Singing Tree, page 30
“What’s the matter, my love? Aren’t you happy?”
His downcast eyes raised to meet hers and he shook himself, as if throwing off some kind of malaise. “Yes!” he responded emphatically, tugging her forward until she fell into his lap. He cupped her face and laid his mouth on hers. He kissed her gently but deeply. “I’m very happy to have you home,” he whispered against her mouth.
Hreem got lost in the purple galaxies swirling in his eyes. The throbbing energy from his heart space enveloped her and told her everything she needed to know.
“Come on, let’s go,” Hreem heard Shimti tell her brother with a knowing sigh. “We’ll be at the Cliffs of Dothar with Gabriel and Michael,” Shimti told her mother and patted her on the cheek. Gam pumped his wings twice, and the two disappeared.
“Alone at last…” Dyeus rubbed his nose against hers and nibbled on her bottom lip. Desire flowed through her and made her feel warm and light-headed. He tightened his arms around her with a quiet rumble of satisfaction in his throat. He leapt to his feet and strode away quickly, carrying her in his arms. It was then that she saw her surroundings for the first time, and she looked around in wonder at the beautiful sights and sounds – fountains and chimes and scents of flowers and musk. All those things she longed for but didn’t know why. It had been the garden she dreamed of, all that time on Dai. Their Garden of Love, hers and Dyeus’. She really was home.
Floating weightless in Dyeus’ arms, Hreem glanced down and saw his sapphire feet barely graze a carpet of pink balsam. She gazed lovingly at his face, so stern and fierce, and she rested her head against his shoulder. She was safe now. She felt cherished in the arms of her beloved, who cradled her so gently against his chest.
Hreem massaged the bulging muscles of Dyeus’ shoulders, ran her fingertips across his powerful chest and over his mighty biceps, and she smiled with contentment when he kissed her on the top of her head. Their marriage bed swung into view, and she realized with a shiver of excitement where he was taking her. It stood on a platform of marble, encircled by gardenia bushes in full bloom. Hreem inhaled the rich, sensual scent and sighed. A gentle buzzing, soothing and resonant, filled her ears, and she saw a hive of bees swooping through the bushes, drinking their fill from the blossoms.
With a mighty hand, Dyeus swept aside a branch dripping with delicate cherry blossoms and placed Hreem on the silken, white bedding. She laid her head against the cushions and looked up at the cherry trees, whose trunks formed their bedposts and whose intertwining branches created a romantic canopy above them.
Through the clouds of pink cherry blossoms, a snow-capped mountain rose high against the sky, just barely visible in the distance. Dyeus’ mountain, Hreem recalled, Mount Inu. Dyeus lowered himself onto the bed and stretched out beside her. He rested his weight on one arm and looked down at her, drinking in the sight of her. He ran his fingertips through her hair and drew the back of his forefinger across her cheek. Her heart flooded with so much love for him it took her breath away, and the energy field of rose light around her body began throbbing rhythmically. She had missed him so much on Planet Dai. Only a part of her had forgotten him, and the rest of her ached for him so painfully as if some profound part of her soul was missing.
She rubbed her palm against the thick slabs of muscle on his back and breathed him in. He smelled like eucalyptus, sandalwood, and frankincense. His powerful musk was intoxicating and eclipsed the more delicate floral scents that drifted through their garden on the warm breeze.
Dyeus trapped her body under his leg and drew her close, his eyes searching hers hungrily, his gaze wild and desperate. She stroked his calf with her foot and raked her fingers through his long hair, seeking to soothe the sudden fierceness that had come to his face.
“Let’s never be apart again. Promise me. Never again,” he demanded, his hands tightening like vices on her shoulders.
“I promise,” she whispered, her voice soft like nectar. She was startled by his intensity, though she felt the same. She had no intention of ever leaving his side, for the rest of eternity. Never again.
With a satisfied sound, Dyeus rolled on top of her, spreading her thighs with an adept shove of his leg. He lowered his hips between her legs, and Hreem felt the warmth of his body through her thin gown where his pelvis ground against her and where his biceps pinned her shoulders. A sweet, feverish ache began to build inside her.
“I love you, and I missed you so much. I was so lonely on Planet Dai without you,” she whispered into his ear. He encircled her wrists with his hands and pressed them against the bed.
“I know you were, my dove.” He bent his head to kiss her neck. “It was not easy,” he murmured against her throat, his mouth wandering to her collarbone. “Keeping you all to myself while you were playing mortal on Dai.” He kissed the curves of her breasts.
He released her wrists, and she threw her arms around his head and pressed him against her heart. Her legs lifted and wrapped around his waist tightly and clung to him. Even the mere thought of any distance between him was painful to her. One lifetime without him was too many. He was her soul mate, and they belonged in each other’s arms, eternally.
Hreem moaned with need and shuddered as Dyeus slipped the bodice of her gown open and he cupped her breasts in her hands, his breath hot against her bare skin.
Without warning, an unwelcome thought intruded. She opened her eyes, and her hands went limp against his back. It was a disturbing thought and quite unpleasant to contemplate. His words sunk in belatedly. It was not easy…keeping you all to myself.
Since she awoke in her and Dyeus’ abode, her memories of Planet Dai had been coming back in tumultuous waves of sounds and images. Dyeus’ cryptic words reminded her of something else. There had been another voice, a beguiling voice, but one that spoke the truth. What had the voice said? A husband has a right to be possessive, no?
Hreem’s legs fell away from Dyeus, and she pushed his head away. “What do you mean, it wasn’t easy to keep me to yourself?”
He looked down at her in alarm, and she studied his face, trying to analyze his expression, the hardness that came over his features.
“I mean, you are the Goddess of Love. You were bound to have your admirers. And I know how much you hate to be lonely. I had hoped you would remain faithful to your vows to me, but the Waters of Lethe did their job too well.” He shook his head and sighed. “I did what I had to do,” he said with a callous shrug of one shoulder.
“You did what you had to do?” Hreem pulled away from her husband and tugged her gown up over her exposed chest. “You made sure that I was alone?! On that terrible planet? I had to face the Corruptor and his devils alone because of your jealousy?” The realization of his betrayal cut like a knife. She could hardly bear the sight of him, so smug and indifferent to her feelings.
“You’re my wife.” His hands tightened possessively on her shoulders, and his voice roughened.
Her eyebrows dropped into a frown, and her chin trembled. “Taiven?” Her voice shook. “Was that you? Did you do that?” she accused.
“You’re my wife,” Dyeus repeated stubbornly, jaw clenched. That was as near an admission as Hreem was going to get from him.
“And the others?” Hreem’s voice squeaked out in a high register, like Udaya’s so often had.
Anger flared around his head, and thunder rumbled in the distance. “Your aunt got what she deserved,” Dyeus growled. “She mistreated you. And your mathematics professor earned his punishment for touching you. He had to pay for what he did.”
Hreem let his words sink in. Flashes of memories of a deserted mathematics classroom and a wandering Rauiine male’s hand… of running away to the safety of sunlight, of being chased. The sky had darkened too quickly. A clap of thunder boomed in the distance. A bolt of lightning flashed. The sound of screams and the smell of burning flesh…
Her mind reeled as she processed the truth beyond all of her pain and suffering in the mortal realms. “Perhaps the professor did deserve some kind of punishment. But what about the boys? The accidents? Taiven? He was a sweet young man. He was kind to me. He was my love! How could you do that to me?”
Dyeus shifted uncomfortably on top of her. “You couldn’t expect me to watch you fall in love with some mortal,” he said, avoiding her gaze.
“But they tortured me because of those accidents! All those rumors of Jaoiine witchcraft! Dyeus, they were cruel! And it was you all along! You caused all of that pain.” She glared at him. It was too much to understand. It was Dyeus who betrayed her. It was Dyeus who made her life miserable, out of jealousy. She couldn’t remember a single time in all their millennia together that he had ever hurt her. So how could he have done this? And why didn’t he seem to care at all? She hitched a sigh, then burst into tears.
Dyeus hung his head and growled in his throat, his long black hair obscuring his face. Then he swung off her in a single fluid motion and left her alone on the bed. Hreem turned over and buried her face in the pillow. She sobbed out years of painful memories from her life on Dai.
Then, Dyeus was back at Hreem’s side. He laid a hand against her shoulder. She twitched to shake him off, but he did not remove his hand. His touch was comforting, familiar. He massaged her back gently with his fingertips, and again she had that feeling of being home. The feeling of love, of knowing she was fulfilling the purpose of her existence. She raised her head from the pillow and sniffed.
He propped himself up on an elbow. He had an impish grin on his face and an object in his hand. He extended his arm with a jaunty flourish and waved something at her. Hreem blinked in astonishment. In his hand, he held the white chalice from her vision.
“Your sadness pains me, my dear. This, I cannot bear. I beg you. Drink of the Nectar of Peace and be well. All of these painful memories will be forgotten, and nothing but love and bliss will remain.”
Hreem looked from the chalice to Dyeus’ unconcerned smirk. The glib, practiced expression on his face made her distrustful. There was a feather-like tickle in the back of her mind, as if someone or something was trying to get her attention. Hreem…Hreem…Hreem… Whispers from a pink sea of bliss. Suddenly, she became certain that she had drunk this nectar many times, at his urging, though she could not remember when.
She scowled at the chalice. Once, an untrustworthy mortal tried to make her drink a potion, too. An orange, Rauiine female whose office was a suffocating grey box. But Udaya refused. Then Hreem remembered Tir’s warning from that in-between place between mortality and the heavens – the chalice was like a hot stove, dangerous and not to be touched. Hreem gave Dyeus a suspicious look and shook her head.
She sat up slowly on the white coverlet. She drew her gown around her waist regally. When she spoke, it was with all the authority of the Queen of the Heavens.
“I shall not drink.”
Her forceful declaration sent ripples ringing through the garden. Above her head, cherry blossoms rustled and whispered to one another. What did she say? Dyeus’ head rocked back as if physically struck.
“Are you sure, my dear? The Nectar always makes you feel much better,” he cajoled and wiggled the chalice under her nose.
She pushed his hand away. “I am sure. I do not wish to forget,” she stated slowly and clearly. Imperially. Let there be no mistake, she would not drink from that cup.
“Yes, but your suffering, it pains me. Don’t you think –”
“I am not suffering. And there is no cause for you to feel pain.” She interrupted him with a raised hand. He shifted under her fierce gaze. After a moment, he sat the cup down awkwardly on the stone step near the bed.
“Very well,” he said, his voice gruff, and appraised her through narrowed eyes as if she was some strange creature he had never seen before. “What is it that you desire?”
She searched her heart and examined his face, took in his rough demeanor, the cold way he regarded her. “I desire…an apology. And my husband’s love and understanding.”
The tension in his shoulders visibly eased, and he gave her a magnanimous smile. “Oh, my darling, how sincerely do I apologize! I am intensely sorry if I caused you any pain –”
“You did,” she interjected.
He urged her into his lap and took her chin between his thumb and forefinger. “I would never willingly hurt you, beloved.”
Hreem’s heart softened somewhat, but she wasn’t through. She raised a finger. “And I want you to apologize to Taiven.”
“I beg your pardon? Apologize to whom?” Dyeus dropped Hreem’s chin and looked incredulously at the finger she was pointing at his nose.
“The mortal man who died terribly because he loved me,” she explained slowly, as if to a child, distressed that Dyeus couldn’t even remember the name of the mortal she had so grieved for. “He deserves an apology too.”
“Ah, of course, my dear.” Dyeus nodded and waved a hand dismissively. “Be assured, at the earliest opportunity I will seek him out and issue him a formal apology.”
“Good.” Hreem jerked her head and smiled at him. The pressure in her chest was starting to lighten. Dyeus would make everything alright. He promised. “And someday, I want you to make it up to him.”
His eyebrows shot up. “Make it…up to him?” he asked in bewilderment.
“Yes, make it up to him. Surely, someday, he will be born again as a mortal, and at that time, he may ask of you a boon, and you shall grant it. Say you agree,” she ordered, tapping him on the chest for emphasis.
Dyeus smirked and nodded. “Why, of course, my darling, anything you wish. I hereby agree and promise.” He raised his hand to the air, then placed it limply on his heart.
“Thank you.” Hreem searched his face, trying to make sense of this new side of him, assessing his sincerity. His eyes did look worried, haunted even. And his shoulders didn’t stand as strong and proud as she remembered. Instead, his posture was slumped, tired. Hreem frowned and stroked his arm. He seemed drained and weak. Surely, he was distressed that he hurt her, and he did apologize and agree to make things right, for Taiven’s soul.
She wondered how she would have felt if the situation was reversed. Could she have watched him fall in love with a mortal woman? The pain would be nearly unbearable. But could she kill out of jealousy? She had never killed anyone, not even a mortal, and not even in punishment for disrespecting the Gods, as was common in bygone cycles. But Dyeus had no such reservations. That wasn’t his fault though, she reasoned. He didn’t have the ability to empathize that she did. How could she ask him to be anything but true to his nature? As she was to hers.
And it was in her nature to forgive.
He slid to his knees at the side of the bed. He lifted her gown just a little to kiss the top of her foot, her ankle, her calf. Then he rested his head in her lap and gazed at her with sad eyes. Her heart melted, and all was forgiven.
She stroked his hair and smiled at him. “Now…what about my second desire?” she asked, her tone smoky and full of implication.
“Hmmm…which was?” he pretended to wonder as he sat alongside her on the bed. She could hear the relief in his voice.
“A husband’s love…I was wondering. What did you miss about me?” She batted her eyes at him.
“Everything,” he groaned and snaked an arm around her waist. “I missed your beautiful green eyes.” He kissed each eyelid in turn. “And I missed your beautiful red mouth.” His mouth on hers was gentle and sweet at first, then he deepened the kiss. Hreem’s lips parted, and he slipped his tongue inside her eagerly.
Hreem lifted her gown and drew one leg over his lap. Dyeus hands tightened on her hips and he pulled her tightly against his nudity, throbbing with sapphire light. She looked down at her own silken robe and tried to remember how clothing operated here in the heavenly realms. She could have sworn Dyeus wore a loincloth just a moment ago. Did clothing disappear and reappear at will?
As if reading her mind, Dyeus clutched the fabric that covered her breasts in his hands, and the gown dissolved into mist and dissipated.
“Now, for the rest of the things I missed about you…” he said in gruff voice.
The look in Dyeus’ eyes gave Hreem the same feeling of exhilaration as if she had just leapt from the peak of Mount Inu. He glowed with blue flames and watched her with a vicious hunger. The burning sweetness that filled her before came back with a vengeance. He was too far away. She needed him closer.
She locked her arms around his neck and writhed against him. He drank her love greedily from her mouth and flipped her onto her back. With a groan, he pinned her beneath the blue mountain of his body, and everything else fell away. Time stood still for them, and her world narrowed to the rhythm of his thrusts. The storm of his power battered her, lovingly, but intensely. Her cries of pleasure rang through the Garden of Love, and her conscious mind was erased by bliss.
She was lost in joy so powerful it was obliterating. Filled with the knowing that their love was all there was in the universe, Hreem pressed her pelvis ever closer to him. It wasn’t enough, it could never be enough. The sun set, and as darkness fell in the Garden, Dyeus’ light became perceptibly brighter and more intense against the deepening twilight. Even his body became larger. His giant hands eclipsed Hreem’s hips as he pinned her tightly underneath his surging power.
He drank her climaxes from her lips with the desperation of a mortal dying of thirst. He forced from her body one delirious explosion after the next, as the stars burst into flame in the night’s sky, one by one. With each moan that escaped her lips, he grew inside her, and the force of his light intensified.
Hreem gave one more spasming scream, and Dyeus fell still and released her. The Garden was quiet, save for the susurration of her shallow breaths. Tears of pleasure ran down her cheeks, and she floated in the most delightful feeling of nothingness, looking up at the sky. She was spinning; the bed was spinning; even the stars were spinning above her. Dyeus stretched out alongside her with a self-satisfied groan. With his hand, he turned her face towards his.
