Nobody knows it, but you've got a secret smile.

PlicaeÂ’s senses stirred, but he did not open his eyes when he felt Koani rub her cheek against his and then trail her tongue along his jaw line. Instead, he made a rather contented groaning noise, and then lifted his arms over his head, being careful not to hit the thill as he did so. He also wriggled his limber, naked body, before he put his arms down and finally popped his colorless eyes open, their sleepy depths immediately wandering upwards to meet KoaniÂ’s own gaze.

“Hey," he said after a second. He was halfway between lying flat on his back and being on his side, and he rolled so that he was completely on his right side, using his elbow to prop himself up. For an instant, Plicae turned his face away from Koani to glance around the room, though he was not left wondering why his own clothes were strewn about. Despite having been quite inebriated, he happened to remember the events of the prior night, and when he finally latched his eyes upon hers again, there was a mischievous glimmer in them.

“That was definitely different," Plicae said with a deep, purring laugh, before slowly hoisting himself up and turning so that he was in a sitting position. He became somewhat tangled in the sheets, but quickly loosed himself and threw them partially aside. “To answer your question, no, I don’t hate you now that it’s morning. In fact, I think my feelings are quite the opposite." He smiled fondly then, though for one reason or another his courage failed him just then and he couldn’t say the three words he wanted to. He was just glad that the sentiment was easily implied.

“I really have to pee," the lukuo added on after another moment, and he made to swing his legs sideways off the bed. As he did so, he winced as a sudden soreness around his pelvis jabbed at him. Obviously, having been chaste for a year had put him out of fitness. And although the sex had not been bad at all, he now felt the repercussions of having been out of practice for so long.

Trying his best to mind his tenderness, Plicae stood, and after casting a puppyish grin over his shoulder at Koani – my, how good it felt to wake up beside a pretty girl again! – he then began to make his way towards the adjacent bathroom. The tile of the floor was cool beneath his feet, and so he walked even more gingerly as he made his way to the toilet, bent down, lifted the seat up, and then stood over it to empty his bladder, which was likely so full due to his drinking the night before.

After heÂ’d relieved himself and flushed the toilet, the arden moved to the sink and deftly began to wash his hands. Plicae studied his reflection in the mirror as he did so, and he noted that he looked tiredÂ… but there was a glow about him. In fact, there was a grin on his face, though he hadnÂ’t even known he was smiling. This caused him to chuckle, and as he rinsed and then dried his hands, the lukuo knew that the things heÂ’d done with Koani the night before had been so right, so perfect. HeÂ’d let go in the biggest way of all, had opened his heart and shared his body with her, had had fun. And now he felt lighter and happier than he had since before his wifeÂ’s death.

“Nng… you made me sore," Plicae whined playfully as he exited the bathroom and padded towards the bed once more. He kneeled on the edge, and then did an odd stomach slide forward so that he ended up on Koani’s legs, his arms around her middle and his head resting comfortably in her lap. “Bitch," he added on with a giggle and a purr, just because he knew she’d like hearing him swear.

“By the way… what did you do with my daughter?" he added on after a second, though there was no alarm or worry in his voice as there could have been. Plicae was certain that Koani would have taken good care of Villi and arranged for her sitter to be on watch, and so he felt no anxiety as he buried his face in Koani’s lap – quite close to her intimate bits, really – and made some of his trademark “murring" sounds.

 

Plicae soon released the squirming Koani, and with a grin upon his face, he sat up. Due to her tousling, his hair was all askew, namely his color streaked bangs, which were now hanging in his face. The arden reached up a hand to swipe the hair out of his eyes, and also pulled idly on an antennae as he did so. Then, because sitting upright put him in the perfect position to do so, he leaned forwards and placed a slow, soft kiss on the edge of KoaniÂ’s mouth, before tracing his tongue quite delicately along her lower lip.

“For a minute there, I believed you," he joked after drawing away a few inches. His right hand once more reached up, but not to play with his own hair. Instead, he placed it on the thill’s jaw line, and gave her a quiet, satisfied smile. “Thank-you for taking care of her for me, and for taking care of me, as well… in all the ways that you did. I seriously cannot describe to you how right everything feels this morning."

Leaning his head forwards, he put his mouth against her ear and purred, before withdrawing and glancing towards the bathroom. Plicae imagined he smelled like stale alcohol, and perhaps sweat and other things as well. A shower was definitely in order, and he grinned as he thought of the last time heÂ’d showered in her room, on the first night heÂ’d stayed here. HeÂ’d secretly stolen over here each subsequent night since then, and Koani had even slipped him a copy of her room key card, but most mornings he was out before true sunrise so that he could be with Villi and shower in his own stateroom. Today, with the knowledge that arrangements had been made for her care, he was in no hurry to return to the niotie just now.

Swinging his legs and rolling off the bed again, the lukuo stood next to it and stretched his arms a bit. As his fingers reached towards the ceiling, he instinctively noticed his lack of a wedding ring. He hadn’t put it on again since the other night, nor did he plan to ever wear it again, at least on his finger. Right now it was sitting in his underwear drawer back in his own room, and he was planning to have a chain put around it so he – or Villi, perhaps – could wear it around his neck. It was a great complement to the silver helixes and cuffs he tended to wear around his biceps and fetlocks.

“Tandem showering?" Plicae purled to the thill after his short stretch, and he offered her a hand and a playful look. If he had his way, the lukuo would have sex with Koani every day from here on out, but this invitation was more affectionate than erotic. “Showering with a friend is very useful, you know… they can get to all those hard to reach spots… plus, it’s quicker," he added on with a bit of a purr.

 

Plicae didn’t say anything, but smiled quietly before trailing Koani into the bathroom. As she padded over towards the toilet – he prided himself on having put the seat down earlier – the arden then turned away and moved towards the shower. Placing his palm flat on the fogged glass, he slid the door open and then bent over a bit to twist the knobs of the faucet. Immediately, water rushed out, and then he pressed a button that diverted the water upwards and through the showerhead. Straightening out, he stuck a hand under the water and then smiled when it heated up rather quickly and began to emit steam with rolled about the room, moistening and warming the air.

By this time, Koani had finished with her bathroom break, and Plicae glanced over towards where she was standing at the sink. His eyes landed on her just in time to watch her dry swallow a pair of pills, and his tail flicked as he wondered what they were. Because they hadnÂ’t used any sort of protection the night before, it was likely that Koani was being careful and taking some contraceptives. Even though he was pretty sure she hadnÂ’t been receptive, he thought such an action was fairly responsible; their relationship was new and rather secretive, and having an unplanned nioti was pretty much the last thing either of them wanted.

“Shower’s ready," Plicae piped up, but instead of stepping into it, he padded over towards the thill. He playfully rubbed at her side before he squatted beside her and opened a small cupboard that was below the sink. In his own stateroom, he’d found a waterproof radio in the same place, and just as he’d expected, Koani had one too. It was a small appliance, easily held in one hand as the lukuo stood. His other hand sought out the Grader’s as he then moved towards the shower.

Maintaining his grip on her fingers, he stepped into the shower. Immediately, the hot spray beat down on him, slicking along his dark fur and matting his hair, as well as fogging his glasses, though a specially designed property in the glass soon cleared them up. Plicae scooted towards the back of the shower to make room for Koani before he let go of her fingers and grasped the radio with both hands, carefully lifting it against the wall and attaching the suction cups on its backside against the damp shower wall. When it was firmly fastened, a black finger pushed the power button and the radio crackled before automatically tuning itself to a rock station.

Grinning rather wickedly, which was somewhat unlike him, Plicae turned to face Koani. He lifted his left hand up and outstretched his other, and began to air guitar in time with the music. Then, when the guitar riffs were over, he thrust out a hand and grabbed the nearest shampoo bottle – Fresh Flower? – and pretended to use it as a microphone.

“It’s been sunny with a high of seventy-five, since you took my heavy heart and made it light," he crooned along in his deep voice, colorless eyes glittering as he regarded the colorful thill standing just inches away from him, water pounding down and cascading over her slender, willowy form. “It’s funny how you find you enjoy your life when you’re happy to be alive." It sounded like something their kids would listen to…

 

After his little show of sorts, Plicae became quiet once more, though the mischievous glimmer remained in his eyes and the corners of his mouth were upturned. His smile grew a little more when Koani then took a step closer to him, bringing herself within less than an inch of him. Her delicate fingers could be felt walking over his shoulders, and then his upper arms, where the arden was wearing a matching set of platinum helix bands. They were, of course, made of stainless materials and would not become rusty in the shower, but Koani was right. In order to wash up properly, they needed to be removed, as did the silver cuffs Plicae was wearing around his digitigrade fetlocks.

Depositing the bottle of flowery shampoo on one of the showerÂ’s shelves, the male bent forward a tiny bit and lifted his foot up so as to twist the thick band from around his ankle. He then rotated to his other leg and repeated the same. Once both cuffs were in his hand, he then made to straighten himself, and on the way up he bent forwards just a bit more to place a playful nibble on KoaniÂ’s collarbone.

Setting the ankle bands aside, Plicae’s hands moved to his arms as he easily tugged off the helixes. He put them atop the other pieces of silver, and then looked down at Koani with a smile. The lukuo was free of markings, and now also of decorations. The only coloration that marred his perfect black pelt was the orange and white tints on his tail, as well as the dual bands – one a stark white, the other a radiant orange – that had been tattooed near the head of his penis not long after hatching, as part of a family tradition akin to earthen circumcision. He felt remarkably free like this, completely bare and dampened by the dripping water and steam.

“A cold shower, eh? Why’s that?" Plicae belatedly replied to the thill’s words, a teasing note in his voice. He understood what she’d meant, and he knew she wanted to resist the temptation to fool around too much. Plicae himself didn’t really feel like making an attempt at shower sex right now. For one thing, he truly was sore, and for another, it sounded hazardous to their collective health. Perhaps, though, she would be up for some other methods of play?

“Soreness plus fear of slipping and dying equals no Plicae sex for you," the lukuo joked with an affectionate purr, and as he spoke, he reached out a hand and rubbed at Koani’s stomach. The remaining half an inch between them closed as he then drew his body against hers and carefully wrapped his arms around her, mindful of her spikes as he wrapped her in a tight embrace and rested his chin atop her head. “Perhaps you won’t mind this, though?"

There was a suggestiveness to his voice, and as it trailed away to be replaced by nothing but their breathing, a soft rock song, and the showerÂ’s spray, Plicae loosed his grip, turned the thill around, and then put his arms around her again so that his hands were now wrapped around to her front side. Once more, his fingers massaged her belly, before he began to walk his hands further downwards, clearly making a voyage below her waist. But just above KoaniÂ’s most intimate and female parts, PlicaeÂ’s hands froze, and then suddenly drew away.

Less than a second later, the lukuo had grabbed the bottle of flowery shampoo and squirted its entire contents onto KoaniÂ’s head.

 

The scent of flowery soap was almost overpowering now, but Plicae was too busy grinning foolishly to notice. The gooey pink substance was trailing down KoaniÂ’s hair and causing the water at their feet to become sudsy. The floor was also becoming quite slippery, but the lukuo kept his feet firm so as not to fall. He was just trying to be playful, and the last thing he wanted to do was hurt himself, or her, by stumbling or falling.

Apparently, however, Koani had a different game plan in mind. She turned around to face him, and her expression was both amused and dangerous. For a split second, Plicae thought she might jokingly strike him, as she often did when he was being too gentlemanly. Instead, she pressed up against him and put her hands on his sides, before soliciting and then administering a sensual kiss that left the arden a little bit breathless. This was perhaps partially due to the fact that one of her hands was ghosting over his privates.

If he’d mistakenly thought all was well, Plicae soon learned the truth. Koani’s hissed obscenity was soon followed up by a rather staid bite to his throat, which tickled in a painful sort of way. At the same time, the hand near his genitals enclosed around the sensitive skin of his testicles and gave them a rough squeeze. Perhaps this would not have hurt half as much if they hadn’t had boisterous “boy on bottom" intercourse last night that had worn him out. As it was, the soreness soon became a stabbing pain in his lower regions as Koani squeezed and held on.

Battling his surprise and his urge to cry out, Plicae bent his neck downwards and wrapped it around KoaniÂ’s, and when his mouth was near her ear, he finally gave off a pained noise, a sort of purling groan, as if pleading her to release him. He then nibbled at her ear, stuck his tongue inside it, and bucked his hips once against her hand as if trying to throw her hand off him.

“Cock tease," he whispered in return to her own name calling. “You’re hurting me," he added on in a matter of fact voice, as his hands fidgeted and snaked up her back, pulling gently at her as if begging her to let go, though he did not actively attempt to release himself. “And you smell like flowers."

 

Finally, KoaniÂ’s grip loosened, and Plicae exhaled slowly as the pain ebbed away. He was still tender, though it was more of a dull ache nowÂ… an ache that that was mostly forgotten in lieu of the thillÂ’s changed grip. Now, she was gently petting him, her fingers pressing and kneading in such a way as to easily arouse him, despite his soreness.

“Mm… I like you too," the lukuo replied to Koani’s words, his voice a bit husky as she continued to handle him. He was a little too distracted to make a joke of her wish for him to scream, so instead he bent forwards yet further and hunched a bit to place his chin on her shoulder. He then moaned her name rather loudly in her ear, followed by a rather thick rendition of his trademark murring noise.

Still, she continued to manipulate him, and Plicae moved so that his forehead was pressed against her shoulder and his colorful bangs draped over it. She’d bitten him and then licked the small “wound," and now he returned the favor by nibbling on her flesh. His were tender love bites, mostly because he would only be rough per request, and secondly because his mouth was not altogether too far from her scars.

In the two or so minutes since her touch had become gentler, Plicae had already become quite aroused. Despite his soreness, he felt himself become firm, although Koani’s fingers hadn’t even touched his penis – yet. The lukuo’s hands, which had still been prodding and petting oh so gently at Koani’s back and sides, now slipped around to the front, but he didn’t touch her. Nay, instead, his hands both went down towards where she was touching him, and he gently pried her fingers away from his scrotum. He then deftly used them to wrap her warm grip around his erection, and still holding her fingers under his, he began to guide her hands in a rubbing motion, his encouragement quite clear.

All the while, his face was still buried in her shoulder, though he turned it sideways a bit to suckle at her neck, and he blew his warm breath on her earlobe as he quipped with something of a deep purr, “Iyo rujali huba sy syokh na sy das na hujp. Ty nokh vyj dassemd klaum. Pym’s tsyg myf."

 

The arden smiled faintly at KoaniÂ’s words, though he was far too distracted to do much else. As her hands enclosed around him and she began to rub, first at a slower rhythm and then faster and faster, PlicaeÂ’s breath sped up with the pace. His eyes closed and he continued to press his face into her shoulder, and his hands remained with hers, overtop her fingers, adding the slightest degree of added pressure as Koani continued to stimulate him.

This tandem masturbation went on for a good few minutes, Plicae struggling to savor every second and not reach his peak right away. He tried to momentarily focus on other sensory information, such as the hiss of the spray as it beat down on their close bodies, as well as the soft rock song playing on the waterproof radioÂ… but it was fruitless. His entire consciousness was focused upon the feeling of KoaniÂ’s soft, warm hands manipulating along the length of his penis, and, perhaps earlier than he would have liked, Plicae felt himself about to experience an intense orgasm.

He had no real opportunity to step back or otherwise avoid Koani. Besides, her grip was too tight upon him, and he didnÂ’t think either of them would mind overly much. He signaled to the female that he was about to come by moaning rather loudly, and the next thing they both knew, their fingers as well as KoaniÂ’s upper leg were warmed by white fluid as Plicae ejaculated. He uttered a noise that was a curious blend of a groan and a purr, and when his forceful release was over, Plicae sagged against the thill and murred more deeply than ever before.

“I hereby formally withdraw my earlier statement about you being a cock tease."

Though the spray of the shower was pounding down, it was mostly on KoaniÂ’s back, and so when Plicae released his fingers from overtop the femaleÂ’s, he could feel the sticky warmth of his own semen on his fingers, just a small amount. His first instinctive urge was to reach behind her and put his dark digits beneath the spray to rinse away the fluid. Instead, however, he lifted his right hand to KoaniÂ’s mouth, almost forcibly rubbed his thumb across her lower lip, and then dove in for a sensual kiss as both his arms now moved to wrap around her. He could taste his own salty sweetness, just a vague tang, as his tongue traced along the edge of her mouth and then proceeded to play with hers in an undeniably intense and erotic exchange.

 

Their zealous kiss broke off soon enough, though Plicae was left grinning and breathing somewhat faster than usual as Koani nibbled on his bottom lip. He was rather glad that it hadnÂ’t been quite intense enough to excite him all over again, for at this point the arden could feel a dull pain in his lower regions due to all the exertion. Also, it was about time he actually got clean, considering he was in a shower. Sexual play with Koani was immensely fun and satisfying, but they both needed to wash up and get out on deck before someone came looking for them.

Ironically, just as he was musing over getting clean, the thill reached around him and clutched a bottle of shampoo before squeezing its fragrant contents onto PlicaeÂ’s head. The lukuo laughed as he felt the soap ooze in his multihued hair, and he playfully returned KoaniÂ’s lick at his snout. He then did his best to hold still as she began to lather the shampoo into his hair.

After the scent of tropical fruit had totally surrounded them, the male reached a hand upwards and collected some of the excess shampoo and gingerly began to rub down the rest of his pelt. As he applied the fruity scented goop to his body, he wriggled a little in a dance not unlike his drunken strip dance the night before, and Plicae snorted and laughed at himself as he finally finished lathering himself. Koani was finished with his hair as well, and so he slipped to the thillÂ’s other side and stood beneath the brunt of the showerÂ’s spray, tilting his head backwards and reaching his hands up to rinse the foamy lather from his black, white, and orange locks.

After flipping his head forward and re-rinsing it, as well as wringing out his tail, Plicae was then finished with his cleansing down. Casting a grin at Koani, he reached behind himself to turn the faucets off, and then turned to open the fogged door to the shower. Once heÂ’d made certain there was a mat on the floor, he then turned back to the Grader thill, put an arm around her back, and then abruptly lifted her over the edge of the shower before setting her down on the mat and exiting the shower himself.

The air in the bathroom was somewhat chilly, and the arden shivered a bit as he collected the towels that Koani had set out earlier. Before attending to himself, he playfully wrapped the thill up. When sheÂ’d taken a hold on her provided towel, he then shook himself out a bit to get rid of the droplets of water clinging to him, before deftly tying the clean, white cotton around his waist.

The arden generally brushed out his hair but did not do much else in way of grooming, save for brush his teeth. Though he’d been spending all of his nights in Koani’s bed, he was usually out before sunrise, and had had no need to transfer any toiletries of his own into her room. Now, though, Plicae realized he didn’t have simple things, like a comb or a toothbrush. Koani probably wouldn’t have any issues lending him a brush for his hair – that was, if she wasn’t busy yanking it through her own glossy, aquamarine locks – but when it came to a toothbrush, the lukuo wondered if she would have a problem sharing it with him.

“Then again… you’ve kissed me and now had my come in your mouth, so I can’t imagine you’ll have too much trouble letting me use your toothbrush just this once," Plicae mused aloud, his eyes twinkling as he regarded the damp Koani.

 

Plicae found himself chuckling at KoaniÂ’s aversion to sharing a toothbrush, but otherwise remained silent as she explained that she didnÂ’t share. His colorless eyes watched as she moved towards the sink, and his gaze widened slightly when her fingers pinched his backside. He gave her a boyish giggle in response, and then accepted the red and white toothbrush she proffered to him.

“Thanks," he said laughingly, and then turned to seek out the bottle of toothpaste. After applying some to the new brush, he then shoved it in his mouth and began to scrub at his teeth until his mouth was fully of minty froth. At this point, he braced his dark hands on the edges of the basin, leaned forward, and spat, before running the tap to rinse the sink as well as the toothbrush.

With newly shiny fangs, Plicae turned and grinned at Koani, before he then glanced in the mirror over the sink and began to comb his fingers through his hair. He had far less than his female counterpart, and so it wasn’t overly difficult to work out the worst tangles and snags. With these taken care of, he then swept his hair into its usual style – the majority of the colorful, highlighted tresses dangling around his face and giving him that dashing, brooding appearance that was his trademark.

“I guess I’m going to have to wear my clothes from last night," the lukuo said thoughtfully after fixing his hair, and with the towel still about his waist, he padded out of the bathroom and into the bedroom once again. Almost immediately, he bent down to collect an article off the floor, before he methodically went around the room and plucked his boxers, pants, shirts, and scarf off various pieces of furniture. Then, with the bundle loaded into his arms, he stepped back into the bathroom.

“Got anything planned for today?" Plicae asked as he began to shake out his clothing and smooth over some of the creases. He put the spares on the now closed toilet seat and glanced over at Koani as he spoke. They were a couple, at least somewhat, but nobody but them knew that, and so they didn’t have a shared schedule. “I think I’m going to try to meet the rest of the council people, and then hang around with Villi… as usual. Do you think it’d be too obvious if we ate dinner together? Hum," he added on, his tone thoughtful. They’d dined privately before – at Koani’s house – though eating together here might be suggestive of something.

While listening for KoaniÂ’s reply, Plicae carefully untied the towel from around his waist, patted himself down one last time, and then began to dress. He noted that his clothes smelled a lot like stale bourbon, and he thought perhaps itÂ’d be best if he stopped by his own stateroom after leaving hers, in order to grab a change of clothes.

 

“I think I’m going to stop by my stateroom when I leave here, to change into something a bit cleaner," Plicae stated idly as he finished dressing. He lifted his sleeve towards his nose and inhaled, once more scenting the pungent, alcoholic scent. The arden rarely drank, and almost never in excess, but he’d simply let himself go last night. Luckily, he hadn’t behaved too peculiarly, and he remembered almost everything. The only blank spot in his memory was the trip from the deck party to Koani’s room, but he figured there wasn’t much to remember there, anyhow.

“Sounds good," he added on when Koani said she’d hang out with him for the day. Plicae padded after her out of the bathroom and into the bedroom, smiling fondly at her as he flicked his tail. He wouldn’t be able as whimsical with her in the public’s eye – he wouldn’t be able to kiss, hold, tickle, or else be affectionate with her – but just spending time together was always good, and he was grateful. The lukuo had strong feelings for Koani, and although he was still unable to say “I love you," to her, he knew that he did, that he loved her.

Shuffling to stand next to her in front of the open closet, Plicae whistled as he surveyed the clothes. She had her entire wardrobe with her, it seemed. But the arden didnÂ’t mind what she wore; he thought she looked gorgeous in most everything. Although, he had liked the capris sheÂ’d worn the first full day of the cruiseÂ… the Grader thill had rather nice legs. Now that heÂ’d seen all of them, and more, he didnÂ’t really mind much, though. Koani could wear anything she wantedÂ… as long as he got to remove it all at the end of the day.

“You look pretty in anything," he said after a moment, and leaned down slightly to lick at the corner of her eye. “It’s going to be tough keeping my hands off you in public… but it wouldn’t look too professional to be groping one another in front of everybody. Plus we don’t know how Villi, Cayson, Riot, et cetera, would feel about it. So I think I’ll keep them to myself," Plicae said with a short laugh. “But we are together… right?" he tagged on after a second, surprising himself at the sudden question that had popped into his mind just a second before slipping from his mouth. He’d simply assumed that they were a couple, really, and just wanted to make sure that’s what Koani considered them to be, too…