chiaroscuro extras

celebration

—————

(Y/N) couldn't help the smile that grew on her face when she met Harry's eyes in the bathroom mirror. His gaze was hooded,  his face buried in the curve of her throat as his nose skimmed over her skin with gentle kisses being planted on the back of her shoulder. Bite marks still lingered over her skin—bruising with the smallest of punctures right in the middle—almost a week after he'd given them to her the night he gave into his heat and bonded with her. She watched, fixing her hair as best she could without disturbing him, as a slow curl of his lips softened his features once he reached the darkest bite right on the curve of her neck. That was the one he told her solidified the bond, where he would drink from her and where he would feel the most connected to her every time he sunk his teeth in.

"What?" she asked of the glimmer in his eyes as he grazed his teeth over his bruise.

The shake of his head had his nose nudging against her skin in a cool run. "Nothing. I love you."

That was still so new, the whispering of his devotion to her. She was sure Harry could hear the way her heart picked up at the sound of the words leaving his lips. Biting back her smile, (Y/N) distracted herself as she reached for a cream to pat under her eyes. "I love you, too, H."

She watched as he practically melted into her despite the chill that covered his skin, acting as if she were his sun to bathe and warm himself under.

Bliss, that was the only way she could describe the days since they'd bonded. An unofficial honeymoon that consisted of them locking the doors to the manor and Harry declining any and every call that came to him while (Y/N) fed an excuse to Charlotte about a broken phone so she wouldn't be reachable. (Y/N) felt like they'd just been married with the way she couldn't get enough of him, both carnally and in innocent moments.

Harry's nose skimmed across the back of her neck, his lips following after as he made a point to touch over every bit of skin he had access to. A sheepish smile touched at (Y/N)'s lips as she applied a treatment to her bitten pout.

"Harry?" she started, twirling in his arms once she was finished with her routine, clasping her hands behind his neck.

"Yes, my love?" he smiled at her, immediately ducking his head and touching his forehead to hers with a contented smile taking over his features.

As she played with the hairs on the back of his neck, the tiny curls she loved to wrap around the tips of her fingers when they cuddled in bed after another romp, she tried to find the words without getting distracted by her love. "B-Bonding," she started with a stutter, "It's a big deal right?"

His expression grew serious then, becoming the kind of stone the temperature of his skin suggested. "Yes, it is a very big deal. Why are you asking?"

Trying her best to soothe him with a kiss to his cheek, she continued, "Even for you?"

"I'm not quite sure I understand what you're asking, petal," he mumbled, pulling away so he could look at her squarely with the intensity of his eye contact burning through her, "If you're asking if I am still devoted to you, I'm worried I haven't show—"

"No, no," she shook her head, a small laugh touching at her words, "I mean, as a vampire,"—that word still felt entirely foreign, almost a little silly considering Harry was more than folklore to her—"is it a big deal the same way getting married for humans is?"

Realization flashed in his eyes just before the mossy green of his irises softened. "It is comparable, yes. A touch different in terms of ceremony, but the sentiment is the same. Not many of us choose to bond, even less so with humans, and the ones that do, tend to either hide away like we've been doing, or splash out on a gathering to celebrate."