Illumin0sity

Journey to the East

Noah’s gaze fluttered between Elann’s face and his hand smoothing up her thigh, slowly revealing her to him and the world since the wagon flaps were open and the light was so bright. Whether or not the people were staying away because of the light and the fear evoked by it, because they were setting themselves up for the night, or because they were hiding away in their own wagons until dinner, Noah was glad they weren’t bothering him or his bondmate. He could see her rising anxiety and tension at his teasing advance and it was all in a game for him, her reactions bringing him amusement.

Elann shot up and shoved his hand down, immediately bringing a grin to his face and a breath of laughter. She conceded defeat, requesting the journal. Noah stood up again, smiling in his victory as Elann rose to close the flaps to the wagon. He heard them come down, swatting at the air as they settled heavily over the entrance. Privacy was granted to couple as he retrieved her journal, coming back to the bench as she lie there still acting as if she was dying.

Noah squatted beside the bench again, near her head, and rose the journal up. “Read,” he commanded, lightly thunking her on the forehead with the binding of the book. “No kiss of any kind until you read to me.”

Noah’s voice was a little sterner, though the playful flirtation was still there. He was actually looking forward to hearing what she wrote about kissing him. He thought she had a way with words, her language was poet and colorful enough to encourage his vivid imagination to formulate the image she may or may not have been intending to paint.

Journey to the East

The more Noah counted, the fainter Elann became. It was minorly amusing, and as he reached two chime fulls of seconds, she went completely limp. He looked at her, examining her features in the light. In the white illumination, her darker skin, still fair, was much lighter and his own was nearly fluorescent. He had seen how the brilliance of her eyes would grow tenfold in the gem’s light, though he could not see it now through her closed lids.

Noah felt her desire piquing and could imagine her heart leaping in her chest as his advance. His own was dormant and controlled, he was looking at toying with her as a game, her reactions being his consistent rewards and encouragement to continue playing, regardless of the ending outcome. He didn’t know how long it took for the cook to sound the call for dinner, thus didn’t know how long he truly had to play his game. He did know they had once managed to wait long enough for Aimee to aid the hunters in tracking down squirrels and hares before cooking dinner though.

“Elann,” he said in a sing-song way. “Elann,” he sang again, “my love, come back to life.”

Elann didn’t budge, staying true to her supposed death. Noah stood straight again then squatted just before the bench. Then, he reached for her, poking at her side, evoking a grunt of stifled laugh from the Benshira. He poked her again, bringing forth another. He looked at her legs, reached for her, then watched his hand smooth up her shin, over her knee, and then her thigh, bunching up the dress’ skirt as it went.

Journey to the East

Though it was dark, Noah could see Elann fairly clearly. His pale skin tone probably aided eyes in searching for him, but he was tempted to light one of the stormgems in order for them to see near perfectly. He had, after all, managed to tap into their offensive capabilities. Noah watched her, partly taking joy in her having a hard time seeing him. It was adding to his objective flare and how he wanted to play hard-to-get. He recalled her saying it was okay for either of them to either ask for affection, sexual or not, or to pursue and be pursued by the other. He was attempting to let her in behind the walls erected around his heart’s passion. The pleasure and enjoyment derived from having sex with her being the force in which slowly crumbled the walls.

Elann engaged in her dramatics, saying she would wither away and die if she didn’t get his kisses. She once wondered how they felt, now that she knew, she needed them to live. He watched her hand come over her forehead, watching as she feigned weakness. Smiling, he turned his back to her again, counting the seconds aloud from one. Counting still, he rummaged through their chest to find the sack of stones, pulling out one of the smaller ones that immediately began to glow in increasing intensity at the touch of his fingers.

The bright white light radiated through the room, casting their shadows over the canvas and could probably be seen from outside, maybe reminding the caravan goers of the electricity once emitted if they could connect the light and the stone to Noah.

“One-hundred... one hundred and one,” he continued, turning back. He took steps towards her, bare feet padded silently across the floor.

With the light illuminating the whole of his features, he counted still. Holding the gem in his bad arm, he leaned in over her, holding himself up with the good one until he got to one-hundred and nineteen.

With his face directly before hers, he whispered, “One-hundred and twenty... oh no... it’s been two chimes.” He watched her for a reaction, partly believing she would feign death then and there.

Journey to the East

Elann expressed it could be a while before she read what she wrote, saying to him she may have already written down what was on her mind pertaining to kissing him. She asked if he wouldn’t kiss her until then, perhaps years between now and then. Noah met her whispering tone with a slight tilt of his head, gazing up at her. He smiled somewhat smugly, shrugging his shoulders.

“A shame...” he trailed, his eyes slowly leaving her before he went to sit up. “How will you ever survive for years?”

There was a subtle sense of sarcasm in his voice as he rose from the bench, a hand coming over his chest to scratch at the skin. Noah took himself and his nakedness to the fore of the wagon, where he went to him and Elann’s trunk. There was a brief moment where goosebumps came over his skin due to the chilled air flowing into the wagon. The moment passed and his skin retook it natural texture.

Noah turned to face Elann then, rolling his shoulders slightly to test the pain from the wound on his back. A slight look of discomfort came over his face, but the pain was much less than the days prior, and he didn’t fear tearing the wound anew any longer since the stitches were out.

He looked at his bondmate expectantly, wondering how she was reacting to his seemingly uncaring nature.

Journey to the East

At Noah’s denial Elann threw the covers off of him, exposing him and his bareness to the chill of the air he wasn’t used to. The blanket trapped his warmth and made it comfortably hot in there for him, now it was gone and it was shocking to his skin. The shock wasn’t allowed to be processed as his vision was quickly muddled by the blanket being cast over his head. Not seeing Elann, but feeling her fingers invade, any initial panic that may have started was swiftly stopped by the ticklish proddings of her weaver’s fingers. He immediately shied away from her fingers but the laughter came regardless, muffled by the blanket over his head.

Noah turned over onto his back as quickly as his wound would allow, his head still attempting to work against Elann’s fingers. He managed to snatch the blankets off his head, revealing her to him as he stared up at her now, the back of his head against her thighs. She requested again for the kisses. The tickling woke him up all the more, and the mischief within was encouraged.

“No,” he said adamantly, tucking his lips into his mouth.

The tickling continued; he failed to hold in his laughter. The next bout of giggles coming from him forced his lips back out but his hands were already going for Elann’s, grasping them to force them to stop their tickling. He lay there, smiling up at her. He trusted her to not rip her hands away from his. Though he could confidently confine one of them entirely, the bad arm would’ve failed to keep up with any jarring snatch she might’ve done.

“Did you write about them?” he asked pertaining to the kisses. “No kisses until you read me what you wrote. If not, none until you’ve written about them and have read to me.”

Noah quirked a brow up at her, solidifying his bargain as truth and also seeing how she would react. It may have been a gamble on his part, he couldn’t exactly stop her from tickling him again once he let her hands go to either grab the journal in order to read to him or to write in.

Journey to the East

Noah was contented further by Elann running her hands through his hair. Her voice was even more comforting, how even though it was urging it was soft and he enjoyed it. She said she wanted a kiss, to which he groaned further into her front, both in playful hiding and in the want to take in her scent all the more. He felt her fingers tug on his hair lightly as his hair was twirled, but he remained where he was, face buried, as she informed him about his sister, how she went hunting. He hummed in acknowledgement, feeling somber by the information because he wanted to be hunting with her too.

He turned his attention back to Elann though, letting her fingers in his hair alleviate the feelings of his mind. “No kisses,” he murmured. “They’re mine.”

He shifted his head, peering up at her through the corner of his eye to see how she would react. It was in play and mischief, he wanted to keep a kiss from her because of how she said they made her feel. It would be fun to play keepaway with her.

Journey to the East

Elann’s words gave Aimee pause, as she was ready to shift if there was nothing else but a goodbye and smile. She didn’t expect the Benshira to grow sentimental in what Aimee regarded as idle comments. She truly didn’t care what the others thought, she simply wished she didn’t have to put up with it. In the long run it wouldn’t matter what the caravan goers thought, they would part ways and Aimee would be at home within the next two weeks. All it would do now was alienate her for a few more days until her brother was back on his feet, then the both of them could take to the wilds as they loved. The humans’ opinions would be but an afterthought then.

It was uplifting though, Elann’s words, and how Yahal was supposedly pleased with Aimee’s behavior and personality. Yahal wasn’t a deity that Aimee consciously aligned herself with, but she did seek the appreciation from the gods, whomever it would be.

“Thank you,” she whispered in reply to Elann’s well wishing. She took a few steps towards the exit of the wagon, meeting the gaze of the driver behind their wagon before the man’s fleeted away.

Aimee shifted, the magical flash of light and appearance of mystical dust taking over her form before the sound of four paws touching wood sounded. The wolf took careful steps towards the edge of the wagon, her snout up as she sniffed the moist air, before she leaped down off to the right, a puddle of water sloshing from her impact. The patter of her paws falling was heard for a moment more before the grass covered her advance into the thicket.

Time passed still, evening grew to night and the call for camp was sounded. It was the loud resounding call that woke Noah up finally, and he stirred once more. His lids cracked open and he sought out Elann first, wherever she was in the wagon. If she was still acting as his pillow, he would tighten his hold around her once more, before groaning in the unwant of wakefulness. His own comfort was immense in that moment.

Journey to the East

“He’ll be elated,” Aimee said, looking to Noah as he resettled on Elann’s lap, falling back into whatever light sleep he roused from momentarily.

The wolf found it curious Elann expressed that she didn’t want Aimee to risk going out, even though she had been hunting alone a fair few times since their initial meeting in Syliras.

“I appreciate your concern,” she addressed, rising from the trunk. “I’ve been here long enough since Noah’s been injured. He’s getting better and you haven’t left his side since, so I’m assuming that your relationship has gotten better as well.”

She turned her back to Elann, bending down to reopen her trunk. “No offense, but it’s quite boring being around camp all day, sleeping... having people look at me like that. They don’t think I notice but I swear humans are nose-blind, eye-blind, and deaf sometimes, think they’re being so sneaky with their glances.” There was a clear tone of disdain in Aimee’s voice, though she was talking quietly.

She began strip off her tights, pulling them down from around her waist to pull off from the leg holes around her ankles. “I guess I lied, it’s not the cook’s cooking that I don’t want, even if it isn’t the best, I’d just rather be away for a little while.”

Aimee looked at Elann, folding her tights. Though she was bare from the waist down Noah’s shirt was long enough to cover her. “Your cooking is great, don’t get me wrong, but like I said, just for a little while...” A soft smile was shown then, partly in apology for rejecting Elann’s offer and ultimately disregarding the Benshira’s concerns though Aimee did address them.

She turned around again, letting the pants drop into the trunk before she went to take off her shirt, pulling at the bottom to roll up over her head and down into the trunk. Her hands came through her hair a final time, fanning it all out before turning back to look at Elann, listening if she had anything else to say in reply, perhaps a final urging or well wish before Aimee would depart.

Journey to the East

Though Elann was there and it was stormy, it took Noah a while to fall into a deep sleep, as deep as it would go given his naturally light sleeping ability. All that was to tell he was truly asleep was the deepness in which he took his breaths and how the bond only communicated the feelings of his quiet existence there before her. As Aimee spoke out from across the wagon his breathing lessened in its weight, his mind drawing up into the state of half-sleep and half-not, stirring readily once Elann’s spoke as well, her voice sounding directly overhead and her torso rumbling as she talked. His arms tightened in their hold over Elann’s midsection after she spoke, a soft murmur of a moan coming from him and spoken over her belly.

“No, but he can still see leagues better than either of us...” Aimee trailed, watching Noah stir. “Thanks for the offer, maybe next time. I’ve lost my appetite for it now, I’ve been reading all day anyway.”

She stood, moving to put her book away then turning and sitting down overtop her crate. She looked out of the wagon to the horses behind theirs, hearing the sloshing hooves as they coursed through once packed dirt now turned to mush.

“I guess everyone will be sleeping in their wagons tonight. The ground’s probably soaked, way soaked,” she went on, pausing for a few breaths. “I think I’m going hunting tonight, see what I can find.”

Aimee looked at Noah sullenly. “It’s much easier to do when you’ve got an eagle to point everything out for you, safer too since he watches while I eat, makes sure nothing will happen to me.” She sighed, coursing a hand through her hair, root to tip. “I’m hungry though, and there’s no telling what the cook will whip up. I may not have the stomach for it tonight.”

Journey to the East

Aimee stuck her nose into her book, keeping herself angled towards Elann and Noah so they knew she wasn’t totally against speaking to them. If needed, she’d heed any beck or call her way. As it were, the couple was drawing close to one another and she was drawing close to the story in her lap.

Across the wagon, Noah’s request for water was answered by Elann. He declined the tea, diluted or not, just wanting the water to quench his thirst and aid in alleviating his headache and mild congestion. He figured his own body was tired from healing, though he hadn’t been engaging in anything particularly exhaustive until the trek to the river and bathing in the cool water thanks to Elann. He was grateful to be clean regardless, hoping whatever he was developing would pass by with sleep and water.

Elann came back to him with the water and he drank it slowly as the both of them watched the pattering rain drop down on the edge of the wagon. Noah felt a little bad for the horses since they had to trudge through it all at the behest of the humans. He figured if they were wild they would seek refuge, if they were anything like him or Elann, they didn’t like being wet if it wasn’t their choice. Thankfully for him, Elann didn’t feel like talking, and he was content with that, watching and listening as the wagons rolled, the horseshoes’ plodded, and the rain pattered.

Noah patted Elann and gazed out the back with renewed anticipation and fluttering excitement. Following him grabbing her attention thunder ripped through the sky and shook the clouds, causing the rain to pour heavier still for a few moments before lightening up again. He showed her a small smile, bending down to set the cup on the floor of the wagon before lying down on the bench, using her lap as a pillow for his head, his arms wrapping around her midsection while he nearly buried his face into the front fabric of her dress.

By the time evening fell and it was approaching time for the wagons to pull over for the night, the rain had ceased and Noah was well into his slumber. On the opposite bench, Aimee lay down on her back, her book held over her head before she let out a soft grunt of frustration, folding the corner of the page before closing it altogether then resting it over her bosom.

“I wish I had his eyesight,” she said, looking at Noah. “Maybe I could read in the dark, low light at least.” She sat up, arching her back to relieve built up tension. “Don’t get me wrong, I love being able to smell and hear like I can, but it would be amazing to see like he can. Don’t you think so?”