Chapter Text
By the time Wriothesley had finished relaying to Neuvillette the probable origin lore of their unlucky creature, the two men had finished the descent from Fontaine’s elevated waters. As their boat began to slow, the sun was still fairly high.
‘Good’, the Chief thought.
If everything went to plan, they would be able to complete this rescue mission before it got dark. It wasn’t that they were pressured by time. Manon and her crew would be there till late into the night regardless… It was only that Neuvillette had been very aware of how little time he had spent with his companion over the last couple days, and how relieved he felt to be by his side once again.
Neuvillette combed back his slightly windswept hair and attempted to distract himself with the task at hand. Leaning over the boats edge, he stared down into the depths.
“It’ll be easier for us to access the cave from this distance. I only wish it wasn’t such a long way back up.”
“Then it’s a relief we’re both in such good shape.”
A firm hand clasped his right shoulder as the other man joined him.
“…Yes, quite.”
“Well? If you’re ready, then I say we dive right in and have you lead the way.”
Wriothesley turned to Neuvillette with those silver eyes, looking to him for confirmation. The hand on his shoulder gave a reassuring squeeze.
“Let’s do it. Follow me.”
With that, they both dove into the water and descended even further beneath the great weight of their city. The sun’s rays stretched much further into the sea than the moon could the last time Neuvillette was here. It made him feel hopeful.
He kept checking behind him on the way down. He was worried for Wriothesley’s condition, but each time he would be met with a confident nod.
It was better to be safe than sorry though. He could at least make the journey more comfortable for him.
When they reached the entrance of the tunnel, he swam up close and lightly pressed his fingertips to the duke’s neck. Using his powers, he alleviated the pressure of the water by forming a bubble of air around Wriothesley’s head like a glass helmet, making it easier for him to see and breathe.
The man inhaled deeply at the sudden presence of oxygen and exhaled slowly as his eyes followed Neuvillette’s lingering touch.
Their eyes met briefly… but the Chief pulled away and beckoned for Wriothesley to follow him over the edge towards the cavern. It was fortunate that there were more important things for them to focus on. He really didn’t want to stop and wonder what the other might currently be thinking.
Before long, they arrived before the big sad thing at the bottom of the ocean.
“Well shit…”
“Yes, he’s quite something isn’t he.”
The duke swam up to beast with strangely little caution when considering the usual nature of this species. Perhaps he deemed its condition too debilitating for it to cause any threat, although, Wriothesley was usually a good judge of character. Sometimes, it felt like he could see right through you.
“Something is an understatement…. He’s a statement within himself!”
“I’ll choose to find a deeper meaning in that.”
He gave the Blubber Beast a heavy-handed pat on its round head. The rumble and light shake in response made it seem as though the touch had barely registered.
“He’s got thick skin I’ll give him that.”
“Well, he’s survived this long on his own somehow. Now help me to help him.”
“Gladly.”
The mission was executed as swiftly as it was gentle, the passenger making little more than a hum. Perhaps it was the result of their combined abilities, but the whole event was over much faster than expected and the sun had only just begun to set.
“Oh sirs!!! I can’t thank you enough for everything!!”
Manon was elated, and so was her crew. The whole sanctuary team had been waiting at the surface as promised, ready to receive the impressive creature with very, very open arms.
Whilst Wriothesley stretched his limbs and ringed his clothes dry, Neuvillette rained gratitude down on the carers and bid his farewells to the beast. There was little he could do now except leave him or her to the experts, save for the promise to return the following day for updates. It was getting dark out after all.
“Neuvillette, are you alright?”
“-Oh, Wriothesley. I didn’t hear you come near.”
“My apologies, didn’t mean to startle… you sure dry quick.”
“It's a simple trick. I'm quite sure your abilities allow for similarly efficient drying.”
“I don't always appreciate the cold,” he said, smirking. “Still, you always clean up well. Are we done here?”
Neuvillette felt the ever more frequent heat rise to his face. Wriothesley had this way of wrapping up his compliments so neat you would have thought they were dirty. They never actually felt inappropriate, just honest and perfectly flattering… so why did they make him feel so flustered?
He cleared his throat.
“Actually, there’s one more stop we need to make.”
Back on the shores of Petrichor, the shell towers rose like sparkling stalactites from the sandy beach. With the moon rising steadily, the broken shell shards glowed practically iridescent. It was beautiful.
Neuvillette tried his best to keep his focus on the task at hand.
It would have been quite a sight to see the Duke of the Fortress of Meropide, a supposedly cynical man, ushering otters off the beach with the stoic Ludex of Fontaine.
Yet his attention constantly veered towards his companion. He had a surprising lack of coordination. Every time their eyes met, he would stumble over his own feet. Every time Neuvillete laughed, it felt like the distance between them was closing.
As the final otter padded into the water, relief poured out of Neuvillette.
Everything was in order again. Finally.
He turned to Wriothesley with a sigh, only for his breath to catch at the sudden closeness. The Duke was looking back at him too, that soft smile on his lips.
“You must be relieved.”
“-I truly am, I can’t thank you enough.”
He could hear his heartbeat.
“Oh yeah? I think we figured it out together pretty well.”
“I think so too.”
His breathing was slow.
“I... don’t want to say goodbye just yet.”
“Wriothesley… your hands-”
A familiar warmth in his face.
“Neuvillette. I’m usually the sort to fight for what I want, but I’ve been weak... As a general rule, the less a person sees of me, the happier their life is… but I don’t want to run from this any longer, please forgive me if this upsets you.”
The chief only had a second to process.
The sudden feeling of lips on his caught him by surprise, but the rough hands cupping his face held him still. A rush of sensations flooded his body, like static under his skin. A pleasing ache. He couldn’t resist as Wriothesley guided his mouth and his legs seemed to weaken with every fraction of a moment he remained in his embrace. The lips were as soft as they'd looked, teasing the ground out from beneath his feet.
Then it was over.
Over too soon.
He took a step forwards.
...
Neuvillette was tripped up by the edge of the bed frame and fell gracefully onto the blankets. His hair sprawled out beneath him. His lips were swollen, and his silk blouse fell slightly open to reveal the toned and pale skin beneath.
Wriothesley couldn’t have stopped to admire if he wanted, coming down on top of him like a man possessed. He ceased their respective panting by meeting the chief’s lips once more, shifting weight to his forearms.
At some point the two of them had ended up back in the same bedroom at the inn. Wriothesley never even got to ask his question, now completely committed to satisfying Neuvillette's curiosity.
Feeling those nervous hands, delicate but firm, wander around his nape and exposed chest for the first time only made him feel crazier. He needed to calm down and take it slow, let Neuvillette take him on his own terms… but the clumsy and inexperienced way he chased his desire was ridiculously attractive. Even now, sensing him slow down, he anxiously pulled at Wriothesley’s lip with his teeth.
He hadn't ever expected to find himself here. How could he restrain himself…
He pressed his tongue into the eager mouth and revelled in the low hum of surprise he got in return. The Duke gently guided him into compliance, familiarising him with his touch and taste. They soon fell into a pleasurable rhythm, limbs intertwining as they rolled around in the small bed.
As everything else became irrelevant, so did their shirts, which they quickly discarded of.
It was strange to imagine Wriothesley the more experienced of the two. Despite Neuvillette’s claims, it seemed he must have been kissed at least once before.
That wasn’t to say he himself was well versed in intimacy by any means. Still, the idea that he was running his scarred hands down such a perfect sculpture, untouched by any man for centuries... it was a sick sort of privilege.
“Wriothesley-” Neuvillette murmured, as the man in question drew his lips further from his mouth. Caught between thighs, Wriothesley trailed kisses down Neuvillette’s throat, his collar bones, and his chest, lingering at each point of high sensitivity and marking ground with a soft bite. The gasps each graze elicited sent his blood rushing downwards. Which of them was more touch starved was unclear.
He kissed ribs, abdomen, and hips.
Kneeling, he glanced up at his companion. It was slightly troubling to see him so uncomposed.
“Is this, okay?”
“Yes… excuse my behaviour, it's my heart. It won’t calm down and I feel… I’ve only ever thought about things like this objectively.”
“Don’t worry.” Wriothesley assured him. “Would you like me to lead?”
Neuvillette’s blush deepened with his frown, but after a moment’s hesitation he nodded. He seemed to have come to terms with something as he combed his long white bangs out of his face and pulled the other in for another kiss. It seemed like neither of them wanted to worry about the logistics regarding their predicament.
As they kissed, lips gently devouring lips, Wriothesley’s hands slid beneath the high waist band of Neuvillette’s trousers, following the slope of his hip bones. All the fabric pulled down along with them, revealing the source of the heat between his legs.
His body was pristine. Made of pearl.
Burying his face into that silky neck to hide his reddened complexion, Wriothesley ran his hands up and down those toned legs, pulling himself closer and more tightly between them. As his own clothed hips pressed firmly up against Neuvillette’s bare ones… the Ludex’s right hand squeezed the back of his neck as he watched the duke spread his thighs apart. His exposed lower half was pressed firmly against Wriothesley’s hardened front. His breath was irregular.
“Does this feel good?” The duke asked in a daze.
“Yes, are you going to remove the rest of your clothes as well?”
“That does feel like the natural course of action, doesn’t it?” He squeezed the thighs he was still opening provocatively.
“You tease me even now.”
“A little, relax here.” He urged Neuvillette to stop tensing his body so he could unbuckle his belt. Letting his trousers fall away slightly, he studied Neuvillette’s expression. He looked overwhelmed but… he didn’t push him away. He seemed conflicted about what they were doing together, but it clearly wasn’t Wriothesley’s naked and ruined body that bothered him.
“Tell me when to stop.”
He leant over Neuvillette once more, using one hand to lift the base of his spine up off the bed so that his elegant form arched into his chest. His other hand slid down Neuvillette’s back, slick fingers wandering dangerously. Sweet sounds soon filled his ears as his finger’s pressed deeper, twisting. Two fingers became three.
The arms that embraced him for support squeezed him tightly, and he relished in Neuvillette's poor attempt to restrain his real strength. He pulled his fingers out slowly and slid them around the open rim. The body beneath arched deeper into him in response. Wriothesley shivered.
Now that Neuvillette held himself in place, Wriothesley encouraged him to wrap his legs around his back. Then he adjusted himself, took a breath, and pushed himself slowly against the wet opening below. The large head slipped in immediately, catching where the length swelled.
Neuvillette could only let his head fall back against the pillow, his breath hot and eyes shut as the rest of it pressed its way inside him. Wriothesley’s grip on his hips was subconsciously tightening.
“Wait! Wriothesley-”
“-Are you hurt?”
“I just need to breathe-.”
Wriothesley was caught up in something akin to a heat stroke. Neuvillette tried to relax. His skin was glistening; locks of white hair plastered to his face. Anyone else would’ve been a dishevelled mess yet he looked like a prince.
Having a bigger and stronger, heaving body struggling beneath him was somehow more alluring than any other person he’d had under him before.
“Please- please keep going.”
The duke grasped Neuvillette tightly once more and thrust the rest of his way inside. Caught off guard, the Ludex cried out in surprise, but before he could adjust, Wriothesley had already begun to pull and push, quicker and quicker. It was hot and tight, each movement sending waves of heat through his body. He was beside himself with pleasure.
Neuvillette allowed Wriothesley to completely undo him as they entered a heated trance, desperate to fend off the clarity that would come with morning.