[ P ] Too hot to handle

Here the magma deep within the mountain was jealous of the sky and the sun within. It crawled upwards, hissing at the brilliant star and its hubris. Trapped by its earthly prison, however, it could not surface. All it could do was blow steam and until the ground water boiled and formed a lake within a mountainside fissure. And so a hot spring was born.

He had found this spot within the mountains when he had been a boy and, although it was not his to claim, he guarded it like a jealous sea serpent. Green eyes flashed with envy whenever he considered telling another sole of his secret spot -- and so he never did. Not even his dear sister knew where to find him when he drifted up the mountainside and disappeared. For all Black knew, he had been swallowed whole by the fairies.

And it felt a tad like that when he swam through the water, its taste metallic and sharply mineral. It was unlike the salty ocean and oh-so soothing for his muscles after a long week of storm watching, rescuing pups from riptides, and climbing up to this coveted cove. Not that he rescued many pups these days. Aberdeen had ushered in many a widow... and their forlorn glances out to the ocean could not replace the love of their late husbands.

There would be few pups come spring... that he knew.

Sighing, Caspian closed his eyes for a moment -- until the snap of a twig caused his eyes to snap back open.

manip: bean + code: clae

Don't Believe Everything You See “Oh where oh where has the Ghillie Dhu gone? Oh where oh where can he be,” she sang ominously within the little forest she had occupied half a season ago just before the ball, the very thing that had brought forth her desire to trounce around here again. Once splattered in blood and reeking of death, the scent had long since vanished with Spring now here and so too had the body of a broken man she had left barely breathing in the snow no longer laid. Curiosity danced as she had caught sight of the budding of flowers hidden among the valley where his body once laid and her fangs had itched to slice his throat. She could remember it so clearly, his primal threats to kill her should he find her but unfortunately for him she had caught him first; his malnourished body and hell hound eyes, he had been nothing. Just an empty husk with a lost mind. Had he upped and survived or had the Fae taken up her offer of sacrifice? She’d like to believe with the little ring of flora that had formed, it was the latter, causing a smile to ghoulishly form upon her maw though there was that bit of sorrow. A play thing; a pet now gone. It was too bad if such were true. She had not been done with her prey. Something had caught her attention and she had moved along the trail further away till she lost track of it entirely, her ears twitching as if she was being led by something no one else could see with an all too ready eagerness. She was never a woman to ignore the voices on the wind, the guiding call that caressed her like a sinner's hand to draw her into the dark. It often brought her to some interesting things and today might be no different. As she heard the steady trickling of water, she knew she had potentially found a treasure that the earth had stowed away from the King and his men that plagued nature so carelessly. It all had slipped so far away from itself. Just as she narrowed in on the heat where fissures warmed the colder surrounding, she realized she was not guided to solitude. A different scent oh so familiar surfaced where the rest had failed but it was not of the same memory, no, one a little more devious came to the forefront of her mind perhaps even more vivid than the other. She never had found that gem again that fell into the ocean but it seems she has located the other pair, doubling her profit. She attempted to prowl in secrecy, keeping hidden by the rocks and debris around the heated pool, peeking out to see the faintly more saturated blue hues of a pelt among the water but a fog made it near impossible to see clearly. At the snap of a twig, she’d pause, contemplating playing a little hide and seek but found no fun in that. “It seems I’d make quite the poor stalker, hmm?” she chuckled, coming out of hiding but not entirely, taking advantage of the mists that lined the lake so she would become but a beacon that flickered in and out of it’s semi-opaque tendrils as it rolled over her fire imbued pelt.

art ☓ table ▸ bunny

- shoves this to spring too -

Tsk. His tongue clicked against the roof of his mouth as he paddled aimlessly within the water. Although his exterior was peaceful, internally, he brooded. What became of the winter ball? No part of him worried over the King's wellbeing—to hell with the head that wore the stolen crown. However, he feared for the highlanders that had been dragged to the affair. Had they been mere puppets to a false show of unity? Or had they been part of the whole assassination affair? Word had it that Voice—the alleged keeper of peace—had ordered the King's death. It was to no great surprise of Caspian's. Anyone who craved power had a way of justfying another death with seamless grace.

He just hoped his sister was well. She had not gone to the festivities but she had been absent on the night where it all had transpired. Although he'd caught glimpses of her here and there, he had not seen much.

And what of that solider? His wounds had largely healed from her, yet whenever there was a slight sting, he thought of the sharpness of her teeth and wit. And her diehard loyalty to her side. Even if he loathed it, some part of him was forced to respect it... and tease it. Such was his solemnly sworn duty.

There were others, too, such as that little girl he'd almost drowned out of immature foolishness. Ah, and the siren. A pleasant warmth stirred within him as a slow smile spread over his lips. He had never taken a woman in a body of water before, the thought had never occured to him, but now he felt as though he was addicted to the taste. Not just the act, but the intoxication of the whole endeavor—her eyes, her fur, her twisting words and dangerous promises.

He was content to reminisce when a twig snapped and he glanced to the side, still distracted by the erotic memories that lazily captured his attention.

Only they were memories with newfound company.

A wry laugh was tugged from his lips as he saw her again, as beautiful ever yet strikingly red in the sunlight. She looked like a creature of the forest, not of the ocean. Nonetheless, she was still shrouded in mystery—and quite literally. Fog obscured her chest and half of her face. As her veil shifted with the breeze, he witnessed both eyes and a welcome shiver wound down his spine.

"I won't tell if you won't," he mused as his paws pressed against the pool's edge and he waded toward her. "Hello again, sweet siren." A wolfish smile spread across his lips.

manip: bean + code: clae

@Wisteria

Don't Believe Everything You See It seemed the lone male recognized her well enough in the swirls of mist or perhaps her voice alone was a memory all it’s own that never left his head; those sweet nothings to poetry to those moans into the night. Whichever the case, it appeared to beckon him gently but she did take notice to the sardonic laugh that strummed from his lips, which didn’t feel so welcoming though she supposed the context hadn’t been the best humor. She personally found it rather entertaining but that was because she knew herself. Stalking wasn’t outside of her range of hobbies, especially when she had been but a child learning about others while too shy to interact, studying them like they were a prized rabbit at an auction or an experiment no one knew the outcome to and she was seconds away from discovering it. That bagged the question: was her studying of this man over? Or had it only just begun? Had he passed or failed her first, that was something she never quite came to a conclusion to, for in a sense yes and no for it would depend on how she worded the theory but he certainly proved her hypothesis with flying colors when the sheets of her chambers had been sullied by someone new and so eagerly willing. For a split moment the fog would subside enough to see those brilliant emeralds and in that moment it would seem as though the mist had lightly caressed his chin and coaxed him in before turning into a leash to guide him to her. Like a dog, he would follow without a proper invitation though she didn’t mind for she already knew he wasn’t wholly obedient, he just had a habit of taking the bait. He did play her at her own game after all, though she couldn’t say either of them had lost. The scholar in her wanted to take things in retrospect but all her body desired was to feel his warmth again; oh how the mind and desires often argued in the body. Her ears would flick gently to the sound of his playful voice, now realizing she missed it, their time apart having been a little too long. His words pulled her lips into an amused smile, her tail giving a light sway on top of the water causing light ripples to counter the ones he was creating as he moved toward her. She would meet him halfway, gliding along the water till she was a little less than shoulder deep where she would gently greet him, should he allow, with a press of her lips into the curve where his jaw and neck were connected by tender flesh where she’d place a gentle nip mischievously. “Hello to you too, Sailor Caspian. I do enjoy a secret or two, especially with you,” she cooed before slipping past him but not without letting her side glide against his on the way and her tail gently flicked the underside of his chin. She knew his body far more than she knew who he was but she also knew him more than he knew her. At least she knew his name, he couldn't say the same about her. Taking in a breath, she’d slide down where he had been resting, relaxing to the sensation of the heat the water provided against the cold of the air. “Running from your shell again, did it get too heavy?” she asked gently, still playing on his old metaphor, curious what brought him to the middle of absolute isolation. She’d adjust herself a bit in the water, gently knocking a few of the rocks that lined the edge of the pool with her shoulder so she could add a bit of extra support where her neck would rest against.

art ☓ table ▸ bunny

It was true—in most ways, he was her dog. Not one that slept upon a plush cushion or fed from her hand, but one that knew his name well enough to come when he was called. And more often when he wasn't, often nipping at her heels or accidentally aggravating her. But perhaps that was the core of their relationship. This proverbial tug of war kept the relationship fresh and interesting. If she tugged too hard, he'd growl and back up. That would play upon her nerves, and although he would never know how close she would come to killing him each time, she'd grant him the opportunity for obedience once more. At times he would play the role of the dominant one, but that was more of a role she granted him within her own theatre.

There was no questioning who truly pulled the strings. And, if he was being truly honest, he would have to admit that he appreciated her rough form of guidance. He didn't have to think—no, he only had to feel (and worry, just a little). That made it all the more entertaining.

As she slid into the water, he was drawn toward her like one magnet to another of opposite charge. Her delicate greeting held a fragility that was contrary to the body that had endured both him and the waves. At her less-than-gentle nip, Caspian felt a small jolt of electricity run down his spine, and he turned to trace his nose from her cheek to shoulder—if she allowed such a fondness.

On script, she slid away, her body sweetly pressing against his own as she passed. Caspian smirked, this time remembering her quip. "You see through me," he mused. "Do I seem too weary? Does it show?" Dark ears flicked and he idly drew toward her again.

"I would abandon that pesky shell if it weren't so..." Hmm... how would he describe his family? "So painfully important. Do you have anything like that, sweet siren?"

manip: bean + code: clae

@Wisteria