handle of the picnic basket resting at their feet. Ever so slowly, as if it were carrying precious cargo, this long, thin branch, with patches of moss here and there and nothing else on it, raised the basket gently off the ground before curling its end into a hook-like position to hang a few inches above Atreyu's shoulder.
Eyes wide with surprise, Atreyu turned toward Moonchild, his jaw nearly scraping the ground. "Did you do that?..."
"No..." she breathed, looking just as perplexed as he.
"But then how?...What could have?..."
The Empress's lips curved into a soft smile, her eyes full of gentle love and deep wisdom. " I believe, My Atreyu. It was the Garden..."
"What!?..."
"The Garden," she repeated, lifting her chin rather regally, "is offering to hold our lunch for us till we have need of it."
"The Garden!? Moonchild...I don't under-"
"Liston to me Atreyu, and listen carefully. Last night I told you I believed the Secret Garden was here for us. Well, what I didn't tell you-for I chose to wait till we had a generous amount of time to spend here-was that when I stepped into this place yesterday evening, I felt a strong sense come over me. This sense was telling me our Secret Garden was not only created for us Goddess knows HOW many eons ago, but it had a purpose. This purpose was to protect, guide and shield us from those who refuse to understand us and instead choose to ridicule us as a couple in little ways-whether it be verbally or not. Here, we are safe, hidden, and free to not only express ourselves but where we can be free explore this love we share. This Garden," she went on, "wants to see to our comfort, our happiness. In doing so 'It' has decided to take upon 'Itself'' to discreetly provide us with whatever 'It' feels we may want OR need during the times we are here."
"It's-it's like a gift..." Atreyu whispered in awe. "It's like this Secret Garden wants to repay us, thank us for something we have done. But whatever could it be? I can't think of a thing."
"I can."
"What? What is it, mitawa cantkiya? What is this Garden repaying us for?"
"It's simple, mitawa akicita-wanasapiolepier." The Empress moved so she was now standing in front of him. "This Garden is offering us its safety, its security, its haven, for all the respect we have unintentionally given to the natural world and all who live in it-whether it be animals or no-over the years.
"That's it!? That's all!?"
"Yes, My Atreyu. That is all. Nothing more, nothing less. Just our respect for Mother Nature-or as you call her in your language, Maka-and all the creatures and plant life she watches over." She leaned up and kissed him softly. "Now, I think we should leave the basket where it is for now. This tree will keep our lunch safe till we are ready for it. Don't you agree?"
Atreyu smiled, "Hau, Ogliglewakan. I do."
"Good. So, would you like to explore our haven for a little while before we eat?"
"Sounds like a great idea to me, Igmutaka." His hands released their hold on hers to place themselves on her shoulders. Bending down he kissed her forehead. "I'm looking forward to see what's around here. Maybe we can revisit the place where you found me."
She nodded, her arms going 'round his upper body in a joyous hug. "I wouldn't mind that at all."
With this spoken, each of their hands found the other and together, with a free arm around their partner's waist, they strolled contentedly down the Garden's main path, grinning and chortling while pointing out to their partner little things they hadn't noticed the night before.
"Moonchild, look!" Atreyu whispered in her ear, "Do you see the bird perched on that branch?"
"Yes! Oh, look! There's another one on this branch right above us!"
"Stop." Atreyu's arm slid gently around her middle. Be very still, cantkiya. Can you see the little squirrel peering out at us from its hole in the middle of that trunk on you left-hand side? Shh...be very quiet, we don't want to startle the poor thing.
"Of course not, and yes, I do see it." They tiptoed nearer to the tree where a pair of large brown, long-lashed, inquisitive eyes gazed out at the newcomers as they drew near, their feet barely moving so as to not make a single sound. Moonchild very, very carefully bent down to get a closer look. She smiled, and fluttered her fingers softly at the adorable wee creature, who surely thought she must be a giantess compared to it. "Hi, little one!" The Empress's voice was so soft neither the squirrel nor Atreyu could hear her. Only her lips moved as she grinned widely. "How are you today?"
The squirrel squeaked happily, sensing this creature before him or her was no foe, but a friend.
Moonchild stretched out a finger so slowly it looked as if it wasn't moving at all. With its tip she very, very gently petted the top of the squirrel's furry head, loving the silky-smoothness on her skin. "Oh, you are so cute...just so cute..." she cooed, barely making a sound as her lips moved. She playfully stroked the wee cold nose then very, very slowly she turned her hand over, so her palm was visible where, with the rest of her fingers, she tenderly stroked it under the chin.
The squirrel gave another squeak. This one sounding of contentment.
Moonchild grinned.
The squirrel's nose twitched, its ears wiggled, as did the fluffy tail. Its itty-bitty paws gripped the edge of the hole as it straightened up. Then, before either Atreyu-whom was now crouching behind his Angel, peering at the adorable scene over her shoulder-or Moonchild could react, the squirrel, hopped up onto the hole's ledge, hesitated, gave another high-pitched squeak of happiness, then agily stepped onto the upturned, outstretched fingers of The Empress. Both Atreyu and Moonchild held back gasps of elated awe, marveling at how such a naturally timid creature could trust them so easily. The squirrel soon found its way onto The Empress's palm, squeaking happily, curiously as it stared up at the pair of giant creatures before its wide, rounded eyes.
"Oh, Mitawa Tunkasilas..." Atreyu whispered in Moonchild's ear, "this is amazing... He choked back an excited laugh, "I've never been THIS close to a squirrel before."
"Would you like to pet him or her too?"
"Oh, Mitawa Tunkasilas, hau!"
"Go ahead then. Be VERY gentle, and move VERY, VERY slowly."
Acting on Moonchild's instructions, the hunter-warrior reached out and, with the tips of his fingers barely grazing its fur, he stroked the top of the squirrel's little head.
The squirrel, in turn, closed its eyes in contentment, as if it was thoroughly enjoying all this attention it was getting. It moved a little further down Moonchild's palm, leaned up on its hind legs and touched the tip of its cold, black nose to that of The Empress's, before sticking out its little tongue and giving her chin a kiss.
It was all the couple could do to keep from bursting into giggles. Their cheeks were burning from the width of their grins.
The squirrel cocked its head and squeaked again, blinking as if was asking if they had any food.
"Awww...we're sorry little one. We don't have any food with us." Moonchild felt bad that she nor Atreyu had a treat for the squirrel
A disappointed squeak came out of the squirrel's throat. It stared at the couple with sorrowful eyes.
"Next time we come, we'll bring you something." The Empress promised, making a mental note to obtain some nuts to slip into a dress pocket for the next visit to the Garden.
An excited squeak came next, along with a happily wagging tail.
"I promise, the next time you see us, you'll have a treat or two to nibble on."
The squirrel nodded, squeaking excitedly as it hopped up and down on its hind legs, the end of its tail wagging furiously.
Just then, another squirrel, this one, looking to be a bit older. bigger, and seemed to have a motherly look about it, poked its head out from the tree trunk's hole. With a series of short, sharp squeaks it stared directly at the little squirrel happily standing in Moonchild's open hand.
"Is that your mommy?" The Empress whispered to the squirrel she was holding.
A nod, followed by a disappointed squeak was her answer.
The other squirrel, assuminly this one's mother, squeaked again. Its head vanished from view then reappeared ten seconds later, with an acorn half in its paws. Holding up the acorn higher, so all three could see it clearly, the squirrel in the tree squeaked more sharply and loudly to what Moonchild assumed was its child.
"I think you'd better go now little one." She kissed the top of the little squirrel's head."I think your mommie's telling you to come in for lunch."
The squirrel in her hand let out what sounded like a tiny high-pitched squeaky wail."I don't wanna go!" it seemed to say. "I wanna stay here with you! You're nice!"
Moonchild petted the squirrel."I know you don't little one. But you must be good and behave yourself and listen to your mommy."
The poor squirrel looked like it was going to cry.
Sighing sympathetically, Moonchild leaned forward and, with a gentle nudge of a finger from her other hand, urged the baby squirrel back towards the hole."Go on little one. Go inside and have your lunch. Go on now. Do as you're told."
The 'mother' squirrel looked as if she agreed with this gentle Giantess.
The baby squirrel, turned around, looked back at the two new friends it made, and gave another pleading squeak.
"Don't worry, you'll see us again soon." Moonchild said.
Another happy squeak.
An impatient squeak came from its mother.
"You'd better hurry," Atreyu encouraged the squirrel. "you don't want your mommy mad at you-or us."
"Yes, run along now. You must be hungry."
At the reminding mention of food, the squirrel bounded forward and popped back into the hole.
The 'mother' squirrel gave Atreyu and Moonchild a look of relieved thankfulness. A second later, her 'baby' repoked its head out, its cheeks bulging as it crunched its mouthful of acorn.
"Your welcome." Moonchild whispered to the mother squirrel. She lightly petted it, then gave a few loving pats to the one being a pig beside it.
Both Atreyu and Moonchild rose, little by little to their feet, their movements being watched closely by the mother and child squirrels.
"Bye-bye you two." The Empress said softly. "Have a good day."
Two bushy tails wagged happily in response. Then the mother squirrel and her baby were gone, back into the hole where they made their home.
The couple continued on down the path, both grinning, their hearts full of happiness.
"THAT," Atreyu commented, "was TOO cute."
"I couldn't agree more, My Atreyu." The Empress agreed. "Oh, look!" She pointed to a bunch of large bright red flowers growing nearby. "What kind of flower is this? Do you know?"
Atreyu looked over to where she was pointing, his gaze carefully examining the bunch of flowers she was inquiring about. "I think those are carnations."
"They're beautiful!" She exclaimed. "Can they be used for anything? Or are they just for show?"
Atreyu shook his head, smiling. " Unfortunately, hiya, Ogliglewakan. Carnations don't have any healing abilities. They're just something to look at mitawa cantkiya."
"It's all right My Atreyu. I was curious that's all." She looked up at him. "Are there any other flowers or plants you recognize mitawa Koi?"
"I'm not sure yet... We'll have to see what kinds this Garden has. If I come across any I am familiar with, I'll be sure to point it out and explain it to you."
And he did.
As they walked along the path, Atreyu pointed out many names of flowers and plants growing along the path and walls of the Secret Garden. With each one they came across, he always took time out to pause and point it out to Moonchild, telling her the name of that certain plant or flower, what it could be used for-if anything-and patiently answering her questions.
Without realizing it they had passed through the tree-tunnel and found themselves in the second section of the Secret Garden, near the grove where Moonchild had discovered Atreyu the night before.
They glanced at one another and exchanged a smile.
"Do you remember the Ball?" Moonchild asked softly.
"Hau..." He whispered, his eyes locked onto hers. "You looked so beautiful..."
Moonchild blushed and bowed her head. "Thank you My Atreyu."
Atreyu lifted her head with his knuckles. "Don't..." His voice was soft, his eyes gentle. "There's no need to feel embarrassed cantkiya. For you TRULY DID look beautiful last night. MORE then beautiful I should say." He ran the back of his hand alongside her cheek. " I want you to know I was honored, VERY honored to have shared that first waltz with you."
Moonchild shook her head, her eyes sad and remorseful. "I'm sorry Cairon took me away from you like he did. I'm sorry you had to see me dance with all those snobby, self-absorbed noblemen afterwards." She blinked back tears, "I didn't mean to cause you so much pain."
"Shhhh..." Atreyu soothed, "Don't be. We BOTH know you are not to blame. It was Cairon's arrogant stubbornness and pride that made him tear you away from my arms." His mouth brushed against hers. "I still wastelake niye Ogliglewakan. Nothing 'those two' can or will do will EVER change that." He brushed away any tears threatening to fall. "I wastelake niye very, very, VERY much."
"And I wastelake niye more. My Atreyu."
"I wastelake niye iyota." They said together. Then, realizing they'd spoken the exact same line in Atreyu's native language at the exact same time, they both laughed and wrapped each other in a long hug.
They stood like this for a long while, her cheek resting on his chest, his on the top of her head [even though he had to slightly bend over to do so] quietly reminiscing the events of the evening before-both of them deliberately avoiding discussing the nightmare that had shaken Moonchild so badly later on that night. At last, Atreyu raised his head from where it was pillowed in her hair, before stepping back a few inches and releasing her from his embrace. There was a soft glow in his dark almond eyes as he gazed down at His Empress.
"Would you like to join me in another dance?" he murmured. His eyes never leaving her face. "Considering the fact that Cairon deliberately kept us from continuing to dance at the Ball." He added, almost bitterly.
A soft smile lit up Moonchild's face. "Of course I would, My Atreyu."
The Great Warrior's face took on a serious, yet kind expression, his eyes warm and tender. "So you accept my offer then?"
"I do." She responded quietly as she brought her left hand up to meet with his, their fingers interlocking once more.
Keeping their free hands on their partner's waist-although sometimes they switched that hand to the others shoulder-they gently swayed back and forth in the MOST simplest of waltzes to nothing more then whatever elegant music they could hear playing gently in their minds-it was as if they could hear the same melody the other was thinking of...But such a thing was impossible...wasn't it?-never taking their eyes off one another for a single second the entire time. When they finally stopped waltzing, they let their hands fall gracefully from their positions to entangle themselves in between their owner's bodies
"Pilamayaye mitawa Empress..."
"Nitawa Taayaayahi My Atreyu..." She murmured back as their lips met in a tender series of kisses that were soft and slow and incredibly intoxicating.
It was as if, Once Again, Time had Stopped Just for Them.
The rumbling of their stomachs broke the moment and they let go of one another, laughing softly.
"I think we should go eat don't you agree?" Moonchild's tone was still barely above a whisper.
Atreyu couldn't keep from grinning, "Good idea." He wrapped an arm around her slim waist, "Although if I had my way, I'd make our stomachs wait a while longer. I wasn't finished kissing you...." He murmured playfully, seductively into her ear.
"Forgive them for interrupting us mitawa Koi."
"I do, I do." He kissed her hair. "But still..." his voice trailed off, his eyes dancing with mischief.
"Oh, lets go eat! Your stomach'll thank you later, Belive me.'
"Oh, I do Ogliglewakan. Trust me, I'm just not happy about having to put what we were 'doing' on 'hold' in order to satisfy a pair of stomachs whom have no regards for their owners."
Moonchild giggled.
Atreyu's stomach gave an insulted rumble.
"Oh, shut up you." The hunter-warrior growled in response to the rumbling and gurgling his stomach was giving him. "You'll be fed soon enough."
This made The Empress giggle more.
"We'd better get moving if we want them to stop."
All Atreyu did was mutter something indistinguishable under his breath as he leaned over and kissed the side of her head.
Snuggling up against one another, they walked back to the front of the Secret Garden where Atreyu retrieved their picnic basket from where it was hanging on the tree-hook.
"Where do you want to have lunch?" he asked.
"Humm...I'm not sure..."
The couple glanced around the Garden for a moment After a few moments they finally decided to partake their midday meal in the field of high grass the color of honey and the mass of wildflowers growing in its midst.
As if It sensed the couple's thoughts, a wide circle of wildflowers and golden high grass gracefully flattened themselves ten feet or so before their astonished eyes. Glancing at one another a second time, their mouths slightly agape, their faces broke into wide grins as they made their way across the field to the circle of knee-high flowers and honey-toned grass.
Upon reaching this circular patch of flattened grass and wildflowers, Moonchild, her knuckles turning white from the strain, bit back a groan as she struggled to hold the basket's handle with both hands, She hadn't realized it was quite so heavy and prayed to the Gods she wouldn't let it fall on her feet-thus smashing her toes in the end. Atreyu, in the meantime, had unbuckled the strap holding the picnic basket's flaps shut. He flipped back both halves of the lid where he extracted a large soft dark blue and green checkered blanket. Seeing Moonchild straining to keep the basket aloft, he hurriedly tucked the blanket under one arm and took hold of the handle himself and placed it on the ground beside his feet.
"Are you all right there Ogliglewakan?"
Moonchild, who was rubbing her throbbing hands in order to get the blood flowing again, nodded. "I'm fine Atreyu." She caught his skeptical glance. "Honestly, I am." She flexed her fingers so they would unstiffen.
"All right...If you're sure..." He gave a nervous chuckle. "You had me worried there for a moment."
"At least the basket didn't slip out of my grip and land on my feet."
Atreyu cringed. "Oh, Tunkasilas, Moonchild! Don't say that!" He shook himself, as if he were being doused with an unexpected wave of ice-water. "I'm already getting chills thinking about it!"
"I'm sorry! Here," She crossed over to where the warrior stood. "let me help you."
"Piwakila, canteskuye." He rubbed the tip of his nose with hers, grinning.
"Canteskuye?" Moonchild asked, surprised, cocking her head to one side in curiosity. "What does that mean?"
For the second time since he'd entered The Empress's private suite of rooms the night before, Atreyu was stunned as he realized WHAT had come out of his mouth. His grin melted into a look of open-mouthed astonishment. Without even realizing what he was doing, Atreyu took a step backwards from The Empress of Fantasia as his mind absorbed the suddenness of the word along with the shock of how easily it had come to him. Without even thinking about what he was going to say next to The Empress, the word had slipped out as if he'd been calling her 'canteskuye' for a long, long time."It means-" He hesitated, searching for the right words. "It means 'sweetheart' in my native tongue..." His gaze shifted from hers, feeling somewhat self-conscious all of a sudden-though deep down he KNEW there was NO reason to be.
"Canteskuye..." Moonchild quietly repeated, trying it out for herself. "The word...it-it's beautiful..." Then she noticed Atreyu's eyes had shifted so they were not looking directly at her. "Atreyu?" she asked softly, laying a hand on his arm,"Are you all right?"
He nodded, a hint of a blush tingeing the high cheekbones of his handsome face as he abashedly rubbed the back of his neck with one hand.
"Are you sure?" A hint of tender concern had entered into The Empress's voice. "Because to me it looks something's bothering you mitawa Koi."
He nodded harder, as did the hand rubbing the nape of his neck, "Really Moonchild, I-It-Nothing...It's- Oh, Tunkasilas... " He faltered, struggling to regain his composure. A loud sigh of embarrassed frustration escaped him. He hated it when he couldn't get the words to his thoughts straight. Especially in front of The Empress. It made whatever situation they were in awkward AND embarrassing. And Atreyu couldn't stand feeling awkward OR embarrassed in front of his Angel. "It's just...I-I've never called anyone that before..." he finally admitted. He looked down at his feet, then back up, this time meeting her gaze squarely. "Because, until you came into my life,there WAS no one I found meaningful enough TO call 'canteskuye'."
Moonchild was deeply touched by this admission.
"Thank you My Atreyu..." She leaned over and brushed a kiss across his lips. "Thank you for loving me enough to call me such a beautiful thing."
"Nitawa Taayaayahi mitawa Empress..." was all he could say before returning her kiss with one of his own.
They stood like this for a long moment, sharing a lingering kiss then pulling back and staring at one another for a long moment, before remembering the still-folded blanket he was holding under one arm.
"Come on, " Atreyu said, shaking a stray hair out of his eyes while biting back nervous laughter, "let's get this thing spread out."
Together, they unfolded the blanket and carefully spread it on the flattened grass, smoothing out any wrinkles they found.
Sinking to the flannel-covered space of circular ground, Atreyu bent his outstretched legs and, acting on impulse, unlaced his ankle-boots and removed them from his feet before tossing them to the side where they landed on an unblanketed patch of flattened field-grass and wildflowers beside their picnic area.
Inspired by his spontaneous casualness, Moonchild too, removed her soft, flat shoes along with her thin stockings made of lace. She tucked a stocking inside each shoe before leaving them on her side of the picnic blanket before plopping down next to Atreyu, Stretching out her legs, her toes wiggling happily in the warm, late spring/early summer air, she placed her arms behind her as she leaned back on her hands with her face upturned to the clear blue sky, her eyes momentarily closed as she basked in the warm sunlight.
"Mmmm...now THIS is nice..."
Atreyu glanced over at Moonchild and was pleased to realize that a grin had returned to her face.
After a few moments, with her arms and neck getting tired from leaning back for more then five minutes The Empress sat up and crossed her legs in Atreyu's native-style. [cross-legged] She looked to her right to find Atreyu was also leaning back on his arms with his eyes closed as he shared her joy of the warmth of the sun. The couple welcomed the hint of cool breeze, which chose to make its appearance every now and then for it kept the weather on this astonishingly beautiful day, from getting too hot.
Feeling The Empress's eyes on him, Atreyu opened his eyes and smiled softly at her. He was about to speak when they both heard the rumbling of their stomachs as they began throwing another hissy-fit.
'They'll just have to wait.' He thought uncompromisingly in reference to the yowling of their empty bellies.
Shifting his posture so he was more upright then leaning backwards, Atreyu leaned over and touched his lips to those of his Angel's. He could feel her smile as they exchanged a light, lingering kiss before he rose to his bare feet. Gingerly stepping over Moonchild's lap-being careful as to not accidentally step on her in the process-the Great Warrior retrieved their picnic basket from where he'd left it on the flat grass on the other side of the blanket-where The Empress was sitting. Settling back down, now in front of his Angelic Empress, with one leg tucked underneath his arse and the other extended out in front of him on Moonchild's left side, Atreyu reopened the flaps of the basket with Moonchild eagerly looking on.
They both squealed delightedly like little kids as a treasure trove of food nestled in the basket was revealed: A good amount of thick rectangular slices of bread they both knew had the same consistency and taste as French Bread in the Human World, its thick, crackling crust and soft middles speckled with the grass-seeds of Atreyu's homeland. Accompanying this bread, wrapped neatly in brown paper and carefully labeled, was a package containing long chunks of cooked buffalo meat, slathered in a semi-thick peanut sauce, on skewers. Another package, also wrapped neatly in brown paper and labeled, held thick chunks of hard yellow cheese while a medium container, made of unbreakable porcolion, yielded soft white spreadable cheese. There was also a couple of semi-medium wooden crocks holding fresh, creamy butter.-one plain, the other had bits of chives and black pepper lightly mixed in-They also found a small round bowl-woven out of the same material as the picnic basket-the inside lined with a linen cloth-full of scones dotted with the same grass-seeds that were on the rectangular slices of bread. Bunches of firm green grapes and raspberries lined the inner edges of the picnic basket. Finally, tucked away in a corner of the basket, hidden under a large, perfectly rounded firm green apple, Atreyu and Moonchild could see a miniature pile of homemade brownies peeking out from their neatly tied cloth bundle, their chocolaty scent tickling their nostrils and making their mouths water.
Overcome with joy, Moonchild's hands flew to her opened mouth as she threw her head back, letting loose another squeal of joy, tears of excited laughter trickling down her face.
As one, the couple pulled out all the food-saving half of the bunches of grapes and raspberries for later in the day-along with linion napkins and dull silver knives with which they could apply the soft cheese or butter to either their rectangular slices of bread or flaky, rounded scones. Within five minutes of that basket being ravaged, Atreyu and Moonchild were each munching away on bread-with-butter-and-cheese sandwiches residing in open linen napkins spread on their laps while savoring delicious peanutty sauced meat pulled from the skewers as they sat across from each other, each one in turn talking away a mile a minute as they exchanged funny stories or jokes which made them laugh till tears came to their eyes.
. . . . . . . .
An hour later they were still laughing, though not as hard. Both of their tummies were at last full and happy. The remains of their lunch were back in the basket, aside from a half a bunch of grapes, a half a bunch of raspberries, a single brownie-the rest had already been consumed-and the uneaten apple.
Now stretched out on his side with his head-which was a few inches away from Moonchild's kneecaps-propped up by his left hand cradling his cheek, and his face in the direction of the still cross-legged Empress, Atreyu gazed peacefully up at his Angel, unable to take his gaze off her beautiful face that was still flushed from laughter. Part of her loose hair was partially hiding the right side of her face while the rest cascaded down her back to end in a lustrous pool a few inches beyond her perfectly appealing little arse. This captivating mass of hair looked like a waterfall made out of chestnuts and highlighted strands of dark gold shimmering in the sun. The darkness of The Empress's azure eyes gazing down at him were warn and full of as much love for him as the Great Warrior's dark brown ones held for her.
"I wastelake niye." Although he'd said it to her only an hour or so before, he couldn't help repeating this line.
"I know," was her quiet answer. "And I watelake niye just as much if not more..."
Atreyu said nothing. He only gave her a crooked half-smile and continued to let his fingers make nondistinct patterns along the edge of one of her kneecaps.
The Great Warrior lay on the blanketed-covered grass in front of The Empress, his eyes continuing to stay fixated on her lovely face as, little by little, a look of hesitant, serious concentration replaced the half-smile he was wearing. It was almost as if he wanted to do something, but was not quite sure how to go about it. It was as if the wheels in his head were turning 'round and 'round as his thoughts sought to find a way to solve this nearly awkward dilemma.
Without warning, his gaze dropped from her eyes to her knees, where the fingers of his hand were still making abstract patterns. After a prolonged period of time they darted back up to their previous position. With his gaze relocked solidly on her dark orbs, the fingers that had been dawdlingly caressing her kneecap and lower arm, raised itself, seemingly out of nowhere, to linger upon her hairline. These fingertips stayed where they were, at the topmost edge of her face, not moving for the longest time, as if the hand of which they were connected to were uncertain of which direction to take. Should they go right or left? Or should they go straight down? Should they take a distinct route? Or should they roam haphazardly in a mindless pattern? Atreyu did not know. He just lay where he was, thinking, thinking, continuously staring deep into the stunning eyes of his beloved Angel. He could feel himself chew absently on his lower lip-something he'd always done when faced with a challenging or delicate situation. And the situation he was in was most certainly both delicate AND challenging. For his conscious brain was fully aware of WHAT he had in mind. There was only the matter of HOW to go about what he wanted to do-what he had been longing to do for a while now-without making either of them uncomfortable in the process. Part of him was wondering WHY he was acting SO nervous and cautious NOW when he'd been at ease-for the most part-with her the previous night, all of this morning and into this afternoon. This part of his subconsciousness thought he was being silly, that 'he should 'get over it', move ahead and leave such ridiculousness such as nerves and second-guesses FAR behind'. But there was another part of him that wanted to take no chances. This part of him wanted to be absolutely certain this moment in time was going to be nothing less then superlative-with no regrets or worrisome feelings of having ventured too close to 'forbidden territory' too quickly afterwards. Time seemed to slow to a snail's crawl then stop altogether as he focused heavily on which way to go, which part of himself he should listen to, which path to take. He could feel Moonchild watching him, patiently, understandably, waiting with baited breath as he wrangled with his choices of 'playing it safe and backing off for the time being ' OR' throwing ALL caution to the wind, taking a chance and giving into his own needs, wants and desires.' What had occurred between them last night in The Empress's bedchambers was of comfort and soothingness. This time was going to be different. This time around it was going to be more about succumbing to pent-up desires and held-back longings rather then comforting the other during a period of frightful distress or snatching a few precious stolen moments of interludes.
They both understood this VERY clearly. Even if was unspoken. It was still something both Atreyu and The Empress were MORE THEN well aware of.
As if they'd read the others thoughts, [or did they hear them speak of the matter with their mind alone?...But that couldn't be!? Such things as HEARING what another person was thinking of was IRRATIONAL...ABSOLUTELY, INDUBITABLY LUDICROUS!...Or...or was it?...] Atreyu's mind unexpectedly came to a decision-or rather his fingers made the final decision for him.
Even before his mind could have a chance at reconsidering this conclusion it'd arrived at, the tips of his fingers were already moving to the left.
'So, this is how it is to be then,' Atreyu thought. 'the path has been taken, the choice has been made.' Banishing ALL second-thoughts out of his mind, he allowed his emotions to relax and let himself indulge in wherever this new, intriguing path would take them.
When Moonchild felt her warrior's fingertips, light as the butterflies in this Garden, make their way along the left side of her temple, then trail meticulously alongside her jawbone before flittering across her cheek to run down the bridge of her nose, she shivered. Already she could feel her body trembling all over with a combination of nervous anticipation and suppressed desire for this simple buffalo hunter lying on his side in front of her. And just as she had done the night before, The Empress did not make a single move to halt his wandering fingertips as they continued to trace the outline of her face. [This action she instinctively knew would, sooner rather then later, lead on to those fingertips tracing the outline of her body] Nor did she utter a single audible protest indicating he should cease his actions while he was ahead. When the pad of one lone finger began to memorize the delicate curve of her neck then drift over to the hollow of her throat, she tilted her head in an upturned angle so this lone fingertip could have better access of where it wanted to roam. A ripple of excitement ran through her. Her lips felt dry as she let out a soundless breath. The hairs on her arms stood up, her eyes slid shut as she went on revealing in her warrior's gentle touch.
Atreyu, on the other hand, went on trailing a path along Moonchild's skin. never once removing his gaze from her flushed, upturned face. Then, abruptly, his fingers drifted away from the path they'd been following. Slowly, ever so slowly, he raised himself up until he was sitting in an almost upright position. With both hands now lying flat on the soft flannel material beneath them, they supported his weight as he leaned in closer to The Empress. Heart pounding in his ears, his head dipping in a downward angle, Atreyu tilted his head slightly to the right as he inched his way forward. A second later he felt his lips brush a kiss upon the skin of her exposed throat- inches from the hollowed space in its middle. There was a long pause as his mouth lingered against her arched throat, his breath warm against her skin. The soft sound of her contended breath told him it was all right to go ahead and release a bit more of that lustful desire he''d been holding back ever since last night when she was cradled in his lap as they sat together on the windowseat in her bedchambers. Bending his head sideways a fraction more, he felt his lips delicately trail a path from where they had been lingering a second ago, to the hollow of her throat. It was here that they pressed a feathery kiss in that hollowed space before making their way, snaillike, upwards, leaving tiny nibbles in their wake.
A gentle finger grazing her parted lips made Moonchild's eyes open. Her azure orbs found themselves staring deep, deep into those of her hunter-warrior's. There were no words to speak for their eyes did all the speaking for them:
'Do you want me to continue? Or would you prefer that I go no further today then I already have?'
'Continue Atreyu...' her solemn eyes pleaded. 'Please, continue...It's all right...Go ahead with what you wish to do...'
'Are you sure?...'
'Yes...I won't stop you...'
It was all he needed to know.
Without another moment's hesitation, Atreyu's mouth descended upon hers and in doing so, he claimed her mouth in a kiss that nearly robbed The Empress of her breath.
Momentarily not caring if what she was letting herself get into was 'proper or not,'nor caring-for the time being-that what was occurring between her and Atreyu in this moment in time was something that was considered scandalously sinful in the eyes of her Head Adviser/Servant and Head Handmaiden, Moonchild returned Atreyu's breath-robbing kiss, rubbing her lips softly against his. At the same time, she felt his weight shift as he moved his hands from the space between their knees to the area on either side of her body.
'I'll do silent repentance for whatever sinful temptations I am failing to resist [along with any 'sinful' ways I am allowing My Atreyu's hands-and mouth-to touch me] this day-and as well as last night,-tonight before I go to sleep.' The Empress silently promised herself.
Their lips never left each other. Not even when they felt their bodies lower themselves to the blanket below-so that Moonchild was now laying on her back with the upper half of Atreyu's body hovering mere inches above her-not once did they stop exchanging kisses. Kisses that were starting to become a shade more brazen with every one they shared.
They did not know when the fingers of their hands, which were in the middle of stroking their partner's cheeks, had left the others face to begin wandering downwards, curiously exploring the upper halves of one another. Their curious fingers were tentative at first, but with every moment that passed, they started to grow a little bit bolder.
Moonchild felt Atreyu's pleasured sigh as her fingertips curiously touched the warmth of his bare chest. She felt the heat of his breath as his mouth traced the outline of hers-gently coaxing her lips further apart as he did so. She barely managed to quell the nervous shaking of her hands as her fingers began to make tiny circles upon his warm skin. Skin that was a trifle or two shades darker then her own from spending so many days outdoors. Her fingertips trailed a path up and down the exposed section of his torso before allowing themselves to slide under his tunic where they danced along his back. Another ripple made her body quake beneath him as she felt his tongue delve inside her mouth for what seemed like the umpteenth time today. To this, she responded eagerly-especially when she felt the tip of his tongue locate hers-while her traveling fingers wandered lower to explore the sides of his body. Moonchild let out a little moan of disappointment when she felt Atreyu lift his mouth from hers a few moments later-thus putting the seductive dance of their tongues on hold. She could feel the heat of his gaze as their eyes met for the third time since that morning, From what she could read in their depths he was once more seeking her permission for the next move he was contemplating. She paused, but only for half-a-millisecond before her eyes granted him this sought-for permission. And she was there, waiting for him when his lips returned to resume their deepened kiss, his tongue once again mingling with her own.
When she felt those wondrous fingertips of his trace the outline of her breasts, not for a single second did The Empress make a move to stop the touch of her warrior's hands. At first he stayed to the outer edges, then, as the moments went by, he allowed his fingers to very cautiously, gradually, expand the exploration of her bosom. Her ears caught the sound of a very soft moan against her mouth as his fingers [which were duplicating the same small circular motions her own fingers were making as her hands ran themselves along his upper body] caressed the petite globes of her breasts. With each caress, she could feel those fingers move further and further inwards. Her breath caught and her heart nearly stopped in amazement when, a second later, she felt the pad of his thumb brush itself ever so lightly across her right nipple-the tiny bud taunt from the continuous waves of desire coursing through her veins like miniature rivers of fire.
Atreyu, seeing the hint of shocked amazement in her eyes, started to move his thumb away but her quiet voice hauled his movements.
"Don't..." she whispered. "Please, mitawa Koi, don't stop touching me." Her voice was quiet but firm.
Atreyu stared at her, with what was clearly unrelequished desire in his dark eyes, in astonishment when he heard those words.
"Are you sure Moonchild? Are you absolutely sure of what you are asking of me?"
"Yes, Atreyu. I am positively certain of what I ask of you." Moonchild eyes bore stubbornly into his. "Now, please, mitawa wastelakapi akicita, please, continue where you left off..." She closed her hand over his, gently moving his thumbpad back over her turgid nipple before kissing him full on the lips with all the intensity of the desire running through her body, like molten lava, behind it.
"I wastelake niye mitawa Igmutaka..."
All Moonchild did in response to his words was to deepen her kiss.
Pleasantly shocked by Moonchild's actions, Atreyu returned her kiss with equal passion, fondling her nipple for a few minutes more before letting his hands resume their tender explorations of her body. He could feel her back arch slightly, feel the hardened tips of her dress-covered breasts graze his chest. Dipping his head, he nuzzled the right side of her throat with the tip of his nose, playfully nipping at the satiny skin, only lifting his head long enough to suckle her tender little earlobe every now and then. Moving one hand to her slender hip he somehow was able to turn her body sideways so that she was now lying on her left. Then, after a moment's hesitation, the warrior-hunter straightened up long enough to remove his tunic as he felt his body heat up more and more with the glorious moments drifting by. He knew this heat he was experiencing not only came from the passionate fire within but from the afternoon sun as well. Dropping his ógle over his already discarded ankle-boots beside their picnic blanket, he too, lay down on his left-hand side. With both their bodies laying atop the soft flannel material, Atreyu reached out and slipped his right arm over Moonchild's back. This arm tenderly encircled the small of The Empress's back where, bit by bit, it drew her closer and closer to him till their bodies were at the point where they were now fully touching one another.
Moonchild's heart thudded harder with anticipation as to what might come next. With her dry lips parted ever so slightly and her lowered gaze never taking themselves off his upper body, she found herself gingerly placing her palm flat upon her warrior's bare chest. With the gentle beating of his heart under her right hand, Moonchild felt her head being tilted upwards where she found Atreyu's loving gaze boring deep into her own.
"Do you think we should cease what we are doing Ogliglewakan?" The tone of his voice was so low Moonchild could barely make out the hunter-warrior's words.
"No..." she breathed, shaking her head negatively at the very same time she uttered this single word. Then, before he could say or ask anything else, The Empress leaned over and tenderly placed her lips over his.
Like all the other times they'd shared before then, their kisses remained chaste at first, but as time went by, these kisses melted into something more bold and brazen as the simmering fire inside their bodies gradually built itself up into an inferno that robbed the couple both of their breaths and their senses. Feeling surprisingly unabashed, they let the flames of love consume them while allowing their hands to continuously have free reign as they roamed over their upper bodies. Duplicate moans softly escaped their throats as two pairs of lips and tongues became one as they nipped, sucked, tugged and explored each other over and over again.
Both Atreyu and The Empress felt as if they'd gone half-mad-if not fully insane-from the intense desirous cravings they had for one another. Cravings they'd been forced to keep dammed up deep inside their hearts and souls for so long. It was maddening what they were doing at this moment in time. They couldn't get enough of each other. It was as if they'd been stranded in the Desert of Shattered Hopes for eight long, torturous years and that the other person they held in their arms right now was an oasis of the food and water they had been so cruelly deprived of for what seemed like an eternity.
Moonchild's head fell back as she arched up against Atreyu, her fingernails delicately scraping the skin of his sun-bronzed body. Her rapid breathing came out in jagged gasps as her very best friend and, now, her lover pressed his hands against her arched back, pausing every now and then to tangle and untangle his fingers in her silken mass of hair, filling the palms of those hands with the martial-covered flesh of her own upper body. Those same palms traveled further downwards to naughtily linger on her arse, his fingernails gently, firmly digging into the roundness of her arse-flesh aptly concealed by the ankle-length pastel dress she wore. She felt his loving hands cradle her hips for the second time in less then twenty-four hours before moving up both sides of her arched body to tenderly cup her small breasts, the tips of his fingers gently teasing the stiffened buds of her nipples. All the while she could feel her warrior's hungry mouth feasting on every inch of bared skin it could reach.
Atreyu's mind was numb with delighted amazement. In the split second when he felt the thricly return of The Empress's kisses upon his lips, all logical thinking dissipated. Gone were the uncertainty of offending His Empress as his hands ventured into 'forbidden territory'. Gone were the need to seek silent reassurance for every forbidden move he wanted to take. Moonchild's audaciousness gave the Great Warrior the confidence he needed to allow his primal instincts to take over his body and mind. In fact, both of them allowed themselves to rely on the intuitions they were born with to guide them in how and what to do, if it was 'safe' to 'indulge in each other', and when it was time to 'cross yet another forbidden line'. He couldn't get over how phenomenal The Empress felt beneath his hands and mouth. Her smooth unblemished flesh was soft in some places, slightly firm in others. And what skin-heated from the hot sun above-his mouth could reach was a delicious mixture of sweetness and tanginess perfectly blended together. Atreyu sucked in a deep breath then slowly let it out. It was taking every ounce of self-control he possessed in keeping his lust in check. Even now, with The Empress caressing his naked back, torso and sides, he could feel that self-control slipping away minute by minute. In spite of this knowledge, of what her hands were doing to him, how they were making his body feel, he was, nevertheless, unable to resist wanting another taste of her. Giving in to a low moan of surrender, his lips, followed by his tongue, found themselves exploring the inner walls of her small, lush mouth.
With a mind of their own, the melded hips of their bodies unconsciously began to rock gingerly yet rhythmically in time with one another in a dance known only to lovers for eons.
Dimly, Atreyu could feel 'that male part of him' begin to harden even more then it had the night before, when they had been in her bedchambers. He could feel the gradual ridging of his 'masculine' flesh against the confining insides of his ozoges as his male member grazed itself against Moonchild's leg every now and then while their hips engaged themselves farther in their ageless dance. A feeble whimper escaped his lips as his self-control steadily began to fray, their fragile strands threatening to snap at any moment.
Through the hazy fog of lust that had, what seemed like hours ago, enveloped them both, he managed to slide his hands over her hips, pausing for the longest moment as he struggled to steady their shakiness. And, as much as he didn't want to, Atreyu moved his lower body a few inches away from Moonchild's and reluctantly sat up.
Moonchild lay beneath him for a few moments longer, her wondering gaze following his movements, before moving to a sitting position herself.
Seeing worried questions in his lover's eyes, Atreyu did his best to explain why he abruptly hauled their 'forbidden explorations.'
"Forgive me, mitawa wastelakapi Ogliglewakan," he panted. He could feel himself struggling to catch his breath as he worked to recover from such intoxicating interactions, "but I think it's best-as pleasuring as it is-if we cease our actions at the moment. Because if we don't stop at this very moment, I honestly...I honestly don't know how much longer I'll be able to keep my desire for you from spiraling out of control." His hands closed over hers, his eyes locked on her own. "Tunkasilas slolyes I want to continue Moonchild, make no mistake about it. I just don't want what we've been sharing between us leading to us crossing 'certain' forbidden lines' sooner then expected." Desperation etched on his face, he pulled her into a tight embrace, lowering his head to bury his face in the tousled strands of her silken hair. "Oh, skuye Tunkasilas, Moonchild... As much as I want us to both 'fully claim each other as our own' mitawa igmutaka, it is MUCH too soon for us to 'cross that 'most forbidden line.' " He cupped her face in his hands, laying his temple against her own, "But by all means, that DOESN'T mean we can't indulge in one another as we have done now, We simply need to be aware-even if only for a short while-of how far we are going in our 'explorations.' Do you understand what I'm trying to say Ogliglewakan?"
"Yes, mitawa Koi, I do understand, very much so. Though I do have to admit, it will be a most challenging thing for us both..."
"I know, Ogliglewakan, Yuwakape Goddesses, I know...I know ALL too well..."
Even as he spoke these words to her, The Empress couldn't help but noticing, with a concerned expression in her eyes, how Atreyu was subtly biting his lower lip. She took note of how his head was bowed- hiding itself behind her ear-with his facial expression carefully hidden beneath the silken curtain of her hair. How he seemed unable to look her directly in the eye, and, how his eyes looked to be half-closed. She saw how his whole body trembled as he inhaled and exhaled deep, shallow breaths, almost...almost as if he was experiencing some kind of physical pain...
Sensitively, she laid a hand on his waist, her gaze continuing to be full of concern.
'Are you in pain?' She silently queried.
Atreyu shook his head. Though he WAS on the verge of extreme discomfort, he, Atreyu, being a strong warrior as well as a skilled hunter, AND having been brought up from a very young age to bear ALL kinds of pain OR discomfort-no matter WHAT the circumstances-was unwilling to let it be known to The Empress that he was gritting his teeth beneath his clenched jaw. Bravely, he sat there in front of His Empress-though he continued to shield his expression from her view-feircely choking back a hiss, valiantly fighting back the pulsating, distending feeling he was experiencing in his nether region.
Feeling Moonchild's unwavering gaze riveted on him, he hesitantly raised his head to meet her worried eyes.
'I am experiencing no pain cantkiya... Just a little 'discomfort'.'
His body shook all over and he was grateful he hadn't spoken the words aloud. For if he did, they would have come out as a choked, hoarse whisper. The warrior swallowed thickly as he tried to keep his hands-which by now had left her cheeks to circumspectly encircle her back-from clenching into fists or from his fingers from digging into the delicate skin of her material-hidden back.
'Where?'
At this, Atreyu dropped his head back down to rehide his face in her hair, unable to continue.
There was a long silence.
Then, very, very cautiously, Moonchild moved her hand from his waist to his stomach, her palm gliding smoothly across his lower abdomen.
Feeling her hand moving down his lower abdominal region, one of Atreyu's hands shot out from behind her back, grasping her wrist to halt her movements. Choking out a strangled groan, he whispered, "I don't think that's such a good idea canteskuye." His whole body gave another apprehensive, quavering convulsion as he went on combating the dull throbbing discomfort of the slow increasation of his partially aroused 'male' flesh straining itself within the lightweight softness of his buffalo-hide ozoges.
Moonchild stared deep into his dark orbs.
'Please, My Atreyu, just trust me.' Her eyes firmly pleaded.
At her wordless plea, Atreyu obediently nodded and fell silent.
Fixating her gaze downwards, her hand made its way along the smooth firmness of his abdomen, finally stopping inches above his groin. She heard her lover harshly suck in a hissing breath as she closed her eyes and concentrated.
A second later Atreyu felt a warm sensation, like a gentle wave of energy, flowing from The Empress's hand through her fingertips to the area directly above his groin. This invisible surge of warm energy, or maybe it was some sort of magick-he didn't know which-traveled through his groin to below his waist where it encased his male organ with its soothing warmth. He could feel that ridged part of him lesson little by little until at last he could no longer feel the swollen hardness of his male member nor the pulsating, straining sensation that accompanied it.
A long, shuddering breath escaped Atreyu and he lifted his face from its hiding place only to drop his head to nuzzle the crown of her head, feeling a sense of awed wonderment sweep over him. "Skuye Maka na Tunkasilas Iwalob...Moonchild...Mitawa Tunkasilas...you are incredible...But how did you know!? How, on Great Maka, did you know without me even telling you...EXACTLY WHERE and WHAT was behind the cause of my 'discomfort!?"
A wicked gleam was sparking The Empress's eyes "I'm not as naive as Cairon or Brijatte would like to think I am Atreyu." One corner of her sweet little mouth curled upwards in an impish smile. "Even if I do not know the exact details of WHAT happens when a male and female 'mate', there HAVE been times where I've managed to sneakily read a medical book or two behind their backs. From the information I have gathered from doing 'such research' over the years, I've been able to learn-from a scientific point of view-the 'basics' of 'mating,' and, while in doing so, I have also managed to obtain from these medical books a general idea of how 'that part of the male anatomy' is supposed to function."
Tears of mirth smarted Atreyu's eyes. He couldn't help it.
He couldn't get over HOW innocent her face looked with that naughty gleam in her eyes and HOW calm her tone was as she spoke. The whole thing was SO adorable it was hilarious.
Now it was HIS turn to throw his head back and laugh.
Atreyu was laughingly roaring so hard he was crying by the time his laughter subsided. Moonchild, blushing like mad, collapsed further in his arms as she giggled with him, her cheeks tinged with subtle embarrassment at how she had responded to him in such a calm manner along with how bold was the answer she had given in response to his question. With the last strands of their combined laughter ebbing away, Atreyu rubbed his temple against hers.
"Mitawa Tunkasilas, what an AMAZING person you are Moonchild..." Unable to restrain himself, he framed her face in his hands a second time and gave his Angelic Empress a long, deep, slow kiss. "Oh, Tunkasilas, how I wastelake niye Moonchild...," he breathed against her lips, "Skuye Maka, how I have loved EVERY second of our interlude we have shared thus far this day...and, oh, how much I look forward to many more in the future ahead..." Tenderly ending his kiss, Atreyu gazed long and deep into the eyes of his beloved Empress. "Would you like to explore more of our Secret Garden mitawa hopa Ogliglewakan?"
"Haa, I would. Plamayaye."
Dear Gods how he loved hearing her speak his language...
Again, as if the Garden could hear and understand their words, a small handled basket, made out of very thin, but very strong, tree branches, materialized out of thin air at the far corner of the picnic blanket near where the basket sat. Not knowing how long they'd be gone from their picnic area, Moonchild lined the bottom of this basket the Garden had so thoughtfully provided for them, with a clean linen cloth she had found tucked away in a corner at the bottom of their picnic basket. This done, Atreyu filled it with the half-bunch of grapes, the half-bunch of raspberries, the large green apple and the lone brownie. Slinging one of the two water canteens-made from tightly woven waterproofed buffalo hide- they had shared during their meal over one shoulder and, taking up the tree branch basket in his hand, he rose to his feet. He then reached down and pulled the Empress up from where she was sitting. Bending down Atreyu kissed her gently as he took her hand in his own and, leaving his tunic and their shoes behind, they wandered away to venture back through the tree-tunnel and farther into the Garden.
They bypassed the grove of trees where they had shared their first kisses the previous evening and instead they followed a small stream winding its way through the lush woodsy half of the Secret Garden. The late afternoon sun shone through the branches of more trees growing on either side of this stream that was winding its way through their 'special haven'.
"I can't get over how peaceful it is here." Moonchild commented as they wandered along their side of the stream.
"I agree with you wholeheartedly Moonchild. This place really is peaceful and beautiful no matter what time of day or night it is."
"I can't believe that during ALL the many centuries I have been Empress I have NEVER known this Garden existed..." Moonchild mused.
Atreyu looked at her in surprise. "You didn't?" He hauled in his steps and stared at his Angel in baffled astonishment. "How could you, mitawa wastelakapi Moonchild, who, as The Empress of our world, who KNOWS EVERYTHING in and of Fantasia, have NOT an inkling sense of the existence of this Secret Garden!?" His jaw was hanging open in utter amazement at this newfound revaluation.
"Because, My Atreyu," she went on patiently, smiling that all-knowing wise smile he had come to admire and adore, "It has never been 'the right time' for The Secret Garden to reveal Itself." The Empress turned sideways, leaned up and placed a loving kiss on the corner of her warrior's mouth. "This Garden has been waiting centuries and centuries for us and US ALONE. Not until WE came to learn of one anothers existence and not until WE had reached 'that special place in our relationship' did The Garden feel the time was right to unveil Itself and become visible to our eyes." She hugged him. "Do you see now My Atreyu? Do you have a better understanding of WHY It had waited so long? Of WHY It had chosen to stay hidden from my knowledge for so many centuries?"
"Hau, mitawa Ogliglewakan, I do." He nodded then bent down and softly kissed the top of her head. "Pilamayaye for explaining it to me. And now that I have a better understanding of WHY this haven of ours had chosen to stay hidden for so long, It has become even more beautiful in my eyes. For now I see HOW TRULY a special and sacred place this is and can be for us. I am humbly honored beyond belief to know that I have been chosen to know Its secret whereabouts AND Its serene beauty."
"Forgive me Atreyu..." A look of guilty remorse had now crept into The Empress's eyes. The tone of her voice had all of a sudden gone from one that was soothing and full of wisdom to one that was guttural with held-back emotion and full to the brim with tears. Her gaze fell to her feet and she shook her head in despair.
"Forgive you? Forgive you for what mitawa hopa Ogliglewakan?"
"Forgive me for not knowing about The Garden beforehand. I HONESTLY did not know ANYTHING about it before last night." There was a sudden look of desperation upon the delicate cherubic features of The Empress as she lifted her gaze to look at her warrior, her lover, her very best friend.
Atreyu was startled by the expression on His Empress's face. He swallowed nervously. His heart skipped several beats as the muscles in his body tightened. From the way she was acting, from the anguished, desperate expression she wore, Atreyu began to get the horribly uneasy feeling that The Empress was about to reveal to him something that would most likely blow him out of the water. He could feel a knot of anxiety start to coil itself inside his stomach. He turned to the left, to face His Empress, his arms desperately reaching out for her. All he wanted to do right now, right at that moment, was to hold her, to comfort her, to reassure her. Just as he had done the night before. He bit his lip as his own throat tightened. It was all he could do to keep from letting tears fill his own eyes.
"Moonchild...canteskuye...you DON'T have to apologize! Please, listen to me...you DON'T HAVE to apologize for anything! Please, cantkiya, For Ki Tunkasilas Sakes! I understand!...I-"
"No!...No you don't!... " She shook her head wildly, hastily stepping back a few feet-out of the reach of his outstretched arms, her voice breaking as the tears he had heard in her voice finally welled in her beautiful eyes. "NO YOU DON'T! YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND! THAT'S NOT THE POINT!" Moonchild suddenly burst out. She pounded her hips with hands that had curled into miniature fists. Her tearful, screaming tone was choked as she let out a distraught wail. Her knees gave way and she collapsed to the ground in front of Atreyu, whose arms had fallen back to his sides, burying her face in her hands. "THE POINT IS, IS THAT I DON'T KNOW EVERYTHING ATREYU! THAT'S A FACADE! IT'S ALL A FACADE! CAIRON MAKES IT SEEM LIKE I KNOW ALL THERE IS TO KNOW ABOUT FANTASIA AND ITS INHABITANTS! CAIRON MAKES IT SEEM LIKE I KNOW ALL THE ANSWERS TO EVERYTHING, TO EVERY SITUATION! BUT IT'S NOT TRUE! CAIRON IS THE ONE WHO GATHERS ALL THE KNOWLEDGE! CAIRON'S THE ONE WHO DOES THE MOST RESEARCH! CAIRON'S THE ONE WHO MAKES THE MAJOR DECISIONS WHEN IT COMES TO FANTASIA AND ITS INHABITANTS! ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO POLITICS! CAIRON DOES EVERYTHING HE FUCKING CAN TO KEEP ME FROM SEARCHING FOR THE SOLUTION TO A FANTASIAN'S DILEMMA ON MY OWN! HE INSISTS-NO-HE FUCKING DEMANDS ON DOING IT FOR ME! HE SAYS I'M NOT SMART ENOUGH TO KNOW WHAT I'M DOING! HE SAYS I DON'T HAVE A CLUE TO KNOW EXACTLY WHAT I'M LOOKING FOR IN FINDING THE SOLUTION 'THE RIGHT WAY'! I'M ONLY GIVEN THE BARE MINIMUM, THE VERY BASICS OF WHATEVER CRISIS IS GOING ON IN OUR WORLD OR WHAT A BESEECHING FANTASIAN IS SEARCHING FOR WHEN HE OR SHE COMES SEEKING MY HELP! CAIRON'S THE ONE WHO GATHERS ALL THE INFORMATION NEEDED FOR A FANTASIAN IN NEED, THEN HANDS THE 'ANSWER' OVER TO ME ON A WRITTEN PARCHMENT BEFORE I'M TO MEET WITH WHOMEVER HAS COME TO SEEK 'AN AUDIENCE' WITH 'THE EMPRESS' '! NOT ONLY THAT, CAIRON MAKES IT SEEM LIKE I'M THE ONE-I'M THE ONE WHO DID ALL THE HARD WORK! CAIRON'S THE ONE WHO 'PUTS IT OUT THERE' TO OUR WORLD' THAT I'M THE ONE WHO HAS THE FINAL SAY, I'M THE ONE WHO DOES ALL THE 'POLITICAL-OR NON-POLITICAL-RESEARCH! CAIRON IS THE ONE WHO TELLS MY PEOPLE THAT I'M THE ONE WHO GOES AND GATHERS ALL THE INFORMATION THAT IS NEEDED TO PUT TOGETHER THE ANSWERS TO SOLVE A CRISIS IN A REGION OF FANTAISA OR EVEN FOR A SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM OR QUESTION, OR ADVICE FOR A SEEKING FANTASIAN WHO HAS COME TO SEE ME! BUT IT'S ALL A LIE ATREYU! IT'S ALL A FUCKING LIE! ALL THAT 'ROYAL WORK' CAIRON PILES ON ME EVERY WEEK WHEN YOU'RE NOT THERE IS NOTHING MORE THEN ORGANIZING ALL THE RESEARCH, ALL THE INFORMATION CAIRON'S ALREADY GATHERED! ALL THAT 'ROYAL WORK' CAIRON MAKES ME DO IS LUCKDRAGAN SHIT COMPARED TO ALL THE HARD WORK HE DOES! I'M THE ONE WHO SHOULD BE DOING WHAT CAIRON DOES! I'M THE ONE WHO SHOULD BE SPENDING ENDLESS HOURS LATE AT NIGHT GOING THROUGH COUNTLESS BOOKS IN SEARCH OF ANSWERS! I'M THE ONE WHO SHOULD BE SPENDING HOURS ON END TAKING NOTES ON INFORMATION GATHERED! I'M THE FUCKING ONE WHO SHOULD BE WRITING OUT THE 'READIED ANSWERS' ON PARCHMENT SO THAT THE BESEECHING FANTASIAN HAS SOMETHING IN WRITING TO TAKE BACK TO HIS OR HER PEOPLE! BUT NO! FUCKING NO! INSTEAD OF DOING ALL THAT-DOING WHAT OTHER RULERS AND LEADERS DO-I'M STUCK WITH MENIAL SHIT LIKE SORTING ALL THE NOTES THAT CAIRON'S WRITTEN OUT INTO 'NEAT PILES' AND MAKING SURE THE FINAL WRITTEN COPY OF 'THE SOLUTION' IS WRITTEN CLEARLY AND PROPERLY! HE-CAIRON-WON'T EVEN LET ME CHANGE ANYTHING HE'S WRITTEN! HE-CAIRON-SAYS THAT 'WHAT HE'S WRITTEN, HOW ITS WRITTEN, AND THAT 'THE ANSWER' TO 'THE PROBLEM OR QUESTION' IS 'THE' RIGHT ONE'! HE-CAIRON-SAYS THAT WHATEVER 'ADVICE' HE'S WRITTEN DOWN TO BE GIVEN OUT IS 'THE RIGHT ADVICE' AND THAT IT IS A DESPICABLE THING OF ME TO CONTRADICT HIM! EVEN IF I TRY TO TELL CAIRON OTHERWISE, EVEN IF I TRY TO CONVINCE CAIRON THAT WE SHOULD WAIT A BIT AND GET 'A SECOND OPINION' ON WHATEVER SOLUTION HE HAS COME UP WITH, HE GETS EXCEEDINGLY UPSET! SO IN OTHER WORDS, DO I EVEN GET THAT COOPERATION-OR EVEN A MERE COMPROMISE-FROM CAIRON!? DO I GET THAT CHANCE!?-THAT CHOICE!? NO! INSTEAD OF COMPROMISING OR EVEN AGREEING-TO-DISAGREE WITH ME FOR THE SAKE OF MY PEOPLE'S BEST INTERESTS, CAIRON FURIOUSLY INFORMS ME THAT "THERE'S NO TIME TO GET 'A SECOND OPINION''! CAIRON TELLS ME "FANTASIANS HAVE COME TO YOU, MY EMPRESS, SEEKING IMMEDIATE HELP!" "YOUR SUBJECTS DON'T HAVE TIME TO WAIT FOR 'A SECOND OPINION'!" "IT IS DISCOURAGINGLY DISRESPECTFUL OF YOU, YOUR HIGHNESS, TO KEEP YOUR LOYAL SUBJECTS WAITING LONGER THEN NECESSARY!" THEN HE TELLS ME 'ALL I HAVE TO DO IS 'SHUT MY MOUTH AND DO AS I'M TOLD! CAIRON SAYS THAT WITH 'HIM' BEING MY HEAD ADVISER AND ME BEING 'SIMPLY 'THE EMPRESS' IT IS 'HIS DUTY' AS HEAD ADVISER TO ADVISE ME ON WHAT IS BEST FOR MY PEOPLE AND OUR WORLD! THEREFORE, IT IS NOT MY PLACE NOR MY RIGHT TO QUESTION 'HIS AUTHORITY' OR HIS JUDGMENT! CAIRON'S ALWAYS REMINDING ME THAT HE'S MY 'HEAD ADVISER', HE KNOWS WHAT HE'S TALKING ABOUT-AND I DON'T! SO I SHOULD JUST "KEEP MY INPUT, THOUGHTS AND OPINIONS TO MYSELF AND GO 'OUT THERE' TO THE THRONE ROOM AND 'DO WHAT I'M SUPPOSED TO DO'!" -WHICH IS TO GIVE ADVICE, FIX A CRISIS, OR SUPPLY THE ANSWER TO A SOLUTION TO 'THOSE IN NEED OF MY 'WISDOM'!-AND NOTHING ELSE! EVEN IF I WANTED TO DO MORE, EVEN IF I WANTED TO GIVE A 'SECOND OPINION', EVEN IF I WANTED TO VOICE MY IDEAS, MY THOUGHTS, MY INPUTS TO WHOMEVER NEEDS MY ASSISTANCE, MY ADVICE, I WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO! CAIRON'S ALWAYS HOVERING IN THE BACKGROUND MAKING SURE I DO EXACTLY AS I'M TOLD! IF I DARE TO DO ANYTHING BESIDES EXACTLY WHAT CAIRON'S LAID OUT FOR ME, IF I DON'T DO EXACTLY 'WHAT'S EXPECTED OF ME' AS 'THE EMPRESS OF FANTASIA', I GET SCOLDED BY BOTH HIM AND BRIJATTE AFTERWARDS! DO YOU UNDERSTAND IT NOW ATREYU!? DO YOU HONESTLY UNDERSTAND WHAT I'M TELLING YOU!? DON'T YOU GET IT!? I'M NOT ALL OR WHAT YOU THINK I AM! I'M NOT ALL WHAT THE PEOPLE OF OUR WORLD SAY I AM! I'M NOT WHAT AND ALL THE CITIZENS OF FANTASIA 'EXPECT ME TO BE'! I NEVER HAVE BEEN! I NEVER WILL BE! AS FOR HIM, AS FOR CAIRON, ALL I AM TO HIM IS A DOLL-A FUCKING SHOWPIECE! THAT'S ALL I AM TO HIM ATREYU! THAT'S IT! THAT IS ALL! IN CAIRON'S EYES AND MIND, ALL HE SEES BEFORE HIM IS NOTHING MORE THEN A CHINA DOLL!-AN EXCEEDINGLY BEAUTIFUL CHINA DOLL WHO IS SO INSUBSTANTIAL IN BODY AND MIND, THAT SHE NEEDS SOMEONE LIKE 'HIM' TO 'BE HER TRUE MIND'', TO 'TAKE UP HER PLACE' PUBLICLY IN WHAT IS CONSIDERED 'A MALE'S ROLE' AND BE THERE BEHIND THE SCENES TO 'THINK FOR HER' SINCE SHE CANNOT THINK FOR HERSELF BECAUSE 'IN HIS MIND' SHE IS TOO UNINTELLIGENT, TOO NAIVE, AND MUCH TOO IGNORANT TO COPE WITH 'FILLING A MAN'S SHOES'-PREDOMINATELY WHEN IT COMES TO POLITICAL MATTERS! WHEN IT'S ALL SAID AND DONE ATREYU, CAIRON'S THE ONE WHO 'TAKES ALL THE CREDIT' FOR WHAT IS RESOLVED HERE IN FANTAISA!-WHETHER IT BE A SINGLE FANTASIAN OR A WHOLE REGION!-CAIRON NEVER BRAGS ABOUT IT OPENLY, BUT I KNOW OTHERWISE! I CAN SEE IT ON HIS FUCKING FACE, IN HIS FUCKING EYES! I KNOW HE SILENTLY GLOATS ABOUT BEING 'THE SMART ONE,' BEING 'THE WISE, ALL-KNOWING ONE'! AS FOR ME, I DON'T GET SHIT! CAIRON'S THE ONE WHO MAKES THE FINAL DECISIONS ON WHAT SHOULD OR SHOULD NOT BE DONE-POLITICAL MATTERS, REGIONAL CRISES OR OTHERWISE-NOT I!" Poor Moonchild was now crumpled over in a sobbing heap, her shoulders shaking with guilt, remorse, and virtual rage."Oh Gods, Atreyu. I'm SO sorry!... I'm SO sorry I'm not ALL that you have believed me to be!... I'm SO sorry I don't know EVERY SINGLE THING about our world or my people!...I wish I did!...Gods knows I wish I did! But the truth to the matter is that I don't!...I DON'T know EVERY single thing about everything and everyone in our world!..." The Empress's body heaved as she tried desperately to gulp in air. "I feel like such a fraud..." she wept.
Atreyu just stared at her. He stood there staring at the crumpled form of The Empress sobbing hysterically on the grassy ground of the Secret Garden. For a moment he couldn't say anything. What The Empress had said to him had temporarily struck him dumb. The words that had come from her beautiful mouth had totally blown him away. He couldn't believe it. He just couldn't believe it. In all the years that he'd been coming to the Ivory Tower, to see The Empress, he'd NEVER imagined that Cairon was capable of doing something SO fraudulent, SO utterly egoistically cruel as to spread lies about The Empress to the rest of Fantasia.
'But then again,' he told himself, 'the way he treats The Empress, the way he undermines her abilities, her authority... the way he works your poor Moonchild to the point where she's close to fainting from sheer exhaustion... I wouldn't put it past him to do something like this: to spread lies about The Empress of Fantasia.' A fleeting sense of dread ran through the Great Warrior. 'And if he's capable of deciving the creatures of Fantasia, if he's capable of undermining The Empress... Tunkasilas Slolyes WHAT ELSE he's capable of doing to the citizens of Fantasia... Or worse...to The Empress...'
It seemed like hours [but in reality it was only minutes] had passed before he was able to come out of his state of shock.
Tentatively, not wanting to cause her ANY MORE distress then she was already dealing with, Atreyu placed trembling fingertips from his free hand on top of her bowed, hidden head."You're not a fraud Moonchild..." he whispered, his heart breaking for her even as a raging wave of anger aimed towards The Empress's Head Adviser/Servant threatened to wash over him. "You never were one..." He stroked a few strands of chestnut-gold hair, letting the fine strands sift gracefully between his fingers "Mitawa Tunkasilas, Moonchild,...You never WERE a fraud and you AREN'T one now."
Moonchild went on sobbing. She was so distraught she was unable to do anything more or less.
"You must hate me now..." came the muffled sobs hidden behind delicate hands, "You must hate and blame me for misleading you all those years ago, going on the Great Quest while all the while thinking, like everyone else in Fantasia, that, even though I was deathly ill, I was still this 'all-wise, all-knowing' person...this ethereal creature who had-and still has-the solution to EVERY problem there EVER was...An 'all-knowing' greatly-wise person who knows EVERY SINGLE thing about EVERY SINGLE creature or person in EVERY SINGLE region of Fantasia..."
Letting both the tree-basket and the buffalo-hide canteen he was carrying fall, simultaneously, to the ground, Atreyu sank down to kneel, in a squatting position, in front of His Empress on the grass.
"I don't hate you Moonchild... I...I COULDN'T hate you...even if I WANTED to... I...I just COULDN'T do it... I wastelake niye too much TO hate you, mitawa Ogliglewakan,-for ANY reason...You're a GOOD person Moonchild-both INSIDE and OUT-and THAT'S one of the MAIN reasons WHY I fell in love with you in the FIRST place." He said softly. In spite of the fact that his voice was firm and full of anger towards the man who had so deplorably wronged her, the Great Warrior went on gazing upon The Empress's hunched figure with tender, loving, understanding eyes."And I don't BLAME you for ANYTHING! YOU'VE DONE NOTHING WRONG MOONCHILD! CAIRON'S the one who fucked you over! If ANYONE'S mislead me,-and others-it's CAIRON who's done the misleading, the lying, NOT YOU canteskuye! CAIRON'S the fraud in all of this! NOT YOU mitawa hopa wastelakapi Ogliglewakan!" His voice nearly broke as he went on, his gaze pleading with her to believe him, to believe EVERY WORD he was saying. "You've NEVER led me to believe you were ANYTHING other then the person you are Moonchild! A strong, brave, compassionate Empress who loves her people and her world MORE then anything! The moment I saw you I KNEW there was MORE to you then what my eyes were seeing in front of me! The moment I laid eyes on you I KNEW you possessed something OTHER THEN just 'great wisdom' and ageless, ethereal outer beauty! I don't know WHY or HOW, but for some odd reason I HAD a FEELING that the rumors and stories about The Empress of Fantasia being ALL-KNOWING AND ALL-WISE were grossly exaggerated! They HAD to be! NO ONE...and I mean NO ONE, can pull great wisdom OR ALL the KNOWLEDGE of ALL the world straight out of thin air like people say! Not even YOU mitawa cantkiya! Such a thing is IMPOSSIBLE.! EVEN IF you studied around the clock for centuries you STILL could not know EVERY SINGLE THING there is to know about EVERYONE or EVERYTHING in Fantasia! Our world is ALWAYS evolving. Its always growing, always expanding. To keep up with such things would make your head explode from all the knowledge and wisdom you'd have to keep in it twenty-four hours a day, every day of every year!"
At this last sentence a flicker of a smile flashed across the corner of Moonchild's mouth then disappeared as quickly as it had come. She sniffled and dropped her hands from her bowed head to rest them in her lap. "If you don't blame or hate me then WHO do you blame and hate?" She asked, not bothering to raise her head to look up at him.
"CAIRON that's who! I blame that sonofabitch who calls himself your 'Head Adviser!' I blame that sonofabitch who has the BALLS to LIE to the faces of innocent, desperate Fantasians who travail Tunkasilas-slolyes how many miles to the Ivory Tower in ALL kinds of weather seeking YOUR help, YOUR advice, YOUR wisdom, YOUR knowledge-and EXPECTING YOU AND NO ONE ELSE to have the answer for them right then and there the MOMENT they have an audience with you! CAIRON'S the one who's deceiving me and EVERYBODY ELSE in Fantasia by claiming, by saying that YOU honestly are magically, naturally, ALL-KNOWING, ALL-WISE and can readily have WHATEVER answer, WHATEVER solution, WHATEVER advice, they want-without doing ANY WORK, without doing ANY RESEARCH beforehand-within MOMENTS of being in your presence!" Atreyu took a deep breath to keep himself from totally exploding, he was SO pissed. He took her hands in his and gripped them, willing the truth of his words to take root in His Empress's heart. "To THINK that THAT sonofabitch can STAND THERE and tell people-TO THEIR FACES NO LESS-that YOU can pull EXACTLY the solutions to WHATEVER it is they need STRAIGHT out of THIN AIR is LUDICROUS!, FARCICALLY PREPOSTEROUS! For the life of me I CAN'T BELIEVE CAIRON WOULD BE SO ARROGANT AS TO DO SUCH A THING TO YOU MOONCHILD! IT'S SICK! HE'S SICK!-IN THE HEAD!"
"You have NO idea HOW right you are about Cairon 'being sick in the head' Atreyu...' Moonchild thought miserably, 'you have NO idea at all...'
Atreyu let go of Moonchild's hands long enough to sit back on his heels and run both his hands through his hair. "Fuck, Ogliglewakan! WHO THE FUCKING HELL DOES HE THINK HE IS!?" The Great Warrior ran his palms over his slack-jawed, pale face, "I'm serious Moonchild! Who-or WHAT-does Cairon think he is!? Ruler or Emperor of this world!?"
"I don't know Atreyu..." Moonchild whispered, her eyes refilling with fresh tears "He certainly acts like it though sometimes..."
'And the rest of the time he acts like a fanatically religious head monk...and expects YOU to be a saintlike, anchoress nun...' Her mind reminded her, 'At least until he and Brijatte marry you off to some faceless, pious royal or noble blooded brute of a man...and even THEN you're expected to live the ways of a sainted, anchoritic, demure, obedient wife and 'sidelined' mother-whether you like it or not...'
"Moonchild?..." Atreyu was looking at her with sad, concerned eyes, "Canteskuye, how did all of this come about? When did it all start?"
Moonchild's chest felt tight from all of her heaving sobbing, her constant waves of tears. She gulped and glanced up at her warrior, her lover, her VERY best friend in ALL Fantasia from watery, swollen, red-tinged eyes but could say nothing for a long, long moment.
Atreyu waited silently, patiently for her to speak. His concern for her emotional welfare overrode ANY and ALL anger he had towards Cairon. In his mind, the man was a 'Grade-A asshole', a 'twenty-four carat cunt' who deserved to be shot [as Bastian would put it]-though it sickened Atreyu to use such a degrading word such as 'cunt.' He-as well as his people-respected females on a whole to the HIGHEST LEVEL and reframed from using such demeaning words as the one that just came to mind.
'In Cairon's case,' Atreyu thought, 'the bastard deserves to be called such a vile name. He also deserves to be skewered, have every inch of his skin slashed to ribbons with the sharpest blade, and then be thrown to the wolves who'll gladly devour him alive.'
He was brought out of his dark visions of The Empress's Head Adviser/Servant being torn to shreds by a pack of wolves, still screaming death screams as they ripped him apart limb by limb, by Moonchild's loud sniffles as she regained her composure-even though she still did not look directly at him.
"I don't know-I don't know when it started. I can't even remember HOW it all started. Not exactly anyways." she began, wiping the tears from her clouded vision. "But I DO know it's been going on for centuries. For as long as I can remember Atreyu, Cairon-Cairon always has had the final say on EVERYTHING-he still does, or wants to from what I can tell. He's always insisted on being the FIRST one to receive and read whatever mail that is delivered to the Tower. Even when I want to personally examine the mail that has been conveyed to the Ivory Tower, he's never let me read-or even look over-ANY of the letters, messages or inquires that are addressed specifically to me UNTIL he's gotten a chance to THOROUGHLY read through them first. In his warped mind he thinks that I'm too fragile-minded, stupid or illiterate to understand exactly what they say-"
"Waste Fucking Tunkasilas Moonchild!" The Great Warrior interrupted furiously. He took another deep breath. For Moonchild's sake he HAD to stay CALM. He clenched his teeth-and his fists-for a moment as he fought the urge to explode with anger-it was taking every ounce of strength he had NOT to raise his voice to a bellowing roar. [the last thing Atreyu wanted to do was to scare his Angel half out of her mind by letting himself fly off the handle. She was already upset as it was-he didn't need to make things worse by bellowing like a raging buffalo-bull. There was a moment, there was a time, there was a place for him to unleash his fury. But this moment, this time, and this place-here and now-was NOT one of them] But still, no matter how calm he appeared to be outwardly, inwardly Atreyu was outraged-even IF he did his best NOT to let it be shown in his voice. Only his face was clouded with this dark emotion. Only his beautifully shaped almond eyes, which had become darker then usual-having gone from soothingly deep earthy brown to almost frighteningly coal-black-with his flashing anger, gave away his inward feelings. 'You're NOT illiterate OR stupid! I DON'T CARE IF CAIRON DOES THINK THAT OF YOU! And for Ki Tunkasilas Sake Moonchild, DON'T EVEN GET ME STARTED on what I think about Cairon thinking you're fragile-minded! And I'll tell you something else Moonchild, I DON'T CARE IF CAIRON-OR BRIJATTE FOR THAT MATTER-SAY OR THINK OF YOU OTHERWISE, YOU ARE ONE OF THE MOST STRONGEST, BRAVEST PEOPLE I HAVE EVER KNOWN!" Atreyu's forehead dropped forward to rest atop His Empress's bowed head as his hands gently, but firmly, grasped her hunched shoulders, "Don't you realize how strong and brave you are Ogliglewakan?" The Great Warrior's voice quavered as he fought the urge to weep. "With all that you've had to go through during the Nothing... It-It takes a certain amount of strength and bravery to withstand something like that. And believe it or not, YOU HAVE that sort of courageous strength Moonchild... You may not believe it, but you do. You HONESTLY do..." His lips placed a trembling kiss upon her hairline before releasing his grip on her shoulders and sitting back in his crouched position.
'I'm not as strong OR as brave as you think I am Atreyu.' Moonchild thought privately, 'You have NO IDEA HOW easily I crumble when Cairon or Brijatte start in on me... You haven't a CLUE just HOW swiftly they can destroy my self-esteem, my self-worth, with just a few sentences...or even a few simple words... I TRY to be strong, I TRY to appear unafraid, unitimidated by them, but the truth is, they frighten me. They frighten me so much... You have NO idea HOW intimidating they can be...You have not a single clue...and I pray to the Gods you NEVER have to bear witness to their wrath-or worse-become a subject of it...'
Atreyu continued to watch His Empress with concerned love and barely-held-back rage in his own eyes. He watched as her fingers absentmindedly plucked and played with bits of grass as she sat in silence for a few minutes before resuming their heated discussion. Though Atreyu could not fully see it, he still caught a glimpse every now and then of the expression in her eyes. The expression that still beheld the guilt, remorse, and sorrowful virtual rage she had inside.
"Even though I DO know a GREAT deal about Fantasia and its inhabitants," Moonchild went on in a quiet, tearful voice, "there ARE STILL some things I DO NOT KNOW OF. For both Cairon AND Brijatte somehow manage to do their very damnedest to keep me from getting my hands on certain books and there are sections of the Royal Libraries they keep locked for they feel these 'sections,' these 'reading materials' are not 'proper for simple minded females to know of let alone spend time 'dabbling' in.' " She sighed and finally looked up at her warrior, her red-rimmed eyes full of distress and somewhat softened anger."How can I be of ANY help to my people Atreyu!? How can I guide them if I'm kept from accessing books that might help me help them in their time of need!?"
"But you DO help them Moonchild! I've seen you at it!"
"I can't help them as much as I want to Atreyu! Cairon won't LET me!"
"But you're always at consultation meetings aren't you canteskuye?"
"Yes! Of course I am! But they're not what you think they are!" She threw up her hands in saddened exasperation, "They're not all they're cracked up to be!"
"What are they like Moonchild?" Atreyu asked gently, putting aside his raging fury for the moment. "What really goes on in these meetings you always seem to attend?"
Now it was Moonchild who ran her hands through her hair in frustration. "It's Cairon who runs those meetings!" she cried, tugging sparatacly at spontaneous locks of hair. "It's Cairon who decides WHEN the meetings should start and WHEN they should end! And thanks to HIM, I'm RARELY able to get a damned word in the WHOLE fucking time!"
"What are you talking about Ogliglewakan!?" Atreyu couldn't believe what he was hearing. He'd always thought that Moonchild, being The Empress of Fantasia, was head of the meetings. He'd always thought that SHE was the one who had the most influence during these assemblies being held with her Advisers [along with any attending ambassadors or highly-regarded, important representatives, from any one or more of Fantasia's limitless regions, who needed to be there in attendance with them] that seemed to take place at any time of the week at any time of the month. [Atreyu also knew, from Moonchild telling him, that these meetings could take anywhere from one to four days to complete and could last as long as eight hours per day if necessary. And it was sheer luck that The Empress had managed to have gotten that morning's meeting over and done with within four hours] He'd always thought that SHE was the authority figure at those consultation meetings she always had to be a part of.
"What I mean My Atreyu, is that I'm RARELY ALLOWED to voice MY OWN FUCKING opinions, MY OWN thoughts, MY OWN ideas... BLOODY FUCKING HELL ATREYU! I'M BARELY EVEN ABLE TO ADD IN MY OWN FUCKING INPUT on the matters being discussed for The Gods Sake!" Suddenly The Empress of Fantasia was no longer simply saddingly anger. She was flat-straight-out enraged.
'And rightfully so.' Atreyu thought as he watched his usually regally calm and composed Angelic Empress reclench her little hands into fists and pound them furiously on the grass on either side of her slender frame.
"Do you EVER get a chance to get a word in during these meetings?" Her asked tentatively. He'd seen her rage before-and it was not pretty. She was like a little fireball when she REALLY went off-and he could sense, if she kept on getting herself worked up as she was now, that she would go off into a fiery tirade and wouldn't stop till she had vented ALL of her pent-up frustrations. And Atreyu knew, that if The Empress of Fantasia was allowed to pour out her frustrations more often, then she wouldn't be on the verge of exploding like a human bombshell every few month. BUT NO! Thanks to Cairon and Brijatte, The Empress was FORCED to keep WHATEVER anger, rage, and frustrations she had-however petty or small they might be-bottled up. She had told Atreyu long ago that "it is unfit for 'The Empress of Fantasia' to lose control of herself, to lose control of her emotions-especially in anger. She must ALWAYS appear calm, composed and demurely positive at ALL times-even when she is feeling otherwise." [Atreyu had guessed this was something that Cairon-and particularly Brijatte-had quoted to His Empress SO often, she was able to 'parrot' it to the letter]
"Hell Fucking NO!" Moonchild snapped, [Atreyu didn't blame her for being edgy right now-he would be too if he were in her shoes] "I'm almost NEVER able to get in even ONE opinion OR input at that meeting table! And when I DO try-or get a chance-to express my opinions or even my own input-which, I assure you My Atreyu, is a RARITY-Cairon jumps RIGHT IN and shushes me with a wave of his hand like I'm some annoying fly! That is IF he doesn't give me one of his infamous looks of disapproval and annoyance first! If THAT doesn't work,if that 'doesn't shut me up' he'll either ignore me or he'll loudly inform me-AND whomever is THERE at the TABLE that I don't know what I'm speaking of, that they should just ignore my comments, and NOT LISTON to my 'ramblings'! "
"If that's the case then WHY are you at the meetings in the FIRST PLACE!?"
Moonchild laughed-her laugh was a sarcastic laugh full of bitterness."The ONLY reason I am at those meetings My dear Atreyu, the ONLY reason WHY Carion has allowed me, 'granted me permission' I should say, to attend meetings AT ALL is to sit quietly in my chair at the head of the table WITH my hands perfectly folded in my lap-'like a good little girl,'-let my regal presence alone speak for itself, listen silently to whatever it is that is being discussed and 'to look pretty'. 'Like a little china doll'!" She spat, angry tears threatening to spill from her eyes all over again. "That is ALL that is REQUIRED AND EXPECTED OF ME Atreyu! THAT IS IT! NOTHING ELSE! NOT MY BRAINS, NOT MY INTELLIGENCE, NOT MY IDEAS, NOT MY THOUGHTS, NOT MY OPINIONS, and certainly NOT MY INPUTS!... .JUST MY LOOKS! JUST MY FUCKING PRETTY, DELICATE, 'PERFECT', DOLL-LIKE LOOKS!"
Atreyu was flabbergasted by the disgusted expression The Empress now wore. He was too bowled over to utter a single word.
"There has even been times," The Empress raged on, the new tears now flowing freely down her cherubic cheeks, "when Cairon has deliberately OVERRULED MY DECISIONS on HOW and WHAT should be done concerning whatever issues are being discussed at the meeting table! He's even gone so far as to ignore the inputs and opinions of Eldarmarh and my other four Advisers if he feels that they don't or WON'T go along with 'his ruling!' What's more is that Cairon's gone so far as to take it upon HIMSELF to do what HE thinks is best for the situation-or issue-that is at hand! NO MATTER WHAT I, Eldarmarh, or ANYONE ELSE SAYS! Sometimes it'll be hours or DAYS afterwards before I find out-or he lets it slip-that he has disregarded and has overruled whatever I have had decided on what should be done! That is IF he doesn't do the COMPLETE OPPOSITE OF my decision to begin with!"
"Is that what happened today? At the meeting?"
Moonchild sighed, "Yes..." she dropped her head back in her hands, weary at remembering that morning's meeting. "that is exactly what happened..." She groaned and rubbed her temple with her fingertips. She could feel the oncoming of a major headache-NO,make that a migraine.
"Is that why you seemed a little angrily tense and stand-offish when we met up outside in front of the circular steps near the entrance to the Royal Gardens this afternoon?" She felt him slide one hand beneath hers and lay its palm on her wet cheek. She didn't even have to look up to know the tender look he wore.
"Yes..." she sighed again, feeling guilty over her reaction to his casual question about that day's meeting, "I'm sorry Atreyu. I didn't mean to respond to you in the way that I did. Please forgive me. I was still feeling unappreciated, frustrated, worn out and pissed after being forced to be in a meeting where my opinions and inputs mean little to none to hardly ANYONE there when we re-met up this afternoon. I tried not to show my frustrated anger in front of you-but I couldn't help it! Belive me, My Atreyu, I would have much rather have spent the rest of the morning with you! We could have had so much fun together! Running laps, doing the obsticale course, going horseback riding and doing whatever else we wanted to do! Instead I had to be stuck doing the shit Cairon and Brijatte demanded that I do: something THEY had scheduled FOR me BEHIND MY BACK, WITHOUT TELLING ME TILL THE VERY LAST MINUTE! -which just so happened to be the DAY OF the Ball-AND they EXPECTED ME TO DO IT on THEIR time NO LESS! And THAT 'something' was ME having to be attending a meeting that could have very well been easily rescheduled for another time! Like the week-or even the day-AFTER you leave here and are back home with your tribe!"
"I know canteskuye, I know. I forgive you, Ogliglewakan, I forgive you. I don't blame you for being upset-for being downright pissed. I would be too, if somebody did a thing like what you've just described to me. And I'm sorry too, that you weren't there to share the rest of the morning with me like you wanted to." She could feel the bottom of his thumb rubbing itself gently along her soft, tear-roughed cheek. "I missed you canteskuye."
"I missed you too My Atreyu." She leaned over and kissed him apologetically on the lips, "I was miserable at that meeting today. I missed not having you sitting next to me-even if all you could do was be there for simple moral support. But still, I don't doubt that if given the chance, you would have done very well at the meeting. Imagine what could have been accomplished if we could have both gone. Gods knows what kind of extraordinary informative ideas and opinions you would have been able to bring to the table."
"It would have been nice to join you at that meeting today Moonchild. Really, I would have loved to have joined you at that meeting table-even if all I could do was listen in on the conversation. I've been a part of my people's tribal council for the past six years so I HAVE some experience and SOME knowledge of what COULD go on during a meeting-of ANY kind-here at the Tower. But WE BOTH know Cairon would rather see the Nothing return then let 'a commoner such as me' sit at this morning's meeting-or ANY meeting for that matter-let alone contribute anything to it."
"It's disgusting isn't it mitawa akicita? How Cairon thinks so little of you-and of me." She remarked forlornly.
"Yes, it is," Atreyu concurred. He shifted his position so that he was now sitting cross-legged instead of in a squat-like position, "very disgusting AND biased if you ask me."
She gazed into those beautiful almond eyes she could never get enough of and her eyes filled with tears."I couldn't agree with you more My Atreyu..." she whispered.
He continued to stroke her cheek.
Moonchild sniffled and Atreyu's heart went out to her.
He sighed sympathetically."Come here Ogliglewakan." he said softly, leaning forward and putting his arms around her. She let out a choking sound as if she was fighting back another bout of tears as her warrior pulled her closer to him, tenderly drawing her into his lap. She bit off a hiccuping whimper as she nestled her face in his shoulder seeking solace, warmth and consolation, like a needy newborn kitten. "Shh...I understand, Ogliglewakan, I understand..." His gentle lips faintly brushed across the tips of her dark lashes, soothingly kissing away the tears that were lingering there. He felt her shiver as if she had caught a sudden case of the chills and he rocked her gently in his arms like a child, hushing and soothing her with his love, his touch, his comforting words. "Shhh...it's all right cantkiya, it's going to be all right. I'm here for you. "
"I'm...I'm sorry...I...didn't-didn't mean to burst out like I-I di-did a f-few...mi-minutes ag-ago. I-I...di-didn't me-mean t-to bec-become...s-so en-engraged li-like th-that." She sobbed into his shoulder, her tears soaking his sun-bronzed skin. "I ju-just couldn't sta-stand the...the fact that...that you'd gone all this...ti-time not...know-knowing t-that I'm not as natur-naturally, m-magic-magically sm-smart, know-knowlagable a-and wi-wise as I'm m-made...made ou-out to-to b-be." Moonchild was crying so hard she was stammering.
"But you ARE smart Moonchild. You're one of THE most smartest people I know. You're smarter then Bastian-or even ME for that matter."
"B-but it-it's not like I ca-can pu-pull an-answers out-out of th-thin air li-like p-pe-people say I...I can. Li-like Cai-Cairon bo-boasts I...I c-can."
"I know, I know. And I DON'T CARE about that. I DON'T CARE if you ARE some 'miricale-worker' or not canteskuye. THAT'S NOT the reason I love and admire you. I love and admire you for the kind, generous, hard-working person you ARE in REALITY. I love you for YOU Moonchild. You know that. I KNOW you do. Even if you really DID turn out to be an Honest-to-Tunkasilas 'miricale-worker' as well as an ethereal ageless Empress, OR even if you simply turned out to be really nothing more then a penniless, homeless gypsy wandering aimlessly around Fantasia. I'd've ended up falling in love with you EITHER way. Do you know why? Because I LOVE the person WITHIN. I LOVE the person in HERE-" he gently tapped Moonchild's left breast, where her heart was. "I LOVE what comes from there-your heart. Everything else is secondary as far as I'm concerned."
"I kn-I know you do Atreyu...I th-I think I just need-needed t-to b-be re-remi-reminded...of...of th-that. I ho-I hope you d-don't mi-mind i-it..."
His fingers caressed her exposed cheek, "Of COURSE I don't mind it, Ogliglewakan. Everyone needs to be reminded of HOW and WHY they are loved once in a while. Even you."
Her fingers crept up to curl against the warmth of his other shoulder. "I wastelake niye mitawa akicita..." she murmured wearily into the side of his throat,nuzzling the warm satiny skin she felt beneath her lips and the tip of her nose. She limply sat curled in a semi-ball in the lap of her beloved warrior. Her stammering from a moment ago and her explosive raging rant she had let loose before that had taken up nearly half of her energy."I wastelake niye so much it hurts..."
Atreyu said nothing. He simply placed a hand beneath her chin to remove her teary face from its hiding place, drew her face close to him, and let his mouth softly settle over hers. He heard her raspy sigh as she sought and found his offering kiss, felt her curled fingers dig into his skin as she found the nape of his neck, felt her body tremble with emotion as the fingers cupping the edge of her chin slipped down to gently fondle one of her breasts. He heard the softness of the faint moan she gave as they each deepened this kiss of comfort they shared. Atreyu let out a soft sound of his own-not quite a groan, not quite a sighing whimper either, but something in between-as her free arm slid around his trim waist to cling to the small of his naked back. They sat like this for a long, long, long time, holding, clinging to each other as if the other was an anchor to a human life-raft in a stormy sea. Their free arms wrapped tight, tighter around the waist of the other as their open-mouthed kisses became deeper and more urgent with every passing second. It was as if the fevered, desperate kisses they were exchanging were giving the strength and energy their bodies needed-even if they weren't consciously aware of it. It was as if they wanted, needed to remind the other person that they were there for them-through the best times and the hellish times, through pain, corruptions and deceit done to them by others, [both in the past and in the future] for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, through even the MOST darkest moments of their lives-no MATTER what that moment would be-that they would be there for each other, take care of each other, and passionately love each other till the end of time and beyond. It was as if they knew that nothing but Death Itself-and not even that-would be able to separate them.
And so, there in the Secret Garden, wrapped tightly in each others arms, Atreyu and The Empress subconsciously made the solemn vow that they would love one another even more unconditionally then ever before and that somehow, some way, come hell or high water, no matter how many times Fantasia was reborn, they would find a way [and if they couldn't find a way, then they'd sure as hell MAKE a way] to stay together not ONLY as very best friends, but as lovers and-if they were truly blessed-as spouses.
It seemed like forever before their lips finally released one another.
They pulled away-just a few inches away-and brought their temples together, both of them panting, both of their mouths dry, chapped and slightly swollen from their fevered kisses. Both of their bodies were faintly damp from the fine sheen of perspiration that had accumulated on their skin in the hot sun. [and from their intense bout of 'forbidden interactions']
Moonchild let out a little cough.
"You all right there Ogliglewakan?"
She nodded, feeling as though her throat had turned to human sandpaper. "I'm-I'm fine, throat's a little dry though." she confessed wryly.
"Here." Atreyu seized the momentarily forgotten water canteen. "Drink." He uncorked the canteen's top and brought it to his Angel's chapped, swollen lips. She greedily accepted the cool wetness of the water running down her parched throat. She didn't even mind he'd tipped the canteen up for her so that all she had to do was drink. After a few gulps she pushed the canteen away and coughed again, her throat feeling not so roughened anymore. "Pilamaye Atreyu..." she said huskily, "I needed that."
Seeing that his Angelic Empress was taken care of, Atreyu took his turn in soothing his parched throat. He took a long swig from the canteen and recooked it. "Nitawa Taayaayahi mitawa Ogliglewakan." He planted a fierce kiss to her temple. "Feeling better?"
"Much. Thank you."
"I mean emotionally canteskuye." He touched her chin lightly, turning her head towards him, his eyes full of concern. "Are you feeling better emotionally?"
Moonchild thought about it then nodded. "On an emotional level, yes, I am better. Maybe not all the way better, but better then what I was a little while ago."
"Are you feeling up to picking up where we left off on our exploration of our haven cantkiya? Or do you want to sit here for a while longer?"
"Explorations please Atreyu." She gave a weak smile. "I'm curious to see what's around here."
"All right mitawa cantkiya." He stood up, dumping The Empress out of his lap in the process.
"Atreyu!" Suddenly there was laughter from Moonchild's throat-like the laughter they had shared during lunch-that sweetly filled the air once more. "Do you realize what you just did!?" She playfully swatted at his lower leg as she got to her feet.
"Oops. Sorry about that Ogliglewakan. I forgot you were still in my lap."
"Sorry my ass, you lovable prat!" She mockingly scolded him. "Now what are you going to do about it? How do you plan to make it up to me?" She folded her arms and cocked an elegant eyebrow.
"Will you let me kiss you Mitawa Empress?" he murmured teasingly, [though he felt himself blush a little as he asked the bold question]
The Empress put her finger to her chin, pretending to think about it. "Well..." she began, "if it's a kiss you want to give me mitawa hopa akicita..." she moved towards him, slowly, swayingly, her dancing eyes narrowing as they challenged him, "...I think...you'll have to catch me first..." She stopped scant inches from him, looking fully up into his handsome face. "What do you say?...Are you up for it?" she coyly purred.
Atreyu reached out to touch her, but she stepped agily out of his way, smiling the smile of a Cheshire cat. "Oh, hau..." He responded in a quiet, sensuous voice. His voice held a tone she'd never heard out of him before, it was a dark, sultry tone that sent shivers down The Empress's spine. She could feel his dark, heated gaze narrowing as he drank in the sight of her enticing figure, her alluring stance. Atreyu could feel his blood starting to heat up all over again just from the way she was looking at him. "I'm up for it..." But the second he reached out for her, she darted away, so that all his fingers closed on was air. In moments she was weaving in and out between the trees, bushes and rocks of a thicket twenty feet away from where they stood next to the stream.
Mockingly frustrated, but still enjoying this 'game' of hers, he let out a low, feral growl and took up the chase.
He'd chase her down and tackle her if it was the last thing he did.
Atreyu's hand landed on one trunk, then another as he ran after his little wildcat, his playful, unknowingly-seductive 'lioness.' He could feel his hunting instincts kick in. He immediately slowed his pace, realizing that if he was to catch his 'lioness' he'd have to use stealthfullness, not speed, if he was going to be successful in this 'hunt' he was on.
And he wanted to be successful. He wanted to succeed in this chase she was engaging him in.
For he knew that when he did 'capture his 'prey' the results would be most rewarding
Slowing to a halt, Atreyu studied his surroundings, turning around and around in a circle, his trained eyes narrowing to slits as he probed each and every crevice, every hole, every hiding place there could be. His gaze travailed over the ground, where the rocks and bushes were, then moved to the sky, where the thick, leafy branches grew.
'Where could she be?' he pondered, 'Where could that nahmalay cikala igmutaka of mine be hiding?'
Little by little a thought began to occur to him: If she reminded him of a lioness, a wildcat, a feline so often, then in this 'game' they were engaged in she must be thinking like one as well. So that meant he needed to do the same thing. He must think-and possibly act-like the panther she so lovingly called him.
A slow, sly smile curled across his lips. A wicked gleam lightened up his dark eyes.
'Very well, If it's a panther she wants, then it's a panther she'll get.'
Dropping on all fours, he expertly moved bit by bit towards the thicket of trees in front of him. One hand, then one foot, he put forth as he crept forward. Always keeping his body up and away from the ground, always using only his fingertips and his toes to move in search of his 'targeted prey' so that nothing, not a rustling of grass, not a crackle of leaves, not even a shifting of dirt or pebbles could be heard. He must become camouflaged, undetectable. A shadowy being blending in with Maka, so that his 'prey' would suspect not a single thing. Not his presence, not his movements, not even the sound of his breathing. He must make it appear to his 'prey' that she was completely alone. That he was nowhere to be found. That it was 'safe' to move about without fear.
Only then, when he sensed she had let her guard down, when he sensed she had allowed herself to be a little less cautious, would he strike. Only then-and not a second before-would he pounce upon this unsuspecting 'feline' and take down his 'prey' in a swift, silent tackle.
But first, he had to see if he could find her.
First he had to locate where she was hiding-and how she was doing it.
He was now at the outer perimeter of the thicket, in front of a wide oak tree. Drawing his lower body as close as it was bodily possible, Atreyu crept to the left side of the tree and placed both hands on the trunk, making sure to keep his fingers hidden from view. Feeling the rough bark beneath his skin, the skilled warrior-hunter peered out from his hiding place.
For a long moment he couldn't see anything. Couldn't hear anything, The only thing he could feel other then the bark of the tree he was crouched up against was the gentle coolness of the breeze as it blew almost soundlessly through the leafy branches of the trees in this Secret Garden. He waited. His eyes scanning the branches of the trees, the heaps of rocks and the clumps of bushes all around.
'You must excel patience.' he reminded himself. 'No matter HOW you feel emotionally or physically, you MUST do this. The success of your hunt DEPENDS on your flawless ability to exert self-control AND patience.'
Atreyu fought back the urge to release a long, deep sigh of longing. He could already feel the increasing desire for His 'feline' Empress stirring his blood.
'No, don't think about her being in your arms-or even better, on the ground beneath you-just yet. Clear your mind. Focus on the task at hand. You'll have her soon enough. Just be patient. Give it time.'
He choked back a groan, leaning his temple on the tree while closing his eyes for the briefest moment. 'Skuye Yuwakape Tunkasilas, I want her SO much it's driving me mad... Oh, mitawa hopa igmutaka, why do you torture me like this?...'
His teeth sank deep into his lower lip-so deep that it was to the point where if he bit down on his lip any harder, he would've drawn blood-as his bit back the urge to let loose a lustrous moan. He could feel an ache forming deep inside his body-and he had a feeling it wasn't his leg or arm muscles cramping up on him from crouching in one place for so long.
'Oh, Tunkasilas, not now. Oh, Tunkasilas canlwaste, don't let yourself get 'roused up' NOW...'
Atreyu could feel himself steadily breaking out into a sweat-not only from him having to sit perfectly still for so long but from having to hold back his desirous craving for his 'lioness.'
He licked his lips, did his best to quell his breathing, ignored the stinging dampness he felt as tiny beads of perspiration stung his eyes.
'Be patient' he kept telling himself. 'Above all, you MUST be patient. No matter HOW badly you want her in your grasp right now, you HAVE to stay focused. She'll come out soon enough. Give it time, give it time.'
Yes. She would emerge.
Sooner or later his 'lioness' would have to come out of hiding. It was only a matter of time.
Many, many minutes passed as Atreyu sat there hidden behind his tree. And in that time, he was able to bring his physical urges back under control. [it wasn't easy, but somehow he did it] Then, a faint rustling caught his hearing. His ears perked up. Inching forward he peered out a little further from his hiding place.
And then he saw it.
There it was.
A flash of pastel, a hint of pale, sun-kissed skin, a fleeting glimpse of hair the color of chestnuts and dark gold.
Yes, it was his 'lioness.'
She was there, darting out from behind some bushes at the far end of the thicket. Judging by her movements Atreyu guessed she was heading towards a pair of trees standing close together a few feet away from where she'd been hiding.
'Ah, NOW I've got you, niye nahmalay cikala igmutaka... You're not going to be able to hide so easily from me now!...'
With the cunning, agile stealthiness he was known for, Atreyu emerged from behind his tree and made his way silently across the thicket, towards his 'prey.' He saw the graceful flourishing movement of the skirt of her long dress catch the afternoon sunlight as his 'lioness' slipped behind one of the twin trees up ahead of him. A few moments later he was there at the base of the twin trees-willows he surmised them to be-and waited for his 'prey' to move again.
It didn't take long.
He only had to wait a few minutes before he caught the faint sound of small feet moving again. Sideways-was his guess.
And he was right.
He waited a second longer before rising to his feet. Copying the direction of her small feet he crept to the side of the tree where he knew she was heading.
Then he pounced.
Quick as a flash, he appeared from his side of the willow and grabbed her arm with one hand and her slim waist with the other.
Moonchild, spooked out of her wits, screamed, then laughed.
"No!, Atreyu!" She squirmed and batted at his hands, laughing as she wrestled out of his grasp, running back across the thicket. Back towards where they'd left their tree-basket and buffalo-hide canteen.
"Oh, no you don't!" Atreyu promptly gave chase. He was NOT about to let her get away from him a second time. "You're not going to get away from me!'
His mocking threat only made them both laugh harder and her run faster.
But she wasn't fast enough. Five feet from where they'd started their 'game' Atreyu tackled her from behind.
Moonchild fell forward, flat on her face, on the soft grass with Atreyu on top of her-pinning her to the ground with one leg on either side of her slender frame. She squealed and squirmed, trying to get back on her feet. But he was too quick for her. The second he had her pinned down he started tickling her.
And this only made her scream-and laugh-louder.
"Oh, Gods! Atreyu! Stop! You KNOW I hate being tickled!"
"Yes you do!" he teased right back at her. "Admit it, Ogliglewakan, you LOVE it when I tickle you!" And with that, he flipped her over onto her back and started tickling her from the front as well as from behind.
"I will NOT!"
"Oh, hau you will! If I have anything to do with it you will!"
"Oh, for Fucking Gods Sake Atreyu!" She was laughing, screaming and swatting at his hands, his face, trying to get him to cease his tickling. Tears of mirth smarted and stung her eyes. "I will NEVER admit to such a thing! Never!"
Her swatting hands gave him the chance to bend down and nuzzle the side of her throat, all the while making mockingly anamalistic growling sounds as if he wanted to eat her up [which he privately did] right then and there. "Come on, mitawa hopa igmutaka, if you won't admit to that, then you'll have to admit to defeat. Face it, Ogliglewakan, I've got you pinned down, I've got you 'surrounded,' and you've have NO defenses at your disposal!"
"Never!" She squealed, laughing so hard tears were streaming down her face. "I'll NEVER admit to that either!"
"Then I'll just have to tickle you until you do!"
And he was good as his word.
He tickled her in every place he could think of. Under her arms, behind her knees, the bottoms of her feet, the back of her thighs, and even a few places neither of them knew about till then.
All the while he made growling noises against the side of her throat as if he really WAS a hungry panther and she was his meal.
"All right! All right!" She screamed, laughing all the while. "You win! I give up! I surrender! Do you hear me!? I surrender! I fucking admit defeat!" She playfully kicked at him with her bare feet, and swatted at his hands, tugged at his hair, batted the top of his head. "Now will you PLE-PLEASE...st-stop...tick-tickling me!?"
He raised his head from where he'd been lovingly 'nawing' at her throat admist his growls."Did I hear you correctly Mitawa Empress?" He teased, looking down into her watery eyes, her flushed, laughing face."Did I hear you finally admit defeat?"
"YES!, Yes!" She shrieked, still swatting at him with her hands. "You heard me! I admit defeat! You win! You fucking win! I surrender!"
"Is that so?" his teasing voice had dropped down to a deep, sensual purr."You surrender to your panther mitawa Igmutaka?" He bent forward and touched the tip of his nose to hers for just a second before nuzzling her throat again, this time with much more tenderness.
"Yes!..." Moonchild felt her body arch upwards,"Oh, Gods...yes!..." Even with her eyes closed, she was surprised to realize that the deep throaty, sultry voice she had heard when her mouth opened to answer Atreyu's question had come from her. For a split second she was astonished at how wanton she sounded.
'Oh, yes, I will defiantly have to do some serious silent repentance tonight...'
Then the second passed and she found herself yielding to the kisses of her warrior all over again.
Her legs stopped kicking at him, her hands stopped batting the top of his head. Her fingers found themselves winding their tips into his long, thick and dark strands. She moaned a low moan of defeat, of surrender as she felt the hot, dampness of his mouth, then of his tongue as he gave the side of her throat hungry, damp kisses that seemed to last forever. Her lips found themselves pressing against his hairline, against his temple as she cradled his head in her arms, She tenderly stroked his hair as she felt his mouth make its way upwards behind her ear, along her jawline and to her mouth where she eagerly awaited those sort of kisses she could never get enough of. Her hands framed his handsome face as she gave equal kisses of her own. Deep, open-mouthed kisses that were surely of the most sinful kind. But for the moment, she didn't care. She sighed into his mouth as her tongue danced and twined with his. Sighed as she traced his mouth with her own just as he was doing with hers. Her fingers stroked his high cheekbones, traced his ears, played with the understrands of his hair.
"Atreyu..." She breathed. Nothing more. Just his name.
He lifted his mouth from hers, his gaze overflowing with love and unbridled desire. "Moonchild..." His mouth formed the words but no sound came out.
She said nothing. Only kissed him.
Atreyu melted into her kiss, tracing her swollen lips with the tip of his tongue as if to soothingly reassure her he WAS there. That he was ALWAYS going to be there. That he wasn't going anywhere. That he was hers for the rest of this lifetime and the next and Gods knew how many more lifetimes after that. His lips softly outlined hers one last time before dropping a kiss to the tip of her nose, then moving on up to place another one to the middle of her temple.
Then unwillingly, he moved away.
He had to.
He knew what would happen if they stayed like this any longer. If they took this any further. Already he could feel 'that male part of him' pulsating, stirring. If he'd stayed in her arms like this a few minutes more 'that male part of him' would have started hardening.
He'd already been pushed close to the breaking point once. He didn't want it happening again.
At least not today.
Moonchild met his gaze and she read his thoughts behind his eyes.
She nodded. She understood. And she understood why he had ended his kisses to her.
Yes. it was best to stop now before 'it' got out of hand.
With this look of understanding in both their eyes, they slowly sat up and then got to their feet.
Without exchanging words Atreyu picked up the tree-basket and re-slung the canteen over his shoulder.
Slipping her hand back into his, Moonchild allowed her warrior to lead her forward, deeper into the woodsy half of their private haven.
Never letting go of the others hand, the couple made their way across the thicket where a short while before, they had played their 'game' of 'hunting and capturing.' As they bypassed the twin willows where Atreyu had pounced on his 'lioness,' they heard a faint gurgling sound and felt a soft quivering in their bellies. Without saying a word, the two looked at each other and exchanged a soft smile as Atreyu's hand released his Angel's long enough to dip into the tree-basket. Retrieving the apple from the basket, Atreyu took a bite before passing it alongside to Moonchild who, in turn, took the offered apple and sank her little teeth directly next to the VERY place he had bitten. Moaning in delight over how good the apple was, The Empress let her eyes close and her little mouth purse in blissfulness as she passed the apple back to her warrior. Just the sheer sound of her delighted moan mingled with the look of pure ecstasy on her face sent a shiver of excitement down the Great Warrior's back. He had to bite back a moan of longing himself as they passed the apple back and forth between them as they followed the stream to a cave hidden beyond some more trees.
The cave, which looked as if it had been carved out of the very inner mountain encasing the Ivory Tower, glistened with fragments of silvery minerals threaded here and there amongest the light-toned rock outlining the cave's mouth. It was this dark, gaping hole, that the softly bubbling stream disappeared into. The delicate sound of gushing water reached their ears as they approached the mouth of this cave. It was here, near the darkly, gaping hole, that the Garden conjured up a small wooden torch out of thin air. With an elegant wave of her hand and a crafty smile, The Empress effortlessly lit the torch before she passed it over to Atreyu.
Holding the wooden torch above his head, the couple cautiously entered the deep blackness of the cave where, by following the stream, they found themselves in surprisingly warm, beautiful and large surroundings: The inner walls, floor and ceiling of the cave appeared to be made of onyx. Examining the wall closest to them Atreyu discovered that they WERE made of onyx. Smooth, shiny onyx that glittered and shimmered with tiny specks of silver lines of minerals-like the ones they found outside-running through the walls, ceiling and even the floor of the cave like miniature silvery veins. Some of the walls and ceiling looked to be roughened with age. Other walls and parts of the ceiling were as smooth and as shiny as the floor beneath them. Smooth slabs of rock, that looked as if they could pass for benches or chairs hand-crafted by Maka Herself, jutted out spontaneously from around the edges of the walls of the cave. At the very back of this enormous, warm, and beautiful haven, surrounded by boulders of all sizes-none very large or tall though, save for those located at the VERY farthest end where they were connected with the cave wall itself-was a stunningly beautiful natural hot springs. An awed breath escaped Moonchild. She had never seen a hot springs before. Only read about them. But here she was, with the man she loved and cherished, standing before what was surely THE MOST exquisite and enchanting hot springs in ALL of Fantasia. The stream of which they had been following flowed seamlessly over a series of rocks INTO this hot springs where it tempered the water to the point that if you touched it, the temperature would be VERY hot indeed. BUT it would not be SO hot you would incur a burn. A medium-sized waterfall that was so enchantingly beautiful,it took your breath away, roared and frothed at the opposite end of the hot springs. The water coming from this waterfall was what was keeping the hot springs continuously full and heated at all times. Steam rising from both these great falls and from the hot springs itself created an enchantingly mesmerizing mist that hovered over the area of the springs closest to the falls. Soft noises could be heard from other areas of the hot springs as pockets of hot, foamy water frothed and bubbled sporadically in different sections of the deep, dark pool of water that was the hot springs itself.
Both Atreyu and Moonchild stood spellbound, staring in awe at the wonderment and beauty of what was there before them. Neither of them were able to say a single word. What they were seeing was TOO beautiful TO be described.
Tearing his gaze away from the falls, Atreyu found himself being drawn to a elongated slab of rock a few feet away from where they had been standing. As he approached this slab, a faint sound reached his ears. It sounded like something was shifting inside the wall itself from which this rock-bench was protruding. To his amazement, a neat, and carefully formed slit, big enough to hold a torch-handle, shaped itself before his astonished, widened gaze. Mouth falling open in total disbelief, The warrior-hunter stood stock-still, unable to comprehend what had happened before his very eyes. It took him a moment to realize what he'd just seen had ACTUALLY happened: that it WASN'T a trick of the light-for there WAS no light to be found in this cave other then the fire crackling in the torch he held aloft in his upraised hand. Shakily setting the torch into this slot the mountain had opened for them to use, Atreyu sank down upon the rock-bench, feeling as though his legs were going to give way any moment.
Moonchild, who had been watching all this from where she was standing near the hot springs, went over to join him. "Are you all right My Atreyu? You look like you've seen a ghost."
"Di-Did you see what happened!?" The Great Warrior stammered, stil in absolute shock over what had occurred a moment ago.
"Yes, of course I did." She calmly smiled at her lover's pale, open-mouthed, wide-eyed expression as if such things as torch-holes forming themselves happened every day.
Atreyu shook his head. He was still having a hard time wrapping his mind around such things as baskets and torches appearing out of thin air, tree-branches unfurling themselves and lifting picnic-baskets of their own accord, grass flattening itself into a circle with no wind or other sources to assist it, and slits for torch-handles carving themselves out of perfectly normal-looking cave walls all on their own. "I-I still can't get over it..." he breathed, waving his arm in a circle, indicating the Secret Garden Itself. "I-I-I'm still having a hard time believing such things as what I've seen today, actually happen..."
Moonchild took a seat next to her beloved and bemused warrior-lover."I understand..." she said softly, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. "You are not used to seeing magic happen all around you as I am. I understand mitawa akicita, I understand. It is going to take some time getting used to all of this mitawa wanasapiolepier-akicita... To such things as magic happening before your very eyes. But you will. You will. It'll take time, it'll take some time. But one day, in time, one day, My Atreyu, you'll be as used to it as I have become."
Atreyu smiled back at his Angel as he placed his hand over the one on resting on his shoulder. "I know." He said, his voice as soft as hers, "I know. And you'll be there beside me as it happens..."
"I wouldn't have it any other way mitawa akicita, I wouldn't have it any other way..." The Empress leaned over and kissed him, her lips scantly brushing his.
Atreyu's hand came up to lay itself on her cheek as he turned to better receive such a gentle kiss of love and reassurance. "I wastelake niye mitawa hopa Ogliglewakan..." He faintly whispered as his eyes closed in response to his lips meeting hers in a kiss so light they could scarcely feel it.
But they didn't need to feel it.
Their hearts already did.
"And I wastelake niye mitawa ohitike, itan akicita...I wastelake niye more then life itself..."
"Moonchild..." It was now Atreyu who breathed nothing but her name. The hand resting on her cheek slipped downwards to cup the nape of her neck as his lips met hers in a kiss like the one they had just shared.
Moonchild's hand duplicated her warrior's actions, slipping her own hand around the nape of his neck.
With a soft growl of defeat, the lure of wanting her touch, her kiss, her body being too powerful to resist, Atreyu pulled His Empress onto his lap for the third time since he'd found her huddled in the dark on her windowseat, shaken and nearly scared half to death from her nightmare. Another soft growl, this one of lustful need, ripped itself from his throat as his free arm wrapped itself around her slender waist, his hand sliding downwards to cup one half of that adorable little arse he had come to love so much in such a short span of time. A needy whimper joined his soft growl as The Empress clung to him greedily, as if she too, wanted him as badly as he did her. He could hear her scattered breathing, feel the intensity of her kiss as, jointly, their lips parted, their tongues twined, as his fingers gently scraped along the softness of her small rounded arse-cheek.
Oh, Gods he wanted her so badly...
Oh, Dear Fucking Gods, he wanted her SO badly it hurt-literally...
There wasn't a day that had gone by in the past two years where his body hadn't ached to possess The Empress of Fantasia. And now that he had her in the WAY he wanted her-in the way they BOTH wanted each other-, now that he had a taste of her, that aching need to possess and claim ALL of her as his own, grew and intensified even more.
What was he thinking!?
How could he deny himself something so alluring, so beautiful, so temping as this feline creature he was holding? He couldn't. He couldn't resist her if his life depended on it. Hell, he'd be a bloody, fucking fool to do something as foolish as limit himself to a few 'intimate interactions' with this angel, this lioness, this Empress of his per day or night. There was NO WAY in Mahpiya or hell he could go for long periods-or even short periods-of time without wanting to feel her in his arms, without wanting to feel the gentle touch of her hands on his body, without wanting to feel the intoxicating taste of her kisses. His body and mind were going mad with craving her body as it was. And it hadn't even been a full day passed since the Ball when he'd kissed her for the very first time. No. Moments like 'this', like the one they were sharing, could AND would NOT be passed by or up. If he felt the 'moment' was right to 'indulge in heated, intimate interactions' with His Empress then by Ki Tunkasilas, he'd take it. He'd seize each and EVERY opportunity to have His Empress as he WANTED her that he could. It wouldn't matter if it was for a few short, fleeting moments or a WHOLE day like today. He'd take the opportunities to devour His Empress's mouth, to caress her upper body. [he'd already promised himself that he'd keep his hands AWAY from her 'lower body' for the time being. He didn't trust himself right now to 'behave himself'' if his hands went ANY lower then her arse] And he'd do his damnedest to keep himself busy during those weeks he HAD to be away from her. For he knew that if he DIDN'T throw himself into his duties, into his everyday activities he partook in whenever he was home with his tribe, he'd go insane from wanting her so much. If he allowed himself to dwell on his Angel NOT being there each time he entered his tiyobleca, to awaken each morning to find His Empress NOT laying by his side, naked and in his arms, under his many layers of tashinaptes and buffalo-hair-woven shinas on his soft pallet, to NOT feel the smoothness, the softness of her bare skin against his own naked body as they slept in each others embrace after a day full of playful fun and hard work, to NOT be able to make slow, tender, and passionate love to her [or not even being able to make fierce, heated, primalistic love to her in such a way it would make her scream with ecstasy and make her beg for more] would drive him into madness. So that was why, he, Atreyu, was determined to make the MOST of EVERY free-and VERY private-moment he could get with His Empress EACH and EVERY lone week of every month he was-and would be-here at the Tower.
His free hand ran itself over her smooth dress-covered arse over and over again, loving how it felt under his palm. The tip of his tongue skated across her small mouth, lush and swollen from the kisses he gave. Her lips parted for him for Tunkasilas slolyes HOW many times that day. He groaned and let his tongue explore her mouth's inner walls, feeling a shudder go through him as it touched and began to dance its erotic dance with hers all over again. His palm slid up from her arse-cheek, glided along her hip, paused to massage the pelvic-bone where it dipped elegantly from her small waist before giving her waist itself then her stomach a gentle massage of their own. His fingers drifted upwards to caress the underside of a small, soft breast. They ran along the outer lines of her breast for a few seconds before making circular patterns inwards until they found her nipple, achingly erect as it pressed itself against the inside of her dress's bodice.
A low purring moan escaped The Empress as she felt the fingers of her warrior run themselves back and forth across her breast's stiffened tip. To be caressed and fondled in such a place made her toes curl and her breath catch.
It made her long for more. So much more.
Such caresses as those her warrior was giving her made her want him to do other 'things' to her. Sinful, wicked, carnal things that were utterly forbidden.
Especially to her. To The Empress of Fantasia.
But oh, Gods, she WANTED to be touched, to be kissed, in 'other' ways, in 'other places', by those hands, that mouth that was introducing her body to things it never knew had existed before...
No matter HOW sinful it was, no matter HOW many times she would have to do repentance for her sinful, wicked thoughts and actions, her body cried out for total surrenderance to this man.
She WANTED him. Even IF it meant damming herself to hell, even IF she feared the terrifying wrath of her Head Adviser/Servant and Head Handmaiden if she and Atreyu were EVER found out, she still WANTED him.
She wanted him SO badly it made her want to weep with longing.
She ended the kiss they were sharing long enough to look into his eyes.
And what she saw made her heart soar.
For the SAME desires, the SAME longings, the SAME aching cravings she felt were reflected in those beautiful eyes of his. Eyes that were dark as dark could be with lust, with desire, with the overwhelming need to possess, to claim.
She smiled that smile she knew he loved most of all.
It was the same smile she had worn when she told him "No, you haven't..." after he had said "I have failed you Empress..." on that long-ago fated day when they were trapped in the Magnolia Pavilion. On that fateful day when they had come face-to-face with each other for the VERY first time...
Her hand, the one which was holding onto his waist, rose to place its palm against his cheek as she gazed into those beautiful earthy brown eyes she loved SO much-from the VERY beginning.
His hand rose to cover this hand resting on his cheek, and their gazes met and held for such a long time, they could no longer recall HOW long it actually had been when their minds had replayed the events of this day later on that night long after they each had gone to bed.
Never breaking eye contact with His Empress, Atreyu bent down and reached into the tree-basket he'd placed beside his feet. Blindly reaching into the basket he plucked out a grape and gently placed it against the lips of The Empress. Feeling a heated sensation flash through her nether region, she shyly opened her mouth and blushingly, daintily, bit into half of the little rounded fruit. Her blush deepened as she chewed, never realizing something as feeding one another food like this could be so...so...-what was the word?-erotic...
She almost choked as the sinful word materialized itself in her mind.
Oh, Gods, Cairon would KILL her if he KNEW she had conjured up such a sinful word as 'erotic.' To him, 'that' word was as sinful, as wicked, and as damning as a word could get.
She lightly coughed and brought her trembling fingers to her lips in order to cover the real reason as to why she almost choked.
"Went-went down the wrong tube..." she rasped,
Atreyu, chewing on the remaining half of the grape, nodded as if he understood. "Did you enjoy it?"
She nodded, wiping her watering eyes, "Yes-yes I did...Thank you."
"Would you like another?"
She nodded, blushing too hard to speak.
He reached again into the basket and brought out a raspberry this time instead of a grape.
He started to offer it to her but Moonchild, inspired by his bold actions a moment ago, plucked the knobbly red berry out of his fingers. Ducking her head for a moment, for she was blushing harder then ever by now, she gathered her courage and raised her head to meet his gaze.
Praying he wouldn't take notice of her trembling hand, Moonchild shyly offered the fruit to her lover, gently touching the raspberry to his lips so softly she wondered if he knew it was there.
He must have known it was against his lips, for a second later he'd bitten into the berry she was holding. She was about to bring the remaining half to her own lips when the gentle touch of his hand on her wrist stopped her.
For a second Moonchild wondered why he'd hauled her hand's movements.
Then she found out.
Not even a second later, she saw-and felt-the tip of his tongue gently lick berry juice off of her thumb and first two fingers before bending down and lapping up a thin trail of red juice that had unknowingly trickled its way down her thumb to her wrist.
Moonchild's heart stopped for a full minute and she felt faint.
Dear Gods, she had only had fleeting images of such a sinful thing late at night when she had unwittingly dreamed of such wicked things being done to her by him...
It...it was as if he could read her mind... As if he somehow KNEW what she was thinking...
'But wait a minute, ' she told herself sharply, 'such a thing is impossible! There's NO WAY he COULD HAVE known she'd wanted him to do WHAT he had just done to her before now! There was NO WAY he could have read her mind like that! NO WAY POSSIBLE!...OR...or was it?... My Gods... could it really be possible to be SO spiritually connected to someone you've loved SO deeply for SO long that that 'someone' could ACCURATELY guess your longings and desires? No.' she firmly told herself. 'There HAS to be another reason-a more logical explanation to what had just happened. What he'd done to you right now was nothing more then a stroke of luck, a lucky guess that is all.'
Not wanting to dwell on such matters at this point in time, she swallowed her half of the raspberry. [she didn't even remember or realize when she'd put it in her mouth. All she could recall was the feeling of Atreyu's hand guiding her own hand to her mouth to eat the berry-after that, her mind went blank for a second as it mulled over the reasoning for Atreyu's licking the berry juice off of her thumb, fingers and wrist.]
"Are you all right mitawa Igmutaka?" He asked softly. His eyes were still dark as dark could be, his voice was thick with desire and full of barely-restrained lust.
"I'm fine My Atreyu..." She whispered, bending down and reaching into the basket herself. Pulling out a grape this time she handed it to him.
He took it and fed half of it to her.
She took the remaining half and fed it to him in return.
Then he kissed her.
It was a kiss that spoke of ALL he wanted to do to her in the future...if she let him.
And she would. She knew she would.
It was only a matter of time-a few months perhaps [no later then the end of the year she surmised]-before they could no longer hold back the urge to claim one another's body in the fullest sense.
But for now, this was just the beginning of what would no doubt be a lifetime [or, if they were VERY lucky, MANY lifetimes] of passion for both of them.
That is if Brijatte and Cairon didn't kill them for it first. [or something close to it]
Ending this breathtaking kiss her warrior had given her, Moonchild bent down and retrieved the canteen from its place beside the tree-basket.
Uncorking it she took a swig and offered it to her lover.
He took it gratefully and swallowed a good mouthful before pulling out another raspberry and, this time, slipped the entire thing between her lips.
She did the same to him, but with a grape.
Together, between long, lingering kisses that stirred their blood, and drinks of water from the canteen, they fed each other the remains of their lunch from the little basket the Garden had provided for them.
The last thing they fed one another was the lone brownie residing in the bottom of the basket: Taking this last article of food from the now empty basket, Atreyu broke it carefully in half and handed one piece to The Empress. He then fed the piece he was holding to her bit by bit, only feeding her another small mouthful AFTER she'd fed a bit of the brownie half she held to him. This way each received equal bites of brownie. When each had eaten the last bite of brownie, Atreyu leaned over and licked the crumbs and chocolate stains off of and around His Empress's mouth. Feeling too shy to mimick his actions entirely, Moonchild kissed him lightly, then allowed herself to nibble off the few crumbs lingering on his lips before allowing her tongue to slowly make its way over and around his mouth as it removed smudges of chocolate from his skin...
. . . . . . . .
By the time they left the cave, the sun was very low in the horizon. After sending a message to Twyla via sparrow informing her they'd be back at the Tower itself within the hour, Atreyu and the Empress reluctantly decided it was time to leave the Secret Garden.
They took their time, though, in making their way back through their secret haven, only stopping long enough to put on their shoes and, in Atreyu's case, his ógle as well from the flattened circle of grass and wildflowers where they'd picnicked earlier that afternoon. They then folded up the blue-and-green checkered blanket, put it, and the cloth they had used to line the bottom of the tree-basket, inside the picnic basket before leaving the field of wildflowers. They then slowly made their way back onto the main path that would lead them to the green handless door leading into the Garden.
Not wanting to leave quite just yet, Atreyu hung the picnic basket on the hooked tree-branch near the door and, taking her hand in his own, lead Moonchild over to another tree nearby. With her back against the trunk of this tree Moonchild reached out and pulled her lover up against her body. With a look of aching longing in his eyes, Atreyu bent down and kissed His Empress over and over, tasting her, savoring her, his fingers running through the long tresses of her hair, his hands wandering down...automatically searching...finding...then claiming the smoothness of her hips, the soft roundness of her arse before traveling upwards to fondle her breasts one last time...
Finally, breathlessly, they parted. Their bodies trembling all over as they held the others gaze, not wanting this moment to end so soon...
With tears threatening to materialize in her eyes, Moonchild wordlessly cast a silent charm that straightened out her dress, her hair and, much to both their dismay-but knowing it was necessary for it to be done in order to keep their 'passionate tryst' secret-removed ALL signs of Atreyu's fierce kisses from her shoulders, neck and mouth.
Her heart aching and fighting the urge to break down and weep, The Empress swallowed her tears, lifted her chin in order to give herself strength, walked over to the gnarled tree and promptly removed the basket from its place by the door.
With Atreyu almost directly behind her and at her heels, they heavy-heartedly left the tranquility and haven-like safety of the Secret Garden behind them.
. . . . . .
As the couple made their way back to the Tower, they realized they were very near the little alcove they had discovered early that morning, thanks to the Royal Gardener who had encountered them on their morning walk.
They looked at each other and without needing to say a word, they slipped inside this secret hiding place.
Once there, Atreyu glanced over at Moonchild with a quizzical look in his eyes. "Moonchild?"
She turned to him, "Yes?"
"Do you-" He took a deep breath, trying to get what was on his mind out without stumbling over his words. "Do you intend to confirm the truth of just HOW deep our relationship is to your seven handmaidens tonight?"
Moonchild looked at he lover for a long, long moment, then slowly, she nodded, "Yes," she said quietly, "I do." There was a long silence following this statement as she looked far-off into the distance for what seemed like ages. "But I DO NOT plan to tell them anything UNLESS THEY breech the subject first. AND even then, I will ONLY disclose the truth about us AND our relationship IF I feel FOR myself it is completely safe to talk about it." The Empress's gaze turned from where they were staring offhandedly in the distance to focus on Atreyu, the dark auzreness of her orbs firm and hard with determination . "I do not want to take the chance of Brijatte accidentally overhearing what I have to say to them. So before I even CONSIDER revealing the confirming truth about us to Luanna and the others I want to be ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN that her aunt-Brijatte-is COMPLETELY out of earshot and has FOR CERTAIN retired to her rooms for the night."
"That makes sense."
"I mean it Atreyu!" The Empress's voice sounded almost high-pitched and angry. [even though she wasn't] "I'm NOT taking ANY chances of THAT WOMAN who calls herself my 'Head Handmaiden', fucking up this new era of our relationship BEFORE we even HAD a chance to cherish and explore it!" Her voice broke out on a sob and she had to turn away from the man whom was her warrior and her lover. She raised a shaking hand to furiously swipe away at the tears that were starting to trickle down her face.
Setting the picnic basket a few inches from him on the grass, Atreyu stepped up behind His Empress and gathered her in his arms, tenderly brushing back wisps of hair the evening breeze had blown across her teary cheeks with one hand. His lips pressed kisses to the back of her head, then to the shell of her ear while whispering words of comfort as he held her tightly in his strong embrace. "Shhh...shhhh...there, there canteskuye, Everything's going to be all right, Everything's going to be all right. Everything's going to be fine... Shhh...don't cry cantkiya, don't cry... If your handmaidens are ANYTHING like you say they are,-loyal, discreet and unquestionably faithful to Their Empress-they'll MAKE SURE the coast is clear before they EVEN BEGIN to discuss ANYTHING concerning our relationship with you." His lips trailed from her ear to her throat where they began to plant soft reassuring kisses all along its right-hand side. A soft moan slipped from The Empress's lips as her head fell to one side. Her eyes closed and she let out a breathless sigh, her body sagging into the warm security she knew was the solid firmness of his body. She shivered from both the coolness of the twilight air and from the touch of her lover's hands as they tenderly cupped her breasts from behind. A soundless cry nearly escaped her as her nipples puckered into aching buds from the rapid coldness that the evening was bringing in. She gasped and her knees nearly buckled when the fingers of her warrior teased and flickered themselves across the turgid, aching tips of her breasts.
"Oh, Gods...Atreyu..." She gasped, desperately trying to keep her voice to a quiet moan, feeling her back arch against the hard, sturdy frame of his body. Her hands grasped his hips as an unfamiliar heat begin to spread throughout her body-and down into her nether region. Her legs quivered, as if they, themselves, had melted down to nothing more then a jelly-like state. "we-we can't..."
"Oh, yes we can..." came the soft reply as more kisses were planted along the right column of her throat. Hot, searing, damp kisses that made her already unsteady legs go even weaker then they already were. She moaned a little louder this time as those hands she adored and cherished gently molded themselves to the softness of her tiny globes.
"No-no-we-we can-can't..." she panted, "Not-not here... it-it's too-too risky..."
"We're safe cantkiya, we're safe here." He reassured her as he lightly squeezed, then pinched the very tips of her nipples-earning another soft moaning cry from The Empress. "Remember? The Gardener said this place was VERY secluded and private."
"Ye-yes..." she panted, pressing her backside harder against him in an effort to keep herself from falling to the ground, "I-I re-remember...:" She turned her face towards him, blindly seeking that mouth, and the kisses it gave, she loved and craved so much. She found what she'd been searching for and touched her scarcely parted lips shyly to his, the tip of her little tongue now being the one that sought entrance to his domain instead of the other way around. She was rewarded for her shy boldness by a parting of his lips followed by the heated dampness of the thrusting of his tongue as it eagerly plundered the hot cavern of her mouth. One hand of hers crept up and disappeared beneath the shaggy, smooth coarseness of his long hair as his hands slipped from their tender massaging of her breasts to her arse where they cupped and squeezed the combined softness and tautness of what was the twin halves of her arse-cheeks.
This time Moonchild's legs really DID give way.
A lengthy, deep moan of surrender escaped her and, unable to resist neither her body's reactions-as unfamiliar and SINFUL it was being-NOR the touch of the hands and mouth of her warrior, she-with him standing behind her, his hard, lean body pressed firmly against her own, -slid in a hazy, passion-dazed heap to the plush grassiness of the ground below.
The air between them crackled with the heated staticy energy that was the ensuing passion they shared as their fused mouths and waltzing tongues nipped, licked, sucked, bit [gently of course], tugged and teased in much the very same manner they had done earlier that afternoon when the bodies of their owners had been laying nearly on top of one another on the flannel checkered blanket. A quiet series of whimpering moans rolled off their engaged tongues as their bodies molded, dug and pressed into to one another, trying, needing to get as close to the other as possible. As it had happened before, it felt as if ALL logic, ALL rationality, ALL reasoning had left them and their bodies and senses were yet again teetering on the edge of insanity with their increasing yearning to be joined as one instead of two separate beings.
No matter WHAT the consequences.
Oh, Dear Gods... I must surely be going mad...' Moonchild thought as she clung harder to the man whose lap she was in-again. 'What I am doing, what I am engaging in, How I am BEHAVING so wickedly...so WANTONLY...surely must be in a sin of itself... But oh, Gods... oh, sweet, blessed Gods...for the life of me, for some odd reason, I do not care... For ONCE in my life I DON'T CARE if I AM commuting a carnal sin-or many carnal sins as the case may be-I LOVE this man whose hands my I am allowing to put on my body. I ADORE this warrior whose mouth sears my skin with its sinfulness... and Dear Gods and Goddesses I CRAVE him-ALL of him...it matters not if such a longing as this is sinful in its own right, I CRAVE and WANT his body for my own...' Moonchild twisted her head away, gasping for breath... She needed air, she was so heated from the inside out she couldn't breathe, 'Mother Goddess and Dear Goddesses Above...' She silently prayed, ' Please forgive me...for I have sinned...'
As this last line left her subconsciousness, Moonchild's body arched and she threw her head back wantonly, releasing a throaty moan as the mouth of her lover heatedly made its way along the left side of her jawbone and down to her throat. She pressed herself against her hunter-warrior as he filled his hands with the small, plush roundness of her arse, Her lips parted and her eyes squeezed themselves shut when his fingers resumed the sensual massaging of her arse-cheeks, then her pelvicbone, then of her hips. She inaudibly gasped when she felt 'that male part of him' begin to press against one half of her backside as it hardened. For the third time in several hours her heart nearly stopped beating as she felt the heated, pulsating length of swelling male flesh through her thin dress and his lightweight ozoges. Without realizing what she was doing, Moonchild ground her arse against that steadily rising 'male part of him' that was becoming more hardened and more swollen by the minute. A strangled gasp from her warrior reached her ears and the sound of his hitching breath, told her he'd felt what she had unintentionally done. She froze, wondering if she had offended him-or worse-caused him bodily harm. But the barely-noticeable upward thrust of his hips told her otherwise. She gasped at the sensation, her skin prickling all over from this newfound feeling she was receiving. Her head fell to her left side and she found herself placing featherlight suckles alongside his throat, her little tongue daintily flickering out periodically to experimentally caress his skin-like a little cat. A naughty little cat whom was preening the smooth fur of its mate.
"Moonchild...oh,Tunkasilas,...Moonchild...' Atreyu's voice was thick and guttural with a white-hot raging lust he could barely control. His back was arched and his own head was thrown back against the stone wall he was up against. His eyes were shut tight and 'that male part of him' ached so badly it nearly brought tears to his eyes. Unable to control himself he pressed his awakening rigid length to the underside of her tempting little arse, softly grinding himself against her in an attempt to ease the pain his swollen, hard member was causing him. His heart was thumping hard and fast in his chest and he couldn't breathe properly from the way his breath was coming out in short, hitched gasps. Hell, he couldn't even think, he was so aroused.
How could one little creature, one petite, delicate-looking, yet courageous Empress, with only a few simple caresses, a few kisses that were both chaste AND seductive at the same time, bring out a carnal, primal passion in him so easily? How was such a thing possible? How could she drive him SO wild with SUCH a craving, lusting need for her hands, her mouth, her sweet little body there were times he'd thought he'd 'go over the edge' with madness without her even knowing it? How could she NOT realize that with every caress, every kiss she placed upon his lips, upon his body, she was igniting a fire in him that would one day burn out of control? And ONCE that fire was burning uncontrollably, there would be NO way of stopping it-save ONE. [and Atreyu knew WHAT that 'one way' was]
The Great Warrior groaned into the soft, disheveled tresses of The Empress's hair as he desperately forced himself to think of something...ANYTHING that would subdue the rapidly awakening 'male part of him' that was relentlessly pressing itself into the underside of his Angel's arse. There MUST be SOME way he could get rid of the painfulness in his male member... There must be something he could do...
'Your mind.' an inner voice told him, 'Clear your mind.' Atreyu blinked back painful tears and bit his lip. 'Relax your body and clear your mind of everything that is in there right now... NO matter WHAT your cikala igmutaka is doing to you, no matter HOW she is making you feel on an emotional AND physical level in THIS moment in time, you MUST clear your mind and let it be empty long enough for 'the discomfort in your nether region' to dissipate.'
Releasing a low moan Atreyu did as his subconsciousness advised:
He focused his energies on relaxing his body and temperaraly disposing his mind of ALL thoughts. Within minutes he could feel the tension in his body and the aching feeling in his nether region ebb away.
He let out another, quieter, softer moan and let his head fall to one side, his tight hold on The Empress lessening as his entire body was relived of all its aching tension.
His eyes opened a few minutes later to the light, tender kisses and the soothing hands of The Empress as she lovingly stroked his hair, his face. He smiled as he turned his head to look at her. She was smiling in a way that made his heart melt and made him feel in a way he'd never felt before. Soothed. Comforted. Loved. Tended to and taken care of.
"Are you all right mitawa Koi?" Her voice was soft, concerned, and light as a nightingale.
"I'm fine Ogliglewakan." He croaked. His voice was still a little hoarse from having to hold on to an overwhelming lust that nearly got away from him.
She continued to gaze at him.
He saw there was a faint hint of remorse in her eyes in addition to the look of concern she wore
His hand rose to touch her cheek. "Don't Moonchild..." he softly pleaded. "Canlwaste, don't look at me as if you've done something wrong. You've done nothing mitawa cantkiya..." He bent down and touched his lips scantly to hers. "Belive me, Ogliglewakan, canlwaste. Belive me on this. Trust me Ogliglewakan, canlwaste, trust me..."
"Yes mitawa hopa akicita, I believe and trust you..."
She did. She DID believe him.
Even now, when her 'fanatically religious monk Cairon-influenced' part of her conscience screamed at her that she had committed a multitude of carnal sins in the past twenty-four hours and she needed to do immediate silent repentance in order to 'cleanse and repurify' her body and mind, Moonchild STILL trusted and believed him when her Atreyu when he told she had not done a single thing wrong.
"Are you ready to go back?" His voice was still as soft as hers.
She shook her head, her eyes filling with tears.
"Oh, Ogliglewakan." His heart nearly broke, as did his voice, when he saw the anguished look in her eyes. "I KNOW you don't want to go back to the Tower. I KNOW you don't want to back to 'making it appear everything's normal. That everything's the same, that there is NOTHING but 'platonic friendship' between us." He stroked her cheek, kissed her forehead, gazed at her with equal anguish in his own eyes. "Oh,Tunkasilas, canteskuye, believe me, I don't want to go back either. I DON'T want it ANY more then YOU do. But we don't have a choice in the matter right now canteskuye. We have to. We HAVE to go back. It'll look suspicious if we stay away for too long."
"I know...I know!..." Moonchild's voice quavered as she balled her hands into fists and dug her fingernails into her palms, She pressed her forehead against his chest and could no longer hold back the flood of tears brimming in her eyes. Her body shook as she began to weep softly. "I KNOW we haven't a choice in the matter! And that's the WORST part!" She sniffled, tears streaming down her beautiful cherubed face. "Oh, Gods Atreyu...what are we going to do?... How can we keep up such a facade?..."
"I don't know mitawa hopa cikala wanji. But don't worry canteskuye. We'll find a way..." He vowed. He kissed her lips, tasting the saltiness of her tears as he soothed her aching heart. "We'll find a way..." He repeated, more firmly this time. He kissed her again, this one as tender and as soothing as the one he'd just given her. The tenderness of both his kisses AND his vow made Moonchild want to weep even harder.
Gods she loved him so much.
Oh, Gods how she loved him.
And it was BECAUSE she loved him SO much that Moonchild KNEW she could NEVER give him up.
Never.
Not in a million years OR a million lifetimes could she do such a thing.
No matter WHAT anyone said or threatened. Moonchild could not AND would not leave her Atreyu. Nor would she stop loving him.
She'd rather die first.
At long last Moonchild felt her tears subside and she lifted her head from the chest of her lover.
She sniffled, wiped at her cheeks and her eyes and looked at him, this time there was a resignation in her azure orbs. A relenting resignation but a resignation nonetheless.
If she had to keep up a lie about her and Atreyu having NOTHING but platonic friendship between them for Cairon and Brijatte in order to be able to stay with her beloved warrior, then she would do it.
She would do what she would have to do.
Even if she didn't like it.
She would 'put on a show' and do whatever it took to keep her and Atreyu together.
Even if it meant having to lie to the faces of her Head Adviser/Servant and Head handmaiden.
For her sake and Atreyu's she'd do just that.
She'd lie and make it appear that 'nothing had changed between her and her warrior.' Even if it meant suffering the horrifying, terrible wrath of Cairon and Brijatte all on her own if they were caught.
She'd do that as well.
She'd endure whatever she had to in order to protect him, her warrior, her lover, from experiencing the fullness of their anger. Of their wrath.
Just like she had always privately, secretly, done in the past.
"I'm ready." she said, both her gaze and her tone hard and stubbornly firm. "Let's go."
Atreyu nodded. It amazed him how His Empress could 'wear a mask' so easily and convincingly.
'But then again, she's had to.' The warrior-hunter told himself as he gently pushed his Angel out of his lap. 'She's probably had to 'wear a mask' all her life. Knowing how her Head Adviser/Servant and Head Handmaiden are, how they WANT her to be, how they EXPECT her to act, how they DEMAND she appear to the rest of Fantasia,...she's probably had to hide her true self for a long, long, long time. Centuries no doubt. 'Those two' have most likely FORCED her to conceal WHO she TRULY is as a person, forced her to hide WHO she REALLY is as an individual from the rest of our world. Now that she's told me how manipulative and deceitful Cairon is, I wouldn't be surprised if he's the main one behind it. I wouldn't be surprised at all. Brijatte sounds like 'a piece of work' as Bastian would say, but from what I've seen, from what mitawa Ogliglewakan has told me today, Cairon's the worst one out of the pair.'
Rising to their feet, the couple embraced one another and held one another for a long, long moment before Atreyu picked up the basket and they left the hidden alcove.
. . . . . . . . . .
All too soon they reached the door leading from the Royal Gardens into the Kitchens. Having managed to compose herself long enough to let herself relax and feel positive again, Moonchild opened it and Atreyu followed her inside.
They found Twyla in the preparation area of the Kitchens helping the Cook prepare that night's supper. Smiling a genuine smile, The Empress handed over the basket to Twyla."Thank you SO much Twyla. the lunch you and Head Cook prepared for us was wonderful."
"Did the pair of you have a good time today My Empress?" the motherly, plump and robust-looking Head Cook asked curiously, smiling fondly at the cute couple casually standing in her kitchen.
"Yes!" Atreyu and The Empress replied simultaneously.
The Head Cook laughed. They REALLY were an adorable pair.
"We had a wonderful day and a great time." Atreyu told the Head Cook earnestly. "And thank you SO much for putting together SUCH a stupendous lunch. It was delicious!"
"Yes, you really outdid yourself this time." Moonchild added grinning.
The Head Cook beamed with pride.
"I'll see you in your private suite of rooms in a few minutes Moonchild." Twyla informed Her Empress, "I need to finish up here in the kitchens."
Moonchild gave the half-elf a quick side hug "That's fine Twyla. I'll see you and the other six handmaidens in a bit."
"There'll be five of us tonight Moonchild. Lupianya and Sertala have the night off." the half-elf reminded her Empress.
"Oh, that's right, I forgot all about that. Thank you Twyla."
"Anytime My Empress." The half-elf said, beaming up at her mistress.
The Head Cook chuckled.
"You two had better better get out of here before Brijatte comes in and catches you in here in the Kitchens and throws a fit. You know how she is My Empress when she sees you casually spending time with 'commoners like ourselves.'" the plump woman advised, hurriedly bustling Atreyu and The Empress out the Royal Kitchens and Pantries and to the door leading out to the Gardens in an affectionately, motherly way.
"I know, I know!" Moonchild rolled her eyes but couldn't help laughing.
"Still, " the Head Cook grumbled. " 'THAT woman and THAT 'Head Adviser/Servant 'she chums with' needs to stay out of MY Domain. The Kitchens are MY territory! They are NOT hers OR Cairon's! And I'm NOT in the mood tonight to be fighting with that overbearing woman's nitpicking and bitching on what you SHOULD and SHOULD NOT be eating Your Highness!"
Both Atreyu and Moonchild started laughing at this statement and the Head Cook grinned with them.
"Gods, that's the LAST thing ANY of us need!" Moonchild gasped as tears of laughter smarted her eyes.
"I totally agree wholeheartedly with BOTH of you." Atreyu was grinning. "My appetite would be completely ruined if I had to sit through an ENTIRE meal with HER nitpicking and bitching on about the foods we're eating!"
The Head Cook gave them both warm hugs, then gave Atreyu , a motherly pat of fondness on the cheek. "Ah, it does my heart proud to know and see how wonderful you are to Moonchild, Atreyu. You remind me SO much of my own son."
Atreyu blushed. Moonchild beamed.
Then, laughing they exited the Kitchens.
The Head Cook sighed happily and, with a look of pride and happiness for the couple who reminded her SO much of her own children [now all grown and gone] moved to close the wooden Outer Kitchen door. But just before she had a chance to close the door entirely, she caught a glimpse of Her Empress and "that nice boy from the Plains" stealing a quick kiss before continuing on their way out of the Royal Gardens, through the still-partially opened Kitchen door. She smiled to herself and closed the door completely. She then returned to work on The Empress's and Atreyu's supper.
'Please, Dear Gods and Goddesses Above.' the Head Cook silently prayed as she chopped vegetables, shifted pots and rolled out pie crusts, 'Please watch over Our Empress and 'That Gentle Buffalo Hunter.' she so obviously seems to love. Please, Dear Gods and Goddesses, please, protect them both from the tumultuous tirade and wrath of both Brijatte and Carion should the dreadful day come where they discover Their Empress and The Great Warrior from the the Great Plains and Hunter of the Purple Buffalo have fallen in AND are deeply in love with one another...'
Author's Note: If anyone is curious or interested, here are the translations for the language Atreyu uses when he speaks to The Empress-and when she speaks it to him :) [it is Lakota]
mitawa akicita [my warrior]
Pilamayaye, mitawa cikala igmutaka [Thank you my little lioness]
Hau, mitawa [Yes, my]
mitawa Koi [my Panther]
mitawa wanasapiolepier-akicita [my hunter-warrior]
Mitawa Tunkasilas [My Gods]
Mitawa Tunkasilas, hau [My Gods, yes!]
hiya [no]
wastelake niye Ogliglewakan [love you Angel]
wastelake niye iyota [love you most]
Tunkasilas [Gods]
Piwakila, canteskuye [Thanks sweetheart]
mitawa wanasapiolepier-akicita [my hunter-warrior]
wastelake niye mitawa Igmutaka [love you Lioness]
mitawa wastelakapi Ogliglewakan [my beloved Angel]
Tunkasilas slolyes: [Gods knows]
Yuwakape [Blessed]
Skuye Maka na Tunkasilas Iwalob [Sweet Earth Mother and Gods Above]
mitawa wastelakapi [my beloved]
Ki Tunkasilas [The Gods]
haa [yes, female version]
mitawa hopa wastelakapi Ogliglewakan [my beautiful, beloved Angel]
Waste Tunkasilas! [Good Gods!]
nahmalay cikala igmutaka [sneaky little lioness]
Skuye Yuwakape Tunkasilas [Sweet Blessed Gods]
mitawa hopa igmutaka [my beautiful lioness]
niye nahmalay cikala igmutaka [you sneaky little lioness]
wastelake niye mitawa hopa Ogliglewakan [love you my beautiful Angel]
wastelake niye mitawa ohitike, itan akicita [love you my brave, proud warrior]
mitawa hopa akicita [my beautiful warrior]
mitawa hopa cikala wanji [my beautiful little one]
Shina [Blanket]
tiyobleca [tent]
tashinaptes [buffalo robes]
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Enchanted Night