Sharp Teeth - Sleep Token/Vessel FF

Chapter XIII

"I love you too, Vessel." I threw my arms around him, hugging him with all my strength and wishing this simple act could take away his sorrows. But even my love felt powerless against those years under Sleep's thumb, a puppet to a mighty God.

"You have no idea how long I have waited to hear you say those words. You touch me in many, many ways, Ava." He brushed his thumb over my lips, the black paint fading off his skin. "Your lips are the most heavenly thing I have ever felt."

Vessel leaned in for a gentle kiss, his right hand caressing my neck while his left danced on my waist.

"I hope you do not resent me for keeping quiet before we made love for the first time," he grinned as he walked to the table to pour us more wine. "You know, the moment I first laid my eyes on you, I felt my skin burning inside. You were my liquid fire, and I was filled with love and passion and desire and joy, it was very hard to concentrate and not kiss you, make you mine. It still is."

Vessel poured me a generous glass and sat back down. I noticed the veins on his hands, and for a second, my face flushed red. It was getting hard to concentrate, the wine was warming me up and I had the hottest man on Earth sitting right in front of me, shirtless. But he was finally opening up, telling me everything I was eager to know, so I did my best to push those thoughts away, smiling at the possessive "mine" rolling off his tongue

"I must confess, I thought I was losing it when you froze everything around us and went floating outside my room. How can you do that? Do all of us have some sort of special powers?"

"No, just me and my 'special powers,' or Scarlet Gift, as I call it. I'm not exactly sure why but I suspect it has to do with my connection to Sleep. I remember exactly when I noticed – besides being an immortal vessel for a powerful god, I could bend reality. I won't complain, the Scarlet Gift can be a blessing sometimes." His eyes were glowing behind the mask.

"What do you mean, bend reality? You can do more than float around scaring defenseless women and manipulating time?" I laughed, my blood getting warmer as the wine went down my throat.

"Defenseless, are we?" He rested his left hand on my thigh. "I can manipulate everything the human mind touches: memories, visions, dreams, physical sensations, even feelings if I dare. I was just testing the waters when I showed up at your window. I wanted to see how you'd react to the weird monster I am."

"You are not a monster, Ves. But you did scare the shit out of me," my laugh was playful, his apologetic.

"I'm truly sorry, I should have thought it through. I just wanted to look at you, to feel you near me. Like that day during breakfast when I made everything around us stop, it was a selfish moment. I just wanted to be near you without having everyone looking at us, without making you a target."

"You said you can manipulate feelings. Have you ever used it on...?"

"Never, Ava. And I never will. Not to you, not to anyone. Even though I am powerful enough to do so, feelings, even bad ones, are precious."

"See, if you were a monster as you claim, you wouldn't think like that." He went silent for a moment, considering my words carefully. "Do you think I might have powers like yours one day?"

"I doubt it. Like II, III, and IV, your soul is bonded to mine, not directly to Sleep. But there's a lot you need to know about being immortal. Your body will change, adapt, and get stronger. Did you notice we just drank four bottles of wine?"

I looked at the table in disbelief. I wasn't a lightweight, but that was a lot.

"WHAT? What about hangovers, do we have them?" I scrambled for water, finding none.

"I just told you you're turning into a powerful, immortal goddess, and you are worried this wine will give you a headache tomorrow?" His laugh was hypnotic, his teeth so sharp they could easily rip my skin. Part of me wished they would.

"Guess I prioritize things weirdly sometimes," I admitted, my gaze locked on his mouth. "Right now, I should be listening to your lessons. And yet, all I can think about is how much I want to kiss you." The wine was definitely taking away my inhibitions.

"Immortality has its perks. We have all the time in the world for me to teach you about your new life." He grabbed the glass of wine from my hand, putting it on the table beside the bed. "Though believe me, resisting the urge to spend every day tangled in the sheets with you, exploring every curve of that incredible body, takes immense effort. You set me on fire, Ava."

He reached out a hand, and I took it, letting him pull me up from the bed. "Close your eyes," he ordered and I obeyed. I could feel my hips pressed against his. He was so warm, his scent so attractive. He trailed a kiss down my neck, his breath sending shivers down my spine.

"Worried about lessons, love?" he teased, his voice right by my ear. "There are things to be learned here too, you know. Like the fact that you can feel me and hear me even though I'm across the room."

I whipped around, eyes flying open, to find him leaning against the wall, a sly grin on his face.

"How?" My mouth was open in disbelief.

"Part of the Scarlet Gift," he winked. "I can make you feel my touch no matter the distance. Want to explore the other possibilities?" His voice was husky, tinged with desire.

If he could hear or sense my heartbeat, he already knew the answer. I couldn't handle it anymore. I pounced on him, a lioness claiming her prey.

This man was mine, and I was his.