<<< PREV | FIRST | NEXT >>>

There's a little playful naughtiness in this one, but I'm leaving it as General since...well, you'll see. If you feel like it should be changed, just let me know and I will correct.

***

The snow crunched loudly beneath their feet as they traversed the midnight forest. Hand in hand, Night led Mhina through the maze of pines and spruce. Where they were going still remained a mystery, at least to her, for only he knew the route to wherever it was that they were going. What wasn’t a mystery was the sudden temperature drop.

During the end of the frozen sleep, the sun didn’t rise, so the temperature didn’t rise or fall with the varying times of the day. But, it had been snowing hard, earlier and now the snowing had stopped. With the snow no longer falling, it was no longer there to insulate the air. As such, it had gotten much cooler.

“Hmm?” Night mused, turning to look at the shivering form of his wife. “Are you cold?”

“Night, it’s like 20 degrees colder than it was earlier.” she replied through chattering teeth.

He smiled apologetically and said, “Sorry, sweetheart, I didn’t notice.” as he began to unbutton his jacket.

“Wha--! Not, don’t take off your coat!” Mhina exclaimed, placing her hands over his to stop him from disrobing.

He looked up at her and smiled. “Mhina, it’s fine, I don’t need it.”

“You don’t need it?” she repeated, with obvious skepticism.

“No.” he answered, before returning to the task of freeing himself from the confines of his outerwear. “More to the point, my beloved wife is cold, so I must warm her.” he said, undoing the final button and shrugging out of his coat.

“Night, you’re carrying a blanket. I can just wrap myself up in that.”

“No, you would move more slowly that way.”

“But, well then maybe we should go back.” she suggested as he draped his jacket over her shoulders. “Can the thing you wanted me to see be seen tomorrow morning when it’s warmer?”

“Yes, it can be seen all the time, as long as the sky is clear like it is now.” he answered, buttoning the first few buttons on the coat. “But, even if we waited until morning, it wouldn’t affect the temperature. The sun doesn’t rise during this time of year, so the temperature is fairly consistent regardless of the time of day. So, going now or going later, it would be the same. What does change, however, is the weather and right now, the weather is good. I can’t say for sure what the weather will be like tomorrow, so while I can, I need to show you.”

“But, you’ll get sick.” she whispered, looking down and away at the ground.

He looked at her worried face, demurely turned from him. “…you really are cute.” he said, quietly. He pulled her close and kissed her little pink nose. “I’ll be fine.” he promised. “I won’t get sick because I’m not cold. The truth is, I don’t really need any clothes at all.”

Repetition was the flavor of the night, for once again, a look of pure skepticism was awash upon Mhina’s face. “…nothing? Really? In this cold? Babe, I know you have an aversion to heat, but that doesn’t make you impervious to cold.”

He kissed her nose again and said, “No, but it does make me more resilient and tolerant of it. You know all that fur that Shade and Blaze and I shed in the blooming flowers season? That’s what keeps us especially warm during the frozen sleep. We hardly lose any heat at all. As it is right now, I could walk around completely naked and still be totally fine, at least for a while.”

“Oh?” she mused, touching her finger to his nose. “Now that is something that I would very much like to see.”

“Then, I will show you.” he said, his voice lustfully husky.

Without another word, he began to undress. He reached behind his back and grabbed his sweater in the awkward way that boys often did. He tugged on the garment and pulled it off, then handed it to Mhina. He stepped out of his boots and set them aside. That done, he reached for his belt and quickly unbuckled it. He flipped open the button on his trousers, then tugged on the zipper and unzipped them. With ease, he slid the pants off of each leg and handed the final garment to his wife. Completely naked with nothing between his body and the rest of the world, Night turned his eyes to his wife and smiled.

“Well?” he asked, cheekily.

Mhina was speechless. She had seen the splendid form of her husband in the nude many times, but never had she seen him look so wondrous. Painted with the dappled moonlight that sifted through the trees and the pristine white snow that covered the forest floor and coated the trees, he looked nothing short of enchanting.

A sensuous, male chuckle bubbled up from his chest as he walked over to his awestricken wife. He leaned over and kissed her soundly and whispered, “I’ll take that to mean that you like what you see.”

Breathlessly, she nuzzled him and bit his neck, playfully. She stepped back, slightly and whispered, “I always have.”

Extremely satisfied with her response, he pulled her close and kissed her, deeply, groping her bottom as he did. She moaned, softly and his loins burned with desire. He eagerly kissed her all over and whispered sweet-nothings against her cheek and throat as he did. Enraptured, she clung to him and rubbed her leg against his thigh.

“…ngh…” he groaned, aroused and stimulated by her caresses. “Damn it, Mhina.” he growled, abruptly ending his sensual ministrations. “We have to stop, sweetheart.” he breathed. “For one thing, I’m already naked. But, being aroused and naked…” he chuckled, kneeling down to scoop up his boots. “Also, I really have to show this to you before the weather shifts. Come on.” he said, taking her hand and continuing to lead her on their journey to his mysterious destination.

The couple walked through the dense wood, quietly. Every so often, a bit of moonlight would beam down through the canopy and brighten the forest floor. It was beautiful, Mhina thought. She wondered if the moonlight flickered through the leaves like this back at home. Then, something curious happened. The bright, white moonlight that shone down from the heavens started to waver with a greenish hue. Was the light going through the leaves? That was impossible. Evergreen leaves were much too dense for light to travel through them. So then, what was it?

Needing to find the answer to that question, she withdrew her gaze from the ground and raised it heaven-bound. A sharp gasp escaped her and she came to a complete halt. Her eyes were wide with a mix of confusion and wonder. Feeling her stop, Night turned to see what was wrong. Looking at his lovely wife with eyes filled with astonishment, he had to smile. In that moment, she had the innocent wonder of a child, but the beauty and allure of a woman. She was splendidly captivating.

“N-…Night?” she whispered, her eyes still on the sky. “What…” she trailed, her words abandoning her.

Wordlessly, he tugged on her hand and proceeded onward. In just a few paces, the edge of the wood came into view and the end of the journey had at last arrived.

“We’re here.” Night said, as they finally reached the timberland’s edge. “This is what I wanted to show you.” he said, as he guided her over the woodland threshold and into a wide open, snow-covered meadow. In the center of the frozen field was an icy lake that, like everything else, was coated with snow. Despite its emptiness, it was still somehow majestic as well. But, the real spectacle of beauty wasn’t on the ground, it was up above.

Dancing in the moonlit sky were billowy curtains of colored light that streamed through the darkness like a celestial river. A slow reverent gasp left Mhina’s chest as she beheld the entrancing display. Tears filled her eyes at the splendor of it all and a shiver unrelated to the cold possessed her body. Night, who had been spreading the blanket he carried out under a nearby cedar tree, walked over to her. He stood behind her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders, then pulled her against him and hugged her tightly.

“I’ve wanted to show you this for a long time.” he whispered against her hair. “This is, the Veil of Aria. When wolves die, this is the place where our spirits come to rest.”