Flora & Fauna Pt. 05

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Andrius doesn't look at me when I walk quietly back to the hearth. I keep one hand dragging along the wall in case I slip as water drips from the ends of my hair, collecting remnants of milky suds and dragging them down my skin. Any remaining modest urge to draw an arm across my exposed breasts lost its battle somewhere between the first replay of his words in my head and the hundreth. His forelegs are bent and facing the fire where he lays with his upper half resting against the padded easel-bed. The flickering firelight outlines the profile of his face. His eyes are aimed down at a book he holds open with one hand.

Silently, I move forward until I'm close enough to kneel beside him and feel his heat against my legs. He closes the book and his lips part as if he'll speak, until his eyes dart over my body and back up to my face. I watch the bob of his throat as he swallows and his eyes widen with the focus it takes to remain on my face.

"Flora-"

"Enjoy it for what it is," I whisper as quietly as I can, as if I'm afraid someone besides the two of us will hear. As if reality will hear.

As he puts down the book, I stay perfectly still and resist the reemerging bashful urge to close my legs tight or hug my arms over my chest. I set my own gaze free to match his, taking in all the details and angles of his body in the firelight. One of Andrius' hands comes forward and settles over one side of my hips. I bite my lip as he pulls me forward and lays me down on the pillows beside him.

A burning hot mischief swirls deep inside me as I part my legs slightly and watch his golden eyes study my sex. I reach up and place one hand on his chest to feel the powerful rise and fall. When he manages to look at my eyes again, I think he's going to tell me what a bad idea this is. Instead he leans forward to kiss me.

This kiss is more voracious than those he gave me before. A deep growl rumbles under my palm as I keep one hand on the muscles of his upper chest. His mouth leaves mine unpredictably to bite at my lips, my neck, my collarbone. There's a burning anger in the nips. I yelp in pain but throw my arms around his neck to pull him tighter to me. Because I'm angry too.

I sink a hand into his hair and feel my nails scratch deeply at his scalp, the back of his neck. I want to tell him to never stop, but I'm afraid any words spoken aloud will make him rethink everything. His teeth sink into the skin of my neck, nearly behind my ear, and I whimper against him in too many kinds of agony. One of his hands stays flat beside me, keeping his upper half towering over me, while his other finally ventures between my thighs. I part my legs wider and raise my hips, hunting for his touch.

At first his hand goes flat over my wet heat. The slow caution of the contact makes me realize how different that part of me must be for him. However sexually experienced he is with his own species, I wonder if he doesn't know quite what to do with my lower half. I reach one hand down to put over his, pressing his fingers with my own. I press hardest over my clit and move his fingertips, mirroring the maddening, circular motion he watched me pleasure myself with. I open my eyes slightly as I leave his hand to explore me, and reach up to hug around his neck again.

Andrius' front legs are kneeling forward to bring his upper half down to me. But I hadn't noticed that his back legs are standing, keeping his hips lifted. I release him and lean back into the pillows to get an unobstructed view. His cock is fully revealed, extended. His manhood shines, glossy with its own wetness. Thick, sticky liquid drips from the opening at the tip. A powerful twitch makes it rise up and hit his underside. A line of fluid shining in the firelight extends from the tip to his fur. My lips part in silent, titillated awe. Andrius' hand dips lower, his fingers sliding along my dripping slit.

I come to my senses and look back at his face, suddenly aware of how long I've spent staring elsewhere. He's already staring at my eyes when I look back. One side of his mouth turns up in a sardonic smirk as his fingers go to either side and part my sex just enough that I gasp.

"You expect me to fit in here?"

"I think you could have fun trying."

"I have a new idea," he growls quietly.

"Oh?"

"What if I just tell Claudius what a tease you are? That'll keep him from marrying you."

"Oh, I'm the tease?"

He leans forward again to press his lips to my forehead.

"Don't do that," I snap.

"Do what?"

"Do sweet, nice stuff like kiss my forehead. That always means we're done."

"You'd rather I be mean?"

"Yes!"

In a flash, his hand goes flat on my chest and holds me down. His head bows, throwing his hair over my collarbone and throat as the heat of his breath blows over one of my breasts. I have a split second to expect a kiss, before his teeth sink into my nipple. I throw my head back and scream at the sudden pain, even as my clit throbs so hard I nearly orgasm from that alone. I raise my hips, desperately searching for contact.

A snarl escapes my clenched teeth as I shove my hands at Andrius' chest and push him back. I know I'm only able to get him onto his back with his assistance. I straddle the area where fur meets bare skin and push my hands down hard on each side of his chest. Casually, he reaches a hand up to brush all his hair back from his face, revealing his wide smile.

"Too mean?"

I lean forward until the tip of my nose is nearly touching his, "I should bite that smirk right off your face."

"You're welcome to try."

I slide down, feeling the change in his form between my thighs as I do, pressing kisses to his chest and slowly reaching the lowest of his abs with my lips. The sensation of my sex meeting his stops me in my tracks. The thick, wet manhood presses against my pussy, just enough that it presses open the lips. My breaths come out in shallow gasps. Too enraptured to pull away, too uncertain to press down and try to take him. I put my hands flat on his body and raise myself up so I can look clearly at his face.

"Andrius?" I ask nervously.

His eyes are half-lidded. What I can see of them are lolling around in the sockets like loose marbles. I repeat his name and massage a hand gently on him, unsure what else to do. His eyes snap open, looking black and wild. His lips part when he sees me, as if he forgot I was here.

"Andrius?" I ask again.

So fast I can't follow his movements or account for all his limbs, he snarls and grabs me. I squeak in frightened hurt as his fingers dig too deep into my sides and flip me onto my stomach. I reach down to push at his hands, but they've already left and yank me back by my thighs as they lift my hips. I try to sit up on my knees. His forelegs kick out past my head and wrap around my arms, knocking me back down and pinning me with his lower chest. Over the sound of my heart hammering in my chest, I hear his back hooves step frantically around the wooden floor as he tries to line himself up with my human body.

"Andrius!"

His forelegs unloop from my arms. The speed of the movement makes me fall. I'm still righting myself as I hear Andrius' hooves scrambling back. There's a loud sound and vibration as he falls onto his backside. I reach out to take the sweater and pull it over my head. I take a few tentative steps toward Andrius, where he sits with one hand over his face and another held out flat at me.

"Are you okay?" I whisper.

He flinches and lowers both hands. His eyes are his again.

"Did I hurt you?" He asks without answering me.

I shake my head.

His legs slowly lower him down to a lying position.

"Was that...the trance?"

He nods, so slightly it's barely perceptible.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-"

"We can't do this."

"Okay," I whisper, all the arguments gone out of me.

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The pillows between us feel like villains, even with the fresh memories of last night. Andrius is laying on one side of the wall, his top half propped up on the remaining pillows. On the other side of the plush wall is me, wrapped in the blanket like a cocoon. We watch each other over the top border of the pillow wall, neither of us speaking for several moments. Some line crossed and impossible to retreat behind again. He pulls one pillow away from the top and reaches a hand across to brush against my cheek. I cover his hand with my own to press it against me. Something about the touch, the daylight streaming in, feels so final that I need to soak up as many touches as he will offer me.

"Flora, I'm sorry that-"

"Don't," I interrupt sadly, "Don't do that. Just this."

He nods and leans forward. With the wall still between us, our lips meet. The kisses are tragically gentle. Nothing like the bold, lustful kisses last night. When we both still thought we could have each other. Even if he thought it more secretly than I had.

"Can I say one thing?" Andrius asks against my lips.

Part of me doesn't want to hear it, but I nod anyway.

"I wish I could keep you."

His lips press to mine again before I can give any response.

Neither of us move through the early morning. Silently, we reach over the plush wall to run our fingers through the other's hair, memorize the shape of the other's face, and carefully kiss. A pathetic, involuntary whimper escapes me when Andrius suddenly pulls away. He stays completely still, his eyes trained on the window beyond me.

"What's wrong?" I whisper.

"I thought I heard voices."

I hold my breath and listen with him. The highest notes of a few birdsongs reach us inside, the sound of wind pressing against the walls.

Then the familiar voice makes my hair stand on end. Like a bad dream finding a way to intrude on a good one. A fist knocks on the door, the metal knob shakes a second later. Andrius is standing before I can force enough breath into my lungs to speak, to tell him not to.

I kick back away from the pillows, reaching back for the stretchy bandage and my slip. I manage to scramble the slip up under the big sweater and twist the bandage back around my ankle a split second Andrius' unlocks the door and it flies open before him. My father storms in, flanked by two officers in matching, dark uniforms. His eyes go wide when they land on me.

"Who are- Hey!" Andrius' interrupts his own question as my father shoves past him and rushes toward me.

"Flora! This is where you've been?" My father turns and seems to notice Andrius for the first time, "What the Hell are you?"

The two officers press in close to Andrius, until he glowers down at them. They take a few steps back, looking as if they've suddenly thought better of it.

"He's a centaur. Don't be rude," I grumble quietly.

"Rude?!"

"Who even are you?" Andrius barks.

"I'm her father!"

"Oh." His golden eyes go wide and I see him silently decide against whatever he had intended to say next.

"Flora, you better have a good explanation for why you're here with this horse," he spits out the final word.

I think but don't say the correction. Instead I stick out my bandaged ankle and lie.

"I broke my ankle in the forest. It was too dark for me to figure out the way home. Andrius was taking care of me until I was well enough to walk back."

Over my father's shoulder, I see Andrius notice my re-bandaged ankle. I wish I could feel some satisfaction at how impressed he looks at my quick fabrication. My father eyes the same thing suspiciously.

"You better hope Claudius believes that," his hand wraps around my wrist and pulls me up to my feet, "He has been so worried about you."

"Yeah, I bet he's worried sick," I grumble sarcastically.

"Flora," my father tugs me forward, "I do not appreciate this new attitude of yours."

"It's not new."

My father turns back toward the officers and directs them to wait for us outside. I shake my head at Andrius' when I see him nearly snarling as he takes a step toward my father and I. He stops short and nods once at me. A deep fissure splits my heart at the gloomy acceptance that washes over his face.

"Where is your-" My father snatches up my crumpled dress and backpack from the floor, pulling me toward the front door without another word.

I feign stiffness and pain in my healed ankle to slow the exit as my heart hammers in my chest. This isn't supposed to be happening yet. I'm not supposed to have to leave him yet. Or ever. But not yet, at the very least.

The sunlight outside as we step onto the porch makes my eyes squint shut. I shield them with my hand and turn back to say my farewell to Andrius. But my father slams the door shut just as I turn, making me miss my last look by an instant. I think I whimper aloud. If I do, if it's ignored. I wonder if Andrius had been about to say something to me as well. If he was going to take one last look at me. Or if he had already turned away to move on with his real life.

The weight of reality, as I'm shoved into the seat of a carriage like luggage, makes me want to vomit. The door slams shut, my father and I alone in the back, the two officers sitting up front to direct the horses.

"You have no idea the trouble this caused, Flora. We had so many people out searching for you. Claudius was sending sprite messengers to every town they could reach."

He keeps talking. I can't focus on his words. I'm too focused on swallowing the continuous flood of saliva around my tongue as I feel sicker and sicker. My breaths are strangled and short as the carriage jolts into movement. I peek through the curtains of the little window, staring at the closed door of the house. Waiting for something I'm not certain of. There's a cruel irony in the sound of hoofbeats taking me away from him.

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