Artistic Differences

A rather loud yawn echoed through the halls of the capital building as Sabina wandered slowly down the hallway towards the door that would lead her out to the terrace. Cobra padded along silently beside her, his great head turning this way and that slowly as to observe the landscape. Nothing suspicious was happening inside right now. Big surprise. Nothing ever happened here. But then again, thats because no one was stupid enough to try. A whole squad of highly trained, lethal Amazonians and some with their large cat friends? Yeah.... If that didn't scream suicide, she wasn't sure what did. "Sabina." She froze in her spot. She knew that voice. There was no way she should ever have to run into that voice ever on patrol. They had made it so that it would be so, and by her request. Cobra turned and immediately walked towards the woman that approached her from behind, another great leopard standing beside her whom regarded Cobra with a cool icey blue gaze. Sabina still did not turn.

"Sabina Eron Alexandra Ramon I taught you better manners than that." She cringed at the use of her full name, taking a deep breath as she slowly turned on her heel to look at her mother. "Hello Irina. I apologize." She called as she tried to call up some kind of smile for her mother. The woman was a giant amongst women, even taller than Sabina was. The woman stood at 6'3" and was completely lean muscle as she stood there with her spear in hand. Her hair flowed long down her back in thin braids that were tied back by a splash of a blue ribbon that Sabina knew to be hand dyed by their tribe in the jungle. She stared down at her daughter with a cold, even gaze that betrayed nothing of affection or warmth. "I hear that you met one of the other tribes in the trees a few weeks ago. You were taking care of something with some woman?" Sabina nodded once as she stared up at the woman who birthed her, the contrast quite stark between the two of them. Her mother still wore the clothes that were typical of their peoples style while Sabina.... She was in her usual short red garb and boots. A gun holster was beneath her arm, and another was at her hip. Her obsidian dagger was hidden within her boot and a larger kukri knife was at her hip. The two barely looked related in this sense.

"Yes. We had to take care of some rebels. They were affecting the wild life nearby. They certainly would have attacked the tribe if we hadn't interfered." God, it was like she was reporting to her superiors or something! She HATED having to talk to her mother because it only made her just just.... ARRRGHHH!!! Irina nodded once before turning away to gaze out the windows towards the streets below. "Good work." Wh... what? "Thank you." That.... never happened. What was with this? Why was her mother thanking--- Both of them stiffened as they sensed something was off, their leopards raising their heads. Now the two women looked at each other with the same knowledge in their eyes, nodding once without words before they went their separate ways. Sabina carefully hurried down to the end of the hall towards the terrace, her heels narry making a sound as Cobra loped along beside her. Drawing her beretta, she slowed by the door before taking a breath. One.... two.... On three she went outside gun drawn and ready to fire, the great leopard leaping out beside her. She slowly closed the door again, gesturing for Cobra to continue onward as though little to nothing was wrong. So what exactly was off?

It wasn't often one committed suicide, but if one planned on it well,they might as well do it with style. Now it wasn't that he planned on dying ohh no, far from it in fact. The dead after all couldn't enjoy the spoils of his life. But when one broke into the capitol building of Esparia one had to plan for the worse. Now you may be asking why a career criminal with more money in the bank then most people made in a life time would decide to do something as hair brained as this. Well it was rather simple, to prove he could. To test his skills. To put his life on the line for nothing more then to prove that he COULD over come any and all obstacle put in his way. Ether that or he honestly didn't care if he lived or died. Sebastion him self wasn't entirely sure of which was true and which wasn't. Hell for all he knew he did it for the thrill, for the shear rush and nothing else. But he didn't spend much time contemplating such things, and he didn't think he ever would so this was a question that may never be answered. But that wasn't a bad thing, life was much better with some unknowns after all. Though like every professional thief, he didn't risk his life for little or no return. No he had a mark that night, one he hoped to walk away with if all things went according to plan, which they rarely if ever did.

So he found him self walking the mostly deserted halls of the capitol building, navigating the halls by memory, and avoiding the guards and cameras with a practiced ease of a man who know each man and woman's route and where exactly each and every blind spot was. Though if someone did catch sight of him well, he wouldn't seem out of place, he wore an average mans dark suit and tie, dress shoes, horn rim glasses and what pulled it all together-Paper work and folders filled with still more paper work clutched in his hands, he could have been any late night clerk or office worker who had decided to pull an all nighter and he hoped that more then anything else would keep him safe, because who wanted to hassle a man who already looked like he was about to keel over from stress already? No one, or so he yet again hopped. He would admit to him self if not to anyone else that he was slightly unnerved by the large flesh eating cats that a few of the women had dodging their heels, but as of yet that hadn't become a problem that he needed to worry about.

No what he needed to worry about right then was finding the exact office he was looking for, which was next to impossible considering the labyrinthine layout of the building, and even after memorizing the blue prints he still felt as if he had become turned around. But he didn't let that doubt become anything more then a fleeting surface thought, as soon as he panicked, as soon as he lost his cool head this little escapade was over and that more then likely meant he would be some tigers late night snack. He walked along the wide, long corridors that made up the uppermost level of the building, and if he hadn't been pressed for time he would have stopped and admired some of the finer works that lined the corridors. But no he wasn't here for those, he was here for what was rumored to be hung behind the presidents desk. No if he could just manage to get his hands on that well... He would not have to work another day in his life. He turned the corner and say the door he was looking for, two wide ornately carved double doors flanked by the Esparian flag on ether side. Quickly he checked his watch and nodded. Two minutes tell the next guard would come sauntering by. More then enough time to get into the room.

He quickly approached the door and removed from his coat a set of lock picks that made short work of what little security was placed on the door, and with just over thirty seconds to spare he stepped into the room, closed the door behind him and beheld his prize. "La liberte guidant le peuple" He let out a small sigh. Liberty leading the People. A painting thought lost in the war... A master piece that had been locked away for far to long. He approached the paining slowly , his eyes locked on the woman leading the charge. "The textbooks dont do it justice..." His voice was just above a whisper and a smile of pure joy crossed the mans face. Here he was, in front of a work of art that had been thought lost for years. It.Was.Heaven. "Though for heaven.... Tis a tad muggy..." He walked over to the bank of windows and threw them open and stuck his head out the window to glance at the stars... It truly was a beautiful night... And maybe thats what caused him to be so reckless, or maybe the moon was getting to him. One would never know.

Sabina grimaced as she glanced around the terrace, carefully peeking around the corner to find that the veranda was empty. Cobra sniffed, his tail swinging back and forth as he padded his way across the terrace near the bars that rose up to protect from jumpers or those who may scale the walls. He continued all the way to the other side towards the doorway that was on the other side. "Cobra, get back--" She hissed, shutting up the instant that the window opened towards the center of the terrace about fifteen feet away to her left from the corner that she hid behind. Startling she whipped around the corner, her back digging into the still-warm stone as she gripped her gun a bit tighter. Shit. That was the cause of her discomfort, the wrong that was in the air. She knew that her giant cat friend could smell the difference, was probably already planning on how to attack. She licked her lips as she painfully slowly looked with one eye past the corner, watching the man that was leaning out the window to stare up towards the sky.

A blush instantly rose to her cheeks.

"Ohhh shit...." She mumbled under her breath as she stared at that dark hair, those eyes that looked so peacefully up towards the stars. The gentle slope of those cheeks yet with distinct cheek bones with those glasses perched upon that perfect nose. Of course. The one time that someone actually tried to attack or rob or whatevered the capital building, it was a drop dead gorgeous man. This was not fair at all. Gritting her teeth, she wanted to bang her head against the wall behind her, until a single thought hit her. If her mother got there first.... THAT WOULD NOT HAPPEN. So she jumped out from cover with her pistol pointed towards him, but her confliction was rather obvious in those hazel eyes of hers. "Oi, come out slowly. I don't really want to shoot you. Please?" As she called out to him, Cobra leaped out from the other side and snarled, his hackles up as he glared at the intruder. Sabina whistled shrilly and glared at her cat friend, but the giant leopard only looked at her in a way that seemed to say, 'What? We have a job to do.' Yeah... they did have a job to do.... ARGH! "Come out the window slowly. I don't recommend the door. State your name." Her mother would probably be passing by there shortly. Heh, this was a good excuse to get his name-- ARGH NO. BAD. HE WAS A CRIMINAL! But a really hot one..... Dammit....

The cool breeze thay wafted past him brought out a gentle smile on the would be thief's face, it smelled of the night, of things that where some how both pleasant and disgusting at the same time. It was an odd sensation, but one that Sebastion basked in, reveled in and drew inspiration from and he knew with out a doubt that this sensation, this unique feeling would stay with him for the rest of his life. It was odd how the simple things could effect you in ways such as this, how each new experience built upon each other until you had something utterly unique. He let out a content sigh and started to move from his starry perch when a sound, an ever so soft sound caught his ear. Was it his imagination? Or was it something more? All to quickly this was answered for him as a voice that was both soft and commanding floated into his ears. The voice of what could only belong to something heavenly, to something majestic, to something completely and utterly human. "Oi, come out slowly. I don't really want to shoot you. Please?" Though i all honesty he could just have been letting the moment, and the night get to him yet again.

He let his head swing towards the voice, and what he could only guess as the source of the sound he had heard just a little while before. AS sweet as the voice was though, it hardly did justice to the creature that stood before him. His eyes took her in, those dark pools drinking in the image of a living, breathing master piece. The pale moon light played of the woman's hair and eyes in such a way that it they seemed alive and vibrant with energy, the cities lights in the background made the perfect backdrop and frame, highlighting and extenuating every supple curve. His hand itched for a paintbrush so that he could immortalize this most stunning of scenes. But it seemed she had other plans. His eyes fell on the gun. "Come out the window slowly. I don't recommend the door. State your name." He looked at her again, trying to clear the rosy filter that seemed to have clouded his site so that he may see the harsh reality of his situation, but alas it was to no avail. Reality it seemed had no place in this moment, this hallmark of his life.

With no hesitation he swung his legs out the window and took a seat on the ledge, his eyes still locked on the woman before him with with that gaze he tried to tell her the breadth of his emotion at that exact moment.He sat there as if it where normal, as if he held conversations at tiger point on a daily basis. He finally looked at the beast and noticed that his colors where a complement to hers and helped hold this picture together. The tigers coat contrasted so sharply with the dark of night all around them that he had to wonder if this miracle of nature had been put on this earth souly to captivate and inspire the artistic mind. His eyes met that of the animal, and his smile grow slightly more somber, he had seen something in the cats eyes that told him he was but a hairs width away from a gruesome and slightly ignoble end. Oddly the prospect of ding right then and there didn't bother him, what bothered him was his in ability to immortalize this priceless picture in front of him in something other then his memory. Maybe later he would have time.

His eyes drifted back to the room and the painting that hung there and smiled. The woman leading the charge for liberty and the woman before him shared something it seemed. But that was a thought for another moment, maybe another lifetime. "Can I paint you?" The words left his lips and carried with them all his hopes, all his dreams, and all his fears. Those four words carried such conviction that even lady liberty would stop for a second and ponder them. "It wont take but a few hours... And you could do what ever you wished with me afterwords, i would not complain." Truer words had never been spoken under such a moonlit night, truer words might never be spoken again for all Sebastion knew. "there is just something about this... About you that speaks to me, and i know this may be odd but muse must never be pushed aside." It seemed he had found something that most artists only dream of, he had found muse personified in living flesh and that was a gift that could never be wasted.

Sabina took a deep breath to strengthen her resolve as he turned and stared at her, almost feeling a little bad for disturbing the peace he had found in the moon. ACK NO! Jesus she had to get ahold of herself. But.... then there was how he was staring at her. It was with a look that she couldn't even describe. It was like he was sucking in her entire being, those obsidian pools drawing her in further and further, calling to her. It was completely entrancing. Her arms relaxed in the slightest, the barrel of her gun beginning to lower until Cobra snarled again which snapped her to attention. Focus. She was an Amazonian guard charged with guarding their leader and this palace. She was a member of this elite force, and her mother was pacing that hallway now most likely. Her lips tightened as she fought against that caramel sensation in her limbs that warmed her so, filling her with ripples of rivers. No one had ever stared at her like that before. Aw man, why did she have to be the one to find him? Wait! No! She should be happy that it was her! Because if it had been the others, who knew what would have happened?

He obeyed her suggestions, swinging his legs so casually over the edge as if he were used to this situation. Now that made her wonder, what exactly was it that he did? What was it that he did that had him so accustomed to being at gunpoint? What part of the underworld did he belong to? Her lips tightened even further into a little line, searching desperately for the righteous fire that existed within her. But it was nowhere to be found. This shouldn't be happening. She should want to strike down this man, this criminal whom had broken into the place that she was sworn to protect. She should be angry! Indignant! Something! Not... Twitter-pated. She tried to focus upon the rumbling that echoed in her leopards chest, to feel the distrust that he felt towards this stranger that had cast such a spell upon her. "Cobra, stand down." He snarled at her, turning a bit as his eyes showed what could only be described as an incredulous expression. He could not believe that his partner said that. So he snarled and took a couple of steps towards the man but Sabina also took a step forward to put herself in the middle. Now there was the fury that she was known for, a fire burning in those green eyes of hers. "Cobra, I said to stand down." With a sniff, the large cat walked behind her and sat down, his tail swishing back and forth in agitation as she turned her attention back to the man she should be arresting at this very moment.

Not conversing with.

She did not lower her gun though even as she yelled at her companion, the fire only abating itself slightly as she stared warily at him. God he was so fucking gorgeous, how does this even happen?!?!!? "Can I paint you?" .... What? Her eyes widened as a blush immediately made her slightly tan features match the red of her clothes, her hands faltering again. In fact, they began to tremble. Could he.... paint her? Was that... what he had really just asked her? And then there was the way that he had asked her, with such a calm and sureness that it only made her currently shaky foundation crack further. Paint her.... He wanted to paint her... The way he had been looking at her earlier made sense to her know, he had seen something within her. Was this that spark? "It wont take but a few hours... And you could do what ever you wished with me afterwords, i would not complain." This was happening. This was seriously happening. He wasn't kidding at all. And Sabina just stood there dumbly in complete and utter bafflement. "there is just something about this... About you that speaks to me, and i know this may be odd but muse must never be pushed aside."

The night air in Esparia was never necessarily chilly, but tonight... she had been a little bit. Right now? There was such a warmth in her that it could have rivaled the very sun. Her arms lowered completely now as the whirling within her began to calm as a storm that has moved on. There was a soft click as her pistol slid into its holster, the surprise fading from her face as she stepped up to him and held out her hand. "Sabina Eron Alexandra Ramon. Or just Sabina." She chuckled nervously as she introduced herself, suddenly grinning even as the blush faded to a soft roseyness to her cheeks. "You have a deal." It was done. She had just made a deal with a criminal. And she didn't even care. [i]"But there is one thing you haven't answered, and that is your name."

She was blushing... That was the first thing that registered to the moon stuck fool. Why was that? Well it could have been the fact that she turned an ungodly shade of red(He had no idea that the human body could turn that color), or it could have been the fact she was showing such extreme emotion to such a simple question. Was it that inappropriate to ask some one to model for them? Okay admittedly the circumstances kind of made it an odd request, but nothing to blush at, or was there something more to his words and his look that he wasn't catching? He tried to turn down the intensity of his stare but... He wasn't sure if it worked. "Sabina Eron Alexandra Ramon" Her name... Its meaning, could it be a coincedence? Sabina: The tribe that gave birth to the Tiberian Empire and the muses them selves. Eron: She who is enlightened. Alexandra: She who defends man. He had to wonder if she knew the meanings behind her names, and the weight she must hold because of them. She wondered if she knew the joke. "Or just Sabina." No.

No that was not good enough for her, she whos name gave meaning to the arts, gave meaning to what it might mean to be mortal. Sebastion had to wonder if he took life and all the random chance encounters to seriously, and thought to deeply on the smallest of things. He had taken someones name and turned it into a symbol, but was that wrong? There was a power in a name, and it was said that to know someones name was to know them for who they where... That may have been why he had changed his oh so many years ago, he didn't want people to know who he had been or where he had come from. N o he wanted them to know what what he had made of him self, he wanted them to know him for his talent, his mind, his soul... Not his up bringing. He had distanced him self from his pat and the circumstances of his birth, but the smell on the night air never failed to bring him back to his childhood and nights of sleeping with rats and begging for moldy scraps of food.

"You have a deal." Her voice yet again brought him back to reality and he felt like he should really focus on the moment at hand and not the random rambling he had gong on in his mind. "But there is one thing you haven't answered, and that is your name." Was it important? To him, no. But to her it seemed to be so as he stood and dusted off his pants he took a step forward, ignoring the beast at her side and gently took her hand before bowing some and raising it to his lips. "My name is Sebastion Castillo, and i am your prisoner Sabina Eron Alexandra Ramon" Her name fell from his lips and he could only smile... It felt good to say it. He rose from his bow then, his eyes never leaving hers during this entire exchange. "And my life rest firmly in your hands" With that he lets go of her and lets his own arms fall to his sides. "So do will you lead me out so that i may paint you? Or have you tricked me into lowering my guard?"

When she introduced herself, he seemed rather thoughtful as if he were examining it closely. Had he heard it before? Or was he translating it into Cretan and its definitions? It was true, her parents had given her quite the auspicious name that she felt she was somehow letting down in some way or another. How could she live up to a name that had embedded itself in the Arts and War? It could not be the Arts of War for the two did not quite combine in the way that she held her daily life. She stood guard, she ran errands, she avoided her warrior mother, she only got to see her soldier father on occasion, and maybe, maybe if she was lucky she could drink. The rarest thing was whenever she got to sing. And how she always wanted to sing and swim at their little secret spot just her and Cobra. Though... she hadn't been there since she met that Amazonian chieftans daughter Nayeli. That just served as a further reminder of how she did not live up to half of her heritage. She didn't look like them except for her height and her cat compatriot, and she certainly didn't act like them. They were of a far more honorable sort than she. Shit. Her mother was probably still there.

He stepped towards her and took her outstretched hand, and much to her surprise he kissed it. Now that made blood rush to her cheeks again because.... well... how many men kept that bit of chivalry nowadays? None of them. "My name is Sebastion Castillo, and i am your prisoner Sabina Eron Alexandra Ramon" Sebastion Castillo.... Sebastion: from Sebaste. Or else venerable, or awe, reverence, or dread, or maybe feel awe,scruple or be ashamed. Which meaning was she supposed to follow? Castillo was much easier, that meant Castle. So a regal name was his. But why did he use her full name? Did he enjoy it so much? Was he using respect? His mannerisms certainly portrayed that his intent was not to mock so that meant it was probably out of respect. She was a member of the law technically, or the military. Depending on where you placed the Amazonian division. He straightened up now and she held a hand out to Cobra, the giant leopard padding over to nuzzle his head into her palm. She was very relieved that her companion had settled back into his normal indifferent calm. He trusted her opinion, and if she didn't deem something a threat then it probably wasn't one. Besides, he would probably move faster than her if a threat were to appear. But Sebastion Castillo was right, he was her prisoner now. And she sure as hell wasn't letting him go. "And my life rest firmly in your hands." She smiled lightly and nodded, scratching gently behind Cobra's ears. "So do will you lead me out so that i may paint you? Or have you tricked me into lowering my guard?"

Sliding onto the back of her giant cat, she patted his back behind her as she smirked to her very pretty captive. "A pleasure Sebastion Castillo. Hop on, Cobra here can get us out of here. Don't worry about weight, he can carry surprising amounts. Not that he'd want to heh." She chuckled a bit as the giant cat snorted, his tail wagging side to side as he turned his green eyes towards the man that they should have apprehended. "I made a deal with you, and I always keep my end of the bargain. Sort of like promises. So, is there somewhere in particular you had in mind for painting? Like a studio of yours or something?" She was rather curious to see how this would go, she hadn't met any painters before and certainly none that would have offered to paint her of all people.

Was it real? Or was it just fantasy? The woman slid onto the back of her giant cat and that more then anything else argued for the later over the former. Yet as he watched a chill ran down his spin, and in dreams one could not feel the cold, could not shudder. It was true you could remember those things when you woke up, but in the dream it self? No. No, what was happening was something else entirely. He could see her speak, but he heard not words. Instead he heard music, music that drowned out everything else, music that seemed to permeate the very fabric of reality its self. This was something more then reality, something more then mere fantasy." So, is there somewhere in particular you had in mind for painting? Like a studio of yours or something?" Her words now seemed part of the music, a solo that tied the rest of the piece together. Slowly as the cat started to move her words sunk in and he came back to this reality, this world... And as he did the music faded, the colors dulled his thoughts turned back to the more mundane world he lived in. How he hated it... How he loved it... How confused was he?

"Well im the villain in this little drama...So lets call it a lair." Yes he liked the sound of that. Lair. His place of contemplation, his place of solitude, his hide away from the outside world. It was a fitting name for where he made his home in this city of duel natures... Very fitting indeed. "and my lair, like those of every successful criminal is located right where it should not be..." He helped guide the massive cat down ally after ally and back street after back street tell they came upon one of the more well to do neighborhoods. The houses where clean, the streets almost spotless and somehow the normal rank smell of the night was masked by the sweet scent of flowers. "Why did you say yes? It wold have been safer...easier to just take me right then and there... So why wait? Why take this chance?"

Why indeed. Why hadn't he ran when he had the chance? Escaped into the night and hidden yet again. Maybe moved on to another city, another country and then start his work all over again, Sebastion had done that in the past, would do it in the future he was sure...so why not now? "But most of all why do you trust me? I am a thief after all... And we are not known for keeping our word."

He felt warm at her back, his arms... so enveloping around her waist. Goddess... out of anyone whom had ridden with her... No one had given her such jitters like this. What was the MATTER WITH HER?! She had completely lost her head, she was even HELPING a CRIMINAL. If her mother ever found out.... She would be so dead. She would have to escape to another country. She knew it. That would be the end of her life here amidst the trees, sun, and ocean that she loved so dearly. And yet... what was this? This tango with the underworld? "Well im the villain in this little drama...So lets call it a lair." Sabina had to chuckle as the trio set off through the streets of their beloved capital. What she didn't know was that her mother checked the room ten minutes after they left, noticing the window open and little seemed out of place. But they were long gone by then. "I like the sound of that." She commented as her hands rested on the shoulders of her large friend, quite calm given the potential of this situation. A thief was sitting behind her on her cat and he could, at any time, climb off or possibly even shank her.

Yet she was not the least bit afraid.

It was like she knew. She knew that he wouldn't do that. There was something about him (and this was getting her sense back instead of squeeing over a gorgeous face), something that told her that he wasn't like that. Or at least not with her even though they had just met. He did say he wanted to paint her after all. "and my lair, like those of every successful criminal is located right where it should not be..." Oh? Her eyes noticed the change in scenery as they moved through the city, raising an eyebrow as the houses got nicer and nicer. Wow. Yeah, talk about where it shouldn't be. So what EXACTLY was his crime--"Why did you say yes? It wold have been safer...easier to just take me right then and there... So why wait? Why take this chance?"

She straightened up a bit at that, somehow very aware of how warm his arms were about her exposed mid-section. Why had she said yes? She was quiet for a moment, and she could tell even Cobra was very interested to find out this reason as well. Sometimes she thought that her large cat-friend was too smart for his own good. "I don't know." It was a short answer, but an honest answer. She really didn't know why she had agreed to this mad idea. "But most of all why do you trust me? I am a thief after all... And we are not known for keeping our word." An even better question. Cobra snorted at this as he padded down the street with the two on his back. She was quiet for even longer now, her head tilting back as she looked up to the sky, sighing lightly to herself. It really was ludicrous. Completely. So why, deep within her, did it not feel wrong? Taking a deep breath, she shrugged her shoulders, her head lowering to stare ahead of them down the street. For some reason, lyrics floated to her mind...

*

Blinking, she shook her head a little as Cobra slowed to a stop, turning to stare at her inquisitively. "Sorry. I guess... its the way you looked at me. Or else its a gut feeling I got. I... just do." Her voice sounded a little distant before she turned to look back at him with a grin and chuckle, "Well, that, and I could take you down if you tried anything. And if I didn't, Cobra would." Nudging Cobra's sides gently, the cat rumbled beneath her before continuing onward, the night breeze ruffling her short brown hair. "But I have to ask you, why didn't you try to bolt? Or, I guess, why haven't you tried to bolt? Why are you trusting me?" She turned the question right back on him, twisting her body a bit so she could look at him, unable to stop the blush that rose to her cheeks due to them being so close.

*This is the song its from.

[Note: I moved this thread so you can finish it, but Esparia is now NPCed.]

"My existence is so much vague and imperfect 、and it's shaped with "YOU"
A glass palette, painted with memories
The souvenir of you shined brightly"

A voice, a voice like an angel, a voice of a demon... What was this? Tears threatened to come to Sebastions eyes, and he had to admit even if only to him self that he was in fact being overly...emotional. But how could he not? This woman...Sabina, had just broken out into song over nothing overly important, it reminded him of... Him self actually in an odd way. It was like, how could he put it? She was from two worlds, two realities and like him she had found a way to balance them, if not perfectly then well enough. No, that was hardly right but it was as close as he could get right then, with him being such a starry eyed fool that is.

"Sorry. I guess... its the way you looked at me. Or else its a gut feeling I got. I... just do." The...way her looks at her? "How is my gaze any different from anothers?" For the first time he noticed his arms where wrapped about her waist, for the first time he felt her body move against his and he had to wonder how he had not noticed the supple curves before. Every lopping step of the cat they rode accented a different and wholly unique muscle. She was toned he noticed, vary toned and he knew that she was stronger then him, but unlike most men he did not feel emasculated in the least. He would never be the strongest of individuals, but there was more to a man then strength of arm. His mind turned back to the body he was holding close and the subtle dance that they where entwined in.

"Well, that, and I could take you down if you tried anything. And if I didn't, Cobra would." That was the plain and simple truth and he had to laugh lightly as she vocalized his thoughts. Was that some sort of divine connection he had felt right then? Or was he romanticizing this situation? And if he was, was it such a horrible thing?

"But I have to ask you, why didn't you try to bolt? Or, I guess, why haven't you tried to bolt? Why are you trusting me?"He smiled and let his arms tighten ever so slightly about her waist. "Maybe i tried to flee, maybe i tried to run away... And maybe... Just maybe i failed." He laughed again, the sound akin to silvery bells as he thought about his failure to escape this womans ohh so tight clutches "AS for trust well... I cant honestly say, can you?"

Soon they arrived in front of his not so humble of abodes and with out waiting for the cat to stop he slid off. The house he stood before was a three story classic looking thing with an open garden just visible on the roof. "Tis not as hidden as a lair should be, but it serves me well regardless" Sebastion offers a hand to help her dismount her rather unique steed.

"How is my gaze any different from anothers?" Sabina wanted Cobra to stop but he didn't, because she definitely did. There was a noticeable slight stiffening in her spine as her hands tightened into fists as they rested atop the great leopards shoulders. How was it different? It was COMPLETELY different! She wanted to say it, she wanted to tell him so bad, but she didn't. She couldn't. She didn't know why she couldn't, but the words just hung there suspended inside her throat.


She closed her eyes letting the moment pass as she memorized these lyrics that came to her so. She would definitely write at least a few songs later. After all, no one had ever looked at her the way that he had ever. Like she was something.... Oh hell she didn't know what the proper words were!

Then she phrased her question, and she could feel how his arms tightened a little around her which only made that blush darken as they sat there, perched atop a giant leopard, in the middle of the night, facing each other. His smile... Oh god that smile...Maybe she needed his arms wrapped just that little bit tighter around her in order to hold herself together. Goddess she was a bloody hot mess.. "Maybe i tried to flee, maybe i tried to run away... And maybe... Just maybe i failed." His laugh made her smile softly, but there was a hint of... something else. It wasn't quite incredulity, it definitely wasn't surprise, it was serenity, it was amusement, and.... ARGH! Something! Why were words so hard sometimes? "AS for trust well... I cant honestly say, can you?" Whatever that other something was it faded as she chuckled and turned back around, shrugging lightly. "I suppose thats true." There was never any guarantee for trust, especially in these conditions... was there?

Cobra came to a stop again before a three story house that was definitely grander than her dinky little apartment away from this part of town. Well, he was a thief after all. Of course he made more than she ever would. She sat there for a moment to take it in, even Cobra fascinated for a moment. She could feel the rumble in his chest that signified that he was impressed. He managed to maintain a garden too? "Tis not as hidden as a lair should be, but it serves me well regardless" There was movement out of the corner of her eye, her gaze turning quite quickly towards it only to find it was his hand. Blinking she raised her hazel eyes to his as she took his hand and slid off, wishing that she didn't have that stupid hint of a blush at the sensation of his hands holding hers. Stupid stupid stupid..... "Oh I suspect that perhaps you have a hidden room or two in there? It's a helluva lot nicer than where I live. I might be a little jealous." She giggled at that, her hand sliding gently out of his to clasp behind her back as Cobra was already padding up to the door to paw at it. She flicked his ear as she followed after him, shooting him a look that he only sniffed at, pawing at the door again until Sebastian opened it for them.

The trio wandered inside, and of course it was dark, it was night after all and there weren't any lights on. She closed the door quietly behind them, Cobra already sniffing and off through the halls without so much as a word to her. "Sorry about him, he's just... very trained." She sighed as she faced Sebastian now, able to make him out in the darkness. It was like being in the jungle that night with that strange woman that she had met and... kissed.... Damn. She had almost forgotten about that. Was he going to... OH GOD STOP IT BRAIN. Why she managed to hide her embarrassment NOW she had no idea, but she was extremely grateful. He didn't need to know that she wasn't as serious an Amazonian guard as she should be. Her lips tightened slightly, twitching before they relaxed again at that thought. He would probably find out anyways if he hadn't already... She was breaking about... twelve different protocols by doing this after all.

*The song is this

A blush came to the amazons face, so faint that Sebastion might have missed it if he wasn't as attuned to the colors of the words as he currently was. The sight of of the now rosy flesh would have caused him to smile if he hadn't been already, but as it was his clear eyes began to dance in the lamp light the illuminated them. He know knew what he wished to paint and he wondered when he suggested it if she would blush deeper... Or slap him. Maybe both? "Oh I suspect that perhaps you have a hidden room or two in there? It's a helluva lot nicer than where I live. I might be a little jealous." What she must think of him to say such a thing! Secret rooms? Devious plots? Did he reek of deceit? Was there an air of mystery hanging about his person? "If there where any such room i would never say... And you could never find them." He looks back at her then and winks, his eyes still seeming to sparkle with the sheer novility(<--This is now a word >.<) of the situation. He swung the door open and let his two guest clamber inside his current home, or what he had made him home while the owners where otherwise occupied.

"Sorry about him, he's just... very trained." With a disarming laugh he flips the light switch and suddenly they are, for the first time, able to see each other with perfect clarity. "I never doubted that for a second Sabina, otherwise i would have pointed out the 'no tigers allowed' sign i have hanging by my door." He tried to keep a perfectly strait face but... He failed... Miserably. What was wrong with him? He should not be smiling and so near to laughter. He should be more in control... Less emotional... But he wasn't and no matter how he tried to reign in his rather sporadic feelings they always seemed to escape. "Now before we start, would you care for a drink? I have to say all this excitement has caused me to develop something of thirst." He started to walk away then, his foot steps echoing off the solid wood floors as he made his way to the kitchen and the liquid courage he had stored with in."And as for my furrier guest... I think i have a bowl big enough for him hidden away somewhere around here, after giving us a ride like that i know he must be thirsty."

He was about to drink with someone who was on most days his most natural of enemies, but it didn't matter. It felt right and good and if he was taken after this and sentenced to years in prison well... It might just have been worth it. He had the chance to capture something real and unfettered for the first time in his life... He might finally paint something worthy of being called a masters piece him self, instead of copying the works of others. All in all it was something of a dream come true.

His kitchen held a homey feeling, and it was obviously well used and well loved. The counter tops while cluttered, held that feeling of controlled chaos that made it seem perfectly natural for everything to be where it was. He took down two wine glasses and set them on the center isle, and filled each a red from the wine rack by his fridge. He took up his glass then and sipped before offering something of a toast. "To chance encounters, and unlikely things~"

Er.... She was REALLY hoping that her big mouth hadn't said something out of line. She did have a habit of just letting any old thing roll off her tongue even if it probably wasn't the smartest thing. It just sorta happened! She didn't mean to! Her mouth moved faster than her brain. Errrrgggghhhh she shouldn't CARE so much what a criminal thought of her! She wasn't even thinking of him as one anymore at all! Just as some... some guy! Some stranger she might have met on the street and that was just SO. WRONG. But there was literally nothing she could do to change how her heart had begun to feel, or what her mind thought. "If there where any such room i would never say... And you could never find them." That.... was probably true--- ACK. THAT WINK. She felt her heart skip a couple of beets, having to practically slap herself in her mind to keep her thinking straight. Oi.... how the mighty had fallen.....

The lights flickered on, blinking a few times at the sudden change of ambience, colors swirling back into focus on... him. "I never doubted that for a second Sabina, otherwise i would have pointed out the 'no tigers allowed' sign i have hanging by my door." Sabina chuckled as she smiled, watching as Cobra moved onward towards the kitchen with a light little jump. "Well good! He would have felt so very put off if he couldn't join us." Sadly that was actually true. Her big leopard would have laid down outside and pouted the whole time. And probably been sour at her for at least a couple of days afterwards. He was pale like she was, and it made her wonder if he was a true Esparian or not. Then again, she knew better than to ask because she had gotten that question enough times and it had irked her so. In the end it didn't really matter anyways. Man, even his furniture was better than hers! It really paid to be a thief, didn't it? "Now before we start, would you care for a drink? I have to say all this excitement has caused me to develop something of thirst."

She had to blink twice, snapping out of her thoughts and her looking about his home, her boots thudding on the floor as she followed after him. "A drink sounds great." She had to bite down on her tongue so as not to ask about any particular liquors since that was rude and---GOD DAMMIT. HE WAS A CRIMINAL!! C-R-I-M-I-N-A-L! What if he tried to poison her? That thought felt wrong passing through her neurons. He just wasn't going to, and her gut feelings were usually right. "And as for my furrier guest... I think i have a bowl big enough for him hidden away somewhere around here, after giving us a ride like that i know he must be thirsty." He really was quite considerate, wasn't he? She slowed as she passed through the doorway into his kitchen, Cobra already sniffing with interest in the dining room before raising his great head to stare at the two of them. Sabina wasn't paying attention to her cat friend. No, instead she was examining Sebastion's kitchen, unable to not chuckle as she thought of her own kitchen. Hah, or just her home in general. There was definitely a controlled sort of chaos there, thats for sure.

The clinking sound of glasses and pop of a cork drew her hazel eyes towards him, their color appearing more of an amber brown in the new light. She took the glass offered to her and smiled an almost sweet little smile, "To chance encounters, and unlikely things~" Her glass clinked gently against his as she giggled softly, "To the unexpected and to chance indeed." She drained her glass in one gulp, suddenly aware of it as the glass lowered from her lips. Er..... he didn't dislike a girl who could hold her liquor... did he? ARGH WHY DID SHE CAAAREE!!!!! Clearing her throat, she placed her glass down on the counter as she banished away those thoughts from her mind, pulling the fingerless gloves off of her hands. "So um... how is this whole painting thing going to go? Am I going to be nude? Or um..." She shrugged a little at that as she bit her lower lip, suddenly a little bit nervous about this.

The clink of glass on glass sent a shiver down Sebastion spin, for there was no sound that spoke of celebration quite like it. In fact the sound of clinking glasses was almost synonymous with a party of one sort or another, whether it be a wedding or a funereal it always managed to bring some sort of happiness with it, and this being an already happy (If unexpected) occasion just meant that its effect compounded in the most pleasant of ways. "To the unexpected and to chance indeed." She raised the glass to her lips, and in the span of what seemed like seconds her glass was drained, having barley taken a drink from his own he had to admit he was slightly impressed... The girl could hold her drink well it seemed. He was tempted to fallow up that display with one of his own, but he felt he might just make a fool of him self, he had never been a big drinker and he feared that if he attempted that same stunt, he might find him self on his ass. So he sipped his wine, smiled and watched with some amusement as that same faint blush came to her cheeks... That was by far more intoxicating then the wine could ever be.

He watched her, still silent as she set down her now empty glass and had to wonder what thoughts where going through the woman's mind right then, what caused her to react in such a way? He wanted... No he needed to understand what was going through her mind so that he could better capture it, immortalize it. "So um... how is this whole painting thing going to go? Am I going to be nude? Or um..." Blink. It seemed like that night was one for surprises, and for the first times in a long time Sebastion blushed, Though the smirk he gave may have done something to lessen his apparent embarrassment."Well i was going to suggest a clothed session first... But I think doing a nude might be the better option, the human body after all is the perfect natural beauty every artist wishes to capture." And the fact that she was more then attractive certainly helped matters along. "Why dont we get started?"

He set down his unfinished glass and gently took her hand in his and lead her deeper into his home. Up the stairs they went, their foot steps echoing in the other wise empty house with an almost eerie clarity. He said not a word as they reached the door at the top of the landing, simply opening the door that lead into his studio. It was not a clean room by any means, everything from paint to brushes strewn in a hap hazard fashion, yet laying against the walls where paintings, some famous some not so much... Yet everyone was done with attention given to every detail. Yet something was lacking, and that was his own personal works. Everything she could see where masterfully done recreations, yet recreations they where. He looked about him, taking in the fruit of other mens minds and wondered if this piece he was about to create would hold up to the masters.

He glanced behind him at the subject of his first, and maybe last original work and let a soft smile come to his lips... If he did her half as well as god had managed, his name would for ever be among the master of that he was certain. He walked calmly to the tall windows at the back of the room and threw them open to the night sky, and let the cool night air roll over them before he motioned for her to move to the center of the room. "Would you like me to leave as you get undressed Sabina? I promise not to run." Not that he would even dream of it right then... His mind was to focused on what would be his masters work.

The act of undressing was far more intimate then seeing someone nude, it was like baring your soul to someone inch by pale inch and he did not want her to feel uncomfortable... On the contrary her wanted her to feel relaxed and as at home as she could manage. He understood this, and would do what he needed so that she, his muse would be able to stand proud in his mind as he gave life to something new and beautiful.

What did modeling even really entail? She had no idea, she never paid any attention to those magazines or fashion shows that happened around the world. It was a different world that was far different from the one that she lived. So how in the world had she somehow ended up breaching that gap in the span of one encounter, by one.... man.... He didn't seem upset at all by her draining her glass so, which meant he didn't mind or was hiding it very well. She really hoped it was the first of the two options. Ok... modeling....Ugh, she almost wished she had somehow prepared herself for this sort of encounter (which is entirely impossible), but how could she have known? All of her thoughts stopped as she saw him blush, instantly mesmerized and intoxicated by him all over again. This wasn't fair.... This shouldn't be possible.... How could a single man have melted her, rebuilt her, and melted her all over again all in one, ONE encounter?! Goddess she had never been this nervous about anything before...... It was at least reassuring to see him blushing about it too though.

"Well i was going to suggest a clothed session first... But I think doing a nude might be the better option, the human body after all is the perfect natural beauty every artist wishes to capture." Oh... ok..... Yeah... that was true. "Why dont we get started?" She almost would rather take on an entire army right now than face such a simple thing as posing naked. She swam naked in the ocean for heavens sake! Well.... that was usually just her and Cobra, but still! Speaking of her large friend, she started to glance about for him when she felt Sebastian take her hand which sent an electric jolt all through her bloodstream. Her heart rate shot through the roof as she cursed the color flushing into her cheeks now. Ooooo he would think he some schoolgirl at this rate! She tried to offer him a little smile, the sound of great footfalls reaching her ears to signal that Cobra was heading upstairs. Eh? Now she was.... really... wondering..... Her thoughts drifted into the silence that filled the house leaving the world with just the two of them, and her nervous heart. His hands warmth became something she was acutely aware of as that silence rolled them around in its palm.

Wow..... This was a kind of peace she had only heard about from her mother. Of her times in the jungle with just her and her large ocelot while they had been on a hunt or something. Or when she was alone with the ocean... or singing... As she stared at Sebastians back, she wished she could figure out the secret that he held within him to call such feelings no one had ever made her feel before, to the forefront. Cobra was waiting patiently for them outside the studio, staring at the two of them with a mild interest before sniffing and nudging the door. "Patience Cobra." She murmured quietly as she reached her free hand to him, scratching behind those big ears of his. As soon as the door opened, she suddenly understood everything. Why he had been there that night, why he had wanted to paint her, and what sort of crime he was charged with. Her hand slipped from his a few steps into the room for she had come to a complete stop, staring in amazement at the ordered chaos all about her. Paintings she had seen in museums or on the internet when scanning it on a bored day. "You were there to steal his painting... in his office...." She whispered under her breath as she carefully stepped across the floor to peer closer at one of the paintings leaning against the wall. No wonder he appeared the more scholarly type, he was a painter! A forger to be precise, but still! She hadn't met anyone who could paint with such skill before, much less paint. The people she knew were more keen on hitting things and drinking, or were feline. Cobra looked at her at that moment as if he knew her thoughts, finding a corner for him to lay down in that allowed him to continue watching the two of them with a lazily attentive eye.

Sebastian turned to her, the sensation of his eyes upon her drawing her own, hazel gaze. The low light and moons glow made her eyes appear almost green, tossing her fingerless gloves aside. He was almost silhoueted against the black, but she could still see his features and.... Oh how her heart throbbed in her chest! She really was some school girl meeting her first love or something. Damn. "Would you like me to leave as you get undressed Sabina? I promise not to run." She shrugged lightly and unzipped her red vest, leaving her in a short black sports bra, her cleavage only becoming more noticeable as the moon cast its gentle, pale beams upon her. Her red skirt came next, leaving her in solid black tied panties. Boots, socks, her gun holster, the hidden obsidian dagger in her boots.... Her skivvies weren't sexy, or feminine, but practical. It was now that she faltered, glancing down at her toned body, now her heart beating out of nerves than whatever he caused within her. It couldn't be love. Love at first sight NEVER happened. It was a fairy tale! Thats all just---

Closing her eyes, she pulled the sports bra off over her head, casting it aside into the pile of her clothes. Her breasts were perfect and round, still perky with youth, probably a D cup if not DD. They were just perfect peaches. Bowing her head to look at the last article of clothing on her, her fingers hesitated on the ribbon that held it closed and took a deep breath, exhaling as she tugged on it. The fabric fell apart and away from her body, dangling now between her fingers by that single string which she let go of, dropping it onto the pile. Now Sabina raised her eyes to him without a single attempt to hide her naked flesh, her expression focused and accepting of what would happen. But a nervous chuckle escaped her and cracked that image back into what was truly her, scratching the back of her head before smoothing out a few strands of her hair. "Heh, first time I've undressed for someone when it isn't for sex. Who woulda thought." She joked, mostly for her own benefit for the nerves were beginning to nibble at the edge of her. No, he was a gentle man. He was a gentle... criminal... who was painting her nude. But then she gazed upon his face once more, and all of that just poofed. Poofed into thin air to leave her only with a calm inside her body.

It was sudden. So sudden that Sebastion had to wonder if he had fallen into a dream. A dream of passion, flesh, lust, heat and primal urges. But no, he could feel the damp of the air on his skin, he could smell the light fragrance of her, the musk of her cat. IT was all to real to be a dream, and for once he was thankful for that because what he was seeing was a dream made reality. So as she slowly undid her top he could feel his pulse quicken and his breath catch as a true work of art was ever so slowly unveiled. Was it just his imagination... Or did she seem to glow? He blinked and the light that had seemed to radiate from her vanished, leaving in its wake something less yet something more then light... The idea of light, the creation of it. And like that his master piece formed in his mind. Yes, this woman was light, would be made light by his hands. She would represent the purity, the passion and the burning desire of that most natural of elements. She would be that and so much more. Her top hit the ground. Sebastion eyes opened, when had they closed? How could he have missed the unwrapping of such a creature?

Her cleavage was well displayed in that evenings moon light and for the first time that night he remembered something important... He was a man and he looked at her like starving man looks at an apple, with hunger. A man with a taste for the finer things in life, and this woman before him... Who was stripping for him was something so far removed.... So much more then fine that it boggled the mind. Her body was perfect, soft in all the right places yet under that was a core of steel. He knew that, he also knew she was stronger then him... But he felt no shame in that. She had trained and honed her body that was easy to see and while he had never let him self wast away, he had never tried to perfect his physical vessel. Her skirt fell away and with it some of his self control. She stood before him, clad in the weapons of war and next to nothing else like some sort of warrior goddess and that excited him.

He wanted to touch her then, to walk to her and let his hands explore her body, to become familiar with the feel of her, the texture... So that he might paint her... Right? No. Now his intentions where not so pure... Or at least his thoughts weren't. Her bra fell to the ground. Yes, she was an angel... She had to be. How else could her body be so perfect? So impossibly perfect. He had seen many a woman naked before, but none of them could compare with her. His painting finally finished its self in his mind. He would pain her sprawled out, her body in the throws of pleasure, the night its self making love to her as the stars in the back ground winked suggestively. Yes... That would be his painting, his masters piece. Could a man be jealous of the night? Of a painting? The answer of course was yes. Her panties joined the pile and before him stood a naked goddess with the grace or ferocity enough to not look the least bit ashamed of her naked form. It nearly drove him mad with lust.

"Heh, first time I've undresse d for someone when it isn't for sex. Who woulda thought."

Ohh but the night was still young was it not? He smiled at that and walked from behind his easel his actions beyond his control for a few dire seconds then suddenly he regained control and he stopped short of her and let his body slowly relax. "Would you like me to paint you in a certain position? I know some models can be picky, wanting to make sure i capture their best said. Though for you... I don't see that as being a difficult thing, being as beautiful as you are from all angles." He tried to mask his lack loss of control behind his words... He wondered if it worked... He wondered if he hide it... But try as he might, there was nothing he could do to hide what was in his pants. That more then anything spoke of his lack of control. Yes, the night was still young and so where they.

The atmosphere had entirely changed the moment that she began to undress for him. It had been calm, a quiet sort of night that could be expected when sitting on the beach alone with her and Cobra. Now... It was disturbed by the hint of a drum. A drum beat that began quietly at first, slow and pulsing as a tribe that was preparing itself for battle. The weight of his gaze was the weight of the knowledge that the enemy was waiting for them, was as strong as them, and that they too, were preparing for this fight. The calm became strained. Her top hit the ground. The beat began to press louder and louder in her veins, the pounding of her heart matching the beating of the drum as she continued to remove her clothing piece by piece. The knowledge that they were ready for this fight, that they were going to win was beginning to settle into each and every warrior. Her skirt hit the ground.

She stood there proud and ready, staring down her enemy as the drums roared behind her, beneath her, shaking the very core of the earth. In reality, all was very still, except for that gaze.... Sebastians gaze sent her far away into the jungle where her tribe was, where her mother had longed for her to go as a proper Amazonian woman. Her bra hit the ground. Her fingers were prepared to pull the trigger, to end the life of the enemy that stood across from her in-between those trees as Cobra lurked in its shadows. There would be no hesitation, there was no nervousness anymore. She had been before, but now.... That gaze. His very eyes followed her every move, traced along every inch and crevice of her body as she now stood before him completely naked. She was an Amazon, and she felt ready to fight. Her eyes opened and locked immediately onto his own as he smiled that damnable smile at her, causing the flames licking about in her bloodstream to roar and caress her further. She wanted his hands to be that burning caress, to feel his hot breath upon her as that wind of her enemies last breath. Goddess there was nothing that she wanted more at this moment. His stare had caused that, and she knew that he felt it too.

There was a calling connection between the two of them. Something they had not expected to ever find, and would never find again with anyone else. At least, that was true for her. She simply knew. He made her feel like she was the Goddess at this very moment with the way that he looked upon her. Heh, and she would not mind if he defiled her temple... Not at all, she welcomed the thought. The slight bulging in his pants that she saw told her that he was as hot and ready as she. But perhaps it was a painters passion? No... it was both a painter, and a mans passion. "Would you like me to paint you in a certain position? I know some models can be picky, wanting to make sure i capture their best said. What did she know of these things though? She had never done modeling work before and so she only stared at him evenly with that small little smile, completely at ease like this before him. "Though for you... I don't see that as being a difficult thing, being as beautiful as you are from all angles." Argh, the blush returned and reminded her of her nakedness before him, and yet she didn't care.

Cobra rose up and moved two big leaps over to her side, curling about her leg as his tail wrapped itself around her arm, staring at Sebastian with a wary sort of knowledge. Yes, her feline friend could smell the lust between the two of them and he wasn't quite sure what he wanted to do about it. He knew that Sabina knew that he was a criminal, that this was completely against all regulations. What worried the big leopard was that she didn't care. Her hand rested on top of his head and scritched behind his ears, "Thank you. I um... I don't have any ideas really. What did you have in mind oh master of the paints?" She asked him with a coy little smile, resisting every calling urge to step forward and around his easel, to kiss those lips that moved so as he spoke, to take those hands that seemed to tremble in the slightest as he fought his own urges. "You seem to be searching for something in your paintings, and I think, that you think, that I hold the answer. Why else would you suddenly ask me to model?" She pointed out as she raised an eyebrow at him, her hand slowing to a stop as she stroked Cobra's soft fur.

Now she did take a step towards him, bringing her a little closer to his easel as she pulsed with those drums of war. "Direct me into your vision, and I will follow."

The world had changed in an instant, and the change had been... Profound. Gone where the mundane colors of reality, gone where the distractions of the out side world. Yes, Sebastion saw the world through a rose colored filter, everything taking on a warmer tone, a more inviting feel. What had triggered this sudden change? What had turned this mundane world into something almost divine? The mans eyes gazed along the woman's body, drinking in the sight of her just as a parched man drinks water. She was his water, she was his oasis in the desert that had been his life. With an internal cry of pain he wrenched his eyes away from her and fallowed the path of the cat as it moved with a slow feline grace to its mistress. Did the beast sense the heat between them? Did it hear the drumming of their hearts? The quickening of their breath? Could the great cat smell the rising passion in the air as the both of them slowly lost control? Or did it just want to protect her from what it viewed as a wicked and evil man? He eyed the creature, keeping his gaze focused on it even as his body cried out for him to look away.

As he watched the animal he found that he was jealous of it, jealous of it in a way that he knew made no sense. This woman, this goddess rode the cat as a stead, let it wrap its self about her... Touched it. Caressed it. Yes, he was jealous of that cat. He wanted her to ride him in the night their bodies as one, he wanted to encircle her with his arms in an embrace more intimate then any lovers before, he wanted to touch her and stroke her, he wanted to be with her... Be one with her. What was this feeling? It was more then lust, more then passion, more then any love he had ever felt before but whats more... It felt right. He met her gaze, his eye burning with new found sensation. He saw the challenge in her gaze and met it with one of his own. A lesser man would have looked away, a lesser man would have flushed. But he was not a lesser man... and though she was a goddess given mortal flesh, he knew in his heart that he was her match, her opposite. He was the sun to her moon, the night to her day.

"Thank you. I um... I don't have any ideas really. What did you have in mind oh master of the paints?" He was hardly a master of paints... How could he be when he could not master his own flesh? It would not obey him,nor heed his warnings. He ached for her, longed for her touche. His member throbbed in time with his heart beat straining against the fabric of his pants. "You seem to be searching for something in your paintings, and I think, that you think, that I hold the answer. Why else would you suddenly ask me to model?" He wanted to paint her yes... But that was secondary... Now he wanted her. To possess her. To make her his. With a sigh he let his hands fall to his sides, the fingers still shaking with the need she instilled in him. "Direct me into your vision, and I will follow."

Those words broke him. Shattering any hope he had of resisting those primal urges that had slowly been building up inside him.His gaze at once turned from hot to smoldering and a small intimate smile crossed his features. Slowly he moved from behind the easel, his foot steps seeming to echo in what had suddenly become a profound silence... The only other sound was the drumming of their hearts almost perfectly in rhythm. With a now steady hand he reached out and touched the taut firm skin of her midriff and slowly walked around her, his fingers trailing light paths on her skin. His eyes examined her then taking in the gentle curves of her body. His hand made a gentle circle around her, his paced unhurried as he felt her bare skin. When after what felt like a life time he was yet again facing her he smiled a hungry smile and brought his body closer leaving just a hairs breadth between her naked flesh and his. He leaned close his mouth going to her ear. With a heated whisper he spoke, his breath tickling her oh so softly as he did so. "I. want. you." Those three words carried all the passion he had ever felt, would ever feel in his life... An with those three words he finally after what seemed like a life time brought his lips to hers, with what may well be his last first kiss.

The drums still beat, constant and pulsing as their hearts called out to the other in the dark of that room. The moon was a spotlight and the room was their stage. What scene would come next? Would he paint her or.... No. No Sabina knew deep in her bones that no painting would happen tonight. Not yet. The animals were calling, the distance was closing and the time would be upon them within moments. It was like pulling a string taught, you just knew when it was time to stop pulling. Cobra glanced between them one last time once she had finished speaking, snuffing his nose once before he backed away quietly, leaving the two humans to do what he could smell they wanted to. Sabina didn't even notice, all she was aware of was the man that stood before her with that gaze of his.

Then she finished speaking and she felt that string snap, the final tug drawing them together as he came from around the other side of the easel. Ohhh she didn't have to see the bulging in his pants to know anymore because there was nothing else in her mind but him. God DAMN his smile!! It made her twist inside, squirm and feel like some stupid school girl dreaming of her first boyfriend! Her breath grew shorter, smaller as he approached, then slower... deeper... Her lids closed partially as she felt his fingertips sliding against her. It was as if she were a river and he had trailed his fingers lightly through her surface, sending ripples all throughout her at that simple touch. She didn't raise her gaze to him yet, no.. she couldn't. His hands were surprisingly soft, yet she could feel the smooth calluses on his fingertips from his various sorts of work. Oh Goddess... was this what one was truly supposed to feel like in this situation? Never.. never before... Her thoughts broke into silence as he stopped just before her, heart thumping so loud that she thought it beat right out of her. Her green eyes slowly, slowly began to raise as his lips approached her ear.

Goddess... The shivers that rolled down through her at the simple sensation of his hot breath on her skin... She hummed a low trill of a note, not quite a moan, but not just some humming either. He hadn't even touched her yet! But he still had complete control, and she didn't even care. "I. want. you." That was all she needed to hear. It was like she had waited her entire life (all 26 years of it) to her HIM say those EXACT words to her on THIS night. Their lips met and the roar of the fire engulfed them both, deafening as a crack of thunder. A slight little step closer, a raising of hands, her lips deepening that kiss slowly, gently. They may burn with the fires of passion, but she felt no need to rush right in. In fact, she felt like it was right to ease in, to relish and delight in these feelings that flowed and wrapped themselves about both of them. Her right hand came up, lightly sliding against the flesh of his neck up to the side of his face, barley even resting there. The other gliding over his chest and shoulder to his back where she held herself against him, again, soft and gentle. There was no need to press herself against him, the sensation of the colder fabric of his shirt was enough to send a spark of pleasure right through her.

A moment or three later she finally pulled back juuuust enough so that the tips of their noses touched, opening those brilliantly green eyes to look up at him though they were barely a breath away from each other. "And you have me." She whispered in a hushed voice, closing that tiny gap to place another kiss on his lips. She dove back into that ocean that he had created for them, not wanting to swim in any other waters ever again. This... This was where she belonged.

His world exploded with stars. More stars then could be seen in the night sky filled his vision with their twinkling brilliance and in that instance he found that he could not breath. Why would he want to? Breathing would mean time would pass... And nothing could be as perfect as this moment, nothing could be as divine. How wrong he was. With a small step she was pressed up against him ever so lightly, her kiss deepening. Sebastion gasped with the sheer Pleasure of it all as her arms wrapped gently about him, stroking him. The feel of her finger trailing over his skin left trails of fire. A fire the refused to be put out, a fire that only grew in strength. He knew he would be consumed by it, utterly lost to its destructive force. He would be destroyed, but in a way he didn't care for the fire while one of utter destruction was also one of rebirth. And when he finally walked free of the fires of this passion he knew with out a doubt that he would be changed forever more. Changed in a way he hadn't even know he needed. Yet he yearned for it now, yearned for this fire to eat him alive.

She pulled back and pain replaced the pleasure as soon as the kiss broke. Their eye opened, crystal blue orbs staring into his own dark pools that had so suddenly come alight with fire. He breathed then the and found the air sweeter then ever before and a tiny smile found its way to his flushed face. "And you have me."What ever he would have said was driven from his mind as his lips yet again found hers. All thoughts other then those of the woman in his arms where driven from his mind, all words where lost to his tongue, and the world out side the tiny space that held the two of them did not exist. A husky gasp escaped him as they kissed and he found that his hands had found their way to her waist, circling it and pulling her naked body to his. Slowly ever so slowly he took her to the ground, his lips never once leaving hers as he did so, not wanting to break his life line to this new reality that the two of them now shared.

His mouth moved from hers and with what was almost a growl bite along her neck, leaving tiny marks on her soft skin tell he found her ear and let hips lips explore that tender flesh, his tongue flicking ever so softly over the sensitive skin. He was done trying to remain in control, it was a pointless battle that he could never win and in the end didn't want to win. He held him self lightly over her body and with a voice that was almost a growl he spoke. "Mine..." With that he kissed her again and lost him self in the inferno of their passion.