Before you rush out into the world searching for miracles,
don't forget the one that is right in front of you.
Love, love is the greatest miracle of all...
The house was quiet save for the muffled sound of summer insects singing in the night outside. The scent of night-blooming flowers made its way through an open window, its invisible fingers lightly caressing the slumbering people inside.
Moonlight spilled through the room, illuminating the pale features of the sleeping man. Strands of purple hair fell into his face and he moved restlessly in his sleep.
Sairaag.
The sharp, choking smell of fire; smoke and mists swirling like ghosts in the gloomy half-light. The insane, bloodthirsty presence of Zanaffar in his blood, reeling power streaming through him. The accursed Tree was behind him, its holy light fighting him every step of the way.
The blue-haired bitch had dared to interrupt Lina Inverse when she called forth the Giga Slave, dared to interrupt before spell was completed. She dared to oppose him, trying to deprive him of what he so desperately sought? Well, she would pay. They would all witness the full extent of his power, and then... they would die. Light-headed with power he raised his hand, raw magic flowing easily through him, and he hurled the lethal, blinding bolt of lightning towards the blue-haired girl who had presumed to disrupt his grand design.
Everything slowed down, the air becoming strangely thick, the spell moving forward in slow motion. Around him the scenery changed, all his other enemies fading away like phantoms, the blackened ruins suddenly replaced by green foliage, the acerbic smell of smoke becoming the scent of flowers. They were standing in Sylphiel's garden, his hand still raised in attack, the deadly blast still speeding towards her. Through raging confusion he realized he had to cancel the spell, but everything was so strange, distorted... Time slowed even more, yet no matter how he tried he couldn't stop the blazing bolt of lightning. She looked up, her eyes met his, and he felt a twinge of panic as he realized there was no more time.
Then the spell hit her.
Falling forever, blood marring her pastel clothes, smeared into her opal hair she reached out towards him. Then she hit the ground, collapsed into a broken heap among the flowers. Desperately fighting the strangely frozen time he rushed over to her, gathered her delicate, shattered body into his arms. Her eyes were closed, a thin trickle of blood trailing from the corner of her mouth, coloring her lips red. He called upon his power to cast a healing spell... And nothing happened.
Like when he had first returned to life, his magic wouldn't answer. He tried again, and again, and yet nothing happened. Tears streamed uncontrollably down his face as he held her close, feeling her body go limp as the last breath of life left her.
How could this happen?
This was not supposed to happen.
Why?
He sat up with a start. His heart beat hard and he gasped for breath, sliding a trembling hand through his hair. Moonlight streamed through the open window.
Only a dream
He finally calmed down enough to realize that fact.
It was only a dream. Nothing more.
He looked down at his trembling hands. Only a dream. It could never really happen.
I would rather die than harm her.
Yet the uneasy feeling refused to let go. He stood and walked over to the window. The cream-colored summer moon soared in the sky, bathing the land with soft light. Crickets chirped, a blackbird sung somewhere beyond the garden, sung as if its heart was about to break. The night was beautiful, ethereal. Yet his heart still ached.
I would never harm her.
Never.
He turned away from the moonlit night and paced back and forth. Finally he gave up and opened the door to leave his room. He had to check, had to make sure. Perhaps it was ridiculous, but he knew he wouldn't be able to get any more sleep until he knew for sure she was safe. Her door wasn't closed but left ajar for the cat to be able to come and go as it pleased. Without a sound he walked through the dusky hallway and slowly slid her door open. She lay cuddled up in her bed, soundly asleep. A few rays of light from the window in his room reached around him to caress her. He could hear her breathing, calm, undisturbed. Safe.
Relief slowly surged through him, her presence chasing away the last shadows of the nightmare. He remained standing where he was, just watching her, listening to her breathing.
As he finally turned to leave he heard her move and he froze. She sat up and rubbed her eyes and sleepily mumbled his name.
The feeling of another's presence slowly awoke her and she opened her eyes. The door to her room was open, moonlight filtering through it. She could make out the shape of a man standing in the doorway, the celestial light surrounding his silhouette with a glowing halo. Puzzled she sat up and rubbed her eyes.
"Antares..?" she mumbled, making the name a question. He moved slightly, nodding, the moonbeams shifting and moving around him.
"Yes," he replied, his voice very quiet, slightly awkward.
"I was just... I just wanted to make sure you were alright."
She raised an eyebrow and managed a tired smile.
"Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be?"
He made a gesture with one hand, a glowing apparition in the night
"I just had a dream... I'm sorry to have disturbed you."
She shook her head with a smile and stroked a few strands of hair behind her ear.
"It's alright."
The luminous moonlight made the night surreal, its glow turning this half-sleep into a dream. And surely it must be a dream... If hadn't been, certainly she wouldn't have heard her own voice ask him to come in?
He hesitated, apparently as surprised as she was, then slowly approached her. The light danced around him, hid his face in shadows. She moved over and patted the bed with one hand.
"Tell me about your dream. It might help. My mother sometimes helped me chase my nightmares away that way."
He remained standing, cautious and uncertain like a spooked animal, then slowly sat down on the edge of the bed. She could make out his eyes now, glowing faintly in the dark like Poohti's always did.
He bowed his head, looked away.
"I dreamed... I was back in Sairaag, three years ago. Lina Inverse was there, and the rest of her friends. And you."
He hesitated, but she remained quiet, her silence encouraging him to continue.
"Do you remember when you prevented Lina from casting the Giga Slave? How I attacked you?"
She nodded and he let out a sigh of exasperation.
"I dreamed that all happened again. And then the scene changed, and we were in your garden and I could stop the attack. I killed you, Sylphiel! You were dying in my arms and I couldn't do a thing!"
His voice grew rough, and he tensed; she sensed he was deeply disturbed by the dream. She reached out and put a hand on his arm, soft as a butterfly's touch, yet he started in surprise and turned to stare at her.
"But it was only a dream. Not for real." she mumbled. " It wouldn't really happen, would it?"
He shook his head.
"No! Of course not! I would never harm you, you know that. I couldn't. I..."
He cut off and turned away again, leaving the sentence unfinished. She studied him, how the moonlight made his purple hair glow, made shadows dance across his face.
Was he about to say he loves me? she thought to herself. Why does that thought make me feel all tingling, warm and cold at the same time? Do I want to hear him say that? No. Yes...
This really must be a dream.
But if it is a dream... then it wouldn't matter if I...
She reached out towards him, hesitant and determined at once, to touch his cheek. As he turned towards her in surprise she leaned forward. Barely touching, an innocent caress, like the brush of a butterfly's wing she kissed his lips. She felt him stiffen and his eyes opened wide to stare down at her in utter astonishment. She opened her eyes, looked into his. Suddenly she remembered what he had once told her about Eris, about being forced and humiliated, and she let go.
"I'm sorry," she whispered. " I shouldn't have..."
He blinked at her a few times, still looking perfectly bewildered. It would almost had been amusing hadn't she felt so confused and guilty.
Finally recovering from his surprise he shook his head.
"No, no... I didn't mind... I was just so..."
She looked away, a blue-haired siren glowing in the moonlight.
"I'm not like Eris. I won't make you do anything you don't want. I shouldn't have kissed you."
She looked so small and sad where she sat, wrapped in her covers like a little girl, yet fighting a young woman's confusion and emotions. His face softened and he reached out to put one hand under her chin, tilting her face up so he could meet her eyes.
"I'm sorry," she mumbled again. His eyes narrowed somewhat, as from an invisible grin.
"I'm not. You just caught me by surprise."
Her large eyes glittered like emeralds in her moonlit face.
"You don't mind?"
He really did smile then, a warm smile, and once again she was amazed by how different his face looked when he smiled.
"Not at all. But you... Are you sure you..?"
He trailed off, leaving the question unspoken and unanswered. She closed her eyes, briefly, then opened them again. She refused to think of the painful past, of all the hatred, agony and grief. Not tonight. This is my moondream, she thought. None of that really matters.
She looked up at him, tentatively reaching out again.
"I'm sure," she whispered.
He nodded once, recognizing her decision, then leaned forward slightly to meet her lips. The kiss wasn't as innocent this time, but hungry, hot. Her lips were on fire, the touch of his sensitive fingers against her skin sending tickling jolts through her.
He answered her kiss, softly yet firmly, letting her decide how far to go. Her shimmering blue hair was soft as silk against his fingers, her small arms around him strangely comforting. Never once with Eris had he felt like this. Never once had been this close to someone he... Loved?
Is this love? The most mysterious, elusive enigma of human emotions - could this be it?
I don't know, he conceded. All I know if it feels so right to hold her in my arms and that I never want to let go.
Sylphiel finally broke the kiss and leaned her head against his chest, one of her small hands playing absentmindedly with a lock of his hair.
"You don't have to do this if you don't want to..." she whispered. He answered by leaning down to kiss her forehead, holding her close.
"You needn't worry about that. But the same goes for you - you can stop this anytime you want."
She looked up at him, no doubt remaining in her deep emerald eyes.
"I don't want to stop," she breathed, then used her grip on his hair to pull his face down so she could kiss him once more.
Her eyes never left his as she unbuttoned his nightshirt, a constant, wordless question in their depths. Her fingers were inexperienced and hesitant, yet their touch upon his skin burned like ice and chilled like fire, her kisses leaving him breathless. His shirt fell forgotten to the floor as she started working the buttons of her own nightgown with trembling fingers. He gathered her hands in his, turning them to kiss their palms and she closed her eyes, slowly leaning back.
Delivering her nervous hands from their task, his fingers continued unbuttoning her gown, slowly, almost teasingly. She opened her eyes again to look up at him, her eyes pools of darkness in the ghostly light. No matter what she had said, she was trembling slightly, delicate and vulnerable like a little child. Very careful not to rush her he dealt with the last button, leaving the cloth of her gown still covering her body. He leaned over her, slowly sliding his fingers through a coil of her beautiful hair, letting her decide herself when she was ready to go further.
She just lay still for a moment, watching him in silence as he stroked her hair, the sensation sending tingles through her. As the wild, almost panicky racing of her heart had subsided somewhat she took a deep breath and flung her unbuttoned gown aside, reaching up to embrace him. She held him close, feeling his arms around her in return. His arms were strong, yet held her as carefully as if she had been made out of delicate glass. As she leaned towards him she could hear the soothing sound of his heartbeat. She closed her eyes, letting herself be held like a little child. Skin against skin, the closeness was nothing like anything she had experienced before. Her last nervousness faded away and she just relaxed in his embrace, tilting her face up to be kissed.
He bent down to kiss her; soft breathless kisses barely touching her face. He trailed his fingers through her hair once more, then beyond, tickling her back and shoulders with their feathery touch. She wrapped her arms closer around him, pressing her body against his, as if wanting the two to melt together. His touch sent stabs of fire blazing through her blood and she gasped as his hands expertly explored her body. She sank back against her pillows, dragging him down with her. The sound of her quickening heartbeat in her ears was deafening, she could feel it reverberate all through her body.
She was on fire, she was burning... Emotions and sensations she had never known before surged through her, intense as magic, overwhelming.
No matter how careful he was it still hurt as he entered her, and she gasped and winced in pain. He hesitated, looked down at her, his lustrous eyes filled with concern.
"Did I hurt you?" he whispered, pulling back. She shook her head and reached out for him again, blinking away tears.
"No," she assured him, her voice somewhat husky.
"It's alright. It's... the first time..."
He closed his eyes as if in pain, then opened them again to give her a dejected look.
"Sylphiel..." he managed to get out, stroking her cheek with a slightly unsteady hand.
"You deserved someone better than me..."
She shook her head and smiled through her tears.
"I don't think such a man exists," she whispered, then reached up again to kiss him with tearstained lips, the ethereal moonlight falling around them like a curtain of light and shadows.
In many ways the opposite of Eris, she might seem hesitating but knew for sure what she wanted. Unearthly beautiful in the filtered light she leaned back beneath him, her precious blue hair spilling like liquid lapis lazuli over her pillows, her emerald eyes reflecting the moonlight like the surface of bottomless oceans. Her arms wrapped themselves around him, holding him close, and her feverish lips met his, again and again. Her chest rose and sank in time with her quick breathing, the throbbing pulse of her heartbeat tangible through her skin. Never had he felt like this before, the surge of emotions, of utterly and completely wishing only for her happiness. Her touch, her closeness, her total trust in him made him ache deep inside.
Never. Anything like this.
Never before.
Pain subsiding into pleasure, the rush of her blood quickened, liquid fire in her veins. She felt feverish, her body shivering with sensations she had never dreamed existed. She clung close to him, somehow not able to ever get close enough. All rational thought, all memories faded, became unimportant. There was only him, her, the warm night and the cool moonlight.
All movements appeared strangely slow, the slanted moonbeams rendering the room in dreamlike silver shadows. Her face was a ghostly mask painted in silver-white, her eyes squeezed shut, shimmering shadows moving in alien patterns across her moonglowing skin. Unearthly beautiful; yet her truly being human was the most amazing magic of all. Ethereal, yet so very real under his yearning fingers and lips. With love, near reverence he kissed the salt tears from her cheeks, savored her smell, her feel, the sound of her breathing and her racing heart.
She moaned and writhed, every touch, every movement sending electric shocks through her entire body. She felt tears running down her cheeks but couldn't make them stop. The experience was so intense, the extreme closeness after the long times of loneliness overwhelming.
The rush of her blood made her dizzy, yet it kept growing stronger, faster. She felt as if she would soar away forever, lost in the dreamy moonlight, the sensations lifting her beyond thought and physical form. Just as she thought she could take no more, that she'd be lost forever, the rush, the surge, all the impressions charged together in a crushing, pulsing relief. She felt him stiffen, heard him whisper her name through the dull, heavy throbbing of her heartbeat. Then there was only silence, stillness. Moonlight.
She lay in his arms, close, and listened to the sound of his even breathing. She shut her eyes, feeling heavy and tired, yet happier than she could remember having felt for a very long time. He was studying her, those glowing mismatched eyes reflecting the waning moonlight.
"Should I leave..?" he asked as she looked up at him. She shook her head and he leaned forward to kiss the last tears from her cheeks. She reached up to stroke a few wild strands of hair out of his face.
"No. Don't leave. I've been alone for so long."
She snuggled closer, feeling his heart beat in time with hers.
"I don't ever want to be alone again."
She felt his embrace tighten, those strong arms holding her, protecting her.
"I think I love you," she whispered. His eyes widened, looking into hers. To her surprise she spotted a lonely tear, glittering in the moonlight slide down his cheek. He opened his mouth to speak, but couldn't find any words. She smiled and saved him from his dilemma by firmly planting her lips on his. As she drifted into sleep, still safely held in his arms, she was almost certain she heard him whisper a muffled 'I love you' in return.
The house was quiet save for the muffled sound of summer insects singing in the night outside. The scent of night-blooming flowers made its way through an open window, its invisible fingers lightly caressing the slumbering people inside.
Held close by him, the blue-haired girl slept, her breathing even, her dreams soaring.
Holding her close, the purple-haired man slept, completely affirmed, accepted at last.
Both lost souls finally having found peace, both healed through love.
A small shadow floated through the open door, only to find its usual spot in Sylphiel's bed occupied. With a feline smile the cat turned to find herself somewhere else to sleep. She walked out the door leaving her humans alone with the night, with each other.
With the moonlight.
Well, who would have thought it? Kopii and Sylphiel got to have their fun at last...
And with that we say goodbye to this unlikely couple once and for all. This story closes the Dunnoyet Chronicles - here the story ends, and what will happen to our friends in the future remains a mystery.
Thank you for reading this story to the end. I hope you have liked reading it as much as I have enjoyed writing it - or hopefully more, considering the writer's blocks and general anguish I've been battling to get it all written.
Write me at Silvestris@hotmail.com and bug me to write more if you want to find out.
The quotes are from Oshiro-sama's Letters to a Red Priest (in other words, I made 'em up) and can't be used without my permission. If you ask nicely and give me credit you'll most likely get my permission, but anyways...
I don't know if people would get insulted to be thanked for inspiring this story, but for all to know; it's all Pairaka's fault!
Her dirty mind was what corrupted my fave characters here into demanding a lemon in the first place. For shame, P-chan! Kram!