Love as Pure as Water

"Do I even want to?" Alana looked hurt. "Thomas, when I asked my sisters about it, they always told me that I would recognize the feeling of love when I felt it. I always thought that was some awful way to dodge the question, but I get it now! They were telling the truth!"

"I know it seems impossible," she continued. "I kept telling myself that the past two nights. There's no way, I thought. There's no way I could have possibly come to...to love someone that quickly! And even if I did, there's no way he would return my feelings. But I look at you now, and I think...I think I really am in love with you!"

"Alana," Thomas said, voice hoarse. "I..."

Alana snatched his hand and pressed it against her chest, just below her throat. The sensation made her pulse quicken that much more.

"Can you feel my heartbeat?" she asked softly. "That's what you do to me. That's how I've been feeling this entire day! It just...everything seems better with you around! Like I can notice all sorts of things that I couldn't before!"

She trailed off and looked pleadingly into his eyes. "I...of course I want to be with you..."

"Do..." she swallowed the lump in her throat and looked at him nervously. "Do you feel the same way?"

The tension hung in the air as she waited for his reply. Their eyes remained locked together, and her heart continued to beat.

Thump-thump. Thump-thump.

That was all there was. His eyes, and her heart - the only things in her world at that moment.

"I'm sorry that I was too dense to understand your meaning," he smiled sheepishly. "But I just didn't know what to say until a second ago."

"I was thinking the same thing," he continued. "I didn't want to admit to anything, because I wasn't sure what my own feelings were. I was doubtful. You said it, right? That there's no way I could love someone so quickly. But..."

"Every day, I learn something more about you. Your magic, your singing, your tail, your sanctuary, your god, your family...the more I learn, the more I want to learn. And you've been helping me learn about myself, too. I've realized a lot, in these last few days. You said you were noticing all sorts of things that you didn't before? That's exactly what I've been going through."

Alana hung on to his every word, eyes still shining with hope.

"So...here's your answer."

Thomas leaned up and kissed her. It was a brief kiss, not all that much longer than their first time, but it felt like so much more. All their passion, their joy, their fear, their stress...it all flowed freely between them in one, tender moment. Without even being aware of it, Alana had ignited her magic, renewing the breathing spell. This time, however, she didn't want to send just the warmth of the spell through his body. She wanted to show him how warm - how safe, how free - he made her feel. She wanted to express as much of herself through a single kiss as she possibly could.

When Alana finally pulled away, the tearful, yet joyous expression that she wore on her face made it all worth it to Thomas. Everything - years of his stress, grief, and loneliness - were washed away in that moment.

And all that remained was love.

"Pack your bag," Alana giggled. "Tonight, you're staying at my place."

**********

Alana's place turned out to be a cave in the seafloor, forming a comfortable little hollow in an underwater hill. She didn't have much to decorate it with - her sole bag of possessions leaning against one of the walls - but she had taken great care in keeping it clean, moving out all of the urchins and aquatic moss. Surprisingly, he noticed that Alana actually had a bed. It wasn't a wooden or metal bed, but an ingenious display of nature. A network of coral formed the frame of the bed, with a mass of aquatic fibers and plants forming the mattress. She had a blanket made of kelp, that somehow seemed to be quilted into a diamond pattern, despite being mostly all the same color.

"What?" she laughed. "Did you think that I slept while moving, like a shark?"

"Maybe," he admitted, echoing her amusement.

"Mersharks actually do that, though," she pointed out. "So I guess I can't entirely fault you. Anyway...here we are! Home sweet home. What do you think?"

Thomas nodded, taking the question seriously as he appraised the place.

"It's very you," he concluded. "I like it."

"Thank you," Alana beamed. "Sit with me?"

The pair swam over to her bed, which was thankfully plenty large enough for the two of them. Thomas sat on the edge of the bed, and Alana joined him. Her tail was too long to dangle off the edge of the bed, so she had to wrap it around her body, coiling up like a snake. She absentmindedly began stroking her tail fin after a few seconds.

Neither of them could find the right words, and the silence began to stretch on for a while. Thomas took a deep breath, and welled up as much manliness as he could muster.

"Alright," he said confidently, turning to face her. "There's no way I'm gonna make you take the initiative again. So...how about this?"

He reached out and stroked her cheek with his fingers, repeating the little game that they had played before. Alana smiled, closed her eyes, and nuzzled her cheek against him.

"That feels wonderful," she said softly. "But I don't know how much time we have. We should probably...skip this part...at least for this time."

"This time," he repeated. "I like the sound of that."

"So do I," Alana cooed. "Take my cloak off."

Thomas grinned at that, and moved to begin unbuttoning her cloak, starting from the bottom up.

"Don't get me wrong," he started. "I love your cloak. The design is neat, and it's really well-made. But I've been waiting to see you without it for a while now!"

"It wasn't fair when you took your shirt off in front of me," she complained, still smiling. "Now I get to even the score."

"I think I'm still beating you," Thomas said, reaching the silver trident emblem near her collar. "Remember the fin incident?"

"Please don't ever remind me of that. I never felt so mortified in my life."

"Hmm," Thomas hummed noncommittally, finally undoing her cloak and shrugging it off her shoulders. He breathed in sharply through his teeth when he finally laid eyes on her.

"Alana..." he muttered. "You're gorgeous..."

Beneath her cloak, Alana only had two more pieces of clothing. A black bra, which held back her moderately-sized breasts, and a black sash that looped around her waist, concealing the line where her hips gave way to her fish tail.

She blushed and smiled, but refused the urge to look away.

"I could say the same to you," she said. "Lift your arms up...I want to see you again."

Thomas complied, and Alana lifted his shirt off of him, quickly folding it and placing it next to her cloak. She wasted no time in placing both of her hands against his chest, sighing as she ran her fingers over his muscles.

"I love the way you feel," she said appreciatively.

Thomas took angled her head towards him with one hand, moving in for a kiss. She allowed him, and eagerly met his lips.

When they pulled apart, Thomas smiled.

"I think it's only fair if you let me do the same to you, Alana."

"Of course," she smiled. "Undress me...lover."

Upon saying that, she tried and failed to suppress a small giggle as Thomas moved to undo her bra.

"Lover," she repeated. "I'd never thought that I'd have anyone to call that."

"I like it, though..." Thomas grinned, undoing her straps and casting her bra into the growing pile of clothing. He leaned in close to her and whispered directly into her ear. "...lover."

Before she could react, Thomas leaned over and took one of her head fins into his mouth, and gave it a very gentle nibble, while his hands moved to gently cup and massage her breasts. The unexpected stimuli caused her to gasp and shudder.

"That felt really good," she breathed happily. "But...warn me next time!"

"Alright," he smiled nefariously. "I'm about to bite your fin again."

"Wai-"

She couldn't finish her protest before another shudder and gasp coursed through her body. Being so close to her brain, the pleasure affected her almost instantly, and it felt like the blissful waves of pleasure bouncing around in her head were turning her brain into mush.

"That's not what I meant," she protested weakly.

"You said it, right?" he teased. "We don't have much time. I'm just acting in my own survival interests, here."

Before she could get in another word, Thomas moved one of his hands up to gently pinch one of her nipples, again causing her to moan and squirm.

"I'm not the one who..." Alana grit her teeth as she tried to get her words out. Thomas gave her no mercy, continuing to explore and play with her body. "...who needs to get off first!"

"Maybe I like to take risks." Thomas moved down her body, and took one of her nipples into his mouth, gently sucking on it.

"You have got to be kidding me," she moaned into his shoulders. "I'm trying to save your life, here! And you're acting like-like a newborn!"

He intensified her pleasure by starting to play with her other breast at the same time.

"Do you truly find my breasts so captivating?" she complained. "They aren't that special..."

"Yes," Thomas grunted, pausing briefly to come up for air. "They're perfect."

He kept playing with her body for another few minutes. The only sounds that filled the cave were Alana's moans and gasps of pleasure - they were safe, totally insulted from the storm raging above them.

"Alright," she said firmly. "Alright, enough! Seriously, I don't think I can hold the magic for more than fifteen minutes. Hands above your head, mister!"

Thomas reluctantly complied, but not before removing himself from her nipples with a small pop. To her credit, Alana only gave a small gasp before resuming her stern glare.

"You have some gall," she admonished, working his pants down and tossing them aside. "Teasing me like that...I hope you're ready for some payback!"

Alana stopped as she saw the outline of his member, sticking out pointedly at her through his boxers. She briefly lost her train of thought until she remembered her purpose. She summoned her all of her willpower - his life quite literally depended on her ability to get him off in these next few minutes. Before she moved to undress him completely, a curious idea struck her.

She pulled back for a moment, which prompted her lover to give her a curious look.

"You keep those hands where I can see them," she threatened. "It's my turn."

Alana let her hands fall to her hips and undid the sash that hid her womanhood, but she did not cast it aside. She turned her attention back to her lover, and swam towards him with as much seductiveness as one could have while swimming. He moved to speak, but she put her index finger against his lips to silence him.

"Quiet," she commanded. Her voice was firm, yet still playful. "We can take our time and have fun when I'm sure that you're not going to drown in the middle of it. But for right now? I need to make sure that you don't interrupt me. Open your mouth, lover."

He blinked at her, then grinned eagerly.

"I like where this is going," he chuckled, allowing her to gag him with her sash and tie a knot around the back of his head.

"Now, then," Alana said, smiling sweetly. "Let's get back to business, shall we?"

Without warning, Alana yanked off her lover's boxers, revealing his painfully hard cock. She took hold of her lover's hips and spun him around, pushing him down onto the bed, face-up. She moved in to settle in between his legs, her tail hanging off the frame of the bed. Before she began, however, she looked up at her lover's eager face, and gave him a serious expression.

"One last thing," she warned, "Keep your hands under your body. If you so much as touch me, I am going to stop for an entire minute. Understand?"

He nodded, unable to speak. And with that, she reached for his hardness and took him into her hands.

And then she realized...that she didn't really know what she was doing.

Perhaps this wasn't the wisest idea...

...no, it was too late to back out now. She understood the very basics of sex, at least. Her sisters had helped her learn that much. Play with his penis, remember to be gentle, and don't stop when he starts to pop. She took a breath to steady herself - she would just have to learn quickly, and adapt based on his reactions.

Alana adjusted her grip, wrapping both hands around his cock. One near the tip, and one near the base. She started to gently tug him up and down, sliding her hands to match the motion. The effect on him was immediate - a long, muffled moan escaped from his gag. That sounded promising! Alana kept the position for a while before deciding to throw in some extra moves.

She started twisting her hands around him as she went up and down, adding in gentle squeezes at random to break up her rhythm. Thomas moaned again, louder and longer this time, and he arched his back a little every time she squeezed him. This was coming to her far easier than she had expected. She kept pleasuring him in this way for a few minutes, taking great enjoyment in watching him squirm at her touch.

Alana watched her lover start to breathe more heavily, felt his cock swell even larger. Those were signs that she was doing well. Her sisters had never specified that before, but she simply knew it to be true. Her mamono instincts were taking over, she assumed.

It was time to intensify his pleasure even more.

"I can feel your dick throbbing," she said, shocked by how easy it felt to slip into dirty talk. "Do you like what I'm doing to you? Do you like being gagged, unable to talk or touch me? Your pleasure is totally at my mercy, right now."

Alana didn't consider herself a sadistic person, not in the slightest. Sadism just wasn't in the nature of a sea bishop. This was just an extension of their earlier game, really. It was something private, something just for the two of them to explore with each other. It was to be expected that they would find new sides of themselves when they made love - and wasn't that wonderful?

Alana laughed and leaned forward, planting a small kiss on the tip of his dick, which made him wriggle.

"Do you want me to take you in my mouth?" she teased. Thomas nodded vigorously.

"Okay," she said sweetly. "Here I go...aah..." Alana opened her mouth wide and slowly lowered her head towards her lover's aching dick, all while maintaining eye contact. She could see the desperation in his eyes, how badly he needed her to please him. She let the head of his cock pass into her mouth, but without letting it touch any part of her. Then she stopped, paused for a moment, and pulled back. She leaned back and dipped her head towards his sack, giving his shaft a long lick from base to tip.

Thomas screamed his frustration into his gag and began thrusting his hips, desperate for stronger stimulation. Alana giggled and let go of him completely.

"That's my payback," she said, smiling innocently. "Maybe next time you'll think twice about being so rough with my fins, hmm?"

Thomas nodded fiercely, and she could tell that he was silently begging her for mercy.

"Hmm..." Alana started running a finger around his pelvic area, avoiding his cock. She wasn't ready to give up teasing him quite yet - this was far more fun than she had ever imagined. "Are you sure you want my mouth?"

He nodded again.

"Really?" she pressed. "You wouldn't prefer my hands?"

He shook his head.

"Well, alright," she laughed. "I think you've learned your lesson."

Alana reached down towards him and gave his shaft another lick. This time, when she reached the top, she kept going, and took about half of his shaft into her mouth before she sealed her lips around him and began to suck.

"Mm..." she moaned into him, savoring his taste. Thomas moaned in blessed relief at the beautiful sight of Alana fellating him. He wanted so badly to give her praise, to run his fingers through her hair and to stroke her soft fins...but he wasn't sure if Alana was still playing or not. He decided not to risk it, as she sounded pretty serious when she warned him about moving his hands.

Alana kept up the routine for a while before coming off of him with a satisfying pop.

"Ah...you taste wonderful, lover..." she said breathily. "But you know that you need to cum soon, right? You know that you need to feed me."

She licked him again, and started to use one of her hands to massage his sack.

"Feed me," she commanded. "Give me your energy, give me the power to make us both happy for a long time..."

She took him back into her mouth, continuing to play with his sack, and adding in the extra simulation of her hand on the lower part of his shaft. She started rotating her head around him as she sucked him, and added extra powerful sucks at random intervals, mirroring the same techniques she used during her handjob.

It all felt so natural to do this. It felt so right!

Meanwhile, the danger of drowning was adding an unexpected edge for Thomas. The risk was intoxicating! He groaned deeper and louder than even before, arching his neck backwards as the pleasure started to prove too much for him. It was obvious to her eyes, but Alana swore that she could practically sense his impending orgasm on an almost supernatural level.

Drops of precum were oozing out of his cockhead. Without realizing it, Alana lapped them up with her tongue, unwilling to release his shaft for even a moment. It awakened her to yet another avenue of pleasuring her lover, and she started to throw her tongue into the mix, as well.

That was the final sensation Thomas felt before he started to tip over the edge. All of the pleasure that Alana was giving him blended together into a single mass that overwhelmed his senses, causing him to groan in ecstasy.

Alana felt him peaking, and doubled her efforts. She clearly remembered one piece of advice from her eldest sister - to not stop pleasuring him as he burst, because that was when the man was most sensitive, when he needed your touch the most.

He cried out again and his dick began to jerk, pulsing his warm essence into her mouth. The second that she felt the first spurt leave his body, she gave a strong suck and swallowed it all down.

The instant that his seed hit her taste buds, her eyes went wide. She knew that she had a specialized organ in her body that consumed the spiritual energy from human sperm, but this? This was taste beyond comprehension!

Delicious was an understatement. She immediately understood that she would never be able to forget this moment. As cliche as it seemed, it felt like she had truly opened her eyes for the first time, beginning to see colors that weren't there before.

This taste - it was her lover's pleasure, given physical form. It was his essence - she could taste the power contained within it, she could taste that the very core of her lover's being was contained in this energy.

Words couldn't do it measure. It was indescribably good, and she had to have more of it!

Alana increased the intensity of her ministrations, tugging on his shaft, kneading his balls, and sucking on the tip of his cock, even as he thrashed and groaned into his gag. She swallowed everything that he had to give her, lovingly teasing more and more out of him. When he finally stopped throbbing and pulsing into her mouth, she slowly pulled off him, giving a strong suck the entire time.

She had to be sure she got it all. It would be the greatest possible sin to waste even a drop of his ambrosia.