Chapter Text
Ch 19: Of Pain And Pleasure
The morning came and Sterling was up and moving. He looked at his scroll. Indi had given him some heads up when she woke up that morning. Glancing over, Indi awake and looking his way with Spadix still asleep, he nodded and got down, “I’ll get Jin moving. We’ll meet up at breakfast.”
Indi nodded and rolled back to stroking Spadix’s hair softly, trying to let her sleep. Sterling got Jin up, “Come on loser, we have to get moving.”
The dragon growled angrily, snapping at him. Sterling startled a bit, his hand jerking back quickly and barely missing being ripped into by sharp teeth, this behavior rather new of her, “Jin. What the f*ck? Did you just try to bite me?”
Jin sat up, glaring daggers at him before taking a deep breath, “Sorry, I slept like sh*t. I’m up, let me get ready.”
Amber eyes glanced seeing the others still in bed. The dragon got up and dragged herself to the bathroom, sharing the sink with Sterling to get ready. The two got dressed in their gear. Sterling watched her, her movement sluggish and downtrodden. He had never really seen her actually depressed before, not like this. When they were ready, the two headed off to eat.
Once they were gone, Indi gently woke her friend, “Hey, time to get up, Spadix.”
Spadix rolled to face her, eyes tired like she got almost no sleep at all. Indi’s eyes softened sadly, “Spadix, I’m gonna ask again, you ok?”
Spadix curled up, “No.”
She felt Indi’s forehead against her own, her friend holding her hands, “What’s wrong? You know you can tell me anything.”
Spadix shrugged, “I don’t know. I just feel really stressed and tired Indi. You are just able to be so calm for me and you don’t ask too many questions or try to get answers out of me and Jin just ends up with so much energy and I just need a break. I’m so overwhelmed… and one of those team SLVR goons found me last night. She didn’t do anything but… I just couldn’t relax and all I could think about was what happened and how everyone was talking at the stadium and if I was going to be in some sort of trap or something it was just weird…”
Indi nodded, “Ok… fair but… don’t forget your girlfriend loves you ok? I understand if you didn’t want to have to go through the dance steps after that experience but like… don’t forget to tell her ok? You could’ve messaged her yourself last night and been a bit more clear you know.”
Spadix was quiet for a bit until she felt Indi’s finger poke her nose, “Remember you owe me girl. So do me a solid and just let her know you were having a rough night and didn’t have it in you to have to do the whole ‘not tonight’ or ‘I can’t talk about it right now’ song and dance thing. She’ll understand. And if she doesn’t I’ll make her.”
The owl chuckled softly and her friend smiled, “Good now we gotta hurry or we won’t have time to eat.”
The two got up and ready, heading down. As they made their way to the cafeteria, Spadix checked her scroll finally. Her heart sank painfully as she saw the message Jin sent, ‘I’m sorry. I love you so much but maybe you were right.’
Spadix stopped walking. Indi turned, “girl I am not going to be able to fight today if we don’t eat… hey why are you crying?”
Spadix touched her face, feeling the harsh tears. She leaned down holding herself up against her knees, holding her scroll up to Indi, unable to speak. Indi read over the message. Before anything was said, Spadix felt a gentle grasp on her hood collar, Indi pulling her quickly to their teammates.
Spadix wasn’t released until Indi flung her to Jin, the owl stopping right before falling over onto the dragon. Amber eyes glancing up, the deepest sadness Spadix had ever seen in them staring up into her tears. Spadix glanced at the warmth she felt on her stomach, noticing Jin had reached out to stop her from falling. Sterling and Indi gathered some food for the two arrivals quickly as they sat there.
“Jin… I…” the owl started, tears still streaming down her face, soaking into her mask.
Jin reached up with a gentle hand, wiping them away. “I got your message. Please… I just had a really bad night and… I didn’t have the energy in me to risk having to tell you to not be playful or to have to convince you I’d be fine or anything. I barely had the energy to speak… I-I… please… I love you…”
Jin gently pulled her face down, resting her forehead against the owl’s, “It’s ok, I get it. Look… I think maybe… we should take a break… from each..”
Spadix let out a sobbing breath, “Please no… Jin… Lyra found me while I was trying to calm my nerves so I would be fine for bed… really it wasn’t you…”
Jin stopped, but softly smiled, “Don’t lie to me please. I know it’s also me. But I understand how that was probably the icing on the cake for you. Alright. Here’s the deal. I can’t stop who I am. I can’t change that this is how I love. I will always stop if you don’t want it but this is me. Take it or leave it Spadix. But you can’t punish my heart like this, making me feel guilty for being in love with you. You can’t do things like push me out or avoid me and be tired of me like this with no explanation. So here is your turn. If you really can’t stand it, now is your chance, walk away. We will figure out how to make it work as a team before it gets worse. But it isn’t fair to either of us to try to force this to work if you know that it can’t.”
Spadix felt like she couldn’t breathe. Their teammates were staring at each other and then back at the two, trying not to panic. Jin was hurting but trying to be strong. Spadix was crying harder, “Jin… this… I-I’m trying… I…”
Jin rubbed her cheek, closing her eyes because if she watched her girlfriend any longer she was going to crack herself, “I know. Spadix, I love you so much and that’s why I am willing to let you go if this is too much for you. You deserve to be comfortable and happy. But I also deserve to be happy and feel like I’m not making my partner miserable and cornered or pressured all the time. I deserve to be able to show my affection to my partner without feeling heartbroken like I have hurt them every time. I deserve to be able to support you and be there for you without you avoiding me like I did something wrong before you’ll even talk to me. We both deserve so much. And I just want to be sure we are getting what we should. I’m not saying you have to sleep with me all the time by the way. I’m just saying, you won't talk to me when things are wrong and you shut me out or shove me away. You'll make strides but then you'll rebuff me as if you regret things or like I’m just some deviant monster and it's so heartbreaking and painful that I don’t know if I can take it. It just always feels like I’m hurting you or making you miserable and you have to understand that the only reason I want anything with you at all is because I love you. So Spadix… I’m sorry but you have to decide. Right now because I can’t anymore. What do you want to do? I’ll stay or go, whatever you are comfortable with Little Bird.”
Spadix gasped on air, shaking. She felt like her knees would give out. She could hardly think. She felt Jin’s hand slowly slip from her face and her head pull away. Her own hands quickly reached out, grabbing for the dragon, “Jin please… I can find a better way. I don't regret things, I just end up shy and privacy is hard to get sometimes and… I can figure out how to speak up. I'm just so used to not talking to people it’s hard to relearn. I don’t mean to hurt you, I didn’t know. I can’t let you go. Please let me try… don’t count me out before I try…”
Jin let out a breath, having been holding in air. The dragon gently pulled the owl close, kissing her hand, “Ok… but if this doesn’t work, that’s it. We won’t keep hurting each other. Alright?”
Spadix nodded weakly. The dragon smiled up into her eyes, “Can I at least kiss you?”
Spadix leaned down, holding onto Jin like a liferaft in deadly waters as she kissed her lips softly and simply, almost scared to pull away after to try to eat. Indi got food in front of Spadix, feeling the tension ease even from herself from the sudden scene she just witnessed.
The team made their way to the games, grateful they weren’t matched in until closer to lunch with how much energy was already spent that morning. They sat watching the fights, Spadix resting her tired head on Jin’s shoulder, falling asleep. Indi stared at the emotionally exhausted leader, “Were you serious back there?”
Jin’s eyes watched the fighters, “Yes. I was. My mom told me before I ever did a single thing with Spadix last year that I should be sure that I consider my needs and hers if I got into a relationship. That if they didn’t align that maybe it wasn’t really a good idea. And she’s right. I’m very touchy and yea my libido is high but those things contribute to how I show love and affection to my partner. It’s delicate the line of how I get turned down. If I didn’t love her it wouldn’t really matter. Because I do though, it hurts when she can’t talk to me about things that get between us or when she is a bit rude about it or when she acts like I only care about the sex or when she straight up avoids me as if it's all I want. I have always respected when she doesn’t want something. I have even tried really hard to ease up, even though it often is stifling and makes my heart feel like I’m going to burst from a kind of loneliness I can’t explain.”
Indi just stared at Jin, having never had such a mature conversation with her before. She glanced down at the sleeping owl, “She was in really bad shape last night. She didn’t even tell me what was wrong. Spadix has a lot of trauma holding her back from so much. But I get it. It’s not fair to you to feel that way. I guess I’ll say what I told her once, you gotta do what you gotta do ya know?”
Jin just nodded. Sterling handed Indi some cotton candy and she shifted gears excited. He messaged Jin, ‘It’s her birthday Saturday. Mom’s thinking about taking her with us to dinner but Aunt Blake said her and Spadix do a town cupcake. Did we wanna make it a team thing?’
Jin looked over at Indi and at her owl then smiled, ‘Nah, let that be something they do as friends. I’ll get her some candy thing and you can take her to dinner. She’ll have a great time.’
After their matches, they were moving through the ranks with more injuries than before, the competition getting harder. The partner games got more cheers and Sterling and Jin continued to have a fan following and prove to be a mad force. Spadix watched this time, refusing to pull a book out.
By the end of the day, the team was dragging their feet back to the dorm. Sterling and Indi fought for dibs on the showers, Indi winning. When she finished, Sterling was in and out, wanting nothing more than to sleep, his body covered in cuts and mild burns from dust attacks. Indi helped cover him in aloe as Jin gently pulled Spadix into the bathroom with her. “Jin wait…”
Jin smiled, her calm hands removing the owl’s hood, “You are covered in cuts, burns and frost marks and I bet your body is knotted up and dying for help.”
Spadix let out a breath as Jin got her out her clothes, reaching and locking the door. Spadix blushing, “Ok but… what about…”
Jin kissed her cheek, “Relax, I’m not going to try anything. I just want to help. Honest. Please give me some more credit then that.”
The owl was flustered but nodded remembering her lover’s hurt words from that morning. She shyly covered herself as Jin stripped and reached, running a hot bath for them. She slid in, reaching for the owl, helping her step in infront of herself. As Spadix sat and leaned back against Jin’s chest, body stinging in the soothing water, Jin gently rubbed out her shoulders. Soft cooing left her lips from the skilled hands, eyes closing. Jin worked through her neck and back, working out the knots in her muscles before working down her arms carefully.
When she got to her legs, Spadix was so relaxed she let out a soft moan, shifting a bit as the touch sent shivers through her. Jin smiled sweetly, “You ok?”
The owl nodded, cheeks a deep red, “That’s…nice…”
Jin lightly kissed her neck over faint bite scars left previously by the dragon, working her hands along the toned small thighs, responding to the owl’s gasps and light moans. Her hands stopped right before Spadix’s womanhood, a heavy breath brushed her lover’s ear as she asked, “May I?”
Spadix nodded weakly, “Please…”
Jin’s fingers pressed beyond the folds, listening to Spadix whine as she tensed and leaned back into Jin. The dragon’s fingers tracing her cl*t as her other hand continued to massage the tired leg muscles. Spadix’s hips shifted, hungry for more, her talons reaching to her sides, gripping onto Jin’s thighs listening to Jin moan against her neck. The owl squirmed in her grasp as she slid in her finger, thrusting sweetly against her lover’s favorite spots and nibbling at the owl’s ear, watching her hips bucking towards her finger.
Her other hand made its way up Spadix’s slender frame, grasping a breast and teasing her nipple as she slid in another finger, thumb teasing her cl*t in rhythm. She could feel the talons as they dug deeper into her thighs, her legs shaking in pleasure, sinking her teeth a bit into Spadix’s neck, leaving a light mark and moaning against the skin curling her fingers into the places inside the owl that brought the greatest pleasure with each thrust.
Sooner than Jin expected, she felt Spandix’s grip instantly tighten down hard on her thighs, her inner walls clamping down on her fingers and her body tense as she rode through her climax, brain dizzy and chest gasping for air. Jin slowed as she let her come down, nuzzling her neck after letting go with her teeth. When she felt the talons release and the blood trickling down she let out a soft sigh into her lover’s skin, listening to her breathing start to calm. The owl gently curled and turned, looking Jin in the eyes, Jin touching her face, “For the record, I did not intend to do any of that. I really did only intend to help your injuries I swear.”
Spadix leaned her face into Jin’s hand, “You know… that kind of made it so much more arousing…”
She leaned close and kissed Jin. The dragon returned it, toes pulling the plug on the bath, “Alright. Maybe a shower then to actually clean off.”
She stood and got the water going but looked down curiously when she realized Spadix was still there on her knees, “Um… what?”
Spadix was staring at her, nervous gentle hands reaching out, touching Jin’s wounded thigh, watching her wince, “Spadix… it’s ok I told you I like it.”
“I know but… this is the first time you didn’t…”
Jin blinked then realized Spadix was talking about Jin having not cum and she smirked, “Well no but that’s alright. I’m o…k…”
She stopped, moaning softly as she felt Spadix nuzzle up between her legs, “y…you don’t have to if you…”
Spadix gently reached to her stomach and pressed her into the wall, face flush as she whispered, “but… I do… I told you… I should reward you, didn’t I?”
In a haze Jin had almost forgotten that teasing whisper from Spadix days ago. Now she was watching her owl eagerly as the girl nervously leaned close, tongue gently sliding along her slit, pressing forward to her cl*t. Jin gasped, eyes locked on the sight, her nervous lover exploring her womanhood with her tongue and lips for the first time.
She felt the talons scratch down her sides and the tongue trace her cl*t before the lips encircled it and her mouth sucked on it, repeating patterns based on how Jin's body responded. Jin whined her lover’s name, easily stimulated from everything to her own org*sm, legs trembling. Spadix moved her tongue and mouth, trying the taste of the fluids leaving her dragon, a lot of it ending up down her face and neck.
She pulled away, tongue out her mouth and some spit dangling with the rest as she looked up, still a bit flush and shy watching Jin catch her breath. Jin’s eyes staring down at the owl in such a position that her brain burned, mumbling, “S…so hot…”
The dragon pulled her up eagerly for an intimate kiss, hungry to be close to her lover. The owl wrapped her arms around Jin’s neck and smiled, feeling accomplished and a sense of pride in herself, glad she was able to please the dragon. She felt the tile against her back as Jin pulled her thighs up around her hips, biting into her neck at the nape enough to just barely lock in her teeth with a soft possessive growl that made the owl’s skin crawl delightfully. “J…Jin…” she softly whined into Jin’s ear, her talons racking over tense muscles in Jin’s back as she felt them ripple and quiver under the skin at her touch.
When Jin felt Spadix’s legs locked around her hips, she slid her hand between them, sliding her fingers back into her lover and thrusting them along with her hips, groaning at the talons running along her back and the feeling of Spadix tensing under her teeth and body. Jin’s other hand held Spadix by the waist, body keeping her pressed to the wall of the shower, increasing her pace each time she could tell in Spadix’s body and moans that she was eager for more from the dragon until they rolled through another blissful moment together. Jin’s head spinning in the steam and the sounds of Spadix’s org*sm as talons carved into her skin, cumming with the owl.
When they calmed down, shivering in the now cold water, Jin set Spadix down and they got cleaned up and got out, Jin tending to the healing burns with aloe and the both of them bandaging battle and sexual wounds up before heading to bed.
The others were already asleep. The couple slid into Jin’s bed, snuggled close to one another, Spadix missing the dragon’s warm body close to hers but very exhausted, listening to Jin’s heartbeat as she curled into her. Jin smiled, playing with her hair as she held her close. Before they knew it, they were asleep.
