#reidacha

Reidunn was fond of the occasional lazy morning the two of them got, as rare as they were. Alexander was a determined night owl, true, but also an early riser. Times when Reidunn could convince him to stay in bed were rare, and she relished them. She laid with her head on his chest, red curls fanned out and intermingling on the pillow, her tail encircling them both and tapping lazily. Alexander’s eyes were closed, though he was awake and was lightly tracing patterns into the skin of Reidunn’s back above her hollow. She reached up and twirled a lock of his hair around her finger, then combed her fingers through his hair, nails lightly scratching at his scalp. Alexander sighed in contentment, Reidunn knew he liked it when she did that. She felt his hand slide down her back (avoiding her hollow) and come to rest at the base of her tail, rubbing small circles into the skin there. Reidunn felt a pleasant heat begin to pool in her stomach as he did so. Two could play at that game. 

She ran her hand through her lover’s hair again, and this time tugged as she did so, drawing a soft ‘oh’ from his lips. She pressed her lips to his throat, and kissed a path down to the centre of his chest, and sucked a mark onto the skin there. Alexander’s eyes fluttered open, and he gazed at her with lidded violet eyes. His hand dipped lower, now rubbing the delicate skin of her thighs, which soon became slick with want. It was like her nerve endings were burning with delight, that pooling heat beginning to rush through her. 

She rolled over so she was on top of him fully now and pulled his head up by the hair to kiss him and carefully, she rocked her hips down so her centre pressed down just above his mons pubis. She could feel his cock press against her buttocks, and was pleased to feel him already fully hard. He groaned into her mouth, hands finding purchase on the soft skin of her waist. She rocked her hips again, feeling the curvature of Alexander’s hip bones, the skin pressing delightfully against her bare lips. 

She broke the kiss and seized one of his hands, bringing the fingers to her lips and drawing them into her mouth. 

“Touch me,” she whispered as she released them, guiding his hand down to her core. He readily complied, first one finger, then two, slowly moving in and out of her. She pressed back against his fingers, each thrust drawing a low noise from her throat. Reaching behind her, she brushed her fingers over the head of his penis, fingertips toying with the piercing there. His breath hitched and he bucked into the touch, throat bobbing as he swallowed hard. A minute or so later, he withdrew his fingers and shifted slightly, sitting up. He looked up at her, questioning wordlessly. She nodded. 

She lifted her hips, placing her hands on his chest to anchor herself as he guided his cock to her entrance and pushed inside agonisingly, deliciously slowly. 

“I want you to ride me,” he said breathlessly, “ride me til you come.”

She began to roll her hips against him, each thrust taking him in further. He dipped his head to her breast as she did, tasting the sweat that had been beading on their bodies. She wove a hand tightly into his hair, fisting it in the bright red locks. Somewhere along the line his hand wove its way between her legs and found that little bundle of nerves above her entrance, stroking it in time with his thrusts. Reidunn’s blood sang in her ears, gasping out her lover’s name. Alexander buried his moans in the open mouthed kisses he pressed insistently on any skin he could reach, her chest, her breast, her shoulder. Everything outside of the two of them began to blur, the rest of the world didn’t matter. 

After what could have been hours, yet felt like far too soon, she felt her peak approaching. Her body felt wound tight like a bowstring, each rapid thrust bringing her closer to the edge. He knew, recognised the way she felt in his arms,

“Come for me, Dunna,” he rasped.

With a sharp cry, she climaxed, muscles clenching tightly around him. Stars burst behind her eyes, her body screaming with delight. He followed a few thrusts later, with a long moan of her name that was the sweetest music to her ears.

They flopped back onto the bed together, breathing hard. Their faces were redder than their hair, and said hair was sticking to their faces. They caught each other’s eye, and neither could help laughing softly. Alexander pressed a kiss to her forehead,

“You said you were scared,” she said eventually, her voice soft, “why are you scared, Alexander? I want to know why.”

She was met with more silence. Alexander’s hands were shaking again. She laid hers on top of his. His skin was cold, colder than is usually was.

“I...I told you,” he croaked, “everything. It...it’s everything.”

“Everything?”

Alexander opened his mouth, then closed it again. His throat had gone tight again. He’d have to tell her, tell her about everything that had happened before, everything that now weighed so heavy on his heart and mind. And once he did, there’s be no going back. That was why he hadn’t said anything yet. He couldn’t let himself be so vulnerable, no matter how much he wanted to. He knew Reidunn valued honesty, and it hurt more to know he was failing her like that.

“I... I’m scared to love. And scared to be loved. The last time... my lover, back in Zadith, he...” his throat constricted again, as if his body was trying to prevent his from speaking, but he swallowed it down, “he wasn’t a bad man.”

Reidunn wasn’t convinced by that.

“He wasn’t, he just... we had been together for two years. I loved him more than I have loved anyone before, I was prepared to spend the rest of my life with him, give my soul to him. But it wasn’t enough. I wasn’t enough. I thought he loved me as deeply as I did him, but then... it was all a lie. Everything we had burned. He told me that I was unloveable, just a cold, unfeeling bastard princeling who was so hung up over the fact his mother didn’t care about him that it stopped him from being able to care about others in turn. And I believed him. I spent so long telling myself that if... if what I thought was love could hurt someone so badly, I should never let myself do it again. And until now, I...I didn’t. And then... then I met you. And... I can’t go through it again. To find out it was all a lie... I would never be able to live with myself if I hurt you like I hurt him.”

Reidunn couldn’t believe her ears,

“And that is why you left me? Why you’ve been so closed off recently?”

Alexander nodded, closing his eyes. More tears spilled down his cheeks,

“I thought if I pushed you away, made you stop caring for me, I’d stop myself falling deeper and you’d stop...”

Reidunn shook her head,

“Alexander, that is what hurt me. Not your love. I’m not him, you know that?”

“I know. I know you’re not I just...” 

Alexander made a guttural, strangled sound in the back of his throat and he crumpled forward, “Forgive me,” he begged, voice quivering, “I-I didn’t mean...”

Reidunn seized the mug and placed it on the table, then gathered Alexander into her arms. He buried his head into her shoulder and sobbed. She slowly stroked his hair, lightly running her fingers through it as she shushed him. After a long minute, he calmed slightly, his cries dissolving into damp hiccoughs.

“Alexander, I want you to listen to me,” she said, tilting his chin up to look at her, “I love you. I love your heart, I love your mind, I love your soul. And what’s more, I love you for loving me as deeply and truly as you do. Nothing of that is falsehood. I have never felt like you were lying to me, and you know that I would know.”

“But I...I did lie.”

“You kept something from me. Something, admittedly, I wish I’d known. But I understand why and Sacha... oh, my Sacha, I forgive you. And I love you.”

“R-really?”

“Yes. Believe me.”

His mouth was dry, his heart thudding in his chest,

“Please, tell me again...”

“Alexander MacRionnag, I love you,” she repeated, looking him in the eye.

She pressed their foreheads together and cupped his chin, stroking her thumb along his cheekbone, made rough with stubble. Alexander felt something lift in him, like the barriers he had built up around himself had begun to crumble. Then,

“Kiss me,” the words passed his lips as a hoarse whisper, barely audible.

III.

Baking had turned into a messy affair, even messier when Lughnasa got involved,

I help! She had cawed gleefully, diving headfirst into the bowl and sending flour everywhere, narrowly missing the pot of tea-steeped fruit which threatened to tumble until Alexander quickly caught it with a bolt of bright blue magic that froze it in mid-air.

“Gods strike you, Lughnasa!” he grumbled, carefully putting it back. The magpie chirped an apology, shook flour off her wings, then quickly flew off before Alexander could scold her further. 

“I think we may have to start this bara brith again,” Reidunn said, before she caught sight of Alexander and started to laugh, “oh Sacha, look at the state of us.”

Both he and Reidunn were covered in flour, her hair and clothes coated in flecks of dusty white. He raised his hand and Reidunn felt the warm, slight prickling feeling of his magic wash over her as he siphoned the worst of it off. This changed to a gentle brush of his fingers across her cheek, dusting the last of the flour off,

“Perhaps we should get cleaned off and try this again?” he asked, a little sheepishly, “No corvid intervention this time.”

IV.

Watching Alexander perform magic was equal parts interesting and baffling for Reidunn. There were things she recognised from her own practice, then the implementation of strange instruments, strange charms and incantations, strange pulses of energy that she couldn’t place. It was wonderful, though, to see him hard at work on something he cared so much about. This experiment was a big one, she knew. He had been talking about it for weeks. He had taken his astrolabe, a large brass contraption that featured a series of rings, and had been performing spell after spell on it. This, as Reidunn understood, should be the last one, and would prove if Alexander’s experiment would be successful. She stood a safe distance away in the lab, watching. The astrolabe was suspended in the air, glowing a bright, clear blue. Alexander’s brow was furrowed in concentration, his triskelion shining the same blue. He took a handful of something and tossed it into the astrolabe, where it dissipated into a shower of white sparks, then with his other hand traced patterns. The astrolabe began to shake, then pulse with a low buzz, then the rings began to move, encircling each other faster and faster. The inside of the sphere glowed brighter, changing from blue to a hot, binding white. Alexander’s stance was rigid, as if the magic was threatening to push him back and he was straining with the effort of keeping upright. Suddenly, there was an almighty rush of what sounded like a powerful wind, and Alexander was thrown back. The light flashed, and Reidunn had to screw her eyes shut. Then, the room was plunged into darkness. When she opened her eyes, Alexander was on the floor breathing heavily and above him… the astrolabe had seemingly come apart and increased in size, the rings of brass turned platinum-coloured and floating round the room. Within it, around them, were… stars, Reidunn realised in awe. They were the stars. 

She rushed down to him, helping him sit up. His skin was freezing to the touch and he was trembling. But, he was grinning ear to ear,

“It worked,” he breathed, “it...it worked. It’s the sky, Dunna, it’s a model of the sky as we see it.”

Shakily, he got to his feet and excitedly showed her around,

“That, see that there? In the centre?” it was an orange ball. Reidunn could feel warmth as Alexander guided her hand over it, “that’s the sun. And this!”

He stumbled over and touched another floating white orb, from which sprung a silver cord that linked it up to neighboring stars, 

“Recognise this?”

She did,

“That’s Aquarius. That’s our sign.”

“Yes! And this…” 

He waved his hand and the room rotated around them. Some of the stars faded in and out, some resized.

“Lie down with me,” he said, beckoning her to the floor with him.

She gazed up. It was beautiful, like looking at the skies over Vesuvia on the clearest of nights.

“This is where the stars were on the first night we spent together.”

His voice was quieter now, almost tentative. Reidunn reached for his hand, and threaded their fingers together. In the dark, her smile beamed even brighter than the stars. 

V. 

It was the small hours, and he couldn’t sleep. It wasn’t for a particular reason, just that he couldn’t. The only sound was Reidunn’s soft breathing, her head pillowed on his collarbone and her arm thrown across his torso. In the dim light of pre-dawn, the chain of her amethyst pendant glinted. The stone seemed to be doing its work, she was sleeping peacefully, mercifully free from nightmares. In her sleep, she nestled close to him, and his heart filled with affection for her. He could gladly spend forever in this moment. 

He gently pressed a kiss to the red curls at her forehead. 

“Tha gaol agam ort, Dunna,” he whispered. 

He closed his eyes, and soon fell back to sleep.

He’d missed holding her. It had been three days since they’d both committed to giving their relationship another go, and up to now their embraces had been rather chaste; lacing hands, kisses on the forehead or cheek rather than the lips. But now, they were cradled together on Alexander’s battered settee, her head resting on his chest and his arms circled around her waist. 

“I’ve missed this,” she sighed, nuzzling in closer, “I missed you.”

“I missed it too,” he admitted, “...Dunna, I can’t even begin to say how sorry I am for how I acted-”

“Sacha. We’ve been over this. You know I forgive you.”

“I know but… I was a complete fucking arsehole to you. Even pushing you away when you tried to help, which was a spectacularly idiotic move, even for me.”

“Perhaps,” Reidunn said slowly, looking up at him, “you could...make it up to me.”

She shifted slightly so she was on top of him, a telltale flush beginning to bloom on her cheeks.

“Perhaps I could,” Alexander replied, leaning up so their lips were almost touching, “and perhaps I should.”

With that, he closed the distance between them. Immediately their kisses began to grow frenzied, a press and slide of lips and tongues, occasional scrapes of teeth. Alexander sat up fully and pulled Reidunn into his lap so she was straddling him, her hands buried in his hair and pulling it free from its ponytail. He began to trail kisses down her neck and over her shoulder, pushing the sleeve of her blouse down as he did. 

“Wait,” she gasped, lightly pushing him away.

Alexander froze, thinking he’d gone too far, but Reidunn instead pulled her blouse over her head and unlaced her hollow cover, tossing them both aside. Alexander sighed softly, and, slower this time, he bent his head back down to her shoulder and trailed kisses down to the swell of her breast. Reidunn’s hands tangled in his hair again, and she whispered words of encouragement. He took one rosy nipple into his mouth and sucked lightly; Reidunn rewarded him with a light moan and a gentle tug on his hair. After a few minutes, he turned his attention to the other breast, and by now Reidunn’s breathing had gotten shallow, her tail tapping, and she had started rocking her hips slightly into the growing swell in his trousers. He lifted his head, asking wordlessly, and she nodded, reaching for her skirt and pulling that over her head, and shifting so she could pull her smallclothes off. Alexander tore his shirt off and pushed his trousers down to mid-thigh, his erection springing forward, the head weeping. 

Reidunn positioned herself over him, their eyes locked, and slowly pushed down til she was fully seated. They sat for a minute, foreheads pressed together and arms wrapped around each other, breathing heavily as they adjusted. Then, Reidunn began to move, still slowly, savouring the feeling of their bodies being reunited. His hands caressed every inch of her he could reach, her throat, across her breast, her thighs, the space just under her hollow. One of her arms anchored on his shoulder, the other stroking across his chest, occasionally brushing the nipple with his thumb. He gently rocked up to meet her movements, a whisper of,

“Oh Dunna,” dropping from his lips.

Everything was unhurried, but not necessarily lazy. Rather, each little movement, each kiss, each moan of pleasure was steeped in desire and longing. Each moment of lovemaking was a moment to be saved after far too long.

And it was lovemaking, Reidunn thought, Alexander’s lips brushing the hollow of her throat. She had never loved him more than she did right now. 

Eventually their movements began to speed up, and the steadiness began to dissolve into passion, though the intensity of their emotions remained. Their eyes never left each other’s faces as Reidunn rode him, hazel locked onto violet. When they came, it was together, both bodies harmoniously singing in delight and their lover’s name on their lips.  

They laid together for a long time after, sweat cooling on their naked bodies and a delightful haze settling over them

“I love you.”

From the moment they had set foot on Cumbran soil, anxiety had sat at the bottom of Alexander’s stomach like a cold, weighted stone. He and Reidunn had been well on their way back to Vesuvia from Longyearbyen, staying a week with Meirneal and Morgaine in Nalba, when the missive had found them. The missive, bearing the swirling red dragon and triskelion of the Cumbran royal seal that bore a direct order from Queen Nimue requesting (or demanding) their presence at court in a fortnight’s time. 

In hindsight, they could have just ignored it and gone back to Vesuvia anyway. What could the Cumbri have done, hunt them down and bring them back in chains? They weren’t criminals or fugitives, they were newlyweds who were eager to return home after their honeymoon. Nevertheless, Meirneal had advised that the right thing to do would be to respond and honour the Queen’s request. A week and a half later they arrived at Neuadd y Brenin, high on its hilltop and looming over the towns and villages in the valleys below. 

Neuadd y Brenin was maybe not as impressive as the palace in Vesuvia, but the castle was still resplendent in white marble, the turrets and spires reaching into the skies and the standard fluttering in the breeze. 

“Oh my,” Reidunn had breathed half to herself when the castle became visible over the horizon, “it’s beautiful…”

She turned on her horse and caught sight of her husband’s face. Alexander had gone nearly as pale as the high stone curtain walls, his hands gripping his reins tightly. She reached out and brushed her hand over the top of his comfortingly. Seemingly broken from his reverie, Alexander jumped.

“Sacha,” Reidunn prompted gently, “ are you alright?”

She felt she knew the answer without him having to say anything. 

Alexander bit his lip hard and let out a sharp breath through his nose,

“The sooner we arrive, the sooner we can leave,” he muttered, voice clipped.

“Exactly,” she nodded, squeezing his hand.

She nudged her horse closer so they were side by side, and leaned up so she could press a soft kiss to her husband’s frowning lips,

“You aren’t alone, my beloved,” she said, “we’re in this together. We can face this together.”

Alexander returned her kiss, cupping her chin in his hands,

“Thank you, cariad,” he murmured against her lips, “I’m glad for that.”

Her lips were warm against his cold ones, and for a moment his fears dissipated. In between more kisses, she tucked an errant red curl behind his ear and held him as closely as they could manage while on horseback. 

Eventually she broke the kiss and pressed their foreheads together, offering him a hopeful smile that he hesitantly returned.

“I suppose we’ll soon found out how good a Cumbran teacher you are,” she quipped, 

“Aye,” he replied, almost chuckling, “I suppose we will.”

Alexander tried to keep a brave face the rest of the journey, but by the time they passed under the iron trellis gate and into the bright lights of the main courtyard, the pit of anxiety had reformed in his stomach and his hands were beginning to shake. They were ushered off their horses and led through the large castle doors and the subsequent maze of hallways by several servants and the chamberlain, who had the good grace to mask his disdain with an artificial smile and not mention Reidunn’s tail. He had swooped into a low boy, addressing Alexander and Reidunn as “My lord and lady,” and Alexander thought he was going to be sick. He felt Reidunn curl her hand around his and he clung to it like a lifeline. 

The vast carved door of the throneroom was suddenly before them. Alexander knew every single whorl and chink of wood in that door from hours of staring at it as a child. A scratch on the top right panel that looked like a lightning bolt, a chip in the carving towards the bottom that his grandmother had made. He swallowed hard.

“Welcome home, my lord,” the chamberlain had said before he disappeared out of a side door, leaving Reidunn and Alexander alone in front of the door, knowing Alexander’s mother was on the other side. He didn’t feel at home. Home wasn’t here.

Home was his and Reidunn’s life together. The future they were looking forward to. 

No, more than that. Home was Reidunn. 

Alexander breathed in deeply and turned to his wife,

“I love you,” he said quietly, pressing a light, gentle kiss to her lips, “home is wherever I’m with you. Even here.”

“I love you too,” she replied, chasing his kiss up with one of her own.