Calliope - In The Arms Of Morpheus

Chapter 10

Calliope sighed. So cold. So tired. But Hippolitos nose on her cheek was incessant.
He neighed softly.
Let me sleep! "Please!"
His head nudged her shivering arm. So cold.
"Noooooh... we need to rest..." she whispered.
The cave's hard cold wet floor had ceased to be a problem. It was just another place to close one' s eyes on. Another cold place.
Hippolitos snorted and nudged again. More and more.
"Noooohhh..."
He stomped his hooves. Why? Calliope could not lift her head, but she opened half an eye. "What's the matter?"
He shook his head, then knelt beside her, nudging her again.
Horses never kneed.
He flapped his wings. Then turned his head and looked at his own back.
So tired.
He looked at her again, then nudged her and looked back at his back.
"...you want me to..."so hard to even speak "...climb..."
He nodded. Then looked at his back again.
Calliope lifted an arm and patted his nose. Her arm felt as heavy as stone.
Hippolitos nudged her again.
"....okay..."
It had been easier to flee up an entire mountain than drag her heavy body closer to his.
Hippolitos radiated precious warmth.
Calliope crept closer, then wrapped her arms around his neck.
"..this is soooo hard..." she moaned.
He neighed and nodded. Then he looked back at the place between his wings, where he wanted her.
She lifted a leaden leg and maneuvered it up, unable to move her stiff knee.
His soft snuffle sounded encouraging.
Calliope tightened her arms around his neck and pulled, until most of her weight was up on his back.
Hippolitos stretched out his wings, pushing her up the past few inches. Then he looked at her.
"Okay, I'll try to hold onto you." she whispered.
The pegasos slowly rose and she managed to hold onto him. Then he stepped out of the cave, into the rising morning sun.
She had to close her eyes. With him, she was safe. He would protect her, as long as she held onto him.
With a few quick steps he started running, then the clattering of his hooves stopped and his wings moved softly.
Calliope opened an eye and gasped. The ground fell away and they sailed towards the rising sun.

****

Morpheus stepped through the horned gate into the sandy desert, surrounding the dreaming, with Lucienne right behind him. The soft winds fanned the sand across the plain, bathing the desert in a dusty golden light.
There they were: A few feet away, Hippolitos nudged a heap of skin and light blue cloth. He flapped his wings to keep the swirling sand away from Calliope, who's one arm still clung to his reign.
In a few quick strides Morpheus was there and patted the pegasos' nose. "Let me take care of her, dear friend."
Hippolitos lifted his head while Morpheus knelt to turn her over, loosen her grip on the leather straps and hoisted her onto his arms. Her body slack, sand drizzled from her pale face, lips slack and blueish, eyes closed.
"Let me help with the sand, Sir." Lucienne was on the spot with using a soft cloth to brush the sand from Calliope's eyes. She then wet the cloth with water from the bottle Morpheus had summoned, and dabbed at the unconscious girl's parched lips.
Calliope was so still in Morpheus' arms, barely breathing. A soft sigh, then her head relaxed against his chest.
"We should get her inside." Lucienne dabbed Hippolitos' sandy nose too. "They are both exhausted, dehydrated, and cool."
Morpheus shifted Calliope's weight, so that she was supported by his arms, her nose buried against his naked chest, protected from the swirling sand by his cloak, while he rose to his feet. She was so light. So fragile.
Lucienne took hold of Hippolitos' reigns. "Come," she clicked her tongue at him, "let's find you a stable and some water, shall we?"
They walked through the gate towards his castle. Calliope's weight resting on Morpheus' arms, her torso against his body. Her warm breath against his chest. So fragile. So powerful. Just her breath sent sparks of life across his ageless skin. New sensations, unknown to a being not familiar with the need to savor life in a limited lifespan.
Shivers.
Dream's beating heart.

(Are you ready for more proximity with the sexy Endless? Then vote for this chapter, and read the mext one.)