Of Women and Wolves

Realizations

It had been three months since the events in Dol Blathanna and Jaskier had finally left them that morning to spread his new song and vocal talents around the Continent. Fianna liked having the bard around, seeing Geralt so irritated on a regular basis really was rather entertaining but what she found even more entertaining was watching him struggle to hide his growing fondness for their little songbird. So after three months, they were finally alone again and night had fallen by the time they returned to the cave where they had made camp. They had picked up this contract from a notice board about two days ride outside of Oxenfurt for what was later to be discovered, was a Nightwraith. Both Witchers had prepared as usual for their hunt by taking potions but the fight was over surprisingly quickly and now Fianna had to wait for the effects of the potions to wear off.

She paced from left to right at the mouth of the cave while Geralt lit their fire for the night in agitation. The vial of Thunderbolt that she had taken caused a marked increase in her already formidable strength by increasing the speed that adrenaline was produced in her body, which was handy for fighting monsters but not so much fun when she was idle. Geralt could ignore his increased heart rate and just meditate until the effects wore off but Fianna was a ball of restless energy with no outlet.

"LYA! Stop fucking pacing!" Geralt snapped from where he had set up their bedrolls and was now meticulously cleaning his silver sword.

"You know what? I think I saw evidence of Nekker activity on our way back. Only about two miles east of here." She said while continuing her frantic pacing. Geralt knew there was no way she would calm down until the potion's effects wore off and unfortunately, neither of them thought the job would be so quick and they didn't brew any White Honey in case this happened. He rolled his eyes at her as she snapped her fingers and turned to him.

"I'm gonna go kill'em." She said decisively with comedically fast head nods and eyes still black from the vial of Cat she had taken.

"For fucks sake!" Geralt huffed and stood from his spot on his bedroll. He made it to her side in two quick strides to forcefully stop her from re-attaching her heavier armor. Spinning her by her shoulder and pressing her against the cave wall, she didn't even have time to protest at his interruption before he smashed his lips against hers. His kiss was full of fire and Fianna felt her brain stutter and her knees weaken as her brain caught up with her lips. Her hands found themselves buried in the hair at the back of his neck as she reciprocated the kiss with wild abandon. She pulled away to draw in a much-needed breath and Geralt wasted no time in moving his lips to her throat, leaving little sharp bites all down the right side of her neck.

"Fuck! Yeah, Okay! This will work too!" Fianna stated enthusiastically, that was all the consent Geralt needed before he started undressing her with practiced movements.

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They came down from their high in silence, the only sounds to be heard were their harsh pants for breath echoing through the cave. Fianna exhaled deeply before turning herself into Geralt's side and laying on his chest like it was the most natural thing to do in the world. Because it was. Geralt wrapped his arm around her bare shoulders and traced his free hand over the scars decorating the thigh she had thrown over his waist. Neither of them could be exactly considered 'cuddly' but with each other? Intimacy like this was as easy as breathing.

"You never fail to disappoint Geralt!"

"Hmm." He looked down to see that her eyes had returned to their regular slitted gold. As much as he loved when they were black and she craved his more animalistic side, he adored the way the firelight reflected off their usual colour. She truly was beautiful. Looking up at him, Fianna smiled in contentment and he could feel himself harden against her thigh. She let out a breathless laugh and climbed on top of him in one sure movement. He smiled and rested his hands on her muscular thighs and just stared at her in awe as she rocked back and forth on him languidly. He watched in rapture as Fianna flicked her long tangle of braids and chain over her shoulder then met his eyes with her own and smiled sweetly down at him. Her lips stretched back to reveal a set of perfectly white teeth with slightly pronounced canines, the scars decorating her body told a story very similar to his own. Geralt was truly entranced by her beauty, it must have shown on his face because her own expression morphed into something softer, less cheeky as she stared into his eyes. They continued their love making like this, unhurried and lazy while looking upon eachother with unreadable expressions on their faces until they reached climax simultaneously. Geralt could almost feel a thread attached to his heart pulling him towards the magnificent woman by his side and they once again caught their breath in silence.

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What could have been hours later, they both lay beside one another in content silence, the potions effects had worn off after their first round. Geralt lay on his back with one arm bent behind his head, just drinking in the feeling of his lust satiated fully for the first time since they had met the bard. He looked over to Fianna who lay there much like him, eyes closed and a small satisfied smile on her full lips. He could do naught but stare. The warm light from the fire danced across her bare form, reflecting off of the beads of sweat that were now cooling on her skin. She almost looked pure and innocent in this light, and that's when Geralt's thoughts turned treasonous. He knew he didn't deserve her, Geralt had a bad habit of believing himself unworthy because of the words of others. Witchers were emotionless, they were monsters. He wanted to keep on denying the way things had changed between them, but it was getting harder for him to refrain from blurting out those three words every day. Because they were true, he loved her, always had in some way. Were it anyone else laid beside him, he would have ran for the hills after such a realization, but then Fianna looked to him with eyes so-like his own and he could push back the haze that his insecurities had cast over his mind and truly look at her. Gold cat-like eyes, long silver-white hair, both given to her through the same horrors he had been subjected to, her even more so. Her strong beautiful body, hardened through years of hard labour and littered with scars. Not as many as his own but that was because she was better than him, not due to laziness or inexperience. The flickering light of the fire caught on the snarling wolf medallion nestled between her breast. That's when he came to his second realization in the span of minutes. She was like him. She could relate to how he felt right now, she had experienced the horrors that the real world had to offer and when she could have let them chew her up and spit her out, she had risen above to become this fearsome warrior with a quick wit and a heart of gold. This woman, his Lya, was not some blushing maid hiding behind layered skirts and demure smiles. She was a wolf, all teeth and threatening snarls in the form of sarcastic barbs and a caustic tongue. She didn't smell of floral perfume and baked goods, but of the fresh mint that she chewed religiously and hardened leather. She would never let herself be broken by one such as him, and with that startling realization, he couldn't help but reply out of instinct to her next jest.

"How was that for more favourable company? Hopefully better than what those twenty-five ducats would have gotten you."

"Priceless Lya, you are priceless." He mumbled without thinking and she stilled in shock as the tenderness in his tone. He could smell the overwhelming scent of shock that managed to penetrate the air around them thick with lust and sweat. But he could also detect the smallest trace of sweetness-hope. Deciding to throw it all out there in the moment, Geralt raised onto his elbow and leaned over her, he gently moved one of her smaller braids over her shoulder and caressed her cheek. She looked him in the eye and scanned his face and scent for any trace of deceit.

"You are mine Lya, as I am yours. If you will have me." He proposed, much more bravely than he thought he could be at that moment. Her shoulders relaxed and he marveled at the bright blush that spread across her face for what must have been the first time since she was a child.

"Oh." The small sound escaped her parted lips as her shoulders relaxed in acceptance. Fianna raised her hand up to his face, mirroring the position of his own on her face, and smiled at him before pulling him down by his neck and kissing him, trying to convey all of the things she couldn't say in words. Word's they both knew they were not ready to hear. After a few minutes, Geralt reluctantly pulled away from her. Touching his forehead to hers, he stared into her eyes.

"Say it Lya. I need to hear the words." He growled desperately.

"Your Lya. I am yours, as you are mine." Fianna said passionately and that was all Geralt needed to hear. He kissed her again with wild abandon and as they rolled around on the floor of that cave, they were the only two people who mattered. From that night, through some unspoken agreement, their relationship had irrevocably changed for the better. There was no turning back.  

***AN***

Hey there folks! This chapter was just a bit of an interlude before Temeria. I know things got a bit spicy up there but its nothing compared to the more explicit version that I have posted on my AO3. If you want to read that, let me know and ill send you a link to my profile there. 

Uploads are going to be infrequent for a while. I'm seriously enjoying myself writing this story but I am also working a full-time job with irregular hours and studying at the same time. I write all of my chapters out by hand first before I transcribe and edit them onto my laptop, while I have most of S1 written. I need to type it so there's a delay.
Hope you enjoyed
xo Storm