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From: Remmelt de Haan <remmelt@kosterix.icce.rug.nl>
Subject: RP: Carlin 1/6 - Journey to Carlin (mf, fantasy, cons)
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All of these stories are copyright Remmelt de Haan '97-'98.
I'm not writing to fill my pockets (or anyone ELSE'S for that
matter). I'm not interested in archiving my stories (stop bugging 
me about that, thanks) and I'll do the reposting - please email
me if you've found these stories anywhere else.


Journey to Carlin


    They still had a couple of days before they were expected to show
up in Carlin and meet the others. They could've made the entire journey
in seven days time, but they were in no hurry. Avoiding towns and main
roads, they were more concerned with keeping a low profile. On the sixth
night they camped at the edge of a lake not far from a village called Oak's
Grove. As usual, Abigail fed and took care of the horses and Ukko prepared
the evening meal.
    He roasted the two rabbits they'd caught in their snares two days ago
and filled their waterskins with fresh water from the lake. Making sure
that their fire was not visible from across the lake - Oak's Grove lay
on the other side - he wondered why his companion had been so lost in
thoughts the past couple of days. She wasn't much of a talker to begin
with, but she seemed unusually quiet off late. He didn't mind though. She
was very refreshing after experiencing the ladies of the big city who
seemed so full of themselves and talked the entire evening and, if they
could, after that.  "Hey, what's eating you, Ears?" Ukko said, trying to
get a rise out of her. Abigail turned in irritation.
    "Don't call me that."  She led her mare down to the waterside where
she could drink.
    Ukko shook his head and dug out his salt pouch from the saddlebags.
    "Dinner's ready," he announced after a while.
    They ate for the most part in silence. Sitting opposite her and
having the advantage of added height Ukko watched Abigail eat. Her eyes
focussing on the task at hand she gently tore off small pieces of meat
with her mouth. From time to time she licked the dripping off her long,
slender fingers. There was an unstudied elegance about her eating, the
same unconscious grace applying to most other things she did.
    "You told me you cut your hair out of rebelliousness. So that they
couldn't miss seeing your ears," Ukko said. The fire's flames gave her
face and hands a fiery glow.
    "Uhuh," she replied, concentrating on the meat and spitting a piece
of bone into the fire.
    "Are you letting it grow back now?" he asked. She nodded.  "I grow
tired of the hood. I want to feel the sun on my face again without having
to give away that I'm..."  Her voice faded and she followed a couple of
sparks that had leapt up from the fire.  "That, and the fact that I'm
around someone with whom I can be myself again."  Her eyes caught his.
Ukko couldn't find a proper response to the sudden praise and nodded
instead.
    After dinner he carved a large splinter of wood out of a branch
and started picking his teeth with it, one of his favorite after-dinner
activities. Abigail took a dirty rag and started cleaning the mechanism
of her crossbow. Ukko let out a modest burp. An owl hooted nearby. A few
crickets launched into a new recital. He felt at peace, sitting here
beside the fire and listening to the sounds around them. The lake's
surface was smooth, reflecting the lights of Oak's Grove at the farside.
Cloud and King stood next to the old willow near the water, nuzzling.
Two hills between them and the nearest path. If there was more to life
than killing, looting and pillaging, this, he thought, could very well
be it. His eyes drifted back to Abigail and he smiled. She hooked her
feet behind the wood of the bow, took the bowstring in her hands. Ukko
looked at the play of her muscles of her arms as she started to draw the
string back. Only the pursing of her lips betrayed the effort. She caught
him staring and frowned.
    "What?"
    "You're so quiet, Ears," he chuckled. With great speed Abigail nocked
an arrow, aimed the bow at him and fired. The arrow hit something next to
his shoulder. The warrior just sat there, the blood drawn from his face
and his mouth hanging open.  "G-gotcha. I won't call you that again," he
said in a hoarse voice. She smiled at that. When she lowered the bow Ukko
glanced beside him to see what she had hit. Next to his shoulder lay a
snake, its head pierced with an arrow. He released his breath in a long,
slow sigh.  "Koriel guard me! I thought you were going to shoot me!"  He
tried to clear his throat.
    "There was no time to warn you," she apologized. "Are you alright?"
    "I think so... Do you think it was poisonous?"
    Abigail shrugged.  "Don't know. But it was about to give you a lovebite.
Would've given a nasty wound in the neck from any kind of snake."
    Ukko pushed the arrow through the snake's head and gave it back to her.
    "Thanks, Abby."
    "Hey, next time you save my skin again."  After a short inspection of
the sight she put the bow and the cleaning rag away. She got up and walked
down to the edge of the water. In the light of the rising moon she unfastened
the buckles of her chainmail shirt. Ukko stared as she took the shirt off
and put it on a large boulder near the water. Her beltpouch and sheathed
dagger were put on top of it. She managed to take her boots off without
unceremoniously limping around on one foot. Then she slowly stripped her
legs of the padded armor. She was now only dressed in a long shirt that
used to be white but which had now reverted to a more neutral grey. From
not more than ten feet away Ukko admired her. From her long legs, muscled
yet graceful, and the curve of her hips to the swell of her breasts and
the outlines of her nipples, clearly visible through the shirt. She was
breathtaking. He could hardly believe this was the same person who had
drunk him under the table two weeks ago in Woolfson Bridge. Normally, he
decided, any woman looking like she did now, combined with her sense of
humor and the ability to keep up interesting conversation would be near to
impossible to resist. How come he hadn't noticed her before?
    Abigail took off her jewelry, two rings and a necklace and dropped it
in one of her boots. She turned her back to him and slowly lifted her shirt.
For his mind's eye he envisioned them together, his hands at the small of
her back while he... Ukko blinked his eyes to get rid of that train of
thought. But he wondered why he'd never even considered trying to get her
into bed with him. A small voice inside him answered, because friends are
too valuable to take advantage of. And you're not like Dlanor. Abigail
folded her shirt and bend down to put it on top of her armor, giving him
a broad view of her butt, hips and the treasure, that lay between them.
If she were putting on a show for him, it was definitely working. He had
a raging hardon which started to become painful. She stepped into the water
and slowly waded towards the deeper parts of the lake, her hips and ass
swaying. She looked over her shoulder.  "Come on in, the water's great!"
she called.
    Ukko raised his hand in response. He gathered some branches and threw
them on the fire. He unfastened his leather belt and thought about the dangers
they had faced together. The encounter with the Death Knight still brought
him shivers. For a while he was distracted by loosening the straps of his
jerkin and by the time he dropped his pants his erection had withered enough
for him not to embarrass himself in case he was imagining things. The water
was cold enough to be refreshing and still warm enough for comfort.
    "Did you never do this when you were younger?" Abigail asked, treading
water as he swam towards her.
    "Nope."
    "Come on, a farmboy like you?" She giggled. "Swim naked at night?"
    "They worked me too hard," he admitted.  "I was too tired to do anything
at night."  He found out he could just touch the stones on the bottom with
his toes. He found an elevated rock with a smooth surface and stood on it.
    They were just grinning stupidly at eachother for a moment.  "You
standing on a rock? Maybe I can too."  She nearly tripped on his toes,
lost her balance and regained it when he put his arms around her. Her arms
slipped around his neck and her groin slowly rubbed against his, leaving
little doubt about what she wanted. The warm, smooth skin of her back felt
great under his wandering hands. His member hardened again and nuzzled her
left thigh. There appeared something unsaid, still, so he stopped momentarily
to face her. He was surprised to see a tear running down her cheek.  "Do
you need a reason?" she said softly. Ukko thought about that.  "To be honest,
no. I eat when I'm hungry, drink when I'm thirsty and sleep with someone
when I'm lonely. A night of passion for the sake of passion is fine by me.
But I wondered what /you/ wanted out of this."
    Abigail blinked away another tear.
    "My life's mostly been dark. There's so much blood and death in it. So
many friends lost. For every foe slain we lose something of ourselves. I
wanted to add some brightness and..."  She gulped and added: "Like you said,
no strings attached."
    Ukko realized he could as easily fall in love with this woman as he
could slip off the rock they were standing on. He wasn't about to confuse
the issue by saying so. He knew he wanted to possess this sensual being,
to know what she would sound like in the heat of passion and to see the
movements of her slender form and sleek feminine muscles, striving towards
perfection in a rather different art than unarmed combat. He also didn't
want to think about the next morning.
    "Don't you desire me, Ukko?" she asked, mistaking his hesitation.
    "Absolutely," he said. He moved his face towards hers and licked the
underside of her nose. Then he grabbed her buttocks, lifted her out of the
water and flipped her over backwards.
    She surfaced gasping for air. In a low voice she growled: "You're going
to pay for that!"
    "I'm soo scared!" Ukko cooed. He started a quick crawl to get some
distance between them. She grabbed a foot and yanked him underwater. They
both surfaced seconds later, facing each other. Abigail splashed water in
his face and laughed. Ukko liked to see that she enjoyed herself and was
determined to keep her spirits up. She'd never smiled much, at least not
as much as he would like. He splashed back and dove underwater. He
encountered a smooth leg and pulled on it. They wrestled and tried to push
the other down. When they hit the bottom, which was littered with pebbles,
Abigail pulled him close. Ukko felt her soft lips caress his, reminding
him of their intentions.
    It was some time before they got tired of chasing each other and got
out of the water.
    They shared a blanket and lay down next to the fire to dry. When by
mutual consent the course of events for this night had been clearly outlined,
neither one of them was in a great hurry to consummate their desire. They
both wanted to draw out the experience. For a while they were content to
hold eachother and stare into the flames of the fire.
    Abigail smiled at him. He smiled back. It was infectious and she found
she couldn't stop grinning. She stuck out her tongue at him and shook
her head, spraying his face with drops of water. Ukko tickled her and
she giggled. They kissed, softly. He stroked her face with surprising
tenderness, slowly licking her right ear. "Ahh, praise Shilohin," Abigail
moaned. She had only suspected that her ears were so sensitive. It was
as if her ears were directly connected to her nipples and what she liked
to call her private garden. Suddenly eager to be joined, she slipped her
hand down and grasped his shaft, now more rigid than ever. Ukko grunted
in appreciation but continued licking her, following her jawline and
neck. Slowly massaging his rod Abigail asked breathlessly: "Am I going
too fast for you?"  Ukko groaned: "Uhh... do as you... ahh..  please. I'm
yours..."  With satisfaction she noticed that his head was as slippery
as she was. Sitting up briefly she leaned back and slowly let his shaft
enter her garden, all the while watching his face. They both sighed deeply
as she slid down. After a few moments she rested her buttocks against his
hips, his penis firmly lodged inside her. They slowly moved against against
eachother, trying to find the rhythm. Her hard nipples dragged across his,
adding fuel to their passion.
    Ukko admitted to himself that during combat practice he /had/ wondered
how the young female, at the time performing a complicated figure, would
look and feel in this position. Now he knew: it felt great. She looked
great, smiling and making purring noises from the back of her throat. Her
hair, which looked pearly white in the moonlight, was still partially wet
and tousled. He was staring at her small breasts, which hardly swayed
despite the long and deliberate thrusts of her hips. He wanted to know
what the dark, hardened nipples would taste like, but there was time
enough; for the time being he satisfied himself by pulling and twisting
those two heated points of pleasure.
    Abigail felt as if she slipped into a hot bath. Heat flowed from
different parts of her body towards her loins, where it accumulated. She
looked down to where their bodies were joined, her matted hairs mingling
with his darker hair. Where his penis entered and filled her private garden,
which seemed to be burning with need. Soon Abigail felt the tying of a
knot in her stomach, the familiar knot that kept expanding. Her nipples
were tingling in time with her heartbeat, which was going faster and
faster. He reached out and sharply pinched her right nipple. That send
her over the edge. With a loud scream that silenced the cricket orchestra
she exploded into orgasm. She tried to keep up her movements while the
hot waves coursed through her frame. His hands supported her hips, helping
her along. She felt herself gripping him with great force, felt her heart
match that delicious pounding she felt throughout her loins.
    Ukko tried to keep up the rhythm without giving in to the stars
himself. Trying to counter the feeling of her warm, wet sheath moving
around him and the sound of her continuous moaning in his ears, he
thought of tax-collectors and death knights.
    She helped by trying to dig her nails into his shoulders. Abigail
ground her pubic bone into his, drawing out her pleasure. The moment
passed and their movements slowed. When the last waves had passed she
opened her eyes again. She still felt the blood run through her nipples
and fingertips. With a blush on her cheeks she sighed: "Oh, Shilohin!
Wow..."
    "You are beautiful when you reach the stars," he told her. Catching her
breath she felt that he was still hard. Recalling an intensive three-hour
battle-practice she wondered how long their stamina would last. Neither of
them had broken a sweat yet. It would be a lot of fun to find out, she
thought and smiled wickedly. "I'm curious what you will look like," she
replied. Eager to join the stars again she started to move again. After
she had had three more orgasms they tried out other positions, the Autumn
Crane, the Faceless Unicorn. When they switched to Butterfly they were both
panting from exertion.
    Ukko leaned on his arms and licked the sweat of her forehead. She tasted
salty.
    "Can you give me one more?" she asked hopefully. Shilohin, I'm getting
greedy, she thought. I've joined the stars eight times in one night and I
want more!
    Ukko chuckled.  "I'll try hon, but I'm almost ready to go. Can't you
feel it?"
    Embarrassed by her selfishness she nodded.  "I'll let you go. Don't
worry about me."  She fondled his jewels and her hips started a gentle
rhythm.
    Ukko groaned. Whether he moved or not, his pleasure kept mounting. It
wouldn't be long before his companion, now writhing under and around him,
would send him on his journey.  "Are you..." he started to ask.
    "Safe? Yes, I'm in the middle of my... unngh... safe period."  Abigail
flung her arms around him and sped up her movements.  "You can leave inside
of me... nnghh..."  Her private garden, which by now felt like a mountain
river in spring, had covered his rod with copious amounts of her juices.
Soft liquid noises joined the other sounds of their lovemaking.  "Ahh... 
actually I insist..." she panted. Putting her hands on his hips she tried
to coax him to greater speed. She felt his member expand inside her and
realized he was almost gone. To her excitement the warmth inside her
concentrated once again into a fiery ball which was growing rapidly. If
they timed it right they might leave together! She pulled him close and
whispered: "Almost going, dear friend? So am I... If we're not careful we
might go together..."
    Her sultry comments and her soft, sweaty body sliding beneath him
almost send him away. Ukko gritted his teeth and tried to slow down, but
Abigail would have none of it.
    "Did you ever make a Lover's Journey with a friend?" she continued.
"I'll wager you didn't."  The words added fuel to the fire they both felt
building inside them. Amazingly, neither one of them had left yet. It was
almost a contest of strengths, the muscles in their arms and legs strained
and their minds set to launch the other into paradise.
    "Ladies first," he groaned.  "No, go with me," she whispered. "Leave
with me... please!!"  Ukko drove his member all the way inside her and
let himself go. Abigail gasped when she felt his hot streaks up inside
her, releasing in time with the tightening of her own inner muscles.
Then the fireball exploded in her and she was consumed by the flames.
Ukko growled as her release fuelled his. He gripped her shoulders and
thrust again, and again. She retaliated by locking her ankles behind
his back and drawing that delicious member inside her burning garden,
quenching and fueling her fire at the same time. They looked at each
other, smiling and panting, their eyes trying to catch as much detail
as possible. 
    Finally the sensations dulled and their movements slowed. By unspoken
agreement he stayed inside her. She traced the contours of his shoulder
blades, enjoying the closeness. Every small movement still caused some
muscles to contract, which in turn still caused warm, gentle waves for
both of them. Abigail tested all her muscles and found herself satisfied.
The bruises on her shoulders told her she truly had made him lose control.
She smiled quietly. Not bad for a first time, she thought.




    Ukko woke up at sunrise. A few muscles in his back protested as he
shifted, reminding him of the night before. He became aware of the warm
body next to him. He opened his eyes and saw Abigail resting on her side,
looking at him.
    "Hi," she said.
    "Hey you," he replied.
    Ukko let his eyes wander over her smooth curves. The first sunrays
of the days caressed her thigh and shoulder, adding an angelic quality
to her beauty. If Shilohin would ever walk among mortal men, he thought,
this is what she would look like.
    She stared back, as she had done for a while. She ached in places
long forgotten. But it felt good, a testament to their labors. She felt
better than she had for an unhealtily long period of time.
    "Penny for your thoughts?" he said after a while.
    "I wondered what you were thinking," she smiled. "If you had..."
    "...regrets? No."
    That came out a bit too quickly, he realized, so he added: "No, really,
I don't. I feel great."  He immediately felt guilty. It was as if he'd
said: you were a great lay, thank you. See you around. The sex had been
fantastic, for sure, but hadn't it been more than that?
    "How about you? Was this what you were pining about for the past
days?"
    She bit her lower lip and nodded.
    "Wondering how to get my attention?" he teased.
    Abigail rolled her eyes.  "I practically had to throw myself at you,
before you noticed me!" she complained.
    "Hey, I noticed alright. I'm just a guy who needs a bit more reassurance
than Dlanor. I don't have all that much experience with women. They don't
usually throw themselves at me, you know."
    "Their loss," she quipped and gave him a quick peck. She got up and
took her grey shirt. Stretching her arms above her head she let the shirt
slide down over her shoulder and breasts. She donned her clothes and armor
in methodical, practiced movements, covering more and more parts of her
body.
    This was, strangely enough, as exciting as her stripping, Ukko thought.
But he put a lid on that train of thoughts. Time to cut the strings
connecting to last night, he decided. He might wish it had been more than
just sex, but it wasn't up to him to decide that it had been. 
    After eating the last of the berries they gathered yesterday it was
time for training. Abigail had made a wreath of twigs and leaves and hung
it up on the old willow. They took turns in shooting arrows with Abigail's
crossbow. First with the gem-sight mounted, then without. A few times
she had to correct his stance. Ukko felt himself distracted by the feel
of her hands on his wrists and arms. He forcibly emptied his mind and
tried to capture the moment of release. The arrow hit the target alright,
but not anywhere near the middle. If she had noticed, she didn't let on.
    Then they duelled. He with his two longswords and she with her
longsword and her silver dagger. Dancing around eachother, parry and
strike, block and thrust. They worked up a good sweat, but the nagging
feeling Ukko had had for a while remained. They took a refreshing swim
afterwards, but neither one of them tried to strike up a conversation.
They avoided looking at eachother. As they got out of the water Ukko
wanted to tell her how much he had enjoyed the closeness between them.
He stared at her bare back while she stripped the water off her arms.
And he just couldn't find the right words. They dressed and packed their
gear without a spoken word.
    This is ridiculous, he thought, as they mounted their horses and
rode off eastwards. The entire day they drove on, only stopping at midday
to let their mounts drinks. At about four in the afternoon Abigail spotted
a wild boar. She managed to kill it with only two arrows.
    "Hey, there's a farm up ahead. I'll check the place out and see if I
can buy some bread, ok?" Ukko announced.
    "Ask them if they got fruit!" she called as he rode off. She took the
harnas and saddle off her mare and started looking for the brush in the
saddlebags.


    "Afternoon," Ukko greeted the elderly couple which was sitting on a
wooden bench in front of their house. The farmer got up and raised gnarled
hand.  "Afternoon, stranger."
    "My companion and I are a bit short on food and I wondered if I could
buy some bread. And some fruit if you have some," he explained.
    "Maybe..." the farmer replied. He eyed the warrior suspiciously.
"Are you going to pay for it as well?"
    Ukko grinned and shook his purse.
    "My sovereigns are as good as the next man's, farmer."
    "And your swords as sharp as the next man's," the old man added grimly.
"Let's see those shiny coins, stranger."
    Ukko dismounted and walked towards him, keeping his hands away from
his swords. The farmer relaxed somewhat and they bargained. A little later
Ukko rode off with fresh supplies. He'd paid a bigger amount than was
reasonable, but these people were farmers. Working from sunrise to sunset
just to keep the bread on the table. Adventurers on the other hand, like
themselves, could just try and hijack another goblin patrol and earn
some quick sovereigns.
    Riding back to where he'd left Abigail, he noticed a trail of broken
off twigs and flattened grass joining his old trail. He wasn't sure what
the signs told him; she had taken time to tell him about tracking and
some telltale signs and now he wished he'd paid more attention. Coming
close to where she'd shot the boar he heard voices. From right behind
that group of trees. He saw some faint movement and he recognized her
voice - she seemed agitated. Riding around the copse of trees Ukko saw
four horses tied to a couple of birches. Abigail stood with her back to
Cloud, the brush still in her hand. Surrounding her were four young men.
One of whom had grabbed hold of her wrist. Abigail yelled something and
the men looked at him, distracted for a moment.
    Ukko felt the blood rush to his head. His Abby! They were trying to...
the thought was blotted out by a wave of anger. He jumped from his horse
and bellowed: "Get away from her!!"  He didn't even bother to draw his
sword. A rage had taken control of him and demanded that only his bare
hands were good enough for revenge. Two of the men hesitated. The one
holding Abigail shouted something and the fourth one stepped towards him.
His fist struck the man in the middle of his chest. Ukko didn't wait for
the reaction but added two more punches, one left and one right. When
the big guy sagged through his knees Ukko made a run for the one
holding Abigail. The man let go of her and reached into his shirt.
Ukko grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and drove him straight
into one of the trees. Planting his knee in the other man's crotch,
he screamed: "Why don't you try me on for a size, huh!?"  Stepping
back for a moment he drove his head into the man's stomach. Ignoring
the muffled screams he grabbed a handful of hair and slammed the other
man's head against the bark.
    "Like touching women, eh!?" Ukko yelled into his ear. Gasping for
air the man produced a dagger. Ukko simply ignored the weapon. He formed
Stone Fist, designed to break an opponent's nose, and punched as hard
as he could. The man dropped the dagger and tried to scramble away from
this madman. A trickle of blood ran from his nose to his lip. Ukko took
another swing at his stomach. And another.
    "Ukko, that's enough!"
    He looked up and saw the other three men quickly mounting their
horses and riding away if chased by demons. Abigail stood next to him
and covered his fist with her hand.
    "That's enough," she repeated.
    Ukko took a deep breath and let go of his opponent. The man madly
scrambled away from him and ran towards his horse.
    "Farmhands I think. Thought they could have some fun with me,"
she said.  "They surprised me," she added softly.
    "Are you alright? Did they..." Ukko swallowed. "...do anything?"
    She smiled. Her hand moved to his heaving chest, a feathery light
touch that send shivers through him.
    "I'm alright, my love."
    Hearing her call him that send another wave of excitement through
him. She looked so lovely and beautiful. He nodded curtly, picked up
the assailant's dagger and turned to examine it in the sunlight. He was
afraid that in her gratitude she'd hug or kiss him - he was convinced
he'd lose it then for sure. He whistled for King and walked away from her.
    Abigail looked at the ground. The moment had passed. He hadn't even
given her a chance to thank him. She resumed brushing Cloud with slow
strokes, feeling disappointed and relieved at the same time. Relieved
that he hadn't asked why a couple of farmboys had caught her off-guard.
Disappointed that she missed the opportunity to hold him and and kiss
him and... seduce him again, she confessed to herself. Oh Shilohin, that
would've been disastrous, she thought. Look what one night of love had
done to their friendship. No, she corrected herself. A night of sex. It
had been sex. A very relaxing and very much needed physical exercise.
And the most tender and passionate sex she had ever had.
    She gritted her teeth and closed her eyes. This is getting me nowhere,
she thought. I just have to act normal and pick up our friendship, just
like he does.
    Cloud looked round why her mistress had stopped brushing. Abigail
smiled a wry smile and ran her hand over the mare's nose. Cloud winked
at her as if she understood.
    After unsaddling his horse, Ukko started to skin the boar. He had
done skinning many times and knew how to get every ounce of meat out of
the animal and keep the skin intact at the same time. Relying on his
experience he tried to calm down the torrent of thought that still raged
inside him. After a while he discovered he'd ruined a perfectly good
boarskin. The cooking went better.
    Abigail squatted beside him. "Smells good!" she commented. Ukko
grumbled something and added a few herbs. Half an hour later they ate
pork stew. They talked about different recipes for stew and shared a
few jokes about some of Ukko's failed culinary experiments. Ukko was
put more at ease and was no longer distracted by her long, searching
looks. They were two flexible, well-adjusted adults, comfortable with
themselves and around one another.
    Ukko pulled out his waterskin and offered it to her.
    "Want some applewine?"
    Abigail's eyes lit up.
    "Applewine? What's the ocassion?!" she teased. She put the waterskin
to her mouth and took a swig. She felt the liquid warm her chest as it
went down. She took another swig and gave the waterskin back to him.
She stretched luxuriously and sighed in utter contentment.
    Trying to ignore her pose, Ukko asked: "Don't you wish it could be
like this forever?"
    "Almost," she agreed. Then she added: "Well, no. Not in the long run."
    Ukko sipped his applewine and studied the way her hair cascaded down
her shoulders and how her long, slender fingers fidgeted with her necklace.
    "What do you want then, in the long run, I mean."
    "You mean, what would I wish for?"
    Ukko nodded. She wrapped her necklace around her index finger. He
remembered how good those fingers had felt on him.
    "Do you remember that time we stayed in Katar and one of the rooms
in the inn had been broken into?"
    "The juggler."
    "Yes. One of the guests had seen him skulking around the rooms that
night. They searched him head to toe and they couldn't find anything. But
that didn't stop them from flailing him and driving him out of town.
Do you remember what they called him as they threw stones at him?"
    Ukko remembered. Shouldn't we do something? he had asked Revelc. The
mage had slowly shaken his head. The crowd will turn against us or the
militia will throw us in jail, he had answered. But isn't anyone going
to help that poor kid? he had protested. Revelc had gripped his wrist
and told him: attacking people's beliefs is very dangerous. They cannot
be changed with gold or power. You can only pity how these simpletons
think of people of mixed race.
    And so they had done nothing.
    "They didn't even bother to ask him if it was true," Abigail continued.
"Because he was halfelf. A half-breed."
    She propped herself up and sought his eyes. She said: "I want to be
accepted as I am. Accepted as a daughter of mixed blood. I want to be
proud of my double heritage. I want those people apologizing to that
juggler. I want the father to tell his son that he made a great match,
not a great match /for a half-elf/."
    Ukko looked at her. It was hardly a wish any mortal man, no matter
how powerful or wealthy, could fulfill. But she dared to dream. And he
loved her for it. He doubted that she ever would see it come true, but
if anyone could make a difference, it would be her. Life seemed to happen
around her.
    "You don't think it will happen," she said.
    He sighed.
    "People are stubborn, Abby. And most of them don't like admitting
they're wrong. Not to themselves and certainly not to others."
    Looking into the flames, he added: "But if anyone can make them
change their mind, I think you can. And if it makes any difference,
I accept you as you are." 
    For a while only the crackling of twigs in the fire could be heard.
Abigail smiled to herself. It was the first time she had ever mentioned
this dream to anyone and he hadn't dismissed it as idle fancy. And even
when he was serious, he managed to give her a compliment.
    In only two days they would arrive in Carlin, Ukko reflected. Just
two more days to decide if there was there was more between them than
just friends. If there was anything at all. If he wanted to tell her
how he felt, he had to tell her before they joined the others. He knew
himself. He didn't have the gall to breach the subject with anyone else
present, let alone the rest of the group. It was ridiculous really,
that he was afraid of being laughed at by the same people who had
saved his life and whose lives he had helped save. He had laughed in
the face of troll warriors, insulted a storm giant and he just didn't
have it in him to approach Abigail and tell her the truth.
    Maybe I can stretch it to three days, he thought.
    Abigail moved over to him and took his hand. "I know you do, and
it does make a difference. Thank you."
    The inviting smile she gave him melted away any control he had
built up in the past hours. She wouldn't mind that he stole one kiss,
he reasoned. After all, what would one kiss be after last night. He
grabbed her wrists and pushed her backwards, putting his weight on
his arms to force her onto her back. He kissed her forcefully.
    "Ukko... mmmhh... leggo! Wha... mmhh... stop it!!"
    She struggled wildly to get her hands free, trying to get away,
but he held her down with considerable ease. When he relaxed his grip
somewhat she bit his nose. He screamed in pain and seemed to realize
what he was doing. He let go of her wrists and his face went ashen.
    Koriel, take me away, he thought. What have I done? How can I
apologize for this? I ruined it.
    "Not so," Abigail said breathlessly. "Not this way."  She sat up
and rubbed her wrists.
    "Please forgive me," he started. He wouldn't lie to her. He would
just have to tell her. There was no other way now.
    "I just had to... I, I can't get you out of my mind, I kept thinking
of last night and I... I never meant to harm you and I know we're just
partners and, and... Gods, you drive me crazy, Abby..."
    His voice faltered.
    Abigail was stunned. /She/ drove /him/ crazy? The blood rushed to
her face and she put her hands on the ground to stop them from trembling.
She whispered hoarsely: "Go on."
    Ukko cleared his throat. Maybe there was a way out of this. Maybe
she would understand.  "I desire you, Abby. I want you so much it hurts. 
I want to hear and feel you again, I want to make you scream and..."
    Abigail put her hand over his mouth and whispered: "Go on."
    His eyes widened when he realized what she meant. For a moment he
was dumbfounded, unable to move. Then he took her hand and slowly licked
her palm. Abigail swallowed visibly as he sucked her index finger in his
mouth and slowly circled it with his tongue. Her wildly beating heart
sped up her breathing. She felt herself growing warm and fuzzy. Without
letting go of her finger, Ukko reached for her and stroked her cheek.
She closed her eyes and tilted her head give him access to her neck.
    Ukko felt incredibly alive. He had taken the only chance there was
and told her the whole truth. And she had accepted it. Accepted him.
The woman he knew so well as friend and comrade in arms was here with
him, for him, warm and pliable, smelling of blossoms in the spring. He
shifted weight to give his erection more room. She excited him to no
end and judging from her face and heavy breathing, the feeling was
mutual. He gently bit her earlobe and kissed a trail down to her throat.
    Abigail shivered under his touch. They stood up and kissed again,
hungrily, almost devouring each other. His tongue came out to lick
her lips and she tried to suck it in. Her hands were frantically untying
the straps of his jerkin and loosening the shirt underneath. He ripped
her shoulder piece off and bit her gently in the nape of her shoulder.
Impatiently, Abigail drew her dagger, cut the unyielding straps in
a swift move and yanked the jerkin off his shoulders. She pulled up
his shirt and licked his chest, inhaling his masculine scent. Ukko
slid a hand inside her linen shirt and cupped a breast, twisting and
pulling her stiff nipple. A gasp escaped from her lips. One of her
hands slipped inside his pants and started stroking his rigid member. 
He moved his hands down her back, down to her buttocks and in between.
Her knees buckled as she felt him at her wetness, rubbing her pleasure
bead. Her world shrank to that spot between her legs. If he would just
come inside her, she wanted him so badly... With his pants at the
ankles Ukko suddenly turned her around and lifted her shirt. A wave of
excitement coursed through her. Mare and Stallion! Shilohin, don't let
me fall down, she prayed.
    Then all coherent thought left her as felt his head against her
entrance and his warm hands on her hips pulling her back to him, onto
him. She felt him sliding deep in her garden and sighed. They fit so
well and it was so fine.
    Ukko felt her warm wetness caress him, the clenching of her inner
muscles and her warm ass on his hips and feared he might go without her.
He started a rhythm of short, hard thrusts. Abigail sighed in relief
as she felt her pleasure mounting towards the stars. Shifting her feet
for better balance she started to buck her hips back at him, each move
producing more fiery jolts inside her, stretching her as if she were
a bow string and he was so hard inside her and speeding up with every
move and stroking her legs, now trembling with the effort to remain
standing and the heat grew bigger and threatened to swallow her and
then fireworks started to go off inside her head.
    Ukko felt her muscles contract around him and could no longer contain
himself.  "Abby..." he groaned as he ejected in her tightening sheath.
    Abigail moaned blissfully and kept moving against his hardness, not
feeling anything except the wonderful pounding in her loins and the
incredible heat where her body joined his. She was floating among the
stars. As the pleasure faded they realized how closely they were pressed
together. She leaning her back against his chest and stomach, loins and
legs almost one and her hands over his. His ragged breathing and hers.
The soft liquid sounds of their joining.
    "Abby... let's sit down," he whispered.
    "Great idea."
    She sat in his lap and looked up at him. For a while they just stared
at each other, enjoying the closeness.
    Thank you for her, Shilohin, Ukko thought. He felt awkward addressing
the Lady of Love who had never before smiled upon him.
    "Why didn't you say anything?" she said softly.
    "I thought you wanted to be friends."
    "You fool," she smiled. "I've been thinking about you all day, what
to say to you and how to say it."
    Ukko ran his finger over her upper arm and shoulder.  "When you got
out of the water this morning... I tried. But I just didn't know how to
tell you."
    "Tell me what?" she asked, her eyes unsure.
    Ukko looked at her and wondered if she felt as vulnerable as he did.
Just say it, he thought. Just tell her.
    "That I'm in love with you," he said softly. "Madly in love."
    She hugged him fiercely, burying her head in his shoulder, mumbling:
"So am I, Zhaly'en. So am I."
    Ukko recognized the Elvish word for 'soulmate' and knew he had vastly
underestimated her feelings for him.
    In only two nights they would arrive in Carlin. Not a lot of time to
be alone, Abigail thought. Maybe I can stretch it to three days.



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