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Shuri desperately tries to pull out the spear but it won’t budge. The pain that she feels is crippling and she has to gasp for air. Namor comes back to her after having replenished himself in the ocean. Despite the violence of having put her there, his hands are gentle on her face, putting his forehead to hers. “Yield, Black panther of Wakanda.” He whispers softly. “Yield, and I will protect your borders and we will burn those who seek to harm our people.”
She stared at him, defiance clear in her eyes, but her words did not match. “I yield.” Shuri gritted out.
— Namor kept his word after their fight. The fighting between their people had ceased, on his command. Then he handed Shuri over to her people so that she would be given the time to heal her wounds, and went directly to her council to go over the new order.He did not wish to rule over them, that was never his intention, and he told them as much. Namor wanted their allyship for when the day would inevitably come when the world would align themselves against those with Vibranium, and that seemed to calm the council marginally. He even offered for his people to come help rebuild the damage that they had done to their nation, however…“I do have one condition. Considering the unnecessary fighting amongst our people.” Some of the members of the council seemed to bristle at this, but Namor did not care. He refused to be the only villain in this story when both sides had clearly made destructive choices. “We will solidify our alliance, preventing further fighting, with the union of your Black Panther to me.”There was a moment of palpable silence before the chaos broke, and Namor simply waited for it to pass. He was unsurprised that not everyone was of the same opinion. “...The princess did make the rash decision to bring our fight to him. We lost a lot of good warriors.” This one sentence threw the entire room into silence. Namor allowed them to speak amongst themselves, to which they finally came to an agreement. Princess Shuri of Wakanda would marry the God King of Talokan within the week. When Shuri found out, after her wounds had been healed, she raged at her council, but M’Baku had taken her to the side to calm her. And whatever he had said to her seemed to disheartened her enough into compliance. The ceremony was quick and simple, nothing overly flashy. Shuri kept her eyes averted the entire time, and Namor admired that she didn’t cry once. It was not lost on him that she wore all white, he was aware of their funeral practices. He wondered if it was not lost on Shuri that his ancestors had to quite literally die in order for Talokan to exist. So to him, her attire was appropriate. She said her goodbyes to the ones closest to her. He overheard a conversation with Nakia, the woman she called her sister, offering her home in Haiti if Shuri ever needed it. Namor did not bother to correct them, to tell them that Shuri would never see the surface again. She would find out soon enough. — She’s quiet during their journey back to Talokan and for the rest of the day, until it’s time to go to bed and she looked horrified that they would be sharing the same room and bed “Absolutely not.” “We are husband and wife.” He said simply, removing his gauntlets first before moving to the chest plate he wore.“I want my own room.” “No.” “No? NO!?” Shuri rushed at him, shoving him with each sentence. “You force me to marry you! You force me to leave my home! It’s the least you can do to not make me sleep in the same bed with my mother’s murderer! I hate you! I-” Namor finally snapped, his irritation getting the better of him, and crushed her to him, his mouth muffling any other word. He kissed her mostly to stop her from talking, but a small part of him had wanted to do this, long before the opportunity had passed. There was a brief moment of them pressed to one another, before she wrenched herself away from him and slapped him hard across the face. The sound of it ringing in his ears.“Don’t you EVER touch me like that again. We may be husband and wife, but never in that capacity.” Shuri hissed and turned her back to him. He watched quietly as she quickly got dressed for the night and got into the bed he had installed for them. She scooted far to the edge furthest from him.He slipped into bed beside her, listening to her cry herself to sleep. The following weeks are spent with either her giving him the cold shoulder or sniping at him, which he took in stride. Her anger never being something that bothered him, and her honest reaction to things was always something to be admired in his opinion. However, he was grateful that she never extended her ire to the rest of Talokan. She was kind and attentive to the workers, and asked them many questions, using her beads as a translator. The children seemed quite fond of her as well, constantly coming to visit their new queen. They were shy at first, curiously watching her from the safety of the various pools within the caves, but she ended up luring them out to her with a hologram of birds from her beads. Now she spoiled them with treats meant for her from the kitchens. Her kindness even extended to his generals, which at first surprised them, but even they warmed to her. Namora being the biggest surprise of all. “What has changed your mind about the Black Panther?” He asked Namora one day. “She is Queen of Talokan.” Namora said simply. “And also, she almost beat you.” — After the first month she began bringing up her mother more and more to him. It was beginning to grate against his nerves. He was fully aware of what he did, and it was something he knew he would do again so he would not apologize for his actions. Namor would go as far as to admit that he understood why her mother did what she did, but it did not lessen the consequences. They had been visiting a room that held many handwritten archives of Talokan’s centuries of being in the sea. She was carefully looking through one of the scrolls, commenting on the preservation of the archives, when somehow the conversation had somehow led back to him murdering her mother. “And what of your mother’s actions?” He snapped back at her, unwilling to continue having this conversation. So let us just get to the point, he thought grimly. “You want to hold me accountable for her death then let us do the same for her.”Shuri looked frozen, but her rage still simmered behind her eyes. “She’s dead, what would you hold her accountable for?” He strode up to her, leaning on the table between them where she sat. “So you do not care that your mother had those two girls killed?! Are their deaths worth less than your mothers?” She flinched at the tone of his voice and tried to open her mouth to respond but he cut her off. “If you say no. Then why bother saving that scientist? Someone you did not know? If I had killed her as originally planned then we would not be here.” That set her back into motion and she stood, slamming the scroll in her hand down on the table. “Why did anyone have to die!?”He continued, relentless. Namor was fully aware of what he did to her mother, but did she understand what her mother did? Did she even want to consider how different things would be if her mother had not had killed those girls? “Did you know that that handmaiden was the same age as that scientist? That she asked me to save her life and I could do nothing but hold her as she died? Did you even know their names?” Shuri threw the scroll at him, her face contorted in a mix of confusion and anger, tears streaming down her face. “Stop it!” She pushed away from the table and stormed out. It was several hours before he finally went back to their hut, unwilling to follow her right away. He found her already curled up in bed with her back facing him. When he lay down, facing her, he was not surprised to see that she was still awake. “Abha and Patli.” She whispered into the quiet of the room, her voice sounding louder than it was. The names of the two girls. His earlier rage had long since passed, but hearing the names quieted something inside that had been eating at him. The uncomfortable feeling loosening. He reached out to touch her, his fingers stretching to her bare arms, but he pulled his hand back at the last second. Instead he covered her with a blanket, before turning away from her to sleep. — He would catch her, when she thought he wasn't watching, enjoying foods that the kitchens let her try. Her favorite being the purple corn cakes with fresh avocado. Shuri chose not to eat with him, staying in their room when meals were presented, so he never got to see the soft look of enjoyment on her face unless he happened to pass by. Shuri spent most of her time in their archives, translating their store of history. And was always delighted when the staff brought her bits of technology from Talokan. Showing a particular interest in how their conch shells work. There are moments when it looked like she wanted to talk with him, ask him questions that he knew had been festering in her mind about everything that she read or saw, but she always ended up clamping her jaw tight and looking away instead. Wanting to change that, he presented to her a peace offering.“What?” She asked breathlessly, unsure if she had heard him correctly. “I will allow you to update your suit so that you can visit Talokan.” Namor handed her the necklace that housed her panther habit; he had taken it from her after their battle. Keeping it as one of his conditions after the alliance was formally made. “However it will be under the supervision of my own engineers, you understand. It should go without saying, but it would be foolish for you to try to use this as a means to escape.” Shuri surprised him by saying, “I won’t. I know my decision to attack you had cost a lot of lives and resources. I know that my council blames me for it more than they blame you.” She glanced down at the necklace, stroking it, before looking back up at him. “Don’t misunderstand, I would have made the same choice.” “I understand.” He truly did. It took several weeks for her to get the new suit ready. Not that Shuri wasn’t up to the task, but more because of the language barrier, and understanding what she could and couldn’t work with due to tools and resources, but she made it work in the end. Her face had lit up with the project, which in turn relaxed Namor. Not realizing how tense he had been feeling the past few months she had been there. When everything was tested and ready, he led her back down to Talokan. Her suit looked a little bulkier, but it was much smaller than the first suit she had worn, and with much more mobility. Going through the streams she yelled out in enjoyment and when they made their way through Talokan she spun and weaved her way through the entire kingdom. Namor couldn’t see her face, but this was the closest he had seen her to being happy in a long time.The people greeted their Queen warmly, trusting their King's decision despite their past with the Black panther. The children immediately swarmed her, saluting with wrists together, palms and fingers splayed. It surprised Namor to see her readily salute in the same way back, delighting the children. Before they left, he took her to watch the Satsun descend, the image of her face the first time she saw it flashed through his mind. His heart ached at the memory. The success of the trip put Namor in a good mood, feeling a small seed of hope wedge itself inside of him. Although she’s quiet for most of the journey back. He just assumed she was tired.When they got back to their hut, she retracted her suit, falling limply on top of their bed. The trip had worn her out, despite her heightened strength as the Black Panther. He walked over to a chest in the corner to grab her a cloak to relax in. “Talokan, truly is a beautiful kingdom. Your Satsun…your Sun…” Shuri goes quiet, her thumb rubbing over the gold necklace that held her panther habit. “I miss the sun, Namor. I want to see it, I want to go to the surface.”Namor felt everything inside of him go still, the good feeling from before draining out of him. He walked over to her and placed the cloak around her shoulders. “Talokan’s sun will have to be enough.” “I won’t leave I jus-” “No. Going to the surface is not an option.” He took the panther habit from her, and at her questioning look, “You may only go to Talokan when I am with you.”Shuri stood up quickly, the cloak falling off of her, “So as Queen I can only come and go at your word?” She pushed past him, and attempted to leave the hut. Namor’s hand shot out to grab onto her arm and she turned back toward him, yanking the arm he was refusing to let go. “Get your hands off of me. I don’t want to be near you right now.” “Shuri-” “What? I can’t even leave this hut now? You selfish bastard, let go.” She growled, attempting to push him off with her free hand. Namor reached up and gripped both of her arms to her sides, her own strength making it a problem to keep her still, but his hands might as well have been made of vibranium. His anger coiled within him, but it was edged with a confusing pain he did not want to address. The cause of that confusion he knew Shuri to be the root of. “Everything, everything, I have ever done has been for Talokan. The only thing I have ever been selfish about in my life is you.”“...Am I supposed to be flattered?” She scoffed, continuing to struggle against him.“I should have never shown you Talokan.” He shook her as he spoke harshly, and she looked at him, surprised at his words. Namor wasn’t speaking of today, he was speaking of the first time she had come to him. Kind and compassionate, bringing a hopeful understanding that he felt mirror his own. Before it was all ruined. “I should have never allowed you to come here, but damn you I do not think I would have ever chosen differently if given another chance.” He said it with a calm anger that was not directed at her. She simply stared at him, searching his face for what he didn’t know. He yanked her towards him and kissed her roughly. Shuri responded by biting his bottom lip, and instead of pulling away he deepened the kiss, moving forward and pressing her into the wall next to the door. Namor moved his hands away to wrap them around her waist, fully expecting her to push him away. To stop him with her hands now free, but to his shock she ended up coiling her arms around his neck, bringing him flush against her. She made a small noise in the back of her throat that would have thrown him into a frenzy if-“K’uk’ulkan?” A small voice said beyond the doorway, a simple cloth hanging keeping both him and Shuri hidden from view. “We have brought you and the Black Panther food. We thought she might be hungry after her trip.” “Yes, child, that is very kind of you. Please leave it at the door.” There is a soft shuffling noise of the food being settled down, before everything goes quiet.Shuri quickly shoved him away, and walked to the opposite side of the room. He let out a slow breath before grabbing the platters of food and placing them on the table. There was enough food for the both of them but he didn’t think she wanted him there. “You should eat something.” There was no response from her, not even a glance. So he walked out of the hut to leave her alone. — The week after that she began taking her meals with him. She also started asking questions about various things involving all that she had seen so far. At first tentatively, as if unsure if she even wanted to speak, but as soon as he answered her first question it seemed like a dam had broken. Her insatiable curiosity getting the better of her. It honestly surprised him at how much she was holding back prior to this. He could see it on her face clearly, but now that she was open with asking the first question it quickly led to a hundred more. When there were things that were easier to show her then answer he would, and she always seemed delighted by this. Although she would turn away from him before he could really see it openly on her face. She asked about their agriculture practices and he both explained and took her to their gardens and farmlands. She asked about his paints, he showed her how he made them himself. It was both overwhelming and relieving to hear her speak so much. Namor simply soaked it in, unsure when she would suddenly clamp back up.During the lulling moments of when she would wander around the caves by herself, he would catch her staring at the ceiling. Her eyes closed and hands spread open, as if basking in the warmth of something not there. Seeing her like this sparked an idea. A small one that engulfed him into wanting something that he knew to be distant from him, like two planets passing by one another, so he focused on something small, attainable. The rest of the day is spent on getting this idea underway, utilizing an unused space, a small cave that was used mainly for storage. He cleared away most of it, placing a small table, and painting the flatter surfaces a solid neutral color so that other paints would come out more vibrant.He worked on it well into the night, shocked to see that it was well past dinner. Namor made his way back to their hut and was surprised to see her still awake sitting at the table, a platter of food in front of an empty seat at the table.“Oh, so you're back.” She said nonchalantly, not looking at him, and flipping through one of his sketchbooks that he had acquired long ago on one of his trips to the surface. He looked to the untouched bed, to the untouched food that was enough for one, and then back to her to see that she still wore the thin dress that she had chosen for the day. “Were you… waiting for me?” Shuri looked up, stricken by his question. “Of course not.” She said quickly, panic edging her words. Shuri blinked rapidly, tossing the book onto the table and stumbled up and away from it. “No..I..You normally…” Her words tripped over themselves, halting to a complete stop as she stared hard at the table. “Everything here is becoming so familiar, I d-don't want that I don't want this to be hom-” A sob ripped out of her. Namor’s breath hitched in his throat, a sudden lump that made it hard to breathe as he watched her stagger to the floor, her breathing coming in and out too fast. He finally broke away from his frozen state and knelt next to her, reaching for her, but she slapped his hands away. It didn't deter him. He tried again, this time managing to get his arms around her before she shoved him back again, nearly toppling him. “This is your fault!” She managed to gasp out between sobs, her tears streaming down her face. “Why am I even here!?”
I know.
If he was really honest about it, their union didn’t have to happen to keep their alliance. It would have withstood without it, he was sure that she would have kept her word. However, he wanted to keep her.
“Keep me instead.”
She couldn’t understand how those three words, so freely and honestly given, rooted themselves so deeply inside of himself, that only death could remove them. And even then he wasn’t sure if that was true. He wondered if they would continue to grow, transcending into another time, another place, using his corpse as nourishment. Shuri continued to sob in front of him, wiping furiously at her face. He finally wrapped his arms fully around her and pulled her flush against his chest, tucking his face close to hers. She weakly pushed at him, but he could tell that the will to fight him had left her and she let him hold her. “I know.” He admits out loud, whispering so low that she wouldn’t have heard him if his lips weren't right next to her ear. It made her cry harder, her body shaking uncontrollably, and all he could do was hold onto her. Her loud sobs dwindled down to quiet cries, before she’s finally sagging against him. Limp with exhaustion. He waited until her breath sounded soft and even before he finally moved. Namor wasn’t sure how much time had passed, it could have been well over an hour, his limbs feeling stiff and achy as he stood, scooping her up from the ground. Making his way to their bed, he kneeled on top and placed her on her side, not bothering with her clothes. He moved his arm from under her legs, and placed it next to her head, his other arm still pinned under her neck. Before taking too long to think on it, he leaned down and kissed her forehead, trailing his lips down her temple to kiss her cheek, then finally dragging his lips to hers. Placing a small chaste kiss. When he leaned back to move away, he paused when he saw her watching him quietly, clearly not asleep. Her eyes flick down to his lips then back to his eyes. Slowly Namor came back down and kissed her again, taking his time and sliding his lips against hers leisurely and firmly. Kissing her the way that he had always wanted to. She pressed her fingers onto his chin and he opened his mouth enough to slide his tongue against hers, pulling her closer to him. When she moaned his whole body shudders, and his free hand began to roam. Touching her leg up to her hip before sliding onto her stomach, his fingers inching down. She moved then, both hands gripping onto his wrist to stop him. He moved back, breaking the kiss to look down at her. They simply stare at one another, her fingers slowly loosening their grip and sliding her hands away, deliberately opening her legs a fraction open.His hand began to move down again, sliding easily between her legs, and grinding the heel of his hand to where he knew she needed the pressure the most. Her reaction was instant, her hips rising to meet his hand, her small hands grabbing onto his shoulders as a sudden gasp ripped out of her, his own gasp matching her own as he watched her face. As he continued his ministrations between her legs, he began kissing her jaw, biting her neck and mouthing at her hardened nipples through the thin fabric of her dress. She’s panting and mewling underneath him, and it took everything in him not to rip the dress off of her and have his way with her for the next few days. But he wanted to do this for her, anything to make her feel good, even if it was only for tonight. Shuri tugged at his hair, forcing him back up to her face for a desperate kiss, her hips frantically moving against his hand. He wanted to move his head back to look at her as she came apart but she wouldn’t let him, so he settled for kissing her harder, angling her head back to lick inside her mouth. She came hard against his hand, moaning loudly into his mouth, and he swallowed it willingly, helping her ride through her orgasm until she fell limply against him for the second time that night. He placed one last tender kiss on her lips then studied her face. No words were exchanged, but there's a calm between them that he hadn’t felt in quite some time. Not wanting to ruin the moment he pulled away slowly, to tug his cloak off to place on top of her in lieu of a blanket since they were still on top of the one on the bed. She was asleep within minutes. His arms wrapped around her. — The next morning they both pretend that nothing happened, that the line hadn’t been irreversibly crossed. The memories threaten to hang around Namor’s mind like a plague, so he forced all of his attention onto the room he had been preparing for her. It only took a couple days more to finish, acquiring several blank notebooks, quills, and paints to fill the shelves for her own personal use. He didn’t even get a chance to show her, because she beat him to it. With all of her wandering she finally found her way to the small room. “What is all this?” She asked, curiously looking around. “Ah,” He blinked, suddenly feeling ridiculous, “this is for you.” Shuri walked further in, touching the shelves and the dried walls ready to be filled with a small look of wonder. “For me?” “To do as you like.” And for the next few months she did. She immediately filled one notebook first, filling it with ideas that she had been keeping to herself with no place to put them, before tentatively starting on the walls. The blank canvas put her at ease as she painted, filling the walls with numerous designs that intricately linked and repeated into a pattern. Sometimes there would be faces and animals jumping from the designs to break up the design.Namor tried to let the space be hers, not wanting to break the small bit of peace that he had hoped had been provided in the secluded room, but he was surprised when she invited him to sit with her. “I want to learn your language. The translator works well, and I know a few words, but I think it would be helpful.” “As you like.” Namor replied quietly. That was how he spent the following month with her, a couple hours a day in her private room helping her learn the language. She was an excellent student, soaking it in little by little but soaking it in none the less. He noticed that she liked writing it more than speaking it, seeing his language hidden in her paintings on the wall. Some days, he just spent his time with her to watch her paint. “Is that some sort of dog?” Namor suddenly asked one day.“Do-? That’s a cat-a panther.” She slaps a hand on a dry part of the wall, giving him an incredulous look.“Truly?” His voice light, almost joking. Shuri choke laughs looking at her work and back at Namor with a wide grin.“Has old age caught up with…” The smile on her face froze.Namor had frozen too, she hadn’t smiled at him during the entire time she had been there. The comfortable warmth that had been carefully growing between the two of them had suddenly gone cold. Shuri swallowed thickly, just staring at him before dropping her paintbrush in hand and quickly walked out of the room. He only waited a beat before getting up after her. She didn't look back but she quickened her pace as soon as he’s behind her, leading them all the way back to their hut. Once inside she turned to confront him, only managing to get out the first syllable of his name before he yanked her forward into him, his mouth crashing down onto hers. There was no hesitation from her this time around, as she wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him to her, two planets crashing into each other, equally destroying the other. Her quick and clever fingers begin undoing the small strings of the plain robe he wore, undressing him quickly. He had dressed simply that day, no adornments, and nothing underneath the robe, completely bare before her in an instant. Namor follows her lead by tugging at the straps of her dress, accidently ripping one in his haste. He paused for the briefest of moments at the sound before following through and ripping the rest of her dress off, no longer caring. As the dress came off, tangling around her legs, she lost balance and fell back onto the bed behind her with him on top of her. He studied her, his hands sliding down her stomach, keeping his eyes on her for any sign for him to stop, but she just tentatively reached up, her fingers rubbing the beard on his chin. Namor leaned down to kiss her as his fingers slipped inside of her, swallowing the sound of her moan. He nudged her legs wider to move his fingers quicker, curling them in a way that has her body arching into him. Pleading to him unintelligibly. His body responding with the painful ache of want at the sound and feel of her. “Shuri.” Namor whispered against her open mouth, nipping at her lips, slipping a third finger into her and picking up the pace. “Shuri.” She suddenly gasps, shocked by the orgasm that suddenly ripped through her. Her hips moving against his hand, until her hips begin to shudder limply before stopping. She relaxed back on the bed, breathing out heavily, watching Namor through half lidded eyes. “Namor.” She whispered back, in a tone that spurred him on to continue. He rolled on top of her, lifting a leg up over his hip as he slowly slid himself inside of her, watching every minute change of her face as he completely filled her. Her eyes rolled back and closed at the sensation of him inside and he let out a low groan at the sight. He kissed her exposed neck, basking in the tight warmth of her around him, staying still to let it imprint in his mind forever. Rolling his hips once, Shuri’s eyes flew open with a moan, and Namor took that as a good sign and began moving. He kept her close, his chest rubbing against hers, groaning into her neck. One hand gripping her hip tightly, just reveling in the sensation of her body moving against his so intimately. How long had he dreamed of this?Of taking her like this?“Faster, please, Namor.” She cried out. Not needing to be told twice, he sat up pulling her legs up onto his shoulders, and snapped his hips forward, her sudden wailing at the new pace almost threw him over the edge right then and there. Shuri began calling his name faster, and not being able to hold on much longer, his hand slipped between her legs to help her along. He watched as she came undone first, memorizing her face as she did, before he followed soon after, thrusting deeply one last time and shouting out as he released inside of her. They both gasped in and out, staring at one another. Namor moved her legs back down to his sides, and fell on top of her, his mouth slotting against hers in a sloppy kiss. And she fully welcomed it. — Over the course of the next two months everything felt almost happy. A feeling he had not laid claim to for such a long time. It frightened him. Things between them were amiable, affectionate even, with freely given featherlite touches and smiling conversations. They also continued the new physical aspects of their relationship. However, it doesn’t go unnoticed that she never initiated, which always made him hesitate. But when he did, she always pulled him towards her, never pushing him away. When he’s the first to wake in the mornings and finds her sprawled on top of him, wrapped around him, or sometimes, somehow wedged partially under him, he would try his best not to move. Not wanting to ruin the comfortable feeling of having her just simply there with him. It was as if something inside of him had turned to glass, ready to break at any given moment. For two months he would have considered them happy. And then it just dwindled away. One morning she was smiling and the next…Shuri began pulling away from him. Her mood, not aggressive or sour like the beginning months of their marriage, but somber. He would have preferred her anger, her rage. It would mean that she would at least be talking to him, something for him to respond to. Whole days would pass and not a word would leave her mouth as she gazed at nothing, quite literally wilting before his eyes. She stopped going to the room he had made for her, and barely ate the food that was brought. The only thing she seemed to accept were the vibrant mangos from Talokans farmlands and plain sticky rice. The worry grew when she didn’t even acknowledge the children who would still come to visit her. Namora had to gently steer the distraught children away, throwing an alarmed look at her King. One day, he found her sitting at the table in their hut, leaning over the wood surface and laying on one of her arms. Her eyes gazing at a piece of blank wall in front of her. Namor knelt beside her, placing himself directly in her line of vision, forcing her to focus on him. “What can I do to make you happy?”Shuri stared at him, a hollow face he did not recognize. She whispered, “Does it matter?” A sudden painful feeling sliced right through him, a large crack splintering through glass.He blinked rapidly as he looked over her features, unable to look her in the eye any longer. It only took a moment, but he quickly came to a decision. — “Why…Why are we here?”“To visit your sister.” They stood on the coast in a wooded area, up ahead was a small home. It was early morning, and he watched as Shuri squinted at her surroundings, the small amount of light still being a bit much for her. “I had Attuma find her location.”“But why? You said no when I asked-” “Go on.” He interrupted, his resolve quickly leaving him. “I’ll come back for you when the sun begins to set.” “You’re not coming with me?” “No.” “And you’ll come back for me?”
No. I won’t.
“...Yes.” Shuri looked wildly unsure, but her desire to see her sister clearly won over her suspicions so she slowly turned away from him towards the small house on the beach. He watched her go, willing himself to stone, to be unfeeling. The plan was to simply leave her.So when he came back to retrieve her at sunset he cursed himself to every single god he knew, including hers. He tried. He tried . Her footsteps came through loud and clear, and a dreadful relief washed over him when she appeared through the trees. The look on her face seemed to mirror his own, but he wondered if it was something he simply wished to see. Namor reached his hand out to her and she took it, and before he could stop himself he placed a small lingering kiss to the back of her hand and took the two of them home. For a week he continued this awkward dance of him bringing her to the surface to ‘visit’ her sister, fully intending to never come back but never being able to follow through. Repeating the day again and again. Each day proving that he was right to leave her, as he watched some of the life that had left her seep back into her features. The crack inside of him was slowly getting larger. On the eighth day, Shuri didn’t come back. Instead he was greeted by her sister Nakia. “Where is Shuri?” “She wasn’t feeling well. Shuri just needs maybe twenty minutes and she’ll be here, she just wanted me to let you know.” Namor looked past her to the house, before looking to the ocean, the image of her wilted on the table in their hut ingrained in his mind. “No. That is fine.”
“What?” “She will go back to Wakanda.”“For how long?” Nakia asked, her entire posture pensive. As if he was making a cruel joke. “Indefinitely. Tell her our marriage is dissolved.” He kept his eyes forward, unable to look at Nakia directly, afraid that she would see the cracks beginning to branch into smaller fractures, slowly spreading in different directions.Nakia stared wide eyed at him in disbelief, and at a clear loss of words with her mouth agape. In the distance Namor could hear the shuffling of brush, and he quickly left. — Namor threw all of his focus on keeping the alliance successful, splitting his time between Talokan and Wakanda, only spending a few hours for sleep in the hut he once shared with Shuri. He even started attending the council meetings that King M’Baku had invited him to to sit on. And although he didn’t speak much during them, they were blessedly distracting. There were growing tensions from a few of the European nations and parts of North America. Unsurprising but a concern nonetheless. Occasionally he would see Shuri in passing, but he kept his distance, avoiding her completely. It surprised him later to learn that she was working on several defensive measures for Talokan. Her team of engineers presented a shield that was similar to Wakanda’s that would both hide them from sight as well as alert them to any oncoming danger. The technology was accepted gratefully, but he refused when it was offered that Shuri would go back with him to install it. “No.” Namor said roughly, surprising M’Baku who had spoken with him on the matter. He swallowed and tried again. “No. That is unnecessary. We just need verbal instruction and my own engineers will do the rest.” “...You would not like your wife to go back with you?” M’Baku asked curiously. “She is no longer my wife .” Namor spoke with some frustration, he knew that the King of Wakanda knew. “And you’ve spoken with Shuri about this?” “She is free of me. That is all that should matter.” The two kings stood staring at one another. M’Baku gave Namor a curious look that unnerved him more than he would care to admit, but no more words were exchanged between the two. Several Months passed, although it could have been another century for Namor with how the days dragged on. Meetings below in Talokan, Meetings above in Wakanda, sleep, then repeat. He continued this cycle without running into Shuri with relative success. Until she finally sought him out. It was during the celebration of Toussaint, the late King T’Challa’s secret son, being formally introduced to all of Wakanda. There was a joyful buoyancy to the nation, chanting and dancing all around. Both of his generals were immediately enamored, and he stayed at the palace as they went to explore. Namor had watched the festivities from a small secluded balcony when Shuri had found him. His exhaustion must have finally caught up with him because he did not realize that she was there until it was too late. “Namor?” Shuri’s voice was soft, but it made his whole body flinch, turning slowly to look at her. She was dressed in a sleeveless, loose fitting dress, the color of the sea, that flowed around her as she moved. Her rich brown skin practically glowing in the sunlight. He looked away before he could look her fully in the face. “My apologies, I did not mean to take over this balcony. I will leave-” “Wait.” Her hand shot out gripping on to his forearm, the weight of her hand anchoring him to the spot. Namor focused on her fingers, tempted to place his hand over hers. “Why did you let me go?” The direct question almost made him smile. She was never one to waste time. Namor finally looked up at her, and his heart clenched at how well she looked. Similar to how she looked when she first visited Talokan, but fuller, healthier. It's only a moment of hesitation, but he placed his hand on top of hers, the open look on her face nearly shattering him, before he pushed her hand off of his arm.He had a feeling that ripping his own skin off would have been easier. “You look well, Princess.” And then he left. After that he no longer went to Wakanda, sending Namora in his stead to take care of any political matters as his proxy. He wondered if she judged him for it, because there were moments when he caught Namora looking as if she wanted to tell him something, but instead she shook her head and moved on. — Three years passed him by in a blur, no longer dragging as it did before, but most days could not hold his interest. He kept most of his time below the surface in Talokan, making sure that anything that Shuri had made to keep his kingdom safe was never wasted. With Namora successfully representing Talokan as part of Wakanda’s council, there was never ever a reason for him to come to the surface. Until Talokan was inevitably called upon to help protect Wakanda’s borders, just as he promised all those years ago. The rumors of an alliance brewing between radical terrorist groups from both Europe and North America, finally bore fruit. They were bringing the fight, foolishly, to Wakanda’s border in an attempt to demand vibrainum. In their own words, ‘ Either Wakanda learns to share and open trade in Vibranium, or we take matters into our own hands.” As foolish as the group had sounded, there was one troubling rumor. They were supplied with weapons powerful enough to stand up to Wakanda.The rumor had turned out to be true, in the form of machines three times the size of a normal human. However they were still out matched, by Wakanda’s ingenuity and the inhuman strength of Talkan’s warriors. Namor was on the front lines alongside the Black Panther. It had been the first time he had seen Shuri in all those years, but he kept his focus on the battle at hand. The two of them took out the major threats while their people took out the rest. As the heat was getting to him, a mech had almost gotten the drop on him but Shuri had scrambled onto the back of it, ripping out the wiring to stop it from moving, it then fell backwards on her, trapping her underneath, as the wires began to spark with signs of an oncoming explosion. Namor hefted the machine off of her and launched it into a crowd of enemies, the mech exploding within it. He had walked over to Shuri, helping her to her feet. They stared at one another for only a moment before continuing on. They fought well together, taking turns saving the other.Their enemies never stood a chance. — His people were of course invited to stay in Wakanda to celebrate their victory. “My warriors will be more than pleased to celebrate our success, I myself must decline.” “Must you?” M’baku asked, one eyebrow lifted. “I’m sure that even you could make time to relax now and again.” “I…” Namor looked beyond the Wakandan king, seeing Shuri in the distance, staring at him. She was still wearing her suit but her cowl had been taken off so that he could see her eyes clearly. “No. Thank you for your hospitality. I leave Attuma in charge in my stead.” This is for the best. He reminds himself as he turns away from her, although it's beginning to feel like he’s just running away now. — Namor finds her, a week after the battle at Wakanda, cleaning the room he had made for her. He had heard noises coming from the room, and he was momentarily angered that anyone would suddenly disturb it, but he found Shuri instead. She was wiping down the surfaces of any dust and grime, and he simply stood there in shock, watching her. Not quite believing that she was really there. “What are you doing here?” Namor finally managed to ask, his throat feeling dry and unused. “If Wakanda is in need of me you-”Shuri stopped what she’s doing, dropping the rag in her hand on the table and wiping her hands down on her dress. “I missed you.” Namor froze, his hands dropping limply to his sides.“You know I was actually mad at you for just leaving me and then I was afraid that you might actually drag me back. But you never went back on your word…you never do.” “...no.” Shuri nodded, sighing. “Before you had let me go…” She trailed off, looking towards the surface. “I felt so ashamed when I found out…when I found out that I felt anything good about you, but it’s there nonetheless.” Shuri walked up closer to him, her hand shooting out to latch onto his cloak to keep him from backing away. “You know I tried my best to live without you.” “Shuri-” “I miss you.” She said again, tugging him further into the room, forcing him down to sit into a chair. “Did you miss me?”“Everyday.” He whispered, watching her in frozen awe as she sat down on his lap, straddling him. He stiffened when she kissed him, unused to her ever initiating anything intimate. When he didn't kiss her back right away, she leaned back to gaze at him, stroking his chin with gentle fingers. “Do you hate me?” She asked.“No.” “Do you want me to leave?” “No.” His tone sounded much too desperate to his dismay, betraying the toll it had taken from him from the years of not having her near him. Centuries without having ever known her, to only have the past three years with her absence nearly shattering him. “Then let go.” Shuri whispered.With a sigh, she settled against him, pressing her lips to his again. And this time he did let go, slipping his fingers behind her neck and leaning up into her kiss. His mind finally caught up to his body, realizing that she was real, and that she had come back to him. Shuri broke away from him to stand, slipping off her clothes and then helping him take off his. She didn’t let him move from the chair, but brought his hands up to touch her as she settled back into his lap. He obliged, letting her take the lead entirely, smoothing his hands up her back, pressing her bare chest into his, shuddering as she slid her tongue into his mouth, her fingers brushing through his hair. Without breaking her kiss, she angled her hips up and over to slide down the length of him, grinding her hips forward to securely nestle him within her. He groaned out, gripping her body tightly against hers, suddenly wanting to sob at the feel of her. Shuri pressed her forehead against his, and for a moment they simply stayed like that, their bodies reacquainting themselves to the feeling of a piece finally being put back into place. She set the pace, his hands on her hips helping guide her as she rode him, a pleasurable pressure building slowly inside of him at both the feel and sight of her. He slid a hand up her stomach, his fingers brushing over a hardened nipple before pinching and flicking a thumb over it. Shuri leaned back with a gasp, her pace faltering for only a second before picking it back up again, grinding her hips a little closer. Namor moved forward to capture her other nipple into his mouth, sucking and nipping, gifted with the sound of her gasping out his name. He licked up between her breasts, back up to her mouth to pull her into a frantic kiss, pulling her back towards him. He’s close, the memory of her body was nothing compared to the reality of her really being there with him. He began whispering her name against her lips over and over again in a silent plea. And they both let go, moaning loudly as their bodies shudder against each other, both clinging on tight. They stay like that until their bodies cool, Namor ignoring the ache in his back for staying too long in the chair. Afraid that if he moved that Shuri would disappear, and that this was just some cruel trick his lonely mind had created. But she was solid and warm and continued to hold onto him, keeping him inside of her, and gently tracing his collarbone. His eyes began to sting with how overwhelming it felt, and he leaned his head back to rapidly blink back tears that were threatening to spill over. “I need you to do me a favor.” Shuri finally spoke, breaking him out of his spiraling mind. “Yes?” “Come to the surface with me, no questions asked.” Namor shifted to sit up straighter in the chair, forcing her to sit back to look at him, her face strangely serious. “As you like.”Reluctantly they finally break away from each other, cleaning up, and getting dressed. When Namor was done, Shuri reached forward, grabbing his cloak to pull him down to kiss her again. It’s quick and affectionate, reminding him again that this was real. “We’re not going to Wakanda. I live at my sister’s old house now.” A question bubbled up within him instantly, but she had said no questions so he tamped it down and nodded. — Shuri has him bring her to the same spot he abandoned her. When he recognized it he stopped walking, causing her to stop and turn back to him. She reached out a hand and did not wait long for Namor to slip his hand into hers. She led him out onto the beach that lay ahead of the small house, and he noticed two figures. One of them instantly familiar.
Namora?
His general met them part way, splaying her fingers in salute to both him and Shuri, with Shuri returning the gesture. Again he had to forcibly tamp down the sudden need to ask questions. “Thank you Namora. Your King will be safe with me.” “Of course my Queen.” Namora replied, she turned to Namor and simply nodded her head to him, and without another word she walked into the ocean to leave them be. Namor turned his attention to the second figure, a child kneeled down in the sand, with three piles in front of him. One of shells, one of rocks, and one of branches. A numb shock began spreading through Namor the closer they got. The child was a small boy, the color of his skin and his long fingers reminding him of Shuri. But it was his large curious eyes that solidified the fact that this was indeed her son. He looked like Shuri…but he also…his tuft of soft curly hair…the bridge of his nose…his ears…“This is Imvula, he’s getting close to four soon.” Shuri kneeled down next to him, touching his back gently. Imvula didn’t look up from what he was doing, but he leaned toward Shuri a fraction.
Close to four.
I felt so ashamed when I found out.
Namor went through his memories in flashes; when she was late to meet him because she was feeling unwell, when she looked fuller and healthier on the balcony. His breath hitched in the back of his throat as he looked at the boy, his vision beginning to blur. “Imvula.” She calls gently to the boy. “This is your baba.” Namor slowly knelt down to the other side of Imvula, their son, and simply just stared at him. The boy glanced at him briefly before turning back to his piles, finding a small twig within the rocks and placing it in the pile of twigs.He then stopped what he’s doing suddenly, bringing both hands slowly above his head, his fingertips touching into a steeple before opening both hands flat as if releasing something up into the air. Imvula repeats this motion several times, raising and releasing, at the end patting his chest once as if satisfied and then going back to his piles. Namor watched him, completely enamored. His silence, however, spurred Shuri into an anxious babble. Her tone went from nervous to frustrated when Namor didn’t respond right away.“Imvula is non verbal, meaning he doesn’t communicate the way you’ll expect, and his attention is hyper focused on certain things, mainly puzzles and putting things into piles.” She gestured to Imvula’s current piles. “And he’s-” “Perfect.” Namor finally spoke, taking his eyes away from his son, only to look at Shuri with the utmost affection. “He’s perfect, Shuri.” Shuri exhales in relief and her smile is brighter than the sun. When Namor reached out a hand, the boy, without looking, touched it briefly, squeezing two of Namor’s fingers together before going back to what he was doing. The brief interaction filled in the splintered cracks within Namor, making him feel more solid and present than he had in a long time.“I would have never bothered you. You could have kept him a secret forever.” He whispered to Shuri.“I know, I could have.” “Thank you.” Shuri just gave him a soft smile.
She stood up and dust herself off. “Imvula?” She called, her tone sounding a pitch different then before which their son noticed, glancing up at her. When she has his attention she made a quick gesture with both hands, which has Imvula perk up a little more. “Are you hungry?” Almost frantic, the boy quickly finished what he’s doing, and stood up. He hesitated when he saw a shell fall from the pile to the sand, taking one step towards his mother before immediately going back to the shell, placing it back in the same exact spot from where it moved. Imvula stared hard at the shell, then finally stood to look at his mother again. “Go on baby, it’s time for dinner.” With that Imvula took off screaming and laughing towards the house. “He really likes fruit.” Shuri laughed. Namor stood, unsure what to do next, but Shuri turned to him and held out her hand to him for the second time that day. “Would you like to stay?” There’s no hesitation when he placed his hand in hers. —
One year later
Imvula waited, his feet in the surf as he looked out to the ocean. His father appeared, walking out of the water and brushing back his hair. Shuri had told him that Imvula waited for him around the same time everyday, so Namor made sure to never make him wait long. He walked up to his son, kneeling to touch his forehead to Imvula’s briefly. The boy giggled at the touch, reaching out to tap the large pearl on his father’s chestplate. Imvula still wasn’t talking, but he was beginning to say a few words here and there and he was growing more affectionate with both of his parents. “Are you hungry?” Namor asked, making a small gesture with his hand towards his mouth, a sign that Shuri taught him to use with Imvula. The boy mimicked the gesture vaguely and took his father’s hand in his, leading him out of the ocean and back to the house where Shuri was watching them from the doorway. “Go and sit down at the table ok? Go sit down.” Shuri touched her son's hair as he passed her, but she moved in Namor’s way before he could step in, grinning. “Hey, I was thinking, for baby number two you can name them. But if they have wings on their feet you get to deal with it.” Namor blinked rapidly, looking down to her stomach before looking back at her beaming face, and all he could do was smile back.