Time of Ages   ( Chapter 8 ) .: Rescue :.

  *~ Part 2 ~*

  She felt weightless.
  Like she was flying. Freely falling in front of the cascading waterfall. Her arms hung at her sides as she fell, hands still bound, the water and wind mixing in her hair. She did not open her eyes. Her face and chest were the only things not carried by the falls, they were open to the air and mist around. In some ways she wished that it were a shorter waterfall, that she may meet her end without so much suspense. She judged she must be reaching the end. The sun was nearly gone, throwing the sky into vivid colors of gold, deep purple, red and pink. A wind stirred in the forest, bringing cries of animals to her ears, along with the crashing of the water all around.
  The immediate halt in her fall jerked her back into reality.
  She opened her eyes as she entered into the waterfall itself and landed on a cool, rocky surface. Coughing and sputtering, she laid there and gasped for air. When she could sit up, she did. She took in her new surroundings carefully. She laid in a small, rocky cove. The entrance she had come through was completely covered by the waterfall, and the slowly rising moon cast iridescent lights through the water that created blue and purple lights all around, dancing off the smooth walls. Behind her was another entrance in the rock, with a crude spiral staircase carved into the rock.
  He sat there, on the ground, near her.
  He was soaking wet, though with her mind at its current state, she couldn't figure out why. All she thought about was how he looked, sitting there, with the lights playing off his face and hair; peaceful. She had never seen him look peaceful. He didn't look at her, but she stared at him.
  "Why are you staring so?" he asked. It was not his usual tone, he spoke softly.
  "What happened?" she asked. He turned to look at her and all at once lost his sense of speech. She looked absolutely amazing. Her hair had come out and hung in loose ringlets, framing her face. Her outfit was dripping and clung to her, outlining her perfectly. Her eyes... they shone with a brilliance, like the sea when the sun rises on a morning when everything is just so right. He was mesmerized, trapped, lost in her eyes.
  "You... you were falling," he said at last. He forced himself to turn away and his voice became rough once again. "I pulled you in here." She was absolutely shocked. He had... saved her?
  "...why?" she asked quietly.
  "Why?" he repeated, still not allowing himself to look at her. He stood and faced the rocky wall.   "Why?" she asked again. Using what strength she had, she rose. She had not realized that her hands and feet were still bound, and she fell back over abruptly with a small cry. He turned at once to see that she was all right and, summoning his willpower, walked over to her. He helped her sit up and began to unbind her feet. He made no move to speak and did not look at her eyes.
  "You haven't answered my question," Sally mentioned once, maneuvering her head to try and look at his face. He avoided her. Once her feet were unbound, she sat on her heels as he worked on her hands.
  "Because I was here," he stated.
  "But why! Why were you here? How did you know? And why bother?" she exploded with a small laugh of disbelief.
  "Because!" he shouted. "Because I knew something was wrong. I followed that evil man and heard of his plans. Because I knew something might happen. Because I don't trust Duo to take care of everything. Because I had to be here to save you!" He had stopped his work on her hands when he began to talk, and afterward he picked it back up again with fervor. She was silent for a moment.
  "You had to save me?" she repeated.
  "...yes," he said. She thought she heard him sigh. She could smell him, the scent of a man, and a particular odor that she identified with elves. It was terribly addictive, but she was afraid. She was afraid she would fall in love. Or that she had already fallen.
  Live for me. Live and LOVE.
  "Thank you, Anthony," she said almost inaudibly.
  He looked up at her once, questioningly. She caught his eyes and saw fear.
  "Are you afraid, Wufei?" she asked him.
  "I was," he answered. Now that he had looked again he couldn't tear himself away.
  "Of what?"
  ".......of losing another woman I loved."
  Her hands were unbound. He held them between his own and looked into her eyes pleadingly. Seeing no resistance, he brought his face nearer to hers slowly. He could feel her breathing, virtually taste her sweet breath on his mouth and he lost his willpower and self-control.
  In a second his mouth was pressed against hers, his lips tasting hers. It was the most passionate kiss she had ever had in her life, and she loved it. Every second it got better and better, and she never wanted it to stop. She pressed her mouth against his harder, causing slight sounds to come from both of them. When her lips left his reluctantly, she stared into his deep, dark eyes.
  "I thought, Sally Po," he said. "Before I came here, I thought. Thought of you. I thought about hunting. I thought about what I would do if I really had to kill someone that I knew hadn't done anything wrong. I knew I couldn't kill the other girls. If I did, I would be no better than that horrible man was. My... my Merian told me to live honestly, justly, and rightly." He looked deep into her eyes. "I believe that is what I'm doing now."
  "And what are you doing now, Wufei Chang?" she asked. He brought his face close to hers once again and closed his eyes.
  "Falling in love with you." He kissed her again, holding her head in his hands, stroking her damp hair with his strong fingers. She brought her own arms up so her hands cradled his head, undoing the tie that held his silky hair back, burying her fingers in the dark strands. She pulled away for a moment, murmuring.
  "I love you... Wufei Chang," she said with eyes still closed.
  "And I you, Sally Po," he said, lips finding and claiming hers again.

  From the doorway, a smiling figure watched with an enormous smile. He hurried back up the staircase.
  "Well??" Hilde asked impatiently.
  "They're fine, just as Quatre thought," Duo said, still smiling. "I think they might need a decent amount of time alone though; it's very private down there and, unless I am not an elf, there is a fair amount of passion buiding in that small cove!" Quatre blushed and Hiiro laughed.
  "Shall we then?" Trowa asked.
  "Of course, Adriel and Mytrica await!" Zechs replied with a low bow to Lucretia. Sweeping their girls off their feet, they headed off to dragons and unicorns.

  The moon shone down on the forest, where peace echoed and fantasy reigned again. The sound of water cascading over rocks mingled with the whistling breeze, and the beautiful melody of lyre and pipes wafted through the forest, filling the hearts of all creatures who heard.

  :. *~*~* .:

 

 

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stay tuned for the Epilogue!!! ^.^ Domo arigatou gozaimasu!

 

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