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Indigo was sitting at his desk deep within the Forum’s offices at a rather late hour. The rest of Old Sharlayan had long since gone to sleep; the only sounds in the small workspace were his hitching breaths and the scratching of his quill against parchment.
Idly, he wished he had turned on the small orchestrion on the side table away from him, to distract him from the pain that continued to flare in his wrist as he wrote. But now that he had reached a flow state of signing off papers, he didn’t dare move.
As he went to dip his quill into the inkwell, a rapping came from the other side of his door. Confused, he let go of the white plume and adjusted his robes before he strode the few steps to the ornate golden handle.
Opening the door revealed Fourchenault, in his casual attire no less! A loose white shirt was half tucked into black slacks, his hair only barely plaited and mostly unkempt. For him to appear before Indigo now made a heat spread from his cheeks down his neck. “S-Ser Fourchenault! What brings you here this hour… It’s rather late, and I’m sure you have business to attend…” Stumbling over himself, he pulled the door wider to allow the elezen in. “C-Come in and I can put on the kettle. Is aught amiss?”
Fourchenault entered and let Indigo close the door before he grasped his wrist.
The hyur gasped, more in pain than shock as the tendons flared in agony.
“I gathered as much,” Fourchenault spoke softly as he gingerly held the hand and led Indigo over to the couch in his office. “I noted that you seemed to be in pain during the meeting today…" He continued. "After going back to mine, I realised I never saw you leave your office… and one of your attendants came to my door asking if you were there. How long have you been writing?”
Worrying his lip, Indigo ducked his head and focused more on the hem of his robe. “Ah, Theodore must've been worried… even though I told him I was working late tonight… sneaky eel that one." With a sigh, he spoke up once more. "There’s been much to sort through since the Final Days led to a fundamental change in how we operate…” His voice was tense as the pain flared with the mention of paperwork. “New trade to sort… now that we proffer aid, we have to plan how to best approach our Thavnarian and Garlean allies to assist them in their efforts to rebuild…. I simply wished to stay ahead of the curve.”
Fourchenault twisted the arm slightly, and it took all of Indigo’s power to bite back a curse and pull away from the older Forum member. “You’ve strained it… too much…” He began to mumble out a spell of healing, and the relief that washed over Indigo was nothing short of euphoric. “Indigo, this will only aid the inflammation. You must let it rest, lest the strain get worse.”
With a sigh, Indigo shook his head. “I can’t let you and the other Members take on what I assured I could do… it would be unbecoming of me.”
“Why?” Fourchenault asked. “Surely it would be worse if you continued and then couldn’t use the limb at all?”
Feeling tears spring in his eyes, Indigo tried to hide his face in his hair, away from Fourchenault’s gaze. “I don’t want to be useless. I-I’ve been drinking potions to take the edge off, but they’ve become less potent…over the years with my past… I…. I can’t be a burden to you…”
Indigo felt a warm hand against his chin, and he was guided to look up at the elezen before him. Quartz pink met sapphire blue, and he saw how Fourchenault’s eyes were awash with worry.
“You are never a burden, Indigo… My flower.”
“I want to believe it… I just…” Indigo sniffed. His mother’s voice filled his head as she screamed about how worthless he was… how, despite his ability to be at the top of his class for all his studies, including his archon’s mark, he would never amount to anything without her aid.
“Useless boy, you’re only here because I used to pay. Now, where’s what you owe me?”
Rubbing the pad of his thumb over Indigo’s lips, the hyur found himself pulled from the nightmare that was his mind when Fourchenault pulled him in for a kiss.
His lips felt… softer than usual. As if he’d thought it put on lip balm before knocking. It was warm and filled with many an unspoken word.
“Rest it… please.” Fourchenault begged against his bottom lip. The other hand that still rested on his wrist massaged it softly, earning a keening whine from the other as the knotted nerve began to loosen.
“O-Only if you promise me a treat like that kiss…” he idly teased. Indigo was aware that it was a bit childish to ask for something in return, especially with the trauma of his past. But kissing the elezen was a nice distraction from the tight nerves that shot levin bolts of pain up his entire arm.
Fourchenault seemed to be down for the slight shenanigans, laughing against his cheek before he pressed another kiss. “Alright, my flower. If you let me help with your workload, then… how about we go on a date tomorrow night?”
Indigo looked up at the elezen, and let him continue speaking. “You can come to mine… Ameliance said she was going to visit an old friend in Gridania for the next few days.”
Letting out a small huff of amusement, Indigo relaxed more into Fourchenault’s hold; the man was now massaging his wrist, and it felt divine. “I bet she told you in all sorts of colourful ways to make use of the house while she’s away on her adventures.”
“You are correct… M-My ex-companion has a way with words, especially as she continues to play matchmaker between you and I.” Fourchenault’s face was bright red as he seemed more interested in staring at the plant-based tattoos on Indigo’s arm that were usually hidden by the stuffy nature of their Forum robes. “S-She insisted… that I make sure you’re taken proper care of. Considering the amount on your plate, I wholly agree. I wish to spoil you, Indigo, and I can start by making sure you rest well.”
Now it was Indigo’s turn to blush. Bashfully, he ducked his head. He had admired how both Fourchenault and Ameliance had remained stalwart friends despite their secret divorce. It meant even more that the female elezen had been very vocal about her blessing of his and Fourchenault’s relationship… even down to suggesting ideas or proposals offered to ensure their newfound companionship would remain strong. “S-She is too kind… a-as are you.” He took a moment to steady himself. “Thank you for insisting I rest… You are right. While you’ve taken away a lot of the strain, the arm is still… painful. I can do some light work in the morning and join you for a night of fine dining and passion.”
Humming in a way that set Indigo’s heart aflame, Fourchenault cast one more lesser healing spell on the arm and pulled the sleeve back down, but not before giving it one last kiss. “Well done, my flower. I am proud of you for choosing to rest. Mayhaps an extra helping of dessert may find its way to the table for your reward.”
“Y-Y-You needn’t go through any trouble!” Indigo stammered as he stood up with the elezen.
Chuckling, breathy and deep, Fourchenault wrapped an arm around Indigo’s waist and pulled him into another kiss. It was chaste but bursting with passion. The slightly older male knew how to make the hyur melt in his hold, the way he pulled away to kiss the side of his jaw. “Cute flowers like you who listen like good little pets deserve such things. Isn’t that right?”
Now feeling dizzy with excitement, Indigo nodded as he gripped onto Fourchenault’s robes. “Y-Yes, Ser.”
With one more kiss to the side of his neck, Fourchenault pulled away slightly and raised a hand to caress Indigo’s cheek. “M-Mayhap you come join me for the night, and tomorrow. I can send a missive to your manor for the morning, though I gather that with Theodore sending me your way, he knows what was to unfold already. I should monitor your wrist… and…” He trailed off, and Indigo nodded, trying and failing to keep his lust in check.
“I-I agree! Better to watch me so I don’t attempt to slip away and do more paperwork… better to ensure that by my spending the night with you too…”
They both let out a soft huff of a laugh and shared one more kiss before they began to exit the office.
Maybe I should strain my arm more often. Indigo laughed again. No, maybe I can just be more forward and honest about how much I like him taking care of me… I like it.