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Post by lilgiastar on Jan 28, 2023 1:32:53 GMT
i think its a great idea, and we can probably take inspiration from the Atlantis movie, from Wakanda Forever, and other such things to create the world.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 28, 2023 1:41:10 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jan 28, 2023 1:42:09 GMT
I haven't seen the other movies you mentioned, but I look forward to improving on them haha. Should be lotsa fun
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Post by lilgiastar on Jan 28, 2023 1:47:58 GMT
yesss it will be lots of fun
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Post by Deleted on Jan 28, 2023 4:20:40 GMT
Art wasn't too sure exactly when his feelings started... He thought it might have been a slow and gradual build over the last two years during expeditions and regular correspondence with Adriel. He did know it kind of hit him over the head at the end of the the last expedition, though. Almost literally. Adriel had pushed him out of danger making him land on his back, and he had a front row view to watching him fight.
Initially, he had thought the feelings in his stomach was some kind of illness. He was pretty quiet for the last bit of their time together, but Adriel seemed fine with the silence or filling it in. He wondered how Adriel got to know him well enough to know which Art was looking for most of the time. The other man did occasionally interrupt his researching time making him snappish, but all Adriel would do was apologize and leave him to it rather than get angry back like everyone else did.
The odd feelings in his stomach didn't get better though even after returning to England. Other symptoms included a restlessness that kept cropping up so it interrupted his research into the ancient Mayans. There were some sticky nights which made sleep uncomfortable, though he didn't recall the dreams. Only that he would wake up flushed and uncomfortable.
So he had gone to St. Mungos after a month because he worried he had caught something in the jungles. He was informed that he was only 'suffering' from having a huge crush, deep infatuation, or outright had fallen in love, and that had been highly embarrassing. He had fled the room though the nurse had only given an amused smile, and swore to himself he would avoid it for the rest of the year at least.
He had stayed home for the following two days between the embarrassment and the denial, but the nurse's voice that kept going through his head started to poke holes in his denials. It would point out that he got restless when researching because something in the book would make him think about Adriel, and how the feelings in his stomach was strongest when he had been near the other man at the end of the last expedition. The voice got annoying enough that he decided he would research the symptoms and subject himself to disprove it and marched straight to the Oxford Library.
Even the children's books on the subject proved the nurse right, though. Art spent several minutes banging his head on the book while groaning when it did. 'How To Know If You Like Someone!' had been his last hope after tearing through the few available psychology books, and it had been written more like a picture book with two almost-stick-figures holding hands and smiling on the front cover.
Art was doomed. It was horrible. He hated it. He hated that he couldn't hate Adriel for it. He hated that he couldn't talk to Adriel about it like he did about other problems when he wrote. It made him pretty snappish for the next week as he stalked around his workplace, enough so that even Brian avoided him. And the only other people he might trust enough to talk to about it were his parents, but he cringed at how eager they would be over his 'first love' or whatever. So by the end of the week, he controlled his mood enough for it to be merely a bad rather than snarling anger.
It took another week before a stray thought of 'I'm glad Adriel can't see me like this' made him realize that not only had the realization not cooled down his feelings, but that he actually did need to properly come to terms with it so he could hopefully forget about it. Preferably before the next expedition that was supposed to be during fall since South America would be hitting spring.
When Adriel's letter came three weeks after that, he realized he was fondly smiling and felt warm halfway through reading it. He thunked his head down on his desk and gave a dramatically miserable moan, one he thought might be worthy of a Greek epic. His plan was apparently not working, not at all, so he would have to figure out what to do when they next met up.
Adriel was a bit concerned as he made his way to Art's office. Not worried - Art had not mentioned any illnesses or anything - but that was actually what had concerned him. Art's letters usually included anecdotes about one of his asshole co-workers, mild ramblings that were very loosely connected to the topic, or other small things that showed Art's personality. The last few had been written more formally and with none of that, though. It made him wonder if he had said or done something wrong.
When he got to the statue of Merlin, he waited for the call to enter before he did. The first thing he noticed was how Art wasn't meeting his eyes when he greeted him, looking off to the side instead. Figuring he was about to get told that the expedition funds had fallen through or that Art had found a new team, he approached while keeping his disappointment inward. "Everything okay?" he asked.
The only response he got was a glance, and then Art buried his face in his hands. "Nothing," Art miserably mumbled, though his ears were bright red.
Adriel took another step so he could lean over the table with his hands braced on the surface. "Hey, hey, whatever it is, it's okay," he soothingly tried to console, bewildered and very much worried that he was about to have a crying Art on his hands. "It can't be that terrible, right?"
The only response Art could make was a small whining noise, and Art leaned forward to quietly thunk his forehead on his desk while his arms covered his head to hide the blush. He couldn't do it. Nope. Never. Nada. Nein. όχι. All the other No's he had learned in the other ancient tongues he knew as well. He had practiced for days, and when the time came, all he could force out was a whine.
Adriel was stumped, but he reached over the desk with a hand to give Art a pat on the back. He froze though when Art did, then withdrew his hand. "I'm sorry I didn't ask for permission," he apologized with a wince. Art had been getting more comfortable around him, so he had reflexively reached out like he would have with any other friend since it had been a while since the other man had flinched or froze at a casual touch. The only response he got to his apology was a small whimper, though, so Adriel settled down and decided to wait this out, whatever it was. "Take your time, Art, I'll wait."
Art groaned again and just wanted to curl up. He regretted deciding he should just say something about it before they started since he knew Adriel didn't do relationships or sleep with those he was working with. It seemed to be the more logical thing to do to explain how he would probably be very awkward until he could figure out what to do, but when it came to actually saying something... Well, his voice and body didn't want to cooperate. But as the silence stretched on and was only broken by Adriel's occasional restless shuffles, he slowly relaxed enough to sit up if he wanted. Which he didn't. Because the thought of looking at Adriel had made his face burn. Well, he supposed he could talk into the desk.
"I have... uh... foundoutthatIlikeyou!" he mumbled, rushing through the last part to get it over with. Of course, that made him panic, but this time fight was apparently his response because he sat up straight to glare right at the target of his infatuation even though he was still beet red. "I know you don't date, I don't want to make this awkward, I don't date, but I don't want to cause problems so I needed to get this out of the way while I try to make it stop."
Adriel most definitely did not expect a confession after the prolonged silence of tension and misery. He had been thinking that the lead to the Mayans had been destroyed or stolen, or that someone else took over the project because of library politics, or even that Art's cat died this morning! Not that Art had a cat, or not one that had been mentioned, anyway. And, going by how Art was speaking, it sounded like his first confession, one that sounded like Art didn't like himself nor did he expect Adriel to like at all.
"I'm not upset," he reassured as he gave the other man a thoughtful look. "Just give me a minute to think about it."
Art figured that was fair - he had had a few months to think about it. It also made him worry, too. At least Adriel hadn't laughed at him, not that he expected him to by this point. But he still felt tense, like he was suddenly on center stage but the stage director had told everyone to freeze. This wasn't as bad as it had been earlier when his voice froze and he couldn't speak or think at all. Still, what did Adriel have to think about? Maybe he had a solution? He was more experienced in these kinds of things from the casual comments Adriel would say or write once in a while. And... Well, the look he was getting from him was familiar, but he never recalled it feeling so intense. He usually didn't pay attention to it or Adriel would look away after a few seconds.
Adriel was fond of Art as well, and had caught himself checking the other man out fairly regularly almost from the first day they had met. Still, it was the fondness of a friend, and while this wouldn't be bad normally, bringing any kind of intimacy in could ruin their friendship and work relationship since Adriel wasn't sure he was willing to be serious about having a fling with Art. His conscience was also warning him, especially since he suspected that Art was like his mother in that he would probably only fall in love once or twice in his life, and he didn't want to accidentally draw him in too deep. It was so very tempting, he thought about the few times when he wanted to press in close, then closed his eyes and took a deep breath to steady himself while gripping the edge of the desk tight.
"I'm one of the first people outside of family that you have gotten close to, so it's perfectly normal to develop feelings," Adriel reassured first before opening his eyes again. "And you're right, I don't date. I don't want to break your heart, either. But I'll be honest and say that having a friendly affair with you has crossed my mind several times." Adriel paused a split second to lick his bottom lip while wrestling with his self control. "I don't think that's possible right now, though. Like I said, I don't want to toy with your heart that way."
Art almost held his breath while wondering where this was going. Adriel wanted him? But as a friend? There was an insinuation of more in that, though. And why would his heart be toyed with if there was more? Wait, but no, neither of them were interested in dating, though there had been his own dreams he had finally started to recall once he realized his feelings. Ugh, why was it so hard?
Adriel flashed a reassuring (definitely not hungry) smile at Art when he saw the confusion. Damn him, the innocent thing normally wasn't something Adriel was in to despite all the other things he did enjoy, but Art was in a completely different category for it. "I'll be a little more blunt then," he clearly stated and leaned over the desk to get closer to Art's personal space without getting in it. "I highly suggest that if you do want to pursue physical intimacy with me, either do a lot of research or go to Copenhagen or any other city that is fine with homosexuality to get some hands on experience. Both would probably be in your best interest since I have more kinks than an overused silver wire."
He couldn't help the last comment or the smirk that accompanied it, but he did draw back and very carefully relaxed his muscles to appear more casual once more. "So, now that the air is cleared out, did you want to go over the expedition details tonight, or would tomorrow be a better time?"
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Post by Deleted on Jan 28, 2023 5:59:39 GMT
Adriel was highly stressed and very angry as he left the Ministry of Magic. His portkey to Britain this time had required dealing with American bigots that harassed him over his MACUSA credentials, trying to claim he was too illiterate to have them. Once he had taken care of that, the British officials harassed him because his portkey had been four hours late, so it was a late hour in London and even the security got involved to make sure he wasn't trying to smuggle anything in. By the time he was released, it was exceptionally late, a full moon was out, his usually relaxed composure was more aggressive, and he still had to go see Art. Maybe Art would take pity on him and let him crash in his office that night so he wouldn't have to chance any more human encounters.
When he got to the library courtyard, he opened the unlocked side door and stalked through the darkened corridors to the statue of Merlin. Before knocking, he leaned against the wall by it and worked to relax himself with deep breaths - Art was sensitive and he didn't want the other man thinking he was angry at him. Sensitive? Fragile? Most definitely hot - he had been fantasizing more and more about him lately. His quiet groan of frustration carried through the empty halls, and he pressed his forehead against the cool wall for a couple seconds to banish those thoughts before turning to knock.
Art had been alerted by a weird sound right outside his door, and he checked the time to realize it was past 10pm. Adriel hadn't come, which was weird since he said he would, so he had expecting to be interrupted several hours ago for a meeting. He felt conflicted as he grabbed the book he had been reading to take home since he had practiced for the last few days on how he was going to confess, but at the same time he was relieved he wouldn't have to. He was also worried that Adriel might have...
A knock at the door partially interrupted Art's thoughts and he carelessly called out enter before freezing when he thought about the strange noise. But no, it was just a very tired looking Adriel that came in, giving him a wan smile, and Art moved out from behind his desk out of worry. By the time his silent concern was waved off with a casual gesture from Adriel, Art noticed how close he was to his uh... infatuation... and blushed hard. That was the word he decided on since crush was far too American and sweetheart was... Definitely not a word one could call Adriel. Not that he didn't think Adriel was nice - he wouldn't have developed these weird feelings if he wasn't nice, probably. But not a sweetheart, since that insinuated a little bit of meekness or delicacy that Adriel didn't have.
When Adriel saw Art blushing in front of him, he couldn't help the sharp inhale and hoped it was quiet enough to go unnoticed. "Sorry I'm late," he drawled while breathing out slowly. "Both ministries gave me problems. Can I crash here tonight? I just might start a bar fight in the Leaky or something if the wrong person says the wrong thing. I won't read anything... Are you okay?"
Art felt like he should be asking that question with how on edge Adriel seemed - the last time he was like this was when they had to go through that really dangerous bazaar in South America. Art had never been that close to real cutthroats and stuff, and... Well, he should stop procrastinating because it looked like Adriel might touch him and he really didn't want to be touched right now. Best to get this all out at once like he had practiced.
"I uh... I like you but it won't affect anything, I promise," he rushed out while staring at the ground.
And didn't that just take the damned cake for Adriel's day. Had he not been so tired or so angry, he could have taken a deep breath and held on to his self control. But Art was blushing while staring down at the floor and had just admitted to liking him even though he was sure that the man had zero interest in anything sexual or intimate in any way beyond platonic. Anything living, anyway. The darker part of him roared to life and it was too tempting to play a little. He just looked too damned delicious like that.
Adriel stalked forward, and as he suspected, his proximity made Art take the two steps back necessary to back him against his desk. The panicked look made him smirk, and he leaned in to brace his arms on the edge of the desk on both sides of Art, but was very careful not to touch him. He was very deliberate in how he trapped Art, pressing in close and slanting himself a little bit so their bodies aligned. Any movement from either of them would make them touch, but there was a tiny bit of space to prevent that.
"You caught me with that at the worse time you could, Artemio," he purred into Art's ear, rolling the R of his name as he had thought about doing enough to finally learn how. It wasn't as if it was a waste with South America and so many other languages which was why he had went with the urge to learn the past year. "But I'll probably apologize after I get some sleep."
Art wasn't sure how exactly he had gotten from a confession to this, whatever this was, but he was... Terrified? Not really? Frozen and anxious, yes. Couldn't get a word out, yes. Hot? He wasn't too sure if that was him or Adriel's body heat. Struggling not to hyperventilate while all his senses seemed to be alive, his frozen state the only thing not making him shiver from Adriel's hot breath in his ear or that he had never heard his name being spoken like that before. Was he being mocked? No, he didn't think so, but...
"Shhh, breathe. I've stayed away from you only because I thought you were completely uninterested in anyone," Adriel said after listening to Art's panicked breathing for a few moments, waiting to see if he would be pushed away and rewarding him with a soothing voice when he wasn't. The logical part of him that was still fighting knew that it was because of Art's usual freeze response, but his snapped control didn't care about that. "Now that you've expressed your interest, I thought it was only fair I express mine."
He lowered his head a little to smell the collar of Art's shirt, then huffed a silent laugh when Art stilled to the point of holding his breath. "Breathe," he stressed again, then resumed a soothing but still dark and husky tone. "I am not going to touch you tonight, even if you ask me to. By wizarding standard, I am promiscuous. but if you were to go with muggle standards, I'm downright sinful and debauched. You are far too innocent for me, and I do have some morals even in this state... But if you are curious, I would be more than happy to point you in the right direction or even teach you through a ménage à trois..."
Adriel then pushed himself away and took several steps back before he could say anything worse. "I'll leave tonight and find somewhere else to stay, but I'm sure you will think it over," he said with a sly smile, then turned to quickly leave. "See you tomorrow... Art."
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Post by Deleted on Jan 28, 2023 6:56:55 GMT
Do's Don't BDSM Extreme pain plays Role play Blood play Always a safe word or gesture with kinks humiliation Switch (bottom/sub or top/dom) scat Gentle/vanilla asphyxiation Any regular position orgies (Used to, not anymore) Polyjuice (with a lot of planning) Love/lust potions Wholly enthusiastic consent Any non-con Any spells that doesn't control Somnophila (planned or not) Some drugs with planning Pedo (polyjuice or roleplay is still no) Oral (Will deep throat and swallow) Drunk sex (A little is ok, but not a lot) Bondage Voyeur/exhibitionist Semi-public locations ~~Feel free to ask about others and I'll add them to the list
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Post by Deleted on Jan 28, 2023 19:08:38 GMT
Adriel was self aware enough to know he was attracted to Art and had been for a long while. It was hard not to be, with the other man's intelligence, need for protection, a contradicting independent streak, and his looks. He would find himself thinking about what it would be like to hug him from behind or pull him into his lap when Art would look sad, lonely, or unhappy, but he also knew that Art didn't like those kinds of touches, or most touches, really.
Not that Adriel hadn't tried to get Art to accept being touched. It wasn't that he was a Horse, though that was part of it. It was just a basic necessity from the beginning because Art might need to be suddenly pulled back or something, and the last thing Adriel wanted was for him to jerk right back into danger. The flinching from even a casual brush that Art hadn't initiated also upset Adriel, so he always made sure to ask for permission, or to telegraph his movements very obviously in case Art didn't want a pat on the shoulder when he looked upset except in moments when there was danger. It had been an uphill battle to get Art to accept even that much because he was so averse to it.
Art had also been a puzzle for Adriel from the start. Not one that needed to be solved or was broken or anything - more like a confusing conundrum that was interesting enough to be drawn to, but that you didn't reach out to try to play with because it was so fragile beneath a hard shell that appeared strong. Adriel did gently poke at the fragility a few times, but he quickly backed off when his attempts to get Art to open up was very much unappreciated.
With the Navajos, there was usually a stern visage presented to the world. But as a people, they were very warm and open with each other because understanding feelings was an integral part of harmony. Adriel knew he was developing feelings. He understood that the attraction was more than surface level. He suspected Art might also appreciate him as more than a friend, but it would be presumptuous of him to assume it. Mostly, it was the fact that Adriel was allowed to touch Art, but there were also times when he saw the other man looking back at him before he would go back to reading his book or working on his maps. That could just be friendship and admiration, though, so Adriel said nothing and acted like those rare and brief moments were normal so Art wouldn't get anxious or upset.
He was wondering if the last had been a good tactic, though. Those moments had become less rare lately, and he felt so conflicted about the mixed signals. Art was a very expressive person, but he also had very little skill in interacting with others. He was also a very private person, and someone that didn't like to talk about feelings. It made reading Art very easy at times, but without understanding what the man was actually thinking, any assumptions on what was picked up through body language could be highly inaccurate. In other words, he could tell when Art was upset, but he wouldn't be able to say if it was because of him, an old memory, or something about his research. And asking would often get Adriel in trouble when it was about memories or other personal matters.
Appreciative looks or lingering glances often meant a couple that had been together for a while and was still as attracted to each other as when they had first started dating. Art didn't date, though. For all Adriel knew, Art could currently be comparing Adriel's body to ancient warriors to figure out where Troy might be using his twisty conjecture theorizing methods that actually worked to find places like Atlantis and an ancient Egyptian tomb of a wizard enclave. And while Adriel's vain side preened at how he was being looked at, his emotional side felt like it was being poked with a stick until it wanted to snarl and bite it. Adriel knew he needed to say something before that happened, but he had been putting it off because he didn't want to hurt Art's feelings, make feel awkward, or cause problems with the team dynamic they had formed together through danger and success.
Two weeks later, he was still quietly brooding about it while using his wand to help make a path through the Amazon jungles they were trekking through. He had been trying to figure out a way to broach the subject while maintaining that casual attitude about the glances that were happening almost once a day now, but everything he could think of didn't sound right. It wasn't a 'it's not you, it's me' conversation, nor would attention from Art be unwelcome. How can someone argue against something they would want if it were possible? Not that Adriel was sure if it would be a good idea even if it was possible - risking team dynamics for a relationship that could sour was a bad idea. Adriel had tried his best to use logic to stop the mix of feelings so he could avoid a talk, but that wasn't working out as well and causing disharmony within.
When late afternoon required them to stop to set up camp, he decided he had to wing it. He knew his feelings on it, but he didn't know Art's feelings on it. He dug this hole himself, his feelings were not Art's fault, so he would need to dig himself out without flinging mud on the other man. It was while cooking dinner that an opportunity came up.
"Are you aware that these types of glances usually mean attraction to the other person?" he drawled with wry smile, one that flashed into a genuine one for a brief moment when his question made Art blush and look away quickly. "Not that it upsets me, since my looking means I am interested in you. I thought it was good to let you know in case you don't mean to do it, though."
And there it was, Adriel's side out in the open with no way to misinterpret what he said while Art looked embarrassed, confused, surprised, and something else. The last, as always, was what drew Adriel in, the lack of denial making hope unfurl in his chest. Art didn't immediately say anything, but Adriel was willing to patiently wait for days for any kind of response, be it verbal or body language. Art was an expressive person, after all.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 29, 2023 8:03:30 GMT
Three days later, black clouds quickly swept in and Adriel and Art had to get to a shelter in a small cave halfway up a ravine to avoid flooding or landslides. Adriel climbed the slippery rock, tossed the end of a rope down to Art so he could tie it around his waist, then helped pull him up while he scrambled for purchase. They had decided on September to travel since it was supposed to be the middle of dry season, but weather in the Amazons was unpredictable and the heavy storm had caught them without warning. It ended being so bad that what should have been early afternoon light more resembled evening after the sun set but before everything went completely dark. It was one of those storms that could blow over in an hour, or it could continue all day long.
Art fumbled with matches as he tried to light a candle, and Adriel pulled a couple towels from his bag. Before he could cast lumos, Art got a match lit, and he kissed the flame to a wick. A few more candles were lit using the first and placed on the ground, then they glanced around the small cave to make sure it was unoccupied. Art sighed with relief, and sat down to look over the scrapes he got on his hands from scrabbling against wet rocks.
"I can dry your hair while you tend to those," Adriel offered as he quickly wrapped his own hair up like a turban. "Last thing we need is a cold."
Art blushed hard at the offer though he kept his focus on his hands. He had avoided saying anything to Adriel since he told him he liked him (he liked him! Why him? Nobody had liked him before, what was he supposed to do?) unless it had to do with their journey. Adriel seemed to take it in stride though he had kept watching Art, and the increased intensity in his eyes had made him tongue tied for anything else except for business. But... He was right, getting sick would be bad right now.
"A-alright," he quietly mumbled while he rummaged in one of his chest pouches for essence of murtlap.
Adriel moved the candles to the side of the cave, then crouched down behind Art who immediately tensed up his shoulders though he stayed where he was and started dabbing the potion on his hands. "Are you sure you're okay with this?" he asked as he brought the towel in his hands up. "You can ask me to stop whenever you want."
"Yes," Art snapped out more clearly, anxiety and confusion making him sound angry (No, he wasn't angry. Not angry at all. Well, maybe a bit, because he had been forced to consider the feelings he had kept shoving back ever since... Ever since...). "Yes, please," he added more quietly with a wince.
Figuring that Art was embarrassed enough to be snappish, and accepting the second more politely worded acceptance as a type of silent apology, Adriel carefully started to dry out the other man's hair. The tension between the two of them for the last few days had been something he had been enjoying, but he realized how dangerous it was to play such games in the middle of a jungle. He silently cursed himself at his bad timing to let his feelings be known, especially with someone as skittish as Art was. He waited until Art was done applying the potion to his hands before he spoke, though.
"Look, I know I had bad timing," Adriel started, but Art panicked thinking Adriel was about to say he wanted to take back the words so he cut him off.
"Ilikeyoutoo!" he rushed out as one word while curling up where he was sitting. Nononono, he didn't mean to say that out loud! It was just a phase! Adriel would get bored of him and they were already a team and things would go wrong and then Art would be all alone again! Everyone hated him eventually, even Adriel would because-
"Hmmm," Adriel hummed and shifted to sit closer to Art's back. "I'm happy to hear that, actually. I thought you might not like me, and was going to say that nothing had to change."
Art twisted around so fast that he almost pulled a neck muscle, and he gaped at Adriel like the man had said the stupidest thing ever. Because he had. Well, in Art's opinion, it definitely was stupid that someone wouldn't like Adriel, unlike himself. The sudden movement did get the towel in his face, though, and he sputtered as Adriel pulled it back quickly with his quiet little huff of laughter (that Art did not find interesting!).
"Relax," Adriel rumbled, amused at the expression he caught for a moment and feeling relaxed now that he knew for sure that Art was also interested in him. "We don't have to decide anything now if you don't want to."
Art turned back around to give Adriel his back again, and he started removing his chest belt so the wet leather could dry. "Sorry," he mumbled as he thought about it. Talking about it now might be better, especially since they had nothing to do. Actually, they might be stuck in this tiny cave together all night, and the tension would feel even worse. His stomach was already fluttering so bad that he almost felt sick, so something had to give or he would... He would... Well, he didn't know what he would do, but it would definitely be something. "I... I want to talk."
"Don't apologize for feeling shy or anxious," Adriel said as he laid the towel on Art's shoulders, then reached up to start toweling his own hair. "Everyone feels nervous no matter how many times they've admitted they like someone. Even I was nervous for weeks before I said something."
That actually made Art feel a little bit better knowing that Adriel had been nervous and that it was normal. Well, he knew it was normal for a lot of people, but Adriel never showed that, he thought. He reached up to pull the towel around himself tighter while he listened to Adriel dry himself. "So... What do we talk about?" he asked after a few moments of silence.
"What you want, what you don't want, boundaries, and expectations," Adriel listed as he tried to work the towel through his braid. Figuring that was not going to do anything, he removed the tie and started unbraiding it. "Would you like to date?"
Art flushed hard at the question and ducked his head while he thought about it. He didn't date! Well, he had never dated before... And he thought maybe he did want to date Adriel. No, he did know he wanted to date Adriel, but he didn't know how to. "Y-yes," he breathed out in a small voice, embarrassment and uncertainty making his voice hard to use. "But I don't... I don't know how."
Adriel gripped his hair tightly for a brief moment so he didn't reach out to pull Art to him. "That's where the other questions come in," he reassured. "Would you like me to hold you? And like everything else, even if you say yes now, I won't take it as a blanketed yes to hold you anytime unless you tell me you are comfortable with that in the future."
That... That was actually okay for Art. He felt the tight coil inside him loosen up, and he almost slumped over in relief. "Yes, please," he agreed. "You won't hate me for not liking to be touched?"
Adriel felt a thrill with the permission, and he reached out to gather Art to himself. "No, I decided I liked you already knowing you don't like it," he reassured as he moved his legs around on either side of Art. He had meant to change his shirt after drying his hair, but this was far more important to him. "I would like to explore touching with you to see what you might like in the future, but even if you decide you still don't like it, we will work something else out instead. Is this okay?"
Art leaned back against Adriel's chest a little, tensed for a moment when an arm came around to hold his stomach, then relaxed again when it did nothing else but provide him some heat while holding him. "Yeah, it's okay," he sighed out. "It's... It's nice. What do you mean by work something else out?"
Adriel shook his head no while he started drying his hair again one handed. "We'll cross that bridge if we get to it," he said. "There's no point in inviting bad ideas before something good can start. And I have no problem taking this as slow as you need to." When Art quietly nodded in reply, Adriel continued again. "First rule is that you always have to tell me no if you don't like something and I don't notice your dislike. No matter how much you think I might want something, I won't continue if you don't, okay?"
Art nodded again. "I can do that," he agreed with relief. Everything he was hearing so far didn't sound as hard as he thought things might sound. "Does it count for you also?"
Adriel nodded, though he huffed a laugh as well. "Yes, I would very much appreciate you listening to my no as well," he agreed out loud since Art wouldn't be able to feel his nod. He set his towel to the side and wrapped his other arm around Art's stomach, waiting for him to relax after another brief moment of tensing up. "But I doubt there is very little you can do to me touch-wise that wouldn't meet a blanket approval. I don't think hitting me is in you, but just in case, that is a no. Other than that, you have a blanket approval, and I will say no if anything does bother me. Is this still okay?" Honestly, he had been dying for Art to touch him more even in a casual way, but he figured it was best not to say that since it sounded strange even in his own head.
Art nodded with what Adriel first said, and listened closely to the second part. He shook his head no at the hitting part, he wouldn't ever, but he had blanket approval? What was he supposed to do with that? Was... Adriel expecting more? But no, he had just said he didn't have to do anything even if he thought Adriel wanted it. Then he realized Adriel was starting to pull back because he didn't answer the question, and he quickly grabbed his arms before he could. "This is okay, I was just thinking," he quickly said before he blushed hard at how relieved he felt when Adriel settled back in closely. "Sorry..." he apologized, and immediately predicted that Adriel would tell him not to apologize again.
"It's ok," Adriel said to Art's surprise. "I'm happy to hear you are thinking about it. That is good. You're doing very well so far, Art."
And as they had been doing lately, the simple compliment made Art blush once more, though he leaned back further into Adriel as well. "Why do you always tell me I'm doing good?" he mumbled. "It just... makes sense to do that."
Adriel quietly chuckled when Art said that, but made himself refrain from holding Art tighter when started cuddling against him. "For many reasons since very little things only have a single reason to them," he answered. "Most people don't think, so when someone does, it's good to encourage them. Also because you don't hear as many compliments as you should, and when I realized it a long time ago, I decided you deserved to hear someone say nice things about you. It's something friends and family should do for each other, but most definitely something someone you are dating should also do. And only sincere compliments - I will not give you false ones."
Art shifted sideways a little so he could get more comfortable on the hard floor, and he nodded to what Adriel said. "I uhm... I think you are handsome," he managed to get out without stuttering, though it was a close thing. He couldn't lift up head because he was so mortified, so he turned it to bury his face into Adriel's wet shirt. The coolness of it felt nice, though a niggling part wondered what his chest felt like.
Adriel leaned forward a little to brush his cheek against the tip of Art's curly hair. "Thank you," he answered back, happy and content with their position physically and emotionally. He stayed in that position with Art for several minutes until he felt the other man start to relax again. "So, we have covered a little bit of expectation with deciding we want to date. The more important boundaries have been established. We've both gone over some things we want and don't want. Is there anything immediate you need to know right now?"
Well... There was that the two of them were in a candlelit cave while a storm raged outside, and now that they decided they were dating, he was wondering if they were supposed to kiss now. Isn't that what people did? Did he want that? He didn't like getting kissed by his mom. But he also didn't like hugs from his family, but this hug was ok? Was this a hug? He was just being held in a comfortable way, not a tight or unwanted way, so he didn't know. He shook his head no since he didn't know what to ask and would just have to figure it out.
"Okay, then we should change our shirts and cover the floor with the sleeping bags so there is a barrier to prevent the floor from leeching away our warmth. I'm going to hang my saddle blanket up over the entrance so if there is wind, it won't blow the rain in," Adriel said, figuring practicalities should be observed even if he was loathe to let go of Art.
That was all? Were they done talking? Art was let go, and he looked up in confusion when Adriel stood up. His mind went a little blank when the other man stripped off his shirt like he wasn't just sitting right there. He kept staring when the wet shirt was tossed into a corner, and his mouth went a little dry while panic started to bubble up when his brain wondered if the pants were next. But no, he was pulling out a new shirt. Wait, he was pulling out a new shirt? Before he could think about it, he reached out and managed to grab it for a moment before he jerked his hand back like he had been burned, and he curled up again with embarrassment while wondering why he did that.
Adriel had noticed his shirt had been tugged on, so he looked over and saw Art curled up again. "Are you okay, Art?" Adriel asked with concern. When he got no response, he knelt down in front of him. "Do you want me to hold you again?"
Art almost choked at the last question and he kind of wanted to curl up more if he could, but he gave a small nod in reply since... That was what he wanted? He didn't have a problem anyway until Adriel moved away. He couldn't think very well, his brain was almost as frozen as his body was. But when he felt Adriel's warm arms come around his shoulders as Adriel settled down, he moved to bury himself against Adriel's naked chest with relief when Adriel carefully pulled him close.
Ah, that was what he wanted and why he grabbed the shirt. The chest he had cursed many times in his head because it had kept distracting him from his books. He felt his brain start to relax, but more doubts didn't creep in which was a nice change.
Adriel figured a bit more time of cuddling would be fine before they had to worry about the elements. After several minutes of silence and Art relaxing by small increments, he felt the other man uncurl enough reach his arms out to hold him around the waist. Yeah, they would definitely figure this out. One step at a time was fine for him.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 29, 2023 8:48:57 GMT
Er... I'm not gonna post any pictures, but look up Martin Sensmeier shirtless on google images. Cause yeah. Damn. I didn't look until I posted the story, and I kind of regret looking. Cause yum. Look for the ones where he still has long hair, the later ones where he cut it he is too ripped imo.
He could model for one of the smut romances Q.Q
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Post by lilgiastar on Jan 29, 2023 15:12:02 GMT
i looked it up and dang XD LOL i wonder does Adriel have that barbed wire tattoo too?
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Post by Deleted on Jan 29, 2023 19:36:39 GMT
Hmm, barbed wire became popular in the states by the 1880s, but I don't think Adriel would use it since it would represent losing freedom to him. If he had one, it would be either the Navajo's holy mountains like this from the elbow up on his upper arm or something horse themed like this that could later be turned into a full sleeve
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Post by Deleted on Jan 30, 2023 1:38:23 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jan 30, 2023 2:58:44 GMT
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Post by lilgiastar on Jan 30, 2023 3:38:32 GMT
R rated! Very R rated!
Art lay in his and Adriel’s tent. Ever since they had found out they liked each other, they had been… closer. Not really physically, Art still didn’t love being touched. Or even like it. But they were closer. And while even though they now slept in the same tent they were on opposite sides and didn’t touch. Art was a bit restless. It was raining out. Luckily the tent was enchanted to be completely waterproof so not a drop could get inside no matter how hard it poured. While he found nice gentle rain soothing, this was not that. This was lightening, and thunder and it was hitting the ground with such force it sounded like it was punching the ground. They had been in the tent a while now, maybe about an hour or so it was hard to tell without an hour glass or a clock. But he wondered if Adriel was still awake too. “Adriel?” he gave a loud whisper into the darkness. It had to be loud to be heard over the rain. A moment or two of silence and Art felt very alone. “What?” finally was whispered back and Art relaxed a little. “I don’t like this” he said, forgoing whispering due to the heavy rainfall. Another moment or two. “Would you… perhaps like to try to cuddle? I know we decided to try us out but we haven’t really… done any of that yet due to your… aversion. But perhaps it could make you feel safer” Adriel suggested. Art was silent. Cuddling seemed like a lot of touching all at once. He didn’t even like hugging. But he had a point. Adriel had protected him, in Greece, in Egypt and now in South America from everything from pick pockets to magical and muggle beasts and everything in between. He kind of liked that about Adriel. So the suggestion made sense at the very least. “We could try” he said. In the dark he scooted his sleeping bag over until his sleeping bag was touching Adriels. That felt alright still though he didn’t love the closeness. “Lay on your side” Adriel said. Art nodded and did so. And then he felt Adriel pressed up against his back, he could feel the heat of his breath on the back of his neck. And then Adriel wrapped an arm around him, holding him close. Art froze. It was too much for him, it was worse then a hug. He hated it. “You need to relax, or else you will never get to sleep” Adriel said. Art didn’t think it would be possible for him to relax. It was awful. “Could I perhaps try something to get you to relax?” Adriel asked. That intrigued him. “What do you have in mind?” he asked. “Have you ever when frustrated or stressed touched yourself… between your legs?” Adriel asked. He was shocked by the question, that wasn’t just something you asked someone! Though Adriel wasn’t really just ‘someone’. He didn’t know what they were any more. “Are you suggesting I… do that.. in front of you?” he asked. “No” came a very simple answer. “I’m suggesting I do it for you” Adriel said. While his mind went reeling at the thought, his pants got tight and it seemed his body very much liked that idea. “I… don’t like being touched. How will that relax me?” he asked. He didn’t really know how he would react to such a thing. Would he even enjoy it? It wasn’t a no though. “It’s a very relaxing activity. If you don’t want to I won’t but if you want to give it a try I don’t mind” Adriel said. Art had to admit he was a bit curious. He rarely ever even touched himself, he didn’t really see the point of it and didn’t really have a reason to. But… his body had reacted… positively to the idea. “We.. could try” he said hesitantly. “We can start slow, see how you and your body react to it. And if your up for it we can then try other things.” Adriel explained. Art felt his hand move and unzip his sleeping bag a bit and then slowly put his hand into his sleeping bag. Art felt his hand on his chest and make his way down to his pants. Adriel gave a soft chuckle as his hand went to his member, over his pants still. “I think you like the idea of being touched here more then you think” he said. Art felt his cheeks burn, though the blush was lost since it was so dark, and his back was to Adriel. Adriel gently rubbed him through his pants. Art closed his eyes, it did feel good. And kind of odd having somoenes hand there. But he still didn’t really like it. “May I take your pants off?” Adriel asked. “Yes” Art said trying not to sound too nervous or anything. Slowly Adriel’s hand moved to do so. Luckily he wasn’t wearing a belt. Belt’s were rather uncomfortable to sleep with. So he easily with one hand was able to undo his pants and push them down. Adriel’s hand was then met with the latest style of underwear, boxers which were turned into underwear only about ten years ago and was oh so comfortable. Better then Long Johns. Adriel’s hand went on his hard member through his boxers, gently running his hand along the shaft. “Is this alright?” Adriel asked. Art bit his lip to try to not moan. The gentle rubbing with his hand, plus the friction that the underwear created felt so good his member was practically begging for more. “Mm-hm” he let out through his closed lips. “I’d rather you say yes, or no, I don’t want to touch you without your complete consent” Adriel said, his hand stopping as he spoke. Art almost whined but caught himself before he did. “Y-yes it’s alright” he said, his voice shaking. “Do you want me to continue?” Adriel asked. Art had the oddest urge to hump Adriel’s hand, despite the fact he hadn’t even moved a single muscle yet. He almost did too, it took every bit of will power to not. “Yes!” he practically begged. Adriel gave a soft chuckle at that and started to rub along his shaft again. Art stayed still, and the pace Adriel was going at was… too slow. It was teasing and almost like torture. Suddenly Art felt lips on the side of his neck, kissing he suspected. He only had ever been kissed by his mother and father, the cheek or the forehead or top of the head. And it never felt anything like this. This felt… like every nerve in his neck was on fire and was turning his joints into jelly. And it was wet and there was sucking and a little bit of teeth? He bit his lip harder, he was sure if he bit down any harder he would be tasting blood. But then his lips were gone from the spot and he felt his hot breath on his ear. “You know… its customary to let the other person know you like what they are doing to you” Adriel whispered into his ear and gave his ear lobe a little gentle nibble. “If you wish to moan do not hold back, there’s no one for miles and even if there were the rain would drown out the noise” he whispered. Art was conflicted at that, the handful of times he had touched himself was more out of curiosity then anything else and he had been in his bedroom, alone but a teenager in his parent’s apartment when his brother had been out for one reason or another and moaning was a no due to the fact his parents and sister were only a thin wall away. But… this was a completely different situation. And no one but Adriel could hear him. Suddenly Adriel was on his neck again, sucking and gently biting and Art let out just the softest of whines. “Would you like me to take the underwear off?” Adriel whispered into his ear. “Yes” he whispered, his voice full of lust. He felt Adriel’s hand go to his waist band of his underwear and then gently gently slide them off. Art let out a soft groan as his very hard member touched the slightly cold air. But it didn’t feel the cold for long. Adriel wrapped his hand around it and slowly rubbed it. Art let out a soft moan. But the pace was still agonizingly slow. “Could… could you go a little faster?” he asked a bit awkwardly and bashfully. “Of course I can, shikąʼ “ Adriel said. Art didn’t really know what he said but before he could get a chance to ask, Adriel started to go faster, his hand twisting, his thumb gracing the head. Art gasped out a moan, having not expected that. Art quickly was moaning more, still sort of feeling awkward about it and holding back but moaning much more. It had been so long since he had touched himself he had almost forgotten what it felt like, and having it be anothers hand felt so different any way, not knowing what they were going to do next. “Adriel!” he moaned out loud enough to be heard over the clap of thunder that sounded at the moment, coming all over his sleeping bag, stomach, shirt, and Adriel’s hand. He gasped for breath and slowly calmed down… and his body relaxed, his muscles no longer tense and even curling towards Adriel a bit. He felt Adriel’s hand move so it was holding him again, around his chest. It didn’t feel so… foreign and unwanted any more. It felt… not quite nice. Nice was too strong of a word to describe it. But perhaps eventually nice could be used. But he was relaxed instead of all tense and frozen. Art gave a soft smile for a couple of seconds even though with how they were curled up, Adriel couldn’t see it. “What about you?” Art asked after a few moments in silence. “We don’t have to worry about that right now if your not ready or comfortable with that, I’d rather you get used to me touching you before you have to worry about that” Adriel said. Art gave a little nod and yawned. “Alright. Good night, Carino” he mumbled and closed his eyes and slowly drifted to sleep, feeling comfortable despite the storm raging outside and despite the fact that he was being cuddled.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 30, 2023 12:21:46 GMT
After six months of dating, Adriel had managed to get Art to relax a little around him. If he sat on the floor next to Art's chair while he was reading, he would sometimes absently reach out and run his fingers through Adriel's hair. If he sat next to him on the couch when he was tired, the younger man would occasionally doze off and lean into him. Art would more often than not say 'yes please' to a carefully loose hug or to have Adriel run his fingers through his curly hair when he needed comfort as well, though it took a lot of work and reassurance to get there.
Honestly, this had been the most difficult relationship to work to progress for Adriel. He was actually enjoying it, working for the long game, but he had stayed in England the whole time to do so. While he missed his tribe greatly on some days, seeing Art smile or blush made up for it. But today, he found out he had to leave for a job offer because his funds, while not low, could get there and he wasn't comfortable with the idea. He was also loathe to put a long pause on his relationship because it could undo all his work. It was a lose/lose situation, but he wanted to make sure he did not go broke, so he made his way to Art's office to talk to him.
"Hey Darlin'," he drawled after knocking and getting the usual consent (in ancient Sumerian this time) to enter. "Got a few minutes to talk?"
Art froze when he heard the question, his hands gipping his book tightly. Talk? Usually when someone said something like that, he had done something wrong and was in trouble. He wondered if his issues had made Adriel decide he was done with him. He peeked over his book at Adriel and swallowed hard. "Yes?" he shakily asked.
Adriel waved a hand dismissively to show Art there was nothing to worry about when he saw the fear in his eyes, then walked forward a couple steps so he could lean on the side of the desk and look at Art without the glare of the light from the window behind him. "I accepted a job offer this morning, but it has a strict NDA on it of zero contact, zero information," he explained, then reached out to catch Art's book when the other man dropped it after slumping in relief. "It's going to last around two months. I won't be able to send or receive owls, and I can't tell you where I am going. I can only say that it's CF-05136D with the British Museum, and my cuneiform knowledge is part of why they want me on it. Will you be ok for that period?"
Art reached out for his book as he pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling a mix of relief that it wasn't what he feared, annoyance at Adriel for making him afraid, affection for Adriel because he had let him know, and a bit of anger for (anyone) interrupting his studies. "I'll be fine," he sighed with exasperation. "I was just fine on my own before we started dating. I'm more used to being alone, anyway."
Adriel blinked at the tone, and though he felt a little hurt at the blasé attitude, he also knew that Art didn't mean it in the way most others would. Hmm... Books on emotional communication... Was that a thing? Maybe he would have a better chance finding something on empathy. He wasn't too sure what something like that was called, actually. If a book could be found though, Art might be interested in reading it. Maybe later, though, he would probably just get upset about it at this point. "Alright... Well, I will pack up tonight and will be gone tomorrow afternoon, so I won't be home when you are off work," Adriel said, before turning to head out.
"Alright, los querido," Art absently replied as he settled back into his book again.
Art worked a little late that night since he got caught up in his book for too long, but he was home in time for dinner. The conversation from the afternoon had just about slipped his mind, but he was reminded of it when he noticed that Adriel's favorite blanket was no longer colorfully decorating the back of his couch, and the apartment was more tidy than usual. "Adriel?" he called out, worried his boyfriend might have already left.
"I'm here," Adriel called from the bedroom as he folded up the last of his now clean clothes. "Almost done packing."
Art walked over to the bedroom and watched him start putting this into his pouch. Something in his chest ached, but he dismissed it as a heartburn for missing lunch. "Do you want to go to the Spanish restaurant with me tonight?" he asked as he rubbed his chest. "I missed lunch, and I think... You said it's good to have rest nights, so I think we should do that."
Adriel smiled at Art and nodded. "Alright," he agreed. "That was the last of it anyway, except for my pajamas for tonight."
Art hesitated, then looked down with a blush. "You can stay here tonight instead of going back to your place in Soho," he quietly offered. "Just... Just sleeping."
Adriel smiled wider, feeling warm affection for confused man in front of him. "Just sleeping," he agreed as he walked over to join Art. "I will pay for dinner, though."
Art felt very strange after Adriel left. He would get a weird buzzing in his ears on some nights like the silence of his apartment was pressing against him. He would get cold if he fell asleep on the couch, and there were times he would reach out for something while reading only to find nothing there. The scent of Adriel faded away, and though Art had the pajamas still, he had already washed them so they didn't help. Most of all, he missed being touched when he actually wanted it. It seemed like somewhere along the way, Adriel had figured out when it was a good time to ask if he wanted to be touched.
It kind of hurt, all the small things he kept noticing, and each night that passed made the ache grow stronger. It took him a bit, but he realized he missed Adriel with his warm laughter and reassuring body heat.
He threw himself into work harder, not coming home until exhaustion was dogging at his heels and he ran the risk of falling asleep in his office. He dreaded his days off because he would miss him even more in his empty apartment, so he took to scrubbing surfaces and washing things. He even repainted the walls a different color (cream, the salesperson said it was considered a warm homey color) and it didn't help. So he started watching the calendar when his books weren't enough to occupy him, and used a pen to mark each day off as it ended.
Two months passed, but there was still no Adriel. Around two months? What did 'around' even mean? The lack of an immediate presence on the day that marked two months made Art's anxiety skyrocket, and he started wondering if something bad happened. He wanted to go to the British Museum to put in an inquiry about Adriel even though they were Oxford's rival, often vying for the same locations or artifacts, but he couldn't recall the number that Adriel had given him.
Why hadn't he written it down? Ah, because he was stupid and thought he would be fine. Or that Adriel would be fine. Or that two months was nothing. He sat in the kitchen and cried a little that night while promising he would do better if Adriel came back. He missed being taken care of, he missed being held, he missed having someone next to him, and he didn't want to miss the chance to tell his boyfriend that he loved him.
He affirmed that promise every night for the next two weeks as his worry grew stronger, and he thought about writing a letter to Adriel's tribe to see if they knew anything if there was still no word at the three month mark. But when he got home Friday night, he saw Adriel passed out on his couch looking exhausted but whole.
"Adriel!" he cried out, running over to all but jump on him. And though Adriel had been sleeping, he was alert in split second and caught Art in his arms with a deep rumble of happiness in his chest. "I missed you, Carino," Art said, before burying his face into Adriel's chest and sobbing.
Adriel was about to go right back to sleep after that brief moment of being startled awake since he had Art in his arms again, but then his boyfriend started crying against him so he ran one hand through Art's curls while the other rubbed a soothing circle on the small of his back. Mmm, he wondered if he was dreaming right now, since Art usually pulled away at this point, and he wondered if it was going to be one of those dreams.
Art was just happy to be in Adriel's arms again. He was happy at being comforted. All the pain from over two months didn't stop coming out, but being soothed while he loudly sobbed felt so nice, especially compared to crying silently alone. Being held was no longer suffocating or skin crawly, not right now with Adriel anyway.
"Shhh, sweetheart, darling," Adriel sleepily rasped out. "Hey, issokay, 'm home."
"D-d-didn't think y-you would," Art sobbed out, too relieved to blush at his stuttering. "Thought th-the w-w-worst."
Adriel groaned and shifted more onto his back while moving Art a little so the other man was lying on top of him. "Told you around two months," he sighed out while relaxing. "Took a bit longer cause the team lead was a idiot. What kind of asshole loses his paperwork, demands the whole team to search through the ruins for over a week, then realizes it was packed away in his spare folder that was shrunk and put in a side pocket of a briefcase all along?"
Art laughed through his tears when the explanation caused a clear picture to pop in his head. "One th-that should b-be reported," he replied, the laugh helping him slow his tears down.
"Mmmm, already done, darling," Adriel rumbled as he lowered his head to smell Art's clean hair. "Missed you."
Art gripped Adriel's shirt tighter as he tried to wiggle even closer even though there was no space remaining between them with him on top. But no, Adriels legs gave way and he was able to nestle his own between them. "Love you," he mumbled in reply without looking up, knowing his face was most definitely red with embarrassment. He wouldn't have been able to pull away when Adriel stiffened up under him, not with how frozen he was and how the arms around him had suddenly tightened for a moment, but before he could worry if the reaction was bad, he felt something poke against the front of his hip.
"I love you too," Adriel breathed out as he started to relax again after the surprise from Art's declaration, then winced when Art started wiggling his hips against his hard-on. He splayed the hand on Art's lower back out to try to still him. "Hey, no, none of that now. Not going to take advantage of how upset you are."
Art sniffled a few times as he tried to figure out what was in Adriel's pocket without letting go of his shirt, but when he was told he was loved as well, he melted in relief while still trying to figure out what was poking him. But then Adriel spread out his warm hand like he did and applied a little pressure, and he almost wanted to purr with how good that felt while he was so relaxed. 'Ah, this is what a cat must feel like,' part of his mind thought while the rest analyzed what Adriel had said. "What do you mean?" he sighed out, too relaxed to feel confused.
Adriel laid his head back, breathed in deeply through his nose, then breathed out slowly through his mouth while he continued to rub Art's lower back since he seemed to be enjoying that a lot. Sweet naïve innocence, how he missed and didn't miss it. Adriel wondered how much of a masochist he was as he calmed himself down as much as possible. "That's my dick, darling," he explained as evenly as he could, though it did come out a little dry as well. He cleared his throat and explained more in a kinder tone. "When people are very sad or very happy, they sometimes make bad decisions they will regret later. I don't want you to regret anything with me which is why I said that, but I didn't know that you didn't know what you were doing, so you can disregard that."
Art blushed again when he realized what he had been doing, but he didn't want to move away. Not with the warmth, love, and comfort he was getting after being starved of it for so long. "Oh," he said in a quiet voice as he thought over what Adriel said. Well, Art knew of course that Adriel used to be very sexually active. He also knew that Adriel promised he wouldn't do anything with anyone else as long as Art didn't want him to. He honestly hadn't given sex much thought at all, though 'not much thought' meant he had wondered about it a few times in the past six months compared to the 'a few times in the last several years' that it was before. Now that Adriel had mentioned it, and with the proof he could feel hot against the hollow of his hip, he couldn't stop himself from wondering more about it.
What would sex with Adriel be like? He had read that it could hurt for women, but he hadn't read if it did for men. Would he... Who would stick what where? He was pretty sure there were oils that were needed as well, or at least that was what certain ancient societies where homosexuality was a daily part of life used. Did they still use oils, or were there other things in use now? Why didn't he research this sooner?
"I... I wasn't thinking about it before but... I think I want to learn?" he finally mumbled out, uncertain and a little afraid, but trusting Adriel to know what to do at least.
Adriel had started to doze off again during the long silence while petting Art, very much used to the discomfort of being turned on around the other man but more than content with the ability to hold and pet him. Mmm... Now if only he could pet under Art's shirt. Touching his skin would be... "Huh? Learn what?" he asked, a little lost between his half awake state and his half fantasy state.
Art buried his face against Adriel's chest as he made an embarrassing low whining noise because he couldn't say it out loud. Instead, he rubbed himself up against Adriel again to show what he meant with full knowledge of what he was doing.
Adriel groaned and pressed his hand down against Art's lower back again to still him, then shivered when his action made Art shudder and groan. "Holy shit," he hissed out since he could feel Art's reaction pressing against his inner thigh. Who did he kill in his last lifetime for this torture? "No, I don't want you to regret anything," he insisted a little more firmly.
Art squirmed again to experimentally rub himself against Adriel's hard thigh. He definitely agreed with what Adriel had hissed when he felt that same spark of pleasure again, then whined when Adriel's other hand came down to grip his hip to hold it still. "I won't regret it," he swore. "I... I want to try to uh... To have sex. With you. Please?"
Adriel was most definitely not a saint. If anything, the Church of Satan would have canonized him as a patron for the second circle of hell. Having Art in his arms was one thing, but having an Art that was begging him for more was another. He had imagined reality would go a completely different way, to be honest. He would slowly coax Art into accepting more and more touching until he could finally offer to experiment with pleasure... Something he was also going to take very slow. He had been playing the long game, and now Art was trying to change the rules for it.
"I don't want to say no when you ask so sweetly," he grumbled out loud as he started reciting Navajo song prayers in his head. It might have been a bit sacrilegious to his Gods, but they would understand. "But I don't want to make a mistake with you. I want your first time to be something you won't have any reason to regret."
Art waited patiently when there was no immediate reply, but only because he had recognized Adriel's breathing pattern that meant he was thinking or meditating. It would not have been something he would have paid attention to before, but it was one of the small things that used to fill up the silence he had missed. And while Art wasn't a manipulative person at all - one had to notice subtlety to be so - he was great with conjecture when there was something he really wanted. Like Atlantis and how it was nestled deep under the ground. Or the Egyptian tomb where it was hidden in a desert everyone claimed was empty and a waste of time. And even with Adriel, who was now saying no for Art's sake, not his own.
He could feel Adriel's want, and knew if he could move his hips a little, he could align his member against it and rub them together. But he also knew that Adriel was still saying no, regardless of who it was for, so he had to change that to a yes before he did something because Adriel was big on those yeses. Both of those were statements of fact, and they made sense, so he looked up at Adriel and... Well, didn't he mention asking sweetly?
"I don't know what t-to do," he stammered out while trying to control a furious blush so he could ask in a way to get Adriel to say yes. "But you do. I want you to t-teach me, please!" And that was about as much as he could do, he buried his face in Adriel's shirt again to hide it.
Adriel wished he had a hard surface rather than a soft couch to thunk his head back on. He didn't dare move though, since he knew if he did, it would cause friction in their lower body. He tried to convince himself that it was just emotional upset that had Art so willing again, but that no longer seemed to be the case. Instead, there was a sexual tension in the air so thick that it could be churned into something solid. "Fuck," he cursed under his breath, making Art jolt against him in surprise which in turn made him groan. Ah well, he could try to discourage Art one more time. He wasn't sure if he should pray for it to work, or dread that it might work, though.
"Strip," he ordered as he let go of Art. "Slowly. Look into my eyes as you do. It's okay if you don't want to do this or if you change your mind at any time, but I want to make sure you do want this."
Art had felt both shock and a flare of triumph when Adriel cursed like he did since he rarely swore like that, but he froze up when he was ordered to strip. He swallowed hard a few times as he held tightly to Adriel, wondering if he bit off more than he could chew at the sudden order and shift in attitude. Knowing he was allowed to change his mind at any time helped him unfreeze his voice. "Even... Even if uhm... We're in the middle and I want to stop?" he asked in a voice muffled by his boyfriend's shirt.
"Yes, any time," Adriel firmly said, though his voice was a bit strained because of want and uncertainty.
Art braced his hands on Adriel's chest and shyly sat up while keeping his eyes off to the side. He knew he had to show he wanted to learn by looking Adriel in the eyes, but not until he started to strip. His hands fluttered nervously from his shirt collar to the bottom of his vest, but they settled on his belt buckle as he took a deep breath to steady himself. This was... Looking at Adriel's eyes wasn't as scary as staring into a dark depth at the bottom of the ocean with no promise that the underwater cave would lead somewhere, damnit.
And because he had had to do that when searching for Atlantis, he looked over to meet Adriel's gaze and sharply inhaled at the almost predatory in them. He froze, and felt his heart beat so hard that he could feel it pounding in his ears making him light headed. Yes, he stubbornly refused to look away.
"Breathe," Adriel said, and Art felt the air reflexively whoosh out of him at the reminder. Adriel had told him that so many times during his panic attacks that his response to it was automatic, now. He had actually forgotten that tidbit of comfort, but he wouldn't in the future. It was another thing that reminded him of why he loved this man. He gave a small smile to Adriel, and felt warm when the other man's eyes softened and returned his smile as well.
"I love you," Art murmured, and since he couldn't look down to see what he was doing, he fumbled with his buckle a little before it popped open so he could slip the belt off and drop it to the ground.
"I love you, too," Adriel said as he bought his hands up to fold behind his head so he could watch whatever Art was willing to give him without feeling tempted to touch. "Take your time, darling."
Art felt his breath hitch, but his smile got a little bigger. Feeling a bit emboldened by the reassurance, he slowly unbuttoned his vest and felt smug satisfaction when he saw that Adriel's eyes kept flickering down to his fingers. It also joined the belt on the floor, and he pulled his shirt up out of his pants before he started to unbutton it, too. It was honestly exhilarating to see how he made his love swallow hard when he flashed a little bit of his skin while he worked on the buttons, and he moved his hips like he did in the saddle to relish the whimper Adriel made.
"Easy, Darling," Adriel huskily warned. "We will take this slow. I love that you're a tease, but we'll work up to that."
Art paused, then nodded an agreement since he was certain now that Adriel really really wanted him. It was a heady feeling, and an unfamiliar one after being convinced almost all his life that he was unwanted. An annoyance at best, a hated person with tainted blood and a terrible personality at worst. It made his eyes want to water up again, but he swallowed the mix of grief and love down so he could slip his shirt off his shoulders and let it fall behind him.
"Beautiful," Adriel breathed out as he admired the soft pale skin that didn't match Art's tanned hands and face after their expeditions into hot climates. He suspected that those adventures had toned Art's build a little more than it was when they had originally met, and the other man's regular exercise and diet let him keep it up during the down time. He still had a softness about him, but that was a good thing to Adriel.
"Should I do your shirt, too?" Art shyly asked, and though he maintained the eye contact, he had lowered his head so he could peer through his lashes in an attempt to feel a little less vulnerable.
Adriel shook his head no then licked his lips. "You'll need to get off me to do your pants," he said instead. "Are you sure you want to do that? It's ok if you are done here."
Art almost hesitated, but he knew if he did, Adriel might put a stop to this. And this, whatever this was, scary as this was, was also giving him a thrill similar to the ones he got when he was nearing his objective. So he smoothly got off like he was dismounting from Adriel's horse form while he kept eye contact, and nodded his head. "Yes, I want to do this," he confidently replied as he unbuttoned his pants and watched Adriel sit up. Art ran his fingers along the waist of his pants to loosen them, then they both froze at the same time when it started to slip down. For a change, it was Art that moved first, kneeling down to guide them to the floor, then realized after a few tugs that they were tangled up in the shoes he forgot about (they were on his clean couch!).
Adriel smiled when Art broke eye contact to scowl furiously at his shoes, and he slid off the couch to sit in front of Art. "May I help with your shoes?" he asked, and when Art nodded an assent, he reached out to untie the laces and carefully wiggled them off one by one while keeping an eye on his embarrassed partner who was now staring up at the ceiling. "Do you want to continue, or are you happy with this? I can still teach you something if you don't want to finish undressing but want to continue with that."
Art's eyes snapped back to Adriel when he asked if he wanted to continue, and he was about to say yes, but then he made a second offer that... sounded like a compromise. Or maybe a reward? And while he was very embarrassed about messing up with his shoes, he wanted the whole damned prize, whatever it was. He kicked off the rest of his pants while giving Adriel a challenging glare, then leaned forward to kiss him on the mouth while his fingers went to the waistband of his boxers.
They had kissed before. They had kissed plenty of times before! Usually closed mouth kisses, but Art recalled there was an open mouthed one in the excitement after their last expedition was a success. Adriel had immediately apologized about it after even though neither was sure who initiated it because they hadn't been dating. The kiss was the catalyst to making him explore his own feelings that eventually led to starting a relationship. So when Adriel gave his lower lip a small nip followed by a lick, he opened his mouth to try it again.
It was different from the first time. The first time, Art hadn't known what to do and Adriel had not tried to crowd or touch him, but this time his right cheek was gently cupped so his head could be tilted a little bit for their mouths to fit together. He reached out with his left hand to support himself on Adriel's right shoulder, and he leaned into the kiss more to chase the other man's tongue with his own since he was sure he was supposed to do that. He felt Adriel's hum of approval when that tricky tongue slipped back out to meet his halfway, and he wasn't too sure what he was supposed to do now that they were touching tongues. But then he groaned when Adriel's tongue did a little twist against his that tickled in a way that sent a bolt of pleasure down his spine, and he immediately pulled back to pant for air.
"Was that okay, darling?" Adriel asked, a little worried he had pushed too far. Art had never expressed interest in wanting to french kiss after they started dating, so he was very careful to keep them short and chaste. "It's okay if you didn't like it, we don't have to do anything you don't want to do."
"No," Art said as he sat back a little dazed. "I mean yes. Yes, I liked it. Just a little... A little overwhelmed."
Adriel leaned back against the couch behind him to give Art some space to catch his breath. The dazed look in Art's eyes made him feel proud for putting that there, and the flush on his cheeks made him want to kiss him more. But he didn't want to push too hard, so he drank in Art's almost naked body while he patiently waited for him to recover and decide what to do.
When Art realized that Adriel was staring at him and that he was sitting on the floor like... Well, like someone that had been ravished in a romance book, he immediately wanted to cover himself up with his arms. He aborted the movement to slam his hands palm down on the floor with a choked sound when the other part of him sharply reminded him that there was a reason for this, then he looked up to meet Adriel's eyes like he wasn't sure what he wanted to do as his face and neck burned hot. He knew he couldn't ask him to make the choice for him since Adriel had explained consent to him on numerous occasions. The choice had to fully be his without external pressure or influence. Adriel wasn't interested in anything that wasn't fully reciprocated, and even with enthusiastic consent, he was still a little slippery to pin down sometimes after refusing to settle down for so long.
When Adriel continued to quietly sit and wait, Art slowed down his breathing to match Adriel's breathing. Neither of them broke eye contact, and Art felt that weird tension that both scared and thrilled him start to build around them again. He licked his dry lips, then smirked when Adriel broke eye contact first to look at his lips before they snapped back to him once more.
"Darling, you're killing me with the suspense," Adriel groaned as he shifted around to open some space in his pants. "That smile was just plain evil."
Art gave a little laugh and shrugged. "I want to continue," he said as he moved to pull off his socks. "I definitely want to continue."
Adriel couldn't help the feral smile, though it was brief. It was all teeth, but there was joy in it, too. He leaned forward then kept himself still even though he wanted to coil up and pounce. It seemed like letting Art keep the lead for a little longer was to his best interest. Especially with the way he was thumbing his boxer's waistband.
That was... It was almost Adriel's hunting smile. Art recognized it though it appeared less grim compared to the few times he got to see it when he watched the other man fight. He wished he had gotten to remove Adriel's shirt so he could watch his muscles, but suddenly feeling like prey was making him play with his boxers a bit longer. He was... Was he really ready? He was over thirty, nearing forty, so most people would say he was way past the age to ask that question. His sister used to mock him for his inexperience until she realized he really didn't care. He uh... Did Adriel just growl?
Adriel swallowed hard when Art's hands stopped fidgeting with the boxers, and he dragged his eyes up to meet Art's gaze again. "Only as much as you want," he promised as he leaned back against the couch again to force his body to relax, his voice deep with want. "We can stop any time."
And like that was a permission of its own, Art relaxed and slipped his boxers down. They caught on his member for a moment, but he didn't dare look away from Adriel's eyes after coming his far, and Adriel kept eye contact instead of looking which helped alleviate any embarrassment he might have felt. He moved around to get them off while still in a sitting position, then bunched them up and tossed it towards his reading chair. "Now what?" he asked.
"Now, you just lay back and relax," Adriel said as he started to move forward on his knees. One of his hands reached up for the pouch around his neck, and he pulled a small glass bottle out of it filled with a clear fluid. "Is it ok if I touch and kiss your body? You can say no at any time."
Art started to lean back, though he only got as far as one elbow before giving Adriel a small nod. "Yeah... Yes, it's okay," he whispered, feeling nervous and tense suddenly. This was it. But why was Adriel still wearing his clothes? "Will you be taking off uh...?"
"Not this time," Adriel murmured as he reached out to firmly run a hand up Art's leg. "Is this okay?"
Art thought that if it had been a light touch, he would not have liked it. He tended to jump away from them more than he did the firm ones because they... didn't exactly tickle, but it was uncomfortable. Having Adriel run his warm hand up his leg made him more aware that he was naked in a cool room, and though the nudity made him feel vulnerable again, the hand made him feel protected. "Yes," he whispered as he laid back on his other elbow as well.
Adriel hummed in approval as he got between Art's knees, then lowered his head to suck on his left hip. When Art stuttered a breath and jerked at the feeling of the kiss, Adriel laved the spot with his tongue once and then nuzzled Art's inner thigh. "Was that okay?" he asked.
Art laid back all the way with a whimper and squirmed with need. He hadn't heard the questions because that kiss had caused that same bolt of pleasure from earlier, but this time it went from his hip to his toes and curled around his left waist to cover the lower back area where Adriel had rubbed earlier. But nothing else happened for a minute, and Art felt frustrated. He grabbed a handful of Adriel's hair and tugged. "More," he begged. He wasn't sure what he was asking for, but he knew he wanted more of that feeling.
Adriel huffed a quiet laugh as he opened the bottle he had pulled out while trailing his tongue up along Art's stomach, and he coated the fingers of his right hand with the oil based lube. Art's hand continued to keep a grip of his hair, so he couldn't use it to also trail along the path he licked like he would have, but maybe that was for the best since Art's eyes were already squeezed shut as he arched into the feeling with a whine. "So sensitive," he murmured when he reached the right nipple, and was rewarded with another yank when he flicked his tongue over it once.
"Don't stop!" Art demanded before Adriel could ask if he was ok with that, so he covered it with his mouth and sucked on it while his slicked fingers went down to Art's hole. Art's other hand came up to also grip his hair, and he was very glad that Art had gotten into a habit on how to grip no matter how mindless with panic he was while riding on a horse. He sucked harder and started rubbing on the outside of Art's hole.
He didn't think Art noticed what his slicked hand was doing, but Art raised his hips with a whine so he guessed wrong. He wasn't going to actually push a finger in without verbal consent, however, so he stretched out a leg to draw some of Art's discarded clothing closer, grabbed it with his clean hand, and rolled up the vest and the shirt together as a makeshift as a pillow to shove under Art's hips. Then he stopped sucking, gave the nipple one last lick similar to what he did with the hip, and leaned back a little while using his free hand to rub on Art's hand to coax him into relaxing his grip. "Are you okay, love?" he asked.
Was he okay? He was... He felt like what he wanted was just out of reach. He felt like he would have been able to get it if Adriel had done anything to his dick. He knew he was supposed to feel embarrassed if he came too soon - that was something he heard in the dorms at Hogwarts and in the men's room at work. But he. Didn't. Care! Oh, Adriel was trying to get him to let go of his hair. He... He wasn't sure if he could. He peeked an eye open and groaned at the concern on Adriel's face.
"I'm... Yeah," he choked out as he slowly stretched out his fingers to release Adriel. "Just... Why?!" Why did he stop? He told him not to before!
Adriel swept his hair back behind him with his clean hand and rubbed his slicked finger against Art. "I would like your consent to penetrate you with my finger," he said in reply, amused with Art's frustrated impatience.
Art brought his hands up to push his hair off his forehead, and grimaced at the light sweat that was there. "I raised my hips!" he exclaimed. "Trust me, I know the basics of insert rod A into slot B."
Adriel snickered at the amusing description of sex. "Well, I'll looking for button C in slot B," he rebutted. "I wanted your verbal consent for that, not a consent given in the heat of the moment. When I find it, I promise I won't leave you panting and unsated."
Art groaned and rubbed his face, curious what button C was but too frustrated to ask. He almost wanted to say no, but that would be cutting off his nose to spite his face. "Yes," he agreed. "Yes, yes and more yes! I promise I will say no if I don't like something if you don't stop again!"
Adriel knew better than to accept those kinds of promises, but he had no intention of stopping this time so he gave a noncommittal hum that Art could take however he wanted. "Just close your eyes and relax," he said instead, then lowered his head to swipe his tongue along Art's length.
Art hissed, started to reach out for Adriel's hair again, then stopped himself because he worried he might have hurt him earlier. But Adriel's hand reached out to grab his and guide it to his hair himself. He burrowed his fingers deep into the thick roots, and bucked his hips up with a groan when he felt Adriel's mouth gently suck on the tip.
Adriel splayed his free hand out on Art's lower abdomen to keep him steady while he sucked and licked down Art's length again. As he did that, he slowly pressed against the ring of muscles until they gave in for him to push in to his first knuckle. He then sucked one of Art's balls into his mouth, and carefully started to pump his finger while keeping Art from twisting too much. Art was such a handful, but the challenge and fun was what eventually drew him in.
Art shuddered when he finally got to feel what it felt like to have his balls sucked on, and he brought his knees up to spread his legs further apart. He alternated between pulling and rubbing Adriel's scalp until a certain grip made the other man groan, and he marked it in his memory as something important to remember. He wanted more, but when Adriel also sucked in his second ball and pushed his finger in deeper, he whined and gripped the wrist holding him down with his free hand.
Adriel only glanced up to make sure he wasn't causing pain when Art grabbed his wrist, then ignored the feeling of his nails digging in as he continued to search for the prostate. He found the smooth, almost rubbery spot when his second knuckle was almost in, and he started to gently rub it so he didn't overstimulate Art too quickly. He released the balls which made Art pull his hair and start to growl, but when he immediately started licking up the shaft like he was chasing a drop of ice cream, the growl turned into a whimper and more squirming.
Art was lost in how good everything felt. Distantly, he knew he was gripping Adriel too tightly again, but that didn't compare to the shocks of pleasure that the spot inside him (button C?) was giving him, the way a second finger was starting to push in and make him feel full, or how Adriel's hot mouth felt when he engulfed his penis and swallowed it all the way to the base in a couple of bobs. He thought he was finished right there, but then Adriel held still and moved the hand on his stomach down a couple inches to squeeze the base, and it stopped the ending he knew was right there from occurring. He let out a sob when he felt that, but he was also glad he would be able to feel this way a little longer.
It wasn't until Adriel got his second finger in all the way that he finally let go of Art's penis, and used that hand to reach up to lightly pinch Art's left nipple. Since Art was now free again, he was able to buck up, but Adriel followed the movement with his head while he scissor the fingers inside of Art to loosen him up a little. By his moaning, Art was really close again, so he wanted to get both fingers on the prostate which was why he did that. He then started bobbing his head while swallowing and pressed both fingers into the sensitive tissue.
Art felt like the breath had been knocked out of him when the a strong burst of pleasure made him see white. He couldn't whine or anything. He couldn't even think. All he could do was feel. He felt his nails break the skin of Adriel's arm, and he felt himself pulling hard on the hair, but Adriel stayed where he was to swallow everything, and Art could feel every movement of his throat which just heightened the pleasure more. He wanted to tell him to stop, that it was too much, but he was glad he couldn't because he also didn't want it to stop. Finally, he hit a point where his mind kind of shut down while feeling completely sated.
He wasn't sure how long he was in that state, but it felt like a long time, and it felt incredibly short. When he became aware of his surroundings, he was in Adriel's lap, cuddled tightly against him while being carefully held. He saw the blood on Adriel's arm, and reached out to touch it with a pang of guilt.
"Ssshhh, no kwá’ásiní," Adriel comforted to Art's bewilderment. Why was he being comforted when Adriel was the one that got hurt? "Darling, are you coming back to me?" Art gave a small nod since he thought he was. "Good... Did you like that?" What kind of stupid question was that? "And there's the look you give to idiots," Adriel said with a chuckle. "Would you like to take a shower together?" A shower sounded good, but he didn't think he was ready for one alone, so he nodded. "I will carry you then, relax."
Art felt like he normally wouldn't allow something like this, but he didn't want to stop clinging to Adriel. Somehow, the other wizard managed to hold him while he started the shower up, but then he had to set him down so he could strip. "Just a moment," Adriel reassured when Art looked up at him with a sad expression of abandonment. "You're just coming down, it happens if things get too intense," Adriel explained while undressing, then he picked Art up again and carried him into the shower.
The water helped Art recover quicker, and he started to shiver a little even though he wasn't cold. Adriel's hands soothed them away while he soaped him down, and Art noticed Adriel was still hard. He reached out to touch it, curious since he had not seen it before and it was almost as tanned as Adriel was.
"Don't worry about me," Adriel said when he felt the touch and mistook it as guilt. Art had touched his arm several times while he was in the subspace zone, so he figured it was a similar reaction. But to his surprise, Art answered not just out loud, but contrary to what he had thought.
"I... I'm curious," Art managed to get out as he rubbed his palm against the uncircumcised head.
Adriel's breath stuttered when the clear statement turned him on even more than he was before. "Of course you are able to be curious when you're supposed to be coming down," Adriel half heartedly grumbled under his breath. "Do you want to watch me take care of myself?" He was planning to do it alone after putting Art to sleep, so a no was fine.
Art stared hard at the penis as he turned the question over in his mind. Everything felt sticky like molasses in his head. "Can I taste a little when you do?" he asked, wondering what it tasted like because Adriel had swallowed all of his.
Adriel blew out a huff of air. Of course he would ask that. "You should ask again later if you are still interested," he replied back, relieved when Art gave a slow nod of agreement. "You're probably going to feel really good for the next couple days," Adriel said as he took himself in hand. "Thank the gods it's the weekend. I probably won't last long, but you can touch me wherever you want."
Art watched Adriel jerk himself off for a minute, then his eyes trailed up to his chest. He had permission, so he reached out to touch a nipple, and felt glad when Adriel moaned from it since it meant he liked it too. He watched Adriel switch hands so he could lean against the wall, and the new position gave Art better access to his chest. So he leaned in to lick it this time, and he heard Adriel breath in sharply before he groaned and his arm started to jerkily move. Art looked down to see why there was a change, and got to watch the white creamy cum as it was washed away by the water and went down the drain.
"I hope you're a bigger handful after this," Adriel sighed as he flung his other arm across his eyes and leaned his head back against the wall. "Cause I love you too damned much for it to be any other way." Adriel also hoped that Art wouldn't remember the shower in the morning, because it was embarrassing for him to also cum like it was his first time. Well, that was a problem for the Adriel of tomorrow, the Adriel of tonight had to finish washing up, then put Art to bed while he took the couch to make sure Art didn't wander off until he had it under control.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 31, 2023 2:28:47 GMT
When Art decided to finally go on his Egyptian expedition, the museum was eager to fund it at first. After he told the board his theories and proposal, though, one snorted and told him the desert had been checked for magic fifty years back and had the results had shown it was barren. Art knew his theories were pointing him in the right direction, though, so he argued that it could have a different type of warding system, reminded them he had found Atlantis, and said he knew he was right. So the board reluctantly funded him, but they gave him half the amount they had given for the Atlantis expedition and told him he would be reimbursed for twice that if he came back with results.
Oh, and that he was in charge of forming his own team again, because all their regular teams currently had projects with a better chance at success.
Art fumed as he stalked out to go back to the library so he could put something together with what he had. He knew that the money he had gotten wasn't enough for a full team for the duration he needed to be out. It would most likely take months to find it, especially if his theory about certain star alignments was right. After Atlantis and listening to Adriel's occasional comments about how there were usually more around to help and provide backup, he had done some research on what the bare amount should consist of.
He would probably only be able to hire a couple people... and camels. Because even with magic, traversing certain areas of the desert was exceptionally dangerous. He knew he would need at least one person that was familiar with Egypt. And his brain reminded him that Adriel had mentioned it a few times, as well.
Adriel hadn't lied, either. He had forgotten to read his files before they left for Greece, but he did go through them when he returned to England and found himself missing his... friend? He was pretty sure they were friends. Adriel ended up saying he considered Art his friend. Art had even gotten a few letters that he had dutifully replied to the past year, even if it felt awkward to him because he wasn't too sure what to write in it. But yes, his friend had recommendations for his fighting ability, his way with cuneiform, and from curse breakers that claimed Adriel had some kind of sixth sense that had saved them from a trap or beast. Art recalled how uncanny it was to be pulled back one time just before he was attacked, and the only warning there was was Adriel's own burst of movement right before Art could get hurt or maimed.
Of course, Adriel's letters were usually interesting with amusing anecdotes about his current teams along with tidbits of knowledge from ancient ruins. Things written on pottery and such that hadn't been publicized but also weren't under an NDA. Art felt his letters were probably boring in return since he just talked about his research, but Adriel would respond to them like there was nothing amiss. There were reminders for Art to reach out to other specialists in the fields from Adriel along with a couple of name recommendations to try, and Art did give in when he got stuck a few months back and wrote to a couple of those people, too. He ended up getting a response from one man in Alexandria, and after a few more exchanges, he had gotten the final lead he needed to figure out his research.
He could try writing to Adriel to see if he was available. He didn't try to fool himself into thinking that he was Adriel's only friend, or even that he was Adriel's best friend, but Adriel was his only friend so he didn't really have anyone else to turn to unless he wanted to try the papers again. After his research on teams, he read other expedition reports, and he knew how lucky he got with finding someone competent through a random ad because a lot of them ended in disasters when a team was filled with rookies. Art was not even an amateur... He had one expedition to his name even if it was a major one. He understood a bit more on why the board had blocked him before - it wasn't just Atlantis, but also giving a rookie a team when he hadn't been out in the field for at least two years.
Art was feeling pretty depressed by the time he reached his office with all those heavy thoughts. No real friends, not good enough still for the museum to take him seriously, boring, still hated, probably going to fail from low funds, Adriel was probably busy or on another team, and he should just use the Daily Prophet again. He flopped into his chair listlessly and looked around the tiny space that was even more packed with books than it had been a year previously. Even his filing cabinets had towering stacks on top of them, and he winced at the thought of some clumsy oaf from the papers coming in to knock one over. No, he would definitely write Adriel first and was willing to wait as long as he could if Adriel was currently on an expedition. He hoped he wouldn't have to wait too long as he pulled out a parchment and started to write.
Adriel and Art had to travel through dunes and hard desert plains for six weeks before they managed to reach a location that Art thought was close enough to start using his star charts on. It was in a rocky desert area with caves often hidden right below the sands, so Adriel had to take extra precautions when setting up the wards for things that might pop out from below. Sand painting wasn't an option for him with the harsh winds and sand storms, so he had to use stones and runes to try and recreate wards from other ancient sites he had seen. Some worked, some didn't, but it passed the time while Art did his night research and slept in the cool tent once the hot sun came up.
Adriel really wasn't good with boredom or almost no conversation. He knew better than to interrupt Art while he was working, so they only got to chat over meals, and that was only if Art hadn't buried his nose in a book. His prowling around the area every couple hours had either gotten the more dangerous creatures killed off (and often put into the cooking pot with the skins stretched out and bones carefully stacked so both would cure in the dry air) or things fled to safer areas within two weeks.
He tried practicing with his elemental magics after, since it was rare he got to use them outside of tribal grounds. He would either lose focus and fail, or he would become so focused that he didn't pay attention to the time until migraines were pushing at his eyes. He put his practice to the side when the latter occurred for the third time because he didn't want to be debilitated if something happened. So he used his new skins to work on dreamcatchers, and he carved on the bones to make new jewelry during the day.
Being the only person capable of being alert and on watch, Adriel had started a sleep schedule similar to what was used on certain ships or in very dangerous terrain where sleeping or resting much could lead to death. Fifteen minutes of napping and 45 minutes of watch each hour would get him a full eight hours per day, but he only needed six so he skipped a few nap times as he pleased.
Rest and work was not an issue, but no talk, play, or play was since he was a social creature. He had used his magic through his wand to raise some rocks below them so they had cover during sand storms and some shade during the day, but it was only after a lot of meditation to feel out the area below them so he could make sure he didn't cause a sink hole. One of the smaller rocks was what he had used before during his practice with wandless magic, and now boredom had him playing with its shape and texture often so he could lounge on it during day watches when there was shade over it. By the end of the ninth week, Adriel didn't feel like moving from it unless he had to, and though he was still alert, he had gotten more quiet.
That led to him watching Art often. He lamented that Art wasn't interested in not dating, and he suspected Art was nádleehi, a changing one, after their conversations during the first expedition together. The comment Art had made outside the Tavern in Wales was the biggest clue, though he still didn't fully presume without actual confirmation. He couldn't help but imagine Art in the female clothing of his culture though, regardless if he was one of the nádleehi or not. He also knew that thinking too much about these things could get him in trouble, but as long as he said nothing, it would be fine since a person's thoughts should have their privacy respected.
As the ninth week passed towards the tenth, he wondered if Art would be interested in men if he had grown up as Navajo, not that all nádleehi were. Some were not interested in people at all, were genderfluid so man one day and woman the next as they felt, and others did not identify at all as man or women. And while they were given a more female role in tribal society, they had the choice to be with a man or woman as they wished. A lot of the nádleehi did prefer to be with men, and Adriel often figured it was because of the acceptance of their preferred gender along with the female role. Since nádleehi were not men or women, but their own gender since Navajo had four rather than the regular two, a relationship with one was not considered homosexual and so was outside the tribal rules of men being with men as long as nothing about it was said directly to the US officials.
The American government refused to acknowledge that there was more than two genders, and they tried to insist that tribes mark down the genders of their children as they were born for consensus, but it was easy enough to slip things through since the workers themselves were racist enough to not want to let forms get filled because of 'illiteracy,' and the government was so tired of being painted as barbaric that they had started looking the other way when it came to the extra gender roles. Something had come out of the Long Walk and then the forced cutting of hair while trying to force European civilization on them - the Navajo had supporters in the White Men tribes.
He really wished Art had some kind of interest in people, though. Adriel thought he would make a great bed friend, especially during these types of expeditions when it was just the two of them with nobody around at all to hear things if it got loud. Art's slim body and expressive face would be a wonderful thing to see during sex, no matter who was top or bottom. It made Adriel shiver as he thought about being on all fours with Art behind him, and him teaching the other man what to do with their positions like that. He would no doubt be blushing hard, unable to meet Adriel's eyes, and his touches would be tentative and teasing as...
"Are you okay, Adriel?" Art asked over dinner, seeing Adriel was staring past him again with unfocused eyes and unable to keep silent about it anymore. He had started noticing how Adriel had gone quiet a couple days ago and would either stare through him or stare out at nothing for short periods of time before he would scan the area alertly. It had probably been going on for longer than that, but Art only noticed recently when he realized that meal times and gotten uncannily silent though Adriel still cooked when it was his turn and ate without being prompted. He knew it had probably been about a week since they had last talked, and it was highly unusual. He had been appreciating the silence to work or think during meals, but now he was starting to get concerned. "Are you sick?"
Adriel blinked when the silence was suddenly broken, and shook his head to get the daydreams out. "No," he said, his voice raspy from not being used for so long. He reached for his water skin to soothe his throat, then sighed and rubbed his eyes.
"I have some pepperup potion if you have a cold..." Art said, trailing off uncertainly at the end because Adriel looked so... Not unhappy or angry or anything, nor sick exactly since his skin looked healthy and he wasn't sweating with fever. Maybe tired? "If you need a break, you can sleep in the tent."
"No," Adriel said more clearly while shaking his head no as well. "It's just... I don't deal well with long periods of silence or no company. I'll be fine, though."
Art scrunched up his face when Adriel reluctantly admitted what was wrong. He wanted to accept Adriel's announcement that he was fine, but a pang of guilt wouldn't let him. That was confusing since it wasn't his fault Adriel was feeling lonely, he had work to do and they both had jobs. But at the same time, Adriel was supposed to be his friend, so maybe he was feeling guilty because he was about to ignore how being lonely was affecting Adriel.
"We... can talk?" he slowly offered while thinking over his daily schedule. He supposed he could set aside one of the books he was reading purely for his own interest to spend some time with Adriel. "Do you want to talk about something tonight?"
Adriel wanted to say yes, but he hesitated because he knew he would probably say something incredibly stupid if he stuck around. So he shook his head no. "Tomorrow, but I need to... I'll go rest. I'm tired and will probably babble or something," he said, willing to mix some lies in with some truth to make it all sound somewhat believable.
Art gave Adriel a skeptical look, but since it sounded like he was starting to babble with the way that had come out, he gave a nod. "Alright," Art said. "I'll just check the stars while in the wards so you can sleep in the tent without worrying something will attack me outside of them."
Adriel gratefully nodded and stood up. "Goodnight," he said as he sat the bowl down on his rock, then he made his escape. That was an uncomfortably close call, because if he had stayed, he probably would have asked Art if he ever thought about sex or if he felt like he was a woman inside. Knowing Art, those questions probably would not have ended well. He would spend a few hours meditating and resting to clear his head so he could work on going back to acting normal in the morning.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 31, 2023 10:03:10 GMT
An amusing OOC of Art trying to learn all the reasons Adriel doesn't date I don't date.That was one of the first things Art and Adriel had agreed on outside of business, even if it had different meanings for them. Art hadn't been interested in dating at all, and he knew that Adriel didn't date because he enjoyed hopping from bed to bed. Neither of them had talked about why they didn't date, so while Art knew he had reasons he didn't date (People were idiots. People hated him. People had expectations he couldn't meet. People wanted more than he could give.), he didn't know what Adriel's were. On the surface level, what Adriel had said about being promiscuous was true. But Art knew the other man had a lot of depths, and he never had a single reason for something when he could have several reasons instead. Adriel had told him that himself one night over the camp fire during an inane conversation, and though he couldn't recall the topic, he always could always remember that part. Nothing was ever black and white with Adriel - the second the other man had entered his life, he immediately started turning Art's world upside down with color and chaos. It was slow at first, but everything kept adding up until he was where he was now - on the way home back to England after Adriel invited him to explore the Congo for any lost city together. Though nothing like that was found, they did have new adventures and Art even got the skin from the giant Nile Crocodile that Adriel had hunted down one night after a local village they stopped to split up and collect local legends asked them to take care of the monster killing their herds. Oddly enough, the meat was burned to ash, but Art figured that it meant a Nile Crocodile wasn't edible or the water it had been in wasn't safe so disease was a possibility. Now it seemed like Adriel was making up for the weeks spent in the jungle by sleeping with a new person every night in each city they passed through to get back to England. There wasn't just one portkey to Britain from the Congos - you had to go to South Africa first, wait for the next available portkey to either Egypt or India, then you could get a Portkey back to France or Italy and then England because politics were a bitch and Grindelwald was terrorizing enough countries for them to put restrictions on things to try to slow down his followers. They were now in France, and Art was alone with his books in their room again. One good thing was that Adriel never brought people to their rooms - that would have been too far for him - so he was given the silence he needed for long periods. But it also meant that he would lose track of time, and so was usually still reading when Adriel came back late smelling of perfume or flavored tobacco or whatever place he had gone to find his entertainment with bruises on his neck and looking pretty happy with his night. When it happened again this night, Art cleared his throat before Adriel could enter his suite in their rooms, and it made the other man look back at him with his usual friendly smile. "Why don't you date?" he asked, curious because the whole thing was getting rather ridiculous to him, and couldn't help his small smile when Adriel looked surprised. "Hm... Did I tell you it was because I was promiscuous, or was it because of my tribe?" Adriel asked in return. He knew they had talked about it when they had first met, but he couldn't recall which reason he had given. "The first," Art admitted as he raised a questioning eyebrow. "What is your tribe reason?" Adriel grinned back at Art, amused at the other man's sudden questioning when he hadn't said a word their whole friendship. "I wouldn't want to leave my tribe, and nobody would want to join a primitive society," Adriel flippantly answered before he turned to go to his room. "Going to shower then bed, you should get some rest too, Art. We need to check the ministry again the the morning." Art grumbled at the reminder - they were on day two of delays - then carefully bookmarked his page before he got up to go to his room. As he prepared for bed, he wondered who exactly had paid for the Congo expedition because their rooms had been rather nice. This one overlooked Paris from the sitting room balcony, and each room had its own baths. The Oxford museum would never pay to set their teams up like this, so he suspected it was a rich private collector that Adriel knew. He had asked before they left, but Adriel had only replied with a shrug then changed the subject, and Art went along with it only because he trusted Adriel and it had sounded interesting. I don't date.That statement still bothered Art when he woke up the next morning. He had gotten a second answer, but the way it was said meant that there were still more reasons. He wondered if he really should try to dig into the mystery when he hadn't told Adriel anything, either, but the other man was making his habits known very boldly every night so he didn't feel guilty about it. He quickly washed up, got dressed, then went to the sitting room and ordered breakfast to be delivered since he could hear Adriel also getting ready in his room. Breakfast arrived only minutes after Adriel appeared, and they ate together at the table by the balcony window. "Why else don't you date?" Art while cutting up his eggs into smaller pieces. "Didn't you ask me that last night?" Adriel asked while he piled his eggs on a slice of toast. "Why are you suddenly so curious?" Art knew Adriel had manners - he had seen him properly eat. But watching him fold nicely prepared eggs into a half sandwich on a slice of specialty bread like neither thing mattered made him grimace. When Adriel's eyes suddenly focused intently on him, he realized that his companion had picked up something from his body language (again, damnit) so he scowled at him. "You are ruining the bread," he primly said in response to Adriel's look. "And you keep returning covered in bruises and sometimes lipstick so it made me curious." Adriel laughed at the reply and returned his attention back to his food. "I'm hungry," he stated before taking a large bite. They both chewed in silence for several second, but Adriel swallowed first. "It's not about the sex, you know." Art almost choked on his eggs when Adriel bluntly said sex. They were eating! "You have no shame," he snapped to cover his embarrassment, not that he thought it would work. And it didn't, Adriel's eyes danced with silent amusement while he munched on his food. "And I wasn't asking about your night. I don't want to know that. That's your business. I'm just asking why you don't date." "My reasons for why I don't date is also my own business, right?" Adriel facetiously pointed out as he speared a slice of pear with his fork. Breakfast and entertainment! "Do I get to ask a personal question that you have to answer?" Art wasn't sure if he felt more annoyed with Adriel for dodging his questions or embarrassed for getting caught out. He viciously bit into his toast to avoid an immediate reply, then shrugged because he really hated leaving a question unanswered. "Ask if you want. I might answer," he grumbled, then crumpled up his napkin and chucked it at Adriel's face when he looked smug. Adriel caught the makeshift missile, opened it up, then neatly folded it and passed it back to Art. "I could ask you the same question you are asking me, but that would be too easy," Adriel replied as he put a lump of sugar into his coffee and stirred it. "Will you get angry if I ask a question you don't like?" Art scowled at Adriel and snatched his napkin from the table. "I won't get mad, but I reserve the right to not answer," Art huffed as he spread the napkin back out on his lap and smoothed it down. "That's fine," Adriel answered with a shrug, then took a sip of his coffee while watching Art over the rim of the cup. One free question without consequences! He needed a good one that had a chance to be answered. "Do you dislike having sex?" Art dropped his fork on his plate and violently blushed as his hands went to his lap to grip the napkin. Of all the... A sadist! Adriel was definitely a sadist. He definitely would have preferred to be asked why he didn't date since he had several reasons for that, but a yes or no question wasn't the same thing. And after the one conversation they had about what breaking trust meant, he didn't want to lie and give either answer because he technically didn't know if he liked or disliked sex. Was another answer worth giving away that he had no experience? Did it really matter to him if Adriel knew he didn't have any experience? That last question was actually a good point - it wouldn't change anything for him, and Adriel didn't seem the type of person to judge or mock people on their sexual preferences or lack thereof. Then again, that secret was a big one, so maybe he should change his question to a different one. "If I answer that one, can I change my question to a different one instead?" When Adriel nodded as he polished off the last of his fruit slices, Art asked his question. "Who is funding this expedition and why?" Adriel blinked at the question, then shrugged. "I suppose it won't hurt to tell you now as long as you don't mind that I can't name names," he said as he picked up a spoon and dipped it into the bowl of whipped cream that was meant for the fruits. When Art nodded an agreement, Adriel frowned at his spoon. "A man's daughter went missing in that area a few weeks ago that was a reporter. She wanted to do an article on the shamans of the Congos. Unfortunately, their Dark Wizards can be just as bad as the Navajo ones, and they really like white women and albino humans, so when MACUSA refused to get involved, he begged the Nation for assistance because we have 'witch doctors,' too." Adriel scoffed and licked the whipped cream. "Anyway, he offered political support in Congress and a lot of gold if we could get his daughter back if she was alive, or her body if she wasn't, so he could properly bury it rather than have it get desecrated." Art turned pale, then turned green as Adriel explained why they had gone to the Congos. "But... The lost cities?" he weakly asked as he pushed his plate far, far away. "Oh, that was just a side project I was hoping for," he said as he watched Art. "I also needed a legitimate excuse to poke around the area - the tribes there are exceptionally territorial if they thing you are hunting one of theirs down, even if they are evil human sacrificing assholes that deserve to be fed to their pet crocodile. Are you sure you want to know more? You know I won't lie to you." Art regretted asking, but the mention of a crocodile made him think about the skin that Adriel gave him. "You... Crocodile... What happened to the woman? Did you rescue her at least?" he asked, hoping that the answer was a yes. Adriel licked his spoon clean and scooped up another large lump. "Remember the monster I said the villagers wanted exterminated?" he asked after another lick, and when Art nodded, he continued. "The word they use for monster is also synonymous with a type of dark wizard that does exceptionally horrific rituals on those that are innocent to spread curses over an area they want to take over. It kills off the livestock first, turned the water toxic, spreads diseases among the humans, then kills off the plants last. They power it first by sacrificing children at certain points, and as each curse is sent, another sacrifice must be made. The man's daughter was the first to kill their livestock, we got there a few days too late for her, but the other three were saved and released." Art clenched the napkin tightly, then brought it to his mouth so he could keep his breakfast down. "What happened to the wizard? And why was I invited along when I can't fight?" Adriel smirked after licking his second spoon of whipped cream clean. "Ah, well, the only way to stop a ritual like that is also through sacrifice," he explained as he went for a third dip. "Sometimes it requires the whole group involved, but he was an idiot and tied the power to himself. His crocodile appreciated the meal, but wasn't satisfied with just that, so it tried to eat the other prisoners it was guarding." He paused to suck the whole spoon clean, then shrugged at Art. " You were invited along because you are good at putting clues together, and I really was hoping we could find an ancient city without having to rely on your board for funds. I didn't want you involved with the other problem, so I didn't involve you, but I wanted to have fun together." Art wasn't sure if he should feel sick about how he thought Adriel had joked about the crocodile and the dark wizard extermination only to find out it wasn't a joke, or if he should feel warm about why he was invited along. Well, he was technically already feeling sick, but now he was also feeling warm, and the contradicting feelings were making the sick feeling worse. He reminded himself of why Adriel did that though, and some of the nausea abated. "I should have stuck with the dating question," he groaned. "You still have to answer my question," Adriel pointed out while pointing his spoon at Art's abandoned plate. "Can I finish your food?" Art silently pushed his plate over. "I don't know," he huffed, unable to feel mortified with everything he had just learned. Finding out his best friend had been on a hunting trip while also looking for an ancient city at the same time, succeeding at the first, then presented him with the trophy of his kill was... Art shut down the train of thought. He didn't want to offend his friend by trying to return the gift. Gifts were a huge part of Navajo traditions. "So... We saved a village?" Adriel looked at the plate pushed over to him with confusion. "You don't know if I can finish your food?" he asked, before looking up again. "Or you don't know if you dislike having sex?" Art blushed again and wanted to throw his teacup at Adriel, but that would be a waste of tea. So he picked it up, bared his teeth at Adriel, and drank half of it in one go though it was black because he needed the comfort it gave. "The latter," he said in a clipped voice after setting his cup down so he could add honey and milk to it. "I haven't done... that because I see no need for it." Adriel nodded as he picked up the small bowl of whipped cream from Art's plate. "Anyway, yes, we saved the village," he said to answer the earlier question as he tucked away the new answer he got into the conundrum in his mind known as Art. "Your innocent questions got the villagers willing to say more than they would have told me, though I was not using you that way. We really were there to see if there were any old legends in the area that could point us to a city - I planned to track while we moved around the jungles. But if they had not said what the problem was, there would probably have been many more dead people before I could find him. I am sorry that we didn't find a city, though." Art actually felt better about the whole situation when he found out that he did help, even if it was in an unknowing way. He reached out to snag up his toast from the plate he gave Adriel so he could munch on it with his tea. "Since I helped, can I get another answer to why you don't date, then?" he innocently asked, and felt quite proud when his question made Adriel laugh since it meant he would give in. "Hmmm... Not many people hold my interest for long," Adriel casually threw out after licking his spoon clean. "You're the first person I've invited along for a hunting trip, actually. My tribe hates it when I go solo since they know I am a horse rather than a wolf, so they agreed to send 'a witchdoctor' out only if he also provided board for anyone else they needed along. They left it up to me to decide who, if anyone, I wanted to bring, though. I can be rather difficult when I am ordered, so they stopped doing that after I got my scandalous Coyote tattoo." Art was smiling and blushing into his teacup since he felt oddly touched and a little bit special, then scowled because Adriel made him feel that way since it was another couple things he caused in Art's emotional turmoil of the morning. "Ugh, why do I consider you my best friend," he grumbled in disgust before nibbling on his toast. 'I swear, if you had actually attended a potion class, you would have been one of those that tossed random things into a cauldron just to see what would cause an explosion while making the teacher want to retire." Adriel barked a laugh at the description, then raised his coffee up in a silent toast before downing it. "Mmm, you might be right," he drawled as he stood up and grabbed an apple slice. "Let's go to the ministry and see if we can get you home today. You're starting to get cranky from your library withdrawals and- ack!" Adriel ran out of the room with Art hot on his heels, hand out to try to pull his braid again. "Take that back, Adriel!" he growled though his own laugh.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2023 0:44:12 GMT
Art loved his curiosity most of the time since it was the drive behind his ambitions, but occasionally it would get him into trouble. He did learn to manage it because the trouble was much worse when he was a boy - asking questions in muggle class would get him mocked for being a teacher's pet, or trying to correct a teacher would have his hand slapped with a ruler. So he learned to keep quiet, internalize his problems, not ask questions, and try to watch to figure things out if there was no book that could help. And lately, his curiosity had turned towards sex.
He blamed Adriel for it. Stupid man with his stupid handsomeness and his stupid comments and habits. Art hadn't really cared about sex beyond the basics of biology until he noticed how cheerful with an almost glow that surrounded Adriel after a night out when they had their final stop at Crete.
Unfortunately, books on sex were of two varieties - the medical ones that explained the biology and drive behind reproduction, and the scandalous ones that depicted positions and the ones that made him think dear gods is that really safe, possible, or proper? The former mentioned nothing about why people actually loved sex beyond 'a brief moment of pleasure,' and the latter was too graphic to contemplate. The Kama Sutra was supposed to explain the pleasures of sex according to what he had heard, but it didn't. It really really didn't. People couldn't twist that way unless they were acrobats and the like.
That left Art to experiment on his own when he could get privacy. That wasn't hard to manage even though they were deep below the earth to head back to Atlantis for the third time to do another excavation. Adriel rarely stayed in one spot for long, and when he said he was going to scout the area, it meant he was exploring through more of the cavern networks to check it for hidden dangers and the like. That would give Art a minimum of an hour alone in his tent, and though he had to remain in the warded area Adriel would mark out each night, he had his books to read and never left it so his protector had gotten more relaxed about leaving him alone for up to a few hours.
So far, he had learned that using some olive or coconut oil before taking himself in hand made experimenting feel very nice. Not much oil, just a few drops to half a small spoon's worth because he didn't like how it felt to get too messy or how hard it was to clean his hands afterwards. He also found what areas felt nice to rub his fingers along, especially the glans around his head, and lightly brushing the slit at the top felt good though only for the first few moments. He kind of wanted to see what it was like to put something small and thin into the hole, but he also didn't want to hurt himself or get something stuck so that idea was shelved in the back for when he got home, maybe. Lightly tugging or pulling at his balls also felt good, but he really liked rubbing the area underneath it that the anatomy book called the perineum.
He kind of felt guilty when he would occasionally think about the times he had touched Adriel's hair or arm at the urging of the other man to 'get Art used to touch' as he called it, but the feeling of playing with himself reminded him of how soft the other man felt, so he couldn't help it though he would stop what he was doing when it would happen. Continuing while thinking of Adriel felt wrong, but stopping would make him irritable for a few hours after even though he wasn't sure why. Adriel would look confused when he would snap at him after he returned from a scouting trip, but he would also brush off Art's bad moods like it was nothing and the casual way he treated it would often calm Art down quicker than he normally would when he would get irritable at people. He did feel bad for the man, but since Adriel didn't ask why or try to actively figure out what was upsetting Art during those incidents unlike some other times when Art was actually feeling miserable or sick, he brushed off the feeling since Adriel didn't seem to care either.
"How do you know when I don't want to talk about something?" Art asked one night a few hours he had calmed down and got curious enough about it.
"Body language," Adriel had replied while focusing on cooking their dinner in his cast iron pot he called a dutch oven. "There are many types of anger, but defensive anger is the most dangerous, so I don't ask. When you are angry but also look like you want to hide."
"I'm sorry," Art mumbled, feeling terribly guilty all of a sudden and brought his knees up to wrap his arms around.
"Don't apologize," Adriel had said while giving him a friendly grin. "We all have feelings, and they cannot be controlled or changed like logic. Trying to ignore it or hate it is bad for you, and I am not hurt. I do not want you to hurt yourself over it."
That answer had made Art want to reach out and pat Adriel in thanks, but he didn't. He never did. He only reached out if Adriel asked and he himself was okay with it, but he was unused to touching people and was used to being unwelcome, so initiating himself was outside his zone of comfort. Instead, he sighed and nodded, and let the subject drop that night. They ended up talking about the new passages instead, and Art was able to fill out a little more of his map with Adriel's descriptions. They were most likely inaccurate since Adriel didn't use exact measurements or depth gauges, but Adriel wouldn't let him go on the unsafe paths because some floors could collapse or there could be hidden creatures in dark crevasses. When Adriel brought back a pale white lizard with milky blind eyes that he explained would scurry out of holes no bigger than the width of a pencil though it was almost three times the width, Art decided Adriel had a point.
Art wanted to experiment with his bumhole has well, but a regular position didn't allow for much penetration with his finger, and he would have had to adjust himself to a highly vulnerable position to try to reach deeper. There was also the smell that it left as well that was gross and took a couple scourgifies to his finger when a regular rinse didn't work since there was no shower, and he didn't want Adriel to smell it because then he would know something was happening while he was gone and Art definitely didn't want that. So he stuck with what he had so far and increased his experimentation in trying to figure out what combinations and speed would feel the best on completion, and started to understand a little what the fuss with sex was about.
When they reached Atlantis and the bubble that still surrounded it, he had to stop his experimentation because there was almost no privacy. He wasn't able to set up his tent because they were moving around too often to circle it and place down counter runes they had both been studying and trying to create using Ancient Greek and Phoenician Semetic for him and Cuneiform for Adriel (and wasn't it a bit of a surprise when Adriel pointed out how Cuneiform had evolved, and maybe they could do something to try to work out counters that could maybe open a doorway in the bubble without bringing it down since ancient Sumerian was the oldest known script and might be able to wiggle between potential cracks) in the hopes they could successfully enter this time.
They had found the city on the first trip, and Adriel had grabbed the back of his shirt when he tried to run forward to push him back behind him. Art had gotten angry and was about to start yelling at him, but saw how tense Adriel was and how he was sniffing the air. Art had warily taken a couple steps back and stayed still, understanding there was something dangerous nearby, and just watch Adriel prowl an invisible line back and forth while sniffing and pausing to listen like a guard dog on alert for about ten minutes. Then Adriel had reached into his pouch, pulled out a small wooden box that he unshrunk into the size of a jewelry box, and opened it to reveal... Sand? Sand in many different colors, all natural though definitely from many regions, and each contained in its own high quality glass or crystal bottle that probably contained more space on the inside. The box was gently set down, Adriel licked a finger, then carefully rubbed it in the air on the invisible line he had been pacing before sticking the finger he had licked into his mouth and sucked on it.
"Navajo magic," Adriel had shortly explained as he sat down to pick up a bottle, look it over, and either set it off to the side or gently place it back in its spot. "There's something invisible here, and I need to reveal it."
Art sat down, suddenly scared when the feeling of the Unknown that could be hidden in the pitch black darkness outside of their lamps. The walls of the city were only twenty feet in front of them, but Adriel was sitting ten feet from that as he started pouring a little bit of sand into a large abalone shell he was using as a bowl. He would mix the sand with his bare hand, take a small pinch and lick it, add another sand into it, and repeat until he was finally happy with the results. The bowl was half filled by then, some of the bottles were almost empty while others didn't even look like they had been used, and Adriel either chanted or sang something out before he tossed the sand out over the invisible line he had been careful not to go past.
The air rippled like the sand had been tossed into water or something, and as it started to settle, a translucent blue bubble shimmered into existence with runes on the ground that looked like an even older form of even ancient Phoenician, the alphabet ancient Greek was based on. Art stared in fascinated and stunned awe, glad he was already sitting down because falling on his bum would have hurt later.
Adriel had quickly put away his holy supplies and broken the silence with his own theory. "Huh, I wonder if that is written in the fabled original language Babylon myths mention when all Men spoke the same thing," he commented out loud. "Anyway, I don't think we're getting past this. I also don't think we should tell the museum the location yet unless you want someone else to possibly take over the project. What we should do is go back to Crete or Athens, buy a camera, come back, take some pictures as proof, and return to England so that we can figure out the meaning of these runes. Can't break a ward unless we know what it is, but it would also be a shame to break this one because on its own it is historical and probably the first and only one of its kind."
Art was initially annoyed at having the silence broken, but as Adriel continued to talk, he was filled with dread with the idea of someone else getting his Atlantis, especially after he had been laughed and mocked over it for so long. "They won't do that, will they?" he asked with disbelief. "I found it!"
"Yeah, but we can't break in," he pointed out. "It could do anything, like collapse the cavern and us in it, cause an explosion to destroy everything and form a new volcano, rise above the ground into a new island that has no muggle repelling wards, or who knows what. As soon as you tell the museum where it is, there will be so many more richer or politically connected people that will want the site that they would happily push you to the side or graciously allow you to continue under someone else for the money and prestige they could get from a patron like that. It was almost done with Knosses, has been done with some Hettite and Egyptian sites, and will continue to be done with other locations. Archeology is a rich man's game, and Knosses, with the Minoan Palace, was almost sold to a Turkish guy who wanted the area for the olive trees. Thankfully, the amount of trees was overstated in the sales pitch, angered the Turk, and caused the sell to default to the Englishman who wanted the property for the excavation of the palace. And though he didn't know that his friend Duncan Mackenzie was a wizard, it allowed the magical side of the British Museum to get the magical artifacts when he was invited along. It was a good thing there was a muggle repellant area set up before he got hit with one of the cursed areas that made him insane, since the museum was able to continue to pick up magical things for the sake of their Statute."
Art had been angry at Adriel for pointing all of that out, and though he still hadn't believed him, he had gone along with his plan after being talked into it just in case. He found himself grateful and indebted to Adriel when the museum did try to push him out and couldn't since they didn't know the location, and found himself piled with more funding. But he refused to take on more team members despite the urging of the museum and Adriel because the sense of betrayal from his employers was too much, so he was on this third trip with Adriel alone, feeling more frustrated the longer they tried to find a weakness in the runes, lamenting a lack of privacy by the fifth day of trying to translate while they followed the barrier so they could record the entire rune sequence that never repeated in a specific pattern, and he was so damned tired. And hard. Because Adriel's hair would occasionally brush against him while they were leaning over translations, or watching him walk in front of him was a nice view, and... he really really wasn't interested in sex with another person or dating. Just experimenting with himself because he was curious.
"We need a break," Art declared halfway through the sixth day. "I am tired and I want to sleep in a bed. My feet hurts, I don't sleep well on the ground because it is hard, and my brain needs to rest."
Adriel held up both hands and grinned. "I was actually going to suggest that tomorrow since you've been pushing yourself for too long," he said in an easy going manner. "I'm almost at my limit, too, and I'm used to high activity. You've been doing great, but you're not used to these things, so it's fine to be tired."
Art felt even more irritated by how casually Adriel treated his unhappy mood, and he made an almost growly noise at the other man before he dropped his pack so he could pull out the tent. "Whatever," he snapped as he yanked the poles out. "I'm not hungry, I just want to sleep."
Adriel shrugged as he glanced around. "Alright, I'm going to set up wards, then scout around first before sleeping out here," he stated, keeping his tone more neutral so Art wouldn't get snappier. Poor guy really had pushed himself too far. "I'll keep food warmed up in a pot in case you wake up later while I'm resting and are hungry."
Art grunted in return, pointed his wand at the tent, and made it assemble itself before he stalked inside it because he really needed to be away from Adriel. As he set out his sleeping bag and pulled out the things he would need for the night, he listened to the other man set up their perimeter and cast spells, then things went silent for several minutes. Art never heart Adriel's footsteps unless it was intentional, something he usually did in camp when Art was awake, so he figured Adriel was gone now. So he sat on his sleeping bag to rummage in his pack for the olive oil he used, pulled it out, and poured a small amount into his hands before rubbing them together and sticking his hands down his baggy sleeping pants with a quiet sigh of relief.
"Art?" Adriel called as he poked his head into the tent. "I'm going to uh..." He yanked his head out and cleared his throat after licking his lips. "Didn't mean to interrupt, just wanted to let you know I'm going to head out now."
Art whimpered and wanted to die of mortification. It was the most embarrassed he had ever felt in his life. He kind of wanted to either die, or hope that Adriel got lost during his scouting because nobody had ever caught him the few times he had tried this as a teenager, and he would have preferred for that trend of no witnesses to continue. But he scraped together the small crumbs of his dignity he had left to call out "okay" in a voice that cracked like it did when he went through puberty, groaned with more mortification, and sent farewell prayers to the rest of the dignity that died with that.
Adriel just quietly coughed once and very clearly walked away, and Art kind of wanted of wanted to stab the man just once for that. Maybe multiple times. While he no longer felt tension down there, now he had to live with the knowledge that someone knew about his newly developed habit. He hoped Adriel never, ever, ever brought it up, because he decided that the only way to deal with it was by pretending it. Never. Happened.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 9, 2023 3:03:29 GMT
After the Atlantis expedition, Adriel decided to stop in North Ireland to visit his grandparents before he headed back to the States. He apparated by their house, then walked up to the door and knocked. When they answered, they were surprised to see him but very glad, and Adriel gave both grandparents a hug before he was invited in. Once in, he pulled out a Navajo blanket his mother had woven to gift to them, then pulled out his own gift of a bear skin rug.
"Oh Adriel, the blanket is lovely, and I'm sure your grandfather will love the rug!" his grandmother said as he gave him another tight hug. "I insist you stay for a few days, or even a week at least! It's been a couple of years since I last saw you, so I am sure you have plenty of stories to tell your grandfather and I. Gramps has also been collecting Irish folklore for you, especially the ones about the fae that you like so much!"
And so Adriel found himself staying with his grandparents on a short vacation. He helped his grandfather work on his farm by washing the sheep for their last shearing of the year, then he did repairs on the fences, the barn, cleaned out the rain gutters on the roof of the house, and did several other chores that his aging grandparents had not been able to do to prepare for the winter yet. When he woke up on the fourth morning to go down and get the wood stove going for grams so she wouldn't have to when she got up, he found her already in the kitchen waiting for him with her wooden cooking spoon waving at him in warning.
"No chores today, Adriel! It sounds like you had a lot to do in Greece, even if you can't give me all the details, so today is a rest day for you! Go have fun exploring the countryside after breakfast, I will pack you a large lunch since a growing boy like you needs food."
Adriel laughed and gave her a kiss on the cheek, then he obediently sat down at the table and let her fuss over his hair before she went back to the stove to cook. Gramps came down a bit after dressed for the day but looking sleepy, and he gave a grunt of appreciation when Adriel set his morning tea in front of him before serving himself some tea. He told them stories about teaching Art how to ride horses in an empty field in Wales, and gramps mentioned he should have brought the young man over and he would have assisted in the lessons. Adriel shook his head and said that his employer was the most socially awkward person he had ever met that had not become a complete hermit, so bringing him over would probably have made him even clumsier or stubborn.
Then he mentioned he talked about the kelpie and asked if they knew if it was still in the loch.
"Hmm, haven't been there since the day you were almost eaten," gramps admitted. "It gave us such a scare since we had honestly thought it was safe."
Adriel perked up. "Huh, I think I'll go visit and see then," he all but chirped, feeling excited about maybe seeing it again. Wary, too, but mostly excited. "Maybe I can hunt a few rabbits and remove the liver to feed it."
"Oh, Adriel," Grams sighed in a self-suffering way. "Just don't get hurt. I know you are all grown up and have fought off worse, but a kelpie is no laughing manner!"
Adriel gave his grandmother an innocent wide-eyed look with an innocent smile. "I promise I don't have a golden bridle of any kind and will not try to ride it," he assured her. "I'm sure it is just lonely and wants a friend. Or some food. Food first, and maybe a friend later."
Grams buried her face in her hands with another sigh and Gramps laughed. "Still as much of a scamp as ever!" gramps declared. "Well go on, then, I'm sure you know what you are about. Just stop trying to give your poor grams a stroke!"
Adriel snorted with as he got up to give his grandmother a hug. "Don't worry, I won't do anything stupid," he reassured. "Just going to check to see if its still around."
She squeezed him back tightly and gave him a kiss on the cheek since she couldn't reach his forehead from where she was sitting. "Your lunch basket is by the front door," she said instead of continuing her fussing. "Gramps will come by later in the afternoon to make sure you haven't become a kelpie's lunch. Right, gramps?"
His grandfather chuckled. "Yes, yes, I'll check on your precious grandson," he agreed, amused by the whole thing. "Maybe it won't be about and I can use that as my fishing spot again. Would be nice to go out there once more."
Adriel's grandmother released him to huff at her husband. "Our precious grandson," she primly reminded him. "Make sure you eat before you go and see your kelpie, Adriel. And no marrying it!"
Adriel gave an innocent smile again as he backed towards the door, though he couldn't maintain it and it turned into a mischievous one instead. "I'm afraid I can't promise that I won't marry it if it's willing to go back with me to my tribe!" he said with a laugh, then turned to flee. "I'll be back later!"
Adriel was thinking about how happy he was to come and visit as he hunted for rabbits, squirrels, or even any wild birds in the woods he was warned away from as a kid. The red caps no longer bothered him after he reduced their population quite a bit in his teenage years, so he wasn't worried about danger. His grandparents were wonderful people, even if he felt awkward at first about visiting when his father had died. They continued to treat him as they had, trying to spoil him when he was around which he tried to counter by making sure he did what he could for them. They gave him a sense of security and playful freedom that not even his tribe could provide, though he tried not to indulge in it too often to better treasure the days when he would agree to have fun on a day like this.
They didn't understand his wild nature, not even as a boy, but rather than try to stifle it, they had always given him the freedom while setting clear limits and why they were there. There had never been a 'do as I say' mentality from them that he had gotten from most people that couldn't understand his need for freedom, nor was there ever any attempts to control him beyond safety reasons as a child. If they would allow it, he would have gladly brought more extravagant gifts for them, but the most they would accept were things he made himself or the occasional small jewelry or the like that he would buy from his or one of the other tribes.
They made him feel treasured the same way his mother did, and even his father was astounded by how fast he had bonded with them when he had not bonded well with anyone outside of his tribe until that point. His father had initially been a bit jealous when he realized how attached Adriel had gotten to his parents, but he had let that go after gramps had pulled him to the side for a little talk and just worked harder himself to try to work with Adriel rather than try to force a bond through a shared interest in creatures and runes. His father honestly wasn't sure how to act around a child, but once Adriel had gained a bit of maturity they were able to meet in the middle when he was around fifteen years old.
He was in a good mood by the time he took a lunch break, and he found a large roast beef sandwich had been packed for him with gram's homemade bread, a cold bottle of lemonade, a hot thermos of tea, and an apple. He pulled out the apple to munch on first while he hung the two rabbits and a goose fat from a good summer upside down in a tree to bleed them out, then he settled down to eat the rest. When his meal was done, he put the thermos to the side for later, shrunk the basket, and tucked it away into his pouch and cleaned the area up. Finally, he went to gut and clean his kills, and plucked the wild goose a bit to keep the larger feathers but buried the rabbit skin with the all the guts since he didn't have the time to properly cure them.
He untied his game from the trees, grabbed his hot thermos, checked the clearing one more time to make sure it looked just like how he had found it, then apparated to the loch he had visited as a kid.
It was just as beautiful as he remembered it, and just as empty of humans as well. The wild game had increased, so he guessed that it might be inaccessible to muggles as he walked around the area to try to recall where the table had been and where his father and grandfather had fished at, though he didn't need to recall where he had dove off from since that memory was crystal clear to him. Once he had finished scouting the area, he debated about putting his hair back into a braid just in case he decided to swim, but decided that going into the water even if the kelpie didn't appear was a very stupid decision since he couldn't know for sure if it just chose not to respond or if it really was not around.
Adriel hesitated when he turned to approach the rock he had dove off, though. He had felt anticipation all morning, but now he felt... nervous? Yes, he felt nervous. He wasn't sure why he felt nervous since he wasn't afraid, and was definitely not hoping to marry or date it or anything, but he guessed he didn't want his offerings to be rejected or for him to had done all that work this morning for nothing to happen. Well, if it chose to not eat his gifts, he could always take it back to his grandmother so she could make meat pies. He took a deep breath to steady his nerves, then calmly strolled over to the overhanging rock and crouched down at the overhanging ledge he had dove off of so long ago.
"Hello to the kelpie I tried to ride as a kid a few decades ago!" he cheerfully called out, and his voice echoed out across the water to startle some ducks into flight. "I brought you some rabbits and a large goose, gutted so there is no liver! Will you come up to accept them?" He grabbed one of the rabbits by the hind leg then held it out over the water. "I just want to talk, I promise I have no bridle of straw or gold or anything!"
He silently waited for several minutes, and though he felt like he was being watched somehow, nothing surfaced for the rabbit. The gaze didn't feel malevolent exactly, though if he had to describe it, he would say there was some dark humor in it like it was hoping he would enter. "If you don't want to approach but want the rabbit, you can splash a bit away from me and I'll toss the bunny out?" he offered.
He waited for another couple minutes, then there was a large splash more towards the center of the lake and he threw the rabbit to where the water had rippled out from. A childlike glee bubbled out from his chest and he couldn't help his laugh of delight, and he happily grabbed up another rabbit. "Please come up? I have absolutely adored you since I was a boy!" he all but begged with a smile. "My grandparents would not let me visit no matter how much I asked, but I was reminded about you a month back and decided to see if you were still around. You don't have to come, I'll toss out the rabbit if you splash again, but I would like to see you if you will allow."
There was no immediate response, not that Adriel had expected on. The earlier dark feeling he had felt had disappeared, though, so he hoped it had turned thoughtful. He continued to wait with the rabbit held out over the water for ten minutes, and was just about to give up since his arm was growing tired, but then he saw the water under the algae start to ripple with movement. He tensed for a moment when he saw the ripple slowly coming towards him, then relaxed since that would easily allow him to move if the kelpie tried to attack, and he waited with bated breath to see what it was going to do since he didn't feel bad intent.
A horse's head barely popped up above the surface in an almost crocodilian way, and the color was green with dark green patterns just as he remembered it as a boy. "Oooh, you're as beautiful as I remember," he all but cooed, careful about keeping the rabbit where it was though he wanted to lean forward. "I came to visit today because I was telling a friend that I had said I wanted to marry you when I was a kid. I had a crush on you for years!"
Water blew out from where the horse's nostrils were under the water as it snorted with laughter, then it proudly tossed its head up and snatched the rabbit, nearly taking Adriel's hand had his reflexes not been fast enough. Adriel laughed with more delight at its attempt to eat him. "Yes, I know you would have devoured me in a heartbeat," he agreed with amusement. "I am hoping we can be friends if I continue to bring you food, though. Are you still hungry?"
The kelpie gave him a skeptical look when he mentioned friendship, but its eyes brightened when he asked if it was still hungry. Adriel smiled in return and reached back for the goose without looking away - he had not lived to be over 30 by giving his back to people no matter how much he liked them - and he pulled the goose forward and left it at the edge with a wing handing down towards the water. "It's fat from all the wild berries," he said as he inched back a little just in case the kelpie took him up on his silent offer to come up on the rock. "I didn't pluck it much like I did the rabbits since I wasn't sure if you liked feathers or not, but it is properly gutted and bled with the larger feathers removed. I wasn't sure how much you ate, or I might have tried to hunt down a red cap or two for you. I decided to go with the amount a large carnivore might eat."
The horse eyed the goose for a moment before it sunk back down, and Adriel grew a little wary when the head disappeared under the ledge without the goose being taken. He paced his breathing to go completely silent as he listened for any sound, then he jumped back from the ledge a couple feet from his crouched position when a loud splash sounded out. Pale hands with sharp dark green nails grabbed the edge of the rock as he watched, and an androgynous being pulled its top half up over the ledge while the bottom half remained in the water. They both silently studied each other for a minute, and when Adriel relaxed his stance and went back to his casual crouching position, the kelpie focused back on the goose and started to deftly plush its feathers out.
The kelpie's hair was also green, but so dark that it could pass as black had it not been for the sunny day. Seaweed from the lake was tangled up in it, and it was halfway down the kelpie's back in wet tangles. Its eyes had also been green, but a brighter green, but otherwise it almost appeared human were it not for the claw-like nails. Still, he couldn't quite tell its gender and he tilted his head a little in curiosity as he wondered about it.
"My name is Adriel," he said with a close-mouthed smile once it finished plucking the goose. "What is yours?"
The kelpie had glanced up a little in surprise like it had forgotten he had been there when he started to talk again, but it just gave a sly smile rather than answer his question and pulled off one of the goose's wings. Adriel maintained eye contact as it jerked a wing off the bird and started to eat it, and he saw that even as a human shape it still had those sharp teeth he remembered. He smiled a bit more, still with a closed mouth, and he genuinely started to relax. The kelpie looked a little confused by his reaction, but it didn't stop its own study of him while it ate.
Adriel figured he was now entertainment during dinner, so he decided to entertain it while it ate. "Once upon a time, when the world was so new that there were no stars in the sky..."
He told it one of his favorite stories - the one of how Coyote made the Milkyway when he got tired of how long it was taking for the constellations to be made. He used his hands as well as his words, and when the Kelpie appeared interested, he hacked away off the rock to use his body and elemental magic to show how slow the Black God had been lighting the stars on fire (with little sparks with his gestures as he acted like he was reaching up as high as he could go) and how sneaky Coyote was before he stole the pouch and tossed it in the air (which included a light show at the end where multicolored lights stretched up to the sky almost like a rainbow to symbolize the Milkyway). Honestly, he had not had this much fun telling the tale for years since tribe children heard it from Singers that used the fires at night to create illusions and he couldn't use his magic like this around most regular people.
It took almost an hour to finish the story, and the kelpie's goose had long since been devoured. It grinned widely at him to show its appreciation and he smiled back. He started to creep forward a little so he could try to chat to it again, careful to show no signs of aggression in his body language, but they were suddenly interrupted by a loud crack that made him jump back and the kelpie leap back into the water.
Adriel looked around, then pouted when he saw it was his grandfather with a fishing pole, though he didn't notice Adriel's pout because he was staring in shock at the spot where the kelpie had been. "Gramps, you interrupted us!" he exclaimed as he jogged forward. "I was telling my kelpie stories after I fed it and hoped to get it to talk."
"It's still here?!" his grandfather exclaimed as he recovered from his shock. "And you fed it?! Adriel, that's dangerous!"
Adriel snorted with amusement and gave his grandfather a hug to calm him down. "Humans are more dangerous," he pointed out with dry humor. "I think I want to come by every afternoon to visit for the rest of my stay, though."
His grandfather looked at him like he was crazy. "What?! You're not serious about marrying it, are you?!" he cried out.
Adriel gave him an 'are you stupid?' look right back. "Of course not," he said with a sniff. "It is happy and needs a loch, it would not go to a dry climate to live with my tribe. You know that that or someone willing to constantly travel as a partner is the only way I might get married, and I doubt anyone out of tribe would be willing to only see me only a few months out of the year while staying with my tribe."
His grandfather sighed with both relief and exasperation. "Yes, I know, and you have also promised that any non-tribe children you might choose to have will be named with Pennington," his grandfather answered, falling back on old reassurances made even if he didn't quite get Adriel's different way of living and thinking. "Well, Chee or Pennington, you know your grandmother will be terrible upset if you don't bring them." He paused. "Even if it is half kelpie, probably."
Adriel stiffened up with a bright blush. "Grandfather, don't say that!" he hissed with embarrassment. "The kelpie is probably listening! And besides, I think it is taboo to mate with demons in the tribe, though I'm not sure since I never asked." He frowned in thought though he was still red. "And probably completely illegal in Britain."
His grandfather groaned and closed his eyes. "Adriel, I doubt anyone in the Wizengamot has even considered the possibility despite the tales, so it's probably not illegal," he sighed. "At the same time, it would be very cruel to have a child that could not fit in either world, right?"
He gave his grandfather a half-hearted glare. "I just want to be friends," he insisted. "I wasn't even thinking about kids! You brought it up! My father must have gotten the ability to embarrass me in front of friends from you!"
His grandfather started to laugh, and found he couldn't stop for several minutes since every time he looked at Adriel, Adriel's flush had him cracking up again. "Sorry, sorry," he laughed as he wiped the tears out of his eyes with a hand. "I'll leave you and your kelpie alone from now on, okay? Just friends, I understand. Lets go home, and don't tell your grandmother the kelpie is still here. Best she doesn't worry."
Adriel refused to look at his grandfather as he nodded an agreement. He had not been this embarrassed since a teenager, and he couldn't believe his grandfather had said all that where the kelpie could hear! He was about 95% sure that any kind of sex with a kelpie was taboo because of Anye stories, and even if he could, it would be very stupid to leave himself vulnerable to those teeth.
He decided retreat was the best option and decided to apparate to the barn... There were some chores he could do while he recovered from his mortification. It still wouldn't stop him from visiting the kelpie the next day, but he would bring it better kills while he apologized for his grandfather's words. Hopefully it still wanted to be friends, or would be willing to humor his attempts at making friends with it.
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