Unleashed
JOYCE
He had stared at her when she spoke, his eyes wide as if he was afraid of what she might say. But when she begged him to let go, to just give himself without fear of hurting her, to unleash, something inside him snapped. She felt it go and felt him… detonate.
He flipped her onto her back, one hand cradling her head, the other at her back, and reared over her, positioning himself so his hips pressed against her as a low growl rolled out of his throat. She gasped and arched as the pressure pushed the seams of her pants against her so hard that she trembled. She reached for him, and her hand slapped on his shoulder as he rolled into her again, growling her name.
"Sung, I-"
But he took her mouth, an invasion more than a kiss; his head turned to let their mouths align entirely, and his tongue danced and plunged. Joyce sucked in and arched again, as desperate as he was.
"Let me take off my-"
"No!" he gasped. "Let me."
And before she could even answer, he had taken hold of the top of her blouse and pulled it apart so hard and fast the fabric tore. Joyce gasped but clung to his neck, pulling herself up and into him until they were chest to chest. For a moment, he pressed her down into the soft ground beneath the blanket, and she wallowed in his weight, his huge arm braced on the floor next to her ear.
But even as he groaned at the delicious slide of their skins, he unlocked her hands from his neck. He pulled them up, one by one, above her head, grasping her wrists in one hand, pinning them there as sure any manacle. Then he raised himself, his arm and shoulder muscles bunching in delicious ways as he loomed over her.
She whimpered at the loss of contact. He stared at her, open-mouthed and rasped her name, his hair falling over his face, his beautiful body tensed and poised for her. A breath of wind fluttered over her bare chest, and her sensitive skin pebbled. His eyes raked down the length of her, and he made that call from so deep within that the very ground seemed to tremble with it. She could feel it vibrate in his chest and wished she could call back to him.
But when she opened her mouth to tell him that, he retook it, just a quick possession, then, with one hand still braced over her head, holding her wrists, he started down, his free hand exploring every dip and curve of her, as he slid against her skin and she arched again.
Then, just as he mimicked what she had done to him by stroking his thumb over her nipple on one side, he laid his mouth on the other and sucked once, then again. Then he set his teeth around her, and the pressure, so much pleasure, so close to pain, made her cry his name. He growled in response and rolled his hips again.
Frantic minutes of her gasping and aching, his mouth on hers, her neck, her breasts, his free hand everywhere on her skin, but never below her waist. And the fire, the fire reaching higher, until she was drumming her heels with frustration.
"Sung, please!"
"What do you want, Joyce?" he rasped, rolling his hips again so she could not breathe.
"You!"
"Me, what?"
"Inside me! Please!"
He muttered something like a curse against her neck but did not stop rolling into her. She was beginning to tremble from head to toe, her hands jerking against his restraint, her feet peddling with the desperation she felt to have him closer, deeper.
"Please!"
"Shhh," he shushed and retook her mouth, swallowing her cry as he thrust against her. Still, the barrier of their clothing just made it a delicious tease that threatened to steal her sanity.
He kept it up, the rolling and stroking of hands and tongue until she sobbed his name.
Then, as if it were a signal, he huffed the mating call at the exact moment he released her but flipped her over.
Before she could even begin to prop herself up, she heard the jingle of his belt. As she turned to look and see him, to reassure herself that he was going to do it this time, he had the waistband of her pants in both hands. He had torn them at the seam, then pressed her back to the ground as he kissed his way down her spine, right to the base, rolling himself, stroking her, his hands over her and under her, grasping and kneading at her breasts until she was afraid she would come apart, and he had not even entered her.
He was curled over her, his mouth at her neck, his hands on her breasts, his chest against her back, and she whimpered and pushed himself back to bump into him, and he slid against her.
She saw stars, already so close to her climax that she could not breathe.
"Sung, please!"
With a growl, he knelt behind her, grabbed at the ruined pants, and peeled them off her in one long slide, then… nothing.
Joyce found herself face down on the blanket, her hair in her face, her breath heaving, and him behind her but not moving. Had someone found them?
Panicked, she whipped her head around to look at him over her shoulder. "What-?"
But he was kneeling between her knees, a look of awe on his face, and as she turned, he moaned, "Joyce, dear lord!" through his teeth and plunged into her.
She sucked in a scream at the sheer pleasure of it, the whole, long slide of him that crackled through her like electricity, lighting up every vein and muscle, prickling her skin from head to toe. But before she could let out a sound, Sung clapped one hand over her mouth, whispering "Quiet!" in her ear in an amused rasp. Then his other massive hand spread between her breasts as a counter-balance as he pulled her up and back onto him until he sat, and she rode his rolling hips, his chest at her back, his lips and teeth at her neck.
"Sung, oh, Sung," she moaned.
He used one hand to hold her weight so she could reach back and have her hands in his hair on his shoulders. And with the other, he reached forward to find where they met, sliding his fingers against her even as he moved within her. He was relentless, rolling into her hard but holding the peak for seconds before he pulled back, and the pressure was lost.
She sucked in and held her breath.
Once, twice, three times, then she shattered with a guttural moan that would have done any Leonine proud.
SUNG
As Joyce shuddered in his arms, he almost tipped over the edge himself, but he was revelling in her body, worshipping at her temple, and he did not want it to end. With his breath hissing through bared teeth, he rode out her climax until she sucked in and slumped back against him, not finished but catching her breath.
She tipped her head back onto his shoulder, and the angle gave him a stunning view of her breasts. Unable to resist, he pulled both hands up to cup them, kneading, then rolling her nipples between his thumb and forefinger. She clenched around him, and he sucked in when she arched.
"You like that, my love," he rasped in her ear.
"I love that, Sung. I love you."
With a groan, he dropped his chin to lay his mouth at the claiming. And tensing up for another orgasm if he did not miss his guess. The temptation to bite her again was strong, but he did not want to cause her pain when she finally relaxed and smiled again.
As he stroked her, she rippled beneath his hands, but soon she rested her hands on his forearms to stop him.
"I want to touch you, Sung. I want to see you," she said, then stopped breathing when he pulled her down at the moment he thrust up.
"Are you certain of that?" he rumbled.
"Y-yes. Please, Sung. I want to see your face."
He groaned and had to stop moving before it was too late for anyone to do anything.
She slumped against his shoulder again, and they both breathed for a moment, his hands trailing up her sides again, but slowly. Then she sighed and leaned forward to crawl off of him. She whimpered when he pulled out, and he groaned. But it was probably good because he was far too close to exploding.
He stood to remove his pants while she lay back on the blanket and watched him.
"The sun makes your skin look golden," she said quietly, smiling, her hands under her head. She was spread out before him like a feast, her torn clothing thrown to the side.
There with him, alone, she was as shameless as any Anima, and it was a sucker punch to his gut, knowing she would do this for no one else, with no one else.
Ever.
He knelt at her feet, and she smiled, opening her arms to welcome him as he crawled over her. But his face was severe, and she frowned.
"What is it? Is something wrong?"
"No," he murmured, tracing the line of her collarbone with a finger. "Nothing at all. I am just… Joyce, you honour me. I am humbled."
She tipped her head and trailed her fingers through his hair. "What do you mean?"
"You are so generous in how you give yourself to me. And to know you have never done this with anyone else… it humbles me."
A shadow passed behind her eyes, and he was afraid that he had reminded her of Lucine and she would get sad, but it passed as quickly as it came. She put her hand to his face and said, "Sung, I love you. And I love doing this with you. I just can't believe you want to!"
He growled at that expression of her self-doubt but did not say anything because she was smiling. She wrapped her legs around his hips as he moved over and pulled him into a kiss that threatened to steal his control.
They were both panting again in seconds and when he entered her, it was almost as if it was the first time. She cried out, and he groaned. Then he pulled back so far, almost entirely out of her, thrust hungrily back into her, his head thrown back with the sheer bliss of it all.
"Oh, Sung," she whispered as he began to roll, setting a pace faster than before. "Sung… Sung…" He did not think she knew she was saying his name. Her eyes were closed and her head back, and with the peak of each thrust, she seemed to fall deeper into his thrall.
He stroked up her side and found goosebumps from her knee to her waist. The firm ground beneath her gave her little room to move, so he slid his hand to the small of her back and pulled up as he thrust.
"Sung!" She was arching again, her breast bobbing in time with his thrusts, and he felt his wave begin to crest.
"Joyce!" he gasped, "Look at me, look at me!"
Her eyes flew open, and he pulled up at her back again. Her mouth dropped open, and he was unsure if she was breathing, but he spoke through his teeth, and their eyes never wavered.
"You are… mine," he snarled, his breath heaving. "Forever, no other, no matter what."
"Oh, Sung-"
"No one else will ever have this from me. I love you from the bottom of my soul. Whatever I am is yours," he rolled into her again, and they both groaned. "Whatever I have, you can take." Again, she was beginning to tremble. "There is no woman on earth, no woman in Anima, no woman created to match you."
"Sung!" Her voice was high and shrill.
He cupped her neck and arched back but held her gaze. "None, Joyce, do you hear me? None!"
"Yes!"
"You are mine, you alone."
"I love you, Sung!"
His tether snapped. Stiffing a roar, he braced on the ground on either side of her head and pounded into her, animal moans and grunts breaking from his throat. She clung to his arms and panted so sharply her breath burst out of her like she had been squeezed, again and again. She could not speak, only make noise as, with laser focus, he built the rhythm until she started to scream his name. Then he dropped to brace himself on his elbows, swallowing her cries and crying his climax into her kiss.
His entire body shook, and he was unaware of anything except her as he writhed against her, his body releasing the pent-up tension in the most delicious explosion of energy and light he had ever felt.
And then it was done. They clung to each other, slicked in sweat, and tried to catch their breath.
Still braced on his elbows, he had both hands cupped over her head, and when he opened his eyes, hers were shivered, shining with unshed tears.
"Oh, love, what is wrong?"
"Nothing, Sung. That is the point. Absolutely nothing," she breathed.
Joyce's Epiphany
JOYCE
She understood, then, what he had been doing. Why he had brought her there and what he had hoped to achieve. And she loved him even more because he was right; it worked.
When he had insisted on bringing her there, she had thought they were coming there to have a break, to be alone. And she knew that was part of it. But now she understood something he had seen right away. She needed to know her importance to him, to understand her significance to everyone.
When the king held you high, the people should too.
As they lay there, tangled together in Anima's bright, clean air, Sung dozed on her shoulder, still inside her, stroking his back and hair. She smiled and stared at the sky and started to recalibrate her life.
She had been so busy trying to find her way that she had lost herself.
Yes, she was different from Anima, and yes, she needed to try to work with them, learn their ways, and not offend them. She already loved these people and this place. But she had become so profoundly aware of their differences that she had forgotten their similarities and would not let the people ignore them.
She could see now that finding acceptance was going to take time. And that was okay. They needed to get to know her as much as she needed to get to know them. And she was willing to bet she could find a way to make that happen. But in the meantime, she was the queen. She was adored by the king and held high in his esteem, and that was worth something.
He knew her already and loved her. The others just needed time.
She made a face at herself. She was not unrealistic; she knew there would always be Anima that did not trust her because of her physical weakness or her different ways. But that was true of Sung, but he did not care.
He was who he was. He knew who he was and let everyone else know it too. That was what she needed to do. She needed to let them know who she was so they could measure her by her true self, not by what they thought was true about her or what they were told by scheming wolves.
As she thought about it, all the successes she'd had, the few people whose minds she had changed, all seemed to happen when she had gotten angry enough or passionate enough to do what she thought was right. Such as, when Khloe stood up for Sung and the elders when she had told them to question her, it was always when she forgot to be worried and acted on instinct…
Her mouth dropped open. Sung had known from the beginning.
Listen to your instincts.
What a clever husband she had.
Heart brimming with hope and happiness, she wrapped her arms around Sung's massive shoulders and squeezed him as tightly as possible.
His even breathing caught, and she felt him come awake.
"Was I crushing you," he said suddenly, leaning on his elbows.
"No, not at all," she sighed happily. "It was lovely to just hold you."
He smiled and stroked her hair. "More lovely to be held, I think." He kissed her, and her heart swelled, tears threatening again, but of the happy kind.
"Thank you, Sung," she croaked when he pulled away to frown.
"Why the tears, my love?" His face looked so pained; she wanted to cry at how much he loved her.
"No, no! They are happy tears because… you were right. This was exactly what I needed and… and I see everything more clearly now."
"Oh? How so?"
She cupped his face with both hands and beamed at him. "You are amazing. You are you; you are all of yourself, all the time. And… I thought I was that way too. But since I have been here, I have been holding back. Scared or worried about upsetting people. I never found my feet because I forgot who I was. I need to be myself and let them see me exactly like you do. I need to be more like you, Sung. Except… me."
He blinked several times, then backed off of her to sit, pulling up one knee and leaning his elbow on it, running that hand through his hair and shaking his head slowly. His eyes never left her.
He squinted a few times, then eased off of her to sit, pulling up one knee and resting his elbow on it, running his hand through his hair and shaking his head gradually. His eyes never left her.
She sat up, watching him. "What is it?"
"You… " he gulped and turned away. "You humble me," he said, his voice deep and harsh. "I don't merit your esteem, Joyce."
"You do!"
"Wow! Take a look at what you've done here and everything you have accomplished," he replied. "Think about all the times I have let you down and let you stumble around since you arrived. Each time I have… not been there for you."
Her facial expression resembled as if someone had poured cold water over her. Yet, she realised there was no point in allowing herself to think about that too much. He had shown her since she arrived he had a keen interest in nobody but her. So, she couldn't blame him entirely for having relations with other females before she came.
"I… " she began, then followed off, gnawing her lip. "Give me a second to check whether I can say this right," she said. "I was not furious about you engaging in sexual relations previously. Truly, I'm somewhat happy you understand what you are doing because… I like it," she grinned. Sung's face remained serious. "I was unnerved about Lucine because… it feels personal. Excessively close. Like… she had a piece of you that I didn't,"
"She didn't."
"I know, Sung, it's all right. Let me finish. I was at that point where I felt like a disappointment before that surfaced, and I'm happy you told me-" She hurried on when he seemed as though he would talk. "I'm, I'm glad I know. It will be weird for some time when I see her, but eventually, that will stop. You did the perfect thing bringing me up here today because I can see now that I have been looking at everything incorrectly."
"In what way?"
"I was thinking I need to gain the affection of the people of Anima, and afterwards, I would be worthy of you," she said energetically. "Then, I would make you happy and have… earned my place." She hurried nearer, straight up to his legs, put her hand on his knee, and grinned at him.
"Joyce-"
"No, let me finish! I understand that was the incorrect method for checking it out. I see it now because I have you," she said delicately, and his eyes warmed. "I, as of now, have my place with you. Furthermore, you… you have earned your place and the deep respect of everyone in Anima, so they will listen to you. Also, I… I want to show them who I truly am. Since I have not been me, well, not the real me. I have been so worried, scared and stressed, and I have not shown anyone who I am or… been me. So, I will show Anima the real me, and Sung, I'm sure some will like it and some won't, and those that don't like it, we can cross that hurdle when we come to it, right?"
"Right," he agreed.
Once more, she grinned. "We are in the same boat, Sung. You're not going to get rid of me, nor is Anima."
"Thank the creator for that," he inhaled and kissed her ravenously.
Hungry
SUNG
She stayed bare. It was radiant. He promised to take her up there daily, assuming she wanted to. After the exceptionally poorly timed interruption of Erwin and the men when the quiet one was close, he understood why she felt awkward in the cavern without garments. In this way, it was a unique treat to have her out there, the sun kissing her skin and Sung kissing it as well.
They relaxed on the sweeping for some time, looking at nothing in particular. Then her stomach growled, and Sung knew he had to bring their time to an end.
"It is getting incredibly late; my sovereign requirements her lunch."
"I would like some more dessert," she said shamelessly, running a finger down his chest. His breath came quicker, and he grinned at her. He jerked slightly when she moved and propped herself up on her elbows so it pushed her breasts together, giving him a perfect view. She saw how he looked at her and raised an eyebrow at him.
"Down, lady, or I won't ever get you taken care of," he said, letting the intensity he felt show in his eyes.
She laughed, and the appeal was so incredible he needed to stimulate her and cause her to remember it. But he restrained himself from starting anything and began to unload the food. There would be plenty of time for tickling and different things later.
While he did that, she moved onto her back and stretched out. Sung bit back a groan.
"You're not helping my control," he protested. With an overstated eye-roll, she moved onto her stomach so her entire front was in perfect view, and he growled. "Still not making a difference."
"Really?" she expressed, moving back to her side and resting her head on her clenched hand, which made her midsection plunge and her breasts hang together, another more enticing position than the first. "Men, all of you are so weird."
"Says the one who gets short of breath each time I remove my shirt," he turned his eyes to the food yet knew the sight that would welcome him when he gazed upward.
He gazed upward.
She grunted. "There isn't a lady with a heartbeat that wouldn't get short of breath when you remove your shirt, Sung," she said. He gave her a grape without looking away, and she popped it into her mouth. At the point when her lips pressed together, his body froze. He lay down the rest of the food and hurried over to be directly in front of her, carrying the grapes. She held her jawline down yet looked at him through her lashes, and a murmur of endorsement thundered in his chest.
"Open up."
He put the grape in her mouth when she dropped her jaw, and she shut her teeth on his finger. The image of her like that, her teeth exposed, eyes hot, and breasts squeezed together, made this whole body heat up. With a delicate growl, he pulled his finger free yet gently placed his hand at the back of her neck and pulled her in for a kiss, taking the grape from inside her mouth. Then he pulled away with a grin and ate it.
"Brute," she said, blushing.
"I'm hurt; your words cut me here, Joyce," he said, tapping his chest.
Once more, she chuckled and put her hand where it had been. "Poor baby, so sensitive. Let me make it better," she leaned in and kissed the spot right at the focal point of his chest; however, rather than pulling away, she stayed close and moved her hand to float down between his legs, where his growling excitement was glaringly obvious.
Sung thundered and moved onto his back, pulling her with him. She didn't stop kissing his smooth skin, and as they lay level, her hair spread over his chest like a brilliant cover. He pushed both hands in it, allowing the delicate strands to pull between his fingers and shudder on his chest. She grasped him and stroked hard, and his fingers fixed in her hair.
She brought her head up, her eyes brilliant and cheeks pink. "That's what you like?"
"More than like," he replied softly. He gently pulled her up to kiss him. She didn't release him or quit stroking, and soon he needed to drop his head back and inhale, or this would turn chaotic.
"Joyce… dear ruler… "
She replied by kissing her way down his jaw to his throat, stroking hard again similarly as her tongue lapping at the V between his collarbones. He tossed back his head, curving into her, his whole body unbending.
"Stop," he panted. She was testing his sanity, so he used his advantage and pulled her towards him. "Stop, or I wouldn't have the option to do this right."
"You don't need to do this, Sung; let me do this to you."
"Not on your life. I will see you panting, or we both return home miserable, " he said, pulling her to his chest, flipping them both over so she screamed and let go of him.
"Sung!"
"Mmmmm?" he murmured, his face buried in her neck, using one knee to push between her legs to separate them so he could rest between them.
"I… "
She shuddered, and he dropped to kiss and lick his way down her breasts.
"Oh, don't bother," she said energetically. "I can't remember what I was going to say."
Sung laughed, her areola still in his mouth, and she shuddered again.
Then Sung froze and lifted his head abruptly. Joyce started to look around. "What?" she murmured.
"Your list!" he said. "We completely forgot about the rest of the list of things on your mind!"
Joyce made a small commotion and drooped back onto the cover.
"Do you really have to mess with me?" she groaned into her hands. Sung chuckled and pulled her hands from her face.
"Tell me! We are here. We are outside, and I realise that was one of them. But there should be more?"
"Sung, this isn't the time-"
"I don't even want to think about going back down to civilisation," he said, cuddling her neck. "But I truly need to return to work eventually, but you're too irresistible. If it's not too much trouble, tell me… what else is there?" He nibbled on her earlobe, and she shivered, her skin pebbling from her neck right down her arm. "Please, Joyce?"
She groaned yet turned her head to gaze at him, her cheeks flushed and her eyes shimmering. "The majority of the others would be inside, I think," she said, and Sung's ears livened, his brain flipping through every one of the remarkable thoughts she may have.
"Indeed, that could be set up," he said, waggling his eyebrows.
She chuckled. "No! I love this. I love being here alone and in the sun. There is that saying that it wouldn't make any difference one way or another where we were, but there is one thing."
"What is that?"
"I was wondering about… being on top."
"Whatever you desire," Sung said roughly, flipping them over again. Joyce squealed and clung to him; however, he held her safely against him until they were turned, and she regained her composure, resting on his chest, riding his hips. His hands supported her hips, and his eyes began making promises.
Her hair fell forward over her face, her mouth opened wide with the abrupt shift, yet her eyes glimmered.
"Are you ready, Joyce?" he said in the soft tone she had come to cherish.
"For what?"
"To tick something off both our lists," he growled.
On Top of the World
JOYCE
She was the luckiest lady on the planet.
After a reasonably abnormal start, since she had not been sure how to well mount him, for the absence of any better word, he continued murmuring guidance and telling her how much he loved her. She was once more stunned by how beautiful, tremendous, and solid he was. What's more, he was hers.
With her hands level on his chest, Sung lay underneath her, his head back, eyes hooded, locked on her, his hands at her hips. He kept a sluggish yet consistent speed, pulling her down even as he crashed into her until he nearly lifted her knees off the ground.
She let her head fall forward, and he growled. The tension was extraordinary and delightful, and she shuddered with it. Abnormal noises had begun to break out of her throat at the pinnacle of each push, and she was experiencing difficulty keeping her eyes open.
"Now, sit up," he murmured. "You can relax. I won't let you fall."
"I… what?" she inhaled, eyes half-shut.
"Sit up, Joyce. Trust me."
She was panting with each roll of his hips; she moved her hands in reverse until she was standing and… dear Ruler, she could feel him all over the place, as though he pulsated in her skin, even her feet! "I… gracious… Sung… "
He moved into her once more, and she murmured, allowing her hands to lay on the steel of his lower arms as he grasped her hips.
"Joyce, creator's light, you are lovely," he said, his voice choked.
"Th-thank you," she murmured weakly. She was battling to zero in on everything except the sensations he had wrung from her skin. Once more, he pushed, holding her at the top for a full breath, and she shivered; however, that wave inside of her was building.
She let her head tip back and brought one of her hands up to touch her bosom, prodding the areola until those shocks popped through her centre to meet the flood of sensations; he continued to light low in her stomach. "Sung… " she relaxed.
"Light," Sung shouted. "I can't… light, Joyce, you are… fuck!" His breath murmured through his teeth, and she opened her eyes briefly to see him letting completely go. As though all the power and strength in him was hers for a brief moment. She loved it when he went to pieces.
"It is all right, Sung; you can go. I'm… this is exquisite," and it was. She may not hit her top here, but instead, feeling him so unmistakably inside her, between her legs, his hands on her… it was a completely new encounter that she needed to repeat.
Sung swore again and gritted his teeth like she had given him a test. "I told you, I will see you pant, or we will both go home miserable," he wheezed
She laughed, and it made her hold onto him. He groaned like he had been shot. She giggled again and lifted her hands to run through her hair, curving back marginally.
"Right now, you're teasing me," Sung gasped, and she snickered once more; however, her eyes extended. The sensations were magnificent and changed emphatically as her weight moved and with her arms back like this… gracious…
" Tilt back, Joyce."
"I can't. I will fall."
"I would never allow you to fall, love. Believe me. Hang back over my hand; I have you. Let yourself go," he put one of his massive hands on the small of her back, his arm unbending and his muscles swelling, whether from propping her weight or keeping himself under wraps; she had no idea. Yet as his grasp changed and she tested doing as he said, allowing herself to recline again, the vibe of him inside moved, and she paused her breathing. Once more, he rolled, and her mouth opened with a groan.
"That is all there is to it, my wonderful," he grated. "Give up. I have you."
Incapable of opposing the call of that unique wash of feeling, she drooped back over his hand, her back angled, breasts to the sky, her hair laying on his thighs.
Sung settled on the mating decision, which twanged in her gut like a guitar string drawn excessively close. She moved, and he rolled again, and she could feel the wave inside her structure.
"Goodness, Sung!"
"I have you… fuck… I have you, Joyce!"
He moved his thumb right where they were joined, and as he moved his hips. He slid his thumb between them towards that small bud that pulsated and throbbed, demanding release.
"Goodness, indeed, Sung."
"Joyce, my love, come for me, wonderful," he groaned, stroking and rolling, holding her weight as she marvelled in wonder at the feelings he caused inside her.
Her body strained, she held on to him, and he sped up. "I can't… Joyce… goodness… fuck… "
"Sung! I'm… "
"Joyce! Joyce!" He started to shake underneath her, his thumb squeezing her increasingly close to her peak; however, he was tipping past the brink, and she could feel it in him.
Frantic for the final delivery, she pinched her nipples and squeezed similarly as he moved his thumb and pushed. Her whole world zoomed down to a solitary pinpoint: Sung's glow and strength, his voice calling out to her, and the role of his muscles underneath and inside her. Then she felt the sudden build-up until she released, crying his name.
Shaking and reviling, he sat up abruptly, pulling her against him hard as he pushed unpredictably. She wrapped her hands around his neck and hung on as he fell to pieces, thundering her name until it reverberated off the mountainside above them.
Then they drooped against one another, Joyce's temple on his shoulder, his jaw on hers, gasping and jerking as their deliveries blurred.
Joyce felt like her very skin sparkled. Depleted and shaking, she pushed her hair off her face and smiled.
Sung had his eyes shut. "Oh crap," he muttered.
"What?" What's up?" she asked, pushing the hair off his face. Had he harmed himself? Has she damaged him in some way or another?
He opened his eyes hesitantly and murmured. "So much for keeping it quiet," he muttered.
Joyce's eyes went wide.
Then they jumped up and ran for the opening and the ladder.
Erwin the Destroyer
SUNG
"What on earth were you thinking, Sung?" Erwin yelled in the lamplight of the cave thirty minutes later.
"I was not thinking about you, that is without a doubt. Hey now, Behr, it is nothing you should be worrying about. My mate and I-"
"You and your mate just reported to the world that the lord was at home and getting going, outside, and unattended!"
"Erwin," Joyce moaned. "What difference does it make? Everybody will know anyway."
"It is important!" The monstrous man turned on Joyce with eyes blazing with outrage, and Sung growled and moved to stand between them. But Erwin stared him down, then looked at Joyce behind him. "It makes a difference because the watchmen were not with you, implying they will realise you were unguarded."
Joyce swallowed. "It was a mistake. Things got warmed and - "
"You should be the one with the rope around his nose; you could not keep him calm one time?"
"But I did the first couple of times. It was the third time that - " Joyce began, stifling a giggle. Sung was so strained he was starting to shake. She put a hand on his shoulder and murmured to him. "He won't hurt me. He's just angry. Everything is fine."
Sung snarled. Erwin surrendered and stomped away from them across the great room but pivoted suddenly and stepped back up to place a finger in Sung's chest. "You will let me know where you were, how you got outside without the gatekeepers seeing you leave, and we will have new monitors posted at the exit - "
"I told you, Behr, we were in the mineral pools."
"Try not to fucking deceive me! My hearing is superior to yours, Sung, and that was no burrowed reverberation. You were outside, and the whole Tree City knows it!"
"They don't know that no gatekeepers were with me except if you tell them."
"The watchmen know! And that implies every trooper does because they needed to interview on a shift change, and you know how they love to prod you about mating thunders, Sung. It will take one individual to draw an obvious conclusion - "
"Then I surmise our responsibility is to ensure they can't," Sung said with determination.
"Let me know where you went! How you got out!"
"No."
"Sung, I keep thinking about whether - " Joyce began; however, he spun on her.
"No, it is our own. Just our own. We will have one secret place!" he snarled and turned to Erwin. "A certain something! One spot that is just for my mate and me, and you won't be the one to take it from us, Erwin."
"But the security - "
"It has been in this cave longer than I have and never found," Sung demanded. "Nothing has changed aside from you now, knowing it exists, but the response is still no."
"And the wolves?"
"The wolves don't have any idea it exists either, but if anybody asks, we will… I don't know what we will say to them, but we will think of something".
Erwin remained before him, face pale, hands clenched, shaking in a fury. "I am committed to protecting you with my life," he said unobtrusively, eyes burning. "I have surrendered everything to guard you, to protect your mate."
"And I'm unceasingly thankful for it, brother; that's what you know," Sung said honestly.
Erwin gestured. "But yet, you are telling me you are putting a hindrance in my way. An entrance that our foes could utilise, and you won't permit me to monitor it. To guarantee your safety. You won't tell me where it is!"
"Since I realise the risk is so low - "
"Just consider the possibility that it was Joyce here alone, Sung. Consider the possibility that she was the person who had sorted out some way to escape the cave yet wouldn't tell you. What then? How would you feel?" Sung went still. Erwin gestured. "Not entirely agreeable when the shoe is on the other foot, Sung?"
"Erwin-"
"Sung, just tell him," Joyce murmured. "If he understands and sees how safe it is, he wouldn't go ballistic and… and ideally, we can quit having watches soon."
Sung and Erwin traded a whole discussion in one look.
"Let me know where it is," Erwin said through his teeth.
"No," Sung said. "Listen to me, brother, the explanation I wouldn't tell you is because I realise the gamble is much lower by the stowing away. The more individuals know, the more likely we will have a breach. The place was created by my dad, and nobody has ever found it. We genuinely are protected. I want you to trust me on that."
Erwin's jaw jerked. He moved his shoulders and shook his head. "You will regret this, Sung. I know it in my bones."
"I hope that isn't true, brother," Sung said, unfortunately manoeuvring Joyce into his side. "It is an exceptionally required and important departure. Unfortunately, it will stay private."
Joyce gave him a troubling grin and put a hand on his chest, and briefly, all they had shared that day streaked in his mind. Her hand on his chest, her lips on his chest, his lips on hers, her hair in his grasp, her cry in his mouth, everything ran through his head, and he took steps to fix his groin again, which must be unthinkable.
She was like a drug he couldn't seem to get enough of.
He put his hand over hers and grinned at her, causing Erwin to growl in his throat that would have stamped his wolf if they had not known better.
Yet, he knew Sung and knew when his brother wouldn't move. Sung was seldom difficult, and when he was, it was with a particular reason in mind.
He could hear Khloe laughing in his mind and shook his head to free himself of the sound.
"I'm troubled, brother," Sung said. "Really. Yet, I want you to trust me on this."
Erwin fluttered a hand to excuse Sung and stomped from the cave, mumbling faintly about moronic, cocksure lions.
When he had gone, Joyce gazed toward him. "Are you sure, Sung?" she asked unobtrusively. "He seems really stressed."
"I'm sure," Sung said, pulling her jaw up for a kiss. "I truly have to go and smooth his broken nerves. Will you be okay for a little while?"
"I'm the best I have been in a long time," she grins. "You go and do your duties. I'm headed toward starting mine."
Sung grinned. "That's my queen."
Then he bowed over her hand before leaving the cave and pursuing Erwin, just to find he had left the clearing.
Sung groaned. The bastard had run because he knew Sung couldn't keep up.
Master Plan
JOYCE
Sadly, she had not seen Sung or her cohorts before supper. She had spent two or three hours in the cave trying to think of how to win the hearts of everyone in Anima. She didn't want to talk to her cohorts without a thought… however, she was coming up blank. The fact of the matter was she had barely any familiarity with the Anima to be able to understand what they appreciated.
The time had come to address her counsellor.
She left for supper early and dropped by Dim's market. He was there, however, without any clients, and when she showed up, he grinned. "Great to see you."
"You as well," she said, looking at the twisted cowhides he displayed on the table. They were all so beautiful. "I realise I talked with all of you about exploring today; however, I have had another thought. Or then again, perhaps it would be smarter to say I need another thought. Are you able to walk with me? Only for a few minutes, and then we can go to supper and perhaps track the others down."
"Of course, let me just close up."
However, a couple of moments later, they were strolling through Tree City, away from the market, because it was time for dinner. Joyce had been throwing her ideas at Gray just to find that much of what she said wouldn't be perceived or understood by Anima correctly.
She groaned. "I not entirely set in stone, and I will beat this. I have not been myself. I have been so stressed over individuals I have not allowed them to see me in the right light, and I believe I should do that! I want to figure out how to get people energised and together so I can talk to them-"
They turned a corner into a woodland region that Joyce had not entered. They nearly collided with a lady rushing with her head down.
"Oh, my, I'm so sorry!" Joyce said as they came chest to chest.
"No need."
It was Lucine.
They stood, gazing at one another briefly, and Joyce gulped. This was not how she had wanted to connect; however… she didn't know when she would get another opportunity. And she would rather not have this dark cloud looming over her.
"Lucine!" she said quietly. "I'm extremely sorry, but you really snuck up on me."
The lady gazed at her on the same level, then looked at Gray, and incredibly, her face relaxed.
"Howdy, Lucine," Gray said.
Lucine acknowledged Gray and then turned to Joyce, and all articulation tumbled from her thoughts.
"I'm extremely delighted to have run into you," Joyce said rapidly, keeping her jawline high until Gray poked her. She remembered that bearing your throat to a hunter was taboo. So she set her shoulders back yet dropped her jawline. Lucine's eyes widened; however, she said nothing. "I was wondering whether maybe we could talk privately. There are a couple of things I feel like we never got cleared up after the ritual."
"I can't meet privately with the sovereign," Lucine spat at her face out of nowhere, a sign of offence and fury. She shot an evil look at Gray, dashed around Joyce, towards the market, and practically ran.
Joyce gazed after her. "What was all that about? Why can't she meet with me?"
"She's paralysed. If you somehow managed to meet with her and not kill her, it would shame you and exacerbate her situation."
"How? What situation?" she expressed, turning to face Gray. What sort of bizarre rules do these people have?
"You decided not to kill her as per the custom during the rite," Gray explained. "By doing that, you basically called her inadequate - somebody who, like a child, ought to be secured, even from themselves."
"So… how would I tell everybody she isn't that?"
"The main way is to challenge her, battle, until the very end."
Joyce's mouth fell open. "Are you joking? Tell me that's a joke."
"She is shaken because you pronounced her unfit, and Sung didn't kill her, which he should have done, but since you proclaimed her inadequate, she is now treated like a child. Or maybe an insane grown-up? But if one of you challenges her so she can demonstrate that she is able… " He shrugged.