by Orr, Krystal
It had been then that she realized what she was doing and how she had done it. She'd looked down at herself, her torso still naked and her body covered in sweat and dirt, and her mind had worked in vain to connect the pieces to a puzzle she could not see.
Her thoughts had plagued her mind then. How was she moving? How was she sitting up? Where was Talliea? How much time had passed? As she'd sat on her Ophe'las bedding, she'd realized that, although her pain was less, it was still very much present. Standing up slowly, for her body had been stiff and her joints sore, she had struggled to get her boots onto her feet and her jerkin over her shoulders. She'd not cared to button the garment, instead choosing to cover her body with her cloak, and had left the cave to search for her love.
As she had walked, her shoulder blades had protested her endeavor. All that had mattered was finding Talliea and ensuring she was safe. Her feet had moved without direction while her mind had fought to find itself an answer to her sudden, and very swift, recovery. She could not understand how she had been healed. Her pain had been debilitating. It had been horrible and restricting and it had scared her. She had worried for herself and for Talliea. Thoughts of her people, of Cynra and Talyn and Sed'dya, had passed behind her eyelids in flickering and ever receding shapes and she had never felt so apart and disconnected.
The only small amount of light for Arizira had been the knowledge that she was with Talliea, her failira. She'd continued walking, her trek leading her toward the hot spring, as her thoughts had lingered on Talliea.
Had she healed her? She had recalled Talliea telling her that the Lat'sa'val possessed healing abilities, but did that gift also extend to the Esu women? Her internal ramblings had been interrupted when she finally came to the end of her short lived, but tiresome, journey. Talliea, the object at the center of everything Arizira did, had been exactly where Arizira felt she would be.
The hot spring.
Standing now near the water, the steam rising up and heating her tired and chilled body, Arizira watched Talliea for a moment while her mind came back to the present. Her eyes looked upon Talliea's dark, tanned skin and she felt her body react to the sight of full and round breasts disappearing beneath the veil of rippling water. Talliea's face was fixated upon her own and, though there were no words spoken, Arizira felt as if a lifetime of conversations passed between them.
She swallowed and shivered as a stiff wind nearly knocked her into the spring. She could not seem to take her eyes away from the deep brown before her. The woman matching her gaze was...she was everything to Arizira. She was her friend. She was her lover, though they had yet to lie with one another, she was her heart and her spirit.
As Arizira allowed her cloak to drop to the moist ground behind her, she let her thoughts settle on the one belief she had been dying to confess since she first awakened and realized she could move, that she was healed: Talliea was a goddess.
She was her goddess for she had healed her and brought her back to herself. No other explanation could justify how Arizira had gone from an agonizing and dreadful state of hysteria to being able to walk and move and think clearly once again. Talliea was her goddess in every sense of the word. She had to be.
She watched Talliea's eyes travel across the skin of her body. Though her skin was dark, Arizira easily saw a blush rise up and spread across her chest. She slowly, and in halting movements, slipped her jerkin from her shoulders and allowed it to join her cloak. Talliea, the woman whom she had practically come to worship, licked her lips and continued to watch her. The wind was cool, but being so close to the spring kept Arizira warm enough to continue undressing.
This was a first for them. In all of their time together, and even after they had acted on their feelings for one another, Arizira had always undressed away from Talliea just as Talliea had undressed away from her. It had been an unspoken agreement, one Arizira had taken seriously in her efforts to respect Talliea and her body. Now, however, she was standing before the woman she loved and was slowly sliding her leather pants down her legs.
Talliea watched, her eyes unable to tear themselves away from the beauty being revealed in front of them. Though Arizira's fair skin was bruised and marked with dirt, the perfection underneath could not be sullied. She noticed Arizira had very little body hair, much like her own people, and smiled at that similarity. Her eyes swept their fiery gaze over Arizira's chest, settling on light pink nipples, before trailing down to a flat stomach. When she reached the apex of Arizira's legs, her eyes lingered and she felt a heat, having nothing to do with the spring, wash over her body.
She had always noticed the differences between her people and Arizira's. Those differences had oftentimes left her feeling as if she and Arizira were worlds apart, having no common ground, and struggling to understand such vast disparities. Looking at Arizira nude before her, with no barriers left between them, Talliea realized that they were not as different as she had always believed.
Arizira's body was very much like her own. Her skin was more fair and her nipples were a lighter shade, but they were alike in nearly every other way. Arizira's sex was like her own. Her body was not so different from Talliea's. For all of the things that had set them apart, seeing Arizira as she currently was made Talliea appreciate everything that had brought them together.
Taking a deep breath, she finally lifted her gaze and looked into shimmering blue eyes. Arizira slowly entered the hot spring, staying near to the edge, and lowered her body into the water. Talliea waded over to her and, stopping only a moment to appreciate her presence, took her into her arms.
Arizira's body melted into Talliea's. She wrapped her arms around Talliea's waist and pressed their chests together. Her hands settled in the small of the Esu woman's back while her face buried itself in the side of her neck. She felt Talliea tentatively press her hands against her back and she let out a sigh at the gentleness.
Talliea, one hand in the center of Arizira's back and the other rising up to settle between her shoulders, turned her head and let her lips bush across smooth skin. She felt her tears slide down her face before she could hinder them. The feeling of Arizira's body, without any restrictions, pressed so intimately against her own, was unlike anything she had ever experienced. She had worried that she had ruined any chance she and Arizira may have had. Feeling Arizira's body connected so closely with her own was too much.
She had feared that she would never get to touch Arizira again, that the other woman would associate pain with any caress she could offer. She'd been wrong.
Moving her hands over Arizira's sides and trailing them to her arms, she sighed against the side of her neck before leaning back. When their eyes met, Talliea knew that everything would be okay between them. Arizira did not harbor any diseased or adverse feelings toward her. The knowledge caused a happy smile to grace her lips. She rubbed her fingers over Arizira's arms and shoulders and took in a shaky breath.
"Ari--"
A finger on her lips stopped her. "Do not, Tah-li."
Talliea looked sheepish a moment before nodding her head. She had apologized to Arizira everyday since the accident had transpired. Every time she had done so, Arizira had stopped her attempt and told her such a gesture was not necessary. Still, Talliea could not allow matters to rest between them so easily. She needed Arizira to understand her actions and her thoughts.
Placing a hand on Arizira's wrist, she lowered the finger from her lips and opened her mouth to speak. "No, Ari, the words that have been lying upon my soul must be heard. There is so much I need to say, but the desires of my heart leave me breathless. You must understand that I will never hurt you again. I do not desire you to fear my touch."
Arizira nodded as the fingers of her left hand smoothed over Talliea's right shoulder. "Just as I do not desire you to fear mine. I will not touch you as he did, Tah-li. I will not ever use your body for myself. When I touch you, I wish for you to feel the caress as an expression of my feelings for you. Please do not see me as you see him."
Smiling, Arizira moved her hands from Talliea's back to her hips and lightly squeezed her skin. "I will never hurt you," Talliea whispered again, eyes lowering at the sensation of Arizira's caress. "Nor I you," Arizira responded.
A moment passed and Arizira spoke up again, "It would seem that part of the old tales my people sing is true." Talliea caught her eyes. "What part?"
"Esu strength being greater than our own. Our legends tell us the Esu were able to move the mountains, so great was the power in their limbs."
Talliea offered no confirmation or comment. Her people did possess great strength, but they were not able to do as Arizira said. Knowing her "strength" had harmed her love was distasteful to her. She embraced Arizira and the two of them spent the next several minutes enjoying the company of the other. Talliea washed Arizira's body and hair and gently scrubbed the wound on her back. Though Arizira was healing, and was in a much better state than she had been before, her body was still sensitive and sore.
Talliea moved behind Arizira and pressed her chest to her back. She heard the slight inhale that accompanied the movement and smiled as she placed a kiss on Arizira's shoulder. Wrapping her left hand around a slender waist, she laced the fingers of her right with Arizira's and held her close. She lowered her head to the space between Arizira's neck and shoulder and closed her eyes.
"Your recovery is remarkable, Ari. I had feared I made the wrong decision in keeping you with me." Arizira leaned back into the embrace and squeezed their joined hands. "Keeping us together will forever be the correct course, Tah-li. I have you to thank for my recovery."
Pulling back, Talliea questioned, "Me? I have done nothing worthy of such a statement. The dohethra aided you, Ari. That is all."
"No, say not such things. Dohethra eases pain. My body was broken, Tah-li. I was unable to move. Dohethra would not have mended such an injury. You healed me. What else is there to explain this miracle?"
Talliea loosened her hold on Arizira so that the other woman could turn around to face her. "I-I did not. I could not," she pressed, unable to believe Arizira's wild claims.
"You told me the Esu have such powers, yes?"
"Yes, b-but for the men. Then only the chosen, never for the common folk and, most certainly, never for a woman. I did not heal you, Ari. Your injury must not have been as serious as we thought. Rest and willow bark paved the trail for your recovery. Not I."
Arizira sighed and looked at Talliea. It was obvious the Esu woman was not going to be of the same belief that she was. How Talliea had healed her was unknown to Arizira. All she knew was that she should not have been able to move as well as she was. Dohethra had not healed her; it did not possess such properties. The only logical conclusion then was that the power behind her body's progress was, somehow, Talliea's doing.
That was her belief, regardless of whether or not it was true. Closing the distance between them, Arizira brought her hands to the sides of Talliea's face. She felt her nipples wetly slide across the other woman's and a sharp and tense wave of pleasure shot through her body. When she had been unable to move, the one overriding thought in her mind had been the possibility of never getting to touch Talliea again as she desired. No longer feeling any restrictions in her movements, for Talliea's presence seemed to have removed any last lingering pain, Arizira pressed the full length of her body against Talliea's and slid her fingers into her wet and heavy hair.
She kissed the side of the Esu woman's mouth tenderly. Her left hand held the back of Talliea's head while her right moved down the slope of her neck. Fingers spread across a prominent collar bone while lips sought out another embrace.
Arizira and Talliea kissed slowly, neither feeling the need to progress matters any further. Their bodies were pressed against one another's while their hands moved and explored skin unknown. Without either woman realizing it, a milestone had just been reached in their relationship. A new sense of trust had been achieved.
Talliea had hurt Arizira, however unintentionally, but that act had served to bring them closer together rather than rip them farther apart. Each could now understand the fears, worries, and insecurities of the other. Arizira could understand the devastation Talliea felt over Lao'dahn's abuse, and Talliea could empathize with Arizira in regard to a loved one holding trepidation over a simple touch.
Whether or not Talliea had actually healed Arizira, or Arizira's recovery was the result of tender care and rest, was unimportant to them. What mattered was that they had both weathered their unexpected storm together. Arizira was healing. She was going to make a full recovery and Talliea had not damaged their chance at happiness.
Despite all the bad, the pain and tears and the uncertainties, everything had turned out exactly as they were supposed to. A new appreciation had been kindled. A fresh beginning had been granted. No longer would the atrocities of the past hinder the two of them in the present. They both understood the other in ways they had not before.
As Arizira wrapped her arms around Talliea's neck, and Talliea gently and reverently placed her hands between Arizira's shoulder blades, both women knew they had finally come to the one place they had both longed for since their first meeting.
Talliea's attack, Arizira's injury, the question of who or what had perpetuated Arizira's recovery, did not seem to matter as both women held the other. Arizira, arms around a tanned neck, grasped a handful of Talliea's dark hair and hugged her body closer.
"Thank you," she whispered against Talliea's temple. "Thank you for making me whole once again."
Talliea smiled, tears still lightly staining her cheeks, and replied, "Always, Ahmanae. Always."
Chapter 29: Unification of Spirits
Cynra watched the clouds in the sky as their color moved from white to grey. A change was nearing with the weather. On the horizon, a storm brewed. Though the skies were currently clear with no rain or snow falling, Cynra knew it would not be long afore everything changed.
To her left the white wolf, her companion, looked up at her with blue eyes. "It is today," Cynra said. The wolf turned its head and regarded her again. "They become one today."
* * * * * *
"You are sweet," Arizira said as she pulled away from kissing Talliea's lips. The two of them were partaking of a hearty breakfast of fried apples and wild-berries with thick honey and nuts, complete with one of the rabbits Talliea had secured the day before. "You taste like honey and mint," Arizira continued playfully.
Talliea blushed, a smile lighting up her face, and leaned forward to wipe away at a small dab of honey on Arizira's chin. Since Arizira's recovery four days earlier, both women, without words or explanations, had come to a better understanding of one another. Neither was able to explain how they knew what they knew, nor how they felt what they felt. Without their being aware, they had moved farther and farther away from the accident that had frightened them both and, in the process, come closer together.
"I think you only desired to kiss me," Talliea teased, looking back at Arizira before taking another bite of rabbit. Arizira's smile was immediate. She dipped her fingers into the bowl of honey that sat between them and raised a playful eyebrow toward Talliea.
"That is what you think, yes?"
Talliea eyed Arizira with some suspicion, but nodded. "Yes." Before she could react, Arizira was leaning into her again and smearing the honey on her fingertips across Talliea's lips. Talliea tried to move away, laughter sounding around her, but Arizira was too quick. The two women fell in a heap of tangled limbs. When Talliea attempted to speak, Arizira quickly engaged them in a kiss, her tongue swiping over the honey still present on Talliea's lips.
"You must live with your decisions, Tah-li," Arizira said sitting on top of her companion with a smug look on her face. Talliea could only smirk.
Once their bellies were full, each chewed a k
alale'zarith leaf, a small, deep green petiole the Arnira used for hygienic purposes, and hunkered down into the warmth of their Ophe'las beds. The weather had turned foul quite unexpectedly and a dismal darkness soon spread across the lands. Clouds, full and heavy, soon released their burdens and all the lands were quickly sodden with wind and snow.
Talliea snuggled into Arizira's back and wrapped her arm around her middle more securely. It still amazed her how warm and soft the leaves of their bedding were. When Arizira had first told her that the Arnira used leaves to sleep upon, she'd been skeptical that such a thing could actually produce any amount of comfort, let alone warmth. Having slept upon Ophe'las for months now, she could not imagine anything else offering such gratification.
"Teach me how to say your name," she said, breaking their still hush. Arizira inhaled at the satisfaction she felt just lying with the woman she loved before responding with, "It is easy, Tah-li. Aree-zira."
Talliea made a face at the second half of the name, but Arizira could not see it. "Aris-s--" she attempted.
"Zzz Like a bee, Tah-li."
"Sss"
A laugh bubbled up from Arizira's throat at Talliea's effort. "Not like a snake! A bee! Zzz." Laughing herself, Talliea tried again. "Ari-sss...my people do not have this sound."
"Just try."
"Ari-sss...Ari-sera," Talliea said, her accent on the name causing Arizira to smile. "Perfect. I like it."
All fell quiet around them once more. Talliea continued to hold Arizira closely as her fingers began to probe at the material restricting her from satiny skin.
Arizira moaned slightly as Talliea's hand around her middle snaked its way under her top. Fingers explored the soft skin of her stomach and she could not stop the hitch that came in her breathing. The sounds of the wind and snow, now louder with sleet, sounded just outside their cavern. The fire some distance behind them crackled with life and a defiant need to continuing burning, despite the onset of the sudden winter storm outside.