Work Text
Clive sank into his research in his old office, surrounded by piles of artifacts and tablets from the astral space. They’d excavated as much as they could before it became inaccessible for good. Stacks obscured his view of the door, but he sensed Neil’s aura before hearing the sound of the door opening.
A heavy sigh rankled his nerves.
“You don’t need to breathe anymore.” Clive jabbed his pen more forcefully into the thick parchment. “Stop it.”
“Clive,” a weary bitterness laced through his voice, “no one’s seen you come out of here in four days. Even bronze rankers need to rest.”
“Tell that to the Builder Cult.” His curt reply earned him another weary sigh.
“Have you at least eaten? Or had some spirit coins?”
Clive grunted in lieu of an answer. A beat later, a spirit coin was being pressed into his palm. He paused in his work, staring down at the bronze ranked coin with Jason’s face on it.
Another piece of him fractured. They each carried so many of these coins from Jason’s looting power. He couldn’t decide whether it would be worse to use them and never see it again when he ran out or using them just because it reminded him of the enigmatic man.
His fingers clenched around the coin before the portal for his storage opened and he tucked the coin inside. Ignoring Neil’s outraged groan behind him, he went back to work.
The heavy door swung a few minutes later with a resounding finality that mirrored the darkness brewing inside him.
——
Neil slowly lowered himself onto the bench seat at the foot of his in his childhood bed. He hadn’t been home in nearly a year, between staying in the cloud boat in Greenstone and then their time in the astral space. He took one deep breath and released it slowly. His nerves shook, resting his hands on his thighs kept the tremors at bay.
Jason had been gone for three weeks now. Three weeks of the team drifting apart like a broken raft on the Sky River. Their physical recovery came quickly over a few days, but their psychological healing was… not going well. He felt himself vacillating between shock and guilt on a daily basis. He squeezed his knees to ground himself.
While most of the team was stumbling into side quests, Clive had locked himself away in his old Magic Society office. The position had been vacant since their time on their long term mission. And just like in the astral space, Clive threw himself into studying with the fervor of a madman. He wasn’t eating or sleeping, snapping when anyone interrupted him.
Neil made stopping in to check on him part of his daily routine, but each day unsettled him more and more.
——
“Clive, this isn’t healthy.” Neil watched his teammate scribbling notes on a stack of parchment. He didn’t even know how Clive found anything in here anymore. He placed a hand on Clive’s shoulder, tugging gently. “You need to face this.”
“What is there to face?!” Clive spun around, his face contorted in rage. “Jason’s dead. There’s a cult destroying our world. This is the ONLY thing I
can
do!”
His chest heaved with air he didn’t need. Neil’s senses pinged off at the escalating nervous system shut down underway from repeated stress.
“Clive…” He spoke calmly, he understood, he really did. But it was his job to look after them and Belinda had called him over because of how bad it had gotten.
“I can’t stop!” A vein throbbed in the scholar’s temple as he spat out vehemently. “I can’t bring him back, but I can do this!”
Clive’s eyes widened as he heard his own words, a broken look of hopelessness took over his eyes before they welled up with tears.
“I can’t bring him back…” He whispered wobbly, “He’s not coming back.”
Instinctively, Neil closed the distance between them, wrapping his friend in a full bodied hug and squeezing. Clive’s body wracked with sobs as he finally let his emotions out.
“I know,” Neil whispered, guilt still a daily struggle as their healer. “I’m sorry.”
Clive hugged him back, tightening his fingers in Neil’s baggy fabric that Jason used to make fun of him for. Another pang sliced through him as he held onto Clive, as badly in need of the hug himself.
——
The days that followed were surreal. Drifting as they’d been, the pain of loss sharply digging into them, he found himself gravitating towards Clive every evening. He’d let him study in the mornings and afternoon while he made his rounds with the Church of Healing. Then, when the sun set, he’d pull Clive bodily away from his tasks.
Dragging him to a cushioned lounge, he’d tug Clive down to sit beside him, holding him close until the scholar collapsed onto him in a heap. Sometimes Clive would sleep. Other times, he’d clutch Neil while shaking in rage and sorrow.
“I’m sorry,” Clive whispered against his chest one night.
“What for?” Neil hoped Clive wasn’t going to send him away.
“You lost him too.” Clive whispered, while playing with his fraying garments. Neil’s heart seized up, his fingers dug into Clive’s back just a tad.
Hearing someone say it out loud, months after the fact, when the condolences had dried up and others had moved on… broke a damn he hadn’t been aware of shoring up. He sucked in a stuttered breath, tears welling up in his eyes as he blinked them back.
“That idiot,” his voice shook. Holding onto Clive, he let himself say what he’d been feeling, what he’d been thinking, “it was never going to end any other way, was it?”
Another deep breath with a barely repressed sob sent his tears spilling over. Clive pressed himself closer, wrapping his arms around his sturdy frame. So focused on helping others, he’d deluded himself into thinking he was dealing with it. But he hadn’t.
Every day he handed Clive a coin. And every day, he’d take a coin of his own.
He’d become accustomed to spirit coins during their extended stay in the astral space. Ordinarily, he’d have been excited to feast again after having nothing but the static charge of spirit coins for months. Instead, the idea of eating turned his stomach. Every item of food reminded him of Jason. The very idea of eating sickened him.
That night, they both fell asleep on the lounge, tucked together with dried tear tracks on their faces.
——
“Hey, come on,” Neil’s voice and gentle touch pulled him from the object he was examining. Truthfully, he was running out of artifacts to study. Soon, he’d have to move on. The break was a welcome one. Clive turned into the hug Neil offered, burying his nose into the elf’s neck.
His scent was like deep woods, earthy and grounding.
Hands ran up and down his back, along his spine, soothing his tense muscles. Slowly, he raised his arms to encircle Neil back, just holding onto the life raft Neil represented.
He nosed at Neil’s neck and shoulder juncture, concentrating on the texture of his skin, smooth, warm, soft. The elf’s hands paused, an almost imperceptible sharp breath followed.
Thinking he’d done something wrong, Clive drew back. Slowly shifting his gaze to Neil’s, afraid of what he’d see. His companion’s mouth was slightly ajar, his eyes wide and searching. Clive blinked owlishly, unsure if he’d created a blunder.
Gradually, Neil leaned in towards him.
Clive felt a magnetic pull towards the elf in kind. When Neil tilted his face, Clive instinctively mirrored his movements. His limbs tingled with what felt like static electricity. He breathed in the scent of spirit coins from Neil’s mouth as he drew near. With a gentle brush, their lips met in a tentative exploration.
Clive’s lashes fluttered, he glanced down at Neil’s eyes, before their lips met again. Neil’s lips lingered, each brush of their lips they pressed back more insistently. Neil’s hands slid into Clive’s hair, raising goosebumps along his skin.
A quiet gasp slipped through Clive’s lips before he plunged into the kiss. Latching onto Neil’s baggy clothes, he pulled the elf closer.
“Mmmpff.” He hummed into the kiss. Both of them clutched each other. Neil backed him up against his desk. Scrolls fluttered to the floor in disarray. The distraction was enough for Neil to draw back.
——
With Clive backed up against the desk, his body curved towards him, Neil took a moment to commit the sight to memory. His hair askew, lips and cheeks flushed.
His distant crush of Cassandra and recently discovered feelings about Jason floated through his mind. Both thoughts paled in comparison to the very real temptation of debauching the scholar in front of him right now.
Everyone dealt with grief in different ways, and admittedly, neither of them had been dealing with it very well—if at all. This felt like a turning point. Once again, Clive surprised him, grabbing his face and pulling him back in. Neil gripped the back of Clive’s clothes, pulling him tight against his own body.
Clive’s hand slid into his hair, sending cascading tingles down his spine. He leaned into the lean man, his tongue sliding alongside Clive’s. His grip settled on Clive’s lower back and used it for leverage to rock into the other’s body. The delicious sounds coming from Clive only spurred him on.
Neil lost track of time, lost in the sensations until his lips felt numb.
Gentle, lingering kisses kept him from drawing away. Resting his forehead on Clive’s, he anchored himself. All they’d done was make out, but this was the closest he’d ever felt to anyone. One more lingering kiss ended their evening after he made sure Clive ate a spirit coin.
——
The next day, Neil did something he’d never attempted before—he baked. Briefly, he’d considered cooking a full meal for Clive, but the recipe had some terms he honestly didn’t understand. It seemed more of an art form and less of a science.
If Jason had been here…
He cut the thought off. It was too late to learn how to cook from his departed teammate.
Ignoring the pang of those thoughts, he watched the timer.
The fluffy cake rose in the oven, filling the kitchen with the scent of warm chocolate. Using the safety mits was cumbersome, but he managed to get the hot pan out without having to heal himself. He didn’t bother with fancy frostings. After the confection was cooled, he placed it into a container to transport it, immediately heading to Clive’s study.
——
Curling his tongue around Clive’s he tasted the chocolate cake, rolling the flavor around his tongue while Clive squirmed beneath him. Neil still couldn't bring himself to eat anything other than spirit coins, but the taste combined with Clive’s mouth made the entire experience erotic in a way he’d never considered before.
He rolled his hips, brushing his pelvis into Clive’s. Nimble hands clutched onto his shoulders, bunching up the fabric. Teeth nipped at his lips the longer he teased Clive. He didn’t stop. Seeing, feeling, hearing the way the other man reacted was addictive. As good as the flavor on his tongue.
They ground their hips together while they made out until time lost meaning. Still, they didn’t take it any further, enjoying the journey, wherever that might lead.
——
Each day, he brought a new recipe he’d tried out. Each dessert tasted on Clive’s tongue. Even flavors he wasn’t a huge fan of tasted better when drunk from those addictive lips. His lips trailed down Clive’s neck, kissing, nipping, laving it with his tongue, all while rolling his hips in time with Clive’s motions.
By the third day, making out on the lounge, Clive wrapped his legs around Neil’s waist, driving him insane. Their kisses turned rougher, nails scratching through the fabric of their clothes, and nips turned into biting anywhere they could reach. But still, their clothes remained.
——
Day five marked a new shift when Clive shoved him down onto the lounge first and proceeded to climb on top of him as soon as he entered the study. He carefully set the dessert down on the floor beside them and then glowered down at Neil.
“Tell me if I should stop,” Clive warned. Neil’s eyebrows shot up. He nodded deliberately.
Sinking down to capture his lips. The first few soft caresses spiraled quickly. Each press of lips, reminded him of the night before. Clive’s tongue wrapped around his, a fist gently tugged at his hair. Breaking away, Clive lazily kissed and nipped down his neck, holding his head still by his hair. Neil groaned.
Kissing back up his neck, Clive detoured towards his ear. Teeth latched on, his tongue sporadically grazing his ear lobe. Clive closed his lips over those teeth and then hummed. Neil wriggled, unsure of his body’s response. His hips bucked up into Clive, his toes curled in his shoes.
Clive’s aura seeped out into the room laced with desire. Nipping kisses across his face brought Clive’s mouth back within range to retaliate. Neil kissed him hard, slipping his hands into Clive’s hair, holding him close as he writhed.
When Clive broke the kiss again, his hands gripped the collar of Neil’s shirt, yanking it out of the way. His teeth followed, latching onto Neil’s neck and upper shoulder. Soon, Neil found himself gasping and bucking up into Clive desperate for more.
Clive’s hands slipped under his shirt, ghosting up his abs, and Neil ground his hips against Clive, clutching his backside to get more friction. Hiking up his shirt, Clive drew back only to slink down and start kissing up his navel.
“Ggghhhh.” Sounds escaped his lips he’d never admit to as he lost control of his hips entirely. His head rolled against the cushion of the lounge, adding tingles of anticipation climbing up and down from his toes to his scalp.
Clive tugged his pants down, just far enough to tease him further.
The longer this lasted the more he wanted to shove his cock down Clive’s throat. Afraid he’d act on those thoughts, he grabbed the cushion beneath him, scratching his nails into the surface. The threads might have torn when Clive put his mouth on his pants right over his cock, hot breath heating him up inside and out.
Neil shouted, one step away from coming in his pants. The sheer build up of anticipation for days now, combined with Clive’s hands and mouth all over him was driving him towards the precipice. “Oh fuck—Clive.”
The other man blinked up at him owlishly. “Yes?”
He’s going to make me say it,
he thought deliriously as he squirmed, breathing heavily despite not needing to. He uttered a single word without really knowing what it was he was asking for,
“Please.”
——
The trust radiating off of Neil was heady as Clive dragged the other man’s pants down below his member. Scenting him caused Neil to drop his head back onto the lounge. The lewd sounds escaping his companion were extremely enticing. He wanted more of them.
Nosing at the soft foreskin, he trailed his tongue up the shaft and made eye contact before swallowing Neil down.
——
Heat engulfed him and Neil tore a chunk out of the fabric of the lounge. His shouts would have been embarrassing if Clive didn’t look so pleased with himself. He had to fight with himself not to shove his cock all the way down Clive’s throat or cum immediately. He clenched his teeth and curled his toes in an effort to contain the intensity.
Clive bobbed his head up and down. He lost the battle on his hips. His pelvis shifted in tiny thrusts as he flexed his arse. Shortly after, his hands ended up in Clive’s hair, cupping the back of his head, gently trying not to drive in too far. Then Clive sank all the way down.
Neil felt his cock pop into the back of Clive’s throat—and he lost it. Gripping tightly onto that heat, he spilled down Clive’s throat while he held him in place. Hips flexing up and down as the tight channel milked him, the mere sight dragging out his orgasm as Clive’s throat squeezed the head of his cock.
When he finally pulled his cock back, it was softening and his hands were trembling. He collapsed onto the lounge.
Clive climbed up onto his half nude thighs. Pressing a hand against his own cock through his robes, he squeezed himself through the fabric.
With half-lidded eyes, Neil riffled through Clive’s clothing till he could reach his companion’s dick. Gently, he wrapped his palm around it. With the scholar seated on his thighs just below his flaccid cock, Neil pumped Clive’s member, brushing his thumb up and over the head.
Clive’s mouth fell open, a silent plea radiating through his aura and across his face.
His lithe hips bucked up into Neil’s hand. Clive’s thighs joined in as he tried to fuck himself above Neil.
Fuck.
His cock twitched at the thought of fucking Clive this way. His hand movements sped up, tightening his grip, twisting over the head repeatedly, forming a tight hole for Clive to fuck himself on.
Clive’s hands fell to Neil’s shoulders as he fought for stability. His eyes unfocused. Head nodding has his hips worked against Neil’s hands, until he froze, body seizing up. His face contorted in ecstasy and he spilt over Neil’s fingers.
He stroked him through it until a gutted sound was wrenched from him and he toppled down onto Neil in a spent heap.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
The recording finished. There was a moment of silence only the cheeky bastard could create by dropping his not so untimely demise into the astral.
“Of course!” Clive was the first to recover. “The world phoenix token.”
While Clive chided himself, the rest of the group sat reeling at the realization that the companion they’d mourned for the past two years was alive and—relatively—well.
“That son of a bitch.” Absolutely disgusted with himself, Neil got up and headed in the direction of the inn’s bar to buy himself a sandwich.
I can’t believe I ate spirit coins for two years while he was living it up in another universe,
he berated himself as he stormed off.
——
Later that night, he dragged Clive into the room he booked for the evening. He crowded Clive against the door as soon as it was shut. Locking his lips onto the taller man, he poured his frustration into the kiss.
It had been more than a year since he’d seen Clive. They’d each gone their own ways once they both felt stable enough to pursue their own goals. It hadn’t taken long.
“I’m sorry,” Neil eased back. “I should have asked.”
Clive, being who he was, ignored his apology as if he hadn’t spoken and didn’t need to at all.
“You’re angry,” Clive surmised.
“Aren’t you?” Neil was barely holding back a wave of rage, along with a lot of other emotions he didn’t even know lurked beneath years of apparent repression.
“Only with myself for not figuring it out.” He tilted his head. “I’m relieved he’s alive. And even more shocked to find out Farrah’s alive too.”
“I never knew her.” Clive nodded, he opened his mouth like he was about to use a whole lot of words. Neil gave him a pleading look, which put a stopper in it more effectively than he expected.
After a quiet moment of contemplation, Clive asked, “What do you need?”
He’d never had to say any of this out loud before. They’d always just fallen into it back in Greenstone. Finding a tactful way to say it was challenging, “Can I have you tonight?”
Clive’s face flushed, his eyes widened. He was asking for more than they’d ever attempted before. Neil could tell by aura that they weren’t the same people they were two years ago. A little dazed, Clive nodded.
Neil leaned in, pausing just before those lips, “Tell me, if I should stop.”
Clive nodded again, “Alright.”
Neil’s lips caressed Clive’s, gently—what he should have been doing from the start. It felt different than those nights years ago. They’d both gained more muscle, their bodies more filled out. Both had crossed into silver rank and Clive was even more alluring.
Neil swept his hand into Clive’s thick wavy hair, tugging him closer as he deepened the kiss.
——
Clive’s mind raced with the realization that Jason was alive, possibilities clamored for his attention. Neil’s hand in his hair, as he was pressed up against the door, helped quiet his mind. Encompassed by someone he trusted felt like a relief after a year of fighting for every scrap of freedom he had.
A hand swept across his abdomen drawing his thoughts back into the present moment. Untucking the bunched up fabric at his waist, Neil’s hands worked open his shirt, while he observed the changes in Neil since he’d last seen him.
The handsome elve’s jaw was a little more squared, his shoulders broader, and his chest rippled with muscle under his close-fitted shirt, in stark contrast to the ill-fitting tunics he used to wear. It was very appealing.
Neil’s warm fingers ghosted across his abs. Clive gasped at the sensation. Sinking down at Clive’s feet, Neil’s lips trailing down his naval. Strong fingers trailed along the edge of his adventuring pants, unfastening his belt. His pants dropped to the floor with a jingle of his belt buckle along with his undergarments.
Clive watched as Neil took him into his mouth, eyes locked through his lashes. Clive’s head hit the door behind him as he groaned. Neil’s tongue danced along the underside of his cock. His hips undulated back and forth, his cock swelling to fill Neil’s mouth. He buried his hands in the soft head of hair.
Pressing his tongue to the underside of his head, Neil increased his suction, pulling harder before sliding back down his shaft with just as much suction. Clive squeezed his eyes shut. Again and again, that hot mouth consumed him. Scratching Neil’s scalp, he scrambled to grip his hair, tugging Neil away before he came down the elf’s throat.
“I want this to last longer,” he explained. Neil’s aura flared with a spike of lust, quickly tamped back down. Neil stood up in one fluid motion as Clive sagged against the door. Toeing off his shoes, his pants pooled at his feet, before he stepped out of them. With fists full of Clive’s shirt, Neil tugged him toward the freshly made bed.
When they reached it, Neil’s hands slid back into his hair, pulling him into another passionate kiss. Clive opened his mouth, tilting his head, and let the tide of Neil’s emotions take him out to sea. Caged up emotions leaked out of Neil’s aura control, the miasma was more than he could parse out.
But all of it was washed away as the need to touch rose above the rest. Neil’s hands groped down his backside, dragging him closer. “Mmmmm.”
Nipping kisses and grazes of teeth trailed down his neck. Undoing Neil’s shirt in a tangle of limbs, he barely got the shirt undone before Neil was tipping him over onto the bed. Neil shrugged off the shirt as he knelt down on the bed, one knee between Clive’s, pulling a small jar from his pocket.
The elf was startlingly beautiful. His dick twitched, and Neil’s gaze dipped down at the movement. Clive had never read an erotic romance novel, but he imagined this is what someone would picture in them.
Neil bent down, smoothly leaning in to capture his mouth. Clive’s hands found their way into Neil’s hair and up his toned abs and pecs. Neil’s hand caressed up his chest, stopping to thumb at a nipple.
Groaning into the touch, Clive clutched the back of Neil’s head, kissing him harder. Their tongues foretold possibilities he very much wanted to explore. Fumbling at Neil’s pants, Clive worked to get the barrier out of the way without breaking their kiss, to minimal effect. When he finally had the pants halfway down Neil’s thighs, the elf drew back to shuck them off the rest of the way.
——
“Turn over,” Neil’s voice sounded foreign to his ears, deep and breathy. As Clive complied, Neil peeled him out of the rest of his shirt still dangling off his shoulders and tucked a pillow under Clive’s pelvis.
Kissing his way down his spine, he traced surprisingly strong muscles down either side of Clive’s back. He grazed his teeth over random spots, reveling in the gasps and writhing it elicited. When he reached Clive’s arse, he continued kissing and nipping his way down. Taking both cheeks in his hands, he pried them apart, gliding his tongue down Clive’s crack.
“Ahhhh,” Clive’s voice shook as he took more air in without realizing it. Neil pressed his tongue flat and firmly, laving up and down over his hole. Clive’s thighs tightened and released over and over, tiny twitches rippled throughout his body, until his hole was fluttering in response.
Still, Clive didn’t rush him, not even when he crossed into whimpering. Neil’s dick twitched at the thought of keeping him like this even longer before the idea of sinking into him spurred him onward.
Finally, he traced the tip of his tongue around Clive’s hole. A stuttered sound escaped the scholar, lying prostrate on the bed.
Slowly, savoring the moment, Neil speared him with his tongue, deeper with each thrust until Clive was moaning beneath him.
——
Clive’s blissed out mind drifted with the soft tongue driving him to madness. And then a slippery finger slid into him. He gasped, the back of his thighs tingled and his sphincter spasmed in surprise. His body teetered back on the digit, then twitched forward, while Neil held his finger still. He gripped the quilt under his hands in an effort to ground himself.
“Is this alright?” Neil asked as he rotated his finger, sliding it in and back out. A hot and cold feeling rushed up and down his limbs with the sensation. Clive nodded as he breathed. The finger pushed in deeper and his sphincter fluttered again as the finger reached its full depth. A gutted sound escaped his lips as he tried to thrust back onto it deeper.
“Neil…” He thrusted back onto it again, lifting himself up and then back down again. The elf groaned behind him as he worked Clive open. Another finger circled his hole before plunging in beside it. The stretch burned at first, taking the pleasure back a notch. He focused on relaxing his body as Neil waited patiently once again.
This process continued until Neil had three full fingers rotating without resistance and he was back to a mess of desire. Neil’s fingers pumped in fast thrusts before stopping entirely as Clive thrust back chasing them. By the third time, Clive was ready to break from the teasing.
“I swear if you don’t fuck me right now,” he gasped, “I will find a ritual to finish the job.”
The brief moment of emptiness was nearly his undoing, but the thick press of heat as Neil filled him up with his cock made it worth the transition. He groaned into the mattress, pressing back onto the thick member.
“Oh gods,” chills ran up and down his spine as he gasped, “that’s so good.”
“Gods, Clive,” Neil’s hands squeezed his hips, holding him still. Grinding up against Neil’s hips, he drew the first devastated sound from his partner. A deep groan rumbled from Neil’s chest.
“Mmmm,” Clive moaned. When grinding wasn’t enough anymore, he resorted to begging, “Please, Neil.”
A gutted sound wrenched from the elf, followed by blessed movement. He started with long drawn out strokes, so very good, but also maddening. Never quite taking him to the same heights, but feeling so much fuller, it made him dizzy with want. He hadn’t realized he’d started whispering under his breath, “please.”
Building up in a crescendo of thrusts, Neil’s long thrusts grew shorter and faster. The pinnacle of his rhythm was close to what he’d been doing with his fingers and he took a short pause just the same.
After a breath to stabilize, Neil resumed his fast pace. The pressure ramped up. Clive tightened his grip on the comforter as he moaned out his pleasure, only to have it cut short again.
The low growl that surfaced from Clive surprised himself. This time when Neil started up again, the desire climbed even higher even faster. He found himself barely in control of his vocal chords as his pitch rose with the pounding into his body.
“Oh fuck, Clive.” This time he didn’t let up. He continued thrusting into Clive with short rapid bursts. Clive turned his face into the mattress and held on. “Touch yourself. Cum for me.”
The mere request sent his scalp tingling. He reached underneath himself, cramming his hand between his member and the pillow. He wrapped his fingers around his cock and stroked it as fast as he could get to Neil’s thrusts.
“Guuhhhhh!” His eyes shut tight. He spilled over his hand as he shouted in his climax.
——
Clive splayed below him, face pressed into the mattress as his arse tightened around Neil’s cock. This was his breaking point. He pounded into Clive a few more times as he came, nearly whiting out from how good it felt. Every muscle in his body tensed before the most exquisite full body release he’d had in years as he came into Clive’s tight channel.
Knowing there wouldn’t be any clean up as Clive’s body absorbed his seed made it even kinkier; his cock spasmed with another spurt. Slumping down onto Clive’s back, he groaned as those thoughts circled his mind.
Gods, I am a kinky bastard.
Clive’s groan filled the room before he spoke. “Oh, we are definitely doing that again.”
——
Months later…
“Humphrey, are you in love with Jason?” Belinda asked on the commandeered airship. The mere suggestion rankled Clive’s nerves, but why?
Why do I care?
The question ran circles in his mind, despite how often he pushed it back. Was Humphrey not allowed to like Jason when he obviously had feelings for Sophie? What does that even matter?
He tried telling himself it was because he cared about his friends and their feelings were all important. A feeling in his gut told him this wasn’t the full extent of that emotion, but he pushed it aside again.
As the days drew closer to Jason’s return, these thoughts kept surfacing. During a rare evening alone with Neil, his mind cruelly overlaid Jason in his place, almost shocking him out of the moment.
He tried his best to ignore it. A thread of guilt wove its way through him as the realization sank in. He didn’t want to give up Neil, but he would be happy if he was in this situation with Jason too. These thoughts plagued him as Neil kissed his way down his throat.
——
Rimaros Reunion.
Neil stood, watching Jason greeting the team. Seeing him so full of life after years of grief hit him hard. Watching him hug each member of their team, reunited at last, made him want to break down in tears or punch Jason in the face. Maybe both.
When he wandered down the gangplank, he found himself falling into old patterns as Jason sassed his clothing choices. Neil was grateful when Jason made the decision for a warm handshake.
Repressing his desire for the madman had been perilous lately, riddling him with guilt in his moments with Clive. But he already knew there was nothing to be done for it. Jason had always referenced women when it came to dating. Getting back into the swing of trading barbs helped calm those festering emotions down to a low simmer.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Neil watched as Clive used his mana drain spell over and over again to detrimental effects to himself. Whatever unrefined mana Jason had juiced himself up with was deteriorating Clive’s magical matrix as he syphoned it off. He threw healing bolts at Clive for hours and then all throughout the night, as Gordon’s absurd aura projection ritual burned till dawn. All the while, he felt nearly useless.
When Jason was finally out of death’s clutches, Neil sagged with relief, cracking jokes about sandwiches.
Clive’s glossy black hair looked startlingly similar to Jason’s. It shook him on a level he wasn’t prepared to deal with at the moment. Stash stood over their unconscious team member wearing Jason’s visage, which only twisted his emotions around even more as he stared down at Asano’s emaciated form.
He was going to need the best damn sandwich he could make after this.
——
Months Later…
“Do you love him?” Neil’s voice carried quietly across the room to Clive. He’d spent Jason’s convalescing time dissecting his own emotions and about how Clive might feel about Jason—the hair was killing him. He really needed to know if it was just a random byproduct or if it meant something to Clive.
Because he was struggling with the resemblance. Every time he looked at Clive, he was reminded of Jason, of nearly losing him again, and every inadequacy he harbored about himself.
“I just need to know,” he continued. “It’s ok if you do, I just…”
Words failed him as his gaze skittered away from Clive’s gobsmacked expression.
“Of course, I love him.” Clive looked at him in confusion. Neil sighed.
“I mean like… in love with him.” Neil waited awkwardly, watching Clive warily from the corner of his eye. “I’ve seen the way you watch him.”
“How is the way I watch him any different from the way
you
watch him?” Clive asked the question, catching him wide eyed. A chagrined look crawled across his face. The gears in Clive’s mind clicked into place before his eyes. “Oh.”
“I… I’m not saying, I don’t want you,” Neil continued despite the crestfallen shift from Clive, determined to talk through this like Arabelle had suggested—although he hadn’t revealed the specific subject matter. “I very much do. And I don’t know if it even really matters since Jason might not be interested anyway…”
Neil took a deep, centering breath. “I want to know if you have feelings for him, romantic or… the sexy kind.” Glancing at the ceiling for guidance and courage. “I do.”
Clive stared at him, his face and aura both unreadable. His eyes dropped to the ground as he spoke subdued.
“We almost lost him again…” His voice trailed off with the heaviness of his words, his aura following. Neil moved forward, closing the gap between them and wrapped his arms around Clive. “We’ve barely had him back and it’s already clear he’s facing forces so much more powerful than we should be encountering. I’m terrified we’ll lose him for good.”
His arms tightened around Clive. “So am I.”
Clive drew back, looking him in the eye. “I don’t want to waste the time we have with him no matter how long or short.” He keenly searched Neil’s eyes. “What did you have in mind?”
“Nothing yet.” He sighed. “I’m serious that I want to be with you. If we decide to do something about our feelings for him, then I want to do it together.”
Clive cracked a smile for the first time since Neil hit him with the heavy subject. Leaning in, he captured Neil’s lips in a playful, loving kiss. It reminded Neil of the depths of care they both had for each other.
——
Weeks later…
The chocolatey smell of fluffy muffins wafted into the kitchen in the cloud house. This particular batch had some new ingredients he was testing out. After resting the confections on the cooling rack, Neil turned to clean up the rest of the bowls and utensils before storing them.
“What’re ya makin’?” Jason appeared out of nowhere, startling a pan out of the elve’s hands.
“Jason, why do you have to be such a creeper?” It still disturbed him that someone could get the drop on his silver rank senses in here, but Jason’s aura suffused the entire cloud house. It was impossible to sense him coming unless he wanted you to notice him.
——
Jason snagged a cupcake off the drying rack. It was so much fun watching Neil react every time he snuck up on him.
“I didn’t know you baked.” Chuckling to himself, he took a bite of the confection.
“That’s not meant for you!” Neil shouted, but it was too late. The notification was immediate.
You have been inflicted with Potent Aphrodisiac.
You have resisted Potent Aphrodisiac.
Potent Aphrodisiac does not take effect.
He stared at the screen in front of him, horror stricken. “Who was that meant for, Neil?”
“That’s none of your business.” Despite his silver rank, Neil’s face flushed.
“It is if you’re going around drugging people to pick up dates!” A betrayal of who he thought Neil was and what he knew about him slowly crept through him. “I thought you were better than this. I thought I
knew
you better than this.”
“You don’t have to worry about it, alright.” Neil stacked the cupcakes onto a plate with shaking hands.
“Neil,” He closed the gap between them. “I’m not letting you walk away with those.”
“Gods, Jason, it’s for my boyfriend.” The elf gave him a flat look, clearly annoyed for being called out.
“That doesn’t make it any better!” The back of his mind was tripping over the
boyfriend
intel. He’d been doing his best not to spy on his teammates despite the fact that he had access to way too much information about them.
“I don’t have to defend myself to you.” Jason blinked at Neil dumbfounded, feeling wildly out of depth like he’d never truly known the elf. Neil scooped up the plate and whisked them away. “Keep your thieving hands to yourself.”
Jason stood in the kitchen staring at the empty space left behind. A drop of water hit the pans Neil left behind. He honestly didn’t know how to react to any of what he’d just learned.
See, this is why I don’t spy on them!
He fumed as he stomped out of the kitchen.
After a long internal debate he decided, “Shade, I wanna know the minute someone eats one of those.”
——
Neil shut the door behind him clutching the plate of unfrosted chocolate cupcakes. When Clive found him staring a hole into the floor several minutes later, he pried the plate out of his hands and quietly tucked them into his storage space.
“What happened?” Patiently, the scholar wrapped his hands around Neil’s and waited.
“Jason ate one,” he replied subdued. Clive nodded.
“That’s not what you’re upset about though.” Neil shut his eyes. “Have you changed your mind?”
Neil opened his eyes as they cleared with determination. “No.”
Capturing Clive’s mouth, he walked Clive backwards till his legs hit the bed across the room. Clive fell onto the sunset colored covers.
That night, as they slept curled up together, Neil let his mind drift to the wounded expression on Jason’s face.
I seriously hope I’m not fucking this up.
——
A few days later…
Clive sliced a plain cupcake into four equal portions and placed the plate beside the bed. Stripping Neil through the waves of anxious energy pouring off the man had him questioning the elf again. “You’re sure you want to do this?”
Gently cupping his hands for a moment before Neil nodded, allowing him to continue undressing him. “Yes. I’m sure.”
After Neil, Clive stripped his own clothes off, tossing them on the floor in a haphazard heap. The elf laid himself out on the bed with his head at the foot. He shimmied up until his neck rested at the edge of the bed, his hair cascading down the foot of the bed. Clive took a moment to appreciate the elf’s form before scooping up the plate and climbing onto the bed.
Setting the plate on the comforter, Clive slid his legs over Neil’s. His smooth skin as tempting as always. He bent down and kissed his way up Neil’s chest. Up his neck, he licked and scraped his teeth, feeling the low level arousal sneaking into Neil’s aura. A kiss to the corner of Neil’s mouth enticed him into an open mouthed kiss.
When he sensed Neil relaxing into the bed, he leaned back, reaching for the cupcake. He pinched a quarter of it between his index finger and thumb, slowly bringing it to Neil’s lips. Without a word, Neil opened his mouth, his tongue curling around the confection and pulling Clive’s fingers into his mouth with it.
Arousal stirred in Clive as he drew his fingers out through those soft lips. He watched as Neil’s pupils dilated slightly. The temptation to taste it on his lips was great, but he wasn’t sure if it would transfer the properties as well. Instead, he held another piece to Neil’s lips as he felt Neil’s cock twitch between them.
All four pieces were gone and Clive was seated on Neil’s cock, fucking himself on his shaft when Jason burst through the bedroom door. Clive’s cock twitched as Jason’s eyes roved over his body, threatening to throw him over the edge.
——
Jason stood, transfixed just inside the bedroom, the door clicking shut behind him. Clive’s flushed skin glistened as he rode Neil’s thick cock. Hot and cold ran through Jason’s body, nausea fighting with arousal. He held out his hand and chanted. “Feed me your sins.”
To his surprise, nothing but pure Lifeforce rose up out of Clive before sinking back down. The bloke didn’t even pause, holding eye contact with him while a moan escaped his lips. A flush broke out on his own skin. Jason looked down at Neil’s face hanging off the edge of the bed, watching him.
The elf’s face was flushed, his mouth open, eyes locked on Jason as small puffs of air escaped his lips. His hands clutched at the sheets as Clive rode his cock. The arousal coming from his aura was just as strong as Clive’s, but his pupils were wider than they should have been.
Jason felt glued to the spot, held in place by the two pairs of eyes on him. Clive wrapped a hand around his bouncing cock, moaning quietly at the back of his throat. Within seconds he was coating his fingers and Neil’s chest with thick ropes of white.
A wave of pleasure rippled across the room and Neil followed after, eyes still locked on Jason’s.
As the shock of what just transpired sunk in, Jason stepped backwards into his shadow and fled to his own room, mind racing.
——
The weeks that followed were pure denial for Jason until he ran into Neil frosting cupcakes in the kitchen. He stared down at the familiar confection. The room didn’t smell like baking. All he could think about was the sexiest scene he’d ever witnessed. Neil swirled the frosting up into a peak and then turned to face him.
Sticking his thumb into his mouth, he sucked the white frosting off. Jason felt his cock twitch in his pants.
That’s not fair,
he thought as he registered an uptick in arousal coming from the elf. Jason squinted at the frosting.
He wouldn’t… would he?
His curiosity got the best of him. He sauntered to the counter. Neil’s gaze followed him with increasing levels of heat as the elf stuck another finger into his mouth. Jason swiped his finger through one of the frosted cupcakes. Slowly, he licked his frosted fingertip before sucking on the tip of his finger, staring Neil in the eyes as the pop up emerged.
You have been inflicted with Potent Aphrodisiac.
You have resisted Potent Aphrodisiac.
Potent Aphrodisiac does not take effect.
“Bloody hell, Neil,” he murmured as the elf shuffled forward. The look on his face was pure trouble. Neil crowded into his space, dropping a hand on the counter on either side of Jason. “Look, I’m not gonna judge you on being into that, but you’ve got a boyfriend to… play with.”
Neil’s eyes bore into him before glancing down at his mouth. He could feel his pants constricting him as Neil’s aura infused his own with arousal along with his proximity.
Fuck,
he chiding himself for letting Neil get this close. Neil leaned down, lips brushing his ear. “What if we want you to join us?”
A heady dizziness rolled over him as his arousal shot up. Jason clutched the counter behind him, desperately trying not to lean into the elf. Neil’s lips ghosted over the edge of his ear, all the way up and over it. Jason caught himself sucking in a breath.
“Come find us,” Neil whispered before withdrawing with a plateful of those wretched cupcakes.
Once he was alone in the kitchen, a whimper slipped from his lips.
——
Neil briskly entered their shared room, handing the plate off to Clive the moment he entered. Without preamble, he stripped his shirt off, tossing it across the room.
“Do you have any idea how hard it was to not make out with him?” Neil huffed as he stripped out of his pants. The corner of Clive’s mouth quirked up, clearly amused. Clive plucked a single cupcake from the plate before tucking the rest into his storage. This was the longest their baked goods had ever lasted between them.
Pushing Neil down onto the bed, Clive pressed Neil’s thighs open. Looking up, he dropped his mouth open as Clive brought the cupcake to Neil’s lips.
Clive had insisted that one of them needed to be sober for this to work with lasting results. If they hadn’t needed the intrigue to convince Jason to invade their personal space, then they wouldn't have been needed at all. Although, Neil was beginning to enjoy the teasing nature of being aroused and being made to wait for any kind of immediate gratification.
Thoughts of being bound while Clive fed him more, making him wait, drifted through his mind. For the moment, he gripped his knees in a facsimile to the thought as Clive fed him one bite at a time. His cock was leaking precum, thick and twitching when Jason finally walked through the door.
Clive turned, his finger still in Neil’s mouth, to greet him. “There you are.”
——
“I didn’t want to start without you.” Clive dragged his finger out of Neil’s mouth and down his chin before standing up to his full height. Jason’s gazed pinballed between Clive’s fingers, Neil’s weeping cock, and his swollen lips. He thought he was aroused in the kitchen.
A wave of fuzzy tingles swept up his thighs and lower back at the sight. He couldn’t take his eyes off of them.
Do they really want me here?
His mind struggled to comprehend it even as his body raced to catch up to the pair’s growing arousal. Several pithy remarks formed and died on his tongue as Clive motioned him forward.
His feet moved of their own accord, drifting closer. Clive pulled him in, gently tugging him forward by the elbow. Trailing his hand up Jason’s bicep, then his neck. Jason paused, frozen in anticipation. Leaning forward, the lean wizard bent down in a light press of his lips to Jason’s.
As Clive’s thumb climbed higher, his scalp tingled. His lips melted against Clive’s as his body relaxed. Clive’s other arm snaked around his waist, drawing him closer. Humming into the kiss, he gripped Clive’s biceps, unconsciously testing the changes in his muscle mass since bronze rank.
The memory of how handsome Clive became at the rank up in the astral space briefly flashed through his mind. Clive had only gotten more beautiful as time went on. If it weren’t for Neil, Jason would have assumed Clive never thought about sex at all. His mind had always been the most attractive quality that drew him to the wizard.
Clive’s hand groped his arse the same moment his tongue dove into his mouth. Jason’s hips canted forward, heat rising at the unexpected multitasking. Beside them, he heard Neil slide to his knees and then a shuffling sound followed. Neil’s hands on his hips, prying his shorts down over his arse had him moaning into Clive’s mouth.
Neil’s smooth hands caressed his arse before splaying his cheeks apart. Jason’s eyes shot open as the wet tongue glided over his arsehole. He broke the kiss as he processed the sensation. Staring at Clive, his mouth hung open, wavering, as Neil’s flattened tongue pressed up against his hole and lathed up and down, unhurried.
“Huhn,” he let out a garbled sound as he rose onto his toes with Neil’s tongue chasing behind him. Jason’s eyes rolled back up towards the ceiling as a cascade of desire washed over him. He gripped Clive’s sleeves at the shoulders, holding on, steadying himself as he teetered on his toes. Falling into Clive’s embrace, who’s hands slid down to hold his arse cheeks apart, Jason clutched at him. “Ghuhn.”
“If there’s anything you don’t like, tell us.” Clive’s soft voice coaxed his eyes open. For someone who was gripping his arse, he had an outrageously sober facial expression. Jason nodded and then gasped as Neil’s tongue pressed harder. He ground back minutely,
fuck.
That must have been what Neil was waiting for, because the next press of his tongue slipped into his hole. Jason’s hips twitched, stuttering away, and Clive’s hands clamped down on his arse, holding him still. The next soft spear into him left him only able to twitch his cock in response, which brushed along Clive’s pants. The low groan from Jason’s lips was accompanied by a dark look up at the scholar.
If it wasn’t for the fact that he was enjoying himself immensely, he would have retaliated. Even as Neil’s tongue sank deeper with each thrust, and he let Clive support his weight, he contemplated it.
——
When Jason finally allowed them to perceive his aura, Clive knew they could move on. Neil was at the point of moaning into Jason’s backside, his aura control shredded by the aphrodisiac and the necessity of waiting. His desire had been on clear display since Jason walked in the room.
“Neil,” Clive lowered Jason onto his feet as he addressed the elf. “Lay down on the bed.”
Another zing of arousal zipped through Jason’s aura and Clive briefly wondered if it was the idea of Neil on the bed or Neil taking orders from Clive that he found enticing. Or perhaps both. Neil complied immediately, scrambling up the comforter, turning to them as he lay back with his knees at the end of the bed, feet dangling off.
The sight told Clive exactly what he wanted to do. Withdrawing a tube of lube from his pocket, Clive flipped open the cap. Jason was staring at the elf’s bronze form splayed out for them.
“Lift your legs up.” His request was met with enthusiasm and another shot of desire coursing through Jason’s aura as Neil folded his knees and tucked his hands under his thighs to hold them up. Clive coated his fingers with the lube. Jason’s eyes darted to his fingers, lingering.
Slowly, Clive trailed his index and middle finger up Neil’s crack, over his hole and back down again, teasing him. The elf quivered underneath his gentle touch. Glancing up, Jason’s features appeared filled with want, but for which?
“Do you want my fingers?” Clive asked, trailing his fingers down again, while watching Jason’s face. Neil moaned his reply and Jason’s eyes finally snapped to Clive’s. Clive lifted his two fingers, holding them up with raised eyebrows.
He stepped forward, clearly unsure. With a gentle caress, Clive trailed his lubed fingers up Jason’s inner thigh and then ran them over his loosened hole, twirling them around it without going in. Jason’s eyes rolled up into his head as he swayed.
“Lay down,” Clive suggested softly, reaching for more lube. The cloud bed sank with Jason’s weight as he laid down beside Neil.
——
Jason’s gaze lingering on his cock, trailing up his abs and chest felt like a physical touch. Neil didn’t mean to be breathing, but he couldn’t seem to help it. He breathed through the arousal to keep himself grounded. As Clive lubed up both his hands, Jason turned on his side to lean over him.
Lithe fingers trailed up his abs, up his pecs, swirling around his areola. His cock throbbed painfully at Jason’s touch, ripping a moan from his throat. Jason’s eyes flickered up to look him in the eye before he leaned down, capturing Neil’s lips in a bruising kiss that added more fuel to the fire.
Neil’s abs were clenching and unclenching with restrained desire when Clive’s fingers slid smoothly into his arse. Moaning into the kiss, he writhed on those elegant fingers. Jason whimpered briefly into his mouth and he knew Clive was using both hands to full effect. Groaning, he fought the urge to drop his legs and roll over onto Jason.
Reminding himself, this wasn’t the time to take what he wanted. It was the time to let Jason in and see at what capacity they could work together. The ease so far was driving him mad, nearly causing him to forget it was their first time doing any of this together. He wanted so
badly.
——
Clive’s fingers drove his desire to cum just as much as watching Neil writhe on the bed. But it was when Clive rotated his hand and crooked his fingers, repeatedly thrusting into both of them that he lost his resolve. Not only was he nearing the edge, he watched Neil tip right over it, spilling his seed and shouting his ecstasy with his head thrown back on the bedsheets.
Fuck,
that was the last he could take. Jason wrenched himself up and off of Clive’s hand, throwing his leg over Neil’s torso. He ran his hand through Neil’s cum and coated the elf’s cock with it.
“Ahhh,” Neil arched up into his hand. Jason lifted his hips and held Neil’s cock up against his hole. Neil’s eyes flew open at the pressure at the head of his cock. “Oh,
fuck,
Jason.”
Sinking down slowly, he felt the stretch open him up the rest of the way. His thighs trembled as he fought the urge to slam down. Finally, he sat in the full feeling as their hips met with Neil’s groan. Jason lifted up and then sank back down again, adjusting to the fullness as he watched Neil’s cock disappear back into his body.
Quickly building up a rhythm, he bounced up and down on Neil’s thick cock, wondering how long he’d have before he’d need to add actual lube.
——
Clive watched in fascination as the ripples of arousal bounced back and forth in the room. He lubed up his own cock after watching Jason sink down onto Neil. The bed was at just the right height for what he had in mind. Reaching down, he gripped Neil’s cock as Jason went up, lubing the member for them.
The moans of appreciation brought a smile to his face.
Stepping up to the edge of the bed, he slid a hand around Jason’s chest, trailing wet lube over him as he slowed. He pressed kisses to Jason’s neck as he lined himself up with Neil’s hole. It took some concentration, but when he popped in up to the head, Neil’s high pitched whine spurred him on.
Pressing deeply inside, he listened for any discomfort, but was instead met with Neil squirming back onto Clive’s cock and then bucking upwards into Jason. Neil’s mouth fell open, a near constant sound reverberating from his core as he squeezed his eyes shut. Clive drew back and then thrust in, holding Jason as an anchor.
Both men groaned. Clive thrust in again, then again, building up a rhythm as he gripped Jason’s hips.
——
“Oh fuck,” Jason’s voice rasped as he was thrust down onto Neil over and over. He grabbed his dick, pulling on it rapidly as Clive slammed him down with a bruising grip onto Neil’s cock. The moans escaping his mouth reverberated throughout the room along with the chorus of sounds from the other two men. He squeezed the head of his cock, pressing down, and the pressure threw him over the edge. “Ahhhhhh!”
Spilling over his hand, he came all over Neil’s chest, spurting ropes of cum over the elf’s nipples, some even landing in his hair. It was the most erotic thing he’d seen in years. “Fuck.”
——
The sight of Jason spilling on him combined with his arse clutching his cock like it owned him, ricocheted through him, drawing out another orgasm. He felt his cum pulse out into Jason’s body adding to the eroticism along with Clive’s cock hammering into his arse.
He held onto Jason’s thighs, holding him down as he pulsed. His own legs, wrapped around Clive, tightened as he came.
——
The swell of ecstasy in the auras of the room washed over Clive in waves, culminating in Neil’s channel tightening exquisitely. He thrust into his tight hole until his legs shook, spending himself, riding that wave of euphoria with them.
When he finished, he slumped onto Jason and then let his legs collapse under him as he crumpled to the floor, head resting against Neil’s thigh and Jason’s hip. He pressed a kiss to Neil’s thigh as a smile spread across his face.
“I hope you intend to stay.” Clive rasped out of his dry mouth as he rubbed his thumb along Jason’s opposite hip.
“Well, since you asked so nicely…”