Chapter Text
Normally, if you were to ask Malleus Draconia about his horns, he would reply with an ominous message with the intent of “fuck around and find out.” And at first, when Dani inquired about his horns, he had the same reaction. But it had been a while, and Malleus had fallen for the pink-haired foreigner pretty badly. So the “fuck around and find out” evolved into “please ask me anything, I want to hear your voice.”
So, this leads to Malleus sitting contently on the Ramshackle dorm-head’s bed, resting his back against a rickety headboard. Dani was sitting at the side table he had arranged for, typing away at his computer. Malleus was always impressed by the speed at which Dani typed. He could barely operate a toaster, yet this human had mastered all forms of electronics and technology. Dani let out a sigh and cracked his hands, looking up from the screen.
“I’m gonna call it quits for now. I’ve been revising this application for a while, but it seems like some of the code isn’t gonna budge. I’ll have to ask Idia about that sooner rather than later.”
Malleus hummed. He opened his eye as he heard Dani start to move. Dani walked over to the bed where Malleus lied, and felt the bed shift as Dani crawled next to the fae. Dani sighed and put his head on the shoulder of the taller man, shimmying his body closer. Malleus’ natural warmth acted as a space heater, and his pleasant warmth comforted Dani.
“Malle, do you have blood vessels in your horns?”
“That is quite a weird question. Why do you ask?”
“We were learning about horns in potionology, and Crewel mentioned that some species of animals have blood vessels in their horns. I wonder if this applies in your case.”
“Ah, I faintly remember that lesson. I do in fact have some blood vessels in my horns, they have some nerve endings as well. In older days, horns were not only a status symbol, but as a method of defense and sometimes for heating.” Malleus paused. “They were also customary in courting practices.”
“I see.” Dani thought for a moment, and rolled into Malleus’ lap. Malleus fully opened his eyes, and looked curiously at the man in his lap. He put his hands around the smaller man’s waist, and smiled.
“So if I touch your horns, would it elicit a reaction?” Dani asked. He had almost a childlike wonder to his person, and his eyes sparkled while looking at his partner’s horns.
“If you touch my horns, I can’t guarantee what will happen next.” Malleus had a playful intonation to his voice, and narrowed his eyes as he smirked.
Almost like a toddler, Dani yanked his hand out from under him and put it on Malleus’ horn. Rather aggressively, mind you. Malleus grunted. Dani retracted his hand.
“Ah, sorry Malle.” He looked so innocent. Malleus melted then and there.
“No, no, it’s fine. It takes a lot to hurt me.” He put his head down, giving better access to the pink-haired male.
Dani reapproached Malleus’ right horn. His hands were large enough to encompass the circumference of the horn, and Dani felt the surface of the horn. It was smooth, like a table with a fine varnish. The ridges of the horns weren’t sharp, but their prevalence was noticeable. It almost felt fake, with the lightness of the general horn. But Malleus grunted as Dani rubbed his horn. He thumbed over the ridges, moving his thumb in a circular motion, rubbing the horn.
Malleus let out a small mewl, and Dani giggled.
“Does it feel good?” Malleus grunted as he tilted his head into the touch. Dani repositioned himself to sit up in front of Malleus, and lifted his chin up.
“You know, I think you’re a lot less scary than what you say. You’re quite cute.” He smiled warmly and placed a loving kiss on Malleus’ lips. His hand went back to the horn, starting to trace patterns in the ridges. Malleus let out a small moan as he wrapped his arms around the man in front of him.
Dani started to investigate the back of the fae’s horn, and started to lightly scratch. Malleus let out almost a purring sound as he careened into Dani. Opening his eyes, Dani gently released Malleus’ lips and looked at him.
“Haha, did you like that? I’m glad you’re enjoying this.” He smiled and kissed the corner of his mouth. “You’re so cute like this, Malle.” A light pink dusted Malleus’ cheeks as he leaned into the touch. Dani reached up to his other horn, and started massaging.
A more audible moan came out of Malleus’ mouth, as he shut his eyes. He emitted a low rumbling noise, similar to a purr of a big cat, as a smile spread to his face. Shifting his body into Dani’s, he repositioned to melt into his boyfriend.
Nobody had ever had the guts to touch Malleus’ horns. When he was little, Lilia helped with the upkeep, helping to shave off broken ends and oil them so that they look perfect. He always enjoyed that upkeep; it was very comforting to have his horns massaged (albeit, Lilia was quite rough and ended up pulling quite hard sometimes). But Dani exploring his horns felt like an itch was scratched. A wave of relaxation washed over him, and his muscles lost some of their tension. His body lost some of the built-up stress, and his grip on his partner relaxed.
He was almost dozing. The soothing motions felt comforting, and he felt as though he was in a safe space, where he was impervious to harm. It felt as though his worries were alleviated, and his agendas were things of the past. All that mattered was his comfort and his love, and he sighed deeply.
Hell, Malleus didn’t even know he needed this. It was better than a spa day or the many attendants dressing him in the finest fabrics. He felt comfortable and in his element, and he felt loved. It was wonderful, and he felt at peace.
In turn, Dani was quite intrigued. Malleus had a genuine countenance of relaxation. He never saw this side of Malleus; he was always on guard. He let the weight of his head fall into Dani’s hands as he made small sighs and grunts. Dani let out a lopsided smile. It was adorable, really. The big and fearless dragon fae, the prince of the Briar Valley, was unwound in his hands, in almost a trance-like state. It was impressive at how quickly Malleus changed demeanors.
Dani let his hands slowly move away from Malleus’ horns, and Malleus opened his eyes and whined. Dani let out a defeated sigh.
“Sorry, love, my hands were starting to lose circulation.” Malleus huffed and pulled Dani into a sweet kiss. He let his hand ghost across the pink-haired man’s back, and gently released the kiss.
“That was wonderful, Dani.” Malleus’ cheeks flushed slightly. “I would enjoy it if you could do that again sometime.” Dani chuckled softly, and cupped Malleus’ cheek.
“I would love to, I just may need you to lay down or sit in front of me.” He looked sweetly into Malleus’ eyes, and Malleus’ complexion became warmer. He craned down and put his head into Dani’s shoulder. Dani reached up to rub his fingers across the horn closest to him, and then pressed a soft kiss on the horn. Malleus sighed lovingly, burrowing his face further into the soft shoulder. Dani wrapped his arms around the fae as he climbed into Dani’s lap.
“I love you, my prince.”
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You know, Grim would have asked Dani to open a tuna can, but he absolutely was not gonna recover from watching his indentured servant sap over a whole ass dragon. He hacked, and then suddenly got the glorious idea of coughing up a hairball in retaliation. That will teach him to stop being gross.