The sense of absolute release was undescribable, something she had longed for but had been denied for so long. Aarani shuddered when all was said and done, her tongue drawing lazily along her lips as she settled onto her back to stretch her toes to the sky. "Mm, more like that, please," she said with a soft laugh, glancing over to her not-Fíonn with a startling sense of clarity. Viné was not an unattractive beast by any scope of the imagination, and now in afterglow she wondered if she might not be able to love him sincerely. He was a brute, yes, but Gabriel had been as well.. and maybe he would treat her well? No. Absolutely not. Aarani deserved more than a man who struck her, even if the D was good and she was on cloud nine. "Do you mean that? Do you love me?" she murmured, rolling back onto her stomach to stare up at him. Rani was asking Viné, not Fíonn, and wondered what she might do with the answer if he genuinely answered yes. It was a confusing mess inside her head, but Aarani was intrigued by the willingness to play his part. "Come here." The priestess said, clearly requesting cuddles. It was fine. Everything was fine.

Table by Ice. Graphic by Brooke.

His mine still floating on that leaf in the sea, the torrent of feeling and emotion washed over without pause or direction. Her words were heavenly, her body more so and together they experienced ecstasy. He laughed gently as she asked him for more. "Whatever you wish, love." He cooed softly, pleased that he had given her such an experience that she craved more. It stroked his male ego.

"I do." He replied with a contented sigh. Not sure anymore if he was lying himself or not, it was hard to tell. "I regret hurting you." Perhaps it was the drugs that had placated him, perhaps it was the the afterglow talking. Viné did not think to hard on it and simply let the words spill out. "It was unbecoming of me. Undeserved. If I could begin again with you.. we would have enjoyed this so much sooner." He submitted to her request without complaint wrapping his weight around her and holding her against his chest. "I would show you love and devotion, I would never leave your side."

You will be mine, he had said. "I would be yours." Was what he should have said. ;; "speak"

Whatever she wished. Mm, that was what every woman wanted to hear, wasn't it? Aarani was no different, and in the aftermath of losing so much of what she held dear, his words were like honey. He confessed that what he had said was true, and though deep down they both knew it was a shared lie, Rani chose to believe it for the night. She had been robbed of love time and time again, she could provide herself one final night of closure before finally moving on. Her tail flicked in a steady rhythm as he explained himself, claiming he regretted his actions and for half a second, Rani knew the disguise was gone. She knew that it was actually Viné saying those things, and it flustered her more than it should have. And then.. well, things turned sharply into another direction. Aarani looked up at him with those bright eyes, studying the lines of his face quietly. "I am cursed, my love, and I cannot stand the idea of you falling to it. Everyone who takes me as a mate, as a wife.. they disappear. They vanish, never to be seen again." It wasn't entirely a lie, either. Everyone had vanished, though it was just a nicer way of saying they had abandoned her in time. There were tears lingering just beyond the minty gaze, threatening to spill. "I have been hurt too many times to give myself to you like that. Not.. not yet." Her ears wilted into her mane as she dropped her chin, eyes falling shut as she awaited whatever response that would elicit from him. "I'm sorry, Viné, I.."

Table by Ice. Graphic by Brooke.

He knew better, rather then the words he had wanted to hear, better to give the ones whispered in a past life. Learning from his mistakes seemed to be a clarity provided to him by the substances and the act of release. Funny enough, he wasn't entirely sure it was a lie. His body sure seemed to love her, though he couldn't tell if it was purely physical. Perhaps it was all Viné was capable of.

He liked her so close. Liked the feel of her against his chest. Liked the thrum of her heart and the shin of her eyes. It took his languid mind a moment to realize the shine was because of tears. The illusion of whatever the fantasy was, was gone, he knew. Her words were purely truth. He listened with half lid eyes a gentleness he did not usually possess. Cursed. She thought herself, or was using it as an excuse, true or not. A small frown crossed his face.

"Then... I think I will break it for you." He said softly. "I will find a way to stronger then this curse of yours." She wilted painfully and for a moment Viné wondered were the facade ended for either of them, if it was really truth that spilled from her lips or his. "I will break you free. You do not apologize and when you are ready, I will be here. I swear." ;; "speak"

Her mind was a whirlwind and the headache beginning to form behind her eyes felt like an icepick, but she did what she could to hang on to the high. The lines of clarity between Viné and Fíonn were blurring even further, tossing her around like a ship on the sea. The man spoke of breaking her curse, and Aarani knew without question that it was a fruitless endeavor. If she had been able to break it, she would have by now -- and Fíonn would still be in her life. But he wasn't. And neither was Díor or Gabriel. They were all gone. He swore he would be there when she was ready, and Rani winced at the idea. It would have been so much easier to simply fuck and leave, but the drugs had gripped so deeply into her mind that she was powerless to do anything but ride the wave. "I.. think I should go for now," she confessed, hesitantly untangling herself from his crimson form. "I.. I'm sorry, I just need to think." What she really needed to do was sleep it off and gain back some lucidity, but thinking was also a valid excuse. Aarani attempted to slip from his grasp and disappear into the night, unaware of how sober Rani would handle the amount of bullshit she had just gotten herself into. exit unless stopped

Table by Ice. Graphic by Brooke.

He had prodded and pushed as much as he could. Tilled the soil of her soul and planted his words with in. He was mostly lucid now, and not distressed by the trip he'd been on. He'd played his role whole, perhaps even believed it himself. The drugs had confused his desires enough that he wasn't entirely sure what was fiction and what had become truth as they'd shared one another.

He blinked slowly at her excuse, let her free from his grip without complaint. Now was not the time to hold tight and demand. She needed space, time to think, time to let the seeds grow. If she'd even remember any of this later. "For now." He repeated softly and then, "Ah, but wait... I am a bit ashamed. Your name, you've never given it to me. He lay without moving, though his paw was stretched out towards her, pleading for this last little tidbit before she vanished into the night. ;; "speak"

Aarani knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that she would do whatever necessary to forget what had transpired. It had just been a game that had gotten too real, and neither of them had meant a single drop of what they had said. Rani knew that. She knew, through the fading of the herbs, that neither of them would ever be happy with the other. Her game of pretend had crossed a line, and now she needed a way to forget it entirely. Fíonn had taught her about fermented fruit, and she was on her way to find some when he called out for her. He didn't even know her name. She paused in her stride, turning to glance at him from over her shoulder. "Aarani." It was a simple request to fulfill, and if it made him happy, she would oblige. With nothing else, the woman vanished into the night to drown herself in booze and drugs. Healthy coping mechanisms and such. exit

Table by Ice. Graphic by Brooke.

She scurried away into the darken gloom if the mire and he let her go. Feeling conflicted by what transpired between them. Sure, it had started out as a ruse to get close to her, and it had, at a point he could not discern, become something more. He lay on her mossy bed with have lid eyes, wondering, the tendrils of the herbs brushing the edge of his mind. Had he meant it? Even in the slightest? Unsure. Yet, he felt his words ringing in his own ears. A promise to break this idea of a curse she had. Was it even real. Nothing said between them held an air of fiction or truth. Soulless thing he was; original soul long gone and imposter within. Did he have the soul, the heart, needed to take the woman's words as truth. Could he keep her close, prove her wrong and bind her to him. He didn't know. The flowing sea within his mind was lulling him downwards and his last thought, was it was strange that he liked the sound of her name.

.exit via sleep ;; "speak"