no one really knows what the ocean hides
but you and I, bird, we’re gonna find out
It doesn’t escape her notice when Pteron just barely shifts away from her, a subtle rejection that she feverishly grips onto. She doesn’t say anything, listening to the quiet woods as her mane and tail crackle and hiss. Addara occasionally snorts amid her nursing, sweeping her tail side to side happily. Occupied, she doesn’t listen to the hushed conversation of her parents, her mind clouded by the delectable taste of milk on her tongue.
The tender moments ceased when Reia slipped shamelessly into their private lives together. Pteron struggles to mask his falter, but she can nearly tango to the escalation of his heart beat. The predatory nature thrumming in her veins presses her to take advantage, to take what is hers, but she somehow remains steadfast. A twitch of her skin (scales) here, a swivel of her ear there. It’s almost empowering to be so quiet, to occasionally glance at him and watch as he tersely confesses his loyalty. He is a rabbit to her, trembling beneath a rising fear of what she could do to him. A relationship of predator and prey.
Another minute of waiting, of muted contemplation, before she looks at him roguishly. ”Oh, darling, if only I actually believed you,” a jagged smile just barely crosses along her lips. Her cerulean eyes gleam with hooded mischief despite the too-sweetness of her voice. If only she could identify the culprits; if only she knew the wedges in her relationship. Their scents cling to her memory, tacked on from months prior, but she has not been near enough to anyone to find the original source. One day, she promises herself, because even as Pteron reassures her that he has ended everything, she cannot help to disbelieve him.
Why else does he deviate from giving Adarra a brother so soon? Why else does he shudder when she tries to rest kisses on his throat or lean into his side?
As a mild distraction, and an opportunity to mull his idea, Reia turns her head toward their nursing daughter, bumping her croup gingerly. A surprised jump jerks Adarra back, unlatching her mouth to acknowledge mother inquisitively. Their eyes hold one another briefly. A smile is shared. With a deep breath, Reia returns to focus on Pteron, her chin lifted in objection. ”No. Age won’t affect that,” she has siblings but the age difference neither helped nor hindered the relationships. A weak persuasion attempt, she thinks, and her eyes narrow on Pteron skeptically.
He is right to think she will not hurt him in front of their daughter. Adamant to maintain a united front, Reia keeps close to him, pressing occasional kisses on his jawline and neck in between curt, frigid statements. While Adarra is this young, it works to fool her; but it will not last forever.
Tucked against him, she murmurs into his soft skin. ”Adarra can explore and become independent when she is a yearling, as I did. She may even find someone to love and claim,” Reia pauses to lift her gaze to his, ”just as I did.” For her, it was an immediate knowledge, but the emotional warfare has persisted enough that at times, she falters from the idea.
But, she is too far in to let go now.
A gentle nip catches his shoulder. ”I have half the mind to steer her from men and love. It would only set her up for pain and annoyances, am I right Pteron? Such a beauty she is, and so strong, but she will never be enough, so why let her try? Why let her tread the same path as I have?” Malice rises inside her, sharpening her voice like a knife until she is able to bring herself to search his eyes and pierce into him vehemently. ”Why ever make her wonder why she isn’t good enough, or make her fight for the attention of a man she wants?” Her voice hisses from her clenched teeth and the fire along her neck angrily roars.
But then Adarra is there, walking to stand in front of them.
Her olive eyes trace up her parents, and she smiles at them, immediately subduing Reia’s fury.
and I'll be next to you when the lights go out
@[Pteron]