Title: Open Your Eyes

Author: Janine

Fandom: The Hollows

Pairing: Ivy/Rachel

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: I don't own them.

Chapter Summary: Rachel returns home after hiding out while Ivy talked to Glenn.

PART 8

Ivy might not have wanted to hold out forever but I was beginning to think that she was having a ton of fun sexually frustrating me.

After claiming Ivy's lips on the couch my plan was to get the vampire on her king-sized bed naked as soon as possible, but the lovely Ivy had other ideas. As we kissed I had moved to straddle her, and when my hands began to migrate under her shirt, she captured them and restrained them with her own as she had done days before.

"I have an idea," she had murmured, stroking my hands gently.

"I've got a lot of ideas," I had husked back, "but you're going to have to give me my hands back."

"Oh, I can guess what you have in mind dear heart," Ivy purred in response, her sharp little fangs showing as she smiled wolfishly at me.

"And your idea is different?" I asked arching a ginger eyebrow at her as my lips curved down in a slight frown.

"Not so different," Ivy had replied, her long, pianist fingers tenderly stroking mine again. "It's more of a first step."

"I've gotten pretty familiar with the territory over the last few days," I breathed out roughly. The things she was doing with her fingers were driving me to distraction and making me very aware of the tingle between my legs our kissing had produced. "I'm ready to jump right in," I told her trying to tug my hands out of hers.

Ivy tightened her hold on me enough to restrain my movements but not enough to hurt. She was strong, so strong, but she knew how to control her power. She knew exactly what she could and couldn't do to me without hurting me.

The thought caused a rush of desire to flow through me and within seconds the tingling between my legs had turned into a throbbing.

"There's no rush," Ivy whispered, "we have all the time in the world now. Have some patience dear heart. Waiting a little while longer won't kill you."

There was a glint in Ivy's eyes as she spoke and it was at that moment that I began to suspect that she was slowing us down on purpose and that my consternation amused her.

I won't lie, the thought irritated me but I also understood why she was doing it. This was the first time in our relationship where I was the one after something that Ivy had. Everything before this had been her asking and me denying, her laying her heart out and me guarding mine, her moving forward and me stepping back. Despite Ivy's strength and speed and combat proficiency I had always had the real power in our relationship. Rynn Cormel had been right when he had talked to me all those weeks ago; when it came to Ivy and me, I was the dominant. But now the tables had turned slightly, the power balance had shifted between us, had evened out slightly and Ivy was momentarily enjoying being the one in a position to deny.

I sighed softly then, realizing that this was a battle I was not going to win.

"What did you have in mind?" I asked knowing that I had to give her what she wanted to get what I wanted.

Ivy desired me just as badly as I desired her but she was far better at restraining herself than I was. If I didn't challenge her too much I knew that we would make love before the end of the night. However, if I kept on trying to direct the course of events I suspected that I'd be made to wait for her touch for an unacceptably long period of time.

Ivy smiled and reached out for me, placing her palms flush against my jean clad thighs and then she slowly ran her hands up my legs to my waist which she grasped.

"It's a surprise," she purred, "But don't worry, you'll like it. It involves me taking these off," she continued as she lightly fingered the waistband and button of my jeans.

And that's how I found myself stretched out in Ivy's bathtub, naked as the day I was born, with scented bubbles and a very relaxed and comfortable vampire surrounding me.

I moaned contently as Ivy's fingers combed through my wet hair, enjoying the feel of the warm water and the gentle slopes of her body behind me.

"Okay, you win," I sighed dreamily as her fingers slipped from my hair and danced lightly over my shoulders before she drew them gently down my arms. "This is nice," I admitted.

"I'm glad you approve," Ivy murmured, dipping her head down slightly so that she could kiss my temple.

I smiled and angled my head towards her, encouraging her to kiss my skin again.

"I feel like I'm in a romance novel or something," I confessed, blushing slightly as the uncharacteristically sappy words came out of my mouth. "All that's missing are candles and one of us reciting poetry."

Ivy laughed softly, and I could feel the vibrations of it where our bodies were pressed together. There was something incredibly intimate about that and I found myself shifting a little so that I could snuggle better into her arms.

"I could get candles," Ivy responded bracing her hands on the edge of tub, preparing to push herself up out of the tub.

I reached out quickly and pulled her hands back into the tub before she could start to rise.

"You're not going anywhere," I told her placing her hands back on my body. Candles were an unnecessary extravagance whereas Ivy was crucial to my enjoyment of this bathing experience. There was no question about it, she stayed.

"I could recite some poetry," Ivy volunteered helpfully.

I didn't need to turn around to know that she was smiling.

"Oh really," I murmured, my voice rising comically high. "You've memorized some, huh? Could it be that the recitation of poetry is a standard Tamwood seduction technique?"

"Oh, I'm naturally seductive," Ivy purred, "I don't need a 'technique'."

She started to run her hands over my body under the water as she spoke, as if to emphasis how easily she could make my heart begin to pump faster and send my blood flowing south.

"Besides," she continued conversationally, "I was planning on composing a poem for you."

That got my eyebrows crawling towards my hairline again. "You write poetry?"

"Rachel," Ivy drawled. "All lovers are poets."

The utter seriousness with which she pronounced that made me laugh and Ivy purred happily and hugged me to her until I started to calm down.

"Okay," I said when I had gained control of myself once more. "Lay it on me."

Ivy was silent for a moment as she composed, then she cleared her throat and began.

"Sweet smell of redwood

Your hair is very fragrant

I love you a lot."

When Ivy finished delivering the haiku, I was silent and still for a second, but then my body tensed and I had to bite down on my bottom lip to try and contain my laughter. My efforts were futile however and soon I was shaking in her arms, consumed by silent amusement.

I tried to contain the laughter. Ivy had delivered her 'poem' with great flourish and I wasn't quite sure how serious she was about it, but when she pressed her lips to my bare shoulder I could feel that they were curved up in a smile.

"You didn't like that one?" she asked playfully. "I can write another."

"Oh god," I muttered but I was interested to know what she would come up with next and my interest showed in my tone.

"Vampire made boots

Look really damn hot on you

Your ass is nice too."

Once again, Ivy delivered the poem in a sober and important tone of voice and my body was shaking in her arms as I was overcome with laughter once more.

"Beautiful," I sighed sarcastically.

I was smiling widely though, and I knew my pleasure rang through in my voice. I loved it when Ivy was silly. The seriousness our lives demanded sometimes made me forget how funny she could be when she was in a good mood, and her happiness made me almost as giddy as the poems themselves.

"Dear heart, my dear heart

Long has my soul wept for thee

You make great pancakes."

Ivy's agile mind was working rapidly now that she had re-familiarized herself with haiku structure and she delivered that gem without prompting.

"You really know just what to say to make a girl swoon, don't you?" I asked dryly though I was still smiling and my face was actually beginning to hurt from it. I was deeply smitten with her and no amount of sarcasm could hide it.

"Don't worry," Ivy purred beguilingly. "I'll catch you when you fall."

"My hero," I sighed dreamily, doing my very best Victorian romance novel impersonation even though I meant the words completely.

Ivy chuckled at my dramatics and as she did I shifted in her arms so that I could press my lips to the base of her throat.

She sighed contently and I felt her chest rumble in pleasure when I kissed her lightly once again. Her hands began to trail over my skin under the water and I kept my lips on her, placing small butterfly kisses over the flesh that was within reach of my mouth.

The warm water had made her normally pale skin flush delightfully, and her flesh was soft, so wonderfully, tantalizing soft. My tongue peaked out from between my lips to taste her more fully and before I became consciously aware of what I was doing I found my teeth grazing her skin and then clamping down on it.

Ivy moaned and her back arched into my body for a moment as pleasure coursed through her before she eased back into her former position. The sound of her moan traveled straight through me and settled in my groin.

A sleepy contentment had been settling over me as we bathed together, but as my desire increased so did my alertness until I was preternaturally aware of every little hitch of her voice, and the sound of the water rippling around us as we moved, and of my own heart pounding in my chest.

I bit down on Ivy's flesh again and she whimpered as her hands grasped my arms tightly, holding onto me as if I was the only thing keeping her grounded.

"Ivy," I husked, my warm breath bathing her skin. "Bite me," I whispered, kissing her skin again. "Bite me."

Ivy breathed in so deeply it was almost a hiss.

"Are you sure?" she asked tremulously.

"Yes," I breathed out. "When I said everything, I meant everything."

She hadn't asked me directly about it over the past few days, but I knew that she was worried about whether I would actually let her bite me when the time came. She had been very careful since I had admitted my feelings to her not to release pheromones around me. She didn't want me to think that she was manipulating me and she needed to know that allowing myself to be bitten was a decision I was making with all of my faculties.

"My mind was clear when I told you I wanted to give you everything," I continued speaking slowly and deliberately, "and my mind is clear now. I'm not going to change my mind. I give this to you freely."

Ivy was silent for a moment and then a long moan escaped from her throat. Seconds after that her hands were in motion, grasping my hips and pulling me on top of her so that was straddling her waist.

She gazed up at me, her thumbs stroking my hips gently.

"Thank you," she whispered gazing up at me, her midnight black eyes shining wetly.

Her hands trailed up my torso until she was able to cup my face between them, then she strained up to meet my lips and kissed me gently, each brush of her lips and stroke of her tongue bursting with love.

As our lips continued to meet with increasing passion Ivy's hands began to move once more, slipping from my face and dancing down my chest until she was cupping my breasts in her hands. I moaned into her mouth and she answered with one of her own and then she took my bottom lip between her teeth and bit down gently, teasing me, giving me a taste of the bite that I was truly anticipating.

Her thumbs grazed over my nipples and as they did I felt my scar begin to tingle. Ivy was finally releasing pheromones. I shivered as the sensations rushed through my body, and when her fingers squeezed the hard nubs grasped between them I cried out loudly and arched my chest, begging her for more.

She placed one last kiss on my lips and then moved down to kiss my jaw before sliding her lips further down to my neck. The pheromones she had started to release had my scars singing and when she breathed hotly on my neck it sent of thrill of pleasure so intense through me that for a moment I couldn't breathe.

I lost track of time and where I was. I could have been on Mars for all I cared, nothing mattered as long as Ivy was touching me, and kissing, and licking and nipping at my flesh. All that mattered in the world was her hands on my body, and that her fingers kept on doing the wonderful things they were doing, and that her mouth stayed where it was, setting me on fire.

My hands gripped her upper arms tightly, and her name became to fall from my lips like a prayer, my voice reverent and ecstatic.

"Please," I gasped, tears leaking from the corners of my eyes as my nails pressed into her flesh so desperately I drew blood.

Ivy moaned deeply, so deeply that it was almost a growl, and her tongue peaked out of her mouth to lap at my skin. Her hands were still playing with my breasts, squeezing and massaging, her thumbs brushing over the hard tips of my nipples lightly and then roughly, pinching and then tugging, before her thumbs moved over them again soothingly. I felt smooth teeth against my neck and the teasing poke of fangs on my flesh as she teased us both, threatening penetration but not pushing in.

"Ivy," I begged shamelessly.

"Yes dear heart," she rasped, the sound of her voice sending a shiver through my body.

"Bite me now," I demanded. "Bite me now," I repeated, digging my nails hard enough into her arms that she hissed and then shuddered.

"Okay," she breathed out.

For a second nothing happened, but then I felt the sharp points of her fangs digging into my skin and before I could so much as say 'thank you', she bit down sending her icy fangs into my neck and my body bent like a bow, arching almost painfully into her as the ecstasy the bite tore through me. A half-sob, half-shout emerged from my throat as Ivy began to pull and my hands tangled in her silky onyx hair, holding her to me.

A feeling of warmth and safety began to merge with the pleasure coursing through me and I had enough wits left to open my second sight so that I could watch as our auras merged, the shining gold of hers covering the black of mine making me feel clean in a way I hadn't since the original colour of my aura had been lost.

Ivy's hand slipped between my legs and I whimpered as her fingers brushed over my clit. Distantly, I noted her hand leave my center and knock against my upper thigh. I realized I was so wet that her hand had slipped, and while I normally would have been somewhat embarrassed by that I was too far gone to be self-conscious.

She recovered quickly however, and soon her fingers were moving steadily between my legs, alternating between pinching and circling and using her entire palm to stimulate my flesh.

I could still feel her pulling at my neck though she was sucking with much less intensity. Her aura was still wrapped around me, and I could feel her pleasure flowing into me in waves as I moved closer and closer to orgasm.

Suddenly Ivy's mouth pulled away from neck and I gasped at the loss of her. Automatically I tilted my head down and my eyes found pitch black shimmering orbs focused on my face. Her lips were stained red with my blood and her fangs glistened wetly in the bathroom light.

Two fingers slipped inside of me and I breathed in deeply, my eyes widening at the pleasure of it, but I did not take my eyes off of her.

"You're so beautiful," Ivy whispered blinking as she looked up at me in wonder. "I love you so much," she breathed out, tears leaking out of the corners of her eyes as she spoke.

My lips parted to tell her that I loved her too, but I couldn't speak. Her words and the devotion in her eyes pushed me to the edge and I started to climax, my body tensing and then jerking into her hand over and over again as my orgasm took me over and I tumbled into pleasure, my eyes never leaving Ivy's for a single second.

I collapsed heavily against Ivy what felt like an eternity later.

My breath came in harsh pants and though I can't be sure I think I was crying.

I wrapped my arms around her body as tightly I was could while still shaking and convulsing through the aftershocks rocking my body. I was distantly aware of speaking though I think the only word coming out of my mouth was her name over and over again. She pressed her lips to my forehead and began to speak to me but I couldn't comprehend what she was saying. I just listened to the melodic sound of her voice and kept clinging to her because she was Ivy and Ivy made everything okay.

PART 9

Being Ivy's lover made me wish that I had been an artist. She was comfortable in her own skin, in her nudity and would have made an excellent model. I was crouched at the bottom of the mattress cradling her ankle in my hand slowly caressing her smooth, creamy skin before I trailed my hand up a little higher to feel her calf and higher up to her thigh. She twitched and let out a little squeak of laughter when my fingers trailed behind the back of her knee, and I nearly melted into a puddle of goo then and there, but other than that she was peaceful and still, allowing me to explore her body at leisure.

I'd spent the past hour running my hands over her body, licking and kissing, caressing, pinching and squeezing, until she was sweating and straining, and arching up into me, but it had been fevered, and while not rushed, I hadn't simply luxuriated in her skin while I had made love to her as much as I had tried to devour it.

As my fingers trailed higher up in her thigh, they ran over slick skin and I breathed in deeply, running the pads of my fingers over the damp flesh for a few seconds remembering the feeling of my fingers inside of Ivy before I trailed my eyes up the length of her body so that I could see her face.

Her eyes were mostly black which surprised me considering how calm she was, and a little shiver ran through me as I remembered staring down into her jet black eyes, the tips of her icy fangs showing through pink, kissed swollen lips as I drove her closer and closer to orgasm.

There was a crooked, teasing smile on Ivy's lips as she looked down at me then, and I pursed my lips at her and pinched the tantalizing skin my fingers had running over in response.

Ivy simply purred softly and smiled wider.

I went back to exploring.

I had known before making love to Ivy that I loved her and that I wanted her, but just how much I loved and wanted her body surprised me.

When I had fantasized about her in the past, my thoughts had been rather vague. I had focused on her scent and her face, on those dark eyes staring at me hungrily while her strong, slim fingers moved between my legs or her wicked, talented tongue pleasured me. But now that I had seen all of her, touched all of her, and knew how amazing it felt to have her bare breasts cupped in my hands, now that I knew what it felt like to have her hard dark nipples in my mouth I never wanted to stop touching her. I wanted to hold her slim hips in my hands and feel them arching up into me. I wanted those long, lithe legs wrapped around me. I wanted to feel the soft press of dark curls, slick with moisture sliding across my skin.

I pressed my lips to Ivy's hipbone and she hummed softly before she trailed her fingers over my neck and then into my hair.

"Why don't you come up here and visit for a while," she murmured.

She sounded amused and when I tore my eyes away from the smooth skin of her abdomen to look up at her face I saw a teasing smile on her lips and cinnamon eyes twinkling happily as she looked down the length of her body at me.

"I like it down here," I mumbled nipping at her skin lightly before a wicked smile touched my lips and I moved one of my hands between her legs and slowly drew my index finger along the length of her sex. "It's fun," I continued a second later drawing my damp finger up to my mouth and sucking on it.

Ivy's hips rolled and a low moan escaped from her.

When I looked back up at her face her eyes were no longer cinnamon and her instead of smiling she was biting down on her bottom lip.

I placed a kiss on her stomach and then I slid up her body as she had requested until I was propped up on elbows looking down at her.

"Tease," Ivy muttered though she happily accepted my lips when I leaned down to kiss her.

"Takes one to know one," I breathed out against her lips before kissing her again.

"Ooh," Ivy drawled, "burn."

I smiled but then slapped her lightly on the stomach for good measure. I didn't want her thinking she could get away with such sassiness with impunity.

Ivy growled loudly in response, and as I looked down at her, her eyes were consumed by darkness. Her figure seemed to grow more imposing around me, and I found myself shivering despite the heat of her body against me, almost as if someone had just cranked the AC up to the max.

She was pulling an aura naked in bed with me!

"Stop that," I murmured leaning down to kiss her cheek sweetly.

She laughed and in a matter of seconds here eyes were their normal brown and the heat returned around us.

"That used to scare you," she said softly as I trailed the backs of my fingers over her cheeks.

"I know," I breathed out softly. "But not anymore," I continued seriously holding her eyes as I spoke, wanting her to know that the vampire aspects of her that used to scare me and intimidate me no longer did. "Actually, I think that's kind of neat," I told her smiling in an attempt to reduce the heaviness of my previous words. "You just better not try that when we're fighting."

"Already planning fights are you?" Ivy asked arching an eyebrow. "We've only been going out three days and already you're anticipating a fight?" she continued though she looked and sounded amused.

"Since I'm one of the people in this relationship, yeah," I responded self-deprecatingly. "Any day now I'm going to do something you think is an extremely bad idea, and then you're going to tell me it's a bad idea and I'm not going to listen to you because bad ideas always seem like good ideas to me, and then we're going to get in a fight. But," I drawled enticingly, "After the fight we'll have really, really hot make-up sex which will make it all worthwhile," I continued stroking her stomach lightly with my hand. "As long as you don't pull an aura that is," I finished meeting her gaze seriously.

"Mm," Ivy hummed lowly, "In that case I kind of feel like picking a fight right now."

I slid my hand up her stomach and over her breast, pausing to cup it for a moment before I trailed my fingers over her collarbone to her neck. I gave her neck a domineering little squeeze which made her eyelashes flutter and then I drew my hand back down over her torso possessively.

"You don't need to pick a fight now," I murmured lowly, playfully dipping my finger into her bellybutton. "We're still in the honeymoon stage."

"And what does that mean?" Ivy asked though the smile on her face indicated that she had a very good idea what I was going to say.

"It means," I drawled before dropping my head to kiss the swell of her breast, "that my body is your oyster. Do as you will."

Ivy growled softly and then reached out for me, grasping my hips tightly so that she could pull me on top of her.

"Do you know what it does to me when you say things like that?" she asked, looking up at me with jet black eyes as her chest rumbled happily.

"Yes," I said biting my lip coquettishly as I looked down at her. "That's why I say them."

Ivy ran her hands along my thighs and exhaled raggedly.

"You're a dirty girl, Rachel," she breathed out. "I like it," she purred a moment later as her lips curled up lecherously, flashing a tantalizing hint of fang.

"Show me how much," I whispered grinding against her for emphasis.

"Mm," Ivy murmured grasping my hips once more before flipping us over so that she was on top of me. She leaned down and brought our lips together, and for quite a while after that we both found better things to do with our mouths than talk.

The End