Chapter 10: Sleeping Beauty

Throughout the remainder of the day, Ares could not stop thinking about Vanya and her other mates. He kept checking the time whenever he saw one, wondering if she had awoken. He decided to go check on her later in the evening.
The hours dragged on, but each minute seemed to drag on even longer. He tried to pass the time by scouting into the Hollow's woodland with Lachlan's men. When he came to a clearing and noticed the oldest Linden tree in the middle, he climbed it and leaned back against the trunk in the top branches. This was something he used to do when he was younger.
He stared out from the topmost limb, thinking about how things in his life had grown even more confusing with the addition of Vanya's other mates. He yawned when he felt that calming warm wind, and his eyes soon became too heavy, so he opted to rest for a while. He nearly fell out of his tree in shock when he opened his eyes again and realized how far the sun had already set into the mountains beyond.
“Shit,” he hissed. He instantly gathered himself and hopped down the tree, landing neatly, and stood back up, stretched, and quickly headed off to the manor.
“Ares, I’ve been looking for you,” Selene said as their paths crossed in the hallway.
“Not now, Selene. I’m busy,” he remarked curtly, hurrying to the south wing..
“Okay. Later then…”
He knocked as soon as he was in front of the door. "Vanya?" he called, but there was no response. His enthusiasm rose as he considered the possibility that she had gotten up and was now out and about somewhere else. However, when he cautiously pried open the door, he found her still laying on her bed, and his brow furrowed.
He shut the door behind him and strolled over to Vanya, a frown on his face when he noticed she hadn't moved in the slightest. He sat back on the edge of the bed, as if he hadn't left her that morning.
Part of him wanted to let her sleep, but another part of him was a little more frantic. When he couldn't take it any longer, he took one of her hands in his, turned her wrist up, and traced the lines on her palm. He was curious about what Moira had seen.
*“You are not her sole fate; you are not her sole destiny, Ares.”* The shaman’s voice echoed in his mind. *“Her fate line is intertwined with three more lines.”*
What was the Moon Goddess thinking when she fated Vanya with only three mates? What could be her purpose for gifting Vanya more than one mate? But could it be considered a gift when it was obvious that having more than one mate would result in conflict? Particularly on his part.
Moira had previously mentioned a prophecy that Ares had long refused to believe. He believed that things happened based on prior events and processes at any given moment in time.
“Stupid prophecy,” he grumbled as he watched Vanya's chest rise and fall slowly. He waited a few moments, expecting that the hunter's eyes would slowly flicker open, but it stayed closed.
"Vanya," he said softly as he gently shook her shoulder, but her body only moved limply under his touch. He called her name and a bit louder the second time. Then he shook her shoulder once more and this time, he was relieved when he got a reaction out of her.
Vanya made a little whimpering sound and turned her head to face him. A few strands of her hair landed on her check and he tucked the stray hair behind her ear.
"Vanya, wake up. You’ve been sleeping the entire day, hunter."
But she did not move again.
"Fine." He sighed and ran his fingers through her soft hair before leaning in and kissing her. His lips lingered on hers until he felt her stir beneath him. When her eyes fluttered open, he pulled away.
"Ares," Vanya gasped. "W-What are you doing here? What happened?" her face blushed red and she was breathing a bit heavily.
Ares only smiled in return. "You were asleep the entire day," he said, stroking the side of her neck with the back of his right palm. “You don’t feel hot, but are you okay?”
Vanya blinked at him before turning to look out the window, where she noticed the sun was setting. She gasped and threw herself up straight, only to discover that she was still wearing the same dress she had the night before. Her movements were too swift for her still-awakening body, and she wavered, starting to fall back into her bed.
Ares charged forward, catching her in his arms and tenderly held her.
"W-What happened?" she mumbled. "Why did I sleep for so long?"
"I think it's because your body was still trying to recover yesterday but the party and the dancing stressed you out. I guess," he informed her. "You were sleeping soundly. I'm sorry I woke you up. I just…I was worried," he admitted guiltily.
"Well, I'm glad you did." She flashed a smile. "I've slept long enough and I feel great now. And…" she trailed off.
"And?" he prodded.
"And…I think I just had the strangest dream ever," she suddenly confessed.
“Was it of me?”
She shook her head and bit her lower lip. “No. It was the same dream I had when I was younger…”
“Ah, so it's the same dream you wouldn't tell me about.”
She gave a nod. “But this time it was longer. Stranger, too, I guess I'll have to eventually talk to Moira about it.”
“I see you have more trust in her than you have in me.”
“You know that isn't the truth, Ares.”
“Okay. So, this time, could you tell me all about it?”
She raised her eyes to his. “I-ah, I guess it's best if I don't tell you.”
“Okay. But, have you ever dreamt about me, Vanya? I know you've had a lot of fantasies about me. But...have you ever dreamed of me?”
Blushing, Vanya nodded. “Of course. I had a dream about dancing with you just a month ago. We were laughing and having a great time. We, on the other hand, did not. Then came father, and we continued to dance. Selene arrived and threw a fit because she wanted to dance with you, but we just laughed and carried on and－” she cut herself off, realizing she had said too much.
Ares looked down at her with a wry grin. He was still holding her in his arms and wasn't even aware of it because it felt so natural to him. "Are you certain that I didn't rip your dress at any point? "he asked, chuckling.
Vanya joined him in his laughter. “Why are you always so horny?”
“Hey! Not every time,” Ares objected. He then laid his hands on her stomach and quickly skimmed his fingers over her sides, causing her to yelp.
“Ares! “Stop!” she exclaimed, laughing. But he kept tickling her mercilessly, and she shrieked uncontrollably, her feet gently kicking out as her midsection jerked. She rolled around on the bed, giggling hysterically.
"Oh, yeah? Do you want me to stop right now?”
"Yes! No!" Stop!” She burst out laughing like a child, her cheeks flushed. She attempted to catch her breath, but he just kept tickling her, chuckling anytime she shrieked or squeaked.
“What?”
"A-ares!" she exclaimed. "P-Please st-op－"
A laugh interrupted her last word in the cutest way and Ares finally ceased his assault on her.
She lay on her bed, panting heavily, arms crossed, hugging her aching tummy and heaving chest.
Ares waited patiently for her to recover her breath, and after a few moments, she let out one final long sigh.
"I…I'm fully awake now." she wheezed.
"Really? Are you?" he asked, nudging her side, and she squeaked once more.
"Yes, I'm certain!"
“I'm happy to hear that you are!” He teasingly smiled and drew her into him, wrapping his arms around her and pressing his body against her.
Vanya snuggled towards him, her face buried in his chest. She breathed his scent while clutching his arms. “This is nice.”
He waited for her rapidly hammering pulse rate to return to normal before letting her go again. “Would you like to know what's going through my horny mind right now?”
"Ares!" She raised her eyes to his.
“What?”
“I don’t want to know,” she said with playful softness and he leaned down closer again.
“Are you sure?” Ares asked, sliding the back of his hand across her cheek before kissing her passionately. As a response, she curled her fingers around the hair at the back of his head.
He swept his tongue into her mouth, deep and desperate for more of her, all of her. He couldn't get enough of her taste, her softness, and the faint whimpering sounds she made at the back of her throat that he was so used to.
"Vanya," he groaned into her mouth.
She sucked on his tongue, tugged his lips between her teeth, her nails sharp at the back of his neck.
“Oh, fucking hell, Vanya. How could I not feel horny all the time when I'm with you?” He pressed her against him, chest to chest, and her sensuous curves. Pleasure rushed through his veins, right to his midsection, and his body rose with it.
“Ares…” Vanya moaned when he trailed his fingers down her spine, nudging the curvature of her back. She rocked wildly into him, her muscles tight around his thigh, her thin dress riding up. He could almost taste her moan on his tongue; his tongue sliding deep, stroking at the roof of her mouth.
He curved his palm over her cheek, his thumb caressing the line of her cheekbone as he gently kissed her, sipped at her mouth, his tongue caressing delicately.
Vanya's fingers curled around his neck, caressing slow circles through his hair, her other hand sliding over his hip, waist, and teasing over the curve of his ass.
“Keep touching me like that, Vanya, and I swear you're not going to leave your room tonight.” Ares' heart was pounding with each word he spoke, fire coursing through his veins and curling along his spine.
And then, with a few delicate kisses, mere brushes of his lips against hers, he broke the kiss and slowly drew away.
Vanya's eyes opened, darkened by arousal, her mouth open, and her lips swollen.
Ares wanted to dive back in, but he pushed himself to stop and take a breath. He stroked his thumb along her lower lip and watched her eyelids flicker.
“What's the matter?” Vanya asked, perplexed.
He cracked a smirk. "Are you hungry?" he croaked, clearing his throat.
“I'm starving,” she admitted.
He kissed the corners of her mouth, her cheekbones, and the top of her head. "Go get yourself some supper."
“Yeah. Then I'm going to see Moira.”
"May I come?"
"I'd like to go alone."