Six Days

When the dishes were done, Raine shut off the kitchen light and passed by the patio window. She paused at the top of the stairs to say something to her custodians and headed downstairs, out of sight. Auron's eye traveled diagonal across the back of the house to her bedroom window, still lit from when they were there earlier, and a moment later, the door opened wider and she strode into her room. She avoided looking out the window and headed to the corner where her bed couldn't be seen and Auron waited patiently for her to come into view again. There were times she was on her bed for hours, reading or chatting with a friend on a commsphere, so this was not uncommon. But she was visible again a few minutes later, at the window, closing the curtains.

Hmph. That didn't take long.

To entertain himself, he glanced back to the living room. Her aunt and uncle were still watching a recap of the Blitzball game, quiescent in their chairs. Auron leaned against the fence, brooding over the consequences of showing her his usual post, until her curtains split open again. She had changed into loungewear, a pink tank top and purple running shorts. She opened her closet door, which blocked nearly half the window, and busied herself inside for another few minutes. When she approached the window again, her hand came up to fiddle with the locks and release the window.

"Auron!" she hissed across the yard.

Auron came quickly, only so she didn't say his name again and risk her parental guardians hearing. As soon as she saw him, she delved into her closet again and Auron immediately grew wary. He lowered down to one knee at her open window. There was music playing low in her room and he could hear commotion in the closet.

"Raine?" he whispered.

"One sec."

Auron checked the dark yard for nosy neighbors. Raine came out of the closet, covered neck to ankle in a shimmering blue gown and a perfectly square graduation cap with a blue and white fringe swinging against the side her face. She made a showy "ta-da!" gesture, her hands shaking like tambourines, and he snorted.

"Graduation's in two months," she said, leaning her arms on the chest-height windowsill. "You're coming, right?"

He tilted his head, evincing an ironic look. Did he not already follow her everywhere?

"You can't miss my valedictorian speech."

"I won't," he promised.

"Every student gets four seats, I think. You can sit next to my aunt and uncle. You can talk to my uncle about Blitzball."

Auron didn't say anything. He was sure a decline would diminish her upbeat mood.

"Do you want to come in?" she asked, swinging the window wider.

Badly.

"I'll be fine out here."

"Are you sure? My uncle and aunt never come down here, not since the laundry was moved to the main floor."

She misinterpreted his hesitation as a silent scolding.

"Okay, okay. Look, I'll leave the window unlocked. In case it ever starts to rain or if you just want to talk."

"Lock your window," Auron said.

"But—"

"Don't argue. You'll be safe from—"

Me.

"—prowlers."

"I thought you kept me safe from prowlers," she said with a light in her eye.

"Do your homework," he said sternly and walked back to his spot in the trees before she could respond. He heard the windows shut after a while.

Back in his thicket of junipers, Auron situated to run on idle for the remainder of the night. Raine sat dutifully at her desk, working on homework.

Auron had to remind himself it wouldn't always be like this. Her crush on him would eventually disappear. Right now, school was slowing down to give her time to apply to colleges, but life would pick up again when her higher education commenced.

His thoughts were interrupted as the house began to darken. Aunt Naya and Uncle Cetan had turned off the lights and gone to bed. Soon, Raine put away her homework and started her nightly routine, disappearing into the bathroom across the hall and returning with a freshly washed face and brushed hair. A new move had been added to her routine, however, a short wave in Auron's direction, before the lights blinked off. He smiled without humor at her good-night gesture, suddenly losing himself in contemplation, considering the open invitation he now had to her room....

Day One

It was well after midnight when Auron sidestepped between the tugging branches of the junipers, knelt by his reflection in Raine's window and pushed it open with his gauntlet. The sweet and spicy scents of her candles reached his nostrils immediately. Round and full as a silver gil coin, the moon illuminated everything but for the darkest corners of her room in a steely hue. It seemed like he was waiting for something. Another invite, perhaps, but when one didn't come, Auron knew she was deep in sleep. His boots landed on the carpet with a muffled thud and he leaned his sword in the corner by the closet before silently latching the window.

She was sleeping to his left, laying on her side, facing away from him, her blonde hair spilling across her pillow. Auron maneuvered her bedroom carefully, stepping over stacks of books and magazines and heaps of clothes to find safe patches of carpet. Boots didn't tip-toe well, but he managed to approach her bed without awakening her. There was nothing he wanted to say and to take her out of slumber just to prove how easy it was for prowlers to get to her was a weak excuse. Anyway, she was right. Auron was there to keep her safe, from prowlers, from Sin-spawn, from anything that posed a threat.

So who was keeping her safe from him?

Making his way back through the obstacles, Auron settled in the arm chair between her closet and desk, opposite the wall her bed was on so he could watch her. He could tell the rickety way the chair shifted under his weight that it was old, but she had repurposed it with a rose colored sheet as a slipcover to hide any stains or holes it might have underneath and accessorized it with a silk heart pillow frilled with white lace, which Auron adjusted at his lower back for the most comfort, but ended up removing it completely. He noticed the white stitching on the back: Luv Sux. With a silent snort, he tossed it to the floor.

Raine hadn't moved a muscle since he had come in. He didn't know what he was doing there, but after a few minutes he was content with not knowing. He should have known better than to get comfortable; it made it harder to leave. Apart from the occasional sleepover at a friend's house, Raine slept at home and Auron had spent every night for the last three years in those junipers. He was enjoying the novelty of being inside for once and the rare, guilt-free opportunity to close his eye for a moment. Soon, the candles' pungency was making him sleepy. He didn't need sleep to function, but he enjoyed a nap once in a while for meditation. His eyelid felt heavy behind his sunglasses and he began dozing off in short intervals, his head dropping forward. At least he only woke himself when his breath began grating on the back of his throat.

A few hours passed before Auron came out of one of his catnaps, apparently woken by Raine's stirring. Her back was still to him, but she had shaped her pillow differently. With very good intensions to wake up and stay up, Auron situated in the chair, winking his eye in determination, but then he slouched forward and rested again.

He was roused a second time, this time by Raine's soft breathing. Since her blankets were pulled up to her shoulder, the only visible part of her body was her head, but she was fidgeting under the covers, slightly hunched as if she was situating her pajamas or scratching her leg. After so many hours of perfect stillness, her activity, even in sleep was a welcome diversion. He was suddenly wide awake, rapt by her simple actions of listless scratching, adjusting her bedding or changing positions. As she languidly rolled on her back, Auron noticed she was trembling strangely under the covers and Auron watched her with rigid alarm until it occurred to him she was dreaming. He smiled faintly, fondly, and rested his elbow on the arm of the chair so he could lean his cheek on the knuckles of his gauntlet, idly wondering what sorts of things Raine dreamed about. He was realistic enough to know her dreams were not all puppies, rainbows and candy (or whatever girls her age dreamed about), but judging from her low whimper, Auron realized not even little Raine was immune to nightmares.

However, something in the rhythm of her breathing jerked his cock. Suddenly, her head came off the pillow, suspended under the blankets, curled in what looked like a stomach crunch. She relaxed, her legs straightening, lying back on her pillow, and then something was deposited out the side of the blankets, landing in a small heap on the floor. Auron had to squint to focus on it, but when he saw her white-with-red-hearts underwear, he knew she wasn't dreaming.

Auron arched his eyebrow.

Slowly shrinking into the chair, Auron didn't dare make a sound. While unanticipated, it was suddenly glaringly obvious to Auron why grown men didn't enter the rooms of young women unannounced, but it was too late to broadcast his presence now. It would mortify her and he couldn't imagine it would be pleasant for him, either. Studying the window, Auron knew he was stealthy in his boots, but not enough for this kind of escape. His only option was to keep still, hope her eyes remained shut and pray she finished quickly. After, when she was asleep, he would sneak out, saving him from ever acknowledging this.

Raine's lips parted as her light pants turned to breathy moans, and Auron had to imagine the place where the blankets shivered was where her hand was feverishly rubbing between her legs. The faint squelch of her fingers inside her made Auron very aware of how insufferably hot it was in the room and Auron felt the first crack of his composure as a cold sweat developed under his arms. He wanted to open his cloak for air. As a durable, stoic man, Auron could fight the urge to fidget restlessly, but his first instinct to close his eye only brought images to his mind that were even more lecherous than what was actually happening.

Although the shame of his reluctant erection was excruciating, he found her compelling to watch. He had never asked a woman to pleasure herself for him, but he suspected it would not have been as satisfying as this. Raine's body undulated under the covers with practiced poise, an air of routine that let Auron know this wasn't exploratory for her. Eyelid softening, Auron leaned his head back on the chair, releasing a channel of stimulation inside him as he allowed his blood to boil. He had to force himself to breathe controlled sips of air through his nostrils.

His gauntlet crept to the drawstrings of his trousers, but he wavered. The tension inside him was almost painful, but the commotion of his own release would certainly alert her of his uninvited company.

"Oh, Auron," she groaned.

Auron started, his boot inadvertently knocking over a stack of books. His first thought was she had finally opened her eyes and saw him, but it quickly became apparent she was only seeing him behind her eyelids as she touched herself. The books slumped and a quiet rustle of pages and creaking of new spines was all it took for Raine to know she wasn't alone.

As her limbs flailed wildly under the covers, Auron heard the inhale of her scream and flew out of his chair, pouncing to subdue her. Quickly, he wrestled his arm out of his sleeve. The last thing he needed now was for her aunt or uncle to hear and his hand smashed her face to smother her mouth, one knee coming up to hold her down. She gave him a good fight, he realized later, when he had time to examine the battle scars: a single bloody scratch on his forearm and teeth marks on his palm. But during their tussle, the only sound was the soft rustle of flannel sheets, muted slaps and the gentle clicking of a string of beads hanging from her headboard.

It was the most physical they had ever been and Auron found the brawl exhilarating, but when he had the opportunity, he leaned close to her face, emphatically touching his lips with one finger. She watched him with wide eyes, her fingers curling around his forearms, not really pulling or fighting. Just holding on. Her eyes darted around in the moonlight, slightly frazzled, but unafraid. Auron's gloved thumb was absently stroking her forehead in effort to calm her and after a few moments, he felt her relax minutely. It only took Auron a moment to realize why. Her eyes were bubbling with tears and both her hands clapped over her eyes to hide herself. He heard the whine of humiliation right before the vibration of her adorable weeping against his hand. Waves of heat came off her face like the flu, but he was reluctant to let her mouth go. Once he released her mouth, talking would inevitably follow. And he didn't think he was ready to talk about...this.

Maybe it was the tension of the moment or the excitement of their wrestle or how her embarrassment was as endearing as it was heartbreaking, but it seemed wholly out of his control when he asked, "Would you like my help?"

Her fingers opened like scissors so she could peer out between them and Auron couldn't help chuckling. Her nod was eager under his hand, but she was also trembling. Slowly, Auron let her face go and she repositioned herself against the pillow.

"How did you get in?" she whispered.

"The window," he said and almost added, "I told you to lock it," but he didn't want her to think she brought this on herself.

Auron lifted the blankets out from under him and tossed them aside to shield an audience of lime-green tonberries, creamy white moogles, and fiery orange moombas, all stuffed and judging with their plastic googly-eyes.

Raine was naked from the waist down and she only wore a thin tank top. He could see the peaks of her nipples through the fabric, but her legs were together, held at an awkward angle as though purposely trying to hide her nakedness. "How long were you watching me?"

"Long enough." Auron removed his robe, draped it at the end of the bed and began unsnapping the buckles of his collar. Raine watched his every move carefully. "This will go better if you remember to breathe."

With a great exhale, she smiled in chagrin and made an exaggerated effort to take in air, her chest heaving nervously. At one point, her swallow sounded like a gulp.

Kneeling up on the bed, Auron positioned himself between her quivering knees and dropped down on his belly. He wrapped his arms around her thighs, easing them open. She smelled ready. He nudged her, feeling the tickle of damp pubic hair on his upper lip and wondered if her young boyfriend could do this as well as Auron could. He was feeling a massive boost in ego as he thought of all the things he could do to her.

"I—I haven't showered since this morning," she rushed to say.

Somewhat disgruntled with her interruption, he felt like he was in a pool of fantasy and every time she talked brought him closer to the surface of reality. "You smell good," he murmured and kissed the inside of her thigh. Like a tug to the deep end. The moonlight made her skin look like stone, gray and smooth. Auron leaned in to kiss her pubic lips, already imagining her taste, her warmth, all just within reach of his outstretched tongue.

"Wait," she said and shifted suddenly. "Wait, wait."

Like a bubble popping, Auron surfaced to reality. He looked up. She had sat up a little on her elbows, looking down at him. What was he doing? Kneeling in a twin bed covered in stuffed animals, face down against the wet genitalia of Jecht's daughter? Disgraceful. He nodded and rose to his knees. "I understand." His cock didn't, but he did.

Even in moonlight, it was hard to see what she was doing. He felt the balmy heat of her sex on the back of his hand as she scooted towards him and her fingers as they combed tenderly through the hair on his temple. After that, he hardly needed any coaxing to kiss her open mouth. His lucidity had been brief, permitting her to drag him back down into the murky depths of debauchery with one long, captivating kiss.

She was a better kisser than he was, little wonder with a boyfriend with a backseat, but her tongue was surprisingly hesitant as it dipped searchingly between his lips. She tasted sweetly sour, like green apple, and once he tasted her he couldn't get enough of it and demanded more from her, invading her mouth with his tongue, losing himself in her kiss. This was new. Kissing women had always been like signing a contract. Sealing the deal. Just business. No one had ever kissed him and meant it before. He leaned into her, one hand flared against the small of her back, the other propped on the mattress by her hip. He was careful not to let his groin touch her. If it did, his tongue would not be the only thing thrusting inside her.

Her lips fell away from his as she dropped her head back, but he didn't want the kiss to end. Stubbornly, Auron bumped his mouth against hers, as if to provoke her, and felt the twist of a faint smile on her lips right before she lied back.

"I'm ready now," she said.

Raising an eyebrow at her, he made a noise that was something between a subtle scoff and a snort. He was completely beside himself, marveling at her. "How did you do that?"

She was settling back into her pillows. "Do what?"

Something had changed. Auron felt it, but Raine was too innocent to notice.

She was no longer fulfilling his fantasy. He was fulfilling hers.

Auron lowered to his stomach and sunk his tongue between her pubic lips, familiarizing himself with the sensitivities of her anatomy; her smell, her taste, the way her juices chilled on his whiskers. Her breath was ragged, but quiet. Stiffening his tongue, he slowly circled the tough kernel of her clitoris and he felt her tense, her pelvis pressing into him slightly. Over the top of his sunglasses, Auron saw her white knuckles clutching the front of her tank top, exposing the writhing muscles of her stomach, her marble skin glistening as tracks of sweat pooled in her belly button.

A long, low moan came out of her mouth, and it increased his hunger. He devoured her with gluttonous enthusiasm, valiantly pushing through the ache rising in his jaw, and he was compensated rather unceremoniously with a vice to his skull as she came. His glasses shifted on his face, but didn't break. While he fought to hold her bucking thighs apart, Auron was progressively aware of Raine's cries as they gained authority. He climbed over her body to stifle her with one hand, the wind of her rough breaths fast and focused on the back of his knuckles, the vibrating hum of her muffled hollers on his palm. His other hand twitched fitfully between her legs, chasing the glorious aftershocks of her climax, watching the beautiful sight with smug satisfaction. He didn't let it end until she physically pulled his hand free of her loins.

Kneeling back, Auron admired his work. She was breathing quickly through a lazy smile, making no attempt to cover herself as her legs splayed lewdly. Her tank top had hiked up during her delightful ordeal and he stared at the tender swell of side-breast. He wanted to expose it. Squeeze it. Suck the nipple. Instead, he glanced down at the erection in his pants.

Raine saw it too. She reached over and grappled with his drawstrings.

"No, Raine," he grumbled and pushed her hands away. Of all the lines he'd crossed tonight, this was the one he couldn't intersect.

"It's okay," she whispered.

"I can't."

"I want you to."

"No," he barked. Before this, their voices had been hushed, never exceeding some invisible threshold of hearing, until now. Auron did it to startle her into listening, but she only grinned conceitedly, pluckier now in the afterglow of orgasm.