Morning Glory

8/26/o8 tues.

She remembered the darkness. Dreaming in darkness had been a norm for her. The black, spacious, emptiness had always left her feeling exactly that – empty. She had gotten used to it after a couple of years, but the darkness always made it seem like she was just closing her eyes one second, then opening them the next. Her nights were unfit full. Tonight was no different.

Phoenix woke, her lilac eyes fluttering open a few times – pupils adjusting to the dim light in the bedroom. The barest hint of early morning rays were pouring in through her window, the sky streaked a lighter blue near the horizon. Her subconscious told her it was after four in the morning. As her vision cleared, she found herself staring at a face. A decidedly male face.

She held her breath as her eyes took in his appearance.

Handsome, young, a slight tan and dark strands of almost wavy ebony hair framed this face. His brows were relaxed, his lashes curled and tightly shut in deep sleep, and his lips were slightly parted – and dry – and breathing cool, fresh air onto her own face. His breath smelled vaguely like her tavern's brand of ale.

She had the sudden urge to kiss him.

Arca.

She wanted to kiss him.

Instead, she smiled to herself as she watched her fiancee sleep.

She could barely conjure up memories of last night. She was doing some chore with a rag, he had come in, they hugged and kissed, she heated up some leftovers from that night while he showered, and then something else happened... She forgot... Then, she thought, he started drinking a bit and something else happened with Kiata or Miaka, then they came up here, stripped and threw on their night ware, and flopped into bed. Now they lay facing each other, their bodies mere inches away from the other, and both were covered in the thin white sheet that was used for cool summer nights, such as last night.

He had come back from some random journey last night, after about three weeks of being out on the road. She was surprised at first to find him in her bed this morning, so used to him being gone and away, and so used to her heavy heart missing him. Now, though, she was glad to gaze upon his dozing face as it nestled in his pillow, taking on quite the angelic look.

Arca usually woke before Phoenix – the waitress who liked to sleep in 'til the sun (and her twin) would no longer allow it. Now the tables were turned, and where usually she would wake finding him admiring her sleeping, drooling face (which was then followed by her blushing and hiding under the covers), she would now do the same to him. Though she knew it wouldn't last long – Arca never slept that long anyway.

Like her, he had dreams of darkness, but unlike the priestess-in-training, he saw images in the darkness. Images that he wouldn't disclose to her, and kept him up at all hours of the night. Which was why she was okay with him drowning in her business' alcohol (sometimes).

Phoenix sighed lightly, smiling as she took in his attractive features. He was just so awesome. She wondered sometimes what he ever saw in her, being that she was such a simple girl, but she knew that he questioned the same thing about himself. She didn't know why, but she figured that she never would know.

A few minutes ticked by before he began to stir. She was surprised he slumbered as long as he did. Slowly, his eyes opened, revealing a surprising molten orange color as his eyes focused in on her. (A.N.: the orange color when seen in Arca's eyes, represents happiness, and passion. happiness being yellow, and passion being dark red.)

She blushed ever so lightly, and grinned as his awareness kicked in. He smiled back at her and blinked lazily, his eyelids never reaching up past the halfway point.

"Good morning," she croaked, then blushed more. She had been awake longer than him, but hadn't used her voice yet. She cleared her throat, and tried again. "Good morning," she said, and though still a little rough, her voice came out smoother.

Arca's smile widened. "Morning..." was all he said. He continued gazing at her in that half-lidded stare, using that crooked smile that made her melt. The orange swirled in his eyes, making them hauntingly beautiful. She hadn't seen orange on him since she had given him her sash all that while ago... Man, that brought back memories. Brought back a sweet nostalgia.

"So..." she began, the blush easing gradually from her cheeks. "Does the orange color in your eyes mean that you had a good dream?"

"My eyes are...? Ah, well..." He stretched slightly, a mere movement underneath the sheets. "I did indeed dream well last night..."

Something in his voice made her raise a brow, her curiosity piqued. "Oh? And pray tell, what did it entail?" She teased him, but she did really wanna know. Arca's good dreams were always rare and far in between.

He grinned at her, the sleepy look in his eyes diminishing as he became more awake, the orange glowing darkly.

She blushed, the red heat returning to her cheeks as she blinked innocently, bringing the cool sheet up to hide behind, only allowing her eyes to peek out at him.

"I dreamt I was sleeping on a cloud, and when I woke, an angel hovered above me. She was so beautiful, that I swear she was no mere angel, but a goddess in her own right."

"Oh...?" she questioned, trying to beat down her jealousy and not glare at him. "So do I know this hoe-bag or are you gonna tell me her name so I can find her...?"

His grin widened, and this time she didn't resist glaring hatred at him.

"The angel was youthful, with long blue-black hair, and bright, shining, lavender eyes... Her skin was like a light milk chocolate and her full, soft lips reminded me of rose petals."

Phoenix shifted her eyes, blushing and feeling very much like an idiot. "Oh..." was all she said. "...Continue..."

"Shall I?" Arca teased, scooting closer to her, only a hair's width away, enabling her to feel the heat of his large body contrasting to the cool chill of the room and the sheets around them.

"Arca!" she shouted, raising a fist and waving it in a silent threat, but more as a show of frustration. "Just...! MOU!"

He laughed, deep and joyful beside her as she pouted at him angrily.

"As I was saying, she was a goddess all on her own. She descended upon me, and at the mere brush of her skin against my fingertips, I could not control myself. I dreamt I had ravished an angel..." he finished quietly, his eyes roaming down her body, its outline visible through the thin material, and when he brought his eyes back up, they were more red than they had been a moment ago.

Phoenix remained silent, not knowing how to respond to his heated confession. Arca watched her for a long moment, before reaching out for her beneath the sheet. His hand came around her waist and dragged her forward, closing the distance between their bodies.

"What about this morn'...?" he asked, his voice low as his breath tickled her ear. He moved up slightly, kissing her temple, before pulling back just enough to look her in the eye. "Will I ravish an angel this morning...?"

Her lips worked for words as she stared into his eyes, the red swirling in the dark orange, and becoming dominant. Then his eyes left hers and gazed down at her lips. He pulled her as close as she could get, then leaned down to take her lips. Only he stopped just an breath away.

Confused, she looked up at him, then glanced down at his lips. Then she remembered her earlier thoughts of wanting to kiss him, and her hands crept up from in between their bodies to cup his face, bringing her own up to close what little distance there was left.

Their lips touched, and the kiss was sweet and gentle. Her hands pushed up into his hair, her fingers combing through the thick locks as his hands roved all over her back, until one snuck around to the front and cupped her breast, filling his palm and the curve of his fingers with the soft, firm flesh. Arca squeezed her gently upon contact, which elicited a soft, airy moan from his young lover. She pulled back from their kiss to playfully glare at him. His response was that crooked half smile. She grinned and kissed him again, before running her slick tongue over his bottom lip, then taking his lip in between her teeth and tugging, which made him groan low and deep against her. She released him and looked up at him, a smirk on her own lips as if to say 'There, now I've got you!'

Arca growled playfully and dragged her forward by her hips, which made Phoenix giggle like a school girl. Her hands pushed at his muscled chest while he ate at the side of her neck. She laughed and protested, and when he finally relented and pulled back, he smiled down at the red mark he left on her skin. A hickey to show that she was his, and his alone.

Her hand slapped down on the welt, and his eyes came back to hers. "Oh Arca, now I have to wear a band-aid or a scarf or something... Embarrassing...!"

He growled – again, his tone playful. "Don't cover it. I want everyone with able sight to see that you're mine," he said, nuzzling the other side of her neck.

She blushed again. "Arca, I run a business... I can't do that..." she pouted, squirming as his hands began to wander again, this time down her side.

He licked at her neck, his lips brushing her sensitive skin there and she got an inkling of what he was doing. "Oh no! Not another one!"

His chuckle was deep, and he ignore her as he sucked on the other side of her neck.

"Arca!" she shrieked, rolling over him in an attempt to stop him, but instead creating a small wrestling match. Small, because they tumbled around the bed for about a minute, and kicked off the sheet, before he finally pinned her down underneath him. Her hands were placed above her head, her wrists caught in one of his large hands, and one of his long legs was placed in between her own legs.

He grinned down at her, bringing his free hand up to her view and wiggling his fingers, looking like the very picture of rape. His molesty hand was just for dramatic effect.

"W-wait!" she shouted, tugging at her hands. "There's...something I gotta do first before you..." She gasped here dreadfully, turning her head to the side and looking pained. "Before you... Have your way with me...!" she choked, as though she actually minded.

"Oh? And what would that be?" he questioned, smirking at her horrible acting skills.

"Well... Just let go of my hands and you'll see – and don't give me that look! Ya got the rest of my body pinned down, I just need my hands... I won't try to escape, I promise..." She smiled sweetly, looking the picture of innocence, which of course, meant she wasn't.

He decided to give her a chance though, and released her hands. She rubbed her wrists, as though he had shackled her for days in some dank dungeon, which made him smile and roll his eyes. She then surprised him by throwing her arms around his neck and hugging him tightly.

"Aishiteruuu!" she shouted, smiling into his shoulder. "Aishiteru Koishii. Lots of Aishiteru..." She pulled back enough to smile at him.

Arca smiled back, and rubbed her nose with his. "Mo Aishiteru, Phoenix... Lots of Mo..."

Then, just as he was leaning down to kiss her deeply, she pushed at him while trying to simultaneously roll out from beneath him. The little minx! Little, lying minx...

In the short, short struggle that ensued, he managed to wedge both his legs in between hers, and captured her wrists again. "Worth a try..." she said nonchalantly, shrugging to the best of her restrained abilities.

"You promised you would not try to run..." he accused, playfully glaring at her.

"I lied..." was her response, before she grinned up at him.

"I noticed..." he said, before using his free molesty hand to massage her breast, squeezing it gently in his soft hold.

Phoenix hummed, before trying to wriggle out from under him again, but that only caused Arca to moan, and he dropped his head down by hers, groaning in her ear. She ceased her movements, blushing as he pulled back to look her in the eye. After a couple of tense moments, he shifted his hips, grinding into the part of her that was just aching for him. She moaned this time, her hips tilting upwards on their own accord, before she took control over them and dropped them back down onto the bed.

"I want you..." he said calmly, giving her that half-lidded gaze again.

"I know..." she retorted, feeling shy under the power of that crimson.

"Do you want me?" he asked, tilting his head the slightest degree to the right.

She didn't answer him, and instead chewed on her bottom lip. He decided he wouldn't wait for her to speak, so instead his free hand slid down and cupped her in her most intimate place, making her gasp and making him smile as his palm covered a damp patch over the crotch of her panties.

He flexed his strong fingers against her, and received a light moan.

"Arca..." she murmured, blushing lightly under the new morning rays. The room was lighter now, the color still pale and thin, but bright. Bright enough so his sharp eyes could take in every detail of his perfect lover. And she was exactly that – perfect.

He flexed his fingers against her again, more firmly this time, and she made a noise of pleasure and arched towards him.

"Please..." was all she said after that.

He pushed her white T-shirt up a little to the middle of her stomach, then used both hands to grip the sides of her black panties, tugging them down her hips and sliding them down her thighs and calves, then throwing them behind his shoulder.

He leaned over her, balancing himself with one hand by her head while the other pushed down his grey sweats. The need to be in her was so great, he could not stand to be another moment without being buried in her wet, hot--

"Arca, I just want you to hold me. Please...?" she pouted prettily, and he thought that his balls would explode, but not in the mind blowing orgasm way, but in the blue balls for hours kind of way.

"Oh......... Alright..." he murmured, hiking his pants up by a few inches, the cloth rubbing uncomfortably against his raging erection. He settled down on his side, as he previously was, and dragged her mostly naked body towards his. He felt as though he deserved some award of high standing, for not raping her sweet ass as she cuddled up against him, further igniting his carnal need for her.

He knew, though, that no award was forth coming, so instead he chose to pull her nightie down as far as it would go, and drag the bed sheet up to cover them both, so her view of her naked legs wouldn't remind him of her naked hips.

Phoenix smiled in contentment and snuggled into him, trying to ignore his raging erection, but proud that she could get such a rise out of him (no pun intended). She curled her arms in between their chests as his arms came around her waist and pulled her close. She honestly didn't know why she continued to give Arca blue balls all the time, but figured it had to do with the fact that she just simply loved to tease him.

She sighed against his bare skin, making him shiver in pleasure, and she figured that she'd probably have to screw his brains out when she woke up. Just because she loved him so, and to give the poor guy a break.

As for now, Phoenix let her eyes close as sleep called to her yet again, and she blatantly ignored the chirping of birds in the distance. Curled up to her Kosh and tucked under the blanket was all she really needed. She just hoped that she didn't wake up sore and satisfied.

Arca sighed heavily, his hard length pressing up against his sweats, was now nestled along the line of her lap, straining against his pants. He tightened his hold around his lover, dragging her close as she slumbered lightly, and he too began to feel the pull of sleep call.

As they slept, Phoenix in Arca's arms, the darkness returned to her. Except this time, it shifted, the shadows giving way to a wonderful view of white, fluffy clouds. And, amazingly enough, amidst the clouds lay a tall, dark, handsome man with little wolven ears and a thin, catty tail. His entire being contrasted so sharply with the white clouds that she was drawn to him, seeming to float down towards him. As she descended, his eyes flickered open, meeting hers and they reflected a golden, yellow color. She blushed, but then continued towards him. Just then, the man lifted his hand and his fingertips grazed her upper arm.

Something happened, something ignited between them, and suddenly she wanted to be with this man and have him inside of her. She wanted to know his name so she could call it out in ecstacy as she dragged her nails down his bare back. He, too, must have felt it, because the yellow in his eyes gave way to a darker color, a color of pure passion, and he curled his fingers around her upper arms and dragged her down the rest of the way, pulling her underneath him and capturing her lips with his own.

She moaned against his soft, searing lips – the feeling unknown and unlike anything she had ever experienced. One continuous thought ran through her mind as he disrobed her and made her cry out into the empty skies...

This is what it was like to love a God?...

OWARI

(Perhaps)