Her Gifts | A Kindred Souls Short Story
The fire dancers dippedand twirled, the lit fire-sticks casting designs and words sparkling in the air.
I clapped with the rest of the crowd, grinning up at Bastian. He winked and tucked me tighter into his side, his fingers sliding lower on my hip, making me shiver.
The celebrations for Yule in the dragon lands were something I’d always wanted to witness. Ever since I read a story about them in an old book my parents had when I was a little girl.
It had sounded so magical and exciting to me.
And the reality completely lived up to my childhood imaginations.
The dragons I’d been teaching music to since I moved here with my kindreds had their first public event tonight and I couldn’t wait to see how we performed together.
The scents of spiced wine and roasted meat tickled my nose, making my stomach growl.
Aster stepped up to my side from his spot where he’d been chatting with Whist. “Hungry, princess?”
It still startled me every time he called me princess. Technically, I was one, but since we didn’t live in Faligrey, it only affected me when we visited Indigo.
“Very.”
“I’ll go grab some food and save a table. Come find me when the show’s over.” Aster kissed my cheek before stalking off through the crowd.
I watched him over my shoulder, fondness and love unfurling in my chest.
Whist stepped up to my free side, sliding his hand into mine. Saber and Sky cuddled together a few feet in front of us, watching the fire dancing with awe on their faces, their cheeks pressed close together, occasionally glancing back at us, making sure we were still here, still with them.
My family. My kindreds.
Adoration for these men kept me warm against the bitter chill in the air. Our bond had only strengthened since we left Faligrey and moved to the dragon lands to make our home here.
I’d never been so happy or more at peace in my life. Sometimes, I pinched myself to make sure it was all real.
Though, if it was a dream, I never wanted to wake up.
Men and women with dragon scales pasted onto their skin joined the fire dancers as the thunder of the drums picked up, so loud I felt each beat in my chest. They stomped in time with the drums, their hands slapping onto their thighs as the tribal sounds pounded through the air, the fire dancers spinning their sticks behind them.
I cheered and clapped as the dance ended and darkness fell around us, the fires put out, leaving only the moon and stars to light up the courtyard outside the mountain that held our city, our home.
The tall torches were relit as the festival continued, no more performances for now until I closed out the celebrations with our musical show.
My kindreds led me through the excited crowd of dragons to the booths selling food, searching for Aster.
I spotted him first, snorting at the way he scowled at those who approached, hoping to join him at the large table he’d claimed.
The longer we spent here, the more like a dragon Aster became. He and Bastian had bonded over their love of books and history, and with their work for the dragon council, they spent a lot of time together.
It tickled me, watching Aster growl and huff, taking on the mannerisms of his new people.
I pulled away from Bastian and plopped onto Aster’s lap, smiling when he shot the dragon a smug look. Bastian curled his lip and bared his canines as he sat across the table.
Sky and Saber took spots on either side of us, leaving the last seat for Whist next to Bastian. We reached for the food Aster had bought, digging in to the delicious meats and nuts and pastries.
Dragon food could be a little bland sometimes, but not tonight. They went all out for the celebration.
I settled farther against Aster, my breath catching when his arousal pressed back into me.
He made a low noise in his throat, his lips brushing against the crook of my neck. Whist’s eyes gleamed at me across the table, his leg reaching out to press against mine, making gooseflesh rise across my skin.
As much as I was enjoying the festival celebrations, I was looking forward to going back to our rooms with my kindreds more. They always did this, torturing me with teasing touches and kisses until I vibrated with need for them.
I couldn’t imagine ever not wanting them, needing them.
We chatted and ate, smiling at those who stopped to greet us. We were still a curiosity to them, Faligreans coming to live with dragons. Faligrean royalty who left their land behind to start fresh, to fight for peace.
Saber stole me from a grumbling Aster’s lap, cuddling me into his warm chest, his fingers still stained with paint from working earlier in our quarters. I gave him a soft kiss, smiling as he took it deeper, sneaking his tongue into my mouth, a low sound reverberating in his throat.
“You two need to quit before we start looking for a dark corner to take you in.”
I shuddered at Aster’s dark words, remembering the last time we found a dark corner.
Saber stroked my cheek with a mischievous smile. “Later, love.”
Yes. Later. Which couldn’t come soon enough.
I needed my own seat or I’d be a complete mess for the final show. I pulled myself from Saber’s lap and circled around to the other side of the table, sitting beside Whist after giving him a warning glare.
Whist’s lips quirked and he shrugged, wordlessly making no promises. The ass.
Thankfully, he left me alone as we finished the pile of food Aster got and returned to safer topics.
Soon, it was time for my performance with my students. I rose and kissed each one of my kindreds before pushing to the dais where my students were setting up. I’d asked Aster if he wanted to play with us, but he still refused to touch a piano in front of anyone other than our bondmates.
Kira handed me my mandolin before she took her position behind the harp, and I slid my hand across it with a fond stroke. The instrument had been with me for so long, seen me through so many things. It was the only remaining piece of my past I still had. The only piece I still cared about.
My students spread out around me with their own instruments, the fire dancers joining us.
I counted down the beat with five stomps of my boot and we sprang into song. It was a song of celebration and hope, of freedom and peace. A perfect anthem for Yule. A perfect anthem for my new life with my kindred souls in the dragon lands.
The intrigue and danger was far behind us. The doubt and mistrust and worries long gone.
The six of us had been through so much and somehow we’d come out on the other side with our bond stronger than ever. Faligrey and the dragon lands were allies and we weren’t the only Faligreans who had decided to make our new homes here.
Many had followed their prince here, hoping to find their kindreds or to grow their businesses. There were still tensions between the two groups sometimes, but with Aster as the ambassador holding a spot on the Assembly, he was able to smooth things over.
I couldn’t see my kindreds past the lit firesticks waving and twirling in front of me, but I could feel them watching. I could feel their love and pride and desire. It pulsed through our bonds, making me impatient for the festival’s end.
Would I ever stop craving them? Their touch, their taste, their scent?
I hoped not.
It wasn’t just the bond either. It was Sky’s humor shadowed with darkness; it was Saber’s soulful sweetness; it was Bastion’s stubborn grumpiness hiding a heart of gold; it was Aster’s confident charm and brilliance; it was Whist’s dangerous edge and steady presence.
The five of them together were everything I needed. The six of us completed each other. It sounded so trite thinking it, but we did.
My love for them rang out in the ballad, never able to leave the emotions they brought out in me from any song I wrote.
The music crashed to an end and the crowd roared with their approval, flowers thrown at us, scattering across the moonlit ground.
Fondness squeezed my heart for these people who had embraced me so fully. Pride in my students swelled within me. They were amazing and had learned so much so fast.
We bowed for the audience and my kindreds pushed through and drew me away as people began to trickle off back to their homes.
I cast one final glance at the glittering night sky before being pulled into the lantern lit caverns of the mountain we lived in.
We didn’t speak as we climbed up the hundreds of stairs leading to our quarters, anticipation spreading with each step, with each sideways glance, with each brush of skin against skin.
I could almost taste the desire swirling around us as it pumped through our bonds, making me dizzy and breathless.
An ache spread low in my belly, my hand clenching around Whist’s. His moonlight eyes glinted over at me and I bit my lip. A low groan rumbled up his throat and he hurried our pace, the others scrambling to keep up.
We should have taken the lift, but the line for it wrapped all the way outside, no one wanting to heave their tired and full bodies up so many steps.
Our door finally greeted us and we tumbled inside, a tangle of limbs and impatience and need.
I was lost in a sea of sensations and touches, unable to focus past the pleasure they teased out of me, no idea who was touching where as we stumbled over to the bed.
The bed. The perfect, massive bed made out of magic and clouds Bastian had surprised us with when we moved here.
Five sets of hands stretched me out on top of the mattress once my clothes were peeled and ripped from my skin. Everyone but Aster climbed up onto the bed with me. Aster was always the one who gathered the toys.
I had a different idea for one of them tonight. Something I’d wanted to do for a while. And I knew just who’d be up for it too.
Moans spilled from my lips as warm mouths sucked, strong hands stroked, sharp teeth nipped, calloused fingers pinched.
Aster rejoined us with his hands full, breaking through the bliss. I reached out and plucked the toy I wanted to play with from his grip.
He raised a brow with a smirk. “Have your own plan tonight?”
“I do.” I jerked my head towards Sky who was kissing Saber, and Aster’s smirk grew to a full-blown grin.
He bent down to whisper in my ear. “Next time, it’s my turn,”
I shuddered and nodded, excitement heating my blood.
Bastian reclaimed my attention with a scorching kiss, fucking my mouth with his tongue, making me tremble and whimper. I heard Aster talking low and Sky’s chuckle, so I assumed Aster was filling Sky in on my hopes for the evening.
Sky licked my neck up to my ear where he caught the lobe between his teeth. “You can fuck me anytime you want, doll. Any way you want. I’m up for anything.”
Sky liked to dominate in bed, so I wasn’t completely sure he’d be into it, which was half the fun of trying. Thrills ran through me at the lust thickening his voice.
He was very into it.
Before I could catch my breath I was flipped over on top of Bastian, his erection gliding through my wet folds. I whimpered again, desperation fueling me. I needed them.
Now.
After kissing the hell out of me again, Bastian released the back of my neck and nudged me up onto my hands and knees. Heat seared my back and when I glanced over my shoulder, I met Aster’s blazing eyes as he coated his thick length in oil. My breath caught and I bit my lip as I watched him stroke himself, preparing himself, his goldeness almost blinding.
He reached over me and took the toy from my hands, oiling it up for me before he handed it back with a heated look.
I swallowed hard and turned back around to see Sky already laid out and waiting. Saber straddled Bastian’s head, his thick brown cock standing at attention, making me lick my lips in anticipation.
Aster grabbed my empty hand and poured oil into it before he tossed the bottle to Whist who knelt behind Saber.
Bastian grabbed my hips and plunged into me without warning, making me cry out in surprise and pleasure. He ground his pelvis against mine, making lightning zing through my veins, then stilled deep inside me.
I squirmed against him, but his grip remained firm steel, refusing to let me fuck him. Sky shook his ass a little, reminding me I had oil leaking from my hand.
I reached out and spread the oil around his ass, sliding first one finger, then two inside his warmth. He clenched around my fingers, making us both moan in harmony as I curled my finger to hit the special spot he had inside of him. Aster did the same to me, somehow working in unison.
Sky groaned as I pulled out my fingers and scrambled for the carved cock. I pressed the tip to his tight hole and pushed it in just a little, teasing him like they always teased me.
Tonight, I wanted my revenge.
Aster gave me the exact same treatment, wordlessly telling me I’d get what I wanted once Sky got what he wanted. The ass.
I thrust the phallus into Sky, grinning as he lurched and cried out, his cock twitching. My cry joined his when Aster shoved into me. Hard.
After glancing over to make sure Whist and Saber were ready, the six of us began to move. We were all connected, linked.
Our lovemaking was a dance to music only our souls could hear. I took Saber into my mouth, enjoying the way he cursed and buried his hands in my hair. My eyes rose to meet Whist’s who watched me over Saber’s shoulders with a heated gaze. He refused to release me, trapping me in his swirling silver depths.
Two different hands cupped my breasts. Sky and Bastian. Sky pinched and played while Bastian rolled and plucked. Aster’s fingers dug into the flesh of my hips as he rammed into me. I matched his pace on Saber and I kept fucking Sky, who wrapped his fingers around his cock and stroked lazily, his mouth twisted and breaths short and fast.
Whist pounded into Saber, using him to fuck my mouth while Bastian pistoned up into me replacing his hand with his mouth on my breast, biting, then licking to soothe the beautiful sting.
We moved as one, breaths and moans rising into a crescendo as we were caught in this spell of pleasure. Bastian reached over and brushed Sky’s hand away from his cock and fisted his length, pumping him up and down, completing the circle.
Love and lust swirled around us as our heartbeats pounded like bass drums, our sighs the melody, the slapping of skin against skin the crash of cymbals.
Stars burst behind my eyes as I stiffened with a scream, garbled around Saber’s cock still plunging in and out of my mouth harder as Whist quickened his thrusts.
Aster and Bastian lost it next, shoving inside me together as deep as they could reach, their roars primal and raw.
I shoved the wood harder, quicker, deeper into Sky, Bastian tightening his grip, he and Aster still moving inside of me.
Sky bucked and spilled himself onto Bastian’s hand and his own belly, slumping back onto the bed, throwing his arm over his eyes as he fought to catch his breath.
I released the toy, but left it inside him after once last shove, making him jerk and curse.
Saber swelled in my mouth and he came down my throat, his hands pulling at my hair with a delicious sting as Whist growled behind him, his knuckles turning white from how hard he grabbed Saber’s hips.
Seeing them fall apart like that triggered me again and this time my scream was loud without Saber’s cock choking me. My head tossed back and everything went black for a moment as pleasure rippled through me, Bastian and Aster still fucking me, making it last longer, making it seem never ending.
My vision took several moments to clear, my lungs finally back in working order. I hadn’t noticed us untangle or curl into a pile of sweat-slicked skin and trembling limbs.
We hadn’t had a night like this together in a while, all of us so busy with our jobs, our schedules rarely lined up enough for us to play in one big pile. We usually only slept in one big pile once everyone finally showed up to bed.
A wicked smile curled Aster’s lips. “We need to do this more often.”
Bastian groaned. “I might not survive if we did this regularly. That was intense as hell.”
“I’m willing to die for more nights like this.” Sky fisted his cock, looking like he was ready to go again.
I was willing if he was.
Aster, Whist, and Bastian rose from the bed, leaving me sprawled and cuddled between Saber and Sky.
Saber pressed a sweet kiss to my forehead, his hand gripping my hip. “We have presents to open still. The night’s not over yet.”
I shrugged lazily. “You five are the only gifts I need.”
Sky smacked my ass. “Too bad.”
Bastian lit the stack of wood in our fireplace and gestured for us to join him after Aster and Whist brought over warm, wet rags for us to clean up with.
Wrapped in a blanket to ward against the cold, I heaved myself from our perfect bed and padded over to the thick rug in front of the crackling fire. I sank onto the floor and Whist pulled me into his lap, still naked beneath me.
They were all still naked and completely comfortable that way. I was ready to forget exchanging presents and drag them back to our bed, only craving them more.
Bastain brought out a wooden tray from our kitchen of fruits, cheese, and nuts, settling it between us as the rest of my kindreds joined Whist and I on the floor.
Presents wrapped in brightly colored paper rested on the fireplace, and covered most of the floor in front of it, more than what had been there earlier that morning.
Sneaky assholes.
“What is all this?” I pointed in accusation. “It turned into a mountain in just a few hours.”
Bastian handed me a slice of apple. “Calm down, greedy. They’re not all for you. There are six of us, you know.”
“I know that, dragon. I’m commenting on the sneakiness of their arrival.” I stuck my tongue out.
Aster leaned towards me, his blue eyes dark. “Put that thing back in your mouth before I put it to better use.”
I stuck it out further, more interested to see what he had in mind than the presents.
Sky stuffed a grape in my mouth and I chewed it automatically. “There. That worked for now, but we better get this done before we get sidetracked by the little vixen.”
I shrugged, completely unrepentant. I couldn’t help how much I craved them and they didn’t seem to mind it too much.
It was never enough with them.
And I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Saber handed me as soft gift wrapped in gold. “This is from all of us. We want you to open it first.”
I ripped into the gold paper with a grin, my mouth falling open when silky blue fabric slid from the package into my lap. I held it up, my breath catching as the the color flickered between blue and purple, an iridescent sheen catching the firelight.
I wide smile strained my cheeks. “A new cloak. It’s beautiful.”
Sky winked at me. “You keep ruining your others ones, so we figured you could use an extra.”
I frowned as I hugged the smooth fabric against my chest. “My black one is still fine.”
Whist snorted. “For now.”
“I love it. And I love all of you.” Tears pooled in my eyes at their thoughtfulness.
My kindreds smiled at me, love blazing from their eyes. “Happy Yule, Rhapsody.”