Sleeping Beauty

It was just like something out of a fairytale, Ephraim thought, the prince carrying the princess to safety as she was put under a Sleep spell.

It was a lucky hit from a Druid nearby, and with them miles away from anyone with a Restore staff they were forced to hole up in a nearby cell until her condition wore off. Ephraim removed his cloak and carefully set L'Arachel down upon it, double-checked to make sure the stairwell and the entrance were blocked, and sat down to wait.

As the sounds of battle continued outside their cell, Ephraim patiently sat by L'Arachel's side, absently stroking a stray curl away from her face now and then. She really was beautiful, he thought, usually it was easier to notice her boisterous mannerisms and voice before anything else, but with her so quiet, it was easier to focus on...other aspects. Ephraim's fingers idly traced the contours of her face, down to her shoulders and her-

No, he scolded himself. Even if he were not a prince and she not a princess, it wasn't right to touch a sleeping girl inappropriately, he thought, pulling his hand away from her breast. How long does this spell take to wear off anyway?

An hour later, she was still fast asleep. I should at least make her more comfortable, Ephraim thought, and began to unbind her hair, letting it tumble down over her shoulders. She looked even more beautiful like that...he felt a slight twitch in his pants as he loosened the laces of her dress, not wanting them to cut off her breath while she slept, and removed her boots so her feet wouldn't feel cramped when she awoke. And she had such adorable feet...

What am I doing? Undressing a sleeping girl was just as inappropriate as touching her. He quickly set her back down, and as an afterthought removed his coat to drape over her, so she wouldn't catch cold.

*

Another hour later the fighting still had yet to stop, and L'Arachel had still yet to wake up. Worse, Ephraim's constant monitoring of her had left him in an almost painfully aroused state.

She really was beautiful.

Perhaps if I only kissed her... In fairy tales, the kiss of a prince could wake a princess from her slumber, but those were fairy tales. Kneeling beside her, he bent down to press his lips gently against hers. Gods, how soft they were, and tasted vaguely of strawberries as well...damn it! His arousal was growing worse, he threw the coat aside, gazing at her half-covered breasts and bare arms, wanting to taste and feel every inch of her, even knowing how wrong it would be to do so.

L'Arachel remained deeply asleep.

I don't have to take her, he reasoned, to take her in her sleep would be an act of the most barbaric sort, but if he simply explored her a little, what harm could it do?

Carefully, Ephraim began to slide her dress and undergarments down, exposing her breasts. He filled his hands with their soft, plump weight, caressing lightly with his fingertips, rubbing the nipples with his thumbs.

"Mmmm..."

He froze. Was she waking up? He pulled his hands away and drew back for a moment...when she didn't open her eyes, he sighed with relief. Growing bolder now, he softly kissed her left breast, circling the nipple with the tip of his tongue. He felt her shiver and heard her moan softly, but she didn't wake up. Ephraim slid his hands down her body until he reached the hem of her skirt; he reached underneath and eased her lower undergarments and stockings down, then began to stroke up and down the length of her long, silky legs.

"Ohhh..."

Even as she slept, a contented smile crossed her face, and he realized she just might be dreaming of something like this...grinning, he slipped two fingers between her legs and was surprised to feel how wet she was. Carefully, he drew her thighs apart and placed his hands on her inner thighs.

"Maybe there is another way to wake you up," he murmured; using his fingers to part her, he buried his face against her soft wetness. He lapped and sucked and nibbled at her tender flesh until she began to writhe and buck in her sleep; when she began to moan he moved his tongue up to her clit, flicking rapidly.

Suddenly, L'Arachel's eyes flew open and before she could ask where she was or even what he thought he was doing to her she began to climax; she planted her hands on his head, gripping twin fistfuls of his hair as the sensations wracked her.

"Take me, Ephraim," she panted as her spasms faded, too clouded by her haze of pleasure to think straight. Ephraim was all too happy to comply as he unlaced his pants, thrusting into her hard and fast.

*

"What were you thinking?!" she shrieked after they regained control of themselves. "I knew you could be something of a brute, but this?!"

"I'm so sorry," Ephraim groaned as he straightened his clothes. "I wasn't thinking, I suppose. You were so beautiful...I've been attracted to you since we first met, I guess, but that's still no excuse."

"You're most certainly right it's no excuse!" L'Arachel snapped. "Why, it's as if you crept into my very mind and read my unladylike dreams!"

"W-what?"

"Oh, how embarrassing! To have such naughty dreams is bad enough, but to act on such things...!"

Ephraim didn't know whether to be relieved or not at this.

"So...you did want me?"

"Of course I did! But I...I am a princess, and a princess must save herself for her marriage bed!" L'Arachel wept. "Oh, you must think me some sort of filthy harlot now."

Ephraim smiled and wrapped his arm around her, gently brushing her tears away with his fingertips.

"Hey, now. What happened to me being a horrible brute?"

"Oh, you still are. But it's my fault as much as it is yours." She sighed, leaning against him. "Then again, you did save me..."

"It was the only thing I could think of at the time. Since we weren't near any other healers, all I could do was get you to safety before more enemies attacked."

"My hero," she murmured. "And hey...I think the fighting's finally stopped! Oh, but if it has, I didn't get a chance to show off my prowess in battle!"

Ephraim smiled, helping her stand up and opening the door to the cell.

"You'll have another chance, I'm sure of it," he said. "Let's go, the others are probably wondering what happened to us."