4.

Rei's grip tightened on Lyra's leg where he had caught it at its apex.

She was so beautiful. Her slim figure tantalizingly close to his own as Lyra's body heat radiated in gentle waves towards him driving Rei crazy. Rei shuffled closer to Lyra catching hold of her waist as he did so closing off Lyra's movements even more.

Rei stood practically pressed against her center as her leg quivered in his iron palm next to his shoulder. Her foot inches from his face.

Rei's indulgent light smile had transformed his usually cold and expressionless face. His eyes thawing as he gazed deeply upon his Lyra. His fingers flexed lightly as his grip turned to shackles on her, tightening further before finally crushing Lyra to him as he drove his nose deeply into Lyra's thick black tresses.

His strong, straight nose tracing Lyra's silken strands of hair down past her jaw until Rei's face was thoroughly buried deep into the crook of her neck.

Inhale.

Exhale.

Inhale again.

Rei repeated this, starved of her scent while they stood locked in place together under the torrential rain.

To Rei, even soaked, Lyra smelled of sweat and soggy heat. The faintest perfume of magnolia flowers clung to her hair as he breathed deeply of her and his heart trembled at the memories it induced in him. Like, when he first saw her, they're first meeting, the gruesome battles they had fought together, and the passionate nights they had shared.

All of it stirred in Rei's mind like petals caught in a spring breeze as Rei clung to Lyra. Meditating in the sound of her pulse. A gentle and even thrum through her veins and the respite he had been so desperate for in the days she had so thoroughly eluded him.

A sharp pain to his scalp alerted Rei from his thoughts as he lazily moved his face away from the curve of Lyra's neck. Rei's eyes met with an enraged gaze that clashed violently with his own careless and serene one.

Lyra let her fist tighten its hold in Rei's hair as she pulled savagely at the roots.

Rei didn't even have the decency to flinch.

"Let. Go." Lyra bit out, her voice hard and crystal clear even though it should have been drowned out under all the downpour. Her eyes shooting daggers and hellfire at Rei as Lyra's teeth practically gnashed together.

Lyra was normally expressionless and cold like Rei, she was always collected, refined, but detached. Everyone in her life accepted Lyra's character of being hard to read and aloft- but when it came to Rei, there were cracks in Lyra's mask. Lord knows, it had taken Rei ages to learn Lyra's every minute expressions and centuries more to earn Lyra's unabashed and genuine smiles but more importantly, her love.

Even Lyra hadn't had a clue she had fallen until she woke up stunned one morning to realize she loved Rei.

Rei of course had known from the start, but he never pushed Lyra into realizing her feelings sooner. Rei was patient all the while through the passage of time and waited for her.

Waited for her to be ready to let him into her heart.

Rei had loved Lyra from the start. What was a little more patience for his greatest reward? Her realization of the feelings she had towards him. To Rei, it was more than worth the wait.

Rei's eyes never left Lyra's as he turned his dripping face, his dark wet hair still in Lyra's incredibly strong grip and kissed the ankle of her delicate foot like he was worshiping a goddess. Lyra's expression darkened like the storm clouds above their heads and in a split-second she broke from Rei's hold on her waist under the cover of a loud thunder clap. Lyra used the small window to turn boneless as she slipped out of Rei's hold and slid between his braced legs.

At Rei's expansive back Lyra quickly launched herself up onto it dodging his swinging arms as Lyra's arms and legs circled Rei's neck, squeezing mercilessly. All of this done in a second, Lyra never really out of control as she easily turned the tables in her favor.

Rei's breath was cut short but his reaction was fast as Rei let himself fall backwards with abandon onto the hard ground as his steel arms trapped Lyra in place behind his head.

They fell. Lyra's back taking the brunt of the fall as her head slammed into the rubble dotting the mountainside. Lyra wheezed harshly, seeing stars. The wound on her ribs reopening causing the trickle of blood to transform into a river as it started to come out faster than before.

A wave of dizziness hurled itself straight at Lyra's consciousness making the world go dark for a minute. It was all Rei needed to wrench out of the chokehold Lyra had around his throat. Rei spun around nimbly in the mud straddling Lyra while he pulled at her legs, dragged her closer to him forcefully.

Sheets of rain hurtling down at them obscured their view, making their surroundings harder to distinguish. The only reprieve from this fearsome dark and stormy night were the blinding flashes of white hot lightning. Thunder following close behind, ripe to deafen ears as it echoed ferociously off the mountain.

Lyra struggled against Rei's grip. Her fist flying towards Rei's face as her legs finally broke free only to wrap around Rei's waist. Lyra used Rei's half-seated position in the mud to leverage herself upright from off the ground adding the extra burst of momentum to her rocketing swing.

As knuckles collided with flesh Rei's jaw made a satisfying popping sound when it dislocated. At the same time Lyra felt unholy agony as Rei's fingers dug savagely into the open gash at her side making it bigger. Lyra stifled a scream as she bit her tongue drawing blood.

Shifting again Lyra released her legs from around Rei's waist and landed with a soft thud back on the wet ground while she aimed a well-placed kick towards Rei's crotch. Rei rolled, just in time, getting his feet under him again. Rei's hand reached towards his face as he gave a lopsided grin at her before popping his jaw back into place with a sharp snap. He hadn't so much as moaned.

With a grunt Lyra swung her leg out again this time intending to trip Rei as he made a move to approach her again. He jumped back, Lyra not wasting time quickly followed after him scrambling up from the slick ground as she gave chase.

Hair whipping wildly in the wind of the storm, the wet strands alternated between clinging to her face or whipping harshly against her pale skin.

Lightning clapped behind her and outlined her body against the backdrop of the mountain. Lyra's eyes were bloodshot and filled with malice. Loathing and fury seeped densely from her pores as unbridled bloodlust poured out of her, thickening until a dark bright red aura engulfed her.

Rei wasn't even phased as he eyed her from a few feet away. Water slid down his face making him look like a marble masterpiece left in the rain. Rei ran his hand back along his hair so that it would stay out of his face, languidly taking in the sight of his Lyra.

She was mad at him. For now. But Rei could fix that. In time Lyra would realize everything he had done had been for her.

Everything.

Lyra let lose a battle cry before charging him, her blood mixing with the rain like her shout had with the thunder as lightning flashed again. Only this time, in the lightning another figure was revealed.

Rei's eyes widened in surprise before he bellowed with a howl that shook the heavens.

"NO!"

But it was too late.