The Devil's Cursed Witch

With Ember engrossed in her worries, she didn't realize a certain someone was approaching her after having spotted her form on the balcony from high up in the sky.

Morpheus had a big grin on his face at the thought of surprising her.

'Good that I found you here, or I would have gone through that annoying Dragon to see you. It's not like that will stop me, but I don't want you to see both of us arguing and fighting. I don't mind you thinking that dimwit is scary, but I can't have you scared of me.'

Morpheus landed on the balcony with a flourish, the gust of wind he brought with him causing Ember's brown hair to flutter about. "Hey, little female!"

Ember, who was lost in her own thoughts, was startled by his voice, and she almost jumped out of her skin. Upon seeing it was just Morpheus, she took deep breaths with her hand over her chest, trying to calm her crazily beating heart.

"Morph! You scared me!"

"Huh? I did?"

"Yes, you did!"

"But I always arrive from the sky this way?"

Ember pouted at his cheeky response. Her heart was still pounding, though at this point she was not sure whether it was because she was startled by the shapeshifter's arrival or she was yet to recover after reading those erotic books.

Morpheus observed her red face, somewhat confused by the way she overreacted.

'Did my arrival truly shock her this much? Why does she look...' He couldn't quite find the best word to describe it. '...different, maybe? Did something weird happen to her?'

However, the wind picked up at that moment and his nose caught a whiff of her sweet fragrance. He stared at her intently for a while.

'She always smells good, like fresh flowers, but why is it so strong today? It hasn't been a month since--wait, is she..?'

Morpheus was stunned when a strange thought popped into his mind. Due to his guess, he began noticing the signs she was letting out.

'Damn, where is that idiot Dragon when he should be with his mate?! Such an ignorant creature! That dimwit can't even take care of his mate!'

Unaware of his thoughts, Ember was confused to see him standing without saying a word.

"Morph, why are you here?"

Her own question surprised her. Normally, she would feel happy whenever he came to visit her. There was no particular reason, but this time, she felt a bit bothered to see him here.

He showed her the bundle of hide he was carrying. It was filled with familiar red orb-like fruits. "Ta-dah! Dragon Fire Fruits! I picked a lot of them for you. Yesterday, you liked them so..."

"Ah, thank you," she said with a smile, but her response was a bit lacklustre from what he expected.

Morpheus placed the bundle of fruits on the stone railing of the balcony and stepped towards her, his expression showing concern.

"Are you not feeling well, Ember?"

Ember took a step back instinctively and averted her gaze from him. She looked overly nervous as she fiddled with her fingers, scratching the skin around her nails.

"Y-Yes! I am fine..."

Morpheus observed her for a bit and closed the remaining distance between them.  He held her hand and checked her fingers. "Stop that. You are hurting yourself."

The moment his hand touched hers, she felt as if she was electrocuted, and she tried to pull her hand back but he did not let go of his grasp.

"Did I? I didn't realize--"

"Tsk. You have scratched your own skin and it's almost bleeding."

"I will take care of it," she said, still trying to pull her hand away to let him know he needed to let go of her hand.

He shifted his attention from her hand to her lowered face. Seeing the pink tinge on her skin, his doubt was cleared that she was not fine--and he knew exactly why that was the case.

'Her sweet scent is stronger than ever.'

Morpheus felt his own heart skipping a beat at the realization of what she needed the most at the moment. He was a healthy male after all, and as a beastman, his instincts regarding such matters were stronger than males of the other races. His urges were pushing him towards giving her what she needed.

He was starting to get lost in that sweet fragrance coming from her. No other female's fragrance had ever tempted him like this, but this human...she was an anomaly.

'So sweet...I wonder if your lips taste just as sweet...'

Continuing to hold her hurt hand with his, his free hand moved towards her face. His rough fingers, remnants of his warrior days, touched her smooth cheek with gentle affection.

A light gasp left her lips as she looked up to meet his gaze. She could not react under the spell of his eyes. Her heart was beating faster and faster as his soft touch seemingly traced a trail of warmth on her flushed cheek. Those ash grey eyes appeared darker than usual, staring at her intensely. As if he would engulf her entirely.

"Morph...?" she mumbled under her fast, shallow breathing.

Excitement.

She's feeling a strange surge of excitement, her body humming in anticipation.

Morpheus felt the same as he could feel his own heart racing, his breathing turning heavy, almost like there was not enough air around him. He didn't wish to let her go.

"You smell so good, Ember," he said leaning closer to her, his voice so low and hoarse with desire, it made her gulp.

Ember could not pull her gaze away from those intense eyes. No word came out of her mouth. She found his face coming closer to hers, and soon enough, he was so near she could feel his hot breath fanning across her delicate skin.

"Ember..."

Hearing him say her name again, her lips slightly parted but she still could not say a word.  His voice held longing for her, and it gave her an odd impression. It was as if it was not just her name he was saying--it was as if his very existence, his soul itself, was calling out for her.

Morph was totally different from how Ember knew him.

It was strange, but she didn't dislike this different Morpheus. Her body was humming, seeking for something, and it was telling her this man would give it to her. She wanted him closer as her body started to expect from him something she could barely understand.

"Morph..."

Lost in his eyes, she ended up whispering his name. His name rolled off her tongue as if it was the most natural thing to say. She did not know why she did so and she didn't care in the first place. It was just right, and she could see his eyes darkened in response.

"I want to kiss you," he whispered back, his face so close the tip of his nose touched hers. He briefly closed his eyes as he savoured that sweet scent coming from her. 'I want a taste of her lips...'

Hearing those words, Ember's gaze lingered on his lips that were approaching hers. She wanted it. She wanted it too. She wanted him to remove the remaining distance between their lips. It was such a strong urge, her body was craving, begging for it.

And when his warm lips finally touched hers, she felt like all the thoughts inside her head melt into nothingness.

Morpheus felt her delicately soft lips brush against his. It wasn't merely even a kiss, more a beginning of one, like she was teasing him with a featherlight touch. Something inside him was roaring as his own heart raced under his ribcage. It felt as if his heart would jump out of his chest. It was the first time ever he had felt this way.

'It's not enough! More!' his urges were telling him. 'More!'

He opened her lips slowly, wanting to deepen their kiss but... but he stopped. Against his own instincts, Morpheus stopped and pulled his head back slightly. The man whose own instincts were driving him crazy fought against his desires to look at the human in front of him.

Ember had her eyes closed and lips slightly parted, willing to receive his own desires. He wanted to comply, to lower his head once more and readily give in to what he wanted, no, what they both wanted, but he needed to stop. As a man, he had to stop.

'Does she really want this?'

Morpheus knew what kind of person Ember was. She might not understand what she was doing and why she was behaving like this, but that wasn't the case for him. He could not just take advantage of her momentary lapse of judgment. He wanted to make sure that she knew exactly what she was doing... that she would not blame ignorance for the consequences of kissing a man not her mate.

Ember opened her eyes, her half-lidded emerald green eyes looking at him as if she was begging him to continue. However, Morpheus steeled his own resolve. He did nothing further although everything about her was saying she was expecting more to happen.

"Are you sure you won't regret this, Ember?" he said in a low, husky voice, his breathing rugged.