Sweetness

It took her three weeks of gathering her courage before she finally decided to confront him. The issue had, however, begun long before that. In truth, it had begun the moment he pushed aside that blue curtain and walked into the teahouse.

Often, Fuu wondered if the teahouse had burned down because of the secret wish she had made when she first saw Mugen. She’d been debating leaving in her mind for ages, but she thought if she could travel with a guy like him, screw the teahouse. He wasn’t a pretty sort of handsome, not by any means. He had a fierce look in his eye that made him like some sort of feral dog. But what he lacked in beauty, he made up for with rugged strength. He had the tanned skin and tattoos of a prisoner, a man of the world. Somehow, that fascinated Fuu.

Like a not-prince in badly tarnished armor, Mugen had saved her life. And following in his wake, was the most beautiful samurai she had ever laid eyes on. Jin was everything Mugen was not. His grace was practiced, his effeminate beauty the result of being raised as nobility. Unlike Mugen, when he spoke it was only kindly, and he actually knew the meaning of respect. By all common sense, Jin should have been the one Fuu fell in love with. But common sense be damned, he wasn’t whom her heart chose.

She realized it as early as the time they’d gotten involved with the yakuza and she was kidnapped to be a prostitute. Even though it had been Mugen’s idea to abandon her in the first place, he’d been the one to come back for her (though it had taken some intense wheedling on her part to get him to admit to that fact). And the longer she stayed with the two of them, the less Mugen infuriated her. Instead, she caught herself stealing glances when he wasn’t looking and watching him when he was asleep. He was so different then—unguarded, sprawled out and as vile as ever, but his face was almost soft. She watched all his expressions, looked with unabashed lust at his body, and wondered what it would be like to sleep curled up under one of those strong arms. She wanted every last inch of him.

But as confident as she was during the night, the daytime was a whole different matter. She found it nearly impossible to alter the sibling-like dynamic they had going on. To get more familiar with him, to say what she really felt… Well that was just nonsense.

To her surprise, it was Jin who served as the catalyst that finally made her decide that talking might be a good idea after all. He was always so silent and stoic that at times she forgot he was watching.

“Fuu,” he said one morning after pulling her aside from the road. Mugen went on ahead of them, oblivious.

“Huh?” she asked stupidly, with no clue as to why he’d want to talk to her. He spoke so little, it rather came as a surprise.

“You really ought to get more sleep.” He poked gently at the bags under her eyes and she blinked, not immediately catching on to what he was insinuating. “You need your rest for the road,” he continued, “and while I have no problem with you peeping on our companion, I’d rather not—”

Fuu was struck by a sudden lapse of manners and cut him off. “You what? You noticed—I mean, you saw me doing—er…” She turned beet red, pointedly fixing her gaze on the Takeda kamon on his kimono.

To her surprise, he cracked a small smile. “Well, Fuu-chan, it was rather hard not to notice, although our friend Mugen still seems ignorant of the situation.”

Fuu retained her blush but relaxed a bit. Jin knew, and he wasn’t angry. That was good. She had been afraid that he might be hurt to find out that she favored Mugen over him romantically. And so, even without explicitly cheering her on, Fuu gained a bit more confidence from him.

Still, it was some time before she finally found the opportunity to make her move. Perhaps Jin had some sort of sixth sense, for one night he tacitly excused himself from their room at the inn they were staying at, presumably to go take a walk. He gave her a kind of look on the way out and then disappeared. The timing couldn’t have been better, she thought, considering the time of month. It was go time.

“Hey, Mugen,” she said conversationally, interrupting him picking his teeth with a yakimanju skewer left over from lunch.

“Hn?” he inflected, kicking his feet and sliding his gaze over toward her. He seemed only vaguely interested in what she had to say, though she wasn’t about to give up. She had a secret weapon.

“Some guy gave me a free bottle of sake earlier, and I was wondering if you wanted it.” That was a downright lie—she’d saved for three days to buy the small bottle, and had discovered an ingenious way to hide it in her pallet roll while she bided her time.

Now Mugen was interested, and he slid over across the tatami toward her. “Gimme that,” he said, swiping the bottle from her hands and rolling it over to inspect it. He pulled the cork and gave it a sniff. “This is some pretty good-smelling shit. Why’d the guy give it to you?”

“Uhh…” And this was where her plan wore thin. Perhaps she should have planned a little better—she hadn’t actually expected him to read into her ruse. Agh, she was such an idiot!

“’S a lie, ain’t it?” he said shortly, setting the bottle back down. Damn, score one for Mugen’s intelligence. “Now why exactly would you want to give me sake? Tryin’ to get me wasted? Or do you just want brownie points?”

Fuu blanched, rubbing at the back of her head. “I, uh…”

Mugen smirked, but remained silent. Neither of them moved for a long while, though the lantern was dying down. The flame was barely more than a flicker before Fuu couldn’t stand the silence any longer, and took a deep breath.

“I want you, Mugen.”

“What?” he snorted incredulously, then with the last guttering pulse of the lamp, it hit him. “Nah… That can’t be—”

“I want you,” Fuu said again, this time with infinitely more confidence. The smoke curled in a lazy path to the ceiling, dissolving with the last of her inhibitions.

Mugen looked at her with some inscrutable emotion in his dark gray eyes. The light was too dim to make out much else about his expression, but Fuu got the faint impression that it was something she’d never seen in him before.

“What is it?” she asked, sure that she’d embarrassed herself or pissed him off. “I—I mean, do you… not want me?”

Mugen let out a small chuckle at that, full of something bitter like bile. “Me, not want you? You got it all backwards, babe. You don’t want me. I promise you.” He turned away, wild hair catching the silver outline of the moon.

Fuu laid a hand on his shoulder, and while he didn’t say anything, she felt his body tense up like a bowstring.

“Fuu. Don’t.” His voice was a whisper, but as hard as steel.

“Mugen,” she said in earnest. “Why would I not want you? Talk to me.”

Without warning his hand shot out, catching her by the wrist before she could withdraw her hand. He turned his eyes back to her, flashing annoyance and something else. Something powerful. “You don’t want me, because everything you’ve said about me and what kind of guy I am is true. I don’t give a shit, about anything. I fuck and I fight, and that’s enough for me. I am a dog. And once I sink my teeth into something, I ain’t ever gonna let go.”

Fuu tried to yank her wrist from his grip with little success. “Mugen, what—what’re you trying to say?” He finally released her hand and she snapped it back, rubbing at the painful marks he’d left with his vice-like grip.

“I’m saying, if you know what’s good for you you’ll keep away. Because if you keep danglin’ yourself in front of my face like a piece of meat, I’ll bite. I won’t stop you. And then I’m yours, and you’re mine, and there ain’t no refunds. That’s it.” He kept his steely gaze trained on her, his teeth bared in warning.

Fuu supposed he was trying to scare her away, but some part of her had listened to his words and said, ‘I know, and I don’t care’. It was true—she knew Mugen was a rough-and-tumble guy, with plenty of obsessions but few true loyalties. However, there was always the chance that he was worth it. No one else had his kind of passion. It was what she craved.

Tentatively, her hand reached out to him again. This time he made no move for her, but his eyes followed. Then, when her fingers reached his face to gently stroke down his cheek, they closed, and he let out a soft sigh. Mugen let her hand continue its path, traveling along his jaw to the back of his neck and down to his collarbone. His breathing stilled when she reached his chest, stroking him through the coarse fabric of his gi. Then he made a sort of low noise in his throat, which seemed to wake him up from his trance.

“Fuu.” He blinked his eyes open, pinning her still with his intensity. “You can’t change your mind about this. If you offer, I’m gonna take it. And I’m not gonna be gentle, or soft, or any of that shit.”

Her mouth sought words to speak, but came up empty. Instead, she did the only thing she knew to do, and lowered her hand to press against his thigh. She kept her own gaze leveled at him, silent and challenging. She wanted this. She wanted him.

“So be it.”

Suddenly she found herself horizontal, on her back on the tatami. Mugen’s warm, heavy weight settled on top of her, a firm pressure on her nether regions. He was already aroused; she could tell that much, and she took silent satisfaction in knowing he really did want her, after all.

“Off,” he growled in her ear, and she felt his strong fingers tugging at her obi. She reached under herself to give him a little help untying it, arching under him and making him groan. Once that was disposed of, he made short work of her kimono and juban, tugging the sleeves off and baring her down to her bindings. Those he attacked with his teeth, finding the tucked end and pulling it out, and loosening the cloth enough to slip off of her. He took a moment to examine what he’d uncovered, while Fuu shivered and felt self-conscious. She knew her breasts looked bigger outside her clothes, but she was still no match for women like Budoukiba or even Kohza. But apparently Mugen was satisfied, for he lowered his head to nose at her, tasting her skin and moving to take one nipple and roll it in his teeth.

“Ah! Mugen!” she protested at first, nearly overwhelmed by the sensation. She squirmed beneath him, but her words seemed to fall on deaf ears. He continued his ministrations on the other nipple, but now the discomfort was giving way to something else, something that shot straight down her to her belly and between her legs. “Ahh… anh…”

Mercifully, his mouth left her chest to travel up the graceful lines of her neck to her lips. The kiss was tender and bruising at the same time, his tongue following to caress what his lips had just ravaged. What she didn’t know about kissing she assumed she could expect him to make up for, so she opened her mouth to him. It was a surprise when his tongue entered her, but not an unpleasant one, she decided.

A growing distraction from his kisses, however, was the burgeoning arousal she could feel pressing against her through the fabric of his cut-off hakama. She pushed against his shoulders and he yielded, sitting back far enough for her to pull at his haori. He quickly caught on and shucked it off, followed by his gi. He didn’t immediately move to take off his hakama, so Fuu took the opportunity to admire the smooth, hard planes of his chest and the swell of his biceps under his tanned skin. Likewise, he ran his hands hungrily down the slight curve of her waist and down to her hips.

“Nice,” he murmured in appreciation, and Fuu felt her cheeks burning.

“You too,” she said honestly. She could pretend like she hadn’t enjoyed it every time she’d inadvertently seen him naked, but her body betrayed her every time.

“And you ain’t even seen the best part yet.” When Fuu heard this she felt even the tips of her ears burning, but she wasn’t about to stop him. She’d only ever seen him when he wasn’t aroused, so this would be new. He went to untie his hakama, but she caught his hand out of reflex and pushed it away, instead inexpertly tugging at the strings herself. He grunted his approval and allowed her to continue. When she was done he stood, letting them flutter to the floor. He wasn’t wearing anything underneath, so Fuu was treated to the sight of him in all his glory. Her breath caught. Sure, she didn’t have much in the way of comparison to go by, but he was big. She briefly shuddered at the thought of how she was going to manage taking him in, when he pulled her up with him.

“Futon,” he explained, leading her over to the other end of the room where his pallet was laid out. She felt her heartbeat quicken as he pushed her down on her back and climbed atop her, insinuating his hand down her belly and between her legs. His fingers slid easily along her, and he grinned. “Damn. You really do got the hots for me.”

“Shut up and do something,” she whined, feeling every inch of herself go red this time. And to her surprise, Mugen complied. Instead, his mouth latched onto her nipple once again, making her arch beneath him into his erection. He groaned into her at the contact, slipping his fingers into her folds and rubbing against the wetness he found there. She let out a little squeak of surprise when one of his fingers entered her, but he stopped at her inner barrier. He didn’t seem too concerned about her virginal state, however, retreating and instead situating his middle finger over the nub of her clit and giving it a soft flick.

“Ah!” she cried in pleasure, writhing beneath him. She had touched herself before, many a night when she was thinking about him, but there was something different when it wasn’t her own hand stroking her. He smiled, looking satisfied, and lowered himself down her body until she could feel his warm breath on her already heated skin. “Mugen, what’re you—” And then his tongue was upon her. She wanted to hit him over the head for sticking his face into that most private area—after all, that couldn’t be sanitary, but—ah! she didn’t think she’d ever felt something so exquisite in her entire life. She didn’t have any prior experience, but he seemed talented at this. Incredibly so. Her body writhed and jerked under him like a puppet with its strings cut. She could feel orgasm looming, rising from the pit of her stomach with a steady burn.

“That’s it,” he murmured against her, the rumble of his voice sending a shock of pleasure down her.

“Ahh… Kami-sama…” she moaned, feeling the tremors beginning in her gut. “Ah, ah!” Suddenly her body convulsed, her vision turning a momentary blinding white and her hearing nothing more than the rush of blood in her ears and oh god oh god oh god. Her back arched off the ground and she bucked into his face as she coated herself and Mugen with her fluids.

“Mmh.” Fuu collapsed bonelessly back onto the futon as Mugen licked his lips, then swiped up some of the dripping moisture with his fingers. He slid back up her to give her another rough kiss, on which she tasted herself, and then he was whispering in her ear.

“Are you ready?” The words sent a shiver down her spine, and although three seconds ago she felt as if she’d never be aroused again, she couldn’t help but nod enthusiastically. Mugen chuckled. “Alright then.” He reached down to coat his already slick member with her fluids, giving himself a few quick strokes. Then she felt the head of his thick cock pressing at her entrance and her heart stopped. “This will hurt,” he murmured into her ear, “but not for long.” And then he pushed roughly inside of her.

“Ah!” She couldn’t help but cry out a little at the intense pressure she felt against her inner barrier. He slid almost completely out, then with a few more short, intense thrusts, it gave way with a sudden blooming of burning pain. She stifled another cry by biting down on his shoulder as blood began to add to the slickness aiding Mugen’s passage. But then he slowed until she was completely filled, every inch of his length inside her, and the pain began to fall away, leaving nothing but satisfaction and pleasure. She could feel him throbbing within her, as hard as steel as he pulled out and thrust again, establishing a harsh but steady rhythm. Ah, this was it. What she’d been waiting for. The pleasured grunts he made and shaky breaths he took only added to her pleasure, each of them sending a thrill down into her core. He liked it; he was enjoying it, and that was nearly as hot as being fucked by him was alone.

“Nfh, you’re so tight… gods… So wet…” Mugen panted, rocking his hips against her so hard she saw stars. Then he shifted, and with the new angle he brushed against—well, against something. She let out a fierce moan and he followed suit, thrusting into her with added fervor. They kept up this pace for a while, but each of them felt orgasm approaching ever closer by the tightness in their bellies.

“Mugen, I—” Fuu began, but whatever she had planned on saying degenerated into incomprehensible babble. It felt like he was fucking her all the way up to her brain, rubbing the sweet spot inside her every time he went in and out.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck, I’m gonna—” And then he too was babbling, but in Ryukyuan.

She convulsed under him, her inner muscles clenching around him in her release and spurring him on. Mugen’s fingers tightened in her hair—when had they gotten there?—and he let out a shout, jerking within her as his orgasm hit him like a tsunami. Fuu watched him as she felt him slip from her, the dying aftershocks still apparent in his features, and she decided this was when he was most beautiful.

“Ngh…” he groaned, settling atop her with his head on his chest. She cautiously threaded her hands in his hair, but he didn’t seem to mind, leaning into her touch. She thought he was just as out of it as she was, but she felt the brush of his eyelids as he blinked and the slight feather of breath from a little laugh.

“Fuu,” he whispered, taking her by surprise. “Did we… did we just have sex? Did I just… with you?”

Fuu let out a little giggle, then took in a deep gasping breath as his weight on her pushed the air from her lungs. “Yeah. We did.”

She immediately felt Mugen’s body relax, and he rolled off her to spoon her from behind. “Oh, okay.” There was a moment of silence, and then, “Does Fish Face know about this?”

“There’s a reason he left tonight, you know.”

Fuu felt the rumble of his laughter through her back. “Sweet.”

And it was.