emet_sulk | [avalon] IC Inbox

Hythlodaeus, on the other hand, doesn't quite conceal his own happy grin as he slightly tightens his hold on Hades's waist. His cheeks are a little flushed too, but with excitement rather than embarrassment.

"Now that sounds as though you wish to misbehave, Hades. I wonder... how many other surprises you're hiding from me?"

"Mayhap I do," he states, surprising himself with his own boldness. He leans into his friend's side, thinking nothing about how it might look. "Twelve thousand years and hardly a day to myself. I should like to know what it feels like to be...disciplined. Especially as you only ever seem to enjoy my curtness."

Fortunately for everyone else outside, it's not such a long walk back to their lodgings - and perhaps fortunately for these two as well, because even as they speak Hythlodaeus feels a growing desire to get away from prying eyes and somewhere more private (not to mention more comfortable).

"I'm wounded, Agesandros! I enjoy every side of you. 'Tis simply that that is the one you choose to display most often."

"Hmph." Smiling faintly though, he leans up to kiss Hythlodaeus' cheek. It must definitely be the wine making him more open with his affection, but he too is glad to see that they are just about home.

He unlocks the door for them and enters first, breathing a sigh of relief when the cold air is finally shut out. "Let us finish the wine first before it loses its heat."

After that? Well... His gaze and his touch lingers on Hythlodaeus.

The lingering is not lost on Hythlodaeus, and likewise he doesn't quite let go of Hades's hand even as he moves to put the cup down and start undoing his coat.

"Good idea. It's quite a pleasant taste, too - 'twould be a shame to lose it. Particularly if we mean to make today a day of indulgence for ourselves."

He nods, helping Hythlodaeus remove his coat. His own follows shortly after and he drapes it over one arm. Taking up the mug, he cups his hands around its warm exterior before taking long sip. He passes the remaining half to his friend afterwards.

"No doubt I could replicate it with alchemy," he murmurs, "but making it the traditional way allows you to appreciate the nuances of the final result."

Hythlodaeus nods appreciatively as he drinks up the rest of the wine without hurrying, letting himself enjoy the taste and the warmth.

"Mayhap we could make it for our friends for the celebrations. I know you've been quite vocal about not being willing to give presents, but a get-together would still be pleasant, no?"

He wrinkles his nose. Well, enjoying a meal together IS simpler than thinking up unique gifts for several people...

"Yes, I suppose it would be," he concedes. "Although I would prefer to eat out."

Please don't make him have to think about cooking.

"Ah? You do not fear that we would get into debt once more if we organize a big dinner? Though if you do not feel up to the task, I would be ready to take it onto myself."

That's right, Emet. Just imagine letting Hyth do all the cooking.

He takes a deep breath and closes his eyes, brow furrowing in that way Hythlodaeus knows best.

"Sometimes I think you weaponise your incompetence against me." He opens his eyes, reaches up and pinches his lover's cheek. "Fine. But know that I do so in protest."

He starts to head towards the stairs, wanting to put his coat away before anything else. He has a feeling it will be hours before either of them feel like tidying up otherwise.

Hythlodaeus, in turn, only grins at his friend's grumpiness that he knows is just played up. He lets Hades pinch his cheek with a fond, then leans in to press a quick kiss to his forehead - the third eye, to be precise.

"I do not weaponize aught, Hades! I merely suggested that if you do not wish to cook, I could do it instead."

He follows suit, however, trying not to betray his own excitement at the thought of getting to spend the rest of the day with just the two of them.

He shakes his head. "We both know you would make a mess and that it would be left up to me to clean it up," he says with exaggerated, long-suffering tiredness.

He spares a momentary glance at his phone, left behind on the table when they had gone out. His expression dims briefly but he quickly turns from it and takes Hythlodaeus' hand again, giving it a squeeze.

"When you are ready..." He trails off, heart thudding in anticipation.

He does notice that brief glance. Clearly, he needs to make more of an effort to distract his friend...

Hythlodaeus smiles, returning that squeeze as he steps closer to Hades, leaving barely any distance between them, raising his other hand to trail his fingers through his lover's hair.

"When I am ready?.."

He dips his head, leaning in even closer to murmur the question against Hades's lips. Of course, he's fully aware what his friend means, but there's a pleasure in making him elaborate, one that he feels Hades might enjoy too.

Even though he knows he quite literally asked for his friend and lover to assume the reins, being confronted by it is...well, something else. He finds himself unable to tear his eyes away, feels a flush creeping up his neck and into his checks yet again despite having left the cold behind. Some of it is the wine, but honestly...honestly?

Most of it is sheer attraction.

The way Hythlodaeus' fingers tenderly brush through his hair sets his heart aflutter. Even without their soulsight here, his lover's gaze is no less piercing. He feels seen in a way few can understand.

Yes, he thinks - this sort of play does arouse him. He doesn't try to hide it this time. And it's only because of his utter trust for Hythlodaeus that he feels comfortable in what he says next.

"When you are ready...to have me," he whispers.

Hythlodaeus tries to force himself to breathe evenly, stay in control, but there is a moment of tension, a dilation of his pupils that betrays all too clearly how much Hades's openness affects him. There's the sheer physical desire, of course, but more than that there's the dizzying knowledge that Hades would be honest with him - not something afforded to many, as Hythlodaeus well knows. That trust, that vulnerability is more alluring than merely physical intimacy - perhaps because it is a testament to the strength of their bond.

His eyes never leaving Hades's face, Hythlodaeus gently but quickly spins them around, pressing his lover up against the wall, one hand winding into his hair to keep a tight hold on his head as he closes the distance between them to kiss Hades, slow but thorough, giving him no room to break it. He has a feeling that this kind of insistent attention is what Hades wants - and thinking about it, perhaps that has been obvious all along, given the history of their friendship, both between the two of them and Azem.

He only has time for a short, sharp gasp before Hythlodaeus seals his mouth in a deep kiss. He's never truly seen this side of his friend before. Glimpsed it, perhaps, when someone pushes Hythlodaeus beyond even his immense patience. Glimpsed it again that first night when emotions ran high and closeted desire finally spilled over into open want. But now his friend is off the leash, so to speak - is this what they are truly like?

He is not being afforded any leeway. Hythlodaeus' fingers are wound tightly into his hair, with prickling pain accompanying even the slightest movement. Hades wraps his arms around his lover's back and dizzily surrenders to their direction. The taste of the spiced wine lingers on both their tongues.

"Mm... mm..." His fingers curl into the back of Hythlodaeus' shirt.

Edited 2021-12-24 15:32 (UTC)

Those little noises, the way Hades clings to him, the tension of his body in Hythlodaeus's arms - all those things feel like they're getting him drunk faster than any kind of alcohol could. Hythlodaeus presses even closer against Hades as though annoyed that there's still the distance of flesh between them, slides a knee between his lover's legs. He's starting to run out of breath, but rather than make him relent it only prompts Hythlodaeus to be rougher, hungrier with the kiss - and when he's finally forced to break it to get some air it only lasts a couple of moments before he tips Hades's head back slightly, busying himself with nipping and sucking at his lower lip. As if he means to truly have every last bit of his bonded, the taste and scent and feel of him, his every reaction.

Stuttering, breathy moans escape him now. His meagre grasp of Hythlodaeus' shirt serves as his only leverage as he ruts slowly against the leg between his thighs. It's not enough It's never enough. He uses the break from their kiss to gasp for air, withholding nothing from his bonded.

Ahh, how stifling their flesh and blood forms are, he thinks desperately. He craves the touch of his bondmate's soul, the surety of their embrace, the purity of their love. A pity that the closest they can approach bliss is through the physical expression of their desire.

That said, he has never felt more secure than he does now in their grasp. "'Daeus," he whispers breathlessly, staring up at his lover. "Tell me what you want of me."

There is indeed a degree of intimacy to this that goes beyond the usual; not that their relationship wants for affection and openness, but this... this stirs something in Hythlodaeus, a feeling he doesn't quite have a name for. Possessiveness, perhaps, but without the stifling selfishness that normally accompanies the word. It's the knowledge that Hades belongs to him, much as Hythlodaeus himself belongs to Hades; the feeling that there is nothing else in his world but his lover. His lips part slightly as Hades poses the question, so breathless and vulnerable.

You. I want all of you.

But though that's perhaps the most accurate expression of how Hythlodaeus feels, saying it now, when asked for a command to give... it feels a little juvenile. He takes a deeper breath, steadying himself, keeping his voice confident and a little teasing as he replies.

"I want... for you to be as open as you can be. So that there is naught you could conceal from me."

Hythlodaeus smiles, trailing a finger down the side of Hades's neck, though his own heart is beating madly with excitement.

"Bare yourself."

He swallows, heart thudding. Usually it is he trying to wrestle his friend into behaving. Seeing how easily they slip into the dominating role, Hades realises that this is perhaps the truest expression of their relationship. Hythlodaeus has ever done as he pleased, manipulating others (i.e. him) into following in his wake. In day to day matters, it is exasperating. But right now Hades would not have it any other way.

Unable to tear his eyes away from Hythlodaeus' own, he reaches towards the collar of his shirt and starts to undo the buttons. One by one, popping them out of their neat little column. A sliver of skin reveals itself to his lover's hungry gaze. Then a line. Until finally, he pulls the shirt down off his shoulders and lets it fall to the floor by their feet.

Bare yourself, Hythlodaeus had said. In more than simply literal terms. He covers the hand trailing down his neck and gently shifts it lower, pressing it against his chest.

"As if I could hide anything from your keen eyes," he breathes against his lover's lips.

His breath deepens as Hades undoes the buttons, a hunger indeed in his eyes. Hythlodaeus lets Hades press his hand against his skin, feeling the other man's chest under his touch, brushes his thumb across the nipple.

"Ah, but there is much difference between seeing... and being shown," he replies with a smile, tipping Hades's chin up with his other hand. "And you have yet to show me everything."

He sucks in a short breath, shifting his hips ever so slightly for that bit more friction against his friend's thigh. It's all the movement that he's allowed in Hythlodaeus' confined embrace. Warmth blooms in his gut, arousal darkening his eyes.

"'Daeus..." he whispers. Beneath their hands his chest rises and falls with each breath, telegraphing each sharp intake. He lets his hand slip down, brushing past stomach, over abdomen, until it grasps the buckle of his belt. Hythlodaeus is right - he has yet to show his friend everything.

It requires both his hands to undo the buckle and loosen the belt. Ah, but there's one small impediment--

"Your leg," he murmurs, cheeks flushed pink.

Though it was indeed the heat of the moment that made Hythlodaeus forget about that, he sees no reason not to take the chance to once again assert his dominance, pointedly pressing his leg up against Hades's clothed erection and only then finally withdrawing.

"Do continue."

With a smile, Hythlodaeus steps back to sit down on the bed, leaning back on his hands, clearly intent to enjoy the show.

He lets out a soft yet audibly frustrated groan when Hythlodaeus parts from him. Though it isn't that far to the bed, the gap feels like an interminable distance. It's cold.

Mindful of his friend's watchful gaze, he pushes down his pants the rest of the way, letting the belt's weight drag it down before stepping out of the legs. The suggestive bulge of his erection is plain to see, especially in the modern underclothes this land (and the previous one) carries. His cheeks grow a little darker as he thumbs the waistband, extremely conscious of how he once decried these performative acts as obscene.

He carefully pulls the briefs down, having to bend to step out of it properly. When he straightens again, his erection hangs stiffly between his thighs, not quite fully turgid but flushed and wanting.

Though he tries to maintain an easy composure, Hythlodaeus's heart thuds with excitement as Hades undresses, his eyes following his lover's every movement. He gives a shaky exhale when Hades is finally fully bared, digs his fingers into the linens of the bed slightly. It's such an intoxicating feeling to have so much power over his friend, to be in charge through consent instead of force - not that he ever would dare employ force in the first place, but being trusted like this is no less sweet for that.

"Come here."

Hythlodaeus's voice is low with arousal as he eyes Hades hungrily, nodding to him slightly to approach and patting his own lap to indicate where exactly he wants him.

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