Summary: As they get closer to the Iron Empire, Kenna realizes her feelings for Diavolos go deeper than she expected.
Part 1 (PG-13) Part 2 (PG-13) Part 3 (NSFW) Part 4 (NSFW)
The closer they get to Ducitora, the calmer Kenna gets. She expected to be panicking, but, she’s come to realize, short of finding a way to predict the future, there’s nothing else they can do to prepare. Having Diavolos in her bed nearly every night probably helps keep her calm too, though no one except Annelyse knows that.
He’s incredibly adept at making her forget everything else, his skillful hands and mouth leaving burning trails across her skin, the words he whispers in her ear erasing her worries for the moment. As much as she tries to keep her feelings for him in check, as the days pass, it gets harder and harder to deny that there’s something building between them.
Even though he’s told her this isn’t some one-time thing for him, even though he’s opened up to her about his brothers dying and about growing up with Luther, and even though she gets the sense that this is becoming a deeper relationship for him too, her self-preservation instincts still kick in, and she tries not to let him see how deep her feelings are becoming. And, she reluctantly admits to herself, they don’t and can’t have a conventional relationship.
She doesn’t even know if they can have a relationship at all beyond this, when it’s all said and done, but one night when Leon has half-reluctantly agreed to let Diavolos take watch with him, Annelyse asks her just that.
“Do I want a relationship with him after this is all over?” Kenna asks in surprise. “One of us could die. We could both die. I…”
She can’t say she hasn’t thought about being with him after this, because she has, in the quiet dark of her cabin when she’s alone, or when he’s accidentally drifted off to sleep next to her.
“I think I might,” she finally admits quietly. “But how can we?”
Annelyse smiles gently. “If you want it, if he wants it, you’ll find a way to make it work. You’ve already told me you don’t just see him as a Nevrakis.”
“I don’t,” she agrees. “But what about everyone else?”
Annelyse shrugs. “Well, I think we’ve all started to accept him. Even Leon and Val.”
“Luther will never accept this,” Kenna says miserably.
Not that she cares about his approval, but she knows what that man is capable of when he’s displeased.
Annelyse’s expression turns briefly sour at the mention of his name. “Luther won’t accept anything but getting control of Abanthus back. Kenna. I know you have a kingdom full of people to think of. But sometimes, even if it seems like the whole world is resisting and fighting against you, you still need to do what’s right for you. I know how self-sacrificial you are. But you still deserve to be happy.”
~~~~~~~~~~
A few days out from Ducitora, they’re slammed by a massive storm. It scares her, her adrenaline pumping as they’re thrown about on large, angry waves in what is really a very small ship. Diavolos takes immediate control, calmly directing everyone but the crew from Panrion and Leon inside, telling Kenna and Raydan to make sure all of the lanterns are out. She hunkers down in the sleeping quarters with the others, riding the storm out and hoping to gods it passes soon. When the waves finally subside, she slowly makes her way outside.
Everyone is drenched on deck, but, Leon assures her, they’re all okay, and the ship doesn’t seem to have any damage. Diavolos has a cut on his forehead, blood dripping down his face, and he swears irritably as he swipes at it. Even though she knows he’s fine, it still makes her heart clench a little. He refuses to go inside or let Annelyse look at the cut until Kenna quietly sidles up to him and discreetly squeezes his hand. He sighs as he looks down at her, a half smile crossing his face.
“You’re going to keep bothering me until I go in, aren’t you?” he asks.
“I am,” she agrees with a smile.
Diavolos rolls his eyes but relents, following Annelyse below deck. When he comes to Kenna’s cabin late that night, he’s wearing his usual confident grin, but she can see the way he grimaces slightly and holds his left side as he walks through the door. Kenna frowns as she tugs his hand away, slowly undoing the buttons on his shirt and pushing it over his shoulders. Even in the faint glow from the lantern, she can see the purple bruise blooming across his ribs. She lightly trails her fingers over the spot, pulling her hand back when she hears him suck in a breath.
“Sorry,” she murmurs.
“It doesn’t hurt,” Diavolos tells her, gently placing her hand back on his side and closing his eyes as she runs her fingertips over his skin.
There are scrapes and bruises dotted across his chest and ribs, and a few on his arms and back as she walks around him.
“Some of these look bad,” she says quietly, lightly touching her fingers and lips to each spot.
Diavolos shrugs and sinks down on the edge of her bed. “I’ve had worse from getting thrown around on a ship before.”
She’s sure he has. He reaches for her and she settles herself in his lap, mindful of his bruises. His touch is gentle as he slides his arms around her and presses his lips to hers.
“Are you okay?” he asks.
“Not a scratch,” she reassures him. “Thanks to you.”
“I have a little experience with ocean storms,” he teases her.
“Good thing,” she smiles, leaning into him carefully and running her hand through his hair and down to cup his cheek.
She studies him, this face she’s come to know so well, and her brow furrows slightly as she thinks about her talks with Annelyse.
“What is it, Kenna?” Diavolos murmurs, brushing his lips over her palm.
It’s a loaded question, given everything that’s been on her mind lately, but she’s not sure she’s quite ready for him to hear all that yet.
“Nothing,” she finally says, leaning in to kiss him again.
He winces and she pulls back. “I’m fine,” he promises. “But I can’t promise tonight will be very exciting.”
Kenna smiles, standing up. “That’s okay. Do you…want to just stay here for a while? My bed is more comfortable, after all,” she says half-teasingly.
Diavolos chuckles as he slowly stands up. “It is.”
He watches through hooded eyes as she gently undoes his pants and pulls them over his feet, then eases himself back down to her bed. She hesitates just for a second before she latches her door and removes her clothing, gratified to hear Diavolos’ quiet groan as she carefully lays next to him.
“I will never get over how beautiful you are,” he murmurs in her ear.
She presses her lips to his bare chest and carefully settles against his side, threading their fingers together.
“I’m probably going to fall asleep,” he apologizes, blinking sleepily at her.
“Go ahead.”
He’s asleep within a few minutes, his breathing deep and even, his face relaxed and peaceful. She forces herself to stay awake even though she’s exhausted, knowing he can’t be seen leaving her cabin in the morning. Just as she’s about to wake him a couple hours later, he stirs, his face pinching into a frown and a quiet groan leaving his mouth as he stretches, his eyes opening slowly.
He grins when he sees her, tugging her closer to him and brushing his mouth over hers. He looks at her with a mixture of amusement and affection.
“What are you smiling about?” she asks with a smirk.
“I woke up next to a beautiful, completely naked woman. Why wouldn’t I smile?”
Kenna rolls her eyes as she fights back a laugh. She sits upright and Diavolos curses quietly, reaching for her when the blanket pools around her waist.
“You’re injured,” she reminds him, sighing as she slides back down and his lips brush over her neck, his stubble scraping lightly against her skin.
“I can work around that,” he assures her, running his fingers over her hip.
“I want you,” he says in her ear, then bites her shoulder.
She hears him hiss in pain as he leans over her, shaking her head and gently nudging him to lay back down. He protests, again, that he’s fine, but Kenna gives him a stern look that ends up dissolving into a smile as he laughs at her attempt to scold him. Eventually he relents, laying back down and gingerly wrapping his arm around her waist as she rests her head on his chest. They lay in a comfortable silence, his skin warm under her cheek, his heartbeat a soothing, steady thump in her ear.
“If you won’t let me make you feel good-” Diavolos says after a few minutes, and she sucks in a breath and nearly gives in at the implication, knowing just how good he can make her feel, “-will you at least tell me what you were thinking about earlier?”
Kenna fidgets unintentionally and Diavolos squeezes her thigh. “You can’t be naked and squirming against me like that,” he says in a strained voice.
She stills immediately. “Sorry.”
He squeezes her leg again playfully. “So what was it?”
Kenna props herself up gently on his chest, her brow furrowing as she tries to think of what to say.
“Kenna,” Diavolos says, cupping her cheek. “You’re starting to make me think you’re planning to toss me overboard.”
She cracks a smile. “I’m not.”
“Then what is it?”
She sighs, absentmindedly trailing her fingertip over his jawline. “I like you,” she finally says slowly.
Diavolos chuckles. “Is that all? You’ve told me that before. I’ve been told I’m a likable person.”
Kenna huffs, fixing him with a frustrated look. “That’s not what I meant.”
Diavolos pulls her closer and kisses her deeply, his hand sliding around to tangle in her hair. When he pulls away, he’s smiling.
“I know what you meant,” he murmurs, pressing his lips to hers again. “You already know this isn’t a one-time thing for me. I’m not planning to just stop liking you when we get back to the Five Kingdoms.”
That makes her smile, and even though she knows this is far more complicated than just liking each other, his words still manage to quiet some of her worries. She settles her head against his shoulder, tracing her fingers across his chest.
“We should be in Marossi in a couple days,” he reminds her.
“Mm-hmm. I don’t know if I want it to hurry up and get here, or if I want time to slow down,” she muses.
“Do you still think this will end badly?” she asks after a minute.
Diavolos sighs, brushing his lips over the top of her head. “I do. But we’re as prepared as we can be.”
She murmurs her agreement, stilling her hand against his chest.
“I should probably go,” he says after a little while.
“Probably,” she sighs.
He eases himself upright, grimacing slightly as he stands and slowly pulls his pants on.
“Want some help?” Kenna asks teasingly, wrapping the blanket around her and climbing out of bed.
Diavolos grins as she slips his arms through his shirt sleeves and starts doing up the buttons.
“A woman wanting to help me get dressed,” he smirks. “That’s a first.”
Kenna smiles as she finishes his shirt, rising up on her toes to kiss him.
“Good night,” she murmurs.
“I’ll see you tomorrow.”
He slips quietly out her door and Kenna returns to bed, staring up at the ceiling until her eyes drift closed, the gentle rocking of the boat making her fall asleep.