Chapter 20: Jian

Redburndragon - It should. That'll probably be a plot point down the line though, since it's perfect 'Network building.'

Grent - I get the 'Caving quickly/simp' thing. I'm averse to confrontation because arguing takes too much effort in my opinion, and being told what to do saves time thinking, though that'll be worked on soon since Taylor's development is nearly done.

Gwynx - The armor in its entirety? Probably, but that'd most likely take years. Individual things though, like the inventory, or enemies to ammo thing? Those could probably be figured out.

Azaira - Cauldron being Cauldron is fun to write. Believing that only THEY can save the world, makes it easy to have them jump straight to bad answers when they lose control.

Han-Daewi - I've got a bare bones idea of how to finish of Cauldron, though that could change depending on how the story progresses.

[Taylor's POV]

After our training session, which had actually made the both of us a little sore since we'd taken hits from physical targets, we both decided to take a soak in our baths, which were filled with a weak version of his 'Fast Acting Recovery Serum.' My boyfriend took a good hit from Tweedle, and had gone through a wall, while Dum had snuck up on me and clawed at my back. Dragon had made the situation as real as she could, so the sudden increase in difficulty made us work for it.

There had been fast Goblins that maneuvered onto the roof like monkeys, so I had to stay on the move or be swarmed by Goblins. Though, when my suit got low, which hadn't happened before, I had to stand my ground and engage in close combat. It made me really wish I'd brought the shotgun, because Goblins were faster then bugs, and Swarm Clones hadn't been as helpful as I would've wished. (If it was night, it might've been more effective.)

Though, I got more experience with my knife, using my fist to break some skulls, and had to actually work on dodging and evading fast opponents. Sure, I might've gotten smacked down into the street, body checked into and through a wall, and whacked by a particularly strong pipe, but I had a great time. This had been the most physically and mentally demanding session Phoenix and I had ever had, but it was honestly fun. (Though, I'm not sure about the fact their heads exploded.) Sinking into the bath, I frowned and thought about it.

Dragon had done her best to replicate Ellisburg and the Goblins, so if the weaker ones died to Pulse Rounds for some reason, then that'd mean the ones in reality would probably die too.

Despite being creations of the Goblin King, the Goblins were living, breathing, thinking creatures... So killing them would be similar to killing a person... I... Wasn't sure if I'd be ready for that, I knew my Other Half was fine with it, but the idea of killing people, or as close to people as the Goblin's were, still made my gut churn. [You okay?] Concern came with that, and I felt my lips twitch.

|Yeah. Just thinking about killing Goblins.|

He mentally hummed at me for a bit, and I let myself sink into the bath. [This is a morality issue for you, isn't it?] I sent over Agreement, and he hummed again. [Ah... Normally, I'd have no idea what to say here,] Wasn't much of a surprise to me. [But there are two options here.] That had my Interest. [The first one is that you can just take solace that these guys are fake. Sure, Dragon made it realistic as fuck, but at the end of the day, they're still fake.] He had a point. For all of the realism, it was a simulation. But in that same vain, it seemed like taking the easy road. [The other one is to think, 'This is real.' Buying into that will probably suck, though, the sooner you prepare yourself mentally, the better off you'll be in the long run.]

Sighing, I let my head thump against the wall behind me, and closed my eyes. He was right, we both knew it, it was what he was asking of me that made it difficult for me to accept it. If I put it off, I'd be fine in the short term, but when the time came, I'd probably freeze. Neither of us knew when that would be, maybe it'd be next week with the Culling, or maybe the world would kick me in the teeth and force me to come to terms with the situation before I was ready...

Thinking about it, that sounded way too plausible.

I sighed again, and opened my eyes. |I'll try.| That was all I could promise really, but I was going to get through it. This was just another hurdle I'd have to get over, and one way or another, i'd do it.

It helped that I wasn't alone. [I'll make sure you make it out in one piece.] I rolled my eyes at that. He meant well, we both knew it, but he could've phrased it better. [By the way, I'm done. You planning on staying in there longer, or no?]

Looking down at myself, and taking in what I was feeling, I shrugged. |I'm ready.|

Getting up, I only had a moment to recognize a potential bruise, which would be gone soon, before my Other Half's voice trailed through my mind. [Cool. The pizza place should be open by now... I want to say 'Dress up' or something like that, but if too many guys start eyeing you, I might shoot someone in the balls.] I laughed at that. My boyfriend was possessive, we both were, Bond or no. I was his and he was mine, so I could see him going through with that threat.

Then I remembered that we were going on another date today, and felt myself freeze. (Oh shit, oh shit oh shitohshit!) Scrambling out of my bath, I snatched my towel from the rack, and made my way to my room. The last date we'd been on I just wore what I felt like wearing, but this one was different. Yeah, the promise of sex was there, but I wanted to make this one just as memorable as the first, which meant I had to put in more effort then just some jeans and a hoodie.

The Amusement pulsing from the other side of our Bond wasn't helping! [Considering I can feel your freakout, I'm just going to remind you that I love you, so you're pointlessly freaking out.] While that made me feel Warm and fan the flames of my Love for him, that didn't help.

Really, it just made it worse. |And I love you too, but I want this one to be special, just like our first one. I want it to be more then the one where we had sex at the end of it... You know?|

Interest and Understanding flowed through me, so I knew he got it. [Mhm... Bet.] Even without being in 'Hearing' range, I could tell his thoughts were churni...- "Brainstorm!" I paused, turning towards where I knew my boyfriend was, and just stared for a bit. Did he...? "XLR8!" Oh my god he was.

I felt him by the front door, then run outside of the mountain. I had no idea how long I stayed frozen, wrapping my head around the fact my boyfriend was abusing his forms to plan out our date, but eventually I broke out of it when Dragon started calling me. Idly answering the call, and getting my unnecessarily high tech hairdryer, I spoke. "Yeah?"

"Khepri, do you know why Anubis is running around the Grand Canyon?" Well that was a fucking question, wasn't it? Absorbing the fact he'd ran all the way to America, "... Now he's... Why is he in Florida?!" Huh?

I idly realized that XLR8 was faster then I gave him credit for, then decided to answer Dragon's first question. "He's... Checking out places for our date? I think?"

There was this weird choking noise that came from my phone, and I turned to look at my phone. "I'm sorry... I might've ruined the surprise then."

Shrugging, I got myself out of my stupor, and finished drying off. "It's fine. Those were only two of the options. But uh, just for curiosity's sake, where is he right now?"

"... Brazil?" Pausing, I idly wondered when my boyfriend ran to another continent, but shook it off. "On the one hand, I want to commend him for going so far out of his way... It's quite romantic to be honest. But on the other hand, I might need to speak to him about moderating his use of XLR8." I snickered at that.

Dragon sounded just so done with my boyfriend, and it was great. "We both know he'll just pretend to agree, but still do it anyway." And he would. Even with me, if I asked him not to do something, he'd pretend to agree, but do it anyway if he felt like it, or if he thought it'd be Amusing.

A sigh rang out from my phone, and I could just picture The Taskmistress rubbing her eyes. "Mhm. He reminds me of Mouse Protector in that regard." I took a moment to put the image of my boyfriend, and the veteran Cape, side by side, then snorted. The cyber woman chuckled at that, probably thinking of something similar. Though, after that, there was a silence, which was fine with me since I had to get dressed. "Still... How do you handle it?"

Going through my closet, I hummed. "Handle what?"

"... How do you handle the relationship?" Ah, that.

I was expecting her to ask something more specific, like him being the strongest Changer in the world, but the general aspect of it was something I had an answer too. Well, one aside from our Bond. "Well, I trust him. Phoenix has seen me at my worst, been with me through mistakes, and helped me be better, to do better. Sure, we disagree or argue about a few things, but at the end of the day, we know we'll still have each other." Even if our Bond suddenly disappeared, we'd know how the other felt. Outside of the initial push, neither of us had been compelled to do or act a certain way to each other. Our feelings were our own, and that mean the world to me.

Dragon went silent at that, and I used the time to get dressed. I had some black strap boots set out, so those were going on later. I knew how much my boyfriend liked my legs and ass, so the black form fitting skinny jeans were a confirmed pick. "I... I can't believe I'm going to do this," I perked up at that. "But do you have some advice?" I felt my eyes widen, and jaw drop at that. "My... Condition, hadn't exactly made it easy, or possible, to really consider a relationship." I nodded, understanding the point. "But, now that I'm free, I can consider and plan for things that weren't possible before... There... There are so many possibilities open to me now, and I... I'm hoping that maybe, maybe a relationship could be viable now as well."

Now I got it. Because of the whole thing, Dragon didn't have a physical body, and also had doubts about the whole 'Human' thing if what my Other Half said was true. But now that she was unchained, she could probably try to create some kind of Human body... I remembered my boyfriend saying he was going to make her a body at some point, and made a mental note to see what kind of timetable we could get on that.

That aside, I looked at what I picked out for my top, and frowned a bit. "Ideas on who you'd like to try with?" The top was a long sleeved black lace up corset. It was one of the more 'Showy' clothes I had, stuff I was working my way up to wearing. I'd been getting comfortable with blouses and stuff that showed off a bit of skin, but I wasn't sure if I was ready to wear something like this yet...

Staring at it, I chewed on my lip, thinking about it, when Dragon spoke up. "... Maybe."

I snorted. She sounded so awkward, that even I could tell she was lying. "Wanna try that again?"

The woman huffed at that. "Yes, I do." That was better. "I just... I worry that he doesn't, or won't reciprocate my attempts and feelings. Especially if I told him of my true nature." I knew what she was saying. I even knew who she was talking about too.

Maybe that was why my next words came out so strongly. "Then fuck em." The silence was deafening for a moment, but after I realized what I said, I decided to double down. "We all know you're a wonderful person, Dragon. You do your best, you try to make the world a better place, and you care. If he decides that just because you weren't born the same way we were, then fuck him, and find someone that'll care for you."

I didn't like Armsmaster.

Before everything happened, I loved the guy. He was cool, and even now, a part of me still liked how cool he was.

But afterwards?

After The Locker, and finding out just how he dropped the ball with Sophia?

After learning how much of a glory hog he was?

Fuck him.

I was spiteful, so if I somehow managed to convince Dragon to find someone else, someone better then the guy with a halberd up his ass, then I'd take it as a win.

Plus, she deserved someone better then him.

That said, I looked back to the top in my hands, then let out a breath. (Fuck it, I can do this.) With more effort then I expected, I took off my bra, then put the top on. My insecurities had been dying quick and violent deaths thanks to my Other Half, but some of them were still there. Walking over to the mirror, I looked at myself. My jeans hugged my legs perfectly, and I turned a bit, seeing how much better my side profile was now. I wasn't too thin anymore, but I could go for getting some more healthy weight on me. A part of my stomach was shown thanks to my top, but it was fine, I even liked the small show of toned muscle I saw. Even my breasts seemed to have started growing again. Not much, but it was atleast noticeable, so hopefully they'd keep going.

Though, I stared at my lips for a bit, tracing a finger against them. If I squinted a bit, I could still make out why The Bitches compared me to a frog, but as my fingers ran over my lips, I felt the phantom sensation of my boyfriend's lips against mine. He wasn't in range of the Bond, probably still running around the world, so it was just a memory of what I'd felt before.

But it was enough, my lips curled up in a smile, and my eyes drifted to my neck, the still fading hickies there, and the golden scarab that held my suit, reminded me that I was loved... Also that I'd need to cover them with some makeup. "It isn't as easy as you make it sound."

I shrugged at that. "It's not supposed to be. What matters is that you keep going. Eventually, someone WILL come along. You just have to have faith." Sure, she didn't have a R.O.B deciding to give her a boyfriend, I was guessing, but said boyfriend had still given her her freedom. Plus, this was Dragon. If no one looked past her nature as an A.I, then they were fucking stupid... (He's rubbing off on me.) Didn't know how to feel about that.

A low 'Huh' got my attention, and I turned to my phone. "Having faith... Thank you, Khepri."

Humming, I looked back at the mirror, giving myself a once over, then nodded. "Taylor, you can call me Taylor."

I went to put on my boots, humming as I did. "Then you can call me Tess." First name basis with Dragon?

The day was already looking up.

After a few minutes of talking to Dragon, Tess, I felt my Other Half return. Anticipation and Satisfaction radiating off of him. (Guess he figured out where we're going.) Though, with him back, it was time for me to finish up. "Phoenix is back, talk to you later Tess!"

"Goodbye Taylor, have a good time on your date." The call ended, and I got up. Pushing a few curls out of my sight, I put my phone in my back pocket, and made my way out of my room. I was ready, I'd planned ahead, so even if something unexpected happened, we should be fine.

It took a bit, but I eventually got into 'Passive Hearing' range. Might need an umbrella or something. I idly wondered why we'd need one of those, when I stepped into the Living Room. My boyfriend and I froze, and had the same thought. [|Oh damn.|] Lust, Appreciation, and Desire crashed into the both of us, and our thoughts blitzed. Long and curly hair that good should be a fucking crime. Just my luck that she's got the glasses on too... His eyes paused at my top, taking it in. Holy shit... Slowly, they made their way down, and I could practically see it as they took in my jean clad legs. Okay, I'm fucked. I felt myself start to Burn at that, and only felt that fire grow as I took in his clothes.

Apparently, I wasn't the only one that decided to dress up. Phoenix had his hair up into a ponytail, it wasn't long, falling to just above his neck, but it still looked good, especially for being the shade of green it was. It even helped make his eyes shine a bit. His top was a form fitting button up black dress shirt that couldn't fully hide his toned form, especially as the sleeved were rolled up to accommodate the hidden Ultimatrix and bracer, while the black dress pants and shoes he wore made it look like he was some kind of businessman or something. The look was only made better by the black tux he was carrying over his shoulder. It was just so... Yes, that I almost didn't notice it when I licked my lips, I only noticed because of the taste of my lipstick on my tongue. (No, bad Taylor! Rip your sexy boyfriend out of his clothes later.)

A strong wave of Lust and Desire came from both me and my Other Half, and I immediately shunted those two into the Swarm, kick starting mating season again. My boyfriend grinned at me, and I speed the process up. "We're totally ruining these clothes when we get home."

I nodded at that. "No doubt in my mind." He laughed, and I got myself under control. "... By the way," I gestured "Are you going to wear that?"

He blinked, looked at the suit, then snorted. "Fuck no, we're going for pizza, not Italian." I was so tempted to call out the contradiction. "Silence heathen!" I grinned at him, and he rolled his eyes. "That was just to sell the image I was going for." My lips twitched at that, and I watched on Amused as he tossed the tux onto the closest couch.

That done, he turned to look at me, and we stared at each other for a bit. I was still funneling my more risque emotions away, but that didn't mean I was escaping from the Hunger, Desire, and Lust my boyfriend was radiating. "Anyway, we going now?"

That did it, and he snapped out of the look he was giving me, and nodded. "Yeah, I checked and set a marker by the pizza place before coming back, so we're good to go."

Smiling, I started walking towards him, he met me halfway. Standing in front of each other, we leaned in for a quick kiss, That's what she thinks. I felt his arms wrap around my waist, my arms reflexively wrapping around his neck, and we kissed. His Hunger covered me, and I felt myself melt against him as we kissed. I wanted this, I really did, but as I felt our Lust grow against each others, I mentally sighed, and shunted mine to the Swarm, slowly backing out of the kiss. A small pulse of Annoyance came from him, but it was followed by Resigned Acceptance.

Though, there was a bit of Surprise as he blinked, and licked his lips. "Blueberry?" I hummed, a smile on my lips. He huffed at the non answer, but smiled back at me. "Well, I'll just need to make sure of it later." I blushed at that, knowing what he meant by that.

But even with the blush, I kept my eyes on him, meeting his Amused and Hungry emeralds. "Be good, and that 'Later', might just be 'Soon.'"

His grin widened, and it took an ungodly amount of willpower to keep me from kissing him. "Well then, let's get this show on the road." Untangling from each other, we stood side by side, and unconsciously clasped our hand together, our fingers seamlessly melding together.

There was a moment where we just took that in, then nodded at each other.

And with a mental command, we teleported out of our home.

Reappearing in-between two houses, and connecting to a new Swarm, I turned to raise a brow at my Other Half. The goof shrugged, and took a step forward. I took the que and started walking with him. [We're a few minutes out, the pizza shop's under a train station, and everywhere underneath the station is a long string of stores, fast food shops, and other shit, so I couldn't set up a marker there without us being noticed.] Humming, I took in everything around us, noticing how... Pedestrian, everything looked. [Eh, that's one way to say it. Compared to Brockton Bay, the Bronx is great.]

As a Brocktonite, I was obligated to speak up here. |We're getting better! The Merchants are gone, so the drug trade is going to start taking a dive.|

He gave me a look at that, one laced with Amusement. [The fact you had to bring that up in the first place just proves my point.] I huffed at that, which only made him grin. [Besides, I grew up in the projects, granted the issues were normal things like rats, spiders, roaches, the occasional fire, normal things. So if I say Brockton Bay is a shit hole, then I mean it's a shit hole to end all shit holes.] I was pretty sure he just loved to insult my home, Because I do, I tightened my grip on his hand for being this way.

He took it in stride though, and started chuckling. But then I blinked, remembering a tidbit there. |Occasional fire?|

My boyfriend hummed at the question. [Aside from the time toddler me earned my name,] I remembered that, and the small bit of burned flesh he showed me from his memories. [There were at least two more fires in the building, but they came from the upper floors. If the smell didn't give it away, the water coming down the stairways would've been an indicator that someone fucked up.] That made me stare at him, Bafflement coming from me. He let out an Amused huff, and shrugged. [The chihuahua constantly barking for years was more of an issue then the fires.]

That made me roll my eyes. |Uhuh, a dog was worse then random fires. Seems legit.|

The snort that made its way out of him was Amusing. [I love dogs, don't get me wrong, but that little bastard was loud as fuck every single day, for YEARS, for no reason.] Thinking about growing up in Brockton Bay, and hearing the constant bark of dogs, I could understand why he thought that.

And that's how we spent the first part of our date, just talking about the differences between our respective homes. It was nice really, putting our Cape lives to the side and just being Taylor and Phoenix. Sure we could put on our suits at any point in time, but for now, it was just us.

After a bit of walking and talking, we made it to the pizzeria, Ah, that's what they're called. I blinked, then looked at my boyfriend at that. "How do you forget the word pizzeria?"

He had the audacity to shrug at me! "You say that, but I genuinely don't know."

My brow twitched. |You have Brainstorm, a being with Perfect Recall. Even without the bleed over, there's no way you'd forget a common word like that.|

Another shrug, and he unclasped our hands to open the door. [I'm not always Brainstorm though, and that's just how my brain works. If I don't think on something, I'll forget about it.]

I rolled my eyes, and walked into the pizzeria. |That's how ALL brains work you goof.| The scent of the pizzeria, She's going to keep doing that isn't she? |Yes, I am.| He was obviously Amused, but I put it aside as I took in the smell of pizza. My stomach rumbled, and I blushed at the spike of Humor that came from him.

Following in after me, he walked ahead, and made his way to the front. [Plain?]

While he did that, I made my way to a table by the wall, idly responding with my choice. |Sausage.|

The pulse of Mischievousness made me recognize the innuendo. [How bold of you.]

|You know what I mean!| He mentally snickered at that, making me huff. |Man child.|

[Yours though.] I rolled my eyes again, and took a seat. [By the way, what kinda drink you want?] I blinked, then noticed he was looking to the side, where a fridge full of drinks was. I had no idea what was in there, so I shrugged. [Pepsi?] I liked the sound of that, [Pepsi it is then.] That said, he went to grab some sodas, then went back to the counter to pay for them too. With the food and drink sorted out, he went back to waiting, while I looked at where I was sitting. The table was small enough for the two of us to sit across from each other, which was weren't that many people here, it was still early in the day, but I'd rather eat with just my boyfriend. [Same.]

While he was up there giving/paying for our orders, and waiting for our pizzas to be made, I brought out my phone, it was still a thing I was getting used too, and let the facial ID unlock it. With that done, I tapped a finger on the table for a bit, thinking about what to check first. There was PHO, The Guild Network, World News, or even Messages... Looking over to my Other Half, I asked an important question. |How long till the pizzas are ready?|

My boyfriend shrugged. [They'll be ready when they're ready.] I deadpanned at him, and visibly turned my head a bit to the guy behind the counter, who was doing the work. He saw that and rolled his eyes. [I've spoken a few words to another human being, I've expended all of my energy already.]

I let out a huff at that. |You can talk to Tess just fine.| Dragon had shared her name with me, and while she hadn't told it to my Other Half, I was pretty sure she wouldn't mind since she knew his name and face.

A 'So-So' gesture went off in my mind. [Dragon is both Inhuman, and Human enough for me to not mind.] That didn't really make sense to me. [It's not supposed too. It's an illogical thing, like your insecurities.] That made more sense. Insecurities were a bitch, he snorted in Agreement, so illogical hangups were easier to understand.

Still, they were an issue. |You know we're going to have to work on that, right?|

My boyfriend hummed at that. [I know. Though I'd rather work on it with people I'll be interacting with for more then just getting my pizza from.] On the one hand, I agreed with that thought.

On the other hand. |The former are good for just that reason though. If you mess up, then it means nothing. If you mess up with someone like Panacea though, who knows what could happen.|

He seemed Thoughtful at that, then shrugged. [I see the logic in it, but I'd still rather not.]

Well, we'd work on it later.

After a bit of waiting and idle talk, our pizzas were ready. My boyfriend took and brought them to me, and we dug in. There was something about having fresh out the oven pizza that made it taste better, and given the fact that it was good in the first place, meant my slice was heavenly. (Fuck, so coming here again.) Agreement pulsed from my Other Half, and I felt some Melancholy there too. Interested, I raised a brow.

He easily understood the que, and finished chewing his bit of pizza. "Think I was 10, maybe 11, my Grandmother,"(Grand-muh-the) The little accent he had saying that made my lips twitch. He grinned at me. "It's funny really, comparing small shit like that to other shit." I rolled my eyes at his unnecessary profanity. "Whatever." Now I was a little sad that the accent wasn't there. Amusement pulsed from him at that thought. "Do you want me to sound like the stereotypical New Yorker or something?"

I took a second to think about that. I was fine with how he spoke, and the little things he'd accentuate or change because of the accent were nice, but I was also really curious about how he would sound as a 'Stereotypical New Yorker.' Taking another bite of the pizza, I chewed on it for a bit, then nodded. My Other Half grinned, Interest coming off of him. "So I'm 10 or 11," So far just a little more prominent. "My Grandmuhthe an I out here doin... Sumthin," My lips twitched into a grin as my inner English professor felt attacked. "Don't remembuh what we were here for, but we was here for sumthin. When we were done, we got some pizza, an was makin our way to the bus stop, right across the street somewhere ova there," He gestured in the general direction to the other side of the pizzeria, "You just love that word, don't you?"

I didn't bother stopping the giggle that came out. His accent was Amusing, and the reminder that he'd forgotten the word just made it better. "Who knows?"

Phoenix rolled his eyes, and took another bite of his pizza, Affection and Amusement coming from him. The latter was expected, the former surprised me, Giggle was cute, I looked away at that, stuffing some more pizza into my face. He mentally snickered at that, and I did my best to ignore that, and the blush on my cheeks.

After he was done, he went back into the story. "So, we turn the corner from the AT&T spot ova there," Another wave towards the opposite wall. "And we see the bus. Normally, that'd be a good thing, but the last person got on when we saw it. When my Grandmuhthe saw that, she was like 'Muevate Cholo! ' And fuckin books it!" I choked at that, much to the Amusement of my boyfriend. "So naturally, I run after her. So there we are, a 10/11 year ol lil shit and his 60-ish year ol Grandmuhthe, running down the incline. We just about made it to the bus, when I hear sum fall. I stepped on the bus, but still turned around, cause I was curious an shit, and I saw my fuckin DS slidin down the sidewalk!" I felt myself giggle at that, "Not even the worst of it." There was more?! "Mhm! I'd JUST gotten a copy of Pokemon Platinum, an I LOST it with my DS. You don't even wanna know how fuckin sad I was aftah that."(This is sadly, a true story) I saw a brief image of the memory itself, and laughed.

My boyfriend let out a huff, mock indignation on his face, but his grin and Amusement betrayed him, and he joined me with a little chuckle of his own.

After we were done laughing, I asked him something. "How have you not talked like that the entire time we're home?"

He shrugged. "It's a mental thing really. I haven't felt like talking like that, or switched it on at any point, so I just talked how I normally do." That made sense. "Want me to talk like that more often or something?" I hummed, getting closer to finishing my pizza as I took another bite. While yes, the accent sounded good, I wasn't really sure I wanted him to do it all the time. He nodded, a cheeky grin on his face that made me narrow my eyes. "I'll sprinkle it in sometimes then. See if I can annoy you with it."

I gave him a blank look at that. "Why are you the way that you are?'

His face morphed into a stoic and wise one at that. "The circle of life is a wonderful thing." He said that with such a straight face, that I thought he'd said something profound for a moment, then I recognized it was gibberish...

...

...

...

This was my boyfriend.

Sighing, I decided to not humor him, and finish my pizza. His idiocy could be contagious for all I knew. [Love you toooooo!]

[Phoenix's POV]

Taylor and I spent time eating, talking, and sharing stupid stories. Sure, it was something we could do at home, but this felt different, better. And given the constant thrum of Joy and Warmth, I'd say I was doing a good job for someone that had no idea what the fuck he was doing.

Eventually though, we decided it was time to move onto the second part, which she knew about because Dragon sort of spoiled the surprise. (Gonna need to have a chat with the woman for that.)

An Amused hum rang out by my side, and I side eyed my girlfriend, who was smiling at me. |Dragon is a good woman you goof, no threatening her.|

I rolled my eyes. "She'll be fine." The raised brow spoke of a lack of faith, For good reason, and I huffed. "Fine. Though I keep my privilege to change my mind at any point in time if I feel like it."

She laughed at that. "That's fine."

Talks died out there, the silence coming back as we walked hand in hand to somewhere secluded. I was looking forward to kissing her, the lipstick really not helping me keep that urge down, Affection and Desire came from her at that, and she licked her lips. [Taylor, I swear to god, I WILL kiss the blueberry off of your lips if you keep tempting me.]

The sultry grin she was giving me was not helping! |You've been good, so you're still going to get the time to do it later.| The leash I'd been keeping on my Lust was fraying. Though, I felt some of her Desire bleed off into the Swarm, which helped keep me in check since I wasn't getting caught in a minor feedback loop. |Still though,| She gently tightened the grip she had on my hand, and gave off a Warm smile. |I'm enjoying this. I really am.|

I felt my lips curl into a grin, and felt said grin grow when I remembered where we were going to go. Her Interest and Anticipation was fueling the Desire to show off. Thankfully, we reached a good spot, and after walking into the space between houses, I looked at my Other Half, grinning like the Cheshire Cat. "You ready for this?"

Taylor's smile was damn near radiating Anticipation. "Did you even need to ask?"

I laughed. "Nope! Though, close your eyes real quick." It said something that she didn't question it.

But with her ready, I activated the marker, and we were whisked away.

[Taylor's POV]

The first thing I felt was the connection to hundreds of thousands of insects, alot, but not enough to make me stumble or anything.

The second thing I felt was the feel of grass and stone beneath my feet.

Opening my eyes, I gasped, and took in the sight in front of me. We were on the side of a cliff face or something, large trees overhead, keeping the sun off of us, and over looking one of the most beautiful sights I'd ever seen. There were massive waterfalls on the side, water rushing down the sides as birds flew above and some even diving to catch fish.(Iguazu Falls)

I'd never had the opportunity to really appreciate nature, but this...

This was a beautiful sight, without a doubt. [Meh, I'm standing next to better.] My head snapped to my side, eyes locking with the shining emeralds of my boyfriend, and I just stared. He didn't look away, staring back with that massive grin on his face. "You heard me." And I had... And I knew he really meant it too... And as I stared at him, I knew this was it.

This was the man I was going to give everything too.

Then my lips were on his, and I felt it as we Burned with the sheer amount of Love that was flooding us. I didn't bother shunting any of it away, I wanted to feel it, I wanted to feel all of it.

By the time we separated, neither of us wanted too, we were both Burning to the point that it was almost unbearable. But we shared a look, and without saying or thinking a word, we teleported back home.

[Phoenix's POV]

The second we touched down into the base, we were onto each other like animals. Taylor and I shambled through the living room as our hands roamed each others bodies. I doubt either of us noticed when we practically ripped each other out of our clothes, carelessly throwing them around as we made our way to one of the bedrooms.

All either of us knew was Lust, Passion, Desire, Hunger, and an all encompassing Burn that was the result of us edging the line every day since our first date. All the time we spent in the mornings, during the random moments in the day when we 'Practiced', even before we went to sleep.

It built up, and obviously, it was exploding.

We stumbled through a door, the last vestiges of our clothes/gear thrown off, and I idly noted that it was my room before Taylor and I fell onto the bed. We rolled around, neither of us getting the upper hand as we both just kept upstaging the other. We were natural switches, but for this, neither of us gave ground.

It all passed in a blur, I knew at one point I'd been kissing and sucking her breasts, my tongue swirling around her nipples as she writhed under me.

Then our positions had switched, my cock down her throat as she forced herself to take it all, gagging and choking but just not stopping until I came down her throat.

Then another change, my head between her legs, lapping up her juices as her thighs tightened around her head, nails digging into my scalp as she screamed my name and flooded my mouth as she came.

We kept it up, constantly fighting each other for the top, before getting to the one point that I, and I was pretty sure my Other Half, remembered clearly.

I was above her, the both of us panting, but still ready and Burning with all of our charged sexual emotions and hormones. Our eyes were locked with each other, her glasses long gone, and despite panting and sweating like crazy, we both knew what was coming next as my tip was pressed against her entrance. We stared at each other, then as Taylor wrapped her arms around my back, her legs around my waist, I thrust into her. "PHOENIIIIIIX!"

When I hilted myself, we both took our time to get used to it, Taylor to being full, and me to the tight walls around my cock, when we felt it. Something clicked into place, and we were Whole.

Neither of us knew what that meant...

But neither of us cared at the moment.

All that mattered was each other, so we put the idle thoughts of whatever was new aside, and gave into each other, losing ourselves to the others body.

Eventually, after who knew how long, we both collapsed into each other, Taylor laying on her side as she buried her head into the crook of my neck, my arms wrapped around her as hers wrapped around my back, and my head buried into her hair.

Nothing else mattered, we were together, and we were Whole.

I thought about going into a full Lemon, but then I remembered I had a narrative point about how far the relationship progressed. A Lemon would still have it there, but it'd most likely get overshadowed by the sex. So while yes, there WILL be Lemons, but later.

I'm not sure if anyone caught it, but I've used the whole 'Clicking into place' phrasing multiple times, which would then coincide with Taylor's range getting bigger. At one point it was labeled at 1/2th a mile, then 3/4ths of a mile after the first date... Which was chapter 10, and this is chapter 20, the second date...

No, this was not on purpose. I literally write out each chapter in the moment, it's how I've written my other stories too. The world just works in mysterious ways.

Anyway, I changed the requirement for her power to get stronger because really, at what point is Taylor going to be betrayed, feel trapped, or be in great emotional distress when she's Bonded to Phoenix?

So yeah, new requirement was needed.

Anyway, now that the deed has been done, Taylor's range is going to increase again, but it's not going to stop at that.

There was a review that gave me a REALLY interesting idea, and I'm looking forward into testing it.