Make the most of our time

He returned her kiss, and then it was Artorias' turn to chuckle while Briar accepted his offer to bathe her and turned to present her back to him. He shifted to sit closer to her in the warm water until he was right behind her, lathering up the soap in the hot spring and rubbing the bar over the back of Briar's neck and down across her shoulders. The scent of aloe and mint oil mixed into the soap lightly filled the steamy air as he rubbed the suds through Briar's fur, using his claws to comb through her coat and untangle any knots and free any dirt. His paws worked in slow, kneading circles across her muscles, giving Briar a massage as much as he was bathing her. Simply being this close and intimate with her still made his heart beat faster in his chest, a warmth spreading from inside his core that rivaled the heat of the springs.

While he was washing her fur, Artorias took the time to marvel at Briar's beauty. She was such an impressive wolf and did things to him that no one else could. Gentle paw pads ran down her back on either side of her spine, tenderly kneading through the taut, lean muscles on her sides while he ran the soap through her fur. Not a single inch of her body was left unattended to, covered in lather while his paws worked her over. Once he'd gotten her back soaped up, he set the bar on the edge of the spring and grabbed an empty bowl, filling it with some of the hot water and pouring it slowly down her back and along her shoulders, rinsing her clean. Artorias couldn't resist once the soap was gone, leaning closer to press his chest to Briar's back and leave a trail of slow, savoring kisses along the back of the Fatalis princess' neck, breathing deep her scent mixed with clean soap.

Artorias set the bowl aside and grabbed the bottle of wine, pulling the cork out with his teeth and spitting it aside somewhere. The pungent scent of fermented grapes and alcohol hit his nose immediately, causing him to sniffle to avoid sneezing at the bitter smell. Taking the bottle, he passed it over to Briar, giving her the first drink. "Heads up, it's a little potent. It's sweet and a little bitter, but I think you'll probably like it," he warned her in advance, then grinned while he nuzzled the side of Briar's face. "Drink up, Princess!" The dark-furred wolf took the soap once more and returned to his girlfriend, sidling up behind her again while she had her first drink and looped his paws around her sides, taking to scrubbing along her sides from underneath her forelegs to down her sides, curious to see her take on alcohol.

"Artorias" | "Corbin" | "Argent"