The Swan Princess

Chapter 27: A Bird in the Hand is Worth Two in the Bush

The heat rushes to my face as I open my eyes. Broad, chiseled chest breaks through the water. Moonlight reflects off focused eyes. His pupils are black, matching the surrounding scenery.

Stars above, how did he get here? The one place I find solace, he exists.

I whip my head back to the trees. Deceitful creatures. They're shaking slightly, and I can't tell if they're laughing at me, or cheering me on. I wonder if the prince paid them off, somehow, or whether they do this out of their own free will. The tree that shook off its leaves is now wiggling suggestively. Traitor.

I turn to my nemesis.

"The foliage out-competes you, Your Highness," I respond. The trees behind him bow in mock approval. Water droplets drip down his exposed, muscled chest, making him look both impossibly foreboding and forbiddingly delicious.

I shake my head, distracted by my own scandalous thoughts.

"Does it out-compete me? Given that it brought you here, perhaps you could say it complements me."

"Or it brought me here to kill you."

He chuckles, and drifts forward. He's taller than me, and even from a distance, I have to look up to see his face. What does he see in mine right now? He's not supposed to be able to recognize me by sight, and without clothes, I could be either Odette or Insun.

"My darling Insun, why is it that I suddenly have déjà vu? Why does everyone beautiful want to kill me these days?" He shakes his head mockingly. "You'll have to come closer to me to succeed."

Ah. So I'm Insun to him right now. Maybe... this is an opportunity. Especially when I need to use Insun to steal him away from my sister, thus punishing my father.

Unbeknownst to my thoughts, he continues.

"Although, my darling, if you do so as you are, naked, I would be unable to complain."

"Did you watch me undress?" I start. If so, I might have to commit regicide after all.

"No, my prude." He swims close enough that we're only a breath away from each other. Then, he shakes his head like a dog, spraying me with water.

"Hey!" I shriek as the droplets scatter.

"See how wet my hair is?" He chuckles. "I was underwater, swimming, when you arrived. All I've seen is your hair, and, unfortunately, your hair covering your breasts. Which you are free to remove, by the way."

"Is he being truthful?" I ask the trees. They bob up and down, nodding yes.

"What a shame," I murmur. "Should you have seen me undress, then I would have demanded you exit the water fully. Just so that we are even in our views of one another."

"A shame," he says, reaching for my waist. I let him wrap his warm arm around me, pulling me flush with his chest. I can feel his hard need for me against his stomach, and his other hand drifts down to the small of my back, just above my bottom.

My toes curl, and my heart races in anticipation.

"Shall I make it up to you?" He gaze moves down my body. The whites of his eyes are gone, replaced with an expression of pure black. A dark predator, ready to pounce.

"Of course," I purr, sliding my hands up his chest.

He descends.

His left hand squeezes my behind, as his right yanks my hair back for a kiss. He smashes his lips into mine, grinding his body in time to his kisses. His tongue parts my lips, jerking in and out of my throat with the frenzied passion of an animal.

"Sieg," I gasp. All my heat has moved down to my core. His lips are so warm, so demanding, that I melt towards him, letting him mold me against his body, over and over again.

His hands move, one holding my neck roughly against him, the other squeezing a tender breast. I moan against his mouth, and he growls.

"You have no idea," his voice gutters, thumb brushing my nipple, "how long I have waited to do this." I whimper, grinding my body against him. My hands reach up of their own accord, wrapping around his thick neck to pull him closer.

He moans, closing in on the hollow of my throat. He sucks deep, moving both his hands to tease my breasts. Calloused hands rove and caress them, moving in maddening circles with his palms.

"You're perfect." He squeezes, then kneads again. Trailing kisses along my collarbone, he moves to my shoulder, which he bites in tandem to his squeeze.

If he weren't holding me, the ecstasy would have toppled me over. His head angles so that he now moves to my neck, devouring, as he slides a hand down my torso.

Composing myself, I push him away.

"Insun?" He gasps, panting.

"Sorry, prince." I smirk. "I'm waiting til marriage." My hair flips around as I turn.

Leaving him dumbstruck, I abandon him, taking measured, calculated steps out of the water.

My bare back comes out first, and, for once, the prince is struck silent. Pulling my hair forward, I make sure to slow my steps enough to gives him an ideal look at my behind as I strut out of the water. His panting fills the empty silence.

I exaggerate my movements as I walk towards my clothes, making sure my curves are swaying just so before reaching my undergarments. Smiling to myself, I bend over.

"Insun," Siegfried finally hisses.

The water sloshes as he chases after me.

Before he can reach me, I slide my undergarments and dress on.

"I am a respectable lady, Your Highness." I say. "You will need to court me and marry me before engaging in such unmentionable acts."

"You were a nude lady just a second ago." A great splash permeates the air, and I turn around to see that he has slipped and fallen completely in the water. He's now seated on his behind, the water covering all of him (shame), looking at me with a mixture of lust and frustration.

"You may reach out to me when you are ready to marry," I respond, reaching the edge of the clearing.

"Don't threaten me with a good time."

"Goodnight," I sing back, and slip into the woods. The branches briefly part for me, then close behind for privacy. I look up. The moon is rising, so I'm right on time. I let the air spin and glow white around me. Lift my arms up. Close my eyes. Jump.

Then I'm flying away, soaring above the dark trees, towards my castle home.

The only notable thing I see on my return is a lone wolf, isolated on a cliff, roaring into the sky.