Caranwyn's Tale: In Defence of Middle Earth

This chapter is LONG.  I'm very sorry, but I simply cannot break it.  There is nowhere appropriate to put a chapter divide that wouldn't completely spoil important aspects, or leave me with a stub that can't stand on its own...  I've looked at several ways I might have separated it, but to no avail.  That said, it's a racy chapter, so hopefully interesting enough that you won't notice how brutally long it is for a single chapter.

-Niara

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A Noble Mark

 

A bell tolled high in the City, sending its solemn tone to weave and wind through the dark streets, lit only by the spaced lamps along the main road.  It marked the third hour after night fall, and Caranwyn drew a deep breath.

“Are you ready?”

“Let’s find out.”  The reply in the dark was soft, but she could hear a note of daring in her sister’s voice.  They rose in silence, dressing as swiftly as they could in their casual clothes.  She paused as she lifted the folded cloth of her bindings, then dropped them back into the drawer.  They were more hassle than they were worth, considering their plans.  Beside her, Russellwen eschewed them as well, tugging her top over her head swiftly and pulling the laces tight.

“Doesn’t it seem strange that we’re trying to sneak out of the house, unnoticed, now that we’re apparently adults?”  Russellwen’s voice had dropped to the barest whisper, standing close as they were, but even so the excited eagerness was impossible to ignore.

“Well, if you’d rather tell mother and father that we’re sneaking out to conduct entirely indecent and improper activities with a boy…”  Finished first, Caranwyn walked to the door and lifted the latch with a delicate hand.  Russellwen was standing close behind her by the time she had eased the door open and together they crept through the common room of the house to the front door.  The sound of their father’s quiet snores drifted on the air.  Even so, Caranwyn felt like holding her breath as she gradually pulled the door open enough for them to slip out, one after the other.  She pulled it shut again once they were both outside, and let out a small sigh of relief.

They walked quickly once they were away from their home, heading out towards the main street and beginning to descend.  The lamps on the main street created a snaking trail of light through the city, and they both took a moment to marvel at the sight; so rarely had they been out long after dark, that the view was still a fresh one to them.  The City grew even quieter during the night than it was during the day, though there were still the movements of the guards, and the varied activity of those who still had other duties to attend.  They passed no-one on the road for as long as they stayed on it, though, and before they reached the lower gate they turned off into a side alley.

The danger was passed now, and both girls paused in the darkness to look at one another.  Caranwyn barely contained the giggle that threatened to overcome her, grown from the sheer impropriety of what they were doing.  Russellwen fared less well, smothering her own laugh behind one hand.  After the initial glee passed, Caranwyn reached out to take her sister’s hand and they broke into an easy run, darting through the neglected side-streets and alleyways with the familiarity built over years of exploring.  She took the lead as they ran, though for once they were not truly racing.  More excited laughter floated about them, muffled yet unstoppable until they made their way back along the level towards a certain point of the wall.  Stopping in the shadow of the building just before the battlement itself, she glanced back, still grinning, and put one finger to her lips.  The walls of the intermediary levels were not generally manned with guards, except nearest the gate itself, though their lamps were lit each night.  Nevertheless, it paid to be cautious.  She glanced out from the shadow, first to the steps up the battlement nearest them, and then along as much of the wall as she could see.  All clear.

They dashed out together, climbing the steps before running further along for another short distance.  Soon enough, they came to a broken part of the wall, partially repaired.  The spot had been like this for several years, unfinished.  Caranwyn didn’t know why the shoring had only been half done, but she suspected other more urgent summons had drawn the men tasked with it away, and it had simply never been returned to.  Many of the construction materials remained, both at the top, where they stood, and more importantly, stacked and piled around the base of the battlement on the level below.  Between the damaged wall and the materials set by for its repair, an intrepid band of young children had, several times, managed to clamber down to further their explorations without having to pass through the gate for the level.  It availed them again now.

“That was much easier than it was when I was twelve.”  Russellwen ran one hand over the large slab of stone she had dismounted from, a small, almost wistful smile at the corner of her lips.  Caranwyn nodded, glancing up at the masonry again, then reached out to take her sister’s hand.

“Come on, he’ll be waiting.”

They ran along the base of the wall, skirting behind the various buildings that backed onto it.  The second level was more expansive than the third, and Caranwyn didn’t know it as well, but Celegeth was far more familiar with it, and had suggested a point where they could meet.  His home was somewhere on the level, but neither of them knew exactly where.  They reached the place before long, a short pass-through alley that had long been blocked off halfway through by a stack of empty crates, stored there for some long forgotten reason.  Caranwyn turned back once they reached the blocked point, sneaking back to the entrance of the alley to watch for their friend.  A gasp followed by quiet giggling a moment later made her turn.  Russellwen had her head back, eyes closed as a figure behind her lavished kisses at her neck, his hands wrapped around her, one at her middle while the other caressed her breast.  Caranwyn hid a smirk, giving the couple a moment.

It was several, in fact, before Celegeth lifted his face to kiss her lips, then stepped out from behind her, grinning.  They hugged and Caranwyn had to force down a laugh as she caught sight of her sister’s hand first holding, then squeezing at the boy’s rear.  He turned to Caranwyn after they parted and reached out to take her hand before raising it to place a much more reserved kiss just above her knuckles.  She wondered how he managed it, while still grinning as broadly as he was.

“Good evening ladies.  It’s turned into quite the beautiful night.”  His teeth flashed for a moment as he looked between them.  “Especially from my own eyes, happing upon two such beautiful maidens so.”

“Not for long, for one of us.”  Russellwen seemed to be tasting her lips unconsciously as she spoke, though her words broke into a soft, embarrassed laugh by the end.  Close as he was now, even in the dim light of the stars, Caranwyn cold see the blush chase across Celegeth’s cheeks at the comment.  He waved his eyebrows once at her sister, winning another small laugh, then stepped back quickly so that he could face both of them at once.

“Russellwen, my love; Caranwyn, it would pain my honour to let two such beauties wander the streets alone at night.  Perhaps you would care to walk with me instead, and I might show you the way to a place more comfortable?” He accompanied the words with a small bow, one foot forward, extending a hand to each of them.  Russellwen put one hand to her mouth, smothering her giggles and blushing as she reached out to accept. Caranwyn kept her own response to a wry smile, taking his other hand. She bit her tongue from further comment, reminding herself that the night was first and foremost for her sister and Celegeth. 

As they turned to walk from the alleyway Russellwen glanced towards her suitor again, still unable to restrain her smile, or perhaps making no effort to.

“You’re being very dramatic tonight.”

“And why not?”  He leaned over to kiss again at her cheek.  “After all, I find myself in a position of truly singular honour tonight.”  A moment later his air of formality crumbled, however, though his eyes still danced with excitement.  “Though, to tell the truth, that’s really about it for fancy things I might say, that I thought of ahead of time.  So you’ll just have to settle for rough-speaking old me from here on.”

“That could not suit me better, dear Celegeth.”  She returned his kiss, but then gave a visible shudder as the breeze between the buildings picked up for a moment.  “But let’s hurry.  You’ve already made me quite warm on the inside, but that wind is cold and I am not wearing as much as I might normally.”  Caranwyn found herself wondering whether the teasing was deliberate, or utterly innocent.  It had become very hard to tell sometimes.  Celegeth cast her a look that was somewhere between highly amused, and just a little bit lustful.

“As you wish, my lady.  Follow me.”  They dropped hands as the three began to run, Celegeth leading them on a winding path through the narrow streets and narrower shortcuts between the buildings.  He moved quickly, sure and nimble even in the darkness, but never let himself pull very far ahead of the girls who chased with glee. 

After only a minute or two running alongside her sister, Caranwyn could feel her heart racing faster than the gentle run itself would cause, and recognised the hot, base thrill that passed through her for the excitement that it was.  She wanted to catch hold of the other girl and steal an eternity of kisses and touches from her but now certainly wasn’t the time for it.  Just ahead of her, Russellwen seemed far more affected, cheeks flushed deeply in the dim starlight.

Celegeth slowed to a walk at last, stopping in front of a small house and leaping up the cracked steps with the surety of practice.  The girls followed more carefully as he opened the door and made a small show of holding it for them.  Caranwyn could feel her sister panting beside her.  Inside they found a small common room with a round table and two chairs, which seemed to connect directly with the small food store and preparation area.  Stairs down on one side of the room led to what was likely the wash area, while two arched doorways on the other side were most likely the bedrooms.

“Nothing grand, I know, but it is home.”  Celegeth spoke for the first time without his voice lowered, now that they were inside, though it seemed quite loud indeed after the quiet of the night.  He immediately set about lighting the lamps in the main room, then moved through to do the same for what Caranwyn assumed must be his own area.  Somehow it felt safer talking without whisper once the lights were lit.  Celegeth looked to Russellwen, still flushed and breathing deeply, and raised an eyebrow.  “Would you like a drink of water?”  She shook her head, but stepped forward to catch him up in another rush of quick, indiscriminate kisses.  Caranwyn shook her head, grinning at the boy’s surprise as he was forced backwards.  He stopped after a step, embracing her to return the assault with an equal fervour.  Russellwen was fine for a moment, but flinched, slowing as his hands ran down her back to hold her behind.  He leaned away from her as he felt the hesitation, meeting her eyes instead.

“Russellwen?  Are you alright?  I’ve never seen you so… zealous, before, but…” he searched her eyes, and Caranwyn could tell he was lost for the words to describe what they each felt.  Her sister paused, pressing her forehead into his shoulder and biting her lip.

“I’ve been working myself up to this for so long.  I want this, I really do.  Don’t stop me or my courage might fail.”  The heat was clear in her voice, but Caranwyn could also hear the tones of fear underneath that she was sure anyone else would miss.  She stepped closer to the pair, lifting her hands to rub gently at Russellwen’s shoulders.

“It’s alright.  Don’t force yourself.  I’m here; we both are, for you.”  She let her eyes flick to Celegeth for a moment, doing a quick double shift between his gaze and her sister, though the boy already seemed to be seeking something to say.

“I… I don’t want to make you feel like you have to, Russellwen.  I want you, but only when you’re sure.”  He leaned in again to nose softly at her ear and hairline, placing a gentle kiss on her temple.  “We could always do something else tonight, while I’ve got you here, if you prefer?  There’s so much possibility with both of you, after all.”  His casual eagerness brought a quiet laugh to her lips and she looked up again.

“Both more, and less, than you think, I’ll wager.”  She laughed again, louder than before, at his confused look, then lifted one hand to the back of his head so that she cold kiss him properly.  She moved as they broke, shifting until she could look at both of them again. “Thank you,” her eyes moved between them and she took a deep breath, “I’m alright now, I think.”  She looked beyond them, into the bedroom beyond, and Caranwyn followed her gaze to the bed which lurked within, waiting.  Russellwen swallowed, wetting her lips and making a nervous smile.  “Shall we?”

She reached down to take Celegeth’s hand and led him through the archway, stopping to hold him again as they reached the foot of the bed, running her hands over his shoulders and through the hair on the back of his head.  Caranwyn followed behind them, ducking around the pair smoothly to pull off her shoes and take a seat near the head of the bed, crossing her legs in front of her.  She watched the lovers exchanging gradually more intimate kisses and touches until her sister pulled back enough to draw Celegeth’s eyes.  She ran a finger over the laces of her shirt, looking at him.

“May I?” The boy’s question made her tilt her head, looking at him somewhere between puzzlement and laughter.

“As though you haven’t already seen everything that’s under these clothes several times already.”  There was a vague hint of chastisement in her voice, but Caranwyn was pleased to see her sister relaxing more.  Celegeth smirked, but tried to school his face to a semblance of composure before he responded.

“That’s not the point.”

“Then you may, my silly, beautiful boy.”  As he loosened the laces, Russellwen ran her hands through his hair again, inhaling deeply as she nuzzled her nose in it.  She lifted her hands as he pulled the shirt over her head, letting out a small, half-sighed laugh as he dropped it to the floor.  From where she sat, Caranwyn could see the soft curve of her breasts, freed at last, and grinned despite herself.  Her skin was smooth and clear, paler under the shirt than her forearms.  Just pale enough to make the blush of heat spreading out over her breasts, across her chest and up over her neck and cheeks all the more visible.  As Celegeth leaned down to kiss, and then suck playfully at one nipple, Caranwyn found herself running the tip of her tongue over her teeth.  She caught herself, closing her lips and swallowing once, but that didn’t slow her heart again, or drive the heat from her cheeks.  A small gasp from Russellwen sent a shiver through her and she pressed her hands into the bed sheets more firmly, fingers clenched.

While he was distracted, Russellwen ran the backs of her fingers down over Celegeth’s back, until they arrived at his waist.  She quickly pulled at his shirt until the ends of it were bunched up in her grip.  With a small coo of victory, she pulled it up over his head then took time to stroke her fingertips all over his exposed chest.  His chest had remained quite devoid of hair, even as they had grown, but judging from her sister’s eager caressing and nuzzling it seemed that Russellwen, at least, preferred the smooth and toned look.  Celegeth only basked in the attention for a moment, however, his hands already moving downwards in their exploration.

As his fingers reached the band of her leggings, Russellwen laughed, turning quickly in his arms to put her back to him.  She took hold of his wrists, arresting his progress and instead directing the hands to rove more over her chest and middle.  He accepted the guidance without a word, but craned his head to pay further attention to her neck.  She let her head roll to his shoulder to allow him more room and moaned softly as he took it.  A shudder passed through Caranwyn at the sound and she let out a hot breath that she had held without realising.  She hadn’t considered this when Russellwen had proposed her plan; they were only getting started and already she could feel a stirring in her groin.

This time when the daring hands reached downwards, Russellwen sighed, tilting her hips back to help him slip both them, and her underwear, down.  Despite that assent, she kept her thighs firmly together, leaving the bold fingers to stroke and caress at the small crest of red-orange hair, but no more.  She let out another long breath as they did and Caranwyn could see the slight tremble in her hands.  Calmer, perhaps, but she was still nervous.  A part of her wanted to take her sister and run away; bring her home to where she could hold her and make love to her until she forgot all about boys.  The more rational part of her mind knew how silly that was.  The thought was confirmed for her a moment later as Russellwen pushed back against her lover, mostly with her hips, then cast a smiling glance over her shoulder.

“You seem very excited…”  It took Caranwyn a moment to join up her sister’s words, the action, and how they were connected, before the blush in her cheeks intensified.  She knew that in this one way, at least, they were very different; Russellwen did actually like men, and always would.  Celegeth murmured something into her neck too softly for Caranwyn to hear, and the other girl laughed again.

“Well, then I think I’m going to lie down.  What about you, dear Celegeth?”

Russellwen unclasped his hands from around her and jumped away, taking a moment to stretch and show off her body once she was out of reach.  She clambered onto the bed, kneeling briefly before reclining on her side, resting her head in Caranwyn’s lap.  Caranwyn stroked her hair, then her shoulder with one hand, barely stopping herself before the hand ventured towards her breasts.  She looked down at her sister in time to catch the anxious smile flashed to her before the other girl looked back to Celegeth.  He was looking at both of them, standing still now, hands on the tie of his leggings and spots of colour blooming in his cheeks.  Caranwyn felt his gaze meet hers specifically for an instant before he cleared his throat.

“Now, now I guess it’s my turn to feel nervous and uncertain.  I’m, Caranwyn...  I, I’m just a little embarrassed, Captain, you understand?”  He made a helpless gesture and Caranwyn hung her head, sighing.

“Please, no ‘Captain’, not here.  I’m just Caranwyn.  I’m…  Here,” she wasn’t sure what made her do it, besides the need to do something, and her own building desire demanding that it be something drastic.  She stood from the bed and pulled her top over her head, then shucked off her leggings and underwear.  As she did she could smell the faint scent of her own arousal, and knew that her sister would most certainly notice it as well.  The thought alone did nothing to help the situation.  She glanced up as she undressed to see Celegeth blushing more fiercely than before, but once it was done she resumed her place on the bed and offered him a smile.

“There.  Just Caranwyn; is that better?”  To her surprise, Celegeth laughed, not quietly, but full-bodied and mirthful.  He shook his head, clearly over his embarrassment one way or the other.

“Not a chance.  Once, long ago, by a river, Captain; you taught us all something important then, and like it or not, none of us will ever forget it.  Not even when you tease me with what is the second most comely form in all the City.”  Here he winked at Russellwen before beginning to undress the rest of the way.

The sound of her sister inhaling deeply made the blush rise higher in Caranwyn’s cheeks and she looked down at the feeling of a finger brushing against one thigh.  She could see just how fierce her aroused blush had become as she glanced over her own chest before seeking her sister’s face.

“Enjoying the show?”  Russellwen was grinning up at her.

“You have no idea.”

“Oh I think I do.”  The fingers on her thigh trailed inward towards her groin, teasing, then arched up to trace light patterns across her middle.  The other girl giggled as Caranwyn felt her body shudder from the touch.  Celegeth joined them on the bed, one hand stroking over her sister’s hip and thigh.  Russellwen shifted at his touch, turning to lie on her back and reaching out both hands to pull him down into an embrace, sharing another series of drawn-out, breathless kissed with him.  She moaned softly in between and Caranwyn couldn’t help but let her own hand wander, caressing the girl’s shoulders and the back of her neck.  She let her fingertips slide along her collar bone, fighting off the urge to go further.  Her eyes would not be restrained though, and she bit her lower lip watching the small, unconscious movements of her sister’s body as she responded to Celegeth’s attention.  One of his hands had slipped down from where it had been squeezing gently at her breast, to probe instead towards her groin.  She had parted her thighs just enough to allow him, and Caranwyn could see the fingers working slowly up and down in a long circle. 

Her next breath came out in a hot shudder, eyes fixed on the small, needy thrusts of her sister’s hips in time with her lover’s touch.  A soft moan from the girl, half hidden between kisses, became a gasp, and Caranwyn grew aware of how heavy her own breathing had become.  Russellwen brought her hands to Celegeth’s shoulders, pushing him back from her enough to meet his eyes.  She nodded to him, drawing a deep, shaky breath as she did.  The boy hesitated for a moment, watching her as his other motions slowed, though to his credit he didn’t need a second invitation.

He sat back on his knees to let Russellwen reposition herself and Caranwyn found her eyes looking clearly at the boy’s… manhood.  Unlike his chest, the years had put a modest thicket of curly, brown fuzz at his groin, and rising from it in an exceptionally prominent way, the sign of just how eager he was, nerves or not.  She averted her eyes again.  Instead she moved; uncrossing her legs to allow Russellwen to sit higher, leaning against her body now.  The other girl had her knees up and together as she settled, hands in the blankets either side of her, and seemed to be focussed for the moment on taking several deep breaths and letting them out slowly.  Caranwyn was far too aware of the feel of her sister’s back against her chest, and tried to tell herself to behave.  She lifted her hands to Russellwen’s shoulders, rubbing softly and letting her fingers drift all the way down her arms every few strokes.  She lowered her head to nuzzle against the other girls, brushing their cheeks together in what had always been a gesture of comfort and closeness.  The smell of her hair was mingled with the beginnings of perspiration and the hint of another very recognisable scent.  She savoured it.

Celegeth had begun to advance again, with slow, soft touches moving up her legs every bit as graceful and delicate as they were relentless.  Caranwyn felt her sister anticipate the sensations with him as his fingers danced across the tops of her feet and up the back of her calves.  When he reached the tops of her knees he leaned in to kiss on each side, just above where his fingers rested, before raising his eyes to her.  Russellwen breath quivered as it passed her lips but she smiled at him and slowly let her legs slide apart, inviting.  He came on, crawling forward until his knees rested either side of her hips.  His eyes remained fixed on hers as his fingers sought inward along her thighs, then around her hips.  He put his hands down, onto the bed as he leaned in to kiss her again, and Caranwyn felt her sister’s moan vibrate through her own body as well.  There was movement between their bodies as the lovers moved in a needy likeness of what was still to come, and Caranwyn felt her hips respond in time, intoxicated by the other girl’s arousal.

As they broke, Celegeth bent lower, moving his kisses to make trails across her breasts and suck at one nipple.  Caranwyn felt her lips brush along Russellwen’s ear, then down her neck in a curving line of light kisses.

“You have no idea how much I want you right now,” it was barely a murmur, but she caught herself a moment too late and could only gasp after the words escaped.  Quiet as it had been, there was still no way that Celegeth could have missed it.  She glanced at him to see his eyes already looking back directly at her, but they sparkled with an almost triumphant gleam, and spoke of the smile he couldn’t quite conceal between his kisses.  His eyes lowered again after a moment, though the half-hidden smile grew stronger.  Russellwen let her head roll back to rest on Caranwyn’s shoulder, her lips by her ear.

“So much for caution,” Russellwen’s voice was husky through her desire, soft but rough, and threaded through with barely hidden relief.  She kissed at Caranwyn softly, lips brushing against her jawline and she felt a shiver ripple out from the point through her body.  Her sister drew Celegeth up against her body again, kissing him now with more urgency than before.  He groaned in between short breaths and Caranwyn could feel the movement of their hips again, the boy’s slow sliding pushing against her.  There was a moment of hesitation and the motion changed, becoming very small, gradual circles.  Russellwen gasped, her body going tense, and she lifted one arm up, back over her shoulder to take Carnawyn’s hand in her own.  She gave a reassuring squeeze before giving in to her own desire, caressing her sister’s body with her other hand and lavishing kisses wherever she could reach.

Celegeth’s motion pressed gradually deeper as Russellwen’s breath began to fall into their rhythm.  She winced as he pushed further, letting out a small cry and squeezing Caranwyn’s hand tight.  Stillness followed a moment later and she grew aware of the heated sounds of their breathing, each as worked up as the others.  Russellwen swallowed, managing a weak smile as she looked to her lover.

“It’s…”

“I know,” he kissed her again, then pushed himself away from her enough to look at her face clearly.  “I don’t…  They say it must be done swiftly, and that it will hurt you briefly.”  His gaze dropped before returning to her.  “The thought of causing you pain is… but there’s no—” Russellwen raised a finger to his lips.  She was smiling and though it was nervous, there was also certainty.

“It’s alright, I know.  Celegeth, my love, I want you to be the one to take me, and I’m ready.”  She squeezed on Caranwyn’s hand again, taking a moment to glance up at her, then back to Celegeth.  “I’ll be alright.  Please, don’t wait any longer.”  Caranwyn recognised the look in the boy’s eyes; the same look that had passed between the twins on the dark night that they’d made their promise.  He leaned in to brush his face softly against hers.

“I love you, Russellwen.”  He turned his head to kiss her neck, fierce and passionate, and pressed forward with a sudden, strong motion.  Caranwyn felt her fingers crushed hard as Russellwen’s body tensed up.  She gave a small, wordless cry of pain, muffled between clenched teeth, though it continued, inarticulate for several moments.  Stillness returned and Caranwyn held her sister tight, listening to the other girl’s fast, heavy breathing.  She was blinking rapidly, keeping tears out of her eyes, and her breath shook but she freed her hands to wrap them around her lover, holding him to her.  From where she sat, Caranwyn could see Celegeth’s eyes.  He was staring, lips still pressed to her neck, his eyes awash with a mixture of disbelieving wonderment.  He took a breath, his eyelids drifting shut again as he moved to rub his cheek against hers.

“Russellwen, I…  Are you alright.”  She was still hugging him tightly.  He kissed her neck again and trailed his lips around her ear.  “I can feel… you, you’re squeezing.  I can’t describe it.”  Russellwen gave him a small smile, rubbing his back.  It grew into a quiet, somewhat wet giggle as she sniffled, losing control of the tears at last and rubbing her face against him instead.

“It hurts still, but I think the worst is done.  Thank you.”  She sniffed again, though the tears didn’t seem to be stopping yet.  She threw her head back, looking at the ceiling in frustration at their insistence.  Blinking more, she took a deep breath and blew it out.  Celegeth muffled a groan in her neck as she did.

“I’m alright, my love.  Just, just give me a minute.”  She kissed him softly, and then again, beginning to mirror his attention to her own neck against his.  Caranwyn could feel a tightness in her chest, and a confusion of emotion inside her, panting and aroused, but intimidated, and horrified, even though she knew there was no sense in that.  She tried to coax moisture into her throat and slipped her arms lower to caress and hold at her sister’s hips.

“What…  What does it feel like?”  Her voice was only a whisper, and she felt the burn of embarrassment prickling at her skin, removed from the hot flush of her arousal.  Russellwen let her head fall back again, nuzzling at her with her eyes closed.

“It feels,” her voice trailed off into a soft groan as Celegeth nipped at her neck in between kisses.  “Good.  It’s sore but, yes, it’s good.”  She sighed, letting her hands slide down to her lover’s rear and holding him tight against her.  “It’s… right.  I guess; like something I’ve been waiting for.  Hmmm…” the hum warmed into a pleased, almost blissful sound, and Caranwyn smiled.

“Good, I’m glad.”  She stroked around the other girl’s hips, making short tracks towards her groin with her fingertips and Russellwen gasped and shivered.  Celegeth found her lips again, cutting her sigh short in another kiss before lifting his head to meet her eyes.  Glancing up over her sister’s shoulder, Caranwyn could see his gaze, soft and caring, but behind it an unquenchable exhilaration kept barely in check.

 

“Are you ready for more?”  He was grinning now, eyebrows raised, and Russellwen smiled back, the blush in her cheeks increasing.  She nodded to him, her fingers gripping more firmly at his rear and squeezing.

“Go slowly, alright?  It still feels like it’s…” her voice trailed into a mumble, but Caranwyn was sure it was something about the girth of what was now buried inside her.  Celegeth nodded and drew his hips away from her slowly, making Russellwen suck a sharp breath in through her teeth and his length withdrew.  Her wince spiked again has he pushed forward once more, and she let out a quiet, pained sound despite her efforts.  She nodded him on, though his face bore growing concern now, but her discomfort continued, no matter how gently he moved.  After a few more strokes she pulled her hands back to press against his chest.

“Wait Celegeth.  I’m sorry, it’s just…  Ughh!”  She made a frustrated motion with her hand in the air beside them.  “Why must it be like this?  It feels good, it does, but, the pain of it, it’s getting in the way.  I can’t…”  She bit her lip, then lifted her hands to his cheeks, pulling him close for another kiss.  “It’s alright; I should have expected this... but I want you to enjoy it, I really do, so it’s alright.”  She managed a weak smile for him.  “You go ahead, I’ll be alright.  I want you to enjoy me, even if it’s painful this first time.”  Caranwyn hugged her sister tightly, pressing her body against her and resting her head on the other girl’s shoulder.  It shouldn’t have to be this way.  Celegeth tilted his head, looking at her sister with just one eyebrow raised, a look very close to amusement masking whatever he was really feeling.  He kissed her quickly on the forehead with a smile.

“Do you take me for a lout, oh beautiful lady?  Listen, I might not really know what in the world I’m doing, in honesty, but I mean to get it right somehow, and that means you as well.  So tell me, what can I do to please you, anything, Russellwen.”  In that moment, Caranwyn loved the boy for his words.  She would have hugged him, if not for their current position.  Russellwen seemed overcome for a moment, surprised and not sure how to answer.  At last she nodded, silent, then seemed to think briefly.

“I… Well, it’s not so bad, just like this, with us together and close.  The real pain is when you thrust back and forth so.  How about… hmm…”  Caranwyn shifted, moving along with her sister as the same idea occurred to them.  She sat up enough to pull the pillow on the bed behind her, leaning back against it, with Russellwen leaning her weight completely against her in turn.  She pulled the boy with her, raising her legs to wrap them around his hip and crossing her ankles together to keep him there. 

Caranwyn could feel the touch of his sister’s back all the way down her body, as the position put a firm but not unpleasant pressure against her breasts.  Still holding his face in her hands, Russellwen flexed her thighs and relaxed them, coaxing a slight movement from the boy’s hips.  His breath drew in sharply as she repeated the motion and Caranwyn could feel the movement of her hips accompanying it.

“You can move like that, yes?”  He nodded, beginning to pick up her rhythm softly.

“It doesn’t hurt you?”

“A little, but there’s less, you know…” her eyes darted about seeking tactful words that didn’t present themselves. “Out and in again?  Ahhh… Mmm, that’s good, like that.”  Caranwyn could feel her sister moving her hips and legs in time with Celegeth’s motions, though he still moved carefully.  As she looked at his face he seemed to be trying more to restrain himself than anything else.  If it was better for Russellwen, it was certainly good for him as well, perhaps too exciting.  Her arms were still wrapped about her sister’s waist, but she moved them now, sliding them in over her middle, between the crush of the lover’s bodies.  She let one palm rest just above her groin, pressing softly, while the other reached practiced fingers lower, pushing through the soft hair to the core of heat hidden within.

Russellwen moaned, a louder sound this time, caught between the combination of their actions.  Celegeth was breathing hard, small vocal sighs escaping him with each breath as he gradually began to move with more confidence against her.  His hands were pressed into the bed hard, supporting his weight while his lips began to roam her body once again, starting at her breast and climbing in a wandering trail towards the exposed skin of her neck.

The sounds of her sister’s resurging pleasure sent thrills through Caranwyn’s body and she began to nip and kiss with equal fervour at the other side of her neck, while her fingers worked quickly, rising to the pace she could tell Russellwen needed.  She found her own hips moving with her sister, the sensitive heat of her groin rubbing teasingly against the small of the other girl’s back.

Celegeth’s motions grew fiercer and he groaned aloud, his head back as his whole body worked to the rhythm of their love-making.  His legs slipped and repositioned as he struggled to press himself against her firmly, moving their bodies together, and Caranwyn gasped as the motion pressed and rubbed against her in turn, making her toes curl and clench with the building pleasure.  She could hear the catch in her sister’s voice as their tempo reached its height.  Russellwen’s body grew tight as her peak approached, her breaths turning to harsh gasps.  Celegeth cried out, a rough sound dragged from between clenched teeth, his motion growing more fervent than before, then halting altogether as he pressed his hips hard against her.  Each breath from him became a cry as his body seemed to jerk in spams.  Russellwen’s climax broke over her moments later, the tension in her body making her arch and buck even as Celegeth’s peak subsided.  He seemed to brace himself more firmly as her arms and legs clamped around him, crushingly fierce.

Her cries faded gradually and as they relaxed back against each other, Caranwyn pulled her hands away to rest gently on her sister’s shoulders instead.  Russellwen let her legs relax, unhooking them from around his back and beginning to kiss in a relaxed way at his cheeks and forehead while she regained her breath. 

They rested for a while, but it was Celegeth who roused first, sitting back on his knees again.  Caranwyn’s eye was drawn to the red staining a small patch of the sheets, where Russellwen had been when they first began.  Blood on sheets was nothing new to either of them, but this was different.  Her eye moved up to Celegeth, or rather, to his groin.  His penis had gone down now, and it looked mostly clean, but there in a roughly smeared red ring around the base of the shaft, the evidence remained.  She looked away.

“Ehhh…  this is bad enough when it’s not all… inside me.”  Russellwen wore a slightly disgusted expression.  She had one hand between her legs and had lifted it up to reveal a vaguely pinkish-white goo on her fingers, not at all like the normal fluids of their arousal.  Caranwyn wrinkled her nose at the distinct smell that accompanied the stuff, then slipper her arms back around under her sister’s breasts, hugging her. 

“And most women prefer this?”  She mumbled into the other girl’s shoulder, not bothering to mask her incredulous tone.  Celegeth wiped sweat from his forehead.  He grinned at them.

“You can bathe here, if you want to.  I’ll need to see to the sheets anyway, and I don’t expect mother will be back at all tonight.”  He glanced down and away, embarrassed, as Russellwen wiped her fingers on the sheet beside her, trying to clean her hand.  “You could stay, if you wanted.”  Uncertain of the offer, he scratched at his chin and rubbed briefly at the back of his neck, fidgeting.  Russellwen giggled, then rolled over, turning in her sister’s arms.  Caranwyn kissed back as their lips met, her eyelids drifting shut for a moment.  She blinked, watching Russellwen kneel over her, on her hands and knees, almost predatory.  The other girl was smiling, her eyes alight again.

“A chance to clean up sounds wonderful Celegeth my love,” she spoke clearly enough for him to hear, though her eyes remained fixed on Caranwyn.  “but first, I can tell that three people got very excited just now, but only two of us…”  she didn’t finish, instead leaning in for another kiss.  Caranwyn felt her embarrassed blush returning.  “Shall I help you?”  Her soft kisses became another giggle.  “Celegeth doesn’t seem to mind, after all.  He might even want to watch.”  Now the blush raged to full force and Caranwyn shook her head quickly, a small, yet very certain gesture.  When her sister paused, looking at her with questioning eyes, Caranwyn lowered her gaze for a moment, then glanced to Celegeth.  The boy had raised his eyebrows, looking on with a keen interest that he hadn’t thought to disguise.  When he saw her eyes, though, he looked down and away.  Russellwen nodded softly as Caranwyn shook her head again, and changed her attentions into a tight hug instead.

‘Sorry’  She murmured the sound in her ear before sitting back again.  “I understand.  A quick wash though, that would be a fine idea.”  She moved to the side of the bed, stretching, then winced and resettled herself.  “And a tear is a tear, whether it’s supposed to happen or not.  The healer in me wants to make sure everything is clean and in order down there, after all that.  It still feels a bit raw.”  Clambering to the edge of the bed, Caranwyn retrieved her clothes and stood, holding them in a partially folded bundle in front of her, still trying to will the blush from her cheeks.  The others followed suit after a moment and they headed to the washroom.       

Celegeth’s washroom was in the lower floor of the house, and seemed to achieve an almost cave-like feeling as he lit the single light and settled the candle he had used on the other side of the room.  The water was icy and cold, but Caranwyn wasn’t bothered.  If anything, she found herself thinking, she needed it.  As they washed, she glanced to Celegeth.

“You didn’t seem very surprised when I said what I did.  Did you suspect?”  The boy shrugged, wiping and dabbing at himself gingerly, trying to get as little of the freezing water on his skin as he could.

“I did think that you might look to women as well, Captain… you appreciate the ladies with us far too easily.  I suppose I hadn’t really thought more about it in this light until yesterday.  Now I think it must be only women to whom you look, and not men at all.”  He paused, putting down his cloth and leaning back against the counter top.  “So, you two, you really are… uhh…”

“Yes,” Caranwyn saved him from trying to find a delicate way of asking.  “But you mustn’t ever tell anyone.  Far too many would not accept it.  We were afraid that you might not.  I wasn’t supposed to let anything slip.”  She winced, remembering her loss of control and immediately dipped her head under the water, feeling its cold filter through her hair and across her scalp.  Russellwen had been examining herself with careful fingers as she cleaned, but her eyes had gown pensive and thoughtful.  She continued to wash the rest of her body as well as she raised her gaze to Celegeth.

“I’m glad.  I didn’t want to have to keep a secret from you, and I’m glad you’re not upset by us.  I think most people would want nothing to do with our deviancy.”  Here he only laughed.

“Maybe people who haven’t grown up with you all their lives.  The way I see it, and I know I can’t honestly speak for the others, but I feel like I can, if it should ever get out…  The way I see it, we all know that you two love and care for one another; you are twins after all.  Beyond that, who honestly has call to complain about just how much you care?”  He waved his eyebrows at her, smirking.  “And call it my own overconfidence in myself, but I’m not worried either.  I know that I would never win a competition for your heart, if it were one, so I’m still honoured to have your affection, because it is not.  Your relationship long predates ours, I suspect.”

“I am done.”  Russellwen stood from the water, shaking her limbs and taking the dry towel Celegeth offered.  “Good, but don’t even think about it that way, dear Celegeth.  We have told each other many times that it simply doesn’t count, since we are sisters, so now I’m telling you the same.”

Caranwyn was almost finished redressing herself, scrubbing at her hair with her towel and finding herself glad once more for how short she kept it.  A part of her had secretly hoped that Celegeth would not join them in the washroom, so she could have let Russellwen follow through on her offer, but it could wait for later.

“Your mother’s duty must be long if you don’t expect her to come back tonight.  Does she work full night shifts at the salve-maker’s houses often?”  Celegeth snorted a laugh and shook his head, almost stumbling in his mirth as he pulled on his undergarments.  He looked up at her once he recovered.

“Nothing so noble, Captain.  Since father was killed, mother has found more than a few shoulders to pour out her grief on, and you would be surprised how few of them have been female.  Of late, she has been seeing ever more of Forgost, a wheelwright and carpenter who lives not far from here.  This is not the first evening she has visited late with him.  Sometimes she comes home again, other times not, though I’m sure she would have returned by now if she were going to.  What truly frightens me is that by the time we return, she may well be wed again.  I do not resent the man, but I also do not know him very well.”  He sighed, shrugging his shoulders, and reclaimed the candle from its ledge.  As they climbed the steps, he paused to extinguish the other light, then followed them.

In the house’s common room, he set the candle down on the table, looking between them.

“My offer stands.  I’d be pleased if you both wished to stay here tonight, rather than walking home again.  I know that you, Caranwyn, will have remembered the path even from a run in the night, but, I’d be very happy if you were willing to stay.”  He held his hands open in an offering gesture and Russellwen stepped in quickly to hug and kiss him soundly.  She shook her head against his shoulder, however.

“We can’t, you know how early our mother and father rise, and they will question our absence heavily if we do not rise with them, in the same house where they saw us last.  Especially tomorrow morning, when we all must leave.”  Caranwyn hid a grin before agreeing with her sister.

“We might be able to explain to father; he suspects much and asks little, but I wouldn’t dare risk trying to explain this to mother.  We might end up having to reveal more than we should, and then… well, then we will all be glad to be heading halfway across the world tomorrow.”  Celegeth sighed, prolonging their embrace and claiming another drawn-out kiss from Russellwen in consolation.

“I understand.  I’m only sorry that we have had to be so secretive about this.  Where two might find time to sneak away and have others avert their eyes, with three it isn’t so easy.”

“We’re lucky, then, that we likely won’t need to find such an opportunity again.  Somehow, I don’t think you’ll need me present every time you do this.”  She was smiling as she winked at the couple, still holding one another, but a small voice in her mind suggested that she’d been far too quick in her response.  Russellwen looked towards her, biting her lip.

“Not if you’d rather not.  I’ll be alright, now that the first time is out of the way,” she looked quickly back to her partner.  “And it was good.  Thank you, Celegeth, for being so patient with me.  I, em,” she blushed, pressing her head into his shoulder as she mumbled the rest.  “I hope it was worth the wait.”  He raised his eyebrows at her, then changed his embrace of her to a much more dramatic pose, putting on his false formality again.

“Well, my lady, if you are concerned please allow me to remove all doubt.”  She began to laugh, but it broke off swiftly as he drew her into another series of long, passionate kisses.  The dramatic bravado melted away within moments as they became absorbed in one another, and Caranwyn leaned back against the door arch, grinning as she waited for the pair.  Eventually they finished what had grown into their farewell hugs and kisses for the night and Caranwyn joined her sister as they moved towards the door.

Outside, Celegeth wished them both a less intimate goodnight and they waved once as they made their way down the steps and back into the twisting back streets of the second level.  They walked, rather than run now, and Caranwyn reached out to take her sister’s hand.

“Are you alright?  How are you feeling, now that it’s all said and done?”  Russellwen was silent for a few more paces, biting her lip and she thought.  Eventually she sighed and hung her head.

“I’m sorry, Caranwyn.  I didn’t think.  I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable, I just.  I didn’t think about how awkward you might feel thorough it all.  I shouldn’t have put you in that position.”  She sounded as though she was close to tears, but Caranwyn couldn’t come up with an answer right away.  Instead she halted their pace, wrapping her arms around the other girl and holding her close.  She felt Russellwen’s arms around her as well, but it still took a few more moments before she found what she wanted to say.

“I was there for you.  That’s what I wanted.  It wasn’t as uncomfortable as all that, I was just… upset, I suppose,  that compared to what we share, the things that are ‘normal’ and ‘right’ are so… hurtful to you, or to other women.  I love Celegeth, but not like you do.  He’s a brother in arms, and a comrade, not a lover… and I felt wrong, at the thought of him seeing me in such an intimate way.”  She sniffled, unsure why her eyes prickled so, but continued.  “That is for you, and it will only ever be for you, dearest in the world to me.  No-one else; never anyone else.”  She felt Russellwen’s shoulders shaking against her, and the heat of her cheek on her neck.

“I’m sorry,” she pulled away enough to meet her eyes, aware that her own held tears as well.  She blinked, trying to clear them.

“It’s alright.  I…  I knew I didn’t want anyone else, but, before this I didn’t understand how true that was.  I think I needed to walk through this fire every bit as much as you did, tonight.  So no tears from either of us about it, alright?”  She couldn’t help a small giggle at herself, face hot and already lined by them.  Russellwen nodded, grinning back.

“Alright,” she wiped her eyes, then ducked her head, smirking more.  “It was good, though.  Something new, and even with the soreness it was very pleasant.  Though I suspect I wouldn’t have gotten there in the end if not for a certain someone’s help.”  Taking each other’s hands again, they began walking once more.  They reached the break in the wall and began to climb up, pausing on the battlement to look out at the sky.  It was cloudless and clear, the stars bright.  Caranwyn found herself wondering how long it might be before she spent another night in her own home, and was glad they had agreed beforehand that they would return, and not stay with Celegeth for the night.  She leaned on the stonework, swaying from side to side with a small grin on her lips.

“You know,” she let the words trail off as Russellwen looked across at her, eyebrows raised.  “If you really wanted to make it up to me for putting me in such a compromising position…”  She didn’t bother finishing as her sister laughed.

“You say that as though I wasn’t meaning to already.”  Caranwyn felt hands slip around her waist as Russellwen came to stand close behind her.  “But the longer we stay out here, the longer you’ll be waiting.  Home?”  She glanced back over her shoulder at her sister, and let out a content sigh.

“Let’s.”  They started walking, but didn’t even make it as far as the first buildings before they both broke into a run.

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