"Other Ways of Speaking" Log Date: 10/25, 11/15/01 Log Cast: Benja, Kaiulani Log Intro: Kaiulani has leapt with a full heart and a ready will into the greatest surging wave she has ever faced. She has sought out the biggest challenge she has ever experienced in her life. She has defied her cousin and Decemvir as well as the rest of her family... and gone at last in search of the man she has come to love, her guardian Benja, with whom she has vowed she will spend the rest of her existence. Undeterred by the discovery that what has kept Benja from revealing himself all this time has been a lack of ability to speak mind-to-mind as their people normally do, Kaiulani has happily accompanied her protector to a hidden cave and declared her love for him, much to his joy. Now as her first morning in Benja's arms comes to Kaiulani, she finds herself eager to embrace her beloved as her next step into her new life.... [NOTE: Adult situation below. Consider yourself warned!] ---------- Water laps softly at the pillow of sand in the hidden cave. The tide has risen outside and the water is much closer about the couple who lay embraced within their own private heaven. Benja's broad chest expands, taking in the first deep breath that will rouse him from his slumber. His dreams were so perfect last night, he is loathe to open his eyes and face reality. And so, he keeps them closed, breathing deeply, its as if he can still smell her! Her hair, so soft on his arm, and her warm body curved against his, snuggling there... Very seldom in her life has Pandion Kaiulani ever slept out of the embrace of the water. And so as she begins to rouse up from her rest in this secluded haven, unfamiliar sensations begin to steal across her consciousness. Her skin... soft still from the kiss of salt water, but dry. Her hair almost so, with a stray tendril having somehow managed to get caught against her lips. When she lifts up a hand to dislodge it, she becomes aware of where that hand had just been lying... And the most curious sensation of all, that of something warm and sturdy against which she lies. Her head, pillowed against a muscled shoulder; her back, cradled within something soft. _His fins,_ is her first thought, and then, in its wake, comes a rush of excitement. _Benja...!_ Her eyes flash open, and with a breathless little gasp, the maiden tries to stir. Reflexively, Benja's eyes open at the sound of the gasp, every muscle tensing. Blearily he blinks, and then slowly his eyes drift downward to the beautiful maiden laying within his arms. His lips part as his jaw drops in pleased surprise. "Kaiulani..." He whispers in husky disbelief. Wonder lights his eyes as he stares at her, and delight is written clearly upon his features, "..thought... dream..." His arms tighten about her delicate frame, pulling her closer. Willingly she is pulled, for it gives her an opportunity to pull herself up onto the hunter's chest. The pressure of her form against his own is negligible, but it is there -- and more than enough to lend assurance of the truth of her presence. Especially when taken with the sparkle in her eyes, as she flashes forth her scintillating smile. "You thought I was a dream?" she murmurs, no less wonder in her own expression than there is in his. She brings up a hand, first to push more of her errant hair out of her line of sight; it blocks her view of him. Then those curious fingers come to explore _his_ hair, as she gives a little giggle. "I'm not a dream, silly...!" Benja's thicker fingers rise to her cheek, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "Hard to ...believe." He whispers breathlessly. "Always dream, before." Pale green eyes roam over her face. The most beautiful face in the world. Rolling more onto his back and nestling his leg against hers, he gently urges her to move atop him. There is no timidity about his actions, yet it is obvious he's paying attention to find the limits of what is proper for him to do. The hands pressing lightly against her are ones in which she has absolute trust, and so Kaiulani scoots more solidly up atop Benja's form. Nor is there any timidity with _her_, though a delicate flush creeps into her cheeks as the back of her mind registers his closeness. So... _much_ of him, so close! She wets her lips for a moment, scrutinizing the coppery features just below her own all over again while her fingers trace the line of his cheek. "I'm real," she assures, "and I'm here... as long as you want me. As long as I'm welcome...!" Benja's strong arm is wrapped easily around her waist, keeping her there against him, while the fingers of his other hand trace the line of her neck softly. His eyes do not leave hers, his mouth warming into another smile. "Stay forever, Kaiulani." He rasps, almost wanting to plead for her to do so. "With me." The sound of his voice -- fleeting half-heard impressions of it have haunted her dreams. Now that she can hear it clearly, it has yet to lose its power over her. That softly rasped entreaty sends a shiver coursing through her, calls up a deeper flush of pink to her cheeks, and brightens the glow of her eyes all at the same time. And her hand comes to rest, palm against his cheek, while she dizzily wonders if it is possible for one who can breathe beneath the ocean's surface to drown in the depths of a man's eyes. "That's why I-I came," she blurts, shy and forthright all together, half distracted by the unfamiliar tangle of reactions her hunter prompts from her but not fearing them, or letting them keep her words from tumbling forth like waves leaping to the shore. "So I-I-I could be with you. I _want_ to be with you... forever!" The dreamy expression in the shark-hunter's eye gives the impression that he may still believe this is nothing more than a fancy of his mind. His eyes remain upon hers and his smile broadens. "Then I will keep you with me forever." He rumbles softly. The hand at her waist squeezes tighter for a moment and then begins to slide downward, over her bottom, pressing her hips into his. "And you will be mine." He adds in that same deep masculine voice. Kaiulani cants her head ever so slightly, not missing the look in the eyes beholding her so lovingly. It occurs to her to wonder, _Is he really awake?_ But as his hold about her tightens, cajoling another breathless exhalation from her, she has but fleeting time to consider that thought. Instead, she giggles a little startledly, leaning in towards the hunter until her face is scant inches from his. "'Yours?'" she echoes teasingly, half amused by what strikes her as a rather quaintly barbaric way of putting it... and half excited, as something within her responds on a far more primal level to the roughly rumbled words. Her voice quivers, just a little, to go with the flush of her cheeks. "W-w-we're going to have to discuss this 'yours' notion... one of those things I'm going to have to learn, huh? Like what we're going to do for food... and if you'll show me Haven... and... and... we'll have to work out a way to communicate under the water... and.... you're... going to have to show me..." Her voice trails off, as certain unmistakable nuances of the form lying beneath her own communicate to her -- and never mind the niceties of speech, whether spoken or telepathic -- of _other_ fascinating things she may well be about to learn. Benja grins boyishly as she leans down to whisper this question. The hand that was on her neck rises to the back of her head and pushes her forward gently, but firmly as he raises his head and captures her lips in a tender, desire-filled kiss. "Mine." He rasps possessively, controlling the grin just enough for another kiss. His hand then slides to the middle of her back, while the other wanders down the back of her leg and back up, his fingers barely brushing against the inner portion of her thighs. His grin is still wide as he shakes his head, "No. No discussion. Mine. Forever." He claims. Part of him is teasing her with his masculine assertion, the other part of him is completely serious. "Learn now." He chuckles and leans up in hopes of another kiss. She knows what desire tastes like in the mind -- the guardsman Sangwyn had made no secret of it, when he'd once confessed his attraction to her. But Kaiulani had felt nothing in return, had had no sense of what such things would feel like in _her_ thoughts... Until Benja. Pulled irresistibly into the first of the kisses, her body shivers from her bare toes clear up to her tousled flowing mane as she melts in reply... and then tries her best to offer up in fair trade as good as she has just received. Her lips quest against his, till she hears him speak again. "You... make a very... eloquent argument," she manages to gasp out tinily; then, her mouth returns to what it had been doing, inexorably drawn. Benja grins into the kiss. He does not know what the big word meant, but it seemed a favorable response. His lips are firm and warm, his tongue soft and gentle in its searching of her mouth. A low rumble of pleasure vibrates in his throat, and his hand slips up against her bottom again, pulling her tight against him. The evidence of his arousal is more prominent now, and he doesn't even try to hide it. Easily, he rolls, pulling her with him, in hopes of trapping her lovely body beneath his own. Still caught in half-dream, half-elated joy, he smiles at her, eyes staring intensely into hers. "Kaiulani." The name is like a succulent fruit upon his lips that he savors, "So beautiful..." Telepathy be _damned_, Kaiulani thinks in a surge of renewed rapture. She might not be able to sense the hunter in her mind, but she knows what she sees in his eyes and in his face... and what the expression he trains upon her does to her insides. That look alone is enough to make her feel strangely weak and giddy, and she is assuredly unable to resist being rolled over exactly where he wants her. Nor does she want to, and with a startled little squeak of laughter she finds herself suddenly the one face-up on the sand, the rest of existence fallen away, leaving nothing but the green gaze soaking into the very center of her breast, into her blood, into her bones. "Benja," she murmurs back, still astonished and amazed that she has that name to utter... but the signals his body conveys to her are growing all the louder, and now her blush is quite evident. She is the maiden who has ridden storm-waves and upon the backs of dolphins without fear... but storm-waves and dolphins never churned up her emotions into a flurry of nervousness and delight and shyness and desire and love. "Benja... do you want..." Benja's loving green gaze bears not only the unrestrained emotions that he has kept to himself for years now, but they also glow with an undeniable passion. His eyes wrinkle warmly at the corners as his smile widens. Her question is unfinished, but he can see the blush, and sense what it is she is wondering about. His pale gaze grows smokey with desire, his smile fading a measure to enchant the expression with loving inquiry. He will stop if she wishes it, but he certainly doesn't wish her to stop him. His voice rumbles huskily as he bends his head down to kiss her neck, his chest firmly against her own, his hips pressing down on hers, "I want -you-, Kaiulani." Oh _my_. The maiden wets her lips again, not sure whether it is the weight of the hunter's frame against her own, the timbre of his voice, or the glowing regard with which he favors her before he lowers his head down to brush his lips against her skin that makes her heartbeat speed up. Maybe it's all three. Her pulse skitters beneath his mouth, and she finds her face turning towards his dark hair, her fingers lifting up to further explore it. Dry, she thinks giddily, but still smelling of salt and the ocean; the scent and the texture of it fascinate her. And she breathes into it, "M-me too -- I... I mean... I want..." Benja chuckles softly, his warm breath whispering against her neck, followed by his lips and tongue. His hand slides up from her waist, along her side and inward to cup the side of her breast. A low rumble of pleasure escaping his throat at her words. Could this really be happening? She -wants- him? Kaiulani! She is not only here... but he is able to touch her as he has always dreamt about... and feel her next to him! Under him... So soft and warm... His other hand finds her hair, winding his fingers into her luxiourous locks. "Mmmmm... Kaiulani..." He murmurs breathily. Shifting his weight, he brings himself to the side, so he is only half on top of her, freeing his hand to explore her more fully. Lifting his head, he catches her lips in a firm, masculinely tender kiss, as his thumb wanders over the peak of her breast. Here indeed, and as living flesh rather than an insubstantial dream. If the curves of her form weren't enough to provide assurance of her presence, the soft little whimper she makes at the touches to her breast helps drive the reality home. So does the way she arches gently backward for a moment before trying to turn with Benja as he shifts, her own hands trying to roam over his larger frame as his roam over her. "Benja," she gasps in reply, and then she giggles. "Wondering if I'm dreaming, now--!" Benja blinks a little at that, confusion wandering into his eyes as he looks back at her. "You... dream about Ben... about me?" He wonders breathlessly. As she turns her sweet body against his, he inhales deeply, his breath coming just a bit more heavy. His hand is gentle, but obviously strong. It gives a slow, savoring squeeze to her breast and then takes its time wandering down her belly and over hip, to the front of her leg, only barely brushing the inner part of the thigh teasingly before moving back up again. Could it really be that this exquisite woman, the one he has never stopped thinking about, has actually dreamt about him too? His heartbeat is already fast, but that thought makes it skip a beat. Up close, this close, with so much of him touching so much of her, his voice seems to resonate from her ears clear down to her toes -- and Kaiulani shivers at the _feel_ of it as much as the _sound_. "Yes," she blurts, the syllable escaping her intermingled with another of those tiny breathless whimpers. "Always... since I was young... I-I-I mean, younger..." And his hands, his big strong hands, sure and gentle against her skin... "Even before I-I-I heard you or saw you, dreamed a lot, what you'd be like, that I'd get to..." And his _shoulders_, broad and muscular; one of her own small hands traces the shape of the shoulder beneath it, down and around to his sturdy upper arm. "See you... be with you...!" Benja's hand stops just under her breast, against her belly, his fingertips nudging at the fabric that covers her flesh from him. His eyes widen just a bit and he lets out a disbelieving sort of sound, looking back at her in amazement. "I... never ...I never dreamed you thought about me too..." He whispers in a mildly shocked, yet very pleased tone. His breath grows ragged for a moment in the excitement of this news combined with the heat that is pulsing through him, brought on by the feel of her delicate skin beneath his fingers. Letting his eyes flick between her eyes and her lips for a moment, he then leans down and kisses her again, letting himself drown in those soft lips and the feel of her hand on his shoulder. An involantary shiver wanders through him. And then his hand is back in motion, sneaking its way under the fabric of her halter, sliding the warmth of his palm up and over her breast, flesh to flesh, his thumb and forefinger seeking the pinacle, to caress between them. At those startled words, laughter bubbles up out of Kaiulani. "I dreamed _more_," she confides, "after you started to speak to me, t-to show yourself to me--" What is he doing with his hands? Waters! And another kiss! Though his hair is far shorter than hers, her fingers nevertheless manage to twine in the dark strands -- one hand's fingers, at any rate. The other's fingers track around behind him, along the soft folds of the wing-like fin that joins his limb to his back. When she can breathe again, her lips unable to go any farther from his than the barest fraction of an inch, she whispers, "And... a-and now..." Her kiss is like sipping from the golden chalice of heaven itself, and it melts this hunter more than he ever thought it would. Never has anything tasted so devine, and felt so perfect. His fingers caress and tease at her breasts, the halter holding his hand tightly to her. His lips toy with hers, brushing against them softly without actually kiss, his eyes are an intense green, smoldering with love and desire as well as the reminents of astonishment at this news she imparts to him. His voice lowers again to a low rasp as his chin also lower, his heated gaze focusing on her from under his brows in a rather sultry manner, implying his want quite clearly. "And now... I'll show you what -I've- been dreaming about..." He whispers. A light kiss is placed upon her chin in passing as his hand lifts the fabric up and over her breast just in time for his lips to fall upon the bared flesh. His mouth is hot and soft, the sucking gentle yet hungry. His tongue playing languidly with the hardened nipple. Kai's breath pulls in sharply, and brief as the sound of it is, it somehow manages to escalate in pitch between when it starts and when it stops entirely. The baring of what little skin of hers lies beneath her halter is of no consequence -- but what he _does_ with it makes her throat go dry. The sensation of it is so unfamiliar to her, a Daughter of the Water, that it momentarily shorts out all other thought. Then she manages to murmur, shy and shivering and increasingly distracted, "Show me... oh, Benja, I've... never done..." Benja mmmms deep in his throat at her little sound and opens his mouth wide to fill it with the round firmness of her flesh, sucking softly, before releasing it, scraping his teeth faintly over the tip as it slips from his lips. His smile is somewhat roguish as he looks up at her, thoroughly enjoying her reactions to him. Lowering his mouth again, to her chest, he kisses and nuzzles his way between them, pulling the rest of the halter out of his way so he can feast on the other unattended breast. Meanwhile, his hand drifts down her stomach again and over her hip, down the front of her thigh and then inward. Ever so softly, teasingly, he draws his fingers up the inside of her thigh, brushing them softly over the loin cloth that covers her. His excitement continues to grow against the hip he is pressed against, and every once in a while, he rocks himself against that hip. But he is restraining himself for the moment. He wants to savor every last second of this intimacy with her, and if she has never done this, he wants it to be the best thing that has ever happened to her. Already this experience is rapidly approaching that very lofty claim out of all of the things she has experienced in her young life, for it is beginning to fill Kai's entire system with little white sparks of fire and light, and should the hunter chance to find her eyes with his, he might see them beginning to grow unfocused. But _she_ chances to glimpse that roguish smile playing at the corners of his mouth, and it occurs to the maiden to wonder if this is some sort of new mischievous challenge he is presenting her. Can she do what he is doing to her? Her palms begin to itch with the need to find out, and one of them slides down his side towards where he has pressed his hips to hers. What will he do if she puts her hand... _there_? Benja's taut muscles ripple under the maiden's bold little hand. His eyes roll shut as another rumble winds through his chest. The lower she gets, the closer she gets, the more his motions slow, his lips upon her breast, his hand in its roaming... but only for a moment, and then he is arching his hips up to meet her explorations, his mouth feeds hungrily upon her, and his teasing fingers dip down between her thighs to press a little more firmly against her womanhood, sliding up along it and then up to grasp her other breast again. His voice is breathy and deep as he murmurs her name along with a soft groan. How magical she is! Delightful on so many levels, this nymph he has only been allowed to admire from afar is oh so much better in person, close up, oh so very close... Close, and growing progressively intent on getting closer. Her lower lip catches for a moment beneath teeth as pearlescent as her hair, before she begins to fumble at the hunter's tunic. Somewhere between something a Son of Water might wear... and a lander, she tells herself, her gaze sweeping over what she can glimpse of his fins from where she lies. Where her gaze goes her hand is not long in following, and her nimble little fingers begin to try to work at lacings, to undo them so that she can try to address the increasingly vexing problem that Benja is simply wearing entirely too much cloth. But it's a challenge indeed, for her name rumbled upon his lips is dizzying. So is his hand between her thighs -- and _that_ makes her actually squeak. Benja grins against the center of her chest as he moves to cover this area with kisses. Her fingers fighting with his tunic is apparently amusing to him, and the sound of her reaction to his touches only spurs him on. The hand that was tangled in her hair comes down to pull the cloth a bit, so that she can remove it more easily, if that is her desire. He lifts his face to flash her a small, teasingly devilish grin, joyfully mocking her with the difficulty of his clothing. He knows how she enjoys a challenge after all, doesn't he? Even if it was an unplanned challenge, he can take advantage of it. Returning his attention to her body, his kisses wander upward from her chest to her neck, giving him another excuse to rock against her hip with the hardness that he hopes is the center of her curiousity at the moment. In unison with his hips, he presses firmly again between her legs again with his hand, gently but insistantly urging her legs to part. When their gazes meet again, Kaiulani's have grown rounder with her mounting surprise... and have begun to darken with an even more swiftly rising need. She has no way of knowing how her eyes have changed color, turning a deeper, more velvet green that speaks of ocean depths farther down from the reach of the sun. And what _she_ sees is that enticing, maddening grin; he _is_ teasing her! Devilish Benja! Roguish Benja! Does he know what he is doing to her? From the look of that grin, surely he must -- and Kai somehow succeeds in rallying her thoughts together to try to figure out how to repay him in kind. Offered the temptation of his helpful loosening of his tunic, she picks up where he'd left off and finally figures out how to undo one side, giving her room to slide a hand in and under and discover the muscles of his chest beneath the cloth. Her fingertips make it up to the lines of the gills that lie quiescent in the open air before the pressure of his hips distracts her anew... and her eyes flash up involuntarily to find his once more. Benja catches that look in his lovely maiden's eyes and feels his heart melt and leap at the same time. To know that he is the cause for the expression he sees, it fills him with an unspeakable pride, joy and love. Still he cannot help but grin at her, and it takes all his will not to chuckle, afraid that laughter might spoil this wonderful moment. His eyes close in the moment he presses against her, his hand seeking to please her from outside her loincloth with the same tingles that course through him in this rocking motion. Slowly his pale green eyes, heavy with growing need of their own open again and focus upon hers, daring in the unhindered lust they speak to her. "Benja..." It is her turn now to whisper his name to him, and for a moment her brow crinkles in her frustration that words are so _inadequate_. With all of the new myriad sensations washing through her, it is all she can do to remember that she can't join her mind to his. He won't hear her. She _wants_ to, though. She wants to wrap her thoughts around his own as she's wrapped up in his broad arms; instead, she must rely on other ways of speaking, and it is growing more and more difficult to remember how to make her mouth work. "More," she pleads tinily as she wrestles the tunic out from between them both, syllables spilling out like spray thrown forth from a rolling wave. Her voice is changing, too, but it eludes her notice that her sweet soprano is turning taut with need, not entirely unlike that part of her down there beneath the hunter's palm. "Do more, I-I want you to do more, I--" And then she breaks off as she finally manages to pick up on the message in his expression. She stops speaking. Stops breathing. And her white throat ripples for a moment as she swallows, shy and mute... but answering that challenge. Down there, she shifts, giving him the room he seeks. A warm vibration of pleasure rumbles through his chest at the sound of his name so passionately whispered from the lips he has longed for since he was but a boy. He is oblivious to the ways of speaking from mind to mind, but he has learned well how to speak body to body. Thanks to his unlikely teacher. Not a thought is spared for her now though, as he has his love within his grasp. "More of what?" He asks in breathy teasing, challenging her yet again, to either speak it allowed or direct his hands... or simply blush and fall silent so that he can tease her further. In truth, however, he is very distracted himself, and his own patience is growing thin, the swelling need causing his breath to quicken and his temperature to rise. His hand slides up along her femininity and takes her exploring hand, guiding it downward as he leans in to kiss her neck and chest hungrily. One leg wraps itself over her own, the one closer to him. Once he believes she has the idea, he lets go of her hand and returns his to the loin cloth, snaking his fingers underneath slowly, as slowly as he can keep himself to at least. Pandion Kaiulani, however, has never been adept at waiting to see what will come to her... and now is no different, despite the blush that heats her cheeks. With her other hand still twined round Benja's neck, she lets the one he's caught be redirected -- and then draws in a shaky little breath that could be astonishment, wonder, and anticipation all intermingled together as her fingers reach the unmistakable shape of the _maleness_ of him. "That," she blurts as _his_ fingers slide along that place between her thighs; she'd had no idea she could get so warm there, so sensitive. _That_ is maddening, too. Intoxicating. And for a moment she forgets to point out what else she would like more of until Benja's mouth finds her neck; point out vocally, at any rate. The soft little groan that escapes her, and the way she unthinkingly, pliantly arches against him fills in that little gap in her communication. [Happily, joyously, passionately, Benja fulfills his dream at last... and the log fades to black.]