Chapter 131 Aella’s Journey
Aella had never expected that she would miss the too-soft, too fancy bed, but as she sat on it to remove the clothing that was not hers, she finally felt like she could let her walls down. The boys had taken an hour to get to bed when it was time, wanting more stories, more songs, more cuddles. Nereida indulged them, smiling tearfully all the while. She had then taken Damara and cuddled her until it was the baby’s bedtime, giving Aella only a few minutes to hold their daughter. But Aella understood; it had been longer, for Nereida. Damara was bigger than she remembered, or was that only her imagination? They were only gone a short time, surely she could not have grown that much!
Finally it was just them. The children were abed, the baby was abed with her wet nurse ready for the night feed. They finally had a moment to just be themselves. But first, the clothing had to go. Nereida was still in her borrowed dress, the pale, faded fabric patched and thin. Aella leaned in to kiss her wife. Nereida rolled over, snuggling into Aella, pressing her curves against the Admiral. She brushed stray hair from Aella’s face with a tenderness that almost broke Aella. How could Nereida still want her, still love her, after all they had been through? She wanted her wife so, so much, but she was afraid the siren wouldn’t want her any more.
As if she could read Aella’s mind, Nereida leaned in to kiss her cheek.
“Of course I love you,” she whispered, kissing up her cheek to her ear. “Do you want me?”
“Yes,” Aella replied, pulling her wife in closer, holding her tight. “More than anything.”
“Do you plan to “make it up to me” since I am a little miffed?” Nereida asked, wiggling her eyebrows and giving Aella an exaggerated pout. Aella snickered into her wife’s neck and began kissing her again.
“Can we get out of these ridiculous clothes?”
“Only if you help me bathe too,” Nereida replied. “I don’t want our bed to smell of dead fish.” Aella made a very unflattering face at the idea, and Nereida giggled again, though she did not lose her mind entirely this time. Aella pulled her wife to her feet.
The bath was an entire room dedicated to bathing; a deep tub took up nearly half the room, and was carved into the floor itself. The room was covered in small tiles that made dragon-like shapes in red stone set against a beige background. The tub itself was made of stone, and was deep enough that if Aella sat on the stone benches carved around the edge, her shoulders were covered. The water was heated, though Aella had no idea how such a marvel could be achieved. The water was brought in through a large pipe that Nereida had told her came from a mountain spring.
Carefully, Aella stripped Nereida’s borrowed frock from her, tossing the offending garment to the side. Someone had left large robes, sponges, cloths and all manner of oils and soaps. Once Nereida was freed from the borrowed clothing, Aella took hers off as well, tossing it carelessly aside. She never wanted to see that outfit again. Nereida took her hand, and together they eased themselves into the warm water.
It was glorious, the feel of the warm water on her skin. Aella reached for a cloth and some of the soaps. They smelled of lavender, sweet and soothing. She lathered the soap onto the cloth, and slowly began to scrub her wife clean. She started with Nereida’s back, scrubbing and rubbing, before she urged Nereida to sit on the edge of the tub so she could clean her legs. Nereida was obliging, lifting her legs out one at a time, letting Aella scrub and kiss both her legs from the toes all the way up. Then, while her wife was still on the edge of the tub, Aella knelt on the bench, and lowered her face to Nereida’s muff, tasting her wife as Nereida squirmed. Nereida arched her back and nearly lost her balance as Aella teased her with her tongue. She kept one hand on the edge, and used the other to gently move the cloth to behind Nereida’s knees. The siren giggled at the sensation.
“More?” Aella asked, coming up for air. Nereida slid into the bath with her, goosebumps on her arms. She lowered her body into the water, seeking warmth.
“More,” Nereida echoed, kissing her deeply. She pressed her curves against Aella, clearly craving more touch. Aella, with a teasing smile, lathered up the cloth again, this time to clean Nereida’s breasts. She gently rubbed each nip, scrubbed underneath the large breast itself. While Nereida was soapy, Aella gently pinched each nipple, her fingers sliding about. Nereida made a beautiful little noise, urging her to do more.
“Soon,” Aella promised. “But I want us clean first.” She rinsed her wife with her hands, and urged her to dip under. Once her hair was wet, Aella sat on the edge and worked the soap into her wife’s hair, running her fingers through the wild blue locks that so often resisted taming into proper styles. Nereida moaned as Aella scrubbed. The Admiral kissed her wife’s neck, though leaning over to do so was uncomfortable, it was worth it when Nereida made her own little noises of appreciation.
Her hair full of bubbles, Nereida turned to face her. The siren’s blue skin had a delicate purple hue, and she smiled a soft, almost secretive smile. Her stormy eyes came up to Aella’s.
“Come in the water, love,” Nereida whispered. “Let me take a turn.” Aella felt heat rising her own cheeks, and she slid back into the warm water, sliding underneath to wet her entire body. Nereida came up behind her, hands full of the sweet, floral smelling soap. She skipped the cloth, opting to use her hands to clean Aella’s breasts. Aella closed her eyes, enjoying the touch, though it felt so very different from Nereida’s usual way of playing with her breasts. It was strangely relaxing to have her wife’s soft, chubby hands work their way over her body. But when the siren began to take her hair out of its braid, the heat began to spread throughout her body. Gently, Nereida teased her hair apart, working in the soap as she went, scrubbing with the tips of her fingers. Aella leaned back into her wife as she worked, the feel of her wife’s fingers in her hair filling her with contentment. It was so intimate, so overwhelmingly perfect. She never wanted it to end.
Nereida’s clever fingers gently urged her under, and so Aella took a breath and slipped beneath the warm water completely. Before she could come up again, Nereida kissed her, pressing their mouths together, her tongue darting in. Aella opened her eyes in surprise, melting into the kiss even as soapy water threatened to invade her mouth along with Nereida’s tongue. They came up for air together, bodies pressed tight to each other. Aella was panting, her heart thundering in her chest.
“We don’t have to go back to the room,” Nereida said with a mischievous little grin. Aella felt her knees buckle at the smile. “After all, you can’t exactly get wetter than you are right now.”
“Incorrigeable witch,” Aella replied with her own grin. “Whatever shall I do with you?” The princess did not answer, but she did duck into the water and, with a grace that Aella envied, swam between Aella’s legs. She did not come up for air, but instead began to kiss and nibble at Aella’s legs, her sharp fangs teasing danger without the siren ever piecing Aella’s skin. Instead, it was fingers that worked their way up and into Aella as Nereida stayed beneath the water. It was hard to remain upright as Nereida touched her, licked her, teased her from beneath the water. She could see stars as Nereida’s fingers and tongue worked together. She lost her balance and fell back into the water. She emerged sputtering, her air stolen from her lungs by her wife’s deft hands as much as from the water. Nereida came up for air as well, looking smug.
Aella splashed her wife, causing the princess to laugh.
“Maybe that wasn’t my best idea,” Nereida said, still laughing. “Come on, let’s go back to the bedroom.”
“Might not have been our best, but wasn’t our worst either,” Aella replied, climbing out of the bath. The tile floor was wet after their shenanigans, and both women had to pick their way across the floor carefully. Nereida’s claws scraped the tiles, and she made a face each time she stepped as if she were embarrassed. Aella tried not to sigh. She knew her wife was still struggling with the lizard foot.
Once they had returned to their room, cuddled in the warm robes, their hair dry but wild thanks to Nereida’s magic, Aella urged her wife beneath the covers. She kissed her, starting at her neck, going lower and lower, down to her breasts, then all the way to her hips, spending a moment to appreciate the little rolls, the scars and stretch marks, everything she knew her wife hated about herself. Nereida moaned at each touch, until she reached the scaled leg. Aella found the spot, teasing it with her tongue. The scales had a strangely salty taste, but it wasn’t bad. Nereida wove her fingers into Aella’s hair as the Admiral teased and touched her.
“Please,” Nereida begged.
“Come apart, my love,” Aella replied softly. “Come apart while I play with you, touch you. This is you as much as this is,” and she slipped her fingers inside her wife as she continued to kiss and suck and lick the scaled leg. Nereida cried out her name, crying out as she shuddered to pieces.
Aella cuddled in next to her wife, stroking her damp hair. She did not ask if Nereida was alright, because the siren wore a beautiful little smile. Instead, she kissed her cheek softly.
“I love all of you,” she whispered to Nereida. The siren flushed, embarrassed. “I mean it,” Aella insisted, pulling her wife into a tight embrace.
“I love you too,” Nereida replied, her voice cracking. “I missed you.”
“Well, then, love, let’s endeavor to not be in a situation where we have to bunk with your brother.” Nereida laughed softly, until Aella added, “when Caleb joins the crew, we will put him with everyone else. No unnecessary drama.”
“When Caleb what?” Aella sighed at her wife’s outburst, cuddled in close, and started to explain. It was going to be a long night.