#like seeing the most stoic character in the game shed a tear upon seeing her body

[epicwin64]

The worst part about Aerith dying in Rebirth? We will NEVER get to see her Synergy attacks with Cid and Vincent.

[lady-of-lyon]

So, I made one post a while back about how awesomely feminist the show Wild Kratts was, with how its two main female characters were women of color in engineering and deserving roles of power, female villains who weren’t motivated by spite or quest for youth, etc, but today I wanted to talk about something slightly different, that I’ve wanted to cover for a while now, because I also think it’s very good - and that’s how the show portrays masculinity, in a way that’s really positive!

First, we have our two main characters, Chris and Martin Kratt. Keep in mind these two are basically self-inserts - and there are plenty of creators, especially males, who have used self-insert characters in really scummy ways - all I have to say is Powerpuff Girls reboot and you know exactly what I’m talking about. Even if they weren’t literal self-inserts, male characters, superheroes especially, oftentimes serve the male power fantasy, being just the strong, stoic, all-powerful person so many boys are told they’re supposed to be. I could get into a whole discussion about how the male power fantasy is present even when males are not (ever look through a fashion magazine and wonder why there are so few men? Sure, part of it is that the industry thrives off exploiting women’s insecurities, and men aren’t as concerned for their appearance, but another part of it is so that the guy, looking through it, can feel like he has no competition for these women - there’s a reason so many comedians have jokes about fashion magazines being their sexual awakening as kids. It’s really scummy) but that’s not what this is about. So, the bros had every opportunity to do just that - make themselves these traditional heroes who aren’t actually really good role models, like batman or what have you. It’s certainly not uncommon for celebrity cartoons to do stuff like that. But Martin and Chris chose a different approach. They’re pretty strong standouts for positive masculinity. They’re openly affectionate - both with eachother as brothers, and with their friends. They cry, sometimes over little things - most of the time when big superheroes cry, it’s ‘cause they lost the girl they loved or their mentor or something like that, only in the big, most agonizing moments do they shed a tear. But here, Chris or Martin will cry just because they’ve had a bad day, or because they’re overwhelmed and overjoyed that someone named a mantis after them! In a lot of shows or movies when a guy cries over something little, it’s usually played for laughs, or to emasculate him, but here it’s casual without being unreasonable or overdone. The brothers cry just ad much, maybe even more (haven’t gone back and counted or anything) as the girls do. Not to mention, it’s a very nice depiction of a loving, healthy sibling relationship. As the youngest sibling myself, it’s refreshing to see a pair who don’t abuse eachother with noogies or cruel and snarky remarks. When they do fight, it’s never a screaming match, and also because they had a conflict of interest or disagreed over a fact, not because, say, one of them stole the other’s shirt or is neglecting the other’s feelings. Kids, being very impressionable, get exposed to a lot of abusive sibling relationships played as normal in media, and start thinking this is how siblings are and should act. For instance, my sister (who is now my best friend and has gotten over all these bad habits over time) when she was younger watched a lot of Kim Possible, a show that is great, but has a bad family dynamic with Kim and her little siblings. The “tweebs” as she calls them are always irresponsible, destructive, and making Kim annoyed to no end. My older brother was one of the most polite, reserved, kind little kids, but she still treated him like he was a brat and a nuisance, because that’s what shows like Kim Possible taught her little brothers were. Additionally, I was always treated like a spoiled crybaby who just wanted attention and got away with everything - I was not any of those things, ever, but that’s what shows teach you little sisters are. Sure, Wild Kratts has a smidge of that, with Chris seemingly being the stereotype of the know-it-all little sibling, but instead of being constantly looked town upon for being too “perfect” like with Hailey Long in American Dragon, Martin often praises his brother for his abilities. Sure, Martin gets annoyed when Chris tries to correct him on things, like in the episode Wolf Hawks, but everyone else does too, so it feels more like a take-down of mansplaining than a sibling spat.

I talked too in the feminist post about how refreshing it is that Chris and Martin more or less willingly put themselves under the authority of Koki and Aviva, two women of color. I don’t think it’s possible to say any one character is the “leader,” they all work as a evenly balanced team, but it’s safe to say that Koki and Aviva make the more responsible decisions. The bros try to get out of their calls a few times, but the show plays it more like they’re being irresponsible, and less like they’re renegade cool dudes who don’t take nothing from nobody, especially not two girls. They are pretty much always punished via karma for their reckless choices, most especially in To Touch a Hummingbird, where their arrogant attitudes blow up in their faces rather spectacularly. We also never see the narrative most present in sitcoms, where the male leads mess up and go out of their way to cover it up and ultimately gets away with it - after all, you have to root for them, right, because sure they messed up and had no consequences, but aren’t they just so lovable? No, here Martin and Chris always have to fix their wrongdoing, and it’s always deserved when they get comeuppance. Another aspect of the show I like is that, many times, when the bros get captured or are in peril, they are saved by the women - and most refreshing of all, there’s never a moment of “wink wink nudge nudge wow I can’t believe I had to be rescued by a GIRL” or even “wow you saved me you’re pretty good honey guess I shouldn’t have underestimated you, you go girl!” No, when the girls save them, it’s just - you know, relief? Because they were saved? It’s never a scenario played as an exception, or any more dire than when the bros need to rescue eachother. The bros are genuinely happy to have them as teammates. The show even did the standard “boys vs girls” episode in the form of When Fish Fly - but instead of being actually girls vs. boys, it’s engineers vs. adventurers. There’s nothing really gendered about it - the girls happen to be engineers, and the boys happen to be adventurers. And the episode doesn’t end with the boys being “wow gosh darn I shouldn’t have doubted you girls are better at everything,” it’s a mutual agreement that both parties have hard jobs. Basically, the bros are very naturally respectful of women. That plays more into their feminist narrative too, but either way, it’s refreshing.

Then, we have Jimmy! Jimmy, the lovable gamerboy pizza man. At first glance Jimmy seems like the stereotypical cowardly, pathetic, emasculated loser. He’s frightened of most things, as of yet has no power suit, and he BAKES for crying out loud! But none of these things are framed as terribly bad traits. Sure, we laugh when he screams and runs from an animal, but though it happens over and over, the crew doesn’t get sick of it. They don’t berate him or belittle him because he’s so gosh darn cowardly. There’s a great scene in Rattlesnake Crystal where Jimmy has to deliver something to the bros alone, in the middle of a spooky desert. He is terrified the whole time, sprinting off after he delivers the goods. When Martin and Chris run into him, they don’t laugh at him for being spooked, they just greet and then bid fair well to their friend. To them, this is just Jimmy, and there’s nothing wrong with it. Jimmy isn’t coddled, but he is reassured many times that he’s a valuable member of the team. I love that little message, that you’re just as important of a person even if you can’t do as much or have greater limits. When his friends do try to get him over his fears, it’s not because they have to, that the day will somehow be ruined by Jimmy’s incompetence p, but because they’re his friends, and want him to experience fun and wonderful things that he would otherwise miss out on. But what Jimmy CAN do is just as important! Jimmy is a gamer, which in a lot of shows, is portrayed as a lazy, useless, mindless hobby. But here, because he plays video games, it makes him essential for piloting the ship and teleporting important items. There’s always the joke that video games improves your hand/eye coordination, but recent studies have shown it has much better effects. It can make you much better at keeping track of multiple moving objects and processing technical but variable information- two traits which, fittingly enough, are really really important for air traffic controllers and airplane pilots! He also demonstrates a lot more courage behind the wheel of the Tortuga, which makes sense - in an impersonal setting, he would have more sense of calm and control and courage, because it’s so similar to a video game world. It’s not all too different with how I feel more emboldened to pick fights with people on the internet, but get crazy anxious if a real person so much as looks at me. So Jimmy’s love of video games isn’t because he’s irresponsible, it has real benefits. A quick last point - Jimmy also eats a lot, but they thankfully don’t make him fat or greedy or anything like that. He never takes food from people, he actually bakes, and shares it with others! Having the baker be a boy is a lovely touch.

I might do another post about the toxic masculinity of the two villains, (or four villains, I guess, if I wanna discuss the minions) but I’ve got other work to do, and this post is long enough already, so I’ll get around to it later. I’ll sum it up with this - Wild Kratts is a show that teaches boys it’s not only ok to be kind, but essential. The brothers protect defenseless animals, advocate for things “icky” and “weird,” like bugs or snakes or worms - not because they’re boys, and boys like icky things, but because they genuinely see the beauty in all life, and are encouraging us to slow down and do the same. The Wild Kratts are heroes who save the world not by being the strongest or smartest or coolest, but by looking after those who are exploited and vulnerable, who are essential to the world, even if they can’t always do everything. In Wild Kratts the only weaknesses a man can have isn’t what he can’t do, but what he does do that he shouldn’t have. Sure, it’s a cute show about two funny guys who have cool powers, but it’s also a show about accountability, compassion, respect and trust. The show says “boys will be boys” in all the right ways - Martin is a lovable goof with a heart of gold, but he still has to get his act together when he messes up, and he’s still creative and smart and openly sensitive. Chris is a bit of a know-it-all show-off, but he can also mess up as much as his brother, and is still bold, brave, adventurous, and can put his money where his mouth is. Jimmy is a cowardly, napping, eating machine video-gamer, but he’s still a valued member of the team, has incredible skills and talents, and will always help his friends, even if he is really, really scared. It is so important to have role models like these, in a world dominated by unhealthy machismo. The Wild Kratts are heroes who save the world - both animated, and real.

All they need now is a canon queer character, and I’ll stan them forever! My money’s on Aviva!!

[ephrampettaline]

.. chatzy transcript with @cassiegermaine

the grand lady of summerset and the lord of the honeywilds sow seeds for future fruition

House Pettaline -- when there had been a House Pettaline -- wasn't a clan given overmuch to intrigue or dramatics or even imagination. Creativity, in fact, was somewhat frowned-upon; the long line of lords of agriculture and bee-keeping believed in the value of the soil you could sift through your fingers and the sheaves of wheat you could count in your storerooms. Flights of fancy were viewed with suspicion at best and hostility at worst.

Ephram had kept his own fanciful thoughts to himself from early on. In some ways he berated himself for being a coward and not speaking up, offering his views on how Honeywild Holding could adapt to newer cultivation methods and should possibly engage in more social interaction with other Houses, thinking that perhaps he might have been able to prevent House Pettaline from dwindling away like withered corn on the stalk.

Instead of being in the position he was in now, which meant relentlessly quashing his own pride in order to reach for access to influence and power wherever he could find them.

The character of his stoic, pragmatic House still left its legacy, though -- the static tenseness of the Bluesprings Keep after the horrendous assassination of the High Raj was deeply unsettling to Ephram. He could barely sit for more than ten minutes, needing to leap up and walk and pace, and so he found himself in the lavish court gardens in an attempt to get the Rajasthangard to stop glaring at him in the castle corridors.

He wasn't alone there, however. Recognizing the elaborate glossy tresses of the Lady of Sommerset standing out dark and rich amidst the blowsy, tall white roses that grew in the salt air, Ephram made his way over to Cassandra and gave a slight bow of greeting. "You've got either very well-hidden guards protecting you," he said, "or you're well-nigh fearless, Lady Cassandra, after what we were witness to earlier." This close, she smelled of frosted gardenias, feminine and inviting, and Ephram wondered where she got the flowers. An attar, maybe, given her ties to the seafaring Princes of the Isles. She would want for nothing, regardless of seasonal availability. It was a heady thought, made more so by what Ephram could now see was a ripely swelling figure in her beautifully-made gown.

Cassie was admiring the quiet and simple beauty of the palace gardens. It was a moment of needed solace after visiting outside the walls, and so many meetings with all the other nobles that were full of fear and tenseness. She heard the crunch of his footsteps first, turning her head slightly before facing the Pettaline and watching him bow slightly before her. “Between my own guards and those provided by my brother I am well looked after, but even I need moments of peace.” She smiled softly, “Alone - I don’t see how much harm can come to me.” One of her hands brushed the delicate petals of a white rose and she asked, “Where have you been running to amidst all the chaos? I don’t think I’ve seen your face in a room for more than a few moments at a time.” She clicked her tongue, “People might start to get suspicious of you.”

Ephram gave a wry chuckle, lifting his hand to follow the trace of Cassie's on the rose, but along the underside of the petals instead. "One of the few benefits of hailing from a holding with very little claim to martial or political strength, Lady," he said, "is that we haven't got anything at all to benefit from throwing the Bluesprings back into chaos. There isn't anything nefarious or interesting to my whereabouts and gettings-up-to, I'm afraid; I've been doing my damnedest to secure assurances of non-aggression against the Honeywilds."

He looked down at her -- she wasn't a tall woman, but there was a calm regalness to her that was undeniable -- and murmured with a slow smile, "...although I admit it is a warming thought that you've noticed when my face was missing from the throng."

Cassie lips thinned at Ephram's response to her, her brow furrowing in a clear idea of opposition to his words. But she had come to the gardens to escape political games, not stir them anew. Her blue eyes flickereed up to meet his own, "Somone in my posisiton can never be too observant. Besides-" Her voice dropped into a soft whisper, "You haven't come to visit me. I suppose you've been too concerned over your wildflower patches at home. Or perhaps my little brother has become more of a handful?" Either way, the fact that she'd been ignored had clearly annoyed her.

Now that wasn't what he'd expected. Not about Prince Miguel, Ephram had no doubt that the more savvy members of the Threepenny Prince's family would know about their dalliance before the sweat had even dried.

But the fact that the Grand Lady was piqued that she hadn't appeared higher on his list of people to ingratiate himself to, that threw him. Only momentarily, though. Ephram knew what he was to these people, the elite highborn -- a diverting bit of rough, with enough title and looks of his own to mean they weren't completely lowering themselves -- and that was all he needed. Just the chance and opportunity.

"Prince Miguel is very sweet, like the honey he's named for," Ephram said diplomatically, taking note that she didn't call him brother-by-marriage or anything distancing like that. And yet she was about to cuckold her husband, brother to that little brother?

Maybe she wasn't. Maybe she only wanted Ephram to devote his time and efforts towards seducing her, to feed her own ego or boredom or nerves, before she summarily rejected him. And, well ... he could work with what he was given, whatever that would be.

"I didn't realize you'd be amenable to company, Lady Cassie." Ephram turned to face her properly, taking one of her hands -- it all but disappeared in his own -- and stroking his thumb along the inside of her wrist. Like white rose petals, there, and the butterfly beat of her pulse. "Or my visits would've been scattered in your favour." He smiled, the expression lending a genuine quality to the flattery, and let go of her hand to slide his arm around her hips and bring her close against his tall, lean body. "My wildflower patches are well worth admiration," Ephram murmured, dipping his head to trail the point of his nose against her soft, rounded cheek. "But there come times when all's I want is to sink my hands into sommat more refined, beautiful, more cultivated. More exquisite."

He kissed her, lips parted slightly to encourage Cassie to respond in kind, his other hand sliding up her side to just barely snug against her breast.

"Ah-" Cassie held up a finger when Miguel was praised, "Even the sweetest individuals can make you sick." Which was really just more of a warning. Surely the Honeywilds Lord and seen Iann and Miguel at eachother throats throughout this visit. It wasn't exactly wise to underestimate either of them. She laughed lightly, "Well I can't just declare it in front of the the whole Quiver, honestly Ephram you need to start looking at people a little deeper than that. Especially if you want to keep your wildflowers safe." Cassandra stepped closer to him, only quickly scanning the garden grounds around them. Her hand rested on top of his that found her hip and gave a small upturn pull of her lips. "Summerset is certainly more varied and worth exploration than this bland white rose explosion." Her heart raced at the brush of his lips, and at the invitation she didn't hesitate to kiss him deeper.

Ephram accepted Cassie's admonition without protest; after all, she was married into the family of the Isles. Whatever advice or information Cassie wanted to provide, he'd do well to heed. "I've got something of a sweet tooth," he admitted, before the subject of Miguel and his sugary charms was dropped entirely in favour of the circuit of intimacy that swirled between them, the bite of Cassie's words paired with the soft yield of her body setting Ephram's blood racing.

He growled into the kiss, throaty and low, and then swept his thumb over the swell of her breast, teasing until he could feel the peak of her nipple. "It helps, then," Ephram said, lifting Cassie against him so that he could kiss his way down her decolletage, fingers yanking what fabric he could out of the way, "that I've always been considered the adventurous one in my clan." Her gown was layered like a damn blossom, it seemed, and Ephram felt some gossamer cloth squeak and give way as he tore through it. With a lusty huff, he closed his lips over Cassie's nipple, sucking and kissing, giving the sweet secret flesh a nip with his teeth before kissing again.

Cassie huffed grabbing Ephram's wrist for a moment when she heard the quiet tear of her gossamer shift. But her hold dropped when his lips trailed and teased her tender nipple. Her eyelids fluttered and she glanced up to the sky for a moment before giving a heady chuckle. It was true that it felt good in certain attentions, but she didn't understand most men's obsession with ladies bossoms. Or destroying garments, for that matter. Cassie gave a little yelp at the breif sharpness of his teeth, and pressed a hand to his chest to pause him. "If you're going to be rough, you can't just defile me in the open." She rasped.

"I'll defile you somewhere else, then."

Setting her back onto her feet, Ephram latched his fingers around Cassie's and towed her through the garden, weaving in and out until they reached the potting shed. This being Bluesprings Castle, though, the 'shed' was a vast, airy room with plenty of long tables, a cistern of clear water, the fresh scent of plants and loam filling the air.

Ephram wasted no time at all in setting Cassie atop one of the tables, his strong hands rustling up her gown higher on her thighs as he bellied up between her legs and kissed her hungrily. "This is better, isn't it?" he said, starting to undo the pearl buttons of her bodice, wanting her full breasts swelling out into his hands. "The work in process, before it's put out all prettied up and polite for the rest of the world to see. In here it's still waitin' to be planted, and everything's still a little dirty." The last button came loose and he tugged aside her flimsy shift -- no ripping, this time -- to devote himself more fully to her nipples, her curving flesh.

Her breasts weren't as high and tight as a young girl's would be, something that Ephram delighted in; Cassie'd mothered a baby, and even if she'd used a wet-nurse, it still had made lush pastures of her bosom. "You're flowers in bloom all over, petal," he murmured against fragrant, silky skin, and then put one hand on the inside her her knee, under the rumpled rustle of her gown. "I want to taste those dewdrops."

Cassie hurried as she was pulled through the pathways of the garden, holding up her half loosened bodice until she and Ephram reached the lavish garden shed. Her arms wrapped around the back of his neck as Ephram hurried lifted and held her against her one of the work tables. "It is." Cassie agreed, a little more comfortable now there wasn't the risk of just anyone walking by and encountering them. It didn't matter that the Lady of Summerset could have whoevr she wanted, it'd still be considered a scandal. Her skin prickled with goosebumps as the shift was fully tugged to the side this time, and Cassie's fingers tangled in a bit of hair at the nape of Ephram's neck as she let out a shakey breath. The whispers against her skin were enough to coax a soft moan from her throat and she pressed harder against him so that the hand at her chest and snaked up her thigh rubbed just that bit rougher. "Why don't you devour it instead?"

He lifted his head at that encouragement, coupled with the movements that encouraged him to plunder instead of browse. "Surely you haven't been denying yourself all this time of a man's attentions," Ephram grunted as he dropped to one knee, big hands roughly spreading Cassie's pale thighs wide, splaying her obscenely for his view. "You couldn't talk like that, honey, and be keepin' yourself all prim folded up like a rosebud. Not when there's all this to be worshiped."

Although it would seem that the Lord of the Honeywilds believed in a rather primal form of worship, from the way the tips of his thumbs dug twinned bruises into Cassie's thighs as he pushed his face between her legs, groaning in pleasure at his first taste of her. Verdant and deep, the scent of her filled his head and he slurped at her lavishly, using the broad flat of his tongue first and then the pointed, eager tip to dart at that sensitive pearl. He sealed his lips over her clit, not content with such hummingbird sips, and sucked down on her hard, holding her open with one shoulder now so he could slide two long, thick fingers into her core.

Cassie grinned down at Eprham, the curl just a little wicked a her blue eyes glinted, "Oh, wouldn't you like to know?" She might share her body, but she'd hold onto her secrets. Her expression strained slightly as his hands strongly held her open and when Ephram's face first ventured amongst the bunches of her skirts Cassie let out a wavering sigh. Her hands moved from his neck down his back some, and the more Ephram's tongue ventured and pressed againt her, Cassie grasped and pulled at the fabric of his shirt. She was already aching deep within herself and as Ephram's ministrations intensified so did her gasps and groans.But then he sucked at her so strongly Cassie almost felt lightheaded before kicking out slightly in reflex, "Gods above-" She panted "I can hardly stand it."

"Mmmmmm." The air of triumph was evident in Ephram's bumblebee hum against her softest parts, and he let up enough to lick at her in hard darting motions of his tongue before concentrating on frigging her with his fingers. Every now and again he pressed the pad of his thumb against Cassie's slick, swelling clit, quick and hard, before pulling it away again. "You'll have to," he intoned throatily, mouth thick and lush with the nectar of her. "I don't intend to stop until I have you drenched and wailing for me, honey."

Ephram rose to his feet again, giving Cassie a fast but significant kiss as he bunched her skirts up in his fist as high as they could go. Some people didn't like to taste their own arousal; being heavily invested in keeping his lovers sweet and indulgent, Ephram didn't linger too long on sex acts that might upset the applecart. He loved the taste, personally, which had served him well in his endeavours. Sometimes these higher-up nobles didn't know just how lustful they'd get when confronted with Ephram's earthy, unrepentant, driving sort of carnality, what depraved things they'd be driven to new heights by. "You want me to fuck you now, Lady Summerset?" he grunted, dragging his scruffy face against her smooth one, gaze locked on the brightness of her eyes.

His fingers twisted inside her, thumb tapping an insistent staccato against that pretty pearl of her sex. "Tell me you want me to fuck you now. Or tell me in some gardening wordplay -- instruct me to dig deep enough to plant my seed, or beg me to plough you thoroughly, or say you're parched and need to be watered until you're running with it. You'll get whatever you want."

And hopefully, there'd be a fair bit of that manner of thinking the other way around, too, once Lady Cassie'd gotten her end in.

Cassandra wasn’t exactly used to submission, or if the situation naturally called for it, she certainly didn’t acknowledge it willingly. She was a Queen after all, and the damn Honeywild boy had all but said it himself. She was well worth more than him. But she was in a haze pinned between Ephram and the table, and when he spoke to her her mouth could only managed a moan or some unintelligible slur of words. Cassie sighed into his brief kiss, and could only manage continuous nods when Ephram prompted her. “Yes, god-“ Her breath hitched at the new movement and Cassie finally went to grab his wrist again in an encouragement to pause. Even just a moment of reprieve would be enough, her skin had already begin to redden with heat and arousal. “Since you’re so clever then-“ She breathed, yanking Ephram’s hand away from her parted legs, but also pulling him forward after so that he fumbled slightly on top of her. Cassie bit her lip feeling the erection through his trousers, “Plough the fields well and deep.” She stated dramatically, just a hint of laughter beneath her words.

A thrill of overwhelming excitement ran up Ephram's spine as Cassie -- stronger than she seemed -- halted the movement of his hand, and then managed to unbalance him. Physically as well as mentally; it wasn't often that Ephram bedded someone who took charge of the proceedings. It wasn't that he was averse to being the dominant partner, but the truth was that Ephram was naturally biddable and good at following cues.

So if the Lady of Summerset wanted him to fuck her, Ephram would do his damnedest to acquit himself in pursuit of her pleasure.

He tugged his trouser fastenings open, lunging forward to find her wetness and slide his cock through for a few strokes before pressing the thick head against the voluptuous softness of her cunt and thrusting in. "Gods above and below," Ephram gasped, burying his face against Cassie's pale throat, mouth open and dragging as he started to move his hips in earnest. He wrapped one arm around Cassie's back, the other hoisting her leg so he could clamber closer onto the table, drive in deeper and faster to set a punishing pace for the both of them.

Cassie sighed softly as their most private parts joined together, Cassie renewing her grasp around Ephram as he moved and adjusted her to attempt and thrust as deep as possible. It was a slightly overwhelming feeling, and combining it with the slight scratches from the stubble on his face was enough to make her cry out a few times he hit that particularly sweet spot. She could hear the slight creak of the table, and the air around them was so thick and hot Cassie sometimes felt the breaths she was getting in was enough. Regardless, she could feel the ache and pressure building in her gut and her lips eagerly sought out Ephram’s before she spoke, “That’s a steadfast cock. Don’t stop.”

Ephram rode into and against her body with less careful movements now, groaning loudly in time with each protest from the table, the sound and scent of their coupling thickening the air. "I won't stop, Cassie," he promised, hauling her bodily up against him as he redoubled his thrusts, hips jackrabbiting against her as he plunged into her again and again. "And you'll give me what I want too, won't you? I don't ask much. Only that the Summerset thinks fondly of--" Ephram paused, grunting through clenched teeth and rubbing his damp forehead against Cassie's chest, panting along the softness of her breasts. "Remembers the Honeywilds fondly, when she counts her allies and contacts."

Cassie’s expression was first slack with pleasure before it shifted and contorted into something like curiosity. She looked down slightly at Ephram as he nuzzled into her chest and cleared her throat, “I’m not exactly the type to mix business with pleasure but-“ And Cassie strained then pushing back the creeping feeling of release for just a few moments longer. She lifted a hand and brushed a few strands of damp hair out of her face, “You’re certainly proving yourself a worthy ally to have on hand.”

Ephram tipped his head up to look at Cassie, his scruffy chin scraping along her skin, and then moved up to kiss her. Hard and deep, as his thrusts slowed and got more intense; it was only the firm grip that he had on her bodily that kept Cassie from being jolted across the tabletop. "I'll prove it as often as I need to," he growled, voice hoarsened with desire. "Whenever you want me to." Ephram tangled one hand in Cassie's hair after she stroked it back, knotting his hand into a fist so he could expose her throat to his mouth again. His breath was coming erratic now, body tight and straining, but Ephram held off on his own climax to grind against Cassie's clit with each rough lunge. "Let me see it, honey," he begged, lips finding her nipple again. "Let me see you find completion."

“I’ll hold you to that then.” Cassie responded in seriousness, before hissing in air at the feeling of her hair being knotted. “God, god-“ The second request alone was enough to send Cassie over the edge, her inevitable climax breaking inside her so intensely her back arched slightly up off the table. She cried out in ecstasy in time with the waves that overtook her body, muscles eventually relaxing but leaving her raw and extra sensitive as she tried to recollect her bearings still pinned to the table.

And Ephram crashed after her, the velvet clench of Cassie's body on his cock drawing his orgasm out in a violent shudder. He bit down hard on Cassie's bodice, the fabric creaking in his teeth as it soaked with his spit and he rode out the lashes of his spend that ribboned deep inside the Summerset Lady's belly. Ephram stayed there, the weight of his body pinning Cassie to the table, his hips flush against hers as he shifted them deliberately, fucking his seed into her as far as he could before finally withdrawing.

He dropped to his knees again, eyes closed as he pushed his face between Cassie's sticky thighs and licked her clean of the spunk leaking out of her. A good ally knew how to cooperate before he was even asked, after all.

Cassie was slightly taken-a-back when Ephram knelt down to lick between her legs again, but she let him since she was still coming out of the fog of her orgasm. Cassie sat up then, pulling the front of her dress back together as she looked down at Ephram. Her smile was relaxed and pleased, and Cassie ran her fingers through Ephram’s hair before tilting his face up to look at him directly again, “You certainly provide a valuable service.” She commented, crossing her legs and adjusting her skirts with her free hand, “Honeywild Holdings will certainly have a spot at my table should you ever come visit Summerset.”