Can I Keep You?

Chapter 10

Ban was so close he could almost taste it. He was at the end of the trek he had made so many countless times, that he could probably make the trip in his sleep and still manage it without any problems. Just past this thick fog was the Fair Kings forest that he had replanted himself with the seed Elaine had given him and the blood he spilled to create a new fountain of youth. He would be there soon...

Once he had managed to slip through he could see it, the outline of trees and brush becoming clearer and clearer, he would see the lush greens in just a moment. As the last of the fog cleared on this side, Ban stopped in his tracks. The perimeter of the forest was dead and withered, while further in, he could see the bright colors of the plants and wildlife leading all the way to the towering Holy Tree in the middle of the forest. "What the hell happened?"

He heard some fussing ahead, shrill high pitched voices and he was quick to run to see what the hell was going on.

"Lady Elaine, nothing we do is helping! Even the soil beneath the foliage is dead!"

Ban slowed to a stop as the small group of fairies came into view. At the center of which floated the woman of his dreams and deepest desires. He grinned from ear to ear as the dead vegetation was no longer of interest to him and he slowly snuck up on the blonde, easily sneaking past the fairies spread out in front of him.

All of the fairies - including Elaine - were fretting over the land when Ban wrapped heavy arms around her, effectively pinning her arms to her sides. Before she could let out a scream to alert the other fairies, he leaned in close to her ear, "Gotcha~" he sang, his breath lingering on her lobe and neck, and with bright red cheeks she turned her head to gape happily at him.

"Ban! You've returned!" she cried out, alerting all around them to the new presence in their midst before Ban managed to turn her in his arms, and seize her lips. He hadn't been soft about it. He wanted her in a way even he couldn't put words to – and he was the sin of greed. Everything that could have been used to describe it wasn't fierce enough.

She didn't fight his advances, instead melting into his tight embrace and allowing him to guide her. His tongue darted across her lips, tasting how sweet they were. Felt her soft breath as she breathed through their kiss, her body pressed securely against his.

So this is what heaven feels like...

It was a long time before he parted from her, pulling back to see her eyes flutter open dreamily, her face flushed from ear to ear, lips puckered slightly – begging to be claimed again, and yet it wasn't long enough. His eyes narrowed hungrily on her before giving her a grin that showed off his canines when her breath hitched at his stare. Elaine bit down softly on her bottom lip as her amber eyes spoke of a need all her own. 'That's my girl...' he thought with pride and lust growing, his body more than ready and willing to comply.

"Ahem..."

"huh?" Ban glanced around lazily and was reminded of the little audience they now had – not that it mattered much to him. Elaine, on the other hand, began to fidget and burn under their watching of such an intimate moment between them. But, neither her or Ban made a move to exit their current position.

"Sir Ban, it is great to see you again!" one of the fairies managed to shake off her embarrassment and bounded up to the couple before more of them joined.

'Greeaat. Now I feel like a regular circus act.' Ban groaned in his own head as the fairies surrounding them began firing off questions about his travels and his purposes for coming back.

"Look, guys, there's only one thing I came back for, and I'm holding it. So, if you'll excuse us..." before any of the fairies had a chance to say a word, Ban was bounding for the towering Holy Tree in the middle of the newly formed Fairy King's Forest. This is where he had spent years bringing himself to look on Elaine's corpse swearing to bring her back before she had been resurrected. This is where the new fountain of youth – made up of his own blood – called its home. This was where he was going to spend the next twenty-four hours making up for the time he had spent away since last he saw her.