Nova's Journey

It's finally here, the third installment. I must admit, I have some eager fans and I'm flattered to death by all the attention this story is getting. Thank you all so very much for the continued support through votes/favorites/comments, I appreciate each and every single one. You are all awesome, there is more to come, enjoy :)

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Chapter 7

Despite her adamant belief that we could not be together, that we could not be involved or in a relationship of any sort; I had promised myself to Skye and I wouldn't have had it any other way. I knew, even being so young, even if we had only had a couple experiences, even though we had not known each other for long, she was it for me. She was my woman, my goddess, the one. I knew she would hold my heart and I would never take it back from her. Perhaps it was my own fervor that pushed her, that persuaded her to follow her heart as well, despite her better judgment and wiser means. Regardless, I felt secure in knowing that, despite all her arguing otherwise, despite the rules, despite the conflict between her emotions and her logic, she was still looking at me as though I was the only other person to walk the earth. She was still holding me in her arms, kissing me with her gentle kisses and staring into me with her deep eyes. We burned for each other and, if she hadn't insisted otherwise, I would have taken her again. We were being waited on, and we needed to return to continue, I padded next to her in the sand back towards the caravan.

The giant hole she had blown into my chest earlier, with her arguments, was closing, but it did not close all the way. While I gained some security, some reassurance from her current state, I knew the truth. I knew what was waiting for both of us, and I harbored some resentment that others would be involved. I knew I had to find a way to let it go and I knew Skye would be doing the same for my sake.

We closed in on the caravan and made our way back to the tent. I entered to find all of the women standing in a circle, fully robed with their veils. Skye directed me to the center of the circle and walked gently past me to the head of the circle, where she turned to face me. Another of the women stood next to her, holding a ceramic cup that was steaming. Skye removed her veil once again, staring into my soul.

"Welcome, initiate," her voice was smooth amongst the cacophony of echoes from the other women. "We, the women of the Cerulean Order, invite you to join us. In order to do so you must take three vows. Do you accept?"

"Yes,"

"Repeat after me," she paused, "I swear loyalty to my sisters,"

I repeated,

"I swear respect for my equals,"

This as well,

"I swear to complete the job no matter what the cost,"

Finally I repeated this.

"In order to become one of us, you must complete this ritual. You will drink this nectar," she turned, taking the cup from the other woman and holding it in front of her, "This nectar given to us by nature and made into the sweetest tea. Your senses will overwhelm you and you will be born again, we will make you a clean slate to be written once again."

This concept scared me, what was this? What was going to happen? What kind of overwhelming senses could I possibly experience? But I reminded myself, I had been told to go to the new experiences, to learn from them, and this was Skye, I trusted her. What else would I do? I had to join them or I wouldn't be able to stay.

"Do you accept?"

"Yes,"

"Then drink," she handed me the cup with two hands, I took it from her gingerly and blew on it momentarily before I began to drink it. It was sweet, I could taste the honey and the tang of ginger, it tasted like an herbal tea, I wondered what 'nectar' was in it, or if there was at all. I finished the cup and handed it back to Skye, she handed it to the woman next to her. By this time I was feeling dizzy, slightly lightheaded. The room was shifting around me, even though I was stationary, I began to feel as though I had been upside down too long, my head felt swollen and full of pressure. Sky reached out and grabbed me, I realized I was swaying on my feet.

"Now," she said, "we will remove your clothes and begin,"

I was still punch drunk, I looked around me as the other women began pulling at my clothes, removing them from me. For some reason, my inhibitions were gone, I wondered if perhaps they had slipped me some of the bitter alcohol that my father drank. I had only once slipped in and drank some of it, it had left me in much a similar state of mind. The women were all around me, I could barely make out their words now, it was as though the entire world had gone blurry around me. Skye still stood before me, holding me up, now her hands were beneath my armpits, keeping me standing. I felt myself becoming heavy, as though I was made of metal. My legs gave way and my vision became dark. I prayed that this was normal, that I was not about to die, that Skye had not accidentally given me too much. I felt myself slump to the ground, but the women were still holding on to me, they gently let me fall, I felt myself slipping away into sleep.

I awoke on my knees, it was pitch dark and I noticed that I could not hear. It was as though I was underwater and listening to conversations occurring above the water, everything was blurred. I felt hands, what I thought were hands at least, what felt like hands. Many of them, all over. Someone caressed my face, my neck, another gently rubbed my chest, another my back, a couple even ran down my legs, all the way to my ankles. Despite the horrible position, being blinded and being deaf, it became enjoyable. Lips fell on mine and began to kiss me, although I had no idea who it was, I prayed it was Skye and did my best to imagine it was her before me. My body had begun to tremble, the sensations were so intense, the hands were becoming bolder, touching more and more, making me shiver as they reached places before only accessible to Skye. The strong sensations supported the sense of reckless abandon that was flooding over me, I was giving myself to these hands, these people, whoever they were, moving against them, pleading for more, even though my own voice was unintelligible to my ears. As the sensations peaked, I noticed them becoming more faint, their effectiveness began to decrease, I felt my body beginning to go numb and my hearing was getting stronger, the voices were slowly becoming clear. I heard them around me, talking, to my dismay, I couldn't identify Skye.

"I can hear," I said gingerly, almost afraid to hurt my now almost overly tender ears.

The talking stopped suddenly, I heard footsteps moving around me on the soft bedding. I felt hot breath on my ears, both of them. Then a voice like dark silk, as smooth as Skye's but deeper, darker in tone, spoke to me, "This is your sense of hearing," the voice gently caressed my left ear, "You will be reborn with a new sense of hearing," the voice had moved to my right ear and was gently breathing against me. "You will love what we have in store for you, the things we will do." the sound was intoxicating as it was almost whispered into my right ear. Someone was nibbling my left ear, using their lips and teeth to bring me to heights I didn't think imaginable from a voice and a gentle nibble. It switched, the right ear was being nibbled and the left was being cooed into by the dark velvet voice, how could this be so good? But the voice began to fade, along with the intense sensation of the nibbling and I became aware of the earthen smell around me.

I began to sniff, I heard something said, although it was very muffled, and I was lifted to my feet. I stood, naked and cold, faintly feeling the bedding beneath my feet. I could make out the aftertaste of the drink I had previously had in my mouth. I felt warmth against the front of my body and a strong smell as I leaned forward to investigate I felt the hot breath of the other woman on me, on my neck and chin, I felt her cheek slip against mine. Her perfume was on her neck and I was drawn to it, she wrapped her arms around me and I did the same to her, primarily for support to remain standing, but also because she smelled so beautiful. My nose ran along her neck, back up to her ear and I felt her shiver and could make out a sigh as I felt her chest fall against my own.

My lips and nose skimmed down the other side of her neck and feeling her respond beneath my touch brought me a strong sense of satisfaction, her smell was intoxicating. She smelled of rosemary and plant oils, I could smell herbs and other plants, she smelled green like the great forests we had wandered into when I was younger. I felt her hand on my face, guiding me away from the nape of her neck and up to her, I felt her lips on mine. I hesitantly kissed her back until I began to taste the mint in her mouth. She must have put a couple mint leaves into her mouth before she did this, her taste was so strong. I felt her mouth open against mine and what I figured were the leaves landed against my tongue. I breathed hard, the mint burned, it was so strong, but it soon faded as well. The woman released me and moved away, I stood easily now.

My vision began to get lighter and I began to make out colors before me. I blinked and squinted, trying to see anything in front of me, but I could make out nothing. I closed my eyes, waiting, giving it time to come back to me. I opened them slowly, letting my eyes focus as everything came to me, still very dim. Skye was before me, just as bare as I was, she looked into my eyes and smiled gently, I could see she was much more happy that she would, or could, let on. Her shape and the shape of everything around her became sharper. I smiled at her and stepped towards her, reaching out and pulling her to me. I ran one hand over her face, watching the black lines around the outside of her eyes sharpening as the contrast between the highs and lows in her eyes was amplified.

The whole world was turning into bright colors, the likes of which I had never experienced, but I was completely unimpressed. The voices were still speaking around me in their gibberish, but I only had eyes for the beautiful woman in my arms. I didn't care what they thought, or what the rules were, I had her here, with me now. The world was becoming too bright, and Skye was far too light as it was. I mouthed what I really wanted to say, as I knew it would be gibberish if I spoke it, I hoped she understood. I leaned in to kiss her as the bright light drowned all the colors left from my vision until everything turned back to blackness.

As I came back to reality, I felt myself lying down and realized I was slowly waking up. The earthy smell around me was familiar and I could feel the warm sunlight landing on my face. I took a deep breath and it felt as though I was breathing for the first time, the air was cool. I laid there for a moment, taking in everything all over again, as if it was all new.

"You're awake,"

I turned my head to see who it was, Embry stood before me, robed in blue, but without her veil.

"Yes," I responded hoarsely

She laughed,

"You had quite a bit of fun last night," she crossed her arms, "Then again, so did we. It's been a while since anyone joined us and I rather enjoy these ceremonies." She was stepping towards me, I thought for a moment she would step close to me and kick me to get out of bed, but she did no such thing and only chuckled as I grimaced. "Relax," she said simply, "I'm not going to attack you." she knelt beside me and felt my head, as though I had a fever, I could only sit and stare at her, her hands were rough, undoubtedly from work, but gentle in their touch. "The tea can have adverse effects if it stays in your system too long. It can make you very ill, but you seem to be doing just fine." her hand left my forehead and ran over my face gingerly. "Your voice is a little rough still, but that's normal. How do you feel?" For the first time since I met her, I saw genuine concern on her face.

"I think I'm alright," I sat up slowly, feeling the cool air on my exposed skin, I was still undressed. I half expecting the room to begin spinning, as it had the last time I had felt so out of it from drink. I blinked a few times and she looked me over.

"Open your mouth," she commanded, she examined my mouth and tongue, she pinched the skin on the back my hands and watched as it settled, she tugged on my face and looked at the whites of my eyes, finally, she felt my neck with her hands. I closed my eyes and relaxed as she did, it felt so nice, almost like a massage. My sense of touch seemed much stronger than it had been, which scared me somewhat after all the time Skye had spent telling me that I was sensitive.

I opened my eyes and Embry was very close to me, she stared into my eyes for a moment before her glance fell to my lips. Her mouth curled into a smile, "I'm going to have a lot of fun with you." I felt myself leaning in towards her and I was somewhat shocked when I realized what I was thinking. I was feeling something. My body was responding, telling me what to do, not my mind. I was not being controlled by the heart that loved Skye, I was being controlled by the want in the pit of my stomach, and the warmth between my legs. What had these people done to me? What the hell was in that drink? Her fingertips grazed my lips and it took my breath away.

"Fascinating," she muttered, "Even despite your feelings for Skye, you sit here before me, begging for me." Her words were sharp but I was distracted, the want inside me was beckoning. I was panting now, it was so intense. "Well," she said simply, inching in 'till was so close I could almost feel her lips speaking against mine "I suppose I owe you for last night." I heard her chuckle and felt her lips against mine. I reached out and grabbed hold of her, pulling her to me, she stumbled from her kneeling position into my lap. It was like electricity all over, I had felt it at moments with Skye but this was different, much more intense than it had ever been. These were not the soft, gentle kisses, these were fervent, wanting. I felt her tongue slip into my mouth and tasted something familiar: mint. It was Embry who had held me as my sense of smell took over last night. I felt one of the leaves slip into my mouth from her tongue. I stopped and stared at her,

"It was you," I said, shocked.

"Don't look so surprised," she grinned at me, leaning back in, letting her body press against mine as her lips and tongue ran up my neck, I felt myself shiver and my breathing sped up. "We all have skills." she whispered against my cheek. My face fell to her neck, remembering how she had responded last night to even just a gentle touch. She still smelled strongly of plant oils, of rosemary, she was earthy and my senses wanted to take her all in. There was fire in my chest, burning, raging inside me, wanting to take this woman, to make her mine, but I heard Skye's voice in my mind, reminding me.

"Sometimes it's better to kill someone with kindness"

I took a deep breath and began very gently, my lips gentle on her neck, moving up towards her ear, she sighed and I felt her tug on my hair with one hand. My hands rubbed her back tenderly, I nibbled her ear gently with my teeth, she was breathing hard now, tugging at me, I could feel that she didn't want me to stop. I made a point to drag on, painfully slowly, as my lips and tongue moved over her ear and back down her neck where I had started. I could feel her chest pounding against mine, she was trembling much the way I had when Skye had done this to me. I knew it was working. I felt her nails dig into my skin when I would nibble harder or my lips would close around somewhere particularly sensitive. I bit down gently at the nape of her neck and she gasped, I felt her hand slide up my neck into my hair, her nails tracing along my scalp, pulling me against her. Her breathing was ragged and she breathed hard into my ear trying to speak,

"Do you want me?"

She wouldn't release me, I was still buried in her neck, breathing hard as well.

"Say it," she whispered in my ear. "Do you want me?"

I took a moment to breathe and let her do the same, when I pulled away from her this time to look her in the eye, she released me. She was very flushed and still breathing hard, but there was something about her, something in that moment that made her beautiful in my eyes. She wasn't bad looking, but we had been more rivals than anything, she was like an older sister, nagging me about this and that. But she wasn't anymore, this woman I held in my arms had wants, needs, desires. She wasn't the person I knew from a social standing, she wasn't another woman from the Cerulean Order, she was just another woman like me. I couldn't attach meaning to her, or status, or anything else. The only thought coursing through my mind was how much I wanted her and how much I wanted to please her. I reached past her face and tugged at the ribbon holding her brown hair back, it came loose and I discarded it to one side, her hair cascaded down her shoulders. I smiled,

"You need to wear your hair down more often," I looked to her long straight hair then back to her face, she looked a little discouraged that I hadn't answered her question, "You're beautiful, Embry." She closed her eyes and shook her head, her gaze fell to one side, she was about to turn and stand up when I caught her arm and pulled her back, she turned back to me with tears in her eyes. I was taken aback that she could be so hurt by me, I had meant no harm. I reached up and took her face in my hand. "Embry," I said softly, "I do want you." She stared at me in disbelief for a moment, but I pulled her in and kissed her deeply.

There was no more soft and gentle, I had a mission now, the mission was to prove to her how much I wanted her, to take her. I was fervent and rough now, I reached behind her and quickly undid the clasps on her boustier, pulling it from her and feeling her skin on mine. I undid and tugged on her belt, feeling the silk unwrap of its own accord from her waist. My hands moved over her, egged on by her responses, her moans, her heavy breathing. I slowed, however, I knew I needed to start gentle for the next part, mostly because of my inexperience. I gently moved up the inside of one leg with my hand, feeling moisture against my fingertips. I began to rub gently, she let out a small moan, and I began kissing her neck once again. She sighed and trembled slightly as I slowly sped up, my other hand was intent on her chest, matching the pace.

"I don't think you understand how much I want you," I whispered into her ear, I was becoming more bold, my touches were becoming more harsh, faster. She moaned. "I'm going to do everything in my power to prove it to you" I could feel everything beneath my fingertips, she was shifting against me now, trying to get more from me. Her hands clasped my shoulders tightly so she could shift completely, she leant up onto her knees to get more motion. She was panting furiously, trembling, sweating, I sped up more and she let out a long cry burying her face into my neck but still moving rapidly against me, I felt her shaking. She finally stopped, so I did the same. She was panting against me, breathing hot breaths on my neck, I could feel the heat from her face on my shoulder.

I slipped my hand out from between us and ran it over my tongue, I was curious to know what it tasted like, I still hadn't tasted it. Embry was exhausted, her eyes were closed and she was still panting, I ran my hands over her gently. My back was beginning to hurt supporting all her weight, I slowly laid back against the bedding, she was stretched out over me. I was still touching her gently, tracing her curves. Her hair was a dark brown, it had more texture than Skye's but it was straight, not curly or wavy, it fell completely flat over her. Embry's skin wasn't so pale she could be a ghost, she was simply light. I laid there for a few moments, admiring her, she was pretty. She chuckled into my ear gently.