[this took place on MONDAY night. Sorry for the delay!]

Still perplexed over his run-in with Angelina, and honestly just missing Katie after having not seen her in over a week, Fred closed the shop as it grew dark outside, intending to head for Rose Cottage. Between counting out the till - tedious but necessary - and taking care of the projects in the lab, it was an hour later before he actually ran upstairs to scrub off the potions muck and got ready to leave. Raking his nearly-dry hair out of his face, he found his wand and Apparated into Katie's front hall.

He was almost surprised that the dogs weren't there waiting for him; Pea seemed to have some type of early warning system for visitors, generally. Smiling as he heard the faint warble of the Wireless from the sitting room, he headed in that direction, toward the warmth of the cheery fire and his princess likely curled up on her sofa. "Kates?" he called softly, stepping through the doorway into the glow of the room, glancing toward her usual spot as the Yorkie made her presence known as she greeted him.

Katie's eyes fluttered open when a familiar voice and squirming puppy barks disturbed the pleasant hum that had apparently lulled her to sleep. She slowly sat up from where she'd slid down on the arm of the sofa and looked around, a bit disoriented. The novel she'd been reading was still lying open in her lap, the wireless still buzzing quietly, the fire crackling, but Pea was excited. She turned toward the entryway after a few moments in which her head was shaking off the fuzziness of sleep, and saw Fred.

A soft smile pulled at her lips when she saw him. "Hallo shiny boy." Unfolding herself from the sofa, Katie stood, the blanket she'd been curled up in falling to the floor as she stretched, reaching for the ceiling on her tip toes before padding over to meet him.

"Hallo, sweetness," Fred greeted in return, sliding his arms around Katie's waist as she reached him, pulling her in close as he'd wanted to for days now. He bent his head to nuzzle her cheek, breathing the warmth of her skin, her scent calming and energizing at the same time. He knew Angie had been shaken and angry when she'd said what she had, but her words were still on a muted loop in the back of his mind, and Katie's presence was helping to remind him of the reasoning behind the decisions he'd made. Bringing his lips slowly to Katie's, he kissed her softly, an almost chaste contact, especially given the desire simmering in him to slip her from her clothes for something far naughtier.

As Fred pulled her close, Katie slid her arms around his waist, hands bunching in his shirt at the base of his spine as she tip-toed up into the soft kiss. It was just a brush of lips, but after her many confused thoughts concerning her meeting with Greg earlier in the week, it was grounding in its own way. They both pulled back, still in each other's breathing space. "I missed seeing you this week." After a few moments, she decided it was better to tell now rather than later. "Greg came to see me."

Allowing the happiness he felt at being with her to show on his face as Katie met his eyes, Fred agreed quietly, "I missed you too." He blinked a moment as she mentioned Greg's visit, and drew her over to the sofa, settling himself on the cushions and letting her choose her own position. "That's good, I imagine; you've seen him more recently than I have, then... How was he?"

Katie curled into Fred's side, wanting both his warmth and because she liked the feel of him touching as much of her as possible. "He seems well enough, but ..." she glanced up at Fred then, "... shiny, he tried to ... the potions and alcohol." She shook her head a bit as if to shake the thoughts away before continuing. "He didn't seem to want to really talk about it much, but he did say he's getting help, that you told him to. That's good, I guess."

"I know," Fred murmured, combing his fingers lightly through Katie's hair as she watched his face. "I haven't pressed Ginny for information, but he's admitted he nearly died, and knew it was a possibility of what he was doing." He considered what else he wanted to share as Katie cleared her head, and nodded at her statement. "I told him he had to take care of himself to be around you," he said seriously, memory of that conversation calling a slight frown to his lips. "You're too special for him to hurt accidentally because he's low or upset. That's not something -" I'd allow "I want to happen."

Katie's eyes flicked to the frown pulling at his lips, the wrinkle between his brows and before she was much thinking about it, she reached up and lightly ran a finger to smooth it out. When the last of what he'd said penetrated her study, her hand dropped. This then, was why she'd always trusted Fred implicitly. Katie knew he had watched out for her over the years, had done his best not to hurt her, but it was entirely different to hear it from him. He thinks I'm special. She tucked that shining happy thought away.

She stared into the fire then, concentrating on the licking flames as she thought on the things she wanted to say next. "He ... he confuses me. I can't ..." She sighed then, trying again. "I can't figure out how to read him. Sometimes he's really shy and hesitant and all I want to do is make it better and it's not tingly at all. And then sometimes ... sometimes, he's not shy or hesitant at all and I want things that are more than warm and fuzzy." Katie felt her cheeks heat in a blush, but she needed to talk to somebody about it and Fred would understand better than anyone else. He knew Greg too, even knew him better than she did really. She glanced up at him then. "I'm always tingly when I'm with you, even just for snuggles."

Lips twitching into a tiny smirk as Katie tinted pink, the reaction completely endearing as a reminder of her own occasional shyness, Fred brushed a kiss across her forehead, pulling away to catch her eyes and say gently, "It's all right to talk about, you know. I'm not going to laugh at you, and I like that I make you tingly." He let one hand trail from her hair to rest warm against the back of her neck, smiling at the subtle catch in her breathing. "Let's see, then. Always with me, but sometimes with him; not when he's shy, good when he isn't, yes? You tell me, princess... what's the difference?"

With Fred's hand resting at the back of her neck, the smile now pulling at his lips, Katie was a bit distracted. She watched his lips move as he talked, concentrating on the words because they were a bit more important at the moment than her little fascinations. "The difference?" she repeated softly, thoughts running through her head as she processed the question. Her eyes flicked up to his before going back to his mouth as she answered, "I like confidence in the way someone moves and carries themself ... I like when I look into someone's eyes," hers rolled up to his then, "that I can see sureness there ..." Her voice dropped to a murmur, "... and other things."

Fred nodded, gathering her words as she spoke them and making matches to what she'd already said. "He's... worried, I think. That's a shaking thing, even to think about, let alone do or try to do," he reasoned quietly, knowing it was part truth from personal experience. "He's got to relearn what he had before, for himself more than anything." He shrugged, adding, "It'll take time. Like I did. Maybe time for the other things to show again too."

Katie murmured her agreement. What Greg had done was something that shook you to your very core, set your whole world at a different axis. There were ghosts in his past and they weren't letting him run away, in fact, had caught up with a vengeance. She hoped that he really tried to find peace with those ghosts. As much as it hurt, you couldn't move on, couldn't really live for yourself or the people around you if you didn't attempt some kind of peace.

"You're right. It'll take time. It's just ..." Katie's brows knit in a small frown as she sifted through her thoughts. "... It's just that I'm trying to figure out what he is to me now, is all." She closed her eyes and shook her head, frustrated. "That makes it sound all about me. I care about him, if he gets better, that he takes care of himself, that maybe he'll let me be a friend to him and help with what I can. I just ..."

She shook her head again, banishing as many confused thoughts as she could and took a small, steadying breath. "He asked me to dinner, a date, on Tuesday night and ... and I like him enough, shyness and tingles all mixed together, to have said yes."

Watching Katie as she sorted her thoughts, the hand at her neck moving to card slowly through her hair, Fred accepted the news, nodding after a moment. "Then you'll go, and see how things are, yeah?" He was still fairly certain that Greg was keen on things working out with Katie, and though on occasion he shared the boat she was currently bailing, trying to figure out what Greg wanted his place to be, he wanted them to find a balance, if they were interested. He wasn't surprised at Katie's confusion; he'd been trying to place Greg in the grand scheme of things since before Halloween, and kept having to edit his decision every time they were together; it would be even worse for Katie, since Greg was normally the type to be a leader to her, as Fred was, and had been so different lately.

Katie let out a breath, letting go of the tension in her body as well and relaxed into Fred's side, laying her head against his shoulder. "Yeah, I'm going. I want to go. I like Greg and I haven't been on a real date in ages." She tilted her head up then, a small smile pulling at her lips. "Plus, he's got pretty hair - blond and auburn bits in the light. Did you notice?"

Fred turned to meet Katie's eyes, mouth bowing into the beginning of a frown as he realized he might have neglected something. "I did, and yes, he's pretty... Princess, you know you've only to say so if you'd like to do something fancier than seeing me here or at my flat, right? I hadn't thought of it, as generally I'm just glad to see you, but you're right; we've not been out for a 'real' date, just the two of us on purpose." His expression warming into a smile, he added, "I'd not complain about getting to show off my lovely girl."

Katie could feel her cheeks heat at Fred's last comment. His girl. She didn't know exactly what she and Fred were, and wasn't bothered overmuch to define it either. She liked what they had as it was, but hearing him talk about her that way made her feel warm inside too.

Her eyes flicked from his mouth, where a smile was once again pulling at his lips, back up to his eyes. Katie's attention was completely on him again, whatever confusions in her head fading to the background. "I like getting prettied up," her voice dropped to a murmur then, "but I like staying in too."

Smirking as Katie blushed, always amused and pleased that the smallest compliment would turn her a fetching pink, Fred shifted her to straddle his lap, his hands sliding up her back to steady her. "You're beautiful all the time, though I'll admit that watching you get ready to go out last weekend was fun." Smiling knowingly, his fingers playing lightly along her spine, he teased, "I can think of several merits to staying in, myself. Want to share your ideas with the class, pet?"

More than a few things ran through her mind, things she'd read in the books everyone made fun of her for reading, but she was pretty sure that none of them would mind actually doing any of them. The pictures that danced behind her eyes for a few split seconds didn't help the blush painting her skin at all. "Me and you things? Kisses ... " Her eyes dropped to his lips. "... and skin ..." She reached out to run a finger lightly from the freckle just underneath his ear down to the top of his tee. She raised her eyes back up to his then, "... those kinds of things."

"Those you can have... gladly, in fact," Fred murmured, a slightly wicked grin appearing as his hand ran up her spine to cradle her neck, pulling her closer, pressing his lips to hers. He coaxed her to open to him, having missed her softness, the tiny sounds that escaped under too much sensation. His mind had been increasingly occupied with 'those kinds of things' of late, especially as pertained to Katie; she, more than anyone, drove him to all manner of distraction if he didn't keep a tight rein on his thoughts, and while he'd not been interested in his usual evening pursuits since beginning this new aspect of his relationship with her, the urge to touch, to do more than touch, was a powerful one. He couldn't resist a gentle nibble as he drew away a fraction, placing a soft kiss on the spot to repay the sting.

A small sigh escaped Katie's lips as Fred pulled her to him in a kiss she hadn't known she'd been waiting for, craving for, until his lips were on hers, his tongue dancing against hers. They hadn't done more than kiss and cuddle and just be together the past weeks - not since their relationship had irrevocably changed when Fred had marked her skin, had done other things that still made her blush to think on.

Katie couldn't pin-point exactly why, but she'd been anxious the past few days. She needed ... something. The not knowing had made her antsy, a bit restless, unfocused and distracted. Being with Fred, just sitting with him, talking with him, lazy touches against her hair and neck was the most grounded and tuned in she'd felt.

This kiss, the something behind it that made it more than all the others over the past weeks - everything else faded away but Fred, and that something that had been eluding her grasp came into sharp focus. She wanted Fred, just him and her and whatever was between them. A small sound escaped her as his teeth pulled at her bottom lip, a teasing sting. Fisting her hands in his tee, Katie pulled herself closer, body molding to his even as she slid her hands up over his chest and behind his neck, just to feel his skin.

Reining in his instinct to roll Katie beneath him, for the moment, Fred dropped kisses from the corner of her mouth along her jaw, puffing a warm breath against her neck; the barest contact. He caught her earlobe between his teeth, light nips and licks in no particular pattern, moving after a while to trail his lips over the curl of her ear. It was his favorite of all low tricks, the small act concentrated on one of her especially sweet spots earning him all manner of delectable noises, the occasional involuntary wiggle.

He knew Katie tried her damnedest to hold still for him, could feel the tension singing along her limbs, in the set of her back as he toyed with her ear, and he thrilled at her obedience to an unvoiced desire. Her shivers were enticing, and his hands smoothed up her back, across her shoulders, down her arms, rubbing away the wash of gooseflesh he'd caused.

Fred's hands ran over the goosebumps that had spread across her skin, but Katie was anything but cold. Everywhere he touched left a brand of fire in its wake, her whole body on heightened awareness. He kept at her ear, and it was all too much and not enough at the same time. She could feel the tension in her body, the heat running beneath her skin, Fred's body beneath hers, but it was all too nice to stop, to move. An especially stinging nibble brought a small whimper from her lips, her hands clutching the soft strands of ginger hair at the base of his neck.

Katie's whimper drew Fred's focus, and he released her ear with a parting kiss, drawing away to turn her face up to his. He'd noticed long ago that his proximity distracted her, his or George's, but the effect was more pronounced now; he waited, lips forming a pleased, knowing smile, as she raised her eyes, trying to concentrate through her dazzle. Feeling her fingers begin to relax their grip in his hair, he traced a fingertip over her cheek, considering his request carefully before he made it. "Do something for me, sweet," he began, cupping her face in his hand.

Katie raised heavy eyes to Fred's and gave him a small nod. A little thrill went up her spine that he wanted something of her. She liked doing things for him, liked pleasing him. It had always had the pleasant side effect of making her happy, and she was quite sure that she wouldn't mind whatever Fred suggested.

His smile skewing toward crooked, Fred stroked his thumb across her cheek and revealed the rest of his plan. "Go to your room, then, and take these off," he directed, free hand smoothing down her side to her hip, touching both of her current articles of clothing in the process, "and lie down on your bed." He watched her face as his words sank in, waiting.

Katie's lips twitched at seeing Fred's smile, but at his words, her eyes darkened and she gave another small nod. "Okay shiny," she murmured softly, sliding off of him and padding across the house towards her bedroom. She looked over her shoulder just as she was about to go around the corner, a shy smile tugging at her lips before she disappeared from his view.

Slipping out of her little boxer shorts and pulling her cami over her head, Katie crawled onto her bed until she had her back against the headboard, knees pulled up. As she was sitting, one wouldn't be able to tell right off that she was bare. Katie's pulse sped as she waited, wondering and curious at what Fred had planned, what he would do.

Waiting until a slow count of ten before he even rose from the sofa to follow Katie, Fred trailed across the room and down the hallway, pausing at the door. He noticed immediately that she hadn't quite done as he'd said, but didn't bring it up as he entered the room, pulling his tee off over his head as he crossed to stand near the side of the bed. His jeans followed; unbutton, unzip, slide, step out, Katie's eyes warm on his skin as the denim left it, his boxers remaining as a mental barrier for himself more than a physical one.

He knelt at the edge of the mattress a moment, regarding Katie silently, then moved toward her, stalking on hands and knees until he drew even beside her, sitting back on his heels. One hand raised to caress down her leg, from upraised knee to ankle, warm but light against her skin. "Shy, princess?" he asked, eyes briefly following the path of his hand before returning to meet hers.

Katie watched Fred undress, every bit of clothing revealing freckled skin that she loved touching, but couldn't, not quite yet. Her eyes followed him as he knelt on the bed and crawled towards her, muscles moving beneath his skin.

She raised her eyes to his at his question, momentarily distracted from his hand running along her leg. She had felt a little bit shy, but the moment Fred had entered the room, it had fled. "No," she answered softly, honest. Not anymore. Keeping his eyes, Katie let her body slide down the bed until she was lying bare before him, just as he'd asked the first time.

Fred shifted as Katie reclined against the blanket, relinquishing eye contact only once she was still and calm to let his gaze follow the line of her body, a nonphysical stroke over the soft gold of her skin, taking the time to appreciate but not memorize. A small smile, genuine and unguarded, stole over his lips as his eyes returned to hers. "You're beautiful, Katie," he murmured, fingertips ghosting from her navel, slowly up the center of her body to her face. He'd known this already, had known it before their sudden heightened awareness of one another the night they'd danced at Eclipse, but her quiet surrender forced the picture he carried of her in his mind into sharp focus, blending and branding her current image in his thoughts.

Unhurried, his hands mapped her skin; the column of her throat, the taper into her shoulders, down each slender arm. He caught her hands in his and raised them to his lips, kissing each finger in turn, swiping his tongue over the sensitive pads.

The occasional shiver of gooseflesh and quiet intakes of breath were the only signs that what Fred was doing affected her. Katie watched his hands, his face, the slight movements of his body as he shifted. She loved that he touched her, anywhere and everywhere, every brush both calming and not, at the same time. So many feelings, just from a touch and his eyes which had gone dark blue.

As Fred kissed her fingers, Katie pulled her eyes away from his mouth and rolled them up to meet his, only to find him watching her. She felt her body heat in a light flush as she held his eyes, responding to the darkness and intent there, the elusive glimpse of something else. His tongue ran over another of her fingers and she felt her eyes widen, just a bit, her breath catching. They were seemingly innocent touches - the waiting, the tease of skin on skin, small caresses, quick licks, but there was promise behind them.

With a light nibble to the tip of the last finger, Fred released Katie's hands, lowering them to rest on the coverlet. He bent low to press a kiss just above her belly button as he moved a bit farther down the bed, hands curling over her hips a moment, then sliding, lazy and firm, down her thighs, knees, calves. Her skin was impossibly soft under his hands, and were it not for the need weighing heavily on them both, he'd have been content to kiss and caress her until something interfered with that plan. The fact that his complete attention didn't irk her or chase her away pushed all of his buttons at once, and he purposely took the most circuitous possible path from her toes, kissing his way up to one hip, then retreating and starting over on the other side.

It was somehow unsurprising that Katie should be the one to fray his control by her simple yielding; her rein on her own reactions was impressive, and made him want to reward her for the effort. Raising himself on his hands, he moved back up her body, dusting kisses over her skin until he hovered above her, eyes intent on hers.

Katie loved his hands on her, his lips running down her skin. It was the sweetest kind of torture the way he was touching and kissing along her body, lazy, but with intent. She kept still, though it was an effort not to squirm. She liked what Fred was doing and he'd only continue if she didn't move too much, discouraging. It was all in anticipation anyway, waiting for that moment when she couldn't help but move. As he came back to her, she could feel the heat of his body just above hers. She held his eyes, her own as dark as his now, and was just a little breathless.

Lips curling in a slow smirk as Katie regarded him, Fred lowered himself until their skin brushed together, coming to rest on his knees and one forearm above her, one thigh nestled between hers. The play of heat between them, the not-quite-full contact were a tease in themselves, promising more for just a fraction of movement. He bent his head to press his lips to Katie's, the hand he wasn't using for balance coming to pet her hair away from her face, gentleness to preface careful nips as he changed the tone of their kiss.

As Fred's kiss became more demanding, insistent, Katie's control began to slip. She could barely feel his body brushing against hers and when he began to intersperse the kiss with nips on her lips, Katie couldn't help but to arch into him, her hands fluttering down his sides. Small sounds slipped out as her skin slid against his, the movement bringing her center into full contact with his thigh resting between hers. The friction there along with the kisses, the nips, all the other sensations swirling around her pulled a soft whimper from her.

Feeling Katie react, the slide of her skin as she arched against him, the barely-there brush of her hands, Fred pulled his mouth from hers, trailing a kiss along her cheek, down to the tempting flesh of her neck, mirroring the action with a fingertip on the opposite side. He licked a wet line across her skin, gripping her chin gently in his hand, and tasted her pulse point, pausing over the steady throb for a soft scrape of his teeth.

When Fred pulled his lips away from hers, Katie tried to catch her breath as he moved his mouth down her neck. She slid her hands to the small of his back, an anchor. She couldn't help but squirm against him, wanting more contact, but when he grabbed her chin and scraped his teeth against her neck, Katie went still. She wanted him to do it again.

Fred flicked his tongue against the jump of Katie's heartbeat, releasing his grip and stroking his palm over her skin, down over the ridge of her collarbone to her breast, cradling the soft weight in his hand. He knew she'd been waiting for teeth, sharpness to mark her as his, and he would give that, but later. His thumb circled her nipple, and he met the lift of her hips with a rock of his own, pressing more firmly against the apex of her thighs and encouraging her search for more touch. Questing slowly lower, he nibbled her collarbone before mimicking the motion of his hand with his lips, the grazes becoming soft sucking after a few teasing passes.

A lick on her jumping pulse, another tease full of promise, and then Fred had focused his attention elsewhere. As his hand came over her breast, Katie's eyes fluttered closed as her body once again arched into his, wanting to feel his hand firm against her. When he rolled his hips, not quite perfectly fitted between her thighs, but enough for her to feel his arousal very distinctly through his boxers, Katie couldn't help the little shudder that went through her body even as her hips rolled against him, searching for more and finding it as her center rubbed firmly against his thigh still resting between hers. Her eyes popped open, a little bit wide, as Fred's mouth covered her, every pull of his mouth on her breast felt through her whole body. She slid a hand up his back, tangling her fingers in his hair as he sucked, soft sounds and breathless noises falling from her mouth at all the sensations.

Growling as Katie rocked against him, the friction between them decidedly distracting, Fred nipped at the peak between his teeth, pinching the other nipple lightly at the same time. He pulled his mouth away after a soothing lick, and braced himself above Katie on his hands for a moment, watching her body lift, hold, seeking the contact he'd just moved out of range for. "Sweet," he murmured, waiting until she'd refocused on him, one hand petting her stomach in slow strokes, "do you take the monthly potion?" Necessary information, though he hated that she had to redirect her attention to answer.

Katie was completely breathless, her mind more than a bit hazy and full of nothing but Fred. She was aware of his hand running along her stomach, but his eyes were asking questions and she focused on what he had said. After a few moments, she nodded her head, answering a murmured "yes" even as her pulse began to pick up again in anticipation of what his question might mean.

A smile forming at both her answer and her dreamy expression, Fred let his hand slide low over Katie's belly, cupping her sex in his palm, fingers gliding against her damp curls. "Good girl," he praised almost absently, his focus divided between the quick hitch of her breath and the wetness at his fingertips, dipping between her folds to caress the soft flesh inside, biting back a groan as his erection twitched in anticipation. He leaned down to lick along the path his hand had taken, turning aside to suckle a point on her hip, a gentle pull before he bit just hard enough to make a mark.

Katie bit her bottom lip as Fred touched her, her hands fisting into the blankets as his fingers started to relieve the ache for more that had been pulling at her. It wasn't enough though; just a tease of what there would be. It took effort, but she kept heavy lidded eyes open and on Fred as he moved down her body. His mouth on her finally drew the small sounds out that she'd been trying to hold in, but his teeth in her hip, sudden and unexpected, pulled a low moan from her even as her body tensed at the pain, lacing with the pleasure of everything else he was doing.

Licking over the imprint his teeth had left, a soft touch to soothe the sharp one, Fred drew away once more, kissing his way up Katie's body. He shifted aside long enough to discard his boxers, returning to settle in the cradle of her hips, losing a low hiss of pleasure as their bodies made contact. Trailing his fingertips over the hip he'd marked, feeling the heat from the abrasion, he looked a question at Katie, unwilling to continue unless she was ready.

As Fred settled against her, completely bare, a little sigh slipped between her lips. Katie could feel his arousal, but he wasn't moving and she raised her eyes to his, seeing a question there. She unclenched her fingers from the blankets and ran her hands down his back to the base of his spine, lightly digging her nails in there and all she could think was yesyesyesyesyes.

Katie's nails in his skin, the nearly-wild, pleading look in her eyes pulled a growl from Fred's throat. Bowing his head to capture her lips, he accepted her affirmation and guided himself against her entrance, pressing inside at an agonizingly slow speed, a bit of breath-stealing torment for them both. Finally seated fully inside her, he held himself still, enjoying but still trying to focus around the silken grip of her inner walls. He'd waited for this, wondering, since the first time he'd led her to her bed, and the reality was nearly overwhelming, even beyond the physical aspect. It was Katie clutching at him, her breath warm and uneven against his neck as her muscles fluttered around him, her whimpers and gasps turning his blood to lava, and that was just something more.

All she could see was Fred. All she could feel was Fred; tantalizingly slow and inside of her, not moving, but she was full of him, of Fred. Her skin burned everywhere it touched his, the weight of him atop her exactly what she wanted. She was a little overwhelmed with the fact that they were finally here. Katie had craved for his touch, had craved for him, for this.

He was still, and she followed suit though all she wanted to do was rub her body against his, feel him inside of her, around her, over her until she couldn't think anymore and the only picture in her head was shiny. She did so good, waiting for him, muscles quivering around him in the waiting, sweet tension. After a few long moments of uneven breathing, she couldn't help but do something, and licked a wet line along the underside of his jaw before nuzzling her nose there, breathing in the scent of him.

Pleased beyond real thought by Katie's restraint, Fred rewarded them both with a slow roll of his hips, pulling in a gulp of air at the delicious glide of flesh together. He tilted Katie's hips as she arched to meet him, doubting she would take as much attention as she otherwise might, and knowing that he was already fast losing his focus, though not his control. Curling his hand over the curve of her hip, he guided them together, savoring the feeling of being literally connected with her along with the pleasure their bodies were currently sharing.

A small sound spilled from Katie's lips as Fred started to move inside of her, the sounds continuing to fall in a breathless wave as their bodies came together. When he grabbed her hip, her body tensed around his as he pressed against the bruised mark there. The small pain mixed with the pleasure of having him inside of her and her fingers clenched against the muscles at the small of his back even as her hips continued to roll with his. Being with Fred this way; Katie was completely overwhelmed. Every kiss and touch since they had become aware of each other had narrowed her focus to him, but like this - she couldn't see anyone but him, think about anyone but him and the emotions that would remain unnamed for her own well-being.

Covering Katie's lips with his own, Fred swallowed the little noises that rattled his focus completely, the tiny whimpers of pleasure, a sharp intake of breath as his thumb pressed the mark he'd left at her hip. He loved the knowledge that his brand was on her skin, his, should anyone be in a situation to see, and that she wanted it there, would leave it until it healed on its own. Shifting his balance slightly, he traced the line of her thigh, fingers slipping between them to brush the bundle of nerves at her center, biting his lip as she clenched around him. He shared the small pain, nipping her mouth once before dragging lips and tongue to the point just below her ear, laying a warm kiss against her skin.

He filled her; every touch and stroke and scrape of teeth too much, overloading her senses, but not enough at the same time. Katie arched into him, hips rolling to meet his, body quivering with sweet tension as Fred teased her with fingers, mouth, teeth. She ran her hands up his back, bringing a leg up along his body and wrapping it around his waist. As he sought a kiss on her neck, Katie tilted her head to the side, an unconscious movement. She was so close, the sensations clouding her vision, her thoughts, and yet her grasp on finding stars was elusive, her body clenching around him in unfulfilled anticipation.

With Katie's tension mirrored in his own limbs, straining toward the release he wanted to give her, the shining edge of her pleasure, Fred laid his lips to her skin once more. He licked along the cord of her neck, stretched and bared perfectly by the way she'd turned aside, feeling the jump of her pulse as his teeth touched her, and knew in that moment what she needed. Placing a reverent kiss at the spot where neck faded into shoulder, that delicate slope begging for his attention, he tasted the salt on her warm flesh. His hand moved to pull her leg tighter around him as he rocked inside her, and he let his teeth score her neck, holding the bite carefully, just short of drawing blood.

Fred's teeth biting into her neck sent Katie spiraling over the edge. The bolt of pain shot through her, mixed with the pleasure of their joined bodies and exploded behind her eyes in a shower of fireworks. Her nails raked down his back as she arched into him, leg around his waist holding them together, holding him deep inside of her, his name falling from her lips on a ragged, almost sobbing breath. "Fred..."

The lance of heat, stinging down his back as Katie raked him, the grip of her around him, pulling him closer, shredded the fine thread of restraint Fred had maintained. He let go the bit of flesh he'd claimed as his body stopped obeying his will, hips jerking against hers as her release triggered his own, "Kit," rasped out as he shuddered, the name he used for her in his mind escaping unbidden. Gathering her to him as he shifted to the side, not wanting to rest his weight on her, he brushed a kiss across her lips, hands smoothing over all the skin he could reach as he tried to catch his breath.

Leg still thrown over his hip, Katie was completely languid in Fred's arms as she regained her breath. His hands running over her skin brought her back down, grounding, the world coming slowly back into focus. She raised her eyes to his after a few moments, a crooked little smile tugging at her lips. "Kit?"

"Mmm?" Fred muttered, distracted by the motion of his hands over her skin, the feeling of her still pressed against him. "Oh..." he nodded, not quite sure how to explain the pet name. "My Katie-kit. It's... how I think of you. You're my princess out loud, but usually Kit in my head." He'd have shrugged, but she was pillowed on one shoulder and he didn't want to joggle her. He could feel his heartbeat returning to a normal pace, slightly out of sync with Katie's where he could feel it against his skin.

A soft smile on her lips, Katie turned her head just a fraction to place a kiss against Fred's chest. "I like being your Kit." She looked back up at him again, heavy eyes running over his features. "You're just shiny to me. All kinds of shiny," she murmured. Katie wanted to reach up and touch his hair, the ginger strands what had prompted the nickname years and years ago now, but she wasn't sure she could move yet, not that she wanted to much. There was much more about Fred that was shiny than his hair; something Katie had found out rather quickly and what had drawn her to him from the very beginning. My shiny, she thought, his marks still pleasantly tingling on her skin.

His own smile forming in response to Katie's, Fred raised the hand not cradling her against him to trace a fingertip over her cheek. "I like you being mine," he said quietly, perfectly honest. Smirking slightly at the reminder of her name for him, he added, "and I'm glad you don't only like me for my hair, though I'll admit it's a fabulous quality." He curled a lock of her hair around his finger at the thought, tugging gently, just enjoying having her in his arms, the bare length of their skin together.

A blush tinted Katie's cheeks at his words, her smile turning just a bit shy. His. It made her warm inside for a completely different reason than all the things they'd just done, her body still tingling. She'd keep it to herself right now though and instead chose to focus on the last of what he'd said. Katie tightened the leg still draped over him a moment, pulling their bodies close. "It's one of many that goes on the shiny list, I think," she said with an impish grin, the blush still staining her cheeks.

"Oh really?" Fred quipped in return, fingers gliding down her spine until his hand caressed her backside, squeezing lightly. "Behave, sweet, or you'll be sore in the morning," he warned, stroking down to her thigh and then back up. "I never get enough of touching you." He'd realized that the first time he'd taken her to her bed; her skin fascinated him - Katie fascinated him - and he'd happily spend his hours exploring her until she was too worn to permit it, if he could. He dragged his short nails idly over the path he'd been tracing, not enough to sting, just a tickle, a tease.

A little shudder stirred her as Fred raked his nails down her skin. Her breathing had evened out, but she was a little breathless when she answered him. "Touch me all you'd like, shiny. I like..." a little shiver ran through her body again, "Don't stop," she murmured, just a little pleading, as he dragged his nails back up.

Fred felt his arousal reawaken as Katie's shivers caused her to tense around him where they were still connected, and he rolled properly to his back with a low groan, positioning Katie so she was straddling his hips. With both hands now free, he returned to grazing her skin with his nails, watching her eyes widen slowly, feeling her breathing turn again to soft pants, quick and warm on his skin.

Katie could feel him grow hard inside of her and that, along with his nails along her skin, had her body tensing, wanting more again, now. Keeping her eyes on his, she slowly sat up so she was straddling him, hands braced on his chest. Watching Fred's face and seeing nothing there but focused intent, she raised herself tantalizingly slow as he had done earlier, and then slid down his length, body shivering again from the mixture of their bodies coming together and his nails raking across her skin.

"Yes, princess," Fred growled, one hand catching at Katie's hip, the other scratching lightly up her ribs to cup her breast. "Move for me... make yourself feel good," he breathed, drinking in the image of her poised above him, eyes dark on his. She was so beautiful, tousled, lips slightly kiss-swollen, fighting to keep her eyes open as they came together; watching her nearly stole his breath away, and his fingers stroked her skin gently, unwilling to break the trance.

Her breath caught as Fred caught her hip, his hand pressing into the bruise he'd made there with his teeth, her skin breaking out in gooseflesh as he scratched up her ribs, cupped her breast. His words were like fire under her skin, driving her into a steady rhythm. She rolled her hips up and down even as she kept heavy eyes locked with his. After a few long moments of just their breathing and the soft noises that escaped her lips at the sensations, Katie finally answered him with a breathy, "you make me feel good, shiny."

"Together, then," he managed, his hand tightening at Katie's hip as he matched her rhythm, craving more of the tiny whimpers their motion kept pulling from her. His fingers rolled her nipple, interspersing mild pinches with the caresses, the reactionary clenching of her inner walls jarring his concentration momentarily. Pressure was building in him as he could tell it was in Katie, and he pushed it back to focus on her, wanting to watch her this time, to see her dissolve into her pleasure.

Katie could feel her muscles quivering already. She wasn't going to be able to hold herself together as long as she had the first time, especially now that every part of her body was sensitized and tuned into Fred. Katie briefly let her eyes drift; his tousled ginger hair, the freckles dusting across his shoulders, down to where their bodies were joined. The sight made her more than breathless; that and the things he was doing to her breasts made what little control she did have fray at the edges. Bringing shining eyes back to his, a pleading "Fred," spilled from her lips.

Biting back a swear at Katie's plea, nearly losing his rein on his body, Fred ran his hands along her sides, reassuring, as he directed, "Let go, beautiful." He wondered for a split second if she could wait for him, for his permission, but it was a thought for another time, stored away to be toyed with later. His eyes found hers as her gaze moved back up his body, and his hands slid to grasp her hips, guiding as he lifted to drive into her with more force than they'd been moving together.

The extra force, the tight grip on her hips, almost bruising, had the pressure hot and heavy inside of her. Let go. One moment she'd felt like she would never find the stars, be on that sweetly torturous plateau forever. Head falling back, hair tickling along her skin, Katie found her release, a tumble of whimpers falling from her lips as her body tensed in pleasure, her fingers digging into his chest.

His breath stealing from his lungs as Katie froze above him, body strung tight for a moment before she shuddered her climax, Fred gave in to the rhythmic pulse of her walls around him. Hips arching, he pushed into her once, twice more, fingers clenching at her hips as he spilled inside her, drawing her down to him as soon as his arms would cooperate. He wanted her close, skin on his, while they came down together, close so that he could run his hands down her back, warming, calming, trying to convey how gorgeous she was to him.

Her body was draped bonelessly atop him. Katie's cheek was resting on his shoulder, puffs of air blowing against glistening skin as she tried to catch her breath. Tilting her head just enough to look at up at him, she caught his eye and gave him a tired, impish grin. "I think that is going on the shiny list."

Chuckling quietly, Fred pressed a kiss to Katie's temple, arms wrapping around her to hold her tightly for a few seconds. He loosened the hug but kept her in the circle of his arms, smiling himself at her proclamation. "I'll have to agree with that," he admitted, nuzzling her hair, "though your body may say otherwise in a few hours." She'd have bruises, he knew, from his hands in addition to the marks he'd given her, nevermind being sore. He'd have felt guilty if she hadn't enjoyed it so much at the time, and his hands moved to pet over her skin again as if to soothe away future pain.

"It's not as bad as all that." After a few moments, Katie glanced up at him with a shy smile. "Plus, I like seeing you on my skin even when you're not here." She lowered her eyes then, watching her finger drawing lazy circles on his chest where her hand was resting. "It never hurts much anyways, especially because it mostly just reminds me of shiny things," she finished quietly after a few moments.

Eyes going dark at Katie's admission, the words spiking a thrill of possessiveness along his spine, Fred reached out to tip her chin up. He traced the purpling bruise at her throat, a slightly wicked smile curling his lips at the knowledge that it would be a reminder to her of what they'd shared tonight. "I'm glad you like your marks," he said softly, caressing the side of the hip on which the second one was hidden. "I like giving them to you." He waited for her eyes to meet his, fingers playing lightly over her skin. "Mine" he reminded, holding her gaze. "Just as I've had no one but you, save Greg."

Katie's eyes widened a bit. She hadn't known Fred had narrowed his partners down to exclusively her and Greg, whom they had talked about quite often since they'd decided to let their relationship change as it would. A little flutter of something bubbled inside of her, a thought she pushed away before it could fully form. She hadn't had any expectations when she and Fred had decided to further this new aspect of their relationship.

As much as it made her glow inside that he seemed to want to focus a bit on her, Katie pushed that away too, and narrowed in on the part of what he'd said, twice now tonight, that really pulled at her. "I've only been yours. No one else in longer than I can remember. I am yours," she whispered, holding his eyes as she absently ran a finger over the bruise on her neck. I've always been yours.

Fred caught the hand Katie was tracing her mark with, bringing her fingers to his lips for a kiss. "I know," he murmured, laying her hand at his shoulder so he could frame her face in his palms, his eyes warm with the affection and protectiveness her words caused. "Precious," he breathed, serious in the sentiment as he tugged her gently closer, dusting the lightest of kisses over her lips, her cheeks.

Katie's eyes fluttered as Fred dusted kisses across her face, and a small, contented smile tugged at her lips. This then, was why waiting over ten years to touch, hold, kiss each other, was worth it.


SUMMARY: Fred goes to visit Katie at Rose Cottage. They talk about Greg and relationships, smut, smut again and then there are some revelations for them both.